It was a fine afternoon for baseball, because the weather is always great when you’ve got a dome. The Rays were looking to sweep their series against the Red Sox, and to get the job done, they had Drew Rasmussen on the mound. He was up against Jake Bennett for the Sox.

Rasmussen got things started by doing what Drew does best, and he got the side out in order. In the bottom of the inning, the Rays did the same, though, so not an ideal way to get things going.

It was another 1-2-3 for the Red Sox in the top of the second, but once again, the Rays also didn’t get a baserunner on.

Caleb Durbin broke the hitting dry spell for the game with a leadoff single in the top of the third. Isiah Kiner-Falefa then grounded into a force out to eliminate Durbin. Once on first, IKF stole second, but he got greedy trying to steal third and was tagged out. The Rays finally managed to get their offense working in the home half with a leadoff double from Nick Fortes. A sac bunt from Cedric Mullins moved Fortes to third, then a sac fly from Taylor Walls brought him home and put the Rays on the board first. Love to see a little small ball action.

The Sox went three-up, three-down in the fourth. Does Drew Rasmussen have somewhere to be? Love the efficiency. In the home half, Junior Caminero singled. One out later, Jonathan Aranda joined him with a single. With two runners on, though, they weren’t able to bring anyone home.

Willson Contreras was hit by a pitch to start the fifth. Then, with one out Masataka Yoshida singled. Rasmussen got himself out of the jam, though, collecting the next two outs of the inning. Nick Fortes decided he was going to have himself a game and opened the home half with another double. Then, with one out, Walls singled to push Fortes to third. A Yandy Diaz single brought him home. Then Austin Slater doubled to score Walls, putting the Rays up 3-0.

They weren’t done quite yet, though. Caminero was intentionally walked, which evidently Ryan Vilade took personally, because he hit a sac fly to score Diaz.

If the Red Sox were hoping for a comeback, they sure didn’t show it, going 1-2-3 in the top of the sixth. That was all she wrote for Bennett, who was replaced by Ryan Watson. Fortes continued to dominate, getting a one-out single in the bottom of the inning. Then, with two outs, Walls singled, bumping Fortes to third. A Yandy Diaz single brought Fortes in to score for the third time in the game. Walls then stole second, and a wild pitch allowed Diaz to advance, but the Rays had to settle for just the one run.

With two outs in the seventh, Mickey Gasper walked, but he was soon walking right back to the dugout as Rasmussen got out of the inning. The Rays didn’t do anything to add to their lead in the bottom of the inning.

Rasmussen was done after seven, with a final line of 7.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB and an INSANE 13 K on 97 pitches. He was replaced by Cole Sulser, and the first thing Sulser did was give up a solo home run to Durbin. Then Kiner-Falefa walked. After getting an out, Sulser was done, replaced by Steven Matz. Jarren Durran singled, then Ceddanne Rafaela homered, bringing the score to 5-4. With two outs in the inning, Matz was replaced by Casey Legumina, who got the final out. If I was Drew Rasmussen, I’d be pretty annoyed. Justin Slaten was the new pitcher for the Red Sox, and with one out, Fortes singled again. Chandler Simpson came in to run for him, and then Cedric Mullins hit a home run to recover a few of those runs.

Yandy Diaz singled, and the Sox dipped back into their pen for Greg Weissert who got the final out of the inning.

Garrett Cleavinger came on for the Rays in the ninth and with two outs, gave up another home run to Durbin. Those extra runs were certainly looking extra nice right about now. Kiner-Falefa walked after challenging his call, and the took second on defensive indifference. Cleavinger did manage to get the final out and the Rays walked away with both a game and series win.

Final: Rays 7, Red Sox 5

The Braves are looking to force a rubber match tomorrow with a win tonight behind Chris Sale.

Chicago waited until the last second to confirm it, but they will indeed send Davis Martin to the mound to face the Ronald Acuña Jr.-less Braves. Upside for us, downside for his teammates? More time for pranks, maybe.

(The roster moves today: Ronald to the 10-day IL for the strained left hamstring (hello, Rowdy Tellez), Tyler Kinley to the 15-day IL for his elbow, James Karinchak selected, JR Ritchie recalled, and Carlos Carrasco DFA’d.)

Even though the role of RAJ was played by Eli White on last night’s great outfield assist, it will be Michael Harris II batting leadoff. Ozzie Albies will hit second, and then we’ll go from small to tall with Matt Olson in the three-hole. Dominic Smith will hit in the cleanup spot, followed by Mauricio Dubon making a start in left field. Austin Riley (sixth) and Mike Yastrzemski (seventh) aren’t surprising to see. Walt Weiss rounds out the lineup with Jorge Mateo at shortstop and Austin Wynns catching and batting ninth for a second straight start. 

Atlanta isn’t the only one shaking things up – the White Sox have reengineered their whole lineup to face a southpaw. The only constant from last night’s lineup is Luisangel Acuña playing SS and hitting eighth. 

Last night’s walkoff hero Braden Montgomery remains in right field but moves up a spot to bat fifth. What a great story for your major league debut… just wish it didn’t have to happen to us. But that’s baseball! 

New face Edgar Quero will start instead of Drew Romo to catch and bat cleanup. Randal Grichuk, who came in late last night as a pinch-hitter, will DH and bat second behind Chase Meidroth. As mentioned in the preview, Grichuk has the most history versus Sale. Miguel Vargas drops a spot to bat third and play third. Derek Hill will man left field and bat fifth. Jacob Gonzalez remains at first base but will bat seventh, and following Acuña in the nine-hole will be center fielder Tristan Peters.

First pitch is at 7:40 pm ET.

Getaway games can never just be normal, can they?

Carlos Rodón’s second pitch of the game was hit out of the park, Angel Martínez played right field like he was doing shots in between innings, Trent Grisham had one of the most consequential ABS challenges of the year … this game had a bit of everything. Despite all the chaos, the Yankees got exactly what they needed — a sweep of the Cleveland Guardians, and it wasn’t some one-run affair this time.

Pour one out for the Yankee starter with that opening home run, but the Yankees did well to get right back in the game. A pair of leadoff singles had them in business early, just in time for Jazz Chisholm Jr. to crack another big hit, not waiting for the eighth inning this time:

That hit helped push Jazz officially over 100 wRC+ on the season, and the keystoner is warming up with the weather. The Yankees benefitted from a Guardians error one batter later, with Chisholm coming home to make it 3-1.

Rodón had kind of a funky day, up and down almost along with the inning count. The first inning wasn’t very good, with the aforementioned leadoff home run, a walk, and soft single allowed. A clean second inning followed and a clean third would have to if Anthony Volpe was a major-league-caliber shortstop, but I am becoming increasingly convinced he is not:

Carlos was able to work around what was officially scored a single and error, sparing Volpe any more venom than he rightfully received for the misplay. The fourth inning was once again trouble for the southpaw though, as he issued two leadoff walks and Austin Hedges made him pay with a double that plated one of those runners, and a followup sac fly tied the game at three. And then Good Rodón was back, icing the Guardians through the fifth and sixth, finishing a full frame deeper than I thought he would based on his pitch count in the fourth.

Critical was that perfect sixth inning, a shutdown affair as the Yankees picked the top half to be their breakout frame, kicked off by Grisham’s keen eye:

We don’t get WPA for turnovers, but by that metric this has to be one of the bigger swings of the season. Grisham going down would have left the Guardians two out, nobody on, in a tie ball game.

Fallacy of the predetermined outcome and all, but José Caballero’s subsequent fly ball would have ended the inning instead of giving the Yankees the lead — although Grisham does deserve additional credit for one heck of a slide:

From there the club had themselves a nice little two-out rally, with Volpe and Paul Goldschmidt tacking runs on in the tack-on portion of the game:

We got that big inning from Carlos, and the Yankees added two more runs in the seventh to push the lead to five. Brent Headrick and Ryan Yarbrough teamed up after Rodón’s six innings, and while Yarbrough did allow a run to cross in the ninth, a pair of nifty defensive plays from the left side of the infield was enough to seal the game, series, and sweep.

The Yankees did what they had to to keep pace with the Rays, who finished off their own sweep of the Red Sox at the Trop. There’s truly no salve like the AL Central, and now the team will enjoy an off day in June in Toronto, which is a pretty good deal for anyone. Ryan Weathers is expected to get the ball against the Yanks’ now-familiar nemesis Trey Yesavage on Friday night to kick off a three-game series with the Blue Jays, so we’ll see you all for the 7:07pm first pitch.

Box Score

Pretty embarrassing series start to finish, especially on the heels of taking 2 out of 3 from this same team in the Bronx. Starting pitching was an absolute mess, furthered today by Messick giving up a career-high 5-runs against a Judge-less Yankees lineup. The bullpen was, again, an embarrassment. Festa came on in relief of Messick and gave up a run and Heuer gave up 2 runs only recording 2 outs. On the bright side, Will Dion pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out 3!

The game started well, at least, with Martinez hitting a leadoff homer.

The Yankees scored 3 runs in the 2nd, and the Guardians tied the game in the 4th.

From there on out it was all New York.

This last month-ish of mediocre baseball from the Guardians (paired with the White Sox seemingly being a team of destiny) is going to make the trade deadline much more difficult than it looked early on. This team has gaping holes in the rotation (whether it’s an abject lack of depth or an inability for the non-Gavin-and-Parker starters to establish themselves as the SP3), in the bullpen (even with a healthy Sabrowski), and in the lineup. Getting tossed around by a Yankees team — when you didn’t have to face their best starter or the best hitter on the planet — is an embarrassment. This team desperately needs another injection of youth into the 26-man roster, and I just don’t see how the front office can neglect the bullpen (with Aleman still waiting in the wings and an external addition absolutely necessary) and lineup (with Valera, Ralphy, Ingle, and Watson all raking in AAA) much longer.

The Guardians will host a hot Detroit team this weekend, with Skubal perhaps making his return at some point during that series. The White Sox now hold a share of first place in the division (with the chance to own it alone tonight) for the first time in 4 years.

Johan Rojas won't be returning to the field this season after all.

The Philadelphia Phillies outfielder suffered a UCL tear in his right elbow and will now need surgery, the team revealed on Wednesday. The plan, as of now, is for Rojas to be ready for spring training next season.

The injury came while Rojas was ramping up baseball activities in recent weeks as he neared the end of an 80-game suspension. Rojas tested positive for the banned performance-enhancing drug Boldenone in March, which led to the league suspending him for nearly half of the season and making him ineligible for the playoffs. Rojas was removed from the Dominican Republic's roster for the World Baseball Classic as a result, too. 

Rojas was set to return from that suspension on June 25. Now, he'll have to wait until next season. 

The 25-year-old has spent his entire career with the Phillies after making his MLB debut with the organization in 2023. He held a .224 batting average with one home run and 18 RBIs last season in 71 games. He was demoted to the team's Triple-A affiliate in August, and didn't play with the Phillies for the rest of the campaign. 

The Yankees completed a three-game sweep of the Cleveland Guardians, winning Wednesday's matinee by a score of 8-4.

Here are the takeaways…

-- A big moment came in the top of the sixth, with the game tied 3-3. After Trent Grisham was initially called out on strikes (the call was challenged and overturned), he then laced a ball over the head of Angel Martinez in right, good for a one-out triple. Grisham came around to score on a Jose Caballero sac fly to left, thanks to a great slide into home plate. And the rally would continue from there.

-- Anthony Volpe had a fielding mistake earlier in the game, throwing one away at first base in the third inning on what was ruled a Jose Ramirez infield single. Ramirez advanced to second on the wild throw, but luckily for the Yankees, the Guardians didn’t score in that inning. It was Volpe’s second error since being called up.

But the young shortstop made up for it in the bottom of the sixth, roping a double to left to put the Yankees up 5-3. Paul Goldschmidt followed up with another RBI hit to right to extend the lead to three runs.

--Carlos Rodon, who owned a 2.88 ERA coming into the game, allowed a leadoff home run to Martinez, who smoked the second pitch of the game 406 feet for a solo shot. But from there he was fairly solid on the bump.

Rodon allowed two more earned runs in the fourth after walking the first two batters, but he ended up turning in a quality start. The lefty went six innings, allowing three earned runs on four hits with seven strikeouts and three walks.

-- Jazz Chisholm Jr. had another big hit against a lefty, roping a two-run triple to right in the second inning off of Guardians starter Parker Messick. Chisholm drove in three runs and scored a pair of runs on the afternoon.

Grisham, meanwhile, had a pair of hits and scored three runs.

Highlights

Jazz stays hot 🔥

Vote Jazz 🗳️ https://t.co/8m0RdBIan1pic.twitter.com/z4oMUDe09M

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 10, 2026

One out triple for Grish puts the go-ahead run on third! pic.twitter.com/Winw2hOgom

— Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) June 10, 2026

¡José, José, José! pic.twitter.com/HaVfK5YBEv

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) June 10, 2026

Next up

The Yankees are off on Thursday before facing the Blue Jays in Toronto over the weekend in a three-game series.

Well, June was a rough time for the Guardians in 2025 and it is shaping up that way again.

Parker Messick didn’t have it today and Matt Festa and Codi Heuer continue to be bad. Festa was good in 2025. He is not now.

The Guardians actually scored 3 runs off of Carlos Rodon. A minor miracle. Angel Martinez may very well become our first outfielder to hit 20 homers since Elmer Flick. At least it feels that way.

I hate when they play the Yankees. I hate that the Yankees won those first two close games and then blew them out today. I find myself looking at the Columbus box score and hoping that Kahlil Watson and Cooper Ingle sitting today means they are getting a call up for Detroit, but doesn’t that just mean Grant Fink and co. will fail to finish developing them?

Bring me Watson, Ingle, and have Franco Aleman and Andrew Walters join them in the Uber. Or, don’t and just make Friday’s delightful surprise Gabriel Arias for Stuart Fairchild and some more sacrifice bunts. That’s cool, too, I guess.

The game isn’t even over so I can’t tell you the score. The Yankees are up 8-3 but it’ll probably get worse. Let’s hope the Tigers fall apart in Cleveland again.

Tampa Bay Rays pitcher Drew Rasmussen mowed down the Boston Red Sox's Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu during a 7-5 win on Wednesday afternoon at Tropicana Field. And then the righty did it again, and again.

Rasmussen struck out each of Boston's top-three batters three times. In the first and fourth innings, the 2025 All-Star got all three of them swinging.

In a surgical performance that paralyzed an already stagnant Red Sox offense, Rasmussen piled up 13 Ks, shattering his previous career high of 10 that he set in a victory over the New York Yankees on Sept. 9, 2022.

Continuing to jockey for first place with this year’s Yankees in the AL East, the Rays (40-25) completed a sweep of the Red Sox (27-39) on Wednesday. Boston has lost four games in a row and six of its past eight contests.

Rasmussen allowed only two hits in seven innings of work. He didn't give up a run. The bulk of the Red Sox's scoring came in the top of the eighth, the first frame Rasmussen wasn't on the bump.

Caleb Durbin launched a solo shot to left off right-handed reliever Cole Sulser. Soon after, with Steven Matz on the hill, Rafaela suddenly found success, taking an 83-mph changeup to left for a three-run homer that made it a 5-4 game.

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The Braves placed their franchise outfielder on the 10-day IL Wednesday, June 10 with a strained left hamstring. It is the second time this season that same injury has put him on the IL. He left Tuesday night’s game against the White Sox after trying to beat out a ground ball to third base, the kind of play he used to make look effortless.

The Braves had been hopeful he would not need a trip to the injured list this time, and Acuna told reporters he didn’t think it was as bad and he had no pain.

Still, before Wednesday night’s series finale in Chicago, Acuna was back on the shelf.

His history of injuries is getting long.

He had a torn right ACL that ended his 2021 season. A torn left ACL ended his 2024 season after just 49 games. He opened 2025 still finishing that rehab, added a calf strain in July and played just 95 total games. Now in 2026, he has hit the IL twice with the same left hamstring issue. That is five lower-body IL stints across five seasons.

The Braves can absorb this, for now.

Michael Harris II is having the best season of his career, hitting .308 with 13 home runs. He is the reason Atlanta’s outfield does not feel depleted right now. Beyond Harris, the depth runs thin. We'll see Mike Ystremzeski in a platoon role and more Eli White, who replaced Acuna the moment he limped off Tuesday night.

Rowdy Tellez was added to the roster with Jhancarlos Lara designated for assignment to open the spot on the 40-man roster.

In between his injuries, Acuna has shown flashes of stardom. In 2023, his last full season, he hit 41 homers, scored 149 runs and stole 73 bases, becoming the first 40/70 player in MLB history.

More: Ronald Acuna Jr. injury update: What we know after Braves star exits vs. White Sox

As we look ahead to this year's trade deadline, there are a few players who are extremely valuable based on a few factors. Those factors include their production so far this season, their contract status and salary, and even their years of club control remaining. The players below might not all be traded this summer, but they are prized potential trade chips for their current teams. 

Here are the 10 most valuable trade assets ahead of this year's deadline.

10. Luis Arráez, 2B, San Francisco Giants

Arráez can roll out of bed and deliver a team two hits without striking out. In a season when teams are struggling to hit league-wide, Arráez provides plenty of value at this year's trade deadline. The Giants' second baseman, who's hitting .326 with 84 hits and a 122 wRC+, is having a resurgent year offensively and playing on a one-year deal, meaning he would be a quality rental for any contender in need of offense. That's not to mention the jump Arráez has made defensively in 2026, which only increases the value he can bring for two months.

9. Willson Contreras, 1B, Boston Red Sox

Right-handed power is a valuable commodity, and it's one of the things that makes Contreras stand out at this year's deadline. So far this season, he has been one of the only Red Sox hitters who has had success, leading Boston in nearly every offensive category. The first baseman is currently hitting .288 with 13 homers and a .906 OPS in 63 games. And in what is looking like a season in which Boston has to sell, making the most of Contreras' value and getting valuable pieces for the future in return might be in the Sox's best interest.

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8. Michael Soroka, SP, Arizona Diamondbacks

A year ago, Soroka was a trade-deadline acquisition by the Cubs. Thanks to an injury suffered in his first start in Chicago and a lengthy stay on the injured list, the second half of his season didn't go as planned. But so far in 2026, Soroka has been one of the biggest surprises in baseball. The Arizona right-hander is 8-3 with a 3.28 ERA through 13 starts.

Once again, he has put himself in position to be on the move if Arizona decides to sell. Soroka, who signed a one-year, $7.5 million deal in the offseason, would be one of the rental arms on the market. For a team looking for a quality rotation addition for the stretch run, Soroka fills that need.

6 and 7. Michael Wacha and Seth Lugo, SP, Kansas City Royals 

If there's one thing both Wacha and Lugo have brought to the Royals' rotation over the past three seasons, it's consistency. Wacha (4-4, 3.44 ERA) and Lugo (2-4, 3.91 ERA) have been two of the American League's best starters in recent years, and with both having one more year of club control after this season, they could be intriguing targets for teams looking for rotation help for both this season and next season.

Kansas City's moves the past few seasons have just not worked out the way the team had hoped. But starting pitching has been an area of strength for the Royals lately. Moving one or both of their better arms could be the key to injecting some much-needed life into both the farm system and the big-league roster, while knowing the rotation has quality arms such as Cole Ragans and Noah Cameron to build around in the future.

Henry Russell/Yahoo Sports

5. Freddy Peralta, SP, New York Mets

It seems hard to believe that just six months after the New York Mets acquired Peralta from the Milwaukee Brewers, trading the right-hander again is a possibility. But given the way the Mets have played in the season's first half, president of baseball operations David Stearns might not have a choice. Peralta, who will be a free agent at season's end, would be one of the bigger names moved this summer if New York decides to sell. The Mets' right-hander, who is 4-5 with a 4.04 ERA, has postseason experience and the stuff to be the best arm on a contender's staff down the stretch.

4. Aroldis Chapman, RP, Boston Red Sox

Ten years ago, Chapman was a premier trade-deadline acquisition for the 2016 Chicago Cubs, who went on to win the World Series. And 10 years later, still throwing harder than 100 mph in the ninth inning, the Red Sox's closer is once again a coveted trade-deadline target. Chapman, who at 38 years old has a 0.46 ERA and 13 saves, will be the best bullpen arm available this summer, and his 2027 option vests with 40 innings pitched, something he's already almost halfway to achieving (19 ⅔ IP through Tuesday).

3. Joe Ryan, SP, Minnesota Twins

Ryan's name has been swirling in trade rumors for some time, and things will be no different at this year's deadline. The 30-year-old righty has been one of the American League's most consistent starters the past several seasons and is once again proving he's a frontline arm, with a 4-3 record and a 3.07 ERA through 14 starts this season. The extra appeal for any team looking to acquire a frontline starter is that the Twins' ace has an additional year of club control after this season. That also gives Minnesota more leverage to get a strong return.

2. Yordan Álvarez, DH/LF, Houston Astros 

Álvarez is the least likely player on this list to be traded, but that doesn't mean he isn't an extremely valuable trade asset. The Astros' slugger is putting together an MVP-worthy first half and the best season of his career, hitting .317 with 22 homers and an MLB-leading 1.074 OPS through 68 games. 

So why would Houston entertain trading him? For a decade, the Astros were perennial World Series contenders, and when you're always in win-now mode, you use your prospect capital to address needs at the major-league level. Houston was extremely successful in doing that, but at this point, it has left the farm system depleted. Álvarez has two more years of club control after this season, and when you combine that with his otherworldly talent, the haul the Astros could get in return for him would be massive — even more than it would take to get the final superstar on this list.

1. Tarik Skubal, SP, Detroit Tigers

This wasn't a hard choice. Skubal is the most valuable trade asset in the sport at this year's deadline. And you could make the case that he has been the most valuable trade asset the past three trade deadlines as well. The Tigers' ace is the best pitcher in baseball, and despite his being on the IL for the past month after having a loose body removed from his left elbow, he's close to completing a rehab assignment and returning to Detroit's rotation. 

Prior to going on the injured list, the back-to-back AL Cy Young Award winner, who is a free agent at season's end, was doing what he usually does, with a 2.70 ERA and 45 strikeouts in his first seven starts. A player of this caliber is rarely available even as a two-month rental. Skubal would be an extremely valuable final piece for any contender trying to make a push to win the World Series.

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The Red Sox showed exactly why the lineup just hasn’t been good enough all season long. The group made the wrong kind of history in Wednesday’s matinee loss as the Tampa Bay Rays completed the sweep. 

Boston is 12 games under .500 as the season swirls further away from the team’s control. 

Here’s three takeaways from Wednesday’s loss. 

FOR THE HISTORY BOOKS! (Yikes)

Drew Rasmussen completely carved the Red Sox lineup from start to finish in the series finale. Tampa Bay’s right-hander had thrown the ball well(entered with 3.00 ERA in 12 starts) and took it to a new level against the AL East counterpart. 

Rasmussen set a career high with 13 strikeouts in seven scoreless innings with just two hits allowed. Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu all struck out in each of the first three turns of the order, marking the first time the top three hitters in an MLB lineup have done that since 1901, per the NESN broadcast. 

Boston’s dugout rejoiced when Tampa Bay went to the bullpen to start the eighth inning. Clearly the Red Sox found an opportunity. 

Caleb Durbin did hit a 415-foot solo shot for his first home run off of a non-position player in the eighth inning. Boston’s third baseman is up to .278 in his last 10 games and hit another solo homer in the ninth. Later in the frame, Ceddanne Rafaela took a massive cut against former teammate Steven Matz for a three-run blast to left field. 

Despite the late rally, Boston still struck out a glaring 15 times in the game.

JAKE BENNETT CAN BE SERVICEABLE
Boston’s No. 6 prospect (MLB Pipeline) returned for his third MLB start and struck out two in the first inning with five swings-and-misses. 

Bennett struck out four in five innings. The four earned runs on his line could’ve been cut down had Isiah Kiner-Faleka not misplayed a potential double play ball that should’ve ended the starter’s final frame. 

NOT SO WELCOME BACK TO THE TROP 

The Red Sox actually had a decent run at Tropicana Field the last season they visited in 2024 at a 4-2 clip. 

Boston previously went a combined 2-15 in St. Petersburg in 2022 and 2023. The Red Sox fell back into those struggles this week and will return for another clash with the Rays from Sept. 18-20.

The Los Angeles Dodgers visit the Pittsburgh Pirates tonight, and they're in a great position to notch a victory with Shohei Ohtani on the mound. 

My Dodgers vs. Pirates predictions are eyeing L.A. to grab a convincing win behind their two-way superstar. 

Read on for my MLB picks for Wednesday, June 10.

Who will win Dodgers vs Pirates today: Dodgers -1.5 (-118)

The Los Angeles Dodgers will be licking their chops ahead of this matchup. 

Jared Jones takes the hill for the Pittsburgh Pirates, and he owns a brutal 5.78 xERA across his last two starts. During that span, Jones also has a 50% hard-hit rate while allowing 1.93 home runs per nine innings. 

That's bad news against a Dodgers team that ranks fourth in the big leagues in long balls. L.A. also has a 41.6% hard hit rate over their last six games, while owning an xSLG of .412.

Shohei Ohtani counters for the visitors, and he's been absolutely lights-out.

Ohtani sports a 2.27 FIP over his last four starts, while holding opponents to a .115 average. He's given up only one earned run over his previous four outings as well.

I'd play this up to -150. 

COVERS INTEL: Shohei Ohtani has limited opponents to a 3.8% barrel rate over the last month, consistently inducing weak contact. 

Dodgers vs Pirates Over/Under pick: Over 7.5 (-125)

This is a prime opportunity for the Dodgers to explode offensively, but there's more reason to believe we'll see the Over hit tonight. Both of these bullpens are struggling to get outs.

L.A.'s pen sports a 4.50 xERA over the last week, with a hard-hit rate of 39.5%. Ohtani rarely pitches past the sixth inning, so they will be busy when he exits, and the relievers aren't thriving at the moment. 

As for the Bucs, their bullpen owns a 4.41 xFIP over the last 14 days while allowing 5.63 walks per nine innings. While I expect the Dodgers to do damage against Jones, given Pittsburgh's inconsistent command and poor form, L.A. could also score more runs when Jones departs. 

There are multiple paths to offense, making 7.5 runs a relatively modest number to clear. I'll play this pick up to -140. 

Dodgers vs Pirates odds

• Moneyline: Dodgers -198 | Pirates +166
• Run line: Dodgers -1.5 (-126) | Pirates +1.5 (+106)
• Over/Under: Over 7.5 (-127) | Under 7.5 (+122)

Dodgers vs Pirates trend

The Dodgers have covered the run line in 27 of their last 45 away games for +9.90 units and a 18% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Dodgers vs. Pirates.

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The NCAA Transfer Portal opened on June 1 for college baseball and will close on June 30. Through the first week or so of the portal, there’s already plenty of talent. Below you’ll find the top 25 overall players who have entered their names so far, as of June 8.

While the portal is open, the season is still ongoing. The College World Series will get underway in Omaha on Friday, June 12.

For a full rundown of college baseball’s transfer portal, bookmark On3’s tracker with the latest entries and commitments. On3 also has the latest intel on players in the portal.

1. Notre Dame OF Bino Watters (committed to LSU)

Bino Watters has been one of the ACC’s most productive hitters in his two seasons at Notre Dame. As a freshman in 2025, he hit .317 with nine home runs and a .984 OPS, driving in 39 runs with 26 strikeouts to 32 walks.

This season, Watters broke out even more. In 2026, he hit .362 with 10 homers and 51 RBI. He finished with a 1.057 OPS. He’s our top-ranked transfer at this point.

2. Clemson C Nate Savoie

2026 was Nate Savoie’s first at Clemson, and he had quite the season. He hit .329 in 57 games with the Tigers, belting 16 home runs with 52 RBI in addition to a 1.009 OPS.

Savoie was also a star in 2025 at Loyola Marymount. In his two-year career, he’s hitting .316 with 36 home runs.

3. Gonzaga RHP Landon Hood (committed to LSU)

Landon Hood was one of the best pitchers in the country this season at Gonzaga. While he only made four starts, he tossed 54.1 innings as a key piece of the Gonzaga bullpen.

In 16 appearances, Hood posted a 2.48 ERA with 78 strikeouts to just 21 walks. He finished the season with five saves. He’s already committed to LSU.

4. Washington OF Jackson Hotchkiss

Jackson Hotchkiss is one of the best power bats available in the college baseball transfer portal right now. He took an enormous step forward in 2026 after hitting .241 with six homers as a freshman in 2025.

This season, Hotchkiss hit .339 with 20 home runs and 47 RBI. He’s also stolen 16 bases through his two seasons.

5. Northwestern State LHP Brody Trosclair (committed to Tennessee)

Brody Trosclair is one of the most intriguing players available to this point. The lefthander just wrapped up his freshman season at Northwestern State, posting a 1.89 ERA in 10 appearances (four starts).

Trosclair tossed 38 innings in 2026, striking out 55 batters with just 11 walks. He earned First Team All-Southland Conference and Southland Conference Pitcher of the Year honors as a freshman.

6. UConn LHP Cayden Suchy

Another intriguing left-hander, Cayden Suchy was the Big East Pitcher of the Year in 2026 at UConn. He made 14 starts and threw 82.1 innings, with one complete game.

Suchy posted a 2.84 ERA in 2026. He struck out 94 batters with just 23 walks on the season.

7. Fairleigh Dickinson OF Hunter Ray

Hunter Ray made some real noise in 2026. The FDU outfielder was the NEC Player of the Year after finishing second in the country with 32 home runs.

Ray didn’t just hit for power, as he finished with a .345 average this season. He drove in 81 runs and also stole 24 bases, making him a well-rounded and coveted bat in college baseball’s portal.

8. Mercer C Eli Stephens (committed to Georgia Tech)

Eli Stephens hit .267 in limited action as a freshman in 2025 at Mercer, but he broke out in 2026. The sophomore catcher hit .374 this season, belting 20 home runs with 64 RBI.

Stephens was a big part of Mercer’s success in 2026. He finished with an OPS of 1.224. He’s committed to Georgia Tech.

9. Florida Gulf Coast C Jon Embury (Florida commit)

Jon Embury was one of the nation’s top catchers in 2026, finishing as a semifinalist for the Buster Posey Award. He hit .364 this season with 17 home runs and 60 RBI.

Embury finished the season with a 1.084 OPS. He also hit 13 doubles. And Embury has already committed to Florida for 2027.

10. Kansas State OF AJ Evasco

AJ Evasco has had two productive seasons at Kansas State. As a freshman in 2025, he hit .311 with 11 home runs and 52 RBI.

Evasco improved his average to .348 in 2026, while he hit eight homers and 51 RBI. So far across his two seasons, he’s a career .330 hitter with 19 homers, 103 RBI and a .949 OPS.

College Baseball Transfer Portal Rankings: 11-25

11. Baylor IF Travis Sanders
12. Wake Forest RHP Blake Morningstar (Miami commit)
13. Texas State SS Dawson Park (LSU commit)
14. Texas Tech SS Linkin Garcia (Texas commit)
15. Mercer 1B/RHP Braydon Kersey (Tennessee commit)
16. South Carolina LHP Alex Valentin
17. Coastal Carolina IF Walker Mitchell (South Carolina commit)
18. Pittsburgh C Sebastian Pisacreta
19. Cal Baptist SS Chris Ramirez
20. Florida State C Hunter Carns
21. UCF SS Jordan Lodise (Georgia Tech commit)
22. Georgia State C/OF Brady Christman (Mississippi State commit)
23. Georgia State IF Wills Maginnis
24. Jacksonville State RHP Maddox McDougall (Florida commit)
25. William & Mary SS Jamie Laskofski (North Carolina commit)

The Nationals issues finishing off sweeps have been well documented at this point. They will get another chance to finally bring out the broomsticks this afternoon. This has already been a great road trip, but getting the sweep would be the icing on the cake. A good road trip has the chance to become a great one.

Blake Butera has decided to give CJ Abrams an off day this afternoon. Abrams has rough numbers against Robbie Ray, so the Nats decided today was the right day to give him a breather. Nasim Nunez will take his place at shortstop and Jorbit Vivas will play second. Curtis Mead is at third. James Wood will DH, meaning Daylen Lile is in left, Jacob Young is in center and Dylan Crews is in right. Andres Chaparro will be at first with a lefty on the hill and Keibert Ruiz will be behind the dish. Foster Griffin is on the mound for the Nats.

The Giants are also making a few changes. Interestingly, Casey Schimitt moves from left field to shortstop, giving Willy Adames an off day. Victor Bericoto will get his first start of the series in left field. Matt Chapman will move up to the 3 spot against a left hander. Veteran Robbie Ray will be on the hill for the Giants.

Game Info:

Stadium: Oracle Park

Time: 3:45 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

The Nats are looking for a sweep, but will have to do it without their star shortstop, at least for the start of the game. This has already been a very good road trip, but has the chance to be a special one. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

The San Francisco Giants wrap up this three-game series against the Washington Nationals this afternoon at Oracle Park.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be left-hander Robbie Ray, who enters today’s game with a 4.12 ERA, 5.33 FIP, with 63 strikeouts to 36 walks in 67.2 innings pitched. His last start was in the Giants’ 18-3 win over the Chicago Cubs on Friday, in which he allowed just two hits and five walks with four strikeouts in five innings.

He’ll be facing off against Nationals left-hander Foster Griffin, who enters today’s game with a 3.63 ERA, 4.84 FIP, with 69 strikeouts to 21 walks in 72 innings pitched. His last start was in the Nationals’ 14-1 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday, in which he allowed one run on two hits with four strikeouts in five innings.

Game #69

Who: San Francisco Giants (27-41) vs. Washington Nationals (35-33)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

When: 12:45 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

Cincinnati Reds (32-34) at San Diego Padres (34-32), June 10, 2026, 1:10 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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The Mets are recalling right-hander Jonathan Pintaro from Triple-A Syracuse and optioning Joey Gerber, the team announced on Wednesday afternoon ahead of the second game of their series against the Cardinals.

Pintaro, the Mets’ No. 20 prospect per MLB Pipeline, impressed during a brief stint with the big league club in May. In two appearances, the 28-year-old totaled 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing no hits and one walk while striking out three. Pintaro has been effective all year in Syracuse, with a 3.16 ERA over 31.1 innings pitched. But he’s made a notable step forward in terms of limiting free passes of late. Pintaro issued 12 walks in 25.2 innings (4.21 BB/9) to open the season in the minors. Since returning to Syracuse on May 26, Pintaro has issued just 1 walk in 5.2 innings (1.59 BB/9).

Gerber, an offseason signing, has recorded three outings at the major league level this season. The most recent came on Tuesday night against the Cardinals, when the 29-year-old right-hander allowed one run in two innings. Gerber went out to the mound to warm up for a third inning of work, but was removed with an apparent injury.

The Mets have also made an adjustment to their rotation. Christian Scott, who was originally supposed to start Wednesday night against the Cardinals, will instead start Thursday afternoon in the series finale. Austin Warren will be the opener on Wednesday night. Pintaro, who last pitched for Syracuse on Saturday night, could provide multiple innings in relief for the Mets.

Have yourself a seat in a comfortable spot and take a deep, deep breath. Here at Red Reporter, we are about to dive into some Brady Singer stats, and you need to prep for those before reading.

Among the 128 MLB pitchers who have thrown at least 50 IP so far in 2026, Singer ranks dead last in HR/9 (2.78). That’s especially a problem when you factor in that his K-BB% of 8.9% ranks 108th of that group. His 23.6% HR/FB rate is also the highest in the sport, with none of those 127 other pitchers so much as crossing the 20.0% mark.

His 90.6 mph average fastball velocity ranks 3rd lowest among the 126 pitchers that have that data tracked this year. His 5.89 ERA ranks 12th, somehow…wait a second, there are a lot of Colorado Rockies pitchers ahead of him on that list. His xERA of 6.27 ranks 6th worst – again, with two Rockies ahead of him and one right behind him on that list.

His 6.79 FIP, though, is the single highest in the sport. It’s somehow vastly larger than Eric Lauer, who sits at 6.46 behind him. Unsurprisingly, his fWAR of -0.6 has been worsted only by one pitcher in the game, and that’s Chicago’s Jameson Taillon at -0.7.

It’s been simply a horror show season for Singer, the highest earning pitcher (and second highest earning player) on the 2026 Reds. On Wednesday afternoon in San Diego, he’ll get yet another chance to either vastly improve those overall numbers or, instead, rocket to the top of all the bad leaderboards in one fell swoop.

Cincinnati will be up against Padres starter Michael King, who is coming off a trio of extremely mediocre starts by the standards of anyone other than, say, Singer. He’s yielded 13 ER across 15.2 IP, with 4 dingers allowed in those outings, so perhaps it’s good that the Reds are catching him at this juncture.

First pitch is slated for 4:10 PM ET, so tune in early.

Lineups for both clubs are listed below.

Some day game roster moves: lefty reliever Reiver Sanmartin, who’d been placed on the 60-day IL with a right hip flexor strain back in Spring Training, has returned from his rehab assignment and is now on the active roster. To make space for him, the Giants needed to clear both a 40-man spot and a 26-man roster spot.

Outfielder Will Brennan became the 40-man roster casualty as the Giants designated the 28-year old outfielder for assignment. The “speedster” stole 0 bases in 11 games with the Giants and was just 2-for-23 at the plate with 0 walks and 3 strikeouts. I confess ignorance about the financial ramifications of his split contract. He would’ve earned $900,000 if he’d spent the whole year in the majors or $400,000 if he played the whole year in the minors, but if he goes unclaimed (as I suspect he will), does that mean the Giants are on the hook for the prorated portion of the $900,000, as that’s a major league salary and seemingly guaranteed? Or because it was a formally split one, does that mean he’s only guaranteed the prorated portion of $400,000 because that’s where he was located at the time of the DFA? or is there some Giants both optioned Tristan Beck back to Triple-A Sacramento and designated for assignment outfielder Will Brennan. The difference would be about $250,000 ($450,000 if the majors is guaranteed vs. $200,000 for the minors).

But enough about Will Brennan.

Tristan Beck was optioned to Triple-A to clear the requisite spot on the major league roster and as someone who was once a Beck booster I believe his time on the team has likely come to an end. In this latest callup, he had just two scoreless appearances out of 6 and a 7.88 ERA (4.73 FIP) in 8 innings of work. Just 3 strikeouts, too.

He never had a great fastball, but it averaged down around 94 as opposed to 95 and batters teed off on it pretty good, slugging 1.091 off of it on 10 batted balls out of 56 times it was thrown. He’s been a bit better in Triple-A this year (3.91 ERA in 23 IP with a 9.0 K/9), but at 30 years old, he’s definitely entered “fungible reliever” territory.

So now the Giants turn to Reiver Sanmartin as their third lefty reliever in the bullpen, slotted behind Erik Miller (4.19 ERA / 3.77 FIP) and Sam Hentges (1.92 / 4.92). His 4-year major league career prior to 2026 had been on the Reds exclusively, where he had a 5.66 ERA (4.45 FIP) in 84.1 innings pitched. He had an 8.22 ERA with the River Cats in 7.2 IP but 8 strikeouts against just 2 walks. He is not a velo arm. He’s a contact pitcher by arsenal, featuring a 92-94 mph sinker, high-spin slider, and a changeup. Firmly in the Scott Alexander or Joey Lucchesi mold. Obviously, there’s something in the Giants’ scouting that tells them this pitch-to-contact type of arm is effective, even if the results for the team hasn’t shown up. A reminder that that Giants are 22nd in K/9 (8.03) but 4th in groundball rate (45.2%) yet 22nd in ERA (4.47). From 2022-2025, they were 12th (8.67 K/9), 1st (47.5%), and 12th (3.96), respectively.

Sanmartin missed all of the 2024 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery. He made just one appearance in 2025, back on September 2nd.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Diamondbacks fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

A.J. Puk and Carlos Santana are rehabbing in Reno. Lourdes Gurriel Jr recently started his rehab assignment at Salt River Fields. The team signed Max Kepler to a deal. The clock is ticking on all these players, and in the next couple of weeks, decisions will need to be made, regarding what to do with them. There’s really three separate levels at which these choices have to be executed. Let’s look at each in turn, and see where the Diamondbacks stand.

The 40-man roster

Gurriel is, at least, already on here. Having been placed only on the 10-day injured list, that saves his spot on the 40-man roster. But Puk and Santana are both on the 60-day IL. While a positive at the time, in that they no longer counted towards the 40-man roster, in order for them to be re-activated, a spot will have to be cleared on that. Kepler, similarly, is not on Arizona’s 40-man roster, because he is still serving out the end of his 80-game suspension for a failed drug test. But when that happens, the team will also need to find a spot, if they want to keep him. All told, that’s three 40-man spots Arizona probably needs to find.

Let’s exclude the current 26-man roster from consideration here, calling their spots on the 40-man roster secure for the time being. That leaves fourteen men. Nine of them are pitchers, three are position players, and there are two on the 10-day IL: Gurriel and catcher James McCann. The latter is out with a strained quad, which led to an IL placement on May 19. Might he be moved to the 60-day IL? Quads are tricky things, especially for catchers. However, he reportedly started facing a pitching machine and doing catching drills last week. Unless there’s a set-back, 60-daying McCann – sidelining him for at least another five weeks – seems excessive. Especially with Aramis Garcia as the backup catcher.

The three position players are Jose Fernandez, Tim Tawa and Tyler Locklear. The first two were on the active roster until just a few days ago. If they were going to be DFAd, it would probably have have happened when they were taken off it (on June 5th and 1st respectively). I think it’s interesting that Locklear wasn’t activated when he came off the IL, especially given Arizona’s struggles at 1B, where their production is among the worst in the majors. But he has been merely okay in Reno: his .786 OPS in 25 games through Monday is basically team average. Still, the team traded for him for a reason, and it seems unlikely they’d cut bait as yet.

My instinct is, there’s going to be a bit of a National German Chocolate Cake Day Massacre (you know I’ll be celebrating that one tomorrow) among the minor-league pitching staff. Below, I’ve ranked the nine pitchers from most secure to most at risk, in terms of whose 40-man roster spot is in jeopardy. Generally, starters preferred over relievers, age and current level of performance also taken into account. All stats through Monday.

1. Brandon Pfaadt. Despite his fall from grace, definitely not going anywhere.
2. Mitch Bratt. Performing very well – a 2.68 ERA in 10 Reno starts is stellar. Currently on the MiLB IL with back inflammation
3. Yilber Díaz. Best K-rate of anyone currently in Reno – 38 Ks in 27.2 IP – but as ever, the walks (19) are an issue. Future closer potential.
4. Dylan Ray. A starter, and a 4.82 ERA is reasonable. He’s also young for AAA, but is on the 7-day IL for the second time this season.
5. Kohl Drake. A 7.80 ERA isn’t great. But he’s a starting pitcher and a left-hander, two big reasons to keep him around.
6. Andrew Hoffmann. Prone to the meltdown. Allowed 19 ER in twenty outings: 12 ER came in just two of those. Walks too many, but improved recently.
7. Philip Abner. Well, he’s left-handed and quite young. But that horrendous outing vs. Washington won’t have done his chances any good.
8. Kade Strowd. A rough game against the Nationals, and almost as many walks as strikeouts in Reno. Also turns 29 in September. so limited upside.
9. Juan Burgos. Came from Seattle with Locklear in the Suarez trade, but seems to have struggled since.

The 26-man roster

The next problem is going to be finding slots for everyone on the active roster. Let’s start with Puk, since he’s the only pitcher among the quartet, and there is a fairly easy solution there. As mentioned previously, the top of the D-backs bullpen has been excellent so far. The latest arrival was Drey Jameson, who took Pfaadt’s spot after the starter was optioned to Reno. His appearance in the Washington series didn’t exactly inspire confidence, allowing two runs on two hits and two walks in an inning of work. Having only been recalled on the 6th, he seems the clear candidate to give up his spot for Puk.

On the position player side, LuJames Groover is the most obvious candidate for similar reasons, and will probably be going back down to Reno when Santana is available. It’s an infielder for an infielder, and with Santana being a switch-hitter, handedness isn’t particularly important. When Lourdes is ready, I’d not be surprised to see Adrian Del Castillo optioned out to Reno. I’ve a feeling the team may want to keep Gurriel off the field, given this is already his second IL stint of the year, and use him more as a DH. Del Castillo is a lefty though while Gurriel is a righty. If the team wants to remain balanced, and Gurriel is considered able to play the outfield, optioning Tommy Troy instead makes sense.

If that does happen, then making room for the final man would become relatively easy, with left-handed Del Castillo being replaced by left-handed Kepler, largely in the DH spot. So while the ordering may be uncertain, it looks as though Groover, Troy and Del Castillo will be the ones to give up their spots on the position player side, as and when necessary to make room for the returning players and new arrival.

The roles

I touched briefly on this above, mentioning whether Gurriel is going to keep playing the field, or become our primary DH. Given the problems with his legs, I would be inclined to keep him at DH where possible. While Gurriel has struggled at the plate this year (OPS+ just 66), he might have the best overall track record among the right-handed candidates there. The problem would be, DH starts vs. LHSP are going to be the minority. What do you do the rest of the time with a man who is earning $13 million this year, whether or not he plays?

That isn’t a particular problem with Kepler, who is likely earning little more than league minimum. If he doesn’t hit down in Reno – and there’s a non-zero chance of that – then the team can simply let him go, with no damage except to their reputation. Presuming that isn’t the case, and he joins the active roster, then he’ll likely get starts at DH against RHSP. Even with the low bar at 1B (the D-backs are dead last in OPS there, and it’s not close), it’s hard to see much time for Santana, except as a late-inning defensive replacement. I would not be surprised if he comes back, fails to hit and the D-backs release him before the trade deadline.

The most interesting situation will be Puk, and whether he’ll take over as closer from Paul Sewald. The latter has been almost perfect in save situation (15 of 16), but a FIP of 4.00 and a minuscule .137 BABIP suggests there may be a Paulpocalypse approaching. The latter is the third-lowest of the 360 pitchers with 20 IP this year. That might be good reason to transfer the closer’s mantle to A.J. as soon as possible, rather than continuing to roll the dice. But that’s what the poll below is for. How do you think the team should handle the closer’s situation when A.J. Puk returns? Make your selection below, and explain your decision in the comments.

The big advantage of having a blazing two-plus months and MLB’s best record? You can afford to ease off the gas here and there. The disadvantage? Your fans have to watch a team that sometimes eases off the gas. While I have no idea how long Ronald Acuña Jr. will actually be out as a result of his latest run-in with injury, it’s possible that it’s less than ten days and this is a precautionary, if warranted, Injured List placement:

This is Acuña’s second IL placement for a left hamstring issue this year. He previously missed about two weeks in May with a similar ailment. He had a .333 wOBA (111 wRC+) and a massive .380 xwOBA before his first IL stint, and then returned and posted a much more fortunate .390 wOBA (150 wRC+) with more or less the same inputs (.376 xwOBA). What will he do for his third act? Stay tuned, but it won’t start until at least ten days from now. On the season, he has 0.9 fWAR in 235 PAs, which is a pretty good rate for a player in general, but is well below what we’re used to from him — dragged down by his own defensive issues, and the lingering ball-in-play issues from April.

Taking Acuña’s spot on the active roster is Rowdy Tellez, a veteran of eight MLB seasons that signed a minor league deal with the Braves a week before Opening Day. Tellez has a career 98 wRC+ and 0.1 fWAR, which makes sense given that a league-average bat isn’t very useful if you aren’t providing any defensive value. He’s put up a 123 wRC+ in 207 PAs in Gwinnett. My main thought is: if Dominic Smith can be blessed with the bounty of the 2025 Braves and become a fan-favorite masher, why not Tellez? The answer? Well, he and Smith can’t both be in the lineup at the same time…

Part of the roster math here sees Jhancarlos Lara get DFAed. I have no real knowledge about Lara, but people used to talk about him as being exciting back in 2023, when he was striking out a million dudes as a starter in A-ball. Since then, he’s really fallen apart with ballooning walk rates and dwindling strikeout rates; even moving to a swingman and then a relief role didn’t salvage much. Lara was pitching out of the Double-A bullpen earlier this year and putting up ghastly numbers like an FIP and xFIP both in the 7.00s.

The real question, though: are you ready for more Eli White?

Apologies for going a few days without roundups for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates. Thankfully, Tuesday was a full day, with all seven teams in action, so there’s still lots to talk about!

Link to the 2026 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.

News

High-A Eugene LHP Luis De La Torre (No. 14 CPL) was named Pitcher of the Week in the Northwest League after a 12-strikeout performance last week. Congrats!

AAA Sacramento (38-24)

Sacramento River Cats beat the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (Astros) 5-4
Box score

What’s the pitching equivalent of “one to measure, two to rake?” Whatever it is, it’s a philosophy that LHP Matt Wilkinson apparently abides by. Wilkinson, acquired earlier this year in the Patrick Bailey trade, was promoted to AAA after just 9 games in AA. And in his AAA debut, he was unable to make it out of the 2nd inning.

But things went much, much better with his second take. The burly southpaw was sensational on Tuesday, striking out 9 Space Cowboys in 5 innings, while throwing 53 of 81 pitches for strikes. Tugboat gave up just 4 baserunners on the day: a pair of singles, a walk, and a hit batter.

Unfortunately — but kind of humorously — all 4 of those allowed baserunners were in succession. After Wilkinson retired the first 2 batters he faced, he gave up back-to-back singles, hit a batter, and then issued a 4-pitch, run-scoring walk. But after that? He retired 13 consecutive batters to finish his day, which included striking out the side in both the 2nd and 4th innings. And with that, Tugboat is off and motoring in AAA!

Things went less well for the pair of pitchers on the 40-man roster who threw. Recently-optioned RHP Wilkin Ramos threw just 12 of 26 pitches for strikes while failing to get through an inning, allowing 2 hits, 1 walk, and 2 runs, while recording 2 outs. RHP Ryan Walker got the save, but gave up 2 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run, with no strikeouts. Walker has been pitching quite well with Sacramento, where he has a 1.93 ERA, a 3.80 FIP, and just 3 walks in 9.1 innings … given how awful San Francisco’s bullpen is, I’m in favor of bringing him back … just not for the 9th inning.

A very boring day on offense. Designated hitter Will Brennan had the only multi-hit game, as he went 2-4 with a strikeout, but I think most Giants fans have seen enough to want Brennan to stay put as depth in AAA. He could be a roster casualty given that center fielder Jared Oliva (who went 1-5 with 2 strikeouts) will be coming off the 60-Day IL soon, and the Giants won’t need as much as outfield depth when Heliot Ramos and Harrison Bader get healthy. And as I write this, the news comes in that Brennan has been designated for assignment.

Catcher Drew Cavanaugh (No. 19 CPL) continues to look oh so comfortable at the level, and went 1-2 with a walk and a hit by pitch. In their recent ranking of the top prospects in the organization last week, Fangraphs noted that “there are people within the organization who think he’s the player most likely to emerge from the pile of upper-level catchers as the club’s starter.” The lefty is up to a 1.166 OPS and a 196 wRC+ through 21 games with the River Cats, and has done a tremendous job limiting strikeouts this year (he had a 27.4% strikeout rate across 4 levels last year, and just a 19.8% rate in AAA this season). I think we’ll see him make an MLB debut at some point this year, especially since Daniel Susac (No. 20 CPL) has been struggling on offense lately, Jesús Rodríguez (No. 16 CPL) got optioned/demoted, and Eric Haase could be dealt at the deadline.

AA Richmond (37-20)

Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Harrisburg Senators (Nationals) 1-0
Box score

The Squirrels may have lost, but it was still perhaps the best game on the farm this year from a pitching standpoint. Richmond was truly and utterly sensational from the start of the game to the finish.

It began with the starter, LHP Cesar Perdomo. A week after having one of the best pitching performances of the year on the farm, Perdomo one-upped himself with what I feel quite confident calling the best pitching performance of the year for a Giants prospect. The 24-year old from Venezuela took down 7 shutout innings while throwing just 85 pitches, 65 of which went for strikes. In those 7 innings, Perdomo allowed just 1 batter to reach base, when he gave up a 3rd-inning single.

And the cherry on top? Of the 22 batters he faced, Perdomo struck out 13 of them!

June has been sheer dominance for Perdomo, who in his last start pitched 6 shutout innings with 4 baserunners and 9 strikeouts. Perdomo’s numbers this year are phenomenal: he has a 3.35 ERA, a 2.45 FIP, and 68 strikeouts against just 18 walks in 53.2 innings. He’s also made huge strides: after striking out 8.3 batters per 9 innings in High-A a year ago, he’s all the way up to 11.4 in AA this season. Of the 39 Eastern League pitchers with at least 40 innings thrown this year, Perdomo is 3rd in strikeouts per 9, and 2nd in FIP (behind former teammate Joe Whitman in both cases). Just an incredible year.

The bullpen was awesome, too, if a little chaotic. LHP Jack Choate (No. 37 CPL) had the lone hiccup, but even it was kind of funny and impressive: he gave up the winning run in the 8th inning, despite not allowing a hit or a walk, and striking out 2 … but he hit a pair of batters and committed an error. RHP Ben Peterson, recently promoted to AA, struck out a pair in the 9th inning, while allowing a hit. He has a stunning 23 strikeouts in just 13 innings since getting promoted.

In all, Richmond pitchers had 17 strikeouts on the day, while allowing just 2 hits and 0 walks. They deserved better than to lose the game!

Unfortunately, the offense couldn’t help them. The Squirrels had just 6 hits, and 0 extra-base hits. Center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) led the way by going 2-4, as he continues to round into form. Davidson hit quite a rough patch there for a while, but has opened up June with a 7-game hitting streak, during which time he’s gone 12-30 with 5 home runs, 1 double, and just 4 strikeouts. That’s brought his OPS back to .814 and his wRC+ to 110.

High-A Eugene (40-18)

Eugene Emeralds beat Spokane (Rockies) 6-5
Box score

Eugene was the lone member of the Giants Class-A teams that didn’t shine on the pitching front, but they still won, which made them first-half champions in the Northwest League. Still, there were some exciting things there. LHP Jacob Bresnahan (No. 11 CPL) is still trying to find a groove this year, after missing the start of the season with an injury. He wasn’t great in this game, as he allowed 4 hits, 2 walks, and 2 runs in just 4.2 innings, but he did strike out 6 batters. With a 4.80 ERA and a 5.05 FIP, it’s looking very unlikely that Bresnahan makes it 3 straight seasons with Pitcher of the Year honors in his league, but the 11.4 strikeouts per 9 innings are a reminder as to why the Giants are so high on the southpaw, who turns 21 later this month. There’s a lot to like there, even if right now he’s issuing too many walks and giving up too many dingers.

RHP Ubert Mejias pitched quite well in relief, striking out 4 batters in 3 innings, while throwing 31 of 42 pitches for strikes. Impressive! Mejias did allow 4 hits though (all singles), which tagged him for a run. It was nice to see Mejias settle in, as he got absolutely rocked in his High-A season debut (this was his 2nd appearance at the level this year, after 1 appearance in 2025). As a result of that, his numbers look hilarious with Eugene this year: in 5 innings, he’s allowed 10 hits, 3 homers, and 6 earned runs … but has 8 strikeouts and 0 walks.

The offense was more solid than exceptional, but Eugene’s quartet of highly-ranked prospects, who fittingly fill the top spots in the order, all had good days. Right fielder Trevor Cohen (No. 15 CPL) went 1-4 with a strikeout, but drew a walk and bopped his 20th double of the season. Last year’s 3rd-round pick has an .808 OPS and a 124 wRC+ in his debut full season. Shortstop Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL) also went 1-4 with a double, while also getting hit by a pitch and not striking out. Level has adjusted well to High-A so far, as he’s hit safely in all 7 games with the Emeralds, going 11-31 with 4 doubles and just 5 strikeouts (he hasn’t drawn a walk yet, but he’s been hit 3 times). Notably, Level played shortstop with High-A for the first time on Tuesday, as he had only played second base in his opening series with the team. It seems as though the Giants will switch he and Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL) on a series by series basis, rather than a game-by-game one.

Speaking of which, Kilen played second for the first time this year, and went 1-3 with a double and a walk. The reigning 1st-round pick is now up to a .774 OPS and a 111 wRC+, with just a 13.3% strikeout rate. Rounding things out was center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL), who had a mixed bag of a day … the powerful righty hit 1-4 and struck out 3 times, but also blasted a 2-run home run, showing off his sensational power. The 2024 4th-rounder has a .790 OPS and a 113 wRC+ on the year, but also has a 30.6% strikeout rate.

Low-A San Jose (33-25)

San Jose Giants beat the Stockton Ports (A’s) 7-1
Box score

And now we return to our regularly scheduled pitching dominance. And this one began with someone who I would argue is the top pitching prospect in the organization: RHP Keyner Martinez (No. 10 CPL).

It’s been an up-and-down season for Martinez, following his breakout in 2025. But Tuesday was firmly in the “up” category, as the 21-year old Venezuelan breezed through 5 innings, giving up just 2 singles, a walk, and an unearned run, while striking out 8 batters. After a tough May, Martinez has started June on a dominant foot, as his 1st start of the month featured 9 strikeouts in just 4 innings, with an unearned run.

There’s no denying the magic in Martinez’s arm. He’s now up to 67 strikeouts in 41.1 innings, resulting in a 14.6 K/9 mark that ranks 3rd out of the 419 Minor League pitchers with at least 40 innings thrown this year.

It hasn’t been a flawless year for Martinez, who is allowing 5.0 walks per 9 innings, has seen his ground ball rate drop by more than 10 percentage points (to 38.6%), and has both an ERA and an FIP that begin with a 4 (4.57 and 4.05, respectively). But my goodness is he exciting.

The bullpen was great, too. More than great, actually; perfect! RHP Mauricio Estrella tossed 3 perfect innings while striking out 4 batters, while RHP Trey Seeley K’d all 3 batters that he faced. Estrella’s overall numbers have been more good than great, as he has a 3.74 ERA and a 3.62 FIP, but the recently-turned 22 year old has phenomenal walk and strikeout numbers: 42 and 7, respectively, in 33.2 innings.

As for Seeley, it was his debut at Low-A, and what a debut it was! The 23-year old was a 14th-round pick in last year’s draft, and pitched 7 times in the Complex League with middling results this year, before moving to San Jose. Perhaps he just needed to face better competition!

The pitching stole the show, but the hitting was good, too. Catcher Junior Barajas had a really nice game, hitting 2-5 with a solo home run and a strikeout.

A left-handed hitter taken in the 11th round last year, Barajas earned high praises entering the year, and started the season red hot, but he’d really cooled off lately, posting just a .573 OPS in May after a .940 OPS in April. Most notably, he bashed 4 home runs in his first 8 professional games … then went 31 straight games without a dinger. Until Tuesday! The cold stretch tanked his numbers to a .741 OPS and an 83 wRC+, but there’s still so much potential in his bat, to go along with some awesome defense and leadership behind the dish.

Two other hitters had great games: third baseman Dario Reynoso continued his stellar season by hitting 2-3 with 2 stolen bases, while also striking out once, while designated hitter Jeremiah Jenkins went 1-2 with a double, 2 walks, and a strikeout. Reynoso, a right-handed hitter from the Dominican Republic who recently turned 21, has a sensational 1.003 OPS and a 148 wRC+, with 9 stolen bases in 11 attempts, though he’s still striking out at a 30.5% clip. Jenkins, a lefty from Maine who was taken in the 14th-round of the 2024 draft and just turned 23, has an .828 OPS and a 113 wRC+, but is striking out 33.1% of the time.

Arizona Complex League (12-15)

ACL Giants lost to the ACL Athletics 12-2 (7 innings)
Box score

Well, this was just a bad game, and there’s no reason to dwell on it. The ACL Giants sent 5 pitchers to the mound, and all 5 struggled, en route to 15 hits and 12 runs in just 6 innings of action. RHPs Brayan Narvaez and Matt Dunaway, the latter of which is on a rehab assignment from High-A, struggled the most, as each gave up 3 runs in just an inning of work, without a strikeout.

The offense wasn’t all that much better. Designated hitter Yulian Barreto had a funny game in which he didn’t register an official at-bat, as he had a sacrifice fly and was hit by a pitch twice. Second baseman Jose Ramos had the best day, as he went 2-4, while shortstop Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) went 1-3, but was caught stealing and committed an error.

Moving on…

Dominican Summer League Black (4-3)

DSL Giants beat the DSL Red Sox Blue 15-5 (7 innings)
Box score

Well, this is a much better game. The pitching wasn’t great, with the best performance coming from RHP Frank Quiroz. A 19-year old from the Dominican Republic who was a late addition to this year’s international signing class, Quiroz got rocked in his first 2 games of the season. But this one went much better, as he tossed a no-hit inning with 2 strikeouts, though he also walked 2.

The offense, on the other hand, was awesome, with 14 hits in 7 innings, half of which went for extra bases. Left fielder Franco Willias went 2-4 with a 3-run home run, a walk, a stolen base and a strikeout, while third baseman Boris Sarduy hit 1-3 with a 2-run blast and a walk. Both players are having exceptional seasons: Willias, a 21-year old, has a 1.029 OPS and a 119 wRC+, though it’s his third pass through the DSL (he performed well in the first two attempts); Sarduy, a 19-year old, has a 1.111 OPS and a 176 wRC+. It’s very early, but after really struggling with strikeouts in his first two years, Sarduy is K’ing much less frequently this season.

Designated hitter Keiberg Camacaro hit 2-4 with a double, a walk, and 2 stolen bases, while catcher Diego Alambarrio went 2-3 with a pair of doubles and a walk. Camacaro, who is only 19 but is in his fourth season in the DSL, is easily having his best year, with an .899 OPS, a 125 wRC+, 6 stolen bases in 8 attempts, and, like Sarduy, a dramatically reduced strikeout rate. Alambarrio, who just turned 18, has a .950 OPS and a 127 wRC+; he was great in his debut last year, but only played 9 games.

Dominican Summer League Orange (5-2)

DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL Mariners 8-7
Box score

Another rough pitching performance, though RHP Gerson Rivero stood out in earning the save, as he struck out 2 batters in a scoreless inning, with a hit allowed. Rivero, who recently turned 18, was part of last year’s signing class but this was his professional debut. Quite an introduction!

The stars were on offense, though, and there were a trio of them. Third baseman Albert Jimenez had the biggest day, as he went 2-4 with a 3-run home run, a sacrifice fly, and 5 runs batter in. Jimenez, a 19-year old righty, entered the season with 7 career home runs in 81 DSL games over two seasons. This year? He already has 5 home runs in just 7 games, giving him a 1.580 OPS and a 218 wRC+.

Shortstop Yeison Oviedo hit 3-5 with 2 doubles and 2 strikeouts, while right fielder Yoxander Benitez went 3-4 with a walk. Oviedo, an 18-year old in his second season, has a 1.071 OPS and a 163 wRC+ after struggling in his debut last year; Benitez, a 19-year old in his third season, has a 1.029 OPS and a 160 wRC+ as he looks to prove himself following two below-average years.

Home run tracker

8 — Dakota Jordan — [High-A]
5 — Junior Barajas — [Low-A]
5 — Albert Jimenez — [DSL]
1 — Franco Willias — [DSL]
1 — Boris Sarduy — [DSL]

Wednesday schedule

Sacramento: 5:05 p.m. PT at Sugar Lang (SP: John Michael Bertrand)
Richmond: 4:05 p.m. PT vs. Harrisburg (SP: Greg Farone)
Eugene: 6:35 p.m. PT vs. Spokane (SP: Niko Mazza)
San Jose: 7:05 p.m. PT at Stockton (SP: Jordan Gottesman)

The WNBA and Major League Baseball are in full swing as summer nears and both have a hint of Ole Miss flavor to them.

The Chicago White Sox called up Jacob Gonzalez on May 31st, not to play short stop or even second base, but to be their starting first baseman after the injury to star rookie Munetaka Murakami. That call would have likely gone to Tim Elko, who made his debut last season, but he is currently injured and Gonzo has been on a tear in the minors, forcing his way to the bigs.

Gonzalez was batting .317 with 19 home runs in the minors and since his debut, he’s hitting .333 with a home run. He got his first career hit in his first career game and hit his first home run on June 6th.

(Side note for those interested, Madison Central product Braden Montgomery made his MLB Debut on June 9th. He had two hits, the second being a walk off home run in the tenth inning against the MLB-best Atlanta Braves).

Nick Fortes is with the Tampa Bay Rays this season and is currently batting .260 with a home run and 14 RBI. His average is an improvement from his time in Miami last season.

I was pumped this off-season when I saw the Braves had claimed Ryan Rolison from the Rockies. Then they let him go. Now, he is dealing for the Chicago Cubs with a 2.35 ERA across 23 innings pitched and a 5-1 record.

Over in the WNBA, Cotie McMahon is playing roughly 17 minutes a night for the Washington Mystics, contributing six points and two rebounds per game.

Also for the Mystics, Shakira Austin is doing her thing averaging just over 15 points and eight rebounds per game.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Royals fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Kris Bubic has been a hot topic of conversation lately. Bob Nightengale reported that the Athletics were interested in the Royals’ pitcher. It’s difficult to know what a reasonable asking price for Bubic might be, but one marker might be the Guardians trade of an injured Shane Bieber last year. They managed to get back Khal Stephen, who was the Blue Jays’ fifth-best prospect at the time of the trade. Stephen is now considered the Guardian’s sixth-best prospect and has a 3.44 ERA, though only an 11.1% K-BB% in AA as a 23-year-old.

That would probably be the best possible outcome for the Royals, though Bubic figures to need to be healthy if KC makes a trade; he doesn’t have the history of excellence that Bieber has.

The Royals, of course, might not ultimately even be sellers. They’ve won 5 of their last 6 and 6 of their last 8 to put themselves only 4.5 games out of a Wild Card spot in a messy, messy American League. But if they are sellers, Bubic doesn’t figure to be the only starting pitcher on the staff to get some attention. Per an article on Bleacher Report, Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha are likely getting some attention, too.

The Trade: Kansas City Royals send RHP Seth Lugo and RHP Michael Wacha to the Chicago Cubs for IF Jefferson Rojas, OF Kevin Alcántara and RHP Jaxon Wiggins

If the Royals could get better prospects for Lugo and Wacha, perhaps they’d be better off extending Bubic. His injury history should drive the price down some. Perhaps even to the point where if he continues to be unable to hold up in the rotation, the team would be able to move him to the bullpen without feeling like they were overpaying. They’d certainly have the money on hand to keep Bubic if they dumped Lugo’s and Wacha’s salaries.

But what would you do?

Chris Sale’s former team road tour continues and concludes this series as he’s set to take the mound at Rate Field against the Chicago White Sox. It goes without saying, and he probably already thinks this way as an ace, but going six innings / giving some length tonight would be ideal after last night’s extra-innings heartbreaker. We’ve been so wowed by the aggressive bullpen management to date, but the downsides of it appeared yesterday after the team was hamstrung by Grant Holmes’ early exit and the desire for more rest for the high-leverage relievers. In theory, the arms Walt Weiss wanted to stay away from yesterday are rested, so all should be in play tonight except for Dylan Dodd and Raisel Iglesias. ICYMI, Carlos Carrasco (DFA) and Tyler Kinley (IL , right elbow inflammation) are out, JR Ritchie and James Karinchak are in.

Sale (8-4, 2.23 ERA) was the losing pitcher last week on Thursday, where the Braves failed to complete a sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays in their single loss of the homestand. But the 7-2 score is deceptive – Sale was charged with three earned runs in his 5.2 innings of work. Sale exited, the bullpen threw up zeroes in the sixth, seventh, and eighth, and the bats got us within one before Things Happened. It was a weird one. Sale was throwing as hard as ever, extra-rested as he was, but he gave up ten hits for the first time since 2021. There’s nothing more frustrating than death by a thousand soft singles. Something to keep an eye on: this is Sale’s first outing pitching on regular rest since the Braves have started building in those extra days starting in April. His record against his original team is 2-2 with a 2.92 ERA.

Only two White Sox have faced Chris Sale before: Randal Grichuk is 6-for-27 in his career against Sale with two homers and a .781 OPS. Drew Romo has 3 at-bats with a strikeout. But as we saw last night, this White Sox lineup is unfortunately very fun and very legit. 

As of this posting (~2:30 pm ET), the White Sox have yet to confirm their starting pitcher. Likely taking the ball for Chicago will be the righty Davis Martin (8-2, 2.61 ERA), who’s outperforming an xERA of 3.65. He throws a six-pitch mix, relying on a four-seamer 26.4% of the time, followed by the sinker and changeup in almost equal measure with a slider, cutter, and curveball in there as well. Only three Braves have seen Martin with very limited data. Mike Yastrzemski is 2-for-4 with a double and a walk, Jorge Mateo 1-for-1 with a homer, and Ha-Seong Kim is 0-for-2. We will likely see a lineup shakeup anyway to accommodate for the day-to-day status of Ronald Acuña Jr. (left hamstring tightness). But in whatever configuration, let’s hope this is the version of the Braves that gives Chris Sale run support. The Braves were meant to feast off of Fedde last night, which didn’t come to pass – I’m inviting anyone else not named Matt Olson to launch multiple homers out of Rate Field, please and thank you.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Wednesday, June 10, 7:40 p.m. ET

Location: Rate Field, Chicago, IL

TV: BravesVision

Streaming: MLB.tv

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan

What to make of a starting pitcher with more wins than earned runs allowed in June? A day following seeing Eric Lauer masterfully navigate a lineup incredibly susceptible to left-handed pitching, Shohei Ohtani makes his 11th start of what’s currently a season defined by his otherworldly pitching accomplishments, with six wins and five earned runs allowed in 61 innings.

While the Pirates lineup carries stark splits, featuring a 112 wRC+ against right-handers that goes down to 88 against southpaws, Ohtani’s dominance knows no limits, going through opposing lineups like a hot knife through butter. After shockingly—in large part thanks to the offense’s shortcomings—losing back-to-back games between the end of April and the beginning of May, Ohtani puts to the test a streak of four wins, allowing all of one run in this period.

Despite this winning streak, one could argue for the similarities between Ohtani and Paul Skenes as starters let down by their offenses when you consider the respective qualities of these teams. Following last night’s Dodgers win, the Pirates are now 6-8 when Skenes takes the mound, absurd numbers for a team that has improved to hover around .500 in what’s an insanely competitive NL Central. For Ohtani, those four straight wins have carried the Dodgers into a solid but unspectacular 6-4 record in Ohtani starts. There is nothing wrong with a .600 record, far from it, but to contemplate that the reigning champs have had this many losses in Ohtani starts when he’s been untouchable is still a bit of a surprise.

Tuesday’s game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Pirates
• Ballpark: PNC Park, Pittsburgh
• Start time: 6:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

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The 2026 MLB All-Star Game is set to take place next month in Philadelphia, and while fan voting ballots have officially dropped, it’s time to start thinking about who you might place on the American and National League squads. While there are some obvious names to make the team—looking at you, Shohei Ohtani and Yordan Alvarez—fans will have to make a few difficult decisions about who else will get their vote.

On this episode of Baseball Bar-B-Cast, Jake Mintz and Jordan Shusterman break down both sides of the ballot and give their opinions on who they think should be voted in, including who might be the top vote-getter on the AL side with Aaron Judge set to miss the game. They also try to figure out how many players from the Philadelphia Phillies will represent their club with the game being hosted in the City of Brotherly Love.

Later, Jake and Jordan discuss their recent trips to the ballpark, where they saw Paul Skenes take on the Los Angeles Dodgers, as well as his side quest to hang out with some little leaguers, and Gerrit Cole do something he hadn’t done since 2022 against the Cleveland Guardians. They then talk about the incredible debut from Chicago White Sox prospect Braden Montgomery and look at the crazy numbers coming out of Sacramento A’s and Milwaukee Brewers games in Las Vegas.

1:19 - The Opener: All-Star Game ballots released

4:34 - Who should make the AL squad?

18:25 - Who should make the NL squad?

37:15 - Field Report: Skenes on and off the field

47:35 - Cole against Cleveland

55:03 - Around The League: Montgomery’s memorable debut

1:03:58 - Slugfest in Las Vegas

Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images

🖥️ Watch this full episode on YouTube

Check out all episodes of Baseball Bar-B-Cast and the rest of the Yahoo Sports podcast family at https://apple.co/3zEuTQj or at yahoosports.tv

In the 350-card checklist, there are a number of rookies that collectors will be chasing, including the exciting Chicago White Sox slugger Munetaka Murakami. It’s not only base cards collectors are chasing, but low-numbered variations, inserts and autographed cards.

Not sure who to collect? Here are five rookie cards to keep an eye on. 

Munetaka Murakami: Even though the White Sox rookie is on the IL, he still has 20 home runs, which still ranks him third in the league. He is expected to be out for another month with a hamstring injury, but he already has a strong season for a rookie. But he’s likely to crush more once he’s back on the field.

You’d be excused if you avoided watching the Detroit Tigers in the month of May, as injuries and underperformance led to a 6-22 record for the month. If that was you, you might’ve missed Dillon Dingler’s early-season breakout. However, Dingler’s rampage through early June makes one thing clear: Detroit has a top catcher on their roster right now, likely the favorite to start the All Star Game for the American League.

Coming off a strong 2025 season, Dingler seemed like a solid starting catcher to begin with. He paired Gold Glove defense with a .752 OPS, basically league average. Considering the league-average catcher’s OPS was just .696, Dillon repeating 2025 would have made him an under the radar top-5 to 7 catcher in the league.

Instead, Dingler has improved across the board. The 27-year-old backstop has always taken an aggressive approach at the plate, looking to do damage and hit his way on base, which led to a 4.9% walk rate last year. That worked because he hit the ball hard anyways, but it’s a major limitation to his ceiling; there just aren’t many great hitters with walk rates around 5% anymore. Those that do need either outlier raw power or contact skills to stand out; Dingler had neither, so a bit more patience was probably his best path forward. So far, so good; he’s spiked his walk rate up to 8.9%, basically league average, to create a far more stable offensive approach.

However, if all Dingler did was walk more, he wouldn’t be a prime contender to start the All Star Game as the American League’s catcher; that’s only the first step. He also slashed his strikeout rate from 23.5% to a better-than-average 19.4%, and more importantly, has 16 home runs on June 10th compared to the 13 home runs he mashed in all of 2025.

This is what controlling the zone really looks like. Take your walks, lay off pitches you can’t handle, and punish the baseball if a pitcher throws you something he shouldn’t have. Despite some rough BABIP luck, Dingler’s hiked his OPS all the way up to .857 this year, 3rd among all catchers.

In terms of pitch type success, the big change for Dingler this season is that rather than chasing breaking balls, he’s forcing pitchers in need of an answer against him, because you don’t want to pump fastballs with abandon to Dillon Dingler, to try and spot their breaking stuff for strikes. That’s now a particularly dangerous game, as Dingler holds a .508 weighted onbase average (wOBA) against breaking balls this year. Last year his mark against breaking stuff was a .263 wOBA. The weakness pitchers could most exploit in 2024-2025 is now a strength. There’s even a minor argument that Dingler has outperformed his results. His overall wOBA on the season stands at a whopping .371 mark, but his expected wOBA based on contact and batted ball data is .407.

How’s he doing this, then? On the plate discipline side, it’s pretty simple. Dingler’s seeing fewer pitches in the strike zone, he’s swinging at about the same rates as always, and he’s whiffing a little less than he did last year. That means taking more pitches out of the zone and fewer swinging strikes, hence the improved walk and strikeout rates. Most likely, pitchers saw he was pretty aggressive last year, and haven’t adjusted back to his slightly more patient approach. Of course, what he’s doing when they put something in the zone could also be scaring them back out of it.

To put it simply, Dingler is crushing pitches in the zone with two basic tenets: making a lot of contact and hitting balls really hard in the air. In both respects he has improved from 2025, and combined, those are pretty big changes on the stat sheet. Seriously. He’s 15th in biggest gainers in contact rate and 19th in biggest gainers in barrel rate. Pulling that off at the same time is the simplest way to level up as a hitter. Why wouldn’t you want to make more contact while also making better contact?

For most hitters, they have to pick one or the other. The guys who do both are the names you know from teams you don’t follow. Dingler’s special, however, because he’s doing this as a Gold Glove caliber catcher. And yeah, he’s still one of the best defensive backstops in the game.

As of today, Dingler is tied for 5th in all of baseball in Fielding Run Value at 8, BasaballSavant’s best attempt at a catch-all fielding statistic. This incorporates Outs Above Average, Arm Value, and Catcher Throwing, Blocking and Framing, from all positions. It’s worth mentioning that FRV is a counting stat, and Dingler only plays about 70% of all Detroit’s innings, because he’s a catcher. Only Adley Rutschmaan, another excellent catcher, has 8 or more FRV in fewer innings than Dingler. And despite nearly 100 fewer innings than most other top defenders, he’s 5th, ahead of names like Fernando Tatis Jr and Andres Gimenez.

As icing on the cake, Dingler is also arguably the best catcher at challenging pitches, which is a totally awesome perk that isn’t (yet) included in FRV. Seriously, we went over this about a month ago, and he was top-5 then. Now, Dingler leads the league in ‘net overturns more than expected’ based on the opportunities he gets to challenge. He’s also 3rd in overturn rate among catchers with at least 40 challenges, at 70%. Add it to the long list of things Dingler is excellent at.

Basically, if you wanted to build a good position player in a lab, it would be what Dingler’s doing early in 2026. Start with an excellent up-the-middle defender, then make him coincidentally one of the best at handling the new ABS system for a smidgen of extra value. Then, double that player’s previous walk rates and home run rates, and for good measure, reduce his strikeout rate, all at the same time, so he’s now making more contact that’s also better. Put all that together, and you get Dillon Dingler, tied for 3rd in all of baseball in fWAR with Corbin Carrol. The guys he’s behind? Bobby Witt Jr. and Yordan Alvarez. You’ve heard of them, I’m sure.

Will he keep it up? Maybe. So many of his process stats have leveled up, it feels like most of the gains are legitimate so far. Maybe he breaks down in the second half as his catcher’s workload stacks up on him. Or maybe he just… keeps going. The defense is stable – he’s been among the best defensive catchers in baseball for almost 2 years now – and walks don’t typically dry up all of a sudden. Catchers are notoriously slow to develop at the dish, so peaking at age 27 really isn’t that big of a surprise. At this pace, the All-Star Game should be just the next step in an outstanding season full of accolades.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Rockies fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

After weeks of folks begging for a prospect promotion, it finally happened yesterday — the Rockies called up Cole Carrigg (No. 4 PuRP), who not only made his MLB debut, but made a statement when he smacked a triple for his first MLB hit.

With the triple, he became the second Rockie ever to record a triple as their first MLB hit (Ryan Ritter was the first just one season before. However, he also drew a walk in his next plate appearance, becoming the first Rockie to record a triple and and walk in their first MLB game.

So now that the gates have opened, more promotions may be on the horizon — either in the near term or later in the season. President of baseball operations Paul DePodesta has said players need to show they are ready, and an opening on the roster must present itself before a prospects is promoted.

With that in mind, which prospect do you think will be next?

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

I don’t have to tell you that the Cubs have been just awful over their last 28 games, going 7-21 after a 27-12 start.

That leaves them just one game over .500 entering tonight’s contest against the Rockies at Coors Field.

Let’s look at some of the numbers from that great 39-game start, and then the same numbers from the 28-game collapse (and really, it can’t be called anything other than a “collapse” right now.

Over the first 39 games the Cubs batted .258/.354/.429. They scored 215 runs (5.51 per game) and had 62 doubles and 51 home runs (1.31 homers per game). They drew 185 walks (4.74 per game) and struck out 308 times (7.92 per game).

In the last 28 games, the Cubs batted .213/.304 /.334. They scored 98 runs (3.5 per game) and had 39 doubles and 25 home runs (0.89 homers per game). They drew 111 walks (3.96 per game) and struck out 254 times (9.07 per game).

So as you can see, the Cubs got significantly worse in every offensive category over the last 28 games. They’re still walking at a decent rate, but even that is down from earlier in the year.

But it’s not just the bats that have gone silent. The pitching staff has just gotten pounded.

Over the first 39 games, Cubs pitchers had a 3.75 ERA and 1.189 WHIP, with a 4.15 FIP. They allowed 47 home runs (1.21 per game), issued 123 walks (3.15 per game) and struck out 323 (8.28 per game).

In the last 28 games, Cubs pitchers posted a 5.17 ERA and 1.325 WHIP, with a 5.23 FIP. They allowed 51 home runs (1.82 per game), issued 80 walks (2.86 per game) and struck out 208 (7.43 per game).

The home run number is ghastly. It’s gone up by more than .60 per game, and the 98 homers the Cubs have allowed this season are the most of any team (four more than the Nationals).

So it’s basically everything. Over the 28 game slump the Cubs have been outscored 148-91. That’s an average of 5.29 runs allowed and 3.25 runs scoreed per game — so they’ve been outscored by an average of two runs per game for an entire month, basically. They’ve been shut out four times and scored one or two runs nine other times, winning just one of those nine (2-o over the Braves May 14, largely thanks to great pitching by Ben Brown).

What is the answer to this?

Well, if I knew that, I’d certainly tell Jed Hoyer and Craig Counsell.

It’s mystifying how an entire team can slump this badly, both offensively and the pitching staff. Some of the pitching issues are injury-related, but not all of them. What’s happened to Shōta Imanaga, for example, is almost inexplicable. How does a guy pitch lights-out for nine starts (2.32 ERA, just five home runs in 54 innings), then just get absolutely hammered by opposing hitters (four starts, 10.80 ERA, 12 home runs in 21.1 innings)?

I have to believe these guys are all better than they’ve shown over the last 28 games. Usually, when a team’s hitters or pitchers go into slumps, they have other guys on the team to carry them. The only Cubs hitters who have hit reasonably well over the last month are Pete Crow-Armstrong and Michael Busch. The only pitchers who have been solid for that time are Ben Brown and Jacob Webb.

It will turn around. It has to. Right? Right?

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Rangers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

We have a Rangers Reacts question for you today, and it is about new Texas Rangers manager Skip Schumaker, who took over from Bruce Bochy this offseason.

What we want to know is, what grade would you give on the job Schumaker has done so far this season?

Cast your vote below…

There’s no question that the Giants lost something when they traded away Patrick Bailey now one month ago, but the franchise seems comfortable with their new direction, even if it’s a little unclear in a bad way just how much has been lost. They embarked on it for two reasons: an offensive uptick and more leadership at the position. Have either of these tasks been accomplished since the trade went down 30 days ago yesterday?

Before the trade, Bailey hit .146/.213/.183 (.396 OPS) in 30 games and 86 PA. The Giants’ lineup had a team wRC+ of 81 through the first 38 games of the season while the pitching staff had a 3.63 ERA in his 238.1 innings catching (3.93 overall — 12th).

Now, I’m including the team’s total offensive production here because in looking at it by positional split I came away pretty surprised. Patrick Bailey was completely awful — one of the worst professional hitters on planet Earth — but with Daniel Susac’s .478/.500/.652 line in 24 plate appearances and .300/.300/.500 in 10 PA from Eric Haase, the Giants’ catching position was not the worst in baseball through May 8th. At 83 wRC+ (.244/.297/.345), it ranked 16th, ahead of the Yankees, Red Sox, Mets, Rangers, Mariners , Guardians, Diamondbacks, Nationals, Blue Jays, and Phillies. So, the notion that the Giants had to get more offense out of the position was sort of… wrong? Remarkably, it was about as bad as the rest of the lineup. But Patrick Bailey’s .146 made him an obvious target.

[He has also hit .220/.276/.324 since the start of last season.]

Since the trade, the Giants’ lineup has a 126 wRC+ in 30 games, the best lineup in baseball. Ditching Bailey has raised the catching position all the way down to 17th in MLB with an 81 wRC+ (.206/.283/.346). The team’s ERA has been the third-worst at 5.16.

Compare to what’s happening over with Cleveland. Prior to the trade, their team ERA of 4.01 was 14th in MLB. Since then, it’s risen to 7th with a 3.45 result. What’s interesting about that is that Bailey’s catcher ERA in the 16 games he’s caught in is just 4.02 in 130 innings. Their catching position has dropped on the hitting side from a 65 wRC+ (23rd) to 55 (25th) “thanks” to Bailey’s abysmal .167/.196/.333 in 17 games (51 PA). I wouldn’t say it has been a slam dunk move, but it has certainly helped Cleveland more than it’s hurt them.

The results were pretty strongly in favor of the Guardians since the early going, prompting many people on social media to immediately respond with “Bailey isn’t starting in Cleveland so this is misleading!” but that’s sort of besides the point because it’s not as though the Giants couldn’t have done the same thing. Their options were to bench him entirely (which is the first thing they did), demote him, trade him, or diminish his playing time. That last option would’ve probably been the most difficult to do given all the success that he’s had and a trade might have been the only way to get him to “accept” the role, but it is pretty clear that the Giants found his value to be more theoretical than tangible, hence trading him for a draft pick and a pitching prospect, both “assets” of theoretical value.

Some consideration must be given to how the relationship between the team and the player could’ve frayed so much. It’s not as though the catching position has been a traditionally important part of a lineup and as a general scapegoat for the likes of Devers, Chapman, and Adames woefully underperforming (and let’s throw Jung Hoo Lee in there for good measure) it’s more of a bad look for the team than the player, but let’s put ourselves on the organization’s side here.

Like all of Buster Posey’s big moves (Adames, the Devers trade, dumping Bob Melvin and replacing him with a college coach), the trade was defensible in the moment. The relationship between player and team had hit a wall and there was a move to be made that netted them a meaningful draft pick and a pitching prospect who could boost a thin part of their farm system. And like all of these big moves, it sort of needs 2-3 years to really play out before we can say whether or not it was “good.”

In the podcast discussion between Roger Munter and Kerry Crowley that I linked to before, Crowley suggested that Buster Posey might have his idea of what a team’s starting catcher should be like in terms of personality. Someone a little more outgoing and leader-like. Roger was quick to point out that a Rule 5 pick and minor leaguer (at the time, Jesus Rodriguez was the de facto backup catcher) might not slip right into that role. Everything that we’ve seen suggests that the Giants just wanted different energy in that position and figured that the slumps of a Rule 5 pick, a prospect, or a journeyman backup couldn’t be worse than the full-time work Patrick Bailey offered with the bat. In terms of the defense? Maybe they thought that the ABS Challenge System would be a way to shore up whatever defensive deficiencies there might be in going from Bailey to Susac and backup.

The other part of this, of course, is that Patrick Bailey wasn’t one of Buster Posey’s successes. Farhan Zaidi gets credit for that. And that made it even easier to move him once he became a problem — which, to be clear, the front office and coaching staff affirmed that he had become a problem. But now the Giants have to live with the consequences of such a big move and a month out, it’s unclear if it’s one that’s worked out.

The Giants were 15-23 (.395) when Patrick Bailey was on the team. They’re 12-18 (.400) without him. Seems like a wash. Sure, the lineup got better, but the pitching staff seems to have gotten worse. But maybe this season was always destined for failure. So, let’s be real fair and revisit this in 2 years to see how that draft pick and Matt Wilkinson worked out for them.

What does it feel like to hit a home run prop? I've lost that loving feeling during this cold snap.

But the sun's out, home runs are on the rise, and it's a great time to back the bats and MLB player props.

I'm targeting Max Scherzer and his fly-ball ways with two different Phillies batters, while the Rockies might have the best HR matchup on the board vs. a lefty who has given up a dozen dingers over his last four games. 

These are my favorite MLB home run predictions for Wednesday, June 10. 

Best MLB home run props today

Player to hit a HR	Odds
Bryce Harper	+402
Ezequiel Tovar	+470
Brandon Marsh	+585
💲Today's HR parlay	+13436

Home run pick: Bryce Harper (+402)

Max Scherzer is coming off the IL today and should be good for his usual 80-pitch workload. That's great news for the Phillies' bats, as the veteran right-hander has already allowed seven home runs in just under 20 innings of work this season.

The roof should be open, and the fly balls should be plentiful for the visitors.

It's a small sample, but Scherzer ranks 21st-worst among MLB starters in HR/FB rate, which pairs poorly with his seventh-worst groundball rate at 27.7%. A lot of Philadelphia bats are popping in the projections.

There are several Phillies hitters who have seen Scherzer more than 20 times, but at the current prices, Bryce Harper at +402 stands out as one of the best +EV home run plays, per the projections powered by THE BAT.

Left-handed hitters are crushing Scherzer this year, and Harper has taken him deep three times in 24 at-bats, which isn't an insignificant head-to-head sample. Alec Bohm at +700 or better is also showing value in the projections.

I have the fair price on the Harper home run closer to +300. For reference, Kyle Schwarber is sitting at +191.

• Time: 7:07 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SN1, NBCSP

Home run pick: Ezekiel Tovar (+470)

There is no better home run matchup to target today than the Rockies against Chicago's Shota Imanaga. The Cubs' starter has allowed 12 home runs over his last four starts, owns the worst BlastContact% of any starter on the slate over the last 30 days, and over that same stretch ranks second-worst in HR/FB rate.

It's 90 degrees in Colorado, and the wind is blowing toward the right-field wall.

Ezequiel Tovar went deep last night at a similar price in a tougher matchup. He has three homers over the last 14 days, ranks second on the team in ISO over the last two weeks, and is getting the ball in the air at a healthy rate. The fair price should be closer to +320.

Hunter Goodman is priced well below +200 to go deep, but Tovar projects as the next-most likely Rockie to leave the yard despite carrying the fifth-longest odds on the board.

• Time: 8:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Rockies.TV, Marquee Sports Network

Home run pick: Brandon Marsh (+585)

Let's add another left-handed bat against Scherzer in his first start off the IL.

There aren't many pitchers in baseball who allow as many fly balls as the veteran right-hander while also carrying one of the highest HR/FB rates in the league this season.

Brandon Marsh is just two games removed from homering in three straight contests. Over the last two weeks, he leads the Phillies in ISO, slugging percentage, HR/FB rate, and wOBA.

His low 16% groundball rate also pairs perfectly against a fly-ball pitcher like Scherzer.

Almost every visiting bat is projecting as +EV to go deep today, and the Phillies team total Over 1.5 home runs at plus money is another strong way to attack this matchup.

• Time: 7:07 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SN1, NBCSP

Today’s HR parlay

Bryce Harper	Bet Now +13436
Ezekiel Tovar
Brandon Marsh

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Toronto Blue Jays slugger Vladimir Guerrero Jr. gets a favorable matchup tonight against Philadelphia Phillies starter Jesus Luzardo, and his underlying metrics suggest a breakout performance at the plate may be imminent.

Read on for my Blue Jays vs. Phillies predictions and MLB picks for Wednesday, June 10.

Phillies vs Blue Jays predictions

Phillies vs Blue Jays best bet: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Over 0.5 singles (-135)

Jesus Luzardo owns a 4.35 ERA while ranking in the 59th percentile in opponent expected batting average this season. He also hasn't done a great job limiting quality contact, ranking in just the 58th percentile in barrel suppression.

That spells trouble against Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who matches up well against Luzardo's arsenal (four-seamer, changeup, sweeper). He owns a .340 batting average against those pitches along with a 24.4% line-drive rate this season.

He's also displayed an excellent approach at the plate this season, ranking in the 91st percentile in expected batting average.

More so, Vladdy's hard-hit rate against Luzardo's pitch mix has jumped to 57% in June, up from his 45.8% season average. Given his naturally low launch-angle profile, that increase in hard contact should translate into more line drives and sharply-hit balls finding the outfield grass. I'd bet this up to -150.

COVERS INTEL: Vladimir Guerrero Jr.'s singles make up for 79% of his 67 total hits this season.

Phillies vs Blue Jays same-game parlay (SGP)

Kazuma Okamoto matches up very well with Luzardo’s three-pitch mix, owning a .417 average and a 16% barrel rate against them when facing southpaws. I’ll add Over 0.5 hits for Okamoto to my SGP. 

Jays starter Max Scherzer has faced J.T. Realmuto 64 times in his career and owns a 31.2% strikeout rate against him. The Phillies catcher also owns just a .184 average against the four-seamer with a 19.6% K-rate, which is Scherzer's top pitch.

Phillies vs Blue Jays SGP

• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Over 0.5 singles
• Kazuma Okamoto Over 0.5 hits
• J.T. Realmuto Over 0.5 strikeouts

Phillies vs Blue Jays home run pick: Kazuma Okamoto (+380)

Luzardo gave up three homers in his last outing, but went four straight starts prior without allowing one, so we’ll just make this a half-unit wager.

However, Okamoto’s hitting profile matches up extremely well against the Philadelphia Phillies starter, making him the best bet to go yard tonight for the Jays. 

Okamoto barrels the baseball well against left-handed pitchers, resulting in a .417 average against Luzardo’s three most-used pitches with an .833 slug and a 57.9% hard-hit rate.

Phillies vs Blue Jays odds

• Moneyline: Philadelphia -130 | Toronto +110
• Run line: Philadelphia -1.5 (+120) | Toronto +1.5 (-140)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-115) | Under 8.5 (-105)

Phillies vs Blue Jays trend

The Blue Jays have gone Over the total in eight of their last 11 games for +4.8 units and a 41% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Phillies vs. Blue Jays.

How to watch Phillies vs Blue Jays and game info

Phillies vs Blue Jays latest injuries

Phillies vs Blue Jays weather

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Really hoping to salvage this one

With the Phillies finally on track and playing better baseball, it seems clear the fanbase won’t have to endure an All Star Game as dreary as the last one played in Philadelphia.

In 1996, Veterans Stadium was on the verge of falling down. Stray cats ruled the concourses. The scent or urine hung high in the air. All the bunting in the world couldn’t make the dark, cavernous Vet look like it deserved to host the sport’s premier mid-summer event. 

Even worse, the ‘96 Phils were flat-out awful. By June 18, they had fallen into last place in the NL East and never emerged from the basement. They were 37-49 at the break, 16 ½ games out of first place, and would eventually fall 29 games out with 95 losses.

They had one All Star named to the team, closer Ricky Bottalico. 

This time around, the country will be celebrating its 250th birthday, with the stars of MLB centered in the cradle of Liberty. It’s only fitting that the Phillies be well represented at Citizens Bank Park next month.

As of now, there are six Phillies who can make strong cases for a spot on the team – Christopher Sanchez, Kyle Schwarber, Jhoan Duran, Bryce Harper, Zack Wheeler and Brandon Marsh.

The problem with saying “Brandon Marsh should be an All-Star” is that, yes, in a vacuum, Marsh is having an All-Star season. There’s no two ways around it. 

By virtually every metric, Marsh’s career year should land him on the NL roster for the Midsummer Classic. But as history has taught us, deserving players get left off of All Star rosters every year.

It’s a numbers game. Each roster will consist of 32 players, 20 position players and 12 pitchers. 

The mandate remains that every one of the 16 teams have at least one representative. There also needs to be a certain number of players at each position to give managers some flexibility. You can’t have 10 outfielders and one first baseman. 

The fans will also have their say. Fans get to vote on who the position player starters will be. This is a wonderfully American and democratic thing, but it sometimes allows players who are having lesser seasons earn an All Star nod they might not otherwise deserve.

So when considering whether a player has a realistic chance at making the team, one must take these factors into consideration.

Let’s take a look at the six Phillies mentioned above and rank them from most likely to least likely to make the All Star squad.

Cristopher Sanchez – LOCK

In his outing Monday night in Toronto, Sanchez gave up two runs. I mean, this kind of decline is really unacceptable. After a 50 ⅔ inning scoreless streak that ran 5th-longest in MLB history was the most for any left-handed pitcher ever, it’s really galling to see him spiral downward like this, isn’t it?

The only real question is whether Sanchez will be named the starter for the NL All Star team. One would think manager Dave Roberts would give Sanchez the nod, given the game is in Philadelphia. Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski is the leading challenger, they are 1-2 in fWAR (3.8 to 3.2), and while Miz edges Sanchez just a bit in ERA (1.50 to 1.54), Sanchez has thrown 93 ⅓ innings to Misiorowski’s 78. 

There’s still time for this to change, of course, but whether Sanchez starts or not, he’s a lock for selection.

Kyle Schwarber – LOCK

Only Shohei Ohtani has been a more valuable DH in the National League than Schwarber, and Schwarbs is the NL’s home run king at the moment. He leads with 23 bombs. The next closest players are Matt Olson, James Wood and Hunter Goodman, with 17. His .573 slugging percentage also leads the league, and his .932 OPS is second.

Plus, you’d think Roberts would want him around in case something like this were to come up again.

Jhoan Duran – LOCK

After converting each of his first 16 saves this season, Jhoan Duran finally blew one.

Yep, he couldn’t hold a 2-1 lead and allowed the first three hitters to reach via singles, leading to a 3-2 Phils loss.

Yet, Duran’s 16 saves are third-most in the National League and, until last night in Toronto, had not allowed a run in any of those 16 opportunities. His overall 2.08 ERA is 3rd among closers and among qualified relievers, his 40.7% strikeout rate is 2nd. 

There’s not much to overthink here. The thought of the Durantula entrance from the bullpen in the 9th inning of the Midsummer Classic at Citizens Bank Park is already giving folks goosebumps. He’ll be there.

Bryce Harper – LIKELY

Harper’s case is less open and shut, but I think there’s a strong chance he’ll be included.

If you look at fWAR, you’d think Harper was having a very “non-elite” season. He’s currently ranked 9th in fWAR (1.1). Here are the players ahead of him entering Tuesday’s action.

• Sal Stewart (1.3)
• Liam Hicks (1.3)
• Spencer Horwitz (1.3)
• Alec Burleson (1.4)
• Michael Busch (1.5)
• Jake Bauers (1.5)
• Freddie Freeman (1.8)
• Matt Olson (2.3)

There’s no world in which Harper is not making the team because Stewart, Hicks, Horwitz, Burleson, or Busch have higher fWARs. Not happening.

Among NL first basemen, Harper’s 14 homers are 2nd-most (Olson, 17), his 41 runs scored are also 2nd, and his .866 OPS is 3rd. But there is a numbers crunch here.

If the National League only takes three first basemen, there’s a chance Olson, Freeman and Milwaukee’s Jake Bauers could be the three to make the team. Bauers’ .911 OPS and 154 wRC+ are tops among all NL first basemen, his 12 home runs are 3rd-most, and he has six more RBIs than Harper.

Of course, there are still a few weeks until rosters are decided, but while I feel it’s likely Harper would get selected ahead of Bauers, Roberts could decide to select Bauers if he feels Milwaukee needs another representative and the Phils are otherwise well accounted for. But then again, can they really tell Bryce Harper he’s not going to play in an All Star Game being hosted by his hometown Philadelphia?

Brandon Marsh – TOSSUP

There is no doubt Marsh is having an All-Star worthy season. His .333 batting average is tops in baseball, and he’s become one of the game’s most lovable young stars. His power is coming around too, with three home runs in his last four games, pushing his total up to 8 for the season. 

But like with Harper, Marsh could be facing a numbers game and, in this case, fan vote could make it very difficult for him to get in.

Marsh’s fWAR ranks tied for 9th in the NL, but that’s not the big worry. Juan Soto, Ronald Acuna Jr. and Kyle Tucker all have lower WARs. Tucker has barely been better than a league average hitter this year (104 wRC+) and Acuna (126) hasn’t been as productive as Marsh (142). Soto, however, has been a touch better (147). All three of these players are exceedingly popular and could all be voted in despite none of them being in the top-10 in NL WAR among outfielders.

There are also other outfielders having as good, if not better, seasons than Marsh. The Cardinals’ Jordan Walker is having a breakout season, too, leading all outfielders in wRC+ (158). That’s tied with Washington’s young superstar James Wood. He’s definitely making the team. Corbin Carroll is third (154). 

Michael Harris II, Andy Pages, Ian Happ, San Francisco’s Casey Schmitt, and Chicago’s Pete Crow-Armstrong are also extremely strong candidates. 

Much of this will come down to who gets voted onto the team. Marsh has a good chance if one of Acuna, Soto or Tucker is not voted to start, and an even better chance if two of them are not. Generally, seven outfielders make the roster, although there have been as few as six and as many as eight in years past.

We discussed Marsh’s candidacy in depth on the latest Hittin’ Season podcast. Check it out!

Zack Wheeler – TOSSUP

Wheeler got a late jump on the 2026 season, but he’s more than made up for it since re-joining the Phils’ rotation.

Wheeler pitched another gem last night in Toronto, giving up just one run on six hits with five strikeouts and no walks in six innings, lowering his ERA to 2.22. Among NL pitchers with at least 50 innings, that ranks 5th, and he’s allowed opponents to hit just .181 off him. That’s tied for 3rd in the NL among pitchers with at least 50 innings pitched. He’s been extremely good.

Like Marsh, the issue could come down to numbers. You see, it’s an insane year for starting pitching in the National League.

There are four starters with a better ERA right now: Chase Burns, Sanchez, Misiorowski, and Ohtani. Now, Ohtani is getting in as a DH, so we don’t have to count him among the pitchers Wheeler will contend with. Paul Skenes will make the team. Chris Sale is having another phenomenal year. Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Justin Wrobleski have been incredible for the Dodgers. Arizona’s Eduardo Rodriguez is having his best season, Milwaukee’s Kyle Harrison is 2nd in the NL in K/9, and even the Mets’ Clay Holmes, with only nine starts this year, has a 2.39 ERA.

If he continues to pitch like he did in Toronto on Tuesday night, he may very well get selected, despite missing the first month of the season.

In short, I think the Phillies will be well represented at this summer’s All Star Game.

This evening, our MLB player props are rolling with Dominic Canzone, Kyle Schwarber and Kyle Stowers, all in matchups that set up well for production.

Let's take a deep dive into why these guys are catching our eye for the top MLB picks for Wednesday, June 10.

Best MLB player props today

Player	Pick	Odds
Dominic Canzone	Over 1.5 Hits, Runs, RBI	-121
Kyle Schwarber	Home Run/Double	+193 | +353
Kyle Stowers	Over 1.5 Hits, Runs, RBI	+101

Dominic Canzone Over 1.5 Hits, Runs, RBI (-121)

Calzones for everyone, if this cashes! CALZONES!!!

The very first prop I locked in today was Seattle Mariners designated hitter Dominic Canzone to go over his hits, runs, and RBI prop.

Today marks Canzone's 24th elite rating, and he has surpassed this prop in six of his last 10 elite-rated games, per Batters-Box.

Against Baltimore Orioles right-hander Brandon Young, Canzone's matchup wOBA, ISO, hard-contact rate, and fly-ball rate all see significant boosts. Not to mention, he owns tremendous arsenal coverage against Young's pitch mix.

Recently, Canzone has been all over anything left over the plate. Over his last 30 plate appearances against right-handed pitching, the 28-year-old is producing nearly 60% hard contact with a 27.3% barrel rate, while posting a 1.324 OPS, .857 SLG, and .428 ISO.

On the other side, Young has been getting crushed by left-handed hitters at home, allowing a 40.6% hard-contact rate, a 26.9% ground-ball rate, and a 55.8% fly-ball rate.

If Canzone gets a hold of one tonight, I think it has a good chance of leaving the yard. I'd sprinkle a little on the home run and would play this prop up to -130.

• Time: 6:35 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: MASN, SEAM

Kyle Schwarber Home Run (+193) | Double (+353)

We are not paying juice on any of Kyle Schwarber's props today. Skip the nonsense, it's home run or double day.

The Philadelphia Phillies slugger finds himself in a great spot against future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer, who takes the mound for the Toronto Blue Jays this evening.

Against Scherzer's pitch mix, Schwarber owns a 70.8% arsenal coverage rate while also carrying an elite rating. Across nearly 250 plate appearances with an elite rating according to Batters-Box, the slugger leaves the yard 28.34% of the time.

Scherzer has allowed plenty of hard contact at home this season, surrendering a 20% barrel rate while sporting an 8.51 xERA. Through 53 left-handed hitters faced, opponents have produced a 14.9% barrel rate and a 76.6% elevation rate. Those lefties also own a .311 xBA, .616 xSLG, and .411 xwOBA against him.

While Schwarber is batting just .240 over his last 30 plate appearances against right-handed pitching, he continues to square the ball up at an impressive rate, posting 61.5% hard contact. On the season, he owns a 13.51% barrel rate and a 52.94% hard-hit rate against righties.

If we're expecting Schwarber to elevate the baseball in Toronto tonight, let's attack the elevation props and grab the better value.

• Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SN1, NBCSP

Kyle Stowers Over 1.5 Hits, Runs, RBI (+101)

Big day to be a Kyle, as we’re also backing Miami Marlins young buck Kyle Stowers to go over 1.5 Hits + Runs + RBI at even money.

The 28-year-old checks in with an elite rating on Batters-Box, and he’s been nothing short of consistent in these spots. Across 28 elite-rated games, he has cleared this number 57.14% of the time. He’s also recorded multiple hits in nearly 40% of those contests and has left the yard 21.43% of the time.

The Marlins outfielder gets a matchup against Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Ryne Nelson, who enters with poor ratings in both matchup ISO and hard contact allowed. Left-handed hitters have given him plenty of trouble this season, posting a nearly 71% elevation rate alongside a .541 expected slugging percentage and .356 xwOBA.

Stowers also has strong arsenal coverage against the fastball-heavy righty. On top of that, he’s seeing the ball extremely well right now, hitting .296 with a .901 OPS and .556 SLG over his last 30 plate appearances against right-handed pitching. During that stretch, he’s produced a 56.3% hard-hit rate and a 12.5% barrel rate.

I’d do my best to grab this prop at plus money. Getting an elite-rated hitter at plus money to go over 1.5 HRR feels like a gift.

• Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: MIAM, ARID

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

It’s been a series full of nailbiters, but at least the Yankees have come out on the right side of a pair of one-run games in this set with the Guardians. With a getaway day today, we have a matinee affair for you that will hopefully be a little more of a laugher than we’ve seen this week, but a pair of low-ERA lefties might mean we’re doomed to another tight one.

Carlos Rodón has looked more than serviceable in his five starts already this year, with a 2.88 ERA and 3.08 xERA that suggest he’s not just suppressing runs but suppressing good contact as well. However, there are a couple of yellow flags to note. First of all, he has a very elevated walk rate, over 15 percent of batters faced. He did walk five in his return start against the Brewers, but has only issued two or fewer free passes in one outing this year, and being able to control the strike zone will be an early key to his effectiveness. He’s also running a pretty paltry HR rate that will begin to normalize eventually, and while this Guardians squad won’t bludgeon you to death, they have a couple guys that can get some good swings off.

Parker Messick is playing in his first full season and a lot of the things we just said about Rodón could probably be said here, even if it appears Messick’s error bars are for the time being narrower than his veteran counterpart. He’s walking guys about doubly as often as last year, but with a more normal home run rate. Regardless, the two southpaws feature FIPs within .15 points of each other, so we’re dealing with two pretty similar looking seasons so far.

We see the Full Lefty lineup deployed once again, with Paul Goldschmidt leading off, but given the half-day off while DH’ing, Amed Rosario cleaning up, and Ali Sánchez batting ninth and catching. The platoon advantage is there for Sánchez of course (and it’s a day game after a night game), but after the game J.C. Escarra had, having the backup in was probably a good idea regardless of the starter.

How to watch

Location: Progressive Field — Cleveland, OH

First pitch: 1:10 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, Guardians TV, WKYC3

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY), WTAM 1100, WMMS 100.7, WARF 1350, Guardians Radio Network (CLE)

Online stream: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

As you might expect with a team that has hovered around .500 all season, signs point upwards, downwards, and downright sideways, all at the same time, with regard to the 2026 A’s and the rest of the season.

Make no mistake about it, there are positives. The A’s have not hit the way they expected to, but joining the already superb Nick Kurtz, Shea Langeliers, and Carlos Cortes is the sizzling hot Tyler Soderstrom and Brent Rooker has shown signs of life this week as well. The A’s will ultimately hit. And the emergence of Gage Jump, along with the good arm of Jack Perkins and breakout of JT Ginn, gives the A’s renewed hope around their beleaguered rotation.

But there are still more questions than answers around the final 95 games as the A’s sit 3.5 back of 1st place and 0.5 game out of a crowded field of wild card mediocrity. Here’s an updated look around the diamond…

Third Base

Leo De Vries looked so good in spring training that it felt realistic to think he might push for a spot on the big league roster as soon as this month. He didn’t miss that fast-track by a hair, he missed it more by a finger. De Vries suffered a bone bruise in his finger that probably explains his big drop in slugging so far in 2026, with an ISO of just .107 compared to the impressive .196 of last season. All his other stats are still looking elite and he’s on his way — but not imminently anymore.

Meanwhile, Zack Gelof has been a revelation, with his .266/.315/.462 batting line pretty close to his enticing rookie season stats (.267/.337/.504) that had him looking like a core piece for years to come. His defense has been the best of any A’s candidate, night and day better than Max Muncy and superior to that of other players, e.g., Darell Hernaiz, trying to play it as their second or third best position.

So why hasn’t Gelof stabilized 3B going forward? Not because of anything he has done wrong, but because of what Jeff McNeil has done wrong. McNeil went to bed April 30th a wily 34 year old veteran and woke up on May 1st a 54 year old trapped in a horror movie best described as “Freaky Friday meets The 100 Year Old Man”. Point being the A’s might need Gelof to stabilize 2B, where his defense is even better, leaving a hole still at 3B.

As for Muncy, who is being given opportunities again to show he is capable of manning 3B every day, he brings questions on both sides of the ball. He has yet to prove he can play 3B (or 2B) adequately and the bat has not shown up since he was hit on the hand, played through it, rested, rehabbed, and returned to go 1 for 8 — and the one should have been ruled an E6.

Bottom Line: Really you want to put players at their best positions when possible, especially if there is a hole at that position. For Gelof that is 2B, not 3B, so it leaves 3B still highly uncertain given that De Vries is not yet in the picture. It continues to be the place where the A’s should probably focus if they consider a trade or waiver acquisition for the rest of the 2026 season — but they know help is on the way so they would only be looking at a stopgap of an upgrade, which is an unlikely fit. Especially for a team whose focus will be on pitching if it’s on anything.

Second Base:

Once lovingly referred to as Squirrel, then also Graybeard as a tribute to his “mature profile,” lately Jeff McNeil’s nickname has simply been Your Expletive Here. Another possible one would be This ISO Intentionally Left Blank, as McNeil’s last extra base hit came on May 20th and he has had just two since May 3rd.

It’s hard to overstate how bad McNeil has been the past 6 weeks, as his swings themselves are actually more alarming than the results, which are putrid enough. May’s terrible .216/.278/.284, 54 wRC+ performance has been followed by an even more frightening June: .091/.130/.091, good for the ol’ -44 wRC+. He is now 4 for his last 48 with 4 singles.

Perhaps McNeil’s most recent PA shines a spotlight on just how far the former batting champion has fallen. With the game on the line in the bottom of the 12th, McNeil swung at the first pitch even though it was several inches inside and he could not have possibly done anything with it but pull it weakly foul as he did. Then he took a strike which he challenged even though most of the ball was clearly in the zone. Then he waved late at a pitch up around his neck. It was a PA you couldn’t fathom in April, but have come to expect in June.

If the A’s sit McNeil they solve 2B immediately with Gelof. Only the hole it leaves at 3B, and the “what to do with McNeil?” questions remain — but both are significant queries. So 2B remains as unsettled as 3B unless the A’s can figure out a way to clone Gelof (hey, he does have a brother in the minors…).

Bottom Line: The A’s need to figure out what they do with McNeil and if it’s the Gio Urshela “It’s been fun…” treatment then they have solved 2B with Gelof, but if not most likely we will continue to see some sort of platoon that bounced Gelof around the infield.

Center Field

This is probably the least unsettled of the 5 in that Henry Bolte is off to a somewhat rollicking start — so long as you don’t look too deep under the hood. Bolte smashed his first HR last night, which is a welcome development, but he also struck out twice to raise his K rate to 31.5%. His BABIP now sits at .440.

Bolte also committed errors in each of the first 2 games of the series, first making an unnecessary throw that skipped past 3B and then getting his footwork a bit tangled as he fanned on a base hit he was charging. Bolte is still only 25 games and 89 PAs into his career, and there are clear signs of success (a .295 BA and .371 OBP) as well as red flags for regression ahead (he has struck out in 14 of his 28 June PAs).

Bolte’s job is safe in that Denzel Clarke is out for a long time and Lawrence Butler is a terrible CFer who also happens to be hitting worse than Clarke offered. But what lies ahead for Bolte, both at the plate and in the field, is anybody’s guess.

Bottom Line: The A’s will pretty much “sink or swim” with Bolte for the next 2 months. It’s just unclear which it will be.

Starting Pitching

Gage Jump has been sensational and JT Ginn has been a true “breakout SP” — including last night when he was charged with 5 ER in 5.2 IP but in the context of the hitting environment offered the best start of any of the 4 SP in the series so far. Jack Perkins is still an unknown but offers a third “plus arm” the A’s can hope to lean on to create a young “big 3” of sorts.

It’s after that things get even dicier than wishcasting great success on Perkins before he has fully shown it. Jeffrey Springs began the season with an ERA of 1.46 for his first 4 starts and hasn’t won a game since. His season ERA now stands at 4.68 and the dreaded HR ball has shown up 16 times in just 75 IP. He has pitched very much like JP Sears did for the A’s, and while Sears was useful to the A’s he was clearly a “back of the rotation innings eater”. The 5th SP is a revolving door of recently Kade Morris, potentially Joey “You think Springs gives up a lot of HRs?” Estes, and soon the return of Aaron Civale, who out pitched his peripherals for a while and then didn’t.

It feels like the A’s SP, going forward, could be anything from “surprisingly solid” — like the bullpen was last season following the Mason Miller trade — to “predictably godawful” as you can get when you rely on pitchers who have made 3 big league starts, haven’t been able to stay healthy for a full season, have pitched to poor predictive stats but better results, and so on. It’s a wild card to match the playoff spot the A’s are a half game away from.

Bottom Line: The A’s are going to lean heavily on 3 very inexperienced SPs to lead them into the post-season picture at more than a cursory level.

Bullpen

Oh the bullpen. This is a group that can throw 6.1 IP scoreless innings across 6 different relievers one day and then the very next day turn a comfortable 5-1 7th inning lead into a devastating walk-off loss. After last night, fans are bullish about the prospect of Mason Barnett and Elvis Alvarado blowing away the competition in high leverage, but how many felt this way a week ago?

Justin Sterner (3.19 ERA with underlying metrics to support his success) has probably been the A’s most consistently effective reliever from day 1 to day 67. Certainly Alvarado has the stuff as he unleashed yesterday. Hogan Harris has a team leading 5 saves but he has also walked 23 in his 32.1 IP. Barnett has been a revelation, but only for 3 appearances so far. Luis Medina has been solid in lower leverage and brings good stuff to go with erratic results throughout his career. The rest of the bullpen crew (Mark Leiter Jr., Scott Barlow, Jose Suarez) are veterans who rely on guile more than plus offerings.

Best case scenario is that a couple arms emerge to give the A’s one thing they have sorely lacked all season: a clear set-up man and a clear closer to build the rest of the pen around. 2 of Alvarado, Sterner, and Barnett could potentially seize these roles, but whether they will is still anybody’s guess.

Bottom Line: “Closer and set-up man by committee” just doesn’t usually work well at all, so look for the A’s to settle on 2 guys soon and then we’ll find out if they made good choices.

A lot of uncertainty, and also a lot of potential and upside, as the A’s spend the next month or so learning whether they are contenders, pretenders, buyers or sellers, in a mediocre AL that is there for the taking — but is also not going to be taken by most of the middling teams. Your thoughts and suggested plans of action moving forward? One thing is clear: it’s not early anymore and the wheat and chaff are about to separate in the American League.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Pirates fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

There’s a little over a third of the season in the books, with the Pittsburgh Pirates sitting at 34-33. They’ve been wobbling back and forth between .500 and a few games over all season. However, it’s better baseball overall than we’ve seen in a while, minus some hiccups.

What we want to know is, who do you consider to be the Bucs MVP with a third of the season in the books?

There’s some newcomers, a stud pitcher, a guy finally coming into his own at the plate. You decide.

We’ll be back soon with the results. Thanks for voting!

Freddie Freeman doubled and singled in Tuesday night’s win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, bringing the Dodgers first baseman to 2,500 career hits, just the 102nd player in major league history to reach that milestone.

“It does mean a lot,” Freeman told reporters in Pittsburgh after his 2,500th hit, as shown on SportsNet LA. “There’s always another [milestone] to get to, but to step back and realize how long you have to play, the consistency over the course of that, to play at a high level for many, many years to get there, it does mean a lot.”

Freeman is the first new member of the 2,500-hit club since Robinson Canó on May 7, 2019 while with the New York Mets. The 2010s were a fruitful decade in gaining new members to this exclusive club, with 11 players getting their 2,500th hit between 2010-19.

There have been double-digit players reaching 2,500 career hits every decade dating back to the 1970s, topping out at 14 players between 2000-09.

Freeman is the first player to reach 2,500 hits in the 2020s, and we’re already in our seventh season of this 10-year stretch.

Jose Altuve is next in line on the active career leaderboard, with 2,430 hits. The Houston Astros second baseman will likely reach 2,500 hits at some point later this season. But the rest of the active hit leaderboard quickly runs out of steam when it comes to potential players reaching 2,500 hits by the end of 2029.

MLB active hit leaders

1. Freddie Freeman 2,500 hits
2. Jose Altuve 2,430 hits
3. Andrew McCutchen 2,280 hits (39 years old, released by Rangers on May 28)
4. Paul Goldschmidt 2,229 hits (turns 39 in Septmber)
5. Manny Machado 2,109 hits (turns 34 in July)
6. Nolan Arenado 1,973 hits (age 35, had 453 hits since start of 2023, ~3.5 years)
7. Carlos Santana 1,882 hits (age 40)
8. Xander Bogaerts 1,874 hits (age 33, last had 170 hits in a season in 2023)
9. Bryce Harper 1,862 hits (age 33, topped 150 hits twice since 2021)

Of that group, Altuve and Machado look likely to reach 2,500 hits in the next three-plus seasons, and maybe Arenado depending on how he finishes out this year. Bogaerts and Harper still very well could reach 2,500 hits, but perhaps not until 2030 or later.

The 2020s might end up being the decade that sees the fewest new entrants to the 2,500-hit club since the 1950s, when only two players did so. They were upper-echelon Hall of Famers Stan Musial and Ted Williams, so maybe it’s not all bad to be in such select company.

By all accounts, the San Diego Padres should have won Tuesday night’s game. With the bases loaded in the sixth inning, the Friars grounded into an inning-ending double play. With runners on first and second in the eighth, the Cincinnati Reds struck out Samad Taylor before inducing a flyout from Jase Bowen to end the inning.

But the biggest situation came in the bottom of the ninth, where three consecutive singles loaded the bases with one out for the Padres. Manny Machado struck out to bring up Gavin Sheets. Sheets promptly struck out as well to send the game to bonus baseball.

San Diego quickly tied the game in the 10th on an RBI-single from Taylor. But they wouldn’t get any more than that, setting up a dramatic 11th inning. The Reds’ Sal Stewart slugged a two-run shot against Yuki Matsui that would be the difference maker.

That said, this was a productive game for the Friars. The superstars showed up tonight, with Fernando Tatis Jr., Machado and Jackson Merrill going 8-for-17 at the plate. Unfortunately, that production didn’t translate into a win for San Diego. They’ll now face off against Cincinnati in the rubber match today.

Taking the mound

Brady Singer (CIN) v. Michael King (SD)

Singer spent the 2025 season as a productive back-end starter for the Reds but has not been the same in ‘26. Through 55 innings, Singer owns a 5.89 ERA, 1.69 WHIP and an incredibly high .316 opponent batting average.

Most of the Friars haven’t faced the righty, so Cincinnati will be hoping that it takes some time to figure him out. San Diego will need to put up runs quick to take the rubber match and win their first series of June.

On the other side, King has been San Diego’s ace through this season. Despite a recent rough stretch, the righty has posted a 3.41 ERA through 74 innings. His last three starts have been tough, giving up 13 runs in just 15 2/3 innings.

Unlike Singer, King has faced a majority of the Cincinnati lineup. He’s had success against most of them, but catcher Tyler Stephenson boasts a .286 batting average and a team-high seven at-bats against the righty.

Batter up!

Samad Taylor has looked fantastic in his first week with San Diego. Across 11 at-bats, the speedster boasts a .364 batting average and a .500 on-base percentage. It’s a small sample, but he’s been a veritable spark for a Padres’ offense that had gone dark.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., 2B
2. Jackson Merrill, CF
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Gavin Sheets, DH
5. Ty France, 1B
6. Samad Taylor, LF
7. Jase Bowen, RF
8. Sung-Mun Song, SS
9. Rodolfo Durán, C

The stars showed up last night, but the rest of the lineup didn’t do much to help. The Padres went a blistering 3-for-20 with RISP, cutting short any hope of scoring opportunities. They’ll need to do much better tonight to win the series.

Relief corps

With the game going into extras (and Lucas Giolito going just four innings), the Friars’ bullpen looks pretty depleted after last night. David Morgan, Adrian Morejon, Jason Adam, Mason Miller, Bradgley Rodriguez and Matsui covered a total of seven innings to finish out the game.

That leaves just Ron Marinaccio and Wandy Peralta in the ‘pen for the Friars. Thankfully, King has a track record of working deeper into games than most of the San Diego rotation. The Padres hope he’ll be able to do so against a middling Cincinnati lineup.

Here’s my trio of top MLB same-game parlay predictions for three night games Wednesday, June 10.

The MLB picks begin with the Arizona Diamondbacks taking down the Miami Marlins and wrap up with the nightcap between the Houston Astros and Los Angeles Angels tonight.

Today's best MLB SGP picks

Game	SGP Odds
ARI vs  MIA	+390
PHI vs  TOR	+320
HOU vs  LAA	+455

Diamondbacks vs Marlins SGP: Snakes sink Fish

The Miami Marlins rank 26th in overall xwOBA across the past 30 days, while the Arizona Diamondbacks check in sixth, so I’m expecting the Snakes to put enough runs on the board to pull away tonight.

Arizona star Corbin Carroll has hit the Over in this market in 19 of his past 26 games, and he’s also posted a monster .375 wOBA against righties since the beginning of 2025.

Turning to Diamondbacks starter Ryne Nelson, he’s dipped to a 16.8 K% across his past seven starts while throwing fewer fastballs and adding a sinker to his pitch mix. It’s a clear recipe for success with his solid 2.89 ERA and 0.99 WHIP during the stretch, too.

This SGP is playable down to +375.

• Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: MIAM, ARID

Phillies vs Blue Jays SGP: Philly maxes Scherzer

With the Toronto Blue Jays ranking 27th in xwOBA across the past 30 days and 26th in wOBA against lefties this season, I’m anticipating Philadelphia Phillies southpaw Jesus Luzardo to cash in on pending statistical correction. His 3.15 xFIP is miles below his 4.56 ERA, after all.

Phils first baseman Bryce Harper also lands in a favorable matchup with his high-end .418 wOBA and .292 ISO against righties, and Toronto turning to Max Scherzer (6.26 xFIP).

The final leg is uncorrelated to boost the odds, and Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. sports an elite .318 batting average against southpaws since the beginning of the 2024 campaign.

I’d play this SGP down to +300.

• Time: 7:07 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SN1, NBCSP

Astros vs Angels SGP: L.A. bats tee up Lambert 

Los Angeles Angels right-handed hitters Zach Neto and Oswald Peraza have a sneaky matchup with Houston Astros starter Peter Lambert sporting reverse splits and allowing a healthy .365 wOBA to righty bats. 

Neto and Peraza both hit in the top half of the Los Angeles lineup and check in with respective .372 and .375 wOBAs against right-handed arms this season.

While Angels starter Reid Detmers sports an impressive 28.5 K% this season, I’m anticipating him having a tougher time racking up punchouts with the Houston Astros ranking sixth in wOBA while striking out at the fourth-lowest clip against southpaws.

This SGP is in play to +425.

• Time: 9:38 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ABTV, SCHN

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.