The Boston Red Sox (27-35) take on the New York Yankees (37-26) on Sunday. Saturday’s game between the two teams was postponed. The scheduled starting pitchers are Ranger Suarez for Boston, with a 3.38 ERA, and Cam Schlittler for New York, with a 1.89 ERA. The Yankees are favored with the over/under set at eight runs.
Former Edmonton Oilers' forward Milan Lucic has officially announced his retirement after 17 NHL seasons and 1,177 games.
The former Stanley Cup champion with the Boston Bruins wraps up his career with 586 regular-season points and 77 more in the playoffs, also playing for the Los Angeles Kings, Edmonton Oilers, and Calgary Flames.
Lucic hadn’t played in the NHL since 2023-24 but attempted a comeback in 2025-26, including brief stints in the AHL and overseas. Last season, he had a PTO with the St. Louis Blues but was cut. He played 26 EIHL games after joining the Fife Flyers in late December and recorded 5 goals, 7 assists, 18 PIMs and a +/- of -14.
His career effectively ended following a domestic incident in 2023, though charges were later dropped. Still, the latter part of his career, including his struggles both on and off the ice, will likely place a bit of a cloud over his career run. His repeated controversies in his personal life will have stained his legacy.
As for the positives, he retires as a physical, productive power forward, one of the best of his era. With the Oilers, he played 243 regular season games, scoring 39 goals. His best run came with the team in 2016-17, when he scored 23 goals during the season.
Milan Lucic is officially announcing his retirement following 1,177 career NHL games played – wishing all the best to the 2010-11 #StanleyCup champ👏 pic.twitter.com/X4QF1dWqt3
The courtside seats in Cleveland will soon have a blank space.
The chair Taylor Swift sat in during Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals between the Cleveland Cavaliers and New York Knicks has been listed for auction.
According to the listing on The Realist, the opening bid was $100 and, after 38 bids as of Sunday, was listed at $6,000. The auction is set to end June 14, per the listing.
“As one of the most recognized and influential artists of her generation, the occupant of this chair has earned worldwide acclaim through a career defined by commercial success, critical recognition, and multiple Grammy Award victories,” the bidding description reads. “Her attendance reflects the cultural reach of the NBA Playoffs and the significance of the Eastern Conference Finals as one of the most visible events in sports.”
These courtside chairs were used during the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals at Rocket Arena by some of the biggest names in sports, entertainment, music, and film as they watched one of the most talked-about playoff series of the year unfold. pic.twitter.com/MH1oSiXcKz
Swift attended the game on May 23 at Rocket Arena with her fiancée, Travis Kelce, the Kansas City Chiefs star and an Ohio native. The chair Kelce sat in is also up for auction at, as of Sunday, $525 after 30 bids.
But it was a cruel summer for the Cavaliers, who lost the game the couple attended 121-108 en route to getting swept in the series – meaning those courtside seats won’t be needed any time soon.
Taylor Swift and Travis Kielce attend the game between the New York Knicks and Cleveland Cavaliers during Game 3 of the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals on May 23, 2026 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by David L. Nemec/NBAE via Getty Images)
The chair features a Cavaliers logo, arm rests and a cup holder. The listing says an authenticator was on site to witness Swift’s use of the chair during the game, and the item features a Gold OVD.
“This chair serves as a tangible artifact from a nationally celebrated postseason event,” the listing reads.” “Its connection to one of the world’s most recognizable entertainers adds a distinctive layer of provenance to an item tied directly to the atmosphere and excitement of the 2026 Eastern Conference Finals, further reflecting the Cavaliers’ position at the intersection of sports and pop culture.”
Other seats used by celebrities in the series are also being auctioned. The chair that actor and Knicks fan Ben Stiller sat in during the Knicks’ Game 4 series clincher is listed, as of Sunday, at $385 after 17 bids. Timothée Chalamet’s seat for that game is listed for $106 after 16 bids — and bidders can make it a set by also adding the chair used by Chalamet’s girlfriend Kylie Jenner, which is up to $280 after 21 bids.
“Throughout the 2026 postseason, Chalamet emerged as one of the most visible celebrity supporters of New York basketball,” the listing reads. “Whether attending games at Madison Square Garden or traveling to road playoff matchups, his presence became closely associated with the team’s deepest playoff run in nearly three decades. Television broadcasts, social media coverage, and national headlines regularly featured Chalamet among the faces of a fan base experiencing a long-awaited return to championship contention.”
The Knicks return to Madison Square Garden on Monday for the team’s first NBA Finals home game in 27 years. Holding a 2-0 series lead over the San Antonio Spurs, the team is two wins away from its first championship since 1973. Tickets to the games are at record highs, with the lowest asking prices on the secondary market at five figures.
Celebrity row at the Garden will be full of A-listers. Regulars like Spike Lee, Stiller, Chalamet, Jenner and Tracy Morgan are expected to attend. President Donald Trump will be in the building. Maybe Swift, a New York resident, will even show up.
The former Maple Leaf scored the fastest three goals by a single player in Cup Final history, requiring just six minutes and 10 seconds to beat a record previously held by Maurice “Rocket” Richard from 1957 (6:21).
Since he also assisted on Hertl’s goal, Marner became only the second player in NHL Finals history — joining Frank Foyston (1919) — to post four points in a single period.
The 29-year-old is also just the second player in history to record a natural hat trick in a single period at this point in the playoffs, joining Ted Lindsay (1955). After this latest performance, Marner leads the playoffs by a considerable margin with 28 points (10 goals, 18 assists) in 19 games.
Golden Knights wing Mitch Marner (93) scores on Hurricanes goalie Frederik Anderson during the second period in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on June 6, 2026. AP Photo/John Locher
He is considered the frontrunner for the Conn Smythe Trophy as the NHL playoff MVP.
“Well, I think a lot of guys made great plays to set me up,” Marner told reporters after Vegas took a 2-1 series lead Saturday night. “I think you need five guys on the ice to all be on the same page. And I thought our line did a really good job of that throughout the entire night.”
The hat trick and the 4-0 Vegas lead stood as the game’s only notables for a very short time.
Mitch Marner (93) celebrates scoring one of his three goals during the Golden Knights’ double-overtime win over the Hurricanes in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final on June 6, 2026. AP Photo/John Locher
Carolina saw to that by setting a new record for the fastest three goals scored by a team in the final. Jordan Martinook, Taylor Hall and Jordan Staal each struck within 39 seconds to pull the Hurricanes within one goal less than eight minutes into the third period, smashing the previous record of 56 seconds set by the Canadiens in 1954.
The equalizer came off the stick of Andrei Svechnikov while on the power play later in the frame.
Saturday was ultimately the highest-scoring Game 3 in Stanley Cup Final history.
In addition to the nine goals, two Vegas scores were overturned in the second period. The play on Mark Stone’s goal was deemed offside and goaltender interference disallowed Jack Eichel’s goal.
Jerry Stackhouse won’t be returning as a Warriors assistant for the 2026-27 NBA season, but he gained some valuable knowledge while coaching under Steve Kerr for the last two years.
On a recent episode of FanDuel TV’s “Run It Back,” Stackhouse shared a key lesson from Kerr that he will take into the rest of his coaching career, specifically referencing when Golden State was without injured stars Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler this past season.
“With Steve, it was all about, you know, he wants those guys’ joy. His messaging was always on point,” Stackhouse explained. “I think with guys, from the standpoint of when we lost Steph and we were down, I think he still found a way to find positives in what was happening and using it as growth moments and growth opportunities. And I think for us, we saw our younger guys get better, probably guys that we weren’t counting on going into the season.
“And then when Jimmy went down and when Steph went down, then it was like, okay, this is this an opportunity for you guys to step up. I thought Gui Santos took a really big step for, like I said, a guy that wasn’t even really penciled in, but once he got his opportunity — I think he’s going to provide a lot of depth for the Warriors this year because of that. …
“I saw how how Steve, you know, he wants conversation. He wants to make sure that you understand — even the coaching staff — just constantly confirming with everybody to make sure that you know where you stand and and you know what we’re trying to get accomplished.”
The short-handed Warriors, missing their two best players for an extended stretch, limped through the back end of the regular season before their eventual loss in the NBA play-in tournament.
But as Stackhouse mentioned, there were still some positives that came out of that difficult period — specifically Santos’ emergence as a solid rotation piece. After the 2026 NBA All-Star break, the 23-year-old averaged 15.5 points, 5.7 rebounds and 3.9 assists in 31.3 minutes across 24 games (including 21 starts).
That experience could be invaluable for someone like Santos once the Warriors — hopefully — get healthy next season, as the team attempts to make one last deep playoff run.
And if Santos contributes significantly, like Stackhouse believes, Kerr certainly would deserve credit for helping develop the former No. 55 overall pick.
Mitchell Robinson no longer has a technical foul from Game 2 of the 2026 NBA Finals on his ledger.
The NBA on Saturday rescinded the tech given to the Knicks center during the second quarter of their 105-104 win over the Spurs in San Antonio on Friday after the league reviewed the play.
Robinson and 7-foot-4 Spurs star Victor Wembanyama were fighting for position when Wembanyama pushed Robinson, who pushed him back, though the contact didn’t seem egregious.
Mitchell Robinson was given a technical foul for this interaction with Victor Wembanyama. pic.twitter.com/otGZRBddmb
Yet Robinson was called for a tech with 4:56 left in the first half and then was subbed out of the game for Karl-Anthony Towns.
It could have impacted the game as Wembanyama made the technical free throw the Spurs were awarded, but the Knicks escaped with the win and lead the series 2-0 entering Monday’s Game 3 at Madison Square Garden.
Knicks center Mitchell Robinson (l.) was called for a technical foul on this play with the Spurs’ Victor Wembanyama (r.) in the second quarter during Game 2 of the NBA Fianls on June 5, 2026. ABC
“I know we needed stops and I had picked up a few fouls on him,” Robinson said. “I think, what, three, like early on? So in my mind, I was just like, defend without fouling. So that was kind of like how it went. Just great contest, and just kind of how it went.”
Robinson finished Game 2 with seven points, three rebounds, one block and one steal in 14 minutes. He was 3-for-6 from the free-throw line as the Spurs intentionally put him on the line a few times.
The eighth-year Knick fractured the fifth metacarpal in his right hand, reportedly at home, and had surgery ahead of the Finals. He’s been wearing a wrap around his right hand.
The Buffalo Sabres have a number of scenarios involving their roster construction this summer, and with limited cap space available, it could force GM Jarmo Kekalainen to make some trades to clear salary or get something in return for winger Alex Tuch before he hits the open market on July 1.
The 30-year-old winger, along with Tampa Bay defenseman Darren Raddysh, will be the most hotly pursued free agent target. With just $12.9 million in available cap space and the price disparity between what Tuch’s representatives are looking for and what the Sabres are reportedly willing to offer makes the odds of him returning to Buffalo a long shot, especially with the salary cap going to $104 million this summer.
One option open to the Sabres may be to shop Tuch’s rights before July 1 to a club that wants the option of exclusive negotiating rights, but that would undoubtedly only yield a mid-round draft pick in return. Another option that could yield a more significant return would be to follow the Mitch Marner model that the Toronto Maple Leafs were forced into last June with the Vegas Golden Knights.
Marner had determined, according to various reports his intent on signing with the Golden Knights, going back to the start of his final year in Toronto, and blocked a trade to Carolina using his no-movement clause at the 2025 trade deadline. In late June, the Leafs negotiated an eight-year, $96 million extension with Marner and traded him to Vegas for center Nicolas Roy. Vegas needed to clear Roy’s $3 million cap hit to fit the winger’s $12 million AAV and the eight-year deal allowed the Golden Knights to lower the AAV to a more manageable number.
With Tuch, the Sabres are the only club that can sign the 30-year-old to a longer term deal, and if he goes to market in July, the max he can receive is a six-year contract under the NHL’s new collective bargaining agreement. A sign-and-trade might be worth something to the club Tuch is interested in signing with, since it would decrease his AAV and it would be beneficial to the Sabres, with them potentially getting a higher draft pick, player or prospect in the deal.
Another situation that Kekalainen will have to deal with is RFA defenseman Michael Kesselring. The 26-year-old had an injury-riddled season with the Sabres, playing only 34 games, with two assists and 50 penalty minutes. The right-handed blueliner is only one year away from unrestricted free agency and after expecting to be a top-four defender with Buffalo, he is likely to be slotted on the bottom pairing.
With Kekalainen looking to extend Bowen Byram this summer, re-signing Kesselring to anything more than a one-year deal is unlikely, and with their being a dearth of righty blueliners in free agency this summer, the Sabres could potentially acquire a useful piece in return for someone who might not be in their future plans.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - JUNE 06: Jacob Young #30 of the Washington Nationals reacts after hitting a triple against the Arizona Diamondbacks during the seventh inning at Chase Field on June 06, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. Nationals won 6-1. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With back to back convincing wins against the Diamondbacks, the Nationals are back above .500. They have also made up all the ground they lost in the Wild Card race, sitting just one game back of a playoff spot on June 7th. The fact that the Wild Card is even worth mentioning speaks to the craziness of this turnaround.
#ICYMI: BIG BIG Series: The Washington Nationals’ May surge is real: 2nd in the NL East, 1 game back in the Wild Card, and an offense that leads MLB in runs, home runs and extra-base hits.
James Wood is leading the way, Keibert Ruiz is catching fire, and the Marlins are next.… pic.twitter.com/NUySjMGDDg
— TheNatsReport 🇺🇸 ⚾ (@TheNatsReport) June 1, 2026
Since 2021, the Nats have never truly been in the hunt this deep in the season. Now, we are just one game behind the Padres, Pirates and Cubs in a crowded National League. I wish the Nats were in the American League because the playoff race in that league truly feels like a race to the bottom. Right now, the 31-33 Rangers hold a playoff spot.
As a whole, the National League is the much stronger one this year. You can see that in the records. NL division leaders are 45-24 against the AL, while AL division leaders are only 31-29 against the NL. The Nats would only be one game back in the AL West right now, despite being 11 games out of their own division.
There are a lot of good teams in the National League, and the Nats have fared well against those opponents. The Padres and D-Backs are in the Wild Card hunt, and the Nats have now won series against both. They swept the Brewers earlier in the year and took a series off the Braves in Atlanta. This team has the firepower, but competing in this hard scrabble NL is tough.
If the Nats were in the AL, I would be more bullish on our postseason hopes. However, in this league, there are so many teams that are looking to win now. For me, a realistic goal is to stick close to .500. Staying in a playoff race is just a cherry on top.
I do think that being competitive is good for this team long term. Core players like Wood and Abrams have mostly just seen losing in DC. It is good for them to know what it is like to consistently win ballgames. There is a standard being set in DC, and the league is taking notice. Hopefully, this will make free agents want to play in DC moving forward.
A winning culture is sprouting, but the Nationals are also becoming a place where players can develop. These players are always looking to improve, and Washington, DC is full of success stories. Just look at Zack Littell, who was brutal to start the season after signing late. The Nats coaching staff and front office stuck with him, and after making adjustments, he is throwing the ball at a near elite level.
Zack Littell is 6-0 with a 2.27 ERA over his last seven appearances dating back to May 1. Quite the turnaround. Credit to Littell, the coaches, and analytics staff. 🤯 https://t.co/2oBd8uRZri
If you are a free agent hitter, you should also want to be coming to DC. Just about everyone on this team has gotten better. Curtis Mead has been a massive organizational win, finally living up to his prospect pedigree at 25 years old. Jacob Young has been turned into a power hitter, and Keibert Ruiz went from a lost cause to a solid starting catcher.
There are also young stars to build around here. James Wood has become one of the best players in the entire league this season. CJ Abrams also looks poised to become an All-Star starter. These are pillars of the franchise, and the next step will be building around those guys.
James Wood hit his 17th home run of the season. He leads National League outfielders in the next categories:
— Nationals Communications (@NationalsComms) June 6, 2026
The Nats are only one game back of a playoff spot in what was supposed to be a rebuild year. Really, I still think this is a rebuilding year. There are so many clear holes on the roster, yet this team is still succeeding. If they get into the playoffs this year, it would be a truly miraculous turnaround. However, I think this year is that season where the Nats finish around .500 and then build on it in the future.
For a long time, fans have wondered when the next version of that 2011 season would come. Despite going 80-81, that 2011 season was a very important one in Nats history. It was the year where fans felt like the rebuild was starting to push towards something. Playoff success and division titles felt like they were on the horizon.
In 2024 and 2025, Nats fans wondered if the next 2011 would come. However, both years, they fell short of that and remained deep in a rebuild. With a new regime coming in and trading MacKenzie Gore, the Nats felt further away from that than ever entering this season. However, on June 7th, the Nats appear ahead of schedule.
The new 2011 is finally here, and this offseason would be a good time for Mark Lerner and Paul Toboni to push their chips to the middle of the table. Now would be the time for that Jayson Werth signing and Gio Gonzalez trade. Let’s see how the rest of the season plays out, and just go along for the ride. The Paul Toboni/Blake Butera ride has been fun so far, and I am trusting the process.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - JUNE 06: Jack Leiter #22 of the Texas Rangers pitches during the first inning of a game against the Cleveland Guardians at Globe Life Field on June 06, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by John E. Moore III/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning, folks…
The Texas Rangers fell to the Cleveland Guardians last night by a score of 6-0.
Frankly, most discussion around the Houston Rockets these days airs on the side of irritating. They’re in an irritating position. The Rockets are young, but Durant isn’t. They’re good, but not good enough. They’re X, which is good, but they aren’t Y, which is better. The Rockets are like the time you saw your favorite artist live, but the seats were worse than you’d thought, and the guy in front of you is really tall, and even though you’re at the Kanye West concert, and he hasn’t had his antisemitic meltdown yet, it’s not as special as you want.
Ugh.
This conversation will be annoying because it’s going to be cliched. Two teams are in the NBA Finals. Every year, that leaves 28 teams (and their fans, and their semiprofessional writers) wondering how they got there, and how they can get there. It’s the age-old search for the NBA’s new meta.
Yet, here I am, writing the generic “what can the Rockets learn from an NBA Finalist” piece. Here’s the deal: These teams advanced to the NBA Finals. The Rockets did not. So surely, there’s something to be learned here.
From the Spurs, there isn’t much to learn. You just need to get so remarkably lucky in the draft that even rational people entertain conspiracy theories. You can draft Josh Primo, Blake Wesley, Jeremy Sochan, Rob Dillingham, an old man, and an infant all in the first round. If you get to draft Victor Wembanyama and Dylan Harper, you can just stash the baby on Amen Thompson and camp Wemby in the paint.
The Knicks are different. What they’re doing demands admiration. There was precious little luck involved in their process.
How did they do it?
The Knicks made smart, bold decisions
It starts with Jalen Brunson.
When the Knicks handed him a four-year, $104 million deal, you wouldn’t have to search far to find someone who thought it was an overpay. By the time he signed a five-year, $156 million extension, it was widely understood that he was taking a massive discount to enhance the team’s cap flexibility. Outside of that signing, this group was largely built on the trade market.
The Karl-Anthony Towns for Julius Randle and a pick deal evoked the Hitler vs. Stalin meme. The Knicks were flipping a losing player for another, slightly better losing player. A chorus of eye rolls.
RJ Barrett and Immanuel Quickley for OG Anunoby. This was perceived as a good deal, and it was. We’ll elaborate later.
Five first-round picks for Mikal Bridges? Outlandish. You’d have to win a championship to justify this deal, and the Knicks weren’t winning any championships. This leads me to the first quality this front office has shown that the Rockets could learn from:
Sheer, unadulterated audacity.
Let’s get back to that Anunoby deal. Barrett was 23. He was averaging a respectable 18.2 points per game. Rest assured that he had supporters who felt he’d reach his ceiling if the Knicks were just patient. The team identified him as a sub-championship player and moved him anyway.
It was bold. Fortune favors the brave. It’s a consistent theme in the Knicks’ decision-making process. They’re seemingly impervious to outside noise. This organization has done whatever it thought it needed to do. It has trusted its own internal evaluation process, and it has paid off.
This is not about any particular Rocket. Barrett, as a talented-but-flawed, productive young player, could be Thompson, Alperen Sengun, or Reed Sheppard. The point is that if the Rockets do not believe any one of these young guys could get on the floor in the NBA Finals, they should trade them and live with the fan outrage. The fans will calm down when the team is in the NBA Finals.
Did I mention the NBA Finals?
The Knicks have targeted playoff-proof players
Towns’ turn as a plus defender has certainly been unexpected. Now that it’s happened, take a look at the Knicks’ playoff rotation.
See any non-shooters besides Mitchell Robinson? See any defensive liabilities at all? That’s right, you don’t. One non-shooter. Zero defensive liabilities.
Here’s an analogy I’ve been toying with lately. A team’s offensive creation is its weapon. Shooting and defense are its armor. The defensive aspect of that analogy is obvious, but spacing the floor protects your star creator’s ability to create.
In the NBA Finals, you can afford as few weak links as possible. This isn’t unique to the Knicks. The Thunder, Celtics, and Bucks’ rosters were all similarly constructed. Even the Nuggets insulated the best offensive creator in the world (at the time) with a platoon of shooters and defenders.
Ultimately, this entire piece just reduces to another “Sengun and Thompson can’t shoot, Sengun and Sheppard are both questionable defenders” piece. It’s the reality the Rockets need to be facing. They should look to the Knicks, who realized they didn’t have a championship-caliber roster and took bold steps to build one.
That doesn’t mean trade everyone now. The Rockets can continue building through the draft. The first step is to find their Brunson (yes, I know Towns is on track for Finals MVP, but Brunson bears the brunt of the defensive pressure). It doesn’t matter how you do that, but once you do, you can’t be scared to part with beloved young players to put the right team around him.
In time, the Rockets might be fun to talk about again.
May 30, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates starting pitcher Mitch Keller (23) delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images
On a Friday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates lost 6-3 to the Atlanta Braves on the road. With that loss, a new issue is opening up for the team, and the issue is starting pitcher Mitch Keller.
Keller started the game, and he went 4.2 innings allowing seven hits, six earned runs and walking three batters. He threw 99 pitches in not even four complete innings of the game.
Friday night’s loss is not the first time we saw the 30-year-old pitcher struggle. The last game Keller pitched was on May 30 against the Minnesota Twins. In that game, he allowed 10 hits and seven earned runs in just four innings pitched.
The right-handed pitcher also had mediocre performances lately against the St. Louis Cardinals and the Colorado Rockies. In the game against the Cards, he allowed 4 earned runs in the 9-6 loss, and in the game against the Rockies, he allowed seven hits and six earned runs in a 10-4 loss against one of the worst teams in baseball.
The recent struggles bring up the tough question. Has Mitch Keller lost his touch ?
I think they do, which is not easy for me to say. Some of his most recent struggles are coming against non playoff teams like the Twins and the Rockies. To start the season, a lot of people believed that the Bucs had one of the strongest starting rotations in the Majors, but because of his mediocre performances of late, it looks like Keller is towards the bottom of the rotation.
Keller had two really solid seasons in 2023 and in 2024 for Pittsburgh. During his only All-Star campaign in 2023, he set a career-best in strikeouts (210) and innings pitched (194.1) while posting 13 wins and a strong 4.21 ERA. That year he cemented himself as the ace of the Pirates rotation.
Last year, Keller had a rough 6-15 record, but I thought a lot of those losses were on the struggling offense. His ERA last season was actually pretty solid at 4.19, and he had 150 strikeouts, which wasn’t bad either.
To start this season, he has a 5-3 record which is a little deceiving. Right now he has a 4.81 ERA in 13 games pitched, which is high. I don’t think Mitch Keller has been terrible, but he definitely has been disappointing of late after a decent start.
The Pirates also need to have Keller go longer into games. The former All Star hasn’t gotten past the sixth inning since May 1. With the bullpen still being shaky, it is important to have the starters go longer into their starts so the bullpen is relied on as much.
I like Keller a lot, and I don’t like that he has been terrible, but he is pitching as well as the team needs him to do right now. If the Pirates want to keep pace with the Milwaukee Brewers in the NL Central, they need the pitching to be better, and it starts with Mitch Keller.
Comment below if you think Mitch Keller has touch his touch on the mound.
Aug 2, 2025; North Augusta, South Carolina, USA; GreenJacket outfielder Eric Hartman (17) throws the ball during the Augusta GreenJackets and Carolina Mudcats game at SRP Park. The GreenJackets won the fifth game of the series 5-3. Mandatory Credit: Katie Goodale - Augusta Chronicle/USA TODAY NETWORK | Katie Goodale / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Saturday’s big story in the Atlanta Braves system seemed like it would be Tate Southisene making his High-A debut after being promoted earlier in the day – but one of his teammates stole the show, as Eric Hartman knocked two home runs and stole a base to continue his impressive run in Rome. Southisene’s High-A debut went about as good as anyone could have hoped for, while Manuel Campos and Jose Manon also had big games, and Hurston Waldrep made his second rehab start.
Austin Gomber got the start and went one out shy of a six inning start, allowing four runs on eight hits and a walk. Gomber also struck out five and picked up 10 whiffs before Anderson Pilar came in to get the final out of the sixth inning. Hayden Harris, Joel Payamps, and James Karinchak each threw a scoreless frame in relief, with Karinchak striking out each of the three hitters he faced.
Brewer Hicklen continued to lead the Stripers offense, as he went two for four with his 10th homer of the season and batted in four of the team’s six runs. Brett Wisely was the only other player with a multi-hit game, going two for four with a double, but Rowdy Tellez and Aaron Schunk each added doubles. Jim Jarvis was held out of the hit column in this one, but he did walk, score a run, and bat one in.
Rocket City Trash Pandas 2, Columbus Clingstones 1
Lucas Braun turned in his best start in Double-A this year, and possibly his best start overall. He went six shutout innings, allowing four hits and two walks with a season-high seven strikeouts to go with 12 whiffs. Jhancarlos Lara followed and allowed a run on a hit and two walks in the seventh, though he did strike out one batted and collected six whiffs. Tyler LaPorte picked up the loss, as he came in for the eighth and allowed an unearned run to score.
Ethan Workinger led the offense, going two for three with a walk and the lone run batted in. Logan Braunschweig added a double and scored the run, while David McCabe had a single and walk in the loss. Luke Waddell and Kevin Kilpatrick were the only other Clingstones to reach base, as each had a single.
Colin Daniel turned in a quality start, going six innings and allowing three runs on five hits and a walk. Daniel also struck out four and had nine whiffs, needing just 79 pitches to get his quality start. Things blew up from there, as Jacob Shafer came in and allowed three runs while recording just two outs. After a scoreless inning and a third from Justin Long, Drew Christo allowed an unearned run to come in during his inning of work.
Tate Southisene had a strong debut, but it was overshadowed by a monster night from Eric Hartman. All Hartman did was hit a pair of homers, walk, and steal a base in his four plate appearances. With these two solo shots, Hartman is up to 15 homers on the season, and his steal takes him to 25 bags stolen. Southisene reached base three times in five plate appearances in his debut, recording a double and a pair of walks. Colby Jones also added a homer, giving him three on the year. Both Isaiah Drake and Dixon Williams had base hits, and Williams had an RBI as well. John Gil was hitless in five at bats.
Delmarva Shorebirds 7, Augusta GreenJackets 3
Alex Lodise, SS: 1-3, BB, RBI, .247/.331/.388
Conor Essenburg, CF: 1-4, BB, .246/.380/.446
Luis Guanipa, RF: 2-4, .310/.358/.507
Zach Royse, SP: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 4.56 ERA
Zach Royse turned in another solid start, allowing three runs on seven hits and three walks over five innings. He also struck out seven with 14 whiffs, bringing him to over a strikeout per inning on the season. Cristobal Abreu was next and he threw a scoreless inning, walking two and striking out one with four whiffs among his 18 pitches. Logan Forsythe also added a scoreless inning before Luis Arestigueta allowed four runs in just one third of an inning to break this game open for Delmarva. Styven Paez pitched the final inning and two thirds of scoreless baseball, and struck out four batters for the five outs he recorded.
Even without Tate Southisene the prospects at the top of the order were the catalysts for the Augusta offense in this one. Luis Guanipa had a two-hit day, while Conor Essenburg and Alex Lodise each singled and drew a walk, with Lodise picking up an RBI. Taking Southisene’s place was the recently demoted Cody Miller, who singled and batted in a run. The real star of the day was Cooper McMurray, who doubled and homered, and brought his OPS up to .703 – which is impressive as he was at just .488 after April. Michael Martinez also added a single, but did strike out in each of his other three at bats.
FCL Braves 4, FCL Rays 3
Manuel Campos, SS: 2-4, 3B, R, RBI, .264/.380/.407
Hurston Waldrep’s second rehab start also went two innings, just like his first one. Waldrep battled his command a bit, giving up two hits and three walks plus a wild pitch, but struck out hitters for four of the six outs he recorded. After Robinson Narciso allowed a run during his inning, normal starter Gensi Angeles came in and pitched five strong innings of relief, allowing a run on four hits and a walk with three strikeouts. That takes Angeles’ ERA to 1.98 through 27.1 innings – though his velocity being more upper 80’s has a bit of a limit on his ceiling despite his success. Yander Pinero pitched a scoreless ninth inning to pick up the save.
The star today on the hitting side was again Manuel Campos, who was two for four with a triple, run scored, and one batted in. Caden Merritt actually won the game when he hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth to put the Braves ahead. Yamvier Carrero singled, stole a base, scored, and batted in a run, while Owen Carey walked and doubled in the win – joining Manuel Dos Passos, who singled and doubled, as players who had an extra base knock. Top prospect Diego Tornes was hitless in three at bats, but did draw a walk.
DSL Braves 12, DSL Cubs 10
Jose Manon, SS: 1-2, 2B, 3 BB, 2 R, 3 RBI, SB
Starlyn De La Cruz, CF: 0-2, 3 BB, R
Jorwin Pulido, DH: 2-3, 2B, BB, 2 R, 2 RBI
Cesar Navarro, SP: 4 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
This game perfectly sums up what DSL baseball can look like. There were 22 runs scored on just 14 hits, with 10 errors and 18 walks. Started Cesar Navarro had glimpses of a solid start, but did allow four runs (two earned) over his four innings. Two scoreless innings from Ernesto Meza to finish this game off in seven innings was the biggest positive from the pitching side.
Top international signee Jose Manon continued to impress here, going one for two with a double, taking three walks, scoring a pair of runs, batting in three, and stealing a base. Catcher Jorwin Pulido got the start at DH and went two for three with a double, walk, two runs scored, and two batted in. Even Starlyn De La Cruz reached base three times, all via walks, and scored a run. Luis Fortunato singled three times in three at bats and drew a walk, while Osmar Torrealba singled and walked in his four plate appearances plus stole a base. The other key prospect here is Edelson Cabral, who was hitless in four at bats, but drew a walk and stole a base.
Jun 6, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks second baseman Ketel Marte (4) claps for Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman LuJames Grover (16) after a collision at first base against the Washington Nationals in the seventh inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Anna Carrington-Imagn Images | Anna Carrington-Imagn Images
If you’re single by the time you’re 30 in Germany, you’ll have to do chores.
Once an unmarried woman reaches her 30th birthday, they must clean the doorknobs of their best friends’. On the other hand, unmarried 30-year old men will get other cleaning chores. However, there is a way out: you can forego all the cleaning if someone of the opposite sex kisses you.
A giraffe cleans its ears with its tongue.
This is one of our most surprising did you know facts about these tall creatures. A giraffe’s tongue is over a foot and a half long or 21 inches. They also use their tongues to get around thrones and acquire the leaves they want to eat.
Mr. Potato head used to be made of actual potato.
When Mr. Potato Head was first released in 1952, the toy only included eyes, noses, and mouths. For the potato body, kids were expected to provide their own. However, due to the possible safety hazards of the sharp pieces, the plastic body was provided in 1964.
Jun 6, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Seattle Mariners first baseman Josh Naylor (12) dives in safe at home ahead of the tag by Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) in the third inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images | Rick Osentoski-Imagn Images
Before Pride Night at Dodger Stadium last night, the Los Angeles Dodgers unveiled a new, permanent display honoring the lives of Glenn Burke and Billy Bean.
The trade deadline is now less than two months away, and some teams are having to come to terms that 2026 might not be their year. One such team is the Boston Red Sox, who have a surplus of catchers on their roster, as well as some effective arms in their bullpen. The Sox aren’t truly out of it (yet) but their upcoming schedule may solidify them as sellers within the next couple weeks.
I will talk from time to time about the “shape” of a win. As much fun as these come from behind, walk-off wins are, it would be okay to have some mundane wins too. It’s ironic that Bears quarterback Caleb Williams and Pete Crow-Armstrong have been publicly seen hanging out this year. The Bears set an NFL record for games in a single season in which they were losing in the fourth quarter and eventually won. The Cubs are leading major league baseball in walk-off wins. This was their eighth. Both teams have had a pretty special season in terms of come from behind.
In the long run, the problem is that these types of wins are often a little fluky. The win against the A’s happened, in part, because the A’s had used a lot of bullpen in securing a pair of one-run wins against the Cubs. I’m sure the Bears coaching and management staff would all say that if they have to rely on a lot of last-second wins in the upcoming season, they’ll probably struggle. Yes, there is something a team picks up in terms of confidence and standing up to pressure that comes from these wins. But as we saw in the couple of games where Williams and the Bears didn’t complete their comeback attempts, one bad bounce or one odd play can derail one of those games.
I’m reminded of the Cubs front office pointing out that the best teams aren’t necessarily the best in close games. The best teams win the most games comfortably and don’t have to sweat out one of those unfortunate bad plays. You want to build a model that builds a team that just straight out wins games. Unfortunately, this Cubs team and that Bears team weren’t really those teams. The margins were too close. Everything was necessarily a grind. So here we are. It’s not going to be easy or pretty. But this team is still in the hunt. In for a penny, in for a pound. Let’s take the journey.
A quick hat tip to most of the Cub pitching staff. Two runs allowed in 10 innings is an excellent performance. A homer off of Caleb Thielbar (who did strike out two of the three he faced) and Daniel Palencia’s rough ninth inning was really the only blemishes for the pitching staff. Everyone else was pretty superb. As is so often the case with games like this, there are very few contributions that you could take out of the stack and still see a Cubs win. Every little bit helps.
Three Positives:
I mean, this was Pete Crow-Armstrong’s game. Four hits, two of them homers. One tied the game in the sixth and one tied the game in the ninth. Very nice.
Ben Brown threw 5.1 innings, faced just 19 hitters and allowed a hit, a walk and hit a batter. He struck out five. I continue to think any path to staying competitive is going to look just like this 16-20 batters faced for the starter and get out of there. Don’t save bullets or worry about setting things up for facing a hitter three times.
Jacob Webb threw two scoreless innings. He did have to face eight hitters to get six outs, but he’s been a god send in the bullpen. With he and Brown both throwing, you saw the two most effective Cub pitchers so far in one game.
Game 65, June 6: Cubs 3, Giants 2 (34-31)
Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.
THREE HEROES:
Superhero: Pete Crow-Armstrong (.737). 4-5, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 2 R
Hero: Ben Brown (.310). 5.1 IP, 19 BF, H, BB, 0 ER, 5 K, HBP
Sidekick: Ryan Rolison (.308). IP, 2 K
THREE GOATS:
Billy Goat: Daniel Palencia (-.305). IP, 5 BF, 2 H, 0 ER, K
Goat: Nico Hoerner (-.175). 0-4
Kid: Alex Bregman (-.175) . 0-3, BB, K
WPA Play of the Game: Pete Crow-Armstrong’s game-tying, solo homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth. (.489)
Giants Play of the Game: Bryce Eldrige singled with a runner on first and one out in the ninth, the game tied. (.186).
Cubs Player of the Game:
Game 64 Winner: Seiya Suzuki received 61 of 105 votes.
Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)
The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.
Michael Busch +22
Ben Brown +11.5
Pete Crow-Armstrong/Michael Conforto +10
Carson Kelly +9.5
Ryan Rolison/Phil Maton/Jameson Taillon -8
Caleb Thielbar -9
Matt Shaw -10
Dansby Swanson -11
Seiya Suzuki -26.5
Win Pace: 84.7
Up Next: The third and final game of the series. Jameson Taillon (2-5, 5.13, 66.2 IP) starts for the Cubs. He’s allowed nine homers in his last four starts (21 IP). Last time, he was pretty decent over 6.1 innings, allowing two runs on six hits and a walk. Hopefully he can do that again. 25-year-old right hander Trevor McDonald (2-3, 4.50, 34 IP) starts for the Giants. Making just his seventh start of the year for the Giants, McDonald has lost his last three starts, allowing 12 earned runs in 15 innings of work.
It’s been a long time since the Cubs won a series. How about now?
