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			<title>Latest MLB News &amp; Videos from FOX Sports</title>
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		<pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2026 12:50:14 -0400</pubDate>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Are Yankees Best Bet To Win AL East?]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-new-york-yankees-best-bet-win-al-east</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-new-york-yankees-best-bet-win-al-east</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Even though the Yankees have been an up-and-down squad all season, Will Hill believes they're still the best bet to win the AL East.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2026 11:58:55 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Even though this 2026 Major League Baseball season is still young, the New York Yankees have been a roller coaster all year. A sizzling start had them at 7-1 in early April with the best record in baseball. Then they promptly lost six out of their next seven games. On May 8, the red-hot Yankees entered a series in Milwaukee with a 26-12 record, having won 16 out of 19 games. There, they got swept, the beginning of a 4-11 stretch that got them as far as 5.5 games behind the first-place Rays in the American League East. However, in their last two games, the Yanks got a walk-off home run from Aaron Judge to break a 0-0 tie and beat Tampa Bay on Sunday, followed by a ninth-inning comeback on Monday to defeat the Royals. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. The Yankees are currently -140 to win the AL East, and as inconsistent as they have been in the first two months of the season, perhaps betting them now to win the division is the perfect time — especially considering their streakiness. Former Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole returned Friday night after over a year-long absence, delivering six shutout innings and reaching 98 mph on the radar gun. Starting pitcher and former All-Star Carlos Rodon also returned to the rotation recently, joining AL Cy Young favorite Cam Schlittler. Schlittler’s co-ace, Max Fried, is currently on the injured list but is expected to return at some point this season. The team the Yankees are chasing, the Rays, have been a great story and always seem to do more with less considering their low payroll and lack of resources. But a couple of stats stand out and suggest the Rays might not be the team in first place once the fall rolls around. Despite the outstanding record, they have only outscored opponents by a combined 38 runs, as opposed to the Yankees, who have outscored their opponents by 68 runs so far this year. A big reason for the disparity between record and run differential is that the Rays have been exceptional in close games. The Rays have played nine, one-run games this year; they lost the first one to the Cardinals in their opening series but have since won each of the eight others. Some might say Tampa Bay simply plays well in close games, but it’s also fair to suspect there has been some good fortune attached to that record. With well over 100 games still to be played, and the Yankees only 3.5 games out of first place, a bet at -140 odds for the more talented Yankees to surpass the Rays and win the American League East is one I’m willing to make. PICK: Yankees (-140) to win the AL East]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Jacob Misiorowski Is Breaking Historic Ground In Velocity]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-cardinals-dodgers-rockies-white-sox-astros-no-hitter</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-cardinals-dodgers-rockies-white-sox-astros-no-hitter</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[No one has ever thrown heat like Miz, the Astros twirl a combined no-hitter, the Dodgers come from behind, Schwarber and Murakami go yard again and more from Monday's MLB action.]]>
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				<pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2026 11:50:25 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: Brewers’ starter Jacob Misiorowski was terrifying on Monday. He struck out seven batters over the first three innings against the Cardinals and finished with 12 punch outs on the day, making him the first pitcher to reach 100 on the season. He limited St. Louis to one run on two hits and a walk, and got through seven innings on just 96 pitches. What was most startling, though, is just how hard he was throwing — even for Miz. He registered 103 mph on eight pitches in the first inning, and threw 57 pitches of at least 100 mph: per MLB, that’s 10 more times than anyone has managed since this data began to be tracked in 2008. In addition, the 103.4 mph four-seamer he got Cardinals’ DH Iván Herrera to whiff on in the first is the fastest strikeout pitch recorded during this same stretch, topping Miz’s own record from April, when he struck out the Pirates’ Oneil Cruz on a 102.7 mph pitch. Just a phenomenal start from Misiorowski, who has seen his command and control improve in his sophomore campaign to the point that he’s now leading the majors in hit rate, strikeouts, strikeouts per nine and has a 1.83 ERA — the run he allowed on Monday was the first he’s given up all month. The Brewers’ lineup made sure not to waste this effort from their 24-year-old hurler, either, as Milwaukee plated five runs — three of those in the first, thanks in part to a two-run shot from veteran DH Christian Yelich — and the Brewers defeated the Cardinals, 5-1, to increase their NL Central lead to 2.5 games. Tatsuya Imai has had a tough time adjusting to MLB after joining up from NPB this offseason, but on Monday against the Rangers the 28-year-old righty had things together enough to throw six no-hit innings. His bullpen kept things going, holding the Rangers hitless the rest of the way, and Houston managed a combined no-hitter on the road. [Houston Astros No-Hit Texas Rangers: Historic Feat By The Numbers] Of course, it’s never just the pitchers that make no-hitters happen. The defense has to be there, too, and that was the case for the Astros against Texas. In the third, with Houston up 1-0, shortstop Jeremy Peña made a great snag on a ball deep to short off the bat of first baseman Joc Pederson, and then Christian Walker was able to rope in the off-balance throw at first to complete the out. Walker made his presence felt in other ways, too: in the seventh, he hit a three-run blast — his 15th homer of the year — to put the Astros up 7-0. Reliever Alimber Santa came on in the eighth and ninth innings to finish off the combined no-hitter, and he succeeded. Even better is that this was Santa’s first-ever big-league game. That’s correct, the 23-year-old right-hander managed to partake in a no-hitter in his MLB debut. According to MLB’s Sarah Langs, he’s just the second pitcher in league history who can make this claim, too: the other occurred all the way back in 1892, when Bumpus Jones threw a no-hitter in his debut for the Reds. That predates the formation of MLB itself! This W is also significant for the Astros since they are now just a game back of the Rangers in the AL West, despite a horrible start to the year thanks to myriad injuries to key players. Houston is still under .500, yes, but the Athletics are also in first place at 27-27, so. The division is open, is the thing. MLB’s home run leader remains Kyle Schwarber, as the Phillies’ left fielder and DH was the first to 20 dingers and, after last night, is also the first to 21. In the top of the first against Padres’ righty Griffin Canning, Schwarber took a 90.6 mph changeup low in the zone 374 feet to put Philadelphia up 1-0. That would turn out to be the only run the Phillies needed, as lefty Jesús Luzardo and a trio of relievers threw a combined five-hit shutout against San Diego, but Philly added another couple of insurance runs along the way anyway to win 3-0. Now, it’s much too early to talk about pace with real seriousness, but Schwarber is currently on track to hit 65 long balls in 2026. Which is notable mostly because 2025 was the first time that he went yard at least 50 times in a season, when he wrapped with 56. Assuming 65 just because he has 21 before May concludes is pushing it, but back-to-back 50+ campaigns? Now that’s something to consider, and he would be just the 12th player to manage more than one 50-homer season if he pulls it off, to boot. On Sunday, Orioles’ outfielder Colton Cowser pinch-hit late against the Tigers, and then ended up staying in the game and hitting a three-run, walk-off homer in the ninth to give Baltimore the W in the first game of a doubleheader. On Monday, Orioles’ outfielder Colton Cowser pinch-hit late against the Rays, and then ended up staying in the game and hitting a two-run, walk-off homer in the 13th to give Baltimore the W. Simply incredible. Even better, that dinger was not the only way that Cowser contributed. He scored in the 12th to keep the game going after the Rays scored a run in the top of the inning, on a play at the plate that required a challenge to review what exactly happened. He somehow got his arm in under catcher Nick Fortes while sliding, and his other arm was far enough away that the left got the plate before Fortes could tag the right. That extended the game, and gave Cowser a chance to end it with one swing. And he did just that. Well, let’s rewind. First, Tampa Bay scored a pair of runs in the top of the 13th, and then Baltimore answered with an RBI double from center fielder Leody Taveras and a sac fly from third baseman Jackson Holliday to tie things up, 7-7. Then Cowser did his thing to give the O’s the dub — a great all-around effort for anyone who wasn’t pitching for Baltimore last night. Look at this ball come out of the hand of rookie right fielder Rikuu Nishida, who was making his big-league debut on Monday. It looks like he shot that thing right out of a cannon, and directly at White Sox’ catcher Drew Romo. Who, after a brief bit of comedy, managed to apply the tag and end the threat. Romo was not expecting the ball to make it all the way to him, as you can glean from his positioning there, well in front of the plate. Nishida showed off his arm, though, and it all ended up working out in the end because Twins’ shortstop Orlando Arcia missed home plate assuming Romo was going to be more in the way of it than he was. Speaking of White Sox rookies, Munetaka Murakami continues to impress. Yankees’ right fielder Aaron Judge tied him for the American League home run lead on Sunday with his 17th of the season, and Murakami answered right back with No. 18 on Monday. Murakami, who was supposed to struggle with velocity in his transition from NPB to MLB, took this 97.5 mph four-seamer that came inside on him and sent it flying back at nearly 106 mph. He’s been something to behold these first two months of the season, that power is legit. Things do not go well for the Athletics on Monday overall — more on that shortly — but it was an important night for first baseman Nick Kurtz. When the 23-year-old slugger drew a walk in the third inning against off Mariners’ starter Luis Castillo, it stretched his on-base streak to 48 games: that ties him with Mark McGwire for the longest in Athletics’ history. It’s also tied for the 58th-longest streak in MLB history, which is more impressive than it might sound like off the bat, as another five games will put him in the top-25 ever, tied with the likes of Alex Rodriguez and Shohei Ohtani, who got that far on the list earlier this season. Kurtz isn’t hitting for quite as much power in 2026 as he did in his Rookie of the Year-winning 2025, but part of that is because pitchers are rightly terrified of his bat. He slugged .619 with 36 homers in 117 games last summer; this time around, he’s leading the majors in walks with 52, just 11 shy of his entire 2025 total which had helped him to a .383 on-base percentage. Kurtz is slugging .481, but he has a .444 on-base percentage to make up for that — it’s been a fascinating sophomore season, and it also has him approaching some rare territory in MLB history. Kurtz might have extended his on-base streak, but the Mariners’ offense got to work in the third inning and never looked back. Things started out innocently enough, with first baseman Josh Naylor driving in a run on a force out, but then left fielder Randy Arozarena hit an RBI double to score Naylor, and right fielder Luke Raley hit a two-run shot to make it 4-0, Mariners. Designated hitter Dominican Canzone would hit his own two-run shot later in the inning to make it a six-run frame for the M’s, too. Those represented just half the homers that Seattle launched on Monday: shortstop J.P. Crawford hit a solo shot in the seventh, and Arozarena went yard in the ninth to make it 9-1, Mariners. The A’s got a run back in the ninth, but that was nowhere near enough, and while they still sit in first in the AL West, they are also just .500. The Rockies were more than holding their own against the Dodgers, as Colorado was up 3-1 after the top of the seventh, within which they added another run to their lead courtesy a home run from shortstop Ezequiel Tovar. That dinger must have woken up the Dodgers, however, as Los Angeles responded with a four-run bottom of the seventh. It opened with catcher Will Smith and second baseman Hyeseong Kim walking against reliever Juan Mejia, who was in his second inning of work. Mejia was then lifted for Brennan Bernardino in the middle of a strange back-and-forth where Dalton Rushing was sent in to pinch-hit for Kiké Hernandez, but then Miguel Rojas was put in for Rushing once the lefty Bernardino was summoned from the pen. Bernardino then hit Rojas with a pitch to load the bases with no outs. DH Shohei Ohtani would ground into a force out but push a run across, cutting the Rockies’ lead in half, and then shortstop Mookie Betts would tie the game up with a sac fly. First baseman Freddie Freeman managed to drive in a run without giving up an out to do it, and put the Dodgers ahead for good with a double that scored Ohtani. Jaden Hill would come on in relief of Bernardino — who, to be fair, was dealt a pretty terrible hand there, not that he helped himself much — and center fielder Andy Pages kept it going one batter longer with an RBI single to center to score Freeman. A trio of Dodgers’ relievers — Will Klein, Alex Vesia and Blake Treinen — kept the Rockies in check the rest of the way, and Los Angeles secured the come-from-behind victory. With San Diego losing to Philadelphia, that puts the Dodgers 2.5 up in the NL West as the last days of May approach.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Houston Astros No-Hit Texas Rangers: Historic Feat By The Numbers]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/astros-no-hit-rangers-by-the-numbers</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/astros-no-hit-rangers-by-the-numbers</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Houston Astros threw a combined no-hitter against the Texas Rangers. Here's the feat by the numbers.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 26 May 2026 10:53:32 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[It happens every once in a while, and it happened in Arlington, Texas on Monday night, as the Houston Astros threw a combined no-hitter against the Texas Rangers in what was a 9-0 win. Here's the no-hitter by the numbers: 1: Alimber Santa pitched the ninth inning for the Astros. Want extra significance? This was the first MLB appearance of Santa's career — we could go in another direction with this, but that note will do. 2A: Speaking of the bearded man in the red suit (okay, we lied), Santa is just the second player to pitch in a no-hitter in his MLB debut, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. The other? Cincinnati Reds right-hander Bumpus Jones in 1892. 2B: Regarding the bats, Houston had two home runs, with designated hitter Yordan Álvarez hitting a solo homer in the top of the fourth and first baseman Christian Walker blasting a three-run homer in the top of the seventh. 2C: Astros catcher Christian Vázquez was behind the plate for all nine innings, with him tallying two singles — including one that drove in a run in the top of the fifth — at the plate. 3A: The number of pitchers the Astros used: Tatsuya Imai (six innings), Steven Okert (one inning) and Santa (two innings). 3B: The number of wins that Houston has against Texas this season (the Astros are 3-1 against their American League West rival). 4A: Amazingly, Houston's pitching staff recorded just four strikeouts. 4B: The Astros are now on a four-game winning streak, including two shutouts (9-0 win over the Rangers and a 3-0 victory against the Chicago Cubs). 5A: This is the fifth combined no-hitter in Astros' history, with the previous one coming against the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 4 of the 2022 World Series; Houston also had a team no-hitter against the New York Yankees in June of that season. 5B: While the Astros surrendered no hits, they did give up five walks. 6: In pitching six innings, Imai had the longest start of his MLB career (Monday night was the right-hander's sixth start). 7: Okert's one inning of relief marked the seventh time in his last eight appearances that he pitched a scoreless inning. 9: Houston put nine runs on the board. 18: In all, this is the 18th no-hitter in Astros' history, with Ronel Blanco's no-hitter against the Toronto Blue Jays on April 1, 2024 being their last one. 136: The number of pitches thrown by Houston pitchers. 628: The number of days between the Astros' combined no-hitter and the last no-hitter in MLB (a combined no-hitter by the Cubs on Sept, 4, 2024).]]>
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					<![CDATA[Houston Astros Toss Combined No-Hitter Against Texas Rangers]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/houston-astros-toss-combined-no-hitter-against-texas-rangers-tatsuya-imai</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/houston-astros-toss-combined-no-hitter-against-texas-rangers-tatsuya-imai</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Houston Astros threw the first combined no-hitter of the 2026 MLB season to defeat the Texas Rangers.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 22:11:10 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Houston Astros right-hander Tatsuya Imai and relievers Steven Okert and Alimber Santa combined to throw a no-hitter in a 9-0 win over the Texas Rangers on Monday night. It was the 17th regular-season no-hitter in Astros history, and the fourth one that was a combined effort. They also had a combined no-hitter in the 2022 World Series when four pitchers had one against Philadelphia. Okert took over to start the seventh inning Monday night after Imai got 16 outs over the last 16 batters he faced. Imai walked three of his first four batters but benefited from a double play in the first inning before settling into a groove. Santa made his big league debut and retired all six batters he faced, his 24th pitch being a called third strike against Brandon Nimmo that ended it after an ABS challenge by the batter was confirmed a strike. The Rangers were held without a hit for the sixth time, the first since Corey Kluber threw a no-hitter for the New York Yankees against them on May 19, 2021. The Astros got the first no-hitter in the majors since Shota Imanaga and two Chicago Cubs relievers combined on a 12-0 win over Pittsburgh on Sept. 4, 2024. The previous pitcher to throw a complete-game no-hitter was Blake Snell for the San Francisco Giants against Cincinnati on Aug. 2, 2024. Imai's fourth walk of the game was to Nimmo leading off the fourth, but Ezequiel Duran then grounded into a double play. Imai threw 57 of his 97 pitches for strikes. He struck out two. The 28-year-old Imai is in his first big league season after coming over from Japan. He was 1-2 with an 8.31 ERA in his first five starts for the Astros. Imai joined the Astros in January after agreeing to a $54 million, three-year contract. He was a three-time All-Star during eight seasons in Japan, and went 10-5 with a 1.92 ERA last season for the Pacific League’s Seibu Lions, striking out 178 in 163 2/3 innings. Rangers leadoff hitter Joc Pederson was retired on a nifty play in the third when shortstop Jeremy Pena made a backhand stop and a twisting throw to first for the out. Justin Foscue and Danny Jansen had deep flyouts in the Texas fifth. Okert walked Nimmo leading off the seventh before retiring the next three batters. Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski Sets Statcast Era Record with 57 Pitches of 100+ MPH]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-jacob-misiorowski-sets-statcast-era-record-57-pitches-100-mph</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-jacob-misiorowski-sets-statcast-era-record-57-pitches-100-mph</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski threw 57 pitches of at least 100 mph — the most in a single game since pitch tracking began in 2008 — while getting 12 strikeouts to match his career high Monday against the St. Louis Cardinals]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 18:27:33 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski threw 57 pitches of at least 100 mph — the most in a single game since pitch tracking began in 2008 — while getting 12 strikeouts to match his career high Monday in a 5-1 win against the St. Louis Cardinals. The previous record for 100-mph pitches in a single game was 47 by Cincinnati’s Hunter Greene against St. Louis on Sept. 17, 2022. Misiorowski (5-2) allowed two hits and one walk in his seven-inning stint. He improved his ERA to 1.83. The 24-year-old right-hander reached 101 mph on 40 of his 96 pitches. He got to 102 mph on 22 pitches and had nine of at least 103. His top velocity was 103.4 mph, which he reached three times. Nine of his strikeouts came on pitches that reached 100 mph, tying the single-game record that Greene set in that 2022 game against St. Louis. Misiorowski started the game by walking JJ Wetherholt on a 3-2 pitch inside, but the Cardinals didn't get another runner on base until Pedro Pages hit a bloop single to lead off the sixth. The Cardinals got a run later in the sixth to end Misiorowski’s streak of consecutive scoreless innings at 29 1/3. Teddy Higuera owns the Brewers franchise record with 32 straight scoreless innings in 1987. Misiorowski entered Monday having not allowed any runs in his past four starts. Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[Big Bets Report: Bettor Banks $290k on 6-Leg MLB Parlay]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-six-leg-parlay-dodgersr-knicks-game-1-rally</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-six-leg-parlay-dodgersr-knicks-game-1-rally</guid>
				<category>nba</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[One bettor bagged six figures on a six-leg MLB parlay, while another cashed in on the Knicks' miraculous ECF Game 1 rally. Patrick Everson has the scoop.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 17:28:46 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[With the advent of live in-game wagering a few years ago, good timing became an even bigger part of sports betting. But good luck certainly doesn’t hurt, either. A DraftKings Sportsbook customer learned that in Game 1 of the NBA Eastern Conference finals, turning a long-shot bet into a five-figure payday. More on that wager, a four-figure MLB bet for a huge six-figure win, an update on the NBA ladder bettor and more, as we recap the week that was in sports betting. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Knicks of Time Last Tuesday, the Knicks were 5.5-point home favorites vs. the Cavaliers. New York was riding an eight-game playoff win streak, including a second-round sweep of the 76ers. But Cleveland was having none of it. With 7:52 remaining in the fourth quarter, the Cavs led 93-71. It was a total runaway. Yet at that point, a DraftKings bettor thought: Why not take a $200 shot on the Knicks in-game moneyline, at a hefty +8000? It seemed like lighting money on fire. But New York stunningly went on a 30-8 run to tie it at 101 and force overtime. Then the Knicks outscored the Cavs 14-3 in the extra period to win 115-104. So that $200 flier became $16,000 in profit, in perhaps an hour’s time. That’s some outstanding ROI right there. MLB Money Also last Tuesday, a Fanatics Sportsbook customer put down far more money than most people should on a six-leg parlay: $5,000 on an MLB moneyline ticket. As I often remind: Parlays are a bookmaker’s best friend. Sportsbooks enjoy nothing more than seeing customers add more and more legs to their wagers. So just keep that in mind every time. To the bettor’s credit, the parlay mixed in a couple of short underdogs and four relatively modest favorites. The Dodgers were the biggest favorite, at -165 against the host Padres. As it turned out, Los Angeles was the biggest sweat, too. The Dodgers won 5-4, with Andy Pages’ sacrifice fly scoring Alex Call with the decisive run in the top of the ninth inning. At healthy odds of +5713 — just beyond 57/1 — the bettor’s five grand turned into a whopping $290,675.89. Ladder Day Saint As reported over the past month, one bettor is putting a notable dent in BetMGM’s bottom line, on ladders of straight point-spread bets in NBA games. A week ago, the customer was up $1.085 million. On Tuesday night, in that aforementioned incredible Knicks comeback, the bettor draped a whopping $775,000 across five bets on New York: All five of those bets — and more than three-quarters of a million dollars — appeared dead in the water early in the fourth quarter. Then came the stunning rally, with the Knicks not only winning 115-104 in overtime but covering every one of the numbers in that customer’s wagers. The bettor profited $466,718 (total payout $1,241,718), running the total profit over the past four weeks to $1.55 million. But wait, there’s more. On Friday, the high roller dropped $300,000 worth of Thunder bets on Game 3 vs. the Spurs. Oklahoma City proceeded to give up the first 15 points of the game. But Shai Gilgeous-Alexander &amp; Co. erased that deficit early in the second quarter, going on to a 123-108 victory as 2.5-point road underdogs. All five bets easily cashed, profiting $167,509 (total payout $467,509), running the bettor’s total profit to $1.72 million. Then on Saturday night, the whale bettor tossed $350,000 across six Knicks bets, for Game 3 against the Cavs. And as you might’ve guessed by now, the bettor went 6-0 to pocket $217,173 profit (total payout $567,173). That bumped the customer’s total profit to an eye-popping $1.94 million. Finally, on Sunday, for just the second time during this incredible run, the bettor had a losing night. And it was sizable. The high-roller had $350,000 across six spread bets on the Thunder for Game 4 vs. the Spurs. But San Antonio ran away with the game, covering every number in a 103-82 home win. That noted, the customer is still up $1.59 million in the past month. Further, the big bettor has $200,000 across five wagers on the Knicks for tonight’s Game 4, ranging from Knicks +3.5 to Knicks -2.5. More NBA Paydays At Fanatics, a customer dialed in nicely on both Game 1 matchups in the NBA conference finals. The bettor put $175 on a six-leg parlay, with three legs from Spurs-Thunder and three from Cavaliers-Knicks. The key to that ticket: Dylan Harper +2200 to grab 10 or more rebounds. The Spurs guard finished with 11 rebounds. At huge odds of +55850 (558.5/1), aided by a 10% profit boost, the bettor bagged nearly six figures, turning $175 into $97,911.72. In Wednesday’s Spurs-Thunder Game 2, a Fanatics customer rode ostensibly a free play into a five-figure win, banking on Oklahoma City’s Isaiah Hartenstein to have a good night. The wager was $109 in FanCash on a two-leg parlay: Add up those odds, and you’ve got +14000 (140/1). Hartenstein finished with exactly 10 points and grabbed 13 boards. And that free bet became $15,260 in real money. Bad Beat In Friday’s second round of the CJ Cup Byron Nelson, a Hard Rock Bet customer dabbled in betting on just one grouping: Jordan Spieth, Sungjae Im and Chris Kirk. The bettor put $400 on Spieth +200 to outshoot his playing partners. Spieth shot a respectable 2-under 33 on his first nine. Then he went haywire with six straight birdies en route to a 7-under 29 on the second nine, for a 9-under 62 total. Almost any other day, that would’ve been more than adequate. But over the final three holes, Im shockingly got a hole-in-one, followed by a par, then a closing eagle-3 on a par-5 to shoot 61. Granted, it was only $200 to profit $400. But that one’s gotta sting. Here’s Hoping You Had It It’s not always about making bets for hundreds or thousands of dollars. Sometimes, it’s about finding that long shot or semi-long shot and just getting 10 bucks on it to fatten your wallet a bit. For example, in Game 1 of the NHL’s Western Conference finals, the Golden Knights’ Dylan Coghlan was +7000 to score the first goal. With 7:30 remaining in the second period, Coghlan lit the lamp, and Vegas went on to a 4-2 road upset of the Avalanche. If you’d put a tenner on Coghlan, then you’d have an extra $700 in your pocket. Heck, even if you’d bet Coghlan as an anytime goalscorer — rather than the first goal — you’d be up $150, as he was +1500 to score at any point in Game 1. On the PGA Tour, Wyndham Clark was +4800 to win the CJ Cup Byron Nelson this past weekend. Clark then fired a ridiculous 10-under 60 in the final round to post a 30-under 254 total and a three-shot victory. Ten bucks on that would’ve netted you $480 profit. And a DraftKings Sportsbook customer did far better than that, putting $400 on Clark to bank $19,200. That’s a nice weekend’s worth of work.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Henry Davis Plays Hero As Pirates Hand Sliding Cubs Ninth Consecutive Loss]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/henry-davis-plays-hero-pirates-hand-sliding-cubs-ninth-consecutive-loss</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/henry-davis-plays-hero-pirates-hand-sliding-cubs-ninth-consecutive-loss</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Henry Davis hit a go-ahead solo home run in the seventh inning to lead the Pittsburgh Pirates to a 2-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 17:01:00 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Henry Davis hit a go-ahead solo home run in the seventh inning, and the Pittsburgh Pirates sent the Chicago Cubs to their ninth straight loss with a 2-1 victory on Monday. Davis turned on a 91 mph cutter from Cubs reliever Trent Thornton (2-1) and sent it well over the right-field fence for his fourth home run of the season. Pittsburgh's bullpen made it stand up. Wilber Dotel (1-0) tossed three scoreless innings in relief to pick up the victory. Gregory Soto worked a perfect ninth for his sixth save as the Pirates beat the Cubs for the third time in four tries so far this season. Brandon Lowe had two hits for Pittsburgh, including an RBI double. Spencer Horwitz also had a pair of hits and a handful of excellent plays at first base, all of them against Cubs star Pete Crow-Armstrong. Horwitz was perfectly positioned to snatch a couple of line drives and then made a brilliant diving grab on a sharp grounder before tossing to Dotel covering first to rob Crow-Armstrong of a hit. Michael Busch hit his sixth homer of the season for Chicago, but it wasn't enough to halt a funk that is nearing three weeks. Chicago's nine-game skid is the franchise's longest since a 10-game slide in 2022. The Cubs have dropped 13 of 15 overall to fall into the middle of the pack in the hyper-competitive NL Central, where all five teams started Memorial Day above .500. Cubs starter Ben Brown allowed one run and four hits over six innings with two walks and seven strikeouts, whittling his ERA to 2.01. Pirates starter Carmen Mlodzinski — fighting hard to stay in the rotation as Jared Jones nears his return from elbow surgery — allowed one run over five innings with three walks and three strikeouts. Up next The series continues on Tuesday. Braxton Ashcraft (3-2, 2.89 ERA) starts for the Pirates. Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Mets’ Star Juan Soto Misses Second Straight Game While Battling Illness]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mets-star-juan-soto-misses-second-straight-game-while-battling-illness</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mets-star-juan-soto-misses-second-straight-game-while-battling-illness</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[New York Mets star Juan Soto is out of the starting lineup for the second straight day because of an illness.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 15:22:05 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[New York Mets star Juan Soto was out of the starting lineup for the second straight day Monday because he was sick. Manager Carlos Mendoza was unsure whether Soto would be available off the bench against the Cincinnati Reds. "He developed fever again last night. Still weak," Mendoza said. Soto was scratched Sunday, when the Mets lost 4-0 at Miami as the Marlins completed a three-game sweep that dropped New York to 22-31, last in the NL East. Soto is hitting .294 with 10 homers, 21 RBIs and a .949 OPS is his second season after signing a record $765 million, 15-year contract. New York's batting order already was without shortstop Francisco Lindor (strained left calf), catcher Francisco Alvarez (surgery to repair a torn right meniscus in his right knee), designated hitter/first baseman Jorge Polanco (bruised right wrist) and outfielder Luis Robert Jr. (lumbar spine disk herniation). Lindor, sidelined since April 22, has started running and hitting indoors and will soon start fielding grounders, according to Mendoza. "It’s hard to put a timetable," Mendoza said. "He’s still got to go through a lot — he’s got to check a lot boxes still." Infielder Jared Young, who last played April 12 because of a torn left meniscus, could be activated Tuesday. He hit .227 with one RBI over 22 at-bats in six minor league games since May 15. Left-hander A.J. Minter, returning from surgery on May 12 last year to repair his left lat muscle, was to go through a throwing progression Monday and could be activated Tuesday or Wednesday. The 32-year-old has a 1.59 ERA in 12 minor league outings since April 7, striking out seven and walking one in 11 1/3 innings. "Every time you miss that much time, mentally, it’s a grind," Mendoza said. "He's a big part of our bullpen." Polanco, who last played April 14, was to work out Monday in Port St. Lucie, Florida, and could start a minor league injury rehabilitation assignment this week. Alvarez, who got hurt on May 12, could be back sooner than the original six-to-eight-week projection. "He’s already hitting. He’s already doing catching," Mendoza said. Right-hander Kodai Senga, who last pitched for the Mets on April 22 because of lumbar spine inflammation, was to throw a bullpen Monday and will make a second minor league rehab start Thursday. He allowed two runs, four hits and one walk with two strikeouts over 3 1/3 innings for Class A St. Lucie on Friday, throwing 37 of 64 pitches for strikes. Banged up New York also is missing right-hander Clay Holmes, out until late in the season because of a broken right leg. Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Power Rankings: One Stat To Help Explain Every Team's Start To Season]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-power-rankings-one-stat-help-explain-every-teams-start-season</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-power-rankings-one-stat-help-explain-every-teams-start-season</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Has Atlanta done enough to continue holding onto the top spot in this week’s power rankings? Take a look, along with one stat for each team that helps explain its start to the year.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 12:54:52 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[While Tampa Bay's starting pitchers continue to excel, Dodgers relievers have now thrown 38 consecutive scoreless innings. Overall, though, it’s still the Braves who boast the lowest overall ERA in MLB. Has Atlanta done enough to continue holding onto the top spot in this week’s power rankings? Take a look below, along with one stat for each team that helps explain its start to the year. They have the worst run differential in MLB (-63) and haven’t won a series in May (6-16 during the month). One of the biggest problems is a 5.75 rotation ERA, by far the worst mark in baseball. Opponents are hitting nearly .300 against Rockies starters. Their offense has struck out more than any team in MLB, while their pitchers have allowed the second-most walks in MLB. A 5.41 bullpen ERA hasn't helped matters. They finally snapped an eight-game losing skid, but things are bleak right now in Detroit. Their offense is tied for the worst slugging percentage in the American League, and only three teams have a lower OPS. The Royals rank 29th in OPS with runners in scoring position, which has played a role in the team ranking 25th in runs scored. They’ve scored the fewest runs and hit the second-fewest home runs in MLB and rank 27th in slugging. Their league-best bullpen ERA (and top-five overall ERA) can’t fix those offensive issues. This weekend’s sweep of the Cubs was a step in the right direction, but this is quite the hole they’ve dug themselves. Missing Josh Hader (among many, many others) hurts a lot, but he can’t singlehandedly fix a bullpen that has an MLB-worst 5.60 ERA. The Astros' diminshed rotation also ranks in the bottom five in ERA, resulting in the worst overall team ERA in the sport (5.17). This past week felt like their chance to really gain ground. Instead, they split their four-game series in Washington and then scored a combined two runs over three games while getting swept in Miami. The Mets rank last in MLB in on-base percentage and slugging (and, clearly, OPS). They’ve scored the fewest runs in the National League, their starters rank 27th in ERA, and they've had the least productive outfield by fWAR. Moves are entertaining out there, though. They rank 24th in starters ERA, 25th in bullpen ERA and 26th in overall ERA. The Marlins lead the majors with 62 steals but have also allowed the most steals in MLB, and their defense has committed the second-most errors in baseball. The Twins are riding high after sweeping the Red Sox at Fenway Park for the first time in 32 years. A year ago, they ranked 21st in on-base percentage and 23rd in runs scored. This year, they rank eighth and seventh, respectively. Well, that’s not what you want. The Rangers went just 3-6 on a road trip to Houston, Colorado and Anaheim, including a sweep at the hands of the dismal Angels. They rank 28th in runs scored, but their bullpen has the best ERA in the American League (2.96). Against left-handed pitchers, the Mariners rank last in batting average, on-base percentage and OPS. Overall, they’re tied for the lowest batting average in MLB. Last year, the Blue Jays led MLB in on-base percentage. This year, they rank 26th. The White Sox have the highest whiff rate in MLB but also rank third in home runs, seventh in slugging and 10th in walks. Basically, the team has taken on the identity of new slugger Munetaka Murakami. Their offense ranks fourth in slugging percentage, while their pitching staff has surrendered the fourth-highest slugging percentage in MLB. The result is a .500 record, but that's (shockingly) good enough for second place in the NL East. By both OPS and wRC+, the A’s have two of the 10 best hitters in baseball this year in Nick Kurtz and Shea Langeliers. A year ago, the Pirates ranked 28th in batting average and 23rd in on-base percentage. This year, they rank fourth and fifth, respectively. They have the highest year-over-year jump in both categories. Their offense ranks 24th in batting average and 25th in on-base percentage, but their pitchers lead the National League in strikeouts. A year ago, the Reds ranked 21st in home runs and slugging percentage. This year, they rank in the top 10 in both categories. Their offense has the lowest chase rate in MLB and the highest year-over-year jump in expected slugging percentage. The Diamondbacks absolutely pummel left-handed pitching. Their .282 batting average against lefties ranks first in MLB, while their .452 slugging percentage and .792 OPS rank second behind only the Yankees. This is a team that knows how to win tight contests. The Cardinals' 10-4 record in one-run games — aided by a 7-2 record in extra innings — is the best mark in the National League. The free-fall continues, as the Cubs just got swept by the Astros to lose their eighth straight game. Their depleted rotation ranks 23rd in ERA, but their defense is still elite, and their offense ranks second in on-base percentage. The arrow’s pointing up for a Cleveland team that has won 11 of its last 13 games. Guardians pitchers lead MLB in strikeouts, and their offense is striking at the right time. In late/close situations, the Guardians lead the majors in OPS. The Yankees’ offense leads MLB in homers, and their rotation — which just got Gerrit Cole back Friday — has the third-best ERA in the sport. Padres pitchers have surrendered the lowest hard-hit rate in MLB, while their hitters have the highest year-over-year jump in hard-hit rate. Their pitchers rank first in strikeout rate and have allowed the fewest home runs in MLB, while their offense has more hits with runners in scoring position than any team in the sport. That’s a winning combination. The Rays have the lowest starters ERA in MLB at 2.88. No other team is under 3.00. Over the last 27 games, a Tampa Bay starter has allowed more than three runs in an outing just once. The Dodgers’ bullpen, which has the lowest ERA of any relief unit in MLB despite missing Edwin Díaz for the last month, has set a modern-era franchise record with 38 straight scoreless innings. It's the longest bullpen scoreless streak since Cleveland (38.2) in 2017. When your pitchers have the lowest ERA in MLB and your hitters have the highest batting average and slugging percentage in the sport, wins tend to follow. That nine-game division lead looks awfully comfortable.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Who Will Lead MLB in Home Runs? Schwarber Favored]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-who-will-lead-majors-home-runs</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-who-will-lead-majors-home-runs</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The home run race is already a hot one, with a familiar NL slugger doing some major damage at the plate.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 12:27:34 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Home runs have made a comeback. Consider this: After a 20-year stretch from 2002 to 2021 without a single 60-home-run season, we’ve now seen two in just the past four years. And the 2026 MLB season is off to a powerful start as well. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. The Yankees' Aaron Judge opened the year as the favorite once again, and once again, he is near the top of the home run leaderboard — but he's not the leader. Let's check out the odds for who will lead MLB in home runs this season at Fanduel Sportsbook as of May 25. Most regular-season home runs Kyle Schwarber: -115 (bet $10 to win $18.70 total)Aaron Judge: +200 (bet $10 to win $30 total)Munetaka Murakami: +1100 (bet $10 to win $120 total)Yordan Alvarez: +1300 (bet $10 to win $140 total)Ben Rice: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)Matt Olson: +2700 (bet $10 to win $280 total)Byron Buxton: +2700 (bet $10 to win $280 total)James Wood: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)Mike Trout: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)Max Muncy: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total) Here's what to know about this oddsboard: The Favorite: Kyle is crushing again. The Phillies' masher, as of May 25, is leading baseball in home runs (20), a few ahead of Aaron Judge and Munetaka Murakami, who are both at 17. Schwarber isn't new to this. He led the NL in home runs in 2022 (46), hit 47 in 2023, and then led the NL again in 2025 (56). He's now on pace to hit 61 this season. Respect The Judge: The Yankees' Judge has led MLB in home runs three times in his career, including twice since 2022. He set an AL record with 62 home runs in 2022, followed by an injury-shortened 2023 season in which he still hit 37 in 106 games. He then led the sport with 58 in 2024, and last season finished with 53, the fourth-highest total in the majors. After opening the season as the +350 favorite, he is now the +200 second choice. This season, he's currently projected to land at 52, after he just put an end to an 11-game homer-less streak.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: The Cubs Were Swept And Have Lost 8 In A Row]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cubs-astros-yankees-rays-red-sox-twins-angels</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cubs-astros-yankees-rays-red-sox-twins-angels</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Cubs lose yet again, the Mets are swept in a devastation fashion, the Twins earn a rare sweep against the Red Sox, the Angels walk it off in a weird way and more from Sunday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 12:26:28 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: On May 16, the Cubs defeated the White Sox 10-5 in their Rivalry Weekend opener. This win put Chicago at 29-16, up 2.5 games on both the Brewers and Cardinals in the NL Central, and with a +48 run differential that had them fourth in the NL. Things have gone downhill from there for the Cubs. Chicago would lose the next two games and the themed weekend to the White Sox, then the Brewers swept their division rivals at Wrigley, all leading to a series against the Astros. Who, despite their own stumbling around in 2026, just swept the Cubs as well. They were all close defeats against Houston, but defeats nonetheless. A 4-2 loss on Friday, then Chicago was shut out, 3-0, on Saturday. The offense woke back up on Sunday in the series’ finale, with the Cubs stringing together hits and walks in the bottom of the second to go up 3-1, and another two runs would be added later. The problem is that this was the game where Chicago’s pitching faltered. In the top of the fifth, the Astros opened with a double off of starter Shota Imanaga, off the bat of right fielder Cam Smith, and then loaded the bases. While the Cubs would log the second out of the inning before any actual damage was done, they didn’t get the third nearly fast enough. Shortstop Jeremy Peña singled in a pair to give Houston a lead… …then first baseman Christian Walker sent the rest of them home with a three-run homer. That was Walker’s 14th blast of the year, and the Astros were, all of a sudden, up 7-3 thanks to a five-run fifth. Chicago would score two more, as said, but the Astros also added another: Imanaga might have been sold enough prior to the five-run outburst, but he allowed three long balls on the day and seven runs from them. When those are solo shots, it’s one thing, but Walker’s homer put the game out of reach. The sweep has the Astros 4.5 back in the American League West, still possessing a number of problems but in the correct division to have them. The Cubs, meanwhile, are now 2.5 back instead of ahead in the NL Central, their record dropped to a far less impressive 29-24, and their run differential similarly whittled down in a way that suggests their record now reflects their play to this point. It’s far too early for panic, but in a division where every team has a winning record, rattling off eight-straight defeats is the kind of thing that can come back to haunt months from now. Speaking of haunting. The Mets sat half-a-game ahead of the Marlins in the NL East entering the series between the two this weekend, that extra game played to this point the only thing keeping New York out of the cellar. This was a chance to inch closer to .500, to close the gaps between the Mets and the teams in front of them in the division, but instead, it was the Marlins taking advantage. Miami won the first two games of the series, 2-1 and 4-1, wasting quality pitching from New York by doing an even better job of things, and then took the finale in dramatic fashion. Both teams had held the other scoreless through eight innings, and reliever Pete Fairbanks kept that going in the top of the ninth by allowing a pair of baserunners but stranding them, just as Miami had stranded the eight before them. New York was not so lucky. Devin Williams relieved Luke Weaver in the bottom of the inning, and things immediately unraveled. Williams allowed a leadoff double to designated hitter Christopher Morel, who was replaced by pinch-runner Esteury Ruiz; he was immediately bunted 90 feet closer to home by third baseman Javier Sanoja. Catcher Liam Hicks walked on six pitches, with Williams trying carefully to avoid leaving anything up over the plate, and then second baseman Xavier Edwards was intentionally walked to create a force at every base. This brought up Heriberto Hernández, who had entered the game as a pinch-hitter earlier and then stuck in left field. The result? His second home run of the year — a game-winning grand slam. In that one swing, more runs were driven in than the Mets managed the entire weekend. Miami outscored New York, 10-3, over those three games, and now they sit 2.5 games up, in fourth place in the East, while the Mets dwell alone in the basement. Sitting seven games back of the last wild card is not insurmountable on Memorial Day, but that’s the glass half-full view. The half-empty one notes that the Mets are already seven back of the final wild-card spot in the NL on Memorial Day, in a much different and less optimistic tone of voice. There’s a lot of Mets’ season left this summer, which is either a reason to hope or a not-so-veiled threat, depending. The Mets were not the only New York team to enter the ninth in a scoreless tie on Sunday. The Yankees found themselves in the same position against the Rays, except strong performances from starting pitchers Ryan Weathers for New York and Drew Rasmussen for Tampa Bay powered things instead of a conveyor belt full of relievers. Righty Kevin Kelly, in his second inning of relief, faltered in the ninth against the heart of the Yankees’ lineup, though. [4 Takeaways: The Divisional Clash Between The Rays And Yankees] First, center fielder Trent Grisham walked to lead off the inning, and was replaced by a pinch-runner once he got on base. Those extra wheels weren’t necessary, however, not with star slugger Aaron Judge coming to bat. Judge saw one pitch, a 92.5 mph sinker from Kelly on the inside part of the strike zone that didn’t sink nearly enough. Ballgame, 2-0 Yankees, on Judge’s 17th homer of the year. That put Judge back in a tie with Munetaka Murakami for first in the American League and second in MLB, behind Kyle Schwarber’s 20, but more importantly in the moment gave the Yankees a split with the Rays in a series cut short — temporarily — by the weather, at a time Tampa Bay sits ahead of New York in the AL East. The Yankees are 4.5 back of the Rays as is; even further back isn’t going to help matters. Diamondbacks’ right fielder Corbin Carroll had himself a game on Sunday against the Rockies. He went 4-for-4 with a run and a pair of RBIs, as well as two triples. That alone would be worth noting — especially in the context of a 9-1 victory against Colorado in the series’ rubber game — but the first of those triples was also special. It was the 50th of Carroll’s young career. As MLB’s Sarah Langs noted, the only player to get to at least 50 triples and 80 homers faster than Carroll in his 537 games was Yankees’ legend and Hall of Famer, Lou Gehrig, who managed the feat in 461. That’s pretty great in a vacuum, but remember that baseball stadiums used to be built a whole lot more triple-friendly, too, and with outfielders not exactly having the positioning notes and arms they do in the outfield today to stop a Corbin Carroll from happening, either. Oh, and then Carroll hit another triple later, too, don’t forget about that. The 25-year-old is now batting .301/.399/.580 while leading the majors in triples with eight, and in OPS at .979. It’s still early, but he’s having his best season yet in a career already full of real good ones. Not a great weekend for teams trying to reverse their fortunes. Well, sort of: the Marlins and Astros have to appreciate their good fortune, at least, and you can add the Twins to that list, as in another battle of teams facing off to try to get it together, it was Minnesota that came out ahead with yet another weekend sweep. It was the Twins’ first sweep of the Red Sox at Fenway Park since 1994, so it’s been awhile. And it almost didn’t come to pass, either: Minnesota won by just two runs on Friday and on Saturday, and then Sunday’s contest ended with the Twins up by a single run. A win is a win and a loss is a loss, though, and Boston doesn’t get extra credit for almost winning, nor do the Twins lose credit for outscoring the Sox by a combined five runs in three games. In the bottom of the fourth, first baseman Willson Contreras launched his 11th home run of the season to tie things up, 3-3, and then shortstop Marcelo Mayer actually put the Red Sox ahead, 4-3, with a single to right later that same inning. The Twins would get those runs back shortly after, with right fielder Austin Martin doubling in the tying run in the top of the sixth before third baseman Brooks Lee put the Twins up 6-4 that scored both Martin and shortstop Ryan Kreidler. Martin would then make a hell of a catch going back, in the rain, with a runner on and no outs, helping to keep Boston off the board in the eighth. This would prove important later, because Boston rallied in the ninth. Second baseman Nick Sogard tripled to open the inning, then backstop Carlos Narváez walked before being replaced by pinch-runner Connor Wong. Third baseman Isiah Kiner-Falefa, who had entered into the game earlier as a defensive replacement, would then hit a double to drive in Sogard… but not Wong. That was a bit of a desperate and unnecessary send there, considering the Sox still had just the one out and the top of the order was coming up. And it got even more obviously unnecessary after seeing how things played out afterward: Yoendrys Gómez balked against the next batter, moving Kiner-Falefa to third, then he hit left fielder Jarren Duran with a pitch. It very well could have been a tie game with the winning run at third and one out at this point; the pitches thrown by new reliever Travis Adams might have been different in a changed scenario, but as is, he allowed a fly ball to right against Ceddanne Rafaela, 250 feet out, that could have brought in the winning run on a sac fly. Instead, it ended the game and the series. The Twins are now 26-27, in third in the AL Central and back to a positive run differential after facing Boston. The Sox, meanwhile, have dropped to 13 games back in the AL East, and are 3.5 back of the final wild card spot. Esmerlyn Valdez was called up by the Pirates on Friday, and on Sunday, the rookie right fielder hit his first big-league homer. The reward? Silence. It’s a classic for a reason, people. Luckily, the Pirates knew how important this was to him, and so Valdez got the ball back. But it cost him, thanks to a shrewd — but not overly demanding — young fan. Alright, maybe you could be a little more demanding, kid, jerseys aren’t cheap and all. It’s been a tough season for Tigers’ closer Kenley Jansen to this point. Yes, he moved up the all-time saves leaderboard, but overall he now has a 5.02 ERA and is 1-3 on the year already, despite being deployed regularly with Detroit in the lead. The latest of those Ls came on Sunday, as the Orioles walked off Detroit, courtesy a Colton Cowser home run. Baltimore’s left fielder — who had entered earlier in the game as a pinch-hitter in the nine spot — hit his second homer of the year, a three-run shot to give the O’s the win in the first game of a doubleheader against Detroit. The second game didn’t go nearly so well for Baltimore — the makeup of Saturday’s postponed game was a 4-1 loss — but that just highlights the importance of this swing all the more. The Angels walked it off, as well, but their way was not as standard as that of the Yankees or Orioles or anyone from Sunday. Gavin Collyer came on in relief for the Rangers to pitch the bottom of the ninth in a 1-1 game, and he found success out of the gate by striking out first baseman and three-hitter Vaughn Grissom. DH Jorge Soler then hit a single, though, and was replaced with pinch-runner Donovan Walton on second after the next batter, right fielder Jo Adell, was hit on a pitch to put Soler in scoring position. And that’s when the weird began. Third baseman Oswaldo Perez grounded into a force out, the second of the inning, but… well, you should watch to see for yourself. Second baseman Justin Foscue bobbled the ball after stepping on second, and then his throw was not caught by first baseman Jake Burger, but it was Foscue charged with the error. The ball instead ricocheted away, toward the base coach’s box, and Burger lost sight of it. Long enough for Walton to decide to take off for home and score the walk-off run. Not only did this give Los Angeles the win, but also the sweep; there sure were some strong, repeated themes in this weekend of baseball.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 World Series Odds: Dodgers Favored; Rays Continue to Rise]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-world-series-odds</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-world-series-odds</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[One AL East team is making waves on the World Series oddsboard, but it might not be the one you think.]]>
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				<pubDate>Mon, 25 May 2026 12:11:53 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Baseball is humming. Here are the odds for the 2026 World Series at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 25. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. 2026 World Series odds Dodgers: +200 (bet $10 to win $30 total)Yankees: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)Braves: +900 (bet $10 to win $100 total)Mariners: +1100 (bet $10 to win $120 total)Rays: +1500 (bet $10 to win $160 total)Cubs: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)Brewers: +1700 (bet $10 to win $180 total)Phillies: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total)Blue Jays: +2200 (bet $10 to win $230 total)Rangers: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)Guardians: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)Padres: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)Red Sox: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total)Astros: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)Athletics: +5500 (bet $10 to win $560 total)Tigers: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)Mets: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)Pirates: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)Diamondbacks: +6000 (bet $10 to win $610 total)Orioles: +7000 (bet $10 to win $710 total)Twins: +8000 (bet $10 to win $810 total)Royals: +8000 (bet $10 to win $810 total)Reds: +12000 (bet $10 to win $1,210 total)White Sox: +12000 (bet $10 to win $1,210 total)Cardinals: +15000 (bet $10 to win $1,510 total)Giants: +20000 (bet $10 to win $2,010 total)Marlins: +35000 (bet $10 to win $3,510 total)Angels: +40000 (bet $10 to win $4,010 total)Rockies: +50000 (bet $10 to win $5,010 total)Nationals: +50000 (bet $10 to win $5,010 total) Here's what to know about this oddsboard: The Defending Champs: At the end of last season, the Dodgers became the first back-to-back World Series champs since the Yankees won three in a row from 1998 to 2000. In addition, L.A. won its third championship in the past six years. As for this season? L.A. has picked up right where it left off. As of May 25, the Dodgers are atop the NL West and have the third-best record in baseball (33-20). They have the highest run differential per game in MLB (2), and sit in the top five in batting average, home runs, RBIs, hits, pitching wins, team ERA and quality starts. Making Waves: The Rays were not seen as a threat entering the season. In fact, they had the longest odds to win their own division. However, as of May 25, they have the best record in baseball (34-16), behind a pitching staff that is having a dominant year. Tampa Bay is second in wins (34), fifth in team ERA (3.51) and first in saves (23). In terms of World Series odds, the Rays were at +6000 back on April 27.]]>
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					<![CDATA[4 Takeaways From The Divisional Clash Between The Rays And Yankees]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/4-takeaways-from-divisional-clash-between-rays-yankees</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/4-takeaways-from-divisional-clash-between-rays-yankees</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[We learned a few things about the top two teams in the AL this weekend.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sun, 24 May 2026 18:02:53 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[YANKEE STADIUM (New York) — The Tampa Bay Rays swaggered into Yankee Stadium on Friday feeling confident with a spacious lead in the American League East that they expected to extend. The Yankees had played inconsistently for a while, and there was an opportunity for the Rays to capitalize on that volatility. The Bronx Bombers, meanwhile, knew they had to avoid letting the Rays run away with the division. Alas, the heavy rainfall all weekend in the Bronx took away some of the excitement from the cutthroat series between the division rivals. Besides Friday night’s packed crowd for Yankees ace Gerrit Cole’s impressive season debut in his return from Tommy John, Saturday was a rain out, and Sunday was a plastic-poncho party in the stands for those who were dedicated enough to sit through cold and wet temperatures for a few hours. So these weren’t the best performances the top two AL teams would have liked to showcase, never mind the high-stakes impact on the standings. But we still learned a few things about the Rays and Yankees this weekend. Here are my takeaways: 1. A Judgian Slump Ends In Walk-Off Fashion For the past couple of weeks, Aaron Judge has been chasing pitches off the plate, grounding into double plays, and seeing his batting average dip to .250. The slugger entered Sunday mired in an 11-game RBI drought that ran parallel to an 11-game homerless streak. The Yankees go as their captain goes, which explains why they entered the final game of their homestand on Sunday having lost 10 of their last 14 games. Judge finally singled in the first inning Sunday against Rays right-hander Drew Rasmussen, which ended an 0-for-15 slide at the plate. But then he wandered off first base and made it almost all the way to second on a fly out from Ben Rice. By the time Judge realized the ball fell into the right fielder’s glove, it was too late. He hustled back to first and was doubled up to end the inning and the Yankees’ potential threat. We already knew Judge was feeling off at the plate, but his mental error after getting his first base hit in six days indicated he was really going through it, perhaps more than we thought. The concern turned into full-blown relief in the ninth inning when Judge snapped his homerless streak with a two-run, walk-off home run off Rays right-hander Kevin Kelly. And, man, did the Yankees need that swing from their offensive leader. Sunday’s victory marked the Yankees’ first win of the season against the Rays after they were swept at Tropicana Field early last month. Without it, they were staring down an 0-4 head-to-head record against their division rivals. Now, at least, the Bombers have something to build off. "There’s nothing better," Judge said after walking it off on Sunday. 2. Tampa’s Rotation Shines Elite pitching is the primary reason Tampa Bay has held its status as the best team in MLB so far this season. Rays starters own the best ERA (2.88) in the majors, and it’s not particularly close. Plus, the rotation has consistently worked deep into games, stifling opposing lineups three times through the order. It becomes demoralizing facing the Rays’ excellent staff, and after getting swept by Tampa Bay on the road last month, the Yankees got another taste of being suppressed at the plate this weekend. Right-hander Nick Martinez, Friday’s starter, delivered another brilliant start in the series opener, limiting the Yankees to one run over six innings and wiggling out of jams despite the nine hits he gave up. Martinez has allowed two runs or fewer in each of his 10 starts this year. The 35-year-old veteran grinded through his outing, but he still lowered his ERA to 1.51, which is second-best in MLB behind only Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler. Then it was Rasmussen’s turn to shine. He took the mound on an extra day of rest following Saturday’s postponed game, then he provided seven shutout innings against the Yankees. Rasmussen struck out six batters and worked around five hits and one walk to keep his final line clean. The combination of Martinez, Rasmussen, and Shane McClanahan has given the Rays a sturdy foundation and a high level of stability that they haven’t been able to enjoy in recent seasons. It’s still early, but the starting staff looks capable of maintaining this terrific performance over the long haul. 3. Rays Gonna Ray No team is putting the ball in play more than the Rays this season. Paired with the lowest strikeout rate in the majors, Tampa Bay is displaying the type of feistiness at the plate that the 2025 Blue Jays relied on to go all the way to the Fall Classic. The Rays’ .305 BABIP is the highest in the AL, and their come-from-behind win on Friday perfectly captured why they’ve been so successful while being scrappy. Down by a run in the eighth inning on Friday, Tampa Bay roared back for their 14th comeback win of the season and their fifth of the year when trailing after seven innings. It was their fifth consecutive win and 22nd of their last 26 games, on a night when nobody would’ve faulted them for taking a loss following Cole’s terrific season debut. Still, they kept their heads down, passed the baton, and rallied for the runs they would need to shut the door on the Yankees. The eighth-inning rally was started by leadoff hitter Chandler Simpson, who reached on a fielding error by Yankees shortstop Jose Caballero. Hungry to punish New York for its mistake, Junior Caminero followed by lining a single to center field, and Jonathan Aranda collected his AL-leading 38th RBI of the year on a double to center that tied the game at 1-1. After reliever Tim Hill intentionally walked Yandy Diaz, Richie Palacios might have felt a certain type of way, because he chopped a ball that deflected off Hill’s glove and went just over the reach of Caballero at short, scoring two more runs and leaving the Yankees in the dust. "I don't know if my mentality just kind of changes naturally in those types of situations," Aranda said of coming up clutch. "But, thankfully, they have." 4. Yankees Need Bullpen Help, ASAP This was the team’s largest glaring weakness going into the season, and it hasn’t taken long for it to rear its ugly head. Too many Yankees relievers are volatile outing-to-outing, nobody has locked down the seventh/eighth inning high-leverage roles, and manager Aaron Boone’s circle of trust is becoming increasingly small. On top of all that, it certainly doesn’t help that closer David Bednar has a 4.91 ERA across 22 relief appearances this season — though his .3.09 FIP suggests he’s running into bad luck. Hill, who has been excellent, is one of Boone’s most dependable relievers. But even he has bad days, and his overuse could lead to trouble by the All-Star break. The southpaw took the loss on Friday after he was charged with four runs (three earned) in that game-changing eighth-inning rally from the Rays. He bounced back on Sunday, though that was due mostly to two stellar defensive plays from the Yankees’ corner outfielders, which kept Tampa Bay off the board. Aside from Hill, right-hander Fernando Cruz is Boone’s only other bridge to Bednar in the ninth inning. The lack of depth is quickly becoming an issue. The bullpen’s problems have been magnified because New York plays so many one-run games. Boone has been forced to use his trusted relievers earlier than he’d like to. Camilo Doval, Jake Bird and Ryan Yarbrough have been disappointing, and we can throw Bednar into that group until he proves otherwise. There are no reinforcements in the minor leagues, either. All of which means the Yankees will be tasked with making the most of what they have for at least the next several weeks, until general manager Brian Cashman can go shopping at the trade deadline. There’s no denying that, for a championship-caliber team like the Yankees, the bullpen is just too thin and unstable right now. 4 ½. What’s next? The Rays (34-16) close out their road trip with a three-game set in Baltimore on Monday, hoping to create more separation in the AL East standings, before they head home to host the Angels on Friday. Tampa Bay boasts an impressive 14-3 record against AL East teams this season. The surging club leads the division by 4 ½ games. The Yankees (31-22) begin a six-game road trip on Monday to face the struggling Kansas City Royals and the AL West-leading Athletics. Their series at Kauffman Stadium is an excellent opportunity for the Yankees to string some wins together and regain their confidence after some inconsistent results this month. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Walker Homers Twice, Astros Beat Cubs 3-0 For Chicago's 7th-Straight Loss]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/walker-homers-twice-astros-beat-cubs-30-as-chicago-loses-7-straight-for-first-time-since-2022</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/walker-homers-twice-astros-beat-cubs-30-as-chicago-loses-7-straight-for-first-time-since-2022</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Christian Walker homered twice with three RBIs as the Houston Astros beat Chicago 3-0 to extend the Cubs’ losing streak to seven, their longest skid in four years.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2026 21:42:55 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Christian Walker homered twice with three RBIs, and the Houston Astros beat Chicago 3-0 Saturday to extend the Cubs' losing streak to seven, their longest skid in four years. Kai-Wei Teng (3-3) allowed two hits in six innings, struck out six and walked three as the Astros won their second straight and third in four games. Three relievers followed, with Bryan King working around a ninth-inning single to finish a three-hitter for his sixth save. Chicago's losing streak is its longest since a nine-game slide from July 7-16, 2022. The Cubs, who have lost 11 of 13, also had a pair of 10-game winning streaks this season. The Cubs are just the fifth team in the expansion era that started in 1961 with a pair of winning streaks of at least 10 games and a losing streak of at least seven games in the same season, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. They joined the 1969 and 2019 Houston Astros, 1978 Pittsburgh Pirates and 2017 Los Angeles Dodgers. Astros slugger Yordan Alveraz left the game in the middle of an at-bat in the sixth inning with a back spasm. Walker hit a two-run homer in the first and added his 13th homer in the fourth, both against Colin Rea (4-3). Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner made a between-the-legs flip to first baseman Michael Busch to retire Cesar Salazar on a fifth-inning drag bunt. The two-time Gold Glove winner made a bare-hand pickup before tossing to Busch, who reached high to his left. Chicago benched Ian Harpp in a 1-for-24 slide, and started Michael Conforto, who went 0 for 2. Up next Houston RHP Peter Lambert (2-4, 3.57 ERA) faced Chicago LHP Shota Imanaga (4-4, 3.38) on Sunday. Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Stephen Kolek's Complete-Game Shutout Ends Royals' 4-Game Skid]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/kolek-throws-completegame-shutout-and-royals-top-mariners-to-end-4game-skid</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/kolek-throws-completegame-shutout-and-royals-top-mariners-to-end-4game-skid</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Stephen Kolek's complete-game shutout Carter Jensen's two RBIs led the Kansas City Royals to a 5-0 win over the Seattle Mariners end a four-game losing streak.]]>
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				<pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2026 20:55:35 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Stephen Kolek's complete-game shutout and Carter Jensen's two RBI's powered the Kansas City Royals to a 5-0 win over the Seattle Mariners, ending their four-game losing streak. Kolek (3-0) allowed a walk, four hits and struck out two. He only needed 108 pitches to go all nine innings in a game that lasted only 2:06. The 108 pitches were four more than his previous career high. It was Kolek's second career shutout in 23 starts and the seventh complete game and fourth shutout in the major leagues this season. Kolek’s other shutout was a five-hitter in a 21-0 win at Colorado on May 10 of last season while pitching for San Diego. Kolek joined Chris Archer and Mike Montgomery as the only pitchers to debut since 2010 with two shutouts in their first 23 career starts. The Royals took a 3-0 lead in the first inning. Maikel Garcia led off with a double and scored on a fielder's choice grounder by Vinnie Pasquantino. Jensen had an RBI grounder and Pasquantino later scored on Jac Caglianone single. Jensen added a sacrifice fly in the third inning that scored Bobby Witt Jr., who went 2 for 4 and scored twice. Kansas City added a run in the sixth on Isaac Collins' RBI single that scored Jensen. George Kirby (5-4) went six innings and gave up all five runs, three earned, and nine hits and struck out three. Up next The Mariners will send RHP Bryan Woo (4-2, 3.51 ERA) to the mound and the Royals will start RHP Seth Lugo (1-4, 3.68) in the series finale on Sunday. The Associated Press contributed to this report.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: Brewers Take Game 1 Of 3-Game Series Against Dodgers]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-dodgers-rays-yankees-guardians-phillies-braves-walkoff</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/brewers-dodgers-rays-yankees-guardians-phillies-braves-walkoff</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Brewers took Game 1 of a three-game series against the Dodgers, the Guardians beat the Phillies on one swing, the Braves walked it off and plenty more from Friday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2026 12:28:42 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: The Milwaukee Brewers, who were swept by the Los Angeles Dodgers in last season's National League Championship Series, won their first game against the defending, back-to-back champions. The damage came in the opening inning, as Brewers catcher William Contreras — who had a game-high three hits — launched a three-run home run to left field off Dodgers left-hander Justin Wrobleski. Later in the inning, right fielder Sal Frelick drove in a run on a sacrifice fly. Milwaukee got a fifth run in the bottom of the second on a double from first baseman Andrew Vaughn in what was a 5-1 win. Contreras leads the Brewers in hits (56), RBIs (30) and batting average (.304); through 39 at-bats, Vaughn has driven in seven runs and sports a .333/.447/.513 slash line. On the mound, the Brewers got five scoreless innings from Logan Henderson, with Shane Drohan, Aaron Ashby and Chad Patrick each pitching 1 ⅓ innings of relief and combining to give up just one hit. In all, the Dodgers had three hits. Granted, they drew six walks. Milwaukee (30-18) has won 12 of its last 14 games and has a 2.5-game lead on the St. Louis Cardinals and Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central. New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole was spectacular in his first start since Game 5 of the 2024 World Series (Tommy John surgery), pitching six scoreless innings on just 72 pitches. The problem? New York supported him with just one run (a solo home run from catcher Austin Wells in the bottom of the fifth), and Tampa Bay broke through in the top of the eighth. In said inning, the first five batters reached base, with a double from Jonathan Aranda tying the game at 1-all and giving the first baseman his American League-high 38th RBI and a two-run single by second baseman Richie Palacios giving Tampa Bay the lead. The Rays would score a fourth run in the inning on a sacrifice fly from pinch hitter Ryan Vilade. New York scored a run in the bottom of the eighth on an RBI triple from second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr., but Tampa Bay would win, 4-2, improving to 4-0 over its division rival this season. The Rays (34-15) now have a 5.5-game lead on the Yankees for first place in the AL East. Despite giving up 10 baserunners (nine hits and one walk), Rays starter Nick Martinez — who owns a remarkable 1.51 ERA and 277 ERA+ — surrendered just one run through six innings. Zach Neto — who hit a walk-off, two-run home run against the Athletics on Monday — was a menace on Friday night. The Los Angeles Angels shortstop sent the first pitch he saw from Texas Rangers ace Jacob deGrom into the Angels' bullpen to lead off the bottom half of the first. Later in the inning, left fielder Wade Meckler hit a three-run homer, with a two-run single from catcher Logan O'Hoppe giving the Angels a 6-0 lead in the third. Texas gradually got back in the game, though, as it got three runs in the top of the fourth on a solo home run from right fielder Brandon Nimmo and a two-run triple from center fielder Evan Carter. Then, second baseman Justin Foscue singled in a run in the sixth and Nimmo doubled home a run in the seventh, pulling the Rangers within one run. That said, second baseman Oswald Peraza — who had a game-high three hits — blasted a solo home run in the bottom half of the seventh for the Angels and Neto struck again in the eighth with a solo homer, which was followed by an RBI single from first baseman Nolan Schanuel later in the inning. Los Angeles won, 9-6. Neto is batting a career-low .221 and leads the AL with 73 strikeouts, but he has also hit 10 home runs and sports a 115 OPS+; Peraza has totaled six home runs and 12 RBIs, while boasting a .477 slugging percentage. No runs were put on the board through eight innings between the Cleveland Guardians and Philadelphia Phillies, but Kyle Manzardo grabbed a bat and changed that. Pinch hitting for the Guardians with one out in the top of the ninth, Manzardo hit the first pitch he saw from Phillies star reliever Jhoan Duran over the left-center field wall, which would help the Guardians get a 1-0 road victory. Both teams' starters were spectacular, as Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sánchez extended his scoreless innings streak to 34 ⅔ innings with eight more shutout innings, while Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams — who now leads the AL with 84 strikeouts and 69 ⅓ innings pitched — tossed eight shutout innings, recording 11 strikeouts and giving up just four baserunners (four hits). Manzardo, who hit 27 home runs in what was his first full season at the big-league level in 2025, is off to a slow start this year (he has a .228/.307/.382 slash line), but he has hit three home runs and posted a .389/.450/1.000 slash line over his last six games. The Guardians (31-22) have won seven consecutive games and 10 of their last 11. It wasn't pretty, but the Atlanta Braves got their fourth consecutive win. Trailing the Washington Nationals 1-0 in the bottom of the seventh, the Braves took the lead on back-to-back RBI singles by designated hitter Dominic Smith and shortstop Ha-Seong Kim. Granted, an eighth-inning solo home run by Nationals shortstop CJ Abrams tied the game at 2-all, which would ultimately send the game to extra innings, where Abrams would drive in two runs on a triple in the top of the 10th — but the Braves would rally once again. Chadwick Tromp singled home a run to lead off the bottom of the 10th for the Braves, with Mauricio Dubón later driving in a game-tying run on an infield single. Washington failed to plate a run in the top of the 11th, and Tromp hit a walk-off, RBI single for Atlanta in the bottom half of the inning, giving it a 5-4 win. Tromp is 4 for 7 at the plate this season, while Abrams leads the NL with 45 RBIs and a 169 OPS+, while sporting a .299/.391/.556 slash line. The Braves are now 4-1 against the Nationals and own the best record in the NL at 36-16. The Chicago White Sox scored nine runs in a 9-4 road victory over the San Francisco Giants; each of their nine runs came in the same inning. Chicago loaded the bases in the top of the fourth with one out, which began with the first two batters getting hit. Second baseman Chase Meidroth then walked in a run, designated hitter Andrew Benintendi hit a two-run double and catcher Edgar Quero grounded in a run before a Tristan Peters strikeout. Then, right fielder Derek Hill singled in a run, first baseman Munetaka Murakami — who leads the AL with 17 home runs — hit a three-run double and third baseman Miguel Vargas — who has an .848 OPS — later drove in a run on a single, capping off a nine-run inning. "That'll do, Donkey. That'll do." Remarkably, the White Sox had just five hits in the game altogether, while the Giants — who scored three runs in the bottom of the fifth and a fourth run in the sixth — finished with seven hits. Ace Davis Martin pitched through 5 ⅔ innings for the White Sox, who got 3 ⅓ combined scoreless innings of relief from Tyler Davis, Brandon Eisert and Trevor Richards. Chicago (26-24) is in possession of the No. 2 AL wild-card seed. Juan Soto looks like Juan Soto. The New York Mets' star outfielder hit a solo home run in the top of the first inning of the team's Friday night road matchup against the Miami Marlins; he also singled in the fourth. Over his last 11 games, Soto has posted six home runs, 11 RBIs, four stolen bases and a .381/.458/.810 slash line. And through 36 games, he has totaled 10 home runs, 21 RBIs, five stolen bases, a 174 OPS+ and 1.5 wins above replacement, while having a .301/.394/.571 slash line. The problem? Soto's home run was the only run the Mets scored in a 2-1 loss, with his two hits accounting for half of New York's total baserunners (the Mets had three hits and one walk). Marlins right-hander Eury Pérez surrendered just one run over 6 ⅓ innings, while right fielder Owen Caissie drove in a run on a ground out in the bottom of the second and later singled home a run in the fourth, which would be enough offense for Miami to take Game 1 of the three-game series. The Mets (22-29) are now back in last place in the NL East, with the Marlins (23-29) a half-game ahead of them in fourth. The Arizona Diamondbacks were on a five-game winning streak, but the Colorado Rockies had seen enough. With the game tied at two apiece and one out in the top of the ninth, Rockies designated hitter Sterlin Thompson doubled to center field, which infielder Chad Stevens followed up with a go-ahead, RBI single to right field in what was his first hit of the season, putting Colorado up 3-2, and that would be the final score. Antonio Senzatela, who owns a 1.13 ERA and an 0.78 WHIP over 32.0 innings of relief, pitched the final 1⅔ innings for the Rockies. Earlier in the game, Rockies center fielder Jake McCarthy drove in a run on a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth and rookie first baseman TJ Rumfield — who sports a .788 OPS — hit a game-tying RBI double in the eighth. Arizona got its two runs on a second-inning sacrifice fly from left fielder Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and an RBI single from Gurriel in the fourth. Meanwhile, Colorado starter Tomoyuki Sugano gave up just two runs over 6 ⅔ innings. Through 10 starts, the 36-year-old Sugano owns a 3.86 ERA and a 1.23 WHIP across 53 ⅔ innings pitched. The Boston Red Sox got out to a 4-0 lead in the first inning and later led 6-3 in the seventh, but the Minnesota Twins fought back. Following the aforementioned first inning that saw right fielder Wilyer Abreu double in a run, first baseman Willson Contreras triple in a run, designated hitter Andruw Monasterio single in a run and second baseman Marcelo Mayer hit a sacrifice fly for the Red Sox, the Twins had a three-run second inning, with shortstop Ryan Kreidler hitting an RBI double and second baseman Luke Keaschall and designated hitter Byron Buxton each singling home a run. Boston got two runs back in the bottom of the fourth on a sacrifice bunt and an RBI ground out, but Minnesota turned the tide in the seventh with a pair of two-run home runs from Buxton and outfielder Austin Martin to go up 7-6; the Twins got an eighth run in the ninth and won 8-6. Martin, Buxton, Kreidler and Keaschall each had two hits for the Twins, who got five scoreless innings from their bullpen after the Red Sox scored six runs off Connor Prielipp over four innings. On the season, Buxton has hit 16 home runs, which is tied for third in MLB; Martin sports a .297/.413/.398 slash line; Kreidler has recorded three home runs, eight RBIs and a .313/.405/.656 slash line over 11 games. Minnesota has won four of its last five games. The ball was flying out of Petco Park. Following the Athletics scoring two runs in the top of the first, San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado made it 2-all with a two-run home run in the bottom half of the inning. Later, trailing 3-2 in the fifth, right fielder Nick Castellanos unloaded on a solo home run to left field to get the Padres even once again. Then, in the seventh, left fielder Ramón Laureano put San Diego up for good with a solo homer. The Padres tallied three more runs in the bottom of the eighth, as first baseman Gavin Sheets — who leads the Padres with nine home runs, while sporting a .522 slugging percentage — hit a two-run single and shortstop Xander Bogaerts hit a sacrifice fly en route to a 7-3 win. Right-hander Walker Buehler pitched through the fifth inning for San Diego, whose bullpen proceeded to pitch four scoreless innings. The A's scored their three runs on a double from first baseman Nick Kurtz and an RBI ground out from designated hitter Brent Rooker in the first and an RBI single from center fielder Henry Bolte in the fourth. San Diego (30-20) is the No. 1 NL wild-card seed.]]>
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					<![CDATA[‘Like I Never Left’: Yankees Ace Gerrit Cole Delivers 6 Shutout Innings In Return From Tommy John]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-ace-gerrit-cole-delivers-six-shutout-innings-season-debut-after-tommy-john-like-i-never-left</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-ace-gerrit-cole-delivers-six-shutout-innings-season-debut-after-tommy-john-like-i-never-left</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Gerrit Cole looked like himself in his return for the New York Yankees on Friday.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 23 May 2026 03:41:50 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[NEW YORK — Gerrit Cole walked into the Yankees clubhouse on Friday afternoon wearing a dark brown polo shirt with a matching Tom Ford belt and sharp white dress pants. This was a statement game, and even before suiting up in the Yankees pinstripes, Cole was dressed for the occasion. He was locked in, ready to dominate. The fit was part of the mentality. Just like the iconic character Proposition Joe said on HBO’s hit show, "The Wire": "Look the part, be the part." Cole did just that in his season debut. The Yankees were thrilled to see their longtime ace and the unanimous 2023 Cy Young award winner return to the mound on Friday night in the Bronx against the Tampa Bay Rays. Cole held the division rivals to only two hits over six scoreless innings. He permitted three walks and struck out two batters, not seeing as much swing-and-miss likely because the Rays have the lowest strikeout rate in the major leagues. He dialed up his four-seam fastball to 99 mph in the first inning, proving his arm was all the way back. He was efficient, throwing just three pitches in the fourth inning. He pounded the strike zone and picked a runner off second base, hyper-alert and quick on his feet for, as Yankees manager Aaron Boone put it, "The game within the game." He did all that against a feisty Rays offense that owns the highest batting average and on-base percentage in the American League. Reminding everyone in the ballpark that Cole was making this look easier than it actually was, Boone pulled him after 72 pitches. That was the plan all along. It was just a tease. "It was almost like a second debut kind of situation," Cole said, unable to stop grinning. "It was an enjoyable moment. It was nice to get back in the fire." Cole was Cole. It was the Yankees offense that let him down in front of 41,358 fans who were living and dying on every pitch. New York’s bats failed to cash in when they created traffic on the basepaths. The Yankees went 2-for-11 with runners in scoring position and left nine men on base en route to a 4-2 loss to Tampa Bay. It was their third consecutive loss and 10th in their last 14 games. "With what we’re going through, you hate losing a game," Boone said. "Hopefully the silver lining is that I felt like the guys had good at-bats tonight and were on stuff. We need to carry that forward now and have the ability to break through." The other silver living was how seamlessly Cole picked up where he left off. It was hard to believe it was his first start in 569 days. Cole agreed, saying: "At some point tonight, it was almost like I never left." His last start was in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Dodgers; he threw six innings in a no-decision. After spending one year and two months rehabbing from Tommy John surgery, Cole is 35 years old now. Aside from his age and surgically-repaired right elbow, things have changed since the last time Cole pitched. For one, he debuted his new windup on Friday — a different, over-the-head motion similar to Max Scherzer and other old-school veterans in the game — that he adopted during his extensive rehab process. The right-hander was also sporting a beard for the first time in his seven-year Yankee career. Cole was on the injured list when Yankees owner Hal Steinbrenner nixed their 49-year no-facial hair policy last year. So, Friday was the start of a new era in more ways than one for New York’s ace. For another, Cole’s season debut against the Rays was the first time he pitched under Major League Baseball’s new Automated Balls and Strikes (ABS) system that launched this year. "My mindset going into it was not to worry about it," Cole said. "And just assume everything's a ball." Towards the end of his rehab, Cole emphasized throwing in the zone so that he could be better prepared for ABS. It was one of several final boxes he checked off for himself before receiving the green light to wear the pinstripes again. Some of the other variables included his recovery, pitch quality, sequencing, conditioning, and good stamina overall. "It's funny, it's like you almost take an extra day here early, an extra week here early, and then you think, 'Oh, this is never gonna end,’" Cole said of his rehab progression. "But then you end up showing up right on time. So it's funny how it works out that way, because it didn't feel very quick, yet it's been very efficient and optimal." The Yankees actually moved Cole’s season debut up to Friday after initially believing he would need at least one more rehab start before rejoining the team. But after his pitch count reached the 80-plus range and he touched 99 mph in his final rehab outing on May 16, plans changed. Cole told the team that he was ready to take the next step, and the Yankees said welcome back. "I expected to do well," Cole said of how he managed the immense Tommy John rehab workload. "I didn't really hit any significant snags, so you put a lot of hard work in and execute along the way, and this is where it takes you." It just so happened that the Yankees also needed Cole to return as quickly as possible after southpaw Max Fried hit the injured list with a bone bruise in his left elbow last week. That was a huge blow to the Yankees rotation, a strong staff that ranked top five in the majors with a 3.22 ERA even before Cole’s return. As much as the Yankees hope Cole’s dominance in his first outing back from Tommy John means their starting pitching won’t miss a step without Fried, the team will also be extremely careful with his build-up in the early goings. "I feel like that was a smart play," Cole said of exiting Friday's season debut after six scoreless innings. "It may seem easy, but it was a high-pressure, tough game." Which is why it wasn’t all that surprising that Boone pulled Cole when he was in a groove on Friday night. The packed house at Yankee Stadium was let down when fans saw the bullpen doors swing open in the seventh inning, rather than No. 45 jogging out to the mound for one more frame. But just imagine if Cole’s excellent outing was wasted on another rehab start with Triple-A Scranton? The way the Yankees ace pitched on Friday night, every fifth game is going to be must-see television for the remainder of the season, and if the worst is behind him, for the remainder of his career. Before his debut, Cole said he was most looking forward to pitching in games that matter again. Asked to describe what it felt like to settle in and once again be the conductor of that intense and competitive environment, Cole had just one word to describe his night. "Lovely," he said, smiling ear to ear. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: How Will Gerrit Cole's Comeback Season Shape Up?]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-how-will-gerrit-coles-comeback-season-shape-up</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-how-will-gerrit-coles-comeback-season-shape-up</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Gerrit Cole returned to the mound on Friday. How will he fare in his comeback season?]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 13:58:54 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Gerrit Cole had been out of baseball for closer to two years than one. It had been 569 days, to be exact. The Yankees ace pitched in Game 5 of the 2024 World Series, back on Oct. 30, 2024. He then underwent Tommy John surgery in March of last year, and missed the entire 2025 season. Then, nearly two months into the 2026 season, he finally returned to the mound, starting against the Rays on Friday and allowing just two hits across six scoreless innings. Quite the return. Let's check out the odds for Cole's comeback season as of May 22 at DraftKings Sportsbook. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Regular-season strikeouts Over 118.5: -115 (bet $10 to win $18.70 total)Under 118.5: -115 (bet $10 to win $18.70 total) What to know: Cole pitched 12 seasons before missing last season due to surgery, and he spent many of those years in the conversation for the game's best pitcher. He had eight seasons with over 118 strikeouts, including 202 in 2015, 276 in 2018, an MLB-leading 326 in 2019, 243 in 2021, an MLB-leading 257 in 2022 and 222 in 2023. He won the AL Cy Young in 2023, and is a six-time All-Star. Two other times he finished second in the Cy Young voting. Regular-season ERA Over 3.85: -105 (bet $10 to win $19.52 total)Under 3.85: -125 (bet $10 to win $18 total) What to know: Twice Cole has led the majors in ERA — in 2019 (2.50) and in 2023 (2.63). Outside those two seasons, he's had eight other seasons with an ERA below 3.85, and in total, he's had five seasons with an ERA under 3.0.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Dodgers-Brewers Ready For NLCS Rematch; Next Steps For Cardinals, Reds?]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-roundtable-dodgers-brewers-nlcs-rematch-reds-cardinals</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-roundtable-dodgers-brewers-nlcs-rematch-reds-cardinals</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[A rematch of last season's NL Championship Series and how two surprise teams can build on early success.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 12:44:00 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[We are set for a rematch of the NL Championship Series in Los Angeles as the Dodgers visit the Brewers. Both teams are living up to their billing as postseason contenders, but the Brewers are also finding themselves in a surprising slugfest in the NL Central where all five teams have winning records. Let's look at some of the notable teams and players that are catching our eye ahead of the weekend. 1. Roki Sasaki has shined in May. Is this the pitcher that the Dodgers believed they were signing before 2025, or are there still concerns? Kavner: There are definitely still reasons for concern, but this last start was by far Sasaki’s best as a big-leaguer. Already this month, he has limited walks while shaving over a full run off his ERA. The harder splitter he has adapted to pair with his four-seamer, forkball and slider appears to be an effective tool, and he is clearly making significant strides. On Monday against the Angels, he went seven innings for the first time in his career and didn’t walk a batter for the first time in his career. The "against the Angels" part is doing a lot of work, though. It sounds like the Dodgers would have given him every opportunity to continue working out his control issues in the big leagues regardless, but injuries to Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow have further cemented his place in the rotation. Now, this weekend against the Brewers represents a tremendous opportunity for him to demonstrate that what we’ve seen the last couple starts is real. 2. Brice Turang, already a stellar second baseman, became a productive hitter in 2025. He's now the Brewers' best bat this season. Is this who he is? Kavner: We saw a taste of it at the World Baseball Classic, where he was one of Team USA’s most consistent hitters, and I think we’re now seeing his ascension into stardom. Turang has always demonstrated an advanced approach at the plate, but the steady increase in pop over the last two years feels legit. He hit 18 homers last year, and his .491 slugging percentage this season is actually lower than his expected total based on his quality of contact. There’s only a small handful of players who rarely chase or whiff, walk a lot, run well, consistently hit the ball hard and play Gold Glove defense, and Turang is doing it all with underlying numbers that support the production. 3. The Cardinals look like they are relevant in the NL once again, and a big part of that is outfielder Jordan Walker. Just how good do you see him being? Thosar: Walker’s red-hot start will likely cool down – nearly 3 wins above replacement (WAR) by mid-May is borderline MVP pace and really tough to sustain – but the underlying breakout feels legit. The Cardinals reportedly helped Walker make a subtle adjustment to his stance, and the results have been turning heads. Beyond his elite hard-contact rate, he’s been punishing mistakes to all fields instead of selling out exclusively for pull-side power. Walker’s raw power was never in doubt, and it’s been encouraging to see him making better swing decisions and becoming more confident about which pitches he can drive. After the departures of Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan Arenado, the Cardinals have been looking for a true offensive centerpiece, and Walker looks like the answer. 4. Elly De La Cruz is just 24 years old, but 2026 is shaping up to be his best one by far. What can the Reds do to build around their star shortstop? Thosar: Finally this year, Elly De La Cruz – who can reach arbitration for the first time in the offseason – doesn’t look as volatile at the plate as he has since he came up to the big leagues four years ago. He has a .954 OPS against lefties this season, and his previous struggles against southpaws were one of his most glaring offensive weaknesses earlier in his career. He’s starting to really take off, so the Reds absolutely have to maximize the years when EDLC costs a fraction of his actual value. Besides strengthening the rest of the lineup, including improving the on-base percentage ahead of EDLC, Cincinnati needs to bolster its pitching staff. The Reds have assembled intriguing arms, but not an October-caliber rotation. Without more durability and certainty on the staff, which usually comes from Cy-Young caliber aces or dependable veterans, EDLC will be forced to carry games. The Reds can start building around their star player by prioritizing their pitching.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: Pirates Win Series Against Cardinals In St. Louis]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/pirates-cardinals-blue-jays-yankees-mets-bo-bichette-braves-dbacks-walkoff</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/pirates-cardinals-blue-jays-yankees-mets-bo-bichette-braves-dbacks-walkoff</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Pirates took a series against the Cardinals, Bo Bichette is heating up, Michael Harris II has become a star, the D-backs had another walk off and more from Thursday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 12:36:34 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: Raise the Jolly Roger in enemy territory. By defeating the St. Louis Cardinals on the road, 6-2, the Pittsburgh Pirates took two out of three games from their National League Central foe. Second baseman Brandon Lowe got the offense started for Pittsburgh with a solo home run in the top of the first inning, with right fielder Jake Mangum driving in a run on a force-out in the fourth. Then, in the sixth, Pirates designated hitter Marcell Ozuna hit a two-run single, with catcher Henry Davis leading off the seventh with a solo home run and left fielder Bryan Reynolds driving in a run on a ground out later in the inning. Lowe and Ozuna each had two hits for the Pirates, who got a plausible, seven-inning start from Braxton Ashcraft; the right-hander posted nine strikeouts and gave up just one run and six baserunners (four hits and two walks), with the one run being a solo home run by Cardinals designated hitter Ivan Herrera. Eight of nine Pittsburgh starters recorded a hit, with the one who didn't (Reynolds) driving in a run. Through 10 starts this season, Ashcraft has recorded a 2.89 ERA, a 1.03 WHIP, a 145 ERA+ and 65 strikeouts across 62 ⅓ innings pitched. Ashcraft has pitched through the seventh inning in four of his last six starts and pitched through the sixth inning in seven of his 10 starts. Pittsburgh averaged 6.3 runs per game in the three-game series and held St. Louis to a combined two runs over the last two games, which were each Pirates' wins. The back-to-back wins for the Pirates came in the wake of four consecutive losses. These are now part of everyday life, apparently. Regarding the Pirates' first home run, it was actually an inside-the-park homer off the bat of Lowe, who hit a fly ball off the top of the left-field wall, and it bounced out enough for him to touch all four bags and score while jogging into home plate. Lowe's homer marked the sixth official inside-the-park home run of the 2026 MLB season. On the year, Lowe, a two-time All-Star, has totaled a team-high 13 home runs — which is tied for eighth in MLB — 32 RBIs, a 150 OPS+ and 2.0 wins above replacement, while sporting a .256/.348/.558 slash line. His .558 slugging percentage ranks ninth in MLB and his .906 OPS ranks 15th. The Toronto Blue Jays lost Games 1 and 2 of a four-game series against the New York Yankees in the Bronx, but they won the last two and shut down their American League East rival in the process. After getting six shutout innings from right-hander Trey Yesavage in a 2-1 win on Wednesday night, the Blue Jays beat the Yankees on Thursday night, 2-0, to salvage a series split. Toronto used five pitchers (Braydon Fisher, Adam Macko, Spencer Miles, Tyler Rogers and Jeff Hoffman) to get the win, highlighted by 4 ⅓ innings of relief from Miles, who recorded six strikeouts. The bats were mute but effective enough for the Blue Jays to get back-to-back wins, with their Thursday night offense coming on a first-inning RBI double from center fielder Daulton Varsho and a seventh-inning solo home run from designated hitter George Springer. Meanwhile, infielder Ernie Clement, who boasts a team-high .296 batting average, had a game-high three hits, which was the total number of hits that the Yankees had. After missing the first month of the season due to a shoulder injury, Yesavage has been fantastic for Toronto, posting a 1.07 ERA, a 1.07 WHIP, 29 strikeouts, a 415 ERA+ and 1.5 wins above replacement over his first five starts (25 ⅓ innings). Despite being just 23-27, the Blue Jays have won four of their last six games and are just 1.5 games behind the Texas Rangers for the third AL wild-card seed. The Cleveland Guardians are rocking. By beating the Detroit Tigers on the road, 3-1, the Guardians finished off a four-game sweep of the AL Central opponent and earned their sixth consecutive win and ninth win in 10 games. Cleveland got its first two runs on an RBI double from third baseman Daniel Schneemann and an RBI single from designated hitter José Ramírez in the top of the third. Later, in the eighth, catcher Patrick Bailey uncorked a solo home run to right-center field, which marked his first homer with the Guardians since being acquired from the San Francisco Giants earlier this month. Elsewhere, shortstop Brayan Rocchio, who owns a team-high .290 batting average, went 3 for 3, including two doubles. Detroit got its lone run on a leadoff home run from catcher Dillon Dingler in the bottom of the eighth. Outside that blemish, the Guardians' pitching staff held the Tigers in check, with six pitchers — beginning with 5 ⅔ innings from left-hander Joey Cantillo — surrendering just one run and six hits and logging a combined 13 strikeouts. Through 11 starts, Cantillo owns a 3.05 ERA and a 134 ERA+. Cleveland (30-22) has a 3.5-game lead on the Chicago White Sox for first place in the AL Central. After losing back-to-back games in the series, the New York Mets managed to win on Thursday, 2-1, to get a four-game series split on the road with the Washington Nationals. In the top of third, shortstop Bo Bichette drove in two runs on a single up the middle, and it would ultimately be just enough for the Mets to get the win. The Mets used five pitchers, with Huascar Brazobán, Brooks Raley, Luke Weaver and Devin Williams combining for four scoreless innings of relief, with them surrendering just two baserunners (one hit and one walk) after starter David Peterson pitched five innings. The Nationals' got their one run on an RBI ground out from first baseman Andrés Chaparro in the bottom of the fifth. New York (22-28) has won seven of its last 10. Bichette, who's in the first season of a three-year, $126 million deal with the Mets, struggled immensely out of the gate, but could he be turning a corner? Over his last four games, Bichette, who entered this week hitting .210, has totaled three home runs and nine RBIs, while posting a .389/.421/.944 slash line. He had three hits in the team's 16-7 extra-inning victory over the Nationals on Monday and hit a pair of two-run home runs on Tuesday. The 28-year-old Bichette was previously a two-time All-Star and the primary shortstop for the Toronto Blue Jays from 2020-25 (he was called up during the 2019 season), but he was signed by the Mets to play third base. With that said, as star shortstop Francisco Lindor recovers from a calf injury, Bichette has dabbled at shortstop, making 17 starts at his natural position (short) and 32 starts at third. Bichette currently sports a career-low in batting average (.225) and on-base percentage (.276), but he has driven in a team-high 27 runs. After an almost no-hitter turned into being walked off by the Los Angeles Angels on Monday, the Athletics won three consecutive games over the Halos. Granted, it took an extra frame for a second consecutive night on Thursday. Los Angeles drew first blood in the bottom of the first on a two-run home run from first baseman Nolan Schanuel. The Athletics got on the board in the top of the sixth on an RBI single from first baseman Nick Kurtz and tied the game at 2-all in the seventh on an RBI single from infielder Darell Hernáiz. Both teams went scoreless in the eighth and ninth innings, and the A's got the ghost runner to score in the top of the 10th, as third baseman Zack Gelof brought in a run on a force-out. And, despite giving up a leadoff single that put the tying run at third base with nobody out, reliever Mark Leiter Jr. kept the Angels off the board in the bottom half of the inning, with the right-hander getting Jorge Soler to ground into a double-play to finish off a 3-2 Athletics victory. The A's got seven innings from starter Luis Severino, with the veteran totaling 10 strikeouts and giving up just two runs and three baserunners (three hits). Michael Harris II is having a season. With a runner on first in the top of the first, the Atlanta Braves' center fielder hit a two-run home run and later blasted a solo homer in the ninth as part of a 9-3 win over the Miami Marlins; Atlanta took three out of four in the road series. Meanwhile, Braves left fielder Mike Yastrzemski went 3 for 3 with a solo home run and a double and outfielders Ronald Acuña Jr. and Mauricio Dubón each had two-run singles. On the mound, Braves starter Spencer Strider recorded nine strikeouts over 6 ⅓ innings; he gave up three runs. Back to Harris, the Braves' outfielder has two hits in each of the last three games, including a combined three home runs over that span. Through 48 games, Harris has totaled 11 home runs, 29 RBIs, a 139 OPS+ and 1.7 wins above replacement, while boasting a .298/.324/.524 slash line. He has also posted five defensive runs saved in center field. Moreover, Harris ranks in the 98th percentile of MLB in hard-hit percentage (56.7%), the 97th percentile in average exit velocity (93.9 mph) and the 95th percentile in barrel percentage (17.3%), according to Statcast. Folks, this may be the best team in baseball. At 35-16 (68.6% winning percentage), the Braves, who missed the playoffs for the first time in eight years last season at 76-86, have the best record in the NL, the second-best record in the sport (the Tampa Bay Rays are 33-15, good for a 68.8% winning percentage) and are 14-1-1 in their series to date. Atlanta's offense ranks first in MLB in hits (464), batting average (.266) and slugging percentage (.445), second in runs (276) and home runs (72) and sixth in on-base percentage (.329). First baseman Matt Olson leads the NL with 42 RBIs and 16 doubles, while sporting a .569 slugging percentage; catcher Drake Baldwin has totaled 13 home runs, 38 RBIs and 2.3 wins above replacement, while owning a .303/.389/.543 slash line; veteran Dominic Smith boasts a career-high .343 batting average and a .549 slugging percentage, while having totaled 22 RBIs. Meanwhile, its pitching staff (starting rotation and bullpen as a collective) is first in ERA (3.09) and opponent batting average (.206) and second in WHIP (1.13). Left-hander Chris Sale (1.89 ERA and 0.87 WHIP) and right-hander Bryce Elder (2.01 ERA and 0.98 WHIP) are each early NL Cy Young candidates; reliever Dylan Lee owns an 0.77 ERA across 23 ⅓ innings; free-agent signee Robert Suárez has given up one run over 21 ⅓ innings; closer Raisel Iglesias hasn't surrendered a run over 14 ⅔ innings. Atlanta's 9.5-game lead on the Philadelphia Phillies (25-25) for first place in the NL East is the largest gap for a division leader in the sport. Two days after Ketel Marte hit a walk-off, three-run home run, the Arizona Diamondbacks pulled off another ninth-inning walk-off hit. D-backs catcher Gabriel Moreno led off the bottom of the ninth with a walk, but a pair of outs followed. Granted, one of them was a sacrifice bunt that moved Moreno to second base. Then, Marte — who had a game-high two hits — walked, and right fielder Corbin Carroll smacked a single to right field, bringing home Moreno for the walk-off run. Carroll, who has a .282/.390/.552 slash line, drove in Arizona's first run on a sixth-inning force-out, with Colorado scoring a game-tying run in the top of the eighth on a hit-by-pitch. The D-backs got another potent outing from left-hander Eduardo Rodríguez, who threw seven scoreless innings and has now pitched seven-plus innings in three of his last four starts and in four outings altogether this season. Rodríguez has posted a 2.24 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, a 184 ERA+ and 2.0 wins above replacement across 60 ⅓ innings pitched (10 starts). Arizona (26-23) has won five consecutive games and six of its last seven, putting it just two games behind St. Louis (28-21) for the third NL wild-card seed.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Back Up-And-Coming Brewers Ace for NL Cy Young]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-back-up-and-coming-brewers-ace-nl-cy-young</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-back-up-and-coming-brewers-ace-nl-cy-young</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The NL Cy Young race is already a dogfight. But Will Hill sees a lesser-known name he likes to make a run at the award.]]>
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				<pubDate>Fri, 22 May 2026 12:35:53 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Memorial Day Weekend is upon us — often considered the first check-point of the Major League Baseball season. While there are still plenty of games to be played, it’s no longer early, as roughly two of the season’s six months have already been played. As we enter the unofficial start of summer, I wanted to highlight the race for one prominent award that I think is going to make for some great debate this summer, and might offer a good betting opportunity. The National League Cy Young race is loaded with big names and powerful arms. Pirates flamethrower Paul Skenes is looking to win the award for a second consecutive year and is currently the favorite to do so at +225, followed closely by Phillies left-hander Cristopher Sanchez. However, those two have plenty of competition, with Brewers ace Jacob Misirorowski and 2024 NL Cy Young winner Chris Sale currently owning absurd sub-2 ERAs. Oh, and by the way, Dodgers two-way star Shohei Ohtani has a 0.73 ERA, as he looks to add to his already crowded trophy case. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. But, among all of these huge stars is a lesser name with big stats. Milwaukee lefty Kyle Harrison is already on his third team in his young big-league career. While the name recognition isn’t there for Harrison, he enters this weekend with a 1.77 ERA, coming off of six shutout innings, 11 strikeouts and a win against the division rival Cubs. Harrison was a highly-touted prospect for the Giants, and was traded to the Red Sox last summer in the Rafael Devers deal. Boston only used Harrison for a handful of appearances, then sent him to Milwaukee this offseason for infielder Caleb Durbin. The Brewers tinkered with Harrison’s arm angle and mechanics, and just might have unlocked an ace. He enters the weekend as the only MLB starter with a sub-1.8 ERA and a strikeout rate of 30%. At 75-1 odds, Harrison has the numbers and pedigree to hang around in what is as stacked of a Cy Young race as I can remember. PICK: Kyle Harrison (75-1) to win NL Cy Young]]>
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					<![CDATA[A's $2B Las Vegas Strip Stadium Remains on Track for 2028 Opening]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/as-2b-las-vegas-strip-stadium-remains-track-2028-opening</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/as-2b-las-vegas-strip-stadium-remains-track-2028-opening</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The lower bowl of the Athletics’ $2 billion domed stadium on the Las Vegas Strip is taking shape, and officials said the project remains on schedule to open before the 2028 season]]>
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				<pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 22:00:32 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The lower bowl of the Athletics' $2 billion domed stadium on the Las Vegas Strip is taking shape, and officials said the project remains on schedule to open before the 2028 season. Club and contractor officials presented their update on the 33,000-person capacity ballpark on Thursday at the Las Vegas Stadium Authority meeting. "The lower-suite level is progressing substantially," said Tyler Van Eeckhaut, project director for contractors Mortenson-McCarthy. "We're starting to see a lot of rooms taking shape and a lot of that environment has really started to become a component of the stadium." Buttress work has been completed to mark a significant milestone, and the upper deck began going up in April. A parking garage on the southeast side will be phased in with 1,500 lots initially available and 2,500 by the time construction is completed. The A's might have to, however, build a temporary plaza on the northwest side. Bally's Corp. hasn't yet raised financing for an elevated plaza on the property as part of a $1.19 billion mixed-use project that includes restaurants, shopping and entertainment in addition to a hotel-casino and 2,500-seat theater. The stadium is part of the overall development plan. Sandy Dean, A’s vice chairman, said the club is in the process of creating plans so that a plaza will open by the time the first pitch is thrown in the 2028 season. "Those guys (at Bally's) are doing a lot of things, and we have to remember Bally's had the vision to bring us to this site," Dean said. "We and Las Vegas are all going to benefit by being on the Bally's site. This is just something we've got to sort through together with them in the next little bit." Steve Hill, CEO and president of the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority, told the A's to present a plan regarding the plaza at the next Stadium Authority meeting on Aug. 20. "In order to facilitate the retail and the parking that you would ultimately need beneath that plaza area, you have to tear that up and build a permanent plaza at some point in the future," Hill said after the meeting. "I don't know necessarily how that would work. We just asked for clarity on if that looks like an option that might have to be implemented that we understand that it will work." A's President Marc Badain said the first set of suites that were made available for purchase have sold out and 80% of the season-ticket packages for the seats behind home plate for what is called the Athletic Club have been sold. He added tickets will begin going on sale to the general public in the coming months. The team had also conducted about 85 hours of focus-group studies with 120 Las Vegas-area residents to their feedback regarding the A's move. Badain said he wasn't ready yet to share the specifics of those results. "We got their feedback with their experience with (the NHL's Golden Knights and NFL's Raiders) and things they love and things they'd like to see maybe a little different in our ballpark," Badain said. "But, overall, it was very positive." While construction takes place on the Las Vegas Strip, the A’s are playing the second of three planned seasons at a Triple-A stadium in West Sacramento, California. They played their previous 57 seasons in Oakland, California. The A's entered Thursday's play in first place in the AL West at 25-24, a game in front of the Texas Rangers. They will play six regular-season games next month at Las Vegas Ballpark, home to the club's Triple-A affiliate. Badain said just a few tickets remain for the June 8-10 series against Milwaukee and June 12-14 set against Colorado. Ceremonial groundbreaking on the stadium occurred June 23. The A’s Ballpark Experience Center in Las Vegas opened in December to give fans a chance to view the stadium in detail and take part in other immersive experiences. Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Digging Into MLB’s ‘Loose Bodies’ Problem — And The Technology To Address It]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-loose-body-problem-revolutionary-technology-tarik-skubal</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-loose-body-problem-revolutionary-technology-tarik-skubal</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[What a “loose body" in the elbow means, what it could signal, and why Tarik Skubal represented the perfect subject for Dr. Neal ElAttrache to try a new tool to fix it.]]>
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				<pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 18:29:37 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[What began primarily as a new tool for use in pediatric orthopedics might now be the next groundbreaking surgical innovation for professional athletes, including big-league pitchers with "loose bodies" in their elbow, who are hoping to expedite their return to the field. Last year, the NanoNeedle scope 2.0 was used successfully on a 13-year-old baseball player dealing with a labrum tear. The technology, developed by Arthrex, is a minimally-invasive arthroscopic device that includes a tiny camera at the tip of a needle-like instrument 1.9 millimeters in diameter, about a third of the size of a standard pencil. The device offers higher-quality imaging than previous iterations and is smaller and less disruptive than the traditional arthroscope, making it ideal for use on smaller joints in pediatric patients. But Dr. Neal ElAttrache, among other surgeons, started thinking bigger. After successfully operating with the new NanoNeedle on shoulder capsule and knee meniscus repairs, ElAttrache was waiting for the right case to use it on a major-league arm. "I wanted to do it where I could say, 'This would definitely change the outcome,’" ElAttrache told me last weekend, in the aftermath of his procedure on the best pitcher in baseball. This year, a spate of procedures to remove "loose bodies" have resulted in some of the game’s most prominent arms being sidelined for months. In February, it was Braves pitchers Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep. In March, it was Reds ace Hunter Greene. At the end of April, it was Dodgers closer Edwin Díaz. None of them have returned to action yet. Greene hopes to be back in July, while Díaz is targeting a second-half return. ElAttrache performed the arthroscopic elbow procedures on both of those players, but he was still waiting for the right situation to use the new NanoNeedle 2.0. In back-to-back Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal, he found the ideal subject. Unlike Díaz's surgery, all that Skubal needed to be removed was a single loose body. ElAttrache did not need to shave or sculpt or clean up a bone spur, which could have required a larger instrument. Time was of the essence in the middle of Skubal’s contract year, and ElAttrache felt certain the new scope would work. "The more I can sneak in there and get out of there without leaving a trace, the better off this guy would be," ElAttrache thought. "I was waiting for this particular kind of case, because I knew it would be really, really useful and helpful to be able to decrease the downtime." A typical arthroscopic elbow surgery to remove loose bodies can sideline a pitcher for two to three months or more, depending on swelling, stiffness, bleeding and the progression of the throwing program after the procedure. The inflamed joint lining and tissue take time to "calm down," as ElAttrache describes it. But it’s also vital to get the elbow moving as quickly as possible after the procedure — often within a day or two, according to Dr. Jason Snibbe, an orthopedic surgeon and consultant for multiple Los Angeles area professional sports teams — to avoid the elbow getting stiff. Doctors will also focus on a patient’s shoulder strength after the procedure, since those muscles can get weak or problematic if the loose body was making a player compensate. Due to various factors, the timetable for return can vary dramatically. "Sometimes you have an elbow surgery where they remove a loose body in a pitcher, and he’s back, let’s say, in three months," Snibbe told me. "Sometimes, he’s back in six to nine months. Sometimes, it can be really long because it takes them a long time to get their mechanics and get their sequencing and be able to throw 95 or 100 mph." Providing a less-invasive option, the NanoNeedle 2.0 might be revolutionary. Just 12 days after Skubal’s procedure — or the "Skubal scope," as it has been referred to — the Tigers ace was already throwing a full, symptom-free bullpen session at Comerica Park. It was the second time he had thrown off a mound since the innovative procedure. While there’s no set timetable for his return to action, Skubal appears to be weeks ahead of schedule, just as ElAttrache predicted. "The less and less invasiveness we’ve been able to use to accomplish getting these chips out," ElAttrache said, "the better and better these guys do." Explaining ‘Loose Bodies’ Skubal had been dealing with a strange, uncomfortable feeling in his elbow throughout the start of the season, but he assumed it was the result of the typical soreness that can arise while building up for a season. Sometimes, his symptoms would disappear for weeks, only to then return again. "Not knowing when that’s going to happen is very distracting," ElAttrache said. "These guys, generally when that starts happening, they want to get rid of it because they can’t really perform." Occasionally, Skubal could be seen shaking out his arm, trying to get the sensation to go away. One such occasion occurred on April 29, after he fired a 96-mph sinker past Matt Olson in the seventh inning. Skubal waved over catcher Dillon Dingler and the training staff, then was seen rubbing the back of his elbow during a mound visit. Skubal stayed in the game and struck out the side, but the discomfort was reaching a point where something needed to be done. Scans revealed a loose body — a small piece of bone or cartilage — that had broken off in his elbow. He was relieved, at least, to get an answer to his problem. ElAttrache, meanwhile, was pleased to offer a new solution in the NanoNeedle 2.0, a scope that could limit swelling and allow Skubal to start building back up much more quickly. "If something happens like that later in the season, they can tolerate a couple weeks of no throwing and gradually getting their motion back and come back and do an abbreviated throwing program because they’ve had all season to ramp up," ElAttrache explained. "But if you do it at this time of the year, it’s really tough. It really sets them back. So, I was waiting for a case like this that would be very, very useful for the patient — rather than using the technology as the primary reason." Over time, the constant friction of bones that occurs from throwing with enormous force at a high velocity can cause stress on the elbow joint and lead to bone spurs, a sort of defense mechanism for the body. Those spurs can then break off and form loose bodies. When they’re small or remain attached to the bone, they might be asymptomatic. But if they become bigger or free-floating in a player’s elbow, they can migrate into areas that cause discomfort or limit a pitcher’s range of motion. Sometimes, a pitcher might not be able to extend his arm or follow-through properly. "And not having a good follow-through can put more stress on your shoulder, it can actually make you put more stress on your ulnar collateral ligament, and the other thing is it can cause inflammation," Snibbe said. "Your elbow can feel sore and full of fluid and inflamed and irritated. It’s sometimes just annoying, like a rock in your shoe. You’re shaking your elbow all the time, trying to get the loose body to kind of break away within the joint itself." In Skubal’s case, the loose body was causing his elbow to lock or catch. While the loose piece is trapped, the joint lining of the elbow is simultaneously being stimulated to make fluid — ElAttrache compared it to a motor being able to make its own motor oil — which can lead to swelling and stiffness. A cortisone shot can help get that inflammation down, but it doesn’t get rid of the cause. "You still have that offending loose piece or spur in there," ElAttrache said. "If it’s causing enough problems to where it’s big enough that it’s getting caught, it’s very unsettling." Skubal’s issue wasn’t going away, but his circumstance required less work than Díaz’s procedure. The Dodgers closer had five loose bodies removed from several different places in the elbow in late April. ElAttrache also had to clean up a piece of spur that was cracking and about to fall off, which required a bigger instrument than the NanoNeedle. Díaz said he had known about the loose bodies in his elbow throughout his professional career. It wasn’t until his last outing on April 19 that he said the issue became symptomatic. Though he wasn’t a prime candidate for the NanoNeedle scope, he still felt relief almost immediately after his traditional arthroscopic procedure. Within days, his range of motion had returned. He expressed "100%" confidence that he’ll be able to get back to his usual dominant form later this year. ElAttrache, who’s the head team physician for the Dodgers, said Díaz's current timeline for return — sometime after the All-Star break — might even be conservative; he just didn’t want to rush the 32-year-old back in a suboptimal condition. "The worst thing for him and for the Dodgers would be you bring him back a little too soon, either he doesn’t perform like you’d expect him to perform or he expects himself to perform, or he gets injured again and then you lose him for possibly the rest of the time," ElAttrache said. "So, I just wanted to make sure that we were OK with that, and from the looks of how he’s recovered, if anything, maybe I was a little too conservative. He’s feeling good and progressing without the pressure of having to rush it back. I think all is going to turn out well with that." Skubal, meanwhile, is on track to return far sooner than any other big-league pitcher who has undergone the surgery, thanks to the new procedure. It’s a stunningly positive development both for Skubal, who could have a record-setting contract ahead if he looks like himself the rest of the year, and for the Tigers, who entered Thursday 10 games under .500 and needing their ace. "I wanted the first time I used it on a professional pitcher to really be a big, big difference from what the standard stuff would be," ElAttrache said. "That way, I could really see the benefit, and I could see if indeed our hunch was right that this would make a big difference." A Tommy John Precursor? Snibbe said a lightbulb goes off in an orthopedic surgeon’s mind when a player has loose bodies in their elbow. The long-term concern for any pitcher dealing with the issue is not the loose body itself but what might be on the horizon. "Usually, loose bodies in the elbow is a sign that there may be laxity or looseness or damage to your ulnar collateral ligament," Snibbe said. "The people that have loose bodies removed from their elbow, about 12% end up with ulnar collateral ligament surgery." ElAttrache agrees that there’s a relationship between the two. Bone spurs can form in the elbow as a response to gradual laxity. Sometimes, ElAttrache explained, too much sculpting of a spur during a procedure can tip the scales from laxity to instability. "You’ve taken away the compensation where the overgrowth of bone is stabilizing the elbow just enough that the person’s not feeling instability," ElAttrache said. "When that guy goes back to throwing 95 mph, now all of a sudden he doesn’t have that compensating buttress in the back there, and then he develops symptoms of medial elbow pain — the typical findings you see in a patient that needs a Tommy John." In one of ElAttrache’s studies, he found a "linear relationship" between the amount of bone removed from the olecranon — the pointy part at the end of the elbow — and how much strain is added to the ligament. "What is the critical amount? That varies from player to player," ElAttrache said. "The general rule of thumb is if you’re taking off spurs, only take off the spurs or the pieces of bone that are offending the player. If there’s a crack in it, if there’s a fracture in it where it’s going to come off or there’s a little bit of toggling because it’s partially loose, take that off. But don’t take off any firmly, well-attached bone." Skubal has already undergone Tommy John surgery once before in his career. But because ElAttrache did not have to sculpt or remove any bone spurs during Skubal's loose-body procedure, "there's no reason to think that he has any increased exposure of the ligament or the medial structures that would be at risk now," according to his surgeon. "There’s no evidence in there that he’s got an ongoing, enlarging bone spur that’s trying to keep up with a loosening elbow," ElAttrache said. "I would be able to know by stressing that side of the elbow if that is a currently symptomatic problem, and it’s not." So, What Next? ElAttrache isn’t surprised to see an increasing number of symptomatic loose-body issues, considering the mileage that pitchers have on their arms by the time they reach the major leagues and the efforts those pitchers are taking to gain velocity. For the pitchers who’ve undergone the surgery to address loose bodies — a group that now includes Dodgers starter Blake Snell, who also used the less-invasive NanoNeedle scope 2.0 earlier this week in an effort to shave time off his recovery — the question is how quickly they can return this season and if they’ll perform to their capabilities when they do. Snibbe believes it's possible. "Absolutely, it’s possible," he said. "I also think it’s everything else. If a guy has a loose body in his elbow and he’s got a bum shoulder or a bad knee or other things that are going on affecting his mechanics, that might take a long time for him to recover. I would say, it’s not just an elbow. It’s about the mechanics of the whole body and how those are being affected." For the surgeons performing the procedure, the question is also how the new NanoNeedle 2.0 scope might revolutionize arthroscopic procedures moving forward. "Any time a surgeon uses this technology, things are going to enter that surgeon’s head about how he can use it," ElAttrache said. "Because this thing is small enough and can get into places and see things that we couldn’t see before — and it’s not taking up room in these joints, it’s not overcrowding the joints — now they can use it and use instruments that they couldn’t use before, and now all of a sudden you’re going to see new things develop around it. "A really useful new piece of technology like this usually causes a mushrooming, rapid expansion of new techniques and new technology and new equipment."]]>
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					<![CDATA[4 Takeaways From The Dodgers’ Series Win In San Diego]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-padres-san-diego-series-takeaways</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-padres-san-diego-series-takeaways</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Dodgers bested the Padres in their first head-to-head series of the season. Here are my four takeaways.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 13:25:47 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Save for some playful facial expressions, the typically stoic Shohei Ohtani rarely reveals his emotions on a baseball field. But in the fifth inning Wednesday night in San Diego, in the most pivotal moment of the Dodgers’ series win against their greatest division challengers, he let them loose. With one out and the bases loaded, Ohtani extinguished the Padres’ best opportunity to strike by getting Fernando Tatis Jr. to ground into an inning-ending double play. The Cy Young hopeful then walked off the mound roaring, "Let’s go!" "As a pitcher, you know when it’s a crucial moment," Ohtani explained through his interpreter. The scoreless frame lowered Ohtani’s ERA on the year to 0.73 — the lowest mark for a starting pitcher through the first eight appearances of a season since Jacob deGrom in 2021 (0.71) — and helped the Dodgers finish off a 4-0 win to stay alone atop the NL West. Here are my takeaways. 1. For The First Time In Nearly A Month, Shohei Ohtani Does It All Entering this week, Ohtani had just one hit all year in games in which he started on the mound. He hadn’t been in the lineup at all in four of his last five pitching starts as the Dodgers attempted to manage the four-time MVP’s workload and give him a breather as he slumped at the plate. But with Ohtani swinging a hotter bat lately, manager Dave Roberts let the two-way star both hit and pitch Wednesday night for the first time since April 22. Immediately, that decision paid off. Ohtani went deep on the first pitch of the day from Padres starter Randy Vasquez, sending a four-seamer at the top of the zone out for a 405-foot home run. That hit alone would have been enough to earn him the win. He then took the mound in the bottom of the first and set the Padres down in order. Ohtani didn’t have his best command, as evidenced by the 88 pitches he needed to get through five innings, yet he still was perfect the first time through the Padres’ lineup and extended his scoreless innings streak to 16. His ERA (0.73) is now considerably lower than his OPS as a hitter (.885), a testament both to his sensational work on the mound and his improvements at the plate. He has reached base multiple times in each of his seven games and is 11-for-23 with six extra-base hits since being given back-to-back days off as a hitter on May 13-14. 2. The Padres’ Top Bats Are Still Struggling — And Now Hurting The biggest moment of Wednesday’s game was an example of both Ohtani’s ability to work around traffic and Tatis’ continued power outage. Tatis entered his fifth-inning at-bat hitting .465 with four grand slams in his career with the bases loaded. This year, though, he’s still looking for his first home run of any kind. He ranks in the 97th percentile in hard-hit rate, but he’s pounding baseball into the dirt with the highest ground-ball rate of his career and has the seventh-lowest slugging percentage (.278) among all qualified MLB hitters. And he’s not the only Padres star struggling mightily to start the season. Tatis, Jackson Merrill and Manny Machado — who homered Tuesday for his lone hit of the series —all rank in the bottom 15 among qualified MLB hitters in OPS. To make matters worse, Merrill left Wednesday’s game early after tweaking his back trying to make a play on Ohtani’s home run. As a team, the Padres’ offense ranks last in batting average and 29th in on-base percentage. 3. The Padres’ Lone Win Of The Series Showed How They Got To This Point A 1-0 Padres victory Friday, during which Michael King spun seven shutout innings to outduel World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, was a quintessential example of how they've jumped out to their 29-20 record despite the underperformance of their offensive stars. In that win, all it took was a solo shot from Miguel Andujar to make them victorious. Jason Adam threw a scoreless inning in the eighth, and Mason Miller closed the door in the ninth to secure his 15th save of the season. The Padres have the fourth-best winning percentage in the National League despite scoring just three more runs this year than they’ve allowed, primarily because they don’t blow leads and they win close games. Miller still has not blown a save this season, though on Tuesday he suffered his first defeat in more than a year. He had gone 65 games — 67 including the playoffs — without suffering a loss until a walk, an error on a pickoff attempt and a sacrifice fly from Andy Pages ended that streak. It was the first time all season that the Padres have lost a game when tied after the eighth inning. It’s a credit to the supporting cast members of the Padres’ lineup, the team’s clutch hitting, the steady work of King (2.31 ERA) and Vasquez (2.91) in a shorthanded rotation and, most obviously, Miller and the team’s shutdown bullpen that San Diego has gotten out to this start. 4. Against The League’s Most Feared Bullpen, It Was The Dodgers Relievers Who Shined Entering this series, the Padres’ bullpen received far more acclaim, led by the most dominant closer in the sport. But this week, it was the Dodgers’ relievers who continued piling up zeroes. The Dodgers bullpen, which has the lowest ERA in the National League, has not allowed a run in its last eight games. Since losing Edwin Díaz to an elbow issue on April 19, Dodgers relievers have the lowest ERA in the sport. On Tuesday, Edgardo Henriquez, Alex Vesia, Blake Treinen, Tanner Scott and Will Klein combined to throw five scoreless innings of relief to finish off a 5-4 win. One day later, three of those pitchers — Henriquez, Treinen and Klein — were back on the mound helping blank the Padres to finish off the series win. Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on X at @RowanKavner.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Division Winner Odds: Rays Making Waves Across Baseball]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-division-winner-odds</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-division-winner-odds</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Rays are pacing MLB and angling to overcome the Yankees in the AL East. See the latest division odds.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 12:28:05 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Only two MLB division winners from last season are expected to repeat this season, meaning parity is alive and well in baseball. Let's check out the division winner odds at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 21, as well as what to know about each division. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. NL WEST Dodgers: -1100 (bet $10 to win $10.91 total)Padres: +850 (bet $10 to win $100 total)Diamondbacks: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)Giants: +9000 (bet $10 to win $910 total)Rockies: +30000 (bet $10 to win $3,010 total) What to know: It's the Dodgers' to lose again. L.A. has won four straight and 12 of the last 13. The last time a different team won the NL West was in 2021, when the Giants took the division … before losing to the Dodgers in the NL divisional round. L.A. opened the season as the -650 favorite. Its odds have shortened dramatically, and it just won its first regular-season series against the Padres. NL EAST Braves: -450 (bet $10 to win $12.22 total)Phillies: +475 (bet $10 to win $47.50 total)Mets: +1700 (bet $10 to win $180 total)Marlins: +7500 (bet $10 to win $760 total)Nationals: +8000 (bet $10 to win $810 total) What to know: The Mets last won the division in 2015, and that same year, they lost in the World Series to the Royals. They opened the season as the +140 favorite, but they are currently last in the division, mostly due to a 12-game losing streak back in April. Atlanta, meanwhile, has the second-best record in baseball. NL CENTRAL Cubs: +115 (bet $10 to win $21.50 total)Brewers: +135 (bet $10 to win $23.50 total)Pirates: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)Cardinals: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)Reds: +2000 (bet $10 to win $210 total) What to know: Milwaukee has won four of the last five, and the Cubs last won it in 2020. The Brewers defeated the Cubs in the NLDS last season before losing to the Dodgers in the NLCS. It stands as Milwaukee's only postseason series win during that span of four division titles in five years. The Cubs opened the season as the +115 favorite, and they remain atop the oddsboard. AL WEST Mariners: +125 (bet $10 to win $22.50 total)Rangers: +160 (bet $10 to win $26 total)Athletics: +425 (bet $10 to win $32.50 total)Astros: +1500 (bet $10 to win $160 total)Angels: +7500 (bet $10 to win $760 total) What to know: The Mariners will look to make it two straight, having captured their first division title since 2001 in 2025. The winner of the AL West has won at least one playoff series every year dating back to 2017, except in 2024. Houston has won seven of the last nine AL West titles. Seattle opened the season as the +100 favorite. AL EAST Yankees: -175 (bet $10 to win $15.71 total)Rays: +180 (bet $10 to win $28 total)Blue Jays: +2200 (bet $10 to win $230 total)Red Sox: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)Orioles: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total) What to know: The Rays have been the surprise of this division, and of baseball in general. They opened as the +2500 last choice to win the AL East, but now, they have the best record in MLB. Wow. AL CENTRAL Guardians: -145 (bet $10 to win $16.90 total)White Sox: +500 (bet $10 to win $60 total)Tigers: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)Twins: +900 (bet $10 to win $100 total)Royals: +950 (bet $10 to win $105 total) What to know: The Guardians have won three of the last four and six of the last 10. The Tigers haven't won it since 2014, and won four straight from 2011 to 2014. The AL Central represented the American League in the World Series in both 2015 and 2016. Detroit opened as the +110 favorite to win this division.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: Dodgers Superstar Shohei Ohtani Dazzles Against Padres]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-brewers-cubs-red-sox-pirates-cardinals</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-shohei-ohtani-brewers-cubs-red-sox-pirates-cardinals</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani shined, the Brewers swept the Cubs, the Pirates destroyed the Cardinals, multiple late comebacks and more from Wednesday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 21 May 2026 12:27:03 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: It took one pitch for Shohei Ohtani to make his presence felt. Ohtani jacked the opening pitch of the game from San Diego Padres starter Randy Vásquez just over the center-field wall, giving the Los Angeles Dodgers a lead they would never surrender. The following inning, Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández brought home a run for the Dodgers on a sacrifice fly and later hit a solo home run to lead off the top of the ninth inning. Los Angeles also got a run in the fifth on a Kyle Tucker RBI single, which was all good for a 4-0 Dodgers victory. First baseman Freddie Freeman — who had two home runs on Tuesday night — had two doubles, while shortstop Mookie Betts had two hits of his own. Who was on the mound for the Dodgers? That would be Ohtani, who pitched five scoreless innings and recorded four strikeouts. The Dodgers then got scoreless innings from Edgardo Henriquez, Blake Treinen, Kyle Hurt and Will Klein. While having totaled eight home runs, 26 RBIs, a 150 OPS+ and 1.5 wins above replacement as a hitter — boasting a .272/.399/.486 slash line — Ohtani owns an 0.73 ERA, an 0.84 WHIP, 54 strikeouts, a 544 ERA+ and 2.2 wins above replacement over 49.0 innings (eight starts) as a pitcher. After winning two out of three against the Padres in San Diego, the Dodgers (31-19) now have a 1.5-game lead on the Padres for first place in the National League West. Bryce Harper drove in a run for the Philadelphia Phillies on a sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first, but then it was all about the Cincinnati Reds. Granted, the Phillies got a two-run home run from third baseman Edmundo Sosa and a solo homer from first baseman Alec Bohm in the sixth. Cincinnati struck for three runs in the top of the second, with first baseman Nathaniel Lowe doubling in a run, right fielder Will Benson hitting an RBI ground out and catcher P.J. Higgins hitting an RBI single. Higgins singled in another run in the fourth, and Lowe doubled in two more runs in the seventh. Meanwhile, in the sixth, outfielder Dane Myers had an RBI double. But the star of the show for the Reds was infielder Sal Stewart, who demolished a two-run home run into the second deck of Citizens Bank Park in the top of the ninth and finished the day with a game-high four hits in what was a 9-4 victory for Cincinnati that wrapped up a road series win. Through 50 games, Stewart has totaled 12 home runs, 34 RBIs, 10 stolen bases and a 133 OPS+, while sporting a .265/.353/.503 slash line. Stewart leads the Reds in both home runs and RBIs. Ketel Marte has had a rough start to the 2026 MLB season (the two-time Silver Slugger has a career-low .235 batting average and sports a mere .702 OPS), but his last 48 hours? Quite vibrant. One night after hitting a walk-off, three-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, the Arizona Diamondbacks' star second baseman reached base in each of his four plate appearances, most notably blasting a two-run home run in the bottom of the third. Marte also hit a double, single and drew a walk. Elsewhere for the D-backs, shortstop Geraldo Perdomo drove in a run in the bottom of the first on a sacrifice fly and doubled home two runs as part of a three-run fifth inning, which also saw first baseman Ildemaro Vargas hit an RBI ground out. Starter Merrill Kelly gave up three runs over six innings to the San Francisco Giants, with the D-backs winning 6-3 and pulling off a sweep of their NL West rival. Arizona has won five of its last six games, improving to 25-23. The Milwaukee Brewers came to Chi-Town with an agenda and executed. Beating the Chicago Cubs 5-0, the Brewers (29-18) finished off a sweep of the Cubs and now have a 1.5-game lead on both Chicago and the St. Louis Cardinals for first place in the NL Central. Left-hander Kyle Harrison had arguably the best start of his MLB career on Wednesday night, throwing seven scoreless innings, posting 11 strikeouts and giving up just three baserunners (two hits and one walk). DL Hall pitched two scoreless innings to end the game for Milwaukee. As for the offense, the Brewers got three runs in the top of the second after third baseman David Hamilton singled to center field, but the ball then got past Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong and rolled all the way to the warning track, with Hamilton touching all four bases for a de facto inside-the-park home run. The Brewers scored their fourth run in the third on an RBI single from first baseman Jake Bauers and their fifth run on a wild pitch in the seventh. Hamilton and catcher William Contreras each had three hits for Milwaukee, while Harrison and Hall held Chicago to a combined two hits; the Cubs scored just five runs in the three-game series. Through nine starts, Harrison has a 1.77 ERA, a 1.07 WHIP, 59 strikeouts, a 232 ERA+ and 2.1 wins above replacement over 45 ⅔ innings pitched. Milwaukee has won 11 of its last 13 games. For just the second time this season, the Boston Red Sox have swept an opponent — and both series came on the road against teams in the same division (they swept the Detroit Tigers on the road earlier this month). Trailing 3-2 in the top of the seventh, Red Sox left fielder Jarren Duran hit an opposite field, go-ahead, two-run home run to left field to put Boston up for good on the Kansas City Royals, 4-3, for a three-game sweep. Duran had two hits on the night, while first baseman Willson Contreras — who leads the Red Sox in home runs (10), RBIs (30), on-base percentage (.369) and slugging percentage (.497) — had a team-high three hits for Boston. Its other two runs came in the top of the second on an RBI single from infielder Nick Sogard and an RBI ground out from catcher Carlos Narváez. On the hill, the Red Sox got 6 ⅓ innings from starter Connelly Early. Boston out-scored Kansas City in the three-game set 14-5. If you want, you can leave the brooms out for this one, too. Trailing the Baltimore Orioles 3-1 in the bottom of the eighth, the Tampa Bay Rays put four runs on the board, as designated hitter Jonathan Aranda hit a two-run double, second baseman Richie Palacios singled in a run and first baseman Ryan Vilade stole home on a double steal (runners on first and third each stole a bag). Ian Seymour pitched a one-two-three ninth inning to give the Rays a 5-3 win and a series sweep of the Orioles. Sticking on the pitching front, after left-hander Steven Matz went four innings for the Rays, Jesse Scholtens had a four-inning appearance before Seymour pitched the ninth. Tampa Bay's other run came on a second-inning solo home run by catcher Hunter Feduccia. On the season, Aranda has driven in a team-high 37 runs, which is sixth in MLB, and Vilade has driven in 13 runs, while possessing a .306/.380/.484 slash line through 27 games. Tampa Bay scored 25 runs in its three-game series against Baltimore. The Rays own the best record in baseball at 33-15. One day after losing to the Texas Rangers 10-0, the Colorado Rockies could smell a victory, but it turned out to be a false sniff. Leading 4-3, Rockies reliever Brennan Bernardino got Rangers pinch hitter Danny Jansen to strikeout to open the ninth inning; it was all downhill from there for Colorado. Joc Pederson reached base on a catcher's interference, Justin Foscue and Alejandro Osuna each singled and a passed ball brought home the game-tying run. Then, third baseman Josh Jung singled home the go-ahead and eventual game-winning run for the Rangers, who got a 5-4 victory. Jung — who leads Texas with 54 hits, 14 doubles, a .309 batting average, a .365 on-base percentage and a .474 slugging percentage — and Foscue each had a game-high three hits for the Rangers, whose other three runs came on back-to-back, fourth-inning home runs from infielders Ezequiel Durán (a two-run homer) and Jake Burger (a solo homer). Jacob Latz pitched the final two innings for Texas, tossing scoreless eighth and ninth innings and posting four strikeouts. The left-hander sports a 1.90 ERA, an 0.59 WHIP and a 193 ERA+ over 23 ⅔ innings pitched. The Rangers took two out of three from the Rockies at Coors Field. But a win is a win. Trailing the Detroit Tigers 1-0 entering the top of the ninth, the Cleveland Guardians grinded out a game-tying run. Infielders Daniel Schneemann and Travis Bazzana led off the inning with back-to-back singles, and catcher Patrick Bailey drove in Schneemann on an RBI ground out two batters later. Then, in the top half of the 10th, outfielder Ángel Martínez hit a leadoff triple, which drove in a run, and star third baseman José Ramírez followed with an RBI double, giving the Guardians a 3-1 lead, which would be enough for them to ultimately get a 3-2 win. What could get lost in Cleveland's bats going silent for eight innings is its starter, Tanner Bibee, giving up just one run and five baserunners (four hits and one walk) over eight innings. As for the 10th-inning run-producers, Martínez has totaled nine home runs, 26 RBIs and eight stolen bases this season, while owning a .500 slugging percentage; Ramírez has logged eight home runs, 23 RBIs, an AL-high 20 stolen bases and 2.1 wins above replacement. The Guardians, who stand atop the American League Central at 29-22, have won eight of their last nine games. The Tigers? They've lost 13 of their last 15. The Athletics had to rally to get another win over the Los Angeles Angels in Anaheim. A's left fielder Tyler Soderstrom hit a two-run single in the top of the first, while right fielder Carlos Cortez had an RBI single in the second. With that said, a first-inning, two-run home run from designated hitter Jorge Soler and second-inning home runs from outfielders Jo Adell (solo homer) and Josh Lowe (two-run homer) gave the Angels a 5-3 lead, which would be the score through the sixth inning. The A's got within one run in the seventh on an RBI single from star first baseman Nick Kurtz, and second baseman Jeff McNeil leveled up the score at 5-all in the ninth with a leadoff solo home run, which forced extra innings. Soderstrom singled home the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th, and the A's kept the Angels off the board in the bottom half of the inning to complete a 6-5 win. At 25-24, the Athletics are in first place in the AL West. A Pirate's life was not for the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday night. The Pittsburgh Pirates thoroughly defeated the Redbirds to take Game 2 of a three-game set in St. Louis, 7-0. The first indentation on the Cardinals' beak came on a solo home run from Spencer Horwitz — who sports an .814 OPS — in the top of the second, as shown below. In the fourth, center fielder Jhostynxon Garcia singled home a run, with third baseman Nick Gonzales driving in a run on a sacrifice fly in the sixth. Pittsburgh broke it open with a four-run eighth inning that saw Gonzales and right fielder Jake Mangum each single in runs and Bryan Reynolds hit a two-run double for good measure. One could argue that the star of the game for the Pirates, though, was rookie shortstop Konnor Griffin, who had a game-high four hits, marking the second time this month he has tallied four hits. Griffin, Gonzales, Garcia, Mangum and catcher Endy Rodríguez each had multi-hit performances for the Pirates, who had a combined 15 hits and used five pitchers, with starter Carmen Mlodzinski going five innings. The convincing win snapped a four-game losing streak for Pittsburgh, which is now back over .500 at 25-24.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Blue Jays' Pitcher José Berríos Undergoes Season-Ending Tommy John Surgery]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blue-jays-pitcher-jose-berrios-undergoes-season-ending-tommy-john-surgery</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blue-jays-pitcher-jose-berrios-undergoes-season-ending-tommy-john-surgery</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[José Berríos underwent a full Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, sidelining the veteran Toronto Blue Jays starter well into the 2027 season]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2026 19:16:16 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Jose Berrios underwent a full Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Wednesday, sidelining the veteran Toronto Blue Jays starter well into the 2027 season. The Blue Jays hoped Berríos — who missed Toronto’s World Series run last fall with elbow inflammation — would need a less invasive surgery to repair a stress fracture and remove loose bodies from the right elbow. But manager John Schneider said a loose body was found on the ligament, which necessitated the Tommy John procedure by Dr. Keith Meister in Texas. "It’s kind of like, got an answer," Schneider said before the Blue Jays faced the New York Yankees. "It sucks for him, it sucks for us. I know he’ll attack the rehab. It’s just the time part of it sucks. Not having him here sucks, too." Berríos, 31, appeared healthy at the start of spring training. But he opened the season on the injured list with the stress fracture and posted a 10.67 ERA while displaying reduced velocity and battling a sore elbow in four rehab starts. "When you have something, guys are usually OK when its not surgically (repaired) initially," Schneider said. "Really didn’t see this coming." Berríos and teammate Patrick Corbin are the only pitchers to make at least 30 starts in each of the last seven full seasons, since 2018. Berríos, in the fifth year of a seven-year deal signed in November 2021, is 53-39 with a 4.09 ERA since being acquired from the Minnesota Twins in July 2021. "Since we acquired him, he’s just been steady, he’s been kind of part of what we’re doing and reliable, obviously," Schneider said. "It’s weird not having him. I think that we were looking for him to kind of just get back to normal a little bit. And he was hoping for that, too." Berríos’ season-ending surgery is another blow to an injury-battered Toronto rotation. Shane Bieber has yet to make a start this season due to right forearm stiffness. Cody Ponce, who signed with the Blue Jays after four seasons in Japan, suffered a season-ending right knee injury in his first start March 30. Bowden Francis, who made 27 starts the previous two seasons, underwent Tommy John surgery in February. Veteran Max Scherzer has been limited to five starts by forearm and ankle injuries while Trey Yesavage, a rookie sensation in the playoffs last year, was slated to make his fifth start Wednesday after missing the first month with a right shoulder impingement. Schneider said Scherzer is scheduled to throw a bullpen session Thursday while Bieber could begin a rehab stint next week. Bieber would likely need at least four or five starts before he becomes an option for the Blue Jays, who entered Wednesday at 21-27 and 11 1/2 games behind the Tampa Bay Rays in the AL East. Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: Inside-The-Park Grand Slam, Seat Catch In Mets-Nationals]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/nationals-mets-inside-the-park-grand-slam-dbacks-cardinals-walk-off-dodgers-padres</link>
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				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[The Nationals and Mets combined for a highlight-reel game, two walk-off, three-run home runs, an NL Central lead change, the Dodgers won a thriller and more from Tuesday's MLB action.]]>
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				<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2026 12:22:57 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: This one was all over the place. For starters, the New York Mets got out to a 5-0 lead in the second inning, highlighted by a pair of two-run home runs from shortstop Bo Bichette, but then right fielder James Wood flipped the script for the Washington Nationals in the bottom half of the inning. With the bases loaded and two outs, Wood hit a fly ball to the left field wall that Mets left fielder Nick Morabito — we'll get back to him — couldn't handle, and the ball bounced off the wall enough for Wood to pull off an inside-the-park grand slam. Wood's grand slam would spark the Nationals, who scored three runs in the third to take the lead, those coming on a solo home run from designated hitter José Tena, a passed ball and a sacrifice fly from third baseman Jorbit Vivas. On the last score, the earlier mentioned Morabito, who was making his MLB debut, made an absurd, leaping catch into the left field stands to record the out. Washington got two more runs in the fourth on an RBI ground out and infield error. New York scored a run in the top of the sixth on a solo home run from designated hitter Juan Soto, but it was to no avail, as the Nationals won, 9-6. Wood, who leads the National League with 43 runs scored and 40 walks and boasts a career-high 165 OPS+, finished the game with three hits. While three of the runs were unearned, Mets right-hander Nolan McLean was the pitcher on the mound for each of the Nationals' nine runs. Holding a mere 1-0 lead on the Chicago White Sox, Seattle Mariners right-hander Luis Castillo, who pitched 2 ⅓ innings out of the bullpen, put two of the first three batters on base in the top of the ninth, which prompted manager Dan Wilson to go to his closer, Andrés Muñoz. Then, Muñoz gave up a game-tying single to White Sox second baseman Chase Meidroth, and designated hitter Andrew Benintendi followed with a ground ball to the right side, which Mariners infielders Josh Naylor and Cole Young each went for and missed, with the infield hit driving in the go-ahead and ultimate game-winning run; Grant Taylor struck out the side (all swinging) in the bottom of the ninth, giving Chicago a 2-1 road victory. Muñoz, an All-Star in each of the last two seasons, has blown three saves this year and owns a career-high 4.82 ERA and 1.34 WHIP. Seattle's one run came in the bottom of the first on an RBI force-out from third baseman Patrick Wisdom; the Mariners had one hit, which was a first-inning Julio Rodríguez single. Chicago starter Anthony Kay pitched through 5 ⅓ innings, followed by 1 ⅔ innings from Tyler Davis and scoreless innings from Bryan Hudson and Taylor. The White Sox have won eight of their last 10 games and are just two games behind the Cleveland Guardians for first place in the American League Central. The Texas Rangers slapped the Colorado Rockies around at Coors Field from start to finish. The onslaught began in the opening frame, as infielder Ezequiel Durán hit a two-run double. In the second, Duran, right fielder Brandon Nimmo and first baseman Jake Burger each singled home a run. Later, in the fourth, Nimmo hit a two-run home run to center field. Then, in the eighth, second baseman Justin Foscue drove in a run on a force-out, with Texas later getting an RBI single from Joc Pederson — who had a game-high four hits — in the seventh and an RBI double from Durán in the eighth. Durán and Nimmo each had three hits, with the former driving in four runs and the latter driving in three runs. Tyler Alexander pitched the first 1 ⅔ innings for the Rangers, and Kumar Rocker dominated, thereafter, posting seven strikeouts and giving up just six baserunners (three hits and three walks) over 7 ⅔ innings; Jalen Beeks got the final out of the game for Texas, which won 10-0. The 10-0 victory marked both the most runs the Rangers have scored and their largest margin of victory this season. A few seconds ago, the Milwaukee Brewers were in last place in the National League Central. Now, they stand atop the division. After defeating the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Tuesday night, 5-2, the Brewers are in first place in the NL Central (28-18), which they've won in each of the last three seasons. Milwaukee drew first blood in the opening inning on an RBI single from center fielder Garrett Mitchell and got two more runs in the top of the third on a wild pitch and an RBI single from first baseman Jake Bauers. Later, in the eighth, second baseman Brice Turang, who had a game-high three hits, gave the Brewers more separation with a two-run home run to left-center field. On the mound, it was all about "The Miz" for the Brewers — again. Pitching six scoreless innings, right-hander Jacob Misiorowski recorded eight strikeouts and surrendered just four baserunners (three hits and one walk). The flame-throwing right-hander sports a 1.89 ERA, an 0.88 WHIP, an NL-high 88 strikeouts, a 215 ERA+ and 2.1 wins above replacement over 57.0 innings pitched (10 starts). Elsewhere, Turang has driven in a team-high 29 runs, while possessing a .292/.413/.497 slash line; Bauers has driven in 28 runs, while boasting a .292/.363/.507 slash line. Both Milwaukee infielders have hit seven home runs. This one was a back-and-forth bout. First baseman Freddie Freeman got the Los Angeles Dodgers started with a two-run home run in the top of the first, but San Diego Padres third baseman Manny Machado replied with a two-run homer of his own in the bottom half of the inning. The Padres then took a 4-2 lead in the third on a two-run homer from designated hitter Miguel Andújar. A fifth-inning RBI ground out from Shohei Ohtani — who reached base three times (two hits and one walk) — and a solo home run from Freeman, which was his second long ball of the game, in the sixth would tie the game at 4-all. Later, the Dodgers did something that had only happened in one game this season: They got Padres star closer Mason Miller to give up a run. Dodgers catcher Will Smith led off the top of the ninth with a fly out, but third baseman Max Muncy walked and outfielder Alex Call pinch ran for Muncy and got to third on a throwing error. The next batter, center fielder Andy Pages, flied out to shallow right field, and Call snuck into home plate for the go-ahead run. Will Klein then had a one-two-three ninth inning, closing out a 5-4 Dodgers win. The Athletics lost in brutal fashion on Monday night, as J.T. Ginn's no-hit bid ended in the top of the ninth on a walk-off, two-run home run from Los Angeles Angels shortstop Zach Neto. That is NOT how Tuesday night's game went for the A's. After a pair of scoreless innings to open the night, the Athletics put six runs on the board in the top of the third on a two-run double from left fielder Colby Thomas, a two-run single from third baseman Zack Gelof and RBI singles from first baseman Nick Kurtz and right fielder Brent Rooker. Kurtz later singled in two runs in the sixth, while Gelof hit a solo home run in the seventh. The A's then plated four runs in the eighth on a two-run double from Kurtz and a two-run home run from Rooker. They got another run in the ninth on an RBI single from infielder Darell Hernáiz in a 14-6 Athletics win. On the season, Kurtz has totaled eight home runs, 34 RBIs and a 151 OPS+, while boasting a .276/.431/.488 slash line; Gelof has totaled six home runs and 16 RBIs, while sporting a .505 slugging percentage; Thomas is batting .344 over 32 at-bats; Rooker has driven in 24 runs. For the Angels, center fielder Mike Trout hit a solo home run and drove in two runs, while third baseman Vaughn Grissom and outfielder Josh Lowe also drove in two runs of their own. What happened to the Detroit Tigers? Yes, back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal is on the mend with an elbow injury, but the Tigers went from being arguably the best team in the AL in the thick of the 2025 season to blowing a 15.5-game lead in the AL Central — granted, they still reached the AL Division Series — to being tied for last place in the division at 20-29 this season. In losing to the Guardians for a second consecutive night, 4-3, the Tigers have now lost 12 of their last 14 games. As for the damage, Guardians left fielder Steven Kwan had a sacrifice fly in the top of the second, rookie second baseman Travis Bazzana hit a two-run home run in the fourth and shortstop Brayan Rocchio had an RBI ground out in the seventh. Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson hit a two-run homer in the second and left fielder Riley Greene reached base in each of his three plate appearances (two hits and one walk), alas, in another loss. Meanwhile, the Guardians have won seven of their last eight, improving to 28-22 and good for first in the AL Central. The Philadelphia Phillies got burned. Right-hander Chase Burns was exceptional for the Cincinnati Reds in Citizens Bank Park, recording nine strikeouts and surrendering only one run and three baserunners (three hits) over six innings pitched (86 pitches) in a 4-1 win for the Reds. Burns' only blemish was a solo home run to Phillies star Trea Turner in the bottom of the second. Cincinnati scored its runs on a pair of fourth-inning sacrifice flies and a two-run seventh inning that included an RBI force-out and an RBI walk. Reds catcher Tyler Stephenson reached base in each of his four plate appearances (three walks and one hit), while right fielder Blake Dunn had a team-high two hits. Through 10 starts, Burns, whom Cincinnati selected with the No. 2 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, has posted a 1.83 ERA, an 0.95 WHIP, 64 strikeouts, an NL-high 241 ERA+ and 2.9 wins above replacement over 59.0 innings pitched. The Reds held the Phillies to just three hits and one walk altogether. The 4-1 loss ended a five-game winning streak for Philadelphia. Game 1 of a three-game series between the St. Louis Cardinals and Pittsburgh Pirates was a seesaw in action. St. Louis led 3-0 after four innings, but a four-run fifth gave Pittsburgh the lead, which the Cardinals took back in the bottom of the sixth. Then, the Pirates tied the game in the top of the ninth with an RBI ground out from Marcell Ozuna and an RBI single from first baseman Spencer Horwitz, which ultimately sent the game to extra innings. After Pittsburgh didn't get a run home in the top half of the 10th, Iván Herrera made the Pirates pay, as the Cardinals' designated hitter hit a walk-off, three-run home run for a 9-6 win; Herrara now has an .808 OPS. Herrera's home run was one of four for St. Louis, which got blasts from infielders JJ Wetherholt, Nolan Gorman and Alec Burleson. Gorman drove in two runs for the Cardinals, who got multi-hit performances from Wetherholt and Burleson. For Pittsburgh, Jared Triolo had a game-high three hits. The Cardinals (28-19) are a half-game behind the Brewers for first place in the NL Central. This one came in the ninth inning and with the team that hit it trailing before the homer. The Arizona Diamondbacks trailed the San Francisco Giants 3-1 entering the bottom of the ninth and two of the first three batters of the inning didn't reach base. Then, D-backs designated hitter Adrian Del Castillo singled home a run, with center fielder Ryan Waldschmidt being given first base on a catcher's interference in the next at-bat. And then it happened. After failing to reach base in his first four at-bats, D-backs star Ketel Marte cranked a slider below the strike zone over the left-field wall for a walk-off, three-run home run. Sticking with the dramatics, the D-backs got their first run of the game in the first on a de facto, inside-the-park home run, as right fielder Corbin Carroll laced a triple to left-center field, the throw to third base hit his head (Carroll lost his helmet in-between first and second base), got away from Giants third baseman Matt Chapman and Carroll came around to score. Carroll, a two-time All-Star, has totaled seven home runs, 24 RBIs, six triples, six stolen bases, a 166 OPS+ and 2.5 wins above replacement, while boasting a .285/.395/.563 slash line. The walk-off, 5-3 win gave Arizona a winning record (24-23).]]>
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					<![CDATA[What's Going On With The Blue Jays?: 'We Just Haven't Gotten On A Roll']]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/assessing-whats-going-blue-jays-season</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/assessing-whats-going-blue-jays-season</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[The Blue Jays look a little different right now than they did last October.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Wed, 20 May 2026 12:20:15 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[NEW YORK — The Blue Jays look a little different right now than they did last October. Back then, Toronto’s bats were clicking. The 2025 Blue Jays knocked out the powerhouse New York Yankees, outscoring them 34-19, in a four-game ALDS that was just the start of their special postseason run to the Fall Classic. They rubbed it in, beating up on the Yankees for winning the division and eventually, the American League pennant. Now? The Blue Jays (21-27) entered their ALDS rematch with the Bronx Bombers (30-19) this week in third place in the AL East, fighting to get to .500, 11 ½ games behind the first-place Tampa Bay Rays. Through Tuesday, Toronto’s offense is ranked 25th in the major leagues (91 wRC+). The Jays’ .306 on-base percentage is ranked 26th in MLB. While the Yankees have started the year red-hot, the elements that made Toronto’s offense feel suffocating to opposing teams last year are not quite showing up the same way. "Since I've been a Blue Jay, [the Yankees] always seem to start off really hot," Blue Jays right-hander Kevin Gausman told me on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. "So you try to take it with a grain of salt. Try not to put them too high on a pedestal. "And then, as bad as we would say we've played, we're still right there. We just haven't gotten on a roll. We have a good series, and then a bad one. The consistency, really on all aspects of our team, just needs to kind of tip higher, especially on the defensive side. Just not as clean on the defensive side as we were last year." Gausman is being a little hard on his fielders, but only because they’ve clearly taken a step back from how excellent the defense has been the past few years. So far this season, the Jays are ranked fourth in MLB in Fielding Run Value with 12. Ask the last-place Mariners, who have a FRV of -13, and they would take that any day of the week. But the Blue Jays are used to leading the big leagues in defensive metrics, because they have done exactly that from 2020-2025, so they expect better from themselves. But it’s not like their overall offensive identity has changed. As a team, the Jays still strike out the least in MLB. They’re still emphasizing the same style of play. It’s just that, so far, some of their most important bats haven’t been nearly as impactful as they were at the end of last year. First baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is the biggest culprit. The 27-year-old slugger has homered just three times so far this season, and it’s not exactly trending up. This month, Guerrero has been the worst hitter in the Blue Jays lineup. He’s been so forgettable in May that his 34 wRC+ is ranked 174th out of 184 qualified major-league hitters. Springer, too, has struggled to get his bat going. He only has three home runs this year, while recording a career-low .604 OPS. There is belief within the Blue Jays organization that last year’s World Series run could have something to do with the offense’s sleepier performance so far this season. The team played long, grueling, and difficult games in the postseason that were both physically and emotionally draining. Game 3 of the World Series against the Dodgers stretched to 18 innings. Game 7 went to 11. Their ALCS against the Mariners also went the distance to Game 7. As a result of their extended season, several players had delayed ramp-ups in spring training this year. For some Blue Jays players, that slow build-up might be bleeding into the beginning of the regular season right now. They call it a World Series hangover for a reason. A couple of players who are exempt from that phenomenon include the Blue Jays’ new $210 million man, right-handed ace Dylan Cease, and new Japanese third baseman Kazuma Okamoto. Cease, since signing his seven-year contract with Toronto this past offseason, owns a 2.98 ERA in 10 starts. Okamoto leads the team with 10 home runs, 27 RBI and a .436 slugging percentage. They have both done their jobs. So has the pitching staff, for the most part. The Jays’ rotation is keeping the team afloat with a 4.06 ERA that’s ranked 12th in the majors. The bullpen is beginning to get taxed due to the burden of pitching in tight, one-run games of late. It’s the offense that’s sleepwalking. The Blue Jays play their best brand of baseball when they’re applying pressure in all sorts of ways. Chief among them is their ability to put the ball in play. Last year, the Blue Jays were celebrated as one of the best high-contact teams in recent baseball history. They led the league with the lowest strikeout rate and the highest batting average when they ended the regular season, and they carried that masterful offensive approach into the postseason. It helped them eliminate the Yankees in the ALDS, stunning New York by forcing it to execute fundamentals, something the team has struggled with in recent years. "They put the ball in play," Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm told me regarding what impressed him about the Blue Jays offensive approach last year. "They make you make plays. That’s the hardest thing to do in baseball. You gotta make plays. Especially in that environment here. But they didn’t just do it to us. They did it everywhere." But, what made Toronto’s approach work best was how excellent they were at slugging, in addition to playing small ball. The Blue Jays finished the 2025 season ranked seventh in MLB with a .427 slugging percentage. It helped that Springer hit 32 home runs last year for the first time since 2019. It also helped that Addison Barger, Bo Bichette, and Alejandro Kirk combined for 54 of their 191 total home runs in 2025. Of that trio, two are currently on the injured list and one is playing for the Mets. So the current version of the Jays’ offense is in desperate need of some pop, and help should be coming relatively soon. Barger (right elbow inflammation) is expected to receive clearance to begin throwing and hitting this week, with a target to return to the lineup at the end of this month or the beginning of June. Kirk (left thumb fracture) has been out since April 4, but he has started catching and hitting, and the Jays should have a clearer timeline on his return toward the end of this week. "The biggest thing is probably injuries," Gausman said on why the team is underpeforming. "We're missing a lot of guys. So we're trying to figure a lot of that stuff out." At this point in the season last May, the Blue Jays weren’t playing all that differently to how they are right now, counting most offensive metrics. They were still in third place in the AL East, two games under .500, looking up at the Yankees in the standings. Last year, they didn’t really start clicking until the last few days of May. A key sweep of the Yankees in July vaulted them into first place, and then they never looked back. So, there’s still time for the defending AL champions to turn things around. There’s no panic in the Blue Jays clubhouse. If things go as they planned, the AL East will have to go through Toronto. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Chase Burns' Nine Strikeouts Power Reds to 4-1 Win Over Phillies]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/chase-burns-dazzles-with-9-ks-as-the-reds-snap-3game-losing-skid-with-41-win-over-the-phillies</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/chase-burns-dazzles-with-9-ks-as-the-reds-snap-3game-losing-skid-with-41-win-over-the-phillies</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[Chase Burns shines for the Cincinnati Reds, striking out nine in six innings during a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 21:55:50 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Chase Burns struck out nine over six innings and lowered his ERA to 1.83 in another terrific start for the Cincinnati Reds in a 4-1 win over the Philadelphia Phillies on Tuesday night. Burns (6-1) allowed only Trea Turner's solo shot in the third as he helped the Reds end a three-game losing streak and move back above .500 (25-24). Bryce Haper scorched a line drive off Burns with two outs in the sixth. Burns collected the ball and threw out Harper at first base to end the inning. Burns ran off the field on his own and headed straight down the dugout tunnel to the clubhouse. He did not return for the seventh, though there was little reason to pitch another inning with the Reds up 4-1. Tony Sillitan worked the ninth for his second save and helped snap the Phillies' five-game win streak. Not even fans who stripped off their shirts and waved them in the rain — part of the "tarps off" trend — could rally the Phillies in the final innings of their loss. Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber — who leads the majors with 20 home runs — sat out the second straight game with an illness. Jesus Luzardo (3-4) struck out five and gave up two runs in five innings in a start in which it was 95 degrees (35 Celsius) at the first pitch. Elly De La Cruz hit a leadoff triple in the fourth, Spencer Steer hit an infield single and Sal Stewart walked to load the bases and set up a pair of sacrifice flies by Dane Myers and JJ Bleday for the 2-1 lead. The Reds scored twice more in the seventh on a fielder's choice and De La Cruz drew a basesload walk. Burns allowed three hits, walked none and drew 18 swings and misses. The right-hander has allowed two or fewer runs in nine of 10 starts this season and one or fewer runs in seven of 10 starts this season. The 23-year-old Burns, the second overall pick in the 2024 amateur draft, went 0-3 with a 4.57 ERA in eight starts over 13 appearances for the Reds last season. With the way he's pitching this season, Burns' next appearance in Philadelphia could come in the All-Star Game. Up next The Reds send LHP Andrew Abbott (3-2, 4.21 ERA) to the mound against Phillies RHP Aaron Nola (2-3, 5.91 ERA) on Wednesday. Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Ronald Acuña’s Three-Run Return Powers Braves Past Marlins, 8-4]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/ronald-acunas-three-run-return-powers-braves-past-marlins-8-4</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/ronald-acunas-three-run-return-powers-braves-past-marlins-8-4</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[Ronald Acuña Jr. doubled, walked twice and scored three times in his return and the Atlanta Braves beat the Miami Marlins 8-4]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 21:18:50 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Ronald Acuna Jr. doubled, walked twice and scored three times in his return and the Atlanta Braves beat the Miami Marlins 8-4 on Tuesday. It was Acuña's first game since being sidelined May 2 because of a left hamstring strain. He batted leadoff as the designated hitter. Mauricio Dubon had three hits, including a go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning. Matt Olson walked twice, had two hits and drove in three runs, while Michael Harris II homered and singled for the NL East-leading Braves. Dubón reached on a two-out infield single to put Atlanta ahead 5-4 after Marlins reliever Calvin Faucher (4-3) walked Mike Yastrzemski, Ha-Seong Kim and Acuña to load the bases. Olson followed with a two-run single to make it 7-4. Kim added an RBI single in the ninth. Dylan Lee (2-0) pitched 1 1/3 innings of relief for the win. Braves starter Martin Perez allowed four runs and five hits and struck out a career-high 10 in five innings. Harris’ leadoff drive in the sixth tied the game at 4-4. He drove Marlins reliever Andrew Nardi’s first pitch over the wall in center for his ninth homer of the season. Miami erased a 2-0 first-inning deficit with three runs in the bottom half. Xavier Edwards hit a leadoff homer and Kyle Stowers added a two-run double. Esteury Ruiz's sacrifice fly in the third made it 4-2 before Olson’s RBI double in the fifth narrowed the gap. Ozzie Albies’ sacrifice fly and Harris’ RBI single against Marlins starter Braxton Garrett gave Atlanta the early lead. Garrett allowed two runs and three hits in three innings. It was Garrett’s second outing after missing last season because of elbow surgery. Up next LHP Chris Sale (6-3, 1.96 ERA) will start for the Braves on Wednesday against Marlins RHP Janson Junk (2-4, 4.14). Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[Yankees Ace Gerrit Cole Returning From Tommy John Surgery On Friday Against Rays]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-ace-gerritt-cole-make-season-debut-friday-against-rays</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-ace-gerritt-cole-make-season-debut-friday-against-rays</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Gerrit Cole is scheduled to return from Tommy John surgery Friday night and make his season debut for the New York Yankees against Tampa Bay.]]>
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				<pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 19:40:41 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Gerrit Cole is scheduled to return from Tommy John surgery Friday night and make his season debut for the New York Yankees against Tampa Bay. Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced the plan Tuesday before his team's game against Toronto. Cole, the 2023 AL Cy Young Award winner, hasn't pitched in the major leagues since October 2024 in Game 5 of the World Series versus the Los Angeles Dodgers. "Been a long time," Boone said. "We're thrilled to get him back." Even after fellow Yankees ace Max Fried landed on the 15-day injured list last weekend with a left elbow bone bruise, Boone said the team still intended to have Cole make a seventh minor league rehabilitation start this week before rejoining the big league rotation. But after the 35-year-old right-hander threw 86 pitches over 5 1/3 innings for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against the Syracuse Mets on Saturday night, Cole and the Yankees changed course. "When we all looked at it and just considered all the variables, it checked all the boxes," Cole said. He will start the series opener at Yankee Stadium against the AL East rival Rays, who swept three games from New York last month in Florida and entered Tuesday with the top record in the majors at 31-15. "I expect it to be intense. Tough matchup. Lot of balls in play. Control the running game," Cole said. "Lot of pressure from the other team." Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Unreal Ending To Athletics-Angels]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/athletics-angels-ending-mets-extra-innings-padres-dodgers-marlins-braves</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/athletics-angels-ending-mets-extra-innings-padres-dodgers-marlins-braves</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Angels walked off a once-no-hit bid, the Mets scored 11 runs in extras, Michael King shut out the Dodgers, the Marlins pummeled the Braves and more from Monday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 12:31:09 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: Athletics right-hander J.T. Ginn pitched his heart out. "You were really brave. You put your arms out there. You slit your wrists. You said, 'World, this is my blood. It’s red just like yours, so love me."" But then the Los Angeles Angels put his heart in a shredder. Ginn was pitching a no-hitter, had recorded 10 strikeouts and given up just one walk entering the bottom of the ninth inning before second baseman Adam Frazier led off the inning with a single. Then, shortstop Zach Neto hit a walk-off, two-run home run to center field for a 2-1 Angels win. A literal nightmare for any pitcher. The dramatic turn of events ended a six-game losing streak for the Angels, while the Athletics have now lost six of their last eight games. Neto's walk-off homer provides a bright spot in what has been an otherwise slow offensive start for the Angels' shortstop, who averaged 24.5 home runs, 69.5 RBIs, a .458 slugging percentage and 5.1 wins above replacement per season from 2024-25. Through 49 games this season, Neto is hitting just .225 and has racked up an American League-high 68 strikeouts. As for Ginn, the right-hander has a 2.98 ERA and a 1.07 WHIP over eight starts/11 appearances altogether (51 ⅓ innings). One way to get the first hit of your MLB career is by sending a pitch where nobody on the field can catch it. In the bottom of the eighth, Seattle Mariners third baseman Colt Emerson hit a three-run home run to right field off Chicago White Sox reliever Trevor Richards, marking Emerson's first MLB hit in what was just his second big-league game. Emerson, whom Seattle selected with the No. 22 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft, signed an eight-year, $95 million extension with the Mariners in April. Prior to getting called up to the big leagues last week, the 20-year-old Emerson totaled seven home runs, 26 RBIs and 10 stolen bases over 38 games in Triple A, boasting a .255/.347/.469 slash line. As for the rest of Seattle's offense, center fielder Julio Rodríguez hit a solo home run in the bottom of the first, left fielder Randy Arozarena — who had two doubles on the night — doubled in a run in the third and first baseman Josh Naylor — who had a game-high three hits — singled home a run in the sixth. Starter Bryan Woo pitched six shutout innings, posting eight strikeouts and paving the way for a 6-1 Mariners victory. San Francisco Giants southpaw Robbie Ray spent five-plus seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks (2015-20). Unfortunately for the 2021 American League Cy Young Award winner, his old team had zero warm feelings about Ray making a start at his old stomping grounds. In the bottom of the first, D-backs third baseman Nolan Arenado hit a grand slam off Ray, who would go on to surrender 13 baserunners (11 hits and two walks) and 10 runs (nine earned) over 4 ⅓ innings. Ray entered Monday night with a 3.04 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. He left the night with a 4.28 ERA and a 1.32 WHIP. Catcher Gabriel Moreno — who hit a two-run homer in the fifth — second baseman Ketel Marte and left fielder Tim Tawa each drove in two runs, while center fielder Ryan Waldschmidt went 3 for 3 with two doubles and a walk in a 12-2 win for Arizona. On the season, Arenado has hit seven home runs and sports an .810 OPS; Moreno's home run was just his second long ball of the season; Waldschmidt is 10 for his first 32 in the big leagues (.313/.371/.438 slash line). Arizona has won three of its last four and is now .500 (23-23); San Francisco is 20-28. The New York Mets blew a two-run lead in the seventh inning, with the Washington Nationals scoring a run in the seventh and eighth innings to ultimately force extra innings. Both teams failed to get a run to cross home plate in the 10th, but each scored a run in the 11th. Granted, the Nationals stranded runners on second and third after tying the game. And the Mets made them pay, dearly. In the top of the 12th, New York scored 10 runs in an inning where it tallied nine hits and triggered Washington putting infielder Jorbit Vivas on the mound to get the final two outs of the inning after five runs had already scored; the Mets won, 16-7. In total, the Mets had 18 hits, which included three-hit performances from right fielder Carson Benge and shortstop Bo Bichette, who, along with fellow infielder Brett Baty, hit a solo home run. Baty, designated hitter Juan Soto and outfielders A.J. Ewing and Tyrone Taylor each had two hits. The Mets have won six of their last seven games. Scoring 16 runs in 12 innings is impressive, but the Tampa Bay Rays only needed six innings to reach the 16-run mark. Tampa Bay tattooed Baltimore Orioles pitching, scoring eight runs (seven earned) off starter Trevor Rogers and four runs apiece off relievers Cameron Foster and Dietrich Enns. Designated hitter Yandy Díaz had a game-high four hits — including two doubles — and four RBIs for the Rays, who got a 3-for-3 performance from right fielder Ryan Vilade. Meanwhile, third baseman Junior Caminero hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the fifth and drove in four runs altogether. Caminero has hit a team-high 13 home runs and boasts a .506 slugging percentage; Díaz has logged a team-high 53 hits, while sporting a .310 batting average; Vilade is hitting .317. The 16-6 thrashing of the Orioles improved the Rays to 11-2 in AL East play and an MLB-best 31-15 on the whole. It took the Milwaukee Brewers one try to do what they couldn't against the Chicago Cubs in the 2025 National League Division Series: win a game at Wrigley Field. Leading off the top of the second, Brewers designated hitter Christian Yelich demolished a Shota Imanaga sweeper off the right-field scoreboard, which would be an omen of what was to come. Milwaukee plated four runs in the fourth on RBI singles from Jake Bauers and Jackson Chourio and a two-run double from right fielder Sal Frelick. Then, Bauers launched a three-run homer in the top of the fifth, which gave the Brewers an 8-0 lead and knocked Imanaga out of the game. The left-hander gave up 12 baserunners (nine hits and three walks) across 4⅓ innings. Chicago's offense briefly came to life in the bottom of the fifth, with shortstop Dansby Swanson hitting a two-run homer and first baseman Michael Busch doubling in a run. That said, Yelich — who has driven in 13 runs over just 18 games this season — would double in a run in the sixth, and Milwaukee won 9-3. The Brewers have won nine of their last 11 games. As for the other dugout, the Cubs have lost three consecutive games, which comes after they recently lost four consecutive games. Milwaukee now trails Chicago by a half-game for first place in the National League Central. After losing two out of three to the New York Mets and trailing the team that eliminated them in the playoffs last season in the seventh inning (the Toronto Blue Jays), the New York Yankees looked destined to lose their eighth game in 10 tries. Until the bottom of the seventh inning happened. The first two batters of the inning failed to reach base. Then, Yankees superstar Aaron Judge singled, which fellow outfielder Cody Bellinger followed up with a game-tying, two-run home run. Following a Trent Grisham walk, second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. brought the roof down with a go-ahead, opposite field home run off the foul pole. While closer David Bednar gave up three baserunners (two walks and a hit) and a run in the bottom of the ninth, he got the save for the Yankees, who beat their AL East rival 7-6. As for the seventh-inning standouts, Bellinger has totaled six home runs, 32 RBIs, a 138 OPS+ and 2.6 wins above replacement through 47 games, while owning a .271/.377/.476 slash line; while off to a slow start, Chisholm is nine for his last 16 with three walks. Miguel Andújar — who had two of the Padres' four hits — blasted a solo home run for the San Diego Padres in the bottom of the first, and that's all the run support that right-hander Michael King would need. The Padres' ace tossed seven scoreless innings against the Los Angeles Dodgers, posting nine strikeouts and giving up just six baserunners (four hits and two walks). Jason Adam and Mason Miller proceeded to shut the door with a pair of scoreless innings in a 1-0 San Diego win. The Dodgers wasted an exceptional outing from star right-hander Yoshinobo Yamamoto, who logged eight strikeouts and gave up just one run and five baserunners (three hits and two walks) over seven innings. The 1-0 loss marked just the second time this season that Los Angeles has been shutout. Through 10 starts, King has recorded a 2.31 ERA, a 1.06 WHIP, 59 strikeouts, a 176 ERA+ and 2.1 wins above replacement across 58 ⅓ innings pitched. The slim win puts the Padres a half-game ahead of the Dodgers for first place in the NL West. Some fast food chains have a bell you can ring near the exit if you feel that the service was satisfactory. The Minnesota Twins rang that bell twice on Monday night. In the bottom of the second, designated hitter Josh Bell hit a solo home run and later unloaded a two-run homer in the fourth. Bell finished with a game-high three hits and four RBIs, which was the impetus for a 6-3 Twins' victory over the Houston Astros. Elsewhere, second baseman Luke Keaschall drove in two runs on a single in the sixth for the Twins, who used a combined seven pitchers. Left-hander Kendry Rojas, who made his first three MLB appearances as a reliever, posted three strikeouts and didn't give up a run over four innings in what was his first big-league start. Bell has struggled out of the gate, but Minnesota's designated hitter has driven in nine runs over his last seven games, while owning a .286 batting average and a .571 slugging percentage over that span. The Atlanta Braves went fishing in South Florida and ended up being the ones on the line. The Miami Marlins had their way with Atlanta's pitching staff, most notably striking for five runs in the bottom of the fourth and six runs in the fifth. Regarding the fourth-inning surge, Miami got a two-run double from designated hitter Liam Hicks, a two-run single from catcher Joe Mack and an RBI single from second baseman Xavier Edwards. In the fifth, Miami got a grand slam from infielder Javier Sanoja, a solo home run from Edwards and an RBI walk from Mack. Starter JR Ritchie and reliever Aaron Bummer each gave up six runs for the Braves, who lost 12-0. The Marlins' other run came on an RBI ground out from Mack in the second. The 12 runs that Miami plated were a season-high. Its second-highest run total this season? The Marlins have scored 10 runs in three games, one of those times coming against the Braves on Apr. 13. As for some of Monday's primary run-producers, Hicks leads MLB with 42 RBIs; Edwards boasts a .322 batting average, which is seventh in MLB, while Edwards' double-play partner, shortstop Otto Lopez, leads MLB with a .337 batting average; Mack's four RBIs account for two-thirds of the runs he has driven in (six). On the hill, Miami got six scoreless innings from Max Meyer, who now has a 2.85 ERA, followed by scoreless innings from John King, Calvin Faucher and Lake Bachar. The Marlins held the Braves to four hits.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Cubs CF Pete Crow-Armstrong Apologizes For Heated Exchange With A White Sox Fan]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cubs-pete-crow-armstrong-white-sox</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cubs-pete-crow-armstrong-white-sox</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong says he regrets the words he used during a heated exchange with a fan.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 19 May 2026 11:18:15 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong said Monday that he regrets the words he used during a heated exchange with a fan. The incident occurred in the fifth inning of Sunday's 9-8 loss to the crosstown White Sox at Rate Field. Crow-Armstrong was getting up from the warning track after making an unsuccessful attempt to haul in Miguel Vargas' two-run double when he was heckled by a woman standing beyond the fence. The 24-year-old Crow-Armstrong responded with a vulgar message punctuated by an expletive. "I think I just regret my choice of words the most and who that affects in my life, directly and indirectly," Crow-Armstrong said. "I don’t think that any of the women in my life would ever think that I would use those kind of words regularly, especially referring to them. "So I’m just bummed out about the word choice, and that a bunch of little kids go and probably find their way to social media and see that as well." Cubs manager Craig Counsell said he spoke with Crow-Armstrong about what happened. "He made a mistake, and we’ve got to move on from it," Counsell said before Chicago's 9-3 loss to Milwaukee. "It’s a reality of this job. It happens. Fan interactions happen. You want to try to keep them positive, even when they’re not. Sometimes when it’s a really emotional situation, it’s difficult, but it’s still a requirement of the job." Crow-Armstrong is one of Chicago's biggest stars after hitting .247 with a career-high 31 homers and 95 RBIs last season. He also is one of baseball's best defensive center fielders, winning his first Gold Glove last year. Crow-Armstrong, a first-round pick in the 2020 amateur draft, agreed to a $115 million, six-year contract with the Cubs in March. But he is batting just .229 this season after going 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in the loss to the Brewers. "Part of playing is that you’re going to hear some stuff that you don’t want to hear, and the job is to focus on what’s going on in the field and keep your attention on that," Cubs outfielder Ian Happ said. Crow-Armstrong's exchange with the fan was captured on video and widely shared on social media. "That’s something I should be aware of at all times, that there will be cameras and such on me," he said. "I’m not always going to let stuff like that fly either. It’s just about being a little more respectful and maybe killing somebody with kindness instead of matching their level of intent." Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Rookie Slugger Munetaka Murakami Looks Right At Home With Young White Sox]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/munetaka-murakami-chicago-white-sox-home-runs-npb-free-agency</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/munetaka-murakami-chicago-white-sox-home-runs-npb-free-agency</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Munetaka Murakami wasn’t supposed to end up with the Chicago White Sox, but he's there and he's thriving.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 18 May 2026 09:56:58 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Munetaka Murakami has a fun handshake with fellow infielder Miguel Vargas. He playfully agreed that a magic wand routine with teammate Mike Vasil helped him slam another homer. His No. 5 jersey dots the stands at Rate Field. The Japanese slugger wasn't supposed to end up with the Chicago White Sox. But it's working out quite well at the moment. Murakami looks right at home with a promising group of young position players in Chicago, and they have been mashing the ball so far this season. Murakami has an AL-leading 17 homers and a team-high 32 RBIs through Sunday's action, and the surprising White Sox are tied for second in the majors with 66 homers overall. "It’s the full lineup, one through nine. Feeding off each other," Murakami said through his interpreter, Kenzo Yagi. "It’s a great confidence builder, seeing other players get good results. I just want to be that contributor and contribute to the lineup and contribute to the team’s wins." Murakami’s 17 homers are tied for third-most by a player in major league history in his first 45 games, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. He went deep in a record eight consecutive series openers from April 14 to May 8. When Murakami strides to the plate, one of baseball's three true outcomes is the likely result. He also ranks among the major league leaders with 36 walks and 66 strikeouts. "He’s a superstar. There’s no other way to do it," White Sox pitcher Davis Martin said. "You play against guys like (Mike) Trout, you play against guys like (Aaron) Judge and Yordan Alvarez and he’s doing the same things that they are. It’s an incredible thing to watch." Murakami is the fourth Japanese-born player to play for the White Sox, joining Shingo Takatsu (2004-05), second baseman Tadahito Iguchi (2005-07) and outfielder Kosuke Fukudome (2012). Takatsu managed Murakami in Japan. "He’s had to make a ton of adjustments to get comfortable," White Sox manager Will Venable said. "And I know that probably is not easy for him. So yeah, he’s just a guy who has that flexibility to come into different environments and then get comfortable and I think this speaks a lot to his character and who he is." [Touching Base: Inside the White Sox's '1% Chance' and Hot Start for Slugger Munetaka Murakami] The 26-year-old Murakami was Central League MVP in 2021 and ’22. He was limited to 56 games last season because of an oblique injury, but he batted .273 with 22 homers and 47 RBIs. He entered MLB's posting system in November. When the market was lighter than expected — there was some exaggerated concern about his ability to handle velocity — the White Sox signed the slugger to a $34 million, two-year contract in December. During Murakami's fast start this season, White Sox general manager Chris Getz has fielded some laudatory calls from other GMs. "One GM said ‘Congratulations, you beat the industry on this one,’" Getz said, "so that was nice to hear, and it’s worked out and you know we feel really excited about having him in a White Sox uniform and he’s helping us win baseball games." Murakami was a late arrival for his first spring training game after he got caught in some traffic. But it has been smooth sailing most of the time. He hit a solo homer in his first three regular-season games. He crushed a 431-foot grand slam in a 9-2 victory at the Athletics on April 17, beginning a five-game homer streak. He connected for a three-run shot in an 8-7 victory over the Angels last month. With Vasil continuing to wave a magic wand in the White Sox dugout, Murakami went deep twice in his first career multihomer game on Saturday night against the crosstown Cubs. He isn't sneaking up on anyone anymore. "He’s a dangerous hitter and a guy you definitely have to be careful with," Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. Murakami wants to get better, too. He said his biggest challenge has been adjusting to new pitchers every day, and he is growing more comfortable at first base. Asked about his biggest challenge in moving to the majors, he paused and smiled. "Compared to Japan, here, the environment's totally different," he said. "The space, the fields and everything is really nice. That’s the ... biggest surprise." Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Dave Roberts Sees 'Fruits' of Progress in Roki Sasaki’s Masterclass vs Angels]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dave-roberts-sees-fruits-progress-roki-sasakis-masterclass-vs-angels</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dave-roberts-sees-fruits-progress-roki-sasakis-masterclass-vs-angels</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Roki Sasaki’s eventful major league career finally appears to be going the way most everyone expected when he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers at the start of last season]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 21:55:12 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Roki Sasaki's eventful major league career finally appears to be going the way most everyone expected when he joined the Los Angeles Dodgers at the start of last season. Sasaki pitched a career-high seven innings of four-hit ball in a 10-1 victory over the Los Angeles Angels on Sunday, turning in the longest and most dominant start of his strange tenure in blue. The 24-year-old right-hander racked up a career-best eight strikeouts with no walks, doing it all with a burgeoning confidence he lacked for most of last season. Sasaki (2-3) repeatedly baffled the Halos while attacking the strike zone with a 98 mph fastball and his proliferating selection of breaking pitches. "I think he has confidence in who he is as a big league pitcher, and we’re seeing some of the fruits right now," Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. Although he did it against the team with the worst record in the majors, Sasaki's stuff is clearly working at a high level he has rarely reached as a starter stateside. He was already a ballyhooed young star in January 2025 when he chose the Dodgers as his big league home for at least the next six years. But after a rookie season in which almost nothing went as planned, Sasaki has only recently shown why every team in the majors wanted him in their rotation. "I actually felt better in my last outing, but today I felt able to throw strikes a little bit more," Sasaki said through his interpreter. "Also the offense did a great job of scoring a lot of runs." Sasaki hasn't been dominant in most of his starts, but Roberts said he is clearly trending upward. He is also working well with catcher Dalton Rushing, who received credit from Roberts for calling an outstanding game at Angel Stadium. "He looked really good today," Rushing said. "Obviously it’s really good momentum for him to carry forward, but at the same time, there’s opportunities for him to be even better. We know that’s not his ceiling. What he just did is obviously the best we’ve seen him to this point, but I trust that guy has got a lot more in the tank, and we’re going to continue to push. But it was fun to watch." Sasaki is again trying to carve out a permanent spot in the Dodgers' rotation this season after famously failing to do so as a rookie. He subsequently missed 4 1/2 months with shoulder problems, but improbably returned as Los Angeles' closer during its playoff run to a second straight World Series title. Sasaki's success as a reliever was a lifesaver for the short-handed Dodgers, but it didn't change their long-term plans for him. Sasaki returned to spring training as a rotation member again — but then he repeatedly pitched poorly in Arizona and damaged his confidence. Exactly half the batters he faced in spring exhibitions reached base, and Sasaki struggled for any control. Roberts said the Dodgers' message to Sasaki has been consistent: Stop worrying about minor mechanical tweaks or fine-tuning new pitches, and simply attack the strike zone with your already formidable talent. It took a while for Sasaki to hear it, but now it's loud and clear — and it turns out his aggressiveness is also improving his delivery. Sasaki generated 18 swing-and-misses from the Angels, a big factor in his career-high strikeout total. "I think one of the reasons is mechanical," Sasaki said of his recent success. "Things are kind of clicking, and I was able to execute really well throughout the game today." The Dodgers need Sasaki to be sharp as they attempt to get through yet another year of major pitching injuries. High-priced starters Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are out once again, and closer Edwin Diaz is also on the shelf along with Jack Dreyer, their most-used reliever. Los Angeles is still pitching superbly, going into the weekend with the third-lowest ERA in the majors. Rushing and Roberts both expect Sasaki to be a big part of the effort to keep it that way. "Pretty much it’s a confidence thing," Rushing said. "He needs to trust his stuff, understand how good his stuff is, and execute. ... With the stuff he has, it’s easy to miss barrels, and we hadn’t quite got to see that just yet. Today was obviously a big step forward." Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[Mariners Call Up Top Prospect Colt Emerson for MLB Debut Against Padres]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mariners-call-up-top-prospect-colt-emerson-mlb-debut-against-padres</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mariners-call-up-top-prospect-colt-emerson-mlb-debut-against-padres</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Seattle Mariners promoted top prospect Colt Emerson from Triple-A Tacoma on Sunday and placed All-Star utilityman Brendan Donovan on the 10-day injured list with a left groin muscle strain]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 20:27:05 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The Seattle Mariners promoted top prospect Colt Emerson from Triple-A Tacoma on Sunday and placed All-Star utilityman Brendan Donovan on the 10-day injured list with a left groin muscle strain. Emerson, 20, was originally announced in Tacoma's lineup for the Rainiers' home game against Sugar Land, but was scratched shortly before first pitch. Instead, he made the quick drive north to Seattle and will be the youngest Mariners player to make his major league debut since Félix Hernández did so at 19 years old on Aug. 4, 2005. General manager Justin Hollander said the Mariners electing to call up Emerson wasn't on his bingo card Sunday morning, nor was placing Donovan on the IL. "I probably wouldn’t have taken the kids tidepooling in Deception Pass (State Park) this morning," Hollander said with a chuckle. "But, we want to do the right thing for Colt. We also want to do the right thing for the Mariners. We think he’s the best option. This period will get him some runway. This is not a 15 at-bat or 20 at-bat tryout to see if he’s capable of taking the job and running with it for the rest of the year." Hollander confirmed that Emerson, who is viewed as the shortstop of the future in the Emerald City, will primarily see time at third base at the start of his major league career. He started five games at third base for the Rainiers this season. J.P. Crawford, the longest-tenured player on Seattle’s roster, remains the everyday shortstop. Crawford, who started the season on the injured list with a right shoulder injury, is hitting .217 with six homers in 39 games. Hollander said he, manager Dan Wilson and president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto convened Sunday morning and decided it was time to bring up the franchise's top prospect. Emerson signed a $95 million, eight-year contract April 1 – the biggest commitment at the time for a minor leaguer yet to make his major league debut. The Mariners selected Emerson with the 22nd pick in the 2023 draft, and his stock only rose from there. Emerson had a breakout year in 2025, when he hit .285 with an .842 OPS, 16 homers, 28 doubles and 78 RBIs across three levels and established himself as a big league-caliber defender. This season in Tacoma, Emerson has hit .255 with an .816 OPS, seven homers, eight doubles and 26 RBIs. Emerson got off to a slow start to the season as he dealt with a wrist injury, but Hollander said a cortisone shot has allowed him to bounce back at the plate recently. "He looks loose, he looks comfortable, he looks confident up there," Hollander said. "He’s starting to put together quality at-bat after quality at-bat. There’s no reason that can’t translate over to what happens on this field out here." Donovan missed Saturday's game as he continues to be plagued by a left groin injury. Donovan also missed time from April 18 to May 7 with a left groin muscle strain, and dealt with right groin discomfort earlier in the season as well. Hollander said Donovan reaggravated his left groin injury while trying to hit for the cycle in an 8-3 win over the Houston Astros on Thursday. Donovan will receive a platelet rich plasma (PRP) injection for his groin strain, as well as a different injection in his adductor, according to Hollander. There is no timeline yet for Donovan to return to play, but Hollander estimated it could be two to three weeks. Donovan underwent sports hernia surgery in October 2025 shortly after his last season as a member of the St. Louis Cardinals, which Hollander said the Mariners' sports performance team anticipated could make him more susceptible to groin strains and core muscle strains. "Our own internal view was that there would be some days where he didn’t feel good, at least for the first half of the season," Hollander said. "I think the most important thing that we can do is that we’re putting him in position to go out there and feel good every day." Reporting by the Associated Press]]>
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					<![CDATA[4 Takeaways From The Subway Series: Mets Stun Yankees In Drama-Filled Weekend]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/takeaways-from-mets-subway-series-win-over-yankees</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/takeaways-from-mets-subway-series-win-over-yankees</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[How can the Mets build on a tough weekend in which they took two out of three over the Yankees?]]>
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				<pubDate>Sun, 17 May 2026 20:19:38 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[CITI FIELD (New York) – The Mets entered the Subway Series red-hot, on the heels of sweeping the Detroit Tigers at home. Meanwhile, the Yankees slumped into the weekend having lost five of their last six games. It was a scenario that, just a few weeks ago, would have seemed preposterous. The tables had turned, and it created a buzz. During a warm and sun-splashed weekend that finally felt like summer was around the corner, fans with different New York alliances traveled to Flushing and packed out the stadium every day of the three-game series. The atmosphere was charged. The stakes felt high. The drama was waiting to unfold. In the end, it was the Mets, the team with one of the worst records in baseball, that stunned the Yankees, the club that’s built to go to the World Series again. The Mets took two out of the three games, winning the first meeting of the season between the longtime crosstown rivals. Here are my takeaways: 1. Worst Gut Punch In A Season Full Of ‘Em Out of all the comebackers that could’ve hurt the Mets, this one burned like no other. Mets right-hander Clay Holmes absorbed a 111 mph line drive off the bat of Yankees rookie slugger Spencer Jones in the fourth inning of Friday’s series opener. It bounced off Holmes’ right leg and broke his fibula. He is expected to pitch again this season, but not for a very long time. A best-case scenario includes Holmes returning to the mound sometime around August. After Friday's game, a 4-0 loss to their crosstown rivals, Mets manager Carlos Mendoza looked devastated. Reliever-turned-starter Holmes entered his Subway Series outing representing the Mets’ most consistent and dominant arm in their rotation. He carried a 1.86 ERA into his ninth start of the year before what he termed "a freak accident" derailed his season. As long as Holmes was churning out ace-level performances every five days, the Mets liked their chances of climbing up the NL East standings. But, without him? This was the toughest gut punch in a season full of them. "It’s tough. Clay is a guy who shows up every day. He’s one of the hardest workers I’ve seen in my career," Juan Soto said on Friday. "It’s really sad what happened to him. We’re going to support him in any kind of way that he needs us. But it just sucks." The Mets are without Francisco Lindor (calf strain), Francisco Alvarez (torn meniscus), Jorge Polanco (Achilles), Luis Robert Jr. (lumbar spine disc herniation), and Ronny Maricio (thumb fracture) for the foreseeable future. None of those position players have a definitive timeline to return. And yet, Holmes’ injury hit the Mets clubhouse the hardest, Mendoza said. On the heels of yet another lifeless loss, it seemed like the final nail in the coffin for their playoff hopes. The best thing about hitting rock bottom? The Mets were left with a blank slate. Even though it’s brutal, the only place to go was up. The only thing left to do was start over. 2. Mets Bullpen Then Shines In An Inspiring Win After deep devastation came a reason for celebration. The Mets showed up to Citi Field on Saturday with a vengeance, refusing to let Holmes’ injury sabotage their season even if it thwarted his. The Mets lineup rallied against the Yankees pitching staff and jumped ahead for a two-run lead that the Bronx Bombers were threatening to erase in the seventh inning. The Yankees loaded the bases with nobody out, thanks in part to a dropped ball from Mets rookie right fielder Carson Benge, when Mendoza turned to his eccentric setup man in the bullpen. Entering an impossible situation, Luke Weaver somehow pulled off the unimaginable against his former team. The wiry right-hander punched out his first two batters, then induced a groundout to end the inning with no runs crossing the plate. Weaver got it all done in just 11 pitches, so the Mets asked him for more. He came back out for the eighth, this time against the top of the Yankees order, and again he faced the minimum. Weaver delivered six king-sized outs for the Mets in a difficult spot. So, of course, he smirked as he walked off the mound. In the dugout after, Soto told Weaver he’s a unicorn. "You feel like there’s a little bit of an injury bug that we’ve had, and it feels never ending sometimes, especially in the midst of what’s going on with us this year," Weaver said on Saturday. "But it’s games like tonight where every day is an opportunity to hit the refresh button." Closer Devin Williams, another former Yankee, picked up some of Weaver’s leftover magic when he took the mound in the ninth inning. Trailing by three runs, Yankees left fielder Cody Bellinger battled Williams but eventually whiffed on the sixth pitch of the at-bat. Williams followed up his toughest matchup by retiring his final two batters with ease, securing his sixth save of the season. After some inconsistency in their first few weeks as Mets, Weaver and Williams have bounced back so far this month. Williams has not allowed a run in his last 8.2 innings pitched (nine relief appearances). He’s given up just one hit and two walks in that stretch, while recording four saves. Weaver, too, has not allowed a run in his last 7.1 innings pitched (six relief appearances) with 11 strikeouts in that span. 3. Rodon’s Outing Was Bad News For Yankees' Fried-less Rotation The Yankees avoided the worst when they learned on Friday that Max Fried’s elbow pain was due to a bone bruise. The left-hander won't need surgery, and in a few weeks the team will re-evaluate whether Fried can resume throwing. In the meantime, the rest of the rotation has some very big shoes to fill. After Cam Schlitter, Fried was their best starter on the staff, helping the Yankees stay afloat until ace Gerrit Cole and southpaw Carlos Rodon returned from their respective injuries. Cole is one or two more rehab outings away from returning to the Yankees rotation for the first time since 2024. And now with Fried down for a while, there is more pressure on Rodon to perform like the 2025 version of himself, when he delivered an All-Star season and finished sixth in American League Cy Young award voting. But Rodon didn’t even make it through the fourth inning against the Mets on Saturday, which was his second start of the season since completing his rehab from left elbow surgery. He lacked command all night, eventually throwing a wild pitch that allowed the Mets to take the lead. Rodon’s erratic performance arrived at the worst time. The Yankees need him to settle in and find consistency as the No. 2 starter in the rotation now, particularly because Fried was a workhorse that saved manager Aaron Boone from having to overuse his bullpen. "I’m never going to make an excuse," Rodon said on Saturday. "I think I should be dialed in right now. It’s frustrating." Given what’s left of New York’s rotation — Will Warren, Ryan Weathers, Elmer Rodriguez, Schlittler, and Rodon — it’s fair to question whether this staff will be able to maintain its strong season. Yankees starters possess the second-best ERA in the AL, and it will be an uphill climb to try and keep it that way. 4. Extra-Innings Drama Returns To Subway Series After the Mets rallied for a victory on Saturday, the Subway Series finale on Sunday afternoon became an intense rubber match. The crosstown rivals were tied at 1-1 through five innings until the Bronx Bombers put up a four-run rally on Mets starter-turned-reliever Sean Manaea in the sixth inning. Boone had emptied his entire bench heading into the bottom of the ninth inning. Then he went to his closer, David Bednar, trusting him to deliver a Yankees win. They were one out away from him doing just that when Tyrone Taylor had other plans on his mind. Taylor, the Mets’ fourth outfielder, executed the swing of his life — slugging a game-tying three-run home run off Bednar to resurrect the Mets back from the dead. He tied the game at 6-6, sending it to extra innings, as Citi Field went berserk. Williams took care of the Yankees again in the top of the 10th inning, expertly stranding the ghost runner at third base before Benge walked it off for the Mets in the bottom of the frame. "Bummed out to happy," Taylor said of his emotions at the plate on Sunday. "Hitting’s contagious." Boone seemed to panic throughout the series finale, over-managing with pinch-hitters early and often until there was no one left to do damage when the Yankees needed it in the 10th. Taylor and the Mets, meanwhile, kept the faith. In the fifth, Taylor came off the bench as a pinch-hitter and ripped a liner that had an expected batting average of .680 to center field, where Spencer Jones made a terrific diving catch to take away an extra base hit. Again, Taylor ran into an unlucky out in the seventh inning on a lineout to left. In the dugout, his Mets teammates encouraged Taylor to keep swinging. When he finally did, he hit the ball so far that no Yankees fielder would get in his way. "I blacked out for him," Benge said of Taylor’s at-bat on Sunday. "Hopefully we can get our at-bats going. Our arms are shoving. We’re trending in the right direction." 4 ½. What’s Next? The Bronx Bombers’ ugly road trip has mercifully reached an end. The Yankees went 2-7 against the Brewers, Orioles and Mets — their first spell of true adversity in what has otherwise been a terrific start to the year. They go home to host the division-rival Blue Jays on Monday. The four-game series is their first meeting against Toronto since the Blue Jays eliminated the Yankees from the playoffs last October. The Mets will try to keep the good times rolling on a quick road trip that holds the best opportunity yet to change the course of their season. Beginning Monday, they face the Nationals and Marlins, also known as the two teams that are ahead of the Mets in the NL East standings. If they can stack up more wins on the road, the Mets have a chance to jump from last place to third in the division. The Yankees (28-19) and Mets (20-26) will meet again on Sept. 11 in the Bronx. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Dodgers' Blake Snell Set for Elbow Surgery, Expected Back Later this Season]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blake-snell-set-for-surgery-to-remove-loose-bodies-from-elbow-dodgers-expect-him-back-this-season</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blake-snell-set-for-surgery-to-remove-loose-bodies-from-elbow-dodgers-expect-him-back-this-season</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Dodgers RHP Blake Snell will undergo surgery in his left elbow this Tuesday, and is expected to return later this season.]]>
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				<pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 21:48:49 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Blake Snell will undergo surgery to remove loose bodies from his left elbow, and the Los Angeles Dodgers expect the two-time Cy Young Award winner to return this season. Snell made his season debut last weekend, giving up four earned runs in three innings after missing the start of the season with left shoulder fatigue and inflammation, and the left-hander was scratched from his scheduled start on Friday against the Los Angeles Angels. The surgery is scheduled for Tuesday. "It’s going to be to take out those loose bodies, and it’s supposed to be a lot quicker recovery, so we’re encouraged about that," manager Dave Roberts said Saturday before the second game of the three-game Freeway Series at Angel Stadium. Snell missed most of the 2025 regular season because of a shoulder injury, which limited him to 11 starts, but he was able to make six appearances in the playoffs. Snell had a 3-2 record in the postseason to help the Dodgers to a second consecutive World Series title. Snell’s latest injury was discovered on Thursday, and Roberts indicated the 33-year-old could undergo a similar procedure to what Detroit Tigers ace Tarik Skubal recently had in an effort to expedite his recovery. Skubal had a more aggressive type of minimally invasive surgery on May 6, which allowed him to resume playing catch and soft tossing just over a week later. Roberts indicated it was too early to have a timetable for Snell’s return to baseball activities, but "I think just with the MRI, the scans and everything, we feel good about getting back to play sooner than later," he said. The Dodgers are already without closer Edwin Diaz, who had surgery to remove loose bodies from his right elbow in April, and starter Tyler Glasnow is on the injured list because of back spasms. Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Cristopher Sánchez Strikes Out a Career-High 13, Phillies Beat Pirates 6-0]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cristopher-sanchez-strikes-out-a-careerhigh-13-as-the-phillies-beat-the-pirates-60</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cristopher-sanchez-strikes-out-a-careerhigh-13-as-the-phillies-beat-the-pirates-60</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Cristopher Sánchez struck out a career-high 13 as the Philadelphia Phillies blanked the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 20:30:27 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Cristopher Sánchez struck out a career-high 13 while picking up the second shutout of his career as the Philadelphia Phillies drilled the Pittsburgh Pirates 6-0 on Saturday. Sánchez (5-2), the National League Cy Young runner-up a year ago, allowed five hits and didn't issue a walk while extending his scoreless streak to 29 2/3 innings, dropping his ERA to 1.82. Bryce Harper smashed a 457-foot three-run homer off the batter's eye in the first inning off Bubba Chandler (1-5). Trea Turner and Alec Bohm had two hits apiece. Kyle Schwarber, baseball's leading home run hitter, added an RBI single as the Phillies gave Sanchez an early five-run lead and cruised. Philadelphia improved to 14-4 over its last 18 games to return to .500 (23-23) and made bench coach Dusty Wathan a winner during his managerial debut. Wathan filled in for Don Mattingly while Mattingly attended his son's college graduation. One night after the Phillies rallied from six down to stun Pittsburgh in extra innings, Sanchez made sure no comeback was needed. He retired the first 11 batters he faced and never really ran into trouble until the ninth inning, when the Pirates put runners on first and third with one out. With a reliever warming up in the bullpen, Sanchez struck out Marcell Ozuna to reach 13 strikeouts for the first time and then retired Nick Yorke on a groundball to end it. While Sanchez was crisp, Chandler was not. The hard-throwing 23-year-old, considered an important part of Pittsburgh's future, continued to struggle with his command. Chandler issued four walks in his three innings of work, pushing his total on the season to a major league-leading 31. And when Chandler did find the strike zone, Schwarber and Harper made him pay. It took Philadelphia all of three batters to take control. Turner led off with a single. Schwarber walked, and Harper followed with his 11th homer of the season, a monster shot that made the significant chunk of the PNC Park crowd who made the five-hour drive across the state roar with approval. Up next The series wraps up on Sunday when reigning NL Cy Young winner Paul Skenes (6-2, 1.98 ERA) starts for Pittsburgh against Philadelphia's Zack Wheeler (2-0, 2.55). Reporting by the Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: Pirates Implode Against Phillies]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/phillies-comeback-yankees-mets-tigers-cardinals-walkoff-dodgers-reds-ending</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/phillies-comeback-yankees-mets-tigers-cardinals-walkoff-dodgers-reds-ending</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Phillies stormed back against the Pirates, the Dodgers silenced the Angels, the Reds had a web gem to end the game, three walk offs and more from Friday's action.]]>
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				<pubDate>Sat, 16 May 2026 12:10:06 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: This one stings for the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Pirates put six runs on the board in the bottom of the sixth against the Philadelphia Phillies, with center fielder Oneil Cruz hitting a two-run single and both second baseman Brandon Lowe and designated hitter Marcell Ozuna hitting two-run home runs. Philadelphia got on the board with a sacrifice fly in the top of the fourth and later got a two-run home run from designated hitter Kyle Schwarber in the fifth, but Pittsburgh got one of those runs back on a solo homer from Lowe in the bottom of the fifth and another run back on an infield error in the sixth. In the top half of the seventh, Schwarber got the Phillies back within three runs (8-5) on a two-run home run, his second long ball of the game and MLB-high 20th of the year. The Pirates entered the ninth inning with a three-run lead, but then the Phillies evened the score. After Schwarber walked in a run, first baseman Bryce Harper — who had a game-high four hits — hit a game-tying, two-run double off the right-center field wall. The game went to extra innings, where the Phillies built a lead to last. Outfielder Brandon Marsh led off the top of the 10th with an RBI double. Two batters later, pinch hitter Rafael Marchán had a two-run single, which would help Philadelphia win, 11-9. With two runners on the basepath, two outs in the bottom of the eighth and trying to keep a 2-0 lead, the San Diego Padres called on Mason Miller to get a four-out save against the Seattle Mariners. Did he make things interesting? You bet! But the hard-throwing right-hander got the job done. After giving up a single to load the bases, Miller got pinch hitter Connor Joe to strikeout looking to end the eighth. Then, Seattle got two of the first three batters on-base in the bottom of the ninth, but Miller responded by striking out both Mitch Garver and Brendan Donovan to end the game. Each of the four outs that Miller recorded were strikeouts. Across 21.0 innings pitched (20 appearances), Miller, a 2024 All-Star, has posted an 0.86 ERA, an 0.76 WHIP, 44 strikeouts, a 483 ERA+ and 1.3 wins above replacement. He leads MLB with 14 saves and is yet to blow a save opportunity. Prior to Miller entering the game, San Diego got six shutout innings from Randy Vásquez, a scoreless inning from Adrian Morejon and Jason Adam got the first two outs in the eighth. The Padres got their two runs on an RBI double from designated hitter Miguel Andújar — who was one of four San Diego players to log two hits — in the top of the fourth and an RBI ground out from second baseman Sung-Mun Song in the seventh. The Minnesota Twins took a 2-1 lead into the eighth inning, but then the Milwaukee Brewers flipped the script. Milwaukee led off the top half of the inning with back-to-back singles from center fielder Jackson Chourio and second baseman Brice Turang. Then, catcher William Contreras — who had an RBI single in the top of the first — brought home a run on a force-out, which first baseman Jake Bauers followed with a go-ahead, RBI double. Granted, the Brewers stranded two runners in scoring position with nobody out. Minnesota put two runners on the basepath in the bottom half of the inning, but reliever Abner Uribe induced a double-play to end the inning, and Trevor Megill pitched a one-two-three ninth to give Milwaukee a 3-2 road victory. The Brewers are figuring it out. After a rough start that saw it be last in the National League Central, Milwaukee has won seven of its last eight games, improving to 25-17 and second place in the division. The New York Yankees got a convincing Game 1 win over the New York Mets in Act 1 of this year's Subway Series. In the top of the third, Yankees left fielder Cody Bellinger had an RBI double, which second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. followed with a two-run double. Later, designated hitter Spencer Jones singled in a run in the fifth and first baseman Ben Rice gave the Yankees more wiggle room with a solo home run in the ninth, helping them get a 5-2 win. The Mets, who had just five hits, got their two runs on a seventh-inning solo home run from left fielder Juan Soto and an RBI single from third baseman Brett Baty in the bottom of the ninth. Rice and Chisholm each had a game-high three hits for the Yankees, who got 6 ⅔ innings from starter Cam Schlittler; the right-hander posted nine strikeouts and surrendered just one run and four baserunners (two hits and two walks). On the season, Rice has totaled 14 home runs and 30 RBIs, while boasting a .314/.418/.686 slash line. Rice leads the American League with a .686 slugging percentage, a 1.104 OPS and a 204 OPS+. Meanwhile, Schlittler, who's averaging six innings per start, leads the AL with a 1.35 ERA, an 0.78 WHIP, six wins, a 310 ERA+ and 2.8 wins above replacement among pitchers. Losing eight of their last nine games, the Detroit Tigers needed a win — and they got one. With a runner on first and two outs in the bottom of the ninth in what was a 2-2 game, the Toronto Blue Jays decided to intentionally walk Tigers right fielder Zach McKinstry, and first baseman Spencer Torkelson made them pay, hitting a walk-off single to right-center field. Detroit scored its other two runs on a wild pitch in the bottom of the third and an RBI double from left fielder Riley Greene in the sixth, while Toronto got its two runs on a two-run double from shortstop Andrés Giménez in the top of the second. The Tigers rolled with a bullpen day, as six pitchers (Brenan Hanifee, Brant Hurter, Ty Madden, Burch Smith, Drew Anderson and Kenley Jansen) combined to give up just five hits and two walks. One day after scoring two runs in the top of the ninth to take the lead and beat the Athletics, the St. Louis Cardinals walked off the Kansas City Royals. After trading runs in the 10th inning, St. Louis kept Kansas City off the board in the top of the 11th, and with two outs in the bottom half of the inning, pinch hitter Yohel Pozo sent everybody home on a walk-off single to right field. Elsewhere for the Cardinals, right fielder Jordan Walker hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth and had a game-high three hits; catcher Pedro Pagés hit a solo homer in the fifth; first baseman Alec Burleson singled home the ghost runner in the 10th; right-hander Dustin May gave up three runs through six innings. St. Louis has won three of its last four games. Spencer Arrighetti is the story of the night in H-Town. The Houston Astros' right-hander carried a no-hitter into the top of the eighth and was promptly relieved, thereafter. Bryan King picked up where Arrighetti left off, pitching 1 ⅔ shutout innings and finishing off a 2-0 win for the Astros over the Texas Rangers. Through his first six starts (Arrighetti began the 2026 season in Triple A), Arrighetti has posted a 1.50 ERA, a 1.19 WHIP, a 280 ERA+ and 1.6 wins above replacement across 36.0 innings pitched. As for the slim offense in this matchup, the Astros got a solo home run from third baseman Isaac Paredes in the bottom of the third and an RBI single from infielder Braden Shewmake — who's batting .366 with three home runs and seven RBIs across 41 at-bats — in the eighth. Want some bizarre history? The Astros and Rangers are now 150-150 against each other all time, according to MLB Stats. Last year, the Los Angeles Angels went 6-0 against the Los Angeles Dodgers. That will NOT happen this season, as the Dodgers, ironically, defeated the Angels in Angel Stadium, 6-0. The bulk of the Dodgers' offense came in the top of the fourth, as center fielder Andy Pages hit a three-run home run, which was followed by third baseman Max Muncy hitting a solo shot. Left fielder Teoscar Hernández joined the long-ball party in the sixth with a two-run homer. Muncy and Hernández each had two hits for the Dodgers, who used a whopping eight pitchers (left-hander Blake Snell was scratched from his outing) and held the Angels to just two hits. Angels shortstop Zach Neto was the only player for Mickey Mouse's favorite team (one would hope, at least) who made some hay, as he singled and drew two walks. Pages is tied with Miami Marlins catcher Liam Hicks for the MLB lead in RBIs (38), while Muncy leads the Dodgers with 12 home runs and Hernández has driven in 20 runs, which is good for a three-way tie for second on the team. Merrill Kelly posted a 9.95 ERA and gave up six home runs over his first four starts. Over his last two outings, Kelly has been exceptional. The Arizona Diamondbacks' right-hander went the distance on the road against the Colorado Rockies on Friday night, giving up just one run and four baserunners (four hits) and throwing 100 pitches over nine innings in an overwhelming, 9-1 victory. He has given up just two runs over his last two starts, combining to throw 16.0 innings. Moreover, this marked Kelly's seventh consecutive quality start (giving up no more than three earned runs over at least six innings) at Coors Field, which is an MLB record, according to MLB Stats. The Rockies' one run came on a first-inning solo home run from catcher Hunter Goodman. What happened in the top half of the inning? The Diamondbacks scored six runs: an RBI single from first baseman Ildemaro Vargas, a two-run single from catcher Gabriel Moreno, an RBI double from designated hitter José Fernández and a two-run single from center fielder Ryan Waldschmidt. Vargas, who finished with a game-high four hits, had another RBI single in the fourth and scored two runs in the eighth on a Lourdes Gurriel Jr. sacrifice fly and an RBI double from Moreno. The Atlanta Braves, who were originally the Reds at their 1876 induction, played in Boston before the Red Sox, who were founded as the Boston Americans in 1901. Its relevance to the Friday night game between the two teams? Minimal, if any, but it was an exciting game. After keeping Boston off the board in the top of the 10th, the Braves walked off the Red Sox in the first at-bat of the bottom half of the inning, with outfielder Mike Yastrzemski lacing a walk-off double to left-center field for a 3-2 win. Designated hitter Drake Baldwin got the Braves on the board in the bottom of the first with a solo home run, which was his 12th homer of the year, with center fielder Michael Harris II, who sports a .308 batting average and a .510 slugging percentage, hitting a solo home run of his own in the fourth. Boston's two runs came on a sixth-inning RBI single from designated hitter Mickey Gasper and a solo home run from second baseman Marcelo Mayer in the seventh. The Braves have won five of their last six games. The Cincinnati Reds led the Cleveland Guardians 6-1 entering the bottom of the eighth, but then the latter struck for five runs over the next two innings. Granted, the Reds scored a needed run in the top of the ninth. Nevertheless, Cincinnati escaped Progressive Field with a one-run victory after second baseman Matt McLain made a diving stop on a ground ball hit by Guardians rookie Travis Bazzana in the outfield grass, got to his feet and just made the throw to first base to end the game. McLain reached base safely three times (two hits and one walk) and drove in a game-high three runs, highlighted by a two-run home run in the top of the eighth. Reds left fielder JJ Bleday had a team-high three hits, while right fielder Spencer Steer tallied two hits. After left-hander Andrew Abbott pitched five innings, the Reds used five relievers to get a 7-6 win.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Yankees Vs. Mets: Flashback To 2000 'Subway Series' World Series Matchup]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-vs-mets-2000-world-series-subway-series-matchup</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-vs-mets-2000-world-series-subway-series-matchup</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Here's a look-back at the 2000 Subway Series matchup between the New York Yankees and New York Mets, who square off this weekend.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 15 May 2026 16:08:06 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[In late October 2000, New York City was the epicenter of the baseball world, as the New York Yankees and New York Mets faced off in the 2000 World Series. With the two teams set to face-off in a three-game series at Citi Field beginning on Friday night (watch Game 2 of the series on Saturday at 7:15 p.m. ET on FOX and the FOX Sports app), here's a look-back at the 2000 Subway Series. Irony from the jump. The Mets sent Al Leiter, who spent the first two-plus seasons of his MLB career with the Yankees (1987-89), to the mound for Game 1 in Yankee Stadium, and the left-hander carved up his old team the first two times through the order. Leiter kept the Yankees off the board through the first five innings, giving up just four baserunners on three hits and one walk. Then, the Yankees broke the ice in the bottom of the sixth inning. After two of the first three runners of the inning got on base, left fielder David Justice laced a two-run double to left-center field, giving the Yankees a 2-0 lead. With that said, after six scoreless innings from Andy Pettitte, the Mets got to the Yankees' left-hander in the top of the seventh. After back-to-back singles and a walk, pinch hitter Bubba Trammell leveled the score at 2-all for the Mets with a two-run single. Two batters later, Pettitte was relieved by right-hander Jeff Nelson, who gave up a go-ahead single to second baseman Edgardo Alfonzo. The Yankees didn't plate a run in the seventh or eighth innings, but they managed to send the game to extra innings on a Chuck Knoblauch sacrifice fly in the ninth. Both teams went scoreless in the 10th and 11th innings, with the Yankees stranding two runners in both innings and also doing so after tying the game in the ninth. In the bottom of the 12th, the Yankees finally got the winning run home, as second baseman José Vizcaíno hit a walk-off single with two outs in the inning. Vizcaíno finished with a game-high four hits for the Yankees, who won 4-3. Yeah, drama was aplenty in Game 2. In the top of the first, Mets star Mike Piazza broke his bat on a foul ball, and part of the bat went to Yankees starter Roger Clemens, who hurled that piece of the bat down the first-base line where Piazza was standing at the time. Both benches cleared temporarily, but no one was ejected, and the inning resumed moments later, with Piazza grounding out to end the inning. That skirmish has continually distracted from the memory of Clemens dominating the Mets in Game 2 from start to finish. The eventual seven-time Cy Young Award winner pitched eight scoreless innings, posting nine strikeouts and only surrendering two baserunners (two hits). As for the Yankees' bats, they went right to work on Mets left-hander Mike Hampton, with first baseman Tino Martinez and catcher Jorge Posada each driving in a run on a single in the bottom of the first. Third baseman Scott Brosius then led off the bottom of the second with a solo home run. A fifth-inning Paul O'Neill single, a seventh-inning sacrifice fly from Brosius and an eighth-inning RBI single from Martinez — who, along with Yankees star shortstop Derek Jeter, had a game-high three hits — would give the Yankees a 6-0 lead entering the ninth inning. But then it got dicey for the Yankees — like, wildly dicey. Nelson began the ninth inning for the Yankees and proceeded to give up a single, a two-run home run to Piazza and then another single, forcing manager Joe Torre to go to Mariano Rivera, who also struggled. While Rivera got out two of the first four batters that he faced, MLB's eventual all-time saves leader (652) proceeded to give up a three-run homer to center fielder Jay Payton, making it a 6-5 game. All that said, Rivera got infielder Kurt Abbott to strikeout looking to end it, with the Yankees evading a catastrophe, winning 6-5 and taking a 2-0 series lead to Queens. One could argue that the ninth inning of Game 2 gave the Mets some momentum that they capitalized on in Game 3. The Metropolitans struck first in Game 3, as third baseman Robin Ventura hit a solo home run to lead off the bottom of the second. Granted, the Yankees tied the game with a third-inning RBI double from Justice and took the lead in the fourth on an RBI triple from O'Neill. Mets first baseman Todd Zeile evened the score at 2-all in the bottom of the sixth with an RBI double, and they took the lead for good in the eighth on an RBI double from left fielder Benny Agbayani. Later in the inning, Trammell drove in another run on a sacrifice fly, and Armando Benítez shut the door on a Game 3 win for the Mets in the top of the ninth. As for the pitching performances, right-hander Rick Reed got through six innings for the Mets, while the Yankees stayed with Orlando Hernández (AKA "El Duque") through 7 ⅓ innings and had him throw 134 pitches; the right-hander was credited for all four earned runs. The air in Shea Stadium evaporated on the first pitch. Jeter smacked the first pitch thrown by Mets' starter Bobby Jones into the left-field seats, giving the Bronx Bombers the early edge. The following inning, Brosius drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, with the Yankees tacking on a third run in the third on an RBI ground out from second baseman Luis Sojo. Those three runs would be all the Yankees needed. Now, the Mets did promptly respond, as Piazza hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the third, but it would be the last runs scored in a 3-2 Yankees victory. For the Yankees, starter Denny Neagle lasted just 4 ⅔ innings, but David Cone, Nelson, Mike Stanton and Rivera combined for 4 ⅓ scoreless innings of relief and gave up just three total baserunners (two hits and one walk) — and Rivera got a two-inning save. The Yankees didn't just win the 2000 Subway Series: They won it in Queens. Center fielder Bernie Williams brought in the first run of the game on a solo home run in the top of the second, but the Mets scored two runs in the bottom half of the inning on an infield error off the bat of Leiter and then an infield hit by Agbayani. Later, "The Captain" evened the score at 2-all, as Jeter hit a solo homer in the sixth. The Mets rode with Leiter until the cows came home, as the southpaw was still on the mound with two outs in the ninth inning, but Sojo delivered the final blow for the Yankees, hitting a go-ahead, two-run single, which knocked Leiter out of the game; he threw 142 pitches. Meanwhile, the Yankees got seven innings from Pettitte, who threw 129 pitches. Rivera closed out Game 5 for the Yankees in the bottom of the ninth, putting a bow on the first three-peat in MLB since the Oakland Athletics accomplished the feat from 1972-74, and it remains the sport's most recent three-peat. Jeter was the 2000 World Series MVP, as the Hall of Fame shortstop — who's sixth in MLB history with 3,465 career hits — went 9 for 22, hit two home runs and finished the series with a .409/.480/.864 slash line. Meanwhile, O'Neill finished the Subway Series with nine hits and posted a .474/.545/.789 slash line; Brosius finished with a .308/.389/.538 slash line; Martinez hit .364; Pettitte pitched a combined 13 ⅔ innings over his two starts, recording a 1.98 ERA. For the Mets, Zeile had a team-high eight hits, while Piazza had two home runs and a series-high four RBIs; Leiter pitched a combined 15 ⅔ innings. A five-game, best-of-seven series is what it is: a convincing series win for the victors. With that said, all five games in the Subway Series were decided by two or fewer runs, the Yankees out-scored the Mets 19-16, and it marks the only time that the two teams have squared off in the World Series. This was the closest thing the New York sports world has received since the Yankees, Brooklyn Dodgers and New York Giants did battle in countless World Series before the Dodgers and Giants moved to the West Coast.]]>
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					<![CDATA[MLB Roundtable: Subway Series, White Sox's Outlook, And A Dodgers Dilemma]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-mets-subway-series-white-sox-braves</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/yankees-mets-subway-series-white-sox-braves</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Looking at how the Yankees and Mets can both improve. Plus, are the White Sox a playoff team?]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 15 May 2026 14:14:36 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The MLB weekend slate brings some intriguing regional rivalries, including the first Subway Series of the season. While the Yankees are hopping onto the 7 Train to face the Mets, the Cubs are taking the Red Line down to visit their Windy City counterparts, the White Sox. Meanwhile, the Dodgers will endure some freeway traffic to take on the Angels. Let's take a look at some of the notable MLB teams in action this weekend: 1. The Yankees top the AL in HR, RBI and OPS. Cam Schlitter feels like a Cy Young candidate. What's their weakness? Kavner: This looks like the team to beat in the American League, but the bullpen and the bottom of the lineup have some weak spots, and now there’s suddenly a lot more pressure on Gerrit Cole to return looking like himself after Max Fried left his start with elbow soreness. Opponents are hitting .260 against David Bednar, Fernando Cruz is missing a ton of bats but also walking too many hitters — a primary reason for his 1.44 WHIP — and Camilo Doval, Jake Bird and Paul Blackburn all have ERAs well over 4.00. They should be able to grab another leverage arm at the trade deadline. The other issue is what happens when a pitcher gets past the Ben Rice-Aaron Judge-Cody Bellinger portion of the lineup. While every team would like more offensive depth, the Yankees’ No. 6-9 hitters rank 25th in batting average, 22nd in on-base percentage and 19th in OPS. Those numbers are too low for a team with championship aspirations. They need to find a way to get Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Austin Wells going. 2. What’s a fix the Mets can make to at least climb up the NL East standings? Thosar: The Mets finally looked like they're capable of making a run that fans will get behind after sweeping the Tigers at a re-energized Citi Field this week. Much of that energy came from the surprising promotion of top prospect A.J. Ewing, who hasn't experienced a loss since coming up to the big leagues. The 21-year-old outfielder is enjoying a fast start, batting .333 with four walks, three RBI, three runs scored, one stolen base and four strikeouts in three red-hot games. His confidence while grinding out at-bats has been contagious. The front office making the desperate but necessary decision to promote Ewing was the first real fix this club needed to try and climb back up the NL East standings. Any and all conversations about the Mets resembling a playoff contender begin with their underperforming offense. Some of their bad outcomes are self-inflicted, like expecting center fielder Luis Robert Jr. and infielder Jorge Polanco to stay healthy. But others are downright perplexing, like third baseman Bo Bichette forgetting how to hit, and the young core in Brett Bay, Mark Vientos and Francisco Alvarez unable to find consistency in what is now their fifth season in the major leagues. Bichette went from boasting a 129 OPS+ last year to recording a 62 OPS+ in over 40 games this year. If Bichette can get back on track, Francisco Lindor can return from his calf injury soon, and the young Mets can do their part, the Mets can attempt to crawl out of their hole. 3. Speaking of the NL East, the Braves feel like they could run away with the division. What’s been behind Atlanta’s hot start? Thosar: The Braves have the best pitching staff in the National League, which is a supreme success given that the rotation looked out of commission before the season even began. First it was Spencer Schwellenbach who went down with injury. Then it was Hurston Waldrep, Joey Wentz, and eventually Spencer Strider. The Braves are running away with the division despite all of that, rocking the second-best rotation ERA (3.04) and third-best bullpen ERA (3.10) in MLB. Beyond the continued excellence from future walk-in Hall of Famer Chris Sale, nobody expected right-hander Bryce Elder to be this terrific. The Braves starter owns a 1.81 ERA and 1.01 WHIP, outperforming his 3.09 FIP and suggesting he's run into some good luck. In reality, the pitching staff didn't even need to be this dominant given how dangerous the offense has been. First baseman Matt Olson is leading the lineup's ascendency with an NL-leading 184 OPS+ and 2.4 fWAR. The 32-year-old's 14 home runs are tied for the fourth-most in the majors. Right behind him is catcher Drake Baldwin, who's following up his 2025 NL Rookie of the Year award with a standout sophomore season. Baldwin's 37 runs scored lead MLB, and his 155 OPS+ trails only the A's Shea Langeliers' 173 OPS+ among all big-league catchers. Those two bats in particular have helped Atlanta possess the best offense in baseball. The Braves lead MLB in average (.271), slugging (.252), OPS (.786), runs scored (237), and RBI (232). Their combination of high contact and elite power is menacing, and it all looks sustainable for this battle-tested team. 4. The White Sox are hanging tough in the AL Central. Should the South Siders be thinking about the postseason? Kavner: The fact that we’re talking about this at all a year after they won 60 games and two years after the worst season in modern baseball history is an incredible achievement in itself. The surprise signing of Munetaka Murakami has provided a real jolt — they’re 22-21 entering their three-game series against their Northside neighbors and would currently hold the second wild-card spot in the uninspiring American League — and their success to this point goes beyond the powerful and polarizing NPB sensation. The Miguel Vargas offensive breakout is finally upon us, Colson Montgomery now has 32 homers in 113 career games, and Davis Martin has a 1.62 ERA through eight starts. They’ve also gotten to this point without standout catcher Kyle Teel, who should be returning soon. If they find a way to sneak into the playoffs, that’s an unbelievable success. But they’re not going to mortgage their future to make it happen, and this isn’t a team built to make a deep run in 2026. This year is still about development for their intriguing young talents, and I can’t imagine the White Sox will sacrifice them for "win-now" moves. It will, however, be interesting to see what, if anything, they do with Murakami. If they’re unable or unwilling to extend him, they have to at least listen to offers from contenders while his value is this high. 5. Blake Snell's return gives the Dodgers a boost, but are they facing some tough decisions? Kavner: They will, and really those roster decisions already began earlier this week when Mookie Betts was activated and they optioned Alex Freeland. On the pitching side, an even tougher call looms when Tyler Glasnow is ready to return, even with their six-man rotation. Most likely, one of Justin Wrobleski, Emmet Sheehan or Roki Sasaki will have to move to the bullpen, get optioned to Triple-A or be placed on the injured list. Based on performance thus far, the most obvious decision would be sending Sasaki either to the minors or back to the bullpen, but the Dodgers don’t sound inclined to do either. They’ve been adamant that they believe the best thing for his development is to have him continue making starts in the majors. He has performed better lately, but it’s hard to make a case that he’s more deserving of a rotation spot than Wrobleski, who had a 0.56 ERA through his first five starts, or Sheehan, who has a 3.38 ERA over his last five starts. Still, it seems most likely that the odd man out will be either Wrobleski, who proved last October that his stuff can play up in a relief role, or Sheehan, who has had trouble holding his velocity through starts. They’ll "kick the can down the road" on that decision, as they like to put it, as long as possible.]]>
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				<title>
					<![CDATA[Last Night In Baseball: White Sox Have A Winning Record in May]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/white-sox-winning-record-kyle-schwarber-homer-inside-the-park-homer-yordan-alvarez-astros-mets</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/white-sox-winning-record-kyle-schwarber-homer-inside-the-park-homer-yordan-alvarez-astros-mets</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The White Sox have a winning record, Kyle Schwarber happened, the Giants had an inside-the-park home run, the Mets hit five home runs and more from Thursday's action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 15 May 2026 12:22:08 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: For the first time since 2022, the Chicago White Sox have a winning record in May. Furthermore, in the wake of their 6-2 win at home over the Kansas City Royals, which finished off a three-game sweep of their American League Central rival, the White Sox have won five consecutive games and are the No. 2 AL wild-card seed at 22-21. As for its latest win, Chicago got a two-run home run from left fielder Randal Grichuk in the bottom of the first inning, a two-run single from Grichuk in the bottom of the third, an RBI single from second baseman Chase Meidroth in the fourth and an RBI single from outfielder Derek Hill in the eighth; Grichuk and Meidroth each finished with two hits. Grichuk has played just eight games for the White Sox, totaling three home runs, seven RBIs and batting .313; Meidroth has logged a team-high 43 hits, while batting .281; Hill sports a .787 OPS; elsewhere, rookie first baseman Munetaka Murakami has totaled 15 home runs and 29 RBIs, while boasting a .227/.371/.533 slash line; shortstop Colson Montgomery has totaled 11 home runs and 29 RBIs, while owning a .230/.331/.500 slash line. The White Sox are fifth in MLB with 56 home runs. On the hill, Chicago got six innings from starter Anthony Kay, who surrendered just two runs, which was followed by a scoreless inning of relief from right-hander Tyler Davis and two scoreless innings from left-hander Sean Newcomb. As for its starting rotation as a whole, Chicago's staff ranks 12th in MLB in ERA (3.98) and opponent batting average (.237). Most notably, ace Davis Martin owns a 1.62 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP, a 265 ERA+ and 2.6 wins above replacement over 50.0 innings pitched (eight starts). The White Sox, who have lost 100-plus games in each of the last three seasons, have won three series against 2025 playoff teams: the Toronto Blue Jays, San Diego Padres and Seattle Mariners. Ryan O'Hearn gave the Pittsburgh Pirates all the additional runs they would need with one swing. One at-bat after outfielder Bryan Reynolds drove in a run on a single in the bottom of the first, O'Hearn launched a two-run home run to center field. O'Hearn would go on to have two more hits, finishing with a game-high three hits in a 7-2 Pittsburgh victory over the Colorado Rockies, which gave the Pirates a series win. Pittsburgh also got multi-hit games from infielders Konnor Griffin and Jared Triolo and catcher Endy Rodriguez, while its pitching staff held Colorado to just five hits, highlighted by Carmen Mlodzinski surrendering only two runs over five innings. O'Hearn has posted seven home runs, 29 RBIs and a 138 OPS+ this season, while boasting a .299/.375/.474 slash line. It was a pitchers' duel through seven innings. And then Kyle Schwarber happened. Following a leadoff single from Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner in the top of the eighth, Schwarber unloaded on a cutter from Boston Red Sox reliever Tyler Samaniego, sending it into the right-field seats for a two-run home run to break a scoreless tie. Later in the inning, infielder Bryson Stott singled in a run, and while right fielder Wilyer Abreu singled in a run for Boston in the bottom half of the eighth, Philadelphia would hold on to win, 3-1. As for the pitchers on the mound, the Phillies got six shutout innings from left-hander Jesús Luzardo, while the Red Sox got 5 ⅓ shutout innings from former Philadelphia southpaw Ranger Suárez. Schwarber leads MLB with 18 home runs and is seventh with a .610 slugging percentage. Philadelphia took the three-game set in Boston, with the losing team scoring one run in each of those contests and the Phillies averaging just two runs per game in the series. The Washington Nationals won the first two games of a three-game series on the road against the Cincinnati Reds, but the home team made sure the visiting team left Cincinnati with a souvenir — or a lot of them, for that matter. Cincinnati commenced a 15-1 shellacking of Washington in the bottom of the second, when infielder Matt McClain hit a two-run home run. The Reds added four runs in the fourth on a two-run single from catcher Jose Trevino and a two-run double from third baseman Ke'Bryan Hayes. Designated hitter JJ Bleday then blew the game open with a three-run homer in the fifth and later hit a two-run homer in the seventh. The Nationals had outfielder Joey Wiemer pitch the eighth inning, and the Reds scored four runs off him, which came on a three-run homer from center fielder Dane Myers and an RBI single from Bleday. McClain, Hayes, Bleday — who had a game-high six RBIs — and infielders Spencer Steer and Elly De La Cruz each had multiple hits for Cincinnati. Washington, whose one run came on a wild pitch, was held to three hits. Cincinnati right-hander Chase Burns pitched six shutout innings, posting seven strikeouts and surrendering just four baserunners (two hits and two walks). Through nine starts, Burns has recorded a 1.87 ERA, a 1.00 WHIP, a 232 ERA+ and an NL-best 2.6 wins above replacement across 53.0 innings pitched. The San Francisco Giants took Games 1 and 2 of a four-game series against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium, but the defending, back-to-back World Series champions managed to salvage a series split. After beating the Giants on Wednesday, 4-0, the Dodgers got another win on Thursday to escape the four-game set even-steven. Los Angeles immediately got on the board in the bottom of the first, as catcher Will Smith, who was the team's designated hitter, hit a leadoff home run. Second baseman Hyeseong Kim got the Dodgers another run on an RBI single in the second. San Francisco leveled up the score at 2-all in the top of the fifth, but Los Angeles scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth on RBI singles from outfielder Alex Call, which drove in two runs, and shortstop Miguel Rojas, who plated one run and gave the Dodgers a 5-2 lead, which would be the final score. All the while, Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández had a game-high three hits. Right-hander Emmet Sheehan gave up two runs over six innings for the Dodgers, who surrendered just two hits altogether. With the San Diego Padres losing to the Milwaukee Brewers, the Dodgers are back in first place in the NL West at 26-18. One of the Giants' two hits was the most dramatic one in the sport on Thursday. In the top of the fifth, right fielder Jung Hoo Lee hit a ball down the left-field line, and Hernandez wasn't able to play it off the side wall, with the ball rolling to the outfield wall and Lee rumbling around the bases for an inside-the-park, two-run home run. On the season, Lee has totaled three home runs, 16 RBIs and a 103 OPS+, while possessing a .267/.313/.394 slash line. He has also posted two defensive runs saved in right field. This was the first inside-the-park home run of Lee's MLB career (2024-present) and the fourth official inside-the-park-homer in MLB this season. This is another instance of a player shining in a loss. While in an 8-3 defeat to the Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Álvarez reached base in each of his four plate appearances (three hits and one walk), most notably hitting a solo home run to center field in the bottom of the third. Álvarez, who had three of Houston's five hits on Thursday, has totaled 14 home runs, 30 RBIs and 2.0 wins above replacement this season, while owning a .321/.429/.642 slash line. He leads the AL with a 198 OPS+ and 106 total bases. Álvarez, a three-time All-Star, ranks in the 96th percentile of MLB in average exit velocity (94.0 mph), the 94th percentile in barrel percentage (17.6%) and the 90th percentile in hard-hit percentage (50.8%), according to Statcast. Better late than never. Trailing the Athletics 4-3, the St. Louis Cardinals failed to get two of the first three batters on the basepath in the top of the ninth. Then, second baseman JJ Wetherholt was hit by a pitch, and catcher Ivan Herrera hit a game-tying single on the very next pitch. And, on the very next pitch, right fielder Jordan Walker dropped a double into shallow right field, giving the Cardinals a 5-4 lead, which would be the final score. Walker had two hits and drove in two runs, his other hit being a solo home run in the sixth. Meanwhile, center fielder Victor Scott II hit a solo homer in the fifth, third baseman Nolan Gorman had an RBI single in the sixth and designated hitter Yohel Pozo registered a team-high three hits for the Cardinals. St. Louis right-hander Michael McGreevy — who now owns a 2.10 ERA, an 0.88 WHIP and a 185 ERA+ — gave up just one run over six innings before relievers Ryne Stanek and JoJo Romero gave up a combined three runs in the bottom of the seventh. Regarding the ninth-inning heroes, Walker has logged 12 home runs, 32 RBIs, a 170 OPS+ and 2.6 wins above replacement this season, while boasting a .294/.370/.575 slash line; Herrera has driven in 20 runs and sports an .805 OPS and a 135 OPS+. St. Louis stands at 25-18, two-and-a-half games behind the Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central. Speaking of the Cubs, they ended a four-game losing streak by shutting out the Atlanta Braves, 2-0. It was a team effort to get through nine innings for Chicago. First, starter Ben Brown posted seven strikeouts and surrendered just two baserunners (one hit and one walk) over four innings, which was followed by two innings from Hoby Milner and scoreless innings from Phil Maton, Jacob Webb and Daniel Palencia. In all, Chicago gave up five hits and one walk. As for the offense, which was scarce in this matchup between NL division leaders, Cubs right fielder Matt Shaw had an RBI force-out in the top of the sixth and left fielder Ian Happ blasted a solo home run to right field in the top of the eighth. Happ had two of the Cubs' six hits and was the only player on either team to record multiple hits. On the season, Happ, a four-time Gold Glover, has logged 10 home runs, 19 RBIs, a 149 OPS+ and 1.9 wins above replacement, while owning a .234/.376/.481 slash line. Right-hander Zebby Matthews got called up by the Minnesota Twins to start for them on Thursday against the Miami Marlins, and then he answered the call in emphatic fashion. In what his first start of the 2026 season at the MLB level, Matthews tossed seven shutout innings, posted five strikeouts and gave up just five baserunners (four hits and one walk) while throwing only 83 pitches. Kendry Rojas pitched the final two innings for Minnesota, which got a 9-1 win. Matthews made nine starts for the Twins in 2024 and 16 starts in 2025. The right-hander's Thursday afternoon outing was his first shutout through a seven-inning MLB start and just the third time that he pitched through the seventh inning in the big leagues. Regarding Matthews' run support, Twins outfielders Austin Martin and James Outman each drove in three runs, with designated hitter Josh Bell logging a two-run double and first baseman Victor Caratini driving in a run on a ground out. Martin is batting .333 through 38 games, while sporting a .454 on-base percentage. Minnesota has won four of its last five games. The New York Mets' offense has come to life this week. Two days after scoring 10 runs, the Mets dropped nine runs at Citi Field on Thursday to close out a three-game sweep of the Detroit Tigers. Seven of those runs came on home runs from outfielders A.J. Ewing — whose homer was the first of his MLB career — and Juan Soto and infielders Brett Baty, Mark Vientos and Marcus Semien. Moreover, the Mets only had two strikeouts. On the hill, right-hander Nolan McLean pitched seven innings for the Mets, recording seven strikeouts and giving up three runs. The sweep of the Tigers was the Mets' first such feat this season. Ironically, Detroit actually scored first and got out to a multi-run lead in each of the three games. Of course, it was to no avail for the Tigers, who have now lost eight of their last nine games.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Tentative $2.3B Deal For New Rays Ballpark In Tampa Announced]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/tampa-bay-rays-stadium-tampa</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/tampa-bay-rays-stadium-tampa</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Tampa Bay Rays and local officials have announced a tentative $2.3 billion agreement for a new ballpark in a new city, funded by public and private money.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 15 May 2026 10:21:12 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The Tanmpa Bay Rays and local officials announced a tentative $2.3 billion agreement on Thursday for a new ballpark funded by public and private money. The nonbinding memorandum of understanding among the Rays, Hillsborough County and the city of Tampa outlines the costs of a stadium, which would include $967 million of tax dollars. Elected officials for the city and county are expected to vote on the deal at separate meetings next week. "The Rays respectfully but resolutely encourage Hillsborough County and the City of Tampa to approve the MOU and make possible a Forever Home for our community’s Tampa Bay Rays, breathe new life into the Dale Mabry Campus of Hillsborough College, and create a new privately financed neighborhood that will be an inviting and inclusive destination to work, live, learn, and play," Rays CEO Ken Babby said in a statement. The Rays ownership reached an agreement earlier this year with Hillsborough College to build the stadium and mixed-use entertainment district on the college campus and to renovate some of the college's buildings. The property is located next to the New York Ynkees' spring training facility and across a highway from Raymond James Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. The Rays have said they hope to have the new stadium built within three years. Since the team took the field in 1998, the Rays have played at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, except for moving home games to the Yankees' Steinbrenner Field in 2025 following hurricane damage at the Trop. The Rays lease runs through at least the 2028 season. The team returned to the Trop last month for the start of this season. A proposed $1.3 billion redevelopment deal for a new ballpark adjacent to the Trop fell through last year, raising new questions about the future of the team, which was bought last September by Patrick Zalupski’s ownership group. Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Smart. Workaholic. MVP? Matt Olson Is Driving The Red Hot Braves]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/hes-smart-hes-workaholic-its-contagious-how-matt-olson-driving-braves-hot-start</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/hes-smart-hes-workaholic-its-contagious-how-matt-olson-driving-braves-hot-start</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[If anyone is going to contend with Shohei Ohtani for NL MVP, it might be Matt Olson, who has been the best player on the best team in baseball.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 14 May 2026 21:29:00 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[LOS ANGELES — Matt Olson wishes he could point to something purposeful, a fix or tweak or deliberate change that he made, to help explain his MVP-caliber start. He has been one of Major League Baseball’s best first basemen for years, but he’s on a different level to start the 2026 season. The 32-year-old leads MLB in doubles and total bases and the Braves in home runs, RBI, walks, slugging and OPS. He leads the National League in FanGraphs’ version of wins above replacement. He’s barreling the ball at the highest rate of his 11-year career, swinging harder than he has either of the past two seasons and producing his lowest whiff rate in five seasons. It seems the only thing he can’t do right now is elucidate the main reason why. "That’s the hardest question to answer," Olson told me last weekend while helping the Braves capture their series victory over the Dodgers. "When things are going well, you hit the mistakes. That’s what it feels like. A guy makes a mistake over the plate, you’re barreling it instead of maybe just fouling it off or popping it up or whatever. I haven’t really changed anything. I wish I had a cool answer for you." One explanation for the performance could be his higher attack angle, which, in tandem with his already high quality of contact, is helping his hard-hit balls clear the fence. Prior to this year, Olson’s highest fly-ball rate (34.4%) came in 2023, when he hit a career-high 54 home runs. This year, his fly-ball rate is even higher (35.5%), and his 14 home runs have him on a 52-homer pace. Whichever way he’s getting to his production, the Braves will take it. A year ago, they won their 30th game of the season on June 13. This year, they reached that mark on May 13 — exactly one month earlier — to become the first team in baseball to 30 wins. While Olson struggles to explain his own transcendence, it’s no mystery why his team is excelling: The Braves’ pitching staff has the lowest ERA in the sport, and their offense has the highest OPS in the sport. Coming off back-to-back All-Star seasons, 37-year-old Chris Sale somehow looks even better. Bryce Elder trails only Shohei Ohtani for the lowest ERA among qualified National League starters, and relievers Dylan Lee, Robert Suarez and Raisel Iglesias have combined for a 0.53 ERA at the back end of the bullpen. Offensively, Ozzie Albies and Michael Harris II have found their form again coming off the worst offensive seasons of their career, and 25-year-old Drake Baldwin is already one of the top catchers in the league. Perhaps above all else, though, Olson looks like an NL MVP contender. "It’s tough to make a better case than Ohtani every year," Braves manager Walt Weiss acknowledged, "but Matt’s been unbelievable, one of the best players in the game. People talk about 2023 when he had 54 homers. I think he’s swinging the bat even better now." Earlier this month, Olson joined the 300-homer club and moved into the top 10 on the consecutive games played list. His 1.013 OPS is the highest mark of his career, and he continues to grade out as one of the top defensive first basemen in the sport. When I asked utility man Mauricio Dubon if anything stood out about his new teammates, he singled out Olson. His reasoning went beyond the first baseman’s production. "He’s smart, he’s a workaholic, and it’s contagious," Dubón told me, pointing out how diligently Olson studies pitchers and gameplans. "You see, ‘Damn, this guy has so many home runs — he just hit his 300-something home run — playing 800 games in a row, and still doing that?’ Yeah, I gotta step on it. For me, that's the mentality." Dubòn, who was acquired in the offseason for light-hitting shortstop Nick Allen, is hitting above league average for the first time in his eight-year career. He’s among a group of supporting cast members in Atlanta who have helped raise the floor for a Braves team that is bouncing back despite dealing with another plethora of injuries. The Braves weren’t planning on Dubón starting 23 of their first 43 games at shortstop. They re-signed Ha-Seong Kim to play the position in December. A month later, Kim slipped on ice and needed surgery to repair a torn tendon in his middle finger. It was an ominous sign for Braves fans who watched injuries play a major role in the team’s fourth-place finish last season. The avalanche continued from there, as pitchers Spencer Schwellenbach and Hurston Waldrep underwent elbow procedures, Joey Wentz tore his ACL, Jurickson Profar was suspended for the year and Spencer Strider suffered an oblique strain all before the start of the season. It felt like 2025 all over again. Only this time, the Braves responded differently. Many of their players credit Olson’s leadership and studiousness for helping guide the way. There’s an obvious element of leading by example when you’re the sport’s active ironman, but Olson’s teammates point out that he’s also more vocal than it might appear. "He’s a guy that’s always in the video room looking at pitchers, getting scouting reports," outfielder Eli White told me. "He likes to relay that to the guys, what he’s seeing, what he’s thinking. But also, he’s a guy that likes the game to be played hard and played with guys treating the game with respect. If he sees something where he doesn’t think somebody’s holding to a certain standard, he’ll let them know — in a good way, in a respectful way, the way you want guys to hold each other accountable." Sometimes, Olson said, it can be as simple as getting on a young guy for not tipping clubhouse attendants appropriately. "I’m here when I need to be," Olson told me. "I think a lot of stuff gets worked out itself, and I think it should be handled in here with the guys first. I’m not the guy to, like, chirp everybody on everything — maybe in a joking manner — but I think by doing that, your voice carries a little more weight. So when something actually does need to be said, people understand, you know, ‘All right, he’s saying something, something’s up.’" Olson points out that he doesn’t seek out confrontation, and he can count on one hand the amount of times in a season he needs to speak up about someone’s behavior, but he also recognizes that he’s "one of the older guys now." He feels that’s part of his responsibility. "But we’ve got a good group," said Olson, "so there’s not actually a lot that needs to be said." Talking baseball, meanwhile, is a much more frequent occurrence. Having played for the Braves for five seasons, Olson has a better idea now about his teammates’ swings and which players might want his advice. "We’ve got a few guys that if you go up to them and say, ‘Hey…your back shoulder’s a little low,’ it’ll go right over their head," Olson explained, "which is great. I honestly envy that big time. But there’s some guys that want to dig into that, and you get a feel for that the more you play with guys. "I guess I’m more willing — because I’ve been here long enough and know the guys better — to say stuff to guys. If it’s something glaring on the field, like [pitch] tipping, or this guy’s 80% changeup in a 1-1 count, little things I might find, that kind of stuff can impact a game. And I’m kind of letting everybody know about that because I feel like if you know that it’s going to help us win a ballgame." This year, the Braves are doing a lot more of that. Despite the injuries, they’re already leading the National League East by nine games. No other team is leading its division by more than 2.5 games. Olson, the best player on the best team in baseball, is a major reason why. "I can’t point to one thing," he said. "I think maybe last year the bad season we had left a little sour taste in some peoples’ mouths. When we showed up to spring, everybody was locked in."__ In "Touching Base," we check on the top players and topics making headlines around baseball and what comes next.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 Cy Young Odds: Can Ohtani Challenge Skenes in NL?]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-cy-young-odds</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-cy-young-odds</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Dodgers' superstar pitcher-hitter is officially chasing Paul Skenes for the title of best pitcher in the National League.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 14 May 2026 12:43:07 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is a stark difference in the recent history of the American League Cy Young award and the National League one. First, let's check out the odds for this season's winners at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 14. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. American League Cy Young Cam Schlittler: +220 (bet $10 to win $32 total)Dylan Cease: +260 (bet $10 to win $36 total)Jacob deGrom: +400 (bet $10 to win $50 total)Jose Soriano: +1000 (bet $10 to win $110 total)George Kirby: +3000 (bet $10 to win $310 total)Logan Gilbert: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total) National League Cy Young Paul Skenes: +165 (bet $10 to win $26.50 total)Shohei Ohtani: +500 (bet $10 to win $60 total)Cristopher Sanchez: +500 (bet $10 to win $60 total)Chris Sale: +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total)Jacob Misiorowski: +800 (bet $10 to win $90 total)Yoshinobu Yamamoto: +1800 (bet $10 to win $190 total) Here is what to know about these two oddsboards: AL Injuries: When the season began, Detroit's Tarik Skubal was favored to win a third straight Cy Young. That's how dominant he's been. However, he was forced to have surgery to remove loose bodies in his throwing elbow, and is now sidelined for months, opening the door for a new winner. Atop the board is the Yankees' Cam Schlittler, who is 5-1 in nine starts with a 1.35 ERA and 59 strikeouts. Keeping him company near the top of the board is Toronto's Dylan Cease (3-1, 2.41 ERA, 75 Ks) and Texas' Jacob deGrom (3-2, 2.62 ERA, 57 Ks). The NL Race: Paul Skenes took home the award last season, after leading all baseball in ERA, and he remains the favorite in the NL, after opening the year atop the oddsboard. Through seven starts, Pittsburgh's Skenes is sporting a 6-2 record and a 1.98 ERA, 56 Ks and a 0.64 WHIP. However, this race is tightening up, mainly due to the dominance of a few premier pitching names, including the Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani, the two-time reigning NL MVP. Ohtani was at +700 a little over a week ago, but in his latest start, he gave up four hits to the Giants in seven innings, with eight strikeouts, two walks and no runs. On the year, in seven starts, he is 3-2 with a ridiculous 0.82 ERA, alongside 50 Ks and a 0.82 WHIP.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Blue Jays Stun Rays on 10th-Inning Walk-Off Grand Slam]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blue-jays-walk-off-grand-slam-yankees-orioles-shohei-ohtani-dodgers-fan-interference-dbacks-rangers</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/blue-jays-walk-off-grand-slam-yankees-orioles-shohei-ohtani-dodgers-fan-interference-dbacks-rangers</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Blue Jays hit a walk-off grand slam, the Yankees were held to one hit, Shohei Ohtani shined, the D-backs and Rangers combined for a wild finish and more from Wednesday's action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Thu, 14 May 2026 12:08:14 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: The Tampa Bay Rays have owned the Toronto Blue Jays this season, and with a two-run lead going into the bottom of the 10th inning, it appeared to be more of the same. Then, the improbable happened. After a pop-out to open the inning, Toronto drew back-to-back walks, loading the bases for center fielder Daulton Varsho, who smacked a line drive to the opposite field and over the left-field wall for a walk-off grand slam. The long ball was just Toronto's sixth hit of the game and gave the Blue Jays their first win over the American League East-rival Rays this season (Toronto is 1-5 against Tampa Bay), that being a 5-3 victory. Varsho, a 2024 Gold Glover, has totaled five home runs, 13 RBIs, 1 win above replacement and two defensive runs saved in center field through 41 games, while owning a .250/.321/.403 slash line. Toronto's other run came off a sacrifice fly from third baseman Kazuma Okamoto in the eighth, while starter Dylan Cease gave up just one run over seven innings. Speaking of slams, enter the "Big Amish." Trailing the St. Louis Cardinals 1-0 with one out in the bottom of the fifth, Athletics first baseman Nick Kurtz came to the plate with the bases loaded and delivered, knocking a Matthew Liberatore slider just over the center-field wall. The A's would never look back, with a seventh-inning sacrifice fly from center fielder Henry Bolte — who was making his MLB debut — and an eighth-inning solo home run from third baseman Zack Gelof adding to their lead, while starter J.T. Ginn, who sports a 3.12 ERA and 1.5 wins above replacement over seven starts/10 appearances, gave up no earned runs over six innings in an eventual 6-2 win. Both teams had 13 hits. After a slow start to the 2026 season, the "Big Amish" has been raking over the last month, with Kurtz recording five home runs, 22 RBIs and a .319/.451/.571 slash line over his last 24 games. Last season, Kurtz totaled 36 home runs, 86 RBIs, a 165 OPS+ and 5.4 wins above replacement over 117 games, while posting a .290/.383/.619 slash line, helping him earn 2025 AL Rookie of the Year honors. The Atlanta Braves and Chicago Cubs are on polar opposite runs. In defeating the Cubs, 4-1, the Braves have won four consecutive games, giving them the best record in MLB at 30-13, while the Cubs — who previously won 10 consecutive games — have now lost four in a row. As for the Wednesday night matchup, catcher Drake Baldwin drew first blood for the Braves with a leadoff home run in the bottom of the fourth, his 11th long ball of the year. Granted, Cubs second baseman Nico Hoerner leveled the score at 1-all with an RBI single in the top of the fifth. That said, Atlanta took the lead for good in the eighth when outfielder Mike Yastrzemski drove in a run on a double. Then, after shortstop Ha-Seong Kim was thrown out trying to score a second run on the aforementioned Yastrzemski double, left fielder Mauricio Dubón gave the Braves more breathing room, launching a two-run home run to left field. Raisel Iglesias proceeded to shut the door on a 4-1 victory for the Braves in the ninth; the right-handed reliever hasn't surrendered a run over 12 ⅔ innings pitched this season. The San Diego Padres were on the verge of losing their fourth game in six tries. Then, Gavin Sheets happened. Down 1-0 to the Milwaukee Brewers, San Diego failed to get either of the first two batters on the basepath in the top of the ninth. Then, designated hitter Miguel Andújar singled and shortstop Xander Bogaerts walked. What followed? Sheets hit a go-ahead, three-run home run to right field off Brewers reliever Abner Uribe. The home run was one of Sheets' two hits on the night and his sixth homer of the season. Sheets and Fernando Tatís Jr. accounted for two-thirds of San Diego's hits in what was a 3-1 win (the Padres had six hits), while Mason Miller got the save in the bottom of the ninth. The only other run that was scored came on a fifth-inning RBI force-out by Brewers second baseman Brice Turang off Padres' starter Michael King, who pitched 5 ⅔ innings. For Milwaukee, it wasted a spectacular outing from young right-hander Jacob Misiorowski, who recorded 10 strikeouts and gave up no runs and just four baserunners (four hits) over seven innings. The Padres have a half-game lead on the Los Angeles Dodgers for first place in the National League West at 25-17. That happened. It's not a typo. Coming off a 6-2 victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday night, the New York Yankees logged just one hit and were shutout by their AL East rival on Wednesday, 7-0, dropping a three-game series and recording their fifth loss in six games. For Baltimore, right-hander Kyle Bradish pitched six shutout innings, logging seven strikeouts and giving up just four baserunners (three walks and one hit), with Keegan Akin, Dietrich Enns and Yennier Cano each pitching a scoreless inning, thereafter. As for the bats, the Orioles got an RBI double from designated hitter Coby Mayo in the bottom of the second, a sacrifice fly from catcher Adley Rutschman — who later hit a two-run home run in the fifth — and an RBI single from first baseman Pete Alonso in the third and a two-run single from second baseman Blaze Alexander in the sixth. Rutschman, a two-time All-Star, has logged six home runs, 24 RBIs, a 151 OPS+ and a .291/.339/.553 slash line through 28 games. The Yankees are averaging just 2.3 runs per game over their last six contests. To make matters worse for New York, star left-hander Max Fried left the game after three innings on Wednesday due to left elbow posterior soreness. Losers of four straight games, the Dodgers turned to Shohei Ohtani to end their slide, and he delivered. The electric right-hander tossed seven shutout innings against the San Francisco Giants, recording eight strikeouts and giving up just six baserunners (four hits and two walks). Tanner Scott and Kyle Hurt each pitched a scoreless inning after Ohtani was relieved, sealing a 4-0 Dodgers' win. As for the offense, Los Angeles got back-to-back solo home runs to lead off the bottom of the third from infielders Santiago Espinal and Mookie Betts. Then, in the fourth, designated hitter Teoscar Hernández singled in a run and left fielder Alex Call brought home a run on a sacrifice fly. Ohtani, who didn't hit on Wednesday, has pitched through seven innings in back-to-back starts and pitched through at least six innings in each of his seven starts this season. Ohtani owns an NL-best 0.82 ERA and 486 ERA+, an 0.82 WHIP and recorded 50 strikeouts and 1.9 wins above replacement over 44.0 innings pitched. Meanwhile, as a hitter, the four-time MVP has totaled seven home runs, 17 RBIs and five stolen bases, while owning a .240/.370/.427 slash line. New York Mets outfielder A.J. Ewing shined on Tuesday night in what was his first big-league game. On Wednesday, outfielder Carson Benge was the Mets' rookie to shine brightest. With one out in the bottom of the 10th, Benge hit a walk-off single up the middle, giving the Mets a 3-2 victory and a series win over the Detroit Tigers. Benge, whom New York selected with the No. 19 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, finished the night with a team-high three hits. He has totaled three home runs, 13 RBIs and seven stolen bases across 126 at-bats this season, possessing a .230/.292/.341 slash line. Benge has started at least eight games at all three outfield positions for the Mets. New York's other two runs came on an RBI force-out from left fielder Tyrone Taylor in the second and an RBI single from shortstop Bo Bichette in the seventh. The Mets used five pitchers to get through 10 innings, highlighted by 2 ⅓ perfect innings of relief from right-hander Huascar Brazobán, who boasts a 2.14 ERA and a 187 ERA+. It had been a while since we had one of these. The Washington Nationals led the Cincinnati Reds 8-6 going into the bottom of the 10th after designated hitter Daylen Lile hit a two-run home run in the top half of the inning, which was his third homer in the last two games. Then, the thing happened. With one out in the bottom of the 10th, Reds first baseman Spencer Steer laced a ball to left field that looked like it had a chance to clear the wall for a game-tying, two-run home run. Well, one Reds fan made sure of that, as he reached over the wall to catch the ball and bring it into the seats. After review, it was determined that it was indeed fan interference, and Steer was given a double, which drove in a run. The Reds would ultimately strand both the tying and go-ahead runs, with the Nationals holding on to win 8-7 and taking the three-game series. Cincinnati actually began the game with a five-run first inning, highlighted by a grand slam from catcher Tyler Stephenson, but Washington responded with a four-run second inning, which included a two-run home run from catcher Keibert Ruiz. The Nationals tied the game at 5-all in the third on a Joey Wiemer walk, with both teams later scoring a sixth run. Washington is now in second place in the NL East at 21-22. The losing streak to the Seattle Mariners ends at nine for the Houston Astros. Yes, in fact, Houston entered Wednesday 0-6 against Seattle this season and having lost nine straight games to its AL West foe dating back to last season. Ironically, it took 10 innings for the Astros to stop their losing streak to the Mariners from reaching 10 games, with outfielder Zach Cole — who had a game-high three hits — hitting a walk-off single in the bottom of the 10th. The 4-3 win snapped a four-game losing streak for Houston, which got its other three runs on a solo home run from Christian Walker — which was his 10th of the year — and an RBI single from second baseman Jose Altuve in the sixth and a sacrifice fly from Altuve in the eighth. As for the hero of the game, Cole has only appeared in eight games for the Astros this season, but he's batting .304 with two home runs and six RBIs over the 24 plate appearances that he has received. Hang with us here. The Texas Rangers took a 3-2 lead over the Arizona Diamondbacks into the top of the ninth and sent Jacob Latz to the mound to close out the game. That did not go as planned. The first four batters all reached base, with right fielder Corbin Carroll doubling, shortstop Geraldo Perdomo drawing a walk, third baseman Nolan Arenado hitting a game-tying, RBI double and first baseman Ildemaro Vargas bringing in two runs on a single. Cal Quantrill relieved Latz, who didn't get an out, and got the Rangers through the inning without giving up another run after the D-backs scored three. But wait, there's more. Two of the first three batters failed to reach base in the bottom of the ninth for the Rangers, but then their bats came to life. Second baseman Ezequiel Durán hit an RBI double, which left fielder Alejandro Osuna followed with a walk. First baseman Jake Burger then hit a game-tying, RBI single, which was followed by catcher Danny Jansen hitting a walk-off double down the left-field line, giving Texas a dramatic, 6-5 win. MLB's 15-game Wednesday slate saw four games go to extra innings and four games end with a walk off.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Why the Dodgers Still Plan To Rest Shohei Ohtani Despite His Breakout Homer]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-still-plan-rest-shohei-ohtani-after-breaking-slump</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/dodgers-still-plan-rest-shohei-ohtani-after-breaking-slump</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Though Shohei Ohtani broke out of a hitting funk and ended his home run drought, the Dodgers still plan to give him an offensive reset.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Wed, 13 May 2026 18:01:55 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Dodger Stadium (Los Angeles) — Weeks of frustration turned into a sense of relief and, finally, a moment of levity Tuesday for Shohei Ohtani, who jokingly asked his teammates in the dugout for the home-run ball after he went deep for the first time since April 28. Lately, even brief spurts of joy and frivolity have come sparingly for the Los Angeles Dodgers during their extended offensive funk. On Tuesday, those moments were fleeting again as the Dodgers lost for the fourth straight day and the ninth time in their last 13 games. But Ohtani, who entered the night 4-for-38 over his past 11 games, reached base three times and ended his long-ball drought. Leading off the third inning, he took a sinker off the outer edge from San Francisco Giants starter Adrian Houser the other way with a 105.9 mph liner off the bat for a 398-foot home run. Amid the offense’s larger struggles, manager Dave Roberts felt like it might have been a turning point for his scuffling slugger, even if Ohtani couldn’t stop the spiral for the rest of a dormant lineup that has scored two runs or fewer over the past 13 games. If the two-way superstar hopes to build on his encouraging performance at the plate, though, it will have to wait. The Dodgers plan to give the four-time MVP a breather, holding him out of the lineup for the next two games amid his prolonged slump. "The pros are, taking the hitting part off his plate, letting his body recover a little bit as far as being a two-way player for a couple days, playing more of the longer view, potentially giving him a reset on the offensive side," Roberts explained Tuesday afternoon, before Ohtani’s breakout night. "The con is just not being able to write his name in the lineup at the top of the order." After already informing the player of his plan, Roberts wasn’t swayed by Ohtani’s slump-busting two-hit game. "I don’t like the bait and switch," Roberts said. "To go back on a pact, a decision, that we came upon, or I came upon, I don’t like that." The plan is for Ohtani to only pitch on Wednesday, marking the fourth time in his last five starts on the mound that he won’t be in the lineup. Ohtani is then expected to get Thursday off, too. When or if that happens, it will be the first time in Ohtani’s tenure with the Dodgers that he’ll be held out of the lineup in consecutive games despite being available to play. Ohtani is expected to be available to pinch-hit late on Thursday, but Roberts hopes that the superstar takes advantage of the extra rest and shows up a little later to the field. "For me, with any hitter, when the quality of at-bat starts to go down consistently, I think that’s a telling sign there needs to be a break," Roberts said. Roberts told me that Ohtani hasn’t expressed that he’s dealing with fatigue, but it seems like it might be a factor in his at-bats of late as he assumes full two-way duties for the first time since 2023. Beyond the dip in surface-level numbers, Ohtani’s bat speed is down a tick from last season. He’s posting his lowest hard-hit rate since 2020, and his chase rate is the highest it’s been in the past six years. "I think the fatigue is bleeding into the mechanics," Roberts said. "I think that most players get that towards the end of the summer. And now I’m learning, managing Shohei, it has probably shown itself a little earlier as far as the tax on pitching and all that comes with it to the hitting, too." Dodgers pitching coach Aaron Bates told me that if Ohtani is dealing with any fatigue, it might be more mental than physical. If Ohtani is tired, Bates reasoned, he wouldn’t still be trying to steal bases, as he has done four times in his past 14 games. Bates believes Ohtani is capable of handling this workload. Roberts maintains that he is, too, but also acknowledged that the plan the Dodgers had for Ohtani before the season is "fluid" and requires reading and reacting. "We have an opportunity to do things the way we feel are best for him," Roberts said. "So, no one thought it was gonna be easy. No one thought it was gonna be linear." On the mound, Ohtani looks like a Cy Young contender. He has a 0.97 ERA and has gone at least six innings in each of his six starts. At the plate, Ohtani’s downturn is one of many problems for a Dodgers' offense that ranks 18th in runs scored, 20th in home runs and 21st in slugging since April 18, a span of 23 games. But it’s a significant one. Even after his two-hit performance Tuesday, Ohtani is batting just .200 with two home runs over his last 17 games. His .796 OPS is the lowest it’s been through his team’s first 42 games since 2022. After going hitless in just 25.9% of his games last year, he has done so in 41% of his games this season. His 17 RBIs are also his fewest ever to this point of a season, and his seven home runs are his fewest through his team’s first 42 games since 2020. Often, Bates said, Ohtani’s misses are the same as they were last year, where he’s chasing balls in the dirt or hitting them too far out front and rolling over. "He would just mix in the homers between the misses," Bates explained. "So, when you’re not necessarily hitting the homers, the rockets, the doubles, and you have the same misses, it looks probably worse than it is." Ohtani has been adamant that he doesn’t think his pitching is impacting his hitting, but he has acknowledged that it’s more difficult in this current role to devote the time necessary to fix his swing when something is off. He has to keep his health at the forefront, which means balancing his workload and monitoring his repetitions while also trying to perform his Herculean tasks. Over the past week, for instance, he has hit on the field multiple times before games, a tactic he only tries when he’s searching for something at the plate. But he has had to work that batting practice around his bullpen sessions in preparation for his start on Wednesday. "It’s always a juggling act," Bates said. "It’s just bandwidth, I think, pitching and hitting full season now. And also last year, he was doing really well when he started layering the pitching in, so you kind of had the hitting on, not autopilot, but he knew where he was at and what he wanted to do. I think this year, combining both those with the shortened spring training and the WBC, it’s been a lot of factors." Tuesday was a giant step in the right direction, but it didn't alter the Dodgers' strategy. They still plan to hold him out of the lineup the next two games, according to Roberts, who did not express any concern that the decision might halt Ohtani's positive momentum. "I just can’t take for granted what’s on his plate, so I’m trying to be sensitive to that," Roberts said. "I’m learning that you have to be proactive because he’s always going to want to do more. He always has that sense of responsibility to his teammates that he wants to be out there both ways."]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Giants Beat Dodgers in Back-to-Back Games]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/giants-dodgers-mets-aj-ewing-debut-bailey-ober-nationals-phillies-yankees-paul-skenes</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/giants-dodgers-mets-aj-ewing-debut-bailey-ober-nationals-phillies-yankees-paul-skenes</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Giants beat the Dodgers for a second consecutive night, Bailey Ober pitched a complete-game shutout, the Nationals hit six home runs, Paul Skenes is dealing and more from Tuesday's action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Wed, 13 May 2026 12:14:56 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: After beating the Los Angeles Dodgers at Dodger Stadium on Monday night, 9-3, the San Francisco Giants picked up where they left off on Tuesday, getting another win over their bitter National League West rival. The Dodgers led 2-1 entering the fifth inning, thanks to a first-inning sacrifice fly from catcher Will Smith and a solo home run from Shohei Ohtani to lead off the bottom of the third inning. However, the Giants would take the lead and never give it back in the top of the fifth when center fielder Harrison Bader and catcher Eric Haase hit back-to-back solo home runs. As for Haase, it was his second homer of the game, as he launched another solo shot in the top of the third. Both of those home runs came off Dodgers star right-hander Yoshinobo Yamamoto. San Francisco built a four-run cushion in the seventh, as outfielder Drew Gilbert singled in a run and fellow outfielder Jung Hoo Lee doubled in two runs, giving the Giants a 6-2 lead, which would be the final score. Right-hander Adrian Houser pitched 5 ⅔ innings for the Giants, who improved to 4-1 against the Dodgers this season and have won four of their last five games. The Detroit Tigers got out to a 2-0 lead over the New York Mets in the top of the second, but that would be all the offense that Detroit would muster, as a New York avalanche ensued. Over the next seven innings, the Mets racked up 13 hits and 10 runs, scoring in all but one of those seven innings. Among the biggest standouts was center fielder A.J. Ewing, who had a spectacular MLB debut. Ewing, whom New York selected with the No. 134 pick in the 2023 MLB Draft and ranks as their No. 2 prospect by MLB Pipeline, reached base in four of his five plate appearances, recording an RBI triple and three walks, one of them driving in a run. Prior to getting called up to the big leagues, Ewing had totaled two home runs, 11 RBIs and 17 stolen bases across 30 combined games in Double A (18 games) and Triple A (12 games) this season, boasting a .339/.447/.514 slash line. As for New York's 10-2 win over Detroit, outfielders Carson Benge, Juan Soto and Austin Slater, infielders Bo Bichette and Mark Vientos and catchers Francisco Alvarez and Luis Torrens each drove in at least one run (Ewing had two RBIs). Starter Freddy Peralta surrendered two runs and posted seven strikeouts over six innings. If one blinked, they may have missed Bailey Ober's heroics on the mound. Why's that? The Minnesota Twins' right-hander pitched a complete-game shutout against the Miami Marlins, surrendering just two baserunners (two hits), recording seven strikeouts and throwing only 89 pitches to accomplish the feat in what was a 3-0 victory. Through nine starts, the 6-foot-9 Ober has recorded a 3.46 ERA, a 1.02 WHIP, 39 strikeouts, a 126 ERA+ and 1.4 wins above replacement across 52.0 innings pitched. It was the second complete game of Ober's five-plus-year MLB career (2021-present); he owns a career 4.03 ERA and 105 ERA+. Minnesota scored its three runs in the bottom of the fifth, with center fielder Byron Buxton stealing home on a de facto double steal (runners stole second and home) and catcher Ryan Jeffers smacking a two-run home run to left field. The Twins have won three consecutive games. The recurring "bang" that was heard near the Ohio River on Tuesday night wasn't construction: It was the Washington Nationals cracking the seats at Great American Ball Park with the long ball. The Nationals brought the big sticks to Cincinnati, blasting six home runs, which accounted for nine of their 10 runs in a 10-4 win over the Reds. First baseman Luis García Jr. and left fielder Daylen Lile each cranked two home runs and had three hits apiece, with right fielder James Wood and third baseman Brady House also hitting home runs of their own. Eight of nine Washington starters had a hit. The Nationals' other run came off a ninth-inning RBI double from designated hitter Jose Tena. As for those who went yard, Wood has totaled 12 home runs and 29 RBIs, while sporting a .244/.392/.538 slash line; Garcia has totaled 21 RBIs, boasting a .434 slugging percentage; House has totaled six home runs and 21 RBIs; Lile has driven in 19 runs; meanwhile, shortstop CJ Abrams, who had two hits on Tuesday, has racked up nine home runs, 36 RBIs — which is second in MLB — and seven stolen bases, while possessing a .293/.391/.531 slash line. Speaking of the Nationals, their former ace, left-hander MacKenzie Gore, had one of the best starts of his career in Game 2 of a three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Gore lasted eight innings, marking the longest start of his MLB career, surrendering just one run and four baserunners (three hits and one walk) in a 7-4 victory for the Rangers; the D-backs got three runs off reliever Gavin Collyer in the top of the ninth. Entering his Tuesday night start, Gore, a 2025 All-Star, owned a 5.18 ERA over eight starts, with opponents hitting .300 on balls put in play against him. As for the Rangers' offense, they got solo home runs from designated hitter Joc Pederson in the bottom of the first and second baseman Ezequiel Durán in the bottom of the fourth. Texas later plated four runs in the fifth with RBI singles from Duran, outfielder Alejandro Osuna and first baseman Jake Burger — who had another RBI single in the second — and an RBI force-out from shortstop Corey Seager. Burger and right fielder Brandon Nimmo each had three hits. The Tampa Bay Rays are a runaway freight train, but the Toronto Blue Jays nearly derailed them. Trailing 5-0 in the bottom of the seventh, the Blue Jays struck for five runs, which ultimately sent the game to extra innings. Those five runs came on a two-run double from outfielder Yohendrick Piñango, an RBI double from outfielder Jesús Sánchez, an RBI single from designated hitter George Springer and a Tampa Bay error on a Vladimir Guerrero Jr. ground ball. All that said, the Rays scored two runs in the top of the 10th, as shortstop Taylor Walls singled home a run and first baseman Jonathan Aranda drove in a run on a sacrifice fly, with the latter run being the difference, as Tampa Bay won, 7-6. Rays' right fielder Jonny DeLuca had a game-high three hits, while Aranda, third baseman Junior Caminero and left fielder Ryan Vilade — who hit a solo home run in the seventh — each had two hits. Tampa Bay, which has the best record in the American League at 28-13, has now won 10 of its last 11 games and is 5-0 against Toronto. Old reliable appears to be back in midseason form. Philadelphia Phillies right-hander Zack Wheeler, who missed the first month of the season due to a shoulder injury, tossed a gem in what was his fourth start of the year, giving up just one run and six baserunners (six hit) over 7 ⅓ innings in a 2-1 win on the road for the Phillies over the Boston Red Sox; Wheeler threw just 87 pitches. Over four starts, Wheeler, a three-time All-Star, has recorded a 2.55 ERA, an 0.93 WHIP, 22 strikeouts, a 170 ERA+ and 1.1 wins above replacement in 24 ⅔ innings pitched. Wheeler has pitched through six innings in each of his last three starts. Regarding Wheeler's run support, designated hitter and 2025 NL MVP runner-up Kyle Schwarber hit a solo home run in the top of the first and second baseman Bryson Stott, who finished the night with two hits, had an RBI double in the second. This marked the fifth straight game that Schwarber has hit a home run, with him uncorking a combined six long balls over that span; Schwarber leads MLB with 17 home runs. Meanwhile, Stott has a four-game hit streak and recorded a hit in six of his last seven games. "It was his hat, Mr. Krabs. He was No. 4!" Actually, he was No. 1, but the point here is the No. 4 was a theme for the Seattle Mariners in Game 2 of their four-game set against the Houston Astros. With the game tied at 2-all in the top of the fourth, Mariners designated hitter Dominic Canzone crushed a grand slam to right field. Canzone finished what became a 10-2 victory for Seattle with five RBIs. The Mariners' other five runs came on a two-run home run from left fielder Randy Arozarena in the second, a fifth-inning RBI single by shortstop J.P. Crawford, an RBI double from Arozarena in the seventh and a Crawford walk and Canzone sacrifice fly in the ninth. As for Arozarena, the two-time All-Star finished the game 4 for 4 and is hitting a team-high .303. Seattle got six innings from starter Bryan Woo, who totaled nine strikeouts and gave up just two runs and six baserunners (four hits and two walks). Seattle is 6-0 against Houston this season. After losing a two-run lead in the seventh inning on Monday, the New York Yankees got ahead of the Baltimore Orioles in the early going on Tuesday — like, on the first pitch early. On the first pitch of the night, Yankees first baseman Paul Goldschmidt lifted a Trevor Rogers fastball into the left-field seats. Two innings later, New York put five runs on the board, as left fielder Cody Bellinger brought in a run on a force-out, second baseman Amed Rosario had an RBI single and center fielder Trent Grisham hit a three-run home run. Those six runs would be all the Yankees needed, as they went on to win, 6-2. Goldschmidt, who's now 6 for his last 11, and superstar Aaron Judge each had two hits for New York, which got 5 ⅔ innings from starter Will Warren, who surrendered two runs and posted six strikeouts. The Yankees' bullpen proceeded to give up no runs over 3 ⅓ innings. On the season, Warren owns a 3.42 ERA, a 1.16 WHIP and has totaled 59 strikeouts over 47 ⅓ innings pitched (nine starts). New York's victory over Baltimore terminated a four-game losing streak. Paul Skenes didn't escape the first inning on Opening Day. Ever since, the Pittsburgh Pirates' superstar right-hander has been otherworldly. On Tuesday, Skenes pitched eight scoreless innings at home against the Colorado Rockies, recording 10 strikeouts and giving up just two baserunners (two hits) in a 3-1 win for the Pirates. Moreover, he struck out the first six batters of the game. Over his last eight starts, Skenes, the 2025 NL Cy Young Award winner, has a 1.09 ERA, while opponents are hitting just .157 on balls put in play against him. Skenes has pitched eight shutout innings in each of his last two starts, surrendered no runs in four of his last five starts and given up more than one run in just one of his last eight starts. Pittsburgh got its three runs on RBI singles from infielders Nick Gonzales (bottom of the first) and Brandon Lowe (bottom of the fifth) and outfielder Bryan Reynolds (bottom of the seventh). Meanwhile, center fielder Oneil Cruz had a game-high three hits, including two doubles. Regarding the aforementioned run-producers, Cruz and Lowe have each hit a team-high 10 home runs this season, combining for 57 RBIs; Lowe owns a .558 slugging percentage, while Cruz boasts a .491 slugging percentage; Gonzales has driven in 19 runs and owns a team-high .321 batting average; Reynolds has driven in 24 runs. The Pirates have won six of their last 10 games and are 23-19. Uh-oh, we have a 23-19!]]>
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					<![CDATA[Why The Mets Are 'Feeling The Risk' On Evaluating Injury-Prone Players]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mets-david-stearns-feeling-risk-evaluation-process-injury-prone-players</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mets-david-stearns-feeling-risk-evaluation-process-injury-prone-players</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Injuries. A manager under pressure. Calling up a top prospect. The Mets are looking to shake things up.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 12 May 2026 23:15:28 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[CITI FIELD (New York) – Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns sat in front of the microphone on Tuesday before the team opened a six-game homestand, and there were two moments that stood out from his scheduled news conference with reporters. One was about the Mets manager, and the other was regarding his front office’s assessment on injury-prone players. The Mets entered the day with the worst record (15-25) in Major League Baseball. On Tuesday, they promoted No. 2 overall prospect A.J. Ewing in an attempt to fill a need in the outfield and, it went without saying in their official press release, to shake things up. Stearns has fielded questions from reporters once every homestand since he took the job in October 2023. Typically, the longtime baseball executive is composed — perhaps even unflappable — when addressing the team’s poor performance. It’s clear to see he prides himself on being unemotional in front of the cameras. But, on Tuesday, Stearns got a little snippy in response to a question about manager Carlos Mendoza’s job security. "I'll let my words speak for themselves," Stearns said in a measured and tight tone. "I've been very clear and consistent that I think Mendy does a really good job. I believe Mendy does a really good job. I like coming to work with him every day. I'm not going to address this every two weeks when I talk to you guys. I'll leave it at that." As long as the Mets continue to lose, questions about those who are in charge and whether their baseball operations processes are working will persist. On some level, the Mets P.O.B.O. understands that. After all, he grew up a Mets fan on the Upper East Side. He knows the heat comes with the territory. But, behind Stearns’ sly grin, his sharp answer revealed how much the pressure of the team’s current situation is getting to him. The Mets have represented the worst offense in baseball for a quarter of the season. They entered the day tied with the San Francisco Giants for the fewest runs scored (139) in MLB. It’s no longer early, as both Stearns and Mendoza said. But Mets leadership believes there is too much talent on the team, as well as enough season left, for the club to turn things around. Stop me if you’ve heard this answer before, as in last year, when the Mets were unable to turn things around en route to missing the playoffs. "We have a lot of players with really good track records in this league," Stearns said when I asked what he specifically believes in about this team. "We are counting on those track records, not only on the field, but how they prepare for games, how they go about their business, how hard they're working right now. And we believe that ultimately that's going to show." As the Mets turn, their top prospect, Ewing, is the latest player whom the team hopes will jump-start its lifeless offense and save the season. The 21-year-old started the year in Double-A and played just 12 games at the Triple-A level before joining the Mets at Citi Field on Tuesday. Ewing, praised for his speed, hit .326/.392/.435 with five stolen bases, five walks and four RBI in those dozen games. Mets officials said they would not have called up Ewing unless they truly believed he was ready for the big-league jump. Unfortunately, it smells of desperation. Ewing did impress in Tuesday's outing – an RBI triple in the seventh for his first career hit, and then becoming the first Mets player with a triple in his big league debut. He also walked three times, scored twice, and stole a base. It was apparent when the Mets took the field on Opening Day that the lineup was built to be overly reliant on players who have a history of getting injured. Luis Robert Jr., who is currently sidelined with a herniated disk in his lumbar spine, was one of those injury-prone players the Mets acquired over the offseason. The Mets gave up Luisangel Acuña for Robert when they had a logjam in the infield anyway after trading Brandon Nimmo for Marcus Semien. Robert, at his best, is an All-Star center fielder who is just a few years removed from winning the Silver Slugger award at his position. But, all along, the Mets’ grand plan to keep him on the field was a delayed ramp-up during spring training, followed by regularly scheduled off days once the season began. It didn’t work. Despite their best precautionary measures, Robert's injury has significantly weakened the Mets lineup and created a revolving door in center field. The team’s situation at first base has been a disaster, too. After passing on free agent Pete Alonso, who is currently the Mets’ franchise leader in home runs, Stearns signed veteran infielder Jorge Polanco to play first base. Polanco played two games at first this season before going down with an Achilles injury and a wrist contusion. Robert and Polanco are earning a combined $40 million this year, an exorbitant amount that only seemed reasonable if both players stayed on the field for the majority of the season. As of this moment, there is no timetable for their returns. While Stearns said, "I don't think sitting here in the middle of May that I'm going to do a postmortem on our season," it stood out that he admitted he may need to rethink some of his models and systems on injury-prone players. "I think we absolutely have to look at our risk assessment on injured players, or players who get injured once they're here," Stearns said. "Certainly we know we're taking a level of risk when we bring players in with injury histories. We're feeling that risk right now. And it certainly doesn't help that a number of our players have gotten hurt at the exact same time. It's not something that we necessarily anticipated. But I think that's a fair question and something we need to look at." Stearns &amp; Co. may not have anticipated that several players would get hurt at the same time, but anyone who has followed the Mets for the past few decades was looking out for it. Even if Stearns was wearing rose-colored glasses when he constructed the roster over the winter, it’s hard to imagine that he believed the team’s strategy in building more off days for Robert would be the solution. Mets brass had to know their depth would be tested eventually. As it turned out, 38-year-old outfielder Tommy Pham was not the answer; he recorded two hits in 31 plate appearances before the team designated him for assignment. Then, the Mets signed journeyman right fielder Austin Slater at the end of April, and he has one extra base hit in 16 at-bats. So, no, that hasn’t been the spark the offense is looking for. Outfielder/designated hitter MJ Melendez has made the most of his opportunity with an .852 OPS in 20 games since getting called up last month. But the rest of the Mets offense has performed so poorly that Melendez’s at-bats haven’t helped. Now, the club is hoping Ewing is the answer. If he is part of the solution, the Mets can still go on a run and compete for a spot in the playoffs. And if he's not, they're inching closer and closer to being sellers at the trade deadline. Stearns was asked at what point this season he would pivot to the future and decide that this year's club, the one he tore down and built in his own vision, is just not good enough. "We're not close to that point right now," Stearns said. There were no more questions, not even the ones he won't address every two weeks. Deesha Thosar covers Major League Baseball as a reporter and columnist for FOX Sports. She previously covered the Mets as a beat reporter for the New York Daily News. The daughter of Indian immigrants, Deesha grew up on Long Island and now lives in Queens. Follow her on Twitter at @DeeshaThosar.]]>
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					<![CDATA[MLB Owners and Players Start Labor Talks Ahead of December Deadline]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-owners-players-start-labor-talks-ahead-december-deadline</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-owners-players-start-labor-talks-ahead-december-deadline</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[MLB and the union began labor talks today, 6 1/2 months before the Dec. 1 deadline.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 12 May 2026 18:12:03 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Negotiators for baseball players and owners began what figures to be lengthy and acrimonious collective bargaining negotiations Tuesday to replace their labor contract that expires Dec. 1, with management likely to propose a salary cap system the union has vowed never to accept. An initial session of about two hours took place at the office of the Major League Baseball Players Association, a five-minute walk from Major League Baseball's headquarters in Manhattan's Rockefeller Center. The meeting lasted about two hours and was scheduled for initial presentations from each side on their view of the sport and its economics. No proposals were made. Players who attended included Mets infielder Marcus Semien, a member of the union's eight-man executive subcommittee, along with Mets teammates Clay Holmes, David Peterson, Austin Slater and Sean Manaea. Several Detroit Tigers, who were in town to play the Mets, also were at the meeting and additional players joined via video conference. "It’s the first one I’ve been at, so I don’t really have much to compare it to," Holmes said. "It was just kind of initial meetings, first time the sides were getting together and kind of sharing their thoughts on kind of where they thought things were at and what they thought was best for kind of the game moving forward." The sport's five-year labor contract expires Dec. 1, and baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred has said repeatedly that management prefers offseason lockouts to in-season strikes, aiming to prevent the loss of regular-season games. Baseball has not lost regular-season games to a work stoppage since a 7 1/2-month strike in 1994-95 that caused the first cancellation of the World Series in 90 years. Talks for the last agreement began in April 2021 and ended with a deal on March 10, 2022 that preserved the 162-game schedule only after the sides bargained past several deadlines and Manfred announced the cancellation of 184 games, which were restored. Bruce Meyer will lead negotiations for the union, as he did in 2021-22, but in his new role as interim union head. He moved up from deputy director in February after the forced resignation of Tony Clark, a former All-Star first baseman who took over following the death of Michael Weiner in 2013. Deputy commissioner Dan Halem heads MLB's negotiations team, as he did in talks for the previous two agreements. MLB and Meyer declined to comment on the session. "I think just player engagement as a whole, it just seems like there’s a lot of it right now," Holmes said. "Guys are wanting to hear and guys are wanting to be there and so, just to be able to kind of be there and pass along things that you may see or learn or just have conversations there." Some major league owners have said a salary cap system that also contains a floor is needed and would improve the sport. MLB, unlike the NFL, NBA and NHL, has not had a cap system, but since 2003 has had a luxury tax designed to slow spending. "When I talk to the players, I don’t try to convince them that a salary cap system would be a good thing," Manfred told the Baseball Writers’ Association of America last summer. "I identify a problem in the media business and explain to them that owners need to change to address that problem. I then identify a second problem that we need to work together and that is that there are fans in a lot of our markets who feel like we have a competitive balance problem." Restraints had not appeared to have had much impact on the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets in recent years. The Dodgers shattered MLB's spending records with a combined $515 million in payroll and luxury tax last year en route to their second straight World Series title, according to final figures compiled by the commissioner’s office, and Los Angeles is projected for the highest total again in 2026. The ratio of the five highest spenders to the five lowest increased from 3.6 in 2021 to a record-high 4.7 last year. The union maintains a cap system decreases spending on players, while management argues a cap and a floor would benefit most players. Players increased their potential war chest of cash and investments ahead of collective bargaining to $415 million heading into 2026. MLB also has been accumulating cash ahead of bargaining, about $75 million per club in withheld central fund distributions. Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Pirates' Don Kelly Best Bet for NL Manager of Year]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-pittsburgh-pirates-don-kelly-manager-of-year</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-pittsburgh-pirates-don-kelly-manager-of-year</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Is there a case for Pittsburgh's Don Kelly to win NL Manager of the Year? Will Hill believes there is and here's why.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 12 May 2026 16:50:18 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Roughly a quarter of the way through the MLB season, the theme so far has been parity. The teams expected to be among the worst — the Rockies, Nationals, Cardinals — are all feisty and fairly competitive. The American League only has four teams entering play on Tuesday night with a record above .500, and the current division leaders are the Rays, Guardians and Athletics. Those are all surprises to some degree. If the playoffs started today, the White Sox would be a wild-card team, despite having a losing record. Even the vaunted Dodgers have yet to exert their dominance, as they currently look up in the National League West standings to the first-place Padres. While the AL currently has just four teams with winning records, the National League Central has five. And within that league, I think, is a wager that offers some value. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Pirates Manager Don Kelly is currently +600 (bet $10 to win $70 total) to win National League Manager of the Year. These awards, especially when it comes to coaches or managers, are often about what the best story is, with expectations heavily factored in. The Pirates were a wild-card team from 2013-2015 and haven’t been to the postseason since. Remarkably, they have not won a postseason series since winning the 1979 World Series. The Pirates currently sit at 22-19 and look like a serious playoff contender, with NL Cy Young favorite Paul Skenes at the top of the rotation. Braves manager Walt Weiss and Cubs manager Craig Counsell currently have shorter odds than Kelly, but both of those managers have more talented teams with considerably higher expectations than the Pirates. The Cubs were division favorites entering the year, and the Braves had a down year in 2025. Prior to that, Atlanta had been a perennial playoff team and World Series contender for close to a decade. The Pirates currently have +140 odds to make the playoffs, and if they were to make it, Kelly would be the frontrunner, in my opinion, to win this award come the fall. Ultimately, the Pirates are in the conversation for having the least success of nearly any major sports franchise over the last few decades. A return to the postseason would not go unnoticed by the voters. PICK: Don Kelly (+600) to win NL Manager of the Year]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: 2025 AL MVP Runner-Up in 36 At-Bat Hit Drought]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mariners-cal-raleigh-hitless-streak-giants-dodgers-yankees-orioles-rays</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mariners-cal-raleigh-hitless-streak-giants-dodgers-yankees-orioles-rays</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Cal Raleigh is in a dark slump, the Giants defeated the Dodgers, the Orioles beat the Yankees, the Rays have the best record in the AL and more from Monday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Tue, 12 May 2026 12:38:28 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: Outside arguably New York Yankees superstar and 2025 American League MVP Aaron Judge, no one was more dangerous with a bat in their hands last season than Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh, who was the runner-up for the 2025 AL MVP Award. That has not been the case this season. In Seattle's Monday night matchup against the Houston Astros, Raleigh went 0 for 4 with one strikeout. He has now failed to record a hit in each of his last 36 at-bats, the longest such streak for a player in MLB this season. Through 39 games, Raleigh has totaled seven home runs, 18 RBIs, a 61 OPS+ and -0.2 wins above replacement, while owning a .157/.238/.320 slash line. He has just 24 hits, compared to 54 strikeouts. Moreover, he currently boasts a career-low in average exit velocity (86.9 mph), barrel percentage (11.9%) and hard-hit percentage (28.7%) over a full season, according to Statcast. Elsewhere for Seattle, Brendan Donovan made a slick play at the hot corner. Leading off the bottom of the seventh inning, Astros second baseman Jose Altuve hit a ground ball to the left side, and Donovan, who was playing near the infield grass, made a diving play to his right, got up and made the throw to first base for the out. Donovan finished 0 for 4 at the plate. On the season, the Mariners third baseman has totaled three home runs, eight RBIs and a 134 OPS+, owning a .257/.376/.429 slash line. And as for the entire game, the Mariners got a 3-1 win over the Astros, improving Seattle to 5-0 over Houston this season and 8-0 dating back to last season. The Mariners struck first in the top of the second with back-to-back RBI singles from designated hitter Dominic Canzone and second baseman Cole Young. Then, leading off the following inning, center fielder Julio Rodríguez blasted a solo home run up near the train in Daikin Park. The two-time Silver Slugger's long ball was his seventh of the season. Rodriguez and fellow outfielder Randy Arozarena each had two hits for the Mariners. Seattle got five innings from starter George Kirby, who gave up his one run to Astros' third baseman Isaac Paredes, who had an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth; Paredes and Altuve each had three hits for Houston, which got seven innings from right-hander Peter Lambert. The Mariners used four relievers to get through the final four innings: Nick Davila, Cooper Criswell, Eduard Bazardo and Andrés Muñoz. Still, Seattle (20-22) and Houston (16-26) each have losing records. It wasn't revenge for losing the 2023 World Series, but the Arizona Diamondbacks silenced the Texas Rangers in their home park in the first game of a three-game series. D-backs right fielder Corbin Carroll doubled in the second at-bat of the game, and shortstop Geraldo Perdomo followed with a double of his own, driving in Carroll. And that would be the only run scored in a 1-0 Arizona win. Perdomo and third baseman Nolan Arenado each had a game-high two hits for Arizona, which got 6 ⅓ shutout innings from Mike Soroka, marking the right-hander's second consecutive outing where he pitched 6 ⅓ innings. Soroka, who has a 3.53 ERA on the season, has given up just one run over his last two starts. In all, Arizona held Texas to just five baserunners (four hits and one walk). For whatever reason, both of these teams have been involved in several shutouts over the last week-and-a-half. On May 2, the Diamondbacks lost to the Chicago Cubs, 2-0. Then, last week, Arizona beat the Pittsburgh Pirates, 9-0, but the latter answered by shutting out the former in the ensuing game, 1-0. As the Rangers, they've been involved in a shutout in each of their last three games: 6-0 and 3-0 wins over the Cubs and a 1-0 loss to the D-backs. Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernández made a diving catch on the first pitch of the game against the San Francisco Giants. That, however, would be one of the Dodgers' few high points on Monday night. Leading off the top of the second, Giants designated hitter Rafael Devers launched a solo home run to right field. Later, trailing 2-1 in the top of the sixth, Giants left fielder Heliot Ramos — who has a team-high 20 RBIs — drove in two runs on a double down the left-field line. After the Dodgers leveled the score at 3-all in the bottom half of the inning, Devers walked in a run in the seventh, with shortstop Willy Adames later driving in two runs on a single. In the ninth, Adames singled in another run, third baseman Matt Chapman walked in a run and catcher Jesus Rodriguez drove in a run on a ground out, capping off a 9-3 win for the Giants over their deep-rooted rival. It's tied for the second-most runs the Giants have scored in a game this season. San Francisco got two-hit nights from Devers, Ramos, Adames and infielders Luis Arráez and Casey Schmitt. While he surrendered 11 baserunners (nine hits and two walks), right-hander Trevor McDonald pitched 5 ⅓ innings for the Giants, whose bullpen (Matt Gage, Keaton Winn and JT Brubaker) then gave up just one baserunner over the next 3 ⅔ innings. The Giants are 3-1 against the Dodgers this season and have won three of their last four games altogether. Among the other "high points" for the Dodgers was third baseman Max Muncy hitting an opposite field, solo home run in the bottom of the sixth; Muncy also had an RBI single in the fourth. Muncy is in the midst of a peculiar offensive start. Through 39 games, the two-time All-Star has totaled 11 home runs but just 17 RBIs. Five of those homers were solo shots. Mind you, the Dodgers are second in MLB in on-base percentage (.344) and third in hits (367). Still, the Dodgers' star is having a highly productive season, boasting a 166 OPS+, 2.2 wins above replacement (WAR) and a .280/.375/.568 slash line. Muncy is on pace for a career-high in home runs and WAR, while his current batting average and OPS+ are career bests. Furthermore, Muncy ranks in the 97th percentile of MLB in barrel percentage (20%) and hard-hit percentage (55.8%) and the 94th percentile in average exit velocity (93.3 mph), according to Statcast. Yankees left-hander Ryan Weathers was carving up the Baltimore Orioles, as he entered the bottom of the seventh with a no-hit bid and nine strikeouts. But after putting two of the first three batters on base, New York relieved Weathers for fellow southpaw Brent Headrick. Then, Orioles designated hitter Coby Mayo demolished a go-ahead, three-run home run, which would be good for Baltimore to get a 3-2 victory. Mayo's home run was one of just three hits for the Orioles, who snapped a nine-game losing streak to the Yankees dating back to last season. As for the pitching, Baltimore got 5 ⅓ innings from starter Brandon Young, who gave up two runs. The Orioles then got 3 ⅔ shutout innings from relievers Dietrich Enns, Rico Garcia and Anthony Nunez. Meanwhile, the loss marked the Yankees' fourth consecutive defeat and their fifth loss in their last six games. A positive for New York? Ben Rice continues to rake. In the top of the third, the Yankees first baseman hit a two-run home run to center field, which accounted for all of New York's scoring against the Orioles. The homer was Rice's 13th of the season. If the AL MVP voting were held today, Rice would be a finalist for the award. He has driven in 29 runs, owns a .312/.417/.696 slash line and leads the AL in slugging percentage (.696), OPS (1.113) and OPS+ (206). Staying on the power front, Rice ranks in the 99th percentile of the sport in hard-hard percentage (59.6%), 98th percentile in barrel percentage (21.3%) and 97th percentile in average exit velocity (94.5 mph), per Statcast. Last season, Rice hit 26 home runs, recorded a .499 slugging percentage, ranked in the 97th percentile in hard-hit percentage and ranked in the 95th percentile in average exit velocity. The Cleveland Guardians struck early against the Los Angeles Angels so they didn't have to strike often. With two outs in the bottom of the second, Guardians shortstop Brayan Rocchio brought in two runs on a single for the first runs of the game. Cleveland then had a five-run third inning, with catcher David Fry walking in a run, center fielder Daniel Schneemann driving in two runs on a single and second baseman Travis Bazzana doubling home two runs, which would lead the Guardians to a 7-2 win. Fry and first baseman Kyle Manzardo each had two hits for Cleveland, which got six shutout innings from left-hander Joey Cantillo. Meanwhile, designated hitter Rhys Hoskins drew three walks. The Angels got their two runs on an eighth-inning RBI single from right fielder Jo Adell and a ninth-inning RBI single from third baseman Vaughn Grissom. As for those who drove in runs for the Guardians, Bazzana, whom Cleveland selected with the No. 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, has recorded a hit in four of his last five games; Fry owns an .876 OPS over 55 at-bats; Schneemann boasts an .810 OPS; Rocchio is batting .277. As for its starting pitcher, Cantillo has recorded a 2.98 ERA, a 1.32 WHIP, 41 strikeouts, 1.0 wins above replacement and a 139 ERA+ over 45 ⅓ innings pitched (nine starts). While they're 22-21, the Guardians are in first place in the AL Central. The Tampa Bay Rays are cracking skulls and taking names. In defeating the Toronto Blue Jays for a fourth consecutive time this season (the Rays swept the Blue Jays in Tampa Bay earlier this month), 8-5, the Rays are now 27-13, which is good for the best record in the AL. As for its Monday night victory, Tampa Bay got three runs in the top of the first off a sacrifice fly from first baseman Jonathan Aranda and a two-run single from second baseman Richie Palacios. Aranda then drove in another run in the second on a single, with shortstop Taylor Walls driving in a run on a triple and another run coming around to score in the fourth on a Toronto error. Aranda later led off the sixth with a solo home run to center field, with Tampa Bay's other run coming via an RBI single from Palacios in the seventh. Palacios and left fielder Chandler Simpson — who owns a .314 batting average and has hit an AL-high three triples — each had a game-high three hits for the Rays, while Palacios and Aranda — who has driven in an AL-high 32 runs and has a team-high 142 OPS+ — each drove in three runs. Shockingly — insert sarcasm here — pitching has been the backbone of the Rays' success. Their starting rotation is first in MLB in WHIP (1.08) and third in ERA (3.15) and opponent batting average (.211). Granted, their rotation is just 20th in innings pitched (203.0). Nick Martinez owns a 1.70 ERA, a 1.05 WHIP and a whopping 246 ERA+; Shane McClanahan boasts a 2.60 ERA, a 1.07 WHIP and a 162 ERA+; Drew Rasmussen, who pitched through six innings on Monday night, has a 3.16 ERA and an 0.91 WHIP. Opponents are also hitting just .227 against the Rays' bullpen, good for eighth in the sport, with closer Bryan Baker (2.16 ERA, 0.84 WHIP and 197 ERA+) first in the AL with 11 saves. For Toronto, right-hander Kevin Gausman hit a personal milestone in the top of the fourth when he recorded his 2,000th career strikeout. Meanwhile, Blue Jays' shortstop Andrés Giménez had the first multi-home run game of his MLB career and drove in each of Toronto's five runs.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Dontrelle Willis: Dodgers ‘Looking a Little Sluggish’]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/willis-dodgers-offensive-struggles-theyre-looking-little-sluggish</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/willis-dodgers-offensive-struggles-theyre-looking-little-sluggish</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[FOX Sports MLB analyst Dontrelle Willis weighs in on the Los Angeles Dodgers' early season offensive struggles.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 22:08:55 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The Los Angeles Dodgers are tied with the San Diego Padres at the top of the National League West, but their offense has gone cold despite their strong record. A star-studded lineup has struggled to find the consistency expected of a team seeking a World Series three-peat. FOX Sports analyst Dontrelle Willis pointed to the lack of production from the top of the Dodgers’ lineup during Monday night’s MLB on FOX broadcast. For Willis, the issue is not just the offense struggling overall, but the team’s biggest stars failing to produce consistently. "Andy Pages has been a great story and hopefully he gets a chance to be an All-Star," Willis said. "He leads them in batting average, RBI and slug. The problem is you don’t want Andy Pages in the sixth or seventh hole leading you in RBI or slug." The Dodgers have struggled to get consistent production from the top of the lineup, and one of the more notable slow starts has come from reigning MVP Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani is hitting .241 this season, which would mark the second-lowest batting average of his career. "Shohei Ohtani has gotten off to a slow start, not looking comfortable at the plate," Willis said. "So run production is a little sketchy, especially when they’re going up against the upper echelon of ball clubs." The Dodgers’ stars have especially struggled in recent games. Over the last 11 contests, Ohtani, Teoscar Hernandez, Max Muncy and Freddie Freeman have combined for a .591 OPS. During that stretch, Los Angeles has gone 4-7 and dropped three of its last four series. "The run differential is still there," Willis said. "They’re behind the Yankees and Braves, but I want to see more quality at-bats up and down the lineup. We’re not seeing that. Maybe it’s a little bit of fatigue, but I just hope this is not the hourglass coming to the end in this locker room." The recent offensive slump has started to overshadow what has otherwise been a strong start in the standings for Los Angeles. "They’re looking a little sluggish, especially the key guys," Willis said. "Hopefully, Mookie Betts getting back in the lineup brings a little shot in the arm, a little motivation and a little jolt, and they can get going from there."]]>
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					<![CDATA[Dodgers Offically Activate Mookie Betts for Giants Series Opener]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mookie-betts-set-to-return-from-strained-oblique-when-dodgers-open-series-against-giants-on-monday</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mookie-betts-set-to-return-from-strained-oblique-when-dodgers-open-series-against-giants-on-monday</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Mookie Betts is set to return against the Giants after missing more than a month because of a right oblique strain.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 19:31:45 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Mookie Betts is set to return after missing more than a month because of a right oblique strain when the Los Angeles Dodgers open a four-game series against the San Francisco Giants on Monday. Betts hasn’t played since April 4, when he was hurt in a 10-5 win at the Washington Nationals. Manager Dave Roberts said he would have Betts hit second or third in the batting order though he was batting .179 with two home runs and seven RBIs in eight games before the injury. Roberts did not say who would be sent down to free up a roster spot for Betts, a four-time World Series champion and the 2018 American League MVP. Hyeseong Kim, Alex Freeland and Santiago Espinal have platooned effectively to help fill out the middle infield in Betts’ absence. "It’s a good problem in a sense of where we’re at, but it’s a potential tough conversation," Roberts said Sunday before the finale of a three-game series against the Atlanta Braves. Betts completed a rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Oklahoma City on Saturday, going 2 for 5 with a walk in two games. Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Bettors Backing Dodgers Despite Recent Woes]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-bettors-backing-dodgers</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-bettors-backing-dodgers</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[MLB bettors are still backing the Dodgers to win the World Series and the NL Pennant, despite the club's current skid.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 18:07:44 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Currently, the reigning champion Los Angeles Dodgers are not the team with the best record in baseball. Instead, that distinction belongs to the Atlanta Braves. But even the Dodgers sitting 3.5 games back in the MLB standings hasn't stopped bettors from backing the Boys in Blue. At BetMGM, they're still the favorites to win it all, moving to +190 from +350 since the season opened. They also have the highest ticket in World Series futures at 12.1%. Behind them in that spot are the Yankees (9.3%) and Tigers (8.5%). LAD also has the highest handle when it comes to the World Series oddsboard at 26.0%. The Yankees follow at 8.3%, then the Blue Jays at 7.3%. Los Angeles, however, is in the midst of a skid. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. The Dodgers have lost three of their last five games, a rough patch that includes two losses to the Atlanta Braves and one loss to the flailing Houston Astros. Yet and still, bettors are also backing the Dodgers in the NL Pennant market. At BetMGM they're the favorites at -105 to win that league and have the highest handle at 26.2%. So is L.A. — a ballclub that sits third in the NL behind Atlanta and Chicago — worth a wager to win the NL or to win it all, especially considering its recent struggles? According to FOX Sports MLB writer Deesha Thosar, she believes LAD is still the MLB standard, but noted that the it will have to resolve Roki Sasaki's recent pitching woes. "The Dodgers have the type of depth that other executives dream about, making it a no-brainer to let Sasaki work out his troubles and give him a long leash, at that," Thosar explained. "It’s not like Sasaki is that much of a detriment that he’s throwing the Dodgers’ bullpen out of whack. Though he’s allowed multiple runs in his last three starts, and is having trouble issuing walks, he’s averaging four-plus innings pitched each time out, which is manageable for now. "Sasaki’s command issues are a problem, no doubt. That 14.1% walk rate is up from last year. But, in a vacuum, that’s not hurting the club’s chances to compete in October."]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Odds: Dodgers Favored to Win Most; Rockies, the Least]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-best-worst-regular-season-records</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-odds-best-worst-regular-season-records</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Check out the odds for the biggest winners and losers during the 2026 MLB season.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 17:54:14 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[In sports, there are winners and losers. And then there are big winners and even bigger losers. Let's check out the odds for which MLB team will have the best record in baseball and who will have the fewest, at DraftKings Sportsbook as of May 7. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Most MLB regular-season wins Dodgers: -105 (bet $10 to win $19.52 total)Yankees: +310 (bet $10 to win $41 total)Cubs: +390 (bet $10 to win $5549total)Braves: +450 (bet $10 to win $55 total)Rays: +1600 (bet $10 to win $170 total)Mariners: +3500 (bet $10 to win $360 total)Padres: +4000 (bet $10 to win $410 total)Phillies: +4500 (bet $10 to win $460 total) What to know: Of course, the Dodgers are favored to win the most games during the regular season, and they are also favored to win the World Series for the third straight year. As of May 7, the Dodgers are first in the AL West, and have the fifth-most wins in baseball (23). The current wins leaders are the Braves (26), Yankees (25) and Cubs (25). The Brewers led MLB in wins last season with 97, preceded by the Dodgers in 2024 (98), the Braves in 2023 (104), the Dodgers in 2022 (111), the Giants in 2021 (107) and the Dodgers in the COVID-shortened 2020 season (43). Dating back to 2013, L.A. has won at least 90 games every season (outside of the COVID year). Fewest MLB regular-season wins Rockies: -155 (bet $10 to win $16.45 total)White Sox: +450 (bet $10 to win $55 total)Nationals: +500 (bet $10 to win $60 total)Angels: +650 (bet $10 to win $75 total)Marlins: +1400 (bet $10 to win $150 total)Twins: +2500 (bet $10 to win $260 total)Giants: +2800 (bet $10 to win $290 total)Astros: +5000 (bet $10 to win $510 total) What to know: The Rockies are tied for the fewest wins in baseball as of May 7 (14). Last season, they had the fewest wins in baseball with 43, 17 fewer than the closest team — the White Sox, with 60. In 2024, Colorado had the second-fewest wins (61) and the third-fewest in 2023 (59).]]>
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					<![CDATA[Big Bets Report: Bettor Banks Close to $1 Million With Unique Strategy]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-successful-alternate-spreads-strategy</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-successful-alternate-spreads-strategy</guid>
				<category>nba</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[A bettor cashed in on almost a million bucks using a unique strategy, while another used a bonus bet to win six figures. Patrick Everson breaks it down.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 16:12:36 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Over the past two weeks in the NBA playoffs, a BetMGM customer has used an interesting strategy to rack up massive wins. As in, nearly $1 million in profit at one point, before the Spurs’ Sunday night loss finally slowed down the bettor. And the net total is still more than $900,000. More on the ladder-wager bettor, two notable hits from UFC 328 — including a six-figure payday on ostensibly a free bet — and some interesting MLB winners, as we recap the week that was in sports betting. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Climbing the Ladder Betting the point spread is quite a common move. Not quite as common, but certainly not unusual, is betting alternate point spreads. Less common: Betting several alternate point spreads on one game, for huge money. Ever since Timberwolves-Nuggets Game 5, though, a BetMGM customer has employed that strategy to incredible success. In that game, the bettor placed $375,000 in straight bets across seven different point spreads. Those bets went 6-1, and the customer bagged $196,500 in profit. Since then, the bettor has fired in similar fashion on a handful of NBA playoff games. That included $250,000 in Sunday wagers on Knicks-76ers Game 4: New York then absolutely plastered Philadelphia 144-114 to complete a 4-0 sweep in the series. Obviously, all six bets were winners, for a net profit of $134,770 (total payout $384,770). That took the bettor’s winnings over the past two weeks to a whopping $996,770, knocking on the door of a million bucks. Finally, in Sunday night’s Spurs-Timberwolves Game 4, the winning run ended. The customer had $75,000 across five wagers on San Antonio, and went oh-fer as Minnesota won 114-109. Still, even after that $75,000 fallout, the bettor is up more than $920,000. And they will probably be back for more, perhaps as soon as Monday night. Fight Night It’s a great feeling to win a bet with your own hard-earned money. But it’s pretty nice to win it with someone else’s money, too. A Hard Rock Bet customer did that on Saturday’s UFC 328 card. The bettor utilized a $250 bonus bet, ostensibly a free ride, on a six-leg parlay. Now, to be clear, earning such bonus bets means you’ve probably lost a fair amount of money along the way. Sportsbooks aren’t just handing those out like candy on Halloween. Still, a long-shot parlay isn’t a bad way to utilize such a free play. In this case, the odds were a hefty +40742, or just beyond 407/1. And it wasn’t on just any six fights from the 13-bout card. It was on six consecutive fights. Plus, the last leg was a big underdog, King Green +1200 to win by submission vs. Jeremy Stephens. But King did just that, finishing off Stephens with 40 seconds left in the first round. The $250 free ride became $101,604.17 in real money. Also on the UFC 328 card, a FanDuel Sportsbook customer perfectly predicted the five-bout main card. The bettor put a modest $25 on a parlay across all five contests. All five fighters won, and at odds of +6286 (about 63/1), the bettor’s modest wager turned into $1,596.53. It’s not a six-figure payout, but neither is it a bad evening’s work. I’d take that ROI all day, every day. MLB Money Ahead of Thursday’s afternoon slate of MLB games, a Fanatics customer put $750 on a five-leg parlay involving three matchups. The bettor mixed in a moneyline, a couple runlines and a couple totals. All five legs got there relatively easily. The biggest sweat was on the two Twins-Nationals legs. Washington won 7-5, with the game’s final two runs coming in the bottom of the seventh inning. That clinched the legs of Nationals -1.5 and Over 10 runs. The odds were +3300, which would’ve netted a fine profit of almost $25,000. But the bettor also utilized a 33% profit boost, hiking the odds to +4340. That bumped the profit to $32,548, for a total payout of $33,298. A Rory Story Some bettors, particularly sharp ones, find value in taking the No on Yes/No prop bets. But most sportsbooks don’t offer Yes/No on props, at least not with any regularity. Perhaps on the Super Bowl and such. So generally, you only have one option, betting on something to happen. You don’t get the option of betting on something not to happen. Prediction markets, however, give traders that option. And a ProphetX customer made the most of it in the PGA Tour’s Truist Championship. In the Yes/No on Rory McIlroy winning the tournament, No was -650. That meant it would take a $650 play to win $100. To make it far more worthwhile, the trader decided to bump it up to $100,000. And after McIlroy stumbled to a 4-over 75 in the third round, the deal was pretty much sealed. McIlroy tied for 19th, 10 shots behind surprise winner Kristoffer Reitan. So the ProphetX trader banked $15,384 profit (total payout $115,384). Missed It By That Much As is often noted in these articles: Parlays are a bookmaker’s best friend. Nothing pleases a sportsbook risk room more than when the public betting masses play five- or 10- or 15-leg parlays. The house advantage goes way up with each leg added. No matter how well you do, all it takes is one leg to blow the whole thing up. A FanDuel Sportsbook customer learned that in Wednesday’s Game 2 of the 76ers-Knicks series. But the bettor at least did the smart thing by utilizing a $500 bonus bet — rather than the patron’s own money — on an 11-leg same-game parlay. Each leg was on the Over/Under for a player’s total points. With 22 seconds remaining, 10 legs were in, and Miles McBride stepped to the free-throw line with a chance to bring that 11th leg home. McBride had three points; two more would reach his total of five points or more. He hit the first free throw, then missed the second. Four points. Parlay dies. One charity-stripe miss away from a $12,256 payday. That’s parlays in a nutshell.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Power Rankings: Who is Each Team’s Early Season Standout Starter?]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-power-rankings-who-every-teams-standout-starter-begin-year</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-power-rankings-who-every-teams-standout-starter-begin-year</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Jacob Misiorowski was throwing some heat this weekend. Where do he and the Brewers land on this week's MLB Power Rankings?]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Mon, 11 May 2026 14:55:48 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Before last weekend, the fastest pitch from a starter in the pitch-tracking era (since 2008) belonged to Jordan Hicks at 103.2 mph. On Friday night, Jacob Misiorowski set that record ablaze. The Brewers’ 24-year-old flamethrower introduced himself to the Yankees by striking out 11 batters over six scoreless innings while maxing out at 103.6 mph three times in a 6-0 win. Misiorowski threw 10 pitches at 103 mph or faster and is now responsible for 16 of the 18 fastest pitches from a starting pitcher in the pitch-tracking era. "Miz" has only allowed two hits in 11.1 innings this month, and he’s the MLB leader in strikeouts (70) despite ranking outside the top 45 in innings pitched. In honor of Misiorowski’s record-setting performance, this week’s power rankings include every team’s standout starter to begin the year. Chase Dollander’s role has varied, but he has started in two of his last three appearances and has nearly twice as many strikeouts (47) as the next closest pitcher on the team (Kyle Freeland: 28). Dollander's missing a lot more bats to start his second season, which is an encouraging sign under new pitching coach Alon Leichman. He no longer looks like the best pitcher in the league, but the fact we were talking about José Soriano that way through the end of April is a testament to his sensational start. He had an ERA under 1.00 through his first seven starts and still ranks in the top three in the category among qualified starters (1.66). The offense is still a mess — the Mets rank last in every slash line category — but Nolan McLean gives the team a chance every time he’s on the mound. He has held his opponent to three runs or fewer in each of his eight starts and ranks fourth among all qualified starters in strikeout rate. Opponents are hitting .038 with 19 strikeouts against his curveball. It’s been an uphill battle all year for their shorthanded rotation, which ranks 29th in ERA and is still missing its most important pieces, but Peter Lambert has done his best to assist. The 29-year-old never had an ERA under 5.00 or a strikeout rate over 19% in any of his four seasons in Colorado; he has a 2.42 ERA and a 24.7 K% in four starts in Houston this year. He hasn’t allowed a home run, and opponents are hitting just .125 against his four-seamer. Landen Roupp not only has seen his strikeout rate rise 7% from last year, he also has the lowest hard-hit rate of any qualified MLB starter. In eight starts, he hasn’t allowed a single barreled ball. It’ll be interesting to see how the pitching staff handles the departure of defensive whiz Patrick Bailey, who was traded to Cleveland. With Taj Bradley the latest Twins starter to hit the injured list, we’ll highlight Joe Ryan. It looked like he, too, might be lost for a while. But after leaving his May 3 start with elbow soreness, Ryan returned Saturday and fired six innings of one-run ball on 107 pitches. His ERA this year (3.43) is nearly identical to what it was last year (3.42), but it's worth noting that his velocity and whiff rate are both down a tick. After an inauspicious start to his Boston tenure, Ranger Suárez has a 1.17 ERA over his last five starts and held his opponent scoreless in four of them. He left his last start early with hamstring tightness but appears to be fine. Returning stateside after three years in Japan, Foster Griffin (2.12) has a nearly identical ERA to Cristopher Sánchez (2.11) and the same WHIP as Joe Ryan (1.03). He has allowed one earned run in 20 innings over his last three starts. From Tommy John surgery in 2022 to season-ending hip surgery last July, staying on the field hasn't been easy for 2020 first-round pick Max Meyer. Through eight starts this year, though, he has a career-best 2.79 ERA. His sweeper has been a difference-maker, and his .197 opponents’ batting average ranks in the top 20 among qualified starters. Trevor Rogers has a 4.75 ERA, and that’s the best mark of any Orioles pitcher with at least five starts this year. Baltimore starters have allowed more runs than any rotation in MLB, and the Orioles have lost eight of their last 11 games. It’s not an exaggeration to say that Davis Martin has been one of the best pitchers in the sport this season. Among qualified MLB starters, the 29-year-old has the second-lowest ERA (1.62) and fifth-lowest walk rate (4.7%). The White Sox have won seven of his eight starts this year. Dylan Cease has given the Blue Jays all they could have asked for when they gave him $210 million this offseason. He ranks third in MLB in strikeouts and has the highest whiff rate among qualified AL starters. His 34.6% strikeout rate is the highest of his career. Woof. Between Tarik Skubal undergoing an elbow procedure and Framber Valdez unraveling and getting suspended, it was a brutal week in Detroit. Skubal, Casey Mize, Justin Verlander and Troy Melton are all sidelined (not to mention Jackson Jobe and Reese Olson, who haven’t pitched all year), but at least it sounds like Skubal could return sooner than many anticipated. He is, obviously, the Tigers’ standout. Keider Montero has allowed one run in each of his last two starts, and they'll need him to help keep the ship afloat. Michael Wacha leads the Royals in wins (four) and ERA (2.63). He has gone seven innings in each of his first two starts of May, allowing a combined two runs over those appearances. Opponents are hitting just .164 against his four-seamer and .136 against his changeup. He’s helping the Royals crawl back toward AL Central relevance (it doesn’t take much). Prior to his five-run outing against the White Sox over the weekend, Emerson Hancock was coming off a 14-strikeout performance against the Royals. The difficult outing Friday brought his ERA up over 3.00 for the first time all year, but he has been an important cog for a Mariners rotation that hasn’t dominated the way many expected. After the Rangers lost four straight series, Jacob deGrom put an end to the skid by striking out 10 Cubs batters in seven scoreless innings Sunday. The two-time Cy Young Award winner has a 2.62 ERA with 57 strikeouts and eight walks in 44.2 innings, but no one else in the Rangers rotation has an ERA under 4.00. This feels like a team that’s just going to hover around .500 all year…but maybe that isn’t the worst thing in the American League? Cristopher Sánchez’s ERA is down to 2.11 after throwing eight scoreless innings on May 5 against the Athletics and then adding seven more scoreless frames Sunday against the Rockies, moving the Phillies to 10-3 in the Don Mattingly era. After finishing as the Cy Young runner-up last year, Sánchez should be in the mix for the award again. Eduardo Rodriguez is 4-0 with a 2.25 ERA after coming two outs short of a complete game Sunday against the Mets. It has been a bounceback year for the veteran lefty, who had an ERA over 5.00 in each of his first two seasons in Arizona. He’ll be a longshot considering the strength of this year’s rookie class, but Parker Messick has to at least be in the American League Rookie of the Year conversation. Among qualified AL starters, the 25-year-old lefty ranks fifth in ERA (2.30) and WHIP (0.98) and has the lowest hard-hit rate. Chase Burns ranks third among qualified NL starters with a 2.11 ERA; every other Cincinnati starter’s ERA is more than double that total. The 23-year-old has the fifth-highest whiff rate among all qualified MLB starters, and he has a 1.47 ERA over his last five starts. His slider is a serious weapon. The decision to add Aaron Civale in February was a prudent one; the veteran righty leads the team in wins (four) and ERA (2.59). He has surrendered just one run over his last three starts. If you were worried about Paul Skenes after his first start of the year, don’t be. Since that blow-up outing to start the season, he has a 1.31 ERA with 45 strikeouts and five walks over his last seven starts. He has held his opponent to one or no runs in six of his last seven starts, and he leads all qualified starters in WHIP (0.71) and opponents’ average (.156). The only qualified MLB starters with a lower WHIP than Michael McGreevy (0.86) are Paul Skenes (0.71) and Cam Schlittler (0.81). McGreevy has a 2.18 ERA on the year and held the Dodgers and Padres scoreless over six innings in his last two starts. Scroll back to the top for more on Misiorowski, who has a 39.5 strikeout rate. That's the highest mark among MLB starters and would be the highest mark of any starter in a full season since Gerrit Cole in 2019 (39.9%). Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn are back, and the Brewers are picking up steam after an impressive weekend sweep of the Yankees. With Nick Pivetta sidelined, the Padres need Michael King to carry the load. He’s doing his best, holding his opponent to two runs or fewer in six of his eight starts this year. King’s .182 opponents’ batting average ranks in the top 10 among qualified MLB starters. We're far enough into the year that it's time to talk about the Rays. They’re 14-2 over their last 16 games, and their starters have the third-lowest ERA in MLB. Veteran Nick Martinez ranks fourth among MLB starters with a 1.70 ERA and hasn’t allowed more than two runs in any of his eight starts. The Dodgers could really use Shohei Ohtani’s bat to start heating up. Since jumping out to a 15-4 record, they’ve lost 12 of their last 21 games. Over that 9-12 stretch, Ohtani is hitting .219 with one home run. On the mound, however, he is thriving. Ohtani is the only pitcher who has thrown at least 30 innings with an ERA under 1.00 this year. The Yankees were swept this weekend by the Brewers despite Cam Schlittler holding Milwaukee scoreless for six innings Saturday. His 1.35 ERA is the best mark of any qualified starter, and he has only surrendered one homer in 53.1 innings. By fWAR, he has been the most valuable pitcher in MLB. Shota Imanaga has the highest chase rate among all qualified MLB starters and ranks in the top 10 in WHIP (0.93) and opponents’ average (.179). His work is vital as the Cubs deal with a plethora of pitching injuries, though they still managed to win 10 games in a row before dropping their series this weekend in Texas. They’re 18-5 at home this year. The Braves maintain top billing after taking the series this weekend in Los Angeles thanks to 5.2 scoreless innings Sunday from Bryce Elder, whose magical season continues. Elder’s 1.81 ERA ranks fifth among qualified MLB starters.]]>
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					<![CDATA[2026 MLB Trade Deadline Rumors Tracker: SF Giants Shopping High-Priced Core]]>
				</title>
				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-trade-deadline-rumors</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/2026-mlb-trade-deadline-rumors</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Here are the latest whispers and trade rumors currently shaping the 2026 MLB Trade Deadline.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sun, 10 May 2026 22:02:35 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[The early-season dust has settled, but the trade market is already heating up as front offices across the league begin to separate the contenders from the sellers. Here are the latest whispers and trade rumors currently shaping the 2026 MLB Trade Deadline. May 10 The San Francisco Giants could be headed toward a fire sale after a sluggish 16-24 start that has them sitting fourth in the National League West. The Giants are exploring ways to move several major contracts as they look toward the future, according to USA Today. That includes the remaining money owed to Jung Hoo Lee ($85 million), Willy Adames ($161 million), Rafael Devers ($226 million) and Matt Chapman ($125 million). If they are able to unload those contracts, it would mark a dramatic shift toward a long-term rebuild. The San Francisco Giants are expected to make pitcher Robbie Ray their biggest trade chip at the deadline, while several executives told USA Today that the club could also listen to offers for ace Logan Webb.]]>
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					<![CDATA[MLB on Mother's Day: Best Moments on Mother's Day Since 2000]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-mothers-day-best-moments-mothers-day-since-2000</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-mothers-day-best-moments-mothers-day-since-2000</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[There have been a handful of special baseball moments on Mother's Day.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sun, 10 May 2026 18:05:56 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Sunday is Mom's day to shine, and Major League Baseball sure knows that. Once again, numerous players on all 30 teams are wearing or using pink gear in honor of Mother's Day. Some players are using pink bats, like New York Yankees star Aaron Judge. In fact, Judge hit his 16th home run of the season, using a pink bat to send a pitch off Milwaukee Brewers starter Logan Henderson into the bleachers. That home run put Judge in a tie with Philadelphia Phillies star Kyle Schwarber for the most in baseball this season, while Bryce Harper also hit a home run with a pink bat on Sunday. As Judge, Harper and others bring some golden memories for moms on this Mother's Day, let's take a look at some of the other top Mother's Day moments in recent MLB history. In a way, Bill Hall's mom helped power the Brewers to a walk-off win over the New York Mets on Mother's Day in 2006. Hall hit a walk-off home run in the Brewers' Mother's Day win over the Mets that year, using a pink at-bat with his mother's name (Vergie Hall) engraved in it as she watched from the stands. The bat was later auctioned to help raise money for breast cancer research. Brewers owner Mark Attanasio later obtained the bat and gifted it to Vergie Hall. As for the auction, the bat went for $25,000. The Boston Red Sox needed a miracle and then some to take down the Baltimore Orioles on Mother's Day in 2007. Facing a 5-0 deficit in the bottom of the ninth inning, the Red Sox rallied and scored six runs to get a walk-off victory. The Orioles committed a few self-inflicted errors to allow the Red Sox to win the game, though. An infield pop-up fell for a hit, while three walks allowed the Red Sox to make a one-run game. It appeared the Orioles had the game sealed when Julio Lugo hit a ground ball to Orioles first baseman Kevin Millar. However, Millar's toss to Orioles closer Chris Ray went off the pitcher's glove, allowing the Red Sox to score the game-tying and game-winning runs. Fred Lewis was only a few days into his second MLB stint when he achieved one of the toughest accomplishments in baseball on Mother's Day in 2007. The then-San Francisco Giants outfielder hit for the cycle in his team's 15-2 win over the Colorado Rockies. He went 5-for-6 at the plate, with his home run that day doubling as his first MLB home run. Dallas Braden joined an elite class of pitchers on Mother's Day in 2010. He threw the 19th perfect game in MLB history in the Oakland Athletics' 4-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. The Rays nearly avoided being on the wrong side of history, though. With two outs in the ninth, Rays outfielder Gabe Kapler chased at Braden's fastball outside the zone on a 3-1 count, hitting into the final out of the game. Had Kapler looked at the pitch, he likely would've walked. Adding to the drama, Braden actually thought it was a 2-2 count when he threw the final pitch, later saying that he would've thrown a changeup had he known it was a 3-1 count. Beyond the perfect game, the day had significant meaning for Braden. Braden's mom passed away years prior from cancer, leading to him sharing an emotional moment with his grandmother. 2012: Joey Votto Hits 3 Homers, Including a Walk-Off Grand Slam Not many people want to spend their Mother's Day weathering a three-hour rain delay. However, Joey Votto made it worthwhile for Cincinnati Reds fans in 2012. The franchise icon hit three home runs against the Washington Nationals on Mother's Day in 2012, saving his best for last that day. Facing a 6-5 deficit in the bottom of the ninth, Votto belted a ball to straightaway center for a walk-off grand slam. Feloix Hernandez joined a rare group of pitchers on Mother's Day in 2015. The Seattle Mariners' ace struck out six hitters that day in a 4-3 win over the Athletics, logging his 2,000th career strikeout. He became the fourth-youngest pitcher in MLB history to log 2,000 career strikeouts. "This is Mother's Day, so it's pretty special for me," Hernandez told reporters after the game. "My mom's in Venezuela and I miss her so much. I just want to go out there and keep trying to help the team to win. Just dedicated this game to my mom and my wife." Jahmai Jones began his MLB career by going on a pretty long homer-less streak, failing to go yard in his first 46 career games. That changed on Mother's Day in 2024, though. Playing in his 11th game for the New York Yankees, Jones hit his first career home run in a 10-6 win over the Rays on Mother's Day that year. Jones dedicated the moment to his mom, as she had to raise him and his five siblings alone following his father's death in 2011.]]>
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					<![CDATA['One of the Greatest Leaders': How Bobby Cox Left a Lasting Impression on His Players]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/one-greatest-leaders-how-bobby-cox-left-lasting-impression-legacy</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/one-greatest-leaders-how-bobby-cox-left-lasting-impression-legacy</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox, who passed away this weekend, is remembered by Freddie Freeman and Walt Weiss as a leader who always had his players' backs]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 09 May 2026 22:10:41 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[LOS ANGELES — On Sept. 1, 2010, Freddie Freeman saw his name in the Braves lineup, batting sixth, and almost threw up. It was the 20-year-old’s first game as a big-leaguer, and he was sitting at his locker, staring forward, nervous as could be. Bobby Cox, who was in the last of his 29 seasons as a Hall of Fame manager, walked by with a few words to ease the tension and calm the rookie down. "He goes, ‘Gosh dang it, Free, what took you so long to get here to the big leagues?’" Freeman recalled Saturday before facing his former team, reflecting on the life of his first Major League manager. "He said some other choice words, but all the nerves immediately went away, just because of how he went about it." Cox, who died Saturday at the age of 84, leaves a legacy not only as one of baseball’s most successful managers — he won the fourth-most games in MLB history and 14 straight division titles with the Braves — but also as a galvanizing force who always had his players’ backs. "He was one of the greatest leaders I’d ever been around," said Braves manager Walt Weiss, who played for Cox in the late 90s. "He was the best I’d ever been around at creating loyalty amongst the group. It was the way he treated people, the way he encouraged guys. Bobby always made you feel like you were playing better than you actually were." Weiss, who was an All-Star player in his first year with the Braves in 1998, will also never forget how Cox let him take as much time as he needed that season when his son was suddenly hospitalized with a life-threatening bacterial infection. "Bobby told me to go be with my family and come back wherever I wanted," Weiss told me in the Braves' dugout. "There was never any pressure to come back. I think I was gone for about a week or so. Bobby was always looking out for you. It always felt like he was in your corner." That remained the case decades later. Weiss, who’s in his first season as Braves manager, was the Rockies’ skipper from 2013 to 2016 before joining Atlanta as Brian Snitker’s bench coach in 2018. It was Cox who brought Weiss’ name up to Snitker. "I’m forever grateful to Bobby," Weiss said. The devotion Cox felt toward his players is perhaps evidenced most by his 162 career ejections, the most in MLB history. Atlanta first baseman Matt Olson, who grew up in Georgia watching the Braves, remembered those well. "As a kid going to a baseball game, it gets the crowd going," Olson, 32, said from the Braves' clubhouse. "I’d always be there rooting him on to go out." Dodgers first-base coach Chris Woodward was on the field for one such occasion. Woodward only played one season for the Braves in 2007, but even in that short time felt Cox’s unwavering support. He shared a story with Freeman about a time when he turned a double play, but the umpire called the runner safe at second. Cox ran onto the field and quickly asked Woodward if he touched second base. "Woody goes, ‘Yes, I did,’" Freeman relayed. "So, we all knew what Bobby did after that." After finding out the news of Cox’s passing, tributes flooded in from his former players. Andruw Jones even referred to Cox as a second father. Freeman reached out to Snitker, asking his old Braves manager to pass on to Cox’s family how he was thinking of them. Freeman only played one season for Cox, but in the years that followed, he often heard from coaches and writers about how much Cox cared about him and believed in him. He saw it, too, based on the copious number of at-bats Cox gave him in his first big-league spring training. "He cared about a 19-year-old and a 40-year-old the exact same way," Freeman said. "That’s what's special, and that’s why everyone loved him." Through Cox, Freeman learned quickly about "The Braves Way." Even after his 12 years in Atlanta, it’s still engraved in him. "You’re wearing your uniform to batting practice, buttoned down, hat’s always forward," Freeman explained. In Atlanta, he would wear the sunglasses on the back of his hat because he was proud of the "A" on the front and didn’t want to block it. Now with the Dodgers, he won’t wear his glasses over the "LA" on his hat. "That’s Bobby," Freeman said. "Bobby’s still in me. Just a wonderful man that teaches you lessons, teaches you camaraderie, unity, doing things as a unit, no one’s different. That’s how I came up, and that’s what Bobby taught over there, and I appreciate it still to this day." When Cox’s tenure as Braves manager ended, he remained in an advisory role in the seasons to follow. Weiss felt fortunate that he got to see Cox several times over the last few years, going to the Hall of Famer’s house along with Snitker. "He’d continue to watch us every night," Weiss said. "And he was well aware of what was going on. His mind was still sharp." Cox won five National League pennants with the Braves and a World Series title in 1995. He was a four-time Manager of the Year and also spent time as the Braves’ general manager, helping lay the groundwork for the team’s tremendous success in the late 90s and early 2000s. But what Freeman takes most from Cox has nothing to do with the baseball field. "It didn’t matter who you were, he knew your name," Freeman said. "I think that’s what left the impact on so many people, is genuine care. If you guys know me, I’m big person to person. I like to be genuine and real and make you feel like I care because I do. And that’s a Bobby thing. "And I think of why so many people love Bobby, too, is he was always right next to the camera. You could hear him cheering on his teammates. He was in every pitch. He wanted to win just as much as you did. Braves country could hear him cheering for his guys because he was sitting right next to that camera well, and you could hear the speakers." Freeman went hitless in his first career game and went 4-for-24 in his rookie year in 2010. Still, Cox always believed in him. Sixteen years later, Freeman entered Saturday with 2,471 hits for his career, the most of any active player. Hanging on a wall at his house in Atlanta is a Braves jersey autographed by Cox. It reads: "To Freddie. Keep on hitting." "I bet you if I wanted to get tossed out that first game, he would’ve gotten tossed out with me," Freeman said. "That’s just who he was." Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the L.A. Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, grew up in Texas, then moved back to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on X at @RowanKavner.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Hall of Fame Atlanta Braves Manager Bobby Cox Dies at 84]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/bobby-cox-manager-of-the-atlanta-braves-teams-that-ruled-the-national-league-dies-at-84</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/bobby-cox-manager-of-the-atlanta-braves-teams-that-ruled-the-national-league-dies-at-84</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Atlanta Braves Hall of Fame manager Bobby Cox has died at the age of 84.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Sat, 09 May 2026 15:06:32 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[Bobby Cox, the folksy manager of the Atlanta Braves whose dominance in the 1990s gave the city its first major title as well as World Series trips that fell short, has died at the age of 84. The Atlanta Braves announced Cox's death Saturday; details weren’t immediately available. Cox had a stroke in 2019. "Bobby was the best manager to ever wear a Braves uniform. He led our team to 14 straight division titles, five National League pennants, and the unforgettable World Series title in 1995. His Braves managerial legacy will never be matched," the Braves said in a statement. Cox took over a last-place team in June 1990 and led the Braves to a worst-to-first finish in 1991, losing the World Series to the Minnesota Twins in seven games. That was the start of what was to be a record 14 consecutive division titles, a feat no professional team in any sport had accomplished. He managed the Braves for 25 years and led Atlanta to its only World Series title in 1995, retired after the 2010 season and was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 2014. "Bobby was a favorite among all in the baseball community, especially those who played for him. His wealth of knowledge on player development and the intricacies of managing the game were rewarded with the sport’s ultimate prize in 2014 — enshrinement into the Baseball Hall of Fame," the Braves said. As of Saturday, Cox ranks fourth all-time with 2,504 wins, fifth with 4,508 games, first with 15 division titles including a record 14 in a row, first with 16 playoff appearances and fourth with 67 playoff victories. Only Connie Mack, John McGraw and Tony La Russa had more regular-season wins than Cox. His 158 regular-season ejections also was the most among managers. "He is the Atlanta Braves," catcher Brian McCann said in 2019. "He’s the best." McCann described Cox as an "icon" and "one of the best human beings any of us have ever met." The Braves retired Cox’s No. 6 jersey in 2011, when he joined the team’s Hall of Fame. Cox spent 29 seasons as a major league manager, including four with Toronto. He managed 16 postseason teams. He brought an old-school approach to the dugout. He always wore spikes and stirrups, and his fatherly demeanor inspired loyalty from his players. The Associated Press contributed to this report.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Brewers Pitcher Has Unreal Triple-Digit MPH Run]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/jacob-misiorowksi-cardinals-inside-the-park-homer-cubs-win-streak-royals-walkoff</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/jacob-misiorowksi-cardinals-inside-the-park-homer-cubs-win-streak-royals-walkoff</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[Jacob Misiorowski brought historic heat, a veteran hit his 300th home run, the Cardinals had an inside-the-park grand slam, the Royals walked it off and more from Friday's MLB action.]]>
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				<pubDate>Sat, 09 May 2026 12:20:07 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Jacob Misiorowski always brings the triple-digit heat, but what he did in the opening inning of the team's Friday night matchup against the New York Yankees was eccentric. In the top of the first inning, Misiorowski threw 10 pitches. They were all fastballs that registered between 102-104 mph. Misiorowski went on to pitch six shutout innings, posting 11 strikeouts and surrendering just four baserunners (two hits and two walks) in a 6-0 Milwaukee victory. Right-hander Shane Drohan then pitched three scoreless innings, surrendering a mere hit. On the season, the 6-foot-7 Misiorowski owns a 2.45 ERA, an 0.96 WHIP, a National League-high 70 strikeouts and 1.2 wins above replacement across 44.0 innings pitched (eight starts). As for what the Brewers did at the plate, they had a four-run second inning against Yankees' star left-hander Max Fried, which saw four consecutive batters drive in a run: RBI singles from outfielders Brandon Lockridge, Sal Frelick and Jackson Chourio and a force-out from shortstop Joey Ortiz. They got their other two runs off another RBI single from Lockridge in the bottom of the third and a seventh-inning single from catcher William Contreras. Milwaukee has won five of its last seven games and is now in third place in the NL Central at 20-16. You never forget your first. With two runs having already touched home plate in the bottom of the first, Cleveland Guardians second baseman Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 MLB Draft, hit a two-run home run to center field for his first big-league homer. Bazzana has started nine games at the MLB level, driving in four runs, stealing six bases and owning a .200/.368/.300 slash line to date. Prior to being called up in April, the middle infielder totaled two home runs, 10 RBIs and eight stolen bases across 24 Triple-A games this season, posting a .287/.422/.511 slash line. As for the game, Cleveland would beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-4, with star third baseman José Ramírez and catcher Austin Hedges tacking on RBI singles in the seventh and eighth innings, respectively. Ramirez had two hits on the night, while left fielder Steven Kwan reached base four times (two hits and two walks) and left-hander Parker Messick recorded seven strikeouts and gave up just one run over 5 ⅔ innings. The Guardians have won three consecutive games. The Houston Astros were relentless from start to finish against the Cincinnati Reds. In the top of the second, Astros left fielder Zach Dezenzo launched a two-run home run. Later, in the sixth, designated hitter Yordan Álvarez obliterated a baseball into the right-field seats, which brought home two more runs. In the eighth, third baseman Isaac Paredes had an RBI ground out, which was followed by a five-run ninth inning for the Astros that saw Zach Cole hit a pinch-hit three-hit home run, catcher Christian Vázquez follow with a solo homer and Shay Whitcomb hit a pinch-hit RBI single later in the inning. Houston right-hander Mike Burrows pitched seven scoreless innings, recording six strikeouts and surrendering just four baserunners (three hits and one walk), which relievers AJ Blubaugh and Logan VanWey followed with a pair of scoreless innings to finish off a 10-0 victory for the Astros. Houston's pitching staff held Cincinnati to six combined baserunners (five hits and one walk). Last week, the Reds were tied with the Chicago Cubs for first place in the NL Central. Ever since, they've lost eight straight games and are now in last place in the division (20-19). While it came in a 5-2 loss on the road to the San Francisco Giants, Pittsburgh Pirates' designated hitter Marcell Ozuna hit a career milestone in the Bay Area. Leading off the top of the second, Ozuna shoveled out a slider from left-hander Robbie Ray, sending it just over the left-field wall for his 300th career MLB home run. It was the only run that Ray gave up over six innings. Ozuna, a two-time Silver Slugger and three-time All-Star, is 15th among active MLB players in all-time home runs. Through 32 games this season, he has totaled four home runs and 14 RBIs. Unfortunately for Pittsburgh, San Francisco first baseman Rafael Devers responded with a solo home run in the bottom of the second. Later, left fielder Heliot Ramos drove in a run with a single in the fourth, with center fielder Drew Gilbert driving in a run on a single in the seventh that was shortly followed by a two-run single from Luis Arráez. The St. Louis Cardinals had the bases loaded with one out in the top of the fifth, and then chaos transpired. Faced with a 1-1 count, Cardinals' second baseman JJ Wetherholt hit a ground ball through the right side that would've scored one, if not two runs on its own. But the ball got past San Diego Padres' right fielder Fernando Tatís Jr. and rolled all the way to the wall, with Wetherholt thundering across the basepath for an inside-the-park grand slam. Granted, it was officially logged as a two-run single. St. Louis scored two more runs in the inning on an RBI single from designated hitter Nolan Gorman and a sacrifice fly from shortstop Masyn Winn. Elsewhere, catcher Ivan Herrera had a game-high four hits for the Cardinals, while right-handers Michael McGreevy (six innings), Gordon Graceffo (two innings) and Ryne Stanek (one inning) combined for nine scoreless innings, 10 strikeouts and gave up just one hit. As for the one who broke the ice, Wetherholt has totaled seven home runs, 20 RBIs, a 120 OPS+ and 1.7 wins above replacement over 38 games this season, while McGreevy owns a 2.18 ERA, an 0.86 WHIP and a 180 ERA+ over 45 ⅓ innings pitched (eight starts). The Toronto Blue Jays showed Dylan Cease the money this past offseason (seven-year, $210 million deal), and he showed why at Rogers Centre on Friday night. Having lost four consecutive games, Toronto got back in the win column with Cease putting together arguably his best start of the season, as the right-hander posted 10 strikeouts and gave up just five baserunners (five hits) over seven scoreless innings in a 2-0 win over the Los Angeles Angels. Following the seventh inning, right-handers Jeff Hoffman and Louis Varland pitched a pair of scoreless innings for the Blue Jays, who scored their two runs in the bottom of the third off an RBI single from star rookie Kazuma Okamoto and a sacrifice fly from second baseman Ernie Clement. Through his first eight starts with the Blue Jays, Cease has posted a 2.58 ERA, a 1.24 WHIP, an American League-high 66 strikeouts and a 171 ERA+ over 45 ⅓ innings. Cease has pitched through the seventh inning in each of his last two outings. After the Colorado Rockies got a dramatic win over the New York Mets on Thursday that saw outfielder Jake McCarthy hit a go-ahead, eighth-inning grand slam, they pulled off another eventful victory on Friday. This time around, Colorado got out to a 6-0 lead on the road against the Philadelphia Phillies and led 7-2 in the bottom of the eighth before Philadelphia had a five-run inning — two days after the Phillies pulled off a go-ahead, four-run eighth inning — that saw left fielder Brandon Marsh drive in a run on a single, second baseman Bryson Stott rip a two-run double and center fielder Justin Crawford hit a game-tying, two-run home run. The game went to extra innings, with both teams not scoring a run in the 10th, but the Rockies punched through in the top of the 11th with pinch hitter Trey Johnston doubling home a run and McCarthy later singling home a run. Right-hander Juan Mejia didn't allow the ghost runner to score in the bottom of the inning and got the save, wrapping up a 9-7 victory for Colorado. Catcher Hunter Goodman had a game-high four hits — including a two-run home run in the top of the fourth — for the Rockies, who also got two-hit performances from right fielder Tyler Freeman — who hit a solo home run in the seventh — and infielder Willi Castro. The Chicago Cubs are rolling. After winning the final two games of a three-game set against the Padres and sweeping the Arizona Diamondbacks and Cincinnati Reds, the Cubs defeated the Texas Rangers in Arlington on Friday night, 7-1, for their 10th consecutive win. Chicago got its seven runs off a first-inning RBI single from left fielder Ian Happ, a two-run home run from right fielder Seiya Suzuki in the top of the fourth, an RBI double from center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong in the sixth and a three-run double from first baseman Michael Busch in the seventh. On the mound, the Cubs used four pitchers: Ben Brown (four innings), Ryan Rolison (⅓ inning), Javier Assad (3 ⅔ innings) and Ethan Roberts (one inning). Chicago now owns the best record in MLB at 27-12. The Tampa Bay Rays have been scorching hot over the last two weeks, but the Boston Red Sox brought a hose to Fenway Park for Game 2 of a four-game series against their AL East rival. Led by seven dominant innings from left-hander Connelly Early (eight strikeouts and just five baserunners) and back-to-back scoreless innings with two strikeouts recorded apiece from Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman, the Red Sox shut out the Rays, who previously won 13 of their last 14 games, 2-0. Boston's two runs came off solo home runs from right fielder Wilyer Abreu in the bottom of the third and center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela in the bottom of the fourth. The Red Sox have won four of their last five games. Yes, the Atlanta Braves lost Game 1 of a three-game set on the road to the Los Angeles Dodgers, but their defense shined in Dodger Stadium. In the bottom of the third, Dodgers' second baseman Santiago Espinal roped a ball into the right-center field gap that looked poised to be a double. Then, Braves' right fielder Mike Yastrzemski got the ball into second base in a jiff, and shortstop Jim Jarvis tagged Espinal out. Speaking of Jarvis, the shortstop made an absurd, leaping catch in shallow left field in the bottom of the fourth. Of course, the Braves' problem was that third baseman Austin Riley's second-inning RBI single would be their only run of the game. In the bottom half of the second, Dodgers' right fielder Kyle Tucker doubled in a run, and Los Angeles took the lead on a Shohei Ohtani RBI single in the fifth. Then, leading off the bottom of the sixth, former Braves star Freddie Freeman hit a home run to center, giving the Dodgers a 3-1 lead, which would be the final score. Los Angeles used six pitchers in the win: Emmet Sheehan, Alex Vesia, Kyle Hurt, Will Klein, Brock Stewart and Tanner Scott. The Kansas City Royals rallied for an exciting home victory over the Detroit Tigers. Trailing 3-1 in the bottom of the eighth, Royals' center fielder Kyle Isbel and third baseman Maikel Garcia drove in runs on consecutive singles to tie the game. In the ninth, Tigers' reliever Brant Hurter got the first two batters of the inning out. Then, Royals' pinch hitter Nick Loftin put the winning run in scoring position with a double, which Isbel followed with a ground ball that got through the left side, and Loftin came around third for the walk-off run. On the season, Isbel has totaled three home runs, 10 RBIs and five stolen bases, while owning a .283/.347/.424 slash line; Loftin has driven in 10 runs over 15 games, while having a .282/.383/.410 slash line. The Royals have won six of their last eight games, while the Tigers have lost four consecutive games.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Inside the White Sox's '1% Chance' and Hot Start for Slugger Munetaka Murakami]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/inside-white-sox-pursuit-polarizing-npb-star-munetaka-murakami</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/inside-white-sox-pursuit-polarizing-npb-star-munetaka-murakami</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The White Sox initially thought they had about "a 1% chance" of signing Munetaka Murakami, but they stayed on him, focused on the upside and are reaping the rewards.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2026 22:25:01 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[ANAHEIM, Calif.  — When White Sox special assistant David Keller made his annual scouting trip to Japan last August, Munetaka Murakami was among a list of top targets. But the odds of the White Sox actually signing the 25-year-old Nippon Professional Baseball superstar? "I thought it was like a 1% chance," Keller, who runs Chicago's international scouting department, told me during the team's recent series against the Angels. "Realistically, just given who he is, the talent level, the system that I still felt was forming [with the White Sox]. All of those things, him desiring to come to the South Side of Chicago, those are things that are unknown." Nine months later, Murakami is already one of Major League Baseball’s top home run hitters. The Japanese sensation has now mashed 15 homers through his first 38 games and became the first rookie since Trevor Story in 2016 to enter May with at least a share of MLB’s home run lead. To the surprise of almost everyone, Murakami’s impact is happening in a Chicago White Sox uniform. "I think it raises our profile in Japan," Keller said, "in a way that’s probably immeasurable." Getting a foothold in the country figured to be a long-term endeavor for Keller, who was a longtime Mets scout before joining the White Sox in September 2024. At the time of Keller's hiring, the White Sox did not have a full-time scout in Japan and were in the midst of the worst season in modern baseball history. Keller and general manager Chris Getz knew that establishing a presence in the Pacific Rim would require patience, likely years, to make inroads. The process accelerated when they hired a full-time NPB scout, Satoshi Takahashi, last June. A few months later, Keller took his summer trip to Japan. By then, Murakami had already been on the MLB radar for years. At 22 years old in 2022, the superstar slugger set the single-season NPB record with 56 home runs while being named the Central League MVP for the second straight year. But he was a polarizing talent. While Murakami remained a powerful force in the ensuing years, he was unable to replicate his record-setting season. Last year, injuries limited him to 56 games. He still launched 22 home runs despite the missed time and clearly possessed the ceiling to develop into one of MLB’s top power threats, but a high strikeout rate and defensive limitations figured to limit the corner infielder’s suitors and lower his floor. His three-true-outcome profile — homers, walks, strikeouts — made him unlike other Japanese stars who made the MLB leap, which had been a dream of Murakami's since he was a child, and therefore made him difficult to project. But when Keller traveled to Japan last season, as he had done annually in his role as a Mets scout, something caught his eye. "He had really dedicated himself to getting into better shape, to moving better on the baseball field and really making the most of his ability, which for years prior had stood out," Keller said, "because the NPB game is slightly different than the major-league game."While the top home-run hitters in MLB routinely eclipse 50 in a season, Murakami’s 56 homers in 2022 represented a significant outlier in Japan. That year, he was one of only three NPB players with at least 30 home runs. Since he set that single-season mark, no NPB player has hit more than 41 home runs in a season."There aren’t players quite like him," Keller said.Teams can’t speak directly to NPB players until their posting window opens, so they talk to people who know the players, watch them during pregame, see how they interact in-game with teammates and coaches, and try to gather as much information as they can through different means.Even beyond the power, the White Sox liked what they saw. "When you see a guy who’s genuinely liked, who’s taking care of his body and has the makeup and character to navigate the ups and downs of the game combined with significant talent, you start to get pretty excited," Keller told me. "I wanted to really study the at-bats and see what it looked like, and I felt comfortable telling Chris that we have a guy here who has big-time power, who’s going to have good at-bats, who’s going to walk. And, yes, that’s going to come with some strikeouts, but I think that the risk is a worthy endeavor." An unlikely match When Chicago’s 60-102 season ended last year, Murakami’s name came up again during White Sox leadership meetings in October. But the projected salary range for the top NPB talent was still well beyond where they would realistically go. Despite Murakami’s risky profile, most prognosticators thought he would land a long-term, nine-figure deal. His power potential seemed too high – the chance to secure a 26-year-old superstar too tantalizing – for some team not to take a chance. Over time, though, it became clear to the White Sox that Murakami’s projected market wasn’t materializing as expected. That opened a path for the White Sox to make a multipronged push. Chicago’s analytics department and director of hitting Ryan Fuller studied Murakami’s swing meticulously. They felt confident they could help him make the adjustment to big-league pitching. The White Sox's front office stayed in touch with Murakami’s agency at Excel and effectively sold the plan to owner Jerry Reinsdorf. Still, the White Sox were coming off a second straight last-place finish and a fourth straight season missing the playoffs — and they were still operating with a bottom-five MLB payroll. They also had a geographical disadvantage, though they didn’t think playing on the coast mattered as much to Murakami as it did to other Japanese players. "Again, I think I’d be lying to you to tell you I thought we were going to be significant players," Keller said. "I was really hopeful that in a couple of years we were going to be major players in the NPB market." But the White Sox kept Murakami in their conversations as they explored the corner infield market, and they had factors working in their favor. Most importantly, there were only a handful of teams looking for a slugging first baseman. The Mariners answered their need when they re-signed Josh Naylor in the middle of November. Weeks later, the best power hitter on the market came off the board when Kyle Schwarber returned to Philadelphia. Days later, Pete Alonso went to the Orioles, and the Mets countered by signing Jorge Polanco. "Maybe at some point the music would stop, and there wouldn’t be enough chairs," Keller said. "And maybe we would still have a chair open." It didn’t hurt that Shingo Takatsu, who pitched for the White Sox in 2004 and 2005, was Murakami’s longtime manager in Tokyo and spoke glowingly of his experience to the young slugger. Ultimately, the deal that Murakami signed — two years for $34 million — came in well below projections and reflected teams’ hesitancy. His floor scared most teams away from pursuing the ceiling. Not the White Sox. They added the slugger on a low-risk, high-reward deal that accelerated their plans to establish a presence in Japan and added to their growing list of intriguing young talents. Already, Takahashi is frequently sending Keller photos from Japan of people walking the streets in White Sox hats, something that never would have been prevalent in previous years. When Murakami was introduced in his No. 5 White Sox uniform on Dec. 22, Getz still couldn’t believe it. He did not mince words when describing his expectations. "We believe that Mune is going to be a star in this game," Getz said from the dais. Through the first month of the season, it looks that way. Murakami has the highest whiff rate in MLB, but he also has the highest hard-hit rate and is launching home runs at such a prolific pace that his high strikeout numbers haven’t doomed him. He is tied with Yankees superstar Aaron Judge for the MLB lead in home runs. And while nearly all of Murakami's slugging has come from homers — he didn’t hit his first double of the year until his 35th game — he rarely chases and has the ninth-highest walk rate in MLB, which has allowed him to log the highest on-base percentage among all qualified White Sox hitters. "I always thought it would play," White Sox pitcher Anthony Kay, who pitched against Murakami in Japan, told me. "I feel like, as baseball players, we see when guys are talented, and I feel like everyone over there saw it and knew that it would transfer over to the big leagues. But for him to be able to do it at such a quick rate and not really have a transition period is special." It’s only May, but Murakami is currently on a 61-homer pace. He is the only player in MLB history to post at least 10 homers and 20 walks through his first 25 games, and he’s attracting more and more believers with every blast. On Monday in Anaheim, a group of roughly 20 fans ran behind the visitors' dugout to try to get Murakami’s attention, some carrying signs, one wearing a Team Japan jersey, another donning his Yakult Swallows NPB uniform. The blemishes in Murakami’s game did not bother the White Sox, and their recent lack of success did not deter Murakami from choosing them, a decision he felt even better about after Cubs players Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga expressed to him how much they enjoy the city of Chicago. "My main priority was to find the best fit," Murakami said through his translator at his introductory press conference. "Whether the contract was long or not wasn’t really a factor. I just really believe in the city and the organization, and I’m really, really happy to be here." ‘I’m able to be fully who I am' In the middle of April, sidelined by arm fatigue, fellow NPB product Tatsuya Imai acknowledged the difficulties he was experiencing both on and off the field trying to adapt to his first season stateside. Conversely, as the Houston Astros pitcher struggled to adjust to the change, Murakami appeared to be fitting in seamlessly in his new environment. "People experience the differences, cultural or environmental, but for me there’s nothing about that," Murakami told me this week through his interpreter, Kenzo Yagi. Despite the language barrier, he has found it easy to be himself. "My teammates are really communicating to me a lot," he continued. "They listen very well, they talk very slowly, they open up with so much communication that I’m really comfortable making mistakes in English. I’m really happy that they have my back and that I’m able to be fully who I am in the clubhouse, and that’s why I’m really comfortable." There’s guesswork involved for every MLB team when it comes to projecting how a player might handle an international move. But when the White Sox got a chance to speak to Murakami via Zoom last winter, they felt more comfortable. Manager Will Venable told me that any worries about the transition were eliminated on day one of spring training when he saw the way Murakami "chopped it up" with his teammates. Murakami’s willingness to move from third to first base, and his response to coaching and feedback, further eased any potential concerns. "He’s just been great in every way imaginable," Venable said. Murakami is constantly working on his English, which his teammates say has already gotten better. He leans on his interpreter during hitters’ meetings, but he’ll occasionally deliver one-liners. He is finding different ways to showcase his personality and engage with those around him, even as he learns the language. When he arrived at his locker at Camelback Ranch in the spring, Murakami laughed it off when his first name was mistakenly spelled "Munetaki," posting the picture to his Instagram story with a tongue-out laughing emoji. The White Sox attempted to make the transition as comfortable — quite literally — as possible for Murakami, who extolled the benefits of the team adding a bidet to the clubhouse. "It’s good for the environment, too," Murakami said with a grin. "Everybody uses too much toilet paper." White Sox players continue to praise Murakami as a teammate. He tries to teach them Japanese every day, and they’re proactively going to him with different phrases. "I know a few words," infielder Chase Meidroth told me. "We’ve had some sushi dates. We’ve gone out a few times." How does Murakami know where to go? "I ask a lot of people that have been around the city," Murakami told me with a grin. "But mostly I just search on websites." On the White Sox's latest road trip, Meidroth was among a group of players who joined Murakami for an authentic omakase sushi experience — where a chef creates a personalized, multi-course meal — on an off day in San Diego. Murakami was hoping to show them how to properly put soy sauce on the fish. "Aside from being a good baseball player, it’s really fun playing with him," Meidroth said. "Obviously, at first it helps with Kenzo, but I think his English has gotten a lot better. He understands a lot of words, and I pick up on stuff that he says too. You just kind of get to that point where you’re with each other every day, you start to pick up on stuff." That applies to other languages, too. Cuban infielder Miguel Vargas was surprised when he heard Murakami use Spanish phrases with him. "Right now, we don’t pick any language," Vargas told me. "We mix all three. My Japanese is not that good, but his Spanish is good. He tries and has a great attitude." Quickly, Vargas got a sense of how much Murakami cared — about winning, yes, but also about those around him. "He always comes and says, ‘Hey, good AB, how you feel? How do you look at this pitcher?’" Vargas said. "You got a tough day, he comes and says, ‘Hey, tomorrow, we got ‘em.’" ‘Freakish’ power Early in the spring, White Sox shortstop Colson Montgomery described Murakami’s power as "freakish." Murakami has spent the last month demonstrating why. There was the 451-foot home run in Arizona that gave him five straight games with a homer, the 425-foot left-on-left blast that fell into a tree in right field at Sutter Health Park and the 429-foot blast off Angels standout Jose Soriano on a 98.1 mph fastball up and out of the zone. But it was another deep drive that many of Murakami’s teammates and coaches have singled out as the most breathtaking. On April 17, Elvis Alvarado left a full-count 98.2 mph fastball over the heart of the plate that Murakami sent for a ride. A’s center fielder Denzel Clarke took a few courtesy steps toward the warning track, but he knew the result. He looked up and watched the baseball disappear over the batter’s eye. There were questions coming in about Murakami’s ability to handle MLB velocity, but he’s answering them. He’s slugging .643 on pitches 97 mph or above. "He has this opportunity to see, like, ‘OK, what am I in Major League Baseball?'" White Sox hitting coach Derek Shomon told me. "I think if you bucket it in a way that you’re just saying, ‘This is the player you have to be,’ it can be very limiting. We don’t know, right? There’s a good hitter in there that obviously can launch but also is drawing walks at a ridiculously high clip because he’s not expanding. So, who knows, man? What we do know is the best version of it is pretty damn good." The changes in his swing Murakami has had to make as he adjusts to MLB pitching have only been "micro-adjustments," according to Shomon, primarily regarding his setup and first move to get him in the best position to launch. That, clearly, has not been a problem. Ten of Murakami’s 15 homers have traveled more than 400 feet, a number matched only by Judge, and his power and keen eye have made him one of MLB's 20 best hitters by most advanced metrics. The version of Murakami that Kay sees now differs a bit from the one he saw in NPB. "I’d say he matured a little bit in his approach," Kay said. "He knows he’s not going to be pitched a lot in the zone, so his eye has definitely gotten better from what I saw in Japan." He is patiently lifting a White Sox team that is less than a game out of a wild-card spot in the middling American League. Soon, decisions will have to be made. Murakami’s short-term pact with the White Sox helped alleviate the risk they assumed, but it also meant just two seasons with Murakami under contract. For now, they’ll keep enjoying a reality that never seemed possible. "Whether I’m on the road or flying, I’m trying to tune into every at-bat," Keller said, "because he has a chance to do something pretty cool every time he’s in the box." __ In "Touching Base," we check on the top players and topics making headlines around baseball and what comes next.]]>
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					<![CDATA[MLB Roundtable: Mets On Track? Are The Cardinals Legit? Worry For The Dodgers?]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-roundtable-mets-diamondbacks-dodgers-padres</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/mlb-roundtable-mets-diamondbacks-dodgers-padres</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[Let's take a look at some of the teams and notable storylines in the National League.]]>
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				<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2026 22:11:23 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[All three National League divisions are chock-full of intrigue. The NL East-leading Braves are one of the surprise stories in MLB as two postseason contenders – the Mets and Phillies – stumbled out the gate. In the NL Central, all five teams are above .500, and it feels like it could be a dogfight through October. In the NL West, it's the Dodgers who rule the roost but don't sleep on a couple of teams who can keep pace. Let's take a look at some of the teams and notable storylines in the National League: 1. The Mets have somewhat steadied the ship after a 12-game losing streak earlier this season. Is there still more reason for pessimism than optimism? Thosar: As of Friday, the Mets are tied with the San Francisco Giants for the worst record (14-23) in baseball. So, yes, there are still plenty of reasons to be concerned about how they will resemble a competitive ball club against good teams. They just won two series in a row on the road, but what happens when they’re not playing bottom feeders like the Angels and Rockies? Given how dominant the Yankees have looked this year, next weekend’s Subway Series at Citi Field has a high probability of being a one-sided affair. Most of the Mets’ problems start with their disappointing offense, and the longer this trend continues, the harder it will be for president of baseball operations David Stearns to use underperformance as the explanation. We’re now six weeks into the season and the Mets have the worst slugging percentage (.351) in the majors, an on-base percentage (.293) that’s ranked 29th, and a batting average (.229) that’s ranked 28th. They’ve scored the second-fewest runs (134) in MLB. Losing Francisco Lindor (left calf strain) to the injured list was a huge blow, and it’s ominous that his timeline to return is unclear. It’s hard to see how the offense will turn it around without him. It would help if Bo Bichette — who owns a .585 OPS — looked more like himself at the plate, and if Mark Vientos could find some consistency. 2. Arizona has stars in 2B Ketel Marte and OF Corbin Carroll, but has given up the NL's second-most runs. Will the D-backs keep up with the Dodgers and Padres? Kavner: They’re trending in the wrong direction, and I don’t think their pitching is good enough to keep up with the Dodgers, but there is still reason to believe their offense can be good enough to contend with the Padres and push for a wild-card spot. Now, I can’t imagine that 34-year-old Ildemaro Vargas is going to look like an MVP contender all year — we’re already seeing him start to slow down — but there’s reason to believe that the offense overall should be better going forward. I find it hard to believe that Ketel Marte (.615 OPS) will be a considerably below league-average hitter all year, and we haven’t seen the best of Geraldo Perdomo (.743) or Gabriel Moreno (.694) yet. Remember, too, that Corbin Burnes is expected back at some point, and A.J. Puk and Justin Martinez could be back helping the bullpen in the second half. Those are potentially huge X-factors down the stretch. 3. The Cardinals have two of the best young players in J.J. Wetherholt and Jordan Walker. Does St. Louis have enough to maintain this run? Thosar: It’s been terrific to watch this Cardinals team play better than expected, flashing the type of tight team spirit and chemistry that a certain high-payroll club with household names can only dream about. St. Louis is getting it done without all that, thanks largely to Walker’s breakout year, Alec Burleson’s team-leading 29 RBIs (tied with Aaron Judge for the seventh-most in MLB), and, of course, Wetherholt’s excellent start to his rookie season. But the impactful hitter who everyone seems to be overlooking is Ivan Herrera. The Cardinals’ 25-year-old catcher/designated hitter is one of the best young hitters in the game. Since 2024, Herrera owns an .824 OPS (135 OPS+) in 215 games. St. Louis’ surge of power has been another unexpected surprise. The Cards’ 44 home runs are ranked ninth in MLB, which is a huge turnaround after they finished 29th in homers last season. Out of all the encouraging stats from one of the youngest teams in baseball, there are two that most capture their grit. The Cardinals are 5-0 in extra-innings, and 7-2 in one-run games. As of right now, they’re positioned to make the playoffs via the NL Wild Card. It’s too early to count them out of a postseason push, but there are reasons to believe it won’t happen. All of their young players are bound to run into slumps at the plate, and that’s likely going to lead to some inconsistency. Plus, their weak starting pitching (4.67 ERA, 25th in MLB) is struggling to register strikeouts (6.97 K/9, 29th in MLB). There’s not a ton of margin for error here, and how they handle adversity in the dog days of summer will be telling. Still, for a team that went into a full rebuild this offseason, the way the Cardinals have started this season is nothing short of inspiring. 4. The Padres have once again kept pace with the Dodgers atop the NL West. Will this season be any different? Kavner: With Mason Miller, anything feels possible, but I just can’t see the Dodgers losing this division. A.J. Preller always finds a way to do something unexpected at the deadline, but as currently constructed, it’s hard to see the depth either in the lineup or in the rotation being enough to win the NL West. The Padres rank 24th in OPS on the year, and their starters over the last 14 days have an ERA over 6.00. With Nick Pivetta sidelined and Joe Musgrove still out, it’s difficult to see that changing in a meaningful way. Jason Adam and Miller at the end of games provide comfort, and I expect better days ahead for the stars in the lineup — the Padres have stunningly jumped out to this start despite Jackson Merrill, Manny Machado and Fernando Tatis Jr. (who has yet to homer) all being below league-average hitters to this point — but I’m not confident there will be enough leads to protect for them to dethrone the back-to-back champs.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Big Bets Report: Fan Waves White Flag on Lakers, Pockets $13k]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-lakers-thunder-knicks-nhl-wnba</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nba/big-bets-report-lakers-thunder-knicks-nhl-wnba</guid>
				<category>nba</category>
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				    <![CDATA[Patrick Everson breaks down how one bettor cashed in their chips on a potential $500k payout. That and more in this week's big bets.]]>
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				<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2026 19:25:51 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[When making futures bets, it pays to have patience. An outcome could be weeks or months away. But it can also pay to know when to say when. A FanDuel Sportsbook customer believes that point has arrived for the Lakers and got a five-figure payday for bailing out early. More on that wager and other notable futures bets on NBA and NHL playoffs, along with some WNBA action, as that league’s 2026 season tips off. This page may contain affiliate links to legal sports betting partners. If you sign up or place a wager, FOX Sports may be compensated. Read more about Sports Betting on FOX Sports. Take a Free Ride This story begins on April 4, when Illinois met UConn and Michigan faced Arizona in the NCAA Tournament’s Final Four. The FanDuel bettor, who goes by @Indiana_Cers on X, put together a three-leg parlay, starting with those NCAA Tourney tilts: UConn moneyline +136 vs. Illinois, Michigan moneyline -111 vs. Arizona. But those two outcomes would’ve gotten only a nominal payout. So, to make it far juicier, the bettor added Lakers +50000 to win the NBA title. That’s 500/1, in easier-to-digest terms. Better still, the customer utilized a $250 bonus bet for the transaction. Granted, those types of promotional bets are earned over time — and surely some losing wagers — but still, this parlay was basically a free ride. At huge odds of +224654 — just shy of 2247/1 — the potential payout was a massive $561,635. UConn beat Illinois 71-62, and Michigan pounded Arizona 91-73. Then began the wait to see what the Lakers would do. Los Angeles was shorthanded in the first round, with no Luka Dončić and mostly no Austin Reaves. But LeBron James &amp; Co. had enough to beat Houston 4-2 in a best-of-7 series. However, that led to a second-round date with the defending NBA champion Thunder, who went a league-best 64-20 in the regular season and swept the Suns 4-0 in the first round. In Game 1 on Tuesday, the Lakers tumbled 108-90. That was L.A.’s fifth game this season vs. Oklahoma City, and the Lakers lost all five by an average margin of 27 points. So it was decision time — take a chance on the Lakers somehow making this series interesting or accept FanDuel’s cashout offer of $12,599.26. Said the bettor on X: "The white flag was waived." So a bonus bet that took nothing out the customer’s pocket became a nice five-figure boost to the bank account, which looked like an even smarter move after the Lakers dropped Game 2 125-107 on Thursday. Knicks of Time Entering the NBA playoffs, the Celtics had the best NBA championship odds of any Eastern Conference team, in the +500 to +600 range. But Boston bowed out early, blowing a 3-1 lead vs. the 76ers in losing the best-of-7 series 4-3. So that leaves the Knicks (+750) with the best title odds of the four remaining teams from the East. That has a DraftKings Sportsbook customer in a potentially pretty good position. The bettor put a relatively modest $67 on a seven-leg parlay that combined a bundle of sports: three MLB games, a hockey game, a soccer match, and of all things, a snooker match on the pool table. The first six legs are in, including Shaun Murphy over John Higgins in what was apparently a dramatic snooker battle. So now it’s down to the Knicks, who already have a 2-0 second-round lead over the 76ers. Granted, there’s a long way to go and should New York reach the NBA Finals, there’s the probable issue of either the Thunder or Spurs waiting on the other side. But if somehow the Knicks run the table, with that ticket’s odds of +82937 (just beyond 829/1), that 67 bucks turns into $55,634.79. Even right now, the bettor could cash out for a few thousand dollars. That cashout amount will surely grow if the Knicks do as oddsmakers expect and reach the Finals. We’ll keep you posted. Hockey Hopes The Canadiens were +195 underdogs to beat the Lightning in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. But by stealing Game 1 on the road 4-3, Montreal certainly upped its chances to advance. The two teams traded victories over the first six games, setting up Game 7 in Tampa on Sunday. And the Canadiens claimed a second road win, 2-1, to close out the series. That’s got a high-rolling BetMGM customer in a better-than-expected position. Before the first round, the bettor put $25,000 on Canadiens +1100 to win the Eastern Conference. At the moment, Montreal trails Buffalo 1-0 in a best-of-7 second-round series. That bet certainly has life, though. If the Canadiens manage to reach the Stanley Cup Final, then the bettor bags $275,000 profit (total payout $300,000). WNBA Plays The WNBA kicks off its 2026 campaign Friday, drawing some bettors to championship futures and player awards futures. At DraftKings, the New York Liberty are +220 favorites to win the title, followed by the defending champion Las Vegas Aces at +390. The Aces have won three of the last four WNBA crowns. Behind Caitlin Clark, Indiana is the +450 third choice in WNBA futures odds. But one DraftKings customer looked further down the board a few weeks ago, to a potentially up-and-coming squad. On April 4, the bettor put $1,200 on the Dallas Wings +8000 (80/1). Leading the way for Dallas is Paige Bueckers, the 2025 Rookie of the Year. And the Wings took Azzi Fudd, another UConn standout, with the No. 1 overall pick in the recent WNBA Draft. So since that bet was made, the Wings have cut their odds by more than half, now sitting at +3000, the co-seventh choice to win it all. If Dallas indeed lifts the trophy, then the bettor profits $96,000 (total payout $97,200). Related, a DraftKings customer put $1,000 on Bueckers +2000 to win the MVP award. That bet could profit $20,000.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Athletics Annihilate the Phillies]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/athletics-4-home-runs-cubs-7-run-inning-yankees-6th-straight-series-win-marlins-walkoff</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/athletics-4-home-runs-cubs-7-run-inning-yankees-6th-straight-series-win-marlins-walkoff</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
				<description>
				    <![CDATA[The Athletics blew out the Phillies, the Cubs had a seven-run inning, the Yankees won their sixth consecutive series, the Marlins walked it off and more from Thursday's MLB action.]]>
				</description>
				<pubDate>Fri, 08 May 2026 12:46:47 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: The Athletics let out their frustration by losing the first two games of a three-game series against the Philadelphia Phillies in explosive fashion. How's that? They blasted four home runs, those coming from catcher Shea Langeliers, designated hitter Brent Rooker and infielders Jacob Wilson and Zack Gelof. Langeliers and Rooker each hit two-run homers in the top of the first inning, with the A's then having a three-run third, a three-run fifth and a two-run seventh. All nine starters for the Athletics recorded a hit, with Langeliers, Rooker, Gelof and outfielder Carlos Cortes having multi-hit performances in a 12-1 win. Concurrently, A's starter J.T. Ginn dominated the Phillies' offense over eight innings, giving up just one run and five baserunners (four hits and one walk) and posting eight strikeouts. Philadelphia's one run came off a solo home run from Kyle Schwarber, who's second in the National League with 12 home runs, in the bottom of the fourth. The Athletics stand atop the American League West at 19-18 and are sixth in MLB with a .407 team slugging percentage. Meanwhile, this was the Phillies' second loss of the season by 11 runs; they lost to the Washington Nationals on Mar. 30, 13-2. Like the A's, the Colorado Rockies lost the first two games of a three-game series but salvaged the final game of the set with the long ball. Tied at 2-all with the New York Mets with the bases loaded in the bottom of the eighth, Rockies outfielder Jake McCarthy hammered a fastball on the inside of the plate into the upper level for a go-ahead, grand slam, which ultimately gave Colorado a 6-2 win. McCarthy had five RBIs on the day and was the only Colorado player to have multiple hits. Elsewhere, a fourth-inning RBI single from infielder Willi Castro accounted for the Rockies' sixth run, while the Mets scored their two runs in the top of the second. Through 28 games, McCarthy, who has started extensively in both left and center field for the Rockies, has totaled two home runs, 14 RBIs and a 126 OPS+, while boasting a .275/.346/.507 slash line. The outfielder is in his first year with the Rockies after spending the first five seasons of his MLB career with the Arizona Diamondbacks from 2021-25. The win snapped a six-game losing streak for the Rockies. Pittsburgh Pirates second baseman Brandon Lowe hit a first-inning home run in the team's Wednesday night win over the Diamondbacks and did the same in their Thursday night win over the D-backs, launching a Zac Gallen fastball over the right field wall. An Adrian Del Castillo RBI single in the bottom of the first and a Corbin Carroll solo home run in the third later gave the Diamondbacks the lead. That said, Pittsburgh took the lead for good in the top of the fifth on back-to-back RBI singles from right fielder Ryan O'Hearn and first baseman Spencer Horwitz. Then, in the sixth, catcher Joey Bart, who had two hits, gave the Pirates another run for good measure with a solo homer to center. Meanwhile, Lowe had three of Pittsburgh's seven hits and right-hander Mitch Keller surrendered just two runs over six innings in a 4-2 win for the Pirates. Pittsburgh has won five of its last six games, improving to 21-17. After walking off the Cincinnati Reds in three straight games, the Chicago Cubs made matters easier for themselves in the Thursday matinée against their NL Central rival. First, Cubs outfielder Michael Conforto — who finished with a game-high three hits — produced the game's first run on a solo homer to right field in the bottom of the second. Two innings later, the outpouring of offense commenced, as the Cubs scored seven runs in six consecutive at-bats in the fourth: a Conforto walk, a Dansby Swanson force-out, an RBI single from Pete Crow-Armstrong, a two-run single from Miguel Amaya, an RBI double from Nico Hoerner and a Moisés Ballesteros sacrifice fly. Cincinnati later got solo home runs from second baseman Sal Stewart and outfielder Blake Dunn and an RBI double from left fielder JJ Bleday, but it was to no avail, as Chicago held on to win, 8-3. The Cubs got six reputable innings from left-hander Shota Imanaga, who recorded 10 strikeouts and gave up just one run. Chicago's four-game sweep gives it a nine-game winning streak and puts it in a tie with the Atlanta Braves and New York Yankees for the best record in MLB at 26-12. The Cubs' offense has collectively been among MLB's elite, as they're first in on-base percentage (.353), third in runs (208), fourth in hits (335) and batting average (.258), tied for fourth in home runs (50) and are fifth in slugging percentage (.429). Speaking of the Yankees, in the wake of defeating the Texas Rangers on Thursday and taking two out of three in the series, the Bronx Bombers have now won six consecutive series. New York outfielders Cody Bellinger and Trent Grisham each had three-hit performances, with the former driving in two runs and the latter driving in three runs on a go-ahead, bases-clearing double as part of a six-run bottom of the sixth inning for the Yankees. Infielder Ryan McMahon — who entered the game after left fielder Jasson Domínguez was carted off due to a low-grade sprain of his left AC joint, per MLB.com — reached base four times (two hits and two walks in five plate appearances). New York used six pitchers in what was a 9-2 victory. As for how the offensive standouts have fared in 2026, Bellinger has racked up five home runs, 28 RBIs and an AL-high 2.5 wins above replacement, while possessing a .299/.394/.530 slash line; it was Grisham's first three-hit game of the season. The Yankees have won 16 of their last 19 games and are 9-2-1 in their 12 series this season. It was all about the one behind the plate for the Washington Nationals in the rubber match of their three-game series with the Minnesota Twins. Trailing 2-0 in the bottom of the third, catcher Keibert Ruiz got the Nationals on the board with an RBI double, which was followed by an RBI sacrifice fly from second baseman Nasim Nuñez. Two innings later, Ruiz drove in two more runs with another double. And, two innings later, Ruiz put Washington up for good with a solo home run to right, capping off a three-hit day (all extra-base hits) that saw him drive in four runs. First baseman Curtis Mead drove in another run for the Nationals, his second of the game, in the seventh. While the effort came in a 7-5 loss, Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers matched Ruiz, hitting a solo home run, logging two doubles and driving in four runs. Washington has won three of its last four series. After losing the first two games of a four-game series on the road to the Kansas City Royals and scoring no more than three runs in any of those contests, the Cleveland Guardians left Kauffman Stadium with a series split after an offensive breakthrough. Cleveland got out to a three-run lead in the top of the first with a two-run double from first baseman Kyle Manzardo and an RBI single from third baseman Daniel Schneemann. Later, leading 5-2 in the seventh, catcher Bo Naylor blasted a three-run homer to right, which would be a needed oomph, as the Guardians went on to win, 8-5. Naylor and shortstop Brayan Rocchio each had two hits for Cleveland, which got a hit from every member of its starting lineup and 5.1 innings from starter Slade Cecconi. Ironically, the Royals out-hit the Guardians, 12-11, but they wasted a four-hit game from star shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. The Guardians are in first place in the AL Central at 20-19. Literally, they cannot be stopped. Coming off their second consecutive series sweep, the Tampa Bay Rays took the act to Fenway Park on Thursday and won their 13th game in 14 attempts, beating the Boston Red Sox, 8-4. Tampa Bay got three RBIs on two hits from Chandler Simpson and two-hit games from infielders Junior Caminero, Ben Williamson, designated hitter Yandy Diaz and outfielder Jonny DeLuca, as well, as part of a combined 13-hit performance. Caminero put the game out of reach with a laser, two-run home run to center in the top of the eighth. The homer was hit at 114.3 mph and traveled 449 feet, according to MLB Stats. Caminero has hit a team-high 10 home runs this season for the Rays, while boasting a .496 slugging percentage. Meanwhile, Simpson is batting .313, has stolen 12 bases and is tied for sixth in MLB with 45 hits. The Rays (25-12) are a half-game behind the Yankees, Braves and Cubs for the best record in the sport. It wasn't pretty. In fact, the St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres combined for just nine hits, but a win is a win for the Redbirds' sake. The Padres drew first blood with an RBI single from shortstop Xander Bogaerts in the bottom of the first, which was actually a check-swing that traveled 264 feet. At the same time, first baseman Alec Burleson leveled the score for the Cardinals with a solo home run to right in the top of the fourth. And, in the seventh, the Cardinals took a 2-1 lead — which would be the final score — when shortstop Masyn Winn dropped a ball into right field that got past Nick Castellanos for a triple and brought home the go-ahead run. St. Louis got six plausible innings from left-hander Matthew Liberatore, who surrendered only one run through six innings, while its bullpen surrendered just one baserunner (one hit) over three innings to close out the game. Meanwhile, Cardinals right fielder Jordan Walker, who scored the go-ahead run in the seventh, had two doubles. On the season, Burleson has totaled six home runs, a team-high 30 RBIs and a 132 OPS+, while owning a .270/.350/.461 slash line; Walker has totaled 10 home runs, 27 RBIs, seven stolen bases, a 176 OPS+ and 2.2 wins above replacement, while owning a .309/.383/.588 slash line; Winn is batting .264, while posting 1.3 wins above replacement, sporting a career-high 107 OPS+ and recording two defensive runs saved at shortstop. The Cardinals are in second place in the NL Central at 22-15 and in possession of the first NL wild-card seed. Fittingly, we close it out with the only walk off from Thursday's 10-game slate. The Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins entered the bottom of the ninth tied at 3-all. Furthermore, Orioles' reliever Andrew Kittredge got the first two batters of the inning out. Then, Miami pinch hit catcher Joe Mack, who doubled, putting the winning run in scoring position. The next at-bat, down 0-1 in the count, Marlins' third baseman Javier Sanoja hit a ground ball to third base, which third baseman Coby Mayo bobbled. That said, Mayo gathered the ground ball, but his throw one-hopped to first baseman Pete Alonso, and the latter couldn't retrieve it off the bounce with the ball getting away from him and Mack coming around third for the walk-off run; the Marlins won, 4-3. As for the rest of the game, Miami struck first in the bottom of the first on a two-run home run by Liam Hicks, giving him 34 RBIs on the year. Miami added another run in the third when first baseman Connor Norby drove in a run on a single, which came after Orioles' shortstop Gunnar Henderson singled in a run in the top half of the inning. Baltimore got its other two runs on a fourth-inning RBI single from right fielder Tyler O'Neill and an eighth-inning RBI single from Alonso.]]>
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					<![CDATA[How Pete Alonso Is 'Paying It Forward' as a Leader for the Young and Hungry Orioles]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/how-pete-alonso-paying-forward-leader-championship-hungry-baltimore-orioles</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/how-pete-alonso-paying-forward-leader-championship-hungry-baltimore-orioles</guid>
				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[Pete Alonso is taking the veteran leadership he enjoyed as a young player and passing it on with the Orioles.]]>
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				<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2026 19:56:23 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[New York — Time after time, leadership gets passed down. That’s especially true for those that are sponges; not only willing to learn, but eager to lead. Pete Alonso grew up in the big leagues alongside some of the greatest players who have ever stepped on a baseball field. In 2019, even as he slugged his way to 53 home runs and won the National League Rookie of the Year award with the Mets, Alonso never presumed to know it all. He leaned on veterans to understand how to be a professional major-leaguer, and how to do things the right way. Seven years ago, he didn’t know where life would take him. Now, playing with the Orioles on a record-breaking contract, Alonso is bringing all that he’s learned to Baltimore, aiming to shape it into a championship-caliber organization. "I was really fortunate," Alonso told me at Yankee Stadium this week. "I've had a lot of great teammates. Max Scherzer, [Jacob] deGrom, [Justin] Verlander. Future Hall of Famers. And for me, too, Noah [Syndergaard] was a huge influence. Robbie Cano, Todd Frazier. So those guys, they would take me out to dinner, bring me places, introduce me to things. They were like, ‘This is not only how you play, but this is how you behave.’ It was like, these are the standards of what you need to carry yourself as a professional, not just in the big leagues, but in New York. "And I feel like those professional life lessons, they kind of helped me through. It's definitely made a big impact. They were showing me, this is what you do in the big leagues. This is how you operate. So, for me, I’m paying it forward. I was on the receiving end for a number of years, so now it's like, it's my turn." Being a mentor to his Baltimore teammates has come naturally for the first baseman. It was Alonso’s idea to take the O’s to the Clemente Museum — which is dedicated to preserving the life and legacy of baseball player and humanitarian, Roberto Clemente — when they traveled to Pittsburgh to play the Pirates in the second week of the season. Over the years, Alonso has built a strong relationship with the museum’s owner, Duane Rieder, who the slugger said, "Makes some of the best wine and has incredible baseball memorabilia." The Clemente Museum houses an urban winery in the cellar, which surprised some younger players. "It's just really an unbelievable hangout spot," Alonso said. "I think it's the best one in Pittsburgh. So it's an easy thing to do. I want to be able to do things like that because we did a lot of things that built camaraderie on some of the good teams that we had with the Mets. All good teams, they do stuff together." The Orioles entered Thursday with a 17-20 record. Much like many contending teams around the league struggling to eclipse .500, it’s not the start Baltimore had hoped for. But Alonso is reminding his new club to stay the course. Those who are getting to know the way the "Polar Bear" works have appreciated that, even if Alonso goes 0-for-4 with four strikeouts at the plate, he’s still the same guy, keeping his head up, afterward. Orioles teammates describe Alonso as a vocal leader. He’s often the first to speak up on team bus rides. He’s tapping players on their backs after losses, saying, "We’ll get ‘em tomorrow." He’s spending extra time in the batting cages with hitters — particularly after games, wins or losses — to help when someone isn’t having the most success at the plate, or if someone’s struggling with a certain pitch. Third baseman Coby Mayo, now in his third year in the big leagues, has struggled to hit offspeed pitches this season. He was starting to get down on himself when Alonso stepped in and offered a new approach: "How about just eliminating the pitch?" Alonso advised Mayo to stop swinging at curveballs and sliders, and then opposing pitchers might change their game plans against the 24-year-old. Mayo has since focused on working himself into better counts. He’s forcing pitchers to throw more competitive pitches in the strike zone. "Instead of worrying about not hitting this pitch well, mostly, it's because you're not swinging at the right ones, and you're chasing them too much," Mayo told me, explaining how Alonso has collaborated with him. "So, just little things that can help you see it in a different way. It's cool that he takes the time to talk to guys about it." Guiding younger Orioles hitters like Mayo, Jackson Holliday, Jordan Westburg, Colton Cowser and Jeremiah Jackson was one of the primary reasons owner David Rubenstein was comfortable signing Alonso to a five-year, $155 million contract in December. Alonso’s $31 million average annual value marks the largest commitment in Orioles franchise history. Baltimore’s roster carries several promising young talents, and there was a void in leadership that is now being filled in a way players hadn’t seen or experienced prior to Alonso’s addition. "We would do little things here and there, but I'd say this is the first year when I've felt that presence, that leadership presence," Mayo said. "He's been great. We haven't had a guy come into that type of role, making the biggest contract in our history. So it's definitely a higher level of respect for Pete." Orioles manager Craig Albernaz considers Alonso his "thought partner." Being new to the organization, accompanied by a new coaching staff, the first-year skipper has enjoyed bouncing ideas off the first baseman. Alonso is "echoing the right messaging, and he also wants to talk ball," Albernaz told me. Alonso reached the postseason in 2022 and ‘24 with the Mets, so Albernaz is leaning on the slugger to help the Orioles get back on track. After back-to-back playoff appearances (2023-24), the 2025 Orioles season was a major disappointment. They finished 75-87, last place in the American League East, and were eliminated from postseason contention by mid-September. Following a poor start, manager Brandon Hyde was fired last May. The team failed to recover largely due to an absence of strong pitching and extreme underperformance from their emerging hitters. There was a missing piece in the clubhouse and, so far, Alonso has looked like the answer. After a slow start at the plate, the slugger is beginning to heat up. Alonso’s three-run blast off Marlins right-hander Eury Perez in the first inning Wednesday was the difference in Baltimore’s 7-4 win over Miami. He’s hitting .225/.331/.449 with seven home runs and a 119 OPS+ in 37 games. "Pete was brought in to be Pete Alonso," Albernaz told me during Orioles batting practice in the Bronx this week. "And everything he brings on the field, it's been an added bonus of him being him, and how he navigates the clubhouse. It really comes down to him being a great teammate. He really wants the best out of everyone around him. He wants to help. He's there to help. He's not overbearing. As I'm talking now, he's dapping up kids and stuff. He has such a big heart. He cares so much. And he's such a fierce competitor. He really wants to win every night. He's about winning." Community service is another area where Alonso has always been a leader, and he and his wife, Haley, haven’t wasted any time giving back to Baltimore. Last month, the Alonso’s donated $10,000 through the Alonso Foundation to the Baltimore Animal Rescue and Care Shelter, a local shelter not far from Camden Yards. They’ve rescued two dogs, and they love animals, so Alonso described the decision to donate as "a quick, easy thing." And after becoming parents last September, welcoming their son, Teddy, into the world, the Alonso’s have shifted their efforts to helping families and mothers. Understanding all that it takes to raise a child, they’ve made a few donations to a local Baltimore diaper bank. "Diapers aren't cheap," Alonso said. "So we just wanted to kind of help out that way, too. We want to be able to do more, but we’ve just been so busy. As the season starts to kind of unfold, and we spend more time, we'll have a better plan of how to help out more." Paying it forward, indeed. "From The Dugout" is where we provide an insider's view on the biggest and best storylines surrounding MLB's top players and teams.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Liverpool Scales Back Plans For Ticket Price Increases After Fans Protests]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/soccer/liverpool-scales-back-plans-for-ticket-price-increases-after-protests-from-fans</link>
				<guid>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/soccer/liverpool-scales-back-plans-for-ticket-price-increases-after-protests-from-fans</guid>
				<category>soccer</category>
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				    <![CDATA[After facing a call to sell the Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group moved to quell protests from Liverpool fans by backing down over planned ticket price increases.]]>
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				<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2026 15:01:44 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[After facing a call to sell the Red Sox, Fenway Sports Group moved to quell protests from Liverpool fans by backing down over planned ticket price increases. Liverpool said Thursday it had changed its mind about inflationary price hikes planned over the next three years. The Premier League champion had been accused of greed by fans, who refused to spend money on drinks and food in the club's Anfield Stadium by way of protest. Thousands of fans held up yellow cards during a recent game against Crystal Palace with the message "Caution: Anfield's Soul at Risk." The unrest came at a time when Red Sox fans have also voiced their anger at principal owner John Henry and Boston's chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. Last week, a plane towing a banner imploring the ownership to sell the team flew over Fenway Park during batting practice. While Red Sox fans have been angered by a poor start to the season, which resulted in the firing of manager Alex Cora on April 25, Liverpool supporters have accused the hierarchy of "disregarding" fans over price hikes. They welcomed the reversal, which will now see an inflationary rise next season and prices frozen the following year. Fan group Spirit of Shankly thanked those at Liverpool who "listened to us and engaged with us, not all club hierarchies would have done the same." In February, Liverpool announced record revenues of more than $952 million for the year to May 2025. It was the highest-ranked Premier League team in terms of revenue, according to Deloitte and behind only Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain in Europe. That only added to anger from fans when price hikes were announced in March. Spirit of Shankly said at the time: "We should not be conned into thinking it is normal for prices to go up each season. This is a choice LFC are making and one that is driven by greed." While fans have acknowledged the success achieved under FSG — including two Premier League titles and the Champions League — they said the price increases were "tone-deaf and worrying." Liverpool said Thursday it would "seek longer-term alternative solutions" and "explore commercial ideas with the Supporters Board" to try to avoid future ticket price increases. But it added that "without wider progress on alternative solutions, future inflationary increases may still be required." Reporting by The Associated Press.]]>
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					<![CDATA[Last Night in Baseball: Cubs Walk Off Reds For 3rd Straight Day]]>
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				<link>https://www.foxsports.com/stories/mlb/cubs-walk-off-reds-3rd-straight-game-nats-15-runs-andy-pages-3-homers-paul-skenes-start-phillies-comeback</link>
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				<category>mlb</category>
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				    <![CDATA[The Cubs walked off the Reds for a third straight day, the Nationals scored 15 runs, Andy Pages hit three home runs, the Phillies roared back and more from Wednesday's MLB action.]]>
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				<pubDate>Thu, 07 May 2026 12:06:09 -0400</pubDate>
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				    <![CDATA[There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to follow themselves. Don't worry, we're here to help you by figuring out what you missed but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: At this point, is it more impressive that the Chicago Cubs have pulled off three straight walk-off wins, or is it more concerning that the Cincinnati Reds couldn't close out a late-game lead in three straight days? Indeed, after outfielder Michael Conforto hit a walk-off home run on Monday and first baseman Michael Busch hit a walk-off ground ball in the 10th inning on Tuesday, the Cubs made it three in a row on Wednesday, as Busch drew a bases-loaded, walk-off walk in the 10th to give the Cubs a 7-6 victory. In the previous inning, Cubs' center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a game-tying two-run home run to even the score at 6-all and force extra innings, which came after a four-run top of the ninth for the Reds that included a two-run sacrifice fly from shortstop Elly De La Cruz. Elsewhere for Chicago, left fielder Ian Happ had a game-high three hits, including a two-run home run in the bottom of the first, while right fielder Seiya Suzuki and catcher Carson Kelly each drove in a run in the fourth. As for Cincinnati, De La Cruz had three RBIs on the night, while infielders Matt McLain and Spencer Steer each hit solo homers and left fielder JJ Bleday drove in a run. The Cubs have won eight in a row and are one game behind the Atlanta Braves for the best record in the sport, while the Reds have lost six in a row and are now in last place in the National League Central. The Tampa Bay Rays have won 66.7% of their games. In beating the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday, 3-0, Tampa Bay finished off a three-game sweep of its American League East rival and is now 24-12, which is good for the fourth-best record in the big leagues and just a half-game behind the New York Yankees for first place in the AL East. Moreover, the Rays have won 12 of their last 13 games. As for Wednesday's win, the Rays rode left-hander Shane McClanahan, who gave up just three baserunners (two hits and one walk) over 5 ⅔ shutout innings. Tampa Bay outfielders Jonny DeLuca and Chandler Simpson each drove in runs in the bottom of the fourth, with DeLuca bringing in another run on an eighth-inning ground out. One bright spot for the Blue Jays, who are tied for last place in the AL East at 16-21, is rookie third baseman Kazuma Okamoto, who doubled in the loss and has hit five home runs over his last six games. The Washington Nationals gave up 11 runs to the Minnesota Twins in Game 1 of a three-game series in Washington, D.C.; they responded to that beating in emphatic fashion on Wednesday night. A night where Washington hit four home runs and tallied 14 hits saw them beat Minnesota, 15-2, which marked the Nationals' largest margin of victory this season (13 runs). Those long balls came from catcher Drew Millas and infielders Brady House and CJ Abrams — who hit a grand slam as part of a seven-run eighth inning and finished with a game-high three hits, which were all extra-base knocks — and designated hitter Jose Tena. Furthermore, all four of the aforementioned players, as well as outfielders James Wood and Jacob Young, each had multi-hit performances. On the mound, Nationals starter Miles Mikolas surrendered just two runs over 5 ⅓ innings, with left-hander Mitchell Parker and right-hander Zak Kent proceeding to pitch 3 ⅔ perfect innings in relief of the veteran starter. Minnesota starter Bailey Ober was able to get through the fifth inning, but the bullpen forked over 10 runs across the ensuing three innings, with every reliever that entered the game giving up at least one run. Washington's pitching staff is 28th in MLB with a 4.82 ERA, but its offense is fourth in runs (198) and tied for eighth in hits (308). Put it all together, and a 17-20 mark sounds about right. Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages is off to a good start. Correction: Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages is off to an MVP-caliber start. Pages finished the rubber match of the Dodgers' three-game series against the Houston Astros with three hits; they were all home runs. Pages had a game-high six RBIs in what was a 12-2 win for Los Angeles. Granted, his last home run came against Astros' catcher César Salazar in the top of the ninth. Nevertheless, the Dodgers' center fielder has now totaled eight home runs, a National League-high 33 RBIs, six stolen bases and 2.4 wins above replacement this season, while boasting a .336/.376/.569 slash line. As for how the Dodgers got their other six runs, they had three runs off wild pitches from Astros' starter Lance McCullers Jr., an RBI double from first baseman Freddie Freeman and RBI singles from designated hitter Shohei Ohtani and second baseman Alex Freeland. All that said, the Dodgers' bullpen was as vital as Pages and the collective offensive outing. After right-hander Tyler Glasnow was removed from the game due to back pain after the first inning, the team's relief corps gave up just one run over eight innings. It appears that a trip out West was just what the New York Mets needed. On the heels of winning two out of three on the road against the Los Angeles Angels last weekend, New York secured a second consecutive series win on Wednesday night, beating the Colorado Rockies in Denver for a second consecutive game, this time by a score of 10-5 (the Mets won 4-2 on Monday, but Tuesday's matchup was snowed out). Left fielder Juan Soto led off the game for the Mets with a solo home run. Staying on the home run front, second baseman Marcus Semien — who had a game-high four hits — hit a two-run shot in the top of the ninth. The Mets finished the game with 15 hits, as eight of nine starters recorded a hit and six players had multi-hit nights: Semien, fellow infielders Bo Bichette and Brett Baty, outfielders MJ Melendez and Carson Benge and designated hitter Francisco Alvarez. While he threw 91 pitches, Mets' right-hander Freddy Peralta pitched five scoreless innings. New York is now 14-22, good for being five-and-a-half games behind the Milwaukee Brewers for the third NL wild-card seed. The Pittsburgh Pirates have this starting pitcher named "Paul Skenes"; he's very good at pitching. And on Wednesday night, the defending NL Cy Young Award winner had arguably his best start of the season, as Skenes threw eight shutout innings and posted seven strikeouts, while surrendering just two baserunners (two hits) on the road against the Arizona Diamondbacks. Left-hander Gregory Soto then shut the door in the ninth inning for Pittsburgh. Ironically, the D-backs blanked the Pirates on Tuesday night, 9-0. While Pittsburgh returned the favor in that regard, it only scored one run, as second baseman Brandon Lowe's first-inning solo home run would account for all the game's runs, that being a 1-0 Pirates victory. On the season, Skenes owns a 2.36 ERA, an NL-best 0.71 WHIP, 46 strikeouts, an 181 ERA+ and 1.5 wins above replacement over 42.0 innings pitched (eight starts). Skenes' gem in the desert was his longest start of the year and third shutout in his last four outings. Nathan Eovaldi made a Yankees' offense that leads MLB with 61 home runs look pedestrian. Taking the hill for Game 2 of the Texas Rangers' three-game set in the Bronx, Eovaldi pitched eight innings, recording eight strikeouts and surrendering just one run and three baserunners (three hits). And the Rangers hit for the right-hander, as shortstop Corey Seager blasted a solo home run in the top of the first and drove in two runs on the night, while center fielder Evan Carter hit a two-run shot in the third as part of a three-run inning for Texas; second baseman Ezequiel Durán also drove in two runs, while first baseman Jake Burger had two hits in what was a 6-1 win for the Rangers. Eovaldi, who had a 1.73 ERA over 22 starts in 2025, recorded a 5.79 ERA over his first six starts this season. Now, over his last two outings, Eovaldi has given up a combined one run and one walk over 15.0 innings pitched, which were both victories against the Yankees. The only run New York scored in those two games? A solo home run from three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge in the bottom of the sixth on Wednesday night. The Boston Red Sox had their way with the Detroit Tigers this week. After a come-from-behind victory on Monday and a 10-run showing on Tuesday, the Red Sox finished off a sweep of the Tigers in Detroit on Wednesday, getting a 4-0 win. Right-hander Sonny Gray pitched five shutout innings in what was his first start since returning from the injured list due to a hamstring injury, an effort which Boston's bullpen followed with four shutout innings. As for the bats, third baseman Caleb Durbin drove in the first run of the game on an RBI double in the top of the third. Two batters later, first baseman Willson Contreras drove in a run on a sacrifice fly. The following inning, Boston took a 4-0 lead after catcher Carlos Narváez drove in a pair of runs on a ground ball that got past third baseman Colt Keith. The Red Sox outscored the Tigers in the series, 19-7. The Seattle Mariners got their most impressive series win of the year this week. Right-hander Bryan Woo pitched six shutout innings, logging nine strikeouts and giving up just three baserunners (two walks and one hit) en route to a 3-1 win for the Mariners over the Atlanta Braves on Wednesday, helping Seattle take two out of three against Atlanta, which has the best record in the sport (26-12). Leading 1-0 in the bottom of the sixth, star outfielder Julio Rodriguez created the needed separation for Seattle with a solo home run to center field. The homer was hit at 110.4 mph and traveled 436 feet, which were both season-highs for Rodriguez. Seattle's other two runs came on an RBI groundout from catcher Cal Raleigh in the third and an RBI double from second baseman Cole Young in the eighth. Atlanta's one run came on a sacrifice fly from Dominic Smith in the top of the eighth. While they still have a losing record, the Mariners' 18-20 mark has them just one game behind the Athletics for first place in the AL West. The Athletics had the Philadelphia Phillies on the ropes in the bottom of the eighth, but then the latter woke up in a big way. Trailing 3-2 with one out in the penultimate inning of play, Philadelphia got two of the first three batters of the inning on-base. Then, infielder Edmundo Sosa brought in two runs with a single up the middle, giving the Phillies a 4-3 lead. Two batters later, outfielder Brandon Marsh drove in a run on an RBI single and Justin Crawford later drove in another run on a ground out. The A's made it interesting in the top of the ninth, as they loaded the bases and brought the go-ahead run to the plate, but Phillies reliever Brad Keller evaded the catastrophe and finished off a 6-3 win. As for the rest of the game, right-hander Zack Wheeler made his third start of the year for the Phillies, giving up three runs over 6 ⅓ innings, while left fielder Felix Reyes drove in a run on a ground out in the fifth and right fielder Adolis Garcia hit a solo home run in the sixth; the A's got their three runs off a solo home run from left fielder Tyler Soderstrom and RBI singles from Jacob Wilson and Nick Kurtz. Philadelphia has won eight of its last nine games.]]>
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