The Knicks made it no secret during their Game 1 comeback – they were looking to embarrass James Harden.
Trailing by 22 points in the fourth quarter, the Knicks rallied on the back of their captain clutch, Jalen Brunson, who exposed Harden in the 115-104 overtime victory.
In the fourth quarter, the Knicks did everything possible to get Harden as the primary on-ball defender, getting the veteran guard to switch on in nine isolations in the stanza and averaging 1.9 points per action, according to the “All NBA Podcast.”
Jalen Brunson was eating James Harden’s lunch in Game 1. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Those nine isolations resulted in roughly 17.1 points for the Knicks, as Harden could do nothing to help Cleveland while it squandered the lead.
With the Knicks behind, 93-71, with roughly 7:45 to go in the game, a Brunson burner was lit, and the flames completely engulfed Harden.
That trend continued into overtime, as Mike Brown’s group completely blew the Cavaliers out, outscoring them 14-3 in the deciding five-minute period.
Again, Harden was the primary target.
Harden was the screener in 21 on-ball picks in the fourth quarter and overtime combined, where the Knicks got 1.6 points per action in those plays (33.6 points), per the podcast.
Brown said the obvious after the win.
“It was no secret we were attacking Harden,” the coach said.
Meanwhile, Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson kept his timeouts in his pocket as the Knicks rallied.
“I like to hold my timeouts,” Atkinson said postgame. “I try to hold them.”
He held them a bit too long on that one, as from 5:34 to 3:30 left in the fourth quarter, Brunson went on an 11-0 run by himself to give the Knicks a chance.
Atkinson mercifully called a timeout with 3:30 left as the Knicks pulled to within five points.
Harden was the primary defender on each of those buckets during the 11-0 Brunson run.
James Harden was targeted all night by the Knicks. JASON SZENES FOR THE NEW YORK POST
“No,” Atkinson said when asked if he considered benching Harden during defensive possessions. “He’s been one of our best defenders in these playoffs. I trust him. Smart. Great hands. Didn’t think about that.”
Game 2 on Thursday night is the Cavaliers’ next chance to steal homecourt advantage, but this one has to sting a bit extra Wednesday morning for Cleveland.
The Detroit Tigers lost another close game on Tuesday night, succumbing to the Cleveland Guardians, 4-3, in a matchup that saw the good guys go 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and leaving 10 runners on base. And thus the futility continues…
It looks like AJ Hinch is planning for a bullpen day on Wednesday evening, as no starting pitcher has been announced on MLB Probable Pitchers as of the time of publication, but we do know that right-hander Tanner Bibee will be taking the mound for the visitors.
Bibee’s numbers this season have been suppressed by a couple of outlier outings in what has been mostly a solid campaign so far, despite his ugly record. Four of his 10 starts have been of the quality variety, including his last two, which have seen him put up a 2.84 ERA and 3.59 FIP over 12 2/3 innings, allowing eight hits (one home run) and four walks while striking out 11 and hitting a batter.
Last couple of times the 27-year-old faced the Tigers were in his final two outings of the 2025 campaign — a pair of six-inning, one-run efforts for his 11th and 12th wins of the season.
Detroit Tigers (20-29) vs. Cleveland Guardians (28-22)
Time (ET): 6:40 p.m. Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan SB Nation Site:Covering the Corner Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
The Philadelphia Phillies seek a seventh straight series win when they play the rubber match of their three-game set with the visiting Cincinnati Reds this afternoon.
Cincinnati, however, has been mighty comfortable as an underdog in this head-to-head, which is why my Reds vs Phillies predictions and free MLB picks are siding with the road team on Wednesday, May 20.
Who will win Reds vs Phillies today: Reds moneyline (+127)
In his most recent outing, Philadelphia Phillies starter Aaron Nola lasted just 3 2/3 innings against the Pirates, surrendering six runs on six hits, including two homers. It was the third time in five starts he’s allowed at least five earned.
Meanwhile, Cincinnati Reds starter Andrew Abbott has allowed one earned run in his last three starts, rocking a microscopic 0.54 ERA in May.
Coupled with the Reds’ offense in the last two weeks (Top 8 in runs, average, on-base percentage, slugging, and OPS) and a 3-1 record against the Phillies as an underdog in the last four, it's their series to take, and I'll take this plus-money pricetag against a scuffling Nola any chance I get.
COVERS INTEL:Nathaniel Lowe sat out Tuesday's win, but the DH will surely be in the lineup against Nola, whom he’s owned in a small sample, going 4-for-7 with a home run.
Reds vs Phillies Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (+104)
The last seven meetings between the Reds and Phillies have produced an Under record of 6-0-1, with only one matchup touching a combined nine runs.
The Phillies have been an Under machine, going 8-1-0 in their last nine overall. They rank just 20th in scoring, and neither team has lit the world on fire, boasting identical below-averagewRC+ ratings of 93 (tied for 21st in MLB).
With Abbott in a groove and Nola struggling, it’s shaping up for the Reds to carry this to victory, but falling Under the 8.5-run line.
Eric Rosales' 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 7-6, +0.72 units
Over/Under bets: 10-2, +7.74 units
Reds vs Phillies odds
Moneyline: Reds +127 | Phillies -133
Run line: Reds +1.5 (-156) | Phillies -1.5 (+150)
Over/Under: Over 8.5 (+104) | Under 8.5 (-108)
Reds vs Phillies trend
Cincinnati has held Philadelphia to one run or less in three of the last four matchups. Find more MLB betting trends for Reds vs. Phillies.
How to watch Reds vs Phillies and game info
Location
Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
Date
Wednesday, May 20, 2026
First pitch
1:05 p.m. ET
TV
Reds.TV, NBC 10
Reds starting pitcher
Andrew Abbott (3-2, 4.21 ERA)
Phillies starting pitcher
Aaron Nola (2-3, 5.91 ERA)
Reds vs Phillies latest injuries
Reds vs Phillies weather
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
It’s morning in Dallas. The kind of morning where everything is possible, where the sun shines in that special way and life seems a little bit less serious. Is that a small bubble of pure joy I feel deep inside?
Jason Kidd is not the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks anymore. The joy I feel is not because he is gone, but because the wind of change is finally here.
Jason Kidd was a divisive coach. Some didn’t like him and wanted him gone, especially after the Luka Trade. Others didn’t mind him and thought he did a great job.
I think the truth is somewhere in between.
Was he part of making the decision to trade Luka Doncic? Who knows. But the Mavericks need a new start, fresh voices and thoughts, and innovative ways of doing things in order to be able to stay relevant in the fast-moving world of the NBA. And that just wasn’t possible with Kidd at the helm.
He did a good job along the way. He helped develop many young players, and all have spoken very well of him. He managed egos and the intangible aspects of how to run a good team, like connectedness and individual accountability very well. He had a great talent for getting his players to believe and rally around him. I’m sure the list is much longer if you ask his players. And maybe this is really where he was best.
But you can’t say that he was innovative. We regularly saw tired, old rotations, which often didn’t make sense and sometimes clearly served to prove other points than trying to win.
We saw the same ATO plays so often that the opposing teams learned how to read it almost every time.
We saw so many missed timeout opportunities, which could have helped the players rest, get resettled and change or stop momentum or a run. When questioned about this, he once replied: “I’m watching, like you guys”. Was he joking? Who knows, but it wasn’t very funny.
And we saw too much reliance on his franchise player to carry the team and make plays out of sheer individual brilliance, rather than as a product of a coherent scheme.
It wasn’t valued and given credit, and maybe only realized too late how much of an effect said player actually had on winning.
Right after the firing on Tuesday, ESPN Insights reported that Jason Kidd had a .563 win percentage with the Mavericks before Luka Doncic was traded on February 2, 2025. After the Doncic trade, Kidd had a .339 win percentage.
But I am not sure things are that simple.
The injuries and players he had on the roster were just not comparable. So either his partner and previous GM Nico Harrison set him up for failure with that trade — and all the medical staff hirings and issues — or Kidd was part of the decision-making and later reaped what he had sowed. They did arrive as a team in Dallas, the two of them, remember?
Either way, Jason Kidd had to go after the Doncic trade fiasco. In order to start over, you have to start over.
It was a quick and decisive move by new Dallas Mavericks president and alternate governor, Masai Ujiri. Hired on 4, it took him a couple of weeks to hire a general manager, Mike Schmitz, who he had wanted from day one. Then, just 11 days after that hire, the decision to fire Jason Kidd was announced.
“I’ve known him for many, many years,” Masai Ujiri said of Mike Schmitz. “He’s an incredible scout, an incredible leader. He digs deep into work, data, and what you want to know about really scouting a player, team building, all those things.”
“Treating people well, scout organizing, managing people, it’s a whole package you want and it’s very important that we set a tone now for this organization because the fans, the organization, you (media) guys, everybody deserves that,” Ujiri said.
That sounds like as good a reason to find a new coach, as any I’ve heard.
They say you don’t want to meet your heroes. I never met Jason Kidd, but I came to know how to read him — along with most of the fanbase and media people — and to read between the lines when he spoke. There was a lot of saying one thing and doing another, playing certain players to prove a point and holding on to a decision instead of being flexible and adjusting along the way. We became accustomed to the mind tricks and framing.
But we also got to experience some special moments. The fact that he managed to keep the small group of players who were not injured this season motivated stands out to me. That’s impressive.
The “nobody’s dying” quote from 2023 remains a classic. “We’re getting better. It’s just a matter — can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run? If we’re not, that’s just the season. Nobody’s dying.”
Mavericks coach Jason Kidd when asked about the concern level he has now being one game below .500:
"We're getting better. It's just a matter — can we be healthy in time to make a stretch run? If we're not, that's just the season. Nobody's dying." pic.twitter.com/5h2Y3J8ZUl
And what about the old “I’m watching, just like you guys”, mentioned earlier. That was one for the history books. You really have to be sure of your spot to say something like that about your job.
But with a new coach, the Dallas Mavericks will be the exciting new project, finally — the organization that Cooper Flagg — and what remains of the Mavs fanbase —deserves.
Don’t underestimate the work they did to change what happened after they had the rug pulled from under them in the Doncic trade. Like the major protests outside the American Airlines Center:
Will Dallas fans ever recover from the Luka trade? 🏀 💔
After protests, ejections and faux funerals outside their own stadium, ESPN's Mike Rothstein takes us inside the Mavericks' struggle to manage the intense post-Doncic trade backlash.
There’s strength in numbers. Dallas fans showed that they have power if they stick together, and that is no small feat. Mavs fans spoke too loudly to ignore. Hopefully, others feel inspired to do the same, because change only happens when you stand up for what you believe.
Jason Kidd, however, will always be part of Dallas Mavericks history. He was part of a memorable run as a player and then as a coach with two of the best and most entertaining players the league has ever seen. He has influenced the career arcs of both Doncic and Flagg. For that, we can be grateful. And for all parties involved, it is finally time to move on.
San Jose entered the draft lottery with a 5.0 percent chance at winning the No. 1 overall pick and ended up with the No. 2 selection for the second consecutive year, moving up from No. 9 on the second draw of the ping pong balls.
With each team’s positions now set, many hockey experts have released their mock drafts, revealing which players the Sharks could take with the No. 2 overall pick.
“In drafting Reid, San Jose gets a right-handed defenseman whose closest draft-year comparable is Evan Bouchard. Reid is a wonderful skater who will almost certainly become a power-play quarterback and drive offense from the blue line.
“The Sharks have a lot less in the pipeline on the right side, with only Eric Pohlkamp projected to play in the NHL. Reid gives the Sharks a tremendous skater and puck mover on the right side who can partner with Sam Dickinson or drive a pair on his own.”
“Smits (6-foot-3, 205 pounds) stands out in a crowded field of high-end defensemen because of how he’s already proven himself against the highest level of competition. That includes two assists and an average ice time of 18:44 in four games for Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympics, despite the 18-year-old being the youngest player at the tournament.
“He’s a strong skater, has a high-end offensive game, and his maturity on and off the ice — he lived on his own at age 13 when he left his native Latvia to play in Finland — makes him a possibility to play in the NHL as soon as next season.”
– Adam Kimelman
Ivar Stenberg, LW, Frolunda (SWE)
“Though it wouldn’t be a surprise if the Sharks trade down and choose one of the elite defensemen available in this draft, Stenberg (5-foot-11, 183 pounds) is the next-best player here and would fill a need for an elite complementary wing who can keep pace with Celebrini, the face of the franchise. The 18-year-old has been exceptional at every level he’s played this season.”
“The Sharks get a foundational defense piece they’ve needed throughout their rebuild, as Reid projects to run a power play and log a lot of minutes in the NHL. Ivar Stenberg is tempting here, but the stars feel like they would align too well for the Sharks and Reid, given how close the two players are in talent.”
“In our recent scouting report of defenseman Chase Reid, we said he is the best defenseman in this draft. The San Jose Sharks will likely agree. And given they’ve had ample opportunity to build up their forward corps over the last few drafts, they will look to the blue line this year.
“Take a moment and imagine Reid on the ice with Macklin Celebrini and Will Smith and whatever other members of the Sharks’ stable of talented young prospects happen to be around. It’s a nice vision, right? He’s incredibly offensively gifted, agile and intelligent, and he dictates the flow of the game any time he’s on the ice. He’s going to be extremely good, and the Sharks are going to be fun.”
“This is quite the consolation prize, especially for a team that didn’t expect to pick this high. The Sharks could really use a defender – but picking the best player available should be the No. 1 goal. They could take Chase Reid here, but passing on Stenberg would come back to bite them. Stenberg is strong with the puck, has a fantastic shot, and might have the second-best hockey sense of anyone in the draft behind McKenna.
“Stenberg’s production fell as the season wore on, but he still had one of the best seasons by a U-19 player in recent SHL history. Stenberg’s ceiling might not be as high as McKenna’s from an offensive production standpoint. But if you’re looking for someone who excels in more facets of the game, Stenberg is the best choice. Keep a close eye on Stenberg at the upcoming World Championship, assuming he does indeed make Sweden’s roster.”
“With the second-overall pick, Button has the San Jose Sharks, who won the draft lottery to move up from No. 9 to No. 2, taking Soo Greyhounds defenceman Chase Reid. Reid averaged over a point per game last season with the Greyhounds, scoring 18 goals with 48 points in 45 games. He also represented Team USA at the World Juniors, scoring two goals with two assists in five games.
“This will be the fourth year in a row the Sharks will draft in the top five after taking forward Will Smith at No. 4 in 2023, centre Macklin Celebrini first overall in 2024 and forward Michael Misa with the second-overall selection last year.”
ANAHEIM, CA - MAY 17: Miguel Rojas #72 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates on first base after singling in the fourth inning during the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on Sunday, May 17, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
At the beginning of the season, Dodgers fans were prepared for Miguel Rojas’s swan song as a big league player. That was the case until he stated that he would have one more go-around if the Dodgers won a third consecutive championship.
There is still much to be discussed between Rojas and his family, as the infielder spoke with David Vassegh of AM 570 ahead of Tuesday’s win over the San Diego Padres about the certainty— or, lack thereof— of his decision to announce his retirement after this year.
“This is my last year— that is something that I said last year,” Rojas told Vassegh. “There’s one possibility, and it’s winning another championship. I’m going to have to sit down with my wife and see what is out there for me, especially with this organization, because I would not want to play for any other team that is not the Dodgers at this point of my life and my career.”
Mookie Betts had Angels outfielder Jo Adell as the most recent guest on the On Base with Mookie Betts podcast, where the two of them discussed how both their teams have or had managed Shohei Ohtani, with both downplaying why Ohtani might be struggling on either side just because he is simply that talented.
Per Betts: “If he doesn’t get a hit or he has a couple bad games, it’s like, ‘What’s wrong with Shohei?’ I mean he did just go seven inning, two hits, he does have a 0.7 ERA. You forget all the other ways he really affects the game.”
Per Adell: “His tenacity and focus when it comes to getting it done, he’s just a force.”
Newly acquired Dodgers left-hander Eric Lauer was activated on Tuesday and is slated to make his Dodger debut in the starting rotation next week. Along with joining the team that beat his Blue Jays in the World Series last year, Lauer will be reuniting with pitching coach Mark Prior. Their previous relationship within the Padres’ farm system has Lauer hopeful that they both can get the left-hander back to form, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“He was pretty spot-on as far as what I was thinking, what I was feeling and what I’m looking to do. What I think can get me back to where I was and just being the best version of myself,” Lauer said. “He’s very open to what I think, too, and that’s the nice thing. It’s conversation. It’s not just, ‘Hey, do this.’ It’s not a drill sergeant or anything. It’s very based on how I feel and what I want and what I think.”
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - MARCH 08: Devin Booker #1 of the Phoenix Suns reacts after scoring against the Charlotte Hornets during the second half of the NBA game at Mortgage Matchup Center on March 08, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Hornets 111-99. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to our Phoenix Suns Season in Review series, where we revisit every player who suited up during the 2025–26 campaign through the lens of expectation, reality, and what it ultimately meant.
Player Snapshot
Position: PG/SG
Age: 29
2026-27 Contract Status: $57.1 million
SunsRank (Preseason): 1
SunsRank (Postseason): 1
*SunsRank is based on Bright Side writers’ ranking.
Season in One Sentence
Devin Booker stabilized a transitioning Suns team by sacrificing efficiency for structure, leadership, and relevance.
By the Numbers
GP
MIN
PPG
RPG
APG
STL
FG%
3PT%
FT%
OFFRTG
DEFRTG
+/- (TOTAL)
64
33.5
26.1
3.9
6.0
0.8
45.6%
33.0%
87.3%
115.9
112.0
+201
The Expectation
To understand the expectations for Devin Booker entering the season, you have to go back to September, when the general belief was that the Phoenix Suns were going to be a 30-win team and Booker would once again find himself on an island offensively.
I think Booker will have a strong season, averaging around what he usually does, having a slight uptick in scoring, but his impact will go beyond the scoreboard. His influence on rookies Khaman Maluach, Koby Brea, and Rasheer Fleming will be what makes it a great year for him, not how many 40-point double-doubles he has.
In a time of retooling and realignment for the Valley, Booker needs to spearhead the way, and will do so for the 2025-26 season, and in the process break Tom Chambers’ single-season record for points per game in a season he set at 27.2.
That was the expectation. Booker would be tasked with elevating the players around him while simultaneously carrying the burden as the team’s primary scorer.
The Reality
Truth be told, Devin Booker met expectations, even if he didn’t do it in the typical hyper-efficient fashion we’re used to seeing.
Compared to the previous season, his scoring numbers were actually up. He averaged 25.6 points per game in 2024-25 and bumped that to 26.1 points in 2025-26. At the same time, his field goal percentage dipped. His three-point percentage dipped. His assists, rebounds, steals, and effective field goal percentage all declined as well. The turnovers increased, too.
It was a strange season because the Phoenix Suns were in a transitional phase overall.
The expectation entering the year was that Booker would have to carry the offense and drag the team toward competitiveness. What ended up happening instead was the roster around him flourished because of his presence. Multiple players had career years, and a large part of that comes from the gravity Booker creates. His playmaking ability remains strong enough to manipulate defenses and generate open looks for teammates.
Even though he finished only 23rd in the NBA in assists per game at 6.0, he led the league in secondary assists with 1.2. His ability to collapse defenses and create passing sequences that eventually led to points is one of the more underrated parts of his game.
One thing I don’t think enough people appreciated this season was the reduction in his workload. Booker averaged 36 minutes per game in 2023-24 and 37.3 minutes in 2024-25. This season, he averaged 33.5. That feels like the sweet spot. That’s where Booker should be living, especially if the roster around him can consistently provide scoring support.
Booker was unquestionably the stabilizer for this team, and you felt it anytime he wasn’t available. The Suns went 37-27 with Booker in the lineup and carried a 115.9 offensive rating. Without him, they went 8-10, and the offensive rating dropped to 110.0.
Everything became easier when Booker was on the floor, even if it didn’t necessarily become easier for him individually. That’s where the real challenge existed this season. Especially late in games, opposing teams knew exactly where Phoenix wanted to go offensively, and there wasn’t much Booker could do to counter it. In clutch situations, he didn’t consistently perform like the max contract superstar the Suns needed him to be.
In 30 clutch games, Phoenix went 14-16. Booker posted a -7 plus/minus on 44/31/87 shooting splits. His assist-to-turnover ratio sat at 1.4, and the team carried a -4.0 net rating in those situations.
What It Means
What does it all mean? That’s the ultimate question, isn’t it? Devin Booker did not have a bad season by any means. When you factor in the transitional nature of the Phoenix Suns organization as a whole, he was more than a good soldier. He was the leader whom people sometimes fail to give credit for being.
That still doesn’t erase the feeling that continues creeping into the conversation, the realization that simply having Booker might not be enough.
I look at a team like the Minnesota Timberwolves. They reached back-to-back Western Conference Finals and still found themselves bounced in the second round this season. They’re good. Really good. They’re also not good enough. When that happens year after year, you start asking difficult questions about what actually leads to ultimate success, making the NBA Finals, and winning a championship.
As the seasons pass and opportunities slip away, the conversation naturally shifts toward value. What matters most? What can realistically be achieved? That’s where the Timberwolves are right now after three consecutive failed postseason runs, and that is where the Suns are heading with Devin Booker, although they won’t tell you as much.
He’s a max contract player who is one season away from his supermax kicking in. At the same time, stretches like the clutch performances this season create a more finite understanding of what he can individually elevate a team toward. And because the organization has boxed itself into such a difficult cap situation, there’s also a definable ceiling attached to what this roster can realistically become with Booker as the centerpiece.
That’s what this season ultimately represented from a perception standpoint. Booker is a star. I don’t know if he’s a superstar.
He’s absolutely someone you want on your team, and lord knows the fan base appreciates everything he has done and continues to do for this franchise. Still, the ultimate goal of winning a championship feels increasingly difficult to realistically envision.
In many ways, Booker’s season personified the internal struggle Suns fans are wrestling with. Is the most important thing winning a title at all costs, or is there value in appreciating the ride, the loyalty, and the connection along the way? Sometimes those things align. Most of the time, they don’t.
That’s why this season felt like a shift in mentality and reality. Maybe even the season where some fans quietly started stepping off the U.S.S. Booker.
Defining Moment
The best moment of the season for Devin Booker was also one of the defining moments of the season for the Phoenix Suns as a whole. Playing against the defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder, Phoenix had an opportunity to prove that, despite all of the questions surrounding the roster and the transition happening within the organization, they could still stand toe to toe with the best team in basketball.
And they did exactly that.
Booker closed the night by hitting a dagger game-winner over Oklahoma City, one of those moments that instantly reminds you why he still means so much to this franchise and fan base. It wasn’t simply the shot itself. It was the atmosphere surrounding it. The emotion. The realization that, for one night against the NBA’s measuring stick, the Suns looked capable of punching back.
Grade: A-
Despite the frustrations surrounding his late-game productivity, especially toward the end of the season, this was still a quality year for Devin Booker. Sure, some of the statistical efficiency dipped compared to his normal standards. Still, the Phoenix Suns thrived with him as the focal point. Even if the percentages weren’t always pretty, the team around him benefitted simply from his existence.
This team does not win 45 games without Devin Booker as its primary player. This team does not exceed expectations if Booker doesn’t sacrifice parts of his individual game for the betterment of the roster around him.
Yes, there are still questions. The hope is that next season provides answers not only about Booker but also about the organization’s ability to internally develop players and use continuity as a pathway toward more wins and a more competitive roster.
At this point though, I’m thankful Booker is still in Phoenix. I’m thankful the organization didn’t completely detonate everything and enter a full rebuild where fans spend the next two or three seasons hoping they someday draft a player capable of becoming what Booker already is.
The price-for-value conversation is absolutely valid, and as the supermax looms larger, those conversations only become more important. Still, what Booker brings to the Suns is something difficult to quantify. Relevancy.
And that matters more than people sometimes want to admit. Relevance changes the way a franchise is viewed nationally. It changes free agency conversations, television schedules, postseason expectations, and the overall energy surrounding the organization. Devin Booker dragged the Suns out of basketball purgatory years ago, and even now, as Phoenix tries to stabilize itself within a brutal Western Conference landscape, he remains the connective tissue between where this franchise was and where it still hopes to go.
Maybe he never ends up delivering a championship to the Valley. That doesn’t erase the reality that he has already helped change the franchise’s trajectory entirely.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 19: Jalen Brunson #11 of the New York Knicks reacts during the fourth quarter of a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Game One of the NBA Eastern Conference Finals at Madison Square Garden on May 19, 2026 in New York City. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sarah Stier/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Yesterday, I was playing tennis with my son when Shams announced that Dallas had fired head coach Jason Kidd after five seasons. My thoughts immediately turned to those rumors from last summer. Remember how the Knicks brass, needing to fill their own coaching vacancy, allegedly tried to finagle access to Kidd? In the end, they hired Mike Brown, a veteran skipper and two-time recipient of Coach of the Year honors. Not a bad second—or third, or fourth, or fifth—choice, we thought.
The Knicks proceeded to win the most games in 13 seasons. Last night, they hosted Game One of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Cleveland Cavaliers. Just a hunch, but methinks the number of Knicks fans who would prefer Kidd to Brown right now is quite small.
After their second loss to the Hawks in Round One, New York rejiggered their offense. That led to a legendary tear, with seven straight wins and the Knicks’ offense finally reaching its potential after playing an 82*-game season. One of our concerns before the ECF was that while the ‘Bockers waited nine days for Cleveland to beat Detroit, they could get rusty. Or worse, they’d forget how to execute their brand-new, world-stomping offense.
Both concerns proved valid. Despite limiting the Cavs to 16 first-quarter points, New York looked little like the team that crushed the Sixers. Scoring just 23 points in each of the first three quarters and falling behind by 22, our heroes appeared completely cooked until the Brunson Burner kicked on and Coach Brown pulled all the right levers. Donning his cape—and with ample support from Mikal Bridges and Landry Shamet—Captain Clutch scored 15 points in the fourth quarter to lead a 28-4 run that sent the game into overtime. (If you can believe it, that magical run reached 44-11.) In the fifth frame, the Cavs reached the bottom of their tank, New York scored the first nine points, and the improbable win was secured: 115-104.
Cleveland took their best swing, but the better team dug deep and found a way. And look at that: each Conference Finals Game One went to overtime. Lord Silver must be pleased.
Early on, nine days of rust showed for the home team. Bricks came aplenty, with misfires by OG Anunoby, Karl-Anthony Towns, Mikal Bridges, Josh Hart (twice), and Jalen Brunson (twice). New York trailed by six before the midway point, having whiffed on their first five three-point attempts and 75% of their field goals. Luckily for them, neither team was shooting efficiently. At the five-minute mark, Mitchell Robinson picked off a Harden pass and then grabbed a rebound, which became a Brunson reverse layup, capping a 10-3 run for their first lead.
After a Cleveland timeout, New York kept the good times going. Bridges stole the ball from Max Strus and added a dunk; Dennis Schröder missed on a floater, and Brunson responded with a floater; Evan Mobley traveled, and Bridges fed Mitch an alley-oop. When the cutting was done, the teams had combined to shoot 16-of-45 from the field and 3-of-17 from deep. The Knicks were up 23-16.
— Coach Gibson Pyper (@HalfCourtHoops) May 20, 2026
In the second quarter, the Knicks continued to live in the Cavs’ jerseys. After Bridges, Anunoby, and Hart had pressured Cleveland into their lowest-scoring first quarter of the season, the bench did the same. On one sequence, Jose Alvarado closed in on Mitchell, almost wrestled the rock away, forced him into a panicked pass, and Keon Ellis tossed that hot potato out of bounds. Jose won’t get credit for it, but his dogged defense totally killed the possession for The Land.
New York needed the defensive intensity because they still misfired from beyond the arc. When OG finally connected from the corner just past the midway mark, the hosts attained their first double-digit lead of the contest. But then bench guy Sam Merrill retaliated with a triple, Harden matched it, and a 10-0 run cut the differential to one.
All those rusty three-point misses were costly, indeed. With a minute left in the half, a Strus triple tied the game, and one by Spida completed a 13-point swing. That gave Cleveland a 48-46 halftime lead.
The half was won in the paint and lost at the arc. New York dominated the interior, racking up a 32-14 advantage in paint points and shooting an efficient 47% from the floor. That inside success was completely offset by a disastrous 11% shooting performance from deep (2-of-19). Cleveland stayed afloat by knocking down eight triples at a 38% clip, but they bled points on the other end, specifically by turning the ball over 11 times and giving up 15 points off those mistakes. Predictably, Mitchell and Brunson were the top scorers so far, with 16 and 14 points, respectively.
To start the third, Towns missed from deep, then made one to end a 2-for-21 spell. KAT also committed a turnover and a holding foul that nullified a flagrant foul by Allen on Hart. Definitely a mixed bag of a game for the big fella. Meanwhile, the Cavs did what New York couldn’t—namely, convert from deep. With longballs by Wade and Evan Mobley, and Mitchell ripping the ball out of Bridges’ hands for a pick-six, New York fell behind by eight. Spida already had six steals. Things were about to get worse.
Donovan Mitchell really is Spyda damn near did a somersault for this. James Harden might feel this tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/jltDpOjo5D
— Global Utopia Sports (@GL8BAL_SPORTS) May 20, 2026
The Knicks completely lost control of the quarter, undone by sloppy turnovers (seven in nine minutes), more Siberian shooting, and Cleveland’s relentless transition attack. Mitchell was the biggest problem, carving up the Knicks’ defense and turning multiple steals into buckets. New York’s halfcourt offense crumbled with missed isos and rushed jumpers from Brunson and Towns. Meanwhile, Allen and Mobley dominated the glass and protected the rim on the other end.
You were asking, “Where was OG? Where was KAT?” We were, too. Those guys were essential to the new offense that was birthed against the Hawks. After three quarters, they’d combined for 12 points on 5-of-15 shooting.
Oh, and Hack-a-Mitch came back. Our man was missing from the stripe again, making 2-of-8 in the deep end of the third. Around then, New York fell behind by 16 and looked nothing like the team that faced Philadelphia. When Hart passed the ball past Brunson’s knees and out of bounds with 50 seconds left, things looked bleak; they got even darker when Brunson missed another free throw with 11 seconds left.
Dennis Schroder finds Sam Merrill for the 3-pointer to put the Cavaliers up 14, and then Schroder fouls Mitchell Robinson for the Hack-A-Mitch, and Robinson splits the free throws to the loud cheers of the local crowd. pic.twitter.com/VUUgw3VdYj
They were lucky to be down just 83-69 to start the fourth. Little was going right in the final frame, too. Two minutes in, Jordan Clarkson missed an uncontested bunny; then Brunson turned the ball over and missed on a drive to the cup. Towns grabbed a rebound, but then Mobley stuffed Bridges on a drive. Clarkson fouled Wade in the corner for a four-point play. KAT missed a layup. Mitchell connected from deep. Bridges airballed from 26 feet. The deficit reached 22, and this game got late early. Hardly anything that came before gave us any confidence that our heroes would turn this tilt around, nor could we dare to imagine the miracle that was about to unfold.
Landry “Always Ready” Shamet hit a three-pointe to get the deficit under 20, and Brunson went high off the glass to score over Wade. In a flash, an 11-1 run brought the hole to a dozen with five minutes left. When Allen missed two freebies, Brunson canned a floater from the elbow to make it 10. Suddenly, the Garden, which had turned silent as a crypt, regained its voice. The fans lost their minds when Harden airballed out of bounds, then Brunson hit a floater and a 26-footer to make the deficit five.
— Coach Gibson Pyper (@HalfCourtHoops) May 20, 2026
Out of a timeout, Mobley canned a triple at the three-minute mark. Anunoby made 1-of-2 free throws, but a loose-ball foul gave New York another possession, and Bridges hit a Hail Mary from the perimeter.
Down by four, KAT committed a maddening off-ball holding foul that could have doomed the rally. But not so! Brunson found Bridges in the corner for another triple, then Shamet made a three that bounced around and tied the game! With seconds to go, Merrill’s game-winner rimmed out, and the ref missed coach Brown’s plea for a timeout. We had overtime!
During bonus basketball, the team that played a Game Seven two days earlier lost its legs. Harden, specifically, simply disintegrated before our eyes. The hosts scored the first nine points of the frame, capped by another Shamet triple, and although Strus cut the deficit to six with 1:45 left, back-to-back fouls by Merrill kept the hosts in control. Then, finally, Bridges swatted away Strus’ dribble to kill another Cleveland possession, and Anunoby’s free throws carried us out.
Quoth chinaski1980: “Unbelievable comeback.” That, my friend, might be the understatement of the year. According to the broadcast (our very own Mike Breen!), it was the largest playoff comeback victory since 1970.
So, everyone’s cool with keeping Coach Brown, right? Seems to be doing a decent job. Now here’s yours: pay close attention. Commit as much to memory as you possibly can. Because this is the team you’ll be telling future generations about.
Up Next
Game Two will be played here on Thursday. Rest up, Knickerbockers. Box Score
* Should be one more, but NBA Cups are made by Dixie.
Donovan Mitchell looks like he can barely walk and is super tired after dropping 29 points, but blowing a 22 point 4th quarter lead.
Happy Wednesday, everyone, and we hope this week is treating you well. If it’s not, well, at least it’s halfway done, now. In today’s news round-up, we’ll look at the latest victim of loose bodies in the elbow, and why Tarik Skubal’s speedy recovery timeline might make him feel a little better. We also look at one Blue Jays player who needs to start playing October baseball in May, while one player who hasn’t appeared at all this season is ready to help his team get to October.
We’ve got all sorts of good tidbits for you today, so grab your coffee and let’s jump right in.
DENVER , CO - MAY 18: Ezequiel Tovar (14) of the Colorado Rockies walks to first after drawing a walk from Peyton Gray (75) of the Texas Rangers during the third inning at Coors Field in Denver, Colorado on Monday, May 18, 2026. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post) | Denver Post via Getty Images
For the last seven years, Colorado Rockies baseball has been many things, but “boring” rarely made the list.
Instead, we were treated to a chaotic roller coaster. They didn’t just lose games: They lost them in spectacular, historic fashion. They had public front-office feuds, bullpen implosions that defied the laws of physics, and forced us all to hear way too much about teams like the 1895 Louisville Colonels, which featured players named Tug Welch and Ducky Holmes. Every week brought new, creative ways to raise your blood pressure.
It was stressful. It was exhausting. It was a 162-game existential crisis wrapped in a baseball uniform.
On the other, hand the 2026 Rockies are, for lack of better words, kind of boring.
But before you mistake that for a complaint, let me clarify: Being boring is the best thing to happen to this team in years.
The comforts of being boring
The first month of the season for the new-look Rockies was fairly exciting. After losing 119 games in 2025, the Rockies came out playing a much-improved brand of baseball with a new lineup and pitching staff. They reached milestones in the win column that hadn’t been reached until the mid-June last season. The pitching was better, the offense was kind of shaky, but overall it was more interesting.
However, things have predictably regressed in May. The Rockies have lost quite a few games as pitching has struggled, and the offense has tried to fight off slumps. Still, things are nowhere near as bad as they were in 2025 and the team has , generally, played competitive ball.
The defense is making the routine plays. The pitching staff is eating innings without setting the world on fire. The offense isn’t exploding for 15 runs, but they aren’t getting shut out by a guy making his MLB debut, either.
There is also very little roster turnover. Fans are always quick to pull the rip cord on a struggling player, but a difference this season is that the team is not being reactive. Moves are being based on need rather than desperation. A significant indication of this fact is that the team has utilized just two rookies this season.
Boring means stability.
A toxic, high-drama losing environment is a terrible place to develop young talent. When a franchise is a walking dumpster fire, every mistake a rookie makes gets magnified under a microscope of organizational panic. Young players press, they try to do too much, and their development stalls out under the weight of a broken culture.
But in a boring environment? A young player can strike out with runners on, go back to the dugout, look at the tablet, and figure it out without feeling like they just ruined the season. The pressure is lowered because the baseline is stable. Both young and experienced players are allowed to make their routine adjustments quietly, tucked away in the middle of a functional lineup, rather than being asked to be savior-of-the-franchise figures.
It’s understandable to want winning baseball — that’s what we all want — but 2026 is all about the climb.
The Rockies have barely started up the trail, and there is growth happening. The big-league team is learning how to compete and win at the big-league level. The organization is figuring out how to win from top to bottom and implement systems that will reap benefits. There is comfort knowing there is a plan behind the rebuild, and boring baseball that isn’t historic for all the wrong reasons is a major step forward.
The Minor League excitement
If you are longing for excitement from Rockies baseball, the farm system may have what you’re looking for.
The Albuquerque Isotopes have played much better baseball this season. There is a healthy blend of external players that were brought for leadership and depth purposes and top prospects that are finding their footing. The Isotopes are putting patience at the plate into practice, which is what the organization is hoping to instill across the system. The Rockies are letting prospects get sufficient time to be ready to face big-league pitching.
There is also excitement to be found in the lower levels with teams like the Fresno Grizzlies. Ethan Holliday (No. 2 PuRP) and Roldy Brito (No. 11 PuRP) are bringing plenty of flair to the offense, and there are plenty of quality pitching performances. Fresno is playing some of the best ball in the system, and it’s a testament to the changes bubbling under the surface for Colorado.
The minors represents baseball in its purest form, and it’s exciting because you get to watch growth in real time and development for the future of the big-league club.
Lowering the bar to raise the floor
Look, I’m not trying to convince you that this is a secret powerhouse hiding in plain sight. The National League West is still a buzzsaw, and nobody is printing playoff tickets in Denver just yet.
But there is a distinct beauty in a team that stops beating itself.
For years, watching the Rockies felt like watching someone try to assemble IKEA furniture without the instructions while the house was on fire. Right now, it feels like they’ve finally found the Allen wrench. They are executing the boring plays, minimizing the catastrophic mistakes, and staying competitive.
In the grand scheme of a long season, boring means stability. It means we can watch a game on any given night and actually enjoy the baseball, rather than treating it like a psychological endurance test. Sometimes, that’s all you need.
The Rockies don’t have to be great right now. They just have to be enjoyable or, at the very least, serviceable.
Before you can become good, you first have to stop being a disaster. You have to raise the floor.
By becoming boring, the Rockies have finally stopped beating themselves. They have replaced the chaotic, unpredictable lurches from crisis to crisis with something resembling a standard Major League baseball operation.
It just feels like baseball. And after everything this fanbase has been through over the last few years, I will take a boring weeknight win, or even a boring loss, every single time.
A disastrous seventh inning that saw Las Vegas score eight runs ended up playing the difference in the Isotopes 16-8 loss. Sean Sullivan started on the mound and struggled through his 4.2 innings of work, allowing seven runs on 12 hits with four strikeouts. The seventh inning fell apart for Victor Juarez, but only three runs were earned as the Isotopes committed five total errors on the night. Offensively, Chad Stevens led the way with two hits, including a home run, and four RBI. Charlie Condon also had a much-needed multi-hit game, while Andrew Knizner also had two hits and drove in three runs.
The Yard Goats held on to a 2-1 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning, but the Fisher Cats managed to tie things up and eventually put up a two-spot in the bottom of the 10th for a walk-off victory. Ryan Feltner made the rehab start on the mound for Hartford and delivered 3.2 innings of work, allowing just three hits while striking out four. Offensively, the team had eight hits, with Braylen Wimmer knocking a pair of doubles.
Spokane rode a six-run bottom of the seventh inning, aided by a two-run eighth, to victory as they tallied 10 hits against Vancouver. Eight players had at least one hit for the Indians, seven of whom were starters in the game. Alan Espinal and Robert Calaz each had two hits while Jacob Humphrey led the way with three RBI. Surprisingly, Spokane had just two extra-base hits. Both were doubles from Humphrey and Tommy Hopfe. Jackson Cox started on the mound, allowing two runs on three hits with 10 strikeouts and no walks.
Despite out-hitting Rancho Cucamonga 13-11, the Fresno Grizzlies’ pitching struggled with run prevention in the 11-8 loss. Every batter had at least one hit for Fresno, with four notching two hits, and Roldy Brito led the way with three RBI. The team had more walks than strikeouts, but the rally fell short in the latter innings. Marcos Herrera made the start and recorded just two outs in the first inning, giving up four runs on four hits, including three home runs. Manuel Olivares followed in relief and completed three innings, but also gave up four runs on four hits with four walks. Yanzel Correra then tossed 2.1 perfect innings with four punch outs before giving way to Jhon Medina who then allowed three runs in two innings of work.
Ezequiel Tovar’s struggles have been quite evident thus far but he has been getting better. At-bats are improved and he’s starting to make more solid contact.
But Quatraro and general manager J.J. Picollo see his playing time as part of a broader and more intricate matrix. And you can’t say their thinking isn’t reasonable and measured — even if you’d rather they not douse the buzz that way.
Partly, it’s about their view of Caglianone as a work in progress. Partly it’s about Quatraro’s desire to keep the bench sharp when called upon. And, most of all, it’s about what they believe creates the best chance to win on any given day. Trying to usher along Caglianone and simultaneously seeking to seize the day don’t have to be mutually exclusive, of course — a topic in itself for another time.
But it’s also true that the Royals haven’t exactly muzzled Caglianone, who on Monday at Kauffman Stadium started for the 37th time in 48 games this season, and whom Quatraro noted is on pace for 500-plus plate appearances.
When I put that point to Picollo, he said “Actually, I’ll correct you: He’s on pace for a little bit more than that.”
“That was a tough one,” Massey acknowledged. “I actually just went and looked at the play with Duper (replay coordinator Bill Duplissea), and I was running and I had the lane toward the catcher, which is where I was going to go, and then the throw — he did a good job as a catcher, he followed the rule and he gave me the lane — the throw led him in there, so he was allowed to kind of cover the plate to go get the ball. “But it was last second, so he kind of covered the lane I was going for, and then I either had two options. Either I truck him or dodge to the left and try to score, and in that split second. I just tried to make a juke move, and get my hand in there. But yeah, you know, so it was a legal play by him and just a tough break.”
But the biggest talking point surrounding the Royals this season is the lack of production from the middle of the order. Vinnie Pasquantino has a .198/.279/.331 slash line this year, while Salvador Perez has a .201/.244/.346 line. No one in the American League has more plate appearances (54) with runners in scoring position than Pasquantino; his .434 OPS in those situations are fourth-worst in the AL among qualified players.
“Let’s face it: We’ve got our No. 3 and 4 hitters that are struggling right now,” general manager J.J. Picollo said pregame Monday. “They know how valuable they are to the team. What we have to keep reminding them is how important to the team [they are]. Just because you’ve had a tough start doesn’t mean that’s how you’re going to finish.
“… We have a lot of history to lean on with those two. We know that they’re run producers. And they will be run producers. It’s just a matter of when, and that’s why we need to keep running them out there, because they’ve done it before at this level.”
So where do the Royals go from here? There are a few options that the Royals could go with. The first, and the one that seems the most likely, is to keep things where they are and just trust that the players you have now will improve over the course of the season. This plan has a better chance of not working than working, but the roster is what it is, and the fans will have to put up with it for the foreseeable future.
Another option is to make some moves at the deadline. JJ Piccolo can use some of the pitching depth he has at his disposal and trade it for a reliable bat who excels in driving in runs or more bullpen arms. The third, and most drastic option, is to blow it all up and trade players who could give you the most value (Wacha, Ragans, Witt, Kyle Isbel, etc.) This option would make more sense if the woes for the Royals were to continue, but we’re still in May, so the chances of this happening are slim to none. However, there is a lot of value you could get by making big trades like this. Hopefully, the Royals won’t get to that point and that this team will improve as the season goes on, but only time will tell.
I’m not saying Marte should completely replace Collins. However, once a week seems sufficient, especially since Collins can be very hot and cold at times at the plate. He is hitting .130 with a .174 slugging percentage in his last 24 at-bats. The former Brewers outfielder could use a day off, with Marte taking his place in the lineup and in left field.
It’s not a major change, which is what the Royals need, especially with Vinnie and Salvy not looking dramatically better at the plate lately. Kansas City needs an impact hitter, and that likely will have to come through the trade market.
That said, the Royals need all the positive production they can get on their active roster, especially since it’s too early to make a trade.
Quatraro might as well roll the dice and see what else Marte has left in the tank, especially against right-handed starting pitchers.
The Royals have also disappointed this season. They are in the bottom third of the league in team ERA and runs scored. Led by Seth Lugo, Kris Bubic and Michael Wacha, the rotation has been mostly solid, but Cole Ragans has battled injuries and hasn’t gotten back to that 2024 version of himself and Noah Cameron has really struggled. Though Lucas Erceg and Daniel Lynch have been effective in the back-half of the Royals’ bullpen, they’ve been without closer Carlos Estévez for most of the year, which has thinned their depth.
Offensively, they’re led by the best shortstop in the game in Bobby Witt Jr. but the rest of their core — Vinnie Pasquantino, Salvador Perez, Maikel Garcia and Jac Caglianone — have all under-achieved.
Trade deadline position: Wait and see. Like the Tigers, I think the Royals will get back in the race for the AL Central, so there’s no need to panic early with this team. If things go south, they could dangle both Lugo and Wacha at the deadline. If they buy, help at second base, the outfield and bullpen are the three biggest needs.
Wish you were here: World Baseball Classic Vinnie Pasquantino
A lot can happen in 70 days. Back then, Pasquantino was crushing espresso shots and leading Team Italy on a Cinderella run through this year’s World Baseball Classic. His three homers in one game were a WBC first, and he finished with a .970 OPS and more walks (7) than strikeouts (5), giving Royals fans outsized hope that he could carry that production into the season. So much for that. Pasquantino has a 74 wRC+ on the year, with just five homers in 45 games. His batted-ball data is worse than 2025, so he’s not entirely unlucky. Perhaps the Royals should pry back the espresso machine from the winning bidder. — Flores
The Jumbo Shrimp scored one run in the 6th and two runs in the 8th to take Game 1 vs. the Tides on Tuesday.
Norfolk came into the 6th down 2-1, but quickly tied the game thanks to a leadoff solo homer from José Barrero. That tie was short-lived thanks to Jumbo Shrimp catcher Agustín Ramírez. The recently demoted Ramirez jumped on a first-pitch curveball from Norfolk starter Trace Bright, blasting it over the left field fence to give Jacksonville a 3-2 lead.
The long ball would then seal the win for the Jumbo Shrimp in the 8th. With Hans Crouse on the mound for the Tides, Matthew Etzel turned around a 2-2 slider down and in, sending a solo homer to right to grow the lead to 4-2. Two batters later, Ramirez struck again. Crouse hung a slider to the former big league backstop, who tomahawked it to left for this second homer of the game.
The Tides would bring the winning run to the plate four times in the 9th, only for Jud Fabian, Heston Kjerstad and Christian Encarnacion-Strand to all strike out and clinch the win for Jacksonville. CES provided the Tides’ only other run Tuesday night, blasting a 4th inning solo homer for his seventh home run in 26 games with Norfolk.
The Baysox scored three runs in the bottom of the 9th to walk off the Patriots and take the series opener in Bowie.
Chesapeake came into the bottom of the 9th down 5-3 after Somerset scored two runs in the 7th to take the lead. Thomas Sosa led off the inning with a walk and moved to second on a single by Anderson De Los Santos. Fernando Peguero pinch ran for Sosa and scored on a wild pitch to cut the deficit to 5-4. Frederick Bencosme then tied the game on a single up the middle to score Aron Estrada from second.
Tavian Josenberger walked before an Adam Retzbach groundout moved the runners to second and third. With two outs, Carter Young walked off the Patriots, punching a single into right field to score Bencosme.
CARTER CALLS GAME!!
Carter Young scores Bencosme and we've got our 3rd walk-off win of the season!
— Chesapeake Baysox (@BaysoxOfficial) May 20, 2026
Bencosme and catcher Ethan Anderson were the offensive stars for Chesapeake on Tuesday in their come-from-behind win. The outfielder let all Baysox with three hits, going 3-for-5 with three singles, two RBIs and the game-winning run. Anderson provided the power for the Baysox, going 2-for-5 with two solo home runs.
Chesapeake also got a strong outing from the Orioles’ top pitching prospect, Luis De León. The lefty pitched four innings, allowing only two hits and two runs while punching out five. It was the 23-year-old’s best start of the season, and he now has a 3.27 ERA in May with 14 Ks in 11 innings.
The Keys took a lead late into the game against the Drive, only to surrender eight runs in the 8th and give away the series opener against Greenville.
Frederick took an early lead thanks to some small ball in the bottom of the 1st inning. The Keys loaded the bases on a leadoff hit by pitch and two walks. Elis Cuevas then hit a sac fly to center to give Frederick an early 1-0 lead, before Braylin Tavera doubled that advantage on an RBI single through the left side.
After a 4th inning Greenville home run cut the Keys’ advantage in half, catcher Colin Tuft restored their two-run cushion in the 6th. The Frederick backstop jumped on a 1-2 pitch over the middle of the plate and launched it over the right-center fence for a solo home run.
That 3-1 lead would evaporate in the 8th as pitchers Twine Palmer and Joe Glassey lost control of the game for Frederick. After Palmer struck out the first batter of the inning, he allowed five straight batters to reach via four singles and a walk, allowing Greenville to take a 5-3 lead. Greenville’s Isaiah Jackson ended Palmer’s outing with a two-run homer to right to give the Drive a 7-3 advantage. Glassey then came in, giving up two runs on a single, double and single, before finally ending the inning on a pop-up to the catcher.
Victor Figueroa got one run back on a solo shot in the bottom of the 8th, continuing his hot start to the season that has him with a 1.002 OPS and 33 RBIs. It was the only consolation Frederick could muster, though, as they dodn’t get another hit the rest of the game.
The Shorebirds gave up eight runs across the first two innings Tuesday, and could not recover in a lopsided loss to the Wardbirds.
It was an ugly start for highly-regarded prospect Esteban Mejia, with the 19-year-old finishing with a final line of 1.0+ IP, 3 H, 8 R (6 ER), 6 BB, 1 K and 2 HR. Mejia has perhaps the best stuff of any arm in the Orioles’ minor league system, but command is a big concern and it showed Tuesday.
The Warbirds scored two 1st-inning runs thanks to a bases-loaded passed ball and a bases-loaded walk. Mejia then allowed a three-run homer and solo homer in back-to-back at-bats in the 2nd, before leaving the game having thrown 57 pitches and only gotten three outs.
The Shorebirds would get as close as 8-6 thanks to a Stiven Martinez long ball in the 4th. After Edwin Amparo and Braylon Whitaker reached via walks, Martinez swatted a three-run homer to left to cut the Delmarva deficit to two runs. Seven of the Shorebirds’ eight runs came via the long ball Tuesday, as Martinez, Jose Perez, Junior Aybar and Andrés Noyala all went deep.
Apr 21, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Connelly Early (71) throws a pitch against the New York Yankees in the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | David Butler II-Imagn Images
If Payton Tolle came out of obscurity to help the 2025 Red Sox down the stretch, Connelly Early came from another planet. I’m pretty tapped into the farm system. I spend way too much time on Twitter, with an algorithm full of Red Sox content. I knew Tolle; I actually wrote about him well before he was called up, but Alex Speier published a piece about him on the same day I had one planned, so I saved it for closer to his debut. Unlike Tolle, I didn’t know who Early was until shortly before his call-up, and certainly didn’t have expectations for him when he debuted.
He was dominant in his four regular-season starts and pitched well but was let down by his defense in his one postseason start. Through nine starts in 2026, Early has been solid, but not as dominant as he was in late 2025. His ERA is up from 2.33 to 3.21, while his FIP (fielding independent pitching) is up from 0.91 to 4.56. FIP is often cited in determining if a pitcher has been lucky or not because it has some predictive value, but if you allow me to be pretentious for a minute, that’s typically from people who are either uninformed or just lazy. The stat takes balls in play out of the equation and focuses on home runs, strikeouts, and walks. So far this season, his strikeout rate is down, his walk rate is up, and he’s allowed seven home runs after allowing zero in his debut season.
Continuing to be pretentious, I am not uninformed or lazy, so I want to know why those stats have trended in that direction. I started with the home runs. He didn’t give up any in 2025, and has already given up seven this season. Here are the locations of those pitches.
Six of the seven have come on belt-high pitches. Other than that, there’s no real trend. It’s not as if they each came when he fell behind in the count, or if there’s one pitch in particular that has been punished. The location, however, is the most important thing. They’re all in the zone, and while Early’s pitches aren’t lollipops, they also aren’t entirely overpowering. His fastball averages 93 mph, and his slider is hard at 87 mph, but they’re both hittable in the wrong locations. There are very few pitchers who can get away with their mistakes over the plate frequently, and Early is no exception.
I did mention that he allowed no home runs last season, though. Part of that is likely because he only threw 19 innings. While he’s still facing many hitters for the first time, he was a relative unknown when he arrived last season, too. The stuff was more or less the same, and there were still some mistakes; they just didn’t go for home runs. That’s baseball, and statistics or something. We move on.
What are we moving on to, you might ask? The strikeouts and walks, of course. Early walked just four of 79 (5.1%) batters faced. This season, he’s walked 18 of 199 (9%). I mentioned this offseason that his 2025 minor league walk rate was close to 10%, so I’m not surprised to see more walks. I am, however, surprised to see the dip in strikeouts.
For starters, there was some statistical regression bound to happen. Early got to two-strike counts against 61% of the hitters he faced last season and turned 60% of those at-bats into strikeouts. The league average for converting two-strike counts into strikeouts is typically about 40%, and while striking out hitters is a skill that some are better at than others, a 60% strikeout conversion rate* is unlikely to be repeated year after year. This season, Early’s rate is, believe it or not, 41%.
*I made the name of this statistic up. It sounds pretty good though, right?
The other area where Early made slight changes was his two-strike pitch selection. I’ll focus on right-handed hitters, because that’s the area where he’s seen the most regression; his strikeout rate fell from 28.1% to 21.8% against righties.
This season, he’s leaned on his four-seam fastball more, while cutting the use of his curveball dramatically. Last season, his curveball was a great weapon for him, registering a 26% putaway rate. This year, that number is down to 13%, and Early has cut the usage as a result. If we look at the heatmaps, it’s pretty easy to see why that happened.
In his short debut season, his curveballs mostly landed below the plate, often in the dirt. This year, they’re in the zone more often, and hitters haven’t bitten. When they do swing, they aren’t missing as often, frequently fouling balls off to stay alive. His four-seam execution also hasn’t been as sharp.
The pitches here are still largely up and away, where they should play well, but there are more inside and over the plate. He’s using it more as well, and as I mentioned, it isn’t such an outlier where he can afford to miss over the plate, especially in two-strike counts. Here’s an example of where that pitch selection and location came back to bite him.
Connelly Early committed the same cardinal sin against Brice Matthews. I love the 0-0 changeup — Matthews was way in front, telling Early he wants a fastball — but at 1-1, Early gives him that fastball in a hittable location and he doesn't get it back. https://t.co/3XcFcTdPk8pic.twitter.com/DmKJ7cl5K8
Brice Matthews is up with two runners on base. He swings through a first-pitch changeup, an indicator that he, like many hitters when they come up with a runner on third and less than two outs, is looking for a fastball. Early has the breaking stuff to use for chases, but elects to give him the four-seam fastball. It’s down in the zone where it’s hittable, and Matthews puts in the seats.
He hasn’t taken a step back everywhere, though. His changeup, which evaluators tabbed as his best pitch entering 2025, has improved. It comes in about nine miles per hour below his fastball and shows tremendous depth. Last year, it averaged -3.2” of vertical movement; this year, it’s dropping an additional inch and a half on average. It’s lost a little bit of horizontal, and he hasn’t spotted it on the arm side as frequently against righties, but it might just be a matter of finding a feel for the new shape. Even without pristine locations, the chase rate is way up, and he’s earned more whiffs as well. Here’s a look at one of his best this season.
Expecting Early to repeat his 2025 performance is probably wishful thinking. He made four starts, and his command was close to perfect over his 19 innings. While the bar is high, it’s also a good example of who Early can be. When his fastball is up, his curveball is down, and his changeup is arm-side, he’s going to punch hitters out. Remember, he’s only 24 years old and has plenty of time to grow, as well. He’s consistently put the Red Sox in the position to win games without his best command. As he matures and finds the feel for his pitches, he’ll only get better.
May 19, 2026; Washington, District of Columbia, USA; Washington Nationals left fielder James Wood (29) dives head first into home plate to finish an inside-the-park grand slam against the New York Mets during the second inning at Nationals Park. Mandatory Credit: Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images | Rafael Suanes-Imagn Images
It might not be the rarest event in baseball.
But it sure feels like it.
On Tuesday night Washington Nationals outfielder James Wood hit an inside-the-park grand slam against the New York Mets, powering the Nationals to a 9-6 win over their NL East rivals. While there have been more than 200 such grand slams in MLB history, Wood’s was just the 26th such grand slam since the start of MLB’s Division Era in 1969.
Wood came to the plate with the bases loaded in the bottom of the second inning, with the Nationals trailing 5-0. Mets starting pitcher Nolan McLean left a sweeper over the heart of the plate, and Wood rocketed a deep fly ball to left-center field.
Left fielder Nick Morabito made a leaping attempt at the wall, but the ball caromed first off his glove and then the wall, rolling away from him and center fielder Tyrone Taylor. As Taylor checked to see if Morabito had completed the catch, the ball settled in center field, and Wood continued to race around the bases:
After pointing at the ball in the outfield, Morabito raced over to center field himself to get the ball back into the infield. But by then it was too late, as Wood’s head-first slide into home beat the relay to the catcher, and the Nationals had pulled to within one run of the Mets.
For those wondering, Wood needed little more than 15 second to make it all the way around the bases:
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - MAY 18: Jarren Duran #16, Wilyer Abreu #52 and Ceddanne Rafaela #3 of the Boston Red Sox celebrate a 3-1 win over the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium on May 18, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Ed Zurga/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning! Did Jarren Duran’s three-run shot in the ninth last night feel surreal to anyone else or was that just me? I had forgotten that teams were allowed to score late-inning insurance runs.
The Red Sox scored more than three runs for the first time in nine games last night. It was just the fifth time they’ve done it in the last 19 games. Unsurprisingly, they are 4-1 in those games, which just hammers home a fact that has become painfully obvious: if this team could hit at all, it would be really, really good.
Does this fact give you hope or despair? On one hand, they aren’t all that far off from being able to consistently win baseball games; just a little offensive improvement from a few guys in the lineup ought to do it. On the other hand, wishing that this Red Sox team could hit could be like wishing that Craig Breslow didn’t have the personality of a human sweater vest; some things just are what they are.
So with that said, what side of the hope fence are you sitting on: Do you think this Red Sox team will get back to .500 this year? Talk about that and whatever else you want and, as always, be good to one another.
COVERS INTEL:
