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From Boston To Florida, Brad Marchand’s Reign Of Terror Over The Leafs Lives On

Brad Marchand celebrates after scoring the game-winning goal against the Toronto Maple Leafs during overtime in Game 3 of the second round of the 2025 Stanley Cup Playoffs. (Sam Navarro-Imagn Images)

Sometimes, an NHL player more or less owns a particular opponent. Whether it’s happenstance or deliberate dominance, there are unquestionably powerful performances made by certain NHLers against certain teams. And there’s probably no better example of a player laying the boots to one franchise than Florida Panthers left winger Brad Marchand’s amazing play against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Whether it’s been in his time as a member of the Boston Bruins or his current stint with the Panthers, Marchand has been as prickly a thorn in the side of the Maple Leafs as they come. And after Marchand’s game-winning overtime goal in Game 3 of Toronto’s second-round series against Florida, Marchand now has 33 points in 31 career playoff games against the Leafs. 

That’s the third-highest career total of any opponent in Maple Leafs history – only Detroit Red Wings legends Gordie Howe (53 points) and Alex Delvecchio (35) have more post-season points against Toronto. And those players put up those points at a time when there were far fewer teams in the league, making it all the more remarkable that Marchand has been so devastating to the Leafs’ aspirations in a 30-plus-team NHL.

But the 37-year-old Marchand has been a not-so-silent assassin since he began his NHL days in 2009. Marchand’s Game 3-winner against Toronto was his 14th career game-winning goal in the post-season – the most among active NHL players. And Marchand’s game-winner against the Maple Leafs was his fifth career post-season game-winner against Toronto. That ties him with Montreal Canadiens icon Jean Beliveau for the most game-winning playoff goals against the Buds.

In some respects, you could’ve forgiven Leafs GM Brad Treliving if he went out at this year’s trade deadline and acquired Marchand. Of course, the best way you can contain Marchand is to have him on your team. But Marchand wanted to be dealt to the Panthers, and that’s the best stroke of good fortune Florida could’ve asked for.

The Panthers didn’t trade for Marchand strictly because they envisioned a playoff showdown against the Leafs, but you’d be fooling yourself if you believed that Marchand’s success against Toronto didn’t cross the mind of Florida GM Bill Zito when he decided to acquire Marchand.

There’s still lots of the Leafs/Panthers series to be played, and let’s not forget, Toronto did win the first two games of the series with Marchand being on the losing end of things. But the Maple Leafs have been haunted by Marchand for a very long time now, and the prospect of Marchand continuing to thrive against Toronto has to be driving Leafs fans crazy.

The Leafs were within one goal of going up three games to none in the series against Florida, but Marchand stopped that from happening with his latest timely goal. Time will tell if Toronto can shake off the Marchand-related demons of the past and get to the Eastern Conference final this spring, but one thing is for certain – Marchand will go down in history as one of the Maple Leafs’ toughest opponents.

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Ben Rice cracks grand slam, Aaron Judge adds four hits as Yankees pound A's

The Yankees’ batters continued to stay hot with Aaron Judge adding four hits and Ben Rice smacking a grand slam, and Ryan Yarbrough delivered five strong innings in New York’s 12-2 shellacking of the Athletics Sunday in West Sacramento.

In the three games, the Yanks pounded out 29 runs and took two of three to improve to 23-17 on the year. The A's fell to 21-20 (8-13 in their minor-league accommodations). The Yankees hit 16 balls with exit velocities over 99.8 mph, with 11 going for hits (five for extra bases).

Here are the takeaways...

- In the second, Paul Goldschmidt got the Yanks going with a leadoff double off ex-Yank Luis Severino. A wild pitch moved Goldschmidt to third as Jasson Dominguez worked a walk and Anthony Volpe’s single through the left side of the inning plated the first run of the game. Austin Wells stayed on a low and away 0-2 changeup for a single to load the bases and Oswaldo Cabrera tallied an RBI walk, leading to a mound visit. After Jorbit Vivas traded an out for a run on a grounder to short, Severino hit Rice on the back foot, missing on a 1-2 sweeper.

Judge, who struck out his first time up, ripped a two-RBI single to right on a sinker that leaked right over the plate. Cody Bellinger’s soft liner to second and Goldschmidt’s liner to right ended the frame with the visitors up 5-0.

- After Severino’s 37-pitch second, Dominguez smashed a single off the glove of a diving second baseman for a first-pitch base hit in the third. Severino got Volpe to line out and Wells swinging, but on Cabrera's double to the left-center gap, Dominguez ran through a late stop sign at third and got in with a head-first dive, beating the tag to score from first. 

- The Yanks chased Severino in the fifth with Dominguez singling to right and Volpe to left that put runners on the corners with nobody out. Mitch Spence would hit Wells to load the bases. Cabrera grounded out, Vivas went down swinging, but Rice took a 3-1 cutter down and in and clobbered it 398-feet (111.2 mph off the bat) down the right field line for a grand slam, the first of his career.

After Judge and Bellinger singled, Goldschmidt lined a double off the left field wall for an RBI double before Dominguez couldn’t check his swing to end the inning with two in scoring position. But the damage was done; it was 11-1 Yanks. 

- Ryan Yarbrough needed eight pitches for a 1-2-3 first. The lefty surrendered a bloop single, but cleaned up his mess with a room service 6-4-3 double play and a comebacker meant another quick inning on 10 pitches. He walked ex-Yank Gio Urshela with two down, but got Jacob Wilson, who entered the game batting .358, swinging on a half swing.

A seeing-eye single past Cabrera and Volpe and a first-pitch single to left put two runners on off Yarbrough in the fourth. A flyout to right saw the runner tag and take third as the ball carried a bit on Bellinger. Miguel Andujar lobbed an RBI bloop single to center, but Vivas made a diving stop on a grounder to second and a pop fly to right ended the threat with two in scoring position.

With the lead at 10, Yarbrough got the fifth to look for a chance to earn a win, as his pitch count was 59. JJ Bleday launched a first-pitch homer to right and Urshela singled to left, but the lefty got around that without any further damage.

It looked like this would be the second start as an opener on the year, but thanks to some efficient work, Yarbrough did the business. His final line: 5 innings, two runs, six hits, one walk, two strikeouts, on 67 pitches (43 strikes).

- New York tacked on another run in the seventh, after Rice got plunked for the second time, Judge cracked a single and with one out, Goldschmidt plated a run with a ground-rule double to right.

Judge, who added a hustle double in the alley in left-center in the fourth, finished the day 4-for-5 with two RBI and saw his slashline balloon to .409/.494/.779 for a 1.273 OPS.

Goldschmidt finished 3-for-5 with two RBI and is now batting .349 with a .898 OPS. Dominguez (2-for-4) with a walk and three strikeouts and Volpe (2-for-5) with an RBI and a strikeout also had multi-hit days.

- Out of the bullpen, Yerry De Los Santos pitched three scoreless frames with two walks and a strikeout on 34 pitches (22 strikes). Lefty Tyler Matzek, with Rice working behind the dish, allowed a hit and added a strikeout in the ninth, needing 21 pitches (14 strikes).

Game MVP: Aaron Judge

Last year's AL MVP continues to be a menace in the batter's box through 40 games this year.

Highlights

What's next

New York continues the road trip heading up to Seattle for a three-game series with the Mariners. The Yanks have yet to name starters for the series.

Right-hander Emerson Hancock (5.70 ERA, 1.563 WHIP in 23.2 innings) gets the ball for the M's in the series opener on Monday, 9:40 p.m. EDT first pitch.

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Rangers’ Josh Jung hits home run for mom while facing brother Jace on Mother’s Day

DETROIT — Josh Jung delivered a special Mother’s Day gift to his mom, Mary.

The Texas Rangers third baseman hit a two-out, two-run homer in the fifth inning of his team’s 6-1 win at Detroit on Sunday. Jung’s brother, Jace, was in the Tigers’ lineup at the same position.

Before the game, Mary Jung delivered the game ball to the mound and her sons joined her on the field.

“My heart is just exploding. I mean, I couldn’t ask for a better Mother’s Day gift,” Mary Jung said in an interview on the Rangers’ telecast. “We’re all in the same place, to begin with. But then to watch them live their dream, do what they love to do, I couldn’t be more proud.”

According to the Elias Sports Bureau, it was the first time since the first national Mother’s Day in 1914 that a major league player homered against his brother.

“It’s a pretty cool feat, pretty rare,” Josh Jung said.

The Jungs’ parents, Mary and Jeff, were in attendance throughout the three-game series. The brothers also started on Saturday when Texas won 10-3.

“To everybody involved — parents, my brother and I, his girlfriend — all encompassing, I think everyone had a great time, a great moment,” Josh Jung said. “Any time we all get to be in the same city, which is kind of rare now, it’s special. To be able to play against each other, I know my parents are super proud. All the emotions come out because of all the sacrifices they’ve made for us. There’s no way to say thank you, but hopefully they were super proud watching us both going out there and playing the same position for these last two days.”

The Jung brothers gave their parents jerseys prior to the game — half with Texas blue, the other side with Detroit white. Their mom had already purchased a similar jersey.

The Jung brothers escorted Mary to the mound and she placed the ball there before Tigers starter Reese Olson’s first pitch.

“Super cool moments, pinch-me moments,” Josh Jung said. “It will probably never happen again.”

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Colorado Rockies fire manager Bud Black a day after losing 21-0 to San Diego

DENVER — The Colorado Rockies have fired Bud Black, the winningest manager in franchise history, after a 7-33 start that’s one of the worst in Major League Baseball history.

Colorado promoted third base coach Warren Schaeffer to be the interim manager, the team announced Sunday after a 9-3 win over San Diego. That victory wasn’t enough to save Black’s job after the Rockies lost 21-0 to the Padres on Saturday. They also fired bench coach Mike Redmond. Hitting coach Clint Hurdle takes over as interim bench coach.

The Rockies have the worst 40-game start since the 1988 Baltimore Orioles, who were 6-34.

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The NL's top pitcher and power hitter lead Phillies to series win in Cleveland

The NL's top pitcher and power hitter lead Phillies to series win in Cleveland originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The best pitcher in all of Major League Baseball since the day he signed with the Phillies in December 2019, Zack Wheeler showed again Sunday night how much of an advantage his dominance can provide in the deciding game of a series.

And just like Tuesday in Tampa to begin this week’s road trip, the Phillies broke through in the eighth inning to turn a one-run game into a more comfortable lead, winning 3-0.

Kyle Schwarber went solo in the top of the second to extend his on-base streak to 46 games, then provided the insurance with a two-run shot in the eighth. His 14 home runs are tied with Aaron Judge for the most in MLB.

Wheeler bookended the 5-1 road trip with wins. He went seven innings on Tuesday and exited after just 84 pitches because the Phillies scored four times in the eighth inning to open up a five-run lead. He threw 93 on SUnday.

The pitches Wheeler saved in Tampa helped in Cleveland, an example of why a manager must consider more than just that night’s game.

Wheeler put just five Guardians on base over seven scoreless innings to improve to 4-1 with a 2.95 ERA and 0.91 WHIP. He’s struck out 74 strikeouts and walked 11 in 58 innings. He snapped an uncharacteristic string of eight straight starts allowing a home run.

Jose Alvarado pitched the eighth and Jordan Romano the ninth to earn his third save, both going 1-2-3. Romano has made five straight scoreless appearances.

The Phillies come home with a 24-16 record and are 9-3-1 in 13 series, the best among any National League club.

Their next three games are against the Cardinals, the only NL team hotter with eight consecutive wins. Cristopher Sanchez, Jesus Luzardo and Aaron Nola start in that order, and in the opener, the Phillies will face a left-handed starter (Matthew Liberatore) for the first time in over a week.

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Former Penguin Marc-Andre Fleury Named To NHL Quarter-Century Team

Jun 11, 2017; Nashville, TN, USA; Pittsburgh Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury (29) skates with the Stanley Cup after defeating the Nashville Predators in game six of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final at Bridgestone Arena. (Credit: Aaron Doster-Imagn Images)

Two days after Pittsburgh Penguins' forwards Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were named to the NHL Quarter-Century Team, another longtime former teammate will be joining them.

Future Hall-of-Fame goaltender Marc-Andre Fleury - who officially announced his retirement from the NHL following the first-round conclusion to the Minnesota Wild's season - was named as one of five goaltenders to the Quarter-Century Team, which is a media and fan-voted list in recognition of the top-25 NHL players from the last 25 years. 

Fleury, 40, was drafted by the Penguins first overall in the 2003 NHL Draft, and he remained with the Penguins until 2017, when he was selected in the expansion draft by the Vegas Golden Knights. He won three Stanley Cups (2009, 2016, 2017) with Pittsburgh and is the all-time franchise leader in wins with 375.

He won a Vezina Trophy with the Golden Knights in 2020-21 and is second all-time in goaltending wins with 575, behind only Martin Brodeur's 691. He has suited up for the Penguins, Golden Knights, Chicago Blackhawks, and Wild.

Despite his retirement from the NHL, Fleury is currenty representing Team Canada at the IIHF Men's World Championship in Sweden and Denmark, and he earned his first World Championship win on Sunday in a 7-1 victory over Team Latvia.

Crosby, Malkin Named To NHL Quarter-Century TeamCrosby, Malkin Named To NHL Quarter-Century TeamThe votes for the NHL Quarter-Century Team are finally in. 

The other goaltenders named to the Quarter-Century Team were Martin Brodeur, Patrick Roy, Carey Price, Henrik Lundqvist, and Roberto Luongo.

Bookmark THN - Pittsburgh Penguins on your Google News tab to follow the latest Penguins news, roster moves, player features, and more!    

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European football: Serie A title race hots up after Napoli draw and Inter win

  • Genoa’s Johan Vásquez scores late equaliser
  • Dortmund spoil Alonso’s Leverkusen leaving party

Napoli’s Serie A title hopes suffered a late setback on Sunday when they were held to a 2-2 draw at home against Genoa, setting up a thrilling season finale as Inter are just one point behind. Napoli remain top on 78 points, holding a slim lead over Inter, who won 2-0 at Torino earlier in the day, with two rounds remaining.

Scott McTominay delivered a perfect pass into the box where Romelu Lukaku got rid of his marker before guiding his shot into the bottom corner to give Napoli the lead in the 15th minute. Genoa equalised in the 32nd minute when the Napoli goalkeeper Alex Meret initially parried Honest Ahanor’s header on to the post, only for the rebound to bounce off his body and into the net for an own goal.

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Avalanche, Penguins Greats Dominate NHL’s Quarter-Century Team Reveal

Alex Ovechkin and Sidney Crosby (Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images)

Four Colorado Avalanche all-time great superstars and three Pittsburgh Penguins icons led the way as the NHL’s final Quarter-Century Team was revealed this week.

The Edmonton Oilers, Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins and Calgary Flames also had two players each named to the Quarter-Century team, which was selected via a fan vote from Feb. 12 to April 1.

The four Avalanche players named to the team are no surprise. Goalie Patrick Roy, centers Joe Sakic and Nathan MacKinnon, and defenseman Cale Makar made the cut, while Penguins legends Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin and Marc-Andre Fleury also made the team. In addition, Oilers star centers Connor McDavid and Leon Draisaitl were honored by being named to the team, as were Bruins stars Zdeno Chara and Patrice Bergeron. Finally, Red Wings stars Pavel Datsyuk and Nicklas Lidstrom made the team, as did Flames stars Jarome Iginla and the late Johnny Gaudreau.

Otherwise, ten other franchises had one player named to the team, including Washington (Alex Ovechkin), Tampa Bay (Steven Stamkos), Toronto (Auston Matthews), Anaheim (Teemu Selanne), San Jose (Joe Thornton), Montreal (Carey Price), New Jersey (Martin Brodeur), Florida/Vancouver (Roberto Luongo), the New York Rangers (Henrik Lundqvist) and Chicago (Patrick Kane). And really, there’s no arguing any of the choices.

Winning a Stanley Cup made it easier to make this list, as 16 of the 25 players had won a Cup at some point in their career. But approximately one-third of the list included players who either didn’t win a Cup in their on-ice days or who are still competing for one today.

In total, the 25 players who made the Quarter-Century team combined to win 35 Stanley Cups, 14 Hart Trophies as the league MVP, nine Conn Smythe Trophies as the playoff MVP, 14 Art Ross Trophies as the top point-producer in the game, 19 Rocket Richard Trophies as the top goal-scorer, nine Norris Trophies as the best defenseman, and 10 Vezina Trophies as the top netminder. In short, if you were an NHL star who had their name engraved on one of the NHL’s trophies, you had a good chance to make the Quarter-Century squad.

Twenty-five years from now, when the NHL compiles this kind of list again, you’ll be seeing some of the same names that we saw from this Quarter-Century list. For instance, MacKinnon and Makar are both young enough and successful enough to make the next Quarter-Century team, as are Matthews, McDavid, and Draisaitl. But there will be other youngsters who step up and impose their will on games when they matter most, and for that reason, there will be a new batch of honorees to celebrate in 2050.

For now, though, there’s plenty to appreciate about this Quarter-Century team. You’d want to have any of the 25 players on your side, for good reason. They could (and can) do it all, and they’re all proven winners in their own right. 

Get the latest news and trending stories by following The Hockey News on Google News and by subscribing to The Hockey News newsletter here. And share your thoughts by commenting below the article on THN.com.

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After slow start at plate, Mark Vientos back looking like player Mets expected

Mark Vientos’ early-season struggles appear to officially be behind him. 

The Mets' young slugger is finally settling into a groove at the plate -- putting together back-to-back multi-hit showings to helpsecure a big three-game series victory over the first-place Cubs. 

Vientos’ first knock on Sunday was a huge one -- he put New York back in front in the sixth after Chicago evened things up on a solo shot from former Mets prospect Pete Crow-Armstrong during the top half of the inning. 

It was Vientos' seventh homer of the year, which continued his Mother’s Day success. 

“That’s mommy power right there,” he joked postgame. “That one was for my mom. Crazy stat for you, but I feel like the past five years I’ve hit four home runs on Mother’s Day, so mommy power is real.”

Real or not, the Mets will certainly take it -- and the rest of the lineup was able to use some mommy power of their own later in the contest to regain the lead after the Cubs evened things up for a second time.  

Francisco Lindor crushed a go-ahead home run into the bullpen leading things off, then Pete Alonso laced a double into the left-field corner and Vientos drove him home with a single, before Brandon Nimmo capped off a four-run inning with a two-run shot. 

Vientos finished the day 2-for-4 with a pair of runs driven in.

After looking extremely lost at the plate early on this season, he’s now hitting a strong .311 with five home runs and a .912 OPS over his last 20 games.

“I’ve just been competing,” Vientos said. “I’m just trying not to give away any pitch or any at-bat. It’s contagious that our whole team isn’t giving any ABs away and I’m just going up there trying to do the same thing.”

“His at-bats have been a lot better,” Carlos Mendoza added. “We’ve seen a lot of that this year he just wasn’t getting the results, finally today it was there -- it’s good to see him being the player we know he’s capable of.”

The turnaround comes at a perfect time for Vientos, as Brett Baty has returned to the big leagues with a power surge -- crushing three home runs in two games since being called back up from Triple-A. 

Though playing time may become a bit tricky with so many hot bats and only a handful of open lineup spots, the skipper is confident they’ll find way to get it done. 

“We’ll find room,” Mendoza said. “I’ve been saying it, there’s 13 guys there. It doesn’t matter the nine that you put out there you feel good about your chances. That’s my job and that’s our job to continue to put these guys in good positions -- we have a lot of good options.”

One of those options is using Vientos as the designated hitter while Baty slots in at the hot corner -- the route they took on Saturday night when Baty hit two of those homers and drove in five runs. 

Vientos says he’d absolutely be open to the idea: “Whatever gets the team wins, I’m all for it.”

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Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman has a setback in his rehab from a left knee injury

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. — New York Yankees pitcher Marcus Stroman had a setback as he tries to return from a left knee injury that has sidelined him for the last month.

Manager Aaron Boone said Stroman still had “discomfort” in his knee after throwing a live batting practice session in Tampa, Florida, on Friday and will be reevaluated before the team figures out the next step in his rehabilitation process.

“He’s gotten a lot of treatments on it and stuff,” Boone said Sunday. “It just can’t kind of get over that final hump to really allow him to get to that next level on the mound. We’ll try and continue to get our arms around it and try and make sure we get that out of there.”

Stroman hasn't pitched since allowing five runs in two-thirds of an inning against the San Francisco Giants on April 11. He was placed on the 15-day injured list the next day with what Boone hoped at the time would be a short-term absence.

But there is no timeline for his return, and Boone said that injury likely impacted the way Stroman pitched before going on the IL. He was 0-1 with an 11.57 ERA in three starts.

“Certainly that last start, I think he just couldn’t really step on that front side like he needed to,” Boone said. “I talk about how these guys are like race cars, and one little thing off and it can affect just that last level of command or that last level of extra stuff that you need. So we’ll continue to try to get him where we need to.”

Stroman had surgery on March 19, 2015, to repair a torn ACL in his left knee. He returned to a major league mound that Sept. 12.

The 34-year-old Stroman is in the second season of a two-year contract guaranteeing $37 million. The right-hander’s deal includes a $16 million conditional player option for 2026 that could be exercised if he pitches in at least 140 innings this year.

Last season, Stroman was 10-9 with a 4.31 ERA in 30 games (29 starts) when he threw 154 2/3 innings, his most since 2021 with the Mets. Stroman struggled in the second half and did not pitch in the postseason, when the Yankees made their first World Series appearance since 2009.

In other injury news, DJ LeMahieu played for the second straight day on a rehab assignment at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Sunday and could join the team in Seattle this week to make his season debut. LeMahieu recently had a cortisone injection last week in his right hip, an injury stemming from last year.

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Usually calm, collected Francisco Lindor fired up after lifting go-ahead homer vs. Cubs: ‘I wanted that at-bat’

Francisco Lindor had a chance to win the game for the Mets on Saturday night. 

After Jeff McNeil worked a tremendous 10-pitch walk leading off the bottom of the ninth facing Cubs closer Porter Hodge, the superstar shortstop stepped to the plate looking to provide some more late-inning magic. 

However, he rolled into a 1-6-3 double play before Juan Soto grounded out to end the game.

Fast forward just a few hours, and Lindor found himself in a similar spot. 

Knotted in a 2-2 tie in the rubber match of a three-game set, Hodge was brought in to face the top of the order in the bottom of the eighth -- and this time, the Mets' star leadoff man was able to get the best of the matchup. 

Lindor quickly found himself in a favorable 3-1 count before he demolished a middle-middle sweeper deep into the Mets’ bullpen in right-center -- putting them ahead for good to secure the series victory. 

The usually cool, calm, and collected Lindor, no matter how big the moment, was visibly fired up after this dramatic blast -- letting his emotions show as he went back to the dugout and celebrated the go-ahead homer with his teammates.

“It was just the moment,” Lindor said. “I wanted that at-bat. I wanted to get on base and make something happen for the boys. Yesterday, I felt like the momentum was on our side and we didn’t capitalize, so today I wanted to make sure I did something for the boys.

“I wasn’t trying to hit a home run there. I was just trying to have a quality at-bat and let the big boys do what they do best, and then the emotions just came out. I definitely had my mom, my sisters, and my wife, who was in the stands, in my mind.” 

And the guys behind him did their job as well -- adding some insurance as Pete Alonso followed him up with a double before Mark Vientos cracked an RBI single and Brandon Nimmo crushed a two-run homer of his own. 

The four-run eighth inning not only pushed the Mets across the finish line to secure a huge series victory over the first-place Cubs, but it also showcased just how scary this deep lineup can be late in ballgames. 

“It’s really cool,” Lindor said. “It’s cool to go up into the 7th, 8th, or 9th inning feeling like one of us is going to get it done. We have a really good lineup, the coaches continue to prepare us the right way day in and day out, and we do a good job talking in the dugout. 

“It feels good to have that feeling of anyone can get it done.”

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Mets’ Griffin Canning was in ‘complete control’ during Sunday’s dominant birthday outing

Have yourself a birthday, Griffin Canning. 

The righty took the ball on his birthday Sunday afternoon, and put together another stellar outing -- allowing just one run on two hits while walking one and striking out five in six innings. 

Canning opened the game perfectly -- setting down each of the first six batters he faced, including striking out the side in the top of the first for just the second time in his big-league career.   

He ran into trouble in the third as the first two batters reached on a single and a walk, but bared down nicely and was able to escape without any damage, picking up a big punch out of Pete Crow-Armstrong. 

The right-hander continued cruising from there, pushing his streak to 10 batters in a row before Crow-Armstrong stuck with one out in the top of the sixth, crushing a game-tying solo homer into the Coca Cola Corner. 

Canning retired the next two batters to end his day strong. While he saw his five-start winning streak come to an end, he once again delivered the Mets the type of performance they were looking for. 

“He was solid,” manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He had everything going today. It starts with the fastball, especially at the top to get the swing-and-misses, and then we know how good the slider and the changeup can be. 

“All three pitches today, I thought he was in complete control of the game. He used them effectively, mixed, attacked -- he got ahead and then just used them to put hitters away. It was a really solid outing there.”

Canning, a former second-round pick, has shown spurts of potential throughout his big-league career, but he has never quite been able to put it all together. 

He ended up being designated for assignment by the Los Angeles Angels after pitching to a 5.39 ERA last season -- and was picked up by the Atlanta Braves, but was non-tendered after he couldn't crack the big leagues.

Still, the Mets decided to take a chance on him this winter, and after making some tweaks to his pitch usage, he’s delivering some of the best baseball of his career. 

Canning has a tremendous 2.36 ERA through seven starts this season.  

“The change of scenery has been good,” he said. “I fit in well with these guys over here. It’s always fun just going out there and trying to win and playing for the team. Everyone on and off the field have been really helpful.” 

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Sneyd inspires Warrington to defeat Leigh and reach Challenge Cup final

  • Semi-final: Warrington 21-14 Leigh
  • Sam Burgess going to Wembley for second straight year

These may still be considered the formative years of Sam Burgess’s coaching career but, as Warrington celebrate back-to-back Challenge Cup finals, it was worth a moment to reflect on how, just as he did in his playing days, Burgess belied his lack of experience on the biggest stage once again.

This year has not been anything like as enjoyable a season in charge of the Wolves for Burgess. After the high of guiding Warrington to a cup final and a playoff semi-final in his first year as a head coach, the early part of this campaign has been much more testing for the 36-year-old, with inconsistency at the heart of most of what they have done. It is perhaps easy to forget that, in coaching terms at least, he is still incredibly young.

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