Category: MLB

Rafael Devers might have found his groove again.

Devers has homered in back-to-back games after cracking a 93.2-mph sinker from Pittsburgh Pirates right-hander Carmen Mlodzinski into a 399-foot fly ball just over center in a 5-2 win on Friday, May 8.

He also added an RBI on a 2-for-4 batting night.

The Giants are now 15-23, but still at the bottom of the NL West standings. Devers hasn't had the best start to the 2026 season. He entered Friday with a batting stat line of .221/.265/.329.

After Friday, Devers has a .229 batting average, .271 OBP and .354 SLG in 37 games. He's accounted for four homers, 12 runs and 16 RBIs in 2026.

But his recent games could be a sign of good things ahead for Devers and the Giants. Over his last seven games, Devers has registered a .350 batting average, slugging 7-for-20. In that span, he hit two home runs and had 5 RBIs on a .391 OBP, .750 SLG and 1.141 OPS.

San Francisco hasn't had the ideal start to the season. It came with attention, not necessarily expectation, with the team taking a chance on signing a manager with zero major league experience.

The Giants hired Tony Vitello, whose previous experience came as a successful collegiate baseball coach at the University of Tennessee. He won a national championship in Knoxville.

USA TODAY Sports gave the Giants a D+ grade for their performance after a month, which has seen an inability to score runs, hit the ball or close games.

In desperate need of someone to step up and carry their extremely shorthanded offense, Mark Vientos continues to be the man for the Mets. 

Vientos has enjoyed a strong start to the road trip, and he delivered again on Friday. 

The slugger opened the scoring in the ballgame, crushing a third pitch slider from Ryne Nelson 401 feet deep to left-center for his fifth home run of the season.

New York’s offense went silent after that, until Vientos was able to come through once again in the latter innings. 

After Devin Williams pieced together a eight-pitch bottom of the ninth, Vientos immediately cashed in the ghost runner, ripping the first pitch he saw for a go-ahead double. 

Carson Benge immediately followed that with a big insurance run, and then Tobias Myers put the finishing touches on the victory with a 1-2-3 bottom-half. 

“It felt pretty good,” Vientos said postgame. “I felt like the at-bats I put together were pretty good, I’m just happy that I was able to come through in both of those spots.”

The righty slugger has finally started to look more like himself at the plate after a dreadful spring training and start to the regular season. 

He’s now hitting .261 with three doubles, three homers, five runs scored, 10 RBI, a .333 on-base percentage, and a .855 OPS over his last 13 games. 

“The more he gets the results, the more you’re going to see that,” Carlos Mendoza said. “When he gets going he gets locked in and mentally it helps him big-time -- he’s a very good hitter and it’s good to see him getting results.”

“I feel good right now for sure,” Vientos added. “Just gotta keep stacking the days and continue to be consistent.”

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers clawed and scrapped their way to some offense against Chris Sale to get the better of the Atlanta Braves 3-1 in Friday night’s series opener between perennial National League powerhouses at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers had only five hits in seven innings against Sale, but made them count. Teoscar Hernández singled and Kyle Tucker doubled him home in the second inning. Miguel Rojas reached on an error in the fifth inning, then with two outs Shohei Ohtani singled him home for the first Los Angeles lead of the evening.

Then, Freddie Freeman and his newer closed stance provided insurance with a solo home run in the sixth inning, his third consecutive game with an extra-base hit, and fourth in the last five.

That was Freeman’s first home run since April 6, snapping a string of 114 plate appearances without a long ball. Freeman now has 100 home runs with the Dodgers, the 37th player to hit that many with the franchise.

“I would have taken a broken-bat bloop against Chris,” Freeman said. “He’s one of the toughest left-handed pitchers you can face. He’s coming from behind you.”

All three Dodgers run-scoring hits off Sale were by left-handed batters, against whom Sale had allowed only seven hits in 38 at-bats all season before Friday, none with anyone on base.

“That guy was phenomenal. He’s one of the game’s best and has been for quite some time,” manager Dave Roberts said of Sale. “For us to scrounge and scrape and get a couple of points, was big.”

The specter of potentially losing a rotation spot once Blake Snell is activated on Saturday no longer loomed after Tyler Glasnow was placed on the injured list on Friday. Though the immediate pressure lessened, Emmet Sheehan still looked to turn things around after allowing a pair of home runs in a loss last Saturday in St. Louis.

Holding velocity through the game has been an issue for Sheehan this season. He threw a fastball 97 mph in the first inning, his fastest pitch of the year, and averaged 96.1 mph in the opening frame. Sheehan’s average velocity still waned in his start, down to 92.4 mph in the fourth inning and 93.1 in the fifth. But he was effective enough to induce 14 swinging strikes (eight on the fastball) and strike out seven, with just one walk.

“There’s certainly some things we’re trying to figure out and tap into to increase [velocity], but at the end of the day it’s about getting outs,” Roberts said before the game.

Sheehan got 14 outs, and was pulled in a 1-1 tie with two outs in the fifth with runners at the corners and lefty Matt Olson at the plate. Southpaw Alex Vesia got Olson to fly out to end the frame.

After the game, Roberts said, “I thought Emmet threw the ball as well as he’s been throwing the ball all year, as far as stuff, compete. He did everything we had hoped.”

Friday’s stellar matchup was close throughout, and also featured a few defensive highlights. Austin Riley doubled to the left field wall in the fourth inning, but a perfect relay from Hernández to Rojas to Will Smith nailed Michael Harris II at the plate, an out call upheld by replay review.

In the bottom of the fourth, a sure single to shallow left field by Tucker was instead plucked out of the air by shortstop Jim Jarvis in just his second major league game. Charley Steiner on the Dodgers radio call said of the spectacular catch, “It was as if he was diving into the pool.”

After using six relievers to cover the final eight innings on Wednesday, the Dodgers followed Thursday’s off day with five pitchers to get the final 13 outs on Friday, nearly all of them through stress.

Vesia stranded Sheehan’s two runners in the fifth. Kyle Hurt allowed two singles before pitching a scoreless sixth. Will Klein stranded a seventh-inning walk, then was pulled after a leadoff single in the eighth, trying to pitch a second inning. Brock Stewart walked a batter of his own, then stranded those two runners to finish the frame.

Tanner Scott however pitched a clean ninth to close out the win, earning his third save of the season.

Friday particulars

Home run: Freddie Freeman (4)

WP — Alex Vesia (1-0): 1 up, 1 down

LP — Chris Sale (6-2): 7 IP, 5 hits, 3 runs (2 earned), 7 strikeouts

Sv — Tanner Scott (3): 1 IP, 1 strikeout

Up next

The Dodgers and Braves are back at it on Saturday night (6:10 p.m., SportsNet LA), with Blake Snell on the mound for his season debut against Spencer Strider for Atlanta.

Time will tell if this weekend’s series is a postseason preview.

But Friday night certainly had the feel of a playoff game.

On one side, the two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers.

On the other, a red-hot Atlanta Braves squad that arrived in Los Angeles tied for the most early-season wins in the majors.

Both teams possess high-powered offenses, with the Braves leading baseball in runs scored and the Dodgers topping all clubs in OPS.

Both teams have talented pitching staffs, the Dodgers ranking second in ERA and the Braves led by former Cy Young winner Chris Sale.

On Friday, they each topped it off by turning one spectacular defensive play after the next.

“Tonight,” manager Dave Roberts said, “was a typical sort of October game.”

A typical game, with a typical result, as the Dodgers did what they usually do in high-profile matchups by grinding out a 3-1 win to take the series-opener at Dodger Stadium.

“For me, it’s a pretty good win,” veteran infielder Miguel Rojas said. “Because it keeps telling us that we are ready for the big picture.”

Friday was decided on the margins, ultimately coming down to one costly mistake and one big swing.

With the score tied 1-1 in the fifth inning, Braves rookie shortstop Jim Jarvis –– fresh off a stunning diving catch in the bottom of the fourth and his first career hit in the top of the fifth –– airmailed a throw into the dugout that put Rojas on second base.

Three batters later, Shohei Ohtani snuck a two-out ground-ball through the infield for a go-ahead RBI single.

“Two-out hits, we gotta get those,” Roberts said. “Especially against a guy like Sale.”

In the sixth, the Dodgers would stretch their advantage, when Freddie Freeman capitalized on a rare misfire from the 37-year-old left-hander. In a 0-1 count, Sale left a fastball over the heart of the plate. With his biggest swing in weeks, Freeman clobbered it to center for his first home run since April 6.

“I would’ve taken a broken-bat bloop against Chris,” Freeman joked. “Probably the toughest lefty you’re going to face in this game as a left-handed hitter.”

That was enough to give the Dodgers (24-14) some breathing room. And after a 4 ⅔-inning, one-run start from Emmet Sheehan, they got 5 1/3 scoreless innings from the bullpen to close it out.

It started with Alex Vesia, who stranded a pair of runners he inherited from Sheehan in the fifth. Kyle Hurt came on next, gave up back-to-back singles to lead off the sixth, then escaped the jam in his highest-leverage appearance so far this season.

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From there, Will Klein and Brock Stewart built a bridge to the ninth inning. Then, Tanner Scott emerged for his third save.

“You gotta prevent runs and use the arms in the ‘pen that you got,” Roberts said. “And we prevented runs tonight and got just enough hits.”

There were other key moments mixed in along the way. Like a perfect relay play from Teoscar Hernández and Rojas to gun down a runner at home in the fourth. Or Rojas winning a foot race to second base –– despite playing through some leg pain he suffered earlier in the game –– before absorbing a collision with a baserunner. Or Dodgers pitching holding the Braves (26-13) to just a 1-for-10 mark with runners in scoring position overall.

And though the Dodgers didn’t exactly solve Sale in a seven-inning, seven-strikeout start, they ultimately didn’t have to. Instead, they were simply a little better in every other phase –– finding a way to win on a night full of shades to the fall.

What it means

That, when facing premier competition, the Dodgers can win in a number of ways.

After all, the team was out-hit 9-5 on Friday. Sale easily outshined Sheehan, who continued to battle fluctuating fastball velocity, on the mound.

Yet, as the club has done so often over the past two Octobers, they prevailed nonetheless.

“We obviously put together a really quality, quality game played today,” Freeman said.

Who’s hot

The Dodgers got on the board Friday courtesy of Kyle Tucker, who continues the slow process of turning his season around.

With two outs in the second, Tucker was facing a 1-2 hole against Sale when he got a shin-high slider over the outer edge of the plate.

He was early with his swing, but rode the pitch out and somehow got the barrel to it, pulling a double down the right-field line to erase an early 1-0 deficit.

The hit marked Tucker’s seventh double in his last 14 games (a stretch that also includes a home run), and helped him raise his batting average to .288 in that time.

The $240 million signing is still hitting just .254 on the season with a sub-.750 OPS, but he’s at least been contributing more regularly since being dropped down the lineup.

Who’s not

With Mookie Betts out on a rehab assignment and set to rejoin the Dodgers on Monday, a potentially difficult roster decision is on the horizon.

In a rare chance to start Friday, utilityman Santiago Espinal didn’t exactly help his cause.

While Espinal worked a couple long at-bats against Sale, he only turned one of them into a hit. And even then, he got himself thrown out trying to stretch for an ill-advised hustle double on an opposite-field line drive.

Espinal, a former All-Star looking to revive his MLB career with the Dodgers this year, is now batting just .200. It’s possible that, when Betts returns, the Dodgers will opt to send one of Hyeseong Kim or Alex Freeland back to the minors, where they could get more regular playing time.

But both of them have been productive lately, raising the possibility that the Dodgers could cut Espinal loose in the next few days.

Up next

Two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell will make his season debut Saturday night, after missing the start of the campaign recovering from offseason shoulder fatigue. The Braves will turn to former All-Star Spencer Strider, for what will be only his second start of the year since returning from an oblique strain.

PHOENIX — The Mets waited until the 10th inning to start the party Friday night.

After totaling only two hits over the first nine innings, they awoke from their desert siesta with an energetic extra frame for a 3-1 win over the Diamondbacks at Chase Field.

“It’s a good thing we stayed locked in until the last inning,” Mark Vientos said of the team’s extended wait for hits.

Vientos and Carson Benge each delivered run-scoring doubles in the 10th before Tobias Myers got the final three outs for his first major league save. The Mets won for the fifth time in seven games on the road trip, capitalizing on a strong Nolan McLean start and bullpen performance behind him.

Vientos’ double against Kevin Ginkel leading off the 10th — he homered earlier — brought in the automatic runner. Benge, moved up to fifth in the lineup for the first time in his major league career, doubled on a 1-2 slider to provide the cushion.

“I am always confident at the plate — I feel good right now for sure,” Vientos said. “I just have to continue to be consistent.”

In a rebound performance from his shortest start of the season, McLean allowed one earned run on three hits, one walk and a hit batter over six innings with six strikeouts, departing after 100 pitches (matching a season high). McLean lasted just four innings against the Angels in the Mets’ loss last Saturday.

“My job is to get as deep into the game as I can every time I go out,” McLean said. “I was disappointed last time out against the Angels not doing that, so it was pretty important to do today.”

He began the day tied for fourth among NL pitchers with 51 strikeouts, seventh in WHIP (0.94) and ninth in opposing batting average (.184).

Vientos’ third homer on the road trip gave the Mets a 1-0 lead in the second. Vientos hammered a cutter from Ryne Nelson over the left field fence for his fifth homer this season. He hit two against the Angels on Sunday before going 1-for-12 in three games in Colorado.

“The more he continues to get results, you are going to see [confidence] from him,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “This is a guy that when he gets going, he gets locked in mentally.”

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Nolan Arenado took McLean deep on the second pitch in the bottom of the inning to tie it 1-1. The blast was the first allowed by McLean in his last three outings.

Francisco Alvarez singled leading off the third, but was left stranded as Bo Bichette’s shot to the right field fence was snagged on a jump by Corbin Carroll for the final out. Alvarez’s single was the Mets’ last hit until Vientos delivered in the 10th inning.

McLean plunked Carroll leading off the fourth before getting Adrian Del Castillo to ground into a double play and retiring Arenado.

In the fifth, McLean walked Gabriel Moreno with one out, but struck out Jose Fernandez and retired Jorge Barrosa to keep the game tied. The D’backs were without Katel Marte — a late scratch because of illness — adding Fernandez to the lineup at second base.

Ildemaro Vargas’ single in the sixth was only the D’backs’ third hit against McLean. On his 95th pitch of the night, McLean retired Carroll before concluding his night by striking out Del Castillo.

Benge walked with two outs in the seventh, snapping a streak of 14 straight retired by Nelson following Alvarez’s single.

Juan Morrillo entered following the walk to Benge and got Marcus Semien to pop out on the first pitch.

Luke Weaver walked Moreno with two outs in the seventh and Fernandez singled following a delay (Luis Torrens got smacked with a foul ball off the face mask and was examined).

Weaver walked Barrosa to load the bases before retiring Perdomo to escape.

Brooks Raley got two fast outs in the eighth before allowing a single to Ryan Waldschmidt in his first major league at-bat. The lefty retired Arenado for the third out.

Devin Williams needed just eight pitches to retire the side in the ninth. Mendoza was asked if he considered sticking with his closer for the 10th rather than use Myers, who worked a perfect inning.

“We talked about it,” Mendoza said. “But then at the end, how much we have been using these guys, I just decided to go with Tobias there, but we did discuss it.”

The Mets defeated the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-1 in ten innings in Phoenix, coming out on top of a pitchers’ duel in the desert.

The Mets and Diamondbacks traded solo homers in the second inning and the scoring came to a screeching halt after that. Mark Vientos launched a towering shot to left center in the top of the second off Ryne Nelson and the Diamondbacks responded via a Nolan Arenado blast off a Nolan McLean sinker in the bottom of the frame.

Both starting pitchers settled into a nice rhythm after that. Corbin Carroll made an excellent play up against the wall in right field on a deep Bo Bichette fly ball in the third that kept the Mets from building any momentum. But Nolan McLean put forth an incredibly strong effort, striking out six in six solid innings, yielding just the one run on three hits.

The Diamondbacks’ best chance to pull ahead came in the seventh inning against Luke Weaver, who entered the game in relief of McLean. The Snakes mounted a two-out rally against Weaver that began with a walk to Gabriel Moreno, aided by a smart challenge by Moreno on the second pitch of the plate appearance, which was called a strike, but turned out to be outside by a fairly significant margin. Jose Fernandez singled and then Jorge Barrosa walked to load the bases and put the go-ahead run 90 feet away, but Weaver escaped the jam, inducing an inning-ending ground ball off the bat of Geraldo Perdomo.

The Mets had a crisp defensive game and no play was better than the diving play by Marcus Semien to rob Arenado of his second hit of the night in the eighth. With two outs and the go-ahead run on first base, Semien laid out to quash the rally and help Brooks Raley through a scoreless eighth. Devin Williams followed with an impressive 1-2-3 ninth punctuated by a strikeout to send the game to extra innings. Meanwhile, the Mets’ bats were quiet against the Diamondbacks’ bullpen until the tenth when they finally broke through.

Mark Vientos got things started by ripping the first pitch he saw from Kevin Ginkel into left field to score the ghost runner Brett Baty and give the Mets the lead. Vidal Bruján then came in the game as a pinch runner for Vientos. Carson Benge followed with a ground rule double to left-center to score Bruján and extend the Mets’ lead to two runs. Marcus Semien kept the rally going with a heads up bunt single down the third base line; it was a perfectly executed bunt that caught Nolan Arenado unaware, as he was playing back. Ginkel then finally recorded the first out the inning via a strikeout of MJ Melendez and Jonathan Loáisiga came in the game. The Mets still seemed poised for a huge inning when Semien stole second base to put runners on second and third with still only one out, but then Francisco Alvarez hit a grounder back to the mound and Carson Benge was nabbed at home for the second out. And Luis Torrens grounded out to third to end the inning, but the Mets had their first lead since the second.

Tobias Myers came into the game in the bottom of the tenth tasked with protecting the two-run lead and successfully did so to earn the first save of his major league career. Myers retired the Diamondbacks in order, including two strikeouts to emphatically close the door on the Mets’ fifth victory in the last six games as they attempt to claw their way back to .500. The Mets will try for their third straight series victory tomorrow night with their ace Clay Holmes on the mound, facing off against the struggling Merrill Kelly.

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Mark Vientos, +44% WPA
Big Mets loser: Juan Soto, -14% WPA
Mets pitchers: +68% WPA
Mets hitters: -18% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Mark Vientos’ RBI double in tenth, +38.3% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Nolan Arenado’s game-tying home run in the second inning, -10.9% WPA

With the Mets and Diamondbacks tied at one apiece in the bottom of the ninth, Devin Williams came on and needed just eight pitches to push the game to extra innings. 

New York’s offense had gone quiet since the top of the fourth, but they wasted no time cashing in their ghost runner, as Mark Vientos doubled on the first pitch of the 10th. 

Carson Benge then continued his recent hot-stretch at the plate, tacking on a huge insurance run with a ground-rule double into the left-center gap. 

With a two-run advantage and a low pitch count there had been some thought that Williams would come back out for the save, however, that wasn’t the case.

Carlos Mendoza instead called upon Tobias Myers. 

“We talked about it,” the skipper admitted. “But then at the end with how much we’ve been using these guys so far this year, I just decided to go to Tobias -- but we did discuss it.”

And in the end, the decision paid off, as Myers needed just 10 pitches to set the Diamondbacks down in order in the bottom of the tenth and secure the victory. 

It was a much-needed bounceback outing after the righty after he was knocked around by the Rockies for four runs in just 0.2 of an inning his last time out.

This was also Myers’ first career save.

“He showed the ability to bounce back,” Mendoza said. “I like his ability to throw strikes, I like the changeup against lefties, the fastball at the top, and he’s been really solid for us no matter what we’ve asked him to do.

“Whether it’s an opener, as a multi-inning guy, today getting the last three outs -- it was just good to see.”

Right-hander Frankie Scalzo Jr. was promoted to Triple-A Iowa from Double-A Knoxville.

I-Cubs catcher Christian Bethancourt went on the bereavement list.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs hung on to beat the Columbus Clippers (Guardians), 13-12.

Starter Doug Nikhazy didn’t fool anyone early, as he gave up two runs in the first on two solo home runs and four more in the second on a grand slam. But he settled down and pitched two more scoreless innings. His final line was six runs on six hits over four innings. Nikhazy walked three and struck out three.

Ryan Jensen threw the fifth inning and got the win. He allowed a two-out walk, but no other baserunners. Jensen struck out two.

Vince Velazquez came out to pitch the next three innings and allowed just one run from the sixth to the eighth innings. But then Velazquez came out to pitch the ninth. Then this happened.

So Velazquez ended up being charged with four runs on two hits and five walks over 3+ innings. Gabe Klobosits came on to relieve Velazquez and he allowed two inherited runners to score, one batter whose walk was charged to Velazquez to score, and two more runs of his own. But Iowa’s six-run lead in the ninth was enough to withstand a five-run top of the ninth.

Left fielder Owen Miller homered twice tonight. The first one was with two on in the fourth. The second one was a solo home run in the eighth. It was his first two home runs of the year. Miller went 3 for 5.

Center fielder Justin Dean connected for a solo home run in the fifth. Dean was 2 for 5 with a walk and two runs scored. The home run was Dean’s second this season.

Catcher Eric Yang also homered with the bases empty in the sixth, his second on the campaign. Yang went 1 for 5.

Third baseman Pedro Ramírez was 3 for 4 with a double and he was hit by a pitch. Ramírez scored twice and drove home one.

First baseman Jonathon Long went 3 for 4 with a walk. He scored two runs and had two RBI.

Shortstop Scott Kingery was 2 for 4 with a double and a walk. He scored once.

Owen Miller’s three-run blast.

Dean’s shot.

Eric Yang clobbered that one.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies swept a doubleheader from the Birmingham Barons (White Sox), 8-1 and 3-2.

Brooks Caple had a strong Smokies debut, throwing 3.2 scoreless innings. Caple allowed two hits, walked two and struck out six.

Marino Santy took over for Caple in the fourth and got the win. Santy allowed one run on two hits over 2.1 innings. He struck out four and walked one.

The Smokies scored eight runs in this game on only one hit, thanks to ten walks, a hit batter and two wild pitches. At one point in the fourth inning the Smokies were winning 5-0 and being no-hit. But catcher Owen Ayers cleared the basses with a three-run triple, the only hit of the game for Knoxville. Ayers was 1 for 2 with a walk and a stolen base. He scored once.

The only hit of game one for Knoxville. [VIDEO]

In game two, Dawson Netz completely shut down the Barons for five innings. He gave up no runs and no hits. He did walk two while striking out six as he improved his record to 2-0.

Tyler Santana pitched the final two innings and the no-hitter was broken up with a leadoff single in the seventh. Santana ended up giving up two runs on three hits over two innings as he picked up the save. Santana walked one and struck out one.

Left fielder Jordan Nwogu had an RBI single in the third inning (where a second run scored on an error) and an RBI single in the fifth. Nwogu was 2 for 3.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs hammered the Lansing Lugnuts (Athletics), 14-6.

Starter Kevin Valdez gave up two solo home runs to Bobby Boser. Otherwise, his final line was three runs on seven hits over 3.1 innings. Valdez walked two and struck out one.

The win went to Kenyi Perez, who relieved Valdez in the fourth. Perez faced six batters. Five of them he struck out. He walked the other one.

Ethan Flanagan was on the mound after that for a four-inning save. Flanagan allowed seven runs on three hits. He struck out five and walked one.

Left fielder Christian Olivo had a magic night in South Bend. Olivo was a perfect 4 for 4 with a walk and two home runs. The first one was a three-run home run in the fifth and the second one was a two-run blast in the sixth. Olivo now has four home runs this year. Olivo had six total RBi and scored three times.

Second baseman Alex Madera was 3 for 5. He scored twice and drove in two.

Right fielder Leonel Espinoza went 2 for 5. He scored once and had one run batted in.

Shortstop Ty Southisene was 2 for 5 with one run scored.

Highlights.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans cracked open the Hickory Crawdads (Rangers), 6-2 in ten innings.

Dominick Reid turned in a dominant start. He allowed no runs on just one hit over five innings. Reid walked no one, although hid did hit two batters, and struck out six.

Daniel Avita pitched the next three innings and he permitted two runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out five.

The win went to Jordan Henriquez, who retired all six batters he faced in the ninth and tenth innings. He struck out four.

The Pelicans blew this game open with a four-run top of the tenth. Center fielder Alexy Lumpuy plated the automatic runner with a single. Lumpuy went 2 for 5 and scored once.

But the big blow in the tenth was a two-run double by second baseman Jose Escobar. Escobar was 2 for 5.

Both Pelicans runs in regulation came on solo home runs. Left fielder Darlyn De Leon homered in the second inning. He went 1 for 3 with a walk and two runs scored.

In the third inning, right fielder Josiah Hartshorn cracked his fourth home run of the year. Hartshorn went 2 for 4. He was also hit by a pitch and stole a base.

De Leon’s blast.

Hartshorn’s blast.

ACL Cubs

Lost to the Brewers, 6-5.

Kaleb Wing’s second pro start didn’t go as well as the first. Wing took the loss after giving up three runs on four hits over 4.2 innings He did strike out eight and walked only two.

SAN FRANCISCO — It wasn’t pretty. But it’s a win.

At this point, that’s good enough for the Giants, who staved off sole possession of the majors’ worst record Friday with a 5-2 win to start their series against the Pirates.

Robbie Ray walked four batters and was at 72 pitches through three innings, but the Giants’ starter buckled down to complete six frames.

Despite walking the bases loaded in the third, Pittsburgh’s only damage against the left-hander came on a solo shot from Marcell Ozuna.

Rafael Devers was the solo proprietor of runs for the home team until San Francisco finally broke through for some insurance in its third scoring opportunity of the evening.

Devers’ fourth home run of the season — his second in as many games — matched Ozuna blast-for-blast to tie the score at 1 in the bottom of the second. He singled and scored in his next at-bat to give the Giants a 2-1 lead that would hold up for Ray’s third win in nine starts.

San Francisco added on to its advantage with three runs off the Pirates’ bullpen in the seventh. The rally was started by another slumping slugger, Willy Adames, who added a second knock for his second multi-hit game since April 17.

It proved to be necessary insurance as the Pirates plated one run and brought the tying run to bat in the ninth. Caleb Killian was able to get out of the jam to earn his second save of the season.

What it means

Ray had been the recipient of some of the lowest run support in the majors (2.72 per game) but got more than enough against Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski.

With the Rockies’ extra-innings win over the Phillies, the Giants had to win to keep pace — with the second-worst team in the sport. Thanks to Colorado, San Francisco’s negative-42 run differential isn’t bottom of the barrel. That distinction belongs to the Phillies (minus-44).

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Who’s hot

The further away from April the schedule moves, the more Devers is beginning to look like himself. The slugger has officially begun to come out of a season-long slumber over his past eight games, recording hits in all of them while batting .346 (9-for-26) with a 1.041 OPS.

The most encouraging sign might be the pitches Devers is doing damage against. Both his home runs this week have come against fastballs. Over the course of his hitting streak, Devers is batting 6-for-14 against the hard stuff, a vast improvement over his .269 start to the season.

“When he gets going, we start rolling,” Ray said. “If he’s feeling good in the box, if he’s taking at-bats like that, he can carry a team. It’s good to see.”

Who’s not

The five-spot represented one of the best scoring outputs for the Giants this season — only the second time in their past 10 games they reached that modest total.

But it was hardly an all-you-can-eat buffet for their bats.

Most notably: A group that has taken, by far, the fewest walks in the majors went its third game in a row without working a free pass from an opposing pitcher.

There have only been 12 such stretches previously in the bicoastal history of the franchise. It has happened just once — early on in 2009 — dating back to 1976.

Still, San Francisco had no shortage of runners and still managed strand five on base.

The Giants haven’t done much hitting or running — last in the majors in both runs and stolen bases — but executed both at the same time to perfection in the third to give them runners at the corners. Luis Arraez rolled over into an inning-ending double play.

The following inning, Casey Schmitt and Devers led off with a pair of knocks, giving the Giants runners at the corners and nobody out. Schmitt was thrown out at home when he broke on contact on a grounder to third from Matt Chapman.

That was only the first out of the inning. The frame came to a close when Chapman, for no apparent reason, got caught between second and third on a single to center from Heliot Ramos. Devers, at least, was able to touch home plate before Chapman was tagged out.

Up next

The Giants will try to win consecutive games for the first time since the end of their last home stand. RHP Landen Roupp (5-2, 3.18) gets the ball against RHP Braxton Ashcraft (1-2, 3.02).

Here an eight-figure salary, there an eight-figure salary, seemingly everywhere an eight-figure salary. There are not too many nights when you can point to a position and say the man playing a certain position for the Dodgers makes $17 million less this season than the opposing player at the same position.

This was one of them. The Atlanta Braves are paying Chris Sale, the nine-time All-Star, $18 million this season. The Dodgers are paying Emmet Sheehan a little less than $1 million.

You might not have bet on this outcome in the sports books or prediction markets: The Dodgers won.

Not because your home team has suddenly become a plucky underdog, even if the Braves (26-13) have a better record. The Dodgers (24-14) dented Sale for three runs in seven innings — one on a home run by Freddie Freeman ($27 million this year), one on a double by Kyle Tucker ($55 million), and one on a single by Shohei Ohtani ($70 million).

Final score: Dodgers 3, Braves 1.

Read more:Dodgers put Tyler Glasnow on injured list; Blake Snell set to start Saturday

“I know the guys think a win is a win,” infielder Miguel Rojas said, “but knowing that we’re facing (the team with) the best record in the league now and those guys have been playing really good, the bullpen showed that they took the ball and knew what they were going to face.

“For me, it’s a pretty good win, because it tells us we are ready for the big picture.”

Two of the Dodgers’ pitching stars on Friday arrived in Los Angeles together, in a little-noticed trade that now stands out as one of Andrew Friedman’s most underrated. In the fifth inning, Alex Vesia relieved Sheehan and induced a two-on, two-out fly out from Matt Olson, who might be the National League’s most valuable player to date.

In the sixth inning, Kyle Hurt stranded two runners on base to complete a scoreless inning and lower his earned-run average to 0.90. In 2021, Friedman acquired Vesia and Hurt from the Miami Marlins for middle reliever Dylan Floro.

Since then, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said, Vesia has mentored Hurt.

“There’s just real confidence now,” Roberts said. “There’s always been talent.”

Will Klein, Brock Stewart and Tanner Scott finished off the Braves on a night the bullpen delivered 4⅓ shutout innings.

Vesia’s one-batter, one-out performance earned him his first victory of the season, with Scott working the ninth for the save.

Each team scored once in the second inning, with the Dodgers adding an unearned run in the fifth on the Ohtani single and a final run in the sixth on Freeman’s fourth home run — and first since April 6.

In 12 career at-bats against Sale, Freeman has two home runs. Teoscar Hernández is the only other player on the Dodgers’ current roster ever to homer off Sale.

For a left-handed hitter like Freeman, Sale combines a power fastball with a funky delivery.

“He’s probably the toughest lefty you are going to face in this game, as a left-handed hitter,” Freeman said. “He’s coming from behind you.” 

It is not that Sheehan outpitched Sale. But Sheehan pitched well enough, against a very good opponent and a very good opposing pitcher, for the Dodgers to consider this progress.

“I thought Emmet threw the ball as well as he’s thrown the ball all year, as far as stuff and compete,” Roberts said. “What he gave us was what we needed.

“I think it’s something for Emmet to build on.”

Sheehan fired his fastballs from 94-96 mph in the first three innings, and six of his first eight outs were strikeouts. His fastball velocity dropped into the 92-93 mph range in the fourth and fifth inning, and four of his final eight batters reached base.

“I think it’s just being more consistent with my mechanics,” Sheehan said. “Obviously, trying not to think about that out there but, yeah, I definitely wish I could have held it a little better.”

The line was good enough: one run over 4⅔ innings, with one walk and seven strikeouts. How long the Dodgers might stick with a pitcher with a 4.79 ERA could be determined by how long Tyler Glasnow stays on the injured list. Glasnow hit the IL Friday because of back spasms, so the question of whom the Dodgers drop from the rotation to make room for Blake Snell is moot for now. The Dodgers plan to activate Snell from the injured list Saturday and start him against the Braves.

The Dodgers hope to activate shortstop Mookie Betts from the IL Monday, and the question of whom the Dodgers drop from their roster could be determined in part by the status of Rojas, who left the game in the eighth inning. 

Rojas slipped getting out of the batter’s box in the second inning and said he had “kind of a dead leg” sensation after being hit while taking a throw at shortstop in the sixth. He said he expected to be “fine” going forward.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Nolan McLean endured the shortest outing of his career, his last time out, lasting just four innings as he was knocked around a bit by the Los Angeles Angels. 

The young righty was able to bounce back nicely Friday against the Diamondbacks, though.  

McLean didn’t have his best stuff, but he still gave the Mets six solid innings. 

“My job is to get as deep into the game as I can every time I go out,” he said postgame. “I was disappointed in myself last time not being able, so it was pretty important for me today.”

McLean worked around a two-out Corbin Carroll double in the first, but then served up a Nolan Arenado homer on just the second pitch of the bottom of the second. 

The crafty right-hander found his footing from there, retiring the next six hitters he faced before hitting Carroll with a pitch leading off the bottom of the fourth. McLean immediately rolled a double-play, though, to put up another zero. 

He was able to evade a walk in the fifth and then a single in the sixth, ending his night with just the one run allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out eight Arizona hitters.

“He was pretty solid,” Carlos Mendoza said. “He did a good job pacing himself -- the sinker was good when he needed it, the breaking ball, the sweeper, the curveball, and when he needed to let it eat, he put some on it with the velo.

“He found a way to give us six good innings, so pretty solid there -- just the execution, strike-throwing, the attack, the way he was using all of his pitches, he was pretty good today.”

The Mets' bats couldn't back him up, but they finally came back to life in the 10th to rally for the series-opening win. 

Dodger Stadium has been a house of horrors for the Braves over the years, and it continued to be so on Friday night as they lost yet again, 3-1. Atlanta had chances to score in seemingly every inning and just couldn’t get the big hit to swing the game. They ended the night 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position with 10 runners left on base.

Yikes.

The lone run came by way of an Austin Riley single up the middle in the second to score Michael Harris. It seemed like more could be on the way, but back-to-back strikes from Mike Yastrzemski and Jim Jarvis promptly ended the threat.

Shortly after the Braves took the lead, the Dodgers quickly responded with an RBI double from Kyle Tucker to tie it up. In the fifth, LA took the lead with a Shohei Ohtani single to make it 2-1. And in the sixth, Freddie Freeman homered to make it 3-1. And that’s all she wrote.

Chris Sale was really strong for seven innings; he deserved a better fate tonight. He struck out seven, didn’t walk anyone, and scattered five hits. One of the three runs he allowed was unearned as Jarvis uncorked a wild throw that ultimately plated the go-ahead run. Aaron Bummer threw a clean 8th inning against the top of LA’s lineup, an encouraging sign.

The series continues Saturday night and all eyes will be on Spencer Strider, who needed 80+ pitches in his season debut to record 10 outs. Strider will be opposed by Blake Snell, who may be a bit limited as he makes his season debut a little earlier than expected. First pitch will be an hour earlier at 9:10 p.m. ET.

Game Summary

Let’s look back at another close loss for the 2026 Diamondbacks – or don’t and just skip straight to venting in the comments if you wish. For those of you still here, away we go.

Ryne Nelson put together his second straight strong start in May after scuffling through the month of April. He became the third of four Snakes’ starters to pitch into the 7th inning after Torey Lovullo pulled all of his starters into the office and told them they needed to be better. Well, the have been better. Much better. But Torey’s club has lost 3 of the the 4 ballgames since anyway. Tonight, Nelson was very efficient, sticking in and around the strike zone all night and finishing with 2 hits allowed, 7 strikeouts and a lonely walk to the last hitter he faced in 6.2 innings. Nelson’s one crime was a leadoff homer he allowed to Mark Vents in the top of the 2nd inning. After that, he was nails, including a run of 14 straight hitters retired before his walk with 2 outs in the 6th that ended his night. Nelly is looking much more like the pitcher he was for the bulk of 2024-25, which is great news for the 2026 D-backs.

The bullpen was also great, until it wasn’t. Juan Morillo and Brandyn Garcia put in excellent outings to keep the game in reach for the Snakes, but Kevin Ginkel came in for the 10th a gave up back-to-back doubles and a bunt single before finally getting an out before handing the ball to Torey. Jonathan Loaisiga promptly got 2 ground outs to end the frame.

Normally, 2 earned runs wouldn’t sink you, but the Diamondbacks offense right now is not normal. Tonight’s 1-run squeaker by the offense makes it 5 games in their last 9 in which they’ve been held to 2 runs or less. Unsurprisingly, they are 0-5 in those games. Nolan Arenado had a leadoff homer to match Mark Vientos in the 2nd, but after that, it was mostly crickets. They had opportunities, sure, but the good guys went 0-5 with RISP and left 8 on base. To be fair, Nolan McLean is a tough customer, but this is no longer a one-off. Hopefully the offense comes back to life soon, but as we Diamondbacks fans are conditioned to expect, when the offense figures it out, one of the bullpen or starting pitching – or both – will collapse.

Oh well. I’ll still be there to watch it all go down with you all here on the ‘Pit. The Waldschmidt era has arrived and Alek Thomas is out the door. I have a feeling that AT’s exit is only the first in a series of moves the D-backs will begin to make if they don’t figure things out quickly, overhauling much of the regulars we’ve had in the org over the past few years. Buckle up folks!

Loss Probability and Box Score

Outside the Box Score

• After Gabi blew an ABS challenge on the first pitch of the game, Nelson came back and struck out Juan Soto on the next 3 pitches, culminating with a whiff on a 98mph fastball right at the top of the zone.
• No bearing on the outcome of the game whatsoever, but a gentleman wearing a Dodgers hat caught Nolan Arenado’s home run ball in the third. He was clearly stoked about catching a home run ball. It’s great that no matter who your team is, catching a ball will turn you giddy.
• DBacks fandom collectively held its breath at the end of the top of the third inning when Corbin Carroll made a fantastic catch fading/jumping into the right field fence. It looked like maybe his throwing hand was hurt since he was holding in close to his hip and then gave a little hop with a grimace as he ran back in to the dugout. Corbin had his helmet on in the dugout getting ready to hit the next inning so hopefully just a stinger that won’t cause any future issues.
• Ildemaro Vargas made a very good diving play at second base to take a hit away from the Mets to lead off the fourth. He quickly spun around through to first while barely getting off the deck. Fernandez, for his part, did well to corral the throw far to the fair side of the bag and complete the putout.
• The television broadcast showed a graphic during Corbin’s second AB of the game that showed the difference between his OPS in games the DBacks win vs. games they lose. His OPS is north of 1.300 in wins and around .400 when they lose, the largest gap in MLB so far this year. Corbin is our motor.
• Ryne Nelson only had 64 pitches at the end of 5 innings. Looking extremely efficient, with only one 3-ball count through those 5 innings per the broadcast, and a Zone% of 58% (for comparison, Nolan McLean was at 49%).
• Jose Fernandez was called out on strikes in the fifth on a curveball that looked pretty far outside, but already being down a challenge thanks to Gabi’s first pitch decision, made the decision to not risk the team’s final challenge at the halfway point of the game. Bummer as it would have brought up a full count with a runner on first and only 1 out instead of being the 2nd out of the inning.
• Ryne Nelson owned Juan Soto all night long. 2 strikeouts and a lazy fly out and he didn’t look comfortable in the box all game.
• The common refrain when something, anything, goes wrong for the Diamondbacks pitching late in the game, is that Torey was late with his hook for the pitcher. Tonight, he got up Morillo midway through the 7th and after Nelly had back-to-back full counts – with the second one resulting in a walk – Torey went out and got his starting pitcher after 6.2 stellar innings of work. Juan Morillo made quick work of Marcus Semien to strand the runner and, unfortunately, guarantee Nelson would get a No Decision for his work tonight.
• Luis Torrens, the Mets catcher tonight, took a foul ball straight off the bottom of his mask from the bat of Jose Fernandez. He was down for several minutes and was clearly in pain based on his reaction to the Mets trainer prodding around his jaw and chin, but – as most catchers are – he’s tough as nails and got the mask back on got back behind the plate. I don’t know if I could mentally get through a full season as a Major League catcher. My hats off to them, that is a brutal position.
• The Diamondbacks finally got to face someone other than Nolan McLean in the 7th inning, and the Rattle of the lineup went walk, single, walk with 2 outs to bring up Domo with a chance to put the Serpientes ahead for the first time of the night. Unfortunately, Gerry rolled over to first base for an easy out to end the threat.
• Ryan Waldschmidt, fresh off the bus from Reno, came in as a pinch-hitter for ADC with 2 out in the 8th for his first AB in the Majors and spanked single that fell at the feet of Juan Soto for his first career hit in the Bigs. Congratulations on the first of many hits Waldy!
• The Mets had runners at the corners with 1 out in the 10th and smartly had Semien steal second to remove the threat of the double play. Good thing for them as the next ball in play was a soft grounder right back to Jonny Lasagna, but since the Mets were running on contact, the Snakes got an easy out at the plate for the 2nd out of the inning and then Jonny induced a soft grounder to Arenado to finish the extra frame. Too bad it was 2 runs too late.

Comment of the Game

The GameDay Thread was very well attended with several topics touched on outside the ballgame (per usual). A final tally of 413 comments at time of publishing. Comment of the Game tonight is awarded to chwalter for this gem:

Coming Up

The Diamondbacks face the Mets for the second game of this 3-game set tomorrow evening with a 4:15pm first pitch televised on FOX. Righthander Clay Holmes (4-2, 1.69 ERA) will take the mound for New York and Merrill Kelly (1-3, 9.95 ERA) takes the ball for the good guys looking to show signs of life. Here’s to Merrill returning to his Mainstay form.

The Mets came alive late to beat the Arizona Diamondbacks 3-1 in extra innings on Friday night at Chase Field.

Here are some takeaways...

- Nolan McLean was a bit shaky, but he rebounded nicely following the shortest outing of his career. The crafty right-hander was hurt by a solo homer leading off the bottom of the second, but was otherwise solid, holding Arizona to a walk and two other hits across six innings of work. 

McLean struck out six batters on the night, including two in a strong final frame. 

- Unfortunately for McLean, the Mets' offense couldn't get much of anything going against Ryne Nelson for the second time this season. Mark Vientos' solo homer in the top of the second was their lone tally on the board, which the righty followed by giving up a leadoff single in the third, then retiring the next 14 Mets he faced.

A Carson Benge two-out walk in the seventh ended that stretch and chased Nelson from the game. 

- Vientos' homer continued a positive stretch at the plate for the slugging infielder after his dreadful spring training and start to the season. The blast that left the bat at a whopping 104 mph and traveled 401 feet was his fifth on the year and gave him seven RBI since the calendar flipped to May. 

- Luis Torrens had a bit of a scare in the bottom of the seventh, as he took a 97.1 mph Jose Fernandez foul ball directly off the bottom of his catchers mask. The veteran backstop was visibly shaken up as he was checked out by the Mets' trainer, but he was able to remain in the ballgame.

- Back in Arizona, an amped up Luke Weaver easily retired the first two batters he faced. The right-hander allowed the next three batters to reach, loading the bases with two walks and a hit, but he was able to get Geraldo Perdomo to roll over to first to escape the jam with the game still even. 

- Brooks Raley gave up a two-out pinch-hit single to Arizona top prospect Ryan Waldschmidt in his first career at-bat, but then was helped out by a terrific diving stop by Marcus Semien and Vientos scoop at first to end a scoreless eighth. 

- Devin Williams made quick work of the D-backs in the bottom of the ninth, then the Mets' bats wasted no time cashing in the ghost runner in the 10th. Vientos laced a first-pitch double to bring in the go-ahead run, then Carson Benge followed that with a run-scoring ground-rule double of his own. 

- New York wasted a first-and-third with no out opportunity to cash in more, but Tobias Myers was able to come on and needed just 10 pitches to lock down the first save of his career. 

- The Mets improved to 5-2 through seven games of their nine-game road trip.

Game MVP: Mark Vientos

The red-hot slugger accounted for the majority of New York's offense. 

Highlights

Mark Vientos' 5th home run of the season! pic.twitter.com/DrKr979dzW

— SNY (@SNYtv) May 9, 2026

2 nasty Ks from Nolan McLean as he finishes off 6 solid innings pic.twitter.com/6pwYEQLMtv

— SNY (@SNYtv) May 9, 2026

Marcus Semien with the diving stop! pic.twitter.com/AHGbdsuTX6

— SNY (@SNYtv) May 9, 2026

Mark Vientos first-pitch swinging in the 10th to give the Mets the lead with a double! pic.twitter.com/JtKjtPHIhc

— SNY (@SNYtv) May 9, 2026

Carson Benge follows Mark Vientos' RBI double with one of his own! pic.twitter.com/JL3Held7CI

— SNY (@SNYtv) May 9, 2026

What's next

Clay Holmes looks to continue his phenomenal start to the season as he faces off with Merrill Kelly on Saturday at 7:15 p.m.

It was an electric night in San Diego as a brilliant start by Michael McGreevy and a “Little League grand slam” from JJ Wetherholt led the St. Louis Cardinals to another victory over the San Diego Padres.

It would be easy to start drawing some conclusions that are likely overreactions from Friday night’s game between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres. Let’s start with the possibility that Michael McGreevy is the current ace of the Cardinals staff. He held the Padres hitless until the bottom of the 4th inning when Jackson Merrill managed a single off of him. It’s also probably too early to start thinking of the Cardinals as a team of destiny but there was another sign that might be the case based on what happened in the top half of the 5th inning.

For the first 4 innings, Ivan Herrera was the only Cardinal with a hit (and he had four of them on the night), but it wasn’t until the 5th inning that the Cardinals started mounting a serious threat (which they followed through on admirably). Masyn Winn singled to start off the top of the 5th. Nathan Church reached on an infield single and Masyn advanced to second. After Prieto struck out, Victor Scott II drew a walk to load the bases and that brought up JJ Wetherholt who did not disappoint. In typical JJ fashion, he did something productive that turned into a play that broke the game open. On the third pitch of his at-bat, he ripped a single to right field which went under the glove of Fernando Tatis Jr. and it was off to the races.

Technically, it was a single and a 3-base/2-run error, but for the rest of us, it was a Little League grand slam that gave the Cardinals a 4-0 lead with JJ getting credited for 2 RBI’s. St. Louis wasn’t done, either. Ivan Herrera snuck another single between third base and short followed by a double that was lanced down the left field line by Alec Burleson which advanced Herrera to third. Jordan Walker followed that with a nice 4-pitch walk to load the bases again and Nolan Gorman came through with a single to score Herrera that made it 5-0 Cardinals. Masyn Winn managed a sacrifice fly to score Burleson and make it 6-0 St. Louis. The Rally Dawg had to be proud of the Cardinals 5th inning.

The real story Friday night was Michael McGreevy. Six innings allowing just 1 hit and no runs with 9 strikeouts and just 2 walks is ace stuff. He did not allow the Padres to create any kind of momentum. Big offense from the Cardinals grabbed the headlines, but Michael McGreevy’s performance deserves its own standing ovation.

Gordon Graceffo pitched a solid inning of relief in the bottom of the 7th and also pitched the bottom of the 8th allowing no Padres baserunners. A nice bounce-back from his last outing. Ryne Stanek was brought in to close out the Padres in the 9th inning and he did it without drama giving Riley O’Brien a night of rest. Cardinals pitchers collectively threw a 1-hit shutout. Very nice.

Dustin May will get the Saturday night start at Petco Park for the Cardinals as he’ll do battle with Randy Vásquez who will take the mound for the Padres. First pitch is set for 6:15pm central time and the musical chairs broadcast schedule has the game being broadcast on Fox Saturday night.