Category: Baseball

Despite the Mariners winning this afternoon’s game against the Guardians, the big story was a standout performance from Cleveland’s starter, Joey Cantillo, and his newfound love of the curveball. The curveball’s fallen out of fashion in MLB lately. Just 8.2% of the pitches this season have been big benders, the second-lowest since 2008, despite the general rise of the secondary pitch and fade of the fastball. But there are exceptions to every trend, and Cantillo has decided to zig where the league has zagged, and all that movement left the Mariners flummoxed.

Here’s a little chart of Cantillo’s curveball usage leading up to today’s game:

Notice that big spike? That was Saturday’s game against the Astros, when he went eight innings, striking out nine against just one walk and one run allowed, on the back of a 45% curveball rate. Now here’s today’s game on that chart:

So on the one hand, you can forgive the Mariners for getting caught off guard. Prior to Saturday, Cantillo’s career high on the curveball was 33%, and he’d only pitched four games in which he used Uncle Charlie more than 30% of the time. The fact that the Mariners whiffed on the pitch more than half the time owes a lot to how dramatically Cantillo changed his game. I genuinely can’t remember the last time I saw a starting pitcher use his curve literally 50% of the time.

More troubling, though, was the Mariners’ inability to adjust. Even the second and third time through, they were still getting hammered by the 59-inch break. Take Dominic Canzone’s second at-bat. Cantillo threw five curveballs in a row, with Canzone whiffing twice and barely getting a piece of a third before finally giving Cantillo a sword on a fastball that Canzone obviously thought would be a curve. Seattle struck out on the curveball five times, with another four punchouts set up by it one way or another. The team only managed one hard hit off Cantillo’s curve, a 103-mph groundball off the bat of Julio Rodríguez, which ended the sixth and ended up being the final pitch Cantillo threw.

The Mariners did get to Cantillo once, a homecoming home run for Colt Emerson. In Colt’s first game in the ballpark he grew up coming to, he smashed a ball out of the park in front of all his friends and family. How did he do it? By laying off two curveballs and getting a changeup.

Colt doesn’t show as much emotion on the field as Cole Young, and the game state made the home run less consequential. But don’t let any of that fool you. This was just as special for him as Cole’s was in Pittsburgh.

And despite getting pretty well manhandled by Cantillo, the Mariners were in a fine position when he left the game because Luis Castillo put up six excellent innings of his own. In one way, it was vintage Castillo, mixing in all his pitches, and even getting four whiffs and several weak ground balls off his formerly premier cambio. In another way, it was hardly the Castillo of old, with just ten whiffs and four strikeouts. Still, I’m happy to celebrate a Castillo that rolls through a lineup on soft contact. No muss and no fuss isn’t as sexy as taking another team’s lunch money, but we could use a little less muss and fuss after Seattle’s last couple weeks. It’s good enough for today’s Sun Hat Award anyway.

The Mariners were able to win the game in the final three innings thanks to taking advantage of Cleveland’s mistakes. As soon as Cantillo left the game, Tim Herrin walked the first two Mariners he saw, Cal Raleigh and Dominic Canzone. And after some bad BABIP luck over the past month or so, the Mariners got a little good luck with Travis Bazzana bobbling J.P. Crawford’s groundball, allowing Cal to score. In the next inning, the Guardians once again let a free baserunner score when Colt Emerson walked and was driven in by Julio.

Those three runs were enough today, despite it being the 12th game in a row that the Mariners have scored three runs or fewer, because unlike Cleveland, Seattle’s bullpen locked down their starter’s good outing. Jose A. Ferrer, Gabe Speier, and Andrés Muñoz retired all nine batters they faced. Connor Donovan points out that over his last two outings, Muñoz has faced six left-handed batters out of six possible batters faced and struck out five of them. And remember that chart of Cantillo’s curveball usage? Let’s look at another one to close this out. It shows Gabe Speier’s fastball velocity over each month of his career.

That spike at the very end is only going to move higher because he averaged 97 mph again today. I’ll have more to say about that next week.

The Los Angeles Angels have announced they are relieving general manager Perry Minasian of his duties and have appointed John Mozeliak as the club’s interim general manager.

Minasian’s departure was announced by a press release from Angels team president, Molly Jolly.

“Perry has been a valued leader who worked tirelessly over the last six years to strengthen our baseball operations department,” said Jolly via a press release by the Angels. “I am grateful for his dedication, insight and many contributions to our organization.”

Minasian, 46, was hired as the club’s general manager in November, 2020. During that time, he was tasked with fixing the Angels.

He inherited Joe Maddon as his manager, Shohei Ohtani, a prime Mike Trout, and one of the worst farm systems in baseball.

Minasian’s tenure as general manager of the Angels oversaw multiple losing seasons and five different managers leading the clubhouse.

The Angels have failed to reach the postseason, a drought that dates back to 2014, and have failed to finish a season above .500, another drought that dates back to 2015.

In 2021, the club finished 77-85; since then, they’ve been steadily declining. In 2023, the team was having its best season under Minasian’s guidance, sitting at 52-49 when the trade deadline came around. The team would go on and win 21 of their next 61 games and would finish the season fourth in the American League West with a 73-89 record.

In 2023, the Angels had the opportunity to trade Ohtani, as multiple teams expressed interest in trading for him, but Angels owner Arte Moreno insisted the club kept him as they were hopeful they could sign him in free agency.

As Minasian was tasked with fixing the Angels’ farm system and turning the team competitive on the fly, he notoriously drafted players who were close to being MLB-ready during the draft, notably Zach Neto, Nolan Schanuel [Who made his MLB Debut the same year he was drafted], Sam Bachman, and Christian Moore.

In his first year as general manager, he also had the infamous 2021 MLB draft, where he selected 20 pitchers as the Angels were in dire need of starting pitching. Only Bachman remains with the club from this class.

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Mozeliak will join the Angels following a 30-year tenure with the St. Louis Cardinals.

During his time in St. Louis, he spent the last 18 years leading the team’s baseball operations. During his guidance, he helped the team reach the postseason 10 times, winning 6 National League Central division titles, winning the National League Pennant twice, and helping the team win the World Series in 2011.

“John is one of the most accomplished and respected baseball executives with a proven track record of building a winning organization,” Said Jolly in a press release.

“For three decades, he constructed one of baseball’s most respected organizations, combining strong leadership with a commitment to player development and organizational excellence. We are thrilled to welcome him to the Angels and look forward to benefiting from his experience and perspective as we continue to shape the future of our organization.”

Juan Soto said he was surprised to learn about the Mets' firing of manager Carlos Mendoza on Friday morning.

"It sucks,” Soto said when asked about his emotions when he heard the news. “It’s tough to see for a guy like that. I was really close with him; I talked to him a lot.

“Then to see him go, it’s really tough.”

Soto, who signed with the Mets on a 15-year deal after Mendoza’s first season as skipper, said he was informed of the decision by a call from the team’s front office. Soto said he spoke with Mendoza to express his appreciation for what the former manager did for him in welcoming him to the clubhouse “in the best way.”

Despite the team’s poor start to the season, they fell to 34-48 with a 2-1 defeat to the Philadelphia Phillies in the first game with interim manager Andy Greenon the bench, Soto said he did not expect the club to make a move at manager.

“Not at all, not at all,” Soto said after Friday’s loss.

“It’s moves every day here. You see bullpen guys going up and down, trades, starters getting moved to the bullpen. You're always expecting those moves,” he continued. “But seeing Mendoza, it's just tough."

Soto said he didn’t think the team’s struggles were a result of players pressing in the hopes of rescuing the floundering season and saving the manager’s job.  

“It’s tough, it’s part of baseball,” Soto said of the team’s struggles despite the talent on the roster. “We just haven’t been coming through in big situations. That’s the way the game goes, you gotta come through in the right moment.”

In Friday’s game, Soto came close to a two-run home run in the bottom of the first, but Phillies center fielder Derek Hill made a tremendous leaping grab to bring the ball back from over the fence. 

“I think it was an unbelievable catch,” Soto said. “When you see the replays, you see how impressive it was. He didn’t even have any time; he just went straight to the wall and jumped. That was incredible.”

Soto finished 0-for-4 with a strikeout.

Andy Green wasn’t expecting a return to the dugout. 

But following the firing of Carlos Mendoza, the Mets’ senior vice president of baseball development felt a “responsibility” to step in on an interim basis — and help ease the “burden” on players to perform amid this nightmarish season. 

“Guys play their best when they play with joy,” said Green, who had been serving as the team’s senior vice president of baseball development. “Guys play their best when they realize this isn’t about strategy, it’s about freedom.” 

Green, who managed the Padres from 2016-19, was completely happy in his front office role in the minors, which president of baseball operations David Stearns said he will return to at the end of this season. The former utility infielder and short-lived Mets player (he suited up for the team four times in 2009) “loved” running the team’s farm system, said he rejected other chances to manage and enjoyed being able to spend more time with his three daughters. 

This, Green said in a captivating press conference, “wasn’t something I was running to.”

“This felt like a responsibility more than an opportunity. Once it was made known to me that there was nothing that was going to change [in terms of his development role], once I learned that, I genuinely believe that given my life experience, I was best positioned to help over the next three months and see what we can get done as a group.” 

There’s no guarantees that Green, who amassed a 274-366 record in San Diego, will inspire a turnaround for this Mets team, who entered Friday’s matchup against the Phillies riding a six-game losing streak and two days removed from a six-error disaster against Chicago. 

Green, who knows Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing and Nolan McLean from their time in the minors, believes this team can defend better overall. He also seems a good bet to provide a jolt to the Mets’ clubhouse, as he admitted that “there’s been plenty enough people that have not loved my leadership style.” 

“I will show up every day with the humility to know that I only impact so much, and I will show up every day willing to challenge people, and I think that’s how you end up earning respect of people,” he said. “If they choose to see me in a different light, I am not going to be bothered by that.” 

The interim boss, who played three seasons for the Diamondbacks, didn’t reach the playoffs during four seasons in San Diego but evidently took plenty of lessons from his time out West and said he previously picked the brains of managers who had gotten second chances in the role. 

“I’ve had them share stories with me, and I’ve had them share learnings with me, and that doesn’t mean I am on a pathway to be like them,” Green said. “It means there’s freedom to go through struggle, failure, shortcoming, and realize you didn’t die, because once you realize something’s not fatal, you have the capacity to go through it without the stress that transfers to everybody else in the building.” 

For now, Green will hope to change the fortunes of a team in the basement of the NL East and nowhere near a wild-card spot. 

“We can flip that script,” Green said, “and they’re the ones with the pen in their hands to get that all through the story.”

Albert Pujols has confirmed that he is interested in managing the New York Mets.

Pujols was seen reacting to the vacancy of the managerial job with the Mets on MLB Network Friday afternoon and casually said why he would be interested in the job.

“You have an owner that want’s to win, wants to spend, that’s always huge,” Pujols said on MLB Network. “You have the talent on the field, although this year, it hasn’t been great for them because of the injuries. When they built this ballclub through the offseason and through spring training, they would never have thought they were going to have so many injuries like this.”

The vacancy of the Mets manager position became official on Friday morning when they fired Carlos Mendoza, and announced Andy Green will serve as the interim manager for the rest of the season.

Mendoza’s departure comes as the Mets are 13 games below .500 with a 34-47 record and are 15 games out of first in the National League East.

On paper, the Mets have one of the best rosters in baseball, as they have a lineup that features Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Bo Bichette. But injuries have plagued the team this year, as Soto, Luis Robert Jr., and Marcus Semien are currently on the team’s injured list.

With all the injury struggles the team is having, the early indications are that the team will miss the playoffs for the second consecutive season.

With the decision to move on from Mendoza and sitting dead last in the division, New York will likely get a head start on the offseason and be sellers at this year’s MLB Trade Deadline.

Having an opportunity to get a head start, it brings up the question: Is Pujols the right fit to lead the Mets?

The Dominican Republic finished in third place, after losing 2-1 to the USA in the semifinals of the WBC. Which brings the question: Is Pujols the right fit to lead the Mets?

“No matter where it is, I’m gonna bring in my experience, learning from great managers in the past, and try to do the best that I can to try and build a great relationship with the players,” Pujols said. “Because at the end of the day, I believe that communication is huge, with your players, with your superstars.”

When Pujols managed the Dominican Republic during the WBC, he was impressive.

The Dominican Republic had Soto on the team, and they finished in third place, losing 2-1 to the USA in the semifinals.

“I remember when I took the WBC job, people were asking, ‘How are you going to handle so many superstars?’ By talking to them. Expecting them to do their best.” Pujols said. “I don’t have too many rules, just show up, play hard, respect me and my coaching staff, and that’s what they did.”

In hindsight, Derek Hill won the game in the first inning, before most fans had settled into their seats at Citi Field Friday.

After a turbulent morning that included the Mets dismissing manager Carlos Mendoza, Juan Soto looked to turn things around in New York. He turned on a 96-mile-per-hour Zack Wheeler fastball and drove it deep to right center. It was 104 mph off the bat and looked like it was going to be a two-run homer.

Hill, however, had other ideas. The center fielder shaded toward the left side of second base and read it early, turned back and ran. Though he never really looked rushed, he flew back and at the track leapt. His elbow cleared the top of the fence and he brought back that potential home run ball.

Starter Zack Wheeler, who began his career with the Mets and hated their constant drama, watched and just laughed. He went on to make it stand up into a 2-1 win for the Phillies.

We still cannot believe this catch 😮

Did Derek Hill just make the play of year?! https://t.co/RYCBl3d1xOpic.twitter.com/t1xKp3BTDe

— MLB (@MLB) June 26, 2026

The Phillies went crazy. Brandon Marsh who had been running over for backup from right field, yanked off his cap and went over to congratulate Hill. Bryce Harper celebrated at first base and Alec Bohm just put his hands on top of his head and stared out in amazement.

It is already a contender for catch of the year.

Wheeler, meanwhile, went seven innings and gave up just one run and four hits, while striking out seven.

BOSTON — Andy Green might not be in the Mets dugout for long as he takes over for the fired Carlos Mendoza, but one of his Citi Field predecessors is confident the new interim manager could have a positive impact while he’s there. 

Terry Collins was the organization’s minor league field coordinator in 2010, when Green was in his final season as a player. 

Green spent most of that season at Triple-A Buffalo and talked with Collins, who went on to take the Mets manager job the following season. 

“I talked to Green about maybe managing that year,” Collins said by phone on Friday. “He was smart, knowledgeable and loved the game. At the time, he wasn’t sure if he wanted to keep playing.” 

Green, who played 140 games in the majors over parts of four seasons — including four games with the Mets in 2009 — took Collins’ advice and went into coaching in 2011 and got back to the majors as the third base coach for the Diamondbacks in 2015. 

A year later, he was the Padres manager. 

“All of a sudden, he was a major league coach and then manager,” Collins said of Green, who is headed back to the front office following the season. 

“I think he can be a good manager,” Collins said. “He’s an intense guy. Maybe that’s what they need. Carlos did a great job getting them turned around and having that run in 2024. Sometimes a different voice or personality can help.” 

Green, like Collins, was an undersized player who tried to get the most out of his ability. 

“We weren’t blessed with power or size,” Collins said. “Guys like that know you have to play harder than everyone else. Maybe that will help in there.” 

Collins recalled fondly the altercation between Green and Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, when the two got into an argument while meeting with umpires during a game in 2017 that resulted in Roberts shoving Green, which earned him a suspension. 

“Andy is intense,” Collins said. “Maybe that’s what they need. Their players weren’t executing. I wish Andy well there and I know Carlos is gonna land on his feet.”

It is Friday. The Orioles have returned home and beat the Nationals, 3-1. Trevor Rogers was good. Coby Mayo was also good! There were some shenanigans, but not enough to keep the Orioles from getting the win.

YOU KNOW WHAT MUST BE DONE

(GIFS!)

SAN DIEGO –– The Dodgers still don’t know when starting catcher Will Smith will return from his neck injury.

Thus, when Shohei Ohtani takes the mound next Wednesday, it will “most likely” be Dalton Rushing behind the plate again, manager Dave Roberts said on Friday.

Typically, managers aren’t asked about battery pairings almost a week away from a pitcher’s next start.

But over the last couple days, the Ohtani-Rushing dynamic has been the leading story around the Dodgers, after the two expressed frustration with one another during a second-inning meltdown in Minnesota this week.

In the wake of that episode –– in which the four-time MVP and second-year backup catcher suffered miscommunication in everything from pitch-calling to ABS challenges to PitchCom mix-up that led to a run-scoring passed ball –– Roberts said there had been “conversations” behind the scenes to ensure “that going forward we’ll all be on the same page.”

“It’s not always going to be synced up, but I think that where it got to the other day, I really don’t see that happening going forward,” Roberts said. “They all care. Everyone cares. Just more of, I got to make sure that we’re all on the same page and they got to do their jobs.”

This week’s Minnesota game was only the third time Rushing has been behind the plate for an Ohtani start this year. It has happened in each of the two-way star’s previous three outings because Smith continues to battle a lingering neck injury.

What was initially believed to be minor neck pain has now sidelined Smith for three weeks.

On Friday, Roberts said Smith is still not doing any baseball activities, but is “feeling better day-by-day.”

Roberts added that it’s unlikely Smith will be back by the start of next week’s homestand, but still downplayed any long-term concern.

“I think it’s concerning in the sense that it’s a lot longer than we’d expected,” Roberts said. “It’s not concerning because we don’t think it’s a long-term situation.”

The Texas Rangers scored five runs while the Toronto Blue Jays scored four runs.

Remember last night when the Rangers scored a bunch of runs early and then gently moseyed to a victory over the Blue Jays despite their lead shrinking to almost nothing late? Well, tonight’s game was pretty much the same deal.

The Rangers scored three runs in the top of the first off of 2025 friend Patrick Corbin as they enjoyed a rare trio of hits with RISP. A couple of innings later, Justin Foscue made it 5-0 with his fifth home run of the season, a two-run shot following a Jake Burger walk.

Irritatingly, the Rangers went hitless with RISP in their remaining nine opportunities as they couldn’t quite turn the game into a blowout. The well running dry at the plate would eventually lead to some late-innings heartburn again. Nevertheless, the early damage was already in the books and, luckily for Texas, they had Nathan Eovaldi on the mound and he was shoving.

The second most famous pitcher from Alvin, TX went seven innings and allowed zero runs on five hits and a walk with nine strikeouts. Toronto didn’t have their first hit until the fourth inning and only really threatened Eovaldi in his last couple of frames. The veteran erased a couple of rallies to maintain the five run lead.

The Rangers needed all five of ’em, too. Like last night, despite being staked to a big early lead, the Blue Jays flipped it on in the late innings and eventually put up a four-run frame in the eighth.

Starring down a potentially dubious outcome after leading by five runs early, Texas again turned to Jacob Latz for the save and he came through for the second consecutive one-run win for the Rangers in Toronto.

Player of the Game: Foscue drove in three of the five runs and his dinger was big, and Wyatt Langford continued his torrid June with three more hits and a stolen base while flying around on the bases, but it’s hard to argue against Eovaldi’s evening as he provided Texas with seven shutout frames to keep the mileage off a sputtering bullpen during this brutal stretch.

Up Next: Eyeing a third win in three tries to begin this series, the Rangers don’t yet have a pitcher listed for tomorrow’s game while Toronto will start RHP Dylan Cease.

The Saturday afternoon first pitch from Rogers Centre is scheduled for 2:07 pm CDT and will be back on the Rangers Sports Network.

Happy Pride Night! After a rousing electric guitar version of the Star-Spangled Banner, the Orioles came on out and delivered an inspired Friday win, defeating the Nationals in a tidy 3-1 contest. It wasn’t the most explosive offensive performance ever, but left-handed starter Trevor Rogers certainly brought the energy, going 6 1/3 innings with a fastball that was simply ruthless.

Let’s talk about another great start from Trevor Rogers, his third quality start in a row. As of May, Rogers’ ice-cold start to the season was making Birdland wonder whether his charmed 2025 was a mirage, but June has been quite the leveler. He now has a 2.05 ERA in five appearances. That’ll work.

Tonight, Rogers faced the minimum through three innings. This included a drama-free first inning with two pop flies (Rogers nicely battling back from down 3-0 to Curtis Mead) and a swinging K. In the second, Rogers whiffed CJ Abrams with high heat, making me think how tough the lefty Rogers looks against a lefty—but then he did the same on three pitches to right-hander Dylan Crews!

The Rogers four-seam fastball has been a weapon in June, and it looked devastating today. Of his first 20 pitches, 16 were strikes, and of 87 total, 65. Wow. Trevor Rogers is locked in, people.

Rogers’ counterpart on the mound, the rather inexperienced Andrew Alvarez, who has all of ten career starts, made a strong first impression here at Oriole Park, too. Alvarez whiffed two in a perfect first inning, dotting breaking balls everywhere. Lefties bearing offspeed pitches, and this Orioles lineup? Danger.

The Orioles wasted a scoring chance against Alvarez in the second when Pete Alonso walloped a curveball and with two outs, Leody Taveras walked. But Taveras ran into a third out on the bases, and Alvarez was out of trouble. Baltimore put the leadoff man on in the third, Jackson Holliday legging out an infield single, but Pete Alonso struck out with runners at the corners, and the rally went no further.

Meanwhile, Rogers was working at a furious pace, like he had somewhere to be. The third inning was just a bunch of groundballs. A somewhat lackadaisical throw to first by Gunnar Henderson took Pete Alonso just off the bag long enough to allow Jacob Young to get on base on the E6. But Rogers was unbothered: he teed up another ground ball—double play—and one more grounder to get out of the inning. Unflappable.

The Nationals nicked Rogers in the fourth—Maryland native James Wood doubled, and Curtis Mead followed him with a bloop single—but astonishingly, even with men on second and third and no outs, didn’t draw blood. Rogers just dug in, attacking the zone like a beast. First, he drew a bouncer right at Blaze Alexander, who made a strong, accurate throw home, and Wood was a sitting duck at the plate. Defense! CJ Abrams popped out next, and there were two outs. Crews scorched a ball, 104 mph, into the infield—but right at Jackson Holliday, who made a great stop, and fired to first. De-fense!

The game’s first runs came in the fourth, and they were orange-colored. Coby Mayo had taken some ferocious hacks at Alvarez in his first AB, back in the second, but he didn’t miss a big hanging curveball this time—double. A flustered Alvarez walked Tyler O’Neill on four pitches (one looked to be a strike). A mound visit and two quick outs later, and the rally looked to be toast. But Jackson Holliday walked to load the bases, and from the 9 spot, Blaze Alexander got the big base-knock. Two scored. Don’t get too enamored with Blaze, I’ll just say. Taylor Ward singled with two on, but Alexander got thrown out trying to go first-to-third and no third run would score. Runs, but also another stupid mistake.

On top of that, Washington immediately got one back, making it 2-1 in the fifth. With one out, Jacob Young had doubled deep to center. It looked like Rogers would get out of it cleanly when he struck out No. 8 hitter Nasim Nuñez. But the veteran Keibert Ruiz singled him home.

But that was all the Nats would get off Rogers tonight. Determined, I assume, to avoid handing this Orioles bullpen anything like a narrow lead, Rogers came back out for the sixth. I joke, but he’d only thrown 75 pitches when he came back out for the seventh, too.

Maybe Rogers likes a challenge, so he spotted the Nationals a leadoff double. Maybe not. He really struggled to retire Daylen Lile, but a pop out ended Lile’s AB and Rogers’ night. The O’s lefty exited with another quality start: 6 1/3 innings with one run on five hits, seven strikeouts and no walks. Welcome back, Rogers!

I’m sorry to remind you but I must: over the last three weeks, this Orioles bullpen has an ERA of 5.38. Happily, they didn’t look like it tonight. Also, the Orioles offense made their assignment a little easier by scratching out a third run for insurance. Washington’s Brad Lord had pitched a clean sixth, and tried to give his team length by pitching into the seventh. Bad call, probably.

Lord allowed a leadoff single to Taylor Ward before Gunnar struck out in an inconvenient spot. But Pete Alonso walked for the second time, and up to the plate came Coby Mayo. Mayo looked locked into today. He came through, to the tune of a 113-mph run-scoring double, his second of the day. 3-1 Birds.

After that, no drama from this relief corps whatever. Tyler Wells got two quick outs to end the seventh. Grant Wolfram pitched a perfect inning in the eighth. So, too, did lately homer-prone closer Ryan Helsley, who, flashing both a nasty breaking ball and 100 up in the zone, drew a quick groundout, a swinging strikeout, and … a slow roller to short. Too many times lately, the Orioles have done stupid things when faced with a play like this. But not tonight: Gunnar barehanded it and made an absolutely perfect throw to first. Ballgame over.

Clocking in at just over two-and-a-half hours, this was a clean, well-pitched, well-fielded game. Just the cure for the Orioles’ recent sloppiness. Watching a game like this, you could easily be tricked into believing the Orioles could actually make some noise down the stretch. Who knows?  

So who is your Most Birdland Player, CamdenChat? Trevor Rogers and his 6 1/3 one-run innings (maybe not just SPB [Starting Pitcher Bias])? Coby Mayo, 2-for-4 with two doubles? Blaze Alexander, with the big two-run RBI single, a walk, and a run-saving throw home? Taylor Ward, quietly going 3-for-5 at the top of the order?

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss. 

The Mets changed managers on Friday, but that hardly jumpstarted a lineup that had to deal with Zack Wheeler for most of the night. Now Andy Green knows what it was like to be Carlos Mendoza. 

Green’s crew managed only five hits in a 2-1 loss to the Phillies at Citi Field that extended the Mets’ losing streak to seven games. Green took over as interim manager earlier in the day after Mendoza was fired. 

The Mets (34-48) looked every bit like the team that entered the day ranked 29th in MLB with a .673 OPS. Their misery on this night included getting one-hit over the final five innings. It was the fifth time during their losing streak the Mets scored three runs or fewer. 

“I thought the energy was good, the effort was what you want — we just weren’t able to square up balls,” Green said. 

Zach Thornton, in his second major league start, was sharp over six innings. The left-hander, thrust into the rotation following David Peterson’s trade to the Cubs and Kodai Senga’s demotion to the bullpen, allowed one earned run on five hits with seven strikeouts and one walk. 

“It just gives me the confidence I can compete with the best out there and I can get anybody out,” Thornton said. 

But Green said a decision hadn’t been reached on whether Thornton will remain in the rotation. Christian Scott will return from the injured list on Saturday and it’s possible Thornton will be the roster casualty. 

Thornton surrendered three straight hits to begin the game, but escaped the first with only one run allowed. Bryce Harper delivered an RBI single that gave the Phillies a 1-0 lead after Trea Turner’s leadoff double and Kyle Schwarber’s ensuing single. Thornton rebounded to get three straight outs. 

“Zach was really good, especially you are talking about a young kid who gets barreled up three consecutive times, gets a mound visit and settles in and gives us six great innings,” Green said. “It’s tough to win baseball games when you put one run on the board.” 

Derek Hill scaled the fence in right-center in the bottom of the inning to rob Juan Soto of a two-run homer. Carson Benge singled leading off before Hill fully extended over the fence for the larceny. 

“It was an unbelievable catch,” Soto said. “You see the replays and you see how impressive it was. He didn’t have any timing — he just went straight to the wall and jumped. That was incredible.” 

Jared Young’s RBI single in the fourth tied it 1-1. Bo Bichette’s leadoff double ignited the rally before Young delivered against Wheeler. 

Huascar Brazoban allowed an RBI single to Trea Turner in the seventh that gave the Phillies a 2-1 lead. Hill’s leadoff single and Bryson Stott’s walk gave the Phillies their base runners before Hill’s single. It was a rare misstep for Brazoban, who wasn’t scored upon in his previous seven appearances and began the night with a 1.82 ERA. 

Wheeler dominated with a second good outing in less than a week against his former team. The right-hander allowed one earned run on four hits with five strikeouts and one walk over seven innings. Wheeler, in his return from surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome, has pitched to a 2.03 ERA in 11 starts this season. 

“It’s tough and it’s part of baseball,” Soto said. “We just haven’t been coming through in big situations and that is kind of the way the game goes. You have got to come through in the right moment, at the right time.” 

Green, who last managed a major league game for the Padres in 2019, said he felt at home in the dugout. 

“It’s what I know,” Green said. “I will certainly make mistakes along the way, but the game was not moving any faster than a normal game has in the past. I have got good coaches around me that are very bright, so I think in that sense I felt good.”

BOSTON — The Yankees at least spared themselves the infamy of having a perfect game thrown against them. 

They even mustered a run in the eighth inning. 

But that is where the list of positive developments ended for them on Friday night at Fenway Park. 

Red Sox lefty Payton Tolle dominated them across seven innings, allowing just one hit to Spencer Jones after retiring 16 straight to start the game, as the Yankees stumbled to a second straight loss by a score of 6-1. 

“Good pitcher executing, it can be a tough game sometimes,” manager Aaron Boone said. “So obviously just had a hard time to mount anything. But no issue with where our preparation and focus [were]. We just got beat tonight by him.” 

Tolle, who struck out 11 in six innings of one-run ball against the Yankees (48-33) in April, was even more untouchable on Friday night while striking out seven. Jones poked a single into center field off him with one out in the sixth, and Tolle later walked a pair in the seventh. But all three base runners proved harmless as he mowed down the Yankees, who have now lost six of their past nine. 

The Yankees began the season 18-6 against lefty starters but have now dropped four of their last five, including the first two games of this four-game set against the last-place Red Sox (34-46). 

“[Tolle] did a good job of filling up the zone, getting ahead in the count and then was able to do what he wanted to do with certain pitches,” said Jones, who was getting a rare start against a lefty. “Credit to him, he was able to execute and get out ahead.” 

Besides Tolle vying for a perfect game, the only real drama — if you can call it that — of the night came in the bottom of the fifth inning, when the benches cleared after Will Warren walked Willson Contreras. Ball four was up and in on Contreras, who essentially stands on top of the plate, and he flipped his bat before jogging down to first and jawing at Warren. 

Contreras, who had crushed a 418-foot homer off Warren earlier in the game, seemed to want to know why the Yankees pitcher was looking at him. After some talking back and forth, both teams left their dugouts and bullpens to crowd around first base with nothing more than words exchanged. 

“He said something, so I said something back,” Warren said. “I’m just trying to make a pitch.” 

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

That only added to the frustration for Warren, who gave up five runs on seven hits and three walks across 5 ²/₃ innings. For the first time in his career, he did not record a single strikeout. 

Warren was consistently hit hard even on outs, as 10 of the 24 balls the Red Sox put in play against him came off the bat at 95 mph or higher. 

After a strong first two months of the season, Warren has had a rockier June, giving up 16 runs (12 earned) on 27 hits in 19 ²/₃ innings across four starts, with left-handed hitters in particular giving him some trouble during that stretch. 

“I’m not sure [why],” Warren said. “Just got to find a way to get them out. I’ve dealt with that in the minor leagues. The four-seam kind of changed that. Obviously they’re on it right now, but we’ll figure it out and move on.” 

After Tolle exited the game, the Yankees broke up the shutout against former teammate Tommy Kahnle in the eighth inning. Anthony Volpe led off with a double and eventually came in to score on Austin Wells’ groundout to erase the goose egg and save some face. 

“Obviously,” Boone said, “just a tough night for us offensively.”

It is the end of the sixth inning; the White Sox are leading 17-1. The Royals scored their only run on a double play groundball after David Sandlin walked the bases loaded following a 10-run bottom of the third inning. This comes one night after the Royals were almost no-hit in Tampa Bay and lost 13-2. I’m not watching any more of this and neither should you.

If you’re looking for positives, Steven Cruz struck out 3 in 1.1 scoreless innings. Carter Jensen extended his hitting streak to 17 games. Jac Caglianone had a triple. Kendry Chourio earned his first win with the River Bandits. That’s all I’ve got for you.

Good night.

It’s kind of crazy the way momentum works in baseball. Normally, we equate momentum as when one teams comes from behind on another, scoring runs to take a lead and eventually emerging victorious. One could argue that both teams had some kind of momentum today coming into this game. The Phillies, of course, had several games where they were down to their last strike before demolishing a Nationals bullpen. The Mets had a different kind of momentum. They had earlier fired their manager and were looking to get off to a good start under the interim manager.

In the first inning, the Phillies capitalized on their momentum, the first three hitters reaching on hits and scoring a run. Eventually, the Mets starter Zach Thornton settled down and kept them off the board the rest of the inning to swing some mo’ back New York’s way. Carson Benge singled off of Zack Wheeler to start the Mets’ frame, bringing up Juan Soto. Soto drove a ball that looked off the bat to be a home run, but Derek Hill had other ideas.

That, my friends, is a dagger.

You could almost see the air going out of the Mets’ balloon after that catch, much in the way you could see Ralph Wiggum’s heart breaking with Lisa Simpson.

The rest of the game, it was Wheeler in total command of his game. He allowed a single run in the fourth when Bo Bichette doubled, moved to third on a ground ball and scored on a Jared Young single, but the rest of the game was a masterclass.

The issue? Thornton had also settled all the way in, limiting the Phillies’ offense to the lone run on seven hits. He was relieved by Huascar Brozaban in the seventh, a move on which the Phillies capitalized. Hill singled, then moved to second on a walk to Bryson Stott. Trea Turner came through with a two-out RBI single to score Hill and give the Phillies a lead.

In the end, the momentum shifting catch by Hill was the difference. Without it, who knows how the Mets respond. They’d have had the lead in the first inning with no outs and the stadium loud. Instead, they allowed Wheeler to get locked in and were summarily locked up themselves.

Good.

These teams will lock horns again tomorrow afternoon, so long as the weather holds up.