Category: Baseball

No reason to end the griping, sniping and debating over the so-called "Ohtani Rules."

Not until there’s time to better understand the issue, which bubbled to the surface this week after Chicago Cubs manager Craig Counsell made remarks that triggered a question laced with conspiracy.

If and why are Shohei Ohtani and the Dodgers getting preferential treatment from Major League Baseball?

“First of all, Ohtani is a treasure, right?" Dan Duquette, former general manager of the Montreal Expos, Boston Red Sox and Baltimore Orioles, told USA TODAY Sports.

No debate there, and here’s what you need to know about the rules:

MLB teams are allowed to carry only 13 pitchers on their active 26-man roster, with one exception. Teams can carry 14 pitchers if one of them qualifies as a two-way player. Ohtani, 31, is the only player in the major leagues who qualifies as a two-way player under MLB criteria (more on that later). That means the Dodgers are currently the only team eligible for the exception

With 14 pitchers on their roster, the Dodgers get an extra arm that rivals don't have the luxury of having.

Another rule introduced since Ohtani came to America allows a two-way player who has finished pitching to remain in the game as a designated hitter rather than require him to play in the field.

Duquette suggests the "Ohtani Rules" are in baseball’s best interest.

“He is the most marketable player in the game around the world," Duquette said. “So any discussion about how he is employed on the field needs to be thoughtful and take into account the workload.’’

Ohtani, who is a left-handed hitter and right-handed pitcher, has undergone two elbow reconstruction surgeries on his right arm – in 2018 and 2023. As a result, he did not pitch in 2019 or 2024.

MLB two-way player rules

Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has responded to Counsell’s insinuation that Ohtani and the Dodgers are getting preferential treatment.

"We're more than willing to have other teams go out and find a player that can do both (pitching and hitting)," Roberts said. “He's an exception because he's an exceptional player."

It’s more complicated.

One reason the Dodgers have Ohtani is they’re a big-market franchise that had the means to sign the Japanese superstar to a 10-year, $700 million contract in 2023. They’ve also spent massive amounts to money to surround Ohtani with enough talent to win two straight World Series titles and be favored to win a third in a row.

Other teams have tried to develop two-way stars through the draft. But Rick Hahn, former general manager of the Chicago White Sox, said there’s an inherent challenge.

“The challenge is that those two skills (pitching and hitting), when you're talking about an 18- or a 21-year-old and continuing that development in the minors, those two skills can very much develop at different paces,’’ Hahn told USA TODAY Sports. “The player probably wants to be in the big leagues. The team certainly wants to get the benefit of the drafted player in the big leagues.’’

The likely outcome: the player is called up to the major leagues before he has adequate time in the minor leagues to develop as a two-way player.

There was no such conundrum with Ohtani, who developed his two-way skills playing professional baseball in Japan before making his major league debut in 2018 with the Los Angeles Angels.

Not to mention Ohtani is a baseball unicorn.

Shohei Ohtani pitching rules explained

A player qualifies as a "Two-Way Player" only if he accrues at least 20 Major League innings pitched and at least 20 Major League games started as a position player or designated hitter (with at least three plate appearances in each of those games) in either the 162-game season or the prior 162-game season.

John Coppolella, former manager of the Atlanta Braves, echoes a point made by Roberts, the Dodgers manager.

“The rule is not specific to the Dodgers," Coppolella told USA TODAY Sports. “All teams are eligible to carry a 14^th pitcher if the player is classified as a two-way player. If Ohtani signed with the Yankees or the Braves, they would be treated the same way.’’

So why all the fuss?

Dave Stewart, a retired pitcher who won a World Series ring with the Dodgers in 1981, said he thinks people are piling on because the Dodgers' immense payrolls and success. That includes three World Series titles in the past six years.

“Anything that is in favor of the Dodgers, then everybody's got a complaint about it or they see something wrong with it,’’ Stewart told USA TODAY Sports. “But the truth is, if other teams had the ability to do what they're doing, they would do it.”

Stewart also suggested the absence of "Ohtani Rules" would create more harm than the current rules create benefit for the Dodgers superstar.

“If you got a two-way player that's capable of doing it… then you have to create a special rule, a special situation for that type of player," Stewart said. “You can't punish the player because he's capable of doing two things."

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Shohei Ohtani pitching rules for Dodgers benefit baseball

The New York Yankees (14-9) take on the Boston Red Sox (9-14). The Yankees shut out the Red Sox 4-0 in the series’ opener on Tuesday. Starting pitchers are Max Fried for the Yankees, with a 2.97 ERA, and Ranger Suarez for the Red Sox, with a 3.22 ERA.

How to watch New York Yankees vs. Boston Red Sox

• Date: Wednesday, April 22

• Time: 6:45 p.m. ET / 3:45 p.m. PT

• Where: Fenway Park, Boston, MA

• TV Channels: MLB Network, NESN, Amazon Prime Video

• Live Stream:ESPN+, MLB.TV | Follow on Yahoo Sports

Team records

• New York Yankees: 14-9 (No. 1 in AL East)

• Boston Red Sox: 9-14 (No. 5 in AL East)

Odds

• Spread: Boston Red Sox +1.5

• Moneyline: Boston Red Sox +115 (44.4%) / New York Yankees -140 (55.6%)

• Over/Under: 7.5

Starting pitchers

New York Yankees: Max Fried (2-1, ERA: 2.97, K: 23, WHIP: 0.81)
Boston Red Sox: Ranger Suarez (1-1, ERA: 3.22, K: 15, WHIP: 1.07)

Weather: 46°F at first pitch

Ballpark: Capacity: 37,755 | Roof: Open | Surface: Grass

After one of their best games on offense last night, the Brewers are back for game two of their series against the Tigers this evening.

Though Chad Patrick was announced as the original starter, the Brewers have decided to go with DL Hall as an opener tonight. Hall will likely pitch an inning or two, then give way to Patrick for the bulk work. Hall has a 6.75 ERA in two previous appearances against the Tigers, but hasn’t pitched against them since 2023. Meanwhile, Patrick is making his first career appearance against the Tigers. He is coming off of a strong start against the Blue Jays, where he pitched 6 2/3 innings and allowed just one run. This is also the second time the Brewers are using an opener in front of him.

For the Tigers, Casey Mize makes his fifth start of the season. Through his first four games, he has a 2.78 ERA and 3.14 FIP, with 25 strikeouts compared to seven walks. He has allowed zero or one runs in three of his four starts, including a scoreless 6 2/3 innings against the Red Sox in his last start. The Brewers last faced him in 2024 and scored five runs (three earned) in 5 1/3 innings.

Before the game, the Brewers provided a couple of injury updates. Quinn Priester was assigned to Triple-A Nashville to begin a rehab assignment and is pitching tonight. He is scheduled for three innings and 45-50 pitches, but it could be a while before he’s ready. Also, Jackson Chourio took swings on the field today and it went well.

After a 12-run outburst yesterday, the Brewers will use the same lineup with just a couple of changes. Branon Lockridge will play in left field over Blake Perkins, and Joey Ortiz starts at shortstop with David Hamilton moving over to third base. Lockridge will bat sixth and Ortiz is in his usual ninth spot.

First pitch is at 5:40 p.m. The game will be on Brewers.TV and the Brewers Radio Network.

Another one from Detroit

📺: https://t.co/eycfmE2vgm
📻: WTMJ#ThisIsMyCrew x @NicoletLawpic.twitter.com/Jjp5MHWx1M

— Milwaukee Brewers (@Brewers) April 22, 2026

25/162

⚾️ 6:40 PM ET
📺 @WatchDSN
📻 @971theticketxyt
🏟️ Comerica Park pic.twitter.com/RPoKd40Nju

— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) April 22, 2026

After a very complete performance last night, the Nats are back in action tonight. They split the first two games of the series, so the Nats will look to secure at least a split tonight. Grabbing a split against a team the caliber of the Braves would be big for this young group.

As usual, manager Blake Butera made a few alterations to his lineup. Brady House is back at third base, which pushed Jorbit Vivas to second. Jacob Young was moved out of the three hole and is hitting 6th tonight. Keibert Ruiz is back in the lineup after Drew Millas started the first two games of the series. Zack Littell will look to bounce back from a rough outing last time. He will need to keep the ball in the yard.

lining up

→ https://t.co/iUBDqlACVspic.twitter.com/RTLlr6xKXB

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) April 22, 2026

The Braves are not making a ton of changes tonight. Mike Yastrzemski will be back in left field, but otherwise it is the same group as last night. Jonah Heim will catch again, which pushes Drake Baldwin to DH. The Braves decided to call up 20 year old Didier Fuentes to make this start. Fuentes is one of the youngest players in the league, but his stuff is loud and his control is very good for a 20 year old.

7️⃣2️⃣ on the mound!#BravesCountrypic.twitter.com/0XZDh40LHg

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) April 22, 2026

Game Info:

Stadium: Nationals Park

Time: 6:45 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

Last night was a great performance, it is all about stacking those types of games. The Braves will be up for the fight, but the Nats have shown they can compete with anyone, except maybe the Dodgers. Follow along down below and let’s go Nats!

Well folks, we’ve got ourselves a series. If the Braves can win tonight, they’ll at least ensure that their streak of not losing series goes on through another midweek and they can go for an impactful series win of a four-game series on the road. If not, then the pressure will be on to salvage a split on Thursday afternoon.

Didier Fuentes has been called up and will be making the start for the Braves. Opposite of him will be Zack Littell, who has gotten off to a rocky start to begin his season for the Nationals. Will Fuentes be able to quiet this Nationals lineup that’s been doing some damage lately? Will the Braves continue to make baseball life miserable for Littell? This likely won’t be a boring one, so let’s see what happens.

The Yankees have epitomized what it means to go through the ebbs and flows of a baseball season, even if we’re not even four weeks into the 2026 season. They started 7-1, lost 8 of their next 11, which included a five-game losing streak, and have now rebounded to win four in a row heading into the middle game of a rare weekday April series at Fenway Park against the rival Red Sox. With their two best pitchers going the next two days, they’re in prime position to not only win the series, but push for a sweep.

The Yankees will give the ball to their ace, Max Fried, to make his sixth start of the season on Wednesday night. After being untouchable in his first two starts of the season, Fried has allowed three runs in each of his last three starts, and while he’s been able to eat innings despite not having the same dominance, his ERA is up to 2.97 (145 ERA+) with a 3.07 FIP, which is somehow third in the Yankees’ rotation. In his first year as a Yankee, he made four starts against Boston (postseason included), pitching to a 1.46 ERA in 24.2 innings.

Former Phillies All-Star Ranger Suarez will make his first appearance in baseball’s greatest rivalry, as he’s on the mound for Boston in his fifth start of the year. His first two starts were rough, allowing eight runs in 8.1 innings, but the soft-tossing lefty has thrown 14 shutout innings over his last two starts against the Cardinals and Tigers and has provided both length and stability to a struggling Red Sox rotation over the first 23 games.

Suarez has always gotten by with a deep pitch mix that keeps hitters off balance and sensational command of his pitches that prevents his slower fastballs from ending up in dangerous spots. Yet, even with his two consecutive strong outings, his peripherals look quite regressed from last season. The 30-year-old, who’s never thrived on getting whiffs and strikeouts, is getting even less of those now, and he’s gone from being one of the best starters in baseball at limiting hard contact and keeping the ball on the ground to being about average at both.

Suarez offers a six-pitch mix that includes three different fastballs, all sitting between 88 and 92 mph, which have historically induced soft contact. He continues to get a lot of whiffs out of his changeup and curveball and will also figure to mix some more sliders in against the Yankees’ lefties. He’s been getting very lucky on all of his fastballs, so the Yanks will have a chance to do some damage on pitches that are not being located as well as they usually are. In his lone career start against the Yankees last July, he allowed one run in 5.2 innings.

Paul Goldschmidt is back in the lineup and leading off as he looks to set the table for Aaron Judge against the lefty. That also means that Ben Rice, who’s seen lefties very well to start the year, will start the day on the bench. Cody Bellinger and Giancarlo Stanton follow, while Amed Rosario and Randal Grichuk continue their platoon work in third base and left field. Jazz Chisholm Jr. will look to build on yesterday’s two-hit night, followed by José Caballero and Austin Wells.

Boston’s lineup is a doozy. Ceddanne Rafaela is leading off and Roman Anthony is on the bench with a balky back. Willson Contreras, Wilyer Abreu, and Trevor Story follow in the heart of the order. Four of the bottom five batters in the order started last night on the bench, with the exception of former Yankee farmhand Caleb Durbin. That means Andruw Monasterio, Jarren Duran, Connor Wong, and old friend Isiah Kiner-Falefa will round out the lineup.

How to watch

Location: Fenway Park — Boston, MA

First pitch: 6:45 pm ET

TV broadcast: NESN, MLB Network

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY), WEEI 93.7 (BOS)

Online stream: Amazon Prime Video, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

Back at it in Boston. #RepBXpic.twitter.com/7w1AJGxf3v

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) April 22, 2026

Wednesday at Fenway. pic.twitter.com/kkVsStkfXK

— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 22, 2026

Mets lineup

Bo Bichette – 3B
Juan Soto – DH
Luis Robert – CF
Francisco Lindor – SS
Francisco Alvarez – C
Mark Vientos – 1B
Marcus Semien – 2B
Tommy Pham – LF
Tyrone Taylor – RF

Clay Holmes – RHP

Twins lineup

Byron Buxton – CF
Trevor Larnach – LF
Josh Bell – DH
Victor Caratini – C
Kody Clemens – 1B
Luke Keaschall – 2B
Matt Wallner – RF
Royce Lewis – 3B
Brooks Lee – SS

Connor Prielipp – LHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 7:10 PM EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

Texas Rangers outfielder Wyatt Langford has been placed on the 10 day injured list, the team announced today. To take his place on the active roster, the Rangers have recalled outfielder Alejandro Osuna from AAA Round Rock. In addition, the team announced that pitcher Marc Church, who was designated for assignment last week, has cleared waivers and been outrighted to Round Rock.

Langford left yesterday’s game after two at bats due to soreness in his right forearm. After an MRI today, he has been diagnosed with a grade one flexor strain. Per the beats, Langford was optimistic that he will be able to return after the 10 day minimum.

This is the third year in a row Langford has landed on the injured list early in the season. In 2024, he went on the i.l. in early May due to a hamstring strain, and in 2025, he went on the injured list in early April due to an oblique strain.

Osuna, 23, had 63 games in the majors for the Rangers in 2025, slashing .212/.313/.278. He has gotten off to a slow start at AAA this year, slashing .262/.355/.354 in 17 games. Ezequiel Duran, who has played well of late, would seem likely to get the bulk of the playing time in left field while Langford is sidelined, though the Rangers could opt to sit Josh Smith some and put Duran at second to get Osuna some playing time.

As for Church, his star has fallen significantly since thirteen months ago, when he broke camp with the Rangers. One would think that someone would have put in a claim on him, but apparently not. He will remain in Round Rock for the time being.

Well, the Orioles did what they needed to do and won their series against the worst team in the American League. But it sure as heck wasn’t easy.

The O’s took the rubber game in Kansas City, 8-6, behind a six-run explosion in the top of the sixth, then held on for dear life to fend off the Royals’ late comeback attempt. The offense got contributions from up and down the lineup, including much-maligned underperformers like Colton Cowser (two hits) and Coby Mayo (a massive three-run homer), and Anthony Nunez filled in as closer for the day and notched his first major league save. The victory completes a 3-4 road trip for the Orioles, who bring a 12-13 record into their first off day in two weeks.

The Orioles offense faced a tough assignment in Michael Wacha, the veteran Royals right-hander who entered the game with a microscopic 1.00 ERA in his first four starts. But Wacha was a bit rough out of the gate. After a leadoff strikeout, the next three Orioles hitters — Taylor Ward, Dylan Beavers, and Pete Alonso — each mashed deep fly balls. Ward’s slammed off the wall for a double. Beavers’ was knocked down by the wind and caught on the warning track. But nobody was catching Alonso’s. The Polar Bear lofted a 410-foot, opposite-field blast over the wall in right, giving the Orioles a 2-0 lead. That’s the kind of easy power we’d like to see more of from the Birds’ shiny new slugger.

Despite the early O’s advantage, the vibes quickly turned sour. While Wacha settled into a groove and threw four straight scoreless innings, Orioles starter Chris Bassitt frittered away the lead. Vinnie Pasquantino provided the first Royals run with a solo homer in the first, snapping an 0-for-16 drought and giving the Royals just their second run in the first inning all season. Bassitt got through the second and third unscathed before the Royals flipped the lead in the fourth.

Pasquantino started the rally with a double, and two batters later — just as the MASN announcers were mentioning that the Royals are the worst hitting team in MLB with runners in scoring position — Carter Jensen delivered one such hit, a single up the middle to plate Pasquantino with the tying run. Later in the inning — just as the MASN announcers were mentioning that Lane Thomas was 0-for-8 in his career against Bassitt — the aforementioned Lane Thomas socked an RBI single to give the Royals a 3-2 lead. Just stop mentioning things, MASN announcers! Only silence from now on.

Staring down a deficit in the top of the sixth against a cruising Wacha, things looked bleak for the Orioles. And then: something amazing happened. The O’s scored six runs. Seriously! Not only that, but it was one of the most un-Orioles type of offensive rallies you’ll ever see. They hit the ball to all fields. They shortened their swings with two strikes, putting the ball in play however they could. It was a nearly unrecognizable Orioles attack, and it was delightful.

It all started innocently enough, when Alonso drew a four-pitch walk and Samuel Basallo doinked a changeup into right for a single. That brought up the Orioles’ dynamic duo of Leody Taveras and Jeremiah Jackson — two of the best hitters on the team, as we all predicted in spring training — and both of them delivered again. On a 2-2 curve from Wacha, Taveras flicked the ball into right field, bringing home Alonso to knot the score at three. Basallo aggressively ran to third base on the play, and Taveras alertly advanced to second on the throw to third.

Up next was Jackson, who dunked a single into left-center field, driving in two more runs and putting the Birds back on top, 5-3. There we go! Where would the Orioles be without Jeremiah this season? Not bad for a guy who might not have even made the team if Luis Vázquez weren’t hurt. The Orioles, improbably, had knocked Wacha out of the game. They hung six earned runs on a pitcher who’d allowed only three runs in his first four starts combined. Not too shabby!

But the Orioles had saved the best for last. Against reliever Eli Morgan, Colton Cowser singled on an 0-2 changeup — his second hit of the game — to bring up Coby Mayo. It’s no secret that Coby has struggled mightily this season, but when he’s on, he’s capable of hitting massive, jaw-dropping, moon-shot dingers. Eli Morgan got a first-hand look at that when Mayo jumped on his hanging slider and crushed it OVER THE FOUNTAINS AT KAUFFMAN STADIUM, a prodigious blast measured at 452 feet. Wowza. An Orioles fan in the second deck, who probably never thought in her wildest dreams that she was in home run territory, ended up with the ball. It was the Orioles’ longest home run since July 5 of last year, when Jordan Westburg crushed a 461-foot blast in Atlanta.

The Earl Weaver special gave the Orioles an 8-3 lead, and against a lousy offense like the Royals, you’d think that would be plenty. You’d think. But just as the MASN announcers mentioned how important it was for Bassitt to pitch a shutdown inning, you’ll never guess what happened. He almost immediately gave back a chunk of it. Jensen led off the bottom of the sixth with a homer, followed by a Michael Massey double. Bassitt got just one out in the sixth before Craig Albernaz went to the bullpen.

The good news, I suppose, is that Bassitt’s 5.1-inning performance was his longest of the season. But he still wasn’t good. Against a bad offense, he gave up eight hits and five runs, with his inherited runner scoring on Kyle Isbel’s two-run homer off Yennier Cano. With Cade Povich and Brandon Young pitching well at Triple-A, I’m wondering how long the O’s will persist with Bassitt in the rotation.

The Royals’ sixth-inning rally made it an 8-6 game, and the Orioles squandered numerous opportunities to add insurance runs. Beavers doubled to lead off the seventh but never advanced. In the ninth, Ward was thrown out at the plate on another Beavers double. Eight runs would have to do.

Fortunately, it did. Tyler Wells had his best high-leverage outing of the year, working 1.2 scoreless innings, and Anthony Nunez entered the ninth for his first career save opportunity (closer Ryan Helsley went on the bereavement list earlier in the day). Nunez retired the first two batters before the third baseman Mayo, on what should’ve been the final out, spiked a routine throw to first to bring Bobby Witt Jr. to the plate as the tying run. Oh boy. Here we go.

No worries. Nunez racked up a clutch strikeout of Witt, nailing down the win and earning his first save. Congrats to the rookie, who has been a great addition to the O’s bullpen (again, not bad for a guy who almost didn’t make the Opening Day roster).

That’s an Orioles victory. Who is your Most Birdland Player, Camden Chatters? Coby Mayo for his breathtaking three-run homer? Alonso for his dinger? Taveras or Jackson for their clutch hits? Wells or Nunez for their relief work? There are no wrong answers. Except Chris Bassitt.

Today’s roster move: Here

Wednesday notes…

• STREAKING: The Cubs’ seven-game winning streak is their 107th since 1901 of at least seven games. It is their longest since they won eight in a row July 2-192, 2023. Their last that ended after seven games was Aug. 31-Sept. 6, 2021. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• PITCHING: Cubs pitchers have allowed exactly six hits in each of the last three games. They have allowed no more than six in 11 games this season. The Cubs have won nine of them. Last year, they were 46-13 in such games, a winning percentage of .780. When they gave up seven or more, they were 46-57, .447. The Cubs rank third among all 30 teams in fewest hits per nine innings (7.3), fewest walks per nine (3.0) and fewest hit plus walks per nine (1.146). (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• DANSBY, HEATING UP: Dansby Swanson, last 13 games since April 7: .233/.393/.535 (10-for-43) with a double, four home runs, 10 RBI, 12 walks and 16 runs scored.
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: Jason Heyward’s 10th inning walk-off single scored Javier Báez to give the Cubs a 4-3 win over the Mets. It happened five years ago today, Thursday, April 22, 2021.

The Cubs lineup was not available at posting time. Please check BCB social media for the Cubs lineup.

Phillies lineup:

Wednesday night baseball#RingTheBellpic.twitter.com/nIerUQ2J4h

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) April 22, 2026

Matthew Boyd, LHP vs. Kyle Backhus, LHP

Matthew Boyd returns tonight from an injured list stint for a bicep issue.

His first start this year on Opening Day wasn’t good; his second was excellent, with 10 strikeouts in 5.2 innings. Overall Boyd has 17 strikeouts in 9.1 innings this year (struck out 17 of 37 batters faced). In his rehab start last Thursday for Triple-A Iowa, Boyd struck out six of 16 batters faced.

Boyd made one start vs. the Phillies last year, June 9 in Philadelphia, and the difference in the game was, in part, Boyd’s own throwing error on a pickoff that led to an unearned run. No current Phillie has more than six career AB vs. Boyd.

Kyle Backhus is opening tonight’s game, and likely throws only one or two innings. The most pitches he’s thrown in any game this year is 41, last Wednesday against the Cubs in Philadelphia. Dansby Swanson homered off him. He also threw to five batters in Monday’s game at Wrigley Field.

Taijuan Walker was supposed to get the start tonight, and he’s likely the “bulk guy” in this game.

Walker’s 2026 season has been pretty awful. He’s made four starts, has a 9.16 ERA (yikes!) and has allowed six home runs in just 18.1 innings (double yikes!). He had one decent start (April 11 vs. the D-backs) where he allowed two runs in five innings, the other three were .. yikes.

Perhaps Alex Bregman will break out tonight. He’s 6-for-11 (.545) lifetime vs. Walker.

Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Phillies site The Good Phight. If you do go there to interact with Phillies fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

Detroit Tigers infielder Colt Keith is rolling in the early going of the 2026 season, and after two years of incredibly slow starts to seasons, that’s a positive development. On the other hand, Keith’s hot hand early on has led to a lot of frustration in the fanbase with the fact that manager AJ Hinch still chooses to keep him in reserve when an opposing team has a left-handed starter on the mound. Don’t be deceived. There are certainly some positive hints of a breakout for the 24-year-old, but so far this season he’s done nothing new to warrant playing everyday.

As we covered after the first series of the season in San Diego, Keith does show some underlying improvements that point to an impending breakout. He’s swinging the bat faster than ever, and he’s hitting the ball harder. His new upright stance, combined with the breathwork he started this offseason to help his body to stay more relaxed in the batter’s box, certainly have him looking more comfortable and much less tense than in his first two seasons. No one would argue that those aren’t positive developments, but they still have to translate to upgraded production before we can really say that Keith is unlocking a new level in his offensive game.

Our own Cannon at the Corner wrote about these early signs back on April 1.

Really this is all pretty simple in terms of what a real, sustainable breakout from Keith would look like. For all the angst about him being platooned to hit right-handed pitching only, we have to recognize that Colt Keith is still only a modestly above average hitter against right-handed pitching. Until that changes and he becomes a force, he’s not going to get that many chances to hit left-handed pitching as well. That’s not a slight on Keith as much as it is important to get your right-handed hitters into the lineup because they’re generally going to outhit Keith by a significant margin in the proper matchups against lefties.

So, if you’re wondering how Keith is supposed to get better at hitting lefties when he rarely faces them, the answer is that he’ll earn those chances by hitting right-handed pitching better than he has in the early stages of his major league career. He’d also have a lot easier time if he played plus defense somewhere or was a big basestealing threat, something else to augment the bat.

Right now, Keith holds a 112 wRC+ after two previous seasons in which he posted a 95 mark, and then a 109 mark in 2025. If you prefer OPS+ that’s fine, but they’re generally not much different, and those two metrics are the best “one stop shop” to get an idea of a hitter’s overall contribution to run production. They’re reset each year so that 100 represents league average. So far, Colt is 12 percent better at doing the things that produce runs than the average major league hitter. That’s reasonably good, but considering he’s generally protected from tough lefties, it’s not really great in the sense of an everyday, full-time player.

Yes, Keith is hitting .309, but batting average is more of a descriptive statistic than one that tells you anything about how productive a hitter actually is. The simplest way to frame this, is that offense is all about collecting bases. Two singles or two walks equals one double in the simplest calculation. Sure, with runners on base, a single is better than a walk because said runners can often advance two bases, but without runners on base, a walk is better because it costs the opposing more pitches typically, and because walking has more of a psychological effect on a pitcher than giving up a ground ball that happens to get through the infield or a routine liner into the outfield for a single. But again, the goal is to collect bases, and move your teammates ahead of you around said bases, and using wRC+ or OPS+ gives you the best idea how well a hitter is succeeding.

Keith is hitting .309, but his batting average on balls in play is a whopping .396. Keith’s average BABIP mark is .307, meaning that a bit over 30 percent of his balls in play are going for hits. This year so far, he’s close to 40 percent, and that just isn’t sustainable. A higher batting average, without significant improvements in walk rate, strikeout rate, and power production, is the definition of fool’s gold in baseball. Keith is hitting the ball harder, and so a higher BABIP is appropriate, but something closer to a .310-.320 batting average on balls in play is probably the high water mark here and with enough time his numbers are going to settle at or below that level. Only 26 qualified hitters topped that mark in 2025. Riley Greene’s .323 mark made him the only Tiger to do it.

Incidentally, Kevin McGonigle will be one of those elite guys who consistently runs a high BABIP too. No worries there, although like Keith, it’s just about impossible to be a top shelf hitter without plenty of home runs and extra base hits.

At the moment, Keith has zero home runs. His strikeout rate is at 21.1 percent, which is essentially his career average. After posting a 10.3 percent walk rate last year, this season he’s at 4.2 percent. No doubt the walks will show up. Keith has swung a little more aggressively early on this year, and it’s largely paid off, but he’s always been a pretty disciplined hitter, and the walks will show up as the season progresses. He’s actually chasing pitches out of the zone 5.4 percent less than last year, showing increasing strike zone judgement that could be sustainable. I’m not concerned at all about the low walk rate. Keith is getting pitches to hit and he’s successfully taking his hacks. Until he starts doing damage, pitchers are going to continue pitching him aggressively.

The positive signs of a breakout developing are still in place. Keith is swinging the bat faster, and he’s hitting the ball hard more often. Per Statcast, his hard hit rate is 58.5 percent. Last year it was 43.7 percent. His current mark is 11th best among all qualified hitters so far, and this is the really positive development that has many of us expecting the awaited Keith breakout.

The issue? So he’s actually hit nine percent more ground balls than he did last year, and most of that eight percent comes from his fly ball rate dropping from 38.6 percent last year, which still isn’t that great, to 30.2 percent so far this season. That is not the direction we want to see his batted ball profile move. Yes, hitting the ball harder overall is good, and may be sustainable. That will keep his batting average a little higher potentially, but that’s not really going to make him a much more productive hitter. What needs to happen is for Keith to start collecting a lot more total bases, and the only way those are going to compound is two and four at a time.

Colt Keith has hit 13 home runs in each of his first two big league seasons, while getting roughly 4/5ths of a full season of plate appearances compared to a full-time MLB regular. This is the same guy who hit 27 total home runs in just 577 plate appearances split between the Double and Triple-A levels in 2023. The raw power isn’t in question. We’ve seen him destroy the upper levels of the minor leagues and hit many epic tape measure shots. Keith is 6’2” and probably 220 pounds, built like an undersized linebacker in incredible shape. He’s hitting the heck out of the baseball this season. And he has zero home runs.

This is where the breakout has to show up if it’s coming. It’s great to hit the ball really hard, but it doesn’t really convert to much more run production unless you’re pumping line drives to the wall and tons of fly balls over the wall. A 110 mph ground ball is a single unless it’s right down the lines. A 100 mph fly ball to the pull field is generally a home run is hit between 25-35 degrees of launch angle.

So, we have positive signs from Keith but no actual results. He’s a productive, above average hitter who has some of the underlying metrics of a young player about to break out. But he has to actually break out before any of this really matters much. Before people get to fretting over his ability to hit left-handed pitching, he’s got to become more of a force against right-handed pitching. Start there.

Keith is a talented, still young hitter who runs the bases well, has some speed, and is a useful but still somewhat below average infielder. That basically adds up to an average major leaguer. The ticket to an upgraded profile is still tied up in the need for more fly balls to the pull field. When we see him catching more balls out front and doing big time damage, then his role can expand. I’ve been a big Colt believer since he was in A-ball, and have confidence he’s going to figure that last part out, but until he does his role is going to remain the same. Hopefully the Tigers can get him more starts at first base to develop his defensive profile and give them more options beyond Spencer Torkelson, but the ticket to more playing time is still more power.

Texas Rangers lineup for April 22, 2026 against the Pittsburgh Pirates: starting pitchers are Jack Leiter for the Rangers and Braxton Ashcraft for the Pirates.

The Rangers play game two of their series against the Pirates this evening. Wyatt Langford is out of the lineup, and per the beats, he’s apparently going on the i.l. with a flexor strain.

The lineup:

Nimmo — RF

Seager — SS

Burger — 1B

Pederson — DH

Jung — 3B

Carter — CF

Higashioka — C

Smith — 2B

Duran — LF

7:05 p.m. Central start time. The game is a pick ‘em.

Sometimes one run is all it takes.

That was the case for the San Diego Padres yesterday in their win over the Colorado Rockies. It was, by far, the lowest scoring game at Coors Field ever, with only one run being tallied in the hitter-friendly park.

Both starters had it working, but it was Randy Vásquez who won out. He pitched seven shutout innings against the Rox. Although Colorado starter Chase Dollander looked just as good (if not better) for six innings, he gave up one run to the Friars on a bases-loaded walk to Manny Machado. That was all the Padres would need.

Tonight, they’ll hope to win their fourth straight, and take their sixth consecutive series, with one more win over Colorado.

Taking the mound

Tomoyuki Sugano (COL) v. Walker Buehler (SD)

Sugano has had a mostly-solid start to the year. He’s pitching to a 3.92 ERA with his new ball club, and limiting batters to a .241 average. Those are markedly better numbers than last year’s marks (4.64 ERA, .276 BA).

But in his last start he gave up five runs to the rival Los Angeles Dodgers, only getting through four frames in the outing. If the Padres can get to him similarly, they’ll have no trouble tonight.

Buehler has had a similar turnaround. After allowing seven runs between his first two outings, he’s only allowed two since (11.0 IP). That includes a six-inning shutout of Colorado a week ago in Petco Park that started the bounce back campaign for the right-hander.

If Buehler can keep the good times rolling, it would signify a clear shift from his start to the season. It would also keep the streak of scoreless outings from San Diego starters moving. The last three (Germán Márquez, Michael King and Randy Vásquez) have combined for 17 2/3 scoreless innings.

Batter up!

With the lack of thump yesterday, the Padres will hope that their lineup can deliver against Sugano. That being said, not many have great track records against the righty. The club is 4-for-25 against him, with two of those being home runs (Luis Campusano and Gavin Sheets).

But against the righty, manager Craig Stammen seems pretty set with his lineup:

1. Ramón Laureano, LF
2. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
3. Jackson Merrill, CF
4. Manny Machado, 3B
5. Xander Bogaerts, SS
6. Gavin Sheets, DH
7. Ty France, 1B
8. Luis Campusano, C
9. Jake Cronenworth, 2B

It’s worth wondering when Machado might come out of the cleanup spot. He’s been off to an incredibly cold start to the year, batting just .178 so far. If he can turn that around in this series, it would go a long way toward assuaging any concerns about his bat.

But, more than that, if the Friars can’t figure things out tonight against Sugano, they’ll have as tough a time as they did yesterday against Dollander.

Relief corps

With Vásquez having his longest start of the year of seven innings, the Friars only needed to use Jason Adam and Adrian Morejon to get the job done. The two will likely be unavailable today, though Morejon managed to finish the ninth on only eight pitches so don’t be too surprised if he trots out of the ‘pen in a high-leverage spot.

That leaves San Diego with a plethora of options in Kyle Hart, Ron Marinaccio, David Morgan, Wandy Peralta, Bradgley Rodriguez and closer Mason Miller.

Miller remained in reserve despite a narrow lead going into the ninth. With the off day Monday, it was surprising to see him on the bench, but Stammen has his reasons. That being said, Miller will be on the mound tonight if the Padres take a lead to the ninth.

The Yankees’ uniforms come in two varieties: home whites with pinstripes and the iconic NY logo over the left side of the chest, and gray away ones with “New York” written across the chest. With each, there’s a number on the back and no name. That’s the tradition. 

According to a report in The Athletic, players recently pitched club higher-ups about wearing an alternate road jersey for the first time in the history of the franchise. 

And later on Wednesday, MLB.com's Bryan Hoch reported the Yankees' navy blue batting practice jerseys have been added as an official uniform set approved to be worn in games by the league.

The Yanks, one of only two MLB clubs without a City Connect uniform (the other being the stateless Athletics), new alternate won't be a loud pattern like other teams, but is similar to the ones worn during spring training that have "New York" across the chest in gray letters and numbers with white trim on the back.

“I think we'll always wear the pinstripes at home. I don't think that'll change,” Aaron Judge said before Wednesday’s game in Boston, via Hoch. “We’ve changed our road jersey other years. So I guess if we wear the blues, we’ll wear the blues on the road.”

Judge added, “I’m all about tradition, but we’ve got a [Starr Insurance] patch on our sleeves,” referencing the sponsorship patch added to both the team’s jerseys in 2023 in a deal that reportedly nets the club $25 million a season.

The players did not propose any changes to the home uniforms or to the regular road jerseys, per The Athletic report, which noted the Yanks are also the lone big league team without any alternate jersey.

Giancarlo Stanton called the current uniforms “iconic” when speaking with reporters Wednesday, but indicated that a change would be something that “a lot of people would be ok with.”

Stanton also expressed interest in a City Connect option.

“I think we should do that, too," he said, via Hoch. "There’s a lot of tradition here. The most iconic jersey there is in sports, pretty much. But that doesn’t mean that every once in a while you can’t change something up.”

Matthew Boyd spent about two weeks on the injured list with a biceps issue.

The left-hander made one rehab start in which he struck out six and was deemed ready to return.

So, the Cubs activated Boyd from the 15-day injured list this afternoon and he will start tonight’s game against the Phillies.

To make room for Boyd on the 26-man active roster, left-hander Luke Little was optioned to Triple-A Iowa..

Little appeared in one game for the Cubs, April 15 in Philadelphia, and allowed one run in the one inning he threw. He’ll likely be back at some point later in the season as he rides the Iowa Shuttle. As always, we await developments.

Today’s game preview will post at 4:30 p.m. CT.