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This is going to be something we’ll be keeping an eye on all season, isn’t it? Yesterday, fourteen days after suffering what was hoped to be a minor wrist injury back on May 4, Roman Anthony once again swung a bat. It did not go well, and Anthony’s progression is going to be slowed down. “Obviously, you’re not going to have him swing through soreness and discomfort, so not as good news today,” said Chad Tracy. “But we’ll back off and see what happens after the off day with a few more days of rest.” A young phenom stymied by a wrist injury? If you lived through the Nomar Garciaparra era, you probably don’t want to see a sequel. (Alex Speier, Boston Globe)

As somnambulant as the Red Sox lineup has been, they can’t afford to lose Anthony for the long-term. As it is, the team’s underperformance is starting to weigh on a lot of the players, like Caleb Durbin. “It’s tougher honestly away from the field and pre-work. It’s all I think about. This is our life. For me, like I know what I’m capable of. And like coming into the year, I had really high expectations. Obviously as a team we did and still a lot of ball left, but obviously the games we’ve played up to this point matter a lot, too. Every game matters.” (Christopher Smith, MassLive)

There’s been a lot of fan debate about whether Durbin should be sent down to AAA while he tries to fight through his struggles. The team hasn’t spoken much about that, but he is going to get less playing time while Nick Sogard is up. “I don’t think it means it’s a permanent Sogie’s taking over at third,” Chad Tracy said. “I think you’ll still see Durbin. I just think that on given days, if we see a matchup we like and Sogie’s part of it, we’ll use him. But we’re searching for runs, trying to get runs.” (Christopher Smith, MassLive)

So the Caleb Durbin deal doesn’t look so hot right now. But Craig Breslow did nail two other offseason trades. As of now, the trades for Willson Contreras and Sonny Gray look like absolute steals. (Rob Bradford, WEEI)

And let’s give thanks for the trades not made, like any trade that would’ve sent Payton Tolle elsewhere. The Sox’s “cartoon character” is showing that he’s becoming a complete pitcher. (Ian Browne, MLB.com)

But a few nice offseason trades aren’t enough to shield Craig Breslow from the slings and arrows as this Red Sox team continues to flounder. And they’re not just coming from the fans, Jason Varitek’s wife is getting in on the action:

Now nearly two months into the minor league season, the Mariners have had plenty of young farmhands show off their immense talent across the minor leagues. With midseason reranks rapidly approaching, let’s check in on Lookout Landing’s top ten preseason prospects.

SS Colt Emerson – MLB – .255/.347/.469, 10.1% BB%, 27.2% K% in AAA

Colt will soon be graduating from these ranks and is currently manning the hot corner for the big league ballclub, but the 20 year old shortstop had really started to get things going in Tacoma after a tough start to the year. He’s displaying more pop, commanding the zone at a rate more in line to his career averages, and his stellar defense remained throughout despite his woes at the plate. It’s a fair critique to question if his whiff “problems” should have kept him down in the minors a hair longer, but with that decision already made, it will be trial by fire for Colt as he looks to establish his permanent foothold in the major leagues.

LHP Kade Anderson – AA – 34 IP, 1.85 ERA, 51K, 5BB

It’s tough to poke holes in Kade Anderson’s professional career thus far. He had his first clunker last week and got hit around quite a bit, but his numbers remain pristine due to his utter dominance prior. Still just 21 years old, Anderson’s polish is unmatched across minor league baseball and has already pushed him into a near-consensus top ten prospect in all of baseball. He’ll be ready to roll in the big leagues by the start of next season at the latest.

RHP Ryan Sloan – AA – 27.1 IP, 4.94 ERA, 32K, 10BB

Sloan got off to a rough start at Double-A, losing feel for his arsenal and leaving pitches out where they could get damaged more often than usual. He’s since turned things around and cut his ERA by multiple runs, looking far closer to the version of Sloan we’ve grown accustomed to seeing over the past year and change. Sloan was aggressively sent to Double-A Arkansas as a 20 year old, and despite his numbers looking worse than they did last season, he’s looked like he belongs. Far from flawless, but encouraging nonetheless.

2B/LF Michael Arroyo – AA – .254/.325/.401, 7.5% BB%, 21.9% K%

Arroyo’s numbers haven’t been up to the caliber we’ve come to expect from Arroyo, and interestingly enough, he’s been a rare exception to the usual “Dickey Stephens Park Rule”. Posting significantly better numbers in the “pitcher’s paradise” of DSP than away, Arroyo’s had a weird year thus far and feels like the product of some small sample size nonsense. He’s walking much less than usual, but his strikeouts are right in line with his career norms and the slug has only ticked down just a hair. If he’s able to get his walk rate back to where he usually sits, he’ll be a menace atop this lineup in no time.

CF Jonny Farmelo – A+ – .236/.368/.414, 16.4% BB%, 28.1% K%

Farmelo has had one of the more difficult seasons to pin down so far. With a walk rate north of 16%, Farmelo’s OBP is in a fantastic spot right now, pairing incredibly well with his game-breaking speed on the basepaths. That said, he’s struggled with bat-to-ball, marking a second straight season we’ve seen him with elevated whiff rates. His swing is unorthodox and can get stiff at times, and there is legitimate reason to be concerned about his contact rates moving forward, but we’re still early enough in the season where it’s hard to truly panic about a player posting more than reasonable numbers on the whole. He’s producing, but we’re still in wait-and-see mode for the time being.

RF Lazaro Montes – AA – .243/.362/.529, 14.7% BB%, 30.7% K%

One of the most impressive bats to start the season, Lazaro Montes has been locked in at the plate since returning to the Travs lineup in 2026. Having a solid if unspectacular year offensively at Double-A last season, Montes has left little doubt he’s figured out Texas League pitching, slugging his way to an OPS just south of .900. Better still, when removed from the confines of DSP, Montes’ line improves drastically, raising his season OPS over the 1.100 marker with an unbelievable amount of power. The whiff is still very much present,  but with the level of slug he’s able to get to in-game, it truly has not mattered. He’s got a big up arrow next to his name.

C Luke Stevenson – A+ – .265/.447/.449, 24.2% BB%, 26.5% K%

Yet another bat that’s impressed this season, Luke Stevenson has picked up right where he left off in his brief stint of pro ball last season. Currently walking at a gaudy 24.2% clip, Stevenson has been an on-base machine early in his career and owns a career OBP over .450 through ~250 PA’s. His K rate has risen this season after a recent “slump”, but his outstanding eye and impeccable defense gives him an exceptionally high floor for someone with evident bat-to-ball issues. Tapping into more power is the next step for Stevenson; he’s shown he can lay off balls and poses a constant threat to reach base, but damaging mistakes more consistently will take him from an already elite hitter to a truly special offensive threat.

SS Felnin Celesten – A+ – .341/.442/.504, 14.7% BB%, 18.6% K%

The biggest riser of the season so far, Felnin Celesten has revitalized his prospect stock after a disappointing 2025 season and looks like a blue chip prospect right now. On a torrid month-long streak offensively, Celesten is clobbering the ball all over the field and has brought an advanced approach to the plate, walking nearly as often as he’s striking out. With smooth defense on the diamond and some speed on the basepaths, Celesten should be a lock to stick at shortstop and could easily move to any infield spot should he need to. He’ll be ranked significantly higher in midseason prospect reranks.

SS Nick Becker – ACL – .265/.468/.353, 27.1% BB%, 35.4% K%

ACL statlines are weird. Becker is striking out a ton, but he’s getting on base nearly half the time and also has 10 stolen bases through eleven games. Becker was drafted for his raw tools and was always likely to be a slower mover through the system, but the whiff is certainly something to monitor as the sample size grows. Statline scouting in the ACL is immensely difficult due to the varied nature of the talent at the level, but with solid numbers through his first handful of games, Becker remains an exciting player that’s still several years away from debuting.

NOTE: #10 prospect Griffin Hugus is dealing with a major arm injury and has not pitched yet. It sounds as though he’ll make his debut in 2027.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Rangers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Rangers Reacts returns this week, and we want to know, how have the 2026 Texas Rangers fared, compared to your expectations coming into the season?

Cast your vote below…

The Great Lakes Loons made official on Tuesday what was first reported on Sunday, that infielder Emil Morales was promoted to High-A. He’s batting cleanup and playing shortstop in his Loons debut on Tuesday.

Morales, who turns 20 in September, joins fellow top-100 prospects Josue De Paula (start of 2025) and Eduardo Quintero (last July) as Dodgers teenagers getting promoted to Great Lakes.

Morales hit .323/.385/.570 with a 134 wRC+ and 24 extra-base hits in 36 games for Class-A Ontario, and counting his time with Rancho Cucamonga last season hit .330/.401/.560 with 26 doubles, 11 home runs, and three triples in 66 games in Class-A.

He hit home runs on both Saturday and Sunday, his final two games with the Tower Buzzers.

With Ontario, Morales played 23 games at shortstop and nine at third base this season, with Joendry Vargas splitting time between shortstop and second base. Kellon Lindsey, another shortstop and the Dodgers first-round draft pick in 2024, returned from the injured list last week and played his three games at second base. This frees up time at shortstop in Class-A. Jose Izarra and Eduardo Guerrero covered the innings at shortstop for Great Lakes before Morales’ arrival.

Morales was named to five top-100 prospect lists in the offseason, and has since moved up in a few rankings. He’s now ranked 57th by MLB Pipeline, up from 92nd in January, and at Baseball America Morales went from unranked in the offseason to the No. 61 prospect in baseball now.

From Josh Norris at Baseball America:

Amid a sea of talented outfielders, Morales stands as the Dodgers’ best infielder. After early struggles last year in the Arizona Complex League, he righted the ship and continued his success at Low-A before the close of the season. That success has extended into 2026, which has seen him hit for both average and power. He might not stick at shortstop, but his bat should profile easily at any position on the diamond.

So far this season, Curtis Mead has been the Nats most underrated hitter. The Aussie infielder has put up really impressive numbers to start the season. Mead has an .815 OPS, a 133 wRC+ and has more walks than strikeouts. Entering the season, this was seen as Mead’s last chance to prove himself, and he is taking advantage of the opportunity.

There was a time where Curtis Mead was a big time prospect. Entering 2023, he was the 33rd ranked prospect in all of baseball with a 65 grade hit tool. However, he struggled to translate his minor league production into big league success for the Rays. Eventually, Tampa traded him to the White Sox, who DFA’d Mead and traded him to the Nats for Boston Smith.

At this point, Curtis Mead knew he had to make changes before time ran out. Mead told Federal Baseball that he attributes his early success this season to, “controlling the zone and trying to swing the bat when I think I can do damage”. The numbers bear this out as well. Last season, Mead had a 27.8% chase rate, but has dropped that to 23.2% this season. Mead’s walk rate has also gone from 5.7% to a crazy 15.8%.

For hitters with great bat to ball skills, they can sometimes fall into the trap of swinging at pitches just because they are able to hit it. As Mead is maturing as a hitter, he is learning to key in on pitches he can drive. He also told me that he thinks he is doing a better job digging into opposing pitcher scouting reports and looking at what pitch types are the ones they want hitters to chase.

By finding better pitches to hit, Mead is tapping into his power. His four home runs are already a career high. As a prospect, Mead was seen as having at least average power, but it had not translated because he was not swinging at the right pitches. Now he is, and Mead has hit some clutch home runs, most notably a two run blast against the Giants.

Last season, Mead had just 14 extra base hits in 240 at bats. This year, he has 12 in just 94 AB’s. This has been a crazy breakout, and it is really cool for the Aussie. Over the past couple years, he has been known as the guy that got traded for Cristopher Sanchez. For a while, it looked like the Rays were going to win that swap, but Sanchez blossomed into the best left handed pitcher in the National League, while Mead struggled.

Now, Mead is also having big league success. Part of the reason for that is that there is not as much pressure on him now that he has pretty much been written off. He told me that “It has been nice to just play my game and not worry about my situation as much”. 

Part of that is having less pressure on him, but he also has a defined role now. Mead starts just about every game against left handed pitching, and usually comes off the bench when a lefty reliever comes in. While he has been used as a lefty killer, his splits are actually pretty similar, with his OPS being slightly higher against righties. 

We saw Mead come up with a huge hit against a right handed pitcher last night. The 25 year old hit a game tying double against Tobias Myers in the 8th inning. It was a great piece of hitting, with the Aussie shooting a line drive into the right-center gap. That is the type of thing scouts expected Mead to be doing all the time when he was coming up through the minors.

It has taken a while, but it really does seem like Mead has found his footing. There are not many guys that can walk more than they strike out in the modern game, but that is exactly what Curtis Mead is doing. Playing for his former minor league manager, Blake Butera, Curtis Mead is coming into his own.

Rick Cerone celebrates his 72nd birthday today.

Cerone was one of the original Blue Jays. Four months and one day before their inaugural game, Toronto traded for Rick and John Lowenstein, sending Rico Carty to Cleveland. The Jays had selected Carty from Cleveland in the expansion draft and reacquired him in March 1978.

Cerone appeared in the Blue Jays’ first-ever game, going 2-for-4 with a double in a snowy victory over the White Sox. He played four games that first week before being sent to AAA. Cerone returned for a game in May and rejoined the team for good in mid-August, finishing the season with a .200/.245/.270 line in 31 games.

In 1978, Cerone played 88 games, hitting .223/.284/.298 with 3 home runs while sharing catching duties with Alan Ashby. After the season, Toronto traded Ashby to the Astros, making Cerone the full-time catcher in 1979.

Cerone improved at the plate in 1979, hitting .239/.294/.358 with 7 home runs over 136 games.

Following the 1979 season, Cerone, along with Tom Underwood and Ted Wilborn, was traded to the Yankees for Chris Chambliss, Damaso Garcia, and Paul Mirabella. The Jays then sent Chambliss to the Braves for Barry Bonnell, Joey McLaughlin, and Pat Rockett. Damaso Garcia went on to play seven seasons with Toronto. Both trades proved beneficial for the Blue Jays.

Yankees catcher Thurman Munson tragically died during the 1979 season when he crashed his plane while taking flying lessons.

Cerone had an outstanding 1980 season, hitting .277/.321/.432 with 14 home runs—by far his best offensive performance—while helping the Yankees finish first in the AL East. He finished 7th in MVP voting. Rick would go on to play five seasons with the Yankees, reaching the World Series once, where they lost to the Dodgers in 1981.

After his time with the Yankees, Cerone played for the Braves, Brewers, Yankees again, Red Sox, Yankees yet again, Mets, and finally the Expos, where he became the backup to my favourite player, Gary Carter.

Cerone enjoyed an 18-year MLB career, hitting .245/.301/.343 with 59 home runs in 1,329 games. While he was never a great hitter—he had only two seasons with an OPS+ over 100—he embodied the hard-nosed catcher. Cerone was sound defensively, possessed a strong arm, and excelled at blocking the plate. My lasting memory of him is his perpetually dirty uniform.

Of all the Blue Jays who played in the team’s first game, Cerone had, by far, the best career.

After retiring, Cerone worked in broadcasting for a few years. It would be fascinating to hear his thoughts on the early days of the Blue Jays and his reaction to the trade to the Yankees. I imagine he was thrilled to join a contending team.

Happy Birthday, Rick—I hope it’s a great one.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates will look to snap a three-game losing streak in their series opener against the St. Louis Cardinals today.

Aided by a starting pitching advantage, my Pirates vs. Cardinals predictions see the road team getting back on track.

Let's take a closer look at my MLB picks for Tuesday, May 19.

Who will win Pirates vs Cardinals today: Pittsburgh Pirates (-110)

Matthew Liberatore owns a 4.40 ERA, and that is flattering based on how he has pitched. He ranks in the 10th percentile in xERA (5.83) and the fifth in xBA (.297).

He has started four games against teams ranking in the Top-10 in OBP and Top-16 in walk rate. Liberatore allowed four earned runs in three of them.

The Pittsburgh Pirates are in a good spot to score, and it'll be difficult for the St. Louis Cardinals to keep up. Mitch Keller has allowed two runs or fewer in five of six starts against teams outside of the Top 10 in OBP. 

COVERS INTEL: The Pirates rank eighth in line drive rate against left-handed pitching this month.

Pirates vs Cardinals Over/Under pick: Over 8.0 (-115)

The Pirates lead the majors in hard-hit rate against left-handed pitching, ranking just ahead of the Yankees and Dodgers. That's a sign results should follow – especially facing a vulnerable pitcher like Liberatore.

Konnor Griffin and Bryan Reynolds own wOBAs above .365 vs. lefties, while Oneil Cruz (.237) and Brandon Lowe (.196) have provided power. They have the weapons to score.

Keller has performed much worse against left-handed hitters, and the Cardinals are expected to start five, headlined by JJ Wetherholt and Alec Burleson. 

This total should be half a run higher.

Pirates vs Cardinals odds

• Moneyline: Pirates -110 | Cardinals -110
• Run line: Pirates -1.5 (+150) | Cardinals +1.5 (-175)
• Over/Under: Over 8.0 (-115) | Under 8.0 (-115)

Pirates vs Cardinals trend

Pittsburgh has hit the moneyline in 16 of the last 30 away games (+4.3 units, 13% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Pirates vs. Cardinals.

How to watch Pirates vs Cardinals and game info

Pirates vs Cardinals latest injuries

Pirates vs Cardinals weather

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Coming off a 12-0 thumping, their worst loss of the year, the MLB-leading Atlanta Braves look to get back in the win column as they continue their series with the Miami Marlins.

While the books have Atlanta as the road favorite today at loanDepot Park, they’re getting just -133 moneyline odds.

That makes my Braves vs. Marlins prediction and free MLB picks pretty easy: back the visitors on Tuesday, May 19.

Who will win Braves vs Marlins today: Braves moneyline (-133)

The Atlanta Braves have just two losing streaks all year (of two and three games, respectively), so I expect them to bounce back large behind Martin Perez.

In five starts, he’s got a cool 2.25 ERA and 0.94 WHIP across 36 innings, striking out 28.

Shut out for the first time all year, baseball’s second-highest scoring team should tee off on Miami Marlins starter Braxton Garrett.

Against lefties, the Braves rank first in total hits and RBI and lead the NL in homers (20).

Moreover, when you get such a low price for the best team in baseball to win straight up against an opponent it typically handles with ease, I'll take the Atlanta moneyline every time. That's as valuable as any in-game stat to convince me to take the visitors.

COVERS INTEL: Garrett has yet to beat the Braves. In five starts, he’s 0-3 with a 6.86 ERA, giving up 29 hits in 21 innings of work, including four home runs.

Braves vs Marlins Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (+102)

The Over has been thriving in the recent matchups, going 6-0-1 over the last seven head-to-head meetings.

Miami has seen the Over cash in six straight games, while Atlanta has gone Over the total in back-to-back contests.

Atlanta is baseball’s second-best scoring team on the road, while Miami ranks in the Top 10 at home.

The Marlins also don’t know what they’ll get out of Garrett. In his lone start this season, he was chased after just 1 1/3 innings, giving up four hits and five earned runs, while walking five. That's not a recipe for Unders, especially with baseball's best lineup looming.

Braves vs Marlins odds

• Moneyline: Braves -133 | Marlins +127
• Run line: Braves -1.5 (+127) | Marlins +1.5 (-138)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (+104) | Under 8.5 (-108)

Braves vs Marlins trend

Atlanta has won each of their last seven games against the Marlins following a loss. Find more MLB betting trends for Braves vs. Marlins.

How to watch Braves vs Marlins and game info

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Braves vs Marlins weather

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Last Monday, Alex Freeland was the odd man out in the Dodgers infield when Mookie Betts was activated off the injured list. Freeland was optioned to Triple-A, but made the most of things with Oklahoma City, winning Pacific Coast League player of the week in his first week back in the minors.

The switch-hitting Freeland hit .400/.464/.920 with three home runs — one hit right-handed, two left-handed — and two triples, with three walks, eight runs scored, and 11 runs batted in in five games on the road against the Albuquerque Isotopes, a Colorado Rockies affiliate.

A shortstop by trade, Freeland has played second base and third base in his major league time with the Dodgers last year and this year. Back with Oklahoma City last week, he started three times at third base and twice at second base.

Freeland is the second Comets player to win player of the week honors this season, joining first baseman and outfielder James Tibbs III for the week of March 31-April 5.

Freeland was not the only Dodgers minor leaguer to capture an award on Monday. Class-A Ontario Tower Buzzers right-hander Isaac Ayon took home California League pitcher of the week after his 10 strikeouts in five scoreless innings last Wednesday at home, allowing only one single and no walks to the San Jose Giants.

Ayon, drafted out of Oregon in the 18th round in 2024, has a 2.96 ERA in seven games, including five starts for Ontario this season, with 35 strikeouts against only five walks in his 27 1/3 innings. Among all Dodgers minor league pitchers with at least 20 innings in 2026, Ayon’s 28-percent strikeout-minus-walk rate ranks third, trailing only Christian Zazueta (33 percent) for High-A Great Lakes and Ayon’s Ontario teammate Brady Smith (29.9 percent).

Ayon is the second Tower Buzzers player to win weekly honors this season. Marlon Nieves was California League pitcher of the week for the week of April 6-12.

For his efforts, Ayon was promoted to High-A Great Lakes on Tuesday.

Welcome to Tuesday everyone!

We were treated to some grade-A pitching last night from young right-hander J.T. Ginn. For eight innings the 26-year-old only allowed one walk while taking a no-hitter into the ninth. We’re going to ignore what happened in the final inning from last night’s game because we can.

That performance dropped Ginn’s season ERA to a nice 2.98 through 11 games. That number alone is good for ninth-best in the American League but his dominance goes deeper than that. One must remember that Ginn didn’t even begin the season in the starting rotation, instead acting as a long man out of the bullpen for the first couple turns through the rotation. If we’re only looking at his starting appearances that number drops to 2.64 in eight starts.

Not a lot of people expected Ginn to take off quite like he has this year. In his first cup of coffee in 2024 he showed glimpses of what had the A’s so high on him. He had some bumps and bruises in his first extended action last year though, going from starter to reliever and back to starter again as a rookie. Not an easy situation for anyone to deal with, especially someone who is still trying to find their footing in the big leagues. Add on top of that Ginn allowing 17 runs in 16 innings of work this spring and no one would blame you for being caught off guard by Ginn’s ascent.

Since getting his shot he’s done what tons of pitchers in this league try and fail to accomplish: take advantage of their opportunity. Ginn could have very easily been a spot-starter had he struggled, with someone like Mason Barnett waiting in the wings for his own chance. Instead he’s relied on terrific command while keeping the ball in the ballpark. The strikeouts aren’t the name of his game as he’s instead relying on that heavy sinker to get the ground balls he wants. That’s especially useful in a hitter’s park like Sutter Health Park.

Going forward it’s good to be hopeful that Ginn has truly unlocked something and this isn’t just a hot streak. Every A’s fan was perfectly happy to let Ginn go for history tonight, pitch count be damned. That said, it may be prudent to keep a handle on his innings count going forward. Acquired in the trade that sent Chris Bassitt to New York, Ginn already has a Tommy John surgery on his ledger and he pitched a career-high 112 1/3 frames last year. He’s already departed one game earlier this year with “arm soreness”.

How high is the limit for Ginn? Scouts always believes he would, at best, settle in as a backend 4th/5th starter type but he’s making everyone rethink that calculus. And if he keeps this up he’s going to be in the rotation long-term, waiting for guys like Gage Jump and Jamie Arnold to hurry up and join him in the big league rotation.

Same time same place for tonight’s game. Have a great day A’s fans.

A’s Coverage:

• A’s Suffer Heartbreaker to Open Road Trip
• ‘Gut-wrenching’: Ginn takes no-no into ninth only to give up walk-off home run
• Athletics Outright Michael Stefanic
• A’s Bullpen, Defense Collapse in Series-Deciding Loss to Giants
• How John Fisher betrayed Oakland (again) by finally spending on the Athletics
• A’s Drop Saturday Contest To Giants 6-4
• Kurtz Blasts the A’s to a 5-2 Victory Over the Giants
• The Giants-A’s rivalry is officially dead
• A’s get lefty reliever Suarez in trade with Mariners
• Bolte Flashes In Athletics’ Win Over Cardinals
• Kurtz shakes off pain, crushes massive grand slam to lift A’s
• A’s roster moves: Bolte, Stefanic recalled; Wilson to IL; Harris optioned, Nuñez DFA’d
• There’s Forcing Your Way Up And There’s Bolte — Is There A Spot For Him?
• May Roster Shuffle Could Help The A’s — But They’d Have To Want It
• Athletics’ Wei-En Lin Continues Rising The Ranks
• Now that we’ve seen a two-way player, what about a three-way player?
• A Walk In The Park Is Nice…To A Point
• Three Things To Watch For The Athletics In May

MLB News and Interest:

• Dodgers’ Glasnow has setback; Snell set for NanoScope procedure
• Yankees consider bringing ace Gerrit Cole back early
• Seager placed on injured list with lower back inflammation
• Houston Astros Activate Star Shortstop Jeremy Peña
• Jake Fraley To Undergo Sports Hernia Procedure
• Rangers’ MacKenzie Gore leaves with muscle tightness in back
• Kyle Teel Shut Down With LCL Sprain
• Nationals To Recall Dylan Crews
• Mets achieve rare extra-inning feat not seen in 43 years
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

Injury updates!

Updated prospect list:

Stefanic heading down to Triple-A:

The streak continues:

It’s pretty good:

A’s great Gio Urshela riding off into the sunset:

You can’t really call a game in mid-May with the team still in comfortable playoff position and only two games behind the leaders a “must win,” but for vibes reasons, the Yankees sure could’ve used a victory on Monday. They got one, but it was quite the nerve-wracker.

For one, they had to come from behind, taking a lead on a Jazz Chisholm Jr. home run off the foul pole. Then after Sunday’s adventure, they still called on David Bednar for the save, but he made things as stressful as possible before getting Vladmir Guerrero Jr. — of all people — to ground out to end the game.

With the Yankees at least halting their woes for the day, let’s see if the win allowed them to gain any ground anywhere, as it’s time for today’s Rivalry Roundup.

Tampa Bay Rays (31-15) 16, Baltimore Orioles (21-27) 6

Unfortunately for the Yankees, the Rays stayed hot, as they scored early and often to crush the Orioles.

Tampa Bay took an initial lead on Ryan Vilade’s sac fly in the first inning, but they fully broke things open in the second. The Rays batted around, recording five runs on six hits and a walk. The biggest blow came on a two-run double from Johnny DeLuca, which took the lead from four to six.

Baltimore got on the board themselves after that, but the Rays, answered and then kept the offense coming. They cracked double digits by the fifth inning and ended up with 16 runs on 18 hits for the game. Both Yandy Díaz and Junior Caminero had four-RBI days, with Díaz going 4-for-5, while only one Tampa Bay starter failed to reach base at least once.

On the mound, Shane McClanahan wasn’t even particularly good, allowing four runs in five innings. The Orioles’ six runs on 12 hits would be enough to win plenty of games, it just didn’t come particularly close in this one.

Other Games

• Cleveland Guardians (27-22) 8, Detroit Tigers (20-28) 2: While the Tigers struck first, the Guardians slowly and surely pulled away to gain more breathing room in the AL Central. José Ramírez was, well, José Ramírez, going 3-for-4 with a walk and three RBI, including a late home run to put the game away. The Guardians also got 7.1 good innings from Slade Cecconi, who allowed only two runs on five hits.

• Boston Red Sox (20-27) 3, Kansas City Royals (20-28) 1: Willson Contreras’ two-run homer led the way for Boston as they won a low-scoring game over the Royals. Sonny Gray was also solid on the mound for the Red Sox, allowing just one run in six innings, while striking out nine.

• Colorado Rockies (19-29) 7, Texas Rangers (22-25) 6: The Rangers made a charge late, but they ended up falling one run short against the Rockies. Led by Ezequiel Tovar and Brenton Doyle, the Rockies jumped out to a 7-3 lead through six innings. Texas chipped away at that deficit in the eighth, getting within one run, and putting the go-ahead run in scoring position, but were unable to complete the comeback.

• Seattle Mariners (23-26) 6, Chicago White Sox (24-23): The Mariners cooled off the hot White Sox thanks to a strong outing from Bryan Woo. The Seattle starter allowed no runs on three hits in six innings, while a three-RBI game from recent call-up Colt Emerson, including his first major league hit/home run, allowed the M’s to win without much trouble.