Category: Baseball

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We're going East-to-West with our MLB picks tonight, finding value in a pair of moneylines (plus a total bet) based on prices available at Polymarket.

Read on to see why our MLB experts like a pair of AL West teams to win, while an AL East clash should produce plenty of runs. 

MLB expert picks for today

Pick	Odds
Josh Inglis: TB/TOR o7.5	+102
Jon Metler: SEA ML	-133
Neil Parker: TEX ML	-117

Prices courtesy of Polymarket.

Josh Inglis' expert pick: Rays/Blue Jays Over 7.5

Price: 49¢ (+102) at Polymarket

Let’s put the familiarity angle to the test today. Both starters faced these same lineups in their previous outings, with Drew Rasmussen allowing seven hits and three runs, while Kevin Gausman gave up two runs. Now, we get a controlled environment (inside the dome at the Rogers Centre), the Toronto Blue Jays lineup is getting healthier, and the Tampa Bay Rays can put up runs. Per THE BAT, the fair price on this over is closer to -115.

Jon Metler's expert pick: Mariners moneyline

Price: 57¢ (-133) at Polymarket

George Kirby has been surgical this season, allowing just 2.08 BB/9, which is not a good matchup for the Houston Astros lineup. Kirby isn’t going to hand out free passes and then leave pitches over the heart of the plate for aggressive, mistake-hitting batters like Isaac Paredes and Christian Walker to launch into the seats. Instead, Kirby is going to force Houston to string together multiple hits: A challenge for an Astros offense that lacks depth and has struggled to consistently turn the lineup over. The Seattle Mariners are trading around 57-cent favorites, but I think they should be closer to 62 cents (-163).

Neil Parker's expert pick: Rangers moneyline

Price: 54¢ (-117) at Polymarket

The Diamondbacks have hit the skids at the dish, with a 28th-ranked xwOBA across their past 12 games, while the Texas Rangers check in sixth. Additionally, Texas ranks 11th in wOBA against righties for the year, while Arizona sits 27th — that's a monstrous gap that isn’t priced into these odds enough... and I also give Texas a pitching edge. Rangers righty Nathan Eovaldi has outpitched his surface numbers for the year, with his 3.29 xFIP well below his 4.15 ERA, and Diamondbacks starter Mike Soroka has been beat around (to the tune of a .472 wOBA and 1.082 OPS) in his two road starts.

More MLB best bets for today

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The 1989 Yankees were a mostly forgettable squad. Situated squarely within the late-80s decline that came before the dynasty years of the late ‘90s, the ‘89 team combined lengthy winning and losing streaks to reach the All-Star Break with a 43-43 record — good for second in the AL East, 5.5 games behind the division-leading Baltimore Orioles. A late-July swoon, however, prompted the Bombers to swing some deals at the deadline, bringing today’s birthday boy to the Bronx: 11-year big-league pitcher Walt Terrell, who had a 13-start Yankees career.

Charles Walter Terrell
Born: May 11, 1958 (Jeffersonville, IN)
Yankees Tenure: 1989

Born to a factory worker and seamstress in rural Indiana, Walt Terrell grew up without either indoor plumbing or a telephone for a good chunk of his childhood, receiving the former in 1965 and the latter in 1967. Despite this, the 6-foot-7 Terrell proved to be a remarkable athlete from a young age, playing high school baseball, football, and basketball. Off the back of a strong senior season, in which he threw a no-hitter and posted a batting average above .300, he went on to attend Morehead State University in Kentucky, where he learned a changeup — and how to truly pitch, not simply throw the ball — from coach Steve Hamilton, a 12-year Major Leaguer who spent eight seasons with the Yankees.

Originally drafted in the 15th round of the 1979 draft by the New York Mets, Terrell returned to college for his senior season. In the short term, this cost him draft stock, as he wound up going to the Texas Rangers in the 33rd round the following year. In the long term, however, this turned out to be the right move: when he finally took ta professional mound that summer, he hit the ground running, steadily climbing through the system. When he was traded, along with Ron Darling, to the Mets in April 1982 for Lee Mazzilli, he was immediately added to the Mets’ Triple-A affiliate, and made his debut that September when rosters expanded.

Terrell started the 1983 season back in the minors, but returned to The Show for good that June. For the next year and a half, he was a mainstay in the rotation in Queens. At that point, though, his time with the Mets came to an end, as he was traded to the Detroit Tigers on December 7, 1984. He would go on to spend four seasons there. Across the first three, he was one of Detroit’s most reliable pitchers, averaging 34 starts per season while posting a perfectly league average 4.14 ERA. An ankle injury and underperformance ruined his 1988 campaign, however, prompting the Tigers to trade him to the San Diego Padres a few weeks after the season ended.

Terrell was an effective middle-of-the-rotation starter in San Diego, going 5-13 with a 4.01 ERA (88 ERA+) in 19 starts as a member of the Padres. With the Padres in fourth place and 9.5 games behind the first place Giants in the NL West, San Diego opted to flip the impending free agent at the deadline for struggling Yankees third baseman Mike Pagliarulo and pitcher Don Schulze.

The Yankees undoubtedly hoped Terrell would provide a jolt to the middle of their rotation as they tried to battle back in the division. That, unfortunately, did not happen. He allowed four runs or more in six of his first seven starts, getting tagged with the loss in four of them. Below is one such blow-up, when the “Why Not” Orioles—stunning contenders in ’89 after record-setting misery in ’88—got to him for five runs on eleven hits in six innings of work on August 26th:

In truth, Terrell only had one major highlight with the Yankees, a five-hit complete-game shutout at Fenway Park against Wade Boggs and the Boston Red Sox. That ended his season on a high note at the very least.

That offseason, Terrell was interested in a return to the Bronx, but ultimately signed a three-year contract with the Pittsburgh Pirates for $3.6 million. That contract lasted all of 16 starts, as the Pirates released him in the middle of July after he started his Pirates career with a 2-7 record and a 5.88 ERA. The Tigers picked him up, and he spent the last two and a half years of his career with them. He signed a minor league deal with the Toronto Blue Jays ahead of the 1993 season, but failed to make the team out of spring training and, when it was clear that the team had no interest in bringing him up, retired in July.

After his career, Terrell moved to Kentucky and, according to SABR, worked for Pepsi and coached high school and travel baseball. In 2005, he was inducted into the Indiana Baseball Hall of Fame.

See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.

The San Francisco Giants, ranked fourth in the NL West with a 16-24 record, face the Los Angeles Dodgers, who are tied for first in the NL West with a 24-16 record. The Los Angeles Dodgers are favored with a -185 moneyline compared to the San Francisco Giants' +150. Starting pitchers are Trevor McDonald for San Francisco, with a 1.29 ERA, and Roki Sasaki for Los Angeles, with a 5.97 ERA.

How to watch San Francisco Giants vs. Los Angeles Dodgers

• Date: Monday, May 11

• Time: 10:10 p.m. ET / 7:10 p.m. PT

• Where: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

• TV Channels: SportsNet LA, NBCS BA

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

Team records

• San Francisco Giants: 16-24 (fourth in NL West)

• Los Angeles Dodgers: 24-16 (tied for first in NL West)

Odds

• Spread: Los Angeles Dodgers -1.5

• Moneyline: Los Angeles Dodgers -185 / San Francisco Giants +150

• Over/Under: 9.5

Starting pitchers

San Francisco Giants: Trevor McDonald (1-0, ERA: 1.29, K: 8, WHIP: 0.29)

Los Angeles Dodgers: Roki Sasaki (1-3, ERA: 5.97, K: 26, WHIP: 1.67)

Weather: 74°F at first pitch

The New York Yankees, ranked second in the AL East with a 26-15 record, face the Baltimore Orioles, who are fourth in the AL East with an 18-23 record. The New York Yankees are favored with a -160 moneyline compared to the Baltimore Orioles' +135. Starting pitchers are Ryan Weathers for New York, with a 3.03 ERA, and Brandon Young for Baltimore, with a 4.35 ERA.

How to watch New York Yankees vs. Baltimore Orioles

• Date: Monday, May 11

• Time: 6:35 p.m. ET / 3:35 p.m. PT

• Where: Oriole Park at Camden Yards, Baltimore, MD

• TV Channels: MASN, YES

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

Team records

• New York Yankees: 26-15 (second in AL East)

• Baltimore Orioles: 18-23 (fourth in AL East)

Odds

• Spread: New York Yankees -1.5

• Moneyline: Baltimore Orioles +135 / New York Yankees -160

• Over/Under: 9.0

Starting pitchers

New York Yankees: Ryan Weathers (2-2, ERA: 3.03, K: 45, WHIP: 1.19)

Baltimore Orioles: Brandon Young (3-1, ERA: 4.35, K: 14, WHIP: 1.45)

Weather: 61°F at first pitch

The good news is that, unlike last week the Dodgers did hit a home run this week, eight of them in fact. But outside of two solid hitting games in Houston, the offense was mostly shut down in the other four games, leading to a split of six games against the Houston Astros and Atlanta Braves.

Though the Dodgers scratched together a win against Chris Sale on Friday night, the Dodgers only scored seven runs in three games against Atlanta, owners of the best record in baseball, none against starters Spencer Strider and Bryce Elder on Saturday and Sunday. The Dodgers in their three losses this week didn’t score until the eighth, ninth, and eighth innings. Two hits in Sunday’s loss was a season low.

Scoring has been an issue for a while now for the Dodgers, with three or fewer runs eight times in their last 11 games, and 12 times in their last 21 games. That’s the recipe for going from a 15-4 start to the season to just 9-12 since.

“We really haven’t been able to put together innings,” manager Dave Roberts said of the offense on Sunday. “As a unit, I don’t think we’re one piece right now.”

“We have some guys that aren’t in the spot they want to be in right now, and they’re trying to figure it out. It’s kind of tough to compete when you’re trying to figure things out,” third baseman Max Muncy said. “We’ve preached in the past that you have to forget what you’re doing off the field and when you get into the batter’s box you have to compete. That’s probably something we need to harp on again right now, because there are a lot of guys trying to find some mechanics. And it’s hard to hit when you’re doing it.”

In addition, the stability of the starting rotation, which did some real heavy lifting over the first month and a half this season, finally took a hit with Tyler Glasnow sidelined with back spasms. The Dodgers got Blake Snell back, but earlier than originally planned which led to lots of rust on Saturday.

Only three games into another span of 13 game days in a row, the Dodgers already added three pitchers to the active roster, with the fresh arm express revving up for heavy use, making up for lost time after being mostly out of service for the previous 13-day stretch this year.

Batter of the week

Andy Pages was the standout thanks in part to his three-homer game (see below), but even if you remove that game he still would have led the team in hits for the week.

Honorable mention goes to Kyle Tucker, who doubled twice, homered, and led the team with five walks.

Pitcher of the week

Shohei Ohtani struck out eight in a season-high seven innings on Tuesday in Houston. He allowed only two runs, on the first two home runs he has allowed this season, but suffered the tough-luck loss thanks to the aforementioned offensive struggles.

We are seven weeks into the season, and Ohtani has won pitcher of the week more times (twice) than he has batter of the week (once).

Week 7 results

3-3 record
28 runs scored (4.67 per game)
22 runs allowed (3.67 per game)
.609 pythagorean win percentage

Year to date

24-16 record
203 runs scored (5.08 per game)
134 runs allowed (3.35 per game)
.681 pythagorean win percentage (27-13)

Miscellany

Triple double: Center fielder Andy Pages hit three home runs in Wednesday’s series finale in Houston, his first career three-homer game. Pages joined Max Muncy, who hit three home runs on April 10 as Dodgers to reach the trifecta this season, after not having any three-homer games in 2025. The franchise record for most games with at least three home runs is four, in 1950. That year, Gil Hodges hit four home runs for Brooklyn on August 31, along with three-homer games by Duke Snider (May 30), Roy Campanella (August 26), and left fielder Tommy Brown (September 18).

Century mark: First baseman Freddie Freeman started using a slightly different stance at the plate, turning his front foot inward to help his stance stay closed and keep his right hip from flying open during his swing. It paid off this week with three extra-base hits, including on Friday the first home run by a left-handed batter off Chris Sale since last May 23. That home run on Friday — “I would have taken a broken-bat bloop against Chris,” Freeman quipped — was Freeman’s first since April 6, snapping a 114-plate-appearance drought that’s the fourth-longest of his career. That Friday home run was also Freeman’s 100th with the Dodgers, the 37th player in franchise history to hit triple-digit homers. Freeman also ended the week with 299 extra-base hits for the team — 190 doubles, 100 home runs, nine triples — just one shy of joining the group of 32 others with 300 extra-base hits for the Dodgers.

Throwback outing: Justin Wrobleski’s errant throw prevented a sure inning-ending double play in what became a four-run second inning that decided Sunday’s game. But after that, Wrobleski retired 16 in a row to get through seven innings on only 80 pitches. After heavy bullpen usage over the previous three days, Wrobleski’s role at this point shifted to soaking up as many outs as he could, so he remained in while trailing. He allowed home runs in the eighth and ninth innings and three more runs, but still only needed 100 pitches to record 26 outs, finally removed after hitting Mike Yastrzemski in the head with a pitch. Wrobleski’s final line of 8 2/3 innings and seven runs allowed was a combination only seen one other time by a Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher — Rick Sutcliffe allowed eight runs in 8 2/3 innings in a winon July 25, 1979. Wrobleski now leads the Dodgers with 44 2/3 innings this season

Welcome back: After Wrobleski departed, Wyatt Mills got the final out in the top of the ninth inning on Sunday, after allowing two hits of his own. It was the first major league outing since 2022 with the Kansas City Royals for Mills, who was called up earlier in the day.

Transactions

Wednesday: After missing the first 36 games of the season, Brock Stewart was activated off the injured list, with left-hander Jake Eder optioned to Triple-A.

Friday: Starter Tyler Glasnow was placed on the injured list with back spasms two days after leaving his start in Houston before the second inning. Taller right-hander Paul Gervase was recalled from Oklahoma City.

Saturday: Left-hander Charlie Barnes was claimed off waivers from the Chicago Cubs, and sent to Oklahoma City. Tommy Edman was moved to the 60-day injured list.

Saturday: Southpaw Blake Snell was activated off the injured list to make his season debut, but Stewart landed back on the IL with a bone spur in his left foot. Stewart is expected to miss at least three weeks this time around.

Sunday: The fresh arm express started revving up, with Wyatt Millscalled up to replace Gervase, who took down three innings in relief the night before. Edwin Díaz was moved to the 60-day IL to make room on the 40-man roster.

Game results

• Monday: Dodgers 8, Astros 3
• Tuesday: Astros 2, Dodgers 1
• Wednesday: Dodgers 12, Astros 2
• Friday: Dodgers 3, Braves 1
• Saturday: Braves 7, Dodgers 2
• Sunday: Braves 7, Dodgers 2

Previous reviews: Week 1 | Week 2 | Week 3 | Week 4 | Week 5 | Week 6

Up next

The Dodgers have a full week running the Greg Minton gauntlet, finishing off the homestand with four games against the San Francisco Giants, before traversing down Interstate 5 to play the Angels in Anaheim. The Angels broadcasts of the weekend games in Anaheim will also be simulcast to over-the-air television, with Friday’s game on KTTV channel 11, then Saturday and Sunday each on KCOP channel 13.

After an an eventful and emotional week for Braves Country, we’ve arrived at a well-deserved off day.

The Braves will be back in action tomorrow night, kicking off the homestand with a series versus the Chicago Cubs. Tuesday’s shaping up to be an eventful opener.

Ha-Seong Kim set to return to the majors, updates to come on Sean Murphy as Eli White hits IL

Per reports from Korean outlet SBS News and Lindsay Crosby, Ha-Seong Kim has completed his rehab assignment with Triple-A Gwinnett and is set to be activated for his season debut tomorrow night.

Kim ends his Triple-A rehab stint slashing .263/.333 /.316 with a .649 OPS in five games with the Stripers. Factoring in his four games with the Double-A Columbus Clingstones, that line is .286/.412/.321 with a .733 OPS.

In additon to the corresponding move for Kim, the Braves are expected to report an update on Sean Murphy’s hand tomorrow.

UPDATE: The Braves make it official and have reinstated Kim. The corresponding move for now is Eli White to the 7-day concussion IL. Feel better soon, Eli!

Honoring Ted Turner and Bobby Cox

It was also announced on the Braves Q1 earnings call that they will honor Ted Turner and Bobby Cox during tomorrow night’s game. More details to come.

Another day of minor league baseball is in the books. See the results below.

AAA: Sugar Land Space Cowboys (18-21) lost 5-4 (BOX SCORE)

Sugar Land got on the board in the first inning on a Perez 3 run home run. Sugar Land got another run in the third inning on an Alexander RBI double. Weiss got the start and was solid allowing 1 run over 4.2 innings. The bullpen struggled a bit allowing 2 runs in the 6th and then 2 more runs in the 8th as the Isotopes took the lead. The offense was unable to respond as Sugar Land fell 5-4.

Note: Alexander has a .874 OPS this season.

• Daniel Johnson, RF: 1-for-4, R, BB
• James Nelson, 3B: 2-for-5, R
• CJ Alexander, LF: 2-for-2, R, 2B, RBI, 3 BB
• Carlos Perez, DH: 1-for-4, R, HR, 3 RBI, BB
• Cavan Biggio, 1B: 0-for-1, 3 BB

• Ryan Weiss, RHP: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K
• Joey Mancini, RHP: 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
• Tom Cosgrove, LHP: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• Roddery Munoz, RHP: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• Hudson Leach, RHP: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

AA: Corpus Christi Hooks (15-18) lost 11-5 (BOX SCORE)

The Hooks got on the board in the first inning scoring 2 runs on a Whitaker 2 run single. They picked up 2 more runs in the 4th on a Lytle RBI single and Hernandez RBI double. Dombroski got the start and went 4.2 innings allowing 4 runs. The Hooks retook the lead in the 6th scoring a run on a wild pitch. The Cardinals took the lead in the 7th scoring 5 runs and then got 2 more runs in the 8th.

Note: Lytle is hitting .267 in Double-A.

• Max Holy, SS: 2-for-5, R, 2B
• Joseph Sullivan, CF: 1-for-5, R, SB
• Tyler Whitaker, RF: 2-for-2, R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, SB
• Luis Baez, DH: 1-for-4, R
• Mason Lytle, LF: 2-for-4, R, RBI
• Alberto Hernandez, 2B: 2-for-2, 2B, RBI

• Trey Dombroski, LHP: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
• Trey McLoughlin, RHP: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
• Nic Swanson, RHP: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
• Ramsey David, RHP: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 0 K
• Alejandro Torres, RHP: 0.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, o K
• Amilcar Chirinos, RHP: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 0 K

A+: Asheville Tourists (8-25) lost 17-4 (BOX SCORE)

The Emperors scored 2 in the first inning but Asheville responded with 2 runs on a Brutcher 2 run home run. DeVos, who got the start, continued to struggle allowing 11 runs over 3.1 innings. Steinbaugh allowed another 4 runs as Rome extended their lead. The offense got one in the 3rd on a Schiavone solo home run and another in the 7th on a Schiavone bases loaded walk. Rome added a few more and the offense was quiet the rest of the way as Asheville fell 17-4.

Note: Schiavone has a 1.175 OPS this season.

• Jason Schiavone, C: 1-for-3, R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB
• Ethan Frey, DH: 1-for-2, R, 3 BB
• Drew Brutcher, RF: 1-for-5, R, HR, 2 RBI
• Caden Powell, LF: 2-for-4, R

• Nolan DeVos, RHP: 3.1 IP, 11 H, 11 R, 11 ER, 2 BB, 5 K
• Conor Steinbaugh, RHP: 1.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
• Nate Wohlgemuth, RHP: 3.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
• Eurys Martich, RHP: 1.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K

A: Fayetteville Woodpeckers (13-20) won 7-6 (BOX SCORE) 

The Woodpeckers jumped out to a big lead scoring 5 runs in the first inning on a Neyens RBI single, Sierra RBI single and Flores 3 run home run. Smith got the start but struggled allowing 5 runs over 4.2 innings. The Woodpeckers retook the lead with a Sierra RBI single. They picked up another run in the 7th on a Cauro groundout. Carrera was solid in relief allowing just one unearned run in the 9th as he held on for the save.

Note: Neyens has a .984 OPS this season.

• Anthony Huezo, CF: 2-for-4, R, 2 2B
• Xavier Neyens, 3B: 1-for-2, 3 R, RBI, 2 BB, SB
• Juan Sierra, CF: 2-for-4, R, 2 RBI
• Arturo Flores, C: 1-for-3, R, HR, 3 RBI, BB
• DJ Newman, LF: 1-for-3, 2B, BB

• Aubrey Smith, RHP: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K
• Charlie Weber, RHP: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 0 K (WIN)
• Jesus Carrera, RHP: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K (SAVE)

Today’s minor league starters:

SL: OFF

CC: OFF

AV: OFF

FV: OFF

This might be the easiest top three we have had in a while. Guess that is what happens when the team is playing good baseball – you have players performing well!

Three up

Bryce Harper – I usually don’t mess around with leaderboards on the bigger numbers until Memorial Day. I’ll use them for searching for specific things that are more granular in nature, or if I’m looking for something that fits my very specific purpose in life. So today, I changed things up and brought up the Fangraphs leaderboards for hitters. Most of the time, filtering by wRC+ shows you the best hitters in the game currently and you’d expect to see the same names. Judge, Ohtani, Yordan – these are the names that are familiar at the top. Twelfth in the game right now? Bryce Harper, holding a 159 wRC+ on the year. His season has been outstanding thus far, this week a particular example (.429/.520/1.048 in 25 PA). Sometimes, we just forget how good Harper really is.

Kyle Schwarber – Want to know who’s eleventh on said leaderboard? One Kyle Schwarber, two points ahead of Harper with a 161 wRC+. He’s on his patented heater, smashing five home runs this week, which is truly what happens when this offense is clicking. Overall, the offense hit 14 home runs on the week altogether. Not too shabby.

Brandon Marsh – It’s hard to leave off a guy who hit .519/.533/.593 on the week, so Marsh gets the third nod here. Sure, we’d rather a lot of those hits be of the extra base variety, but thinking back to when they were doing nothing at the plate during their losing streak, singles are great too.

(bonus!) Cristopher Sanchez – I mean, you can’t leave a guy off a top three that had two starts in which he didn’t allow a run over 15 innings in a week, or over 20+ innings in his last three starts. Sanchez is locked back in at the moment.

Three down

Andrew Painter – Here’s a question: if the team had a viable option in Lehigh Valley that they believed could come to the majors and make a few starts effectively, without overtaxing the bullpen each time that turn in the rotation came around, do you think they’d give Painter a quick timeout in the minors? He was dreadful against the Athletics, which we still should contextualize as just one start, but it showcased some of the concerns that are surrounding the young starter. It’s still very early to worry about anything LONG long term, but this wasn’t a good week for him.

Jesus Luzardo – Luzardo had zero idea where the strike zone was for much of his Friday night start. It was reminiscent of his midseason hiccup last year, which is a shame because he had three really good starts in a row. Of course, the usual undercurrent of pitch tipping was there, but he just kind of stunk Friday.

backup catching – When J.T. Realmuto got hurt, one might not have expected the backup catchers to bring all of the value Realmuto brings to the team, but maybe some kind of semblance of offensive aptitude. Yet this week is a stark reminder: when Realmuto gets hurt and has to miss any chunks of time, the Phillies are in real trouble behind the plate. At least Garrett Stubbs can contribute on the mound…

Tacoma Rainiers

Tacoma squandered a series split with an extra-innings loss in Sunday’s contest, dropping the six game set by a score of 4-2. Despite the loss, the series still managed to provide plenty of outstanding performances offensively, perhaps providing a glimpse at a few bats that could be up with the Mariners awfully soon.

Colt Emerson had a great week at the plate and looks to be making strides in adjusting to Triple-A pitching. The young shortstop collected ten hits this week, one of which was a massive homer he launched out to dead center. Though he’s still striking out more than you’d like to see, at just 20 years old, it’s tough to knock Emerson too much for any early season shortcomings. He’s clearly making progress, and that’s ultimately what matters most for his future as a Seattle Mariner.

Brennen Davis was a monster at the plate this series, taking full advantage of the hitter-friendly stadium in El Paso. Logging 12 hits on the week, Davis’ six doubles and two homers raised his season OPS up to .965 and make him an incredibly attractive candidate to serve as the right-handed platoon mate to Luke Raley or Dom Canzone. He’s a guy I’d expect to get some run with the major league team this year.

Arkansas Travelers

The Travs pulled off yet another series win this week, taking this one by a score of 4-2 over an excellent Tulsa team. This team is playing great baseball right now, and now with both a reliable rotation and complete lineup, they’re looking more and more like the favorite for a first-half crown. There’s still a long way to go, but their turnaround in such a short timeframe has been remarkable.

Kade Anderson continued his bid for top pitching prospect in baseball this week, working another 5.2 innings of one run ball that featured just three baserunners allowed and nine strikeouts. It’s unbelievable how good he’s been across his first 30 innings of professional baseball, seemingly requiring zero time to adjust to the increased difficulty. Whether it’s Tacoma with the Rainiers or the M’s in the big leagues, don’t be surprised if he’s pitching in the PNW sooner than later.

Ryan Sloan posted one of his better starts in Double-A this week, allowing just one earned run across five frames. Striking out six and walking none, Sloan’s needed some time to get acclimated with Double-A, but this was a great bounceback for him after a bit of a stinker last week. He remains right up there with Anderson in terms of overall potential despite his surface numbers not looking nearly as shiny.

Everett AquaSox

Everett had a dominant week in Hillsboro this week, taking all but one game from the Hops in the weekly slate. This offense has been truly relentless.

There is no other place to start than with Felnin Celesten and his scorching hot bat. Collecting another ten hits this week, Celesten has been on an absolute tear for the better part of three weeks and looks like the superstar player many have thought he’s capable of being. Maintaining a gaudy .484/.553/.839 slash on the month, Celesten has seemingly flipped a switch and ascended to new heights. He’ll head to Arkansas sometime this summer to try his hand against the Texas League.

Luke Stevenson didn’t have his best week offensively, but his plate discipline and power give him such a high floor that even his down stretches are productive. Rocketing two more homers this week, Stevenson seems like a lock to follow the aforementioned Celesten up to Arkansas this summer, a level that will be a massive test to see if his bat-to-ball shortcomings rear their head against the improved stuff. Still just 21 years old, Stevenson will be rocketing up prospect boards come time for midseason reranks.

Inland Empire 66ers

The 66ers caught a series win this week, taking four of six against a very solid Lake Elsinore team. Hopefully they are able to take this win and build on it, as up to this point, it’s been tough going for this 66ers squad.

Mason Peters continues to log essentially the same start every week, and fortunately for the 66ers, that start has been consistently excellent. After another four innings with six punchouts and one walk, Peters held his season ERA at 2.25 and owns a 37:6 K/BB ratio through his first 24 innings. The M’s seem to have something really exciting here.

Grant Jay had a really nice week at the plate. An uber-physical catcher with a massive throwing arm, Jay has tremendous power to pair with an uppercut swing that’s catered for launching the baseball as far as humanly possible. This does lead to quite a bit of swing-and-miss, but he’s been able to make it work thus far and has posted excellent numbers this month. Slashing .350/.458/.750 over his last seven games, watch for Jay as a late round sleeper that could pop.

ACL Mariners

The Baby M’s had their first full slate this week, netting an even 3-3 record across their first six. This team has some super exciting names on it, and though it’s going to be several years before they end up contributing at the big league level, many of these players will be leading the next wave of great Mariner prospects.

Yorger Bautista has been dialed in at the plate to kick off his 2026 season. Already with a walkoff bomb under his belt, Bautista has led the way for the M’s offensively and seems to be well adjusted right now. Though the strikeouts are still a touch high, he’s slashing .286/.375/.571, good for a .946 OPS. He’s a tantalizing talent that should absolutely be on people’s radar as a breakout candidate.

Worcester: L, 2-3 (BOX SCORE)

Alec Gamboa went from making his Major League debut earlier in the weekend to pitching five innings of one-run baseball for the WooSox in the finale against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees AAA). Unfortunately, Jack Anderson would come in and let up what would become the game-losing home run, but let’s not pin that all on him. The WooSox looked listless with runners on at the plate, stranding eleven and having just one run until the ninth inning. At least a lot of guys got their knocks, though, with everyone but Kristian Campbell having at least a hit, and even he reached on a walk. It just wasn’t enough to capitalize overall, and the WooSox lost a close one.

Portland: W, 11-4 (BOX SCORE)

For those excited for last year’s third round draft pick Anthony Eyanson to skyrocket through the system , you have reason to be: he looked good in his AA debut, and despite going just four innings he struck out four Fisher Cats (Blue Jays AA) and allowed just a run on three hits and a walk. Eyanson, a product of LSU (Geaux Tigers!), was pretty much untouchable in his time in Greenville to start the year and was given a well-deserved promotion following a combination of his results and his fastball being nasty, topping out at 98. The 21-year-old wasn’t quite as dominant in his first time facing Double-A bats but was also backed up by a great offense, including a white-hot Brooks Brannon having an incredible game: 4 for 4 with a home run, two doubles, a walk and five total RBIs. While the catcher was a big reason for the Sea Dogs’ success, Franklin Arias also had a great day with four hits as his average creeps back up over .350.

It is worth wondering how quickly Eyanson climbs the organization with him already achieving success in college, being seasoned through that success, and being awesome so far in his professional career. This is the same organization that saw Payton Tolle go from Greenville to the Majors in the same season just 12 months ago, so, really, the sky may be the limit.

Greenville: L, 11-14 (BOX SCORE)

The Drive are having a disastrous season defensively thus far, and that nightmare continued in Greensboro (Pirates High-A) as the team has still won just one game in May. They’ve now allowed at least ten runs four times this week, and have scored at least nine runs and still lost in three of those. A big part of this game starting off on the wrong foot was due to the Drive finding themselves down 10-0 at some point due to the Grasshoppers treating Luis Cohen’s start like it was batting practice, and it didn’t get better from there, as Joey Gartrell eventually had to just wear some of it while eating some mop-up innings before tempering the lineup down for the remainder of his appearance. Greenville made it appear close by hitting two home runs in the ninth, but this game was never even within striking distance.

Salem: : W, 3-13 (BOX SCORE)

Another game that wasn’t within striking distance due to a towering righty from Georgia, Leighton Finley, making light work (Orioles A) of Delmarva for his five innings. Finley actually may have been able to go longer in this one if he wasn’t already at 73 pitches through 5; he has never pitched into the sixth in his professional career as of yet. He departed with a 13-2 lead thanks to the RidgeYaks’ six hits with runners in scoring position, and while you, the reader, or I could have at least generated some outs with that lead, it’s good that these professional pitchers were also able to do so without the game even coming close.

Have a mysterious Monday.

The Milwaukee Brewers will enjoy what feels like their 20th off day on Monday in Milwaukee before hosting the San Diego Padres for three games beginning Tuesday evening. The Crew, coming off a big three-game sweep of the Yankees, is sitting at 22-16 on the season, tied with the Cardinals for second place in the NL Central. The Padres, coming off a 2-2 series split with the Cardinals, are 24-16 this season and find themselves tied atop the NL West with the Dodgers.

After getting Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn back last week, the Brewers are still waiting on Christian Yelich to rejoin the lineup. It seems possible — if not likely — that Yelich could be ready for this series. The team also lost outfielder Brandon Lockridge on a nasty slide that injured his right knee on Friday night, an injury that is likely to keep him out for at least a few weeks/a month, though it seems he avoided the worst-case scenario as initial X-rays came back negative. For the pitching staff, Brandon Woodruff, Quinn Priester, and lefty relievers Angel Zerpa, Rob Zastryzny, and Jared Koenig are all out. Woodruff is set to resume throwing this week, meaning he could be back in the next week or two, while Priester’s return is TBD after dealing with shoulder soreness during his rehab assignment. Zerpa is out for the season as he’ll undergo Tommy John surgery today, and Zastryzny and Koenig are both targeting late May/early June returns.

The Padres IL is a balanced mix of pitchers and position players. On the pitching front, San Diego is without Jhony Brito (midseason), Joe Musgrove (second half), Nick Pivetta (midseason), Bryan Hoeing (out for season), and Yu Darvish (out for season) with serious injuries. Germán Márquez is also out until at least June with a forearm injury. On the offensive side, the team is without Jake Cronenworth, who is in concussion protocol, and catcher Luis Campusano, who went on the IL last week with a big toe fracture, keeping him out until at least late May.

Brice Turang leads Milwaukee’s offense through the first month-plus of the season, as he has six homers, eight doubles, and is hitting .298/.422/.511 overall. William Contreras and Chourio round out the heart of the lineup, while Jake Bauers and Gary Sánchez have also been key contributors, especially on the power front. The returning Vaughn is another major boost to the lineup, and Tyler Black, Garrett Mitchell, Sal Frelick, David Hamilton, Blake Perkins, Luis Rengifo, and Joey Ortiz round things out. As a team, the Brewers are hitting .240/.333/.353 (.686 OPS ranks tied for 24th), with 26 homers (tied for last), 195 runs (eighth), and 40 steals (tied for fourth).

The leaders of San Diego’s offense are probably not who you’d think. Xander Bogaerts leads the team with seven homers, and Manny Machado is right behind him with six (though he’s hitting just .191/.294/.353 on the season). Ty France has had quite a bit of success, albeit in a small sample size, as he’s only played in 23 games, while Jackson Merrill, Gavin Sheets, and Ramón Laureano have also been key pieces offensively. Fernando Tatis Jr. has no homers, though he has driven in 15, scored 14 runs, and has 10 steals through 39 games.
Freddy Fermin, Miguel Andujar, Rodolfo Durán, Sung-Mun Song, Nick Castellanos, and Bryce Johnson round out the active roster. As a team, the Padres are hitting .223/.297/.370 (.667 OPS ranks tied for 27th), with 39 homers (20th), 170 runs (tied for 19th), and 40 steals (tied for fourth).

Aaron Ashby leads Milwaukee’s bullpen with 19 appearances, spanning 26 innings with a 2.08 ERA, a perfect 7-0 record, and 41 strikeouts. Grant Anderson and DL Hall have been the other fairly reliable arms, while Abner Uribe and Trevor Megill have also been solid pieces, even if their ERAs may not show it. Jake Woodford has been a key low-leverage piece for Milwaukee, with Shane Drohan and Brian Fitzpatrick rounding things out. As a staff, the Brewers have a 3.43 team ERA (fourth), including a 3.44 starter ERA (sixth) and a 3.42 bullpen ERA (eighth). They’ve struck out 366 batters (fifth) over 338 1/3 innings.

Mason Miller leads the Padres’ pitching staff in virtually every category. Across a team-high 18 appearances, he’s a perfect 12-for-12 in save chances with just two runs allowed (0.96 ERA) and 38 strikeouts over 18 2/3 innings. Adrian Morejon, the only other reliever with 18 appearances, has a less-than-sterling 5.57 ERA, while Wandy Peralta (3.00 ERA over 18 IP), Bradgley Rodriguez (1.83 ERA over 19 2/3 IP), and Jason Adam (1.50 ERA over 12 IP) are the other key pieces. Ron Marinaccio (4.37 ERA over 22 2/3 IP), Jeremiah Estrada (3.97 ERA over 11 1/3 IP), and Yuki Matsui (2 2/3 scoreless innings in one appearance since IL stint) round out the bullpen for San Diego. As a staff, the Padres have a 4.07 team ERA (15th), including a 4.55 starter ERA (23rd) and a 3.50 bullpen ERA (ninth). They’ve struck out 350 batters (12th) over 358 innings.

Probable Pitchers

Tuesday, May 12 @ 6:40 p.m.: RHP Brandon Sproat (0-2, 5.87 ERA, 6.00 FIP) vs. RHP Matt Waldron (1-1, 7.71 ERA, 5.43 FIP)

Entering his 10th career start (12th career appearance) in his second season, Sproat is still seeking his first major league win as he’s 0-4 with a 5.44 ERA thus far in his young career. The 25-year-old righty had a solid outing against the Cardinals in his last appearance, going four scoreless innings, allowing three walks, a hit, and a hit batter to go with five strikeouts on 76 pitches. This marks Sproat’s first career appearance against San Diego.

Waldron, 29, is in his fourth MLB season, all with the Padres. After making 27 appearances (26 starts) in 2024, he’s had a 7.71 ERA over five appearances (four starts) in 2025 and 2026. Waldron tossed five innings after an opener in his last appearance against the Giants, picking up the win, allowing just one run on two hits (including a solo homer) and striking out seven on just 67 pitches. Waldron has never pitched against the Brewers.

Wednesday, May 13 @ 6:40 p.m.: RHP Jacob Misiorowski (3-2, 2.45 ERA, 2.63 FIP) vs. RHP Michael King (3-2, 2.76 ERA, 3.87 FIP)

Misiorowski, 24, is also in his second major league season, though he’s had quite a bit more success compared to Sproat. Over 23 career appearances (22 starts), Miz has a 3.60 ERA, 3.22 FIP, and 157 strikeouts over just 110 innings, including an MLB-leading 70 strikeouts over 44 innings this year. He’s coming off back-to-back wins against the Nationals and Yankees, totaling 11 1/3 scoreless innings with two hits and four walks allowed, striking out 19, including 11 against the mighty New York lineup. This marks Misiorowski’s first career appearance against San Diego.

King, 31 later this month, is in his eighth MLB season and third with the Padres after spending the first five with the Yankees. The former 12th-round pick has made eight starts this season, with a 2.76 ERA, 3.87 FIP, and 45 strikeouts across 45 2/3 innings. He took a no-decision against the Cardinals in his last outing, going six innings with one run allowed on two walks and a hit (a solo homer), striking out six in a 2-1 loss. King has made three career starts against Milwaukee, including a pair while with the Padres. He’s 0-2 with a 3.38 ERA and 27 strikeouts across 18 2/3 innings in those games.

Thursday, May 14 @ 12:40 p.m.: LHP Kyle Harrison (3-1, 2.41 ERA, 3.28 FIP) vs. RHP Griffin Canning (0-1, 6.75 ERA, 3.56 FIP)

Harrison, 24, has had a great start to his Milwaukee tenure after being acquired this offseason from the Red Sox. Over seven starts this year, he has a 2.41 ERA, 3.28 FIP, and 41 strikeouts across 33 2/3 innings, allowing two runs or fewer in all seven outings. He took a no-decision in an abbreviated start on Saturday night against the Yankees, going just four innings with two runs allowed on four hits and four walks, striking out six. Harrison has made three career starts against San Diego, all during his time with the Giants. He’s totaled 16 innings, with a 1-1 record, a 7.31 ERA, and 13 strikeouts against the Padres.

Canning, who turns 30 on Monday, is in his seventh MLB season and first as a Padre after agreeing to a one-year, $2.5 million deal. After missing the second half of last season and the beginning of this year due to left Achilles surgery, Canning was activated earlier this month and has made two starts this season. After going five innings and allowing one run on three hits and three walks with seven strikeouts in his season debut against the White Sox, he got hit hard for six runs on seven hits and two walks, striking out five in a loss against the Cardinals in his last outing. The longtime Angel made his only career appearance against Milwaukee while with Los Angeles, taking the loss in a 2024 start where he went five innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on eight hits and two walks to go with four strikeouts.

How to Watch & Listen

Tuesday, May 12: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Wednesday, May 13: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Thursday, May 14: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Prediction

The Padres have been a consistent threat over the last several years, making the playoffs in three of the last four seasons. This should be a fun midweek battle, but I’ll take the Crew to win two of three to wrap up the homestand.

Memphis Redbirds 8, Toledo Mud Hens 1 (box)

A day after scoring 13 runs the day before, the Toledo Mud Hens had just six hits in an 8-1 loss, ending the series with the Memphis Redbirds tied at three games apiece.

Max Anderson and Andrew Navigato each had two hits, Ben Malgeri drove in the only Mud Hens run of the day and Tomas Nido scored that run after reaching on a double in the eighth. Toledo had baserunners in each of the first three innings, but there was no follow-up to any of those moments.

Carlos Pena was strong in his seventh start of the year, but he only went three innings after going two on Wednesday. The pitching situation in Detroit means Toledo has to figure things out on the fly, so bullpen games are happening in Triple-A, too.

Pena didn’t miss a ton of bats in this one, but he’s not giving up hard contact either. The result is outs and an ERA down to 0.90 over 29 1/3 innings this year. He only gave up two hits today and didn’t allow any runs.

Tyler Mattison was first out of the bullpen, and he was even better than Pena. Two innings, one hit, one walk and five strikeouts. He landed five first-pitch strikes in eight tries and had a whiff rate of 44% (7/16) today.

The sixth inning is when the trouble started. Yoniel Curet was wild as wild can be, hitting two batters and walking a pair. The second hit-by-pitch scored the first run of the game and got him yanked. That’s really as bad as it can get.

Eric Silva cleaned up Curet’s mess the best he could, but a second run still scored on a groundout. Silva got through the seventh, walking a batter in each inning, but everything else was fine until the eighth came around. Silva gave up a leadoff double, threw a wild pitch and allowed a third run to score on a single from our old friend Bligh Madris. A two-run homer from Ramon Mendoza made it 5-0 and got Silva pulled.

Matt Seelinger took over and walked the first batter he faced, but a strikeout and double play ended the inning without any more damage. Jack Little got the ninth and gave up three more runs. Rough day for the pitching staff, besides Pena and Mattison.

Anderson: 2-4

Navigato: 2-3, 2 2B (4), K

Pena: 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, BB, 2 K

Mattison: 2.0 IP, H, 0 R, BB, 5 K

Coming Up Next: The Mudhens are in Omaha next week, starting at 7:35 p.m. ET on Tuesday.

Harrisburg Senators 5, Erie SeaWolves 3 (box)

Erie couldn’t get back in the win column on Sunday, dropping the Mother’s Day game against the Harrisburg Senators, 5-3. Still, it’s a 4-2 week for the SeaWolves.

Erie scored first thanks to an error and two singles. Thayron Liranzo got the RBI. That was all the scoring for the SeaWolves until the eighth, though.

As most Sundays go in the minors, the SeaWolves pieced together a bullpen game on the mound, throwing five pitchers, with none going more than two innings.

Luke Taggart got the start and went 1-2-3 in the first. Duque Hebbert was next. He worked around a two-out base hit and a walk in the second, but he had no such luck in the third. Cayden Wallace tripled in Elijah Nunez, who reached on a one-out walk, Sam Peterson drove in Wallace with a sac fly, and back-to-back homers from Kervin Pichardo and Caleb Lomavita made it 4-1.

John Stankiewicz came in to get out of the third, but he gave up another run with a pair of singles and a wild pitch. The fourth went better for him, retiring the side after allowing a leadoff single.

Wandisson Charles got the fifth and sixth. He faced the minimum despite giving up a leadoff single in the latter frame. A double-play cleaned things up nicely.

Moises Rodriguez got the final two innings for Erie. He gave up a hit in each inning, but his three strikeouts were enough to make us forget about that. Nice work from the backend duo today.

Both of the SeaWolves’ extra-base hits came in the eighth. John Peck led off with a double, and Andrew Jenkins homered him in. That cut the four-run deficit in half, but it was too little, too late.

Liranzo: 2-3, RBI, BB, K

Jenkins: 1-4, HR (4), 2 RBI, K

Coming Up Next: The SeaWolves are at home against Richmond next week, starting Tuesday at 6:05 p.m. ET.

Dayton Dragons 8, West Michigan Whitecaps 4 (box)

West Michigan lost game No. 14 in a row on Sunday, 8-4, against the Dayton Dragons, capping off another sweep.

If you’re wondering, at least three minor league teams have lost more games in a row in recent memory. The Rocket City Trash Pandas had 16 last year, the Altoona Curve lost 15 in a row in 2024 and the Rochester Red Wings went 0-19 in 2022.

The silver lining is that Bryce Rainer had an incredible night at the plate. He walked four times — seeing 30 pitches over those plate appearances — and hit his second home run in the first inning. Rainer has struggled a bit since coming off an injury, but this is the guy every prospect junkie knows him to be. He’s made some adjustments to his posture, standing a little more upright now with higher hands, although it’s still a pretty busy load. That should open up the pull field more for him, as it did with this blast.

The 2-0 lead didn’t last long, though, as Dayton scored a run in the second and third innings off Gabriel Reyes. It was a bit of a mixed bag for Reyes today. Seven hits and two walks aren’t good, but six strikeouts and only allowing the two runs are.

West Michigan responded in the fourth with a run. Rainer walked to open the frame and was eventually driven in by Juan Hernandez. Reyes came back out in the fifth with a lead, but he couldn’t get through the inning to qualify for the potential win. Seth Chavez took over with two on and one out and got a double play ball right away.

Chavez wasn’t as good in the sixth. A leadoff double is always a bad omen. Dayton put up a crooked number, scoring three runs on as many singles. West Michigan manager Rene Rivera got tossed after the third one for arguing balls and strikes. It was a horrible call on 0-2, and Rivera took a mound visit to yell at the umpire a bit. He was ejected before he even got to the mound, so he got his money’s worth.

Ethan Sloan took over with the score at 5-3 in favor of Dayton. He was nearly perfect through 1 2/3 innings, allowing one baserunner on a fielding error. CJ Weins relieved Sloan in the eighth and gave up a two-run home run to double the deficit.

West Michigan scored in the bottom half of the eighth on a bases-loaded walk, but Dayton got the run right back in the ninth with a solo homer. Maybe they’ll figure out a way to win next week…

Rainer: 1-1, HR (2), 2 R, 2 RBI, 4 BB

Reyes: 4.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: The Whitecaps are on the road next week against the Great Lakes Loons, starting Tuesday at 11:05 a.m. ET.

Lakeland Flying Tigers 8, St. Lucie Mets 3 (box)

The Lakeland Flying Tigers took Sunday’s game against the St. Lucie Mets, 8-3, to secure a 4-2 series win.

Carson Rucker got the scoring going in the second, hitting a solo shot to right-center field. It could have been a bigger inning with Javier Osorio singling and Edian Espinal reaching on an error, but Osorio was caught stealing third base. Espinal made up for it in the fourth with the first of two RBI singles. He drove in Rucker, who walked to open the inning.

Meanwhile, Charlie Christensen was dealing for four innings. He gave up just three hits and didn’t allow a runner to reach third. He looked like he had more in the tank, too, with three strikeouts in his final frame.

Andrew Pogue took over for Christensen in the fifth and worked around a two-out single. A leadoff walk in the sixth came back to bite him. A deep single brought the runner around, but the defense made sure to get Randy Guzman trying to stretch out a double.

St. Lucie briefly tied the game up in the seventh on a Chase Meggers single. Another base hit from Simon Juan almost gave the Mets the lead, thanks to a throwing error, but Meggers was tagged out at home on a good throw from Anibal Salas.

Sergio Tapia gave Lakeland the lead back immediately on a solo homer to lead off the bottom of the seventh.

Rucker walked later in the inning with the bases loaded to make it 4-2. Osorio singled in two more runs to double that lead, and Espinal hit his own two-run single to make it 8-2. (Well, that escalated quickly.)

Jatnk Diaz came in for the eighth with the idea of closing things out, but he allowed too many baserunners to get the job done. Diaz walked four batters and gave up two hits over 1 1/3 innings. He left the game after St. Lucie scored a run in the ninth, and Eliseo Mota struck out both batters he faced to end the game.

Rucker: 1-2, HR (2), 3 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, K

Christensen: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 6 K

Coming Up Next: Lakeland is on the road next week in Clearwater, starting Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. ET.

Thanks to everyone who asked questions for today’s off-day mailbag! I especially appreciate the slightly unhinged ones.

Speaking of which, since I do not have an answer to the question of why God hates the Mets (though after a few months here, I must admit I can’t dispute the premise), I figured I would focus on some slightly less existential ones for now. Here’s what I’ve got…

“As Gary and Keith discussed, why not bring up [A.J.] Ewing and [Nick Morabito]? At least that gives me a look at a possible future. What good are retreads Slater and Ibanez?” – @FAN5577

I think the main concern with bringing up either of those guys is rushing them: Morabito has only been in Triple-A since Opening Day, and Ewing only has 12 games there (though he is hitting .326 with an .827 OPS, so he seems to have adjusted quickly). Their numbers are good, yes. But as we saw with Carson Benge early in the year, the jump from Triple-A pitching to major league pitching is substantial and requires time for adjustment.

The risk in calling up Ewing and/or Morabito would be that they are called upon to help a struggling team, find themselves unable to do so, and need to be sent back down with less confidence as the big-league team continues to flounder. Now, of course, they could also adjust quickly. They could thrive. But having watched the Nationals and Orioles thrust young players into key roles out of need over the last few years – or even watched the way the Red Sox have struggled counting on young guys to make leaps for them this year -- I can say that relying on young players to fix things is a risk to the franchise in the present and the future.

Still, to your point, calling up one or both of those guys at least ensures that more at-bats on this struggling Mets team will go to players who are likely to be part of good Mets teams to come. Austin Slater, Andy Ibañez, Vidal Brujan and whoever else they funnel into these spots are not the answer now or in the future. They are Band-Aids. And I think one can argue they should be ripped off in favor of more substantial roster interventions.

But more substantial roster intervention would require a shift in posture from David Stearns and his front office, who, to this point, have preached patience with a historically expensive roster. If they suddenly decide that the Mets’ slow start means they should prioritize the future over success this year, then yes, calling those players up makes sense. But it does not seem the front office is there yet. And if it gets to the point of surrender, calling up young players will be the least significant move it will probably make between now and the trade deadline.

“Is there anything to point to in spring training or otherwise that might help explain why the team is so impacted by significant injuries so early this year? Or is it just bad luck?” – Fir Douglass on BlueSky

I think the Mets are so impacted by injuries because they built their roster around a few players who have a history of injury. Period. End of story. Stearns took a risk this winter: As part of his roster remodel, he bet that the Mets could keep Jorge Polanco and Luis Robert Jr. healthier than any of their previous teams ever had. Even with careful handling in spring training and beyond, they couldn’t. Robert’s back has not yet allowed him to do baseball activities. Polanco’s bursitis lingers, flaring up seemingly whenever he threatens to make progress, and is not the kind of injury that will simply go away.

Juan Soto, I think, is pure bad luck. He has so little history of injury and returned so quickly that his calf issue seems to be a blip. As for Francisco Lindor, I think the Mets might have to confront a new reality there: Between the back issue at the end of last season, his elbow cleanup in October, the hamate bone break in spring training, and now the calf injury, the 32-year-old is no longer as invincible as the guy who has played at least 158 games in six of his 12 seasons (and all 60 during the Covid campaign).

Ronny Mauricio, Mike Tauchman,and Jared Young seem to fall more in the bad luck category. But if it weren’t for the injuries to the players they were needed to replace, their injuries would not be substantial enough to derail the Mets like the others.

No one can predict injuries. Every player expects to be healthy. But I think it is the job of the front office to make sure their team is not counting on players to be healthier than they have ever been, and the Mets look like victims of their own optimism so far.

“How can Cohen justify leaving Stearns in his role? He created this mess of a roster. He can’t be trusted to fix it, can he?” -- @Big_John1906

Everything I have heard about Steve Cohen’s stance during the last few weeks is that it is largely one of patience. Stearns would not have told MLB.com he is not firing Carlos Mendoza had Cohen not ok’ed the message. And Cohen does not have a history of dramatic reactivity.

That being said, Cohen knew what he was doing when he told reporters in spring training that he is annoyed that his team has not won regularly during his tenure. He was not bloviating when he said the Mets “have to make the playoffs.” With a roster as expensive as his, that standard seems more than fair.

All of which is to say, I think Cohen gives Stearns a chance to fix this between now and the end of the season. If they miss the playoffs, I do not think he will get more chances beyond that.

“If you were Stearns, what would you do in this situation?” – Brian Bardin on BlueSky

I have thought about this a lot, and I am aware there are always things we don’t know about why some moves have been made and not others. For example, while I have heard the Mets are in contact with teams about potentially moving a pitcher for help, I do not know exactly what offers they have had or considered, so exactly what kind of roster shakeup is available to them is not entirely clear to me.

Still, the first thing I would do is go to Cohen and say, do you want me to try to save this season at any cost, or do you want me to operate with an eye toward the future. If he says the former, I would take advantage of my financial flexibility and pursue a major trade for a big contract that might bring in a new veteran presence and might also bring in some kind of bullpen help or starting depth if I shouldered enough of the money.

There are several veterans around the sport who look uncomfortable with their current teams. Rafael Devers looks hapless with the frustrated San Francisco Giants. Trevor Story is struggling, even as he is vocally frustrated with Red Sox management: Could the Mets pair a deal for him and his contract while grabbing an outfielder from Boston’s longstanding logjam? The Orioles could use some infield depth, and while the Mets might not have it to offer, perhaps some kind of mutual shakeup is possible there. If that sounds like throwing good money after bad, it might be. But if the whole season is going to be bad money anyway, might as well see if a fresh start for a player with a strong track record can help revive him and the Mets at once.

Mostly, I would hunt for a first baseman who can hit for power. There are plenty of them around and securing one would not eliminate Polanco’s usefulness when and if he is healthy. Polanco, famously, has never been a full-time first baseman anyway. Bumping him into more of a utility role deepens the team immediately.

Absent options there, I would make clear that a $400 million-dollar roster is not a place to experiment, but rather a place where every spot is earned.

For example: Sean Manaea is neither starter nor effective short reliever. The Mets do not need a long reliever, since they have Tobias Myers. Keeping Manaea on the roster means working around him when the only thing the Mets should be worried about is winning games.

Besides, it does not seem fair to Manaea, who simply does not look right. When he is right, his velocity is better and his stuff is sharper. Whatever he and the team insist about his health, he has been off since spring training, throwing in the high 80s. I would see if the loose bodies he decided not to get surgically removed are still affecting that elbow, and I would suggest he remove them. He is not helpful in the bullpen as is, and the Mets need as many effective relievers as they can get. And his best chance at an effective future is likely a total physical reset.

I would also be decisive about Kodai Senga’s future. The veteran right-hander threw a bullpen this week, which means he is starting to build his way back from the lumbar spine inflammation that landed him on the injured list after several bad outings. But rosters paid nearly $400 million should not be proving grounds, and Senga has not proven he is an asset. Perhaps he could use a fresh start elsewhere. Perhaps he and the Mets have both needed one for quite some time.

Speaking of which, I would also stop patching holes with veterans trying to reestablish themselves. Tommy Pham,Slater, and the rest have been solid players throughout their careers. But they are not hitting well now, and the Mets do not have enough at-bats to give them to allow them to figure things out while playing in games the Mets must win to save their season. I would call up whichever prospects (Morabito, Ewing, Ryan Clifford) I think are most ready and let them prove they cannot handle it until injured veterans come back. The playing time they need is available in the big leagues now. I think I would let them take it.

And finally, I would tell the entire lineup, top to bottom, to take more pitches. I know the Mets are built around aggressive hitters. But that aggressiveness has not yielded good results. They are not stringing enough hits together to create consistent offense, so they need to find ways to get men on base. No more first-pitch outs from the bottom of the order down a run. If the Mets are built around hitters who cannot work the count and succeed offensively, they need to be built around different hitters. Seeing pitches does not have to come at the expense of making contact, and seeing pitches is the most proven recipe for success this sport has ever had.