Category: Baseball

Let’s bounce back and win a series

Here’s the Guardians’ lineup:

Here the Cardinals’ lineup:

Let’s go, Guardians!

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The Texas Rangers and Athletics continue a four-game set tonight at Sutter Health Park in Sacramento, with first pitch scheduled for 9:40 p.m. ET. 

My Rangers vs. Athletics predictions are eyeing the hosts to erupt against Texas right-hander Kumar Rocker. 

Read more for my MLB picks for Wednesday, April 15. 

Who will win Rangers vs A's today: A's moneyline (-113)

The Athletics bounced back in the second game of this series last night, winning 2-1. While they’ve struggled to score runs this season with only 3.9 per contest, tonight’s clash against Texas Rangers starter Kumar Rocker presents a clear opportunity to string together runs. 

Rocker has a 4.75 ERA through two starts, and the A's are hitting a mind-boggling .588 against the righty.

The likes of Shea Langeliers, Jacob Wilson, and Tyler Soderstrom have hit him around the ballpark and sent him to the showers early in their lone clash against him in 2025, scoring five runs on seven hits in just 1 2/3 innings. 

Rocker hasn't developed as much swing-and-miss as his prospect pedigree may have suggested, as he ranks in the 40th percentile in chase rate, the 34th in whiff, and 27th in K%. This sets an A's offense up for success at their launching pad of a home ballpark.

A's starter J.T. Ginn isn't anything to write home about, but he keeps the ball in the ballpark, limits hard contact, and doesn't walk anyone.

COVERS INTEL: Ginn has held opponents to a .184 average in 2026.

Rangers vs A's Over/Under pick: Over 9.5 (-115)

Rocker is a very shaky starter, and he’s had just about zero luck against the Athletics in his career, owning an 11.37 ERA while surrendering eight earned runs across two starts. 

While I do believe Ginn will improve upon allowing seven earned last week, Texas does have a .341 average against him across 44 at-bats.

Sutter Health Park is extremely hitter-friendly, especially with fly balls often turning into home runs due to the Sacramento air and wind patterns.

Rangers vs A's odds

• Moneyline: Rangers +100 | A's -120
• Run line: Rangers +1.5 (-190) | A's -1.5 (+160)
• Over/Under: Over 9.5 (-115) | Under 9.5 (-105)

Rangers vs A's trend

The Texas Rangers have hit the Game Total Over in 32 of their last 50 away games (+13.30 Units / 24% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Rangers vs. A's.

How to watch Rangers vs A's and game info

Rangers vs A's latest injuries

Rangers vs A's weather

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First Pitch: 12:40 PM
TV: Twins.TV
Radio: TIBN, WCCO 830, The Wolf 102.9 FM, Audacy App
Know Yo’ Foe:Over the Monster

Rewind the clock to ‘46,
Of segregation politics:
A minor league second baseman, Jack;
Opponents wouldn’t play him ‘cause his skin was black.
The Army dropped him when he made a fuss
Of being ordered to the back of bus.
But then a star with Kansas City; Dodgers brought him aboard;
A future of acceptance he was bringing us toward:

Those
Teams laughed for so long,
“Your existence is wrong!”
Bore so much, wouldn’t flee:
You knew whom you’d be:
You’re an MVP
In number 42.

In ‘47, got the call to the Show;
Yes, some around supported, but the hate would only grow:
You’d hear the cruelest epithets from bench and stands,
Get block-written letters with murder in their plans.
But on the field, it was ball and bat,
Same ninety feet no matter where you’re at.
You hit .300, stole thirty bags,
And the Dodgers soon raised pennant flags;

Though
Teams laughed for so long,
You were proving ‘em wrong.
With no such guarantee,
You were whom you’d be:
You’re an MVP
In number 42.

You got down to business, and here you’d thrive,
You won Rookie of the Year, then a ring in ‘55.
One more season, then you were done;
Did you know what you’d begun?

It’s nearly eighty years since your debut,
And every player will be in 42.
Through all that old hate that’s rising and stark,
There’s plenty on field who have skin shaded dark.
So many further enshrined with a plaque
Who played because you opened up a crack.
Now there’s a game ahead, and the fans are awed;
We know today whom we must applaud!

Though
Teams laughed for so long,
You have proven ‘em wrong.
There’s so much to decree;
You were so more than you’d be:
You’re an MVP
In number 42;
Yes, you’re our MVP
In number 42.

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The cozy confines of Comerica Park have been kind to the Detroit Tigers since the calendar flipped to April.

Detroit rides a four-game home winning streak into Game 2 with the Kansas City Royals on Wednesday after taking a tight 2-1 series opening win yesterday.
 
The Tigers, who are 6-1 in their last seven contests inside Comerica, will see that home cooking slow to a simmer tonight.

Our Royals vs. Tigers predictions like Kansas City’s starter and my MLB picks are riding with the Royals as short road dogs.

Who will win Royals vs Tigers today: Royals (+116)

The Detroit Tigers’ recent run at home includes wins over Miami and St. Louis — two teams having issues keeping foes off the scoreboard. 

The Kansas City Royals have been much stingier on that side of the plate, thanks in part to the efforts of starter Seth Lugo. 

The right-hander’s 1-1 record over three outings doesn’t reflect his performance, allowing just three earned runs on 13 hits in less than 18 collective innings. What’s more impressive is that two of those starts came against the big bats of Atlanta and Milwaukee.

Lugo had a head start on the 2026 season after pitching well for Puerto Rico in the World Baseball Classic. He’s already working deep into games, getting into the seventh inning in two of his first three outings. 

That takes pressure off the Royals’ wobbly bullpen, which gave up two runs late in the series opening loss to Detroit.

COVERS INTEL: Kansas City allows the fewest runs in the opening six innings, including just 1.57 runs allowed through six frames in road games. The Royals are 6-11 O/U against first five inning totals, including 2-5 O/U in this derivative market as visitors.

Royals vs Tigers Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (+102)

Lugo will keep Detroit’s bats in the check while he’s on the mound. As for Tigers starter Jack Flaherty, he’s coming off his best showing of the young season. 

The righty went 5 1/3 innings versus Minnesota, allowing one earned run on five hits with six strikeouts. Flaherty has fanned six batters in each of his last two starts and faces a Kansas City lineup that has struggled to produce away from home.

The Royals are driving in an average of just two runs per road game – tied for lowest in the majors – while hitting a collective .171 BA. That’s pumped out a 1-6 Over/Under record on the road.

Royals vs Tigers odds

• Moneyline: Kansas City +116 | Detroit -126
• Run line: Kansas City +1.5 (-182) | Detroit -1.5 (+163)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-115) | Under 8.5 (+102)

Royals vs Tigers trend

The Kansas City Royals have gone Under the total in 28 of their last 45 games (+9.60 Units/20% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Royals vs. Tigers.

How to watch Royals vs Tigers and game info

Royals vs Tigers latest injuries

Royals vs Tigers weather

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A.J. Ewing was one of the young standouts in Mets camp this year. 

With numerous regulars competing in the WBC, the youngster took full advantage of his opportunity for playing time, showcasing the many ways he can impact the game.

Thus far, he’s been able to carryover that success to open the Double-A season.

Ewing reached three times in Tuesday’s Binghamton loss -- doubling in the third, singling up the middle in the fifth, then driving in a run with another single in the seventh. 

He finished the day 3-for-5 with two runs scored, an RBI, and a stolen base.

The 21-year-old is now hitting a whopping .421 and he’s put together three multi-hit showings over his first eight appearances on the season. 

Ewing has also walked (8) more than he’s stuck out (5), he’s ripped five doubles, and has swiped five bases to help rack up an incredible .538 OBP and 1.119 OPS.

He played second base on Tuesday for the third time this season, which as Joe DeMayo noted in his recent prospect mailbag is about maintaining his versatility. 

Pair these early results with his strong finish with Binghamton last season, though, and there’s not much left for the former fourth-round pick to prove at the Double-A level.

If Ewing can keep this up, perhaps he’ll make the leap to Syracuse soon enough.

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No pitcher in baseball has more strikeouts over the last five years than Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Dylan Cease, and I expect him to continue to rack up the Ks in tonight’s matchup against the Milwaukee Brewers. 

Read on to see why he’ll be the feature player in my Blue Jays vs. Brewers predictions and free MLB picks for Wednesday, April 15.

Blue Jays vs Brewers predictions

Blue Jays vs Brewers best bet: Dylan Cease Over 6.5 strikeouts (-155)

The Toronto Blue Jays' pitching staff largely baffled the Milwaukee Brewers in the series opener with 12 strikeouts, and I expect that trend to continue with Dylan Cease on the mound tonight. 

Cease has faced the Brewers four times in his career, and went Over today’s 6.5 strikeout total in each outing, averaging eight K’s per contest.

The slider has been his most effective putaway pitch this season, garnering 10 strikeouts on a58% whiff rate and a .053 opponent batting average.

Milwaukee has the ninth-highest strikeout rating against the slider with a 33% K-rate.

COVERS INTEL: Cease's 38.8% strikeout rate is second among MLB starters to throw at least 10 innings this season.

Blue Jays vs Brewers same-game parlay (SGP)

The Blue Jays' bats seem to be coming around, sporting a .294 average over their last five games, averaging 10.4 hits per game. So I’ll continue to bet on the bats and take Over 4.5 hits against Brewers’ starter Chad Patrick. 

Additionally, Patrick’s main pitch is his cutter, a pitch in which the Jays own a .389 batting average against this season.

I’m also going to keep the Daulton Varsho train rolling and take Over 0.5 hits for the outfielder. He’s recorded a hit in five straight, totaling nine base knocks in that stretch. It’s also a great matchup for him, as Varsho posted a .500 average against the cutter last season. 

Blue Jays vs Brewers SGP

• Dylan Cease Over 6.5 strikeouts
• Daulton Varsho Over 0.5 hits
• Chad Patrick Over 4.5 hits allowed

Blue Jays vs Brewers home run pick: Daulton Varsho (+335)

I’ll continue to bet on Varsho today, who looks to be turning things around at the plate with five extra-base hits in his last five games. 

Three of those have been of the home run variety, and this is a plus-matchup for him to hit one out of the park again tonight. Not only did Varsho have a .500 average against the cutter last season, but his xSLG was also .752 with a 35% hard-hit rate. 

Additionally, Patrick is a flyball pitcher who ranks in the 25th percentile in hard-hit rate. Varsho’s raw power should shine through tonight. 

Blue Jays vs Brewers odds

• Moneyline: Toronto -130 | Milwaukee +110
• Run line: Toronto -1.5 (+135) | Milwaukee +1.5 (-155)
• Over/Under: Over 7.5 (-110) | Under 7.5 (-110)

Blue Jays vs Brewers trend

The Toronto Blue Jays have hit the Game Total Over in 10 of their last 15 away games (+5.75 Units / 35% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Brewers.

How to watch Blue Jays vs Brewers and game info

Blue Jays vs Brewers latest injuries

Blue Jays vs Brewers weather

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The New York Yankees split the first two games of their series with the Los Angeles Angels, earning a dramatic 11-10 win in the opener before dropping Game 2 in blowout fashion.

My Angels vs. Yankees predictions and MLB picks expect the home side to get back on track this Wednesday, April 15.

Who will win Angels vs Yankees today: Yankees moneyline (-178)

Jack Kochanowicz has seen his counting numbers improve this season, but a lot of that stems from luck.

He owns a 5.02 xFIP — very close to last year’s 5.18 xFIP, when he had a 6.81 ERA to go with it.

Kochanowicz has also allowed a .204 average on balls put in play. That is unsustainably low and well below the near .300 BABIP allowed over 175 innings of work the two seasons prior.

All of these numbers suggest regression is coming, and the New York Yankees (third in fly-ball rate, seventh in hard-hit rate) are a good team to force the issue.

COVERS INTEL: Kochanowicz's xERA is nearly three runs higher than his actual ERA this season.

Angels vs Yankees Over/Under pick: Over 10.5 (-116)

Kochanowicz’s underlying profile screams regression, and the Yankees' tendency to hit the ball hard and put it in the air should serve them well in a hitter-friendly ballpark with warm weather and the wind blowing out.

When Kochanowicz departs from the game, the Yankees can look forward to facing a bullpen that ranks Bottom-10 in xFIP and SIERA.

The Los Angeles Angels should chip in their fair share of runs as well. Luis Gil has a tough time keeping the ball in the park, and the Angels rank first in fly-ball rate and second in homers this season.

Angels vs Yankees odds

• Moneyline: Los Angeles +163 | New York -170
• Run line: Los Angeles +1.5 (-120) | New York -1.5 (+100)
• Over/Under: Over 10.5 (+115) | Under 9.5 (-105)

Angels vs Yankees trend

The Angels have hit the Over in eight of their last nine games (+6.90 Units / 68% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Angels vs. Yankees.

How to watch Angels vs Yankees and game info

Angels vs Yankees latest injuries

Angels vs Yankees weather

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Desperate for a win and clinging to a 7-6 lead over the Rockies on Tuesday night, Joe Espada sent Bryan King back to the mound to try to secure the game’s final three outs. Bryan Abreu, the team’s most accomplished healthy reliever, sat on a bench in the bullpen while Enyel De Los Santos, a journeyman 30-year old who signed with the Astros last August, got loose.

After retiring the first two batters he faced, King allowed hits to the next two, prompting Espada to summon De Los Santos to face the right-handed-hitting Jordan Beck. De Los Santos struck him out to end the game, securing the Astros’ first win after an eight-game losing streak.

It was a good night for a team that needed a win and a bullpen that has been maligned for the first 18 games of the season, but it was notable that Abreu, who was scored on in his first six appearances of the season, played no role in it.

“My focus is trying to match up the right pockets. Trying to put these guys in a position when they can deploy their pitches, go to the areas where they can get people out and trying to get them rolling that way,” Espada said. 

That means the way Espada managed his bullpen in the final innings of Tuesday’s game will be the standard operating procedure moving forward.

“Once the dust settles some of these guys will start falling into those roles, but right now we’re going to try to get going that way and try to get these guys on a positive note,” Espada said. 

The Astros bullpen is shorthanded with Josh Hader, who threw a live batting practice session on Tuesday, and Bennett Sousa, who recently started a rehab assignment, on the IL, but its ERA sits at 6.35, second worst in league, after surrendering just two runs over 5 1/3 against the Rockies on Tuesday. 

Getting Hader and Sousa back will be a nice shot in the arm for the Astros bullpen, but it is hard to see it function at a high level without Abreu pitching at a high level. He had his first scoreless outing of the season on Sunday in Seattle, but he still allowed two baserunners and needed 27 pitches to record three outs. 

Abreu will get his opportunities out of the Astros bullpen, but Espada didn’t sound like someone ready to use him in high leverage spots right now.

“I’m going to deploy him in moments where I think it’s what’s best for him and our team,” Espada said. “Once he gets going, he’s a force.”

The Orioles play their 18th game of the year on Wednesday afternoon. They have gone the previous 17 games without facing a left-handed starting pitcher, the longest stretch of any of the other MLB teams. That streak ends today as Arizona’s Eduardo Rodriguez takes the mound against them. If the O’s can pull off the win, they’ll get the series win as they head off on a road trip. Lose and they won’t have managed to sustain good feelings after Monday’s big comeback win.

Although the Orioles have avoided having anyone new placed on the injured list, there’s still been roster shuffling ahead of the game. The team selected the contract of catcher Sam Huff from Norfolk and optioned reliever Nick Raquet back to Norfolk. That means the O’s will be a pitcher short in the bullpen today and for however long this lasts. Raquet did not make a very good first impression on Orioles fans and was lucky not to have given up more runs last night. In this case, there’s not too much downside to not having him out there.

The three catchers thing probably won’t last for long. Maybe it won’t even last until tomorrow’s game. Ahead of today’s game, manager Craig Albernaz indicated that he foresees another roster move coming within the next few days to get the team back to an eight-man bullpen.

I don’t know why the Orioles didn’t bring up Huff a couple of days ago; they’d telegraphed wanting to bring him along as soon as Adley Rutschman hit the injured list, but he’s only arrived today. Mike Elias is always doing weird things on the fringes of the roster. If it matters whether Huff or Maverick Handley is on the roster or how much playing time they’re getting, that’s probably not going to mean good things for the 2026 team. Sending either of them out seems to be the most obvious move.

Pitcher Jayvien Sandridge was designated for assignment to make room for Huff on the 40-man. The Orioles acquired him for cash considerations on March 29, sent him to Norfolk, and never opted to bring him to Baltimore before designating him in turn. Existing at the edge of the 26-man or 40-man rosters is not the most stable place to be.

Orioles lineup

1. Taylor Ward – DH
2. Gunnar Henderson – SS
3. Pete Alonso – 1B
4. Johnathan Rodríguez – RF
5. Weston Wilson – LF
6. Jeremiah Jackson – 2B
7. Coby Mayo – 3B
8. Sam Huff – C
9. Blaze Alexander – CF

This is a lineup, all right. It is not a lineup from which you might be expecting good things. I’m certainly not. Maybe they’ll surprise us. For me, it’s having Rodríguez as the cleanup hitter in his first start as an Oriole that really makes it. With three lefties coming up in the next five games, I’m curious how much of this is going to repeat.

Starting for the Orioles today is Kyle Bradish. At the outset of this season, things haven’t been going well for him, with a particular problem of nine walks in 13.2 innings.

Diamondbacks lineup

1. Ketel Marte – DH
2. Corbin Carroll – RF
3. Geraldo Perdomo – SS
4. Adrian Del Castillo – C
5. José Fernández – 1B
6. Ildemaro Vargas – 2B
7. Nolan Arenado – 3B
8. Alek Thomas – CF
9. Jorge Barrosa – LF

Rodriguez has a 0.50 ERA through his first three starts of the year. Pretty good! It is not an Orioles lineup that’s likely inspiring much fear in him, though they are all still major league players and he can’t totally goof off or he’ll end up seeing his ERA balloon. His best is definitely better than their best and his decent might even be better than their best.

**

This game is taking place on April 15, the day that MLB sets aside each year to honor the day in 1947 that Jackie Robinson made his debut and broke the color barrier in what had been a segregated game. All players will wear 42, the number that is retired league-wide in Robinson’s honor, on this day.

It is a good day to remember that, although overt segregation in public spaces was stamped out long ago, the legacy of this history of racism still impacts our society today. For baseball in particular, a decline in participation by Black Americans is partly rooted in the fact that the youth travel baseball culture that fuels a lot of the domestic talent pipeline in the sport now is off limits to many families for economic reasons rather than overt racial ones.

As this country gears up to celebrate the 250th anniversary of its founding, there is still work to be done to live up to the ideal that all men are created equal. The times in American history of which one can be proudest are the times where people worked or fought to make this reality. Jackie Robinson was a great ballplayer and a great American.

Will Jose Fernandez ever take a walk? Yesterday, he went 2-for-4, but failed to draw a base on balls for the 13th game since he made his debut on March 31st. That is getting him up there into some fairly rarefied company. Well, at least among non-pitchers. As far as records likely never to be broken, we have Enrique Burgos, who appeared 71 times for the Diamondbacks, without a walk. The fact he never came to the plate may have been a factor in this. But in terms of plate appearances to start a career, Fernandez is getting up there. That’s now 44 PA, which have resulted in 44 at-bats. No walks. No HBP. No catcher’s interference. Zero trots down the line to first.

He does have some way to go to reach the franchise record. For the longest time – over twenty years – the mark was held by Jerry Gil, the walkless wonder. In 2004, he played 26 times for the D-backs, coming to the plate 86 times without drawing a walk (he did get hit by a pitch ones). What’s more remarkable is, save one game as a pinch-runner for the Reds in 2007, that was his entire major-league career. Baseball Reference still tags that streak as active… No other position player has had a walkless career with as many PA for almost a hundred years, since Overton Tremper went 94 PA in 1927-28.

However, Gil was recently displaced as the franchise leader for walkless PA’s to start a career. And it was by someone currently on the roster. Nobody noticed much, since it took almost two full seasons to achieve it. But Jorge Barrosa went 35 games and 91 PA, before finally getting his first base on balls in the final game last year. Of course, baseball being baseball, he then walked again, the very next time up. Another D-back also makes the top 10 by games played. Ildemaro Vargas was walkless in his first 20 appearances, though a) they were back in 2017-18, and b) that covered only 28 PA. Right now, by PA, Fernandez sits sixth. We’ll see how much higher her rises!

If you do it once, it’s a fun (and in this particular case, heartwarming) story that we get to enjoy in the moment before moving on to the next thing. If you do it twice, then we’ve gotta talk about it. That’s what Dominic Smith has forced us to do after he did the daggone thing once again.

The Braves mounted a furious comeback in the bottom of the eighth at Truist Park in order to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat. It’s a familiar scenario that we’ve seen play out a bunch of times in the past but now we’re all getting used to a new face doing the damage instead of one of the core group of Braves players that’s usually doing the damage. Dominic Smith has already written two exciting pages of the book that is the 2026 Braves season as he followed up his walk-off grand slam on March 28 with a bases-clearing opposite-field gapper with two outs in order to turn what was shaping up to be a disappointing series loss to the Marlins into a big-time turnaround.

It’d be one thing if it was just those two moments for Dominic Smith so far. That’d be cool but I’d imagine that folks would want more production in-between those two bits of brilliance at the plate. As it turns out, Smith has been delivering on a consistent basis here in the early goings for the Braves. He’s currently sporting a .395/.415/684 slash line with a .474 wOBA, .289 Isolated Power, three homers and 201 wRC+. While he’s likely going to cool down at some point, that’s some mighty-fine production through 41 plate appearances and 14 games!

The obvious hope is that once he does cool down, the plate production will be enough to where he’ll be able to deliver some solid production as one of the main designated hitters for the Braves. If his production last season across 63 games for the San Francisco Giants is any indication, he could very well be in line for a solid season. He hit .284/.333/.417 with a .325 wOBA (outperforming his xwOBA of .306) with five homers and 111 wRC+ across 225 plate appearances. For that to be happening in San Francisco, that’s not bad at all! So far, he’s managed to build upon that and get off to a scalding-hot start in a better environment for hitting here in Cobb County.

As it turns out, Dominic Smith has been making very good use of his time in both San Francisco and Atlanta by utilizing the resources that’s available to him in both locations — and by “resources,” I mean the former legends who used to ply their craft both here and there.

During his appearance in front of the media following Tuesday night’s game, Smith mentioned that he had had conversations about hitting with Barry Bonds while he was with the Giants and then he followed that up by quickly getting in touch with Braves legend Chipper Jones once he became part of the big league roster here. I’d say that whatever advice those two have been giving him has been stuff that he’s been taking to heart and applying to his game because he’s been putting up plate numbers that we haven’t seen from him since the seats were empty back in 2020.

That 2020 season was the last time when Dominic Smith was seen as a serious threat across the baseball world, as he slugged his way to a 166 wRC+ season with the New York Mets. Accruing 1.4 fWAR across just 50 games is a pretty solid achievement but unfortunately, he had’t even come close to that level of production since then. In fact, he scuffled mightily at the plate during his final two seasons with the Mets and he also spent some time in the wilderness in 2023 and 2024 as he bounced around with the Nationals, Red Sox and Reds. Based on that track record, it’s no wonder that we really didn’t get too hyped up about him around here once he was signed as a non-roster invitee — outside of the idea that he’d provide depth for Matt Olson at first base and an occasional option at DH.

Instead, he had himself a solid spring, played himself onto the big league roster for Opening Day and has proceeded to come up huge for the Braves in some big moments early on in the season. Despite all of that bouncing around that Dominic Smith did over the past few seasons, he still garnered respect from his opposition. Walt Weiss admitted as much during his post-game press conference following the win on Tuesday.

“I’ve watched him a lot from the other side — he was in the division with the Mets and the Nationals and it never felt good when he was in the box in a big spot,” said Weiss. “I knew he was going to be a tough out. He’s not going to chase and the ball’s probably going to be put in play.” Weiss also complimented Weiss on being willing to continue to improve his game. “Regardless of where [he’s] at in [his] career, [he’s] always looking to get better every day [he] shows up. Dom’s certainly that guy. All these guys are like that. Good for Dom — those are a couple of pretty good resources in Bonds and Chipper so he’s a smart guy too, going to the right people.”

Throughout all the scuffling, that determination to get better has finally started to pay off some dividends for Dominic Smith and the Braves appear to be the early beneficiaries of it so far. Again, it’s still very early days for both Smith and the Braves here in the 2026 season but so far, the early results have been encouraging. The Braves are off to a very solid start, Dominic Smith is hitting a hot bat and providing production at a spot that was a very big question mark for this lineup heading into the season.

There’s no telling what the future of any given long and winding baseball season will hold but for now, both Smith and the Braves are off to a very auspicious start. We’ll see if everybody can keep it up so that this team can finally get back to where they were in the past and if Dominic Smith can reach back and find some of that success that made him such an exciting talent back in 2020.

Yet another young player has agreed to a long-term extension just days into his major league career. And Kevin McGonigle might be the best bet of the bunch.

McGonigle punctuated his loud debut with the Detroit Tigers by signing an eight-year, $150 million extension Wednesday, April 15, the club announced. The extension begins next year and runs through 2034.

Assuming McGonigle is not demoted to the minor leagues, the deal buys out his first three years of free agency. It includes a $14 million signing bonus, the club announced, and will peak with $23 million salaries in 2032, 2033 and 2034; performance escalators can boost the value of those final three years by up to $10 million.

It's a virtually risk-free bet for the Tigers, who will pay McGonigle, 21, an average of $18.75 million in that span. The early returns suggest the infielder will outperform the terms of his new deal: McGonigle debuted with a four-hit game, is batting .311 with a .417 on-base percentage and .908 OPS and ranks fourth among among AL position players with 1.1 WAR through 17 games.

His underlying statistics are perhaps even more encouraging. McGonigle ranks in the 98th percentile in baserunning value and the 95th percentile with an 11.1% strikeout rate. While his average exit velocity (88.1 mph) and bat speed (71.4 mph) are in the 34th and 39th percentiles, respectively, both metrics should improve as McGonigle - who turns 22 in August - adds strength to his 5-9, 187-pound frame.

McGonigle could have become a free agent at age 27, still the relative prime for a position player, and should he remain on this arc, likely could have exceeded his average annual value in his final two years of arbitration. As a comparison, Bo Bichette, 28, received a $42 million annual salary from the New York Mets on a three-year guarantee this past winter.

Kevin McGonigle contract is latest MLB extension

Yet McGonigle receives significant financial security and the knowledge he's firmly established as the Tigers' franchise cornerstone. He joins the Pittsburgh Pirates' Konnor Griffin (nine years, $140 million) as well as two players who have yet to make their major league debuts - Seattle's Colt Emerson (eight years, $95 million) and Milwaukee's Cooper Pratt (eight years, $50.75 million) as rookies signing long-term deals just after or before their careers begin.

The Tigers are well-versed in this market: They signed infielder Colt Keith to a six-year, $31.64 million deal that also includes three club options before Keith's 2024 debut. He's been a useful player in his first three seasons, and at $4.3 million this season, hardly busts their budget.

McGonigle will follow a similar path - yet the Tigers are quite confident they'll get significant bang for their guaranteed bucks.