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The AL Central has been widely regarded as a poor overall division in the past. 2021 through 2023 saw the division champion be the only team above .500, while 2024 and 2025 had four and three teams respectively. The Guardians are the hottest as of late, winning three out of the last four division championships and have established themselves as the team to beat in the division, despite significantly better efforts from the Tigers and Royals in recent years. Now, shifting focus to 2026, the Guardians lead the way in the standings once again. The other clubs trail behind, searching for consistency in a wide-open American League this year. With the season beginning to take shape with the summer months upon us, here is how the A.L. Central teams stack up so far this year, and maybe a thing of two the Twins can learn from their competitors. No. 1 - Cleveland Guardians (34-26) Pythagorean Record- 31-29 (+3) RS/G – 4.08, RA/G – 3.98 The Guardians currently lead the division by two games. While two-time All-Star Steven Kwan (71 OPS+) is struggling, young players such as Travis Bazzana, Brayan Rocchio, Chase DeLauter, and Angel Martinez have all stepped up, each with above average OPS marks. Cleveland made a notable trade already as well, acquiring Patrick Bailey from San Francisco for his defensive ability behind the plate. Gavin Williams (3.07 ERA, 3.31 FIP) and Parker Messick (2.24 ERA, 3.03 FIP) are the key arms in the rotation, while the ever-reliable Cade Smith leads MLB in saves with a 2.70 ERA (1.19 FIP). Cleveland has something that the Twins currently don’t: young hitters performing at the MLB level. Bazzana, Rocchio, DeLauter, and Martinez have provided energy into a Cleveland lineup that desperately needed it, and the Twins could use that from Kaelen Culpepper, Walker Jenkins, Gabriel Gonzalez, and more of their in the lower ranks. Nevertheless, expect Cleveland to be in the hunt for the division title once again if they aren’t already leading come the later months. No. 2 – Chicago White Sox (31-27) Pythagorean Record – 30-28 (+1) RS/G – 4.71, RA/G – 4.59 One of the great surprises in baseball this year, the White Sox currently hold the second wild card spot. Free agent signee Munetaka Murakami leads the way with a .947 OPS, good for fifth in the league. The slugger is in the 93rd percentile or above in xSLG, average exit velocity, barrel percentage, hard hit percentage, and walk percentage, while being in the 5th percentile in strikeout rate. Murakami is a Three True Outcome hitter and the deal he signed this past offseason is only looking better as the season progresses. However, Murakami could miss the next four-to-six weeks with a hamstring injury. Miguel Vargas’ presence as an offensive contributor has been welcomed as well after a few down years, rocking a 133 OPS+ going into Friday’s action. The Twins could learn something from Murakami and the White Sox in that it is okay to spend a little money in free agency and take a chance. Players such as Josh Bell and Victor Caratini are pretty known commodities at this point in their careers, and a bat like Murakami would be nice to slot in at first base daily. On the pitching side, Davis Martin is off to a great start with a 2.00 ERA (2.30 FIP) over 67 2/3 innings of work while striking out 71. These excellent results are largely due to three pitches: his changeup, sinker, and slider, each of which have a run value of 4. Left-handed reliever Bryan Hudson (1.37 ERA, 2.57 FIP) and 26-year-old starter Sean Burke (3.90 ERA, 3.40 FIP) have been good as well. The White Sox could be a formidable force by the end of the year; however, they’ll likely need to work on their walk problems (pitchers have walked 215 batters so far, sixth worst in the league) and perhaps another bat to replace Andrew Benintendi in the DH spot (77 OPS+ so far in 2026). Still, Murakami has made the White Sox a fun team to watch so far in 2026, and they’ll hope to catch the Guardians to win their first division title since 2021. No. 3 – Minnesota Twins (27-32) Pythagorean Record – 28-31 (-1) RS/G – 4.61, RA/G – 4.86 The Twins sit just a game back of a wild card spot entering Friday’s games, a spot most fans and analysts didn’t expect them to be. Performances from All-Stars Byron Buxton (147 OPS+) and Joe Ryan (2.94 ERA, 2.58 FIP) lead the way, while players such as Austin Martin (119 OPS+) and Taj Bradley (2.77 ERA, 3.26 FIP) have provided value where little was expected. Still, an injury to Ryan Jeffers and struggles and eventual demotions to Royce Lewis and Matt Wallner has left the lineup thin. Nevertheless, this team goes as Buxton and Ryan go, and if they are both still on the team after the trade deadline it wouldn’t be surprising to see this team in contention for a wild card spot come August, though it isn’t likely the postseason will be a part of the Twins’ season. Performances from the franchise players, as well as younger players like Martin and Brooks Lee (in the clutch), are making this team fun to watch at least. No. 4 – Detroit Tigers (22-37) Pythagorean Record – 25-34 (-3) RS/G – 3.77, RA/G – 4.41 A playoff team last year, the Tigers spent big in the offseason, signing Framber Valdez to a three year, 115-million-dollar deal while bringing in other arms such as Justin Verlander, Kyle Finnegan, and Kenley Jansen. Gleyber Torres accepted his qualifying offer to come back to Detroit after being an All-Star in 2025. Even with those additions, the Tigers haven’t performed up to par in 2026, currently second to last in all of MLB ahead of just the Rockies. 2025 Cy Young winner Tarik Skubal is on the IL due to a surgery to get a loose body out of his elbow while Verlander had just one start before going to the IL as well. Valdez’s pitching has been mediocre, with a 4.28 ERA (4.08 FIP) and has spent more time in the news for hitting Trevor Story after giving up back-to-back homers than for the positives of his game. Casey Mize has been a bright spot for this pitching staff, worth 2.2 bWAR with a 2.27 ERA (2.37 FIP). Offensively, injuries have continued to remove Tigers from the lineup, with Torres, Kerry Carpenter, and Javier Baez all on the injured list. Struggles from Spencer Torkelson (99 OPS+), Colt Keith, (96 OPS+) and Zach McKinstry (32 OPS+) haven’t helped either. Riley Greene leads the way with a 136 OPS+ for this group, though 21-year-old rookie Kevin McGonigle follows close behind (131 OPS+) and leads the team in bWAR currently. The Tigers have a big decision to make. The way their season is going, they could sell off some or their larger pieces, such as Skubal, to get a haul at the deadline, or they could wait it out, get healthy, and try to make a playoff push later in the year. Detroit must hope they can find some of the magic they had last year soon, otherwise they could be a big seller come August 3rd. No. 5 – Kansas City Royals (22-36) Pythagorean Record – 23-35 (-2) RS/G – 3.76, RA/G – 4.72 An above .500 team a year ago, the Royals sit second to last in the division. Only two of their qualified hitters have an OPS above .700, one of which being superstar shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. (137 OPS+) with the other being third baseman Maikel Garcia (100 OPS+). Besides those two, struggles to Vinnie Pasquantino, Salvador Perez, and Isaac Collins, among others, has led to the 2nd lowest runs scored per game in MLB, better then only the Giants. On the mound, Seth Lugo (3.74 ERA, 3.07 FIP) and Michael Wacha (2.69 ERA, 3.90 FIP) have led the way for a rotation currently without lefties Kris Bubic and Cole Ragans. The Royals should use this season as a reminder of how good their franchise shortstop is, and with their record well on the wrong side of .500, need to do everything in their power in building a competitive team around him in 2027. The A.L. Central has been criticized over the years for being an overall bad division, but it has been more competitive as of late. Cleveland still leads the way, while Chicago and Minnesota follow closely in hopes of making it a race come August and September. Detroit and Kansas City sit at the bottom, both 10 or more games back from Cleveland entering June. As the summer unfolds, the hope is that the Twins can be competitive in this division, but only time will tell as they have overperformed expectations so far. With plenty of baseball still left to play, the AL Central remains a division filled with stars and teams searching for answers to how to move forward, and that likely won’t change at the end of this season. So how would you rank the five AL Central teams? View the full article

Chicago Cubs Transactions None Iowa Falls To Indianapolis After Late Collapse The Iowa Cubs lost 14-5 to the Indianapolis Indians, undone by a string of big innings allowed by the bullpen. Iowa had taken a 5-2 lead, building it on RBI from Scott Kingery, Brett Bateman, BJ Murray, and a pair of run-scoring singles from Chas McCormick, who finished 2-for-5 with two RBI. Ben Cowles added two hits, and Owen Miller scored twice with two stolen bases. The game turned in the fifth inning, when Indianapolis scored five runs to take the lead for good, then added three in the sixth and four in the eighth. Christian Roa was charged with four runs, three walks, and a home run while recording two outs. Zac Leigh took the loss after allowing five runs, four walks, and a home run while retiring one batter. The lone bright spot on the mound was Connor Noland, who allowed two runs, one earned, on three hits over four innings, walking one and striking out six. Player AB R H RBI BB K Brett Bateman 3 0 1 1 1 0 Justin Dean 3 1 0 0 1 2 BJ Murray 4 0 0 1 1 1 Owen Miller 4 2 1 0 0 1 Chas McCormick 5 0 2 2 0 2 Ben Cowles 5 1 2 0 0 2 James Triantos 4 1 1 0 0 0 Eric Yang 1 0 0 0 3 1 Scott Kingery 3 0 1 1 0 2 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Ryan Jensen 1/3 0 0 0 2 0 0 Christian Roa 2/3 1 4 4 3 1 1 Collin Snider 1 2/3 5 3 3 0 1 0 Zac Leigh 1/3 1 5 5 4 0 1 Gavin Hollowell 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 Connor Noland 4 3 2 1 1 6 0 Knoxville Powers Past Chattanooga With Four Homers The Knoxville Smokies hit four home runs to beat the Chattanooga Lookouts 7-5. Owen Ayers, batting second, finished 1-for-4 with a home run and two RBI, and Jefferson Rojas, Ethan Hearn, and Edgar Alvarez each added a homer. Alex Madera went 2-for-2 with a double, an RBI, and a run, and Hayden Cantrelle reached base twice with two hits. Knoxville scored three times in the third inning, the most decisive frame of the game. Ethan Hearn led off the second with a solo home run, then in the third Alex Madera doubled home Hayden Cantrelle before Owen Ayers homered to bring in Madera, putting Knoxville ahead 4-1. Edgar Alvarez added a two-run homer in the sixth, and Jefferson Rojas homered in the seventh to provide the final margin. Starter Dawson Netz allowed one run on two hits over 3 1/3 innings, walking one and striking out two, to earn the win. Evan Taylor surrendered three runs in one inning of relief, and Jake Knapp settled things down with 2 2/3 innings, allowing one run on three hits with two strikeouts. Player AB R H RBI BB K Alex Ramírez 4 0 0 0 0 1 Owen Ayers 4 1 1 2 0 0 Jefferson Rojas 4 1 1 1 0 1 Andy Garriola 4 0 2 0 0 1 Ethan Hearn 4 1 1 1 0 1 Carter Trice 2 1 0 0 1 1 Edgar Alvarez 3 1 1 2 0 0 Hayden Cantrelle 3 1 2 0 0 0 Alex Madera 3 1 2 1 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Dawson Netz 3 1/3 2 1 1 1 2 1 Evan Taylor 1 4 3 3 2 1 0 Jake Knapp 2 2/3 3 1 1 1 2 0 South Bend Shuts Out Fort Wayne Behind Bowser's Grand Slam The South Bend Cubs blanked the Fort Wayne TinCaps 7-0 on the strength of a combined three-pitcher shutout and a four-run sixth inning. Drew Bowser drove in all four runs with a grand slam to left field, scoring Josiah Hartshorn, Matt Halbach, and Justin Stransky to break the game open. It was South Bend’s second grand slam of May, a new single-month record for the affiliate. South Bend had built its lead earlier with two runs in the second, when Jose Escobar and Justin Stransky hit back-to-back doubles, the first scoring Matt Halbach and the second scoring Escobar. Halbach added an RBI single in the third to bring home Ty Southisene. Bowser finished 1-for-4 with the grand slam and four RBI, and Escobar, Stransky, Halbach, and Southisene each collected a hit. Starter Eli Jerzembeck worked two scoreless innings, walking two and striking out two, to earn the win. Mason McGwire was dominant in relief, striking out six over three hitless and scoreless innings while earning a save. Koen Moreno closed it out with four scoreless innings, allowing two hits and four walks with four strikeouts. Player AB R H RBI BB K Kane Kepley 5 0 0 0 0 1 Ty Southisene 4 1 1 0 0 1 Josiah Hartshorn 3 1 1 0 1 1 Matt Halbach 1 2 1 1 2 0 Miguel Useche 3 0 0 0 1 3 Jose Escobar 4 1 1 1 0 0 Justin Stransky 3 1 1 1 1 1 Drew Bowser 4 1 1 4 0 2 Christian Olivo 4 0 0 0 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Eli Jerzembeck 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 Mason McGwire 3 1 0 0 0 6 0 Koen Moreno 4 2 0 0 4 4 0 Lubo And Melendez Homer As Myrtle Beach Holds Off Wilson The Myrtle Beach Pelicans beat the Wilson Warbirds 7-5, pulling away with a three-run eighth inning. Geuri Lubo led the offense, going 2-for-4 with a double, a home run, and three RBI, and his three-run homer in the eighth, which scored Eli Lovich and Jairo Diaz, provided the winning margin. Yahil Melendez went 1-for-4 with a two-run homer in the fifth, and Alexey Lumpuy reached base twice with two hits, a run, and two stolen bases out of the leadoff spot. Myrtle Beach also scratched out runs early, taking a sacrifice fly from Henniel Alcala in the second that scored Derniche Valdez and a run in the third when Lovich scored on a wild pitch. Noah Edders gave up four runs on five hits over 3 1/3 innings, walking two and striking out three. Braylon Myers picked up the win with 1 1/3 scoreless innings, and Riely Hunsaker worked 4 1/3 innings, allowing one run on three hits with three walks and two strikeouts. Player AB R H RBI BB K Alexey Lumpuy 4 1 2 0 0 1 Alexis Hernandez 4 0 1 0 0 2 Eli Lovich 3 2 0 0 1 2 Yahil Melendez 4 1 1 2 0 1 Derniche Valdez 4 1 0 0 0 0 Jairo Diaz 2 1 0 0 1 0 Geuri Lubo 4 1 2 3 0 0 Henniel Alcala 3 0 0 1 0 2 Edward Vargas 3 0 0 0 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Noah Edders 3 1/3 5 4 4 2 3 0 Braylon Myers 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 1 0 Riely Hunsaker 4 1/3 3 1 1 3 2 0 Cubs Transactions No Roster Moves Top-20 Prospect Performance Jefferson Rojas: 1-for-4, HR, RBI, K Jaxon Wiggins: DNP Pedro Ramirez: DNP Kevin Alcantara: DNP Josiah Hartshorn: 1-for-3, BB, R, K Ethan Conrad: DNP Kane Kepley: 0-for-5, K Jonathon Long: DNP James Triantos: 1-for-4, R, SB Cole Mathis: DNP Owen Ayers: 1-for-4, HR, 2 RBI, R Brooks Caple: DNP Juan Cabada: DNP Kaleb Wing: DNP Angel Cepeda: DNP Dominick Reid: DNP Jostin Florentino: DNP Ty Southisene: 1-for-4, R, K Will Sanders: DNP Brandon Birdsell: DNP View the full article

Boston Red Sox Farm System Recap Triple-A Worcester Red Sox Series at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders (New York Yankees): 4-1 Season Record: 27-26 Worcester’s offense was quiet on Saturday as its hot streak was snapped. The game went sideways early on for the WooSox as Raymond Burgos struggled in his start. Over just three and ⅓ innings, Burgos allowed eight hits and two walks as the RailRiders scored five times. Since allowing just one run in his WooSox debut the lefty has struggled, posting an ERA of 8.79 across four starts. Jacob Webb steadied the ship in his one and ⅔ innings of relief. He allowed a hit and struck out two before turning the ball over to Eduardo Rivera. Rivera gave up one more run on two hits in a two inning appearance but maintained a respectable 2.79 ERA. In the final inning of the game, Devin Sweet allowed one more run to cross home as the RailRiders won easily. Sweet allowed two hits and a walk. Worcester's offense struggled to give itself opportunities, tallying only four at bats with runners in scoring position. Tsung-Che Cheng had two hits and Anthony Seigler drew three walks as the pair were the only highlights from Saturday’s game. The WooSox only two runs came late in the game. In the ninth inning, Matt Thaiss drove in Allan Castro and Cheng on a ground ball that snuck through the defense. It was a frustrating game for the WooSox, who had recorded six or more runs in three of their last four contests. Double-A Portland Sea Dogs Series at Binghamton Rumble Ponies (New York Mets): 3-2 Season Record: 25-24 After opening the series 3-0, Portland fell in extras for the second straight game, losing 4-3. Coming off of a flawless three-inning appearance a week ago, Jedixson Paez opened Saturday’s game with high hopes. Unfortunately for the 22-year-old, he was unable to replicate last week's outing. Over four innings, Paez allowed three runs on four hits. He was able to control his command, striking out four and allowing just one walk. Caleb Bolden got the ball going into the fifth and absolutely dominated over the next four frames. He sat down five on strikes and allowed a solo baserunner on a walk. With the game on the line in the bottom of the ninth, Portland turned to Erik Rivera. Rivera walked the first batter he faced before getting his first out on a pop-out. After a wild pitch and another walk, Binghamton had men on first and second. The lead runner stole third and advanced home, winning the game on a throwing error from Johanfran Garcia. Each of Portland’s hitters reached base once through Saturday’s game, but they were unable to muster more than three runs. The Sea Dogs went 2-for-12 with RISP, stranding seven baserunners. Facing an early three-run deficit, Nate Baez put Portland on the board with an RBI groundout in the third that pushed Franklin Arias across home plate. Later in the inning, Garcia drove in Will Turner on a line drive single. One inning later, Ahbram Liendo hit an RBI single of his own, scoring Tyler McDonough. Similar to the game prior, Portland failed to score down the stretch, going silent over the last five innings. High-A Greenville Drive Series vs. Asheville Tourists (Houston Astros): 3-2 Season Record: 19-29 Despite a formidable comeback attempt in the ninth, Greenville fell to ten games below .500. Alex Bouchard started Saturday’s game and it was a disaster from the jump. Over just an inning and ⅔, Bouchard allowed seven runs on seven hits and only struck out one. With two outs in the second, Brandon Neely bailed Bouchard out before turning the ball over to Matt McShane. McShane allowed three more runs (one unearned) on two walks and a hit as Asheville took a commanding lead. Tyler Uberstine entered in the fifth, making his second rehab appearance. He allowed two hits and a walk, but didn’t let the Tourists add to their lead. Osvaldo Berrios took the next two and ⅓ innings and was nearly perfect. He allowed one walk and struck out two before catcher Hudson White made his second pitching appearance in as many days. White allowed one hit but that was all. After a rough start, Greenville’s bullpen turned in a so-so outing. The Drive scored three runs through the first eight innings, but came to life in the ninth. They scored five as they attempted to pull off the improbable upset. Prior to the comeback bid, Enddy Azocar put the Drive on the board as he continues to impress since being called up from Low-A Salem. He drove in Justin Gonzales with a triple in the first, his second triple of the year. Henry Godbout drove in Azocar on a groundout as Greenville nabbed an early lead. In the fourth, Mason White added one more run. He drove in Luke Heyman on a soft ground ball single back to the pitcher. The Drive’s offense surged in the ninth, loading the bases with no outs. Antonio Anderson was hit by a pitch, driving in Jack Winnay. Then, Gonzales scored White on a single. Azocar drove in his second run of the day as he was hit by a pitch. With the lead down to four, Anderson scored on a passed ball. With the lead in sight, Yoeilin Cespedes drove in Gonzales on a sac fly. However, the comeback was stymied and Greenville fell for the second night in a row. Low-A Salem RidgeYaks Series vs. Hickory Crawdads (Texas Rangers): 2-3 Season Record: 22-28 Salem snapped their three-game skid with a solid 5-1 win. Leighton Finley matched his longest start of the year on Saturday, turning in five frames of work. He allowed six baserunners, four by way of hits and two via walks. Despite the traffic on the basepaths, he held Hickory to just one run and sent seven back to the dugout on strikes. Finley’s lone run was let up on the first, and he settled in nicely afterward. He lowered his ERA to 3.19 with another quality start. Joey Gartrell followed with three excellent innings of his own. He allowed two hits and K’d two in his second appearance since being sent down from High-A Greenville. Drew Allmer capped off the dominant day from Salem’s pitching staff with a perfect inning, closing out the win. It was a successful day on both sides of the ball for Salem as the offense totalled ten hits and five runs. Starlyn Nunez led the way with three hits in four at-bats. He hit a lead-off home run to open the game and put Salem on the board. In the second, Ilan Fernandez drove in Avinson Pinto on a single to give Salem the lead. The RidgeYaks didn’t look back and didn’t relinquish the lead for the rest of the afternoon. In the fourth, Givian Sirvania tacked on another run with a bases loaded single, driving in Adonys Guzman. In the fifth, Nunez hit his second homer of the day to extend the lead to three. Finally, Guzman drove in Nunez on a single in the seventh to put the game out of reach. It was a nice rebound for the RidgeYaks as they’ve struggled as of late. View the full article

The Royals' nightmare stretch and season continued on Saturday afternoon in Arlington. Despite leading 6-4 in the bottom of the ninth, Royals closer Lucas Erceg gave up three runs on five hits to blow the game to Texas. Ezequiel Duran had the game-winning single that scored Brandon Nimmo from third base with no outs. After closing out the game against the Cardinals on May 17th, Erceg has given up eight runs on 13 hits in three appearances. His ERA has risen from 3.26 to 6.33 over that three-game span, and his WHIP has risen from 1.45 to 1.92. Overall, it's been a challenging season for Erceg, as he has not just struggled to generate whiffs and strikeouts, but has also posted a career-worst wOBA, as illustrated in his TJ Stats percentiles below. The percentiles aren't pretty in many categories. According to TJ Stats, Erceg ranks in the 27th percentile in K%, 19th percentile in O-Swing% and Whiff%, 15th percentile in Strike%, 13th percentile in BB%, 8th percentile in wOBA, and 2nd percentile in CSW. He has done a good job of maintaining strong numbers in average EV on batted balls (77th percentile), GB% (79th percentile), and fastball velocity (87th percentile). Unfortunately, those positives have been overshadowed by the negative categories. For comparison, here's what Erceg's TJ Statcast summary looked like back in 2024, when he helped lead the Royals to the ALDS after coming over from Oakland at the Trade Deadline. As Royals fans can see, Erceg had only two categories below the 50th percentile in 2024 (swing% and zone%). He had all the characteristics of an elite reliever in 2024. While things regressed a little in 2025, he was still much better in many categories last season, especially in wOBA, O-Swing%, and BB%, as illustrated below. So what has happened to Erceg in 2026? Why has he declined so dramatically since 2024 and become so unproductive in the late innings this season? A lot can be tied to his regression in TJ Stuff+ and to the command of his pitch arsenal, especially with two key pitches. Erceg's TJ Stuff+ Has Declined Heavily Overall Since 2024 When it comes to a pitcher declining in production from one season to the next, a drop in velocity is often highlighted as the primary culprit. That was the case with Carlos Estevez, who went from throwing in the upper 90's to under 90 this season. Unfortunately, that's not the case with Erceg. His velocity, on all of his pitch types, has remained pretty similar to previous seasons, as illustrated by his pitch velocity chart by season below, via Baseball Savant. Yes, there's a small decline in velocity this year, but it's not enough to be alarming. For context, here's a look at Estevez's average pitch velocity chart over his career. That's a pretty sharp decline for Estevez and a sign that something was seriously wrong (as a result, he's on the IL, and it's unlikely that he will return this season). As for Erceg, the decline in velocity is evident, but it's not excessive or a massive outlier from previous seasons. That said, there's more to a pitch's effectiveness than just velocity. Movement, spin rate, and release point are key, and the quality of those characteristics of a pitch can often be measured with various pitch-tracking tools, including TJ Stuff+, created by Thomas Nestico, the founder of TJ Stats. For those unfamiliar, TJ Stuff+ can be defined as follows, per TJ Stats' website. When it comes to TJ Stuff+, Erceg has seen a massive regression in his pitches compared to 2024, as illustrated in his TJ Stuff+ summary below, which shows the differences in certain categories from two seasons ago. Here is a breakdown of the declines on all of the pitches in his arsenal from 2024. Four-Seamer: Seven-point decline. Slider: Four-point decline. Sinker: 10-point decline. Changeup: one-point decline. Overall: Six-point decline. The decline in overall TJ Stuff+ has led to regression in many important categories. His chase rate is down by six percent, and his whiff rate is down by 10.6%. The change in zone and xwOBACON has been minimal, with differences of -0.1% and +0.006%, respectively. For a more complete breakdown of the difference from 2024 to 2026, here is a complete comparison of his TJ Stuff+ summaries from 2024 to 2026, which also includes the difference in pitch break from 2024 to 2026. There doesn't seem to be a whole lot of difference in his pitch break chart. The arm angle has a one-degree difference, but the pitches break this year move similarly to how they did in 2024. That said, we do see the TJ Stuff+ and grades from 2026 sport major differences from 2024. In 2024, Erceg had an overall TJ Stuff+ of 106, two pitches with grades over 70, and no pitches with grades under 54. This year? He has a 100 overall TJ Stuff+, no pitches with grades of 70 or over, and only two pitches with grades over 50 (sinker and changeup). In terms of vertical and horizontal movement, the four-seamer has less iVB (induced vertical break) this year, and the sinker has MORE iVB. The slider also has more HB (horizontal break) than two years ago, and the spin is down on all four of his pitches. Those movement changes, combined with subtle regression in velocity, have seemed to make the TJ Stuff+ on Erceg's pitches more mediocre this year. That lackluster TJ Stuff+ has resulted in chase and whiff rates under 30% this year, a big drop from the 30+% marks he had in those categories two seasons ago. The Sinker and Slider Are the Main Concerns What made Erceg so effective as a reliever was that he had two premium pitches: the sinker and slider. In 2024, the sinker had a 72 grade (109 TJ Stuff+), a 30.6% chase rate, a 21% whiff rate, and a .211 xwOBACON. The slider had a 54 grade (105 TJ Stuff+), a 34% chase, 37.5% whiff, and .283 xwOBACON. When sequenced together and located effectively, the pitch combo could be absolutely nasty. Below is a compilation of clips of Erceg generating whiffs with the sinker and slider back in 2024 against the Yankees' Juan Soto and the Reds' Stuart Fairchild. Erceg SI SL-2024.mp4 To break down Erceg's sinker and slider further, let's utilize his pitch heatmap summary data from those two pitches via TJ Stats. That could give us an idea not just of where those pitches were located, but also of the metrics derived from that heatmap data. Here's a look at the sinker heatmap data. Erceg was pretty consistent with his location of the sinker, keeping it arms side and down against both lefties and righties. It was more of a weapon against righties, as evidenced by his 39.8% usage against righties compared to a 3.6% usage against lefties. However, it was equally effective against both sides of the plate. Against lefties, he had a 35.3% CSW and .217 xwOBACON. Against righties, it had a 28.1% CSW and .210 xwOBACON. When he wasn't generating called strikes or whiffs, he was limiting hard contact, which is what one wants to see from a sinker. Now, let's take a look at the slider heatmap data. Erceg distributed the slider more evenly against hitters. It had 24.3% usage against lefties and 31.6% against righties. Against righties, he focused more on locating the pitch low and away, while against lefties, he was more willing to be spread out in his location. The pitch was a great CSW pitch against both sides of the plate, with a 34.5% mark against lefties and 34% mark against righties. However, against lefties, it produced better chase (40.3% O-Swing to 29.1% O-Swing against righties) and xwOBACON (.128 against lefties; .372 against righties). Now, let's take a glance at the sinker heatmap data this season for Erceg. The biggest difference with the sinker is that he's throwing it WAY more in the heart of the plate against both lefties and righties. In 2024, the heart% was 35.3% against lefties and 27.6% against righties. This year? Those percentages are 42.4% against lefties and 37.9% against righties. That's a difference of 7.1% and 10.3%, respectively. While it's important to throw strikes with the pitch, Erceg is leaving the sinker too much in the middle of the zone. And what happens when a pitcher leaves it in the middle of the zone too much? It gets hit. The xwOBACON is .272 against lefties this year, which is higher than the .217 mark in 2024. Against righties, the xwOBACON is good, but his 15.4% whiff rate is down from 21.7% a season ago. The sinker is profiling better than his four-seamer, but it's not quite the elite pitch that it was back in 2024. The same is true with the slider, as illustrated by the heatmap data via TJ Stats. The slider heatmap location has been much different this season compared to 2024. The heatmap is totally different on the left side: he is throwing fewer pitches in the heart% zone, but the lower pitch location has led to fewer whiffs and chases. Because Erceg's slider was so diverse in terms of location to lefties, it had a 34.5% CSW, 37.5% whiff, and 40.3% O-Swing% in 2024. This year? He has a 12.5% CSW on the slider, 17.6% whiff rate, and 19.4% O-Swing%. Those are significant differences and make the pitch far less effective against lefty hitters. Below is an example of a 0-2 pitch this season against Milwaukee's Christian Yelich that Yelich spits on because it misses the zone so badly. Because lefties are keen that it's not going to be in the middle of the zone, they tend not to respect the slider, even in pitcher-friendly counts. QXc3ZEtfWGw0TUFRPT1fVjFCWEJWQlZBQUlBVzFNQ1V3QUhCQU5TQUZnR0FnSUFWQUVFQmxFTlVGWmRCRkZU.mp4 Now let's take a look at 2024, where Erceg can get Andres Gimenez swinging on a two-strike slider. It's located more on the edges of the strike zone, and it's a harder, sharper offering. That makes it a lot tougher for hitters to lay off, especially in two-strike counts. cThMMHZfWGw0TUFRPT1fRGdKU1ZnWUdVMU1BQ0Z0V1V3QUFBd1pXQUZnTldsRUFCVkFEQndCUUFsWlJBZ2RV.mp4 Erceg, struggling with that sinker-slider command, with the latter particularly against lefties, has been a big reason he's not generating CSW or chase in 2026 and has led to his lackluster numbers overall this season. What To Do With Erceg Going Forward? Right now, I wouldn't be surprised if Erceg hits the IL with an injury. We have seen a trend where relievers with bad stretches end up going on the IL with some kind of issue or ailment. It happened with Estevez, Matt Strahm, and Nick Mears. Considering how poorly Erceg has pitched recently, it wouldn't surprise me if the same fate befalls him. At the same time, Erceg's issues are command-related, not stuff-related. The stuff is fine, though I would like to see his slider be a sharper, harder offering than the loopy one it has become this year. He could work on that in lower-leverage work, whether at the Major League level or in Omaha on a rehab stint. Regardless, Erceg probably needs to be out of the closer's role for some time while he regains command. Granted, that puts the Royals in a tough dilemma. Yes, Daniel Lynch IV has been good this year, but can he handle high-leverage outings consistently? This is the first year he's really been in those situations. And the options are thin after Lynch. While some are questioning Matt Quatraro for bringing in Erceg, his other options were to push John Schreiber to another inning (not a good idea), or call on Steven Cruz, Eric Cerantola, or Eli Morgan. Safe to say, the results would've probably been similar to Erceg with those other pitchers. Which leads to a bigger question: why have the Royals struggled to build bullpens under JJ Picollo? Granted, some of it has been injury luck, but the Royals have had a mediocre-to-bad bullpen under Picollo in 2.5 of his 4 seasons as President of Baseball Operations. While some organizations like the Cleveland Guardians and Seattle Mariners have become bullpen factories, the Royals have been the opposite. The Ercge and 2026 bullpen situations emphasize that some changes are needed. Whether it's making changes in coaching, talent acquisition, or player development, the Royals have to do something. They can't continue this trend of poor performance in relief. If it does, for another season or two, the Royals may be looking at a new regime up top. Let's hope that Erceg's struggles can be a catalyst for change from Picollo and the Royals' front office. View the full article

There’s a statistic that can permanently change the way you see a baseball team. It’s not batting average, not home runs, not even OPS. It’s much simpler and much crueler: how many times you get a runner to second or third base and still fail to do anything with it. Forget expectations. Forget theoretical production. In baseball, you win with results in the moments that matter most. The San Diego Padres have spent weeks playing a kind of parallel sport, a ghost version of baseball where they load the bases and then empty them without scoring, as if there were some unwritten law stating that a runner may reach third base but no farther. This is not the story of one bad week. It’s the story of a trend that has been building for a long time and finally overflowed during the worst possible stretch: a three-game home sweep at the hands of the Philadelphia Phillies, with final scores of 3-0, 4-3, and 3-0 that say less about what Philadelphia did right and more about what San Diego failed to do when it mattered most. The numbers that don’t lie: Heading into a weekend series against the Nationals, in their last eight games, the Padres have been the worst team in Major League Baseball with runners in scoring position. Their batting average in those situations during that stretch sits at .045, alongside a .140 expected batting average, also the worst mark in the league. To put that into perspective: in 52 at-bats with runners in scoring position, they collected two hits. Two. If you flipped a coin 52 times and it landed heads exactly twice, you’d suspect the coin was rigged. The Padres hit worse than a fair coin in the situations that decide baseball games. The second-worst team in that span, the New York Mets, hit .143. The Phillies—the same team that swept San Diego—hit .152. Even they, despite struggling with runners on base themselves, tripled the Padres’ production. By the time you reach tenth place on that list, you’re looking at batting averages around .212. The distance between San Diego and the rest of the league is not a gap. It’s an abyss. Their BABIP was .057. For all practical purposes, that is impossible to sustain over time. But the fact that it happened at all is equally significant: it means that whenever the Padres put the ball in play with men on base, it found a defender’s glove with almost suspicious precision. All MLB teams with RISP: last 8 games (May 19–27, 2026) Sorted by BA/RISP ascending. TEAM BA ISO BABIP SLG wOBA xBA K% BB% HardHit% San Diego (SD) .045 .000 .057 .045 .105 .140 21.2% 9.6% 34.3% NY Mets (NYM) .143 .000 .200 .143 .138 .250 28.9% 2.2% 23.3% Philadelphia (PHI) .152 .182 .143 .333 .291 .172 27.9% 16.3% 39.1% Chicago Cubs (CHC) .161 .107 .211 .268 .263 .218 26.9% 7.5% 33.3% St. Louis (STL) .172 .207 .146 .379 .263 .242 22.2% 6.3% 45.2% Cleveland (CLE) .176 .098 .209 .275 .211 .227 19.3% 5.3% 20.9% Toronto (TOR) .181 .096 .246 .277 .229 .208 29.3% 6.5% 29.3% Detroit (DET) .182 .055 .250 .236 .254 .174 27.1% 15.7% 25.0% Tampa Bay (TB) .208 .094 .286 .302 .259 .207 30.8% 13.8% 48.6% Kansas City (KC) .212 .038 .234 .250 .228 .214 13.3% 8.3% 29.8% But then you look at the xBA, and the Padres sit at .140 in those situations. That’s not outstanding, but it’s not .045 either. There’s a massive gap between what they should have hit and what they actually hit, and that gap has only two possible explanations: bad luck and something behavioral, something in the swing or the adjustments hitters fail to make when the scoreboard matters most. It’s probably both. To understand what happened this week, you have to zoom out. The last eight days were the breaking point, but the Padres’ issues with runners in scoring position did not begin on May 19. This has been building for months, one failed at-bat at a time, attached to specific names and faces. The most painful story belongs to Manny Machado. Not because his numbers are the worst on the roster—Cronenworth sits at .074 and Fermin at .048, both lower—but because Machado is Machado. A seven-time All-Star and three-time Silver Slugger. One of the ten greatest third basemen in baseball history. The player around whom Petco Park was built in franchise terms. And yet, with the 2026 season unfolding around him, he’s hitting .132 in pressure situations, with a .097 BABIP that feels almost physically impossible for a hitter of his caliber. Machado’s .097 BABIP with runners in scoring position has to rise. That’s close to a mathematical certainty. But the fact that it ever reached that number is already a sign that something is happening. Elite hitters usually do not hit the ball directly at defenders this consistently, especially not in the moments that matter most. There is something in Machado’s mechanics or approach with runners on base that is making him less effective, and that is the concerning part. Then there’s Jake Cronenworth, hitting .074 with a .056 BABIP. When a hitter posts a BABIP that low, the first conclusion is bad luck. But it’s also fair to ask whether he’s changing his approach in pressure situations: becoming too conservative, trying too hard not to make the inning-ending out and, in the process, turning into exactly that. San Diego Padres: individual RISP statistics, 2026 season Sorted by wOBA/RISP descending. Players BA/RISP ISO BABIP wOBA PA K% Gavin Sheets .355 .451 .368 1.200 33 24.2% Luis Campusano .375 .188 .500 .974 17 23.5% Jackson Merrill .289 .178 .343 .863 55 16.4% Ty France .280 .200 .368 .813 27 22.2% Ramón Laureano .243 .189 .304 .718 42 33.3% Miguel Andújar .286 .085 .294 .714 38 2.6% Fernando Tatis Jr. .290 .000 .333 .671 43 18.6% Xander Bogaerts .227 .137 .216 .703 53 11.3% Nick Castellanos .250 .250 .273 .786 35 25.7% Manny Machado .132 .157 .097 .549 50 18.0% Jake Cronenworth .074 .148 .056 .416 31 25.8% Freddy Fermin .048 .047 .059 .337 29 20.7% Bryce Johnson .111 .000 .250 .384 12 41.7% The counterpoint is that some Padres have responded in these spots. Jackson Merrill is hitting .289 with runners in scoring position and owns an .863 wOBA, making him one of the club’s best hitters in the moments that matter most. Gavin Sheets has posted a .355 average and a .451 ISO, proving that when he bats with men on base, the baseball leaves the bat with intent. Fernando Tatis Jr. is hitting .290 with a .671 wOBA, although surprisingly his power has completely disappeared in those situations (his ISO remains .000, meaning he has not recorded an extra-base hit with RISP this season). The problem is that baseball is not an individual equation. It is a nine-man one. And when three or four of those nine cannot execute in critical moments, the total collapses everything the others are building. To get a complete picture, let's dive into that sweep at the hands of the Phillies. Monday, Game 1. The Padres loaded the bases with nobody out in the first inning against Jesús Luzardo. Nobody out. Bases loaded. It was the kind of moment that defines a series, the moment where winning teams seize control and refuse to give it back. Machado struck out. Merrill struck out. Castellanos grounded out to shortstop. Zero runs. Luzardo carried the enormous weight of that escape through the next five innings and still never allowed a run. In the third inning, the Padres again put the first two hitters on base. Bogaerts grounded into a force out. Machado hit into a double play. Threat over, zero runs. San Diego lost 3-0. Tuesday looked different on the surface (the Padres scored three runs), but the underlying pattern stayed the same. Machado came to the plate with two outs in the bottom of the eighth and runners on first and second. The Phillies led 4-3. Machado attacked the first pitch from Brad Keller and rolled it to third base for the inning’s final out. The Padres lost 4-3. Wednesday brought Cristopher Sánchez, who extended his streak of consecutive scoreless innings to 44⅔, breaking a 115-year-old Phillies franchise record. In the fourth inning, Laureano ripped a two-out double that threatened the streak. Merrill, needing only any kind of hit, grounded out to second baseman Bryson Stott. San Diego lost 3-0. The sweep was complete. What makes these three losses so revealing is not what Philadelphia did right, but the consistency with which San Diego arrived at the critical moment and failed to cross it. Not once. Not twice. Systematically, as though an invisible wall existed between second base and home plate. And yet, this is where the narrative becomes complicated in the best possible way. The Padres are 7-6 in one-run games. San Diego has still found ways to win seven times. Not simply stay close. Win. Someone delivered the necessary hit. Someone refused to shrink under pressure. But they also lost six. And many of those losses carry the unmistakable signature of failed RISP opportunities. A 7-6 record is not the mark of a bad team. It is the mark of a team that knows how to compete but still has not learned how to flip the scoreboard often enough. And there is a massive difference between those two things. The teams that win in October are not necessarily the teams that compete the hardest. They are the teams that convert opportunities into runs with enough consistency for close games to tilt in their favor. The Padres are showing the first half of that equation—they keep reaching close games—but they continue failing the second. What can they do? The honest answer is: wait for the BABIP to normalize. A .057 BABIP with runners in scoring position over eight games has to rise; the statistical laws of baseball simply do not allow that number to survive forever. Eventually, the hard-hit balls will begin finding gaps instead of gloves. Eventually, Machado will line that ball into the outfield in the exact moment it is needed. But they also need to examine the hitters who are changing their swings as the pressure rises, and they need to have uncomfortable conversations about approach, pitch selection, and whether the effort to avoid making the “big out” is turning them into passive hitters precisely when they need to be more aggressive. For now, while that question remains unresolved, San Diego’s runners keep reaching third base. And there they stay. View the full article

In 2025, one of the season-long storylines in the Twins’ system was the use of piggyback relievers. At many levels of the organization, in addition to the team’s starting pitchers, there were a handful of pitchers who threw in bulk but were not in the rotation. And they also threw more often, typically on three days’ rest, one day fewer than a typical starter’s four days. Many questioned whether that plan would ever be carried over into the majors, but after the trade deadline last season, the Twins utilized set piggyback bulk relievers like Travis Adams, Pierson Ohl, and Thomas Hatch, who would throw multiple innings out of the bullpen on a schedule. Of course, the second half of the 2025 Twins season came at the end of a lost year, when wins and losses didn’t matter. So it was still unclear at the beginning of the 2026 season whether the team would continue to use this strategy. On Opening Day, the Twins did not appear to roster one of these guys, though players like Cody Laweryson, Justin Topa, Kody Funderburk, Zak Kent, and Eric Orze would be counted on to throw more than an inning. Technically, though, they did start this using a form of this strategy in just the third game of the season, as Mick Abel piggybacked with Bailey Ober, throwing 3 1/3 innings in relief (to poor results, giving up five runs and not completing four full innings). Garrett Acton threw multiple innings in his Twins debut, then, on three days’ rest, threw another couple of innings on April 13th. He wasn’t asked to do so again, falling into a more traditional end-of-the-pen mop-up pitcher before his late April injury. Andrew Morris, though, stepped into this type of role fairly quickly upon his debut. Morris, a starter to this point in his career, debuted April 12th, throwing three innings of relief from the 6th to 8th inning. He next pitched on six days later, this time tasked with attempting a two-inning save, blowing it after recording just four of the required six outs. After this appearance, Morris sat three days and threw 2 2/3 innings, then sat three days and threw three innings. This usage pattern was more or less in line with the role the Twins have used in the minors. However, Morris was trending toward a more high-leverage role. He recorded a four-out hold on two days’ rest, then on two days’ rest recorded 3 2/3 innings in relief of an injured Joe Ryan. Following this appearance, he transitioned to more of a short relief role, and he hasn’t recorded more than four outs since May 3rd. Around that time, Kendry Rojas entered the picture as an additional arm with some length. Rojas, a starter like Morris, had been recovering from injury and started his season late, not fully stretching out as a starter by the time he got his number called for his MLB debut, which was two innings of relief in a piggyback start with fellow rookie Connor Prielipp. He was sent down shortly after his April debut but returned to MLB action on May 10th. Since then, he has followed the usage pattern one would expect of a player in this role. He recorded 10 outs as the bulk arm in a bullpen game against Cleveland on May 10th, then threw two innings on three days’ rest against Miami, closing out a blowout. After three more days of rest, he started his first game, throwing four innings against Houston. On four days’ rest after that, he threw three innings of relief against Boston. Rojas was then in line to start another game on four days’ rest on Thursday, May 28th, but he was scratched due to elbow soreness. Sadly, fans of this role may be without it for a while, but Rojas showed how useful a player in this role can be. He was off to a start to his career in which he was probably having more success than his performance suggested (his 1.47 WHIP is higher than his ERA), but he was almost an old-school swingman, cutting into the bullpen’s workload while also being available to start when the rotation needed to push someone back or fill in for a day. This oddball scheduled bulk reliever was actually working, at least for a while. Adams, one of the pioneers of the role in 2025, has also potentially been working into this role, starting his season throwing 2 1/3 innings on two days’ rest, two innings on five days’ rest, then two innings on two days' rest. However, it seems that the Twins might be gearing him toward working on shorter outings with shorter rest, even if he could be asked to throw more than an inning at a time, similar to the usage seen with players like Orze or Funderburk. Simeon Woods Richardson could have potentially replaced Rojas in this role, but he was DFAd on Saturday morning. It's hard to imagine SWR not being claimed by another organization. Woods Richardson was in line to throw in bulk in his May 18th bullpen debut, but the game entered a rain delay after his first inning of work, shutting him down for the night. He rested six days before pitching again in relief, this time two innings in a losing effort in Chicago. He started Thursday afternoon’s game on just two days’ rest when Rojas was scratched from the start. He didn't even make it through three innings before allowing five runs. Whatever the plan is with Woods Richardson, it doesn’t seem like this role is in the cards. However, using this formula has been something of a success. If you combine this type of multi-inning relief appearances from Morris, Rojas, and Adams, they’ve combined to throw 29 innings, allowing eight earned runs, which is a 2.48 ERA. If you include the four shutout innings Rojas threw as a spot starter on three days’ rest, it drops down to 2.18 in 33 innings. Unfortunately (or fortunately, if you’re of the opinion this role is new-age made-up nonsense), the Twins haven’t been able to keep a player in this role long. Morris has been thrust into late-innings work, Rojas is on the injured list now with inflammation in his triceps, and Adams (who is the least stretched out) has been sent down to Triple-A due to high usage over the last week. And right now, it’s unclear that the Twins have another horse to slide into this role. The current Twins’ pen, outside of the aforementioned arms, doesn’t have anyone who can slide into this role. John Klein was called up to take SWR's roster spot. He didn’t impress in his debut but has been throwing multiple innings at Triple-A to middling effectiveness. Laweryson and Funderburk have also both struggled at Triple-A, and they have been promoted to fill Rojas and Adams's spots, which probably spells the end of the experiment, for now. Marco Raya, a high-octane recently converted starter, has been throwing multiple innings very frequently at Triple-A thus far this season, racking up 10 appearances with at least two full innings pitched. After a very shaky and discouraging start to the season, he’s settled into a more respectable 3.68 ERA in eight May appearances across 14 2/3 innings. He’s typically throwing on two or three days’ rest, though he’s topped out at 35 pitches. Still, he might be the best choice the Twins have if they want a hard-throwing bullpen arm who throws multiple innings with any regularity. C.J. Culpepper was just last month converted to a reliever upon his promotion to St. Paul, but he's throwing shorter outings than Raya and isn't on the 40-man. The position may be more trouble than it’s worth in the long run, and it may be suited only for players like Rojas and Morris who are close to being MLB-ready starters, but early returns on a stretched-out reliever who throws multiple innings on a somewhat predictable schedule have been encouraging. It’ll be interesting to see how much faith the Twins have in continuing its usage as the calendar turns to June. View the full article

Vincent Perozo's three-run homer carried Binghamton to a 4-3 walk-off win, while Bryce Conley struck out seven. Brooklyn cruised 8-1 behind home runs from Mitch Voit and John Bay, and Tanner Witt fanned six over two innings. Emilio Obispo spun five scoreless frames as St. Lucie won 6-3 in 10 innings, with Randy Guzman collecting three hits. Jack Wenninger absorbed the loss in Syracuse's 5-3 defeat at Rochester. Mets Transactions New York Mets designated LHP Anderson Severino for assignment. New York Mets optioned RHP Tobias Myers to Syracuse Mets. New York Mets selected the contract of LHP Cionel Pérez from Syracuse Mets. Wenninger Roughed Up As Syracuse Drops Road Game In Rochester The Syracuse Mets fell 5-3 to the Rochester Red Wings despite out-walking and threatening late. Christian Arroyo led the offense, going 2-for-4 with a home run, a walk, and an RBI, and Ryan Clifford added two hits, including a double, with a walk. Jihwan Bae also collected two hits. Syracuse drew six walks but stranded 12 runners and managed just three runs on nine hits. Jack Wenninger struggled, allowing five runs, four earned, on nine hits and a walk while striking out two over four innings to take the loss. The game turned in the bottom of the sixth and seventh. In the sixth, Rochester scored twice on a groundout and a sacrifice fly to push the lead to 3-0. In the seventh, two more runs came across on a single that scored a runner from third, followed by another run-scoring single, making it 5-0. Syracuse answered with a run in the eighth on a bases-loaded walk to Cristian Pache and added two more in the ninth on Arroyo's home run, but the rally fell short. Zach Peek, Matt Turner, and Ofreidy Gómez combined for four scoreless innings in relief. Player AB R H RBI BB K Nick Morabito 5 0 1 0 0 1 Ji Hwan Bae 4 0 2 0 1 1 Christian Arroyo 4 1 2 1 1 1 Ryan Clifford 4 1 2 0 1 1 Andy Ibáñez 5 1 1 0 0 0 Yonny Hernández 4 0 1 0 1 0 Cristian Pache 3 0 0 1 1 0 Ben Rortvedt 4 0 0 0 0 3 Matt Rudick 2 0 0 0 1 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Zach Peek 2 3 0 0 0 2 0 Jack Wenninger 4 9 5 4 1 2 1 Matt Turner 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Ofreidy Gómez 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 Perozo's Homer And A Ninth-Inning Throwing Error Walk Off Binghamton The Binghamton Rumble Ponies edged the Portland Sea Dogs 4-3 on a walk-off in the ninth inning. Vincent Perozo provided the power, going 1-for-3 with a three-run home run that accounted for all of Binghamton's early offense. D'Andre Smith reached base three times, going 2-for-2 with a walk and a stolen base. Binghamton managed only four hits but drew four walks and stole three bases. Bryce Conley turned in a short start on 46 pitches, allowing three runs over four innings on five hits and three walks while striking out seven. In the bottom of the second, Perozo launched his three-run homer to give Binghamton a 3-0 lead. Portland answered with two runs in the third on a groundout and an RBI single, then tied the game in the fourth on another run-scoring single. The score held at 3-3 until the bottom of the ninth, when Chris Suero and Eli Serrano III pulled off a double steal, and Suero scored the winning run on a throwing error by the catcher. Douglas Orellana, Carlos Guzman, and Brian Metoyer combined for five scoreless innings in relief, with Metoyer earning the win. Player AB R H RBI BB K Jorge Polanco 2 0 0 0 0 2 Jaylen Palmer 2 0 0 0 0 1 Marco Vargas 4 0 0 0 0 2 Chris Suero 3 1 1 0 1 0 Jacob Reimer 4 0 0 0 0 1 Eli Serrano III 3 0 0 0 1 1 D'Andre Smith 2 1 2 0 1 0 Nick Lorusso 2 1 0 0 1 0 Vincent Perozo 3 1 1 3 0 2 TT Bowens 3 0 0 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Bryce Conley 4 5 3 3 3 7 0 Douglas Orellana 2 1 0 0 0 2 0 Carlos Guzman 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 Brian Metoyer 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 Voit And Bay Go Deep As Brooklyn Routs Wilmington The Brooklyn Cyclones rolled to an 8-1 win over the Wilmington Blue Rocks behind a balanced attack and sharp pitching. Leadoff man Mitch Voit went 2-for-4 with a home run, two runs, and an RBI, while John Bay reached three times, going 1-for-2 with a home run, a walk, three runs, an RBI, and a stolen base. Yonatan Henriquez was the offensive standout, going 3-for-4 with two doubles, two runs, and an RBI, and JT Benson drove in three on a 2-for-4 day. Irving Cota worked three scoreless innings, allowing one hit and a walk, and Tanner Witt followed with two scoreless innings, striking out six. The game broke open in the third and fourth. In the third, Brooklyn scored four times, getting RBI singles from Henriquez and Colin Houck before Benson capped the rally with a two-run single, making it 6-0. In the fourth, Voit and Bay hit back-to-back home runs to push the lead to 8-0. Wilmington's only run came in the sixth on an RBI single. Brooklyn's bullpen allowed just one run across the final six innings. Player AB R H RBI BB K Mitch Voit 4 2 2 1 0 0 John Bay 2 3 1 1 1 1 Ronald Hernandez 4 0 1 1 0 2 Daiverson Gutierrez 3 1 0 0 0 0 Yonatan Henriquez 4 2 3 1 0 1 Colin Houck 4 0 1 1 0 3 JT Benson 4 0 2 3 0 0 Trace Willhoite 4 0 0 0 0 1 Nick Roselli 4 0 1 0 0 2 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Irving Cota 3 1 0 0 1 0 0 Tanner Witt 2 0 0 0 1 6 0 Parker Carlson 1 2 1 1 1 0 0 Gregori Louis 1 2 0 0 1 1 0 Dakota Hawkins 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Hoss Brewer 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 St. Lucie Erupts For Four In The Tenth To Beat Bradenton The St. Lucie Mets pulled away late for a 6-3 win over the Bradenton Marauders in 10 innings. Randy Guzman led the way, going 3-for-5 with a home run and two RBI. AJ Salgado came through with a 1-for-1 night that included a triple and an RBI, and Antonio Jimenez added a hit and a run. St. Lucie drew five walks and stole two bases while leaving seven on base. Emilio Obispo set the tone with five scoreless innings, allowing two hits and no walks while striking out four. The game stayed tight before St. Lucie broke it open in the top of the 10th. With Francisco Toledo as the zombie runner, Salgado tripled him home, then scored on Peña's fielder's choice. Guzman followed with a run-scoring single, and Julio Zayas drove in another on a groundout, turning a 2-2 tie into a 6-2 lead. Bradenton scored once in the bottom of the 10th when their zombie runner, Dylan Palmer, came home on a bases-loaded walk, but St. Lucie closed it out. Joel Lara struck out four over two innings. Player AB R H RBI BB K Elian Peña 5 1 0 1 0 1 Antonio Jimenez 5 1 1 0 0 1 Randy Guzman 5 1 3 2 0 0 Yohairo Cuevas 3 0 0 0 2 1 Julio Zayas 4 0 0 1 1 1 Branny De Oleo 5 0 1 0 0 1 Francisco Toledo 4 1 0 0 0 0 Jeremy Rodriguez 2 1 0 0 2 2 Sam Robertson 3 0 1 0 0 1 AJ Salgado 1 1 1 1 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Emilio Obispo 5 2 0 0 0 4 0 Joel Lara 2 1 1 0 2 4 0 Miguel Mejias 2 2 1 1 0 2 0 Christian Rodriguez 1 1 1 0 2 2 0 Top-20 Prospect Performance Nolan McLean: DNP Carson Benge: DNP A.J. Ewing: DNP Jonah Tong: DNP Ryan Clifford: 2-for-4, 2B, BB Jacob Reimer: 0-for-4, K Jack Wenninger: 4 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 4 ER, BB, 2 K Elian Pena: 0-for-5, RBI, K, SB Mitch Voit: 2-for-4, HR, 2 R, RBI Nick Morabito: 1-for-5, K Jonathan Santucci: DNP Chris Suero: 1-for-3, R, BB, SB Zach Thornton: DNP Wandy Asigen: DNP Will Watson: DNP Eli Serrano III: 0-for-3, BB, K, SB Ryan Lambert: DNP Dylan Ross: DNP Antonio Jimenez: 1-for-5, R, K R.J. Gordon: DNPh View the full article

Jake Bauers’ 2026 season is off to a promising start. The Brewers’ first baseman has looked calm, cool, and collected up there and is on pace for some career power numbers while being one of the better overall hitters on Pat Murphy’s squad. Today, we’ll dive into what Bauers is doing differently, if anything, to make for a more productive run this time around. Jake Bauers Background For starters, Jake Bauers is a 30-year-old lefty; the first baseman has seven years of major league baseball experience, as he was originally a 7th-round pick in the 2013 MLB Draft, when the San Diego Padres selected him. Since that point, he’s been in and out of starting lineups and has had major league service time with the Rays, Guardians, Mariners, and Yankees before joining the Brewers in 2024. He has been with Cream City ever since. Bauers is a career .218 hitter, yet this year, he’s hitting .281 with a .355 on-base percentage. His career-best home run total is 12 in a season, yet the guy has eight this year, well before the halfway point of the season. What’s contributing to this breakout season at 30 years old? Before getting into advanced analytics, I have to think there’s some value in stability. This is someone on his fifth big league squad since 2018, and it’s the first time ever that Bauers has suited up for the same ball club three years in a row. Getting into the same routine, working with the same development staff, and other factors don’t hurt. Bauers Is Hitting The Ball Harder Than Ever Diving into his advanced metrics, this is somebody who is hitting the ball extremely hard. 30 might be the new 24 for Bauers, because his hard-hit percentage of 52.8%, or the percentage of times he pieces up a ball at 95 MPH off the bat or more, is one of the best rates in all of baseball. Bauers is in the 95th percentile. How does the veteran first baseman make such pure contact? It starts with a wicked fast bat speed, a metric where he falls in the 96th percentile. Other indicators like his barrel percentage (77th percentile) and squared-up percentage (80th percentile) fall right in line, showing the Crew’s corner infielder is catching the ball as clean as anyone. Bauers has been a part-time player for most of his career, and here are his three most recent qualified years in Baseball Savant: Bauers' Discipline Much like a lot of Brewers hitters, Bauers has the mindset down, too. His plate discipline has been remarkable early on, as he’s chasing just 19.7% of the time, nestling him into the 95th percentile as one of the stingiest batters in the bigs. Bauers does whiff around the league average, and his strikeout and walk rates sit in that same vein, but his ability to lay off of baseballs outside of the zone has bought him more trips on base and a much better slash line overall. A Slight Tweak Bauers has routinely been someone who skies the baseball, as he registered a career-high 22.6 degree launch angle back in 2024. He cut into that mark significantly, lowering the average launch angle off of contact to 16.6 degrees in 2025. This year, it’s at a career low of 8.8 degrees. Bauers is hitting line drives, and combined with an average exit velocity that’s well above league average, that’s a great trend for someone who is on pace to blow his career-high home run total out of the water. Overall, this is somebody who has been with the same team long enough that they can finally start to make some significant strides with their attack at the plate. The result? It could be a career year on a variety of fronts for a 30-year-old making some of his best contact yet. View the full article

Transactions: UTL Eddys Leonard placed on the Nashville Temporary Inactive List INF/OF Daniel Guilarte sent on rehab assignment from Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to ACL Brewers Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent RHP Yancarlos Vasquez to a minor league contract. Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent RHP Deivy Gonzalez to a minor league contract. Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent LHP Noel Cepeda to a minor league contract. The Temporarily Inactive List is "a designated status for players who are unavailable to render active service due to excused personal obligations, family emergencies, or brief absences" (per MiLB). A player must spend a minimum of 3 days on the list. We hope all is well with Leonard, but we often don't learn the circumstances around TIL absences, which is fair. Guilarte had last played on April 24th. The bit of info we have on the young pitchers can be found here. These teenagers are just a tad bit older than the norm signed back as part of the January 2026 international class. So, they had made strides since that time, caught the Brewers eye, and Milwaukee determined there was room in the organization to slot them in. FYI - the Phillies had recently traded some of their Dominican Summer League talent, deciding to pare back from two DSL teams to one. The Brewers clearly aren't anywhere near that type of decision. Speaking of the DSL, the season opens Monday morning. On Saturday, the Brewers formally finalized their two rosters, with all the new additions since January 2026 to the present assigned, and other players repeating the league, but migrating between the "Blue" and "Gold" rosters noted. You can view those transactions here. Nashville Pre-Game Media Notes Final: Nashville 8, Gwinnett (Braves) 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 Deliver a Backyard Beatdown to Take Series over Stripers - Zamora Collects Four RBI to Back Pannone's Quality Start The other Brewers' affiliates do fine jobs on their game summaries, but across MiLB, it's tough to top what the Sounds compose on a daily basis. Touching on and following up some of the paragraphs from this game's report: 21-year-old Cooper Pratt on base four times to lift his OBP to .364, why yes, please. Reaching base 33 times via BB/HBP vs. just 31 K's, why yes again, thank you. We all agree that MLB and AAA pitching staffs are two very different animals, but there are certain skills that translate easier than others, and Pratt's skillset should migrate nicely. It won't dazzle, but much will carry over to the highest level. If you think Pratt's plate discipline and avoidance of the dreaded strikeout is something, then remind yourself that Luis Lara has now received 40 free BB/HBP passes and has fanned only 31 times. The fellow 21-year-old is three months younger than Pratt, and it has to be a near-lock that no other organization has two 21-year-old's performing as well at the AAA level. It's getting easier to picture 32-year-old veteran LHP Thomas Pannone (50 MLB games, including 13 starts) being inserted into the Brewers rotation at some point this season to help navigate upcoming long stretches without days off. Of course, his out-of-options status complicates things, but should rotation thinning continue via injury / ineffectiveness, keep this in mind. I've been adamant that the Brewers will go the "ride-or-die to the end" route with William Contreras, just as they did with Willy Adames. It'd be impossible to replace via trade (one year's service time) what Contreras brings to the team. I'm not one for shooting down others' conversation topics, but whether it's national media or your buddy at the gym, please quickly dismiss their trade thoughts on Contreras this winter and set them straight. Three games and counting since we last saw Brock Wilken. Did you notice the four former members of the Brewers organization who saw action for Gwinnett Saturday? That's one way to make sure you review the box score. Poor Freddy Zamora, it's taken us this long to highlight you on the video review level: Kudos, Gwinnett social media team (sound up). Catch up with the latest Biloxi pre-game audio interview archives Biloxi Pre-Game Media Notes Final Game One, Biloxi 9, Columbus (Braves) 4, seven innings as scheduled Box Score and Game Log Final Game Two, Biloxi 5, Columbus 0, seven innings as scheduled Box Score and Game Log DeBerry's First Career Complete Game Shutout Leads Shuckers to Sweep - DeBerry records 11th complete game shutout in franchise history, 1st in career since 2021 in junior college Like the linked game summary, we'll visit things chronologically. Third Game One hit for Jesús Made, the 7th time this season with 3+ hits - With boppers Blake Burke and Damon Keith sidelined again for the day (both games), an impressive offensive output, to be sure. The thing about Saturday absences is that they often morph into Sunday sit-outs as well, in order to take advantage of Monday's rest day. Just as was the case in Nashville's game, everyone in the lineup reached base at least once. We mentioned age 21 as a key in the Sounds' write-up above. Let's remember that RHP Bishop Letson will also be just 21 years old for the entirety of this season. Making his first appearance in two weeks, if Letson's break was a fine-tuning reset, it was successful for the most part, no earned runs over five-and-a-third innings. Of his six baserunners allowed, four were via the walk. Even so, consider this a good step. Heck, Brandon Sproat is 25 years old. Is it possible to picture Letson even further along than Sproat in four years' time? Sure, though hopefully that timeline can be quickened a bit. My point is patience with Letson is needed. As for Game Two (nice Trey Supak reference in the summary, by the way), keep in mind this was Mike Boeve's 11th appearance at first base (9th start) this season. If his glove even tips this a tiny bit as it scoots into right field, we're talking a no-hitter: So, how's that 2024 3rd round bonus money spent on DeBerry look now (just $25,000 as a senior sign out of Dallas Baptist, allowing for bonus pool manipulation with the other picks). Completely disregard the current 4.84 ERA, the Brewers know what they have in DeBerry. Will it get to the point that the team petitions MLB to lower-case Jaron's "D" as in "deGrom"? Oh, that would be sweet. 22-year-old Dylan O'Rae singled and walked twice. You may win a pub bet by asking who has the higher OPS as of this morning, O'Rae or Jesús Made? Successful once and not successful once, O'Rae is 29-for-35 in SB attempts. Speaking of Mr. Made, we love it when the Voice of the Shuckers takes a team tweet and enhances it: Other highlights are available via the team's 'X' feed, including an Eric Brown, Jr. effort in center field that earns a 9.5 in Olympic scoring for the catch and a 10.0 for the subsequent tumbling routine. Wisconsin Pre-Game Media Notes (download link) Final: Peoria (Cardinals) 8, Wisconsin 3 Box Score and Game Log Via the Timber Rattlers, game details: Peoria’s Two-Out Rally in Sixth Sinks Wisconsin - Chiefs score five runs with two outs to take 8-1 lead The video package supplements you game summary - That Luis Pena play is worth another look - This was RH reliever Ayendy Bravo's second appearance for Wisconsin, and first in nine days. In only his age 19 season, Bravo opened the season with five appearances for Wilson, making his full-season ball debut, whereupon he was shifted back to Maryvale. Bravo would make three brief appearances there before he was brought to Wisconsin at the time when giving up football scores (high football scores, actually) was becoming the norm for the Timber Rattlers. Bravo mixed in a balk and pitch timer violation into his less-than-ideal line. Should the Dominican native be in Appleton at this time? Not really, but the roster juggling act is a dance. We can all agree that his surname is going to be awesome to yell out at Am-Fam Field someday should his career path land him there. Pretty much everything after the first four pitches of the game for Jason Woodward was pretty darn good. With Jacob Misiorowski on the hill for the Brewers Sunday, and his bobblehead set as Sunday's giveaway for the T-Rats, it's worth posting Voice of the Rattlers Chris Mehring's two-tweet combo here: 16-7 away record, 9-15 at home, really? Odd... Wilson Pre-Game Media Notes Final: Myrtle Beach (Cubs) 7, Wilson 5 Box Score and Game Log Pelicans Rally Late to Sink Warbirds - Three-run Eighth Dooms Wilson Good for Filippo Di Turi here, his lone hit of the game: Do you know what was also good for the 20-year-old Venezuela native? His January 2023 $1.3 million signing bonus. The only real advancement Di Turi has made over a poor 2025 Mudcats season is on the basepaths, 13-for-14 this season, an unsightly 6-for-14 last summer. One hopes Di Turi and his advisors invested wisely, and I guess it's invisible within clubhouse dynamics for the most part (it's a sensitive topic, so it's not surprising we ever hear it mentioned in various player or administration interviews), but it must be tough to ignore among teammates that certain players received massive windfalls, absolutely life-changing money. Seeking more positives? How about RBI singles for Luis Lameda and Brady Ebel? Lameda Ebel Tyler Rodriguez has reached via walk or HBP 15 times in 12 Warbird games this season. It's been a minute since we checked on Jose Anderson's strikeout percentage, it's "down" to 41.9%. Final: ACL Reds 6, ACL Brewers 4 Box Score and Game Log NOTE: Huge thanks to my fellow Link Reporter "Ro" for this Maryvale writeup. Two untimely errors resulted in 3 unearned runs allowed, as the Zona Crew (10-12) dropped their 9-inning, 11:00 AM home contest to the ACL Reds 6-4, despite outhitting them 6-3. OF Brailyn Antunez (1-for-3, walk) was back in the starting lineup after exiting Thursday’s game early and the game started well with rehabbing RHP Daniel Corniel's 1-2-3 first inning and DH Luke Adams’ homer (his 3rd in four games; 2-for-4, HR, walk, 2 RBIs, SB today) to lead off the bottom of the 1st inning. However, a two-out dropped fly ball to left field allowed two runs against Corniel (2 IP, 2 R (0 ER), 2 H, 0 BB, 4 Ks), then 4 walks, 1 HBP and 1 balk issued by 19-year old RHP Dariel Jaquez (2 1/3 IP, 2 R, 1 H, 2 Ks) helped push the deficit to 4-1. Down 6-1 late, the first three Brewers reached in a two-run eighth inning (2 walks, Adams’ RBI single), then C Freider Rojas (1-for-3, walk) delivered a two-out RBI single in the bottom of the 9th inning to cut the deficit to 6-4. Adams followed with a seven-pitch walk, but 18-year-old 3B Yu-Lin Liao (0-for-3 today; 2-for-25 in his short career to date) flew out to end it. The game had a funny way of finding Liao, who entered as a substitute for rehabbing SS Daniel Guilarte (K, BB in his first game since April 24), as he committed a run-scoring error in the 8th inning and also struck out for the team’s first out in the bottom half of that frame. RHPs Jhosep Ospino (1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 K) and Argenis Aparicio (1 2/3 IP, 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 0 Ks) were solid in relief to give the comeback a chance, while RHP Josue Toledo struggled a bit with control (1 1/3 IP, 2 R (1 ER), 0 H, 3 BB, 2 Ks). 2B CJ Hughes had a productive game (1-for-3, walk, 2 SBs) and Rojas gunned down 2 of 3 attempted basestealers. Our young men in Arizona have an off day tomorrow but return to action at the ACL Dodgers (8-14) on Monday at 8:00 PM CST. Afternoon action everywhere except in Myrtle Beach, home of their outstanding center field camera and gamebug with radar readings. Head over to your MLB.TV app at 5:35 Central to catch the early evening action. Happy Sunday Funday, everyone! 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

If all else fails, one knows the Boston Red Sox aren't afraid of dramatic changes under Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow. This year's installment saw several familiar faces lose their jobs, including longtime (sans 2020) manager and 2018 World Series champion Alex Cora. Similar to when a veteran player is designated for assignment, the Red Sox decided to call up a prospect to replace Cora. Thus, Chad Tracy gets the nod for the first time as a big-league manager. Now, with one a few more games under his belt this year than Cora got, the Red Sox are 13-16. Better, sure. But that's hardly marked improvement from the 10-17 they were with the former skipper. There are signs this team, at least offensively, is coming around. But how much of that is the coaching change versus simply positive regression? For example, outfielder Jarren Duran -- whatever your opinion of the player may be -- is a career-110 wRC+ bat. Since Tracy took over as acting manager on April 26, Duran has a 105 wRC+; it's 130 since May 1. Overall, he's still having a subpar season offensively, but he's clearly on the right track. He's someone who succeeded with Cora as manager, and Pete Fatse as hitting coach. He's clearly a good baseball player and, at worst, a solid bat at the top of the order. His power surge isn't unique to his career, as he's had several weeks-long stretches flashing power. So, what gives? Why are the Red Sox, despite playing slightly better, continuing to free fall in the American League playoff race? Red Sox Lesson #1: Firing Coaches Doesn't Change the Roster Roster construction is something of a buzzword at this point. It's gotten so overused, it's gone on "mute watch" several times this season. However, the facts are the facts. This team, while talented, is simply not good enough to win baseball games. It's incredible, really. A team that last year overcame the midseason trade of a longtime franchise cornerstone, then significantly upgraded its pitching staff, isn't good enough to win a year after making the postseason. But it's true. A lion's share of that falls on the man who builds the roster, Breslow. The third-year CBO built a team designed to complement a massive Year 2 from Roman Anthony and a return-to-2024-form for Duran. Neither happened, and the team is suffering because of it. Complacency regarding the outfield in general has held this team back. The Red Sox still have five outfielders for three spots, causing inconsistent playing time for Masataka Yoshida. That wouldn't be a problem if not for Yoshida being a legitimate on-base threat this season, posting a .347 OBP -- tied with Ceddanne Rafaela, higher than Duran -- and 101 wRC+ overall despite just one home run. They also opted to hang on to infielder Marcelo Mayer despite reports that the Arizona Diamondbacks liked him in a possible trade for Ketel Marte. That may eventually prove fruitful, and Mayer is one of the best defenders at his position, but Marte is out pacing him by 1.5 fWAR and 225 OPS points. Another component of those reports was Arizona's desire for one of Payton Tolle or Connelly Early. Both arms have been impressive this season for the Red Sox, but balking at that trade later facilitated the trade that sent Kyle Harrison -- plus two players -- to Milwaukee for infielders Caleb Durbin (39 wRC+), Andruw Monasterio (77 wRC+), and Anthony Seigler (Triple-A). Meanwhile, Harrison is an early-season candidate for the National League Cy Young. So, to echo what Breslow told Cora before firing him, he made the manager's job pretty hard. Red Sox Lesson #2: Bullpen Management Remains an Issue Let's start with the elephant in the room: right-hander Greg Weissert continues to come up small inheriting runners. So far this season, he's inherited 21 runners; twelve scored. Overall, he's got a 4.43 earned run average across 24 appearances. Good? No. Though, probably better than it feels. The recent series against the Braves was the latest in an ever-growing list of situations Weissert didn't come through. On Tuesday, he allowed a two-out RBI single to Ronald Acuña Jr., plating an inherited runner in a game the Red Sox lost by one. Come Thursday, Acuña got him again with inherited runners, blasting a dagger of a grand slam in the sixth inning. Bases loaded, nobody out is an almost impossible situation. At that point, you're conceding at least a run. Weissert walked pinch-hitter Mike Yastrzemski after getting ahead 0-2, then the grand slam followed. Game over. The fact the Red Sox continue using Weissert in those spots is growing concerning. It's cliche, but the definition of insanity is trying the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. The Red Sox, by that definition, are insane. They had no problem pulling the plug on southpaw Tyler Samaniego -- until he got re-called with right-hander Garrett Whitlock hitting the shelf -- after a few rough outings in high leverage. Why be so stubborn with Weissert? Moreover, Tracy seems to have adopted the old adage of his predecessor when it comes to not chasing wins. Several times in his brief MLB career, the Red Sox have a late-and-close situation and opt for low leverage arms instead of Whitlock (pre-injury), Justin Slaten, or even left-handed bullpen ace Aroldis Chapman. That also reared its ugly head in the Game 1 loss to Atlanta, as right-hander Tyron Guerrero gave up a two-run homer to Michael Harris II after the Red Sox clawed their way back into the game. Again, the offense has shown signs of waking up, but why potentially make their job harder? Where Do the Red Sox Go From Here? Despite the 23-33 record, the Red Sox still sit just five games back of the wild card through 51 games. Not only that, but they're also chasing six teams just to get into the final wild card spot held by the division-rival Toronto Blue Jays. It's too early to start bailing on 2026, especially when you took such a leap of faith by firing so many coaches. That said, the odds remain stacked against a postseason berth despite such promise coming into the year. Several veterans will likely be sought after this summer. Chapman, Duran, Willson Contreras, Whitlock, even someone like Isiah Kiner-Falefa all likely will have suitors. Not to mention right-hander Sonny Gray, whose an contract will all but certainly at season's end. Right now, it's a matter of hoping and wishing for the 2026 Boston Red Sox and, to speculatively a greater extent, Breslow. It's a consistently frustrating watch, but this is the roster they have. All they can do is hope for the best and see where they are two months from now. View the full article

Royce Lewis was sent down to Triple-A St. Paul to reset his swing after having a .163 batting average in 31 games to start the year. In the past, when Lewis has struggled, he hasn't always shown a willingness to be coached and learn from his faults. Will things be different this time? View the full article

We are less than two months away from the 2026 MLB Draft. Fish On First has already published profiles for many of the prospects worth considering for the Miami Marlins in the first round, as well as an updated draft big board. It's time to dive even deeper with a three-round mock draft. The Marlins will make four selections within the first three rounds—14th, 52nd, 71st, and 87th. Their overall bonus pool is the largest in franchise history at $11,960,100. Here is the 2026 Fish on First MLB Mock Draft 1.0. First Round (14th overall)—AJ Gracia, OF, Virginia Slot value: $5,444,900 With the 14th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select outfielder AJ Gracia. The Marlins have one of the most complete hitters in this draft class with the selection of the Virginia outfielder. AJ Gracia is the 6’3”, 195-pound outfielder out of the University of Virginia. On MLB Pipeline, Gracia is the eleventh-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft class. On Baseball America, Gracia is the fifteenth-ranked prospect in this draft class. At the plate, Gracia is an excellent bat-to-ball hitter who rarely chases pitches out of the zone and can drive the ball to all fields. He has consistently hit at a high level throughout his collegiate career. However, Gracia is pretty limited defensively as he projects as a left fielder at the next level. During the 2026 season, Gracia has played and started in 53 games. Gracia is slashing .3338/.478/.616 with 67 hits, thirteen doubles, fourteen home runs, 42 RBIs, 45 walks, and a 1.095 OPS. Second Round (52nd overall)—Joseph Contreras, RHP, Blessed Trinity HS (GA) Slot value: $1,892,500 With the 52nd pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select right-handed Joseph Contreras. The Marlins use their second round pick to draft their first high school prospect with the selection of Contreras. Contreras is the son of former MLB veteran right-handed pitcher José Contreras. He also pitched for Team Brazil in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. He even jammed Aaron Judge with a mid-90s fastball to induce a broken-bat double play. On the mound, Contreras has a four-pitch mix including his fastball, slider, forkball, and changeup. His fastball sits in the mid-90s but was clocked at 99 mph this past spring. He has a good low-80s slider, but his best secondary pitch is his forkball. Just like his dad, Contreras generates a lot of ground balls and whiffs with his forkball. On MLB Pipeline, Contreras is the 54th-ranked draft prospect. On Baseball America, Contreras is the 55th-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft Class. Contreras is signed to play college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores. Competitive Balance Round B (71st overall)— Dee Kennedy, SS, Kansas State Slot value: $1,192,600 With the 71st pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select shortstop Dee Kennedy. With their extra pick, the Marlins grab one of the biggest risers on draft boards since the beginning of the season. Kansas State shortstop Dee Kennedy had a major breakout season for the Wildcats this season. He has been one of the most improved players in the country, especially after he had LASIK surgery. In his junior season, Kennedy played and started in 57 games. He’s slashing .357/.461/.733 with 79 hits, seventeen doubles, three triples, 20 home runs, 69 RBIs, 22 stolen bases, and a 1.194 OPS. Kennedy is a very well-rounded prospect who can hit and also plays strong defense after a premier position. While he doesn’t have one tool that really stands out, he’s a very solid prospect who could make an immediate impact in Miami’s farm system. Third Round (87th overall)—Daniel Cuvet, 3B, Miami Slot value: $929,700 With the 87th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select third baseman Daniel Cuvet. The Marlins grab a hometown kid and one of the most productive hitters in college baseball since he arrived on campus. Daniel Cuvet is the best hitter for the Miami Hurricanes and is a former First-Team All-American. He’s a very sound hitter who has lots of power to all fields but doesn’t run well and likely projects at first base at the next level. During the 2026 season, Cuvet has only played and started in 41 games due to an injury. Cuvet is slashing .305/.437/.649 with 46 hits, fourteen doubles, twelve home runs, 45 RBIs, 33 walks, and a 1.086 OPS. On Baseball America, Cuvet is the 88th-ranked draft prospect. On MLB Pipeline, Cuvet is the 105th-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft Class. Cuvet’s bat is legit and could come up through the minor leagues quickly if he can continue to consistently hit like he has with the Hurricanes. View the full article

We are less than two months away from the 2026 MLB Draft. Fish On First has already published profiles for many of the prospects worth considering for the Miami Marlins in the first round, as well as an updated draft big board. It's time to dive even deeper with a three-round mock draft. The Marlins will make four selections within the first three rounds—14th, 52nd, 71st, and 87th. Their overall bonus pool is the largest in franchise history at $11,960,100. Here is the 2026 Fish on First MLB Mock Draft 1.0. First Round (14th overall)—AJ Gracia, OF, Virginia Slot value: $5,444,900 With the 14th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select outfielder AJ Gracia. The Marlins have one of the most complete hitters in this draft class with the selection of the Virginia outfielder. AJ Gracia is the 6’3”, 195-pound outfielder out of the University of Virginia. On MLB Pipeline, Gracia is the eleventh-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft class. On Baseball America, Gracia is the fifteenth-ranked prospect in this draft class. At the plate, Gracia is an excellent bat-to-ball hitter who rarely chases pitches out of the zone and can drive the ball to all fields. He has consistently hit at a high level throughout his collegiate career. However, Gracia is pretty limited defensively as he projects as a left fielder at the next level. During the 2026 season, Gracia has played and started in 53 games. Gracia is slashing .3338/.478/.616 with 67 hits, thirteen doubles, fourteen home runs, 42 RBIs, 45 walks, and a 1.095 OPS. Second Round (52nd overall)—Joseph Contreras, RHP, Blessed Trinity HS (GA) Slot value: $1,892,500 With the 52nd pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select right-handed Joseph Contreras. The Marlins use their second round pick to draft their first high school prospect with the selection of Contreras. Contreras is the son of former MLB veteran right-handed pitcher José Contreras. He also pitched for Team Brazil in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. He even jammed Aaron Judge with a mid-90s fastball to induce a broken-bat double play. On the mound, Contreras has a four-pitch mix including his fastball, slider, forkball, and changeup. His fastball sits in the mid-90s but was clocked at 99 mph this past spring. He has a good low-80s slider, but his best secondary pitch is his forkball. Just like his dad, Contreras generates a lot of ground balls and whiffs with his forkball. On MLB Pipeline, Contreras is the 54th-ranked draft prospect. On Baseball America, Contreras is the 55th-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft Class. Contreras is signed to play college baseball for the Vanderbilt Commodores. Competitive Balance Round B (71st overall)— Dee Kennedy, SS, Kansas State Slot value: $1,192,600 With the 71st pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select shortstop Dee Kennedy. With their extra pick, the Marlins grab one of the biggest risers on draft boards since the beginning of the season. Kansas State shortstop Dee Kennedy had a major breakout season for the Wildcats this season. He has been one of the most improved players in the country, especially after he had LASIK surgery. In his junior season, Kennedy played and started in 57 games. He’s slashing .357/.461/.733 with 79 hits, seventeen doubles, three triples, 20 home runs, 69 RBIs, 22 stolen bases, and a 1.194 OPS. Kennedy is a very well-rounded prospect who can hit and also plays strong defense after a premier position. While he doesn’t have one tool that really stands out, he’s a very solid prospect who could make an immediate impact in Miami’s farm system. Third Round (87th overall)—Daniel Cuvet, 3B, Miami Slot value: $929,700 With the 87th pick of the 2026 MLB Draft, the Miami Marlins select third baseman Daniel Cuvet. The Marlins grab a hometown kid and one of the most productive hitters in college baseball since he arrived on campus. Daniel Cuvet is the best hitter for the Miami Hurricanes and is a former First-Team All-American. He’s a very sound hitter who has lots of power to all fields but doesn’t run well and likely projects at first base at the next level. During the 2026 season, Cuvet has only played and started in 41 games due to an injury. Cuvet is slashing .305/.437/.649 with 46 hits, fourteen doubles, twelve home runs, 45 RBIs, 33 walks, and a 1.086 OPS. On Baseball America, Cuvet is the 88th-ranked draft prospect. On MLB Pipeline, Cuvet is the 105th-ranked prospect in the 2026 MLB Draft Class. Cuvet’s bat is legit and could come up through the minor leagues quickly if he can continue to consistently hit like he has with the Hurricanes. View the full article

The Twins have spent most of the season floating in baseball purgatory. They haven’t looked like a legitimate contender, but they also haven’t played poorly enough to fade from the American League playoff race completely. Nearly every time the season feels ready to spiral, Minnesota responds with a strong series win or a timely stretch of baseball that keeps the club hovering near the Wild Card picture. Part of the reason the Twins have stayed alive is that the American League has lacked separation. Outside of a handful of true contenders, the rest of the league has been filled with inconsistent clubs carrying obvious flaws. That reality has allowed Minnesota to remain within striking distance despite its own shortcomings. For this team, the formula moving forward is straightforward. Keep winning series. Stay near the .500 mark. Let the standings sort themselves out. Whether that ultimately leads to meaningful September baseball remains to be seen, but the rest of the season should provide plenty of intrigue. Here’s one bold prediction for every month left in the Twins’ season. June: The Twins Stay Near .500 and Remain in the Wild Card Hunt The Twins continue hovering around the .500 mark through the end of June, keeping themselves firmly planted in the middle of the Wild Card conversation. That might not sound particularly impressive on the surface, but for a club that entered the year with limited expectations, remaining relevant into the summer would still represent an accomplishment. Injuries, offensive inconsistency, and a lack of overall roster depth have created plenty of opportunities for the season to collapse. Instead, Minnesota keeps finding ways to stabilize itself. The rotation continues to carry much of the workload. Joe Ryan pitches like a frontline starter, Bailey Ober provides valuable innings, and the bullpen does just enough to protect late leads. Offensively, the lineup remains streaky, but Byron Buxton’s production helps prevent the club from falling into extended losing streaks. The bigger factor may be the American League's weakness. There are very few dominant teams battling for the final playoff spots, which keeps the Twins firmly in the mix despite their flaws. June becomes less about separating from the pack and more about surviving long enough to stay relevant heading into July. If Minnesota reaches the All-Star break within a few games of a playoff spot, the season suddenly feels much more interesting than many expected back in March. July: The Twins Begin Preparing for Another Deadline Selloff Even while remaining close to contention, the Twins quietly begin laying the groundwork for another trade deadline selloff. Joe Ryan and Ryan Jeffers emerge as two of the organization’s most discussed names leading up to the deadline. Ryan would instantly become one of the top starting pitchers available on the market because of his production, affordability, and years of team control. Jeffers also draws plenty of attention from contenders seeking help behind the plate. Meanwhile, Buxton’s name dominates rumor cycles throughout the month. Rival executives continue checking whether Minnesota would consider moving the face of the franchise. Ultimately, though, the Twins hold onto Buxton while deciding to capitalize on the value of Ryan and Jeffers. The return package mirrors the organization’s recent strategy. Instead of targeting lower-level lottery ticket prospects, Minnesota prioritizes players who are close to major-league ready. The front office wants to remain competitive in the near future rather than commit to a lengthy rebuild. Trading Ryan would be difficult for both the clubhouse and the fan base. He has developed into the reliable ace the Twins have desperately needed for years. Still, the organization understands that controllable starting pitching rarely carries more value than it does at the trade deadline. The Twins may not fully wave the white flag in July, but they begin making decisions with the future clearly in mind. August: Walker Jenkins Finally Arrives in Minnesota Walker Jenkins finally makes his long-anticipated major league debut before the end of August. His shoulder injury significantly delays the timeline. Instead of aggressively pushing him through the system, the Twins choose patience. Jenkins likely doesn’t return to Triple-A St. Paul until late June or early July, limiting the amount of time he has to force the issue before the second half. Once he gets rolling, though, the talent becomes impossible to ignore. By late August, Minnesota rewards its top prospect with a promotion that instantly changes the energy around the organization. Jenkins arrives with massive expectations because of his advanced offensive approach, mature plate discipline, and ability to impact the baseball to all fields. The youth movement may not stop there. Kaelen Culpepper, Emmanuel Rodriguez, and Gabriel Gonzalez could all factor into the second-half picture as the organization begins transitioning toward its next core. Suddenly, the Twins become one of the more fascinating teams in baseball despite lingering around the edges of contention. That wave of young talent provides excitement for both the clubhouse and the fan base. Even if the playoff odds remain slim, the final weeks of August become must-watch baseball because of the organization’s future arriving in real time. September: The Twins Fade from the Race, but Buxton Earns MVP Recognition The Twins ultimately run out of steam during September and fall out of the playoff race. The combination of deadline trades, roster inconsistency, and limited depth eventually catches up to them. Minnesota remains competitive for much of the season, but the lack of established impact talent becomes too difficult to overcome over a full six-month grind. Still, the season closes with one of the most rewarding individual performances of Buxton’s career. For the first time, Buxton finally finishes inside the top 10 of American League MVP voting. The talent has always been worthy of that level of recognition. Health has prevented him from putting together a complete season before last year. He finished with the eleventh-highest vote total in last year’s voting cycle. This year will finally be different. Buxton is one of the only bright spots on the Twins, and he almost single-handedly keeps the club competitive. The numbers could be spectacular. Forty home runs, elite defense in center field, baserunning impact, and highlight reel moments every week would force voters to recognize his value. Even on a team that misses the postseason, Buxton establishes himself as one of the American League’s most dynamic players. The Twins are walking a difficult line between competing in the present and preparing for the future. That balancing act should define the remainder of the season. There will likely be moments where the club looks capable of making a legitimate Wild Card push. There will also be stretches where another organizational reset feels inevitable. In many ways, that uncertainty perfectly reflects where the franchise currently stands. Still, the rest of the season could provide something equally important as postseason baseball: clarity. If Jenkins arrives as expected, and if the next wave of prospects begins establishing itself at the major-league level, the Twins could leave 2026 with a much stronger vision for what comes next. Even if October baseball ultimately slips away, the final four months may still shape the future of the organization for years to come. What are other bold predictions for the coming months? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View the full article

David Shields struck out five over five innings for Quad Cities, while Northwest Arkansas's Omar Hernandez homered and drove in four, and Carson Roccaforte doubled in a run. Columbia's Yandel Ricardo collected two hits, two RBIs, and two steals, Josh Hammond singled in a run, and Ramon Ramirez doubled for High-A. Hunter Owen punched out six in relief at Double-A, and Darwin Rodriguez fanned three across four-plus frames for Single-A in losing efforts across the system. Royals Transactions Kansas City Royals placed RHP Nick Mears on the 15-day injured list retroactive to May 28, 2026. Right shoulder impingement. Kansas City Royals signed RHP Dan Altavilla. Kansas City Royals recalled RHP Eric Cerantola from Omaha Storm Chasers. Storm Chasers Silenced In 13-1 Loss To Memphis Omaha managed just five hits and one run against Memphis, striking out 15 times as a team and leaving 10 runners on base. Abraham Toro and Kevin Newman each collected two hits, and Toro drove in the lone run. The damage began early. In the second inning, the Redbirds scored three runs, capped by a three-run home run that put Omaha in a hole. Memphis added single runs in the third and fourth before breaking the game open in the sixth, when a double, two singles, and another single produced four runs to make it 10-1. Toro's run-scoring force out in the fifth, which plated Connor Kaiser, accounted for the only Storm Chasers tally. On the mound, Jose Cuas opened with 1 2/3 scoreless innings, allowing no hits while walking one and striking out one. The relief work behind him struggled, as Ben Sears surrendered six hits and four runs while recording just one out, and Andrew Pérez allowed five hits and three runs over 1 2/3 innings. Position players Abraham Toro and Anthony Gose were pressed into mound duty late, with Toro allowing three runs in his inning of work and Gose tossing a scoreless ninth. Memphis added three more in the ninth to close out the rout. Player AB R H RBI BB K John Rave 3 0 0 0 2 3 Abraham Toro 5 0 2 1 0 2 Kameron Misner 4 0 1 0 0 3 Drew Waters 4 0 0 0 0 2 Brett Squires 0 0 0 0 0 0 Dustin Dickerson 4 0 0 0 0 3 Gavin Cross 3 0 0 0 0 1 Luke Maile 3 0 0 0 1 1 Connor Kaiser 3 1 0 0 1 0 Kevin Newman 4 0 2 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Jose Cuas 1 2/3 0 0 0 1 1 0 Ben Sears 1/3 6 4 4 0 0 0 Andrew Pérez 1 2/3 5 3 3 1 0 0 Dan Altavilla 1 1/3 1 0 0 1 1 0 Abraham Toro 1 4 3 3 0 0 0 Chase Jessee 2 3 3 3 3 3 1 Anthony Gose 1 0 0 0 1 0 0 Naturals Undone By Eighth-Inning Collapse In Tulsa Northwest Arkansas led 4-3 entering the eighth inning before Tulsa erupted for seven runs to pull away in an 11-7 loss. Hernandez powered the offense with a three-run home run and four RBIs, Carson Roccaforte and Alberto Rodriguez each doubled, and Sam Kulasingam reached three times with two stolen bases and scored twice. The Naturals had built their lead steadily, scoring in the second on a run-scoring double play, the fourth on Hernandez's sacrifice fly, the fifth on Roccaforte's RBI double, and the seventh on Rodriguez's run-scoring double. Hernandez's three-run shot in the eighth pushed the lead to 7-4, but the bullpen could not hold it. Tommy Molsky retired just two batters while allowing four hits, four runs, and a home run, taking the loss and blowing the save as the Drillers' seven-run eighth, which ended on a grand slam, flipped the game. Owen turned in the longest outing, working 4 2/3 innings and allowing five hits and four runs while walking four and striking out six. Brandon Johnson followed with 2 2/3 innings, surrendering two hits and three runs with a walk and a strikeout. The Naturals went down in order in the ninth to seal the defeat. Player AB R H RBI BB K Carson Roccaforte 5 0 1 1 0 1 Colton Becker 5 0 0 0 0 4 Sam Kulasingam 3 2 1 0 1 0 Spencer Nivens 2 1 0 0 2 1 Jack Pineda 2 1 1 0 1 0 Omar Hernandez 3 1 1 4 0 1 Connor Scott 2 1 0 0 1 1 Canyon Brown 4 1 1 0 0 2 Alberto Rodriguez 4 0 1 1 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Hunter Owen 4 2/3 5 4 4 4 6 0 Brandon Johnson 2 2/3 2 3 3 2 1 0 Tommy Molsky 2/3 4 4 4 2 1 1 Shields Solid But River Bandits Fall Short In Cedar Rapids Quad Cities jumped ahead early but could not hold the lead in a 3-2 loss to Cedar Rapids. The River Bandits scored both of their runs in the first inning, when Blake Mitchell grounded out to bring home Nolan Sailors, and Ramirez doubled in Asbel Gonzalez. The offense went quiet from there, managing just three hits on the day. Gonzalez singled, stole a base, and scored, while Ramirez's double was the lone extra-base hit. Shields turned in a strong start, working five innings and allowing six hits and three runs, only two earned, while walking three and striking out five. He took the loss as the Kernels chipped away, scoring twice in the third on a double and a triple and adding the go-ahead run in the fourth on a sacrifice fly. Josh Hansell opened the game with a scoreless inning, and Nick Conte finished with two scoreless innings of relief, allowing one hit and striking out two. The River Bandits left only one runner on base over the final innings and stranded the tying run as Cedar Rapids held on. Player AB R H RBI BB K Nolan Sailors 3 1 0 0 1 1 Asbel Gonzalez 4 1 1 0 0 1 Blake Mitchell 4 0 0 1 0 3 Ramon Ramirez 3 0 1 1 0 2 Derlin Figueroa 2 0 0 0 1 0 Jose Cerice 3 0 0 0 0 0 Tyriq Kemp 3 0 0 0 0 2 Erick Torres 3 0 1 0 0 1 Angel Acosta 2 0 0 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Josh Hansell 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 David Shields 5 6 3 2 3 5 0 Nick Conte 2 1 0 0 0 2 0 Fireflies Fast Start Fades In 8-4 Loss To Charleston Columbia scored four runs in the first inning but was shut out the rest of the way in an 8-4 loss to Charleston. The Fireflies erupted early, as Hammond singled in Henry Ramos, Ricardo followed with a two-run single, and Jhosmmel Zue doubled home another run to build a 4-2 lead. Ricardo led the offense with two hits, two RBIs, and two stolen bases. Hammond added a hit and a run driven in, and Stone Russell and Zue each doubled. The lead did not last. Charleston pulled within one in the third, then took control with a four-run seventh inning that turned a 4-3 deficit into a 7-4 advantage, the rally fueled by a triple and a two-run single. Jhon Reyes struggled in relief, recording four outs while allowing three hits, four runs, and three walks to take the loss and blow the save. Rodriguez gave the most length, working 4 2/3 innings and allowing six hits and three runs while walking three and striking out three. Yeri Perez allowed a run over 1 2/3 innings, and Dash Albus struck out two over 1 1/3 scoreless innings. The RiverDogs added an insurance run in the ninth as Columbia stranded the leadoff hitter and could not answer. Player AB R H RBI BB K Henry Ramos 3 1 1 0 0 2 Sean Gamble 4 0 1 0 0 1 Josh Hammond 4 1 1 1 0 1 Stone Russell 4 1 1 0 0 0 Yandel Ricardo 4 1 2 2 0 0 Jhosmmel Zue 4 0 1 1 0 2 JC Vanek 3 0 0 0 0 2 Roni Cabrera 3 0 0 0 0 3 Connor Rasmussen 3 0 0 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Jhon Reyes 1 1/3 3 4 4 3 0 0 Darwin Rodriguez 4 2/3 6 3 3 3 3 0 Yeri Perez 1 2/3 1 1 1 2 1 0 Dash Albus 1 1/3 0 0 0 1 2 0 Top-20 Prospect Performance Kendry Chourio: DNP David Shields: five innings, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K Sean Gamble: 1-for-4, 1 K Blake Mitchell: 0-for-4, RBI, 3 K Josh Hammond: 1-for-4, RBI, 1 K Ramon Ramirez: 1-for-3, 2B, RBI, 2 K Drew Beam: DNP Asbel Gonzalez: 1-for-4, SB, 1 K Ben Kudrna: DNP Carson Roccaforte: 1-for-5, 2B, RBI, 1 K Yandel Ricardo: 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 SB Felix Arronde: DNP Blake Wolters: DNP Michael Lombardi: DNP Luinder Avila: DNP Steven Zobac: DNP Frank Mozzicato: DNP Daniel Vazquez: DNP Warren Colcano: DNP Shane Panzini: DNP View the full article

Editor's Note: This article was written prior to yesterday's game. Hoffman took the loss on Saturday, giving up five runs in the bottom of the ninth. He threw his slider 54% of the time (13 out of 24 pitches), Jeff Hoffman’s removal from the closer role in late April could have easily become one of the defining stories of the Blue Jays season. Instead, Louis Varland ran with the opportunity, emerging as one of the best relievers in baseball and solidifying the late-game picture for the Blue Jays. Lost in Varland’s dominance has been Hoffman's own reinvention. Since being removed from the role, Hoffman has quietly posted a 2.45 ERA, while striking out 20 batters and walking just two. The improved results may not be a coincidence either. Over the past few weeks, Hoffman has made a significant change to how he attacks opposing hitters. Hoffman has been one of the more perplexing pitchers in Toronto’s bullpen since arriving in Toronto. At times, he’s looked virtually unhittable, overpowering hitters with elite swing-and-miss stuff. Then on occasion, he’s been surprisingly vulnerable, particularly when it comes to the home run ball. In 2025, Hoffman allowed 15 home runs, the most of any reliever in the American League, a surprising outcome for a pitcher with such impressive underlying characteristics. Historically, Hoffman has relied on a three-pitch mix: a fastball that averages 97 mph with 17.4 inches of vertical break, a slider that generated a 47.3% whiff rate in 2025, and a splitter that he would use as a weapon predominantly against left-handed hitters. In 2025, as well as early on in 2026, he led with his four-seam fastball, throwing it 37.4% of the time last season, and 38.4% through his first 21 games this season. The problem with that is that Hoffman’s fastball simply hasn’t been very effective. Here's how his three most used pitch types performed in 2025: Four-seam fastball: .915 OPS, 10 HR Slider: .498 OPS, 3 HR Splitter: .642 OPS, 2 HR Those trends have continued so far in 2026: Four-seam fastball: .960 OPS, 3 HR Slider: .725, 0 HR Splitter: .641, 0 HR For Hoffman, the fastball has been the pitch that has given him the most trouble. The obvious solution would seem incredibly simple: just throw it less often. Over his past six appearances, Hoffman has been doing exactly that. Over his last six games, Hoffman has leaned heavily on his slider as his primary pitch, throwing it 64.9% of the time, compared to a 35.2% on the regular season. The fastball is down to just 16% usage, compared to 34.6% overall rate in 2026. The change is an understandable one. The slider has consistently been Hoffman’s most effective pitch, and the disparity in results between it and the fastball makes the adjustment a logical one. Since making the change, he’s thrown six innings, allowed four hits, faced 20 batters, struck out 10 of them, and walked none. On the surface, the adjustment makes perfect sense. After all, Hoffman's slider has consistently produced better results than his fastball. What's more interesting is figuring out why his fastball has struggled so much in the first place. The surprising part is that Hoffman isn’t getting hit because he lacks stuff. In fact, it's quite the opposite. Looking at the Stuff+ metric on FanGraphs, Hoffman’s four-seam fastball ranks eighth in baseball among pitchers with at least 20 innings pitched: It's unusual for a pitch that grades this well to produce results so poor. In other words, the problem isn’t in the quality of the pitch itself. Usually, when that happens, location is the first issue that comes to mind, but for Hoffman, that hasn’t necessarily been the case either. Location+ has Hoffman's fastball third highest on the team. It is also the second-highest of those eight pitchers named on the previous list. So, if that's not the case, it's time to dive a little deeper, and the problem seems to stem from when he throws his fastball. Here's where he's thrown the pitch when he’s ahead in the count: When he’s behind in the count: And when the count is even: The data suggests Hoffman may be becoming too predictable. When hitters find themselves in even counts, they’re frequently getting a fastball in the portion of the zone where four-seamers are the most vulnerable. At that point, the quality of the pitch matters less than the hitter's ability to anticipate it. Since he’s made the change, Hoffman has posted a 31% zone rate and a 38.5% chase rate on the slider. The challenge with any slider-heavy approach is maintaining enough strike-throwing ability to keep hitters honest. If opposing hitters become too comfortable taking the pitch, Hoffman could find himself back in situations where hitters can sit on his fastball, and as we’ve seen, that doesn’t historically go well. His adjustment also reflects a broader league-wide trend. League-wide, fastball usage has dropped even though fastballs are being thrown harder than ever before. For the Blue Jays, this is another example of them trying to get the most out of what they have in a pitcher. Varland remains the headline act in Toronto’s bullpen, but Hoffman’s recent adjustment may be just as important. By shifting away from a fastball that has consistently been his most vulnerable pitch and leaning into a slider that has long been his most dominant weapon, Hoffman appears to be evolving into a more complete reliever. For a Blue Jays team that has struggled offensively for most of the season, turning late leads into wins is critical, and Hoffman’s new approach could play a major role in making that happen. View the full article

During the 1990s and into the early-2000s, one of the most feared home run hitters in baseball was a man named McGwire. On this day 25 years ago, however, a guy named McGuire also showed he could leave the yard. In a pinch-hitting role for the Florida Marlins, Ryan McGuire had the biggest swing of the game. His pinch-hit grand slam capped a five-run seventh and lifted the Marlins to a 5-3 win over the New York Mets. With the Mets leading 3-0 at the seventh-inning stretch on May 31, 2001, Florida had managed just four hits off New York starter Glendon Rusch. Three pitches into the inning, the Marlins’ fortunes began to change as Mike Lowell went deep to left for a solo home run to cut the lead to 3-1. After walking Charles Johnson and giving up a single to Kevin Millar to put the tying run on base, Rusch’s evening had come to an end. The Mets turned to Turk Wendell, who proceeded to walk Álex González on four pitches. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Florida turned to the left-handed hitting McGuire. To that point, McGuire had just four hits for the year. Wendell was able to get ahead in the count 1-2, but his fastball got all of the plate and McGuire launched it to right field for a grand slam. McGuire’s blast turned what had been a two-run deficit into a 5-3 lead. After Armando Almanza and Braden Looper combined for a 1-2-3 eighth for Florida on the mound, Antonio Alfonseca threw a scoreless ninth to pick up the save. Florida starter Ryan Dempster, who allowed three runs on six hits and four walks with eight strikeouts in seven innings, picked up the win. Both teams finished with seven hits in the contest. Cliff Floyd went 3-for-4 for the Marlins while Millar added two hits. Mike Piazza went 2-for-4 with a solo home run for the Mets. Desi Relafordprovided the rest of the New York offense with a two-run single in the fourth. As for McGuire, he would manage just seven home runs in parts of six seasons in the big leagues. The last of those and only blast as a member of the Marlins served as the game-winner and the lone grand slam of McGuire’s career. It came on this day a quarter-century ago. View the full article

Two big innings sparked the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas to a 13-7 victory over Albuquerque. Miguel Mendez and four relievers combined on for a 1-0 victory by the Double-A San Antonio Missions over Corpus Christi. The High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps managed just three hits in a 7-0 blowout loss to South Bend. Tyler Schmitt struck out a season-high nine as the Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm prevailed 2-0 over Inland Empire. Padres Minor-League Transactions San Antonio Missions activated RHP Eric Yost from the 7-day injured list. Carlos Rodriguez's First Homer Of Year Leads Chihuahuas Carlos Rodriguez capped a six-run fourth inning with his first homer of the season that propelled the Triple-A El Paso Chihuahuas to a 13-7 victory over the host Albuquerque Isotopes. Rodriguez finished with three RBIs, Pablo Reyes had three doubles with a pair of RBIs and two runs scored, Marcos Castanon had two hits, including a solo homer, two RBIs and two runs scored and Nick Schnell hit a two-run homer. Schnell and Castanon's homers were back-to-back. Jase Bowen walked twice and scored twice, while Mason McCoy tripled and scored twice. The Chihuahuas were up 2-1 on sacrifice flies by Nick Solak in the first inning and Rodriguez in the third when they opened the game up in the fourth inning. McCoy had a sacrifice bunt that included a throwing error by the pitcher to score the first run of the inning, then Castanon had a one-out run-scoring single to make it 4-1. Reyes doubled home a pair with two outs for a 6-1 advantage when Rodriguez smacked his two-run homer and an 8-1 cushion. But the Chihuahuas weren't done. After Albuquerque scored twice in the bottom of the fourth, the Chihuahuas came back with a four-run fifth inning. McCoy had a one-out RBI triple, then Schnell hit a two-run blast, his 10th this season and third in four games, and that was followed by Castanon's sixth homer of the year and a 12-3 lead. Chihuahuas left-handed starter JP Sears gave up five runs in five innings, allowing four hits and three walks with seven strikeouts. Right-handed relievers Sean Boyle (three innings) and David Morgan covered the final four innings and didn't issue a walk. EP_0530.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Pablo Reyes 4 2 3 2 0 0 Carlos Rodriguez 4 1 1 3 0 0 Nick Solak 3 1 0 1 1 1 Jase Bowen 3 2 0 0 2 1 Will Wagner 2 1 0 0 2 0 Mason McCoy 4 2 1 1 0 0 Nick Schnell 5 1 1 2 0 4 Marcos Castanon 4 2 2 2 0 0 Anthony Vilar 4 1 1 0 0 2 Pitcher IP H R ER BB K HR JP Sears (W) 5 4 5 5 3 7 2 Sean Boyle (H) 3 5 2 2 0 0 0 David Morgan 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Miguel Mendez Stellar As Missions Shut Down Hooks Right-handed starter Miguel Mendez led a dominant performance by San Antonio pitchers and Chris Sargent's fifth-inning single drove in the game's only run as the host Double-A Missions squeezed out a 1-0 victory over the Corpus Christi Hooks. Mendez, Padres Mission's No. 3 prospect, pitched just three innings in his fourth start since a brief stint on the seven-day injured list. Mendez struck out four and allowed just two hits and a walk. It was Mendez's third shutout start, with none lasting more than four innings. Four relievers followed and gave up just three hits and struck out nine over the final six innings. Right-hander Josh Mallitz gave up a hit in two innings with one walk and on strikeout, while right-hander Eric Yost allowed a hit and two walks while fanning two in 1⅓ innings in his first game back off the IL. Right-hander Andrew Moore went 1⅔ innings, allowing no hits and one walk while punching out four, while right-hander Clark Candiotti gave up a hit and struck out two in picking up his first professional save. It wasn't easy, though, as Candiotti gave up a two-out double and threw a wild pitch to put the tying run on third. But he struck out the final batter. The only run came in the bottom of the fifth. Kai Roberts drew a leadoff walk and was bunted to second by Francisco Acuna. Sargent, the backup catcher, attacked the first pitch and lined it to center. Roberts had to hold up as the ball short-hopped the center field and went to third, but the throw back to the infield got away, allowing Roberts to come home and Sargent to take second. SA_0530.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Carson Tucker 4 0 1 0 0 1 Ethan Salas 4 0 0 0 0 0 Romeo Sanabria 4 0 0 0 0 2 Tirso Ornelas 3 0 1 0 0 0 Albert Fabian 3 0 0 0 0 2 Ryan Jackson 3 0 1 0 0 0 Kai Roberts 2 1 0 0 1 2 Francisco Acuna 2 0 1 0 0 1 Chris Sargent 3 0 1 0 0 2 Pitcher IP H R ER BB K HR Miguel Mendez 3 2 0 0 1 4 0 Josh Mallitz (W) 2 1 0 0 1 1 0 Eric Yost (H) 1 1/3 1 0 0 2 2 0 Andrew Moore (H) 1 2/3 0 0 0 1 4 0 Clark Candiotti (S) 1 1 0 0 0 2 0 TinCaps Held To 3 Hits, Blanked By South Bend A shaky start and an offense kept in check led to a 7-0 loss for the High-A Fort Wayne TinCaps against the host South Bend Cubs. TinCaps right-handed starter Abraham Parra surrendered five runs (four earned) in season-high 5⅓ innings, giving up four hits and three walks while striking out seven, matching his career best. Right-hander Ty Adcock, on a rehab assignment from Triple-A El Paso following an oblique strain in spring training, pitched a scoreless seventh inning, allowing a hit with a walk and a strikeout. This was his fourth appearance with the TinCaps after three in the Arizona Complex League. South Bend held the TinCaps to just three hits: a double by Jack Costello and singles by Rosman Verdugo and Jake Cunningham, who had Fort Wayne's first hit leading off the fourth inning. The TinCaps did draw six walks while striking out 12 times. South Bend scored twice in the second, once in the third and put it away when Drew Bowser launched a seventh-inning grand slam, his second in as many games. Player AB R H RBI BB K Justin DeCriscio 3 0 0 0 1 2 Rosman Verdugo 3 0 1 0 1 1 Lamar King Jr. 3 0 0 0 1 0 Alex McCoy 4 0 0 0 0 2 Jake Cunningham 3 0 1 0 1 2 Carlos Rodriguez 4 0 0 0 0 0 Jack Costello 4 0 1 0 0 2 Jonathan Vastine 3 0 0 0 1 2 Kasen Wells 3 0 0 0 1 1 Pitcher IP H R ER BB K HR Abraham Parra (L) 5 1/3 4 5 4 3 7 0 Igor Gil 2/3 1 2 2 1 1 1 Ty Adcock 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 Will Varmette 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Tyler Schmitt Fans Season-High 9 As Storm Blank 66ers Right-hander starter Tyler Schmitt bounced back from his second-worst start of the season by striking out a season-high nine over six shutout innings as the host Low-A Lake Elsinore Storm edged the Inland Empire 66ers 2-0. Jose Verdugo had an RBI triple in the first inning and Alcides Hernandez scored from second following an eighth-inning error on a grounder by Kerrington Cross, who had two hits. Schmitt, who gave up five runs in 4⅓ innings in his previous start, allowed four hits and three walks. His nine punchouts were two more than he had in 3⅓ innings in his pro debut this season. Cross singled with one out in the bottom of the first, then scored when Verdugo lined an opposite-field triple down the right-field line, scoring Cross. It remained 1-0 until Hernandez doubled leading off the eighth and, two outs later, Cross hit a grounder to the shortstop, who misplayed the ball as Hernandez crossed in front of him, with the ball going into left and Hernandez easily scoring. Right-hander Nick Falter pitched two scoreless innings, yielding two hits and a walk with three punchouts and right-handed closer Will Koger allowing a hit in the ninth for his fifth save. LE_0530.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Ryan Wideman 4 0 1 0 0 2 Kerrington Cross 4 1 2 0 0 0 Jose Verdugo 3 0 1 1 0 0 Truitt Madonna 3 0 0 0 0 1 Yimy Tovar 3 0 0 0 0 0 Jorge Quintana 3 0 0 0 0 0 George Bilecki 3 0 0 0 0 1 Alcides Hernandez 3 1 1 0 0 0 Conner Westenburg 3 0 0 0 0 0 Pitcher IP H R ER BB K HR Tyler Schmitt (W) 6 4 0 0 3 9 0 Nick Falter (H) 2 2 0 0 1 3 0 Will Koger (S) 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Top 20 Prospect Performance Ethan Salas: 0-for-4 Kash Mayfield: DNP Miguel Mendez: 3 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K Kruz Schoolcraft: DNP Ryan Wideman: 1-for-4, 2 K Jorge Quintana: 0-for-3 Ty Harvey: On injured list Kale Fountain: Injured, out for season Braedon Karpathios: DNP Lamar King Jr.: 0-for-3, BB Jagger Haynes: DNP Alex McCoy: 0-for-4, 2 K Truitt Madonna: 0-for-3, K Tucker Musgrove: DNP Garrett Hawkins: DNP Michael Salina: DNP Eric Yost: 1⅓ IP, 1 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 2 K Rosman Verdugo: 1-for-3, BB, K Bryan Balzer: DNP Deivid Coronil: DNP View the full article

TRANSACTIONS In a surprise Saturday morning move, the Twins announced that Simeon Woods Richardson was Designated for Assignment. Despite a rough start to his 2026 season, he is just 25 years old and has shown he can pitch in the big leagues over extended points in 2023 and 2024. Taking his spot with the Twins is RHP John Klein who had been scheduled to start for the Saints on Saturday. How did Brian Dinkelman adjust? RHP Mitch Mueller was promoted from Fort Myers to Wichita. Born in the Twin Cities, he grew up and went to high school in Brookfield, Wisconsin. He pitched one college season at Winona State. The Twins signed him in early May 2015. (Here is his first Double-A strikeout, against a rehabbing big leaguer). Cedar Rapids placed RHP Eston Stull on the 7-Day IL. Infielder Yilber Herrera returned to the Mighty Mussels from the FCL Twins. RHP Callan Fang, the Twins 13th round pick in 2025 out of Harvard, began a rehab assignment with the FCL Twins. He’s been on the 60-Day Injured List all season. Fang went to Pennsbury High School in Fairless Hills, Pennsylvania, the same school that 16-year NFL star Troy Vincent, a former Walter Payton Man of the Year Award recipient, went to in the 1980s. Maybe a bit more relevant to this article and this website, Fang and Twins 2025 ninth-round draft pick Justin Mitrovich were both 2022 graduates of Pennsbury. Mitrovich is currently in the Mighty Mussels starting rotation. RHP Frederick Hiciano was assigned to the FCL Twins from the DSL Twins roster. The Twins also signed 17-year-old RHP Cristian Alvino. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 7, Louisville 2 Box Score For the second straight game, the Saints scored seven runs. They just feel much better about that when the team gives up two runs like on Saturday rather than the 11 runs they gave up on Friday night in Louisville. The Bats scored single runs in the bottom of the first and the bottom of the second innings. The Saints had two runners reach base in the first two innings but didn’t score. That drought ended in the third. Kaelen Culpepper and Hendry Mendez started the inning with singles. With one out, Kyler Fedko knocked his 10th double to drive in Culpepper with the first run. With two outs, Gabriel Gonzalez singled to left to drive in Mendez and Fedko and give the Saints the 3-2 lead. Gonzalez now has an 11-game hitting streak during which he has hit .447. With one out in the top of the fifth inning, Matt Wallner singled. With two outs, Ben Ross singled. Following a pitching change, Ricardo Olivar hit his second home run in as many days to give the Saints a 6-2 lead. He took a 0-1 fastball and crushed it 107 mph. It landed about 430 feet from home plate. That was it for the scoring until the top of the ninth. Culpepper singled to lead off the inning. With one out, Royce Lewis doubled to left field at 108 mph to drive in the seventh run. Culpepper went 3-for-4 with a walk. Lewis and Wallner were both 2-for-5. Lewis’s double was his third. Marco Raya made his first start of the season. He gave up two runs on three hits over three innings. He had four strikeouts. Alejandro Hidalgo came in and had five strikeouts over three scoreless, one-hit innings. Raul Brito recorded the save with three scoreless innings. He walked one and had two strikeouts. WIND SURGE WISDOM Game 1: Wichita 3, Springfield 3 (Suspended after six innings) Box Score They were hoping to get two games in on Saturday. Instead, they got through six innings. The game was tied, and with just one inning to go (maybe), the field conditions became unplayable and the game was suspended. The hope is to play out the suspended game (a 7-inning game) and then play a nine-inning game after that. The missed game will be made up later in the season. A more complete rundown of this game will be available when it gets final. A couple of quick notes. First, in the top of the second, Andrew Cossetti’s third home run of the season drove in Kala’i Rosario and gave the Wind Surge a 2-0 lead. Through four innings, they found themselves down 3-2. In the top of the fifth inning, Jose Salas hit his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot that tied it up. KERNELS CHRONICLE Cedar Rapids 3, Quad Cities 2 Box Score Riley Quick was back on the mound for the Kernels on Saturday night. He gave up two runs in the first inning but then worked three more frames without letting the Bandits add on. He gave up two runs on two hits and two walks, and he had three strikeouts. Early in the game, he was sitting 96-97 mph. Michael Ross came in and worked the next four innings. He gave up no runs and just one hit. He had four strikeouts and no walks. In fact, he faced the minimum of 12 batters in four innings. The second batter he faced singled, but he was erased on a double play ball. Eston Stull returned from the Injured List. He was given the ninth inning. He faced three batters and struck out all three of them to earn his third save. The Kernels faced one of the Royals top pitching prospects, lefty David Shields. He started with two scoreless innings despite multiple base runners in both frames. Marek Houston led off the bottom of the third inning with a single. He advanced to second with his 12th stolen base. With two outs, Yasser Mercedes doubled, his fourth, to right field to drive in the first Kernels run. Quinn McDaniel followed with a triple to the left center field gap to drive in the second run and tie the game. It’s his second triple since joining the Kernels las week. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Jay Thomason reached on an error. Danny De Andrade followed with a walk. A wild pitch moved runners to second and third with nobody out. After a strikeout, Houston flew out to right field, deep enough to drive in Thomason from third base and give the team a 3-2 lead. And that was it for the scoring in the game as both bullpens pitched well. Marek Houston went 3-for-3 with two stolen bases. The team had just seven total hits and three walks in the game. By the way, if you're into sports photography MIGHTY MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Jupiter 1 Box Score The Mussels got a fantastic start, took an early lead, added on a bit, and the bullpen came through late to help the team to a very nice win on Saturday. Matthew Dalquist started the game with five shutout innings. He gave up three hits, walked none and had three strikeouts. He was also efficient, needing just 60 pitches (44 strikes, 73.3%). Consider that the first inning began with a ground rule double against him, and two batters later, they had runners on first and third with one out. He worked out of that situation. He gave up just one more hit and no more runners reached third base over his final four innings. The Mussels took a 1-0 lead in the second inning. JP Smith and Henry Kusiak started the inning with singles, and Jayson Bass walked to load the bases. Smith scored on an Irvin Nunez sacrifice fly. They added on in the bottom of the fifth inning. With one out, Smith singled. After a pitching change, Kusiak got a 1-0 hanging curveball over the inner half of the plate and hit his first home run in affiliated ball to give the team a 3-0 lead. Dylan Questad pitched the sixth inning. He gave up one run on two walks. He had two strikeouts. Jonathan Stevens came in and gave up a hit and two walks, but no runs in 1 2/3 innings. Lefty Jake Murray recorded the final four outs. He walked one batter, but he had four strikeouts to earn the Save. There were a lot of baserunners for both teams, but not a lot of them crossed home plate. Jupiter went 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position. They left nine on base. The Mussels, on the other hand, scored their four runs on 10 hits and 11 walks. They were also 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position, but they left 15 runners on base. Dameury Pena went 2-for-2 with three walks. JP Smith went 3-for-4 with a walk. Henry Kusiak went 2-for-3 with two walks and his first home run. Luis Fragoza went 2-for-4. Irvin Nunez and Jayson Bass each walked twice. COMPLEX CHRONICLE FCL Twins 9, FCL Red Sox 10 Box Score Callan Fang made his first appearance in a regular game since he was drafted last July. In his first rehab appearance, he gave up two unearned runs on one hit, a hit batter, and two walks. He recorded two outs, one on a strikeout. Melvin Rodriguez came in and gave up five runs on one hit and four walks over two innings. He struck out three batters. Carter Holjes gave up one run on two hits and two walks over 1 1/3 innings. Brad Rudis struck out two batters over two scoreless innings. Nick McAuliffe struck out five batters over two innings. He gave up one run on two hits. Pablo Castillo gave up an unearned run (the Manfred Man) in the ninth inning on one hit. The FCL Twins committed six errors in this game. They also allowed four players to steal a combined 13 bases. Edwin Darville alone had five stolen bases. When the FCL Twins came to the plate for the bottom of the fourth inning, they were already behind 8-0. They got on the board when Teilon Serrano and Carlos Taveras started the inning with singles. Serrano scored on a double play ball. Just one run, but it was a start. In the bottom of the fifth inning, Jose Barrios walked with one out. He scored on a double by Yovanny Duran which cut the deficit to 8-2. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Ricardo Paez led off with a walk. Darwin Almanzar doubled him to third. They scored on a wild pitch and then a passed ball. 8-4. With one out, Victor Leal walked and went to third base on a Jose Barrios double. Leal scored on a sacrifice fly by Duran. That made the score 8-5. In the top of the seventh, the Red Sox added a run to push the lead back to four runs. Paez and Almanzar walked. A strikeout and a flyout left the Twins one out from a loss. Barrios was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Yovanny Duran came to the plate and crushed his third home run of the season, a grand slam that tied the game at 9-9. The Twins went scoreless twice in extra innings. In the ninth inning, position player Pablo Castillo pitched. Yovanny Duran is a switch-hitting, 18-year-old outfielder from Venezuela. He went 2-for-3 with a walk, his second double, his third home run, and five RBI. Jose Barrios went 2-for-3 with a walk and his second double. He was also hit by a pitch. He stole his third base. Jhomnardo Reyes was 1-for-3 with two walks. Miguel Caraballo hit his fifth double. He also walked once and was hit by a pitch. Danny Almanzar hit his second double. PLAYERS OF THE DAY Hitter(s) of the Day Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul): 3-for-4, BB, 2 R, K. Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids): 3-for-3, R, SF RBI, 2 SB(13) Dameury Pena (Fort Myers): 2-for-2, 3 BB. Henry Kusiak (Fort Myers): 2-for-3, 2 BB, HR(1), R, 2 RBI JP Smith II (Fort Myers): 3-for-4, BB, 2 R, K Yovanny Duran (FCL Twins): 2-for-3, BB, 2B(2), HR(3), 5 RBI. Pitcher(s) of the Day Matthew Dalquist (Fort Myers): 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, 60 pitches, 44 strikes (74.2%) Alejandro Hidalgo (St. Paul): 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K, 31 pitches, 23 strikes (74.2%) Michael Ross (Cedar Rapids): 4 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 4 K, 48 pitches, 31 strikes (64.9%) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they did today. #2 - IF Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul) - 3-for-4, BB, 2 R, K. (batted first, played SS) #7 - SS Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 3-for-3, R, RBI, 2 SB(13), PO (batted first, played SS) #8 - RHP Riley Quick (Cedar Rapids) - 4 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, HB, 3 K, 56 pitches, 35 strikes (62.5%) #10 - OF Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 K. (batted sixth, played 1B) #13 - OF Hendry Mendez (St. Paul) - 1-for-4, BB, R, K (batted second, played DH) #15 - 3B/CF Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-for-4, 2 K (batted second, played 3B) #19 - C/OF Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 0-for-3, BB (batted third, played CF) #20 - 2B/SS/CF Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 0-for-3, game suspended (batted first, played SS) UPCOMING PROBABLES Sunday, May 31: St. Paul @ Louisville (12:05 pm CT) - RHP Mike Paredes (2-1, 3.38 ERA) Wichita @ Springfield (suspended game + 9-inning game starting at 2:15 pm CT) - RHP Eli Jones (0-2, 4.20 ERA), Quad Cities @ Cedar Rapids (1:05 pm CT) - LHP Garrett Horn (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Jupiter @ Ft. Myers (11:05 am CT) - RHP Reed Moring (1-0, 1.42 ERA) Monday, June 1: FCL Rays @ FCL Twins (11:00 am CT) - TBD DSL Rangers Red @ DSL Twins (10:00 am CT) - TBD CURRENT W-L Records Minnesota Twins: 27-32 (3rd place (of 5) in AL Central, 6.5 GB)) St. Paul Saints: 28-27 (6th place (of 10) in IL West Division, 6.0 GB)) Wichita Wind Surge: 21-26 (4th place (of 5) in TL North Division, 8.5 GB)) Cedar Rapids Kernels: 25-25 (3rd place (of 6) in MWL West Division, 6.0 GB)) Fort Myers Mighty Mussels: 28-22 (2nd place (of 6) in FSL West Division, 2.0 GB)) FCL Twins: 10-10 (3rd place (of 6) in FCL South Division, 3.5 GB)) 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

It speaks to how sickly the Mets — and baseball in general — understand their audience to be, that one of their primary sponsors is Thrive Well Infusion. If you need plasma or medication delivered intravenously, you have our compassion, thought it feels unseemly that our wellbeing has not only become such a commercial enterprise, but has become the commercial enterprise, to judge from baseball advertisements. Well, that and gambling. But nobody understands more than the Mets, who are in a constant state of being re-infused. Transactions, 5/26/2026 COMING Signed as International Amateur Free Agent out of The Dominican Republic, Not Yet Assigned Relief Pitchers Enmanuel Feliz R/R DoB: 2007-04-25 High Level: Academy (2026) There are several Enmanuel Felizes (the plural may possibly be Felices) who have passed through the affiliate minor-league universe in recent years. This guy may possibly be one of them, but it appears that no, this is a new young fresh fellow. We hope to soon find a face for this out-of-season Dominican signing, but please know that an infusion has occurred for the DSL Mets. An infusion of Felicity. Transactions, 5/28/2026 COMING Transferred from St. Lucie to Syracuse on Rehab Assignment Signed away from Schaumberg (Frontier League), Assigned to FCL Mets Starting Pitchers Infielders Kodai Senga Jackson Hauge L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 High Level: MLB (2026) R/R DoB: 2001-02-03 High Level: Frontier League (2025) Kodai Senga's rehab starts have kind of gone like his recent MLB starts. A little bit to impress at the outset, with a dancing ghost fork and more velocity than he's shown in previous seasons, but then he kind of falls over himself by his third inning — losing the plate and laying get-it-over hangers in there until he gets pulled mid-inning. Whether it hints at an ongoing health matter or a future in the bullpen is an open question, but the Mets don't seem to be in a hurry to have him back, and will hope the ongoing Jonah Tong infusion can be potent enough in the mentime. Infusing his way out of the Frontier League is Jackson Hauge. Boss Hauge is coming off a rock solid career with Minnesota State and Kansas, where he mostly played outfield. He's mostly seeing time at first base as a pro, which suggests that his speed is less than impressive. The bat certainly plays (he put in four outstanding seasons in the wood-bat Northwoods League), but the MLB draft is down to 20 rounds, and righthanded firstbasemen often aren't a big get. Here's hoping the bat proves them wrong. Transactions, 5/30/2026 GOING COMING Demoted to Syracuse Designated for Assignment Added to Roster and Promoted from Syracuse Relief Pitchers Relief Pitchers Relief Pitchers Tobias Myers Anderson Severino Cionel Pérez R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 High Level: MLB (2026) L/L DoB: 34594 High Level: MLB (2022) R/L DoB: 35176 High Level: MLB (2026) Is Tobias Myers' exile to the minors just and excuse to get a fresh arm in the pen after an extra-inning win, or are the Mets trying to turn him into a starter? The latter was suggested by Grand Central Mets forum poster Gwreck, when he excerpted this Carlos Mendoza quote from a team report: “It’s just going to be more scripted,” Mendoza said. “Where if you’re going to go and throw 35-45 pitches, then he’s able to get the three or four days after that, something that at this level with the competition you aren’t able to do. Intriguing, no? We mean, it's not all together clear what the Mets manager is saying, but it's something intriguing. Anyhow, as impressive the AAA ERA of veteran Cionel Perez' is (2.57 in seven innings), and as impressive his symmetrical beard is in his thumbnail, Anderson Severino (DFA'd to create roster room) is doing even better at Syracuse (1.31 in 20 2/3 innings), even if his beard is shrubbier. We're guessing that Perez simply had the fresher arm, or perhaps that the Mets place a high premium on beard neatness ... when they are looking for an infusion. Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Christian Scott Jonah Tong R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Sean Manaea A.J. Minter Cionel Pérez Brooks Raley Austin Warren Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 R/L DoB: 35176 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Devin Williams Hayden Senger Luís Torrens Bo Bichette Brett Baty Vidal Brujan Marcus Semien R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 S/R DoB: 1998-02-09 R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 Infielders Outfielders Mark Vientos Eric Wagaman Carson Benge A.J. Ewing MJ Melendez Juan Soto Jared Young R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 R/R DoB: 1997-08-14 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 L/R DoB: 2004-08-10 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Clay Holmes Tylor Megill Kodai Senga Zach Thornton Alex Carrillo Daniel Duarte Reed Garrett R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 L/L DoB: 2002-01-17 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1996-12-04 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Justin Hagenman Tobias Myers Dedniel Núñez Jonathan Pintaro Dylan Ross Francisco Alvarez Francisco Lindor R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 Infielders Outfielders Ronny Mauricio Jorge Polanco Luis Robert, Jr. Nick Morabito Tyrone Taylor S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 R/R DoB: 2003-05-07 R/R DoB: 1994-01-22 Designated for Assignment Relief Pitchers Anderson Severino L/L DoB: 1994-09-17 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 Soft Tissue Specialist Brian Chicklo Joseph Golia Bryan Baca Sean Bardanett Josh Bickel Dustin Clarke Tanner Miracle Jeremy Chiang Hiroto Kawamura DoB: 1972-07-17 DoB: 1978-??-?? DoB: Circa 1980 DoB: 1988-06-23 DoB: 1996-??-?? DoB: 1987-??-?? DoB: 1991-??-?? DoB: ????-??-?? DoB: 22846 View the full article

NEW YORK — The sign still exists. You know, the white one with the black and blue border that reads "LET'S PARTY FIGHTIN' FISH." I saw it in the Miami Marlins dugout two hours before Saturday's game. There just haven't been many occasions to use it lately, or many occasions throughout the 2026 season, for that matter. The Marlins celebrate with the sign after hitting home runs. Well, they have been out-homered in four consecutive games (all losses) and rank 28th among MLB teams in that category. This lack of power is stressing them in other areas and rapidly sinking their chances of postseason contention. Saturday really exemplified how slim the margin can be between offensive excellence and futility. The Marlins scored only one run against the New York Mets despite very well-struck balls off the bats of Otto López, Kyle Stowers and Joe Mack. They traveled 358 feet, 380 feet and 402 feet, respectively, but each of them ultimately landed in an outfielder's glove. Lopez leads the league in hits this season, but only four of those have cleared the fence. A year after breaking out as an All-Star with 25 long balls, Stowers has been limited to three. The rookie Mack is homerless through his first 21 career games. "Get a good pitch to hit, you put a good swing on it, and after that, there's not a whole lot that's within your control," manager Clayton McCullough said postgame. That is an oversimplification. If the quality of contact and its launch angle are good enough, the result is a home run and the opposing defense doesn't have an opportunity to make a play. The Marlins are struggling to reach that standard with their swings. Meanwhile on New York's side, unheralded part-time players Jared Young and Hayden Senger crushed solo shots off Lake Bachar that would've left the vast majority of MLB ballparks. The Marlins have a lot of continuity on the position player side after a surprisingly competitive 2025 campaign. Rather than investing in veterans with proven, consistent track records, they are depending on their young bats to utilize the experience that they've gained and the coaching that they've received to improve. With the notable exceptions of Xavier Edwards and Liam Hicks, most Marlins have regressed instead. Consider these year-to-year decreases in isolated power (slugging percentage minus batting average): Kyle Stowers is down 120 points Heriberto Hernández is down 89 points Jakob Marsee is down 79 points Agustín Ramírez is down 67 points (demoted to Triple-A) Graham Pauley is down 37 points (demoted to Triple-A) Combining their caught stealings/pickoffs with other mistakes on the bases, the Marlins have run into more outs than any other club this season. McCullough has spun it as a positive when speaking publicly, taking pride in being "aggressive" and constantly "pushing the envelope." The reality is, the Marlins play this way out of necessity. Instead of waiting for homers that rarely come, their baserunners have to do more of the heavy lifting themselves. Overall, Miami's offensive production has been nearly average (97 wRC+), but the distribution of those runs is uneven because of how often they are held homerless. That means plenty of good-but-not-great starting pitching performances go to waste. Currently on pace for a 91-loss season, the Marlins have left some meat on the bone. They are capable of playing better defense, for example, and their most experienced pitchers—Sandy Alcantara and Pete Fairbanks—are bound to find their rhythm as the season goes on. However, they won't even sniff a playoff berth without more dingers. View the full article

Box Score SP: Bailey Ober - 4.2 IP, 12 H, 8 ER, 1 BB, 3 K (97 pitches, 72 strikes (74%)) Home Runs: None Bottom 3 WPA: Ober (-0.51), Austin Martin (-0.17), Orlando Arcia (-0.16) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) The Twins watched a victory turn into defeat in the bottom of the ninth on Friday night on the shores of the Allegheny River. On Saturday, Minnesota played the midpoint game of a brutal 17 games in 17 days stretch of this 2026 season. Bailey Ober took the mound in hopes of providing many innings of quality work for a pitching staff in the midst of injury and roster maneuvering. Ober's hopes, and the hopes of Twins fans everywhere got dashed, and resurrected, and dashed again. Ober and the Anti-Maddux On May 12th, Ober threw a "Maddux," meaning that he got a complete game shutout with less than 100 pitches. On Saturday, Ober threw an "Anti-Maddux," meaning he couldn't clear five innings and gave up eight runs in the first two innings, functionally taking his team out of the game from the start. The misplays started right from the first Pirates batter, as Spencer Horwitz pulled a first pitch 89.9 mph fastball foul. With the entire world shouting "Changeup!," Victor Caratini typed in the heater instead, and Ober grooved a 88.7 mph fastball in the same location that would fit Horwitz's swing perfectly for a booming homer into the river. Things only got worse from there for the Twins' battery. After Kody Clemens doubled to start the second, he came around to tie the game at one on a Caratini blooper into the sun in left (remember that sunshine please). In the bottom of the second inning, Ober tried another high-80's fastball down the heart of the plate after four straight off-speed pitches to the light-hitting Jake Mangum. Mangum now can say he hit a homerun in 2026, and the floodgates began to crack open. With two outs, Horwitz struck again, this time with a lazy fly ball to left field. Trevor Larnach never saw it. Not once. He was wearing his sunglasses. He properly used his glove in an attempt to find it. The ball plopped in front of him, and then the next four batters reached. By the time Oneil Cruz sent his three-run homer into the seats, Ober's day was ruined and things looked bleak with the Pirates leading 7-1 after only two innings. For Everyone Who Turned Off the Game at This Point... With the game effectively over before it could barely begin, Byron Buxton led off the top of the third inning with the kind of single that happens when you are a fast human. He found his way to third base after a wild pitch and a groundout. Turns out he could have stayed at first, because Clemens was cycle-hunting and drove a triple over Cruz's head to close the gap to 7-2. At the time, any excitement generated by this moment was sarcastic. In the top of the fourth, the excitement turned ecstatic. Mitch Keller got Caratini to line out to start the inning, but he gave up singles to Orlando Arcia and Luke Keaschall. Tristan Gray took his second chance at RBI's and delivered with a double that made it 7-4! Buxton walked, but Larnach flied out to put the rally on ice again. That is, until Josh Bell cleared the third baseman's glove with a liner that rolled all the way to the wall to clear the bases and make it 7-6! Remember Clemens? Cycle-hunter? This time it was just a single, but it tied us up at seven apiece! No Relief in Sight for Twins With a brand-new ballgame in the fourth inning, but with both starting pitchers laboring early, it was clear that the bullpens would determine the victor yet again on Saturday. Ober and Caratini started the bullpen action off for the Twins in the fifth by allowing a single, committing a catcher interference, and again grooving a center-cut fastball after success on off-speed pitches to Mangum. That single put the Pirates back up 8-7 and sent Ober to the dugout for another early exit. Kody Funderburk came in and escaped the jam that remained in the fifth, and he survived walks and stolen bases and pressure in the sixth. In the bottom of the seventh, Derek Shelton rode the newly returned lefty two batters too many, as a walk and a single put runners at the corners with nobody out. John Klein got his Day 1 assignment after taking Simeon Woods Richardson's place on the roster, and he eventually allowed Funderburk's runs to score via walks, more stolen bases, hits and a sac fly. Just like that, another winnable game was lost by the Twins' bullpen. For Everyone Who Turned Off the Game at That Point... The bipolar nature of Saturday's ballgame kept on swinging through the top of the eighth, as Keaschall, Ryan Kreidler, and Buxton loaded the bases with one out against lefty reliever Mason Montgomery. Brooks Lee got the pinch-hit call to do what Brooks Lee does, and he walked. With the score now 10-8, and the bases still loaded, Bell came up with a hero moment in his former stomping grounds. He didn't "fail," but he didn't become a hero. Bell's slow ground-out to first plated Kreidler to pull the Twins to within a run, but now the pressure fell to Cycle-Hunter Clemens. The Pirates brough in lefty fireballer Gregory Soto to wreck the comeback plans. Soto threw a 1-1 sinker ball that left Kody's bat at 100.1 mph, but Tyler Callihan snared the grounder with a sweet backhand to break the Twins faithful's hearts once again. Soto stayed on for the ninth, but after two rallies the Twins had nothing left in the tank. 10-9 Pirates. You should have just kept the game turned off after all. What’s Next? The Twins look to salvage the final game of the series, and a .500 road trip by beating the Pirates on Sunday. Twins righty Zebby Matthews (1-2, 2.37 ERA) looks to deliver what Ober could not, while the Pirates will send righty Braxton Ashcraft (4-2, 2.75 ERA) out in hopes of proving they were right to fire their old manager. First pitch on Sunday afternoon is scheduled for 12:35pm CDT. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet TUE WED THU FRI SAT TOT Gómez 18 0 17 14 0 71 Orze 0 29 0 23 0 52 Banda 10 0 14 18 0 49 Rogers 16 0 7 12 0 48 Klein 0 0 0 0 39 39 Morris 8 0 29 0 0 37 Funderburk 0 0 0 0 27 27 Laweryson 0 0 0 16 0 16 View the full article

Blue Jays Affiliate Overview (May 28-May 29) Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Series vs Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Philadelphia Phillies): 1-3 Season Record: 26-29 Double-A New Hampshire Fisher Cats Series vs Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees): 2-2 Season Record: 25-21 High-A Vancouver Canadians Series vs Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants): 2-2 Season Record: 20-29 Single-A Dunedin Blue Jays Series vs Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies): 1-3 Season Record: 20-29 FCL Blue Jays Week Record: 4-3 Season Record: 16-4 Triple-A Buffalo Bisons Season Record: 26-29 Series vs Lehigh Valley IronPigs (Philadelphia Phillies) May 28: Thursday's starter Josh Fleming has had a surprisingly good season thus far while at Triple-A Buffalo. He had only given up more than two runs in just one of his prior eight appearances. Unfortunately for Buffalo, Thursday would not continue that trend. Thanks in part to an error by Riley Tirotta in the second, Lehigh Valley capitalized on the extra out Buffalo provided them and had a monster inning. They would score six unearned runs in the frame, highlighted by Bryan De La Cruz's two-RBI double. After Lehigh Valley added two more runs in the sixth inning from Paul McIntosh's two-run home run, Buffalo sat in an 8-0 hole. Willie MacIver and Je'Von Ward tried to fuel a comeback for the Bisons in the bottom half of the sixth. MacIver tripled in two runs, and then Ward blasted a two-run home run to cut the lead down to four. Ward's blast came on a splitter middle-in and had an exit velocity of 106.1 mph and traveled 422 feet. It would be the closest Buffalo would get to Lehigh Valley, as the IronPigs added a late insurance run and took the game 9-4. May 29: After some excitement that Chad Dallas could be called up to make a start in Baltimore for the big league club, he had to settle for being the bulk pitcher behind Brendon Little at Triple-A for Buffalo. Little threw a perfect inning, and then Willie MacIver gave the Bisons the early lead with a sacrifice fly in the bottom half of the first. Dallas entered the game at the start of the second inning and did well, until he was tagged with a two-run home run by Felix Reyes in the third inning. Dallas would then make it through the fourth and fifth innings without really any other trouble, before handing the ball off to Richard Gallardo in the sixth. In the bottom of the sixth, MacIver continued his big day with an RBI double that tied the game up at two. Gallardo would give up two runs in the seventh, before a big Riley Tirotta two-run home run to tie the game back up. With the game all square at four, it went into extra innings, where neither team scored in the tenth. Lehigh Valley then got an RBI single to break the tie in the eleventh, while Buffalo went 1-2-3 in the bottom half of the inning to lose 5-4. Double-A New Hampshire Season Record: 25-21 Series vs Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees) May 28: In the Thursday game between New Hampshire and Somerset, home runs were wild, and they were hit often for the Fisher Cats. Jay Harry started things in the first inning, this time with a rocket pulled to the right field corner for a solo home run. Later in the inning, a Jace Bohrofen RBI single and a Cutter Coffey two-run double would put New Hampshire up four runs quickly. In the fourth, a home run from Nick Goodwin and another home run from Sean Keys would give the Fisher Cats a commanding seven-run lead. The fifth inning was on repeat for New Hampshire, as Aaron Parker crushed a 115 mph home run that went 467 feet. Later in the inning, Goodwin launched his second home run of the game to put the Fisher Cats up nine. Harry would get in on the double home run feat, with his second in the seventh inning. It would be the last home run for the Fisher Cats, as they went on to win this one easily, 14-2. May 29: Fresh off of their six-home run night the day before, New Hampshire had the bats going from the start once again for the Friday night game. Jay Harry again started things with a home run in the first, but this time he was followed by Jace Bohrofen and Nick Goodwin also hitting home runs in the inning. With a six-run first, New Hampshire couldn't hold on though, as Somerset chipped away at the lead. In the fourth inning, Eddie Micheletti Jr. hit an RBI double to put the Fisher Cats back up three runs. Adrian Pinto would drive him in, putting the lead up to four. In the fifth inning, Goodwin would homer again, his fourth in two games. That put New Hampshire up 10-6, but it wouldn't last long. In the seventh inning, Somerset used two home runs and a couple of bases-loaded walks to take the lead by two. In the ninth, Patrick Winkel brought New Hampshire within one with an RBI single, but it wasn't enough. The Fisher Cats lost this one 12-11. High-A Vancouver Season Record: 20-29 Series vs Eugene Emeralds (San Francisco Giants) May 28: Daniel Guerra struggled early on in his start against the Emeralds, giving up a run in the first after giving up three straight singles. In the second inning, he hit the leadoff batter and gave up another hit. He was able to pick off one of the baserunners but then allowed hits to Dakota Jordan and Gavin Kilen, leading to two more runs scored. He locked it in after that though, getting the next 10 batters out in a row in a solid five-inning start. A Manuel Beltre double and a wild pitch that sent him to third base led to a Maddox Latta RBI single to give the Canadians their first run in the bottom of the fifth, but Trace Baker gave that run back after a Beltre throwing error. Baker gave up an earned run in the seventh inning. Hayden Gilliland was able to knock in a run with his second hit of the night to make up for it, but the Canadians couldn’t catch up despite getting the same number of hits as the Emeralds on the night. May 29: The Canadians had some big extra-base hits to score the first runs of the ball game, with Carter Cunningham knocking in Jacob Sharp with his ninth double of the season and Brennan Orf hitting his first homer of the season in the second inning. Danny Thompson Jr. was the starter for the Canadians and had another good start, but gave up a homer in the third inning to lower the lead to one. The Canadians consistently pushed runs across the board though, as Sharp hit an RBI single in the third, and Orf had his second ribbie of the night with a single of his own in the fourth inning. Thompson gave up a two-run shot in the fifth to again make it a one-run game. Manuel Beltre kept up the scoring for Vancouver though, with an RBI single in the fifth inning to push the lead back to two. Reece Wissinger earned his first hold in Vancouver since getting promoted with three scoreless innings. A pair of sac flies from Sharp and Maddox Latta (after Orf had his third hit of the day with a triple) capped off the scoring for the Canadians, and Carson Myers finished the game off with a scoreless inning of his own for a great win to even up the series. Single-A Dunedin Season Record: 20-29 Series vs Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies) May 28: It was a high-scoring affair as the Threshers and the Blue Jays kept on trading blows. The Jays were the first to strike as Juan Sanchez got hit by a pitch, then Aldo Gaxiola continued his hot streak with a double to put a runner on second and third. David Beckles hit a chopper to third to score Sanchez and Gaxiola as Nolan Beltran threw the ball away. Dariel Ramon then hit his fourth homer of the season to make it a four-run inning for the D-Jays. Lazaro Estrada made his first rehab start and pitched two scoreless innings, but everything got away from him in the third inning, letting the first four batters on base and getting replaced by Austin Smith, who allowed two more inherited runs to score. Troy Guthrie replaced Smith and gave up a triple and a single immediately to give up the lead. Some errors allowed another run to score, and then, with a runner on third, Guthrie threw a wild pitch to put the Threshers up by two. The game was tied up once again as Eric Snow and Gaxiola both drove in runs. Guthrie also started to settle down, going four more strong innings without allowing another run to score. The game remained tied heading into the seventh, but a JoJo Parker HBP led to a Sanchez double to put runners on second and third with no outs. Gaxiola got his third hit of the night, a big double to put the Jays up two. Lluveres Severino came in the ninth for a save opportunity and generated a double play despite walking his first two batters. The Jays just needed one more out to get the win, but Severino could not hold on, allowing a two-run homer to even up the ball game and send it to extras. The Jays scored three runs in the 10th inning, and it looked like they could win it, but Severino allowed three doubles in a row to lose the game on a walk-off in the 10th. May 29: In a lower-scoring affair, the Jays and Threshers still ended up heading to extra innings. Karson Ligon was the starter for Dunedin and allowed two runs early on in the first inning. Sam Shaw got a run back for the Jays in the second, but Ligon allowed his third run of the game on a homer to Nolan Beltran. Dylan Watts replaced Ligon and used his changeup effectively in 5.1 perfect innings, striking out five batters. Still, the Jays remained behind until the seventh inning, as with the bases loaded, Juan Sanchez drove in two runs on a single to tie it up. The game stayed tied until extras, where the Jays exploded. JoJo Parker knocked in the ghost runner Shaw, then Aldo Gaxiola hit his seventh homer of the season to make it six to three. Jake Cook hit a single for his fifth time getting on base of the game to add another run, before a wild pitch capped off the scoring for a five-run 10th inning. Franly Urena didn’t allow a run in the inning, and the Jays finally won their first game of this series. FCL Blue Jays Season Record: 16-4 May 28: It was a wild affair in the Thursday game between the FCL Blue Jays and the FCL Phillies. The Phillies scored three in the second inning on a wild pitch and a two-run triple. They would take a four-run lead in the third on a bases-loaded walk. In the fifth, the Blue Jays put up a five-spot, the big hit being a C.J. Stubbs three-run home run. Stubbs continued his big day by adding a two-run home run in the seventh, and Renyel Campos had an RBI single to put the Blue Jays up one. The score wouldn't hold, as a three-run burst for the Phillies in the eighth inning gave them a 10-8 lead, and that is where it ended, as the Blue Jays squad lost this one. May 29: Yimi García was on the mound for a rehab start in this one for the FCL Blue Jays against the Phillies squad again. Things didn't go well, as he gave up an RBI double, a sacrifice fly, and a home run in the first inning. In the fourth, the Blue Jays squad put up six runs, with the big hit being a two-run homer from Hedbert Perez, who also had a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch later in the inning. Angel Rivero had a great game on the mound for the Blue Jays. He went four innings, gave up four hits, one run, and struck out nine batters. The Blue Jays team would win this one 8-4. View the full article

Once again, Joe Ryan is looking like a legitimate ace to start the season. Once again, the Minnesota Twins have a decision to make - should they trade him or should they look to extend him? View the full article

The other player the New York Mets acquired in the huge Freddy Peralta trade has been sent to the minors. Right-hander Tobias Myers was optioned to Triple-A Syracuse on Saturday, with left-hander Cionel Perez having his contract selected from Triple-A. To make room on the 40-man roster, left-hander Anderson Severino was designated for assignment. Myers has made 18 of his 20 appearances this year out of the bullpen, putting up a 4.05 ERA in 33⅓ innings. He last appeared in a game Friday, allowing two runs on two hits, including a homer, in one inning, in a 9-7 win in 10 innings over the Miami Marlins. Myers was acquired along with Peralta in the big trade with the Milwaukee Brewers in exchange for two prospects: infielder-outfielder Jett Williams and right-handed starter Brandon Sproat. Perez signed a minor-league deal with the Mets on May 9 after being designated for assignment by the Washington Nationals and electing free agency rather than going to Triple-A. With the Nationals, Perez had an unsightly 6.19 ERA in 16 appearances and 16 innings, walking 11 and striking out nine. He pitched in six games at Syracuse, walking five and striking out 10 in seven innings for a 2.57 ERA. Severino has not pitched in the majors since 2022, which was also the last time he spent time in affiliated ball, and signed a minor-league contract with the Mets this winter. He had spent the last two seasons in the Mexican League. At Syracuse this year, he had a 1.31 ERA in 20⅔ innings over 18 appearances, walking 11 and striking out 20. View the full article