MLB Preview: Miami Marlins (5-7) at Philadelphia Phillies (4-7)

Baseball
MLB

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: Miami Marlins (5-7) at Philadelphia Phillies (4-7)

MIAMI MARLINS NOTES:

MARLINS MINUTE
The Marlins today play the final game of a three-game series at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park. Wraps up their season-opening road trip in which they started by taking one of three against the Mets at Citi Field. Following today’s, return home for an off day on Thursday followed by a six-game homestand against Arizona (Fri-Sun) and San Francisco (Mon-Wed).

YESTERDAY’S RECAP
Miami rebounded for an 8-4 win at Philadelphia. 2B Luis Arraez (4×5) became the first player in Marlins franchise history to hit for the cycle. SS Jon Berti (2×3) put the Marlins on the board in the third inning with a solo home run, his first of the year. The Marlins collected a total of seven extra-base hits. LHP Jesus Luzardo earned his second win, limiting the Phillies to 3 runs in 6.0 innings, striking out 5.

CYCLE TIME
2B Luis Arraez on Tuesday became the first player in Marlins history to hit for the cycle, coming in the 4,700th game in franchise history during the 30th anniversary. Was baseball’s first cycle since St. Louis’ Nolan Arenado last July 1 vs. Philadelphia (with Skip Schumaker serving as Cardinals bench coach). There had been 111 cycles in the Majors since the Marlins franchise began play in 1993.

• Doubled in the first inning, tripled in the sixth inning, homered in the seventh inning and singled in the eighth inning. According to the Elias Sports Bureau, during the Expansion Era, was just the seventh cycle to be completed in the same order, also: Eddie Rosario (9/19/21 w/ATL at SF), Jake Cronenworth (7/16/21 w/SD at WAS), Freddie Freeman (6/15/16 w/ATL vs. CIN), Daryle Ward (5/26/04 w/PIT at STL), Keith Hernandez (7/4/85 w/NYM at ATL) and Mike Phillips (6/25/76 w/NYM at CHC).

• Is the first player to hit for a cycle in the month of April since Minnesota’s Jorge Polanco on April 5, 2019 at Citizen’s Bank Park, and the 20th to accomplish the feat within his team’s first 12 games of a season.

• Became the sixth Venezuelan-born player to hit for a cycle, joining Eduardo Escobar (6/6/22 w/NYM at SD), Pablo Sandoval (9/15/11 w/SF at COL), Carlos Gonzalez (7/31/10 w/COL vs. CHC), Carlos Guillen (8/1/06 w/DET at TB), and Cesar Tovar (9/19/72 w/MIN vs. TEX).

• Became the 19th player to hit for a cycle against the Philadelphia Phillies; the 25th player to hit for a cycle in Philadelphia (including the Philadelphia A’s) and the fifth to accomplish the feat at Citizens Bank Park, joining (Nolan Arenado, 7/1/22 w/STL), Jorge Polanco (4/15/19 w/MIN), Brad Wilkerson (4/6/05 w/WAS) and David Bell (6/28/04 w/PHI vs. MON) – credit: Elias Sports Bureau

GOOD FIRST IMPRESSIONS
INF Luis Arraez has 22 hits in his first 12 games of the year, with 8 multi-hit games. Marks the most hits among all Major Leaguers and his .537 batting avg. (22×41) is tops in the Majors among all qualified hitters.

• Arraez’s 22 hits are the most for a player in their first 12 games with the Marlins, ahead of the previous high of 20 held by Juan PIerre (2003), Cameron Maybin (2008), and Dee Gordon (2015).

• Are also the most for a player in the first 12 games of the season since Justin Turner’s 22×50 start with the Dodgers in 2021. The last player to have more hits in the first 12 games was the Dodgers’ Adrian Gonzalez in 2015 (23 hits).

• Became the second player in Marlins history to reach base safely as the starting leadoff hitter in each of the first four games to start a season, joining Hanley Ramirez in 2006 (credit: Elias).

• Has struck out just 3 times in 47 plate appearances, the least amount of strikeouts in MLB among players with at least 40 plate appearances.

• Has been very productive in his first at-bat of the game, going 6×9 (.667) with 2 walks in the first inning of games.

PASSING BYE
In the bottom of the seventh inning in Monday’s loss at Philadelphia, C Jacob Stallings was charged with a passed ball. Snapped a streak of 260 consecutive games without a passed ball. Is the longest streak all time (prev. best was held by Hall of Famer Johnny Bench). Had last permitted a passed ball on August 14, 2020 at Cincinnati with Pittsburgh (3rd inning).

FAU TO THE MOUND
On Sunday, the Marlins will congratulate Florida Atlantic University on their incredible run to the Final Four in a pregame ceremony before the Marlins’ 1:40 pm vs. Arizona. Owls head coach Dusty May will throw out the game’s ceremonial first pitch.

JACKIE ROBINSON CLASSIC RETURNS
Tonight, the Marlins and the Miami Marlins Foundation will host the second annual Jackie Robinson Classic at loanDepot park. Presented by NIKE, this year’s Classic will pit two Broward County teams – Piper High and South Broward High – against each other for a regular season game. The Classic will celebrate Jackie’s legacy as each student-athlete will wear a customized Marlins shirt with the number 42 on the back along with one of Jackie’s nine values. The South Florida community is invited to cheer on the teams at the complimentary event and jam along with the high school bands! Courtesy of JP Morgan, the students and bands from each school will enjoy a ballpark hot dog, chips and a drink.

COOP-A-LOOP
1B Garrett Cooper has hit safely in eight of his 11 games this season, going 14×42 (.333). Went hitless last night, snapping a streak of nine straight road games dating back to last season.

• Owns a .338 (25×74) career average at Citizens Bank Park, his third-highest mark at any opponents ballpark in which he’s played at least two series (Busch Stadium – .450; Coors Field – .429).

PHITIN’ THE PHILS
Of the 19 games played between the Marlins and Phillies last year, the Marlins had the lead at some point in 14 of the contests, but went just 7-12 vs. Philly. 11 of the contests between the teams were decided by two runs or less. The Marlins had 9 losses in ‘22 when tied or leading after the end of 7th inning – four of which came at Citizens Bank Park.

HOMER TIME
The Marlins have scored 23 of their 38 runs this season via home runs (61%). Have hit 14 homers total over the first 12 games, homering in 10 of the contests, including each of the last seven.

NOBODY MESSES WITH THE JESUS
LHP Jesus Luzardo earned his second win of the season yesterday at Philadelphia (6.0 IP, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). His 20 strikeouts rank tied for third-most in the National League.

• Dating back to Aug. 1, 2022, owns a 2.80 ERA (90.0/28) with 99 strikeouts. 11 of his 15 starts have been quality starts (at least 6.0 IP and ER or fewer).

TODAY’S STARTER – #27 EDWARD CABRERA
• Edward Cabrera, 24, made 14 starts at the Major League level last year after being recalled from Triple-A Jacksonville on May 31, 2022.

• Walked 6 batters and allowed 2 runs in 4.0 innings on his first start of the season vs. New York Mets.

• Ranked in the top three among rookie starters in several categories, including his .177 opponents batting average, 1.074 WHIP, and 3.01 ERA.

• His .177 avg. against was the lowest by a rookie starter with at least 10 GS. Among all MLB pitchers, ranked fourth behind Christian Javier (.170), Tony Gonsolin (.172), and Jacob deGrom (.175).

• In 7 starts at home in 2022, went 3-3 with a 4.58 ERA (35.1 IP/18 ER). Posted a 1.49 ERA (36.1 IP/6 ER) in 7 starts away, allowing 10 less hits than at home.

• Was named to MLB.com’s All-Rookie Second Team.

• Made four consecutive scoreless outings (22.2 IP) after returning from injury from Aug. 1 until Aug. 22, becoming the second pitcher in franchise history to make four consecutive scoreless starts, joining Chris Hammond in 1994.

• Set a new career-high with 8.0 innings pitched at Oakland on Aug. 22, 2022.

• In his first start back in almost 2 months on Aug. 5, 2022 tossed 5.0 no-hit innings against Chicago Cubs.

• Was the first pitcher in club history to pitch 6.0 innings or more and allow two hits or less in each of his first two starts of a season.

PHILADELPHIA PHILLIES NOTES:

GAME #11 RECAP: The Phillies fell to the Miami Marlins, 8-4, at CBP in South Philly … Starter Aaron Nola (L, 0-2) went 5.2 innings and allowed 4 runs on 9 hits with 0 walks and 6 strikeouts … Offensively, Kyle Schwarber homered, Bryson Stott had another multi-hit game and raised his season AVG to .422 and Nick Castellanos reached base three more times, raising his season OBP to .404 … Marlins infielder Luis Arraez hit for the cycle, the fifth in CBP’s history: Nolan Arenado (7/1/22), Jorge Polanco (4/5/19), Brad Wilkerson (4/6/05) and David Bell (6/28/04).

LAW OF AVERAGES: Through 11 games, the Phillies have a .288 AVG and 110 hits (10.0 per game) which is the most through the first 11 games of a season for a Phillies club since 2011 (123 hits through 11 G) … Among all Phillies clubs in the modern era (since 1900), Philadelphia’s 110 hits through 11 games ranks 16th … For context, last year’s club had 87 hits through their first 11 games (7.9 per game) and a .244 average … Philadelphia’s .288 AVG through their first 11 games ranks 12th in the modern era among Phillies clubs (best: .318 AVG in 2011).

GREAT STOTT!: INF Bryson Stott has hit safely in all 11 games this season and has multiple hits in eight of those 11 games, including each of the last four (since 4/8) … Stott is 8-for-17 off left-handers (.471 AVG) and 11-for-28 off right-handers (.393 AVG) … Stott is the first Phillies player to hit safely in 11 straight to begin a season since Didi Gregorius in 2021 and with a hit today, he’d become the first to hit safely in 12 straight to begin a season since Puddin’ Head Jones (16 G) in 1950.

59 at CBP for 59: Last night marked Rob Thomson’s 59th game as manager for the Phillies at CitizensBank Park (since 6/3/22) … The Phillies went 38-21 in Thomson’s first 59 games at home (.644 win %) … In the 59 games at home prior to Thomson taking over, the Phillies were 29-30 at CBP (.492 win %, 7/28/21- 6/1/22).

REMEMBER THE FIGHTINS: Since Rob Thomson took over as Phillies manager on June 3, the Phillies are 36-22 in 58 games against the National League East (.621 win %) with a +68 run differential (292-224) and 11-4-2 series record … In those 58 games, the Phillies have committed only 15 errors in 2,054 total chances, good for a .993 fielding percentage.

SAINT NICK: Phillies right fielder Nick Castellanos ranks T-8th among all ML outfielders with 2 defensive runs saved (DRS) this season … Castellanos, who leads the Phillies in DRS (also: Realmuto & Stott, 2 DRS), ranks T-2nd among all ML right fielders, trailing only Teoscar Hernandez (4 DRS) … At the plate, Castellanos had seven doubles through his first 10 games played and became only the fourth Phillies player with seven or more doubles through 10 games in the modern era (since 1900), joining John Kruk in 1993 (7 2B), Bake McBride in 1981 (8 2B) and Puddin’ Head Jones in 1949 (7 2B).

STRIKE ONE, STRIKE TWO, GOOD LUCK: Phillies LHP Jose Alvarado extended his career-best scoreless streak to 17.2 innings on Sunday (18 G, since 8/26/22) … Over that stretch, he has struck out 34 of the 59 batters he has faced (57.6 %) while walking only three (5.1%) and holding opponents to a .073/.121/.073 slash line … This season, Alvardo has struck out 11 of the 13 batters he has faced (84.6%) including each of the last 10 … Per Elias, Alvarado is the first Phillies relief pitcher and only the third in MLB in the expansion era (since 1961) to strike out 10 consecutive batters within a single season, joining Eric Gagne (10 straight, 5/17-21/03) and Chad Greene (10 straight, 9/18-24/19) … Since Sept. 25, 2022, Alvarado has pitched 7.1 innings over 7 appearances – he has 19 strikeouts, 0 walks and only 2 hits allowed (both singles) in those 7.1 innings pitched … Starting with his last batter faced on 9/22/22 vs ATL, Alvarado has struck out 20 of the last 25 batters he has faced (80.0%), and in doing so, has joined Josh Hader (21 of 25, 9/3-21/18) as the only two relief pitchers in the expansion era to strikeout 20+ in a 25-batter span.

TOOLS OF BRILLIANCE: Since the second half of the 2022 season, J.T. Realmuto is slashing .295/.350/.559 with a .909 OPS, 15 HR and 49 RBI in 69 games (277 PA) … This year, he has caught four of 12 would-be base stealers (33.3%) and has the three fastest pop times among all MLB catchers to second base (1.73, 1.76, 1.77), four of the top 10 and eight of the top 17 … Last season, Realmuto was named AllMLB First Team last season, took home his third Silver Slugger Award and second Gold Glove Award and finished 7th in NL MVP voting … Additionally, he finished with 6.5 fWAR, 3rd in MLB history for a catcher aged 31 or older and led MLB with 1281.2 innings at catcher (regular and postseason combined) which was 240.0 innings more than HOU’s Martin Maldonado who ranked 2nd at 1041.2 … Finally, he became only the second catcher in MLB history with 20 HR and 20 SB, joining Hall of Famer Ivan Rodriguez (1999).

WELCOME BACK, JEAN: Prior to Monday night’s game, former Phillie Jean Segura was presented with his 2022 National League Championship ring … Segura spent four seasons with the Phillies (2019-22) and hit .281 with a .755 OPS over 427 games … In Game 1 of last year’s NL Wild Card Series against the Cardinals, Segura capped off a Phillies comeback with a 2-run , game-winning single on Oct. 8 at Busch Stadium … Per Elias, Segura had played in 1,328 career regular season games before debuting in the postseason – there are only three other players in MLB history with as many regular season games played who collected the game winning RBI in their first career postseason game: Carlos Delgado (1,711 games, 2006 NLDS Game 1 vs LAD), Ted Kluszewski (1,530 games, 1959 World Series Game 1 vs LAD) and Nick Markakis (1,365 games, 2014 ALDS Game 1 vs DET).

NEW TONIGHT, AT (THE) 6: On 12/8/22, the Phillies signed SS Trea Turner to an 11-year contract, taking him through the 2033 season … Last year with LAD, Turner was selected as an All-Star for the second time in his career, was named All-MLB First Team and won his first career Louisville Silver Slugger Award after slashing .298/.343/.466 with a 121 OPS+ and 27 steals in 30 attempts … Per Statcast, his average sprint speed of 30.3 feet per second ranked 5th out of 582 qualified players … In 2021, Turner led the majors in AVG (.328) and hits (195), led the NL in stolen bases (32) and total bases (319) and posted a career-best 6.8 fWAR (FanGraphs) which ranked 3rd among all ML position players.

TODAY’S STARTER – ZACK WHEELER • RHP #45

LAST START: 4/7 vs CIN: ND, 5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 SO … Wheeler vs Greene … Pregame, Rhys Hoskins and Bryce Harper raised the 2022 National League pennant as the Phils opened their home slate of the 2023 season at CBP with a 5-2 win over the Cincinnati Reds … Trea Turner had 2 hits and scored twice, J.T. Realmuto and Edmundo Sosa both homered.

TODAY’S START:
• Citizens Bank Spark: Wheeler is 6-1 with a 1.59 ERA (13 ER, 73.2 IP), 0.91 WHIP and 81 SO to 19 BB in his last 12 home starts (since 4/28/22), the lowest in the NL in that span and 3rd-lowest in MLB behind Justin Verlander (1.43) and Shohei Ohtani (1.56) … He has not allowed a HR at home since 8/9/22 vs MIA … His 2.24 home ERA (63 ER, 253.1 IP) since joining the Phillies is also 2nd to only Alexander (2.04) among all Phillies pitchers with at least 25 starts at home since ER became an official NL stat in 1912 … Since Wheeler joined the Phillies, only Sandy Alcantara (2.16) has a lower home ERA among pitchers with at least 30 starts at home … In 2022, his 1.85 ERA (16 ER, 78.0 IP) in 13 home starts was the lowest by a Phillie with at least 13 home starts since 1917 (Grover Cleveland Alexander, 1.59)

• Miami Vice: Wheeler is 10-4 with a 2.41 ERA (33 ER, 123.1 IP) in 19 career starts vs MIA, and has allowed 2 ER or fewer in 15 of them …
Subtracting his 7 ER in 3.0 IP on 4/17/22, when he was making his 2nd start of the season after not facing any ML hitters in spring training, his career ERA vs MIA is 1.94 (26 ER, 120.1 IP) in the other 18 starts

• Battery Operated: Wheeler has made 58 starts with J.T. Realmuto behind the plate, more than any other catcher who has caught him … His 4.75 SO/BB ratio with Realmuto behind the dish is the highest among all catchers who have caught Wheeler for at least 10 games, and his 2.83 ERA (113 ER, 359.2 IP) is 2nd (best: Kevin Plawecki, 2.19 in 12 starts)

• Ace True Value: Since joining the Phillies in 2020, Zack Wheeler’s 13.6 fWAR is the 2nd-highest in MLB, trailing only Corbin Burnes’ 14.6 and is more than half a win over the 3rd place pitcher (Aaron Nola, 13.0) … Since 2020, he ranks 5th in MLB in BB% (5.6%) 7th in ERA (2.88, min. 400.0 IP) & IP (447.0), 8th in SO/BB (4.75) & 9th in WHIP (1.06)

• Couldn’t Have Done It Without Ya: In the 2022 postseason, Wheeler set a Phillies record and tied the ML record for most starts in a postseason with 6, done by 7 other pitchers … Wheeler had a quality start in each of his first 4 postseason starts, becoming the first pitcher in MLB to start his postseason career with 4 straight quality starts since Michael Wacha in 2013

• vs NL East: 39-32, 3.36 ERA (226 ER, 605.1 IP) in 98 starts

HOME:
• 2023: 0-0, 3.38 ERA (2 ER, 5.1 IP) in 1 start

• Career: 36-31, 3.36 ERA (229 ER, 613.0 IP) in 99 starts

• CBP: 20-9, 2.39 ERA (79 ER, 297.1 IP) in 46 starts

2022 SEASON:
• NL Rankings: 5th in SO/BB (4.79), 8th in BB % (5.6%) & BB/9.0 IP (2.00), 9th in SO/9.0 IP (9.59), 10th in SO % (26.9%) & OPP OPS (.626)

• His 2.82 ERA (48 ER, 153.0 IP) was 6th-best among NL pitchers with at least 150.0 IP; fell 9.0 IP short of qualifying for ERA leaders

• In his final 23 starts (since 4/28), went 12-4 with a 2.31 ERA (36 ER, 140.1 IP), 0.98 WHIP (30 BB, 108 H) and 152 SO (9.75 SO/9.0 IP), holding opponents to a .212/.261/.341 slash line

• Named NL Pitcher of the Month for May, going 2-0 with a 1.65 ERA (6 ER, 32.2 IP), 1.01 WHIP, 40 SO, 5 BB and an NL-leading 1.4 fWAR

• Was his first ever Pitcher of the Month Award and first by a Phillie since Cliff Lee in August 2011

• His 19.1-inning scoreless streak, 6/28-7/13, was the longest by a Phillie in 2022

• On the IL, 8/22-9/20, with right forearm tendinitis

• In his final three starts allowed one run on nine hits in 15.0 IP (0.60 ERA), BB, 15 SO while facing seven batters over the minimum

2022 POSTSEASON:
• Made six starts in his first career postseason, posting a 2.78 ERA (11 ER, 35.2 IP) and 0.73 WHIP (7 BB, 19 H) … His six starts were a Phillies single-postseason record and tied the ML record

• In Game 1 of the NLWCS at STL, became the second Phillie ever to toss at least 6.0 IP with two or fewer hits in his first-ever postseason start, joining Roy Halladay, who threw a no-hitter on 10/6/10 vs CIN

• Began his postseason career with 11.1 scoreless IP

• In Game 1 of the NLCS at SD, made just the 17th start in postseason history of 7.0+ scoreless IP, 1 or 0 hits, and only the second by a Phillie (Roy Halladay in no-hitter, Game 1 of 2010 NLDS)

• Was the first pitcher since 2013 (STL’s Michael Wacha) to begin a postseason with four straight quality starts

CAREER
• In 2021, finished 2nd to MIL’s Corbin Burnes in NL Cy Young Award voting, was named Second-Team All-MLB and was a NL Gold Glove Award finalist … Made his first career All-Star team in 2021 and set career highs in starts, IP, strikeouts, ERA, WHIP, complete games and shutouts … His 247 strikeouts were 10th-most ever by a Phillie

MLB Preview: Milwaukee Brewers (8-3) at Arizona Diamondbacks (7-5)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: Milwaukee Brewers (8-3) at Arizona Diamondbacks (7-5)

MILWAUKEE BREWERS NOTES:

TODAY’S GAME: Is game 3 (1-1) of a 10-game road trip to Arizona (1-1), San Diego (4g) and Seattle (3g)…..following this trip and an off day on April 20, the team returns to American Family Field for a 9-game homestand against Boston (3g), Detroit (3g) and Los Angeles-AL (3g).

CURRENT ROSTER (bold indicates not on Opening Day roster):
PITCHERS (13) – RH Corbin Burnes, RH Matt Bush, RH Javy Guerra, RH Janson Junk, LH Eric Lauer, LH Wade Miley, LH Hoby Milner, RH Joel Payamps, RH Freddy Peralta, RH Peter Strzelecki, RH Gus Varland, RH Devin Williams, RH Bryse Wilson
CATCHERS (2) – Victor Caratini, William Contreras
INFIELDERS (7) – Willy Adames, Brian Anderson, Mike Brosseau, Owen Miller, Rowdy Tellez, Brice Turang, Luke Voit
OUTFIELDERS (4) – Garrett Mitchell, Joey Wiemer, Jesse Winker, Christian Yelich

IN THE TRAINER’S ROOM: RHP Jason Alexander (right rotator cuff), LHP Aaron Ashby (left labrum), RHP Adrian Houser (right groin), OF Tyrone Taylor (right elbow), INF Luis Urías (left hamstring), LHP Justin Wilson (left elbow) and RHP Brandon Woodruff (right shoulder) are on the IL…..Alexander, Ashby and Wilson are on the 60-day IL.

IN THE STANDINGS (13 days): The Brewers have spent the following number of days alone or tied at each position in the NL Central standings: FIRST: 11, SECOND: 0, THIRD: 2, FOURTH: 0, FIFTH: 0…..the team is currently in first place, leading the second-place Pirates by 1.0 game.

SERIES-LY SPEAKING: The Brewers are 3-0-0 in series play. Game 1: 2-2, Game 2: 3-1, Game 3: 3-0, Game 4: 0-0 Sweep Wins (1): vs. NYM (3g, 4/3-4/5) Sweep Losses (-): None

AT HOME: The Brewers are 5-1 at home, going 2-0-0 in series play…..the team went 46-35 at home last season, going 15-8-4 in series play.

ON THE ROAD: The Brewers are 3-2 on the road, going 1-0-0 in series play…..the team went 40-41 on the road last season, going 9-12-5 in series play.

MANAGER: Craig Counsell – the longest-tenured active manager in the National League and third in the majors – is in his ninth season as Brewers manager (623-558) and eighth full season…..he has the most wins (623) and games managed (1,181) of any manager in franchise history…..Counsell was named the 19th manager in franchise history on 5/4/15, replacing Ron Roenicke…..he is signed through the 2023 season.

COACHES: First base coach Quintin Berry (3rd season), hitting coach Connor Dawson (2nd season), bullpen coach Jim Henderson (2nd season), pitching coach Chris Hook (5th season), third base coach Jason Lane (8th season, 3rd as 3B coach), associate pitching, catching and strategy coach Walker McKinven (4th season), bench coach Pat Murphy (8th season) and hitting coach Ozzie Timmons (2nd season) all returned from the 2022 staff…..Néstor Corredor, who had previously been bullpen catcher (2021-22), is now a coach.

2022 IN REVIEW: The Brewers went 86-76 last season, missing the postseason for the first time since 2017…..the team was eliminated from NL Central contention on September 27 and eliminated from postseason contention on October 3, snapping their franchise-record four consecutive years of making the playoffs…..the team won at least 86 games for the fifth consecutive full season (since 2017), joining the Dodgers (since 2012), Astros (since 2017) and Yankees (since 2017) as the only teams to accomplish the feat during this stretch (does not include 2020).

LET’S GO TO THE VIDEO TAPE: The Brewers have made one replay challenge this season, going 0-1…..the challenge came on Opening Day at Chicago-NL as a safe call at first base (Dansby Swanson) on a pickoff attempt stood.

TODAY’S STARTER: #66 – RHP JANSON JUNK
JUNK AT A GLANCE: Janson Junk, 27, will be making his first start of the season and Brewers debut…..Junk joins the team from Triple-A Nashville, where he was 1-0 with a 0.90 ERA in 2 games/1 start (10ip, 5h, 1r, 1er, 3bb, 7k)…..opponents batted .143 (5-for-35, 0hr)…..he was acquired from Los Angeles-AL, along with RHP Elvis Peguero and LHP Adam Seminaris, in exchange for OF Hunter Renfroe on November 22.

LAST SEASON: Junk went 1-1 with a 6.48 ERA in 3 games/2 starts during three stints with the Angels (5/28, 6/20-6/24 and 7/27-8/4)…..he earned his first Major League win in a 4-0 victory on 7/27 at Kansas City as he tossed 5.0 scoreless innings, allowing 4 hits (1bb, 8k)…..Junk also appeared in 16 games/15 starts at Triple-A Salt Lake, where he went 1-7 with a 4.64 ERA.

CAREER: Is 1-2 with a 4.74 ERA in 7 games/6 starts (24.2ip, 13er) with Los Angeles-AL (2021-22)…..Junk was originally selected by New York-AL in the 22nd round of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of Seattle University…..he was traded to the Angels, along with RHP Elvis Peguero, in exchange for LHP Andrew Heaney and cash on 7/30/21.
CAREER AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD: Junk has never pitched in Milwaukee.

CAREER ON THE ROAD: Is 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA in 3 starts (13.2ip, 3er).

CAREER vs. DIAMONDBACKS: Junk has never faced the D-backs.

ARIZONA DIAMONDBACKS NOTES:

HERE’S THE STORY
♦ The D-backs are 4-2 in their opening homestand of the 2023 season vs. Dodgers (3-1) and Brewers (1-1)…it marks Arizona’s first homestand win since Aug. 29-Sept. 4, 2022 vs. Phillies and Brewers (5-2) and first Opening Week homestand win since 2018 (5-1; vs. Rockies and Dodgers).

♦ With a victory this afternoon, the D-backs will win their second straight series as well as their second consecutive vs. Brewers @ Chase Field (last: 3-1 from Sept. 1-4).

♦ The D-backs are tied with the Padres for first place in the NL West, 1.0 game ahead of the Dodgers, and have found them in or tied for first place since April 8.

♦ Geraldo Perdomo, in 8 games this season, is batting .368 (7-for-19)/.500 OBP with 3 doubles, 1 home run and a team-leading 8 RBI and 4 walks.

♦ Drey Jameson is making his first start of the season (fifth career start) after making 3 relief appearances to begin the year.

ROSTER MOVES
♦ The D-backs made the following roster moves:
Reinstated RHP Scott McGough from the Paternity List.

Optioned RHP Carlos Vargas to Triple-A Reno following last night’s game.

BABY BOY MCGOUGH!
♦ Yesterday, just before first pitch of the game vs. Brewers, Scott McGough and his wife, Lauren, welcomed their second child and fi rst baby boy, Griffin.

♦ Congratulations to the McGough Family!

RUN AT YOUR OWN RISK
♦ Gabriel Moreno’s 4 caught stealings (CS) this season is tied for the most in the Majors (also: Willson Contreras/STL and J.T. Realmuto/PHI) while his 80.0 pct. caught stealing pct. is highest among catchers with at least 3 CS.

CAUGHT STEALING PERCENTAGE (MIN. 3 CS): 80.0 pct
(4-5) – Gabriel Moreno/AZ; 75.0 pct. (3-4) – Elias Diaz/ COL; 66.7 pct. (4-6) – Willson Contreras/STL; 60.0 pct. (3-5) – Ryan Jeff ers/MIN; 33.3 pct. (4-12) – J.T. Realmuto/PHI

2-OUT SUPPORT
♦ Arizona’s .367 average (18-for-49) with 2 outs and runners in scoring position leads the Majors, ahead of the Rangers (.341), Dodgers (.340), Rays (.333) and Astros (.328).

SWIPIN’ BAGS
♦ The D-backs’ 17 stolen bases rank tied for second in the Majors (also: Orioles), behind the Guardians (19).

♦ Corbin Carroll leads all MLB rookies with 5 stolen bases and is just 1 of 2 players in the Majors this season to have 2+ stolen bases in multiple games (2 games – also: Jorge Mateo/BAL).

FOR THE TAKING
♦ The D-backs 64 pct. extra bases taken percentage leads the Majors, ahead of the Braves (56 pct.), Orioles (52 pct.) and Red Sox (51 pct.).

Percentage runner advanced more than 1 base on single or 2+ bases on a double.

ON DECK: MIAMI MARLINS
♦ The D-backs begin their second road trip of the season with 3 games @ Marlins from April 14-16.

♦ In 2022, Arizona swept its 3-game series @ Marlins Park from May 2-4.

♦ Christian Walker, over 6 games vs. Marlins in 2022, batted .357 (6-for-17)/1.206 OPS with 3 doubles, 1 home run, 4 RBI and 5 walks.

RHP DREY JAMESON ♦ #99
AT A GLANCE: Selected by the D-backs as a compensatory round selection in First-Year Player Draft (June 15, 2019).
• Attended Ball State University from 2018-19 where he was named 2019 MAC Pitcher of the Year after going 6-3 with a 3.24 ERA (33 ER in 91.2 IP) and single-season MAC record 146 strikeouts in 16 starts.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW: Is making his first start of the season (fifth career start) and first since Oct. 1, 2022 @ Giants.
• Made his first Opening Day roster and began the season in the bullpen.

• Recorded his first career win as a reliever (March 31 @ Dodgers) and first save (April, 4 @ Padres).

• Enters 2023 as the D-backs’ No. 7 prospect by The Athletic and No. 9 by MLB Pipeline.

VS. BREWERS: Will be making his first career appearance.

DYNAMITE DEBUT: Tied the D-backs record for most scoreless innings (7.0) in a Major League debut (also: Ryne Nelson) on Sept. 5.

• The 7.0 innings were also the second most innings, behind Geraldo Guzmán on July 6, 2000 @ Astros (8.0).

• Jameson’s 2 hits allowed is tied for the second fewest allowed in a Major League debut by a D-back (also: Chase Anderson on May 11, 2014 @ White Sox).

UNFAMILIAR WATERS: In his 7 career games, has never faced a Major League club outside of the NL West.

THE RIGHT STUFF: Is limiting righties to a .125 average (2-for16) with 7 strikeouts this season. 2022 REVIEW: Went 3-0 with a 1.48 ERA (4 ER in 24.1 IP), 24 strikeouts and .222 opponent avg. in 4 starts in his first Major League season.

• Was 5-12 with a 6.95 ERA (88 ER in 114.0 IP) in 22 games (21 starts) with Triple-A Reno.

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
4/12 Scott McGough Reinstated from the Paternity List
Carlos Vargas Optioned to Triple-A Reno (post-game)
4/11 José Ruiz Activated
Scott McGough Placed on the Paternity List

INJURED LIST
10-DAY IL: C Carson Kelly (right forearm fracture), OF Kyle Lewis (illness)
15-DAY IL: LHP Joe Mantiply (left shoulder infl ammation), RHP Zach Davies (strained left oblique)
60-DAY IL: RHP Corbin Martin (right lat tendon avulsion), RHP Mark Melancon (strained right shoulder), RHP Cole Sulser (strained right shoulder)

MLB Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (4-7) at Colorado Rockies (5-7)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (4-7) at Colorado Rockies (5-7)

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS NOTES:

RECENT REDBIRDS: The defending NL Central Division Champion St. Louis Cardinals conclude their first roadtrip (MIL-3, COL-3) of the season today with the rubber game of a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field…the Cardinals snapped a two-game skid with a 9-6 come-from-behind win last night to improve their road trip record to 2-3…the Cardinals, with a win today, can secure their first series win since taking 2-of-3 in their season-opening series against Toronto…the Cardinals have not won consecutive games at Coors Field in the same calendar year since back-to-back wins here Sept. 19- 20, 2016…this week marks the Cardinals lone series visit to Denver, their first games here in the month of April since 2003…the Rockies will visit St. Louis for a three-game series August 4-6.

TAP THE ROCKIES: St. Louis has won their season series vs. the Rockies in each of the 12 seasons (2010-2022) and 21 times in 27 seasons since Colorado joined MLB as an expansion team in 1993. WILD, WILD WEST: Since 2019, the Cardinals are 38-12 at home vs. the National League West, but just 20-30 on the road.

MILE HIGH HIKE: The Cardinals are one of just three NL teams that have never had a pitcher throw a complete game at Coors Field…the Cardinals (104 games played at Coors), Cubs (99) and Mets (98) make up that group…the Cardinals, who also had no route-going efforts in their 12 games played in 1993-94 at Denver’s Mile High Stadium, also lack a complete game effort in their 57 alltime games played at Philadelphia’s Citizens Bank Park.

A NIGHT FOR NOLANS: Starring at a 6-2 deficit in their 7th last night, the Cardinals climbed back to even when Nolan Arenado cleared the bases with a 3-run double, the Cardinals first hit of the season with the bases loaded (they had been 0-for-8 with just 1 RBI)…Nolan Gorman then sparked a three-run 9th inning with a titanic blast to right, his team-leading 3rd homer of the season, helping to secure the 9-6 comeback win.

DONNY’S DEFENSIVE GEMS: Making his first start of the season in left field last night, Brendon Donovan, the first-ever recipient of the Rawlings Gold Glove for a Utility player, made his team-high 4th defensive gem of the season with a leading grab at the track in the 8th inning… Donovan already has had defensive gems at three positions this year, also doing so at 1st base on Monday and a previous pair at 2nd base.

BURLEY CYCLE: Rookie Alec Burleson collected his 2nd career professional triple Monday night, and his first in the majors…by doing so, Burley became the first Cardinal to hit for the season cycle in 2023 with at least one single, double, triple and homer…Burleson also extended his hitting streak to 6 games, the 5th longest active streak in the NL.

INNING BY INNING: The Cardinals have struck for a season-high 13 runs in their 3rd innings and 10 in the 4th…they are still looking to score a run in both the 2nd inning and 5th inning this season…they have left a combined 21 runners on base in their 2nd & 5th innings.

WALKER MAKING HISTORY: Rookie Jordan Walker singled in the 7th inning last night to extend his hitting streak to 11 games, extending his Cardinals rookie record for the longest hitting streak to begin a career…the Rockies David Dahl (2016) and Reds Chuck Aleno (1941) hold the MLB rookie record for longest hitting streak to begin a career at 17 games. (Elias)

SPLENDID: Jordan Walker’s 11-game hit streak to begin his career is just the 2nd all-time by a player age 20 years or younger… Philadelphia Athletics outfielder Eddie Murphy hit safely in each of his first 12 games in 1912 at age 20…Walker on Monday night passed Ted Williams (1939, age 20) who hit in 9-straight games to launch his Hall of Fame career…current Cardinals Bench Coach Joe McEwing holds the Cardinals franchise rookie record for longest hitting streak, doing so in 25 games (June 8-July 4, 1999), the 8th-longest hit streak in franchise history…Walker and the Phillies’ Bryson Stott (11) entered play today with the majors’ longest hit active streaks.

ROOKIE RANKINGS: Rookie outfielder Jordan Walker, the Cardinals 1st round draft selection in 2020, is the MLB rookie leader in hits (14) and in batting (.326) among rookies; he ranks 6th in OPS (882)…his 8 RBI rank 3rd behind the Angels’ Logan O’Hoppe (10) and the Dodgers’ James Outman (9)…Walker’s first 14 hits have come off of 14 different pitchers.

CLOSE TO CARGO: Nolan Arenado who hit his 1st homer of the season and 300th of this career Sat. at Milwaukee, is currently ranked 4th
all-time in Coors Field homers (138), one back of Carlos “Cargo” Gonzalez (139)…he’s HR’d twice at Coors as a member of the Cardinals OFF THE BAT: According to Baseball Savant, St. Louis ranks T1st in MLB in hard hit balls of 95+mph (140) with the Dodgers and 5th in average exit velocity (90.6 mph)…Jordan Walker (19), Paul Goldschmidt (18) & Nolan Arenado (17) are pacing the team in hard hit balls

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP JACK FLAHERTY (1-1, 1.80)
TODAY’S GAME
NL Leaders: Opponent BA (.133, 3rd), Walks (13, T1st), pitches/game (94.5, T12th)
• Makes his 3rd start of the season, first against the Rockies in 2023 and first career start at Coors Field. Is one of 11 active pitchers to make 100 or more career starts without pitching at Coors Field; teammate Jordan Montgomery is among them at 110 (Elias).

• Is 15-9 with a 2.45 ERA in 35 career day game starts. Ranks 6th among active pitchers in day game ERA behind deGrom (2.05), Chapman (2.25), Kimbrel (2.33), Kershaw (2.40) and Alcántara (2.42).

• Needs five strikeouts to tie Theodore Breitenstein for 30th all-time in Cardinals history and seven to tie Andy Benes for 29th at 614.

• Has walked six or more batters in each of his first two starts of the season. If he walks six batters today, he will be the first Cardinals pitcher to notch three consecutive appearance with six or more walks since 1931 (“Wild” Bill Hallahan – also started the season with three straight) and the 5th Cardinals pitcher all time (Roy Golden – 5, Bill Hallahan, Bob Harmon & Jack Dunleavy – 3).

• Has held his opposition to six hits or fewer in 27 consecutive starts dating back to Sept. 20, 2020, 2nd only to Jacob deGrom (36; 8/19/20-present).

• Owns a career mark of 8-3, 3.12 ERA in 14 career starts in the monh of April. Had his streak of 6-straight April decisions snapped in his last start at MIL, with his previous April loss also vs. MIL in 2019.

• Trails only Wainwright & DeJong in years of Cardinals service on current roster.

• Has held his opposition to a .203 career batting average, ranking 13th among MLB pitchers with more than 500 career innings pitched in the Live Ball Era (post-1920); sandwiched between Nolan Ryan (12th, .204) and Sandy Koufax (14th, .205).

• Missed a total of 122 games last season due to a right shoulder injury (64 games from April 7-June 14 and another 58 games from June 27-Sept.4)

• Since becoming a full-time starting pitcher in 2018, ranks 15th among MLB pitchers with a 10.32 strikeouts/9 IP (min. 500 IP).

• St. Louis sports a 53-47 overall record in Flaherty’s 100 career starts. In his first 51 starts from his MLB debut (9/1/2017) until the 2019 All-Star Break, St. Louis went 21-30 (.412). In his last 47 starts (July 16, 2019-present), St. Louis is 32-17 (.653).

• In 100 career starts, is 34-10 when receiving 2+ runs of support, 27-2 when receiving 3+ runs, and 23-0 with 4+ runs of support. Has received 2 or fewer runs of support in 60 of 100 (60.0%) career starts.

• Is 20-13 in 50 career games (47 starts) at Busch Stadium. His .188 opponent batting average is the lowest in stadium history (min. 100 IP), while his 292 strikeouts (8th) and 2.79 ERA (7th) at Busch both rank in the Top 10 among all pitchers in the ballpark’s history (since 2006).

LAST TIME OUT
• Worked around six base on balls in his 5.0 IP, but allowed 2 runs on four hits and fell to the Brewers by a 4-0 score last Friday (4/7) in the opening game of the current road trip.
DATE vs. RESULT DEC IP H R ER BB SO HR NP-S
4/7 @MIL L 4-0 L-1 5.0 4 2 2 6 3 0 94-50
2023

• Threw 5.0 innings of no-hit ball in his first start of the season vs. TOR (4/1), became the 16th pitcher since 1901 to issue seven walks in a scoreless and hitless outing of any length (Langs); and the 5th pitcher in Cardinals history to pitch exactly 5.0 innings without allowing a hit or a run in a start.

• Ran his streak of consecutive games with six hits or less to 27 in a 4-0 loss at MIL (4/7). Allowed just two runs on four hits. His 60th career start receiving two runs of support or less. Walked six batters in the game, first Cardinals pitcher to walk 6+ batters in consecutive games since Carlos Martínez (2018).

COLORADO ROCKIES NOTES:

WHAT’S HAPPENING
• The Colorado Rockies finish their 2023 opening homestand today, facing the St. Louis Cardinals for the rubber match of the three-game set … split a four-game series against the Washington Nationals to begin the homestand.

• The Rockies dropped last night’s game 9-6 after holding a 6-2 lead entering the seventh inning … it was their largest blown lead in a loss since letting San Francisco come back from a 6-2 deficit on Sept. 19, 2022 for an eventual 10-7 win.

• Colorado will head to Seattle tonight … following an off day tomorrow, the club faces the Mariners for three games Friday-Sunday, before returning home to host the Pittsburgh Pirates April 17-19.

TIME FLIES WHEN YOU’RE HAVING FUN
• Through 12 games, the Rockies average game time of 2:33 is slightly below the league average of 2:37 … in 2022, the Rockies did not play a game shorter than 2:32 until their 21st game of the season, a 4-3 win over Cincinnati on April 30 (2:31) … 16 of their games across that span were over three hours … Colorado has yet to play a game in 2023 that has lasted longer than three hours (longest: 2:56).

• The Rockies’ shortest game of the season was a 2:03 affair April 2 in San Diego, the 12th-shortest game in Rockies’ history, the shortest since a 1:58 time of game on July 1, 2008 … in that contest, Aaron Cook tossed a 79-pitch complete-game shutout against the Padres at Coors Field, one of only nine CGSO tossed at Coors Field at the time.

• The shortest game in team history came on June 30, 2006 at Seattle when the Rockies topped the Mariners 2-0 in 1:52.

THE BATS ARE ALIVE
• The Rockies have recorded double-digit hits in each of the last five games and rank third in the Majors with 114 hits on the season … their string of five games with double-digit hits is their longest since a six-game string Aug. 3-8, 2021.

• The Rockies’ 27 doubles are the third-most in the Majors … six different Rockies (Bryant, Daza, Diaz, McMahon, Montero, Tovar) have at least three doubles, tied with the Mariners for the most players with three or more doubles in the Majors.

FIRE UP THE FOUNTAINS
• C.J. Cron’s four home runs are tied for the fourth-most in the National League … his home run last night measuring 479 feet is the second-longest in the Majors this season trailing a 483-foot blast from Giancarlo Stanton.

• The Rockies have hit 13 home runs through 12 games thus far in the season … their average of 1.08 home runs per game is up from the team’s 0.91 mark in 2022 and their 1.00 mark on the road surpasses the Rockies’ 0.63 mark from last season.

WHAT’S IN THE CARDS
• The Rockies host the Cardinals for the third of six games between the two clubs this season … will travel to St. Louis for a three-game set Aug. 4-6.

• Colorado went 2-4 against St.. Louis in 2022, winning two of three at Coors Field Aug. 9-11 and getting swept in St. Louis Aug. 16-18.

• Colorado is 104-127 all-time against the Cardinals, holding a home record of 62-54 with a +78 run differential (744-646) … have won each of the last three home series vs. St. Louis since 2019.

• The Rockies are 42-73 all-time in St. Louis, and have not won a series there since 2009 … are 6-35 overall at Busch Stadium since 2010, including 0-12 since Aug. 1, 2018.

CB AS DH
• Charlie Blackmon has gone 10-for-29 (.345) with one double, one home run and three RBI in seven games as the designated hitter … his batting average and OBP (.407) both lead the Majors among qualified hitters playing as the DH while his slugging (.520) ranks fifth.

• Since the universal DH was introduced at the start of 2022, Blackmon is hitting .274 (98-for-358) in 87 games as the designated hitter, good for the third-highest average in the Majors (min. 300 AB) … was a National League Silver Slugger finalist at DH in 2022.

KBOOM
• Kris Bryant has reached base safely in 19-straight games dating back to July 24, 2022 at Milwaukee, hitting safely in 17 of 19 games across that span (.338/.410/.473) … it is the third-longest active on-base streak in the Majors and the longest in the NL.

• Bryant has reached base in 49 of his 54 games played with the Rockies

ROCKIES STARTING PITCHER – #51 JOSÉ UREÑA RHP
THE SECOND TIME AROUND
• Made 17 starts in a Rockies uniform in 2023, going 3-8 (Rockies 6-11) while posting a 5.14 ERA (89.1 IP, 51 ER) with 38 walks and 60 strikeouts … allowed 10 home runs while opponents slashed .289/.356/.425 (102- for-353).

• Was signed by the Rockies to a Minor League contract on May 16 … was a member of Milwaukee’s Opening Day roster and made four appearances out of the bullpen before being designated for assignment on May 2.

• Re-signed by the Rockies to a one-year Major League contract on Nov. 11, 2022.

ONWARDS
• Has failed to make it out of the third inning in either of his first two starts, allowing 10 total runs (eight earned) on 12 hits across five innings this season … has walked seven and struck out two.

• Is the first starter in franchise history to begin a Rockies season with two starts of less than three innings … RHP Victor Santos (Sept. 14 & Sept. 22, 2002) and RHP Marvin Freeman (April 27 & May 2, 1995) each began their seasons with two such starts, but not at the beginning of the Rockies’ season.

• The last Rockies starter to pitch fewer than two innings in consecutive starts at any point of the season was Antonio Senzatela in 2019 (July 20 & Aug. 25), although Senzatela had a stint on the IL between starts … the last Rockies starter to do it in successive starts with no IL or option between was RHP Juan Nicasio in 2013 (Sept. 17 & 22) … Greg Reynolds is the only pitcher in franchise history to pitch fewer than
three innings in three-straight starts (July 4-Sept. 21, 2008).

THE FINAL STRETCH
• Spun at least five frames and allowed two or fewer earned runs in each of his last five starts for the Rockies in 2022, good for a 2.25 ERA (28.0 IP, 7 ER) through that span.

COORS FIELD
• Was 2-5 (Rockies 3-5) in eight starts at Coors Field in 2022, posting a 6.30 ERA (40.0 IP, 28 ER) with 18 walks and 29 strikeouts … allowed opponents to bat .311 (51-for-164) with six home runs … walked multiple batters in seven of eight starts (4.05 BB/9).

• Received a total of nine runs of support across his eight starts, with seven of those runs coming Aug. 19 vs. San Francisco in a 7-4 Rockies win … received no runs five times and one run twice.

A BIRD IN THE HAND
• Is 2-1 with a 7.66 ERA (22.1 IP, 19 ER), 11 walks and 18 strikeouts in five career appearances (four starts) vs. the Cardinals … lone relief
appearance came as a member of the Brewers on April 15 of last season (3.0,3,2,2,1,2).

• Last start against St. Louis came in 2018 in Busch Stadium … 2-1 with a 7.91 ERA (19.1 IP, 17 ER) as a starter vs. the Cardinals.

A ROUND OF APPLAUSE
• Had his contract selected from Triple-A Albuquerque on July 6, 2022 and made his first start in a Rockies uniform that night at Dodger Stadium.

• Did not factor into the Rockies’ 2-1 loss despite tossing 6.2 innings and allowing one run on five hits with three walks and two strikeouts … tossed six scoreless innings before exiting the game in the seventh inning with the bases loaded and two outs … runner came around to score on a wild pitch by reliever Jake Bird.

• 11th start of his career, third on the road, tossing at least 6.2 innings and allowing one or fewer runs (last: April 14, 2019 vs. Philadelphia).

• Became the 15th pitcher in franchise history to toss at least 6.2 innings and allow one or fewer runs in his first start with the club (last: Tim Melville, Aug. 21, 2019 at Arizona).

SWEET AND SOUR AND SWEET AGAIN
• Began his Rockies career in 2022 with three-straight quality starts July 6-16, going 1-1 with a 1.45 ERA (18.2 IP, 3 ER) over that span …
became the fifth Rockie in franchise history to record a quality start in each of his first three starts with the club, joining Joe Kennedy (four-straight, 2004), Jon Garland (2013), Jason Jennings (2001) and Bryan Rekar (1995).

• In his start on Aug. 24 vs. Texas, became the first Rockie in history to allow at least nine hits and nine earned runs in 1.1 innings or fewer, the 24th in Major League history (last: Mike Fiers, Sept. 9, 2021 at Houston; 1.0 IP, 9 H, 9 ER).

• Earned his first win as a Rockie on July 16 vs. Pittsburgh, tossing six scoreless innings in a 2-0 Rockies win … sixth time in his career tossing at least six scoreless, the first time since July 29, 2018 vs. Washington.

• In 17 starts with the Rockies, posted seven quality outings and allowed five or more earned runs four times.

SUPPORT SYSTEM
• Received two or fewer runs of support in 14 of his 17 2022 outings, including one run and zero runs six times each.

• His 2.42 run support average was the lowest in the Majors (min. 15 GS) … lowest RSA by a Rockies starter in a single-season in franchise history (min. 15 GS).

BREW CREW
• Was signed by the Brewers to a Minor League contract on March 29, 2022 and had his contract selected to the Major League roster on March 30.

• Made four relief appearances with the Brewers in April before being designated for assignment on May 2 … cleared waivers and was outrighted to the Minors on May 9 … refused his Minor League assignment and declared free agency the same day.

• Was scoreless in two of four relief outings, allowing a combined five runs (three earned) on seven hits across 7.2 innings (3.52 ERA) … walked five while striking out three. • Last relief outing came on April 26 at Pittsburgh … allowed three runs (one earned) on four hits across 2.1 innings.

MLB Preview: Chicago White Sox (5-7) at Minnesota Twins (7-4)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: Chicago White Sox (5-7) at Minnesota Twins (7-4)

CHICAGO WHITE SOX NOTES:

No release available.

MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:

THE TWINS: Have gone 3-2 through five games on their six-game homestand, going 2-1 vs. the Astros, followed by a 1-1 split of the first two games vs. the White Sox this week…this afternoon, the Twins will play the three-game series finale with the Sox…after today’s game, the Twins will travel to New York to begin a seven-game, eight-day roadtrip with four against the Yankees from Thursday-Sunday, followed by an off-day on Monday, then three against the Red Sox at Fenway Park from next Tuesday-Thursday.

ALL PABLO DAY NIGHT AT TARGET FIELD: The Twins beat the White Sox last night at Target Field by a score of 4-3 in 10 innings, winning their second extra-innings game this season and second this homestand…Pablo López was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing two runs on three hits in 7.2 innings pitched with one walk and 10 strikeouts…he retired his final 23 batters in his Target Field debut…Pablo’s 10 strikeouts marked his third career double-digit strikeout game and one short of his career-high…the offense recorded nine hits, including home runs from Byron Buxton (2) and Michael A. Taylor (1).

The 23-straight batters retired for López to finish his night marked the third-longest stretch for any Twins starter or reliever during any stretch of a game (Elias):

PITCHER DATE/OPPONENT CONSECUTIVE RETIRED
Jack Kralick……………………. August 26, 1962 vs. Kansas City Athletics………………………………………25
Scott Baker………………………. August 31, 2007 vs. Kansas City Royals………………………………………..24
Pablo López……………………….April 11, 2023 vs. Chicago White Sox…………………………………………23

RUN THE JULS: The Twins announced today that they have recalled infielder Edouard Julien from Triple-A St. Paul…Julien, 23, played in nine games for the Saints, hitting .290 (9-for-31) with two doubles, two home runs, four RBI, seven walks, a .421 on-base percentage and a .970 OPS.

The Québec City, Canada native played for Team Canada during the 2023 World Baseball Classic in March and hit .538 (7-for-13), with two doubles, two home runs, two RBI, five walks and led the tournament with a 1.821 OPS.

Julien played in 113 games for Double-A Wichita in 2022 and hit .300 (120-for-400) with 19 doubles, three triples, 17 home runs, 67 RBI, 98 walks, a .441 on-base percentage and a .931 OPS…he led the Texas League in walks and on-base percentage and ranked third in OPS, sixth in slugging percentage (.490), and seventh in batting average.

After the 2022 season, he played for Glendale in the Arizona Fall League and hit .400 (28- for-70) with a .563 on-base percentage and a 1.248 OPS and was named the league’s Breakout Player of the Year and an AFL All-Star.

He ranks as the organization’s fourth best prospect by both MLB.com and Baseball America and ranked as having the best strike-zone discipline in the Twins’ system by Baseball America…he is the No. 96 prospect in all of baseball, per MLB Pipeline

Edouard is looking to become the 11th Canadian to play for the Twins, joining Justin Morneau (Canadian Baseball HOF), Corey Koskie (HOF), Dave McKay (HOF), Rene Tosoni, Scott Diamond, Reno Bertoia (HOF), Georges Maranda, Jesse Crain, Andrew Albers and Vince Horsman.

BUX FRESH SOX: Byron Buxton is hitting .278 (66-for-237) with 20 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, 39 RBI, 45 runs scored and an .898 OPS in 69 career games vs. the White Sox… below are his first 48 career games vs. the Sox (June 22, 2015-June 29, 2019), compared to his last 21 (June 30, 2019-present):

AVG R H 2B HR RBI BB K OBP SLG OPS
FIRST 48 .234 27 37 13 7 21 11 46 .291 .449 .740
LAST 21 .367 18 29 7 9 18 3 21 .393 .823 1.216

NOTE: Nine of those home runs and 16 RBI have come in his last 14 games.

MOUND MATES: Through 11 games, Twins starting pitchers have combined to post a 2.59 ERA (66.0 IP, 19 ER), with 15 walks, 81 strikeouts and a 0.91 WHIP…below are their ranks among all starting staffs in Major League Baseball:
ERA BAA FIP WHIP HITS ALLOWED K’s WAR
TB – 1.80 TB – .190 TB – 1.98 MIN – 0.91 TB – 40 MIN – 81 TB – 2.4
MIN – 2.59 MIN – .190 MIN – 2.86 TB – 0.92 NYY – 43 TEX – 74 MIN – 1.9
NYY – 3.15 NYY – .216 LAD – 3.56 LAD – 1.08 MIN – 45 CWS – 73 LAD – 1.7
MIL – 3.38 MIL – .217 TEX – 3.30 SF – 1.09 DET – 46 TB – 71 TEX – 1.6
SF – 3.38 SD – .229 NYY – 3.54 MIL – 1.16 CHC – 47 SF – 64 NYY – 1.5

TWINS AND SOX: Twins and White Sox are playing the third of 13 meetings this season…after this three-game series, their next series will be in three games from May 2-4 at Guaranteed Rate Field…since 2015, the Twins have gone 79-66 against the Sox, their most wins against any opponent in that span.

The Twins have beat the Sox 65 times at Target Field (since 2010), second-most of any opponent (Kansas City – 66).

THE BUCK SHOW: Byron Buxton hit his 100th career home run last night, becoming the 20th player in club history (since 1961) to reach that mark…he has 12 hits in 39 at-bats to start the season (.308)…since 2021, Buck is hitting .348 (54-for-155) with 13 doubles, 16 home runs, 30 RBI and 34 runs scored in 41 March/April games…in 2021, he was named American League Player of the Month for April.

SERIES-LY SPEAKING: A victory today would secure the third series win of the season for the Twins…in 2022, they went 21-24-6 in series play, going 14-8-4 at home and 7-16-2 on the road…the Twins have gone 2-1 through their first four series this season, going 3-0 at Kansas City from March 30-April 2, 1-2 at Miami from April 3-5 and 2-1 vs. Houston at Target Field from April 7-9.

THE TRUTH ON TREVOR: Trevor Larnach went 1-for-3 with a walk last night, extending his career-long on-base streak to 11 straight and has a .420 on-base percentage during his current run…he leads the team in hits (13), RBI (8) and walks (8).

Reaching safely in 11 straight to start the season is the longest since Brian Dozier (17) and Joe Mauer (13) started 2018.

The top five Twins on-base streaks to start a season are Kent Hrbek — 33 in 1982, Joe Mauer — 28 in 2016, Jacque Jones — 27 in 2005, Chuck Knoblauch — 23 in 1997 and Tom Brunansky — 23 in 1985.

STARTING PITCHER – SONNY GRAY 54
A Will face White Sox for the 11th time in his career, is 4-2, 4.47 ERA (52.1 P, 26 ER), with 21 walks
and 48 strikeouts…last faced Chicago-AL on September 2, 2022.

Recorded a career high 13 strikeouts in his last start during the Twins’ home opener April 7.

Acquired by the Twins on March 13, 2022 in a trade with the Reds, along with right-handed pitcher Francis Peguero, in exchange for right-handed pitcher Chase Petty.

LAST START: Did not factor into the decision for the Twins home opener against the Houston Astros on April 7, opposite José Urquidy…pitched 7.0 innings, with one run over four hits and one walk issued… struck out a career high 13 batters…his previous record was 12 batters, which he last reached on July 3, 2019 against Milwaukee…struck out five of the first 10 batters he faced…relieved by Griffin Jax to start the eighth inning as the bullpen combined to pitch 2.0 scoreless innings in relief of Gray, before Jorge López allowed a an unearned run in the 10th inning…Twins secured the victory via a walkoff RBI single by Kyle Farmer.

Gray’s 13 strikeouts were the most by a Twins starter since Francisco Liriano’s 15 strikeouts July 13, 2012 vs. Oakland.

TWO STARTS AGO: Was the winner in his season debut in game two of a three-game series at Kansas City on April 1, opposite Jordan Lyles…Twins won 2-0, securing the series victory…pitched 5.0 shutout innings, with three hits allowed, four walks and just one strikeout…walked four of his first 13 batters faced…relieved by Jorge Alcala to start the sixth inning, as the bullpen combined to pitch 4.0 scoreless innings in relief of Gray.

AGAINST CHICAGO-AL: Gray is facing the White Sox for the 11th time in his career, going 4-2, 4.47 ERA (52.1 IP, 26 ER) with 21 walks and 48 strikeouts in his 10 previous appearances…last faced Chicago-AL on September 2, 2022 at Guaranteed Rate Field…did not factor into the decision after pitching only 4.0 innings, surrendering two runs, five hits, one walk and striking out two batters.

Made one relief appearance against the White Sox on August 7, 2018 where he pitched the final 3.0 innings of a 13-inning game as a Yankee…allowed only one hit, issued one walk and fanned four batters…earned the win.

Since becoming a Twin, Gray has a 9.39 ERA against the White Sox, the second highest against any team has faced trailing only the Red Sox (10.80)

HOME SWEET HOME: After his home debut, Gray is 0-0, 1.29 ERA (7.0 IP, 1 ER) with one walk and 13 strikeouts…his at home ERA is ranked eighth in the American League (minimum 7.0 IP)…Gray went 4-2, 2.66 ERA (67.2 IP, 20 ER) with 25 walks and 78 strikeouts in 13 starts at Target Field…is now 50-38, 3.82 ERA (735.1 IP, 312 ER) with 248 walks and 714 strikeouts in his career at home.

LEFTIES AND RIGHTIES: So far this season, Gray has seen more success against right-handed hitters as opposed to lefties…in his first two starts, Gray has held righties to .130/.161/.200 (4-for-30) with 13 strikeouts as opposed to lefties who are slashing .250/.438/.333 with just one strikeout.

In his career, Gray owns a .237 opponent batting average (628-for-2654) with 674 strikeouts against right-handed hitters and a .222 batting average (571-for-2569) with 678 strikeouts against left-handed hitters.

Since 2019, is holding left-handed hitters to a .202 (172-for-851) batting average, is now third among major league right-handed pitchers (min. 750 AB) in that span, trailing Gerrit Cole (.190) and Zac Gallen (.198).

THE ARSENAL: Gray is currently using a six-pitch mix, per Baseball Savant…continued to use his curveball the most at 31.5 percent compared to 24.6 percent last year…has exclusively used the slider against righties and has only used his changeup against lefties…eight of his 12 strikeouts in his last start came from the slider…here’s a look at his repertoire so far:

PITCH (AVG. MPH) PCT. (# OF PITCHES, VS. RHB/LHB) RESULTS
Curveball (79.0)………………………31.5% (57 pitches, 25/32)……………………… .250 (3-for-12),1 2B, 3 K
Slider (82.8)…………………………….18.2% (33 pitches, 33/0)……………………………. .000 (0-for-10), 9 K
4-Seam Fastball (92.6)…………….17.1% (31 pitches, 16/15)……………………….. .429(3-for-7), 1 2B
Sinker (92.2) ……………………………13.3% (24 pitches, 19/5)………………………….. .167 (1-for-6), 2 K
Cutter (87.3) ……………………………11.0% (20 pitches, 19/1)………………………………… .000 (0-for-5)
Changeup (87.2)……………………….8.8% (16 pitches, 0/16)…………………………………. .000 (0-for-2)

SONNY DAYS: Gray is starting in his third straight day game this season…his 0.75 ERA ranks fifth among American League pitches for day games…Gray is 36-27, 3.26 ERA (525.1 IP, 190 ER) with 177 walks and 499 strikeouts in his career during day games.

CAREER NOTES
• Twins are fourth organization (Oakland 2011-17, New York-AL 2017-18 and Cincinnati 2019-21).

• Acquired by Minnesota on March 13, 2022 in a trade with the Reds, along with righthanded pitcher Francis Peguero, in exchange for right-handed pitcher Chase Petty.

• Has made seven Opening Day rosters with the Athletics (2014-2016), Yankees (2018), Reds (2019-2020) and Twins (2022).

• Named to American League All-Star team in 2015 for Oakland and the National League squad in 2019 for Cincinnati (did not pitch in either).

• 2019 recipient of the Johnny Vander Meer Award as the Reds’ Most Outstanding Pitcher and finished second to Atlanta’s Josh Donaldson in voting for the MLBPA’s National League Comeback Player of the Year Award.

• Named to Baseball America’s 2019 major league All-Star second team…named American League Pitcher of the Month for April in 2014…in 2013 was the Athletics’ Minor League Pitcher of the Year and a Baseball America Triple-A All-Star. • Originally selected by Oakland in first round (18th overall) in 2011 First-Year Player Draft out of Vanderbilt University…led Vandy to its first NCAA College World Series berth in 2011.

• Is 0-2, 2.95 ERA (21.1 IP, 7 ER) with 12 walks, 18 strikeouts and a .189 opponent batting average in four career Postseason starts.

AGAINST THE CENTRAL: Gray is facing an American League Central opponent for the 53rd time in his career (51st start)…he is 24-13, 3.27 ERA (297.0 IP, 144 ER), with 117 walks and 269 strikeouts in his career against the AL Central.

Since becoming a Twin last season, Gray is 7-2, 2.76 ERA (62.0 IP, 19 ER), with 16 walks and 61 strikeouts in 12 starts against the AL Central…he ranks sixth in ERA and is tied for ninth in strikeouts against the AL Central since 2022 (50.0 IP minimum).

NHL Preview: Montréal Canadiens (31-43-6) at New York Islanders (41-31-9)

Hockey
NHL

NHL Editor

April 12, 2023

NHL Preview: Montréal Canadiens (31-43-6) at New York Islanders (41-31-9)

MONTREAL CANADIENS NOTES:

À SURVEILLER CE SOIR / KEEP AN EYE ON…

Les Canadiens et les Islanders s’affrontent ce soir pour la 177e fois en saison régulière. En incluant les matchs de séries, c’est le 199e affrontement entre ces deux équipes.
The Canadiens and Islanders are facing each other for the 177th time in regular season. Including playoff contests, tonight’s the 199th match-up between the two teams.

DERNIER MATCH / LAST GAME – TOR 7 VS. MTL 1 (@ SCOTIABANK ARENA)
Buts MTL Goals – Kovacevic
Buts TOR Goals – Marner (AN/PP), Tavares (AN/PP), Nylander, Marner, Tavares (AN/PP), Matthews, Bunting (AN/PP)
Gardien MTL Goalie – Montembeault (39-46)
Gardien TOR Goalie – Samsonov (20-21)
Avantage numérique MTL Powerplay – 0/4
Avantage numérique TOR Powerplay – 4/6
Meneurs MTL Leaders – TOI (Matheson – 29:45) ; S (Gallagher – 6) ; HT (Pezzetta – 8) ; BS (Matheson – 3)

MATCHS À VENIR / UPCOMING GAMES
13 AVRIL VS. BOSTON 19 h / 7 p.m.

RAPPORT MÉDICAL DE LA SAISON / SEASON INJURY REPORT
Joueur Player Date Blessure Injury Matchs ratés Games lost Retour Return
C. Price – Genou / Knee 80 –
P. Byron – Hanche / Hip 80 –
J. Slafkovsky – Bas du corps / Lower-body 36 –
S. Monahan – Bas du corps / Lower-body 55 –
C. Caufield – Épaule / Shoulder 34 –
A. Xhekaj – Épaule / Shoulder 27 –
K. Guhle – Cheville / Ankle 11 –
J. Anderson – Cheville / Ankle 9 –

RÉAFFECTATIONS, SIGNATURES ET TRANSACTIONS / ROSTER MOVES, SIGNINGS AND TRANSACTIONS
The Canadiens have recalled Cayden Primeau and Corey Schueneman from the Laval Rocket (04/08)
Les Canadiens ont cédé Cayden Primeau et Corey Schueneman au Rocket de Laval (07/04)
The Canadiens have loaned Cayden Primeau and Corey Schueneman to the Laval Rocket (04/07)

STATISTIQUES D’ÉQUIPE / TEAM STATISTICS – AVANT LES MATCHS DU 11/04 – BEFORE GAMES ON 04/11
PTS (68 – 28e/28th)
V/W (31 – 26e/26th)
BP/GF (221 – 27e/27th)
BC/GA (296 – 29e/29th)
Tirs-PM/Shots-PG (27.3 – 30e/30th)
Tirs accordés-PM/Shots allowed-PG (33.7 – 29e/29th)
MÉ/Hits (1569 – 28e/28th)
MP/PIM (928 – 5e/5th)
AN/PP (16.4% – 28e/28th)
DN/PK (72.2% – 31e/31st)

LES CANADIENS CONTRE CHAQUE DIVISION L’AN DERNIER / THE HABS VS. EVERY DIVISION LAST SEASON
Adversaire Opponent Fiche Record PTS Buts pour Goals for Buts contre Goals against
Atlantique 9-14-3 21 84 89
Centrale 3-9-4 10 39 65
Métropolitaine 6-17-1 13 55 103
Pacifique 4-9-3 11 43 62
Total 22-49-11 55 221 319
*Inclut les buts en fusillade / Includes the shootout goals

LES CANADIENS CONTRE CHAQUE DIVISION CETTE SAISON / THE HABS VS. EVERY DIVISION THIS SEASON
Division Fiche Record PTS Buts pour Goals for Buts contre Goals against
Atlantique 6-18-1 13 55 112
Centrale 8-6-2 18 52 53
Métropolitaine 11-10-2 24 73 79
Pacifique 6-9-1 13 46 54
Total 31-43-6 68 226 298
*Inclut les buts en fusillade / Includes the shootout goals

MARTIN ST-LOUIS EN CHIFFRES / MARTIN ST. LOUIS’ NUMBERS…
Matchs/Games : 117
Victoires/Wins : 45
Fiche : 45-62-10
Points de classement/Standing points : 100

CANADIENS VS. NY ISLANDERS
À vie / All-Time

CANADIENS vs. NYI 96-56-15-9 (176 PJ / GP)
Dom. / Home 53-19-9-6 (87 PJ / GP)
Étr. / Away 43-37-6-3 (89 PJ / GP)
Dern. Match / Last game:
VP 4-3 OTW @ MTL (11/02/23)
S. Montembeault 3-30 | S. Varlamov 4-31
BG / WG: M. Matheson (P/OT)

10 DERNIERS MATCHS CONTRE NY ISLANDERS / LAST 10 GAMES VS. NY ISLANDERS:
11/02/23 – NYI 3 @ MTL 4 (P/OT)
14/01/23 – MTL 1 @ NYI 2
15/04/22 – MTL 0 @ NYI 3
20/02/22 – MTL 3 @ NYI 2 (TB/SO)
04/11/21 – NYI 6 @ MTL 2
03/03/20 – MTL 6 @ NYI 2
03/12/19 – NYI 2 @ MTL 4
21/03/19 – NYI 0 @ MTL 4
14/03/19 – MTL 1 @ NYI 2
05/11/18 – MTL 4 @ NYI 3 (TB/SO)

CETTE SAISON CONTRE NY ISLANDERS / THIS SEASON VS. NY ISLANDERS:
Match #1: 14/01/2023 @ NYI – D/L 2-1
Match #2: 11/02/2023 @ MTL – VP/OTW 4-3
Match #3: 12/04/2023 @ NYI

MEILLEURS BUTEURS CONTRE NY ISLANDERS / LEADING GOAL SCORERS VS. NY ISLANDERS:
1) Brendan Gallagher (8-9-17, 24 pj/gp)
2) Josh Anderson (7-2-9, 18 pj/gp)
3) Mike Hoffman (6-4-10, 21 pj/gp)

MEILLEURS POINTEURS CONTRE NY ISLANDERS / LEADING SCORERS VS. NY ISLANDERS:
1) Brendan Gallagher (8-9-17, 24 pj/gp)
2) David Savard (2-9-11, 29 pj/gp)
3) Mike Matheson (3-8-11, 23 pj/gp)

MENEURS MINUTES DE PÉNALITÉ CONTRE NY ISLANDERS / MOST PENALTY MINUTES VS. NY ISLANDERS:
1) David Savard (22, 29 pj/gp)
2) Brendan Gallagher (11, 24 pj/gp)
3) Mike Matheson (10, 23 pj/gp)

NEW YORK ISLANDERS NOTES:

LAST GAME
DATE NYI RESULT SCORE NYI SCORERS IN GOAL
April 10, 2023 Loss WSH 5 vs. NYI 2 Fasching, Cizikas Sorokin (20/23)
The Washington Capitals opened the score with three goals in the first period, then Hudson Fasching and Casey Cizikas each found the back of the net with less than six minutes remaining in regulation, but the New York Islanders fell to the Washington Capitals, 5-2, Monday night at Capital One Arena. Noah Dobson and Bo Horvat each recorded points for the third straight game as the Islanders finished their season series against the Capitals with a 1-2-1 record in their final road game of the 2022-23 regular season

INJURIES GAMES MISSED

3 Adam Pelech Dec. 9 – Jan. 21

8 Noah Dobson Jan. 23 – Jan. 28

10 Simon Holmstrom Dec. 23 – Jan. 6

12 Josh Bailey Nov. 29, Feb. 18 – Feb. 24

13 Mathew Barzal Jan. 6, Feb. 20 –

15 Cal Clutterbuck Oct. 13, Nov. 8, Dec. 2- Dec. 6, Dec. 17 – Jan. 3, Jan. 21 – Mar. 9

20 Hudson Fasching Jan. 19 – Jan. 28

21 Kyle Palmieri Nov. 23 – Dec. 13, Dec. 17 – Jan. 21

25 Sebastian Aho Oct. 13 – Oct. 20, Mar. 21 – Apr. 1

26 Oliver Wahlstrom Oct. 13, Dec. 29 –

28 Alexander Romanov Apr. 2 –

36 Otto Koivula Mar. 11 – Mar. 15

40 Semyon Varlamov Dec. 19 – Jan. 1

44 Jean-Gabriel Pageau Feb. 14 – Mar. 11

Man Games Lost: 209

RECENT RESULT
Monday, April 10 at Washington L, 5-2
Saturday, April 8 vs. Philadelphia W, 4-0
Thursday, April 6 vs. Tampa Bay W, 6-1
Sunday, April 2 at Carolina L, 2-1
Saturday, April 1 at Tampa Bay L, 5-0
Wednesday, Mar. 29 at Washington W/SO (2-1)

VS. MONTREAL:
Last five meetings (3-0-2)
Feb. 11, 2023 Bell Centre L (OT), 4-3
Jan. 14, 2023 UBS Arena W, 2-1
Apr. 15, 2022 Bell Centre W, 3-0
Feb. 20, 2022 UBS Arena L (SO), 3-2
Nov. 4, 2021 Bell Centre W, 6-2

2022-23 1-0-1
Franchise History 65-91-15-5
NYI Home 39-40-6-3
NYI Away 26-51-9-2

SEASON SERIES
DATE LOCATION RESULT/TIME
Jan. 14, 2023 UBS Arena W, 2-1
Feb. 11, 2023 Bell Centre L (OT), 4-3
Apr. 12, 2023 UBS Arena 7:00pm

TEAM NOTES
TONIGHT’S MATCHUP
Tonight, the New York Islanders conclude the 2022-23 regular season as they host the Montreal Canadiens in the third and final meeting between the two teams. The last time these teams met was February 11 at Bell Centre, when the Islanders captured a point in a 4-3 overtime loss. The Islanders have collected points in four of their last five home meetings with Montreal, including the last time the Canadiens visited UBS Arena on January 14. Casey Cizikas found the back of the net in a 2-1 Islander win. The Islanders played their final road game of the regular season on Monday night in Washington, D.C. They fell to the Capitals in a 5-2 decision. They finish the season with a 17-18-6 record as the visiting team, and a 16-8-2 record against Metropolitan Division opponents.

MLB Preview: New York Yankees (7-4) at Cleveland Guardians (7-5)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: New York Yankees (7-4) at Cleveland Guardians (7-5)

NEW YORK YANKEES NOTES:

AT A GLANCE: The Yankees will complete their first road trip of the season with the final game of a three-game set at Cleveland (1-1 thus far)…also won two-of three at Baltimore this past weekend…return home on Thursday to begin a season-long 10-game homestand vs. Minnesota (Thurs.-Sun.), Los Angeles-AL (4/18-20) and Toronto (4/21-23).

Have won seven of their first 11 games for just the third time in the last 12 years (since 2012) and the fifth time in the last 20 years since 2004 (9-2 in 2020, 8-3 in 2010 and 7-4 in 2011 and 2017)…with a win today, would mark just the fourth time in the last 20 years (since 2004) that the Yankees have won at least eight of their first 12 games (9-3 in 2010 and 2020; 8-4 in 2017).

With a win today, would mark just the third time in the last 20 years (since 2004) that the Yankees won each of their first four series (won their first four series in 2020 and first five in 2010).

Are 3-0 in rubber games this season.

YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Yankees defeated the Guardians, 11-2, on Tuesday at Progressive Field…Yankees batters set seasons highs with 11R and 13H…RHP Gerrit Cole (7.0IP, 5H, 2ER, 2BB, 3K) started and earned his third win of the year…C Jose Trevino (1-for-4, 1RBI) hit an RBI single in the second inning…DH Willie Calhoun (1-for-5, 1R, 1RBI) hit a game-tying RBI single in the third…SS/2B Oswaldo Cabrera (1-for-4, 1R, 1RBI, 1SF) hit a go-ahead sac fly in the third…RF Franchy Cordero (1-for-4, 1R, 1HR, 3RBI) hit his third HR of the season with a three-run shot in the third inning…1B Anthony Rizzo (2-for-3, 2R, 2RBI, 1BB, 1HP) reached base a season-high four times…3B DJ LeMahieu (2-for-4, 2R, 1 double, 1BB), CF Aaron Judge (2-for-5, 1R) and LF Aaron Hicks (2-for-4, 2R) each picked up multi-hit games…2B Gleyber Torres (1-for-4, 1R, 1BB) reached base multiple times for the ninth time in 11 games… RHP Albert Abreu tossed 2.0 scoreless innings of relief (2H, 1K).

ON A ROLL: OF Franchy Cordero hit his third HR of the season on Tuesday with a three-run shot in the third inning…has 3HR in his last four games…according to Elias, Cordero is just the second Yankee in the Live Ball Era to record at least 10RBI in his first six games with the club, joining Robin Ventura (also 10RBI in first 6G with club in 2002).

Has reached base in each of his first six games.

PITCH PERFECT: Yankees pitchers have allowed just 30R over their first 11 games (2.73 R/G), their fewest runs allowed through their first 11 games of a season in the last 59 years since 1965 (last allowed fewer runs in 1964: 27R).

Have allowed 3R-or-fewer in eight of their 11 games this year…have held opponents to 2R-or-fewer in six of 11G and allowed one-or-zero runs in four of their games.

Rank second in the Majors in HR/9.0IP (0.57), fourth in ERA (2.69), K/9.0IP (10.11), opponents’ BA (.215), opponents’ OBP (.292), opponents’ OPS (.611) and WHIP (1.15) and rank fifth in strikeouts (109).

GLEYBER DAY: INF Gleyber Torres has reached base in 24-of-46 plate appearances this season, batting .371/.522/.657 (13-for-35) with 8R, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 2HR, 6RBI, 11BB and 5SB.

Has reached base multiple times in nine of his 11 games and has reached base at least three times in four games… has hit safely in nine of his 11 games.

Ranks second in the Majors in OBP (.522, first in AL), tied for third in stolen bases (5, tied for third in AL) and walks (11, first in AL) and fifth in OPS (1.179, fourth in AL)…also ranks sixth in the AL in BA (.371) and 10th in SLG (.657)…according to FanGraphs, his 10.9 strikeout percentage is the seventh-lowest in the AL.

Has walked 11 times while striking out just five times in 46PA this season…did not record his 11th walk in 2022 until his 52nd game of the year on 6/9/22 at Minnesota.

Is the only Yankee in the last 13 years (since 2011) to record at least 11BB in the Yankees’ first 11 games of a season…is just the third Yankee (fifth time) to do so since 2000 (last 24 seasons), joining Jason Giambi (14BB in 2004, 12BB in 2006 and 11BB in 2003) and Nick Johnson (13BB in 2010).

Is the first Yankee to record at least 11BB and 5SB through the club’s first 11 games of a season.

STANTON ISLAND: DH/OF Giancarlo Stanton has reached base in each of his nine games this season and has hit safely in eight of those games…marks the third-longest season-opening on-base streak of his career (12G in 2016 and 10G in 2013).

Five of his 10H have gone for XBH (2 doubles, 3HR).

Has hit safely in each of his last five games, going 7-for-20 (.350) with 3R, 2 doubles, 1HR and 4RBI.

CENTRAL PERK: Since 2022, the Yankees are 26-9 (.743) vs. the AL Central…are 37-13 in their last 50 games vs. the division (since 6/23/21) and 50-19 in their last 69G (since 9/12/19).

Have won 19 of their last 22 completed series vs. the AL Central (since 9/10/19)…have won or split 22 of their last 25 completed series (going 20-3-2 since 6/13/19) and 25 of their last 29 completed series (going 23-4-2 in series since 4/18/19).

BRONX BOMBERS: Yankees batters scored a season-high 11R and recorded a season-high 13H on Tuesday at Cleveland… scored 11R despite hitting just 1HR…marked just the second time in the last three seasons the Yankees have scored at least 11R while hitting 1HR-or-fewer (also scored 13R after going homerless on 8/25/22 at Oakland).

Have scored at least 4R in nine of 11 games this season… have scored at least 5R in seven of their 11 games.

Have hit 17HR in 11G this season, tied with Los Angeles-AL (17HR in 11G) for the fifth-most in the Majors, trailing only Tampa Bay (29HR in 11G), Los Angeles-NL (21HR in 12G), San Francisco (20HR in 11G) and Baltimore (18HR in 11G).

Rank fifth in the Majors in SLG (.453, third in AL)…also rank fourth in the AL in OPS (.783).

NOBODY BEATS THE RIZZ: INF Anthony Rizzo reached base a season-high four times on Tuesday…has reached base safely in each of his first 10 games this season, reaching base in 19-of-44 plate appearances…marks the third-longest season-opening on-base streak of his career (12G in 2020 and 11G in 2012).

Has collected at least one hit in nine of 10 games this season, batting .314/.432/.457 (11-for-35) with 5R, 2 doubles, 1HR, 6RBI, 6BB and 2HP.

Was hit by a pitch for the 203rd time in his career on Tuesday… his next hit by pitch will tie Chase Utley’s 204HP for the eighth-most career hit by pitch in Major League history.

Including the postseason, has reached base safely in 19 of his last 20 games vs. the Guardians, batting .343/.471/.571 (24-for-70) with 11R, 4 doubles, 4HR, 11RBI, 14BB and 3HP in that span (since 8/12/20).

EN GARD!: The Yankees’ current series vs. the Guardians marks their first series since defeating them in the ALDS last season…including the postseason, are 9-4 vs. Cleveland since 2022 and 15-7 against Cleveland since 2020.

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP CLARKE SCHMIDT (0-0, 9.45 ERA)
RHP Clarke Schmidt will make his third start of the season in today’s series finale at Cleveland…the 27-year-old will make the start on regular four days’ rest…made his second start of the season on Friday at Baltimore, surrendering 4ER over 3.1IP (ND, 5H, 3BB, 3K)…made his season debut on 4/1 vs. San Francisco, allowing 3ER over 3.1IP without recording a decision (5H, 1BB, 5K, 2HR)…made his second career Opening Day roster in 2023 (also 2022)…went 1-2 with a 5.03 ERA (19.2IP, 16H, 11ER, 4BB, 25K, 2HR, 1HP) in six spring games (five starts)…in 2022, went 5-5 with two saves and a 3.12 ERA (57.2IP, 46H, 23R/20ER, 23BB, 56K, 5HR) in 29 appearances (three starts) over four stints with the Yankees… in three starts, went 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA (11.2IP, 13H, 6ER, 2BB, 14K, 0HR)…as a reliever, went 5-3 with two saves and a 2.74 ERA (46.0IP, 33H, 17R/14ER, 21BB, 42K, 5HR) in 26 games…tossed at least 2.0 innings in 13 of his relief appearances and at least 3.0 innings in five of those relief appearances…was selected by the Yankees in the first round (16th overall) of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of South Carolina.

LAST TIME OUT: Made his second start of the season on Friday at Baltimore, allowing 4ER in just 3.1IP without recording a decision (5H, 3BB,
3K)…allowed 2R in both the second and third inning…his 4ER tied his career high (fourth time, first since 9/22/22 vs. Boston) and his 3BB
matched his most in a game (fourth time, first since 8/23/22 vs. New York-NL)…has pitched 3.1IP in each of his starts this season (also 3.1IP on
4/1 vs. San Francisco).

VS. CLEVELAND: Has made one career relief appearance vs. Cleveland in the regular season, allowing 3R/2ER in 2.0IP on 9/19/21 at Yankee Stadium (4H, 2BB, 4K).

Made two appearances in relief vs. the Guardians in the 2022 ALDS, going 0-1 with a 6.75 ERA (1.1IP, 3H, 1ER, 1K)…made his first career postseason appearance in ALDS Game 2 at home, entering the game in the 10th inning and stranding an inherited runner after retiring all 3BF (1.0IP)…took the loss in ALDS Game 3 at Cleveland after allowing a “walk-off” single to Oscar González in the ninth (0.1IP, 3H, 1ER, 1K).

Is 2-0 with one save and a 3.57 ERA (17.2IP, 17H, 8R/7ER, 8BB, 22K, 0HR, 1HP) in eight career relief outings vs. AL Central opponents… seven of those eight games were in 2022.

ON THE ROAD AGAIN: Has made 20 appearances (four starts) in his career on the road (one in 2023, 16 in 2022, one in 2021, two in 2020)… has gone 3-4 with one save and a 4.46 ERA (42.1IP, 45H, 26R/21ER, 20BB, 42K, 3HR).

In 16 games (two starts) on the road in 2022, went 3-4 with one save and a 3.62 ERA (32.1IP, 30H, 15R/13ER, 11BB, 34K, 2HR)…allowed 2R-or-fewer in 14 of those games, 1R-or-fewer in 12 of those appearances and nine were scoreless.

FOR STARTERS: Will be making his eighth career start…over his first seven career Major League starts (two in 2023, three in 2022, one in 2021, one in 2020), is 0-3 with a 6.08 ERA (26.2IP, 34H, 21R/18ER, 11BB, 28K, 3HR).

Has posted a 9.45 ERA (6.2IP, 7ER) and 8K without recording a decision in two starts in 2023…has tossed 3.1IP in each start.

Went 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA (11.2IP, 6ER) and 14K in his three starts in 2022 (6/16 vs. Tampa Bay, 8/28 at Oakland, 9/3 at Tampa Bay). 2022: In 29 games (three starts) with the Yankees, went 5-5 with two saves and a 3.12 ERA (57.2IP, 46H, 23R/20ER, 23BB, 56K, 5HR) over four stints with the club (4/8-5/1, 5/13-6/22, 7/23-8/1, 8/22-10/5)…made his first career Opening Day roster.

In three starts, went 0-2 with a 4.63 ERA (11.2IP, 13H, 6ER, 2BB, 14K, 0HR).

As a reliever, went 5-3 with two saves and a 2.74 ERA (46.0IP, 33H, 17R/14ER, 21BB, 42K, 5HR) in 26 games…tossed at least 2.0 innings in 13 of his relief appearances and at least 3.0 innings in five of those relief appearances.

Recorded five relief appearances of at least 3.0 scoreless innings, tied for the most in the Majors (also Los Angeles-AL’s Jaime Barria, Texas’ Taylor Hearn and Chicago-NL’s Keegan Thompson)…was just the second Yankees pitcher since 2003 to record as many such relief appearances in a season (also Alfredo Aceves’ seven relief appearances in 2009).

Tossed at least 3.0 scoreless innings in four consecutive relief appearances from 7/24-9/8, tied with Mariano Rivera (4G from 4/19-28/96) and Joe Page (4G from 5/28-6/3/49) for the second-longest such streak in franchise history, trailing only Wilcy Moore (5G from 8/7-24/27).

Tossed 3.0 innings in both of his saves…joined Luis Cessa (two in 2018) as the only Yankees relievers to record multiple saves of at least 3.0IP in a season since 2003.

His 10 relief appearances of at least 2.0 scoreless innings were tied for 10th in the Majors.

Tossed at least 2.0 scoreless innings in six straight relief appearances from 7/24-9/14, tied for the second-longest streak by a Yankees reliever in franchise history, trailing only Mariano Rivera (8G from 4/19-5/12/96)…Bud Daley (6G from 7/25-8/11/62) and Wilcy Moore (6G from 8/6-24/27) also recorded six-game streaks.

Combined to make three postseason appearances, going 0-2 with a 11.57 ERA (2.1IP, 3ER)… made his first career postseason appearance in ALDS Game 2 vs. Cleveland…entered the game in the 10th inning and stranded his inherited runner after retiring all 3BF…took the loss in ALDS Game 3 at Cleveland after allowing a “walk-off” single to Oscar González in the ninth (0.1IP, 3H, 1ER, 1K)…also took the loss in ALCS Game 1 at Houston (1.0IP, 2H, 2ER, 2BB, 2HR).

Made eight starts with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes Barre, going 2-1 with a 3.27 ERA (33.0IP, 26H, 13R/12ER, 9BB, 46K, 1HR).

SPRING BREAK: In six games (five starts) this spring, went 1-2 with a 5.03 ERA (19.2IP, 16H, 11ER, 4BB, 25K, 2HR, 1HP)…made his last spring start on Monday vs. Tampa Bay (ND, 4.1IP, 3H, 2ER, 1BB, 7K)…in his fourth spring appearance (third start) on 3/16 vs. Pittsburgh, tossed 5.0 perfect innings with 7K…made his lone appearance in relief on 3/3 vs. Detroit (1.2IP, 3H, 4ER, 1BB, 2K, 1HR, 1HP).

CAREER NOTES: In parts of four seasons with the Yankees (2020-23), has gone 5-6 with two saves and a 4.21 ERA (77.0IP, 74H, 43R/36ER, 37BB, 77K, 8HR) in 36 career games (seven starts).

Made his Major League debut in Game 2 on 9/4/20 at Baltimore after never having pitched professionally above Double-A in his career.

Did not pitch in 2017 while recovering from “Tommy John” surgery on his right elbow.

Was drafted by the Yankees in the first round (16th overall) of the 2017 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of South Carolina…in three seasons at South Carolina (2015-17), produced a 15-9 record and 3.21 ERA (229.2IP, 82ER) in 45 games (36 starts).

CLEVELAND GUARDIANS NOTES:

YANKEES ROLL VIA 11 UNANSWERED RUNS
The Guardians shouldered their first lopsided defeat of the season on Tuesday night at Progressive Field, falling to New York-AL by an 11-2 margin in the middle installment of this 3-game set… most runs allowed by Cleveland since an 11-4 loss on July 5, 2022 at Detroit…coming off a 5-2 road trip thru Seattle (3-1) & Oakland (2-1) to start the season, club is 2-3 entering the finale of this 6-day, 6-game homestand against Seattle (1-2) & New York-AL (1-1)… Cleveland (7-5) has won 2 of 3 and 7 of last 11…Guardians hold sole possesion of 2nd place in the AL Central standings, one halfgame behind Minnesota (7-4).

Cleveland’s offense got off to a promising start with a pair of runs in the 1st inning against Gerritt Cole before the right-hander settled
in on his way to a 7.0-inning quality start (7.0IP, 5H, 2R-ER, 2BB, 3SO, 97 pitches); Guardians started the contest with 3 consecutive hits, including an RBI-double from JOSÉ RAMÍREZ, and added their second tally on JOSH NAYLOR’s sac fly…beginning with the Taylor sac fly, Cole retired 10 of the next 11 and 19 of the final 23 batters he faced, scattering a pair of hits and a pair of walks.

HUNTER GADDIS (3.0IP, 8H, 8R-ER, 2BB, 3SO, 1HR, 1HB, 67 pitches) held the Bombers to a single run the first time through the order, but ran into trouble the second time thru, as Franchy Cordero capped a 5-run 3rd with a 3-run blast to RF; Gaddis allowed hits to each of the three batters he faced in the 4th before exiting… TIM HERRIN came on and logged a pair of scoreless frames, while XZAVION CURRY matched Gaddis’ pitch count (67), covering each of the last 4.0 innings (4H, 3R-ER, 1BB, 3SO) to ease the burden on Cleveland’s ‘pen.

A BATTLE WITH THE BRONX
After splitting the first two games of this three-game series, the Guardians and Yankees square off in a rubber match to decide a series winner…New York-AL looks to win 2 out of 3 games in their fourth consecutive series to start the 2023 season and Cleveland looks to avoid losing their second consecutive home series to start their 2023 homestand…the Guards tallied an 8-6 record in rubber matches last season, whereas the Bronx Bombers had a 7-9 record in series-deciding games.

The Guardians went 1-5 against the Yankees last regular season, going 2-3 at Progressive Field and 1-5 at Yankee Stadium…2019 marks Cleveland’s last home series win (6/7-6/9/2017) and season series win (4-3 overall) against the New Yorkers…the Guards hold a 5-10 record in their last 15 regular season games against the Yankees…overall, Cleveland holds a 507-526 home record against New York-AL and an overall record of 910-1152-6 against the franchise since 1901…the Guardians will travel to the Bronx for a three-game series in the final regular season matchups between the two clubs on May 1-3.

HOMER-LESS HOMESTAND?
If Cleveland hits no home runs in today’s game, it will mark their first homestand of six-games-or-more with no long balls since April
24-29, 2012…the club split that homestand 3-3 against Kansas City and Los Angeles AL, and have a chance to also go 3-3 in their
2023 opening homestand with a victory today…the Guardians’ five round-trips rank as the fewest in the AL and are tied for fewest in MLB with Washington.

GUARDIANS OF THE BASEPATHS
The Guardians lead MLB in steals with 19, two ahead of Arizona (17), and have only been caught twice in 21 attempts…on Monday, the Guardians had 4 steals, the club’s high-mark this season and most since September 23, 2022 at Texas (4)…this is the 11th time in club history and the first time since 1994 that Cleveland has 19 steals in the first 12 games of the season…the last team to have 19-or-more steals through the team’s first 12 games was the 2002 Royals.

MYLES STRAW ranks T1st in MLB with 6 stolen bases with Baltimore’s Jorge Mateo…the Guardians feature five players in the top 12 in MLB in stolen bases (also Ramírez, Giménez, Kwan and Rosario) the most of any MLB team…ANDRÉS GIMÉNEZ continues to lead MLB in runs scored this season, reaching home plate 14 times through 12 games…Straw accomplished the same feat last season…Giménez and Straw are the first pair of Cleveland teammates to score 14+ runs in 12-or-fewer-games in consecutive seasons since Grady Sizemore in 2007 and Travis Hafner in 2006.

BLUE-COLLAR BASEBALL
Cleveland hitters have found early season success by both reaching base via walks and driving runs in with sacrifice flies… among 2023 MLB clubs, Cleveland leads MLB in sacrifice flies (8), ranking ahead of Los Angeles-NL, New York-NL, and Pittsburgh (6)…no other AL team has more than 4…after drawing a seasonhigh 9 walks on Monday, T3rd-most in any game this season, the Guards 58 walks on the season rank 1st in the AL ahead of Los Angeles-AL’s 48 free passes and 2nd in MLB behind Los AngelesNL’s 60 base on balls…Cleveland also leads MLB with 9 intentional walks, with Houston as the only other MLB team with 3+IBB.

PATIENCE AT THE PLATE
Though the season’s first 12 games, STEVEN KWAN leads MLB with 251 pitches seen, just 5 more than Atlanta’s Matt Olson (246) …two other Guardians are in the top 30 in pitches seen with AMED ROSARIO ranking 27th (208) and JOSÉ RAMÍREZ 29th (207)…as a team, the Guardians lead MLB in pitches seen (1,921) ahead of the Atlanta Braves (1,918).

CLEVELAND AT THE CAPITAL
After today’s contest, the Guardians will have an off day and travel to take on the Nationals for a 3-game series from April 14- 16…Cleveland has faced Washington just 19 times ever…the two sides first squared off in 2002 when the Nationals were known as the Montreal Expos, then squared off in 3-game sets in 2007, 2010, 2013, 2016, and 2019…Cleveland holds an 8-11 record all time against Washington and a 2-7 record in away matchups…the last time the two sides squared off was September 27-29 and saw the Nationals sweep all three games in decisive fashion (8-2, 10-7, 8-2)…as of today, this series would feature the two teams in MLB with the fewest home runs (5).

TODAY’S STARTER – #50 PEYTON BATTENFIELD RHP
WELCOME TO THE BIGS
The 25 year-old right-hander is making his Major League debut in the final matchup of this 3-game set with the New York Yankees… he is the second Guardian to make their Major League debut in 2023 after TIM HERRIN debuted on April 2 at Seattle…Battenfield got the call after AARON CIVALE went on the 15-day injured list with a strained left oblique…he was originally selected in the 9th round (286th overall) of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Houston Astros…was traded to Tampa Bay during the 2020 season and later traded to Cleveland for Jordan Luplow and DJ Johnson on July 30, 2021…he was on the roster during the 2022 season while the club was playing in Canada playing Toronto, but did not pitch.

LAST TIME OUT/2023 CACTUS LEAGUE
His last start came on April 4 against Charlotte while he was with the Clippers…he suffered the loss, allowing 3R/2ER on 2 hits with 3 strikeouts and one walk…his lone mistake on the day was a 3-run home run in the third inning as opposing hitters hit .105 (3- for-19) against him in the contest.

Battenfield made 3 Cactus League appearances in 2023, totaling 5.0 innings of work with a 1.80 ERA (1ER/5.0IP), 4 strikeouts and 3 walks…worked 2.0 innings in 2 of his 3 outings…held opposing batters to a .067 average (1-for-15) as 2 of his 3 outings were hitless and scoreless.

ROAD TO THE SHOW
2022: Spent the season at AAA Columbus leading the International League and organization with 153.2 innings, it was the 4th-most in all of Minor League Baseball…he finished the season 4th in the International League with a 3.63 ERA (62ER/163.2IP)… threw 21.0 more innings pitched than anyone in the system…made his Triple A debut in his 36th career game (142.1IP)

The right-hander posted a sub-3.94 ERA in each of the first five months of the season before posting 7.48 ERA over 5 September starts…he earned International League Pitcher of the week from 8/15-21 after throwing 6.0 scoreless innings with 8 strikeouts and 2 walks, it was hit fifth shutout start of the season.

2021: He combined to go 7-1 in 21G/19GS with a 2.53 ERA (29ER/103.0IP) while striking out 131 batters and walking 19 across two levels (A/AA) and two organizations…he did not allow a run over his first 17.2IP…was traded to Cleveland on July 30… at the time of the trade he was 5-0 with a 2.14 ERA (16ER/67.1IP) with 95 strikeouts and 12 walks in 14G/12GS.

2019: Across 14G/5GS he posted a 1.60 ERA (7ER/39.1IP) with 46 strikeouts and 15 walks…only went 3.0-or-more innings in one of his starts.

MONTH BY MONTH
Owns a 2.70 ERA (9ER/30.0IP) with 22 strikeouts, 11 walks and a .189 opposing batting average (21-for-111) across 6 April starts during his career.

BATTENFIELD SPLITS BY MONTH, CAREER
Month ERA G/GS IP ER
April 2.70 6/6 30.0 9
May 2.29 10/9 51.0 13
June 2.30 13/11 62.2 16
July 3.36 14/10 67.0 25
August 1.95 12/8 50.2 11
September 5.90 9/9 39.2 26

MLB Preview: Seattle Mariners (4-8) at Chicago Cubs (6-4)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: Seattle Mariners (4-8) at Chicago Cubs (6-4)

SEATTLE MARINERS NOTES:

TODAY’S TILT…the Mariners wrap up a 3-game series (0-2) against the Chicago Cubs today, finishing a 6-game road trip after taking 2 of 3 against the Cleveland Guardians to begin the trip…following an off day tomorrow, Seattle welcomes the Colorado Rockies to T-Mobile Park for a 3-game set (4/14-4/16)… the Milwaukee Brewers (3 G, 4/17-4/19) and St. Louis Cardinals (3 G, 4/21-4/23) will also come to Seattle on the homestand…today’s game against the Cubs will be televised live on ROOT SPORTS with Aaron Goldsmith and Mike Blowers on the call and broadcast live on Seattle Sports (710 AM) and Mariners.com with Rick Rizzs and Dave Sims.

ODDS AND ENDS…the Mariners dropped last night’s ballgame to the Cubs by a 14-9 score…Seattle has a chance to finish the road trip with a .500 record after winning the first 2 games of the trip before dropping each of the last 3…Seattle is 2-5 at home this season and 2-3 on the road in the early going.
• Daylight Come And… – Seattle went 37-27 in day games last season…1-3 in 4 day games this season.

• #225 – Eugenio Suárez hit his 225th career home run, the 297th player in MLB history to hit 225 HR.

• Missed It… By That Much – Julio Rodríguez’ 112.0 mph lineout to first base as the game’s first batter was the hardest-hit ball of last night’s game per Baseball Savant.

• 15 Consecutive – Today marks the third of 15 consecutive interleague games for Seattle: at Chicago-NL (April 10-12), vs. Colorado (April 14-16), vs. Milwaukee (April 17-19), vs. St. Louis (April 21-23) and at Philadelphia (April 25-27)…Seattle will face interleague opponents in back-to-back series only one other time during the 2023 schedule: Sept. 1-3 at New York-NL and Sept. 4-6 at Cincinnati.

KRUSHIN’ KELENIC…Jarred Kelenic reached base 4 times last night, going 2-for-3 with a double, home run, RBI and 2 walks…it marked Jarred’s second home run of the season and his second in as many games…in the process, he extended his career-high hitting streak to 6 games (4/5-c)…during the streak, the 23-year-old is batting .450 (9×20) with 4 runs, 3 doubles, 2 homers, 4 RBI and 3 walks, getting on base at a .522 clip, slugging .900 with a robust 1.422 OPS.

TY IS THAT GUY…Ty France also reached base 4 times last night, going 3-for-4 with 2 runs, 2 RBI and a walk…Ty extended his hitting streak to a team-high 9 games (4/2-c)…during the streak, the 2022 All-Star is batting .341 (14×41) with 10 runs, 5 doubles, 5 RBI and 3 walks, getting on base at a .400 clip, slugging .463 with an .863 OPS…Ty’s 9-game hitting streak is tied for the 5th-highest active streak in the Majors.

MARINERS RETURN HOME FRIDAY…the Mariners return for a homestand at T-Mobile Park that begins Friday, April 14…April 14 vs. Colorado is Cal Raleigh Bobblehead Night, with the first 20,000 fans through the gates receiving the bobblehead featuring Cal’s unforgettable “clinch” moment from last season…Saturday, April 15 is Jackie Robinson Day, with all Mariners players and on-field staff wearing #42 and the first Mariners All-Star Ruppert Jones throwing that day’s ceremonial first pitch…other dates on the homestand include Little League Day (April 16), Rally Cap Night Ticket Special (April 17), Hello Kitty Night (April 18), Weather Education day (April 19), All-Star Hat Night (April 21) and much more…for more information, visit Mariners.com/Promotions or Mariners.com/Tickets.

HOT BAT AT THE HOT CORNER…Eugenio Suárez hit a 2-run homer in the 1st inning last night, his first home run of the season…the Mariners third baseman has hit safely in 8 of his last 9 games (4/2-c), batting .359 (14×39) with 5 runs, 2 doubles, 1 home run, 10 RBI and 2 walks, while getting on base at a .381 clip, slugging .487 with a .968 OPS during that span…Geno’s 10 RBI during that span lead the Mariners and are tied for 6th-most in the Majors.

FIRST INNING SUCCESS…in 12 games this season, the Mariners offense is batting .346 (19×55) with 11 runs, 4 doubles, 3 home runs, 10 RBI, 2 stolen bases and 7 walks in the 1st inning…Seattle has a .419 on-base percentage, .582 slugging percentage and 1.001 OPS in the opening frame…Seattle has scored in the 1st inning in 7 of their last 9 games since April 2.

TEOOOOOOO…Teoscar Hernández has hit safely in 6 of his last 7 games (4/4-c), batting .267 (8×30) with 3 runs, 1 double, 2 home runs and 6 RBI with an .813 OPS during that stretch…Teo ranks in the 86th percentile in sprint speed and 80th percentile in outs above average defensively, via Baseball Savant.

EVERYONE’S CONTRIBUTING…a season-high 6 different Mariners recorded an RBI in last night’s game: Eugenio Suárez (3 RBI), Ty France (2), Cal Raleigh, Teoscar Hernández, Jarred Kelenic and Kolten Wong…the Mariners were 7-1 last season when at least 6 different players recorded an RBI.

LA PIEDRA ‘ROCKS’…Luis Castillo has shined through 3 starts this season…in his 3 outings to begin the year, he is 1-0 with a 1.02 ERA (2 ER, 17.2 IP) with 4 walks and 17 strikeouts…the right-hander did not allow a run in either of his first 2 starts to begin the season, becoming just the third Mariners pitcher to do that, joining Félix Hernández (2007) and James Paxton (2017)…Castillo is scheduled to take the mound again on Sunday vs. Colorado.

ONE OUT IN THE INNING…through 12 games this season, the Mariners offense has had its most success with one out in the inning…with one out, Seattle is batting .277 (41×148) with 14 doubles, 4 home runs, 22 RBI, 5 stolen bases and 14 walks with an .800 OPS…with 2 outs, the offense is hitting .197 (26×132) and with no outs are hitting .218 (31×142).

SEVEN AND SEVEN (AND SEVEN)…7 different pitchers are tied for the Major League lead for most appearances this season with 7 apiece…3 of those pitchers are Mariners: Matt Brash, Trevor Gott and Penn Murfee…Brash has a 4.76 ERA (3 ER, 5.2 IP) with 3 walks and 12 strikeouts…Gott has a 1.13 ERA (1 ER, 8.0 IP) with no walks and 7 strikeouts…Murfee has a 0.00 ERA (0 ER, 5.0 IP) with 5 walks (3 intentional) and 3 strikeouts.

AS YOU MAY KNOW…Jarred Kelenic went 2-for-3 with a double, home run and a pair of walks last night, but…DID YOU KNOW?…that Jarred joined a small group of Mariners age 23-or-younger to record both 2+ extra-base hits and 2+ base on balls within the same game?…Kelenic became the 8th different Mariners player age 23-or-younger to do so, joining Ruppert Jones (2x, 6/25/1977 and 9/3/1978), Julio Cruz (5/7/1978), Jim Presley (6/23/1985), Ken Griffey Jr. (2x, 6/1/1990 and 4/19/1993), Jesús Montero (5/30/2012), Ketel Marte (8/16/2015) and Shed Long Jr. (5/29/2019).

TODAY’S MARINERS STARTER – RHP LOGAN GILBERT
ABOUT LOGAN GILBERT…
• The 25-year-old right-handed pitcher is scheduled to make his 3rd start of the season…he will also make the 59th start of his MLB career and 1st career start against the Cubs.

• Selected by Seattle in the 1st round (14th overall) of the 2018 MLB First-Year Player Draft; signed by Mariners scout Rob Mummau.

• Spent 3 seasons at Stetson (FL) University, 2016-18…in 2017, was ASUN Pitcher of the Year and ASUN 1st-Team All-Conference.

• Was named the 2022 Mariners Most Valuable Pitcher by the Seattle Chapter of the BBWAA.

LAST TIME OUT…ND in 2nd start of the regular season at Cleveland on 4/7, tossing 4.0 innings allowing 3 runs on 6 hits, and 2 walks with 6 strikeouts.

EARLY SEASON SUCCESS…holds a career 1.39 ERA (32.1 IP, 5 ER) in March/ April, the lowest ERA in the Majors among starting pitchers with at least 6 games started in the first two months of the season…in March/April, Gilbert has allowed 25 hits, 6 runs (5 ER), 7 walks and 2 home runs while striking out 35…opponents are batting .210 (25×119) against him.

NEW FACES, NEW PLACES…today marks Gilbert’s 1st career start against the Cubs and 1st at Wrigley Field…Logan has only faced three current Cubs batters entering into today’s game…combined they are batting .333 (2×6) against him.

VS. NATIONAL LEAGUE…is making his 5th career start against interleague opponents…holds a 2-2 record with a 3.00 ERA (21.0 IP, 7 ER) with 13 walks and 20 strikeouts…interleague opponents are batting .203 (16×79) against Gilbert…the Cubs will be the 4th different NL team that Gilbert has faced (also: San Diego, Philadelphia, Miami).

WINNING AWAY FROM HOME…is making his 2nd road start of the season…has a 13-3 career record when pitching on the road, the best away winning percentage (.813) in the Majors among starting pitchers with at least 30 away games started… in those 30 games Gilbert has a 3.04 ERA (161.2 IP, 68 ER).

ON A ROLL…in each of his first 2 starts this season Gilbert has recorded at least 6 strikeouts…this marks the 4th time in his career that he has recorded back-toback games with 6+ strikeouts (last: 9/1-9/6/22)… as achieved his career high of 3 consecutive games with 6+ strikeouts on 4 different occasions.

PLAYOFF PERFORMER…made 1 start in the playoffs, on 10/11/22 at HOU in Game 1 of the ALDS…ND after allowing 3 runs on 5 hits (1 HR) and 2 walks with 5 strikeouts over 5.1 innings.

PITCHER OF THE MONTH…was named AL Pitcher of the Month for April 2022, the first time he has won the award…marks the first Mariners winner
since James Paxton in July, 2017 and the 14th different player to win the award (19th instance).

MONTH OF MARVEL…his 0.40 ERA (1 ER, 22.1 IP) in April 2022 was the lowest ERA in a month in Mariners history, surpassing Mark Langston’s 0.50 ERA (3 ER, 53.2 IP) in September 1988 (min. 20.0 IP).

INNINGS EATER…ranked 9th in the AL in innings pitched last season with 185.2…he ranked second among Mariners starting pitchers trailing only Robbie Ray (189.0)…Gilbert threw 6.0+ innings in 18 starts last year.

QUALITY AND QUANTITY…recorded a quality start in his first start of the season…had 16 quality starts in 2022 the 3rd most among Mariners starting pitchers and tied 16th in the AL with Dylan Cease-CHW and Shoehei Ohtani-LAA …he trailed only Marco Gonzales and Robbie Ray who each had 18.

TURN IT UP TO 11…recorded a career-high 11 strikeouts on 9/19/23 at Los Angeles-AL…earned his 13th win of the season and pitched 6.0 innings while giving up 4 hits, 1 run, and 1 walk.

FIRST 50…made his 50th career start on 8/26/22, going 16-10 with a 4.01 ERA (120 ER, 269.0 IP) with 261 strikeouts…his 261 strikeouts are the 5th-most over a pitchers first 50 career starts in Mariners history, trailing Félix Hernández (295), Erik Hanson (279), Hisashi Iwakuma (266) and Taijuan Walker (263).

THE KING AND I…became the 3rd fastest Mariners starter to 300 career strikeouts when he struck out Vimael Machín on 9/30/22 vs. OAK…it took Gilbert just 56 starts to reach the milestone…only Félix Hernández (51 GS) and Erik Hanson (53 GS) reached the milestone in fewer games.

TRIPLE SEVENS…tossed 7.0 innings in 3-consecutive starts dating from 5/17-5/28/22…3 consecutive starts of 7.0+ innings marked the longest streak in his career, having never done it in consecutive starts prior to the streak…became the first Mariners pitcher with 3-consecutive starts of 7.0+ innings since Marco Gonzales had 4 consecutive from 9/11-9/29/19.

HE’S LIKE THE ROCKET, MAN…became just the 2nd pitcher in AL history to strike out 15-or-more batters while allowing no more than 1 walk and no more than 1 earned run over his first 3 starts of the season, joining Roger Clemens (1991) via Stats Perform.

A NIGHT TO REMEMBER…Logan Gilbert (#28) and Jarred Kelenic (#4) made their MLB debuts on May 13, 2021 vs. Cleveland, becoming the highest
ranking duo to debut in the same game since MLB.com began prospect rankings in 2011…there have only been 2 other instances where multiple top-100 prospects debuted for the same team in the same game…on July 23, 2013, outfielders Jake Marisnick (#70) and Christian Yelich (#13) both debuted for Miami…on Sept. 21, 2016, outfielders Manuel Margot (#45) and Hunter Renfroe (#92) both debuted for San Diego.

AMONG STETSON ROYALTY…Gilbert is 1 of 3 active Stetson University players in the Major Leagues, joining Jacob deGrom-TEX, and Corey Kluber-BOS, which places Gilbert alongside 2 Cy Young Award winners…was the first pitcher from Stetson to be taken in the 1st round, and 1st Hatters 1st-rounder since

CHICAGO CUBS NOTES:

WELL, THAT WAS A WILD ONE: The Chicago Cubs, down 7-0 heading into the bottom of the second inning, last night plated eight third-inning runs en route to a 14-9 victory over the Seattle Mariners to capture the three-game series heading into today’s finale … last night’s game was the team’s first in which it erased a deficit of at least seven runs en route to a win since erasing a 10-2 deficit to win 14-10 over the Braves April 14, 2018, at a freezing Wrigley Field.

Like, where do we even begin about last night? … in that eight-hit, eight-run third frame, Nelson Velázquez blasted his first career grand slam to give the Cubs an 8-7 lead and Dansby Swanson’s second hit of the inning increased the lead to 9-7.

Ed Hartig notes the previous time the Cubs won a game by at least five runs after falling behind by at least seven runs was June 30, 1929, in a 14-8 win at the Cardinals … Chicago had fallen behind 8-1 at one point.

ESPN Stats & Info pointed out that prior to last night Chicago had lost its last 79 games in which it trailed by seven or more runs … the Cubs became the first MLB team since Sept. 27, 2001 to trail by seven runs in the second inning and lead by the end of the third (Rockies were down 8-0 to the Padres in the second but led 11-8 heading into the fourth inning).

‘STRO SHOW: Today’s starting pitcher Marcus Stroman enters having spun 12.0 scoreless innings to open the season thanks to consecutive 6.0-shutout inning performances, Opening Day vs. Milwaukee and April 7 vs. Texas … Stroman is the first Cubs pitcher since Mike Bielecki in 1991 to open the season with consecutive starts of at least 6.0 shutout innings.

The last pitcher to open a season with three starts of at least 6.0 shutout innings is Seattle’s James Paxton, who turned the trick April 5-15, 2017.

Stroman has posted a 1.67 ERA (10 ER/54.0 IP) in his last nine starts dating to Aug. 30 of last season, the fourth-best ERA in that span behind only the Angels Shoehi Ohtani (1.08), Tampa Bay’s Jeffrey Springs (1.14) and the Dodgers Julio Urías (1.52).

SO FAR, A RELIEF: Cubs hitters have posted a .302 average (45-for-149) against relief pitchers this season, the second-highest mark in the majors behind Milwaukee (.313 average against relief pitchers) … Chicago’s .367 on-base percentage against bullpen arms ranks third-best in the majors, trailing only Milwaukee (.388) and San Francisco (.382).

SOME NICE ANNIVERSARIES: Today marks the 25th anniversary of Cubs pitcher Kerry Wood’s major league debut, April 12, 1998, at Montreal … 90 years ago today, April 12, 1933, beer was sold at the park for the first time under the name Wrigley Field … when prohibition began in 1919, the park was known as Cubs Park … prohibition ended in time for the Cubs to sell beer at the park on Opening Day, a 3-0 win over the Cardinals.

IT STARTED WITH LESTER’S GAME-WINNING BUNT: The Cubs have won each of their last seven games against the Mariners, starting with the July 31, 2016, ESPN Sunday Night Baseball game in which Jon Lester laid down a game-winning sac bunt to plate Jason Heyward for a 7-6, 12-inning victory (the game took four hours, 18 minutes).

This seven-game winning streak against Seattle is Chicago’s longest against an A.L. club since interleague play began in 1997 … this surpasses six-game winning streaks against Baltimore from Aug. 22, 2014-July 16,2017, as well as against the White Sox (June 22, 2007-June 22, 2008) and Minnesota (June 20, 2015-Sept. 18, 2020).

ABOUT THE ROTATION: Cubs starting pitchers have a 3.70 ERA (20 ER/48.2 IP) in the season’s early going, the third-best mark in the N.L. and ninth in the majors … through the first 10 games of last season, the rotation had a 4.84 ERA (and a 5.32 ERA through the first 11 games of last year).

CURRENT EVENTS: The Cubs, who have won five of their last six games, enjoy an offday tomorrow before starting a six-game west coast swing against the Dodgers (3 games beginning Friday) and Athletics (3 games starting April 17).

The Cubs open the season with 15 of their first 24 games through April 27 at Wrigley Field … of those first 24 tilts, just five are against their own division, the N.L. Central: the season-opening Brewers series and the abbreviated two-game set against the Reds, April 3-4 … in fact, the Cubs are in the sixth game (4-1) of 29-straight games outside of the division until hosting the Cardinals for three games, May 8-10.

INTERLEAGUE INTERLUDE: With MLB’s new schedule format for the 2023 season, the Cubs will play every A.L. club this regular season, totaling 46 games … Chicago is 4-1 this season, and 220-220 (.500) all-time against the A.L. since interleague play began in 1997 … the team was 6-14 (.300) in interleague play last season.

OH, HAPPY DAY!: Cubs left fielder Ian Happ has reached safely in each of his first 10 games this season, hitting safely in eight of those … he’s opened the year with a .314 average (11-for-35) with four doubles, one homer, six RBI, seven runs and 10 walks to contribute to a .467 on-base percentage and a .981 OPS.

Since June 12 of last year, Happ is batting .345 (20-for-58) with six doubles, a triple, two homers, seven RBI and a .415 OBP in 15 interleague contests … he’s hit safely in 13 of those games.

Cubs vs. Mariners
The Cubs and Mariners meet for the first time since the 2019 campaign when Chicago swept four-game season series two at both Wrigley Field and Safeco Field … Chicago has won its last seven contests against the Mariners dating to July 31, 2016.

Starting Pitcher – #0 RHP Marcus Stroman (2-0, 0.00)
Last Time Out
Marcus earned the win and threw his second-straight scoreless outing to begin the 2023 season, tossing 6.0 innings against the Rangers … extended his scoreless streak to 12.0 IP to begin the season … set new career high in consecutive outings of throwing 6.0 innings and allowing zero runs (three, dating to October 2, 2022).

Date Opp. Result IP H R ER BB SO PC-S Left
4/7 TEX W, 2-0 6.0 2 0 0 3 6 89-52 1-0
2023 Splits and Season Notes
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
Home 2-0 0.00 2 2 12.0 5 0 0 6 14
Road – – – – – – – – – –
AVG vs. LHB: .150 (3-for-20) / AVG vs. RHB: .105 (2-for-19)

Marcus is scheduled to make his third start of the 2023 season today vs. Seattle … has not allowed a run in 12.0 IP to begin the 2023 campaign … dating to Aug. 30, 2022, has allowed one run or fewer in seven of his last nine starts, pitching to a 1.67 ERA (10 ER/54.0 IP) during the run.

Made his third career Opening Day start March 30 vs. Milwaukee (0 ER/6.0 IP), earning the win … improved to 2-0 with a 1.29 ERA (3 ER/21.0 IP) in his three career Opening Day starts.

In three Cacuts League starts with the Cubs, went 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA (1 ER/10.0 IP) and 10 strikeouts.

Made two starts for Team Puerto Rico in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, posting a 3.00 ERA (3 ER/9.0 IP).

2022 Splits and Season Notes
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
Home 3-5 5.18 12 12 64.1 63 39 37 22 63
Road 3-2 2.06 13 13 74.1 60 22 17 14 56
AVG vs. LHB: .258 (69-for-268) / AVG vs. RHB: .210 (54-for-257)

Sept. 16 vs. Colorado, tossed 5.2 hitless innings to begin the game, his second-longest no-hit bid of his career (6.0 IP, July 24, 2014 vs. Boston; source: Elias).

Faced Toronto for the first time in his career August 30 (1 ER/5.0 IP).

Went 1-0 with a 2.23 ERA (11 ER/44.1 IP) in eight starts from July 9-August 20 … the 2.23 ERA was the fifth-lowest in the MLB during that span (min. 8 GS).

Was on the 15-day injured list, June 10-July 9 with right shoulder inflammation.

Pitched to a 1.80 ERA (6 ER/30.0 IP) in five starts from April 26-May 29, the third-lowest ERA in the N.L. (min. 30 IP) during that span.

Made his Cubs debut on April 10 vs. Milwaukee (1 ER/5.0 IP).

Career Notes
Marcus is in his ninth major league season since debuting in 2014 with Toronto … signed a three-year contract with the Cubs on December 1, 2021.

Has made 30-or-more starts in four of the five full seasons since 2016, tied for the second-most such campaigns in the majors.

Since making his big league debut with Toronto in 2014, his 0.85 home runs allowed per 9.0 innings are second-lowest among all pitchers with at least 190 starts in that span.

His 57.7-percent ground ball rate ranks second-highest since the start of 2014, surpassed by Dallas Keuchel (59.3).

Started two series-clinching wins for the Blue Jays in the postseason … started Game 5 of the 2015 ALDS vs. Texas and the 2016 A.L. Wild Card game … delivered a quality start in both games to help Toronto advance.

MLB Preview: San Diego Padres (7-5) at New York Mets (6-6)

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: San Diego Padres (7-5) at New York Mets (6-6)

SAN DIEGO PADRES NOTES:

Padres even series with their 4-2 Tuesday win, look to take today’s rubber match
• Last night, Manny Machado doubled in the 5th inning, plating Luis Campusano and Brandon Dixon for the goahead runs…Xander Bogaerts provided needed insurance runs with his 2-run homer in the 9th…Campusano had his 1st-career 3-hit game, and the Padres offense went 3-for-9 with RISP.

• Starter Ryan Weathers got his 1st win since 2021, tossing 5.0 innings of 3-hit, 1-run ball on 2 walks and 3 punchouts…he’s now worked 5.0+ IP with 1 or 0 runs allowed in back-to-back starts for the 1st time in his career. Padres secure winning roadtrip; have won 4 of their last 5 games

• San Diego already has secured a winning 1st roadtrip of 2023, having won 3 of 4 games from the Braves in Atlanta (the Braves hadn’t lost 3 straight games at home in all of 2022) and having won

• Despite last night’s loss, the Padres have now won 4 of their last 5 games and 7 of their last 10.

Snell looks to go the distance
• In his 1st start on Opening Day vs. COL (March 30 in San Diego), Blake Snell went just 4.1 IP with 3 runs allowed, and in his 2nd outing on April 6 @ ATL, he went just 3.2 IP with 4 runs allowed…his start to the season is the 1st time since 2021 in which he didn’t get past 4.1 IP in back-toback outings (July 4, 17, 2021 went 4.0 IP and 4.0 IP).

• The last time he faced the Mets on October 8, 2022 in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card series, he went just 3.1 IP with 2 runs allowed and 6 walks in San Diego’s 7-3 loss.

• Despite Snell’s 4.1 IP and 3.2 IP, the Padres rotation have logged the most innings of any National League team so far in 2023 (66.0 IP)

Padres in a stretch of playing 18 games in 18 days; 21 games in 22 days
• San Diego had their 1st off day on Wednesday and will not enjoy their 2nd one until April 24th, playing 18 games in 18 days from April 6-23…their 3rd off day will be on April 28, and since April 6, their current stretch of games are also 21 games in 22 days.

• San Diego is also starting the regular season with 24 games in 25 days…they had 1 off day on April 5 they will have one in Chicago on April 24th, and they’ll have their 1st off day in San Diego on April 28.

Padres batting vs. RHP & Mets batting vs. LHP
• The Padres, going up against righty Tylor Megill, have the 50 hits this season (a .223 average) against right-handed pitchers this year…those 50 hits are the 4th fewest of any team so far…the Mets, going up against Blake Snell, have 44 hits vs. lefties, which rank 2nd most in 2023 behind the Nationals’ 65 hits.

San Diego relievers packing a punch
• The Padres bullpen have racked the most punchouts of any National League team thus far (51 strikeouts).

STARTING PITCHER – BLAKE SNELL #4
Snell set to make 8th career start vs. Mets
Blake Snell returns to the Citi Field mound for the series and road trip finale today vs. the Mets in what will be his 8th career start vs. the Mets (including Postseason)…he enters today with a 3-3 record vs. the Mets in his 7 previous starts…his last time on the Citi Field bumped he tied his Postseason career-low with 3.1 IP and issued a Postseason career-high 6 BB in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series on Oct. 8, 2022 in SD’s 7-3 defeat.

Trouble going the distance
In his 1st start on Opening Day vs. COL (March 30 in San Diego), Snell went just 4.1 IP with 3 runs allowed, and in his 2nd outing on April 6 @ ATL, he went just 3.2 IP with 4 runs allowed…his start to the season is the 1st time since 2021 in which he didn’t get past 4.1 IP in back-to-back outings (July 4, 17, 2021 went 4.0 IP and 4.0 IP). The last time he faced the Mets on October 8, 2022 in Game 2 of the NL Wild Card series, he went just 3.1 IP with 2 runs allowed and 6 walks in San Diego’s 7-3 loss.

Milestone alert
Although Snell struck out 2-or-fewer for just the 15th start of his career last Thursday @ ATL, the 2 strikeouts were all he needed to reach the 1,000 strikeout plataeu and become the 15th active pitcher to have 1,000 strikeouts since 2016 (teammate Yu Darvish has 1,116 K’s since ’16)…10 pitchers have now recorded their 1000th career strikeout in a Padres uniform, and the last one prior to Snell was Ian Kennedy on May 28, 2015 vs. PIT (Elias).

Snell tagged with the loss in 2nd Opening Day Start
Snell made his 2nd career Opening Day start on March 30 vs. COL, striking out 9 and walking 1 with 3 runs allowed on 6 hits in SD’s 7-2 defeat…his other Opening Day start was opposite HOU’s Justin Verlander, who finished 2nd to Snell in the 2018 AL Cy Young Award voting and made his 11th Opening Day assignment…it was the 4th time since the Cy Young Award was introduced in 1956 that a reigning winner faced the runner-up on Opening Day.

Can’t spell Blake without the K
In 2022, he posted the 2nd-highest SO/9 IP ratio (12.02) of his career, along with 5 double-digit strikeout performances…since 2018, he’s posted the 3rd-most double-digit strikeout games (23) among all ML left-handers, trailing only Robbie Ray (26) and Chris Sale (25).

Tale of two halves
In his 10 1st half starts last season, he went 1-5 with a 5.22 ERA and .705 opponent OPS…in
his 14 second half starts, he went 7-5 with a 2.19 ERA and .585 opponent OPS…finished the
season with a 3.38 ERA, it’s lowest mark at any point in 2022.

NEW YORK METS NOTES:

METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets fell to the Padres, 4-2, last night.. The Mets are seeking their third series victory of the season… The Mets finish their first homestand of the season, a six-game stand against the Marlins (2-1) and Padres (1-1)…New York is off on Thursday before they head to the West Coast for their second road trip of the season, a 11-day, 10-game trip against the Athletics (three games), Dodgers (three games) and Giants (four games).

AMAZIN APRIL: In seven April starts since 2022, Tylor Megill is 6-0 with a 1.85 ERA (8 ER/39.0 IP) and 37 strikeouts…Megill’s six wins in April since last season are eighth…Among qualifiers in March/April dating back to 2022, Megill is fifth in ERA and ninth in WHIP with a 0,95 mark (Min. 30.0 IP).

ADDING TO THE LIST: Today, Megill will make his first career start against the San Diego Padres…The Padres will be the 15th team Megill has faced in his career…In five career starts against NL West foes, Megill is 1-1 with a 5.60 ERA (17/27.1 IP).

RUBBER BAND MAN: The Mets play their first rubber game of the season today…The Mets were 18-4 in rubber games last season.

THE LEFTOVERS: The Mets left seven men on base last night… The team has now left 90 on base this season…That is tied for the fourth-most in the majors and tied for the second-most in the National League.

D-FENCE: The Mets have committed only two errors in 12 games this season…The team’s .995 fielding percentage is the best in the majors.

A HIT’S A HIT: The Mets have collected 14 infield hits this season, which is tied for the second-most in the majors…Last year, the Mets collected 186 infield hits, which was the fifth-most in franchise history and the third-most in the majors in 2022.

TO THE LEFT, TO THE LEFT: As a team, the Mets are batting .246/.332/.402 against left-handed pitchers this season…That compares to a .186/.309/.294 slashline against righties…The Mets are 2-4 when a left-hander starts a game in 2023.

THE LEFT OF US: Brandon Nimmo is batting .308 (4-13) with a double and three walks against left-handed pitchers this year… He hit .264/.358/.428 with 24 walks and a .786 OPS in 234 plate appearances against left-handed pitchers last season…Since 2022, his 21 extra-base hits as a lefty against left-handed pitchers is tied for the fourth-most in the majors.

SINCE 2022 – MOST XBH BY LEFTY AGAINST LHP
PLAYER TEAM EXTRA-BASE HITS
Yordan Alvarez Astros 23
Corey Seager Rangers 22
Kyle Tucker Astros 21
Brandon Nimmo Mets 21
Shohei Ohtani Angels 21

CITI SLICKERS: The Mets are now 3-2 at Citi Field this year…The team won 54 games at home last year…That their highest total at Citi Field in franchise history..,The last time the team won more than 50 games in New York was in 2000 when they went 55- 26…Overall, the Mets went 54-27 at Citi Field…The team’s .667 winning percentage was the fourth-highest in team history… Only the 1988 (56-24, .700), 2000 and 1986 teams (both 55-26, .679) had a better home winning percentage.

DOCTOR ROBERT-SON: David Robertson has appeared in five games this season and has allowed only one hit in 5.0 innings with six strikeouts…He has tossed 3.0 consecutive perfect innings.

CURTAINS FROM CURTISS: John Curtiss hasn’t allowed a run in his last 4.1 innings with five strikeouts and has yielded one run overall in 5.1 innings (1.42 ERA) in five outings.

ALL YOUR BASE ARE BELONG TO US: The Mets have stolen 11 bases this season, which is third in the National League…Starling Marte fourth in the NL with four steals…Brandon Nimmo, who is tied for fifth in the NL, has stolen three bases in 11 games this year…Nimmo stole a total of three bases in 151 games last season.

Rank Player HR GAMES
5th Dave Kingman 154 664
6th Pete Alonso 151 542
7th Carlos Beltrán 149 839
Rank Player RBI GAMES
14th Todd Hundley 397 829
15th Michael Conforto 396 757
16th Pete Alonso 391 542
METS ALL-TIME LEADERS

FOR PETE’S SAKE: Pete Alonso has hit 65 home runs at Citi Field… That is the third-most in the history of the yard…Only Michael Conforto (66) and Lucas Duda (71) have hit more…Overall, Alonso has hit .247/.343/.497 in 265 career games at Citi Field.

OPENING LIN-DOOR: Over the last six games, Francisco Lindor is batting 7-22 (.318) with six runs, three doubles, a home run, six RBI, three walks with a .423 OBP and a .591 SLG.

WALK THE WALK: The Mets rank fourth in the majors and third in the National League with 52 free passes this season…Brandon Nimmo is tied for first in the majors with 12 walks…The Mets have recorded two walks with the bases loaded this season, which is tied for the third-most in the majors…In 2022, the team drew 10.

KING OF QUEENS: In five games at home this year, Jeff McNeil is 4-15 with two runs, three doubles, three RBI and six walks…He has hit .311 with 128 runs, 56 doubles, four triples, 25 home runs, 118 RBI and 77 walks in 266 career games at the yard…His .311 batting average is the second-highest by a Met at the ballpark (min. 100 PA)…Only Luis Castillo, .313, has a higher batting average in the history of the ballpark.

DAY MAN!: The Mets are 5-3 in day games this year…In 2022, the Mets went 39-19 in day games…The team’s .672 winning percentage in the sunlight was the second-best in the National League and third-best in the majors…The Mets posted a 3.16 ERA with 150 walks and 564 strikeouts in the daytime last year…Their 3.16 ERA in the daytime was third in the majors and second in the NL.

TODAY’S STARTER – TYLOR MEGILL RHP #38
MEGILL’S PITCH ARSENAL
Pitch Type Usage Rate vs. LHB vs. RHB Avg. Velocity
Four-Seam Fastball 48% 59% 42% 94.1 mph
Slider 33% 6% 52% 82.8 mph
Changeup 12% 21% 6% 87.7 mph
Curveball 6% 14% 1% 76.9 mph

MEGILL NEWS & NOTES
THE FRANCHISE HAS COMPANY: In Megill’s last start, the Mets home opener on April 7 vs. Miami, the right-hander threw 6.0 scoreless innings and allowed three hits…Megill joined Tom Seaver (April 5, 1983) as the only other pitcher in franchise history to throw 6.0 shutout innings and allow three hits or fewer in a home opener…Courtesy of Elias.

AMAZIN APRIL: In seven April starts since 2022, Megill is 6-0 with a 1.85 ERA (8 ER/39.0 IP) and 37 strikeouts…Megill’s six wins in April since last season are eighth…Among qualifiers in March/April dating back to 2022, Megill is fifth in ERA and ninth in WHIP with a 0,95 mark (Min. 30.0 IP).

RELIEVOR: After starting the first 27 games of his major league career, Megill transitioned to the bullpen after returning from the 60-Day IL on September 19, 2022…Megill pitched to a 6.00 ERA (4 ER/6.0 IP) out of the bullpen…In his final appearance of the 2022 season, Megill threw 2.0 scoreless innings on October 4 vs. Washington.

COMBINED NO-NO: Megill threw the first 5.0 innings of MLB’s first no-hitter of the season on April 29 at Citi Field…It was the second no-hitter in team history (also, Johan Santana, June 1, 2012 vs. St. Louis)…The Mets combine no-hitter against the Phillies marked the 17th time a team has thrown a combined nohitter and the 10th time in the Wild Card Era…Drew Smith (1.1 IP, BB, 4 K), Joely Rodríguez (1.0 IP, 2 BB), Seth Lugo (0.2 IP) and Edwin Díaz (1.0 IP, 3 K) finished the job with 4.0 hitless innings out of the bullpen. 17.1.

2022 RECAP: Was the Mets Opening Day starter and earned the victory after tossing 5.0 scoreless innings against the Nationals…Did not allow a run over 5.1 innings and earned the victory in his following start against the Phillies on April 12…Started the Mets combined no-hitter against the Phillies on April 29 and threw 5.0 innings with three walks and five strikeouts…Struck out a season-high nine batters in his following start against the Braves on May 4…Was on the 15- Day Injured List with right biceps inflammation from May 12 – June 10…Made two starts in his return from the IL before beginning another stint on the Injured List with a right shoulder strain on June 17…Was transferred to the 60-day IL on June 27 and returned to action on September 19…Made his final six appearances of the season in relief and allowed four earned runs over 6.0 innings in those appearances.

OPENOR: Last year, Tylor Megill was named the Mets Opening Day Starter…With 89.2 career innings pitched entering the 2022 season, Megill had the fewest major league innings of any Mets Opening Day starting pitcher in franchise history…Became the 28th different Opening Day starting pitcher in Mets history.

RUNS IN THE FAMILY: His brother, Trevor, is a pitcher in the Minnesota Twins organization…They both made their MLB debut in 2021..According to Elias, they are the fourth pair of brothers to make their major league debut in the same season since 2000 (2019, Scott & Tyler Heineman, 2017, Joe & A.J. Jimenez and 2012, Donovan & Jhonatan Solano).

MLB Preview: Houston Astros (5-7) at Pittsburgh Pirates (7-4)

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MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MLB Preview: Houston Astros (5-7) at Pittsburgh Pirates (7-4)

HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME: The Houston Astros, the reigning World Series champions, will play their first rubber game of the 2023 season today in Pittsburgh behind RHP José Urquidy, who’s making his third start of the young season…this series is the Astros first visit to Pittsburgh since the 2016 season, meaning since their last visit, the Astros have won two World Series championships (2017, 2022) and have played in the ALCS on six occasions (2017-22).

ABOUT URQUIDY:RHP José Urquidy is entering his third start in what is his fifth Major League season (2019-23) and is looking to build upon a solid 2022 campaign in which he set many career highs, including wins (13), starts (28), innings pitched (164.1) and strikeouts (134)…he also had a solid showing this Spring Training at the World Baseball Classic, pitching twice for Team Mexico, including a 2.1-inning appearance (1ER) in Mexico’s semifinal game vs. Japan.

CLEAN GETAWAYS: Going back to last season, the Astros have won 13 straight regular season games on ‘getaway days’ (travel days), including two this season…the last time they did not win on a getaway day was on Aug. 7, 2022, at CLE…looking at the 2022 postseason, the Astros also won all six of those getaway days, two in each round.

AT THE HELM: Astros skipper Dusty Baker is in his 26th season as a manager and his fourth at the helm in Houston…Baker, who ranks ninth all-time in managerial wins with 2,098 wins, has an outside shot of moving up to sixth all time by seasons end…en route, he’d have to surpass Joe McCarthy (8th, 2,125), Bucky Harris (7th, 2,158) and Sparky Anderson (6th 2,194).

IN THE BOX: This season is the first for the Astros under Dana Brown, who was named the 14th GM in club history in January… this season is also the 12th for the Astros under Owner & Chairman Jim Crane, who purchased the club in November of 2011.

RIVALRY RENEWED: The Astros and Pirates are renewing their former NL Central rivalry this week…it’s been a minute since these two teams saw each other, with that last series falling from June 25-27, 2019, a three-game series in Houston (PIT won two of three)…only three players that played in that series are currently active for the Astros: LF Yordan Alvarez, 3B Alex Bregman and LHP Framber Valdez.

ABOUT LAST NIGHT: The Astros rallied for two runs in the 9th to tie the game at 4-4, but allowed a walkoff three-run homer to 2B Ji Hwan Bae in the bottom half to end it in a 7-4 defeat… SS Alex Bregman (2×5, 2B, HR, RBI) and RF Kyle Tucker (2×3, HR, RBI) both hit solo homers for the offense, while CF Chas McCormick plated the Astros two runs in the 9th on a double down the left field line…RHP Cristian Javier (4ER/6IP) started for Houston but did not factor into the decision.

EARLY LEAGUE LEADERS: LF Yordan Alvarez ranks second in the Majors in RBI (16), trailing only Ryan Mountcastle (18)… RF Kyle Tucker ranks tied for third in the AL in homers (4), tied for third in walks (9) and seventh in OPS (1.074).

STREAKING: 1B José Abreu is one of four players in the Majors this season to reach base safely in all 12 of his games played, joining Mookie Betts, Xander Bogaerts and Kris Bryant…this is the longest start of season streak by an Astro since 3B Alex Bregman matched the club record by reaching base safely in his first 25 games of the 2020 campaign.

BOMBS AWAY: RF Kyle Tucker leads the club with four home runs on the young season, which ranks tied for third in the AL… Tucker is looking to improve upon his career high of 30 homers, which he reached in 2021 and 2022.

THE 300: LF Yordan Alvarez enters today’s game with 299 career RBI and will become the 36th player in club history to reach the 300-RBI plateau…among players that began their careers with the Houston franchise, Alvarez will become the fastest to reach 300 RBI, in terms of games played (he enters today with 379 career games), besting 1B Lance Berkman (417g)…if you account all players in franchise history, OF
Moises Alou owns that record, reaching 300 RBI in his 352nd career game as an Astro after joining the club via trade.

LEADOFF SPICE: CF Chas McCormick has made 14 starts hitting leadoff and 19 total appearances at the first spot in the batting order in his career…in those 19 games, he’s hitting .286 (20×70) with 11 runs, six doubles, one triple, two homers, 10 RBI and an .806 OPS…on Sunday at MIN, McCormick became the Astros first leadoff hitter, other than 2B Jose Altuve and CF George Springer, to record four RBI in a single game since LF Robbie Grossman had a four-RBI game as the Astros leadoff hitter on Aug. 23, 2013 vs. TOR.

MISSING PIECE: The Astros are playing without their leadoff man, 2B Jose Altuve, who suffered a right thumb fracture while playing in the World Baseball Classic…Altuve is expected to be sidelined from baseball activity for approximately two months… in his stead, the Astros have started IF Mauricio Dubón (8g) and IF David Hensley (4g) at the keystone, while SS Jeremy Peña (8g) and OF Chas McCormick (4g) have shared leadoff duties.

FILLING IN NICELY: 2B Mauricio Dubón is off to a strong start to the season, as he’s hitting .355 (11×31) in eight games, which includes an active seven-game hitting streak…Dubón, who started most of his games at shortstop and center field in 2022, has made all eight of his starts at second base this season while filling in for the injured 2B Jose Altuve.

BOTTOMS UP: The six through ninth place hitters in the Astros batting order have combined to hit .320 (16×50) with nine runs scored over the club’s last three games…2B Mauricio Dubón has been the primary culprit, as he’s gone 6×12 with four runs scored and an RBI over the last three games.

TAYLOR REINSTATED, OPTIONED: Prior to last night’s game, the Astros reinstated LHP Blake Taylor from the 15-day IL and optioned him to Triple A Sugar Land…Taylor was on the IL while recovering from a left elbow strain.

TODAY’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP JOSÉ URQUIDY
LAST START – 4/7 at MIN: got the nod in the opener of the road trip in Minnesota and allowed 1 run through 5.1 IP and struck out 6 batters to take a no-decision in a 3-2 loss to the Twins.

AGAINST THE PIRATES: will be making his first career appearance against the Pirates…is one of 4 pitchers in the current Astros rotation who entered the series without having made a career appearance against the Pirates…is making just his 2nd career appearance against an NL Central team, with the other coming in a start at St. Louis in 2019.

THE 2022 CAMPAIGN: reached career-highs in appearances (29), starts (28) wins (13) and strikeouts (134), while posting a 3.94 ERA (72ER/164.1IP)

• posted a 2.08 walks per 9.0 ratio (38 BB in 164.1IP) this year…ranked 9th in AL.

• was moved to the bullpen prior to his final start of the season and made his lone relief appearance in his final outing on 10/3 vs. PHI…prior to 10/3’s relief outing, made only 2 regular season relief appearances, which both came in Sep. 2019 (2ER/7IP)

• pitched in 1 game in the ‘22 postseason, appearing in relief in Gm 3 at Philadelphia… delivered 3 scoreless innings of relief, allowing just one hit and striking out 4 batters to 1 walk…helped the Astros bullpen cover important innings in the 7-0 loss as the team went on to win the next 2 games and seal the World Series title…the Astros bullpen allowed just 2 runs through 13 innings beginning with Urquidy’s appearance

POSTSEASON RECORD BOOKS: holds numerous postseason records of foreign-born players…leads all foreign-born players in MLB history with 3 World Series wins…has gone 3-0 with a 1.23 ERA (2ER/14.2 IP) in 5 World Series games…also just the 2nd Mexican-born player to receive a winning decision as a starter in the World Series, joining LHP Fernando Valenzuela (LAD, ‘81)

• through 12 career postseason games, has gone 3-2 with a 3.72 ERA (15 ER/36.1IP). WBC: was a member of Team Mexico in the 2023 World Baseball Classic…picked up the win in a 10-3 victory over Team Canada to advance Team Mexico past pool play, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits and striking out 5 batters to 1 walk in the start • made a relief appearance in the semifinal loss to Samurai Japan, allowing 1 run on 2 hits through 2.1 IP…it was Team Mexico’s 1st trip to the WBC semifinals in its 4th appearance in the tournament.

WITH THE ‘STROS: was originally signed by the Astros as an international free agent from Mexico on March 2, 2015…made his MLB debut on 7/2/19 with a start at Colorado… since his debut, he ranks 6th amongst AL pitchers (min. 325 IP) by averaging 1.90 walks per 9 IP.

• last name is pronounced “urr-KEE-dee”

• is on 11 Mexican-born players to appear in a game with the Astros…his 351.1 IP in his career is the most of any Mexican-born pitcher in Astros history, directly ahead of RHP Aurelio Lopez, who pitched 116.0 innings for the Astros in the 1986-87 seasons…his 24 career wins are 2nd-most of any active Mexican-born player in MLB, trailing only Dodgers LHP Julio Urías (51)

PITTSBURGH PIRATES NOTES:

THE PIRATES:…Are off to their best start (7-4) after 11 games since going 8-3 to begin the 2018 season…Won in walkoff fashion for the first time this season Tuesday night…Have won six of their last eight games…Won a season-high four straight games from 4/3-7…Have not lost back-to-back games since dropping the final two games of their season-opening series in Cincinnati.

BAE DAY: Ji Hwan Bae recorded the first walkoff of his big league career last night with his three-run home run in the ninth inning to lift the Pirates to a 7-4 win…The Pirates recorded 10 walkoff wins in 2022, including three that ended with a home run (Bryan Reynolds was the last Pirate to hit a walkoff homer on August 3 against the Brewers)…Bae and Ji Man Choi also became the first Korean-born teammates to homer in the same game last night.

JACK’S JACKS: Jack Suwinski connected for his first home run of the season last night with a two-run shot in the second inning…Seventeen of Suwinski’s 20 home runs have come at PNC Park, including each of his last eight…Suwinski’s last home run on the road came on June 25 at Tampa Bay.

JUMP FOR CHOI: Ji Man Choi went deep for the straight game last night with a 418-foot shot leading off the sixth inning… Choi has now gone deep on back-to-back occasions six times in his career…Prior to last night, the last time he homered in two straight games came on April 12-13, 2022, while playing for the Rays.

CANNONBALLS COMING: The Pirates are 4-0 this season when recording multiple home runs in a game…Tuesday was the second three-homer game for the Pirates this season (also April 3 in Boston)…Pittsburgh’s 15 home runs are tied for the fourth-most among all National League teams (the Dodgers lead the National League with 21 homers).

ABOUT TODAY’S STARTER: Rich Hill gets the start this afternoon in the finale of this three-game series against the Astros… Hill started Pittsburgh’s Home Opener Friday against the White Sox but had a no-decision (4.0ip/7er) in a 13-9 comeback win.

COMING INTO HIS OWN: Mitch Keller allowed two runs in 6.0 innings while also striking out seven batters in last night’s game against the Astros…Keller enters today tied for first in the National League in strikeouts (22) along with San Francisco’s Logan Webb…Keller’s 22 punchouts are also tied for the fifth-most in all of MLB.

HITTIN’ THE ROAD: Tomorrow night the Pirates will open a four-game series in St. Louis as part of a seven-game road trip…The trip will conclude with three games at Coors Field beginning Monday night…It will be the first of two road trips to St. Louis this year (also September 1-3).

REYNOLDS ON A ROLL: Bryan Reynolds has hit safely in 10 of his first 11 games coming into today (his only hitless game came on Monday)…Reynolds enters today tied for the National League lead in home runs (five), first in slugging (.778), RBI (14) and total bases (35), tied for second in extra base hits (eight), fourth in OPS (1.145) and tied for eighth in batting (.356).

AGAINST THE JUNIOR CIRCUIT: Today’s game wraps up a stretch of nine straight contests for the Pirates against the American League…Pittsburgh’s next series against an American League team will come next month from May 2-4 against the Tampa Bay Rays…The Pirates are 6-2 against the American League this season.

GETTING ON: Andrew McCutchen has reached base safely in nine of his first 10 games and enters today tied for second in the National League with a .500 on-base percentage…McCutchen also ranks ninth among all qualified hitters in the National League with a 1.036 OPS and seventh with a .357 batting average.

PIRATING: The Pirates enter today second in the National League and tied for fifth in all of MLB with 12 stolen bases..The only National League team with more stolen bases coming into today are the Diamondbacks (17).

MAKE THAT A DOUBLE: Andrew McCutchen enters today with 294 career doubles as a member of the Pirates, which is tied with Bill Mazeroski for the eighth-most in club history…Dave Parker ranks seventh (296).

THERE’S NO PLACE LIKE HOME: Saturday night Andrew McCutchen’s ninth inning home run was his first as a member of the Pirates since going deep twice on September 26, 2017, against the Orioles…McCutchen’s 94 career home runs at PNC Park are the most in the ballpark’s history…McCutchen ranks fourth in Pirates history with 204 home runs, trailing only Willie Stargell (475), Ralph Kiner (301) and Roberto Clemente (240).

44 – LHP RICH HILL
RICH HILL: The 43-year-old lefthander is making his third start this afternoon…Had a no-decision (4.0ip/7er) in his last start on Friday in Pittsburgh’s 13-9 win vs. the White Sox.

vs. HOUSTON: 3-2 with a 3.11 ERA (46.1ip/16er) in 12 appearances (eight starts)…Allowed four runs in 3.0 innings in his only start of 2022 on 8/3 at Houston.

Twins Recall Edouard Julien

Baseball
MLB

MLB Editor

April 12, 2023

MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL, MN – The Minnesota Twins announced today that they have recalled infielder Edouard Julien from Triple-A St. Paul.

Julien, 23, played in nine games for the Saints, hitting .290 (9-for-31) with two doubles, two home runs, four RBI, seven walks, a .421 on-base percentage and a .969 OPS. The Québec City, Canada native played for Team Canada during the 2023 World Baseball Classic in March and hit .538 (7-for-13), with two doubles, two home runs, two RBI, five walks and led the tournament with a 1.821 OPS.

Julien played in 113 games for Double-A Wichita in 2022 and hit .300 (12-for-400) with 19 doubles, three triples, 17 home runs, 67 RBI, 98 walks, a .441 on-base percentage and a .931 OPS. He led the Texas League in walks and on-base percentage and ranked third in OPS, sixth in slugging percentage (.490), and seventh in batting average. After the 2022 season, he played for Glendale in the Arizona Fall League and hit .400 (28-for-70) with a .563 on-base percentage and a 1.248 OPS and named the league’s Breakout Player of the Year and an AFL All-Star. He ranks as the organization’s fourth-best prospect by both MLB.com and Baseball America and ranked as having the best strike-zone discipline in the Twins’ system by Baseball America.

The 6-foot-2, 205-pound infielder has played in parts of three seasons in the Twins’ minor league system, hitting .284 (234-for-825) with 49 doubles, four triples, 37 home runs, 143 RBI, 215 walks, a .437 on-base percentage and a .924 OPS in 234 games. Julien was selected by the Twins in the 18th round of the 2019 First-Year Player Draft out of Auburn University.

He will be in uniform for this afternoon’s game against the Chicago White Sox and wear uniform number 47.

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Twins Recall Edouard Julien

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