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Now this is the kind of shutout we can get behind! The Tigers beat the Astros 8-0 on Friday night.

After dropping their first game of the series against the Astros, the Tigers were looking to even things up on Friday evening. They had Keider Montero on the mound to get the job done, and he was up against Spencer Arrighetti for the Astros. Montero was sporting a special “VZ” patch on the side of his cap for the game to honor his home country of Venezuela, still reeling after suffering through multiple earthquakes earlier this week.

Montero got things going with a 1-2-3 inning. If the Tigers took anything away from their Thursday loss, hopefully it would be that they needed to pad a lead, because good pitching goes only so far, and then a few bad luck pitches can overshadow the whole thing. In the bottom of the inning, they did not do that. Instead, they went down in order.

In the second, Christian Walker reached thanks to an error from Kevin McGonigle. He was very quickly removed, however, thanks to a double play off the bat of Jose Altuve. A third out followed to quickly end the inning. Arrighetti had some lengthy at-bats in the bottom of the inning as Colt Keith and Zach McKinstry worked back-to-back walks, but they were both ultimately left stranded.

Montero got through the side in order again in the third. In the home half, James Outman took a leadoff walk. McGonigle then singled, and it was deflected by the first baseman, allowing Outman to advance to third. Dillon Dingler struck out, but then a throwing error by the catcher gave the Tigers the opening they needed to score their first run. McGonigle also stole second. Kerry Carpenter came in and hit a homer, quickly building a nice little lead for the Tigers.

In the fourth, Isaac Paredes got a one-out single, but that was all the Astros would manage. Things broke wide open for the Tigers in the bottom of the inning. Colt Keith got things going with a leadoff home run.

Zach McKinstry walked, followed by a Matt Vierling single. Then, Outman hit one outta the park for a three-run shot.

McGonigle walked, and the Astros then dipped into their bullpen, with no outs. Nate Pearson came on, and McGonigle stole second. Dingler then singled a perfect little blooper behind second, scoring another run. It seems fairly clear at this point that the Tigers did, in fact, learn their lesson from last night.

A strikeout and double play ended the inning, but the Tigers were up 8-0 when all was said and done, and Montero was very well rested.

Jose Altuve hit a leadoff single in the fifth after facing a stadium-wide chorus of boos. Tigers fans certainly know how to hold a grudge. The next play was initially ruled a fielder’s choice with Altuve out at second, but the Tigers challenged the safe call at first and it was overturned, becoming an inning-ending double play. Spencer Torkelson took a leadoff walk in the home half, but was quickly eliminated in a fielder’s choice off the bat of Keith. The Tigers weren’t able to convert their baserunner, though.

In the sixth, Taylor Trammell got a one-out walk. Jeremy Peña then singled, but two outs followed to get the Tigers out of a potential jam. Minor rant… the Tigers should not wear these new orange jerseys against teams whose primary color is orange. It’s visually confusing. In the home half, McGonigle got a one-out walk. Dingler then hit into a double play to end the inning.

It was another single for Altuve in the seventh, this time after the first out of the inning. He got the second out after that. Montero was starting to lose the zone a little at this point, and gave up a double to Yanier Diaz. But he turned it around to get the final out of the inning and end the threat. That would be the end of the game for Montero, who looked good, especially through the early innings. His final line for the game was 7.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, on 96 pitches. After these last starts, I think Montero has more than demonstrated that he belongs in the starting rotation. Pearson was replaced in the home half by Bryan Abreu, who got the Tigers out in order.

Enmanuel De Jesus was the first Tigers’ reliever of the game, and like Montero, he was sporting the VZ on his cap for his home country. He followed right in Montero’s cleats and got the side out in order. Jake Meyers was the new reliever, and he got the Tigers out in order.

Raynel Delgado took a leadoff walk. With one out, Delgado advanced to second on defensive indifference. De Jesus then got the final two outs of the game to close out the all-Venezuelan shutout.

Final: Tigers 8, Astros 0

It's getting harder and harder to catch up to The Miz.

Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski, firmly established as the hardest-throwing starting pitcher in major league history, established another high-water mark Friday, June 26, when he threw a personal best 105.5 mph pitch, breaking his own record for a starting pitcher.

Misiorowski's first-inning fastball to Chicago Cubs leadoff batter Pete Crow-Armstrong – he fouled the pitch off – tied Los Angeles Angels reliever Ben Joyce for the third-fastest pitch in the 18-year pitch-tracking era. Misiorowski's previous fastest pitch – set earlier this month against the Philadelphia Phillies – registered 104.5 mph.

Current Boston Red Sox reliever Aroldis Chapman owns the two fastest pitches, at 105.8 and 105.7 mph, setting the record in September 2010 with the Cincinnati Reds.

One night after facing Walker Buehler, who got the final three outs to close out the Dodgers championship in 2024 at Yankee Stadium in New York, the Dodgers will turn to Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who got the final eight outs to close out the Dodgers championship in 2025 at Rogers Centre in Toronto, facing the Padres in the middle game of the series at Petco Park in San Diego.

Yamamoto has a 2.01 ERA in his three June starts with this game to close out his month, during which he has 17 strikeouts and only two walks in 22 1/3 innings, which included a stretch of 45 consecutive batters retired. Yamamoto struck out eight Padres and allowed only one run in seven innings in a tough-luck loss at San Diego on May 18, part of a stretch during which the right-hander allowed seven total runs over his last six starts.

Right-hander Randy Vásquez starts for the Padres.

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Padres
• Ballpark: Petco Park, San Diego
• Time: 5:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Los Angeles Dodgers (52-29) at San Diego Padres (42-37), June 26, 2026, 6:45 p.m. PST

Watch: Apple TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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No one who spoke about Carlos Mendoza’s firing at Citi Field on Friday seemed to believe it would change much for the 2026 Mets. David Stearns said he does not expect a switch to flip. Andy Green made clear he is under no illusion that his presence will transform them.

The consensus from those who spoke publicly and among members of the Mets organization who didn’t was that something had to change. They hope it will help. They also hoped they wouldn’t be here in the first place.

But because they are here, despite an offseason full of changes made to avoid a new version of the same old malaise, the path forward is not obvious: If getting back into contention will require total transformation, building a contender by 2027 will require another rigorous remodel.

Their starting pitching depth is not what they thought it was. Jorge Polanco and Luis Robert Jr. are no locks to contribute again this year, let alone next. And the stellar bullpen Stearns assembled is home to the assets most likely to bring back useful players at the deadline. If roster turnover delayed the blossoming of this 2026 team, Stearns and Co. will have to find better ways to navigate it next spring, because more turnover is the only thing that feels inevitable for the Mets at the moment.

There is so much unraveling and re-weaving to do, in fact, that Stearns on Friday completely brushed aside a question about what he might look for in his next full-time manager.

“I’m not going to speculate on that right now,” he said. 

Who knows where this team will be by then and who will be on it. One could reasonably wonder about whether Stearns will even be the one making those decisions. Steve Cohen did say in spring training that making the playoffs was his minimum expectation for 2026.

Cohen pays attention to what people say about the Mets, and he is not single-minded. If there is a criticism levied at his baseball team, he usually hears it. And if it comes from someone he finds credible, he even entertains it. His mind can change.

But Stearns said Friday that he speaks to Cohen regularly and that “[Cohen] certainly indicated that I have his support.” 

People familiar with Cohen’s thinking say that is true. After all, Cohen targeted Stearns for the position years in advance, in part with an eye on establishing a long-term plan and instituting stability. Cohen-as-owner does not have a Streinbrenner-esque history of reactionary decisions. And to someone taking a longer-term view, time can make even two bad seasons out of three look like aberrations – especially when injuries obscure the difference between a bad plan and bad luck.

As with Mendoza, who had Stearns’ public support as recently as last month, things can change. But if Stearns does get another year to validate Cohen’s faith, the next few weeks will be pivotal.

He said Friday he is “not thinking about the trade deadline at all” right now, and when asked if he is still trying to engineer a turnaround in 2026, he said, “we’re not turning the page.”

“We all remain very focused on doing everything we can to win as many games this year, while recognizing where we are in the standings,” he said.

Where they are in the standings is near the bottom, and if that does not change between now and the All-Star break, history suggests Cohen will allow Stearns to act rationally and trade current assets for future help.

But while many teams that are forced to sell hunt prospects in return, the Mets need more immediate help. While he is showing patience with Stearns, Cohen does not sound like someone willing to endure another long retreat. Given the amount of money they have committed to stars like Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor, and Bo Bichette, the uncertainty posed by an offseason likely to include a lengthy lockout, and their many pitching needs, they likely need the deadline to bring them help for 2027, not 2030.

Then again, maybe a new voice will help. Maybe – as Green suggested while explaining that he wished it had not come to this – removing the concern about their manager’s job status will allow Mets players to play more freely. After an embarrassing week in an embarrassing season, Cohen and Stearns decided it was worth a try. Yet if there is anything they know after their first three seasons together, it is that turning the Mets into a contender is never as easy as it seems.

The A’s have hit the road but it wasn’t a long trip. A quick hop on a flight down south to Anaheim has brought the A’s to the home of the Los Angeles Angels, where the two division rivals are set for a three-game weekend showdown. The Green & Gold managed to escape the Bay Area with at least one win and remain just a game and a half back of the AL West leading Mariners (along with the Astros and Rangers, crowded atop the division is putting it mildly). After splitting the four-game set last weekend the A’s need to clean up against the last-place Angels, and hopefully that starts tonight.

Taking the ball for the road team this evening will be right-hander J.T. Ginn. The righty has put together back-to-back quality outings since his real only bad outing of the year earlier this month. He’s coming off a performance where he pitched into the sixth inning and allowed three runs… to these very same Angels last weekend. With an absent offense behind him that was enough to saddle the emerging ace with his fourth loss of the season. He’ll be hoping for better results and better offense behind him this evening in a revenge game for the young starter.

Here’s how manager Mark Kotsay decided to line his squad up for the series opener:

It’s literally the exact same batting order as yesterday, and honestly why change things up a ton after a nine-run outburst? The only big difference is that Shea Langeliers will don the catcher’s gear this evening while Jonah Heim only has DH duties tonight. Again, no Jacob Wilson, who is still only considered day-to-day at this point as we all hold our breaths, which means Alika Williams back at short and batting ninth.

That lineup will be facing the Angels’ own up-and-coming righty in Walbert Urena. The 22-year-old rookie has dazzled in his first taste of the big leagues. Over his first 12 starts (plus two relief appearances), Urena has posted a sparkling 2.41 ERA spanning 67 1/3 innings pitched. After a fantastic May he’s come down to earth a bit in June but still has allowed just six runs in four starts this month. The A’s have now seen him twice already this season and have had little to no success: 11 innings, 8 hits, zero runs. We need to do better against him tonight. Hopefully seeing him so much in recent weeks will give the bats a better chance this evening.

And the Angels’ lineup, brought to you by old friend Kurt Suzuki:

Still no Mike Trout for the Angels, and now their also down their backup center fielder Jose Siri, who was placed on the paternity list this morning. Still some dangerous bats in that lineup though, all crowded around the top. If Ginn can take care of Neto, Adel, and not make a mistake to Soler, the A’s should be in business in this one.

Can the squad make it two in a row? Time to find out! Let’s go A’s!

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Watch:
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