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Phillies continue to show Dodgers aren't invincible with 8th win in 10 meetings

Phillies continue to show Dodgers aren't invincible with 8th win in 10 meetings originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Whether you’re a fan of the Phillies or the Dodgers, whether you’re a casual or a diehard, this weekend’s series at Citizens Bank Park was legitimate baseball theater.

Three games decided by four runs. Comebacks or near comebacks each night. Execution in the field. Relievers picking each other up. Hitters forcing pitchers to come to them rather than trying to do too much.

The Phillies took a four-run lead in the bottom of the third inning of Sunday’s series finale but the Dodgers came all the way back to take the lead with three in the top of the seventh off Jordan Romano, who also blew a save on Opening Day and allowed two runs in the ninth inning Friday with the Phillies up by three.

Romano is already a concern and the Phillies have to figure out what’s behind his diminished velocity and shaky command, but all the negatives hurt a bit less after a win. Especially after an 8-7 comeback that gives you a series victory over a team that arrived undefeated and is destined to win 100-plus games.

“I thought it was a great series, I thought we played great baseball,” said Bryce Harper, who doubled to start the Phillies’ game-winning rally and scored the tying run on a Bryson Stott single.

“That’s a good team over there, obviously. We took the lead, they came back, they took the lead, we came back. Just two good teams fighting back and forth.

“Knowing we match up pretty well against them, it’s huge for us. Got a great group of guys in here.”

The Phillies don’t just match up pretty well against the Dodgers, they’ve beaten them in eight of the last 10 meetings and six of seven at Citizens Bank Park, outscoring them 38-20 at home over that span.

Does it mean anything if the teams meet in the NLCS? Maybe, maybe not. But the Phillies aren’t going to be intimidated by the perception of L.A. towering over everyone else. The mystique might impact some opponents but not this one.

“They’re the defending champions but this is a new season,” Cristopher Sanchez said after beating the Dodgers for the third time in less than a calendar year.

Only nine games in, a host of Phillies position players have already been “the guy” in a win: Castellanos, Kyle Schwarber, J.T. Realmuto, Trea Turner, Stott, Max Kepler, Edmundo Sosa.

Sosa has been the Phillies’ best player so far this season and had another big day Sunday starting at third base for Alec Bohm. Sosa singled in his first two at-bats, then busted it down the line to beat out a fielder’s choice in the bottom of the seventh that brought in the game-winning run. It was a bang-bang play with Sosa ruled safe.

“We’ve got to really look at this because so far, it’s real,” manager Rob Thomson said. “He has two hits every game. He’s played great at third, great at short, he did well in center field yesterday. We’ve really got to get into the lab and try to figure out some stuff to get him into the lineup.”

One way might be starting Sosa in left field against tough lefties. Keep an eye out for Tuesday’s lineup against Chris Sale.

The Phillies are 7-2 through three series. It hasn’t been perfect, but it’s been a reminder of how talented and deep they are, how complete a roster it is compared to 27-28 other teams.

“Someone asked me at the start of the series, what’s it going to tell you about your club? Well, I pretty much know our club, and they’re grinders, they’re fighters,” Thomson said. “That’s who they are.”

Now it’s on to Atlanta to face a Braves team that already has to be feeling some desperation after a 1-8 start. Tuesday’s pitching matchup is as good as it gets, Zack Wheeler vs. Sale, a battle of the NL Cy Young runner-up and winner from a season ago.

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Giants' bullpen shows its worth in three-game series sweep of Mariners

Giants' bullpen shows its worth in three-game series sweep of Mariners originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Most of the talk surrounding the Giants this season has been about the addition of ace pitcher Justin Verlander and an offense that has shown a certain panache for coming through in the clutch.

It’s certainly fair to say the bullpen has been equally responsible, if not more so, for San Francisco’s best start to a season in more than two decades.

Take the three-game weekend series against the Seattle Mariners for example.

Giants relievers had to shoulder a heavy load against the Mariners, especially considering Verlander left Friday’s game after recording just seven outs. The bullpen combined to pitch 15 1/3 innings in the three-game sweep while carving a nifty 1.17 ERA.

San Francisco manager Bob Melvin reached deep into his bag of tricks against Seattle, leaning on eight different relievers to get through the series. Five of the six — Randy Rodriguez, Tyler Rogers, Ryan Walker, Erik Miller and Camilo Doval — each pitched in two of the games, while Lou Trivino, Spencer Bivens and Hayden Birdsong pitched in one game apiece.

With the exception of blown saves by Trivino and Doval on Friday — and another by Doval in Sunday’s eventual 5-4 walk-off win — the ‘pen was on point.

“We have a lot of good arms in our bullpen, and we had to use them a lot,” Melvin said. “Everybody’s contributed. Doesn’t surprise me that the bullpen has pitched this well in the series [while] covering quite a few innings.”

Sunday’s victory was a good example of how well the Giants’ bullpen has been.

After starter Jordan Hicks was pulled in the sixth inning, Rodriguez came in and escaped of a one-out jam with one runner on. Rogers followed with a 1-2-3 inning, then Miller entered and allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base before inducing an infield pop-up and an inning-ending double play.

With Walker unavailable after pitching on consecutive days, Melvin then turned to Doval. In typical torture fashion, the former Giants closer gave up the tying run in the top of the ninth but got off the hook when Wilmer Flores came through with his 13th career walk-off hit.

“I know how good we are and I know how good we will be,” Birdsong told NBC Sports Bay Area. “This series we threw well in certain situations, but I think we’re going to be better down the road. Right now it’s kind of figuring it out.”

In 2024, the Giants had a decent bullpen that went through various alterations throughout the course of the season. San Francisco had a 3.96 ERA that was the 16th-lowest mark in the majors while teaming up for a league-leading 658 strikeouts.

Albeit a small sample size, this season’s bullpen is a major strength so far.

Heading into Sunday’s game, Giants relievers had combined for a 1.75 ERA that was the third-best mark in the majors and had five saves, tied for second in MLB.

“It’s incredible for the starters because it frees them up to play their own games,” Giants outfielder Mike Yastrzemski said. “They don’t have to worry about anybody coming in behind them because everybody’s been nails. It’s great to see and it’s fun to watch. These guys have worked so hard, and we saw it in spring training.”

Versatility and depth have been the early common theme for the bullpen. Almost all of San Francisco’s relievers can pitch in multiple situations and can be used in the set-up role if need be. Walker and Doval also are interchangeable at the back end.

“You feel strong one through eight,” Miller said. “It’s always a good feeling where no matter who gets the ball, you feel like they’re going to go out there and shut it down.”

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Alex Ovechkin Breaks Wayne Gretzky's Goal Record vs. Islanders

Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

ELMONT, NY -- Washington Capitals superstar Alex Ovechkin has broken Wayne Gretzky's record for most goals scored in National Hockey League history against the New York Islanders. 

At 7:26 of the second, he beat Ilya Sorokin blocker side on the power play for goal No. 895, sending UBS Arena into a frenzy:

Ovechkin was then joined on the ice by his teammates, Wayne Gretzky, Gary Bettman, and the Islanders players:

Stay updated with the most interesting Islanders stories, analysis, breaking news and more! Tap the star to add us to your favorites on Google News to never miss a story.

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SEE IT: Alex Ovechkin surpasses Wayne Gretzky, becomes NHL's all-time leading goal-scorer

Hockey history happened on Long Island.

In the second period of the Islanders’ matchup with the Washington Capitals, Alex Ovechkin scored his 895th career goal, surpassing Wayne Gretzky for the most ever.

Trailing 2-0, the Capitals found themselves on the power play, allowing Ovechkin, who has the most power-play goals in NHL history, to put his name in the record books as he wristed one past Ilya Sorokin for the record-breaking goal.

With the Islanders’ crowd chanting “Ovi, Ovi,” the games was stopped for a ceremony to allow Ovechkin to fully soak in the moment, as he officially became the greatest goal scorer in NHL history.

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Ottawa Senators Defenseman Jake Sanderson Takes His Offensive Production To A New Level

When Jake Sanderson signed an 8-year, $64.4 million extension with the Ottawa Senators in September 2023, it raised eyebrows across the NHL – primarily outside of Ottawa. Critics questioned whether the young defenseman deserved such a big deal after only 77 games in the league.

Mar 30, 2025: Ottawa Senators defenseman Jake Sanderson (85) skates up ice against the Pittsburgh Penguins at PPG Paints Arena (Imagn Images)

With just four career goals and 32 points, some wondered how Sanderson could already be getting paid close to what superstar defenseman Cale Makar makes with the Colorado Avalanche.

This season, as that hefty new contract has kicked in, no one is talking in negative terms anymore.

When former Senators GM Pierre Dorion signed Sanderson to that contract, there was already a lot to like about the player, in particular a powerful skating stride that serves him so well in both short and long races for the puck—often erasing the rookie mistakes he'd sometimes make. Dorion was banking on the belief that the next-level, higher-end offensive production, his one missing ingredient, would eventually come as he continued to get more comfortable in the league.

He was right. So right.

On Saturday night, Sanderson had a goal and an assist to help lead the Senators past the Stanley Cup champion Florida Panthers, 3-0. That gave him 53 points on the season and briefly moved him into the top ten in NHL scoring among defensemen, one spot ahead of former Senator Erik Karlsson (Sanderson slipped to 11th later in the day).

This new spike of offence has been a nice add-on to all the other things Sanderson does well. For example, in the past two games, some of the moves and breakout passes Sanderson managed to pull off to get the Senators out of heavy forecheck trouble were truly outstanding.

Sanderson now has 28 points in his past 28 games, a run that began in late January as we began to approach the NHL 4 Nations tournament. So he's almost doubled his points percentage (0.53) from the first 47 games this season, when he put up just 25 points. As the Sens stumbled into March on a five-game losing slide, Sanderson's breakout has been a game-changer in bolstering Ottawa’s playoff hopes.

Back in early February, Sanderson foreshadowed his imminent improvements in a conversation with The Hockey News.

"Yeah, at the start of season, I wasn't feeling myself," Sanderson said. "Right now, I feel pretty good. My energy is really good on the ice. I haven't scored in a while, but I'm getting a lot of chances, and that's all I can ask for. So, you know, they're gonna go in eventually."

Perhaps being talked about for a best-on-best tournament and then actually playing in it isn't bad for a 22-year-old's confidence. Sanderson described the 4 Nations experience as "life-changing," and maybe sometime this summer, he'll have a chance to reflect on individual accomplishments. But right now, he's all about helping the team get to the playoffs.

"We're confident where we are right now," Sanderson told the media last week. "We know we're playing good hockey. So at the end of the day, if we're losing, honestly, we're just beating ourselves. But yeah, like I said, we feel pretty confident right now."

Even with the full focus on the team at the moment, the way Sanderson is playing now makes it impossible not to notice the individual excellence. In Saturday's victory over Florida, Sanderson even made a little history, becoming the first defenseman in Ottawa Senators history with a four-game home goal streak.

With Sanderson not even through the first year of his contract and now locked up in Ottawa until 2032, his deal is already highly club-friendly. Based on the way the past two months have gone, we're betting it won't be much longer before it's regarded as one of the very best contracts in the NHL.

Sens Headlines:

One On One: GM Steve Staios' Additions Help To Reset The Ottawa Senators

What's Going On With The Injury To Brady Tkachuk?

Battle of Ontario: Debating Who Would Win A Senators-Leafs Playoff Series

North Dakota Fires Brad Berry, Unofficial Member of Ottawa's Player Development Team

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Alex Ovechkin is now the NHL’s greatest goalscorer. It’s debatable what else he is

Alex Ovechkin is now the top goalscorer in NHL history.Photograph: Adam Hunger/AP

“He’s definitely a very, very, very good player,” the Washington Capitals’ director of amateur scouting, Ross Mahoney, told reporters on the night of the NHL entry draft in June 2004. He was talking about Alex Ovechkin, who the team picked first overall that night. “How good will he be?” Mahoney asked. “Time will tell.” Now, nearly 21 years later, time has had its say. On Sunday afternoon in a game against the New York Islanders, Ovechkin scored his 895th goal, passing Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL scoring record, a tally that had stood since 29 March 1999 and that few believed would ever be broken.

Related: Alex Ovechkin breaks Wayne Gretzky’s all-time NHL scoring record with 895th goal

Had things been slightly different in 2004, we might have been having this conversation a year ago. The NHL season after Ovechkin’s draft – the 2004-05 campaign – never happened, replaced instead by a long dispute between the league and the players’ union. Ovechkin bided his time in Russia, where he played 37 games with Dynamo Moscow. Finally, in autumn of 2005, he stepped on to NHL ice for Washington and, as Mahoney – and everyone else – expected by that time, he proved immediately to be a very good player. Ovechkin scored two goals in his first game, the first of an eventual 52 on the season (alongside 54 assists).

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That rookie year tally included what is still regarded as one of the most impressive, and improbable, goals of all time. During a game against the Phoenix Coyotes, Ovechkin somehow scored while sliding along the ice on his back, facing away from the Coyotes net. “It was unbelievable,” Auston Matthews, who was eight at the time and at the game that night, later recalled. “Nobody really cheered, they really couldn’t get their heads wrapped around what just happened. It was pretty crazy.” Also not cheering was the coach standing behind the Coyotes’ bench that night: Wayne Gretzky.

When Ovechkin helped bring the Stanley Cup to Washington in 2018, the first in the team’s history, he fulfilled the expectations that had followed him for his 12 NHL seasons to that point. And it certainly seemed like he knew it. Nobody celebrated with the Cup quite like Ovi did – nor, frankly, has anyone done it with the same reckless abandon since. The Cup also meant that Ovechkin solidified himself among the greats – as a man capable of scoring, but also winning. On that count, until Ovi began to close in on Gretzky’s goal record, he was most closely compared to Sidney Crosby, who entered the NHL a season after Ovechkin. The two have never been exactly stylistically identical, yet their points totals have tracked along eerily similar trajectories for the entirety of their careers. But until the Caps’ Cup, Crosby – with three championships – was usually regarded as the more accomplished player overall. While Ovechkin’s goal record may not fully balance things out, it seems fitting that, with it, the two players will likely be regarded in the long run as equals – the best examples of what the NHL has to offer.

Related: Et tu, Wayne: Gretzky’s legacy in Canada takes hit over 4 Nations snub

On the ice, anyway. Elsewhere, Ovechkin’s astonishing playing career may always be accompanied by an asterisk: a note about his unsavory, full-throated support for Vladimir Putin. In 2017, Ovechkin launched Putin Team, a social movement that, as he wrote in an Instagram post at the time, “unites people who are proud of their country and want to make Russia stronger.” It went on to say that Putin Team was for people who valued Putin’s “trust in and respect for his people, his fairness [and] righteousness, and the fact that he really cares.” Ovechkin recruited other Russian athletes to the cause, including Crosby’s longtime Pittsburgh Penguins teammate, Evgeny Malkin. In a separate post at the time, Ovechkin wrote that “I never hid my relationship with [Putin], always openly supported him.” Indeed, Ovechkin stood alongside Putin in his Instagram profile photo.

In 2022, after Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine, Ovechkin was less open about the closeness of that relationship, but fell well short of criticizing the Russian leader. Unlike fellow Russian NHLer Artemi Panarin – who said, among other things, that Putin “no longer understands what’s right and what’s wrong” – Ovechkin only said that he didn’t want to see anyone get hurt or killed in the conflict and that he hoped “it was going to be over and we are going to be living in a good world.” As for whether he still supported Putin, Ovechkin said, “Well, he’s my president, but [like] I said, I’m not in politics, I’m an athlete.”

Obviously, that’s never really been true for Ovechkin, but it also feels increasingly that it can’t be true for anyone. When Ovi started out, perhaps athletes could more easily separate their sport persona with the world beyond the game. But over the course of the two decades of Ovechkin’s career, the political and cultural environment has changed significantly, as has the broad perspective of past actions. Now, nobody is free from scrutiny, and whatever dotted line that some athletes once tried to draw between politics from sports in the past, is now gone. Even Gretzky isn’t immune. Where for decades Gretzky was considered untouchable, his own recent close association with a controversial politician, Donald Trump, has undermined his greatness in the eyes of many of his fellow Canadians. The Great One is now, as they say, The Great Once.

Ovechkin is still great, as far as the hockey goes. That’s undeniable. But just as on his draft day only time could tell how great a player he’d be, history will now dictate how great he is ultimately considered to have been. When he talked to reporters after the game in Phoenix in 2006 where Ovechkin scored his greatest goal, Gretzky said it was “pretty nice.” “He’s a phenomenal player ... He deserves all the accolades he’s getting.” That’s still true. But by the same token, he will deserve everything else, too.

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Alex Ovechkin breaks Wayne Gretzky’s NHL career goals record by scoring his 895th

NEW YORK (AP) — Alex Ovechkin has broken Wayne Gretzky’s record for the most goals in NHL history by scoring the 895th of his career.

The Washington Capitals’ captain made history Sunday against the New York Islanders by beating fellow Russian Ilya Sorokin on a power play in the second period. Ovechkin had never scored on Sorokin before, making his countryman the 183rd different goaltender he has beaten.

Just as they did after he scored No. 894 minutes earlier, teammates mobbed the 39-year-old Russian to celebrate the accomplishment, which replaced a record that had stood for 31 years.

Gretzky’s total of 894 goals had long seemed unapproachable. Ovechkin passed it even after missing 16 games in November and December because of a broken left leg, a testament to his durability and a knack for putting the puck in the net consistently for two decades. He surpassed 40 goals this season for a 14th time — two more than Gretzky and also the most in league history.

Even before this, Ovechkin owned the NHL records for power-play goals, shots on goal and the most goalies scored against, now adding Sorokin to that list. Only Gretzky has more multi-goal games, and Ovechkin earlier this season became just the sixth player with 700 goals and 700 assists, joining Gretzky, Gordie Howe, Jaromir Jagr, Marcel Dionne and Phil Esposito.

Ovechkin last moved up the all-time goal-scoring list Dec. 23, 2022, when he got Nos. 801 and 802 to tie and pass Howe.

The chase by the Great 8, a nickname honoring his jersey number, captured attention from North America to Ovechkin’s native Russia, where billboards and goal-counters cheered on and tracked his effort. It helped Ovechkin that his team is one of the best in the NHL this season, defying expectations.

Gretzky broke Howe’s record a little over 31 years ago, since he scored 802 on March 23, 1994. He added 92 more before retiring in 1999 after a total of 1,487 games over 20 seasons.

Even with this one falling to Ovechkin — which he has said he is excited about — Gretzky holds 55 NHL records, and two seem truly untouchable: 2,857 total points and 1,963 assists, the latter of which is more than anyone else has in goals and assists combined.

For NHL playoff goals, which do not count toward the record, Gretzky has the most (122). Ovechkin has 72. Gretzky also had another 56 in the World Hockey Association regular season and playoffs, while Ovechkin has 57 from his time in the KHL, Russia’s top league.

Returning to Russia to play in front of family and friends is an option at some point for Ovechkin, who has one season left after this one on the five-year, $47.5 million contract he signed in 2021, which took him through age 40 to give him enough time to chase Gretzky’s record. Instead, he got it done earlier than just about anyone could have realistically expected.

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Yaz states Robles' amazing catch, scary collision show his ‘character'

Yaz states Robles' amazing catch, scary collision show his ‘character' originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

In one of the most intense moments of the Giants’ game against the Seattle Mariners on Sunday, a hush fell over the Oracle Park crowd in the bottom of the ninth inning.

With the game tied 4-4, Mariners right fielder Victor Robles rushed into foul territory to catch fly ball hit by Patrick Bailey, putting his body on the line and crashing into the net at full speed. Robles somehow made the catch as the net pushed his glove arm back and over his head, then fell to the ground in agony and tossed the ball away while Luis Matos tagged up from first base and advanced to second after a review.

Giants right fielder Mike Yastrzemski knows the notoriously difficult-to-play area very well, and he couldn’t believe his eyes when he saw Robles come up with the ball.

“That was incredible,” Yastrzemski told reporters after San Francisco’s eventual 5-4 walk-off win. “It’s one of the best outfield plays I’ve ever seen in my life. Obviously hope that nothing went too wrong and he’s able to bounce back quick, but man, what an unbelievable effort and commitment to his team that says a lot about his character. That’s incredible to see.”

Mariners manager Dan Wilson told reporters after the game that Robles left with a shoulder issue and was undergoing initial imaging at Oracle Park. After the play, Matos ended up scoring on Wilmer Flores’ two-out, walk-off single — and Yastrzemski knew immediately the young Giants outfielder would have a chance to tag on the ball hit to Robles.

“I was more so concerned about the runner,” Yastrzemski said. “I wanted Matos to tag because I’ve seen that ball stay fair so many times, and I know how tricky that corner can be. So, I kind of caught [the catch] out of the corner of my eye. I’m glad the net was there for part of it, too, because there’s just concrete over there. Who knows what could have happened.

“It’s one of those things where you really hope he is OK, but man, I’ve ever seen anything like that.”

The netting between the field and fans at Oracle Park was extended to both outfield foul poles before the 2020 MLB season, offering more protection from foul balls, flying bats and leaping players. Yastrzemski said the netting can give outfielders more confidence to make a play, but it still can be dangerous.

“There have been some plays in the past couple years where I’ve seen guys be saved by [the netting],” Yastrzemski said. “Obviously I’m not so sure that was the case here, but you definitely have the ability to be more aggressive and go it, especially when the wall is knee-high.

“It’s one of those things where you’ve got to – it’s just another obstacle, too. It’s something you’ve got to look out for, and every time you go to a new ballpark you’ve got to be walking the field and trying to get as much information as you can.”

Yastrzemski certainly can appreciate Robles giving his all to keep the Mariners in Sunday’s game. And after delivering one of the most jaw-dropping catches in Oracle Park history, the Giants certainly hope Robles ends up OK.

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Tour of Flanders: Pogacar stops Van der Poel’s bid while Kopecky earns third women’s title

  • Slovenian takes title in style after 19km solo attack
  • Lotte Kopecky makes history and adds to previous wins

Tadej Pogacar denied Mathieu van der Poel a record fourth Tour of Flanders title when the Slovenian won the second Monument of the season in Belgium for the second time in his career on Sunday.

The 26-year-old Pogacar, who skipped the 2024 edition to focus on a Giro d’Italia-Tour de France double, had won the Tour of Flanders in 2023. Second in the 268.9-km race, which started in Markt in Bruges and concluded in Minderbroedersstraat in Oudenaarde, was the Dane, Mads Pedersen with Belgium-born Van der Poel coming third to complete the podium. Home heros Wout Van Aert and Jasper Stuyven rounded up the top five.

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Pep Guardiola left to rue dropped points as Manchester derby ends in bore draw

Blunt and tame, this 196th ­Manchester derby was a curio that failed to ignite despite the cross-town rivalry. Towards the close, Joshua Zirkzee had the contest’s clearest opening: the No 11 swung a boot at Patrick Dorgu’s cross and connected cleanly but ­Ederson saved, cat-like, and ­Manchester City escaped; as they did, also, when a later penalty shout for Mateo ­Kovacic’s challenge on Casemiro was correctly waved away.

So this finished as a non-event in the sun, with scant incident and only marginally more goalmouth action.

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Dodgers place starting pitcher Blake Snell on injured list

Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell looks down as he struggles during the first two inning against the Atlanta Braves on April 2
Dodgers starting pitcher Blake Snell, who struggled at times against the Atlanta Braves on April 2 at Dodger Stadium, has been placed on the injured list. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

The Dodgers placed starting pitcher Blake Snell on the injured list Sunday with left shoulder inflammation, dealing the first injury blow to their starting rotation this season.

Snell’s IL stint was backdated to April 3, meaning the $182-million offseason signing will be out at least through the end of next week’s homestead.

Manager Dave Roberts didn’t have a specific timeline for Snell’s expected absence, but said the left-hander would miss a minimum of two starts.

Read more:Pitching and defensive struggles prove costly as Dodgers drop series to Phillies

Before his injury was announced Sunday, Snell threw off the bullpen mound at Citizens Bank Park, then spoke with general manager Brandon Gomes and head trainer Thomas Albert for several minutes in the outfield.

Roberts said Snell reported soreness, prompting the Dodgers to IL him ahead of his next scheduled start Tuesday.

“If you’re not going to finish your bullpen, that’s pretty much a tell-all to then kind of nip whatever is going on in his arm,” Roberts said.

The Dodgers called up reliever Matt Sauer in a corresponding move, but are without a clear starter for either Tuesday or Wednesday (when they were already planning to go with a bullpen game or spot starter, rather than pitch Yoshinobu Yamamoto on four days’ rest).

The team does have depth options in triple-A, including Landon Knack, Bobby Miller and Justin Wrobleski.

“One day you feel good with where you’re at, and then the next day you’re scrambling a little bit,” Roberts said of the uncertainty in the starting rotation. “That’s part of the marathon of a major-league season.”

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

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Wilyer Abreu walks it off for Red Sox in thrilling win vs. Cardinals

Wilyer Abreu walks it off for Red Sox in thrilling win vs. Cardinals originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

Wilyer Abreu and the Boston Red Sox stayed hot Sunday in Game 1 of their doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals at Fenway Park.

Boston entered the bottom of the ninth inning trailing 4-2 with All-Star closer Ryan Helsley on the mound for St. Louis. Trevor Story and Abreu worked back-to-back walks to begin the frame, then Romy Gonzalez made it a one-run game with a one-out double.

Connor Wong walked to load the bases, and Rafael Devers added another walk to score the tying run. Aroldis Chapman kept the Cardinals off the board with a clutch appearance in the top of the 10th.

With one out in the bottom of the 10th, Abreu smashed a line drive off the Green Monster to secure a 5-4 walk-off Red Sox victory:

Abreu, who has arguably been the hottest hitter in baseball to start the year, was supposed to sit Game 1 and play Game 2. Red Sox manager Alex Cora said the 2024 Gold Glove award winner was dealing with “heavy legs,” but the 2024 Gold Glover entered as a pinch-hitter in the ninth inning.

Through nine games, Abreu is hitting .522 (12-for-23) with two doubles, three home runs, nine RBI, eight walks, and only two strikeouts.

The Red Sox’ fourth consecutive win improved their record to 5-4. They will wrap up their series vs. St. Louis with Game 2 of Sunday’s doubleheader at 7:10 p.m. ET.

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Canadiens: Express Visit In Nashville

Samuel Montembeault blanked the Predators in December - Photo credit: David Kirouac-Imagn Images

After nabbing a 3-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers last night, the Montreal Canadiens will try to win a fifth game in a row when they take on the Nashville Predators on Sunday night. The hosts are on the opposite end of the spectrum, having lost their last five games in regulation. The Habs have bounced back after a five-game losing streak and are now 5-3-2 in their last 10 games, while the Preds are 2-8-0 in the same span.

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The two teams have crossed paths once this season so far, with Montreal blanking Nashville 3-0 with Samuel Montembeault. Jake Evans, Patrik Laine, and Joel Armia had scored on the night.

There is no confirmation of who will be in the Canadiens' net and no pregame media availability. Montembeault was on duty last night, but I believe he'll be there if he says he’s good to go. He has a 4-1-0 record against Nashville with a 2.76 goals-against average and a .917 save percentage, while Jakub Dobes has never taken them on. Juuse Saros will be manning the home net; he has a 5-1-1 record against Montreal with a 2.89 GAA and .929 SP.

The Canadiens have not confirmed if Josh Anderson will be back in action. He missed Saturday night’s game for family reasons, and given the timing, it’s highly likely his wife has or is giving birth to the couple’s first child. Oliver Kapanen, who filled in for him on Saturday, played well, and Martin St-Louis said he could see the progress in his game after the months he spent in the SHL. After the game, Brendan Gallagher gave the youngster the man of the match’s glasses as a welcome back.

Up front, Patrik Laine is the Canadiens’ most productive forward against Nashville. With 11 points in 25 games, he’s the only Hab who has hit double digits. Brendan Gallagher is in second place with nine points in 17 games, and Joel Armia is third with an eight-point output in 19 games. Cole Caufield only has seven points, but he got them in the same number of games.

On the other side, Steven Stamkos has 50 points in 52 duels against the Canadiens, Ryan O’Reilly is in second place with 27 points in 30 games, and Jonathan Marchesseault completes the top three with 17 points in 21 games. Barry Trotz went all out on the free agency market last Summer, but the results have been disastrous. The Predators are 30th in the league with 62 points, and the GM will need to be creative this Summer if he wants to turn things around.

Even if they are going through a tough stretch, the Preds have won six of the last ten duels between the two teams. While Montreal has got a four-point lead in the second wild card spot, now is not the time to take their foot off the pedal. The Columbus Blue Jackets, the Detroit Red Wings, and the New York Islanders are all in action on this busy Sunday in the NHL. According to Moneypuck.com, Montreal has a 74.2% chance of making the Spring dance.

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Jalen Brunson set to return to Knicks lineup Sunday vs. Suns

It was reported earlier in the week that this could happen, and on Sunday it will become a reality.

Jalen Brunson is set to return to the Knicks lineup Sunday when New York hosts Phoenix, a story reported by Chris Haynes and multiple Knicks writers.

Earlier in the week, Brunson said he was cleared for basketball activities, the only question on his return was timing. With the Knicks on a back-to-back this weekend — they beat Atlanta Saturday — the real question was which one of the games he would play, because it was never going to be both.

Brunson would be a lock to make an All-NBA team this season except he has played in 61 games and needs to play at least 20 minutes in four more to reach the league's 65-game threshold to be eligible for postseason awards. The Knicks have five games remaining, including Sunday. Brunson is averaging 26.3 points a game this season with a 60.6% true shooting percentage, plus he's dishing out 7.4 assists a game.

Barring a highly unlikely total collapse in the season's final week, the Knicks will be the No. 3 seed in the East and host either Detroit or Milwaukee in the first round.

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Takeaways from the Ducks 6-2 Loss to the Canucks

Apr 5, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Quinn Hughes (43) checks Anaheim Ducks forward Cutter Gauthier (61) during the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images

The Anaheim Ducks wrapped up their brief two-game Western Canada road trip with a Saturday matinee against the Vancouver Canucks. The Ducks were coming off of a decisive 4-1 defeat at the hands of the Calgary Flames on Thursday and fared even worse on Saturday, as they dropped their third game of their last four by a score of 6-2.

Takeaways from the Ducks' 4-1 Loss to the Flames

The Canucks entered Saturday having gone winless in their previous three games and hoping to remain within shouting distance of the second wild card spot in the Western Conference. They were without top centers Elias Pettersson and Filip Chytl in this game.

Jacob Trouba is considered day-to-day with a lower-body injury and missed this game. He was replaced by Oliver Kylington, who played his third game as a Duck. Nikita Nesterenko drew back into the fourth line after he was scratched on Thursday in favor of Brett Leason.

Lukas Dostal got the start for the Ducks and saved just 20 of the 26 shots he faced, but he didn’t stand much of a chance on any of the six goals he let in, as the shots he faced were consistently screened, tipped, or the result of a lapse in coverage.

In the Vancouver crease stood Thatcher Demko, who saved 30 of 32 shots in this game.

Apr 5, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) and defenseman Quinn Hughes (43) defend against Anaheim Ducks forward Isac Lundestrom (21) during the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Anne-Marie Sorvin-Imagn Images

Here are my notes:

Pavel Mintyukov-Mintyukov was easily the most positively impactful Ducks blueliner in this game. He was the only defenseman killing rush attacks in the neutral zone with clever tactics to bait breakout passes to seemingly open outlets before he closed in and caused a turnover.

He was breaking up pass attempts with clever stick checks and was poised yet aggressive with the puck on his stick, looking to create much-needed offense from the offensive blueline and the rush.

Trevor Zegras-Zegras had a tough outing in Calgary, seemingly outmatched by their speed and willingness to crowd the Anaheim crease. However, he bounced back nicely in this game and was far more active on both the forecheck and with the puck on his stick.

He displayed a willingness to curl and support his defensemen when the Ducks were regrouping to build speed from his end and into the neutral zone so that he could attack downhill through the middle of the ice, where he’s the most dangerous.

Rush Defense-Rush defense was a significant issue for the Ducks in the 2023-24 season where forwards would do well to backcheck, but there was a lack of communication and failure to pick up opposing trailers entering the zone. That issue popped up again on Vancouver’s first goal of the game, the one that ignited their stretch of five goals in 4:30.

Special Teams-The Ducks now have the worst power play in the NHL, converting at a 12.4% clip. They could stand to take aspects of what made the Canucks successful on both their man-advantages in this game. Chief among them was movement. Whether it was Quinn Hughes activating to find Conor Garland on the backdoor or Brock Boeser sliding from the goal line to the bumper for a high tip, Vancouver predicated their power play on player movement.

The Ducks power play has been too stagnate for too long. Leo Carlsson, specifically, could stand to activate more to find soft ice away from the puck and render himself more of a consistent scoring threat.


The Ducks will travel back home on Monday to host the Edmonton Oilers, as their remaining schedule is down to six games on the season.

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