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Kodai Senga delivered another dud, Juan Soto left the game early because of back tightness and the Mets lost again, falling to the Cubs, 9-6, in front of 35,668 fans Tuesday night at Citi Field. 

The Mets, who have lost three straight and allowed 30 runs over that span, are now 10 games below the .500 mark at 34-44. The Cubs are 41-37. 

Here are the takeaways....

-The Mets' rotation woes continued as the Cubs scored five times in the second inning against Senga. The night had started very well for the beleaguered Mets’ righty – he blazed through the first inning, retiring the side in order with two strikeouts and hitting as high as 98.9 miles per hour on the radar gun. It quickly unraveled, however. Senga walked the first hitter in the second inning, Seiya Suzuki, gave up a single to Ian Happ and hit Matt Shaw with a pitch, loading the bases. One out later, Carson Kelly worked a walk in an eight-pitch at-bat, forcing in a run. After Dansby Swanson cracked a sac fly, Crow-Armstrong mashed his three-run homer for a 5-0 Cubs lead. Senga heard plenty of boos as he trudged off the mound when the inning was finally over.

-Walks have helped sap Senga’s effectiveness all season – he entered the game having walked 6.4 per nine innings this season. Peep this to get an idea of how bad that is: José Soriano of the Angels has the worst walk rate among qualified pitchers (4.5), but it’s nearly two walks fewer than Senga. Senga was not a good matchup for the Cubs, whose hitters owned MLB’s highest walk rate entering the game, and he finished his brief outing with five walks and a hit batter.

-Senga threw 31 pitches in the second inning alone, which meant he was never going to pitch too deep into the game. He didn’t, getting just 11 outs and leaving to more boos with two out and one on in the fourth inning and the Mets trailing, 7-2. In all, Senga allowed three hits and seven runs, including a two-run homer by Swanson, in 3.2 innings. He struck out six and threw 98 pitches (58 strikes). His season ERA ballooned to 10.08. In the two starts since he returned to the Met rotation, he’s allowed 11 runs in 7.2 innings, a 12.91 ERA.

-The Mets entered Tuesday’s game having allowed 151 runs in the first three innings of games, the second-most in the majors, behind only the awful Rockies (161). The Mets have now allowed at least one run in the first three frames in each of their last 13 games.

-The Mets quickly responded after the Cubs took the lead, scoring twice in the bottom of the second with two out. Marcus Semien walked, Brett Baty singled and MJ Melendez worked a walk on a 3-2 pitch. Francisco Alvarez followed by whacking a single into center that plated two runs. The Mets seemed poised to possibly add more when Carson Benge walked, but Cubs starter Edward Cabrera struck out Bo Bichette for the second time to end the inning.

-Alvarez hit a solo homer in the seventh inning, his sixth of the season, a long shot to center off Phil Maton that was clocked at 105.2 mph off the bat.

-The Mets had some late life, too. In the ninth inning, Bichette hit a two-run homer and Benge added an RBI single to trim the Cub lead to three runs.

-Soto, whose streak of 13 consecutive games reaching base safely ended, came out of the game after the fourth inning. He was replaced in left field by Jared Young, who moved from first base. Mark Vientos took over at first for Young. The Mets announced that Soto left with back tightness. He was spotted late in the game back on the Mets bench.

-Cabrera got injured getting the final out of the fifth inning when he covered first and stretched to catch a throw from Nico Hoerner. Cabrera, in obvious pain as he clutched at his left inner thigh, left the field on a cart to polite applause from the Citi Field crowd. It was later announced that Cabrera had suffered a left hamstring/adductor strain. Cabrera allowed two runs on three hits, striking out four and walking four.

-Cionel Pérez provided nifty relief for the Mets, coming in to get the final out of the fourth and then throwing two consecutive 1-2-3 innings.

-Weird play in the seventh: Crow-Armstrong was on first and ran on the pitch as Michael Busch drew a walk. Even though Crow-Armstrong was forced to second because of the walk, the Mets had thrown the ball to the bag and then challenged that Crow-Armstrong had come off the base and gotten tagged. Upon review, the umpires agreed and Crow-Armstrong was ruled out after “losing possession” of the bag and being tagged by Bichette. Perhaps not surprisingly, Cubs manager Craig Counsell was ejected in the post-play discussion.

Game MVP: Pete Crow-Armstrong.

The former Met prospect, dealt for Javy Báez and Trevor Williams at the 2021 trade deadline, smacked a key three-run homer for the Cubs. Dansby Swanson rates, too – he had four RBI.

Highlights

Two strikeouts in a 1-2-3 first inning for Kodai Senga 🔥

Senga's fastball hit 98.9 MPH on the radar gun pic.twitter.com/MzU9vJ8W6O

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 23, 2026

Francisco Alvarez with a two-run single! pic.twitter.com/bEvDnHfp1y

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 24, 2026

A solo home run for Francisco Alvarez!

He's driven in all three Mets runs tonight pic.twitter.com/LYNmVmP7pA

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 24, 2026

Carson Benge drives home Brett Baty to make it 9-4 pic.twitter.com/u9heiKDhdM

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 24, 2026

Bo Bichette with a two-run blast to make it 9-6 in the 9th pic.twitter.com/2nMXXFQbZq

— SNY (@SNYtv) June 24, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Cubs will play a day-night doubleheader on Wednesday. First game is set for 1:10 p.m. with Game 2 slated for 7:10 p.m.

The good news for the St. Louis Cardinals was the fact that Kyle Leahy shut down the Arizona Diamondbacks for the first half of Tuesday night’s game at Busch Stadium. The bad news is Diamondbacks starting pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez also shut down the Cardinals for the first half of the game. It would be crucial misplays at the end of the game that would ultimately cost St. Louis Tuesday night.

The Diamondbacks had the most opportunities early as Ketel Marte doubled on the first pitch of the game. He was moved over to third on a productive groundout by Perdomo, but Kyle Leahy got out of the jam by striking out Carroll and getting Moreno to fly out to center. Arizona would also threaten in the top of the 3rd inning with an almost identical opportunity as Groover hit a ground rule double to lead off the Diamondbacks 3rd, was moved over to third on a groundout by Troy. However, Leahy then struck out Marte and Perdomo lined out to keep Arizona from grabbing a lead.

The St. Louis Cardinals wouldn’t have a baserunner until the bottom of the 3rd inning when Pedro Pagés drew a two-out walk, but he was stranded when JJ Wetherholt grounded out to end the Cardinals 3rd. Jordan Walker collected the first Cardinals hit with one out in the bottom of the 4th inning. Lars Nootbaar followed that with his own single giving St. Louis their first scoring threat of the game, but it would be all for naught as Nelson Velázquez struck out and Jose Fermin lined out to center.

After Kyle Leahy pitched around a Gurriel Jr. double in the top of the 5th and a one-out walk in the top of the 6th, the Cardinals would threaten again in the bottom of the 6th inning when Iván Herrera drew a one-out walk. Jordan Walker followed Herrera’s walk with a sharp single to right field for his second hit of the game and Lars Nootbaar drew a walk which loaded the bases for St. Louis. What would follow would be a massive missed opportunity as Nelson Velázquez popped out to short left field where Perdomo caught the ball, but collided with outfielder Troy. Iván Herrera tagged up on the play and was sent home apparently by Pop Warner trying to score on the confusion of the colliding fielders, but he was thrown out at home plate on a play that was not contested by manager Oli Marmol leaving the game scoreless after 6 innings complete.

Kyle Leahy was nothing short of impressive as he gave the St. Louis Cardinals 6 1/3 innings Tuesday night which is a career-high for him. He was taken out of the game with one out in the top of the 7th inning when Oli Marmol brought in Max Rajcic to face Nolan Arenado. He was able to get Nolan to chase a 3-0 four-seam fastball grounding out to his third base counterpart Blaze Jordan for the second. He would get Gurriel Jr. out on a popup in front of the mound which was awkwardly handled by Pedro Pagés after the rest of the infield baled on the play. Outstanding performance, Kyle Leahy!

The Cardinals would miss another opportunity to provide run support to Leahy’s fine start in the bottom of the 7th inning when Blaze Jordan would draw a two-out walk and then advance to second on a wild pitch by reliever Morillo. Jimmy Crooks was brought up as a pinch-hitter for Pedro Pagés, but he would strike out looking leaving Jordan alone in his thoughts at second.

Max Rajcic stayed in the game to handle the top of the 8th inning for the Cardinals. He would unfortunately walk Groover on four straight pitches bringing up Troy who homered to deep center in Monday night’s game, but he struck out on a nasty 82 mph diving curve. He then got Marte to ground out on an awkward attempt at a double play where both Rajcic and Fermin were standing on first base trying to corral the return throw from JJ Wetherholt which was unsuccessful. Fortunately, it did not matter as Perdomo grounded out sharply to Alec Burleson to end the top of the 8th inning.

After the Cardinals bats remained silent in the bottom of the 8th inning, Matt Svanson was brought in to keep the game scoreless for the top half of the 9th and give St. Louis a chance to walk it off in the bottom half. That didn’t work out like the Cardinals wanted. He was able to strikeout leadoff man Corbin Caroll on a nasty 97 mph sinker, but Jordan Walker lost a flyball from Moreno in the lights for a single. Moreno would advance into scoring position at second on a wild pitch by Svanson and then Smith walked bringing up Nolan Arenado with two on and just one out. Spoiler Alert: this encounter did not end well for the Cardinals as Nado turned on a 3-2 fastball and ripped it into the corner giving the Diamondbacks a 9th inning 1-0 lead and it would get worse. Gurriel Jr. connected on a 3-2 single to center scoring both Smith and Arenado making it 3-0 Diamondbacks. Gordon Graceffo was brought in to try and limit Arizona to just 3 runs so there would be some kind of chance in the bottom of the 9th. That hope was also unsuccessful as Gordon walked two to load the bases and then fell over Marte who scored on a passed ball charged to Jimmy Crooks giving Arizona a larger than it needed to be 4-0 lead before the top of the 9th mercifully ended on a flyout by Perdomo.

I wish I could report that the middle and bottom half of the Cardinals lineup pulled off a miracle rally in the bottom of the 9th against Diamondbacks reliever Paul Sewald, but that would be inaccurate. Would you believe that the Cardinals would bring the potential winning run to the plate, though? That really happened after Lars Nootbaar doubled, Jose Fermin singled and Alec Burleson doubled to give St. Louis a run making it 4-1. Blaze Jordan came up with runners at second and third representing the tying run. He would manage a sacrifice fly scoring Fermin cutting the Arizona lead in half at 4-2. Jimmy Crooks looked to redeem himself for the passed ball and run in the top of the 9th inning by doing something dramatically cool in the bottom of the 9th. He would rip a single to right scoring Burleson and making it a one run game. Good gravy. That brought up none other than JJ Wetherholt as the potential winning run. The Diamondbacks were forced to bring in lefthander Brandyn Garcia to try to shut down JJ. Wetherholt unfortunately struck out. BUMMER. The good news? There’s always tomorrow.

Matthew Liberatore will try to turnaround his season Wednesday night as the St. Louis Cardinals play game 3 of their 4 game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Matthew will be opposed by one of the top Diamondbacks prospect Mitch Britt who will make his Major League debut for the Diamondbacks. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45pm central time at Busch Stadium and the TV broadcast will be available on Cardinals.tv.

Another top pitching transfer is making his way to Fort Worth. On the same day the Horned Frogs reportedly landed Tennessee freshman left-hander Taylor Tracey, TCU has reportedly added Oregon junior right-hander Collin Clarke. The 6-foot-3, 205-pounder from Irvine, California went 6-3 with a 4.92 ERA along with 77 strikeouts and 20 walks in 78.2 innings pitched this season. Clarke appeared in 18 games with 13 starts. In his three years with the Ducks, Clarke has made 44 appearances and 27 starts. He has one year of eligibility left.

64 Analytics was first to report the news, which was republished by Jamie Plunkett of HornedFrogBlitz. For his career, Clarke holds an 11-5 record and a 4.96 ERA. He has 151 strikeouts and 45 walks and opposing batters are hitting .262 against him in his career. He played high school baseball at Santa Margarita Catholic in Rancho Santa Margarita, California, where he went 15-5 with a 2.08 ERA, 130 strikeouts and 22 walks in 131.1 innings. He held opposing hitters to a .232 batting average while tossing five complete games.

As a player, fans got to know Buster Posey as a tremendous leader. In the clubhouse. Of a pitching staff. As the most important player on three World Series winners.

They must be wondering where that guy was as Posey, now the team’s top baseball executive, clammed up during a heated 15-minute news conference inside the home dugout Tuesday.

Confronted with questions about the Giants’ LGBTQ+ Pride Night controversy, Posey had nothing to say. He didn’t offer his support to the four players who objected to wearing the rainbow caps over their Christian faith. He didn’t come out against their actions.

Commissioner Rob Manfred rebuked the organization for its “inadequate and not clear” communication to its players regarding the night, but Posey had no response to that, either.

He had no answers at all.

It was an embarrassing waste of time from one of the franchise’s most beloved players, who might be at risk of losing that title with the way the team has performed under his watch.

Posey began by saying he was “happy to take baseball questions” but the impromptu news conference 10 days after the initial incident, in front of a crowd of some 30 reporters and a half-dozen television cameras, devolved to such a degree that a team PR official had to intervene multiple times as the former franchise legend sat there, lips pursed, eyes down — visibly uncomfortable.

“I’d like to recognize that the organization has shared its response to Pride Night, and I understand that there’s strong feelings on this topic,” Posey said in a prepared statement. “There’s differing perspectives, and out of respect to everybody involved, it’s not something that I’m going to revisit.”

Posey was offered opportunity after opportunity to revisit the way the team handled Pride Night and the decisions by three pitchers to write a Bible verse on their hats in violation of MLB uniform policy. A fourth opted out entirely and wore the Giants’ normal hat.

“I can promise you this is something that we’ve talked a lot about internally and will continue to do so,” Posey said. “Our focus is on the team right now, the upcoming draft, the trade deadline and trying to win games.”

But the questions kept coming. Posey squirmed and looked to the PR official behind the scrum of reporters. There was never a situation between the lines that made him sweat this much.

Literally, Posey was perspiring.

Then again, there hasn’t been a moment where he has looked as comfortable running a baseball team as he did playing on one.

It’s been dysfunction from the top down, one miserable misstep after another.

The shortstop he signed to the largest free-agent contract in franchise history forgot the number of outs while hobnobbing with the opponent. The superstar slugger he acquired to anchor their lineup blatantly undercut the rookie manager Posey hired, who has also looked like a fish out of water at times.

He invested $32 million in two starting pitchers and almost nothing in the bullpen, where one of those starters now resides nevertheless. He traded his starting catcher six weeks after Opening Day and now pitchers are having to call their own games.

“It’s been a rough year,” Posey said, happy to answer a baseball question.

The latest incident, when Rafael Devers tried to shoo-away a pinch-runner called for by Tony Vitello as the would-be tying run in the ninth inning of Sunday’s 2-1 loss to the Marlins, was just another example of the empty chair in which Posey is supposedly sitting.

Posey acknowledged it would be important for him to sit down with Devers, even after the first baseman cleared the air with Vitello on the flight back from Miami.

But two days had passed and Posey still hadn’t spoken with the highly paid superstar whose basket he put so many of his eggs in when he committed to paying him more than $30 million per season through 2033.

That’s not the sense of urgency Posey showed when leading the Giants to three World Series titles in 2010, 2012 and 2014.

“Sometimes it’s not fun,” Posey said. “It’s not fun to stand in front of a camera or a microphone, but that’s something he’s going to need to work on.”

No, he wasn’t talking about himself. He was talking about Devers.

The same way Devers’ refusal to answer questions after Sunday’s game put the burden on the shoulders of his teammates, such as Matt Chapman, Posey’s silence on the Pride Night controversy forced Vitello to answer more uncomfortable questions.

Likewise, the organization issued one milquetoast statement and refused to make any other officials available, despite the scandal growing so large that the Department of Justice launched an investigation into MLB on the grounds of religious discrimination.

“I know Buster had words and spoke with some people earlier today about it,” Vitello said.

No, Tony, actually, he didn’t.

Down 5-0 halfway through the game, the Philadelphia Phillies (43-36) came all the way back to take the lead in the eighth inning, coughed in back up and then swallowed it once again with an epic ninth for a 14-9 victory to tie their four-game series against the Washington Nationals (41-39).

Kyle Schwarber was a late-scratch with a sore back but the Nationals’ still opted for a lefty opener, in the form of PJ Poulin, to face the top of the Phillies order in the first inning before giving way to bulk righty, Zack Littel.

Jesus Luzardo had a funky game, giving up five runs for the sixth time in his up-and-down season, but equaled his career-high with 13 strikeouts across his 6.2 innings of work.

The comeback began in the top of the fifth when Bryson Stott led off the inning with the first of his three hits and came home on a two-run home run by Edmundo Sosa, his fifth of the year.

Sosa again scored Stott in the seventh to cut the deficit to two on a fielder’s choice RBI.

The Phillies took the lead in the top of the eighth courtesy of the Nat’s bullpen and some bad luck by right fielder, James Wood.

Brandon Marsh laced a hard fly ball into the right field gap and ended up on third after the scoop was bobbled by Wood for what went down officially as a one-out double and an error. Alec Bohm worked a two-out walk and Stott took a pitch off the abs to load the bases. Ahead 3-1 in the count, JT Realmuto hit a foul ball just over the right field fence that Wood got a glove on but couldn’t secure. On the next pitch, Realmuto stroked a fastball the opposite way that landed just beyond Wood’s outstretched glove to clear the bases and give the Phillies a 6-5 lead. Wood also went 0-5 at the plate.

It took Orion Kerkering eight pitches in the bottom of the eighth to hand the advantage back to the hosts as he surrendered a three-run bomb to Jorbit Vivas after walking the leadoff man and hitting the next batter on the first pitch.

Nationals’ reliever, Brad Lord, who came into the game vying for a spot on the All Star team with a 2.29 ERA, came in to close and gave up a season-high six runs in the top of the ninth, a frame in which the Phillies sent 13 men to the plate, scoring eight total, all of it with two outs.

Marsh hit a two-run home run to tie the game for his third hit of the night, finishing a triple shy of the cycle.

Stott hit a three-run towering shot that stayed just fair of the right field pole. He also scored four runs on the night.

Sosa picked up his fourth and fifth RBIs on a double that scored Realmuto and Gabriel Rincones, Jr., who tripled his hit total for the season with two in the game.

Turner capped off the Phillies’ scoring with his second single of the inning, the first of which snapped an 0-10 drought.

It was the ninth time in their history the Phillies have scored eight or more runs in the ninth inning and first since September 27, 2015, also in Washington.

The Phillies will look to take the series lead tomorrow with Aaron Nola scheduled to face Miles Mikolas.

The trio of rehabbing Mets were back in action down in Triple-A on Tuesday night. 

Francisco Lindor, Tyrone Taylor, and Ronny Mauricio all enjoyed strong nights at the plate as they draw closer to their returns to the big league level. 

Lindor did his job out of the leadoff spot as he reached on an error, laced a pair of opposite-field singles, and came around to score two of Syracuse's eight runs on the night. 

Taylor was the first to knock in Lindor, and the second was by Mauricio. 

Taylor continues to swing a hot bat during his minor league rehab assignment, as he lifted his second homer and also ripped a double as part of a three-hit effort. 

Mauricio had just two knocks, but he drove in three runs with a sacrifice fly and a two-run double. 

Lindor played eight innings at shortstop, Taylor eight in center field, and Mauricio all nine at third base. 

Lindor appears to be the closest to working his way back into the Mets' lineup, as Carlos Mendoza said ahead of the team's series opener with the Cubs that the team will discuss his next steps following Tuesday's game. 

This was arguably his strongest showing through three minor league contests. 

Taylor and Mauricio, meanwhile, are expected to play in the second game of a back-to-back on Wednesday, then they'll see what the next step for them will be from there. 

It's still unknown if Mauricio will return straight to the majors when healthy or stick in the minors. 

The Mets could certainly use all of the help they could get in their lineup, especially after Juan Soto was forced to leave Tuesday's game early due to left side back tightness. 

Two of the bright spots on the mound for Syracuse were left-hander Jefry Yan striking out all five batters he faced, and Dylan Ross closing out his second save of the season around two hits in the ninth. 

It’s Tuesday night here at BCB After Dark: the grooviest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and sit with us for a while. Outside is hot. In here, we’re cool. There are still a few tables available. The hostess will seat you now. There’s a two-drink minimum, but it’s bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

So last night I mistakenly asked you who should leave the rotation when Matthew Boyd returns this week. The funny/awful thing is, I got the idea for the question when someone asked me it in Minor League Wrap and I gallows humored that someone else would get hurt first. Of course, Edward Cabrera went down with an injury today, so he’s leaving the rotation for Boyd.

But as you voted last night, 66 percent of you said Colin Rea.

On Tuesday night, I don’t do movie stuff. But I always have time for jazz, so that time is now. You can skip ahead if you want.

Tonight we have a video featuring Orkestra Obsolete playing New Order’s “Blue Monday,” only using instruments available in the 1930s. This was from BBC Arts from 2016.

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music.

So the Cubs lost another starting pitcher tonight, which happened while I was writing this. But even before that, two things were true. One, the Cubs are currently in line for a Wild Card playoff berth, even with all the struggles in May. And two, the Cubs need more starting pitching.

We all know who the best starting pitcher on the trade market is: Tigers two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. Any team with Skubal in the playoffs is a threat to win it all. He’s the best pitcher in the majors, or at least tied for the best with Paul Skenes.

It’s also true that any team that trades for Skubal will likely lose him after two months for free agency with no compensation. So trading for him gives you a pure rental of one of the best two pitchers on the planet.

So this article on Yahoo! posted some possible trade offers for Tarik Skubal and they have an offer from the Cubs that they think the Tigers would accept.

Matt Shaw

Pedro Ramirez

Jaxon Wiggins

Kevin Alcántara

That’s almost identical to a deal that was proposed on ESPN a few weeks ago with Matt Shaw thrown into the deal. However, ESPN thought it was a good offer, but that other teams could beat that offer that doesn’t include Shaw.

I have two thoughts on the Yahoo! offer, which has a better chance of being accepted by the Tigers. My first thought is that it’s an overpay. My second thought is that you’re not getting Skubal in trade without overpaying. If you’re familiar with the “winner’s curse,” you understand what I mean.

So this deal would cost the Cubs their best pitching prospect, two important bench players with promise and a decent outfield prospect. None of this is anything the Cubs couldn’t afford to lose, but all of it is a lot. It would certainly thin out the Cubs’ organizational depth.

So tonight, I’m just asking you whether you would make this deal. Let’s be clear–all of this is worth it if the Cubs win the World Series. Getting Skubal wouldn’t guarantee a title, but it seems difficult to see how the Cubs starting rotation pitches well enough to pitch the Cubs to a title without getting someone like Skubal. But I certainly see a path to the title with Skubal. After all, you don’t have to worry about limiting his innings if he’s leaving as a free agent after the season.

So would you trade Shaw, Ramirez, Wiggins and Alcantara for Tarik Skubal?

Thanks for stopping by tonight. We’ve enjoyed hosting you. Please get home safely. Call a ride if you need to. Recycle any cans and bottles. Don’t forget any personal items. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow evening for more BCB After Dark.

Jazz Chisholm Jr. isn’t done with his Blow Pop ways; he just seemed to leave them in the dugout on Tuesday. 

Chisholm caught the ire of Yankees skipper Aaron Boone after he was spotted by the broadcast cameras during Monday’s 5-3 loss to the Tigers, enjoying one of the sugary treats while playing second base. 

He didn’t shy away from the controversy on Tuesday during the sixth inning while he was in the dugout, and the YES Network cameras caught him grabbing what appeared to be a case of Double Bubble gum after he hit a home run in the top of the inning to give the Yankees a one-run lead in their 4-3 win. 

However, it quickly became clear that it wasn’t bubble gum, but rather a jar of Blow Pops, which are lollipops with a bubble gum center. 

Chisholm shook the jar clearly showing it was the lollipops, which drew laughter from Yankees play-by-play man Michael Kay. 

Boone was not as amused by it earlier in the day when he appeared on “Talkin’ Yanks” on Tuesday and told the hosts, “That pisses me off.” 

“I didn’t know about it until after the game, so he and I talked about that,” Boone said. “That won’t be going on.” 

Boone was also not aware that Chisholm had previously taken an at-bat with a Blow Pop in his mouth earlier this year when the Yankees were in Boston. 

“Yeah, I’m not on that,” Boone said when he was made aware of the first lollipop incident.  

The Yankees won Tuesday’s game to snap a three-game losing streak. 

Chisholm had a home run, two hits and two RBIs in the victory. 

The Cleveland Guardians and Chicago White Sox continued their battle for first place in the AL Central. Parker Messick gave as good of a performance as you could hope. He went 7.2 innings and threw 95 pitches in his outing. He allowed 2 runs on three hits, including a solo home run, and a walk. Parker struck out 10 batters before Vogt went to Colin Holderman to retire the side in the bottom of the eighth.

The offense continues to be, in a word, abysmal.

In the top of the third Steven Kwan doubled, Austin Hedges was hit by pitch, and both were left in scoring position.

In the top of the fifth Kahlil Watson hit his first major league home run, giving a small shimmer of hope in these trying times.

Austin Hedges and Petey Halpin hit back-to-back singles, bookended by strikeouts. Manzardo drew a walk to load the bases, but runners were left in scoring position.

The Chicago White Sox now have first place as they go into tomorrow’s day game. The 2:10PM EDT start will hopefully put the Guardians back in the win column and avoid losing too much ground in the AL Central.

DETROIT — Jazz Chisholm Jr. took the lollipop out of his mouth and gave the Tigers something to suck on instead.

After creating some bad optics Monday night by sucking on a green apple Blow Pop for an inning while playing second base, which irked his manager, Chisholm was back in Aaron Boone’s good graces by Tuesday night because of his bat.

With the Yankees trailing by a run in the sixth inning, Chisholm popped a two-run homer to give them the lead and help snap a three-game losing streak with a 4-3 win over the Tigers at Comerica Park.

“The Lollipop Kid came through tonight in a big way, so that was good,” Boone said with a chuckle while Lil Wayne’s “Lollipop” blared over the speakers in the victorious clubhouse.

“He can have all the lollipops he wants now.”

“That’s funny, he didn’t say that [Monday],” Chisholm quipped. “No, I’m joking, I’m joking. We talked a little bit, but it wasn’t nothing crazy. Just safety hazards.”

Upon getting back to the dugout and high-fiving his teammates after his 12th home run of the year, off right-hander Casey Mize, Chisholm went right for the box of Blow Pops sitting on the bench, picked it up and showed it to the television cameras filming him.

Chisholm said he was egged on by his teammates, who were shouting to get him a lollipop. But it turns out the home run was preceded by fans near the Yankees on-deck circle, who were getting on Chisholm and asking him, “Where’s the lollipop at?”

“I think everything fuels him,” Boone said.

The dramatic turn of events in the latest chapter of Jazz being Jazz provided a sigh of relief for the Yankees (47-31), who had been in a rut of late and were not playing their best brand of baseball. But they delivered a closer version of it Tuesday, with some strong defense behind Carlos Rodón, Chisholm’s big swing followed by a key RBI double from Austin Wells for what proved to be the winning run, and a sturdy bullpen effort capped by David Bednar’s four-out save.

“Gosh, we played a good game tonight,” Boone said. “Obviously going through a stretch where we’ve lost a few in a row here, you kind of feel like, man, you really want to get this. … Some important things happened within that game to set us up.”

Among them were Rodón (5 ¹/₃ innings, three runs) catching a line drive back at him and doubling a runner off first in the second inning; Cody Bellinger throwing a runner out at the plate to end the fourth inning, keeping the deficit at 2-1; Fernando Cruz getting out of a jam in the sixth inning after the Tigers had crept within 4-3 against Rodón; and Jasson Domínguez making a shoestring catch on a sinking liner and then doubling off the runner at first to end the seventh.

But naturally, the night belonged to Chisholm, who provided a reminder of the talent that comes with his occasional antics.

Earlier in the day, on his weekly “Talkin’ Yanks” podcast appearance, Boone admitted that Chisholm playing the field while sucking on a lollipop “piss[ed] me off.” Then before the game, after addressing the issue with Chisholm, Boone tried to downplay the situation while acknowledging that it was not a good look.

“I don’t think that should be part of what we’re doing,” Boone said.

After Tuesday’s game, Chisholm insisted that he did not think it was a bad look but that the issue was more the physical risk of playing the field with a lollipop in his mouth.

“I’m playing a kid’s game and having fun,” said Chisholm, who also took an at-bat with a lollipop in his mouth during an April game at Fenway Park. “So I don’t think it’s a bad look, I just feel like [it was] safety issues.”

“I love lollipops. I like candy. I like something to distract me a little bit.”

For now, though, they will not be making their way to the field with him.

“You know what?” Boone said. “If that becomes a little bit of a thing, as long as he doesn’t take it out to second base with him, we’re good.”