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Graphic via FanGraphs.
He’s back: Lawrence Butler, +0.38 WPA
Tough day in the bullpen: Zach Agnos, -0.39 WPA
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The Athletics started their weekend series against the Colorado Rockies on the right foot, beating their NL West counterparts 6-4 thanks to some solid pitching and timely hitting. The win secures the team’s 34th win of the season and they remain in striking distance of a playoff spot and the AL West lead. They’re now just a game under .500 and can get back to that mark tomorrow with another win.
Zeros early
Tonight’s pitching matchup featured a pair of young starters just beginning to make their mark on the league. It was lefty Gage Jump for the Athletics while fellow southpaw Sean Sullivan was making his major league debut for the Rockies.
Jump, one of the organization’s best young pitchers, came into this contest riding high after two quality starts in a row. He ran into some trouble in the first when he allowed back-to-back one-out singles but managed to wriggle out of it. He allowed another single in the second before getting into his rhythm.
From the third on Jump was dominant. He turned in 1-2-3 innings in the third, fourth, and fifth, retiring 10 straight at one point tonight. Considering how much the ball was flying earlier in the week during the Brewers series, Jump did a great job keeping the Rockies off the board for five full frames this evening.
On the other side Sullivan was keeping up with Jump. The A’s got a double in the second that was stranded and put two runners on in the third, but they couldn’t cash in on that early opportunity either. Those three innings were all we would see of Sullivan as the Rockies didn’t want to push their luck and ask him to go through the Athletics’ lineup a second time.
The scoring begins
Righty Jeff Criswell replaced Sullivan and had a scoreless fourth before Seth Halvorsen entered this contest for the fifth. He managed two outs before Shea Langeliers stepped up to the plate and hit the second pitch he saw over the center field wall for a solo shot:
That big fly was Langeliers’ 18th of the year and gave the Athletics the first lead of the game. But the A’s were done there. Next to the plate was first baseman Nick Kurtz and he decided to go back-to-back with Langeliers with his own home run, his 16th on the year:
The power stroke is officially here. That big fly was Kurtz’s fifth long ball in his past five games. It also doubled the A’s lead and gave Jump some breathing room.
Speaking of Jump, he finished the fifth rolling after punching out the side and was sent out to start the sixth given a chance to keep it going. But a leadoff single broke his streak. Then another single and a five-pitch walk brought Mark Kotsay out of the dugout, and the manager decided to pull his starter before things got any hairier.
No need to push the young lefty when he was clearly beginning to lose it. Right-handed Justin Sterner replaced Jump, coming into a bases-loaded, no out situation with the Rockies’ home run leader stepping to the plate. He punched out Hunter Goodman before a sac fly brought in the Rockies’ first run of the evening, charged to Jump. Then it was the big hit for the Rockies, a three-run home run to turn a 2-1 A’s lead into a 4-2 Rockies lead. Two of those runs would also be charged to Jump, putting a bad finish on an otherwise quality outing. Jump is lined up to take on the Pirates next week.
Now facing a deficit, the A’s offense needed to get to work. A leadoff walk to the just-activated Jacob Wilson started the bottom of the sixth. That was followed by a Zack Gelof one-out single (which extended his hitting streak to 16 games) to put two runners on. Up to the plate stepped third baseman Max Muncy and he delivered a huge two-run double that knotted this game back up at 4 apiece:
Much needed hit right there. Muncy would finish the night 2-for-4. This game would need to be decided in the final frames tonight.
The endgame
Following Sterner out of the Athletics’ bullpen was right-hander Mason Barnett, who had a perfect top of the seventh.
The bats meanwhile managed to push a run across in the bottom of the seventh with a little help from the Rockies’ defense. With two outs and runners on the corners Kotsay sent the runner on first, hoping to draw the throw to second base and allow the runner at third to make an attempt for home plate. Instead Butler nearly got picked off at third, but luckily a bad throw from the catcher sailed past the third baseman into left field, allowing Butler to come home and give the A’s the late lead:
Hey, take what they give you right?
Barnett came out for another inning of work in the eighth and got two outs but also allowed a double, putting the tying run in scoring position for the Rockies. Enter lefty Hogan Harris. Asked to get one major out, Harris did his job inducing a ground ball to escape the jam. Breath out.
The A’s added on a much-needed insurance run in the bottom of the eighth. Lawrence Butler, who didn’t even start this game, delivered his second hit of the night to drive in Muncy and give the A’s some breathing room for the ninth:
It was then up to Harris to finish the Rockies off. The lefty finished off the bottom part of the Colorado lineup with ease, collecting two punch outs and securing the win for the Green & Gold while earning his sixth save of the season.
A slightly stressful win but a win nonetheless. Don’t let Jump’s final line tell you he had anything but a great start tonight. The offense managed to do just enough to squeak out the win against the worst team in the league, and the bullpen was (almost) perfect to secure win #34 for the squad. They did what they needed to do tonight and now they need to do it two more times.
We do it all again tomorrow evening, same time same place. The A’s are shaking things up and will send right-hander Joey Estes to the mound for his first appearance with the big league team this season. Estes has made 12 starts with the Aviators this year and has a 5.95 ERA. Not great numbers but on the plus side he has plenty of experience pitching in Las Vegas Ballpark. The Rockies meanwhile have lefty Kyle Freeland going for them in the middle contest this weekend. The 10-year veteran has gotten hit hard this season as he’ll carry a sky-high 7.81 ERA into tomorrow. More homers incoming?
TORONTO — Max Fried still has a ways to go before he is pitching for the Yankees again, but he will take another important step in his comeback on Saturday.
The left-hander is set to throw a light bullpen session after another round of imaging on his left elbow bone bruise showed enough healing to clear him for the next step in his ramp-up, manager Aaron Boone said Friday.
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Try it free“I think it’s just a touch and feel [bullpen on Saturday] and then hopefully progress on the mound and see where that leads,” Boone said before an 8-5 loss to the Blue Jays.
Fried, who last pitched on May 13, has been asymptomatic since he started playing catch late last month. He had gotten out to throwing from 120 feet before going for more tests to get the green light to take the next step.
“Doesn’t mean he’s been cleared to get into that next point of a game — I think there’s still got to be some improvement [in his MRI exam],” Boone said. “But he’s doing well.”
In a best-case scenario, Fried is still likely more than a month away from returning, needing to get through multiple bullpen sessions and live batting practices before a rehab assignment might come into play.
But if the Yankees can get him through those steps healthy, they will gladly welcome him back to strengthen what is already a potent rotation.
J.C. Escarra led off the fifth inning with a double, marking the first hit by a Yankees catcher since May 30. In between, Escarra, Austin Wells and Ali Sánchez had combined to go 0-for-26.
Wells (cervical headaches) is hitting, throwing and going through treatment, feeling “great” as he works toward a return, according to Boone.
The catcher is first eligible to return from the IL on Tuesday, though Boone said the Yankees would decide after this weekend if they want him to play in any rehab games first.
The lore of The Miz just keeps growing.
Brewers flame-thrower Jacob Misiorowski kicked off his start against the Phillies by striking out the side — and breaking one of his own records in the process of the 6-0 win.
The young right-hander hit 104.5 mph on the radar gun with a foul-tip strikeout of Philadelphia leadoff hitter Kyle Schwarber.
THAT SAYS 105 MPH
— MLB (@MLB) June 12, 2026
WOW, Jacob Misiorowski! pic.twitter.com/wXuz0W2YbU
It was the hardest-thrown pitch by a starter in the pitch-tracking era, which dates to 2008, surpassing the 103.4 mph heater he fired in late May against the Cardinals.
Misiorowski finished the inning by punching out Trea Turner and Bryce Harper swinging on 103.5 mph and 104.1 mph fastballs, respectively, to cap a ridiculous opening frame.
He didn’t slow down there.
Misiorowski continued dominating the Phillies lineup, striking out 15 batters while allowing only one baserunner — a fourth-inning single by Schwarber — in a complete game shutout.
The outing continued what has been a ridiculous start to the 2026 season for Misiorowski, who made his MLB debut for Milwaukee exactly one year ago to the day.
Heading into Friday’s game, Misiorowski had posted a 1.50 ERA with a major league-leading 116 strikeouts across 13 starts, putting him squarely in the National League Cy Young conversation.
Last summer, with his stardom rising quickly, Misiorowski was placed on the NL All-Star team after just five outings and 25 2/3 innings.
That decision didn’t go over well around much of the baseball world — especially in Philadelphia.
Phillies lefty Christopher Sanchez, who didn’t make the team despite being 7-2 with a 2.49 ERA across 107 2/3 innings at the time, was among the players who had a case for the spot Misiorowski filled.
Ironically, Sanchez is now one of the few arms in the senior circuit pitching near Misiorowski’s level, having posted a 1.54 ERA with 113 strikeouts, setting up an intriguing NL All-Star Game starter debate and Cy Young race.
It wasn't necessarily pretty, but the Mets held on for a huge 7-5 win over the NL East-leading Braves on Friday night and Devin Williams was a big part of it.
Bo Bichette smashed two home runs and drove in six runs for the Mets, but Nolan McLean wasn't efficient enough to go deep and the bullpen faltered a bit as Atlanta's dangerous lineup chipped away at New York's lead. And with two outs in the eighth and runners on second and third, manager Carlos Mendoza called on his closer to get a four-out save.
Williams has yet to get more than three outs in a single outing as a Met. He didn't even do it with the Yankees a season ago until the playoffs, so this is uncharted territory for the Mets skipper. But after Eli White hit a sharp single off of third baseman Brett Baty that scored a run, Williams got Rowdy Tellez -- who represented the go-ahead run -- to fly out and send the game into the ninth.
"We got to a point now where they’re built up, equipped for it," Mendoza said of his rationale to use Williams for a four-out save. "Once you get in that situation, you’re trying to avoid another high-leverage guy, which was [Luke Weaver]. We get to a point where a four-out save was in play. I thought today, where we were in the game, where we were in the lineup, matchup-wise, that was the decision there."
After getting Austin Wynns to line out on the first pitch of the ninth, the at-bat of the night occurred. Mauricio Dubon and Williams battled for 14 pitches before the Braves outfielder singled, allowing the tying run to come to the plate.
But Williams didn't back down. He struck out Michael Harris II on four pitches and got Matt Olson -- who homered earlier in the game -- to strike out on a foul tip on four pitches to end the game.
"Pretty impressive at-bat by Dubon there, but that’s what makes Devin who he is," Mendoza said of the ninth. "He knows that even after that long one, he’s got two pretty good hitters coming up. He’s gotta execute, stay on the attack, not get behind in the count. That’s what he did. He went right after them. Huge save for us."
“It was a pretty gutsy performance by Devin there," McLean said. "Coming back-to-back and two-ups tonight, that’s big time.”
Friday was Williams' sixth career save of four or more outs and his first since May 28, 2023. It's also a continuation of some recent domination from the Mets closer.
He's now allowed just one run over his last six outings (6.1 IP). He's also unscored upon in 15 of his last 17 appearances dating back to April 26. His 37 strikeouts this season are the seventh-most among NL relievers.
While Williams will more than likely not be available on Saturday, he delivered a big win to start the weekend series as the Mets continue to climb out of their early-season hole.
The Mariners are finishing out their long road trip with an interleague set against the Nationals and things got off to a tough start with a two-hour-plus rain delay, their second of the season (glares in the general direction of Minnesota). Rain delays historically haven’t been kind to the Mariners, but today they overcame the long delay thanks to a strong start from Bryce Miller, backed by an offensive explosion led by Dominic Canzone and Colt Emerson.
After a tough loss in Baltimore yesterday, the Mariners were on the right side of a big inning today, jumping on Nats starter and former Mariner Zack Littell in the second inning. It started with what I’m terming an Arozarena Double (single, stolen base) followed by a walk to Luke Raley, who’s really trying to lean into that Three True Outcomes label lately. Dominic Canzone apparently has a grudge against Nationals Park – which, fair – because he then tried to laser this ball through the center field wall for a rare Dominic Canzone Triple, which unfortunately immediately triggers a #CycleWatch for Canzone.
Miles Mastrobuoni brought home Canzone from third because Miles “Mister Bunny/Master Boney” Mastrobuoni knows how to do his job, to make it 3-0 Mariners, but the suffering would not end there for Littell, as Jhonny Pereda wore him out with a nine-pitch at-bat that ended in a line-drive single (with batflip, natch), bringing up Colt Emerson. Emerson got a fastball up in the zone and was able to pull it over the wall for his fifth home run: an impressive feat for a player whose power was never a highlight in his prospect scouting report.
Even though the Mariners had knocked out Littell by the second inning, the third inning was more of a bummer, comparatively, not only because the Mariners didn’t score but also because Randy Arozarena appeared to injure himself on a routine groundout to first, looking like he maybe tweaked a hamstring trying to beat out the throw. Victor Robles replaced Randy in the bottom of the inning, playing right as Luke Raley shifted to left, making his first return to Nationals Park, and immediately made a nice inning-ending catch.
The first Nats run off Miller came in the fourth, when Miller made the mistake of falling behind Nats slugger James Wood in a 3-1 count. Miller then compounded his mistake by hanging a slider in Wood’s lefty loop zone for a no-doubt homer that at least was a solo shot. Miller almost made things harder for himself with an ill-located splitter to Luis García Jr., but thankfully the yard held it, and Miller was able to escape the inning without further damage.
The Mariners were able to get that run back in the fifth and then some, doing some damage with two outs. Cole Young started with a one-out single, moving to second on a seven-pitch walk to Julio Rodríguez. With two outs, Victor Robles worked a walk to load the bases, with Young eventually scoring on a wild pitch by Nats bulk pitcher Riley Cornelio (pause for Beavis and Butthead jokes). Luke Raley then brought in Julio and Robles with a big two-out single that would put this game functionally out of reach; a pair of solo homers later in the game from Canzone and Josh Naylor pushed the score to double digits.
Miller, with his pitch count in good shape, earned an opportunity to pitch in the eighth to try to set a career high, but fell behind leadoff man Dylan Crews 3-0 before serving up a sinker that didn’t sink, prompting Dan Wilson to get up new bullpen addition Michael Rucker. Miller rebounded, however, to get his next three outs, completing eight innings for the first time in his career.
For Miller, who has a near-encyclopedic recollection of his outings, it was a satisfying step forward.
“The last time I had a low pitch count after seven was 2024 in Milwaukee, and I lost the battle then,” joked Miller.
Today, with the Mariners bullpen thin in the middle of a long road trip, Miller got the green light to go back out and push deeper into a game than he had, making things easy on new callup Michael Rucker, who pitched a scoreless ninth. It was a statement game against a team that’s been averaging over five runs a game, and a statement game for Miller, who’s making a case along with Emerson Hancock to be considered the ace of the Mariners rotation. Big Tex > Big thunderstorms.
Only the Houston Astros this season could deliver angst and high drama after posting a whopping 9 runs in the first inning. What should’ve been a contest set on cruise control, quickly became a roller coaster affair, between dueling bullpens. Houston would hang on for a 10-8 win.
Royals starter Luinder Avila would be chased after throwing 49 pitches, the highest volume for any pitcher in an inning this year. Avila now owns that dubious distinction. Swimming in the same stormy waters was Tatsuya Imai, who in his 9th start would also get bounced in the opening frame while being charged with 5 runs. The inning would take 47 minutes to complete.
Steven Okert would come on initially in relief to quiet the noise. Okert would go 2 1/3 IP, his longest outing since August of 2021. In total, the Astros would utilize six different relievers; Okert, Blubaugh, Pearson, De Los Santos, King and Josh Hader. Hader would close the door, registering his 2nd save of the year.
The Astros first inning fireworks began with a leadoff single by Jeremy Pena, followed by back-to-back home runs from Yordan Alvarez and Christian Walker. The entire order would bat around. Alvarez would then reappear with the bases loaded, launching a grand slam off of reliever Mason Black. It would be the first time an Astros player would have multiple homeruns in the same inning since Jeff Bagwell accomplished the feat in June of 1994 verses the Dodgers. Alvarez would account for 6 of the 10 runs scored. He now leads the A.L. with 54 rbi’s.
The Royals would add a trio of runs in the bottom of the 8th, first on a single by Michael Massey that drove in Michael Garcia. That hit would be followed by a Carter Jensen bases loaded walk and then a Bobby Witt RBI single. That would trim the lead to one.
In the top of the ninth, Brice Matthews would create some breathing room, adding an insurance run with a 433-foot HR. It was Matthews’s 5th homer of the season.
With the win, the Astros improve to 2-2 on this current road trip. Mike Burrows is scheduled to start Saturday. First pitch from Kauffman Stadium at 6:10pm CDT. Burrows has lost 4 of his last 5 outings.
Bo Bichette may have called it while talking to The Post before Friday’s game.
“I think I am good enough that my season could look how I want it to look in a week,” Bichette said. “But I also think that I am good enough to where we look up in a couple of months and I am like, ‘Oh, dang, he made it to where he wants to be.’ ”
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Try it freeHe’s off to a good start.
Buoyed by Bichette’s two home runs, which included a grand slam, the Mets beat the Braves 7-5 at Citi Field for their second straight victory.
The barrage gave Bichette, who began the night with an anemic .607 OPS, three homers over his last two games. His six RBIs matched a career high. It’s the kind of night the Mets had in mind when they signed Bichette last winter to a three-year contract (that contains opt outs) worth $126 million.
“Individually you have a little bit more juice already, knowing that you are playing the best team,” Bichette said of the Braves, who own MLB’s best record. “Individually you are going to have to bring it if you want to win, but coming out and seeing the crowd how it was, I don’t know if I have really seen that all year, so it was exciting just walking out there in the first innings.”
Bichette’s outburst boosted the Mets on a night Nolan McLean scuffled and lasted just four innings because of an elevated pitch count. The right-hander allowed two earned runs on three hits and four walks with six strikeouts. He was removed after 93 pitches.
Juan Soto, whose go-ahead homer Wednesday propelled a victory over the Cardinals, went deep on this night to augment Bichette’s offensive heroics.
Bichette and Soto got the night started with consecutive homers in the first inning that gave the Mets a 2-0 lead. Soto, who received his silver bat award from last season before the game, cleared the right field fence for his team-leading 15th homer after Bichette had homered to left.
“I feel like we haven’t seen that the whole year,” manager Carlos Mendoza said, referring to the Bichette-Soto combo. “Whether it was losing Juan because of injury, then he gets going and Bo going through a rough stretch, but if we get those two going they can carry any team.”
McLean needed 42 pitches to get through the second, an inning in which the Braves sent eight batters to the plate and scored twice, with help from three walks.
Dominic Smith’s RBI single pulled the Braves within 2-1 after Ozzie Albies walked leading off and reached second when Jared Young mishandled McLean’s pickoff throw for an error. Austin Riley walked before Mike Yastrezemski’s RBI single tied it 2-2. McLean then walked Ha-Seong Kim to load the bases before getting three straight outs without a run scoring.
Bichette’s grand slam in the bottom of the inning gave the Mets a 6-2 lead. MJ Melendez doubled against Spencer Strider with two outs to begin the rally before Luis Torrens singled and Carson Benge got drilled to load the bases. Bichette hit a fly to right that just nestled into the first row.
Bichette’s sacrifice fly in the fourth extended the Mets’ lead to 7-2. Melendez walked in the inning and Luis Torrens singled.
McLean’s performance was a step backward after two straight solid starts from the right-hander following consecutive clunkers. In his previous outing, last Saturday against the Padres, he threw a season-high 101 pitches and allowed one earned run over six innings.
Matt Olson’s homer in the fifth against Cionel Perez gave the Braves their third run.
Brooks Raley surrendered two runs in the eighth to slice the Mets’ lead to 7-5 before Devin Williams retired Rowdy Tellez with the tying runs on base for the final out.
Williams worked a scoreless ninth for his second save in as many days. The right-hander threw 33 pitches overall.
“Most teams get hot at some point during the year,” Bichette said. “We have just got to grind this one out.”
The Mets welcomed the Braves to Citi Field with a 7-5 victory to open the series against the division leaders.
The dynamic duo of Bo Bichette and Juan Soto went back-to-back in the first inning to give the Mets an early 2-0 lead against their rivals. After Nolan McLean labored in the second and Atlanta tied the game, MJ Melendez doubled with two outs in the bottom half of the inning. That ended up being a key play in the game since the team went on to load the bases for Bichette who blasted his second home run of the game.
Bichette’s grand slam also saved McLean who stayed in game once staked to a four-run lead. It still wasn’t easy for the righty but he didn’t give up any more runs outside of the second inning. In that inning he threw 42 pitches and gave up RBI hits to old friend Dominic Smith and Mike Yastrzemski. After the two runs came home, the Braves loaded the bases with nobody out but he escaped without further damage by getting two strikeouts and a pop up. His night was done when he was unhappily pulled after four innings. McLean walked four and struck out six in his brief outing and then the game was in the bullpen’s hands.
First up was Cionel Pérez who gave up a home run to Matt Olson to allow the Braves to creep closer and after Huascar Brazobán was stellar for 1.2 innings, Brooks Raley was less so. He got just two outs and gave up two runs which forced the team to turn to Devin Williams with the tying runs on base. Williams did allow one of the inherited runners to score, but he got big Rowdy Tellez to fly out for the final out of the eighth inning. In the ninth the tying run again came to the plate, this time in the form of Olson, but Williams struck him out to nail down the save.
The Mets offense had tacked on a run the the fourth but they were held mostly in check after Spencer Strider departed early with right arm soreness. This game ultimately became a battle of the bullpens and while the Mets’ bullpen bent it did not break and they held on for a 7-5 win they desperately needed. Lets go Mets baby. Love da Mets.
Big Mets winner: Bo Bichette +41% WPA
Big Mets loser: Nolan McLean and Brooks Raley -5% WPA
Mets pitchers: +5% WPA
Mets hitters: +45% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Bo Bichette grand slam in second, +30% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Mike Yastrzemski RBI single in second, -14.2% WPA.
On a drizzly night, the Twins managed (somehow) to win a battle of bumpy bullpens. (In bWAR for relievers, the Cards’ pitchers are ninth in MLB; the Twins’ are 29th.) Inning-by-inning notes:
1: Cards 1B Alec Burleson has a home run in each of his last three games; make it four. Heckuva hot streak. If you didn’t know (I didn’t), the record is eight games in a row. Shared by Ken Griffey, Jr. (1993), Don Mattingly (1987), and Dale Long (1956). Long’s not a name most of us are familiar with, but he had a solid career OPS of .80 over 10 seasons. Six guys have hit seven in a row, and 25 have hit six. None of the above were Twins.
Byron Buxton now has one straight game with a home run. That’s #21 for the year; that’s on pace for 48! But we know he’ll waive his no-trade clause, get traded to the Dodgers for a high-A prospect, and end up hitting 75 home runs because the Dodgers have bought off the baseball gods. (They can afford it.) Tied 1-1
2: Two singles by guys who have Tattooine-type names; Lars Nootbar and Masyn Winn. Then a lineout, and an RBI single for Blaze Jordan, who was just called up today! It was his first at-bat, in fact. Good for him. After a strikeout, there’s a single to right, and Winn scores. Originally, the throw beat Jordan to third, and he was tagged out… but, SS Tristan Gray bumped into Jordan on the basepaths, so he’s safe because of defensive interference.
Radio’s Kris Atteberry keeps saying this mistake cost the Twins a double play. No, Kris. No, it did not. Well, everybody makes boo-boos.
Royce Lewis hits a long out. That’s as exciting as the Twins get here. Cardinals 3-1
3: Ooh, Gameday has really spruced up the graphics this year:
That ball in the dirt KICKED UP some dirt. This is what you pay graphic design graduates hard money to think up, folks.
Finally a 1-2-3 inning for Joe Ryan, although he’s at 63 pitches now which means four innings of The Best Bullpen in Baseball.™
Tristan Gray has a leadoff single, and this mistake costs the Twins an imaginary radio double play. Whoops, I jinxed it, since after a Luke Keaschall strikeout there is an actual double play. Well, I wouldn’t have jinxed it if Atteberry hadn’t said it in the first place, so it’s still his fault.
4: Oops, I also jinxed Ryan by saying he’d pitch five innings. They just paused the game for rain, so he’s done.
I double-jinxed it. The delay was short enough (29 minutes) that Ryan’s back out. Waiting for the game to start, OTHER radio guy Dan Gladden says “I think 14 teams make the playoffs now” and this is untrue, so let’s just assume that the third radio guy is named Jim Beam tonight. Another 1-2-3 for Ryan.
Buxton hits a double, and tries stretching it into a triple. It doesn’t work. The rest of the Twins avoid baserunning errors by avoiding the bases.
5: Two-out single by Iván Herrera, who steals second with no throw, but Ryan strikes out Burleson to end it. He’s at 92 pitches now, though, so my original jinx stands true.
Here we go! A Lewis single and super-rare Victor Caratini double. Second and third, no out. Brooks Lee hit one to right, and Lewis doesn’t try to score, thinking RF Jordan Walker has a rocket arm. Walker does, but the throw ended up being way off line. Still, Gray has an infield single and Royce scores. Luke Keaschall flies out; not deep enough for the slow Caratini to tag up. No more goodness; man, you’d like to have had two runs there. Gashouse Gang 3-2
6: TRIPLE JINX! Ryan stays in to get three guys on seven pitches. Shows how much I know. I mean, I know a lot about certain things. I know that old-timey actor Edward G. Robinson was in a crime movie called The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse and you probably didn’t know that. But I do not always predict the future of baseballing games accurately.
Gee whiz, Byron… 3-3 tonight, this one a double. Kody Klobberin’ Klemens takes a walk. Josh Bell manages to golf-swing one off the outfield wall, and for some reason Clemens doesn’t get past third. Still, Buxton scores, and this chases starter Kyle Leahy.
Alfonso Soriano’s cousin George Soriano in to pitch. Royce sac fly to center, scoring Clemens. “Other” Soriano escapes further damage. Again, when (after the Bell RBI double) you had runners on second and third with nobody out, you’d like to get both of those in, but we’ll have to settle for Twins 4-3
7: Taylor Rogers (4.78 ERA) in. Leadoff walk, not so good. He gets a called Strike Three on the next guy, and he’s probably lucky this is Blaze Jordan’s first MLB game, because the 3-2 pitch was inside, but Jordan doesn’t challenge it. Roger gets the next guy swinging, and walks another; geez, Taylor.
This brings in Eric “Oozy” Orze. He gives up a hit, but Tristan Gray manages to keep the ball from escaping the infield. Nobody scores; yet the bases are loaded.
Four straight balls from Orze. YUMMY. Tie game.
Jordan Walker double. NOT tie game.
The new Cards pitcher is Gordon Graceffo, who is not related to Alfonso Soriano, but he has a very cool name just by itself. He gives up two walks of his own, and the second means he’s replaced by Ryne Stanek.
Hey! Kody Clemens found his dad’s old pharmacy phone number! Homer runner! Tied 7-7
8: Something called a Yoendrys Gómez pitching for the Twins. One easy pop-up out, then a single, WP, another single, and a ball that gets stuck in Tristan Gray’s glove for the RBI. Yuck. New pitcher time, it’s Anthony Banda. A bloop single loads them up; still only one out. A pop-out to first; then a flyout to center. Nice job, Banda, I guess maybe.
Hey, what happens when you hit a ball at the right angle 107 MPH? A Dong Does! Thanks Royce!
Then, Brooks Lee with a pathetic, only 100 MPH one. But, we’ll take the second dong anyways! Better Midwesterners 9-8
9: Andrew “Not Black Jack” Morris in for the save opportunity, and it’s… really pretty easy for him! Twims wim! (Yes, we spell it wrong on purpose here sometimes.)
Studs: Joe Ryan and the Bomba Squad, 6/12/2026 edition: Buxton, Clemens, Lewis, Lee. Duds: No duds, Twins win! (Except the whole bullpen, but it’s not their fault they stink, it’s Pohlvey’s.)
The Twins remain one of two teams (along with the Nats) not to have a walkoff win so far this season.
COTG: Nagurski for weather/cultural observations, SooFoo for “more like tarps on” (referencing how half-nekkid Cards fans like to call themselves the “Tarps Off” bunch, and there was a rainy delay), sandwiches for “We should play Twinkie Town blackout bingo with how the bullpen f***s up a game. Pretty sure we’d have a blackout already on the bingo card and by drowning our sorrows,” then Matt for “what is this Morris nonsense… get Lawrence out there, I want the Twins to obliterate the unique saves record”
Thanks to everybody who joined in; it was a long night!
Tomorrow’s game is at 1:10, featuring one Matthew Liberatore against our own Connor Prielipp. Catch ya next time!
This is going to be a much cheerier recap than my last one, for obvious reasons. Feels like the Guardians haven’t played many truly well-rounded complete games recently, and tonight was a sterling example of what that looks like for this iteration of the club. Great starting pitching which, in turn, limits the amount of damage the middle/non-Cade relievers can do, and just enough offense.
Guardians got the scoring started with a 2-out rally (kinda) in the 2nd. Hoskins hit a leadoff double, which was promptly followed by back-to-back flyouts — neither of which advanced him to 3rd. But, as you might expect, Bailey drove in Hoskins with an RBI single and Rocchio drove in Bailey with an RBI triple (why not?).
The Tigers fought right back in the 3rd with a James Outman (who, if you missed it, was picked up by the Tigers yesterday) solo homer.
It was pretty quiet until the 6th, when Kwan drove in Angel with an RBI single (Angel doubled).
Bibee was through 7 and came out for the 8th, but gave up a solo homer to Torkelson. He was pulled after that. His final line was 7+ IP 2H 2ER 8K 2BB.
Flaherty, who started for the Tigers, was pulled after the 3rd. He had an awkward tumble in the 2nd, but came back out in new cleats for the 3rd. He seems to have been pulled due to some foot/lower leg injury.
Gaddis pitched a scoreless 8th, and Cade slammed the door in the 9th.
Cantillo vs. Skubal tomorrow!
A loss in the first game of the season against the New York Mets was bad for the Atlanta Braves.
The loss of Spencer Strider to right arm soreness during his start was worse.
Strider’s departure after his fastball plummeted to 88-89 mph in the fourth inning overshadowed Atlanta’s 7-5 loss in Queens, N.Y. Friday night.
Mind you, it wasn’t a good start before the velocity dropped for Strider, who allowed a season-high seven runs on six hits — including three home runs — in three-plus innings.
But the optics of another apparent arm injury for a player who has been plagued by them of late are much worse than just a bad start, looming over a starting rotation which should get healthier in the coming weeks and months but isn’t quite there yet.
It didn’t seem the Braves were going to be in a competitive game when Strider exited in a 6-2 game which quickly became 7-2 when an inherited runner scored. Bo Bichette and Juan Soto hit back-to-back homers in the first off Strider.
After Atlanta scored two of its own in the second — before failing to take the lead with the bases loaded and no outs — the Mets reclaimed the lead in the bottom of the inning on another Bichette homer, this one a wall-scraping grand slam.
Credit to JR Ritchie, who was tasked with a bulk-relief appearance in his return to the major league level, for stabilizing things. He allowed the inherited run from Strider on a single to the first batter he faced and then a Bichette sacrifice fly for his sixth RBI.
But from there, Ritchie was dominant the rest of the way, allowing just one more hit and two walks over five total innings of work, striking out five. He did it on just 73 pitches, a promising response after his pitch count would often get a bit elevated in his first stint with the Braves earlier this season.
That shutdown from the rookie allowed the Braves to chip into the deficit. They got a run back in the fifth on a solo homer from Matt Olson, his 20th of the season. They got two more in the eighth on RBI singles from Ozzie Albies (team-high two hits and two runs) and Eli White.
They brought the go-ahead run to the plate in the eighth in the form of pinch hitter Rowdy Tellez, who popped out to strand two, and brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth after Mauricio Dubon worked a 14-pitch at-bat that ended with a single.
But Michael Harris II and Olson each struck out to strand Dubon and end the game short of what would have been a morale-boosting victory given the circumstances.
Instead, it was the Braves’ third straight loss, just their second three-game losing streak of the season and the first since April 4-6. They’ll look to avoid their first four-game losing streak of the season Saturday night when Martin Perez (4-3, 3.02 ERA) to the mound against a TBD pitcher for New York.
Bo Bichette hit two home runs and tied a career-high with six RBI and Devin Williams delivered a four-out save as the Mets hung on for a 7-5 win over the Atlanta Braves on Friday night at Citi Field.
New York (31-38) grabbed the first of 13 matchups with Atlanta (45-24), and improved to .500 at home on the year.
- The Mets jumped on Braves starter Spencer Strider early as Bichette launched a hanging slider at the top of the zone deep to left for a solo shot. The 0-2 offering was smacked (102.6 mph off the bat) and went 383 feet for his seventh of the season.
Juan Soto followed up by cranking a 97 mph fastball at the top of the zone out to right field to make it back-to-back one-out homers. Soto's blast, his 15th of the year, went 382 feet (109.1 mph). It was the second-straight game that the Mets hit two home runs in the bottom of the first inning.
- MJ Melendez ripped a double into the right-field corner and that started a little two-out push in the second as Luis Torrens got a fortunate infield hit on a ball that tipped off Strider’s glove before Carson Benge was plunked on the elbow to load the bases.
After ex-Mets pitching coach Jeremy Hefner went out for a visit, Bichette capitalized, smacking a fastball over the plate the other way for a grand slam, just sneaking it over the wall, 341 feet into the corner.
- Melendez worked a walk to start the fourth and that ended Strider’s night as he exited with the trainer due to right arm soreness. JR Ritchie entered in relief and surrendered a single to Torrens to put two men aboard. With one down and runners on the corners, Bichette muscled a sac fly to center to make it 7-2, but that was all the Mets could muster. (Ritchie would do really well to save Atlanta's bullpen with five scoreless innings, allowing two hits and two walks with five strikeouts.)
Soto finished the day 2-for-3 with the solo HR, an intentional walk, and a ripped single into right in the seventh.
Melendez would finish the night 2-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. Torrens would end up 2-for-3.
- McLean shook off the 76-minute rain delay with two strikeouts in a perfect first. But the righty got into trouble in the second: A walk on a full count, an error on a pick-off throw to first, an RBI single, and another walk on a full count brought pitching coach Justin Willard out for a visit. McLean didn’t settle, allowing a full-count RBI single to Mike Yastrzemski to tie the game and issuing another full-count walk to load the bases with nobody down.
McLean then buckled down, getting Austin Wynns swinging, Mauricio Dubón on an infield-fly, and Michael Harris II looking to end a 42-pitch inning.
Again pitching with a lead, McLean got around a one-out single with a 4-6-3 double-play for a quick bounce-back inning. After issuing his fourth full-count walk of the game to start the fourth, he kept Atalanta off the board with two more strikeouts in the process.
But on the warm, muggy night, that was it for the righty: 4.0 innings, two runs on three hits and four walks with six strikeouts on 93 pitches (55 strikes). Before getting the hook, McLean had an animated conversation in the dugout with manager Carlos Mendoza. He later slammed his hat on the bench in frustration.
- Out of the bullpen, Cionel Perez made two nice plays popping off the mound for outs to start the fifth, but left a sinker in the happy zone for MattOlson to smack a lefty-on-lefty homer 399 feet to right-center. Perez got the first out of the sixth before Huascar Brazobán got back-to-back strikeouts to close the inning, and then added two more strikeouts in a perfect seventh.
Brooks Raley allowed a leadoff single to start the eighth, and after a passed ball and groundout, Ozzie Albies poked a run-scoring single up the middle to cut the Mets' lead to three. Raley got pinch-hitter Jorge Mateo swinging, but a breaking ball over the plate to Austin Riley put two in scoring position with a double to left-center.
When Atlanta pinch-hit with Eli White, the Mets turned to Williams for a four-out save. White grounded an 0-2 changeup down the third-base line that Brett Baty knocked down with a dive, but it was an RBI infield hit. But Williams got Rowdy Tellez (the third pinch-hitter of the inning) to pop out to left to end the inning with runners on the corners.
After getting the first out of the ninth on one pitch, the closer lost a 14-pitch battle with Dubón, who singled to right to bring the tying run to the plate. But Williams, pitching for the second straight day and looking for his first four-out save in some time, got Harris swinging on a 94 mph fastball and blew two fastballs past Olson before getting him swinging on a nasty changeup to slam the door.
- Marcus Semien singled and swiped second base with two out in the third, but was left stranded. He finished 1-for-3 with two strikeouts, one looking and one swinging, and a walk.
- Benge finished hitless in three at-bats with a strikeout swinging and a HBP.
- Baty finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout swinging.
- A.J. Ewing went 0-for-4, with a pair of swinging strikeouts.
- Jared Young went hitless in four trips, including a 6-3 double play.
The Mets have been waiting for Bichette's bat to get cooking, and a 2-for-3 day with two home runs could be the start of that.
A pair of strikeouts in the first inning for Nolan McLean
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 13, 2026
(via @AppleTV) pic.twitter.com/yrCwXQFr5m
Juan Soto goes BACK-TO-BACK with Bo Bichette!
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 13, 2026
(via @AppleTV) pic.twitter.com/17ZxB6a52j
BO BICHETTE GRAND SLAM!!!!!
— SNY (@SNYtv) June 13, 2026
(via @AppleTV) pic.twitter.com/8YISPaHVMA
The series continues with a late afternoon first pitch, 4:10 p.m.
New York has yet to announce a starter, but Sean Manaea (5.02 ERA, 1.442 WHIP in 43 innings) is expected to either follow an opener or be used as a traditional starter.
Atlanta will send out left-hander Martin Perez (3.02 ERA, 1.059 WHIP over 56.2 innings).
Before the Royals took an at-bat in the first inning, they were down 9-0. Before the Astros took their second at-bat, the Royals had made it 9-5. Neither starter made it through the first inning, but the bullpens held it there until the eighth, when the Royals added 3 more to make 9-8. The Astros added a home run in the ninth off of Matt Strahm (naturally) to give us the final score of 10-8.
The big damage in the first inning was done by Yordan Alvarez, who has had a great career but is having perhaps his best season yet at age 28. He belted two home runs in that first inning, a two-run shot followed by a grand slam on his second trip. Christian Walker, having a rebound year, also hit a solo shot in the inning.
The Royals kept the line moving in their half of the first. Carter Jensen led off with a single, Bobby Witt Jr. walked, and Vinnie Pasquantino singled to drive home Carter. Maikel Garcia grounded into a fielder’s choice, Vinnie out at second, but drove in a second run. Jac Caglianone struck out, one of three on the evening, and Salvador Perez swung at a 3-2 pitch below the zone to put runners at second and third. Michael Massey doubled down the right field line to drive in one, then Kameron Misner blooped a single to center to drive in two more. Isaac Collins ripped a single into left, and Kameron Misner made the inexplicable decision to go to third on the plate and was thrown out to end the inning.
And that was it for the scoring until the eighth inning.
Garcia singled to lead off, then Jac struck out again, Salvy singled to center, then Massey went opposite field for an RBI single. The Astros called on lefty reliever Bryan King, and Lane Thomas was tasked with pinch-hitting for Misner, but he struck out. Isaac Collins got hit by an 0-2 pitch to load the bases. Carter Jensen took an RBI walk, and Bobby smashed one toward the hole, but Isaac Parades managed to knock it down, keeping the Royals to only an RBI infield single. With the lefty still on the mound, Matt Quatraro went back to his bench to get Starling Marte to pinch-hit for Vinnie Pasquantino. Marte hit a weak grounder to short. Last year, he would have been fast enough to beat that out, and the Royals would have tied the game. Alas, it is 2026, and he was thrown out by a hair.
As previously noted, the Astros got one of those runs back, and Josh Hader came in to close it out, inducing three poorly hit balls from the Royals to end things.
Given how the game started, it’s amazing that KC managed to get all the way back in the game. But, as has been their modus operandi for the past two years, it was just too little, too late.
They’ll try again tomorrow evening. Mike Burrows (5.77 ERA, 9.8% K-BB%) will go against the suddenly sensational Noah Cameron (3.84 ERA, 16.7% K-BB%). The game is scheduled to start at 6:10 p.m. Central time. The USMNT isn’t playing this time, so I have no idea how you might otherwise distract yourself from whatever nonsense the Royals get up to this time.
Friday night’s game in Minnesota was a turning point of sorts for the St. Louis Cardinals after several roster moves one of which was the debut of Blaze Jordan. He contributed along with a bomb from Alec Burleson, but the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen would blow a lead late as the Minnesota Twins beat the birds Friday night in Minneapolis in a heartbreaker.
It has been a happy habit lately for the St. Louis Cardinals to score early and Friday was no exception. With two outs in the top of the 1st inning, Alec Burleson launched a 95 mph four-seam fastball from Joe Ryan 419 feet way up into the right-center field seats giving St. Louis an early 1-0 lead.
That one-run lead wouldn’t last long as Byron Buxton sent a Kyle Leahy 91 mph slider 425 feet to dead centerfield tying the game 1-1.
There would be two storylines in the top of the 2nd inning and they’re both related. The first was the Major League debut of Blaze Jordan who was called up as Nolan Gorman was sent down. After Lars Nootbaar and Masyn Winn singled, Jimmy Crooks lined out to center which brought up Blaze Jordan which would lead to several firsts. It was his first Major League at-bat, hit and RBI driving in Masyn Winn and giving the Cardinals their lead back at 2-1. Welcome to the show!
After Blaze Jordan’s hit and RBI, Nathan Church struck out, but JJ Wetherholt picked him up lofting a single over the second baseman’s head upping the Cardinals lead to 3-1. One interesting side note on that play was Blaze Jordan who would have been thrown out at third base, but he smartly ran past second base and didn’t slow down making contact with the shortstop which resulted in interference being called by the umpires, so Blaze was granted third base. He didn’t score when Ivan Herrera grounded out to end the inning, but that was smart baserunning and situational awareness by Jordan.
There was a 29 minute rain delay that interrupted play, but Kyle Leahy returned to the mound anyway. He would give up one run in the bottom of the 5th inning after he surrendered a single to Lewis and a double to Caratini. Two batters later, Lewis would score on an infield single by Gray cutting the St. Louis lead to just one at 3-2. Kyle would continue into the bottom of the 6th, but would run into trouble again. He gave up a leadoff double to Buxton then walked Clemens. Josh Bell then hammered a Kyle Leahy changeup to center for a double tying the game 3-3. Manager Oli Marmol took Kyle out of the game and brought in George Soriano in relief. He would give up a sacrifice fly to center which would score Clemens giving the Twins their first lead of the game at 4-3. Kyle Leahy’s line for the night would be 5 innings giving up 8 hits and 4 earned runs while striking out 5 and walking just 1.
The Cardinals would strike back in the top of the 7th inning. Jimmy Crooks walked to leadoff the inning, but Blaze Jordan was called out looking on a pitch that likely would have been overturned if he had made an ABS appeal. Nelson Velasquez pinch-hit for Nathan Church, but also struck out. JJ Wetherholt then drew a two-out walk on a no-doubt ABS challenge where he was already taking off his gear before the result was even revealed. Ivan Herrera then reached on an infield single which was actually a great grab by the shortstop to keep it from reaching the outfield resulting in a bases-loaded opportunity for the Cardinals with Alec Burleson coming to the plate. He promptly walked on 4 pitches when Twins reliever Eric Orze couldn’t find the strike zone walking in a run and tying the game 4-4. That brought up Jordan Walker who did what the 2026 version of Jordan Walker does. He punished an 85 mph splitter and ripped it into the left field corner which cleared the bases as even Alec Burleson scored all the way from first giving St. Louis a 7-4 lead.
Gordon Graceffo was the Cardinals answer for the start of the 7th inning, but he unfortunately wouldn’t finish it. After Gray grounded out to start the inning, Graceffo walked Keaschall. After Larnach flied out to center, Gordon then walked Buxton which brought up the tying run to the plate. The Cardinals brought in Ryne Stanek who was rudely greeted by Kody Clemens who crushed a 3-run homer into the right field stands tying the game (again) 7-7 in the 7th inning. Bummer.
Never fear. The St. Louis Cardinals relentless approach would star once again in Minnesota in the top of the 8th inning. After Masyn Winn popped out to lead off the Cardinals 8th, Jimmy Crooks singled to center and then advanced to second base on a wild pitch by Twins reliever Gomez. Blaze Jordan would then punch his second hit of the night into right field, but the Twins outfield was playing in and Bryan Torres who pinch-ran for Crooks was stopped at third base. Jose Fermin then whistled a sharp grounder to shortstop Gray for what looked like would be an inning-ending double play, but instead he was unable to get the ball out of his glove resulting in everyone being safe and Torres scoring to give the Cardinals an 8-7 lead.
It was then JJ Wetherholt’s turn as he lanced a single into short left field to load the bases again. Unfortunately, the Cardinals would not get another run on the board after Herrera popped out to second base and Burleson flied out to center. Those missed opportunities would come back to haunt St. Louis big time one half inning later.
In the bottom of the 8th inning, Ryne Stanek delivered a 95 mph four-seam fastball in exactly the place that Royce Lewis was looking for it and he destroyed it 394 feet high up into the left field seats tying the game (again) at 8-8 in the 8th inning. But wait, there’s more. After JJ Wetherholt made a Gold Glove-level play on a hot grounder from Caratini to get him out, Stanek grooved an 87 mph slider to Lee who gave someone 382 feet away in right field a souvenir making it 9-8 Twins. BUMMER.
The Cardinals sent up big bats in the top of the 9th inning as it was Jordan Walker, Lars Nootbaar and Masyn Winn representing St. Louis’ last hope. They unfortunately grounded out consecutively 1-2-3 to end a very disappointing night in Minnesota. They’ll try again Saturday afternoon when Matthew Liberatore gets the start for the Cardinals against LHP Connor Prielipp for the Twins. First pitch is scheduled for 1:10pm central time and the broadcast will be handled by Cardinals.tv.
