ARLINGTON, TEXAS - APRIL 25: Josh Jung #6 of the Texas Rangers celebrates after hitting a two run home run against the Athletics during the sixth inning at Globe Life Field on April 25, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Ron Jenkins/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Texas Rangers scored four runs while the Did You Know They Were Originally From Philadelphia? Athletics scored three runs.
Against the AL West-leading A’s tonight, the Rangers looked like they were about to finally succumb to the dreaded below .500 record while guaranteeing themselves a series loss only for their April hero to save them again.
Texas has been playing hot potato with .500 ball for weeks now hanging on the precipice of falling back down below the mark only to rise to the occasion when a losing record stares them in the face several times over.
In fact, since April 5 when the Rangers were 4-5 for their only day below .500 this season, they’ve faced five games with an even record and won all of them. However, on the flip side, since that date they’ve only risen to a highwater mark of two games above .500 and have also lost five games that immediately put them back at .500.
It’s been quite the roller coaster and that’s exactly what tonight’s game was too.
Rangers’ starter MacKenzie Gore started things well with a 1-2-3 first inning, all on strikeouts. But then he struggled to finish off A’s hitters as they collected a two-out RBI in the top of the second to take an early lead. A messy top of the third finished with the A’s up 3-0.
But the bats came through in the bottom of the inning with their own messy rally to put two runs on the board off left-handed former Ranger Jeffrey Springs. The two runs scored despite only two singles from Texas with Corey Seager’s two-out RBI lefty-on-lefty hit proving to be a big moment.
The game stayed at 3-2 and it seemed like maybe the third inning flareup would be all we’d see at the offense-adverse Shed, but then Josh Jung stepped up to the plate with a man on.
There’s really no Ranger you’d rather see in such a situation right now, and Jung delivered again with an opposite field two-run shot to the Texas bullpen on a ball that just kept carrying and carrying.
The superlative relief arms for the Rangers finished things off from there with four, one-hit shutout innings and the Rangers once again find themself above .500.
Player of the Game:
Up Next: The Rangers and A’s close out this series with a rubber match that will see RHP Kumar Rocker take the mound for Texas against RHP J.T. Ginn for Someday Vegas’ squad.
The Sunday afternoon first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 1:35 pm CDT and will be covered by the Rangers Sports Network.
From the opening tip, the Knicks brought a physicality and intensity to Game 4 that they had been lacking all series — and the Hawks could not match it. New York played its best defense of the series, improved its player movement and, more importantly, showed much better intentionality in how it wanted to attack the Atlanta defense. On the other end of the court, Hawks players could not get to the rim, could not finish in transition, while the Knicks were in their element and found their groove.
It all started with the guy the Knicks most needed to have a big game, Karl-Anthony Towns, who posted a 20-point triple-double.
Karl-Anthony Towns' triple-double leads New York to a game 4 victory!
The result was a blowout win for New York, with the game never in doubt from the middle of the third quarter on. A few minutes of garbage time made the final score 114-98, New York.
The series is now tied 2-2, with Game 5 back at Madison Square Garden on Tuesday. Expect these Knicks to show up again at MSG. These were the Knicks we all remember from last year's run to the Eastern Conference Finals. The question becomes, can the Hawks match it?
"Let's go Knicks! Let's go, Knicks!" chants rang out in the State Farm Arena as the Knicks took the lead in the first quarter and never surrendered it. It wasn't just their stars carrying the team, the Knicks got fantastic play from OG Anunoby and Josh Hart, they combined for 21 points on 9-of-16 shooting in the first half. Anunoby went on to finish with 22 points and 10 rebounds. Everything seemed to go right for New York, there was even a Grand Theft Alvarado moment from Jose Alvarado.
Jalen Brunson left the game in the third quarter after tweaking his ankle, went back to the locker room and got it re-taped, then returned to the court. Late in the game, he banged knees with a Hawks player as well. He was a little slowed by all this and had just 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting.
CJ McCollum was the Hawk who handled the pressure best, and he finished the game with 17 points but was 0-of-4 from 3-point range.
Hawks not named McCollum shot just 37% through the first three quarters, and as a team Atlanta was just 7-of-31 (22.6%) with 17 turnovers in those three quarters. Plus, they had zero fast break points.
Quin Snyder and the Hawks can chalk this up to it being "one of those games" and point out that it's now a best-of-three series. They are not wrong.
But when the Knicks bring this intensity again, will the Hawks be able to match it?
MEXICO CITY, MEXICO - APRIL 25: Mason Miller #22 of the San Diego Padres celebrates after winning the MLB Mexico City Series game between San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú on April 25, 2026 in Mexico City, Mexico. (Photo by Hector Vivas/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The San Diego Padres found themselves down by four runs after starter German Marquez struggled to get the third out of the second inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Estadio Alfredo Harp Helu in Mexico City. The Padres mounted their comeback and scored six unanswered runs to set Mason Miller up to get his 10th save of the season with another scoreless ninth inning, giving him the franchise record for most innings pitched (34.2) without allowing a run, to give San Diego a 6-4 win over Arizona.
FINAL: San Diego Padres 6, Arizona Diamondbacks 4.
Miller came in for the bottom of the ninth inning after Ty France gave the Padres a two-run lead in the top of the inning with his second home run of the game. It was fitting that France, who opened the scoring for San Diego with a solo home run in the top of the fifth inning. also drove in the final run of the game. The right-handed closer continued his dominance with another three-up, three-down inning that saw him get an east flyout to left field for the first out before finishing with back-to-back groundouts.
Marquez seemed to be unable to stop the bleeding in the bottom of the second. However, he returned to the mound in the bottom of the third and pitched well enough to keep the Diamondbacks from adding on. Marquez completed six innings, allowing four runs on six hits with one walk and two strikeouts. Perhaps the most important fact was Marquez allowed just one home run, a two-run shot, to Alek Thomas.
The Padres offense started sluggish once again. They faced Zac Gallen to open the game, but he exited in the top of the fourth inning after he was struck by a line drive off the bat of Freddy Fermin. Brandon Pfaadt came in for Arizona and pitched well until the top of the seventh inning. Jackson Merrill opened the inning with a leadoff walk and was followed by Manny Machado who singled and Xander Bogaerts who walked to load the bases.
Taylor Clarke replaced Pfaadt and faced Gavin Sheets, who came through once again for San Diego. Sheets hit a two-run single that scored Merrill and Machado and pushed Bogaerts to second base. France then reached on a fielder’s choice and an error. Fermin hit a sacrifice fly to score Bogaerts to make the score 4-4 before Jake Cronenworth was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Ramon Laureano, who did not have a hit in the game, hit a sacrifice fly to right field which allowed Sheets to tag up and score to complete the comeback and put the Padres in front 5-4.
Apr 25, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; New York Knicks center Karl-Anthony Towns (32) tries to reach the basket against Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
And the tri-state area expelled a sigh of relief. The New York Knicks (2-2) took control early tonight and never let go, rolling past the Atlanta Hawks, 114–98, in Game Four of their first-round Eastern Conference playoff series. Behind a dominant, wire-to-wire effort, Karl-Anthony Towns recorded the first triple-double of his postseason career (20-10-10), while OG Anunoby added a 22-point, 10-board double-double. Jalen Brunson dropped 19 points to steady the offense and secure the comfortable, and reassuring, victory.
Showing a marked improvement from Game Three, the Knicks shot well early, converting six of their first nine field goals. Atlanta matched that efficiency at the start, but New York’s wings applied frantic defense that helped the Knicks secure a 15-14 lead at the midway point of the first quarter.
Defying our cries to always play either Brunson or Towns at all times, head coach Mike Brown inserted Jose Alvarado (6 PTS, 3 STL), Miles McBride (11 PTS, 3-6 3PT), Jordan Clarkson (7 PTS), and Mitchell Robinson (6 PTS, 8 RBS, 15 MIN) to play alongside Josh Hart (10 PTS, 9 RBS, 2 STL) at the 4:20 mark. Luckily for him, his stubbornness paid off. Determined to reclaim their glory, our heroes played at a blistering pace and outrebounded the Hawks more than 2-to-1. Credit Brown for wisely deploying Robinson early, and the big fella brought immediate energy and dominance around the rim.
As New York hit the accelerator, Atlanta wilted under the defensive intensity. The Hawks shot just 7-of-20 in the first quarter and missed nine of their 12 three-point attempts. Thanks to a 14-5 run over the final four-and-a-half minutes, the Knicks closed the period ahead 27-20.
To start the second quarter, Brown rolled out a unit featuring Alvarado, Mikal Bridges (8 PTS, 3-4 FG, 19 MIN), Clarkson, Anunoby, and Towns. The Knicks kept the game in high gear, and Alvarado provided instant energy with a three-pointer and then stripping CJ McCollum (17 PTS, 8-15 FG), leading to an easy bucket.
Towns burst with newfound vigor, repeatedly attacking the cup and dominating the Hawks’ frontcourt. Even more impressive, New York’s defensive pressure stayed elevated while their offense hummed. Brunson rested comfortably until the 7:30 mark, with the Knicks ahead 38-29.
After Hart grabbed a defensive rebound off a Jalen Johnson (14 PTS, 3 RBS, 5 ATS) miss, the ball swung around through five or six Knicks before finding Brunson, who swished a triple. It was arguably the best offensive cohesion the Knicks have shown all series, and one of the first times they looked like the championship contenders we were promised by owner James “Eye in the Sky” Dolan (who took in the game at State Farm Arena).
Following a timeout from Hawks coach Quin Snyder, Atlanta’s defense tightened, forcing Brunson, Anunoby, and Hart to lose their handles on consecutive possessions. Both teams committed at least six turnovers in the period and missed several open shots. However, Anunoby answered with back-to-back perimeter triples, and Hart picked Nickeil Alexander-Walker’s (15 PTS, 5-10 3PT, 6 TO) pocket for a fast-break score, pushing their lead to 16 points.
The Knicks fans in attendance shook the building, and they went even crazier when Hart drilled a three with a minute-and-a-half left that put New York up by 16 again. By halftime, the Knicks held a commanding 58-44 lead.
Through the first half, New York outshot Atlanta 51% to 47% from the field and 43% to 26% from three-point range. The Knicks also dominated the boards 24-13, forced a whopping 10 turnovers in the second quarter alone with steals by Hart, Alvarado, Brunson, and Anunoby, and owned the paint 32-24. Atlanta’s defense was solid in forcing 10 giveaways, too, but they managed zero fast-break points in the half. McCollum led all scorers with 14 points, while Anunoby paced the Knicks with 12.
Out of intermission, the feathers were flying. The Birds scored five unanswered points to open the third quarter. Worse, Brunson rolled his ankle and headed to the locker room for examination within the first two minutes. Alvarado replaced him and did admirably, driving the Knicks at a blistering pace, knocking down a three-pointer, and recording his third steal of the game. Rumors of an Atlanta rally were greatly exaggerated!
"Look how he's just lurking."
Another look at Alvarado's sneaky steal that led to OG's tough bucket 🔥
When Towns hit a cutting Clarkson for an assisted bucket, the lead touched 17. Clarkson then knocked down two free throws, and the Knicks tied their largest lead of the playoffs at 19 points. Brunson returned to the bench and then re-entered the game at the 5:38 mark. The ankle appearing just fine, hallelujah, amen.
Atlanta got brief bursts from Johnson and Onyeka Okongwu (12 PTS, 6 RBS), but their shooting remained trash overall. Through three quarters, the Hawks had made just 7-of-31 from three-point range. McCollum, Okongwu, Dyson Daniels (6 PTS, 9 RBS, 6 ASTS, 2 STL), Johnson, and Jonathan Kuminga (10 PTS, 2 RBS) combined to shoot 1-for-18 from beyond the arc. Due to Atlanta’s ineptitude and New York’s sizzling play, the Knicks took a 86-65 lead into the fourth.
Anunoby scored the first four points of the final period with a free throw and a triple, pushing the advantage to 22. Assisting on Anunoby’s three gave Towns his tenth dime of the game, sealing a triple-double, the first of his career in the playoffs.
The lead ballooned to 24, but a Kuminga jumper and a Alexander-Walker three trimmed it back to 18 with eight minutes remaining. Given how freely the Knicks have surrendered leads this series, that margin still felt a little too close for comfort. From there, though, Brunson hit two free throws and McBride drained his second triple of the night, restoring the lead to 23 points. With those points, Brunson passed John Starks to take fourth place on the Knicks’ all-time playoff scoring list with 1,354 points and counting.
There had to be a blemish somewhere. At the seven-minute mark, Towns exited after tweaking his knee. He remained on the bench, which looked like a positive sign. Then, with 4:20 left, Brunson knocked knees wit somebody (Rowan had distracted me, showing off a drum fill he’s working on), and Jalen was still wincing when Brown called timeout shortly after.
From there, with a 22-point lead, Brown emptied the bench, giving time to Alvarado, Tyler Kolek, Landry Shamet, Mohamed Diawara, and Ariel Hukporti. The reserves did a good clean-up job, and when the buzzer buzzed, the better team won, 114-98.
Up Next
Matthew Miranda’s cooking up your recap hot and fresh. Meanwhile, the series swings back to Madison Square Garden for a tilt on Tuesday. Safe travels, Knickerbockers.
Early in Game 4 of Minnesota’s first-round series against the Denver Nuggets, shooting guard Donte DiVincenzo appeared to suffer an Achilles injury when he fell to the court on a non-contact play. The Timberwolves ruled DiVincenzo out of the game with a lower leg injury. ESPN is reporting that DiVincenzo suffered a torn right Achilles tendon.
The Injury happened with 10:43 to play in the first quarter, right after DiVincenzo took a deep 3 on the left wing. When the ball bounced off the rim, DiVincenzo lunged to track the ball down, but he fell to the floor and immediately grabbed his right calf area.
DiVincenzo sat on the floor and immediately motioned for Minnesota’s training staff to come to his aid. Once the trainers arrived, DiVincenzo writhed on the floor as the staffers tended to him.
Slow-motion replays later appeared to show his Achilles bounce or snap, which is also a common indicator of ruptures.
DiVincenzo was immediately removed from the game, and the Timberwolves ruled him out shortly afterward. During halftime, ESPN cameras showed DiVincenzo being led in a wheelchair down a hallway in the Target Center, with a large brace around his right leg and foot.
DiVincenzo played all 82 games this season and averaged 12.2 points, 4.1 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game. Prior to Game 4, DiVincenzo had been shooting 51.6% in the series.
The Carolina Hurricanes defeated the Ottawa Senators by a 4-2 final score on Saturday. With it, the Hurricanes have officially swept the Senators and have moved on to the second round.
A former Chicago Blackhawks forward helped the Hurricanes complete their sweep over the Senators, as Taylor Hall had a strong Game 4 for the Metropolitan Division club.
First, Hall scored the game-opening goal at the 15:15 mark of the second period to give the Hurricanes a 1-0 lead. He then recorded an assist on Logan Stankoven's third-period goal that gave the Hurricanes a 2-1 lead.
With this, there is no question that Hall came up clutch for the Hurricanes in their series-clinching win. It was just the latest strong game from the former Blackhawks winger, though, as he has been on fire throughout the early stages of the postseason.
In four playoff games so far for the Hurricanes, Hall now has two goals, five assists, seven points, and a plus-5 rating. The former Hart Memorial Trophy winner is turning back the clock at the perfect time for Carolina, and it will be fascinating to see if he can stay hot in round two.
Apr 25, 2026; Atlanta, Georgia, USA; New York Knicks guard Jalen Brunson (11) tries to dribble past Atlanta Hawks guard Dyson Daniels (5) during the first half at State Farm Arena. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | Dale Zanine-Imagn Images
On Saturday evening, the Atlanta Hawks hit the floor at home against the New York Knicks with a chance to go up 3-1 in their first round playoff series. Instead, the Hawks turned in their worst performance of the playoffs thus far and dropped the game by a score of 114-98.
This game featured an aggressive start for both teams.
The Knicks came out attacking the basket early in this one, looking to establish Karl-Anthony Towns in the paint with an early dunk on a switch with CJ McCollum. New York also made a concerted effort to get Dyson Daniels off of Jalen Brunson at all costs, resulting in a couple of early jumpers for the Knicks’ star point guard.
Meanwhile, Atlanta saw the first good opening quarter of the series from newly minted Most Improved Player Nickeil Alexander-Walker, who buried two triples in the first five minutes of the game.
For a third straight game, this first quarter had an early verbal altercation, this one featuring Atlanta’s Mo Gueye and New York’s Jose Alvarado, who has seemingly been involved in as many skirmishes as he has scored points in this series.
Atlanta’s offense started to stagnate later on in the period, with the Hawks falling down 25-19 after a third made field goal from Brunson.
The Hawks settled for a barrage of contested jumpers in the final few minutes of the period and finished the first quarter just 3/12 from beyond the arc, finding themselves down 27-20 heading into the second.
Atlanta’s offensive struggles continued into the second quarter, with Gabe Vincent’s two triples being one of the only sources of scoring for the Hawks in the first half.
Meanwhile, Karl-Anthony Towns punished the Hawks’ smaller defense the way Knicks fans have been begging him to all series, finally getting to the basket with consistency and scoring some impressive finishes around the rim. New York took a 41-29 lead with an open three from Brunson around midway through the second quarter.
Things would only get worse from there, as the Hawks turned the ball over relentlessly, falling behind 51-35 after OG Anunoby heated up for the second straight game from beyond the arc.
For the Hawks, McCollum started getting into the lane late in the second quarter for some much-needed offense.
Unfortunately for the Hawks, that coincided with Josh Hart hitting some tough shots that Atlanta is typically more than happy to concede, and New York wound up taking a 58-44 lead into the locker room.
Overall, it was a very frustrating first half for the Hawks, with Atlanta seeming to be stuck in mud for large stretches of the game, and with referee Scott “The Extender” Foster falling for a couple of Brunson flops that turned into offensive foul calls on Alexander-Walker.
Atlanta also had 12 turnovers in the first half compared to just 11 assists, which is certainly not a recipe for success on offense.
The Hawks got off to a better offensive start to the second half, taking the ball out of McCollum’s hands and letting others initiate the offense. Atlanta at one point got the lead down to eight early in the third quarter, but the Knicks pushed it back up to 13 thanks to some strong play off the bench from Alvarado, who stepped in when Brunson was forced to exit the game after stepping on Hart’s foot.
Once Brunson got back into the game, the Knicks ran the lead up to 19, with Atlanta’s shooting and turnover woes continuing, and with some of New York’s role players off the bench knocking down contested jumpers.
It was a frustrating night for Jalen Johnson, who at one point was just 3-10 from the field, but he did get the Hawks somewhat back to within shouting distance with an and-one followed by a triple late in the third quarter.
However, the Knicks made another run to close the quarter, and ended up taking their biggest lead of the night, 86-65, into the fourth and final frame.
The Hawks opted to insert Tony Bradley into the game to open up the fourth quarter, and while the big man did a solid job of keeping New York off the offensive glass, it still wasn’t enough to allow Atlanta to make much of a dent in the Knicks’ lead.
Remarkably, Atlanta didn’t score its first fast break points until late in the fourth quarter when the game was already well out of reach.
Both teams emptied their bench with several minutes to go in the game, and the Knicks emerged with a 114-98 win.
McCollum led the way in scoring for Atlanta with 17 points, while New York had a balanced offensive performance, anchored by Anunoby, who had another impressive game by dropping 22.
While some of the Hawks’ lack of success in Game 4 can be chalked up to unfavorable shooting variance, Atlanta will need to do a better job of matching the Knicks’ physicality moving forward in this series, as well as taking care of the ball.
This is now a best of three, with the Knicks having home court advantage. Game 5 is set for Tuesday evening at MSG.
The Knicks evened the series to 2-2 after beating the Atlanta Hawks in Game 4, 114-98, on Saturday night.
Here are the takeaways...
-- Things started out pretty evenly between both teams in the first six minutes, with neither side able to get a lead of more than four points. After Jalen Brunson and Karl-Anthony Towns were responsible for New York's first nine points, it was nice to see Mikal Bridges, in the starting lineup despite two consecutive poor performances, which included being held scoreless in Game 3, get on the board with a driving layup on his first shot attempt.
Following the midway point of the first quarter, the Knicks closed the frame on a 14-6 run, helped out by players not named Brunson or Towns to open up a seven-point lead headed into the second quarter. OG Anunoby, Bridges and Mitchell Robinson all played a part in the run and were able to get easy buckets down low.
Defensively, New York held Atlanta to 20 points in the first 12 minutes and that defense kept at it in the second quarter as the Hawks struggled to find consistent scoring. Part of that was because the Knicks were outrebounding Atlanta all throughout the first half, grabbing offensive boards that led to second-chance points and not allowing the Hawks to get near the glass themselves.
Sooner or later, New York's lead grew to 16 points following a quick 10-4 spurt that included the Knicks scoring nine points in the span of 70 seconds thanks to back-to-back threes by Anunoby. Josh Hart, also coming off a tough shooting performance in Game 3, came alive to end the first half and scored nine of the Knicks' last 11 points before halftime to put New York up, 58-44, at the break.
After going 1-for-12 for two points collectively in Game 3, Hart and Bridges went 7-for-11 with 17 points in the first half.
-- Determined to make it a game, Atlanta began the second half on a 9-3 run to cut its deficit to eight points. The Knicks, though, countered immediately with an 11-0 run with Towns getting in the mix by dishing the rock. KAT was the biggest facilitator on the night with a playoff career-high 10 assists, the most on the team.
Still, Towns didn't let that stop him from being aggressive on offense as he scored the final seven points of the quarter for New York. His tip-in layup off an offensive rebound with three seconds left in the quarter gave the Knicks an 86-65 lead, their biggest lead of the night. Towns finished with 20 points on 6-for-10 shooting and secured 10 rebounds for his first career playoff triple-double and just the fifth triple-double of his career.
Meanwhile, Anunoby had a double-double (22 points, 10 rebounds) while Hart was rebound shy of a double-double of his own.
-- New York had things all but wrapped up in the fourth quarter and this time didn't let the Hawks come back. Miles McBride came off the bench and scored eight of his 11 points in the final frame, shooting 3-for-6 from downtown. The Knicks as a whole shot 14-for-31 from three-point range and held Atlanta to 10-for-41 from deep, although Nickeil Alexander-Walker did go 5-for-10 from beyond the arc.
Brunson scored 19 points but had six turnovers.
Game MVP: Karl-Anthony Towns
The big man came up big and did everything in this one by recording his first career playoff triple-double in a must-win sort of game for the Knicks.
Dallas Stars defenseman Nils Lundkvist left Saturday's Game 4 with a deep facial cut after being hit by a skate.
The incident happened at 13:15 of the second period of the April 25 game in Saint Paul, Minnesota.
Lundkvist had tripped Michael McCarron and the skate of the Minnesota forward came up and hit the defenseman in the face. Lundkvist had to go to the dressing room for repairs.
Lundkvist didn't return to the game, leaving the Stars one person short on the blue line as the team and the Wild went to overtime for a second consecutive game. The Wild won 3-2 to even up the series at two games apiece.
Warning: Graphic video
Scary moment as Nils Lundkvist takes Michael McCarron's skate to the face 🤕
It had been 715 days since Missouri baseball had last tasted a Southeastern Conference victory at Taylor Stadium. 1,491 days marked the last time the Tigers had bested Arkansas. Both of those streaks ended in Mizzou’s 6-0 victory on Saturday afternoon at Taylor Stadium.
Another monkey off the Tigers’ back? Their recent nine-game losing streak, which included eight losses in SEC play and one to in-state opposition, SIUE, reached its ultimate conclusion.
Based on this series alone, it would be easy for Tigers fans to anticipate or even triangulate what could go wrong after the first inning. After all, the Tigers’ 5-4 defeat in the series opener came after an early inning that included a pair of homers from Jase Woita and Blaize Ward. This game was different.
Right out of the blocks, Missouri’s offense sprinted out like Usain Bolt, starting with back-to-back singles from Woita and Durnin. A walk surrendered to Blaize Ward loaded the bases with nobody out, and Mateo Serna was hit by a pitch, which was not the most conventional way to put the first run of the game.
Kaden Peer reached base on a fielder’s choice, and Donovan Jordan’s groundout drove two more runs across the plate, giving the Tigers more hits and runs than they accumulated all of Friday evening against the Razorbacks pitching.
SEALS AND MAISONET MAKING IMPACT IN STYLE
The second inning came along, starting with an infield single by Eric Maisonet. Then walked up Pierre Seals. It had been one month and three days since the last time he had gone yard. That changed two pitches into his at-bat against Colin Fisher.
Seals watched, stood, and flipped his bat, and he slowly moved down the first-base line, knowing he had gotten much more than enough of the ball for it to travel out of Taylor Stadium. 425 feet over the left field wall to be exact, giving Mizzou a 5-0 cushion in the bottom half of the second.
“We all come up with all of these cool celebrations to do, and that’s great,” Jackson said. “The thing that was most important for me, he finally got the barrel on it. He’s a guy who’s constantly hitting things to the backside. When you have that power that he does and the bat speed he does, if he can get the barrel out more consistently, you’re gonna see more of that.”
As Jackson pointed out post-game, Seals, despite having hit four homers this year, has proven to be a power bat for the Tigers in Blue, Memphis. 10 home runs, 65 hits, and 33 RBI prove Seals can be a potent hitter when aggressively hitting towards the middle of the field.
On a day where the Tigers broke lots of negative streaks, Seals’ home run drought ended, as well as collecting a hit a piece over the last two games. after previously going hitless in his previous five.
“[Hitting the homer] was definitely big, because I feel like I’ve been hitting balls hard in the past couple of weeks and I didn’t have anything to show for it,” Seals said. “I kept going and kept my approach, and it was good to see it pay off.”
Eric Masionet, who wasn’t necessarily high in the home run column for Missouri this season coming into Saturday afternoon, made his mark in the bottom of the fourth. After connecting on a 1-0 pitch from Gabe Geckle, which admittedly didn’t look like it was leaving the yard, kept carrying.
Damian Ruiz jumped at the left field wall, the ball hit the top of the padding, and then the left field scoreboard. The Tigers were well and truly in the driver’s seat, up 6-0 in the bottom half of the fourth and hitting like a team that hadn’t been at the plate in nine games. No trepidation in the box, aggressive and having nothing to lose and everything to gain from besting a top-25 team in the country.
GONZALEZ AND VILLAREAL PUT UP ZEROS OVER 7.2 INNINGS
Gonzalez and Villareal stepped up not to the plate, but to the mound after an early re-aggravated injury occurred to Missouri’s starting pitcher JD Dohrman in the top of the second inning.
“Its a groin injury,” Jackson said. “If it’s something you keep messing with it’ll never heal and he wasn’t quite feeling 100 percent so it’s better for us to pull him out and try to continue to put him on that rehab stretch and get him completely healed.”
Gonzalez took Mizzou fans back to his outing earlier this month against an offensive powerhouse in Missouri State. Similar to his performance against the Bears, Gonzalez allowed zero earned runs and struck out a multitude of batters.
Gonzalez also became a U.S citizen earlier in the week and earning the victory after tossing five shutout innings capped off the series of good events for the right-hander.
“Its been a long process, Gonzalez said ”I came from Cuba, and, you know, got here to United States, and it was a long process, but being able to become a US citizen, it’s great. This country’s giving me everything, so I’m super happy and proud.“
Villarreal took over for Gonzalez after the sixth inning and continued the dominant outing from the Tigers relief staff. Villareal struck out three Razorbacks and pitched into the bottom of the ninth inning before surrendering a run and the bases being full of runners.
Jackson made the switch to the right-hander Sam Rosand, who’strikeout officially ended the long negative runs but not the work of playing more consistent baseball for Jackson.
“The relief for me is that we played good baseball, ”That’s the relief, regardless of if we would have not won or, like, I felt good on Thursday night because I thought we played good baseball. For me its ultimately it did we play good baseball, and by playing good baseball, can we continue to play good baseball… Yes I’m glad the streak is over but at the end of the day you can’t control whether you win or lose. If we do this consistently we’re going to win more than we lose.“
Golden Knights coach John Tortorella believes there is one player who gives Vegas the upper hand in its series with the Utah Mammoth, despite being down 2-1 in their opening-round series.
"If there's one player I have an advantage with here - I'm still trying to figure out the guys - but if there's one player I do know very well, it's him," Tortorella said of his goaltender, Carter Hart.
After watching his starting netminder allow the first four goals of Friday night's Game 3 loss in Salt Lake City, Tortorella said he never flinched and never considered replacing Hart with former starter Adin Hill, who led the Knights to the Stanley Cup in 2023.
"I know Carter well enough; he wants to work through it," Tortorella said, after the Golden Knights lost 4-2 to the Utah Mammoth. "I have faith in him. There was no thought of taking him out."
Credit a long-standing and deep relationship between Tortorella and Hart, from their days in Philadelphia, as it's crystal clear the confidence the veteran coach has in his 27-year-old netminder.
It's understood, Tortorella has Hart's back and nothing will change that.
During his Flyers tenure, Hart was 9-5-0 allowed just 2.3 goals per start, while turning in a .926 save percentage in 14 playoff appearances. He also stopped an average of 28.5 shots per game.
What should be most important to the Knights is the fact that Hart was 4-0 after a playoff loss in Philadelphia, including two times he allowed four goals, just like Friday in Salt Lake City, where he suffered his first setback after a playoff loss during his career.
"I think he cares," Totorella said. "I know there (weren't) a lot of shots on goal, and there (were) four goals, but it was a weird game. They were very opportunistic. When they had chances, they scored."
To say the least.
In reference to Tortorella's comments, the Mammoth finished with just 12 shots on goal, leaving Hart with eight saves.
And despite the Mammoth scoring on a third of their shots, Tortorella's confidence remains in place as the Golden Knights approach a must-win situation in Game 4 on Monday.
"I don't look at his game as being a real bad game; it was a weird game for him," Tortorella said. "But I know him so well. He has an attitude and a mental toughness about him at that position. He's smart enough, strong enough, to push that away, have a good practice (Sunday), and get ready for Game 4.
"He'll be fine."
PHOTO CAPTION
Vegas Golden Knights goaltender Carter Hart (79) tends the net against the Utah Mammoth during the third period in game three of the first round of the 2026 Stanley Cup Playoffs at Delta Center.
The Knicks defeated the Hawks on Saturday to even the series.
ATLANTA — The Knicks said they were playing for their lives.
Then they came out and played like it.
And it wasn’t Jalen Brunson who led the way — this was a shining moment for his supporting cast.
Particularly Karl-Anthony Towns, who recorded a triple-double, and OG Anunoby, who had a double-double, as the Knicks cruised to a 114-98 Game 4 win Saturday night at State Farm Arena to even the series at 2-2 heading back to New York.
“I thought we did a great job coming out with more tenacity,” Towns said. “More desperation I think is the proper word.”
Brunson — after Dyson Daniels fell on his left ankle — subbed out and went back to the locker room with 10:29 left in the third quarter and the Knicks leading by nine.
By the time Brunson came back in — with 5:38 left in the third quarter — the Knicks were up by 18.
OG Anunoby reacts during the Knicks’ April 25 win against the Hawks. Charles Wenzelberg
Josh Hart, Anunoby, Towns, Jordan Clarkson and Jose Alvarado all scored during that stretch.
Towns — who finished with 20 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists — recorded five of those assists during that third quarter.
It marked Towns’ first triple-double in the playoffs.
He becomes the fourth Knicks player to record a triple-double in the playoffs, joining Walt Frazier, Dick McGuire and Hart.
There was no big comeback or collapse this time around.
No late-game chaos.
It was the most straightforward game — for either side — of the series.
The Knicks nearly led wire to wire — when they took the lead with 6:40 left in the first quarter, they led the rest of the way.
“We understood that in a pivotal game like tonight, we needed to be our best,” Towns said. “I thought we not only met the challenge but we exceeded the expectation in the moment, and that’s what you expect a team that has experience like us to do.”
Jalen Brunson attempts a shot during the Knicks’ April 25 game against the Hawks. Charles Wenzelberg
The signs were there early.
Towns faked a shot, instead throwing a no-look pass to a cutting Hart.
Hart kicked it out to Anunoby in the corner, who swung it once more to Brunson for a wide-open 3-pointer.
He drilled it to give the Knicks a 12-point lead, as the Hawks called timeout with 6:54 left in the second quarter.
The wide-open look for Brunson — in addition to the fluid ball movement that created it — has been a rarity this series for the Knicks.
But their movement on offense re-emerged when they needed it most.
Karl-Anthony Towns attempts a shot during the Knicks’ April 25 game against the Hawks. Charles Wenzelberg
It helped create a balanced scoring attack.
Anunoby was terrific and finished with a game-high 22 points and 10 rebounds.
He hit back-to-back 3s in the second quarter as the Knicks began pulling away.
Hart added 10 points, nine rebounds and three assists.
Mikal Bridges — after coach Mike Brown showed faith in him by leaving him in the starting lineup following his Game 3 benching — recorded eight points.
But Bridges, after subbing out with 7:34 left in the third quarter, was on the bench for the rest of the game.
Brunson finished with 19 points on 7-for-19 shooting from the field along with six turnovers.
“At the end of the day,” Brown said, “that’s why it’s a team game.”
Hart, after another rough shooting start, came alive and scored nine of his 10 points in the second quarter as the Knicks pushed their lead to double digits.
He made a layup, subsequently stripped Nickeil Alexander-Walker as he brought the ball up the court and then dunked to give the Knicks a 16-point lead as the Hawks called timeout with 2:42 left in the first half.
After making another layup with 25.9 seconds left in the half, he pounded his chest and yelled toward the Knicks bench in celebration.
His teammates seemed to feed off it.
It was Hart who energized the Knicks early and set a tone.
“Obviously the sense of urgency was there,” Hart said. “Down 2-1, giving away two games that we should have won. We had that sense of urgency from the jump.”
OG Anunoby blocks a shot during the Knicks’ April 25 win over the Hawks. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Alvarado — who has surpassed Landry Shamet (who did not play until garbage time) — added a punch off the bench with six points.
Soon after checking in for the first time at the end of the first quarter, he got into a bit of a dustup with Mohamed Gueye and forced Gueye into a technical foul.
The Knicks held the Hawks to 41.5 percent shooting from the field and 24.4 percent from 3-point range.
CJ McCollum, guarded by a variety of Knicks, was still efficient — with 17 points — but did not kill the Knicks like he had the first three games. Jalen Johnson shot just 4-for-12 from the field.
“I think we refocused and understood what was gonna be needed tonight,” Brunson said. “Most importantly, just not being afraid to fail is a mindset we need to have. Go out there, leave it all on the table.”
This was a beatdown on both sides of the floor.
This was the Finals-or-bust Knicks that had previously gone missing.
This is the version that now must not be an anomaly.
OTTAWA, Ontario — Logan Stankoven scored the go-ahead goal in the third period as the Carolina Hurricanes defeated Ottawa 4-2 to sweep the first-round series.
Taylor Hall added a goal and an assist before Sebastian Aho buried two pucks into the empty net. Frederik Andersen made 25 saves. Seth Jarvis chipped in two assists.
Drake Batherson, with a goal and an assist, and Dylan Cozens replied for the Senators, who put up just five goals in four games and never led against the Hurricanes. Linus Ullmark stopped 26 shots. Rookie defenseman Carter Yakemchuk added two assists in his playoff debut.
Of the 213 NHL teams to fall behind 3-0 in a seven-game series, just four have come all the way back to win — the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs, 1980 New York Islanders, 2010 Philadelphia Flyers and 2014 Los Angeles Kings.
Ottawa also trailed last spring’s first-round matchup with Toronto 3-0 after seven years outside the postseason tournament before eventually falling in six games.
Stankoven scored his fourth goal in as many games at 9:10 of the final period on a power play off a rebound from the end boards.
Batherson came close to equalizing again with six minutes to go before Carolina was whistled for too many men. But Ottawa’s anemic power play again couldn’t generate any quality looks against a high-pressure penalty kill.
Aho scored into the empty net before Cozens made it 3-2 with 1:49 left on the clock. Aho then sealed the series for good with another empty netter.
Carolina opened the scoring in a physical, nasty second period when Hall beat Ullmark five-hole at 15:15 after Mark Jankowski made a big shot block at the other end.
Ottawa’s power play — 0-for-12 in the series entering play and without much going Saturday — finally broke through when Batherson tipped a Tim Stutzle one-timer.
Emotions boiled over earlier in the period after Senator's defenseman Tyler Kleven crushed Hurricanes counterpart Alexander Nikishin with a huge hit that left the Russian dazed and needing help off the ice.
Among 116 qualifiers entering play Saturday, when the Mets were rained out, his .143 batting average against ranked fifth, his .211 on-base percentage against sixth and .248 slugging percentage against ninth with a 2.67 ERA.
The third time through the order, however, one of the best pitchers in baseball morphs into one of the worst in the early going.
Among 100 pitchers who had logged at least four innings of work against an order a third time through, his .348 average against ranked 88th, .375 OBP against 78th and .609 slugging percentage against 91st with a 10.80 ERA.
Nolan McLean reacts during the Mets’ April 21 loss to the Twins. Imagn Images
The next step for McLean’s ascent has become obvious: He needs to maintain his stuff and keep opposing hitters guessing deeper in games.
“At the end of the day, I just got to execute pitches a little bit better,” McLean said Tuesday. “Maybe do a little more homework on how guys are adjusting to me.”
The 24-year-old, technically a rookie, was speaking after taking a perfect game into the sixth inning — for a second time this season — in a matchup with the Twins, who then began to figure him out.
In the sixth, Minnesota recorded its first hit, a Matt Wallner single, before turning the order over.
Leadoff hitter Byron Buxton, in his third time seeing McLean, smacked a two-run homer.
Further trouble awaited McLean an inning later, when a Kody Clemens double and RBI single from Luke Keaschall ensured that on a night McLean’s stuff was excellent, his stat line (6 ²/₃ innings, three runs) was ordinary in what became a loss.
Nolan McLean throws a pitch during his April 21 start against the Twins. Robert Sabo for the NY Post
Every pitcher becomes more hittable the more he sees an opponent, whether due to familiarity or fatigue.
McLean — whose breaking pitches often seem inhuman, such is his ability to spin a baseball — can begin making his adjustments when he pitches Game 1 of the doubleheader against the Rockies at Citi Field on Sunday.
“These [opposing] guys are getting paid to play baseball for a living, too,” McLean said last week. “… But I’ve got to execute better at the end of the day.”
Sunday’s single-admission doubleheader will begin at 1:40.
Game 2 will start 30-45 minutes after the end of Game 1.
Tickets to Saturday’s game are not valid for admission to the makeup doubleheader.
Fans holding a ticket in their account for Saturday’s game will receive a digital voucher that will be accessible Sunday morning.
Often a good number, but not when it’s how many walks you issued.
Perhaps the most memorable thing about this game from a White Sox perspective is that, according to the TV folks, it was only the second time since 1901 that four switch-hitting catchers appeared in the same game. Not much to that, you say? Well, it’s better than considering what happened on the field.
Want another anomaly? In the sixth inning, the Sox struck out not once, not twice, not thrice, but four times, the first a case of Miguel Vargas getting on via a third strike passed ball.
Noah Schultz pitched well, but not well enough. He did a terrific job getting out of a jam in the third, following a leadoff walk and double with two strikeouts and a grounder to short. But when Schultz started the fourth with two more walks and a wild pitch, both runners scored on a single by .179 hitter Nasim Nuñez to give Washington a 2-0 lead.
Schultz made it through six innings on a (very short) career-high 85 pitches, giving up four bases on balls and an equal number of hits and just the two runs while striking out a (very short) career-high eight. Meanwhile, though, Jake Irvin, who came into the game with an ERA of 6.00, was even better, walking none and allowing four hits and no runs while whiffing 10. He even had the first three K’s of the four-whiff inning.
Three Sox relievers kept it close, including new call-up Tyler Davis, who got two strikeouts in his first major league appearance. He did walk one, but maybe he just wanted to be part of the group. The fourth Sox reliever? Uh, well, we’ll get to that.
Nationals relievers did their best to try to hand the game back to the Sox via walks and hit batters and misplaying a bunt, which was to no avail until the eighth. It was then that Mitchell Parker walked Vargas and hit Colson Montgomery. Ex-Sox Gus Varland came in to give up an RBI single to Everson Pereira.
Chase Meidroth followed with a sac fly to knot the game, 2-2.
The Sox got two on via walks in the ninth — another attempted gift by the Nationals pen — but Montgomery struck out to end the threat. No matter how many gifts you’re offered, going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position won’t help you much.
Then we arrive at the 10th, with Jordan Leasure on the mound. This is an apt time to scream, as usual, “Oh, no! Not him!” Leasure issued a walk and a single to load the bases, Manfred Man pushed to third. A passed ball by Drew Romo (just up from Charlotte to replace the DFAed Reese McGuire), on what looked like a cross-up from Leasure, let in one run. An intentional walk loaded the bases again. Leasure then walked Joey Weimer to force in a second run and make it 4-2, then gave up a two-run single to Nuñez, giving the shortstop (and No. 8 hitter) four RBIs on the afternoon.
Down 6-2, the Sox scored the free runner without any Washington effort to stop him, and 6-3 it ended.
It was a jammed house despite very cold weather thanks to a really cool jacket giveaway, but by the bottom of the 10th everybody had headed for warmth.
Thus, the White Sox are 11-16 and the series is tied at 1-1, with the decider at 1:10 p.m. Central tomorrow, Sean Burke and lefty Foster Griffin the scheduled starters.
