PORT ST. LUCIE, FLORIDA - MARCH 19, 2026: Randy Guzman #39 of the New York Mets bats during the third inning of a spring training Spring Breakout game against the Tampa Bay Rays at Clover Park on March 19, 2026 in Port St. Lucie, Florida. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
Syracuse rallied late but came up short, ultimately unable to come back from Jack Wenninger’s rough outing. Errors from Christian Pache and Nick Morabito didn’t help matters either.
Another walkoff win for the Rumble Ponies, this time in regulation. Chris Suero scored the winning run, stealing third then scampering home on a throwing error. Vincent Perozo went deep in the win, while the rehabbing Jorge Polanco struck out twice in his two plate appearances.
An absolute shellacking by the Cyclones in this one. Homers from Mitch Voit and John Bay highlighted an eight-run outburst, more than enough to support Irving Cota and Tanner Witt’s piggy-backed outing.
Annoyed they missed out on the extra-inning fun on Friday, St. Lucie got in on the action with a 6-3 win over the Marauders. The Mets had a 2-0 lead that they blew in the seventh and eighth, but they managed to score four in the top of the tenth on a triple, a fielder’s choice, a single, and an RBI groundout. Christian Rodriguez gave up a run but made the lead stand up in the bottom half. Randy Guzman was the offensive star, homering and driving in two as part of a three-hit day.
Arte Moreno has owned the Angels for 23 years, his stewardship taking a World Series champion to the worst record in baseball this season while missing the playoffs for more than a decade. (Ashley Landis / Associated Press)
He showed up 23 years ago as the lovably grounded steward of one of baseball’s soaring sports franchises.
“I’m not going to think about it,” he said boldly and decisively. “I’m going to.”
The second thing he did was hand out sombreros in honor of his Mexican heritage and status as the first Latino majority owner in America’s major professional sports.
“Being Mexican American, I’d like to reach out to Mexican Americans,” Moreno said. “But also to everyone.”
The third thing he did was answer a question about the Dodgers with a question.
Angels fans wave signs and urge owner Arte Moreno to sell the team to an ownership group willing to invest more in winning during a pregame protest Saturday at Angel Stadium. (Joaquin Ruiz / For The Times)
“Who?” he said, “The Angels won the World Series. We are the No. 1 baseball team in the world. There is no reason for us to look over our shoulders.”
It was the most delightful introductory news conference I’ve ever attended, Moreno saying all the right things, doing all the smart things, and ultimately embracing his new purchase’s greatest asset.
“My responsibility is to take care of the Angel fan,” he said. “My job is to make sure we live up to the tradition. My job is to make people comfortable here.”
Twenty-three years later, those first impressions have long since been replaced by lasting erosions.
On nearly every weighty promise, with the exception of those beer prices, Arte Moreno has failed.
Take care of the Angels fans? Those fans profanely chant at him, loudly protest against him, universally despise him.
Make sure the team lives up to its tradition? He has taken a glittering inherited World Series championship culture and frittered it into an unrecognizable lump that is undeniably the worst in baseball, 11 straight years out of the playoffs, 10 straight sub-.500 seasons, nobody that bad.
Make people comfortable at Angel Stadium? The only way that is happening now is if Moreno isn’t there.
Arte, please, listen to your customers, heed your record, recognize the inherent sadness of a 79-year-old man being chased out of his own home.
Sell the team.
You’ll make a ton of money while escaping a ton of heat. You can buffet your ownership legacy by handing this civic jewel to someone who will appreciate it. The reputation rehabilitation that once worked for Shelly Sterling in selling the Clippers to Steve Ballmer, it can work for you.
Sell the team.
You made Shohei Ohtani disappear, you made Mike Trout anonymous, you made bright hopes vanish by betting on broken former stars like Albert Pujols and Josh Hamilton and Vernon Wells and Anthony Rendon.
Angels two-way star Shohei Ohtani is honored by owner Arte Moreno, who presented him with the team awards as most valuable player and pitcher of the year in 2021. (John McCoy / Getty Images)
Now it’s time for you to go.
Sell the team.
The experts will say the Angels should not be sold until a new labor agreement is signed, potentially increasing their value. C’mon, the worst franchise in baseball still has an estimated worth of $2.75 billion, a 1,400% increase from the $183 million Moreno originally invested.
Wouldn’t it be worth it to sell as soon as possible before the stands empty and the chants grow and commissioner Rob Manfred gets involved?
Just ask Frank McCourt what happens when a commissioner gets involved.
Sell the team, and here’s guessing at least one local titan would be interested, that being Rams owner Stan Kroenke. Under the daily leadership of Kevin Demoff, Kroenke’s well-run Rams have joined the Dodgers as this city’s two premier sports operations, and just think about what SoFi Stan could do with a storied baseball franchise in baseball-loving Orange County.
The Angels were once the Rams. Heck, the Angels were once the Dodgers.
Angels owner Arte Moreno signs autographs and poses with fans as he attends Angel Fest in 2004. (Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times)
Moreno, who declined to be interviewed for this column, bought the Angels shortly after they won the 2002 World Series, and watched them win five American League West titles in the next seven years, twice finishing one step from the World Series.
But, following the 2007 season, the great Bill Stoneman retired from his general manager position and the direction of the club slowly began to change. Moreno, once satisfied with being just another suds-loving die-hard, became more involved in player acquisition while surrounding himself with inexperienced general managers who struggled along with him.
Every time Moreno tried to make a big splash, he wound up soaking wet. Pujols couldn’t reverse aging. Hamilton couldn’t stay clean. Wells couldn’t play, period.
In a brief moment of clarity in 2014, they won the West, but were swept out of the division series by the Kansas City Royals as Pujols and Trout combined to go three for 24.
They haven’t sniffed the playoffs since while undergoing seemingly constant leadership changes that have allowed their culture to slowly rot.
The team has gone through four different general managers since Stoneman, and five different managers since Mike Scioscia left the team eight years ago, and this lack of stability points directly at the owner who just can’t let people do their job.
An owner, by the way, who several years ago personally canceled a trade that would have brought them the Dodgers’ Andy Pages.
But nothing is more damning to the Moreno era than the handling of arguably the greatest player in baseball history. When Ohtani joined the Dodgers two seasons ago everyone celebrated him as the new kid in town, yet he had previously played in Anaheim for six years! It’s as if those six years never existed! This, even though Ohtani spent them alongside a guy who was once nearly as accomplished.
Ohtani and Trout never synced their skills between various injuries and surgeries, but still … years from now historians will still marvel how two of the greatest players ever could play together for a half dozen years and never once step on an October stage.
Only in Anaheim. Then, to complete arguably one of the most wasted tenures in the history of sports, Ohtani was unconscionably allowed to walk to Chavez Ravine as a free agent with the Angels getting nothing in return.
They should have traded Ohtani during his final season there, but Moreno wanted to squeeze every last dollar out of his marketing power. Then, once Ohtani became a free agent, he reportedly would have considered returning to Anaheim, but Moreno wouldn’t match the Dodgers offer.
The departure of Ohtani for zero prospects, zero young stars, nobody … seriously damaged the remaining shreds of trust between their many loyal fans and the team.
That bond was further strained this winter when the Angels settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by the family of the late Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs, who died in 2019 of a drug overdose. The settlement was reached during jury deliberations after a trial that jurors later indicated showed the Angels’ negligence. The jurors were simply trying to determine the amount of punitive damages when the settlement was announced.
The belief that the Angels could have done more to save Skaggs’ life was yet another giant crack in Moreno’s crumbling foundation.
As a final insult in this downward spiral, this spring Moreno amazingly told the Orange County Register that for his fan base, winning wasn’t their priority.
“They want affordability,” Moreno said. “They want safety, and they want a good experience when they come to the ballpark. Believe it or not, winning is not in their top five.”
The Angels have since contextualized that quote to point out that Moreno was talking about what fans were seeking in deciding to attend a specific game, not about their fandom in general. And over the years, even his biggest critics have acknowledged that Moreno is a hardcore fan who wants to win.
But, again, still, the sound bite sizzled. Winning not in the top five? Are you kidding me?
To be fair, the Angels’ fan experience is still generally outstanding. Parking is easy, food is good, ushers are nice, it has the potential to be great fun. Then again, there was a recent rodent infestation in a concession stand, painting even the best parts of their operation as Mickey Mouse.
All told, the Angels are a glorified minor league team with no apparent vision and no obvious hope for the future and not worth the money at any price.
Arte Moreno has taken a crown jewel and turned it into a punch line.
The Halos have gone to halo, the Big A is now the Big L and, somewhere, a rally monkey weeps.
Sawyer Gipson-Long posted his best outing of the season, but the Hens’ bats slumbered on Saturday.
The right-hander has been up and down since rehabbing a preseason injury, and is still not far removed from rehabbing the Tommy John surgery that cost him the 2024 and most of the 2025 seasons. If he was back throwing 93-95 mph we’d be pretty enthusiastic about giving him a look, but his fastball is still sitting around 92 mph this spring.
Gipson-Long gave up three singles that led to two runs in the top of the first inning on Saturday, and then locked down the Clippers entirely the rest of his outing. He went five innings, allowing just two more hits and no walks, while striking out eight. He racked up 12 whiffs on 44 swings, getting them with his fourseamer, slider, and changeup for the most part.
In the bottom of the first, Gleyber Torres led off by lining out to second baseman Juan Brito. Kerry Carpenter drove a ball 380 feet to center field, but Kahlil Watson was there to haul it in.
Ben Malgeri led off the second with a solo shot, his seventh homer of the season. 2-1 Clippers.
Torres struck out on a high fastball in the third, while Carpenter walked. The latter was then pinch-run for by Tyler Gentry, and appears set to return to the Tigers on Sunday. Torres grounded out in the fifth and took a called third strike in the seventh.
In the top of the seventh against the Hens’ Matt Seelinger, Nolan Jones tripled and then scored on an Angel Genao sacrifice fly to make it 3-1. Tanner Rainey spun the final two innings for the Hens, allowing just a walk while striking out two.
Malgeri: 2-3, R, RBI, HR, BB, K
Gipson-Long (L, 2-3): 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 5 H, 0 BB, 8 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 2:05 p.m. ET start on Sunday.
Sean Hunley tossed a good short start, while Izaac Pacheco provided the power as the SeaWolves won on Saturday.
The SeaWolves got started in the bottom of the second when Justice Bigbie led off with a walk. Andrew Jenkins singled him to second, but Pacheco grounded into a force of Jenkins at second. E.J. Exposito walked to load the bases, and Bigbie scored on a Bennett Lee ground out. That was all they got but it was 1-0 SeaWolves.
Hunley went 4.1 innings of scoreless ball, scattering four hits and no walks, while striking out three. Tyler Owens followed with five straight outs, three by strikeout.
In the bottom of the fifth, Seth Stephenson, who has been scuffling the past week since returning from injury, singled with one out and the Baysox’s third baseman threw the ball away. The lightning fast Stephenson raced all the way around to score on the play, as the Baysox right fielder had to collect the ball and then fired wildly for his own throwing error.
In the bottom of the sixth, Bigbie was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Pacheco smashed towering shot to right center field for his fifth homer of the season, and it was 4-0, where it would end.
Yosber Sanchez, Trevin Michael, and Wandisson Charles were all solid in relief, allowing no hits the rest of the way.
Pacheco: 2-4, R, 2 RBI, HR, K
Bigbie: 1-2, 2 R, BB
Graham: 1-3, BB, 2 K, 2 SB
Hunley: 4.1 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 0 BB, 3 K
Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves can split the series with a win on Sunday. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m. ET.
Lansing Lugnuts 7, West Michigan Whitecaps 6 (box)
The West Michigan Whitecaps are, like their parent club, a disaster area. Winners of just four games in May, they dropped another one on Saturday, and also parroting the Tigers, they were yet again walked off. The Whitecaps bullpen has been the major culprit all along.
The ‘Caps lineup got right to work. Ricardo Hurtado walked with one out, and Garrett Pennington singled. Bryce Rainer smashed a missile high off the big wall in right center field for a two-run double. That ball was estimated to have flown 435 feet if not interrupted by said high wall. The double was undercut by the fact that Mr. Rainer had never hit a ball like that and not gotten a home run out of it, and he should have been standing on third base on the play instead. A Clayton Campbell single got Rainer to third, and a Jackson Strong sac fly made it a 3-0 lead.
Bryce Rainer crushes an RBI double high off the wall in right center. Left his bat at 113MPH and went an estimated 432 feet 😬 pic.twitter.com/K7UUZ8yXyx
In the top of the second, Woody Hadeen drilled a single to right field and Hurtado doubled him to third. Pennington stepped in and roped an opposite field double to score both runs and make it 5-0.
Rayner Castillo was better in this one as well. The right-handed sinkerballer hasn’t recovered the mid-90’s velo on his sinker fully yet, but he allowed a solo shot in the third and no more. Castillo punched out six, walking two and allowing three hits total in his outing.
Preston Howey, freshly rehabbed in Lakeland, handled the fifth and sixth, allowing a solo shot in the latter that made it 5-2. He got the first two outs of the seventh before departing.
In the top of the seventh, Hadeen, also freshly rehabbed, led off with a single and Hurtado was hit by a pitch. The Lugnuts went to Luis Carrasco out of their pen, and he punched out Pennington and Rainer. However, Campbell and Strong both drew walks to force in another run. 6-2 Whitecaps.
The ‘Caps Juanmi Vasquez took over in the eighth. The lefty was the return from the Blue Jays for Connor Seabold. He gave up two unearned runs in the inning after a Pennington error.
In the bottom of the ninth, Jalen Evans took over for the save. He gave up a leadoff single, and with one out, wild pitched the runner to second. Still, it was a 6-4 lead, and he struck out the next hitter. Needing one more out, Evans surrendered an RBI single, and then a two-run walkoff shot from Dylan Fien.
Pennington: 2-5, R, 2 RBI, 2B, 2 K
Hadeen: 2-5, 2 R
Rainer: 1-5, R, 2 RBI, 2B, 2 K, SB
Castillo: 4.0 IP, ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 6 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 1:05 p.m. ET start on Sunday with the Lugnuts up 3-2 in the series.
Palm Beach locked up a series victory, walking off the Flying Tigers on Saturday.
Caleb Leys was shaky in his start, giving up three runs over the first 2.1 innings of work. Jan Carabello cleaned up the third, threw a scoreless fourth, and then allowed two runs in the fifth.
At that point it was 5-2 Palm Beach after the Flying Tigers scored two in the fourth. Zach MacDonald had led off with a single, then stole second and third base. Jude Warwick plated him with a sacrifice fly. Edian Espinal then followed with a solo shot to right. The second baseman turned catcher has been an interesting story to follow in Lakeland this spring.
From earlier, Edian Espinal cracks a 2-run homer to left to tie the game for Lakeland. pic.twitter.com/xvKAsGvOY3
Jordan Yost walked to start the sixth inning and MacDonald was hit by a pitch. They were each given 90 feet on a balk, and after Nick Dumesnil struck out and the Cardinals went back to the bullpen, Warwick came through with a lined single to center to plate both runners and took third on an error on the play. Espinal lifted a sac fly to score Warwick and tie the game 5-5.
Carson Rucker was then hit by a pitch and left the game. Jack Goodman was plunked next, and Javier Osorio walked to load the bases with two outs. Unfortunately, Jesus Pinto grounded out to strand all three.
In the seventh the Flying Tigers seized the lead briefly when Yost walked to start the inning and took second on a wild pitch. MacDonald and Dumesnil both struck out, but once again it was Warwick with an RBI single to center to give them a one run lead.
Unfortunately, Eliseo Mota allowed a run in the seventh that tied things at 6-6, and in the ninth, Luke Hoskins blew the save.
Warwick: 2-3, R, 3 RBI
Yost: 0-2, 2 R, 3 BB, SB
MacDonald: 1-4, 2 R, 2 K, 2 SB
Leys: 2.1 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 H, 4 BB, 0 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 12:30 p.m. ET start on Sunday with the Cardinals up 4-1 in the series.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 29: (EDITORS NOTE: Image has been digitally enhanced.) Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees walks out of the dugout during their game against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park on May 29, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
A month ago at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees won the first game of their three-game set against the A’s before dropping the next two in a row for a disappointing series loss. More recently, they won on Friday in West Sacramento and then lost last night thanks to an up-and-down Ryan Weathers and an offense that once again refused to give him run support. So the Yanks must win this afternoon with Will Warren on the bump to avoid history repeating itself. The A’s aren’t a bad team, but the Yanks really should fare better. We’ll find out soon enough.
Today on the site, Jake will pinch-hit on the minors recap, Scott will interview Triple-A Scranton reliever Danny Watson on his Yankees fan roots and unusual delivery, Peter will run through the Rivalry Roundup, and John’s Yankees Birthdays post will focus on Kenny Lofton, who spent a year in pinstripes as his career wound down in the mid-2000s. Later, John will return for the weekly Social Media Spotlight.
Today’s Matchup
New York Yankees at Athletics
Time: 4:05 p.m. EST
TV: YES Network, NBCSCA
Venue: Sutter Health Park, Sacramento, CA
Questions/Prompts:
1. How damaging do you think the decision was last night to leave Ryan Weathers in to face Nick Kurtz late? Or do you think it wasn’t that consequential because the Yankees’ offense did so little on the whole?
2. Have you been watching any of the College World Series regionals this weekend?
Carlos Lagrange of the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders exits the field during a Minor League Baseball game at Coca-Cola Park in Allentown, United States, on May 22, 2026. (Photo by Dan Squicciarini/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images
Sports Illustrated | Joseph Randazzo: The Yankees bullpen remains the team’s most wobbly unit and it could be getting an exciting internal reinforcement soon. Relaying a report from Joel Sherman of the New York Post, Randazzo noted that Brian Cashman is considering calling up top pitching prospect Carlos Lagrange to provide a boost to a relief corps that could use some more swing-and-miss. Lagrange dazzled in spring with a fastball that reaches as high as 103 mph as well as a much improved slider and changeup. He still has a ways to go in the command department with just a 46.5-percent first-pitch strike rate and 11.5-percent walk rate in 11 appearances at Triple-A, but his high-octane raw stuff is certainly MLB-ready, and his potential call-up is being likened to Joba Chamberlain’s 2007 debut.
MLB.com | Thomas Harrigan: Much of the Yankees’ success this season can be tied to the performance of three homegrown stars. Cam Schlittler, Aaron Judge, and Ben Rice are currently the three most valuable players in baseball by fWAR. Since the start of free agency in 1976, the Yankees have only ever had one season where three homegrown players eclipsed the 5.0 fWAR mark: Andy Pettitte, Alfonso Soriano, and Jorge Posada in 2003. Judge, Schlittler, and Rice are well on pace to eclipse five wins each and could wind up with the greatest ever season by a trio of homegrown Bombers.
NJ Advance Media | Randy Miller: The Yankees raised eyebrows when they decided to bring back Paul Goldschmidt on a one-year, $4 million pact, but so far they have been vindicated in their decision. The 38-year-old has stabilized the DH role with Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Domínguez out injured (enabling Rice to slide over to the DH spot, if not occupying it himself), with six home runs, 18 RBIs, and a 146 wRC+ in 32 games. For his part, Goldschmidt says he is learning to enjoy the small moments of what he called the back nine of his career, and relished the opportunity of getting to suit up for a World Series contender, one of the few prizes that has eluded him in his long and distinguished career.
The Sacramento Bee | Sean Campbell: Last Thursday, Sacramento officials lodged their proposal for an expansion MLB team, and Aaron Judge is a fan. Judge was born outside Sacramento and grew up 40 miles south in Linden, and has enjoyed the opportunity to play in front of family in friends with the A’s playing in West Sacramento the last two seasons. He met with Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarthy prior to their current series against the A’s and learned some of the details of the city’s proposal, Judge calling West Sacramento “great baseball town” deserving of an expansion franchise after the A’s complete their move to Las Vegas.
The heavily favored New York Yankees look to secure a series win against the Athletics on Sunday.
Will Warren takes the mound after a strong start to the season, and our Yankees vs. Athletics predictions expect his ground-ball profile to help produce a low-scoring game and a comfortable Yankees victory.
Warren owns a 3.17 xERA through 11 starts, with his newly optimized 29-degree vertical release slot allowing his 3,005 RPM sweeper to break an elite 17.3 inches horizontally away from right-handed barrels.
Athletics starter Jacob Lopez carries a 3.90 xERA and has struggled to miss bats consistently.
With New York's bullpen leading the majors with a 54.2% rolling groundball rate to insulate the late innings, the cushion is there. Play the Yankees -1.5 to -105.
COVERS INTEL:Jacob Lopez (3.90 xERA) sits in the bottom fifth percentile for fastball velocity at 90.5 MPH. A Yankees lineup running a 128 rolling wRC+ will punish that early and often.
Yankees vs A's Over/Under pick: Under 10.5 (-130)
Warren's 29-degree release slot doesn't just generate horizontal break; it suppresses launch angle.
His ground ball profile, combined with New York's bullpen leading the majors at 54.2% rolling groundball rate, means the score is built to stay low.
Lopez sits in the bottom fifth percentile for fastball velocity at 90.5 MPH, but allows soft contact, not hard damage. His slider-heavy approach produces the same result from the other side.
Two ground-ball-oriented staffs, two contact-suppressing starters, and a 10.5 total that assumes both offenses perform at peak level. They won't on this pitching. Play the Under to 9.5.
Phil Naessens' 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 7-11, -2.19. units
Over/Under bets: 7-9, -3.40 units
Yankees vs A's odds
Moneyline: Yankees -144 | A's +138
Run line: Yankees -1.5 (-100) | A's +1.5 (-104)
Over/Under: Over 10.5 (+108) | Under 10.5 (-122)
Yankees vs A's trend
The Yankees are 9-2 when Will Warren starts a game in 2026. Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. A's.
How to watch Yankees vs A's and game info
Location
Sutter Health Park, West Sacramento, CA
Date
Sunday, May 31, 2026
First pitch
4:05 p.m. ET
TV
YES, NBCSCA
Yankees starting pitcher
Will Warren (6-1, 3.55 ERA)
A's starting pitcher
Jacob Lopez (4-2, 5.73 ERA)
Yankees vs A's latest injuries
Yankees vs A's weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
CLEVELAND, OH - MAY 30: Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Parker Messick (77) is congratulated in the dugout following the fifth inning of the Major League Baseball game between the Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Guardians on May 30, 2026, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
It was a rough game for the Guardians on Saturday. Travis Bazzana went 2-4 with two doubles, and José Ramírez went 1-3 with an RBI double and a walk. Petey Halpin also went 2-4 with a double. Other than that, it was a really tough day for the offense. I’m not worried about them long term, but a lot of guys are in slumps at the same time which isn’t ideal.
Parker Messick did typical Parker Messick things, his ERA is down to 2.21 after allowing just one earned run in his 5 innings pitched. Matt Festa continues to struggle this year, he kind of got bailed out tonight by a weird home run overturn. Will Dion had a pretty rough outing that put the game way out of reach for the Guardians.
The Guardians will look to take the series Sunday at 1:40 pm ET. It will be Tanner Bibee vs Ranger Suarez.
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — As someone who played the game himself, Aaron Boone knows that diagnosing and fixing a hitter’s slump is easier said from the dugout than done from the batter’s box.
But as Austin Wells has continued to sink deeper into an offensive rut, Boone believes he knows what is ailing the Yankees catcher.
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“I feel like he’s making a conscious effort to go the other way so much,” Boone said. “When that happens, sometimes you end up waiting, and you don’t get started, you don’t make your move. Everyone’s a little bit different in how they load and things like that. But sometimes you can get stuck and it’s just, ‘Go.’ So I don’t feel like he’s been as accurate as he should be on some pitches.
“From my eye, and sometimes it gets easier from the side or whatever, I feel like it’s as simple as that. I feel like if he gets started and gets on time, he’s got the ability to be impactful. That’s my expectation and hopefully he can string some at-bats together where he starts to feel that and he can take off.”
Boone had Wells out of the lineup Friday — with J.C. Escarra continuing to eat into some of his playing time of late — following Thursday’s team off day, hoping that the double day off could serve as a reset of sorts.
Because as important as Wells has been behind the plate and in calling games for one of the best pitching staffs in the majors, his lack of offense has become increasingly troubling.
Wells’ underlying metrics do not suggest he has just been unlucky, either. He was hitting balls hard and drawing his fair share of walks during the first month of the season, but both of those areas have taken a downturn in May.
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“As a hitter, you got to get started, you got to have a move, you got to have a hitch or a load that allows you to be aggressive,” Boone said. “I’m getting way in the weeds and it’s not going to make sense, but you got to be able to shut down and have brakes, as I would call it. He’s got that ability, but I feel like he’s been a little stale and trying to be too, ‘Wait, see it, go the other way,’ and then it’s just, ‘Go,’ and you end up beat.”
The Yankees entered the ninth inning trailing 6-1 and A’s reliever Jack Perkins got it started by striking out Paul Goldschmidt. Ryan McMahon then hit a bloop single and J.C. Escarra walked before Anthony Volpe struck out.
From that point on, over the final 28 pitches of the game, the Yankees swung just twice and it almost proved to be a winning recipe against the wild A’s bullpen.
Perkins walked Trent Grisham on five pitches to load the bases before Scott Barlow entered and walked Ben Rice, Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger, each on a full count, to force in three runs. Of that group. Judge had the only swing, taking a big hack through a curveball in the zone.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. then worked a 2-2 count on Barlow before grounding out, stranding the tying run on second base.
“Just great at-bats to give us a chance there,” manager Aaron Boone said. “To not only get the tying run to the plate but then have the go-ahead runs on base there at the end, just a lot of patient, real quality at-bats, forcing them to come into the zone.”
The Yankees’ six baserunners in the ninth inning came after they had nine through the first eight innings combined.
Aaron Judge reacts after being one of three Yankees to draw a bases loaded walk during the ninth inning of their 6-4 loss to the A’s on May 30, 2026 in West Sacramento, Calif. AP
“There was a lot of belief that we were going to come through and do it,” McMahon said. “It didn’t go our way, but putting pressure on a team like that, they’ll remember that, and next time we’re down, hopefully we come through.”
The Yankees played a man short Saturday night and likely will again on Sunday after Amed Rosario was placed on the paternity list shortly before the game.
The utilityman left clubhouse in street clothes a few hours before first pitch to head home for the birth of his child, and because of the timing, it did not make sense to fly a replacement cross-country just for Sunday’s series finale before the Yankees return home for an off day Monday.
Players may take up to three days on the paternity list, meaning Rosario could be back on the active roster by the time the Yankees open a homestand on Tuesday against the Guardians.
Since going through an 0-for-24 skid earlier this month, McMahon finished Saturday batting 9-for-29 (.310) with a .965 OPS over his last eight games.
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“Just trying to trust it,” McMahon said. “This game’s extremely hard. Just trying to work every single day so I can go out there and try to do things to help the team win.”
With a pair of walks, Grisham has now reached base multiple times in each of his last four games and seven of his last nine.
His on-base percentage was up to .329, the highest it had been since April 13.
Luis Severino landed on the 15-day injured list Saturday with a right shoulder strain after leaving Friday’s game against his old teammates before the second inning started.
And, in a frustrating setback for the Dodgers, the worst version of Tanner Scott.
Entering the eighth inning at Dodger Stadium on Saturday night in Los Angeles, the red-hot Dodgers seemed to be rolling to a seventh-straight win and a series victory over the Philadelphia Phillies.
They had gotten 5 ⅓ spectacular innings from Sasaki, who rediscovered 100 mph life on his fastball for the first time this year. They were also protecting a two-run lead, thanks to some big outs from relievers Alex Vesia and Kyle Hurt in the prior two innings.
That’s when Scott came trotting in, trying to extend a 12 ⅓ inning scoreless streak that resembled nothing of the career-worst campaign he endured last season.
Reliever Tanner Scott and catcher Will Smith looks on after Edmundo Sosa belts a two-run homer in the eighth inning of the Dodgers’ 4-3 loss to the Phillies on May 30, 2026 in Los Angeles. AP
Instead, the veteran left-hander quickly imploded in a 4-3 defeat, succumbing to the exact same two-strike issues that plagued him through so much of his 2025 struggles.
He got leadoff man Justin Crawford in an 0-2 hole, before throwing a low slider that was hit for a single.
With two outs in the inning, he was ahead of Bryce Harper in a 1-2 count, but threw a down-and-in fastball that the two-time MVP ripped to right for an RBI single.
In the next at-bat, Scott got to two strikes again against Edmundo Sosa, this time trying to climb the ladder with a putaway fastball. His heater, however, stayed in Sosa’s “wheelhouse,” as manager Dave Roberts acknowledged.
Sosa walloped it to left for a go-ahead two-run home run.
“We were trying to go up and I thought I could get it high enough, [but] I left it too much in the zone,” Scott said. “Just a bad pitch.”
Just like that, the Dodgers had squandered a lead they had held since Santiago Espinal’s sacrifice fly in the fourth inning, and extended on an RBI single from Mookie Betts in the seventh.
Even worse, they let Sasaki’s one-run, three-hit, seven-strikeout gem go to waste, snapping a season-long winning streak that had seemed so certain to continue.
What it means
For the first time since the start of the Dodgers’ recent 13-3 tear, their bullpen finally faltered.
In the previous two losses of that stretch, lackluster offense had been to blame. The bullpen, meanwhile, had been almost flawless, at one point setting a club record with a 38-inning scoreless streak.
Edmundo Sosa belts a two-run homer in the eighth inning of the Dodgers loss to the Phillies. AP
On Saturday, however, the loss fell most squarely on Scott, marking the first time this season he took the mound with a lead and failed to protect it.
“[When] you get count leverage, then you have to be able to put them away,” Roberts said. “And tonight we couldn’t do that.”
Who’s hot
Sasaki, especially with his fastball.
From the very start of the night, the right-handed phenom had found renewed life on his four-seamer. In his very first at-bat against Kyle Schwarber, he hit 99 mph twice, then eclipsed 100 mph for the first time since he was pitching out of the bullpen in last year’s playoffs.
Sasaki would keep lighting up the radar gun the rest of the game, averaging a season-best 98.5 mph with his heater.
Roki Sasaki delivers a pitch during the Dodgers’ loss to the Phillies. AP
It allowed him to attack the Phillies’ star-studded lineup in a way he has rarely been able to as a big-league starter, bouncing back from a second-inning home run from Alec Bohm by retiring the next 13 batters he faced consecutively.
Sasaki’s night only ended after back-to-back one-out singles in the sixth, forcing manager Dave Roberts’ hand with a couple left-handed hitters on deck. But Alex Vesia escaped that jam, preserving what was only Sasaki’s third one-run start this year.
In his last three outings overall, Sasaki has now posted a 2.08 ERA in 17 ⅓ innings, while striking out 19 batters and walking only three.
For the first time this season, he had 100 mph heat to go along with it, marking the most encouraging step yet in his continued growth process in the big leagues.
Who’s not
While Scott was the main culprit, the Dodgers’ offense didn’t help matters either.
Despite racking up nine hits –– including three from Betts –– the club failed to cash in on several chances and went just 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position.
Kyle Tucker’s 0-for-4 loomed particularly large, especially after he took pregame batting practice on the field for the first time this season in hopes of finding a better feel for his swing.
Instead, he left two runners aboard by grounding out to end the first inning, then failed to get Betts home after a one-out double in the third. He also recorded the final out of the seventh, rolling over to second base again right after Betts had pushed the Dodgers’ lead to 3-1.
With that, Tucker’s season batting average is back down to .236, amid a 1-for-16 slump since the start of this homestand.
“It’s a work in progress,” Roberts said of the $240 million slugger. “I think he’s frustrated with his swing [and was] really getting beat on some pitches today, not hitting it hard.”
Up next
The Dodgers will try to salvage this series in a Sunday afternoon rubber match, when Yoshinobu Yamamoto (4-4, 3.09 ERA) faces off against right-hander Andrew Painter (1-5, 5.40 ERA).
HOUSTON, TEXAS - MAY 12: Bryan Woo #22 of the Seattle Mariners pitches in the third inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on May 12, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Well, there’s honestly not so much to say about this one. Ryne Nelson was going for us today, which I actually felt pretty good about, given that the Ryno had pitched at least seven innings in his last three starts, and was rocking an ERA right around 2.70 for the month of May. He was going up against Bryan Woo, a very talented Seattle right-hander who’s been pretty good but who has had a middle-of-the-road performance so far this year, much like the rest of the Mariners’ ballclub.
Sadly, though, tonight it was no contest.
It started off okay, or it seemed to. Ketel Marte led off the game by making good contact on the first pitch Woo threw him for a fading liner into shallow right. I thought it was going to drop for a hit, but Mariners’ right fielder Luke Raley made a nice diving-ish catch to snag it just before it landed in the right field grass. Corbin Carroll then struck out looking, and Geraldo Perdomo struck out looking, getting Woo out of the top of the first with all of ten pitches thrown.
Ryne Nelson matched him, sorta, and even did better, sorta—he gave up a leadoff single, but then induced a one-pitch double play and then a lineout to Tommy Troy in left to face the minimum with only eight pitches thrown. So that was cool….maybe it would be a pitching duel.
Woo came out for the second, however, and promptly struck out Gabriel Moreno, Adrian Del Castillo, and Ryan Waldschmidt on fifteen total pitches. So, six batters faced, and after what turned out to be a lineout he struck out the next five. Yeah. It was all like that.
Meanwhile, Ryne Nelson stumbled in the bottom of the second. After getting a one-pitch flyout to start things off, he allowed a solo home run to Raley, who sent a middle-middle fastball over the wall in right center. One out later, he threw a hanging curveball to old friend Dominic Canzone for the same result. 2-0 Seattle
Woo recorded three more outs in order against the bottom of our lineup in the top of the third, though in what seemed like it might be a hopeful sign (SPOILER: it wasn’t), there were no strikeouts involved. In the bottom of the inning, though, Nelson pretty much repeated what he’d done in the previous inning, surrendering his third solo homer to Mariners’ rookie and nine-hole hitter Colt Emerson, and then his fourth one out later to Julio Rodriguez. 4-0 Seattle
But the real story, aside from all the jokes that erupted in the Gameday Thread about “solo homers won’t lose you the game” and so forth, was really Bryan Woo, who continued to deal. He retired the top of our order again in the fourth, continuing what was to that point a perfect game. That, thankfully, was broken up with one out in the top of the fifth, as Adrian Del Castillo lined a single to center, and then, after Waldschmidt grounded to third but beat the throw that would have resulted in an inning-ending double play, Ildemaro Vargas singled to center. That was that, though, as Jose Fernandez, playing third after Nolan Arenado was a late scratch from the lineup, struck out looking to end our one threat. Woo then retired the Diamondbacks in order in both the sixth and the seventh. We could do nothing against the dude.
Nelson, meanwhile, settled down, I suppose, at least insofar as he stopped giving up solo dingers to random Mariners. He pitched around traffic in both the fourth and the fifth, but managed to put up zeroes in both frames, and given that he’d actually been very efficient, he was only at 78 pitches after five innings of work so he came out to start the sixth. Sadly, however, it did not go well, though this time it was not entirely his fault. Randy Arozarena hung a seven-pitch AB on him to start the frame, but hit an easy grounder to Jose Fernandez for what should have been the first out of the inning. Fernandez, however, air-mailed the throw to first, putting Arozarena on second on the two-base error. Luke Raley then singled to left to advance Arozarena to third, and a Cole Young sac fly to right scored him. All that mishegaas brought Nelson to 99 pitches, and with only the one out recorded, Torey Lovullo swapped him out for Ryan Thompson. Thompson gave up a double down the left field line to Canzone, but recorded the last two outs without any further damage. 5-0 Seattle
And you might think that that would be your ballgame—I expected it to be, myself. Woo was basically unstoppable through his seven innings of work, and our offense, which was basically everywhere all the time when they were needed over the last three series, were nowhere to be found. Their bullpen did their job, our bullpen did its job, with Thompson pitching a second scoreless inning for us and Taylor Clarke putting up a zero in the bottom of the eighth, and us squandering a leadoff single from Waldschmidt in the eighth and then going down to our last out with Ketel Marte and Corbin Carroll making easy outs on the infield to start the ninth.
But no! While everyone else on the team would have liked nothing more than to simply put this one to bed and absquatulate back to the hotel with all speed, Perdomo decided that he was having none of it. Facing Mariners reliever Alex Hoppe, Gerry drew an eight-pitch walk, then promptly took second on defensive indifference. Hoppe then uncorked a pitch that I thought was wild, but was scored a passed ball instead. It rolled to the backstop, Gerry advanced to third, and when Hoppe forgot to cover home plate, Gerry just kept on going:
Moreno promptly grounded out to short to end things after that, but at least Gerry’s hustle spared us the indignity of a shutout loss? 5-1 Seattle
Loss Probability Added, courtesy of FanGraphs
Good Rhinos: NONE Bad Rhino: Ryne Nelson (5 1/3 IP, 7 H, 4 ER, 3 K, 4 HR, -26% WPA)
So, yeah. That was pretty much that. Only one Diamondback had a positive WPA contribution, and that was Ryan Thompson, who managed to contribute a whopping +1%. Adrian Del Castillo and Taylor Clarke at least managed to be neutral, contributing 0% apiece in total. But, well, it was that sort of game.
Perhaps surprisingly, given that, we had a pretty well-attended Gameday Thread tonight, with 274 comments at time of writing, so that was nice. Comment of the game goes to Fearless Leader for this one that got the most rec’s, though to be fair it was one of many that appeared around the same time that worked the same theme:
To be fair, it wasn’t the solo home runs that beat us, I don’t think. It was more that we couldn’t score any runs of our own. Well, at least not until the very end.
Anyway.
Tomorrow we will try to avoid being driven back to the desert by sailors brandishing brooms, I guess. Merrill Kelly goes for us, Bryce Miller takes the mound for Seattle, first pitch is scheduled for an actually reasonable time for a weekend game, which is to say 1:10pm AZ time. Join us if you can, we hope to see you!
As always, thanks for reading, and as always, go Diamondbacks!
The Yankees’ one run before the ninth inning gave Weathers little margin for error, and another strong outing for him turned sour when he gave up his third home run of the night on his 107th and final pitch — resulting in five runs overall — as the Yankees snapped a five-game winning streak with a 6-4 loss to the Athletics at Sutter Health Park.
The Yankees made a wild — emphasis on the wild — last push in the top of the ninth, loading the bases with two outs and forcing in three runs on three straight full-count walks by Ben Rice, Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger. But Jazz Chisholm Jr. grounded out to end it, leaving the tying run at second base in crushing fashion.
“It’s a tough one to swallow, but just got to move on from it,” Weathers said.
After stranding a pair of runners in the top of the seventh, the Yankees (35-23) trailed 3-1 as Weathers went back out to the mound and retired the first two batters in the bottom of the inning. He then walked leadoff hitter Colby Thomas on a full count, at which point Aaron Boone went to the mound to check on him.
The Yankees manager wanted the left-on-left matchup against Nick Kurtz, but it backfired, as Weathers’ next pitch was a 94 mph fastball up and in that Kurtz deposited just over the wall in center field to put the A’s (28-30) up 5-1.
Boone said he did not second-guess the decision to keep Weathers in to face Kurtz, but indicated he could have pulled him before facing Thomas.
Ryan Weathers reacts after allowing a home run during the Yankees’ 6-4 loss to the A’s on May 30 in West Sacramento, Calif. AP Photo
“I feel like kind of kicking myself — probably after he got the second out, through the bottom [of the order] … definitely a case there to go for the leadoff hitter,” said Boone, who had Camilo Doval warming but wanted to keep the A’s lefty hitters on the bench. “I don’t’ question leaving him in there for Kurtz, I’m going to take my left-on-left shot there with two outs. But after he got those first two, and throwing quite a few pitches to that point, that’s the one where maybe I go to Doval there.”
It made for a rough ending on a night when Weathers struck out 10 across 6 ²/₃ innings but was victimized by three long balls — a two-run homer from Shea Langeliers in the first inning, a solo shot from Tyler Soderstrom in the sixth and the two-run blast from Kurtz in the seventh — and a lack of support from his offense.
For the eighth time in Weathers’ 11 starts, the Yankees scored two runs or fewer while he was in the game. They have now averaged 2.95 runs scored per nine innings while Weathers is pitching, the fourth-lowest mark among qualified starters.
This week alone, Yankees starters had received plenty of run support, only for that to dry up on Saturday for their first loss in over a week.
Nick Kurtz’s two-run homer just gets over the glove of Trent Grisham during the seventh inning of the Yankees’ loss. Getty Images
“I put them in a bad spot giving two runs up in the first,” Weathers said. “This is a game of momentum, so if we don’t score, I got to put up a zero and just keep momentum. We create momentum if we score and same for them. I gave them momentum early and this is a game of that. I just can’t do that.”
In a dugout that had no tunnel to the clubhouse (in center field), Weathers expressed his frustration in full view of the cameras after coming out of the game, slamming his glove and other objects after an otherwise encouraging night was spoiled.
Tyler Soderstrom celebrates after scoring on his solo home run during the sixth inning of the A’s win over the Yankees. Imagn Images
“It’s just a competitive kid that pitched his heart out, pitched a whale of a game, frankly,” Boone said. “Two-run homer there to finish sours it, but thought he threw the ball great.”
The Yankees nearly finished off a furious comeback in the top of the ninth, when they recorded one single and five walks against A’s relievers Jack Perkins and Scott Barlow. Before Chisholm grounded out, the Yankees had taken just one swing in their last 27 pitches as the A’s almost self-destructed.
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“Love the finish,” Boone said, “just didn’t quite get over the hump there.”
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 30: Manager Aaron Boone #17 of the New York Yankees comes out to talk with pitcher Ryan Weathers #40 against the Athletics in the bottom of the seventh inning at Sutter Health Park on May 30, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Thearon W. Henderson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
West Coast trips stink. Unless you’re one of the many Yankees fans who live out west, I think a lot of us can agree on that. When they win, it’s chill, especially if it’s a relative blowout like Friday night, where you could catch some shut-eye a little early.
When they lose, you just feel like you stayed up for nothing. This one wrapped up around one in the morning on the East Coast and I kind of wish that I just went to bed after learning the Knicks will face the Spurs in the NBA Finals on Wednesday.
The story of tonight’s game was the power of the (Sacramento) Athletics. A lineup that can be truly scary at times showed why, as they took what was overall a pretty solid night from Ryan Weathers and completely wrecked his line with a trio of long home runs to center field. Couple that with an offense that blew some opportunities early and couldn’t finish off a marathon rally in the ninth, and you get a 6-4 defeat to set up a rubber game tomorrow afternoon.
Ben Rice got things started for the Yankees’ offense with a one-out single in the first off J.T. Ginn, but was erased on a 5-4-3 double play off the bat of Aaron Judge. Weathers took the bump in the bottom half and gave up a fair amount of hard contact, including an absolute bomb off the bat of Shea “Bangeliers” Langeliers to dead center to give the A’s a quick 2-0 lead.
The second went in a similar fashion for the Yanks, as Paul Goldschmidt ripped a single with two outs before being stranded. Weathers induced more soft contact in a 1-2-3 second. Both teams got a baserunner in the third on an Austin Wells single and Langeliers walk, but both pitchers had settled into a groove.
By the time the fourth came around, the Yankees were able to take advantage of the Athletics’ poor defense. Ginn walked Cody Bellinger with one out before giving up a single to Jazz Chisholm Jr. A bad hop caused Henry Bolte to boot it in center field, allowing Bellinger to advance to third.
That proved costly, as Chisholm bolted for second a few pitches later and forced an E4 on a stolen base that scored Bellinger and got Jazz to third with one out. A Goldschmidt walk set up runners on the corners in a prime position to tie or take the lead, but Ryan McMahon struck out, and Wells flew out to get Ginn out of trouble, but not before the Yankees cut the deficit to one. Weathers’ strikeout stuff came back to him in the bottom half, striking out a pair after a leadoff walk.
After coming oh-so-close to tying the game in the fourth, the Yankees somehow managed to get even closer in the fifth. A two-out walk by Rice set up Judge for the third time through, and the three-time MVP put a charge into a fastball and sent it to deep right field, only for it to be caught at the wall. That ball is a home run in 16 ballparks, including Yankee Stadium. Ouch
Ginn wrapped up six strong innings with a 1-2-3 sixth, while his offense added some extra insurance. Weathers was in a groove into the sixth inning after allowing the early home run, but was tagged by Tyler Soderstrom with one out to deep right-center field for a solo shot, making it 3-1.
Ginn was finally lifted after six for the lefty Hogan Harris. McMahon, who was taking the at-bat because Amed Rosario left on paternity leave, ripped a leadoff single. After a pinch-hitting José Caballero and Anthony Volpe were both retired, Trent Grisham worked a walk to set up Rice with the tying run on first. Despite working a full count, the third of the inning, Harris’ slow, looping curveball neutralized him the same way it did with Caballero earlier in the inning, ending the threat.
Despite his pitch count climbing, Weathers remained in the game and appeared to be on the verge of completing seven strong innings, but he lost Colby Thomas with two away, prompting a visit from Aaron Boone. With the powerful lefty Nick Kurtz due up, the Yankees’ skipper elected to stay with his laboring left-hander, hoping he had enough in the tank to get him out, rather than go to Camilo Doval.
Sometimes, the ol’ “fake manager hook” works. Sometimes, it doesn’t.
The Big Amish obliterated the first pitch he saw for a dagger home run that knocked him out after a career-high 107 pitches. 5-1 A’s.
Weathers pitched better than his line of 6.2 innings and five runs allowed, but you are what your numbers say you are. The Athletics can slug, and Weathers gave up three long homers. It happens, but the 10 strikeouts and the ability to grind past 100 pitches are the parts that encourage you here.
Justin Sterner got the eighth for the A’s and sat down the heart of the order 1-2-3. Jake Bird got the eighth and immediately got in trouble, plunking Bolte and allowing a double to Soderstrom. After a strikeout, Zack Gelof lined a two-strike RBI single to left to extend the lead to 6-1. Fortunately, the rally stopped there after some bad baserunning from the A’s, coupled with all-around head’s-up defense, led to a *checks notes* 5-2-6-4-5 double play.
Jack Perkins came on to get the final three outs for the Athletics, but despite the five-run lead, it was never that simple. McMahon blooped a one-out single, Escarra worked a walk, and Grisham extended the game with a walk of his own. With the bases loaded, Mark Kotsay turned to Scott Barlow, who walked Rice to bring in a run and bring up Judge as the tying run in a 6-2 ballgame.
The game got really interesting as Barlow straight up refused to throw strikes with the heart of the order just one swing away from tying the game. He walked Judge and Bellinger to force in another two runs before Chisholm took two called strikes and then finally put one in play. He was jammed on a 2-2 fastball on the inside part of the plate, grounding out to first and stranding the tying run on second.
The final game of the six-game road trip is a much easier watch for those on the East Coast, as the Yankees play the rubber game against the A’s tomorrow at 4:05 pm EST on YES. The pitching matchup will feature Will Warren against lefty Jacob Lopez, who was just announced a few minutes ago.
Philadelphia's Edmundo Sosa, left, walks to first base after hitting a two-run home run off Dodgers pitcher Tanner Scott during the eighth inning of the Dodgers' 4-3 loss Saturday at Dodger Stadium. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
Philadelphia’s Edmundo Sosa sauntered out of the box, motioning with one hand in a pump-wave in front of a nearly packed Dodger Stadium. The left fielder, who had taken over for Brandon Marsh in the top of the sixth, connected on a four-seam fastball that Dodgers reliever Tanner Scott left too far over the plate for a go-ahead home run.
The Dodgers had been playing with fire all night, but they couldn’t regain momentum after Scott’s struggles, losing to the Phillies 4-3 to set up a Sunday series rubber match.
The loss ended the Dodgers’ six-game winning streak for only its third defeat in 16 games.
“I was trying to go up, and I left it more on the plate,” said Scott about the home run pitch. “It wasn’t out of the strike zone with two strikes and it caught me.”
The Dodgers (37-21) started strong, with pitcher Roki Sasaki giving up just three hits and one earned run over 5⅓ innings.
Sasaki’s elevated velocity posed early concerns for the Dodgers as he struggled more with his command. The right-hander crossed the 100-mph threshold for the first time this season on two pitches: a 100.4-mph four-seam to J.T. Realmuto and another fastball, this time 100.1mph, to Kyle Schwarber.
“The fastball was really good,” Sasaki said through interpreter Kensuke Okubo. “The velo was there. I was able to execute what the catcher called.”
Three of his four pitches — the four-seam, slider and splitter — averaged at least 1.2 mph faster than his yearly average.
Roberts said he was surprised to see Sasaki hit triple digits. The Japanese pitcher has been working hard in the weight room and, earlier in the season, he would check the speed of his pitches on the radar gun after every throw. The next step will be to execute his harder throws with a more precise location.
“You layer in the confidence and the conviction and all that stuff,” manager Dave Roberts said. “Then you get a really good fastball with very good command. It’s a very good lineup over there. I know they’re not swinging the bats the way that they will. But good team over there, and he really kept them at bay.”
Dodgers starting pitcher Roki Sasaki delivers during the first inning Saturday against the Phillies. (Mark J. Terrill / Associated Press)
The Phillies (30-28) struggled to generate consistent momentum. Phillies third baseman Alec Bohm hammered a four-seam fastball that skimmed the top of the strike zone over the center-field wall in the first inning. The rest of the Philadelphia lineup struggled against Sasaki, striking out seven times and walking only once.
Roberts pulled Sasaki with runners on first and second in the sixth. Left-hander Alex Vesia walked Bryce Harper but escaped a one-out, bases-loaded jam by striking out Sosa and forcing Bohm into a groundout to third.
“Early on, certainly last year, a little bit this year, you’re trying to protect him,” Roberts said of Sasaki. “I think that you’re trying to not let the shoe drop, leave him with a feeling of confidence when he leaves the mound. Today, I thought he was still throwing the baseball well, but with two guys coming up I thought Alex was a good matchup for those two guys.
“There’ll be an opportunity to push Roki later. ... I’m not necessarily pins and needles, but I just feel like I can give him a little more leash now.”
By then, the Dodgers had already established a lead. Alex Call put them on the board in the second on a poked single through the gap between second and short. In the fourth, Call reached third on a double and a fielding error from Adolis García. Santiago Espinal hit a sacrifice fly to deep center field, driving in Call.
Mookie Betts also found his footing after he went 0 for 3 on Friday. The shortstop struggled in the first four games of the Dodgers’ homestand, batting .200 across 15 plate appearances. Against the Phillies on Saturday night, Betts laced two singles and a double.
Andy Pages scored on a close play at the plate after Betts singled to shallow right field in the seventh. Although catcher J.T. Realmuto missed tagging Pages’ foot, the Dodgers center fielder’s cleat didn’t appear to touch the plate. After a long review, the safe at home call stood.
But the Dodgers’ good fortune didn’t last. Scott gave up an RBI single to Harper, and it was like the Phillies could sense exactly when the reliever’s pitches crossed over the zone. Scott (1-2) then gave up the home run to Sosa before the Dodgers were retired on three groundouts in the ninth.
Before Saturday, Scott’s 1.14 ERA ranked third among National League relievers who had thrown at least 20 innings. He hadn’t given up a run in May and he had only given up three earned runs this season.
In the span of two at-bats, however, he looked closer to the pitcher that struggled last year.
“You throw a pitch in [Sosa’s] wheelhouse, and that’s what happens,” Roberts said. “It happened quick. But Tanner has been great. No one is trying to give up hits and homers. But part of the equation is, you get count leverage, and then you have to be able to put them away. And tonight we couldn’t do that.”
The Yankees' offense was quiet on Saturday night after scoring 34 runs this past week, losing to the Athletics, 6-4.
New York made it interesting in the ninth inning, drawing three straight bases-loaded walks to cut into the lead, but Jazz Chisholm Jr. grounded out to end the game.
Here are the takeaways...
-- Ryan Weathers had an up and down outing, allowing five runs on six hits (three home runs) with 10 strikeouts and three walks over 6.2 IP and 107 pitches.
He opened with a tough first inning, letting up a huge two-run home run to Shea Langeliers that gave the Athletics an early 2-0 lead. Weathers bounced back with a five-pitch, 1-2-3 second inning and kept it going through the fifth inning, allowing just one hit with six strikeouts in that span. However, his hot streak came to an end with one out in the sixth inning, allowing a solo home run to Tyler Soderstrom as the A's went up 3-1.
Weathers got two quick outs in the seventh inning, and despite his pitch count crossing 100, Aaron Boone kept him in to face slugger Nick Kurtz after a walk. The decision backfired as Kurtz launched a two-run homer to center field, making it a 5-1 game and ending the left-hander's night.
-- New York got a run back in the fourth inning thanks to two mistakes by the Athletics. CF Henry Bolte misplayed Chisholm's single, allowing Cody Bellinger to advance from first to third base. Chisholm then stole second base to avoid the inning-ending double play, but Langeliers' throw got by second baseman Alika Williams into the outfield -- making it easy for Bellinger to score and cut the lead to 2-1.
-- Aaron Judge nearly tied the game in the top of the fifth inning, but his deep drive was just short as right fielder Colby Thomas made the catch up against the wall.
The Yanks had another scoring chance in the seventh inning after Ryan McMahon led off with a single. Although, José Caballero and Anthony Volpe both couldn't get the job done, and after Trent Grisham walked, Ben Rice struck out swinging for the third out.
-- Jake Bird struggled in eighth inning by hitting the leadoff man Brent Rooker, allowing a double to Soderstrom, and letting up an RBI-single to Zack Gelof as the A's took a 6-1 lead.
-- Amed Rosario did not play and will be out again Sunday after he was placed on the paternity list prior to the game.
Game MVP: Nick Kurtz
The reigning AL Rookie of the Year went 3-for-4 with two RBI and two runs scored.
Honorable mention goes to RHP J.T. Ginn, who allowed just one unearned run on four hits over 6.0 IP with four strikeouts and three walks.
Highlights
Jazz singles and Bellinger advances on a bobble in center field and the Yankees are set up with runners on the corners and one out for Paul Goldschmidt pic.twitter.com/FUDFf4fUHx
COVERS INTEL:
