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He lays huge eggs and bounds around the garden hiding them while trumpeting loudly and splashing in the water from the nearby sprinkler. Yes he’s the famous and beloved Easter Elephant and the A’s are but 2-6 as the calendar hits his special day.

Let’s go inside a couple numbers to see why or how the A’s have stumbled so mightily out of the gate. Some primary culprits include…

Jacob Wilson

It’s not often a player ranks in the 1st percentile in 4 different Statcast categories out of the 13 listed, but Fidgety Guy is an extremist. As in last season his batting average was extremely high but this year his slash line is a putrid .212/.212/.303 for a reason.

It’s not necessarily alarming for Wilson to be in the 1st percentile for “bat speed” as he ranked exactly there in his superb 2025 rookie season. Wilson’s “barrel rate” is also 1st percentile — last year it was 6th percentile. What’s concerning is that his “chase rate” was 22nd percentile last season and so far this year it’s … 1st percentile. And then there’s “BB percentage”. Hard to get lower than 0%, which lands Wilson in the 1st percentile in yet another category.

Wilson is going out of the strike zone more than anyone in the league and it’s a big part of why his “whiff %” is down to the 79th percentile. That may sound good but last year it was truly elite: 99th percentile. The cure for ails Wilson is pretty straight-forward: he needs to stop swinging at pitches out of the strike zone at unparalleled rates. It is making him an easy out leading to a .515 OPS.

If I had to pick a single phrase to describe what the A’s mantra should be moving forward, it would be “swing decisions” and it starts with the A’s shortstop.

Luis Morales

I am dead set against fast, knee-jerk reactions to small samples as not only is it a statistically flawed way to react to numbers it risks creating performance issues with peers who press when faced with a reality that a few plate appearances or innings can define their status.

But what we are seeing with Luis Morales is not new: he simply does not currently have the ability to throw the ball where he wants to, leading to a lot of walks, high pitch count innings, hanging sliders and centered fastballs that are crushed, and an alarming amount of hard contact overall. We saw it throughout spring training and nothing shifted in his first 2 starts of the regular season.

Morales is a “stuff” guy with his 96.4 MPH fastball and crackling slider. So it’s disconcerting to see some of his more negative stats in the context of him boasting stuff that is raw but supposedly hard to hit.

After 2 starts Morales ranks in just the 32nd percentile in average exit velocity against. His “whiff rate” is in just the 12th percentile, leading to merely an 11th percentile K rate, and he is in only the 18th percentile in preventing hitters from barreling him up.

According to Fangraphs here’s how bad a start Morales is off to: last year his fastball value was -0.7 but so far this season it’s -4.9. His slider showed up at +1.5 last year but is off to a -2.3 start in 2026. His changeup is even down from +1.8 to -0.3. Much of this can reasonably be attributed to the small sample of 2025 and the tiny sample of 2026, but the trends are clear and probably not noise — they match the eyeballs, not just the results.

I think the A’s should, for the sake of both Morales and the team, option him to AAA to refine his command and approach, basically to try to gain some at all. He is not ready for the big leagues despite his “big arm” and it is not serving anyone but opposing hitters to have him continue to make big league starts right now.

I would option him and call up a reliever until Morales’ next start comes up on Friday, then option a reliever (be it same one or one of Michael Kelly and Elvis Alvarado) and call up Kade Morris to start Friday’s game. Morris doesn’t have Morales’ “stuff” but what he has is the ability to command the stuff he does have. He throws a lot of strikes, keeps the ball on the ground well, can change speeds with his fastball, slider, changeup, slow curve combination, and is far more polished.

Morris has done something few can boast: he has pitched well in the PCL where balls fly and ERAs soar. In his last 5 starts (September, 2025 and 2 starts in 2026) his AAA line is: 3-0, 1.93 ERA, 28 IP, 21 hits, 10 BB, 29 K. He had just over a 50% ground ball rate at AAA last season and is at 60% to start 2026.

Just getting Wilson to control the strike zone a tad and slotting in Morris to give Morales the AAA time he needs would improve the lineup and rotation significantly overnight. Calling up Wander Suero (who impressed me in spring training and is off to a solid start at AAA) and/or Jack Perkins to fortify the bullpen could help too.

We’re not talking about “wholesale changes” after 8 games but we are talking about essential tweaks for a team that opened the season with a flawed roster and is paying the price in spades. I would like to think that even if his bonnet is a bit tight around his large ears, the Easter Elephant would agree that these changes are needed.

Ok, so the winning streak thing didn’t work out yesterday. So today let’s just hope that Ranger Suárez can figure it out on the mound. First pitch at 1:35 PM on NESN.

Happy Easter to all who celebrate! The Kansas City Royals have a chance to take the series this afternoon against a really good Brewers ballclub. Early offense propelled the Brewers to a 5-2 win yesterday in game one of the doubleheader, while a big 6th inning led the Royals to an 8-2 victory in the nightcap, to split said doubleheader.

The Royals currently sit at 4-4 on the season, with a 3-2 homestand so far, so on top of trying to make this a winning series, a win today would make it a winning homestand. They have a quick three game series in Cleveland starting tomorrow, before coming right back home for a four-game series against the Chicago White Sox.

Last Easter, the Royals were in Detroit, and Tarik Skubal was the starting pitcher, a game the Royals won 4-3 in extra innings, to wrap up a dreadful road trip, and avoid being swept in a four-game series vs the Tigers.

Kris Bubic goes today for the Royals. The left-hander had a great start in the home opener Monday against the Twins. Bubic went 6 innings, striking out four, giving up just one run (a solo homer), and walking three.

Bubic did start in Milwaukee last season, going 6 innings, giving up 3 hits, 2 walks, striking out 8 batters, while giving up zero runs.

With the Brewers throwing a left hander today as well, the Royals are opting for a more right-handed heavy lineup. Here are the starters behind Bubic.

Also, today the Royals will be wearing a different uniform at home, for the first time since 2008.

As for the Brewers, they have been the model of consistency the last decade in baseball. For a small market team, they always seem to be winning lots of games and in the playoffs. Here is their lineup today behind Kyle
Harrison.

First pitch is set for 1:10 p.m. CT and can be streamed on Royals.TV.

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Sunday Night Baseball returns on Easter with a matchup between the St. Louis Cardinals and Detroit Tigers on Peacock at 7:20 pm ET.

Both starting pitchers have notable splits, so I’m banking on the platoon advantage for three hitters with my Sunday Night Baseball MLB player props.

Read on for my full MLB picks and Cardinals vs. Tigers predictions on Sunday, April 5.

Cardinals vs Tigers props for April 5

Pick	Odds
McGonigle Over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI	-135
Burleson Over 1.5 total bases	+105
Carpenter Over 1.5 total bases	+130

Cardinals vs Tigers player prop picks

Kevin McGonigle Over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI (-135)

Detroit Tigers rookie Kevin McGonigle has been a man on fire, slashing .333/.412/.500 with a 162 wRC+ through his first eight big-league games. 

He stands a good chance of doling out more damage on Sunday against St. Louis Cardinals starter Kyle Leahy, who transitioned to the rotation and allowed four runs on eight hits with a sole strikeout in his season debut. 

Leahy has noticeable splits, posting a 1.50 WHIP and .342 wOBA to left-handed bats. All four of McGonigle’s extra-base hits this season have come against RHP, and he ranks in the Top 10% in expected slugging percentage, so it's wheels up yet again for the precocious infielder.

Alec Burleson Over 1.5 total bases (+105)

Keider Montero makes his 2026 debut after Justin Verlander was placed on the injured list with a hip injury. 

Similar to Leahy, Montero also struggles against left-handed hitters, posting a 5.66 FIP and 1.41 WHIP for his career. The Cardinals don’t have many hitters poised to make Montero pay (80 wRC+ against RHP), but Alec Burleson is one exception.

The former East Carolina product slashes .277/.333/.446 with a 117 wRC+ against RHP. Montero's never gotten him out, either, as he's gone 2-for-2 with a walk in prior at-bats facing Montero. 

Apart from that small sample, Burleson’s swinging a hot bat, ranking in the 88th percentile or better in xwOBA, xBA, and xSLG. It won’t hurt to have winds of 11-15 mph blowing out to left field, either.

Kerry Carpenter Over 1.5 total bases (+130)

Kerry Carpenter would be a Hall of Famer if he only faced right-handed pitching every day. In over 1,000 career at-bats against RHP, he’s slashing .275/.328/.529 with a 135 wRC+.

He’s off to a bit of a slow start, going 5-for-29 at the dish, but that leads to a better price on his prop lines this Easter. 

Leahy’s offerings did not look MLB-caliber in his debut, posting a measly 92 Stuff+. His fastball (79) dragged that number down, and he throws it nearly 40% of the time to lefties. 

Carpenter demolishes four-seamers (157 wRC+) and right-handers alike, so it’s an ideal matchup.

How to watch Cardinals vs Tigers and game info

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The Yankees won the longest nine-inning game of the young season last night, a three-hour, 49-minute slugfest that put them up two games to none in this weekend series against the Marlins. Should fatigue be setting in, the club has the right starter on the mound to go for the sweep, with Max Fried toeing the slab in the boogie down Bronx.

What more needs to be said about Fried? He has yet to let a man cross home plate after two starts to open the year, and while his strikeout totals won’t raise many eyebrows, the results have so far spoken for themselves. A .147 BABIP against probably won’t last all season, no matter how many groundballs are hit to Ryan McMahon, but if Fried wants to smother his opponent again today, I’m sure no nerds will be too worked up about it — signed, one of said nerds.

Chris Paddack is expected* to counter for the Marlins. He’s a guy who six years ago I thought would take baseball by storm. He hasn’t exactly done that, signed by Miami to balance some veteran depth in a rotation that had some upside, but after getting knocked around by the White Sox in his first outing of the year maybe it’s time to wonder whether that depth will be all that helpful. This will be his fifth career start against the Yankees and he has not fooled them, with an ERA over eight and an OPS allowed above .900 so far. If the Yankees can jump on a pitcher they’ve beaten up before, we could have a quick one on our hands.

*Note that we say “expected” now because there is more recent, post-delay news that the Marlins will instead start Pete Fairbanks as an opener rather than Paddack from the jump. But he will still see work as the “bulk guy.” The former Rays closer Fairbanks has pitched three times this year, recording two saves and not allowing a run while fanning five and only allowing a single hit. But he should be gone after the first, especially since this is being done to help his family out, as his wife, Lydia, is pregnant and scheduled to be induced tomorrow morning, so the sooner Pete can get home, the better.

Trent Grisham brings his .406 OBP — and I gotta say, I’m impressed even in a limited sample that he’s been able to set the table that well — into his customary leadoff spot, and indeed the lineup is starting to look pretty consistent. As long as the club keeps winning, expect the lineup to run the course.

Be warned that the tarp is already on the field as of the time we’re writing this, so we’re in for a delay.

As far as viewing the game goes, it’s as easy as can be, with both audio and television broadcasts just the same as they were yesterday. Go Yankees, go baseball.

We’ll finally begin at 5:10pm Eastern.

How to watch

Location: Yankee Stadium — New York, NY

First pitch: 5:10pm EDT (delayed from 1:35pm EDT)

TV broadcast: YES, Marlins.TV/CBS Miami

Radio broadcast: 560 WQAM, WAQI 710 (MIA), WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY)

Online stream: MLB.tv (out-of-market only), Gotham Sports App

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

Today, the Houston Astros announced they have placed SP Hunter Brown on the 15-day IL due to a right shoulder strain.

Brown, now the staff ace, is 1-0 after two starts with an 0.84 ERA and 1.03 WHIP. He has allowed only 1 run in 10.2 IP and has struck out 17.

His injury comes at a time when fellow SP Cristian Javier is having significant struggles with command. Javier sports a 12.96 ERA after two starts in which he has allowed 10 hits and 9 walks in just 8.1 innings. He has struck out only 3.

Reliever Christian Roa has been recalled from Triple-A Sugar Land to fill the roster spot opened by Brown’s injury.

Milwaukee looks to pick up its third straight series win after splitting yesterday’s doubleheader with the Kansas City Royals. On the mound is offseason acquisition Kyle Harrison, who impressed in his first start against the Tampa Bay Rays — tossing five innings with eight strikeouts while allowing just one earned run. Harrison faces a stiffer test today against this Royals lineup, but early returns suggest he’s more than up to the task.

Kansas City counters with left-hander Kris Bubic, who posted a 2.55 ERA across 20 starts in 2025 and opened his season by holding the Twins to two hits over six innings.

Brice Turang leads off again, looking to bounce back after striking out five times over two games yesterday. Hitting second and playing third base is Luis Rengifo, who’s doubled twice in five at-bats this series. William Contreras, Christian Yelich, and Gary Sanchez (at first base) make up the heart of the order. Luis Matos will make his first start as a Brewer, batting sixth and playing right field in place of Sal Frelick, who is out after exiting yesterday’s nightcap with what the team called “left side tightness.” Brandon Lockridge (in center field), Blake Perkins, and Joey Ortiz round out the lineup.

Despite Frelick’s absence, Garrett Mitchell isn’t in today’s lineup. Mitchell, who leads the team with 11 RBIs, has recorded an RBI double in each of his last three games.

Today’s first pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. You can catch the game on Brewers.TV, the Brewers Radio Network, and WTMJ 620.

This past Wednesday, Brady posted the latest SB Nation Reacts poll question of which of their non-Dodgers NL West Division rivals are the bigger threat this season, and now we have that result.

What are the motivations for this poll response? It’s an important question. Do they see the Diamondbacks as a likely second place team or are they more likely to wind up third as they did last season? In that case, the Giants would be competing to avoid a repeat of fourth place. Or, did voters simply look at the field and vote based on which team they thought could be the biggest threat to the Giants clinching second place in the division?

If we focus on the notion of fan optimism, then we’re led to the conclusion that it’s a battle for second place and, presumably, a Wild Card berth. I’m not sure I can travel that far down the road of optimism, however, as the National League playoff field seems awfully competitive on paper. If you figure the Dodgers are the NL West champs (which is no sure thing, because baseball is usually not so predictable), the remaining five teams could be from an extensive group of teams: the Mets, Atlanta, Philadelphia, the Marlins Cubs, Brewers, Reds — heck, the Pirates are 5-3 of this writing. The Giants, Padres, and Diamondbacks don’t seem to be on the same level as most of those teams (Pirates & Marlins being the most obvious exceptions for the moment).

But after seeing San Diego up close, it makes sense that a lot of voters concluded (either just by watching the Giants play them or by their knowledge of the team’s off-field situation in terms of finances, but also prospect capital) that they simply aren’t the threat they once were and especially when compared to the Diamondbacks who… lost a game 17-2 this past week and were then shutout the next night. So, all three of these would-be runner up to the Dodgers have stumbled out of the gate.

Remarkably, ZiPS projects the Giants to land in second place, with the Padres third and Dbacks fourth. The Padres have also won the season series against the Giants in each of the last four seasons and five of the last six. Or, to put it another way, since 2020, the Giants have won the season series just once (2021). Arizona has won the season series in each of the last four seasons, too, though.

But 51-49 is very close, and that makes a lot of sense. Arizona features Corbin Carroll, Ketel Marte, Geraldo Perdomo, Zac Gallen, and Eduardo Rodriguez while San Diego has Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill, Manny Machado, and Ramon Laureano to go with Randy Vasquez, Michael King, and Nick Pivetta. If you put those groups up against Devers, Adames, Chapman, Ramos, Lee, Webb, and Roupp/Mahle there’s a way to make them all roughly equivalent.

Unless the Giants absolutely crater here in April, the battle for second in the NL West should be an intense one for most of the summer.

The poll questions that weren’t team-specific had to do with viewing the games.

With MLB’s media rights deals set to end after the 2028 season, Commissioner Rob Manfred appears to be gearing up to offer all of the teams media rights as part of a large streaming package. What will that mean for viewers in the future? Probably nothing good. And while this poll isn’t a meaningful sampling of the sport’s viewership demographics, it does speak to a truth that there are too many platforms, subscriptions, and plain ol’ logins in this wacky world. MLB is careening towards this situation:

Making it easy to watch games makes it easier to watch games for other teams. Part of the fun of baseball is knowing who all the dudes are.

That question was asked as a follow up to this one. As you’ll recall, the Giants hosted the Yankees for the very first “Opening Night,” which became the sole MLB game to kickoff the season. It was also hosted on a global streaming service which means everybody saw the Giants pantsed and run up the flag poll so that people could pelt them with produce and make fun of their appearance. If you’re not a fan of either team or aren’t into blowouts, you had no recourse other than to maybe look for something else to watch on the service. Unsurprisingly, fans weren’t that into Opening Night:

That’s an overwhelming rejection of the league’s idea, which probably means it’ll stick around for next season.

If you’re interested in being a survey participant, you can sign up for SB Nation Reacts polls here.

The vibes in Birdland right now are…not great. It’s only been eight games, but so far the Orioles look discouragingly similar to the flawed, frustrating team of 2025 that was out of contention by Memorial Day. Their starting pitching has underwhelmed and has already lost a key member, likely for the season. Their offense has too often lacked the big hit. Their defense and bullpen have been as bad as feared. It’s not a good combination. Now the O’s are in danger of being swept by the Pirates in their first road series of the year.

As last year’s Orioles demonstrated, a slow start to the season can easily spiral into something worse, so it would behoove the Birds to turn things around sooner rather than later. Maybe today will be the day. Chris Bassitt takes the mound for his second start as an Oriole after a woeful performance in his debut (4.1 IP, 4 ER, 4 BB, and a throwing error). Bassitt, a veteran leader, could establish some positive momentum for the Orioles if he can deliver a quality performance today. But he’s had his struggles against the Pirates’ big hitters — Brandon Lowe, Bryan Reynolds, and Ryan O’Hearn — each of whom has a .971 or better OPS in at least 17 career PAs versus Bassitt. Lowe has four homers off Bassitt in 20 at-bats.

Meanwhile, some of the Orioles’ key hitters need to get on track. Pete Alonso is 0-for-8 with five strikeouts in this series. Samuel Basallo is OPS’ing .544 for the season. They’ll be batting third and fourth in today’s lineup. Two other struggling Orioles, Colton Cowser and Coby Mayo, have the day off as Craig Albernaz searches for the right mix of hitters. Leody Taveras is back in the lineup and Tyler O’Neill makes his first start in five days. They’ll be facing Pirates righty Braxton Ashcraft, who I definitely will accidentally call “Ashton Braxcraft” at some point. The former second round pick has a 2.74 ERA in 27 games (nine starts) since debuting last year.

The O’s made a roster move before the game, placing scuffling reliever Yaramil Hiraldo on the 15-day IL with right shoulder inflammation. Perhaps the injury explains Hiraldo’s struggles, or maybe it’s just an easy way to rid him from the roster for a while. He’ll be replaced by Cade Povich, who’s up from Triple-A Norfolk. Povich is a candidate to start against the White Sox this week in place of the injured Zack Eflin. I really thought we would get further than two weeks into the 2026 season before we had to watch a Cade Povich start, but I guess that’s a problem for another day.

Let’s go, Orioles. It’s time to look alive.

Orioles lineup:

LF Taylor Ward
SS Gunnar Henderson
1B Pete Alonso
C Samuel Basallo
RF Tyler O’Neill
DH Dylan Beavers
CF Leody Taveras
2B Jeremiah Jackson
3B Coby Mayo

RHP Chris Bassitt

Pirates lineup:

CF Oneil Cruz
2B Brandon Lowe
DH Bryan Reynolds
RF Ryan O’Hearn
3B Nick Yorke
SS Konnor Griffin
1B Spencer Horwitz
C Henry Davis
LF Jake Mangum

RHP Braxton Ashcraft

The St. Louis Cardinals entered this season minus many veteran players who were traded away for prospects by President of Baseball Operations Chaim Bloom. Many are struggling with the change of scenery with one very big exception. These are the most recent stats going into Sunday’s games. Yes, the sample size is still very small, but this is just a check-in.

Nolan Arenado – Arizona Diamondbacks

Nolan Arenado has continued the downward trend that started with the St. Louis Cardinals as he only has 5 hits in 27 at-bats for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Going into this weekend’s games, Nolan has only scored one run with an average of just .185 and an OPS of .370. His defense has not been stellar either as he’s started 7 games at third base for the Diamondbacks and has already registered an error. Arizona Diamondbacks rookie Jose Fernandez was recently called up and took Nolan’s place at third base and promptly homered twice in his debut.

Willson Contreras – Boston Red Sox

Another former Cardinal who’s off to a chilly start wearing a different uniform this season is Willson Contreras. In 27 at-bats for the Boston Red Sox, Willson has a miserable stat line with a .185 average, but he might be about to turn that around as he now has a home run and a couple RBI’s during Friday’s game at Fenway.

Sonny Gray – Boston Red Sox

Sonny Gray had a shaky Spring Training, but has started the 2026 season with 1 victory in 2 starts for the Boston Red Sox. Sonny has thrown 10 innings total and has an ERA of 4.50. His victory came in his Fenway Park debut Friday.

Miles Mikolas – Washington Nationals

While Mikolas signed with the Washington Nationals and wasn’t traded by Chaim Bloom, many are wondering how our old pal Miles is doing. The answer is great if you’re the team playing the Nationals with Mikolas on the mound. Miles Mikolas has started two games for the Nationals and has been shelled in both starts. Yes, it’s very early in the season, but his stat line of no wins, 2 losses and an ERA of 14.46 over just 9.1 innings pitched isn’t what you strive for because, DUH.

Brendan Donovan – Seattle Mariners

There’s good news and bad news for former St. Louis Cardinal and new Seattle Mariner Brendan Donovan. He’s started the 2026 season with his new steam absolutely on fire at the plate. He’s currently batting .370 with 2 home runs, 4 RBI’s and an OPS of 1.152.

The bad news for Brendan is he left Friday’s game with an apparently leg injury after hustling out a ground ball to first. The report so far is Donovan has leg discomfort, but he was set to be reevaluated Saturday by the Mariners.

Paul Goldschmidt – New York Yankees

Former St. Louis Cardinal and MVP Paul Goldschmidt has not seen much action for the New York Yankees so far this season, but 1 of his 2 hits in 9 at-bats was a home run, though.

Harrison Bader – San Francisco Giants

Harrison Bader is off to a rough start after signing a 2-year $20.5 million dollar free agent deal with the San Francisco Giants. Going into Sunday’s games, Harrison is only batting .129 in 33 at-bats. He has a meager 4 hits, but does have 1 home run and 3 RBI’s. Still very early in the season, but that’s not the type of start the Giants or Bader were hoping for.

Dylan Carlson – Chicago Cubs

Dylan Carlson has gone to the dark side, but has yet to see regular season game action in 2026. He made the Chicago Cubs opening day roster due to injuries for outfield depth, but I have yet to confirm that he’s made an appearance in a game so far.

Tommy Edman – Los Angeles Dodgers

It’s been awhile since Tommy Edman was a Cardinal, but if you’re wondering how he’s doing for the Dodgers, injuries are unfortunately still dogging him. Tommy has had a slow recovery from right ankle surgery last year and was put on the IL just prior to the start of the 2026 season. He’s now been cleared to take swings from both sides of the plate and run, but has yet to see any game action in 2026.