Category: MLB

Triple-A: Durham (Rays) 7, Norfolk Tides 4

Friends, it’s depressing looking at this Norfolk box score. No help is on the way and chaos reigns. The Orioles signed a pitcher more or less off of his couch to start this game. That’s Chris Kachmar, part of the Cubs organization last year, who pitched his first game of the year here. His 3.1 innings were scoreless.

Behind him for three innings was Riley Cooper, a guy the team appears to have bumped up from Delmarva for this game out of desperation. Cooper gave up two runs, then random 40-man roster fodder Eduarniel Núñez managed to give up five (three earned) in one-third of an inning.

There is just nothing to hang your hat on. The outfield was Michael Siani (also 40-man fodder), Tommy Pham, and Jud Fabian. There are no infield prospects in this box score. Designated hitter Heston Kjerstad drove in a run while going 1-4 with a double. I’m a little bit interested in seeing how Kjerstad does now that he’s officially been optioned. I hope he can pull off yet another career revival and end up displacing Tyler O’Neill in the Orioles lineup.

Box score.

Double-A: Chesapeake Baysox 14, Erie (Tigers) 2

It’s nice for me to get to look at a butt-kicking by the Orioles affiliate here after that last one. Chesapeake exploded for seven runs in the second inning and they never looked back from there. The team had 19 hits and six different batters had multi-hit games. Among these were my guy Aron Estrada (hit his seventh homer of the year), Ethan Anderson (three hits), and Griff O’Ferrall (four hits). O’Ferrall needs some more four hit games to raise his season OPS, which now sits at .633. Estrada has a .757 OPS, while Anderson has rebounded nicely from last year’s time at Aberdeen, sitting at an OPS of .833.

The Baysox starting pitcher here was Sebastian Gongora, one more guy in the Orioles system who isn’t really a prospect but he’s also not a total non-prospect. The 24-year-old lefty, an 11th round pick by the Orioles two years ago, allowed two runs over a 6.2 inning start where he gave up just two hits and one walk. Gongora now has a 3.56 ERA in ten starts.

Box score.

High-A: Jersey Shore (Phillies) 8, Frederick Keys 3

Does this box score let me report something good to you about Wehiwa Aloy? Sort of, he was hitless in three at-bats but walked twice. Okay, what about lately-warming-up outfielder Braylin Tavera? Also hitless, but he had a walk and a sacrifice fly. Early-season sensation Victor Figueroa? 0-3 with a walk. Vance Honeycutt didn’t strike out, because he didn’t play. Nate George remains on the injured list with an undisclosed illness. The Keys only had seven hits in all, just one of which went for extra bases, and they were 1-9 with RISP. It’s a rough way to try to win a game.

Frederick faced an early hole they were dug by their starting pitcher Kiefer Lord and never recovered from there. Lord sported an unenviable 3 WHIP for the game: Six hits, three walks in three innings. He was lucky to allow “only” three runs. Lord, who’s scarcely been healthy to pitch since being drafted in 2023, has a 6.19 ERA after five starts with Frederick following a promotion up from Delmarva.

Box score.

Low-A: Fredericksburg (Nationals) 2, Delmarva Shorebirds 1

Each of these teams had six hits. The Shorebirds hits were all singles. Fredericksburg had two doubles and a triple. That was pretty much the difference. It didn’t help that there was an error right after the triple, allowing that run to score with two outs. Shortstop DJ Layton, an interesting young guy from last year’s draft, committed the error. He made up for it a little bit with one of the Shorebirds hits, and scored Delmarva’s lone run.

Another guy appearing in this box score is Enrique Bradfield Jr., who’s rehabbing the injury that’s had him out of action with Norfolk since his last game on April 21. Bradfield came up to bat four times out of the leadoff spot, going 0-3 with a walk. Norfolk’s lineup will be a bit more interesting once he returns there.

Box score.

Saturday’s Scheduled Games

• Norfolk: vs. Durham, 6:35. Starter: Trace Bright
• Chesapeake: at Erie, 6:05. Starter: Luis De León
• Frederick: at Jersey Shore, 7:05. Starter: Caden Hunter
• Delmarva: vs. Fredericksburg, 7:05. Starter: Esteban Mejia

After finishing their longest homestand of the season with a 3-6 record and a first-third of the season record of 31-24, the San Diego Padres know they have problems. No one on the team seems to be trying to deny it. The offense is the worst in baseball. The starters also have issues but have been overall competent for most of the season. Once again, they have the best bullpen in baseball, and reinforcements could be getting closer.

It’s a boring enterprise to keep harping on how badly this offense is performing. The best way to express where they stand is to let the highest-paid player on the team, third baseman Manny Machado, step forward and represent the hitters.

“We’re scuffling as an offense, obviously. It doesn’t help that your star player leaves six on base. There goes the game. I don’t really think it’s anybody else. You get a hit there, even drive in one run on a ground ball, double play. Should have done that in the first inning. The game changes a little bit there.” — Machado, after the May 25 loss to the Phillies, as written by Kevin Acee in his Padres Daily newsletter of May 26.

It’s admirable that Machado tries to take the blame on himself but he is joined by many others who make this a team-wide problem. The hitters have struggled against good pitching and bad pitchers. Their .218 team batting average and .291 OBP are the worst in the league. They are 29th in slug and OPS, with the Mets only being worse than them by a small percentage.

Support for Steven Souza Jr

The players and their manager, Craig Stammen, have all spoken up in defense of hitting coach Steven Souza Jr. The latest was Machado, who has taken on the role of team captain despite the Padres never officially having a team captain. Machado has had a prickly relationship with the media at times but during these early-season struggles, his willingness to speak for himself and the team has been noticeable.

“Those coaches don’t grab a bat,” Machado said when asked about Souza. “It’s us grabbing the baseball bat and going up there and putting on our gear and facing Cristopher Sanchez today. It’s on us to go out there and perform. They’re giving us the information, and we’re going out there and we’re executing, we’re just not getting those results that we’d like. The game is like that sometimes.”- From Kevin Acee’s Padres Daily newsletter of May 28, after being shutout by Phillies pitcher Cristopher Sanchez.

It is natural in a situation like this that a rookie hitting coach, with no previous coaching experience, would be taking heat for a poorly performing offense. The Padres will have a real problem soon if the offense doesn’t turn this around. With a winning record and still seven games over .500, the organization still has a little wiggle room but that won’t be true soon.

Bullpen brilliance

The Padres finished the series against the Phillies with the best bullpen ERA in baseball at 3.07. Mason Miller continues to lead the National League closers with 16 saves and 47 strikeouts. He is not the only pitcher on the team who has had success this season.

Yuki Matsui, since coming back from injury, has pitched 12 innings without allowing a run. Jason Adam has 18.2 innings pitched with a 0.96 ERA and has 10 straight scoreless innings. Wandy Peralta has pitched 25.1 innings with a 2.13 ERA but has had 12 straight scoreless innings.

Bradgley Rodriguez, 22, has a 1.69 ERA in 23 games and 26.2 innings pitched with two saves. He has shown the ability to pitch more than one inning as well as pitch in close games. His fastball sits in the upper 90’s and has touched 100 mph regularly. He has a plus changeup and a good slider to complement the fastball.

With Jason Adam being a free agent at the end of this season, 2026 will be the best time for Rodriguez to step up into higher-leverage situations.

Petco Park wins Best Facility in sports

The Sports Business Journal, which holds annual awards, awarded Petco Park the Sports Facility of the Year for 2026.

Earlier this year, Petco Park was named Best Ballpark by USA Today. Petco also won that award in 2023 and 2024.

Injury Updates

Padres manager Craig Stammen provided updates this past week on several players currently on the injured list.

RHP Nick Pivetta has not yet begun a throwing program and is in the “active rest” stage of his rehab.

RHP Joe Musgrove is on the verge of beginning a throwing program that should begin with playing catch next week.

2B Jake Cronenworth is still experiencing symptoms from the concussion sustained when he was hit by a pitch in his right jaw. He was seen on the field this past week, playing catch. That is the first baseball activity for Cronenworth.

C Luis Campusano has caught bullpens for pitchers but is still not able to begin a rehab stint until he can move around freely without pain in his broken toe.

RHP Germán Márguez is no longer experiencing pain in his right forearm and has started playing catch.

Not in Stammen’s update but on a rehab assignment, RHP Jhony Brito has had 3 starts since beginning his rehab from UCL surgery. He had one appearance in Arizona and has had two starts with Double-A San Antonio. His last start, May 23, lasted 3.1 innings and 68 pitches; he allowed six hits and three earned runs and three walks.

Multiple players are playing with the ACL Padres to begin their rehab.

Minor leaguers: RHP Ryan Och, C Brendan Durfee, C Blake Hunt, RHP Adler Cecil and LHP Zach Qin all started rehabs with the ACL Padres.

RHP Ty Adcock , on the Padres roster to start spring camp, started his rehab in Arizona but is now pitching for the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps on his rehab journey.

Meet the Mets

Despite scoring four runs in the first and adding three additional runs in the rest of regulation, the Mets allowed the Marlins to chip away and ultimately tie it, and the first game of the series between the two division rivals thus went into extra innings. The Amazins emerged victorious, however, thanks to a walk-off two-run homer off the bat of MJ Melendez.

Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, NY Post, MLB.com

The Mets are finally making a shift to their rotation, with David Peterson officially heading to the bullpen and Sean Manaea taking his spot as a starter/bulk arm.

David Stearns acknowledged that the team has underperformed thus far but expressed hope that they could still dig themselves out of the hole they’re in.

Tobias Myers surrendered a game-tying two-run homer in last night’s game and was optioned to Triple-A afterwards.

Jonah Tong has made a few adjustments to his arm slot and pitching arsenal as he seeks to establish himself as a major league pitcher.

Bobby Valentine and Lee Mazzilli will be inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame today, and the former celebrated by donning his famous disguise one more time.

Several members of the 2001 Mets will be on-hand to watch their former manager get inducted into the Mets Hall of Fame.

Around the National League East

The Braves got a leadoff homer from Ronald Acuña Jr., the first of thirteen hits on the night as they slugged their way to an 8-3 victory against the Reds.

Zack Wheeler surrendered four solo homers to the Dodgers last night, and that was enough to doom the Phillies to a 4-2 loss.

The Nationals threatened to make a late-inning comeback, but ultimately fell short in a 7-5 loss to the Padres.

Marlins pitcher Eury Pérez suffered a rather Mets-like injury, as the youngster will miss two months due to a leg injury suffered while stretching.

The Marlins ownership group recently sold a 15% minority stake of the club for over a billion dollars.

Around Major League Baseball

As the league and the MLBPA begin negotiations about the next CBA, there will be a lot of discussions about competitive balance and it’s worth considering what exactly that means.

The owners and the union made their respective first proposals, but the end result will probably look very different from both.

One of the most exciting players of the 2026 season thus far will be off the shelf for a while, as Munetaka Murakami suffered a right hamstring injury in last night’s game.

Old friend Luis Severino exited his start last night with right arm soreness and will undergo testing.

The Reds placed reliever Graham Ashcraft on the 60-day injured list with a right UCL sprain.

Take heart, Mets fans: the Tigers have also had a terrible season and are now in the AL Central cellar.

Abner Uribe received a one-game suspension for his recent colorful mound celebration, but he appealed the decision and picked up a win in the meantime.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Vasilis Drimalitis previewed this weekend’s home series against the Marlins.

Joe Sokolowski compiled another week’s worth of sad Mets quotes.

Linda Surovich argued that Sean Manaea deserved a start, and the Mets front office was seemingly listening.

Brian Salvatore and Chris McShane had another bad batch of Mets baseball to discuss on the latest episode of Today Your Love, Tomorrow the World Series.

This Date in Mets History

In a game that would mirror a certain famous World Series game a few months later, the Mets got themselves a walk-off extra inning victory on an error on this date in 1986.

Good morning, LSB.

The Rangers smoked the Royals last night, 9-1.

Evan Grant writes that the offense went old school.

MacKenzie Gore got back on the right track with a dominant outing vs. KC.

New Ranger Nicky Lopez’s first hit in Texas was a big one and came just days after the death of his grandfather.

Elsewhere Grant’s weekly stock report asks if there’s a Rangers Great Depression on the way.

Wyatt Langford and Corey Seager are on their way back, slowly.

Caden Scarborough returned to action at High-A Spartanburg last night after a melanoma scare delayed the start of his season.

Tom Schieffer is the latest guest on Grant’s podcast.

And finally the DMN’s Kevin Sherrington reviewed the recent Nolan Ryan biography, which “leans into the Rangers legend’s grip on Texas culture.”

That’s all for this morning. Have a great weekend!

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The Houston Astros have won six of their last eight and hope to get back in the win column this afternoon against the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Brandon Sproat can’t stop issuing walks or surrendering home runs, which is why my Brewers vs. Astros predictions and MLB picks are backing Houston to even the series as +104 underdogs in a high-scoring contest on Saturday, May 30.

Who will win Brewers vs Astros today: Astros (-101)

This is a great spot to fade Brandon Sproat, which is why I’m backing the Houston Astros as long as they are at -115 or better on the moneyline. 

The Astros have the league’s fifth-highest HR/FB rate (13.8%) in May, while Sproat’s HR/FB rate (19.1%) is the fifth-highest among pitchers with at least 40 IP.

Daikin Park has a Statcast HR effect of 115 that ranks fourth in the majors. Add in a high walk rate and a fastball run value in the 12th percentile, and I expect the Astros to post some crooked numbers early.

COVERS INTEL: Houston’s soft-contact rate at home vs. RHP in May of 10.4% (the lowest in the league) indicates ample opportunity for the Astros to hammer Sproat before he gets the hook.

Brewers vs Astros Over/Under pick: 8.5 (-115)

Even though I like the Astros in this spot, the Brewers are in a good spot to contribute to the Over, which is 23-12 in Houston’s last 35 home games.

Peter Lambert has been far less effective at home, with a 4.32 ERA driven by rough outings in his last two home starts. 

Milwaukee righties have the third-lowest pull rate vs. RHP during May. That will negate his sinker/slider combo, which Lambert utilizes 44% of the time in same-sided matchups.

Add in the ballpark factor, and I’m bullish on this game getting to nine runs, all the way to -130.

Brewers vs Astros odds

• Moneyline: Brewers -108 | Astros +104
• Run line: Brewers -1.5 (+150) | Astros +1.5 (-156)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-113) | Under 8.5 (+108)

Brewers vs Astros trend

The Houston Astros have hit the 1st Five Innings (F5) Team Total Over in 10 of their last 13 games (+7.10 Units / 48% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Brewers vs. Astros.

How to watch Brewers vs Astros and game info

Brewers vs Astros latest injuries

Brewers vs Astros weather

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

It’s been a bit of an up-and-down start to the season for Mets prospect Ryan Clifford, but the lefty has been showing off his power over the past few weeks in Syracuse. 

Clifford was able to do so again in Friday night’s extra-inning loss to Rochester. 

With Syracuse leading 6-1 in the top of the third, the slugger stepped to the plate and lifted a third-pitch fastball up in the zone to deep right-center for a solo shot. 

That accounted for Syracuse’s seventh run of the third inning. 

It also marked Clifford's team-leading 12th home run of the season, and his seventh during the month of May. 

He's gone deep on back-to-back nights, and five times over his last nine games. 

Clifford went hitless across his other four at-bats on the night, but was sure to make his presence felt in the middle of things with the towering blast. 

The 22-year-old also has a triple, four doubles, and 17 RBI across 25 May games. 

While the power has certainly been there the young slugger still has some holes in his game, hitting just .218 with a .294 OBP and a 35.3 percent strikeout rate through 53 games.

The Mets likely need to see Clifford turn things around in those areas before they decide to give him a shot. 

Ty France smacked a game-tying solo home run in the top of the sixth inning and Jackson Merrill hit what would prove to be a game-winning two-run home run in the top of the seventh inning to give the San Diego Padres a 7-5 win over the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.

The home runs were the highlights for the Padres at the plate, but the high-wire act by the San Diego bullpen may have been the most critical part of the game. Mason Miller allowed a two-out walk to James Wood to load the bases in the bottom of the eighth inning. Luis Garcia Jr. came to the plate with a chance to tie the game with a hit and put the ball in play with a sharp line drive to left field. Ramon Laureano got twisted around, but was able to recover and make the catch running back toward the wall to end the inning and the Washington scoring threat.

Miller came back out for the ninth inning and issued a leadoff walk to Curtis Mead, who hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the first inning off starter Lucas Giolito. Miller was able to lock in and looked more like the dominant closer the Friar Faithful have come to expect and struck out CJ Abrams, got a flyout from Dylan Crews and ended the game with a strikeout of Daylen Lile to secure the win for the Padres and earn his 17th save of the season.

Giolito was staked to a 1-0 lead after San Diego manufactured a first-inning run on a sacrifice fly from Xander Bogaerts to score Fernando Tatis Jr. Giolito gave up the lead with the two-run home run to Mead, which put Washington ahead, 2-1. The Nationals would push the lead to 3-1 with a solo home run by Keibert Ruiz in the bottom of the second and the Padres answered with and RBI-single from Manny Machado to score Gavin Sheets in the top of the third inning to make the score, 3-2. The single by Machado snapped an 0-for-35 streak with runners in scoring position for San Diego.

Washington regained a two-run advantage in the bottom of the third inning when Crews singled to score Abrams to make the score, 4-2. Giolito was replaced on the mound one batter later after allowing a walk to Jacob Young. Giolito ended his day with four runs allowed on five hits with four walks and one strikeout in just 2.2 innings pitched. The Padres answered back in the top of the fourth inning with an RBI-groundout from Freddy Fermin to pull within a run and then tied the game when Tatis hit an RBI-single to right field, which scored France. The Nationals took the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning when Young singled to center field off Jeremiah Estrada to score Abrams to make the score, 5-4. That set the stage for France who tied the game with his solo home run in the top of the sixth before Merrill homered in the top of the seventh to give the Padres their first lead since the top of the first inning.

The back-and-forth game was much different than what San Diego fans have come to expect and the blast from Merrill may have provided a sigh of relief for many. He finished his night 1-for-4 with a walk and two RBI, but that followed a multi-hit performance in the final game of the homestand against the Philadelphia Phillies. Additionally, Tatis finished 3-for-5 with an RBI and a run scored, while Machado went 1-for-4 with a walk and an RBI. The Padres got production from each of their three struggling stars, which might indicate they are breaking out of their offensive slumps. France and Sheets also went 2-for-3 and were part of 10 total hits for San Diego.

The Padres snapped a four-game losing streak with the win and will look to make it two wins in a row today at 1:05 p.m.

Padres News:

• Craig Stammen has shown a willingness to do what it takes to help his team win games. He has shuffled the lineup, rotated players in and out of the lineup and has held his team accountable with comments in the media. AJ Cassavell of Padres.com looks at what Padres fans have learned about their first-year, first-time manager two months into his tenure.

• Jhony Brito is working to make his way back to the MLB roster for San Diego. He took a step in that direction with six scoreless innings in his latest rehab start.

• In some positive news on the injury front for the Padres, Nick Pivetta played catch.

Baseball News:

• The Los Angeles Dodgers hit four home runs and outslugged Zack Wheeler and the Philadelphia Phillies to get win.

• Chicago White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami left their game with hamstring tightness and is expected to miss a couple weeks.

• The New York Yankees got a stellar start from Carlos Rodon and pushed their win streak to five games.

• Ethan Holliday, the Colorado Rockies top prospect, is expected to have season-ending foot surgery.

• Ezequiel Tovar lifts Colorado over the San Francisco Giants with walk-off home run.

• The New York Mets got a 9-7 walk-off win over the Miami Marlins.

• Bryan Reynolds hit a walk-off home run to help the Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Minnesota Twins.

• The Seattle Mariners got a one-run win with walk-off against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

Rangers 9, Royals 1

• The Rangers won!
• Yeah!
• Woo-hoo!
• And they won by a lot!
• Look, I know that last time they won by scoring a bunch of runs, we thought that things were on the upswing, and then Texas lost their next two. But this time its going to be different.
• Let’s “power of positive thinking” them on a win streak!
• If we all set our minds to it, I bet we can do it!
• MacKenzie Gore recorded a Quality Start, throwing 6.1 shutout innings.
• There have been games this season where we have talked about a pitcher pitching better than the results indicated. This was kind of the other way around.
• Gore threw strikes for most of the game — he hit one batter and allowed one walk, and those happened with the final two batters he faced.
• He wasn’t missing bats, though, putting up just three strikeouts and getting just seven swings and misses. Gore gave up a lot of loud contact to the Royals hitters, and was somewhat fortunate to allow just four hits to the 24 batters he faced.
• The only real trouble he got into was in the first, when a two out single was followed up by a double that was too hard hit to bring the runner home from first. A ground out ended the inning.
• The first inning could have gone a lot worse — the Starling Marte ground ball for the third out was 102.1 mph off the bat, and was still the softest hit ball of the inning.
• Bobby Witt Jr. crushed a line drive to dead center that Evan Carter made a very nice running catch on for the second out. Let’s give some partial credit to Carter for keeping a 0 on the board in the first.
• After the potentially scary first, the Royals banged balls less bangily against Gore, and when they did hit it hard it tended to be at a defender or a ball where a defender could make a quality play, such as Kyle Isbel’s line drive back up the middle in the third that Ezequiel Duran made a great leaping grab of.
• So we are glad of that.
• Tyler Alexander came in for Gore with one out in the seventh after the HBP-walk sequence and needed just three pitches to get out of the inning, thanks to a 6-4-3 GIDP. Jalen Beeks handled a scoreless eighth before Gavin Collyer pitched the ninth, allowing a run to end the shutout.
• We have talked before about Collyer’s ability to pitch in the majors being dependent on his ability to throw strikes. Collyer walked the first two batters he faced in the ninth.
• Collyer now has issued 11 unintentional walks and hit four batters this season. He’s struck out 15 batters.
• When you are allowing as many batters on base via walk and HBP as you are striking out, that’s a problem.
• When you walk the first two batters you face when you have a 9-0 lead, that’s also a problem.
• You may recall a couple of weeks ago, the Rangers brought Collyer in to close out a 7-1 game and he walked the first three batters he faced, and ultimately got pulled for Jacob Latz without retiring a batter.
• Not throwing strikes when you are closing out a blowout is the type of thing that makes you fall out of a manager’s tree of trust pretty quickly.
• Still, Collyer finished things out, and recorded a pair of Ks in the process.
• The offense scored a bunch of runs, so that was fun.
• Four came in the first inning, and as a general rule, when you score four runs in the first, your chances of winning go up.
• Let’s do a compare and contrast. The Royals had a runner on first and two outs in the top of the first inning, had a two out double, held the runner at third base, and then saw the inning end on a groundout.
• The Rangers had a runner on first and two outs in the bottom of the first inning, had a two out double, held the runner at third base, then had Ezequiel Duran single home the two runners.
• What we can learn from that is that it is better to get a hit with two outs and runners on second and third than to make an out. You might want to right that down.
• Clownball from the Royals brought home two more runs, due to an E4 on an Alejandro Osuna grounder that allowed Duran to score, then Salvador Perez throwing the ball into center field on an attempted Osuna steal of second base, which allowed Evan Carter, who had doubled after Duran had singled, to score from third.
• Stephen Kolek, the Royals starter, retired 11 of the next 12 batters, reminding us of the 10-7 win against the Astros where the snowman in the first was followed by batters being mowed down until the late innings.
• A Josh Jung double and Brandon Nimmo homer in the fifth busted that up, though, and added some additional breathing room.
• Continuing our theme of “the Rangers have de-nerfed the Shed,” Nimmo’s homer went 435 feet, per Statcast. It is the farthest that a Ranger has hit a ball this season at the Shed. It is the fifth farthest that anyone has hit a ball this season at the Shed, with the four ahead of the Nimmo homer all coming earlier this week in the Houston series.
• Eight of the nine longest balls in play at the Shed this season, and 10 of the 13 longest, have come this week.
• Joc Pederson also homered for the Rangers, as did offensive catalyst Nicky Lopez. Lopez’s homer was his first hit for the Rangers. Neither of those homered went super-far, and the Pederson homer was down the line in right field and barely made it over the wall, but they still count.
• Pederson is now slashing .244/.356/.437, and has a 136 OPS+. That’s the third best OPS+ on the team, behind Jung and Duran.
• MacKenzie Gore hit 96.7 mph with his fastball, averaging 95.0 mph. Tyler Alexander’s fastest pitch was an 85.0 mph changeup. Jalen Beeks hit 94.1 mph on his fastball. Gavin Collyer reached 99.0 mph on his fastball.
• Jake Burger had a 108.8 mph double. Brandon Nimmo had a 108.1 mph home run and a 100.7 mph home run. Nicky Lopez had a 101.7 mph home run.
• Let us see if the Rangers can keep the vibe going over the weekend.

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With another jam-packed slate today, I've dug deep to find value in my MLB same-game parlay predictions. 

I'm expecting Trey Yesavage to run through the Baltimore Orioles, while Bryan Woo should miss some bats as the Seattle Mariners face the Arizona Diamondbacks. 

Read more in my MLB picks for Saturday, May 30. 

Today's best MLB SGP picks

Game	SGP Odds
TOR vs BAL	+325
SD vs WAS	+296
ARI vs SEA	+400

Blue Jays vs Orioles SGP: Yesavage Dominates O's

Toronto Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage has been impressive since returning from injury. Across six starts, he's compiled a 2.25 ERA, holding opponents to a .207 average. Yesavage has cashed the Under in earned runs allowed in all but one of his outings. He comes up against an inconsistent Baltimore Orioles lineup, and his ERA sits at 1.69 on the road. 

Toronto is riding a six-game winning streak against the Orioles, and three of those victories have been on the road. The O's have lost two straight at home. Ernie Clement has cashed the Over in runs in three of his last five games, and his high degree of contact (8.3% strikeout rate) leads to more opportunities to get on base and get driven in by Toronto's bats.

• Time: 4:05 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: MASN, Sportsnet

Padres vs Nationals SGP: Tatis Stays Hot

The San Diego Padres are riding a four-game winning streak on the road, and they've captured five victories in the last six meetings with the Washington Nationals. Washington has lost two straight, and starter Foster Griffin has allowed 14 earned runs across his last three starts. 

Michael King owns a 2.86 ERA on the road this season, and he's given up Under 2.5 earned runs in three of his last four contests. Fernando Tatis Jr. is finally starting to find a rhythm, with four multi-hit games over the last week. He's cashed the Over in total bases in back-to-back contests, and in four of his last five. 

Griffin is shaky at times lately, and Tatis is batting .317 against left-handers. 

• Time: 4:05 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Padres.TV, Nationals.TV

Diamondbacks vs Mariners SGP: Whiffs Against Woo

Bryan Woo has been inconsistent at times this season, but he's still missing a lot of bats. The right-hander has 59 Ks in 63.2 innings, and 34 in 31 frames at home.

Woo has cashed the Over in strikeouts in three of his last four appearances, and the Arizona Diamondbacks are striking out a lot more on the road, averaging 8.60 per game. Woo has a 70.7 first pitch strike percentage. He's getting ahead of hitters, which undoubtedly helps him strike out more opponents. 

The Seattle Mariners won the series opener by just one run on Friday, but they've now covered the run line in three of their last four contests. Ryne Nelson takes the hill for the D-Backs, who owns a 4.65 ERA. Julio Rodriguez is in the midst of a five-game hitting streak, and he had three hits on Friday. 

• Time: 10:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Dbacks.TV, Mariners.TV

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A pitcher's duel between the Minnesota Twins and Pittsburgh Pirates highlights serious value in a scoreless first inning this afternoon. 

That matchup headlines my top MLB picks today for the "no run first inning" and "yes run first inning" markets. 

Here are my best NRFI predictions and YRFI picks for Saturday, May 30.  

Best NRFI/YRFI predictions today

Pick	Odds
/ - NRFI	-108
/ - NRFI	-100
/ - NRFI	-100

Twins at Pirates: NRFI (-109)

It's Mitch Keller vs Bailey Ober on the mound in this matchup, two starters who have had success this season. Keller owns a 3.64 ERA, and he's compiled a 9-2 NRFI/YRFI record this season.

Keller hasn't allowed a run in the first inning in three consecutive appearances. The Minnesota Twins are hitting just .199 in the first stanza, and they've been held scoreless in the opening frame 40 times this year. 

As for Ober, he sports a 3.92 ERA and a 10-1 NRFI/YRFI record. In fact, Ober hasn't given up a run in the first inning in nine straight outings. While he has gotten into trouble at times on the road, it's usually later in the game, and the Pittsburgh Pirates haven't scored in the first inning in two of their last three games. 

Play this one to -130. 

• Time: 4:05 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SportsNet Pittsburgh, Twins.TV

Brewers at Astros: NRFI (-100)

While the matchup on the hill here between the Houston Astros and Milwaukee Brewers isn't elite, it's a pair of guys that rarely get into trouble out of the gates.

Brandon Sproat hasn't surrendered a run in the first inning in five consecutive starts, and Houston hasn't scored in the opening inning in three of their last four games. 

As for Peter Lambert, he owns a sub-four ERA and a 6-1 NRFI/YRFI record in 2026. Milwaukee's lineup has had minimal success against Lambert, and they've been held scoreless in the first in three straight. The Brew Crew is also hitting just .205 in the opening inning.

Play this to -125.

• Time: 4:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Space City Home Network, Brewers.TV

Phillies at Dodgers: NRFI (-100)

The Los Angeles Dodgers and Philadelphia Phillies haven't been two teams that score a lot out of the gate this season. They've both compiled 38-19 NRFI/YRFI records, and tonight's clash is expected to be another quiet first.

Jesus Luzardo has historically dominated the Dodgers, holding them to a .168 average across 107 at-bats. He's also allowed a run in the first inning just once this season. 

As for Roki Sasaki, he has an 8-1 NRFI/YRFI record in '26, and the Phillies have gone back-to-back games without creating any meaningful offense in the first inning. They're also hitting just .125 against Sasaki, although it's a small sample size of 24 at-bats. 

• Time: 10:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: NBC Sports Philadelphia, Sportsnet Los Angeles

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Here's what happened in Mets Land on Friday, in case you missed it...

• The Mets opened the series with a 9-7 walk-off victory over the Marlins in extra innings
• MJ Melendez played hero late, overcoming recent struggles to deliver his first career walk-off hit
• The bullpen was mostly terrific helping the Mets get there, headlined by A.J. Minter and Austin Warren
• The one arm who did struggle was Tobias Myers, who was reportedly optioned to Triple-A postgame
• Pregame, Carlos Mendoza and David Stearns provided a number of injury updates
• Among those was Jorge Polanco, who enjoyed himself a strong second rehab game with Binghamton
• Stearns took stock of where the club stands at this point in the season
• David Peterson is moving back to the bullpen, and Sean Manaea is taking his place in the rotation
• WATCH: Melendez, Mendoza, and Freddy Peralta discuss the victory
• WATCH: Stearns discusses the Mets' struggles to this point in the season

There have been some subtle changes in the things Don Mattingly has done different than Rob Thomson this season. There had to be since whatever the team was doing prior to Thomson’s firing was clearly not effective any longer.

One of, if not the, biggest changes has been the usage of Bryson Stott and Brandon Marsh. Lately, they have been in the lineup not matter who is on the mound, left or right handed pitcher. They have responded by hitting much better against southpaws, their weaker side. A lot of that was out of necessity since the team really doesn’t have that much in the way of right handed alternatives for either, but it is nice to see nonetheless.

So far, what has been your favorite thing Mattingly has done that has been different than that of what Thomson did? Maybe it’s the idea of letting Marsh and Stott play more, maybe its in his handling of Andrew Painter or some other reason.

It’s only been two hits. Two hits over two days. Can you declare someone back from the dead after two hits, especially in such venues as Fenway Park and Great American Ball Park? But did you see the hits though? Let me help you with that. Here’s Thursday in Boston:

And here’s last night in Cincinnati.

As someone who witnessed the home run last night, this ball was crushed loud and far. You can’t really hear it from the audio here. But along the third base side was a flock of loud Braves fans. Acuña’s home run and the robbed Harris II home run lit up the left side of the stadium.

Here is Ronald’s rolling xwOBA. Where this chart starts to dip is May 19th, the day that Ronald returned from the Injured List with a Grade 1 hamstring strain. Is he feeling better now? Is a month a good recovery time for a guy with some other lower body injuries? During Thursday’s game he acquired a .684 xwOBA. I’m guessing last night would be in that neighborhood as well. Even the grounders were loud, especially the one that De La Cruz required a spin and throw to get Ronald.

So is Ronald Acuña Jr. back now? It sure sounds like it. Literally.

Cubs left-hander Shōta Imanaga was off to such a good start this season. Over his first nine starts he posted a 2.32 ERA and allowed just five home runs in 54.1 innings. Maybe, just maybe, he had put the home-run issue from last year in the past?

Well, nope, or so it now seems. Over his last three starts Imanaga has an 11.49 (!) ERA and eight (!) home runs served up in just 15.2 innings. Perhaps needless to say, the Cubs have dropped all three of those games, including Friday’s 6-5 loss to the Cardinals.

Still, the Cubs might have had a chance to win this game if not for yet another bad outing from Phil Maton, who gave St. Louis the insurance run they needed in the eighth. Do the Cubs still score in the ninth if it’s 5-4 instead of 6-4? Pitch sequencing might have been different. Still, Maton dug the hole deeper and that’s exactly what the Cubs did not need.

More on that later. Let’s start at the beginning, which was actually good.

After the first two Cubs grounded out, Michael Busch and Alex Bregman singled.

Then Ian Happ left the yard for the third straight game [VIDEO].

This is classic Happ — cold streaks followed by hot streaks. Here’s hoping the hot streak lasts a while.

What did not last was that lead, as Imanaga gave up the first of the three home runs in the bottom of the first, to, of all people, former Cub Nelson Velázquez. Velázquez was playing his first MLB game since 2024. More on that three-run homer from BCB’s JohnW53:

Shota Imanaga also gave up a three-run homer that wiped out a 3-0 lead last season, on Sept. 25 at home against the Mets.

Of the last 10 three-run shots that came with the Cubs up by three, seven have been with the score 3-0.

Kyle Hendricks and Jameson Taillon did it in 2024, three days apart; Jeremiah Estrada and Justin Steele in 2023; and Adbert Alzolay in 202.

Last night’s was just the third of 88 total three-run homers with a 3-0 lead that came in the bottom of the first. The first was off Kerry Wood, at San Francisco in 2000, and the second off Steve Smyth, at Houston, in 2002.

Smyth’s was the 60th of the 88 such homers.

The Cubs took a 4-3 lead in the second. With one out, Dansby Swanson singled. One out later, he stole second and Nico Hoerner walked.

Michael Busch singled in Swanson [VIDEO].

That’s where the game stayed until the fourth, when St. Louis’ Thomas Saggese homered off Imanaga to make it 4-4. And in the next inning, the Cardinals took a 5-4 lead on the third homer off Imanaga, that one by Ivan Herrera.

Cubs pitchers have allowed 82 home runs, most in MLB (Nationals are second-worst with 79). For individual pitchers, Jameson Taillon has served up 19, four more than anyone else (Zack Littell of the Nats, 15). Third is Brady Singer of the Reds with 14, then Imanaga with 13 (tied with five others, including, of all people, Jacob deGrom). None of this is any good for the Cubs, who rank 18th in fewest runs allowed.

More on all the home runs given up by Cubs pitchers this year from John:

This is the eighth game of the season in which the Cubs have surrendered at least three home runs.

Through the first 58 games of previous seasons, they gave up three or more nine or more times in 10 years and eight in seven, including a year ago.

The most were 11, in 1956, 2000 and 2022.

They did it 10 times in 1999 and 2020, and nine in 1959, 1960, 1966, 1994 and 2017.

After the Cardinals took that fifth-inning lead, the Cubs went down meekly in the sixth and seventh, and also in order after a leadoff single by Seiya Suzuki in the eighth.

Ethan Roberts, who relieved Imanaga with two out in the sixth, retired five of the six Cardinals he faced, two by strikeout. Roberts got helped out by this nice defensive play by Busch [VIDEO].

Roberts has been very effective recently and the Cubs can really use another trustworthy reliever.

That’s in part because Maton has become the opposite of “trustworthy.” What’s a good word for that? Don’t answer that question.

Maton allowed a one-out single to Velázquez, then struck out Alec Burleson. Okay so far, but… two more line-drive singles scored the sixth Cardinals run. Craig Counsell had to call on Hoby Milner to bail out Maton, which he did with an infield popup.

Maton, who Jed Hoyer signed after he had a solid year in 2025 split between the Cardinals and Rangers, has been just awful in 2026. He has a 7.64 ERA (5.10 FIP) in 20 appearances, his walk rate is way up (11.6 percent compared to 9.5 percent last year) and he’s already allowed as many home runs (three) in 17.2 innings as he did all of 2025 in 61.1 innings.

This kind of feels like the relief pitching version of the Trey Mancini signing in 2023 — a two-year deal for a guy who didn’t really rate that sort of contract. The Cubs simply cannot use Maton in any more high-leverage situations and if they do and he does this again, they might have to think about just eating the rest of the deal and letting him go.

The run that Maton allowed turned out to be very important, as the Cubs scored off Cardinals closer Riley O’Brien in the ninth. Pete Crow-Armstrong led off with a double [VIDEO].

PCA advanced to third on a comebacker by Nico that hit O’Brien but went for an out. Then Busch grounded out, scoring PCA [VIDEO].

Bregman came to bat as the potential tying run, but grounded out on the first pitch to end the game [VIDEO].

Now, does that ninth inning go exactly like that if Maton doesn’t give up the run in the eighth? Obviously we’ll never know, but it sure would have been better to go into the ninth down one run instead of two.

Here are Craig Counsell’s postgame comments [VIDEO].

The Cubs will look to even up the series Saturday evening in St. Louis. Ben Brown will start for the Cubs and Kyle Leahy goes for the Cardinals. Game time is 6:15 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Fox-TV (regional — coverage map, scroll down to the bottom of that link). A reminder that if you subscribe to MLB.TV or MLB Extra Innings, you can watch this game via those services even if it’s not on the Fox affiliate in your market. Announcers: Eric Collins, John Smoltz and Ken Rosenthal.

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With wins in four of their last five, the Chicago White Sox look for a second straight series win when they play the middle game of their 3-game set against the Detroit Tigers.

Last in the AL Central, Detroit is reeling, with 19 losses in its last 23 starts. Despite this, the Tigers are -113 favorites on the moneyline.

My Tigers vs. White Sox predictions and free MLB picks have the White Sox hammering the team with the worst road record in the American League on Saturday, May 30.

Who will win Tigers vs White Sox today: White Sox moneyline (+108)

The Detroit Tigers have hit rock bottom, batting .196 and ranking Bottom-3 in strikeouts over the past two weeks.

That’s crippled their run production (second-worst), and they're facing a Chicago White Sox team that’s Top-3 in run production over the same period.

Chicago has mashed lefties all year, ranking second in homers and Top 4 in slugging and OPS.

Bad news for Detroit’s Framber Valdez, who has struggled with command, allowing 14 earned runs and 21 hits over four starts, ballooning to a 6.10 ERA.

With three of the White Sox's last four wins over Detroit coming by multiple runs, I not only like them on the moneyline, but would hit the alternate run line at +223 for Chicago to win by two or more.

COVERS INTEL: Detroit ranks near the bottom of the majors in run value vs. the four-seam fastball, Anthony Kay’s money pitch.

Tigers vs White Sox Over/Under pick: Over 7.5 (-110)

With good offense comes good run totals, so it’s no surprise the White Six have seen the Over go 7-3-0 in their last 10 outings.

Chicago is also one of baseball’s better scoring teams at home this season, putting up 4.93 runs per game, which ranks sixth.

In three of their last four wins vs. Detroit, the teams have cruised past 7.5 runs.

Detroit puts up far fewer runs, but Valdez’s recent form has helped push the score Over 7.5 runs in three of his last four appearances.

Even with Chicago slugger Munetaka Murakami hitting the shelf, I'd stay with the Over up to 8.5 runs.

Tigers vs White Sox odds

• Moneyline: Tigers -122 | White Sox +117
• Run line: Tigers -1.5 (+138) | White Sox +1.5 (-144)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (+117) | Under 8.5 (-122)

Tigers vs White Sox trend

The Chicago White Sox have covered the Run Line in 21 of their last 30 games (+10.40 Units / 23% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Tigers vs. White Sox.

How to watch Tigers vs White Sox and game info

Tigers vs White Sox latest injuries

Tigers vs White Sox weather

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