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Recent history tells us that the Miami Marlins are difficult to predict, but that won't stop us from trying. Welcome to a new season of Prediction Time. Once again in 2026, I will be monitoring the prognostications from our valued SuperSubs, Fish On First staffers and livestream guests. Individual article pages like this one will be created prior to every Marlins series and featured prominently on the FOF site. Consistent participation is key if you want to win this annual contest. Submissions only take a few seconds. Scoring system A "perfect" series is worth three points: Earn one point for predicting which team will win the upcoming series Earn one point for predicting the precise number of victories for each team Earn one point for predicting the “Series MVP” who accumulated the highest win probability added (WPA) during the series as calculated by FanGraphs (could pick a player from either team) Here is a reminder of what the 2025 season leaderboard looked like. FOF SuperSubs Parker Heyser and Robert Hanson currently sit atop the 2026 leaderboard, which will be updated between every Marlins series. If you are a SuperSub, leave a comment with your Prediction Time picks on this page, or join the Marlins Discord Server and submit there. We'll feature them on the upcoming Fish On First LIVE episode and track your points throughout the season! Any picks submitted prior to the first pitch of the series opener will be counted. If you are not a SuperSub, please consider signing up here to support the FOF staff. Series preview notes Probable starting pitchers: RHP Eury Pérez (MIA) vs. RHP Grant Holmes (ATL) on Monday RHP Max Meyer (MIA) vs. RHP Reynaldo López (DET) on Tuesday RHP Chris Paddack (MIA) vs. RHP Bryce Elder (ATL) on Wednesday The Marlins rank eighth in MLB with a 106 wRC+ and 12th in MLB with a 3.83 FIP. They are 3-7 in their last 10 games and have a 1-5 record on the road this season. The following Marlins players are on the injured list: Maximo Acosta (10-day IL), Griffin Conine (10-day IL), Ronny Henriquez (60-day IL), Adam Mazur (60-day IL), Christopher Morel (10-day IL), Esteury Ruiz (10-day IL) and Kyle Stowers (10-day IL). The Braves rank fourth in MLB with a 115 wRC+ and seventh in MLB with a 3.59 FIP. They are 6-4 in their last 10 games and have a 6-3 record at home this season. The following Braves players are on the injured list: Joe Jiménez (60-day IL), Ha-Seong Kim (10-day IL), Sean Murphy (10-day IL), Spencer Schwellenbach (60-day IL), AJ Smith-Shawver (60-day IL), Spencer Strider (15-day IL), Hurston Waldrep (15-day IL) and Joey Wentz (60-day IL). View the full article

Fish On First staffers react to the latest Miami Marlins series and prepare you for what lies ahead. Sunday's show was hosted by Alex Carver, accompanied by Ely Sussman. The following topics were covered: Reasons behind Sandy Alcantara's worst start of the season Otto Lopez's quiet excellence offensively Jakob Marsee laying an egg in front of family and friends in Detroit What to make of Connor Norby's mixed results How much longer will Robby Snelling have to wait for a call-up? Previewing and predicting the next series against the Atlanta Braves You can find Fish Unfiltered and Fish On First LIVE on the Fish On First YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever else you get your pods. Our next FOF LIVE episode will be Wednesday at approximately 11:00 p.m. ET following the Marlins-Braves series finale. View the full article

Having lost five in a row and with an offense needing a spark, the New York Mets are turning to journeyman outfielder Tommy Pham to invigorate the team. Pham is being called up to the Mets from Low A St. Lucie, where he has been getting into game shape, Will Sammon of The Athletic reported Sunday. Pham will join the Mets as they open a series on the road against the two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers. A move related to the 26-man roster will be made, but the Mets currently have three open spots on their 40-man. The 38-year-old signed a minor-league contract with the Mets on March 27 and had played five games and went 2-for-12 (.167) with a double, an RBI and three runs scored. Last year with the Pittsburgh Pirates, Pham had a .245/.330/.370 slash line with 10 homers and 52 RBIs in 120 games. Pham has played for 10 teams in 12 seasons, including 79 games with the Mets in 2023. The Mets' offense ranks 23rd in MLB in OPS at .658, including being shutout twice this weekend vs. the A's. The offense has struggled without superstar left fielder Juan Soto, who is on the 10-day injured list with a strained left calf. Soto is expected back around the end of the month. View the full article

The Weekly Nutshell: Well okay then! Through their first nine games of the season, the Twins much looked like the team most expected to see, opening with a 3-6 record that placed them at the bottom of the Central division. Looking ahead to matchups against Detroit and Toronto, the Twins were going to need to step it up to avoid sinking deeper here in April. They did indeed step it up, and in a big way, seizing a rare four-game series sweep at home against the Tigers before heading to Toronto and taking two of three from the defending AL champs. The Twins hit for power, pitched well, and played much more cleanly than we saw in the first few series. They took advantage of lapses while their opponents struggled to do the same. Suddenly, they've won six of seven and eight of their past 11. Now we're having some fun. Weekly Snapshot: Mon, 4/6 through Sun, 4/12 *** Record Last Week: 6-1 (Overall: 9-7) Run Differential Last Week: +16 (Overall: +14) Standing: 2nd Place in AL Central (0.5 GB) Latest Game Results Game 10 | MIN 7, DET 3: Keaschall's First Homer Sparks Win in Frigid Temps Keaschall: 1-3, HR, 2 RBI, 2 BB Game 11 | MIN 4, DET 2: Bradley Outduels Skubal in Dominant Performance Bradley: 6.1 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 10 K Game 12 | MIN 8, DET 6: Twins Ambush Valdez, Hang On to Clinch Series Win Buxton: 3-4, BB Game 13 | MIN 3, DET 1: Abel's Strong Start, Lee's Clutch Hit Secure Sweep Abel: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 6 K Game 14 | TOR 10, MIN 4: Wheels Come Off for Woods Richardson and Banda Woods Richardson: 4 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 K Game 15 | MIN 7, TOR 4: Ryan Cruises and Larnach Delivers Three-Run Blast Ryan: 7 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 5 K Game 16 | MIN 8, TOR 2: Twins Jump All Over Scherzer, Take Road Series in Rout Gray, Lee: 5 RBIs IF YOU'D RATHER LISTEN TO THE WEEK IN REVIEW THAN READ IT, YOU CAN GET IT IN AUDIO FORM! FIND THE LATEST EPISODE ON OUR PODCAST PAGE, AS WELL AS ON APPLE AND SPOTIFY. SUBSCRIBE TO OUR CHANNELS SO YOU DON'T MISS OUT! YOU CAN ALSO WATCH OUR LIVESTREAM WITH LOU HENNESY BELOW. NEWS & NOTES The Twins made their first IL moves since the season began on Saturday, placing third baseman Royce Lewis and reliever Cody Laweryson on the shelf. Utilityman Ryan Kreidler and right-hander Andrew Morris were called up from Triple-A as replacements. Lewis tweaked his knee on a swing in Thursday's game, later diagnosed as a sprain, while Laweryson is dealing with a forearm strain. Some fans expressed dismay to see Kreidler called up instead of, say, Kaelen Culpepper, but the reality is that Culpepper has only played about a dozen games at Triple-A. He's a very important prospect and his timeline should be dictated by development rather than the major-league team's needs, especially if those those needs are short-term in nature. That is hopefully the case for Lewis, who sounds likely to miss the minimum 10 days if things go to plan. Laweryson's timeline is less clear. Forearm strains are always concerning. The timing is tough because he was coming off a couple really strong appearances in the Detroit series, including his first career save on Monday. Morris, ranked by Twins Daily as the #12 prospect in the system, will provide length with the ability to pitch multiple innings. He did so in his MLB debut on Sunday, throwing two-innings of one-run ball while firing a fastball in the upper 90s. HIGHLIGHTS The Twins were failing to get anything done against left-handed starters ... up until they faced Tarik Skubal and Framber Valdez — the $50 million duo atop Detroit's rotation — and knocked them around for 12 earned runs in 9 ⅓ innings, defeating them both on the way to a stunning sweep over the Tigers. Some of Minnesota's righty bats finally came alive. Luke Keaschall hit his first homer of the season on Monday and added RBIs in the next two games. Byron Buxton broke out of his slump with a three-hit game on Wednesday, with Lewis also driving in a pair. Brooks Lee delivered a clutch go-ahead hit on Thursday, and channeled the momentum into two home runs and a two-run double in Toronto. He lifted his OPS from .417 at the start of the week to .694 by the end. A desperately needed awakening for Lee at the plate. There were plenty of good signs from the offense, which averaged 5.9 runs per game on the week and now ranks second in the American League in scoring. But the rotation led the way against Detroit, with Minnesota's four starters combining to allow just five earned runs on 18 hits in 23 innings (1.95 ERA), with zero homers. Joe Ryan and Bailey Ober were good, Mick Abel was very good, and Taj Bradley was once again great. Bradley continues to look better and better each time out, and was flat-out dominant on Tuesday, holding the Tigers to one run in 6 ⅓ innings with 10 strikeouts and zero walks. After outperforming one of the best pitchers in the game on Tuesday, Bradley followed up by outperforming one of the best pitchers of this generation on Sunday, picking up another win against Max Scherzer and the Blue Jays. Bradley battled major control issues in this one, walking four and throwing just 62 of 106 pitches for strikes. But in a way it was maybe his most impressive start yet, because he worked out of self-created jams and found the zone when he needed to. It was a great indicator of how far he's come. Minnesota's patchwork bullpen is getting it done for now. They held close leads in the Detroit series, with contributors emerging from every corner and a different reliever notching the save in each win. Laweryson got five big outs to close out Monday's game. Newcomer Garrett Acton picked up the win on Thursday, tossing two critical innings in relief of Abel to set up Lee's late-game heroics. Taylor Rogers, Eric Orze and Kody Fundeburk were all effective in their opportunities, and Derek Shelton seemed to be putting them in the right spots. I'm not sure how long this grab-bag relief corps will be able to sustain its performance, but you've got to commend them for what they've been able to get done thus far. A few other performances worth highlighting from an outstanding 6-1 week for the Twins: Ryan Jeffers was a run-producing machine, driving in seven across his four starts behind the plate while impacting games with his prolific and proficient pitch-challenging. He tallied three hits, including a homer, in the opener against Toronto, and is taking a lot of high-quality at-bats. Trevor Larnach hasn't had a ton of opportunity to play due to the frequency of left-handed opposing starters, but he's definitely taking advantage of his spots. He launched a big three-run homer off lefty Eric Lauer to break Saturday's game open, and on the season he has seven walks compared to four strikeouts, reflecting masterful control of the zone. Austin Martin is getting on base relentlessly, which is exactly what the Twins need him to do. He recorded five walks and four hits last week, boosting his batting average to .300 and his OBP to .500 in the young season, and his defense in the outfield has looked much-improved. On Friday he doubled for his first extra-base hit of the season; we'll take whatever glimpses of pop we can get. Finally, Josh Bell continues to anchor the lineup with consistently fantastic production. He started in the middle of the order for all seven games and went 8-for-24 with a double, a homer, and five RBIs. Bell has been all that was advertised and then some. LOWLIGHTS Simeon Woods Richardson pitched really well through his first two starts, but felt like a little bit of a ticking time bomb. His swing-and-miss rate was among the lowest in the league, and his stuff was grading out very poorly according to qualitative models. In Toronto, the bottom fell out. Staked an early lead on home runs from Jeffers and Lee, Woods Richardson was hit hard in a four-run fourth that erased the team's advantage. He was replaced by Anthony Banda, another guy plagued by quality-of-stuff issues — his fastball is down nearly three full MPH from last year. Banda was touched up for three earned runs in 1 ⅔ on Friday, after yielding four earned runs while recording just two outs against Detroit on Wednesday. His ERA sits at 9.39 through eight appearances. Maybe we're seeing why the Dodgers were willing to let him go. While many hitters are coming around and finding success at the plate, James Outman is not among them. He's still searching for his first hit of the season after going 0-for-9 with six strikeouts last week. Outman has been overmatched and doesn't really appear to have much of a chance up there. To some extent I can give him some lenience — he's playing somewhat rarely and it can be hard to find your timing or get into any groove with such sporadic opportunities. But that's the role. And while it's not a role that demands much offensively, the Twins need someone who can pose some kind of threat at the plate when he's in the lineup. Lou and I discussed some possible options and solutions in the livestream and podcast. TRENDING STORYLINE We'll see how the Twins handle the left side of their infield in the absence of Lewis. Kreidler and Tristan Gray have traded off starts based on matchups thus far, and that's probably a fair expectation going forward. I wondered if we might see Kreidler step in at shortstop with Lee sliding to third against lefties — probably a better defensive alignment — but so far Shelton has seen fit to keep Lee home at shortstop. Kreidler made a very slick play in his first start at the hot corner, showcasing what he brings to the table defensively. Depending on how long Lewis is out, this could be a great opportunity for Gray to get some playing time and show what he can do. He's always been bit of a fringy player who's struggled to get consistent playing time in the majors, but he's got a really intriguing power tool and we've already seen that on display. He hit another big three-run homer on Sunday and has driven in 11 runs through eight games played, helping key the surprising early success of this offense. Unfortunately, the nature of the upcoming schedule might make it hard for the lefty-swinging Gray to draw regular starts in the near future (see below), but with each eye-catching moment he's establishing himself as a legitimate top backup behind Lewis at third, which as we've seen is a pretty important role. LOOKING AHEAD The parade of left-handers continues, with four more the docket next week, starting with one of the game's best in Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet. The Twins seem to have turned a bit of a corner against southpaws this past week, so we'll see if they can channel that forward into their lefty-stacked matchups against Boston and Cincinnati at Target Field. MONDAY, APRIL 13: RED SOX @ TWINS — LHP Garrett Crochet v. RHP Bailey Ober TUESDAY, APRIL 14: RED SOX @ TWINS — RHP Sonny Gray v. RHP Mick Abel WEDNESDAY, APRIL 15: RED SOX @ TWINS — LHP Connelly Early v. RHP Simeon Woods Richardson FRIDAY, APRIL 17: REDS @ TWINS — LHP Brandon Williamson v. RHP Joe Ryan SATURDAY, APRIL 18: REDS @ TWINS — LHP Andrew Abbott v. RHP Taj Bradley SUNDAY, APRIL 19: REDS @ TWINS — RHP Brady Singer v. RHP Bailey Ober View the full article

The minor-league season is filled with a series of ups and downs. That's normal in development, and then it's not unusual in the big leagues because the development continues. Look only at Sunday's Saints game to see an extreme high and an extreme low. It's going to happen. TRANSACTIONS Not transactions on Sunday. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 8, Toledo 11 Box Score Kyler Fedko had an amazing day, powering the Saints to an early lead and helped build upon it. The Saints held an 8-4 lead heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Marco Raya came on to protect the lead. In 5 2/3 innings before Sunday, he had given up three runs (2 earned) on six hits and two walks. On Sunday, he just didn’t have control or command of any of his pitches. He recorded just one out and gave up six runs on three hits and three walks. It started with a home run by Ben Malgeri. Then a walk, a double, a single, a walk. Raya made one of the more athletic plays by a pitcher, fielding a bunch, turning and throwing a strike to third base for the first out. It was followed by a walk to load the bases. That’s when Dan Altavilla came into the game. On a 2-1 pitch, Cal Stevenson crushed a 96 mph fastball for a walkoff grand slam. That’s a tough way to end a week on the road. Let’s go back in the game. Lefty Kendry Rojas made his first Saints start. He tossed 2 2/3 scoreless innings. He gave up one hit, walked one and had three strikeouts. Altavilla was the seventh reliever used in the game. Yeah, let’s just jump to the offense. In the top of the third, Eric Wagaman singled to lead off the inning. Kyler Fedko followed with his first home run of the season (429 feet). David Banuelos followed with a walk. With one out, Walker Jenkins singled to drive in Banuelos. Gabriel Gonzalez doubled Jenkins to third. Alan Roden drove in both of them with a double to make it 5-0. With one out in the top of the fourth, Kyler Fedko hit his second home run of the game (437 feet) and of the season. That made it 6-0 Saints. In the top of the sixth inning, the first two batters got out. Kyler Fedko hit his third home run of the game (397 feet), his third home run of the season. It was big because it gave the Saints a 7-4 lead. As noted in the below tweet, Fedko is the fifth player in Saints franchise history to hit three home runs in a game. The others are Jose Miranda, Brent Rooker, Spencer Steer, and Chris Williams. With two outs in the top of the eighth inning, Eric Wagaman walked. Kyler Fedko came up and tripled to center field (411 feet) to drive in the Saints eighth run. Fedko went 4-for-4 with a triple and three home runs. He scored three runs and drove in five runs. Walker Jenkins went 3-for-4 with a walk and two stolen bases. Alan Roden went 1-for-3 with two walks and his third double. Gabriel Gonzalez, who made his first start at first base, added this third double of the season. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 5, Arkansas 3 (11 innings) Box Score This game was really a well-pitched game. In fact, there was no score through the first six innings. Ty Langenberg started and struck out eight batters over five shutout innings. He gave up four hits and walked none. 48 of his 65 pitches were strikes (73.8%) It was impressive as he was pitching on three days' rest. William Fleming made his first appearance since joining the Twins organization earlier in the week. The 6-6, 220 pound, 27-year-old, right-hander struck out one in a scoreless sixth inning. Jarret Whorff came on for the seventh inning and gave up two runs on two hits. He walked two and had two strikeouts. With one out in the top of the eighth, Billy Amick singled. With two outs, he moved to second on a single by Andrew Cossetti. Ricardo Olivar followed with a single to center to drive in Amick and make it 2-1. In the top of the ninth, Kyle DeBarge led off with a walk. Ben Ross singled to left. Hendry Mendez grounded to first. Ross was out at second, but Mendez beat the relay throw. With two outs, Amick singled to left to drive in DeBarge with the tying run and make it 2-2. Extra Innings! Garrett Spain started the inning as the Manfred Man at second base. With two outs, Spain was still on second. Jose Salas picked up his teammates. He lined a single to right to drive in Spain with the go-ahead run. Jaylen Nowlin struck out three batters over two scoreless innings. Ricky Castro came in for the 10th inning. The tying run scored quickly, and after an intentional walk to load the bases, he coaxed a ground ball back to the mound, starting a 1-2-3 double play and sending the game to the 11th inning. DeBarge started the inning at second base. Ben Ross singled to left and moved DeBarge to third base. Ross stole second. Hendry Mendez followed with a ground-rule double to make it 5-3. Castro went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the 11th to finish off the Wind Surge win. Ben Ross went 2-for-5. He has at least one hit in all nine games. He’s hitting .444 with an OPS of 1.139. He also now has five stolen bases. Billy Amick went 2-for-4 with a walk. KERNELS CHRONICLE Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 15 Box Score This was a rough one for the Kernels. They gave up three runs in the second, five runs in the fourth, and six more runs in the seventh inning. Three big innings for a team, and there’s a good chance that team will win. It might even surprise you to know that the Kernels had a 3-0 lead after one-and-a-half innings. Eduardo Tait scored on a balk in the top of the first inning. Then in the top of the second, with Andy Lugo on base, Miguel Briceno hit his first home run of the season to make it 3-0. Michael Ross made the start. In two innings, he gave up three runs on four hits. Brent Francisco came on and gave up six runs on four hits (including 2 homers) and two walks. Christian Becerra walked two but got the final two outs of the fourth inning. Cody Peschl and Nick Trabacchi. Ivran Romero came in for the top of the seventh. He got one out and was charged with six runs on five hits and a walk. Eston Stull got the final five outs. The Kernels added a run in the fifth inning. Miguel Briceno singled, went to third on a Jacob McCombs doubled him to third, and Tait drove him in with a sacrifice fly. In the top of the eighth, Briceno lined a single to left to drive in Danny De Andrade with the fifth run. Tait went 2-for-5. Miguel Briceno led the offense by going 4-for-4 with two runs scored and three driven in. We haven’t written much about Miguel Briceno yet this season, so here is a quick background. He signed in July of 2019 with the Milwaukee Brewers and made his pro debut in 2021. The Twins selected him in the minor-league portion of the Rule 5 draft. He played in 59 games for Fort Myers in 2025. Unfortunately, in early July his season ended when he was placed on the 60-Day Injured List. He hasn’t had much opportunity this season with the Kernels. Last Sunday, he got one pitch hit at-bat. On Friday, he pinch ran and scored a run. Sunday was his first start of the season. MIGHTY MATTERS Ft. Myers 9, Jupiter 3 Box Score The Mighty Mussels took an early lead. They gave it back in the middle innings, but then the bats jumped back to life late in the game. Eric Hammond made the start for the Mussels. He was drafted by the Diamondbacks late in the 2021 draft but chose to pitch at Georgia. Four seasons later, he went undrafted, but the Twins signed him in early August as a non-drafted free agent. His first appearance was on Tuesday with two scoreless innings out of the bullpen. On Sunday, he started and tossed three scoreless innings. He gave up one hit, walked on and had four strikeouts. The Mussels provided him with some run support in the second inning. Jayson Bass and Ryan Sprock started the inning with singles. Bryan Acuna followed with an RBI single to center. With one out, Jorel Ortega was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Dameury Pena’s hot start continued. He drove a single to right to drive in a second run. Quentin Young flew out to right field. On the play, Ortega was thrown out trying to advance to second. However, Acuna crossed the plate first to make it 3-0. Jake Murray, a non-drafted free agent in 2025 out of Campbell, came in to start the fourth inning. He faced three batters in the fourth. He walked the leadoff man in the bottom of the fifth inning, but he got an infield pop out followed by a pair of strikeouts. The lefty came out to start the sixth inning, but the leadoff man reached on an error. At that point, Jordan Smith brought Mitch Mueller into the game. Mueller signed as a non-drafted free agent from Utah Valley in March of 2025. He was greeted by a single and then issued a walk to load the bases. Mueller got a ground ball to first base for the out, but a throwing error allowed two runners to score on the play. After a walk, the tying run scored on a sacrifice fly. He got a strikeout to end that inning, but the score was now 3-3. How would the young Mussel hitters respond? Jorel Ortega led off the top of the seventh with a single. Pena was hit by a pitch. After a pitching change and a strikeout, JP Smith walked to load the bases. Ortega scored on a wild pitch to give the Mussels a lead. Eduardo Beltre walked to re-load the bases. The runners all moved up a base, and Dameury Pena scored on a balk. The chance for a grand slam was gone, but Jayson Bass hit a ball 100 mph and 400 feet, beyond the fence in right-center field and settled for a three-run homer. It was his first of the season and gave his team an 8-3 lead. Adam Falinski, who signed as a minor-league free agent in July of 2025, worked the final three innings for Fort Myers. He walked three and gave up three hits but gave up no runs and recorded his second save. Bryan Acuna went 3-for-4 with a walk and a stolen base. He is now hitting .389. Ortega went 1-for-3 and was hit by two pitches. Dameuery Pena went 2-for-4 and was hit by a pitch. His season average now sits at .476. Jayson Bass went 2-for-5 with the three-run homer. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Kyler Fedko (St. Paul): 4-for-4, 3B(1), 3-HR(3), 3 R, 5 RBI. Pitcher of the Day Ty Langenberg (Wichita): 5 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 K, 65 pitches, 48 strikes (73.8%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 3-for-4, BB, R, RBI, 2 SB(3) (batted second, DHd) #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 0-for-5, K (led off, played 2B) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 0-for-4, 2 K (batted sixth, played CF) #4 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 2-for-5, R, RBI, 2 K (batted second, catcher) #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-for-5, 2B(3), K (Batted fourth, played 1B) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - 2 2/3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K, 48 pitches, 30 strikes (62.5%) #9 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Play. #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (Minnesota) - MLB Debut. 3 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K, 67 pitches, 50 strikes (74.6%) #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-5, 2 K, E(4) (batted fourth, played SS). #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - 0-for-4, SF RBI, 2 K, E(6) (batted third, played SS) #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - 0.1 IP, 3 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 0 K, 29 pitches, 15 strikes (51.7%) #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 1-for-5, 2B(2), 2 RBI (batted third, played LF) #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 0-for-4, BB, 2 R, 3 K (batted first, played 2B) #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-3, 2 BB, K (batted third, LF, then CF) #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch UPCOMING PROBABLES Tuesday: Lehigh Valley @ St. Paul (6:37 pm CT) - TBD Springfield @ Wichita (6:05 pm CT) - TBD Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids (6:05 pm CT) - TBD Lakeland @ Ft. Myers (6:05 CT) - TBD CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 9-7 St. Paul Saints: 5-9 Wichita Wind Surge: 4-5 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 5-4 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 6-3 FCL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, May 4) DSL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, June 1) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View the full article

Weekly Snapshot: Record Last Week: 1-5 (Overall: 8-7) Run Scored Last Week: 20 Runs Surrendered Last Week: 32 Standing: 4th in NL Central *** Game 10 (4/6) | MIL 8, BOS 6 Game 11 (4/7) | BOS 3, MIL 2 Game 12 (4/8) | BOS 5, MIL 0 Game 13 (4/10) | WSN 7, MIL 3 Game 14 (4/11) | WSN 3, MIL 1 Game 15 (4/12) | WSN 8, MIL 6 *** Game 10 | Brewers 8, Red Sox 6 MIL Starter: Brandon Woodruff (5.2 IP, 5 ER, 2 BB, 4 K) Top Performers: Christian Yelich (3 H, BB, 2B, RBI) Garett Mitchell (2 H, 2 RBI) Sal Frelick (2 H, BB, RBI) It was a dramatic kickoff to the week for the Brewers, as a rare trip to Boston saw a reignition of an old feud with Wilson Contreras. Behind all that drama, it was Brandon Woodruff who took the ball and labored through 5 2/3 innings in game one, although at the end of the night, it was Garett Mitchell and the pesky Brewers' offense who broke through late to pick Woody up. Garett Mitchell’s go-ahead knock Game 11 | Red Sox 3, Brewers 2 MIL Starter: Jacob Misiorowski (5.1 IP, 2 H, 4 BB, 3 ER, 10 K) Top Performers: DL Hall (2.1 IP, H, BB, 0 ER, K) Gary Sánchez (H, BB) Tuesday’s contest saw Jacob Misiorowski earn his third start of the young season, and for Misiorowski, it was two different tales smashed into one. The first five innings of the game were flat-out dominant, as the young righty recorded 10 strikeouts and kept Boston off the scoreboard. In the sixth, though, he lost all command. Misiorowski only recorded one out, walked three, and left the game only to see all three of those runners come around to score. That would be all Boston needed, as behind the Miz, things didn’t fare much better. Red Sox ace Garrett Crochet quieted the Brewers' offense, twirling 6.1 innings of two-run ball. Misiorowski’s 10 K’s Game 12 | Red Sox 5, Brewers 0 MIL Starter: Shane Drohan (2.2 IP, 3 H, 4 BB, 3 ER, 2 K) Top Performers: Grant Anderson (1.1 IP, 0 H, 2 BB, 0 ER, K) Aaron Ashby (1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 2 K) The offense stayed cold for Wednesday’s rubber match, as another old foe in Sonny Gray shut down the Milwaukee offense. That spoiled the major league debut of Shane Drohan, who, after two solid innings, found himself in a similar situation as Misiorowski the night before; walking multiple batters and exiting the game without finishing the inning he started. Garett Mitchell’s tumbling grab Game 13 | Nationals 7, Brewers 3 MIL Starter: Aaron Ashby (2.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 K) Top Performers: Jake Bauers (2 H, BB, HR, 3 RBI) Aaron Ashby and Chad Patrick were the opener/bulk pairing for the Brewers in the series opener against Washington, a move that saw Ashby surrender two early runs and Patrick twirl three scoreless innings behind him. It seemed as if the ploy for Pat Murphy had worked, but a late implosion at the hands of Trevor Megill blew what was a small lead from a struggling offense. Jake Bauers’ 3-run home run (+26.5 WPA%) Game 14 | Nationals 3, Brewers 1 MIL Starter: Kyle Harrison (4.1 IP, 4 H, BB, 2 ER, K) Top Performers: William Contreras (H, HR, RBI) The Brewer bats remained cold into the weekend, as Nat’s starter Foster Griffin allowed just one hit in his stringent effort against the Crew, while Milwaukee starter Kyle Harrison battled through an early injury scare in his 4.1 innings of work. Unfortunately, his gutsy outing wasn’t rewarded, as it wasn’t until the 9th inning that the Brewers managed to scrape across a run, and by then, their last rally fell short. William Contreras’ solo homer (+5.2 WP%) Game 15 | Nationals 8, Brewers 6 MIL Starter: Brandon Woodruff (6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 6 K) Top Performers: Brice Turang (3 H, BB, 2 HR, 2 RBI) Gary Sánchez (H, HR, 3 RBI) Jake Bauers (2 H, HR, RBI) It was the bullpen's turn to spoil a win in Milwaukee, as on Sunday, a quality start from Brandon Woodruff was squandered by the pesky Nationals, scoring six runs late. On the offensive side, there were some signs of life, though, as Brice Turang recorded the Brewers' first multi-homer game of the season, and both Gary Sanchez and Jake Bauers went deep as well. Turang's second homer of the day (+15.0 WP%) Transactions: 04/10/26 - Recalled RHP Easton McGee from AAA Nashville. 04/09/26 - Signed free agent RHP Reiss Knehr to a minor league contract. 04/09/26 - Optioned LHP Shane Drohan to AAA Nashville. 04/08/26 - Traded RF Steward Berroa to Philadelphia Phillies for cash. 04/06/26 - Placed LHP Jared Koenig on the 15-day injured list with a left elbow sprain. (Retroactive to April 5, 2026) 04/06/26 - Recalled LHP Shane Drohan from AAA Nashville. Notes Christian Yelich left Sunday’s game with left hamstring tightness. His status for the future is currently unknown, although manager Pat Murphy was not optimistic about Yelich avoiding an injury. Both Brand Sproat and Kyle Harrison were being evaluated for Knee injuries after Saturday's game; however, it seems both have avoided any major injury. Looking Ahead: Tuesday, 4/14 - Blue Jays @ Brewers - 6:40 pm CDT Wednesday, 4/15 - Blue Jays @ Brewers - 6:40 pm CDT Thursday, 4/16 - Blue Jays @ Brewers - 12:40 pm CDT Friday, 4/17 - Brewers @ Marlins - 6:10 pm CDT Saturday, 4/18 - Brewers @ Marlins - 3:10 pm CDT Sunday, 4/19 - Brewers @ Marlins - 12:40 pm CDT View the full article

The Miami Marlins fell behind early and stayed behind in losing to the Detroit Tigers on both Friday and Saturday. Looking to avoid the sweep on Sunday, they had to feel good about having their ace, Sandy Alcantara, on the mound. Unfortunately, that optimism was quelled by the notion of facing two-time, reigning AL Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal. For the first two-thirds of the game, the Marlins offense may as well have just stayed home. Carrying a no-hitter into the sixth inning, it would be Austin Slater, in solely due to Skubal's left-handedness, who dunked a single into center field to get Miami in the hit column. Skubal wound up tossing 6 ⅔ innings of one-run ball in Detroit's 8-2 win over Miami, clinching a series sweep. In his four starts to begin the season, Skubal has completed six innings in three of them. In his two prior outings against the Marlins, Skubal owned an ERA of 9.00. Alcantara's afternoon would not be smooth sailing, as the former Cy Young winner allowed seven runs in six innings. In his three starts before Sunday, Alcantara allowed just two earned runs, posting a 0.74 ERA in what has been a resurgent season for him. On the day, Alcantara allowed 15 hard-hit balls, all on each pitch in his arsenal. "Tough series this weekend," noted manager Clayton McCullough. "This is just part of the season, so the positive is that this part is over...All we can try to do is play better tomorrow," continued McCullough. With the loss, Miami falls to 8-8, the first time they've been .500 since Opening Day. In the weekend series, Miami went 0-for-16 with runners in scoring position. After retiring Kevin McGonigle and Gleyber Torres to begin his outing, back-to-back singles would come back to bite Alcantara, as Skubal's battery mate, Dillon Dingler, launched his third home run of the season. Alcantara would settle into the tune of scoreless frames two through four before McGonigle, a .322 hitter in his first big league season, would tag him for his first career home run. On the day, the Tigers would find the outfield seats three times against Alcantara, marking the seventh time he's allowed as many home runs in a single outing. Entering this series, the Marlins offense was above-average in most offensive categories. Whatever excuses you'd like to apply to their struggles at Comerica Park, whether it be the low temperatures, solid quality of competition or absence of newly injured Griffin Conine, the end result was an abysmal output of only three runs. That makes this Miami's lowest-scoring series in nearly a calendar year (3 R vs. SF from 5/30-6/1/25). Looking Ahead The Marlins' road trip will continue with a stop in Atlanta, where they'll meet the Braves for the first time this season on Monday. Eury Pérez (1-1, 5.06 ERA) will look to overcome his road woes in the series opener. In 23 career starts away from loanDepot park, the soon-to-be 23-year-old owns a 5.02 ERA, nearly double the 2.59 mark he's posted at home. Opposing him, Grant Holmes (1-1, 2.55 ERA) will make his fourth career start against Miami, whom he owns a 3.14 ERA against. First pitch from Truist Park is slated for 7:15 EST. View the full article

Box Score: Starting Pitcher: Taj Bradley: 5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 7 K (106 Pitches, 62 Strikes, 58.5%) Home Runs: Tristan Gray (2), Kody Clemens (2) Top 3 WPA: Gray (0.25), Matt Wallner (0.10), Josh Bell (0.07) Win Probability Chart (Via BaseballSavant): In a baseball landscape in which no team (other than the Dodgers, perhaps) really looks that impressive, the Twins had mjuddled their way to 8-7 entering Sunday, after sweeping the Tigers and splitting the first two games against the AL Champion Blue Jays. Adding the competent veteran bats of Josh Bell and Victor Caratini has helped, but the starting rotation has been the team's greatest strength—despite the absence of injured ace Pablo López. Chief among the early rotation success stories has been Taj Bradley, who was utterly dominant against Detroit on Tuesday night, striking out 10 and working into the seventh inning. His command of his 91-MPH splitter (in conjunction with his high-octane fastball) has unlocked the long-dormant upside that made him a top-50 prospect just a few years ago. Opposing Bradley was the withered husk of Max Scherzer, who came in seeking strikeout number 3,500 for his career. Scherzer had an MRI on his right forearm after leaving his most recent start. The MRI was "clean," but that's like saying a politician over 80 passed a cognitive test. In any case, Scherzer worked a smooth first inning. That was not the case for Bradley. Ernie Clement led off and roped a double down the left-field line, and Dalton Varsho singled past a diving Luke Keaschall, making the score 1-0 almost instantly. Bradley's command was all over the place, which led to falling behind hitters. He was lucky to get away with a few hanging breaking balls. He did bear down and got Jesús Sánchez to tap into a double play. A walk would follow before Bradley got the strikeout on an elevated fastball to Nathan Lukes to end the frame. That was key, because Tristan Gray was due up in the second. With two runners on, Gray got a cutter to his liking and smashed it over the bullpen in right field to make the score 3-1 Twins. At his peak, Scherzer was ruthlessly efficient, but he did tend to give up a home run or two—making him similar to fellow legends Justin Verlander and Johan Santana. That number has spiked in recent years, however, and Kody Clemens led off the third with a 417-foot moonshot off a Scherzer slider left up in the zone. The damage wouldn't end there. Trevor Larnach and Keaschall singled, followed by a walk to Josh Bell. Matt Wallner then laced a single to right, Caratini hit a sacrifice fly, and Brooks Lee scorched a two-run double down the left-field line. All of a sudden, it was 8-1 Twins. Scherzer was done after 2 1/3 innings; the Lee double came off of reliever Joe Mantiply. Bradley appeared a little rusty after the long layoff, falling behind every hitter he faced in the third, but got Sánchez swinging on what would have been ball four, and Kazuma Okamoto flied out harmlessly on a 3-1 fastball that ended the inning. Bradley just couldn't land strikes with anything but his fastball. Eloy Jiménez sat on the pitch and turned around a 97-MPH heater for a sharp single in the fourth, and Andrés Giménez hit a fastball on the ground that Keaschall made a nice play on to retire the lead runner. Bradley threw fastball after fastball to the nine-hole hitter, Brandon Valenzuela, on 3-2, before throwing a non-competitive curveball high and out of the zone. On the ropes, he threw a couple of cutters in the middle of the zone to get ahead of Clement, before a curveball was laced on a line—right to Gray at third base to end the inning (a .720 expected batting average). The Twins are in the midst of playing quite a few games in a row, which may have played into Derek Shelton allowing Bradley to pitch the fifth. Bradley fell behind Varsho 3-0 before allowing a rocket double down the right-field line to start the frame. He retired Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on a splitter and struck out Sÿnchez on a challenge fastball. He then threw one of his better cutters of the day to strike out the struggling Okamoto. His ERA won't rise much today, but this was Bradley's worst start of the year, by far. His last inning was better, as he at least got the Blue Jays hitters off his fastball a little by landing some cutters for strikes. On one hand, he held a solid Toronto lineup to one run, but on the other hand, different sequencing and more batted-ball luck could have resulted in a brutal outing given his general lack of command. But that's showbiz. Andrew Morris made his debut in the sixth and looked good, hitting 98 MPH on his fastball; staying in the zone (for the most part); and dropping a sharp, slow curveball at 75-76 MPH that kept hitters honest—except for Giménez, who stayed on a curveball and roped it into the corner because he is not an honest man. Morris also seems to come from the Joe Ryan school of reacting to everything that happens in pretty comical ways. He got out of the sixth, but ran into some trouble in the seventh and eighth, with spottier command and some louder contact. He also threw a lot of pitches (67) over his three innings of work. Things to Track: The defense was good, with some nice plays made by Keaschall and Gray on the infield that kept innings from mushrooming. James Outman went hitless again. He still does not have a hit in 2026. Trading Brock Stewart for him was one of the most inconsequential (but still frustrating, somehow?) transactions in recent memory. Gray has 11 RBIs, second on the team to Bell, who has 12. Lee has been hitting well lately, but it seems a little precious, kinda like Bartolo Colón hitting that one home run. We'll see how long it lasts, but if this team somehow remains competitive, Kaelen Culpepper might be the better option, pushing Lee to a utility role. What’s Next: The Twins host the Red Sox as Bailey Ober (1-0, 5.27 ERA) takes on Garrett Crochet (2-1, 3.12 ERA). The Red Sox have been cold to start the year, but have tons of talent, with a lot of hitters with good track records who have yet to get going. The Twins' porous bullpen might be just the thing to warm those bats up—but so far, that pen has been surprisingly competent. Postgame Interviews: Coming soon. Bullpen Usage Chart: WED THU FRI SAT SUN TOT Morris 0 0 0 0 67 67 Banda 21 0 36 0 0 57 Funderburk 20 0 0 17 0 37 Acton 0 35 0 0 0 35 Topa 10 0 12 0 12 34 Sands 9 0 0 22 0 31 Rogers 0 0 30 0 0 30 Orze 0 14 0 0 0 14 View the full article

As surely as Spring follows Winter, when a team is having trouble winning, they will begin juggling relievers on and of the roster, whether or not it is their bullpen costing them wins. So it goes with the current iteration of the Mets, making their second reliever DFA in as many days, while they utterly struggle in the scoring department — as if their relievers even own bats. Transactions, 4/12/2026 GOING COMING Designated for Assignment Promoted from Syracuse Relief Pitchers Relief Pitchers Luis Garcia Joey Gerber R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 High Level: MLB (2025) Say what you want about Luis Garcia, that thick, bushy bird's nest on his chin made him the most readily identifiable of the denizens of the new-look Mets bullpen. A shutout ninth yesterday, however, proved to be less his salvation and more of an attempt by the Mets to soak up as much slop with him in a mop-up situation as they could before banishing the 14(!!)-year-vet to DFA-land. The beneficiary of Garcia's bad news — Joey Gerber — previous appeared in the majors in 2020 with the Mariners (and does 2020 even count?!), before returning for a cameo last year with the Rays. A 5.40 ERA at Syracuse for The Big Baby (and please let that be his actual nickname) is hardly making a strong case for being first guy up, but he's on the 40-Playe Roster, and that tends to get a guy to the head of the line. An important Joey Gerber note: The Mets reserve relief corps (RRC) also features minor-league veteran Jordan Geber, currently unscored up on in 3 2/3 innings between Binghamton and Syracuse. Barring an injury, he is almost certain to see some time with the big club this year, and just as likely to be conflated with Gerber. Joey Gerber. Jordan Geber. Reserve separate and distinct room for the two of them in your head while you still can. Your Mets Coaching Staff Manager Bench Coach Pitching Coach Hitting Coordinator Third Base Coach First Base Coach Bullpen Coach Ass't Pitching Coach Carlos Mendoza Kai Correa Justin Willard Jeff Albert Tim Leiper Gilbert Gomez José Rosado Dan McKinney DoB: 1979-11-27 DoB: 1989-07-14 DoB: 1990-09-09 DoB: 1992-08-16 DoB: 1996-07-19 DoB: 1992-03-08 DoB: 1974-11-09 DoB: 1989-06-06 Hitting Coach Strategy Coach Catching Coach Coaching Assistant Bat'g Practice Pitcher Equipment Manager Bullpen Catchers Bullpen Catchers Troy Snitker Danny Barnes J.P. Arencibia Rafael Fernandez Kevin Mahoney Kevin Kierst Eric Langill Dave Racaniello DoB: 1988-12-05 DoB: 1989-10021 DoB: 1986-01-05 DoB: 1988-08-03 DoB: 1987-05-11 DoB: 1964-07-09 DoB: 1979-04-09 DoB: 1978-06-03 Your Mets Training Staff Director of Player Health Head Athletic Trainer Assistant Athletic Trainer Reconditioning Coordinator Reconditioning Therapist Head Performance Coach Assistant Performance Coach Performance Coordinator Brian Chicklo Joseph Golia Bryan Baca Sean Bardanett Josh Bickel Dustin Clarke Tanner Miracle Jeremy Chiang DoB: 1972-07-17 DoB: 1978-??-?? DoB: Circa 1980 DoB: 1988-06-23 DoB: 1996-??-?? DoB: 1987-??-?? DoB: 1991-??-?? DoB: ????-??-?? Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Clay Holmes Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Kodai Senga R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Luis Garcia Craig Kimbrel Sean Manaea Tobias Myers Brooks Raley Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 R/R DoB: 32291 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Devin Williams Francisco Alvarez Luís Torrens Bo Bichette Francisco Lindor Ronny Mauricio Jorge Polanco R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 Infielders Outfielders Marcus Semien Mark Vientos Brett Baty Carson Benge Luis Robert, Jr. Tyrone Taylor Jared Young R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 R/R DoB: 34356 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Tylor Megill Christian Scott Jonah Tong Alex Carrillo Reed Garrett Justin Hagenman A.J. Minter R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 On 60-Day Injured List with torn right UCL. With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery and nerve relocation surgery. On 60 Day Injured List with fractured rib. With St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment Relief Pitchers Catchers Outfielders Dedniel Núñez Jonathan Pintaro Dylan Ross Austin Warren Hayden Senger MJ Melendez Nick Morabito R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 R/R DoB: 2003-05-07 On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery. With Syracuse With Syracuse, on Seven-Day IL With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse Outfielders Juan Soto L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 On 15-Day Injured List with strained right calf Designated for Assignment Relief Pitchers Relief Pitchers Luis Garcia Richard Lovelady R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 L/L DoB: 1995-07-07 Designated for Assignment, 2026-04-11 View the full article

Perhaps now we know why Hunter Harvey was struggling in the early stages of the season. The Chicago Cubs' right-handed reliever was placed on the 15-day injured list Sunday due to right triceps inflammation. Left-handed reliever Charlie Barnes was promoted from Triple-A Iowa and added to the 40-man roster, which had an open spot. Harvey becomes the eighth pitcher to go on the IL this year. Signed to a one-year, $6 million contract with an option for 2027, Harvey has appeared in four games with a 8.37 FIP (6.75 ERA), allowing three runs, including two homers, with one walk and four strikeouts in four innings. He last appeared in a game Wednesday, facing the minimum three batters while giving up a hit in the ninth inning to finish off a 6-2 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Barnes is back in the majors for the first time since 2021 with the Minnesota Twins. He made three appearances, one start, at Iowa and posted a 2.38 ERA in 11⅓ innings. Barnes gave up three runs on eight hits, but did walk eight while striking out 14. He made nine appearances for the Twins five years ago with a 5.92 ERA, then spent the next three seasons with Lotte of the Korea Baseball Organization. View the full article

The early returns from the Twins' offseason moves are already impactful, as Josh Bell, Victor Caratini, and Taylor Rogers have wasted no time making their presence felt. With contributions from Tristan Gray and Eric Orze as well, this new group is quickly giving the Minnesota Twins exactly what they needed. View the full article

Fresh off what has arguably been the most successful World Baseball Classic to date, Rob Manfred is already looking at ways to adjust the event’s future. That instinct is understandable given the tournament’s rapid growth, but it also raises a familiar question. Why fix something that is clearly working? Appearing on The Dan Patrick Show to discuss the beginning of the 2026 MLB season, Manfred was asked whether the WBC could become a more frequent event. His answer made it clear that Major League Baseball is seriously considering changes to the tournament’s cadence. “We’re gonna have a meeting on the WBC, which we always do after it is completed. I think the event was so successful this time that we need to talk about frequency, regularity of schedule,” Manfred said. “It’s one thing to not to do it every year, our problem because of COVID, labor negotiations, whatever, you can’t even say it’s every four years. It hasn’t been. Given how popular it is, we need to get into a regular rotation.” The desire for consistency is not unreasonable. Since its debut in 2006, the World Baseball Classic has never truly settled into a rhythm. It began on a three-year cycle before shifting to four years, only to see that plan disrupted by a six-year gap following 2017 due to the pandemic. When the tournament finally returned in 2023, it delivered one of the most iconic moments with a Japan versus the United States championship for the ages. That game alone proved the event had evolved far beyond exhibition status. By the time the 2026 tournament wrapped up, the momentum had only grown. Television ratings climbed, global interest surged, and the overall product felt bigger than ever. Fans were invested, players were all in, and the atmosphere carried a level of intensity that even October baseball sometimes struggles to match. That is exactly why Major League Baseball should proceed with caution. Manfred is correct in identifying the need for a clear and predictable schedule. A defined rotation benefits fans trying to plan around the event and gives broadcast partners something concrete to build around in future media negotiations. It is difficult to maximize value when networks are unsure when the next tournament will take place. However, consistency does not have to mean increased frequency. There has already been discussion of experimenting with more dramatic changes, including moving the WBC to the middle of the MLB season. That concept feels misguided. Players already balance a demanding 162-game schedule, and the mid-summer break serves a purpose. Asking them to replace rest with high-intensity international competition risks diminishing participation, which is the lifeblood of the tournament. Even a small adjustment, such as shifting to a two-year cycle, could have unintended consequences. Part of what makes the World Baseball Classic special is its rarity. When players know the opportunity only comes around every few years, the urgency is real. National pride carries more weight. The stakes feel higher. If the event becomes more frequent, that edge could soften. The World Baseball Classic absolutely needs structure. The past two decades have proven that a floating timeline creates confusion and limits its long-term growth. But structure does not require reinvention. Baseball finally has something that captures global attention in a meaningful way. The solution is not to tinker with its foundation, but to solidify it. View the full article

The Luis Garcia era with the New York Mets lasted just six games. The 39-year-old right-handed reliever was designated for assignment as the Mets called up right-handed reliever Joey Gerber from Triple-A Syracuse. Gerber was not on the 40-man roster, thus the need to DFA Garcia. One of three bullpen signings this offseason, albeit to a modest one-year, $1.75 million deal, Garcia appeared in six games with a 2.80 FIP but a 7.11 ERA. He walked two and struck out four in 6⅓ innings, giving up six total runs in three of his six appearances. His last outing was in Saturday's 11-6 loss where he pitched a scoreless ninth inning, allowing one hit and striking out one. The Mets are on the hook for the entire contract if no one claims him off waivers. Gerber gets his chance with the Mets. Acquired in an early-November trade with the Tampa Bay Rays after he had been DFA'd, Gerber had a 5.40 ERA in four games covering five innings, walking one and striking out five. He has appeared in 19 MLB games in two seasons, 17 with the Seattle Mariners in 2020 and two with the Rays last year. Gerber has a 4.38 FIP (3.60 ERA) in 20 innings, with 10 strikeouts against five walks. Gerber didn't pitch in 2021 due to back surgery and missed 2023 due to Tommy John surgery. View the full article

Andrew Morris has never taken the conventional road, and that is part of what makes his climb through the Minnesota Twins system so compelling. Now, that journey is intersecting with opportunity, as the Twins have turned to Morris to help fill the void left by the injured Cody Laweryson. A fourth-round pick in the 2022 Draft, Morris has steadily worked his way from relative obscurity into a legitimate big league option, even if the journey has come with a few bumps along the way. Morris started his college career at Division II Colorado Mesa, spending three years in the starting rotation before transferring to Texas Tech. Once there, he took on a prominent role as the Red Raiders' Friday night starter, putting himself firmly on the draft radar. In 88 1/3 innings, he posted a 4.58 ERA with a 1.22 WHIP and 9.3 K/0. The Twins saw enough to make him a fourth-round selection, and Morris quickly began validating that decision. His early professional seasons showed steady growth, but it was his 2024 campaign that truly put him on the map. Breakout in 2024 After showing moderate success in his first full professional season, Morris broke through in a big way during 2024. He opened the year at High-A and climbed all the way to Triple-A by the end of the season. Across three levels, he posted a 2.37 ERA and finished with an effective seven-start stint at Triple-A (3.48 ERA with a 1.13 WHIP) . Overall, he posted a 24.5 K% with a 5.9 BB% while holding batters to a .219 BA. That performance positioned him as one of the more intriguing pitching depth options in the organization and put him on the doorstep of a big-league debut. A Setback and Response in 2025 The momentum from 2024 did not carry over cleanly into 2025. Morris opened the season with St. Paul and initially looked solid, but things began to unravel in late May as he started getting hit harder. In June, he landed on the injured list with a forearm strain, an injury that always raises concern for pitchers. He missed roughly six weeks, halting what had already become a challenging season. To his credit, Morris returned in mid-August and finished strong. Down the stretch, he posted a 3.45 ERA with a 29-to-4 strikeout to walk ratio in 31 1/3 innings. It was a reminder of his ability to adapt and compete, even in the face of adversity. A Deep Pitch Mix Morris does not rely on overpowering hitters, even though he has the velocity to suggest he could. His four-seam fastball sat in the 95 to 96 mph range last year and touched 99 mph, featuring decent vertical break. It generated a high chase rate of 40 percent, though it was also hit harder than expected. What sets Morris apart is the depth of his arsenal. He incorporates a two-seamer more frequently against right-handed hitters and added a 90-mph cutter to give hitters a different look. A late addition of a sweeper has helped increase his swing-and-miss ability, while he continues to mix in a mid-70s curveball and an upper-80s changeup. With an essentially kitchen-sink approach, Morris leans on sequencing and pitchability. He throws strikes consistently, though at times it's more control than true command, which leads to contact. Projection and Role At 6 feet, Morris does not offer much remaining projection physically, but his polish gives him a realistic path forward. He pounds the strike zone with a six-pitch mix, limits home runs, and generates weak contact more than empty swings. That profile points toward an innings eater with some mid-rotation upside, though many evaluators see a back-end starter as the most likely outcome. There is also a case to be made for a multi-inning relief role, especially given how effectively he can mix pitches in shorter bursts. Even with the step backward last season, his strong finish reinforced that he remains a legitimate pitching prospect. He’s ready to contribute to the Twins in 2026, whether that comes as rotation depth or in a flexible pitching role. For an organization that continues to rely on internal arms, Morris represents a steady and versatile option who has earned the opportunity to prove himself at the highest level. What stands out about Morris? Can he be successful in a relief role? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View the full article

Joseph Herrera struck out five over 3 1/3 innings, and Tyler Schmitt added five strikeouts in 2 2/3 innings, but Lake Elsinore fell 5-0 to Rancho Cucamonga. Braedon Karpathios walked off Corpus Christi with a tenth-inning single as San Antonio won 4-3. Andrew Thurman tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings in the win. Justin Yeager threw two hitless innings in El Paso's 4-0 loss to Albuquerque. Jake Cunningham homered in Fort Wayne's 12-4 loss to Lansing. Padres Transactions No Roster Moves Sears Strikes Out Five, But Chihuahuas Shut Out By Albuquerque El Paso was shut out 4-0 by Albuquerque, managing just four hits on the night. Starter JP Sears went four innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on five hits with one walk and five strikeouts. Albuquerque scored three runs in the third inning on a three-run homer and added a fourth in the sixth on a sacrifice fly. The bullpen was effective after Sears departed. Omar Cruz threw one scoreless inning with two strikeouts and one walk. Yuki Matsui allowed one earned run on two hits with one strikeout in one inning. Justin Yeager was the standout out of the bullpen, throwing two scoreless, hitless innings with three strikeouts. Ethan Routzahn added one scoreless inning, allowing one hit. El Paso's offense was held in check, striking out eight times as a team. Jase Bowen went 1-for-2 with a double and two walks to lead the way. Anthony Vilar and Nick Schnell each hit a double, and Marcos Castañon had the other hit, going 1-for-4. No El Paso batter had a multi-hit game. The Chihuahuas drew five walks but stranded 15 runners on base and grounded into a double play. Name Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB Jase Bowen CF 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 0 Mason McCoy SS 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Samad Taylor LF 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Marcos Castañon 1B 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Nate Mondou DH 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Nick Solak DH 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Clay Dungan 2B 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Jose Miranda 3B 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 Sung-Mun Song 3B 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Anthony Vilar C 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Nick Schnell RF 3 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Totals 29 0 4 3 0 0 0 5 8 0 Name IP H R ER BB K JP Sears (L, 1-1) 4 5 3 2 1 5 Omar Cruz 1 0 0 0 1 2 Yuki Matsui 1 2 1 1 0 1 Justin Yeager 2 0 0 0 0 3 Ethan Routzahn 1 1 0 0 0 0 Totals 9 8 4 3 2 11 Missions Rally From Two Down In Ninth, Walk Off In Extras On Karpathios Single San Antonio trailed 3-1 entering the bottom of the ninth and rallied to tie the game before winning 4-3 in ten innings on a Braedon Karpathios walk-off single. Starter Ian Koenig threw 4 2/3 innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on four hits with two walks and four strikeouts. Andrew Thurman added 2 1/3 scoreless innings with no hits, one walk, and two strikeouts. Harry Gustin pitched two scoreless innings, allowing two hits with three strikeouts. Manuel Castro earned the win with one scoreless inning. San Antonio fell behind 2-0 on a throwing error in the second and a solo homer in the third. Ethan Salas responded with an RBI single in the bottom of the third, scoring Luis Verdugo to cut it to 2-1. A solo homer in the fifth extended the deficit to 3-1. The Missions rallied in the ninth. Tirso Ornelas singled, Romeo Sanabria doubled, and Francisco Acuna drove in Ornelas with a groundout to make it 3-2. Carson Tucker, who entered as a pinch runner, scored on a wild pitch to tie the game 3-3. In the tenth, Carson Tucker caught a fly ball in right field and threw home to Ethan Salas, who tagged out the zombie runner at the plate for a double play. Salas then threw out another runner. In the bottom half, Kai Roberts started as the zombie runner, stole third, and scored on a Karpathios single to left for the walk-off win. Name Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB Braedon Karpathios 1B 5 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 Ethan Salas C 4 0 2 0 0 0 1 0 1 1 Tirso Ornelas DH 3 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Romeo Sanabria 1B 4 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Carson Tucker RF 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Francisco Acuna SS 4 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 Ryan Jackson 2B 3 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 Kai Murphy LF 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Luis Verdugo 3B 3 1 1 1 0 0 0 1 2 0 Kai Roberts CF 4 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 2 Totals 34 4 9 2 0 0 3 2 14 4 Name IP H R ER BB K Ian Koenig 4 2/3 4 3 2 2 4 Andrew Thurman 2 1/3 0 0 0 1 2 Harry Gustin 2 2 0 0 0 3 Manuel Castro (W, 1-0) 1 1 0 0 0 0 Totals 10 7 3 2 3 9 Cunningham And McCoy Homer, But TinCaps Fall 12-4 To Lansing Fort Wayne lost 12-4 to Lansing in a game where the TinCaps fell behind early and could not recover. Starter Jamie Hitt went four innings, allowing three runs, none earned, on four hits with two walks and three strikeouts. Will Varmette struggled in relief, giving up seven earned runs on seven hits in 1 1/3 innings with one walk and one strikeout. Clark Candiotti followed with 1 2/3 innings, allowing one earned run on three hits with one walk and three strikeouts. Vicarte Domingo closed with two innings, allowing one unearned run on two hits with one walk and one strikeout. Lansing scored three in the third, three more in the fifth, and five in the sixth to build an 11-1 lead. Jake Cunningham hit a solo homer in the fifth to get Fort Wayne on the board. Kasen Wells drove in runs with singles in the seventh and ninth innings. Alex McCoy added a solo home run in the eighth. Cunningham went 2-for-3 with a homer, a walk, and two runs scored. Kavares Tears went 1-for-2 with a double and two walks. Wells finished 2-for-4 with a walk and two RBI. Fort Wayne left eight runners on base and grounded into two double plays. Name Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB Kasen Wells CF 4 0 2 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 Rosman Verdugo 3B 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Lamar King Jr. 1B 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Kavares Tears RF 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 2 1 0 Alex McCoy DH 4 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 1 0 Jake Cunningham LF 3 2 2 0 0 1 1 1 1 0 Oswaldo Linares C 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Jonathan Vastine SS 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0 Dylan Grego 2B 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 Totals 32 4 6 1 0 2 4 7 6 0 Name IP H R ER BB K Jamie Hitt (L, 0-1) 4 4 3 0 2 3 Will Varmette 1 1/3 7 7 7 1 1 Clark Candiotti 1 2/3 3 1 1 1 3 Vicarte Domingo 2 2 1 0 1 1 Totals 9 16 12 8 5 8 Storm Pitchers Strike Out 13, But Offense Shut Out Lake Elsinore was shut out 5-0 by Rancho Cucamonga, collecting just six hits. Starter Tyler Schmitt went 2 2/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits with three walks and five strikeouts. Joseph Herrera followed as the bulk pitcher, throwing 3 1/3 innings with one run on one hit and five strikeouts with no walks. Carlos Medina worked 2 1/3 innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on five hits with three strikeouts and no walks. Daichi Moriki finished with 2/3 of an inning, giving up one hit with no runs. Rancho Cucamonga scored a solo homer in the third, added another solo home run in the sixth, pushed across a run on an error in the eighth, and tacked on two more in the ninth on a double and a single. The Storm's four pitchers combined for 13 strikeouts while allowing nine hits and three walks. Ryan Wideman went 2-for-4 with a triple and was the only Storm player with multiple hits. Jorge Quintana went 2-for-4. George Bilecki went 1-for-2 with a double and a walk, and Truitt Madonna went 1-for-4. Justin DeCriscio drew a walk and stole two bases. The Storm struck out 12 times, left 18 runners on base, and grounded into three double plays. Name Pos AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K SB Ryan Wideman CF 4 0 2 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 Jose Verdugo 2B 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 George Bilecki RF 2 0 1 1 0 0 0 1 1 0 Truitt Madonna C 4 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 Jorge Quintana SS 4 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Justin DeCriscio 3B 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 2 Luke Cantwell 1B 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Kerrington Cross DH 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 Bradley Frye PH 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Conner Westenburg LF 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 Totals 30 0 6 1 1 0 0 2 12 2 Name IP H R ER BB K Tyler Schmitt (L, 0-1) 2 2/3 2 1 1 3 5 Joseph Herrera 3 1/3 1 1 1 0 5 Carlos Medina 2 1/3 5 3 2 0 3 Daichi Moriki 2/3 1 0 0 0 0 Totals 9 9 5 4 3 13 Padres Top-20 Prospect Performance Kash Mayfield: DNP Ethan Salas: 2-for-4, RBI, K, SB Kruz Schoolcraft: DNP Bradgley Rodriguez: DNP Humberto Cruz: DNP Miguel Mendez: DNP Ty Harvey: DNP Jorge Quintana: 2-for-4, K Kale Fountain: DNP Ryan Wideman: 2-for-4, 3B, K Jagger Haynes: DNP Lamar King Jr: 0-for-5 Romeo Sanabria: 1-for-4, 2B, K Truitt Madonna: 1-for-4, 3 K Michael Salina: DNP Garrett Hawkins: DNP Kavares Tears: 1-for-2, 2B, 2 BB, K Deivid Coronil: DNP Francis Pena: DNP Bryan Balzer: DNP View the full article

The year is 2020. Olivia Rodrigo is working on a new album. The Trump administration is trying to figure out what to do with Iran. And San Diego Padres catcher Luis Campusano is primed for a breakout. It seems the more things change, the more they stay the same. It was that Covid year when Padres fans became aware of Campusano. After slashing .325/.396/.509 with Single-A Lake Elsinore in 2019, he became a top-100 prospect in every ranking that mattered, and in a Padres system stocked with talent, he was the catcher of the future. (Remember when MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, and Luis Patiño were going to change the trajectory of the franchise?) Campusano got a cup of coffee in 2020, hitting a home run in his lone game in the bigs, and the Padres would end up winning their first playoff series in 22 years. The future looked bright. We’re still waiting for that future. Now 27 years old, Campusano is in his seventh season with the Padres, yet he has accrued -0.7 bWAR. Fangraphs is kinder to him, with 0.1 wins above replacement, but in any case, the numbers tell the same story: Campusano hasn’t really excelled at anything. The power he displays in the minors—79 homers with an .882 OPS in 504 games—disappears in the bigs. He owns a .668 OPS in San Diego, and has just 18 home runs to his name. His career on-base percentage is below .300. Per Statcast, he’s never hit the ball particularly hard or run particularly fast or fielded particularly well. That makes his start to the 2026 season encouraging, if a little confusing. Heading into their weekend series against the Colorado Rockies, Campusano was sporting a 103 OPS+, making him one of the more productive catchers in baseball, but he had neither walked nor hit a home run. His performance on April 5 against the Red Sox is illustrative: A single, a run, and two strikeouts, and he was lifted late in the game for a pinch hitter and replaced defensively by Freddy Fermin. Is that what the Padres had in mind for their top catching prospect back in 2020? But in a world in which Austin Hedges and his lifetime 53 OPS+ can have a 12-year MLB career, being a league-average hitter at the catcher position is incredibly valuable. Catchers are OPS-ing .673 this season, a number Campusano comfortably exceeds, and his underlying stats point to sustainability. His hard-hit percentage is up from last season, and so are his launch angle and barrel rate. He’s swinging more overall—and his chase rate remains abysmal—but at least he’s swinging more at good pitches and less at bad pitches. This means his strikeout rate is down (albeit marginally and from a lofty 41%). There’s potential there! And that’s always been the book on Campusano. He played in only one game in 2020 because of a wrist injury. He had an elite campaign in the minors in 2021, and got some more MLB experience, but he couldn’t get regular time with the 2022 squad, which was the most talented Padres team ever. On a rate basis, 2023 was Campusano’s best major-league season. An OPS+ of 131 is nothing to sneeze at, but he played in only 49 games because of a shoulder injury. He split time in 2024 with a resurgent Kyle Higashioka, and in 2025, Campusano had an obscene 1.036 OPS… in Triple-A. The Padres have long had one of the best farm systems in baseball, but it’s curious that the Mount Rushmore of Padres catchers would feature only three faces: Benito Santiago, Terry Kennedy, and Gene Tenace. The most recent that any of them have played for the Padres is 1992. Since the 1998 World Series year, there have been 18 different Opening Day starters at catcher, and in the current era, there’s a curious cycle of fading veterans becoming fan favorites—Jorge Alfaro, Gary Sanchez, et al.—only to quickly disappear amid more roster shuffling. In one way or another, the catcher position has been a black hole for the Padres for almost three decades. (Shoutout to Hedges, who did come up through the Padres system, but couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat.) As always, it’s tempting to get excited about the next catcher of the future. Ethan Salas is the Friars' highest-ranked position player in the minors, but he’s only nineteen years old. Campusano is the Padres’ best option behind the dish right now, at least in a world where Fermin has forgotten how to hit a baseball. No other catcher in the organization and no unsigned veteran have his hit tool. No other catcher in the organization and no unsigned veteran are in their prime age-27 season. This opportunity is something Campusano and the club have aspired to for years, and he finally has a chance to be a homegrown success story. But first, he might want to stop swinging at everything. View the full article

The year is 2020. Olivia Rodrigo is working on a new album. The Trump administration is trying to figure out what to do with Iran. And San Diego Padres catcher Luis Campusano is primed for a breakout. It seems the more things change, the more they stay the same. It was that Covid year when Padres fans became aware of Campusano. After slashing .325/.396/.509 with Single-A Lake Elsinore in 2019, he became a top-100 prospect in every ranking that mattered, and in a Padres system stocked with talent, he was the catcher of the future. (Remember when MacKenzie Gore, CJ Abrams, and Luis Patiño were going to change the trajectory of the franchise?) Campusano got a cup of coffee in 2020, hitting a home run in his lone game in the bigs, and the Padres would end up winning their first playoff series in 22 years. The future looked bright. We’re still waiting for that future. Now 27 years old, Campusano is in his seventh season with the Padres, yet he has accrued -0.7 bWAR. Fangraphs is kinder to him, with 0.1 wins above replacement, but in any case, the numbers tell the same story: Campusano hasn’t really excelled at anything. The power he displays in the minors—79 homers with an .882 OPS in 504 games—disappears in the bigs. He owns a .668 OPS in San Diego, and has just 18 home runs to his name. His career on-base percentage is below .300. Per Statcast, he’s never hit the ball particularly hard or run particularly fast or fielded particularly well. That makes his start to the 2026 season encouraging, if a little confusing. Heading into their weekend series against the Colorado Rockies, Campusano was sporting a 103 OPS+, making him one of the more productive catchers in baseball, but he had neither walked nor hit a home run. His performance on April 5 against the Red Sox is illustrative: A single, a run, and two strikeouts, and he was lifted late in the game for a pinch hitter and replaced defensively by Freddy Fermin. Is that what the Padres had in mind for their top catching prospect back in 2020? But in a world in which Austin Hedges and his lifetime 53 OPS+ can have a 12-year MLB career, being a league-average hitter at the catcher position is incredibly valuable. Catchers are OPS-ing .673 this season, a number Campusano comfortably exceeds, and his underlying stats point to sustainability. His hard-hit percentage is up from last season, and so are his launch angle and barrel rate. He’s swinging more overall—and his chase rate remains abysmal—but at least he’s swinging more at good pitches and less at bad pitches. This means his strikeout rate is down (albeit marginally and from a lofty 41%). There’s potential there! And that’s always been the book on Campusano. He played in only one game in 2020 because of a wrist injury. He had an elite campaign in the minors in 2021, and got some more MLB experience, but he couldn’t get regular time with the 2022 squad, which was the most talented Padres team ever. On a rate basis, 2023 was Campusano’s best major-league season. An OPS+ of 131 is nothing to sneeze at, but he played in only 49 games because of a shoulder injury. He split time in 2024 with a resurgent Kyle Higashioka, and in 2025, Campusano had an obscene 1.036 OPS… in Triple-A. The Padres have long had one of the best farm systems in baseball, but it’s curious that the Mount Rushmore of Padres catchers would feature only three faces: Benito Santiago, Terry Kennedy, and Gene Tenace. The most recent that any of them have played for the Padres is 1992. Since the 1998 World Series year, there have been 18 different Opening Day starters at catcher, and in the current era, there’s a curious cycle of fading veterans becoming fan favorites—Jorge Alfaro, Gary Sanchez, et al.—only to quickly disappear amid more roster shuffling. In one way or another, the catcher position has been a black hole for the Padres for almost three decades. (Shoutout to Hedges, who did come up through the Padres system, but couldn’t hit water if he fell out of a boat.) As always, it’s tempting to get excited about the next catcher of the future. Ethan Salas is the Friars' highest-ranked position player in the minors, but he’s only nineteen years old. Campusano is the Padres’ best option behind the dish right now, at least in a world where Fermin has forgotten how to hit a baseball. No other catcher in the organization and no unsigned veteran have his hit tool. No other catcher in the organization and no unsigned veteran are in their prime age-27 season. This opportunity is something Campusano and the club have aspired to for years, and he finally has a chance to be a homegrown success story. But first, he might want to stop swinging at everything. View the full article

Transactions: N/A Nashville Pre-Game Media Notes Final: Gwinnett (Braves) 4, Nashville 3 Box Score and Game Log Via the Sounds, game details, and we encourage readers to always review affiliate write-ups as part of their Link Report routine: Sounds Walked Off for Second Straight Night - Kuehner Spins First Career Triple-A Quality Start You may not recognize the name Cory Hilborne, but he's the Communications Manager for the Sounds and is responsible for the big majority of postgame summaries, and he nails it every single time. Today's effort was just the latest example, and hopefully you'll agree that both the in-game action recap and the miscellaneous notes linked above provide a cornucopia of detail for us. I shared on social media that I was able to catch up with longtime Brewers.com beat writer and Supervising Reporter Adam McCalvy (along with the Journal-Sentinel's Curt Hogg) in Boston on Tuesday. While I thanked Adam for his decades of coverage, he acknowledged that we provide details within our daily Link Reports that aid his efforts. Now, the fact Tyler Black had been placed on the IL was evident from the MiLB transaction wire, easy enough to track. Much less obvious was that Pratt had sat out not one, but two games, something we pointed out when Saturday's early AM report was published. Clearly Adam has the means and the contacts to then follow up on notes like that. Sure enough, by Saturday afternoon, he informed us of the status of both players. Of course, there will be instances when the beat reporters uncover minor league news outside of our site and forum posts. But our symbiotic relationship has helped inform Brewers fans for many years now, and we've long been aware that many members of the organization's front office, spanning multiple departments, make our daily report a staple. Pretty cool, right? Outside of the catching corps, the Sounds have a one-man position player bench (Manager Rick Sweet loves when that is the case - not). Sweet emptied the non-catcher crew when OF Jacob Hurtubise entered as part of a defensive shuffle to begin the bottom of the 10th, with first baseman Luke Adams exiting. Adams had struck out swinging in the top of the 9th and had remained in the game on defense for the bottom of that frame. So, at this time, nothing concerning from that perspective, but as always, we'll see. In addition to old friends Rowdy Tellez and Brewer Hicklen in the Stripers lineup, reliever Tayler Scott is an alumnus (Biloxi 2016-17). As for the extra inning, the top of the 10th was not pretty for Nashville - Wilken K'd on a foul tip, Jones fanned looking, and Eddys Leonard grounding to 3rd, leaving a speedy ghost runner in Lara firmly planted. LHP Brian Fitzpatrick got the first out on a 3-1 putout to start the fateful bottom half, advancing the ghost runner. A 90 MPH chopper vs. the drawn-in infield was enough to end things - watch that here. Nothing personal vs. the Voice of the Stripers, Dave Lezotte, but we've had enough of these walk-off calls: You're invited to consult the Sounds' "X" feed for a series of five highlights - given it's a road game, Lezotte, is on the calls. You'll catch Luis Lara, Greg Jones, Brock Wilken, Tate Kuehner and Will Childers along the way. Biloxi Pre-Game Media Notes Final: Biloxi 7, Pensacola (Marlins) 5 Box Score and Game Log Catch up with the latest Biloxi pre-game audio interview archives - LH reliever Mark Manfredi, Sr.'s chat from Saturday night is available along with all this week's collection - congrats to the new dad and his wife! Via the Shuckers, game details: Shuckers Sneak Past Blue Wahoos 7-5 For Series Win - Shuckers clinch first series victory against Blue Wahoos Another fine write-up. I'm so aware of how repetitive this disclaimer is, but please review as linked just above as we tend not to rehash specific game details too often, allowing us to focus on other nuances of the day. The presence of little-used 22-year-old 3rd catcher Edgardo Ordonez (.544 OPS in 25 games with Carolina in 2025, skipping over Wisconsin to start 2026) allows for Matthew Wood and Darrien Miller to rotate into the designated hitter spot, as Wood did here. Wood contributed with a sacrifice fly and a walk while Miller's fun was a bit louder - Over at the Shuckers' "X" feed, you'll find both of Eduardo Garcia's base knocks in his first game back after he broke his right wrist in Dominican Winter Ball play, along with Kay-Lan Nicasia taking advantage of his playing time opportunity given the recent outfield injuries on the Biloxi roster. Garcia did have one awkward moment early on. Hardin needed 84 pitches and only registered three innings, as he saw double-walk-single to open the 4th. RHP Stiven Cruz allowed one of Hardin's runners to score on a sacrifice fly, but as the game summary noted, would retire all 12 men he faced in a fantastic outing. Southpaws Jesus Broca and Sam Garcia made things interesting late but survived. There were also two caught stealing's, but you get the general idea here: Rattlers and River Bandits Rained Out - Saturday’s game to be made up as part of a doubleheader on Sunday LHP Wande Torres and RHP Braylon Owens are the scheduled Wisconsin starters. Wilson Pre-Game Media Notes Final: Wilson 6, Salem (Red Sox) 3 Box Score and Game Log Warbirds Snap Skid with Victory Over Salem - Anderson’s Big Night Sparks Wilson First of all, no specific highlight here, but the effort is appreciated from the Voice of the RidgeYaks. Wilson scored six runs despite having only four hits. Each of those hits were of the extra-base variety however, three off the bat of 19-year-old Dominican native CF Jose Anderson, who had a monster game with a bases-loaded walk, two doubles and his first home run of 2026. Anderson now has 20 HR's in 148 professional contests (.750 OPS). You'll be able to view an Anderson double and his round-tripper, along with Handelfry Encarnacion's double, via the Warbirds' "X" feed. More video: The Anderson RBI walk Frederi Montero's RBI grounder Fine-to-solid work by the Wilson hurlers here - 20-year-old RHP Jarrette Bonet has now fanned ten in seven innings (1 R, 4 BB, 1 HBP). Bonet picked off two men at first to help his own cause. RHP Tanner Perry turns 23 later this week, so he'll be seeking a bump to Wisconsin, he contributed three innings though was a victim of this home run. RHP Peyton Niksch, 22, did allow a run, but if was unearned due to two passed balls by catcher Yannic Walther in the 9th. We'd love to say the Warbirds' offensive woes are solved. While drawing 12 free passes (11 BB's, 1 HBP) can be productive, 1-for-12 with RISP (11 LOB) is not. It was another night of double-digit strikeouts (11). Thank goodness for Anderson on this night. By the way, the Brewers signed Anderson to a relatively tiny $60,000 bonus in January 2024 to then see him break out with a .915 OPS in his sole Dominican Summer League season. All traditional early afternoon game times Sunday, with the Rattlers playing twice, Our friend Daniel "Ro" will have five recaps for you Monday AM - that's how it goes sometimes on our beat, as I was spared a game and Mother Nature doubled up on Ro. Hope everyone has a wonderful early spring day. Organizational Scoreboard including starting pitcher info, game times, MiLB TV links, and box scores Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Batting Stats and Depth Current Milwaukee Brewers Organization Pitching Stats and Depth View the full article

Twins System Recap: News broke Saturday morning that Andrew Morris was being called up to the Twins. Morris has been among my favorite guys to follow in the system the past few years. Tonight's games were highlighted by yet another impressive outing for Kernels pitcher Eli Jones. Garrett Spain and Ben Ross elevated the Wind Surge on a big night for their lineup. Also, Zebby Matthews got pointed in the right direction and turned in a solid start for St. Paul. View the full article

The Kansas City Royals are a team starving for run production, especially with runners in scoring position. Going into Saturday's game with the White Sox, Kansas City ranks last in Major League Baseball with a 39 wRC+ in RISP situations this season. They also rank last in ISO (.054), 29th in batting average (.196), and 29th in BB/K ratio (0.29) with runners in scoring position this year. For a team that had struggled early in 2025 in RISP situations, these issues with runners on second and third are frustrating, especially for a team that's currently 6-7 going into Saturday's afternoon contest at Kauffman Stadium. It's easy to blame the front office for the Royals' RISP struggles. There are many fans who think GM JJ Picollo should've made a bigger swing for a free-agent bat or traded for one. That said, Jarren Duran, who seemed to be the primary Royals' trade target this offseason, currently has a 51 wRC+. Furthermore, the bottom of the Royals' lineup has been fine, with Kyle Isbel (181 wRC+), Jonathan India (100 wRC+), Jac Caglianone (98 wRC+), and Isaac Collins (82 wRC+) showing decent production in those spots. However, the big issue has been the Royals' 2-3-4 production in RISP situations, as David Lesky of Inside the Crown pointed out on Twitter yesterday. When it comes to RISP wRC+, Bobby Witt Jr. sports a 17 wRC+, Vinnie Pasquantino sports an 8 wRC+, and Salvador Perez has a -65 wRC+. Royals fans read that latter number correctly. The Royals captain has been 65 runs below average with runners in scoring position this season. Of course, it's a small sample. However, his 20 plate appearances in RISP situations lead all Royals hitters as of Saturday, according to Fangraphs. Second is Vinnie with 19. The Royals can be patient with one of those hitters to get out of their funk during this stretch. However, two of them? That's a harder ask, especially with a critical series against the Detroit Tigers coming up on the road. It's not just RISP situations that are an issue for Salvy. Overall, he's hitting .157 with a 51 wRC+ in 56 plate appearances. His 12.5% strikeout rate is 7 percentage points lower than his mark a year ago, which is good. However, his ISO is 52 points down from 2025, and his xwOBA of .307 is 50 points down. It's not like last year, when he was crushing the ball and getting unlucky. He's actually showing genuine signs of regression at the plate. Therefore, manager Matt Quatraro should move Salvy (and perhaps Pasquantino) down in the batting order. Not only do Salvy's current metrics not support him being the Royals' cleanup hitter, but the historical data doesn't confirm it either. The Statcast Data for Salvy Does Not Look Encouraging There are some things that Perez is still doing well offensively this season, at least when it comes to the batted-ball and Statcast data. Salvy's barrel rate is 13.6%, and his hard-hit rate is 43.2%, both of which are above the league average. His average exit velocity is 90.7 MPH, 0.7 MPH higher than a year ago. However, beyond those metrics, the Statcast data has been concerning. Here's a look at where he ranks in certain Statcast categories, via his TJ Stats Statcast summary profile. A few particular metrics stick out with Salvy. His Pull Air% ranks in the 44th percentile. His Max EV ranks in the 38th percentile. His Z-Contact% ranks in the 35th percentile, and his LA Sweet-spot% ranks in the 25th percentile. Those are big declines, especially considering where he was in those categories a year ago, as illustrated below. Last season, his Pull Air% and Max EV ranked in the 88th percentile. Furthermore, his LA Sweet-Spot% ranked in the 65th percentile. His Z-Contact% also ranked in the 43rd percentile, not significantly higher but still noteworthy. The reality is that Perez is hitting the ball less hard, pulling the ball less, and making less contact on balls in the strike zone. Those are all signs of regression, and even though he's bound to see some positive regression in the future, he may not improve enough to match what he did a season ago in those important Statcast categories. The bat speed overall isn't all that different from 2025. His 72.4 MPH average bat speed is only 0.5 MPH slower than last year's mark. That said, his 21.2% fast-swing rate is 9.3% lower than in 2025, and his 7.9-foot swing length hasn't changed. He's blasting the ball above league average at 19%, but his squared-up date is down to 31.6%, a 0.9% decline. The Royals need a primary run producer in the cleanup spot. Right now, based on the Statcast data and his skills, I am not sure that's Salvy, unless something dramatic happens soon. Salvy Historically Hasn't Been Good in the Cleanup Spot After the Royals' 2-0 loss to the White Sox on Thursday, Quatraro mentioned that Perez had proven himself in the past in the cleanup spot, pointing to home runs and RBI as the key indicators. That said, this isn't fantasy baseball. Were his 30 home runs and 100 RBI impressive? Yes, but when looking at his cleanup-spot performance last year, the data showed he wasn't as impressive as his home runs and RBI totals suggested. In 307 plate appearances as a cleanup hitter, he hit .216 with a .621 OPS and 67 wRC+. After a slow start, Quatraro moved Maikel Garcia to cleanup and Salvy to the No. 5 spot. In 315 plate appearances in the No. 5 spot, Perez hit .261 with a .859 OPS and 130 wRC+. As a cleanup hitter, he hit seven home runs and posted a .134 ISO last season. As a No. 5 hitter? He hit 23 home runs and posted a .295 ISO. Some Royals fans may say, "Yeah, well, that's just one year, bro!" (I added the "bro"). Well, let's take a look at his career splits in the 3, 4, and 5 spots, where he's had the most career plate appearances. No. 3: 1,783 plate appearances, .270 average, .790 OPS, .215 ISO, 111 wRC+. No. 4: 2,172 plate appearances, .238 average, .695 OPS, .171 ISO, 87 wRC+. No. 5: 1,667 plate appearances, .272 average, .777 OPS, .200 ISO, 105 wRC+. The best spot in his career has been No. 3, but given how he's trending, it's unlikely Quatraro would move him up (and that may not be the best idea anyway). In 1,667 career plate appearances in the No. 5 spot, he's been solid with a .777 OPS and 105 wRC+. In the cleanup spot, however, Salvy has been mediocre, as evidenced by his posting the worst marks in those four categories. In fact, his wRC+ in the cleanup spot is nearly 20 points worse than his career mark in the No. 5 spot. Quatraro has been protective of players and their standing in the batting order. Even though Witt makes a lot of sense in the leadoff spot (gives him the most at-bats in a game and he's their best player), Quatraro (or Witt) has been averse to it because of some early struggles in that spot (particularly in 2023). It may be a similar case with Salvy. The Royals captain may be comfortable in the cleanup spot, and Quatraro doesn't have a whole lot of "traditional" options right now, either, who could easily fill in for Salvy. That said, it hasn't been working for Salvy in cleanup for more than a year, perhaps even longer. It may be good for Quatraro and his team to trust the data in this situation and move Salvy from the cleanup spot sooner rather than later. So, How Should the Royals' Lineup Look? The easiest solution with the lineup is to move Salvy down to the No. 5 spot. That said, what does the rest of the lineup look like, not just at cleanup, but at the top of the batting order in general? An easy solution could be to move Garcia back to the No. 4 spot, like a year ago, but he's been thriving at leadoff this year. The Venezuelan third baseman is hitting .315 with a 142 wRC+ and provides the kind of plate discipline and speed at the top of the lineup that they need. Another solution could be to move Vinnie down to No. 4, or perhaps move Carter Jensen up to that spot. Pasquantino has thrived in the cleanup spot, with a career .201 ISO and a 152 wRC+ in 317 plate appearances. That said, he also has a career .185 ISO and 107 wRC+ in 1,313 plate appearances in the No. 3 spot. So it's not like Pasquantino is ineffective in the No. 3 spot, and there's a lot more data that supports him at No. 3 as well in terms of plate appearances. One option could be to move Jensen to cleanup. It's a bold move for the rookie, but the Statcast data suggests he's the best power hitter on this team right now, especially in terms of exit velocity, barrel, and hard-hit rates. Here's a look at his TJ Stats Statcast profile this season. Yes, there are some contact issues with Jensen, given his 14th-percentile Z-Contact% and 7th-percentile whiff and strikeout rates. However, he has a 40th percentile BB% and a 71st percentile O-Swing%, so he has the plate discipline to make up for that swing-and-miss. However, the power is what sticks out the most with Jensen. His Max EV ranks in the 95th percentile, his barrel rate ranks in the 93rd percentile, his hard-hit rate ranks in the 74th percentile, and his Pull Air% ranks in the 98th percentile. The power tool is legitimate, and with four home runs, Jensen may have the biggest home run upside of any hitter in the Royals lineup. His home run yesterday against the White Sox shows that he could not just handle the cleanup spot, but thrive in it. Salvy has veteran presence and is the captain, which makes this decision tough for Quatraro (I'm guessing he doesn't want to throw off the clubhouse's vibe). However, Jensen can easily fill in the cleanup spot and surpass what Salvy is bringing in that place in the batting order currently and down the road, both this season and beyond. View the full article

Jays Centre is counting down the top 20 prospects in the Toronto Blue Jays organization. Check out prior entries in the series here: No. 20 to 16 No. 15 to 11 No. 10 No. 9 No. 8 No. 7 No. 6 No. 5 We are entering the home stretch of our countdown of Jays Centre's top 20 prospects. We have already breezed through numbers 20-16, 15-11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, and now we have reached inside the top five to No. 4. Starting off this coveted tier of prospects is someone who sat at the top in prior iterations of this list, but now has fallen just a little: Arjun Nimmala, a prospect who oozes talent and is ready to climb back up to the top of this list with a hot start to 2026. Let's take a look at what he has done, what he does well, where he needs to improve, and what lies next for this budding star. No. 4: SS Arjun Nimmala (High-A Vancouver) PA H 2B 3B HR OPS wRC+ K% BB% 543 106 29 3 13 .694 92 21.4% 10.1% Out of Strawberry Crest High School in Dover, Florida, Nimmala was selected 20th overall in the first round of the 2023 MLB draft by the Toronto Blue Jays. He signed for just $3 million, which was slightly under slot value, but it was more than enough for him to jump into professional baseball and forego playing in college. He managed to get into a few Rookie ball games that same year, collecting five hits across nine games, including a double, triple, and a stolen base. What was extremely impressive during the small sample was his 14 walks, good enough for a walk rate of 35%. It was a sign of his potential talent and gave Blue Jays fans plenty of optimism heading into his first full season the following year. In 2024, the Blue Jays sent Nimmala straight to Single-A Dunedin, where he promptly looked like a stud. In his first three games, he hit a home run, knocked in three, and racked up four hits. For the season, he played in 83 games at the level, slashed .232/.313/.476, and hit 16 home runs. His power was on full display, as he added 17 doubles and six triples to his home run total. In all, he had 39 extra-base hits on the year and was starting to get a ton of national attention in the prospect world. He did, however, show some worrying signs through all of the good; he had a strikeout rate of 31.3% and walked at only an 8.3% clip. His contact rate was also a little low at 69.9%. Then came his 2025 season. Last year was one in which Nimmala saw improvements in some aspects of his game, but regression in others. He played the entire year at High-A Vancouver, where he had 543 plate appearances across 120 games. Health was a bright spot for him, and so was his strikeout rate, which dropped from 31.3% the prior season to 21.4%. Despite the big change in his swing and miss profile, his slash line dipped to .224/.313/.381, and he only had 13 home runs on the season. Nimmala did make up for some of the lack of power with 29 doubles and three triples, but they just don't affect the game as much as the flashy home runs do. He did pick up his impact on the basepaths last year, swiping 17 bags in 20 attempts. His newfound speed adds an extra layer to the multitude of ways he can help his team win games. What To Like Nimmala has loads of power in his bat, and he's shown a tremendous ability to get to it, whether it is in the form of home runs, doubles, or triples. He impacts the game and can do it at an elite level. Last season, his home run total took a step back while at High-A Vancouver, but the 13 home runs he did have were good enough for the 87th percentile in all of the minor leagues. He made up for the drop in home runs by hitting a crazy amount of doubles, 29 (97th percentile). With Vancouver's ballpark being a notoriously pitcher-friendly environment, expect to see some of his home run power return when he moves up a level. However, his home ballpark may not be able to account for all of his dramatic drop in home runs per flyball last year. It could be just a matter of adjusting his swing path to tap back into the juice in his bat, but it is something worth monitoring as he moves through the minor leagues. What To Improve On Despite his budding power, Nimmala has had some issues with his bat-to-ball skills. His contact rate at Single-A Dunedin was 69.9%, and at High-A Vancouver it was 73.6%. He has made some improvements over the years in that arena, but his batting averages are really subpar at best. He's never hit over .232 in a minor league season and needs to make large strides towards improvement in that area in 2026. If he can become a much better contact hitter, his ceiling will drastically jump up into stardom status. Unfortunately, through two seasons so far, he has not shown any signs of becoming better at making more contact, let alone more quality contact. His next stage in development will really hinge on whether or not he can make the improvements needed to become a .250 or .275 hitter, or if his destiny is a profile similar to Lenyn Sosa. What's Next Nimmala is not quite ready for the Double-A level and is back at High-A Vancouver to start the 2026 season. He knows the areas he needs to improve in and what he needs to continue to do well. If he can become a better contact hitter and keep his power going, he has an elite ceiling he can reach. If not, he will be looking more like a platoon bat with power than a star. This season is extremely important to his outlook as a prospect and should give the Blue Jays organization and fans more insight as to what his future trajectory will be. View the full article

For the second straight season, we're getting a pitching matchup between former unanimous Cy Young Award winners. Fish Unfiltered previews the Marlins-Tigers series finale.View the full article

Cedar Rapids got the day started with a noon game. The Wind Surge's late offensive explosion meant that the day in the Twins minor leagues system ended well after 9:00 pm in the central time zone. Long day, but there were some intriguing storylines and performances up and down the proverbial organizational TRANSACTIONS On Friday night, it was announced that RHP Cody Laweryson (right forearm strain) and 3B Royce Lewis (knee sprain) were going on the injured list. On Saturday morning, the team reported the corresponding moves. The Twins called up RHP Andrew Morris and utilityman Ryan Kreidler. The Saints activated catcher David Banuelos from the Development List. LHP Kendry Rojas was activated from the 7-Day IL (hamstring). He will start for the Saints on Sunday. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 0, Toledo 3 Box Score Of the 17 half-innings played in this game, zero runs were scored in 16 of them. The only negative was the bottom of the fifth inning when Zebby Matthews gave up three runs. Blame Ben Malgeri! No, not really. The Tigers 26-year-old right field prospect led off for the Mudhens. In the bottom of the first, he led off with a single. Matthews proceeded to get the next nine batters out. With two outs in the bottom of the third, Malgeri tripled, but Matthews got Max Clark to pop out to end that threat. In the fourth inning, Matthews gave up a leadoff single to Gage Workman, but a force out, a line out, and another force out meant another zero was placed on the board. In the fifth inning, Matthews got a bit bombarded. Teri Cruz led off with a single. Cal Stevenson followed with a groundball single. Cruz advanced to third, He scored on a bloops single to right field by Max Burt. That brought Malgeri to the plate again. This time Matthews got him to strike out. There was a way out of the inning with limited damage. But Max Clark came to the plate. Matthews got him to hit a ground ball to first base. Kyler Fedko fielded it, made a nice throw to second base where Kaelen Culpepper caught it and threw back to first base. Matthews was there, at the base, seemingly in good position, but he didn’t catch the ball. Matthews was charged with the error. Stevenson scored on the play to make it 2-0. After a wild pitch, Clark scored on a Gage Workman single that made it 3-0. In total, Matthews gave three runs (2 earned) on seven hits. In five innings, he had five strikeouts and no walks. Two-thirds of his 78 pitches were strikes. His average fastball came in at 95.2 mph, but he did hit 96.7. The strikeout he recorded to end the bottom of the fifth included three fastballs over 96 mph. He had 11 whiffs, though just one out of 17 swings at his fastball. Jon Brebbia came on in relief. He faced eight batters. He walked two of them and struck out the other six. Dan Altavilla walked one and had one strikeout in a scoreless eighth frame. The Saints offense didn’t help. They managed just two hits and two walks in the game. Emmanuel Rodriguez and Tanner Schobel each had a single. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 12, Arkansas 5 Box Score This started as a very competitive game. In fact, the score was tied at 2-2 through six innings. The Surge scored two runs in the top of the seventh and then broke things open with an eight-run eighth inning. Wichita scored first with a two-run top of the fourth inning. Garrett Spain singled to drive in Hendry Mendez and Billy Amick. Mike Paredes started and worked the first four innings. He gave up one run on three hits. He walked none and had seven strikeouts. The only blemish was a solo homer by Hunter Fitz-Gerald in the bottom of the fourth. Ruddy Gomez came in and worked a scoreless fifth inning. He gave up two singles to start the bottom of the sixth. At that point, it was clear that something happened to his powerful right arm. The catcher came out. The manager came out. When the trainer came out, it didn’t take long before they took Gomez out of the game. We hope for the best. Lefty Aaron Rozek made his first appearance since rejoining the Twins organization and the Wind Surge earlier this week. Rozek walked one but got a couple of ground balls. Unfortunately, the second involved a throwing error that allowed the tying run to score. 2-2 through six innings. With one out in the top of the seventh, Jake Rucker walked and stole second. Maddux Houghton singled on a ground ball to third base. Houghton then stole second base. A wind pitch allowed Rucker to score. With two outs, Ben Ross came through with a single to left to make it 4-2. He has at least one hit in all eight Wind Surge games this season. Rozek got two outs in the bottom of the seventh inning, but he also gave up two singles and hit a batter which loaded the bases. Luis Quinones was summoned from the bullpen, and he needed three pitches to record a strikeout and end the threat. Then came the top of the eighth frame. Garrett Spain led off with a single. Ricardo Olivar doubled him to third base. After a strikeout, Jake Rucker grounded to shortstop. The throw came to the plate and Spain was safe. Houghton singled to drive in Olivar. He stole second. Rucker and Houghton scored on a Kyle DeBarge single which made it 8-2. Ben Ross lined a single to center to make it 9-2. After a pitching change, Hendry Mendez singled to right. After a strikeout, Mendez stole second. Finally, on the seventh pitch to him, Spain added a three-run homer to make it 12-2. Quinones came out for the bottom of the eighth. After a walk, he struck out the next two batter. The right-hander was charged with three runs allowed. Darren Bowen came on and gave up a two-run single that scored two of the inherited runners. He then got a strikeout to end the eighth with the Surge leading 12-5. Bowen tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to sh3531q KERNELS CHRONICLE Cedar Rapids 3, Beloit 2 Box Score The Twins used their seventh-round pick in the 2024 draft on right-hander Eli Jones from the University of South Carolina. The assumption was (by many) that he would start the 2025 season with the Mighty Mussels but move up to Cedar Rapids relatively quickly. That’s not what happened. Instead, he made 18 starts and five relief appearances for Fort Myers. He went 2-10 with a 5.13 ERA and a 1.42 WHIP. In 100 innings, he had 40 walks, 10 hit batters, and 84 strikeouts. Still, he advanced to High-A Cedar Rapids to start the 2026 season. He’s thrown in just three games and accumulated 15 innings so far, but he is 0-0 with a 1.20 ERA and a 0.40 WHIP. On Saturday, he tossed five innings and gave up one run on one hit. He walked none and had four strikeouts. He threw 71.4% strikes (44/63). The only run he allowed came in the first inning. Juan Matheus hit a one-out triple and scored on a Cam Cannarella sacrifice fly. The first time through the Kernels lineup, only nine-hitter Jaime Ferrer reached base. He was hit by a pitch. However, the Kernels got on the board in the fourth frame. Eduardo Tait led off with a single. Khadim Diaw followed with a two-run home to give the Kenels the 2-1 lead. Jacob McCombs delivered his third triple of the season on a play that saw two Sky Carp collide in the outfield. Jones was replaced by Yehizon Sanchez in the bottom of the sixth. He gave up an unearned run, but don’t feel too sorry for him. He gave up a one-out single. He made a throwing error trying to pick off the runner, and then the run scored on a wild pitch. That tied the game at 2-2. Sanchez started the seventh inning as well, but he walked the first two batters he faced.Sam Rochard came on and did what any wise pitcher would… he caused the hitter to hit a ground ball to Marek Houston who started a double play. He then got JSerra alum Cody Schrier to fly out to end the inning with the game still tied. Rochard struck out two batters in a perfect bottom of the eighth inning as well. He got to start the ninth inning as well. He got the first out but then gave up an infield single to Juan Matheus who went to second on a balk. Following a walk, Brian Meyer turned to Jacob Woskinski. On his second pitch, Brandon Compton lined a single to center to drive in the winning run for Beloit. Cedar Rapids had just four hits in the game. They also had just one walk compared to 12 strikeouts. Tait was 1-for-3 with a walk. McCombs hit his third triple of the young season, and Diaw recorded his first home run of the year. MIGHTY MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Jupiter 7 Box Score Joel Garcia made the start for the Mussels. He gave up five runs (4 earned) on four hits and two walks over 3 1/3 innings. He had five strikeouts. He gave up three runs in the second inning, and two more before exiting in the fourth. That’s when Merit Jones came into the game. The Twins thought that Jones was ‘the quality of being particularly good or worthy’ of being drafted not once, but twice. The Twins selected him in the 20th round of the 2024 draft. Instead of signing, he returned to the University of Utah. A year later, the Twins selected him again, this time in the 14th round after an impressive showing in the MLB Draft League. In this outing, he worked four innings. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits. He walked one and had four strikeouts. Mike McKenna came in to get the final two outs. Acuna was the big reason the Mussels got on the scoreboard in the top of the third inning. He walked and stole second base. With two outs, Irvin Nunez and Dameury Pena walked to load the bases. A fielding error allowed Acuna to score. Through four innings, the Mussels were down 5-1. Acuna started the top of the fifth with a single. Jorel Ortega doubled to drive him in and make it 5-2. Fast-forward to the top of the seventh. The Mussels were losing 7-2. Yilber Herrera led off the inning with his first home run of the season. Acuna followed with a single but was erased on a double play. Irvin Nunez walked and went to second on a Dameury Pena single. Ryan Sprock doubled to drive in the team’s fourth run. The Mussels had nine hits and walked seven times. Acuna had two singles and two walks and a stolen base. Herrera went 2-for-4 with a homer. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter of the Day Garrett Spain (Wichita): 3-for-5, 2 R, HR(2), 5 RBI, K Bryan Acuna (Fort Myers): 2-for-2, 2 BB, 2 R, SB(1) Ben Ross (Wichita): 3-for-5, BB, 2B(4), 2 RBI, 2 SB(4), K Pitcher of the Day Eli Jones (Cedar Rapids): 5 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 63 pitches, 45 strikes (71.4%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #1 - OF Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - Did Not Play #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 0-for-4, 2 K (led off, played SS) #3 - OF Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-for-3, K (batted fourth, played CF) #4 - C Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, BB, R, K (batted second, DHd) #5 - LHP Connor Prielipp (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #6 - LHP Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - Did Not Pitch #7 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-for-4, K (Batted third, played LF) #8 - LHP Kendry Rojas (St. Paul) - Activated Saturday. Will start Sunday. #9 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, 2 K (led off, played SS) #10 - RHP Charlee Soto (Cedar Rapids) - Injured List #11 - RHP Riley Quick (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch #12 - RHP Andrew Morris (Minnesota) - Called up to Twins. Did Not Pitch #13 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-4, K, SB(4) (batted fourth, played 3B). #14 - 3B/SS Quentin Young (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Play. #15 - RHP Marco Raya (St. Paul) - Did Not Pitch #16 - OF Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 1-for-4, 2 R, K, SB(1) (batted third, played LF) #17 - 2B/OF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 2-for-5, BB, R, 2 RBI, K, CS(2), E(3) (led off, played 2B) #18 - RHP C.J. Culpepper (Wichita) - Did Not Pitch #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-3, HBP, HR(1), 2 RBI, R, RBI (batted third, catcher) #20 - RHP James Ellwanger (Ft. Myers) - Did Not Pitch UPCOMING PROBABLES Sunday: St. Paul @ Toledo (1:05 pm CT) - LHP Kendry Rojas (first start of season) Wichita @ Arkansas (1:35 pm CT) - RHP Ty Langenberg (0-1, 2.25 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (1:05 pm CT) - RHP Michael Ross (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Ft. Myers @ Jupiter (11:30 CT) - RHP Kolten Smith (0-0, 0.00 ERA) CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 8-7 St. Paul Saints: 5-8 Wichita Wind Surge: 3-5 Cedar Rapids Kernels: 5-3 Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 5-3 FCL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, May 4) DSL Twins: 0-0 (season begins Monday, June 1) Please feel free to ask questions about the teams, the rosters, and discuss today’s games, or anything else Twins minor-league related! View the full article

As the Mets' lineup continues to struggle, they address their issues in classic fashion — by futzing around with the bullpen. Oddly enough, they seem to be cornering the market on former Braves bullpen mainstays to add to their collection of Yankee relievers. Transactions, 4/6/2026 COMING Signed away from SEA to Minor-League Contract, Placed on Syracuse Development List Relief Pitchers Luke Jackson R/R DoB: 1991-08-24 High Level: MLB (2025) Luke Jackson was an indifferent piece of the Braves pen back in the teens, but then had an out-of-this world season in 2021. He paid for that by missing 2022 with UCL surgery and has bounced around the league since, with occasional success. That 2021 season helped the Braves to a championship, giving Jackson one more reason to be joyful following the birth of his son a few weeks earlier, leading Luke to celebrate following Game Three inviting his wife Corrine and baby onto the field for a post-game cuddle. Transactions, 4/9/2026 COMING Sent to St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment Relief Pitchers A.J. Minter L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 High Level: MLB (2025) Former Braves relief standby #2 is AJ Minter, who gave the 2025 Mets a few weeks of effective bullpenning before going down with a left lat strain that led to season-ending surgery. Mets Roster Central's mindset says that strains aren't supposed to lead to season-ending surgery, but we are not lat doctors. We are as happy to see the re-emergence of Minter, and while we are as dubious as experience might suggest with regards to how much he has left, we have to look at his rehab assignment as starting the DFA clock on Richard Lovelady, who knows a thing or two about DFAs. Transactions, 4/11/2026 GOING COMING Sent to St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment Added to 40-Player Roster and Promoted from St. Lucie Relief Pitchers Relief Pitchers Richard Lovelady Craig Kimbrel L/L DoB: 1995-07-07 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 32291 High Level: MLB (2025) Well, that DFA clock sure wound down quickly. And the Mets squeezed as much juice as the could out of Dickie by using him in mopup duty last night. The bell was tolling for poor Lovelady the whole time. It is hard to argue that Craig Kimbrel is distinctly ready to launch himself on the 2026 season, with only a single inning of A-Level competition since he came up short of the roster in Spring Training, but they don't call him "Dirty Craig" for nothing, and he hasn't made nine All-Star Teams for nothing. He's a weirdo at the end of his career, but he finds a way to get it done. Dirty Craig will be rocking his standard 46, which has been on his back for most of his 440 career saves. It isn't expected that he will take a lot of ninth-inning leads to protect away from Devin Williams, but he is currently fifth on the all-time save list, 38 behind Lee Smith and an active Kenley Jansen. Who knows if he will get a chance to make a further run piling up saves, but if doesn't come to blows with his father-in-law under the stands at Citi, a Hall-of-Fame future is all but guaranteed. Your Mets Coaching Staff Manager Bench Coach Pitching Coach Hitting Coordinator Third Base Coach First Base Coach Bullpen Coach Ass't Pitching Coach Carlos Mendoza Kai Correa Justin Willard Jeff Albert Tim Leiper Gilbert Gomez José Rosado Dan McKinney DoB: 1979-11-27 DoB: 1989-07-14 DoB: 1990-09-09 DoB: 1992-08-16 DoB: 1996-07-19 DoB: 1992-03-08 DoB: 1974-11-09 DoB: 1989-06-06 Hitting Coach Strategy Coach Catching Coach Coaching Assistant Bat'g Practice Pitcher Equipment Manager Bullpen Catchers Bullpen Catchers Troy Snitker Danny Barnes J.P. Arencibia Rafael Fernandez Kevin Mahoney Kevin Kierst Eric Langill Dave Racaniello DoB: 1988-12-05 DoB: 1989-10021 DoB: 1986-01-05 DoB: 1988-08-03 DoB: 1987-05-11 DoB: 1964-07-09 DoB: 1979-04-09 DoB: 1978-06-03 Your Mets Training Staff Director of Player Health Head Athletic Trainer Assistant Athletic Trainer Reconditioning Coordinator Reconditioning Therapist Head Performance Coach Assistant Performance Coach Performance Coordinator Brian Chicklo Joseph Golia Bryan Baca Sean Bardanett Josh Bickel Dustin Clarke Tanner Miracle Jeremy Chiang DoB: 1972-07-17 DoB: 1978-??-?? DoB: Circa 1980 DoB: 1988-06-23 DoB: 1996-??-?? DoB: 1987-??-?? DoB: 1991-??-?? DoB: ????-??-?? Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Clay Holmes Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Kodai Senga R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Luis Garcia Craig Kimbrel Sean Manaea Tobias Myers Brooks Raley Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/R DoB: 1987-01-30 R/R DoB: 32291 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Devin Williams Francisco Alvarez Luís Torrens Bo Bichette Francisco Lindor Ronny Mauricio Jorge Polanco R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 Infielders Outfielders Marcus Semien Mark Vientos Brett Baty Carson Benge Luis Robert, Jr. Tyrone Taylor Jared Young R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 R/R DoB: 34356 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Tylor Megill Christian Scott Jonah Tong Alex Carrillo Reed Garrett Joey Gerber Justin Hagenman R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 On 60-Day Injured List with torn right UCL. With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery and nerve relocation surgery. With Syracuse On 60 Day Injured List with fractured rib. Relief Pitchers Catchers Outfielders A.J. Minter Dedniel Núñez Jonathan Pintaro Dylan Ross Austin Warren Hayden Senger MJ Melendez L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 With St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery. With Syracuse With Syracuse, on Seven-Day IL With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse View the full article

Box Score SP: Joe Ryan - 7.0 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K (91 pitches, 65 strikes (71%) Home Runs: Brooks Lee (2), Trevor Larnach (1) Top 3 WPA (via FanGraphs): Larnach (0.17), Josh Bell (0.12), Lee (0.11) Win Probability Chart (via BaseballSavant) Joe Ryan looked to lead the Twins back into their winning ways against the suddenly red-hot bats of the Toronto Blue Jays. Standing in their way was yet another lefty, this time Eric Lauer who has started and opened in his two appearances thus far in 2026. With Royce Lewis again on the shelf, Ryan Kreidler made his Minnesota debut at third base, and Andrew Morris and his passport also made the trip up to Canada to replace the injured Cody Laweryson. Ryan Rocked in the First, but Keeps on Slinging The Blue Jays started Saturday's game the way they finished Friday's, by ripping the cover off of the ball. Ryan walked the leadoff man George Springer, then got ahead of Daulton Varsho 1-2 before Varsho took a high fastball yard for an early 2-0 Blue Jay lead. Visions of Joe's Kansas City start began to emerge, but the ace of the Twins staff dug in and took charge from there. Ryan only allowed two more baserunners through six innings on 79 total pitches. Lauer Starts Strong, but Gives Up the Ghost in the Third Lauer cruised through the Twins lineup through the first two innings, surrendering only a two-out walk in the second. His day began to unravel when the much-maligned but recently encouraging Brooks Lee stepped to the plate to lead off the top of the third. Lee pulled an 0-1 center-cut fastball to the seats in left for his second home run in as many days, and to put the Twins on the board. After Kreidler grounded out in his first Twin at-bat, Byron Buxton kept the rally going with a swinging bunt, and he advanced to second on a single from Austin Martin. Luke Keaschall worked a walk on a full count, and Ryan Jeffers didn't have to work to walk when four straight pitches missed the zone to tie the game at 2-2. Josh Bell found himself right where the Twins want him with the bases loaded and a chance to punish left-handed pitching. While Bell didn't destroy the ball, the results sure punished Lauer and the Blue Jays as Varsho couldn't reach is high fly ball to mid-center and then he wished that he hadn't gotten as close as he did! With the Twins now in the lead at 4-2, Trevor Larnach looked to reward his skipper for putting him in the lineup against a lefty. Trevor likes 90 mph center cut fastballs no matter who throws them. Consider us all rewarded. Finishing it Off Kreidler wasn't able to collect his first hit as a Twin, but he sure got his first web gem. As Ryan was attempting to complete the seventh, Nathan Lukes crushed a ball into the hole at short. Brand new third baseman Kreidler said, "I play here now." After Ryan collected his congratulatory hugs in the dugout after dominating the Blue Jays through the seventh, the Twins turned to a bullpen that more than struggled on Friday night. Kody Funderburk got the first call out of the bullpen, and he allowed an Ernie Clement single and an Andres Gimenez walk to put runners at first and second with nobody out. Three batters and some teeth gnashing by Twins fans later, Toronto returned to their dugout without scoring a run and the game remained squarely in Minnesota's hands at 7-2. Cole Sands came in for the ninth and slammed the door shut. Unfortunately, Jesus Sanchez didn't get the memo, as he took Sands deep for a two-run blast to inch the home team closer at 7-4. That was as close as they would come, as Sands took down the next three Blue Jays, and the visiting squad leveled the series at one game apiece! What’s Next? The Twins look to take their first road series of the season when they tackle Toronto in a Sunday matinee. Twins righty Taj Bradley (2-0, 1.08 ERA) looks to continue his blazing start to the season. The Blue Jays counter with veteran Hall of Famer-in waiting, righty Max Scherzer (1-1, 3.38 ERA). First pitch is scheduled for 12:37pm CDT. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Banda 0 21 0 36 0 57 Sands 12 9 0 0 22 43 Rogers 12 0 0 30 0 42 Funderburk 0 20 0 0 17 37 Topa 14 10 0 12 0 36 Acton 0 0 35 0 0 35 Orze 19 0 14 0 0 33 Morris 0 0 0 0 0 0 View the full article