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The Kansas City Royals lost their 15th series this season, in a 6-4 loss against the Washington Nationals. The NL East club triumphed when it mattered most against Kansas City’s best reliever for much of 2026.

Kansas City Royals left-hander Daniel Lynch IV has been a breakout star this season. Prior to Tuesday’s game against the Washington Nationals, Lynch owned a 1.80 ERA in 30 relief appearances. He limited opponents to a .167 batting average and had issued one hit in his last five outings. In the seventh inning on Tuesday night against the Washington Nationals, Lynch got the call out of the bullpen. With the game tied 3-3, Lynch was tasked with recording a scoreless inning. However, he didn’t get the job done. The Nationals scored three go-ahead runs and regained the lead behind their offense. Lynch didn’t have his best command. He walked two batters before Nationals infielder Curtis Mead belted a three-run homer. Mead hit an 88 mph slider left over the plate for his 11th home run of the year.

Royals Opening Day starter Cole Ragans is getting a second opinion after a setback in his rehab.

After missed a few more days, Ragans had recovered well enough that he was able to return to the mound in a limited capacity. He threw a 23-pitch bullpen session on June 10. The next morning, however, he awoke with discomfort in the arm. He couldn’t make it through playing catch on the field. Now, the Royals want to understand more about the pitcher’s case of VEO. “Ragans met with Dr. (Vincent) Key yesterday,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said Tuesday. “He’s still having symptoms, so he’ll continue to be shut down. And we’re going to have him see another doctor in the next couple of days.

Seth Lugo is expected to come off the concussion list this Friday.

The Royals’ promotion of Kendry Chourio is not just a good thing for the organization, but challenges one of the game’s hottest pitching prospects.

“The better pitchers have always let you know when they’re ready to move and ready for the major leagues,” Royals senior director of pitching performance Paul Gibson said. It became clear that Chourio was ready for a new challenge. In his last three starts, Chourio allowed four runs in 16 ⅓ innings. He won each outing and held opponents to a .193 batting average. Chourio will face developed hitters with High-A Quad Cities. The Royals rave about his elite command that features a plus-fastball and two distinct off-speed pitches. “His changeup and his curveball were both good pitches with higher ceiling,” Gibson said. “So like any young pitcher that has the velocity that Chourio has, running through lineups with that fastball-heavy attack is going to be a natural thing.”

This is something Garcia has been dealing with but only flares up at certain times, like it did on the foul ball tonight. Royals are working through next steps tonight but IL could be in play. We’ll see tomorrow. https://t.co/YcilqQ8jwJ

— Anne Rogers (@anne__rogers) June 17, 2026

Craig Brown talked about Monday’s 7-3 loss in his latest, but sums up the 2026 Royals experience.

I don’t know…You want to point a finger somewhere but damned if I know where to aim. Spence did a credible job getting through the first four innings. The fifth was just a bridge—or and inning—too far. Maybe Matt Quatraro should’ve been quicker with the hook, but…waves hands at the bullpen what would you expect from that move? Quatraro said postgame that they hoped Spence could give the team five. Reasonable. And smart. When you’re talking about needing the Royals bullpen in 2026, four innings of work sounds a helluva lot better than five. More innings, more problems. There was the shoddy defense in left where Collins deflected a bases-loaded single from Luis García Jr. in that fateful fifth. Had he played it cleanly maybe a solitary run scores instead of two. Collins has left me largely unimpressed this season, but tough to get worked up over a gift run when some guy up a few batters later clears the bases.

You want to get ticked off, but it’s kind of tough to give a damn. That’s kind of the whole vibe around this bunch in 2026. It’s tough to give a damn. The thing is, I don’t think I can say anything worse about a baseball team. They’re just wholly uninteresting, uninspiring and uncompetitive.

Royals Keep looks at the team’s struggles against left-handed pitching, dating back to the start of last season.

At first glance, the Royals appear competitive in both batting average and strikeout rate. Yet once again, the same pattern emerges: a lack of impact. Their slugging percentage sits well below the league average, while their home-run rate ranks as the fourth-lowest in baseball during the period examined.

Production with runners in scoring position has not been distributed evenly either. Witt, Garcia, and a handful of timely contributions from Loftin have generated positive results, but much of the rest of the lineup has struggled to convert opportunities into meaningful damage.

That is why Kansas City’s struggles against left-handed pitching cannot be explained by a single statistic or one underperforming player. The organization has two hitters who have consistently demonstrated the ability to thrive in these matchups. It has also received occasional contributions from other members of the roster. What it has not found is a sufficiently broad offensive foundation capable of supporting those strengths.

The Royals rank second to last in The Athletic’s latest power rankings, with a focus on the team’s lone consensus positive.

With 3.0 fWAR in 72 games, Witt found himself ranked No. 9 on FanGraphs’ WAR charts, behind the likes of Aaron Judge, Cal Raleigh and Shohei Ohtani.

Today?

First place at 3.9 fWAR in 71 games.

With Judge on the IL, it’s a two-man race to MVP between Witt and Houston’s Yordan Alvarez. If Witt has his way, he’ll be Kansas City’s second player ever to win the year-end award.

For now, he’s pacing toward a third-straight All-Star appearance for a Royals team that has not had much go right for it over the past two seasons.

The Rafael Devers trade has been an unmitigated lose-lose for the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox.

As the stadium completion looms, the A’s still have a foundation to lay in Las Vegas.

Tom Glavine sees parallels between the coming labor fight and the 1994 strike.

Chris Bzozowski looks at some independent ball players, including the Kansas City Monarchs standing tall in the pitching side of the house.

Under the Knife’s Will Carroll looks at another rash of hamate injuries around the league.

Lance Brozdowski ranks his top 50 pitching prospects.

Dave Helling looks at Kansas City’s love and investment in sports at all levels.

Sam Miller breaks down the old reliable of a modern baseball broadcast, the Statcast 3D Powered By Google Cloud pitcher scouting report.

Buster Olney looks at the 12 MLB executives under the most pressure at the trade deadline.

Lionel Messi notched his first World Cup hat trick as Argentina faced Algeria in Arrowhead Stadium.

A deeper look at the overlooked NFL supplemental draft.

NHL viewership reached record heights in 2026 playoffs.

Former YouTube creators are leading the box office charge in 2026.

After turning “Obsession” into one of the most profitable movies ever, director Curry Barker ponders what it means.

Loved ones identify, remember the 12 people killed in a skydiving plane crash in Butler, Missouri, on Sunday.

Lawrence stands out for welcoming Algeria as their World Cup home team.

The rotting smell of the titan arum drew hundreds of on-sniffers to Winfield, Kansas.

Today’s song of the day is Coal by Dylan Gossett.

It is important to put your best foot forward when constructing a lineup. The lead-off hitter has been one of the most interesting batting-order roles in baseball history, as the use of the spot has been tinkered with throughout the game’s history.

For the longest time, it was simply the spot where the fast person on the team would reside to get on base by any means necessary and steal second base. Over time, especially in the last decade, that spot in the lineup has evolved to produce more and more power threats to jump-start an offense and ensure that one of a team’s best hitters is getting as many plate appearances as possible in a game.

Whatever archetype a team pursues relies heavily on a single unifying factor: The hitter has to be able to produce.

The Colorado Rockies had the luxury of having one of the greatest lead-off hitters in baseball history for the better part of a decade in Charlie Blackmon. While he didn’t exactly burn rubber with his legs in the latter part of his career, Blackmon exemplified an excellent hitter to get on base by any means necessary while also tapping into power that made him dangerous at the top of the order. However, since his retirement after the 2024 season, the Rockies spent all of 2025 trying to find a hitter who sticks at the top of the order, and that has continued into 2026.

So, without further ado, let’s dive into what’s going on with the lead-off spot this season and who may have the chops to stick there for the near future.

The team stats

Entering Tuesday, the Rockies are a mixed bag out of the lead-off spot in the lineup. They rank seventh in batting average (.271), but rank 16th in on-base percentage (.331), seventh in slugging percentage (.397) and 23rd with 91 wRC+. As for some of the other prudent stats, the Rockies have a 22.8% strikeout rate (10th) and a 7.6% walk rate (26th).

It’s evident that the Rockies are, as an offense, aggressive when it comes to swings and tend to make much more contact. A highly ranked average makes sense with that philosophy, but it has shown its drawbacks. Lead-off hitters end up with a higher strikeout rate that reflects what the team is going after due to the lack of on-base skills. Colorado lead-off batters have drawn just 26 walks, while the Washington Nationals lead the league with 59.

They are not necessarily the worst things in the world, as making contact generally is the best way to yield results. The Rockies have a .342 BABIP out of the top spot in the lineup, which ranks third in all of baseball, just behind the Nationals (.365) and the Milwaukee Brewers (.345), while being just ahead of the Los Angeles Dodgers (.332). There is a good amount of luck at play with BABIP, but the top of the order is finding success swinging the bat and collecting hits.

The main concern has been that when the lead-off hitter reaches, not much happens afterward, as the team ranks 18th in runs scored (40). However, the players batting first are being productive as they have driven in the ninth-most runs in baseball with 37 RBI. So, while they have been generating some traffic for the big hitters behind them, they have done well to cash in on the opportunities afforded by the bottom of the order ahead of them. Even if they have just six home runs, the doubles and handful of triples have made the most of things.

Now, we can turn our attention to the players actually stepping up to the plate in the lead-off spot. In 2026, there have been 14 players to hit in the one spot of the lineup. However, only seven have made a start there, and for today’s purposes, we will briefly touch on the three hitters with the most appearances.

Edouard Julien (126 PA)

As the Rockies cycled through a few different options in the first spot of the batting order, Edouard Julien got the nod on April 6 and delivered a 2-for-5 day. He continued to find success through April and looked like the unconventional answer to the lead-off spot. However, Julien endured a horrendous May where he went 5-for-69 at the plate. He was dropped to the bottom third of the order on May 18 and, since then, has hit in the lead-off spot just twice as June has been a better month for him.

Overall, Julien has slashed .252/.341/.342 in the top spot of the order with two home runs, 12 RBI, and three stolen bases. He has also struck out 32 times against 15 walks.

Julien’s hit tool and ability to draw walks are what make him a viable lead-off option, but slumps like the one he had in May make him a little more unpredictable and harder to trust in that spot. The majority of his other time spent in the lineup has come in the nine-hole, where he can act as a pseudo lead-off hitter, which is still valuable in its own way.

Jake McCarthy (86 PA)

What better tool for a traditional lead-off hitter than speed? Jake McCarthy has speed to spare at the plate, and the Rockies hoped that McCarthy could thrive at the top of the order when given the opportunity. His first five appearances of the year all came as the lead-off hitter, where he went 2-for-18. Starting with his start on April 3, McCarthy saw his role relegated to the bottom part of the order where, like Julien, he could act as a type of lead-off hitter in the nine-hole to set the table for the Mickey Moniaks and Hunter Goodmans of the world.

As McCarthy continued to play hot through April and through May, he made a start as the lead-off hitter on May 20 and went 2-for-5 with a triple, two runs scored, and a stolen base. He continued to fill the spot until he became ill during the Chicago Cubs series at Coors Field. Since returning, he has moved more into the middle third of the order.

He is batting .238/.279/.400 in the lead-off spot with five doubles, a triple, two home runs, nine RBI, and six stolen bases. He has struck out 18 times against four walks. His contact tools and speed are a great asset that will garner more looks in the lead-off spot as needed, but his numbers suggest that hitting in the bottom third of the order has brought about a lot of success and may be more beneficial to the lineup.

Willi Castro (50 PA)

That brings us to the Swiss Army knife of the Rockies lineup, Willi Castro. Bouncing around on defense and in the lineup, Castro has proven to be a useful tool for manager Warren Schaeffer. Castro has mostly been used in the heart of the lineup this season, rotating through the 3-to-6 spots in the lineup. He has been consistent in most spots, but the Rockies have experimented with using Castro in the first and second spots on occasion since May 13. Since that day, Castro has been hitting quite well as he fills in different spots, but the lead-off position has become more prevalent over the last two weeks in June, where he has started 5-of-8 games as the lead-off hitter.

On the year, Castro is slashing .378/.440/.556 with two doubles, two home runs, and eight RBI. He has also shown off a keen eye with eight strikeouts against five walks. Castro’s ability to make quality contact while also being a switch-hitter is a significant advantage for a lead-off hitter. They are also skills that have translated well to batting in the second spot. What’s been fascinating is that, unlike Julien and McCarthy, Castro has done well as the first hitter of the game for the Rockies, where he is 5-for-11 with just one strikeout.

Castro has proven to be one of the quietly consistent hitters for the Rockies over the first two months and has heated up quite a bit more in June. His calm contact approach that can dip into power has made him an intriguing lead-off choice for the near future.

Who is next?

Schaeffer has shown that he is willing to experiment with shaking up the lineup and trying hitters in different spots. For now, Castro will see his fair share of at-bats from the top spot, but that can always change if he cools off. For what it’s worth, Cole Carrigg (No. 4 PuRP) could easily be a candidate to get some action at the top of the order at some point. After all, he slashed .285/.336/.455 with the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes as the lead-off man.

Lineup construction is a fickle thing and a constantly changing puzzle. But the right guy in the top spot of the order can make a difference in how the offense plays out.

Who would you like to see stick in the lead-off spot? Or what other players would you like to see get a crack at it? Keep things rolling in the comments below!

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On the Farm

Triple-A: Albuquerque Isotopes 8, Sugar Land Space Cowboys 3

The Albuquerque Isotopes thumped their way to a victory once again as they took down Sugar Land 8-3. Charlie Condon had another two-hit game, including a triple and his 10th home run of the season, a two-run shot. Jose Cordova, who replaced Zac Veen early in the game, went 3-for-3 with two doubles and an RBI. Mike Antico had a two-run double in the game while Nic Kent had a pair of hits. Domingo Acevedo tossed 3.2 innings in his start, allowing three runs in the first inning. The bullpen then locked it down the rest of the way, giving up just three hits.

Double-A:Hartford Yard Goats 6, Reading Fightin’ Phils 5

Thanks to a four-run fourth inning and a crucial insurance run in the seventh inning, the Hartford Yard Goats secured a 6-5 victory. Roc Riggio had himself a good night at the plate for Hartford, going 3-for-5 with two doubles and a triple. He also drove in a pair of runs, including the game-winning run in the seventh. Aidan Longwell also contributed his 10th home run of the season with a three-run blast in the fourth inning as part of a two-hit day. Konner Eaton made the start on the mound and went just 1.2 innings, giving up three runs on two hits while allowing four walks. Stu Flesland III ended up tossing 4.1 innings of bulk relief, allowing just one run on four hits. Carlos Torres delivered two scoreless innings, followed by Andrew Baker, who secured the save despite allowing a run in the bottom of the ninth.

High-A:Spokane Indians 15, Vancouver Canadians 11

It was a high-scoring affair in Spokane as the Indians scored in all but two innings and survived a rough top of the eighth en route to victory. Spokane had 15 hits with the 1-through-6 batters each collecting at least two. The team slugged four home runs with Jack O’Dowd contributing his sixth of the year, Roynier Hernandez hitting two homers while driving in six, and Alan Espinal adding a two-run homer in the eighth. Max Belyeu also had a pair of doubles and scored four runs. Bryson Hammer had a solid start, going five innings and allowing two runs, but it was Bryan Perez that had the rough night on the mound. Pitching in the eighth, he allowed eight runs on six hits, including two home runs, while recording just two outs. Francis Rivera replaced him to finish the inning followed by a clean ninth to secure the save.

Low-A:Fresno Grizzlies 4, Inland Empire 66ers 3

The Fresno Grizzlies delivered a walk-off victory thanks to Ashly Andujar as they won 4-3. Despite 12 hits, the Grizzlies went 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position but the Grizzlies made it count. Tanner Thach led the offense with three hits while Andujar, Kyle Fossum and Carlos Renzullo each had two hits. Jesus Freitez drove in a pair of runs with a solo home run in the fifth inning and an RBI fielder’s choice in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game 3-3 before coming around to score the winning run. Austin Newton had a good night on the mound, allowing two runs on eight hits with six strikeouts over seven innings. Dylan Crooks pitched the last two innings and have up the go-ahead run in the top of the ninth, but the offense bailed him out. An interesting thing of note was that neither team issued a walk.

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Rockies’ Hunter Goodman Needs More Recognition After First All-Star Ballot Results | Rockies on SI

Be sure to vote for Hunter Goodman for the All-Star ballot because he is very much deserving to start for the NL this season!

Affected by Altitude Episode 214: The Kids are All Right | Rocky Mountain Rooftop

This week, Evan Lang and I talk about the recent rookie call-ups, look through the injury report, and talk Kyle Freeland’s legacy in Colorado.

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Though the Atlanta Braves only completed one inning on Tuesday night, the injury scares continued. In the bottom of the second inning against the San Francisco Giants, Michael Harris II was removed due to lower back tightness. There has not been any update on his status at this time.

Earlier this month, Harris dealt with lower back tightness and was out of the lineup for a couple days. He was able to come on as a pinch hitter and win the game for Atlanta, so hopefully this is a similar situation and nothing overly serious.

As far as the contest, the game was suspended in the bottom of the second inning and will resume this afternoon at 2pm ET with a 3-2 Giants lead.

More Braves News:

Check out the latest Braves Biweekly to be caught up on how Atlanta has performed the first half of June. 

Georgia Tech outfielder Drew Burress has been connected to the Braves, so here is a scouting report ahead of the MLB Draft. 

MLB News:

The Seattle Mariners placed Randy Arozarena on the 10-day injured list with left hamstring tightness. The move is retroactive to June 13.

The Chicago Cubs placed closer Daniel Palencia on the 15-day injured list with elbow inflammation. 

The Cleveland Guardians placed outfielder Angel Martinez on the 10-day injured list with a fractured food. He is expected to miss four to six weeks. 

From the Feed:

Drake Baldwin returned from the IL and launched a home run Tuesday. 

One of the main problems last season was that the Cardinals were in R&D mode and in budget-aging-vet pitcher mode simultaneously, resulting in negative WAR value output from several players. From the testing of developing players standpoint, a brigade of suck was in effect from enough players that it created a siphoning effect that spoiled the performance of the team. We aren’t talking about just a player or two, but an aggregate of -.1 and -.2 WAR guys, basically replacement-level players on the downturn (Michael Siani, Cesar Prieto, Nolan Gorman, Garret Hampson, Ryan Vilade, Jose Barrero), a -.4 WAR version of Jimmy Crooks, and the failing big prospect that was 2025 Jordan Walker who finished at -1.3 WAR. The siphoning effect of this R&D mode was a negative 2.7 WAR!

On the pitching side there was a total of -1.3 WAR, so theoretically the team could’ve been 4 wins better if they would have just gotten replacement level performances out of 13 roster spots. It was not as fun as it should’ve been.

Then you had the constant reminder that two spots in the rotation would be occupied by guys like Miles Mikolas (a hair above replacement level last season), replacement level Erick Fedde, with up-and-comer Michael McGreevy doing his best. But that’s the past now, and in 2026, Chaim Bloom’s Cardinals roster management is more up to the task.

***

Jimmy Crooks will be 25 before the season is over. All of the projection systems like his bat more than Pedro Pages’, and maybe his defense too. According to projections, look to get from .8 to 1 WAR out of Jimmy. Or if his bat surprises, he will be more than an 87 to 101 wRC+ hitter, which covers the range of mainstream projection systems. Could we hope for something like 105-110+? _{My wishcasting projections articles at the beginning of the season seem less wishy-washy at this point for several players (*I did not know that Jordan Walker was going to do this, though, just to be clear!).} With Jimmy Crooks, it sure feels like it’s a main catcher upgraded scenario! Pedro is still there for depth and support, and of course, Ivan Herrera carries on as a DH/C hybrid.

How is Jimmy Crooks actually hitting so far? 83 wRC+ over 35 PA with 1 HR… he’s hitting like Pedro Pages!

After Nolan Gorman was set to soon surpass his -.2 WAR total of last season, the Cardinals decided to stop that situation from happening again. Blaze Jordan was hitting really well at AAA, so the timing was perfect. Blaze Jordan is just 23, but is projected to be about average on 3B defense, maybe a tad less, if anything, but not bad projections there really. But what he was really promoted for was his hitting. A consensus of projections have him at 94 wRC+, but there are a good number of systems projecting him as a league average hitter. And we think he can be better than that, don’t we? _{Wishcasting again.} If nothing else, he should turn the tide at third base and not be negative fWAR. Projections say that Blaze should be worth at least half a WAR. Maybe more if he is mature for his age. Could be… it would be sort of a miracle if the Cardinals get more than 1 WAR from his the rest of the way, but, it also doesn’t sound too far-fetched.

How is Blaze Jordan actually hitting so far? 159 wRC+ over 19 PA! 1 HR and 12 Total Bases ( he already has a home run, triple, double, and singles, well played Blaze).

Nathan Church falls under the same category of stop-gap reinforcement players. I like all three of these guys enough to view the projections as their floor. It’s the same story with Church, he isn’t projected to be league average at hitting, but he is projected as a helluva lot better than Victor Scott II at the plate. He should also be good for half a WAR, instead of minus fWAR. The consensus projection has him at around 88 wRC+.

How is Nathan Church actually hitting so far? 92 wRC+ over 185 PA, right around his projections. But to make it more fun, he’s hit 5 HR! It may be funny to hear that Blaze Jordan is beating Nathan Church in the triples dept.

Which of the three do you think will be the best hitter? The obvious answer is Blaze Jordan, but Jimmy Crooks is probably the best overall prospect of the three. And the darkhorse candidate would be one Nathan Church, he isn’t projected to be too bad at the plate either. Maybe one of them will end up being above league average at hitting! Wouldn’t that be nice. So far we have Jimmy underperforming on offense, Church at projections, and Blaze torching his projections sheet.

The upgrade of Crooks over Pages is probably only a marginal upgrade, but if he can hit MLB pitching, he will be a sizable one. His defense is better, overall, and he could be the catcher of the future for all we know. Maybe we will have three different catchers tailored to different pitchers? Get creative, Cardinals! I know you will.

The upgrade over Gorman will be tough to tell for a while. The projections still like Gorman as much as Blaze Jordan at hitting, and his defense is probably a little better than Jordan’s. But in the abstract, it sure seems like the bleeding has been stopped when it comes to third base offense. And for what it’s worth, I don’t think the projections are right about Gorman.

Nathan Church is obviously an upgrade on offense over Victor Scott II, so that problem is also sort of solved. The defense won’t be quite as good, but it is certainly good enough. It will help a lot if Church ends up a league average hitter or more…

These three players may only be marginal upgrades, but they have made the lineup a lot easier to watch, more balanced, and a lot less lopsided. A bottom of the order of Jimmy Crooks, Blaze Jordan, and Nathan Church is just obviously better than it was earlier in the season, at least watching as a fan so far. The middle of the season is where we are going to find out if Nathan Church is more than a stopgap measure, if Jimmy Crooks is ready to take the reins of the main Cardinals catcher, and if Blaze Jordan has been promoted too soon or right on time!

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Ok so, this comes as a surpise to me, but it could be that Bloom and the Cardinals freaked out a bit because there is another list of negative WAR players this season, and they have already reached -2.4 WAR. Break glass! EXIT!

With a tough month of July coming up, the Cardinals needed reinforcements. By changing the roster so much for the middle third of the season, the Cardinals just may stem the flow of loss through player value. Victor Scott II, Pedro Pages, and Nolan Gorman obviously could not hit 2026 MLB pitching.

One last note: who was even more demotable than Gorman and Victor Scott II? Thomas Saggese at -.4 WAR.

Along Came Noot

While we have turned the tide with rising prospects (hopefully!), we must not forget what may be the biggest upgrade of all: Lars Nootbaar. Noot has come back from a somewhat long healing process from surgery on his heels… and it’s at a next level for him: in 45 PA, Lars has hit 2 HR, 2 doubles, knocked in 6 runs, and scored 7 times. It sure is fun having this guy back on the team, and watching him now as the elder is wonderful!

At 138 wRC+, Nootbaar is hitting at Burly and Herrera levels! I know he won’t be able to keep that up (but hope he does!), but wow, this lineup is stacked with Lars Nootbaar in it! And let’s keep in mind Nootbaar won’t even turn 30 until next year. Not only is the bottom of the order not a huge liability now, there are 5 well above average hitters in the lineup. That’s fantastic!

And it’s not just the ‘Return of Nootbaar’, the ignition of Blaze Jordan, the return of injured Church, and Jimmy Crooks III; the bench is WAY better with Bryan Torres and Nelson Velazquez. Jose Fermin isn’t too shabby either, hitting around league average. That’s some real depth all of a sudden.

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And so ends the baseball portion of this week’s article. And it is time to talk music over the years of my life. After going through COVID this decade I have been listening to a lot of music of the past, but now, I am focusing on each year going back 50 years. I started with 1975, and now I’m up to 1991.

1991

1991 featured an explosion of the evolution of heavy metal, the big grungey debuts of Nirvana’s ‘Nevermind’ and the masterpiece that is ‘Badmotorfinger’ by Soundgarden, several important and absolutely classic shoegaze albums, and the advancement of hiphop into new creative realms. And more! Next week I will be focusing on that huge heavy metal explosion… this week, all that other good stuff.

• My Bloody Valentine – ‘Loveless’ you probably either love it, hate it, or still have never heard of it, but Loveless by My Bloody Valentine of the UK is absolutely incredible and sounds like nothing else before or after. Channeling punk, pop, psychedelia, noise, and even hiphop influences as per the band leader’s interviews, the notoriously over budget, multiple studio warpage of time and space into sonic art is a capture of guitar innovations, gigantic walls of sound generated by actual walls of amplifiers and oozing with effects pedals. Best heard on vinyl with your head between two big speakers with the sound cranked up. I’m not even so sure it’s their best album but it is absolutely memorable and fantastic and stands on its own planet of sound.
• Mr Bungle – self titled It was pretty tough not to rank this #1 because this album opened a lot of doors into different genres of music for me, and also acted as a weirdo dark comedic concept album recorded impeccably well. The main aspects of this album is how it’s somehow on a major label, it’s from way back in 1991, and it just gets you ready for hearing heavy metal, funk, jazz, ska, experimental music, and more.
• Soundgarden – ‘Badmotorfinger’ perhaps the best grunge album of all time! this or Dirt by AIC. If there is a sound more unmistakenly 90s, I guess it would have to be something like Nevermind because of it’s uber-popularity (which will be covered further down in the list). Perfect album from start to finish. I have retired all of the first three into my album hall of fame, btw, written in past years! We are getting into my high school stomping ground of music.
• Massive Attack – ‘Blue Lines’ Massive Attack’s debut I would file under the very best of trip-hop releases, and among the band’s best albums. This to me is every bit as good as their mega-release ‘Mezzanine’, it’s just a lot different. (my other favorite by Massive Attack is ‘100th Window’). ‘Blue Lines’ shows the roots of the genre, way back in 1991 there wasn’t much else like this. Another big UK release! But forget all that, I would simply call this an all time classic of any genre!
• PRIMUS – ‘Sailing the Seas of Cheese’ rounding out my top 5 is this super fun, genius level musical experience, complete with claymation cover and videos! The musicianship on display here is both of some of the most tightly crafted and the most bizarre. Super creative, artsy, but also dark and heavy and magnificently twisted. I would rank this higher but I honestly listen to ‘Badmotorfinger’ and ‘Blue Lines’ more often these days. Primus is more of a special, cheesy occasion. But also, super necessary.
• Dogfaced Hermans – ‘Mental Blocks For All Ages’ wow has this band gone from the outer reaches of my brain to one of the favorite bands in a really short period of time! I always remembered hearing the name over the years but never bought an album or saw them live. Well now, consider me a big fan. Really cool post-punk music recorded really well and where have you been all my life.
• The Jesus Lizard – ‘Goat’ the Jesus Lizard get even weirder here, and it was either the first or second album I bought from them, while I was still in high school. I’m sure it warped my mind just as much as anything else! Creepy, weird, and brimming with creative rock and punk vibes. They are at their best here just as they are on all of their first 4 albums. David Yow is the nicest unhinged madman you’ll ever meet. Air-tight Steve Albini recording!
• Talk Talk – ‘Laughing Stock’ shout out to the VEB’rs who recommended this band to me! This so happens to be my favorite album by them. It crosses so many styles of music while sounding natural about it, taking music to new places while keeping it chill. I wasn’t expecting to put it high on the list but this is pretty high!
• Sonny Sharock – ‘Ask The Ages’ another big find that I am still getting accustomed to… for fans of jazz and rock! Sharock did the them for Space Ghost Coast to Coast, in case you hadn’t heard. Very uniquely gifted guitarist and the right band to back him up! Instrumental genius.
• SWANS – ‘White Light From the Mouth of Infinity’ goth rock at its best! there is even a song or two that sounds like, triphop? I think so! This sounds nothing like the Swans of the 80s. Music for a new era. A dark introspective masterpiece.
• Del the Funky Homosapien – ‘I Wish My Brother George Was Here’ Del The Funky Homosapien is one of the most gifted rappers and producers of all time! His wordplay is not to be fucked with. And this album is just a bunch of funky awesomeness from a big year in rap music. I have lost track of the amount of times I’ve listened to this one! Been with me since the late 90s on a used CD.
• Gang Starr – ‘Step In The Arena’ Gang Starr is Guru and DJ Premier. If you know, you know. I wasn’t too into hiphop in high school but I remembered years late that some of my friends were into Gang Starr. One of them is no longer with us. He got a little too into the lifestyle. I ended up buying their best of years later, which made me a fan of Guru’s socially conscious lyrics and the top notch production of DJ Premier.
• Organized Konfusion – self titled with Del the funky homosapien, hiphop began to branch out into an “alt hiphop” direction. Organized Konfusion I would throw under the same umbrella with A Tribe Called Quest and De La Soul occupying that new territory as well. Organized Konfusion ended up being around for a while, never quite cracking into the mainstream, but they were too cool for that. To sum it up: this is just a damn good party album! An exciting, really fun listen, that if I gave it more of a chance, might move up several spots on this list.
• Main Source – ‘Breaking Atoms’ along the same lines as Organized Konfusion, if you like fun early 1990s hiphop, you need this in your library. Still new to me, and obviously sort of obscure, but I love it.
• Public Enemy – ‘Apocalypse 91… the Enemy Strikes Black’ running out of time here, but Public Enemy and the Bombsquad were still in their prime here! Classic hiphop.
• MC Solaar – ‘MC Solaar – “Qui sème le vent récolte le tempo when I worked at an ad agency my department (the scanning and imaging dept) used to play this album and the one after it all the time! That’s how I got into French rapper MC Solaar. I don’t know French but this music is really freakin cool.
• Nirvana – ‘Nevermind’ and yes I do love this album, and it’s very important along the musical timeline of history… but it’s not my favorite of theirs like at all. It’s a perfect album don’t get me wrong, and it deserves a lot of its legacy, and yep, ahead of its time. But yeah, I liked Bleach and In Utero and maybe even Incesticide more. I think it just may be one of those classic albums I’ve heard too many times, but it’s still good.
• Fishbone – ‘Reality of My Surroundings’ this album was on my bench for when I was sick of hearing everything else. It’s a really really good 90s album, I would recommend it to anyone looking to hear the sound of 1991. I should listen to this one more often, reminds me of being in high school and learning about a bunch of musical styles. Fantastic album, the opening track “Fight The Youth” is THE song to hear. Lots of funk and ska going on here, but mostly it just rocks in an alternative fashion.
• Chapterhouse – ‘Whirlpool’ obviously my 2nd favorite shoegaze album from the important year of 1991. It sounds like a cross between My Bloody Valentine and Slowdive, sort of, but they are contemporaries and just didn’t get as famous. This album is truly fantastic, and good! If you like the genre, it’s a must have.
• Dinosaur Jr – ‘Green Mind’ total 90s classic rock here, and put Dinosaur Jr on the map around the country! They toned down their sound a bit here, but to good ends. The songs end up more memorable than previous albums, as good as they were.
• Slowdive – ‘Just For A Day’ another defining shoegazer classic! For those who don’t know the genre: it’s named because of a journalist coining the term, as a lot of the bands would stare at the floor and their pedalboards. It’s at times noisy, psychedelic, post-punk, but Slowdive pushed forward the dreampop nature of it, and this is them at their early stages, already nailing the sound.
• Nomeansno – ‘0+2=1’ oh man this is so good! Punk rock at its best! Maybe this should be higher. It’s growing on me.
• Swervedriver – ‘Deep Seat’ 1990s classic shoegaze album from the big year of 1991! My favorite song is “Rave Down”, getting goosebumps hearing it right now. Driving alt rock of the highest order.
• Rabih Abou-Khalil – ‘Al-Jadida’ as it turns out Middle Eastern jazz is really fucking cool! I would induct this into my jazz hall of fame in a heartbeat.
• Mercury Rev – ‘Yerself is Steam’ I have never given this album enough of a chance but whenever I heard it I recognize its place in music history as a very unique form of art and a very 1991 entry into the psychedelic rock lexicon. Very alternative.
• Honorable Mentions: Ween – ‘The Pod’ I don’t even know what to say about this but, it’s gotta be heard to be believed. The ultimate fucked up stupid drug music, or total genius bedroom recording masterpiece? You decide. De La Soul – ‘De La Soul Is Dead’ one more 1991 classic hiphop masterpiece! A Tribe Called Quest – ‘Low End Theory’ and how could I forget this top tier 1991 hiphop album for the ages! I almost did! wth

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The Cardinals play an afternoon game today. At 1:15pm Kyle Leahy defends his home turf vs the Padres and Griffin Canning (what a name!) who isn’t doing so well this season. Fangraphs gives the Cardinals a 55.4% chance of winning.