Whether authored by Nolan Ryan or Mike Scott or Ronel Blanco or a cast of several to nail down a World Series victory, the Houston Astros simply have a way with no-hitters.
And the one they spun Monday, May 25 might have been the unlikeliest of the 18 no-hitters in franchise history.
Tatsuya Imai, their splash free agent pitching acquisition who was so disappointing he was stashed on the injured list just two starts into his career, pitched the first six innings of a three-man relay and relievers Steven Okert and Alimber Santa – making his major-league debut – took care of the final three innings as the Astros subdued the Texas Rangers, winning 9-0 at Globe Life Park in Arlington.
Imai walked the first two batters of the game. Santa had never thrown a major league pitch before Monday night. Yet somehow, they started and finished a thorough suppression of the Rangers.
Then again, lots of teams are doing that these days.
Just one night before, Los Angeles Angels lefty Reid Detmers struck out 14 Rangers and allowed just a solo homer and the Rangers managed just one more hit in losing to the Angels.
This time, a lineup missing Corey Seager drew just two walks against the Astros’ trio. And even if the competition was meager, Imai’s performance was surely a relief to Houston: Signed for $54 million, he was shipped to the injured list after just three starts, admitting he was struggling acclimating to life in the major leagues and the USA.
He spent five weeks working his way back, yet still entered Monday’s game with an 8.31 ERA in five starts.
By night’s end, he had the biggest piece of the fifth combined no-hitter in franchise history.
ARLINGTON, TX - MAY 25: Tatsuya Imai #45 of the Houston Astros pitches during the game between the Houston Astros and the Texas Rangers at Globe Life Field on Monday, May 25, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Kelcee Skoug/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Tatsuya Imai (W, 2-2) hurled 6 innings of no-hit ball, Yordan Alvarez and Christian Walker homered and the Houston Astros (24-31) pummeled the Texas Rangers (24-29) 9-0 in the first game of their four-game series at Globe Life Park in Arlington.
It’s a huge mark for Imai, who was making his 6th start of the season and whose early tenure with the Astros has been marked with struggle and injury. While his most recent performances have been trending in the right direction, Imai’s line tonight of 6 no-hit shutout innings was easily his best performance of the season. While he walked 4 and struck out 2, he also generated 8 ground ball outs which was very important given his recent penchant for ceding the long ball.
Steven Okert pitched the 7th. Alimber Santa set the Rangers down in order over the final 2 innings, punctuated with a strikeout of Brandon Nimmo to end the game. This was Santa’s first appearance with the Astros.
The Astros got to Rangers SP Kumar Rocker (L, 2-5) right away in the first. Jeremy Pena was hit by a pitch leading off the game, and then stole 2nd. After advancing to 3rd on a groundout by Isaac Paredes, Yordan Alvarez hit a sacrifice fly to score Pena and make it 1-0 Houston after 1.
The Astros would get on the board again in the 4th, when Alvarez led off the inning with his 16th HR of the season. The 415 foot blast to center was hit 110.6 MPH, and gave the Astros a 2-0 lead going to the bottom of the 4th.
Houston would get 2 more in the 5th. Zach Dezenzo led off with a walk. Nick Allen then singled to right to put runners on the corners with no out. Christian Vazquez then successfully executed a squeeze bunt to score Dezenzo and increase the lead to 3-0, with Allen advancing to 3rd.
Pena would then rip a ground ball single to right to score Allen to make it 4-0 Astros.
Houston would break it open in the 7th. Vazquez led off with a single to center, followed by Pena being hit by a pitch for the second time in the game to runners at 1st and 2nd with no out. After Paredes and Alvarez both popped up, Christian Walker launched his 15th HR of the season to left center. The 3-run blast made it a 7-0 lead for the Astros.
The next batter, Jake Meyers, would reach on an error by Rangers shortstop Michael Helman. Cam Smith would also reach on an error by Helman, giving the Astros 2 on with 2 out. Brice Matthews then hit a hard single to left to load the bases for Nick Allen.
Allen, coming off a 3-for-3 performance in yesterday’s series finale with the Cubs, continued his hot hitting with a 2-run single to left scoring Meyers and Smith and pushing the lead to 9-0. It also capped a 5-run 7th inning for Houston. Allen would finish 2-for-5 with 2 RBI, he is now batting .317.
The combined no-hitter is the 18th no-hitter in franchise history and the first no-hitter in MLB since September 2024. It is the first Astros no-hitter since Ronel Blanco’s solo gem April 1, 2024. It is the franchise’s 5th combined no-hitter, and first since Cristian Javier led a combined no-hitter against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4 of the 2022 World Series at Citizens Bank Park.
Jason Alexander (1-0, 7.30 ERA) will get the start tomorrow as the Astros look to continue their march towards the 2026 Silver Boot and back towards .500. Houston has now won 4 straight and 7 of their last 10.
The last time the Mets were home they capped off their best stretch of the season with a thrilling come-from-behind win to lock up the first-half of the Subway Series.
A struggling offense showed some much-needed signs of life, signaling perhaps that they were finally ready to make a dent in the gaping hole they put themselves in.
However, a much different club returned to Citi Field on Monday.
With Juan Soto sidelined again with an illness, those bats have quickly returned to their sluggish form, as they dropped their fourth consecutive game with a 7-2 loss to the Reds.
Unlike their sweep at the hands of the Marlins to begin the week, they were able to generate some traffic this afternoon, but that still didn’t lead to runs, as they finished 0-for-6 as a team with RISP.
Bumped up to the cleanup spot, Marcus Semien broke a Mets' three-game homerless drought with a solo shot in the sixth. It was just one of three extra-base hits on the afternoon.
As a result, New York finished with two or less runs for the fifth straight game.
"We can sit here and make excuses with some of the guys we’re missing, but we have big-league hitters here and they are struggling," manager Carlos Mendoza said.
"We're having a hard time putting rallies together, and the biggest thing is our inability to drive the ball out of the park -- look at a night like tonight, we had nine hits but two runs -- it’s hard to score three or four by just singles, you gotta be able to drive the ball out of the ballpark.”
Just like that, any signs of May momentum have quickly been swept away.
With losses in six of their last seven games, the Mets are now back to 10 games under .500 and remain in the basement of the NL East at the one-third mark of the season.
“It sucks,” Mendoza said. “I’ve been saying it, it’s not early anymore -- we’re not putting ourselves in a good position, obviously. We gotta go out and do it.”
CLEVELAND, OH - MAY 25: Cleveland Guardians pitcher Logan Allen (26) leaves the field following the sixth inning of the Major League Baseball interleague game between the Washington Nationals and Cleveland Guardians on May 25, 2026, at Progressive Field in Cleveland, OH. (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Guardians were crushed 10-2 by the Nationals today.
A while back, I went round and round with a Twitter reply guy who said that Tanner Bibee had been “awful.” I pointed out that he had not been awful save for the particular game about which he was commenting afterwards. Bibee than proceeded to put up a 3.08 xERA in the next 30 innings. Then, tonight happened. Bibee gave up seven runs on five homers. That was, indeed, awful. Is it indicative of a future problem? I don’t think so. But, man, it was a bad night. Perhaps offered in solidarity to the Cavs next door? Stephen Vogt was frank saying that he didn’t see much in the way of execution tonight from Bibee. Bibee said he would be too emotional if he tried to talk about what happened tonight. He was upset with himself.
Perhaps more distressingly, the Guardians were dominated by Zach Littell for 7 innings. They need to start hitting the ball, period.
On the bright side, Logan Allen threw the ball well (3 innings, 6 K’s) and saved the bullpen. Hey, try him as a reliever because with Sabrowski gone for a bit, we need the lefty help. Codi Heuer returned for Sabrowski, whom Vogt said they’d have MRI results on tomorrow. Sounds like they are hopeful it’s “just” elbow soreness. Gulp.
Rhys Hoskins hit a home run and Angel Martinez had the other RBI. Forget this one and get ready to hit the Nationals’ one good pitcher tomorrow.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Houston Astros right-hander Tatsuya Imai and relievers Steven Okert and Alimber Santa combined to throw a no-hitter in a 9-0 win over the Texas Rangers on Monday night.
It was the 17th regular-season no-hitter in Astros history, and the fourth one that was a combined effort. They also had a combined no-hitter in the 2022 World Series when four pitchers had one against Philadelphia.
Okert took over to start the seventh inning Monday night after Imai got 16 outs over the last 16 batters he faced. Imai walked three of his first four batters but benefited from a double play in the first inning before settling into a groove.
Santa made his big league debut and retired all six batters he faced, his 24th pitch being a called third strike against Brandon Nimmo that ended it after an ABS challenge by the batter was confirmed a strike.
The Rangers were held without a hit for the sixth time, the first since Corey Kluber threw a no-hitter for the New York Yankees against them on May 19, 2021.
The Astros got the first no-hitter in the majors since Shota Imanaga and two Chicago Cubs relievers combined on a 12-0 win over Pittsburgh on Sept. 4, 2024. The previous pitcher to throw a complete-game no-hitter was Blake Snell for the San Francisco Giants against Cincinnati on Aug. 2, 2024.
Imai’s fourth walk of the game was to Nimmo leading off the fourth, but Ezequiel Duran then grounded into a double play.
Imai threw 57 of his 97 pitches for strikes. He struck out two.
The 28-year-old Imai is in his first big league season after coming over from Japan. He was 1-2 with an 8.31 ERA in his first five starts for the Astros.
Imai joined the Astros in January after agreeing to a $54 million, three-year contract. He was a three-time All-Star during eight seasons in Japan, and went 10-5 with a 1.92 ERA last season for the Pacific League’s Seibu Lions, striking out 178 in 163 2/3 innings.
Rangers leadoff hitter Joc Pederson was retired on a nifty play in the third when shortstop Jeremy Peña made a backhand stop and a twisting throw to first for the out. Justin Foscue and Danny Jansen had deep flyouts in the Texas fifth.
Okert walked Nimmo leading off the seventh before retiring the next three batters.
May 25, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks starting pitcher Merrill Kelly (29) returns to the dugout after the bottom of the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images | Kelley L Cox-Imagn Images
Turns out slam-fest over the weekend against the Chicago White Sox means very little to Merrill Kelly, Ketel Marte, and the Arizona Diamondbacks.
The five days that elapsed between the Giants last meeting with starter Kelly wasn’t enough to cleanse the palate. The 2026 Giants can’t figure him out, nor could they over the past seven seasons either. He’s now collected a quality start in his last six games against San Francisco, a streak that dates back to September 2023. Over 22 starts in his career, Kelly has posted a 3.30 ERA over 133.2 innings pitched. That’s a solid two-thirds of a season in which Kelly has pitched admirably against the Giants. Results that bear a quiet dignity, like if a minor British Royal was on the mound. Kelly doesn’t light up the radar gun. He relies heavily on a change-up and a variety of low-90s fastballs that he cuts, sinks, and places pretty much where he wants it. The 37 year old has never been the ace or the star. His celebrity doppelganger is Chris Elliot, who is someone you don’t know by name but absolutely recognize. Elliot isn’t going to win an Oscar, and Kelly probably won’t ever win a Cy Young, or even an All Star nod, but he’s made a career out of dotting 90 MPH cutters on the outside corner of the zone. As Mike Krukow likes to point out, there are throwers and pitchers, and Kelly is the latter.
After a really rough start to the year in which he allowed 19 runs across three consecutive starts, Kelly has found his footing, and the Giants have played an integral part in regaining his form. Kelly has now won his last four starts, following up a quality start (3 ER, 6 IP) on May 25th with another rock solid outing, allowing 2 earned runs on 4 hits over 7 innings pitched in San Francisco’s 6-2 loss.
The only breakthrough against him came in the 4th when Rafael Devers took on Triple’s Alley with the second-longest double in the Majors (the longest was hit by Devers yesterday). At the time, it gave the Giants a 2-1 lead. Which was nice. It’s fun when your team is down by a run and then a pitch later, your team is up for a run. Like many leads this year, this feeling of positivity and good-will proved fleeting. I was listening to the game on the radio as I warmed up for my softball game, and the goodwill bought by Devers’s double lasted about as long as it took for me to move a milk carton full of softballs from the left field foul pole to the right.
While Landen Roupp was perhaps not the sharpest he’s been, it was a couple of costly defensive mistakes in the 5th that Arizona capitalized. Number-9 hitter Tommy Troy reached second on a throwing error by Willy Adames. Ketel Marte tied on the next pitch when Casey Schmitt, playing left due to the health of Heliot Ramos and Jung Hoo Lee, misplayed an opposite-field flare. Maybe a more experienced or confident corner outfielder would’ve reeled the ball in, but with an xBA of .610, it’s hard to argue that Ramos, or any other player on the Giants roster who’s played left this year, is that outfielder. The major mistake on the play wasn’t not catching the ball, but letting it skip past. Instead of a single with runners on the corners giving Roupp to work out of it (which he essentially did in the 3rd), the lead was gone, and the Diamondbacks were set-up to retake it.
By the time the 4-run 5th was over Roupp had thrown 93 pitches. He bagged 7 strikeouts but lacked an efficiency in at-bats (against a tough contact-oriented Arizona lineup to be fair) to survive any deeper in the game. The error and misplay obviously didn’t help either. And with Roupp out of the game and Joel Peguero in, Marte continued to be the bat-wielding version of Kelly, extending Arizona’s lead with a 2-RBI single that effectively put the game to bed.
That’s two wins in a row for Kelly, four more hits and three more runs batted in for Marte (bumping up his totals to 10 H and 10 RBI vs. SF), and Arizona’s fourth win in as many games so far against our Giants.
A fan dressed as Santa Claus waches the action during first half action against the Philadelphia Eagles at Highmark Stadium in Orchard Park on Dec. 28, 2025. | Tina MacIntyre-Yee/Democrat and Chronicle / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
The Texas Rangers had zero hits but the Houston Astros scored nine runs.
I think in some regards it is at least interesting that we are getting to experience the worst lineup that perhaps the Rangers have ever fielded in franchise history. It certainly isn’t pleasant but at least it’s historic.
All you really need to know about this game from a Rangers perspective is Kumar Rocker hit the first batter of the night and that runner eventually scored without the benefit of a Houston hit. Meanwhile, in the bottom of the inning, the Rangers drew three walks and didn’t score a run. It was over right then and there, essentially.
Before it ended, however, Sam Haggerty pitched a scoreless final inning for Texas. It was the best performance by Sam Haggerty on a baseball field all year. Sam Haggerty is a hitter*.
*it says that on his business card at least
By that final inning the Rangers had not had a hit all night. They did not get a hit that inning, either. The night’s starter Tatsuya Imai came into the evening with a 8.31 ERA. He’s now sporting a svelte 6.17 ERA. The final six outs came via a guy named Santa making his MLB debut. Merry Christmas!
This Texas lineup followed up a 16-strikeout almost perfect game last night with the first no-hitter in the big leagues in like two years. I’ve written this like it’s an achievement for the lineup because it very much is. Congratulations on finally securing that no-hitter, fellas!
Player of the Game: Dan Jansen fielded a throw on a delayed squeeze play bunt where Jansen caught the ball flipped from in front of the plate by Rocker and immediately moved his knee/leg further away from the plate as to provide the Astros’ runner a red carpet experience on his way to scoring Houston’s third run.
I’ve appreciated the moment because it allowed me to no longer invest emotions into tonight’s game. Thanks, Dan.
Up Next: The Rangers will play the Astros on Tuesday night. Someone will pitch for Texas against someone for Houston thanking their lucky stars that they get to face the Rangers.
The first pitch from The Shed will be at 7:05 pm CDT. It’ll be on the Rangers Sports Network if you want to tune in.
People might show up and take their off shirts in a section of the top deck in the hopes of going viral on social media.
They might do the pledge of allegiance during the seventh inning.
The Rangers will allow a first inning run.
You won’t know whether or not the Rangers will get a hit all evening and that will replace the suspense that used to exist for the outcome of the run column.
Kiké Hernández was still in an anesthetic haze when he woke up from the elbow operation he underwent in the offseason, so forgive him if the details of this story aren’t entirely accurate.
But as far as he could recall, when he came to, his surgeon told him his injury was the worst of its kind that he’d ever seen.
“I don’t know how you played,” Dr. Neal ElAttrache told him.
World Series hero Kiké Hernández, after beginning the season on the IL following elbow surgery, returned to the Dodgers lineup on Monday night. Getty Images
He made a video-call to Andrew Friedman, the Dodgers’ president of baseball operations, and asked ElAttrache to repeat what he just told him.
“I did this for you,” Hernández recalled telling Freidman, “so you better bring me back.”
Not as if Friedman had to be pushed into doing so.
The now-34-year-old former class clown is one of the most emblematic players of the golden era of Dodgers baseball. Activated from the injured list on Monday, Hernández started his ninth season with the franchise in the opening contest of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Uniqlo Field.
“I’m still the clown in the clubhouse,” Hernández said.
Hernández is known for his acrobatics defensively and power offensively. Getty Images
Except when he first joined the Dodgers, he was thought of as that and little else. He was a part-time player who knew how to attract eyeballs, once popping up in the dugout in a full-body banana costume in hopes of inspiring a comeback.
But Hernández didn’t work his way into the position he is now just by thrusting his pelvis whenever he heard reggaeton playing in Dodger Stadium.
If his playful antics granted him entry into the hearts of fans, his on-field performances kept him there.
Who could ever forget the three home runs Hernández hit against the Chicago Cubs in Game 5 of the 2017 National League Championship Series to advance the Dodgers to their first World Series in 29 years?
Or his game-tying pinch-hit home run against the Atlanta Braves in the 2020 NLCS that contributed to the Dodgers finally breaking their championship drought?
Or his solo blast against the San Diego Padres that drove in the deciding run in a winner-take-all Game 5 of the 2024 NLDS?
Or how he doubled off a runner at second base to seal a win over the Toronto Blue Jays that extended the World Series last year to a seventh game?
Hernández will go down as one of the best postseason performers in Dodgers history. Getty Images
What’s especially striking about those games is how Hernández seems to be a completely different player in the playoffs than in the regular season. He’s a career .236 hitter in the regular season. Wanting to be a full-time player, he left the Dodgers after the 2020 World Series, only for the Boston Red Sox to discard him in his third season with them.
Hernández returned to the Dodgers and resumed creating postseason moments. He now has 16 career postseason homers, tying him for 20th-most all-time – one fewer than Bryce Harper, Aaron Judge and David Ortiz; and one more than Babe Ruth.
Producing last October, however, was particularly difficult. His left elbow problems sidelined him for nearly two months, and he reaggravated the injury diving for a ball in left field against the Milwaukee Brewers in Game 3 of the NLCS.
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“Every time I would get in my batting stance, I would feel like I had a blowtorch on,” Hernández said.
In his eight games before the dive, Hernández batted .379. In the nine games after, he hit .143.
He still managed to make one of the most memorable plays of a World Series won by the Dodgers.
“He’s a tough, tough competitor, tough player,” manager Dave Roberts said. “And I don’t think anyone appreciated how severe the injury was (last year). He was not going to come out of the lineup and gave himself every opportunity to play with the kind of pain that he was going through. That’s kind of what makes him special.”
While he’s best known for his miraculous catch to save the Dodgers in Game 7 of the 2025 World Series, Hernández has a clutch gene at the plate as well. Getty Images
The operation to repair the torn extensor tendon and muscle in his left elbow cost Hernández the chance to represent Puerto Rico at the World Baseball Classic, which he said “hurt my soul a little more than I was in pain physically last year.”
While appreciative of his place in Dodgers history, Hernández said, “I don’t like to sit back and think about it at all because that’s when you start thinking about, ‘Oh, life after baseball,’ and things like that.”
But he said he’s aware of the different roles he has to take on as a veteran player, whether it’s as a leader in the clubhouse who is “in charge of checking guys” or a representative of the Latino community.
“We’re living in some rough times, especially in this city in the last few years,” Hernández said.
Hernández’s fiery personality is just a small part of what’s made him a key figure in the Dodgers clubhouse. Getty Images
Last year, Hernández was the only Dodgers player to speak out against the ICE raids staged across Los Angeles.
“I always say that one baseball year is kind of like cat years,” he said. “One baseball year is like seven years of life with how much you learn and all the stuff that happens in one season. And, you know, I love being here. I love being a Dodgers. I love the grind of a baseball season.”
He reflected on the three weeks he spent in the minor leagues on a rehabilitation assignment.
“Now I’m back with my guys here,” he said, “and am ready to go.”
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MAY 24: TJ Rumfield #7 of the Colorado Rockies gets ready in the batters box against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on May 24, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In the bottom of the first inning against the Dodgers on Monday night, Colorado Rockies first baseman TJ Rumfield was hit by pitch in the right hand. The rookie stayed in the game to run the bases, and even tried to field in the bottom of the inning, but he was unable to stay in the game.
His hand was visibly swollen above his ring and pinky knuckles after being hit by a 96.6-mph four-seam fastball from Emmet Sheehan.
UPDATE 10:07 pm — In his postgame interview, Warren Schaeffer said that Rumfield’s x-rays showed he did not have any broken bones. He will get additional imaging tomorrow.
Purple Row will continue to follow this developing story as more information becomes available.
CLEVELAND, OHIO - MAY 25: Luis García Jr. #2 of the Washington Nationals celebrates with teammates after hitting a two-run home run during the second inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Progressive Field on May 25, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
James Wood set the tone for this game when he absolutely launched a lead off home run into the Progressive Field crowd. From there, the Nats put it on the Guardians, and did not let up. The Nats launched six home runs in this contest, absolutely lighting up Guardians starter Tanner Bibee.
James Wood sends his 14th HR of the season 412 FT at 107.7 MPH.
In his age 23 season:
255 PA 14 HR I 46 R 8 SB 17.6% BB% I 29.4% K% .272 ISO .257/.400/.529 .929 OPS I .401 wOBA 158 wRC+ pic.twitter.com/2xaatSOvaN
— Running From The OPS (@OPS_BASEBALL) May 25, 2026
This weekend in Atlanta, the Nats offense was mostly neutralized. Maybe it was due to the Braves elite pitching staff, or the presence of Darnell Coles in the opposing dugout. Whatever the reason, the Nats were still able to take 2 out of 3 from the Braves without having their A game, which is the offense.
Tonight the Nats had that A game early and often. Tanner Bibee was just not fooling any of these Nats hitters. It really felt like Bibee was tipping his pitches based on some of the swings these Nats hitters were taking. They seemed to know what was coming, and then absolutely hammered the pitches they did get.
One of the subplots of this series was the Aussie battle between Curtis Mead and Travis Bazzana. As the former first overall pick, Bazzana is the bigger name, but tonight belonged to Mead. Two batters after Wood, Mead hit a two run blast right into the hands of a Guardians fan wearing an Australia t-shirt. In the 5th inning, Mead launched another one. This was his first career multi-homer game.
Curtis Mead's 1st career multi-homer game.
Washington's 6 home runs (so far) are tied for the most by the Club in a single game this season (also: 5/12 at CIN). pic.twitter.com/lbxzwPRTvS
— Nationals Communications (@NationalsComms) May 25, 2026
The pickup of Curtis Mead has been such a great addition by Paul Toboni. Mead now has an .844 OPS and is hammering righties and lefties. When Brady House got sent down, most thought third base would be a platoon between Jorbit Vivas and Mead. However, Mead has gotten the majority of the starts, even playing against a righty tonight. He is running with that opportunity, and it seems like he is living up to his prospect pedigree at 25 years of age.
While the Nats were blasting home runs, the pitching staff was also doing a nice job. Outside of a solo homer, PJ Poulin was solid in his two innings as the opener. However, Zack Littell was the real star of the show. He threw the last 7 innings of the game, only allowing one run and striking out 7. The veteran righty did a great job saving the bullpen and shutting down the Guardians.
Obviously, the 6 home runs were the story. But don't discount what Zack Littell did tonight (7 innings of 1-run ball on 106 pitches) and what he's done in five games this month (2.19 ERA, 0.973 WHIP).
In May, Littell has been who the Nats thought they were getting. Littell has posted a 2.19 ERA in 24.2 innings this month. After giving up 11 home runs in April, Littell has surrendered just two long balls this month. He seems like he has settled into the season after signing late in the offseason.
The power show the Nats put on in the early innings was absolutely outrageous though. They hit 5 home runs in the first 13 at bats of the game. James Wood, Curtis Mead, Jacob Young, Luis Garcia Jr., and CJ Abrams all went deep. It was truly a magical thing to watch.
So many guys in this lineup are taking a massive leap. Abrams and Wood were already good, but now they are elite. Jacob Young has tapped into power nobody thought he had. Curtis Mead looks like the guy who was a top 50 prospect all those years ago and even Keibert Ruiz has been excellent with the bat.
Some of this is young players taking natural steps in their development, but you have to give so much credit to Matt Borgschulte, Andrew Aydt, and this hitting staff. We are almost in June, and this team has the most runs in all of baseball. They made Tanner Bibee, a solid arm in this league, look like a batting practice pitching. It is crazy to see what is going on in the Nations Capital.
Your Washington Nationals are over .500 after 50 games for the first time in 1,788 days. There is a whole generation of young Nats fans, who were too young to remember 2019 now. All they know is losing and rebuilding. I can only imagine how much fun those little kids are having watching James Wood and CJ Abrams go nuclear.
For the first time in 1,788 days, the Washington Nationals are over .500 after 50 games in a season
Honestly, this Nats team is making me feel like a kid again. That 2010’s magic is slowly starting to come back. You go into a series expecting to win games, no matter the opponent. The other team has to fear the Nats, not the other way around. Being the young, fun new kid on the block is such an exciting feeling.
I hope Nats Park is packed this weekend to support this group that has exceeded expectations so massively. It is really May 25th, and the Nats are playing above .500 baseball. Sure, it could come crashing down at some point, but this is already the most fun Nats season in at least five years. This team is making the fanbase feel alive again.
When the Vegas Golden Knights learned that their captain would be available for Game 3 against the Colorado Avalanche on Sunday, his first game in 16 days, it seemed like it would be an automatic boost for a team that already held a 2-0 series lead.
But when Vegas fell behind 3-0 in Game 3 on home ice, it briefly felt like the return of former Ottawa Senator Mark Stone hadn't changed much.
But that feeling didn't last long.
Five unanswered goals later, with Stone right in the middle of it all, the Golden Knights skated away with a 5-3 victory and now, quite shockingly, hold a 3-0 lead in the NHL Western Final.
"Obviously it wasn't a good start," Stone told the media after his first game since May 8. "We knew they were coming; they're down 0-2 in the series. So they knew that that was gonna be probably their best period of the season. And we just didn't find it, I guess. We still had some looks, but we just couldn't get out of our own way almost."
Stone said the key for Vegas was simply to keep playing their game after the rough opening period. Interestingly, that was the same message Travis Green tried to hammer home to Stone's old team in Ottawa for the entire season.
"You start turning it into a track meeting against (Colorado), they're just gonna make it 4, 5, or 6 to 1. I thought we did a really good job at getting back to just playing our game and not getting away from what was successful in the first two."
Captain stuff.
Stone was also asked how he felt physically after missing more than two weeks with an injury.
"Yeah, just rehabbing in the last couple weeks and trying to push back,” Stone said. “It makes it a lot easier when the team’s playing the way they're playing. So yeah, I was inching closer. I tried to buy a little bit more time and felt like yesterday, there was no reason to not jump back in there. So tonight felt great."
There certainly weren't any signs of rust or injury.
With Vegas trailing 3-0, Stone kickstarted the comeback with a power-play goal. Later, he helped set up Tomas Hertl for the game-winner as the Knights completely flipped the momentum of both the game and the series.
Vegas head coach John Tortorella was asked about the return of his captain and what he means to the team.
"Stoney's such an important guy," Tortorella said. “And I've said it to you guys. And before you even step on the ice, just to have the presence in the room. And he's a pretty good player, right? On the ice. So I'm not sure, I think he got 15 or 16 minutes. He scores a huge goal on a pretty goal on the power play to get us, at least back in the game.
"But he put in some big minutes, put in some big minutes towards the end of the third period too for us at key times."
For Senators fans, though he was traded away seven years ago now, it was another reminder of exactly what made Stone such a special player in Ottawa. Even after over two weeks on the shelf, he just stepped back into the lineup and immediately changed the tone as he so often did here.
With the Avalanche down 0-3 and dealing with superstar injuries, they already have two big strikes against them. But Vegas getting their captain back on Sunday may be strike three.
The Florida Panthers social media team had some fun with the star player from another local sports franchise.
On Sunday night, Miami Heat forward Bam Adebayo was spotted at the Vegas Golden Knights home game against the Colorado Avalanche.
It was Game 3 of the Western Conference Finals, and Adebayo was there with his girlfriend A’ja Wilson, who plays for the Las Vegas Aces of the WNBA.
Both Wilson and Adebayo were wearing custom Golden Knights jerseys with their names and basketball jersey numbers, seemingly gifted to them by the home team.
Still, when a photo of the couple began making the rounds on social media, the Panthers’ team on X was quick to respond with a playful post.
To his credit, Adebayo was quick to set the record straight.
He posted a video of his own, one in which he clarified what he was doing in Vegas wearing Golden Knights gear while pledging his true allegiance to the Panthers.
Photo caption: Jul 18, 2025; Indianapolis, IN, USA; Las Vegas Aces forward A’ja Wilson and boyfriend Miami Heat player Bam Adebayo watch the three-point contest during the 2025 WNBA All Star Skills Challenge at Gainbridge Fieldhouse. (Trevor Ruszkowski-Imagn Images)
PITTSBURGH, PA - MAY 14: Chase Dollander #32 of the Colorado Rockies talks with medical staff in the second inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on May 14, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Earlier today, the Colorado Rockies released their weekly injury report.
Below is a list of players on the Injured List and an update on their recovery.
OF Jordan Beck (10-day IL; left hamstring strain) – continuing to progress in his running program in Denver.
RHP McCade Brown (60-day IL, right shoulder inflammation) – playing catch and continuing his throwing program; scheduled to throw a bullpen at the end of the month.
RHP Jeff Criswell (60-day IL; Tommy John surgery rehab) – made his eighth rehab appearance Saturday; scheduled to make another rehab appearance.
RHP Chase Dollander (15-day IL; right elbow sprain) – continuing his rehab program in Denver.
OF Brenton Doyle (10-day IL; left oblique contusion) – receiving treatment; no baseball activities.
RHP Ryan Feltner (15-day IL; right ulnar nerve inflammation) – joined the team in Los Angeles to receive a medical check-up; made his second rehab start Sunday.
RHP Jimmy Herget (15-day IL; right shoulder impingement) – continuing progress in his rehab; playing catch.
OF Mickey Moniak (10-day IL; right ankle tendonitis) – continuing to rehab and will have a medical evaluation in Denver.
LHP Jose Quintana (15-day IL; left elbow sprain) – flew back to Denver to receive an MRI.
RHP Victor Vodnik (15-day IL; right ulnar nerve inflammation) – continuing progress in his rehab; playing catch.
May 24, 2023; Seattle, Washington, USA; Seattle Mariners starting pitcher Bryce Miller (50) and pitcher Luis Castillo (58) interact during the sixth inning against the Oakland Athletics at T-Mobile Park. Mandatory Credit: Steven Bisig-Imagn Images
After a disappointing series loss to the Royals where the offense looked blinkered, the Mariners now have to contend with the high-flying Athletics offense in their pint-sized ballpark. Sounds like a recipe for a good time. Also, per Shannon Drayer, it’s looking like it will be a windy game in Sacramento. Surely that won’t lead to any hijinks, right?
An assortment of the Knicks’ most famous fans traveled to Rocket Arena for Game 4 of the Eastern Conference finals for an up-close look at a Knicks sweep on Monday.
The Cavaliers didn’t exactly roll out the red carpet, however. Self-proclaimed Knicks “superfan” and rapper Fat Joe told ESPN the team scotched the courtside tickets he bought — with the Cavs telling The Post they were enforcing rules against re-selling first-row seats.
Kylie Jenner and actor Timothée Chalamet attend Game Four of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Getty Images
That didn’t keep the star power too far away.
Timothee Chalamet — with girlfriend Kylie Jenner in tow — reprised his usual Madison Square Garden role, and took selfies with fans.
Actor Tracy Morgan attends Game Four of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Getty Images
Fat Joe did find his way into the building, as did actor Tracy Morgan. Garden sideline staple Ben Stiller didn’t miss the action, either.
Director Spike Lee made the trip, sharing a moment with Knicks assistant Rick Brunson before tip-off.
Filmmaker and actor Spike Lee attends Game Four of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals. Getty Images
And what would a Knicks playoff game be without the alumni? Stephon Marbury hyped up a plane full of Knicks fans en route to Cleveland while John Starks, a guard on the 1999 squad that went to the Finals, watched this team do the same. Franchise icons Patrick Ewing and Walt “Clyde” Frazier were on hand to dole out the MVP trophy to Jalen Brunson.
Not that it was a full-on takeover. A game after Travis Kelce and Taylor Swift showed out — and the Chiefs star chugged a beer —rapper Machine Gun Kelly rooted on the home team wearing a Guardians hat.
