Apr 19, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Detroit Tigers catcher Dillon Dingler (13) celebrates his three run home run against the Boston Red Sox during the fifth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Canha-Imagn Images | Eric Canha-Imagn Images
Happy Wednesday, everyone! Just a light general news post for the day, where we look at Dillon Dingler’s incredible zone awareness, just how good Kevin McGonigle has been to start his rookie season, and in a more broad strokes look at baseball news we get a preview of the All-Star Week events, Craig Counsell calls Shohei Ohtani “bizarre” (well, not really), and we dabble into hot topics about pitching.
So let’s just jump right into it!
Detroit Tigers News
That Dingler kid knows his strike zone.
"If Dillon Dingler challenges…you don't even have to look at the video."
Tigers catchers have won 86.7% of their challenges this year, which continues to lead all MLB teams! pic.twitter.com/KYrSJ1iBQh
Essentially, the lab is a place where we can test what we see. That is what statistics are ultimately for. The whole goal is to explain mathematically what we are seeing and feeling. Sometimes we can explain it mathematically and sometimes we aren’t really seeing what we think we are seeing. It might seem like we are throwing a lot of pasta at the wall to see what sticks, but I am a firm believer in the idea that the more numbers we get that say the same thing the more likely we are to be accurate in our assumptions.
This brings us to real offensive value (ROV) and bases per out (BPO). Before we dive into these numbers we should define them, how they are calculated, and what they are looking for. Real offensive value is the easiest one to calculate. The idea behind it is the combine elements like batting average with elements that include everything but batting average. It includes two numbers that can easily be found at baseball-reference.com. Simply put, you add batting average to secondary average and divide by two.
Essentially, secondary average calculates everything a player does that does not include batting average. For most of us in the stats game, that would include isolated power, isolated patience, and stolen bases. A league average secondary average tends to mirror the league average in batting average, so a real offensive value can be interpreted the same way as batting average. A .250 ROV is probably close to big league average although early returns might be different this season.
BPO essentially measures the same thing in a different way. It is calculated by adding total bases, walks, hit by pitches, and stolen bases and dividing it by the total number of outs. Unfortunately, baseball-reference.com does not calculate either ROV or BPO, but the components are all there to do it by hand. While seasons vary, the league average tends to range between .650 and .700.
ROV
BPO
Yordan Alvarez
.495
1.467
Christian Vazquez
.407
1.182
Christian Walker
.340
.879
Taylor Trammel
.311
.947
Jose Altuve
.309
.824
Cam Smith
.301
.754
Carlos Correa
.263
.677
Isaac Paredes
.236
.655
Joey Loperfido
.233
.659
Jake Meyers
.230
.645
Brice Mathews
.226
.519
Jeremy Pena
.221
.594
Nick Allen
.200
.500
Yainer Diaz
.157
.356
The first thing we are going to do is clean up our disclaimers and particulars. These are the numbers at the conclusion of Monday night’s game. Obviously, no two numbers will ever have a perfect 100 percent correlation. That is particularly true early in the season. ROV and BPO measure most of the same things, but there are some subtle differences. For instance, ROV does not penalize you for grounding into double plays, but bases per out does. On a long enough timeline, those things won’t matter as much, but in the span of 24 games it all matters a great deal.
These numbers confirm a couple of important things and highlight an area where we may have overlooked something. On the first count, Yordan’s numbers are just stupidly good. You’d have to track the best seasons of Barry Bonds, Ted Williams, Babe Ruth, or maybe Lou Gehrig to find numbers that would even approach that for a full season. For reasons that will hopefully be obvious, we won’t do that yet, but if this trend continues we will definitely look at those comparisons.
Secondly, Diaz has been historically awful both offensively and defensively (as Patrick pointed out yesterday). Again, this is about finding as many different ways to show the same thing over and over. It seems repetitive, but it also confirms something we are seeing with our eyes. This is one of those areas where Patrick has done the heavy lifting for me. It would be easy to look at Vazquez’s numbers and Diaz’s numbers and simply assume that Vazquez should be the starter from here on out.
That may turn out to be the case, but nothing is ever that simple. Vazquez’s underlying hitting numbers point to regression. We are looking at things like expected batting average, expected slugging percentage, and exit velocity. Vazquez will not be an all-star catcher when all is said and done. If we are lucky he could be the equivalent of a mediocre regular catcher when all is said and done. The good news is that he doesn’t have to be.
A baseball season is a 162 game marathon, but within that marathon there are multiple parts. Each player has good parts and bad parts. The trick is to maximize the good parts and minimize the bad parts. Vazquez is hot and Diaz is cold. That will likely change within a few weeks, but Joe Espada might as well take advantage of the hot streak now. If he and the Astros are lucky, Diaz will recover at about the same time that Vazquez begins to falter. In the meantime, you milk as much as you can out of Vazquez and minimize the damage Diaz is currently doing.
The surprise in the numbers comes in the fact that Brice Mathews doesn’t look like hot garbage when looking at those numbers. Many of the Astros young hitters are cut from the same cloth. They bring power, patience, and speed to the offense. They also bring a ton of swing and miss. The outfield will provide Espada with opportunities to mix and match. Center field might be an interesting spot for a platoon when Jake Meyers comes back. A lefty/righty platoon between Trammel and Meyers could be intriguing.
Similarly, a lefty righty platoon between Joey Loperfido and Mathews might also be interesting in left field. Obviously, Yordan will play there some as well as they try to fit Isaac Paredes into the every day lineup. The point is that lackluster pitching might give this team some freedom to experiment with guys in a lower pressure situation. If the playoffs are not riding on the outcome, you can use a couple of spots to test younger players to see if they can be a part of the picture moving forward. We will definitely revisit this as the year goes on. Is there anything that surprised you?
The Los Angeles Dodgers hope to break out of a funk as Shohei Ohtani takes the mound for Game 2 of their series against the San Francisco Giants.
Tony Vitello’s built some much-needed momentum with a series-opening victory, however, and his squad is laser-focused on this rivalry series as a turning point in the young season.
My Dodgers vs. Giants predictions and MLB picks are backing the underdog on Wednesday, April 22.
Who will win Dodgers vs Giants today: Giants (+186)
The odds indicate that this is supposed to be a squash match for the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Shohei Ohtani’s pristine 0.50 ERA stands in stark contrast to Tyler Mahle’s (7.23), so the market expects a bounce-back from L.A. after Tuesday’s 3-1 defeat.
Mahle’s due for positive regression, however, as he pitched to a 2.18 ERA across 16 starts a year ago and will benefit from the confines of pitcher-friendly Oracle Park.
Ohtani’s control (94 Location+) hasn’t come back to bite him yet, but that and his unsustainable .158 BABIP indicate his pretty ERA will creep up eventually.
COVERS INTEL: Tyler Mahle has found success against some of L.A.’s best hitters in the past. He’s held Ohtani, Kyle Tucker, and Max Muncy to six hits in 29 at-bats (.207 AVG) with 10 strikeouts.
Dodgers vs Giants Over/Under pick: Under 7.5 (+108)
The first game of this series flew Under the total in a low-scoring 3-1 San Francisco Giants win, and a similar result could be in store during a chilly Wednesday night in San Francisco.
Temperatures in the high-50s for most of this contest will benefit both starting pitchers as well as the two Top-10 bullpens behind them (LAD 3.49 SIERA in relief; SFG 3.59).
L.A. is in a bit of a slump, dropping three of its last four games while missing Mookie Betts and Tommy Edman in the lineup. San Francisco, meanwhile, has yet to get the bats going against right-handed pitching (79 wRC+).
JD Yonke's 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 7-5, +3.08 units
Over/Under bets: 8-5, +2.74 units
Dodgers vs Giants odds
Moneyline: Dodgers -200 | Giants +190
Run line: Dodgers -1.5 (-120) | Giants +1.5 (-105)
Over/Under: Over 7.5 | Under 7.5
Dodgers vs Giants trend
The Dodgers have dropped three of their last four games, costing one-unit bettors a 5.75 unit loss. Find more MLB betting trends for Dodgers vs. Giants.
How to watch Dodgers vs Giants and game info
Location
Oracle Park, San Francisco, CA
Date
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
First pitch
9:45 p.m. ET
TV
Sportsnet-Los Angeles, NBCS-Bay Area
Dodgers starting pitcher
Shohei Ohtani (2-0, 0.50 ERA)
Giants starting pitcher
Tyler Mahle (0-3, 7.23 ERA)
Dodgers vs Giants latest injuries
Dodgers vs Giants weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS - APRIL 05: Jaylen Brown #7 of the Boston Celtics (left) and Jayson Tatum #0 of the Boston Celtics embrace during introductions prior to a game against the Toronto Raptors at TD Garden on April 05, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Jaiden Tripi/Getty Images) | Getty Images
BOSTON — For many Celtics fans, Tuesday’s Game 2 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers might feel like a catatrasophe.
But for Jaylen Brown and Jayson Tatum, it’s part of the difficult journey that is the NBA playoffs, a journey they both know quite well as they begin their 9th playoff run as teammates.
“That’s a good team over there,” Tatum said. “The NBA is hard. Bunch of guys over there that are prideful and obviously wanted to come out and play better, and that was to be expected, and you got to give them credit. They did.”
After a 32-point Game 1 win, it appeared that the Celtics were in control of the series, and that the three-point shooting gap between the two teams would be difficult to close.
But in Game 2, things flipped. Philadelphia shot 19-39 (48.7%) from three and the Celtics shot just 13-50 (26%) from beyond the arc. And, Boston got outworked, a rarity this season.
“I just thought they out-competed us tonight,” Brown said. “I think our intensity level could have been better. Defensively, we could have been better. We died on some screens. We just got to be better. It’s the playoffs. They got ball players over there, and they came to play. Any given night, you could lose a game if you don’t come out with the right mindset.”
Despite that, Brown was relatively upbeat at the podium after the 111-97 loss. There have been losses this season after which the Celtics’ star was overwhelmingly frustrated; this was not one of them.
Why was that?
“I trust our group,” Brown said. “We’ve grown a lot over the course of the season. Obviously, this is the ultimate test, playing in the playoffs, and we got players who have gotten better and developed, and we’re gonna rely on them. I trust them to come out, make those plays, and contribute to the game. We just got to continue to have the right mentality, have each other’s back, just breathe.”
That unflappable sentiment was shared by Jayson Tatum, too. Tatum, who returned from an Achilles rupture six weeks ago, has a renewed perspective on what it means to even be in this position.
“I’m feeling good,” Tatum said. “Sounds cliche, but man, I’m back in the playoffs, and for me, it’s a win every day that I get to come back from what happened last May, and been able to play at this level for the last month. And, obviously going to continue to get better, but I get to walk out the court with my own two feet. And, as long as I do that every day, I win a little bit.”
Losing undoubtedly sucks. But, Tatum said he’s processing this type of adversity a little bit differently in the context of his injury.
“Especially since it’s just so fresh,” Tatum said. “And that’s not to say — obviously, frustrated after a loss. I wish I would have played better, wish we would have played better.”
But, even irregardless of the Achilles tear, Tatum has learned not to overreact to losses in the playoffs. En route to the 2024 title, the Celtics lost Game 2 at home twice — in the first round to the Miami Heat and in the second round to the Cleveland Cavaliers — and they went on to win both series in five games.
“Even before getting injured, I think just being through it so many times, the playoffs is a roller coaster,” Tatum said. “And I think what I’ve learned throughout my 9 years in the playoffs is just stay even-keeled throughout, right? And I think the team that sticks together and does that from an emotional standpoint will be fine.”
Tatum and Brown have played in 117 playoff games together. Only once — last Spring — has their season ended before the Eastern Conference Finals.
They’re going to need more from their supporting cast. Derrick White (3-12 FG), Payton Pritchard (2-8 FG), and Sam Hauser (2-8 FG) all struggled in Game 2. The Celtics’ trio of sharpshooters combined for 42.7 points per game during the regular season, but just 18 combined points in Tuesday’s loss.
Brown said the team will continue to work to get them going.
“Just keep finding them,” he said. “Keep trusting them. I thought Sam and Payton both got good looks tonight. Both got some open shots. That’s what we want. So continue to trust that process. But just continue to play Celtics basketball — it starts on defense, and then getting down and running. I think it also leads to the type of energy that we need. So we trust Payton, we trust Sam, we trust Baylor, we trust all of those guys to come in and impact the game. So, we just got to continue to stay consistent with that, and we’ll be okay.
They knew going back to Philadelphia won’t be easy; the 76ers have the momentum, home-court advantage, and much less to lose.
But, they’ve been in these kinds of high pressure situations many times before, and most of the time, they’ve responded.
“It’s gonna be a journey,” Brown said. “It’s gonna be some ups and some downs, but I’m looking forward to it with my guys.
“You look back two months ago, month ago, no one in here would believe we’re technically the worst team in baseball,” Bobby Witt Jr. said. “We believe in each and every one in here. And that’s how we got to go about it. We got to get better every day and try to just improve.”
This is the answer the Royals continue to state no matter how bad things look on the field. General manager J.J. Picollo expressed outward confidence in his club Monday afternoon in his usual homestand-opening scrum with local media, acknowledging that the group is pressing some but that the only way out of it is to keep moving forward and trust the process just 23 games into the year.
“We all know how long the season is,” Picollo said. “If you break the season up in bunches, short bunches, it doesn’t take much to turn something around. But if we get too focused and caught up in what’s happened over the last couple of weeks, we’re not going to be able to move forward. You get one big hit, the energy changes. The excitement changes. That may lead into the next night, and now all of a sudden the mentality changes. That’s something that we need to have happen.”
Once again, the Royals find themselves stumbling out of the gate in the first full month of the season. The Royals have lost eight straight games following Monday night’s 7-5 defeat to the Orioles in 12 innings, and they have the worst record in baseball at 7-16. Some fans have called for a change, but Royals general manager J.J. Picollo on Monday met with the media and expressed confidence in manager Matt Quatraro. The reason for Picollo’s faith? He looked back at Quatraro’s first year as Royals manager in 2023 when the team lost 106 games. But the following season, they were in the playoffs. “That’s ultimately going back to ‘23 when you go through a really tough year, and the composure that he kept through ‘23, the positivity, the way we played in August and September of that year, where we played a lot better, led into ‘24,” Picollo said of Quatraro. “I think his steadiness is what allows us to do things well and right the ship.” That ship is currently taking on water.
Johnathan Duncan, city councilman for the 6th District, told The Star the stadium footprint “that will be briefed tomorrow is not Washington Square Park.” The city has notably been referring to the project location as a combination of Washington Square Park and neighboring Crown Center. While the Royals have not publicly unveiled their vision for the area, Duncan’s suggestion would illustrate a remarkable shift in at least the public perception of the stadium plan. The City Council passed an ordinance Thursday authorizing City Manager Mario Vasquez to negotiate with the Royals a stadium deal up to $600 million. The financial framework has occupied the conversation over the ensuing week, but Duncan said, “there’s a lack of clarity about the site.” The Royals could provide that clarity during a planned Wednesday morning announcement at a Crown Center restaurant.
The Kansas City Royals are scheduled to announce an “important update” about the team’s future in Kansas City on Wednesday, a long-awaited decision that could mark the culmination of the team’s stadium hunt. Royals Chairman and CEO John Sherman will make the announcement alongside Missouri Gov. Mike Kehoe and Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas at 10 a.m. Wednesday, according to a release from the team on Tuesday. TOP VIDEOS The video player is currently playing an ad. The announcement is expected to center on a new Royals downtown stadium, according to two officials scheduled to attend the press conference and an email invitation sent to City Council members on Tuesday. That invitation references a “Bring the Crown Downtown Ballpark Celebration.”
At some point, the hole is just too deep to get out of, but that point generally doesn’t come quite so early in the season. And yet, here we are after another Royals loss, their eighth in a row. The Royals had a gut-punch loss in the second game of the season when they blew a 2-0 lead in the ninth. They had another gut-punch loss just a few days ago when they came back from five down to take a lead into the ninth, but blew that. Last night may be worse than either of those. But having three examples to choose from in 23 games might be the bigger problem than any single game. The fact that I would have been shocked if they didn’t blow it last night is just sad.
There were 18 players who appeared for the Royals last night. Four of them carry zero blame of an ugly, ugly loss.
There were boos throughout the night. The Royals (7-16) own the worst record in Major League Baseball and have lost eight consecutive games. TOP VIDEOS The video player is currently playing an ad. You can skip the ad in 5 sec with a mouse or keyboard Royals star Bobby Witt Jr. addressed the situation postgame. He felt the Royals’ fan base deserved a better product on the field. “Yeah, it sucks,” Witt said. “But if you’re the worst team in baseball, you might deserve to get booed every once in a while. It should motivate us to get better. Just motivate us to go out there and just lay it all on the field each and every night. Give it all every night, and so just go from there.”
Just in case you forgot the pain that was Monday’s loss, here is a good reminder from Vahe Gregorian.
Somehow, though, the Royals outdid themselves Monday night with a nauseating defeat — one that conjured the immortal wisdom of former Royals manager Buddy Bell. Following a 10th straight loss in 2006, he alertly said, “I never say it can’t get worse.” At least that losing streak ended after one more L. These Royals should only be so fortunate after the 7-5 loss in 12 innings against Baltimore extended the losing streak to eight — their longest since a 10-game string in 2023 on the way to a 56-106 season. Instead of being the fresh start they desperately need, this game was somewhere between a microcosm and fusion of all that’s been going awry all season: Again with the stupefying inability to produce with runners in scoring position, underscored by leaving 16 men on base. Fresh evidence that the bullpen that was such an asset last season no longer is slamming the door but … a trap door; in this case, it squandered Seth Lugo’s seven innings of one-hit, scoreless work into the eighth loss of the season by relievers after Alex Lange gave up five runs in the 12th.
Is it Time to Rethink the 2026 Royals? Yes. No big league team is or can be perfect, but Kansas City’s imperfections are glaring. Perhaps general manager J.J. Picollo found the offseason price of a new big bat too high and settled for less than he wanted and his club needed. Perhaps Perez is running out of gas. Maybe some of the club’s talent is overrated, and was from the start.
Improvement is needed. And sooner, not later; the club can’t wait for the midsummer trade deadline. But the history of this typically conservative franchise suggests no new, truly impactful major league hitter will arrive this season, and hoping the rotation and bullpen pick up the slack all season is too much to ask.
Although it’s still early, this club is in trouble.
On the pitching end, Chazz Martinez had a solid week, allowing no runs on two hits and three walks while striking out six in three innings of work. For the season, Martinez is posting a 41.7% K% and 20.8% K-BB% in six innings of work. While the TJ Stuff+ metrics aren’t great (98 overall), he’s done an excellent job limiting hard contact while generating solid whiff and chase rates, as seen below.
The four-seamer is an interesting pitch with crazy horizontal break (18.3 HB), and it generates a decent amount of chase (26.9%) and whiff (31.8%) as well as weak contact (.241 xwOBACON). As a result, the four-seamer has a 102 TJ Stuff+ and a 57 grade. Unfortunately, his other offerings don’t rate as well stuff-wise, with his sweeper having a 30 grade and changeup sporting a 47 grade.
Still, Martinez could be an Evan Sisk type who simply can generate chase and whiff effectively due to his arm angles, even if he may not have the most overpowering stuff profile.
The three-game series is up for grabs when the Baltimore Orioles meet the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium this afternoon.
Royals starter Michael Wacha’s peripherals point to regression, and my Orioles vs. Royals predictions and MLB picks are backing the underdog Orioles.
Who will win Orioles vs Royals today: Baltimore Orioles (+115)
Michael Wacha’s 1.00 ERA looks dominant, but it’s misleading. His 3.95 xFIP suggests he hasn’t pitched nearly that well, and regression is coming.
The Baltimore Orioles lineup is already rolling, scoring 12 runs in this series, and the Kansas City Royals' bullpen, ranked 26th in baseball, is unlikely to slow them down. The Orioles also hold a clear bullpen edge, and that matters once the starters exit.
The Royals are 8-16 for a reason; outside of Carter Jensen and Bobby Witt Jr., their sticks have been too inconsistent, and I'll take the plus-money Orioles today.
COVERS INTEL:This Orioles bullpen strikes out the second-most batters per nine innings (10.38) with a third-best 3.26 SIERRA.
Orioles vs Royals Over/Under pick: Under 9.5 (-126)
Wacha may be outperforming his metrics, but his 23.5% strikeout rate and 33% chase rate are legitimate, and Baltimore's lineup punches out 25% of the time against right-handers.
That's a dangerous combination.
Kansas City's bullpen may be a disaster, but they won't be tested much if Wacha deals deep into the game. Kansas City's lineup will swing early and often against Bassitt, and its 23.5% strikeout rate should help the struggling Orioles starter.
With two pitchers doing just enough against two aggressive lineups, runs might be hard to come by. Take the Under.
Phil Naessens' 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 3-5, -1.35 units
Over/Under bets: 4-3, +0.94 units
Orioles vs Royals odds
Moneyline: Orioles +113 | Royals -122
Run line: Orioles +1.5 (-170) | Royals -1.5 (+163)
Over/Under: Over 9.5 (+113) | Under (-117)
Orioles vs Royals trend
The Royals have cashed the Under in 29 of their last 50 games for +6.20 units and an 11% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Orioles vs. Royals.
How to watch Orioles vs Royals and game info
Location
Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO
Date
Wednesday, April 22, 2026
First pitch
2:10 p.m. ET
TV
MASN, Royals.TV
Orioles starting pitcher
Chris Bassitt (0-2, 6.19 ERA)
Royals starting pitcher
Michael Wacha (2-0, 1.00 ERA)
Orioles vs Royals latest injuries
Orioles vs Royals weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
Apr 21, 2026; San Antonio, Texas, USA; San Antonio Spurs guard Devin Vassell (24) shoots over Portland Trail Blazers guard Matisse Thybulle (4) in an attempt to tie the game at the end of the fourth quarter of game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Frost Bank Center. Mandatory Credit: Scott Wachter-Imagn Images | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images
This game started off bad when Portland jumped to a 15-4 lead, became terrible when Wemby went down with a concussion, softened somewhat when the Spurs led by double digits in the fourth, and then landed like bad egg salad when they squandered that lead in the final minutes. Let’s be blunt: the Spurs are better than the Blazers even in the absence of Victor, as they proved earlier this year and for a big chunk of playing time in this game. However, this iteration of San Antonio is sorely lacking in playoff experience, and that absolutely showed down the stretch. Having said all of this, last night’s game did produce some interesting (albeit often disappointing) box score stats, and I hope you all will take solace in reviewing the highlights:
Note: Now that we’ve moved into the postseason, the reference period used for grading changes from the set of regular season games since 2012-2013 to the set of postseason games since 2012-2013. Unless otherwise noted below, this set DOES include play-in games. As of the end of April 21, 2026, this group include 1,135 games.
Factors that decided the game
Portland held minor edges in offensive boards (+3) and turnovers (-2), but these advantages had a minimal effect on offensive opportunity. In fact, while the Blazers did have three more field goal attempts, they also fouled the Spurs more often and at worse times, resulting in a FTA margin of +5 for San Antonio.
Unfortunately, the Silver and Black logged a disappointing free throw percentage of 71.43%, leaving eight crucial points on the table.
Given that San Antonio did outscore Portland by three at the charity stripe, the game ultimately was decided from the field. Interestingly, both teams made exactly 38 shots, meaning that the Spurs actually held a small edge in FG% (+1.49 percentage points).
However, the Blazers leaned much more heavily into shooting from distance, with a 3PA margin of +14. The Spurs’ terrible efficiency from three also gave Portland a +5.04 percentage-point edge in 3P%. Taken together, these forces generated a +6 3PM differential for the Blazers, resulting in Portland outscoring San Antonio by six from the field.
Rare Box Score Stats
There were quite a lot of steals and blocks in this game, and they were really unevenly distributed. In fact, this was just the eighth playoff games since 2012-2013 in which the winning team had a block differential of +6 or more while having a steal differential of -5 or less (that’s a frequency of once in every 142 games).
In the 1,135 playoff games since 2012-2013, this was just the 11th time that a team won while notching FGM and FTM differentials as bad or worse than +0 and -3, respectively.
Even though he finished with just 18 points, Castle was the Spurs’ leading scorer. This is not a great recipe for success, as there have only been 74 playoff games dating all the way back to 1996-1997 in which the winning team’s leading scorer register a point total at least this low. Furthermore, this event has become increasingly rare over time, with the last occurrence prior to last night being in 2021.
What are Team Graded Box Scores?
Very briefly, these box scores grade winner-loser differentials for basic box score statistics, with the grade being based on the winning team’s differential relative to other NBA winners during a defined reference period. Think of it like a report card for understanding how a given winner performed relative to other winners. The reference period used runs from the start of the 2012-2013 season to the latest date of play, including only games in the same season category (i.e., regular season and playoff games are not compared to each other).
Data Source: The underlying data used to create these box scores was collected from Basketball Reference. In all cases, the data are collected the morning after the game is played. Although rare, postgame statistical revisions after data collection do occur and may affect the results after the fact.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - APRIL 21: New York Mets boo in the ninth inning in the game between the New York Mets and the Minnesota Twins at Citi Field on April 21, 2026 in the Flushing neighborhood of the Queens borough of New York City. The Minnesota Twins defeated the New York Mets 5-3. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Meet the Mets
The Mets lost their twelfth-straight game 5-3 to the Twins, despite a three-run home run from Francisco Lindor and a strong start by Nolan McLean.
Plenty has been said about who or what may be at fault for the Mets’ losing ways, but the Mets offense has been the worst in the league during their eleven game skid.
It’s only April, but questions have already been being raised about whether or not the 2026 Mets can be salvaged.
Kodai Senga’s start will be pushed back, with Christian Scott being called up to start Thursday instead, and David Peterson will remain in the bullpen.
Juan Soto will be activated for today’s game, but his workload will be managed in his return.
Soto may have more than just the Mets record on his back in his return—he could be responsible for his manager’s job security as well.
The Mets are breaking new ground for early season disappointment, at least when it comes to hyper-specific records.
Around the National League East
MLB and the Phillies revealed the festivities for All-Star Week, which coincides with the celebration of America’s semiquincentennial.
The Braves made a bevy of moves, with pitcher Raisel Iglesias landing on the injured list and Sean Murphy and Spencer Strider having their rehab assignments moved.
Zack Wheeler will be making his much anticipated (and needed) return to the Phillies rotation on Saturday against the Braves.
The Marlins fell to the Cardinals 5-3, with Chris Paddack giving up all five runs in 4.2 innings, with eight hits and seven strikeouts.
The division leading Braves were smacked around in an 11-4 loss to the Nationals. Reynaldo López lasted just one inning, giving up four runs on five hits and three walks.
The Cubs continued their hot streak against National League East teams, beating the Phillies 7-4. Jesús Luzardo pitched well for the Phillies, giving up just one run in 4.2 innings.
Around Major League Baseball
Craig Counsell criticized the two-way hitter designation with regards to Shohei Ohtani, and Dave Roberts responded.
MLB has no plans to have the ABS call every ball or strike…yet.
Recently released Met Luis Garcia found a new home, signing with the Mets current opponent, the Minnesota Twins.
Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue
It’s been about a month of minor league baseball, and as such Steve Sypa delivered the fourth 2026 group of Mets Minor League Players of the Week.
Linus Lawrence looked back on the worst losing streak in Mets history, which was unsurprisingly in 1962, losing 17 straight from late May to early June. We’re getting closer!
This Date in Mets History
56 years ago, Tom Seaver received his 1969 Cy Young Award plaque and proceeded to strike out 19 batters in a 2-1 win over the San Diego Padres.
BOSTON, MA - OCTOBER 31: The Boston Red Sox ride in duck boats on Tremont Street during the Boston Red Sox Victory Parade on October 31, 2018 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Maddie Meyer/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There have been a lot of words spilled about the Mets and the Giants and the Blue Jays and the Red Sox potentially ending their October dreams, well, already. Seeing things like “only 3% of teams playing this poorly have gone on to make the playoffs” makes it sound like a done deal. But for most of baseball history making the playoffs was hard. Really hard. And the Red Sox are making it as hard as possible as they open the season going 9-14.
Until 1968 only two teams made the postseason. They played in the World Series. When the Yankees talk about “27 rings” remember that 20 of those were won via a single round of postseason play. (Yes that applies to the Red Sox too, but no other team is chanting their total titles.) The winner of that series won the World Series. No random chance 84-win team sending their ace in a coin-flip game. No Wild Card Series. No Division Series. No Championship Series. There was none of that when Cy Young, pictured above, was pitching in October, which was in fact, September in the beginning.
The 1951 New York Giants finished with a final record of 98-59. They started the season 9-14, just like the 2026 Red Sox. If the ‘51 Giants sound familiar to you it’s because they, like the 2026 Mets, lost 11 straight. During the opening 23 games. At least the Sox haven’t combined their record this year with the Mets losing streak. It’s partially sequencing, of course, as the Mets have only been a tad worse (7-16) than Boston so far, but it does feel better to know there is, like the Sarlacc pit, a new definition of pain and suffering.
Those Giants are the only team to start 9-14 and make the playoffs in this era. But keep in mind these were the two-team, straight-to-the-World-Series years.
From 1969 until 1993 the playoffs doubled in size from two to four teams. With expansion to 24 teams (12 and 12) and splitting each league into two divisions the playoff push became more difficult. But double the teams entered the competition! The 1969 Mets and 1979 Pirates even win the World Series after their slow starts. The 1984 Royals, 1987 Tigers, 1989 Blue Jays all make it into the playoffs, losing in their Championship Series to the Tigers, Twins, and Athletics, respectively.
This is not even half as much time as the World Series era but the slow starting 9-14 teams have five playoff appearances just by going from two to four teams.
Before the 1994 strike canceled the end of the season and the playoffs, baseball was set to debut a new postseason format. Expanding from two division into three with East, Central, and West divisions in the American and National leagues, MLB added two new playoff seats as each divisional champion would receive an invitation. And as they said in the As Seen on TV Ads of the ‘90s but wait there’s more! Two new Wild Cards – one per league – would be added as well. The team with the best record that wasn’t a division winner, across the entire league, would also make the playoffs. From four teams to eight.
The first team to go 9-14 and make the playoffs? The 2005 Yankees. The 2006 Twins, 2007 Rockies, 2007 Yankees, and 2009 Rockies would all go on to do this as well. That ‘05 Yankees team won 95 games! The Twins won 96. The ‘07 Yankees won 94.
Outcomes can be unlikely but still possible. Heck, just look at batting averages. It’s cliche but it’s true.
2012 would bring another tweak: the Wild Card would become a one-game playoff. We’re now at ten teams or one-third of the league. There will be a one-year sixteen-team playoff tournament in 2020 due to, well, everything. And then from 2022 to at least 2026, a twelve-team bracket. In all of these Wild Card expansions there has been only one slow starting team in October: the 2014 Pirates. They started at 9-14 but finished at 88-74. The 2014 Mariners would go on to win 87 games but not make the playoffs.
Since then the slow starters have maxed out at 82-80, the 2025 Kansas City Royals.
But the takeaway is not that it’s impossible or that it’s likely to happen. But that over time, as MLB expands the playoffs, teams can make bigger mistakes, start slower, and not necessarily be punished. It doesn’t’ matter that 3% of teams doing X, Y, or Z made the playoffs from 1901 until 2025. What really matters is from 2022 onward. In four seasons, yes, there hasn’t been a team that started 9-14 in the playoffs. And last year’s Royals finished 5.0 games back from even the expanded Wild Card. But the Tigers made it in with 87 wins. Not starting 9-14, but the Cincinnati Reds made it into the Wild Card with 83 wins. 83!
The Red Sox are frustrating. But it’s not over yet. Maybe 90 wins is impossible. But if they win 87 and Garret Crochet is healthy and cruising, Roman has 20 home runs, and Chapman has a pile of saved games, do you think that team couldn’t win 2 out of 3 in the postseason? Or 3 out of 4? I’m not sure I really want mid-or-low-80s teams to have a possibility of the playoffs, even if it’s my team, but in a 12 team bracket that’s possible. The longer MLB runs with 12 teams (or more!) in the postseason the more likely it is that these “no team has ever” records fall away.
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - APRIL 21: Kumar Rocker #80 of the Texas Rangers delivers a pitch in the first inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Globe Life Field on April 21, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Rangers 5, Pirates 1
Hey, that was fun!
Texas got down two batters into the game. Oneil Cruz had a leadoff single, stole second and ended up on third when Danny Jansen’s throw ended up in center field, and scored on a Ryan O’Hearn single.
Oh no!, we all thought, Kumar Rocker doesn’t have it today! We are going to have to use Cal Quantrill for multiple innings!
Kumar Rocker did have it, though. As you can infer by the final score, no more Pirate runs scored the rest of the way. And after those first two leadoff singles, Rocker allowed just two hits and one walk. Rocker logged a Quality Start, striking out five. Way to go, Kumar!
There is, however, a huge asterisk on that final line. An Evan Carter shaped asterisk.
After the O’Hearn single, Rocker faced thirteen straight batters and got thirteen outs, with the one single he allowed erased on a double play ball. With one out in the fifth, Rocker was cruising.
Jake Mangum then hit a first pitch single. Konnor Griffin hit a grounder in the hole at shortstop. Corey Seager was only going to have one play, at first, but he ended up bobbling the ball, resulting in two on, one out. A Henry Davis (hey, remember him?) tapper in front of the plate moved the runners to second and third with two outs, bringing up Oneil Cruz with the Rangers up 2-1.
Evan Carter made a spectacular leaping catch at the wall, stealing a go-ahead homer from Cruz.
When Carter was going back to the wall, I was sure the ball was gone. I just knew that Carter would get there, leap, and the ball would be five feet over his glove. The Pirates had taken the lead.
But no…Carter got there, timed it perfectly, and made the catch of the year for the Rangers.
The Rangers added onto their lead in the bottom of the fifth, and things never felt in doubt after that. The Pirates didn’t get a runner past first base over the final four innings, with Cole Winn, Jacob Latz and Jakob Junis all responsible for an inning apiece.
I thought Latz would be asked to finish things out when he came into the game for the eighth inning, though with Robert Garcia day-to-day with a sore left shoulder, Latz appears to be late inning lefty #1 right now, and thus limited to shorter outings.
The bats put up crooked numbers in the second and the fifth. A Joc Pederson single, Josh Jung double, and Evan Carter single tied the game, with Josh Smith hitting a sacrifice fly to give the Rangers a lead that they would never surrender.
If Game Winning RBIs were still a thing, Josh Smith would have gotten one for that.
The other three runs came in the fifth when, energized by Evan Carter’s catch, the Rangers chased Pittsburgh starter Carmen Mlodzinski thanks to a Smith double, an Ezequiel Duran double, and a Corey Seager single. A Jake Burger single and a Joc Pederson walk loaded the bases up, and we all hoped the suddenly super-hot doubles machine that is Josh Jung would blow things open. We settled for an RBI groundout.
Duran, incidentally, was in the game in place of Wyatt Langford, who walked and stole a base, but left the game due to forearm soreness he felt swinging the bat in his second plate appearance. Langford is getting an MRI on Wednesday, and hopefully, he is fine. If not, well, I guess it is Alejandro Osuna Time.
Kumar Rocker’s sinker topped out at 95.5 mph, averaging 93.9 mph. Cole Winn hit 96.2 mph with his fastball. Jacob Latz reached 96.1 mph with his fastball. Jakob Junis topped out at 91.7 mph with his sinker.
Joc Pederson had a 109.4 mph single. Corey Seager had a 109.0 mph groundout. Josh Smith had a 108.1 mph double. Brandon Nimmo had a 106.8 mph fly out. Jake Burger had a 104.9 mph single. Josh Jung had a 103.5 mph double and a 101.0 mph groundout. Evan Carter had a 103.3 mph single and a 100.6 mph groundout.
Texas started the homestand off on a good foot. Let’s keep it going.
The positive spin: Boston dropped early round Game 2s against both Miami and Cleveland in 2024, then finished both series in five games en route to Banner 18.
The harsh reality: The Celtics shot themselves in the foot throughout Tuesday’s loss and activated a Sixers team that ought to feel confident as the series shifts back to Philadelphia.
The Celtics have some obvious defensive issues to shore up after watching “VJ Maxx” get way too comfortable on the parquet. But here are five more things the Celtics might need to tidy up ahead of Game 3 in Philly on Friday night:
The one that sticks in our mind was late first quarter, with the 76ers already walking down an early double-digit deficit, when Payton Pritchard got trapped above the 3-point line.
Maxey looked like a cornerback jumping a comeback route when he peeled off from Derrick White and jumped in front of Pritchard’s haphazard pitch intended for Nikola Vucevic. Maxey waltzed in for a dunk that made it a one-possession game.
The Celtics finished with six live-ball turnovers leading to nine points. They had 13 turnovers overall leading to 15 points. None of those numbers are egregiously bad, but when the offense is sputtering and every possession feels important, the Celtics certainly complicated their lives.
The other turnover that’s hard to forget came after the Celtics crawled within two with 6:25 to play in the fourth. The Garden got playoff loud only for Maxey to get free for consecutive pull-up 3-pointers.
Coming out of a timeout with a chance to steady themselves, Tatum threw another haphazard pass to a cutting Neemias Queta that Edgecombe easily picked off.
2. Eliminate backbreaking second-chance points
Despite Tatum’s late-game giveaway, the Celtics got back and set in the aftermath … only for Maxey to accelerate past Pritchard and Queta to elevate for a leaning layup while Tatum and Jaylen Brown watched.
The ball kissed off the glass too hard, but despite three green jerseys under the basket, it was Andre Drummond who swooped in with the tip-in that pushed Philly’s lead to 10 with 4:36 to play.
The 76ers turned 11 offensive rebounds into 19 second-chance points. Yet again, that’s not an egregious number, and the Celtics actually won the second-chance battle (18 offensive rebounds for 22 points).
But those second-chance points felt like momentum-sappers each time the Celtics couldn’t limit the Sixers to one shot. And all the attention that Maxey drew allowed Drummond and Edgecombe (seven combined offensive rebounds) to feast on the offensive glass.
3. Stay attached to shooters
The Sixers shot 32.2 percent on pull-up 3s during the regular season, so the Celtics will live with some of the shots that Maxey and Edgecombe knocked down off the dribble. (That number jumped to 42.9 percent for Game 2). It’s the 3-pointers where Boston defenders strayed a bit too far that Boston needs to clean up.
Quentin Grimes got a quality look when Pritchard wandered to help on Maxey in the first quarter, then got another wide-open catch-and-shoot opportunity when Sam Hauser went to help Pritchard in isolation against Paul George.
Baylor Scheierman got caught flat-footed when Drummond zipped a cross-court pass to Edgecombe for a corner 3 midway through the second quarter.
Too many times the Sixers got a great look when the Celtics were scrambling an extra defender in Maxey’s direction, and Boston has to be more disciplined in those moments.
During the regular season, Payton Pritchard ranked second on the Celtics with 11.9 drives per game. White was fourth at 7.5 per game. In Game 2, the duo combined for seven drives total, per NBA tracking.
Yes, both players have to be better knocking down shots. White has been in a season-long shooting funk, and it’d be nice to get that 3-point percentage back at previous playoff levels.
Things undeniably get tougher when White, Pritchard, and Hauser combine to go 4 for 22 on triples like they did in Game 2. The Celtics as a whole went 9-for-40 (22.5 percent) on open or better 3-pointers (4+ feet of space) in Game 2, per NBA tracking.
But good things happen when White and Pritchard attack the basket. Queta, who was a beast in the teams’ final regular-season meeting while largely subsisting on offensive rebounds and alley-oops, gets activated too when Boston’s guards commit to driving the ball.
Boston’s offense felt bogged down for much of Game 2 as the team settled for perimeter shots. Even when Pritchard did drive, he felt oddly hesitant instead of muscling room to finish like he normally does.
The Celtics logged just 14 total minutes of center-less play after Tatum’s return in March. Lineup combinations with Tatum/Brown/White/Pritchard + any wing were outscored by seven points in that limited sample.
The question lingers: Could the Celtics go small with Tatum at the five and sustain against a team like Philadelphia?
The Celtics went small for a whopping one possession in Game 1 (and a got a bucket out of it). Going small might put a tremendous amount of stress on Tatum to joust with the likes of Drummond and Adem Bona, but it’s an intriguing curveball that Boston might need to explore at times in non-Queta minutes.
LOS ANGELES, CA - APRIL 21: Los Angeles Lakers guard Luke Kennard (10) and Houston Rockets center Alperen Sengun (28) battle for the loose ball as Houston calls a time out during the fourth quarter of game two in an NBA playoff game at Crypto.com Arena on Tuesday, April 21, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
In Tuesday’s Brotherhood Playoff Action, Jayson Tatum and the Boston Celtics lost to the Philadelphia 76ers 111-97; Mason Plumlee and the San Antonio Spurs fell to the Portland Trail Blazers 106-103, while Luke Kennard helped lead JJ Redick’s Los Angeles Lakers to a 101-94 win over the Houston Rockets.
Tatum just missed a triple-double with 19 points, 14 rebounds, and 9 assists in Boston’s loss.
For his part, Kennard had another outstanding game filling in for Luka Doncic with 23 points, 6 rebounds, and 2 assists.
Plumlee, however, got a DNP.
On Wednesday, Paolo Banchero and Wendell Carter will lead Orlando against Trajan Langdon’s Pistons, while Jared McCain and OKC face off against Mark Williams, Grayson Allen, and Khaman Maluach.
393323 03: Boston Red Sox Executive Vice President and General Manager Dan Duquette (L) smiles as newly named manager Joe Kerrigan speaks at a press conference August 16, 2001 in Boston, Massachusetts after being appointed to replace fired manager Jimy Williams. (Photo by Darren McCollester/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s bad enough that the Red Sox are struggling out of the gate. But we are also constantly hearing complaints from fellow fans that the 2026 Red Sox are no fun to watch. It’s hard to blame them. They only managed to score four runs in three games over the weekend! They are nearly being out-homered by Yordan Alvarez alone! They were just brought to heel by the Yankees’ worst pitcher!
So, yes, the 2026 Red Sox are no fun so far. No argument from me. But what would it take for them to become the least enjoyable team of your lifetime?
For me, I’m not sure I’ll ever hate a team more than the 2001 Red Sox. That team, unlike this one, started great, sitting at 17-9 on May 1, after an offseason in which we spent dreaming about finally breaking the curse. But this was the year that we began to see cracks in Nomar’s armor (he didn’t even play his first game until the end of July after the aggravated his wrist in February). This was the year that the team was briefly led by the worst manager of my lifetime (yes, even worse than Bobby Valentine): Joe Kerrigan, who took over for a tired Jimy Williams and was clearly in way over his head. This was the year they lost 13 of 14 games at the end of August and start of September.
Use this space to talk about teams you’ve hated and whatever else you want and, as always, be good to one another.
Apr 21, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Guardians designated hitter Chase DeLauter (24) hits an RBI triple during the eighth inning against the Houston Astros at Progressive Field. Mandatory Credit: Ken Blaze-Imagn Images | Ken Blaze-Imagn Images
By beating the Houston Astros, the Guardians are now 14-11 and hold a 1-game lead over the 12-11 Twins.
For a while, it looked like the Guardians were going to blow their chance to face Houston’s terrible pitching, but a 6-run 8th inning saved the day. Chase DeLauter came up with the bases loaded and tripled home all three runners. Deborah has your recap here.
Franco Aleman has yet to give up a hit or a run in Columbus. Just in case Chris Antonetti was thinking we might need some bullpen help.
Houston fell to 9-16, banging into the floor of the trash AL West division. The A’s are now in first at 13-11.
Around baseball
The Mets are trying to rebound from a losing streak like the 2025 Guardians once did. Theirs is at 12 after the Twins came back to beat them yesterday.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - APRIL 21: Shohei Ohtani #17 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks out to bat against the San Francisco Giants in the fifth inning at Oracle Park on April 21, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
These five words will never cease to amuse me: Shohei Ohtani made history, again.
Although the Dodgers suffered their third defeat on this current road trip— dropping Tuesday’s contest to the San Francisco Giants 3-1— Shohei Ohtani was able to extend his on-base streak to 53 games, tying Shawn Green for the longest such streak in Los Angeles Dodgers history. Ohtani is still five games off from tying Duke Snider for the longest in franchise history.
Ohtani is slated to pitch against the Giants for Wednesday’s game, and the Dodgers intend to have Ohtani resume his two-way duties after opting to only pitch in his previous start, notes Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“I think that it makes a lot of sense that if you’re … hitting while pitching, it takes a little bit of a toll,” Roberts said. “He certainly has managed it really well, but if it makes sense, I’ll have that conversation with him.”
Now that the Dodgers are in the midst of their first season with Shohei Ohtani performing his two-way prowess for a full season, Mike Petriello of MLB.com writes about Ohtani potentially unlocking a new gear that the baseball world has yet to see.
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The Dodgers had their new bona-fide star closer for all of three weeks before landing on the injured list.
Edwin Díaz will miss the next three months after being diagnosed with loose bodies in his right elbow, which now raises a question about which Dodger reliever will take over as the team’s de facto closer. As for what Dave Roberts forecasts, per Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register, the initial candidate is Tanner Scott but the decision will vary day-to-day.
“If I had to guess … I would say probably Tanner,” Roberts said. “And that could change. I honestly don’t know. I mean, Tanner can pitch in the seventh tonight, and Blake can get the save. So honestly, it’s kind of day to day. It really is.”
The Dodgers will shoot down trade talks involving the red-hot Dalton Rushing unless the return haul lands them something huge in return, reported Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic during his latest appearance on the Foul Territory podcast.
“At the deadline, anything is possible, but I can’t see the Dodgers entertaining this unless it was a major deal— unless they were getting something huge in return— and I’m not sure what that would be at this point.”
The Dodgers likely won't entertain a trade involving Dalton Rushing unless they're getting something huge in return, says @Ken_Rosenthal. pic.twitter.com/9WqS46ToyM
COVERS INTEL: Tyler Mahle has found success against some of L.A.’s best hitters in the past. He’s held Ohtani, Kyle Tucker, and Max Muncy to six hits in 29 at-bats (.207 AVG) with 10 strikeouts.
