Category: Baseball

The Detroit Tigers are on a roll after a perfect 6-0 homestand that erased a five-game losing streak and put them over the .500 mark for the first time since late March. Next up on the agenda are the Boston Red Sox, who will host the Motor City Kitties for a four-game series at Fenway Park starting on Friday night.

The BoSox got off to a slow start to the 2026 campaign, dropping five straight after their season-opening win at the Cincinnati Reds, but have since earned series wins over the Milwaukee Brewers and St. Louis Cardinals. Boston enters the weekend coming off a series loss at the Minnesota Twins, but it did prevent a sweep with a win on Wednesday’s finale.

Opening things up on the mound for the Olde English D is right-hander Casey Mize, whose trademark splitter appears to be finally reaching its long-awaited potential. Opposite him is lefty Ranger Suarez, who has had modest success so far this season.

Make note that Friday night’s tilt will be broadcast on AppleTV, while Monday’s matchup starts at an eye-rubbingly early 11:10 a.m. ET.

Detroit Tigers (10-9) vs. Boston Red Sox (7-11)

Time (ET): 7:15 p.m.
Place: Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts
SB Nation Site:Over the Monster
Media: AppleTV,Tigers Radio Network

Game 20: RHP Casey Mize (1-1, 3.94 ERA) vs. LHP Ranger Suarez (1-1, 5.02 ERA)

MIZE

SUAREZ

The Yankees wrapped up a four-game set with a split series on Thursday, dropping a game that spiraled out of control late and ended up an ugly 11-4 loss. Truth be told, the series ended in a split was extremely fortunate compared to how well the Yankees played this week, as their two wins were both ninth inning comebacks while their losses leaned towards blowouts. If it weren’t for the sleeper cell known as Jordan Romano, they could very well have been staring at a four-game sweep and the continuation of a nine-game losing streak entering this weekend — whether that’s looking at the glass half full, or realizing that they’re in the midst of a truly poor stretch of play, is up to interpretation.

While we wait for the team to retake the field tonight, let’s run you through what we have in store. Matt starts us off with a preview of the pitching matchups for this series with the Royals, and Sam takes us through what the rest of the league was up to on Thursday in the Rivalry Roundup. Jonathan celebrates the birthday of a man who left a legacy across multiple sports in Zack Clayton, Jeff takes the bottom of the lineup to task in examining the lineups struggles, and later in the day I’ll be back to answer your latest mailbag questions.

Today’s Matchup

New York Yankees vs. Kansas City Royals

Time: 7:05 p.m. EST

Video: YES Network, Royals.TV

Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

Questions/Prompts:

1. Are you more annoyed that the Yankees let the Angels outplay them or relieved they somehow pulled out a split considering their play right now?

2. Is the rotation experiencing regression to the mean, or just going through a rough patch?

Fans chanted his name. Teammates toasted his name. His manager deified his name, claiming he had just unleashed one of the greatest bullpen performances in baseball history.

Everybody loved him. Nobody doubted him. And in the middle of the Dodgers' postseason run last October, nobody was more valuable than him.

Remember Roki Sasaki?

It’s tough, but try.

Read more:Dodgers don't need Shohei Ohtani's bat, just his arm, in rout of Mets

Remember his first October appearance last fall, finishing the clinching game of the wild-card series against the Cincinnati Reds, one hitless inning, two strikeouts, everything disappearing at 100 mph out of this skinny kid’s right arm?

That was the beginning of the chants, arguably louder than for any other player in Dodger Stadium history, stronger than Moo-kie, deeper than Fred-die, chants thundering enough to seemingly be heard for a lifetime.

“Ro-ki, Ro-ki, Ro-ki!”

Remember what happened next? He finished off the first two wins of the division series against the Philadelphia Phillies amid a taunting mob in Citizens Bank Park, becoming the first pitcher in history to record his first two career saves in the playoffs.

Then, back home, he created what was, at the time, the highlight of the season.

With a depleted pitching staff needing him, with the Dodgers' teetering hopes balanced on him, Sasaki came through with three perfect innings to essentially win the clinching Game 4.

Remember this? He started his work in the eighth inning by blowing past Kyle Schwarber, Bryce Harper and Alec Bohm. He finished his work after the 10th by being hugged by jubilant manager Dave Roberts while still on the field.

The Dodgers won it in the 11th on that incredible throwing error by Phillies’ reliever Orion Kerkering and the rest is shiny blue history.

The Dodgers couldn’t have won the World Series without Sasaki and, judging from their reaction after that clincher against the Phillies, they thought they had found their closer of the future

“One of the great all-time appearances out of the pen,” said Roberts.

Fellow Dodger pitcher Tyler Glasnow went even farther, saying, “Since … coming in from the bullpen, he’s honestly one of the best pitchers I’ve ever seen.”

The highest compliment, though, was paid by teammate Miguel Rojas, who raised a post-game clubhouse toast in his honor.

Read more:L.A.’s Blue Era: How popular are the Dodgers? Even the Lakers look up at them. Way up

“Shot for Roki!” he shouted.

Fast-forward to Sunday afternoon, Dodger Stadium, where the starting pitcher looks lost.

He can’t find the strike zone. He can’t find his fastball. He can’t find himself.

He gives up five hits and five walks in four innings. He requires the use of four relievers. He is eventually saddled with an 0-2 record with a 6.23 ERA after piling up a 4.46 ERA in eight starts last season.

The fans faintly begin chanting his name, then their voices disappear into a hush. Nobody is coming to hug him. Nobody is coming to call him the greatest pitcher ever.

He’s no longer the benefactor of a toast, because he is toast.

Remember Roki Sasaki?

Not like this, you don’t.

The former star reliever has become their most embattled starter and one who has made the season’s first big move seem inevitable.

They’ve got to put him back in the bullpen, no?

They’ve got to put him back to where he found his greatest success, where his lack of a variety of pitches will not hurt him, where he can throw 100 mph for 20 pitches and save the team with his strength.

As last October showed everyone, the bullpen is where he belongs. The rotation, featuring budding star Justin Wrobleski, will survive without him. The bullpen needs him more.

Don’t believe the Dodgers’ public shrugs about the recent dead-arm condition of Edwin Díaz. Something was wrong. Maybe nothing serious, nothing long-term, but something was wrong.

You don’t bring in the highest-paid closer in history and then not use him in consecutive save situations unless something was wrong. You don’t have him throw a bullpen for Dodgers officials unless something was wrong.

Read more:Dodgers lefty Alex Vesia closes out pitchers' duel on 'very emotional' night

That “something” may have already been fixed, as Díaz was available to pitch Wednesday after being sidelined for four days, but still. He could need help, and that is exactly what Sasaki offers and exactly what should happen.

C’mon Dodgers, send him across the field and into the left-field corner where he belongs.

Bullpen him, now.

“My goal is, kind of, go deeper in the game a little more,” he told the media Sunday through his interpreter Kensuke Okubo.

No, no, no. He doesn’t possess enough pitches to go deeper in games. He possesses just enough pitches — a fastball and a splitter — to last two innings, tops.

Look at this startling statistic:

In his first two innings of work, in three starts, he’s allowed zero earned runs.

In his other seven innings of work, he’s allowed nine earned runs.

Enough said. He’s a two-pitch pitcher who needs to be moved from the rotation into relief, and don’t think it hasn’t been done here before.

Eric Gagné made 48 starts from 1999 until 2001. At that point, the Dodgers decided he didn’t have the arsenal or attitude to be a starter, so they moved him to the bullpen.

He made 354 relief appearances without ever starting again, using his strength and skill and, yes, perhaps steroids, to convert a record 84-straight save chances while winning a Cy Young and coining the phrase “Game Over.”

Gagné was like Sasaki long before Sasaki. Even his entrance song, “Welcome to the Jungle,” matches Sasaki’s “Bailalo Rocky” with its ominous tones.

This is all so obvious, it’s a miracle the Dodgers haven’t put him in the bullpen already. But this is just the Dodgers being the Dodgers, an organization that puts the players first.

Sasaki wants to be a starter. When they convinced him to go to the bullpen last October, the Dodgers promised him he would return to the rotation.

“We were just honest with him, that as things stood, the only real pathway … was in the bullpen,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman told reporters at the time. “But we wanted his full buy-in.”

Sasaki, who had mostly started while growing up in Japan, told the Japanese magazine Shukan Bunshun he was “very hesitant” to make the switch but only agreed when the Dodgers promised it would be temporary.

“Because they will let me try to start again next season, it was a relatively easy decision to make,” he said.

Now it is the Dodgers who have the relatively easy decision. Sasaki will be upset, but the bullpen is surely a better option than an extended stay in Oklahoma City, where there are triple-A hitters whom he has already dominated. He’s too good for the minors. The problem is, as a starter, he’s also not good enough for the big leagues.

Into this limbo, the bullpen fits perfectly and if he’s unhappy, well, he was given a $6.5-million signing bonus to accept the ramifications of the following numbers:

Read more:How changes last year set up Dodgers' Justin Wrobleski's gem against Mets: 'He was at a crossroads'

In 11 career starts, he has a 5.13 ERA.

In 11 career relief appearances, he has an 0.71 ERA.

You do the math.

Remember the Roki Sasaki of your October dreams?

Bullpen him.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

One of the first group of MLB Power Rankings has been released, and the Pittsburgh Pirates are somewhere we are not used to seeing them: near the top.

Sports Illustrated has released their first MLB Power Rankings since right before Opening Day, and your Buccos are sitting pretty in fourth place. Here’s what SI has to say about our squad:

How about those Pirates?! After an uncharacteristic Opening Day meltdown, ace Paul Skenes has righted the ship for the Buccos, Braxton Ashcraft is quietly pitching like an ace and Mitch Keller continues to be a quality start machine. But it’s been the Pirates’ rebuilt lineup, led by an apparent breakout year from Oneil Cruz and hot starts from newcomers Ryan O’Hearn and Brandon Lowe, that has Pittsburgh residents already dreaming of the club’s first postseason appearance since 2015. 

So while SI isn’t as presitgious these days as the power rankings on MLB.com, it’s nice to see Pittsburgh being recognized for their 11-8 start. Right now, that puts the Bucs on a 92-win pace, which is better than any of us predicted here on the staff. I think most importantly, baseball has been fun, which hasn’t been the case here in Pittsburgh for a while. I legitimately enjoy watching each member of the starting five, and now that the team is hitting the ball a little bit, it’s been a pretty good watch on that side of the ball as well.

Since I am an elementary teacher, I don’t usually get to games in person until the summer, so it would be nice for the games I attend to matter for a change. It’s been a while since the Bucs were still playing for something in June, July and August when I can actually go. Let’s hope the power rankings hold. Go Bucs!

New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: The day after finding out Gerrit Cole is headed to Double-A to begin his rehab assignment, we got some details. Cole’s pitch count is expected to be in the mid-40s and the Yankees plan to build him to a “higher threshold” during his rehab then be conservative with him once he returns to the major leagues — so don’t expect to see Cole back in pinstripes after only a few rehab starts. He’ll make several but that kind of timeline dovetails nicely with the end of May or so. The Cole Train could be approaching the station soon.

MLB | Rhett Bollinger: Kids these days don’t understand how incredible Peak Mike Trout was. Or, before this week’s series at Yankee Stadium, they didn’t. The future Hall of Famer, whose career arc was derailed by injury, was absolutely in his bag against the Yanks: five home runs in four games, at least one in each. After he homered in his last game at Yankee Stadium last season, he’s now only the second player to homer in five straight games at the Stadium (joining Aaron Judge, who put his own power on display this week). He also joins George Bell, Darrell Evans, and Hall of Famer Jimmie Foxx as the only players who’ve ever clubbed five round-trippers in a single series against New York. Good work. Now go away.

NJ.com: YES broadcaster Michael Kay is dissatisfied with the Yankees’ handling of Ben Rice in the early part of 2026. He decried what seems like a platoon arrangement at first base, pointing out that it’s depriving the club of one of its best bats. He’s also not convinced by the late game pinch-hitter argument. But Kay is no mere angry fan. He brings a possible solution with his complaint: get Rice ready to don the tools of ignorance. Having Rice backup Austin Wells would allow Paul Goldschmidt to start at first base against lefties while keeping Rice’s bat in the lineup.

The Athletic | Eno Sarris ($): This is perhaps not the most opportune time for this article to come out, considering Max Fried’s ugly start Thursday against the Angels. But we have a new set of Sarris’ pitcher rankings. All four Yankee starters appear, with two in the top 20. Fried lands at #6, with Sarris highlighting his pitch mix, velocity, and command. Cam Schlittler meanwhile, comes in at #20. Sarris’ Stuff+ model has been sold on Cam since last season and Sarris wraps up his thoughts on Schlitter with “Put the bubble wrap on him, this kid’s arm is golden.”

How Adolis García's path to the bigs still shapes him a decade later originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Ten years ago, Adolis García did not look much like the player Phillies fans see today.

Back then, the top Cuban prospect was listed at 6-foot and 175 pounds, still slight, and years away from becoming the broad-shouldered right fielder who now plays with the force and edge that earned him the nickname “El Bombi.”

In 2016, García was 23 and still trying to fulfill his dream of playing in the Major Leagues, where his brother Adonis was the everyday third baseman for the Braves.

That spring, after winning MVP honors during a Serie Nacional title run in Cuba, Adolis left his homeland for Japan and signed with the Yomiuri Giants. It was the first real stop of his career outside the baseball world he knew, and the adjustment hit him immediately.

“I went to Japan straight from Cuba,” García said through Phillies interpreter Diego D’Aniello. “At first, it impressed me because I didn’t know anything else from a cultural standpoint.”

But his game never clicked in Nippon Professional Baseball. García appeared in only four games for Yomiuri and roughly two dozen more in the minors before the club released him. He still points to that stop; however, as a turning point, saying he learned “discipline and work ethic,” which felt “completely new and different from what I knew at that point.”

For Cuban players of that era, the path to MLB was not a direct one. Opportunities to play abroad existed, and Japan became one sanctioned outlet for Cuban players. Others had made similar stops there. García, though, navigated it without any real connection to those paths. He was the only Cuban in the Yomiuri organization without a single familiar face.

Instead of returning to Cuba, García defected and went to the Dominican Republic, beginning the process of establishing residency as an international free agent.

García was living that uncertainty, three countries in one calendar year. In real time, though, looking back, he sees it simply as part of the process of becoming the player he aspired to be.

“I think it was all part of becoming a Major Leaguer,” he said. “From a work ethic standpoint, from a getting-better standpoint. So a lot of things to learn on that end.”

It also helps explain the way García sees the turbulence that followed.

The climb did not smooth out once he reached the United States. García signed with the Cardinals organization in 2017 and debuted in the majors a year later, but never found a real foothold there. He spent all of 2019 in Triple A, hit 32 home runs and still did not get recalled. After the season, St. Louis designated him for assignment.

Texas took a chance on him, but the COVID-shortened 2020 season limited his opportunities. Before the 2021 season, he was DFA’d again. García went unclaimed, received a non-roster invitation to spring training – where he’d rake – and broke camp with the Rangers’ big league club. His exceptional play that year earned him his first All-Star nod.

“I think from the moment that I started playing in the big leagues, I never had any doubt that I could do it, that I could be here,” he said. “Of course, slumps can happen, bad years can happen, everything that’s happened in my career can happen, but that’s just part of the process. So on that point, I’ve never doubted that I belong here.”

That level of confidence and passion was on full display two years later, when he became a playoff hero in Texas. He hit 39 home runs, drove in 108 runs and made his second All-Star team in 2023. He won ALCS MVP, playing his way into the spotlight of October as Texas charged to a championship, but setbacks returned. 

This time, they were physical. His 2023 postseason ended with an oblique injury in the World Series. 

In 2024, he dealt with a lingering left patellar tendon issue that required eight weeks of rehab after the season. In 2025, he suffered an oblique strain in camp, then ran into more injuries later in the year. Across those two seasons, he posted a weak .675 OPS. The Rangers non-tendered early this past offseason.

The 2023 version is what made him so appealing to the Phillies, though. And even with the recent struggles, they were still bringing in a right fielder who offers big power, premium defense with an elite arm. On a one-year, $10 million deal, the organization still felt he offered more upside than Nick Castellanos, whom they are paying over $19 million to play elsewhere.

It starts with the range. Last season, García posted 16 Defensive Runs Saved, the best mark among Major League right fielders. And this year in Philadelphia, he’s already tallied two outfield assists. His arm has been a huge difference maker — sitting at 94.2 mph on average, which ranks in the top two percent among outfielders. That alone gives the Phillies an element of the game they did not have at the position a year ago.

Offensively, the goal has been clear: get him closer to the hitter he was in 2023, before the chase rate soared and his plate discipline fell.

When García arrived at camp this year, the Phillies’ hitting coaches made clear in camp that they believed in his bat. He said the focus was on “a few tweaks and adjustments” — improving his pitch recognition, going after good pitches and building from there.

In 2023, García’s chase rate was 29.3 percent. By 2025, it had ballooned to 35.7 percent. This season, it is back down to 30.5 percent. His in-zone contact rate has jumped to a career-high 87.5 percent, and his hard-hit rate is running about three points higher than his 2023 numbers. All positive signs.

So far, much of his success with the Phils has come against left-handed pitching, something the club has struggled mightily against. He is slashing .333/.375/.462 in those matchups. He also leads the Phillies in multi-hit games.

“Ever since we had those conversations [in camp], I think we’ve had good results with it, and it’s just keep going forward with it,” he said.

Slight tweaks to his batting stance and hands early this spring have stuck. Adjustments are the common thread that have carried through García’s career. Both on and off the field. 

When asked what keeps him grounded now, it’s not some elaborate routine. It is the path itself, and the people attached to it.

“It’s just thinking about my family and the long road that I’ve had all the way here,” he said. “I think that’s what keeps me focused — thinking about my family and just staying present in the moment.”

That road began in 2016.

Now it runs through Philadelphia, where García is trying to prove himself once again for a club with World Series expectations. For him, that’s familiar territory.

Ever since Artemis II launched a little over two weeks ago, I’ve felt an itch in my bones. The itch for Kerbal Space Program. I finally gave in tonight, while watching the Seattle Mariners get swept by their legally mandated rivals, the San Diego Padres. Tonight’s 5-2 loss comes on the heel’s of last night’s 9th inning disaster and puts a sour taste in the team’s mouth as they head back north. But whereas last night the Mariners were gallant right up to the bitter end, tonight’s game they were just goofus. It almost looked like the game of baseball was alien to them.

For those not in the know, in the video game Kerbal Space Program, the player takes on the task of guiding little green aliens to outer space using real rocket science and orbital mechanics. It is not an easy game, nor a simple one, but it is, and this is important, incredibly goofy. The rockets wobble and explode, the buildings burn, the satellites crash, and through it all the little green guys just keep smiling. And, in a strange way, I see either the Seattle Mariners in them, or Kerbals in the Mariners. Watch this old announcement trailer and see if you catch my meaning.

When Brendan Donovan led off the game with a walk, it was a nominal liftoff. And then he detached his boosters before they were out of fuel, and got himself picked off at first for the second out of the inning. Whoops. Later on, Luke Raley hit a nice line drive in the second inning, but activated the parachutes too early. So instead of banging a double off the wall, he allowed Fernando Tatís Jr. to make a shoestring catch to end the inning.

In KSP, the player’s main adversaries are two forces of nature: atmospheric drag and gravity. But for the Mariners, the padres have been playing so well and are on such a streak that they may as well be considered forces of nature, as inexorable as the force that guides the arc of a home run ball. Or in the case of the Padres, a bunch of annoying seeing-eye ground balls that get through for singles and score a run. But hey look! One of them hit a hot shot to Naylor at first! Now he can turn a double play!

Uh-oh, Josh dropped it. There he learned a valuable KSP lesson: you can’t go too fast too low. Just Josh rushing to transfer the ball while still in a crouch caused him to drop the ball, your rocket going too fast too low in the atmosphere is just going to waste fuel and produce unnecessary heating. In rocket science, just as in baseball, it’s often better to slow down, take your time, and take some of the (atmospheric) pressure off yourself. But because Josh wasn’t able to turn that double play and end the inning, one run scored directly, and then two more Padres came across the plate to make it a 4-0 ballgame.

Offensively, the Mariners looked a little lost at the plate, as if Walker Buehler’s sweeper was as incomprehensible to them as the Tsiolkovsky rocket equation. I mean, what part of Δu = V_eqln (mf/me) − g₀ ⋅ tb is hard to understand? The Mariners made two big threats. The threat in the 4th failed to even go suborbital as a pair of leadoff singles by Donovan and Raleigh were left stranded.

The threat in the 6th succeeded in breaking through the atmosphere, however. This time, after a pair of leadoff singles by Young and Donovan, Cal hit a line drive that made splashdown in right field and scored Cole Young easily. Now finally mortal, the Padres were forced to replace Buehler.

Julio followed up Cal’s Apollo mission with an Artemis mission, also hitting a line drive into right that scored a runner from third. Now, with runners on first and second with nobody out, then the bases loaded with one out, the Mariners were poised to finally enter orbit a tie or take the lead from the Padres. But then they ran out of fuel. Connor Joe pinch hit for Luke Raley and struck out on a high fastball, and J.P. hit a routine groundball to end the inning. There would be no orbit and, for the Mariners, no more spaceflights. They’d never get so close to the Padres again.

In fact, the Padres managed to rub some salt in the wound in the 7th when, with runners on second and third, Cole Young lost a pop up in the San Diego sky and dropped it, giving the Friars another run.

Mercifully, that inning, and the remaining two, were soon ended, completing the San Diego sweep putting the Seattle Space Program on hold. Perhaps its time to go back to the drawing board in the Vehicle Assembly Building and start over with a new design. Put Julio at first base. Make Cal pitch. Have George Kirby play shortstop. That’s the kind of thing I do in KSP when my rocket just flat out isn’t working. And you know what? It usually works.

The Mariners return home tomorrow for a 3-game set against the Texas Rangers. After also being swept by Texas a couple weeks ago, some wins against a divisional rival are exactly what this team needs right now. The most demoralized fans among you would say that beating the Rangers this weekend is a dream. But what can I say? I like to shoot for the moon.

For those who thought Aaron Boone might have nothing to get ejected about with the arrival of the automated ball-strike system, think again.

The Yankees manager picked up his first ejection late in Thursday’s 11-4 loss to the Angels, getting tossed by home plate umpire Will Little at the end of the eighth inning for arguing a balk call from the top of the eighth.

“I still haven’t gotten good clarity, because of course they got overly sensitive when I was as calm as could be,” said Boone, who first went out to talk to Little in the middle of the eighth before going out again at the end of the frame.

“I wasn’t out there arguing, I just wanted to hear their explanation. I’m going to wait to get more clarity. I think it’s a fine play.”

First base umpire Ryan Additon called the balk on lefty Ryan Yarbrough, who tried to pick off the man at first with runners on first and second and two outs in what was then a 7-4 game. 

Boone said the Yankees had a play on for Yarbrough to attempt a pickoff at first and thought the throw over was within the rules. But he was dissatisfied with the lack of explanation for why it was called a balk.

“Will gave it to me behind home plate, but then I wanted what I thought should have been more of an explanation,” said Boone, who has led the AL in ejections in each of the last five years. “So I went out to talk to Ryan out at first and [crew chief Lance Barksdale] cut me off.”

Gerrit Cole will be on a pitch count around the mid-40s Friday night as he starts a rehab assignment at Double-A Somerset, which, if it goes well, could have him back in The Bronx in around a month.

The plan is for Cole to get fully built up on his minor-league assignment, instead of doing what the Yankees did with Cam Schlittler to start this season and taking him at around 70 pitches to finish off that buildup in the big leagues.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

“It’s one step at a time,” Boone said. “Looking forward to him starting on Friday and we’ll build him from there. Even when he gets back to us, we’ll probably be conservative with him.”


Rehab assignments come with a 30-day clock for pitchers — May 16 would be the final day of that for Cole — but those coming back from Tommy John surgery, as the former AL Cy Young winner is, can extend that window if needed.

Carlos Rodón, meanwhile, could be back shortly before Cole.

The left-hander, whose return from elbow surgery was delayed by a hamstring issue, is scheduled to throw live batting practice Saturday, after which he could get cleared to begin a rehab assignment that would likely include “at least” three games — potentially putting him in a position to rejoin the Yankees in the second week of May.

Oswald Peraza tormented his former team all series, going 2-for-4 with a double, home run, walk and three RBIs on Thursday after going 3-for-3 with a homer and a walk Tuesday.

“Man, he looked like what we were excited about several years ago,” Boone said. “Then obviously went through a couple years of really struggling. He’s super talented, always has been. … Clearly in as good a place as he’s been in a few years.”

For the first time this season, the scuffling Ryan McMahon did not play third base during a Max Fried start.

Despite Boone’s stated preference to have the defensively gifted McMahon handling the hot corner for Fried, who generates a high clip of ground balls there, he started Amed Rosario to balance the lineup on a day when the Angels were throwing a bullpen game.

The Yankees lost their automated ball-strike system challenges by the bottom of the third inning Thursday.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham were both proven wrong trying to get strikes turned into balls.

The Atlanta Braves’ day off began with another bullpen shuffle, and this time, right-hander Ian Hamilton got the call. In addition to his selection, the club optioned lefty Hayden Harris to Triple-A Gwinnett and designated righty Osvaldo Bido for assignment. 

30-year-old Hamilton joined the Braves in December of last year and has yet to make his Atlanta debut. He’s thrown just 6.1 innings in Gwinnett this season, where he owns a 2.84 ERA. He’s given up just one base on balls and whiffed nine. 

Harris was called up earlier this week and did not get a shot at big league action. As for Bido, the move is a direct result of his lackluster outing against Miami.

More Braves News:

The Braves, who have yet to lose a series, are beginning a road trip full of NL East foes, and first, they take on the Philadelphia Phillies in a three-game set. 

Bryce Elder has been effective early this season and is shaping up to be a regular in the starting rotation.

Jim Jarvis is on a nine-game hitting streak down in Triple-A. More in the minor league recap. 

Luke Williams has rejoined the Braves on a minor-league deal, per the transaction log. He was designated for assignment earlier this week and elected free agency.

MLB News:

The Washington Nationals acquired left-hander Richard Lovelady from the New York Mets in exchange for cash. The Mets designated him for assignment over the weekend. 

From the Feed:

Brian Snitker will be inducted into the Braves Hall of Fame on April 25, and there’s a slate of special guests that will be in attendance.

The Colorado Rockies entered their series finale in Houston against the Astros needing a win in the worst way. Losers of six straight on the road, the Rockies could have ended their road trip with seven consecutive losses with a daunting match-up against the Los Angeles Dodgers quickly approaching.

The Rockies got the memo. Despite a shaky start from opener Juan Mejia, the Rockies pitching was largely excellent. They held the strong Astros offense to just two runs on their way to a victory that no doubt resonated in the clubhouse.

Cold Open

With the Rockies scuttling to get the most out of their pitching staff due to injuries and heavy bullpen use during this road trip, righty Juan Mejia was begged as the opener. Mejia threw just over half of his 30 pitches for strikes and recorded two strikeouts, but three singles and a hit by pitch helped the Astros jump head to an early lead. Mejia was pulled after recording just two outs.

Cut to the Chase

Chase Dollander turned in one of the best performances of his young career operating in bulk relief of Juan Mejia. Dollander consistently dialed up high velocity on his fastball—regularly hitting 100 MPH—and induced a 44% whiff rate on the pitch. He also made strong use of his slider and changeup (with 40% and 43% whiff rates, respectively) as he struck out a career high nine batters in 5.1 scoreless innings.

Dollander held the Astros hitless until his final inning of work. In the sixth inning a leadoff walk to Isaac Paredes and a double deflected off the glove of third baseman Kyle Karros had runners on second and third with no outs. Dollander proceeded to bear down with a gutsy finish. After getting noted Rockies killer Christian Walker to ground out without advancing the runners, Dollander struck out the next two batters to end the inning with no damage done.

See what happens when you don’t strike out 15 times?

Tonight was one of the Rockies’ most disciplined games at the plate so far this season. The Rockies struck out just five times against the combined Astros bullpen—including the opener Ryan Weiss—while chasing significantly less than previous games over this road trip. They also drew six walks.

Unfortunately, that didn’t necessarily equate to runs. The Rockies scored just three runs on nine hits, going 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position and leaving nine men stranded.

Tyler Freeman, Hunter Goodman, and Brenton Doyle were the Rockies’ heroes at the plate. Freeman went 3-for-5 with an RBI without striking out—though he did ground into a momentum-killing double-play—while Hunter Goodman both went 2-for-3 with a walk. Doyle put his speed to good use with two stolen bases while Goodman hit his fifth home run of the season.

Bend, but don’t break.

Dollander gave way to Jaden Hill, Jimmy Herget, and Victor Vodnik. All three relievers faced traffic but kept the Astros off the board. Hill walked two and gave up a hit, but managed to navigate the inning unscathed while Herget also gave up a walk. Vodnik also issued a walk, and a towering fly ball off the bat of Isaac Paredes gave Rockies fans flashbacks as it looked like they were about to be walked off yet again. However, the ball fell into Mickey Moniak’s glove at the wall and Vodnik earned his second save of the season.

Coming Up Next

The Rockies are heading back to what might be a chilly and snow-touched Coors Field tomorrow to start a four-game series against the powerhouse Los Angeles Dodgers. Tomoyuki Sugano 菅野 智之 will make the start for the Rockies, looking to continue building on his excellent start.Tyler Glasnow will go for the Dodgers. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 PM MDT.

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Two heavyweights went toe-for-toe in a sideshow to the Yankees-Angels series this week before Mike Trout came out on top.

Trout out-homered fellow three-time MVP Aaron Judge 5-4 in the four-game set that the teams split, homering in each game (two in one game), including a solo shot in the Angels’ 11-4 win over the Yankees on Thursday afternoon in The Bronx.

“It’s unreal,” said Giancarlo Stanton, who also homered in the loss. “Cool showing from him and Judgey all series. Obviously you don’t want that against us, but you got to acknowledge the greatness. It was a deciding factor today. Not what we want, but obviously a great talent.”

By homering off Yankees reliever Angel Chivilli in the seventh inning Thursday, Trout became the first visiting player to homer on four consecutive days at Yankee Stadium.

The 34-year-old outfielder, whose talent has been hindered by injuries in recent years, went 6-for-16 with five home runs, eight runs, nine RBIs and three walks in the series.

“He’s not chasing and he’s deadly in some certain parts of the zone,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Chivilli really the entire at-bat was executing pretty well against him and then all of a sudden goes back to that changeup and [Trout] hammers it. 

“He’s clearly healthy and he’s an all-time great. Hurt us this series.”

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

Judge had homered in the top of the first inning Thursday — his fifth home run in his last five games — to temporarily even the tally with Trout during this series.

They both went deep twice in Monday’s series opener, while the Angels kept Judge in the ballpark Tuesday.

The Yankees wish Trout had looked like his former self against a different team, but they tipped their cap across the way.

“Obviously he’s been one of the best in the game from the time he came up,” said Max Fried, who walked Trout twice. “He’s very patient and he knows the zone. I was trying to throw the ball over the plate and for whatever reason, was just missing. Frustrated because I wanted to be able to go after him but obviously didn’t.”

By now, you have probably heard that Parker Messick threw 8 n0-hit innings against the Orioles. What more is there to say?

Messick is such a special competitor. And, at this point, I find myself wishing Austin Hedges could catch all our pitchers because he seems to get them all to dominate. Messick kept hitters guessing all game long. 36% of Messick’s four-seamers were either called-strikes or whiffs, and 29% of his cutters. And, with that said, I don’t understand how anyone ever makes contact on his changeup.

Now, with 106 pitches, manager Stephen Vogt rightly let Messick try to get a no-hitter, but Leody Tavares got a 103.5 mph single past Juan Brito and then Blaze Alexander hit another ball hard for a single. Vogt got Cade Smith at that point, who continues to make things interesting in the 9th. He allowed a single, a sac fly to Gunnar Henderson that was very close to a grand slam, and a double to Pete Alonso, before getting a pop fly and a groundout. The final groundout was the hardest struck ball of the game at 107 mph, and Juan Brito made a nice sliding play and throw from a seated position. Hopefully that helps the young infielder flush the memory of his atrocious play in the bottom of the 9th in St. Louis that cost the Guardians a game.

Cade Smith needs to begin locating his secondary stuff more consistently or we may be in for a Joe Borowski year in the Guardians’ closer position. Cade, no one wants to go full Borowski. Reel it in, buddy. IN CARL WE TRUST.

Jose Ramirez smoked a two-run homer in the first on the first pitch he saw of the night. That was good to see. Jose also got a single and a walk as his OPS climbs steadily back toward .800 plus. Brayan Rocchio had a double, Steven Kwan and George Valera both had two hits. It has been nice to see the Guardians win some games as Chase DeLauter goes through a hitting adjustment period.

This was a great win. I hope the Guardians can figure out a way to beat the Orioles three times this week and help me shake the bad taste that Cardinals’ series left with me. Watching Parker Messick absolutely carve up other teams already went a long way to helping in that effort.

Sometimes you need a clickbaity title for fun, and sometimes the extreme title is actually justified. This might be one of those times.

In the early going, there aren’t a tremendous amount of statistics that mean much of anything, or at least that mean enough to re-evaluate what we think about a player.

As an example, here are the statistical leaders by various metrics:

• wRC+: Danny Serretti (200)
• BA: José Mejía (.406)
• OBP: Kayson Cunningham (.533)
• SLG: Manuel Pena (.778)
• Line Drive Percentage: Jose Alpuria (58.3%)

With the exception of Alpuria (who has 30 plate appearances) none of these players have reached 50 plate appearances yet, and it takes at least 60 plate appearances for any of the available stats at lower levels to mean anything. So hats off to Cunningham, getting on base more than half of the time, but it’s probably unsustainable.

Only four hitters (all at Reno, of course) have reached the requisite 60 plate appearances for their stats to mean anything, and it isn’t all of their stats.

The first stat that means anything is bat speed, for the simple reason that bat speed has nothing to do with results or luck. Unfortunately, we don’t have bat speeds for hitters in AAA. The next stat to becoming meaningful is hard hit rate and exit velocity, and by the time 60 plate appearances are reached, strikeout rate becomes meaningful. BABIP, when combined with the exit velocities and hard hit rates, has a meaning, but the meaning lies in the interpretation, as BABIP is a stat which varies widely from year to year and really tells us nothing other than how lucky or unlucky a player has been.

There’s two more stats that are ancillary to these, one of which is fairly well known and the other of which is not as well known. Launch angle is the average angle at which the ball leaves the bat; ground balls have negative launch angles, statcast defines line drives as batted balls with a launch angle between 10 and 25 degrees, but an ideal launch angle is probably in the 15-35 degree range, depending on exit velocity. Too high a launch angle and the batted ball is a harmless fly out or pop up; too low a launch angle and there’s no chance at a home run.

Not as well known are various permutations of exit velocity. Tom Tango (the brain power behind a lot of Baseball Savant) views average exit velocity as a useless stat, for the simple reason that it is measuring a lot of useless data. Baseball Savant provides a stat called “adjusted exit velocity” which measures batted balls in relation to a cutoff point of 88 MPH, below which velocity means practically nothing. Tango prefers EV50, an average of the 50% hardest hit balls. That’s what I have here (only easily available on prospectsavant.com) but keep in mind as well that batted balls below 88 MPH are regarded as valueless in terms of exit velocity. It will be important later

As mentioned above, four players have reached 60 plate appearances and some preliminary conclusions can be drawn. I’ll cover them without names at first, because our opinions of these players certainly cloud our perceptions.

Before going further, please quickly vote on which of these players is having the best season so far.

Now to provide a little bit of context for these stats. Players A-C have all been top-100 prospects at one time or another, but their history on the one stat that means something and can be compared throughout their career is quite different. Player A has carried a strikeout rate of just under 20% through his career prior to this season. Player B has been even lower, at about 15%. Player C, on the other hand, had a sky high 30% strikeout rate prior to this season. And Player D, the lone player among these who has never been a top-100 prospect, posted a 13.5% strikeout rate prior to this season.

Unfortunately, we do not have the numbers for hard hit rates or exit velocity at previous levels, nor do we have bat speed numbers at any level.

Player A is Tommy Troy. He’s got a slash of .317/.408/.417, which are some good numbers, but not eye-popping for Reno. He’s only hitting the ball hard a quarter of the time, and his EV50 is below the cutoff point for value of 88 MPH, and not by a little bit. Despite that, he’s managed to post a BABIP of .429, which is partially attributable to his speed, but is mostly a function of luck.

Player B is Ryan Waldschmidt. That incredible .311/.417/.557 slash line is being upheld by high BABIP despite three problems. His strikeout rate is close to 30%, which is basically double what he’s done in his career previously. His average launch angle is 24 degrees, and while the average is a good number, having that high of an average indicates a lot of high fly balls or pop-ups. And his EV50 is in the bottom half of minor leaguers with Statcast data. In order for the top 50% of his batted balls to average out to 89.6 MPH, he has to hit a lot of balls below the dreaded 88 MPH. Note that I am not saying that he’s not playing well; he’s having a great season in many ways. I am saying that a player who is expected to be a key part of the franchise for years to come does not need to be called up to the major leagues when experiencing struggles he’s never dealt with before, regardless of how gaudy the numbers are. He’s going to figure it out and be fine, but people really need to pump the brakes on calling for his promotion.

Player C, and the most surprising for me, was Kristian Robinson. His slash of .240/.350/.460 doesn’t look like much, but remember his BABIP is 100 points lower than any of the other three. He still strikes out too much, but it’s at least come down to respectability (and he’s striking out less often than Waldschmidt, something I never thought I’d type in a million years) and walking more than any of the other three, although walk rate isn’t really predictive at this point. He’s the only player in this group who would be expected (based on his quality of contact) to post better numbers than he is posting. He’s smashing line drives the other way, and despite concerns about his speed diminishing, he’s still got quality wheels. While his EV50 is in the 88^th percentile, that is either among all batters or all qualified batters; among players with at least 50 plate appearances, he has the fourth best adjusted exit velocity.

Player D is LuJames Groover. His .359/.440/.453 slash may be more sustainable than other hitters with his underlying numbers simply because of the type of hitter he is, but given his lack of speed (sprint speed is not available at AAA, but his Fangraphs speed score is catcher level) he needs to hit for more power. But he makes a ton of contact and isn’t striking out. But he’s also not hitting the ball hard, and it’s been shown time and again that the best predictor of a successful big league career is how hard a player hits the ball.

It’s hard (or perhaps impossible) to have much faith in Robinson at this point. But it would be proper to note that his stint in AAA last season saw a similar reduction in strikeout rate (it actually started in Amarillo) but that was combined with lower exit velocities. He still swings and misses a ton. Still, according to the statistics that mean something at this early point, he’s the hitter in Reno who looks the most big league ready, with Groover close behind.

Hopefully the Diamondbacks will not need any position players called up in the near future, especially with Lourdes Gurriel Jr. nearing a return. But if they do, I believe that they would be better served calling up Robinson at the moment (depending on positional needs, of course) than they would be breaking the glass on Waldschmidt.

One final note: this was written prior to the games on Wednesday, and I’m not going to update all the numbers, although they have changed somewhat. Waldschmidt walked twice, while Robinson struck out twice, meaning that Waldschmidt’s strikeout rate has dropped below Robinson’s. But Robinson also hit two balls over 105 MPH, both for singles, and given that he hit no other balls, his EV50 has increased even further and his hard hit rate likely reached 50%. Groover and Troy both failed to pick up a hit.

All systems nominal: Cal Raleigh (=.09 WPA)

Scrub the launch, we’ve got a problem: Luis Castillo (-.25 WPA)

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