Category: Baseball

With the first month of the minor league season in the books, we‘re checking in on the top 25 Mets prospects who made our list ahead of the 2026 season.

1) Nolan McLean

April: 6 G (6 GS), 35.1 IP, 20 H, 12 R, 10 ER (2.55 ERA), 10 BB, 45 K, .234 BABIP (MLB)

2026 Season: 6 G (6 GS), 35.1 IP, 20 H, 12 R, 10 ER (2.55 ERA), 10 BB, 45 K, .234 BABIP (MLB)

Grade: A+

I was a Nolan McLean skeptic coming into the season. It’s not that I thought he would be bad, but in the 48.0 innings he pitched last season, he was basically as good as the NL and AL Cy Young Award winners and I did not think that would be sustainable over an entire season. Well, here we are a month into the 2026 season, and by the eye test and by the metrics, it seems like it might be sustainable; the right-hander is somehow even better than he was last season! One month down, five more to go, if these trends continue, the Mets might be looking at their seventh Rookie of the Year and/or fifth Cy Young Award winner, either of which would be their first since 2019 when Pete Alonso won the former and Jacob deGrom won the latter.

2) Carson Benge

April: 27 G, 93 AB, .186/.247/.279, 16 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 7 BB, 21 K, 6/6 SB, .222 BABIP (MLB)

2026 Season: 27 G, 93 AB, .186/.247/.279, 16 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 7 BB, 21 K, 6/6 SB, .222 BABIP (MLB)

Grade: C-

It’s not exactly fair to grade Carson Benge the same way I am grading everyone else on this list (with the exception of Nolan McLean, but with him, it’s a moot point). Yes, Benge is struggling, but might he be excelling if he was in Triple-A? Might another hitter who is in the upper levels of the minors right now struggle just as much, if not more, if promoted to the majors tomorrow? Over the offseason, Benge spent a lot of time working with his former head coach at Oklahoma State, Josh Holliday; his swing during his time at OSU was decidedly not a major-league swing, with too much hand movement interfering with his ability to get them into optimal hitting position and to keep his body balanced. Early in the season, it was looking like Benge had gotten into that habit, something he eliminated just prior to signing with the Mets and going pro. Whether or not he is doing this intentionally, if so, if he begins to succeed with it or adjusts and streamlines his mechanics, remains to be seen. Regardless, this is certainly not the start that even the biggest Benge critic was expecting.

3) Jonah Tong

April: 6 G (6 GS), 25.1 IP, 20 H, 19 R, 16 ER (5.68 ERA), 15 BB, 38 K, .288 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 6 G (6 GS), 25.1 IP, 20 H, 19 R, 16 ER (5.68 ERA), 15 BB, 38 K, .288 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: C+

It’s been a confusing month for Tong. Outside of an elevated walk rate- command has been a weakness Tong has traditionally always had, though it really wasn’t much of a noticeable issue last season- Tong is still doing everything you want to see. He has limited batters to a .211 BAA and his 38 strikeouts are most on the team and second in the International League. Issuing all those free passes and allowing five home runs in 25.1 innings will screw with your ERA, though. I’m not too worried about Tong, and obviously I’d rather see excellent performance than poor performance, but I think the right-hander will start improving as the weather warms and he gets better acclimated to the Triple-A/MLB ball.

4) A.J. Ewing

April: 18 G, 63 AB, .349/.481/.571, 22 H, 6 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 17 BB, 15 K, 12/13 SB, .426 BABIP (Double-A) / 3 G, 12 AB, .583/.615/.833, 7 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 BB, 0 K, 1/1 SB, .583 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 18 G, 63 AB, .349/.481/.571, 22 H, 6 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 17 BB, 15 K, 12/13 SB, .426 BABIP (Double-A) / 3 G, 12 AB, .583/.615/.833, 7 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 1 BB, 0 K, 1/1 SB, .583 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: A+

Two games in and A.J. Ewing already has 7 hits in Triple-A. That’s…something else. After having no trouble in Single-A, High-A, or Double-A last season, Ewing continued where he left off, demolishing the Eastern League until his promotion to Syracuse earlier this week. As I’ve said before, there are things Ewing could improve, mainly improving his groundball:flyball ratio, which was a not-that-great 55.1%:22.4% in Binghamton. While it would be great if he keeps posting impressive numbers and gets promoted to Queens sooner rather than later, I’d rather see Ewing not be rushed and improve on the things he could stand improving on, so he can truly be a big-time contributor when he gets the call

5) Jacob Reimer

April: 20 G, 70 AB, .186/.329/.314, 13 H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 13 BB, 26 K, 3/4 SB, .279 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 20 G, 70 AB, .186/.329/.314, 13 H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 13 BB, 26 K, 3/4 SB, .279 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: C-

Reimer has gotten off to such a cold start to the season after having such a great year last year. He has been walking a lot, which has basically been sustaining his offense- such that it is- but he has also seen a spike in his strikeout rate by nearly 10%. The rest of his batted ball data is more of less in line with the numbers he posted in 2026, so here’s hoping this is just an adjustment period while facing better pitchers.

6) Ryan Clifford

April: 28 G, 98 AB, .224/.306/.429, 22 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 12 BB, 44 K, 2/4 SB, .340 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 28 G, 98 AB, .224/.306/.429, 22 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 12 BB, 44 K, 2/4 SB, .340 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: C

I repeated I don’t know how many times last year that when Ryan Clifford is on, he is capable of single-handedly carrying a team, but when he’s on the schneid, he is almost unwatchable. Such has been Ryan Clifford’s April. In his first two series’, he hit .219/.265/.250 in 8 games with 1 double, 2 walks, and 16 strikeouts. In his next series, he hit .200/.333/.333 in 6 games with 2 doubles, 3 walks, and 8 strikeouts. In his next, he hit .375/.474/.875 in 5 games with 2 doubles, 2 home runs, and 3 walks to 2 strikeouts. In his next, he hit .217/.296/.478 in 6 games with 2 home runs and 3 walks to 11 strikeouts. As I write this, Clifford has notched just one hit in the three games in Syracuse’s current series against Lehigh Valley while drawing 1 walk and striking out 7 times- and of course it was a home run. I’m just not a believer in Clifford’s hit tool; I mean, you’d hope with a .340 BABIP, a guy could do better than a .224 average, but here we are. He’s on the cusp of the majors, at this point, he is what he is.

7) Will Watson

April: 5 G (5 GS), 19.1 IP, 23 H, 17 R, 15 ER (6.98 ERA), 10 BB, 19 K, .344 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 5 G (5 GS), 19.1 IP, 23 H, 17 R, 15 ER (6.98 ERA), 10 BB, 19 K, .344 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: D

I had very high hopes for Watson coming into 2026, and, well, they really haven’t been realized yet. He has roughly the same sample size in Double-A Binghamton in 2026 as he did last season, and basically everything is trending in the wrong direction (with the exception of his walk rate, which is slightly improved). He is inducing about 10% fewer groundballs and is allowing about 10% more line drives, contributing to the high BABIP and the more hits allowed than innings pitched. Hopefully, as the weather improves, so too does Watson.

8) Jack Wenninger

April: 5 G (5 GS), 22.1 IP, 16 H, 5 R, 4 ER (1.61 ERA), 12 BB, 26 K, .273 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 5 G (5 GS), 22.1 IP, 16 H, 5 R, 4 ER (1.61 ERA), 12 BB, 26 K, .273 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: A+

Jack Wenninger has been one of the bright spots in an April that has seen so many players, in the majors and in the minors, under-perform. I’m happy that the right-hander is getting the recognition that he deserves. The stuff has been effective and there are no major red flags to think that he will be hit hard by the regression bug. I do think he is performing above his head a little bit, but I think Wenninger is unquestionably a major league caliber pitcher and will pitch in some capacity sooner rather than later.

9) Mitch Voit

April: 19 G, 76 AB, .224/.314/.382, 17 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 7 BB, 20 K, 10/11 SB, .264 BABIP (High-A)

2026 Season: 19 G, 76 AB, .224/.314/.382, 17 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 7 BB, 20 K, 10/11 SB, .264 BABIP (High-A)

Grade: C

Unlike 2024 first-round pick Carson Benge, 2025 first-round pick Mitch Voit was always going to be something of a project. Not considered nearly as polished as Benge, he ran roughshod over the lower minors, while Voit is not. The infielder has been treading water in Brooklyn, anchored down a bit by a sub-.300 BABIP that he should have the ability to raise in the long haul with more line drives hit with authority and fewer weakly hit fly balls- both things he is capable of doing.

10) Jonathan Santucci

April: 4 G (4 GS), 17.1 IP, 13 H, 12 R, 11 ER (5.71 ERA), 11 BB, 26 K, .364 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 4 G (4 GS), 17.1 IP, 13 H, 12 R, 11 ER (5.71 ERA), 11 BB, 26 K, .364 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: B-

Santucci’s 5.71 ERA is pretty deceptive. He is allowing too many walks- he’s always had that problem- but outside of that, he’s doing everything else right. He’s been limiting the hits, keeping the ball on the ground at a solidly average rate, and has been striking out a surprising number of batters; with a 53.1% LOB%, it just seems like Santucci is getting burned by the relievers after him failing to get outs.

11) Elian Peña

April: 22 G, 85 AB, .353/.467/.482, 30 H, 8 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 17 BB, 16 K, 9/10 SB, .420 BABIP (Single-A)

2026 Season: 22 G, 85 AB, .353/.467/.482, 30 H, 8 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 17 BB, 16 K, 9/10 SB, .420 BABIP (Single-A)

Grade: A+

What superlatives can we use that haven’t already been used? The youngest qualified player in the Florida State League, Peña is fourth in the circuit in batting average, sixth in on-base percentage, ninth in OPS, sixth in stolen bases and is walking more than he is striking out. His batted ball data is impeccable, and with the exception of not pulling the ball enough, almost perfect. Yes, he is just 18-years-old, but at this point, he is making the Florida State League look like child’s play. The Cyclones are gonna need some marquee players to put butts in those seats, let’s make it happen sooner rather than later.

12) Zach Thornton

April: 4 G (4 GS), 21.0 IP, 21 H, 10 R, 10 ER (4.29 ERA), 7 BB, 20 K, .333 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 4 G (4 GS), 21.0 IP, 21 H, 10 R, 10 ER (4.29 ERA), 7 BB, 20 K, .333 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: C+

Thornton was pitching exceptionally well in Double-A Binghamton last season, prior to an oblique injury sustained in early July that ended his season prematurely. This season? Not so much. So far in the young season, the left-hander is more hittable than he was last year, with his peripherals all trending in the wrong direction. Between the chilly weather and his shaking off the cobwebs, I wouldn’t be worried right now, but as a pitcher who is a sum-of-all-parts guy rather than someone with exceptional stuff, Thornton admittedly doesn’t have too much wiggle room for mistakes.

13) Nick Morabito

April: 26 G, 90 AB, .256/.376/.444, 23 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 14 BB, 23 K, 7/9 SB, .297 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 26 G, 90 AB, .256/.376/.444, 23 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 14 BB, 23 K, 7/9 SB, .297 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: B+

Through his first twelve games, Morabito hit .295. Over the course of his next 12, he hit .225. Nick Morabito is an extremely BABIP-dependent hitter given the fact that he hits over 50% of the balls he puts in play on the ground; case in point, he had a .333 BABIP over his first 12 games, and a .241 in his next 12. The outfielder has been walking a lot more, striking out a bit less, and has been showing a little more power as compared to last season, all of which is sorely needed ones if he wants to take the next step and become a meaningful MLB contributor on the offensive side.

14) R.J. Gordon

April: N/A

2026 Season: N/A

Grade: N/A

Gordon began the season on the 7-Day Injured List with a lat injury. He began a rehab assignment with the St. Lucie Mets at the end of the month, allowing three runs on three hits while throwing 23 pitches, recording just one out.

15) Chris Suero

April: 19 G, 63 AB, .159/.349/.397, 10 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 18 BB, 28 K, 3/5 SB, .188 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 19 G, 63 AB, .159/.349/.397, 10 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 18 BB, 28 K, 3/5 SB, .188 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: C+

Chris Suero was never going to run a particularly high batting average, but yeesh. Thanks to his power and his walk rate, he’s put up an above-average wRC+ though. Go figure. The backstop/outfielder has seen a 10% decrease in his line drive and groundball rates, and a massive 20% increase in his flyball rate. His Pull% dropped almost 20% while his Center% increased about 10% and his Opp% increased about 5%; in short, Suero is hitting more balls in the air, which is good, but he’s hitting fewer balls to his pull-side for power. All those extra flyballs are dying out there in center and right. Conceptually, should be a correctable issue, so here’s hoping.

16) Dylan Ross

April: 1 G, 0.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER (27.00 ERA), 2 BB, 1 K, .500 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 1 G, 0.2 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER (27.00 ERA), 2 BB, 1 K, .500 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: N/A

Ross began the year on the 7-Day Injured List, suffering from ‘arm fatigue’. He appeared in four rehab games, two with Single-A St. Lucie and two with High-A Brooklyn, and looked fine in them. He has since appeared in a single game for Triple-A Syracuse after being activated, allowing a pair of runs in 0.2 innings, allowing a hit, walking two, and striking out one.

17) Ryan Lambert

April: 10 G (0 GS), 8.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 6 ER (6.23 ERA), 9 BB, 12 K, .278 BABIP (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 10 G (0 GS), 8.2 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 6 ER (6.23 ERA), 9 BB, 12 K, .278 BABIP (Triple-A)

Grade: C

Lambert still is who he is; he’s been stingy allowing hits but negates that by allowing tons of walks, this season a bit more than last. Key to his schtick has been his ability to strike batters out left and right, and Lambert has not really been able to do that so far this season, at least up to his standards. Nothing about his performance has been all that red flag worthy outside of the uptick in walks and decrease in strikeouts, but we’re working with an 8.2 inning sample size here. I have confidence that things will normalize a bit as the season progresses.

18) Antonio Jimenez

April: 20 G, 77 AB, .143/.193/.247, 11 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 22 K, 3/4 SB, .167 BABIP (High-A)

2026 Season: 20 G, 77 AB, .143/.193/.247, 11 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 4 BB, 22 K, 3/4 SB, .167 BABIP (High-A)

Grade: F

Another player whose offense I expected to be depressed due to being in Brooklyn, I didn’t necessarily expect Jimenez’ batting line to be so depressing. Jimenez comes up to the plate looking to swing and swing hard, and that he does, resulting in plenty of strikeouts and plenty of poorly hit balls put in play for easy outs. Very few players hit their way out of Brooklyn, and Jimenez will likely have to either adapt, growing as a player and changing his approach to whatever degree, or risk posting the worst offensive numbers among every player in the minor league system like he is now.

19) Edward Lantigua

April: 2 G, 8 AB, .125/.125/.250, 1 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 0 BB, 3 K, 0/0 SB, .200 BABIP (Single-A)

2026 Season: 2 G, 8 AB, .125/.125/.250, 1 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 0 BB, 3 K, 0/0 SB, .200 BABIP (Single-A)

Grade: N/A

Lantigua was held back in extended spring training when the minor league season began in order to better rehab a core muscle injury. He was activated at the end of the month and played in both halves of a doubleheader, notching one hit, a double.

20) Eli Serrano III

April: 21 G, 71 AB, .239/.371/.451, 17 H, 6 2B, 3 3B, 1 HR, 13 BB, 22 K, 0/0 SB, .320 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 21 G, 71 AB, .239/.371/.451, 17 H, 6 2B, 3 3B, 1 HR, 13 BB, 22 K, 0/0 SB, .320 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: C+

The physical and baseball growth that was envisioned when Eli Serrano III was drafted still hasn’t manifested itself. The outfielder is walking plenty and has shown no major platoon splits against fellow left-handers, but the hit tool still isn’t up to snuff and the power still isn’t up to snuff; scouts and evaluators still rave about certain underlying hitting metrics and expected statistics, but at a certain point, we need to start seeing the results that have largely been absent.

21) Randy Guzman

April: 22 G, 77 AB, .234/.359/.468, 18 H, 4 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 11 BB, 24 K, 3/3 SB, .286 BABIP (Single-A)

2026 Season: 22 G, 77 AB, .234/.359/.468, 18 H, 4 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 11 BB, 24 K, 3/3 SB, .286 BABIP (Single-A)

Grade: B

Guzman got off to a slow start, hitting below the Mendoza line, failing to record a single extra base hit, and striking out at an elevated rate while barely walking. Around the middle of the month, things started clicking and hit a solid .275 with 4 doubles, 1 triple, and 4 home runs for the rest of the month, with 9 walks to 14 strikeouts. The strikeouts are baked into Guzman’s profile, but as long as he is hitting for power, you can live with that. He has about the same amount of games with St. Lucie this year as he did last year, and while he hasn’t been able to continue that torrid pace- he hit .333/.381/.604 with 13 doubles, 2 triples, and 3 home runs in 26 games- he has been looking solid since the middle of the month.

22) Daiverson Gutierrez

April: 20 G, 70 AB, .171/.326/.257, 12 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 9 BB, 18 K, 1/1 SB, .216 BABIP (High-A)

2026 Season: 20 G, 70 AB, .171/.326/.257, 12 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 9 BB, 18 K, 1/1 SB, .216 BABIP (High-A)

Grade: D

Expectations weren’t especially high for Gutierrez coming into the year. He showed some improvements as a hitter, the advanced metrics showed many were legitimate, and his defense generally got neutral-to-positive reviews. Playing in Brooklyn, I’m not surprised that he is struggling offensively, but more concerning to me is that there are more reports that his defense is bad. I knew he had a scattershot arm, but based on what I have heard, from what I have seen, and from the stats, it’s bad enough that he might not be able to stick behind the dish despite doing everything else back there solidly enough. As a 20-year-old catcher, there’s still plenty of time to figure things out, but he’s really going to need to improve his defense since his offensive profile is not exactly sky high.

23) Boston Baro

April: DNP

2026 Season: DNP

Grade: N/A

Baro sustained a right shoulder injury prior to the start of the 2026 season and is expected to return to the field around the All-Star Break.

24) Marco Vargas

April: 17 G, 66 AB, .212/.333/.303, 14 H, 2 2B, 2 3B, 0 HR, 12 BB, 21 K, 9/9 SB, .311 BABIP (Double-A)

2026 Season: 17 G, 66 AB, .212/.333/.303, 14 H, 2 2B, 2 3B, 0 HR, 12 BB, 21 K, 9/9 SB, .311 BABIP (Double-A)

Grade: C-

Vargas started the season out slowly, but it looked like he was starting to come out of that funk towards the end of the month. In the last series he played in, against the Erie SeaWolves, he hit .412 with a pair of doubles and a pair of stolen bases, walking 4 times to 5 strikeouts. Unfortunately, he was placed on the on the 7-Day Injured List on the 29th with a shoulder injury.

25) Peter Kussow

April: DNP

2026 Season: DNP

Grade: N/A

Kussow underwent season-ending labrum surgery on his right shoulder prior to the start of the season.

Good morning everyone and happy Friday!

The M’s are on national TV tonight with an Apple TV broadcast on tap for the series opener with the Royals. The Apple TV broadcast has long been my favorite of the national TV presentations. Which ones have you been impressed with so far in 2026?

In Mariners news…

• The Lookout Landing staff discussed the merits and demerits of a “Gray Zone” for ABS challenges.
• Over on The Feed, Eric Sanford asked you all which Mariners starter you’ve been most impressed with so far this year.
• Adam Jude at The Seattle Times spoke to Mariners brass about the impressive start to the season for M’s second baseman Cole Young.

Around the league…

• Brewers veteran starter Brandon Woodruff was removed from yesterday’s game and will undergo an MRI after seeing an alarming drop in velocity during his outing.
• Yesterday’s game between the Pirates and Cardinals featured a cool moment — Pittsburgh starter Paul Skenes got to face off against his high school mentor Nathan Church in their first-ever MLB matchup.
• The MLB Pipeline prospect team wrote about the hottest-performing minor league hitter for each MLB organization.
• Rustin Dodd at The Athletic spoke to several professional athletes — including Logan Gilbert — about why they take on a “persona” when they get on the field or court. ($)

Diamondbacks News

(Sporting News) Diamondbacks’ James McCann sets absurd position player pitching record

McCann has set a mark by pitching more times before the end of April as a position player than anyone in MLB history, according to Baseball Reference’s Jessica Brand.

The long-time major league catcher has already thrown in four games, including Thursday’s blowout loss to the Milwaukee Brewers.

(MLB.com) Brewers await MRI results after low velocity prompts Woodruff’s early exit

Woodruff’s first pitch of the game was a four-seamer at 84.2 mph, and it didn’t improve as he tried to settle into his outing. He worked around a leadoff walk with a pair of strikeouts in a scoreless first inning, then didn’t touch 85 mph with any of his pitches in the second while retiring a batter and surrendered a single to start the frame.

In hindsight, the first signs that something was amiss may have appeared in Woodruff’s previous outing against the Pirates, when 59 of his 71 pitches were varieties of fastballs. His four-seamer averaged 92.9 mph — which was actually up a tick — but he was part of the decision to come out of the game after only five innings, according to Murphy.

(Clutchpoints) Diamondbacks’ Ildemaro Vargas ties Venezuelan-born history in blowout loss to Brewers

Despite Milwaukee Brewers starter Brandon Woodruff being pulled after just 1.1 innings, they still blew out the Arizona Diamondbacks 13-1 on Thursday. But in the process, Diamondbacks infielder Ildemaro Vargas made Venezuelan history.

Vargas went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles in the loss. He extended his hitting streak to 26, which ties the record for longest by a Venezuelan-born player, originally set by Wilson Ramos in 2019, via independent journalist Francys Romero.

(SI.com) Ildemaro Vargas Is Forcing MLB Fans to Pay Attention

Vargas’ .378 batting average is 20 points higher than Vladimir Guerrero Jr. of the Toronto Blue Jays, who has the second-best batting average in baseball at .358. Vargas’ .378 batting average is 42 points ahead of Xavier Edwards of the Miami Marlins, who is in second place in the National League in batting average at .336.

MLB News

(Yahoo! Sports) MLB owners, MLBPA reportedly set to begin labor negotiations soon, with salary cap at center of talks

With the 2026 MLB season only a month old, both the players and owners are already looking to the future. The league’s collective-bargaining agreement (CBA) expires at the end of the season, and both sides are expected to engage in multiple contentious rounds of negotiation.

In an effort to get ahead of that, the owners and MLBPA will reportedly start meeting in the coming weeks, per The Athletic. At the center of those talks is a salary cap, which the owners are eager to implement.

[Ed. Note] And so it begins

(CBS Sports) 10 most pleasant MLB surprises after the first month of 2026, from Mike Trout’s renaissance to a Rockies ace

We’re roughly one month into the 2026 Major League Baseball regular season, and that means it’s time for a league-wide check-in. Specifically, we’re going to highlight 10 baseball entities that qualify as “pleasant surprises” thus far. What’s a surprise? Something that’s gone contrary to general expectations. What’s the pleasant part of this? It means the player/team/etc has exceeded expectations in a positive way.

Now let’s look at 10 pleasant baseball surprises that stand out through the first month of the season. We’ll proceed in no particular order, just like time itself …

[Ed. Note] No Ildemaro Vargas. List invalid.

(MLB.com) Phillies the first team in 22 years to walk off twice in a doubleheader

The Phillies swept the Giants in Thursday’s doubleheader at Citizens Bank Park with a 3-2 walk-off victory in Game 1 and a 6-5 walk-off victory in 10 innings in Game 2, leading them to a 3-0 start under interim manager Don Mattingly.

It was the first time the Phillies had two walk-off wins on the same day since July 24, 1998, against the Marlins. The last team to accomplish the feat was the Pirates on May 28, 2004, against the Cubs.

If you haven’t been paying much attention to non-Orioles baseball so far this year, I regret to inform you that the 2026 New York Yankees are a good team. Their 20 wins are the most in the American League. They have scored 153 runs, second-most in the AL. They have allowed 106, which is the fewest. And while the Orioles spent yesterday playing a doubleheader, the Yankees had an off day.

It could be a long four-game series. And, in fact, the Orioles play the Yankees in seven of the next 13 games.

On offense, the Yankees are being led, as expected, by Aaron Judge. In his 11th season, Judge leads the league with 12 home runs and has an OPS of 1.002. More surprising is first baseman Ben Rice, who has 10 home runs and an even higher OPS than Judge. In Rice’s case, something tells me that a .373 BABIP and a17.2% walk rate are probably not sustainable. Arguably, they are the best offense in the AL.

The starting pitching on the Yankees has been insanely good this year. It has been the best in baseball. The Orioles will face their top four starters in this series. Two of them are lefties. Three of them have K/9 over 10. They just called up one of their top prospects, Elmer Rodríguez, to round out the rotation.

The relief pitching hasn’t been as good as the starters, but they have still been good with an opposing OPS of .710. Closer David Bednar leads the league with nine saves, but his ERA of 3.55 and WHIP of 1.658 are a little ugly.

Note: As of Thursday night, the Orioles have not announced any starters for this series. Chris Bassitt and Brandon Young pitched yesterday, so they are out. With Trevor Rogers and Dean Kremer on the IL, it’s unclear how things will shake out.

Kyle Bradish could pitch on regular rest tonight and Shane Baz could pitch on regular rest on Sunday. Down in the minors, Cade Povich last pitched on April 25th. It stands to reason he’ll be called up for this series to pitch today or tomorrow. As for Monday? Maybe Albert Suárez, if they add him back to the 40-man.

Game 1: Friday, 7:05

TBD vs RHP Will Warren (3-0, 2.59 ERA, 37 SO)

After pitching to a 4.44 ERA over 33 starts last year and getting a few Rookie of the Year votes, Warren is off to a great start in 2026. After failing to pitch deep into the game in his first four starts, Warren has gone seven and six innings in his last two.

So far this year, Warren has good numbers across the board with a 28.7% strikeout rate and just a 5.4% walk rate. When he isn’t striking guys out, he is getting groundouts 48.8% of the time. He’s been doing this despite an average fastball velocity of 93.9 mph.

Last year, Warren faced the Orioles four times, and they did pretty well against him. In 20 innings, he gave up 11 runs (4.95 ERA) and the Orioles hit .272/.333/.506. But that was 4.44 ERA Warren, not 2.59 ERA Warren. In limited plate appearances, Gunnar Henderson (3-for-7, 4 BB) and Colton Cowser (3-for-7) have fared well against Warren.

Game 2: Saturday, 1:35

TBD vs LHP Ryan Weathers 1-2, 3.21 ERA, 40 SO

Lefty alert! The Yankees traded for Weathers in January, with the 26-year-old pitcher coming to the American League for the first time in his career. After a tough start with the Padres, Weathers looked good for the Marlins over the last two seasons before the trade. That has continued for six starts this year with the Yankees.

Weathers is a big strikeout guy with a K rate of just under 30% so far this year, but has struggled with the homer. He’s given up five long balls in six starts, but none in his last appearance against the Astros.

Weathers has never faced the Orioles, and no current Orioles have much experience against him.

Game 3: Sunday, 1:35

TBD vs LHP Max Fried (4-1, 2.09 ERA, 37 SO)

Oh great. Max Fried. Back-to-back lefties!

Imagine a world where the Orioles had signed Max Fried before the 2025 season instead of the Yankees? I can’t either, but it would have been cool. Fried has been exactly what the Yankees expected after signing the ace to an eight-year contract.

Fried’s 47.1 innings pitched over seven starts is tops in the league at this point. He hasn’t been striking as many guys out so far, but is keeping guys off base with just 4.9 hits per nine innings and a WHIP of just 0.803.

Last year, Fried faced the Orioles twice. In June, Fried had the old Quality Start with three runs in six inning. In September, Fried struck out 13 Orioles in 7 shutout innings.

From their time together in the NL East, Pete Alonso has faced Fried 48 times with a hitting line of .238/.333/.405 with two home runs.

Game 4: Monday, 7:05

TBD vs RHP Cam Schlittler (4-1, 1.51 ERA, 49 SO)

Are these guys kidding me with these tiny ERAs? Come on!

The Yankees drafted Schlittler in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. He debuted last year with a 2.96 ERA in 14 starts and has been even better this year. He has that tiny 1.51 ERA and leads the league in FIP (1.51), WHIP (0.744), and K/BB (8.17). In case you’re wondering, the Orioles drafted Preston Johnson in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. He is currently on the roster of the Mississippi Mud Monsters of the Frontier League.

Schlittler’s Statcast page is a sea of red. His fastball averages over 97 mph and he has a curve ball that drops in at just 84. He strikes out over 30% of batters and hardly allows home runs.

Last year, Schlittler faced the Orioles twice. In 12.1 innings, he allowed just one run on 5 hits and struck out 15.

How do you think the Orioles will do this series? Let us know in the comments.

The Pittsburgh Pirates just got swept by the St. Louis Cardinals and have dropped to 16-16 on the season. What looked like a great start to the season has quickly gone sour, so here are my top 3 concerns/takeaways from the four game series. 

1. The pitching struggles

The season started with the pitching looking really good but the last four games they have struggled. In the first game Dennis Santana blew a save and allowed 4 runs in the ninth inning. While in two other games the pitching staff allowed 10 and 11 runs. The pitching used to be the reason why the Bucs would win games but in this series it seemed like they were the reason they lost. Even former Cy young winner Paul Skenes struggled today allowing eight hits and four earned runs.

2. The offensive slow starts

The final three games of the series was a rough watch for the offense and when they did get going it was too little too late. Tuesday’s game Pittsburgh lost 11-7 but in that game they got down 6-0 and didn’t score till the sixth inning. Then in Wednesday’s game they didn’t score till the fifth inning when they were already down by three runs. Then in Thursday’s game they got down by four runs until they scored. The offense has not been strong enough in the early innings and if the Pirates want to get back in the win column they can’t start putting up runs while already down by multiple runs. Game one was the only game this series that the Bucs scored first and it was in the first two innings. Pittsburgh failed to score the rest of the game and left multiple base runners stranded.

3. The rise and dominanc of JJ Wetherholt

 The Cardinals young star player and Mars Area High School graduate JJ Wetherholt had a monster series. It was quite the showing for the seventh pick of the 2024 draft. Wetherholt, who received audible cheers from friends and family in attendance when he came through, combined to go 6 for 16 with three doubles, two home runs, three RBI, six runs and two walks. It is tough watching a hometown kid come in and smash the ball like he was doing. He was honestly the best player in the series and the Cardinals as a team just simply outplayed the Pirates.

The Pirates are now on a 5 game losing streak and if the pitching struggles and slow offensive starts continue this is going to be a long season for the fans in black and gold.

A franchise once known as baseball’s lovable losers are, for the moment, merely baseball’s most expensive losers.

The New York Mets wrapped a shocking April by losing 5-4 to the Washington Nationals on Thursday, dropping to a major league-worst 10-21 and burrowing even deeper into last place in the National League East – making them somehow even worse than their old rivals the Philadelphia Phillies, another wealthy-yet-terrible team. The Mets will (probably) not play at their current 52-win pace all year but their sordid first month has done immense damage to their postseason hopes. Their chances at October baseball were 87% on Opening Day, according to the analytics site FanGraphs. They are now less than three-in-10 to make the playoffs, and that projection seems pretty generous for a team who have lost 17 of their last 20 games.

“Not good enough,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said after Thursday’s loss. “Obviously not a secret. That’s not going to do it. We got to start winning series. Period.”

Related: Slumping Phillies fire manager Rob Thomson after losing 11 of last 12 games

Zoom out, and the picture gets worse. Last season on 2 August, the Mets led the East by half a game and had a 62-47 record. They finished on a 21-32 run to miss the postseason and are now an extraordinary 31-53 over their last 84 games. That’s more than half a season’s worth of games at a 102-loss clip. This would be bad if the Mets were a spendthrift team composed of journeymen and rookies, but under multibillionaire owner Steve Cohen – who fans hoped would turn the team into serial winners when he bought the club in 2020 – they have the second-highest payroll in baseball, at around $380m.

These Mets raise interesting questions about baseball economics. For everyone who claims the also-wealthy Los Angeles Dodgers are “ruining baseball” with their high payrolls and back-to-back World Series, the Mets are proof that hefty roster expenditure will not do the job on its own. Why not? And what will become of the Mets over the next few years if the club doesn’t quickly right the ship?

As when any team starts this miserably, there is no single cause for the Mets’ horrendous April. Quiet bats are at the front of the line, though. Aside from a few moments of inept defense, the Mets are boring as well as bad. They have the league’s worst offense by weighted on-base average and a host of other team statistics. The great Juan Soto – seen as symbolic of the kind of superstar the Mets could attract in the Cohen era – has hit well but has only recently returned from injury.

No other Met has hit seriously in any significant sample size. Outfield prospect Carson Benge has been a little better in recent weeks but is yet to figure out big league pitching. Catcher Francisco Alvarez is the least of the team’s problems but has slumped hard after a scorching start. A wide variety of pricey veteran acquisitions have so far failed to launch: Third baseman Bo Bichette, second baseman Marcus Semien, and injured first baseman Jorge Polanco are earning a combined $85m. Not one of them has an on-base percentage north of .275. Franchise shortstop Francisco Lindor had started to heat up after a mediocre start before he went down with injury.

Every one of these hitters should improve, but they also show the limits of a “throw money at it” strategy of roster-building. That approach can work – just look at the baseball god Soto, who is still only 27 and playing on the largest contract ever signed – but most elite talents don’t reach free agency or get traded away until they’re exiting their prime. Semien is 35 and Polanco is about to turn 33 – ages at which players decline rather than get better. Bichette is 28 but with a lot of recent injury history. The Mets will not get the best versions of most of these hitters. The younger bats they expected to be good – in particular Benge, Mark Vientos and Brett Baty, all in their early to mid-20s – have not picked up the slack. Hence, the Mets have scored MLB’s second-fewest runs.

Mets fans have given the franchise a lot of grace over many decades of Metsiness, some even saw their failing as part of their charm. But the team cannot be an affable second fiddle to the cross-city Yankees when they are a financial heavyweight that enters spring training each year gunning for a pennant with a roster that, on paper, could do it.

At some point, though who could guess when, accountability would fall to general manager David Stearns, who put together the plan for this season that is already on the verge of doom. Stearns, the type of Ivy-educated geek-genius who has become prized in baseball front offices, was welcomed by fans when he joined the team from the Milwaukee Brewers, who he had made a serial contender on a small budget. But some have wondered if his approach works at a franchise with larger resources, and more pressure. Many of his signings – many of them former Brewers – have wilted in the crucible of New York. Some of the start is bad luck, but some of it is a calculated plan going poorly in ways that lots of people could have predicted: For example, center fielder Luis Robert, who has hit and fielded his position decently, just hit the injured list for the 10th time in seven big league seasons. That’s less misfortune for the Mets than what you’d expect if you sign an injury-prone player.

Not everything is a disaster. The Mets’ farm system is well-regarded, Soto is still Soto, and rookie pitcher Nolan McLean is a genuine revelation who looks primed to win a Cy Young Award in his career. (He could even be in the mix this season, if the Mets don’t severely tamp down his innings count.) Benge is a smooth outfielder who will eventually be able to hit his way out of a paper bag. Almost nobody who’s struggled in this lineup will stay this bad for another month, let alone another five. But the losses the Mets have already banked have moved them from a 90-win team to one that will scrap to finish .500 and would need a real surge to reach October. It’s all compounded by the fact that being a losing team in the snakepit of New York sports is the opposite of fun. And they no longer have the shield of claiming poverty compared to the Yankees.

No team in baseball is delivering a lesser return on investment. Cohen won’t tolerate that for long. He could fire Mendoza, who has made some poor decisions but isn’t responsible for the players he’s given. He could fire Stearns, but that would mean disrupting the long-term plan the two have in place as they attempt to build a talent pipeline to produce young talent that can complement highly paid superstars, a method the Dodgers have perfected. Cohen needs to think of something different though because he’s learned the hard way that throwing money at a problem doesn’t always work.

You never want to lose heading into an off-day, but something tells me the Yankees didn’t have too bad of a flight back home. Though a shutout loss to the Rangers left a sour final note as the Bombers headed to New York, the setback still left them with a stellar 7-2 record on a long road trip through Boston and Texas. Now, the Yankees can settle back and look to protect home turf, as they start off a four-game set with the Orioles in the Bronx tonight.

On the site this morning, Sam gets you caught up with today’s Rivalry Roundup, while Jeff takes a look ahead at the weekend’s series with Baltimore. In the afternoon, Michael and John start off our monthly divisional review series, as Michael discusses the AL West and John analyzes the AL Central. Meanwhile, Nick profiles a high-profile prospect from a couple decades ago, Brandon Claussen, and Madison delivers the answers to this week’s mailbag.

Today’s Matchup

New York Yankees vs. Baltimore Orioles

Time: 7:05 p.m. EST

Video: YES Network, MASN

Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

Questions/Prompts:

1. Who do you think will lead the Yankees’ pitching staff in WAR this year?

2. For the NBA fans around here, can you think of any baseball analogues to what the Knicks did last night, rolling up a 50-point lead in the first half of a close-out game against the Hawks?

MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: Andy Pettitte, you’ve got company; Max Fried is making a case for himself as the Yankees pitcher with the best pickoff move. Fried’s skills were on display when he picked off Josh Jung in the fourth inning of Monday’s 4-2 win against the Rangers with a delayed motion (video in article). Pettitte, who was present in the Yankees’ clubhouse and coaches’ room during their series in Arlington, praised Fried’s pickoff move effusively, claiming that Fried’s is better than his was. Whether or not you agree with his appraisal, this is one to read if you’re a fan of pickoffs.

SI.com | Joseph Randazzo: Camilo Doval has struggled thus far in his second year with the Yankees. Particularly worrying is his case of acute gopheritis; his 2026 HR/9 of 2.61 is more than triple his career rate. Randazzo notes that Doval’s lackluster performance has resulted in a marked decrease in his usage, and has put added pressure on the rest of the bullpen.

The Athletic | Keith Law: ($) Keith Law took a trip to see the Yankees’ Double-A Somerset squad’s doubleheader with the Portland Sea Dogs, and he’s provided notes on Gerrit Cole’s rehab start as well as former top prospect Marco Luciano. For those anxious about Cole’s rehab progression, Law’s words should offer some reassurance. And while Luciano’s prospect shine has definitely dimmed, Law doesn’t rule out a big-league role for him entirely.

MLB.com | Jonathan Mayo: The MLB Draft is fast approaching, so MLB.com has offered their top 150 Draft prospect list as a snapshot of the current general consensus of the scouting industry. The Yankees won’t be picking particularly high due to their draft penalty incurred from surpassing the second CBT threshold; their first pick is at No.35, followed by 63, 99, and 127. Hopefully they can make the most of these, as it’s no secret that their farm could use some added depth.

MLB.com | Jared Greenspan: Finally, the latest edition of MLB’s Hitter Power Rankings are here, and while Yordan Alvarez takes the top spot, Yankee fans will be pleased to note that the dynamic duo of Aaron Judge and Ben Rice occupy the second and third spots. After a somewhat underwhelming (for his standards) start, Judge has been turning it up as of late, truly a welcome sight. Meanwhile, Rice stormed out of the gate and hasn’t looked back. I look forward to watching these beefy boys hit the snot out of the ball all summer long.

If you had told me before the series that James McCann would throw out runners in two of the three games, that would have told you all you needed to know about how it would go for the Diamondbacks.

Arizona’s starting pitching skid continued on Thursday, as the once red-hot Michael Soroka unraveled against Milwaukee’s pesky offense. Soroka allowed eight earned runs in just four innings, and the D-backs dropped the rubber game of the series, 13-1.

Soroka entered the day with a sparkling 2.60 ERA but left with it ballooned to 4.70. His velocity was down nearly a full tick, and his trademark slurve wasn’t generating the usual swing-and-miss. The clunker put the D-backs in a deep hole early — they trailed 6-0 by the third inning. If this team wants to remain competitive, the starting rotation is going to need to make an adjustment, and it has to happen quickly.

Offensively, Arizona couldn’t generate much of anything. Being down by six runs in the third inning is mentally daunting, and it showed. Hitters started pressing, trying to do too much instead of staying within themselves.

The lone bright spot was once again Ildemaro Vargas (sorry, not Bonds), who collected two hits and extended his hitting streak to 26 games dating back to last season. That ties him with Paul Goldschmidt for the second-longest streak in franchise history.

What stung the most in this series was how the D-backs got beat at their own game. When Arizona is at its best, it wins by applying constant pressure on offense, playing airtight defense, and getting solid pitching. Prior to Ryne Nelson’s blow-up start, the rotation had posted a collective 3.40 ERA, and the bullpen had looked better than expected. There were warning signs that the staff might have been slightly overperforming relative to the underlying metrics, but it’s safe to say no D-backs fan saw things unraveling this badly, this fast.

The Diamondbacks now head to Chicago to face the Cubs and their potent offense at the historic confines of Wrigley Field. Given how well Chicago’s lineup has been swinging the bats this season, this upcoming series could get ugly quickly if the starting pitching doesn’t figure things out in a hurry.

The Arizona Complex League starts on Saturday, so there’s some movement in anticipation of that. The Iowa Cubs also got some (probably) temporary reinforcements.

Right-hander Vince Velazquez has elected free agency.

Right-hander Jace Beck was promoted to Triple-A Iowa from Double-A Knoxville.

Outfielder Jeury Ramirez was promoted from the Dominican Summer League Cubs-Red to Iowa.

Outfielder Freiker Betencourt was promoted from DSL Cubs-Red to Iowa.

Right-hander Jubrayker Salaya moved from DSL Cubs-Red to Iowa.

Right-hander Ben Johnson was demoted to High-A South Bend from Knoxville.

Second baseman Darlyn De Leon was promoted to Low-A Myrtle Beach from the ACL Cubs.

Outfielder Derik Alcantara was sent down to Mesa from Myrtle Beach.

Please note that the Cubs did not fly those players out of the Dominican Republic and send them to Iowa. They were in Arizona to be activated for Saturday’s season opener for Mesa and the Cubs just sent them to Iowa to fill out their roster. Presumably they will soon be sent back down to Mesa. None of those DSL players played for Iowa tonight.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs were excommunicated by the St. Paul Saints (Twins), 3-1.

It wasn’t a bad start for Charlie Barnes, but he got the loss as Iowa couldn’t score. Barnes’ final line was three runs on just two hits over five innings. He did walk three and hit one batter while striking out four.

Luke Little, Ethan Roberts and Tyler Beede all threw one inning of relief without allowing a hit or a run. Roberts retired the side in order in the seventh, striking out one. He somehow took 23 pitches to get those three batters out. Fifteen were strikes.

The I-Cubs outhit the Saints 8 to 2, but were outscored 3 to 1. First baseman Jonathon Long singled home third baseman James Triantos in the eighth inning. Both players were 2 for 4.

Long’s RBI single was pretty much it for the highlights for Iowa.

Jonny Long gets us on the board in the eighth! pic.twitter.com/io3HygiIG2

— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) May 1, 2026

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies split a doubleheader with the Rocket City Trash Pandas (Angels), losing game one 3-1 and winning the second game 6-1.

Grant Kipp started game one and took the loss after he allowed one run in the first inning and two more in the second. Kipp’s final line was three runs on four hits over 1.2 innings. Kipp walked three and struck out two.

Knoxville only had two hits in game one. Center fielder Jordan Nwogu was 0 for 1 with two walks and he scored the only Smokies run of the game on an Owen Ayers sac fly in the sixth.

Shortstop Jefferson Rojas was 1 for 3 with a double.

Three pitchers combined on a two-hitter in game two. Starter Dawson Netz pitched four innings and allowed no runs and one hit. Netz struck out seven and walked just one.

Luis Rujano threw the next two innings and got the win because Netz only went four innings. Rujano gave up one run on hit—a double by the first batter he faced in the fifth. Rujano struck out one and walked no one.

Vince Reilly retired the side in order in the seventh. He struck out one.

Third baseman Jefferson Rojas was 2 for 5 with an RBI double.

First baseman Edgar Alvarez went 2 for 4 with one run scored.

Second baseman Ed Howard was 2 for 4 with an RBi single in the second inning. He also scored on the Rojas double.

Center fielder Jordan Nwogu was a perfect 1 for 1 with three walks. He was also hit by a pitch with the bases loaded for an RBI. Nwogu also scored one run.

Rojas’ RBI double in game two.

Rojas paints the third base line 🎯 Smokies up 3-0. pic.twitter.com/yftotFFH36

— Knoxville Smokies (@smokiesbaseball) May 1, 2026

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were dented by the Ft. Wayne TinCaps (Padres), 6-1.

Koen Moreno started and got the loss. Moreno surrendered four runs on seven hits over 4.2 innings. Moreno struck out five and walked on.

Leonel Espinoza came into the game when Reginald Preciado left the game after getting hit by a pitch. Espinoza went 2 for 2 with a double and a solo home run in the eighth. It was his second home run this year.

Espinoza’s home run.

Off the bench, on the board! 💣

Leonel Espinoza has gone double, @hoosierlottery home run since entering the game!#SBCubspic.twitter.com/OxODxqyyJ4

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) May 1, 2026

A nice defensive play by second baseman Drew Bowser, costing Luigi a hit. I’m sure that’s Lamar King Jr.‘s nickname now.

Off the bench, on the board! 💣

Leonel Espinoza has gone double, @hoosierlottery home run since entering the game!#SBCubspic.twitter.com/OxODxqyyJ4

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) May 1, 2026

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans called lights out on the Columbia Fireflies (Royals), 4-2.

Edwardo Melendez started and went four innings, allowing just one unearned run on one hit. Melendez struck out four and walked just one.

The win went to Victor Zarraga because Melendez didn’t go five. Zarraga relieved Melendez and pitched 3.1 innings, allowing one run on two hits. Zarraga did walk three and struck out six.

Braylon Myers pitched the final 1.2 innings and got his first career save. Myers did not allow a run or a hit, but he did walk two while striking out three.

The Pelicans scored all four runs in the second inning.

Center fielder Alexey Lumpuy went 2 for 4 with a two-run double.

First baseman Michael Carico was 2 for 4 and scored one run.

Left fielder Eli Lovich was 2 for 4 and scored one run.

The night after reader holycow8498 pointed out that right fielder Josiah Hartshorn had a 21-game on-base streak to start his professional career, Hartshorn was 0 for 4, snapping the streak.

Highlights.

The Twins finally found the solution to their bullpen: just score enough that they can’t ruin it. Byron Buxton did everything he could, and this time, the rest of the lineup was able to deliver the key hits they’ve been lacking these past two weeks. 

It was a pitcher’s duel early, with both teams only getting two baserunners through the first three innings. I wouldn’t say either Bailey Ober or Toronto starter Kevin Gausman had their best stuff, but the vets were mixing pitches and keeping opposing batters off balance.

I’ll focus the rest of this recap on the lineup, who deserve their flowers, but I want to again give a shoutout to Ober who keeps finding ways to get things done. What he’s doing is completely unprecedented in the modern game, which makes me skeptical he can keep it up, but he keeps delivering solid start after solid start. His average fastball velocity of 88 MPH is the slowest in the game by a healthy margin. The average four seamer from a righty averages 95.1 MPH. His strikeouts are down, his walks are up, but by golly he just keeps posting quality starts. I’ll take whatever we can get at this point.

Despite Ober’s wizardry, Daulton Varsho and the Jays finally struck in the fourth inning with a solo shot off of Ober. But for the first time in weeks, the Twins were ready to respond. 

Trevor Larnach got the Twins their first non-Buxton leadoff baserunner. And then future All-Star Ryan Jeffers took command of the game. Jeffers fought off a bunch of tough pitches and finally got a fastball down the heart of the plate on pitch number 8. He gave the Jays’ bullpen a little souvenir for their troubles. 2-1 Twins.

Since we all can see the future, we know the Twins technically didn’t need another run but given the state of literally every single reliever in the organization, no one watching was comfortable with a one run lead. Luckily, we have the aforementioned Buxton, who is quite good at bashing baseballs. Buck’s solo dong in the sixth inning was his eighth of the season, all of which have come in the past two weeks. Safe to say we’re in the midst of another patented Buxton hot streak. Austin Martin plated one more in the frame with a clutch, two-out single.

Just to really cover their bases, Buxton got one final rally going in the 8th. A Buck single and a throwing error (largely caused by Buck’s speed) put two on for Josh Bell, who was able to deliver a clutch, two-run single of his own. Walks to Austin Martin and Kody Clemens left them juiced for Luke Keaschall, who brought in one final insurance run on a sac fly. With a six run lead, the lineup decided that the bullpen could (probably) handle it from there.

Twins win!

STUDS

• Byron Buxton: 3-4, 1 HR, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 RBI
• Ryan Jeffers: Go-ahead 2 run dong
• Bailey Ober: 6 IP, 1 R, 4 H, 2 BB, 2 K
• The bullpen!: 3 IP, 2 H, 1 BB

DUDS

• NO DUDS TWINS WIN!!!

Comment of the game goes to Zach for being the real winner tonight.

The Twins close out April at 14-18, but are just two games back of the AL Central. They are also one of just five teams in the American League with a positive run differential, alongside the Tigers, Yankees, Mariners, and Rangers. The bullpen makes it extraordinarily hard to believe, but the Twins are still very much in this race with the first full month of the season in the books.

Nine straight sinkers to Bryson Stott before his game-tying triple that led to the Phillies 3-2 walk-off win earlier in the day. 

Seven straight splitters to Kyle Schwarber before he ripped a two-out, game-tying double that eventually led to another Philly win in 10 innings — the first time an MLB team has walked-off twice in a doubleheader in 22 years.

April 30th was really really so close to being a pretty dang good day. Two ball games, two leads in the 9th. 19 innings packed with some promising Giants baseball that ultimately has to get dumped into the toilet bowl and flushed.  

This was so close to being a joyous, insightful recap about a 5-4 win, rather than an incoherent rant about a 6-5 palm-to-the-face loss. I still want to salvage something from the wreckage. Anything, really. Look, see, the offense was kind-a doing their job. 5 total runs scored. They erased a two-run deficit twice to put themselves in position to win in the 9th inning. Luis Arraez and Jung Hoo Lee each came through with clutch 2-out RBIs. The line-up out-hit the Phillies 13 to 9 and walked 5 times. A Giants batter hit with a runner in scoring position in seven of 10 innings. Two sacrifice flies!

All silver linings that as I sit here at my desk really really tired after a day of teaching and an evening of watching gut-punching baseball and a later-evening of writing with another day of teaching looming in the morning, I realize are not silver linings at all — rather instruments of torture.

There is no sunshine behind clouds. All clouds do is piss rain, postpone games and delay the inevitable. Spring has sprung a leak. Two deficits erased, more like two blown leads, aided by free bases, conviction-less offerings, and 2-out RBIs handed-out by relievers. 18 baserunners, 15 at-bats with a runner in scoring position, and all the offense could manage was two run-scoring hits with two sacrifice flies. All those opportunities lost. Rafael Devers, Willy Adames, and Matt Chapman all struck out twice each. Heliot Ramos followed his 3-hit afternoon with a 4 K evening. 

And not to harp on this — but seven splitters in a row? Did we learn nothing from Ryan Walker’s stubbornness? And why was Keaton Winn even pitching to Schwarber in the first place? Schwarber had hit two homers on the day, and San Francisco arms had yet to get him out in the game. Winn had already thrown 1.2 innings and gave up a lead-off double in the 9th. Lefty Matt Gage was up in the bullpen. Instead of going for the left-on-left match-up, manager Tony Vitello stayed put, and the Winn-Bailey battery waffled between wanting to pitch to the slugger or not. The first two pitches were nowhere near the zone, then his splitters started creeping into bashin’ range, keeping Schwarber at the plate — which was the last place the Giants wanted him to be. Would it have been better to put the winning run on base, and face Bryce Harper? Was the thinking that the splitter had the best chance of eliciting chase, or poor contact, or keeping a ball in play on the ground? But there’s a point where an off-speed isn’t off speed anymore, and by the last one Winn threw, Schwarber was well-timed to it, got down on one knee and golfed it into right. 

And why didn’t Drew Gilbert score from second on Ramos’s single in the 10th?

The ball ricocheted off Bryson Stott’s glove and rolled into no man’s land in shallow center — Gilbert would’ve scored easily, but third base coach Hector Borg decided to hold him at third. Did Borg lose track of the ball? Did he throw the stop sign up too early? Add ‘em to the list of exasperating questions!

During the postgame wrap, Ron Wotus referred to this as “a broken play” in which the action goes awry and the normal functions of a play get thrown out the window. Though it was possible Borg didn’t see the ball, Wotus — who knows a thing or two about coaching third — figured he threw up the stop sign with an abundance of caution. He had to make a split-second decision. There were no outs, the 2-3-4 hitters were due up. Wonky things happen on wonky plays, why risk getting thrown out at home? Turns out the Giants didn’t have the luxury of those precautions. Chapman struck out on a sinker out over the plate, Luis Arraez lined out…and that was basically the game. 

So maybe Borg’s stop sign made some baseball sense — it’s just this team that doesn’t make baseball sense.

With the offense being so hit-or-miss, hot-or-cold, nothing feels guaranteed. Playing it safe doesn’t work. Scrap that philosophy, load up at the buffet, grab what ya can carry off the sale rack, take the money and run. Runners at the corners and nobody out is just as much a crap shoot as two-out and runner on second. Luis Arraez can dump an 0-2 change-up into right, or he can slap a liner right into the outstretched glove of Alec Bohm. Or if it’s Willy Adames at the plate, he can strike out on three pitches or four.   

But we should’ve known it was going to end this way. Omens of disappointment announced themselves from the very beginning.

Trea Turner and Schwarber were up front about what was in store for Giants fans with back-to-back homers in the 1st inning off Adrian Houser.

While I’m glad, deep down…somewhere, that the Giants made things a little more interesting, my Thursday evening would’ve certainly been much simpler if that early 2-0 score held. Houser would’ve been the story, and what I wrote before the late-inning meltdown would’ve been much more relevant.

I already had a headline too: “Burning Down the Houser.” Great stuff. This is what I wrote.

Adrian Houser is made of straw and sticks. He’s been structurally unsound up on the hill, blown down by the slightest huff and puff from an opposing offense. The mound is nothing more than shifting sand beneath his feet, ground impossible to put one’s faith in. Houser entered Thursday’s start with a 7.36 ERA over his first five starts of the 2026 season, with a -10 Pitching Run Value. He had given up at least 4 earned runs in all but his first start and was still looking for answers to his 11-hit, 8-run thrashing by the Marlins when he took the mound in Philadelphia. Tipping pitches? Sure, man, maybe…or based on the first pitch solo shot by Trea Turner, it’s less that he’s tipping, and more that he’s just throwing. Throwing the baseball has really just not worked for Houser this past month. It’s time to tear down, to restructure and rebuild — if that fact wasn’t clear beforehand, it became obvious after Kyle Schwarber chased Turner’s solo shot with an absolute tank to deep right center. 

Two batters into the game, two runs already in. Burn it all down, and Houser did. Right in the middle of the diamond, he burst into flames, becoming engulfed in a cleansing fire, and was reduced to ashes. Like a phoenix, he reformed in front of our eyes. A new man with gritted teeth, and a hardened, Clint Eastwood visage of determination. Or something like that. Houser didn’t become Dirty Harry, but he started getting hitters out. Batters no longer felt lucky to face him. A front door sinker froze Bryce Harper at the top of the zone. Two groundouts stranded Justin Crawford in the 2nd after his one-out triple that missed another solo home run by a couple of feet. The next Phillies hit off Houser wouldn’t come until two outs in the 5th. After walks to Schwarber and Harper in the 3rd, he got Adolis Garcia to ground into an inning-ending double play, then made a nice recovery play after taking a comebacker off his hip as part of an 8-pitch 4th. He dropped a wicked 0-2 curveball on Garrett Stubbs for the second out in the 5th before Turner punched a single up the middle, chasing Houser from the hill, before coming around to score three batters later. 

The 4.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 2 HR isn’t quite a .44 magnum of a pitching line, but considering how poorly Houser has pitched, and how poorly his afternoon started, those particular results are a decent step forward. He held the line long enough for the Giants offense to piece themselves back into the game. The third run earned was hardly his fault considering Turner essentially walked around the bases with Ryan Borucki on the hill.  

At just 68 pitches, and it being Philadelphia’s first hit since the 2nd, it did seem like a quick trigger by Vitello. Then again, take a moment to think about it, and the decision was pretty understandable. Don’t be swayed by recency bias. Houser pitched well for three innings.  Did we truly believe he had been rebuilt, or reborn? Did we want to see him face off against Schwarber for a third time if the homer in the first still hadn’t returned to earth? And with lefty specialist Ryan Borucki, why give Houser more rope to potentially trip himself on? The button was there, rosy red and flashing, and Vitello punched it. Many of us would have. 

Having not pitched in six days, Borucki was well-rested and well-rusted. He was holding the baseball but didn’t seem to be in control against Philadelphia’s power lefties. With count leverage, Schwarber flipped a hustle double to left field. Harper then walked on four pitches to bring up the right-hander Adolis Garcia, who sawed a 3-2 slider into left for a 2-run single to regain the lead.

Soon after a passing spring shower relieved itself over south Philly postponing the game for half-an-hour. Some Giants fans may have preferred it if the grounds crew had just kept the tarp on the field and called the game then.

Blue Jays 1 Twins 7

That was awful in a lot of ways.

The offense was sad, just six hits, only one an extra base hit, Daulton Varsho’s fourth of the season. It was good to see, because he’s looked lost at the plate. George Springer had two singles. Vlad, Clement, and Valenzuela had one single each. And we had only three walks.

Kevin Gausman wasn’t the Kevin Gausman we’ve seen up until now this year. 5.2 innings, 4 earned, 2 home runs against, 2 walks and 2 strikeouts. I don’t know if it was the cool weather, or that it was just his turn not to be great.

They made two errors in the eighth inning (when it was 4-1 and you could squint and say they still had a chance:

• With a runner on first (Byron Buxton) and one out, Ryan Jeffers popped one up to the third base side of the mound. Vlad called it, he shouldn’t have. Being fair, it was likely on the first base side of the mound when he called it, but Kazuma should have called him off when he saw it was much closer to him. Anyway, Vlad stumbled on the mound and the ball fell. Okamoto picked it up and threw to second, where they could have got the force on Buxton, but rushed and threw wide. It ended up with runners on second and third.
• Then Josh Bell singled and Davis Schneider threw it in, Andres Gimenez cut it off and threw it…..somewhere, well towards second but it went by Clements at second and two runs scored.

I guess the bullpen was pretty good:

• Tommy Nancy got four outs, three strikeouts.
• Mason Fluharty was the one the unlucky one to be on the mound when we forgot how to play defense. But he did give up two walks and two hits (one of them was that popup that I think I could have caught, but the one after that hit near the top of the wall in left. He only got one out.
• Joe Mantiply got the last two outs.

No Jays of the Day.

Other Award: Gausman (-.17) and Jesus Sanchez (-.09) and lets give one to Vlad, Okamoto and Gimenez for their “defense”, though their offense was bad too.

Tomorrow we have game two. Hopefully the Jays will actually play. It is an 8:00 start time. Patrick Corbin (0-0, 3.72 ERA) starts for the Jays. Simeon Woods Richardson (0-4, 6.30) starts for the Twins.