ATLANTA, Ga. – Atlanta Dream guard Danielle Robinson underwent a successful left knee arthroscopy yesterday at Emory’s Musculoskeletal Institute in Atlanta, Ga., performed by Dr. Sameh Labib, MD.
Robinson sustained the injury with 1:02 left in the second quarter of the Dream’s game at Dallas on May 20, 2023. She is anticipated to return prior to the WNBA All-Star break.
WINNIPEG, MB., – The Winnipeg Blue Bombers today announce that receiver Kenny Lawler has been transferred to the suspended list pending resolution of matters related to his 2021 off field incident.
We will provide a further update once the situation resolves, which we expect to occur in 3-4 weeks from now.
The Phoenix Mercury have had a full week to savor their first victory of the young WNBA season.
The Los Angeles Sparks have had nearly a full week to stew over a lopsided loss.
Both teams return to action when they face off Friday night in Phoenix.
The Mercury’s last game produced their first victory since Brittney Griner’s return as they defeated the visiting Minnesota Lynx 90-81 on May 25.
Diana Taurasi, who turns 41 later this month, led the way with 23 points, making 4 of 9 3-pointers on her way to becoming the oldest player in league history to score 20 or more points.
The Sparks struggled against the team that won the league title last season.
They watched the Las Vegas Aces receive their championship rings before their home opener May 27, and the defending champions raced to a 31-13 lead at the end of the first quarter and coasted to a 93-65 victory.
L.A. committed seven turnovers and allowed six second-chance points during the first quarter.
The Sparks trailed by 31 points at halftime before outscoring Las Vegas by three points in the second half.
LOS ANGELES – The Los Angeles Dodgers have acquired right-handed pitcher Ricky Vanasco from the Texas Rangers in exchange for minor league left-handed pitcher Luis Valdez. In order to make room on the 40-man roster, the Dodgers designated right-handed pitcher Zack Burdi for assignment.
Vanasco, 24, pitched in two games for Double-A Frisco since being activated from the injured list and allowed six runs in 2.1 innings with two strikeouts. The right-hander posted a 4.68 ERA (48 ER/92.1 IP) with 118 strikeouts in 23 starts last season between High-A Hickory and Double-A Frisco. He has been in the Rangers farm system since being drafted in the 15th round of the 2017 First Year Player Draft out of Williston High Schoool (FL) and he is a combined 9-10 with a 3.84 ERA and 236 strikeouts in 178.0 innings. He was designated for assignment on May 29.
Valdez, 19, appeared in eight games for Low-A Rancho Cucamonga, posting an 0-2 record with a 3.12 ERA (6 ER/17.1 IP) and 24 strikeouts. The southpaw was in his third season with the organization and was a combined 3-3 with a 2.70 ERA (20 ER/66.2 IP) and 84 strikeouts in 24 games (21 starts). He was originally signed as a minor league free agent on November 4, 2019 out of Navojoa, Sonora, Mexico.
CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:
No team release available.
MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:
THE TWINS: After completing their six-game, seven-day homestand with a record of 2-4 (1-2 vs. the Giants and 1-2 vs. the Blue Jays), the Twins traveled to Houston for a short three-game road trip and took two of three from the Astros this week, winning games one and three… tonight, the Twins are returning home for a quick four-game series/homestand against the Guardians through Sunday…after this series, the Twins will travel to St. Petersburg to enjoy an off-day on Monday, then begin a six-game road trip with three at Tampa Bay from June 6-8, then three at Toronto from June 9-11.
LOUIE V, SO MUCH MONEY: The Twins beat the Astros last night at Minute Maid Park by a score of 8-2, winning their eighth series of the season (8-9-1), including their second on the road (2-6-1), first since opening the season with a three-game sweep at Kansas City…Louie Varland (3-1) was the starter and winner, pitching 7.0 shutout innings, with four hits allowed, one walk and five strikeouts…the offense recorded 11 hits, walked five times and struck out 14 times…Donovan Solano went 2-for-4 with four RBI and drove in the first two runs with a bases-loaded single, snapping an 0-for-14 stretch for the Twins with the bases full…Ryan Jeffers later drove in two runs with a bases-loaded ground rule double.
WELCOME BACK, POLO: The Twins have reinstated infielder Jorge Polanco from the 10-day Injured List…Polanco, who was placed on the Injured List on May 20 with a strained left hamstring, has played in 23 games for the Twins this season, hitting .284 (27-for-95) with seven doubles, four home runs, 14 RBI, 10 runs scored, six walks and an .811 OPS…to make room for Polanco on the 26-man roster, the Twins have optioned infielder Edouard Julien to Triple-A St. Paul..Julien, who was in his second stint with the Twins this season, recently appeared in 11 games for the Twins, hitting .200 (7-for-35) with two doubles, two home runs, four RBI, six walks and four runs scored.
STARTER STRENGTH: Twins starters have averaged 5.6 innings-per-outing, up from 4.8 in 2022…below are Twins starting pitching ranks in all of baseball:
INNINGS ERA BAA BB/9.0 FIP WHIP K’s OPS
SEA – 316.2 TB – 3.13 TB – .225 SEA – 1.96 MIN – 3.42 SEA – 1.10 MIN – 344 TB – .644
TEX – 316.0 TEX – 3.28 MIN – .227 MIN – 2.41 TB – 3.50 MIN – 1.12 CWS – 326 SEA – .651
MIN – 314.0 MIN – 3.32 NYY – .233 TEX – 2.48 SEA – 3.51 TB – 1.12 HOU – 320 MIN – .656
TOR – 314.0 HOU – 3.35 SEA – .234 SF – 2.48 ATL – 3.74 TEX – 1.16 ATL – 312 TEX – .677
CWS – 313.0 ATL – 3.41 TEX – .237 LAD – 2.51 TEX – 3.75 HOU – 1.20 TOR – 308 CHC – .687
SUMMER MADNESS: With May wrapped up, below are the hitting (top) and pitching (bottom) comparisons through the first two months of the season:
AVG R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB K OBP SLG OPS
MAR./APR. .237 134 228 44 6 38 128 89 275 .310 .413 .723
MAY .229 122 214 43 1 36 115 115 299 .323 .393 .716
W L S IP H R ER HR BB K ERA BAA
MAR./APR. 17 12 9 258.2 216 108 100 27 76 285 3.48 .223
MAY 12 15 3 245.1 206 102 93 28 94 267 3.41 .226
ADDITIONALLY: The Twins’ 267 strikeouts in May set a club record for the month after setting a club record for any month in April with 274…below are the club’s all-time strikeout totals for May:
YEAR K/9.0 STRIKEOUTS
1) May of 2023 (27 games) …………………………………..9.8 ………………………………………………………267
2) May of 2019 (29 games)……………………………………9.1 ………………………………………………………260
3) May of 2022 (30 games)……………………………………8.6 ………………………………………………………256
4) May of 2018 (28 games)……………………………………8.8 ………………………………………………………252
TWINS-GUARDS: The Twins are playing the Guardians for the fourth of 13 times in 2023… these two last met for a three-game series at Progressive Field from May 5-7, as the Twins won the first of the three games…Twins were outscored 6-5 in the series.
Since the start of 2022, 17 of the 22 games have been decided by three runs-or-less and 10 by one run.
The Twins have hit 58 home runs against Cleveland pitching since the start of 2021, their most vs. any opponent in that span…next is Kansas City (56) and Chicago-AL (55).
Since 2019, Carlos Correa is hitting .311 (38-for-122) with four doubles, nine home runs, 17 RBI, 21 runs scored, 14 walks, a .387 on-base percentage and a .952 OPS in 32 games vs. Cleveland…however, he is just 1-for-12 this season with no walks and one home run (off Stephan on May 6).
Max Kepler hit two home runs during the three-run series at Progressive Field in May, one off Peyton Battenfield and one off Logan Allen…since 2016, nobody in baseball has more home runs vs. Cleveland pitching than Kepler’s 22 (chart in the right margin).
FEELING MINNESOTA: The Twins are 16-12 at home, compared to 13-15 on the road…they have a run differential at home of +27 (135- 108) and +19 on the road (121-102)…the offense at home has hit .246 (228-for-927) with 50 doubles, 40 home runs, a .768 OPS and 4.82 runs-per-game…on the road they have hit .221 (214-for-970) with 37 doubles, 34 home runs, a .674 OPS and 4.32 runs-per-game.
AK’S PAs AND ABs: Alex Kirilloff has reached base safely in 11 of his last 14 plate appearances and in 16 of his last 24 PAs…in his last five games he has posted a .652 on-base percentage, drawing seven walks and recording seven hits (1 HBP)…since being recalled from Triple-A St. Paul on May 5, Kirilloff has hit .314 (22-for-70) with three doubles, three home runs, eight RBI, 14 walks, a .448 on-base percentage and a .934 OPS in 23 games…among players with at least 75 PAs in May, his .448 OBP ranked sixth best in baseball.
He is hitting .415 (17-for-41) with four extra-base hits off fastballs this season.
STARTING PITCHER – PABLO LóPEZ 49
2023: 3-3, 4.11 ERA CAREER: 31-34, 3.96 ERA
Making his 12th start and appearance and sixth home start of 2023 in his sixth major league season (Miami – 2018-22)…also his 106th career appearance (all starts).
Facing Cleveland for the second time in his career and first since April 23, 2019 with Miami at Progressive Field (W; 6.1 IP, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 H, 2 BB, 6 K).
Acquired by the Twins from Miami on January 20, 2023, along with infielder Jose Salas and outfielder Byron Chourio, in exchange for infielder/outfielder Luis Arraez.
LAST TIME OUT: Earned his first win of May in the Twins 9-7 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays at Target Field on May 27…pitched opposite Chris Bassitt, who took the loss…went 5.2 innings, allowing four runs on five hits, with three walks and six strikeouts…allowed two home runs, a solo shot from shortstop Bo Bichette in the first inning and another solo homer to second baseman Cavan Biggio in the fourth; marked his second start this year in which he allowed multiple homers (3 on May 15 at Los Angeles-NL)…was relieved with two outs in the top of the sixth by Jovani Moran, who stranded one inherited runner…marked just the second win of his career allowing four-or-more runs, also doing so on April 28 vs. Kansas City (6 R).
Marked his 10th start of 2023 in which he recorded six-or-more strikeouts; is tied with TB’s Shane McClanahan and PIT’s Mitch Keller for the second-most such starts in baseball this year, trailing only ATL’s Spencer Strider (11).
Through 11 starts this season, López is among the American League leaders in several statistical categories, including strikeouts (81 – 4th), innings pitched (65.2 – 13th), pitches-per-inning (15.7 – 13th) and WHIP (1.13 – 15th).
TWO STARTS AGO: Took the loss despite recording a quality start against the Los Angeles Angels on May 21 at Angel Stadium, a 4-2 Twins loss…faced right-hander Shohei Ohtani, who did not factor into the decision…went 6.0 innings, allowed two runs on five hits, with three walks and nine strikeouts… allowed a sacrifice fly to infielder Gio Urshela in the bottom of the fourth inning…walked pinch hitter Matt Thaiss to start the bottom of the seventh and was relieved by Jorge López, who allowed two runs to score in the inning…Twins dropped the finale to lose the three-game series two games to one. AStruck out nine batters, his second-highest total of the season (10 on April 11 vs. Chicago-AL).
ON GUARD: Facing the Guardians for the second time in his career and first since April 23, 2019 with Miami; earned the win at Progressive Field, going 6.1 innings and allowing one unearned run on two hits with two walks and six strikeouts in a 3-1 Marlins victory…marked his first career start vs. an American League Central opponent and the coldest temperature at first pitch (56 degrees) in his career; has since started two games in which the game-time temperature was under 50 degrees, both at Target Field in 2023 (35 degrees – April 22 vs. Washington
and 48 degrees – April 28 vs. Kansas City).
Has faced five current Cleveland hitters in his career, with infielder Josh Bell owning the most experience against López (3-for-13 in 17 plate appearances).
In six career starts vs. AL Central opponents (KC – 3, CWS – 2, CLE – 1), he is 3-1, 2.79 ERA (38.2 IP, 12 ER) with eight walks and 45 strikeouts…Twins have gone 4-0 in his four starts against the AL Central this season, with López going 2-0, 3.46 ERA (26.0 IP, 10 ER).
BACK AT TARGET: Today is López’s sixth home start of the year…Minnesota has won four of his five home starts, with López going 2-1, 5.46 ERA (29.2 IP, 18 ER) with 11 walks and 37 strikeouts…in his six road starts this season, López has gone 1-2, 3.00 ERA (36.0 IP, 12 ER) with nine walks and 44 strikeouts, with the Twins going 2-4 those six games…over his career, López is 16-16, 3.64 ERA (313.2 IP, 127 ER) with 90 walks and 305 strikeouts in 55 home starts…in 50 road starts, he is 15-18, 4.33 ERA (262.0 IP, 126 ER) with 72 walks and 265 strikeouts.
Looking for back-to-back home wins for the third time in his career and first time since beating Philadelphia on April 15, 2022 and St. Louis on April 21, 2022 in consecutive starts at loanDepot Park with Miami.
LEFT/RIGHT: López has limited right-handed hitters to a .214 (31-for-145) batting average this season…left-handed hitters are batting at a .240 (23-for-96) clip…his 53 strikeouts against righties are the third most in the American League this year, trailing only HOU’s Framber Valdez (68) and TB’s Shane McClanahan (73)…overall, opposing hitters are batting .224 (54-for-241) vs. López this year, the 16th-lowest opponent batting average among qualified American League pitchers…over his career, he has better numbers against right-handed hitters (.662 OPS) than left-handed hitters (.747 OPS).
The New York City FC have won its last three home matches against the New England Revolution in all competitions, including a 4-2 victory last July. New York City FC had recorded just three wins (D2 L4) in its first nine home matches against the New England Revolution from 2015 through June 2021.
Following a 3-1 defeat to FC Cincinnati on Wednesday, New York City FC has lost six of its last seven matches in all competitions (D1), including consecutive defeats at home. New York City FC has never lost three straight home matches in all competitions.
The New England Revolution have conceded three goals in each of its last three matches, playing a pair 3-3 draws after a 3-0 loss to the Philadelphia Union. This is the first time since June 1998 that a Bruce Arena-coached side has conceded has three or more goals in three straight regular season matches.
tow of the three goals New York City FC conceded against FC Cincinnati on Wednesday came on set pieces (1 direct free-kick, 1 penalty). New York City FC has conceded an MLS-high 11 goas on set pieces this season, two more than they allowed during the 2022 regular season.
Carles Gil opened the scoring inside the first 30 seconds in the New England Revolution’s 3-3 draw at Atlanta United FC on Wednesday, the sixth time the New England Revolution have scored a goal in the first 30 seconds of an MLS match, the most in league history.
Jim Miller is the fighter with the most UFC bouts in history, but his story is coming to an end. The 39-year-old probably has a few more fights in him, but no one can say for certain whether he’s gonna do well in those. Bookies, for one, think he’s not going to cope well on Saturday when he squares off against Jared Gordon.
Jim Miller vs Jared Gordon Odds
Moneyline Odds
Jim Miller +140
Jared Gordon -170
*Odds taken from Sports Odds Direct on Thursday, June 1, 2023.
Jim Miller was originally supposed to fight Ludovit Klein at UFC on ESPN 46. The Slovak fighter is great when it comes to takedown defense, but his grappling skills on the floor aren’t that great, as evident from the fact that 50% of his losses happened by submission.
Knowing this, it’s only logical to assume that Miller’s original battle plan for Saturday was to take Klein down to the ground and beat him by submission. That’s something he excels in, the proof being that Miller’s submission-to-win ratio is 54.28%.
The trouble is that his new opponent is a proficient striker who won’t let Miller get anywhere near him. And history teaches us that “A-10” struggles against such fighters. In his most recent trip to the Octagon, Miller fought Alexander Hernandez who beat him by a unanimous decision.
Hernandez absolutely dominated that fight, throwing 108 significant strikes (41 more than Miller). It’s really surprising that he didn’t manage to drop Miller in that fight. But Jared Gordon might do it this coming Saturday.
Jared Gordon is 19-6-1, with his most recent fight being declared a no-contest due to an accidental clash of heads with Bobby Green. Before that, he lost to Paddy Pimblett by decision, even though many thought it was Gordon who won the fight.
Nevertheless, he’s got a chance to get back to the winning track on Saturday when he’s fighting a guy who just isn’t at the same level as him fitness-wise. Gordon is famous for his stamina, with 12 of his 26 fights going the distance. The most impressive thing about this is that each time he fights, he gets very busy, throwing huge volumes of strikes. In fact, his average is 5.32 significant strikes per minute, with a striking accuracy of just under 60%.
In the past, his opponents had no major problems with taking him down, but they struggled to put him into submission on the floor. In the fight against Joe Solecki in 2021, for example, Gordon was taken down four times but managed to defend himself each time.
In 2022, Grant Dawson took him down seven times, but it took almost full three rounds to finish Gordon with a rear naked choke. Since then, however, Gordon’s upped his takedown defense and hasn’t suffered a single takedown in the last three fights.
CINCINNATI REDS NOTES:
RED HOTTEST
RED HOTS
TONIGHT’S GAME
SERIES NOTES
BREWERS UP NEXT
Tonight’s Pitcher – #21 Hunter Greene, RHP
BOSTON RED SOX NOTES:
STATE OF THE SOX: The Red Sox have lost their last 3 games…They are 1 game above .500 (28-27). The Sox have been above .500 since 4/29 (14-14). They finished the month of May with a 13-13 record. At 28-27 (.509), the Sox rank 5th in the AL East and are 4.0 games back from the AL’s 3rd Wild Card spot.
SERIES BUSINESS: The Red Sox have lost the 3-game series vs. CIN to fall to 11-6-1 in series play, including 6-3-0 at home. The Sox were swept in 4 of their previous 5 series losses (0-3 vs. PIT, 0-4 at TB, 0-3 vs. STL, 0-3 at LAA). They are 3-3-1 in their last 7 series, beginning 5/9.
SOX AND REDS: The Red Sox have lost their 1st ever regular season series to the Reds…They are 2-4 vs. CIN since the start of 2022 after entering last season 12-1 against the club. The Sox are 1-3 vs. CIN at Fenway Park since the start of 2022…They entered 2022 5-0 in home games vs. CIN.
CENTRAL SCARIES: The Red Sox are 1-3-0 in series against NL Central opponents this season. They beat the 1st-place Brewers in a 3-game series
in Milwaukee from 4/21-23 (2-1), but have lost every game (all at home) against the 2nd-place Pirates (0-3), 3rd-place Reds (0-2), and 4th-place Cardinals (0-3).
NATIONAL AFFAIRS: Tonight concludes a stretch over which 17 of the Red Sox’ 23 games from 5/5-6/1 were against NL teams…They are 7-9 against NL teams during that span (2-1 at PHI, 1-1 at ATL, 0-3 vs. STL, 2-1 at SD, 2-1 at ARI, 0-2 vs. CIN). The Red Sox are an MLB-best 297-208 (.588) all time in Interleague play, but 9-13 this season. The Sox are 4-3-1 in Interleague series this season.
GETTING BUSY: The Red Sox are currently in a span of 26 games in 27 days for the Red Sox, from 5/30-6/25 (0-2 so far). 4 of the Sox’ 8 series during that span are against teams with a record currently below .500 (vs. CIN, at CLE, vs. COL, at CWS)…The Sox are 9-8 against opponents with a sub-.500 record. They will play 3 series against AL East opponents during that span (vs. TB, at NYY, vs. NYY)…Just 1 of their 9 series from 4/28-6/1 were within the division (5/1-4 vs. TOR).
ON THE MEND: Christian Arroyo and Adam Duvall are both on rehab assignments with Triple-A Worcester. Arroyo has made 3 starts at 2B and 1 as the DH…He has recorded a hit in each of his 4 games (5-for-14, 2B). Duvall has made 1 start in CF and 1 as the DH (0-for-6).
HOME COOKING: The Red Sox are 15-13 at Fenway Park…They’re 2-6 in their last 8 games at the venue, after going 11-3 in their previous 14.
The Sox have averaged 10.5 hits per game at home, 0.9 more than the closest team (COL-9.6)…They’ve recorded 10+ hits in each of their last 4 home games.
RED SOX IN HOME GAMES
Stat MLB Rank
6.0 R/game 2nd
10.5 H/game 1st
4.1 XBH/game 1st
124 wRC+ 4th
Stat MLB Rank
.298 AVG 1st
.360 OBP 1st
.489 SLG 3rd
.849 OPS 2nd
COLD STRETCH: The Red Sox are 2-7 in their last 9 games, batting .239 with just 27 runs and 5 HR in that span. 4 of their 7 losses during that span have been by 1 or 2 runs, including each of their last 3 games.
UPS AND DOWNS: The Red Sox are 15-13 in their last 28 games, beginning 4/29…That span includes the Sox’ 2 longest winning streaks of the season (8 games, 4/29-5/6 and 4 games, 5/15-20) and 2 season-high-tying 4-game losing streaks (5/12-15 and 5/21-24). Since snapping their season-long 8-game winning streak on 5/7, the Sox are 7-13 in 20 games, averaging 3.9 runs/game and 0.9 HR/game during that span.
START ME UP: James Paxton allowed 1 run over 5.0 IP last night, holding CIN scoreless through the first 4.0 innings. Red Sox starting pitchers have allowed 2 earned runs or fewer in 10 of their last 12 games…Their 3.19 ERA (21 ER/59.1 IP) during that span ranks 2nd in MLB (TEX-2.58).
Beginning on 4/29 vs. CLE, pitchers in the Red Sox’ current starting rotation (Bello, Houck, Paxton, Sale, Whitlock) are 9-6 with a 3.51 ERA (45 ER/115.1 IP).
SETTING SALE: Chris Sale leads the Red Sox in wins (5). The Sox are 7-3 in Sale’s starts, including 4-1 in his last 5. He’s 4-0 with a 2.23 ERA, .172 opponent AVG, and 8.75 SO/BB in his last 5 starts.
CHRIS SALE’S LAST 5 STARTS
Game (final score) Dec. IP H R BB SO
4/30 vs. CLE (7-1) W 6.1 3 1 0 5
5/5 at PHI (5-3) W 6.0 7 3 1 10
5/13 vs. STL (3-4) ND 8.0 3 1 1 9
5/20 at SD (4-2) W 7.0 3 2 1 8
5/26 at ARI (7-2) W 5.0 4 1 1 3
TOTALS: 4-0 32.1 20 8 4 35
FOREVER AND DEVERS: Rafael Devers recorded his 200th career double last night, and his 500th career RBI on Tuesday. He’s the 13th player ever to record 150+ HR and 200+ doubles for the Red Sox, and 1st to do so before turning 27 years old. Only 13 players have reached 150+ HR and 200+ doubles at a younger age than Devers did (26 years, 219 days).
150 HR AND 200 DOUBLES ≤ 26 YEARS, 219 DAYS OLD
Active Players Retired Players
Rafael Devers Albert Pujols Al Kaline
Manny Machado Adrian Beltre Hank Aaron
Mike Trout Andruw Jones Hal Trosky
Miguel Cabrera Alex Rodriguez Mel Ott
Ken Griffey Jr. Jimmie Foxx
SLUGGING SOX: The Red Sox rank in MLB’s top 5 in runs scored (4th, 285), AVG (4th, .264), OBP (3rd, .333), OPS (5th, .768), doubles (2nd, 124), and XBH (T-4th, 191). The Sox have recorded 10+ hits in 23 games, tied for 3rd most in MLB behind TEX (30) and TB (27). BOS hit 2 HR last night, snapping season-long streak of 9 games without hitting multiple HR.
TONIGHT’S STARTER: 41 CHRIS SALE – LHP
W-L ERA G GS IP ER HR BB SO WHIP AVG
2023 5-2 4.72 10 10 55.1 29 8 14 65 1.16 .237
CAREER 119-77 3.08 333 253 1733.1 594 186 401 2129 1.05 .220
Is making his 1st career appearance vs. CIN…Is the only ML team in his career that he hasn’t pitched against.
Earned his 5th win of the season Friday at ARI, allowing 1 run over 5.0 IP (4 H, BB, 3 SO)…The Red Sox improved to 7-3 in his starts (4-1 in last 5).
Has a 2.91 ERA in his last 7 starts (43.1 IP, 14 ER, 32 H, 46 SO), after recording an 11.25 ERA in his first 3 (12.0 IP, 15 ER, 18 H).
Has thrown 5.0+ innings in each of his last 7 starts…Red Sox are 7-3 in his starts.
Has allowed 3 HR over his last 7 starts, all solo (5 HR in his first 3 starts).
Has 5 BB in his last 6 starts (37.1 IP), after issuing 9 BB in his first 4 (18.0 IP).
LOS ANGELES ANGELS NOTES:
LEADING OFF: Today, the Angels play the fourth (2-1) of seven games on a road trip against the Chicago White Sox (2-1) and Houston Astros (June 1-4)…Halos went 5-4 on last homestand against the Minnesota Twins (2-1), Boston Red Sox (3-0) and Miami Marlins (0-3)…LAA was 3-4 on last road trip to Cleveland (1-2) and Baltimore (2-2).
DINGER DUO: Yesterday was the 27th time that Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani homered in the same game… It’s the third highest total among duos in Angels history (trails only Trout/Pujols – 48 games & Salmon/ Anderson – 28 games).
JUST MET A MAN NAMED BARRIA: Since April 8, Jaime Barria leads the Majors (min. 20 IP) with a 0.59 ERA (30.1 IP – 2 ER)…He made his second start of the season yesterday at White Sox and earned the win (has also made 11 appearances from Angels bullpen this year).
WINNING MONTHS: Angels went 15-13 in May after completing March/April with a 15-14 record (15-13 in April)…Halos had a record above .500 in consecutive months for the first time since June/July 2021.
VS. HOUSTON: Astros lead the 2023 season series 2-1 after the first series of the year at Angel Stadium from May 8-10…The teams will meet a total of 13 times this season…Last year, Astros won season series 13-6…Mike Trout leads all active players with 29 career home runs vs. Houston.
LEAGUE LEADER: Shohei Ohtani, leads the Majors in opponent batting average (.155), is second in WHIP (0.95) and fourth in strikeouts (90).
PLAY FROM AHEAD: Halos have held leads in 46 of 57 games played this year.
JOYCE CALLED UP: Monday, RHP Ben Joyce made his Major League debut, working one scoreless inning with two strikeouts…Recorded first career strikeout on 101.8 MPH pitch vs. Gavin Sheets; second fastest pitch for first career strikeout in the Statcast era (102.4 MPH by Julian Fernandez (COL) on 9/5/21 vs. ATL)…Joyce is ranked by MLB Pipleline as Angels #9 prospect…The Angels third round selection last season becomes the second player from the 2022 Draft to reach the Majors, following teammate Zach Neto.
LATE COMEBACKS: Halos have three wins this season when trailing after eight innings, which matches the Angels total from each of the last two seasons…Last time LAA had more than three wins in a season when trailing after eight frames was 2017 (5).
FEELS FAMILIAR: Tuesday night, Taylor Ward hit his second career leadoff home run…Both came at Guaranteed Rate Field off Lucas Giolito (also, 4/29/22).
CATCHING ON: This season, Angels catchers rank third in the Majors with an .800 OPS and are tied for third with 10 home runs.
SINGLE HANDED: Gio Urshela has hit 47 singles this year plus 11 extra-base hits (eight doubles, one triple & two home runs)…Urshela ranks second, behind Toronto’s Bo Bichette (56), for the American League lead in singles…Since May 5, Urshela ranks third in the A.L. with a .345 (29/84) batting average in that span.
LEAD ASSISTANT: Hunter Renfroe is tied for second in the American League with five outfield assists this season…Since 2017, his 61 outfield assists lead the Majors (Starling Marte is second with 52 assists).
NET-OW: Zack Neto has been hit by 10 pitches this season, which is second-most in the Majors…Since 1901, only Nick Johnson (2001-02 Yankees; 37 career games) reached 10 career HBP faster than Neto (41 career games).
ESTÉVEZ ENDING: This season, Carlos Estévez is pitching to a 1.50 ERA (24 IP – 4 ER) and has converted all 13 of his save opportunities (the 13 saves are a new career high)…He is the first Angels pitcher to convert his first 13 save opportunities of a season since Troy Percival had 16 straight successful save opportunities to begin the 2001 season.
THE MICK: Mickey Moniak is one of three players in the Majors with at least three leadoff HR this year, along with Mookie Betts (4) and Christian Yelich (3)… On May 13 at Cleveland, became the first player in MLB history to make his season debut on his birthday and hit a leadoff home run.
SHUT OUT: Sunday’s 2-0 loss vs. Miami was the first time Halos were shut out since Aug. 21, 2022 at Detroit…The streak of 94 games without being shut out was the longest active streak in the Majors and finishes as the fourth-longest streak in Angels history.
BACHMAN IN THE SHOW: Sam Bachman made his MLB debut Friday night vs. Miami with 2.0 innings pitched in relief…The Angels first round pick (ninth overall) in the 2021 Draft, Bachman is currently rated by MLB Pipleline as the #4 prospect in the Halos system…He is the highest drafted player from the 2021 Draft to debut and the only pitcher from the first two rounds of that Draft to appear in the Majors.
UNEARNED: Angels have allowed 31 unearned runs this season, which is tied with San Francisco for the Majors…Halos have committed 35 fielding errors this season, which is tied for fifth-most in the Majors and tied for most in A.L.
TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – LHP REID DETMERS
0-4, 4.93 ERA
Tied career high with 12 strikeouts on May 19 vs. Twins
HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:
TONIGHT’S TILT: The Astros and Angels will open a four-game series tonight with a pitching matchup of rookie RHP Ronel Blanco opposite LHP Reid Detmers…the addition of Blanco, who was recalled from Triple A today, gives the Astros a six-man rotation, which they plan to use within their current streak of playing a game on 17 consecutive days.
ABOUT BLANCO: RHP Ronel Blanco will be making his first Major League start tonight in what will be his 17th career-appearance…Blanco made the Astros as a reliever out of Spring Training this season and made nine appearances before being optioned to Triple A on May 6…at Triple A, he worked to get extended, making appearances of 2.1 innings, 3.1, 5.0 and finally 5.1 in his last appearance on May 26…he had huge success in this role, going 2-0 with a 0.56 ERA (1ER/16IP) and an .098 opponent average (5×58)…Blanco’s transition as a starter can be credited to Astros General Manager Dana Brown, who identified Blanco in Spring Training as a potential starter.
RECENT ‘STROS: The Astros are 15-5 in their last 20 games dating back to May 9…since that date, the Astros record is the best in the Majors, immediately ahead of the Yankees (15-7).
GRINDERS: Tonight is the seventh day in a streak of 17 consecutive days with a game for the Astros…prior to this week, the most days the Astros had played in a row was seven, a streak that opened the season from March 30-April 5.
VS. THE ANGELS: The Astros and Angels are matching up for their second series of the season, with Houston winning two of three in Anaheim from May 8-10….the Astros went 13-6 against the Angels in 2021 and 2022 and own an all-time 113-76 record vs. the Angels.
ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Astros dropped the rubber game of their three-game series against the Twins last night by a score of 8-2…the Twins ran away with the victory, leading 8-0 late, before the Astros clubbed a pair of back-to-back homers in the 8th, one each by CF Jake Meyers and C Yainer Diaz…SS Jeremy Peña and 3B Alex Bregman each picked up a pair of singles in the loss.
TODAY’S ROSTER MOVE: The Astros have recalled RHP Ronel Blanco from Triple A Sugar Land and have optioned LHP Parker Mushinski to Triple A.
PITCHING IN: The Astros have the lowest team ERA (3.25) and have allowed the fewest runs (197) in the Majors…the Astros starters rank fourth the Majors in ERA (3.35) and have allowed one-or-fewer earned runs in eight of their last 12 games…also, the Astros bullpen ranks third in the Majors in ERA (3.10).
Lowest Team ERA – MLB Runs Allowed – MLB
HECTOR’S HOT STREAK: RHP Hector Neris has not allowed a run in his last 17 appearances (15.1IP), which ranks as the longest scoreless appearance and innings streak of his career… the streak also ranks as the longest scoreless inning streak by an Astro this season and as the longest active streak in the AL.
BULLPEN WEAPON: RHP Phil Maton has been outstanding this season, allowing just 11 hits and two runs in his first 23 appearances (26.2 IP) for a 0.68 ERA and a .124 (11×89) opponent average…among AL relievers, he ranks first in ERA (0.68), first in WHIP (0.52) and second in opponent avg. (.124)…among MLB relievers, Maton has posted the lowest WHIP and trails only RHP Devin Williams in ERA (0.51).
HOT CORNER HEATER: 3B Alex Bregman, who’s on a seven-game hit streak, is hitting .321 (27×84) with three homers, 14 RBI and an .851 OPS in his last 21 games, dating back to May 8…he’s coupled that by going errorless in those 21 games.
SECOND TO NONE: SS Jeremy Peña has hit second in five straight games, with the Astros going 3-2 in those games, and has hit second 10 times in 2023 (5-5)…over the last two years, including the postseason, the Astros are 58-14 when he hits second…Peña is hitting .351 (13×37) with five homers and a 1.280 OPS in his 10 games hitting second this season.
TONIGHT’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP RONEL BLANCO
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
2023: 0-0 4.50 9 0 12.0 16 9 6 7 16
LAST TIME OUT: did not surrender a run while setting season highs in innings (5.1) and
strikeouts (9) while allowing just 2 hits vs. Salt Lake…the 9 strikeouts were also
his MiLB career high and the 5.1 IP were the most since tossing 6 IP on 7/24/17
with Single A Quad Cities.
START IT UP: is set to make his first career start in the Majors after appearing predominantly as reliever through the first 8 seasons of his professional career… moves to the Astros rotation to form a six-man starting staff with the team amidst a stretch of 17 games in 17 days (5/26-6/11)…entering the ‘23 season had made just 21 starts at the minor league level, with the last coming in ‘19 and none above the Single A level.
WHERE IT STARTED: worked as a starter toward the end of Spring Training, making 2 starts out of his 6 appearances and working up to 50 pitches…had a fantastic Spring Training, recording a 0.64 ERA (1ER/14IP) and did not allow a run through his two starts (6.1IP).
WITH THE ‘STROS: has made the Astros’ Opening Day roster in each of the last two seasons, with last year’s appearance serving as his Major League debut…made 7 appearances in ‘22 before spending the majority of the season with Triple A Sugar Land and made 9 appearances in relief this season prior to being optioned to Sugar Land on 5/6…has recorded a 5.40 ERA (11ER/18.1IP) in his MLB career…averaging 12.0 strikeouts-per-nine-innings throughout his MLB career.
While the Las Vegas Aces aim to continue their early dominance, the Atlanta Dream simply eye back-to-back wins for the first time this season.
The visiting Aces try for a franchise-best 5-0 start when they face the Dream on Friday night.
The Aces have not been shy about boasting of their goal to become the first WNBA team to repeat as champions since Los Angeles in 2001-02. So far, Las Vegas’ “super team” appears more than good enough to do so while averaging a league-high 96.5 points, allowing a league-low 71.8 per contest and posting an average victory margin of 24.7 points.
Jackie Young (23.0 points per game) leads four Las Vegas players averaging at least 14.3 points and scored 23 during Sunday’s 94-73 win over Minnesota. The victory matched the 2011 squad for the best start (4-0) in franchise history.
The Aces have won eight of the last 10 meetings against Atlanta (2-2), which looks to build on Tuesday’s impressive 83-65 rout of Chicago to improve to 1-1 on a five-game homestand. The Dream scored at least 83 points for a third straight contest and held the Sky to just 32.5-percent shooting.
Atlanta’s Rhyne Howard is averaging a team-leading 17.8 points and has totaled 43 in the last two games.
Teammate Allisha Gray averages 17.0 points and a team-best 3.3 assists, while Cheyenne Parker is scoring 15.3 per game with a club-best 6.8 rebounds.
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