Category: Baseball

On Wednesday morning, Colorado Rockies fans were greeted with good news: Rookie first baseman TJ Rumfield had been named Major League Baseball’s National League Rookie of the Month for May.

The 26-year-old Rumfield—obtained this offseason from the New York Yankees in exchange for right-handed pitcher Angel Chivilli—led National League rookies in virtually every offensive category for the month. In May he hit .310/.400/.483 with four home runs, 12 RBIs, and a strong 139 wRC+ while also playing a defensively sound first base.

Rumfield is just the eighth Rockies rookie to win the award, which has surprisingly been elusive since it was created in 2001.

Here are the other seven:

RHP Jason Jennings, August 2002

The first and only Rockies player to win Rookie of the year, 1999 first round pick Jason Jennings went 5-1 over six starts and 38 innings in August with a 3.55 ERA and 25 strikeouts!

Shortstop Clint Barmes, April 2005

Clint Barmes only played 81 games in 2005 and still finished in eighth place for National League Rookie of the Year voting. He started the year strong by hitting .410/.467/.639 with four home runs and 14 RBIs across 21 games in April!

Third baseman Garrett Atkins, June 2005

The only time the Rockies ever had multiple Rookie of the Month winners in a single season, slugging third baseman Garrett Atkins hit .364/.381/.533 with three home runs and a whopping 26 RBIs over 27 June contests!

Shortstop Troy Tulowitzki, August 2007

Troy Tulowitzki should have won Rookie of the Year in 2007 but instead took second place behind Ryan Braun. The mold-breaking shortstop phenom hit .333/.394/.567 with six home runs and 25 RBIs over 29 games in the penultimate month of the 2007 season.

Shortstop Trevor Story, April 2016

After a nearly ten-year gap between winners, Trevor Story started his rookie campaign with the most home runs by a rookie in franchise history and six of them through his first four big league games. Story finished the month hitting .261/.324/.696 with ten home runs and 20 RBIs over 22 games.

RHP Antonio Senzatela, April 2017

Before reinventing himself as a clutch, late-game reliever this season, Antonio Senzatela was once a promising young starting pitcher. His 2017 rookie campaign would end up being one of his best seasons over 36 appearances and 20 starts. In April of 2017 the 22-year-old Senzatela went 4-1 over five starts with 18 strikeouts and a 2.81 ERA over 32 innings of work.

Outfielder Nolan Jones, September 2023

The Rockies traded for Nolan Jones prior to the 2023 season and it looked like they might have found themselves a star. While things didn’t work out that way, Jones shone brightly with a 4.3 rWAR season. He became the first Rockies rookie accomplish a 20/20 campaign. He was the 16th rookie in MLB history to do so and the first to accomplish it in under 130 games and fewer than 425 plate appearances. He also played some excellent left field. Jones finished the season with an explosive September, hitting .350/.460/.631 with six home runs, 22 RBIs, and 11 stolen bases over 28 games. He finished fourth in National League Rookie of the Year voting but arguably should have been a finalist.

Final Thoughts

While we congratulate TJ Rumfield on his success so far, what are your thoughts on the other Rockies Rookie of the Month winners? Are there any standout rookie months you feel got missed along the way? Who are some noticeable omissions?

Let us know in the comments!

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Jorge Polanco could be the face of these Mets.

He’s highly paid, has been injured and played poorly when he was on the field.

The Mets roster is filled with that type of player this year and if it stays that way, the team will look considerably different by the trade deadline.

So with the clock ticking — and the Mets in last place in the NL East — Polanco’s return from Achilles bursitis and a right wrist contusion will have to be a step in the right direction.

If it’s not, the Mets will be that much closer to having to consider tearing down the roster.

Polanco could be back from the IL this weekend, as the Mets begin another must-win series Friday in San Diego, their season still teetering near irrelevance.

When they signed Polanco to a two-year, $40 million deal in the offseason with the idea of having him replace Pete Alonso at first base — and as one piece of a makeover that would make up for the loss of Alonso, Brandon Nimmo and Jeff McNeil at the plate — the hope was that the 32-year-old would at least come close to replicating the production he had in Seattle last year.

Instead, Polanco never got going offensively and had an OPS of just .532 through 14 games before he hit the IL.

And without Polanco, who didn’t do much in five minor league rehab games split between Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse, the Mets haven’t gotten much out of first base.

Mark Vientos has continued to struggle on both sides of the ball, and though the lefty-swinging Jared Young has hit well since returning from his own IL stint, the Mets aren’t looking for him to be their regular first baseman.

Polanco isn’t expected to take that role either when he gets back, as the Mets figure to be cautious with him, given his Achilles issue that is likely to linger all year.

As Carlos Mendoza noted a week ago, Polanco is “gonna feel” the injury throughout the season.

“We have to keep it to a point where [it’s] ‘I can tolerate this,’ ” the manager said in May. “Because if not, he’s gonna be shut down for a long period of time.”

The switch-hitting Polanco has generally hit well from both sides of the plate and, if he can return to the form he had with the Mariners a year ago, would deepen a lineup desperately in need of lengthening.

With Bo Bichette in the midst of a season-long slump — although perhaps his four-hit day Wednesday was a good sign — Marcus Semien also not hitting and Francisco Lindor still out with a strained calf, the Mets have had to rely too much on Juan Soto, as well as rookies Carson Benge and A.J. Ewing.

If the Mets are going to make an effort toward getting back in the wild-card race — they started Thursday six games back of the final spot with seven teams ahead of them — they’ll need to move quickly.

They followed up a four-game winning streak in Queens by dropping two of three in Seattle and will face a Padres team that lost its fifth consecutive game Thursday and has dropped nine of its past 10.

The Mets, despite the rough series against the Mariners, have still won five of seven but will have to do more than that to start inching up the standings.

A 2025 version of Polanco would at least provide some help in that regard, but the one they’ve seen so far this year has been an all-too-familiar disappointment.

The 7th overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, the Alabama Crimson Tide will host St Johns, who was the 4 seed in the Tallahassee Regional, in Super Regional play this weekend. The 40-19 Tide will host the 36-24 Red Storm in game one at 8 p.m. CT on Saturday. Game two is set for 2 p.m. CT on Sunday and the if necessary game would be Monday at a time to be announced. Today we will look at Bama’s overall statistics and the individual leaders.

Alabama Team Offense:

Batting Average- .257, 493 hits, 94 doubles, 10 triples, 79 home runs, .440 slugging percentage, .376 on base percentage, 282 walks, 99 hit by pitch, 541 strikeouts, 26 sacrifice flys, 14 sac bunts 85-93 on stolen bases.

Leaders:

*Brady Neal .332 batting average, 64 hits, 15 doubles, 10 home runs, 49 RBI, .575 slugging percentage, 33 walks, 111 total bases, .444 on base percentage.

*Bryce Fowler .322 bating average, 73 hits, 17 doubles, 2 triples,6 home runs, 38 RBI, 112 total bases. 15-17 stolen bases.

*Justin LeBron .274 batting average, 61 hits,12 doubles, 16 home runs, 46 RBI, 121 total bases, .543 slugging percentage, .382 on base percentage, 26 walks, 15 hit by pitch, 40-41 stolen bases.

*Eric Hines .289 batting average, 121 at bats, 3 doubles, 1 triple, 9 home runs, 24 RBI, .554 slugging percentage, .341 on base percentage.

*Johnny Lemm .253 batting average, 9 doubles, 9 home runs, 33 RBI, 31 walks, .462 slugging percentage, .383 on base percentage.

*Jason Torres .241 batting average, 8 doubles, 9 home runs, 47 RBI, .409 slugging percentage, 36 walks, .367 on base percentage.

*Luke Vaughn .213 batting average, 8 doubles,9 home runs, 30 RBI, .452 slugging percentage.

Alabama Team Pitching:

40 wins, 14 saves, 4.22 ERA, 510 innings pitched, 476 hits allowed, .247 batting average against, 206 walks, 513 strikeouts, 82 doubles allowed, 57 home runs allowed.

Leaders:

*Tyler Fay 10-4, 4.70 ERA, 95.2 innings pitched, 83 hits allowed, 21 walks, 112 strikeouts, .232 batting average against, 11 doubles allowed, 20 home runs allowed.

*Zane Adams 7-4 , 4.04 ERA, 82.1 innings pitched, 84 hits allowed, 27 walks, 90 strikeouts, .264 batting average against, 8 home runs allowed, 15 doubles allowed.

*Myles Upchurch 8-3, 3.57 ERA, 70.2 innings pitched, 50 hits allowed, 40 walk, 77 strikeouts, 6 doubles allowed, 6 home runs allowed, .198 batting average against.

*Hagan Banks 2-0, 6 saves, 2.82 ERA, 22 innings pitched, 23 hits allowed, 8 walks, 29 strikeouts, 1 home run allowed, .256 batting average against.

*Matthew Heiberger 3-2, 5 saves, 3.05 ERA, 38.1 innings pitched, 31 hits allowed, 20 walks, 31 strikeouts, five home runs allowed, .246 batting average against.

*Ashton Crowther 2-2, 2 saves, 3.27 ERA, 33 innings pitched, 31 hits allowed, 8 walks, 23 strikeouts, five home runs allowed, .246 batting average against.

*JT Blackwood 1-1, 3.86 ERA, 30 innings pitched, 33 hits allowed, 7 walks, 15 strikeouts, 3 home runs alllowed, .280 batting average against.

The Yankees announced tonight that Aaron Judge has been diagnosed with a stress fracture in his right rib. Judge will be re-evaluated in four to six weeks after a period of rest and limited activity.

It’s a crushing piece of news, though one that at least avoids the worst-case scenario. After days of testing, fears spread that Judge could be suffering from thoracic outlet syndrome, which would have almost certainly ended his season. Instead, Judge seems likely to return at some point this season, but when that could be is anyone’s guess at the moment.

Judge missed his first game of the season on Tuesday, with the slugger apparently having dealt with shoulder pain for the last few weeks. The discomfort coincided with one of Judge’s worst slumps of the last few years, Judge running a .672 OPS over his last 20 games.

New York will soon place Judge on the IL and get a healthy player on the roster in his place, perhaps top outfield prospect Spencer Jones. Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Domínguez are both progressing in their respective recoveries, but neither is ready to replace Judge on the roster. It goes without saying that no one is prepared to replace a healthy Judge’s production (or at least to truly complement the early-2026 version of Ben Rice), and we now have to hope that we’ll get to see a healthy Judge back on the field some time this year.

Blue Jay 7 Braves 2

I figured the Chris Sale start would be the tough one to win, but wrong again.

The Jays scored:

• Three in the third: With one out, Vladimir Guerrero doubled and Kazuma Okamoto singled to put runners on the corners. Charles McAdoo singled one home. Nathan Lukes was hit by pitch, to load the bases and Myles Straw singled home two more. Unfortunately Tyler Heineman hit into a double play to end the inning.
• Four in the ninth: Ernie Clement started it with a single and Vlad singled. Two outs later, Nathan Lukes singled to bring in one. Straw singled in another. And Tyler Heineman doubled in two more. Nice to see him chipping in.

We had 16 hits. 16. That’s more than we’ve had in a week. And we were 7 for 18 with RISP. How many times does a team get 18 runners into scoring position. Just three extra base hits, all doubles.

Clement and Vlad had three hits. Okamoto, Lukes, Straw, and Heineman had two. Yohendrick Piñango was the only starter to go 0 for. We will forgive this time, since he was in tough against one of the best lefties in baseball.

And we had another excellent job from the pitchers in a bullpen game:

• Mason Fluharty: He opened and got the first four outs, giving up a hit and a walk.
• Chad Dallas got the ‘bulk’ role, going 3.2 innings allowing 2 hits, 2 walks with 2 strikeouts allowing just a run. He was terrific in his MLB debut. And he was awarded the win. He came in with a runner on third and one out, in the second and got out of it without allowing the runner to score.
• Tyler Rogers pitched the sixth, a clean inning.
• Jeff Hoffman pitched the seventh, a clean inning, with a strikeout.
• Braydon Fisher started the eighth, and gave up a solo home run, making it a one run game.
• Louis Varland got the last four outs for the save, without allowing a base runner, with a strikeouts. His ninth save of the year.

Jays of the Day: Dallas (0.19 WPA), Straw (0.18, 2 for 5 with 3 RBI) and Hoffman (0.08).

Other Award: Well, Pinango has the number, but he did take charge in the outfield on a fly ball hit between him and Straw. He’s been a bit hesitant to do that, so happy to see it there.

The Jays will be straight to the airport, to fly home for the start of a series with the Orioles tomorrow. Usually, getaway games are earlier in the day. Brandon Young (3-1, 3.35) goes against Trey Yesavage (2-2. 2.19).

A verdict has finally arrived on Aaron Judge’s injury. 

The Yankees captain has been diagnosed with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, the team said Thursday night.

He will be relegated to rest and limited activity and then be re-imaged in about four to six weeks to determine how much improvement he has made and what his next steps might be. 

“Judge is expected to return at some point this season,” the team said in its statement. 

While losing the three-time American League MVP for likely at least two months is a serious blow, it may not be the worst-case scenario after the Yankees had been consulting with a specialist whose focus was on vascular procedures including thoracic outlet syndrome — which may have required season-ending surgery. 

Instead, this diagnosis gives Judge a chance to play again this season, though the Yankees will have a 6-foot-7, 282-pound-sized hole to fill in the meantime. 

Judge, who has not played since Sunday after the shoulder soreness he had experienced in recent weeks came to a head, underwent tests on Monday and then an additional MRI exam on Wednesday night at CT scan and X-ray Thursday morning.

The Yankees were left holding their breath during the four-day saga while waiting for a concrete diagnosis, a process that took longer than they had hoped. 

“Best hitter in the sport, and obviously what he means to us [is huge],” manager Aaron Boone said earlier on Thursday before the final diagnosis was announced. “There’s a void there, but we also have really good players that can pick it up, too. 

“You’re not replacing Aaron Judge though.” 

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

Judge was not fully hitting like himself so far this season — likely in part because he was playing through the injury — but still had 17 home runs and a .907 OPS in 59 games. 

Last season, Judge missed 10 games with a flexor strain in his right elbow and 42 games in 2023 with a torn ligament in his big right toe after running into the wall at Dodger Stadium to make a catch. But this threatens to cost him more games than either of those injuries, meaning the Yankees will have to find a way to keep winning without him. 

Since Judge became a regular in 2017, the Yankees have gone 652-442 with him in the lineup versus 137-127 when he is not. 

They have better depth than they have had in years, which could give them a better chance of surviving Judge’s absence. Ben Rice has emerged as one of the top hitters in the game, finishing Thursday with the second-highest OPS (a Judge-like 1.031) in the majors. Cody Bellinger has been an all-around standout, the most valuable player in the team by WAR.

Veteran Paul Goldschmidt, who came into the season as Rice’s backup, has been a critical right-handed bat to help them withstand Giancarlo Stanton’s month-plus on the injured list. 

Of course, the Yankees now need Stanton to get through the rest of his rehab from a right calf strain without any hiccups — he could be about 10 days to two weeks away from becoming an option — and the same for Jasson Domínguez, who could return next week from an AC joint sprain in his left shoulder. 

But even if they get the best from all of those players — plus those who have under-performed to date, like Jazz Chisholm Jr. — they are not Judge. 

“It kind of sucks not having a three-time MVP in your lineup,” Chisholm said after a 2-1 win over the Guardians. “But at the same time, we all know we can’t use it as an excuse. We’re all baseball players and we got to go out there and win a game.” 

Earlier on Thursday, the Yankees had been waiting to hear back from vascular specialist Dr. Gregory Pearl, who reviewed Judge’s images, hoping to rule out an extreme diagnosis like thoracic outlet syndrome.

They appear to have at least avoided that for now, which is the best news to come out of announcing that one of the best players in the game could miss months. 

“You really miss a player like that, not only out on the field, [but] in the clubhouse and in the dugout, different things like that from a leadership standpoint,” Ryan McMahon said. “You’re always going to miss an Aaron Judge. But it’s on us. We got to hold it down.”

These Atlanta Braves sure have a knack for winning just enough games to take a series.

After winning the first two games at home against the Toronto Blue Jays to win their 17th series of the season, they sputtered out at the plate in a 7-2 loss to the Blue Jays in Thursday night’s finale.

Of those copious series wins, only two have been sweeps — which they haven’t done since May 1-3 at Colorado.

It’s at least somewhat true that the final score was not indicative of the competitiveness of the game. The Blue Jays blew open what had been a contested battle with a four-run ninth off Reynaldo López, scoring all of the runs with two outs.

But that inning made what was a lopsided offensive showing more like it probably should have on the scoreboard based on the hit column.

The Braves allowed a season-high-tying 16 hits to Toronto, which saw each of its top eight hitters in the lineup notch at least one hit and was 7-for-18 with runners in scoring position.

Atlanta’s offense, by comparison, managed just four hits and was 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position.

That was certainly surprising given the pitching matchup. The Braves started Chris Sale, while Toronto opened with reliever Mason Fluharty before turning it over to Chad Dallas, making his major league debut after he was promoted from Triple-A Buffalo earlier in the day.

Dallas managed the Braves pretty well, getting out of a runner-on-third, one-out situation he inherited and allowing one run on two hits over 3 2/3 innings. And Toronto’s bullpen then really shut the door on the Braves, retiring 12 of 13 Braves over their final four innings at the plate.

All of the Blue Jays’ scoring before the ninth came in a three-run third where they put five straight runners on base with one out. The rally began with the only extra-base hit of the inning, a double by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Singles by Kazuma Okamoto and Charles McAdoo followed before a hit-by-pitch of Nathan Lukes and a two-run single off Myles Straw’s bat.

That was certainly the tone of Sale’s outing. He wasn’t consistently hit hard but Toronto racked up 10 hits (his season high allowed) over 5 2/3 innings. His three earned runs allowed were his most since allowing six against the Angels on April 6.

Once again, run support was a totally uncontrollable problem for Sale, who fell to 3-3 over his last six starts despite posting a 2.15 ERA over that span.

The Braves got a run right back in the bottom of the third after Ronald Acuña Jr. led off with a single, stole second for his 14th swipe of the season (and third in as many nights), advanced to third on a Mauricio Dubón single and came home on Matt Olson’s sacrifice fly.

Speaking of Dubón, he built off last night’s go-ahead homer by notching two of Atlanta’s four hits. His second hit was an eighth-inning solo homer to snap a streak of 14 straight batters retired which dated back to the final out of the third.

After Dubón had one homer in May, he has two in his first three June games.

At first, the Braves’ bullpen gave the offense a chance to come to life. Didier Fuentes got out of a jam he inherited in the sixth before delivering a scoreless seventh, and Dylan Dodd worked through the eighth without incident.

But López’s ninth inning that got away from him dug way too deep a hole for an offense which never found its gear after a strong showing in Wednesday’s series-clinching win.

Up Next

No rest for these Braves, who will stay at home to host the Pittsburgh Pirates this weekend. Pittsburgh entered Thursday’s series finale against Houston having won four of five.

Aaron Judge will be out through at least the All-Star break after he was diagnosed with a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side, the New York Yankees announced Thursday, June 4. 

Judge, the three-time American League MVP, has undergone significant testing since last playing in a game May 31. The club announced Thursday that his test results would be reviewed by a thoracic outlet syndrome specialist, and the announcement of the rib fracture came several hours later. 

The Yankees said Judge's injury will require a period of "rest and limited activity," and Judge will be reexamined in four to six weeks; the lone timeline offered by the club was that Judge is "expected to return sometime this season." 

It's unclear whether the stress fracture would ultimately require removal of the rib, a surgical procedure that would likely sideline Judge for the remainder of the season. Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler was diagnosed with vacuous TOS and underwent removal of the rib last September; he did not pitch in a regular season game until April 25. 

Judge, 34, won his second consecutive AL MVP last season when he led the majors in batting (.331), on-base (.457) and slugging (.688) and hit 53 home runs. He was off to a similarly powerful start this season, with 17 home runs in 59 games, though his OPS of .907 - while still elite - is off his 1.144 pace of 2025. 

Minus Judge, the Yankees lost two of three games to the Cleveland Guardians. They started Jose Caballero in right field the first two games of the series, then moved Caballero to shortstop, benched Anthony Volpe and gave Max Schuemann a start in right. Judge's production will be virtually impossible to replace, and the extent of Judge's injury and length of absence may frame the extent to which they seek offensive reinforcements at the August trade deadline. 

New York enters the weekend 37-25, a half-game behind Tampa Bay in the AL East.  

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Aaron Judge injury timeline revealed by Yankees in latest update

The Yankees will be without Aaron Judge for some time.

After days of imaging and re-imaging, the Yankees announced Thursday night that the two-time AL MVP has a stress fracture of the first rib on his right side. 

"He will be reimaged in approximately four to six weeks to determine the level of healing and appropriate next steps," the team wrote in a statement. " Judge is expected to return at some point this season."

Judge was missing from the team's series opener against the Cleveland Guardians on Tuesday when manager Aaron Boonerevealed that Judge had been dealing with a bone bruise in his upper right rib and was feeling it through his right shoulder. 

“He’s been, kind of the last couple of weeks, dealing with some shoulder soreness, just kind of nagging,” Boone said at the time. “And then over the weekend, the last couple of games in Sacramento, I think it became a little more than that, where I noticed on some swings and stuff."

 For days, the Yankees and their fans were waiting for the results of the imaging. 

Judge missed the entire Guardians series, in which the Yankees went 1-2, and will now be without their captain for quite some time.

The 34-year-old has had a solid season so far, but has scuffled of late. Over his last seven games, Judge has just one home run and is hitting 7-for-26 (.269). He has only one home run in his last 18 games. 

Overall, Judge is hitting .248 with 17 home runs and 38 RBI to go with his .908 OPS this season.

As for Judge replacements, the Yankees hope to get back Giancarlo Stanton and Jasson Dominguez soon. Dominguez is set to start his rehab assignment on Friday and Boone said Thursday that he expects to continue into next week. It's unclear if the news on Judge has shifted Dominguez's timeline.

For Stanton, the slugger is seemingly further away. The former NL MVP continues to have live BP and his running ramp-up, and the Yankees skipper conceded earlier this week that it could be a couple of more weeks before Stanton returns to the team. 

Spencer Jones, who had a cup of coffee with the club when Dominguez landed on the IL, could receive the promotion again. 

Across 10 games with the club, Jones went 4-for-24 (all singles) with three walks, two RBI, one stolen base and 12 strikeouts. 

Brayan Bello does not want to hear any more talk about his role on the Red Sox.

Bello, 27, allowed eight runs and walked three through five innings of work in Boston’s 8-2 loss to the Orioles on Thursday before being optioned to Triple-A Worcester, according to multiple reports.

Following the loss, Bello told reporters that he wants people to “stop talking” about whether he is a starting pitcher or a reliever.

“Just stop talking about bullpen and starting games,” Bello said through translator Carlos Villoria Benítez, according to MassLive. “I’ve always been a starter. And when I’ve been successful as a starter, nobody has questioned whether I have to be in the bullpen or starting games.”

Questions have arisen about Bello potentially pitching out of the Red Sox’s bullpen due to his abysmal 10.35 ERA through eight starts. In comparison, he has a 0.71 ERA as a bulk reliever while pitching after an opener.

Bello did acknowledge that he’s been having a “bad season” so far, but insisted that he would be able to recover going forward.

“Just stop that talk because I’m just having a bad season. That’s it,” Bello said. “It’s not whether I’m a starter or I’m a reliever. I’m just having a bad season. But I know I can turn it around. I always have. And I think I will.”

When asked if a short stint in the minors would help him figure things out, Bello said, “I’m not thinking about that.”

“I’m thinking about making my adjustments in the big leagues,” he added. “I have a big league contract. That doesn’t mean the bosses … will take that into consideration. But I’m a big leaguer. I’m a big league starting pitcher. And I’ll make my adjustments here.”

With the Red Sox sending him down to Triple-A, it appears that Bello will have no choice but to figure it out in the minor leagues.

Following Thursday’s game, Bello holds a 2-6 record with a 6.34 ERA across 61 innings pitched this season, noticeably worse than last year for the righty, who pitched to a 3.35 ERA through 28 starts in 2025.

“I don’t really know what’s going on,” Bello said. “I think I have the same mentality whether I’m starting or relieving.

“So obviously I don’t know.”

Two nights removed from an excellent performance in his first game at Triple-A Syracuse, Mets catcher Francisco Alvarez had a night to forget as he works back from torn meniscus surgery in his right knee. 

Alvarez was 0-for-4 tonight with three strikeouts, caught looking on one of them. His only other at-bat ended in a groundout to short.

Since Alvarez went under the knife on May 14, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza has made it clear that his everyday catcher has to prove he's able to play back-to-back games in the minors before he is reactivated from the IL.

In Alvarez's absence, fellow Venezuelan Luis Torrens has been thrust into the starting role behind the plate. He was signed to a two-year, $11.5 million contract extension less than two weeks before Alvarez sustained his injury.

While Torrens has been struggling mightily at the plate, slashing .220/.287/.578, he is an excellent defensive catcher, ranking in the 94th percentile of all qualified MLB catchers for fielding run value (per Baseball Savant).

Meanwhile, DH Jorge Polanco, still yet to return to the Mets lineup as he recovers from Achilles bursitis and a wrist issue, was left out of the Syracuse lineup tonight.

Outfielder Nick Morabito was also on the bench for tonight's game. Ryan Clifford served as the team's DH and went hitless.

In the end, the Syracuse Mets walked it off to take the win against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, 3-2 the final. 

For the RailRiders, top Yankees prospect George Lombard Jr. batted leadoff and went 2-for-4, while Spencer Jones was 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.

Don't run on Alvy!

Francisco Alvarez nabs Duke Ellis for his second straight rehab game catching a runner stealing! pic.twitter.com/radGUULHXt

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) June 4, 2026

PHOENIX –– Shohei Ohtani’s sub-1.00 ERA so far this season is even more impressive than it initially appeared.

Turns out, the two-way star has been nursing a small blister on the inside of his right middle finger.

The good news: The blister does not appear to be much of an issue.

In a scoreless six-inning start against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Wednesday night, Ohtani was seen picking at his finger during the outing. A close-up photo of his hand later emerged from when he was sitting in the dugout.

However, manager Dave Roberts said he “didn’t hear too much about it after the game” and “don’t expect it to affect him going forward.”

“He’s dealt with it for the last couple starts,” Roberts said. “Thomas [Albert, the team’s head trainer] just kind of gives me information on how he’s feeling. And every time I’ve asked, it’s been a non-issue.”

Asked specifically if the blister was to blame for Ohtani’s recently inconsistent command –– he had walked eight total batters in his three previous starts before Wednesday, when he issued just one free pass –– Roberts again downplayed its impact.

“I don’t think so,” Roberts said. “When his command has been off, I think it’s a bigger thing than just a blister. Because it’s a small blister, it’s small. That’s just when his mechanics are out of whack.”

Despite all that, Ohtani has continued his dominant start to the year on the mound, returning to full-time pitching duties with a nearly historic 0.74 ERA through his first 10 starts.

“He’s the best player that’s ever walked this earth,” catcher Will Smith said after Wednesday’s game.

Ohtani was out of the Dodgers’ lineup for Thursday’s series finale against the Dbacks, getting the kind of scheduled day off that might become more common the days following his pitching starts.

“Just the overall body soreness and fatigue is something that, if we can manage that, it kind of gives us a chance to get through the next days after,” Roberts said earlier this week.

At the start of the year, the Dodgers had attempted a different strategy to manage Ohtani’s two-way workload, keeping him out of the batting order in three of his early-season pitching outings before having him DH again the day after.

But last month, the club changed course, keeping Ohtani out of the lineup as DH for both his May 13 pitching start and the day immediately after. In each of his three pitching starts since then, he has played both ways, then gotten rest the day after.

“I think him knowing he’s down tomorrow is mentally freeing going into tonight,” Roberts said before Wednesday’s game, when Ohtani also reached base five times as a hitter (three singles, two walks) to push his batting average back over .300. “So, there is some value in him knowing he can empty the tank and know that he doesn’t have to go to it tomorrow as well. 

With Will Smith filling in as the DH, the Dodgers play the Diamondbacks before returning home.

Thursday’s game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Diamondbacks
• Ballpark: Chase Field, Phoenix
• Start time: 6:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

We now know that the St. Louis Cardinals will finally have Lars Nootbaar back in the Major League lineup as he’s being activated for the homestand versus the Cincinnati Reds starting Friday night. There’s been a lot of discussion about what that will mean for the roster moving forward, but I’d like to focus on something that Lars Nootbaar’s return gives the team that statistics cannot track.

In case you missed the announcement that was reported on by MLB Trade Rumors, Lars Nootbaar is headed back to St. Louis. No additional roster move was required because St. Louis sent rule 5 pick Matt Pushard back to the Marlins. The expectation is that Lars will take over his spot in left field which has been covered by Jose Fermin, Bryan Torres, Nelson Velázquez and Thomas Saggese since Nathan Church was injured. There’s a good chance that Lars will be slotted 5th, 6th or 7th in the batting order which should be an upgrade over the production from the bottom of the lineup so far this season. These are important and tangible differences that having Lars back will make for the St. Louis Cardinals.

May I introduce one other factor that I haven’t seen mentioned so far about what Lars Nootbaar’s return will provide the St. Louis Cardinals? If I were one of the Sabermetrics experts here in the VEB community (spoiler alert: I’m not), I’d call my intangible metric TOE. Tarps Off Energy.

One of my favorite parts of the St. Louis Cardinals 2026 season compared to the past 3 years is the competitive energy that the team’s young players bring to the table. I can count on one hand the number of games this year where I’ve felt the team lacked intensity. Now, imagine Lars Nootbaar bringing his personality and fire to what we’ve already seen this season. I can’t wait.

I was not surprised to see ESPN mention today that they believe Lars will become a trade deadline candidate if he stays healthy. That may be so and I don’t disagree that the team should listen to offers and move if the right one is presented. I have to wonder if his playing time between now and the trade deadline is enough to show his value to another team. There’s also the issue of whether Lars can remain healthy which has been his challenge for the past few seasons. However, even if that happens, that gives Lars nearly two months to make a positive impact on the Cardinals young lineup.

Having a career 9.4 WAR player added to the bottom of the lineup which needs help can only be a good thing. There are many that believe Nootbaar being back will also enable the Cardinals to move Victor Scott II back to the minors for more development time once Nathan Church is able to return in the next week or so and I don’t disagree. But, I still believe one of the biggest pluses of having Lars Nootbaar back with the St. Louis Cardinals active roster is the energy he will bring. Let’s hope his positive mojo will be like adding fuel to an already burning fire this young team has already shown.

Long-time Denver Post sports reporter Patrick Saunders announced today on X that he would be leaving the newspaper on June 24, 2026.

Saunders has worked for the post since October 1998 when he began writing about the Denver Broncos.

In 2005, he moved to covering the Colorado Rockies, only missing two years when he served as The Post’s online sports editor (2010-2011).

The third-generation Colorado native, Saunders was recognized in 2018 as the Colorado Sportswriter of the Year. He also served as president of the Baseball Writers’ Association in 2017.

Saunders has degrees in history and education from Fort Lewis College and earned a master’s degree in journalism for the University of Colorado where he works as an adjunct faculty member teaching journalism courses.

Thoughts and well wishes have poured in from the Rockies media community:

On a personal note, Saunders’ departure marks a significant loss of institutional memory on the Rockies beat. In watching Patrick work, he has an ability to ask difficult questions in ways that elicit thoughtful answers. He has worked tirelessly to cover the Rockies and share stories that might be overlooked.

Plus, he’s very funny.

Whatever’s next for Patrick, we here at Purple Row appreciate all that he’s done and look forward to seeing what’s next.

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