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Ronald Acuña Jr. is heading to the injured list once again. 

The Braves star strained his left hamstring trying to run out a ground ball and left the game during the fourth inning of Tuesday’s game against the White Sox.

Acuña, who will be sidelined at least 10 days with the injury, missed roughly two weeks last month with a Grade 1 strain in the same hamstring. 

The latest issue adds to a long list of lower-body problems the 2023 National League MVP has dealt with in recent years. 

He tore his ACL in May 2024, ending that campaign after just 49 games, and returned last year to play in 95 games.

In 2021, Acuna tore his right ACL, which took him out for about a year. 

Late last month, Acuña also suffered a bone bruise in his left thumb, although he opted to play through the ailment. 

When healthy this season, Acuña hasn’t quite looked like his MVP-like self. 

In 52 games, the five-time All-Star is hitting .251/.373/.421 with seven home runs and 15 stolen bases. 

Acuña’s hamstring issue adds to what has been an injury-marred season in Atlanta. 

Pitchers Spencer Strider, AJ Smith-Shawver and Spencer Schwellenbach, among others, have all spent varying amounts of time on the IL. 

Catchers Sean Murphy and Drake Baldwin both hit the IL days apart last month, forcing the Braves to shake up their backstop rotation. 

Despite seemingly endless injuries, the Braves haven’t missed a beat this season. 

Heading into Wednesday’s play, Atlanta sits at 45-22, which is the best record in baseball and nine games clear of the rest of the National League East.

Fernando Tatis Jr. was in a slump. Home runs were tough to come by.

As of nearly two weeks ago, Tatis finally ended his home run drought and got his first of the season against the Washington Nationals on May 30.

Fast forward to June 10 where the San Diego Padres' big-time slugger just dropped off a walk-off bomb against the Cincinnatti Reds.

The Padres trailed 4-2 going into the bottom eighth inning where Jackson Merrill got things going with a double to left field. Merrill scored after Gavin Sheets hit a double at right field, giving him an RBI. Jase Bowen went in as pinch runner for Sheets. Bowen scored after a single from Samad Taylor allowed him to cross home.

The score was 4-4 going into the ninth inning. And with two outs on the board, Tatis took a swing of his bat, ate the pitch and left no crumbs in a walk-off fashion as his teammates embraced him and the victory at home plate.

The Padres won, 5-4.

The Martian is learning to inhabit a new planet.

Jasson Domínguez played right field Tuesday at Triple-A and was scheduled to do so again Wednesday, according to Yankees manager Aaron Boone.

Dominguez has never played right field in the majors — and only done so once in his minor-league career — but could be preparing to take the injured Aaron Judge’s vacated spot. 

“The good thing is reports [are] that he was very comfortable doing it,” Boone said before the series-sweeping 8-4 victory against the Guardians. “Seems like it went off without a hitch. His pregame [drill work] was apparently good, too. I think he was happy to do it to add to different ways he can help us.”

The Yankees could move versatile left fielder Cody Bellinger to right field to accommodate Domínguez, though Bellinger’s defense has been elite. And left field at Yankee Stadium is the more spacious ground.

Of course, that thinking assumes Dominguez (shoulder) will be promoted to the majors once his rehab is complete, which is no guarantee as Boone lives in the “day-to-day” world and prospect Spencer Jones continues to hit well in his second promotion.

“We invested so much because we switched Jasson to left field before last year to help with the transition so we wanted him to really focus on that,” Boone said. “But to be able to have the versatility, I think, is important. Spencer has done a good job of getting some real reps in both corner spots as well as continuing to have center field in play. I think it just adds to their overall value a little bit.”

Ryan Weathers, who will start Friday’s game on six days’ rest, was warming up in the fifth inning in case Carlos Rodón’s start was cut short.

He would’ve pitched an inning on regular rest to help a bullpen that threw 10 ²/₃ innings the previous two games.

“He was very much in play today — not just in an emergency situation, either — which is awesome in and of itself,” Boone said. “He was ready for whatever we needed. He could’ve factored in in a winning way.”

If used, Weathers would’ve slotted back into the rotation on his next turn after off days.

“I think I’m glad we didn’t use him,” Boone quipped. “I was going to go to him in the sixth, but Carlos having a really efficient fifth and feeling like he was good to go back out for the sixth took [Weathers] out of it for at least the time being.”

The humidity that admittedly fatigued Gerrit Cole during Tuesday’s four-inning start, including a 29-pitch inning, was back (and worse) Wednesday afternoon.

Cole and Rodón both are working their way back after starting the season on the injured list.

“It’s definitely summer now,” Rodón said. “It was warm. It’s part of the gig. It’s what we do. There is a job to be done. Go out there and compete.”

Angel Chivilli (shoulder) began a rehab assignment at Triple-A. He pitched in two games for the Yankees earlier this season.

Tonight, the Athletics will take on the Brewers in the series finale of the first of two series at Las Vegas Ballpark this week. After dropping the opener 15-14 in the highest scoring game of the season so far, the A’s rebounded last night with a 7-5 victory, hitting five more home runs and getting strong relief outings from Elvis Alvarado and Mason Barnett.

Having launched 12 home runs through their first two games in Las Vegas, the A’s powerful offense looks well-positioned to keep the long-ball barrage going in another matchup that figures to produce plenty of runs.

Making his second start and 19th appearance of the season, A’s right-hander Jack Perkins brings a 2-3 record, 6.19 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, and 39 strikeouts in 32 innings into today’s matchup. The 26-year-old struggled in his first start against the Houston Astros, allowing five runs on five hits over four innings while taking the loss.

Like Ginn, Perkins is very familiar with this hitter-friendly ballpark. He made nine starts for Triple-A Las Vegas last season and three more appearances with the affiliate this year before earning his promotion to the majors. Perkins’ high-velocity arsenal gives him the ability to miss bats and limit damage, even in a venue that tends to favor hitters.

However, inconsistency and occasional command issues have plagued him during his brief MLB career, which is not uncommon for a young pitcher. If Perkins can trust his stuff, pound the strike zone, and keep the ball on the ground, he should have success this evening. Otherwise, the Brewers’ lineup could capitalize on his mistakes the way the Astros did in his previous outing.

Here’s the Athletics’ lineup for this series-deciding contest:

This is an interesting lineup that A’s manager Mark Kotsay has put together for tonight’s game. Nick Kurtz and Tyler Soderstrom, the team’s two hottest hitters in this series, occupy the first two spots in the order. Meanwhile, Carlos Cortes is making his first start of the series as the designated hitter and is surprisingly slotted into the cleanup spot rather than leading off.

Given how well Kurtz has been swinging the bat, it would seem to make more sense to flip him and Cortes in the lineup to maximize Kurtz’s RBI opportunities with runners on base. Another notable development is Brent Rooker’s absence from the starting lineup for a second consecutive game. The A’s have not indicated any issues, but they can ill afford to lose one of their most dangerous hitters to another stint on the injured list.

Cortes is not the only A’s player making his first start in Vegas. He is joined by outfielder Lawrence Butler and second baseman Jeff McNeil, two players who have had their playing time drastically reduced lately due to major offensive slumps. Zack Gelof moves back to third base with Max Muncy getting the night off, while Alika Williams earns his third straight start at shortstop.

That starting nine will be facing Brewers right-hander Brandon Sproat, who was involved in one of the biggest trades of the offseason. The New York Mets sent Sproat and a minor league infield prospect to Milwaukee in exchange for Freddy Peralta.

The 25-year-old has gone 1-4 with a 6.17 ERA through his first 12 appearances with the Brewers, including ten starts. In his most recent outing against the Colorado Rockies, Sproat received a no-decision after allowing three runs on seven hits over five innings.

Only A’s backup catcher Jonah Heim, who is not in tonight’s lineup, has previously faced Sproat. While the element of unfamiliarity could work in the young right-hander’s favor against A’s hitters, the A’s may benefit from the fact that Sproat has likely never pitched in this ballpark before. If the hosts can repeat the approach and offensive execution they displayed over the first two games, they should have opportunities to score against this talented but inexperienced pitcher.

And Milwaukee’s lineup for tonight’s contest:

The Brewers’ lineup features most of their regulars, with the lone exception coming behind the plate, where Gary Sànchez gets the start in place of William Contreras. The top of Milwaukee’s order is especially dangerous now that Andrew Vaughn is back in the lineup after appearing as a pinch-hitter last night.

As a result, Perkins will need to be careful when attacking the strike zone and do his best to keep the ball in the ballpark, something his teammate J.T. Ginn handled well in yesterday’s outing.

Time to win the series and head into tomorrow’s off day with good vibes. Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:
Watch:
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Well that sucked. Just when it looked like the Nationals had a sweep in the bag, the bullpen completely melted down. The Giants rallied from 9-1 down to stun the Nats. DMV product Bryce Eldridge hit a walkoff grand slam to finish off a humiliating defeat for Blake Butera and the Nats.

What happens after this game will be telling. For a more traditional front office and coaching staff, heads would absolutely roll after this kind of loss. However, I am not sure whether this analytically minded front office will deviate from their plan. As we have seen this season, there is a long term vision in place and we are seeing that translate on the field.

After this one though, I think it is time for some old school behavior. Blake Butera and Paul Toboni need to send a message to the players and the fans that what happened this afternoon was not acceptable. The two primary culprits of this bullpen meltdown were Mitchell Parker and Paxton Schultz, and their places on the team need to be examined.

For Parker, I honestly have no idea what this braintrust sees in him. The results have not been there, his stuff is below average and he does not seem to have the mentality to be a high leverage arm. Despite all of this, Parker constantly gets thrown into big spots, rarely succeeding. In the past month, Parker has an ERA over 8, and has allowed 7 homers in 16 innings. 

This is not a team that is in the gutter, and the front office needs to act that way. When guys aren’t producing, they should be let go. Parker has been consistently terrible for over a year now. Since May 1st of 2025, he has a 6.44 ERA in 159.1 innings. What more do you need to see from this guy? As the saying goes, insanity is trying the same thing over and over again and expecting different results.

Mitchell Parker pitching on this upcoming home stand would give fans a pretty good indication that this front office and coaching staff has no interest in winning this season. Going all in on 2026 is not logical either. This team is still in year one of a new era. However, we know what we have in Mitchell Parker. It is unfair to the fans and the pitchers in Rochester to keep trotting this guy out there.

The other culprit of this meltdown requires a more nuanced conversation. Paxton Schultz has had a very strange season. He has been solid in 18 of his 20 outings. However, in the other two appearances, he has had some of the worst meltdowns you will ever see. He has shown the ability to be a quality arm, he has just been completely unable to stop the bleeding. 

On the one hand, if you can’t be trusted to protect a 9-1 lead, you should not be on the roster. However, I think Schultz has some traits to be a fine reliever. In the heat of the moment, you would like to see a change, but I would understand if they stuck with Schultz. Today was absolutely dreadful, and he is arguably the biggest reason for the collapse, but you cannot be overly reactionary.

What happens next will tell us a lot about this new regime. They have some very important decisions to make heading into this home stand. This team has a playoff caliber offense, but the bullpen can explode at any time. Will this front office send a message or will they continue to only look at whatever numbers are telling them Mitchell Parker is a major league caliber pitcher? The roster moves or lack thereof will tell Nationals a lot about Paul Toboni and Blake Butera.

The San Francisco Giants pulled off a major comeback, walk-off win against the Washington Nationals after being down eight runs in the final two innings on Wednesday.

Giants' young prospect Bryce Eldridge was the man of the hour, putting the nail in the coffin with a triumphant walk-off grand slam in the bottom ninth inning, giving San Francisco an 11-10 victory.

Eldridge finished the game with a stat line of 1-for-4, including two runs and 4 RBIs. The 21-year-old rising star was the organization's top prospect in 2025, and he's proving why he was worthy of the ranking.

During the 2026 MLB season, Eldridge has steamed up a batting average of .298 with four home runs and 12 RBIs. His OPS is .907 through 28 games played.

Bryce Eldridge is the youngest player in MLB history to hit a walk-off grand slam. The previous youngest was Roberto Clemente.

More: 3 moves the San Francisco Giants must make to salvage their season