Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Jesus Sanchez had to leave Sunday's game against the Baltimore Orioles after getting hit by a baseball thrown from the stands in the middle of the sixth inning.
Sanchez originally stayed in the game for two batters in the bottom of the inning before he was replaced by Yohendrick Piñango.
"Jesús Sánchez was removed from today’s game with a right wrist contusion," The Blue Jays said in a statement. "He underwent precautionary X-rays that were negative for a fracture."
According to Baltimore Sun beat writer Jacob Calvin Meyer, a young fan apparently thought Sanchez was waving his glove like he wanted to play catch − as players occasionally do with fans between innings. However, Meyer reports the kid threw the ball late, after Sanchez had turned his back.
Sánchez left game after this fan interaction, ball appears to hit him in arm/wrist.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MAY 18: Starting pitcher Robbie Ray #38 of the San Francisco Giants pitches against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the third inning of the MLB game at Chase Field on May 18, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The San Francisco Giants are playing awful baseball, and have lost six straight. Now they’ll try to salvage a win against the Colorado Rockies in their series finale, before mercifully leaving the mountains … and taking on better teams. What could possibly go wrong?
Veteran left-hander Robbie Ray takes the mound for the Giants, with hopes of reversing his recent struggles. In 11 starts this year, the two-time All-Star is 3-6 with a 4.60 ERA, a 5.62 FIP, and 53 strikeouts to 29 walks in 58.2 innings. He’s been roughed up in his last three starts, including in his last outing, when he walked seven batters while allowing four runs in as many innings against the Chicago White Sox.
For the Rockies, it’s 28-year old right-hander Tanner Gordon, who makes his ninth appearance of the year. Gordon has mostly been used out of the bullpen for bulk innings, as this is just his second start. He’s 0-0 with a 5.85 ERA, a 4.08 FIP, and 33 strikeouts to seven walks in 32.1 innings. He got the start in his last game, and held the Los Angeles Dodgers to one run over five innings.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - MAY 25: Tanner Gordon #29 of the Colorado Rockies delivers a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on May 25, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Kyle Cooper/Colorado Rockies/Getty Images)
For the first time in over a month we can say this: the Colorado Rockies have not only won a series against an opponent and are now aiming for the sweep.
The Rockies started the series with a much-needed walk-off win thanks to a late-game rally and an Ezequiel Tovar home run. Then last night they continued to step on the gas by scoring eight runs before the Giants tallied their first. Now it’s time to see if they can finish the job.
The Rockies hope to bust out the brooms against the San Francisco Giants in their final series in May. That way they can leave a difficult month behind them and start June on a high note with some momentum.
On the mound for the Rockies is Tanner Gordon, who has officially been moved to full starting duty thanks to a litany of injuries to the pitching staff. The righty has been mostly used in bullpen or bulk relief duty this season, but is now coming off a strong outing in what was his first true start of the season. In five innings against the dreaded Los Angeles Dodgers, Gordon gave up just one earned run on six hits and a walk with three strikeouts.
On the bump for Los Gigantes is a familiar foe in veteran lefty Robbie Ray, who enters today’s contest with a 4.60 ERA and 53 strikeouts over his first 11 starts and 58.2 innings. He has struggled with his command this season, issuing 29 walks with a 4.4 BB/9 so far.
The former Cy Young winner and two-time All-Star has plenty of experience against the Rockies. However, the results are mixed. In 22 career starts against the Rockies, Ray holds a 5.24 ERA and has given up 19 home runs. He has strong strikeout numbers against Colorado with 142 punch-outs over 111.2 innings of work.
This season Ray has mostly four pitches, consisting of his primary four-seam fastball that averages 93.2 MPH, a slider, a changeup, and a knuckle curveball. The changeup has been his primary put-away pitch, but he has solid whiff induction in all three of his main breaking offerings. Ray also throws a very rare sinker. He’s used the pitch just 12 times this season, and for good reason. Opposing batters are both hitting and slugging .400 against it.
It’s the last day in May and the first time this season the Cubs will be featured as the Sunday Night Game of the Week in 2026. It’s also the beginning of a whole new era of Sunday Night Baseball here at Bleed Cubbie Blue, with the game moving from ESPN to NBC this season.
Long time readers of the site will remember that this feature began as a way to at least have a bit of fun while ESPN’s original crews shared gems like “Javy Báez should be more boring” or Matt Vasgersian ranting about bachelorette parties in the bleachers while absolutely butchering the pronunciation of some player names. Credit where it is due, that broadcast got a lot better over time. The final crew of Karl Ravech, with David Cone, Eduardo Pérez, and sideline reporter Buster Olney was actually pretty excellent, but the Bingo game must go on!
So here we are, on a new baseball channel but with the same classic rivalry between the Cubs and Cardinals. That rivalry has spanned parts of three centuries, now, our little Bingo game can surely survive a broadcast channel change or two.
As always, make it a blackout game for a challenge, but I don’t really recommend making it a drinking game unless you’re looking to pass out before the end of the game itself. The game begins at 6:20 p.m. CT on the NBC broadcast channel in your area.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - MAY 30: Bobby Witt Jr. #7 of the Kansas City Royals reacts after striking out against the Texas Rangers during the fifth inning at Globe Life Field on May 30, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Royals are in complete disarray. They have lost 15 of their last 18 games and are trying to avoid being swept for the third time in the last four series.
I don’t really have many positive things to say, Michael Wacha starts today, he’s been one of the few bright spots this season. With Maikel Garcia leaving the game yesterday with a pulled hamstring, it’s a different starting lineup for the Royals today.
The Rangers aren’t much better than the Royals and their three best hitters are injured right now, but they are still looking to sweep the Royals. They lost 3 of 4 at home to a bad Astros team before the Royals came to town.
Right hander Jack Leiter starts for them today. He made two starts against the Royals last season.
Here are the starters for the Rangers behind Leiter.
Rangers 5/31
J. Pederson DH J. Jung 3B B. Nimmo RF J. Burger 1B E. Duran SS A. Osuna LF K. Higashioka C N. Lopez 2B M. Helman CF
After this game concludes, the Royals are off to Cincinnati to play the Reds three times. First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m. CT, the game can be watched on Royals.TV
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 27: Willy Adames #2 of the San Francisco Giants reacts after being tagged out by Aramis Garcia #35 of the Arizona Diamondbacks in the eighth inning at Oracle Park on May 27, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Should the San Francisco Giants initiate a formal, but modest rebuild with just a year and a half left on Buster Posey’s deal? On Wednesday, the San Francisco Standard’s Tim Kawakami made the case that they should, based solely on the results of April and May. Around here, I’ve seen people comment about how “this just isn’t the Giants’ year” and that it’s a simple case of cataclysmic bad luck, the flip side of the unrepeatable fluke of 2021 and, therefore, a rebuild isn’t warranted. Which idea makes the most sense?
Rebuild!
The Giants might be able to get some pretty good players in return for their players having, hopefully, just some down years. On the other hand, Kawakami’s argument is less than inspiring: because they got a bunch of average-at-best players at last year’s deadline for a pair of relievers, that means they could get better prospects for better players. Are they going to get players who are meaningfully better than the ones they got at last year’s deadline for 2-3 months of Robbie Ray and Luiz Arraez? It’s iffy. Robbie Ray has been replacement level at best this season and not many contenders need a second baseman.
He also admits that Chapman, Adames, and Devers would be tough to move this season, calling Chapman a “sunk cost.” I’m not convinced of that, which means trading Chapman might be a bit of a buy low but not one that would just be to get his contract off the books, which itself might be reason enough for teams to stay away, even if they think he’ll return to form once he gets away from San Francisco. But there’s also a chance that Chapman bounces back in a Giants uniform.
The other argument Kawakami makes is that there might be a lockout for 2027 and so the Giants might just need to reload for 2028. I’d argue that would be part of the calculation for teams acquiring Giants. Robbie Ray and Luis Arraez don’t have contracts beyond this year and so they have the most value (well, besides Casey Schmitt), but Chapman, Adames, and Devers getting a chunk of next year off just makes them that much older and past their primes come 2028. Why would anyone trade for that?
On the other hand, there’s Logan Webb, whose contract would end after 2028. If teams really do start figuring there won’t be much of a 2027, then the Giants would need to consider trading Webb *this* season to maximize a return. A season and a half of Webb would net more than just 1 season.
Teams that choose to rebuild usually do so when they’re out of talent at the major league level and need to rebuild their farm system. Once again, the Giants find themselves in the middle, having some major league talent and some minor league talent that’s up and coming. The minor league talent the team has is still 2-3 years away from making major league debuts, and if there’s a lockout that could be extended like what happened with the COVID season. And, because other teams might be factoring in a lockout, too, it might be more difficult to move high priced veterans than one would imagine. Still, moving the players on expiring deals and maybe Logan Webb would bring in a lot of talent. Those acquisitions, plus the talent rising through the system, plus the players added in this year’s draft might be enough to make this a brief rebuild window.
Don’t rebuild!
Since the 2026 Giants aren’t so different from the Giants of last year, and Buster Posey has spent the past two seasons putting together a WIN NOW team, I think the McCovey Chronicles community has it right that the Giants have the team that they want, they just don’t have the results they expected.
Now, I could argue that the Giants have never had the team that they thought they did. I’ll argue that because if you look at their record following their 19-12 start last season, they’re 84-105. They’re a bad team that has been a bad team, but they’ve been led by someone who practices the power of positive thinking, I guess.
Since this season is a dud that will guarantee the franchise goes five years without a winning season for the first time in its history, there really isn’t much upside to a teardown. That just prolongs the pain. Rafael Devers, Matt Chapman, and Willy Adames all being bad at the same time is bad luck but also not an indication that all three are cooked for the rest of their contracts. Next year (or 2028) is probably a better time to reassess, and with a salary cap likely in place soon, it makes sense to just let some things play out.
Giving a lot of playing time to “the kids” makes some sense, and we’re already seeing Bryce Eldridge play a bit more. Jonah Cox has been called up. Trevor McDonald pushed Tyler Mahle to the phantom IL. I’d like to see more experimentation on the pitching side as the lineup guys are still a few years away, but the point is that getting a new manager familiar with the league is probably done better with a roster that’s not a smoking crater. The Giants have only played like a smoking crater, well below the projections.
But here’s the reason that I am personally opposed to a rebuild: I don’t trust this front office group to pull it off. I think their draft & development strategy is working, but when it comes to the major league roster, there’s a stench of ignorance and desperation blanketing the whole thing. The notion that they could trade away talent to get talent that helps the roster in a big way sooner rather than later doesn’t make much sense to me. Sure, a pitching prospect and a draft pick for Patrick Bailey sounds great, but Patrick Bailey is also a known commodity while two non-major leaguers aren’t. Drew Gilbert and Jesus Rodriguez are big question marks. I get the calculation of taking some risks to increase the upside, but I’m not impressed by the risk hit rate during Buster Posey’s tenure, which is literally, what, signing Luis Arraez to play second base? The principles that led them to their current situation won’t change.
The current front office really thought they just had to do a few things differently to open up a window of contention for the organization. That hasn’t been the case. The Giants don’t really do rebuilds, except for those times when they have (2005-2008, 2019 & 2020), but this group wasn’t tasked with doing that. Posey is probably going to remake parts of the major league roster on the fly, sure, and count on Randy Winn and the farm system to give the major league roster some impact players in the next 2-3 years, but to call it a rebuild or even consider it one just doesn’t seem like a solid path. Plus, I don’t think the Giants can get much in return for their highest paid players — if anything at all — in which case, what’s the point?
May 29, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Detroit Tigers center fielder Matt Vierling (8) celebrates with third baseman Kevin McGonigle (7) after scoring against the Chicago White Soxduring the tenth inning at Rate Field. Mandatory Credit: Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images | Patrick Gorski-Imagn Images
Detroit Tigers (22-37) vs. Chicago White Sox (31-27)
Time/Place: 2:10 p.m., Rate Field SB Nation Site: South Side Sox Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network Pitching Matchup: RHP Keider Montero (2-3, 4.09 ERA) vs. RHP Sean Burke (2-3, 3.90 ERA)
Rikuu Nishida is looking for another clutch RBI this afternoon | Matt Marton-Imagn Images
I’m still looking at 31-27 with some level of disbelief. I have typically been on the sunnier side than many of colleagues in prognosticating the future of the White Sox. It took until August 2024 for me to think that they really, truly had a chance at reaching 121 in the loss column. In 2025, I remained confident that they would keep it together enough to be an ordinarily bad 100-loss team, rather than maintaining the 2024-esque pace they played with for the first two months of that season. This year, I predicted they’d reach the 70-win mark for the first time in four seasons. Maybe they could make a second-half push for .500 ball if the midseason call-ups were just as effective as last season.
This, though? Even for my eternally hopeful brain, the idea that they would be better than .500 with a hold on a Wild Card slot as late as June felt ludicrous.
Perhaps the most surprising part is that while a LOT of important things have gone more right than I ever imagined — Murakami setting records, Colson Montgomery maintaining his 2025 pace, Miguel Vargas adding 3 mpg of bat speed and turning into a bona fide middle-of-the-order hitter, Randal Grichuk finding the fountain of youth, Davis Martin finally fulfilling my long-held fantasy of competing for a spot on an All-Star roster — there have still been plenty of duds that they’ve nonetheless overcome. The Opening Day starter was back in Triple-A after three games. The primary trade return for Luis Robert Jr. isn’t a major league-caliber player. Injuries have led to far more plate appearances from Jarred Kelenic, Derek Hill and Tristan Peters than anyone would have thought ideal. Erick Fedde remains completely washed, Noah Schultz struggled in his first action with the big club. Kyle Teel has yet to play and Edgar Quero has spent much of the last month seemingly on the verge of being demoted. Seranthony Domínguez has avoided many meltdowns but has already lost a secure grip on the closer job despite being signed for that exact purpose.
Yet here we are. The last time the Sox reached five games above the break-even mark was September 2022. Here’s the getaway day lineup we’re getting as they try to set themselves up to reach their highest water mark since the halcyon days of 2020-21. I can only presume that you, like me, are quite invested in Jacob Gonzalez’s first look on the South Side, given the absurd 19 homers he’s already cranked in Triple-A. If he can keep up anything close to like that, it’ll certainly go down as one of the more remarkable bust-to-boom prospect stories in recent memory.
The Tigers, meanwhile, have treaded the opposite path and undergone an utter shitshow of a season in which they were division favorites and World Series contenders, and are instead racing towards a very early draft pick in 2027. At the moment, they are the worst team in the American League and tied with the Rockies for worst in all of baseball.
The Sox last swept the Tigers in 2023, which is not what I expected to find. That series was also in late May, and after winning the second game in walk-off fashion, they secured the sweep with a Jake Burger grand slam to end it. It may have legitimately been the high point of the 2023 season.
Here’s the lineup that the moribund Tigers will trot out today, in hopes of salvaging some pride:
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - MAY 30: Brandon Nimmo #24 of the Texas Rangers reacts after scoring the winning run against the Kansas City Royals during the ninth inning at Globe Life Field on May 30, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Carson Benge – RF Bo Bichette – SS Juan Soto – LF Jared Young – DH Mark Vientos – 1B A.J. Ewing – CF Brett Baty – 3B Marcus Semien – 2B Luis Torrens – C
SP: Nolan McLean – RHP
Marlins lineup
Xavier Edwards – 2B Liam Hicks – C Otto Lopez – SS Kyle Stowers – DH Jakob Marsee – CF Connor Norby – 1B Owen Caissie – RF Esteury Ruiz – LF Javier Sanoja – 3B
SP: John King – LHP
Broadcast info
First pitch: 1:40 PM ET TV: SNY Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2
On this day 103 years ago, Ernie Johnson headed from the South Side to the Bronx. | (American Caramel)
1914 Joe “The Butcher Boy” Benz, (so named because he worked as a butcher in the offseason) fired a no-hitter, beating Cleveland 6-1 at Comiskey Park. The lone Naps run, scored in the fourth inning, came out of three consecutive White Sox errors. Benz walked two and struck out three on the day.
It was the second time in 17 days a White Sox pitcher had thrown nine no-hit innings. On May 14, Jim Scott went nine frames without a hit, then lost his no-hitter (and the game, 1-0) on two hits in the 10th at Washington.
1923 After a stirring reclamation of his MLB career two seasons earlier, Ernie Johnson’s poor play at shortstop saw him waived by the White Sox. Johnson had signed with Chicago in 1921 after two years out of the majors, playing for the Double-A Salt Lake City Bees. He played well enough on the South Side (1.8 WAR and extremely good defense) in 1921, but saw his value winnow to glove-only in the two subsequent seasons.
The Yankees, dominating the American League at 29-10, claimed Johnson on waivers and employed him as a bench player for the rest of the season. Thus while Johnson’s career was on the wane, he did earn himself a World Series ring as a defensive replacement and pinch-runner that October.
1950 White Sox GM Frank Lane made a six-player deal with the Senators that included former All- Star second baseman Cass Michaels (real name Casimir Kwietniewski). The move was important, because it cleared the way for a youngster named Nellie Fox to take over full-time at the position; that year, Fox would play in 130 games and register 497 at-bats.
1970 The torpid White Sox, on their way to the worst single season in franchise history, annihilated the Red Sox in Boston, 22-13. The South Siders banged out 24 hits, with Luis Aparicio and Walt Williams collecting five apiece. Williams scored five times, and Bill Melton knocked in four runs. Chicago had innings where they scored seven, six, four and three runs.
The victim that afternoon? None other than former White Sox star pitcher Gary Peters, who was knocked out of the box in the first inning. It was the second-most runs ever scored in a single game by the White Sox.
1971 In the nightcap of a doubleheader with the Orioles at Comiskey Park, former White Sox infielder Don Buford charged pitcher BartJohnson with his bat after Johnson drilled him with a pitch that hit him in his behind in the eighth inning. When Bufordwent out to left field in the last of the eighth inning, Sox fans pelted him with garbage and vocally let him know what they thought of his actions.
Cooler heads prevailed, but in the ninth inning while standing in the on-deck circle lecturing a fan, Buford was attacked from behind by a second fan, who escaped … onto the field! Buford was alerted by White Sox players yelling from the field, because they could see what was unfolding. Buford knocked the fan out with one punch, then his Oriole teammates charged out of the dugout and did a bloody number on the trespasser before security could lead him away.
Bufordwas ejected from the game by umpire Nestor Chylak for going to the screen to warn fan in the first place, antagonizing the situation.
The teams split the doubleheader that afternoon.
1973 It was an inauspicious debut for a player who’d make himself into a fine big-league hitter. In a game at Chicago that the Sox won, 10-2, BrianDowning entered the game in the seventh inning to make his big-league debut at third base.
On his first play in the big leagues, in fact on the first pitch, Downing caught a foul pop off the bat of Detroit’s Dick McAuliffe, diving to make the catch. On the play, though, Downing ripped up his knee and was placed on the injured list.
Downing would collect his first big league hit in August, an inside-the-park home run off of Mickey Lolich in Detroit.
1978 The White Sox trounced California, 17-2, with a 22-hit attack.
The game turned into a rout in the fifth inning, when the Sox turned a 1-1 game on its head and exploded for 11 runs. Fifteen White Sox came to the plate, with Greg Pryor singling and doubling, Jorge Orta singling twice — and Lamar Johnson making two of the inning’s outs. Three Angels pitchers were victimized by the ex-Hit Men, none worse than recent White Sox hurler Ken Brett, who relieved in the frame but was knocked out of the box having retired just one Chicagoan. The hurlers were done no favors by two errors in the inning.
On the White Sox side, Steve Stone somehow weathered that endless fifth to complete the game and improve to 4-3 on the year.
That run output ties for 38th-most ever by the White Sox, and the 22 hits rank tied for 24th.
The rout zeroed out a 5-2 homestand and marked a fifth straight win. The South Siders would win two more on the road, stretching the win streak to seven, before losing again. However, the White Sox were floundering, stuck in sixth place even after the win streak and improving to just 17-28 with this romp.
2000 The White Sox swapped relief pitcher Tanyon Sturtze to Tampa Bay for infielder Tony Graffanino, in the very first trade Chicago ever made with the Rays. Graffanino was excellent in 2000 and over the next three seasons, increasing his WAR each year and serving as a superb utilityman covering shortstop, second base and third. Sturtze was having a horrific (-0.8 WAR) season in Chicago but recovered for a 1.6 WAR and 2.56 ERA as a swingman in Florida; in the next season (2001), Sturtze was outstanding, garnering 3.3 WAR primarily as a starter, pitching almost 200 innings to a 4.42 ERA.
Graffanino even gave the White Sox assist later in his career, committing a key error for the Red Sox in Game 2 of the ALDS in Chicago.
2007 Mark Buehrle lost to Toronto, 2-0, giving up solo home runs to Aaron Hill and Frank Thomas. That’s it: No other hits, walks, or Sox errors in the game. Thus the Blue Jays became the first team ever to win a game without a single baserunner.
The White Sox only twice even had runners reach third base, with one, Rob Mackowiak, thrown out at home.
Despite the loss, Buehrle also became the first White Sox pitcher since Joe Horlen in 1967 to throw a no-hitter and a complete game of only two hits or less in the same season.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - MAY 30: Christian Walker #8 of the Houston Astros hits a three-run home run in the eighth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at Daikin Park on May 30, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Houston Astros/Getty Images) | Getty Images
TODAY’S GAME: The Houston Astros (27-33), who are 8-3 in their last 11 games, will play the rubber game of their three-game series today opposite the NL Central division leading Milwaukee Brewers (34-21).
RHP Tatsuya Imai (2-2, 6.17 ERA), who started the Astros combined no-hitter on Monday at TEX, will start for the Astros today opposite the Brewers and hard-throwing RHP Jacob Misiorowski (5-2, 1.83 ERA).
ABOUT IMAI: RHP Tatsuya Imai is set to make his seventh career Major League start today and his fourth since returning from the IL after a bout with right arm fatigue.
He’s performed better since his return, particularly in his last two starts in which he’s gone 1-1 with a 2.53 ERA (3ER/10.2IP) and a 0.84 WHIP.
In January, the Astros signed Imai to a three-year deal.
In 2025, he was an All-Star for the Seibu Lions in the NPB in Japan, where he went 10-5 with a 1.92 ERA (35ER/163.2IP) in 24 games.
ABOUT THE NO-NO: In the last start by RHP Tatsuya Imai, the Astros got back in the record books on Monday at TEX, tossing their 17th regular season no-hitter and their 18th no-hitter overall in club history.
A few notes on the no-no:
• Imai (6IP), LHP Steven Okert (1IP) and RHP Alimber Santa (2IP) produced the fifth combined no-hitter in club history and the first since Nov. 2, 2022 at PHI (World Series, Game 4).
• Per Elias, RHP Alimber Santa became the first pitcher since 1900 to pitch in a no-hitter in his ML debut. According to their records, it happened one other time, which was on Oct. 15, 1892, when RHP Bumpus Jones of Cincinnati hurled a 9.0-inning, complete game no-hitter in his Major League debut.
• The no-hitter was the Astros seventh since 2019, which is the most in the Majors in that span. Additionally, the Astros 18 no-hitters overall are the most in the Majors since the franchise was born in 1962.
CONGRATS JOE!: Manager Joe Espada is one of several individuals being inducted into the Carolina Sports Hall of Fame in Puerto Rico today. This Hall of Fame honors athletes, coaches, and sports figures who have made profound contributions to local and international athletics. Roberto Clemente, who was born in Carolina, was their first inductee.
FOR STARTERS: Astros starters have a combined ERA of 3.35 (32ER/86IP) over the last 15 games (since May 15) with a 1.07 WHIP. In that span, they have allowed just 52 hits in 86.0 innings for a Major League-best .174 opponent average, while also ranking third in the AL in WHIP and fourth in ERA. Additionally, Astros starters have allowed one or fewer runs seven times in the last 15 games.
MAKING THE PLAYS: The Astros have committed just 21 errors on the season, the fewest in the AL and the third-fewest in the Majors. They also lead the AL in fielding percentage (.990).
MAY-KING HIS CASE:RHP Spencer Arrighetti has made a strong case for the AL Pitcher of the Month award for May, going 4-1 with a 0.93 ERA (3ER/29IP) and a .165 opponent average (16×97) in five starts in the month. In May, he has the lowest ERA and opponent average among AL starters, while ranking tied for first in wins.
HOMER HAPPY: The Astros have slugged 19 homers in their last nine games. Houston now ranks tied for second in the AL in homers with 79, trailing only the Yankees (86) in that category.
ON THE LEADER BOARD:DH Yordan Alvarez leads MLB in OPS (1.062) and total bases (137). In the AL, he ranks first in extra-base hits (32), tied for first in HR (20), second in SLG (.643), second in OBP (.419), second in hits (65), fifth in batting avg. (.305), sixth in RBI (39), tied for sixth in walks (39), and tied for eighth in runs (39).
HISTORIC HOMERS: DH Yordan Alvarez is off to one of the most prolific starts in franchise history. His 20 homers through the club’s first 60 games of the season match the franchise record, also reached by 1B Jeff Bagwell in the 1999 season.
YOR-GONE!: DH Yordan Alvarez has blasted 190 career regular season home runs, which ranks seventh in Astros history. He’s now one home run shy of matching 3B Alex Bregman for sixth all-time.
WALKER, TEXAS HAMMER: 1B Christian Walker has five HR and 12 RBI in his last seven games.
For the season, he leads the AL in RBI (43) and ranks tied for fifth in XBH (26), tied for fifth in total bases (113), sixth in HR (16), and eighth in SLG (.521). Walker also has not committed an error in 59 games.
HIT PAREDES: 3B Isaac Paredes has 499 career hits and is looking to become just the 10th Mexican-born player in MLB history to reach 500 career hits. Two of those nine ahead of him played portions of their careers with the Astros in 3B Vinny Castilla (1,884 hits) and C Alex Treviño (604 hits).
HEATING UP: RF Cam Smith has a hit in nine of his last 10 games, batting .324 (12×37) with seven runs scored, two doubles, two homers, four RBI and three walks in that span.
OF Taylor Trammell is riding a career-high, nine-game hitting streak, batting .387 (12×31) with two doubles, one triple, three RBI and a .940 OPS within the streak.
TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY: 1975 – The Astros set a club record with a 12-run inning, doing so in the 8th frame in a 15-3 win over the Phillies at Veterans Stadium. PH Cliff Johnson has a double, homer and three RBI in that 8th inning. Enos Cabell (HR, 3 RBI) and Milt May (3×5, 2 RBI) had big days offensively.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Sunday, May 31, 1:10 p.m. CT
Location: Daikin Park, Houston, TX
TV: Space City Home Network
Streaming: SCHN+
Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - MAY 18: David Fry #6 of the Cleveland Guardians at bat against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on May 18, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Nic Antaya/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Please win one for Bibee.
Here’s the Red Sox lineup:
UPDATED 5/31 at CLE: Duran CF Gasper 1B Abreu RF Yoshida LF Kiner-Falefa 2B Durbin 3B Mayer SS Wong DH Narváez C Suarez P
May 30, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Boston Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran (16) congratulates relief pitcher Danny Coulombe (67) after the Red Sox defeated the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images | David Dermer-Imagn Images
Happy Sunday, Red Sox Nation! We’ve got another series finale on deck today after splitting the first two games against the Cleveland Guardians. Willson Contreras gets a maintenance day, and Ceddanne Rafaela was scratched, so we’ve got an interesting lineup. All three catchers are in there, somehow. I flew a little too close to the sun last night at a wedding, and should probably also be scratched, but we’re powering through. Congrats to the Andersons.
ATLANTA, GA - MAY 12: A tribute to recently deceased Ted Turner and Bobby Cox on the field with the 1995 World Series trophy before the Tuesday evening MLB game between the Atlanta Braves and the Chicago Cubs on May 12, 2026 at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
When I was gallivanting around Washington, D.C. a few weeks ago, I saw that Ted Turner & Bobby Cox had passed away. I wanted to comment on that, as those two fellows had a surprising impact on my “baseball upbringing”, if you will.
Let’s start with Ted Turner. Perhaps best known for starting CNN (a 24/7 news channel? No one will ever get into that), Turner also created the TBS (Turner Broadcasting System) cable TV channel, which was included in cable packages across the nation. Why was this important to baseball fans? Well, alongside James Bond movie marathons & WCW professional wrestling, TBS became the broadcast home of the Atlanta Braves (which Turner also owned). As far as I know, this was the first time an MLB team could be routinely followed out-of-market by a mass audience.
(Side note: Billionaire Ted also established TCM—Turner Classic Movies—and bought out old studio back catalogs simply to fill air time. Without that endeavor, a film like It’s A Wonderful Life would never have been re-discovered and now-revered).
How did this have an impact on me living in northwest Minnesota? You have to remember that I started following MLB—in 1996—when the Minnesota Twins were the joke of the league. In a sense, it is truly amazing I stuck with it at all. But I fell hard for baseball and the Braves were the class of the league in the late-1990s. Granted, I was usually rooting against them and for the underdog (what a world!) New York Mets of Mike Piazza, Al Leiter, & Benny Agbayani vintage. Either way, it allowed me to watch highly-competitive baseball from time to time as opposed to the Twins slogging through their doldrum late-90s.
The manager of those ATL squads? Why, Bobby Cox of course! Excluding the never-concluded 1994 campaign, Cox presided over a mind-boggling run of 14 consecutive division titles for the Braves (1991-1993, 1995-2005). Over 29 skipper seasons with Atlanta & the Toronto Blue Jays, Cox compiled a 2504-2001 record (.556 WP), one World Series title (though not two), four other NL pennants, and a plaque in Cooperstown.
I don’t care how much he leaned on his “Big Three” SP of Greg Maddux, Tom Glavine, & John Smoltz—a track record like the one he put together speaks for itself. He was also a Gardenhire-esque source of entertainment in that he set the all-time MLB record for manager ejections—even surpassing the notoriously wicked John McGraw in terms of getting the ‘ol heave-ho from the Men in Blue!
A final thought to mull over here as the Twins are set to clash with the Pittsburgh Pirates this afternoon: in the span of the 1991 to the present—not all that long in the grand scheme of things—cable TV went from nascent curiosity to in 90% of TV-watching homes to the most hated enterprise in business to almost obsolete (we are currently here) to being pined for in an uber-fragmented TV landscape (we are also here). Remarkable—Ted Turner and his irascible-but-brilliant manager were right in the middle of all of it.
