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The Giants jumped all over Marcus Stroman in the first inning and the Yankees could not recover in their 9-1 loss during a rain-shortened game on Friday night at Yankee Stadium.

The game started after a 30-minute delay, but the rain continued throughout. Couple that with strong winds, and it was a bear to deal with for both sides. The game would be delayed again in the sixth inning before it was finally called after another 26 minutes.

Here are the takeaways...

- Stroman probably wishes the game was rained out. He allowed the first five batters to reach base, as the Giants started the game with a double, walk and then a three-run shot by Jung Hoo Lee. Back-to-back walks forced the Yankees to get their bullpen up before Lamonte Wade Jr. drove a double down the line to score two more.

Stroman would get the next two batters out but Tyler Fitzgerald's single chased the veteran right-hander out of the game after getting just two outs.

Manager Aaron Boone called on Ryan Yarbrough to try and give the team length. The southpaw would get Mike Yastrzemski -- in his second at-bat of the inning -- to strike out and end the first.

Stroman's night was done after recording just two outs on 46 pitches (23 strikes), allowing five runs on four hits and three walks and striking out just one batter. The right-hander's ERA on this young season is now 11.57.

- Yarbrough did his job, pitching 2.2 scoreless innings while allowing just one hit and one walk and striking out three batters. However, the Giants broke the game open in the fifth.

Ian Hamilton walked the first two batters before striking out Heliot Ramos. Boone brought Tim Hill in to get out of the jam, but the sidearmer just couldn't find the zone. After walking the bases loaded, Hill took the out at first base after a Wilmer Flores chopper back to the mound. He then thew a wild pitch on the first pitch of the next at-bat that scored a run before giving up a run-scoring double to Patrick Bailey.

- Things went off the rails in the sixth with the Giants already up 8-1. Yoendrys Gomez could not grip the baseball and walked three straight batters to start the inning. Twelve of his first 13 pitches were balls.

The umpires all walked up to Gomez after the third walk to discuss with him before calling Boone and the groundskeeper to the mound. After a conversation, the officials let Gomez continue. To Gomez's credit, the right-hander struck out the next two batters but walked in the Giants' ninth run of the game.

Boone walked to the mound again and after some discussion, the umpires brought in the tarp.

- The Yankees' first and only run came in the second off the bat of Austin Wells. The left-handed catcher launched a pitch from LHP Robbie Ray that was projected to go 408 feet -- according to the YES Network broadcast -- but the wind, which was gusting in from right to left, had it go just 358 feet and off the top of the right-center field wall for a double that scored Anthony Volpe from second.

New York had chances to slowly cut into the Giants' lead but just couldn't get the hit. They were 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left six men on base.

The Yankees had just two hits: the Wells double and Volpe's infield single. Aaron Judge went 0-for-1 but walked twice.

- The Yankees' bullpen was taxed on Friday but the Giants were on the verge of being in the same boat after starter Robbie Ray could only get through four innings. San Francisco used just one reliever to get one more inning to make it an official game.

Game MVP: Lamonte Wade Jr.

The first baseman went 1-for-2 with two walks but drove in three runs. He was on base for all of the Giants' big innings.

Highlights

Austin Wells hits an RBI double off the top of the wall pic.twitter.com/DQlcaMVOVb

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) April 12, 2025

What's next

The Yankees and Giants continue their three-game set on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 4:05 p.m.

Will Warren will take the mound for the third time this season and will be opposed by Jordan Hicks.

(This article was written with the assistance of Castmagic, an AI tool, and reviewed by our editorial team to ensure accuracy. Please reach out to us if you notice any mistakes.)

The start of the 2025 MLB season has been a roller coaster for many teams, but few have begun their campaign quite like the Los Angeles Angels. In the latest episode of "Baseball Bar-B-Cast," hosts Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman dive in to how the Angels have managed to capture the baseball world's attention. 

The Angels are the only team yet to lose a series this season.

"I don't believe in this franchise," Mintz said. "And yet, so far this season, this team, at the very least, has provided reasons for optimism."

"Let us recall that this season began for the Angels with Nicky Lopez pitching on Opening Day against the White Sox," Shusterman noted. "And we were like, all right, here we go again. We're on our way to 100 losses. This is the most embarrassing franchise in baseball." 

And yet, through two weeks, the Angels stand out with their surprising achievement: They've won all four series they've played, albeit without sweeping any of them. Despite their success, the 8-4 Angels find themselves trailing the 9-4 Texas Rangers by a half-game in the AL West.

A standout story for the Angels is the unforeseen rise of Kyren Paris, who boasts an impressive 1.485 OPS, a 1.000 slugging percentage, five home runs and four steals so far. Paris, 23, was drafted by the Angels out of high school in the second round of the 2019 MLB Draft.

As Mintz noted, "None of this is sustainable for even the godliest of men, but there does seem to be something interesting brewing here with Kyren Paris."

Paris' journey through the minors was fast-tracked, as the Angels like to do, and then he struggled massively upon arriving in the big leagues in 2023. 

"And then last year, it's even worse," Shusterman explained. "He hit .167 in 60 minor-league games. He had some injuries. They were still putting him in the big leagues for some of it. He hit .118 in 21 big-league games.

"He was 22, so it's not like you were dooming him forever. But this seemed like a case of, 'Oh, the Angels. They got too aggressive with one of their players that seemed to be on a decent track, and now he's paying the price.'"

But starting this spring, Paris has looked like a different player. As the hosts noted, Paris worked in the offseason with Aaron Judge's personal hitting coach, Richard Schenck, and has made some apparent adjustments to his stance in the batter's box, which are clearly paying off.

"Which is most compelling because Kyren Paris is not a big dude, you know?" Shusterman said. "To see kind of applying some of the same methodology, the same physical moves that have helped Aaron Judge — it's not a perfect replica, but it is maximizing and making the most of athleticism that Kyren Paris has always had."

Will Paris slug 1.000 for the rest of the season? Almost definitely not, but as the hosts pointed out, he also brings defensive versatility that will continue to benefit the Angels.

What else is going right in Anaheim? The hosts took a look at the rest of the lineup, highlighted by new right fielder Mike Trout, who has also hit five home runs. And the Angels have seen some improvements in their starting pitching, thanks to Kyle Hendricks and Jose Soriano stepping up early in the season. Lastly, the Angels have Kenley Jansen anchoring the bullpen and closing out games.

Shusterman summed it up well: "We're talking about 12 games, and when you have a couple good starting pitchers and an offense that's hitting a bunch of homers, you're going to win a decent number of games."

It's important to note that the Angels have played the Rays, White Sox, Guardians and Cardinals — not exactly the most daunting slate of opponents. Also, the Angels have started strong through April a few times in the past few years, yet they've always fallen off before the second half. 

As such, the hosts aren't buying this Angels team quite yet.

"I'm glad they're playing well right now," Shusterman said. "I am loving the Kyren Paris breakout. I'm loving Mike Trout. But they would just need to be doing it for so much longer and so many other ways for me to believe."

To listen to the full episode and more, tune in to "Baseball-Bar-B-Cast" on Apple, Spotify or YouTube.

Jeff McNeil got into an actual game on Friday evening with Port St. Lucie, and the Mets infielder had a successful rehab start.

Starting at second base, and leading off, McNeil went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run. He played the field for five innings before being subbed out.

The former NL batting champion is hoping to continue his form from the second half of last season, which allowed him to salvage his 2024 campaign. After a dreadful start, McNeil finished the year with a .238 batting average after hitting .216 in the first half of the season. His second half saw him hit a respectable .289.

"It’s a tricky injury with the oblique but the fact he’s already playing in-game, that’s a good sign," Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Friday. "He’ll play today, then he’ll play Sunday, play Tuesday and then we have to get him to play back-to-back games. How he’s going to respond to that and then we’ll check with him if he needs more at-bats or not. He got more at-bats than Alvarez did in spring training so that’s good there but we’re going to play it by ear."

The Mets skipper said McNeil's next rehab game will be with St. Lucie on Sunday before eventually going to Triple-A Syracuse to continue getting at-bats.

Jeff McNeil gets a single, Francisco Alvarez battles from down 0-2 to work a walk, and Drew Gilbert brings them all home with a 3-run homer for St. Lucie! pic.twitter.com/YfD3qsFLuX

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) April 11, 2025

Latest on Francisco Alvarez 

As for Alvarez, he started at catcher hitting behind McNeil in Friday's game at Port St. Lucie.

The Mets backstop caught seven innings going 0-for-3 with a walk and a run scored. It's Alvarez's second rehab start after catching five innings on Wednesday.

Mendoza said the plan for Alvarez is to play one more game at St. Lucie on Sunday before heading back to Citi Field on Monday to check in with the doctors. And then he'll head up to Syracuse for a game on Tuesday.

Update on Paul Blackburn

Mendoza also detailed what the next steps for Blackburn are.

"He threw a live BP today, one inning," he said. "Depending on how he feels the next couple of days, the next step will be another live BP on Tuesday, two ups live BP and then we’ll go from there. He threw in Brooklyn today."

Luis Severino was hoping to return to the Mets this offseason. 

The hard-throwing right-hander was coming off a bounce-back campaign in which he stayed healthy for the first time in a long time and returned to the dominant form he showed during his early days with the Yankees. 

The two sides had discussions on a potential reunion during the winter -- and Severino told the Mets that he’d be willing to accept a two-year deal worth $40 million to stay, but as things played out they had other plans.

The 31-year-old told reporters Friday that New York was only willing to offer him the two-year, $34 million pact that they signed Frankie Montas to this offseason, which ultimately led to them going their separate ways. 

“I was told I had a chance,” Severino said. “I was trying to stay with the Mets. I asked for less money to stay there but, like I said, I wasn’t in their plans. At the beginning I was shocked but at the end, I knew it was business, and they need to take care of themselves.”

While things didn’t quite go as planned, all worked out well for Severino -- as he ended up signing with the Athletics on a three-year, $67 million deal, the largest guarantee in franchise history.

“I’m proud of him,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “He was really good for us. I had a really good relationship with him even when we were both with the Yankees. I’m proud that he got a nice contract, the work paid off.”

Severino received interest from numerous clubs before he signed with the A’s -- and while they aren’t exactly in the most ideal of circumstances at the moment -- he felt they were a perfect landing spot.

“The last two offseasons I’ve had a meeting with my agent and discussed what I’m looking for. At the end, [the Athletics] was the closest to what I was looking for. Having a young team that has talent and wants to go out there and play baseball.

“Last year nobody thought we were going to the playoffs and we made it. I’ve played for a lot of teams that had something to show and I feel this is one of those teams.”

The Mets will get their first look at that young and hungry team this weekend. 

Severino, who has thrown six or more innings in each of his first three starts, is lined up to face Kodai Senga in the series finale on Sunday -- a tough matchup that he certainly is looking forward to. 

“I'm really happy to see those guys, they were like family to me," he said. "Even though it was one year I feel like I was there for a long time -- so yeah, it's going to be fun. I’m going to bring my best, best of luck to them.”