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The San Diego Padres made perhaps the only noteworthy transaction remaining in early 2026 (non-trade division) in agreeing to a one-year deal with starting pitcher Lucas Giolito on Wednesday. In a vacuum, such a deal should be a welcome addition. There's also reality to consider, however. The Padres began the season with something of a patchwork rotation that has only been further depleted by the absence of Nick Pivetta and repeated setbacks in Joe Musgrove's return from Tommy John surgery. They'd already been hoping for rebounds from Germán Márquez and Walker Buehler and received mixed results from each. Matt Waldron was called back into service prior to last weekend. Griffin Canning remains on rehab assignment ahead of what will be an eventual debut at some point in the near future. With so much abstract in the picture, the fact that Giolito is a solid veteran with a track record that reads even more so should help to provide something a little more certain. At the same time, certain factors leave one to wonder where the realistic expectations fall. It's been a while since Giolito was at his height. He bookended the COVID year of 2020 with exceptional seasons in 2019 (5.2 fWAR) and 2021 (4.0 fWAR). He struggled in 2022, pitched for three teams in 2023, and had a 2024 that was entirely lost to injury. There was something of a rebound across 26 starts with the Boston Red Sox last year (2.0 fWAR), but the strikeouts were down, the walks were up, and he didn't pitch in the postseason because of an elbow issue. As such, any optimism over Giolito's addition to the mix is going to come on paper. When he's at his best, he's able to deploy his four-seam-slider-change combination to run up a fair bit of strikeouts (24.6 percent for his career). He can also eat innings effectively, averaging 5.6 innings per start in each of his last two seasons. In general then, you're looking at an arm that isn't exactly going to mow down opposing hitters, but can work efficiently enough to keep you in games and work deep enough into them. That's what the projection models are considering, too. Steamer, for example, has him at a 4.68 ERA, 20.6 K%, and 9.6 BB%. ZiPs is only slightly better at a 4.58 ERA, the same strikeout rate, and an 8.9 percent walk rate. Back in 2021, Giolito had two pitches (slider and change-up) that ranked above average by Stuff+. Now, it's only the change-up. The name of the game is stability, though. If Giolito can provide the Friars with that, then the signing is worthwhile regardless how the stat sheet shakes out. As an innings-eater, Giolito's presence alone forced ZiPS' playoff projections to increase for San Diego by 10 percent in the wake of signing the veteran. That's easily more than any other team with which he could have signed, with the Chicago Cubs' 8.1 percent increase falling in second. Even if he's not going to bring the swing-and-miss upside he was flashing on the South Side of Chicago a handful of years ago, he should be able to help fortify a unit that sits in the bottom half of the league in innings pitched by their starting pitchers (and sits among the league's worst in that regard over the past week). Reality for the Padres is not knowing what the timeline looks like for Pivetta or Musgrove. Michael King doesn't have the cleanest of histories in his own right, and each of Márquez and Buehler have been start-to-start in their performance. Canning is a total wild card. So, while the rotation has probably performed better than expected, there's too much uncertainty lurking to let a pitcher who can raise the floor of the group sign elsewhere. Especially at an entirely reasonable price point. Giolito, even with a decline in his performance over the last handful of seasons, offers the team's best chance at stability at this early stage of the season. That's why you make a signing like this. You're not looking for the upside. You're in it for the innings and relatively consistent performance, considering the bullpen you can roll out as his reinforcements. Even the most grounded-in-reality type of thinker can understand the benefit of pursuing that kind of stability. View the full article -
A dominant first pro season, Payton Tolle overwhelms hitters with his fastball, but does he have enough with the secondaries to reach his potential of a middle-rotation arm? View the full article -
Connor Prielipp Shines In Debut; Riley Quick Remains Dominant
DiamondCentric posted an article in Twins Daily
Twins System Recap: Connor Prielipp made his Major League debut tonight, as did Kendry Rojas. Prielipp looked great, striking out six batters while not issuing a walk over four innings. He surrendered a pair of runs. Rojas managed to pitch two scoreless innings, but it was more of an adventure. Down on the farm, Riley Quick kept rolling for Fort Myers, who won thanks to another shutout performance and a timely hit from Dameury Pena. Also, Ricardo Olivar slugged a pair of homers tonight. View the full article -
Why Chris Paddack will get more chances despite 6.38 ERA
DiamondCentric posted an article in Fish On First
Fish On First LIVE discusses what has contributed to Chris Paddack's ineffective first month as a Marlin, including a few reasons for optimism. View the full article -
Chicago Cubs Minor League Report: April 21 Affiliate Overview Triple-A Iowa Cubs Series vs. Louisville Bats (Cincinnati Reds): Cubs trail 1–0 Season Record: 11–10 Double-A Knoxville Smokies Series vs. Chattanooga Lookouts (Cincinnati Reds): Lookouts lead 1–0 Season Record: 8–8 High-A South Bend Cubs Series at Dayton Dragons (Cincinnati Reds): Lead 1–0 Season Record: 9–4 Single-A Myrtle Beach Pelicans Series at Fayetetville Woodpeckers (Houston Astros): Woodpeckers lead 1–0 Season Record: 9–7 Triple-A: Iowa Cubs Season Record: 11–10 Series Opponent: Louisville Bats (13–9) Series Standing: Trail 0–1 April 21: The Iowa Cubs opened their series with the Louisville Bats with a 10-3 defeat. The Bats jumped out to a 6-0 lead after four, thanks to a five-spot in the third, and held on the rest of the way. The Cubs scored all three of their runs in the home-half of the fourth, thanks to Dylan Carlson’s (1-for-4) three-run home run, his first of the season. BJ Murray went 3-for-4, extending his hitting streak to six games. Chas McCormick also posted a multi-hit effort, going 2-for-3. Paul Campbell took the loss in the start, allowing seven runs, six earned, over 4 2/3 innings of work, striking out two. Double-A: Knoxville Smokies Season Record: 8–8 Series Opponent: Chattanooga Lookouts (13–3) Series Standing: Trail 0-1 April 21: The Knoxville Smokies were blanked in their series opener vs. the Chattanooga Lookouts, 4-0. The Lookouts scored all four of their runs in the second to claim their fifth-straight win. Andy Garriola and Karson Simas each posted two-hit nights. It was Garriola’s fourth two-hit performance in seven games. Nick Dean took the loss in the start, allowing four runs on five hits over three innings of work, picking up three strikeouts. Dawson Netz, Vince Reilly and Tyler Ras combined for six shutout innings in relief, yielding just three hits and whiffing six batters. High-A: South Bend Cubs Season Record: 9–4 Series Opponent: Dayton Dragons (9–4) Series Standing: Lead 1–0 April 21: The South Bend Cubs used a six-run rally in the ninth to earn a 16-10 shootout victory on Tuesday night. The Dragons took a 3-0 lead after two before the Cubs got on the board in the third through Christian Olivo’s solo blast, his first of the year. Dayton pushed the lead to 5-1 with two more runs in the bottom-half of the frame before South Bend posted two runs in the fifth, with Kade Snell (2-for-4) and Matt Halbach (2-for-6) picking up RBI knocks. Snell would later pick up another RBI on a sacrifice fly in the seventh, capping another two-run frame that would tie the contest at 5-5. The Cubs took their first lead of the ballgame with five runs in eighth, through an RBI-groundout from Justin Stransky (0-for-4), a three-run double from Cole Mathis (1-for-6) and an RBI-single from Snell, his third of the contest. Dayton would bring the game level with four runs in the home-half of the eighth but the Cubs erupted for six runs in ninth to put the game away. Stranksy was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to give South Bend the lead and Halbech would put the contest out of reach with a three-run single to make it 16-10. Ethan Flanagan allowed one run on three hits over four innings of work, striking out four, and Ethan Bell would earn the win with two scoreless frames, allowing just one hit. Single-A: Myrtle Beach Pelicans Season Record: 9–7 Series Opponent: Fayetteville Woodpeckers (4–12) Series Standing: Trail 0–1 April 21: The Myrtle Beach Pelicans suffered a 6-2 defeat to the Fayetteville Woodpeckers to open their series on Tuesday night. The Woodpeckers took a 3-0 lead in the second and pushed their advantage to 4-0 with a run in the fourth. The Pelicans got on the board with a pair of runs in the seventh through RBI-singles from Josiah Hartshorn (2-for-5) and Michael Carico (1-for-4). Fayetteville would grab those runs right back in the home-half of the frame and would go on to earn the 6-2 win. Dominick Reid suffered the loss in the start, allowing three runs on five hits over three innings of work, picking up one strikeout. View the full article -
Welcome to the 2026 MLB Consensus Draft Board. This is the fifth version of the board, which started in 2022 as a top 30. Since then, it’s expanded to around 150 players on an annual basis, featuring at eight different team sites. So what is the Consensus Board? How is it made? How should it be used? The concept is loosely based on Arif Hasan’s NFL Consensus Board. It’s meant to be a tool for folks getting interested in the MLB Draft. As I was learning about the draft, I struggled to navigate wildly varied rankings and evaluations of players. The Consensus Board takes every major publicly available board and combines them into a consensus ranking, eliminating some of the noise and variance of an extremely challenging evaluation process. We’ve found this process to be useful in ranking players in appropriate ranges through the first five (or so) rounds of the draft. On the board, you’ll find player names, handedness, listed height and weight, age, and a write-up, walking through their strengths and weaknesses as a prospect. As we go through the cycle, these will be updated with tweaks, final college stats, and more. Every time a major outlet (Baseball America, ESPN, The Athletic, etc.) releases an updated list, the consensus ranking shifts. As such, the board is a lagging reflection of what the industry thinks of the class and its key players. The final Consensus Board will incorporate at least 10 other boards as inputs. New MLB Mock Draft Board Features There are a few important features to point out to help you navigate the board. There’s a search bar to help you find players of interest. If you click ‘expand,’ the board will focus on the writeup you are engaged with, in addition to one immediately above it and one immediately below it. Additionally, you’ll find the logo of your team next to their draft slots to help understand where they are picking. There will be a player slotted there, based on their consensus ranking. Rather than using that ranking as an indicator of who they might actually pick, it’s more useful to use it as a proxy for what caliber of talent is available at that slot. We’ll dig in deeper to team-specific mock drafts later in the cycle. The last important note is that this year, the board features ‘push’ updates. It updates automatically every hour. The board is typically updated with new write-ups five days per week, so check back regularly. At #3, The Minnesota Twins Select: Jackson Flora, RHP, UC Santa Barbara Flora pitched behind No. 2 overall pick Tyler Bremner in 2025, and returns a year later to headline the Gauchos' rotation, himself a contender to be a top-three pick. Flora has an ideal frame for a starter, standing 6-foot-5 and weighing 205 pounds, with some additional strength still to be added. After pitching primarily as a reliever as a freshman, Flora took on a starting role as a sophomore and thrived, managing a 3.15 FIP in 75 innings, while striking out close to 28% of the hitters he faced. The stuff is loud. Flora primarily relies on a fastball, slider, and changeup combination, though he does access a cutter and curveball occasionally, too. It's a high-spin fastball (up to 2,600 RPM), topping out at 100 MPH from a low release height. Flora throws two iterations of his slider, a harder version around 87 mph, and a sweeper that generates 19 inches of horizontal movement. To add to this intriguing arsenal, Flora has been an excellent strike thrower in college, walking just 5.5% of hitters in 2025. Flora has separated himself as SP1 early in the 2026 cycle. There's room for development and refinement of his pitch shapes and arsenal, but this is front-of-the-rotation arm talent and upside. At the moment, he's the type of player Twins fans can expect the team to be discussing when they're on the clock this July. Demographically, he'd be an unusual choice for this team, but then again, the front office has undergone some major changes recently. It's a whole new world. View the full article -
Three Takeaways from the New Royals Stadium Announcement
DiamondCentric posted an article in Royals Keep
On Wednesday morning, owner John Sherman and the Kansas City Royals made an important announcement about the future ballpark. Sherman had been forthright about not staying at Kauffman Stadium and the Truman Sports Complex after the lease expired in 2031. However, on Wednesday, after years of keeping things close to the chest and working with city and state officials, the Royals shared their future plans following their tenure at Kauffman. The full press conference aired around 10 a.m. and is available in its entirety on the Royals' YouTube channel. The stadium announcement took place at The American restaurant in Crown Center. There were rumblings that the Royals were looking to build a ballpark around Washington Square Park, which is right across the street from the iconic Union Station. However, a new report, based on rumors from city officials on Tuesday, stated that the stadium wouldn't be in Washington Park, sparking speculation that it would take over the Crown Center area. In the press conference, Sherman announced that the new stadium would take over the Hallmark headquarters located just south of Crown Center and east of the Liberty WWI Memorial. The Royals and the Hall family, who run Hallmark Cards, reached a deal that would allow the Royals to overtake that space, with Hallmark relocating its headquarters. The Royals' new ballpark project would preserve not just Crown Center (and allow for possible revitalization), but also keep Washington Square Park as a space for mixed-use development. Despite rumors of possibly moving to North Kansas City or to Kansas (like the Kansas City Chiefs), the Royals have committed to staying in Kansas City, Missouri, for the long term. Thus, let's take a look at three takeaways from the new Royals stadium renderings and plan, as well as the future of Kauffman Stadium. The Royals' Stadium Plan Is a Win-Win For the Team and City Listen, I know there's controversy with any stadium that takes public funds. It's definitely a lose-lose situation in many ways. If a city says no to supporting a stadium with tax dollars (or bonds), it risks losing the team to another city that's more than willing to offer those incentives. As someone who grew up in Northern California, I saw how multiple teams in Oakland were ripped away from the city because they couldn't come up with something quickly enough. Do I believe tax dollars should go to more important public resources? Absolutely. But it's no fun losing a sports team that means so much to a city and a community. I don't think the Royals were ever in danger of moving under Sherman. After all, Sherman grew up in the metro and is a lifelong Kansas Citian. That said, failure to come up with something could've perhaps encouraged him to sell, which could've left the future of the Royals in Kansas City in doubt. With this deal with the city and state of Missouri, Sherman and the Royals ownership group get what they need to build a state-of-the-art 21st-century ballpark in the heart of the city. Additionally, businesses or homes do not need to be displaced in order to make this a reality. That was the main issue with the East Crossroads plan a couple of years ago when the tax went to a vote. It wasn't necessarily the tax that was the issue; it was the plan that seemed ill-conceived and unfavorable to local businesses, especially as some would've been displaced by eminent domain. The Dodgers Stadium history in Chavez Ravine should serve as a precedent for what a team and city should NOT do to build a ballpark. Lastly, the Royals will invest to make this ballpark a reality. According to reports, the Royals will put in $2 billion in private investment for this $3 billion ballpark project. Thus, this move, on a financial front, is not just a win for the Royals in upgrading their home ballpark, but also for downtown Kansas City, giving the area the attraction that has been missing without being a total drain on public resources. The Stadium Could Make Kansas City a Hub for Baseball Fans When visiting Chicago, one common sight is many out-of-town fans arriving by train, whether it's Amtrak or the South Shore Line, to watch a Cubs game (or a White Sox game if you want to make the trek south on the L Train). The same could be said for fans in New York, Boston, or San Francisco. For many downtown stadiums, baseball is the magnet for travelers who want to visit and spend time in a metropolis. As great as Kauffman Stadium is, its remote location on the outskirts of Kansas City and Jackson County makes it one of the farthest from its respective downtown. Only the Braves and Rangers were farther away than the Royals. However, the Rangers and Braves had developments around their respective ballparks, unlike the Royals, whose ballpark is surrounded by industrial buildings and a highway. If you were visiting from out of town and you wanted to go to a baseball game? You will need a car or be prepared to pay a sizeable amount for an Uber/Lyft, especially if you are staying in the downtown Kansas City area. It's worth it for a one-time visit, but it definitely deters visitors without vehicles from going to multiple games in a series. In its proposed location? Fans can get to the ballpark on the Streetcar, whether from the UMKC area or the River Market. Furthermore, fans can take the Amtrak from out of town to Union Station and go immediately to a baseball game. Not a lot of ballparks have that luxury. That should entice baseball fans from Missouri, Nebraska, and Iowa to take the train and watch a game within walking distance of the stadium. This trend would make Kansas City not just a hub for baseball, but for visitors who want to watch baseball and experience everything Kansas City has to offer, especially downtown and along the Streetcar route. This "train trip" appeal is not limited to St. Louis for baseball fans in the Midwest. Enjoy the Tailgating at Kauffman While You Can The reality is that parking will look different at the new Crown Center stadium than at the Truman Sports Complex. That's not a bad thing. Public transportation is easier downtown. Patronizing restaurants and bars before a game is easier as well. Downtown ballparks like Oracle Park in San Francisco, Target Field in Minneapolis, Coors Field in Denver, and Busch Stadium in St. Louis offer plenty of attractions for baseball fans of all ages and interests that do not require entrance into the stadium. Many downtown Kansas City businesses will benefit from the new stadium. Furthermore, patrons will also benefit from more choices than they are used to, especially if they're willing to go a little farther on the Streetcar line. That said, some time-honored traditions will be lost for Royals fans who grew up going to baseball games at the Truman Sports Complex. Tailgating in the parking lot will be one of those traditions lost. Now, tailgating at a baseball game is a much different affair from tailgating at an NFL or College Football game. Tailgating at a football game is a no-holds-barred affair that pretty much takes a whole day and then some (it was common for many Chiefs fans to camp in their cars in a line outside the parking lot the night before a Chiefs game). It requires a plethora of food, beverages, and yard games to pass the time (and technology if you're a fantasy football fan). Conversely, tailgating at a baseball game is a much tamer affair. It's a smaller get-together that depends on the day of the week and the time of year. Yes, grills are involved, but they are Weber Smokey Joes, much smaller than the massive smokers and drums seen on a Sunday gameday outside of Arrowhead Stadium. Instead of brisket, ribs, and pulled pork, it's typically burgers and dogs. In terms of beverages, it's only 2-3 before heading into the park (unless one is a college student or a raging alcoholic), and it's a more laid-back vibe. If going to an NFL tailgate is a Frat-House kegger, an MLB tailgate, especially at Kauffman Stadium, is like a backyard BBQ on a Friday after work. Some of the appeal of those kinds of tailgates will be lost with the move to the new ballpark in 2030 or 2031 (the projected dates, as the Royals' lease with the Truman Sports Complex expires after 2031). From the renderings, gameday parking will not be in lots but on the streets and in parking garages. One can't do the current TSC tailgating experience in such environments, unfortunately. Thus, for the time being, Royals fans should enjoy their tailgating experience outside of Kauffman Stadium while they can. Because by the time the new ballpark opens by 2030 or 2031, the Kansas City baseball tailgate will have gone the way of the dodo. View the full article -
It's not just you. The Cubs' offense has been boom-or-bust this season. The offense is completely dependent on sequential hitting, which leads to some frustrating nights in front of the TV. The Cubs, who lack a reliable 40-homer hitter to anchor the lineup, rely on clusters of hits to score. They're more about depth than star power, even after making a splash by signing Alex Bregman this winter. That makes their performance with runners in scoring position even more important than it usually is. Overall, the Cubs' hitting with runners in scoring position (RISP for short) has been solid: they're 12th in the league with a .256/.346/.393 slash line. In their 15 wins, they've excelled. In their nine losses, though, yeesh: .118/.205/.147. That's uglier than looking at the Cubs pitching IL list. Of course, teams don't hit as well in losses as wins, but Chicago is the most volatile team in the league. Their batting average in losses plummets by .224, relative to their wins. By comparison, the league average is .088. The dynamic with OPS is the same, with a .661 difference (league average: .245). The Cubs aren't just streaky, they're the most boom-or-bust team in the entire league. With a lineup bereft of a legitimate superstar bat, when several players struggle, the entire offense can crater. Corner outfielders Ian Happ and Seiya Suzuki, for example, are really fighting it with RISP. Currently, they are 7-for-42 with 21 strikeouts in these situations. Michael Busch and Pete Crow-Armstrong are also scuffling to start the campaign, which cuts down the number of baserunners and makes the failures with RISP appear more stark. Any struggle in this lineup will make the offense sputter. What does this mean going forward? Probably not as much as one would think. The Cubs recently won a game 2-1 against the Mets, wherein they went 0-for-9 with RISP. With their elite defense and complementary pitching staff, they don't lack alternative ways to win games. They should be fine over the course of the remaining games, but don't be shocked if their offense cools off again for a stretch. After all, it's a reflection of how the roster is constructed. View the full article -
Ángel Zerpa's tenure with the Brewers has gotten off to a rocky start. The hard-throwing left-hander has picked up two holds and two saves in 10 appearances, but he's also blown two saves and struggled to a 5.73 ERA, 6.45 xERA, and 4.78 FIP, with as many walks (five) as strikeouts. That's not what the Brewers envisioned when they acquired Zerpa from the Kansas City Royals over the offseason in exchange for Isaac Collins and Nick Mears. They believed—and still do—that he can be a dominant high-leverage reliever near the back of their bullpen. Zerpa's results in Kansas City never quite followed his great stuff, which is headlined by a power sinker that averages just 3.2 inches of induced vertical break with 17.3 inches of arm-side run. "I think it's frustrating from our standpoint, because I think he's so much better than what he's shown so far," said pitching coordinator Jim Henderson, who specializes in working with the team's relievers. "I think that there's just so much more in there." Because he left Brewers camp to pitch for Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic, Zerpa didn't get the amount of work with Henderson, Chris Hook, and the rest of the team's pitching coaches that they would have preferred. That's left them working things out on the fly in regular-season games. The Brewers deployed Zerpa across multiple innings in three of his first seven outings, the last of which saw him surrender four runs when he returned for a second frame. His last three outings have each been one-inning engagements, as the team has reevaluated whether he's suited to handle multiple ups in an appearance. They also want to make his delivery simpler and more consistent. As the rare reliever who pitches out of the windup with the bases empty, Zerpa has more movement than usual in his delivery. Those tweaks are much easier to make in a preseason setting. "I think we would have done those things in spring training, we just kind of missed those opportunities with the Classic," Henderson said. "So now we're just trying to attack those things, the simplified things, and get it more consistent for him." While the Brewers have not gotten as far as they would have liked by now in facilitating a breakout, one of the adjustments they have made has Zerpa on the right track. At the time of the trade, it looked like they could unlock his upside by turning his slurve-like breaking ball into a harder and shorter slider that appeared more like a fastball out of his hand. They did exactly that. "He's kind of a power guy," Henderson said, "so what can you do that can power this breaking ball in front? So we kind of settled on just wanting to throw it harder, maybe even just a little bit shorter, on the tip of the plate, and just match what he does intensity-wise [with the sinker] with a good breaking ball." Because he doesn't have long fingers, all of Zerpa's pitches have lower-than-average spin rates. By trying to throw a bigger breaking ball, he was working against his capabilities. "With guys trying to make bigger sweepers, if you don't have the fingers long enough, it kind of slips out on you, and I think that's kind of what was happening to him," Henderson said. "When he tried to make it big, he wasn't able to work in front of it or work around it as much as if somebody with a little longer fingers were." Because he's no longer trying too hard to spin the ball for bigger movement, Zerpa is now throwing the slider from a lower arm angle, much closer to his sinker. His release points are now similar enough that hitters shouldn't see that slider pop out of his hand earlier than his heater, which seemed to be the case at times earlier in his career. "It's not a big focus for us, but you can definitely tell that there's a little something there that's recognizable for the hitter when you see the slot change," Henderson said. "Just trying to have these two pitches funneled together is important." Starting the sinker and slider from the same tunnel should lead to more swings and misses and chases outside the zone, two significant missing pieces that have kept Zerpa from putting everything together. Instead, his 17.3% whiff rate is nearly identical to last year, and his chase rate has decreased from 26.6% to 19.2%. That's because poor command has left those pitches in the middle of the zone, instead of where they play best at the bottom. Even with too many pitches around the belt, Zerpa is still inducing ground balls at an elite 62.2% rate. The Brewers have tailored his side work toward getting the ball down more consistently. Zerpa no longer throws flat-ground pen sessions with a standing catch partner, which creates a higher target; all of his work is with catchers on a knee or in a squat, replicating where he needs to locate in games. "It's a good sinker," Henderson said. "The results are actually still fine, even when it's elevated. Can't imagine what it's going to be when we get it to the lower third." The ingredients in Zerpa's left arm are still there. In some ways, he's closer to that breakout than he was at the end of last year. For now, though, there's still work left to get everything into place. "He pitched fantastic in the Classic," Henderson said. "I think that's always tough. You come off this high and this intensity, and then you come back down a little bit, even though it's in the big leagues, and then we ask him to go multiple [innings]. It's a lot to handle, and I just don't think we've got to the crispest version of him yet. So I'm looking forward to getting him in a consistent kind of role here and getting him going." View the full article -
The Toronto Blue Jays started their season with a three-game sweep over the Athletics. Since then, Toronto has gone 7-13, including losing five of six games to the Colorado Rockies and the Chicago White Sox, the two worst teams last season. It's not the start the team or fans had hoped for after their World Series trip last fall. There have been issues across the board that explain why the team has struggled. However, the offense has been a massive problem. Among all MLB teams, the Blue Jays rank 23rd in runs, 23rd in home runs, and 18th in OPS (following their game on April 22). Another glaring issue has been Toronto's unwillingness to be aggressive on the bases. The Blue Jays are tied for 28th in stolen bases with only eight on the season. This part of the game has not been a priority for the past four seasons, since John Schneider took over as manager, and their run total has been noticeable. In each of those four seasons, the Blue Jays ranked in the bottom half of the league in stolen bases but still finished in the top half in runs, except in 2024, their only losing season of the four. These teams relied on their above-average on-base and slugging skills to score runs and win games. Year Record Runs Scored (MLB Rank) Stolen Bases (MLB Rank) OPS (MLB Rank) 2022 92-70 775 (4th) 67 (21st) .760 (2nd) 2023 89-73 746 (14th) 99 (21st) .746 (11th) 2024 74-88 671 (23rd) 72 (27th) .702 (17th) 2025 94-68 798 (4th) 77 (28th) .760 (3rd) On the season, only five Blue Jays have a stolen base: Andrés Giménez has four, and Daulton Varsho, Ernie Clement, George Springer, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. each have one. With the team struggling to score runs this season, a philosophy change may be needed until the power numbers improve — their .695 OPS right now isn't cutting it. None of the players on the current roster, perhaps excepting Giménez, seems to have the desire to steal. Since 2022, Giménez has the highest stolen base percentage per opportunity, but it is only 2.2 percent. However, according to Baseball Savant, the Blue Jays have nine players whose sprint speeds were at or above the MLB average of 27 feet per second as recently as last season. Those players are Giménez, Varsho, Springer, Clement, Myles Straw, Addison Barger, Davis Schneider, Nathan Lukes, and Jesús Sánchez. Under the disengagement rule (affecting pick-off attempts or steps off the rubber) implemented in 2023, pitchers are allowed to attempt two disengagements per batter. If they try to pick a runner off a third time, they have to get the runner out, or else it's called a balk and the runner advances a base. This rule, along with larger bases and the pitch clock, has led to an increase in stolen base attempts across the league. So, the Blue Jays have the means to change their philosophy around stealing bases and getting runners in scoring position. Their power has been slow to get started this season, so they need to make a change to start scoring more runs. When a team has a steal threat on first base, it puts pressure on the defense. They will shift players accordingly, which opens holes, but the Blue Jays don't encounter this. Teams know the Blue Jays likely won't steal, so they can play their normal double play or shift positioning depending on the batter. With a below-average OPS, Toronto is currently on pace to finish worse than in 2024, when they finished last in the AL East. It may be the time to make some changes and increase their aggressiveness on the basepaths. View the full article -
New York Mets 2026 Top Prospects Rankings: Nos. 1-5
DiamondCentric posted an article in Grand Central Mets
The countdown is over. After reviewing the best of the New York Mets’ farm system, we now get to analyze the cream of the crop: the top five prospects. If you missed any of the prospects ranked previously, you can find them here (6-10), here (11-15), and here (16-20). Without further ado, here are the best five prospects on the Mets, as voted by our front-page writing staff. No. 5: Ryan Clifford, 1B/OF (Triple-A Syracuse) 2025 stats: .237/.356/.470, 137 wRC+, 29 HR, 7 SB, 25.6 K%, 14.7 BB% Acquired in 2023 in the Justin Verlander trade, the 22-year-old Clifford is a powerful lefty hitter with a ton of swing and miss in his game, but also some relevant power. Last year, he hit 29 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A, and finished the 2025 season with a 137 wRC+ despite a low .237 batting average. So far in 2026, Clifford has used a recent hot streak to bump his season-long numbers up to a respectable 111 wRC+ and .813 OPS. He should continue to rake in the minors, but the way his contact skills (or lack thereof) translate to MLB is in serious question. He hits the ball hard and can certainly work a walk, as last year’s 14.7 percent rate between the two upper minor levels suggests, but he will need to cut his strikeout rate to succeed. Defensively, he can cover first base and the two outfield corners, and has respectable arm strength and range for the latter, even if he’s not a Gold Glover in the making. If given an everyday role, there are 30 home runs in Clifford’s bat in the majors. Will the rest of his offensive game develop enough for him to be an above-average offensive producer at the highest level, especially when pitchers know he struggles with breaking balls down in the zone? No. 4: Jonah Tong, SP (Triple-A Syracuse) 2025 stats: 113 2/3 IP, 1.43 ERA, 1.68 FIP, 40.5 K%, 10.6 BB%, 0.92 WHIP (Minor Leagues) 18 ⅔ IP, 7.71 ERA, 4.31 FIP, 25.3 K%, 10.3 BB%, 1.77 WHIP (MLB) Perhaps you have heard or read about Tong being compared to Tim Lincecum here or there. While it’s an obvious exaggeration and he is a long shot to have such an impactful career, Tong does bear some resemblance to the former Giants ace in pitching style. Tong boasts an explosive delivery with an incredibly high arm angle, but also excellent extension. As a result, his fastball, arguably his best pitch, has that highly sought-after ride effect, with about 20 inches of induced vertical break (IVB). He complements it with a very solid changeup that he throws with a Vulcan grip, a curveball, and a slider he rarely uses. Last year, Tong was a beast in the minors, posting a 1.43 ERA with 179 strikeouts in just 113 ⅔ innings between Double-A and Triple-A. He was then promoted to the majors, perhaps rushed because of the team's circumstances, and posted a 7.71 ERA in 18 ⅔ innings, but with a much more competent 4.31 FIP. Tong is not exactly off to a hot start in Syracuse this year, with a 5.66 ERA in 20 ⅔ innings, but remains very much in the organization’s plans, as they refused to include him in the Freddy Peralta trade. If the curveball or slider can take a step forward to join the heater and the changeup in that plus (or even plus-plus) tier, he could be something special. No. 3: A.J. Ewing, OF (Double-A Binghamton) 2025 stats: .315/.401/.429, 147 wRC+, 3 HR, 70 SB, 18.6 K%, 12.1 BB% Ewing is a 21-year-old outfielder who hasn’t had a single stint of below-average offensive play in the minor leagues since being drafted in 2023. Last year, h posted a brilliant .315/.401/.429 line in 564 plate appearances between Single-A, High-A, and Double-A, with a 147 wRC+ and a whopping 70 stolen bases. After that, he went on to put up a 169 wRC+ in spring training and is off to a blistering start in Double-A, with a 166 wRC+ in 60 trips to the plate. It’s safe to say we will see him in Triple-A soon. Ewing’s swing is not designed to hit a lot of home runs because of its downward attack angle, but he does hit a lot of liners, and ground balls for a plus-plus runner aren’t the worst idea in the world. He has star potential if he can develop 15-homer power, but even five or ten per season would make him a starter with his speed-and-defense skillset. No. 2: Carson Benge, OF (MLB) 2025 stats: .281/.385/.472, 150 wRC+, 15 HR, 22 SB, 17.7 K%, 13.1 BB% We promise you, Benge is much better than this. He can do much more than posting a .136/.219/.197 line with a 25 wRC+. Keep in mind he was probably rushed to the majors and he has just 48 games of experience above Double-A: 24 in Triple-A last year, and 20 in MLB in 2026. At his best, Benge can be a 20-20 club fixture with excellent on-base skills and a high-contact profile. Last year, between High-A, Double-A, and Triple-A, he hit 15 home runs, stole 22 bases, and posted a 150 wRC+ in just 116 games. In time, Benge will be fine. He needs to make some key adjustments, such as lifting the ball more consistently and working on his timing to do some damage on fastballs, but the potential is there for him to be an All-Star. No. 1: Nolan McLean, SP (MLB) 2025 stats: 113 2/3 IP, 2.45 ERA, 3.66 FIP, 27.2 K%, 10.7 BB%, 1.13 WHIP (Minor Leagues) 48 IP, 2.06 ERA, 2.97 FIP, 30.3 K%, 8.5 BB%, 1.04 WHIP (MLB) McLean is already an ace. There, I said it. And I don’t even feel guilty about it. With 13 MLB starts between 2025 and 2026 and a pristine 2.30 ERA in 78 ⅓ innings, I’ve seen enough. Excellent fastball velocity (95.6 mph on average this year, in the 68th percentile), a six-pitch repertoire, and a bulldog demeanor on the mound are the primary elements in his profile. His pitch-movement profile is gross (in the best way), with a sweeper that generates 20+ inches of glove-side movement and a sinker with 18 inches of arm-side movement: There isn’t much to say about McLean other than the fact that he looks ready to dominate MLB hitters for years to come. Once a two-way player, the Mets did well to get him to focus on the mound exclusively, because he is already in the top tier of young pitchers in MLB. View the full article -
Fish On First staffers react to the latest Miami Marlins series and prepare you for what lies ahead. Wednesday's show was hosted by Alex Carver and featured panelists Kevin Barral, Jeremiah Geiger, Nate Karzmer and Alex Krutchik. The following topics were covered: Janson Junk pulled after only 56 pitches Jakob Marsee's best series of the season How much longer is Chris Paddack's rotation spot safe? Esteury Ruiz joining the Marlins active roster Austin Slater designated for assignment Previewing and predicting the next series against the San Francisco Giants You can find Fish Unfiltered and Fish On First LIVE on the Fish On First YouTube channel, Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever else you get your pods. Our next FOF LIVE episode will be Sunday at approximately 8:00 p.m. ET following the Marlins-Giants series finale. View the full article -
Nick Schnell's two-run walk-off homer in the 10th lifted Triple-A El Paso past Reno 13-11. Victor Lizarraga's six-strikeout, four-inning start backed Double-A San Antonio's 3-2 doubleheader-opening win on Tirso Ornelas' homer, but the Missions dropped the nightcap 2-1. High-A Fort Wayne fell 9-3 to Wisconsin. Jose Verdugo drove in two runs to cap a three-run ninth inning in Low-A Lake Elsinore's walk-off win, beating Visalia 8-7. Padres Minor-League Transactions San Antonio Missions placed LHP Luis Gutierrez on the 7-day injured list. San Diego Padres optioned RHP Lucas Giolito to Lake Elsinore Storm. Schnell's 10th-Inning Walk-Off Caps Wild Chihuahuas Win Nick Schnell hit a two-run walk-off homer in the bottom of the 10th inning as the El Paso Chihuahuas survived a furious eighth-inning rally to beat the Reno Aces 13-11. It was Schnell's second homer of the game, finishing 3-for-6. Clay Dungan went 4-for-5 with a home run and two runs scored, and Carlos Rodríguez added three hits and two RBIs from the two-hole. Nate Mondou hit a two-run home run in the sixth that pushed an El Paso lead to 11-4. Leadoff hitter Samad Taylor opened the scoring with a solo home run in the first. The Chihuahuas led 11-4 after the sixth, but the Aces scored once in the seventh and six times in the eighth. Starter Griffin Canning, making his four rehab appearance, lasted 1⅔ innings, allowing two runs on three hits with two walks and no strikeouts. Alek Jacob earned the win after 2⅓ innings of one-run ball with two strikeouts. EP_0422.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Samad Taylor 5 2 2 2 1 1 Carlos Rodríguez 6 0 3 2 0 1 Sung-Mun Song 5 1 3 1 1 0 Marcos Castañon 6 1 2 0 0 2 Nate Mondou 6 1 1 3 0 1 Jase Bowen 0 1 0 0 0 0 Nick Schnell 6 2 3 3 0 0 Mason McCoy 4 1 2 0 0 2 Clay Dungan 5 2 4 1 0 0 Anthony Vilar 2 2 0 1 3 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Griffin Canning 1 2/3 3 2 2 2 0 0 Misael Tamarez 2 1/3 2 1 1 2 3 0 Yuki Matsui 2/3 2 1 1 0 1 1 Logan Gillaspie 2 1/3 2 1 1 0 4 0 Justin Yeager 2/3 3 5 5 2 0 1 Alek Jacob (W) 2 1/3 1 1 1 0 2 1 Missions Split Doubleheader In Pair Of Tight Games Tirso Ornelas hit a two-run homer and also robbed a homer as the San Antonio Missions opened a doubleheader with a 3-2 win over the Amarillo Sod Poodles. The Missions dropped the nightcap 2-1. Kai Roberts and Ethan Salas had back-to-back doubles in the third to tie the game 1-1 and Ornelas homered in the fourth to put El Paso up 3-1. Braedon Karpathios drew two walks and stole a base. Starter Victor Lizarraga turned in a strong outing, working four innings while allowing one run on four hits with four walks and six strikeouts. Harry Gustin worked the fifth and earned the win despite allowing a run that cut the lead to 3-2. Johan Moreno went the final two innings, allowing no hits while walking one and striking out one to lock down his first save. In the second game, the Missions managed only six hits and lost despite limiting the Sod Poodles to three hits. Starter Eric Yost took the loss after working four innings, allowing one earned run on three hits with three walks and six strikeouts. Amarillo scored runs in the second and fifth innings. Leandro Cedeño led the offense with a 2-for-2 day plus a walk, and Karpathios went 2-for-3 with a double and a run scored. Carson Tucker drove in San Antonio's only run with a single to right in the bottom of the seventh that scored Karpathios. SA_0422.mp4 FIRST GAME Player AB R H RBI BB K Ethan Salas 3 0 1 1 0 0 Francisco Acuna 3 0 1 0 0 2 Romeo Sanabria 3 0 0 0 0 0 Leandro Cedeño 2 1 0 0 1 1 Tirso Ornelas 3 1 1 2 0 1 Braedon Karpathios 1 0 0 0 2 1 Ryan Jackson 3 0 1 0 0 1 Carson Tucker 3 0 0 0 0 1 Kai Roberts 2 1 1 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Victor Lizarraga 4 4 1 1 4 6 0 Harry Gustin (W) 1 2 1 1 2 1 0 Johan Moreno (S) 2 0 0 0 1 1 0 SECOND GAME Player AB R H RBI BB K Kai Murphy 4 0 0 0 0 2 Francisco Acuna 3 0 0 0 0 1 Romeo Sanabria 3 0 0 0 0 3 Leandro Cedeño 2 0 2 0 1 0 Kai Roberts 0 0 0 0 0 0 Ryan Jackson 3 0 1 0 0 0 Braedon Karpathios 3 1 2 0 0 0 Albert Fabian 3 0 0 0 0 1 Carson Tucker 3 0 1 1 0 2 Chris Sargent 2 0 0 0 0 0 Ethan Salas 1 0 0 0 0 0 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Eric Yost (L) 4 3 1 1 3 6 0 Andrew Moore 1 0 1 1 2 1 0 Andrew Dalquist 2 0 0 0 2 2 0 Rodriguez Homers But TinCaps Fall To Wisconsin The Fort Wayne TinCaps were beaten 9-3 by the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. The game ended with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning due to a medical emergency in the Timber Rattlers' dugout. Alex McCoy plated Zach Evans with an infield single in the first to give Fort Wayne an early 1-0 lead. That extended his Midwest League-leading hitting streak to 13 games, tying the club record held by Jonny Homza (2021) and Nerwilian Cedeno (2024) since Fort Wayne moved to High-A. Fort Wayne's Carlos Rodriguez delivered a solo homer, his first of the year, in the bottom of the second to cut the early deficit to 4-2. Wisconsin scored twice in the third and twice more in the fifth for an 8-2 lead. Dylan Grego knocked in Kavares Tears with a single in the seventh. Starter Isaiah Lowe took the loss after working three innings, allowing six runs (four earned) on six hits with three walks and three strikeouts. FW_0422.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Kasen Wells 4 0 1 0 0 1 Zach Evans 4 1 1 0 0 0 Lamar King Jr. 3 0 1 0 1 0 Alex McCoy 4 0 1 1 0 0 Kavares Tears 2 1 0 0 1 1 Jake Cunningham 3 0 0 0 0 1 Carlos Rodriguez 3 1 1 1 0 0 Rosman Verdugo 2 0 0 0 1 0 Dylan Grego 3 0 1 1 0 2 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Isaiah Lowe (L) 3 6 6 4 3 3 0 Clark Candiotti 2 2 2 1 0 2 0 Clay Edmondson 1 0 0 0 1 3 0 Tucker Musgrove 2/3 1 1 1 2 2 0 Braian Salazar 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 2 0 Verdugo, Storm Walk Off Visalia With 3-Run Ninth The Lake Elsinore Storm walked off the Visalia Rawhide 8-7, scoring three runs in the bottom of the ninth. Jose Verdugo delivered the walk-off two-run single, scoring Justin DeCriscio and Truitt Madonna. Trailing 7-5, The ninth-inning rally began with a Ryan Wideman walk and a DeCriscio single. Madonna singled to center to score Wideman, then pinch-hitter Bradley Frye dropped a bunt single to load the bases before Verdugo lined his walk-off knock to left. Madonna led the Storm at the plate, going 3-for-5 with two doubles, two runs scored, and an RBI. Leadoff hitter Wideman finished 2-for-4 with two doubles, two RBIs, a walk, a run scored. He had a sixth-inning two-run double that pulled Lake Elsinore within 7-5. DeCriscio added two hits, including a solo home run in the first, and reached base three times. Verdugo finished 2-for-5 with two RBIs. Starter Jesus A. Castro turned in four innings, allowing three runs (two earned) on four hits with two walks and two strikeouts. Will Koger picked up the win after a scoreless ninth in which he allowed one hit and a walk. Nick Falter was sharp in middle relief across three scoreless innings with four strikeouts. LE_2_0422.mp4 Player AB R H RBI BB K Ryan Wideman 4 1 2 2 1 1 Justin DeCriscio 4 2 2 1 0 0 Truitt Madonna 5 2 3 1 0 0 Victor Duarte 2 0 0 0 2 1 Bradley Frye 1 0 1 0 0 0 Jose Verdugo 5 0 2 2 0 0 Jorge Quintana 3 0 0 0 1 1 Luke Cantwell 3 0 0 0 1 1 Kerrington Cross 0 0 0 0 0 0 George Bilecki 3 1 0 0 1 2 Conner Westenburg 4 2 1 0 0 1 Player IP H R ER BB K HR Jesus A. Castro 4 4 3 2 2 2 1 Rordy Mejia 1 4 4 4 0 1 0 Nick Falter 3 2 0 0 0 4 0 Will Koger (W) 1 1 0 0 1 1 0 Padres Top-20 Prospect Performance Kash Mayfield: DNP Ethan Salas: 1-for-4, 2B, RBI Kruz Schoolcraft: DNP Bradgley Rodriguez: DNP Humberto Cruz: DNP Miguel Mendez: DNP Ty Harvey: DNP Jorge Quintana: 0-for-3, BB, K, SB Kale Fountain: DNP Ryan Wideman: 2-for-4, 2 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB, K Jagger Haynes: DNP Lamar King Jr.: 1-for-3, BB Romeo Sanabria: 0-for-6, 3 K Truitt Madonna: 3-for-5, 2 2B, 2 R, RBI Michael Salina: DNP Garrett Hawkins: DNP Kavares Tears: 0-for-2, R, BB, K Deivid Coronil: DNP Francis Pena: DNP Bryan Balzer: DNP EP_0422.mp4 SA_0422.mp4 FW_0422.mp4 View the full article
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As Nashville labored through another uneven night in Quinn Priester's season debut, Biloxi and Wisconsin continued to stack wins and standout performances. Will the AA and A+ squads begin to apply upward pressure on the organization? It's still early, but it's worth pondering. Transactions: Milwaukee Brewers sent RHP Quinn Priester on a rehab assignment to Nashville Sounds. Milwaukee Brewers signed free agent OF Mark Coley II to a minor league contract and assigned him to Biloxi Shuckers Nashville pre-game media notes Charlotte (White Sox) 9, Nashville 4 Box Score As always, you are encouraged to read the official round-up from the team’s site: Two Early Grand Slams by Charlotte Costs Sounds Quinn Priester’s season debut at Nashville did not go to plan on Wednesday night. Slated for three innings and 45 pitches, the righthander did not finish the first inning after tossing just 12 of 29 pitches for strikes (3BB, HBP and 2K). Peter Strzelecki came on and allowed a grand slam on his second pitch, the first of two salamis Strzelecki would allow in his 1.1 IP of work. After two innings it was 9-1 Charlotte and the Knights cruised to an easy victory. The Sounds saved some face with four runs on eight hits, all singles. Tyler Black had his third consecutive multi-hit game and also stole a base. Black has positioned himself for a call-up to the big league club as soon as this weekend. Jeferson Quero and Eddys Leonard also had multi-hit efforts in the defeat. It’s been a tough April for the Sounds’ offense overall. Through 22 games, the team ranks last in the 20-team International League in home runs (12), 19th in runs (95), and 17th in OPS (.695). Cooper Pratt (.169/.290/.186) has struggled atop the Sounds’ lineup and while Jett Williams has gotten on base (.198/.337/.272) he hasn’t yet shown himself to be an option for the Brewers’ infield either. Brock Wilken (.118/.284/.206) has also labored early on. Certainly, the peaks and valleys will even out over the season, and it’s still very early. However, with so many other highly touted prospects raking to start the season at the lower levels, it will be interesting to see how the Brewers prioritize player development. When could the roster spots of players like Ethan Murray or Freddy Zamora become vulnerable in favor of someone with more upside? Biloxi pre-game media notes Biloxi 6, Rocket City (Angels) 5 Final/10 Box Score Extra Innings Win Highlights Wild Afternoon for Shuckers Speaking of Biloxi, one such player generating buzz for a promotion — or at least inclusion on Brewers’ prospect lists — is Dylan O’Rae. O’Rae continued his assault on AA pitching and catching batteries on Wednesday, with three more hits and a Biloxi team-record five stolen bases in the Shuckers’ win. The diminutive O’Rae (.387/.494/.532) has looked absolutely locked in to start the season, reaching base in every game he’s had a plate appearance in, while setting the table for Jesus Made and Blake Burke. Jordyn Adams picked up right where he left off after yesterday’s three RBI performance, with a solo shot in the second inning to give the Shuckers the early 1-0 lead. It was the second homer in as many days for the 26 year-old right fielder, courtesy of Biloxi’s X account: Unfortunately, Raudi Rodriguez (#15 Angels prospect and MLB Pipeline’s top-rated Rocket City prospect) struck again in the third inning, homering for the second time this series as part of a two-run rally off Shuckers starter Bishop Letson that put the Trash Pandas ahead. For Letson (4IP 5H 2R 2ER 2BB 2K) there was at least some progress in the results, if not the process as he set a season-high in innings, with a season-low in runs allowed. The Shuckers tied the game in the fifth when Eduardo Garcia legged out an infield single to score Jesus Made. The inning also featured the first caught stealing of the season for slugger Blake Burke, who had been a perfect 8/8 on the season. It looked like a potential missed double steal, as Burke didn’t bother to slide into second, but Made didn’t break for home. The final few frames were a bit of a seesaw affair. Solo tallies in the 8th and 9th gave Rocket City a two-run lead heading into the bottom of the ninth, but the Shuckers’ best hitters pulled off a two-out rally. O’Rae singled up the middle, just out of Rodriquez’s reach to extend the game. Next, Made walked in front of Burke, who then smashed the game-tying double to right that handcuffed the fielder allowing both runners to score: The knock gives Burke 16 RBI in 17 games this season, good for second-best in the Southern League. Burke was stranded at second, and after Rocket City took the lead in the 10th inning, it looked like heartbreak might be in store for Biloxi. However, Adams drew a walk to put the winning run on and then Mark Coley II tapped one back to the mound that the pitcher threw away to bring in the winning two runs. Coley was only announced as a signing earlier in the day and got the walk-off celebration in his first game of the season: Additional Video: Eduardo Garcia infield single for RBI to tie the game O’Rae’s 5th SB of the game, a club record Letson strikeout to retire the side in the 3rd Tyson Hardin (0-1, 6.75 ERA) will take the mound on Thursday as the Shuckers look to take the first three games of the series. Wisconsin pre-game media notes Wisconsin 9, Fort Wayne (Padres) 3, F/8 Box Score Wednesday night’s game was called mid-action in the bottom of the 8th, due to a medical emergency in the Rattler’s dugout: (h/t to @JH Lee for providing the update in the BF MiLB forum) We hope it was precautionary and that everyone is ok. EDIT and UPDATES as of Link Report Overnight Post Time: (You may refer to our forum thread at this link, but for now, the most recent update as shown below is relatively positive): On to game action… Right-hander Ethan Dorchies (5IP 2H 2R 1ER 0BB 4K) turned in his best outing of the season on Wednesday night. Dorchies, who is very young for the level (19 all season), was able to shake off an early unearned run as a result of an Andrew Fischer throwing error. Besides a solo home run allowed, Dorchies looked to be on cruise control, needing just 64 pitches (45 strikes, 8 whiffs, 8:2 GO:FO ratio) to get through his outing. The Rattlers’ offense gave Dorchies all the offense he needed with a four-run rally in the second, and then added on two more in the third. Tayden Hall, Luis Pena and Josiah Ragsdale provided the run-scoring hits, which you can find below. Pena also turned in this diving stab and wild looking throw: Josh Adamczewski (.314/.478/.771), another player who may soon apply upward pressure in the organization, added another multi-hit day and scored three times. He’s looking better in the outfield too: Braylon Payne had two hits and stole a base. Lefty Wande Torres will take the mound on Thursday. On Friday, it will be an exciting matchup for the Rattlers’ offense versus Kash Mayfield (Padres #4 overall prospect and 25th overall pick in the 2024 draft) who has allowed just one hit in 12 IP to start the season. Additional Video: Hall RBI single Pena RBI Single Ragsdale 2-run single Eric Bitonti RBI Single Wilson pre-game media notes Delmarva (Orioles) 11, Wilson 7 Box Score Wilson Rally Falls Short at Delmarva The Wilson Warbirds dropped an 11–7 decision to the Delmarva Shorebirds on Wednesday night despite a strong late push. Wilson fell behind 7–0 through three innings before getting on the board in the fourth on Frederi Montero’s two‑run homer, his second of the season, via the Wilson X account: The Warbirds made the game tight in the seventh, erupting for four runs to pull within one at 7–6, but Delmarva answered immediately with a decisive four‑run bottom half. Montero continued to lead the offense, finishing with three hits and four RBI. Jose Anderson chipped in with a double and a run scored, while catcher Luis Corobo reached base four times (three hits and a walk) and knocked in two. Wilson added a run in the eighth but couldn’t complete the comeback, ultimately settling for the four‑run loss. Additional Video: Corobo RBI single Montero 2 RBI single Luis Lameda RBI single Enderson Mercado (3IP 6H 7R 5ER 3BB 6K) started and took the defeat for the Warbirds. RHP Jarrette Bonet (1-0, 3.18) will take the hill on Thursday. I'm interested in hearing your thoughts on how the Brewers prioritize their player development this season. Which top prospects will be the first to advance this season? What happens if its May or June and some of these players are still toiling away at Nashville? 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 -
TRANSACTIONS RHP Travis Adams transferred to AAA St. Paul on rehab RHP Raul Brito moved to the Development List. RHP Luis García signed and sent to AAA St. Paul OF/INF Ryan Kreidler optioned to AAA St. Paul LHP Connor Prielipp recalled by Twins RHP James Ellwanger placed on 60-day IL with a right elbow sprain RHP Jose Olivares returned to AA Wichita Saints Sentinel St. Paul 0, Indianapolis 12 Box Score Andrew Bash: 2 2/3 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 3 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Aaron Sabato (2-for-3, 2B) It was all bad. Baseball is a genteel game ripe for purple prose and rosy words, yet sometimes someone just gets waxed. That was the Saints’ fate on Wednesday. Starter Andrew Bash was harassed early. So was reliever Grant Hartwig. By the time Travis Adams entered for his ritual butt-kicking, the scoreboard sang for nine runs—a sour tune turned even uglier by three runs dashed onto the rehabbing righty. Only Aaron Rozek found Wednesday’s matters pleasant. The lefty tossed 2 1/3 scoreless innings. As for St. Paul’s hitters, Walker Jenkins reached base twice, a walk and his second double of the year, Aaron Sabato collected a pair of hits including his third double, and little else of note occurred. The 1984 presidential election held more drama. Part of the Saints’ struggles may be explained by their opponent: MLB’s 84th-ranked prospect, Hunter Barco. The former second-round hurler tossed five shutout innings with just 64 pitches. Wind Surge Wisdom Wichita 9, NW Arkansas 7 Box Score Ty Langenberg: 3 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 4 BB, 2 K HR: Ricardo Olivar 2 (2, 3), Kala’i Rosario (4) Multi-hit games: Hendry Mendez (2-for-3 2 2B, 2 R, RBI, BB), Kala’i Rosario (2-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI), Ricardo Olivar (2-for-4, 2 HR, 2 R, 4 RBI) The Wind Surge won a high-scoring affair on Wednesday. Good things happen when you score five runs in the first inning. Earl Weaver may have said that once. Ben Ross and Hendry Mendez drilled RBI doubles in the opening frame before Ricardo Olivar blasted a three-run homer to left-center. Three batters walked. Former seventh-overall pick, Frank Mozzicato was down big, early. Though the runs would satiate most teams, the Wind Surge continued to add on. Kala’i Rosario singled in a run in the second before smacking a two-run blast in the fifth. It’s hard to find a more non-chalant homer than this one. Olivar homered once more in the eighth. Perhaps Naturals' pitchers should have stopped throwing him strikes. NW Arkansas doesn’t claim a major top prospect. Their best player, center fielder Carson Roccaforte, reached base three times in the game. He’s their 17th-ranked prospect. Kernels Nuggets Cedar Rapids 2, Peoria 5 Box Score Dasan Hill: 4 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Marek Houston (3-for-5, 2B, R) The Kernels suffered an ordinary loss on Wednesday. Dasan Hill Nolan McLean-ed it; that is to say, he looked incredible through the game’s first three frames before unwinding in the fourth. The first third of the game? Near immaculate. The lefty racked up seven strikeouts, appearing to be the next coming of Randy Johnson, if the Big Unit had been a slender prep Texan. But, that fourth. Hill allowed four hits, the final of which a three-run shot that soiled what was once a great start. So it goes. Offensively, the Kernels signaled a tepid performance with a third-inning RBI double by Jacob McCombs before concluding their outburst with an Eduardo Tait two-bagger in the seventh; a Marek Houston single in the ninth was their final base runner of the day. Rainiel Rodriguez, the 32nd-ranked prospect in baseball, caught for the Chiefs and walked once in four plate appearances. Mussel Matters Fort Myers 2, Dunedin 0 Box Score Riley Quick: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K HR: None Multi-hit games: Dameury Pena (2-for-4, 2 RBI), Eduardo Beltre (2-for-4) The Mighty Mussels pitched a shutout on Wednesday. Riley Quick started. That no one scored is no surprise. The Blue Jays started the game with an infield single, then—perhaps in a rage spurned by such insolence—Quick retired the next batters he faced. The rage of the mighty is powerful and us mere mortals are helpless to act in its wake. Facing off against Quick was one “Berríos.” Of course, that accented “i” gives away the game: José, the former longtime Twin, started for Dunedin on a rehab assignment. The 31-year-old fired four shutout innings with five strikeouts. He also probably bought his teammates BBQ or something before the game. Once the Mighty Mussels were done struggling against a literal big leaguer, they found the runs needed to win the game. Two walks and a hit by pitch in the seventh loaded the bases. Yilber Herrera whiffed on three straight heaters. Dameury Pena did not. He smacked the first pitch he saw into right field, scoring the only two runs of the ballgame for either squad. 2025 first-rounder, JoJo Parker, played shortstop for Dunedin, singling and walking in five plate appearances. He is the 39th-best prospect in MLB according to MLB.com. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Riley Quick Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Ricardo Olivar PROSPECT SUMMARY Here’s a look at how the Twins Daily Top 20 Twins Prospects performed: #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul) - 1-3 2B, BB #3 – Emmanuel Rodriguez (St. Paul) - 1-3 2K #4 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids) - 1-5 2B, RBI, K #5 – Connor Prielipp (Twins) - 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K #6 – Dasan Hill (Cedar Rapids) - 4 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 7 K #7 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul) - 0-4 #8 – Kendry Rojas (Twins) - 2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 0 K #9 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids) - 3-5, 2B, R #11 – Riley Quick (Fort Myers) - 3 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K #13 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, 3 K #14 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers) - 1-3, BB, 2 K #16 – Hendry Mendez (Wichita) - 2-3, 2 2B, 2 R, RBI, BB #17 – Kyle DeBarge (Wichita) - 1-5, R, 2B, K #19 – Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids) - 1-4, K THURSDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Indianapolis (10:05 AM) - RHP John Klein Wichita NW Arkansas (7:05 PM) - RHP C.J. Culpepper Cedar Rapids @ Peoria (6:35 PM) - RHP Jason Doktorczyk Dunedin @ Fort Myers (6:05 PM) - RHP Matthew Dalquist View the full article -
Box Score Starting Pitcher: Connor Priellep - 4 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K (82 pitches, 52 strikes (62% strikes)) Home Runs: Byron Buxton (5) Top 3 WPA: Kendry Rojas (.12); Eric Orze (.09); Austin Martin (.05) Win Probability Chart (via FanGraphs) A New Set of Twins Connor Prielipp and Kendry Rojas gave Twins fans a little something extra to savor Wednesday night—a dual debut against the Mets, and a tantalizing taste of each player's upside. Prielipp, the 48th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft out of Alabama, has long been a high-upside arm the Twins were willing to bet on, even through injuries. After Tommy John surgery in 2021 and a UCL procedure in 2023, his return in 2024 and strong 2025 campaign between Wichita and St. Paul proved the patience was worth it, ultimately earning him a spot on the 40-man roster and his big league call-up. His first inning was no gentle introduction. Bo Bichette wasted no time, sneaking in a double to get things going, and while Prielipp settled in to grab two quick outs, Francisco Lindor singled Bichette home to put the Mets on the board first. From there, Prielipp found his groove. He worked four innings, allowing just two runs, issuing no walks, and punching out six. His stuff was lively, and he gave the team a chance to win. For a starter making their debut on the road, that's all you can ask. Rojas took over in the fifth, and proved less impressive but more successful. The Cuban native, originally signed by the Blue Jays in 2020 and acquired by Minnesota in a trade alongside Alan Roden, has battled his own injury setbacks, but his fastball averaged 97 MPH and touched 98.4. After two quick outs, things got wobbly for Rojas. He walked Mark Vientos, and on a 3-2 count, he hung a pitch that Marcus Semien bashed into the left-field corner. With the full count and two outs, Vientos was running, but he didn't get a very good jump; he's very slow; and Trevor Larnach played the ball smoothly with the bare hand on a nice carom off the wall. Larnach's throw to Brooks Lee left plenty of time for an accurate peg by Lee to Victor Caratini, and Vientos was out by a mile. It was good to see the Twins defense execute the fundamentals, and the rookie escaped his first frame in the majors unscathed—but the play also laid bare some of what's wrong in New York right now. Be it hustle or sheer athleticism, there has to be more of something in Vientos there; that should at least have been a more difficult play for the visitors. Minnesota Keeps Swinging - And Leaving Guys on Base The Twins’ bats looked a little shaky through the first two innings as they worked to chase down the Mets’ early lead, but Trevor Larnach sparked some life by getting on base and moving station to station while Minnesota’s lineup began chipping away at New York’s pitching. That pressure paid off when Victor Caratini lifted a sacrifice fly to bring Larnach home and knot things up at 1-1. In the sixth, the Twins finally struck again. They'd fallen behind 2-1, but Byron Buxton hit a long, game-tying homer to left-center off Mets starter Clay Holmes. Buxton is heating up nicely after his ice-cold start, with five homers in the last week and a half. The Twins made a huge push in the eighth inning against Mets reliever Brooks Raley. Austin Martin came in for Larnach and walked; Josh Bell singled to push the go-ahead run into scoring position. While the Mets were forced into another relief pitcher change, the Twins also made another replacement. With two outs, Ryan Jeffers pinch-hit for Kody Clemens in an attempt to bring at least one of the guys home. Luke Weaver walked Jeffers, loading the bases for Luke Keaschall, but the Luke-on-Luke matchup favored the same-handed, same-named pitcher, who induced a foul popout that thwarted the rally. Twins Pitching Versus … Everyone Taylor Rogers came in to face a left-leaning pocket of the Mets lineup in the bottom of the eighth, but chaos took control of the inning, rather than Rogers or anyone else. Juan Soto led off with a single just past a diving Keaschall. With one out, however, the Twins picked him off, clearing the bases and seeming to pave the way to the end of the frame. Alas, Rogers walked young lefty batter Brett Baty, so Derek Shelton turned to Justin Topa to face Francisco Alvarez. Topa walked Alvarez, too, though, bringing Vientos to bat with the go-ahead run at second. Topa gave Vientos the revenge he probably wanted with a sinker that ran in on him and produced a weak fly ball to right. Unfortunately, Matt Wallner came nowhere near making a play on a ball that seemed catchable. With two outs, Baty had been going all the way; there was no play at the plate this time: 3-2 New York. The damage could have been much worse, though. Semien lined a ball to center that looked like it could get down to score another run, but Buxton made a tremendous, flying, diving catch on the run to take away the hit and RBI. The Twins offense had one more chance to come back and tie things up, but the Mets finally got their demons under control and Luke Weaver shut the door with ease. What’s Next? The Twins finish out the series against the Mets Thursday evening, before taking off for Tampa. They'll send Joe Ryan to the mound (2-2, 3.29 ERA), facing Christian Scott, a former top prospect pitching in the majors for the first time since Tommy John surgery ended his 2024 season. First pitch is, once again, at 6:10 PM CT. Postgame Interviews Coming soon. Bullpen Availability Chart FRI SAT SUN MON TUE WED TOT Sands 20 12 0 0 23 0 55 Morris 0 0 47 0 0 0 47 Acton 0 0 29 0 0 0 29 Banda 0 0 0 0 18 0 18 Orze 0 15 0 0 0 11 26 Rogers 0 0 8 0 0 12 20 Topa 11 10 0 0 17 17 55 Rojas 0 0 0 0 0 35 35 View the full article -
Fish On First can report that outfielder Esteury Ruiz has completed his minor league rehab assignment and will meeting the Miami Marlins in San Francisco for their upcoming series against the San Francisco Giants. According to Marlins.TV's Craig Mish, outfielder Austin Slater is being designated for assignment in a corresponding roster move. The club has not made any move official as of Wednesday evening. Less than a month ago, Slater signed a one-year free agent contract worth $1M. The Marlins valued the 33-year-old's track record against left-handed pitching. Nearly all of Slater's work came versus lefties (26 of 28 plate appearances), but he still struggled, slashing .174/.286/.174/.460 with a 40 wRC+ in 12 games played. Slater is expected to clear waivers. Due to his MLB service time, he has the right to reject an outright assignment to the minors and elect free agency. Ruiz was from the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired via trade in December. He is coming off a 2025 season where he spent most of the time in Triple-A, slashing .304/.412/.511/.923 with 16 home runs, 61 RBI, 63 stolen bases and a 137 wRC+. Those numbers should be taken with a grain of salt given he was repeating the level and played in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League. Ruiz owns a lifetime .241/.296/.343/.639 slash line across parts of four MLB seasons. Ironically, the Marlins might not have signed Slater at all if not for Ruiz going down with a left oblique strain near the end of spring training. The injury was supposed to keep him sidelined for 6-8 weeks, but as manager Clayton McCullough said on the most recent Fish Unfiltered episode, "it's been a pretty miraculous recovery." The Marlins' next game on Friday marks five weeks to the day of the injury. Similar to Slater, Ruiz will face predominantly left-handed pitching. He is also a multi-dimensional player because of his elite speed and center field experience. He should make his first start as a Marlin on Saturday when veteran lefty Robbie Ray is scheduled to start for the Giants. A Marlins 40-man spot is now open. The club could potentially go in many different directions with it, the most likely of them being promoting a non-40-man pitcher from Triple-A in the near future. Robby Snelling, who is Fish On First's No. 3 prospect, is off to a dominant start, posting a 1.89 ERA, 2.21 FIP, 14.68 K/9 and 4.26 BB/9 in 19 innings pitched. On the reliever side, Josh Ekness entered the day with a 1.00 ERA, 1.37 FIP, 15.00 K/9 and 4.00 BB/9 in five appearances before allowing three runs this afternoon. Other notable bullpen options include Jack Ralston, Zach Brzykcy and Zach McCambley. View the full article -
A few weeks into the year, we at Royals Keep wanted to take a look at how the top-20 prospects have fared to start the 2026 season. With lots of upside and intrigue among prospects, some of these guys are players you either have already seen or will see soon at Kauffman Stadium. Here’s a quick look at each member of the top-20 prospects and how they have looked to start the season. 1. Carter Jensen - C Playing his age-22 season this year, Jensen has looked pretty solid, especially at the plate. He has hit five home runs in 20 games. He’s shown very good bat speed, in the 88th percentile. One potential issue is the strikeouts, as he has struck out in 31.8% of his plate appearances this season. He’s had a solid start to the year, but where he will be most valuable is at the plate; his defense has been solid as well. Like all young players, Jensen will likely have his ups and downs, but he is set up to be a premier part of the Royals lineup for a long time. 2. Blake Mitchell - C Mitchell is playing his age-21 season, his third professional season, and is playing the early part of the year with High-A Quad Cities. He’s started off somewhat slow at the plate, but it is a small sample size, so it’s silly to get too focused on the numbers there. This will be a big year if he can show upside with the bat, or if he is more likely to take on a back-up role long term as a glove-first catcher with limited upside offensively. 3. David Shields - LHP Shields is also playing at High-A Quad Cities, where he has pitched in 3 games, throwing 11 innings and striking out 15 batters. At 19 years old, he is still a ways from making an impact at Kauffman Stadium, but he has shown the ability early in his career to hit hitters out. He threw 75.2 innings last year and will look to build off that to continue developing as a starting pitcher. 4. Kendry Chourio - RHP A member of the 2025 international signing class, Chourio is playing his age-18 season this year. He’s got higher octane raw stuff than Shields, throwing his fastball between 94-97 mph with a kick-change, curveball, and slider in his arsenal as well. He’s ahead of other 18-year-olds, starting the 2026 season at Single-A, starting three games and throwing 12.2 innings with 15 strikeouts to start the year. One very exciting thing about him in his pro career is his 0.91 WHIP, which means he isn’t giving up many hits and isn't walking many batters either. There is a lot of upside, but young players, especially pitchers, are volatile. He’s likely still a few years away from the majors, but he is a prospect that Royals fans can start dreaming on in the next few years. 5. Ben Kudrna - RHP The first prospect on this list in the upper minors, Kudrna, is starting his age-23 season with Triple-A Omaha. Unfortunately, he was moved to the injured list with right elbow discomfort after just one start and two innings pitched. Any type of arm injury for a pitcher is concerning, so they will likely be careful with Kudrna, not wanting to make the issue worse. Kudrna is getting a second opinion on his elbow before an updated timeline is released. 6. Sean Gamble - OF/2B The Royals' first-round pick from 2025, Gamble, was committed to play college at Vanderbilt before the Royals signed him away after drafting him 23rd overall. He’ll be playing his age-19 season this year, and the left-handed hitter showed up to spring with more strength than he had. While his numbers through his first handful of professional games don’t jump off the page at you, the Royals believe in his athleticism and approach as a hitter. He has upside as a base stealer and the athleticism to stick in center field long term. 7. Josh Hammond - SS The 28th overall selection in the 2025 draft, Hammond is currently a shortstop but may move to third base long term. The Royals are seeing if he can stick at shortstop before making the move. He’s playing his age-19 season in 2026, and started the year at Single-A. He’s gotten off to a hot start at the plate, playing games at both shortstop and third base. Young for the level, it will be interesting to see how he develops as a hitter and grows as a professional. 8. Ramon Ramirez - C Ramirez signed in 2023 as part of the international signing class. He started his age-20 season this year at High-A Quad Cities, with games at both catcher and designated hitter. He’s got enough raw power to hit home runs to any part of any ballpark, and some projections show upside of 20-plus home run power down the road. The organization has lots of catchers in the system, so Ramirez will be given time to develop both at the plate and defensively as well. His upside is as a bat-first catcher, which is something the Royals may have multiple players in the same ilk. 9. Drew Beam - RHP Beam is a former 3rd round selection in 2024, and pitched his first professional season in 2025 at High-A. He threw 131.2 innings over 26 starts in 2025 and will look to build off that solid first year in the organization. He has started the 2026 season with Double-A Northwest Arkansas and has thrown 12 ⅔ innings over his first two starts. He isn’t a high-strikeout pitcher, and his calling card will be his control, which will hopefully help him. He will likely move quickly if he can continue to get hitters out, even without overpowering stuff. 10. Asbel Gonzalez - CF Another member of the 2023 international signing class, Gonzalez has stood out in his first couple of years as a professional. Playing his age-20 season, he is playing at High-A and is in the process of slowly climbing the minor league ladder. Seen as an above-average center fielder, there are few doubts he can stick in center field long term. His development at the plate will be key to watch, as he has shown he can handle the fielding and baserunning, stealing six bases in his first ten games this season. If he can develop offensively, he could project as more than a defensive replacement and pinch-running option. 11. Yandel Ricardo - SS The top Cuban prospect in the 2024 international class, Ricardo, signed for $2.4 million and started his professional career looking the part. His first struggles came at Single-A, where he played 50 games and posted a .547 OPS. One thing worth remembering is that he was playing his age-18 season that year, so reaching Single-A at 18 is an accomplishment. He started this year back at Single-A. The switch-hitter is still a work in progress at the plate, but the Royals believe in him, and signs show he has untapped power if he can make better swing decisions. Like many prospects, what role he has long term will depend on how he develops at the plate. Keep an eye on him if he can start to piece things together at the plate. 12. Felix Arronde - RHP Signed in 2021 out of Cuba, Arronde is playing his age-22 season and started the year at Double-A. He posted a 2.80 ERA in 2025, with 128 ⅔ innings pitched. He has looked solid over his first few starts, but has given up more home runs this year than in previous years. He gave up nine home runs all last season and has given up four already this year. The hope is that he is just adjusting to the upper minors, and this isn’t a sign of issues to come. He’ll likely pitch most, if not all, of the year at Double-A, and the thing to keep an eye on is if he can tap more into swing and miss stuff, because the upside is most certainly there. 13. Luinder Avila - RHP Signed back in 2018 out of Venezuela, Avila has worked his way up the minor leagues and made his major league debut in 2025. He started the year at Triple-A Omaha and was then recalled to the majors, where he has thrown six innings over two appearances at the major league level. He is serving as rotation depth, but may be destined for the bullpen long term, because that is where he profiles best. 14. Daniel Vazquez - SS An international signee in 2021, Vazquez is playing his age-22 season in 2026 and has started the year at Double-A after spending most of last year at High-A. His bat development will be key to his development this year. He profiles best as a utility infielder if his bat can develop enough, as he has been solid defensively and on the bases. 15. Steven Zobac - RHP Drafted in the fourth round in 2022 out of Cal, Zobac was slowed by a knee injury in 2025, limited to just 14 starts. He was added to the 40-man roster prior to the Rule 5 draft, so the Royals believe in him enough not to leave him unprotected. His strengths are in his command, and his pitches play up due to the command being as solid as it is. He has not pitched yet in 2026, but if he can show he is past the injury, he could rise up the last few steps of the minors pretty quickly. He’ll likely start at Double-A with the potential to be in the big leagues if things go as planned. 16. Carson Roccaforte - OF Drafted in the supplemental second round in 2023, Roccaforte won the organization’s Defensive Player of the Year Award in both 2024 and 2025, which shows he has upside in centerfield long term. He showed more power in 2025, hitting 18 home runs between High-A and Double-A. He has started this year at Double-A and hit four home runs over his first 15 games, which is a sign that the power might be here to stay. If his production continues on this trajectory, the Royals could bring him up to the majors sooner rather than later. 17. Blake Wolters - RHP A former second-round pick, Wolters has had his ups and downs throughout his time in the minors. Most recently, he was slowed by shoulder weakness in 2025, limiting him to just 12 starts. He will be pitching at Single-A for the third year, but could climb a level if he shows he is healthy. Still just 21 years old, Wolters has plenty of upside, and the Royals will look to continue developing him as a starter, but a move to the bullpen is possible if the shoulder issues persist. He’s looked solid over his first few starts this year, so hopefully he will continue to develop and live up to the potential that made him an early selection just a few years ago. 18. Michael Lombardi - RHP A 2025 second-round pick, Lombardi is pitching in his first professional action this year. In 2025, he threw 42 innings and had a whopping 73 strikeouts. He’s looked very good this year, with 20 strikeouts over his first three appearances over 10.1 innings. He’ll develop as a starter, but he did pitch out of the bullpen in college, having played both centerfield and first base as well while at Tulane. Still a long way to go developmentally, there is plenty of upside and things to be excited about with Lombardi, as he is playing his age-22 season this year. 19. Warren Calcano - SS Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2025, the 18-year-old switch-hitter will likely move up out of the Dominican Summer League at some point in 2026. His fielding is ahead of his bat, which is not uncommon for young prospects. Calcano has power potential, but time will tell how much he can tap into that down the road. He is returning from a shoulder injury, so how his arm strength looks will be something to watch for this year. He’s shown good speed and has upside as a baserunner as well. 20. Frank Mozzicato - LHP A 2021 first-round pick, Mozzicato has worked his way up the minors and started the year at Double-A. He’s been a bit inconsistent in his time in the minor leagues and will look to be more consistent at Double-A after struggling after a mid-year call-up last year. His velocity has not climbed like many thought it would, but he has an above-average curveball to go along with his 90 mph fastball and 86 mph changeup. He also started throwing a cutter this past season, so it will be interesting to see how much he throws that as well. The Royals will continue to try to develop him as a starter, but there is a real View the full article -
As the best hopes for the Mets' 2026 season are currently on fire, only a fool would dismiss the importance of the return of Juan Soto. But his coming as a DH, and without an inning of rehab games, really ties the Mets hands, and suggests there are several more steps that will be needed to patch their assemblage into a consistently competitive lineup Transactions, 4/22/2026 GOING NEUTRAL COMING Demoted to Syracuse Transferred from Outfield Activated from Injured List Catchers Infielders Outfielders Hayden Senger MJ Melendez Juan Soto R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 High Level: MLB (2026) L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 High Level: MLB (2026) L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 High Level: MLB (2026) Hayden Senger exits the scene as but a phantom on the 2026 Mets — having not appeared in any of the four games since his callup. His presence was very slightly felt last night — to anyone who could feel anything besides cold, despair, and semi-ironic delight in the after-the-horses-left-the-barn performance of Austin Warren — as the Mets sent Luis Torrens up to pinch hit with confidence that they still had a backup catcher. But like much of the last dozen games, that appearance. Senger's unexpected callup does certainly speak to how much confidence the Mets have in MJ Melendez as a third-string catcher, which is apparently not much. But Soto taken over the DH slot for the time being displaces MJ (the Mets most consistent bat during this dark period), and suggests that any future work he gets will be competing with Brett Baty for time as righthanded firstbaseman — a position at which he has netted all of two innings in the majors and five more in the minors. What happens upon the return Jorge Polanco — another everyday player with a damaged lower body and positional unfamiliarity relegated to DH-ing — is a further mystery. The Mets are fighting just to survive the day. And that has been a consistenly losing fight for the last two weeks. But hey! Juan Soto, right?!! Your 2026 New York Mets Starting Pitchers Clay Holmes Nolan McLean Freddy Peralta David Peterson Kodai Senga R/R DoB: 1993-03-27 R/R DoB: 2001-07-24 R/R DoB: 2996-06-04 L/L DoB: 1995-09-03 L/R DoB: 1993-01-30 Relief Pitchers Huascar Brazobán Craig Kimbrel Sean Manaea Tobias Myers Brooks Raley Austin Warren Luke Weaver R/R DoB: 1989-10-15 R/R DoB: 32291 R/L DoB: 1992-02-01 R/R DoB: 1998-08-05 L/L DoB: 1988-06-29 R/R DoB: 1996-02-05 R/R DoB: 1993-08-21 Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders Infielders Devin Williams Francisco Alvarez Luís Torrens Brett Baty Bo Bichette Francisco Lindor MJ Melendez R/R DoB: 1994-09-21 R/R DoB: 2001-11-01 R/R DoB: 1996-05-02 L/R DoB: 1999-11-13 R/R DoB: 1998-03-05 S/R DoB: 1993-11-14 L/R DoB: 1993-11-29 Infielders Outfielders Marcus Semien Mark Vientos Carson Benge Tommy Pham Luis Robert, Jr. Juan Soto Tyrone Taylor R/R DoB: 1990-09-17 R/R DoB: 1993-12-11 L/R DoB: 2003-01-20 R/R DoB: 32210 R/R DoB: 1997-08-03 L/L DoB: 1998-10-25 R/R DoB: 34356 Also on 40-Player Roster Starting Pitchers Relief Pitchers Tylor Megill Christian Scott Jonah Tong Alex Carrillo Reed Garrett Joey Gerber Justin Hagenman R/R DoB: 1995-07-28 R/R DoB: 1999-06-15 R/R DoB: 2003-06-19 R/R DoB: 1997-06-06 R/R DoB: 1993-01-02 R/R DoB: 1997-05-03 R/R DoB: 1996-10-07 On 60-Day Injured List with torn right UCL. With Syracuse With Syracuse With Syracuse On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery and nerve relocation surgery. On 15-Day Injured List with blistered right finger. On 60 Day Injured List with fractured rib. Relief Pitchers Catchers Infielders A.J. Minter Dedniel Núñez Jonathan Pintaro Dylan Ross Hayden Senger Ronny Mauricio Jorge Polanco L/L DoB: 1993-09-02 R/R DoB: 1996-06-05 R/R DoB: 1997-11-07 R/R DoB: 2000-09-01 R/R DoB: 1997-04-03 S/R DoB: 2001-04-04 S/R DoB: 1999-11-13 With St. Lucie on Rehab Assignment On 60-Day Injured List — right UCL surgery. With Syracuse With Syracuse, on Seven-Day IL With Syracuse On 10-Day Injured List with right wrist contusion. Outfielders Nick Morabito Jared Young R/R DoB: 2003-05-07 L/R DoB: 1995-07-09 With Syracuse On 10-Day Injured List with torn left meniscus. 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 -
There's no easy way to spin the numbers, because they're as stark as they come. The Minnesota Twins currently have 36 players on their 40-man roster who were born in the United States or Puerto Rico. Even more telling, until they called up Kendry Rojas, their 26-man roster did not feature a single player born outside those areas. That's not just unusual. It's the most extreme concentration of American-born talent for any team in Major League Baseball, and it points directly to an organizational blind spot that has been years in the making. For a sport that has become increasingly global, Minnesota's lack of international presence stands out. Around the league, teams consistently rely on talent pipelines from the Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and beyond to fill out both their rosters and farm systems. The Twins, at least right now, are not doing that at the same level. When looking deeper into the roster construction, the issue becomes even clearer. The Twins do have a handful of foreign-born players on the 40-man roster, including Emmanuel Rodriguez, Gabriel Gonzalez, Rojas, and Hendry Mendez. But only Rodriguez was originally signed by the organization. The rest were acquired through trades, which undercuts the idea of a strong, homegrown international pipeline. That distinction matters. Gonzalez arrived in the Jorge Polanco deal. Rojas came over in a swap involving Louis Varland. Mendez was part of the return for Harrison Bader. The Twins are finding international talent, but they're not developing enough of it themselves. Beyond Rodriguez, the cupboard is not exactly overflowing with elite international prospects close to the majors. Eduardo Tait is the next notable name, and is the only foreign-born player on Twins Daily’s top 20 prospects list who is not already on the 40-man roster. He joined the system in last summer’s deal involving Jhoan Duran, reinforcing the same pattern. There are, however, signs of life in the lower levels. Adrian Bohorquez turned heads with a dominant stretch run last season, posting a 2.47 ERA and holding opponents to a .185 average after July 1. His ability to miss bats stands out, backed by a strong strikeout profile that suggests legitimate upside if his development continues on this path. Similarly, Santiago Castellanos made an immediate impression in the Dominican Summer League. His 2.79 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, and eye-catching strikeout rate over a limited sample created early buzz—the kind the organization has not consistently generated from its international classes in recent years. Another intriguing addition is Enrique Jimenez, who was once a top-50 international prospect and came over from Detroit in the trade involving Chris Paddack. Jimenez responded with a .982 OPS in a brief stint after joining the organization, offering a glimpse of what a higher-ceiling international bat could look like in this system. Still, those names represent projection more than certainty. The Twins’ recent international signing classes, including players like Daiber De Los Santos, Eduardo Beltre, Victor Leal Jr., Santiago Leon, Haritzon Castillo, and Teilon Serrano, are filled with lottery tickets rather than near-term impact players. That's par for the course for international markets, but the Twins have lacked the volume of hits needed to balance that risk. Part of the explanation lies in organizational change. In 2024, longtime international scouting leader Fred Guerrero departed after nearly two decades with the club. Minnesota brought in Roman Barinas from the Los Angeles Dodgers and shifted oversight to assistant general manager Daniel Adler, while also adding Kevin Goldstein as a special assistant following his time with the Houston Astros. Those are meaningful changes, but they come with a built-in delay. International prospects are often signed at 16 years old, and development timelines can stretch six or more years before a player is ready to impact the major-league roster. Even Rodriguez, one of the system’s success stories, signed back in 2019 and is only now knocking on the door of the majors after navigating multiple injuries. That timeline explains the current roster imbalance. It's both understandable and (nonetheless) concerning. The Twins may very well be in the early stages of correcting their international approach, but the major-league roster is a snapshot of what came before. Right now, that snapshot reveals an organization that has not produced enough international talent internally to keep pace with the rest of the league. The hope is that the next wave changes that narrative. Prospects like Bohorquez, Castellanos, and Jimenez offer reasons for optimism, while the revamped scouting infrastructure could yield stronger classes moving forward. But until those players develop into legitimate major-league contributors, the Twins will continue to feel the effects of a system that has lagged behind in one of baseball’s most important talent pipelines. The current roster didn't blink into existence overnight. It reflects past strategy, past results, and a gap the organization is still working to close. The club's failures over the last two seasons can be partially traced to this shortcoming. Hopefully, this and future years will be defined by the way the team addresses it. Should fans be concerned with the lack of international players on the Twins’ roster? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View the full article -
Have you seen the new Peacock show "The Miniature Wife"? Yeah, me neither. It's baseball season. The NBA playoffs are here. My nephew played the lead in his high school's production of Anastasia last weekend, and I have a new niece and a new nephew to fawn over, and I really should clean out the garden beds now that it's finally warming up. And did I mention that it's baseball season? There's a lot going on! I feel a little (no pun intended) (ok, pun intended, don't pretend you didn't see that one coming) like I've seen the show, though, because I've been watching so much of this season's baseball. Elizabeth Banks plays a shrunken person in the show, but if she were a strike zone instead of a wife, the show would be exactly like an MLB game in 2026. I assume so, at least. You know what? Actually, I don't know enough about the show to make any further meaningful assumptions. Let's all agree to binge "The Miniature Wife" together in November. Until then, it's time to focus on The Miniature Strike Zone. This season brought the implementation of the ABS challenge system, and with it has come a smaller strike zone. The change actually began in 2025, when the league informed umpires they would be evaluated based on a smaller margin for error in advance of the onset of the computerized zone. Tightening tolerances at the edges and corners created a slightly smaller zone. This year, with the zone still called by humans but now actually, tangibly reinforced by computers, the effect has run in the same direction, but even more markedly. For several years, now, the league has trended toward filling up the strike zone more. Fastballs are harder and livelier than ever; pitchers have better command of their non-fastballs than ever; and fielders are better-positioned than ever. You have to pitch more carefully, because hitters are also more powerful and more focused on hitting for power than ever, but on balance, the league has found the incentives favor throwing more pitches in the zone, so that's what they've been doing. This year, that trend has been stopped cold. It's not that the league has stopped trying to fill up the zone, though. It's that the zone itself has gotten smaller. Hitters have noticed, too. The league's average swing rate is down. Twice as many batters have substantially reduced their swing rate so far this year (at least two percentage points lower than last year, with a qualifying number of plate appearances in each campaign) as have substantially increased it. Dansby Swanson isn't just participating in that trend; he's one of the foremost drivers of it. In fact, only two batters (Ceddanne Rafaela and Royce Lewis) have lowered their swing rates more than Swanson has in 2026. Last year, he swung at 50.3% of the pitches he saw. This spring, that number is down to 38.6%. He's being radically patient, in response to the shrinking of a zone he already understood well, but couldn't always cover. Though umpires aren't perfect (and neither batters nor catchers challenge often enough to make them so by correcting their mistakes), theoretically, the top of Swanson's strike zone now is about 38.52 inches above the ground. (I say "about", here, not because two places after the decimal is too few to have the precision right, but because we only have Swanson's reported height of 6 feet to work with; the league has his height down to the millimeter.) The bottom of his zone is now roughly 19.44 inches above the ground. The first thing you should notice is that that's only 19 inches from high to low. Traditionally, we've thought about the strike zone as being taller than that, even for batters around Swanson's height. When you picture the zone in your head, you probably think of a rectangle taller than it is wide, by a noticeable margin. Well, it's now more like a square. Because any pitch that touches even the edge of the zone is called a strike if challenged, we can say that Swanson's zone is now basically 22.8 inches (the 17-inch width of home plate, plus the diameter of a baseball on each side) by 24.9 inches (19.1 inches, or a hair less, plus the same ball's width high and low). That's a lot like a square. It leaves Swanson needing to cover as much as he always has from east to west, but less from north to south. He's taking full advantage of that, too. I looked at pitches in each of the zones about two balls' width wide along the top and bottom of Swanson's newly concretized zone, and at the pitches in between those railings. Swanson is swinging less in each of the three locales, but especially down at the bottom of the zone—and he's benefiting from the new shape of his zone, especially at the top. 2025 Pitch Height Swing Rate Swings RV/100 Take Rate Takes RV/100 1.4-1.9 ft. 48.0 -5.8 52.0 1.2 1.9-3.4 ft. 64.1 -1.3 35.9 -0.2 3.4-3.9 ft. 63.8 -1.7 36.2 0.0 2026 Pitch Height Swing Rate Swings RV/100 Take Rate Takes RV/100 1.4-1.9 ft. 25.7 0.0 74.3 1.0 1.9-3.4 ft. 54.1 -2.2 45.9 1.1 3.4-3.9 ft. 50.0 -13.6 50.0 2.6 At his best, Swanson is a guy who wants to see the ball up and attack it there. He has a relatively steep swing for a high-ball hitter, with plenty of tilt in his bat path and a combination of contact point and attack angle that says he's always trying to launch the ball. He's a low-average, high-power hitter. However, he often gets himself in trouble because (in the process of trying to see the ball up) he chases too many pitches above the zone. His zone now stops much lower than it used to, which makes it easier for him to be more selective up there, even as he maintains the aggressive mindset of seeing it up to make the high-value contact he seeks. Setting the pitches at which he didn't swing along the top of his new zone side-by-side really shows how the altered zone is making his life easier. He's gotten a handful of calls, already, on pitches up and in that would have been—were—strikes last year. That takes a lot of pressure off him, as he looks for that belt-high pitch he can belt. Along the bottom rail of the zone, it's harder to see the clear benefit in terms of extra calls, but Swanson can afford to let a few more called strikes accumulate there than he used to be able to. Not having to sweat the top of the zone makes the bottom edge of the zone less important. He's ahead in counts more often. He can be more selective, then aggressive on the pitches that enter his happy zone. I've talked to Dansby Swanson a couple of times. Based on those conversations, I don't think this is quite how he's thinking about the changes to his approach this season. Whether you conceptualize it this way or not, though, this is what's happening. Swanson doesn't have exceptionally good feel for the barrel, like teammates Nico Hoerner and Alex Bregman do. He's still going to swing and miss quite a bit, and he's never likely to run a very high BABIP. Some younger versions of him could do that, but this one can't. Instead, Swanson's upside at the plate lies in his ability to hit the ball over the wall, without losing contact with all of his other skills. He has a well-engineered power hitter's swing, even though he's a fairly fast, glove-first shortstop and has never had elite bat speed. With this change in the league's rules and the shape of the strike zone, the best version of Swanson can emerge. It's just not the version you might have thought would be the best form of him. Right now, Swanson is batting .187/.337/.400. He probably won't finish the season with such an extreme-looking line, but yes: Dansby Swanson really is a little bit like Rob Deer and Carlos Peña. Those guys swung for the fences, and they knew they would strike out a lot. By also walking a lot, though, they kept themselves viable even when the ball wasn't clearing the fences. When it did, they became star-caliber sluggers. A smaller zone means Swanson can focus that unique swing on pitches in a smaller space, and he's been very smart about doing so. If he continues to, he can still produce the 25-homer power that first made him a star in Atlanta, and he can walk enough to be a plus OBP guy, too. It might come with an ugly batting average, because the called strikes and the whiffs will add up to a rising strikeout rate, but that might be the best version of this late-career Swanson. I'm not sure we want ABS to turn many players into peak Rob Deer. It might be a sign of something troubling, just as "The Miniature Wife" leaves me with an inarticulable unease. There might need to be tweaks to this new, robot-influenced zone. For now, though, it's allowed Swanson to draw 18 walks and hit 5 homers in just 23 games. Well-utilized by a savvy veteran, the system is turning out to be a boon to the patient power hitter. View the full article -
When the Boston Red Sox signed Ranger Suárez over the offseason, the plan was simple: pair him alongside Garrett Crochet to form one of the strongest one-two punches in all of baseball. After failing to acquire a true number two at the trade deadline, the Red Sox managed to get their guy in Suárez. However, things did not go as planned right out of the gates. Making three starts in spring training, Suárez only lasted nine innings while allowing 11 runs on 14 hits, three of them being home runs. While it was a batch of exhibition contests and you can’t put too much stock into those numbers, it worried fans. The last time the team spent big on a free-agent pitcher, they had to use Mookie Betts to offload the contract. The last thing anyone wanted was for Suárez to be a bust. Then came the news that, due to the World Baseball Classic, Suárez was lagging behind and continuing to ramp. For your new $130 million pitcher, that wasn’t ideal. How his season debut against the Houston Astros went was even less ideal. Failing to get out of the fifth inning, Suárez allowed four runs on a walk and seven hits including two home runs. His pitches lacked their usual sharpness, as the left-hander allowed seven hard-hit balls into play and struggled to get coax batters into chasing outside the zone. His second start against San Diego may have been worse. Given a 4-0 lead heading entering the fourth inning, Suárez promptly surrendered it, allowing four earned on six hits and two walks in four-plus innings. Not what you wanted from the man who was supposed to be your number two starter. His plan of attack appeared to change completely as well. Whereas in his first start he relied heavily on his cutter, against the Padres he led with his changeup. And yet, just like against Houston, he was pummeled, allowing seven hard-hit balls to a middling lineup. After two rough starts, people wondered if Suárez was entering his decline phase. A 30-year-old with subpar velocity is hardly working with a big margin for error; perhaps the Red Sox had simply bought in at the wrong time. Fortunately, Suárez managed to squash those qualms the next time out. Pitching in St. Louis, Suárez dominated a better-than-expected Cardinals team. With six shutout innings, Suárez kept the Redbirds at bay until the offense finally woke up. Much like his first two starts, his pitch usage changed against the Cardinals as well. This time the sinker was his go-to pitch, tossing it a whopping 46% of the time. For comparison, he had thrown it just 16% of the time in his previous outing. The pitch worked, generating a chase rate of 35% by itself and only allowing two hard-hit balls. Batters were just 1-for-9 against the pitch, and it allowed him to use the rest of his repertoire to keep opposing batters off balance. But it wasn’t until his latest start where Suárez truly showed what he can do. Finding himself in a pitcher’s duel with Casey Mize of the Detroit Tigers, Suárez out-pitched the former No. 1 overall pick by tossing eight shutout innings. He really set the tone in the first inning, as he allowed two hits and had a runner on third base. Once he settled down and got out of it, the game was on. Following the first inning, the Tigers only had one more baserunner via a walk in the fourth inning; after that, Detroit would not have another batter reach base until after Suárez left. Saying it was a dominant performance would be an understatement, as Suárez yet again continued to hold the opponent down while giving his team plenty of attempts to score. The story behind that start was the same as the others: a change in pitch usage. Suárez relied on a mix of his sinker and changeup, using the two pitches 28% and 27% of the time, respectively. The two pitches worked well, as opponents hit just 1-for-12 against them while whiffing 32% of the time they swung. As someone who has never won with velocity or elite stuff, Suárez will continue to tinker with his game plan depending on the opponent. Should he continue to pitch as he did against St. Louis and Detroit, the rotation will be in good hands until it can get back to full strength. The Red Sox were missing someone like Suárez last season when injuries struck the rotation, and the team was forced to rely on rookies to help get them into the playoffs. Now, the team has a veteran with ample experience to help guide the pitching staff through this treacherous stretch. View the full article -
Edward Cabrera's Cubs Legacy Is Only Getting Started
DiamondCentric posted an article in North Side Baseball
A filthy, lockdown starting pitcher changes the fortunes and the perception of a Major League Baseball team. He can make a fringe club competitive and a contender close to unstoppable. Look no further than the likes of the back-to-back American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, Paul Skenes, or even Garrett Crochet for proof of this concept. The Chicago Cubs' lethal new starter, Edward Cabrera, with his poised control and nasty arsenal, is the next in this line of game-changing starting pitchers. Lucky for us, he plays on the North Side of Chicago. Winding the clock back to March 30 against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, Cabrera toed the rubber for the first time in the squad's iconic blue pinstripes. Right out of the gate, he looked the part of everything this franchise wanted when they signed him in the offseason. With a virtually unhittable changeup that touches the mid-90s, Cabrera burst onto the Wrigleyville scene, going six innings, allowing one hit, striking out five, and issuing just one free pass. In his second start, the first of a traditional doubleheader at Progressive Field opposite the Cleveland Guardians, Cabrera went another 5 2/3 innings. Though he didn't exactly pound the strike zone in this outing, he once again allowed only one hit in a 1-0 victory for this ball club. Nothing comes easy for the opposition when he's scheduled to start, and the team's adversaries are already keenly aware of that. In the early going, the Chicago Cubs were a ball club that appeared trapped in a perpetual search for offensive production. While at the time present, they seem to have orchestrated a bit of a rhythm, the lineup's shortcomings often left the starter with little to no margin for error, called upon from the outset to be a hero. Approaching his fifth start with the Chicago Cubs, Edward Cabrera's steady performances have not only kept his club moving in the right direction, but also helped buy some time for this offense to come around. Frontline pitchers like Shota Imanaga and Matthew Boyd hold down the front end of this rotation. Cabrera may not have attained that status yet, but what he has done is serve as the stabilizer for this rotation and this team. He's a pitcher that each opponent must plan for, knowing that the 28-year-old hurler has what it takes to greatly limit their scoring opportunities. Call it fortuitous, or call it opportunistic, but after kicking the tires on Cabrera a year ago, the Cubs finally swallowed their medicine and paid the hefty price of his services. As the season nears the completion of its first full month, the former Marlin has been more than worth it. The buzz around him at first centered around his ability to make batters swing and miss. With seventeen punchouts tallied thus far, he's done just that. Cabrera mows down batters because he often frustrates them. When the opposing lineup does, in fact, make contact, it hasn't yielded the best results. According to Baseball Savant, Cubs' opponents are whiffing with incredible frequency when facing the right-hander, swinging through more than 27% of their hacks. You might not know it yet, but Edward Cabrera is the next big thing at Wrigley Field. He might not have arrived in town with the type of "brand-name" recognition other have, but what he possesses is the same: talent, confidence, and untapped potential. He's armed Tommy Hottovy and his staff with an exciting young competitor who embodies everything it means to be a Chicago Cub. View the full article -
Cubs Activate Opening Day Starter Matthew Boyd From IL
DiamondCentric posted an article in North Side Baseball
Already on a roll, the Chicago Cubs now have their best pitcher back on the roster. Left-hander Matthew Boyd was activated from the 15-day injured list Wednesday in time to start against the Philadelphia Phillies. Left-handed reliever Luke Little was optioned to Triple-A Iowa. The Cubs have won seven in a row. Boyd, the Cubs' Opening Day starter, went on the IL April 6 with a strained left biceps after making two starts. He has a 6.75 ERA in 9⅓ innings with three walks and 17 strikeouts. Boyd had one rehab appearance at Iowa, setting him up for Wednesday's return. Despite a slew of injuries, including Tommy John surgery for right-hander Cade Horton, starting pitching has been a recent strength. Now, that rotation gets even better with Boyd's return. The Cubs are also waiting for left-hander Justin Steele to come back from his UCL revision surgery. He is expected to return sometime before the All-Star break. Little was called up April 14, but made only one appearance, allowing a run in one inning on April 15 in an 11-2 win over the Phillies. View the full article -
Juan Soto Activated By Mets, Playing DH In First Game Back
DiamondCentric posted an article in Grand Central Mets
Juan Soto is back. And it couldn't come at a better time. The New York Mets, mired in a 12-game losing streak, activated their superstar left fielder from the 10-day injured list Wednesday and optioned third-string catcher Hayden Senger to Triple-A Syracuse. Soto injured his right calf April 3 and went on the IL three days later. Since Soto's injury, things have turned ugly for the Mets. They enter Wednesday's game against the Minnesota Twins with the worst record in the National League at 7-16, thanks to a 12-game skid that hit a new level Tuesday in a 5-3 loss to the Twins as closer Devin Williams entered a tie game and gave up two runs without recording an out. Soto has missed a total of 15 games. He is in Wednesday's lineup as the No. 2 hitter as the designated hitter. The left-handed hitter was slashing .355/.412/.516 and had hit safely in all eight games at the time of the injury. Senger was called up Saturday, but did not appear in a game. View the full article
