May 6, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Baltimore Orioles left fielder Taylor Ward (3) celebrates scoring a run in the seventh inning against the Miami Marlins at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Jim Rassol-Imagn Images | Jim Rassol-Imagn Images
With the MLB Draft only about two months away I thought it would be good to examine the history of the players selected with the picks the Atlanta Braves have in the 2026 MLB Draft. With the Braves picking 26th overall for their second first round selection, I decided to start by looking at the history of the 26th pick in the draft in the modern era – or since 1987.
Every player and the team selecting them are being listed, as well as their bWAR. At the end I will run down the hit to bust rate, and what the median WAR produced is – excluding players drafted after 2020.
Note that with the WAR, a N/A indicates that the player never made it to the big leagues, while a player listed at 0.0 is for players that did appear in a big league game and just had a neutral WAR.
Picks
1987.Red Sox-Reggie Harris, RHP, -0.1 WAR
1988.Tigers-Rico Brogna, 1B, -1.1
1989.Mariners-Scott Burrell, RHP, Did Not Sign (NBA)
1990.A’s-Don Peters, RHP, N/A
1991.A’s-Brent Gates, SS, 5.5
1992.Twins-Dan Serafini, LHP, -0.8
1993.Brewers-Kelly Wunsch, LHP, 3.1
1994.White Sox-Mark Johnson, C, 1.9
1995.Braves-Chad Hutchinson, RHP, Did Not Sign (Football)
1996.Red Sox-Josh Garrett, RHP, N/A
1997.Orioles-Darnell McDonald, OF, 0.9
1998.Orioles-Rick Elder, OF, N/A
1999.Cubs-Ben Christensen, RHP, N/A
2000.Indians-Corey Smith, SS, N/A
2001.A’s-Jeremy Bonderman, RHP, 4.9
2002.A’s-John McCurdy, SS, N/A
2003.A’s-Brian Snyder, 3B, N/A
2004.A’s-Richie Robnett, OF, N/A
2005.Red Sox-Craig Hansen, RHP, -1.9
2006.Dodgers-Bryan Morris, RHP, 2.7
2007.A’s-James Simmons, RHP, N/A
2008.Diamondbacks-Daniel Schlereth, LHP, 0.0
2009.Brewers-Eric Arnett, RHP, N/A
2010.Rockies-Kyle Parker, OF, -1.7
2011.Red Sox-Blake Swihart, C, -0.6
2012.Diamondbacks-Stryker Trahan, C, N/A
2013.Yankees-Eric Jagielo, 3B, N/A
2014.Red Sox-Michael Chavis, SS, 0.1
2015.Angels-Taylor Ward, C, 10.9
2016.White Sox-Zack Burdi, RHP, -0.8
2017.Rangers-Bubba Thompson, OF, -0.6
2018.Red Sox-Triston Casas, 3B, 2.2
2019.Diamondbacks-Blake Walston, LHP, -0.1
2020.A’s-Tyler Soderstrom, C, 3.7
2021.Twins-Chase Petty, RHP, -0.7
2022.White Sox-Noah Schultz, LHP, 0.2
2023.Yankees-George Lombard Jr., SS, N/A
2024.Yankees-Ben Hess, RHP, N/A
2025.Phillies-Gage Wood, RHP, N/A
Breakdown
Total Players Drafted and Signed 1987-2019: 31
Total WAR: 24.4
Average WAR: 0.8
Five Best Players: Taylor Ward (114 career HR), Brent Gates (.685 OPS), Jeremy Bonderman (200 starts), Tyler Soderstrom, Triston Casas
Total 20+ WAR: 0
Total 10+ WAR: 1
Total Who Failed to Reach MLB: 12 (Excluding Burrell, who didn’t sign due to the NBA)
Thoughts
The 26th pick has been pretty awful over the last nearly 40 years. The fact that Taylor Ward is by far the best player to come out of that pick, says everything. It’s also telling that the rest of the Top 5 players to be drafted with this pick include a guy with a sub-.700 OPS, a pitcher who was more about volume (200 starts) than production (89 ERA+), a 24-year-old, and a player who despite only being 26 hasn’t done anything for the past two years due to injury.
Things could really change in the next few years though. Tyler Soderstrom is a talented young slugger, Noah Schultz and George Lombard Jr. are among the top prospects in the game, and Chase Petty, Ben Hess, and Gage Wood are all prospects with potential. You could also add that Triston Casas and Blake Walston are still young, and if they are able to return to health, could still make an impact.
The odds aren’t in the Braves favor, with nearly 40% of the guys picked 26th failing to reach the big leagues, and there really only being one player in almost 40 years who became even a solid starter.
May 17, 2026; Denver, Colorado, USA; The infield is covered during a weather delay before the start of the game between the Colorado Rockies and the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field. Mandatory Credit: Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images | Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
Recaps
[AZ Central] Diamondbacks build big lead, hold off Rockies in road trip finale – A weather delay was announced five minutes before the scheduled first pitch, and a few minutes later, groundskeepers rolled out the field tarp. Light rain then began to fall. At 1:31 p.m., in Denver, fans were told to seek shelter with lightning in the area. But the sky eventually cleared up, the tarp was off the field by 2:35 p.m. and the game got under way. Fans in the stands sang along and danced to music, including Neil Diamond’s classic “Sweet Caroline. Most appeared to have waited out the delay.
[dbacks.com] Carroll homers twice as D-backs erupt, then hold off Rox late rally – After being held homerless for the first two games of the series, the D-backs unloaded on the Coors Field bleachers Sunday, with Corbin Carroll knocking a pair to pace Arizona’s 8-6 win over the Rockies and secure the series win and a .500 road trip. Gurriel knocked his first homer of the season in the two-run fifth and Carroll’s second homer of the game, a 448-foot blast to right-center, accounted for a sixth-inning insurance run to make it an 8-2 lead. Michael Soroka pitched 5 2/3 innings for Arizona, allowing two runs (both earned) on six hits and two walks while striking out eight.
[Arizona Sports] Corbin Carroll knocks 2 home runs in Diamondbacks’ win over Rockies – With the D-backs up 3-0 in the fourth inning, Carroll hit a 94-mph fastball off Rockies righty Michael Lorenzen into the Colorado bullpen for his sixth homer of the season to make it 5-0. His second homer of the day marked the ninth-career multi-home run game of Carroll’s career. His last multi-homer game came on June 3 last season against the Atlanta Braves. Carroll’s offensive outburst was a welcome sight for the Diamondbacks, as Arizona left 10 runners on base and went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position in a 4-2 loss to the Rockies on Saturday.
Team news
[AZ Big Media] Paul Sewald of the Diamondbacks has, literally, returned home – Last spring, Sewald and his wife, Molly, purchased a home in the Valley with a plan: six months at home, six months on the road, and stability for their two young daughters. The cycle of packing, unpacking and re-establishing routines was getting tiring. Then the phone rang. “The Diamondbacks called, and we thought, ‘That’s amazing,’” Sewald said, sitting in the dugout during batting practice. “Pretty cool to stay at home.” For Sewald, the move wasn’t just convenient — it was personal. Sewald and Molly met while she was an ASU student. His brother, Johnny, is also a former Sun Devil. The couple considered settling in the Valley during Sewald’s first stint with the D-backs, from 2023-2024.
[SI] Diamondbacks Prospect Manuel Pena Simply Can’t Be Ignored Any Longer – To say infield prospect Manuel Pena has been swinging a hot bat for the Double-A Amarillo Sod Poodles would be a vast undersell. The 22-year-old is simply posting a .963 OPS, with a .634 slugging percentage through the first 36 games of the Texas League season. The reason that slug is so high? Pena has 15 home runs already. That is on pace for just over 57 long balls in the 138-game Texas League season. Six of his home runs have come in the month of May, including a two-homer game back on May 7.
And, elsewhere…
[ESPN] Mariners call up top prospect Colt Emerson for MLB debut – [Emerson] will be the youngest Mariners player to make his major league debut since Félix Hernández did so at 19 on Aug. 4, 2005. Emerson signed an eight-year, $95 million contract April 1 — the biggest commitment at the time for a minor leaguer yet to make his major league debut. The Mariners selected Emerson with the 22nd pick in the 2023 draft, and his stock only rose from there. General manager Justin Hollander said, “This is not a 15 at-bat or 20 at-bat tryout to see if he’s capable of taking the job and running with it for the rest of the year.”
[Awful Announcing] Joe Davis, John Smoltz discuss whether MLB should change ABS strike zone – As Davis explained, walk rates (specifically, unintentional walk rates) are at an all-time high because the ABS has shrunk the strike zone. Davis then asked Smoltz, “Would you tweak the ABS zone, make it bigger in certain areas?” “No,” Smoltz, who was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2015, responded. “I think lowering it gives hitters a chance with velocity down vs. velocity up. If that strike zone was higher, no chance.” “That’s a spot where the zone has shrunk the most,” Davis said. “The top of the zone is three inches shorter than what umpires were calling last year.”
WEST PALM BEACH, FL - MARCH 09: Kevin Alvarez (11) of the Houston Astros throws from the outfield during a spring training practice game on March 09, 2026 at CACTI Park of the Palm Beaches in West Palm Beach, Florida. (Photo by Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Another day of minor league baseball is in the books. See the results below. Check out the previous days recap here.
AAA: Sugar Land Space Cowboys (20-25) lost 7-6 (BOX SCORE)
Sugar Land got on the board in the 3rd inning scoring 4 runs on a Strahm sac fly and Nelson 3 run home run. McPherson got the start making his Triple-A debut but struggled allowing 5 runs over 2.2 innings. After falling behind 6-4, the offense tied things up in the 7th on a Strahm 2 run single. The game went to the 9th and in the bottom of the 9th, Tacoma walked it off as Sugar Land fell 7-6.
Joey Mancini, RHP: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
Nate Pearson, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Sam Carlson, RHP: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Alimber Santa, RHP: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
Roddery Munoz, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
Logan VanWey, RHP: 0.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
AA: Corpus Christi Hooks (17-22) lost 5-3 (BOX SCORE)
Dombroski started for the Hooks and went 4 innings allowing 1 run. The offense tied it up in the 3rd on a Whitaker sac fly. In the 8th, the Hooks rallied for 2 runs on RBI doubles from Encarnacion and Meyers. The bullpen was solid until the 9th where Ramsey allowed 4 runs, though all were unearned. The offense was unable to counter in the bottom of the inning as the Hooks fell 5-3.
Alex Santos, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
Railin Perez, RHP: 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K
Ramsey David, RHP: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
A+: Asheville Tourists (9-30) lost 19-12 (BOX SCORE)
DeVos started for Asheville and went 4 innings allowing 6 runs, 4 earned. The offense got on the board in the 2nd inning on a Call RBI double. They picked up 3 more runs in the 4th on a Call 2 run home run and Thomas sac fly. Steinbaugh relieved DeVos but struggled allowing 6 runs over 1.2 innings. In the 5th, Daudet connected on a 3 run home run. Asheville rallied for 5 runs in the 6th inning to tie it on a fielder’s choice, Call 2 run double, and two runs scoring on wild pitches. The bullpen continued to struggled as the Spartanburgers added 7 more runs between the 8th and 9th inning. The offense loaded the bases in the bottom of the 9th but was unable to score as Asheville fell 19-12.
A: Fayetteville Woodpeckers (18-21) won 8-7 (BOX SCORE)
The Woodpeckers got on the board in the first inning on an Alvarez solo home run, his 5th of the season. Carrera got the start and went 5 innings allowing 7 runs. The offense battled back in the 5th scoring 2 runs on a Sierra RBI double and Alvarez RBI single. The offense got another run in the 6th on a Ramirez sac fly and one in the 7th inning on a wild pitch. The Woodpeckers tied things up in the 8th inning scoring 2 runs on a Wakefield groundout and Sierra sac fly. The offense took the lead in the 9th inning on a Salas RBI double. Smith went the final 4 innings allowing zero runs as he closed out the 8-7 win.
May 16, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Detroit Tigers shortstop Kevin McGonigle (7) hits a single in the third inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
By any measure, Tigers’ rookie Kevin McGonigle is having an excellent rookie year. The number two prospect in all of baseball coming into the year has an impressive .291/.397/.424 slash for the season and is walking more than he’s striking out. With his blistering start, he quickly settled into the leadoff slot of Detroit’s lineup.
That said, his month of May has been a bit of a struggle, as his power has mostly evaporated. He’s still taking his walks, but a .224 SLG on the month really won’t do. An exceptionally low BABIP for the month is deflating things even more, though a lot of routine fly balls and pop-ups will do that to you, but this is easily the worst stretch of his professional career. There’s nothing to be concerned about long-term at all, and we’re only talking about a few weeks for a 21-year-old rookie, but McGonigle is going to have to make some adjustments to get back on track.
To better understand what those adjustments might be, let’s pretend to be Red Team for the Detroit Tigers scouting department. Typically, MLB scouts focus on how to attack guys for the other team, but when you’re on the struggle bus, reverse scouting is the right idea. The premise is simple: if you put yourself in your opponent’s shoes and better understand how they want to attack you, you can adapt preemptively. To do so, I’ll try and find out McGonigle’s biggest weaknesses so far. Who knows, maybe he’ll read this and learn a thing or two about himself!
The first thing I thought I’d look at is pitch type distribution. Is there a pitch type the league has decided McGonigle can’t handle? I figured if that was the case, his pitch distributions before May 1 and since would look pretty different. Here’s that table:
Pitch Type (%)
Fastball
Offspeed
Breaking Balls
Before May 1
52
16.4
31.7
After May 1
58.6
14.8
26.6
There’s a small change there, but not the one I expected. Teams saw McGonigle spit on secondary pitches and ambush fastballs early in the year, so they responded by… throwing him more fastballs? That feels unintuitive, to say the least. For the whole season, both of his home runs have come on a fastball, and he’s only whiffing on 9% of them. On its own, this doesn’t feel like the solution to beat McGonigle. Trying to get McGonigle out on a fastball feels like crossing your fingers as you send the pitch out towards home plate, but the league seems to have a plan. Let’s keep going.
Next I decided to check pitch location. Maybe that could be more illuminating than pitch type, and indeed, I think it was. Here’s what I found, with the first image being the percentage of pitches he saw in April/May, and the second being for May so far:
Now the extra fastballs make sense. It’s no secret the modern pitcher loves fastballs up, and recently, McGonigle is facing a lot of those. That top right corner of the zone is a particular hot zone, as it’s the hardest pitch to pull for power. Pitchers seem to be coming in with a concerted effort, forcing McGonigle to play more to their strengths than his, knowing that he’s looking for fastballs to drive. The game plan appears to be trying to get ahead in counts with softer stuff, then challenging McGonigle and his average raw power up in the zone, assuming whatever air contact he makes will be more of a lazy fly ball than a crushed dinger. It’s a pretty solid plan, especially since McGonigle’s entire approach is predicated on singling out a few pitches to pull in the air for extra base damage; fastballs up and away help negate this.
Naturally, the follow-up is ‘is it working’? Is this new gameplan backing McGonigle into a corner? And the answer to that is… kind of? Let me try to explain. One way of looking at that would be launch angle; more pitches up probably means a higher launch angle, and we see that. Mostly:
I went ahead and highlighted May 1 in that photo to help give a timeframe. We see McGonigle’s rolling launch angle spike in early May, and then it drops almost as quickly as it climbed. This is measuring the launch angle of his previous 25 batted balls after every batted ball, so it’s susceptible to a lot of noise. In particular, since it’s an average, this isn’t a very precise instrument to begin with. A towering popup at 40 degrees and a weak grounder at -5 degrees average out at 17.5 degrees, same as two well-struck line drives, so it’s probably worth checking out how he’s getting to that mid-May average.
Here is where I have unfortunate news to share: McGonigle has seemingly entered his Ian Kinsler arc. His ground ball rate has spiked from 27.3% to 36.6%, his line drives are down from 27.3% to 19.5%, and worst of all, his infield fly rate has ballooned from 2.2% to a hilariously untenable 16.7% (note: infield flyball rate is expressed as the ratio infield fly balls/all fly balls, not infield fly balls/all batted balls, so it’s bad, but not as awful as it sounds at first blush). Still, this isn’t how a good hitter operates long-term. If McGonigle wants to start bashing again, he needs to either commit to punishing the fastball up he knows he’s going to get and going to the opposite field more, or spit on the fastball until two strikes and wait to ambush an in-zone mistake on a breaking ball.
The good news is he’s not broken and starting to chase: his plate discipline metrics are all still excellent. He’s not going out of the zone much, and he’s making as much contact in the zone as he did in March and April. Plus, as pitchers force him to look outside, he’s responded with more of an all-fields approach which should be the right decision, if he can get back to a line-drive swing. The only red flag is in his inability to punish the fastball up the way he needs to, or to just let more of those go since he isn’t getting that many of them actually in the zone where he can barrel them up. Instead, pitchers know he’s trying to read fastball out of hand, and they’re showing them to him while not really giving him many he can drive. Essentially they’re forcing him to take his walks and betting that he’ll be too tempted to offer when he does get the fastball.
Considering his short levers, great bat-to-ball skills, and strong eye at the plate, this shouldn’t be a pitch that breaks the whole profile long term. He’s really not built to barrel up pitches on the outer edge consistently, but he torched fastballs up in the zone throughout his minor league run and without regard to velocity. It’s likely the first time pitchers have consistently spotted fastballs up and away but close to the zone against him for weeks at a time, and now, the young rookie will have to adjust. This shouldn’t be a surprise for the kid who skipped AAA. MLB pitchers will eventually force some adaptations. Based on his career so far, and the excellent run we saw in March and April, I think we’re just one small approach tweak away from the on-base machine developing into a power hitting force at the top of the lineup.
LAS VEGAS, NEVADA - MARCH 7: Nick Kurtz #16 of the Athletics bats during a spring training game against the Los Angeles Angels at Las Vegas Ballpark on March 7, 2026 in Las Vegas, Nevada. (Photo by Justine Willard/Athletics/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to another new week A’s fans!
The team had a lackluster weekend as they dropped two of three to the Giants. Add that to the series loss mid-week to the Cardinals and the A’s did not have a great time in their latest homestand in Sacramento.
It’s in the books and behind us now though and the team has packed their bags and flown down south to Anaheim to take on the Angels in the team’s second four-game series of the season. This’ll be the first time these two teams have seen each other all year so it’s a fresh start against one another in that regard. The A’s will come into tonight’s series with a slim one-game lead over both the Texas Rangers and Seattle Mariners so the team really needs to rack up wins against these Angels.
Los Angeles is, yet again, near the bottom of the league but perhaps the bottom has truly fallen out from under them this year. At 16-31 the Angels are the owners of the worst record in the sport. Their offense, led by a resurgent Mike Trout, aren’t completely punchless but still rank in the bottom third in most offensive categories. Slugger Jorge Soler and shortstop Zack Neto have provided solid production, as has former Yankee Oswaldo Peraza, but they’ve gotten little help from the other spots in the batting order.
On the pitching side for the Angels they’ve been treated to the revelation of starter Jose Soriano, who is far and away the best pitcher on the team. They’ve gotten strong results from top-20 prospect Walbert Ureña as well but none of the starters have adequate ERA’s. They’ve also had their depth severely tested early on as they’ve already had 10 pitchers start a game for them this year. Things aren’t any better in their bullpen as their relief unit ranks 29th in the league in bullpen ERA, just ahead of the Astros.
The way things have been and are headed for the Angels right now, the future is not too bright. There’s not much in the way of reinforcements coming up in their farm system anytime soon, and Trout will be turning 35 in August. Could this be the year the team finally pulls the trigger and sends their franchise icon to a winning situation? That’ll be a fascinating story to watch as the summer trade deadline approaches.
The starting matchups this week are all already set. J.T. Ginn will get us started tonight as he gets the ball for his eighth start and looking to keep his roll going. He’ll be opposed by Ureña, who himself is pitching well and has had three straight solid starts. Another thing to keep an eye on in this game? If first baseman Nick Kurtz can extend his on-base streak to 41 games:
Nick Kurtz works a walk to leadoff the bottom of the first, extending his on-base streak to 40 consecutive games.
Only Mark McGwire has a longer single-season, on-base streak than Nick Kurtz in the last 40 years of A's franchise history.#Athleticspic.twitter.com/8CpfpHrpzB
Tuesday will see the lefty vs. lefty matchup this series as Jacob Lopez will take on Reid Detmers. Lopez has had struggles this year but has put together back-to-back quality starts and has lowered his season ERA by nearly a full run. There’s other arms in the system that are waiting for their shot though so Lopez needs to keep it up to keep the competition off his heels. Detmers, who once looked like a building block for the Angels years ago, has shifted back to the rotation after spending last year exclusively as a reliever. The early results have been mixed but he’s still only 26 years old and the Angels have nothing to lose letting him try to rediscover his previous form as a starter.
Right-hander Aaron Civale gets the ball for the A’s on Wednesday as he’ll be making his 10th start for the ballclub. He’s continued to be a steal for the Green & Gold as he’ll bring a 2.70 ERA into his first start of the year against the Angels, which ranks 7th in the American League. That mark also leads the Athletics’ pitching staff, though Ginn’s 3.12 mark isn’t far off. Civale will be going up against Jack Kochanowicz, who has gotten lit up to the tune of 12 runs in 10 innings over his previous two starts entering this one. Advantage: A’s.
The final pitching matchup of the series will pit the staff leaders against one another as Luis Severino goes up against one of the best starters this year in fellow righty Jose Soriano. Sevy was on a four-game roll before stumbling this weekend against the Giants. That was at home in Sacramento though and we all know how much he dislikes Sutter Health Park. Maybe getting back on the road will help him get back in the win column too. It won’t be easy as Soriano has been one of the best pitchers in the league this year. That said, he just endured his first rough start last time out when he surrendered six earned runs to the cross-town Dodgers, boosting his season ERA form 1.66 to 2.41. Still a good mark but doesn’t show how dominant he’s been for the Angels so far. Like Trout expect to hear his name in trade talks come this summer.
ESPN Analytics gives our #Athletics a 51.1% chance to beat the Angels tomorrow.
J.T. Ginn is projected to be on the bump tomorrow, will the righty lead the boys in a bounce back series?https://t.co/X9pI8zy8ur
Who else thinks that’s too small of odds? Gotta take at least three of four against these guys, but division games are always a different beast. First pitch of the series is at 6:38 tonight. Until then, have a great day everyone.
Denzel Clarke felt really good about where he was at in his progression and will begin a rehab assignment tonight with Single-A Stockton. Will play two games there today and tomorrow, then likely head to Triple-A Las Vegas next week.
Shotaro Morii, A’s No. 13 Prospect and baseball’s first “three-way” player, collected his first Single-A hit today—an RBI triple! 🔥 #Athleticspic.twitter.com/JhEgWYJrgm
RHP Chen Zhuang to LV IL RHP Nick Hernandez off LV develop list OF Denzel Clarke to STK on rehab IF Michael Stefanic DFA’d IF Alika Williams to A’s from PIT for LAN RHP Kyle Robinson OF Junior Perez to CWS for LHP Jackson Nove (to STK) RHP Jay Dill to LANhttps://t.co/joKXkyUAPy
— Bill Moriarity – A's Farm (@AthleticsFarm) May 18, 2026
FORT MYERS, FLORIDA - MARCH 7: Miguel Bleis #44 of the Boston Red Sox throws before a spring training game against the Tampa Bay Rays at JetBlue Park at Fenway South on March 7, 2026 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In yet another bullpen game, the WooSox kept Buffalo (Blue Jays AAA) off the scoreboard despite using six pitchers. Everyone was in lockstep, and the Bison managed just three hits on the night. The WooSox matched that total just in their extra base hits, and Nathan Hickey hit his third home run of the season out of the nine-hole to get Worcester on the board and in the lead for good.
Just as the Sea Dogs walked off the Yard Goats (Rockies AA) earlier in the week, this time, it was the home team’s turn to capitalize on a blown save. Michael Sansone had a very tough second inning but recovered well and kept it a tie game through 5. This was thanks to Brooks Brannon and Miguel Bleis each going yard in the first inning.
Now, I’m not saying that Bleis is suddenly going to become an organizational factor again, as this game pulled him only just barely back over the Mendoza line, but it’s good to know that revered power still exists somewhere. There was no power, or even much contact, from either side to speak of for the vast majority of this game; after no scores from the third inning all the way to the eighth, Max Ferguson had an RBI knock with two outs in the top of the ninth, and then Cooper Adams got walked off by allowing two runs. The six-game series in Connecticut was a split 3-3 and four were decided by one run.
After losing eight consecutive games including five with Bowling Green (Rays High-A) in town, the Drive finally got in the W column despite giving up ten runs on fourteen hits. The offense was aided by some usual suspects who remained hot even through the losing streak; Mason White hit his eighth home run of the season and Justin Gonazales had his sixth, a three-run shot to put Greenville up 12-3. Bowling Green would threaten to bring this drought to an end and get this to within two runs, but on Sunday, a dozen runs was enough to come away with the W.
The Drive got walked off by Fredericksburg (Nationals A) in the series finale, in part due to allowing ten walks on the afternoon and three in that defining ninth inning on the way one of those runners putting the game away, but it wasn’t all bad: Enddy Azocar, the 19-year-old outfielder and leadoff hitter for the RidgeYaks, had a four-hit day as his batting average re-approaches .300 and accounted for the team’s only stolen base of the day. Still, the team stranded a dozen men and they suffered a Sunday loss.
Have a merry Monday. And, special shout out to the first person to solidify me as a lifelong Sox fan, my father, who turns 65 today. Happy birthday Dad!
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - MAY 17: Yandy Díaz #2 of the Tampa Bay Rays reacts after hitting a home run against the Miami Marlins during the fifth inning of a baseball game at Tropicana Field on May 17, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Mike Carlson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I’m on double duty tonight for Rivalry Roundup and our Today on Pinstripe Alley/daily question post, so since I generally try to throw some very quick thoughts on what the Yankees did as well in these, you’ll excuse me for double-dipping in the next two paragraphs.
What an awful road trip. The Yankees got swept in Milwaukee, lost two of three to an underwhelming-as-hell Orioles team, and then did the same against the Mets, who entered as one of the worst teams in baseball. The 2-7 trip ended when David Bednar couldn’t hold a three-run lead in the ninth, evaporating the edge on a three-run blast by Tyrone Taylor. They then stranded the zombie runner and lost in the bottom of the 10th. That’s some bad baseball, folks.
Now, they get to play the Blue Jays! It doesn’t matter that they’ve been kind of whatever thus far in 2026; it’s not as though the O’s or Mets were rolling when the Yankees faced them this past week. So… joy.
Here’s some of what else was going on around the Junior Circuit.
Tampa Bay Rays (30-15) 6, Miami Marlins (21-26) 3
Just like that, the Rays are the American League’s first team to reach 30 wins — just as we all expected! They’re now three games up on the Yankees as well. Bad.
Early on, the Marlins shook off a Junior Caminero solo shot in the first and made a bigger statement by taking a 2-1 lead on Drew Rasmussen, as they seemed to identify a flaw in the Rasmussen/Nick Fortes battery. Owen Caissie reached on an infield hit, stole second, and scored on an Xavier Edwards single to center. Edwards then repeated the trick with Otto Lopez, swiping second and crossing home on Lopez’s hit. Although Lopez was stranded, he stole the Marlins’ third base of the inning. All told, the Fish went 5-of-6 on steals against this battery.
The Rays had an answer in the home half of of the fourth. Eury Pérez loaded the bases with one out on walks to Yandy Díaz and Cedric Mullins, as well as a double by Jonny DeLuca. He got Fortes to hit into a fielder’s choice, but was burned on a fastball down the heart of the plate to Taylor Walls. The normally light-hitting shortstop cracked a bases-clearing triple to the right-center-field gap that proved to be the difference in the ballgame.
Pérez fanned Chandler Simpson to strand Wells, but in the next inning, Díaz took him deep for a 426-foot shot to dead center. They also got a bases-loaded walk in the sixth, and the Tampa Bay bullpen cruised with a four-run lead.
The Fish did threaten when they loaded the bases themselves in the seventh against Garrett Cleavinger. Kyle Stowers’ RBI single had made it 6-3, and the go-ahead run was at the plate. In came Ian Seymour, and down went Leo Jiménez on strikes, with Heriberto Hernández following with a lineout. Miami never got that close to the lead again.
Toronto Blue Jays (21-25) 4, Detroit Tigers (20-26) 1
The Jays aren’t back or anything and there haven’t been any sweeps, but to their credit, they have won six of their last eight series. Gotta start somewhere! After beating Detroit in 10 innings on Saturday night, Toronto made it two in a row with a pretty smooth victory yesterday. Kevin Gausman muzzled the Tigers with six scoreless innings, and the Jays built up a 4-0 lead against Jack Flaherty on the strength of a solo shot by Vladimir Guerrero Jr., an RBI triple from Daulton Varsho, and a poorly-timed wild pitch.
Yariel Rodríguez allowed a run in relief but limited the damage, and both Joe Mantiply and Tyler Rogers threw up zeroes to nail down the win. Four big games in the Bronx are up next for the Jays to fight their way back into it, their first head-to-head with the Yankees of 2026.
Other Games
Boston Red Sox (19-27) 1, Atlanta Braves (32-15) 8: The team with the best record in baseball wasted no time in getting to Brayan Bello, and a guy who needed a big hit in a disappointing season thus far certainly delivered. Austin Riley clobbered a 431-foot, three-run homer to make it 3-0 after five batters. Grant Holmes kept the zeroes on the scoreboard for Boston with six scoreless innings as Atlanta built the lead up to 7-0 with Mike Yastrzemski going deep, too. The Red Sox sit in the AL East cellar, 11.5 games behind the Rays, though even with a better record than only the Astros and Angels, they’re only three back of the Wild Card. The American League field ain’t great, folks.
Texas Rangers (22-24) 8, Houston Astros (19-29) 0: On the same day that Houston put Jose Altuve on the IL with an oblique strain, Nathan Eovaldi put the offense to bed with an outing familiar to Yankees fans who have seen him dominate them: seven innings, no runs, and eight strikeouts. The Astros mustered five hits, two walks, and a hit-by-pitch, but that wasn’t nearly enough because feel-good story Peter Lambert got smoked for five runs. Jake Burger seared a meaty pitch to the opposite field for a two-run homer, and when Lambert departed with the bases loaded in the seventh, he plated a pair with a double. Kyle Higashioka scored another on a single, and Brandon Nimmo made it a five-run inning with a two-bagger of his own. Higgy had the cherry on top with a homer in the ninth. It’s been a rough season to date for the Higster, so good for him.
The Rangers are still under .500, but they sit one game back of the now-.500 A’s for the AL West, who lost to the Giants yesterday. (Great division! The White Sox would be leading it.)
Seattle Mariners (22-26) 3, San Diego Padres (28-18) 8: Meanwhile, the Mariners continue to sag and underachieve, even if the .500 first-place team means they’re far from out of it. The Padres completed a Vedder Cup sweep in Seattle, with a five-run attack on George Kirby driving the right-hander from the ballgame. Gavin Sheets had a particularly great day, going 3-for-3 with a double, two homers, two walks, and four RBI. Lucas Giolito allowed one hit over five scoreless in his belated season debut following a late signing with San Diego, only faltering in the sixth when his control abandoned him. The already-extended Colt Emerson made his MLB debut for Seattle at third base with Brendan Donovan on the IL, going 0-for-2 with a walk.
Cleveland Guardians (26-22) 10, Cincinnati Reds (24-23) 3: Brady Singer’s season ERA ballooned over 6.00 as the Guardians hit three homers in his four innings of work. Rookie Chase DeLauter clubbed a two-run shot in the first, and though Elly De La Cruz cut into the lead with a 400-foot blast in the second, Kyle Manzardo had his two-run homer in the third. Brayan Rocchio then made it 5-2 with a solo shot, and after Singer left the ballgame, Manzardo launched his second, while Angel Martínez and José Ramírez hit Cleveland’s fifth and sixth homers, respectively.
Coming off their most improbable win of the year to take the Queens edition of the Subway Series, the Mets (20-26) find themselves in Washington, D.C. for a four-game series against the Nationals (23-24). With five wins in their last six games and a 10-5 record thus far in the month of May, the Mets will simply be trying to keep the good times rolling as they continue to attempt a slow climb back into the playoff picture.
To be fair, the team is still just 2.5 games ahead of the Rockies, the team with the worst record in the National League. But there’s a real opportunity to move up a couple more spots in the league over the course of these four games. The Marlins are just a half-game ahead of the Mets, and both the Diamondbacks and the Nationals are 2.5 games in front of them. While a four-game sweep to pass Washington would be a tall task, it’d be great to see the Mets gain some ground by winning the series.
As you’re undoubtedly already aware, the Mets have had one of the worst lineups in baseball this season, but things have started to improve. They’re up to 3.83 runs scored per game, the fourth-lowest rate in the game. That’s better than being literally last, though, and for much of this season, that has been the case. You can thank the Mets’ exciting duo of A.J. Ewing and Carson Benge for that, as the former has a 209 wRC+ since getting called up from the minors and the latter has a 157 wRC+ over the past two weeks.
It’s understandable when a top prospect bats near the bottom of the lineup to get his feet wet, but Ewing is taking the best at-bats of anyone on the team right now, and it would be wise for the Mets to get him into the leadoff spot as soon as possible. The 21-year-old has looked poised and comfortable in his first 25 major league plate appearances, and he’s getting on base at a .500 clip. It’d be unconventional to bat three lefties in a row at the top of the order, but the Mets might need to be unconventional here. Ewing, Benge, and Juan Soto are the team’s most appealing bats at the moment.
Recent contributions from Brett Baty (131 wRC+) and Marcus Semien (130 wRC+) over those same two weeks shouldn’t be ignored, of course. And Luis Torrens (95 wRC+) has woken up with the bat, a welcome sign as the Mets deal with the extended absence of starting catcher Francisco Alvarez following surgery for a torn meniscus in his right knee.
As for run prevention, the Mets have given up 4.17 runs per game, the 11th-best rate in baseball. Their rotation ranks 12th in baseball with a 4.02 ERA, while their bullpen ranks 9th with a 3.45 ERA. There’s a major hole to fill for the next few months thanks to the fractured fibula that Clay Holmes suffered when he took a line drive off his leg over the weekend.
Turning our focus to the Mets’ opponents, you might be surprised to read that the Nationals have the best offense in baseball with 5.43 runs scored per game. Like the Mets, they’ve had a couple of youngsters leading the way, as CJ Abrams (155 wRC+) and James Wood (149 wRC+) have been their best hitters on the season.
Joey Wiemer (146 wRC+) has thrived in a part-time role, and Curtis Mead (126 wRC+), Daylen Lile (117 wRC+), José Tena (108 wRC+), and Luis Garcia Jr. (103 wRC+) have been better than league average. Keibert Ruiz (99 wRC+) is right behind them. If a lot of those names are unfamiliar to you, you’re not alone. The average age of Nationals hitters this year is 25, making the lineup the youngest in the sport.
Run prevention, however, has been a major problem for the Nats. They’ve given up 5.70 runs per game, the very worst rate in baseball. Their rotation has a 5.17 ERA that ranks 29th, and only the Rockies’ rotation has been worse. The bullpen hasn’t been much better, as its 4.78 ERA ranks 26th.
If you’re into low-scoring baseball, well, this might not be the series for you, but the Mets have a real opportunity to build upon their recent success. Whether or not that’s been a mirage remains to be seen, but it’s nice to have something to look forward to with this team right now.
Last but not least, it is going to be hot in the capitol this week, and with that comes a chance of thunderstorms and rain, especially for the Wednesday night and Thursday afternoon games. Highs will be in the mid-to-upper 90s through Wednesday, and the same cold front that’s coming for New York this week will see temperatures dip into the low 60s on Thursday if the teams are able to get that game in on a day the looks like it’ll be pretty rainy.
Monday, May 18: Christian Scott vs. Jake Irvin, 6:45 PM EDT on SNY
Given the long gap between major league appearances, it’s understandable that Scott felt like something of a forgotten man when the 2026 season was getting underway. He’s going to have to cut down on the walks before they come back to bite him, but his strikeout rate and ability to limit home runs have been encouraging signs. If he continues to be an above-average pitcher, he’d be a huge reason that the Mets are trending toward relevance instead of toiling away in the cellar.
Having thrown 180.0 innings last year with a 5.70 ERA, the 29-year-old looks to be the same pitcher this year. His strikeout and walk rates are up, his home run rate is down, and here he is with a high-fives ERA again. FIP suggests he’s deserved better, but his 5.74 xERA does not.
Tuesday, May 19: Nolan McLean vs. Foster Griffin, 6:45 PM EDT on SNY
The way McLean got through seven innings after giving up three early runs in his last start was impressive, and while he isn’t the National League Cy Young favorite at the moment, he shouldn’t be counted out of the running. Yes, he has the 14th-best ERA in the NL at the time of this writing, but he ranks fifth in both FIP and xERA. He is the Mets’ ace—particularly with Clay Holmes sidelined—and is the team’s most exciting pitcher to watch.
Of all the probable pitchers in this series, Griffin has been the second-best by ERA-, trailing only McLean. The 30-year-old lefty spent the 2023 through 2025 seasons pitching in Japan, having logged just eight major league innings in his career between 2020 and 2022 before making the move. The Nationals signed him to a one-year, $5.5 million deal ahead of this season, and that’s looking like a shrewd move, even if the peripherals aren’t quite as keen on him as his ERA appears today.
Wednesday, May 20: TBD vs. Zack Littell, 6:45 PM EDT on SNY
TBD
This is a real TBD for the Mets, as the team hasn’t announced its plans for the vacancy created by the Holmes injury. Sean Manaea and Tobias Myers are the two pitchers on the active roster who could be moved into the rotation. Jack Wenninger pitched yesterday and walked four batters in a short outing, but he might factor into filling in for Holmes at some point soon, even if it’s not in the cards for this game.
The Mets should be rooting for good enough weather to face Littell in this one. He’s tied for the second-most home runs allowed by a pitcher this year, and as a low-strikeout guy, it’s not an ideal thing to be serving up dingers. The 30-year-old was much better than this over the course of the 2024 and 2025 seasons, as evidenced by his 3.73 ERA over that span, but things haven’t been great in his first year with the Nationals.
Thursday, May 21: TBD (likely opener + David Peterson) vs. Cade Cavalli, 4:05 PM EDT on SNY
If you were looking for a textbook case for the concept of an opener in baseball, Peterson would be an excellent choice. He has an 8.10 ERA when working as a traditional starter this year, but he has a 2.25 ERA working as the bulk guy after an opener. FIP has been a fan of his work regardless of those splits, but the results are undeniably quite different. Here’s hoping it continues to work for both him and the team.
The 27-year-old has been a league average pitcher, and FIP likes him more than that because of his strikeout and home run rates. He threw six innings against the Mets when he saw them in Queens, and he struck out ten, walked two, and gave up just two runs along the way.
VENICE, FLORIDA - MARCH 16, 2025: Luis Guanipa #72 of the Atlanta Braves bats during the fifth inning of a spring training Spring Breakout game against the Detroit Tigers at CoolToday Park on March 16, 2025 in Venice, Florida. (Photo by George Kubas/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
Sunday saw the teams in the Atlanta Braves farm system split the results of four games. More importantly we got to see Luis Guanipa and Tate Southisene help carry the Augusta offense, the best start of the season for Cade Kuehler, and Dixon Williams record another extra base hit.
Durham Bulls 7, Gwinnett Stripers 6
Jim Jarvis, SS: 1-4, BB, .299/.407/.416
Brewer Hicklen, CF: 3-5, R, RBI, .339/.422/.583
Anthony Molina, SP: 3.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 7 K, 5.40 ERA
Anthony Molina got the start, and things were looking good through three innings. The Stripers held a 6-1 lead at that time, before Molina imploded a bit and gave up three runs while recording just two outs in the inning. After Daysbel Hernandez came in to get the final out in the fourth, Hunter Stratton went on to allow a run in the fifth inning. Hayden Harris got the next two innings, and didn’t allow a run – but also didn’t record a strikeout. With a 6-5 lead heading into the eighth the Stripers turned to the usually reliable James Karinchak, and he proceeded to allow two runs to score and picked up the loss. Ian Hamilton pitched a scoreless ninth to finish things off on the pitching side.
The Gwinnett offense was hot early on, but couldn’t score a single run after the third inning. Brewer Hicklen’s three for five day was one of two three-hit games, along with DaShawn Keirsey Jr.. Luke Williams had a pair of hits, while Aaron Schunk walked twice, and the following guys all had a single and a walk: Jim Jarvis, Nacho Alvarez, and Ben Gamel. Brett Wisely also had a key game, as he scored twice and batted in a pair of runs in his one for four afternoon.
Ian Mejia turned in one of his better starts of the year, going three and a third innings and allowing just one unearned run on a pair of hits and a pair of walks. Mejia, who struck out three and had five whiffs, lowered his ERA to 10.13 after a rough start to his season. From there the bullpen came in and did their job. Blayne Enlow went an inning and two thirds, followed by two innings from Samuel Strickland, and one from Owen Hackman where no further damage came across. Blane Abeyta was next, but he gave up three runs in just two thirds of an inning, before Elison Joseph had to come in to get the final out.
The Clingstones actually held a 3-1 lead heading into the ninth thanks to a two-run homer from Cal Conley, then Kevin Kilpatrick Jr. adding a solo shot in the eight to give them an insurance run. Conley, who hit his fifth homer of the season, also had a single on the day. Both David McCabe and Lizandro Espinoza went one for three and drew a walk, plus Espinoza stole a base. Beyond that group, the only other hit was a Patrick Clohisy double.
Cade Kuehler turned in his best start of the season as well on Sunday, throwing six innings of one-hit, scoreless baseball. Kuehler allowed two walks and struck out six, picking up 12 swings and misses. Connor Thomas followed with two and a third innings of one-run ball, striking out two. Justin Long earned the save by coming in to get the final two outs.
All of the key prospects in the Rome lineup did something in this win. Isaiah Drake singled and drew a walk in his four plate appearances. John Gil singled, stole a base, and scored one of the runs. Dixon Williams had a double and batted a run in. Eric Hartman had a single. Drake was one of three guys to reach base multiple times, joined by Colin Burgess (1-3, BB) and Will Verdung (2-4).
Davis Polo got the ball on Sunday evening and went four and two thirds, allowing four runs on three hits and three walks, with five strikeouts and 12 whiffs. It was better than it sounded, as he pitched a pair of scoreless innings to open, allowed a two-run homer in the third, and didn’t allow anything more in the fourth. He came back out for the fifth, and it was clear he was running out of gas, as he allowed two more runs in two thirds of an inning. After Lewis Sifontes got the final out of the fifth inning, Kendy Richard came on and didn’t allow a hit or a run over the final four innings, allowing just one walk and striking out three, as he picked up the win.
Tate Southisene was back in the lineup after getting Saturday off, but Luis Guanipa was the story in this one. Guanipa was three for four with a pair of doubles, single, stolen base, run scored, and three runs batted in. Southisene also had a strong day, going two for five with a pair of steals and a run scored. Alex Lodise also reached base twice, as he walked, singled, stole a pair of bases, scored twice, and batted one in. That trio at the top of the lineup combined for six hits, one walk, five stolen bases, four runs scored, and three batted in. That was pretty much the entirety of the Augusta offense along with Joe Olsavsky, who was two for three with a walk and a homer.
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - MAY 17: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. #27 of the Toronto Blue Jays high fives teammates after scoring a run against the Detroit Tigers during the top of the third inning at Comerica Park on May 17, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Yankees got run out of Queens this weekend, dropping back-to-back contests to the Mets—the latter in particularly ignominious fashion—to lose the Subway Series and their third straight series overall. Adding to their woes is the Rays’ continued success, which leaves them three games back in the divisional road. Now seems like a less-than-ideal time for the Yanks to face a team that was a true nemesis for them in 2025: the Blue Jays. Fresh off going 11-6 against them in 2025 (including the playoffs), Toronto returns to the site of their ALDS Game 4 clincher to begin a new four-game series tonight.
The Jays have battled inconsistent hitting and a rash of pitching injuries to start their year, as they enter action at 21-25. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is in the midst of one of his rather frequent power outages (though he did go deep yesterday), and the cast surrounding him hasn’t flexed much muscle this year. NPB free agent Kazuma Okamoto has been their most reliable slugger, but much of the core that brought them within a few feet of winning the World Series has failed to repeat their success. That said, the Jays remain flush with talent and have won six of their last eight series. This four-game rumble promises a bevy of fascinating pitching matchups. Let’s dig in.
Monday: Ryan Weathers vs. Patrick Corbin (7:05 pm ET)
Both teams will open this series sending a portsider to the mound. Ryan Weathers was invincible for most of his last start against the Orioles. He didn’t allow a hit until the seventh inning, at which point he was chased from the game and Coby Mayo’s go-ahead home run off Brent Headrick spoiled all the fun. Weathers, whose father David was a Blue Jays draftee in 1986, will face them for just the second time in his MLB career. His first time at Rogers Centre marked a nice finale to his 2024 season with Miami: 6.1 innings of one-run ball with three hits, two walks, and six strikeouts.
Patrick Corbin always comes back. He signed in Toronto when the season was already underway to shore up an undermanned rotation which was reeling from preseason injuries to José Berrios, Shane Bieber, and Wednesday night’s starter Trey Yesavage. Corbin has performed better than your typical replacement-level arm so far, with a 3.93 ERA through seven spins of the wheel. He’s always going to be pitching around a good amount of traffic, but his slider remains a weapon after all these years.
Tuesday: Will Warren vs. Dylan Cease(7:05 pm ET)
Warren got decidedly more aid from his lineup than from his defense in Tuesday night’s win against the Orioles—a bevy of misplays in the field cost him a chance to complete six frames, but he wound up with a win regardless thanks to a big third inning. Warren will return to the barn where he got eaten alive last playoffs, wearing the rest of the Blue Jays’ relentless onslaught during ALDS Game 2, in relief of Max Fried. But he does so having grown into his repertoire a lot more than his up-and-down rookie year. Regardless, this will prove a psychologically important start.
Cease is the Jays’ shiny new ace, channeling Dave Stieb in more ways than just his striking mustache. The 30-year old is on a roll, having finished seven innings in three straight starts. His last effort was almost wasted, as the Rays rallied against the Toronto bullpen to force extra innings; the ultimately Jays prevailed 5-3. Cease’s command is always liable to fly away on any given day, but you’ll take the chance because he has 75 strikeouts, the most in the AL so far.
The only MLB pitchers with a higher fWAR than Cease’s 2.2 thus far are the Phillies’ Cristopher Sánchez at 2.5 and the 6-foot-6 Yankee I’m about to discuss.
Wednesday: Cam Schlittler vs. Trey Yesavage(7:05 pm ET)
You get the feeling we’ll be seeing this exact pitching matchup in the AL East for years to come. Both breakout stars of the 2025 playoffs have repeated their brilliance in 2026, but Schlittler’s first 10 starts have been in a class unto themselves in the Junior Circuit. Cam exceeded 100 pitches in a start for the first time his last time out against the Mets; a leadoff home run from two-out walk to Brett Baty was all that stood between him finishing seven innings. Revenge may be on his mind after his Game 4 loss to Toronto, which sent the Yankees home last October.
Yesavage stole the spotlight from Schlittler in those playoffs as his team’s playoff run went all the way to Game 7 of the World Series. The big righty with the extreme top-down delivery had a shoulder issue that delayed his encore, so he’s only four starts into his campaign. His latest outing against the Tigers was his first to complete six innings, and he limited Detroit to two runs on four hits while striking out exactly six batters for the third straight appearance. Seeing these two sorcerers of the slab go toe-to-toe should be a delight.
Thursday: Carlos Rodón vs. TBD(7:05 pm ET)
Carlos Rodón would be the first to tell you that his first two starts of 2026 “didn’t go well at all.” The left-hander departed Saturday’s start before the end of the fourth inning thanks to command issues and a pair of gaffes on one play in the third which gave the Mets the lead. Room for optimism exists: Rodón’s issues have almost exclusively come after getting two outs in an inning. The two-out numbers have been rather grisly: the Mets and Brewers combined went 4-for-11 with three walks and five runs scored. As long as he can continue to obtain the first two outs without too much trouble, those troubles should even out over time. Toronto was an outstanding two-out offense in 2025, but have not been quite the same force this season.
This slot in the Blue Jays’ rotation used to belong to Eric Lauer, but he struggled so mightily to begin the year that the Jays designated him for assignment last week. On Saturday against the Tigers, Toronto turned to a bullpen game in which lefty reliever Mason Fluharty opened ahead of rookie Spencer Miles. Miles proved effective in the bulk man role last time, pitching 3.2 scoreless innings with two runs and two walks on five hits. Depending on how much (or how little) the Yankees make the Jays’ bullpen work in the first three games, Miles may be compelled to eat up more of this contest than that affair in Detroit—a 10-inning 2-1 victory.
May 17, 2026; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets right fielder Carson Benge (3) celebrates with left fielder Juan Soto (22) after defeating the New York Yankees in ten innings at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Meet the Mets
Every good Mets season needs That Game. You know, the one that you look back on in a year or 20 and say “remember that game?” Perhaps Sunday afternoon was That Game for the 2026 New York Mets. Coming against the Yankees, that’s just a bonus.
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - MAY 17: Roki Sasaki #11 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitchs during the second inning of a game against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on May 17, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Sean M. Haffey/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Sasaki has tinkered with his pitch mix this season, adding a faster version of his split-fingered fastball while also throwing a slower forkball that he’s used in both years with the Dodgers. David Adler at MLB.com broke down the differences in movement of the pitches, and how Sasaki has been able to incorporate both.
“When hitters have to contend with both the diving splitter and floating forkball with two strikes,” Adler wrote, “Sasaki can keep them way more off-balance.”
Links
The Dodgers acquired Eric Lauer from the Toronto Blue Jays for cash consideration on Sunday. The veteran left-hander will be activated at some point during the series against the San Diego Padres, reports Maddie Lee at the Los Angeles Times, who noted that manager Dave Roberts is “initially picturing Lauer in a length role out of the bullpen.”
Shohei Ohtani tripled home two runs and scored on an error in the eighth inning on Saturday. There was plenty of confusion since the ball bounced in play and then hit and nearly got caught in the netting above the right field wall in foul territory, which per the ground rules in Anaheim was not out of play.
Fabian Ardaya at The Athletic wrote about the Little League home run, including this reaction from Alex Call: “I turned around and Shohei was coming home, and I’m like, ‘What happened?’ I didn’t find out until later. But I guess yeah, the ball’s in play there.”
Stripling believes he can win by concentrating on young athletes, the ones suddenly showered in six- or seven-figure payments from draft bonuses, college revenue sharing payments, and name, image and likeness deals.
“I’ve seen the first-rounders come in and blow money on cars and houses and gambling,” Stripling said, “and I’ve seen the first-rounders like (former Dodgers shortstop Corey) Seager, who probably hasn’t spent a dime of his signing bonus.”
SPRINGFIELD, MO - APRIL 08: Liam Doyle #19 of the Springfield Cardinals pitches during the game between the Tulsa Drillers and the Springfield Cardinals at Hammons Field on Wednesday, April 8, 2026 in Springfield, Missouri. (Photo by Kaylee Vaughan/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
Last week, I shared how the hitting prospects in the system were doing. Wasn’t really planning for it to be a weeklong thing, it’s just that the Cardinals seem to have that many prospects worth monitoring. And I definitely didn’t cover everyone too. This week, I’ll cover the pitching prospects. Let’s get started.
Maybe it’s because he got to Memphis so fast, but I am truly confused as to how long it is taking Mathews to adjust to AAA. Maybe it’s the ball and he’s uniquely affected. Maybe it’s just that some pitchers need more development time at some level. Whatever it is, I really wish he could get his walk rate to a level where I would feel comfortable promoting him to the big leagues. 18% is a nonstarter and it’s not like his other stats are good right now either.
I am suddenly not concerned about Mathews at all after seeing how Hence has pitched this year. He is not currently in Memphis to the best of my knowledge, being sent to the complex league to work out whatever exactly is affecting him right now. The talent is still there. Either the mechanics or the health isn’t however. Hopefully, it works out as well as the Joshua Baez experience.
Tekoah Roby, RHP – 24 (VEB’s #11 prospect)
Underwent Tommy John surgery on July 28th last season. If he pitches at all this year, I doubt he’ll have much time to do more than be a multi-inning relief pitcher.
Mautz hasn’t really had a walk problem before this season, so there really does seem to be something to having to adjust to pitching with a different ball. And of course harder competition. I’m not worried about Mautz only because he wasn’t really ever on my radar to pitch at the big league level this season except maybe a spot start later in the season. Would have surprised me more if he was immediately good in Memphis.
Ixan Henderson, LHP – 24 (VEB’s #17 prospect)
Henderson was shut down due to a flexor strain in his elbow and was slated to miss at least the first two months of the season. I haven’t heard any updates since spring training.
Hunter Dobbins, RHP – 26 (acquired in the Sonny Gray trade)
Dobbins is currently a bit of a confusing pitcher. His Memphis stats suggest we basically have another Andre Pallante waiting in the wings. Which… actually it’s support by his lone MLB start too. He got a ton of groundballs, but couldn’t locate the zone. Pallante, despite lacking control, walks less than you would think. I don’t think Dobbins is exactly kicking down the door with his performance, though it’s good enough that he’s the clear choice if you need a starter.
Richard Fitts, RHP – 26 (acquired in the Willson Contreras trade)
I understand that Zimmermann is this year’s version of Curtis Taylor. I kind of want to see what he’s like in relief though. His K/BB numbers are excellent and it’s clear he can’t start at the MLB level – he’s just too homer-prone. He allowed three homers in yesterday’s game so that FIP is going to get way worse. He had a 6:1 K/BB so that xFIP won’t be hit that badly. Anyway, he was a reliever for 7 total games at the MLB level and he had a 14:0 K/BB ratio. I see more potential in him than Jared Shuster.
Hansen began the year injured, but has worked his way back to full heath at this point. If you focus on his batters faced, they have steadily increased to a season high of 22 in his most recent start, even though he only went 4.1 IP and he managed 5 innings in a previous start. It got momentarily derailed when he got rocked in a start where he lasted just 1.2 IP, hence the high ERA. It’s going pretty well for Hansen so far though. Would like to have another viable player to call up if needed in the Memphis rotation. It’s pretty much just Dobbins right now.
Sem Robberse, RHP – 24
Robberse underwent Tommy John surgery on May 14th of last season, so it’s entirely possible he could be starting rehab in the near future. Very far from being an MLB impact of course.
The Cardinals are kind of playing the in-between game with Rincon, where he’s not a starting pitcher, but he’s a little more than a reliever. He has started 3 games, but not been asked to face more than 15 batters in any appearance. I’m not sure if his innings are being limited or if he’s truly not a starter anymore, but I do find it a bit strange they seem to have given up on him as a starter.
His lone start wasn’t a real start, Rajcic is a full-blown reliever. Just wanted to put that out there. Jake Wood has been a big advocate to consider promoting him to the big league and it’s easy enough to see why. Probably not future as a starter and excelling as a reliever at the moment.
Winquest somehow has three hit by pitches in his three innings of work which do factor into his overall stats. It’s a similar negative penalty to a walk. Despite a solid K%, he hasn’t actually had a good appearance in Memphis yet – he’s allowed a run in each one. He had 2 Ks and no walks or HBPs in one appearance, but also allowed a homer. He is also now injured with an undisclosed injury. So much for bullpen help here.
For a minor league Rule 5 pickup, this is as good of a start as you can ask for. Yes, I know his ERA and FIP are ugly in Memphis. And it’s unfortunate he’s already allowed four homers this year. But he proved to be too good in AA pretty much immediately which is encouraging for a guy who spent last year pitching only rehab innings essentially.
Ryan Fernandez went from someone they couldn’t send down because he needed to work out his issues at the MLB level to a guy who can’t get called up even if he’s pitching well in Memphis (and a brief time at the MLB level) despite the Cardinals having a bad bullpen pretty quickly honestly. It is nice to have someone who I think deserves to get called up if a spot is needed at least.
I mean… Roycroft has to be getting close to entering DFA territory if a 40 man spot is needed. In his last four appearances, including last night, he’s allowed 10 earned runs in 4.1 IP. He may have been the punching bag on May 9th because innings were needed and he faced 13 batters, which is 5 batters more than he’s faced in any other appearance. He allowed six runs in that appearance.
People have suggested Gastelum for the MLB bullpen. He doesn’t appear that close to being MLB ready to me. It does not help his case that he is not on the 40 man roster. Typically if you are on the outside looking in with regards to the 40 man, you need to have great stats to get the call-up. He does not have that.
Good news. I can adjust many stats based upon how a pitcher pitched the night I’m writing this, but FIP and xFIP are not those stats. And Hales pitched a great inning yesterday and his FIP and xFIP will both drop. He struck out 2 in a scoreless innings with no walks and only a hit allowed. The bad news is that his BB% only dropped to 16.9%, so that’s going to need to fall a lot farther down before you consider a promotion.
Okay we at least have two relief pitchers worth promoting if they are needed. Obviously Blewett is a bit more complicated, not being on the 40 man and not having any options if promoted. The team BABIP in Memphis must be .330 because I am seeing a lot of high BABIPs.
In Doyle’s last three starts, he has a 37 K% and 5.6 BB%, so I think he’s at the right level. His advanced stats for the whole season are solid, though nothing special and I would expect a higher GB% at some point. But yeah if you were concerned about his first few starts, his last few starts make me think he’ll see Memphis sooner rather than later.
Not the most impressive stats, and you can really see the value in not walking guys when comparing him and Doyle. Doyle doesn’t have a particularly low BB%, and yet he has a significantly lower xFIP than Cjintje pretty much just because of walks. Cjintje also has four HBPs and man I really wish HBPs wasn’t playing such a big role in some of these pitching lines, because a 12.2 BB% is high, but I found it weird how bad his xFIP was. If you add the HBPs to the walks, it’s a 14.6 BB/HBP% which is really bad. He did strike out 10 in his most recent appearance so clearly there’s a lot of potential here.
Cooper Hjerpe, LHP – 25 (VEB’s #15 prospect)
Hjerpe underwent Tommy John surgery on April 15th last season. I haven’t seen any updates on his rehab, but he should probably pitch this season and I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing him in the MLB bullpen in September.
Everyone raise your hand if you thought Lin was going to outpitch Cjintje after a month and half of play. Now stop lying because you guys did not vote him onto the top 20 prospect list this past season. He’s still walking too many batters, but at least he’s striking out nearly a third of hitters and his walks are in a better place than last season certainly. Let’s hope he keeps this up.
Molina is now in his third organization and at least two of them have been pretty aggressive in promoting Molina, which is interesting because he was a 7th round pick. He’s advanced like a Day One pick. He started 11 games at Low A for the Rangers before they promoted him, and 12 total games at High A before the Cardinals put him in AA. Because the dude can miss bats.
If I wrote this before yesterday’s start happened, there’d be a lot more reason for optimism about Davis, but he had a horrendous start yesterday, walking five and only striking out two while giving up 5 runs. His FIP is going to be a lot worse and so will his xFIP. So that one’s a bummer. I also felt they were particularly aggressive with Davis, as he made just 8 starts at High A last year.
I can’t be the only one whose first instinct on seeing this guy and his stats and thought: “Who’s this guy?” Honestly, there wasn’t much reason before this year to pay attention. He was a 17th rounder in 2024 and spent most of 2025 in A ball, only striking out 19.8% of hitters in Low A. He struck out 39% of batters in High A, but it was just 15 innings. But he also was promoted to Springfield as well, and had a 1.00 ERA, albeit with a 15% K rate. Clearly that 39% K rate told us more than I think I would have guessed at the time as well as his permanent promotion to Springfield. These are great stats. This is a late round gem, even if he ends up hitting a wall. He’s not even old for his level. Score one for the scouting department on this one.
Saladin appears to be a full-time reliever, which is a bummer after his 2024 season, but appears to be the right choice. He didn’t have a great 2025, he would have started being old for his level if they kept him at High A, so they both promoted him and moved him to the bullpen. He’s been wild. Hasn’t allowed a homer, but a crazy high BABIP. Yesterday he threw a scoreless inning with two strikeouts, so his FIP and xFIP will see some improvement. Just needs to control the walks.
Okay, well the Cardinals know more than me. News at eleven. Love has been pretty bad lately, and in fact gave up four runs in a relief appearance yesterday. I don’t know if he’s working on something, I don’t know if he’s fighting through an injury, but the Love I wanted to promote has exited the building.
Most of you probably know this – hell most of you probably don’t pay attention to this – but when I list the age of a player, I am listing the age they are considered for that year. Which can lead to thinks like me calling Watson 24-years-old despite not turning 24 until June. If he was born a month later, he’d be considered 23. That’s just the way it works. Anyway, he actually allowed three of his four homers in his last appearance, which really dragged down his numbers.
Oh hey I made a good call. In a post earlier this year, I said Love should be promoted to Memphis. That has not aged well, I also said Findlay should be promoted to Springfield. It happened less than a week later. And Findlay has rewarded that promotion so far.
Again, let’s give a hand to the scouting department. Burns was drafted in the 14th round of the 2024 draft. Granted, if you told me a later round draft pick had made it to AA, I wouldn’t be that shocked if it was a reliever. Thompson is shocking to me because he’s a starting pitcher. That’s taking nothing away from Burns however, who has been a three true outcomes guy: strikeout, groundball, or walk. He’s allowed two homers in 19.1 IP and has been supremely unlucky to do so since 25% of his flyballs allowed have been homers (average is 12%)
Uhhhh, what in the hell? How is this line even possible? This is legitimately an unbelievable line. I don’t know what to do with this. He has allowed 24 balls in play, which is a crazy low number considering he’s thrown 13.1 IP. Out of those 24, 16 have been hits. Does he occasionally just want to make things hard and just yell “I’m throwing three fastballs right down the middle” because how can you be this unhittable and have a .667 BABIP against. I want to write 2,000 words about this.
Anyway, that’s a good place to end. Hunter Hayes does not have stats worth sharing but he did strike out four and walk none a 2.1 inning relief appearance yesterday, so hopefully that means he turned a corner.
PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - MAY 13: Mickey Moniak #22 of the Colorado Rockies celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a three run home run in the fifth inning during the game against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on May 13, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Colorado Rockies have, to put it lightly, struggled over the past few years. However, one bright spot every year is the selection of a team’s All-Star representative(s). The Rockies have only had one representative each year since 2021:
Germán Márquez (2021)
C.J. Cron (2022)
Elias Díaz (2023)
Ryan McMahon (2024)
Hunter Goodman (2025).
Looking ahead to this year, one player is making a case for himself to represent the Rockies in the Midsummer Classic in Philadelphia: Mickey Moniak.
Moniak posted career highs in games played (135), runs (62), hits (117), total bases (225), triples (8), home runs (24), RBI (68), walks (22), stolen bases (9) and OPS (.824).
He began the 2026 campaign on the 10-day IL after he sprained his finger diving back into first base on a pickoff attempt during spring training. However, he’s been on a tear since being reinstated on April 3 and is leading in numerous categories, both for the Rockies and around Major League Baseball.
Here’s how he ranks among NL and MLB leaders so far in 2026 (all stats current through the evening of May 17):
Stat
Number
NL Rank
MLB Rank
NL OF Rank
Rockies Rank
AVG
.298
12th
—
5th
2nd
SLG
.645
1st
2nd
1st
1st
OPS
.996
1st
5th
1st
1st
Total Bases
91
7th
9th
T-2nd
1st
Home Runs
12
T-4th
T-7th
T-2nd
1st
Extra-Base Hits
23
T-3rd
T-4th
T-2nd
1st
AB per HR
11.8
2nd
7th
1st
1st
In addition to the above stats, Moniak has had four multi-homer games in 2026 — which leads the Majors — and had an 18-game hitting streak from April 15-May 6. And on Wednesday, the 28-year-old fell a single shy of the cycle with a career-high tying five RBI, and his nine total bases were the most for a Rockie on their birthday.
If All-Stars were selected today, Moniak would have a case alongside St. Louis’ Jordan Walker and Washington’s James Wood. Wood was an All-Star last year, while Walker would also make his first All-Star team is selected. Here’s how Moniak stacks against them:
Stat
Number
NL OF Rank
Next Number
Player
AVG
.298
5th
.293
Michael Harris II (ATL)
SLG
.645
1st
.584
Jordan Walker (STL)
OPS
.996
1st
.955
Jordan Walker (STL)
Total Bases
91
T-2nd
91
James Wood (WSH)
Home Runs
12
T-2nd
12
James Wood (WSH)
Extra-Base Hits
23
T-2nd
23
Jordan Walker (STL)
AB per HR
11.8
1st
13.3
Jordan Walker (STL)
As you can see, not only does Moniak rank among NL outfield leaders, but in some cases, he’s far ahead of the next ranking player. That is particularly true of SLG, OPS and AB/HR.
In addition to Wood, the rest of the 2025 honors belonged to Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL), Pete Crow-Armstrong (CHC), Kyle Tucker (CHC), Corbin Carroll (AZ), Kyle Stowers (MIA), and Fernando Tatis Jr. (SD). Acuña, Crow-Armstrong and Tucker were the starters, while the other four were reserves.
Mickey Moniak vs. The Rockies
Not only does Moniak rank among league leaders, but he leads the Rockies in numerous categories — often by a wide margin.
Stat
Number
Rockies Rank
Next Number
Player
AVG
.298
2nd
.275
TJ Rumfield
SLG
.645
1st
.506
Hunter Goodman
OPS
.996
1st
.844
Troy Johnston
Total Bases
91
1st
82
Hunter Goodman
Home Runs
12
1st
11
Hunter Goodman
Extra-Base Hits
23
1st
19
Hunter Goodman
AB per HR
11.8
1st
14.7
Hunter Goodman
Most of the time, he ranks just above Hunter Goodman, who is making his own case to be the first Rockies back-to-back All-Star since Nolan Arenado and Charlie Blackmon did it from 2017-2019. The thing that would give Goodman the edge over Moniak is that the catcher field is less crowded than the outfield, but Moniak is still leading his teammates in enough categories that position might not matter.
Mickey Moniak 2026 vs. Charlie Blackmon 2019
The last Rockies outfielder to make an All-Star Game was Charlie Blackmon in 2019. (He was also selected in 2017 and 2018.) It was also the last time the Rockies fielded multiple All-Stars.
The rosters were announced on June 30 that year, and here’s how Blackmon stood out entering the reveal:
Stat
Number
NL Rank
MLB Rank
NL OF Rank
AVG
.337
3rd
4th
3rd
SLG
.653
3rd
3rd
3rd
OPS
1.036
3rd
4th
3rd
Triples
7
1st
T-2nd
1st
Home Runs
20
7th
T-8th
T-4th
Blackmon also had two multi-homer games in that stretch, and went on two separate 11-game hitting streaks from April 16-28 and May 1-14.
In 2019, Christian Yelich (MIL), Cody Bellinger (LAD) and Ronald Acuña Jr. (ATL) were selected as starters, while Blackmon was selected by his peers as a reserve alongside David Dahl (COL) and Jeff McNeil (NYM).
The case for Mickey Moniak to be an All-Star
The case speaks for itself. Moniak is among league leaders in numerous offensive categories. When you’re in the same conversation as players such as Kyle Schwarber, Matt Olson, Bryce Harper and Max Muncy, you’re doing something right.
That said, Moniak likely won’t be selected as a starter — the last Rockie to have that honor was Nolan Arenado in 2019. However, if Moniak keeps playing the way he has been, he will likely be selected by his peers as a reserve.
Do you think Moniak will be an All-Star, or will that honor go to Goodman? Or do you think the Rockies will have multiple All-Stars for the first time in seven years? Let us know in the comments!
It was not a good day for the Isotopes pitching staff against the Oklahoma City Comets (LAD). Starter Erasmo Ramírez lasted just three innings and gave up nine runs on 10 hits. Bryson Van Sickle then came in and gave up six (four earned) on three hits and Ryan Miller gave up two on three hits. Welinton Herrera (No. 17 PuRP) and Mason Green combined for three shutout innings (Herrera threw two perfect innings with three strikeouts), but then TJ Shook gave up three more in the final inning to seal the blowout loss. The pitching staff gave up three home runs, and only one was a multi-run homer in the fifth inning.
Offensively, Adael Amador went 2-for-4 with a three-run homer and two runs scored. Chad Stevens, Blaine Crim and Jose Cordova also recorded multi-hit games, and Crim and Nic Kent also hit homers of their own.
The Yard Goats fared better than the Isotopes, as they walked off the Portland Sea Dogs (BOS). Starter Konner Eaton struggled, giving up four runs (one earned) on four hits with two walks, five strikeouts and two home runs. Luckily, Carlos Torres bailed him out with two hits and two strikeouts over two innings, and Cade Denton ended up with the win after allowing just one run on one hit with two walks and a strikeout.
Bryant Betancourt ended up being the hero for the Goats, hitting a two-RBI double in the bottom of the ninth.
It was a low-scoring affair in Spokane, but the Indians came out on the losing side of it. They jumped out to an early 1-0 lead over the Hops (AZ) in the first, but it was given back in the bottom of the inning. Roynier Hernandez scored on a pickoff error in the third to put the Indians up 2-1, but that was the end of the scoring as the Hops scored twice in the fifth and once again in the eighth. Hernandez was the only Indians player to have multiple hits (2).
On the pitching side, each player gave up at least one run but Hunter Mann’s was unearned in his 2.2 innings of work.
It was a high-scoring affair in Fresno, but unfortunately the Grizzlies weren’t quite able to overcome an eight-run sixth inning by the Rawhide (AZ). The game was tied 2-2 after the first, and then the Grizzlies scored six in the third to go up 8-2. It started with Tanner Thach being hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to score Clayton Gray. Then Derek Bernard reached on an error to score Roldy Brito, and then Jack O’Dowd hit a grand slam. But then the Rawhide scored eight in the sixth with an RBI double by Pedro Catuy, a two-run triple by Ivan Luciano, an RBI single by Jose Alpuria, a two-run homer by Enyervert Perez and then another two-run homer by JD Dix to put them up 11-8 after the inning. Kyle Fossum grounded into a force in the seventh, but Bernard and O’Dowd were able to score. But then Jakey Josepha singled to tack on another run in the eighth, 12-10, and Alpuria doubled and Cunningham singled to put the Rawhide up 15-10. Gray doubled to score Matt Klein, then Brito singled to score Fossum and Gray. And finally Ethan Holliday singled to score Brito, but that was the end of it: 15-14.
Tanner Gordon flew to and from Albuquerque in place of Jimmy Herget twice last week. After being recalled on April 14, he was optioned down on Tuesday when Herget came off the bereavement/family emergency list. However, he barely touched down before he was summoned back on Thursday when Herget went on the IL with right shoulder impingement. And naturally, after being in five different cities in 48 hours, Gordon had to pitch four innings at PNC Park after starter Chase Dollander went down with an elbow injury in the second inning. He allowed one run on three hits with a walk and five strikeouts.
Michael Lorenzen signed with the Rockies with the hopes of solving Coors Field. Unfortunately, that has not happened yet, as the right-hander has put up a 2-6 record and 7.03 ERA (10.03 at Coors Field). On Sunday, he yielded nine hits and seven runs (six earned) in 4.2 innings in the loss to the Diamondbacks. Lorenzen addressed the media after the game, and we’ll have to see if he’s able to right the ship.
The Rockies’ in-game host has connections both to Colorado and to Major League Baseball. Patrick Saunders caught up with Gianna about her history in both, and how she is making her way in a tough industry.
We’re going to the butcher’s bill early today because it’s long and I don’t have any more animal cruelty stories (thank goodness). Dodgers left-hander Blake Snell will undergo surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow. The Dodgers are hopeful the former two-time Cy Young Award winner will return before the end of the season.
The Dodgers acquired lefty Eric Lauer in a trade with the Blue Jays. Toronto gets cash. Lauer takes the place of lefty Jack Dreyer, who goes on the IL with left shoulder discomfort.
Orioles third baseman Jordan Westburg, who hasn’t played yet this year, is now out for the season with ulnar collateral ligament surgery. Dayn Perry writes that the pressure is now on the rest of the Orioles to step up.
Just under a year ago, Wilber Flores hit three home runs in one game for the Giants. Now a free agent, Flores can’t find a team that wants him. (The Athletic sub. req.) So he’s also playing for Tijuana. Sam Blum and Dennis Lim with both Tijuana stories. (If you want a blast from the past, Flores and Turner are teammates on the Toros with Junior Lake.)
