Category: Sports News

(39-34) Louisville Bats 1, (38-36) Gwinnett Stripers 10

• Jim Jarvis, SS: 2-for-5, HR, 2B, 2 RBI, R, .307/.399/.461
• Brett Wisely, 2B: 2-for-3, 4 R, 3B, SB, .293/.392/.456
• Brewer Hicklen, RF: 3-for-5, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, SB, .310/.373/.515
• Hurston Waldrep, SP: 4.1IP 2H 1ER 2BB 5K, 1.17 ERA
• Connor Thomas, RP: 2.1IP 3H 0R 0BB 1K, 0.54 ERA

Box Score

Offense was the name of the game as the Stripers broke out for 10 runs on 14 hits including seven extra-base hits and two home runs. They scored early, and often, and rode some strong pitching performances to win the game of the series.

Hurston Waldrep made his second start for the Stripers, since coming off of his rehab assignment, and while he ran out of gas late he was still strong – allowing just one run over the course of his outing. The way Hurston did it was diferent as he ditched the four-seam entirely and instead leveraged his cutter and two-seam, along with the rest of his arsenal (splitter, curveball). Hurston will need a few more starts to build up his arm strength before you can consider him an option for the Braves as his velocity started to drop towards the end of his outing from 97 down to 94 around the 60th pitch. His only run, and the only run allowed by the Stripers pitching staff, came in the first inning when Hurston allowed a two out double, walk, stolen base, and single to open up the scoring before he struck out the final hitter to end the first inning. He would then settle in and simply not allow another hit the rest of his outing before giving way to Connor Thomas who continued his strong return to Gwinnett with 2.1 innings of scoreless ball himself. Following Connor thomas were Daysbel Hernández (1IP 1H 0R 0BB 1K), and Ian Hamilton (1IP 0H 0R 1B 2K) who worked the final two frames of the game to preserve the big win over the Bats.

Offensively, there was damage throughout the lineup with Jair Camargo the only player not to get a hit, despite hammering a 111 MPH force out. The attack was so balanced that there were only two innings in which the Stripers failed to score a run entirely. The offense was paced by Brewer Hicklen who continued his strong 2026 – hitting his 12th home run, and stealing his 22nd base of the season

Jim Jarvis continued his strong work as well, getting on-base twice, including hitting his sixth home run of the season. Brett Wisley, Aaron Schunk (2-for-4), and Cal Conley (2-for-4) were the five players to register multiple hits in the game as well.

(29-35) Columbus Clingstones 4, (35-30) Biloxi Shuckers 9 – F/7

• Luke Waddell, SS: 1-for-3, HR, R, RBI, .217/.339/.335
• Jordan Groshans, 3B: 2-for-3, 2B, RBI, BB, .270/.349/.514
• Archer Brookman, C: 2-for-4, .256/.350/.376
• Kevin Kilpatrick Jr., RF: 2-for-2, 2 BB, R, SB, .245/.331/.343
• Julio Robaina, SP: 3IP 1H 1ER 1BB 3K, 3.33 ERA

Box Score

The Clingstones dropped the first game of the double header after taking the early lead as the bullpen struggled to get outs while the offense was held in check throughout the game, outside of one inning.

Julio Robaina got the start and while he only lasted three innings they were relatively pain free as he retired the first six batters he saw before finally giving a single in the bottom of the third. That single was quickly wiped off by a double play before he quickly retired the final hitter of the inning – facing the minimum through three. Robaina would walk the lead off hiterr in the fourth before being replaced by Blane Abeyta (1IP 3H 3ER 1BB 1K) who really struggled as he surrendered a pair of home runs in his only inning of work. Ian Mejia (1.2IP 4H 5ER 0BB 1K) came in for Blane Abeyta and his struggles continued, surrendering five earned runs including surrendering another pair of home runs. Blake Burkhalter (0.1IP 2H 0R 0BB 0K) recorded the final out of the game.

Offensively, the first run of the game for the Clingstones came in the fourth inning when Luke Waddell hit his fourth home run of the season.

As a team the Clingstones went 1-for-7 with runners in scoring position, stranding 10. Their big inning came in the sixth inning when they broke out for three runs. The first three batters of the inning reached based via walk-walk-HBP before Ambioris Tavarez drove in the second run of the game for the Clingstones with a force out to the third baseman. Patrick Clohisy would follow that up with a sacrifice fly of his own to drive in the third run of the game for the Clingstones. Following a Luke Waddell walk, Jordan Groshans would single in another run, their final run of the game, before eventually falling to the Shuckers.

(29-34) Columbus Clingstones 2, (34-30) Biloxi Shuckers 3 – F/7

• Patrick Clohisy, CF: 1-for-3, R, .254/.322/.410
• Drew Compton, DH: 1-for-3, HR, RBI, R, .184/.250/.270
• Kevin Kilpatrick Jr., RF: 1-for-2, BB, .245/.331/.343
• Brett Sears, SP: 2IP 3H 1ER 0BB 3K, 2.36 ERA
• Lucas Braun, RP: 3.1IP 6H 2ER 0BB 3K, 4.70 ERA

Box Score

The Clingstones fell late, surrendering a pair of runs in the bottom of the fifth, to drop game 2 and get swept in today’s double header.

Brett Sears got the start for the Clingstones and his impressive scoreless stretch finally came to an end as he gave up earned run in the first inning. Sears was greeted with a six pitch at bat that resutled in a triple to his first batter of the game. On the next pitch he gave up a run scoring single to Jesús Made that tied the game. He would then retire six of his next six batters before he was forced to sit due to a rain delay, before giving way to Lucas Braun who pitched the next three innings of the game. Lucas Braun would come in for Brett Sears and would surrender a pair of runs in the decisive fifth inning as he gave up four singles that resulted in a pair of runs that swung the game in favor of the Shuckers.

There wasn’t too much to talk about offensively for the Clingstones as they collected a total of just four hits while walking just twice. The only run they were able to score came in the first inning when Will Verdung drove in Patrick Clohisy via a sacrifice fly to originally put up the Clingstones 1-0. Their second run came in the fifth inning when Drew Compton connected on his third home run of the season. Outside of that, the Clingstones struggled to get on base, going just 0-for-3 with runners in scoring position and stranding just two overall.

(32-35) Hudson Valley Renegades 7, (34-33) Rome Emperors 6

• Tate Southisene, SS: 0-for-3, 2 BB, 2 R, 2 SB, .205/.364/.318
• John Gil, 2B; 1-for-5, HR, 3 RBI, R, .275/.369/.441
• Eric Hartman, CF: 1-for-3, R, BB, R, 2 SB, .300/.363/.577
• Dixon Williams, 1B: 2-for-4, RBI, R, .218/.319/.397
• Cade Kuehler, SP: 5IP 7H 2ER 2BB 3K, 4.85 ERA

Box Score

After an offensive outburst in the third inning, the Emperors struggled to get runners out eventually falling after allowing a decisive run in the ninth inning – losing the series two games to three.

Cade Kuehler got the start for the Emperors and pitched to solid results. He gave up a solo home run to the games first batter to put the Emperors down 1-0 but overall lived at the bottom of the zone, inducing weak contact as well as swinging strikes at the bottom. He cruised through the next four innings, only allowing a double, before giving up his second run of the game in the fifth when he gave up a leadoff triple and sacrifice fly. After really struggling through the seasons first five games Cade has turned things around. Cade was removed after the fifth and replaced by Colin Daniel (3IP 4H 4ER 3BB 3K) who struggled, but also was a victim of some poor defense – two fielding errors. Justin Long (1IP 2H 1ER 1BB 1K) pitched the final inning of the game, allowing the games’ decisive run.

Offensively, the Emperors were strong early against starting pitcher Sean Paul Liñan, scoring five runs in the games first three innings, before Franyer Herrera shut them down over the next six. Eric Hartman drove in their first run with a sacrifice fly that drove in Tate Southisene who had earlier drew a walk and stole second and third. In the fifth, Tate drew his second walk of the game and was then driven in by John Gil who hit his 11th home run of the season.

Eric Hartman would immediately follow that up with a walk of his own and would then steal second and third on consecutive pitches. He would then be driven in by Dixon Williams who singled and would later come in to score on a single by Mason Guerra. After that five run third Rome would be shut down over the games final six frames – struggling to get on base.

(31-38) Hill City Howlers 5, (38-31) Augusta GreenJackets 8

• Luis Guanipa, CF: 2-for-4, 2B, 2RBI, BB, R, .326/.377/.504
• Conor Essenburg, RF: 1-for-4, RBI, R, BB, .272/.411/.500
• Alex Lodise, SS: 1-for-2, 2B, 3 BB, 2 R, .248/.342/.432
• Cody Miller, 2B: 1-for-3, HR, 2 BB, 3 RBI, R, .193/.361/.456
• Davis Polo, SP: 5IP 8H 5ER 1BB 5K, 4.31 ERA

Box Score

The GreenJackets struck late, scoring all eight of the games remaining runs winning the series against the Hill City Howlers a resounding 5-1.

Davis Polo got the start for the GreenJackets and cruised through the games first two innings before surrendering a pair in the third. Davis allowed four consecutive singles in the fifth inning, surrendering three runs, before retiring the next three batters and coming out of the game. Logan Forsythe (1.2IP 1H 0R 4BB 2K) worked around some trouble in the sixth inning – walking two, having a hitter reach on catchers interference, as well as a single but still didn’t allow a run. Kendy Richard (2.1IP 0H 0R 0BB 0K) pitched the final innings of the game, consistently attacking the bottom and outside parts of the zone, picking up the win.

After being held mostly in check through the first four innings, the GreenJackets exploded for four runs in the fifth and seventh inning, each. In the fifth Guanipa drew a walk and took second on a wild pitch before being driven in by Conor Essenburg to make it 5-1 Hull City. Alex Lodise would then take a pitch low in the zone and drive it to left, putting runners on 1st and 3rd. Cody Miller would then make it a one run game after this three run home run.

That homer was Cody’s fifth in his last seven games driving his slugging from .314 to .456. The GreenJackets would strike for four more in the seventh – drawing five walks, as well as getting hit by a pitch. The only hit was a two run single by who else but Luis Guanipa, driving in a pair of insurance runs – making it 8-5.

The Cubs played only five games this past week due to Sunday’s rainout. They won three of the five.

Nevertheless, we have enough data for an update on who was hot and not for the team over the five games.

Three up

Pete Crow-Armstrong remains en fuego

PCA’s probably going to win his second consecutive National League Player of the Week award when that honor is announced this afternoon (although he’s got some competition for that in Kyle Schwarber, who also had a big week).

Over the five games he batted .550/.600/1.300 (11-for-20) with a double, a triple, four home runs, seven RBI, four walks and two stolen bases. The walks gave him 28 for the season, which might not sound like a lot but that’s just one fewer than he had for all of 2025.

Here’s his 106 mile per hour, 434 foot leadoff home run last Monday [VIDEO].

Oh, and he also hit for the cycle that day [VIDEO].

PCA is riding a 23-game on-base streak in which he is batting .412/.468/.835 (40-for-97) with seven doubles, two triples, 10 home runs, 17 RBI, 19 runs scored, six stolen bases and eight walks. He has a hit in all but one of those 23 games and has homered in four of his last six games.

He’s also a good candidate for Player of the Month. So far in 17 games in June (nine games remaining): .437/.481/.930 (31-for-71) with four doubles, two triples, nine home runs, 14 runs scored, 14 RBI and six stolen bases.

He’ll almost certainly make his second straight NL All-Star team, too.

Dansby Swanson has shown signs of coming out of his slump

Over the five games, Swanson batted .250/.400/.500. That’s just 4-for-16, but he also walked four times, homered and stole three bases.

Here’s his homer on Wednesday against the Rockies [VIDEO].

Carson Kelly had himself a week — all in one day

Kelly’s 2-for-4, six-RBI, grand slam day on Friday could be a week’s production for many players. Overall he played three games (one as a defensive replacement) and went 4-for-8 (.500) with the home run, a double, seven RBI and four runs scored over the week.

Kelly’s been a revelation in his year and a half with the Cubs. He plays solid defense and his bat is certainly good enough. He was a 3.5 bWAR player last year and likely has another 3 bWAR season in store in 2026. The Cubs and Kelly have a mutual $7.5 million option for 2026. Here’s hoping that’s either exercised (although mutual options rarely are) or they tear it up and find a way to keep him around another year.

He’s also one of the best catchers in MLB at ABS challenges, currently at a 78 percent rate. That’s fourth-best among catchers who have challenged more than 10 times.

Here’s his slam on Friday [VIDEO].

Three down

The collective bullpen had itself a really bad week

Yeesh. The pen gave up eight runs in two innings to the Blue Jays on Saturday and that followed a game Wednesday in which they nearly blew an 8-1 lead.

Jacob Webb, Caleb Thielbar, Trent Thornton and Ethan Roberts had all been reasonably successful for most of this year and had all resided in Craig Counsell’s circle of trust.

For the week, those four combined for the following numbers:

9.1 IP, 11 H, 15 R, 15 ER, 6 BB, 9 SO, 5 HR. That’s a 14.46 ERA and 1.821 WHIP and that’s more runs than a good bullpen should give up in maybe two months, let alone five games.

This has to improve or the Cubs are going to have to find replacements. Weirdly enough, Phil Maton, who had been super-awful most of the year, didn’t allow a run in two outings covering 1.2 innings over the week. Baby steps.

Alex Bregman still has a power outage

Bregman has six home runs this year, only one this month and just two in his last 138 at-bats dating to May 12. It’s not just home-run power that’s lacking. He has only five doubles in that 138 at-bat span for a SLG of .341, which is 140 points below his career slugging percentage entering 2026.

I’m not sure what’s going on here but let’s hope he finds his power stroke soon.

Bregman, at least, is drawing some walks. His .343 OBP is decent, and he’s still playing solid defense at third base.

But the bat has been lacking. Let’s hope it comes back.

Edward Cabrera had another rough outing

Cabrera returned from the injured list and had a good, zero-homer, two-run outing against the Rockies at Coors Field. Then he faced the same team at Wrigley this past week and got hit hard, allowing five runs in 4.2 innings, including a home run.

He just hasn’t been close to the pitcher he was in Miami. There’s still half a season left to turn this around. Sometimes, it seems as if hope is all we have.

The lack of quality hitting prospects is starting to show up in these days of summer as offenses struggled outside of Lakewood.

Worcester 12, Lehigh Valley 3

Hey! We had an old friend alert as Kolby Allard got the start for the IronPigs and actually pitched not too shabby. He allowed seven runs in five innings, but only three were earned thanks to a fielding error by Otto Kemp in the third innings with two outs that gave the WooSox four runs in the inning. Christian Cairo had a two RBI triple in the fourth inning to at least make it interesting for a while, but two more runs allowed by Allard and a nightmare relief outing for Evan Gates (2/3 IP, three hits, three walks, five runs allowed) salted this game away.

Hartford 7, Reading 4

Jean Cabrera continued his horrible season by giving up six runs in 4 2/3 innings for the Fightin’ Phils, chalking up yet another loss on his year. The offense did not help him at all, only notching three hits, though they did draw nine (!) walks from the Yard Goats, but outside a three-run home run from Pedro Leon, the big hit eluded them, wasting those scoring chances. Meanwhile, it might be time to officially declare Cabrera’s season a complete loss and let him try to recoup whatever confidence they can out of him by putting him in the lowest level they can, Roy Halladay style, to see if he can rediscover something, anything.

Jersey Shore 7, Greenville 6

Five different BlueClaws had multihit games on the night, led by Devin Saltiban and his three-run home run. Jersey Shore in total amassed eleven hits and backed a strong bullpen performance to outslug the Drive and walk them off. Who hit the walk off?

Tyler Pettroni joined Saltiban by hitting a two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth to clinch the win for Jersey Shore, the only win in the minor league organization for the Phillies on the day.

Bradenton 8, Clearwater 3

Your hitting stars for the day for Clearwater were Alirio Ferrebus and Juan Villvicencio, both of whom were 2 for 4 on the night. Villavicencio had a double and a two-run home run while Ferrebus had a single and an RBI double. Sadly, they were about the only positives for the Threshers as the rest of the offense had a combined one hit, the relief pitching struggled with MT Morrissey giving up five runs in his inning of work and the Marauders marauded the Clearwater lineup.

Recaps

[AZ Central] Diamondbacks blow late lead, drop series to Twins – The series loss ended the Diamondbacks’ mini streak of back-to-back series victories. They fell to 39-38. The Diamondbacks managed only six hits, though they did walk five times, creating a variety of scoring opportunities. They went just 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position, the lone hit coming from Marte, who split the gap in right-center off Twins right-hander Mike Paredes in the second inning. Cabrera was impressive, giving up just three hits while striking out three in five-plus innings. He faced one batter in the sixth inning before departing. He smiled, waved and tipped his hat to the crowd on his way off the mound.

[Dbacks.com] Right-hander Cabrera strong in debut for battered, short-handed D-backs – Torey Lovullo was asked where his team goes from here. “One way, and that’s all we know, and that is to just keep putting it in gear and going forward,” Lovullo said. “The easy thing to do is feel sorry for ourselves, but I don’t think that group is. They’re in there, they’re hungry, they want to win baseball games, they know how to win baseball games. And we’re going to get this thing turned around. I think on a given day or night, we put two-thirds of our game together. We’ve got to put it all together and start playing very consistent baseball. When we do, we’re going to start to win some baseball games.”

[Arizona Sports] Jose Cabrera delivers enthusiastic, impressive MLB debut – The game had a rhythm with him on the mound, as he handled the pressure of pitching in front of 35,000 fans on Father’s Day well. He said he felt at home. Walking back to the dugout, Cabrera tipped his hat to the crowd and pointed up to the stands. He was motioning to his parents, who traveled from the Dominican Republic to watch him. “Honestly, I felt proud because my dream was achieved, which was to play in the big leagues,” Cabrera said in Spanish. “It was really a strong emotion.” Cabrera became the first pitcher to throw five-plus shutout innings in his MLB debut this season.

Team news

[SI] Jose Cabrera’s Remarkable Debut Was Massive for Depleted Diamondbacks – The Diamondbacks’ rotation is in trouble, to put it lightly. Zac Gallen is pitching at his worst career pace, as is Merrill Kelly. Michael Soroka and Ryne Nelson will be out for a large portion of time with respective injuries, and Brandon Pfaadt is not yet stretched out to pitch a full starter’s load. Arizona needed someone unexpected to step up. And Cabrera did just that. Though there may easily be some rookie growing pains coming, Cabrera’s 95-plus MPH fastball, deep arsenal and strong, confident mound presence were on full display Sunday. Even in the face of a loss, Cabrera’s debut can inspire hope for Arizona’s rotational interim.

[MLB Trade Rumors] Diamondbacks Designate Yilber Diaz For Assignment – After posting a 3.81 ERA over 28 1/3 innings (starting four of seven games) with the Snakes in 2024, Diaz’s big league work has been limited to a single relief appearance in each of the last two seasons. Diaz has been working as a full-time reliever all season in Reno, with mixed results. He has a 4.50 ERA and a garish 14.2% walk rate, but he is striking out batters at a strong pace (29.1K%). He has a minor league option remaining which might be of interest to another team in terms of a waiver claim, but it’s probably more likely that Diaz clears waivers and remains in Arizona’s organization.

[Cronkite News] Groover determined to make the most of MLB call-up – LuJames “Gino” Groover III needed only one word to describe his first 24 hours as a Major League Baseball player: “Surreal.” His parents were more nervous watching his MLB debut than he was playing. “I might’ve been a little bit nervous for him because I know how hard he worked to get to this point,” his father said. “I just wanted him to be successful, and come out and give the fans something that they’re looking for.” Throughout the game, Groover III was able to slow things down: “You remember it’s the same game. Just go out there and have fun, because that’s what makes it worthwhile.”

And, elsewhere…

[Fox 10] Buc-ee’s 1st Arizona location opening in Goodyear today – The 74,000-square-foot West Valley travel center, located near Interstate 10 and Bullard Avenue, has 120 fueling stations. The location also offers its signature food items, including Beaver Nuggets, beef jerky and smoked brisket. In addition to its first Arizona location, Buc-ee’s is also opening new travel centers in several other states. The Buc-ee’s parking lot is set to open at midnight on June 22. Doors open at 6 a.m., and there will be a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 8 a.m. Heavy traffic is expected in the area for the grand opening, with as many as 40,000 vehicles expected to pass through over the week.

[Denver Post] Patrick Saunders is hanging it up after 28 years at The Denver Post. A baseball writer looks back with gratitude – I covered the Rockies for nearly 20 years, and during that time, they had five winning seasons, made the playoffs four times, and made one magical run to the World Series in 2007. I’ve had to rewrite more deadline game stories than I can count. The adage in the Coors Field press box: “The Rockies blew another lead. And they blew another lede.” But, all in all, it’s been quite a wonderful ride. What follows are excerpts from some of my favorite stories I wrote for The Post. The common theme is people.

Companion (2025)

Rating: B
Dir: Drew Hancock
Star: Sophie Thatcher, Jack Quaid, Megan Suri, Lukas Gage

Strong Black Mirror vibes here, with a story of technology being manipulated, and coming back to bite the manipulator. I also found myself humming Don’t You Want Me to myself: “I picked you out, I shook you up and turned you around, turned you into someone new… It’s much too late to find, you think you’ve changed your mind. You’d better change it back or we will both be sorry.” Oddly appropriate lyrics for the Iris/Josh relationship, considering he literally made her into the woman she is today. It feels the film is trying to say something about this, though it’s light enough in touch for me not to be annoyed. It is definitely reflecting loneliness, a perhaps inevitable result of our terminally online culture. 

Read more

The Orioles are flying high after taking two out of three from a talented Dodgers team. They’ll look to carry the momentum into a three-game set against the last place Angels tonight. On paper, this is a golden opportunity to take care of business and climb toward the elusive .500 mark. That being said, I can’t blame anyone for fearing that Baltimore will play down to its competition over the next three days.

The Orioles traded close games with the Dodgers before securing a convincing win on Sunday. The backend of the bullpen looks a little dicey with Ryan Helsley working his way back from injury, but the Orioles should be able to win any game if the offense swings it like it did yesterday.

The Angels will enter the series firmly in last place of the AL West at 32-47. However, they’re capable of taking a series at any given point. The Halos topped the Athletics 9-7 yesterday after securing a 7-0 win the day prior.

Mike Trout had been healthy and playing like one of the best players in baseball again, but the Angels placed him on the injured list with a hamstring strain last week. Former Oriole Grayson Rodriguez is also on the injured list with low-back inflammation.

Monday’s game will mark a return to The Big A for Taylor Ward. Ward spent his entire career with the Angels before getting shipped to Baltimore over the offseason.

Game 1: Monday, June 22, 9:38 pm

RHP Kyle Bradish (4-7, 4.00 ERA) vs. LHP Sam Aldegheri (2-2, 4.50 ERA)

Kyle Bradish can lower his ERA into the threes with a successful start tonight. The righty suffered some ups and downs early in the season, but he’s been the pitcher the Orioles need him to be of late. Bradish pitched into the eighth inning his last time out against Seattle. Another deep start could go a long way in setting up Baltimore for success in this series.

Sam Aldegheri is a 24-year-old lefty that was born in Verona, Italy. He’s only started in three of his six appearances this year and has yet to complete six innings, so the Orioles should find their way into an LA bullpen that ranks 25th in the league with a 4.65 ERA.

Game 2: Tuesday, June 23, 9:38 pm

RHP Shane Baz (4-7, 4.04 ERA) vs. TBD

Bradish and Tuesday’s starter Shane Baz will enter the series with nearly identical records and ERAs. Baz took the loss his last time out despite holding Seattle to three earned runs over seven innings. The former Ray has completed six innings or more in seven starts already this season, and he should have another opportunity to work deep into the game on Tuesday.

The Angels have yet to announce starters for Tuesday or Wednesdays games.

Game 3: Wednesday, June 24, 4:07 pm

RHP Trey Gibson (1-2, 5.81 ERA) vs. TBD

Trey Gibson will get at least one more opportunity to start for the Orioles this week. Both Dean Kremer and Cade Povich kicked off rehab assignments over the weekend, but it remains to be seen how long Kremer will need before rejoining the rotation. Gibson has done a decent job as a rookie still attempting to figure things out at the big league level. He coughed up a few early runs his last time out against the Dodgers but found a way to settle and still give the O’s five innings of three-run ball.

As the MASN booth loves to point out, the moment rarely looks too big for Gibson. The Orioles believe he’s a guy that can help this team for years to come, and he’ll have another opportunity to display his talent against a struggling Angels team on Wednesday.

Worcester: W, 12-3 (BOX SCORE)

In the finale with the IronPigs (Phillies AAA), the WooSox had six batters with a multi-hit day. The scoring started early and often; Vinny Capra, who hit his first home run of June but is hitting .288 on the month, led it off, but by the third it was 5-0 in favor of the WooSox. Lehigh Valley scored three runs on Jack Anderson in the fourth to give the home team a run for their money but then the WooSox bullpen allowed just two baserunners for the duration of the game while also just having two more strikeouts (for a total of six), inducing those balls in play to create outs. Also humorous is that the WooSox, in their display of offensive output, had three players who have suited up at catcher for the team have seven total hits. This includes Jason Delay, the former Pirate who had a 6-RBI day.

Is this catching depth of note considering Carlos Narvaez’ struggles after a strong 2025? Sure, if you let it – but Delay and Thaiss have had their shortcomings offensively in their limited time as Major Leaguers, and as addressed many times in these Minor Lines, Nathan Hickey profiles more as a first baseman and is also having a tough year making content at the plate. For now, the Red Sox may let the current situation ride and consider Gaspers’ versatility an advantage (even though many, myself included, consider the number of platoon guys given everyday roles an indictment on roster construction. It also doesn’t help that Mickey Gasper can’t pick a runner off.) But, hey, I will never sneeze at a 9-run win!

Portland: L, 4-6 (BOX SCORE)

The Sea Dogs made two celebratory posts after the series finale against the Patriots (Yankees AA) and they were both reasons to be excited, but ultimately the thing folks who attended will remember is Eduardo Rivera giving up the go-ahead home run go in the top of the eighth inning after the rest of the pitching staff kept Somerset at bay for most of the night. Despite this pitching blunder, one of those things to celebrate was Anthony Eyanson having another awesome start, though he was pulled after just four scoreless innings and 53 pitches.

Another outlier in an otherwise quiet afternoon offensively for Portland was Franklin Arias, who still holds the leadoff spot in the lineup, going 3-for-5 and opening the scoring by hitting his 14th home run of 2026. Despite the humor of this article’s headline, Arias actually hasn’t gone yard in about two weeks and after his ballistic start has cooled down alongside Brooks Brannon, each of whom have slumbered below an 1.000 OPS. The horror! Arias wasn’t alone in hitting balls in the stands yesterday. Abhram Liendo, hitting out of the 9-hole, is slugging .600 in June and hit his fourth home run of the month in the sixth inning, and shortly after came the collapse.

Greenville: L, 6-7 (BOX SCORE)

Jersey Shore (Phillies High-A) ended up walking off Greenville. I don’t think Marcus Phillips, despite having the strikeout ability, is a starting pitcher; he allowed seven hits and four runs and didn’t make it out of the fifth, something that’s happened quite a bit in 2026. But the Drive stayed in the game thanks to also having one batter manage three of their seven knocks. Yoelin Cespedes hit his 11th home run of the season and was preceded by Isaiah Jackson doing the same in the previous inning, but the lead never grew so large that the Red Claws couldn’t come, uh, clawing back.

Salem: L, 0-3 (BOX SCORE)

The RidgeYaks have started another losing streak against the Nationals and fall to 3-14 this month despite some commendable pitching, albeit giving up eight walks yesterday. Salem actually lost this one by giving up a home run on the second pitch of the game, but they didn’t know it yet. What followed was the team getting just three hits, all singles, and stranding nine.

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Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is showing signs of a turnaround, and today’s +150 price for the Over on his base prop doesn’t reflect how well he profiles against Houston Astros starter Hunter Brown.

Read on for my Astros vs. Blue Jays predictions and MLB picks for this Monday, June 22 matchup. 

Astros vs Blue Jays predictions

Astros vs Blue Jays best bet: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Over 1.5 total bases (+150)

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. profiles extremely well against Hunter Brown. The Houston Astros starter primarily throws a fastball/sinker combination, and Vladdy owns a .373 batting average with a .483 slug rate against those pitches. 

Since June 1, his hard-hit rate has risen from 48% to 57% against these pitch types, which points to some extra-base potential. 

Additionally, Guerrero Jr. has eclipsed this number in three of his last four games, showing serious signs of a turnaround, which gives me confidence in his market.

I’d play this to +130. 

COVERS INTEL:62.5% of Vladdy's extra-base hits have come against fastballs.

Astros vs Blue Jays same-game parlay (SGP)

Let’s double down on Vladdy and take Under 0.5 strikeouts tonight. He matches up well against Brown and has been chasing fewer pitches lately, resulting in only two Ks in his last eight games — including no strikeouts in four straight.

George Springer is turning a corner with a 1.089 OPS over his last nine games, and profiles well against Brown, who’s primarily a fastball pitcher. Springer owns a .296 xBA over the last three seasons with a .558 xSLG against his two primary pitches.

Astros vs Blue Jays SGP

• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Over 1.5 total bases
• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Under 0.5 strikeouts
• George Springer Over 0.5 hits

Astros vs Blue Jays home run pick: Kazuma Okamoto (+440)

Brown is one of the toughest pitchers to homer against, but if a Toronto Blue Jays player leaves the yard tonight, Kazuma Okamoto’s profile gives him the best chance.

Most of Okamoto‘s team-leading 16 home runs have come off the fastball this season, where Okamoto owns a 63.2% hard-hit rate against the four-seamer. 

However, Brown has yet to allow a home run in his three starts this season, and he ranked in the 97th percentile in hard-hit rate in 2025. 

So we’ll just make Okamoto’s home run play a quarter unit.

Astros vs Blue Jays odds

• Moneyline: Houston +105 | Toronto -125
• Run line: Houston +1.5 (-210) | Toronto -1.5 (+170)
• Over/Under: Over 7 (-125) | Under 7 (+105)

Astros vs Blue Jays trend

The Toronto Blue Jays have covered the first five innings (F5) run line in six of their last eight games (+3.60 Units / 36% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Astros vs. Blue Jays.

How to watch Astros vs Blue Jays and game info

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Last week was a week so bad that I couldn’t even bear to pull out three positive moments. Luckily, it can’t get any worse than the bottom, and it didn’t! While it wasn’t anywhere close to a 6-0 week, the 2-4 result had a few moments to be positive about.

Bazzana Has Huge Night

In Saturday’s big 8-1 win against the Houston Astros, Travis Bazzana was the star of the show. He took Spencer Arrighetti’s first pitch of the game 382 feet into right center field for a home run. In the top of the fifth, he took Arrighetti deep again, this time for a 406 foot three-run home run to right center. He ended the day 4-4 with the two home runs, four hits, and five RBI. He is now hitting .273/.367/.471 in his rookie campaign.

Cantillo Shines

Also in Saturday’s win, pitcher Joey Cantillo had his moment to shine. 6-3 on the year after the big win, Cantillo went eight innings while giving up just four hits and one earned run. He struck out nine and walked only one. He brought his ERA down to 4.05 across 16 games this season, and has collected 76 strikeouts so far. Reliever Matt Festa held on for the ninth inning to give Cantillo the win.

Watson Makes Debut

With all of the injuries plaguing the Guardians right now, they had to make some moves. One of those moves included calling up outfielder Kahlil Watson. He had been hitting .255/.370/.491 so far this season in Columbus, and he was highly anticipated in Cleveland. While he has yet to collect a hit or a walk and has struck out eight times in his first four games, he has shown his talent with the leather in the outfield. He made a huge diving catch in his MLB debut, holding the Milwaukee Brewers to just a one-run lead.

Social Media Spotlight

This week’s Social Media Spotlight comes from the Guardians’ Triple-A affiliate, the Columbus Clippers. They posted a video of catcher Bo Naylor’s inside-the-park home run from Friday’s game versus the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRaiders.

Here are five things to watch and predictions as the Mets and Cubs play a four-game series at Citi Field starting on Monday night at 7:10 on SNY...

5 things to watch

The return of Francisco Lindor

Lindor played rehab games the last few days with Double-A Binghamton and Triple-A Syracuse, with his return from a calf injury imminent.

The plan is for Lindor to play a simulated game on Monday at Citi Field, after which he could get a day off before being activated.

That puts Wednesday as the most likely day for Lindor's return.

When Lindor is back, it will be just the 12th time that both he andJuan Soto are in the lineup together this season -- with Lindor having suffered his calf injury in the same April game where Soto returned from his. 

Carson Benge is heating back up

The Mets' offense as a whole was an afterthought as the team lost two of three games to the Phillies over the weekend. That's because Freddy Peralta and David Peterson put New York in early holes that were inescapable.

But amid the carnage, Benge had a strong showing, smacking home runs on Saturday and Sunday.

Over his last seven games, spanning 33 plate appearances, Benge is slashing .290/.333/.548 (.882 OPS) with two homers, one triple, and six runs scored.

Dating back to April 23, Benge is hitting .296/.350/.471 (.821 OPS) with eight homers in 53 games.

Looking at his advanced season stats via Baseball Savant, Benge is above average in 10 of 13 key categories, including xwOBA, xBA, xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, and hard hit percentage.

Playoffs? We're talking playoffs?

Yes, we are, even though it's borderline absurd to be doing so with New York having a record of 34-43.

But despite how bad the Mets have been, they are just 6.0 games back of the third Wild Card spot in the National League with more than half the season to go. The team currently in that spot? The Cubs.

That means if the Mets have a big series this week against Chicago, they can make up serious ground in a theoretical race for one of the final playoff spots in the National League.

The Mets front office has about a month left before they have to decide whether to sell at the trade deadline. At this point -- barring an incredible run in the next few weeks -- buying would seem to be out of the question.

So it will almost certainly come down to standing pat or selling, with the Mets' direction possibly due in large part to how they perform this week at home against Chicago and the Phillies. 

The Jekyll and Hyde Cubs

The Cubs started the year on fire before crashing back to earth.

They were 27-12 ahead of play on May 9 before going on a slide that had them at 34-34 on June 10 -- following a brutal 7-22 clip.

Chicago has righted the ship since, though their 6-3 record over the last week-plus has come against two of the worst teams in baseball, with the Cubs winning five of those games against the Rockies and Giants.

Like the Mets, the Cubs are dealing with rotation issues, with Justin Steele, Cade Horton, Matthew Boyd, and Jameson Taillon all on the IL.

The Cubs are set to send Shota Imanaga, Edward Cabrera, and Javier Assad out against the Mets during this series, with their starting pitcher for Thursday TBD. 

Pete Crow-Armstrong is having a monster year

After struggling badly over the first month of the season (he had a .662 OPS on May 5), Crow-Armstrong has turned it on. 

For the season, Crow-Armstrong is slashing .286/.363/.521 with 16 homers, 12 doubles, four triples, and 18 stolen bases.

He is on a 10-game hitting streak, and has reached base safely in 22 of his last 23 games.

Defensively, Crow-Armstrong has been the best center fielder in the league, with him in the 100th percentile when it comes to outs above average and 99th percentile in arm value. 

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Juan Soto

When in doubt, go with the guy who has a .974 OPS.

Which Mets pitcher will have the best start?

Nolan McLean

McLean has righted the ship after back-to-back rough outings at the end of May, posting a 1.64 ERA in 22.0 innings over his last four starts. 

Which Cubs player will be a thorn in the Mets' side?

Pete Crow-Armstrong

The 24-year-old impacts both sides of the ball like few can.