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Cardinals select contract of Luken Baker from Memphis (AAA); Barrera designated for assignment

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Cardinals select contract of Luken Baker from Memphis (AAA); Barrera designated for assignment

PITTSBURGH, Pa., – The St. Louis Cardinals selected the contract of first baseman Luken (LOO-kehn) Baker from Triple-A Memphis and designated for assignment catcher Tres Barrera (trayce buh-RAIR-uh).

Baker, 26, was batting .313 with 18 home runs and 53 RBI through 54 games at Memphis and was tied for the lead in home runs among all minor league players with Jo Adell of Salt Lake, the Triple-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Angels.  His 53 RBI ranks 3rd in the Minors including a stretch of seven games with an RBI from May 23-30.  His legend grew when he splintered his bat in half and still hit a mammoth 412-foot home run vs. Norfolk at Autozone Park on May 28.

He was first drafted by the Houston Astros in the 37th round (1,099th overall) of the 2015 Major League Draft, but did not sign, electing to attend college and play baseball at Texas Christian University.  The Cardinals used their second round Compensation Pick in 2018 (75th overall) to draft and sign the 6-foot-4, 285 lb., slugger.

Baker was the 2015 Gatorade National Player of the Year out of Oak Ridge High School in Conroe, Texas, becoming the first Gatorade National Player of the Year to attend college and not sign professionally since Drew Henson, the two-sport athlete of football and baseball, who played quarterback at the University of Michigan with Tom Brady in 1998.

When he sees his first Major League action, Baker will become the third Cardinals player this season to make his debut joining outfielder Jordan Walker and right-handed pitcher Guillermo Zuñiga.  Baker is no stranger to Major League ballparks as he has already participated in a home run derby at Chicago’s Wrigley Field and Minnesota’s Target Field in 2014.

Baker played in 438 minor league games before the call-up batting .257 with 79 home runs and 264 RBI.   He will wear uniform No. 26.

Barrera, 28, played in six games while in St. Louis and registered two at-bats.

Reds add LHP Andrew Abbott to Taxi Squad

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Reds add LHP Andrew Abbott to Taxi Squad

The Reds today assigned to the Taxi Squad LHP Andrew Abbott (#41).

Twins return Caleb Thielbar from rehab, reinstate from 15-day injured list

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Twins return Caleb Thielbar from rehab, reinstate from 15-day injured list

Cole Sands placed on 15-day Injured List

MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, MN – The Minnesota Twins announced today that they have returned left-handed pitcher Caleb Thielbar from his rehab assignment and reinstated him from the 15-day Injured List.

Thielbar has missed the Twins’ last 29 games with a right oblique strain. He appeared in two games on rehab assignment with Triple-A St. Paul, going 1-0 with 2.0 scoreless innings, one hit allowed and three strikeouts. The 36-year-old has gone 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA (10.0 IP, 2 ER), two walks and 10 strikeouts in 11 appearances for the Twins this season.

To make room for Thielbar on the 26-man roster, the Twins have placed right-handed pitcher Cole Sands on the 15-day Injured List (retroactive to June 1) with right shoulder impingement. Sands, who last pitched on May 30, has posted a 0.73 ERA (12.1 IP, 1 ER) with seven walks, 13 strikeouts and a .213 (10-for-47) opponent batting average across two stints with the Twins this season.

Red Sox Announce Roster Moves

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Red Sox Announce Roster Moves

BOSTON, MA—The Boston Red Sox today announced the following roster moves:

  • Placed left-handed pitcher Joely Rodriguez on the 15-day Injured List (retroactive to June 1) due to left shoulder inflammation.
  • Optioned left-handed pitcher Ryan Sherriff to Triple-A Worcester following last night’s game against the Tampa Bay Rays.
  • Recalled right-handed pitcher Kaleb Ort from Worcester.
  • Recalled left-handed pitcher Brennan Bernardino from Worcester.

Chief Baseball Officer Chaim Bloom made the announcement.

Rodriguez, 31, last appeared on May 30 against the Cincinnati Reds and allowed five runs over 0.2 innings. The left-hander has allowed eight runs in 4.0 innings pitched over five outings with Boston this season. He has posted a 4.92 ERA (82 ER/150.0 IP) in 162 career relief appearances with the Philadelphia Phillies (2016-17), Texas Rangers (2020-21), New York Yankees (2021), New York Mets (2022), and Red Sox (2023).

Sherriff, 32, appeared in both games of yesterday’s doubleheader against the Rays, allowing one run over 2.0 innings with three hits, two strikeouts, one walk, and one hit batsman. The left-hander has posted a 2.70 ERA (2 ER/6.1 IP) in five games for Boston this season. In 49 career Major League games with the St. Louis Cardinals (2017-18), Tampa Bay Rays (2020-21), and Boston Red Sox (2023), Sherriff owns a 3.53 ERA (20 ER/51.0 IP).

Ort, 31, has appeared in 12 games with Boston this season, posting a 7.30 ERA (10 ER/12.1 IP) with 12 strikeouts and six walks. The right-hander has also recorded a 2.45 ERA (2 ER/7.1 IP) and .179 opponent batting average in eight outings with Worcester, most recently pitching on May 30 in Louisville. Selected by the Red Sox in the Triple-A phase of the 2020 Rule 5 Draft from the New York Yankees, Ort owns a 6.59 ERA (30 ER/41.0 IP) in 38 career Major League appearances, all with Boston (2021-23).

Bernardino, 31, served as Boston’s 27th man for yesterday’s doubleheader against the Rays and pitched 2.0 scoreless innings with four strikeouts in Game Two. The left-hander has posted a 2.93 ERA (5 ER/15.1 IP) in 13 relief appearances for Boston this season. He has also pitched in three games for Triple-A Worcester, allowing two runs (one earned) in 5.0 innings.

Dodgers Recall Jonny DeLuca

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Dodgers Recall Jonny DeLuca

LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers have recalled outfielder Jonny Deluca and placed outfielder Trayce Thompson on the injured list with a left oblique strain.

Deluca, 24, was hitting .315 (23-for-73) with three doubles, one triple, four homers and 19 RBI in 17 games for Oklahoma City. He began the season with Double-A Tulsa, hitting .279 (34-for-122) with 10 homers and 18 RBI. Last season, he played in 101 games between High-A Great Lakes and Double-A Tulsa, recording 23 doubles, 22 homers and 64 RBI. He was added to the 40-Man roster this offseason and appeared in 14 Spring Training games for the Dodgers, batting .304 (7-for-23) with a double, a homer and six RBI. The Southern California native was originally drafted by the Dodgers in the 25th round of the 2019 First Year Player Draft out of the University of Oregon.

Thompson, 32, left the game last night after the seventh inning. He has appeared in 36 games this season, slashing .155/.310/.366 with five homers and 14 RBI. In his last two seasons with the Dodgers, he has amassed 18 homers while driving in 47 runs in 116 games. He has been in the Major Leagues parts of seven seasons with Chicago (2015, 2018), Los Angeles (2016-17, 2022-2023), Oakland (2018), Chicago-NL (2021) and San Diego (2022), hitting .216 with 44 homers and 123 RBI. He was acquired by the Dodgers on June 20, 2022 from the Detroit Tigers in exchange for cash considerations.

MLB Preview: New York Yankees (35-25) at Los Angeles Dodgers (35-24)

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MLB Preview: New York Yankees (35-25) at Los Angeles Dodgers (35-24)

NEW YORK YANKEES NOTES:

AT A GLANCE: The Yankees complete their six-game road trip today with the final game of a three-game set at Los Angeles NL (1-1 thus far)…are 3-2 on the road trip after winning two-of-three at Seattle and splitting their first two games at Los Angeles-NL…after this road trip, will return home for a six-game homestand vs. Chicago-AL (Tues.-Thurs.) and Boston (6/9-11).

At 35-25 (.583), have the fifth-best record in the AL.

Have won five of their last seven games, 10 of their last 15 games, 12 of their last 18 games, 14 of their last 21 games and 17 of their last 25 games.

Are 20-10 (.667) in their last 30 games (since 5/2), the second-best record in the Majors in that span, trailing only Texas (20-9, .690).

Have won or split six of their last seven completed series (since 5/8), seven of their last nine completed series (since 5/1) and 13 of their 18 completed series this season (going 11-5-2).

Are 7-3 in rubber games this season.

YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Yankees defeated the Dodgers, 6-3, on Saturday at Dodger Stadium…RHP Gerrit Cole (6.0IP, 4H, 1ER, 2BB, 5K, 0HR, 1HP) started and improved to 7-0 on the year…LF Jake Bauers (2-for-3, 2R, 2HR, 4RBI) recorded his first career multi-HR game, hitting a two-run HR in the second inning and a two-run HR in the fourth inning…also tied his career high with 4RBI…RF Aaron Judge (1-for-3, 1R, 1HR, 1RBI, 1BB) hit a solo HR in the sixth inning…LF Oswaldo Cabrera (1-for-1, 1R, 1HR, 1RBI) hit a solo HR in the ninth inning…LHP Wandy Peralta (0.0IP, 2H, 2ER, 1BB) allowed 2ER without recording an out…RHP Michael King (2.0IP, 1H, 3K) tossed 2.0 scoreless innings of relief…RHP Clay Holmes (1.0IP,
1BB) tossed a scoreless ninth inning to record his sixth save of the season.

BRONX BOMBERS: Yankees batters hit a season-high-tying 4HR on Saturday (also 5/8 vs. Oakland)…their 31 games with multiple home runs are the most in the Majors this season.

Have hit 94HR this season, the second-most home runs in the AL and the fourth-most in the Majors.

Have hit 7HR over their last two games.

Have hit multiple HR in five of their last six games, 11 of their last 15 games (since 5/18), 16 of their last 21 games (since 5/12), 20 of their last 26 games (since 5/7) and 22 of their last 30 games (since 5/2).

Their 60HR since 5/1 are the most in the Majors in that span (next: Atlanta with 54HR).

Since 5/1, rank third in runs scored (167) and runs scored per game (5.39), tied for third in extra-base hits (106) and fourth in SLG (.467) and OPS (.780).

Are hitting .344/.390/.548 (32-for-93) with 10 doubles, 3HR, 42RBI, 8BB/2IBB, 1HP and 3SF with RISP in their last 14 games (since 5/19).

JAKE RAKES: INF/OF Jake Bauers recorded his first career multi-HR game on Saturday, hitting a two-run HR in the second inning and a two-run HR in the fourth inning…his 4RBI on Saturday tied his career high (fourth time and first since 6/14/19 at Detroit with Cleveland).

Is hitting .462/.556/1.308 (6-for-13) with 3R, 2 doubles, 3HR, 7RBI, 4BB and 1SF in his last five games (since 5/29).

His multi-HR game on Saturday was the ninth by a Yankee this season…are the second-most by any team in the Majors this season, trailing only the Dodgers (13).

NOBODY BEATS THE RIZZ: INF Anthony Rizzo is batting .318/.356/.529 (27-for-85) with 14R, 3 doubles, 5HR, 17RBI, 4BB and 1HP in his last 21 games (since 5/8).

Has reached base in 28 of his last 32 games and 47 of his 55 games this season.

COLE TRAIN: RHP Gerrit Cole earned his team-leading seventh win of the year on Saturday after allowing just 1ER in 6.0IP (4H, 2BB, 5K, 0HR, 1HP)…is now 7-0 with a 2.82 ERA (79.2IP, 25ER) and 84K in 13 starts this season…is the only pitcher in the Majors that is currently 7-0-or-better.

Has allowed 2R-or-fewer in 10 of his 13 starts this season.

The Yankees are 11-2 in his starts this season.

His 13-start season-opening undefeated streak is tied for the third-longest by a Yankees starter in franchise history, trailing only Ron Guidry (first 17GS in 1978) and Allie Reynolds (first 15GS in 1954)…Orlando Hernández (2004), Bob Wickman (1993), Jim Coates (1960) and Monte
Pearson (1937) also recorded 13-start streaks.

ALL RISE: OF Aaron Judge hit his American League-leading 19th home run of the season on Saturday with a solo shot in the sixth inning…has 5HR in his last six games, 8HR in his last 14 games and 13HR in his last 19 games (since 5/13)… his 13HR in his last 19 games match the third-most by a Yankee in a 19-game span in a single season in franchise history, trailing only Alex Rodriguez (14HR in 19G from 4/2- 24/07) and Babe Ruth (14H in 19G from 5/18-6/7/30).  The Yankees have gone 158-50 in his career when he homers…since 2020, the Yankees are 86-21 in those games…the Yankees are 14-1 this season when he homers.

Has homered in each of the Yankees’ last seven series (since 5/11).

Is hitting .348/.483/.971 (24-for-69) with 20R, 4 doubles, 13HR, 24RBI, 18BB/3IBB and 1SB in his last 19 games (since 5/13)…has reached base multiple times in 12 of those 19 games.

Has 24RBI in his last 19 games…has recorded 26RBI in 23 games since returning from the I.L. (since 5/9).

Has hit 5HR in seven career games against the Dodgers…has homered in four of his five career games at Dodger Stadium.

Is batting .291/.404/.674 (51-for-175) with 42R, 10 doubles, 19HR, 40RBI, 35BB, 3SB and a 1.078 OPS in his first 49 games this season…in 2022, hit .303/.374/.659 (56-for-185) with 40R, 9 doubles, 19HR, 39RBI, 23BB, 3SB and a 1.034 OPS in his first 49 games.

Is batting .365/.478/.905 (27-for-74) with 20R, 7 doubles, 11HR, 22RBI, 17BB/3IBB, 1SF and 2SB in 21 road games this season…has reached base in 19-of-21 games on the road this year (did not reach base on Friday at Los Angeles-NL and did not reach in 2PA on 4/27 at Texas after exiting the game due to injury).

Leads the Majors in SLG (.674), OPS (1.078), AB/HR (9.21) and game-winning RBI (9), is second in HR (19, first in AL), tied for fourth in extra-base hits (29, tied for first in AL), sixth in OBP (.404, second in the AL), tied for sixth in total bases (118, fourth in AL), eighth in runs scored (42, third in AL), tied for ninth in walks (35, third in AL) and tied for 10th in RBI (40, tied for sixth in the AL).

Has hit .360/.429/.700 (18-for-50) with 12R, 2 doubles, 5HR, 11RBI, 6BB and 1SB in 13 Interleague games this season…has batted .313/.402/.641 (122-for-390) with 82R, 19 doubles, 2 triples, 35HR, 69RBI, 57BB/4IBB and 9SB in 107 career Interleague games.

His .639 SLG and 1.042 OPS in Interleague play since 2017 are the highest in the Majors.

KING OF THE HILL: RHP Michael King tossed 2.0 scoreless innings of relief on Saturday…has not allowed a run in 16 of his last 18 appearances (since 4/4), going 1-0 with three saves and a 1.16 ERA (31.0IP, 4ER) and 35K in that span.

Has tossed at least 2.0IP in nine of his 19 appearances this season, tied for the third-most such appearances by a Major League reliever…all nine appearances have been scoreless…his nine relief appearances of at least 2.0 scoreless innings are the most in the Majors.

Has recorded at least five outs in 12 of his 19 outings this season…his 12 such appearances are the most in the Majors among relievers.

Has recorded at least four outs in 16 of his 19 games this season…his 16 such appearances are the most among Major League relievers.

PEN PAL: RHP Clay Holmes recorded his sixth save of the season on Saturday after tossing a scoreless ninth inning…has not allowed a run in 13 of his last 14 appearances (since 5/6), going 3-0 with two saves and a 0.63 ERA (14.1IP, 1ER) and 18K in that span.

NATIONAL TREASURE: The Yankees are 10-4 in 14 Interleague games this season…have won each of their four completed series vs. NL opponents this season.

WHAT A RELIEF: Yankees relievers have posted a Major League-best 2.89 ERA (230.2IP, 74ER) and .215 opponents’ BA this season…the Yankees are the only Major League bullpen that currently owns an ERA below 3.00 (next: Houston – 3.08).

Have posted a 1.54 ERA (23.1IP, 4ER) in their last seven games (since 5/27)…have held opponents to a .179 BA (15-for-84) in that span.

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP DOMINGO GERMÁN (3-3, 3.98 ERA)
RHP Domingo Germán will make his 11th start of the season in today’s series finale at Los Angeles-NL…the 30-year-old will start on extended five days’ rest due to Thursday’s team off day…earned his third win of the season in his last start on Monday at Seattle after tossing 6.1IP (7H, 4ER, 3BB, 4K, 1HR, 1HP)…allowed 2R-or-fewer in four straight starts from 5/1-16, tying the longest such streak of his career (also four straight starts from 7/27-8/12/22 and from 5/9-27-G1/21)…has allowed 1ER-or-fewer in three of his last five starts and in five of his last nine starts…among pitchers with at least 50.0IP this season, ranks third in the Majors in WHIP (0.98, third in AL), fourth in opponents’ BA (.179, third in AL) and H/9 (5.80, third in AL), and seventh in opponents’ OBP (.258, seventh in AL)…in 2022, went 2-5 with a 3.61 ERA (72.1IP, 65H, 31R/29ER, 19BB, 58K, 11HR) in 15 games (14 starts) with the Yankees…allowed 3R-or-fewer in a career-high 12 consecutive starts from 7/27-9/30/22…missed the first 93 games of the season with right shoulder impingement syndrome…in six seasons with the Yankees, is 29-24 with a 4.33 ERA (468.0IP, 225ER) and 482K in 102 career games (80 starts)…was signed by the Yankees as a minor league free agent on 12/11/15…was originally acquired by the Yankees from the Miami Marlins along with RHP Nathan Eovaldi and INF Garrett Jones in exchange for RHP David Phelps and INF Martín Prado on 12/19/14.

LAST TIME OUT: Earned his third win of the season in his last start on Monday at Seattle after tossing 6.1IP (7H, 4ER, 3BB, 4K, 1HR, 1HP)…allowed an RBI groundout to Teoscar Hernández in the second inning, a solo HR to Julio Rodríguez in the fourth and a two-run single to Rodríguez in the fifth.

Snapped his streak of four consecutive starts allowing 2R-or-fewer…was tied for the second-longest such streak of his career.

His 29BF marked a season high and the second-most of his career, trailing only his 30BF on 6/4/18-G2 at Detroit.

His 7H allowed also marked a season high and his most since 10/5/22 at Texas (also 7H).

VS. LOS ANGELES-NL/INTERLEAGUE: Will be making his second career start vs. the Dodgers…earned the win after allowing just 1ER over 6.0IP (5H,
2BB, 5K, 1HR, 1HP) in his lone career start at Los Angeles-NL on 8/25/19.

Has gone 4-4 with a 4.50 ERA (74.0IP, 69H, 38R/37ER, 18BB, 75K, 13HR) in 16 career Interleague games (14 starts).

Went 1-1 with a 2.04 ERA (17.2IP, 4ER) and 15K in four Interleague games (three starts) in 2022…allowed 2ER-or-fewer in all three starts and 1ER in two starts.

In two career starts vs. NL West opponents (at San Francisco on 4/28/19 and at Los Angeles-NL on 8/25/19), has gone 2-0 with a 3.75 ERA (12.0IP, 10H, 5R, 3BB, 9K, 1HR, 1HP).

ON THE ROAD: Will make his sixth road start of the season…is 2-0 with a 5.01 ERA (23.1IP, 13ER) and 19K in five road starts this season.
The Yankees are 4-1 in his five road starts this season.

In 53 career games (42 starts) on the road, is 16-13 with a 4.86 ERA (242.2IP, 131ER) and 234K.

Has allowed 3R-or-fewer in eight of his last 11 road starts (since 7/27/22), including 2R-or-fewer in seven of those starts.

Allowed 2R-or-fewer in a career-high four consecutive road starts from 7/27-8/27/22…allowed 1R-or-fewer in three consecutive road starts from 8/6-8/27/22, tied for the longest such streak of his career (also recorded three such starts from 4/28-5/20/21).

2023: Will make his 11th start of the season today…is 3-3 with a 3.98 ERA (54.1IP, 24ER) and 53K in 10 starts this season… among pitchers with at least 50.0IP this season, ranks third in the Majors in WHIP (0.98, third in AL), fourth in opponents’ BA (.179, third in AL) and H/9 (5.80, third in AL), and seventh in opponents’ OBP (.258, seventh in AL.

Allowed 2R-or-fewer in four straight starts from 5/1-16, tying the longest such streak of his career (also four straight starts from 7/27-8/12/22 and from 5/9-27-G1/21).

Has allowed 1ER-or-fewer in three of his last five starts and in five of his last nine starts…has also allowed 2ER-or-fewer in six of his last nine starts.

Has surrendered only 1HR in his last five starts after allowing 7HR in his first five starts this season.

Has recorded at least 8K with 0BB in two starts.

His 53K are the second-most strikeouts he’s recorded through his first 10 starts of a season in his career, trailing only his 59K through his first 10 starts in 2019.

Was ejected on 5/16 at Toronto prior to the bottom of the fourth inning for violating MLB’s prohibitions on foreign substances and served a 10-game suspension from 5/17-27.

Did not record a decision on 5/1 vs. Cleveland despite allowing just 1ER over a career-high 8.1 innings (2H, 1BB, 6K)…allowed just three baserunners…after allowing a one-out single to Amed Rosario in the first inning, did not allow a hit to his next 25BF (1BB) before allowing the single to Steven Kwan in the ninth…became just the fifth Yankees pitcher (sixth time) in the last 22 years (since 2002) to toss at least 8.1IP and allow three-or-fewer baserunners…joined Gerrit Cole (2H and 1BB in 9.0IP on 4/16/23 vs. Minnesota), Corey Kluber (1BB in 9.0IP on 5/19/21 at Texas), Masahiro Tanaka (twice: 2H and 1BB in 9.0IP on 6/17/19 vs. Tampa Bay and 3H in 9.0IP on 4/27/17 at Boston) and Chien-Ming Wang (2H in 9.0IP on 4/11/08 at Boston).

Allowed 1ER-or-fewer in back-to-back starts on 4/10 at Cleveland and 4/15 vs. Minnesota, tying the longest such streak of his career…marked the sixth time in his career he’s recorded consecutive such starts.

Earned his first win of the season on 4/15 vs. Minnesota after recording a career-high 11K (6.1IP, 3H, 1ER, 0BB)…marked his third career double-digit strikeout game (also 10K on 7/25/21 at Boston and 6/14/18 vs. Tampa Bay)…marked the first time in his career he’s recorded at least 10K without surrendering a walk…marked his fifth career start with at least 8K and 0BB allowed, including his second this season (8K and 0BB on 4/4 vs. Philadelphia)…is the first Yankee to record at least 10K and 0BB in a game this season and the first since Gerrit Cole did so on 7/17/22 vs. Boston (12K and 0BB)… tossed 5.1 perfect innings before allowing a one-out single to Christian Vázquez in the sixth inning… his 11K matched the most by a Yankees pitcher this season (also Gerrit Cole on Opening Day vs. San Francisco).

LOS ANGELES DODGERS NOTES:

WHO’S IT GONNA BE?: The Dodgers lost to the Yankees yesterday, 6-3, and today on ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball the club will look to win its sixth consecutive series at home in the rubber match with New York. Today’s contest closes out the homestand (3-2) as the Boys in Blue look to win their first series over the Yankees at Dodger Stadium since taking two of three from them June 18-20, 2004. This weekend marks just the fifth time the Yanks have come to Chavez Ravine in the regular season. Of course, the two squads met 11 times in the World Series from 1941-81 with Dodger Stadium involved in four of them (1963, 1977-78, ’81). Following tomorrow’s travel day to Cincinnati, Los Angeles will begin a six-game road trip against the Reds Tuesday night with the first of a three-game set. Following Thursday’s finale with the Red Legs, the club will head to Philadelphia for a three-game series with the Phillies that starts on Friday night, June 9. Los Angeles (.593) and Arizona are tied atop the NL West and co-own the best record in the National League and the fifth-best mark in the big leagues, trailing Tampa Bay (.683), Texas (.649), Baltimore (.621) and Houston (.603). The Dodgers have the best home record in the National League (20-9, .690) and have won 14 of their last 17 contests at the Ravine.

MISSED OPPORTUNITIES: The Dodgers fell behind early and then went 1-for-11 with runners in scoring position on their way to a 6-3 loss at the hands of the Yankees. Michael Grove made his first start since April 20 and gave up four runs on four hits in 5.0 innings while striking out a season high seven hitters. Unfortunately, two of those hits were home runs by Jake Bauers and Grove fell to 0-2 on the season. At the plate, Miguel Rojas went 2-for-4 with an RBI, giving him four multi-hit games in his last 10 contests. Max Muncy cracked his 18th homer of the season on Friday night, which ranks third in the Majors, trailing just Pete Alonso (20) and Aaron Judge (18). Last night, Muncy’s Dodger season high streak of five consecutive games with an RBI was snapped. The Dodgers lead the National League in runs per game (5.59), runs scored (330), home runs (100), extra-base hits (221), slugging percentage (.462) and walks (251).

BOBBY BALL: Dodger rookie right-hander Bobby Miller will make his third-career start on Sunday Night Baseball vs. the Yankees. Miller has won both of his starts and today will look to become the first Dodger rookie since Kazuhisa Ishii to win each of his first three Major League starts. Ishii would win his first six. The last homegrown Dodger pitcher to win his first three big league starts was Fernando Valenzuela, who ripped off eight-in-a-row in 1981 on his way to the Cy Young Award and a World Series title over the Yankees.

RIVALRY RESTARTED: The Dodgers and Yankees met Friday night for the first time since August 2019 and the clubs have met just 18 times since the start of Interleague play in 1997, with each team winning nine games apiece. The Yankees took two of three from the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium in that 2019 three-game series and overall Los Angeles is 6-7 vs. the Bronx Bombers at Chavez Ravine.

INTERLEAGUING: The Dodgers are 4-4 in interleague play this season after going 15-5 last year against the other league, including a 7-3 record at home. Since the start of the 2019 season, Los Angeles is 57-31 in interleague play and their .648 winning percentage in that span is second best in the Majors, trailing only the Tampa Bay Rays, who have a .673 Interleague winning percentage in that span.

LOCKED IN: Dodger designated hitter J.D. Martinez went 0-for-4 yesterday and was robbed of an extra-base hit in his final at-bat by Aaron Judge. The 0-fer ends Martinez’s hitting streak at 16 games, but he has been on fire since returning from the injured list on May 12, hitting safely in 18 of 20 games while batting .305 (25-for-82) with four doubles, nine homers and a Major League leading 25 RBI during that span.

THE GLUE: Dodger catcher Will Smith went 1-for-4 yesterday and is hitting .375 (12-for-32) with a .474 on-base percentage in his last nine games. The Dodgers are 26-14 (.650) when the All-Star hopeful has appeared in a game and 26-11 (.703) when he starts.

GET HIM TO SEATTLE: Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman went 1-for-5 yesterday, one day after seeing his Dodger season-high 20-game hitting
streak snapped. Freeman, who was named Major League Baseball’s Player of the Month for May in the NL, hit .457 (37-for-81) with five homers, 11 doubles, one triple, 21 RBI and 20 runs scored during the streak. He ranks third in the Major Leagues with 49 runs scored, trailing Marcus Semien (53) and Ronald Acuna Jr. (50). Freeman leads the Major Leagues with 23 doubles, 34 extra-base hits and 135 total bases while ranking second in hits (80) and batting average (.336).

IT’S SHOWTIME!: The Dodgers would like to wish a very happy birthday to right-handed reliever Yency Almonte, who turns 29 today! Almonte is in his second year with the Dodgers and is 3-0 with a 6.75 ERA. He hasn’t allowed a run in his last six games (6.0 IP), allowing just one hit and striking out seven in that span. The Miami native spent his first four big league season with the Colorado Rockies, where he made 120 relief appearances.

LONG BALLS: The Dodgers didn’t homer yesterday and still rank second in the Majors with 100 home runs, trailing only the Tampa Bay Rays (103). Los Angeles recorded their 18th 3+ homer game Friday night, which leads the Majors. The Dodgers also rank second in the Majors with 47 games with at least one homer, behind the Rays (49), who have homered in all but 11 games this season

TONIGHT’S STARTER vs. YANKEES: RHP BOBBY MILLER (2-0, 1.64 ERA in 2 GS)
2023 SEASON NOTES:

  • The big right-hander followed his first career start with another solid showing against the Nationals, spinning six innings, giving up four
    hits, one run and one walk while punching out four…first Dodgers rookie starting pitcher to earn the win in his two career starts since Jose De Leon (9/04/16 vs. SD and 9/12/16 at NYY)
  • Illinois native picked up the win in his Major League debut against Atlanta May 23 after spinning five innings and giving up four hits, one run and one walk while striking out five
  • Owns a 1-1 record across four starts with Triple-A Oklahoma City with a 5.65 ERA (9 ER/14.1 IP) with 12 strikeouts and just 6 issued walks…has limited the opposition to a .212/.295/.385 slashline
  • Was a non-roster invitee to Spring Training…did not appear

VS. YANKEES:

  • Will face New York for the first time in his career

MLB Preview: Chicago Cubs (25-32) at San Diego Padres (27-31)

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MLB Preview: Chicago Cubs (25-32) at San Diego Padres (27-31)

CHICAGO CUBS NOTES:

No team release available.

SAN DIEGO PADRES NOTES:

Yu Darvish goes 7.0 scoreless and Fernando Tatis Jr. homers twice as Padres blank Cubs 6-0

  • The Padres topped the Cubbies 6-0 last night for their 4th shutout win of 2023…starter Yu Darvish tossed 7.0 scoreless innings with just 2 hits allowed with 9 punchouts and 1 walk…it was his 4th win of the season and his 99th career win in Major League Baseball.
  • Fernando Tatis Jr. had his 10th-career multi-homer game, homering in the 3rd and 8th…Juan Soto, Trent Grisham, and Ha-Seong Kim also doubled as the Padres went 10-for-32.

Happy Fernando Tatis Jr. day!

  • On this date in 2016, A.J. Preller traded right-handed starting pitcher James Shields to the Chicago White Sox for righthanded starting pitcher Erik Johnson and 17-year-old infielder Fernando Tatis Jr.

Weathers gets the ball

  • In his last time out on Friday @ Miami, Ryan Weathers made his 2nd start of the most recent 3-city road trip, tossing a career-high 96 pitches in no decision…he allowed 3 runs on 7 hits across 4.0 IP in the Friars’ eventual 9-4 victory.
  • In his start on May 24 @ WSH, Weathers converted his 3rd pickoff of the season, which puts him in a tie for most pickoffs in MLB this year with Taylor Clarke, Brent Suter and Julio Urias.

Who’s hot? Who’s not?

  • Last night, Fernando Tatis Jr. had his 2nd 4+ RBI effort over his last 3 games (also Thursday @ MIA)…Tatis now has 7 extra-base hits over his last 8 games (1.002 OPS), and his 7 XBH since May 26 tie with Aaron Judge for the 2nd most in MLB behind just Ryan McMahon’s 8.
  • Ha-Seong Kim enters today having hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games with a PA, including a career-high, 9-game hitting streak and a current 12-game OB streak (.460 OBP)…during the 12-game stretch, he’s hitting .333 with 3 2B, HR, 3 RBI with 10 BB.
  • Trent Grisham went 2-for-3 with a double last night, but he enters today having gone 10-for-71 (.141) over his past 25 games
  • Since the start of the Miami series, Jake Cronenworth has gone just 2-for-21 (.095)…his last extra-base hit came on May 28 @ NYY (a home run).
  • Last night, Manny Machado snapped an 0-19 skid at the plate (6 G) with his single in the 3rd…he’s now gone 1 for his last 22 (.045).

Xander & Roogey Injuries

  • Xander Bogaerts was removed from yesterday’s game in the 8th inning with left wrist soreness…he will likely not be available in today’s game and will continue to be evaluated…Rougned Odor, who suffered a left groin strain while rounding first base on Friday, could potentially avoid an IL stint…he hit in the cages yesterday prior to the game, and he’ll also be day-to-day.

STARTING PITCHER – RYAN WEATHERS 40
Weathers set for 7th start of season
23-year-old Ryan Weathers is slated for his 7th start of the season, his 3rd at home and the 4th of his career vs. CHC…his lone career start/appearance last season came vs. these Cubs, when he allowed 4 runs on 6 hits in 3.2 IP and did not factor into SD’s 19-5 victory…1 of his 2 relief outings this season also came vs. the Cubs in the 7th inning on April 25 @ Wrigley Field, tossing a scoreless 7th inning and retiring all 3 batters he faced on 10 pitches. Weathers tosses career-high 96 pitches in no decision vs. Marlins Weathers made his 2nd start of the most recent 3-city road trip last Friday at MIA, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits across 4.0 IP in SD’s eventual 9-4 victory…he returned to loanDeport Park, the scene of his lone career HR and 4th career hit July 23, 2021.

Weathers ties season and career high with 6.0+ IP @ WSH Wednesday, May 24
Last Wednesday @ WSH, Weathers was tagged with his 3rd consecutive losing decision for the 2nd time in his career (also: July 30-Aug 11, 2021)…he worked a career-high-tying 6.0 IP for the 2nd time in 3 starts and did not allow a long ball in SD’s 5-3 defeat…he was recalled from Triple-A El Paso on Thurs, May 18 with Seth Lugo landing on the 15-day IL (right calf strain)…he was optioned to El Paso on Mon, May 15 after his Sun, May 14 start at LAD.

Weathers tied for most pickoffs in Majors
In his start last Wed @ WSH, he converted his 3rd pickoff of the season, which puts him in a tie for most pickoffs in the Majors in ’23 with Taylor Clarke, Brent Suter and Julio Urias…it was Weathers 12th career pickoff, and it came in big league inning number 128.0, making him the 5th fastest pitcher to reach 12 pickoffs (in terms of IP) among pitchers to debut in Divisional Era (since 1969)….he trailed only Jerry Garvin (81.0), Ryan Feierabend (100.1), Ricky Horton (114.2) and Greg Smith (117.0)…his 9 pickoffs in 2021 led the Majors.

Hard hit percentage in the top 9 percentile
Weathers is getting hit hard only 29/4% of the time, which ranks in the 92nd percentile this season….the MLB average hard hit percentage is 36.0%, while his career avg is 39.6%.

Weathers improves after the first time through
The first time through a lineup in his 8 starts (6 app), opponents are hitting .315 with a .8.19 OPS (61 batters faced)…the 2nd time thru, opponents are hitting .213 with a .597 OPS (54 batters faced), and the third time thru they are hitting .238 with a .762 OPS (24 batters faced).

Weathers’ barrel rate down in ’23
Weathers allowed 25 barrels in his 1,617 pitches thrown in 2021 for a 8.4 barrel %…this season, he’s allowed just 4 barrels in his 581 pitches thrown for a 3.9 barrel % that ranks in the 89th percentile this season.

MLB Preview: Atlanta Braves (34-24) at Arizona Diamondbacks (35-24)

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MLB Preview: Atlanta Braves (34-24) at Arizona Diamondbacks (35-24)

ATLANTA BRAVES NOTES:

TODAY’S GAME: The Braves and D-backs today conclude a three-game series in what is the third of six scheduled meetings between the clubs this season… Arizona will travel for three games at Truist Park, July 18-20.

  • Atlanta beat Arizona, 5-2, last night to even the series at one game apiece.
  • Atlanta and Arizona played six total games last season, with the Braves winning four of the six… The Braves have won the season series with the Diamondbacks in each of the last two years, and since 2008, Atlanta has only lost the season series with Arizona twice…They went 3-4 against the D-backs in 2019, and 2-5 in 2016…Atlanta is 53-40 (.570) overall against Arizona since that year.
  • The Braves dropped two-of-three games in Arizona last season, losing a series at Chase Field for the first time since 2017… The Braves’ lone win in that series prevented a series sweep and was the first of the club’s 14 consecutive wins from June 1-15.
  • Atlanta is 49-39 (.557) all-time here at Chase Field since the facility opened in 1998, including an 11-6 (.647) record since 2018.
  • RH Michael Soroka has made two career starts against Arizona, both in 2019, and is 0-1 with a 1.64 ERA (2 ER/11.0 IP) versus the D-backs…
    In his lone start here at Chase Field, May 9 of that season, he allowed four hits and one run over 6.0 innings in a no-decision…The 6-foot-5, 225- pound right-hander made his season debut earlier this road trip at Oakland, and allowed five hits and four runs over 6.0 innings to take the loss.
  • RH Zac Gallen is a perfect 2-0 in two career starts against Atlanta, pitching to a 1.42 ERA (2 ER/12.2 IP) and fanning 12…The University of North Carolina product is tied for the N.L. lead with seven wins this season, going 7-2 with a 2.72 ERA (22 ER/72.2 IP) in 12 starts.

WIN: Atlanta collected 11 hits and scored five runs, both single-game highs for its current road trip, to beat Arizona, 5-2, last night…Sean Murphy, Ronald Acuña Jr., Eddie Rosario and Marcell Ozuna all had multi-hit efforts for the Braves.

  • The win sets up a rubber match in today’s finale, and Atlanta is a perfect 3-0 in rubber games this season…The Braves beat Baltimore, Texas and Seattle in rubber games earlier this season to win the sets.
  • Atlanta improved to 27-2 (.931) this season when scoring at least five runs, the best such record in baseball.
  • The Braves’ 11 hits last night were their most since collecting a season-most 20 hits last Sunday night versus Philadelphia…Atlanta had just nine runs and 24 hits in the first four games of this road trip

TEAM HARD HIT: Atlanta batters hit 12 balls over 100.0 miles per hour last night, including each of the seven hardest-hit balls of the game…The Braves had an expected batting average of .347 for the game.

  • The game was the ninth time this season that Atlanta had at least 12 balls over 100.0 mph in a game, easily the most such games in the majors…No other team has done so more than four times this season.
  • Atlanta as a team has an average exit velocity of 91.1, highest in the majors and over 1.0 full mile per hour more than any other club…The Angels rank second with an average of 90.0 mph.
  • Despite the exit velocity, Atlanta made outs on six of the 12 balls it put in play harder than 100.0 mph last night…Three of those six outs were hit on the barrell and had expected batting averages over .500.
  • The Braves have made 182 outs on hard-hit balls this season, defined as balls with exit velocities over 95.0 mph…That total is most in the National League and second most in baseball, behind just Kansas City (186).
  • Conversely Atlanta has just 14 soft hits on the year, defined as hits under 60 mph or grounders and popups under 70…That total is fewest in baseball.

HARRIS II HARD HIT: Michael Harris II put all four of his balls in play harder than 95.0 mph last night, including four over 104.0 mph.

  • Last night was the first game of his career with four balls in play over 95.0 mph.
  • Harris II had the hardest-hit ball of the game, a 113.8 mph single in the eighth inning…It was the hardest-hit base hit of his career.

ACUÑA JR. HOME RUNS: Ronald Acuña Jr. connected on his 12th home run of the season last night, driving a 2-1 pitch in the sixth inning out to leftcenter…It was his first home run since May 17, snapping his season-long homerless drought at 14 games.

  • Acuña Jr.’s home run traveled 464 feet, tying for the sixth-longest shot of his career.
  • Each of his last 10 home runs have traveled at least 420 feet, dating to a 438-foot shot on April 14 at Kansas City…Per MLB’s Sarah Langs, Acuña Jr.s 10 consecutive homers of at least 420 feet is the longest such run in the Statcast era, which dates to 2015.
  • Since he debuted in 2018, Acuña Jr.’s 10 home runs of at least 460 feet are the most in baseball.

BULLPEN: Three Atlanta relievers combined to pitch 3.0 scoreless innings last night, and the Braves bullpen has now tossed 7.2 consecutive scoreless innings.

  • Just two teams – the Padres and White Sox – have a longer active scoreless streak from their relievers.
  • Atlanta relievers have not allowed an earned run in their last 9.1 innings, dating to May 29 at Oakland.

Tonight’s Starting Pitcher – #40 Michael Soroka RHP
2023 Record: 0-1, 6.00 ERA • 2023 MiLB Record: 1-2, 4.33 ERA
vs. RHB: .364 (4-for-11), 0 HR • vs. LHB: .091 (1-for-11), 1 HR
Home: 0-0, 0.00 ERA (0 ER/0.0) • Away: 0-1, 6.00 ERA (4/6.0)

Today’s Game

  • Set to make his second start of the season.
  • His last outing against Oakland marked his first MLB appearance in 1,029 days, dating to August 3, 2020.
  • Missed a total of 486 games with a torn Achilles.
  • Allowed five hits, four runs, two walks and a home run while fanning three in his last start against the A’s.
  • In seven starts with Triple-A Gwinnett, Soroka went 1-2 with a 4.33 ERA.
  • Struck out 21 hitters over 18.2 innings pitched through his last four starts and pitching to a 3.86 ERA

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS NOTES:

HERE’S THE STORY
♦ The D-backs are tied for first in the NL West with the Dodgers and share the NL’s best record and the Majors’ fifth-best record to the Rays (.683, 41-19), Rangers (.649, 37-20), Orioles (.621, 36-22) and Astros (.603, 35-23).

  • Arizona has spent 26 days in/tied for first place (April 2, April 8-24, April 26- 30, June 1-3).

♦ Since May 12, the D-backs’ 15-6 (.714) record is the second-best in the Majors behind the Astros (.762, 16-5).

♦ With a win today, the D-backs would win their seventh series in their last 9 series and their second consecutive home series vs. Braves (2-1, May 30-June 1, 2022).

LOVULLO IN ’24
♦ The D-backs extended the contract of Manager Torey Lovullo through the 2024 season.

PEN WORKHORSES
♦ The D-backs are the only team in the Majors with 4 relievers with 26+ outings — Miguel Castro, Andrew Chafin, Scott McGough, Kyle Nelson…the Mariners, Orioles, Blue Jays and Guardians each have 3 such relievers.

♦ Over the last 8 games, since May 27, the D-backs bullpen has a 1.67 ERA (5 ER in 27.0 IP) and .235 opponent average with 7 walks and 35 strikeouts.

GALLEN + MERRILL TOP-10 TEAMMATES
♦ Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly rank among the National League’s Top-10 in several categories:

Zac Gallen Merrill Kelly
Wins T-1st ……….. 7 T-1st ………… 7
Win Pct. 4th……… .778 9th ………. .700
Innings 5th……… 72.2 6th ………. 70.2
ERA 5th……… 2.72 6th ………. 2.80
Strikeouts T-5th …….. 82 10th ……….. 77
OPP AVG 5th………. 218 3rd ………. .194
WHIP 3rd ……… 1.03 7th ………. 1.08

EXTRA-BASE KNOCKS
♦ The D-backs’ 33 straight games with an extra-base hit is tied for the Majors’ second-longest active streak (also: Angels, Dodgers) behind the Orioles (50).

♦ The 33-gamer is the sixth-longest in a season in club history: 35 games done twice (Aug. 20-Sept. 27, 2020; Aug. 28-Oct. 4, 2015), 41 games (Aug. 18-Oct. 2, 2005), 57 games (July 28-Sept. 28, 2003) and 69 games (July 18-Oct. 7, 2001).

SNAKEBITES
♦ Ketel Marte has reached base in 31 of his last 32 games, highlighted by a career-best 30-game on-base streak (April 26-June 1).

♦ Evan Longoria’s career-best 12.13 at-bats per home run ratio is seventh in the Majors (min. 100 PA).

♦ Emmanuel Rivera has hit safely in 7 of his last 8 games (.379, 11-for-29, .883 OPS, 3 2B, 4 RBI, 1 BB)… on the season, his .341 average is second in the Majors (min. 85 PA).

STREAKS AND WINNING RECORDS
♦ The D-backs had a season-high 6-game winning streak from May 28-June 2, their longest since Aug. 12-18, 2020.

♦ The D-backs’ 35-23 record after their June 2 win put them 12+ games over .500 for the first time since Sept. 1, 2018 (74-62).

DOWN ON THE FARM
♦ High-A Hillsboro LHP Yu-Min Lin struck out 13 of 17 batters faced while tossing 5.0 scoreless innings with 1 hit and 1 walk last night @ Everett.

ON-DECK: WASHINGTON NATIONALS
♦ The D-backs took 2 of 3 vs. Nationals from May 5-7.

♦ Have played and split 4-game series @ Nationals each of the last 3 seasons (2022, ’21, ’19).

STARTING PITCHER – RHP ZAC GALLEN ♦ #23

AT A GLANCE: Is in his fifth season with the D-backs.

  • Fifth in the 2022 NL Cy Young Award voting.
  • 2022 D-backs Most Valuable Pitcher by the Arizona Chapter of the BBWAA after going 12-4 with a 2.54 ERA.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Is 6-0 with a 0.66 ERA (3 ER in 41.0 IP), 0.73 WHIP, .169 opponent average and 54 strikeouts in 6 home starts this season.

  • His 0.66 home ERA leads the Majors (min. 25.0 IP).
  • His 2.07 ERA (39 ER in 169.2 IP in 27 starts) since July 13, 2022 is the lowest in the Majors (min. 120.0 IP).
  • In innings 1-3, has allowed 6 runs, held opponents to a .180 average, walked 5 and struckout 34.

VS. BRAVES: Is 2-0 with a 1.42 ERA (2 ER in 12.2 IP) and 12 strikeouts in 2 career starts…won his last start @ Chase Field on May 30, 2022 (2 ER in 5.2 IP).

NL RANKINGS: Ranks among NL leaders in wins (T-1st, 7), strikeout-to-walk ratio (4th, 5.13), WHIP (4th, 1.03) strikeouts (T-5th, 82), walks (T-5th, 16) and ERA (6th, 2.72).

EARLY RISER: Is 8-5 with a 2.82 ERA (48 ER in 153.1 IP), 0.98 WHIP, .197 opponent average and 163 strikeouts in 27 career day starts.

  • Since 2022, his 1.85 ERA (19 ER in 92.2 IP) is the best in the NL in day games.

LIMITING THE LONG BALL: His 62.0 consecutive homerless innings are the longest active streak in MLB.

  • Has yet to allow a home run (149 BF) at home this year.

THE SCORELESS STREAK: Tallied the D-backs fourth-longest scoreless streak (28.0 IP) in franchise history from (April 4 [final inning]-April 26, 2023).

  • From April 10 to April 26, went 4-0 with a 0.00 ERA (0 ER in 27.0 IP), 0.44 WHIP, .112 opponent average, 1 walk and 41 strikeouts.

MLB Preview: Baltimore Orioles (36-22) at San Francisco Giants (29-29)

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MLB Preview: Baltimore Orioles (36-22) at San Francisco Giants (29-29)

BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:

YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Orioles fell to the Giants, 4-0, last night at Oracle Park… Adam Frazier and Ryan O’Hearn both doubled, accounting for two of Baltimore’s five hits…Bruce Zimmermann tossed 2.0 scoreless innings in relief in his 2023 O’s debut.  The O’s were shut out for the second time in the last five games; all five of the shutouts against the Orioles this season have come since May 3.

BURNING RUBBER: The O’s and Giants square off in a rubber game in today’s series finale…The Birds have gone 5-4 in rubber matches this season after going 11-11 in such games in 2022.

SERIES-LY: A win today would be Baltimore’s 13th series victory this year…The Orioles didn’t secure their 13th series last season until the 28th series on July 13, which completed a two-game sweep of the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field and was the final victory during a 10-game winning streak…The O’s didn’t win more than 12 series in any of the three full seasons from 2018-21 (12-32-8 in 2021, 10-34-8 in 2019, and 9-39-5 in 2018).

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS: Of Baltimore’s 58 games this season, 52 have been decided by four or fewer runs, tied with Los Angeles-AL for the most in MLB…The O’s have gone 33-19 in those games, the most wins and best winning percentage (.635) in MLB…The O’s are 24-13 in games decided by three or fewer runs, the most wins and best winning percentage (.649) in MLB.

Batimore is now 11-6 (.647) in one-run games after Friday night’s victory, tied with five other teams for the second-most wins in games decided by one run this season; only the Miami Marlins (16-4) have more one-run victories.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: The O’s began a six-game road trip with three games in San Francisco on Friday night…After an off day tomorrow, the Orioles play three games in Milwaukee from June 6-8…Baltimore is 19-10 (.655) away from Oriole Park, tied with Atlanta for the best road winning percentage and tied with Texas (19-12) for the most road victories in MLB this season…The Birds went 38-43 (.469) on the road last year, 14th-best in MLB, after going a combined 114-237 (.325) away from Camden Yards from 2017-21.

This season is tied for the second-best road start through 29 games by the Orioles in team history (since 1954), trailing only the 22-7 start in 1969 (see box at right); a win today would mark the fourth time in O’s history that the team has won 20 of the first 30 road games, joining 1969 (23-7), 1997 (20-10), and 1966 (20-10).

AGAINST THE GIANTS: The Orioles and Giants met Friday night for the first time since 2019 and for the first time in San Francisco since 2016…The O’s went 1-2 at Oriole Park from May 31 to June 2, 2019 and took three of four games at Oracle Park (then AT&T Park) from August 12-14, 2016…The Birds are 10-10 against the Giants since the teams first met in 2002 with only six of those games coming at Camden Yards, fewest among active teams.

WHAT’S TRENDING: The O’s have won 27 of their last 42 games, 30 of 46, and 32 of 49…The 36-21 overall record is the third-best in MLB to start the season (see box at right)…Entering today, the Orioles are one of six teams with at least 35 wins, along with the Rays (40-18), Rangers (36-20), Astros (35-23), Diamondbacks (35-23), and Dodgers (35-23).

Last season, the Birds did not collect their 36th win until their 80th game on July 3 (36-44), which was the start of their 10-game winning streak through July 13.

THE ROCK AND THE MOUNTAIN: Félix Bautista and Yennier Cano both threw a scoreless inning on Friday night to lock down the victory…The duo have combined to go 4-1 with 19 saves, a 1.08 ERA (7 ER/58.0 IP), 31 hits, 11 total runs allowed, two home runs, 19 walks, two hit batters, and 87 strikeouts while opponents have hit .156 (31-for-199)…The pair have pitched in the same game 16 times this season with the O’s going 14-2.

BIG TIME RUTSCH: Adley Rutschman leads the AL with 43 walks and with 102 times on base (59 H, 43 BB) this season…He’s also fourth in the AL with a .402 on-base percentage…He ranks among MLB switch hitters in OBP (1st), batting average (3rd, .282), and OPS (2nd, .832) and among primary catchers in OBP (1st) and OPS (3rd).

HAYS OF OUR LIVES: Austin Hays was named the Fielding Bible Award Co-Defensive Player of the Month for May with Toronto’s Kevin Kiermaier by Sports Info Solutions after he led MLB with 10 Defensive Runs Saved last month…Hays has four outfield assists this season, tied for fourth in the AL, and his 21 outfield assists since the start of 2021 are tied for the second-most in MLB during that time.

He ranks seventh in the AL with a .303 batting average.

His .413 batting average in the seventh inning or later leads MLB and he’s the only qualified player currently over .400 in those spots this season; he also leads MLB with a .411 average with two outs.

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – #68 TYLER WELLS – RHP
3-2, 3.29 ERA

QUICK HITS: Scheduled to make his 12th appearance (11th start) of the season, sixth appearance (fifth start) on the road, and first career start against the Giants this afternoon…Went 7-7 with a 4.25 ERA (49 ER/103.2 IP) in 23 starts for the O’s in 2022…Made his first career start on April 10, 2022 at Tampa Bay; dealt the loss after allowing four runs on three hits (1 HR) with two walks and two strikeouts in 1.2 innings…Did not walk a batter in five consecutive starts from April 21 to May 15, 2022, becoming the only Oriole starting pitcher in franchise history (since 1954) to not walk a batter in five consecutive games…Allowed three earned runs-or-fewer in 17 straight starts from April 16 to July 15, 2022…Ended the 2022 season on the 15-day Injured List with right shoulder inflammation…Also spent time on the Injured List with lower left side discomfort in 2022…Originally selected by Minnesota in the 15th round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of Cal State, San Bernardino before being taken by the Orioles in the Rule 5 Draft on December 10, 2020.

LAST TIME OUT: Dealt his second loss of the season during an outing on May 29 vs. Cleveland…Allowed one run on four hits with seven strikeouts and a balk in 6.0 innings of work…Issued no walks in a start for the third time this season (last: 4/9 vs. NYY)…Has tossed at least 5.0 innings in each of his 11 appearances (10 starts) this season; entered 2023 with 12 such games (all in 2022)…Marked his third quality start of the season…Threw 101 pitches, 65 strikes.

WATCH ME WHIP: Wells enters play today leading MLB with a 0.83 WHIP… Also ranks among qualified pitchers in opponent on-base percentage (1st, .220), batting average (2nd, .176), and H/9 (2nd, 5.71), BB/9 (T-8th, 1.71), and OPS (10th, .603)…He posted a 0.72 WHIP in April, tied for the seventh-lowest mark by an O’s pitcher in a calendar month in club history (since 1954) and lowest since Scott McGregor recorded a franchise-record 0.61 WHIP in May 1978… Wells issued just three walks and allowed 18 hits in 29.0 innings through his first five appearances (four starts) in April.

CAREER AGAINST THE GIANTS/NL WEST: Making his first career start against the Giants and the NL West.

ROAD TRIPPIN’: In 36 career road appearances (16 starts), Wells has gone 6-5 with a 3.38 ERA (40 ER/106.2 IP) and two saves…Has made five road appearances (four starts) this season, going 1-0 with a 4.44 ERA (13 ER/26.1 IP)…Made 12 starts away from home in 2022, sporting a 5-5 record with a 3.81 ERA (24 ER/56.2 IP) and 41 strikeouts.

INTERLEAGUE HERO: Making his 11th career Interleague appearance (fifth start) today…Owns a 2-0 record with a 1.21 ERA (4 ER/29.2 IP) and one save through his first 10 outings against the National League…Earned the win in his last Interleague start on May 13 vs. Pittsburgh, working a season-high-tying 7.0 scoreless innings (4/21 vs. DET) on one hit with two walks and a then-career-high eight strikeouts…Threw 96 pitches, 59 strikes… Has allowed two earned runs-or-fewer in each of his 10 outings against the National League.

LOVING LEFTIES: Opposing left-handed batters are slashing .189/.228/.335 (66-for-349) against Wells through his first 78 career games (33 starts)…He has recorded more career strikeouts against lefties (97) than hits allowed (66)…Owns the third-lowest on-base percentage, sixth-lowest batting average, and seventh-lowest OPS to lefties in MLB since he debuted in 2021 (min. 300 BFP).

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:

No team release available.

MLB Preview: Seattle Mariners (29-29) at Texas Rangers (37-20)

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MLB Preview: Seattle Mariners (29-29) at Texas Rangers (37-20)

SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:

TODAY’S TILT…the Mariners continue an 11-day, 8-game road trip (0-2) with the finale of 3 games against the Texas Rangers (0-2)…they will also visit San Diego (2 G, June 6-7) and Los Angeles-AL (3 G, June 9-11) on the trip…Seattle is coming off a 10-game homestand (7-3) against Oakland (4-0), Pittsburgh (2-1) and New York-AL (1-2)…today’s game will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Dave Sims and Aaron Goldsmith on the call…the game will also be broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) and Mariners.com with Rick Rizzs and Gary Hill Jr.

ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners fell to the Rangers by a score of 16-6 in last night’s middle game… Seattle is 21-11 when scoring at least 4 runs and 8-18 when scoring 3-or-fewer…the Mariners are 17-15 at T-Mobile Park and 12-14 on the road this season.

  • Happy Birthday! – Mariners Manager Scott Servais turns 56-years-old today…Servais holds a career record of 577-533 (.520) as Mariners Manager, 2nd-most managerial wins in club history behind Lou Piniella (840-711, .542).
  • Tough One – The Mariners lost by a 10-run deficit in yesterday’s game (16-6), their largest margin of defeat since July 29, 2022 at Houston (11-1)…entering yesterday’s action, Seattle had played 118 consecutive games without a double-digit loss, 5th-longest active streak in the Majors behind Houston (212 G), San Francisco (178 G), Cleveland (150 G) and Atlanta (142 G).
  • On a Line – Jarred Kelenic holds a 29.5% line drive rate this season (FanGraphs), ranking 3rd-best in MLB behind Freddie Freeman-LA (31.7%) and Luis Arraez-MIA (29.6%).
  • Position Player Pitching – Yesterday Mike Ford became the first Mariners position player to pitch in a game this season…the Mariners were the 25th team to use a position player on the mound…only Atlanta, Cleveland, Houston, St. Louis and Toronto have yet to pitch a position player.

MONTH OF MILLER…Mariners starter Bryce Miller made his Major League debut on May 2 at Oakland, setting a franchise record for strikeouts (10) in a debut…in 6 May starts, the 24-year-old right-hander went 3-2 with a 3.00 ERA (12 ER, 36.0 IP) with 3 walks and 31 strikeouts…over his first 5 career starts, Miller posted a 0.511 WHIP, best in MLB history over a pitcher’s first 5 career starts…despite a rough final outing on May 29 vs. the Yankees, Miller finished May as the most valuable rookie in the American League by FanGraphs WAR with a mark of 1.2 fWAR, ranking ahead of Josh Jung-TEX (0.9), José Caballero-SEA (0.9), Hunter Brown-HOU (0.8, Yennier Cano-BAL (0.8) and Logan Allen-CLE (0.8).

THE J-ROD SHOW…Julio Rodríguez has hit safely in 11 of his last 12 games dating back to May 22… during that span, he is batting .392 (20×51) with 8 runs, 4 doubles, 3 home runs, 11 RBI and 4 stolen bases, while reaching base at a .404 clip and slugging .647 with a 1.051 OPS…during that span, his .392 batting average ranks 3rd-best in the American League (7th in MLB) among qualified players, trailing only Wander Franco-TB (.436) and Josh Jung-TEX (.395) for the American League lead…during the 12-game stretch, Julio has recorded 8 multi-hit games and 6 games with at least one extra-base hit.

TY IS THAT GUY…Ty France went 3-for-5 with 1 run scored, 1 double and 1 RBI in yesterday’s game and has now recorded 3+ hits in 2 of his last 4 games…dating back to the beginning of May, Ty is batting .281 (34×121) with 6 runs scored, 8 doubles, 4 home runs, 11 RBI, 6 walks and 4 hit-by-pitches, while reaching base at a .336 clip and slugging .446 with a .782 OPS in 29 games…during that span (5/1-c), Ty has hit safely in 21 of 29 games, while leading the Mariners in batting (.281), on-base percentage (.336), slugging (.446), hits (34), doubles (8) and OPS (.782).

JARRED KELENIC: ALL-STAR OUTFIELDER?…Jarred Kelenic is batting .275 (55×200) with 27 runs, 14 doubles, 1 triple, 10 home runs, 27 RBI, 7 stolen bases and 19 walks, getting on base at a .339 clip, slugging .505 with an .844 OPS in 55 games this season…Kelenic has mashed left-handed pitchers this season, batting .327 (17×52) with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 4 home runs and 13 RBI with a 1.029 OPS in 56 plate appearances against southpaws…overall, Kelenic leads the Mariners in extra-base hits (25), batting average, slugging percentage and OPS…Jarred’s 135 OPS+ ranks 6th among qualified AL outfielders, trailing Aaron Judge-NYY (197), Yordan Alvarez-HOU (166), Randy Arozarena-TB (156), Brent RookerOAK (144) and Masataka Yoshida-BOS (142).

GETTING DEFENSIVE…the Mariners defense ranks best in the American League by Outs Above Average
(12) this season, ranking ahead of Kansas City (10) and Detroit (9)…Seattle’s .989 team fielding percentage
is tied for best in the American League with Houston and Tampa Bay.

AS YOU MAY KNOW…Ty France went 3-for-5 with 1 run scored, 1 double and 1 RBI in yesterday’s game, recording his 16th multi-hit game of the season and his 5th game of the season with 3+ hits, but…DID YOU KNOW?…Ty’s 16 multi-hit games this season are tied with Anthony Rizzo-NYY for most among American League first basemen?…since his first full season with Seattle in 2021, France ranks 3rd among all American League first basemen with 102 multi-hit games, trailing only Vladimir Guerrero Jr.-TOR (111 G) and Nathaniel Lowe-TEX (107 G)…Ty leads AL first basemen with 31 games with 3+ hits during that span (2021-c), ranking ahead of Guerrero Jr. (29)

MARINERS STARTER – RHP BRYCE MILLER

2023/Career MLB Breakdown:
W-L ERA G/GS IP H R ER BB SO HR
Overall 3-2 3.00 6/6 36.0 24 12 12 3 31 2
Home 2-1 4.32 3/3 16.2 15 8 8 2 14 2
Road 1-1 1.86 3/3 19.1 9 4 4 1 17 0
vs. TEX 0-0 -.– 0/0 0.0 0 0 0 0 0 0

ABOUT BRYCE MILLER…

  • The 24-year-old right-handed pitcher is scheduled to make his 7th career start, and his first against the Texas Rangers.
  • Selected by Seattle in the 4th round (113th overall) of the 2021 MLB First-Year Player Draft; signed by Mariners scout Derek Miller.
  • Spent 3 seasons at Texas A&M from 2019-21…also spent 2 seasons playing for Brazos Valley Bombers of the Texas Collegiate League in 2018 and 2020, and 1 season with the Falmouth Commodores of the Cape Cod League in 2019.
  • Was born in Mount Pleasant, Texas and attended New Braunfels High School in New Braunfels, Texas.

LAST TIME OUT…L#2 on May 29 vs. New York-AL, tossing 4.2 innings and allowing 11 hits (2 HR) and 8 runs with 3 strikeouts.

MILLER IN MAY…made his Major League debut on May 2 at Oakland and holds a 3.00 ERA (12 ER, 36.0 IP) with 3 walks and 31 strikeouts over 6 starts during the month…among AL rookies with at least 6 starts during the month, he leads the MLB in ERA, WHIP (0.750), Opp. AVG (.185), wins (3) and strikeout-to-walk ratio (10.33).

FIRST 5 STARTS…became the 4th pitcher in franchise history to not allow a home run over his first 5 career starts, joining Michael Pineda, Jim Converse and Brian Snyder…his 4 earned runs allowed are tied for the fewest in a pitcher’s first 5 career starts in franchise history, joining James Paxton (4 ER, 31.1 IP) and Justin Dunn (4 ER, 9.2 IP).

KEEPING THE BATS QUIET…opponents are currently batting .185 (24×130) against Miller which is the 8th lowest opponent batting average in the league among pitchers with at least 6 starts…he ranks behind Domingo Germán-NYY (.179).

WATCH ME WHIP…his 0.750 WHIP currently leads the Majors among pitchers with at least 6 starts this season ranking ahead of Jacob deGrom-TEX (0.758).

TEXAS HEAT…his 4-seam fastball has the 4th most rise of any pitcher in MLB this season…Miller’s heater has 3.2 inches of vertical movement above average, ranking behind Kutter Crawford-BOS who is ranked 3rd with 3.4 inches of rise on his 4-seamer.

AN ALMOST PERFECT BEGINNING…took a perfect game into the 6th inning in his first career Major League start at Oakland on 5/2 before a Tony Kemp 1-out single broke up the no-hit bid…the 16-consecutive batters retired in a pitcher’s MLB debut are the most since 1961 (h/t Elias Sports).

WHAT A DEBUT…became just the 3rd pitcher in MLB history to strike out 10 batters without issuing a walk in their Major League debut, joining RHP Johnny Cueto-CIN (4/3/08) and Stephen Strausburg-WSN (6/8/10)…became the 30th pitcher in MLB history to strikeout 10+ in their ML debut…also set a franchise record for most strikeouts in a debut moving ahead of Enrique Romo, who struck out 9 on 4/7/77.

NO RUNNERS ALLOWED…became the only pitcher in MLB history to have 3-or-fewer baserunners allowed in each of their first 3 career starts…his 8 baserunners allowed were the fewest in a pitcher’s first 3 career appearances since at least 1901 (min. 15 IP).

MAKING IT LOOK EASY…he became the only pitcher in MLB history to have 6.0+ innings pitched and allow 3-or-fewer baserunners in his first 3 career starts…his 3-game streak of 6.0+ innings pitched and 3-or-fewer baserunners allowed is tied for the longest since 1901… Blake Snell-SDP and Corbin Burnes-MIL were the most recent pitchers to achieve this feat, both doing so in 2021.

TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:

WINS AND LOSSES: Texas beat the Mariners yesterday, 16-6, as club has a 2-0 record to open this 6-day, 6-G homestand vs. SEA (2-0 + today) and STL (3 G)…team has won 2 straight, 4 of 5, 8 of 10, 11 of 14, 16 of 22, and 19 of last 26 games…TEX is an MLB-best 23-9 (.719) in last 32 G beg. 4/28…most wins in any 32-G span for TEX since 5/30-7/2/16 (also 23-9)…TEX is 29-14 in last 43 G and 33-16 in last 49 G beg. 4/9.

  • At 37-20 (.649), TEX owns the 2nd-best record in MLB to only TB (41-19, see chart below)…club’s 37 wins rank 2nd in A.L. and MLB (41-TB).
  • The 37-20 start is the Rangers’ best 57-G start to a season in WSH/TEX franchise history.
  • TEX is a season-high 17 G above .500 for the 1st time since the end of 2016 (95-67)…this is the earliest date ever for TEX to be 17-over (prev. 6/16 in 2016)…just the 11th season in Rangers history to reach 17-over.

BEST RECORDS IN MLB, 2023
Win Pct. Team W-L
.683 Tampa Bay 41-19
.649 Texas 37-20
.621 Baltimore 36-22

WITH A WIN TODAY the Rangers would:

  • Reach the best 58-G record in WSH/TEX franchise history, climb to season-best 18 G above .500 for 1st time since the end of 2016 season, and reach 18-over at earliest point in a season in franchise history (by date or games).
  • Win all games of a series for a 4th time in ‘23 (3-0, 3/30-4/2 vs. PHI; 3-0, 4/17-19 at KC; 3-0, 5/19-21 vs. COL).
  • Win all games of a series against SEA for 1st time since 5/20-22/19 (3-0 at GLPIA).

SERIES STUFF: After securing a series win this weekend vs. SEA, Texas has won a season-high 5 consecutive series, longest such span since going 5-0-0 from 6/15-7/1/18 vs. COL/at KC/at MIN/vs. SD/vs. CWS…club is now 10-1-1 in last 12 series and 13-2-1 in last 16…team is 14-4-1 overall in series this year, going 6-2-1 at home and 8-2-0 on the road… TEX is now 5-1-1 in last 7 series at GLF…team has won 6
straight road series for the 1st time in franchise history, and has won 8 of last 9 away series.

AT HOME: Rangers are 18-8 (.692) at home, 2nd-best home record in A.L. and MLB (TB-.813, 26-6)…has won 5 straight, 6 of 7, 10 of 13, 15 of last 21 at GLF beg. 4/5…TEX has a 104-114 all-time record at Globe Life Field (2020-23), but are 24-15 last 39 G here (beg. 9/11/22)…TEX leads MLB in R/G (6.96) at home in 2023, and 181 R are 3rd-most in MLB (190- TB, 186-BOS).

VS. SEATTLE: Texas is 4-1 in 5 G vs. Seattle in 2023…TEX has won 7 of last 10 G dating to ‘22, but still 7-12 in last 19 G vs. SEA…TEX lost season series in 2022 (5-14) 5th time in 6 years…TEX is just 15-35 vs. SEA beginning 8/21/20.

  • TEX is 13-5 vs. A.L. West, tied w/ HOU for best intra-division record in West…TEX is now 6-0-0 in series vs. West.

TOP 10 PLAYS: Yesterday was win no. 2040 in the managerial career of Bruce Bochy, tying Walter Alston for 10th place on the all-time list…with next Texas win, Bochy will move into sole possession of 10th all-time…of the top 13 on the all-time managerial wins list, 2 are active (Bochy and Dusty Baker) and the other 11 are in the Hall of Fame.

MOST WINS AS MANAGER, MLB HISTORY
No. Manager No. Manager No. Manager
3731 Connie Mack* 2326 Joe Torre* 2125 Joe McCarthy*
2884 Tony La Russa* 2194 Sparky Anderson* 2040 Walter Alston*
2763 John McGraw* 2158 Bucky Harris* 2040 Bruce Bochy
2504 Bobby Cox* 2128 Dusty Baker 2008 Leo Durocher*
*-denotes Hall of Fame inductee

MORE OFFENSE: The Rangers scored 16 runs on a season-high 19 hits yesterday (most since 20 H, 9/8/19 at BAL)… club’s season-high 10 XBH (4 HR, 6 2B) were its most since 9/13/22 vs. OAK (also 10 XBH), and 4 HR matched a season best (4th time)…TEX is 1st ML team w/ 16+ R, 19+ H, 10+ XBH since TOR on 9/20/22 at PHI and it was just 5th instance in TEX history, the other 4 at GLPIA: 9/2/18 vs. MIN, 7/25/11 vs. MIN, 7/31/02 vs. NYY, 4/19/96 vs. BAL

  • Marks Rangers’ MLB-best 5th game w/ 15+ R in 2023, already tied for most in a season in club history (5-1998)… most games w/ 15+ R in 1st 57 G of a season since 1901:
    5-1925 PIT/1950 BOS/2023 TEX.
  • Most games of 10+ R in 1st 57 G of a season since 1900: 16-1939 NYY, 15-1900 PHI/1901 STL/2023 TEX (credit Sarah Langs).
  • TEX leads MLB w/ 364 runs scored this season, 2nd-most thru 57 G in franchise history (367-1998), and most by any club over 1st 57 G of a campaign since 2001 COL (367 R).

THE WHITE FLAG: Yesterday was the MLB-high 8th time in 2023 for Texas to face a position player on the mound…the 8 instances are already a single-season club record (prev. 3 in 2014, 2018, 2019 – excluding Ohtani)…according to Elias Sports Bureau, the 8 instances are T4th-most in a season in the expansion era (since 1961) and just 2 shy of matching the record over that span: 10-2021 ATL, 9-2022 CWS/2022 LAD, 8-2022 PHI/2022 SD/2023 TEX…Elias’ stance is there is too much uncertainty in earlier periods on players’ roles to clearly define records in this “category”.

STREAKING SIMMY: Marcus Semien posted season highs in hits (career high-tying 4, 10th time), runs (career-high 4), and TB (9) yesterday…extended his career best and MLBhigh 22-G hit streak, T8th-longest in club history…Semien has batted .330/.362/.577/.939 (32-97) with 4 HR, 8 2B, 19 RBI, and 24 R over the course of the streak (beg. 5/10), raising his season BA from .286 to .304, 6th in the A.L…he also extended his career-best 30-game on-base streak (beg. 4/30), which is the longest active streak of its kind in MLB and the longest by a Ranger in the last 5 seasons (beg. 2019).

EOVALDI’S RUN: Nathan Eovaldi over his last 6 starts entering today’s series finale: 5-0, 0.77 (4 R-ER/46.2 IP) w/ 9 BB/39 SO…just 2nd pitcher in TEX history to allow as little as 4 R in so many innings over a 6-start span, joining Hall of Famer Fergie Jenkins from 8/18-9/8/1974 (6-0, 0.69, 4 R-ER/52.0 IP)…Eovaldi is the reigning A.L. Pitcher of the Month, 1st such honor of his career, and ranks among league leaders in wins (T2nd, 7), ERA (5th, 2.42), innings (5th, 74.1), and WHIP (6th, 0.996).

SHORTS: Rangers host Cardinals for 3 G this week, 1st meetings since 5/17-19/19 at GLPIA (2-1)…TEX is 9-3 vs. STL all-time in reg. season, winning 8 of last 9 meetings… TEX has allowed just one unearned run in last 19 G, as team’s .992 fielding pct. (9 E/1188 TC) last 33 G beg. 4/27 is highest in MLB…last multi-error game was 4/26 at CIN… Adolis García recorded RBI no. 50 last night, 2nd-most in MLB (51-Yordan Álvarez)…TEX has 11+ runs in 3 of last 4 home games…TEX is 17-6 (.739) in day games, 2nd in MLB (NYY: .750, 18-6), incl. 8-1 at home in day tilts.

TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER – #17 Nathan Eovaldi, RHP
(7-2, 2.42)

TODAY: The 33-year-old right-hander (pronounced ee-VAHL-dee) is scheduled to make his 12th appearance/start of the season in today’s series finale against the Mariners…selected the A.L. Pitcher of the Month for May, Eovaldi posted a 4-0 record with a 0.96 ERA (4 ER/37.2 IP) over 5 G/GS, allowing 1-or-0 R in 4 of his 5 outings…his A.L.-leading 0.96 ERA ranked 2nd-best in MLB among pitchers with 25.0-or-more IP, and it was just the 7th time in TEX history that a pitcher has recorded an ERA below 1.00 in a full month (minimum 30.0 IP)…cutting season ERA in half from 5.20 to 2.42, 5th in the A.L…has 5.0+ IP in all 11 starts, allowing 3 ER-or-less in 10 of 11 outings… has made quality starts in 7 of last 8 games…ranks among A.L. qualifiers in HR/9 (2nd, 0.36), wins (T2nd, 7), FIP (3rd, 2.66), IP (5th, 74.1), ERA (5th, 2.42), BB/9 (5th, 1.70) and SO/BB (10th, 5.00)…Eovaldi signed a 2-year free agent contract with the Rangers on 12/27/22…in 2022, his final season with Boston, went 6-3 with a 3.87 ERA (47 ER/109.1 IP) over 20 G/GS…was slowed by a pair of IL stints: 6/9-7/14 (low back inflammation) and 8/19-9/28 (right shoulder inflammation)…was an All-Star with the Red Sox in 2021 and finished 4th in A.L. Cy Young Award voting…his Red Sox stint also included a historic postseason stretch during the team’s 2018 World Series run…has 250 games/231 starts with LAD (2011-12), MIA (2012-14), NYY (2015-16), TB (2018), BOS (2018-22) and TEX (2023)…joined Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan as the only graduates of Alvin (TX) High School to reach the Major Leagues…TEX is 7-4 in Eovaldi’s 11 starts this season.

A.L. PITCHER OF THE MONTH FOR MAY: Eovaldi was named the A.L. Pitcher of the Month for May on Friday, the 1st such honor in his career…it marks the 2nd-consecutive May for a TEX pitcher to receive the A.L.’s monthly pitching award, (also Martín Pérez, May 2022)…became just the 7th TEX pitcher to win the award in the last 39 years, beginning 1985, joining Bobby Witt (July 1990), Kenny Rogers (May 1995 and May 2005), Rick Helling (Sept. 1998), and Matt Harrison (June 2012).

  • Posted a 4-0 record with a 0.96 ERA (4 ER/37.2 IP) over 5 G/GS for TEX last month, allowing 1-or-0 R in 4 of his 5 outings…his A.L.-leading 0.96 ERA ranked 2nd-best in MLB among pitchers with 25.0-or-more IP, and it was just the 7th time in TEX history that a pitcher has recorded an ERA below 1.00 in a full month (minimum 30.0 innings).
  • Produced just the 2nd month in TEX history for a pitcher to have a sub-1.00 ERA with a WHIP of 0.85-or-lower (min. 30.0 IP), joining Charlie Hough in September 1983.. ranked among A.L. leaders for the month in opponent OPS (2nd, .495), opp. SLG pct. (2nd, .264), innings (3rd, 37.2), WHIP (4th, 0.85), opp. BA (5th, .178), opp. OBP (6th, .232), and HR/9 (6th, 0.48)…he was 1 of 5 A.L. pitchers with a complete game in May.

LOWEST ERA’S IN A MONTH, RANGERS HISTORY
(Minimum 30.0 innings)
ERA Pitcher Month/Year
0.54 Yovani Gallardo June 2015
0.64 Martin Perez May 2022
0.65 Kenny Rogers May 1995
0.72 Rick Honeycutt April 1983
0.82 Charlie Hough Sept. 1983
0.96 Nathan Eovaldi May 2023
0.98 Kenny Rogers May 2005

ADDITIONAL ACCOLADES (SO FAR): Eovaldi during a 5 start span from 4/29-5/23: 4-0, 0.86 ERA (4 ER/41.2 IP), 6 BB, 35 SO, 0.67 WHIP, .158 opp. BA…the only other pitchers in TEX history with at least 41.2 innings while allowing 4-or-fewer runs over a 5-start span are Charlie Hough (Aug./Sept. 1983) and Fergie Jenkins (Aug./Sept. 1974)…the last MLB pitcher with at least 41.2 IP and 4-or-fewer runs allowed over a 5-start span before Eovaldi?: LAD’s Clayton Kershaw in May 2016…last A.L. pitcher to do it?: DET’s Justin Verlander in June 2011.

  • Has 70 SO and just 14 BB in 2023, just the 2nd pitcher in WSH/TEX franchise history (beg. 1961) w/ 70+ K’s and 14-or-fewer BB in his first 11 starts with the club (also Cliff Lee in 2010, 72 SO/6 BB).
  • Had 7.0+ IP in career-best 5 straight starts, the longest such streak by a TEX pitcher since Lance Lynn had 5 consecutive starts w/ 7.0+ IP from 6/17-7/11/19…last longer span by a Ranger?: 6 straight by Yu Darvish, 5/9-6/11/14.
  • Tossed 7-straight QS from 4/18-5/29, joining Martín Pérez (9 from 4/23-6/5/22) and Kyle Gibson (9 from 4/7-5/21/21) as only Rangers since start of 2020 with QS streaks as long…is longest single-season QS streak of Eovaldi’s career, 2nd-longest overall (8 straight, 9/18/12-7/12/13).

LAST START: Notched his team-leading 7th win of ‘23 after tossing 5.0 SO innings in Detroit on Monday (5.0 SHO IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 4 SO)…it was his 1st start of less than 6.0 IP since 4/24 at CIN…now owns a 5.1 record with a 1.49 ERA on the road in 2023… has left the game with the team leading in 9 of 11 starts this season (including 2 CG). VS. SEATTLE: Has gone 0-1, 4.19 (18 ER/38.2 IP) in 7 G/GS in career vs. SEA…is 0- 1, 4.37 (11 ER/22.2 IP) in 4 G/GS against SEA while pitching at home…did not factor into the decision in his outing against the Mariners last season, tossing 6.2 innings and allowing 2R-ER on 4 H, along with 1 HR and 1 BB…struck out a season-high 11 batters during the outing.

AT HOME: Is 2-1 with a 4.15 ERA (12 ER/26.0 IP) over 4 home starts in 2023 thus far, including a CG SHO on 4/29 vs. NYY (3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 8 SO, 113 pitches/78 strikes)… this compared to his 5-1 mark and 1.49 ERA (8 ER/48.1 IP) away from Globe Life Field this season…has fanned 26 compared to 4 walks at home in 2023 (6.50 SO/ BB), marking the 10th-highest home SO/BB among A.L. hurlers (min. 15.0 IP)…has traditionally performed better at home (32-32, 3.96 ERA) than on the road (42-38, 4.16 ERA) in his career.

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER
STREAKING: Posted career-best 29.2-inning scoreless streak from 4/24-5/17, the longest scoreless streak in MLB this season and T5th-longest in Rangers history: 39.0-Kenny Rogers, 5/6-6/1/95; 36.0-Charlie Hough, 8/23-9/14/83; 33.1-Yovani Gallardo, 6/10-7/7/15; 31.0-Rogers, 4/27-5/20/05; 29.2-Eovaldi, 4/24-5/17/23/Jeff Zimmerman, 5/25-8/2/99…marked the longest scoreless streak in MLB since ARI’s Zac Gallen had 44.1 SHO IP from 8/8-9/11/22.

  • Recorded 8.0+ SHO IP in 3 straight starts from 4/29-5/6, becoming just the 3rd pitcher in TEX history with 3 consecutive outings of at least 8.0 scoreless innings: Martín Pérez (3, 4/13-23/14) and Charlie Hough (3, 8/28-9/7/83)…Eovaldi also struck out 25 batters while issuing just 3 walks over that stretch, just the 6th pitcher in the modern era (since 1900) to have a 3-start span with 25.0+ SHO IP, 25+ SO, and 3-or-fewer walks (credit: STATS)…he was the first MLB pitcher to pull the trick since LAD’s Clayton Kershaw from 7/8-23/15 (26.0 SHO IP, 38 SO, 0 BB), and joined WSH’s Walter Johnson (27.0 SHO IP, 25 SO, 3 BB from 4/19-30/1913) as the only A.L. pitchers to ever accomplish the feat.
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