Worldwide Sports News
Ecuadorian wins stage eight by 32 seconds
Hindley attacks but Vingegaard stays on his wheel
Jhonatan Narváez powered away from his breakaway rivals to win stage eight of the Giro d’Italia on Saturday for his second victory and a third for the injury-decimated UAE Team Emirates XRG.
Adam Yates, Jay Vine and Marc Soler have all been forced out of the Giro after a gruesome stage three pile up in Bulgaria, but the super-team from the Emirates has refocused impressively.
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The Texas Rangers were shut out by the Houston Astros on Friday night, falling 2-0.
However, with Jacob deGrom taking the mound this evening, my Rangers vs. Astros predictions expect the visitors to flip the script at Daikin Park.
Let's dive deeper into my MLB picks for Saturday, May 16.
Jacob deGrom has posted a 2.81 xFIP and 2.60 SIERA in 2026, indicators that he is every bit deserving of his strong 2.61 ERA.
The Texas Rangers' right-hander has not allowed much quality contact, striking out a remarkable 32.8% of opposing batters on the year.
Now, the two-time Cy Young winner has a mouthwatering matchup against the Houston Astros,who rank 23rd in wOBA and own the second-highest strikeout rate vs. right-handed pitching in May.
DeGrom will have his way against Houston's struggling offense, giving Texas a great chance of prevailing.
COVERS INTEL:Isaac Paredes is the only everyday Astros hitter with a batting average above .240 in May.Generating offense has been a major problem for the Astros, with several key bats missing from the lineup. They have hit their team total Under in 13 of the last 15 games (+10.35 units, 55% ROI), and a date with deGrom is only going to highlight their woes at the plate — especially when it comes to striking out.
The Rangers aren't exactly firing on all cylinders either. They are hitting only .216 in May and own the fifth-highest ground ball rate, leading to a lot of easy outs.
Don't expect fireworks in this one.
Texas has hit the game total Under in 17 of its last 25 games (+8.4 Units, 31% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Rangers vs. Astros.
| Location | Daikin Park, Houston, TX |
| Date | Saturday, May 16, 2026 |
| First pitch | 7:10 p.m. ET |
| TV | RSN, Space City HN |
| Rangers starting pitcher | Jacob deGrom (3-2, 2.62 ERA) |
| Astros starting pitcher | Kai-Wei Teng (1-3, 3.12 ERA) |
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change.
Not intended for use in MA.
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Max Muncy homered in Friday night’s Dodgers win in Anaheim, his team-leading 12th of the season. The third baseman is in his ninth season with Los Angeles and is hitting .275/.372/563 with a 162 wRC+ that ranks seventh in the National League and 2.2 fWAR that is third in the league.
Ben Clemens wrote about Muncy’s season, and his consistency, for FanGraphs:
It’s not so much that he’s found a new gear; you’d have a hard time differentiating between his 2025 and 2026 component statistics. That’s basically my point, though. What he’s doing isn’t surprising, because he’s made it commonplace. He’s hit more or less like this for a decade.
Kiké Hernández has played six games so far on his rehab assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City, including three games this week in Albuquerque. Hernández talked to Geoff Grammer at the Albuquerque Journal about several topics, but also his health relative to last season:
“I knew it was going to be a long rehab. And even though I’m ahead of schedule, it still feels like it’s forever, because it’s the first time in my entire career that I missed spring training and I missed Opening Day,” said Hernández. “… Last year was miserable, you know? Not only performance wise, but I was just in a lot of pain every time I took the field. So I’m just happy that I’m pain free right now.”
The public comment process for the Dodger Stadium gondola project is exceedingly difficult to navigate, chronicled by Martín Macías Jr. at LA Public Press.
Former major league outfielder and current ESPN broadcaster Doug Glanville wrote about his time guest-hosting ‘This Week in Baseball’ while with the Philadelphia Phillies in 2000, at his Welcome to Glanville newsletter.
“The show took viewers around baseball without heavy bias toward one particular market,” Glanville wrote. “It simply made you love baseball wherever, and whenever, it was being played.”
It does appear that the days of Spencer Strider reaching back and delivering some electrifying stuff in the form of a four-seam heater are over. Strider has made three starts so far to get his 2026 season going and so far, he’s been sitting in the range of 96-97 mph when it comes to his four-seam fastball. Indeed, it’s looking like the version of Strider who could simply blow away other hitters while touching 100-mph on the radar gun is firmly in the rear-view mirror at this point.
With that being said, there’s something exciting brewing when it comes to this current form of Spencer Strider and his breaking balls, in particular. During Friday’s walk-off win over the Red Sox, Strider finished with 5.1 innings under his belt and just one run allowed on three hits and three walks. He also struck out four batters but I’m not here to talk about the strikeouts. I’m actually here to talk about the hits. One hit in particular stood out. In the fifth inning, Ceddane Rafaela led things off by hitting a ground rule double.
While a ground rule double itself isn’t shocking, the fact that Rafaela got a hit in itself was shocking. It isn’t because of anything that has to do with him (though he is off to a fine start so far in 2026 so props to him), it has to do with the pitch that he got the hit off of. It was a curveball. That was the first time in 2026 where an opposing hitter got a hit off of a curveball from Spencer Strider.
Not only that, it was the first time that anybody has gotten a hit off of Strider on anything but his fastball. Indeed, Strider has given up eight hits over 14.2 innings pitched so far and only one of those hits came after Strider threw anything but a fastball. In fact, opposing hitters still have yet to hit his slider or his changeup, either. He’s through three starts now and the Batting Average against his slider and changeup is still at .000.
It’s also not like he’s simply been just “getting away with it,” either. Heading into his start on Friday, the xBA against his slider was at .002. The xBA against his curveball was at .005 and while he’s rarely thrown the changeup so far, the xBA on that pitch is still at a paltry .087. It’s been early yet for Strider but at the same time, the fact that his breaking stuff has been quite literally near-unhittable has been very impressive to see so far.
“I think that was some growth during the time after he came back from the injury,” opined manager Walt Weiss when I asked him about the success that Strider has had with his breaking balls lately. “The fastball last year wasn’t what it was and so [he’s had to] get a little creative and work on some of his secondary pitches. He did and he’s better for it now. In the end, I think he’s going to be a more well-rounded pitcher.”
A more well-rounded version of Spencer Strider would be an awesome sight to see. If Strider can continue to get more efficient with his pitches so that he has to really battle to get through six innings, then we might be in the early stages of seeing a special version of Strider on the mound. The fact that his breaking stuff has such good underlying metrics is indicative that he could end up being dominant with that stuff until hitters figure out a way to counter it.
Hopefully it takes opposing batters a very long time to figure out how to crack the code that Spencer Strider has put out there with his breaking pitches because right now, it is giving the opposition a real devil of a time. It’s still early yet for Strider but it’s still very encouraging to see how effective he was against the Dodgers on the road and then to see him build upon that start with what he did in his first home start of the season. This could be the earliest sign so far that would indicate Strider may be on his way back to being one of the most effective pitchers in both Atlanta’s rotation and baseball in general. We’ll see what happens!
In this bullpen game, every pitcher gave up their share of Buffalo (Blue Jays AAA) runs. The team was bogged down, moreover, by uninspired offense. Despite drawing 8 walks, they hit 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position, had just four batters record a hit, and never held a lead. By the time Buffalo’s Je’Von Ward hit a homer off Wyatt Olds, it was a 4-2 game that felt out of reach despite not being so.
Red Sox fans in Hartford, Connecticut (Rockies AA) that stayed for some extra baseball were treated to Max Ferguson’s third hit of the night driving in what would become the winning run after a game that lacked offensive firepower across the board on Franklin Arias’ night off. This wasn’t due to a lack of runners getting on, as, and stop me if you’ve heard this before in this season organizationally, they couldn’t bring the runners home. This game shouldn’t have been close, but it was. At least Portland pulled it out.
Also notable was John Holobetz putting together one of his best outings of the season in five innings after an opener from a rehabbing Danny Coulombe. I gotta be honest real quick: I don’t really see the appeal of rushing back a 36-year-old mop-up guy with an ERA nearing 6 and an inability to strike guys out to a high level in relief. I’d instead opt to give some younger relief arms some shine or at least some experience. But what do I know?
If you’re playing the “The Drive have still only won once this month” game with me, know that Greenville has now lost thirteen of their last fourteen games. Marcus Phillips couldn’t make it out of the fourth, Shea Sprague got peppered by Hot Rods bats (Rays High-A) and Greenville was hitless in 11 chances with runners in scoring position. Perhaps the one bright spot was Yophery Rodriguez mashing his 10th home run of the year, but even that cut the deficit to 5-2 and Bowling Green would score two in the next inning anyway.
Salem found themselves in an early 3-1 hole in Fredericksburg (Nationals A) but fought back. In the end, the only home run of the game the RidgeYaks let up back in the first inning ended up being the difference in this one as even Ty Hodge’s two hits to drive runners in couldn’t place Salem in the win column in this hard-fought game.
Have a scorching Saturday.
The Royals have made a roster move this morning, sending Matt Strahm to the Injured List. In his place, Bailey Falter will return from the Injured List.
Jaylon Thompson with a few more details:
During the game last night, I remember Strahm threw a couple of odd pitches and Matt Quatraro and the training staff went out to check on him. But they seemed ok with what they saw. He finished out the at-bat. But John Schreiber, who warmed up quickly, came in to face righty Iván Herrera to end the inning.
Strahm, in his return to the Royals this season, has pitched in 17 games with a 1-1 record and a 3.86 ERA and 17K in 16.1 IP.
The back of the bullpen is starting to look mighty thin as he joins closer Carlos Estevez on the IL.
Falter has been throwing down in Omaha and has a 2.70 ERA in 13.1 IP. He hasn’t pitched for the Royals since April 1st.
Aaron Judge hit it out of the park again.
A one-of-kind baseball card of Judge in his first professional season with the Yankees sold at auction for a staggering $838,750 on Friday.
The 2013 Bowman Aaron Judge Superfractor 1/1 — depicting the eventual Yankees captain just after he was selected by the team in the first round of the 2013 MLB draft — is considered the most important unsigned Judge card to exist.
Its previous owner, a Texan, didn’t realize the card’s value until a dealer came to his house to purchase cards — and was left awestruck by the rare find, explained Chris Ivy of Heritage Auctions.
The dealer, knowing its true value, posed the question, “So if I offered you $25,000 for this card, you would take it?”
He didn’t even let the owner answer before advising him not to accept his lowball offer.
“Don’t, this card is worth a lot more. You should reach out to an auction house,” he said.
“Collectors helping other collectors is the foundation of our hobby and we are thrilled to be a part of it,” said Ivy. “The huge result for the card is a life-changing moment for the consignor and his family and we couldn’t be happier for them.”
In March, the autographed version of the same card sold for $5.2 million, setting the record for the most expensive modern baseball card ever sold.
Guess who just got back to the WCF? Those crazy cats down in San Antone. Making sure Game 6 is all they need, Stephon Castle responded to the Timberwolves’ defensive switch-up and scored a game-high 32 points along with 11 rebounds. De’Aaron Fox chipped in 21 points with 9 assists while Victor Wembanyama “casually” scored 19 points with 3 blocks.
These lobs between Stephon Castle and Victor Wembanyama look so organic. Occasionally, Wembanyama will add some spice like dunk the ball from the side or with his back facing the rim. Next, I expect him to bounce one off his face like a seal and then flush it through.
Castle in the sky for this exclamated dunk. I know “exclamated” isn’t a word, but have you seen Howl’s Moving Castle? If you’re a fan of Hayao Miyazaki, I would highly recommend watching it.
Here is an alternate angle of that dunk: Castle’s subtle double clutch in midair to avoid the block is a thing of beauty.
Dylan Harper out here making going left look like going right. It’s legitimately bonkers how bonkers Harper is playing in the playoffs right now. Explosive plays? Sure. Clamped down defense? Of course. Composure beyond his years as a rookie? Indubitably. Meme-able reactions that go viral on the internet? More on that below.
Look, I get nervous when Wembanyama catches a lob with his back to the basket and quickly spins around for a dunk for fear of him hitting his head on the rim if he misjudged his jump and location. Luckily, that doesn’t happen as often as I fear. On this play, De’Aaron Fox puts up a pretty full-court pass on the dot to our favorite sci-fi enthusiast who immediately pirouettes into a dunk off of one pivot of the foot.
Just in case you forgot that the Spurs have a young, budding wing like Castle, they draft Dylan Harper who they bring along patiently and then unleash in the playoffs. Just in case you forgot they have young, promising wings in Castle and Harper, here comes Carter Bryant flying in and soaking in every minute of the 10-13 minutes per game that Mitch Johnson puts him in for. I can’t wait to see Bryant’s increased role next season but am enjoying the burst of energy and effective defense he brings off the bench. What a fun team.
Making butter out of chaos.
This post is a Julian Champagnie appreciation post. Rock solid is usually the description used to describe Champagnie, but if he was on any other team, you’d see regular highlights like below. Good thing he isn’t on another team because he fits right in with this crew.
De’Aaron Fox seems to be playing solo H-O-R-S-E while also leading his team to the promised land of the Western Conference Finals.
You can almost see the light of enlightenment shine on Champagnie when he was about to pull up for an open three and realized his buddy Wembanyama is even more open down by the basket. Just ignore that little love tap Wemby gave out just like the (redacted)s ignored the other love taps give out on Wemby throughout these playoffs (wink).
There’s a lot of work left for these Spurs, but it’s just amazing to see their journey this season. It hits extra hard to our hearts to see a new band of lovable, fun players bring us basketball joy. Especially after that 2014 team, I myself did not think I would ever find that kind of sports joy again, but these guys make it a lot easier.
There’s so much homerism and bias in that paragraph that it almost makes you forget you’re reading it on a San Antonio Spurs site. Almost.
Wow! With all that adrenaline from Friday night’s big series finishing win, winding it down and sending everyone out with some comfort sitcom music, starring Dylan Harper with the most “The Office” face ever:
If you missed the game because you were too busy imagining Creed Bratton running a full-court press, here are the full-game highlights:
Next up, the Spurs will head to Oklahoma City to take on the Thunder in the Western Conference Finals! Tune in Monday, May 18, 2026 for tip-off.
Secondary scoring was one of the most pressing issues facing the Winnipeg Jets this past season. The Jets averaged just 2.79 goals per game, tying the New York Islanders for the seventh-lowest rate in the entire NHL.
Addressing the forward group will be among the top priorities for general manager Kevin Cheveldayoff this summer, and while this is not a free agent class loaded with marquee names, there is genuine depth available that could allow Winnipeg to meaningfully reshape their lineup. Here are three names Cheveldayoff should have at the top of his list.
Mantha had a career season in Pittsburgh, finishing with 64 points and playing a meaningful role on a Penguins team that defied expectations and made the postseason despite many predicting a bottom-dwelling finish for the rebuilding club.
The 31-year-old Quebec native is a consistent 40-plus point player who showed last season that when placed in the right role, he is capable of being a standout forward. Pittsburgh was a surprising destination for Mantha, and with the Penguins' future remaining uncertain, he may look to take his game somewhere with a better chance to win.
Winnipeg could offer him exactly that, and a spot alongside Cole Perfetti on the second line could be a strong fit for both player and team.
Finding reliable center depth is never easy, which is precisely why the Edmonton Oilers gave up a first round pick and Andrew Mangiapane to acquire Jason Dickinson.
The 30-year-old from Georgetown is not a player who fills up the scoresheet, but his value lies in his high-end two-way play. Over the last three seasons, Dickinson posted a minus-14 rating despite playing for Chicago Blackhawks teams that went 77-138-31 during that span, the second-worst record and fewest wins in the league over that stretch.
The fact that he held his own on those teams speaks to how dependable he is on both sides of the puck. Dickinson is also a proven penalty kill contributor, which is an area of need for a Jets team that finished with the 21st-ranked penalty kill this season. Adding a player of his caliber in that role alone could make a noticeable difference.
Bjorkstrand is something of a reclamation project, but one that carries real upside. The 31-year-old Danish winger was a consistent 50 to 60 point producer earlier in his career but saw his game regress this past season, finishing with just 32 points in 80 games while playing a bottom-six role with the Tampa Bay Lightning.
Winnipeg could make a compelling case that they are the right landing spot to revive his game. Bjorkstrand thrives with top-six minutes and meaningful deployment, and the Jets could offer him both. On a multi-year deal, a return to form from Bjorkstrand would give Winnipeg a cost-effective and productive winger during what the organization hopes will be a continued championship push.
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Oklahoma City's Jalen Williams, who has missed the last six Thunder playoff games — including the entire sweep of the Lakers in the second round — says he is healthy and will be back for the Western Conference Finals against San Antonio.
Williams discussed it on Friday on his YouTube channel (hat tip to Justin Martinez of The Oklahoman).
"I haven't had to rush back from my hamstring stuff at all. I'm actually taking extra days now then what was even originally planned because we were up 3-0 [against the Lakers], so there was no point in going into this series and possibly hurting myself before we have to play the Timberwolves or the Spurs. I'm about to go into another series healthy."
Health has been elusive for Williams this season. He missed time at the start of the season recovering from off-season wrist surgery, then suffered a hamstring strain during the season, resulting in him playing in a career-low 33 games. When he did play, he averaged 17.1 points, 5.5 assists and 4.6 rebounds a game, while shooting just 29.9% from 3-point range, all numbers well off his previous, All-NBA season.
Not that the Thunder missed a beat. In the last round against the Lakers, Ajay Mitchell started in his place and averaged 22.5 points and six assists per game, and OKC swept LeBron James and the shorthanded Lakers out of the playoffs.
More than scoring, a return of Williams gives Oklahoma City another high-level defender with good positional size (6'5" as a wing), something needed against the young and athletic Spurs. That said, with the way Mitchell is playing, look for him to get a lot of minutes — Williams isn't returning and playing 40 minutes a night. Still, the Thunder just got deeper and better for the biggest series of the postseason.
The Senators’ 2020 NHL Draft just keeps on giving.
Of course, that was the draft where the Senators had the most lucrative first round in franchise history.
At No. 3 overall, they landed their current best player in centre Tim Stützle, who already has 409 points in 447 games. That already ranks him seventh in franchise history. At No. 5 overall, they selected Jake Sanderson, who has quickly become one of the NHL’s top defencemen.
With their two picks at No. 3 and No. 5, Ottawa probably came away with the two very best players available in the draft.
The Senators continued to hit with their third first-round pick, selecting forward Ridly Greig. The Talented Mr. Ridly has developed into an important piece of Ottawa’s middle six and brings the kind of edge every team covets.
In the second round, the Senators grabbed a highly physical defenseman in Tyler Kleven at 44th overall, and in the third, they selected goalie Leevi Meriläinen, who probably saved the Sens playoff chances last year.
But even with their final pick at 181st overall, Ottawa’s scouting staff was still finding NHL players. That’s when they selected Cole Reinhardt, Greig’s teammate with the Brandon Wheat Kings. Reinhardt was a couple of years older than Greig and put up similar offensive numbers in their final year together in junior.
What you may not have noticed this season is that, after five years in Ottawa's farm system, Reinhardt has found regular big league work, playing in 59 NHL games this season.
He split between Vegas and Florida, where it was just a little warmer than his last five winters in Belleville.
Reinhardt appeared in 17 games for Ottawa last season, almost exclusively in a fourth-line role, recording two points. But he was often noticeable because of his skating and willingness to get involved, reminiscent of pesky Parker Kelly in his early days with the organization.
As a Group 6 free agent, Reinhardt was probably growing weary of life in the AHL. He signed a two-year contract with the Vegas Golden Knights, playing 44 games and recording seven points before being claimed off waivers by the Florida Panthers.
When Reinhardt arrived in Florida, he immediately became the other Reinhart, but at least he could chirp (if he wanted to) that he's the Reinhardt with more D.
He did have a familiar face waiting for him in Donovan Sebrango. The two men spent three years together in Belleville, and as it happens, Sebrango was also claimed off waivers by the Panthers this season.
Life as a Panther agreed with Reinhardt, who produced eight points in 15 games.
That’s not exactly Sam Reinhart production, and it helped that but with that kind of points-per-game pace, even in a small sample size, combined with another year left on his contract, Cole may have positioned himself rather well with the Panthers next season.
For the record, both Cole and Sam are nicknamed ‘Reino,” though Cole joked in a chat with the Panthers website team that he may have to lean more heavily into “Cowboy,” his plan B nickname, to avoid confusion. Reinhardt grew up on a Calgary ranch and loves the Yellowstone TV franchise.
Yes, the Senators’ 2020 draft was overflowing, and it surely sits at the top of former GM Pierre Dorion's uneven resume, printed in Montserrat font (Extra Bold).
Sens fans still gush over that draft, mainly because of the franchise cornerstones it delivered in Stützle and Sanderson. But six years later, we’re still seeing potential from some of the lower-ranked names the Senators were calling long after the TV cameras had left.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News
This article was first published at The Hockey News Ottawa. Check out more great Sens features from The Hockey News at the links below:
Our One-On-One With Senators Winger Drake Batherson
Senators Defenseman Goes From 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs To Signing In Switzerland
Rasmus Ristolainen: A Deeper Look Into A Potential Senators Trade Target
What’s The Plan For Senators UFA Lars Eller?
Archive: The Year Erik Karlsson Became Ottawa's First Norris Trophy Winner At 22
Mariners players have a plethora of team-issued t-shirt options to choose from. One of the most popular designs comes from the high performance team, featuring a modified Rod of Asclepius on the front, where the wings are swapped for the Mariners trident; on the back, (AVAIL)ABILITY, with “ABILITY” highlighted in white. It’s a play on the old chestnut “the best ability is availability” – a slogan meant to encourage players to center the importance of proper conditioning.
But it’s important that availability never overrule the needs of the body: something Cal Raleigh might have run up against after landing on the IL for the first time in his career.
“To be honest, I wanted to play,” Raleigh said, meeting with the media on Friday. “I wanted to see if I could do it – to what extent it was going to affect me, and I told the trainers, if it ever got to a point where I was hurting the team or I couldn’t go anymore, I’d let them know. And essentially it just got to that point where I didn’t want to hurt the team.”
For those who grumble about players pushing through playing hurt, put oneself in Raleigh’s shoes: he’s an everyday catcher, used to shrugging off daily bumps and bruises that would require a weeklong stay in a Victorian-era convalescent asylum for the rest of us mere mortals. And he’s not just any catcher; he’s the Mariners’ iron man, either leading or being near the top of the leaderboard for innings caught every year of his career. Anyone who has watched any significant amount of Mariners baseball has seen Cal Raleigh get knocked down seven times and stand up eight – often in the same game. Therefore, we can forgive Raleigh, for whom pain hums constantly like an overhead fluorescent light, for thinking he could push past this latest ailment, one in a long string of problems faced, fought with, and conquered.
The question, now, is if Raleigh can forgive himself, or at least find a détente with the nebulous forces of baseball injury luck.
“It’s tough,” he said. “You get frustrated, because you know…it’s nothing really I could have controlled or done better. I prepared the same way, and it just kind of happened on a swing. So it’s out of my control. Something that doesn’t normally happen. So, you know, obviously frustrated. But I’m optimistic that it’s going to get better.”
It’s understandable why this situation is especially frustrating for Raleigh, who works tirelessly to control the controllables – not just for himself, but for his entire pitching staff. His work ethic is legendary: always one of the first players in the building, his daily agenda presidential in density, rarely idly scrolling his phone at his locker, never goofing off in the player lounge. Even a half-decade into his big-league career, Raleigh doesn’t seem to know what to do with himself on an off-day, wandering the clubhouse in squishy foam slides and loose athletic shorts, iced coffee clutched in hand; relaxed, but unable to disconnect entirely. Back at spring training, he left for the WBC like a concerned parent leaving his pitching staff with the babysitter, double-checking everyone knew where the important numbers were, lingering at the door, jokingly demanding to be sent updates from the media on if his pitchers were misbehaving in his absence.
But Raleigh isn’t having to go through this experience – his first time landing on the IL – alone. One of his closest friends on the team, Luke Raley, just went through this same injury last season. Raleigh recounted watching his friend, whose dedication to “availability” rivals his own, struggle to even swing a bat, and has taken the advice from his equally-tough friend to heart.
“It was just so hard on him, mentally,” Raleigh said. “And we knew what kind of teammate he was, so watching him go through that last year was really hard. And we talk a lot, so that’s something – I obviously had to listen to him about it.”
Obliques are notoriously tricky injuries to rehab, in that they won’t present with soreness until the muscle is called upon, often when it’s too late to be mitigated – especially not in baseball, a sport that is all about core rotation. Raley has talked about his own struggles with the uncertainty that comes with this particular injury.
The good news for Raleigh is that according to Mariners GM Justin Hollander, the scans the team just got back are “similar or slightly improved” from the ones he had done early in May, when Raleigh first felt the discomfort, meaning Raleigh didn’t further injure himself trying to play through the injury. When pressed to put a grade on the strain, Hollander said a one, not even a one-plus.
Raleigh had an anti-inflammatory shot on Friday and will be shut down for the next week, minimum. Once any trace of lingering soreness is gone, the team will re-evaluate, and if all looks good, he’ll be cleared to restart baseball activities, most likely in Arizona. Hollander said that based on the scans, he doesn’t anticipate a lengthy layoff, but emphasized how careful the organization needs to be given the nature of the injury.
“We want to make sure that when he’s next in the game, he’s doing it with full confidence and pain-free. The hesitation that can come with not knowing if it’s going to hurt a little bit when you swing, or when it will hurt, is probably not good for him or for us.”
The Mariners think sending Raleigh to Arizona will be the best for his recovery: he’ll have a full staff of rehab experts to work with, access to equipment and training facilities they don’t have space for in Seattle, and the complex league teams to get competitive at-bats against. He’ll be able to focus solely on his rehab.
But it will also involve Raleigh having to be away from his team and fully disconnect for the first time, in-season, in his career. Unless, of course, he talks the Mariners out of it.
“If that involves Arizona, that involves Arizona,” he said on Friday, apparently having not listened to Hollander’s declaration that he would be headed there. “But if they need me here and they need me to do things off the field, then I will gladly stay and do that as well.”
Of course he’d gladly stay, tear up the list of important numbers and send the babysitters home. But would it be the best thing for him? Maybe not. Even before the injury, Raleigh was off to a tough start to the season, perhaps a knock-on effect from missing regular spring training while at the WBC. Now, he’s been handed an opportunity to take a step away – being strong-armed to do so, in fact. What might the baseball gods be asking Raleigh to learn from that?
“I don’t know,” he said, brow furrowed. “Patience, maybe?”
“Obviously, the last few weeks have not been great, performance-wise, health-wise, so I don’t know. Maybe just take a step back and just take a deep breath, relax a little bit, maybe watch the game from a different point of view and see where I can get better, what I can do better as a player, as a leader, as a teammate. Usually you don’t have that kind of time to reflect during a season, but within this scenario, maybe that’s something that I can do better.”
Cal Raleigh has been given the gift of time to reflect – a gift not asked for, maybe not wanted, but a gift nonetheless. A time to decide what “(avail)ability” might mean for him, going forward.
Friday in Albuquerque showcased a pair of players who may very well find themselves with the Dodgers within a few weeks.
River Ryan struck out four and allowed only one run on the moon at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque, with four strikeouts. It was his first start since April 11, after missing a month in between with a hamstring injury. Ryan only allowed two singles and a walk while throwing 53 pitches during his four frames.
With both Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow on the injured list in Los Angeles, Ryan is a potential option for the Dodgers rotation, though perhaps after another start or two at least in Triple-A.
“The most important thing is his progression. If everyone isn’t on board with that and speeding it up, it’s moot, it’s just not going to happen,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts told reporters in Anaheim on Friday. “But if the training staff feels that it’s okay and you’re not compromising him and the progression, then it’s a conversation.”
As usual there was a ton of scoring in a minor league game in New Mexico, but the Comets accounted for nearly all of it in a rout of the Albuquerque Isotopes (Rockies).
Four Comets had three hits, including Alex Freeland, who homered and drove in five runs, and Jack Suwinski, who homered, stole a base, and drove in four, plus James Tibbs III, who reached base six times.
Kiké Hernández reached base five times with three hits and two walks, and scored three runs in his sixth rehab game for Oklahoma City. All of them so far have been at third base, including seven innings at the hot corner on Friday. Roberts earlier this week said Hernández will likely also play some second base and outfield during his rehab assignment, which will run through next weekend in Triple-A.
The Drillers allowed the tying run in the eighth inning, then nobody scored until the Springfield Cardinals won with three runs in the top of the 12th inning.
Josue De Paula and Kendall George both doubled and reached base multiple times. Zyhir Hope singled and stole a base. Catcher Griffin Lockwood-Powell walked three times and doubled in his four plate appearances.
The Loons put up crooked numbers in three different innings in a rout of the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers), with a pair of Eduardos figuring prominently in the win.
Third baseman Eduardo Guerrero had three singles, a walk, and a stolen base, and drove in four runs. Center fielder Eduardo Quintero doubled, singled, walked, stole a base, scored three times and drove in another.
Quintero had a rough April, hitting .195/.305/.280 in April in his second taste of High-A. But he’s been on fire in May, hitting .389/.476/.528 in nine games. MLB Pipeline updated its top-100 prospects list this week, with Quintero ranked 38th after being rated No. 30 in January.
Left-hander Jakob Wright struck out four and allowed one run in five innings for the win for Great Lakes.
Kellon Lindsey hit one of three Tower Buzzers home runs, part of a 6-1 lead through three innings, but the San Jose Giants dominated the rest of the way.
Lindsey also doubled and scored two runs in his third game back off the injured list. With Emil Morales and Joendry Vargas moving around the left side of the infield this season, the shortstop Lindsey in his first three games for Ontario has played second base.
Chase Harlan reached base four times in the loss with a double, single, and two walks.
Hyun-Seok Jang allowed three runs in five innings with six strikeouts in his start. Through six games and 26 innings for Ontario in his repeat season of Class-A, Jang has 27 strikeouts against nine walks to go with his 3.81 ERA.
Triple-A: River Ryan was activated from the injured list. Charlie Barnes was called up to the Dodgers with Blake Snell getting placed on the major league injured list.
For the first time in 11 years, the Bell Centre will be filled to the rafters for a Saturday night playoff game when the Montreal Canadiens host the Buffalo Sabres tonight at 8:00 PM. For a second round in a row, the Habs will have an opportunity to eliminate their rival in Game 6. They couldn’t do it against the Tampa Bay Lightning, but they still treated their fans to an instant classic. An unforgettable game that was still 0-0 after regulation and ended after nine minutes of overtime hockey with a Gage Goncalves goal. Two weeks later, will the young Habs be able to put the Sabres down for good?
In the last three games, Martin St-Louis’ men have had a slow start, and they’ll be looking to get rid of that bad habit. Cole Caufield has scored in the last three games, and 21 of his 51 goals in the regular season were scored on Saturday night, earning him the Mr. Saturday Night moniker. Are the stars aligning for a storybook ending to this series?
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Historically, teams that have won Game 5 of a tied 2-2 series have qualified for the next round 80% of the time, with a 371-94 record. When they trail 3-2, the Sabres have a 1-14 record, for a measly .067 winning percentage. When the game is on the road, they have a 1-4 record, for a .200 winning percentage. Meanwhile, the Canadiens have a 36-28 record in Game 6 (.563); however, when that game is played at home, they are 19-10 for a .655 winning percentage. When they lead 3-2 in a series, the Habs have a 28-3 record for a whopping .903 winning percentage overall, and they are 8-1 (.889) when the game is played at home.
Fresh off their big 6-3 win, the Canadiens should start the game with the momentum, but the Sabres will be fighting with despair to save their season. If there’s no doubt about who will be in the net for Montreal, it’s a lot less clear for the visitors. Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen started the last game but was pulled after 40 minutes. Alex Lyon spent just under 14 minutes on the ice, allowing one goal before Lindy Ruff elected to pull him and use six skaters in a bid to come back into the game, or at least get some momentum back. The Canadiens could score in the empty net, but the Sabres were unable to generate grade-A opportunities, even though they enjoyed a two-minute power play.
Jake ‘The Snake’ Evans with a gritty garbage goal. I love it!#GoHabsGo#HockeyX#NHLPlayoffspic.twitter.com/HnBolpD5Qp
— Coach Mac (@CoachMac950) May 15, 2026
There are also some question marks up front for the Sabres. Tage Thompson is having a tough series and has been undisciplined in the last two games. At this stage, one has to wonder if he’s playing injured; what we’ve seen in this series does not reflect what the big winger can do when he’s on top of his game. Alex Tuch hasn’t even been a shadow of himself; the soon-to-be unrestricted free agent has yet to get on the scoreboard in this series and is minus-eight against the Sainte-Flanelle. So far, Zach Benson, Josh Doan and Josh Norris have been doing the heavy lifting, but life would be much easier for the Sabres if their top players found a way to have a positive impact. Captain Rasmus Dahlin has points in the last three games, but he’s still minus-one in this series, and like Thompson, he took a costly penalty in the last game. It will be interesting to see if Lindy Ruff elects to shake things up a bit with his team on the brink of elimination.
You can catch the game on CBC, TVAS, SN, and ABC at 8:00 PM, and if you’re planning to attend in person, make sure to leave early. There are several roadworks in Montreal this weekend, so public transportation may be your best option. Make sure to be in your seats by 7:50 PM if you do not want to miss the opening ceremony. According to BPM Sports’ Max Lalonde, Larry Robinson will be the torchbearer. Francis Charron and Gord Dwyer will be officiating, while Jesse Marquis and Scott Cherrey will be the linemen. If the Canadiens eliminate Buffalo tonight, they will start their third-round series against the Carolina Hurricanes on Tuesday night; if they fail, Game 7 will take place on Monday night in Buffalo.
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Warriors' play-in win vs. Clippers was an all-time ‘top 10' game for Steve Kerr originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area
Over the past decade-plus, Steve Kerr has coached some memorable games.
From Golden State’s run to its first NBA championship in 40 years during the 2014-15 season to that unforgettable 2022-23 campaign when everyone had counted them out — there’s no shortage of magical moments for Kerr to refer to.
And even despite the Warriors’ rocky 2025-26 season with injuries and inconsistencies, Kerr shared that the team’s electric NBA play-in win over the Los Angeles Clippers was a top-10 game for him.
“Well, first of all, it’s one of my all-time favorite games,” Kerr said Friday on “The TK Show.” “We’ve had so many amazing games, it’s probably a top-10 game in the 12 years we’ve had, and that’s saying something. It was just the first play-in game, we didn’t even qualify for the playoffs, but that’s how much the game meant to me and to those guys, probably because of the way this season went.
“The fact that Steph [Curry] missed 27 straight games, the fact that we were on life support, basically, going into that game, it just was so special. It was such a great win, and ultimately, this is what we do it for, that the players do it to feel that moment. The coaches work every day to achieve that level of play, and it hadn’t worked all year. We just couldn’t reach that level, and then to dig deep and to find it was so meaningful.
“It was probably a good metaphor for, like, you can’t get this anywhere else in life — you just can’t. And there’s a reason coaches get addicted to this work, it’s exhilarating. The camaraderie, the companionship, collaboration, it’s beautiful. And that was a wonderful moment.”
With their season on the line, the Warriors rallied from a 13-point, fourth-quarter deficit to defeat the Clippers 126-121 at the Intuit Dome. Curry led the comeback with 35 points — 27 in the second half — and Al Horford hit four 3-pointers in the final frame to secure the victory.
Draymond Green also displayed a defensive masterclass against Kawhi Leonard.
The game was so pivotal that it actually helped sway Kerr’s mind on returning to coach the Warriors for at least the next two seasons.
And even though the magic expired two days later with a crushing loss to the Phoenix Suns, that special win in Los Angeles will forever be one of Kerr’s favorites.