Category: Baseball

There must be a glitch in the Matrix because for the second time this week, Carter Jensen hit a leadoff home run to get his team up early, only for the Royals to fall to the Rays. This time Tampa won 5-2.

Let’s take a look at that Carter jack, though, shall we?

That was off of Ian Seymour who nearly masterminded a combined no-hitter against the Royals last week. Not this time. Unfortunately, he allowed 2 other hits the entire game while striking out 8. Isaac Collins added a solo shot in the bottom of the seventh off of reliever Cam Booser. It was so unimportant to the outcome that the Royals didn’t even bother to post a video of it, so I have nothing to show you.

Stephen Kolek had a 9-pitch, 1-2-3 first inning. But with two outs in the second, things began to unravel. Chandler Simpson was standing at first when Taylor Walls hit a rocket to right field that clanked off of Kameron Misner’s glove for a double. The way the booth told the story, Misner had almost no shot at the ball and it was amazing that he managed to get a glove on it. However, Baseball Savant gave the ball an expected batting average of only .390. And I’d argue any MLB outfielder who gets his glove on a ball should bring it in, but Simpson scored and Misner escaped without an error.

Richie Palacios popped it up into left, but it dropped in no-man ’s-land to score another run. Then Hunter Feduccia gave Misner another chance, and Misner dropped that one, too! That one had only a .170 expected batting average, despite being a home run in 14/30 parks, and Feduccia was credited with a triple. Yandy Díaz walked, and then Jonathan Aranda hit a grounder to the right side that deflected off of Jac Caglianone’s glove. For a moment it looked like the Royals were going to give up a third hit off of a player’s glove. Fortunately for all involved, Michael Massey barehanded the deflection and managed to get it to Stephen Kolek, who was smartly still attempting to cover the bag, and blessedly ended the inning.

As the Royals were batting in the bottom of the second, Matt Quatraro was seen to go out and speak to the home plate umpire while Randy Dobnak warmed up in the bullpen. The broadcast booth theorized Kolek was hurt. There was never an official announcement, but for the second straight start, Kolek was unable to pitch into the third inning and looked awful doing it. It seems likely he’s injured. He was probably injured during his last start, too, but the team hoped it would magically vanish while he was on parental leave.

It’s possible Kolek wasn’t hurt, and that throwing 42 pitches in the second inning was simply more than the Royals were willing to let him throw before getting him out of the game. But I don’t think KC has earned the benefit of the doubt with how they’ve handled injuries this season.

Lane Thomas had a two-out double in the first, Jac Caglianone had a groundball single to the right side in the sixth, and Carter Jensen added an infield single in the eighth to round out all of the Royals’ hitting for the night. Only when Bobby Witt Jr. reached on an error and stole second in the third inning did the Royals ever have a runner standing on second, and he was erased on a Jac groundout. They never had one standing on third.

Speaking of Jac, I saw him berating himself after a groundout in the bottom of the eighth. Combine that with the recent slump and I’m worried about him all over again just a week after I thought I wouldn’t need to worry about him for a good long while and had been praising his good body language even when he didn’t necessarily get a hit.

The Royals have tomorrow off thanks to the World Cup. They’ll start a three-game set with the Phillies on Saturday, the fourth of July. With Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh, and Bryce Harper leading the way, I expect there to be plenty of fireworks even before the game ends. See you then.

In a close game, the White Sox battled late, but sloppy baserunning, poor pitching, and a walk-off home run from Brayan Rocchio gave the Guardians the win. The White Sox fell 6-5 in the first of four games in Cleveland, one neither team necessarily deserved to win.

A few singles and a lot of bad baserunning could best describe the first inning. Sam Antonacci started the game with a base hit but was caught stealing. For the Guardians, Travis Bazzana and Chase DeLauter had back-to-back singles in the bottom half, but DeLauter was caught trying to steal second. Davis Martin’s command was abysmal at best, issuing a walk as well, but he did record all three outs, including a double-play ball that came right back to him to end the frame.

The White Sox caught two breaks in the second. Andrew Benintendi singled and easily got to second on a wild pitch, and Colson Montgomery reached second on a fielding error by left fielder Cooper Ingle. With those miscues, though, came more baserunning gaffes when Benintendi was called out for running out of the baseline. Despite three runners making it on base, no runs would come in. Martin had a much-needed 1-2-3 bottom of the inning to hold off the Guardians.

The Guardians took the lead in the bottom of the third thanks to a double from Patrick Bailey, a wild pitch, and a double from Bazzana that plated Bailey. With two outs, Martin gave up a four-pitch walk to put runners in the corners and walked Kahill Watson to load the bases. Another four-pitch walk forced in a run to make it 2-0 before escaping the bases-loaded jam with a ground out.

With two on, the White Sox squandered a chance to score in the fourth. Martin continued to struggle, giving up back-to-back singles and a walk to load the bases with just one out. Will Venable pulled Martin, and Chris Murphy stepped in. Miguel Vargas snagged the second out in foul territory, and Braden Montgomery made a sliding catch for the third out to prevent any further damage.

The top of the fifth was all about doubles. Tristan Peters started the frame with a double, but Jacob Gonzalez missed the memo with a liner to center. Antonacci sent Peters home via a double to put a run on the board, and Vargas followed up with a double as well. Kyle Teel sent the two runners home with, you guessed it — a double! The fun ended after Colson Montgomery went down swinging, but the Good Guys ended the top half with a 3-2 lead. The Guardians sent two balls into foul territory that were caught, making the bottom half quick and painless.

The doubles didn’t stop in the fifth as Chicago added to its lead in the sixth. Braden Montgomery decided to join in this time with a two-bagger. Then Chase Meidroth padded the lead with his seventh home run of the season, making it 5-2, and that was the end for Guardian’s starter Slade Cecconi. Gonzalez landed a single off new pitcher Daniel Espino, but was left on base after back-to-back strikeouts.

Gabriel Arias singled to start the bottom of the sixth, and Sean Newcomb, who replaced Murphy, gave up back-to-back walks to load the bases. DeLauter grounded out, but the throw home wasn’t in time, giving Arias the safe call and closing the gap 5-3. Newcomb neutralized the threat by striking out pinch-hitter Rhys Hoskins.

David Fry made it a one-run game in the bottom of the seventh with a solo shot. Both teams came up empty-handed in the eighth, and the White Sox went down in order in the top of the ninth. Drama ensued in the bottom of the ninth as Grant Taylor issued a four-pitch walk, putting the tying run on base to start the frame. With just one out, Brayan Rocchio sent Guardians fans home happy with a walk-off two-run homer.

“Faith, Balls, and Patience.”

“Hit him with a sandwich.”

Two immortal phrases tweeted by the god of the right field foul pole, Brayan Hommy Rocchio.

The path to tonight’s 6-5 walk-off win over the White Sox was a winding one. The Guardians started the game by failing to score with runners on first and third and no outs through a pick off and a line drive double-play. It was dumber than it sounds there. Slade Cecconi delivered four shutout innings, however (despite another Cooper Ingle error in left field as he desparately tries to learn a brand new position at the major league level and hit enough to make the experiment worthwhile). This allowed the Guardians to take the lead in the bottom of the third on a Travis Bazzana RBI double scoring Patrick Bailey

and then a Brayan Rocchio bases-loaded walk. Great game for Bazzana who went 2-3 with 2 walks, and it was needed.

Unfortunately, Cecconi ran out of gas on an extremely hot night in the fifth. He surrended four doubles and each was hard hit, and three runs, before getting out of the inning down 3-2. Having thrown 93 pitches, Cecconi was clearly done as the temperature neared 5,000 degrees. Clear to everyone except manager Stephen Vogt who explained after the game “We had to get 100 pitches from Slade with where our bullpen was.” No. That’s the dumbest thing I have ever heard. If your pitcher is done, you figure things out. As the bullpen proceeded to do! Scoreless one and 2/3rds from Daniel Espino, one and 1/3rd from Sean Armstrong (with no help from Gabriel Arias but yes help from Steven Kwan and Rhys Hopkins) and one from Tim Herrin (good time for 2024 Herrin to show up, imho). But, not before Vogt had sent Cecconi out for the sixth and he had given up two more runs because, again, he was obviously done in the fifth. Stupid move by Vogt. Absolutely inexcusable.

However, the Guardians were not done. Arias did something for once and singled to open the sixth, Bailey popped out, Kwan walked, Bazzana walked and DeLauter grounded out to score Arias. All this against Sean Newcomb who dominated the lineup in Chicago last week. Hoskins then pinch-hit for Manzardo and predictably struck out to end the inning. But Manzardo must never face a lefty with where our bullpen was. Or something.

Bottom of the 7th seemed quiet against a second lefty reliever… but then David Fry pinch hit for Cooper Ingle (I approve) and hit a homer!

The bottom of the ninth featured Rhys Hoskins redeeming himself with a leadoff walk (sensibly pinch-run for by Daniel Schneemann) then a really good at-bat from Kahlil Watson who ended up seeing seven pitches and flying out to center. That was apparently enough pitches for Rocchio to perform his magic on Grant Taylor and send the home fans happy.

Yet, I still hope Vogt is doing some serious self-reflection. Rote doesn’t make right. Gotta adjust to what you see in front of you. Or let playoff Rocchio fix it for you, I guess! I’ll take it.

I yelled so loud in our kitchen doing dishes that my wife thought I cut my finger off with a knife.

The Atlanta Braves had a solid game yesterday and were looking to make it two in a row as they took on the Cardinals behind Hurston Waldrep making his return as a starter.

This was the third of six games the Braves would face the Cardinals and will face them again shortly for another three games right before the all-star break. Last season the Braves won both series against the Cardinals. The Braves have a .625 winning percentage against the Cardinals since 2019 which is their fifth best winning percentage against a NL team in that span. The Braves also have a .714 winning percentage against the NL Central this season. The only team with a better winning percentage against the NLC are the Brewers.

The first inning did not go great for Hurston Waldrep, and it started to look like doom and gloom again. Waldrep showing he is a viable option in the rotation would be a huge boon for the ravaged Braves rotation. The first batter Waldrep faced he surrendered a singled and then followed that up with a HBP. He was able to get a groundout, but then Jordan Walker took him deep to left field to score three. Waldrep was able to largely settle down in the first. He gave up another single but was able to end the top of the first without anymore damage.

The Braves had a crazy bottom of the first. Last month being down three runs would have seemed like the game was already over for the Braves, but that was not the case. Dustin May, the Cardinals starting pitcher, has a 5.68 ERA in his 12.2 innings against the Braves before this start. He loaded the bases right away via a single from Baldwin followed by walks to Albies and Olson. Harris struck out, but then Dubón continued his clutch streak by knocking in Baldwin with a line drive single to make the score 1-3. What followed was one of the craziest plays we have seen in awhile. Dominic Smith smoked a ball that hit Dustin May in what looked like his angle and it ricocheted perfectly down the right field line to clear the bases for the Braves to take the lead.

Believe it or not, Austin Riley got in on the fun and hit a single to move Smith to third and then Yastrzemski hit a sacrifice fly to make the score 5-3. Jim Jarvis, the ninth hitter, then singled which prompted May to be pulled from the game and replaced with Justin Bruihl who was able to get Drake Baldwin to groundout to end the inning.

Waldrep then looked like the dominant starter we hoped he would be. He sat down the next seven batters he faced picking up three strikeouts along the way. In the first inning Waldrep pitched twenty pitches. In the next two innings he pitched a combined nineteen. Waldrep did not give up another baserunner until he surrendered a single in the fourth inning to Winn, but he sat down the other three hitters that inning as well. In the fifth inning he a single to Crooks but then he was able to get a fly out and a double play. He came back out for the sixth and after a groundout and walk to Jordan walker he was pulled. All-in-all Waldrep pitched 5.1 innings where he surrendered three earned runs (all in the first inning), five hits, one walk, and accumulated four strikeouts. He was replaced by Tyler Kinley.

Let’s catch up on the offensive side with the Braves. During the following innings after their five run first, they were unable to score anymore runs while Waldrep was in the game. They were sat down in order in the second and third innings, but then in the fourth Yastrzemski was able to get some offense going with a single, and after a Jarvis groundout that moved him to second, Baldwin was hit by a pitch. This led to a pitching changed where Ryan Fernandez came in. This did the trick for the Cardinals because both Albies and Olson were retired. In the fifth the Braves had the minimum runners when Dubón singled but Smith grounded into a doubled play.

The sixth inning is where Tyler Kinley took over for Waldrep and was able to force a double play to end the top of the sixth. Gordon Graceffo came in to pitch for the Cardinals and retired the side in the sixth.

The seventh is where the wheels fell off. Tyler Kinley stayed in the game. He gave up a single to Winn followed by a two run shot by Nathan Church to tie the game. After a walk, he was replaced by Dylan Lee who is having an elite season. However, tonight was not Lee’s night. José Fermín came in to pinch hit and singled to put two on. JJ Wetherholt then had a single of his own to give the Cardinals a one run lead. The damage did not end there with yet another single to make the score 5-7. Lee finally got an out via fielder’s choice, but then he was replaced by Ian Hamilton who promptly gave up a single and a double to make the score 9-5. A grounder was then hit and it looked like Matt Olson gunned down Walker at home, but upon review he was safe to make it 10-5. Finally, Church hit into a double play to end the atrocious top of the inning.

Jojo Romero came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and was able to get Baldwin to groundout and and strikeout Albies. Matt Olson then flied out to end the inning.

Ian Hamilton stayed in the game to eighth as a white flag, and gave up a single to the first hitter. Hamilton then got the force out at second thanks to Jim Jarvin. As a sign of how terrible this game is, the sure handed Matt Olson had an error to put runners on the corners with one out. Fortunately, the next play was a double play to end the top of the eighth.

Michael Harris came up to bat in the eighth and was able to get on via a single to the left side. George Soriano then came in to pitch to Dubón who was able to turn an 0-2 count into a walk. Dominic Smith then flied out on a full count. Riley then grounded into a force out. Yastrzemski also grounded out to end the inning.

James Karinchak came in to mop up in the ninth inning, and the first batter he faced, Alec Burleson hit a HR. Walker flied out but then Nootbar followed that up with a single, and Winn walked on four pitches. After a nine pitch at-bat he finally got a groundout to first followed by a pop up on the first pitch to end the ninth.

Jim Jarvis came up to bat in the ninth with the Braves being down by six. Matt Svanson was the pitcher for the Cardinals. Jarvis had a good at-bat forcing nine pitches but ultimately struck out. Baldwin then came to the plate and also struck out. Albies popped out to end the game.

In a game where the Braves needed some hope, their greatest strength let them down. Going into the seventh inning the Braves had a two run lead. Their bullpen had the best ERA in MLB by almost half a run, but the bullpen ended up surrendering eight earned runs. You can’t win games like that.

The Braves will face the Mets at home tomorrow at home at 7:15 EDT in hopes to get back on track.

The St. Louis Cardinals entered Thursday nights game versus the Atlanta Braves hoping to win the series. By the time it was done, the hope was to keep Dustin May from leaving in an ambulance. They would ultimately succeed, though, as their bats would erupt for one of the Cardinals best rallies of the season late in the game to make manager Oli Marmol’s birthday extra special.

The good news is the St. Louis Cardinals bats woke up and started Thursday night’s game with a bang early. In the top of the 1st inning, JJ Wetherholt led off with a single followed by Iván Herrera (you guessed it) being hit by yet another pitch. Two batters later, Jordan Walker launched an 83 mph splitter 396 feet over the left field wall for a 3-run blast giving the Cardinals a 3-0 lead with many family and friends in the stands at Truist Park watching.

Whatever joy the St. Louis Cardinals and the fanbase felt after the top of the 1st inning would be short-lived. The bottom of the 1st inning was nothing short of disastrous for the Cardinals on so many levels. The trouble started when Dustin May gave up a leadoff single to Drake Baldwin followed by back-to-back walks to Ozzie Albies and Matt Olson. May was able to get Michael Harris II to strike out looking, but then the wheels would come off. Mauricio Dubon singled which scored Baldwin reducing the Cardinals lead to 3-1. Dominic Smith then rifled a line drive off of Dustin May’s ankle as the ball ricocheted off of him into right field. By the time JJ Wetherholt tracked it down, 3 runs had scored as the Braves took the lead 4-3. Dustin May was down on his knees on the field for several minutes. After being examined by the trainer, manager Oli Marmol decided to let May continue. Austin Riley followed that decision up with an infield single to third that Blaze Jordan was unable to handle as Smith advanced to third. He scored on the next play when Mike Yastremski hit a deep sacrifice fly to center field giving Atlanta a 5-3 lead. After Jarvis singled to right, Dustin May limped off of the field and Justin Bruihl came into the game to finish out the depressing 1st inning. The official word after being examined in the clubhouse is that Dustin May suffered a right ankle contusion.

Justin Bruihl did a solid job of keeping St. Louis in the game as he finished the 1st inning that Dustin May couldn’t and continued into the bottom of the 4th inning before running out of gas after throwing 40 pitches. He surrendered the game to Ryan Fernandez who entered with runners on 1st and 2nd with just 1 out. He fortunately was able to get out of the inning without allowing Atlanta to increase their lead. He would carry St. Louis through the 5th inning while Gordon Graceffo would take care of the bottom of the 6th. The St. Louis bullpen’s unplanned start would hold the Braves scoreless into the 7th which would be vital.

Every potential Cardinals rally through the middle innings could be summed up with a single and then a double play to kill the momentum. But, that narrative changed in the top of the 7th inning when the Cardinals bullpen keeping the Braves close would pay off big time. The phrase “all you need is a bloop and a blast” would prove true again. Masyn Winn would provide the bloop single (he had 3 hits in the game) followed by Nathan Church unloading the blast – a two-run homer off an 86 mph slider over the right field wall tying the game at 5-5.

The Cardinals did not take their foot off the gas after Church tied the game. Jordan Walker drew a walk and then pinch-hitter Jose Fermin singled. JJ Wetherholt went up to the plate with directions to bunt both runners over. After two very insufficient bunt attempts, JJ swung away and it’s a good thing he did as he slapped a single into short right-center scoring Walker and giving St. Louis a 6-5 lead.

Iván Herrera kept the train rolling with a single of his own driving in Fermin upping the Cardinals lead to 7-5 with Wetherholt smartly going first to third. After Alec Burleson grounded into a fielder’s choice where JJ Wetherholt made a smart play on the base paths forcing the Braves into a rundown where they would eventually only get one out leaving runners at 2nd and 3rd with one out. Jordan Walker would strike fear into the Braves infield who were forced to play in by crushing a 95 mph sinker into left field giving St. Louis an 8-5 lead and they still weren’t done.

Lars Nootbaar ripped a double into right field scoring Alec Burleson adding yet another tally for St. Louis giving the Cardinals an amazing 9-5 lead. But wait, there’s more. Masyn Winn grounded out to first, but the throw by Baldwin which beat Jordan Walker to home, but he pulled off the slide of the year as he pulled back his left arm and did a swim move with his right to duck around the tag and score the Cardinals 10th run of the game. Incredible.

After the Cardinals more than batted around and the Braves went through 3 relief pitchers, it was 10-5 Cardinals. Hello momentum. It’s nice to see you in our corner again. After that inspiring offensive eruption, there were still 3 innings to survive and Oli Marmol chose JoJo Romero to handle the bottom of the 7th inning. He kept the Braves in check. JoJo would start, but not finish the 8th inning as George Soriano carried the baton for the rest of the bottom of the 8th inning. He inherited a runner from JoJo and walked the first batter he faced, but was able to get Smith to fly out for the first out on a brave 3-2 changeup. He then got Austin Riley to ground out to third for what could have been a double play, but Fermin’s throw to first was awful and pulled Burleson off the bag. It wouldn’t matter, though, as Mike Yastremski grounded out to Masyn Winn for the final out of the Brave’s 8th.

Alec Burleson would add an exclamation point to the Cardinals offensive volcano Thursday night as he launched one of the highest home runs I’ve seen in a long time as it’s horizontal distance was 395 feet and the vertical distance had to be similar. That gave the Cardinals their final 11-5 lead they would end the game with.

Matt Svanson was the Cardinals 9th inning answer to close out the Atlanta Braves to make the series win official. He did the job fine, thank you very much. If the St. Louis Cardinals season becomes one that eventually results in a playoff appearance, remember this game. The Cardinals could easily have rolled over after Dustin May’s early exit. The bullpen locking down the Braves for 8 innings and the Cardinals bats waking up could be a turnaround moment. We can only hope.

The St. Louis Cardinals will travel to Wrigley Field for an All-American 4th of July weekend as they’ll challenge their arch-rivals, the Chicago Cubs. Andre Pallante will try to give the Cardinals another strong start. He’ll be facing LHP David Peterson. First pitch is scheduled for 3:15pm central time and the game TV broadcast will be handled by Cardinals.tv. A heads up that Saturday’s game will be on Fox while the Sunday Cards/Cubs game will be on Peacock.

On Wednesday, during their regularly scheduled bargaining session, the union representing the players (MLBPA) made its third proposal to the MLB negotiating team. The proposal doesn’t include any financial adjustments other than those that come with roster use and manipulation.

Following are the major points of the new proposal:

• Increasing the roster from 26 to 28 players for the first 15 days of the season with a maximum of 14 pitchers. Allows more time for roster decisions as well as allowing the veteran players the option of less playing time to start the season.

• Allows teams to place players on the 60-day injured list as early as the November (the tender deadline) before the season. This gives greater 40-man roster flexibility for the upcoming season and would be three months sooner than it is currently.

• Reducing the number of times a player can be optioned to the minor leagues in a season from five to three.

• Provide service time and salary to pitchers who are optioned to the minors over the All-Star break. If the pitcher records nine outs or throws 50 pitches in a game within seven days before the All-Star break, and is optioned, that player will receive major league pay and service time leading up to the fourth game after the break.

• Change the Rule 5 draft to November from December in the year that the CBA expires. This ensures players get eligibility before any possible lockout occurs.

• Allow players access to the same data the team has regarding player performance.  All teams have data that is organization based and the players currently do not have legal right to the access of that data.

• Move the trade deadline to July 21-27 from July 28-Aug. 3, and assure the deadline is two full days before any signing deadline for drafted players. Players outrighted to the minor leagues should be eligible for trades after being optioned. 

• Any players optioned in September or October will be eligible for major league pay and service time.

• An accommodation for religious observances for players who receive approval to be away from the team between one to three days.

• Playoff eligibility for players who are part of an organization, and not just on the 40-man roster, by Sept. 1.

• Teams must have a bullpen catcher with prior professional experience as their emergency third catcher, and not just an active player on the team.

• Free agents that sign within the first 10 days of the season can agree to go to the minor leagues, provided they are called up within 10 days of being optioned. An additional nine-day extension can be granted.

An ongoing process

This is the third proposal from the MLBPA to the MLB negotiating team. Their principal economic proposal, submitted May 27, was for increases in minimum salaries, an expansion of the pre-arbitration bonus pool, earlier free agency for players, and an increase to the luxury-tax threshold. 

In their second proposal, submitted last week, the union asked for a ban on prop betting for individual players to fight the harassment players endure due to gambling. It was suggested that there should be a joint effort with MLB to prohibit prop bets at sports books and with fantasy betting.

The MLB initially proposed a salary cap and floor, as well as an international draft to be held along with the domestic draft currently in place. They also want all high school players to be removed from draft eligibility and the domestic draft limited in slot money and bonuses.

In their proposal last week, MLB agreed to earlier free agency, minimum salary increases for players, and to end the qualifying offer system. They proposed restricting the salary and length of all free agency contracts.

There continues to be minimal agreement as the MLB accepted some of the initial MLBPA proposals contingent on the salary cap and salary floor system being accepted. The union, and the players they represent, continually stress that they will not accept a salary cap.

The current contract expires Dec. 1 and the owners have already stated that a lockout will come if the current contract expires without a new agreement.

Despite it feeling as though May just ended, the calendar has already flipped to July. The Rockies were able to rebound from an all around poor 8-20 May with an 11-15 record in June.

This improvement was fueled by an incredible spike in their team wide offensive output. They went from 21st in the league in runs scored for May up to 5th in June. The pitching side of the equation still leaves some room for improvement but the lineup has provided a ton of potential candidates for Rockie of the month!

• Cole Carrigg (No. 4 PuRP) made his Major League debut and immediately cemented himself as regular in the lineup with his incredible arm and 122 wRC+.
• Edouard Julien bounced back after a poor May to post an 18.8% walk rate while batting .288.
• Ryan Feltner, back from early-season injury, had a 4.00 ERA while pitching the second-most innings on the team in June.
• Hunter Goodman hit 13 home runs, good for the second-most any Rockie has ever had in a single month.
• Jake McCarthy led the team in stolen bases (3) while batting .326 over 97 plate appearances.
• Kyle Freeland set the franchise record for innings pitched and passed the one thousand career strikeouts mark while leading the team in pitching fWAR (0.7) for the month.
• Kyle Karros had the best stretch of his MLB career so far with a slash line of .357/.444/.586 while playing his usual stellar third base defense.
• TJ Rumfield continued his attempt to earn National League Rookie of the Year with five home runs and a .400 On-Base Percentage.
• Troy Johnston walked more than he stuck out and batted .319.
• Willi Castro did a little bit of everything with four home runs, two steals, a .292 average while playing six(!) different defensive positions.

From that crowded field of potential candidates, who gets your vote for the Rockies player of June?

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

Dodgers are back home, through the All-Star break. Mookie Betts is back in the lineup against the Padres.

Thursday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Padres
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Time: 7:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Jorge Polanco was in the starting lineup for the Syracuse Mets on Thursday night as he continues his rehab and went yard for the first time.

With the Mets down 1-0 in the first, Polanco launched a 91 mph fastball from Devin Sweet of the Worcester Red Sox, up in the zone over the right-center field wall. The homer went 342 feet and had an exit velocity of 103 mph as Polanco tied the game. 

The Mets' 1B/DH went 1-for-2 with a walk on Thursday. The towering blast was his first hit since he started his rehab with Syracuse back on June 2 (six games). 

Before he landed on the IL, Polanco played 14 games with the Mets, going 10-for-56 (.179) with a home run and two RBI. However, his first season in Flushing has been marred by injuries. He was first set back by an Achilles strain, which took away his ability to play first base, and the veteran had to play through the pain. But once he suffered a right wrist strain, Polanco was sent to the IL. 

Last week, Polanco said he was feeling "stronger" as he continued his rehab and is able to tolerate the pain he continues to feel in his Achilles. 

POLANCOOOOOOOO!!!! 💣 pic.twitter.com/fdYB6Amv2w

— Syracuse Mets (@SyracuseMets) July 2, 2026

On the mound for Syracuse on Thursday was Jonah Tong.

The young right-hander wasn't his sharpest as Worcester put up a run in each of the first three innings. The last two runs came off solo shots. 

Overall, Tong pitched five innings, allowing three runs on four hits and two walks while striking out three batters. This season has been a struggle for Tong. Although Thursday's performance lowered his ERA to 5.90, he's still having trouble putting up zeroes. Thursday marked the fourth time in Tong's last five games that he allowed at least three runs. 

Elsewhere on the diamond 

-Luis Robert Jr. continued his rehab, going 0-for-4 with two strikeouts while playing center field for all nine innings. Thursday was Robert's second rehab start and is now a combined 1-for-6 with a walk and a double. 

-MJ Melendez, who was optioned when Tyrone Taylor returned from the IL, went 1-for-3 with a home run, a walk and two strikeouts.

-Ryan Clifford, who will represent the Mets in the All-Star Futures Game in Philadelphia, went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts. He's now hitting .190 with 14 home runs this season.

San Diego Padres (43-42) at Los Angeles Dodgers (56-31), July 2, 2026, 7:10 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Dodger Stadium – Los Angeles, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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The Mariners go for a sweep against the Angels to kickoff a holiday weekend at home.

It’s been exactly one month since the Mariners won three straight games. They beat the Mets 8-3 on June 2 in what would be the final win of an eight-game streak. Since then, the Mariners have gone 11-14, never winning or losing more than two in a row. With commanding wins Monday and Tuesday — before a rare, mid-series off day Wednesday due to the World Cup in Seattle — the Mariners now have a chance to make it three straight with a sweep of the Angels.

On the mound Thursday will be Bryce Miller. Now free of the piggyback, he struck out 11 over 5 2/3 in his last outing, although a pair of homers (and lack of run support) sunk his day. Miller has a 3.07 FIP and 30.1% K-BB rate, which is second best in the majors to Jacob Misiorowski.

The Mariners will face Walbert Ureña for the first time in his rookie season. Just 22, Ureña has slick stuff, with a fantastic sinker-slider combination that helps him stay on the ground. He does struggle with walks and has difficulty going deep into games, so ideally the Mariners lineup will exhibit some patience. This could be a tough one otherwise.

That said, the Mariners will send their best possible lineup at the moment. Both Luke Raley and Dominic Canzone are playing tonight, with Raley in right field and Canzone at DH. The only batter they’re missing at this point is Brendan Donovan, who’s working his way back from the injured list.

News

• Brendan Donovan was out Thursday afternoon doing base running drills. He’s expected to begin a rehab assignment next week when the Mariners go on their final road trip before the All-Star Break.
• Luke Raley is in the lineup Thursday. He’ll be wearing a special compression sleeve on his sore elbow.
• The Mariners announced the next piggyback will be Saturday, featuring Logan Gilbert and Emerson Hancock.

Lineups

Game Info:

First Pitch: 6:40 p.m.

TV: Mariners.TV

Radio: Ol’ Reliable

Had a team ever needed an off day more than the Yankees?

If nothing else, just to ensure that they could not inflict more damage on themselves while trying yet again to end a losing streak that now stands at seven games?

Sometimes when a team is in the depths of despair, it wants to get back on the field as soon as possible to try to climb out of it. The Yankees keep attempting that and it has only gotten worse, so Thursday they had what Aaron Boone described as “a day to refresh the body and mind.”

There may be no better slump buster than the Twins arriving in town Friday, though if the Yankees losing streak somehow reaches eight against their perennial punching bags, the panic may reach an all-time high.

“Ten more [games] before the [All-Star] break,” Cody Bellinger said. “Hopefully we get rolling.”

Before then, here are the five biggest areas of concern from an absolutely brutal week in Yankee land:

Lineup lacks punch 

There is plenty of blame to go around for the terrible week, but first and foremost, the Aaron Judge-less offense has been the most responsible. During the seven-game skid, they have combined to hit just .137 (31-for-226) with a paltry .191 on-base percentage and .230 slugging percentage.

Their .421 OPS is the worst in any single seven-game stretch in franchise history.

Yes, losing Judge to the injured list hurts, but this is more than that — this is almost every hitter on the roster slumping at the same time. 

“I feel like right now, collectively guys are just trying to do too much, trying to be the one guy that will hit the grand slam with nobody on,” Judge said. “It’s like, ‘Hey, just take your approach, take your at-bat.’ ” 

The Yankees have been even worse against starting pitchers in particular. They have faced some tough arms, but those starters have combined to give up just five runs (four earned) and 22 base runners (14 hits, seven walks, one hit batter) with 54 strikeouts in 46 innings. The Yankees have hit a putrid .093 with a .311 OPS against them.

Stars shooting blanks 

Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger will likely be named All-Stars with Judge on Saturday, but they certainly haven’t played like it over the past week. With Judge on the IL for the foreseeable future, the Yankees need Rice and Bellinger to hit like they are capable of — which they did earlier in June when Judge first went down, only to go ice-cold at the same time.

Rice is 2-for-25 during the losing streak while Bellinger is 1-for-23 with two walks. 

“Missing my pitches and then swinging at some pitcher’s pitches,” Bellinger said. “I got to be better. I just got to continue working and continue to trust myself and trust my plan.”

Poor defense 

Among the more stupefying stats of the skid: The Yankees have scored as many runs as they have given up unearned runs: 17.

Officially, they have committed 10 errors — two by Austin Wells (catcher interference each time), two by José Caballero (one at second base, one at third) and one each by Bellinger, Amed Rosario, Oswaldo Cabrera, Ali Sánchez, Yerry De los Santos and Cam Schlittler — along with a handful of additional defensive miscues, all for a unit that had taken decent care of the ball before this stretch.

Part of the problem is the absence of Trent Grisham and Ryan McMahon — both are expected to be activated off the IL on Friday — which has forced some guys to play at positions they are less comfortable with.

“We haven’t done a good job of that this week,” Boone said. “Even with some of the guys out, we should still be better at that.”

Cracks in the rotation? 

The last time the Yankees finished an inning with a lead came in the fourth inning last Thursday in Boston. Since then, along with not scoring enough, they have been falling behind early and having to play uphill.

This does not yet rise to the level of concern as the rest of this list, but the rotation has had some clunkers over the past week, including Schlittler, who may start the All-Star Game for the AL. The stud right-hander needs to make sure it was just a blip and not a sign of anything else to come as his innings mount. Same goes for Gerrit Cole, who enters Friday’s start having pitched to a 6.12 ERA in June.

Rays rising back up 

The seven-game losing streak has coincided with a seven-game Rays winning streak that they brought into Thursday night, turning a three-game Yankees lead into a 3.5-game deficit atop the AL East.

The teams have a four-game showdown next week at Tropicana Field, where the Yankees will need to play better to make up some ground.

The Yankees’ hopes of calling up Carlos Lagrange as a bullpen weapon in the second half have hit a potential snag.

The top prospect landed on the seven-day injured list Thursday at Triple-A with a shoulder injury, a source told The Post. Lagrange is scheduled for an MRI to determine what he is dealing with and how long he may be out.

The flame-throwing right-hander was in the midst of a transition from starter to reliever, which the Yankees put into motion at the beginning of June to see if he could impact the big league bullpen later in the season.

Lagrange last pitched Sunday, throwing on two days’ rest, when he gave up five runs on four hits and two walks in two-thirds of an inning. He threw 20 pitches in the outing and averaged 98.8 mph on his fastball, topping out at 100.9 mph.

It was his seventh relief appearance and second time throwing on two days’ rest, as the Yankees had carefully scaled down his workload over the course of the month.

The 23-year-old had made a strong impression on teammates and coaches this spring in his first big league camp, consistently hitting triple digits with his fastball.

They are not saviors, but Trent Grisham and Ryan McMahon’s expected return to the Yankees on Friday should at least offer some version of a life raft for a team that has spent the past week sinking.

Grisham and McMahon are set to be activated off the injured list ahead of a series against the Twins at Yankee Stadium, getting back two players that should help steady things at least defensively.

“Hopefully they’re a part of the equation [of getting back on track], absolutely,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Add some length to things. I think when you get guys back in the mix, then all of a sudden guys start slotting in a little bit more where they should be and you get more threats at different spots. So hopefully that’s something that’ll be a good thing for us.”

Grisham played in a rehab game Wednesday night, while McMahon, after dealing with food poisoning Wednesday, did not play in one Thursday, as the club had initially planned.

Grisham, who landed on the IL on June 13 with a right hamstring strain, should solidify center field again, allowing Cody Bellinger to remain in left field where he is best defensively and José Caballero to get the bulk of his playing time in the infield.

Before getting hurt, Grisham was one of the Yankees’ hottest hitters, batting .290 with an .847 OPS over his last 36 games. He should reclaim his leadoff spot against right-handed starters, with a ripple effect down the lineup.

McMahon, meanwhile, will shore up third base after he missed the last 10 days on the IL recovering from a peritonsillar abscess — with the Yankees cycling through Caballero, Amed Rosario and Oswaldo Cabrera there in his absence. Despite some rough stretches offensively, the lefty hitter had been respectable of late, batting .258 with a .790 OPS over his last 24 games.

Cabrera, who was called up from Triple-A when McMahon landed on the IL, is likely to head back to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, while the Yankees will have to open another roster spot for Grisham. It’s possible that could be Spencer Jones, since his playing time would likely be limited with Grisham back, though he has been one of the few Yankees who have actually been hitting of late.

The Yankees entered Wednesday with two sacrifice bunts on the season, then doubled their total with sacrifice bunts from Cabrera and Caballero. Both got runners to third (in the eighth and 10th innings, respectively) with one out, but the Yankees could not ultimately score them either time.

Punishments are coming for Willson Contreras and Cade Cavalli. 

Both the Red Sox slugger and Nationals pitcher will face seven-game suspensions for their actions during the benches-clearing incident during Washington’s 10-2 win over Boston earlier this week, the MLB announced Thursday.

Additionally, both players will receive an undisclosed fine as part of their discipline. 

In the bottom of the fourth inning during Tuesday’s game, Cavalli struck out Contreras on a 3-2 sweeper for what looked to be a routine strikeout. 

But it escalated into much more as Cavalli shouted, “Sit down, boy!” to the Red Sox first baseman, prompting Contreras to retaliate and say, “Are you talking to me?”

Contreras eventually moved toward Cavalli, leading to both benches exiting the dugout. 

Contreras tried to throw his helmet at Cavalli in the mix of players pushing and shoving each other around. Numerous teammates pulled Contreras back before the fight eventually settled down. 

While Cavalli wasn’t ejected, Contreras, along with Red Sox outfielder Nate Eaton, Washington right-hander Miles Mikolas and Boston interim manager Chad Tracy, were tossed.

Mikolas was suspended five games and Eaton was suspended for three. 

On Wednesday, Cavalli apologized for using the word “boy,” which has a racially charged history in the United States. 

“I’m extremely torn up about the way that things were perceived,” Cavalli told reporters Wednesday. “Obviously, there was no ill intention behind that. My teammates know me, my family knows me, this organization knows me. I couldn’t sleep because of it.” 

Contreras also chimed in on the incident.

“He struck me out on a good pitch, I was walking back to the dugout, and then he did what he did,” Contreras told reporters after the game. “He was like, instigating and I snapped.”

After being thrown Monday and Tuesday, Contreras became the first Red Sox player in history to be ejected in two straight games, according to The Associated Press.

Contreras was ejected Monday night for tapping his helmet to challenge a call that wasn’t challengeable.