Category: Baseball

Don’t let the scoreline fool you. For eight innings, this was the same old Red Sox team, struggling to string together any semblance of offense behind yet another solid start from Sonny Gray.

But lest we despair too much, let’s note that Guardians starter Parker Messick is no slouch on the mound, having entered today’s game with the seventh-best bWAR amongst all pitchers. The Sox didn’t exactly do damage against him, but they made him work, putting two runners on base in three of his five innings.

Getting Messick out of the game early was the most important thing the lineup did, as they proceeded to score eight of their nine runs against Cleveland’s bullpen, including sixth in the ninth, as Guards’ skipper Stephen Vogt more or less waived the white flag.

Three Studs

Sonny Gray: When the sox win a ballgame, it’s usually because the starting pitcher did his job. Sonny Gray continues to be the steadying force in Boston’s rotation, throwing six relatively clean innings and striking out seven. Three walks drove his pitch count up a little higher than you’d like, but there’s nothing really to complain about in this outing.

Connor Wong: Is Connor Wong really going to go two whole seasons without hitting a homer? Is that even possible in 2026? When you see what happened to him today, you wonder. Wong — along with everyone else in the ballpark — thought he’d broken his drought in the sixth inning, only for replay review to downgrade his knock to a double. But it was the double that would give the Sox a lead they would not relinquish, and he would get another RBI in the Sox’ big ninth inning outburst.

Caleb Durbin: Yes, Jarren Duran hit a three-run bomb in this game. But the game was already on ice at that point, so get that front-running shit out of here! (Plus he also struck out three times…) Instead, let’s give some much needed glory to our beefy, slumpy, third baseman, who started the scoring with a sac fly and then added an insurance RBI on a double in the eighth.

Three Duds

You know what? I’m in a generous mood, so let’s skip duds tonight and let everyone go home early.

Play of the Game

Poor little Connor!

Christian Scott and Hayden Senger shared stops along the Mets minor-league pathway, so perhaps it’s only appropriate that they shared two important career “firsts” on Saturday, too, when Scott earned an elusive first victory and Senger smashed his first big league homer. 

“I think it’s a really cool thing,” Senger said following the Mets’ 6-1 victory over the Marlins on Saturday at Citi Field. “I kind of thought we would do it together. I just kind of had a feeling.” 

“Coming up through all the levels, so you want to see him get that moment and the smile on his face as he was running the bases and the dugout was awesome,” added Scott.

Judging by something else Scott said, the two were showered with food and beverages by teammates afterward, too, a messy baseball tradition for such firsts. “I won’t be able to get peanut butter out of my hair for a couple weeks,” Scott said, “but it was awesome.”

It was a giddy end to a nice day of celebration for the organization – before the game, the Mets inducted Bobby Valentine and Lee Mazzilli into the club’s Hall of Fame. But, particularly with Scott’s performance, there are some this-year applications that could really boost a team looking for ways to come out of a poor start to the season. 

Scott only delivered five innings of mound work after the Marlins forced his pitch count skyward, but his stuff was tantalizing. He allowed just one run and five hits. His sweeper was really good – he got five swings-and-misses on 16 cuts at it – and he matched his career-high of eight strikeouts. He was helped by two terrific catches, one by A.J. Ewing and one by Carson Benge, too.

As the Mets seek answers, Scott might be a big one. He is now an important part of a rotation in flux, a key pitcher they look to for stability. 

“If we can get that version, which I’m pretty confident we will, that’s another factor for us to turn this thing around, right there,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He’s too talented. He’s got electric stuff and he’s going to continue to help us.”

“His stuff is very swing and miss and when he's in the zone and he's locating that heater at the top, it's pretty tough to hit,” added Senger.

Scott, who missed all of last season while recovering from elbow surgery, has allowed four or fewer runs in each of his first 16 career starts. He’s the first pitcher in club history to own such a streak. The Mets were gaga over his potential before he got hurt and now he’s getting them back into that kind of mood. 

Maybe their mood overall is changing, too, though that might be premature. The Mets have won three straight, but there is a long way to go for them to flush their terrible start. They are 25-33 and, their last two games notwithstanding, have troubles on offense. 

But maybe a couple of fun firsts are a palate cleanser of sorts. Senger, 29, is Luis Torrens’ backup, at least until Francisco Alvarez returns, and he’s been trying to add power to his resume in Triple-A. He had hit six home runs in his first 22 games at Syracuse. 

The one Saturday, not surprisingly, felt “maybe a little better than the ones in Triple-A,” Senger admitted. “Probably one of the best feelings I’ve had.” 

He got the ball back as a keepsake. “Thanks to the clubbies,” he said. Clubhouse workers exchanged some Mets memorabilia for the milestone ball, Senger said. “Thanks to the fan, too,” Senger added. He said he’ll try to find a good spot for the ball at home. 

Mendoza said he did not realize it was Scott’s first career win, “because of how well he pitched for us in 2024.” Scott’s first nine starts in the majors were promising, though winless. 

Now, Mendoza is thinking, “First of many,” after Saturday. 

Mendoza also praised the righty for how he moved through the slog of a year-plus of rehabbing. “You feel like you’re on an island by yourself, you know, down in Florida,” the manager said. “It can be a lonely place at times and frustrating at times as well. You’ve got to give him credit and all the medical people and the trainers.” 

Scott admitted he never thought it’d take this long to get his first win – he debuted on May 4, 2024. “Hopefully, it doesn’t take as long to get the second one,” he quipped.

After the game, the Mets’ posted on social media a nice clip of Senger and Scott sharing an embrace in the tunnel from the dugout to the clubhouse. It was a good win for a team that needs to start stacking them, but it was a nice personal moment for two players, too. 

“I knew that was his first win, so I just congratulated him and he congratulated me,” Senger said. “And that was it. 

"And we’re both very happy for each other.” 

Takeaways as Edmundo Sosa's second chance lifts Phillies over Dodgers originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

LOS ANGELES — For most of Saturday night, the Phillies’ lineup had few answers in Chavez Ravine.

Another Dodgers starter was in complete control. Cruise control. Barely breaking a sweat.

On Friday, Dodgers lefty Justin Wrobleski spun seven innings of one-run ball with nine strikeouts. All nine came on the fastball. At one point, he had retired 10 in a row.

There were no excuses Saturday.

They were facing a righty.

After Alec Bohm led off the fourth with a homer, Roki Sasaki retired the next 13 batters he faced. The Phillies managed little against him and had already wasted one major scoring chance by the time the Dodgers handed the game to the bullpen.

That is where the night changed.

Edmundo Sosa had already come up empty in one of the Phillies’ biggest spots of the game. Two innings later, he came up again against another Dodgers lefty.

This time, against Tanner Scott, he did not miss.

Sosa launched a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth inning, lifting the Phillies to a 4-3 win over the Dodgers and flipping a bat and a night that had looked like another quiet offensive showing at Dodger Stadium.

For most of the night, the Phillies were again being held down by a Dodgers starter.

This time, they got to the bullpen.

SOSA’S SECOND SHOT

The night had already put Sosa in the middle of the game.

With the bases loaded in the sixth inning, interim manager Don Mattingly went to Sosa to pinch-hit for Brandon Marsh against Dodgers lefty Alex Vesia.

Mattingly said it was simple.

“Just liked the matchup, honestly,” Mattingly said. “I felt like that was a spot we needed to try to score there.”

Sosa was 2-for-5 in his career against Vesia. Marsh was 1-for-6.

Marsh has been solid against southpaws. He has gotten more chances to face lefties since Mattingly took over and entered Saturday slashing .333/.375/.524 with an .899 OPS in 21 at-bats against them.

Sosa, who has been the Phillies’ go-to option against lefties over the past several years, has not had the same success this season. He entered with a .642 OPS against left-handers.

It did not work there.

Sosa saw four pitches, all out of the zone, from Vesia. Swinging strike. Ball. Swinging strike. Swinging strike.

Bohm grounded out to end the inning.

It was a fitting sequence for the way the Phillies’ offense had looked for most of the night. They had the Dodgers on the ropes. They came away with nothing.

Marsh, who has been one of the Phillies’ best hitters this season, understood the move.

“Of course, I want the at-bat,” Marsh said. “I want to be in there and I want to come through for the guys, but it just wasn’t my night. It was Sosa’s night.”

That showed up in the eighth.

After Bryce Harper lined a two-out, two-strike RBI single to cut the deficit to one, Sosa came up against Scott. He stayed on a pitch and drove it out to left, watching it for a beat before starting his trip around the bases.

“I just tried to stay aggressive with my approach,” Sosa said. “I trusted my swing. I’ve been trusting my swing. I’ve been feeling really good lately.”

He knew it was gone.

“As soon as I connected it,” Sosa said. “I just tried to put my head down and talk to myself a little, enjoy the moment. When these things happen, you have to take your time and enjoy these things.”

Mattingly was glad Sosa got another chance.

“You feel good for him because he’s been scuffling a little bit,” Mattingly said. “But still, you’ve got to trust your guys, what they can do and what they’re capable of.”

For Marsh, that was the best part.

“When that ball came off the bat, my whole body got chills,” Marsh said. “We all pull for each other in here. We’re all one big family, and we’re all going for each other and fighting for each other out there. For Sosa to have that moment is huge.”

HIGH-HEAT BOHM

Bohm’s swing was the first offensive breakthrough.

Even throughout the Phillies third baseman’s struggles, the underlying metrics still offered some positives. He was not expanding the strike zone. He was not swinging and missing much. He was still making contact at a high rate.

The surface numbers told a different story against fastballs, and that has been a key reason his production was down. Entering Saturday, Bohm was hitting just .185 against heaters.

Go one step further, though, and there was a more encouraging split.

Against fastballs — four-seamers, two-seamers, sinkers and cutters — at 97 mph or above, Bohm was batting .333 on 50 pitches seen. That would be a career high. His .417 batting average on balls in play against those pitches was tied with his career mark.

That showed up in the fourth inning.

Bohm got a 98.9 mph four-seamer from Sasaki, middle-up and even out of the 6-foot-5 strike zone. He stayed on top of it and drove it out to right-center for the game’s first run.

His sixth homer of the season was another exclamation point on a much better month of May.

His awakening has at least given the Phillies’ right-handed hitting group some light. Trea Turner has been having better at-bats and using the pull side more. They are going to need more production from J.T. Realmuto, Adolis García and Sosa when he gets the opportunity.

Sosa gave them exactly that late Saturday.

HOW IT STAYED CLOSE…

Before Sosa’s swing, the Phillies had to keep the game within reach.

Jesús Luzardo gave them 5 1/3 innings of two-run ball, and he did it without his cleanest night.

“I thought Zeus did a nice job getting out of a little trouble there,” Mattingly said. “I thought he threw the ball really good.”

The biggest early defensive play came from García.

After Luzardo opened the bottom of the third with his third strikeout, Mookie Betts lined a double. The next batter, Kyle Tucker, dropped the head of the bat on a Luzardo changeup with an 0-2 count and sent a sinking liner toward right field.

It had a hit written all over it.

García had other plans.

He ranged from his spot in right field, broke into a full sprint at more than 27 feet per second and made a diving catch.

It saved a run. With Tucker’s long strides, if that ball gets past García, it could have been more than a single. Maybe a triple. Instead, there were two outs, and Luzardo struck out Will Smith to end the inning.

For everything García has not given the Phillies offensively, his defense in right field has continued to show up.

… AND THEN DIDN’T?

The strangest sequence came later.

In the bottom of the seventh, Orion Kerkering made his first appearance at Dodger Stadium since the throwing error that ended the Phillies’ season last October.

Kerkering got Ohtani and Freddie Freeman, then gave up a double to Andy Pages and a single to Betts. Pages came home from second, and García’s throw beat him. J.T. Realmuto missed the tag, and Pages was called safe.

Then came the confusion.

Replay showed Pages missed the plate. The Phillies challenged the tag play, but because they did not first appeal that Pages missed home, the call stood.

“If we would have known that he missed it, it was just basically a quick challenge right away,” Mattingly said. “J.T. thought he got him. Our guys thought he got him. If we would have known he missed the plate, then we would have had to appeal it first.”

The long delay left plenty for the Phillies, and the umpires, to sort through.

“I think they’ve [Major League Baseball] just got to do a better job,” Kerkering said, “between replay, between figuring out when to call the right time for appeal and then challenge it.”

It did not end up deciding the game, because the Phillies finally got the swing they needed.

They did not solve Sasaki. They did not build much early. They still have offensive questions and still need more consistent pressure from the lineup.

But they stayed close long enough to get the game to the bullpen.

Then Sosa changed it.

“It’s a team game,” Marsh said. “It took all of us tonight.”

LOS ANGELES — An MRI showed a Grade 1 left hamstring strain for Teoscar Hernández, the mildest severity. But the Dodgers left fielder is still expected to miss about a month with the injury.

“It’s going to be a month. Hopefully less than that,” Hernández said Saturday at Dodger Stadium. “The doctor told me if I would have kept pushing, it would have been worse than that, like three to four months.”

Hernández injured his hamstring running to first base on a groundout on Wednesday. The plan now is rest and recovery until the inflammation subsides, and then start building up strength in the hamstring.

“It’s more giving him as much time as he needs, but that’s a fair timeline with a hamstring,” manager Dave Roberts said. “As you get into the summer and you have a setback, it could be more costly, but right now it’s not as costly. We’re going to be mindful of the build up, and I’m sure there’s going to be a rehab assignment to make sure things are good for him, so when he gets back to us, he can hit the ground running.”

The Dodgers called up Ryan Ward on Friday when Hernández was placed on the injured list, and plan to use the left-handed-hitting Ward with righty Alex Call in a timeshare in left field for the time being. One would imagine that Tommy Edman, currently in his first week of what’s expected to be a lengthy rehab assignment for Triple-A Oklahoma City, might see some time in left field in addition to second base once he is eventually activated next month.

Hernández compared this hamstring injury to last year’s groin injury, which first plagued him in May but lingered throughout the season.

“It’s a little different because it was on my groin. Everything that I do, I cannot use that part of the body to do it, especially in this game,” Hernández said. “I think if I get the time right and rest the way I should, the hamstring should really go soon, and I may be back on the field before the time. ”

Hernández last season before his groin injury hit .315/.333/.600 with a 155 wRC+ and nine home runs in 33 games, but after he returned hit .223/.268/.404 with an 84 wRC+ and 16 home runs over his final 101 games of the regular season. This year, Hernández is hitting .276/.348/.436 with seven home runs and a 122 wRC+ in 51 games.

Roberts preached caution this time around with Hernández.

“Fool me once,” he quipped. “He wanted to get back with us and felt he was good. And you look back and he wasn’t. We’re not going to make that mistake again.”

“I’m going to take my time,” Hernández said. “If it means a couple more weeks and then be back 100 percent, and give my best to the team all the way through the season.”

The A’s lost in epic fashion last night but it’s time to get back into the win column. How will the team respond to a tough loss?

It’s J.T Ginn getting the start tonight. Let’s hope he can keep his strong season going.

The A’s lineup:

The Yankees meanwhile have this lineup set for tonight:

Should be a good one. Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:
Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, A’s Cast

Well, the San Francisco Giants lost in fairly ugly and embarrassing fashion to the Colorado Rockies on Friday night. And now it’s Saturday night, and they’re looking for a little bit of revenge. Let’s see if they can get it.

Adrian Houser takes the mound for the second game of the series, as they look to snap a four-game skid. Houser is 2-4 through 10 starts, with a 5.30 ERA, a 5.06 FIP, and 31 strikeouts to 19 walks in 52.2 innings. He’s been pitching much better lately, though he allowed three runs in 4.2 innings against the Chicago White Sox his last time out.

On the other side is fellow righty Ryan Feltner, who makes his sixth start of the season. Feltner, a 29-year old in his sixth season, is 1-1 with a 6.30 ERA, a 5.81 FIP, and 17 strikeouts to eight walks in 20 innings. He pitched just two innings in his last outing, and gave up two runs against the San Diego Padres.

Enjoy the game, everyone! Go Giants!

Lineups

Giants

1. Willy Adames — SS
2. Luis Arráez — 2B
3. Casey Schmitt — LF
4. Rafael Devers — 1B
5. Jung Hoo Lee — RF
6. Matt Chapman — 3B
7. Bryce Eldridge — DH
8. Eric Haase — C
9. Drew Gilbert — CF

RHP. Adrian Houser

Rockies

1. Jake McCarthy — CF
2. TJ Rumfield — 1B
3. Hunter Goodman — DH
4. Willi Castro — 3B
5. Troy Johnston — RF
6. Ezequiel Tovar — SS
7. Sterlin Thompson — LF
8. Edouard Julien — 2B
9. Brett Sullivan — C

RHP. Ryan Feltner

Game #58

Who: San Francisco Giants (22—35) vs. Colorado Rockies (21-37)

Where: Coors Field, Denver, Colorado

When: 6:10 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

The offense from Saturday’s game against the Miami Marlins was more so what the Mets were envisioning from their group when they entered this expectation-filled season.

On a day where the team honored Bobby Valentine and Lee Mazzilli by inducting them into the Mets Hall of Fame, New York pounded out 10 hits and scored six runs en route to a 6-1 series-clinching win against the Marlins to send the large crowd on hand at Citi Field home with a smile – and not just because they heard Valentine’s speech before the game.

The big hits came off the bats of Jared Young and Hayden Senger, who each hit solo home runs to extend the Mets’ lead in the sixth and seventh innings. However, New York built its lead even before that with a three-run fourth inning with Mark Vientos getting it all started with a ringing double off the left-field wall to drive in the game’s first two runs. The Mets were off from there, scoring another on Marcus Semien’s RBI single. 

Vientos wouldn’t get another hit the rest of the game, but the damage had already been done and gave the first baseman two straight games with an extra-base hit after hitting a mammoth home run on Friday night for his only hit.

“It’s good to see guys like Vientos have good back-to-back games,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “When he’s on he can carry us. We saw that in 2024.”

The three-run fourth inning, in particular, was also nice to see because it came right on the heels of a third inning that went terribly for New York. 

After Semien led off the inning with a double and Vidal Brujan reached first base on a sacrifice bunt that resulted in a throwing error by the third baseman, the Mets had runners on first and third with nobody out. Instead of letting Senger swing the bat, New York elected to have the catcher lay down a safety squeeze bunt which led to Semien being thrown out at home. 

Not long after, Brujan was caught trying to steal third base before Carson Benge ended the inning by striking out and leaving the Mets with nothing after an inning that started so promisingly.

“It’s a hard game. They’re gonna struggle at times,” Mendoza said. “You continue to stay positive, you continue to trust your players that at some point they’re gonna come through.”

Fortunately for the manager, they came through an inning later.

But it wasn’t just the fourth inning, or even Saturday as a whole, where New York’s offense came through. Over their last three games, that coincides with three straight wins, the Mets have scored 19 runs while doing their best to make everybody forget about the disastrous three games in Miami where they scored two runs combined.

What a difference a week can make.

“It’s just good to see some of the guys here playing with some confidence, playing loose and having fun and picking each other up,” Mendoza said. “I think we continue to have good at-bats up and down the lineup… There’s a lot of good things going on offensively top to bottom.”

Box Score

It was a rough day for the young pitching staff. Brandon Sproat was hit hard for five runs as the Astros routed the Brewers 9-2 on Saturday afternoon.

They did start with the lead this time. After a leadoff single from Christian Yelich, he swapped places with Brice Turang on a groundout. With two outs, William Contreras hit a double over left fielder Taylor Trammell and Turang was able to make it home, staking the Brewers to a 1-0 lead.

That lead was tested right away. A one-out double from Yordan Alvarez put a runner in scoring position, and then Sproat hit Trammell with a pitch. He escaped the jam thanks to a groundout from Isaac Paredes, keeping the score at 1-0.

After a quick top of the second for the Brewers, Sproat was challenged again right away. Cam Smith led off the inning with a single and advanced to second on a Braden Shewmake groundout. Jake Meyers then singled to right, but Bauers got to it quick and threw it home for a play at the plate. It took a big hop right in front of Contreras, who caught it and went for the tag of Smith. The call on the field was safe, but it was close and manager Pat Murphy challenged it. On replay, it looked like Smith missed the plate initially and Contreras got him, but the call stood. It wasn’t completely certain that Smith missed the plate on replay. Had it been ruled an out, it likely would have also remained an out.

That challenge would be important for two reasons. Not only did it burn the Brewers’ replay challenge in the second inning, but it also extended the inning. Two batters later, Jeremy Peña homered into the left-field boxes, and the Astros led 3-1.

Sproat recovered for a couple of innings after that. He got through the third and fourth with minimal problems, allowing just a single while striking out three. Meanwhile, the Brewers got one back in the fifth inning. Garrett Mitchell drew a leadoff walk, and then advanced to second on a wild pitch from Peter Lambert. Yelich drew a two-out walk, and then Jackson Chourio singled to center to score Mitchell.

Sproat came back out for the fifth, but a combination of rough pitching and defense ended his day. He started the inning by allowing a single to Peña, which deflected off of Joey Ortiz. Peña then stole second to give the Astros another runner in scoring position. After Peña advanced to third on an Alvarez groundout, Sproat hit Christian Walker with a pitch. That ended his day, and Murphy went to Carlos Rodriguez ouf of the bullpen.

Trammell was the first batter that Rodriguez faced. After an eight-pitch battle, Trammel hit a ground ball right at Andrew Vaughn at first. Vaughn whiffed on the catch, but Turang was right behind him. Rather than take the out at first, Turang threw home to try and get Peña. It was late and Peña scored. It might have been a play the Brewers would have challenged, but with their challenge gone that was not an option. Had Vaughn come up with the ball cleanly, there was a chance for a double play to end the inning. Instead, the Astros had runners at first and second with one out and a 4-2 lead.

The Brewers’ troubles continued with the next batter, Isaac Paredes. He doubled down the left-field line, scoring both Walker and Trammell, and the Astros’ lead was up to 6-2.

Unfortunately, the Brewers’ offense just couldn’t get anything going. They had just one more single from the sixth inning on, and the last 11 batters were retired in order.

Meanwhile, the Astros turned it into a rout in the eighth. After two fly outs to start the inning, Peña singled and Alvarez drew a walk. Murphy went to Jake Woodford, who threw three balls to Walker before a sinker down the middle turned into a three-run home run to right. That made it a 9-2 game, which would be the final score.

Though Sproat had a couple of good innings today, the results were not there again. In 4 1/3 innings, he allowed five runs on six hits. He didn’t walk a batter, but hit two batters with a pitch instead. He also struck out four. After the game, Murphy reiterated that he sees the potential in Sproat, but also stressed that “We’re not going to tolerate too many duds like this”. Sproat may still have some time with both Brandon Woodruff and Logan Henderson on the IL, but when both of them are back, that could force a decision.

The Brewers also were able to save the front end of their bullpen. They only needed to use Rodriguez and Woodford. Rodriguez was charged for three runs and five hits in 3 1/3 innings. He walked two and struck out three. Woodford got the final out of the eighth with a strikeout, but allowed the three-run home run (with only one of those runs charged to him).

Meanwhile, the offense had their chances in the game. They had six hits, all coming from the top six batters in the lineup. Vaughn was the lone Brewer with a two-hit game. Contreras had the lone extra-base hit with a double. However, the bottom three in the lineup—Mitchell, Ortiz, David Hamilton, and pinch-hitter Gary Sánchez—went a combined 0-for-10 with one walk and four strikeouts.

Despite the blowout, the Brewers still have a chance to take the series tomorrow afternoon. They’ll have Jacob Misiorowski on the mound, who will face Tatsuya Imai of the Astros.

It may have taken him 16 career starts dating back to his MLB debut on May 4, 2024, but Mets' Christian Scott finally earned his first career win in Saturday's 6-1 victory over the Miami Marlins. 

The 26-year-old battled to get back to the majors after missing the entire 2025 season due to Tommy John surgery and is quietly finding his groove on the mound. He allowed one run with eight strikeouts over 5.0 IP against the Marlins and is now 1-0 on the year with a 2.97 ERA and 38 strikeouts over seven starts.

"It's awesome," Scott said after the win. "It look longer than I would have expected and wanted, but it's nice to have that first one under my belt. I thought the defense played great today. I thought [Hayden] Senger called a hell of a game. Offense stepped up with some big swings. It's nice to get that win for sure."

Manager Carlos Mendoza added that he was surprised to learn it was Scott's first win and called it an impressive outing.

"I know, that's crazy. I didn't know until somebody just told me, cause how well he pitched for us in 2024. I didn't realize that, that's on me I guess," Mendoza joked. "He was really good, man, he was really good today. I thought the sweeper was a pretty effective pitch. He got swing and misses. The fastball, he attacked. We made some good defensive plays behind him. But overall, it was good to see that first one and hopefully first of many."

The skipper believes that if the Mets are going to flip the script on their 2026 season, Scott's success will be a main reason. He then went on to highlight how valuable Scott's development and consistency has been for New York this season with the amount of injuries to the pitching staff.

"Well he's important, right, especially with some of the injuries that we're dealing [with]," Mendoza said. "But we saw signs of that in 2024, like I'm not surprised by it. But man, if we can get that version, which I'm pretty confident we will, that's another factor for us to turn this thing around right there.

"He's too talented, he's got electric stuff, and he's going to continue to help us."

Mendoza was also asked about Scott's evolution since debuting in 2024, noting how his improved secondary pitches have helped him take his game to the next level.

"I think the secondary pitches, the sweeper," Mendoza said. "When he came up in 2024 he was fastball heavy. A fastball that plays at the top of the zone, an explosive fastball. He still has that, but now you got that sweeper, he's got that split, there's a little bit of a cutter there too. So he can get righties and lefties out. There's a lot of different weapons he can go to now."

And Scott agreed, saying having other pitches he can rely on besides his fastball is a big difference from his 2024 self.

"For sure, I agree with that," Scott said. "Just being able to go out and get pitches when certain pitches aren't on. I felt like I was kind of naked out there at some points in '24. But being able to come out, new year, and be able to get outs with multiple different pitches has been huge for me."

Knowing how challenging it is for a young player to miss a season due to injury, Mendoza discussed the challenges Scott has had to overcome and is thrilled to have him back to this level.

"Every time you got to miss a year-plus rehab, you feel like you're on an island by yourself down in Florida," the skipper said. "Could be a lonely place there at times and frustrating at times as well. You got to give him credit, you got to give all the medicals and the trainers and the people that put a lot of hours and a lot of work behind the scenes to get this guy back on track. 

"Like I said, last year, it was hard for him. And the fact that he's now performing, playing, pitching, and helping the baseball team win baseball games, I'm pretty sure he's excited as well."

As Scott will look to earn that second win his next time on the mound, he understands the position he's in and how he can help this team throughout the remainder of the season.

"Means a lot, hopefully doesn't take as long for the second one," Scott said. "Being able to go out there and just go deep in games and give this team a chance to win. The bullpen's been grinding, been working really hard. So being able to go out there and go as long as I can in games will be huge for this team down the stretch. I know that, I'm not oblivious to it, just try to do that on a consistent basis and see what happens."

Here are the lineups. For the Phillies:

For the Dodgers:

Let’s talk about it.

The early returns on A.J. Minter suggest the Mets may have added a significant piece to their bullpen puzzle. 

The left-hander, back this week after a 13-month absence while rehabbing from lat surgery, had two straight strong outings to boast as Saturday’s play began. 

He was utilized in a high-leverage spot Friday, summoned to get the final out of the fifth inning with a runner at second base before returning to record two additional outs in the sixth. Minter finished his one-inning stint with two strikeouts, giving him four over two innings since his return. 

“It’s good to just be out there, but I do feel like I could do better,” Minter said before the Mets beat the Marlins 6-1 at Citi Field in which he did not pitch. “I am missing some balls over the middle of the plate that I wish I could have back and so I feel like I am a little rusty, but I will take these zeroes on the board and I am just excited to be out there helping the team.” 

Minter, who arrived before last season on a two-year contract worth $22 million, owns a 1.38 ERA over 15 appearances with the Mets, with 18 strikeouts in 13 innings. 

His return has provided manager Carlos Mendoza with a second proven lefty reliever to pair with Brooks Raley. 

With Freddy Peralta struggling Friday to finish the fifth, Mendoza summoned Minter to face Jakob Marsee following Kyle Stowers’ RBI double that sliced the Mets’ lead to 6-4. Minter got ahead in the count 1-2 before throwing a cutter out of the strike zone that Marsee swung and missed. 

Minter returned to the mound for the sixth and got two outs, which included a behind-the-back grab by the pitcher on Owen Caissie’s grounder that became an out. 

“I was pleased with a wraparound inning — and it felt good for me to go back out there for that second time,” Minter said. “Definitely some positives in there, and I want to be in those big, high-leverage situations.” 

Mendoza cited Minter’s importance against a heavily lefty Marlins lineup on a night he didn’t want to use Raley. 

“For me to be able to be able to continue to play the matchups in those middle innings without having to worry about what is going to happen when the next at-bat comes in, those guys are in a good place,” Mendoza said. “And for us to have those guys every time they are available, every night, we are going to be pretty good back there.” 

Minter averaged 92.9 mph with his four-seam fastball, which is below his comfort level. 

“I topped to 94 and that was encouraging to see,” Minter said. “Every game I have kind of increased it slowly, gradually, and hopefully we will continue to see the same issue.” 

Minter suspects team brass will be cautious, at least early in his return, and abstain from using him on consecutive days. But Minter said he wants to be treated like the other relievers. 

“I told Mendy that I don’t want him to cater to me and babysit me,” Minter said. “I want to help this team. But I know them, they are going to try to help me and take care of me, but whenever they need me I will be ready to go.”

Is it just me, or did anyone else really need that?

Not gonna lie, the Denver Nuggets’ first-round exit is still weighing heavily. Then the collapse of the Colorado Avalanche made things feel a billion times worse. Then, after the Colorado Rockies posted a 13-14 record last month, they’ve gone downhill at 6-19 this month heading into last night. The Ethan Holliday injury news was the final disappointing straw that broke the camel’s back.

Things were feeling a little “wake me up when May ends.”

So some Mile High Magic in the ninth inning for an 8-6 walk-off win over the San Francisco Giants last night felt especially nice. With a five-game losing streak snapped, the Rox will look to get some momentum going in the other direction in a Saturday night showdown.

Ryan Feltner is back and scheduled to start for the Rockies after a stint on the 15-day injured list for ulnar nerve inflammation, followed by a rehab assignment in the minors. Feltner’s return is another bit of much-needed good news, as the Rockies are dealing with a slew of injuries across the lineup. His last MLB start came back on April 23rd, when he left the game with the injury after two innings, giving up two runs on two hits and a walk to the San Diego Padres. Over the course of the beginning of the season, Feltner was 1-1 with a 6.30 ERA across five starts.

In his final rehab start, Feltner pitched five innings for the Albuquerque Isotopes, giving up just one run on six hits with five strikeouts. He progressed nicely while rehabbing in the minors, building up to that efficient start and upping his pitch count along the way. He’ll look to handle his next big test in his return.

The San Francisco Giants are set to start Adrian Houser, who is 2-4 in 10 starts with a 5.30 ERA, 31 strikeouts, and 19 walks. Houser has cleaned up some of his early-season struggles. In four of his first five outings, he gave up four or more earned runs. Since then, he’s on a five-game stretch of surrendering three or fewer earned runs. His last start, this past Saturday against the Chicago White Sox, was the shakiest of that stretch, as he gave up three runs on seven hits in 4.2 innings pitched. His last start against the Rockies came when he was a member of the White Sox, going eight innings and giving up two runs on four hits in a 3-2 win at Coors last July.

The two squads are separated by just a game and a half at the bottom of the NL West. The Rockies look to carry their late-game fireworks into a strong outing tonight to close the gap.

First Pitch: 7:10 PM MDT

TV: Rockies TV

Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM , KNRV 1150

Giants SB Nation site:McCovey Chronicles

Lineups:

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

You guys. YOU GUYS. Orioles Magic is very much still alive. And it. Is. Glorious.

The O’s pulled off their most incredible comeback of the year — maybe their most incredible in many years — by storming back from a four-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth for a chaotic 6-5 win over the Blue Jays. Noted Oriole antagonist Jeff Hoffman melted down for the Jays as the Birds sent nine batters to the plate in their thrilling final frame, capped off by Pete Alonso’s walkoff single.

This, my friends, was the definition of a miraculous win. The Orioles entered the bottom of the ninth as a team seemingly destined to a third straight loss, one that was shaping up to be one of their most excruciating of the year. They were dead and buried. No hopes of survival — until the impossible happened.

I tell you, folks. These 2026 Orioles are not for the faint of heart. The last game I recapped was the Orioles’ unbelievable 13-inning win over the Rays on Memorial Day, which I classified as “without question the gutsiest victory of the year.” But now I think we have a new holder of that title.

Let’s jump right in to the epic comeback. To set the stage, the Orioles were trailing, 5-1, after eight innings of total failure with runners in scoring position. The Blue Jays’ lead was big enough that it wasn’t even a save situation, so Toronto manager John Schneider brought in Jeff Hoffman, the team’s former closer who lost the job earlier this year. It was a stress-free, low-leverage situation for the struggling Hoffman to get three easy outs, right?

HAHAHA. Oh, Jeff. You have no idea what you’ve gotten yourself into.

He started the inning without issue, striking out Samuel Basallo, on which the O’s DH tweaked a pec muscle on his last swing. He returned to the dugout in pain, but said after the game that he thinks he avoided serious injury.

At that point, Hoffman’s outing went delightfully haywire. He drilled Coby Mayo on a fastball, giving the Orioles their first baserunner since the sixth inning. Leody Taveras followed with a triple into the right-field corner, plating Mayo to make it a 5-2 game. Things were starting to happen, but still the O’s would need to get three more runs before Hoffman retired two more batters. The odds were overwhelmingly stacked against them.

Not for long. Jackson Holliday ripped an RBI single to right, and suddenly it was a 5-3 game with the possible tying run coming to the plate. Hoffman, instead of buckling down, simply buckled. He hung a slider that Colton Cowser ripped into the right-field corner, putting the possible tying run at second. Wait…is this going to happen?

Hoffman’s meltdown continued as he became utterly unable to throw strikes. He walked Taylor Ward on four pitches. Gunnar Henderson stepped up with the bases loaded, and impressively, he stayed within himself and didn’t swing out of his heels trying to be a hero. Henderson patiently worked a five-pitch walk, forcing home Holliday to make it a 5-4 game.

Schneider had finally seen enough of Hoffman, about four batters too late, giving a Hail Mary call to the bullpen for journeyman Connor Seabold. The right-hander, who probably didn’t expect he’d have to be used in this game, seemed woefully unprepared. He, too, had trouble finding the strike zone, and Adley Rutschman gritted out an outstanding at-bat, taking a 3-2 pitch just off the outside for ball four.

WE. ARE. TIED. Cowser trotted home from third as the Camden Yards crowd of 32,645 went nuts. As the Orioles erupted in their dugout, the energy was drained out a shell-shocked Blue Jays team. The only thing left was for the Birds to go ahead and win it.

Pete Alonso delivered. After taking two balls and a strike, he jumped on a fastball and bounced it through the wide open hole on the right side. BASE HIT!! ORIOLES WIN!! I CAN’T STOP CAPITALIZING EVERYTHING!! The ecstatic O’s poured out of the dugout and ripped Alonso’s shirt off, possibly as some kind of ode to the Tarps Off movement but probably because they were just so excited they didn’t know what to do with themselves.

My goodness. The fans who didn’t leave early got to see one heck of an ending. Which is good, because the eight and a half innings of baseball they saw before that were hardly worth the price of admission.

I would have had a lot more to say about this if the Orioles had lost, but there was a truly tragicomic amount of failure from the O’s offense for most of the game. The Birds squandered one opportunity after another in the most painful ways possible, looking nothing like the offense that eventually exploded in the ninth.

Blue Jays starter Trey Yesavage issued seven walks — seven! — yet somehow gave up only one run, which almost seems mathematically impossible. But every time the Orioles had a rally going, they did the worst possible thing at the worst possible time. Yesavage walked three batters in the third inning alone, and Gunnar Henderson’s RBI single provided the O’s an early 1-0 lead. Unfortunately, with the bases loaded and one out, Alonso hacked wildly at the first pitch — again, after Yesavage walked three of the previous five batters — and grounded into an inning-ending double play. At that point, my frustration with the Polar Bear’s recent play was at an all-time high. I’d say he redeemed himself later.

A nearly identical situation played out in the fourth. Again, the O’s loaded the bases with one out against a wild Yesavage. And you’ll never believe what happened! (That was sarcasm. You will easily believe what happened.) Jeremiah Jackson tapped a grounder to third. Kazuma Okamoto fielded, stepped on the bag, and fired to first. Yup. It’s another inning-ending double play, Jackson’s 10th of the year, tying for the dubious MLB lead. Yesavage ended up gutting out five innings and left the game in line for the win. In a game in which, again, he had seven walks.

The GIDPs didn’t stop when Yesavage left the game. In the sixth, the O’s greeted reliever Yariel Rodríguez with a walk and a single to start the inning, and again they came up empty. Coby Mayo hit the ball hard but directly to shortstop Andrés Giménez, who promptly turned the 6-4-3 twin killing. Goodness. A weak Taveras strikeout ended another utterly deflating inning. At that point the Orioles were 1-for-7 in the game with runners in scoring position, and 1-for-17 in the series. I started to think they’d never get another hit in a clutch spot. Boy, was I glad to be wrong about that.

Meanwhile, Brandon Young delivered a whale of an effort — a season-high 6.2 innings and just two runs — but a porous O’s defense betrayed him in the fourth. With two outs and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at first, Jesús Sánchez lofted a fly ball to deep center. Taveras got a bad break, then got himself turned around as he raced backward, and the ball deflected off his glove as he attempted to make a lunging grab at the warning track. Guerrero raced around the bases to score the tying run. It was scored as a double, but a better center fielder would’ve made the catch with ease.

Taveras wasn’t done with the ugly defense. The next batter, Ernie Clement looped a single into center as Sánchez rounded third. Taveras might’ve had a play at the plate if he had fielded it cleanly. Instead, he dropped the ball on the transfer, allowing Sánchez to score without a throw. It’s been said before, but this O’s outfield defense is a real problem. The Blue Jays took a 2-1 lead.

It wasn’t just the Orioles’ offense and defense that struggled. So too did the bullpen. Anthony Nunez continued his recent swoon by giving up two runs in the eighth, with no help from an again-ineffective Keegan Akin, who let both inherited runners score. Albert Suárez, back with the Birds, gave up a run in the ninth to make it 5-1. And that’s how we got to that aforementioned bottom of the ninth with the Orioles in a deep hole. Without that remarkable comeback, there would’ve been a lot of blame to go around. I don’t know about you, though, but I’m suddenly feeling a lot more generous.

What a comeback. What a victory. These 2026 Orioles, man. Just when you think you’re out, they pull you back in.

Drew Rasmussen put in one of his worst performances of the year, getting through just four innings while giving up five runs.

Four of those runs came in the first, an uncharacteristically poor inning from the Rays righty. He gave up a single and then two walks — this is a guy who had, before today, given up eight walks all season. And then, probably eager to avoid a bases loaded walk, he threw a mediocre cutter to Wade Meckler, a mediocre hitter (with two career home runs), and Meckler hit it out for a grand slam.

In hindsight, the game ended there. But it’s not like the Rays had no chances.

They came up in the bottom of the first inning down 4-0, and Yandy Diaz led off with a home run. Aha, we all thought, the Rays are down but they are going to chip away at this lead!

That optimism seemed to be warranted. Jonathan Aranda singled and Junior Caminero walked. One out later, Chandler Simpson walked to load the bases.

But Ben Williamson struck out. Yeah, that happens. But he struck out looking…on a ball.

OK, Yandy had earlier had an unsuccessful challenge, maybe Williamson thought he’d get grief for wasting the second challenge in just the first inning? But all the strategic thinking around challenges is that you want to use them in a high leverage situation? Like….having bases loaded where a walk drives in a run and a strikeout greatly diminishes your chances of scoring that inning? And in fact, after this strikeout, Nick Fortes lined out and the inning ended.

When the Rays didn’t have bad judgement they had bad luck. They did score twice in the fifth inning, making the score 6-3 — not a blowout! So that optimism returned when they loaded the bases in the sixth. Jonathan Aranda did hit a nice liner into the outfield that could have brought home a few runs, but Joe Adell made a terrific catch for the final out of the inning.

After that, from the Rays perspective, it was garbage time. They went with a recent callup from Durham, Andrew Wantz, a 30 year old reliever, who played the role of putting the game completely out of reach. He gave up 5 earned runs, and he did all that with just two walks and two hits! Impressive! (he also hit two batters, and some of the runs scored when Cole Sulser, replacing him, gave up a home run).

Just hard to find any bright spots today, although the Yandy-Aranda—Junior part of the lineup contributed. Here’s what the rest of the lineup looked like:

It’s one thing when your 7-9 hitters don’t contribute, but when it’s your 4-9 hitters doing so little, well, you aren’t generating much offense.

I know this is a baseball cliche but I think it rings true here. The Rays winning nearly every day was not sustainable, but I don’t think this string of blow-out losses is the way they will be playing for the rest of the year either. Shane McClanahan will try to turn this ship around tomorrow, but he can’t do it alone.

Just when you thought the Royals had run out of ways to lose baseball games.

In case you’re too young to understand the reference in the headline, there was an old Newpaper comic strip called Peanuts by Charles Schulz. One of the running gags was that Charlie wanted to kick a football. Lucy would always promise to hold it for him, but when he ran up to kick it, she’d yank it away, and he’d go flying through the air when there was no ball to meet the resistance of his kick. Another common gag in Peanuts was for Charlie Brown to pitch in a baseball game and have a line drive hit so hard past him that it would send him tumbling and blow all his clothes off. Perhaps that would have been the better metaphor.

This one was 3-0 heading into the seventh inning despite the fact that Seth Lugo had pitched a real gem, allowing only a single earned run while striking out 6 in his third straight quality start. Josh Jung hit a one-out home run in the first. Later, the Royals’ vaunted left-side-of-the-infield each had an error in the bottom of the fourth to help Texas score two more.

In the top of the seventh, the Rangers went away from their middling starter, Kumar Rocker, in a shutout despite the fact that he had only thrown 85 pitches. The Royals immediately went to work against the Rangers bullpen. They scored four runs off of Tyler Alexander and old friend Jakob Junis.

Isaac Collins led off the inning with an opposite-field automatic double. Lane Thomas pinch-hit for Michael Massey but struck out looking on a pitch he probably should have challenged, even though it might have been confirmed. Nick Loftin pinch-hit for Kyle Isbel and yanked a single into left to put runners at first and third for today’s leadoff hitter, Carter Jensen. Carter managed a looping liner to left to score Collins. Bobby Witt Jr. pulled a line drive into left to send Loftin home and then Maikel Garcia, batting third for the second straight day, pulled a single of his own into left to tie the game and put Bobby at third. Up came Vinnie Pasquantino, who, infamously, had not hit for extra bases with runners on all year. He finally changed that with an RBI double to left center, giving the Royals the lead. But Garcia went hopping into third and was almost immediately pulled from the game with what was eventually declared a left hamstring strain. He is almost certainly destined for the IL. Salvador Perez and Jac Caglianone each struck out to end the inning.

Then, in the top of the eighth, you really began to think the Royals might be able to pull this off when Young Carter hit a flyball to left that just kept carrying until it left the field.

In the bottom of the eighth, recently anointed eighth-inning guy, Daniel “Danny Drips” Lynch IV was tasked with getting the game to the ninth with the Royals still in front. He’d been asked to get the final out of the seventh and succeeded but seemed to struggle in the eighth. He was pulled after allowing a run with only one out and two on for John Schreiber. Schreiber, miraculously, got a pop-up for the first out and then Carter Jensen made a fantastic play to catch the final out in foul territory.

The Royals went quietly in the ninth, and on came the artist formerly known as “Lights Out” Lucas Erceg to try to collect the save.

Leadoff home run for Joc Pederson to cut the lead to one. Josh Jung singles on a grounder to Bobby that probably should have been an out, but for Bobby’s second awful throw to first in the game. Brandon Nimmo chopped one to second, but Erceg attempted to intercept it, and instead of perhaps getting two outs, the Royals got none, and the go-ahead run was on. Jake Burger singled to right to tie the game and Ezequiel Duran, who has been tormenting KC this weekend, did the same to complete the comeback, walkoff victory.

Lucas Erceg has pitched three times this week; he has allowed 8 runs while recording only 6 outs. That’s right, he didn’t get a single out today. His ERA has ballooned from 3.26 all the way to 6.33. His SIERA has gone from 2.83 in 2024, to 3.78 last year, to something more than 4.47 this year after today’s game. Either he’s hurt, or he’s simply become very bad. Certainly, there has been an element of bad luck to his appearances, but you don’t pitch that poorly without both bad luck and poor performance.

It feels like the Royals simply can’t continue using him as the closer, but even though Matt Strahm is likely to return tomorrow, he hasn’t been significantly better. Carlos Estévez still hasn’t restarted his rehab assignment. Danny Drips has quietly given up 10 hits and 4 walks while striking out only 7 in 7.2 innings over his last 8 appearances. The next man up might be former Tigers closer Alex Lange, who has had several scoreless appearances recently, but also stopped striking guys out.

I’m not going to pretend like I know how the Royals can fix this. The bad news is, Royals General Manager J. J. Picollo isn’t going to either; he offered up this quote to Anne Rogers in her most recent Royals newsletter:

“The only thing we can do is keep competing, keep believing in ourselves, ask the right questions. Are there things that we can do to help us get back on track? Right now, we’re searching for it.”

Anyway, the Royals will show up at Globe Life Field again tomorrow. Michael Wacha will take the mound for the Royals’ final game in May 2026. Jack Leiter will pitch for the Rangers. The game will start at 1:35 Central. If you plan to watch it, you’ve got a stronger stomach than I do.