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ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — The Yankees finally got the elusive big hit in the eighth inning Saturday night, then delivered another two innings later.

But it was all for naught, making their fourth straight loss even more crushing.

After José Caballero put the Yankees ahead in the eighth and 10th innings with clutch hits, the Yankees gave it right back in the bottom of each frame, with the Rays scoring a pair of runs in the bottom of the 10th to secure a 5-4 walk-off win at Tropicana Field.

The Rays dropped a pair of bunts against David Bednar to tie the game — the first a single by the speedy Chandler Simpson to put runners on the corners before Taylor Walls laid down another between the mound and first base, on which Bednar’s throw to the plate was late as the automatic runner scored to tie it.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. bobbles the ball and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the New York Yankees in extras pic.twitter.com/4Vy54WP1fH

— js9innings (@js9inningsmedia) April 12, 2026

The Yankees then intentionally walked Yandy Díaz to load the bases with no outs and brought Cody Bellinger in as the fifth infielder. Bednar struck out Hunter Feduccia for the first out but then Jonathan Aranda hit a chopper that got over the head of Bellinger, playing on the grass at second base. Jazz Chisholm Jr. was behind him in double-play depth but bobbled the ball — costing him his only chance of pulling off an inning-ending double play if he had tagged Díaz, who was running to second, and then thrown to first.

Instead, Chisholm had to go to his knees to collect the ball, and could only muster a throw to first as Simpson raced home from third, setting off a Rays celebration.

“The best thing I was going to try to do is to swing at [Díaz] and hopefully he backed out of the line and they call him out of the baseline and throw it to first base and get that double play,” said Chisholm, who also wondered aloud if he could have thrown to first and then tried to get Díaz out at second — “I don’t know what the rule is,” he said, only to be told by teammate Trent Grisham a few lockers down that it wouldn’t have mattered because Simpson would have scored first.

The dizzying sequence just made a frustrating week even more so, especially on a night when the Yankees (8-6) left 12 men on base and went 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position.

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“We know we’re way better than this,” said Caballero, who had put the Yankees up 4-3 with a two-out RBI single in the top of the 10th. “We just need to continue working and get better and look forward to [Sunday’s] game.”

Max Fried strong across eight innings of work, though was left kicking himself for giving up runs in the second and eighth innings immediately after the Yankees had taken a lead in the top half.

The Yankees trailed 2-1 with one out in the top of the eighth when Caballero, in the midst of a 1-for-30 skid, came up with two outs and runners on second and third. He took issue with home plate umpire Shane Livensparger over a discrepancy with being set in the box with enough time on the pitch clock — which Aaron Boone had to run out to make sure it did not turn into something bigger. After cooling off, Caballero smoked a double to the left field corner that scored both runs for the 3-2 lead.

But the advantage was short lived. Rays catcher Nick Fortes led off the bottom of the inning with a double to the gap before Simpson pinch ran. Taylor Walls bunted Simpson to third, at which point Boone visited the mound for a chat with Fried, who talked his way into staying in the game.

With the infield in, Díaz hit a perfectly placed chopper between Ben Rice and Chisholm. Rice jumped to his right to snare it, but had no play at the plate as Simpson raced home to tie it.

“I thought for the most part, the guys did enough to win tonight and when it came down to it, the two times where I needed to go out there and put a shutdown inning, I kind of let up the momentum,” Fried said. “It’s frustrating. That’s definitely on me.”

The Yankees then stranded runners on the corners in the top of the ninth when Randal Grichuk — whom Boone did not pinch hit for against righty Hunter Bigge despite having Paul Goldschmidt and J.C. Escarra on the bench — flew out.

Austin Wells homered in the second inning for the early 1-0 lead, but that was the only time the Yankees left the park as they again were held in check offensively.

“It sucks,” Chisholm said. “Coming out, working hard to get back out front. Tough loss. They played good and did good baserunning, hit at the right times. We didn’t. We’ll get better with that as the season goes on, but at the same time, we didn’t execute today. We left what, [12] runners on base? Once we do a better job of that, it’s going to come around when we come around.”

The bottom of the Yankees lineup has caught a lot of flack for being automatic outs in the early going this season. Naturally, on a night when the 6-9 hitters drove in four runs and Max Fried threw eight innings of three-run ball … the Yankees still lost. Why, you ask? Take away José Caballero’s two (!!) hits with runners in scoring position and the Yanks were 0-for-10 in those situations. Meanwhile, for as good as he was, every single time the Yankees scored for him, Fried immediately gave the runs back. Add it all up and you have the recipe for the usual despicable Yankee loss at the Trop.

I noted in the game preview that one of Rays starter Nick Martinez’s calling cards early has been a lack of walks. So, of course he put Trent Grisham on with four pitches leading off. I also noted he has not been striking guys out. So, of course he whiffed Aaron Judge. Cody Bellinger, who has been scuffling of late, turned on a cutter in the middle of the plate and singled down the right field line and later stole second, putting two runners in scoring position.

A golden opportunity for an offense that desperately needs to score runs. Alas, Ben Rice struck out looking on middle-middle heat and Giancarlo Stanton drove an absolute missile directly at the left fielder. Opportunity squandered.

Austin Wells came into today hitting .152 with neither a home run nor an RBI on the young season. He rectified that in the top of the second, turning on an inside fastball and driving a ball out down the right-field line.

No cheapie, it would be a dinger in all 30 parks. And speaking of guys who have been brutally struggling, Ryan McMahon managed a single later in the frame, boosting his average to half a Mendoza Line (.100). It was no home run, but anything the bottom of the lineup can do that isn’t an uncompetitive at-bat is a pleasure to see.

With the offense semi-somnolent, it was absolutely incumbent on Yankee ace Max Fried to hold the Rays down, and he did so in the first. Unfortunately, Fried coughed the run support back up in the second. Junior Caminero doubled and moved to third on a groundball. One dunk single into right field later, Caminero was home and the game was tied. Given the offense’s struggles, it felt like Fried had already ceded his margin of error.

The bottom of the lineup was back doing their nonsense in the fourth. Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit his second weak fly ball of the game, having seen a total of three pitches total to that point. I will not harp on Wells’s swinging strikeout considering he was the sole reason the Yankees were in the run column. I will pick on Caballero who, after yet another uncompetitive at-bat, was now 1 for his last 28. I found myself really missing Anthony Volpe right about then.

The Yanks had a golden opportunity to break the game open in the top of the fifth. A pair of walks, to Grisham and Rice, and a Bellinger single, loaded the bases and sent Martinez to the shower. In came righty Kevin Kelly to face Big G, with the sacks juiced and two out. Stanton, with a .325 career average with the bases loaded, promptly whiffed. Opportunity squandered.

Back to the bottom of the lineup in the sixth and Chisholm continued his skid, making him 2 for his last 24. After Wells hit a hard groundball out to second, Caballero struck out. Literally the entire Yankee lineup, other than Rice and to an extent Stanton, was ice-cold simultaneously.

Max Fried retired 11 in a row after giving up that second inning RBI, then ran into trouble in the sixth. Who, you ask, broke that streak? There can be only one. Taylor bleeping Walls. Walls came into today with a career OPS 135 points higher against the Yanks than his overall mark. So, of course he singled to start the home sixth. Fried then had Yandy Díaz take him for a ride to left. Luckily, Bellinger flashed some leather for the first out or the frame could have gotten out of hand.

Another single put runners on the corners and Jonathan Aranda, unlike the Yankees, made his opportunity count. His sac fly to left gave the Rays their second run and the 2-1 lead. You would be forgiven for assuming you could put this game in the loss column, considering the Yankees’ grand total of six runs in their last 3.5 games.

With Fried’s pitch count in great shape (74 through six), Aaron Boone sent his ace back out for the seventh. The star southpaw made Boonie look like a genius, retiring the Rays in order.

The Yankees put themselves in position for a big inning in the eighth. After Stanton walked, Randal Grichuk came in to pinch-run. Then Chisholm, who needed a hit the way a man dying of thirst in the desert needs water, hit a chopper down the first base line that ended in a double. That gave Wells a chance to tie the game without a hit. He failed. A bad at-bat ended in a fly ball too shallow to score the run. All of that meant it was Caballero Redemption Season. And the Yankee shortstop came through. His double to left scored a pair and gave the Yanks a 3-2 lead.

Fried returned for the eighth, with Boonie opting to roll with his ace. This time, it did not work out as well as he surrendered a leadoff double. A bunt moved the tying run to third and turned the lineup over again for Diaz. And Diaz did his job. His infield single tied the game, though Fried escaped without any further damage.

With one out in the ninth, Judge walked for the second time and immediately stole second, putting the go-ahead run in scoring position for the heart of the order. But the Rays retired Bellinger and intentionally walked Rice, leaving the Yankees’ hopes resting on Grichuk. He came into the at-bat hitless as a Yankee. He left the at-bat hitless as a Yankee.

Fernando Cruz and Tim Hill combined to hold the Rays scoreless in the ninth and send the game to extras. Grichuk started on second as The Manfred Man, advancing to third but with two out. Luckily, Caballero was at the dish. His second hit with runners in scoring position plated the go-ahead run and gave Cabby three ribbies on the night.

The bottom of the 10th quickly became a nightmare. Chandler Simpson, who entered late as a pinch-runner, bunted off David Bednar to put runners on the corners with no one out then immediately stole second. Walls then bunted and brought the ghost runner in to tie the game, leaving runners on the corners still with no one out.

Boone opted to walk the bases loaded rather than face Diaz. It worked at first but a weak Aranda chopper scored the winning run. The ball never left the infield and it didn’t matter.

Game over. And for anyone who’s watched the Yankees in extra innings on the road the past couple of years, there should be zero surprise. It’s like clockwork. They fail to do the little things, and they lose.

The Yankees try to avoid the sweep tomorrow in the series finale. Join us for all the coverage. First pitch is at 1:40pm Eastern and you better have your Schlitt together because super sophomore Cam Schlitter gets the start.

Box Score

After an impressive spring and solid start to the season, it looked as if Kodai Senga was getting back to what made him such a dominant force for the Mets.

However, the ineffective Senga emerged in Saturday's 11-6 loss to the Athletics as the right-hander had his worst start as a major leaguer. Senga allowed a career-high seven runs on eight hits and two walks across 2.1 innings.

What plagued Senga was his lack of control, as only 40 of his 72 pitches went for strikes.

"The biggest thing is I wasn’t able to control many pitches near the strike zone or over the plate," Senga said of his outing through the team interpreter. 

"He didn’t have much," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said of Senga. "Starts with fastball command and he just didn’t have it. He kept going to that sinker to get back in counts or get a strike, but he didn’t have a feel for his pitches… Overall, just getting behind because the command wasn’t there."

Senga, who has become known for letting bad starts snowball on him, attributed his lack of control to a "slight" mechanical issue, but he felt great physically. 

In spring and in his first two starts, Senga's fastball was in the high 90s. On Saturday, he was hovering around 93-94 mph. The Mets skipper acknowledged the dip in velocity, but when asked whether Senga was affected by having to pitch on regular rest, which Senga hasn't done consistently since coming to the majors, Mendoza pointed out the off day gave his starter an extra day of rest; he just didn't have it on Saturday.

And when velocity isn't there, location becomes more important and the lack of it played a big part in the game-altering third inning. With the Mets only down 2-1, Shea Langeliers doubled and Tyler Soderstrom homered to give the A's a 4-1 lead. Consecutive singles and a one-out home run by Carlos Cortes capped off the five-run inning and Senga's day.

In the second and third innings -- where all seven runs were scored -- Senga had to throw 54 combined pitches. He was asked if those long innings made it difficult to find a rhythm. Senga didn't use it as an excuse, but instead wants to learn from the start.

"I think it’s tough to have back-to-back innings with high pitch counts," Senga said. "Not every outing is going to be smooth sailing. Some outings are going to be tough. Probably going to have, in a long season, stuff like this is going to happen. I’m going to reflect on this the next time I go back out there so that it doesn’t happen again or it’s better the next time out.

"I didn’t feel like I was going to have a rough outing," Senga added. "I thought I felt good. A lot of unfortunate things came and didn’t stop. That’s how the outing went."

The Mets offense would awaken to cut the A's lead to just one run, but the bullpen couldn't hold down the Athletics long enough to complete the comeback as New York dropped their fourth game in a row. It was a shame considering Mets pitching has been very solid, and the offense hasn't pulled their weight. They pulled it on Saturday, but Senga put them too far behind the eight ball to pick up the win.

"Times like this, it’s important as a starting pitcher to get the team off on the right foot," Senga said. "I wasn’t able to do that today. It’s very regretful on that end."

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Padres fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Craig Stammen admitted there would be a learning curve in his first year as manager of the San Diego Padres. The former reliever, who had not coached at any level before landing the job in San Diego this offseason, had a rough start to his tenure dropping to a 2-4 record after his first six games at Petco Park. The Padres took one game from the Detroit Tigers and one game from the San Francisco Giants and fans were already speaking in hushed tones about the decision to hire Stammen and whether he would see the end of the season.

San Diego went on the road and seemed to find its stride. The Padres flipped the record from the homestand and took both series, the first against the Boston Red Sox 2-1 and the second against the Pittsburgh Pirates 2-1. San Diego returned home after a winning road trip and were the owners of a .500 record. The successful road trip calmed the fan base and propelled the Padres into their home series against the Colorado Rockies.

The 6-6 record to start the season put San Diego right where the Frair Faithful put Stammen’s managerial performance when Gaslamp Ball asked respondents to grade Stammen in this week’s Padres Reacts Survey – right in the middle.

It is unclear if the grade for Stammen would change after the Padres took the first two games of the series against the Rockies in walk-off fashion on back-to-back nights. But if the question was asked today prior to Stammen releasing his Game 3 lineup, which included Fernando Tatis Jr. playing second base he may have received a higher grade.

Time will tell if fans are too high or too low on Stammen the manager, but for now, they seem to have him and his performance pegged.

FanDuel Sportsbook

Jose Caballero gave the Yankees a late lead twice, but New York could not hold down the Rays in their 5-4 loss on Saturday evening at Tropicana Field. 

In the 10th, and the Yankees up 4-3, the Rays played small ball. Back-to-back leadoff bunt singles pushed the tying run across before a one-out infield single by Jonathan Aranda gave Tampa the walk-off victory.

The loss extended the Yankees' losing streak to four games and they have now lost back-to-back series. All four losses were by a combined five runs.

Here are the takeaways...

-Despite the Yankees' struggles to score runs over the last few games, they were not having trouble producing baserunners and that was the case in the first inning. After a leadoff walk by Trent Grisham and a one-out single by Cody Bellinger -- and an eventual stolen base -- the Yankees' best hitter so far, Ben Rice, was up with runners on second and third with one out. The lefty swinging first baseman struck out looking before Giancarlo Stanton -- the team's second-best hitter so far -- smoked a line drive, but it was hit right at the left fielder to end the threat. 

Austin Wells got the scoring started with a solo shot that went 396 feet over the right field wall for his first long ball of the season.

But the theme of the game was missed opportunities for the Yankees. Aside from the first inning, the Yankees had bases loaded with two outs for Stanton in the fifth. The slugger struck out to leave more runners on. 

The Yankees would have another chance in the eighth after Stanton drew a one-out walk and Jazz Chisholm Jr. doubled to put runners at second and third for Wells. The Yankees' backstop popped out to shallow left field, leaving it up to the former Ray, Caballero. The struggling shortstop was hitless in his last 29 at-bats, but came through with a double that plated two and gave the Yankees a 3-2 lead.

-Max Fried was excellent and bounced back from his loss to the Marlins last Sunday. 

After getting the lead, Fried allowed the tying run to score in the second when Jonny Deluca dunked a bloop single to score Junior Caminero -- who led off the inning with a double -- from third base. But after that hit, the Yankees southpaw set down eight straight batters to settle the game down. However, Tampa would take the lead in the sixth after an Aranda sac fly scored Taylor Walls from third. It could have been a bigger inning for the Rays if Bellinger hadn't come up with an impressive leaping grab at the wall that robbed Yandy Diaz of extra bases. 

Diaz would get his revenge on Fried though. The Yankees southpaw pitched into the eighth inning and after allowing a leadoff double to Nick Fortes, Diaz hit a single, a chopper to first base that scored the speedy Chandler Simpson from third base to even up the score at 3-3.

Fried pitched eight innings (94 pitches/66 strikes), allowing three runs on six hits, no walks and striking out six.

-In the ninth, the Yankees would fail to come up with the big hit once again. Aaron Judge walked with one out and stole second base. He took third on a sac fly by Bellinger. The Rays intentionally walked Ben Rice to get to Randal Grichuk, who pinch-ran for Stanton earlier in the game. The outfielder would fly out to end the threat. 

In the top of the 10th, and the ghost runner on third with two outs, Caballero came through again with a single to put the Yankees up. But the inability to put up big innings cost the Yankees who finished 2-for-12 with RISP and left 12 runners on base. In comparison, Tampa was 5-for-7 with RISP.

-One silver lining from the loss was the performance of the bottom of the order. The combination of Wells, Caballero and Ryan McMahon went 5-for-12 with four RBI. 

Game MVP: Chandler Simpson

The speedy outfielder didn't start, but made his presence felt late. He scored the tying run in the eighth and the winning run in the 10th. He finished 1-for-1 with two runs and a stolen base.

Highlights

Austin Wells' first home run of the year! pic.twitter.com/c7Cr0V2gef

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 11, 2026

An incredible catch by Cody Bellinger! 👏 pic.twitter.com/MHgzKbXEnA

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 11, 2026

JOSE CABALLERO GIVES THE YANKEES THE LEAD! pic.twitter.com/BB3vLF5gTJ

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 12, 2026

JOSE CABALLERO AGAIN!

Yankees lead in the 10th! pic.twitter.com/uNDn6lzBMM

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 12, 2026

What's next

The Yankees and Rays conclude their three-game series on Sunday afternoon. First pitch is set for 1:40 p.m.

Cam Schlittler (2-0, 1.62 ERA) takes on Drew Rasmussen (0-0, 1.80 ERA). 

The Houston Astros (6-8) are in Seattle (5-9) for the second game of a four-game series with the Mariners as they seek to end a five-game slide.

RHP Lance McCullers Jr. will be on the mound for the Astros opposite RHP Luis Castillo and the Mariners.

ABOUT MCCULLERS: RHP Lance McCullers Jr. is set to make his third start of the season.

In his last start on April 5 at ATH, he allowed three runs on five hits and three walks with four strikeouts in four innings.

He also tossed seven innings of one-run ball in his season debut on March 30 vs. BOS, which was his longest outing since Sept. 21, 2022 at TB, where he also went 7.0 innings. It was his first quality start and win since July 4, 2025 at LAD.

AGAINST THE MARINERS: The Astros and Mariners face each other tonight for the second of 13 scheduled matchups in 2026. The Astros went 5-8 against the Mariners in 2025, including 2-4 record at T-Mobile Park.

Houston owns a 132-98 all-time regular season record against Seattle. The Mariners will travel to Daikin Park for the first of two road trips to Houston from May 11-14 for a four-game series.

TUVE VS. THE MARINERS:2B Jose Altuve has hit .311 (242×779) with 48 doubles, 21 homers, 96 RBI and an .828 OPS in 191 career games against the Mariners. He already ranks third all-time in hits vs. SEA, trailing only Cal Ripken Jr. (261) and Michael Young (259), and ranks eighth all-time in games played vs. the Mariners.

ON THE MEND:LHP Bennett Sousa will begin a rehab assignment with Triple A Sugar Land tonight. He began the season on the Injured List due to a left oblique strain.

TODAY’S ROSTER MOVE: The Astros have optioned RHP J.P. France to Triple A Sugar Land. To take his place on the active roster, the Astros recalled RHP Jayden Murray.

IMAI UPDATE:RHP Tatsuya Imai flew back to Houston today for further evaluation due to right arm fatigue.

Astros are calling it right arm fatigue https://t.co/nxNe9NBH2P

— Brian McTaggart (@brianmctaggart) April 11, 2026

ROAD TRIP: Tonight is the eighth game of a 10game road trip for the Astros.

The Astros are 1-6 so far on this road trip.

Houston went 41-40 on the road last season.

Following this four-game series in Seattle, the Astros will face the Colorado Rockies for a three-game series at Daikin Park from April 14-16 .

LEAGUE LEADERS: The Astros lead the American League in runs (85), doubles (35), total bases (216), hits (130), walks (71), SLG (.449), OBP (.372) and OPS (.821).

Individually, LF Yordan Alvarez leads the AL in walks (14), OPS (1.266) and OBP (.516).

2B Jose Altuve ranks tied for first in the AL in runs (12) and 1B Christian Walker ranks second in the AL in doubles (6) and tied for second in RBI (13).

NO. 1000: C Christian Vázquez and 1B Christian Walker each appeared in their 1,000th career game last night vs. SEA.

Vázquez ranks third among active catchers in games, behind KC C Salvador Perez (1,721g) and PHI C J.T. Realmuto (1,383g).

Walker has played in games with Arizona (819g) Houston (168g) and Baltimore (13g).

MOVIN’ ON UP: LF Yordan Alvarez recorded his 175th career home run last night at SEA.

The home run moved into sole possession of seventh place on the Astros all-time home run list, passing franchise icon OF George Springer. Next up on the Astros all-time list is 3B Alex Bregman (191 HR).

TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY: 2016 – 2B Jose Altuve goes 3×4 with a walk, an RBI and three runs scored in an Astros 8-2 win over the Royals in Houston. This game is the first of a seven-game stretch for Altuve in which he hit .407 (11×27) with eight runs scored, three doubles, three home runs, seven RBI, and a 1.336 OPS en route to being named the AL’s Co-Player of the Week, an honor he shared with the Orioles RF Mark Trumbo.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Saturday, April 11, 8:40 p.m. CST

Location: T-Mobile Park, Seattle, WA

TV: Space City Home Network

Streaming: SCHN+

Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; KTRH 740 AM; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)

Late night baseball.

⚾️: 8:40pm CDT
📺: @SpaceCityHN | @espn (HOU Blackout)
🎙️: @SportsTalk790 & 740 | Spanish: 102.9 HD2#ChaseTheFight x @reliantenergypic.twitter.com/D1EEAOMhu4

— Houston Astros (@astros) April 11, 2026

The Rock gets the rock. #TridentsUppic.twitter.com/wiWgqGymA1

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) April 11, 2026

Max Muncy needs only 15 home runs on Saturday to catch Ron Cey for fifth place on the Dodgers all-time home run list.

Tonight’s #Dodgers lineup vs. Rangers: pic.twitter.com/7DmxZBgSCv

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 11, 2026

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Rangers
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Time: 6:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

The Mets managed to blast three home runs in their 11-6 loss Athletics, but they couldn’t overcome an early deficit and their recent skid is now up to four games.

Kodai Senga got the start and had the worst start of his young season so far. After the Mets had jumped out to an early 1-0 lead, Senga gave it right back when he gave up two runs in the second. The wheels really came off in the third when Senga gave up a two-run shot to Tyler Soderstrom and then a three-run home run to Carlos Cortes later in that same inning. Cortes’s home run ended Senga’s outing after just 2.1 innings pitched. Senga certainly did not have it on the mound, but he was not helped by his defense either. Francisco Lindor did not cover second on a potential double play ball, Marcus Semien and Mark Vientos both allowed infield hits, and Francisco Alvarez allowed a passed ball.

After Senga’s departure Huascar Brazobán, Brooks Raley, and the newly recalled Craig Kimbrel allowed the team to get back into it. Brazobán especially did the heavy lifting pitching 2.2 innings and settling things down at 7-1. The team started to chip away by hitting home runs in three straight innings. First it was Bo Bichette with a two-run home run, and then Francisco Alvarez and Jorge Polanco followed with solo home runs of their own. Brett Baty also added a sacrifice fly in the sixth and, after seven innings, the Mets pulled to within one. They did get runners on first and second after Polanco’s home run in the seventh but two fly outs by Carson Benge and Marcus Semien ended the rally.

Any hope of the team coming back ended in the top of the eighth when Luke Weaver gave up four backbreaking runs with two-outs. After a good start to the season, Weaver has struggled in his last two appearances. Thi is especially concerning given the state of the rotation right now. David Peterson and Kodai Senga struggled in their appearances and Clay Holmes was lifted with an injury in his last start, so the last thing this team needs is an unreliable bullpen.

Absolutely nothing is going right for the Mets right now, but at least the offense finally showed up. Hopefully they can continue hitting the ball in a winning effort sooner rather than later, since they are now under .500 for the season.

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Win Probability Added

Big Mets winner: Bo Bichette, +24% WPA
Big Mets loser: Kodai Senga, -45.0% WPA
Mets pitchers: -62% WPA
Mets hitters: +12% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Jorge Polanco’s home run in seventh, +14.5% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Shea Langeliers’s RBI single in the eighth inning, -12.0% WPA

Usually an offensive explosion to the tune of nine runs involves a lot of running, or at least jogging, around the bases. But I was fine with the Mariners walking around the bases instead last night. Tonight, they’ll have a trickier task. At least theoretically. Lance McCullers is scheduled to start for Houston, but given his injury history, I’ll believe it when I see it. Houston better hope he does start though because the state of the Astros pitching is like, a whole thing right now:

• Tatsuya Imai is headed to Houston for medical evaluation of a “tired arm”
• JP France was sent back to Sugar Land
• Jayden Murray was recalled to take his place

The Mariners will turn to Luis Castillo, who’s looking every bit like himself through his first two starts, though with a lot of bad BABIP luck in his last start. He keeps dialing up his four-seamer and slider useage and dialing down his sinker and changeup. That’s giving him more strikeouts but also making him more prone to damage when guys connect. It’s a recipe for looking pretty good when pitching at T-Mobile Park in April though.

Lineups

Another day off for Brendan Donovan while he recovers from the bug means another day of J.P. Crawford at the top of the lineup, which I always find aesthetically pleasing.

A bit of a shuffle from yesterday’s lineup for Houston. Regular catcher Yainer Diaz is back in there. Jose Altuve heads back into the field, so Yordan Àlvarez can DH. That shifts Isaac Peredes off of second base, and creates a spot in the outfield for Taylor Trammell. Basically this was a lot of shuffling to give the Astro’s two Christians the day off, which maybe should have happened this past Sunday instead.

Game Info

First Pitch: 6:40 PDT
TV: Mariners TV
Radio: Old Reliable

LOS ANGELES — Blake Snell pitched a simulated inning on Saturday afternoon at Dodger Stadium, facing hitters for the first time this year, the latest step in his rehab from starting the season on the sideline with shoulder fatigue.

Snell threw about 15 pitches on Saturday, facing Tommy Edman (the switch-hitter batted both right-handed and left-handed) and Alex Call on the field about four hours before the scheduled first pitch of the Dodgers’ game against the Texas Rangers.

Snellzilla soon. 👀 pic.twitter.com/fbVTUzlvvM

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) April 11, 2026

After an offseason of mostly resting his arm, Snell was well behind during spring training, such that he didn’t even throw a bullpen session until March 12. He’s been throwing off and on since, but Saturday was his first time facing hitters.

“I’m very excited about how I feel, where I’m at. Getting back to some normalcy again feels really good,” Snell said Saturday. “Throwing bullpens, not facing hitters, it’s tough to stay locked in.”

This is essentially the early part of spring training for Snell, who is expected to face hitters in a two-inning simulated outing at some point next week. Manager Dave Roberts said Saturday that he wasn’t sure if Snell would need two or three more such outings before going on a minor league rehab assignment.

“This one for me, personally, is just an exercise. I’m not really looking for command, to be quite honest,” Roberts said. “Just getting out there, competing against hitters, and just trying to get through the, call it 20-pitch exercise.”

Roberts on the last homestand targeted roughly the end of May for Snell’s potential return to the Dodgers rotation, and Saturday’s simulated inning falls in line with that plan. Let’s assume at minimum, Snell would have two more simulated outings followed by three minor league starts, with five days rest in between each one. That would put his last rehab start 30 days from now, on May 11, with his potential return to the Dodgers another six or seven days after that. Adding in a fourth rehab start would push his return into the final week of May.

The Dodgers have shown patience with the top of their rotation before, like last season when Snell missed nearly four months on the injured list before returning for the last two months of the regular season and all postseason. Same for Tyler Glasnow, who missed over two months before returning to the rotation last July.

Take Saturday for what it was, a positive next step for Snell.

“I talked to him yesterday a little bit in the dugout, and he’s getting antsy,” Roberts said. “But I think he’s just excited because he feels strong, he feels healthy. He’s been working on his diet and stuff, so he’s in a good spot.”