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After sweeping the New York Mets over the weekend, the Colorado Rockies hoped to continue on their winning track in Game 1 against the Cincinnati Reds. However, it was not to be as the Rockies, despite getting on base throughout the game, could never manage to bring runners home and lost the series opener, 7-2.

Edouard Julien powers an offense that can’t finish the job

The Reds took the lead in the first inning on a weird bloop single from Elly De La Cruz that scored Dane Myers. Spencer Steer followed that up with a two-run homer, and the Rockies were down 3-0 as the first inning ended.

(FWIW, Steer is now 3-for-8 against Kyle Freeland.) Making matters worse, it took Freeland 31 pitches to get out of the inning.

“Not a good first inning for us after sweeping the Mets,” manager Warren Schaeffer said after the game.

The Rockies got their first hit in the second inning with a Tyler Freeman lead-off single, but nothing came of it.

Also, I would not be doing my job if I did not share with you this De La Cruz defensive gem:

The Rockies got on the board in the third when Edouard Julien, who walked in the first inning, hit a lead-off home run, making the score 3-1.

The Reds re-established their three-run lead in the bottom of the third, however, when De La Cruz tallied his second RBI of the night, and the score was 4-1.

Julien struck again in the fifth inning when he hit an RBI single to bring home Jake McCarthy, and made the score 4-2.

The Rockies tried to rally in the sixth with runners on second and the third with one out following a Troy Johnston double, but they were unable to capitalize.

The sixth inning was the last for Chase Burns. He finished the evening with 6.0 IP, giving up two runs (both earned) on seven hits. He struck out nine and allowed one walk. After that, the Reds went to their bullpen, which finished the job Burns had started.

The Reds did not score again until the eighth inning when De La Cruz hit a two-run homer, which put the Rockies behind 6-2.

It was another stellar outing for De La Cruz who finished the evening going 3-for-4 with two runs and four RBI.

After that, the Reds continued to get hits, and by the time the eighth inning ended, the score was 7-2.

The Rockies continued to get players on base but failed to bring them home — in fact, they had baserunners on base each inning. All told, the Rockies went 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position. They struck out 12 times and walked twice.

While hits were spread through the Rockies lineup, the standout was Julien who was 3-for-4 with a walk, a run, and two RBI.

“Situational baseball, not good today,” Schaeffer said.

Freeland has a solid return

Stop me if you’ve head this one before, but it was a first-inning-of-unfortunate-events for Kyle Freeland that involved an RBI bloop single in addition to Troy Johnston botching a pick-off attempt at first. (It was not a great defensive night for Johnston.) The starter’s only real mistake was that pitch to Steer that resulted in a two-run homer.

The consequences were twofold. First, Freeland was already down 3-0 at the bottom of the first; second, he threw 31 pitches, which meant his time on the mound would be short, especially given that he was coming off the IL.

In the end, Freeland (again) did his best to keep the Rockies in the game and got stronger as the evening progressed, but the offense struggled to figure out Burns and provide some run support.

Freeland finished the evening with 5.0 IP in which he gave up four runs (all earned) on five hits. He struck out four and walked one.

In short, Freeland was better than the box score indicates.

“I thought Free was really good. Free kept us in the ballgame,” Schaeffer said.

“I definitely got stronger as the game went on,” Freeland said. He added that he did not experience any shoulder issues.

Tanner Gordon was good — until he wasn’t

Schaeffer turned the game over to Tanner Gordon in the sixth inning. Gordon was good for two innings, but allowed some damage in the eighth inning.

His final line was three runs on six hits over 3.0 IP. He struck out three and issued no walks.

Up Next

Join us for Game 2 tomorrow afternoon at 4:40 when Tomoyuki Sugano will face Brandon Williamson.

See you then.

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A lot of things went right for the St. Louis Cardinals Tuesday night. Kyle Leahy pitched a solid 5 innings, multiple Cardinals tried to drown baseballs in the nearby Allegheny River and the St. Louis bullpen was adequate enough for another road victory.

The Cardinals lineup struck early and often with Nolan Gorman crushing a 413 foot home run into the sidewalk next to the river making it 1-0 Cardinals in the top of the 2nd inning.

In the bottom of the 2nd inning, JJ Wetherholt showed why he’s more than just an offensive threat making an acrobatic grab on a ball that was headed into right field before he smothered it and then fired a throw to first that Alec Burleson somehow managed to catch and strafe the bag for a Sportscenter highlight out.

St. Louis added to its lead in the top of the 3rd inning as Victor Scott II did the opposite of bunting for a change and instead launched a ball 2 feet further than Gorman which ended up in the Allegheny River.

JJ Wetherholt showed his power to all fields following up Victor’s bomb with a ball into the left-center field gap. He would later score on a two-out single by Jordan Walker giving the Cardinals a 3-0 lead.

In the top of the 5th inning, JJ Wetherholt and Ivan Herrera would both walk. Alec Burleson then connected for a ground rule double that would score JJ making it 4-0 Cardinals. Jordan Walker hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Herrera upping the St. Louis lead to 5-0. Gorman would follow suit with his own sacrifice fly scoring Burleson making it 6-0 Cardinals.

If you were just judging Kyle Leahy by his first five innings, you would say it was an epic outing. However, he did lose his mojo in the bottom of the 6th inning as he gave up a long home run to Oneil Cruz putting the Pirates on the board. A couple of batter later, O’Hearn would crush a two-run homer cutting into the St. Louis lead to just 6-3. Gordon Graceffo would put out that fire, though, getting a sweet double play to end the inning. Kyle Leahy would end the night after having pitched 5 1/3 inning giving up 9 hits, 3 earned runs with 7 strikeouts and no walks. All things considered, a very positive outing for Leahy.

The St. Louis Cardinals offense continued to be relentless playing small ball in the top of the 7th inning. After Herrera and Burleson walked, Jordan Walker smoked a single to center scoring Herrera and advancing Burleson to third making it 7-3 Cardinals. Gorman grounded out, but Burleson scored on the fielder’s choice upping the St. Louis lead to 8-3. Walker would then score on a single by Masyn Winn giving St. Louis its 6-run lead back making it 9-3 Cardinals.

St. Louis would pile on in the top of the 8th inning as JJ Wetherholt was hit on the hand by a pitch and would advance to third on a double by Herrera. Alec Burleson, in a moment of Deja vu, hammered a double to right center scoring both Wetherholt and Herrera upping the Cardinals lead to 11-3.

While he didn’t make any highlight reels, Jordan Walker made a lot of good decisions at the plate Tuesday night going 2-4 with 3 RBI’s and a run scored. Masyn Winn and Alec Burleson were also 2-4 on the night. Pedro Pagés was the last starter to get a hit as he dumped a single into right field in the top of the 9th inning. Nearly every Cardinal contributed to this lopsided win. Positives in the St. Louis bullpen including 1 2/3 innings of hitless baseball from Gordon Graceffo. Justin Bruihl allowed 3 hits and a 3 runs in the bottom of the 8th, but the Cardinals lead was secure at that point at 11-6. He was bailed out by a Masyn Winn double play to end the crisis. Matt Svanson pitched the 9th inning for St. Louis giving Riley O’Brien yet another down day of rest. He gave up a solo shot to Konnor Griffin which game the Pirates a consolation run for the final score of 11-7 Cardinals.

An honorary tip of the cap to Pirates pitcher Hunter Barco who was tasked with pitching 4 2/3 innings of relief throwing a staggering 84 pitches. Yes, he was shelled with 5 of the Cardinals 11 runs, but he was given the glory-less task of finishing up a lost game for Pittsburgh.

The St. Louis Cardinals are scheduled to start Andre Pallante in game 3 of their series versus the Pirates Wednesday night, but be aware there is rain possible in the forecast that might interfere with the scheduled 5:40pm central time first pitch at PNC Park.

The Dodgers finish off their stretch of 13 game days in a row with a rare weekday daytime start at Dodger Stadium, hosting the Miami Marlins on getaway day Wednesday in Los Angeles.

Tyler Glasnow takes the ball for the Dodgers in the homestand finale, coming off nine strikeouts in eight scoreless innings, the latter tying a career high. He’ll duel with Marlins ace and former Cy Young Award winner Sandy Alcantara.

Wednesday is one of only two weekday daytime starts in Los Angeles this season, both against Florida teams. On June 17 against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Dodgers will play another 12:10 p.m. game.

Wednesday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Marlins
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Time: 12:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Mets prospect A.J. Ewing made his Triple-A debut on Tuesday night and impressed his new team.

Ewing announced his arrival with a standup triple to lead the game. He launched a 93 mph fastball from Alan Rangel of the IronPigs to left center field. The ball was hit with an exit velocity of 104.4 mph and centerfielder Steward Berroa could not catch up to it. The ball caromed off the wall and trickled away from the fielders, allowing Ewing to get to third base unimpeded. He would eventually come around to score on a Christian Arroyo homer three batters later. 

In his second at-bat, Ewing jumped on a fastball from Rangel again, but it stood in the air long enough for left fielder Otto Kemp to catch it on the run. 

Ewing walked on a five-pitch walk in his third at-bat, and singled to lead off the seventh in his fourth at-bat. Two batters later, Ryan Clifford hit his fifth home run of the season to bring home Ewing.

In the eighth, Ewing came up with one out and runners on second and third when he doubled down the left field line to drive in his first runs with Syracuse. 

Ewing finished 3-for-4 with a walk, two RBI and two runs. 

In 18 games with Double-A this season, Ewing hit .349 with a .481 OBP and 1.053 OPS, hitting two home runs with seven RBI and 12 stolen bases. SNY's Joe DeMayo listed Ewing, who has experience in center field and second base, as the Mets' No. 3 overall prospect, behind Nolan McLean and Carson Benge.

"His first Triple-A hit breaks the left-center field wall!"

A.J. Ewing triples in his first at bat for Triple-A Syracuse! pic.twitter.com/jRBRl62MS7

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 28, 2026

Have a NIGHT, A.J. Ewing!

He has three hits and a two-run double in his first game with Triple-A Syracuse 🔥 pic.twitter.com/pOfeVo9Uzn

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 29, 2026

Remember roughly five minutes ago when Sal Stewart’s start to the season was the talk of at least one particular corner of the baseball world?

To be a bit more transparent, Sal’s still swatting the heck out of the baseball for the Cincinnati Reds. He even doubled and scored a run in the Reds series opening victory over the Colorado Rockies on Tuesday night in Great American Ball Park. But as the Reds rose up to a 7-2 win, it became a little bit evident just how red-hot his teammate over at shortstop has been so far this season, too.

Elly De La Cruz homered as part of a 3-hit day, driving in 4 runs to lead the Reds on the night. In the process, he actually bumped his average up to .291 for the season – just ahead of Stewart’s .290 mark – and his homer was a team-leading 10th. Not to be outdone, he even swiped a pair of bags on the night to overtake Stewart for the team lead, 8 to 7, in a game that had all of his talents on full display.

And when I say ‘all of them,’ I truly mean all of them.

Elly gets to take home tonight’s Joe Nuxhall Memorial Honorary Star of the Game after a performance that truly showed why he’s one of baseball’s great five-tool talents.

Other Notes

• Spencer Steer hit a big 2-run homer early as part of his great current run. He entered play tonight with an .822 OPS and 4 dingers over his previous 21 games, and tonight’s dinger followed that very same path.
• Chase Burns, at times, looked a little less than ‘brilliant’ tonight yet a quick look at the final box score shows just how good he can still be when not at his absolute best. He scattered 7 hits across his 6.0 IP, allowing a pair of earned runs, but he fanned 9 while walking a lone Rockie on the night.
• Nate Lowe got the start (against a lefty) and chipped in with a 2-hit night and drove in a run. He’s a proven regular who puts together excellent at-bats and is playing for a legitimate contract next fall – I really don’t see how you don’t keep him in the lineup in some form and fashion just about every single day going forward.
• The Dane Myers acquisition continues to look quite brilliant. He started against a LHP again – as he is wont to do – and scored 3 runs while being on-base all over the place on the night.
• Brandon Williamson will look to get right with the start on Wednesday when these two clubs meet again. First pitch is once again set for 6:40 PM ET.

The Yankees top prospect is officially taking the next step in his journey through the system. 

George Lombard Jr. is being promoted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, according to YES Network's Jack Curry. 

It's felt like it was only a matter of time before Lombard took the leap to the next level, as he's gotten off to a scorching hot start to this season back with Double-A Somerset. 

The 20-year-old come out swinging after struggling to master the level down the stretch last year, hitting .324 with four homers, eight doubles, 10 RBI, and a 1.008 OPS through 19 games. 

He's also drawn 12 walks, helping rack up an impressive .414 on-base percentage. 

Lombard has appeared in six games at the hot corner, 15 at shortstop, and two as the DH. 

Curry reports that he'll spent time at both third and short as he kicked things off with the RailRiders. 

The Yankees feel the youngster is big-league ready from a defensive standpoint, now they'll see how his bat progresses in Triple-A before deciding if they want to give him one more call. 

Detroit Tigers center fielder Javy Baéz was taken from the Truist Field playing surface by a cart after an awkward slide into first base resulted in an apparent right leg injury in the fifth inning Tuesday, April 28.

Baéz hit a ground ball to Atlanta Braves shortstop Mauricio Dubón, whose throw to first was high and wide of the bag. Baéz made a last-second decision to slide feet first into the base, and his right leg appeared to get caught under the weight of his body.

Baéz stayed down for several minutes and could not put weight on the leg before Detroit's training staff helped him to the cart.

Javy Báez was carted off from tonight's game after this awkward slide into first base

Prayers up 🙏 pic.twitter.com/G6AAVQ26pS

— B/R Walk-Off (@BRWalkoff) April 29, 2026

Detroit Tigers starter Casey Mize also left the game early, diagnosed with right groin tightness after departing in the third inning.

Baéz, a 2025 All-Star, is batting .256 with a .677 OPS and two home runs this season.

Atlanta won Tuesday's game 5-2.

Javier Báez exited the game after an apparent injury 🙏 pic.twitter.com/PdzsWM26G3

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) April 29, 2026

Javier Baez injury update

Baez has a right ankle injury and is slated to have an MRI on April 29.

"That one looked scary," Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said, per the Detroit Free Press' Evan Petzold.

Baez said he was feeling "much better" after getting treatment and can "put pressure on my ankle now." But, he noted, "we'll see what's going to happen."

Casey Mize (right groin tightness) and Javier Báez (right ankle injury) will get MRIs before Wednesday's game to determine the severity of their injuries.

Here's what they said: pic.twitter.com/xyPUsVUiZ1

— Evan Petzold (@EvanPetzold) April 29, 2026

This story has been updated with new information.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Javier Baez injury update after Tigers All-Star is carted off

I’ll never get used to the Sacramento Athletics, and frankly I’m stunned that the MLB owners even allowed the Athletics’ ownership to do what they did. But everyone has dollar signs for eyes, I guess, and the sooner the A’s situation gets resolved the sooner that owners can get those sweet, sweet expansion fees in their pockets.

But here we are. Tonight, the Royals start their annual West Coast Road Trip by playing a midweek series against the A’s. The A’s, actually, are pretty good. Former Royal Brent Rooker is hitting cleanup, while Rookie of the Year Nick Kurtz is hitting third. The A’s will be sending out Aaron Civale to the mound.

Meanwhile, the Royals will counter with Kris Bubic and a lineup that features the return of Maikel Garcia. Huzzah!

Athletics lineup

Royals lineup

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers are collecting as many Fitzgeralds as possible for their Triple-A Oklahoma City roster. On Tuesday they acquired infielder Tyler Fitzgerald from the Toronto Blue Jays for cash considerations.

The Dodgers also have Ryan Fitzgerald, who was acquired via waivers in January 9 and later sent outright off the 40-man roster. Ryan Fitzgerald has played mostly third base for Oklahoma City, plus some time at second base, first base, left field, and right field this season. Tyler Fitzgerald in his three major league seasons thus far (2023-25) has played mostly shortstop and second base, plus some time mixed in at third base, first base, and all three outfield spots.

This is the third organization for Tyler Fitzgerald, who played the last three seasons for the San Francisco Giants before getting traded to Toronto on April 5. The Blue Jays designated him for assignment last Friday to make room for catcher Willie MacIver.

Fitzgerald in his three major league seasons with the Giants hit .252/.309/.430 with 21 home runs and a 106 wRC+ in 618 plate appearances. The right-handed hitter, 28, is a career .280/.347/.495 hitter with a 134 wRC+ in 203 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers. This season in nine Triple-A games between Sacramento and Buffalo had three hits in 32 at-bats with one walk and 19 strikeouts.

Fitzgerald has one year, 108 days of major league service time and one option year remaining, having used options in 2024 and 2025.

To make room for Fitzgerald on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers moved pitcher Landon Knack to the 60-day injured list. Knack has been out since late March with an intercostal strain. Not sure of his rehab timeline, but this move guarantees he can’t be activated until at least May 21.

Coming off of a loss, dropping game one of the series against the Tampa Bay Rays, the Guardians announced that they would be calling up top prospect Travis Bazzana for today’s game.

Bazzana’s family flew in from Australia to see him start at second base, hitting seventh in the line up.

Tanner Bibee had another uninspiring, but solid start while his Tampa Bay counterpart had an excellent night. Bibee went 5.0 innings with 4H/1R/3BB/6Ks. He really struggled to keep the pitch count low during at bats while Nick Martinez was lights out against the Guards. Going into the 5th inning, Bibee’s pitch count was at 76 while Martinez was at 38. Thankfully Bibee held the Rays 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position, but lacked run support from the Cleveland offense. Going into tonight’s game, Bibee had no run support in 4 of his 6 starts this season – the second lowest in the league.

In the top of the first, Bo Naylor gave Bibee a nice defensive assist, getting an out in a rundown.

José Ramírez added a defensive highlight of his own with a stellar throw to Kyle Manzardo.

Tim Herrin replaced Bibee to start the sixth inning. Herrin pitched 1.2 innings, only allowing one base runner via a walk. Connor Brogdon pitched 1.1 innings, allowing a single hit.

Nick Martinez carved up the Guardians offense, keeping them to 4 base runners in his 7.0 innings of work. Chase DeLauter and Daniel Schneemann both hit a single and Steven Kwan notched a double along the right field line to account for the 3 hits allowed. Travis Bazzana reached base in his first MLB game with a walk in the bottom of the eighth. Bazz’s walk finally forced Martinez out of the game and into Tampa’s bullpen. The Guards started to warm up finally. Rhys Hoskins, pinch hitting for Bo Naylor, drew a walk off of Rays pitcher Ian Seymour. Brayan Rocchio laid down a sac bunt and the Rays intentionally walked Steven Kwan to load the bases. Chase DeLauter struck out swinging, but brought up José Ramírez with . José hit a fly out to the deepest part of the park that would have probably been a grand slam if it was 5-10°F warmer.

Peyton Pallette closed out the game, walking a batter and striking out a batter.

The team sparked a rally in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs, Angel Martínez hit a double to right field. After taking two balls, Kevin Cash intentionally walked Travis Bazzana. George Valera pinch hit for the final at bat of the night. Valera fouled off the first pitch, took a strike, then swung on a fastball high in the zone.

After tonight the Guardians are 11-4 following a loss. Here’s to hoping that record improves tomorrow and that Travis Bazzana gets another high leverage at bat.

The Mets offensive stats read like a hitting coach’s worst nightmare: fewest runs scored in the majors, as well as the lowest on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS, entering play Tuesday.

After being swept in a doubleheader by the Rockies on Sunday, when the Mets scored one run, Carlos Mendoza said, “I don’t think I’ve ever seen anything like this.”

Hitting coach Troy Snitker wouldn’t go that far when asked about the offense, but the former Astros hitting coach acknowledged he couldn’t recall an extended period of poor performance like the one the Mets have gone through in the first month of the season.

“As a hitting coach, and with hitting in general, you go through these unfortunate stretches during a season,’’ Snitker said before the series opener against the Nationals at Citi Field. “The length may be more in this situation, but we can still turn this around.”

Snitker — the son of former Braves manager Brian Snitker — was hired along with director of major league hitting Jeff Albert to get the most out of this new-look offense, and Snitker said he expected similar success in Queens as what he saw with the Astros.

“I still do,’’ Snitker said. “We have a lot of really good hitters. I’ve seen another group of really good hitters that have struggled [in Houston], and there’s always an answer of how to turn it around. We’re aiming for that.”

If that’s going to happen, a lot of hitters will have to get themselves right.

Mendoza — who has his own issues — backed his coaches Tuesday: “It’s a combination of all us in here, but it’s not on the hitting coaches.”

Still, when asked if anything had “surprised” him about his team’s atrocious start, Mendoza said: “It’s hard to point fingers, but we’re having a hard time scoring runs. There are so many guys going through a tough stretch at the same time. That’s the tough part to describe. It’s usually three or four guys that are carrying the team and two or three are going through it. Right now, a lot of people are going through a rough stretch.”

Mendoza praised the work of Snitker and Albert, but the results have been damning.

Against fastballs of 96 mph or faster, the Mets entered Tuesday with the worst slugging percentage (.231), the third-worst on-base percentage (.269) and fifth-worst batting average (.185), according to MLB Network research.

“We have to do a few simple things better,’’ Snitker said. “We’ve got to get our ball flight to the outfield and we’ve got to hit fastballs better. When players can accomplish that, then the rest of the game gets easier. You adjust to off-speed [pitches] better [and] you control the zone better.”

The lack of results against high velocity has been mystifying, with just about everyone other than Juan Soto and Brett Baty guilty.

The issues, Snitker said, vary from hitter to hitter.

The outcomes, though, haven’t.

Outside of Soto and Francisco Alvarez, just about every other regular has disappointed, from veterans like Bo Bichette, Francisco Lindor and Jorge Polanco to a newcomer like Carson Benge.

“Coming into the season, we wanted to accomplish certain things and you’re constantly thinking about how things are working and then adjusting,’’ said Snitker, who detailed during the spring how he wanted this lineup.

He noted in spring he was looking for “the same type of culture and teamwork, [with the] ability to pass it to the next guy [as in Houston]. We want to work together, build off each at-bat and not have guys feel they have to do it themselves.”

Tuesday, Snitker said: “We still very strongly believe in what we came in with, but we’re always looking for areas to attack.”

Chicago Cubs (17-12) at San Diego Padres (19-9), April 28, 2026, 6:40 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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