On April 21, 2024, the Braves began the day with a six-game winning streak. It ended in fairly routine fashion: the Braves took an early 3-0 lead over the Rangers, but Darius Vines couldn’t prop it up, and they lost, 6-4. That was the last time (before now) the Braves had a winning streak of six games or more when the wins actually mattered. On April 21, 2026, the Braves also began the day with a six-game winning streak. This one ended in far more ignominious fashion, as the pitching (and defense) had a horrific day en route to an 11-4 walloping at the hands of the Washington Nationals.

Though many Braves arms struggled in this one, Reynaldo Lopez set the tone, or whatever the correct idiom is for being horrendous out of the gate. When Bryce Elder struggled early in the series opener on Monday night, it was attributed to a mechanics deficiency associated with the cold weather, and, perhaps, the dreaded “road pitcher first inning penalty” associated with a starter warming up and then having to sit before going back out and pitching. I don’t know if either of those two reasons applied to Lopez tonight, but either way, it was just terrible.

Lopez’ first pitch of the night was a sub-89 mph “fastball,” and that was only the beginning of his issues. For the entirety of that inning, his pitches were either nowhere near the zone, or basically right down the middle. Walk-single-single plated the first run, then there was another walk, then a run-scoring walk on five pitches that all missed the zone, and then a bloop hit to make it 3-0. Lopez managed to get out of the inning with some pitches that were in the middle of the zone but taken or mishit, but it wasn’t a very good start.

And then got it far worse, when he once again could barely flirt with the strike zone against James Wood to start the second, only to throw a 93 mph fastball on a full count that caught enough of the zone to be absolutely obliterated into left field. I’ve seen fielders stop and watch (or not watch) on pulled homers before, but on an opposite field shot on a cold day? Yowza. A single by the next batter chased Lopez, who had one of the worst outings of his career in this one — a 1/3 K/BB ratio and a homer allowed while getting just three outs.

The procession of Braves’ pitchers that followed Lopez wasn’t much better. Jose Suarez actually pitched three scoreless frames with four strikeouts… but he also walked four, including three in his final inning of work before escaping with a weak flyout. Dylan Dodd got two strikeouts and a pop out (great), but was victimized by a couple of bloops that led to the fifth Washington run. After Aaron Bummer mercifully worked a 1-2-3 frame with a strikeout, the Braves gave Ian Hamilton a shot to do something… and it went terribly. A couple of walks and a single loaded the bases, and then Luis Garcia Jr. hit a mediocre line drive into the right-center gap that should’ve been caught, except Ronald Acuña Jr. basically flubbed the catch, leading to two more runs. A groundout scored another. So, then, the Braves went with Joel Payamps, who issued two walks ahead of a three-run homer by Curtis Mead, who entered the game in the middle innings as a pinch-hitter.

Basically, in this game, the Braves’ arms walked twelve Nats, only struck out ten, and gave up two homers. Gross. Both Lopez and Grant Holmes feel like they’re going to be bullpen-bound eventually. Before the season, I surmised that they’d be deficient in availability and not performance, but instead, it’s been the opposite: no injury troubles yet, but other than whatever results they’re scrounging up from pitching in front of a defense that’s played well, they’ve been disappointing.

Offensively, the Braves did some stuff, but they couldn’t really keep up with the 11-run drubbing that their soft underbelly arms (and Lopez) handed to the Nationals on a gilded platter. The first inning had a bizarre sequence where, with Laz Diaz behind the plate, both Acuña and Nationals catcher Drew Millas challenged consecutive pitches, with neither challenge succeeding and Acuña striking out. Back-to-back doubles by Mauricio Dubon and Michael Harris II plated a run against Foster Griffin in the second, and Drake Baldwin took him deep in the third. Eli White then collected his first homer on the year with a hard shot into the right-field corner, which pulled the Braves within one, until the Other Relievers gave it all back and then some. The Braves scored their fourth and final run on a bizarre play that went 3-6-3 but wasn’t a double play, as the throw from the first baseman was not anywhere near the second base bag but ended up being corralled and returned to first for an out anyway. Braves batters ran a fine 6/3 K/BB ratio and hit two bombs to go with three doubles. The problem was that a bunch of their grounders didn’t get through (seven different grounders off Braves’ bats went 100+ mph but turned into outs)… and also that the pitching was really bad.

Well, tomorrow is a new day and a chance to start another, and hopefully longer, streak. Thankfully, whatever the Mets are doing right now is not baseball but rather some kind of abstract performance art trying to communicate the flavor of despair, and the Phillies currently resemble the zombies in a cerca-1988 straight-to-TV zombie movie, so the Braves can afford a pitching stinker like this one. But it’s more fun when they don’t do that and just hit a bunch of dingers and win.

The nightmare in Flushing continued Tuesday night and it’s getting late early at Citi Field.

As their season spirals down the drain, the Mets lost their 12th straight game on Tuesday, this one 5-3 to the Twins.

They expected it to be loud in Queens and it eventually was, as the Mets blew a three-run lead, didn’t get a hit after the fifth inning and then saw Devin Williams implode in a tie game in the top of the ninth.

It left the Mets at a new low point in 2026, with the worst record in the majors (7-16) and little reason for optimism that their fortunes will change anytime soon. No team has ever reached the playoffs after dropping 12 consecutive games.

“It’s not an easy situation,’’ Carlos Mendoza said. “We understand where we’re at, but there’s also a lot in front of us. We’ve got to go out and do it. The history will tell you otherwise, but we still believe in the players. It takes one.”

At this point, it’s hard to know when that one will come, as they’re in the middle of the franchise’s longest skid since another 12-game losing streak in 2002 — and they’re creeping closer to the team record of 17 set in 1962.

“We’re all very aware of it,’’ Francisco Lindor said of the streak.

Lindor seemingly had the Mets on their way to a different outcome, hitting a three-run homer in the bottom of the third and Nolan McLean didn’t allow a base runner until the sixth inning.

But if we know anything about this Mets team, it’s that they simply don’t do easy victories.

Or, these days, they don’t do victories… at all.

Everything went downhill after the sixth, as the Mets got just one hit the rest of the way, the Twins rallied to tie the game in the seventh and went ahead in the ninth.

The new rock bottom for the season came as Williams, off to a horrendous start as closer in Queens, walked the first two batters he faced in the top of the ninth and they didn’t record an out when Kody Clemens bunted to first and Mark Vientos tried to get the force at third, but his throw was too late.

With the bases loaded and the infield in, Luke Keaschall hit a chopper through the left side of the infield to give the Twins the lead. 

Williams followed by walking Matt Wallner to force in a run, exiting to a loud chorus of boos.

Austin Warren entered and kept it close by incredibly striking out the next three batters, drawing several loud ovations.

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But there was no rally in the bottom of the ninth.

“It’s tough, man,’’ Williams said. “I’ve never been a part of something like this. I think we just need to get the one win out of the way and I think everything else will take care of itself. But it’s obviously proving pretty difficult right now.”

McLean, who also took a no-hitter into the sixth inning against the Giants on April 3, remained perfect through the fifth before faltering in the sixth.

Wallner led off the inning by breaking McLean’s bid for perfection with a single to left.

McLean then got Royce Lewis to fly to right and then whiffed Brooks Lee for the second out.

But Byron Buxton followed with a two-run shot to left on a 3-1 cutter to make it a one-run game.

McLean got out of the inning with the Mets still up by a run, but gave up the lead in the seventh thanks to a Clemens double and a base hit by Keaschall.

Following a visit to the mound, McLean allowed a hard-hit grounder up the middle to Wallner, but Lindor stabbed it and got the out at first to preserve the tie.

But not for long.

And the Mets are searching for answers, with Lindor knowing there’s only one way to change the course of the season: “By winning.”

The New York Mets' losing streak has reached 12 games.

The Mets blew a 3-0 lead in a 5-3 loss to the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday, April 21. Mets relief pitcher Devin Williams allowed two runs without getting an out in the top of the ninth as Minnesota pulled away for the victory.

The Mets (7-16) have been one of the biggest disappointments to start the 2026 MLB season. Superstar shortstop Francisco Lindor is slugging just .341 with two home runs so far this season. The Mets' big offseason acquisition in Bo Bichette is doing even worse. However, the biggest disappointment is their record.

The 12-game skid makes the Mets the first team to lose that many games consecutively since the 2022 Los Angeles Angels lost 14 consecutive games. You heard that right. Even the historically bad 2024 Chicago White Sox and 2025 Colorado Rockies never experienced losing streaks of this magnitude.

The Mets — sitting in last place in the NL East — are the owners of the worst record in the National League. The Met's next chance to put their embarrassing losing streak to an end comes on Wednesday, April 22 against the Twins (7:10 p.m. ET). Giving the Mets some hope moving forward will be the return of Juan Soto from a calf strain that has sidelined the outfielder since April 4.

CURSE OF THE MAMBINO? NYC mayor eats blame for Mets’ ugly losing streak

The Cincinnati Reds mashed their way past the Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday night at the Trop, hitting five home runs along the way. At one point, they held a 12-2 lead – that came as they entered the Bottom of the 9th inning – before things went a little sideways for reliever Kyle Nicolas as he tried to finish off the win (1.0 IP, H, 4 ER, 5 BB, 2 K on 42 pitches).

Let’s focus on the positives here, though, as there were many.

For one, we watched as Elly De La Cruz destroyed a pair of homers as part of a larger 3 for 6, 3 R, 5 RBI game that featured a pair of homers – both from the right side of the plate. His second homer of the night did come against Rays position player Ben Williamson pitching in a mop-up role, but Elly opted to hit righty off the righty Williamson and still managed to sock a homer.

That’s good enough stuff to take home tonight’s Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game.

Homers also came off the bats of Ke’Bryan Hayes and Dane Myers, theirs coming back to back off Rays starter Steven Matz in the Top of the 2nd. Hayes finished with a 1 for 3 night that included a pair of walks and a pair of runs scored in easily his best offensive outing of the season. Spencer Steer also homered (and walked twice), while Sal Stewart merely chipped in with a 2 for 4 night that included a trio of ribbies and another stolen base.

Despite the struggles from Nicolas late, Chase Burns (5.2 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 8 K on 97 pitches) was dominant for most all of his outing to lead the pitching line. He entered the Bottom of the 6th having allowed nary a run before a 2-run blast in an already-decided game ended up sending him to the showers. He pummeled the zone throughout the early goings of this one and once again looked every bit the part of a legitimate ace in the making.

The win clinches the series win for the Reds and marks their 5th straight win on this road trip. They also now sit 16-8 on the season and have opened up a 2-game lead on the rest of the National League Central Division.

Go Reds!

The Mets returned home to a frigid Citi Field on Tuesday night and fell to the Twins, 5-3, extending their losing streak to 12 games.

Here are the takeaways...

- Devin Williams entered a 3-3 game in the ninth inning and couldn't find the plate, issuing back-to-back walks before Mark Vientos made a questionable decision to try to nab the lead runner at third on a sacrifice attempt, leading to a bases loaded, none out jam. Williams then allowed a base hit through the drawn in infield as the Twins took a 4-3 lead. He followed by issuing a bases loaded walk to make it 5-3, Twins. As boos rained down, Carlos Mendoza came out to get him.  

Austin Warren replaced Williams and struck out all three batters he faced, leading the agitated, freezing fans to shout mock "MVP" chants at him. 

-The final 14 Mets to come to the plate were retired in order. 

-Throwing a fastball that was up to 98 mph, his dastardly two-seamer, and a host of his filthy secondary offerings, Nolan McLean got off to a perfect start, retiring the first 15 batters he faced, including eight strikeouts -- fanning five batters in a row spanning the second and third innings. 

McLean's perfect game bid ended in the sixth inning, when Matt Wallner led off and lined a clean single to left on a 1-0 two-seamer. After a standing ovation from the crowd, McLean quickly turned the page, getting Royce Lewis to fly out to right field and Brooks Lee swinging on a bugs bunny curve. But with a chance to escape the inning, McLean served up a two-run homer to Byron Buxton that sliced the Mets' lead to 3-2. 

After notching his 10th strikeout to get the first out of the seventh inning, McLean faltered, serving up a double to Kody Clemons and run-scoring single to Luke Keaschall as Minnesota knotted the game, 3-3. McLean got the second out as Lindor made a stellar play on a grounder, ranging behind the second base bag before nabbing Matt Wallner at first base. But that's where McLean's night would end. 

Brazoban relieved McLean and extinguished the threat, needing just one pitch to get Lewis to fly out to left field. 

McLean's final line: three runs on five hits with no walks and 10 strikeouts in 6.2 innings. The 10 strikeouts were one short of McLean's career high.

- With Juan Sotoexpected to be activated off the IL ahead of Wednesday's game, the Mets on Tuesday trotted out another iteration of the lineup -- with Marcus Semien leading off, Bo Bichette batting cleanup, and Carson Benge ninth. 

The new lineup started off slow against former Mets prospect Simeon Woods Richardson, who entered the game with a 6.10 ERA and 1.59 WHIP in 20.2 innings over his first four starts of the season. The only Met to reach base over the first two innings was Bichette, who looped a single to right field. 

Things changed for the Mets in the third inning against Woods Richardson. Mark Vientos lined a sharp single to left field leading off the frame, and was erased on Benge's ground out -- with Benge swiftly stealing second base. After Semien drew a walk, Francisco Lindorcame up and ran the count full before blasting a three-run homer into the second deck in right field to give New York a 3-0 advantage -- their first lead of two or more runs since April 7.

New York's hitters did a good job of making Woods Richardson work in the third and fourth inning, getting his pitch count up to 80.

Highlights

Nolan McLean strikes out two in the first 🔥 pic.twitter.com/mk9ebU0qA2

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 21, 2026

Four strikeouts in two innings for Nolan McLean 💪 pic.twitter.com/UBOkBRbybb

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 21, 2026

7 strikeouts in 3 innings for Nolan McLean! pic.twitter.com/mdPhAgJDUg

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 21, 2026

3-RUN HOME RUN FOR FRANCISCO LINDOR AND HE’S PUMPED! 🗣️ pic.twitter.com/iNUY6LMlcY

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 21, 2026

Nolan McLean gets a nice hand from the Citi Field crowd after allowing his first baserunner of the night pic.twitter.com/IVHlGHyGHd

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 22, 2026

8 strikeouts in 5 innings for Nolan McLean pic.twitter.com/NBi6dmD7HD

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 22, 2026

Francisco Lindor cuts it off to save a run pic.twitter.com/vBxSxV2W2P

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 22, 2026

Huascar Brazobán strikes out two in a scoreless 8th! pic.twitter.com/tOMKdU1nt5

— SNY (@SNYtv) April 22, 2026

Upcoming schedule

The Mets and Twins continue their series on Wednesday night at 7:10. 

Clay Holmes will start for New York, while Minnesota has not yet announced a starter.

BOSTON — Giancarlo Stanton came into Tuesday in the midst of a skid and struggling against left-handers through the first month of the season.

So of course on a chilly night at Fenway Park, Stanton became the hottest hitter in town.

The veteran DH drove in three runs, providing all the offense that Luis Gil needed in his best start of the season on the way to the Yankees’ fourth straight win, a 4-0 victory over the Red Sox.

Stanton was robbed of another extra-base hit in his final at-bat, but settled for going 2-for-4 with a solo home run and a two-run double, both off Red Sox lefty Connelly Early.

Entering Tuesday, he had been 1-for-21 and 0-for-17 overall against left-handers, with Aaron Boone giving him a breather Sunday for a double day off to combine with Monday’s scheduled off-day.

The result was Stanton looking like the hitter he was to start the season and continuing to mash at Fenway Park like he has throughout his career — now batting .316 with eight home runs and a .932 OPS in 40 games.

“It’s always a fun rivalry game, no matter where each team is in the standings,” Stanton said. “It’s just a good experience, a good pure baseball place to play. You’ve got to raise your game in those types of situations.”

That provided the support for Gil, who tossed 6 ¹/₃ scoreless innings even without his best stuff.

The right-hander, who could be on the outside looking in of the rotation crunch once Carlos Rodón and Gerrit Cole return from the injured list next month, allowed just two hits while walking three, hitting a batter and striking out a pair.

“My focus is to execute pitches, get strikes out there and then at the end, let them figure it out,” Gil said of the looming decision through an interpreter.

Despite his velocity being down in the frigid conditions, Gil found a way to be effective with some quick innings against a rough-looking Red Sox lineup.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

In doing so, he continued his strong track record against the Red Sox (9-14), now having allowed just three earned runs in 33 ²/₃ career innings against them.

Brent Headrick, Tim Hill and David Bednar followed Gil to combine for the shutout, the second straight for the Yankees and the fifth of their season.

Stanton’s big night began in the second inning, when Early threw him an inside slider that he crushed to the light tower above the Green Monster. Smoked off the bat at 111.5 mph, his third home run of the season gave the Yankees (14-9) a 1-0 lead.

“Just some really good at-bats, obviously to get us going with a G-esque moonshot,” manager Aaron Boone said.

Early only faced one batter over the minimum across the next three innings before Amed Rosario drew a leadoff walk in the sixth, sparking a rally.

Aaron Judge came up next and — after an unsuccessful automated ball-strike system challenge left him in an 0-2 count — worked another walk.

One out later, Stanton roped a full-count double off the Green Monster that scored both runners, with Judge chugging around from first and scoring on an aggressive send from third base coach Luis Rojas for the 3-0 lead.

Randal Grichuk later added an insurance run in the eighth inning, belting an RBI double to the gap to make it 4-0 and cap off a solid 2-for-4 night after entering the day 2-for-20 on the season.

But the most encouraging performance came from Stanton, who offered a reminder of the threat he can be in the middle of the order if he remains healthy.

Boone has been proactive in getting Stanton regular days off in an attempt to keep him fresh over the long haul, which could allow him to be another impact bat along with Judge and Ben Rice.

“He’s a huge presence for us and glad he’s gotten some big hits here early,” Boone said. “Obviously the difference for us tonight.”

A fiery Dustin May had a solid start and JJ Wetherholt continued his on-base assault while Nathan Church flexed unexpected power as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Miami Marlins Tuesday night.

It only took 4 pitches before JJ Wetherholt was on base as he ripped a 1st inning double to start the game. After Ivan Herrera struck out, Alec Burleson picked him up with a single to center that scored Wetherholt making i 1-0 Cardinals.

The Miami Marlins responded in the bottom of the 1st inning when Jakob Marsee hit a home run that hit the foam padding above the right field wall which was ruled a home run after an umpires review. Honorable mention goes to Jordan Walker, though, as he rifled the ball in from right field that would have nailed Marsee at third base if the umps hadn’t ruled the ball a home run.

The Cardinals would score again in the top of the 3rd inning when JJ Wetherholt walked and then advanced to third on a hit-and-run from Ivan Herrera. He would then score as his speed forced an errant throw by Connor Narby which sailed above the catcher making it 2-1 Cardinals.

St. Louis would extend the lead in the top of the 4th inning when Masyn Winn singled and scored on a long blast by Nathan Church making it 4-1 Cardinals.

Alec Burleson and Nolan Gorman helped the Cardinals add to their lead in the top of the 5th inning as Burleson hammered a line drive to the right-center field wall for a double. Nolan Gorman then went the other way on a 2-strike count dumping a single into left field scoring Burleson making it 5-1 St. Louis.

Masyn Winn then ripped a double to left field moving Gorman over the third. That knocked starter Chris Paddack out of the game for Miami as they turned to the bullpen for help. Former Cardinal John King kept the Cardinals from adding any more runs as he was able to get Nathan Church out on a ball that almost floated over second baseman Edwards.

Jordan Walker’s arm was featured yet again in the bottom of the 5th inning when Jakob Marsee singled to right, but Jordan fired the ball back into the infield to Gorman who was able to catch Marsee venturing too far off of first base and he was tagged out in a rundown which was a key play in keeping Miami from scoring again.

Other than the awkward first inning home run to Marsee, Dustin May had nasty stuff (in a good way) as he only allowed 6 hits through 5 1/3 innings, struck out 5, only walked 1 and only gave up 1 earned run. The Marlins did make solid contact, but had little to show for it. Justin Bruihl was brought in to finish off the bottom of the 6th inning and he was able to get a groundout and a flyout to keep the game 5-1 Cardinals. Bruihl would also stay in the game through the bottom of the 7th and held the Marlins scoreless although 2 did reach base after he hit them.

Ryan Stanek was brought in to deal with the Marlins in the bottom of the 8th inning. He began by striking out Lopez, but then gave up back-to-back walks. After getting another strikeout, he walked another to load the bases. He then gave up a two-run single to Heriberto Hernández making it 5-3 Cardinals before he was removed by manager Oli Marmol. Here’s a fun fact: the name Stanek is of Slavic origin and means “one who achieves glory” which has yet to happen for the Cardinals. George Soriano was brought in to stop the run hemorrhaging which he did by striking out Norby. Riley O’Brien closed out the Marlins in the bottom of the 9th to seal the Cardinals 5-3 victory for his 7th save with some help from Pedro Pagés who made good use of the ABS system on a crucial 2-strike call. The win moves the Cardinals to 14-9 on the young season.

Offensive shoutouts to Alec Burleson, Ivan Herrera, Masyn Winn and Nathan Church who all had 2 hits for the Cardinals Tuesday night.

St. Louis will try to win the series Wednesday when they send Kyle Leahy to the mound against Janson Junk who will make the start for Miami. First pitch scheduled for 11:10am central time Wednesday.

It is hard to believe that this is the same team that recently had a six game win streak. Maybe the Rays were never that good, and the Yankees and White Sox just aren’t much competition?

Yesterday the Rays lost in part due to bad luck and less than stellar defense.

Tonight, the team fell apart just about every other way. This wasn’t bad luck. This was just terrible, no energy, no strategy, no hope baseball. Don’t let the almost respectable score fool you. This was a debacle.

Matz apparently met his match(z) in the Cincinnati lineup. In the first inning, Ely de la Cruz hit a two run home to put the Reds up 2-0. In the second inning, two Reds players each hit solo shots and it was 4-0.

Brian Anderson commented that Matz’s stuff seemed fine but his location is off. That is a very kind, nearly euphemistic way of saying the guy was nowhere near the strike zone. Three innings. Four walks. Throwing nearly more balls than strikes. I’d think most pitchers could do better blindfolded. Not only did he put the Rays in a big hole, but left a tired bullpen to get through six innings, with a day game tomorrow.

And believe me, the six bullpen innings were not pretty. Walks, hits, runs.

Altogether, the Rays 5 pitchers gave up 12 runs (include five home runs) and ten — TEN — walks. Just a disaster. The last pitcher was actually position player Ben Williamson, and he did not do any worse than the actual pitchers! A mere solo home run, practically a clean inning.

The Rays largely seemed flummoxed by Chase Burns, but then again they’ve been flummoxed in general for the last few games, and Burns is really good. In fact the only fun part of this game, in those moments in which I could pretend I wasn’t actually a Rays fan, was when they showed slow motion video of a Burns’ pitch that seemed to move in eight different directions as it crossed the plate.

The Rays managed to scatter a few singles. Jonathan Aranda managed to square one up and hit a two-run home run. But Burns was very effective for 5.2 innings, and the Cincinnati bullpen was equally tough for the Rays.

The best scoring opportunity came in the bottom of the ninth, when Kyle Nicolas, no doubt the low man in the Cincinnati bullpen (because that’s the sort of pitcher you throw in to pitch the ninth when you have a 10 run lead). Nicolas walked the bases loaded and then walked in two runs. He then gave up a very lucky (for the Rays) 2 run-double, a bloop hit that was barely fair, and made the score 12-6. But a lazy fly ball ended the rally and the game.

Boy, does it feel good to beat Boston.

The Yankees got their heads right over the weekend in their home sweep of Kansas City and carried that momentum to Fenway Park, handling the scuffling Red Sox in the first rivalry meeting of 2026. Luis Gil had little trouble shutting down a brittle Boston offense, and the previously-slumping Giancarlo Stanton smashed two extra-base hits to lead New York’s offensive attack. The Bomber bullpen took care of the rest of the paperwork in a 4-0 final as the Yanks collected their league-leading fifth shutout win.

In Gil’s previous outing, the Angels feasted on his fastball, taking him yard off the pitch three times in five innings. Tonight, though, a struggling Red Sox lineup simply couldn’t square him up. Gil allowed a pair of knocks in the first two innings, but from that point he did not allow a hit for the rest of the night. The fastball wasn’t the overpowering offering we saw in his rookie year—in the New England chill, he only averaged 93.6 mph on it—but the Red Sox just couldn’t make hard contact.

In the bottom of the sixth, the Yankees had just extended the lead to 3-0, giving him some extra cushion. He responded by retiring the top of the order in four pitches. He finally lost his command with two walks in the seventh, but some excellent relief work from Brent Headrick preserved his scoreless outing. He finished with 6.1 innings pitched, two hits, three walks, and two strikeouts, only permitting two Boston hitters to even reach scoring position.

The first of Stanton’s two salvos came in the second inning when he put one out of sight—at least, from the vantage point of the YES booth. Stanton’s 111.5 mph blast left the yard at such a high arc that neither Joe Girardi and Michael Kay really saw it go. The launch angle was an absolutely comical 41 degrees—usually a pop-up, unless you have freakish power like Stanton does. That swing busted him out of a 1-for-21 skid.

Big G’s second big hit came following a pair of walks issued by Early to Amed Rosario and Aaron Judge. By this point in the game, Early was losing his edge, nibbling around the strike zone and playing with his food after getting to two strikes. Rosario walked on four pitches, but Judge worked his way back from 0-2 down. So did Stanton. Once he’d gotten the count full, Early was forced to re-enter the strike zone—and he was punished. Giancarlo pounded a changeup off the Monster, scoring both Rosario and Judge to supplement the Yankee lead.

After surrendering lhis third free pass of the inning, Early was finally lifted. The Yankees went on to leave the bases loaded against reliever Jack Anderson—and José Caballero burned their final ABS challenge—but the damage was done.

An unlikely but welcome source helped add on against Anderson in the eighth inning. Ceddanne Rafaela began the frame with a spectacular leaping catch to rob Stanton of what would’ve been his third extra-base hit, but Cody Bellinger slapped an opposite field single to start a rally which was immediately converted by Randal Grichuk. Inserted into the lineup to face the left-handed Early, Aaron Boone opted to keep Grichuk in against the right-handed reliever. Grichuk rewarded the decision with a double into the left-center gap. Bellinger hustled around to score all the way from first to give New York a big insurance run.

Boston’s Carlos Narváez led off the eighth with a single, leading to a call for Tim Hill—who delivered a quintessential Tim Hill performance. He got all three of Roman Anthony, Willson Contreras, and Masataka Yoshida to roll over on grounders to retire the side and set the stage for David Bednar in the ninth. The Yankee closer worked around a Rafaela single to complete the shutout, striking out pinch-hitter Jarren Duran for the 27th out.

The Bombers seek to extend their winning streak to five games tomorrow night. It’ll be two top-flight lefties and former NL East foes facing off: Max Fried against Ranger Suarez. First pitch is once again set for 6:45 pm; as a Wednesday night game, coverage will be on Prime Video.

Box Score

After a road trip, it’s always nice to get home, and the Tigers were certainly happy to be back at Comerica Park. The first game of their series against the Brewers had Keider Montero on the mound for the Tigers, and Kyle Harrison up for the Brewers. Right now, before you continue reading this, I need you to look at a photo of Kyle Harrison and tell me he doesn’t look like Andy Dirks’ brother.

In the first inning, with two outs on the board, Jake Bauers singled. A Gary Sanchez groundout ended the inning, though. In the home half, Gleyber Torres was hit by a pitch with one out. A passed ball then allowed Torres to advance to second. Unfortunately, two outs came right on the heels of that boon and the Tigers did what they love to do: leave a man stranded.

Top of the second, and while it looked like the Tigers had their first out, Garrett Mitchell quickly called for a review, and at a very quick glance, he was right to, and the call was overturned, putting a man on first. Luis Rengifo drew a walk. Sal Frelick then followed that up with a single, which brought Mitchell home for the first run of the game. A perfectly placed bunt single from David Hamilton loaded the bases. Montero finally got the first out of the inning, but it soon got uglier. Bruce Turang singled, scoring two runs. Hamilton made a push for home but was tagged out. The Brewers were up by three at the mid-point of the second. In the home half, Riley Greene got a one-out single, and Spencer Torkelson singled right behind him, but the Tigers would leave both baserunners stranded.

Montero course corrected nicely in the third, getting the side out in order. The Tigers built up another opportunity in the bottom of the third. Kevin McGonigle got a two-out double, and Matt Vierling followed that with a walk, but once again the Tigers left two on base.

The fourth saw another 1-2-3 inning for Montero against the Brewers, something he and the team desperately needed if they hoped to overcome the gap in the score. Greene took a leadoff walk in the home half, then advanced to second on a wild pitch. Torkelson then walked. Hao-Yu Lee singled, and with the bases loaded, that was it for Harrison, who was pulled and replaced by Grant Anderson. Anderson’s first order of business was to induce a double play off the bat of Javier Baez, but the Tigers did score their first run of the game in Riley Greene. They’d have to settle for just the one run for now, though.

The Brewers once again went three-up, three-down in the fifth. In the home half, the Tigers continued to attempt to make something happen. Torres got a leadoff single, but a flyout and double play meant he didn’t get much of a chance to score.

Two outs into the sixth, Montero’s night was done. His final line for the game was 5.2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K on 88 pitches. We’ve certainly seen better from him this season, but it was nice to see a strong course correction after he floundered early in the game. He ended up getting 12 outs in a row before being pulled. Enmanuel De Jesus came out of the pen to replace him, and he got the final out of the inning. Trevor Megill came out of the Brewers pen in the bottom of the inning and got the Tigers out in order.

A nice streak of 15 outs in a row against the Brewers ended in the seventh with a two-out single to Hamilton. Blake Perkins then took a walk. A throwing error was charged to De Jesus on a pickoff attempt. Then Turang singled, bringing Hamilton home. Just an ugly inning, and it kept getting worse as a William Contreras line drive headed to left and scored another run. The Tigers managed to get out of the inning without more runs scoring, but when it was all said and done, the score was now 5-1 for the Brewers. Aaron Ashby was the new pitcher for Milwaukee in the bottom of the inning. Lee took a leadoff walk, even though the Brewers challenged a ball call, it was confirmed correct. With two outs, Torres walked as well, putting two men on. It was another case of Tigers Threaten But Do Not Score, though.

Gary Sanchez started the inning with a triple. Mitchell then got a triple of his own, scoring another run. Rengifo singled as Vierling just barely missed making the catch in right. This scored another run. No one was warming, so this is just how we live now. Sal Frelick walked. If you’re still reading at this point, you’re a real one. Hamilton then singled, which should have been a pretty run-of-the-mill grounder, but nope, instead it’s bases loaded. Can a whole team be charged with defensive indifference? De Jesus was finally pulled. Connor Seabold came in and decided to maintain the status quo by hitting Blake Perkins with a pitch to walk in a run. Sure, why not? The Tigers finally got their first out of the inning with a Turang flyout, but another run scored. Then a Contreras single brought in yet another one. A well-placed double into left by Bauers scored another run. 10 batters into this inning, and we still have only one out. Sanchez, in his second at-bat, grounded out, scoring a run, but also getting the Tigers a much-needed out. The Tigers finally got out of the inning, but seven runs scored, and everyone was a little worse-off personally for having watched it.

Jake Woodford was the new Brewers pitcher. Dillon Dingler reached thanks to a fielding error by Joey Ortiz, but was eliminated in a force out.

Ah, at last, a silver lining! POSITION PLAYER PITCHING! Jake Rogers came out for the top of the ninth, tossing his cute little eephus pitch, and with it, he collected his first career strikeout. He collected two outs before giving up a single to Hamilton. Blake Perkins hit a groundball that took an unexpected hop to keep it from being an out, but the Tigers did manage to get out of the inning without any runs scoring, so go Jake go! In the bottom of the inning, a pinch-hitting Colt Keith hit a one-out single. Wenceel Perez, also pinch-hitting, then singled. McGonigle came through, singling and bringing Keith home. McGonigle advanced to second on defensive indifference, and that was followed by a Vierline double, that scored two more runs. The mini rally was good for the soul, but a flyout to right ended the inning and the game.

Final: Brewers 12, Tigers 4