Category: Baseball

For the first time this season, the Yankees spent a series slugging like they are capable of. 

Also a first this week: watching their pitchers getting slugged, slugged and slugged again. 

On the final day of a wild, back-and-forth series, the Yankees once again failed to keep the Angels lineup in check, or in the ballpark, as they got clobbered for an 11-4 loss on a hot Thursday afternoon in The Bronx. 

The Yankees came into this series having allowed just three home runs through their first 15 games, then got taken deep a stunning 13 times in four games — five by Mike Trout, who homered in each game, two by former Yankee Oswald Peraza and two by Jo Adell, who provided the knockout punch with a grand slam off Ryan Yarbrough in the eighth inning Thursday. 

“Story of the series, we just didn’t keep the ball in the ballpark,” said manager Aaron Boone, who was ejected for the first time this season after arguing a balk call that led to Adell’s grand slam. “That’s something we’ve done really well up until this series. They just kept coming at us. … Had a hard time managing contact against them this series.” 

By the end of the day, all that was standing between the Yankees (10-9) and a nine-game losing streak were two ninth-inning blowups from Angels closer Jordan Romano, which accounted for their two wins in this series — though losing seven of nine is not much better. 

Those two comeback wins against Romano offered potential springboards for the Yankees to get out of this early-season funk, but instead, they delivered clunkers after each one. 

“Obviously haven’t been playing to our standards, but we know the kind of club we are, especially the way we started off,” said Max Fried, who had his shortest start of the season while giving up five runs across 5 ¹/₃ innings. “That standard that we had, we’re going to get back to it.” 

Through the first 15 games of this series, the Yankees had only hit 14 home runs. In this four-game set, they crushed nine — including one each from Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Ben Rice on Thursday, and still it was not nearly enough on what became a miserable afternoon. 

In the side battle of three-time MVPs, Trout out-homered Judge 5-4 in this series. The Yankees could not find a way to contain Trout, who enjoyed a monster throwback series and became the first visiting player ever to homer on four straight days at Yankee Stadium, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs. 

For the first time this season, Fried did not pitch into the seventh inning. He struggled with his command for much of the day, lamenting his three walks that all came with the bases empty, and got knocked out of the game by an RBI double from Peraza — who also crushed a two-run homer in the top of the first inning — that tied it 3-3 in the sixth. 

Fried left the game with two runners on base and Fernando Cruz allowed both of them to score — plus one of his own — as the Angels (10-10) rallied for four runs in the sixth inning to take a 6-3 lead. 

Vaughn Grissom delivered the go-ahead hit with a ground ball off the glove of a diving Amed Rosario at first base before Josh Lowe waged a nine-pitch battle that ended in a broken-bat, two-run bloop to center field. 

Then, after Rice’s leadoff homer pulled the Yankees within 6-4 in the sixth, the game unraveled in the eighth. The Angels had runners on first and second with two outs when Yarbrough was called for a balk, at which point the Yankees opted to intentionally walk Trout to load the bases. That set up Adell’s grand slam that was a fitting exclamation point to the slugfest of a series. 

“We’re slowly, hopefully, getting the offense going a little bit,” Boone said. “Pitching kind of carried us the first 10 days, two weeks of the season. We got to get all that synced up, though. 

“I know we’ll hit our stride and feel good about where we’re going to go and we’re doing some of the right things. We got to put it together now to start winning series again and get it moving in the right way.”

Something strange has been going on in San Diego lately… the Padres can’t seem to lose.

After being behind by six runs as late as the sixth inning (and getting no-hit for most of Emerson Hancock’s start), the Friars rallied with a five-run ninth inning. Down three runs with two outs, the Friars hit back-to-back singles to bring up Jackson Merrill with two runners on. Merrill lined a sinker down the left field line for a walk-off two-run double.

That win came from a gritty style of play that San Diego has embraced as of late. One that proves they’re a team that’s not out of the game until all 27 outs are accounted for. Tonight they’ll see if they can keep the good times rolling with an MLB-leading eighth straight win, and two consecutive series sweeps.

Taking the mound

Luis Castillo (SEA) v. Walker Buehler (SD)

Both Castillo and Buehler have struggled lately.

That’s atypical for Castillo, who has turned in an ERA under 4.00 for seven consecutive seasons. His first start looked normal, pitching six scoreless innings of three-hit ball. But since then he’s allowed 10 runs (all earned), and hasn’t made it through more than four innings in either of his last two starts.

If he wants to reverse that, he’ll have to limit a Padres lineup that has been incredibly potent. It won’t be an easy task for Castillo to do.

But Seattle has hope against Buehler. He’s on the opposite trend as Castillo, having bad starts to begin the season and slowly improving. He capped off that improvement with six fantastic innings of three-hit ball against the Colorado Rockies last Friday.

The only problem? This is a fantastic Mariners offense, highlighted by stars like Cal Raleigh and Julio Rodríguez. If Buehler can’t keep the ball in the yard, the Friars may have a tough time taking control of the game— no matter how easy of a solve Castillo may seem.

Batter up!

Fernando Tatis Jr. was out of the lineup yesterday apart from a pinch-hit opportunity in that magical ninth inning comeback. He’ll presumably be back today batting second in the order.

Ty France has been getting a lot of looks lately, but he’ll probably sit to make way for Miguel Andujar, who hasn’t played in a few games.

It also wouldn’t be surprising to see Ramón Laureano out for a rest day. Bryce Johnson could take his place in left for the day. That would leave the lineup looking something like this:

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
2. Jackson Merrill, CF
3. Xander Bogaerts, SS
4. Manny Machado, 3B
5. Nick Castellanos, 1B
6. Miguel Andujar, DH
7. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
8. Luis Campusano, C
9. Bryce Johnson, LF

Freddy Fermin started yesterday’s game behind the dish but was lifted for Campusano after being struck in the mask by a foul ball. The Friars are hopeful he’s avoided a concussion, but he’ll probably sit out just in case.

It’s also possible that, if Laureano sits, Cronenworth could move back to the leadoff spot like he did earlier this year. Anything can happen with Craig Stammen writing that lineup card.

Relief corps

Randy Vásquez finally looked mortal on the mound for the first time this season. It was going to happen eventually, but he still was pitching quite well. His problem was walks, giving up four free passes to Seattle.

If not for that he could have worked deeper than four innings. Thankfully, with the Padres down four-plus runs for most of the night, all their high-leverage relievers were kept in reserve.

Stammen went with Ron Marinaccio, Wandy Peralta and Alek Jacob to cover the final five frames. They did so splendidly (apart from a two-run homer allowed by Marinaccio). But that gives the Friars plenty to work with tonight against Seattle.

It leaves the Padres with Jason Adam, Kyle Hart, Adrian Morejon, David Morgan, Bradgley Rodriguez and closer Mason Miller. If Buehler falters early, Hart will likely be the first one out of the ‘pen. He has the ability to cover multiple innings if it’s needed.

With Miller not being used last night, don’t be too surprised to hear Korn blaring in Petco Park if the Friars have a lead in the ninth. His historic scoreless streak is now at 29 2/3 innings and counting.

One of the early trends of the 2026 MLB season has been a flurry of activity by teams locking up young talent via extensions. It’s a trend that dates back to early last season when the Red Sox signed Garrett Crochet and Kristian Campbell in the early going before the Padres locked up 2024’s Rookie of the Year runner up, Jackson Merrill through 2034. That trend has only accelerated in 2026 with a flurry of contract extensions for rookie players and some guys who have yet to make their big league debut according to MLB.com:

In 2025, three players — the Orioles’ Samuel Basallo and Red Sox teammates Roman Anthony and Kristian Campbell — inked long-term contract extensions soon after making their MLB debuts. And now in 2026, four more players have signed early extensions, two of them before even debuting in the big leagues:

• Colt Emerson, SS, Mariners: eight years, $95 million (zero days of service time)
• Cooper Pratt, SS, Brewers: eight years, $50.75 million (zero days of service time)
• Konnor Griffin, SS, Pirates: nine years, $140 million (five days of service time)
• Kevin McGonigle, SS, Tigers: eight years, $150 million (20 days of service time)

The Cubs have joined the frenzy of extensions this season, signing long-term deals with Pete Crow-Armstrong and Nico Hoerner. They should really go all in and join the youth movement, extending rookie hitting prodigy Moisés Ballesteros.

There’s been a lot of speculation as to the causes of early extension-palooza, but it seems pretty clear this is a knock on effect of next year’s looming Collective Bargaining Agreement negotiations. As Ken Rosenthal wrote earlier this month for The Athletic (emphasis mine):

Teams only award extensions to players they project will outperform the contracts, producing surplus value. Owners crave cost certainty, especially near the end of a collective-bargaining agreement. And the expiration of the current CBA on Dec. 1 provides even more incentive for MLB franchises to lock up young talent.

Among many possibilities, the owners might try to tempt the players into accepting a salary cap by offering free agency earlier than the current six-year mark. The Seattle Mariners, in the eight-year, $95 million deal they awarded infielder Colt Emerson on Tuesday, bought out a minimum of two free-agent years, and as many as three if they exercise a club option. The additional control will be even more valuable if players in the next CBA can hit the open market sooner.

Even if the CBA remains unchanged, the Mariners will come out ahead if Emerson’s extension proves a bargain, as these deals often do. For every Scott Kingery or Evan White who underperforms his contract — both those players signed six-year, $24 million extensions with three club options in the late 2010s — there are numerous others whose below-market deals save their teams countless millions.

Rosenthal goes on to conclude that MLB will see more prospects extended in the coming months, which brings us to Ballesteros.

The only question really remaining about the 22-year-old Venezuelan hitter is will he find a position someday? The bat looks real and it’s spectacular. Yes, it’s early. Yes, he’s young. And, take a look at his 15-game rolling wOBA through his young career:

I can hear the objections now: baseball is hard, he’s only 22 years old, where will he play long-term? I definitely am sympathetic to all of that. And while I’ll concede that 108 MLB plate appearances is a minuscule sample size, this looks like a special bat.

Ballesteros is slashing .316/.389/.495 with 10 home runs through his first 35 games in the league. Oh, and, those numbers are being drawn down by a slow start to his career in 2025 and that blip of a downturn at the start of the 2026 season.

To be clear, there have been a lot of hot starts to MLB careers that turned out to be flashes in the proverbial pan. Who could forget the damage Aristides Aquino did to Cubs pitching once upon a nightmare? Or the hot start Jorge Soler got off to in 2014? Ballesteros is a category difference and the Cubs should extend him for three reasons:

First, the 22-year-old has quickly mastered every level of professional ball he’s played at thus far. He’s also done so while being relatively young age for his age level. Take a look at this table I put together last year comparing Ballesteros age-to-level with Royals catcher Salvador Perez:

Perez came up before the minor leagues were reorganized so the levels don’t neatly match, but for our purposes today this provides the neatest comparison possible. If anything, Ballesteros has come up through a more difficult minor league system structurally than Perez, which makes it particularly striking that he’s a better player offensively by basically every metric. As I wrote at the time:

There’s a lot to love in those numbers, especially when you consider that Salvador Perez has has put together a 14-season career as a bat-first catcher and franchise player for the Kansas City Royals. Perez has hit .266/.302/.455 with 275 home runs over that time and established himself as one of the best hitting catchers in MLB. There are some key differences, however.

First, Ballesteros has been better at getting on base than Salvy during his minor league career to date. A lot better. It shows in both the OBP comparison and the wOBA comparison. As a reminder, wOBA is a fancy on-base percentage that gives hitters more credit for extra base hits than singles or walks.

Second, I expected Perez to have demonstrated more power during his minor league career. I was wrong. Perez had 20 home runs between his age-17 season and his callup at 21. Ballesteros has 50. Yes, you read that right, Ballesteros has more than twice the number of home runs Salvador Perez had at this point in his career. Some of that is surely the number of plate appearances, Ballesteros has more in the minors than Perez does. However, he doesn’t have double the number of plate appearances. Perez had 1,344 plate appearances prior to his call up. Ballesteros has 1,578 prior to his call up. It remains to be seen if Ballesteros’ power will translate to MLB, but it’s a favorable minor league comparison nonetheless.

The point is, this isn’t a hot start in the majors, this is a track record of elite hitting at every level that is currently being matched at the highest level of baseball that exists.

Second, it’s true that Ballesteros doesn’t have a good defensive fit right now, but the wRC+ numbers he’s posted throughout his career would make sense to lock up even if he winds up a designated hitter throughout his career. So far in his young career Ballesteros has a 147 wRC+ along with a .383 wOBA. Obviously the exercise I’m about to embark in is way too early speculation, however, allow me to throw out the names of some guys who were primarily DH’s throughout their career with similar wRC+ and wOBA numbers: Edgar Martinez (147, .405), David Ortiz (140, .392), Giancarlo Stanton (136, .369). Admittedly, those are probably 90th percentile outcomes and Ballesteros hasn’t demonstrated anywhere near the power ceiling any of those hitters had over their careers, but the ceiling is enticing all the same.

That said, what if he’s “only” Kyle Schwarber (127, .360) or J.D. Martinez (130, .365)? Both strike me as the type of hitter who is elite enough that their bat will remain in the lineup as a primary designated hitter. Both also strike me as the type of hitter a team should try to sign before the cost of the contract skyrockets.

Finally, while it’s so early to dream on what could be with Ballesteros, he’s already demonstrated a pretty remarkable ability to adapt to the league. Brett Taylor of Bleacher Nation wrote this on April 6:

As I watched Moises Ballesteros swing through a fastball way above the strike zone in the 9th inning of the game two loss yesterday, I thought to myself: Has he been doing that more than he did last year? Is this one of the league’s offseason adjustments?

It was never a question of whether the league would find new and different ways to attack Ballesteros this year. It was just a question of how quickly Ballesteros could figure them out and adjust. We knew this coming into the season, given that clubs had an entire offseason to run the data, and given that Ballesteros was now wearing the mantel of expected-run-producer in the Cubs’ lineup, rather than simply being a late-season call-up/fill-in guy. This league is tough on young hitters.

There were valid reasons for concern as of April 6. However, take a look at Ballesteros’ stats through April 5 compared with April 6 through yesterday:

Those aren’t sustainable numbers and the real Ballesteros lives somewhere between these two poles, but that is a demonstrable adjustment to the league adjusting to him. It’s intriguing to say the least and impressive given his track record in the minors.

There are no guarantees in baseball. Perhaps Ballesteros is a J.D. Martinez DH in the making, perhaps he’s a flash in the pan like Aristedes Aquino. But the ceiling of a David Ortiz, the track record in the minors and the prowess he’s shown in his brief MLB career lead me to believe this is a player the Cubs should invest in now. His lack of a current home defensively should make it cheaper to buy out his early years than any of the contracts cited by MLB.com above. That’s a potential steal for the Cubs and a deal Jed Hoyer and Carter Hawkins should consider making now, before Ballesteros has grown into his power and while the CBA constraints give Ballesteros the incentives to say yes.

It felt like neither team wanted to win this afternoon showdown, but eventually the Nats defeated the Pirates 8-7 in extra innings. They secured a series split and head home only one game below .500. This was far from a pretty affair, and there is plenty to nitpick, but a win is a win.

For the first four innings just flew by with Braxton Ashcraft and Foster Griffin matching zeroes. However, things got whacky in the 5th inning and stayed that way for the rest of the game. 

The Nats loaded the bases with a walk, a hit batsman and a double. Then with one out the Pirates made one of the weirdest plays I have ever seen which allowed the Nats to score three runs. I have a hard time even describing the play, so just watch the video down below if you have not seen the play.

After Luis Garcia Jr. ended up at second following the chaos, the Pirates made another mistake on an errant pickoff throw allowing another run to score. However, the Nats pitching staff would not be able to make this lead stick. I thought Foster Griffin had a mostly excellent start, but had a rough inning, allowing four runs, with three of them coming on a Marcell Ozuna homer.

Griffin was sharp today, and actually had more swing and miss stuff than usual today. He was leaning more on his sinker and less on his four-seamer in this start. That is a tweak I like and think will help him out going forward.

The Nats responded in the 6th with one of their only normal runs of the game. Jorbit Vivas got on with two outs and then pinch hitter Joey Wiemer drove him in with a double. The Nats have been pinch hitting their catchers a lot midway through games and today it paid off. 

Most Nats fans knew this new found 5-4 lead would not hold up and they were right. Paxton Schultz and PJ Poulin combined to allow two runs in the bottom of the 6th, with much of the damage coming thanks to a triple by teenaged phenom Konnor Griffin.

However, as we are learning, the 2026 Nats do not have any quit in them. After knocks from James Wood and Daylen Lile, CJ Abrams was intentionally walked. With Jacob Young coming to the plate, that move was a no-brainer, but the Pirates plunked Young and the game was tied.

The Nats did not hit well with runners in scoring position today, but somehow runs still came across. This was mostly due to poor Pirates defense and erratic pitching. The Nats only went 1/14 with runners in scoring position today and hit no homers. They still found a way to score 8 runs though.

With a 7-6 lead, it seemed like the Nationals bullpen was locking in. Gus Varland and Cionel Perez both had scoreless outings and looked good. Perez has looked more like the guy we saw in Spring Training in his last couple outings. His veteran presence and ability to generate ground balls will be important for the Nats bullpen.

However, they were not out of the woods yet. Once the Nats did not score despite having the bases loaded with nobody out, you could sense this game was at least going to be tied. The erratic Clayton Beeter walked and hit the first two batters he faced. 

However, he still managed to get one strike away from closing the door. Brandon Lowe had other plans though. He snuck a ground ball right in between CJ Abrams and Nasim Nunez. Luckily, it did not have enough on it to get into the outfield. That led to only one run scoring. Beeter got the next batter to fly out and we were on to extras.

In the first two extra inning games of the season, the Nats did not look good. That trend looked to be continuing when the Nats made two quick outs. However, Don Kelly played with fire by pitching to James Wood and he got burned. Wood drilled a breaking ball through the hole and ghost runner Jorbit Vivas came around to score.

It did not feel like that would be enough, but it was. That was due to a heroic effort by Orlando Ribalta. After allowing an infield hit to start the inning, the big righty locked in. He got a strikeout of Bryan Reynolds and then he induced a game-ending double play to Jake Mangum.

The big righty got his first career save and the Nats ended their road trip going 5-2. After the game, the Nats put out a bunch of neat stats. I am sure he would have preferred the save, but Clayton Beeter also got his first win.

As they head back to DC, the boys are riding high. They have a chance to get back to .500 with a win tomorrow. This was such a fun and gutsy road trip. While this team has some major flaws, most notably the pitching staff, they are still very exciting to watch. It was not pretty, but the Nats pulled one out, and that was a huge win for the boys.

The Yankees fell to the Los Angeles Angels by a score of 11-4 on Thursday afternoon in the Bronx.

Here are the key takeaways...

-- Max Fried allowed just one hit through his first five innings, but that doesn’t tell the full story. Fried looked uncomfortable on the mound for most of the afternoon, and he was pulled with a pair of runners on in the sixth inning after allowing the Angels to tie the game.

Fernando Cruz came on in relief, but Vaughn Grissom greeted him with an RBI single off Amed Rosario’s glove at third base, giving LA a 4-3 lead. Later in the inning, a Josh Lowe broken-bat looper into center field made it a 6-3 game, closing Fried’s line.

Fried went 5.1 innings, allowing five earned runs on just three hits with three strikeouts and three walks. 

-- Aaron Judge capped off what was a monster power series by going yard once again, this time hitting a solo shot in the first inning off Angels lefty Brent Suter. 

Judge’s fourth home run of the series tied him with St. Louis' Jordan Walker for the major league lead with eight big flies on the season.

-- The Yankees showed off some more firepower in the third inning, with Giancarlo Stanton blasting a two-run home run to center field.

Stanton’s second homer of the season gave the Yankees a two-run lead.

This marked the 61st time that Judge and Stanton have homered in the same game. The Yankees had been 53-7 in the first 60.

--Old friend Oswald Peraza was a thorn in the Yankees' side once again. After launching a two-run home run off of Fried in the top of the first inning (the lone hit allowed by Fried over his first five innings), Peraza chased Fried in the sixth with an RBI double to right field, tying the game at 3-3. 

Peraza, a former top Yankees prospect, had five hits in the series, driving in four runs with a pair of homers.

-- Just as the Angels broke things open a bit at 6-3, Ben Rice answered back with a solo shot to right-center. Not only was it Rice's fifth homer of the season, but it was also a good sign that it came off a lefty, adding more evidence to the claim that Rice should play every day. 

However, the Yankees made a critical mental mistake in the same inning, as Jose Caballero was picked off second base with the potential tying run at the plate. Caballero had just singled and stolen second, but getting picked off ended the threat.

-- What a series from Mike Trout. In the top of the seventh, with the Angels up a pair, Trout hit an absolute moonshot into the bleachers in left off of Angel Chivilli, becoming the first visiting player to homer on four straight days at the Yankees (h/t Sarah Langs). 

Later, in the eighth inning, the Yankees elected to intentionally walk Trout with first base open, and Jo Adell made them pay with a grand slam off Ryan Yarbrough that put the Angels up 11-4, sending most of the fans towards the exits.

-- For good measure, Aaron Boone was ejected between innings heading into the ninth. Boone appeared to have an issue with a Yarbrough balk call (which in turn led to the Trout walk and Adell grand slam), which was called because Rice was deemed to have not made a move to cover the bag on a throw over to first. This was Boone's first ejection of the season.

-- Judge and Trout, two of the game's biggest stars, combined for nine home runs and 14 RBI in the four-game series.

Game MVP

Peraza and Trout, who combined to hit two home runs, drive in four runs, and reach base seven times.

Highlights

ALL RISE! pic.twitter.com/URXrqDSG6u

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 16, 2026

BIG G 💪 pic.twitter.com/hZ5eXzsgEh

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 16, 2026

Ben Rice gets one back! pic.twitter.com/jrnSfkt5hv

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 16, 2026

Upcoming schedule

The Yankees stay home for a three-game series against the Kansas City Royals, starting on Friday night at 7:05 p.m.

Cam Schlittler will face Michael Wacha.

A belated call for time, a pair of hit-by-pitches and a game-ending strikeout stretched across two days to produce a tepid postgame incident between the San Francisco Giants and Cincinnati Reds.

Giants closer Erik Miller struck out Reds rookie Sal Stewart to finish the team's 3-0 victory Thursday, April 16 at Great American Ball Park. The 6-5 lefty exulted and walked toward his own dugout. Stewart, though, apparently took issue with Miller's verbosity, turned and headed toward Miller.

Giants catcher Patrick Bailey interceded and Miller used the international symbol for "go back to your dugout" as the benches ambled out and bullpens jogged in out of curiosity.

"I just said a sentence that most hitters don't like to hear, so I can understand why he was upset," Miller said, per the Bay Area News Group. "It was just more like I was really fired up. It wasn't anything personal."

The kerfuffle's roots sprang from a night earlier, when Giants reliever JT Brubaker got perturbed by a late timeout call from Reds slugger Spencer Steer as Brubaker prepared to deliver a pitch in the bottom of the seventh.

Benches clear at conclusion of Giants-Reds game in Cincinnati. pic.twitter.com/zB5dBKgGlr

— MLB (@MLB) April 16, 2026

Brubaker responded, in a sense, by waiting until the final second on the pitch clock to deliver his next pitch. That prompted Steer, captured by video cameras, to shout, "Throw the (expletive) ball." The Reds went on to win 8-3.

GIANTS MANAGER ON FIGHT: It brings needed 'competitive edge'

A day later, Giants starter Landen Roupp, who took a no-hitter into the sixth, drilled Steer in the ribs in Steer's first at-bat of the game in the second inning. It was the only four-seam fastball Roupp threw all day. He later told reporters the pitch slipped.

In the eighth, Reds reliever Connor Phillips responded by drilling the Giants' Willy Adames in the leg with a pitch. Adames looked out at the pitcher; benches stirred, but weren't shaken. Phillips was ejected, to the mild objections of Reds manager Terry Francona.

And then, the game-ending drama, which resulted in Miller confined to the visiting dugout for postgame handshakes. Sadly, the relievers had to retreat to their bullpens, as they did not secure their belongings before jogging in for the postgame extracurriculars.

The Milwaukee Brewers are headed to Florida, as they’ll make a visit to the Miami Marlins this weekend. Milwaukee, sitting at 10-8 on the season, are coming off a series win over the Blue Jays after losing six straight, as a pair of 2-1 wins in the last two days gave the squad a bit of momentum heading into the weekend. The Marlins had a similarly hot start to Milwaukee followed by some struggles. After starting 8-5 this year, they’ve lost five of their last six against the Tigers and Braves, falling below .500 for the first time this season.

Kyle Harrison is the latest Brewer dealing with an injury, as his start scheduled for Friday was pushed back (more on that below). Offensively, the Brewers are without three of their leaders in Christian Yelich (groin strain), Jackson Chourio (fractured hand), and Andrew Vaughn (fractured hamate bone). On the pitching side, Craig Yoho is the closest to returning as he’s rehabbing from a calf strain. Quinn Priester is hoping to return in May for neurogenic thoracic outlet syndrome, while Rob Zastryzny suffered a setback and is now hoping to return in May. Reliever Jared Koenig is also out with a UCL sprain in his throwing arm, and outfielder Akil Baddoo is out until June with a quad strain.

The Marlins have mostly stayed healthy to this point, especially on the pitching front. While Adam Mazur and Ronny Henriquez are both out for the season, that’s it in terms of arm injuries. Offensively, outfielders Esteury Ruiz, Kyle Stowers, and Griffin Conine are all shelved, with Stowers the closest to returning (likely in the next week or so). Infielder Maximo Acosta could also be back soon, while Christopher Morel is targeting a late April/early May return from an oblique strain.

Jake Bauers and Gary Sánchez sit tied atop Milwaukee’s leaderboard with five homers each thus far, followed by Brice Turang, who has been the Brewers’ best hitter overall with a .300/.425/.567 line. William Contreras has also gotten off to a solid start, hitting .317/.411/.476 with a pair of homers, four doubles, and 11 RBIs through 16 games. Brandon Lockridge, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, David Hamilton, Greg Jones, Luis Matos, Joey Ortiz, Blake Perkins, and Luis Rengifo round out Milwaukee’s offense. As a team, the Brewers are hitting .238/.339/.380 (.719 OPS ranks 12th) with 18 homers (16th), 91 runs scored (ninth), and 27 steals (first).

Catcher Liam Hicks leads Miami with four homers this year, as he’s hitting .309/.355/.545 through 18 games. Owen Caissie, Otto Lopez, and Connor Norby have each added a pair of homers, while Xavier Edwards and Agustín Ramírez have a homer each. Edwards and Lopez are both out to hot starts, hitting .338/.405/.479 and .328/.387/.507, respectively. Deyvison De Los Santos, Leo Jiménez, Graham Pauley, Javier Sanoja, Heriberto Hernández, Jakob Marsee, and Austin Slater round out the squad for Miami. As a team, the Marlins are hitting .259/.332/.398 (.730 OPS ranks eighth) with 14 homers (tied for 25th), 88 runs scored (10th), and 25 steals (tied for second).

The Brewer bullpen is led by workhorse Aaron Ashby, who has allowed five runs and struck out 22 over 14 innings this season, with a perfect 5-0 record. Grant Anderson and Angel Zerpa each have nine appearances, with a blow-up appearance for both pushing their ERAs superficially high (Anderson at 3.72 over 9 2/3 innings, Zerpa at 5.40 over 10 innings). DL Hall still hasn’t allowed a run over 8 2/3 innings, while Abner Uribe may be Milwaukee’s new closer, with a 4.91 ERA over 7 1/3 innings. Trevor Megill finally recorded a clean inning in Thursday’s series finale, but his ERA still sits at 12.00 for the year (eight runs over six innings). Jake Woodford and Easton McGee round out the Brewer bullpen. As a staff, the Brewers have a 3.99 team ERA (15th), including a 3.99 starter ERA (15th) and a 4.00 bullpen ERA (16th). They’ve struck out 163 batters (13th) over 160 innings.

Miami’s top three bullpen arms heading into the season — closer Pete Fairbanks, Calvin Faucher, and Anthony Bender — have all gotten off to rough starts. Fairbanks has a 10.80 ERA and a blown save in five appearances, Faucher has a 4.50 ERA over seven appearances, and Bender has a 6.43 ERA and two blown saves in eight appearances. The good news, though, is the rest of the bullpen has been solid. John King and Tyler Phillips lead the way, as King has a 1.42 ERA over 6 1/3 innings and Phillips has a 0.84 ERA over 10 2/3 innings. Andrew Nardi (6.00 ERA over six innings), Michael Petersen (3.38 ERA over eight innings), and UW-Whitewater alumnus Lake Bachar (3.00 ERA over nine innings) round out Miami’s bullpen. As a staff, the Marlins have a 4.15 team ERA (18th), including a 4.66 starter ERA (25th) and a 3.30 bullpen ERA (eighth). They’ve struck out 165 batters (12th) over 165 innings.

Probable Pitchers

Friday, April 17 @ 6:10 p.m.: TBD vs. RHP Janson Junk (0-2, 4.32 ERA, 4.00 FIP)

This would be Brewer left-hander Kyle Harrison’s turn through the rotation, but Adam McCalvy reported his next start would be pushed back due to some lingering wrist soreness from a fall while covering first base in his last outing. To fill the gap, it seems possible that right-hander Coleman Crow will make his MLB debut, after McCalvy reported Crow was removed as the probable starter for Triple-A Nashville on Thursday evening. Crow, 25, was a 28th-round pick by the Angels in 2019, back when there were more than 20 rounds of the draft. He came to Milwaukee as the return for Adrian Houser and Tyrone Taylor in the 2023-24 offseason, and he’s now ranked as the Brewers’ No. 27 prospect. Added to the 40-man roster to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft this past offseason, Crow has made three appearances (two starts) with Nashville this year, with a 4.02 ERA and 18 strikeouts across 15 2/3 innings.

Junk, 30, is in his sixth MLB season and second with the Marlins. A former Brewer (seven appearances between 2023 and 2024), Junk has become a regular in Miami’s rotation over the last season-plus. He’s made three starts this year, with a 4.32 ERA, 4.00 FIP, and 12 strikeouts over 16 2/3 innings. His last outing spanned five innings against the Tigers, when he allowed five runs (four earned) on five hits and two walks, striking out four. His only appearance against the Brewers came last July, when he went five innings, allowing three runs and striking out five in a 7-4 victory for Miami.

Saturday, April 18 @ 3:10 p.m.: RHP Brandon Woodruff (1-0, 4.32 ERA, 4.30 FIP) vs. RHP Sandy Alcantara (2-1, 2.67 ERA, 3.68 FIP)

Woodruff is three starts into his ninth MLB season, with a 4.32 ERA, 4.30 FIP, and 16 strikeouts across 16 2/3 innings to this point. He bounced back from a rough outing against the Red Sox (5 2/3 IP, 5 ER, 4 K) to go six innings against the Nationals over the weekend, allowing two runs (one earned) with three hits and a walk, striking out six. Woodruff has been great against Miami in his career, with a 2.61 ERA and 38 strikeouts over 38 innings across six starts. He went 12 innings with 14 strikeouts and three runs allowed (2.25 ERA) in two starts against them last season.

Alcantara, 30, is also in his ninth MLB season. The 2022 NL Cy Young winner had a pair of rough seasons wrapped around a Tommy John surgery that kept him out for all of 2024, but he’s bounced back nicely thus far in 2026. Through four starts, Alcantara has a 2.67 ERA, 3.68 FIP, and 22 strikeouts over 30 1/3 innings. He got roughed up in his last appearance, allowing seven runs on 10 hits and two walks, striking out four over six innings. In seven career appearances (five starts) against Milwaukee, Alcantara has a 3.08 ERA and 30 strikeouts over 38 innings. He went six innings with five runs allowed and four strikeouts against the Crew on the Fourth of July last year.

Sunday, April 19 @ 12:40 p.m.: RHP Jacob Misiorowski (1-1, 3.32 ERA, 4.03 FIP) vs. RHP Eury Pérez (1-1, 5.40 ERA, 5.71 FIP)

Misiorowski has had his fair share of good and bad through four starts this season. He has a 3.32 ERA and 4.03 FIP across his 21 2/3 innings, leading the NL with 33 strikeouts but also walking nine and hitting two batters. Even so, his WHIP sits at 1.015, and his 13.7 K/9 rate leads the majors. His last start came Monday against the Blue Jays, when he went 5 1/3 innings, allowing two runs (both solo homers) on five hits with five strikeouts, though he didn’t walk any batters on 76 pitches, a good sign for the 24-year-old right-hander. This marks his first career appearance against Miami.

Pérez, who just turned 23 this week, is already in his third MLB season (not including a missed 2024 due to injury). After a solid rookie campaign in 2023, he hasn’t had as much success in 2025 and 2026. Through four starts this year, he has a 5.40 ERA, 5.71 FIP, and 20 strikeouts over 20 innings. His last appearance against the Braves went four innings, when he allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits and a pair of walks, striking out two. He’s made two starts against Milwaukee in his career, with a 3.72 ERA and 13 strikeouts across 9 2/3 innings.

How to Watch & Listen

Friday, April 17: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Saturday, April 18: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Sunday, April 19: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Prediction

This is a series featuring a pair of teams who got out to hot starts but have cooled off drastically over the last couple of weeks. I’ll take the Brewers to prevail here and take two of three.

The 2025-26 season was not one to remember for the New York Rangers, but there’s a small silver lining. 

There’s no hiding the fact that the Blueshirts underperformed this season, and to make matters worse, the team’s future is still filled with uncertainty and concern. 

However, to close out the year, a glimmer of hope shone upon the Rangers nation in the form of young talent. 

Through the latter half of the season, the Rangers called up Jaroslav Chmelař, Adam Sýkora, and Dylan Garand, while signing Drew Fortescue to his entry-level contract and claiming Tye Kartye off waivers. 

Noah Laba, who has been with the Rangers for the entire season, and Gabe Perreault, who has been with the team since December, elevated their play to close out the season, with both forwards taking on increased roles. 

The emergence of some of these younger players helped contribute to the Rangers’ sudden late-season success. 

Over a long home stand starting late in March and extending into April, the Rangers won five of seven games, largely due to the immediate impact of the team’s youth. 

Mike Sullivan believes that he’s gotten a large enough sample size from these young players to where he can properly evaluate them during the offseason and have a better understanding of their individual games going into training camp in September.

“Some of these guys got to, got a chunk of games down the stretch and had an opportunity to get their feet wet, so to speak,” Sullivan said. “After you get your first couple of games under your belt, and you're here for more than a week or so, the reality of the league starts to settle in. Some guys have a hard time sustaining it, and other guys don't. 

“I thought for the most part, the guys that we called up late in the season here, they did a pretty good job of sustaining a high level of play, and so that's certainly encouraging for us moving forward.”

Here are five things to watch and predictions as the Mets and Cubs play a three-game series in Chicago starting on Friday afternoon...

5 things to watch

Offensively bad

During their eight-game losing streak, the Mets have scored 12 runs, which is almost impossible to believe.

In those eight contests, all without Juan Soto, New York has been shut out three times while being held to one or two runs on four occasions.

Against the Dodgers earlier this week, it was starting pitchers Justin Wrobleski (who tossed a career-high eight innings), Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Shohei Ohtani who gave New York fits.   

And it's not like New York has been hitting into much hard luck.

Their hitters have often been in between while missing hittable fastballs, expanding the zone, failing to work the count, and hitting the ball on the ground at an alarming rate.

"We’re not dictating at-bats," Carlos Mendoza said after Wednesday's loss. "Getting beat by fastballs even though there was some good fastballs by Ohtani today -- we swung through a lot of them today. We have to be able to put pressure and be in attack mode. Right now, understanding what guys are going through is contagious. At the same time, nobody is feeling sorry for us. We got to be able to dictate at-bats."

Will Kodai Senga rebound?

Senga looked fantastic in his first two starts of the season, allowing just four runs on nine hits in 11.2 innings while striking out 17. 

His last start was different, as the right-hander was touched up by the A's to the tune of seven runs on eight hits (including two home runs) in 2.1 innings.

There was some poor fielding behind Senga against the A's, but his stuff wasn't nearly as good as it was in his first two starts.

Senga generated just six swings and misses on 72 pitches against the A's after getting 12 on 88 pitches against the Giants on April 5 and 17 on 92 pitches against the Cardinals on March 31. 

Meanwhile, Senga's average four-seam fastball velocity has been ticking down. It was 97.4 mph against the Cards, 96.0 against the Giants, and 95.6 against the A's.

Carson Benge is looking more comfortable

After going through an 0-for-22 funk that led some to muse about a potential demotion that David Stearns quickly shot down, Benge has started to look more like the hitter he was in spring training.

Benge has hit safely in five of his last six games, and reached base safely in seven of his last eight.

Against the Dodgers on Wednesday, Benge ripped a double and had a would-be single (on a liner to left field) that was turned into a fielder's choice when Francisco Alvarez got tied up between first base and second base and was forced out.

Benge finding a groove would be a big development for a Mets team that is dealing with huge slumps by Brett Baty and Mark Vientos, and underperformance from most of their other regulars. 

Chicago's starting pitching depth is being tested

The Cubs are still without Justin Steele, who underwent UCL surgery early last season.

In 2026, they have lost Cade Horton for the year due to elbow surgery and been without Matthew Boyd, who is working his way back from a biceps issue.

But Chicago has patched things together, due in part to the offseason trade that brought them Edward Cabrera.

Against the Mets, the Cubs will send out Cabrera on Friday, Jameson Taillon on Saturday, and Javier Assad on Sunday.

Cabrera was hit a bit against the Pirates in his last start, but has been tremendous overall, with a 1.62 ERA and 1.14 WHIP in  16.2 innings over his first three starts.

Pete Crow-Armstrong is going through it

It has been a struggle offensively for PCA since he blew the doors off to start 2025, in a year where he wound up smashing 31 homers. 

Over the final two months of last season, Crow-Armstrong slashed just .188/.237/.295 with four home runs in 200 plate appearances.

So far this season, he is hitting .236/.276/.306 with one home run in 72 at-bats.

Crow-Armstrong has been a bit better recently, though, with five hits in his last 14 at-bats.

Defensively, he remains one of the best center fielders in baseball, rating in the 99th percentile in OAA.

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Bo Bichette

Bichette is hitting .292 with a .346 OBP since April 3.

Which Mets pitcher will have the best start?

Freddy Peralta

Since allowing four runs on Opening Day, Peralta has a 2.81 ERA in 16.0 innings over his last three starts, allowing 10 hits while striking out 18.

Which Cubs player will be a thorn in the Mets' side?

Alex Bregman

Bregman carries a six-game hitting streak into the series. 

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For most of a season that, in the grand scheme of things is still in its infancy, most of the angst directed at the Phillies has been towards an inconsistent and maddening offense.

That, of course, makes sense. After all, it has been the lineup that has torpedoed four attempts by this talented team to win a World Series. But in the three-game series the Phils just wrapped up against the Cubs, the pitching staff gave up 28 runs, capped off by Jesus Luzardo’s astonishing implosion Wednesday night:

• 5.1 IP, 12 H, 9 R, 8 ER, 1 BB, 4 K

Through 18 games, this vaunted pitching staff’s ERA stands at 4.92, 5th-worst in Major League Baseball. Only the Cardinals (4.94), White Sox (5.02), Nationals (5.89) and Astros (6.17), have been worse. They have allowed a league-high .272 batting average against them. Phillies’ pitchers are every bit as responsible for their -25 run differential that is 3rd-worst in the league.

• White Sox (-38)
• Giants (-27)
• Phillies (-25)
• Blue Jays (-24)

It is still very early in the season. Only 18 games have been played. And yes, it does provide some comfort that the defending AL pennant winners (Toronto) are off to the same rough start as the Phils.

If you’re a bit bewildered by the Phillies’ pitchers through the first three weeks of the season, you have every right to be. We’ve seen multiple instances where they like world beaters for long stretches and then are suddenly done in by the big inning or a single lackluster start. As a result, the overall numbers of the individual pitchers don’t look great.

Cristopher Sanchez’ ERA remains a sparkling 2.01 through his first four starts, even though he hasn’t featured his best stuff as of yet. Andrew Painter’s is 3.77, Aaron Nola’s is 4.03, Luzardo’s jumped to a ghastly 7.94 after Wednesday night’s disaster, and Taijuan Walker’s 7.36 ERA is also unsightly.

When the strength of the team is supposed to be the starting rotation, these types of numbers foment an 8-10 start.

But the underlying metrics for the staff indicate they have been, by far, the unluckiest pitching staff in baseball through the season’s first three weeks.

According to Fangraphs’ Wins Above Replacement, their 3.5 fWAR is 2nd-best in MLB, behind only the Seattle Mariners (3.7). Yes, that’s right, Fangraphs believes the Phillies have the No. 2 pitching staff in baseball thus far. Although their 4.92 ERA is 5th-worst, their Fielding Independent Pitching (FIP) of 3.06 is 2nd-best. There is not a single pitcher of note on the entire staff who is out-pitching his underlying metrics.

• Cristopher Sanchez: 2.01 ERA, 1.90 FIP (0.11 E-F)
• Aaron Nola: 3.56 ERA, 4.03 FIP, (0.47 E-F)
• Taijuan Walker: 7.36 ERA, 6.50 FIP (0.87 E-F)
• Andrew Painter: 3.77 ERA, 1.55 FIP (2.21 E-F)
• Jesus Luzardo: 7.94 ERA, 2.49 FIP (5.05 E-F!!!)

For the uninitiated, FIP uses a formula that factors in only strikeouts, walks and home runs allowed, filtering out batted ball data that is largely out of a pitcher’s control. No team in baseball has a larger gap between their ERA and FIP than the Phillies. In fact, their 1.86 difference is a full run more than the next closest team, the Astros (0.85). It is not a perfect statistic, but it is useful to help make sense of things when results don’t meet the eye test.

The bullpen has the same issues.

• Zach Pop: 3.68 ERA, 3.16 FIP (0.52 E-F)
• Jhoan Duran: 1.35 ERA, 0.76 FIP (0.59 E-F)
• Tim Mayza: 3.00 ERA, 2.27 FIP (0.73 E-F)
• Brad Keller: 4.70 ERA, 3.55 FIP (1.15 E-F)
• Kyle Backhus: 7.71 ERA, 6.37 FIP (1.34 E-F)
• Tanner Banks: 5.40 ERA, 3.46 FIP (1.94 E-F)
• Orion Kerkering: 4.15 ERA, 2.00 FIP (2.15 E-F)
• Jonathan Bowlan: 3.36 ERA, 1.30 FIP (2.56 E-F)
• Jose Alvarado: 10.50 ERA, 2.49 FIP (8.01 E-F!!!)

Phillies pitchers are striking a ton of guys out, the 3rd-highest rate in baseball (26.2%), while at the same time are the 2nd-stingiest staff in terms of walks (6.7%). They also are a top-10 staff in avoiding home runs, with their 0.84 home runs allowed per nine innings (HR/9) tied with the Dodgers’ staff for 8th.

The reason Phils pitchers are giving up so few home runs is because they are inducing more ground balls than any team in baseball (49.9%). They’re also elite at not allowing hard contact. Their hard-hit rate (29.2%), as calculated by Fangraphs, is 3rd-best in the league and their average exit velocity allowed (87.4 mph) is also the best.

To sum up:

• They’re striking out a ton of batters.
• They are walking very few.
• They don’t allow many home runs because they have the highest ground ball rate in the league.
• They are allowing the weakest contact.

This is what you want. You build a staff in order to generate all of these things, which leads to one overriding conclusion.

On the whole, the Phillies have been unlucky.

As a team, the staff has allowed a batting average on balls in play (BABIP) of .359. Folks, that is insanely high and far and away the worst in baseball, a full 32 points higher than the next-closest team (Houston’s .327). BABIP numbers that high never sustain themselves over the course of a full season. Last year, the Phils’ BABIP was 6th-highest, but only sat at .299.

It’s going to come down.

But one issue that may not correct itself to as large a degree is the defense. Over the first three weeks, the staff has been undone by the worst glove work in baseball.

Their -15 Defensive Runs Saved is dead last and their -6 Outs Above Average is tied for 3rd-worst. They’ve committed 14 errors, 4th-most in MLB. Turner was given a rough error that led to the Cubs’ second run on Wednesday night, but over the last two weeks, we’ve seen the Phils’ defense give away too many outs. This is not a strong defensive team by nature, but early on, they’re making life more difficult than usual for their pitchers.

Now, there’s no sugarcoating Luzardo’s performance on Wednesday night. He gave up a ton of hits and allowed a ton of runs, but his average exit velocity allowed was only 86.9 mph, and he generated a 45.5% ground ball rate against the Cubs. Many of the hits were bleeding grounders and bloopers, although to be fair, the Cubs did square some balls up on him in the 3rd and 5th innings. And there are other issues to be concerned about with him.

Luzardo has long had struggles pitching from the stretch (9.22 career ERA with runners on base), and that problem has only been exacerbated in 2026 (24.55 ERA), and there are other issues, too.

The good news is Luzardo struggled in a similar fashion last season when the Phillies believed he was tipping his pitches, and they fixed it. While that doesn’t appear to be the problem now, Caleb Cotham is one of the best pitching coaches in baseball, and these feel like fixable issues.

As for the rest of the staff, the “back-of-the-baseball-card” numbers should revert to the mean as long as the rest of the underlying data doesn’t change much. The staff has actually been pitching really well, but hasn’t had much to show for it through the first 18 games.

Check out the latest Hittin’ Season podcast, where Justin Klugh and I discussed this and recapped the Phils’ series against the Cubs and their rough start to the season. Powered by WHYY.

The Diamondbacks may have got Merrill Kelly back while in Baltimore. But Arizona still currently have a full dozen players on the injured list. They are evenly split between hitters and pitchers, but two-third of them are on the extended 60-day injured list. With an off-day today, I thought it was a good opportunity to go through the list, and see what the status is of each wounded snake.

Corbin Burnes (IL-60)

It was June 1st 2025 that Burnes threw his last pitch for the D-backs, Tommy John surgery following shortly thereafter. His rehab progress has been steady, though there was never an expectation he would be back in less than a year. The last update from the team had Burnes throwing a twenty-pitch bullpen session on the last day of March. It’ll be a process, Burnes gradually mixing in pitches other than fastballs, and also seeking to build his stamina back up. He could be a valuable addition in the second half, though Jack suggests caution. As Jack does. 🙂 Expected return: All-Star break.

Jordan Lawlar (IL-60)

Probably the most unfortunate injury of the year, Lawlar was hit by a pitch from Atlanta’s Osvaldo Bido, in the same game where he hit his first major-league home-run. While initial X-rays were negative, further examination revealed a fractured wrist, meaning he will be out for 6-8 weeks. Jordan had started off 6-for-18, and had acquitted himself well as an outfielder too. Lawlar seemed to have turned the corner after his rough early time in the bigs, so hopefully he’ll be able to sustain the momentum when he returns. Expected return: late May.

Lourdes Gurriel (IL-10)

The initial expectation was that Gurriell would miss 9-10 months after surgery last September to repair his torn ACL. However, he has speed-run the healing process: indeed, he wanted to be part of the Opening Day roster. Wiser heads prevailed there, but he is now on a rehab assignment with the Double-A Amarillo Sod Poodles. We’ll see how long it takes from there. The maximum length of an assignment like that is twenty days, but I’d not be surprised to see Gurriell back sooner. However, he will probably be DHing initially for the D-backs. Expected return: end of April.

Tyler Locklear (IL-10)

After coming over from the Mariners at the deadline, Locklear hit the IL on September 8, following an unfortunate collision at first base with base runner Connor Wong of Boston. At that time, it was just described as elbow inflammation, but things were apparently worse than originally expected. He ended up having surgery on both shoulder and elbow in early October. There hasn’t been any updates – good or bad – since the beginning of spring training, but his total absence from the preseason would indicated he’s still certainly some way off. Expected return: late May.

Justin Martinez (IL-60)

Not long after ace starting pitcher Burnes had Tommy John in June, we got the news that ace closer Martinez would need more or less the same procedure. He started playing catch in January, but does seem to be a little behind Burnes in his rehab progress. Just before Opening Day, he was still throwing on flat ground, rather than off a mound. That it’s Martinez’s second Tommy John, having previously had the procedure in 2021, may be a factor in him taking additional time to come back. Expected return: late August.

Cristian Mena (IL-60)

Mena has been plagued by issues the past couple of year. In 2024, he was shutdown with a forearm strain at the end of July. The following year, he was done after the first week in June, injuring his right teres major – or “shoulder muscle” as we laymen call it – during the rainy debacle in Cincinnati. It was hoped he would be healthy by spring. But, instead, he was shut down in late February, after suffering more discomfort in the same area. Come the end of spring, he was put back on the 60-day IL, and there has been nothing since. Expected return: no date.

Gabriel Moreno (IL-10)

Since coming to Arizona, Moreno has averaged only 97 games per season. It was just 83 last year, due to a fracture in his right index finger. While the current strained left oblique, incurred on a throw down to second base, isn’t a major injury, it continues an unfortunate trend. As we’ve seen with other players, obliques are potentially tricky things. If Moreno rushes back, it could backfire. So I’ve a feeling he is going to be out for a bit more than the minimum ten days. Expected return: end of April.

A.J. Puk (IL-60)

There’s a couple of reasons Puk will be back before his fellow elbow surgery victims. His injury happened earlier in 2025: he threw his last pitch almost exactly one year ago, on April 17. But his procedure was also different: an internal brace, which is more repair than reconstruction. That has a shorter rehab time, although like Martinez, it is also Puk’s second go around. He previously had Tommy John surgery in April 2018. A.J. has been throwing bullpens, and obviously, stamina will be less a concern than for Burnes. Expected return: mid-June.

Andrew Saalfrank (IL-60)

It appears the baseball gods have not finished punishing Saalfrank. While he had a successful return after serving a gambling suspension, his pitch velocity was well down on previous figures. He pushed through shoulder soreness, but the issue did not resolve itself over the winter. Surgery to clean out the shoulder proved necessary, and that took place in February. It turned out to be the first in a series of dominoes, which ended in the 2026 D-backs bullpen being free from lefties. Expected return: 2027, if there is even a season.

Carlos Santana (IL-10)

I’ve a feeling the oldest active position player in the majors won’t be hurried back. It is only the veteran’s second IL spell since 2014: he missed time in 2022 with ankle bursitis. But when Santana went on the injured list with a right adductor strain, he had gone just 2-for-24 through his first eight games. Ildemaro Vargas and Jose Fernandez have done considerably better than that in Santana’s absence. If that continues, there is a non-zero (though small) chance the team could decide simply to cut bait when Carlos is healthy. Expected return: early May.

Pavin Smith (IL-60)

Smith’s elbow had been a source of bother throughout spring training. He was a late scratch on Opening Day in LA, and though he played in the rest of the first series, the issue lingered. A cortisone shot and rest didn’t fix things, and it was announced on Tuesday that he would have surgery to clear out “loose bodies” in his left elbow. This typically has a recovery time of 6-8 weeks, explaining why the team was able to free up a roster spot for Aramis Garcia by moving Pavin to the 60-day IL. Expected return: mid-June.

Blake Walston (IL-60)

Remember him? He made seven appearances for the team back in 2024. But Walston then had Tommy John surgery in March the following year. On that basis, you’d expect him to be nearing the end of his rehab. However, he got dropped back on the 60-day IL at the start of the season, so is clearly going to miss at least another two months. Unlike everyone else on the list, I was unable to source any updates on Walston’s progress, or lack thereof. I’d be expecting reports of bullpens by now. Still, until proven otherwise, I’m going to assume that no news is good news. Expected return: mid-June.

EDITOR’S NOTE: An earlier version of this article ran here at BCB last October. This one has updated giveaway numbers and some information about Cubs gate giveaways from 2026.

I’ve written on this topic previously, but now I’ve got some new information that I wanted to pass along to you.

As you know if you attend Cubs games when there are promotional gate giveaways, the team limits those to the first 10,000 (or “up to” that number, as they generally say) who come to the gates. This has led to many disappointed fans who, for whatever reason, want the giveaway but can’t get to Wrigley Field early enough. In some cases this has produced very long lines to get into the ballpark and some trouble at some gates.

This year, there have already been some criticisms and issues with gate giveaways.

First, the magnet schedule giveaway is generally one of the most popular every year. For most years before 2026, the team gave away 30,000 of these — sometimes each day for the entire opening series. This year? Only 10,000 magnet schedules, and only on Opening Day.

This led to a lot of unhappy fans, as attendance on Opening Day was 39,712. This led to some of these being sold on eBay for as much as $25. This year’s magnet schedule did not have a sponsor — perhaps if the Cubs got a sponsor for that, they could have given away 30,000 of them. I can tell you that a lot of people I know were very disappointed.

There were also issues with two of the early season gate giveaways. One, a “puffer vest” with the Cubs 150th anniversary logo, was actually quite nice — but I heard from quite a few people that the zippers broke easily. I got lucky and got one with a working zipper, but… seems to me the Cubs could have ordered a higher-quality product. This one did have a sponsor (Southwest Airlines) so… how much more could that have cost to get good working zippers?

Last Saturday, a Ben Zobrist bobblehead was given away and the one I got was broken. Fortunately, the Cubs hold back some extras in case this happens and they replaced the one I received. I have seen Cubs staffers toss around the cartons the bobbleheads are shipped in, perhaps breaking some in the process. They really should be more careful with these things.

Overall, though, the biggest issue is having only 10,000 gate giveaway items when the team generally averages over 37,000 fans per game.

This is not the way many other teams do giveaways. I have numbers for you! On Wednesday, I went through the websites of all 29 other teams to see what their policies were for gate giveaways. Many teams, including the Cubs, now have other giveaways that you have to buy a special ticket for, and those are more limited in number. These numbers are only for gate giveaways that are open to all without a special ticket.

Dodgers: 40,000 (except two Shohei Ohtani giveaways that are listed for 54,000 fans)
Padres: 40,000
Angels: 25,000
Brewers: 25,000 (some 10,000)
Giants: 25,000 (some 15,000 or 20,000)
Diamondbacks: 25,000 (some 15,000 or 20,000)
Mariners: 20,000 (some 10,000 or 15,000)
Nationals: 20,000
Orioles: 20,000
Royals: 20,000 (some 10,000 or 15,000)
Pirates: 20,000 (some “all fans”)
Yankees: 18,000
Mets: 18,000 (some 15,000)
Guardians: 15,000
Cardinals: 15,000
Blue Jays: 15,000
Braves: 15,000
Rockies: 15,000
White Sox: 15,000
Twins: 10,000
Rangers: 10,000
Astros: 10,000
Marlins: 10,000
Rays: 10,000
Red Sox: 7,500

Four teams did not post specific numbers.

Phillies: “all fans”
Tigers: “limited quantities”
Athletics: “while supplies last”
Reds: “while supplies last”

The number that sticks out the most to me in the list above is from the Dodgers. The Dodgers, who lead MLB in attendance every year. The Dodgers, who averaged 49,537 per date in 2025, have 40,000 of every giveaway item, which means that pretty much everyone who wants one would get one.

As noted above, Ohtani items basically go to everyone:

It should be noted that for some of the teams that have smaller numbers, those come close to matching their average attendance. For example, the Orioles have 20,000 giveaway items, their average attendance so far this year 21,362. The Royals, at 20,000 items, are above this year’s attendance average to date of 16,893. Clearly, for teams like this, promotional giveaways might actually draw larger crowds and bump up their averages. That’s not the case for the Cubs, who played to 89.5 percent of capacity in 2025 and who have most of their bobblehead giveaways — the most popular ones — on Saturdays when they’re likely close to sold out anyway. This year, for nine home dates, the Cubs have averaged 32,755, with quite a number of home dates played in very cold weather. That number will almost certainly go up.

The Marlins increased their giveaway item number from 8,000 to 10,000 this year, and so far this year they have averaged 11,713 for 10 home dates. Some other teams giving away more items this year: Giants (from 15,000 to 25,000), Mets (from 15,000 to 18,000, perhaps to match their crosstown rival Yankees) and Mariners (from 15,000 to 20,000).

The only teams that draw well and have as few or fewer giveaway items than the Cubs are the Astros (10,000 giveaways, 33,677 average in 2025) and Red Sox (7,500 giveaways, 34,278 average in 2025).

But most teams have enough for a large percentage of their fans to get popular giveaway items without having to rush to get to the ballpark early, or be disappointed if they can’t. As the Cubs surely know, many fans come to Wrigley from all over the Midwest — should they have to get up at 4 a.m. to drive to Chicago from Iowa just to get a bobblehead?

Occasionally at Wrigley Field, popular gate giveaways draw huge numbers of fans arriving early, creating potential crowd control issues. There’s another popular bobblehead this weekend (Ron Santo) and on Sat., May 24, likely the most popular gate giveaway item of the season, a Ryne Sandberg bobblehead.

Yes, I know the argument — teams want fans in the park early to consume more food and drink. At the same time, enough teams have enough giveaway items for fans that maybe this shouldn’t matter. As noted above, the Cubs (along with almost all other teams) have reduced the number of gate giveaways anyway in recent years, shifting over to the “special ticket” items that have proven to be popular.

The Cubs really should increase the number of gate giveaway items to at least 15,000, or hey, why not match the mighty Yankees at 18,000? Or perhaps to half of the 40,000 the Dodgers give, to 20,000? That would leave far fewer dissatisfied Cubs fans, and there shouldn’t be any additional cost to the team, since the items generally have a sponsor who pays for them. (The Ben Zobrist bobblehead, for example, had Jewel/Osco as its sponsor.)

Get it done, Cubs.

The White Sox will be trying to salvage a win in a series where they’ve been pretty well thumped in the first two games, and the pitching staff may give a try at keeping the Rays to fewer than eight runs while they’re at it. This will be the first game where there’s no one in the Sox lineup making a major league debut, so maybe experience will come into play.

The Sox presumably have their best starter on the mound, since it’s Anthony Kay’s turn in the rotation, though Jordan Leasure is playing the role of opener. Before you slap your forehead and scream, “Oh, no — not HIM!!” please note that Leasure has given up no runs in his last four appearances, so somebody must have pointed out to him that the object is to keep opponents off the bases.

The Rays counter with veteran lefty Steven Matz, who is 3-0 with a 3.94 ERA and outstanding 0.938 WHIP and held the Yankees to two runs in five innings last time out. Matz will face a White Sox lineup without Colson Montgomery, who struck out four times last night, or any batter with more than 20 at-bats who’s hitting over .203, but with San Antonacci, who was 1-for-3 in his MLB debut last night ,in left and hitting ninth.

Leasure and presumably Kay will face a Rays lineup that has won five in a row, two of them pummels of the Sox and three of them close wins over the Yankees.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 Central, with a chance of thunderstorms theoretically going away about then, with a temp of 71 and winds blowing out to left. Usual broadcast suspects.

We are close to game time today in Sacramento as the Athletics prepare to wrap up this four-game series against the Texas Rangers. This afternoon, the Athletics look to win their third-straight game, third-straight series and increase their divisional lead. On the other side, the Rangers seek the series split, hoping to leave town tied atop the standings again.

Last night, the Athletics won 6-5, catapulting into first place in the American League West. Catcher Shea Langeliers and shortstop Jacob Wilson hit two-run home runs in back-to-back innings, giving the hosts a four run lead. Wilson’s run proved to be the game winner. Rangers first baseman Jake Burger’s three-run home run in the eighth inning off A’s reliever Mark Leiter Jr. reduced the visitors deficit to one. That was the closest Texas would get as A’s reliever Joel Kuhnel continued to excel, recording a four-out save.

Left-handed pitcher Jacob Lopez takes the mound for the A’s today for his fourth start of the season. He has largely struggled his first three outings, recording a 1-1 record and 7.43 ERA. In Lopez’s last start against the New York Mets, he gave up five runs in five innings, leaving the game after the A’s 7-1 lead was reduced to 7-6. If the A’s want to win this series against their division rivals, the team needs its lanky lefty to put forth his best start of the season. If he struggles again, the A’s may consider moving him to the bullpen or Triple-A Las Vegas in exchange for a better-performing pitcher. After Lopez, high-upside right hander Jack Perkins may make an appearance out of the bullpen, depending on the game’s score and situation.

The Athletics lineup for Game four shakes out like this:

Second baseman Jeff McNeil will bat leadoff today for the first time with the Athletics. Maybe moving first baseman Nick Kurtz to the third spot in the order will snap him out of his early-season slump. Austin Wynns is catching today, yet Langeliers remains in the lineup as the designated hitter in the wake of his 467–foot home run last night. Lastly, Darell Hernáiz gets the start at third base in place of Max Muncy and Carlos Cortes is in right field with usual right fielder Lawrence Butler shifting to center field.

This afternoon will be a Leiter family reunion. Mark Leiter Jr.’s cousin Jack Leiter is the Rangers starting pitcher. The No. 2 pick in the 2021 MLB Draft is 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA entering his fourth start of the season. In his last start against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Leiter allowed five runs in only 3 2/3 innings. The 25-year-old has good stuff, but has struggled to find consistent success. In a matchup that could be a high-scoring affair, the A’s offense needs to work counts, make Leiter exert a lot of effort and take advantage of any mistakes he makes.

The Rangers’ starting lineup:

The Rangers lineup for today’s series finale is missing some notable names, most significantly superstar shortstop Corey Seager, who hit a two-run home run yesterday. Even without Seager, the Rangers still have multiple dangerous hitters in their lineup. First baseman Jake Burger has been a one-man wrecking ball this series. He will likely be licking his chops today as the right-handed hitter gets to face the left-hander Lopez. In addition to Burger, Lopez must be careful when pitching to outfielders Brandon Nimmo and Wyatt Langford.

Let’s win another series today, fellas. Let’s go A’s!