Worldwide Sports News

The month of May has only added more intrigue when it comes to the Yankees. With two full pages of the calendar behind us, the Bombers are still fighting to reclaim first place, with the Rays playing some good baseball to wrap up the spring.

Regardless of any team success or struggle, another month in the book means a new slate of defensive highlights to look back on. New York ranks as a roughly league-average defensive unit up to this point based on Outs Above Average, but that doesn’t mean they can’t flash the leather now and then. Here’s a look at May’s best.

May 3rd: Judge tracks it down

In a tied game in the third inning, the Orioles began to threaten when Taylor Ward slashed a ball towards the wall in right field. With the ball tailing and carrying all the way to the wall, Aaron Judge raced back and used every bit of his 6-foot-7 frame to reach and snag the ball. His jump took him into the wall fairly hard, but he held onto the ball, and secured the second out of the inning.

May 4th: Ryan McMahon goes full extension

Despite his flaws, which can grow tiring, Ryan McMahon’s calling card has always been his glove. Since his arrival, almost every edition of this series has featured some spectacular play by the Yankees’ third baseman, and May of ‘26 was no different. Later in the O’s series, with the Yankees leading in the seventh, Tim Hill induced a chopper down the line, which McMahon was fairly far from. This didn’t stop him from stabbing the grounder in a fully-extended dive toward foul territory planting his feet and firing a laser over to first base.

May 7th: Jasson Domínguez gives his all

In the very first at-bat in a game against the Rangers, Brandon Nimmo swatted a ball deep into left-center, destined for extra-bases. That was before Jasson Domínguez charged all the way back to the wall, and snagged the fly ball just a beat before crashing into the fence. It was a spectacular play to kick off the game, but certainly came at a cost, as he has not seen the field since then, with a fairly significant sprain of his AC joint on this play.

May 15th: Schlittler bounces back with a beauty

This is a bit of a two-for-one from the mid-May Subway Series. First, with one out in the third inning, Cam Schlittler took a low liner off the shoe, before Anthony Volpe redirected to collect the ball and make a slick play to record the out at first. An inning later, Schlittler showed his athleticism, when he pounced off the mound to barehand a soft chopper before making a terrific fadeaway throw over to first for the out. It was an eventful few innings for the righty, but was certainly a defensive highlight of the month.

May 20th: Bellinger uses every inch of the leather

Later in the month, in a 0-0 ballgame with a the Blue Jays, the Yankees once again benefitted from some fancy glovework. With Schlittler on the mound once again, the righty induced a slicing fly ball toward the left field wall off the bat of a lefty. Cody Bellinger got a good jump and was immediately headed toward the wall, and was forced to used all of his lengthy wingspan to bring in the second out of the inning. Like some of his teammates, a month of Yankees baseball is not complete without a highlight from Bellinger.

Triple-A: Syracuse Mets (30-29)

GAME ONE: SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE 6, SYRACUSE 3 / 7 (BOX)

Syracuse surrendered three in the third and three in the seventh, which put them in a tough 6-0 hole for the bottom of the seventh (and final) inning. They scored three — two on a Ben Rortvedt home run and one on a Matt Rudick single — but the six run deficit was too much to make up.

The big story of this one is that of Kodai Senga, who is continuing his rehab assignment. He was not particularly good, surrendering three runs and six hits over five. He struggled with his command, walking two, hitting two, and throwing two wild pitches. Jorge Polanco also continued his rehab, which may be coming to an end soon.

• RF Nick Morabito: 1-4, R, 3B, K
• REHAB ALERT: 1B Jorge Polanco: 0-2, K
• LF Matt Rudick: 1-1, RBI, BB
• DH Christian Arroyo: 0-3, BB, K
• LF-1B Ryan Clifford: 0-3, 3 K, E (6)
• 2B Ji Hwan Bae: 0-2, BB
• 3B Yonny Hernández: 1-2
• CF Cristian Pache: 0-2, R, 2 K
• C Ben Rortvedt: 1-2, R, HR (3), 2 RBI
• SS Jackson Cluff: 0-3, 3 K
• REHAB ALERT: RHP Kodai Senga: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K, 2 WP, 2 HBP
• RHP Danis Correa: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 K

GAME TWO: SYRACUSE 13, SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE 2 / 7 (BOX)

Well, this game went much better for the Mets. They scratched a run home in the first on a throwing error by the RailRiders’s. Nick Morabito stole third and scored on the aforementioned throwing error. They made it 5-0 in the third, with Christian Arroyo and Andy Ibáñez drove in runs, and Ryan Clifford stole home on a double steal with runners on first and second.

The game broke open even moreso in the sixth, as they scored eight runs en route to a split double header.

• CF Nick Morabito: 1-3, 2 R, BB, 2 K, SB (16)
• LF Ji Hwan Bae: 1-4, 2 R, BB, K
• 2B Christian Arroyo: 2-3, 2 R, 2B, 4 RBI, BB, K
• 1B Ryan Clifford: 2-3, 2 R, BB, SB (5)
• 3B Andy Ibáñez: 1-3, 2 RBI, K
• DH Yonny Hernández: 0-2, R, 2 BB, K, SB (6)
• SS Jackson Cluff: 0-2, R, 2 BB, K
• C Kevin Parada: 1-3, R, 2B, 3 RBI, BB, 2 K, E (2)
• RF Matt Rudick: 2-3, 2 R, RBI, BB
• RHP Zach Peek: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• LHP Matt Turner: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K
• RHP Daniel Duarte: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
• LHP Nate Lavender: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Jonathan Pintaro: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Double-A: Binghamton Rumble Ponies (18-34)

BINGHAMTON 16, READING 11 (BOX)

Binghamton came out firing after surrendering a run in the top of the first, going up 4-1 on RBI singles by JT Schwartz, Vincent Perozo and Wyatt Young, with a Jaylen Palmer RBI ground out for good measure. They kept in going in the second, as Schwartz, Perozo and Palmer combined to drive in five runs in the inning, making it 9-1 after two. Reading would actually come back, scoring seven over the third and fourth innings, and even took a 10-9 lead after seven.

Chris Suero would tie it at ten in the seventh, and a JT Schwartz grand slam made it 14-10. Reading would add one more in the eighth, but a two run TT Bowens home run would put the game out of reach.

• DH Chris Suero: 2-5, 2 R, RBI, BB, 3 K
• CF Jose Ramos: 0-5, 2 R, BB, 2 K, E (5)
• 3B Nick Lorusso: 2-4, 3 R, K
• 1B JT Schwartz: 3-4, 3 R, HR (6), 7 RBI, BB, K
• C Vincent Perozo: 2-5, R, 2B, 3 RBI, K
• LF Jaylen Palmer: 2-5, R, 2 2B, 2 RBI, K, SB (5)
• SS Wyatt Young: 1-3, R, RBI, 2 BB, K
• RF TT Bowens: 2-5, 2 R, HR (1), 2 RBI, 2 K
• 2B Kevin Villavicencio: 2-5, R
• RHP R.J. Gordon: 2.2 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
• LHP Gabriel Rodriguez: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 1 K, 1 WP, 1 HBP, E (1, 2)
• RHP Douglas Orellana: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K, H (1)
• RHP Guillo Zuñiga: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, 1 WP, BS (2)
• RHP Carlos Guzman: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1 WP, W (3-1)
• RHP Saul Garcia: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K, 2 WP
• RHP Brian Metoyer: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

High-A: Brooklyn Cyclones (18-34)

JERSEY SHORE 5, BROOKLYN 4 / 10 (BOX)

Brooklyn struck first, as Colin Houck and Trace Willhoite drove in runs with a single and double respectively, making it 2-0 Cyclones. Jersey Shore would get one back, but a Diego Mosquera sacrifice fly and Grae Kessinger double made it 4-1 in the fifth. It would fall apart from there for Brooklyn, as they surrendered three runs in the seventh to tie it, and a walk off single in the tenth to lose it.

• SS Mitch Voit: 1-5
• DH Grae Kessinger: 1-5, 2B, RBI, 3 K
• 1B Corey Collins: 0-3, BB, 2 K
• C Daiverson Gutierrez: 2-4, R, 3B, K
• CF John Bay: 0-4, 4 K
• 3B Colin Houck: 1-4, R, RBI, 2 K
• LF Trace Willhoite: 2-3, R, 2 2B, RBI, BB
• RF Sam Biller: 1-4, R, 2B, 2 K
• 2B Diego Mosquera: 0-2, RBI, BB, K
• RHP Jose Chirinos: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, 1 WP, 1 HBP
• RHP Bryce Jenkins: 1.2 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, H (4)
• LHP Gregori Louis: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, BS (2)
• RHP Parker Carlson: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K
• RHP Hunter Hodges: 0.1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, L (0-2)

Single-A: St. Lucie Mets (24-29)

GAME ONE: CLEARWATER 2, ST. LUCIE 0 / 7 (BOX)

St. Lucie got no-hit. Clearwater used three pitchers, who surrendered two walks, no hits, and struck out 12. That about sums it all up. Oh, and Cam Tilly was pretty good and the bullpen gave up both runs.

• SS Elian Peña: 0-2, BB, SB
• 3B Antonio Jimenez: 0-3, 3 K
• 2B Trey Snyder: 0-3, 2 K
• 1B Randy Guzman: 0-2, BB, K, E
• CF Yohairo Cuevas: 0-3, 2 K
• RF AJ Salgado: 0-2
• LF Branny De Oleo: 0-2, 2 K
• C Chase Meggers: 0-2, K, E
• DH Jeremy Rodriguez: 0-2, K
• RHP Cam Tilly: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K, 1 WP, 1 HBP
• RHP Christian Rodriguez: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, L (2-1)

GAME TWO: CLEARWATER 5, ST. LUCIE 3 / 7 (BOX)

If a no-hitter in game one was frustrating in one way, game two’s loss was frustrating in a different direction. St. Lucie took a lead after trailing 1-0 going into the fifth, with Elian Pena doubling home a run and Antonio Jimenez singling home a run. That 2-1 lead would hold until the seventh, where Clearwater put four runs on Josh Blum, handing the Mets a double header sweep.

• DH Elian Peña: 1-2, R, 2B, RBI, 2 BB, K, SB (17)
• SS Antonio Jimenez: 1-4, RBI, 2 K, SB (3)
• RF Randy Guzman: 1-2, RBI, BB, K
• 1B Yohairo Cuevas: 0-4, K, 2 E (1, 2)
• LF Jackson Hauge: 0-3, K
• C Francisco Toledo: 0-3, K
• 3B Branny De Oleo: 0-3, K
• 2B Jeremy Rodriguez: 1-3, 2 K
• CF Sam Robertson: 0-1, 2 R, 2 BB, K, SB (24)
• LHP Conner Ware: 4.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K, 1 WP
• RHP Zack Mack: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K
• RHP Josh Blum: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 4 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K, L (0-1), BS (1)
• RHP Miguel Mejias: 0.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K

Rookie: FCL Mets (9-9)

FCL METS 8, FCL NATIONALS 7 / 8 (BOX)

• CF Wyatt Vincent: 1-4, 2 R, HR (1), 2 RBI, K
• LF Bohan Adderley: 2-4, R, 2 K, 3 SB (13, 14, 15)
• C Yovanny Rodriguez: 1-2, R, RBI, 2 BB
• DH Josmir Reyes: 0-4, K
• RF Heriberto Rincon: 0-4, R
• 3B Roybert Herrera: 2-2, 2B, RBI
• PH Vladi Gomez: 0-0, R, SB (9)
• SS Anthony Frobose: 0-3, RBI, K
• 1B Yeider Mindiola: 1-3, R, 2B, RBI, K, SB (4)
• 2B Diover De Aza: 0-3, 2 K
• RHP Jose Guevara: 2.2 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 3 BB, 3 K
• RHP Omar Victorino: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 1 K
• RHP Jean Brito: 2.0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, BS (1)
• RHP Yoralbert Cadiz: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, W (2-1)

STAR OF THE NIGHT

JT Schwartz

GOAT OF THE NIGHT

Gabriel Rodriguez

What else is there to say about Cristopher Sánchez at this point? The streak may have ended at 50.2 innings, but he’s still the record holder for the longest streak as a left handed pitcher and is one of five pitchers ever to have a scoreless streak of at least 50 innings. We will likely never see something like this again in our lifetimes.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• We finally have some more clarity on Aidan Miller’s injury, except that its bad news, as Miller will undergo a back procedure and will be out of action for roughly 6-8 weeks.
• As may have been expected, Cristopher Sánchez has been named NL pitcher of the month for the month of May, beating out Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski.
• The Phillies are winning despite their poor offense thanks to pitching and the efforts of their big three lefty hitters in Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, and Brandon Marsh. ($)

MLB News:

• Well, it looks like Nick Castellanos won’t be getting his chance for a revenge game after all, as it was announced he was designated for assignment yesterday by the Padres.
• The Yankees are holding their collective breath as Aaron Judge sees a specialist for a bone bruise in his rib that is causing discomfort in his shoulder.
• Tarik Skubal figures to be the biggest name bandied about trade rumors this summer. Here are 7 possible locations he could get dealt to. ($)
• I regret to inform you, but it looks like the Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki is putting it all together.

Nick Loftin chose a really good time to hit his first home run on the season.

The Royals found their resilience to go with a few desperately needed bullpen answers Wednesday night at Great American Ball Park.

Nick Loftin belted his first home run of the season in a three-run ninth as the Royals claimed the rubber game of the three-game series with a 5-2 win over the Reds.

It was just the sixth series-finale win in 20 tries this season for the Royals, who won their first road series since sweeping the Mariners in Seattle from May 1-3.

Loftin’s home run came after Michael Massey’s 10-pitch at-bat that ended with a tiebreaking single to right, scoring pinch-runner Tyler Tolbert – who was attempting to steal third on the pitch – to make it 3-2. All three runs in the ninth came off Cincinnati fill-in closer Tony Santillan (1-3), who took the loss.

Lucas Erceg is finally being moved out of the 9th inning… somewhat

As a result, Royals skipper Matt Quatraro announced before the series finale Wednesday that he will be making a change to the closer’s role.

“I think there’s two separate answers to that. In the short term, we’re going to match up, just based on who’s available that night and where we think the best avenue for us to get the win is,” Quatraro said. “But in the long term, I do think Erceg is a guy that we’re going to use in the ninth.”

Quatraro was careful to frame Wednesday’s announcement, making it clear that he won’t hesitate using the right-hander in higher-leverage situations. It just likely won’t be in the ninth if he feels he can use him earlier in the game. Erceg is 3-3 with a 6.45 ERA and a 1.97 WHIP in 24 appearances covering 22 1/3 innings this season.

Yandel Ricardo is tearing it up in Columbia currently.

It’s telling when a player goes 1-for-23 over a seven-game stretch and still has undeniably an impressive month. That’s what happened for Ricardo with Single-A Columbia, where he ran hot from May 2-13 (.325/.372/.675) and picked up a full head of steam of late (.455/.520/.864, two homers in eight games since May 24). The switch-hitting shortstop has already doubled his career home run high with four through 45 games for the Fireflies and is gaining plenty of momentum in his age-19 season.

Also in Columbia, Kendry Chourio continues to dominate as well.

The Royals’ No. 2 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 77 overall, Chourio turned in 5 1/3 scoreless innings on Tuesday in a 3-1 win over Fayetteville at Segra Stadium. The stellar outing lowered his season ERA to 1.46.

It’s well known the Royals need to change it up in the bullpen, Kevin O’Brien of Royals Keep spoke on it.

Luinder Avila had his best MLB start on Monday, O’Brien also talked about how he may be vital for KC

The Royals got outfielder Matthew Lugo, Caleb Moody of Kings of Kauffman talked about the acquisition.

MLB.com insider Mark Feinsand talked about the Royals trade deadline intentions after the slow start

Shohei Ohtani lowered his season ERA under 1.00

Christopher Sánchez’s long scoreless inning streak finally was snapped by the Padres

All-Star Voting is already happening

Mauricio Dubón has an interesting charm, and it’s working lately

CBA talks with Rob Manfred are happening

Aaron Judge to get more testing on rib cage

The Knicks took game one of the NBA Finals in San Antonio against the Spurs last night

Today’s song of the day is Hells Bells by AC/DC

Hello, friends.

The short-lived winning streak is over. The Orioles have a remarkable talent this year of really putting up a crushing loss right after putting something positive together for a few days. They’ve yet to win more than three games in a row this season. That will continue to be the case for at best several days more. The latest three-gamer came to an end with last night’s 8-1 loss to the Red Sox. Check out Alex Church’s recap of the game for more of the not-so-lovely totals.

The game was a return to some of the rougher parts of this season. Starting pitcher Chris Bassitt labored through three innings; there was clear concern about something to do with his health. After the game, manager Craig Albernaz indicated that Bassitt was dealing with lower back tightness. I’m sure trying to pitch through that was tough. There have also been plenty of games this year where Bassitt pitched badly and there was no indication of any kind of injury.

There was no immediate sign from the team whether that might be an ongoing concern for Bassitt. If they think he needs the injured list, they’ll probably pull the trigger on that immediately, so they can get an extra reliever for the next few days and bring up somebody who might be within the window where they can’t come back to MLB except if replacing an injured player.

Another unfortunately familiar thing about last night’s game was the downsides of playing the infielder Blaze Alexander in center field. There was at least one supremely botched play from Alexander that led to further Red Sox offense within an inning. Stop putting infielders in the outfield! It shouldn’t be hard. But the apparent fanatical devotion to trying to press the platoon advantage has continuing downsides. At least Alexander is hitting a little better lately, so he’s not a total lost cause out there, only most of one.

All of this came while the offense was facing a left-handed starting pitcher in young Red Sox starter Payton Tolle. The Orioles broke the winless curse against lefty starters a while ago, but they haven’t gotten themselves back to a good place just yet. It doesn’t feel a whole lot better with the knowledge that, unlike many of the lefties who’ve worked the O’s over this year, Tolle has actually been good. He has a 2.28 ERA following last night’s outing. Must be nice to just draft a guy like that in the second round and have him turn into a solid major leaguer within two years.

After last night’s loss, the team is 7-14 when facing a lefty starter. This is another enduring challenge for the team, represented most dramatically in the person of Tyler O’Neill. The right-handed batting O’Neill is hitting .106 against lefties this year. It’s unreal. He sits at -1.1 bWAR through 92 games as an Oriole.

As with any other loss, last night’s setback was just one game. The Orioles have a chance to make us feel better as soon as today if they can play a better game. Taking a road series by winning today in Boston would ease the sting of what happened on Wednesday. The problem with hoping for this outcome is Trevor Rogers, who has spent the 2026 season getting punished for every bit of good fortune he had in 2025. Or, more likely, he just hasn’t been pitching well. The recent improvement from much of the starting rotation has left him behind.

Don’t show up at 7 o’clock for the game. It’s a 1:35 start time in the getaway day. As of this writing, there’s no listed Red Sox starting pitcher. They may use an opener or something. I don’t know. I try not to spend unnecessary time thinking about the Red Sox.

Orioles stuff you might have missed

Samuel Basallo says one plate appearance led to his breakout. Here’s how. (The Baltimore Banner)
In Basallo’s recounting, drawing a walk on April 20 was the start of something great. From that game through the start of last night’s game, he was OPSing over 1.000, so the story checks out.

“No elephants in the room”: Orioles players detail the value of Pete Alonso’s leadership (The Baltimore Sun)
I’ll feel better about the $31 million a year once he hits some more dingers. But, everyone seems to agree that this sort of leadership is what the Orioles were lacking, and that’s worth something.

Next step for the Orioles: Play better on the road (Steve on Baseball)
The Orioles are 19-15 at home, and after last night, are 10-18. If they were .500 on the road, they’d be 33-29 instead. Things would probably feel better if they’d managed four more road wins.

Frederick outfielder RJ Austin’s calling card is versatility (Baltimore Baseball)
The draft picks ahead of last year’s third rounder have understandably gotten a lot of attention. This Vanderbilt product could still make an impact.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

In their 62nd game last year, the Orioles lost to the Athletics, 5-4, leaving their record at 25-37 for the season. Dean Kremer gave up five runs in 5.1 innings, which meant home runs by Dylan Carlson and Jackson Holliday weren’t enough. The 2026 Orioles are currently 29-33. They continue to remain four wins better than last year’s team. They’re going to need more improvement eventually or this thing will end up at 79 wins.

There are a few former Orioles who were born on this day. They are: 2009-10 pitcher Cla Meredith, 2012 pitcher J.C. Romero, 1986 infielder Ricky Jones, and 1954 infielder Billy Hunter. Hunter passed away in Lutherville last year at age 97.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you! Your birthday buddies for today include: revolutionary war loser George III (1738), actor Keith David (1956), and actress Angelina Jolie (1975).

On this day in history…

In 1411, French king Charles IV granted a monopoly to the people of Roquefort-sur-Soulzon for the process of ripening cheese in nearby caves. The legally distinct Roquefort cheese continues to exist in European Union law today.

In 1745, Prussian monarch Frederick II led his forces to victory over the Austrians in the Battle of Hohenfriedberg, part of the War of the Austrian Succession. This decisive victory was one of those that led to Frederick getting “the Great” appended to his name.

In 1919, Congress approved the Nineteenth Amendment, which would guarantee suffrage to women. The amendment was then sent to the states for approval.

In 1942, Japanese carriers began to attack an American base at Midway Island, the start of a four-day battle where the American navy sunk all four Japanese carriers.

In 1989, protests in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square were violently suppressed by the Chinese army, leaving as many as 10,000 dead.

**

And that’s the way it is in Birdland on June 4. Have a safe Thursday. Go O’s!

Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders:W, 6-3 (7) and L, 2-13 (7) at Syracuse Mets

Game 1:

2B George Lombard Jr. 0-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
CF Spencer Jones 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
SS Oswaldo Cabrera 0-3, 1 RBI, throwing error
DH Tyler Hardman 2-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R
1B Seth Brown 3-3, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB
C Ali Sánchez 1-4, 1 R, 1 K
RF Ernesto Martinez Jr. 1-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 2 K
3B Jonathan Ornelas 1-4
LF Duke Ellis 1-3, 1 R, 1 K

Rafael Montero 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 K
Carlos Lagrange 4 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 2 BB, 7 K (win) — stellar first outing in the ‘pen, though it was more of a bulk start
Bradley Hanner 1 IP, 0 R, 1 BB, 1 K (hold)
Peter Strzelecki 0.2 IP, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 K, 1 HR
Yerry De los Santos 0.1 IP, 0 R (save)

Game 2:

SS George Lombard Jr. 0-2, 1 BB
CF Spencer Jones 1-3, 1 2B, 1 K
RF-3B Oswaldo Cabrera 1-3, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 K, 1 SB
DH Ernesto Martinez Jr. 0-3, 2 K
3B-C Tyler Hardman 1-3
2B Jonathan Ornelas 1-3, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
1B Seth Brown 0-3
LF Kenedy Corona 0-3
C-P Edinson Duran 0-2, 1 BB, throwing error

Zach Messinger 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 4 K (loss)
Eric Reyzelman 0.2 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 4 BB, 1 K
Dylan Coleman 2 IP, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K
Danny Watson 0.1 IP, 4 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 1 K
Edinson Duran 1 IP, 4 R, 3 H, 2 BB — if there’s a game to wind up having to punt, a doubleheader where you already won the first game ain’t the worst

Double-A Somerset Patriots:W, 4-2 at Harrisburg Senators

LF Jackson Castillo 3-5, 2 2B, 1 RBI
CF Garrett Martin 1-5, 1 K, 1 SB, 1 SB
DH Nicholas Torres 1-5, 1 RBI, 1 K
RF DJ Gladney 1-3, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SB
2B Connor McGinnis 2-4, 1 R, 2 K
1B Abrahan Gutierrez 2-4, 1 RBI
C Miguel Palma 1-4, 1 RBI
3B Kevin Verde 1-4, 1 R, 1 K
SS Owen Cobb 0-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K, throwing error

Cade Smith 5 IP, 1 R, 7 H, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HR (win)
Chris Kean 2 IP, 1 R, 2 H, 1 K (hold)
Matt Keating 1 IP, 0 R, 1 K (hold)
Michael Arias 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB (save)

High-A Hudson Valley Renegades:L, 3-10 at Frederick Keys

2B Kaeden Kent 1-5, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R, 1 K
SS Core Jackson 0-2, 3 BB, 1 SB
C Eric Genther 1-5, 2 K, throwing error
1B Kyle West 0-4, 1 BB, 1 K, fielding error
RF Wilson Rodriguez 2-5, 1 2B, 1 K, fielding error
DH Roderick Arias 1-2, 1 R, 2 BB, 1 K, 1 SB
3B Enmanuel Tejeda 0-3, 1 BB, 1 K
LF Josh Moylan 1-3, 1 2B, 2 K
CF Camden Troyer 0-4, 1 R, 1 K

Luis Serna 3.1 IP, 6 R, 4 ER, 5 H, 5 BB, 6 K, 1 HR, pickoff error (loss)
Bryce Warrecker 1.2 IP, 0 R, 2 K
Tony Rossi 1 IP, 0 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 2 K
Wilmy Sanchez 1 IP, 2 R, 2 H
Brandon Decker 1 IP, 2 R, 4 H, 1 K

Low-A Tampa Tarpons:W, 14-5 vs. Palm Beach Cardinals

SS Bryce Martin-Grudzielanek 3-6, 3 R, 2 K, 1 SB
3B Hans Montero 5-5, 1 2B, 2 R, 1 BB
C Luis Puello 2-4, 1 R, 1 BB
LF Logan Maxwell 2-4, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 3 R, 1 BB, 2 K, 2 SB
RF JoJo Jackson 0-4, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 SB
CF Willy Montero 1-5, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 K
DH Engelth Urena 3-4, 4 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SB
1B John Cristino 1-4, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 K
2B Luis Escudero 0-5, 1 K

Wyatt Parliament 4.2 IP, 4 R, 5 H, 2 BB, 6 K, 1 HR
J.T. Etheridge 3.1 IP, 1 R, 1 H, 1 BB, 5 K (win)
Jose M. Rodriguez 1 IP, 0 R, 1 K

Florida Complex League Yankees: Off-day

Dominican Summer League Yankees: Off-day

Dominican Summer League Bombers: Off-day

On Tuesday night, the Pittsburgh Pirates took down the Houston Astros 10-6 on the road. Third baseman Nick Gonzales was a huge part of the Bucs offensive success against Houston. 

Gonzales went 3-4 with 3 hits and walked once. He has done a great job getting on base and producing in the middle of the lineup. 

 Gonzales leads the team with 65 hits after getting two more on Wednesday night, inlcuding a homer. He also has a batting average of .314 which is sixth in the Major Leagues. Gonzales may not show the most power, but he’s hit impressively well and held down third base this season. He now has 2 home runs and 29 RBIs, but with the high batting average and an OPS of .759,he has been a sneaky massive piece for Pittsburgh.

Players like Oneil Cruz, Bryan Reynolds, and Brandon Lowe are getting a lot of attention, but Nick Gonzales has to be the most underrated player so far. The Pirates are 33-29 and tied for second in the NL Central, and Gonzales deserves credit so far. 

Gonzales recorded his second three-hit game over his last three contests and added a season-high three runs scored in the Tuesday victory. On Wednesday, he extended his hitting streak to a modest five games and is hitting .476 (10-for-21) during the stretch.

The Pirates haven’t really needed Gonzales hitting as many home runs, as their 73 home runs shows, thanks to players like Cruz, second baseman Brandon Lowe, right fielder Ryan O’Hearn, left fielder Bryan Reynolds, first baseman Spencer Horwitz and others.

Gonzales has stayed consistent with his approach at the plate, and the Pirates are good with him and his performance, which isn’t hard to understand why with his strong hitting numbers so far.

The 27 year old deserves a lot more credit for the success of the team. The Buccos’ offense is much better this year than last year’s team, and Nicky G is a big reason because of that. If the Pirates want to be a playoff team this year and snap that 11 year playoff drought, they need him to continue to produce.