SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - MAY 05: Matt Olson #28 of the Atlanta Braves reacts after hitting a solo home run during the ninth inning against the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on May 05, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jack Compton/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Atlanta Braves will look to improve to 6-0 in rubber matches and stay unbeaten in series with Wednesday afternoon’s 4:10 p.m. EDT series finale against the Seattle Mariners.
Martín Pérez will be tasked with making another start after he wasn’t used in the bullpen Tuesday night. Jim Jarvis, called up this morning, will make his major league debut at shortstop to give Jorge Mateo a day off.
Let’s baseball one more time before a high-stakes series this weekend against the Dodgers.
Good news for the Glasnow generals, or those who have him on their fantasy team, Glasnow recorded his 1,000th career strikeout in a start against the Houston Astros on May 6. He threw a curveball at Yordan Álvarez, one of the game's notable sluggers, who bit and missed, giving Glasnow strikeout No. 1,000.
Tyler Glasnow picks up his 1,000th career strikeout 🔥
PHILADELPHIA, PA - APRIL 30: Adrian Houser #12 of the San Francisco Giants pitches during the game between the San Francisco Giants and the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on Thursday, April 30, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Denis Kennedy/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The San Francisco Giants conclude their three-game series against the San Diego Padres this afternoon, and they’re hoping for a much-needed series win. We’re also hoping for that.
Taking the mound for the Giants is righty Adrian Houser, who is still trying to find his groove this season. Houser has made six starts this year, and is 0-3 with a 7.12 ERA, a 5.75 FIP, and 16 strikeouts against 10 walks in 30.1 innings. He gave up three earned runs in 4.2 innings against the Philadelphia Phillies his last time out, which, unfortunately, was one of his best starts of the year.
San Diego is opting for an opener, with righty Bradgley Rodriguez kicking things off. The 22-year old has appeared in 14 games this year, and is 0-1 with a 1.62 ERA, a 2.60 FIP, and 12 strikeouts to five walks in 16.2 innings. This is his first career start.
It’s been an exciting few days of Cubs baseball at the corner of Clark and Addison. Last night the Cubs walked off the Reds in the bottom of the tenth inning for their second walkoff win in a row. Tuesday night Michael Conforto hit the first walk-off home run of his career and the first two-out, two-strike walk-off home run at Wrigley Field since the David Bote Ultimate Grand Slam in 2018. However, today I want to focus on something other than walk-offs, specifically, should we reconsider the cycle in an era where most of us would agree that being on base matters more than getting there via a single.
On Saturday, Ian Happ really powered the Cubs to victory en route to wait I propose should be considered a new type of cycle. First, he hit this monster home run [VIDEO].
That ball was absolutely demolished, hit 110.6 miles per hour off the bat and traveling 399 feet into the wind. It certainly gave the Diamondbacks pause the next time Happ ambled to the plate in the bottom of the third with runners at second and third. The D-backs intentionally walked Happ, much to the chagrin of the Wrigley faithful.
It didn’t seem that consequential at the time, but then in the sixth inning Happ hit a double down the right field line. He capped off quite the offensive day during his last at bat in the bottom of the eighth, scorching this triple to right center [VIDEO].
And now, dear Cubs fans, we have a bit of a conundrum. Ian Happ finished a single short of the cycle with an intentional walk. For all intents and purposes according to on base percentage, he did the thing. He had four plate appearances and got to each base in turn during all of them. He hit his way to the hardest parts of a cycle, and honestly looked so good doing it that the Diamondbacks just ceded first base to him rather than let him do more damage.
Admittedly, tweaking these types of rules is sure to upset the traditionalists. However, I’m not proposing that any old walk or hit by pitch can substitute for the single in a cycle. I’m proposing that in the very narrow instance where a batter only comes to the plate four times during a game with three of those plate appearances resulting in a double, triple and home run, if the opposing team has taken it upon themselves to take the bat out of the batter’s hands putting him on first intentionally in that fourth plate appearance, that should count as a modern baseball cycle. For what it’s worth, my colleague at BaseballHQ, Kris Olson agreed:
Should almost count as a cycle in the OBP era. You advanced one base, two bases, three bases and four bases in separate plate appearances.
To be clear, I am not proposing we name this a Sanchez Cycle. But Ian Happ was robbed and should have a something akin to a cycle credited to his résumé. Perhaps we should call it the Happ Cycle, honestly. What say you, BCB?
Golden State Warriors co-owner Joe Lacob said his unsuccessful bid to buy the San Diego Padres assumed that the entire 2027 MLB season would likely be lost due to labor strife.
Lacob’s group was one of a handful of final bidders in the MLB auction, which was ultimately won by billionaire José E. Feliciano and his wife Kwanza Jones for a league-record $3.9 billion.
The sale came ahead of the potential MLB labor standoff. The current CBA expires at the end of this current season, and both sides are gearing up for what could be a prolonged fight over a salary cap, service time and other major issues.
Speaking at Sportico’s Invest Westconference in San Francisco on Wednesday, Lacob was asked how his group modeled the potential risk of games being lost.
“We assumed likely not a season next year,” Lacob said. “Or at least that it was a possibility.”
Giving an owner’s perspective, he added that he believed baseball would benefit from having more cost certainty in the form of both a salary floor and a salary cap. He said that would likely result in the same amount of money paid on players, but would spread that money out across more teams.
“It’s good for the league to have proper and appropriate competition,” he said. “It can’t be just the Warriors doing well in the NBA, it has to be all the teams. Otherwise you don’t have a great league.”
Lacob said his interest in the Padres was both personal—“I happen to like baseball a lot”—but also financial. He said the economics of MLB look similar to that in the NBA, where teams in both sports rely heavily on tickets, media, sponsorships, high-end hospitality and merchandise.
“That’s what the businesses are,” he said. “It’s about local revenue generation. And I believe that we could be really good at doing that with a baseball team.”
On Feliciano’s winning bid, he added: “Some people have said it’s an overpay; it was a lot more than us, and I think we were second. But I think in the long run it will be a good investment, because I do believe in baseball.”
Lacob and his partner Peter Guber bought the Warriors in July 2010 for $450 million, at the time the highest price ever paid for an NBA franchise. The team is now worth $11.33 billion, according to Sportico’s latest valuations, more than any other team in the league.
Asked about the status of head coach Steve Kerr, who is in contract talks, Lacob declined to comment. He said the talks could have a resolution “today, tomorrow or in three weeks, I don’t know.”
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - MAY 05: Xander Bogaerts #2 of the San Diego Padres is congratulated by Nick Castellanos #21 of the San Diego Padres after he hit a home run against the San Francisco Giants in the second inning at Oracle Park on May 05, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
San Diego Padres (21-14) at San Francisco Giants (14-22), May 6, 2026, 12:45 p.m. PST
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PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MAY 05: Eduardo Rodriguez #57 of the Arizona Diamondbacks delivers a first inning pitch against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Chase Field on May 05, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Diamondbacks News
Rodriguez Ends Snakes’ Run of Poor Starts Eduardo Rodriguez didn’t just turn in a quality start, the veteran left-hander tossed seven full shutout innings, making the night easy for the struggling offense who then responded by posting nine runs.
Carlos Correa to Undergo Season-Ending Ankle Surgery One never likes to see a player miss the season, but this might be the time for Houston to take advantage of their injury woes and start planning for next year to be ahead of the curve.
DETROIT, MI - MAY 01: Detroit Tigers Framber Valdez (59) watches the game from the railing in the dugout during the game between Texas Rangers and Detroit Tigers on May 1, 2026 at Comerica Park in Detroit, MI (Photo by Allan Dranberg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
It’s hard to think of a bleaker week of Detroit Tigers baseball in recent memory. During the whole length of a seven year rebuild there were no hopes and dreams to be crushed. The 2024 stretch drive came out of nowhere, while the collapse late in 2025 came with such a huge margin of error already built up, that it was only in the final few games where it really looked like the club wouldn’t even land a wild card spot. The Tigers entered the 2026 season for the first time really acting like a team with expectations and goals. Now those goals stand directly in harm’s way, and in last night’s debacle in Detroit, it was left-hander Framber Valdez, the key offseason signifier that the Tigers were finally really serious about winning, who was at the center of things in all the wrong ways.
Right from the first inning in Tuesday night’s matchup against the Red Sox, the 32-year-old left-hander was on tilt as hitters signaled in pitches and/or pitch locations from second base. Were the Red Sox actually seeing his grips in the glove from second base? Was he tipping pitches in some other way? Were they simply going on pitch location based on where Dillon Dingler was setting up? Hard to say. It’s even possible that they were simply cold signaling without any idea what was coming, knowing Valdez’s reputation for losing his cool at times and trying to get under his skin. Still, considering how consistently he was hit around in this one, odds are they were picking something up.
With two outs in the first, Wilyer Abreu singled and stole second base, and could be seen holding a hand to his helmet right before Valdez went into his motion, indicating to Trevor Story in the batter’s box. Story reached on a one-hopper that Zach McKinstry couldn’t handle, and he promptly had Valdez timed up and stole second base. Ceddane Rafaela followed with a three-run homer.
This continued in the third inning as the Red Sox seemed to know what was coming, and a parade of singles had baserunners behind Valdez at second base throughout the inning. Valdez certainly seemed preoccupied with staring down those runners at points during the inning. By the time he gave up back-to-back solo shots in the fourth inning, with no one on second base for any of those, he was on red and pumped a fastball into Story’s upper back. Story took umbrage, as they say, and there were some choice words with the benches clearing, but Valdez stoically made no move or response, and no real fracus developed. Things actually seemed entirely calmed down when lobbying from the Red Sox finally convinced the umpiring crew to toss Valdez from the game and then warn both benches.
First things first, this is on Framber Valdez, though possibly with a bit of Dillon Dingler mixed in. There’s nothing illegal about signaling from second base whether they were picking up his grip in the glove, as Eric Hosmer and several other former MLB players were speculating on social media, or whether Dillon Dingler was signaling pitch position too early, or whether they had nothing at all and simply know that Valdez is a hot-head who will sometimes go to pieces if you give him some extra things to worry about.
When a very good and generally very consistent pitcher starts giving up a parade of solid singles, and then the home runs start flying, experienced hands at baseball watching will always suspect tipping. But it’s crucial to remember that it’s on the pitcher or occasionally the catcher, who are tipping said pitches, to adapt. Plenty of coaching work goes into making sure in bullpens that their pitchers hold their glove and take their grips the same way everytime. Pedro Martinez famously worked on his grips extensively enough that he could change his grip precisely to a different pitch as he was already into his delivery. Catchers know they have to be careful with their glove to not give anything away before their pitcher goes into his motion. Plenty of work goes into that as well, sometimes flashing a false location as they get set for the pitch when there’s a runner on second base in view of the hitter.
The Pitch Com system has made illegal electronic sign stealing of the sort the Houston Astros infamously practiced, a thing of the past. However, pitchers still have physical cues for what they’re about to throw, and a savvy team of experienced major league hitters have the vision and knowledge to know what to look for, and to spot it if a pitcher is giving something away. This is a team of players managed until last week by Alex Cora, let’s remember. Getting pitches is a part of the game that Cora clearly focuses heavily on.
Wrist position of the hand in the glove can indicate a breaking ball or changeup just by the slight twist of the forearm required to get a grip around the side of the ball. Some pitchers will visibly tense their upper body and even their face when they’re determined to throw a fastball past a hitter. Even a subtle flexing of the forearm for a spread out grip on a splitter can cue the very best in the game, who by definition have outstanding vision, that a splitter is coming. You may have noticed that Casey Mize always takes his splitter grip first as he looks in at his catcher with his arm hanging down, then adjusts in the glove whether he’s actually changing from a splitter to another pitch or not, just to make it harder to pick any of this up.
Point being, this is all part of the game. An experienced pitcher like Framber Valdez has to know better. If there’s a runner on second, you have to keep your glove closed and hooded from the man on second as you take your grip and until you’re ready to go into your motion. You have to do everything exactly the same way every time, and if you don’t, it has to be your own move to try and send a false signal to the many eyes watching. An experienced pitcher like Framber Valdez, should he suspect the runner on second is signaling home, should be crafty enough to use this against his opponents by showing them one grip and changing to another right as their motion begins. This is a cat and mouse game that works both ways.
Part of the reason analysts who’ve done deep dives into the Houston Astros electronic sign signaling scandal generally come away doubting the schemes effectiveness for most hitters, is that they often got the signals wrong. Hitting a good major league fastball is hard even when you know it’s coming. When you’re signaled via trash can that a breaking ball is coming, and then you get a fastball, well you have no chance of barrelling it up.
What you don’t get to do anymore, is throw at a guy to get them to stop or pay them back. True, that was how things worked for much of the game’s history, but these are different times.
As AJ Hinch would say, this is all part of the competition. More simply, it’s all in the game, baby. On Tuesday night, Framber Valdez failed to compete. He didn’t adjust once he began to suspect he was giving something away, he didn’t act oblivious and then try to use it against them by flashing false signals. Instead, he just lost his focus. The two home runs that proceeded Story getting plunked, came with no one on second base. By then, Valdez was a mess, and you can see catcher Dillon Dingler drop his head the instant Valdez released the pitch into Story’s back. Maybe I’m reading too much into body language, but I don’t think so. Dingler knew the score, and he knew what had happened immediately.
In the old days, drilling Story was absolutely a common response. But for over a decade, Major League Baseball has made it very clear that they want these kinds of retaliatory beanballs out of the game. The risk of a fastball to the head is just too dangerous. And it’s a mentally weak response, when, had he just stayed composed and tried to use the signaling back against the Red Sox, he might have stopped the bleeding or at very least, given the Tigers some much needed innings. Even just keeping your cool and pitching like normal is a professional response. Losing your cool and potentially hurting your already hurt team even more, is not the professional response here, obviously.
The only thing Valdez did about the entire situation to help the team was to lie about his intent afterwards. Had he admitted it, we’re talking about a guaranteed suspension for the Tigers’ best pitcher currently healthy, at a time when they desperately needed him to help hold things together until the injury list starts to clear up towards the end of the month. No one is buying that it was accidental, though the way Valdez was booted from the game after the Red Sox spent a few minutes complaining to the umpires, who then apparently gave in, was bizarre, but there’s nothing to be gained by admitting it either. Everyone within the contest knew the score there, and it wouldn’t be surprising if Valdez ends up suspended for a start anyway, right when the Detroit Tigers can least afford it.
None of this is to personally attack Framber Valdez. He’s never had any off the field incidents or given reason to think he’s a terrible human, but he was certainly selfish and immature in his response to a bad night on the mound. He came to Detroit with a reputation tainted by the occasional bout of hot-headed foolishness on the mound, and we got a good example on Tuesday night. The hope, was that AJ Hinch, as Valdez’s former manager in 2018-2019, knew him well enought to polish some of his rough edges, and would be able to get through to him and into a place of better maturity on the mound. This incident will be the test of it.
The Tigers need Valdez to do what he’s here to do, pitch well. Not to get distracted and hurt the team out of some old school sense of “sending a message” when it’s his own responsibility to keep collected, watch his hand and glovework, and not give anything away. His actions were self-absorbed, and the very opposite of team focused. Other than maybe a teammate or two, the only person who can potentially get this through his head is Hinch, and there needs to be a very serious conversation had about this penchant for losing his cool and doing something stupid in a game.
Astros fans have seen this show before. Typically, Valdez goes right back to being Valdez, pitching well and showing no effects. More than likely this isn’t going to carry over into future performances. Still, the spector of Valdez melting down can only make fans fear further foolishness in a high pressure spot later in the season or in the postseason.
Framber Valdez came to Detroit talking about wanting to learn from Tarik Skubal and Chris Fetter, and take the next step in his career toward becoming a Cy Young caliber pitcher in his own right. He has the talent to be that good, but the key to becoming a truly elite pitcher lies between his ears. Dusty Baker and Joe Espada managed to get really good seasons out of him. AJ Hinch is now challenged to do the same, and get through to Valdez that nothing about the way he responded on Tuesday night is good for himself, or more importantly good for the Tigers.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - MAY 04: Kyle Tucker #23 of the Los Angeles Dodgers bats in the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on May 04, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s been four weeks since the Dodgers won a road series, and they’ll need a win on getaway day Wednesday in Houston to snap that skid.
Apr 26, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Jesse Scholtens (65) throws a pitch against the Minnesota Twins in the seventh inning at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
The Rays claimed Jesse Scholtens in August 2025 after he was designated for assignment by the White Sox. Despite a fairly significant overhaul of the roster this offseason, Scholtens was able to hang on to a coveted 40-man roster spot, and has performed well in his limited time with the major league club — maintaining a 3.77 ERA / 3.59 FIP in 31 IP since 2025.
With injuries impacting the pitching staff, Scholtens may now be leaned on this summer in a starting role, where he has the tools to be a solid backend rotation option.
Control and Command
All Scholtens has done with the Rays is throw strikes. His 65.4 strike rate since 2025 ranks in the 78th percentile in the majors (min 500 pitches thrown). He strikes all five pitches in his arsenal at least 50% of the time, and even gets a pair of his secondaries above 60% in his cut-slider and offspeed pitch. The data here suggests above-average control.
Scholtens isn’t just a thrower; he does a good job of commanding his pitches too. He pitches in the zone without catching the heart of the plate better than 73% of major leaguers since 2025. His location consistency data and heatmaps further support his above-average command.
Scholtens has a solid three-pitch mix that allows him to adequately vary his sequencing to each side of the plate:
Four-seam, cut-slider, offspeed for lefties
Two-seam, cut-slider, breaking ball for righties
His four-seamer is a fairly standard cut-ride shape with low 90s velocity. His cut-slider sits in the upper 80s and he has plus feel for throwing it to both righties and lefties – it also gets more break than others thrown with similar velocity and vertical movement. Scholtens also throws a two-seam fastball in the low 90s with a bit more ride than expected from his slot. His low 80s breaking ball gives him a third velocity band but doesn’t have any outlier movement. On pure shape, most of his pitches grade out as average or below, with the cut-slider standing out as his most reliable offering. His above-average extension and slightly lower release height help everything play up a tick.
The separator in Scholtens’s profile is an outlier offspeed pitch that flashes plus. It gets optimal VAA separation from his four-seamer thanks to his above average command of both pitches. VAA separation correlates strongly with chase, while velocity separation tends to drive in-zone whiff. The Rays helped him shave some vertical movement off his offspeed pitch this winter and the velocity separation is already better than average, so the performance of the pitch will be something to monitor in a larger sample.
Despite strong VAA and velocity separation, most models likely grade the pitch poorly due to its unconventional movement profile. Below is a graph of how his offspeed shape compares to others in a similar arm-angle bucket (from 30 to 45 degrees, Scholtens sits at roughly 38 degrees when throwing his offspeed pitch):
We can see that Scholtens gets below-average vertical and horizontal movement compared to offspeed pitches from a similar arm angle. In particular, his horizontal break sits roughly two standard deviations below average – making it a true outlier. Combine this with the VAA and velocity separation he gets on the pitch compared to his fastball, and he’s got a unique offspeed pitch.
His grip resembles a split-finger with a spiked middle finger – closer to a kick-change variation:
While we can’t publicly observe seam orientation (evident in the grainy images of his grips shared above), the shift in spin direction from more backspin in 2025 to more sidespin in 2026 suggests he’s altered the seam orientation of the pitch to shift it toward more horizontal break and less vertical movement.
Horizontal separation matters less for whiff and chase than vertical and velocity separation, so trading some of it off for better VAA and velocity difference is a logical adjustment.
Scholtens is still developing his feel for this relatively new offspeed shape, and that may be the reason behind its limited usage so far. However, there’s a case for increasing its usage to roughly 25–30% against lefties as he gets more comfortable with the pitch given the VAA and velocity separation mentioned earlier. The outlier shape also suggests it could be an effective taste-breaker against righties occasionally.
The arsenal is fairly average overall, but his strike-throwing ability and uniquely effective offspeed pitch give Scholtens a clear path to outperform that profile.
Conclusion
Although Scholtens doesn’t overwhelm hitters with raw stuff, he succeeds through control and command, sequencing, and a subtle pitch design advantage that helps his outlier offering play up. That’s a valuable profile to have on the 40-man — especially for a team that’s navigating multiple injuries to the starting rotation — and with Matz sidelined at least two starts, he should get a significant opportunity in the month of May to show if he can hold his own.
After he was called up from Triple-A Gwinnett Wednesday morning, Jim Jarvis will immediately be making his major league debut for the Braves in Wednesday’s series finale in Seattle.
Jarvis, acquired from the Detroit Tigers just before last year’s trade deadline, will hit ninth and play shortstop.
He’s gotten off to a hot start in Gwinnett this season, slashing .305/.418/.445 with four homers, six doubles and 20 RBIs in 33 games. Now he gets an opportunity with the big league squad to carve out a role in the infield, which will be revamped in the coming weeks with the addition of Ha-Seong Kim.
Michael Harris II is back in left field for the series finale — a promising sign for the health of his quad — and hitting cleanup. Mauricio Dubon is in center once again and hitting fifth while Mike Yastrzemski is back in the seven hole and handling right field.
It’ll also be another Sean Murphy day behind the plate. He’s hitting eighth, letting Drake Baldwin DH in the leadoff spot.
This will be Mariners starter Bryan Woo’s first time facing the Braves. As such, the only five players with previous at-bats against him are players who were added to the Braves’ roster this offseason. Dubon, a previous division rival of Woo’s from his time in Houston, has 11 of the roster’s 25 at-bats against the righty. He’s 4-for-11 (.364) with a double against Woo. Yastrzemski is 2-for-8 with the only homer and only three RBIs.
Overall, the Braves’ hitter are 7-for-25 (.280) against Woo with eight strikeouts and one walk.
For the Mariners, Cal Raleigh is back in the lineup as designated hitter for the second straight day, hitting second. They made a few other lineup changes, putting in Connor Joe in right field and Jhonny Pereda behind the plate against a left-handed starting pitcher.
Four Mariners have 10-plus at-bats against Braves starting pitcher Martin Perez. None of them are hitting better than .235 against him, with both Randy Arozarena and J.P. Crawford (who has homered in each of the first two games of the series) 4-for-17. Arozarena has the current team’s only homer off Perez while Crawford has a pair of doubles.
As a team, Seattle’s roster is a combined 17-for-75 (.227) against Perez with seven RBIs, 18 strikeouts and eight walks.
HOUSTON, TX - MAY 05: Houston Astros left fielder Yordan Alvarez (44) watches the pitch in the bottom of the sixth inning during the MLB game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Houston Astros on May 5, 2026 at Daikin Park in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Leslie Plaza Johnson/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Astros fans, it hasn’t been the start anyone envisioned. The struggles have been real, and the pitching staff, in particular, has left plenty to be desired. But even in the middle of a frustrating opening stretch, one undeniable bright spot has emerged: the resurgence of a healthy Yordan Alvarez.
Alvarez hasn’t just been good, he’s been dominant. Taking home both American League Player of the Week and Player of the Month honors is a reminder of exactly who he is when he’s right. Few hitters in baseball possess his rare combination of power and average. When he steps to the plate, he’s not just a threat, he’s the kind of presence that changes games and forces opposing teams to adjust everything they do.
That’s what makes the recent local chatter about potentially trading him, or needing to, is so baffling.
Let’s be clear: Alvarez isn’t just another piece of this roster, he’s the cornerstone. While the Astros’ offense has been the lone consistent positive this season, Alvarez is the engine driving it all. His production sets the tone, and his presence lengthens the lineup in a way that few players in the league can replicate.
Then there’s the contract. In a league where elite hitters are commanding massive deals, Alvarez remains on a team-friendly contract that gives the Astros flexibility to build around him. If owner Jim Crane truly intends to keep the championship window open, as he’s consistently stated, players like Alvarez are exactly the ones you build with, not the ones you move.
The idea of trading him only makes sense in a full teardown scenario. And even then, it’s hard to justify. This isn’t a player nearing decline or carrying a burdensome contract. This is a prime, elite bat who delivers at an MVP-caliber level when healthy. Compare that to contracts like those of Mike Trout, Aaron Judge, or Juan Soto, deals that at least force a front office to consider long-term financial implications, and Alvarez still stands out as an asset you hold onto.
Jim Crane is a businessman, and he understands return on investment. There may not be a better ROI in baseball right now than what Alvarez provides: elite production at a manageable cost. That combination is invaluable for a team looking to remain competitive while continuing to retool.
Could the Astros make moves if this season continues to go sideways? Absolutely. A sell-off of veteran pieces isn’t out of the question if things don’t turn around. But even in that scenario, Alvarez should be viewed in the same untouchable tier as Jose Altuve, a player whose value to the organization goes beyond what any trade package could realistically return and he’s younger too.
At the end of the day, the question isn’t whether the Astros could trade Yordan Alvarez. It’s whether they should. And based on everything we’ve seen, his performance, his contract, and his role in this team’s present and future, the answer feels pretty clear.
You don’t trade players like Yordan Alvarez. You build around them.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - APRIL 30: Lance McCullers Jr. #43 of the Houston Astros pitches against the Baltimore Orioles in game two of a doubleheader at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 30, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Patrick Smith/Getty Images) | Getty Images
TODAY’S GAME: The Houston Astros (15-22) and Los Angeles Dodgers (22-14) will play the rubber game of their three-game series today in an afternoon matinee at Daikin Park.
RHP Lance McCullers Jr. (2-2, 6.32 ERA), who picked up the win in his last start on April 20 at BAL (3ER/6IP), will make his seventh start of the season today opposite RHP Tyler Glasnow (3-0, 2.56 ERA) and the Dodgers.
LMJ VS. LAD: RHP Lance McCullers Jr. is 2-0 with a 1.14 ERA (3ER/23.2IP) in four career regular season starts vs. the Dodgers, which includes a victory last season on July 4, 2025 at Dodger Stadium (1ER/6IP) in an 18-1 Astros win.
McCullers also faced the Dodgers twice in the 2017 World Series, starting Game 3 (3ER/5.1IP) and Game 7 (0ER/2.1IP), both resulting in Astros victories.
TODAY’S ROSTER MOVE: The Astros have recalled IF Shay Whitcomb from Triple A Sugar Land and have placed IF Carlos Correa on the 10-day IL with a left ankle tendon injury (retro to May 5). The injury is expected to sideline Correa for the remainder of the 2026 season.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY TUVE!: Happy Birthday to Astros legend 2B Jose Altuve, as he turns a spry 36 years old today. Altuve shares his birthday with the late Hall of Famer Willie Mays and veteran reliever Larry Andersen, who famously netted the Astros 1B Jeff Bagwell in a straight up trade with the Red Sox in 1990.
FAMILIAR FOE: After homering last night, 1B Christian Walker has 30 career homers vs. the Dodgers (in 95 games), which are his most against any opponent. His .879 career OPS vs. LAD is the highest among any active player (min. 300 PA), while his 30 HR rank third among active players.
HIT PAREDES: IF Isaac Paredes has hit safely in 12 of his last 15 games dating back to April 19, a span in which he’s hitting .339 (19×56) with two doubles, three homers, nine RBI and a .948 OPS.
Additionally, he’s reached base safely in 10 straight games, posting a .442 OBP in that span.
DOWN IN THE LAND: Three Astros pitchers were on rehab assignments last night at Triple A Sugar Land as they hosted the Albuquerque Isotopes (COL).
RHP Tatsuya Imai (arm fatigue) tossed 3.0 innings of one-run ball, LHP Josh Hader (left biceps tendinitis) worked 1.0 scoreless inning and RHP Nate Pearson (recovery from right elbow surgery) tossed 0.2 of an inning (1ER).
TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY: 2021 – On his 31st birthday, 2B Jose Altuve hits a go-ahead, three-run homer in the 8th inning in the Astros 7-4 win over the Yankees in the Bronx.
Trailing 3-2 in the 8th, Altuve took RHP Chad Green deep to flip the game. Altuve has played in a Major League game on May 6 on 10 occasions, with this being his only career homer on his birthday.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Wednesday, May 6, 1:10 p.m. CT
Location: Daikin Park, Houston, TX
TV: Space City Home Network
Streaming: SCHN+
Radio: KTRH 740 AM, KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)
Welcome to the steals report! I will be here every Wednesday to go over important stolen base trends so you can find more speed for your fantasy teams.
Stealing a base is as much about the opposing pitcher and catcher as it is the actual base runner themself. So, being able to spot which teams and pitchers specifically are being run on most frequently will help you to figure out who can swipe some bags over the next week.
Before we get to this week’s important trends, here is the stolen base leaderboard on the season so far.
The Yankees decided to stick with José Caballero at shortstop despite Anthony Volpe’s rehab stint ending. Volpe is back at Triple-A and Caballero will be their guy for the time being. So, the stolen bases will continue.
Jakob Marsee and Fernando Tatis Jr. are anchoring their fantasy value with stolen bases amidst their dreadful starts at the plate.
Last Seven Days Stolen Base Leaders
Player
SB
CS
Esteury Ruiz
3
0
Wenceel Pérez
3
0
Travis Bazzana
2
0
Brayan Rocchio
2
0
Jackson Merrill
2
0
Kevin McGonigle
2
0
Josh Naylor
2
0
Andy Pages
2
0
Victor Scott II
2
0
16 Others Tied
2
0
Remember Esteury Ruiz? Well, he’s back and stealing bases in a part-time role with the Marlins.
Travis Bazzana being so aggressive this early on is a good sign. It’s likely he runs a low batting average and doesn’t hit for a ton of power this season, so he needs speed to be a driver of his fantasy value as a rookie. Expect him to run a high on-base percentage and hopefully keep stealing bags.
Stolen Base Disappointments
Player
SB
CS
Ronald Acuña Jr.
7
4
Geraldo Perdomo
6
3
Austin Martin
4
4
Richie Palacios
4
4
Brayan Rocchio
3
2
Isaac Collins
2
3
Cole Young
2
2
Sal Frelick
1
1
Juan Soto
1
1
Sam Antonacci
1
2
Jose Altuve
1
2
Willy Adames
1
2
Ceddanne Rafaela
1
3
Daylen Lile
1
3
Ozzie Albies
0
3
Now on the injured list with a hamstring strain, Ronald Acuña continued to push the limits with his speed despite not being efficient early on. When he returns, it wouldn’t be surprising to see the Braves instruct him to be less aggressive. It’s just not worth it at this point.
The stolen bases should start coming for Sam Antonacci, right? He stole 48 in the minors last season, has a .386 OBP through 19 major league games, and has recently been inserted at the White Sox’s lead-off hitter. He’s a fun player with upside.
Now, let’s go over the most important stolen base trends over the past week.
Fantasy Baseball Stolen Base Targets
The Orioles allowed the most stolen bases as a team last week with 10 and they came as the team lost five of their seven games.
Ironically, this stolen base barrage came mostly with Adley Rutschman behind the plate. He caught four of their seven games over the last week, and seven of the 10 stolen bases were on his watch. Also, there was at least one successful stolen base in each of his starts.
Rutschman is a great defensive catcher and has never struggled in the run game. Perhaps he’s a bit slower with his draw after missing some time last month with an ankle injury. Even if that were the case, it still wouldn’t make sense for him to be targeted by opposing teams. Moreover, he caught two runners. So, his 22% caught stealing percentage over the past week isn’t even so bad.
Samuel Basallo is a bit of a different story. He’s made some strides defensively, but is still below average there despite having a fantastic arm. In two of his starts this past week, no stolen bases were attempted on him. Also, it needs to be mentioned that his Orioles were down by at least four runs after the second inning in each.
In their only competitive game with Basallo behind the plate, three bases were stolen and he cut down one runner. Interestingly enough, all three of those stolen bases came with reliever Andrew Kittredge on the mound. Two bases were stolen when he pitched Sunday as well.
Overall, eight of the 10 stolen bases allowed by the Orioles came with a relief pitcher on the mound. Kittredge was the main culprit along with Anthony Nuñez, who saw two stolen on him during an all-time implosion on Saturday versus the Yankees.
Kittdredge is known not to be great with holding runners on – like most relievers – it’s just difficult to target a relief pitcher in the run game for us fantasy managers.
If you want to try and catch the Orioles napping again, they face the Athletics and Yankees again over their next two series. Zack Gelof, Jeff McNeil, Trent Grisham, or Jasson Domínguez could provide some cheap speed.
Catching Changes
There were two huge catcher demotions this week that could dramatically affect the stolen base landscape.
First, a literal demotion with Agustín Ramírez being sent back to Triple-A by the Marlins.
I hinted at this a few weeks ago after featuring Ramírez in practically half of these columns dating back to last year. He’s unequivocally been the worst defensive catcher in baseball since being promoted about one year ago and since he wasn’t performing offensively, this was just a matter of time.
He’s been displaced by prospect Joe Mack, who’s a fantastic defender – 60-grade on FanGraphs – and may fix the Marlins’ run game issues by himself.
Also, another demotion in a more figurative sense as the Giants promoted more offensively-minded catcher prospect Jesus Rodriguez, pushing Patrick Bailey to more of a bench role.
Rodriguez started over Bailey in the first two days after being promoted and then in right field Wednesday with Bailey moving back behind the dish. Clearly, the Giants want Rodriguez’s bat in the lineup and are fine with it coming at Bailey’s expense.
While he is likely the best defensive catcher in baseball, Bailey has a .411 OPS so far this season and a career 72 wRC+. He’s simply not a major league caliber hitter and that will finally eat into his playing time.
No team is hotter in baseball than the New York Yankees and they’ll look to clinch their sixth consecutive series win when they face the New York Rangers this evening. Last night was a fade of the Yankees with our moneyline bet and we paid a price, seeing them complete a mid-inning comeback with relative ease. I’m not making that same mistake this evening.
Read all about it in myRangers vs. Yankees predictions and MLB picks for Wednesday, May 6.
Who will win Rangers vs Yankees today: Yankees -1.5 (-102)
We’ve entered this unique place with the New York Yankees where there is some looming regression coming based on their stat profiles but they aren’t facing the competition to deliver that.
This is a very good team, potentially World Series good, but they’ve overachieved to this point at least slightly because of that.
Take Will Warren for instance. His biggest issue is being reliant on strikeouts inside the zone with 91st percentile K rate but bottom 24 percentile chaserate making him vulnerable to teams that don’t miss pitches in the zone. That’s not the Texas Rangers. On the other side, Nathan Eovaldi's split-finger grades at the 100th percentile but the Yankees chase at just 26% and a majority of those pitches fall out of the zone. They are not going to expand down in the zone to chase it.
That forces him to his fastball, which ranks in the 2nd percentile by run value and the Yankees smash. I’d play this to -130.
COVERS INTEL:Will Warren's whiff rate ranks in the 91st percentile despite a 24th percentile chase rate
Rangers vs Yankees Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (+100)
I think there’s a good chance that Warren could really suppress the runs from the Rangers in this matchup and would consider some alternative team total Unders because of that. Either way though, he’s the anchor to this play. His 91st percentile Whiff rate paired with a 92nd percentile fastball run value gives him multiple ways to miss bats against a Rangers lineup that has a top five swing-and-miss profile.
I don’t expect Eovaldi to be exactly good but he should be competitive enough against the bottom of the Yankees lineup that chases more than the top to keep this Under.
Chris Hatfield's 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets:13-11, +2.62 units
Over/Under bets:16-10, +6.72 units
Rangers vs Yankees odds
Moneyline: Texas +173 | New York -191
Run line: Texas +1.5 (-107) | New York -1.5 (-103)
Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-112) | Under 8.5 (+101)
Rangers vs Yankees trend
The New York Yankees have hit the 1st Five Innings (F5) moneyline in 29 of their last 45 games at home (+15.20 Units / 18% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Rangers vs. Yankees.
How to watch Rangers vs Yankees and game info
Location
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Date
Wednesday, May 6, 2026
First pitch
7:05 p.m. ET
TV
RSN, Amazon Prime Video
Rangers starting pitcher
Nathan Eovaldi (3-4, 4.76 ERA)
Yankees starting pitcher
Will Warren (4-0, 2.39 ERA)
Rangers vs Yankees latest injuries
Rangers vs Yankees weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
Eric Samulski
COVERS INTEL: