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The fastest player in the league hit a sharp one-hopper, almost perfectly placed. With a runner going and Nico Hoerner breaking toward second base to cover a potential throw Tuesday night, Chandler Simpson hit behind the runner. It was still (more or less) up the middle, but Hoerner was moving away from the play. He changed direction gorgeously and speared the ball cleanly on a dive. However, his internal clock got overwound, as he processed the way he'd had to arrest his own momentum and the fact that Simpson gets up the line better than almost anyone else in the league. He rushed and bobbled the exchange, and wasn't able to get the out. It's too bad. He had time, after all, but no way to know that. That play is notable in only one way, really: It's the only hit Javier Assad gave up on Tuesday night. In his first start in the stead of injured Cubs ace Cade Horton, Assad got 17 outs, issued two walks and allowed Simpson to collect that one infield single. With slightly better luck—or if the Cubs had played things more traditionally, with Dansby Swanson covering second with a left-handed batter at the plate—he could easily have gotten through at least six innings without giving up a knock. That's how good he was. Assad only struck out three Rays batters, and the Rays are a team prone to a fair number of whiffs, so don't get ahead of yourself. However, in addition to showing great command of his sinker and feeling out the whole seven-pitch mix that makes him effective in multiple roles, Assad broke out something especially intriguing Tuesday night: a better changeup. Though I can't fully confirm this, it sure looks like Assad has gone to more of a kick-change, after being a standard-issue circle-change guy in the past. The pitch has about two inches more depth than it did in the past, despite being slightly firmer. He throws it with similar initial spin to his fastball, but it deflects more than it used to from that flight plan. This wasn't an anomaly born of pitching in the dome at Tropicana Field, either. He's shown this pitch and its movement profile all spring, including during his stint with Triple-A Iowa. He just got a chance to put it on full display Tuesday. TUFYS05fWGw0TUFRPT1fQVFGUlhBQldWQVFBWGxzTEJ3QUhWMUpUQUFBSEJRSUFWbEFDQUFvRVYxWlFWQXRW.mp4 A changeup that good would be a difference-maker for Assad. He's an adroit, fascinating pitcher who manages contact by surprising opposing batters constantly, but he's never really had an out pitch against hitters on either side. If the changeup can develop into that caliber of a weapon—especially given the way he leans on a sinker, which isn't a pitch you want to feature too heavily against opposite-handed batters. A changeup with enough separation from the sinker to miss bats would be huge for him; it could make his mysterious brand of success more conventional and sustainable. Though Statcast erroneously tagged them all as cutters, Assad also showed feel for his cutter-slider slurry Tuesday. He has both of those pitches, at this point, taking a bit off to achieve more movement at sometimes and speeding it up to get in on the hands of a lefty or freeze a righty sitting on his sinker. He's become a true seven-pitch guy. His sweeper and curveball are virtually show-me pitches, forcing hitters to cover a wider velocity band and a larger hitting zone but rarely serving as out pitches. He'll try to use his sinker, cutter and four-seamer to get most of his big outs, but bringing along the changeup could turn him into a reliable mid-rotation stud. Unexpectedly, the Cubs need that kind of step forward from him pretty badly. Therefore, while it was just the first step of a long journey, Tuesday felt like movement in the right direction. View the full article

The Greenville Drive opened their season last week, with highly touted pitching prospect Juan Valera getting the call for Opening Day. The right-hander, who is currently TalkSox's fifth-ranked prospect, looked impressive in his 2026 debut in an abbreviated outing. Lasting just 3 1/3 innings, Valera put on a show with his pitching. The right-hander struck out seven, including a strikeout of the side to open the game. He also allowed two runs on two hits including a two-run home run in the third. Overall, he tossed 53 pitches with 32 of them going for strikes. Despite the limited pitch count as the Drive build up Valera's stamina, the young pitcher looked fantastic on the mound with only one major hiccup. The outing was a promising sign, as the right-hander missed significant time in 2025 due to elbow soreness. Limited to just 10 starts, Valera made just two limited starts after May and had mixed results. His season debut was not mixed, despite him not making it out of the fourth inning. The main takeaway from the start was Valera’s ability to get opposing batters to swing and miss. The young right-hander led not just the game but all of High-A with 13 whiffs thanks in part to a fastball that topped out at 99.6 mph. His secondaries also looked much sharper than in the past, playing well off his signature heater. Valera had an issue last year of throwing too many pitches and having long at-bats due to an inability to consistently locate his pitches within the strike zone. While he still needs to work on the latter, Valera only needed 53 pitches for his outing on April 2, an improvement over several of his starts in 2025. Unfortunately, Valera still suffered with location within the strike zone, a trait that also hurt him in 2025. While he could get away with some mistakes in Salem, in Greenville he was hurt when he left his fastball over the heart of the plate. With a runner on second with one out, Valera was facing the batter in a 3-1 count and attempted to get a fastball past him on the inside part of the plate. A slightly missed spot later, and Yordany De Los Santos hit it off of the apartment building in left-center field. This was his lone mistake during that Opening Day start, but he was punished for it all the same. For the most part, Valera managed to mix his pitches avoid leaving them in locations that could lead to damage, but the home run was a reminder that he's still a work in progress on the mound. Regardless of how fast he can throw it, pitching is more than just velocity, especially if he wants to stick in the rotation as he moves up the minor-league levels. Still, there's no denying just how talented Valera is and the potential laden within his right arm. Should Valera continue to put up outings like his first, there is no doubt he will be making an appearance in Double-A before the end of 2026. View the full article

“This is not our brand of baseball.” That was manager John Schneider’s message after the Blue Jays were shut out by the Chicago White Sox on Sunday, a loss that capped off a series sweep and dropped the Blue Jays to a 4-5 record. It marked the first time the team had been below .500 since May 28, 2025. A 4-5 start (now 4-6)* isn't disastrous, but it feels underwhelming after three series against the A’s, Rockies, and White Sox, especially with the latter two teams having lost 100-plus games in 2025. The concern isn't necessarily the results; it's how they’ve gotten there. Injuries have played a role, and the roster has changed, but the Blue Jays simply don't look like the team we’ve come to expect. In 2025, the Blue Jays relied on their team chemistry, elite defense all around the diamond, and their ability to put the bat on the ball and put pressure on opponents' defenses to succeed. It's a formula that worked well, leading the team into the Fall Classic. A large part of the success belongs to hitting coach David Popkins and his staff. They helped spark a resurgence from George Springer, breakout performances from Addison Barger and Daulton Varsho, and meaningful offensive contributions from the back half of their roster. They also had the Blue Jays swinging harder in the second half. A report from Eno Sarris of The Athletic noted that every Blue Jay was swinging harder in the second half of the season (aside from Andrés Giménez) and that number carried over into the postseason. Elite contact ability, combined with the intent to swing hard at hittable pitches, drove the Blue Jays’ success in 2025. Fast forward to 2026, and that identity is starting to slip. Their contact rate is stable, but take a look at how their fast-swing rate compares between the second half of 2025 and where we are in 2026: Fast-Swing Rate 2025: 29.1% 2026: 25.8% The situation only gets worse when you look at what pitches they're swinging the bat at. As a team, the Blue Jays have been swinging too much at pitches out of the zone. Their out-of-zone swing rate (per SIS) has climbed from 33.2% in the second half of 2025 to 36.5% so far in 2026. It doesn't matter how hard you swing when you're swinging at pitchers' pitches. Every Blue Jay that has had extended playing time over the past three seasons has seen their chase rate rise in 2026. Regular small-sample caveats apply, but it's not an encouraging sign, especially when it's happening across the board. Defensively, this team should be better than it was in 2025. Gone is Bo Bichette, who, according to Baseball Savant, ranked in the 4th percentile in fielding run value last season. He’s been replaced by Giménez at shortstop, who ranked in the 86th percentile in fielding run value in 2025. Ernie Clement has taken over at second, and Varsho remains in center field. The Blue Jays have won the team Gold Glove award in two of the past three seasons, and the good news is, they can do it again! Statcast's outs above average and fielding run value both have the Blue Jays ranked among the top five in the league early on. The issue is that the team is still making its fair share of errors. Fielding percentage is a flawed stat in many ways because not all errors are created equal, yet it's still worth noting that the Blue Jays have posted a .978 fielding percentage, ranking 23rd in baseball. Take Tyler Heineman, for example. He's stepped in as the Blue Jays' catcher after Alejandro Kirk left a game with a thumb injury, and made a bad throw that helped the White Sox push across a run and hand the Blue Jays another loss. The very next day, it was more of the same; the Blue Jays were down a run late, and another bad throw allowed the White Sox to add some insurance runs. The Jays couldn't catch up. Speaking of catcher defense, the Blue Jays have had their issues throwing out baserunners. In 2025, they allowed 110 stolen bases, 16th-most in baseball, right in the middle of the pack. So far in 2026, Kirk has allowed 10 baserunners to steal, while Heineman has allowed three, and Valenzuela one. Those 14 stolen bases against are the second-highest in baseball so far. Errors will happen, and just because they've happened early doesn’t mean they’ll continue. Still, that's not how the Blue Jays were built to play, and in the early part of the season, it's been costing them games. Right now, they aren’t being beaten; they're beating themselves. The good news? It's April. A slow start isn't insurmountable, and one strong week can reset everything. But if the Blue Jays want to get back on track, it starts with rediscovering their identity, controlling the zone, and swinging with intent. If that returns, so will the wins, and the Blue Jays will be back to playing their brand of baseball Stats updated before games on April 7. View the full article

Earlier this week, it was revealed that New York Mets star Juan Soto will visit the injured list for the next two to three weeks as he recovers from a low-grade calf strain suffered last Friday. Considering the wide array of potentially worse outcomes, you can firmly say that both the team and the player dodged a bullet with the diagnosis. However, that doesn’t change the fact that the Mets will be without their best hitter for a while, anywhere from a couple of weeks to close to a month depending on how the injury evolves. Simply put, there’s no replacing Soto, not even if you are the manager of the NL All-Star team. He offers a unique offensive profile that’s almost impossible to replicate. The superstar outfielder had hit ‘just’ one home run before going down with his injury, yet was off to another incredible start this year; Soto was hitting .355 with three extra-base hits, five RBI, a 164 wRC+, three walks, an six strikeouts in eight games. An Elite Performer Still Finding His Groove Soto’s power and patience numbers weren’t at their best in his first eight games, yet only 14 National League hitters had a higher wRC+ than him as of the morning of his placement on the IL. This is an offensive machine entering his prime and about to post some scary stats in 2026 and the years to come. Last year, Soto became a member of the 40-30 club after homering 43 times and stealing a career-high 38 bases, which is remarkable given his 13th percentile sprint speed. If you want to talk percentiles, however, you should take a look at his offensive profile. In 2025, the Mets outfielder and perennial MVP candidate ranked in the 98th percentile in average exit velocity, 100th percentile in xwOBA, 97th percentile in barrel rate, 97th percentile in hard-hit rate, 100th percentile in chase rate, 96th percentile in expected batting average, and 100th percentile in walk rate. And, if you follow the Mets closely, you surely remember he was being criticized in the early stages of last year’s campaign because of his ‘slow’ start, which was basically a slightly lesser version of these stats. What do all these percentiles mean? Well, the short answer is that Soto is a beast. The more elaborate response is that he is a nightmare matchup for pitchers because he combines elite contact ability, power, and plate discipline. Not even Aaron Judge or Shohei Ohtani have such an amazing combination of the three, even if their most prolific skill (power) is more noticeable in the box score than the otherworldly all-around contributions Soto offers. Soto is a cheat code because he doesn’t chase, and when he swings, he basically murders the ball. His plate discipline is so legendary that his judgment of the strike zone often conditions umpires to make their calls. A Legend In The Making That’s what the Mets offense will be missing for the next couple of weeks, a guy with a legendary eye at the plate and 245 career long balls before turning 28. A few years ago, he was already flirting with 100 MLB homers at 23 years old, when some of the top prospects in the game weren’t even in Triple-A. It takes a special talent to post a 146-wRC+ season over 494 plate appearances at 19 years old. Soto did it in 2018, and since then, he has only gotten better. This season, his Statcast profile hasn’t been all red like last year, but he only played eight games. That’s a tiny sample for some of these metrics to be stable, yet he still is in the 88th percentile in Statcast’s Batting Run Value. Give him a couple of weeks to return and a few more to find his stride, and let’s re-visit these metrics in the late summer. It's not a stretch to say he's the best pure hitter in the world. As for the Mets, they will probably have to use Brett Baty a lot, at least vs. righties. Tyrone Taylor and Jared Young, who is actually off to a strong start, will also be factors (Ronny Mauricio was called up to take his roster spot, but he won't be starting regularly). Replacing Soto, however, will require more than just a couple of reserve players doing a good job. Even the pitchers will need to step up their game for this injury not to derail New York’s first month. View the full article

There are certain matchups in baseball that begin to feel inevitable. A pitcher seems to have a hitter’s number, the results stack up, and eventually every new plate appearance feels like a rerun. For Ryan Jeffers, that reality had long existed against Tarik Skubal. Entering Tuesday night, Jeffers had stepped in against Skubal more than any other pitcher in his career. The results were lopsided, to the point of being almost unbelievable. In 25 plate appearances, Jeffers had just one hit. Yes, it left the yard, but the rest of the line told the story. Nine strikeouts. Two walks. A .043 batting average and a .294 OPS. It was dominance, plain and simple. That lone bright moment came all the way back on July 8, 2021. Skubal was still developing, Jeffers was in his sophomore season, and Minnesota scratched out five runs in a 5-3 win. Since then, nothing. Four seasons of empty at-bats against one of the best left-handed arms in the game. So when Jeffers walked to the plate Tuesday night, the context mattered. The Twins were clinging to a one-run lead. Austin Martin and Byron Buxton worked disciplined ant-bats to draw walks after Skubal had yet to walk a batter all season. Luke Keaschall smacked a single to open the scoring but the Twins were going to need more. First and second with one out. No room for error. The type of moment that can swing a game, and maybe exorcise a few demons along the way. Anatomy of an At-Bat Skubal opened with what has worked so often before. A slider darting across the zone. Swing and miss. Then a 96 mile per hour fastball painted at the top of the zone for a called strike. Just like that, 0 and 2. It looked familiar. Too familiar. But this time, the at-bat did not end there. Skubal went back to the fastball, nearly identical in location, this one at 96.4. Jeffers stayed alive, fouling it away. Another heater followed, this time a 96.8 sinker at the top of the zone. Again, Jeffers got a piece. The count still sat at 1 and 2, but the tone had shifted. Instead of overmatched, Jeffers looked stubborn. That distinction matters against pitchers like Skubal. Survival is the first step. Then came the pitch that had ended so many of these battles before. A slider on the edge of the zone, tempting, sharp, designed to finish. In years past, that is likely a swing and miss. Another strikeout. Another walk back to the dugout. Instead, Jeffers stayed through it. The swing was controlled, direct, and decisive. He drove the ball down the right field line, a 90.3 mile per hour rocket that split the defense. Both runners came around to score. Just like that, the narrative flipped. The two-run double did more than pad the lead. It shifted the game’s probability by 14.9%, pushing Minnesota to an 89.3% chance of victory. In a single swing, Jeffers turned years of frustration into one of the most impactful moments of the night. For hitters, success is often less about dramatic changes and more about subtle adjustments. A fraction longer on the fastball. A better recognition of spin. The willingness to fight off pitches instead of succumbing to them. Jeffers showed all of that in one at-bat. Maybe it was just one swing. Maybe it was just one night. But for a hitter who had spent years searching for answers against the same opponent, it felt like something more. Jeffers did not just get a hit off Skubal. He changed the script. And sometimes, that is all it takes to finally leave the past behind. What stood out about that at-bat? Did Jeffers finally solve Skubal? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View the full article

According to reporter Francys Romero, the Toronto Blue Jays recently signed Tomoya Kinjo, an international amateur free agent from Japan. The right-hander trained in the Dominican Republic and previously played in the Shikoku Island League Plus, an independent professional league in Japan. At 23 years old, Kinjo is on the older side for an international amateur signing, but Romero notes he reaches 98 mph on his fastball – that's eye-catching at any age. Indeed, according to Yakyu Cosmopolitan, Kinjo has set a goal to reach 165 kmh (103 mph), and he's documenting his progress on social media. He has already hit the 100 mph milestone in this endeavor. Obviously, there's more to pitching than velocity, but the appeal of an amateur who can already hit triple digits is just as clear. Yakyu Cosmopolitan also notes that Kinjo entered the NPB draft in both 2024 and '25 but was not selected in either year. In other words, he's not going to be a top prospect – at least not right away (and maybe not ever). He's a notable lottery ticket, but he's still a lottery ticket. Kinjo joins many new Blue Jays prospects in the international class of 2026, highlighted by catcher Juan Caricote and outfielders Michael Mesa and Aneudi Severino. Romero did not provide details about Kinjo's signing bonus. View the full article

Transactions: None Nashville Pre-game media notes Gwinnett (Braves) 4, Nashville 1 Box Score As always, you are encouraged to read the official round up from the team site: Sounds Suffer 4-1 Loss to Gwinnett The Sounds dropped the first game of their series with Gwinnett on Tuesday night, and the story was the Stripers running all over Sounds’ starter Carlos Rodriguez and catcher Jeferson Quero. Gwinnett stole a stunning 10 bases in the game, all in the first five innings. Gwinnett leadoff man Jim Jarvis accounted for four of the steals, and even Rowdy Tellez chimed in with a first inning steal, his second on the season. If you’re a glutton for punishment, or care to breakdown what went wrong, you can rewatch most of the steals here, courtesy of Gwinnett’s X account: Quero entered the game having thrown out 3/7 would-be base stealers on the young season but looked discombobulated on a few attempts. He sailed a few throws 3-4 feet wide of the bag, had one or two less than stellar exchanges, and then a couple times he had a delayed reaction with a lefty in the box. I’m not pushing the panic button on Quero yet, because Rodriguez did not do a whole lot to help, as Stripers runners were getting massive jumps on him, without many throws over. Besides getting run all over, the Sounds run prevention was good in the latter half of the game, holding Gwinnett scoreless in the final four frames and totaling 14 strikeouts on the night. Reliever Drew Rom struck out five in a row at one point: Offensively, the Sounds managed just two hits, with Jett Williams’ single in the 6th inning accounting for the lone run of the game. For just the second time all season, Luis Lara failed to reach base, as he took an 0 for 4 collar. Luke Adams wore his fourth HBP of the year. Garrett Stallings will take the mound in game two on Wednesday night. Still no Robert Gasser in the probable starting pitchers for the week yet. When and where will we see the Gas Man next? Biloxi pre-game media notes Biloxi 8, Pensacola (Marlins) 2 DeBerry's Gem Paves Way for 8-2 Home Opening Win over Blue Wahoos Box Score The results were more positive in the Southern League on Tuesday night as Biloxi dominated Pensacola with a wire-to-wire victory in the Shuckers’ home opener. Twenty-three-year-old Jaron DeBerry anchored the Shuckers run prevention with a dazzling season debut. The 2024 third round pick tossed five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and just one hit allowed to earn the win. In his final inning of work, Berry was the beneficiary of a stellar defensive play by centerfielder Dasan Brown that kept the Blue Wahoos off the board: Blake Burke got the action going in the bottom of the first with his fourth homer of the year, courtesy Biloxi’s X account: Burke has four hits in four games and they’re all solo bombs. Everyone in the Biloxi lineup got in on the action, but most of the damage came from the top of the order. Second baseman Dylan O’Rae continued his hot start to the season with a triple, three runs scored, and three steals. The Shuckers stole six bases as a team. Jesus Made drew three walks and drove in O’Rae with an RBI single to cap the scoring in the seventh. Damon Keith added two hits and knocked in three. Mark Manfredi struck out the side in the ninth inning, and has now struck out eight of nine batters faced this season. As a team, the Shuckers struck out 14 batters. Wisconsin pre-game media notes Wisconsin 6, Quad Cities (Royals) 0 Box Score Rattlers Shut Out Quad Cities It was good to see all the Timber Rattlers top prospects back in the lineup on Tuesday after Braylon Payne, Marco Dinges, and Josh Adamczewski all left the second game of Saturday’s frigid double header in Appleton. The Timber Rattlers made the most of their seven hits (six singles, one double) by going 4-for-9 with runners in scoring position on the night. Payne, Luis Pena, and Eric Bitonti all had run-scoring singles. Andrew Fischer capped the scoring with a two-run single in the seventh: On the mound, Rattlers’ 23-year-old starter Yorman Galindez was making his first professional appearance since June 2024, after missing all of 2025 recovering from elbow surgery. Galindez pitched just two scoreless innings, while striking out four, but we only saw him for 30 pitches due in part of a lengthy delay around an injury to the home plate umpire. Righty Bryalon Owens was the bulk man and earned the win in relief, striking out eight over 4+ innings. Not to be undone by Nashville and Biloxi on the night, Wisconsin managed 17 strikeouts of their own. Wilson pre-game media notes Salem (Red Sox) 10, Wilson 2 Warbirds Drop Series Opener at Salem Box Score Salem dominated from the opening bell on Tuesday night. The RidgeYaks built an early lead and blew the game open with a four‑run fourth inning and a five‑run fifth, cruising to a 10–2 win over the Wilson Warbirds in the series opener. Andrew Healy, a 2025 9th round pick out of Duke, made his professional debut on Tuesday night. Healy’s two scoreless innings were the lone bright spot for the Warbirds, who committed five errors that led to four unearned runs in the contest. Juan Ortuno now owns a modest three game hit streak to start the season. Ortuno also notched his first steal of the season. Handelfry Encarnacion added two singles to raise his average to .278 through three games. 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 IF Jorel Ortega was sent from Wichita to Fort Myers to begin a rehab assignment. He played second base and led off for the Mighty Mussels. The Wind Surge were also assigned RHP William Fleming, who the organization signed earlier in the day. SAINTS SENTINEL St. Paul 0, Toledo 1 Box Score On the mound for the Saints was right-hander Andrew Bash, who put together a solid effort in Toledo. He allowed a single to top prospect Max Clark in the bottom of the first, and after stealing second base he was brought in with an RBI single to give the Mud Hens an early 1-0 lead. But that was it against him as he retired the next nine in a row and pitched into the fifth inning. In 4 2/3 innings, Bash gave up only the single run on three hits and two walks, while punching out six. Relievers Eduardo Salazar (1 2/3 IP, 2 H, BB, K) and Zak Kent (1 2/3 IP, H, BB) finished off the final 3 1/3 scoreless innings, doing their part to give the Saints lineup a chance. Except any offense from that lineup was non-existent. Perhaps Emmanuel Rodriguez behind scratched from the lineup due to illness earlier in the day was a bad omen. The first 14 hitters of the game were retired before Ryan Kreidler drew a walk in the fifth inning for their first baserunner. Then the next eight went down before Kreidler and Kyler Fedko took back-to-back walks in the eighth. This gave them their first at-bat of the game with a runner in scoring position, but Alex Jackson and Aaron Sabato proceeded to go down swinging. With the Mud Hens no-hitter still intact Kaelen Culpepper led off the top of the ninth. He ended up called out on strikes on an overturned pitch. Walker Jenkins challenged a strike three call as the next hitter, earning a walk for his efforts. That brought up Gabriel Gonzalez, who did this: While they avoided being the victim of a no-hitter thanks to that bloop, Alan Roden and Orlando Arcia went down swinging to end the game with the 1-0 loss. As a team the Saints finished 1-for-28 with four walks and nine strikeouts. They were 0-for-4 with four strikeouts with runners in scoring position. WIND SURGE WISDOM Wichita 2, Arkansas 4 Box Score Unlike their triple-A brethren, the Wind Surge offense was ready to strike in the top of the first inning. With two outs Hendry Mendez delivered a double, and Billy Amick followed with his second homer of the season, an opposite field shot to put them up 2-0. “All I do is win-win-win” pitcher Mike Paredes got the start for Wichita and was electric for four innings. He gave up a solo home run in the second but that was basically it. Of his 12 outs, seven came via the strikeout. He threw 62 pitches, with 39 of them going for strikes (63%) including an absurd 16 swinging strikes. It looked like he was getting them on multiple pitches as well, including his fastball, slider, and changeup. Jaylen Nowlin came on for the fifth inning and delivered a scoreless frame, allowing one hit and striking out three. Alejandro Hidalgo went the next two innings after that, striking out three but surrendering two home runs that put the Travelers in front for good. Darren Bowen struck out all three hitters he faced in the eighth, giving Wichita sixteen strikeouts as a pitching staff, the third highest total in franchise history. While they weren’t in danger of a no-hitter or a shutout after the top of the first, the Wind Surge lineup did go quiet for the final eight innings. They managed just four singles and a pair of walks after Amick’s blast, finishing 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and leaving eight men on base for the game. The three, four, and five hitters Mendez (2-for-4, R, 2B, K), Amick (2-for-4, R, HR, 2 RBI, 2 K) and Ben Ross (2-for-4, SB) all had two hits while the rest of the lineup was 0-for-22. Kyle DeBarge drew a walk and stole two bases in four at-bats. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 3 Box Score The Kernels took two of three games against the Peoria Chiefs at home to kick off their season, and hit the road to face the Beloit Sky Carp this week. Shortstop Marek Houston wasted little time getting Cedar Rapids on the scoreboard, taking the second pitch of the game out to left field for his second home run of the season. Eduardo Tait followed by drawing a walk and scored their second run on a triple from Jacob McCombs three batters later. Eli Jones made his first start of the year and went the first five innings. He gave up two runs (one earned) on three hits while striking out four. He threw 69 pitches, with 46 of them going for strikes (67%) as he efficiently pounded the strike zone. He exited the game in line for a win as Cedar Rapids took a 3-1 lead in the top of the fourth thanks to a two-out rally. Jaimie Ferrer drew a walk to get it started, Houston followed with a single to move him into scoring position, and Tait brought him in with a single of his own. Christian Becerra came on to start the sixth inning and went two innings. He gave up a solo home run that gave him a blown save, but also struck out three and got the win. Paulshawn Pasqualotto finished off the final two innings to pick up his first save of the year, retiring all six hitters he faced, including a pair of strikeouts. The Kernels added the needed runs for the win in the top of the seventh on a single from Danny De Andrade. His grounder up the middle was misplayed by the center fielder, allowing Khadim Diaw and Brandon Winokur to score. They had both reached based on walks earlier in the inning. Houston (2-for-5, R, HR, RBI, K) and McCombs (2-for-5, 3B, RBI, 2 K) led the way with two hits apiece. Diaw and Winokur each scored a run and drew three walks. MUSSEL MATTERS Fort Myers 7, Jupiter 6 (10 innings) Box Score He wasn’t the first batter of the game like Marek Houston with the Kernels, but Quentin Young hit his first homer as a professional to also put the Mighty Mussels in the lead before taking the field on defense. Starting pitcher Merit Jones gave up two runs in the bottom of the first so that lead was short-lived, but he settled in from there to finish 3 2/3 total innings. He didn’t give up any other runs and allowed three hits and two walks in the outing, striking out two. Fort Myers got those two runs back in the top of the third as the rehabbing Jorel Ortega doubled with two outs, and Eduardo Beltre followed with his first home run of the season for the 3-2 lead. Ortega knocked in a run of his own with an RBI single in the fifth. The Mighty Mussels pushed their lead to 6-2 in the top of the seventh thanks to a sac fly from Byron Chourio and an RBI single from Beltre. Michael Hilker was the first reliever and pitched 1 1/3 innings after Jones' exit. He walked three but gave up no runs and struck out one. Eric Hammond added two scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one. In the middle of the eighth the weather became too much, with rain leading to a 40-minute delay. When the game resumed, reliever Brian Zeldin took over and had some issues with the mound. A solo homer, walk, wild pitch, and hit batter around multiple delays to fix the mound conditions ended his appearance before he could record an out. He was charged with three runs (two earned) and the dreaded infinite-ERA for his troubles. When play resumed again Xavier Kolhosser took over and was able to finish the long eighth frame. With his team still up 6-5 Kolhosser faced one hitter in the ninth, but gave up a single to end his outing. He would be charged with one earned run on two hits and a walk in one total inning. Mike McKenna was brought into the game and two singles later he had a blown save and the game was heading to extras tied at six. A sac fly from Ryan Sprock scored the ghost runner for Fort Myers in the top half, and McKenna retired all three hitters he faced in the bottom half to pick up the win for the good guys. The Mighty Mussels offense was led by Beltre who had three hits in five at-bats including the homer, and drove in three. Ortega finished 2-for-4 with a run scored and RBI. Young (1-for-5, 2 R, HR, RBI, 3 K) and Dameury Pena (1-for-2, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 SB) each scored two runs. TWINS DAILY MINOR LEAGUE PLAYERS OF THE DAY Pitcher of the Day – Mike Paredes, Wichita Wind Surge (4 IP, 2 H, ER, 7 K) Hitter of the Day – Eduardo Beltre, Fort Myers Mighty Mussels (3-for-5, R, HR, 3 RBI, K) PROSPECT SUMMARY Check out the Prospect Tracker for much more on our Twins Top 20 prospects after seeing how they performed on Tuesday. #1 – Walker Jenkins (St. Paul): 0-for-3, BB, K #2 – Kaelen Culpepper (St. Paul): 0-for-4, K #4 – Eduardo Tait (Cedar Rapids): 1-for-4, R, RBI, BB, K #7 – Gabriel Gonzalez (St. Paul): 1-for-4 #9 – Marek Houston (Cedar Rapids): 2-for-5, R, HR (2), RBI, K #13 – Brandon Winokur (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-2, R, 3 BB, 2 K #14 – Quentin Young (Fort Myers): 1-for-5, 2 R, HR (1), RBI, 3 K #16 – Hendry Mendez (Wichita): 2-for-4, R, 2B (1), K #17 – Kyle DeBarge (Wichita): 0-for-4, BB, 2 SB (3) #19 – Khadim Diaw (Cedar Rapids): 0-for-2, R, 3 BB, K WEDNESDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS St. Paul @ Toledo (5:35 PM CDT) - RHP Matt Bowman (0-0, 3.86 ERA) Wichita @ Arkansas (11:05 AM CDT) - RHP Ryan Gallagher (0-0, 4.15 ERA) Cedar Rapids @ Beloit (6:05 PM CDT) - RHP Brent Francisco (0-0, 2.25 ERA) Fort Myers @ Jupiter (5:30 PM CDT) - RHP Kolten Smith (0-0, 0.00 ERA) Please feel free to ask questions and discuss Tuesday’s games! 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Marlins manager Clayton McCullough speaks with the media about his controversial handling of the ninth inning in Tuesday's frustrating loss to the Cincinnati Reds.View the full article

MIAMI, FL — Sandy Alcantara took the mound in the top of the ninth inning with a 2–0 lead, aiming to become the fourth pitcher in Marlins franchise history to record back-to-back complete-game shutouts. After surrendering a double and a walk, manager Clayton McCullough made his most controversial move of the young season, removing his ace in favor of Anthony Bender. Everything unraveled for Miami from there, as both inherited runners scored to tie the game at two. In extra innings, the Reds added four more runs to secure a 6–3 victory. “(Anthony) Bender was the best person to win the game for us,” McCullough said. “Sandy (Alcantara) had certainly gone above and beyond and threw great, but the decision didn’t work out. At that time, I thought the best way to win the game was going with Anthony.” Alcantara, who has thrown 13 complete games—five of them shutouts—was coming off a complete-game shutout in his previous start. McCullough approached the mound in the ninth already set on making the change, with no discussion planned. After the game, Alcantara said he had not spoken with his manager. “I deserved to be asked how I felt before I was taken out of the game,” Alcantara said. “I saw him coming out, and even before he crossed the line, he pointed to the bullpen. Negative thoughts crossed my mind, but those are things I can’t control. Tomorrow I’ll be here preparing for my next start and hoping things go differently.” Through three starts, Alcantara has pitched into at least the seventh inning each time, but for him, it’s not about innings—it’s about pitch count. “They are just innings, not pitches,” Alcantara said in Spanish. He was at 95 pitches and set to face Sal Stewart for the fourth time, having struck him out in his previous at-bat. With runners on first and second and one out—and a 47.6% ground-ball rate—Alcantara had a strong chance to induce a game-ending double play. Still, McCullough opted not to let him face Stewart again. “There are a lot of decisions over the course of a game and a season that weigh on you,” McCullough said. “For this one not to go our way certainly doesn’t feel great. Answering for it is part of the job, and I don’t feel good about how it finished. Losing the game is what stings the most.” As McCullough walked to the mound, fans began to boo, voicing their frustration with the decision to pull the Marlins’ ace. He acknowledged the reaction afterward. “We have passionate fans, and they care. They’re very invested in us winning games,” McCullough said. “They’re certainly within their right to be displeased when things don’t go our way.” Overall, Alcantara finished the night going 8 1/3 innings pitched, allowing two runs on three hits, two walks and struck out six. His fastball topped out at 99.5 mph, which he hit in the top of the first inning. The changeup was once again his most dominant pitch, generating six whiffs and striking out four with it. His four-seam fastball, which he threw 17.1% of the time in 2025, was his most used pitch on Tuesday, and has been his second most used pitch overall. He struck out two with the four-seam and landed it nine out of ten times for a first pitch strike. "I've been doing a great job," Alcantara said. "Doing my work in the pen, trying to locate my four-seam, and today was great. Threw a lot of four-seam today for strikes from both sides." On the offensive side, the Marlins did provide early run support for Alcantara, as both Otto Lopez and Heriberto Hernandez had RBI groundouts, taking a 2-0 lead. The next time Miami scored a run came in the bottom of the tenth inning, when Graham Pauley grounded into a fielders choice, scoring Jakob Marsee, the runner at third. Miami's offense was 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position, unable to provide a bigger cushion for their ace. Marsee, who had gotten off to a slow start in 2026, finished with his first multi-hit performance of the season, highlighted by a 109.0 mph base hit, his hardest hit ball of the season. On the base paths, he also had four stolen bases, which tied a franchise record. The Marlins dropped to 6-5 on the season, now searching for a series split against the Reds. Eury Pérez, who struggled in his last start against the New York Yankees, will take the mound for Miami on Wednesday at 6:40 pm. View the full article

MIAMI, FL — Sandy Alcantara took the mound in the top of the ninth inning with a 2–0 lead, aiming to become the fourth pitcher in Marlins franchise history to record back-to-back complete-game shutouts. After surrendering a double and a walk, manager Clayton McCullough made his most controversial move of the young season, removing his ace in favor of Anthony Bender. Everything unraveled for Miami from there, as both inherited runners scored to tie the game at two. In extra innings, the Reds added four more runs to secure a 6–3 victory. “(Anthony) Bender was the best person to win the game for us,” McCullough said. “Sandy had certainly gone above and beyond and threw great, but the decision didn’t work out. At that time, I thought the best way to win the game was going with Anthony.” Alcantara, who has thrown 13 complete games—five of them shutouts—was coming off a complete-game shutout in his previous start. McCullough approached the mound in the ninth already set on making the change, with no discussion planned. After the game, Alcantara said he had not spoken with his manager. “I deserved to be asked how I felt before I was taken out of the game,” Alcantara said. “I saw him coming out, and even before he crossed the line, he pointed to the bullpen. Negative thoughts crossed my mind, but those are things I can’t control. Tomorrow I’ll be here preparing for my next start and hoping things go differently.” Through three starts, Alcantara has pitched into at least the seventh inning each time, but for him, it’s not about innings—it’s about pitch count. “They are just innings, not pitches,” Alcantara said in Spanish. He was at 95 pitches and set to face Sal Stewart for the fourth time, having struck him out in his previous at-bat. With runners on first and second and one out—and a 47.6% ground-ball rate—Alcantara had a strong chance to induce a game-ending double play. Still, McCullough opted not to let him face Stewart again. “There are a lot of decisions over the course of a game and a season that weigh on you,” McCullough said. “For this one not to go our way certainly doesn’t feel great. Answering for it is part of the job, and I don’t feel good about how it finished. Losing the game is what stings the most.” As McCullough walked to the mound, fans began to boo, voicing their frustration with the decision to pull the Marlins’ ace. He acknowledged the reaction afterward. “We have passionate fans, and they care. They’re very invested in us winning games,” McCullough said. “They’re certainly within their right to be displeased when things don’t go our way.” Overall, Alcantara finished the night going 8 ⅓ innings pitched, allowing two runs on three hits, two walks and struck out six. His fastball topped out at 99.5 mph, which he hit in the top of the first inning. The changeup was once again his most dominant pitch, generating six whiffs and striking out four with it. His four-seam fastball, which he threw 17.1% of the time in 2025, was his most used pitch on Tuesday, and has been his second most used pitch overall. He struck out two with the four-seam and landed it nine out of ten times for a first pitch strike. "I've been doing a great job," Alcantara said. "Doing my work in the pen, trying to locate my four-seam, and today was great. Threw a lot of four-seam today for strikes from both sides." On the offensive side, the Marlins did provide early run support for Alcantara, as both Otto Lopez and Heriberto Hernandez had RBI groundouts, taking a 2-0 lead. The next time Miami scored a run came in the bottom of the tenth inning, when Graham Pauley grounded into a fielders choice, scoring Jakob Marsee, the runner at third. Miami's offense was 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position, unable to provide a bigger cushion for their ace. Marsee, who had gotten off to a slow start in 2026, finished with his first multi-hit performance of the season, highlighted by a 109.0 mph base hit, his hardest hit ball of the season. On the base paths, he also had four stolen bases, which tied a franchise record. The Marlins dropped to 6-5 on the season, now searching for a series split against the Reds. Eury Pérez, who struggled in his last start against the New York Yankees, will take the mound for Miami on Wednesday at 6:40 pm. View the full article

Box Score SP: Taj Bradley 6.1 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K (104 pitches, 68 strikes (65%)) Home Runs: N/A Top 3 WPA: Bradley (0.28), Ryan Jeffers (0.17), Justin Topa (0.10) Win Probability Chart (via BaseballSavant) The Twins looked to build more Central Division momentum against the Tigers on another chilly night at Target Field. The players looked like they were facing a snowball fight, but Tarik Skubal and Taj Bradley were throwing nothing but filthy heat early on. An Ace vs. An Ace in the Hole? Both of the starting pitchers in tonight's contest began their Major League journeys via the 2018 draft. Skubal came to the Tigers in the 9th round, and emerged quickly into a quality big-league arm in 2021. He came into tonight's contest as a back-to-back Cy Young winner, who has been rewarded with the largest arbitration contract in history at $32 million. Bradley was selected higher in the 5th round of the 2018 draft by the Rays, but his rise into a consistent Major League starting role has been a longer and less successful path. While Bradley has been starting since 2023, he looks primed to enjoy his first taste of success with the Twins for an annual salary of $820,000. Skubal was drafted out of college, while Bradley was selected straight out of high school, so the 29-year old Tiger southpaw should be ahead of the 25-year old young Twins fireballer. Would tonight's game give Twins fans a glimpse of a potential ace in the hole for years to come in the Twins rotation? The first three innings saw traffic on the basepaths, with the Tigers loading the bases in the top of the second before Bradley induced a Colt Keith groundout on a nasty splitter to end the threat. Skubal allowed a Victor Caratini double with one out and struck out Matt Wallner and got Royce Lewis to flyout to end a runner at third with only one out opportunity. Again the Twins got leadoff clutter in the bottom of the third thanks to Brooks Lee and Byron Buxton singles. Austin Martin couldn't put down a bunt, and instead banged into a double play that helped end another chance at taking the lead. Middle Innings...One Ace Remains As the game progressed, the offense did not. The Twins got some more base clutter in the bottom of the fourth, but Lewis once again teased Twins fans with a warning track blast to end the inning. Javier Baez singled and found his way into scoring position in the top of the fifth, but red hot rookie Kevin McGonigle popped up a 3-0 fastball from Bradley to end that threat. The low-light of the Minnesota offense came in the first at-bat of the bottom of the fifth, when Lee bunted the first pitch he saw but forgot to hold onto his bat tightly. The ball dribbled in front of home plate, and the bat flew up and tried to remove Lee's lower incisors. But before a goose egg could land on the scoreboard as well, the Twins got patient and then finally cashed in on a RISP. Buxton and Martin worked walks off of Skubal, and Luke Keaschall stepped up to the plate like a man unhinged, and he ripped a single up the middle to plate Buxton and to put the Twins ahead 1-0. With runners still at first and second, Ryan Jeffers battled the Cy Young winner until he finally got a two-strike slider that he could handle, lacing a two-run double into the right field corner! After a Caratini strikeout, Josh Bell thought that a two-strike changeup was the pitch to hit, looping a double down the left field line to score Jeffers and to chase Skubal from the game down 4-0 without completing the fifth inning. Cy Bradley With a solid lead, and all of his pitches behaving well despite the frigid temps, Bradley cruised into the seventh inning with nine strikeouts and needing only two more to tie his career high. Taj was rudely greeted by two straight singles to start the inning, but Derek Shelton left him in to face the righty Baez and to eclipse the 100 pitch mark. Bradley rewarded his skipper with his 10th strikeout of the game, and Taylor Rogers came in to try to clean up the rest of the mess. Pinch-hitter Jamai Jones obliged with a flyout to right, but it was deep enough to advance the lead runner Torkelson to third. McGonigle showed why he's been such a tough out by lacing a single to left, to cut it to a 4-1 Twins advantage. Jeffers achieved his second strikeout challenge of the game to end the threat, and to close the books on a great start by Bradley. Will the Twins Bullpen Waste a Winning Hand? Rogers stayed in to tackle the lefty Riley Greene, and then Cole Sands was summoned to assumably end the night with five outs. The first out hit Lewis' glove at about 100 mph, but the next outs wouldn't be gotten by Sands as he lost all connection to the strike zone. After nine more pitches, there were Tigers on first and second and Eric Orze couldn't get ready fast enough. Kerry Carpenter came in to try to break the hearts of the approximately 1,824 fans in attendance, but Orze struck him out and kept the Twins in possession of a winning hand. The bottom of the eighth found the bases loaded with Twins yet again, and yet again in this fledgling season the Twins found a way to leave them there. The pressure switch turned back towards the Twins bullpen, and Orze allowed a leadoff double to Baez and another to McGonigle with one out to tighten the score up to 4-2. With the tying run now at the plate, Shelton called in Justin Topa. Topa immediately induced a Gleyber Torres groundout, but lost Riley Greene to a full count walk. Dillon Dingler represented the tying run, but a Topa sinker represented a Twins victory, as Dingler bounced out to Lee to finally secure the win for Bradley. What’s Next? The Twins look to take their first series of the season in the third game of the season Wednesday evening. Twins righty Bailey Ober (0-0, 6.75 ERA) looks to improve upon his consistent but slow start to the 2026 campaign. In two starts, Ober has gone four innings, surrendering four hits and three runs in both outings. The Tigers will counter with the rumored Twins free agent target, lefty Framber Valdez (1-0, 0.75 ERA) who has just been consistently awesome. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40pm CDT. Postgame Interviews Bullpen Usage Spreadsheet FRI SAT SUN MON TUE TOT Rogers 0 23 18 0 12 41 Orze 37 0 0 12 19 37 Topa 17 0 15 0 14 32 Banda 17 15 0 17 0 32 Sands 0 0 21 0 12 21 Laweryson 10 9 0 14 0 19 Funderburk 2 0 3 20 0 5 Acton 0 0 0 0 0 0 View the full article

The Minnesota Twins community is mourning the loss of a member of its 1987 championship club. Tom Nieto has passed away at the age of 65 after suffering a heart attack, according to a message shared by his family and later confirmed by the organization on Monday. Nieto’s sister shared the news publicly, noting that he passed on March 27 while in Florida with his family. She described a man whose strength and resilience left a lasting impact on those closest to him, a sentiment that has echoed throughout the baseball world since the announcement. The Twins also released a statement shortly after the news became public. Nieto’s baseball journey began when the Twins selected him in the 31st round of the 1979 MLB Draft. Instead of signing, he chose to continue his development at the collegiate level, eventually going to Oral Roberts before being selected in the third round of the 1981 MLB Draft by the St. Louis Cardinals. A highly regarded prospect in the Cardinals system, Nieto worked his way through the minors before making his big league debut in 1984. He made an immediate impression during his rookie campaign, posting a 109 OPS+ across 33 games and establishing himself as a capable backstop. He had a role on the Cardinals team that reached the 1985 World Series, but St. Louis ultimately fell to the Kansas City Royals in a seven-game series. Two years later, Nieto found himself on baseball’s biggest stage again, but this time on the opposite side. After a stint with the Montreal Expos, the Twins acquired him during the 1987 season. In Minnesota, Nieto appeared in 41 games as part of a team that would go on to win the World Series, defeating his former Cardinals club in seven games. While his offensive numbers with Minnesota were modest, Nieto played a supporting role on a roster that has become one of the most beloved in franchise history. Across two seasons with the Twins, he appeared in 65 games and contributed as a depth option behind the plate during a championship run. In total, Nieto spent seven seasons in the big leagues. Following his playing days, Nieto transitioned into coaching, where he made perhaps an even greater impact. He spent seven seasons with the New York Yankees organization from 1995 through 2002 and later joined the New York Mets, working under manager Willie Randolph. With the Mets, Nieto served as both a catching instructor and first base coach. For Twins fans, his name will always be tied to 1987, a season that remains one of the franchise's defining moments. Today, it also serves as a reminder of the people who helped make that run possible and the lasting impact they leave behind. View the full article

The Milwaukee Brewers hit Willson Contreras with a pitch for the 24th time in his career Monday night. It barely grazed Contreras, but he reacted with anger and refused to be mollified even by his own manager. Moments later, on a ground ball that retired him at second base, he slid into shortstop David Hamilton with his spikes high, slicing the infielder's pants leg. Hamilton was shaken up, but stayed in the game. The Brewers did their best to shrug off the incident, because Contreras has made himself an angry enemy of the club for his entire decade-long career. But this time, his tired act went from relatively empty tough-guy antics to a dirty play that (even if he meant it was a warning shot, and that only) risked injuring Hamilton. After the game, he doubled down and insisted on the righteousness of his fury, noting how often the Brewers have hit him and saying he would continue to seek retribution if he's plunked again. When you put those many times hit by pitch in context, though, it's tougher to justify Contreras's pique. Monday’s plunking was the 131st of his career, third-most in baseball since his debut in 2016. Contreras gets hit that often because he crashes in toward the plate, leaving less room for a pitch to miss inside and giving him little time to get out of the way. Teams pitch him inside, because he struggles with that pitch. He takes the plunkings, because they're a way on base—but he also takes exception to each one, for reasons that run a bit deeper than some noble worry about health. Decrying being hit and threatening fights against those who hit him are part of Contreras's strategy to force pitchers to keep the ball middle-away, so he can attack those pitches, which suit his swing much better than the ball inside. If hurlers are worried about giving him a free base or just don't want the smoke from him, they might give him the pitches he can actually handle. And if he gets plunked, he can whine about it to further influence pitchers, while raising his OBP—and having the real danger of a major injury mitigated by the copious body armor he (like most hitters, these days) wears when he steps into the box. Being hit and being mad about being hit are each part of Contreras's game, so his rage rings a bit false. Let's engage with his claim itself, though, just for kicks. Do the Brewers hit him more than most teams? Well, 10.8% of his career plate appearances have come against Milwaukee 18.3% of his hit-by-pitches came from the Brewers That's statistically significant, and it shouldn't surprise anyone. Contreras has faced the Brewers more often than any other team in his career, and they've had a clear scouting report and a consistent plan against him for longer than any other team in the league. They're going to work him inside, and no, they're not going to worry much about hitting him. There's a small amount of real fault on the Brewers' side, then, but it's not coming from a place of malice. They're just trying to get him out. The Padres, who have long had the same book on Contreras, have hit him 11 times in his career, but he's had about 300 fewer plate appearances against them than against Milwaukee. Teams who are willing to pound him inside are going to hit him, and they're going to hear about it, but he's never made the adjustments that would change the fact that pitching him inside is the best way to retire him. Teams with a sufficiently ruthless focus on winning games will simply bear his wrath. The truth is, it’s not a Brewers thing; it’s a Contreras thing. Christian Yelich was diplomatic but clear about the view from Milwaukee’s clubhouse, in the aftermath of Monday's kerfuffle. “We’ve seen that skit for the last 10 years," he said. "It’s nothing new.” What about Brandon Woodruff hitting Contreras six times now? Let’s look at the Woodruff-Contreras career matchup. The (now-)Red Sox first baseman is batting .150 with a .200 slugging average in 29 career plate appearances against the Brewers right-hander. Contreras’s bloop double to right field on Monday night was his first extra-base hit against Woodruff, and just his third knock overall. Again: throwing inside on Contreras risks putting him on base, but the juice is often worth that squeeze. Often, too, Contreras is moving into the ball, rather than it coming after him. A few examples: 2018: Contreras is hit by a 1-2 pitch, leaving his elbow in harm’s way before turning away after the ball hits his elbow guard. 2020: Contreras is hit by an 0-1 pitch in the second inning, tucking his elbow guard in to take the harm and the 90 feet that come with it. 2021: With the Brewers winning 2-0 in the fourth inning, Contreras is in full swing mode as the pitch is tailing in toward him and (maybe) hits his hand instead of the bat. 2026: The Red Sox are ahead 1-0 with men on first and second with no outs. A pitch that's barely off the plate barely hits him at all. Will Contreras do anything else if he gets hit Tuesday or Wednesday? Despite his threats to take someone out, it’s unlikely, unless a Milwaukee hurler makes it obvious that they're actually after him—which, again, isn't what's actually happening between this player and his imagined collection of nemeses. Is there a part of many fans (and some players) that would love Jacob Misiorowski to let a 100-MPH fastball slip arm side and find Contreras’s ribs? Let's hope not. But Misiorowski himself has little experience with Contreras, and is unlikely to do anything to him except try to strike him out and move on to the next batter. Contreras would probably be better off letting this go, too—but that wouldn't fit either his overall strategy at the plate, or his troublingly pugnacious disposition. View the full article

On Tuesday afternoon, the Toronto Blue Jays announced that Addison Barger is heading to the injured list with a left ankle sprain. The injury appeared to occur during the Blue Jays’ series in Chicago against the White Sox, when Barger landed awkwardly on first base after trying to beat out a groundball up the middle. The awkward landing on first base happened in the top of the third inning. The 26-year-old remained in the game until the bottom of the sixth inning, when he was replaced in right field by Jesús Sánchez. Barger missed Monday night’s 14-2 loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers before being placed on the IL this afternoon. Through eight games this season, Barger has batted .053 with a .174 OBP, recording only one hit through his first 19 at-bats. His lone hit was a double in Chicago last Friday. The outfielder has also added two RBIs. After struggling during his rookie season in 2024, Barger provided a much-needed boost to the Blue Jays’ lineup in 2025. In 135 games, he batted .243 with 21 home runs and 74 RBIs, finishing third on the club in home runs, trailing only George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Barger then put together a very strong postseason for the Blue Jays, batting .367 with three home runs and nine RBIs, including a Game 1 grand slam off former Dodger and current Minnesota Twins reliever Anthony Banda. In a corresponding move, the Blue Jays recalled newly acquired infielder Tyler Fitzgerald. He was acquired from the San Francisco Giants on Saturday in exchange for cash considerations. Fitzgerald has spent the past three seasons bouncing between the Giants and their Triple-A club, the Sacramento River Cats. For his career, he is a .252 hitter with 21 home runs and 53 RBIs across 563 MLB at-bats. The 28-year-old is also 28-for-36 in stolen base attempts across his three campaigns. Fitzgerald enjoyed a strong season in 2024, but last year, he batted .217 with just four home runs and 14 RBIs across 217 at-bats in 72 games. In other moves, left-hander Josh Fleming was designated for assignment after making his Blue Jays debut in Monday night’s loss. Fleming ran into trouble during his three innings, allowing six hits, four earned runs and one walk, while striking out one. The 29-year-old struggled with command, throwing only 45 of his 77 pitches for strikes. The newly signed Patrick Corbin was called up from Dunedin, replacing Fleming on the big league roster. The Blue Jays signed Corbin to a one-year, $1 million contract on Saturday, as their rotation continues to deal with injuries. In one Single-A start, Corbin threw 74 pitches over five innings, allowing four hits and one walk while striking out nine. The Blue Jays have announced Corbin will start on Friday when the Twins visit the Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays also announced some recovery timelines for a few of their most recent injured players. Catcher Alejandro Kirk had a screw placed in his thumb and is looking like he’s set to miss six weeks. At the same time, they announced that starter Cody Ponce will undergo knee surgery next week and is estimated to have a six-month recovery timeline, effectively ending his regular season. A playoff run could allow for Ponce to return this year and pitch with the club after signing a three-year, $30 million contract with Toronto on December 11. View the full article

The news is bad. The news, by now, is barely news, but that doesn't make it any less bad. Four days after Cade Horton left his start against the Guardians in the second inning, the team announced that he will undergo season-ending elbow surgery. He flew to Dallas to consult with Dr. Keith Meister, who recommended the procedure. Whether the operation will be the modified version of Tommy John that involves placing an artificial internal brace or a full-fledged Tommy John isn't immediately clear, and doesn't need to be decided until the time of the procedure. Either way, though, Horton will pitch again no sooner than June of 2027. It's a devastating blow for the Cubs, who had penciled Horton in as one of their top two starters for this season. It's also a major setback for Horton himself. A second Tommy John surgery is not terribly uncommong in the modern game, and pitchers return to at least their previous level even after a second operation about two-thirds of the time. In fact, the Cubs were set to face Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen Tuesday night, before he left the team to be at the birth of his daughter. Rasmussen has undergone three major elbow procedures—two Tommy Johns and an internal brace variant. Jameson Taillon has had the surgery twice. So has Justin Steele, whom the team hopes to see return to the mound by the early part of June. Needing the operation twice in as short a span as Horton has, though, is especially worrisome. He had Tommy John in college at Oklahoma. He also suffered a significant shoulder injury in 2024 and lost the end of last season to a ribcage injury. It's possible that Horton will simply never be able to withstand a full season's workload in a big-league rotation. At the very least, the Cubs will have to wait until 2028 to try to get him there. The setback is huge, not least because the Cubs have few similarly intriguing pitching prospects on whom to next pin their hopes. Instead, they'll have to hope they have better luck avoiding the injury bug the rest of the way, with one of their best options crossed off before Tax Day. More to come. View the full article

The temperature always turns up quickly in Toronto when it comes to sports. The start of the baseball season shouldn’t be any reason for that to change. The Jays’ offence goes quiet – meaning a bunch of low-scoring games, a few missed opportunities with runners on – and suddenly it feels like the walls are closing in. The familiar questions come back fast. Is this lineup broken? Is this who they are? Should something drastic happen now before it is too late? Let’s slow that narrative down a bit. The sky is not falling on the Blue Jays. Not yet. Maybe not at all. This team is frustrated, not fraudulent. There is a big difference. The frustration is coming mostly from the same place. The pitching has done more than enough, while the offence simply has not held up its end of the bargain so far. Through the opening stretch of the season, Toronto’s pitching staff has been exactly what was expected. The starters have consistently kept games within reach, giving up three runs or fewer in the majority of starts. As a group, the rotation sits comfortably in the top third of the league in ERA and innings pitched, which matters more than people sometimes want to admit in April. The bullpen, while not perfect, has largely avoided the kind of blowups that bury teams early, hovering around league average or better in leverage performance and opponent batting average. That combination should win you games. Over a full season, it almost always does. The problem is that the offence has not returned the favour. The Blue Jays have spent far too many nights with a run expectancy line that never quite turns the corner. Too many games have featured solid contact early that finds gloves, followed by late innings where hitters look like they are trying to solve the entire season with one swing. Statistically, the underperformance is real, but it is also narrower than it feels. Toronto sits below league average in runs scored and power production, but the underlying numbers paint a more incomplete picture. Hard contact rates are hovering right around the league norm despite uneven results. Strikeout rates have stayed well clear of red flag territory. On-base percentage is middling, not disastrous, which matters more than it feels right now. In other words, this is not an offence flailing wildly. It is an offence that looks tight, with each runner left on base adding to the mounting pressure to perform. That mentality is showing up when it comes to pitch selection. Through the first few weeks, the Jays have chased slightly more often than they did during their better stretches last season, especially in hitter’s counts. Their chase rate is hovering around 28 percent, up from roughly 26 percent during their stronger stretches last season. They are swinging early at pitchers’ pitches, then getting passive later when they fall behind. That is an approach problem, not a talent problem. The good news about approach problems is that they are fixable without reinventing the roster. A little pick-me-up might go a long way here, and it does not need to come in the form of a blockbuster trade or a dramatic demotion. It could be as simple as a temporary lineup shuffle. Move a bat that is pressing down a spot or two. Slide someone with a higher on-base profile into a table-setting role for a week. Break the rhythm just enough to force everyone to reset. Manager John Schneider has been making these adjustments quietly, one game at a time, since Opening Day, but maybe it needs to be more overt. We have seen this team respond to small nudges before. When the Jays score early, their entire posture changes. The dugout loosens. At-bats look longer. Toronto has seen roughly 3.7 pitches per plate appearance so far in 2026, which is close to league average, but the distribution matters more than the raw number. Their first‑pitch swing rate is elevated, hovering around 31 percent, which is above league average. Taking more pitches does not mean taking less initiative. It means being intentional. It means deciding as a group that grinding a pitcher down matters more than hunting the perfect swing in the first at-bat of the night. When the Blue Jays have been at their best in recent years, they have forced starters into 20-pitch innings early. That has not been happening often enough so far. The irony is that when the Blue Jays do force starters out early, the offence often follows. Their production improves later in games, once the lineup gets into relief pitching instead of facing starters. The challenge has been reaching that point often enough. This is where doing something slightly unorthodox can help. Not forever. Just enough to disrupt the current inertia. Maybe that means more hit-and-run plays early in games, even if the run expectancy charts do not love it in isolation. Maybe it means more aggressive base stealing, even if success rates hover just above break-even. The Jays are not a slow team across the board, but they have been cautious to the point of stillness. Motion changes defense. Motion creates mistakes. The goal is not to steal bases for the sake of it. The goal is to force the other team to think. Right now, opposing pitchers do not look rushed. They look comfortable. That is the biggest warning sign of all. Hitting is contagious in both directions, and so is pressure. Once frustrations stack, hitters start carrying results into the next at-bat instead of carrying out their plan. You can see it in body language. You can see it in swings that start cheating for velocity in the third inning. You can see it in borderline pitches suddenly looking tempting. That is when mental resets matter more than mechanical tweaks. Managers love to talk about staying the course, and most of the time that is correct. Overreacting to April numbers is how teams create May problems. But staying the course does not mean pretending nothing is happening. It means adjusting without panicking. There is a middle ground, and Toronto is firmly in it right now. Perspective is important. Even with these offensive struggles, the Blue Jays are not buried in the standings. Their run differential is not catastrophic. The team is still playing a disproportionate number of one-run games, which historically swing back toward .500 outcomes over time. Lose too many close games early, and you almost always win a few you should not later. Another thing worth mentioning is how narrow the margins are. The difference between a team OPS in the bottom third and one in the middle of the pack can be a handful of extra-base hits. A few balls that stay fair instead of hooking foul. A few line drives that split fielders instead of finding gloves. Baseball is cruel that way, especially in cold weather. If the Blue Jays were swinging and missing at everything, if strikeouts were piling up, the worry would be louder and more justified. That is not what we are seeing. What we are seeing is tentative baseball. Tentative does not last forever. Leadership carries weight during stretches like this. Not through speeches, but through actions that signal confidence. Long at-bats. Runs scored on singles instead of waiting for homers. Taking the extra base when it is there. Playing like a team that expects good things to happen rather than hoping they will. The veterans know this. They have lived it. How they respond in the next couple of weeks will shape how quickly this offence wakes up. Fans, as always, feel it deeply. That comes with the territory. But it is worth remembering that some of the best Blue Jays teams in recent memory looked far worse than this at the same point on the calendar. They did not break. They eventually figured it out. Sometimes you need to fail in order to succeed. There will be a game soon where the dam breaks. It might not be pretty. It might not come against an elite opponent. It might just be one of those nights where the lineup turns over twice in the first inning and the crowd feels something shift. When it happens, it will feel sudden, but it will not be random. The ingredients are there. Good pitching. A capable bullpen. A lineup with track records. Those are the facts. The sky is not falling on the Blue Jays. It is cloudy, sure. A little uncomfortable, okay. But baseball seasons are marathons played in weather that changes fast... even if you have a dome. Sometimes all it takes is one good night to remember who you are. View the full article

Defense has always been one of baseball’s most difficult elements to quantify, but that reality has changed dramatically in recent years. With the introduction and continued refinement of Statcast, teams and fans alike now have access to advanced metrics that provide a clearer picture of what is happening on the field. The Statcast Era, spanning (for the purposes of their defensive numbers, Outs Above Average and Fielding Run Value) 2018 through 2026, provides a meaningful sample to evaluate how the Minnesota Twins have performed defensively over time. Across those nine seasons, the Twins have experienced both highs and lows in the field. Their best defensive performances came during the 2020 and 2021 campaigns. The 2021 club led the way. Fielding Run Value had them as 21 runs better than an average team, mainly due to standout performances: Andrelton Simmons contributed 16 OAA at shortstop, while Max Kepler and Byron Buxton added 8 and 7, respectively, in the outfield. In the shortened 2020 season, the Twins posted 7 FRV, led by Buxton in center field and by versatile contributions from Marwin Gonzalez, Jake Cave, and Ehire Adrianza in various positions. At the other end of the spectrum sits the 2025 season, which marked Minnesota’s worst defensive showing of the Statcast era. The team combined for -22 FRV, with several players struggling significantly. Edouard Julien posted -8 Outs Above Average, while Willi Castro finished at -6. Trevor Larnach, Brooks Lee, and Matt Wallner each contributed -4 OAA. (Yes, OAA and FRV are on different scales, but directionally, you can see how so many defenders collecting fewer outs than expected led to the team preventing fewer runs.) Notably, half of the 10 worst defenders from that roster are no longer in the organization, including Julien, Castro, Jose Miranda, Carlos Correa, and Carson McCusker. Despite that turnover, the early signs in 2026 suggest the problem has not been solved. Through 10 games, Minnesota is already tied for the worst FRV in baseball, at -7. While it's a small sample, the underlying issues look familiar. The left side of the infield has been particularly problematic, with Royce Lewis posting -4 Outs Above Average at third base and Brooks Lee at -2 while handling shortstop duties. Lewis showed legitimate progress defensively last season and finished with a positive mark, offering some hope that his current struggles could be temporary. Lee, however, remains a more complicated situation. He graded as one of the team’s weakest defenders a year ago, but the Twins have committed to giving him extended run at shortstop. At this point, the metrics suggest he's stretched beyond his defensive capabilities at the position. The lack of clear alternatives only complicates matters. At Triple-A, Kaelen Culpepper is one of the more intriguing internal options. He has shown some improvement at shortstop, but evaluators still view him as a below-average defender there. His arm strength could make him a better fit at third base in the long term, but he can’t play shortstop and third base at the same time. Other potential reinforcements include minor-league veterans like Orlando Arcia and Ryan Kreidler. Both offer experience, but neither profiles as a meaningful defensive upgrade. In other words, there is no obvious solution waiting in the wings. That reality leaves the Twins in a difficult position. Defensive struggles can compound quickly, putting additional pressure on pitching staffs and forcing lineups to play from behind consistently. While it's far too early to draw definitive conclusions, the trends are concerning, especially when viewed alongside last season’s results. If these issues persist, the 2026 Twins may find themselves cementing a place in franchise history for all the wrong reasons. In an era where run prevention is increasingly driven by data and defensive precision, Minnesota’s inability to convert balls in play into outs could define its season. What has stood out about the team’s defense so far? Leave a comment and start the discussion. View the full article

The Minnesota Twins have made it clear they are trying to modernize the viewing experience. Since shifting to Twins.TV last season, the organization has experimented with new camera angles, broadcast enhancements, and presentation tweaks designed to keep fans engaged in a rapidly changing media landscape. On Monday night, they added another new element. Facing the Detroit Tigers, the Twins rolled out a player introduction straight out of the Monday Night Football playbook. Instead of the usual lineup graphic, each starter appeared on screen, introducing themselves and shouting out their college or high school. It was polished, energetic, and honestly, pretty cool. The concept worked. The execution, for the most part, worked too. What did not work was everything happening behind it. As each player delivered their introduction, the broadcast occasionally cut to wider shots of Target Field. That is where things took a turn. The backdrop for this primetime style rollout was a sea of empty seats, a visual contradiction that social media was quick to notice. No one was really taking aim at the idea itself. The production value was solid, and the players seemed to enjoy it. But pairing a bold declaration that Monday Night Baseball could rival Monday Night Football with a visibly sparse crowd felt like a miss. There are, of course, explanations. The weather did not cooperate, with temperatures dipping and wind chills settling into the 20s. It was also a crowded sports night, with the NCAA men’s basketball national championship drawing attention elsewhere. Those factors matter, and they are real. But they are not the whole story. The Twins drew just 1,768,728 fans in 2025, the lowest total the franchise has seen in a quarter century and the smallest in the history of Target Field. Early returns this season have not suggested a meaningful rebound. Through the first handful of home games, the team is averaging 19,381 in announced attendance, a number based on tickets sold rather than scanned. On Monday, the official figure was 12,569. Anyone watching could tell the actual turnout was lighter than that. There is a growing disconnect between the product on the field, the presentation on the screen, and the relationship with the fan base. Some of the most loyal supporters have become increasingly vocal about ownership, and in some cases, have chosen to stay home. That is what made Monday night feel so strange. The Twins delivered something fresh and entertaining, a glimpse at how baseball broadcasts can evolve and feel more personal. It should have been a moment that added energy to the ballpark and the viewing experience alike. Instead, it became a reminder that presentation can only do so much. You can dress up the broadcast, add personality, and borrow from the biggest stages in sports. But when the camera pulls back, the reality in the stands still matters. The idea was fun. The players bought in. The broadcast team executed it well. Now the challenge is making sure the atmosphere matches the moment next time they try it. View the full article

The Minnesota Twins will have options when they step to the podium with the third overall pick in this summer’s draft, but recent performances are beginning to shape the conversation in a meaningful way. One name that continues to gain traction is Jackson Flora, a college right-hander whose combination of production, stuff, and projection is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Industry outlets are starting to align on his value. Baseball America currently slots Flora as the third-best prospect in the class, while MLB Pipeline has him further back at 14th overall. That gap may not last much longer. MLB Pipeline recently highlighted Flora as the top emerging college pitcher in the draft, and his latest outings suggest that label is more reality than projection. In his most recent start, Flora worked nine shutout innings while allowing just four hits. He issued a pair of walks and struck out nine hitters, continuing a dominant run. Across eight starts, he has yet to take a loss and owns an ERA under 1.00. In just over 52 innings, he has limited opponents to 26 hits while striking out 65 and walking only 15. It is the type of statistical profile that demands attention, even in a class loaded with talent. What makes Flora particularly intriguing is how his arsenal continues to evolve. His fastball comfortably sits in the mid-90s and can reach triple digits. The slider has long been considered his primary secondary weapon, operating in the mid to upper 80s with the ability to miss bats consistently. However, it was his changeup that stole the spotlight in his most recent outing. He leaned on it more frequently than his slider against Cal Poly, showing growing confidence in a pitch that could ultimately round out a complete three-pitch mix. That development matters because Flora is not just overpowering hitters. He is doing so with control. His strikeout rate sits north of 30%, but just as importantly, he is limiting free passes at a rate under 8%. The ability to command multiple pitches in the zone separates him from many of his peers and raises his floor as a starting pitching prospect. Physically, Flora checks every box teams look for in a frontline starter. At six-foot-five, he generates premium velocity with relative ease and maintains it deep into outings. His fastball has shown strong shape with late life, while his slider usage includes both a sweeping version with significant horizontal movement and a firmer, tighter breaking ball. The changeup continues to trend upward, flashing the kind of late dive that can neutralize opposite-handed hitters. At the top of the draft, much of the intrigue centers around what happens after Roch Cholowsky, who is widely viewed as the likely first overall selection. The Chicago White Sox are expected to make that call, leaving the next handful of picks open to interpretation. The Tampa Bay Rays go in several directions, including prep shortstops like Grady Emerson or Jacob Lombard, or a college bat such as Justin Lebron. That uncertainty creates an opening for a player like Flora to climb. Pitching always carries risk, but teams picking near the top of the draft often prioritize impact, and Flora is beginning to look like one of the few arms in this class capable of providing it at a high level. For the Twins, the decision at three will ultimately come down to how the board falls and how they balance ceiling with certainty. Flora is making a strong case that he offers both. If his current trajectory holds and he continues to dominate while refining his secondary pitches, he may not just be in the conversation. He could be one of the most compelling options available when Minnesota is on the clock. View the full article

Through 10 games, the Cubs aren't just a disappointing 4-6, but an anemic 4-6. Their lineup has been lousy, and their best hitter from 2025 is one reason for the shortfall. Michael Busch batted .261/.343/.523 last year; he's off to a .176/.310/.235 start this spring. It's early, and Busch is being exposed to left-handed pitchers more often, but still: this is an issue. He's not hitting the ball hard or on a line as often. The culprit? Bat speed. Busch, never a hard swinger, is down to 67.6 mph in average swing speed this year. This could be due to cold weather, or he could simply not be fully loosened up yet. What we know for sure, though, is that it’s come along with being pitched to differently—and that he's failing the league's latest test. A staggering 69.2% of pitches to the slugger have been fastballs this year. Busch has only hit .167 on these pitches. He has simply been overwhelmed by velocity. This was the opposite last year; Busch hit .269 with a .535 slugging average on fastballs. This could be because he's seeing more lefties; he's on pace for well over twice as many left-on-left plate appearances as he had in 2025. Pitchers do much better with their fastballs against same-handed hitters, and are usually more willing to throw them. It could just be that Busch's timing is a bit off, too. Either way, we should note that seeing more heaters is part of the reason why we're getting a lower reading on his swing speeds, too. Statcast reports that number based on the momentary velocity of the barrel at the hitter's contact point on each swing. Naturally, hitters catch fastballs deeper in the zone, which usually means the bat is still going slightly slower. Busch's bat speed is down even if we isolate fastballs, though, so that's not the full story. However, we can also note that he's significantly shortened his swing this year, which nearly always results in less sheer bat speed and which might simply be Busch nursing an injury or dealing with the cold. If he'd lost bat speed despite the pitch mix against him being the same and/or without a concomitant reduction in swing length, it would be more alarming, but as it is, these factors should be somewhat reassuring. We haven’t been told a reason for Busch’s slower swing, and might not find one. What we do know is the Cubs need a better version of their first baseman than the first 10 games have seen. Hopefully, the swing can get to a speed where he can do damage again. The other metrics support a Busch rebound. The plate approach is sublime; he’s making sound swing decisions. Better bat speed would yield better results for a Cub team off to a subpar start, but Busch might also find success with this shorter swing, or the swing might quicken as the weather warms and the arrythmia of the early season gives way to the routine players love. It's not too early to note this, but it's certainly too soon to panic about it. View the full article

It’s still early in the season, but patterns are already starting to emerge. Through three starts—roughly 10% of a typical starter’s workload—Joe Ryan has shown a little bit of everything. At times, he’s looked like the ace we know he can be. At others, he’s struggled to find the same rhythm that made him so dominant last year. Looking at the full picture, it feels less like a clear story, and more like a push-and-pull between the surface-level results and what the underlying numbers are telling us. Each start has played into that mix differently. His outing on Opening Day was easily his best, as he worked 5 1/3 shutout innings with seven strikeouts and an impressive display of swing-and-miss stuff. His next two starts weren’t nearly as clean. More traffic appeared on the bases; pitch counts climbed faster than expected; and he wasn’t able to work as deep into games, even if his stuff still flashed at times. On the surface, his numbers look underwhelming. The 4.40 ERA and 1.26 WHIP are both clear steps back from last year, and they reflect more baserunners, longer innings, and fewer chances to settle in. His early workload also stands out. Should Ryan make 30 starts but work only as deep into games as he's averaged so far, he'd compile just 143 innings. That’s well below what you’d expect from a starter of his caliber, and it points back to the inefficiency that has shown up. But once you dig a little deeper, his data tells a different story. Despite the inflated ERA, his FIP sits way down at 2.06. That gap suggests his performance has been far better than the results indicate. Strikeout numbers reinforce the same idea: his strikeout rate sits at 27.9%, nearly identical to last year’s 28.2%, showing that the swing-and-miss ability that makes him such a high-end starter hasn’t gone anywhere. His walk rate is up, but the sample is too small to assume that's signal, rather than noise. A big part of the disconnect between process and results comes from balls in play. His BABIP currently sits at .342, a huge jump from .268 last season. Over just three starts, that difference can swing results quickly, turning manageable innings into extended ones and pushing pitch counts higher than expected. This issue isn't even Ryan's fault, but it will be his problem. His defense has been bad; the Twins' defense will be bad all year. There are also signs that Ryan is making adjustments. He’s leaned much more heavily on his curveball than in previous seasons, giving hitters another look alongside his fastball mix. When it’s working, it creates more swing-and-miss opportunities and adds a different dimension to his approach. At the same time, any change like that can come with growing pains. Command can wobble early, which naturally can show up as walks or deeper counts, and those little inconsistencies add up to shorter appearances. He's stretching to extremes of movement, with his sweeper, his splitter, his fastball and that curve, and the strike zone is only so big. Through three starts, Ryan sits in an interesting spot. The surface numbers suggest a slight step back, while advanced metrics indicate he’s still performing at a high level. That gap comes down largely to efficiency and some bad luck on balls in play. If his BABIP normalizes and his walk rate settles closer to last year’s numbers, his ERA and WHIP should start to better reflect what he’s actually doing on the mound. It’s also worth remembering just how small a sample three starts really is. Even for a proven top-of-the-rotation guy like Ryan, early-season fluctuations aren’t unusual. Strikeout rates and his underlying performance show he’s still capable of dominating. But until the surface-level results catch up, inefficiency and some misfortune have left his line looking worse than the process might suggest. Nor can we discount the impact of weather. Ryan pitched through heavy rain in Kansas City last week and in stunningly cold conditions Monday night. Baseball played in that kind of weather gets weird and ugly, and Ryan could have mitigated that a bit better, but there was no way to truly avoid the effects. For now, his first three turns through the rotation have been a mix of encouraging flashes and lingering questions. When he’s on, there’s little doubt that he’s the best pitcher in the Twins’ system. When he’s not, walks and a high BABIP can make it look rougher than it really is. The story is far from over, but the early trends give fans something to watch: can he convert the underlying numbers into consistent results, or will these mixed outings continue to shape his season? His talent is still there, and the stuff is still there. Once efficiency starts to line up with performance, the results should follow. Until then, we’ll be trying to figure out which version of Joe Ryan will show up next. View the full article

Ronny Mauricio is getting another shot with the New York Mets, thanks to Juan Soto's calf injury. The club recalled Mauricio from Triple-A Syracuse on Monday as the corresponding move for Soto being placed on the 10-day injured list, retroactive to April 4. The return to the majors is an important moment for the 25-year-old. He needs to impress after a difficult ending to his 2025 season. The trouble is, he figures to be the same player who spent most of the final month on the Mets' bench. Let's refresh ourselves on the best (and worst) parts of his game and offer an overall outlook on what's to come for the former top prospect. Ronny Mauricio Returns: Weighing the Pros and Cons of His Game Pro: He Hits the Ball Hard and He Hits It Far The 25-year-old switch-hitter has eight home runs in 292 career plate appearances, and half of them are catalogued by Baseball Savant as no-doubters. Upper-tank rockets at Citi Field and Coors Field, both delivered from the left side, were "wow" moments and teases of his power tool. His maximum exit velocity is 117.3 mph, his barrel rate is an above-average 7.6 percent, and his bat speed is a zippy 73.8 mph. The Mets know he can provide big-time pop off the bench. Con: He Doesn't Hit the Ball Often Enough Pitchers are good at missing Mauricio's bat, especially if they throw in a wrinkle. He sports a poor 29.1 percent strikeout rate and 32.8 percent whiff rate for his young career. His biggest hole is breaking pitches -- he has a .150/.186/.250 career slash line against them. The curveball is an unsolvable mystery, evidenced by a 50.9 percent whiff rate. Mets fans are bracing for more of Mauricio dropping to a knee as he waves at the pitch. Pro: He's an Athlete on the Infield Mauricio is tall and lanky, listed at 6-3 and 166 pounds. His mechanics aren't the smoothest, but he gets to the ball and his big arm (76th percentile arm strength in 2025) gets it across the diamond. Now that he's more than two years removed from the ACL tear that cost him the entire 2024 season, he should be able to move well wherever he plays. And he's expected to play all over as the backup to second baseman Marcus Semien, shortstop Francisco Lindor, and third baseman Bo Bichette. Con: He Is a Liability Against Left-Handed Pitching Liability is putting it kindly: Mauricio sports a .134/.174/.195 career slash line and 36.0 percent strikeout rate in 86 plate appearances as a right-handed batter. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza would have a tough time justifying a start for Mauricio against a left-hander if Semien, Lindor, Bichette, Jorge Polanco, Brett Baty and Mark Vientos are all healthy. The Mets would be wise to consider making Mauricio a full-time left-handed hitter, or a simple platoon option if he wants to maintain some faux flexibility. Outlook: Mauricio Is a Full-Time Backup Mark Vientos has slipped into a full-time role in the starting lineup thanks to a white-hot start and a minor injury to Jorge Polanco, though most of the rest of the infield is struggling this season (Francisco Lindor and Bo Bichette, in particular, are off to frigid starts). Mauricio will likely get an opportunity or two to spell them for a game, but he'll have to be really impressive in a small sample to stick around in New York for longer than it takes Soto to recover from his calf injury. View the full article

Christian Yelich turned 34 years old in December. He's in his mid-30s now. This is a man who was an old enough boy to spike his hair or dye his tips during the peak of *NSync's popularity. When that Taco Bell commercial featuring Sum 41's "In Too Deep" comes on, he might start mouthing or shouting the lyrics, or not, but something stirs within him. When he dubbed Pat Murphy 'Patches O'Houlihan' upon Murphy's promotion to manager in 2024, it wasn't something a coach mentioned or a reference he first experienced via scrolling through YouTube shorts. That came from his soul. He saw Dodgeball in a movie theater, which is a building where you used to go and see movies on a huge screen, in the dark. Such a person can't be up in the (35-inch contact point) club, with the kids. A '90s kid can't be swinging with catching the ball way out front in mind. It's unseemly, like a divorced dad hitting on a coed at a college bar. That unseemliness just manifests differently: instead of cringeworthy conversation and striking out, it's—ok, actually, some things about it are the same. Every player loses bat speed as they age. Yelich is not an exception. Although the sample is limited, his bat speed is down so far this year, from 73.4 miles per hour in 2025 to 72.3 MPH. It's a minor miracle that his bat speed stayed as strong as it did last year, as he returned from the back surgery that ended his 2024 campaign, but some of that was the buoying effect of having addressed the problem that compelled him to have that surgery in the first place. He's losing bat speed, and that's not a crisis. It is, however, part of what drives most hitters to decline. Some of that decline is self-induced, though. How much a hitter's production is affected by their diminishing ability to flick the stick depends on how one reacts to it. If you change nothing, you'll simply get worse. If you try to compensate for it by starting earlier, you can run into the ball just as often, but when you miss, you'll miss by more. You'll make poorer decisions and pay higher costs for them than in the past. This really isn't so different from a 30-something refusing to age gracefully out in the rest of the world, right? The other option is to make easygoing concessions to age, and the limitations that come with it. It's a voluntary way to pay many of the same costs, but in addition to preserving your dignity, you maintain more control of the process. Which strategy for adapting to the ravages of time best suits a player depends in large measure on what kind of player they were at their peak, but all else equal, the best way to adjust as you age is to accept that the ball will get deeper on you. If you let your contact point drift farther into the hitting zone and closer to your body (but get the bat up to speed nearly as well, in the process), you can sustain a balanced attack with less bat speed than you had before. That's what Yelich is doing. Here are the breakdowns of his intercept point (whether or not contact was made) relative to the center of his body on fastballs, for 2024, 2025 and 2026, in three ranges. Contact Point Range Season Under 20" 20-25" Over 25" 2024 39.4 27.9 32.7 2025 51 25.2 23.9 2026 55.8 30.2 14 The trend is clear, and sensible. Yelich is ok with his gradual shift into dadcore; he's switched from cheap beer and designer cocktails to a tasty but sensible IPA without complaint. He's letting the fastball travel more, and lo, he's raking. He's actually swinging more so far this year, and whiffing about as often as he did last year. He's also hitting the ball hard as much as he did last year, though, and his OPS is over 1.000 through 10 games. Though he hit a mammoth home run in the first series—early, in a good way, on a splitter—this version of Yelich is unlikely to hit nearly as many as the 29 home runs he cracked in 2025. That's ok. He's adjusting to (so far) less bat speed, and doing it gracefully. He's not going out and getting the ball the way he did in the past; he's becoming a radical let-it-travel guy. It's the right move. Let other 34-year-olds embarrass themselves. This one is comfortable in his skin, and in his batting stance. View the full article

Nick breaks down the first series for each affiliate while also going into detail on how top pitching prospects Juan Valera, Kyson Witherspoon, and Anthony Eyanson did in their respective debuts. Justin Gonzales also receives praise for being the monster of a player that he is. It concludes with a quick breakdown of the Salem Ridgeyaks first series since their rebrand and how the pitching of Dylan Brown, Christian Foutch, and Devin Futrell makes him wonder if they would be with Greenville if it weren't for the insane depth the Sox have with pitching in the lower levels of their organization. Listen on Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-talk-sox-podcast/id1783204104 Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/3qPrPXEngu0CxgTmlf0ynm Listen on iHeartRadio: https://www.iheart.com/podcast/263-the-talk-sox-podcast-244591331/ Listen on Pocket Casts: https://pca.st/4tmd121v Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@talksox View the full article