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Projecting a St. Louis Cardinals Jordan Walker Deal—and Why to Wait

MIAMI, FL - APRIL 21: Jordan Walker #18 of the St. Louis Cardinals takes batting practice prior to the game between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Miami Marlins at loanDepot park on Tuesday, April 21, 2026 in Miami, Florida. (Photo by Lucas Casel/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images

The St. Louis Cardinals will have a vexing decision to make about Jordan Walker sooner rather than later. Should they work to extend him or do they wait? There are arguments to be made that it’s worth considering, but at least an equal amount for why the team should wait.

I asked the question a few days ago on The Feed about who the St. Louis Cardinals should work to extend first. While JJ Wetherholt was the winner in a landslide, I was surprised to see that Jordan Walker was the second most popular choice.

The fact that this is even a conversation is borderline miraculous. Very few of us saw Jordan Walker starting the 2026 season in such an impressive way. Through the first 24 games, Jordan Walker is batting .292 with 8 home runs, 16 RBI’s with an OPS of .964. What’s even more remarkable to me is Jordan’s defense which has been a real eye-opener. He’s currently 2nd in the league in defensive runs saved with a +4 margin. I had to remind myself that Walker was not a natural outfielder, but was a 3rd baseman until the Cardinals began to convert him in 2022. His arm strength is becoming elite. There’s a lot to love about how far Jordan Walker has come, but there are also big reasons to pump the brakes on overreacting, too.

Before I look at the reasons why a Jordan Walker extension might be a terrible idea, let’s imagine what that contract might look like. There’s an interesting player to compare Jordan to and that’s Oneil Cruz. He signed a one-year contract for $3.3 million to avoid arbitration for the 2026 season. He’s under team control through 2028 just like Jordan Walker. He has a high-strikeout profile of around 32%. Jordan Walker’s strikeout rate was hovering around the same rate as of this week. Depending on who you ask, I’ve seen possible extensions for Cruz somewhere in the neighborhood of 6–8 years for between $100–$150 million. Cruz has elite exit velocity and a high barrel rate. The one thing that Cruz now trails Walker in is defense. Cruz is considered a massive defensive liability while Walker is more than a plus defender now. If (and that’s a big word that needs emphasis) the Cardinals were to seek an extension with Jordan Walker, I could see a deal looking very similar to Oneil Cruz.

If I were President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom, I would wait before going down the extension road with Jordan Walker. We’ve all seen some of the strikeout tendencies over the past week that look similar to the Jordan Walker we were all worried about during Spring Training and the past couple seasons. I’ve seen better decision making at the plate by Jordan Walker this season than any other previously, but I still want to see him be able to make the necessary adjustments now that opposing pitchers now recognize him as a threat. Cardinals hitting coach Brant Brown said during a pre-game interview this past week that he’s working with Jordan on his approach now that he’s producing and other teams know it. At the bare minimum, I want to see Walker successfully adjust his approach and stay productive through the All-Star break.

Waiting brings with it a risk that the price of Jordan Walker will go up exponentially if he suddenly becomes an all-star near the top of the league in home runs in addition to his now spectacular outfield arm. He could be that middle of the order righthanded bat and a vital part of the new Cardinals core for years to come. But, the possibility remains that he could regress back to the Jordan Walker that some wanted sent back to the minors before the season started. Yes, I was one of them. My vote is that we all continue to enjoy and hopefully see the ascent of Jordan Walker into the player we all knew he was capable of becoming. When and if we commit to locking him into a long-term deal will be one of the most important decisions Chaim Bloom makes – for better or for worse.

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Mets squeak past Twins to put an end to brutal 12-game skid — but lose Francisco Lindor to injury

An image collage containing 2 images, Image 1 shows Mark Vientos hits the game-winning single in the eighth inning of the Mets' 3-2 win over the Twins on April 22, 2026 at Citi Field, Image 2 shows Luke Weaver pumps his fist during his scoreless ninth inning in the Mets' win over the Twins

The Mets prevented an unlucky 13 on Wednesday, but it still came at a cost.

They finally snapped a 12-game losing streak with a 3-2 win over the Twins at Citi Field.

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Francisco Lindor, though, left the game with left calf tightness the same night they got Juan Soto back from a strained right calf.

Still, the Mets will take the victory, ending their longest losing streak since 2002.

Despite blowing a pair of leads and making some ugly baserunning mistakes, the Mets got a run-scoring bloop single to right by Mark Vientos to score Lindor’s replacement — Brett Baty — for the go-ahead run in the bottom of the eighth.

Luke Weaver got the final four outs to seal the win, striking out Byron Buxton to end it.

“It’s a sigh of relief,’’ Weaver said. “There’s a lot more games to play. Today was a great step in the right direction and it was gonna take a game like that to get us going.”

The right-hander has a point, if the first few weeks of the season are any indication.

The winning rally began with two outs and no one on in the eighth, as Baty and Francisco Alvarez walked before Vientos — who was thrown out by a mile after running through a stop sign to end the sixth — came up with a clutch hit.

The victory, their first since April 7, moved the Mets to 8-16, but was clouded by the Lindor injury concern.

The shortstop was removed after scoring from first base on Alvarez’s double to the gap in right-center in the bottom of the fourth.

Mark Vientos hits the game-winning single in the eighth inning of the Mets’ 3-2 win over the Twins on April 22, 2026 at Citi Field. Robert Sabo for New York Post

He managed to just beat the throw home to give the Mets a 2-1 lead, but was slow rounding the bases and remained down at home plate momentarily before he got to his feet and returned to the dugout.

Lindor was removed prior to the top of the fifth, with Baty entering to play third base and Bo Bichette moving from third to shortstop.

The latest injury worry — as Lindor is set to get an MRI on Thursday — occurred just as the Mets got Soto back after the star was sidelined for 15 games with the calf injury he suffered while running the bases in San Francisco on April 3.

The Mets offense was nonexistent without Soto. They’d hoped the return of the $765 million star would turn their fortunes around — and Soto hit several balls hard Wednesday — but missing Lindor for any extent of time would also hurt.

Luke Weaver pumps his fist during his scoreless ninth inning in the Mets’ win over the Twins. Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Before he got hurt, Lindor had an RBI infield single in the first that gave the Mets an early lead after Bichette’s leadoff double.

The Twins tied the game in the fourth with a double down the right field line by Trevor Larnach to open the inning. Larnach advanced to third on a Josh Bell groundout and scored on a sacrifice fly by Victor Caratini.

The Mets went up again when Lindor came home on Alvarez’s double, but Clay Holmes couldn’t hold the lead, as he allowed a homer to Buxton — his second in as many nights — to start the sixth.

Vientos drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the inning, and Marcus Semien doubled to the wall in left.

Juan Soto rips a single during the eighth inning of the Mets’ win over the Twins. Robert Sabo for New York Post

Third base coach Tim Leiper clearly — desperately — tried to stop Vientos from heading home, but Vientos raced through the stop sign and was thrown out easily to end the inning.

It stayed that way in the top of the eighth, even after Brooks Raley and Weaver loaded the bases, as Weaver got Luke Keaschall to pop out.

In the bottom of the inning, Soto led off with a single but was caught stealing for the second out before the Mets took the lead for good on Vientos’ hit and Weaver closed it.

Clay Holmes, throwing in the first inning, allowed two runs over seven innings in the Mets’ win over the Twins. Robert Sabo for New York Post

“It’s not very often you have such a talented team where everything doesn’t click in the right way,’’ Weaver said. “It’s quite an impossible feat, but we made it possible.”

That may as well be their slogan, since no team has ever lost 12 straight games and reached the postseason.

Perhaps this win will get them going.

“Now we can concentrate on just playing baseball and not about the losing streak,’’ Carlos Mendoza said.

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Mark Vientos drives in go-ahead run, Mets end 12-game losing streak after 3-2 win over Twins

The Mets broke a 2-2 tie in the bottom of the eighth inning and held on to defeat the Minnesota Twins 3-2 at Citi Field on Wednesday night, ending their 12-game losing streak.

It was the Mets’ first win since April 7.

Here are the top takeaways...

-Mark Vientos, who made a boneheaded play in the sixth inning, running through a stop sign to get thrown out at the plate, found redemption in the eighth, blooping a single to right field with two outs to drive in Brett Baty from second, breaking a 2-2 tie.

Baty and Francisco Alvarez had each walked to set up the go-ahead run. Alvarez battled in a nine-pitch at-bat against reliever Justin Topa.

Mendoza chose to have Luke Weaver close out the win, keeping him in for the ninth after Weaver got the final out of the eighth inning to work out of a bases-loaded situation.

-Juan Soto looked good at the plate in his return to action from the calf injury suffered on April 4.

He hit two hard fly-ball outs in his first two at-bats, both of them over 104 mph off the bat, then walked his third time up, and singled to right in the eighth inning off lefty reliever Taylor Rodgers.

However, Soto got nailed trying to steal second, leaving too early as Rodgers threw to first and Soto was then thrown out at second base.

-Clay Holmes gave the Mets a strong start, allowing two runs over seven innings. Holmes gave up five hits while striking out three, inducing plenty of weak contact with his nasty sinker.

Holmes continues to have a very good season. His ERA after five starts is 2.10.

The right-hander had a 2-1 lead into the sixth but left a sinker up, thigh-high, to Byron Buxton, and Buxton hammered it to left, 409 feet for a no-doubter home run.

-Francisco Lindorleft the game after four innings with what the Mets announced as left calf tightness.

Lindor was having a big night, with two hits in his first two at-bats, a run scored and an RBI. He appeared to feel the calf tightness as he went from first to home on Alvarez’s double to right-center in the bottom of the fourth.

Lindor scored on the play but remained in a sitting position on the ground long enough to indicate something wasn’t right. He then went into the tunnel at the end of the dugout, followed by the Mets’ trainers, and didn’t come out for the top of the fifth.

Bo Bichette moved to short to replace Lindor, while Baty entered the game at third base.

-The Mets’ new-look lineup, with Bichette leading off and Lindor hitting in the clean-up spot, paid immediate dividends with a first-inning run, as Bichette doubled and eventually scored on Lindor’s single down the third-base line.

But otherwise, runs were mostly hard to come by again for an offense that ranks among the worst in the majors in several categories.

They were also hurt by bad baserunning when Vientos was thrown out at the plate, ending the sixth inning with the score tied 2-2.

With two outs, Vientos tried to score from first base on Marcus Semien’s double to the left-center gap. Third base coach Tim Lieper put up the stop sign to hold Vientos at third, but in what can only be considered a sign of how desperately the Mets wanted a win, Vientos ran through it and was an easy out at the plate. All in all, a bad gamble considering how slowly Vientos runs.

Game MVP: Mark Vientos

Mark Vientos. Why not? Vientos redeemed himself for his base-running mistake two innings earlier by coming through with the game-winning hit in the eighth inning.

It wasn’t a rocket by any means, just 70.3 mph off the bat, but it found grass when the Mets desperately needed a hit and a win.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets and Twins wrap up their three-game series Thursday afternoon. First pitch is set for 7:10 p.m.

Christian Scott will make his season debut going up against Twins ace, Joe Ryan. 

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Shohei Ohtani might be held out of the lineup during more pitching starts, Dodgers manager says

SAN FRANCISCO — Dave Roberts is committed to Shohei Ohtani’s health and keeping him fresh to perform both on the mound and at the plate for the long haul.

And that may look different by the day or week, depending how the two-way star is feeling.

For some games, that could mean Ohtani pitches but isn’t batting as the designated hitter — and the Los Angeles Dodgers manager plans to keep his options open.

Ohtani made his fourth mound start Wednesday night against the San Francisco Giants. A week earlier, Ohtani was held out of the lineup while pitching for the first time since 2021 because he was still sore from getting hit by a pitch.

The 31-year-old Ohtani entered with a batting average of .271, five home runs and 11 RBIs in 85 at-bats. He had allowed just one earned run over his first 18 innings of 2026 for an ERA of 0.50 and 2-0 record, surrendering 10 hits with 18 strikeouts and six walks.

Ohtani also had a career-best on-base streak of 53 games, tied for second in Dodgers history with Shawn Green. Duke Snider owns the team record at 58 games from May 13-July 11, 1954. Ohtani’s streak is the longest in the majors since Orlando Cabrera reached base in 63 straight from April 25-July 6, 2006.

“I think if you look at the overall numbers it’s certainly something. I still feel really good about putting his name in the lineup,” Roberts said. “I know the last start I chose not to have him hit and just pitch. I am open to it. We’ll see. It’s something that we’ve certainly flagged, and also you have to look at what’s the option. In years past or last year, you’ve got to kind of weigh, who’s a different option?”

Catcher Dalton Rushing has become a capable fill-in at DH. He’s hitting .414 with seven homers and 13 RBIs.

The two-time defending World Series champion Dodgers had dropped three of four after losing the series opener at San Francisco 3-1 on Tuesday night.

When Roberts spoke to Ohtani earlier Wednesday, the four-time MVP — including two-time reigning NL MVP — was “really focused.”

“He wants to reset things, to go out there and pitch well and give us a chance to win tonight,” Roberts said.

Roberts had yet to decide whether Ohtani would play the series finale Thursday. He said beforehand he had no qualms about giving Ohtani five at-bats on a day he’s pitching but would consider moving him down in the batting order if that makes sense.

“I think everything should be on the table,” Roberts said.

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Mets snap losing streak in Juan Soto's return, but see Francisco Lindor exit

The New York Mets entered Wednesday less than 10 games away from the longest MLB losing streak of the 21st century. That title still belongs to the 2024 Chicago White Sox, who lost 21 straight contests during their historically bad season, and the Mets will get no closer after they defeated the Minnesota Twins, 3-2, on Wednesday night.

The victory snaps a 12-game losing streak that had plummeted the Mets to the very bottom of the standings. Mark Vientos, who had been cut down at the plate while trying to score earlier in the game, was the hero, his two-out single in the bottom of the eighth plating the winning run.

The win — which came in Juan Soto's return — was not entirely satisfactory to the reeling Mets. They saw star shortstop Francisco Lindor exit with what the team called left calf tightness.

While they hold their breath over Lindor, they can at least rest easy knowing they are winners for a night:

When did the Mets' losing streak begin?

The Mets' losing streak began after the team started 7-4. They then lost 7-2 to the Arizona Diamondbacks on April 8, which started a catastrophic chain of events that led us to where we are now.

Since then, the Mets lost another game to the Diamondbacks, were swept by the Athletics, Dodgers, and Cubs, and then dropped their opener to the Twins.

Longest losing streaks in Mets history

The longest losing streak in Mets history came during the team's inaugural season in 1962. That team not only lost a franchise record 17 straight games during the season but also had other losing streaks of 13 and 11 games.

Since the turn of the century, the longest losing streak in Mets history stands at 12 games, a tie between their losing streak coming into Wednesday night and the 2002 team, which lost those 12 consecutive games between Aug. 20 and Aug. 31 that year.

Longest losing streaks in MLB history

The longest losing streak of the 21st century belongs to the 2024 Chicago White Sox, who lost 21 straight games. However, that is not the longest such streak in MLB history. That dishonor belongs to the 1961 Philadelphia Phillies, who lost 23 straight games.

Here is a list of every team in the modern era (since 1901) to have lost at least 20 consecutive games:

  • 1961 Philadelphia Phillies – 23
  • 2024 Chicago White Sox – 21
  • 1988 Baltimore Orioles – 21
  • 1969 Montreal Expos – 20
  • 1943 Philadelphia Athletics – 20
  • 1916 Philadelphia Athletics – 20
  • 1906 Boston Americans – 20

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Mets losing streak ends with victory over Twins

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San Antonio's Keldon Johnson names NBA Sixth Man of the Year

The man who is the heart and soul of the Spurs is also now the NBA's Sixth Man of the Year.

San Antonio's Keldon Johnson — who came off the bench in all 82 games this season and set a Spurs franchise record with 1,081 bench points — was honored as the NBA Sixth Man of the Year.

Johnson talked about his journey in an ESPN interview when the award was announced.

"I started for a long time. Now, it's my time to come off the bench," Johnson said. "I just continue to analyze the game, come off the bench, go in there and just do my thing."

Johnson's thing was to average 13.2 points and 5.4 rebounds a game for the Spurs, but that sells short what he means to this team. He's the longest-tenured Spur and a leader in the locker room, the guy who keeps the mood light but can get serious when the time is called for.

Johnson got 63 first-place votes from the panel of 100 media voters, besting Miami's Jaime Jaquez (34 first-place votes). Denver's Tim Hardaway Jr. finished third in the voting, with Minnesota's Naz Reid finishing fourth and the Thunder's Ajay Mitchell fifth.

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New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor exits game with left calf tightness, will have MRI on Thursday

NEW YORK — No sooner did the struggling New York Mets get a star player back than another one went down with a similar injury.

Francisco Lindor was removed Wednesday night against the Minnesota Twins with left calf tightness, just hours after teammate Juan Soto came off the injured list. The switch-hitting shortstop will have an MRI on Thursday, putting the top of New York’s punchless batting order in flux once more.

“Here we go again,” manager Carlos Mendoza said.

New York (8-16) ended its 12-game losing streak with a 3-2 victory over Minnesota, but it might have come at a cost.

“We’ve got to wait and see what we’re dealing with,” Mendoza said.

Lindor labored around the bases while scoring from first on Francisco Alvarez’s one-out double up the right-center alley in the fourth inning. He grimaced as he rounded third and paused for a bit from the seat of his pants after beating the relay throw with a feetfirst slide.

“I knew right away when he was rounding third base that something wasn’t right there. So, we’ll see what we’ve got,” Mendoza said. “Right away, he scores and you could see his face. Looking from the dugout, I knew something wasn’t right.”

Lindor headed down the dugout tunnel with an athletic trainer and was replaced in the lineup by Brett Baty, who entered at third base in the top of the fifth. Bo Bichette slid over from third base to shortstop.

Batting cleanup, Lindor knocked in a run when he legged out an infield single with two outs in the first. Moments earlier, he made an outstanding leaping grab at shortstop for the second out of the game.

Soto was reinstated from the 10-day IL earlier in the day. The slugging outfielder had been sidelined since straining his right calf while running from first to third on April 3 in San Francisco.

“We got good news, relatively good news with Soto, and it was still three weeks,” Mendoza said. “So, we’ll see what we’re dealing with.”

After a slow start this season, Lindor was starting to come on recently. He launched a three-run homer Tuesday night and is hitting .226 with two home runs and five RBIs.

“Can’t sit here and make excuses. It’s all part of it. We lost Soto, and we had a hard time,” Mendoza said. “Another really good player, and we’ve got to figure it out.”

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Odds of Steve Kerr’s return are dropping, according to warriors broadcaster

Steve Kerr indicates the percentage chance he’ll return to the Warriors next season.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - APRIL 17: Head coach Steve Kerr of the Golden State Warriors reacts during the first half of an NBA play-in tournament game against the Phoenix Suns at Mortgage Matchup Center on April 17, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Just before the end of the season, Steve Kerr told ESPN it was “50-50” that he’d be back as head coach of the Golden State Warriors next season. Now, Warriors insider Monte Poole thinks it’s 20-80, or even 15-85.

In a conversation with Bonta Hill on the Dubs Talk podcast, Poole summarized how he saw Kerr’s uncertain coaching future:

“The likelihood is that he leaves,” Poole said. “At this stage, I would say ‘If the door is over there, he’s looking at that door and he’s walking toward it’ . . . Can he turn around and turn back? Yeah, but the odds of that are slim.”

Poole explained that people were already speculating this could be Kerr’s final season during the summer, with he and Hill publicly discussing it in December. Assistant coach Chris DeMarco left during the season to become head coach of the New York Liberty, while other assistant coaches were exploring their options, with at least a strong suspicion that their head coach might not be back.

Hill and Poole agreed that the idea that the Warriors would “run it back” with this season’s disappointing roster wouldn’t be acceptable to Kerr or to team management. If the Warriors make big changes to their roster, which is badly lacking in size, youth and athleticism when it comes to other playoff teams, they very well might change their head coach.

There’s another reason to think Kerr himself might be done, and that’s the nature of his comments during the season. It’s not the first time that Kerr has lobbied for a shorter NBA season, but he was more vocal this year. A coach who is talking to reporters about how he wishes the season was shorter is not a coach who is thrilled about coaching more basketball games.

Poole also noted that Kerr spoke about the limitations of the roster, a part of the team he does not control. Kerr handles rotations and doling out minutes, but he may have been sending a message that he did not agree with management’s personnel decisions. Plus, the capped-out Warriors may not have the same options for veterans on minimum deals when the team can’t promise they’ll

Overall, the Warriors future is not bright. Steve Kerr is not happy. Don’t be surprised if the odds of him staying drop to 0-100 very soon.

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Colts head coach Shane Steichen picked Brad Stevens’ brain on Achilles recovery

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - FEBRUARY 06: General Manager Brad Stevens of the Boston Celtics watches warmups before a game against the Dallas Mavericks at the TD Garden on February 06, 2025 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Brian Fluharty/Getty Images) | Getty Images

On Tuesday, during his pre-draft availability, Indianapolis Colts head coach Shane Steichen indicated that he picked the brain of Boston Celtics’ NBA Champion President of Basketball Operations (and former Butler University Men’s Basketball coach) Brad Stevens.

Only, it wasn’t really about basketball.

Rather, Steichen sought out any guidance that Stevens may be able to share regarding Achilles post-surgery recovery, after Celtics star forward Jayson Tatum previously underwent Achilles surgery by the same surgeon who recently performed Colts starting quarterback Daniel Jones’ procedure a few months ago (via The Athletic’s James Boyd).

It’s not the first time that Stevens has offered his insight he has firsthand experienced with his star player’s recovery from a torn Achilles with an Indianapolis professional sports head coach.

Specifically, Stevens reached out to Indiana Pacers head coach Rick Carlisle last July regarding Pacers star point guard Tyrese Haliburton, who suffered the same devastating Achilles injury—only during Game 7 of last summer’s NBA Finals.

It is good to know that Jones, who’s already throwing and performing drop-backs on his road to regaining his prior breakout career year form, isn’t alone in his recovery.

Rather, there have been a number of star professional athletes who have suffered the same injury and underwent the same surgery, and there’s an established protocol for rehabilitation and recovery. There are likely some helpful tips that Stevens can share regarding what worked well and what didn’t—and what to reasonably expect.

The early signs regarding Jones recovery are encouraging, and he’s arguably ahead of schedule—with a hopeful and still realistic return by Colts training camp in mid-to-late July.

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JR Ritchie will be called up to start for Braves against Nationals

NORTH PORT, FL- FEBRUARY 22: JR Ritchie #92 of the Atlanta Braves pitches during a spring training game against the Minnesota Twins on February 22, 2026 at CoolToday Park in North Port, Florida. (Photo by Brace Hemmelgarn/Minnesota Twins/Getty Images) | Getty Images

At the end of the recap for tonight’s 8-6 Braves win over the Nationals, I mentioned that the process of getting through that game pitching-wise brought up some questions as to how they would deal with Thursday afternoon’s game. As it turned out, the Braves will be dipping into their prospect pool again in order to bring up one of the hottest prospects in the organization.

The 35th overall pick from the 2022 MLB Draft will be making his big league debut on Thursday night, as JR Ritchie has reportedly received the call and will be starting on Thursday afternoon against the Nationals.

The move makes sense, primarily because Ritchie will be making this start on regular rest. He’s also been lights out for the Gwinnett Stripers in Triple-A so far, as he’s made five starts and tossed 27.1 innings while only giving up three earned runs compared to 28 strikeouts. He’s sporting an ERA of 0.99 and a FIP of 3.66 at that level and with the rotation being in a tough spot, the time has come for Ritchie to make a spot start.

According to Mark Bowman of MLB.com, the Braves will be sending Didier Fuentes right back down to Triple-A in a corresponding move. The Braves have a tiny bit of room to add Ritchie to the 40-man roster without designating anybody for assignment so that should be the official move once it’s eventually announced by the club itself.

For now, it’s time to get excited as we’re going to see what Ritchie has to offer at the big league level. He’s certainly coming up in a challenging spot as this Nationals roster is tough to deal with and it’s on relatively short notice. With that being said, this is why the Braves drafted him this high and he’s looked great as he’s made his way through the minors. There’s a reason why there’s a lot of anticipation to see what Ritchie can do at this level and Thursday afternoon will be his big chance.

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Max Fried dominates Red Sox at Fenway Park to secure series victory

BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 22: Starting pitcher Max Fried #54 of the New York Yankees throws a pitch in the first inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park on April 22, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Jaiden Tripi/Getty Images) | Getty Images

Despite giving him the richest contract for a left-handed pitcher in baseball history, the Yankees didn’t sign Max Fried to be an ace. They envisioned pairing him with 2023 Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole atop a formidable rotation, but expected to see them together as a 1-2 postseason punch for years to come.

As Yankees fans know, that didn’t happen. Cole underwent Tommy John surgery last March, and that suddenly thrust the former World Series champion into the undisputed ace role for the foreseeable future. And with players not usually returning to top shape after returning from UCL reconstruction surgery, the balance of power was now firmly shifted to Fried being the ace of the New York Yankees.

Well, as he made his 40th start as a Yankee (playoffs included) on Wednesday night, he continued to show why that was a worthy moniker. After dealing against the rival Red Sox all year in 2025, he started 2026 with a bang, tossing eight shutout innings at Fenway Park on Wednesday, giving no room to breathe for a struggling offense. All the run support he needed came early on two big swings by Amed Rosario, as the Yankees secured a series victory, 4-1.

The Yankees jumped on Ranger Suarez right away. After the former All-Star retired two of the first three batters he faced, Giancarlo Stanton picked up where he left off last night by smacking a ball off the Green Monster in left field for a double to set up Rosario with second and third, two out. Shortly after Michael Kay noted the usual platoon bat’s reverse splits, Rosario evened those up in a hurry, pimping a three-run bomb over the Monster to give the Yankees a quick 3-0 lead.

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Fried toed the slab in the bottom half of the inning and pitched around a one-out walk by Willson Contreras to produce a shutdown inning. Suarez settled in to retire 8-9-1 in the Yankees’ order in the second, and his offense looked to respond immediately with a leadoff walk by Andruw Monasterio and a double off the Monster by Jarren Duran.

With runners on second and third and nobody out, Fried gritted his teeth and pulled a Houdini act by striking out the bottom of Boston’s weakened lineup in order to somehow escape without allowing a run.

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That big momentum swing allowed the same part of the Yankees’ lineup to further extend the lead. Aaron Judge singled, Stanton hit yet another double off the Monster, and Rosario lifted a long sac fly to the warning track in left field to make it 4-0. Fried would pitch around a two-out single by Wilyer Abreu to finish off the third.

Suarez got another 1-2-3 inning against the bottom of the order in the fourth, and Duran once again doubled off the wall, a fascinating development for a player who has not only struggled his entire career against Fried but also against lefties. Despite once again getting a runner in scoring position, though, Boston stranded it with a groundout and a routine flyout.

Judge walked with one out in the fifth, stole second, and got to third on a groundout, prompting Alex Cora to emerge from the dugout to bring in right-hander Zack Kelly against Stanton, who promptly induced an inning-ending pop fly. Fried continued to deal as Boston’s lineup flipped over once again, sitting them down in order in the fifth.

With the lefty out of the game, Aaron Boone deployed both Ben Rice and Trent Grisham in place of Rosario and Randal Grichuk, but both struck out against Kelly. With Jazz Chisholm Jr. due up, Cora summoned Eduardo Rivera, a World Baseball Classic standout from Puerto Rico, for his MLB debut, and he tallied his first career strikeout against the continually struggling Chisholm.

The game started to enter a lull as neither team’s offense could get going. Fried had back-to-back 1-2-3 innings to get through seven innings, while Rivera rolled along to save the bullpen, only giving up an infield single to José Caballero that was erased on a complicated rundown double play.

Fried stayed on to start the bottom of the eighth and got helped out by his defense. Ryan McMahon entered for defense in the sixth and made a Manny Machado-esque play on the third-base line, but made that look like child’s play to start the eighth. Isiah Kiner-Falefa ripped a liner down the line that McMahon sprawled out to make a spectacular catch on to take away a double.

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After that, it was back-to-back strikeouts of Ceddanne Rafaela and Contreras to wrap up eight remarkable innings for the Yankee ace. Nine strikeouts, just three hits and two walks allowed, pure dominance. In five starts against the Red Sox as a Yankee (including his wasted Game 1 gem in the Wild Card Series), Fried has a 1.10 ERA in 32.2 innings. If nothing else, having an ace that always goes out and shoves against your biggest rival is a tremendous privilege.

After Rivera wrapped up an impressive 3.1 frames in his first career appearance, Brent Headrick got the call to pitch the ninth against the heart of the order. Of course, it wasn’t easy, as a pair of hits by Trevor Story and Duran (whose three hits today were approximately 60 percent of Boston’s offense) broke up the shutout and Caleb Durbin was a ball away from walking to bring up the tying run. Thankfully, a strong play by Caballero and a scoop by Paul Goldschmidt ended the ballgame.

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The Yankees will go for their first three-game sweep in Fenway Park since September 2021 tomorrow night at 6:10pm EST. It’ll be the Walpole kid, Cam Schlittler, looking to provide an encore to his Wild Card heroics last October against a starter to be determined. Brayan Bello was initially scheduled to go, but was pushed back to Friday.

Box Score

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Michael Harris II and the Braves light up Zack Littell and the Nationals in 8-6 win

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 22: Michael Harris II #23 of the Atlanta Braves hits a solo home in the third inning during the baseball game against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on April 22, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) | Getty Images

The Washington Nationals have continued to show that their offense is plenty potent at the moment. However, the Atlanta Braves were able to out-slug the Nationals in this one as two massive homers from Michael Harris II helped power Atlanta to an 8-6 win over the Nats.

The fireworks started early for both teams — though one team in particular has grown quite used to getting off to quick starts here in 2026. Zack Littell has proven to be a bit prone to giving up the long ball and the Braves wasted no time in continuing to pour on that particular punishment, as Drake Baldwin hit a deep fly to right-center to put the Braves on the board early.

That solo homer ended up giving Didier Fuentes a chance to pitch with the lead. It didn’t last long, as the Nationals jumped on Fuentes and made it a very long first frame back in the bigs for him. Once the Nationals got to two outs, it’s as if their lineup collectively remembered “Hey, we’re the highest-scoring team in baseball in the first inning, we should act like it,” and started mashing. Daylen Lile got a straight heater from Fuentes and crushed it for a three-run shot that put the Nationals ahead and then an RBI double from Jorbit Vivas made it a three-run lead for Washington. The Nats now have 28 first-inning runs this season and it feels like just about half of them have come against the Braves in this series, alone!

While this did end up being a short outing for Fuentes, the 20-year-old did a good job of making sure that it wasn’t a disastrous outing as well. Fuentes only pitched three innings but the youngster was able to pitch his way out of a one-out, bases-loaded jam by striking out José Tena and Keibert Ruiz to end the inning and snuff out the scoring threat. That last strikeout was his seventh of the outing and while everybody would’ve preferred to have seen Fuentes get deeper into this game, it’s pretty clear that Fuentes has the talent to get it done based on the number of punch-outs alone.

It also helped that Fuentes got major backup from his teammates at the plate, as they made this another rough day at the office for Zack Littell. An error from Jorbit Vivas allowed Ozzie Albies to reach base safely to lead off the second and then Michael Harris II immediately made the Nationals pay for the mistake by crushing one into the upper deck in right field for a two-run shot that made it a one-run game. The line kept moving after that and then Ronald Acuña Jr. eventually made it a tie ballgame with his sacrifice fly to deep right-center. Just like that, the Braves had wiped out the three-run deficit in very quick fashion and we had ourselves another high-scoring contest right out of the gate.

The Braves weren’t done there, though. In fact, Money Mike wasn’t done there, either. Harris’ second dinger of the game may not have been as majestic as his first but it was more fun to witness since it put the Braves in front. The one saving grace for the Braves in this series has been that if they can withstand the early flurry of offense from Washington, the Nationals’ pitching staff will provide an opportunity for this team to get back in it. That’s why Didier Fuentes keeping Washington at just four runs was so important since it allowed the lineup a shot to stay in the game and eventually capitalize on some chances.

The big hits just kept on coming for the Braves as Atlanta ended up handing Zack Littell his second-straight outing with at least eight runs allowed. The final blow came from Matt Olson, who hit one into the bullpen out in right-field for a three-run shot that made it an 8-4 game for the Braves in the fourth inning alone. Littell has now giving up homers to Acuña, Harris, Olson and Riley — Riley in particular was probably cursing his luck that he wasn’t able to get in on the fun while he was out there!

Martín Pérez came in to pitch some relief after Didier Fuentes was done, which makes things a bit interesting for the Braves since Pérez was originally scheduled to start tonight’s game and then was pushed to Thursday when Fuentes got called up. We’ll probably see some more shuffling before tomorrow afternoon’s contest as Pérez ended up going three innings in this one. He stabilized things for about two innings before he ran into trouble in the sixth inning. That was when Joey Wiemer led off the sixth with a deep fly and then James Wood continued to mash the baseball as he crushed a solo homer of his own in order to make it an 8-6 game heading into the final innings of the contest.

The onus was now on Atlanta’s high-leverage relievers to get the job done in the late stages of this game. Dylan Lee got the seventh inning and sat down the Nats in 1-2-3 fashion in order to hand the baton to Tyler Kinley. Joey Wiemer and James Wood both reached base in the same inning but this time, it was a lot quieter than what happened in the sixth inning. Wiemer coaxed a one-out walk out of Kinley and then Walt Weiss decided that he wasn’t going to give James Wood a chance to make his presence felt once again and gave him the free pass to first with two outs. Kinley responded by striking out Curtis Mead to end the inning and ensure that the Braves could head to the ninth with the lead.

That set the stage for Robert Suarez to hopefully get the job done to finish things off in the ninth inning. Suarez gave up a leadoff single on the very first pitch he threw but the rest of the inning was similarly quick. It only took eight (8) pitches total for Suarez to finish things off and give the Braves at least a split of this four-game road series.

There are definitely some questions about how the pitching is going to be set up for Thursday afternoon’s game after Martín Pérez was pressed into duty early on in this one but the good news is that the Braves will be able to answer those questions after winning a ballgame [UPDATE: We now know how those questions will be answered. Hello, JR Ritchie!]. Washington’s lineup is no joke but the Braves have clearly found their footing as a collective at the plate so far and tonight was another example of that. Zack Littell was struggling heading into this one and sure enough, the Braves were able to make sure that he was unable to bounce back and stabilize things for this beleaguered Nationals pitching staff.

Instead, the Braves are now heading into Thursday afternoon with the idea that they could be able to slug their way out of any trouble that they may face. It’s not an especially great way to live as a baseball team (as the Nationals themselves are proving) but in this series, the power surge may help push the Braves to a pretty big four-game series win. Also, the more Atlanta can keep on winning while both the Phillies (currently losing 6-2 to the Cubs in the sixth inning as of publishing) and the Mets (tied 2-2 in the eighth inning) continue to struggle, the more they can start putting some increasingly-large distance between them and their two foes from the Northeast. Let’s keep this going!

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Chad Patrick struggles in Brewers’ 5-2 loss to Tigers

Apr 22, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pitcher Chad Patrick (39) throws a pitch against the Detroit Tigers in the fifth inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images

Box Score

After a burst on offense in Tuesday’s game, it was hard to come by on Wednesday night. The opener strategy didn’t pay off this time for the Brewers, as Chad Patrick struggled and the Brewers’ offense couldn’t break through the Tigers’ pitching.

The game started quietly for the Brewers’ offense, going down in order against Casey Mize in the first inning. Meanwhile, opener DL Hall ran into some trouble. He walked the first two batters he faced, but got Jahmai Jones to ground into a double play for the first two outs. Hall escaped the inning with a strikeout of Riley Greene.

Mize continued rolling through the second, but did allow a single to Brandon Lockridge. That was it as he struck out two Brewers on his way to a scoreless second inning. Hall’s second inning went better, this time retiring the side in order as the game remained scoreless.

In the third, the Brewers scored first thanks to some two-out offense. After Brice Turang drew a two-out walk — extending his on-base streak to 21 games — he stole second to get in scoring position. On the next pitch, William Contreras singled to center, and Turang scored, putting the Brewers up 1-0.

That staked Patrick to a one-run lead as he entered the game. His day started well with a scoreless third, working around a walk of Jake Rogers. Meanwhile, Mize rebounded in the fourth with a 1-2-3 inning.

Patrick started to falter in the bottom of the fourth. Greene hit a one-out single to center, which set up Spencer Torkelson. He hit a sinker that was down the middle out to left-center field, giving the Tigers a 2-1 lead. He continued to unravel in a rough 37-pitch fifth inning. After Javier Báez hit a leadoff single, a 10-pitch at-bat went to McGonigle, who doubled to drive in Báez. Colt Keith then brought in McGonigle with an RBI single, increasing the Tigers’ lead to 4-1.

As for Mize, the Brewers didn’t have another scoring chance against him. He finished the day after six innings with one run allowed on three hits. He struck out seven Brewers and walked three. Meanwhile, Patrick got through the sixth but it was his worst day so far this year. He allowed four runs on six hits and a walk in four innings. He only struck out two.

The Brewers did get a second run in the eighth, cashing in a leadoff single from Luis Rengifo. After he moved up on a Contreras groundout, Jake Bauers drove him in with a single to make it a 4-2 game. However, the Tigers responded with a solo home run by Kerry Carpenter off of Carlos Rodriguez, pushing it back to a three-run lead. That was the only run Rodriguez allowed in two innings of relief.

With one more chance in the ninth, the Brewers made it interesting against Tigers’ closer Kenley Jansen. Lockridge hit a one-out bloop single into right for the first baserunner. After Sal Frelick worked a nine-pitch at-bat into a fly out, David Hamilton and Rengifo worked back-to-back walks to load the bases and drive Jansen’s pitch count up to 33. Turang had a chance to tie it or take the lead, but a ground out to Torkelson at first ended the game.

The Tigers kept the Brewers’ offense mostly in check, limiting them to six hits and five walks. Lockridge was the only Brewer with multiple hits, going 2-for-4. Turang also reached base twice with two walks, and Rengifo had a hit and a walk.

This sets up the rubber match for tomorrow afternoon, and the Brewers will have a challenge ahead of them. They will have to go through Tigers’ starter and two-time AL Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal to earn the series win. Meanwhile, Brandon Sproat will get the call for the Brewers. First pitch is scheduled for 12:10 p.m.

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Knicks can’t let their Game 2 weakness become a Hawks blueprint

An image collage containing 3 images, Image 1 shows Dyson Daniels attacks the paint and goes up for a layup over Josh Hart during the Knicks' Game 2 loss to the Hawks, Image 2 shows Jonathan Kuminga makes a strong drive to the basket during the Knicks' Game 2 loss to the Hawks, Image 3 shows Mitchell Robinson (center) battles Dyson Daniels for a rebound as Karl-Anthony Towns looks on during the Knicks' Game 2 loss to the Hawks

The number was staggering. It hasn’t been talked about enough, Mike Brown said. And given the Knicks’ success at defending the paint during the regular season, it made what transpired in the second half of Game 2 — when the Hawks erupted for 42 points in the paint — even more stunning.

It was the worst half of Knicks paint defense all year by six points.

During the regular season, they allowed the third-fewest points in that area per game (43.4), and they had nine instances during the regular season when they only surrendered 42 points in the paint across the entire game. Monday’s lapse stemmed from a lack of execution, Brown said. From a lack of physicality, Josh Hart added.

The Knicks had a new weakness exposed, and starting with Game 3 on Thursday, Atlanta will almost certainly try to replicate that blueprint. It’ll fall on the Knicks, and all of their possible options, to figure out a response.

Dyson Daniels attacks the paint and goes up for a layup over Josh Hart during the Knicks’ Game 2 loss to the Hawks. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post

“I feel like we didn’t have that physicality that we did Game 1 and in the first half [of Game 2],” Hart said Wednesday in Tarrytown before the team flew to Atlanta. “I think that was the biggest thing. When you lose that physicality, then you allow them to kinda move at their own pace, kinda dictate their offense instead of you dictating it. Just gotta make sure we’re physical, have attention to detail and focus for a full 48.”

It could just be an anomaly. A one-off. The Knicks, in addition to being a strong unit at defending the paint and among the NBA’s best defenses over the final two-plus months of the regular season, were also the best fourth-quarter team in terms of net rating during the regular season. That made their collapse Monday an uncharacteristic one. But theoretically, Hart said, the Hawks will try to attack the paint again.

The simplest decision to combat the woes could involve playing Mitchell Robinson — the best Knicks interior defender — more, but that would come with inherent risks.

His minutes jumped from 14:30 to 18:09 in the opening two games of the series, but could Brown keep Robinson on the court more and risk a hack-a-Mitch strategy? And if he does give Robinson more time off the bench, whose minutes would dip?

Jonathan Kuminga makes a strong drive to the basket during the Knicks’ Game 2 loss to the Hawks. NBAE via Getty Images

These are the decisions and considerations that arise over the course of a seven-game series.

In the opening half of Game 2, the Knicks allowed just 16 points in the paint, but CJ McCollum, who shredded Jalen Brunson, finished with 16 points in the paint alone, including 10 in the second half.

Twelve of Jalen Johnson’s second-half points occurred in that area by the basket, too, and he set the tone with Atlanta’s first layup of the third quarter — pump-faking on the left wing after the Knicks went up 13, driving around Hart and finishing his shot before Karl-Anthony Towns’ help defense made an impact.

Mitchell Robinson (center) battles Dyson Daniels for a rebound as Karl-Anthony Towns looks on during the Knicks’ Game 2 loss to the Hawks. Getty Images

And when the fourth quarter arrived, that paint-scoring edge became especially noticeable, with the Hawks outscoring the Knicks 22-4. Jonathan Kuminga rolled off a screen and dunked to pull the Hawks within 93-85. He sent a lob pass over all the Knicks defenders to Onyeka Okongwu for another dunk on the next possession, too. Ball movement kept opening up lanes, and the Knicks kept failing to plug any gaps in time.

“You gotta give Atlanta credit,” Brown said. “We didn’t execute our defense the way that we could have. Or the way we should have, or the way that we have been doing throughout the first six quarters [of the series].”

Now comes the counter, though. Now comes Atlanta’s chance to turn this into a series-defining weakness. Now comes the chance for the Knicks to “keep the physicality going,” as Mikal Bridges said. To help in transition. To “show bodies.” To give a boost to whoever’s guarding the ball.

Now comes the playoff chess match.

“That’s why being focused and having attention to detail is so big in the playoffs,” Hart said, “because sometimes, it goes away from plays — and it just goes into schemes, it goes into personnel. You gotta be able to react on the fly. When you’re locked in, you have that attention to detail, you’re able to do that pretty seamlessly.”

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Dodgers vs. Giants game II chat

SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 21: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers warms up in the outfield before their game against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on April 21, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images

The Dodgers are looking to get back to .500 on the road trip, as they take on the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on Wednesday. Shohei Ohtani makes his fourth start of the season against Tyler Mahle.

WEDNESDAY GAME INFO
  • Teams: Dodgers vs. Giants
  • Stadium: Oracle Park
  • Time: 6:45 p.m. PT
  • TV: SportsNet LA
  • Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 (Spanish)

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