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MLB Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (2-5) at Milwaukee Brewers (6-1)

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MLB Preview: St. Louis Cardinals (2-5) at Milwaukee Brewers (6-1)

ST. LOUIS CARDINALS NOTES:

RECENT REDBIRDS: The defending NL Central Division Champion St. Louis Cardinals opened their first road-trip (MIL-3, COL-3) of the season last night with a 4-0 loss to the Brewers…they continue their three-game Easter weekend series tonight as the Cardinals seek to snap a 4-game losing streak…the Cardinals went 2-4 on their opening homestand, winning 2-of-3 from Toronto before being swept in three games by the Atlanta Braves…the Cardinals are off to a 2-5 start for the first time since 2017 when they began the campaign at 2-6.

APRIL SHOWERS: The Cardinals current 4-game losing streak matches their season high from 2022. It’s their first 4-game losing skid in the month of April since a 4-gamer in April of 2007 (4/16-19)…they have not had a 5-game losing streak in April since 2003 (4/19-24)…the Cardinals have scored just 7 runs over their last four games while batting .248…the pitching staff has allowed 21 runs and owns a 5.40 ERA in that span.

NAUGHTON TO I.L. & CABRERA RECALLED: The Cardinals announced today that LHP Packy Naughton (left forearm strain) has been placed on the 15- day Injured List and LHP Génesis Cabrera has been recalled from Memphis (AAA). Cabrera worked 2.0 scoreless innings for Memphis last night and was unscored upon in his three outings at Triple-A to begin the season (3.1 IP). He wears uniform #92.

7-FOR-7: A pair of Cardinals have hit safely in the team’s first seven games, with Nolan Arenado and rookie Jordan Walker each doing so…Walker’s streak matched Juan Yepez’s 7-gamer to begin his rookie campaign in 2022 and is two shy of the club record to begin a career – set by outfielder Magneuris Sierra in 2017 (9 games).

GOOD COMPANY: Jordan Walker’s 7-game hit streak to begin his career is the first by a player age 20 years or younger since Johnny Callison did so at age 19 in 1958…others to do so include Hall of Famers Roberto Clemente (1955, age 20) in 7-straight and Ted Williams (1939, age 20) in 9-straight.

WALKER’S WEEK OF FIRSTS: Twenty-year-old rookie outfielder Jordan Walker, the Cardinals 1st round draft selection in 2020, hit safely in each of his first six games during the season-opening homestand. Walker collected his 1st career hit on Opening Day with a 2nd inning single, collected his 1st RBI and stolen base on Sat. (4/1), his 1st extra base hit (double) on Sun. (4/2) and his 1st home run on Wed. (4/5)…He is the MLB rookie leader in hits (9) and is 3rd in batting (.333) among rookies; Brewers’ Joey Wiemer and Dodgers’ James Outman are tied for 1st (.350)…At 20 years, 321 days old today, Walker is the majors’ youngest player and the first MLB player to be born in the year 2002.

OFF THE BAT: Jordan Walker is currently ranked T5th among all Major Leaguers in hard-hit balls (95+ MPH) with 14, trailing only the Blue Jays Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. (19) & Matt Chapman (18), Pirates Brian Reynolds (16) and Red Sox Rafael Devers (15)…according to Baseball Savant, St. Louis ranks 1st in MLB in hard hit balls of 95+mph (94) and 5th in average exit velocity (90.2 mph).

KID’S CLUB: The Cardinals & Brewers own two of the majors top combined rookie totals in both batting average (STL -.319, 2nd, MIL-.333, T1st) and hits (MIL-21, 1st, STL-15, 2nd). The Brewers have 14 combined RBI from their rookies (1st in MLB) and the Cardinals 7 (5th).

NORTHERN EXPOSURE: Since the Cardinals and Brewers began regular season play in 1997, the Cardinals own the most wins against the Brewers (234-182, .563) and have the best road winning percentage against the Brewers (121-87, .582) of any team to visit Milwaukee since 1997. Their .586 win pct. (109-77) since American Family Field opened in 2001 is tops among all teams who annually play in Milwaukee.

FINEST IN THE FIELD: The Cardinals, Royals and Mets are the only MLB teams with perfect 1.000 fielding percentages this season…it’s the first time in franchise history (since 1901) that the Redbirds have begun a season without committing an error in their first seven games. The
Cardinals have won back-to-back (2021-2022) Rawlings Team Gold Glove Awards for defensive excellence.

300 WATCH: Nolan Arenado is one homer away from becoming the 7th player to hit home run #300 in a Cardinals uniform, joining Stan Musial (June 3, 1955 at Brooklyn), Gary Gaetti (June 23, 1996 at Montreal), Jim Edmonds (Sept. 4, 2004 vs. LA Dodgers), Albert Pujols (July 4, 2008 vs. Chicago Cubs), Troy Glaus (Sept. 3, 2008 at Arizona), and Paul Goldschmidt (July 16, 2022 vs. Cincinnati)

TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: LHP JORDAN MONTGOMERY (1-0, 5.40 ERA)
TONIGHT’S GAME
• Is set to make his 2nd start of the young season, and his first ever at Milwaukee’s American Family Field.

• Tonight’s road start is just his 3rd as a member of the Cardinals. Had just two road starting assgnments for the Redbirds last season (8/22 at CHI & 9/24 at LAD). Threw a complete game 1-hit shutout in the 8/22 game at Wrigley.

• Made his fourth Opening Day Roster and first with the Cardinals, adding to 2018, 2021 and 2022 with the Yankees. Was on the Injured List in 2019 and Taxi Squad in 2020.

• Was acquired at the trade deadline from the New York Yankees in exchange for OF Harrison Bader on August 2, 2022.

• Is 7-3 as a member of the Cardinals and St. Louis has won 9 of his 12 starts with Redbirds.

• Has held his opposition to three earned runs or fewer in 79% (86-of-109) of his career starts. Ranks 20th among left-handed pitchers since 2017 with 86.

LAST TIME OUT
• Won his 2023 debut with a 9-4 win over Toronto last Sun. (4/2) in the series rubber game. With the win, improved his career mark to 7-3 as a Cardinal.
DATE vs. RESULT DEC IP H R ER BB SO HR NP-S
4/2 TOR W 9-4 W-1 5.0 6 3 3 1 43 0 91-59

2022
• Was acquired at the trade deadline from the New York Yankees in exchange for OF Harrison Bader on August 2, 2022.

• Following the trade with the Yankees, was 6-3 with a 3.11 ERA in 11 starts as a member of the Cardinals with the team posting an 8-3 record.

• Set single-season career highs in innings pitched (178.1), starts (32) and quality starts (14).

• Began his Cards career with a five-game winning streak (Aug. 6-Sept. 2), longest by a starting pitcher to begin his career with the Cardinals since Miles Mikolas (6-0 in 2018).

• Led the Cardinals through the end of the season with 61 strikeouts following his acquisition at the trade deadline.

• Held left-handed batters to a .198/.213/.264 slash with just one HR (Rafael Devers on July 15), five extra-base hits, and just one walk to 109 LH batters faced.

• Since 1974, became only the 16th pitcher to face 100 or more batters in a season and allow one walk or fewer to a left-handed batter. First Cardinals pitcher to do so since Edward Mujica in 2013.

• Logged season-best 13.1 scoreless innings over his first three starts with St. Louis, tying Alex Reyes (2016) and John Urrea (1977) for 5th-longest to begin a Cardinals career. Also was the longest by a starting pitcher in his first three starts since Kyle Lohse (15.0 IP) in 2008.

CAREER NOTES
• Drafted in 4th round by the Yankees in 2014 out of the University of South Carolina.

• Finished 6th in AL Rookie of the Year voting in 2017 and was named to the Topps MLB All-Star Rookie Team. Led AL rookies in starts (29), strikeouts (144) and innings pitched (155.1) his rookie season.

• At time of his trade, had 2nd most starts for the Yankees (97) among pitchers in the organization, trailing only Luis Severino (104). His 61 starts from 2020-22 ranked T6th most in the American League in that time span & T18th in the majors among all pitchers.

MILWAUKEE BREWERS NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME: Is game 5 (4-0) of a 6-game, 7-day homestand against New YorkNL (3-0) and St. Louis (1-0)…..following this homestand, the team takes a 10-game road trip to Arizona (3g), San Diego (4g) and Seattle (3g).

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) and LHP Justin Wilson (left elbow) are on the injured list….. Alexander and Wilson are on the 60-day IL.

THE NEW BREW: INF/OF Brian Anderson (free agent), C William Contreras (trade with ATL), RHP Javy Guerra (trade with TB), LHP Wade Miley (free agent), INF/OF Owen Miller (trade with CLE), RHP Joel Payamps (trade with OAK), RHP Gus Varland (Rule 5 Draft from LAD), 1B Luke Voit (free agent), RHP Bryse Wilson (trade with PIT) and OF Jesse Winker (trade with SEA).

GONE FROM 2022: RHP Brad Boxberger (CHC), C Mario Feliciano (DET), RHP Trevor Gott (SEA), RHP Jandel Gustave (ARI), RHP Trevor Kelley (TB), OF Andrew McCutchen (PIT), C Omar Narváez (NYM), RHP Luis Perdomo (Japan), INF/OF Jace Peterson (OAK), OF Hunter Renfroe (LAA), INF/OF Pablo Reyes (OAK), LHP Taylor Rogers (SF), OF Esteury Ruiz (OAK), LHP Brent Suter (COL), RHP Justin Topa (SEA) and 2B Kolten Wong (SEA).

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 (621-556) and eighth full season…..he has the most wins of any manager in franchise history…..his 1,177 games managed are second to Phil Garner (1,180)…..Counsell was named the 19th manager in franchise history on 5/4/15, replacing Ron Roenicke…..he is signed through the 2023 season.

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.

TONIGHT’S STARTER: #52 – LHP ERIC LAUER (1gs, 1-0, 3.38)

LAUER AT A GLANCE: Eric Lauer, 27, will be making his second start of the season…..Lauer made his 2023 season debut last Sunday at Chicago-NL and earned a 9-5 victory (5.1ip, 5h, 2r, 2er, 2bb, 6k, 1hr, 89 pitches)…..he was acquired from San Diego, along with INF Luis Urías and a player to be named or cash, in exchange for RHP Zach Davies and OF Trent Grisham on 11/27/19 (trade completed on 5/27/20 – cash).

LAST SEASON: Lauer went 11-7 with a 3.69 ERA in 29 starts last season…..the team went 17-12 in his starts…..he posted career highs in starts (29-tied), wins (11), innings pitched (158.2), strikeouts (157) and quality starts (13)…..he held opponents to a .228 batting average…..Lauer was on the 15-day injured list from 9/10-9/22 with left elbow inflammation…..he came back to end the season with 12.2 consecutive scoreless innings.

CAREER: Is 33-31 with a 4.10 ERA in 111 games/104 starts (555.1ip, 253er)…..is in his sixth Major League season with San Diego (2018-19) and Milwaukee (2020-23)…..was the Padres’ Opening Day starter in 2019…..Lauer was selected by San Diego in the first round (25th overall) of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of Kent State University.

CAREER AT AMERICAN FAMILY FIELD: Is 11-7 with a 3.47 ERA in 28 games/27 starts (150.1ip, 58er)…..went 6-2 with a 2.56 ERA in 13 starts last season (77.1ip, 22er).

CAREER ON THE ROAD: Is 15-16 with a 4.78 ERA in 56 games/51 starts (267.1ip, 142er)…..went 5-5 with a 4.76 ERA in 16 starts last season (81.1ip, 43er).

CAREER vs. CARDINALS: Is 2-3 with a 6.46 ERA in 7 games/6 starts (30.2ip, 22er), including 1-2 with a 5.29 ERA in 3 starts last season (17ip, 10er).

MLB Preview: New York Yankees (4-3) at Baltimore Orioles (4-3)

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MLB Preview: New York Yankees (4-3) at Baltimore Orioles (4-3)

NEW YORK YANKEES NOTES:

AT A GLANCE: The Yankees will continue their first road trip of the season with the second game of a three-game set at Baltimore (0-1 thus far)…will also play a three-game set at Cleveland (4/10-12)…went 4-2 on their season-opening six*game homestand, winning two-of-three against San Francisco and Philadelphia.

Have won their first two completed series for just the second time in the last 12 seasons (won their first four in 2020).

Have scored first in five of their seven games…have scored in the first inning in four of their seven games.

YESTERDAY’S NEWS: The Yankees fell to the Orioles, 7-6, in their series opener on Friday at Camden Yards…RHP Clarke Schmidt (3.1IP, 5H, 4ER, 3BB, 3K) started and did not record a decision…RF Franchy Cordero (1-for-1, 1R, 1HR, 3RBI, 1BB) hit his first HR of the season with a three-run shot in the fourth inning…LF Oswaldo Cabrera (3-for-4, 1R, 1 double, 3RBI) tied his career high with 3H…hit a go-ahead two-run double in the sixth inning and an RBI single in the eighth inning…3B DJ LeMahieu (1-for-4, 1BB), DH Giancarlo Stanton (2-for-4, 2R, 1 double) and 2B Gleyber Torres (1-for-3, 1R, 1BB) each reached base twice…RHP Ron Marinaccio (1.0IP, 1H, 1ER, 1BB, 2K) took his first loss of the season…Yankees pitchers allowed 7R after allowing just 14R over their first six games.

GLEYBER DAY: INF Gleyber Torreshas reached base in 16-of29 plate appearances this season, batting .409/.552/.727 (9-for-22) with 6R, 1 double, 2HR, 6RBI, 7BB and 5SB.  Has reached base multiple times in six of his seven games.

Has 5SB in seven games this season…did not record his fifth stolen base in 2022 until his 74th game played on 7/7/22 at Boston.

Has walked seven times while striking out just twice in 29PA this season…did not record his seventh walk in 2022 until his 32nd game of the year on 5/16/22 at Baltimore.

Has hit .317/.392/.610 (79-for-249) with 47R, 17 doubles, 1 triple, 18HR, 49RBI and 29BB in 70 career games vs. Baltimore.

FAST AND FURIOUS: Yankees baserunners have recorded 11SB this season…marks their most stolen bases through their first seven games of a season in the last 34 years (since 1990)… marks just the third time in the last 108 years the Yankees have recorded at least 11SB through their first seven games of a season (also 11SB in 1989 and 12SB in 1969).

Marks just the eighth time in franchise history the Yankees have recorded at least 11SB through their first seven games of a season: 20SB in 1915, 14SB in 1914, 13SB in 1908, 12SB in 1910, 1912 and 1969, and 11SB in 1989 and 2023.

Their 11SB are tied with Cleveland for the second-most in the Majors, trailing only Baltimore (13SB).

The Yankees have had four different players steal a base. LEMACHINE: INF DJ LeMahieu has hit safely in each of his first six games, batting .292/.370/.583 (7-for-24) with 5R, 2 doubles, 1 triple, 1HR, 2RBI and 3BB.

As a Yankee (since 2019), has hit .326 (76-for-233) with 51R, 11 doubles, 6HR, 25RBI and 26BB vs. the Orioles… over that same span, has hit .333/.408/.452 (45-for-135) with 27R, 4 doubles, 4HR, 13RBI and 16BB in 34 games at Camden Yards.

FIRST IMPRESSIONS: RHP Jhony Brito will make his second career start tonight at Baltimore…made his Major League debut on Sunday vs. San Francisco and tossed 5.0 scoreless innings to earn the win…was just the 12th Yankees pitcher in franchise history (and fifth since 1935) to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut, joining Luis Gil (6.0IP on 8/3/21 vs. Baltimore), Jonathan Loáisiga (5.0IP
on 6/15/18 vs. Tampa Bay), Sam Militello (7.0IP on 8/9/92 vs. Boston), Hank Borowy (5.0IP on 4/18/42 vs. Boston), Vito Tamulis (9.0IP on 9/25/34 at Philadelphia-AL), Russ Van Atta (9.0IP on 4/25/33 at Washington-AL), Neal Brady (5.2IP on 9/25/1915-G1 vs. Cleveland), Pete Wilson (9.0IP on 9/15/1908 at Boston), Tacks Neuer (9.0IP on 8/28/1907-G2 vs. Boston), Slow Joe Doyle (9.0IP on 8/25/1906-G1 vs. Cleveland) and
Barney Wolfe (5.0IP on 4/24/1903 at Washington-AL)…was just the ninth Yankees starting pitcher to toss 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut and just the fourth since 1935.

ON A ROLL: OF Franchy Cordero hit his first HR of the season on Friday with a three-run HR in the fourth inning…is 3-for10 (.300) with 2R, 1 double, 1HR, 5RBI and 1BB in three games.

ALL RISE: OF Aaron Judge owns a career-high 40-game on-base streak (since 8/29/22), batting .368/.514/.757 (50-for-136) with 37R, 8 doubles, 15HR, 26RBI, 41BB, 1HP and 4SB in that span…is the third-longest on-base streak by a Yankee in the last 19 seasons (since 2005), trailing only Luke Voit’s 42-game streak (9/19/18-5/3/19) and Mark Teixeira’s 42-game streak (6/6-7/26/10)…has reached base multiple times in 29 of those 40 games.

Is just the 10th Yankee (11th time) in the last 84 years (since 1940) to record an on-base streak of at least 40 games…joins Joe DiMaggio (74G in 1941), Derek Jeter (57G from 1998-99 and 41G in 2000), Alex Rodriguez (53G in 2004), Luke Voit (42G from 2018-19), Mark Teixeira (42G in 2010), Bernie Williams (42G in 2001), Paul O’Neill (42G in 1996), Don Mattingly (42G from 1993-94) and Roy White
(41G from 1975-76).

His 40-game on-base streak is the third-longest by any Major League player since 2020, trailing only St. Louis’ Paul Goldschmidt’s 46-game streak from 4/22-6/10/22 and Tampa Bay’s Wander Franco’s 43-game streak from 7/25-9/29/21.

Has reached base safely in each of his first seven games this season, batting .296/.387/.519 (8-for-27) with 5R, 2HR, 4RBI, 4BB and 2SB.

Has walked in four straight games.

Has stolen a base in back-to-back games for just the second time in his career (also 2G from 8/17-G2-8/18/21).

Has hit 9HR in his last 16 games against Baltimore (since 4/26/22) and 20HR in his last 38 games vs. the Orioles since 2020.

Has hit 35HR vs. the Orioles since 2017…marks his most home runs against any opponent and are the most by any Major League player vs. a single opponent in that span.

Since 2020, has hit .360/.461/.933 (27-for-75) with 22R, 4 doubles, 13HR, 25RBI, 12BB and 2SB in 21 games at Camden Yards.

WHERE’S OSWALDO?: INF/OF Oswaldo Cabrera tied his career high with 3H on Friday at Baltimore and drove in three of the Yankees’ 6R…hit a go-ahead two-run double in the sixth inning and an RBI single in the eighth inning.

Has hit safely in each of his last four games with an AB, batting .467/.500/.600 (7-for-15) with 2R, 2 doubles, 3RBI, 1BB and 1SB in that span.

His 3RBI on Friday marked his second-most RBI in a game in his career (5RBI on 9/21/22 vs. Pittsburgh).

BRONX BOMBERS: Yankees batters have hit 12HR in seven games this season, tied with Atlanta (12HR in 8G) for the fourth-most in the Majors, trailing only Tampa Bay (18HR in 7G), Los Angeles-NL (16HR in 8G) and San Francisco (15HR in 7G).

Marks the 10th time in franchise history they have hit at least 12HR through their first seven games: 18HR in 1932, 17HR in 2003, 14HR in 2011 and 2020, 13HR in 1956 and 1957 and 12HR in 1999, 2015, 2018 and 2023.

Have had nine different players homer this season, tied for the second-most in the Majors (San Francisco-10, Tampa Bay-10, Los Angeles-NL-9).

Have homered in each of their first seven games of a season for just the sixth time in franchise history (first 12G in 2020, first 10G in 1999, first 9G in 2001, first 8G in 1932 and first 7G in 2000).

Have scored at least 5R in five of seven games this season.

STANTON ISLAND: DH/OF Giancarlo Stanton has hit .400/.468/.600 (28-for-70) with 11R, 5 doubles, 3HR, 11RBI and 9BB in 18 games at Camden Yards since 2020…overall, has hit .356/.411/.591 (47-for-132) with 18R, 7 doubles, 8HR, 31RBI and 13BB in 34 games vs. the Orioles since 2020.

Has reached base in each of his six games this season.

NOBODY BEATS THE RIZZ: INF Anthony Rizzo has hit safely in each of his six games this season and has reached base in 11-of-27 plate appearances…is batting .286/.407/.476 (6-for-21) with 2R, 1 double, 1HR, 4RBI, 4BB, 1HP and 1SF in six games.

STRIKEOUT MACHINE: Yankees pitchers have recorded double-digit strikeouts in six of seven games…their 82K are tied with Houston (eight games) for the most in the Majors… are just one of five Major League teams since 1901 to record at least 82K through their first seven games of a
season, joining the Reds in 2020 (93K), Cleveland in 2020 (86K), Yankees in 2021 (84K), Mets in 2018 (82K).

TONIGHT’S STARTING PITCHER: RHP JHONY BRITO (1-0, 0.00)
RHP Jhony Brito will make his second career Major League start tonight at Baltimore…the 25-year-old will pitch on extended five days’ rest… last pitched in his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco, tossing 5.0 scoreless innings (2H, 1BB, 6K) to earn his first career win… became just the 12th Yankees pitcher in franchise history (and fifth since 1935) to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut…is the ninth Yankees starting pitcher to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut and just the fourth since 1935…is the first Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings, allow 2H-or-fewer and allow 1BB-or-fewer in his Major League debut…was recalled from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on 3/30 and made his first career Opening Day roster…Over parts of five minor league seasons in the Yankees organization (2016-17, ’19, ’21-22), has gone 26-21 with two saves and a 3.71 ERA (392.2IP, 375H, 196R/162ER, 81BB, 344K, 28HR) in 86 career appearances (70 starts)…was signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on 11/9/15.

LAST TIME OUT: Made his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco, tossing 5.0 scoreless innings (2H, 1BB, 6K) to earn his first career win.
 Became just the 12th Yankees pitcher in franchise history (and fifth since 1935) to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League
debut, joining Luis Gil (6.0IP on 8/3/21 vs. Baltimore), Jonathan Loáisiga (5.0IP on 6/15/18 vs. Tampa Bay), Sam Militello (7.0IP on 8/9/92
vs. Boston), Hank Borowy (5.0IP on 4/18/42 vs. Boston), Vito Tamulis (9.0IP on 9/25/34 at Philadelphia-AL), Russ Van Atta (9.0IP on 4/25/33
at Washington-AL), Neal Brady (5.2IP on 9/25/1915-G1 vs. Cleveland), Pete Wilson (9.0IP on 9/15/1908 at Boston), Tacks Neuer (9.0IP on 8/28/1907-G2 vs. Boston), Slow Joe Doyle (9.0IP on 8/25/1906-G1 vs. Cleveland) and Barney Wolfe (5.0IP on 4/24/1903 at Washington AL)…among the group, joins Luis Gil (6.0IP, 1BB), Hank Borowy (5.0IP, 1BB) Vito Tamulis (9.0IP, 1BB) and Barney Wolfe (5.0IP, 0BB) as the only four to issue 1BB-or-fewer.

Became the ninth Yankees starting pitcher to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings in his Major League debut and just the fourth since 1935.

Became the first Yankees starting pitcher in franchise history to toss at least 5.0 scoreless innings, allow 2H-or-fewer and allow 1BB-or-fewer in his Major League debut.

Struck out his first batter faced (LaMonte Wade Jr. swinging) for his first Major League strikeout.

SPRING FLING: Made just four spring appearances (two starts), going 2-0 with a 2.08 ERA (13.0IP, 12H, 5R/3ER, 10K 1HR)…made his spring debut on 3/26 at Toronto, earning the win after tossing 2.0 scoreless innings (3H, 2K)…made his second appearance on 3/4 vs. Tampa Bay, allowing 4R/2ER over 2.2IP in relief…made his third spring appearance on 3/10 at Detroit, tossing 3.0 innings in relief (4H, 1ER, 3K, 1HR)…made his final spring outing on 3/26 vs. Toronto, tossing 5.1 perfect innings (3K), earning the victory.

HITTIN’ THE ROAD: Will make his first career Major League road start…in 13 road games (11 starts) with Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in 2022, went 5-3 with a 4.10 ERA (52.2IP, 24ER) and 48K.

INTO THE FIRE: Became the seventh Yankees pitcher to start against a National League opponent in his Major League debut on 4/2 vs. San Francisco, joining RHP Deivi García (8/30/20-G2 vs. New York-NL: ND, 6.0IP, 1R/0ER), RHP Chad Green (5/16/16 at Arizona: L, 4.0IP, 6R/4ER), RHP Chase Whitley (5/15/14 at New York-NL: ND, 4.2IP, 0ER), RHP Tyler Clippard (5/20/07 at New York-NL: W, 6.0IP, 1ER), LHP Brad Halsey (6/19/04 at Los Angeles-NL: W, 5.2IP, 2ER) and LHP Brandon Claussen (6/28/03-G2 at New York-NL: W, 6.1IP, 1ER).

Became the seventh Yankee to draw a start at the current Yankee Stadium in his Major League debut, joining RHP Luis Gil (8/3/21), RHP Deivi García (8/30/20-G2), RHP Jonathan Loáisiga (6/15/18), LHP Jordan Montgomery (4/12/17), RHP Luis Severino (8/5/15) and RHP Adam Warren (6/29/12).

THIS IS 25: At 25 years, 44 days old, became the seventh starter age 25-or-over to make his Major League debut for the Yankees since 1999, joining RHP Chien-Ming Wang (25y, 30d), RHP Masahiro Tanaka (25y, 154d), Christian Parker (25y, 277d), Alex Graman (26y, 155d), Matt DeSalvo (26y, 238d) and Kei Igawa (27y, 268d).

2022: Split the season with Double-A Somerset and Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, combining to go 11-4 with a 2.96 ERA (112.2IP, 95H,40R/37ER, 35BB, 91K, 9HR) in 26 games (23 starts)…allowed 2ER-or-fewer in 19 of his 23 starts.

Among Yankees farmhands, ranked second in wins, fifth in starts and sixth in innings pitched.

Began the season with Double-A Somerset, going 5-2 with a 2.36 ERA (42.0IP, 36H, 14R/11ER, 11BB, 38K, 4HR) in eight starts…was named the Eastern League “Pitcher of the Week” for 4/25-5/1 after allowing just 1H over 7.0 scoreless innings on 5/1 vs. Portland (W, 1BB, 6K).

Was promoted to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on 6/1 and went 6-2 with a 3.31 ERA (70.2IP, 59H, 26ER, 24BB, 53K, 5HR) in 18 games (15 starts).

Following the season, was named by Baseball America as having the “Best Control” among

Yankees minor leaguers.
Was added to the Yankees’ 40-man roster on 11/10.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Over parts of five minor league seasons in the Yankees organization (2016- 17, ’19, ’21-22), has gone 26-21 with two saves and a 3.71 ERA (392.2IP, 375H, 196R/162ER, 81BB, 344K, 28HR) in 86 career appearances (70 starts).

Missed most of the 2017 minor league season and the entire 2018 season due to “Tommy John” surgery.

Was signed by the Yankees as a non-drafted free agent on 11/9/15.

BALTIMORE ORIOLES NOTES:

HOMECOMING: The Orioles defeated the Yankees yesterday, 7-6, to win their second consecutive Home Opener and first against the Yankees since 2009…Improved to 46-24 in Home Openers in club history (since 1954), including 22-10 at Oriole Park at Camden Yards and 5-4 against New York-AL (see chart at right)…The O’s have won the series opener in each of their three series this season.

WHAT’S NEXT: Yesterday’s game marked the beginning of a seven-game homestand for the O’s, their first of the season…Baltimore will play two more games against the Yankees and four against the Athletics…The O’s will then travel to Chicago to face the White Sox for three games from April 14-16, then have a scheduled off day before traveling to Washington, D.C. for two games against the Nationals from April 18-19.

AGAINST NEW YORK-AL: The O’s and Yankees are squaring off in their first series of the year…The Orioles will play a total of 13 games against the Yankees this season, including six at Oriole Park…The Orioles will travel to the Bronx for three games from May 23-25 and four from July 3-6 before hosting the Yankees once more for three games from July 28-30…Baltimore went 7-12 against New York-AL in 2022, including two series wins: April 15-17 at Oriole Park (2-1) and September 30 to October 2 at Yankee Stadium (2-1).

YOU’RE SO GOLDEN: Ramón Urías will be presented with his Rawlings Gold Glove Award by Manager Brandon Hyde prior to tonight’s game…Urías was named the recipient of the 2022 American League Gold Glove Award at third base, the first of his career…He became the first Oriole to win a Gold Glove since Manny Machado in 2015… He is just the third Orioles third baseman to ever win the award, joining Machado (2x) and Orioles Legend and National Baseball Hall of Famer Brooks Robinson (16x).

MAN-ager OF THE YEAR: Manager Brandon Hyde will be honored during a special pregame ceremony…He was named the 2022 Baseball America MLB Manager of the Year and was voted the Sporting News American League Manager of the Year by fellow AL managers…He finished second in voting for the Baseball Writers’ Association of America (BBWAA) American League Manager of the Year award…Last season, he led the O’s to an 83-79 record, his first winning season as manager and the club’s first winning campaign since 2016…He collected his 200th career managerial win on September 1 in Baltimore’s 3-0 win at Cleveland…The O’s also had a 10-game winning streak from July 3-13, their first double-digit winning streak in a single season since winning 13 straight from September 7-22, 1999.

WRAPPING UP THE ROAD TRIP: The Orioles went 3-3 in their season-opening road trip against the Red Sox (1-2) and Rangers (2-1)…They defeated the Red Sox on Opening Day, 10-9, improving their record in season openers to 45-25 overall and 13-12 on the road…The O’s dropped the next two games against Boston before winning the first two against Texas…The two wins against the Rangers increased Baltimore’s winning streak against Texas to eight games dating back to July 4, 2022, their longest winning streak against a single opponent since also winning eight in a row against the Mariners from July 3 to September 19, 2012…The O’s fell to the Rangers in Wednesday’s series finale, 5-2, snapping their streak.

STARTING WITH A BANG: The O’s opened the 2023 season by hitting multiple home runs in each of their first five games, tied for the third-longest streak to start a season by a team since at least 1901 and tied with the 1994 Orioles for the longest streak in club history; the O’s were the only MLB team to start the 2023 campaign with five consecutive multi-homer games…Marked the fifth time in club history that the Orioles homered in each of their first five games to start a season, and first since 2012 (also 5).

STARTING PITCHER – #19 COLE IRVIN LHP

QUICK HITS: Scheduled to make his second start of the season in tonight’s game vs. the New York Yankees…Spent the 2022 season with the Oakland Athletics…Led the team in wins (9), starts (30), innings pitched (181.0), and strikeouts (128)…Posted career-lows in ERA (3.98), opponent batting average (.251), on-base percentage (.293), slugging percentage (.416), and OPS (.709)…Allowed two earned runs or fewer in 17 of his 30 starts…Acquired by the Orioles along with RHP Kyle Virbitsky from Oakland in exchange for SS Darell Hernaiz on January 26, 2023…Originally selected by the Phillies in the fifth round of the 2016 First-Year Player Draft out of Oregon.

LAST TIME OUT: Dealt the loss in his Orioles debut on April 2 at Boston… Allowed six runs on eight hits (1 HR) with two walks and four strikeouts in 4.0+ innings…Threw 88 pitches, 58 strikes, including 32 pitches in the first inning.

CAREER AGAINST THE YANKEES: Making his second career start against the Yankees…Dealt the loss in his only start against New York AL on June 29, 2022, when he allowed five runs on six hits (2 HR) with one walk and five strikeouts in 7.0 innings in the Bronx…Will also be his second career start at Oriole Park; with the Athletics, he earned the win in his first outing at OPACY on April 23, 2021 (5.1 IP, 8 H, ER, BB, 6 K).

AGAINST THE AL EAST: Making his 12th career start (13th appearance) against the AL East…Owns a 4-5 record with a 4.30 ERA (32 ER/67.0 IP) through his first 12 appearances…Started against AL East foes four times in 2022, going 2-1 with a 3.42 ERA (10 ER/26.1 IP) with 15 strikeouts….Faced the Orioles in Oakland on April 19, allowing one run on six hits with four strikeouts to two walks in 5.0 innings of work…Dealt the loss in his last start against the division at Boston on April 2.

HIT IT IF YOU CAN: Irvin relied on his four-seam fastball more than any other pitch in 2022, throwing it 36.1 percent of the time…Opposing batters slashed .222/.263/.387 (51-for-230) against his primary pitch, meaning that he recorded more strikeouts (69) by way of the heater than hits allowed (51)…Irvin induced 121 swings and misses on 941 fastballs for a 12.8 percent swing-and-miss rate.

2022 HIGHLIGHTS: Made his third straight Opening Day roster… Notched career highs in strikeouts (128) and innings (181.0), while his 15 quality starts tied a career-high…Recorded a career-high three consecutive wins from July 15-27…Tallied a career-high 11 strikeouts on August 24 vs. Miami and threw a career-best 105 pitches in his next start on August 30 at Washington…Earned his 20th career win on September 11 vs. Chicago-AL…Tossed 6.0 innings or more in 10 consecutive starts from June 29 to August 19…Went 4-1 with a 1.85 ERA (7 ER/34.0 IP) with 22 strikeouts in five starts in July…Snapped his career-high five-game losing streak on July 4 vs. Toronto.

MLB Preview: Miami Marlins (3-5) at New York Mets (4-4)

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MLB Preview: Miami Marlins (3-5) at New York Mets (4-4)

MIAMI MARLINS NOTES:

MARLINS MINUTE
The Marlins today play the second of three games at Citi Field after dropping Friday’s series opener. Is the first stop on a a six-game road trip – the team’s first road trip of the season – whih concludes with three games in Philadelphia from Monday-Wednesday. Are coming off their season-opening homestand inwhich they went 1-3 vs. the Mets and took two of three from the Twins.

YESTERDAY’S RECAP
Miami fell to the Mets, 9-3 at Citi Field in the Mets’ home opener. 1B Garrett Cooper (2×4) provided all the runs with an eighth-inning three-run homer, his second HR of the year. Marlins pitchers combined to walk 12 batters, matching a club record for a nine-inning game (fourth time). Five of those walked batters came around to score. RHP Edward Cabrera started and did not allow a hit for 2.2 innings, but walked 7 and allowed 2 runs.

JACKIE ROBINSON CLASSIC RETURNS
The Marlins and the Miami Marlins Foundation will host the second annual Jackie Robinson Classic on Wednesday, April 12at 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 drink.

RIDIN’ THE COOP IN THE CITI
1B Garrett Cooper is a career. 280 hitter with 9 home runs aginst the Mets. Marks his most homers against any team. He has hit safely in all four games against the Mets this season and eight straight dating back to 2022, batting .433 (13-30) over the eight-game stretch.

GOOD FIRST IMPRESSIONS
INF Luis Arraez has 12 hits in his first 8 games of the year, tied for second most hits in the National League trailing only Pittsburgh’s Bryan Reynolds (13). His .444 avg. (12×27) ranks 3rd in the NL and 5th in the Majors.

• Became just 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 Sports Bureau).

HOMER TIME
The Marlins have scored 15 of their 18 runs this season via home runs – hitting eight homers total over the first eight games.

SOLER POWER
DH/OF Jorge Soler has homered three times in his first eight games this season. He has driven in 6 of the Marlins 18 runs this season.

NOBODY MESSES WITH THE JESUS
LHP Jesus Luzardo held the Twins to 1 run over 7.0 innings of work in Wednesday’s win. Dating back to last season, has limited opponents to 1 run or noruns in each of his last 4 starts at loanDepot park. Over the stretch, owns a 0.73 ERA (24.2/2) in his home starts, striking out 38 batters.

RING THE BELL
Marlins General Manager Kim Ng and President of Business Operations Caroline O’Connor were joined by ADT Executive Vice President and CMO DeLu Jackson at the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday morning to ring the Opening Bell. The opportunity was extended in recognition of the Marlins’ patch partnership with ADT and to highlight the Marlins organization as the first to be entirely women-led. Marked the first time the Marlins franchise recieved the honor.

THE SANDY SHOW
The 2022 National League Cy Young Award winner RHP Sandy Alcantara tossed his fourth career shutout and 10th career complete game on Tuesday vs. Minnesota in his second start of 2023.

• Marked the fourth time in club history that a Marlins pitcher has thrown a complete game shutout in the first six team games of the season and the first since Dontrelle Willis and Josh Beckett in 2005 in games four and six,respectively. Brad Penny threw a complete game shutout in game three of the 2002 season.

• Is the least amount of games by the club before a complete game since Josh Johnson’s CG on April 12, 2009 vs. NYM (Game 6) and marked the first time in MLB a pitcher has thrown a complete game within the first six games of the season since 2020, when the Cubs’ Kyle Hendricks pitched a complete game shutout on Opening Day (credit: Elias).

• His 6 complete games last year led all of MLB and were the most in a single season since Chris Sale’s 6 CG in 2016.

• Dating back to the start of the 2022 season, Alcantara owns a 2.01 ERA (161.0 IP/36 ER) in games following a loss.

STEALING THE APPLE
The Marlins were successful in 14 of 15 stolen base attempts at Citi Field last year. In fact, the Marlins have been successful in 32 of their 40 stolen base attempts at Citi Field since the start of the 2020 season. Over that same span, since the start of 2020, the Marlins have stolen 150 bases on the road, the most for any team over the stretch (St. Louis, 2nd, 144).

HOME OF EVERYTHING
loanDepot park was once again in the national spotlight earlier today when the Drone Racing League 2023 Championship aired on NBC. The event was filmed at loanDepot park back in February and featured drones flying more than 150 mph through an obstacle course around the ballpark. DRL Rookie pilot MCKFPV from South Korea took home the 2022-23 DRL World Champion title.

TURNING THE TRENDING TIDE
The Marlins are 2-0 in one-run games this season, including Tuesday’s 1-0 victory vs. the Twins.

• Miami played 64 games decided by one run in 2022, the most such games in the Majors last season. Miami’s 40 one-run losses were the most such losses in a season in club history, the most since the 1975 Houston Astros (41), and just three shy of the single-season record for one-run losses during the Live Ball Era (since 1920) held by the 1968 White Sox (44)

TODAY’S STARTER – #28 Trevor Rogers
Walked 2 batters and allowed 3 runs in 4.1 innings on his first start of the season vs. New York Mets.

• Trevor Rogers, 25, made 23 starts in his sophomore campaign coming off a runner-up ROTY season in 2021. Made two separate IL stints, including a season-ending lat strain.

• Recorded his 200th career strikeout against the first batter he faced on April 16, 2022. This made him the first left-hander in MLB history to strikeout 200 hitters in his first 34 games (all coming as starts) while maintaining a career ERA under 3.25. He is just the 12th pitcher to accomplish this feat (All 11 others were right-handed).

• Made 19 starts from the start of the season until July 25 when he was placedon the IL with low back spasms. Allowed three runs or more in 11 of those outings. Pitched to a 5.85 ERA, going 5-14 with 41 walks and 83 strikeouts.

• Held lefties to a .194 batting avg, .296 slugging pct., .584 OPS and just 1 home run (111 BF). Right handed batters hit .299 with a .520 slugging pct., .886 OPS and had 14 home runs (366 BF).

• Struck out a season-high nine batters vs. Texas on Sept. 12. Went 6.1 innings, also a seasonhigh.

• Missed 31 games with low back spasms (July 26 to August 31).

• Has allowed 14 home runs in 106.2 IP in 2022 after allowing 6 in 133.0 IP in 2021.

NEW YORK METS NOTES:

METSCELLANEOUS: The Mets defeated the Marlins, 9-3, yesterday to snap a season-long three-game losing streak…The Mets continue their six game homestand against the Marlins (1-0) and Padres (three games).

THE AWARD GOES TO: Prior to today’s game, McNeil will be presented his 2022 Silver Slugger Award by Mets coaches Eric Chavez, Jeremy Barnes and Eric Hinske…Last season, McNeil earned his first Silver Slugger Award from Louisville Slugger…He became the first Met in franchise history to lead the majors in batting average and only the second Met ever to win the Tony Gwynn National League Batting Title when he hit .326…In addition, the Mets second baseman was named to his second All-Star team and set career highs with 39 doubles and 62 RBI and finished fourth in the NL with a .382 OBP.

HOBIE LANDRITH: The Mets first-round pick in the 1961 Expansion Draft, Hobie Landrith, passed away on Thursday at age 93…Landrith, a left-handed hitting catcher batted .289 in 23 games for the 1962 Mets… He spent parts of 14 years in the majors with the Reds, Giants, Orioles, Cardinals, Senators, Cubs and Mets from 1950-1963…Landrith belted a two-run walk-off homer off Hall of Famer Warren Spahn in the bottom of
the ninth on May 12, 1962 to beat the Milwaukee Braves, 3-2…Manager Casey Stengel when asked why the Mets took Landrith with the first pick (second overall) in the Expansion Draft, famously quipped, “You gotta have a catcher or you’re gonna have a lot of passed balls.”

THE KID: Gary Carter was born on this day in 1954…Carter spent five seasons with the Mets and hit .249/.319/.412 with 89 home runs and 349 RBI in 600 games…He was a member of the 1986 World Champion New York Mets and was an 11-time All-Star, including four appearances with the Mets…Carter was inducted in the Mets Hall-of-Fame in 2001 and the Baseball Hall-of-Fame in 2003…Sadly, Carter passed away in 2012 at the age of 57.

TYLOR THE CREATOR: Tylor Megill tossed 6.0 scoreless innings, allowing three hits, two walks and struck out three yesterday…He moved to 6-0 with a 1.44 ERA (8 ER/39.0 IP) in seven career April starts…He is the only pitcher in the majors to win each of his first two starts of the season over the last two years…His six wins in April since 2022 are the most in the majors during that span…His 1.44 ERA in April is the sixth-best among qualifiers since 2022…He 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.

8 DAYS A WEEK: The Mets have yet to commit an error this season… This sets a franchise record for the longest the team has gone without committing an error…The previous high was the 1985 Mets, who did not commit an error in their first seven games…Last year, the San Diego Padres did not commit an error in their first 17 games to start the season, which was the longest time since 1900.

LET’S GO FISHING: The Mets are 4-1 against the Marlins this season… Tommy Pham is a .305/.382/.500 hitter with 29 runs, eight doubles, a triple, 21 RBI and 13 walks in 27 career games against the Marlins…Starling Marte has hit .288/.341/.424 with 34 runs, 12 doubles, two triples, four homers and 15 RBI in 52 career games against the Fish…Francisco Lindor has socked 10 home runs against the club, while Brandon Nimmo has hit nine…Alonso has smashed 24 home runs in his career against Miami, the third-most among active players and the 13th-most all-time…Is the most in the majors against any one single opponent since 2019.

WALKING THE WALK: The Mets drew 12 walks yesterday, tied for the fourth-most in franchise history in a nine-inning game…The last time was on May 18, 1997 vs. Colorado…The Mets rank second in the majors with 40 free passes this season…Brandon Nimmo ranks second in the majors with 10 walks, while Francisco Lindor is tied for fourth with seven…Yesterday, Nimmo recorded his first career four-walk game and the first by a Met since J.D. Davis drew four walks on September 18, 2020 vs. Atlanta.

KODAI, THE FRIENDLY GHOST: On April 2 in Miami, Kodai Senga became the 64th pitcher whose major league debut came in a start for the Mets…He joined Masato Yoshii as the only two Japanese-born pitchers to make his MLB debut in a start for the Mets…Including Senga, 16 Mets have started and earned a win in their major league debut (eight Mets have won in relief in their MLB debut).

TODAY’S STARTING PTICHER – KODAI SENGA RHP #34
SENGA’S PITCH ARSENAL
Pitch Type Usage Rate vs. LHB vs. RHB Avg. Velocity
Four-Seam Fastball 36.4% 35.0% 37.5% 96.8 mph
Forkball 29.5% 35.0% 25.0% 84.6 mph
Sweeper 20.5% 22.5% 31.3% 82.7 mph
Cutter 13.6% 7.5% 6.3% 90.2 mph

SENGA NEWS & NOTES
LAST TIME OUT: In his major league debut, Senga earned the win on April 2 against the Marlins at loanDepot park…Senga allowed one run over 5.1 innings on three hits, three walks and eight strikeouts…His eight strikeouts were tied for the fourth-most by a Japanese-born pitcher in their major league debut and tied for the third-most by a Mets pitcher in their major league debut.

CITI FIELD DEBUT: Senga is making his Citi Field Debut today against the Miami Marlins after making his MLB debut against the club on April 2…Senga spent the first 11 seasons of his pro career with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball…His desire to play in MLB came from his experience playing against major league stars in the 2017 World Baseball Classic…He enters the season as the 16th-best prospect in baseball according to Baseball America.

MLB DEBUT NOTES: Senga became the 64th pitcher whose major league debut came in a start for the Mets…New York has had one pitcher make his MLB debut as a starter in each of the previous three seasons: José Butto in 2022, Tylor Megill in 2021 and David Peterson in 2020 (the Mets won each of those three games)…Prior to Senga’s debut win, Peterson was the most recent Mets hurler to win as a starter in his major league debut…Overall, 16 Mets have started and earned a win in their major league debut (eight Mets have won in relief in their MLB debut)…Matt Harvey (2012) is the only pitcher in Mets history to record a double-digit strikeout game in his major league debut.

NOW YOU SEE IT, NOW YOU DON’T: Included in Senga’s pitching repertoire is a unique pitch called the ‘ghost fork’…The pitch is so named because its break gives the appearance that it disappears out of the strike zone….All eight of Senga’s strikeouts on April 2 came via the ‘ghost fork.’

METS-JAPAN CONNECTION: Senga is the 14th Japanese-born player to appear in at least one game for the Mets, the most by any major league team…Prior to Senga, the last Japanese-born player to appear in a game for the Mets was OF Norichika Aoki in 2017.

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS: Prior to joining the Mets, Senga spent 11 seasons in Japan’s NPB with the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks…During his NPB career he posted a 87-44 record with a 2.59 ERA (313 ER/1,089.0 IP) and 1,252 strikeouts (10.3 K/9.0)…He was also a three-time NPB All-Star (2013, 2017 and 2019), a two-time Pacific League Best Nine Award winner (2019 and 2020) and a two-time Mitsui Golden Glove Award winner (2019 and 2020).

INTERNATIONAL COMPETITION: Senga appeared in four games in the 2017 World Baseball Classic for Team Japan…He posted a 0.82 ERA, throwing 11.0 innings and allowing one run on seven hits with 16 strikeouts and one walk…He also pitched in two games during the Tokyo Summer Olympics, throwing a total of 3.0 scoreless innings as Japan won the gold medal on its home turf.

2022: Last season, Senga went 11-6 with a 1.94 ERA (31 ER/144.0 IP), 156 strikeouts, a 1.06 WHIP and a 0.4 HR/9 rate over 22 appearances.

MLB Preview: Chicago White Sox (3-5) at Pittsburgh Pirates (5-2)

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MLB Preview: Chicago White Sox (3-5) at Pittsburgh Pirates (5-2)

CHICAGO WHITE SOX NOTES:

WHITE SOX AT A GLANCE
The Chicago White Sox have lost fi ve of their last seven games as they continue a six-game trip tonight in Pittsburgh.

RHP Mike Clevinger, who threw 5.0 scoreless IP in his White Sox debut on 4/2 at Houston, is scheduled to start … Clevinger has never faced the Pirates in his career.

Following this three-game series, the Sox conclude the trip with three contests at Minnesota (4/10-12) before returning home for six games vs. Baltimore (4/14-16) and Philadelphia (4/17-19).

The White Sox went 1-2 on their fi rst homestand vs. San Francisco (4/3-6) after opening the season by splitting four games at Houston from 3/30-4/2.

The White Sox play just three games vs. AL Central teams in April (4/10-12 at the Twins) … from 4/14-30, they play 16 straight games vs. AL/National League East clubs.

TONIGHT’S STORYLINES
 The White Sox are hitting .295/.346/.521 (56-190) through fi ve
road games this season … the Sox have recorded 10-plus hits
in all fi ve games.

White Sox pitchers own the highest ERA in baseball at 7.70 and have allowed 44 runs over the last four games … during that span, Sox starters own a 11.50 ERA (23 ER/18.0 IP) and the bullpen has posted a 10.59 (20 ER/17.0 IP) mark.

The Sox are 9-9 in stolen-base attempts this season.

Mike Clevinger became the third pitcher since 2000 to throw 5.0-plus scoreless IP in his White Sox debut (4/2 at Houston), most recently accomplished by Johnny Cueto on 5/16/22 at Kansas City (6.0) … Clevinger’s eight strikeouts were the most by pitcher in his Sox debut since Francisco Liriano on 7/31/12 at Minnesota (eight).

Yoán Moncada and Luis RoberT Jr. rank among the American League leaders in numerous categories (see boxes at right).

Andrew Vaughn has recorded a RBI in a career-best fi ve straight games, the longest streak by a Sox player since Moncada from 8/15-19/22 (also five).

YESTERDAY’S RECAP

Bryan Reynolds hit a three-run triple off Jimmy Lambert to highlight a decisive five-run fifth inning, and Pittsburgh went on to defeat the White Sox, 13-9, in its home opener.

Lucas Giolito posted a ND, allowing seven runs on a career-high 12 hits over 4.0 IP … Jake Diekman suffered the loss, allowing four runs over 0.1 IP in the fifth inning after the Sox had tied the game at 7-7.

Luis Robert Jr. recorded his fourth career multi-homer game, hitting two-run shots off Rich Hill in the third and fifth innings, and finished with a career-high tying five RBI (second time).

Tim Anderson went 4-5 with two doubles, two stolen bases and four runs scored … Anderson matched his career high in hits (14th time) and runs scored (fourth time), and became the first Sox player since Seby Zavala on 7/31/21 vs. Cleveland to record four hits and four runs scored in one game.

Rookie Oscar Colás hit his first MLB home run in the ninth inning, a solo shot off Will Crowe … Jake Burger was 2-4 with a double, home run and two RBI.

Jesse Scholtens, whose contract was selected from Class AAA Charlotte prior to the game, allowed one run on three hits with four strikeouts over 3.0 IP in his MLB debut.

SOUTHSIDE HITMEN
The White Sox lead the American League in doubles (23) and rank among the leaders in average (2nd, .287), slugging percentage (3rd, .466) and OPS (3rd, .805) … the Sox have recorded a MLB-best 10-plus hits in seven of eight games.

A comparison of the White Sox offense after eight games in 2023 and 2022:
Year AVG AB R R/G H 2B HR SB OBP SLG OPS
2023 .287 296 41 5.1 85 23 10 9 .339 .466 .805
2022 .242 265 35 4.4 64 14 9 6 .279 .404 .682

SOUTHPAW SUCCESS
The White Sox are batting .275/.340/.446 vs. left-handed pitching since the start of the 2019 season … during that span, the Sox lead MLB in average and on-base percentage, rank second in OPS (.786) and fi fth in slugging.

Tim Anderson owns a .354/.384/.565 (141-398) slash line vs. LHP since 2019, while Hanser Alberto is hitting .344/.363/.484 (170-494) … during that span, Anderson and Alberto rank 1-2 in MLB in average vs. LHP.

Luis Robert Jr. is a career .359/.409/.636 (70-195) hitter vs. lefties … Jake Burger owns a .638 slugging percentage vs. LHP.

WHITE SOX VS. PITTSBURGH PIRATES
The White Sox lead the all-time series, 23-19, including a 10- 12 record in Pittsburgh (8-9 at PNC Park).

The Sox have won six of the last eight games since 2020 following an eight-game losing streak from 6/15/15-5/16/18.

The White Sox won three of four games in 2021, splitting two games at PNC Park (6/22/-23) and sweeping a two-game series in Chicago (8/31-9/1)

Andrew Benintendi is a .375/.444/.667 (9-24) hitter with two home runs and 10 RBI in six career games against the Pirates.

INTERLEAGUE INSIGHT
The White Sox are 254-233 (.522) all-time in interleague play (123-121 on road), the seventh-best winning percentage in MLB.

The Sox are 1-3 this season after going 11-9 in 2022 and 14-6 in 2021 … they are 22-13 since 7/25/21.

The White Sox rank second all-time with 611 home runs, trailing only Toronto (647) and the Yankees (616).

HOME AWAY FROM HOME
The White Sox are 46-40 (.535) on the road since the start of the 2022 season, the fi fth-best winning percentage in the American League.

The Sox rank third in the AL during that span with a 3.61 ERA (298 ER/743.2 IP), trailing Houston (3.03) and Cleveland (3.59).

ELVIS BECOMES MR. 2,000
Elvis Andrus became the 290th player in MLB history to record 2,000 hits on Wednesday with a single off Logan Webb.

Andrus ranks fourth among active players with 2,002 hits, trailing only Miguel Cabrera (3,091), Joey Votto (2,093) and Nelson Cruz (2,019) … he has recorded 1,743 hits with Texas, 205 with Oakland and 54 with the White Sox.

CEASE AND DESTROY
Dylan Cease, who fi nished second in the American League Cy Young Award voting last season, has gone 11-6 with a 1.51 ERA (25 ER/148.2 IP) and 174 strikeouts over his last 25 starts dating to 5/29/22.

During that stretch, Cease leads MLB in ERA and opponents average (.167) … he has allowed one or no earned runs in 20 of the 25 starts.

AT THE HELM
Pedro Grifol was named the 42nd diff erent manager in White Sox history on 11/3/22, replacing Hall-of-Famer Tony La Russa … Grifol joins the Sox after a 10-year stint in Kansas City (2013-22), including the last three as the Royals bench coach.

Grifol earned his fi rst victory as Sox manager on Opening Day at Houston (3-2).

He is one of four current Latino managers in MLB, joining Boston’s Alex Cora, St. Louis’ Oliver Marmol and Washington’s Dave Martinez.

Grifol has 23 years of professional baseball experience as a bench coach, hitting coach, winter ball and minor league manager, director of player development and scout

WHITE SOX ROSTER BREAKDOWN
The White Sox 26-man roster includes 13 pitchers (two LHP), two catchers, seven infielders and four outfielders.  INF Elvis Andrus (14.000 entering season) has the most service time, and SS Tim Anderson (2016-) is the longest tenured.

LHP Garrett Crochet (Tommy John recovery) and RHPs Matt Foster (right fl exor strain) and RHP Liam Hendriks (Non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma treatment) are on the 15-day injured list.

BEST ABILITY IS AVAILABILITY
RHP Lance Lynn (21 starts), All-Star SS Tim Anderson (79 games), 3B Yoán Moncada (104) and OFs Eloy Jiménez (84) and Luis Robert Jr. (98) all missed significant time in 2022.

The White Sox projected Opening Day lineup was together for just one game last season, a 3-2 loss on 8/4 at Texas

STARTER #52 MIKE CLEVINGER RHP
CLEVINGER AT A GLANCE
Is scheduled to make his second start of the season, second on the road and first during interleague play. Agreed to terms with Chicago on a one-year, $12-million deal in December (includes a mutual option for 2024). Has appeared in just 32 games (31 starts) since the start of the 2020 season … missed the entire 2021 season to continue his recovery from his second Tommy John surgery … also underwent Tommy John surgery in 2012. Was originally drafted by the Angels in the fourth round of the 2011 MLB Draft … was traded to Cleveland in August 2014 … made 101 major-league appearances (88 starts) with Cleveland from 2016-20 … was traded to San Diego in August 2020, appearing in just 27 games (16 starts) with Padres from 2020-22.

LAST START
Earned his first win as a White Sox on 4/2 at Houston, tossing 5.0 scoreless IP with three hits allowed, three walks and eight strikeouts … is the second pitcher in club history to record at least eight strikeouts over 5.0-plus scoreless IP in his first career outing with the White Sox, joining Bob Weiland (9/30/1928 vs. Philadelphia Athletics, 9.0 IP/9 SO). Departed the game in the sixth with the Sox leading, 3-0 … threw 98 pitches (60 strikes) … the White Sox would go on to win, 6-3. Owned a 65.2 first-strike percentage and 11.2 swinging-strike percentage (13 swing and misses) vs. 23 batters … threw 58 four-seam fastballs (94.7 mph avg; 96.2 mph max), 33 sliders (80.5 avg; 82.4 max), two cutters (82.6 avg; 83.4 max), two changeups (87.1 avg; 88.7 max), two sinkers (92.7 avg; 96.3 max) and one curveball (78.1 max).

2022 SEASON RECAP
Went 7-7 with a 4.33 ERA (55 ER/114.1 IP), .233 (102-437) opponents average and 91 strikeouts over 23 appearances (22 starts) with San Diego. Was 3-3 with a 2.81 ERA (16 ER/51.1 IP) and 49 strikeouts in 10 games (nine starts) from 5/17-8/11. Began the season on the 15-day injured list with a sprained right knee suffered during spring training. Was placed on the 15-day injured list for the second time on 5/22 (retro to 5/21) with a right triceps strain …was reinstated on 6/5 and started that day at Milwaukee (ND, 1 ER/3.0 IP, 5 SO) before going on the COVID-19 related IL from 6/11-16. Earned his 50th career victory on 9/20 vs. St. Louis, allowing three hits over 5.2 scoreless IP.

JUST WIN BABY Dating back to 2022, Clevinger has gone 8-7 with his team going 16-8 in his 24 appearances (23 starts). Is averaging 5.51 runs of support during that span. In his last six outings the Padres and White Sox have gone a combined 5-1, winning four straight, when Clevinger takes the mound.

APRIL LOVE
Has gone 4-0 with a 1.66 ERA (9 ER/48.2 IP), .186 (32-172) opponents average and 42 strikeouts in eight career starts in the month of April … has surrendered one total home run in April, good for a 0.18 HR/9, the second best in baseball among active players (min. 45.0 IP). His 1.66 career ERA in April ranks second among active major-league pitchers (min. 45.0 IP).

COUNTRY ROADS
Is 3-4 with a 6.10 ERA (33 ER/48.2 IP) and .277 (54-195) opponents average over his last 10 road starts. Owns a 27-19, 3.81 ERA (138 ER/326.0 IP), .225 (269- 1,1198) opponents average and 333 strikeouts over 64 career appearances (58 starts) on the road.

START STRONG
Posted a 2.04 ERA (10 ER/44.0 IP) and .173 (27-156) opponents average across the first two innings in 2022, compared to a 5.76 ERA (45 ER/70.1 IP) and .267 (75- 281) mark from the third-seventh. Limited opponents to a .196 (37-189) average the first time through the lineup in 2022, compared to a .244 (43-176) mark the second time through the lineup and a .306 (22-72) average the third time through the order … did not allow a hit until the third inning in his last outing.

VS. PITTSBURGH PIRATES || INTERLEAGUE
Will make his first career start against the Pirates. Is 3-8 with a 4.70 ERA (44 ER/84.1 IP) across 16 career interleague starts … has gone 1-4 with 4.32 ERA (20 R/41.2 IP) over his last eight. Owns a 10-8 career record and 4.35 ERA (65 ER/134.1 IP) in 27 games (26 starts) against the National League.

PITTSBURGH PIRATES NOTES:

THE PIRATES:…Have won four straight games since dropping each of the last two contests of their season-opening series against the Reds at Great American Ball Park…Opened their 137th season as a member of the National League with a 5-4 win against the Reds. GOING THE EXTRA MILE: Bryan Reynolds has recorded an extra base hit in five straight games, which is the longest by any player in MLB so far this season… Reynolds fell a double shy of hitting for the cycle yesterday while playing in the 500th game of his big league career…Reynolds is one of just four Pirates in the modern era (since 1901) to record eight extra base hits within the team’s first seven games along with Barry Bonds (eight in 1988), Tony Peña (eight in 1982) and Charlie Grimm (eight in 1921).

FOUR YOUR INFORMATION: The Pirates bring a four-game winning streak into today…The Pirates won a season-high four games on two occasions last year, doing so from July 9-12 and again from September 12-14…A win tonight would give Pittsburgh its first five-game winning straight since April 14-20, 2019.

SAVING THE DAY: Three different Pirates (David Bednar, Duane Underwood Jr. and Wil Crowe) have combined to record five saves in the team’s first seven games…Prior to this year, the last time three different Pirates recorded a save within the team’s first seven games of a season came in 1993 (Stan Belinda – three, John Candelaria – one and Paul Wagner – one)…Special thanks to the Elias Sports Bureau.

A FAN-TASTIC DAY: Yesterday’s attendance of 39,167 was the largest crowd to see a Pirates game in Pittsburgh since April 3, 2016, when a total of 39,500 fans attended the Home Opener against the Cardinals…The 19 hits were a modern era record (since 1901) for a Pirates Home Opener while the 13 runs score were the second-most ever in a Pirates Home Opener (the Bucs scored 14 runs in both 1953 and 1976).

LEADING THE WAY: Bryan Reynolds enters today with a Major-League leading five home runs and 13 RBI…According to the Elias Sports Bureau, he is the first Pirate to enter a day leading the Majors in homers and RBI since Reggie Sanders on April 4, 2003…Reynolds’ five home runs in the team’s first seven games of the season matches Willie Stargell in 1971 for the most in club history.

LIKE IT WAS SUPPOSED TO HAPPEN: Andrew McCutchen singled in each of his first two at-bats on Friday in his first game back at PNC Park as a Pirate since September 27, 2017…McCutchen is the all-time leader in home runs, hits, runs, RBI, doubles and games played at PNC Park.

EXTRA EXTRA: The Pirates banged out eight extra base hits on Friday, which were the most since recording nine on August 22, 2020, against the Brewers…Pittsburgh’s 25 extra base hits are tied for the fifth-most in the National League (tied for ninth in all of MLB) coming into today.

ABOUT TODAY’S STARTER: Vince Velasquez will make his second start as a member of the Pirates tonight…Velasquez spent the 2022 campaign with the White Sox, where he posted the best walk rate (2.99 percent) of his career while splitting time between the starting rotation and bullpen.

GO JOE: Connor Joe had a career-high tying four hits (also June 16, 2022) in Friday’s game, which included three doubles (the first player in MLB this year to record three two-baggers in a game)…Joe is now 7-for-12 in his first three starts as a member of the Pirates.

AGAINST THE JUNIOR CIRCUIT: The Pirates are 4-0 in a stretch that has the team playing nine straight games against American League opponents..It’s the most consecutive wins in interleague play for the Bucs since also recording a pair of four-game winning streaks in 2019…Pittsburgh’s last winning streak of more than four consecutive streaks against the AL came in 2018 (eight games).

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – 27 – RHP VINCE VELASQUEZ
VINCE VELASQUEZ: The 30-year-old righthander is making his second start of the season tonight…Lost his Pirates debut (4.2ip/3er) on 4/2 at Cincinnati.

vs. CHICAGO (AL): 0-0 in one career start…Will be facing his former team for just the second time…His only other outing came on 6/10/15 as a member of the Astros, where he tossed 5.0 scoreless innings in a no-decision.

MLB Preview: Texas Rangers (4-3) at Chicago Cubs (3-3)

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MLB Preview: Texas Rangers (4-3) at Chicago Cubs (3-3)

TEXAS RANGERS NOTES:

WINS AND LOSSES: Texas lost yesterday’s road opener to the Cubs, 2-0, and club now has a 1-3 record in last 4 G after a 3-0 start…need a win today to avoid falling to a season low point at .500…the current 4-3 record is still the Rangers’ 2nd-best 7-G start in the last 10 years beg. 2014, as only other winning mark over that span came in 2019 (5-2 start)… TEX lost next game in 2019 for a 5-3 start after 8 G…team opened the 2023 campaign with a 3-0 record for just the 9th time in Rangers history, longest season-opening win streak since 2011 (6-0).

• Texas was at a season-high 3 G above .500 (3-0) with win on Sun. vs. PHI, 1st time to be 3-over since a 58-55 mark after losing the 1st game of a doubleheader on 8/7/19 at CLE.

STANDINGS: The Rangers enter today’s slate tied with the Los Angeles Angels (also 4-3, .571) for the A.L. West lead, sitting +1.5 GA of 3rd-place HOU/SEA (3-5, .375)…Texas has been alone or tied atop the division for each of the last 9 days, as this marks the latest date for the club to own even a share of 1st place in the West since the final day of team’s division-winning season in 2016 (10/2/16)…from 2017-22, the Rangers had one day in which it held, or was tied for, 1st place in the West (1-0 on 7/24/20, tied for division lead).

SERIES STUFF: Rangers are 1-1-0 in series this season after a series loss against the O’s this week…the 3-0 finish vs. PHI to open the season marked the 1st time for Texas to win the 1st series of a season since 2019 (won final 2 G of 3-G series 3/28-31 vs. CHC), and the 7th time in club history to open a campaign with a sweep in a series of 3+ G (last 3-0 in 2011 vs. BOS).

• Rangers went 0-5-2 in final 7 road series in 2022, as a 3- finish from 8/20-22/22 at MIN was last away series victory entering this weekend.

VS. CUBS: The Rangers are playing 3 G at Wrigley this weekend to open club’s road slate…this is the 1st of 2 trips to Chicago this season for Texas, also playing White Sox on the South Side from 6/19-21…TEX is 9-10 all-tme vs. Cubs, last matching up in a season-opening series 3/28-31/19 at the former Globe Life Park in Arlington (TEX won 2 of 3 G)… Rangers have not visited Wrigley since dropping 2 of 3 out of AS break, 7/15-17/16…team is 4-6 all-time at Wrigley Field.

INTERLEAGUE: The Rangers have won 3 of 4, 5 of 7, and 13 of last 19 Interleague games beg. 4/30/22…club was 11-9 (.550) vs. N.L. in 2022 after 4 straight losing seasons from 2018-21…TEX has gone 9-6 in road Interleague games since 6/12/21, this after a club-record 11-G road Interleague losing skid from 8/16/20-6/11/21…as a result of this year’s balanced schedule for all 30 clubs – a first since Interleague play was introduced in 1997 – the Rangers are slated to play a record 46 Interleague contests in 2023.

ON THE ROAD: Dating back to 2022, Texas has dropped 6 straight away games, going 4-15 on the road beg. 9/1/22… team was 34-47 (.420) overall in away games last year, winning back-to-back road games just twice over the season’s final 3 months.

• Rangers’ loss yesterday dropped club to 20-32 all-time in 1st road game of a season, losing 4 straight, 10 of 11, 11 of 13, 17 of 20, and 20 of last 24 road openers.

I WILL BE RIGHT HERE WAITING FOR YOU: In winning the 1st 2 G of the season against Philadelphia, the Rangers batted .375 with 5 HR and 27 R, posing a 1.080 OPS figure… in the 5 G since that start, TEX is batting .183 (28-153) with 4 HR and 9 R, posing a .518 OPS figure…club has scored 2-R-or-less in 4 of those 5 games.

BLANKED: TEX has been shut out in back-to-back series openers (Mon. vs. BAL and yesterday at CHC), matching a club record for most SHO suffered within the 1st 7 G of a season (2x in 1972, 1991, 2015, 2023)…team sustained 3rd SHO in 8th game in 1991.

TOUGH LUCK EOVALDI: Nathan Eovaldi fell one out short of a quality start yesterday, as Adolis García nearly made a lunging catch to end the 6th inning…Eovaldi (5.2 IP, 2 R-ER) ended up tagged with the 2-0 defeat, the 2nd time in 4 G for a TEX starter to take a 2-0 loss with 5.2+ IP and 2-R-or-less allowed (also Jon Gray on Mon. vs. BAL: 6.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R-ER).

BULLPEN AGAIN: With 2.1 SHO IP yesterday, the Texas bullpen has now posted a streak of 23.2 consecutive scoreless innings since a run against Jonathan Hernández in the 7th inning on Opening Day, 3/30 vs. PHI…according to STATS LLC, it is the 4th-longest scoreless streak by TEX relievers dating to at least 1974.

• The Texas bullpen leads MLB in relief ERA (0.67), opp. BA (.133), and WHIP (0.74), remaining one of 2 teams whose relievers have yet to allow a HR (also BOS).

LONGEST SCORELESS STREAKS
BY TEXAS RELIEVERS SINCE 1974
IP Dates
28.1 5/1/08 (9th inn)-5/10/08 (2nd inn)
26.1 9/9/90 (6th inn)-9/17/90 (8th inn)
25.1 7/12/13 (4th inn)-7/23/13 (8th inn)
23.2 3/30/23 (8th inn)-current

STARTERS TOO: In 3 G this season in which the TEX rotation has received more than one run of support, starters have posted a 3-0 record…yesterday’s effort by Eovaldi was the 5th time in the 1st 7 G for a Texas starter to pitch 5.0+ IP while allowing 3-or-fewer runs…team had not seen 5 such instances over a season’s 1st 7 G since 2016 (7x in 7 G).

DOESN’T THAT MAKE IT OUR TIME?: Since opening the year with games lasting 3:04 and 3:10, Texas has played 5 consecutive games in 2:30-or-less…according to Stathead, this is the 1st time TEX has played 5 straight games lasting 2:30-or-less since September 1984 (5 G, 9/26-30/1984)…
club also had a 7-G streak of that kind in ‘84 (7 G, 8/25- 9/1/1984)…TEX had a total of 9 G in all of 2022 lasting 2:30-or-less.

THESE DAYS: With 3 day games this weekend at Wrigley, the Rangers are in a span of playing 4 consecutive day contests…club also had 4 straight day games in 2022 (6/3-7/22), as a doubleheader on 6/7/22 at CLE had a pair of games categorized as day tilts…last instance of 4 day games over

4 separate days for Texas came to open the 2021 season:
4/1-4 at KC and 4/5 vs. TOR.
• TEX is 3-1 in day games in ‘23, as team had scored 5+ R in each of 1st 3 day tilts prior to yesterday’s shutout.

THE WEATHER’S FINE: Yesterday’s 43-degree first pitch matched the coldest start for any Rangers game since the beginning of 2019…the only other game with that cold of a start for TEX in that span was also an April contest here in Chicago, a 43-degree start on 4/25/21 at CWS.

ON YOUR TV: While today’s game will be carried as a regular Bally Sports Southwest broadcast in the Rangers’ TV market, an additional national broadcast will be available on FS1, with Kenny Albert and Eric Karros calling the game remotely.

LEODY TAVERAS went 0-for-3 over 7 innings in CF last night on rehab assignment with Frisco (AA)…see today’s minor league report for more info on the farm system.

SHORTS: Bruce Bochy has 2007 career wins as a manager, one shy of tying Hall of Famer Leo Durocher (2008 wins) for 11th place on the all-time list…it was announced yesterday that RHP Jake Odorizzi had a debridement procedure on his right shoulder on Wednesday morning, with the season-ending surgery performed by Rangers Team Physician Dr. Keith Meister in Arlington…Martín Pérez enters today with a 59.0-IP homerless streak that is the 3rd-longest active streak in MLB (61.2 IP-Jose Quintana, 60.0 IP-Shohei Ohtani)

TODAY’S STARTING PITCHER – #54 Martín Pérez, RHP (1-0, 1.59)
TODAY: Pérez, who turned 32 years old on Tues., is scheduled to make his 2nd start of the season today in game 2 of 3 here on the North Side…will work on extra 5 days’ rest after he earned the win in his 2023 debut on Sun. vs. PHI (5.2 IP, 1 R-ER), a 2-1 Rangers’ victory that completed a season-opening series sweep of the Phillies (3-0)…no home runs allowed in last 9 starts (beg. 8/24/22), tied with LAA’s Shohei Ohtani for the longest active homer-less streak among MLB starting pitchers…made 2 starts for Venezuela in the 2023 World Baseball Classic, posting no record and a 9.82 ERA (4 ER/3.2 IP)…after returning to the Rangers on a one-year free agent deal for 2022, he elected to stay with Texas in 2023 on a oneyear deal after accepting the club’s qualifying offer in November…spent the first 11 seasons of his professional career with the Rangers (2008-18), and has now been with the organization for 12 of his 15 years as a pro…left the club for 3 years for brief stints with Minnesota (2019) and Boston (2020-21)…has a 56-57 record with a 4.26 ERA over 174 games/161 starts in his Rangers career, ranking among club’s all-time leaders in starts (7th), wins (11th), and strikeouts (12th, 638)… since 2016, his first full campaign after returning from ‘Tommy John’ surgery, has the 2nd-most starts (176) and 3rd-most innings (1012.1) of any American League pitcher…saw two seasons cut short in 2014-15 following ‘Tommy John’ ligament reconstruction surgery on his left elbow on 5/19/14…also missed time in 2018 after suffering a broken right (non-throwing) elbow.

SEASON DEBUT: Earned the win in his 2023 debut on Sun. vs. PHI (W, 5.2 IP, 8 H, 1 R-ER, 3 BB, 7 SO, 98 pitches/60 strikes), guiding Texas to a 2-1 victory which finished off a season-opening series sweep of the Phillies (3-0)…allowed 8 hits and 3 walks while recording 7 strikeouts, which would have been his T3rd-highest strikeout total of the 2022 campaign…was scoreless thru 3.0 innings before Nick Castellanos scored on a double play grounded into by Josh Harrison in the 4th, one of 2 GIDPs induced by Pérez on the day…allowed just 3 batted balls with exit velo. of 95.0+ mph (Statcast)…became the first Ranger to throw 98+ pitches in a season debut since Mike Minor on 7/25/20 vs. COL (98 pitches, 5.0 IP).

I GOT FIVE ON IT: Has logged at least 5.0 IP in each of his last 31 starts (beg. 4/23/22), the longest such streak ever by a Texas left-hander and 6th-longest in club history overall: 56-Yu Darvish (2012-14), 41-Lance Lynn (2019- 20), 37-Nolan Ryan (1989-90), 32-Colby Lewis (2003-10)/Kevin Brown (1991- 92), 31-Pérez (2022-23)…2nd-longest active streak of 5.0+ IP to a 33-start run by Max Scherzer (beg. 8/15/21)…has gone 13-6, 2.69 ERA (58 ER/194.0 IP) during the streak, ranking among A.L. leaders over that span in IP (5th) and wins (T9th).

VS. CHICAGO-NL / INTERLEAGUE: Today’s start will be just the 2nd of Pérez’s career against the Cubs, with the other coming in a 6-0 Rangers’ defeat here at Wrigley Field on 7/15/16 (L, 5.2 IP, 6 H, 6 R-5 ER, 2 BB, 1 SO, 89 pitches/58 strikes)…permitted just one run through first 5.0 innings of that outing before the Cubbies sent 10 men to the plate in a 5-run 6th inning.

• Pérez, who has spent his entire 12-year Major League career in the American League, owns a lifetime 13-12 record and 4.13 ERA (100 ER/218.0 IP) over 41 G/36 GS in Interleague play…went 3-1, 1.82 (6 ER/29.2 IP) in 5 starts vs. National League clubs in 2022, earning wins in each of his last 3 outings against teams from the Senior Circuit…matched the Texas single-season record for Interleague wins (11x, last 3-0 by Jonathan Hernández in 2020).

KING OF THE ROAD: Saw slightly better results in 16 road starts (7-4, 2.86 ERA) than in 16 starts in Arlington (5-4, 2.92 ERA) last season…ranked among A.L. road leaders in quality starts (T4th, 12), ERA (6th), and wins (T11th)…opened the 2022 campaign with club-record 25.0 consecutive scoreless innings on the road…Rangers went 10-0 in Pérez’s first 10 away outings last season, tied for the longest season-opening road undefeated streak by a starting pitcher in WSH/ TEX franchise history (also 10, A.J. Griffin from 4/8-8/9/16)…Pérez’s career ERA splits are nearly identical on the road (4.41) vs. at home (4.43), though his home win pct. (.532, 41-36) is significantly higher than his road mark (.461, 35-41).

2022: Pérez produced career bests in ERA (2.89), strikeouts (169), and WHIP (1.258) while being selected to the All-Star Game for the first time…just 3rd MLB pitcher since 2013 to post first career qualifying sub-3.00 ERA in his 11th-orlater MLB season, joining José Quintana (2.93 in 2022) and John Lackey (2.77 in 2015) – credit Elias Sports Bureau…posted his 4th career CG and 3rd career CG SHO on 5/20 at HOU, 1st CG SHO by a Ranger since Kyle Gibson on 9/16/20 at HOU…over 15 starts from 5/10-7/29, produced a career-best streak of 9 straight winning decisions, T4th-longest win streak in Rangers history (12-Cole Hamels, 2015-16; 12-Bobby Witt, 1990; 11-Fergie Jenkins, 1978-79; 9-Pérez, 2022; 9-Kenny Rogers, 2005)…from 4/23-8/3, had streak of 19 consecutive starts without taking a loss, which is tied for longest run in WSH/TEX franchise history (also Hamels in 2015-16).

CHICAGO CUBS NOTES:

OPEN AND SHUT CASE: The Chicago Cubs today play the second of three games against the Texas Rangers after winning yesterday’s series opener 2-0 as Marcus Stroman tossed 6.0 shutout innings, Cody Bellinger had a two-out RBI-single in the fourth and Ian Happ delivered a two-out RBI-double in the sixth … Mark Leiter Jr. picked up a hold with a shutout seventh inning while Michael Fulmer recorded the team’s first save of
the season with 2.0 shutout innings.

With a shutout of the Brewers on Opening Day (4-0) and yesterday’s blanking of the Rangers, the Cubs have recorded two shutouts within their first six games of the season for the first time since 1938, and for just the fourth time since 1901 … besides this year and 1938, the Cubs also recorded two shutouts within their frist six games in 1929 and 1908.

Following this three-game set vs. Texas the homestand continues with three contests against the Seattle Mariners.

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 … in fact, the Cubs now play 29-straight games outside of the division until hosting the Cardinals for three games, May 8-10.

RISPY BUSINESS: Chicago is hitting .327 (18-for-55) with runners in scoring position, the fourth-best mark in the majors behind Tampa Bay (.388), Texas (.349) andMilwaukee (.333) … Cody Bellinger is 5-for-13 with RISP, Eric Hosmer is 3-for-6 and Trey Mancini is 3-for-7.

Cubs pitching has allowed a .286 opponent batting average, the fourth-highest mark among N.L. pitching staffs.

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 217-219 (.498) all-time against the A.L. since interleague play began in 1997 … the team was 6-14 (.300) in interleague play last season. © Ian Happ and Patrick Wisdom are tied for 10th among Cubs hitters all-time with 11 home runs apiece in interleague play … Derrek Lee is ninth with 12.

AGAINST THE RANGERS: Cody Bellinger has hit .355 (11-for-31) with three homers and eight RBI in nine career regular season games against the Rangers, posting a .487 OBP and .774 slugging mark … Eric Hosmer has the most extensive experience among Cubs position players against Texas, having played 58 games against the Rangers (has hit .255, 54-for-212 with 11 home runs and 31 RBI).

THIS AND THAT: Cody Bellinger is 5-for-12 with two runs scored, a homer, five RBI and two walks in his last three games since April 3 after starting the campaign 0-for-11 with a walk in his first three games.

Eric Hosmer has reached safely seven times in 13 plate appearances in his last three games with five hits and two walks, driving in four in that span.

Ian Happ’s .556 OBP in the season’s early going is second in the N.L. behind only Milwaukee’s Brian Anderson (.593) … Dansby Swanson’s .500 OBP is tied for fifth.

Happ’s 1.256 OPS is sixth in the N.L. while Patrick Wisdom’s .737 slugging mark is eighth.

RUCK ON THE BUMP: Cubs reliever Michael Rucker has stranded all five runners he’s inherited thus far … he’s one of just three major league relievers to not allow an inherited runner to score while also stranding at least five on base … he joins Pittsburgh’s Dauri Moreta (5 IR/0 IRS) and Arizona’s Drey Jameson (5 IR/0 IRS).

WORKING OVERTIME: Michael Fulmer yesterday recorded the team’s first save of the season while tossing 2.0 shutout innings to preserve a 2-0 victory over Texas … it marked Fulmer’s first save with at least 2.0 innings pitched since Sept. 15, 2021 while with Detroit over the Brewers.

WE’LL NEED THIS IN TRIPLICATE: The Cubs had four players record three-hit games Tuesday night in Cincinnati: Nico Hoerner, Ian Happ, Cody Bellinger and Patrick Wisdom … it’s just the fifth time since 2015 Chicago had four or more players each record three or more hits in a game – previously done June 30 of last season against the Reds (Higgins, Hoerner, Morel and Wisdom).

DISHING ON DANSBY: Dansby Swanson has hit .417 in the season’s early going, the seventh-best average in the N.L. … Swanson is 5-for-11 when dealing with a two-strike count … since the start of last season, his 77 hits with two strikes in the count is tied for third most in the N.L.

WAY TO GET ON THE BOARD: Cubs outfielder Cody Bellinger snapped a season-opening 0-for-11 with a three-run first-inning home run Monday night in Cincinnati … he’s the first player to homer to end a drought of at least 11 at-bats to open his Cubs career since, well, just two years ago – Joc Pederson collected his first hit, a home run, on April 7, 2021, vs. Milwaukee after going hitless in his first 15 at-bats as a Cub.

WORD TO THE WISE: Patrick Wisdom on Sunday recorded his sixth career multi-homer effort, going 2-for-4 with two solo shots against the Brewers at Wrigley Field … since the start of the 2021 season, Wisdom has averaged one home run every 15.02 at-bats, the third-best rate among N.L. hitters with at least 900 plate appearances (Kyle Schwarber, 11.96, and Pete Alonso, 14.68). © Wisdom’s 55 homers since the start of the 2021 season are 13th-most among N.L. hitters.

Starting Pitcher – #35 LHP Justin Steele (0-0, 0.00)
Last Time Out
Justin received his sixth-straight no-decision, but made a quality start, tossing 6.0 scoreless innings with eight strikeouts and just three hits allowed … he has made a quality start in four of his last five outings on the mound, has tallied five-plus strikeouts in seven-straight starts since July 28, 2022 (53 total).
Justin is making his second start of the 2023 season after his season debut, April 1 vs. Milwaukee (0 ER/6.0 IP) … has posted a 0.84 ERA (4 ER/42.2 IP) since July 22, 2022, the lowest ERA in the majors during the run (min. 6 GS). Went 1-1 with a 2.63 ERA (4 ER/13.2 IP) with 13 strikeouts in four Cactus League starts in 2023 … started and tossed the first 2.0 innings of the Cubs combined nohitter, March 3 at San Diego.

2022 Splits and Season Notes
W-L ERA G GS IP H R ER BB SO
Home 3-4 2.78 14 14 71.1 62 24 22 28 70
Road 1-3 3.78 10 10 47.2 49 29 20 22 56
AVG vs. LHB: .232 (23-for-99) / AVG vs. RHB: .248 (88-for-355)
Justin in 24 starts in 2022 went 4-7 with a 3.18 ERA (42 ER/119.0 IP), 50 walks and 126 strikeouts … finished among the team leaders in strikeouts (1st), strikeouts per batter faced (1st, 4.06), HR per 9.0 IP (1st, 0.61) and innings pitched (2nd, 119.0).

His season was cut short when he was put on the Injured List Sept. 2 with a low back strain.

Posted a 2.78 ERA (22 ER/71.1 IP) at Wrigley Field, allowing two or fewer earned runs in 10 of his 14 starts.

Became the first Cub draftee with a 10-strikeout game since Jeff Samardzjia (May 16, 2014 at San Francisco).

On Aug. 5 vs. Miami, became the second starter in Cubs history to record 10-ormore strikeouts in 4.2-or-fewer innings pitched (also Bill Caudill, August 17, 1979 vs San Diego) … also joined Miami’s Trevor Richards as the only pitchers in MLB history to allow no runs and strike out 10 batters in 4.2-or-fewer innings.

Became the 11th lefthander in Cubs history to strike out nine-plus batters in consecutive outings, May 15-21.

© In July and Aug. combined, made nine starts and posted a 1.46 ERA (8 ER/49.1 IP), which leads the majors in the stretch (min. 45.0 IP) … his 0.96 ERA (3 ER/28.0 IP) in the month of August was fourth-lowest in the majors during that span.

Career Notes
Justin is in his 10th season in the Cubs organization … is 8-11 with a 3.41 ERA (69 ER/182.0 IP) in 45 games (34 starts) after making his MLB debut in 2021.

Owns a career 18-23 minor league record with a 3.44 ERA (133 ER/348.0 IP) over 89 outings (80 starts).

Was added to the Cubs 40-man roster Nov. 20, 2018.

Received Carolina League mid-season All-Star honors in 2017, as he went 6-7 with a 2.92 ERA (32 ER/98.2 IP) over 20 starts with Single-A Myrtle Beach.

Was named a MiLB.com Cubs Organizational All-Star in both 2015 and 2017.

Selected by the Cubs in the fifth round of the 2014 draft out of George County High School in Lucedale, Miss.

Was named 5A Player of the Year in Mississippi by coaches in 2014 and won the Mississippi Hall of Fame Award for High School Baseball the same season.

Was committed to the University of Southern Mississippi before signing with the Cubs.

MLB Preview: Cincinnati Reds (3-3) at Philadelphia Phillies (2-5)

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MLB Preview: Cincinnati Reds (3-3) at Philadelphia Phillies (2-5)

CINCINNATI REDS NOTES:

REDS HOTS
• Reds manager David Bell is expected to return to the bench today following a minor medical procedure that prevented him from attending yesterday’s game.

• In 2022, the Reds didn’t earn their third win until the 16th game (4/24) and didn’t win their fourth until the 26th game (5/7)…began last season 3-22 to become only the third team in in modern Major League history to begin a season with as few as 3 wins over the first 25 games (1988 Orioles 2-23, 2003 Tigers 3-22).

TODAY’S GAME
• Is Game 2 (0-1) of 3-game series vs Elyssa Kaplan’s Phillies and Game 2 (0-1) of the Reds’ first road trip of the season, a 7-day, 6-game jaunt that concludes with a 3-game set at Atl.

• The Reds are coming off a season-opening 3-2 homestand vs the Pirates (2-1) and Cubs (1-1, 1ppd).

SERIES NOTES
• With a minimum of 50 games played, the Reds’ .323 winning percentage at Phi’s Citizens Bank Park (20-42) is their lowest at any road ballpark.

• The Reds went 3-13-2 in their 18 previous series vs the Phillies at CBP, their only series wins here in August 2006, May 2017 & August 2021.

• Since May 2014, the Reds have lost 18 of their last 25 games at CBP.

BRAVES UP NEXT
• The Reds are 25-23 vs Atl in the last 48 regular season games, including 3-4 in 2022, and went 4-2-1 in the previous 7 season series.

• The Reds went 2-1-2 in their previous 5 regular season series at SunTrust/Truist Park, including a 5-3 win on 8/18/17 in their inaugural
game at the new ballpark.

• The Reds also suffered a 2-game series sweep loss at Truist in the 2020 Wild Card Series. • The 7-6 loss in the second game of the 2022 season, at Truist Park, was the Reds’ 1,000th loss to the Braves since 1900.

• From 1997-2016 the Reds went 27-42 at Turner Field and didn’t win a series at that ballpark after 9/4-9/6, 2009 (0-3-4 in 7 series, 8-14 in 22 games).

REHABBING
• 1B Joey Votto (8/19/22 surgeries to repair the left biceps and torn rotator cuff in his left shoulder) is with Louisville on a rehabilitation assignment (5g, 5gs at 1B, 3-20, .150, solo HR, 3bb, 12k)…began his rehab Sat at Nashville and hit a solo HR off Caleb Boushley on the first pitch he was thrown.

• IF/OF Nick Senzel (11/14/22 surgery to repair a sesamoid fracture in his left great toe) is with Louisville on a rehabilitation assignment (3g, 1gs in CF, 1gs at 3B, 1gs at DH, 2-10, .200, 1 2b, 1rbi, 3bb, 2k, 1hbp).

• RHP Tony Santillan (low back Pars stress fracture)…is rehabbing with Louisville (2g, 2ip, 1bb, 3k)…threw a perfect seventh inning in last night’s 5-3 loss vs Indianapolis (1ip, 1k, 11 pitches).

• RHP Luke Weaver (right elbow flexor strain) is working out with Louisville.

• RHP Lucas Sims (low back spasms) this weekend could begin working out in Cincinnati.

2022: A SEASON OF RECORDS
• 66 players appeared in at least 1 game for Reds, a new club record for number of players in a season…the previous franchise record was held by the 2003 Reds (57 players).

• 38 players pitched in at least 1 game for the Reds, a new club record for number of pitchers in a season and including position players Matt Reynolds (2g), Max Schrock (1g) and Alejo Lopez (3g).

• 17 pitchers started at least 1 game for the Reds, tying the 2003 club record for number of starters in a season.

• Reds pitchers hit 110 batters, a new Major League single-season record (2021 Cubs pitchers, 98hbp)…the previous club record for batters hit by Reds pitchers in a season was 80 in 2005.

• 10 Reds pitchers recorded at least 1 save (Ross Detwiler, Alexis Díaz, Buck Farmer, Ian Gibaut, Joel Kuhnel, Dauri Moreta, Tony Santillan, Lucas Sims, Hunter Strickland, Art Warren), tying the 2021 single-season franchise record.

• Reds pitchers made 574 relief apps, just 5 shy of the 2021 single-season franchise record.

2022 YOUNG GUNS
• In 62 combined starts, Reds rookie starting pitchers RHP Hunter Greene, LHP Nick Lodolo and RHP Graham Ashcraft went 14-26, 4.34 (334ip, 161er)…all 3 made their Major League debuts in 2022.

• 6 times in 2022 the Reds started rookie pitchers in 3 straight games (last, 7/31-8/2, Lodolo, Greene, Ashcraft).

• In LHP Reiver Sanmartin (Game 2), Greene (Game 4) and Lodolo (Game 6), in 2022 the Reds used as many as 3 rookie starting pitchers in the first 6 games of a season for only the second time in their history…the 1902 Reds staff used 3 rookie starting pitchers in their first 5 games, and 4 of their first 6 games that season were started by rookie pitchers (Bob Ewing 2 starts, Len Swormstedt, Martin Glendon).

2022 MISCELLANEOUS
• SS Kyle Farmer last year was the Reds’ Most Valuable Player and Good Guy Award winner…RHP Alexis Díaz was the club’s 2022 Most Outstanding Pitcher.

• SS Kyle Farmer and RHP Hunter Strickland were the only players to spend the entire season on the roster without a stint on an injured list

This Afternoon’s Pitcher – #40 Nick Lodolo, LHP
• This afternoon is making his second start of the season…will be his third career apppearance and start vs the Phillies, his second at Citizens Bank Park.

• Started the second game of the season and earned the 6-2 win vs the Pirates.

• In his 2022 Major League debut season received 2 third-place votes in the BBWAA’s Jackie Robinson Award voting for National League Rookie of the Year.

• In 2022 ranked among the National League rookie pitching leaders in ERA (4th, 3.66), wins (T5th, 4), strikeouts (3rd, 131), starts (T3rd, 19), innings pitched (5th, 103.1), opponents’ BA (4th, .235) and WHIP (3rd, 1.25).

• Led all Major League pitchers in hit batters (19), 4 shy of Jake Weimer’s 1907 single-season franchise record.

• Went 1-2, 5.52 in his first 3 career starts, but then from 4/28-7/4 missed 69 days and 61 games while on the injured list with a lower right back strain…was transferred from the 15- to the 60-day injured list on 6/21, when IF Donovan Solano came off the 60-day IL.

• Following 4 rehabilitation starts from 6/13-6/29 at ACL Reds (1gs) and Louisville (3gs), came off the injured list on 7/5 and finished the season 3-5, 3.35 over 16 starts.

• In his last 9 starts of the season beginning 8/17 went 1-3, 2.75 (55.2ip, 35h, 17er, 15bb, 67k, 6hr, .182baa, 0.90whip)…the Reds went 3-6 in those 9 starts.

• Beginning 8/17, finished the season ranked among the National League leaders in that span in starts (T3rd), innings pitched (T5th), ERA (8th), strikeouts (7th), opponents’ BA (4th) and WHIP (5th).

• On 9/9 at Mil (8ip, 0bb, 11k) and 9/14 vs Pit (6.1ip, 0bb, 11k) became only the second rookie since 1893, the year the pitching mound was moved to its current distance, to record in consecutive apps 0 walks and at least 11 strikeouts, joining Dwight Gooden (9/12 & 9/17, 1984, 16k vs Pit, 16k at Phi).

• Is only the third Reds rookie since 1900 to record in consecutive apps at least 11 strikeouts, joining Gary Nolan (6/1 & 6/7, 1967, 12k vs Cubs, 15k vs SF) and Bruce Berenyi (8/24 & 8/29, 1981, 12k vs NYM, 11k at NYM).

• Was selected by the Reds in the first round (7th overall) of the June 2019 first-year player draft…was signed by Paul Scott…was Texas Christian University’s highest-ever baseball draft pick.

PHILADELPHIA PHIILIES NOTES:

GAME #7 RECAP: 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 … Starter Zack Wheeler (ND) went 5.1 innings and allowed 2 runs on 5 hits with 3 walks and 5 strikeouts … Trea Turner had 2 hits and scored twice, J.T. Realmuto and Edmundo Sosa both homered and Andrew Bellatti, Gregory Soto, Jose Alvarado and Craig Kimbrel made scoreless appearance in relief of Wheeler.

BEDLAM AT THE BANK: Yesterday marked the 20th home opener in the history of Citizens Bank Park (since 2004) … During the 2022 postseason, the Phillies went 6-2 in eight games (.750 win %) at CBP, outscoring the opposition 44-23 (+21 run differential) … The Phillies posted an .839 OPS in 284 combined plate appearances at home during the postseason and slugged 18 home runs (2.25 per game, .508 SLG) … Philadelphia’s 18 home runs at their home park rank T-1st in MLB history during the postseason with the 2017 Astros (2020 Rays hit 23 HR but games were held at neutral sites due to the COVID-19 pandemic) … Overall, there have been 138 teams in MLB history to play at least five postseason games in a single postseason at home – the 2022 Phillies rank 2nd out of those 138 clubs with an average of 2.25 home runs per game (HOU in 2020, neutral site, 2.40 HR/G) … Last year, the Phillies became only the eighth team in MLB history to win each of their first six postseason games at home … All-time in the postseason at CBP, the Phillies are 22-11 (.667 win %) with a +63 run differential (178-115) … Since Oct. 3, 2007, the day CBP hosted its first postseason game, Philadelphia’s .667 winning percentage during the postseason at home is best in MLB (min. 25 G) – the Astros at Minute Maid Park rank 2nd (.625), Red Sox at Fenway 3rd (.649), Giants at Oracle 4th (.643) and Dodgers at Dodger Stadium 5th (.623).

CITIZENS BANK SPARK: Since July 27, 2022, the Phillies have played 40 games at Citizens Bank Park (regular and postseason combined) – they have won 29 of them (.725 winning %) … Among all MLB clubs since July 27, 2022, Philadelphia’s .725 winning percentage at home (regular and postseason combined) ranks 2nd in MLB to only Atlanta (24-6, .800 win %).

SLAMMING ED SOSA: Since joining the Phillies at last year’s trade deadline, INF Edmundo Sosa has played in 30 regular season games and is slashing .323/.348/.615 with a .963 OPS in 70 plate appearances with 12 extra-base hits (8 2B, 3B, 3 HR) … Sosa, who hit his first career pinch-hit home run yesterday off Reiver Sanmartin, has made 16 career regular season starts for the Phillies – they are 11-5 in those games and he is slashing .346/.364/.654 with a 1.017 OPS as a starter for the Phils.

STRIKE ONE, STRIKE TWO, GOOD LUCK: Phillies LHP Jose Alvarado extended his career-best scoreless streak to 16.2 innings yesterday (17 G, since 8/26/22) … Over that stretch, he has struck out 31 of the 56 batters he has faced (55.4 %) while walking only three (5.4%) and holding them to a .077/.127/.077 slash line … This season, Alvardo has struck out eight of the first 10 batters he has faced – he is the first Phillies pitcher in the expansion era (since 1961) to strike out eight of their first 10 batters faced (Chris Short in 1964 and Rod Reed in 1983 struck out 7 of 10) … Prior to Alvarado, the last MLB pitcher to strike out eight of the first 10 batters faced in a season was Aroldis Chapman in 2021.

THE QUEST FOR 400: In yesterday’s 5-2 Phils win, RHP Craig Kimbrel recorded the 395th save of his career … With five more saves, Kimbrel would become only the sixth pitcher in the history of the sport to reach the 400 save milestone, joining Hall-of-Famers Mariano Rivera (652), Trevor Hoffman (601) & Lee Smith (478) and Francisco Rodriguez (437), John Franco (424) & Billy Wagner (422).

TOOLS OF BRILLIANCE: Since the second half of the 2022 season, J.T. Realmuto is slashing .307/.364/.581 with a .945 OPS, 15 HR and 48 RBI in 66 games (264 PA) … This year, he has caught three of eight would-be base stealers (37.5%) and has four of the top 10 fastest pop times to second base among MLB catchers, including the fastest (1.76 seconds on 4/2 at TEX) … 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).

FLAGS FLY FOREVER: The Phillies were National League champions in 2022 for the eighth time in franchise history (1915, 1950, 1980, 1983, 1993, 2008, 2009, 2022) … The road to the pennant began with a twogame sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals in the Wild Card Series at Busch Stadium, followed by a three-gamesto-one Division Series win over the Atlanta Braves and a victory over the San Diego Padres in the NLCS, four games to one, clinching the series with three straight wins at Citizens Bank Park … In the Fall Classic, the Phillies fell to the Houston Astros in six games; it was only the second postseason meeting between the two clubs, the first being the 1980 NLCS …On May 31, the Phillies were eight games under .500 at 21-29 with a .420 winning percentage that ranked 11th in the National League and 22nd in MLB … Starting June 1, the Phillies went 66-46, 20 games over .500 with a .589 winning percentage that ranked 4th in the NL and 7th in baseball … The Phillies clinched their first postseason berth since 2011 with a 3-0 win against the Astros on Oct. 3 … The Phillies became only the fifth team in MLB history to start 21-29 or worse through their first 50 games and then make the World Series, joining the 2019 Washington Nationals (19-31 start), 2005 Houston Astros (18-32 start), 2003 Florida Marlins (21-29) and 1914 Boston Braves (20-30).

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 – BAILEY FALTER  LHP #70
LAST START: 4/2 at TEX: L, 5.1 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 HR, HR … Falter vs Perez … The Phillies fell to the Texas Rangers, 2-1 … Trea Turner, Edmundo Sosa and Bryson Stott all had two hits but the Phillies went just 1-for- 8 with RISP … Andrew Bellatti, Connor Brogdon and Gregory Soto all made scoreless appearances in relief.

TONIGHT’S START:
Walk It Out: Falter did not walk a batter in his season debut, marking the 7th time in his last 9 starts he has not issued a walk (since 8/26/22) … In that span, he has walked only 4 of the 177 batters he has faced (2.3% walk rate) … There have been only 9 other unique Phillies pitchers since at least 1901 to walk 4 or fewer in a span of 9 starts: Cliff Lee (14x), Jon Lieber (5x), Terry Mulholland, Rick Wise (4x), Jim Bunning (2x), Robin Roberts (3x), Snipe Hansen (2x), Bill Hubbell (3x) and Bill Duggleby (2x) … That 2.3% walk rate is the lowest among all NL pitchers with at least 175 batters faced since 8/26/22, and among the 71 ML pitchers with at least 175 batters faced, trails only Shane Bieber’s 2.0% … The next closest ML pitcher in that span is Ross Stripling (3.3% walk rate) … Dating back to 6/17/22, Falter has issued 2 or fewer walks in 15 straight starts, including 1 or 0 in 10 of those

Mark of Consistency: Since 7/29/22, Falter has gone 6-2 with a 3.04 ERA (19 ER, 56.1 IP), 1.08 WHIP (7 BB, 54 H) and an OPP slash line of .252/.283/.407 … He has the lowest ERA among any of the 6 starters to pitch at least 30.0 IP for the club since 7/29/22 (next: Ranger Suarez, 3.39) … Removing his 6 ER in 3.2 IP on 9/24 vs ATL, he had a 2.22 ERA (13 ER, 52.2 IP) and 0.97 WHIP in that span

Day to Remember: Falter made his first appearance against CIN in his 5th ML appearance on 6/28/21 in CIN … He pitched 4.0 IP, struck out 6 and allowed 1 run on 2 hits … His 4.0 IP remained his career high until the following May in a start at SEA on 5/11/22 (4.2 IP) and his 6 SO that day are still tied for his 2ndmost ever in a game, surpassed only by his 8 in a start on 7/29/22 at PIT

Left Lost: Falter has allowed 7 hits to the last 49 LHH he has faced (dating to the middle of 7/7/22 vs WSH), a .143 OPP AVG

vs NL Central: 1-1, 5.17 ERA (18 ER, 31.1 IP) in 10 games (4 starts)

HOME:
2022: 3-3, 5.49 ERA (24 ER, 39.1 IP) in 10 games (7 starts)

Career: 3-4, 5.14 ERA (28 ER, 49.0 IP) in 20 games (7 starts)

2023 SEASON:
Made his second career and consecutive Opening Day roster

2022 SEASON:
Made his first career Opening Day roster

Had eight stints with the Phillies: Opening Day-4/25, 5/11, 5/27, 6/17, 6/30-7/7, 7/24-8/3, 8/20 and 8/26-end of season

Began the season as a reliever (4 apps) and was transitioned to a starting role during his first stint in Lehigh Valley (AAA)

Made 16 starts for Philadelphia, posting a 3.76 ERA (32 ER, 76.2 IP), and the Phillies won 11 of them  Posted a 3.00 ERA (17 ER, 51.0 IP) and 1.06 WHIP (7 BB, 47 H) over his final 10 starts beginning on 7/29

In seven starts from 7/29-9/18, his 2.45 ERA (11 ER, 40.1 IP) was the lowest among qualifying Phillies starters and T-10th among NL starters

Finished his season with a streak of 14 straight starts with two or fewer walks and walked one or none in 10 of those

Had the 3rd-lowest BB % (4.3, 7 BB, 282 BF) in the NL behind Max Scherzer (3.5) and Aaron Nola (3.9) and 9th in MLB (min. 250 BF) from 6/17-end of season

His 5.42 SO/BB (65 SO, 12 BB) from 6/17-end of season was 9th in the NL among pitchers with at least 250 batters faced

Made Philadelphia’s NLWCS, NLDS and NLCS rosters, appearing in one postseason game (started Game 4 of the NLCS vs SD)

CAREER
Selected by PHI in the 5th round of the June 2015 draft

MLB Preview: Kansas City Royals (2-6) at San Francisco Giants (3-4)

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MLB Preview: Kansas City Royals (2-6) at San Francisco Giants (3-4)

KANSAS CITY ROYALS NOTES:

CHANGE OF SCENERY: The Royals needed all three facets—pitching, defense and timely hitting—to score a 3-1 win at Oracle Park yesterday and spoil the Giants home opener…Nicky Lopez put Kansas City on the board in the 2nd inning with an RBI single that bounced through a drawn-in infield, but the Giants responded with a run in the bottom half…Vinnie Pasquantino broke the tie with a solo HR in the 4th that nearly reached the bay, and Salvador Perez added an insurance homer in the 8th that traveled 416 ft…Joc Pederson tripled to begin the 9th, which brought the tying run to the plate vs. Scott Barlow, who benefited from a pair of called strikeouts and a diving catch by Matt Duffy at third base to secure his 1st save of the season and snap a 3-game skid.

ANOTHER 1ST WIN: After going 1-6 on the season-opening homestand, the Royals yesterday secured their 1st road win, a promising start after beginning 0-4 on the road last year en route to a 26-55 record away from home…it was also the 1st win under Interim Manager Paul Hoover, who is leading the club while Manager Matt Quatraro is out with an illness…Q earned his 1st managerial win Monday night, and even though Hoover was making decisions from the dugout yesterday, Elias tells us that the win over the Giants counts toward Q’s ledger.

PITCHING PROPS: Brad Keller continued the Royals run of strong starting pitching yesterday, allowing just 1 run in 5.2 innings, marking the seventh time in 8 games that a Royals starter has allowed 2 runs or fewer…as a result, Royals starters own a 3.16 ERA (15 ER in 42.2 IP), which ranks 6th in the Majors and marks a significant improvement over last season, when Royals starters ranked 27th out of 30 with a 4.76 ERA (440 ER in 832.2 IP).

It’s only been 8 games, but Royals pitchers have shown significant improvements in several categories… after posting a 3.74 BB/9 and 50.8% first-pitch strike rate last year, which ranked 29th and 30th, respectively, they rank 13th in both statistics this year, posting a 3.16 BB/9 and 61.4% first-strike rate.

The Giants led the Majors with 15 homers through their first 6 games and tied for 2nd in runs per game at 6.3…but in their home opener yesterday, Royals pitchers held the Giants offense to 1 run on 5 hits.

SCORING CHANGE: Major League Baseball announced a scoring change yesterday to the Royals Opening Day game vs. the Twins…in the top of the 2nd inning, Joey Gallo reached vs. Zack Greinke on what was originally ruled an E9, when MJ Melendez, who was playing shallow in right field, failed to field a groundball cleanly when it appeared he had a chance to throw out Gallo at first base…this play has since been ruled a base hit, removing the only error from the Royals defensive totals…this means Kansas City is one of three teams that has yet to make an error this season, joining the Mets and Cardinals…last year, the Royals set an American League record by beginning the season with 11 errorless games, a mark they are just 3 games shy of entering today.

JUST KEEP SWINGING: The Royals have shown some signs of life on offense of late, scoring 6 runs over their last 11.0 innings since the 8th inning on Thursday, on the heels of a 23.0-inning scoreless drought…they’ve hit 3 HR over the last 11.0 innings, nearly matching their total of 4 HR in their first 60.0 innings on offense…the Royals were shut out three times in their first 6 games and despite their recent surge, they still rank last in the Majors in batting average (.180) and slugging percentage (.300) and rank 29th in runs per game (2.5), on-base percentage (.263) and OPS (.563)…but despite the lack of results, the advanced metrics show promise in the Royals approach, as they rank tied for 1st in the Majors, according to Baseball Savant, with a 91.4 mph average exit velocity…the Royals also rank 2nd in the Majors with a 48.1% Hard Hit Rate (defined as balls with an exit velocity of 95.0 mph or greater), trailing only the Dodgers (51.3%)…but despite consistently making hard contact, the Royals rank last among all 30 teams with a .218 Batting Average on Balls in Play and their expected batting average is 61 points higher than their actual batting average, the largest gap in the Majors.

AFTERNOON DELIGHT: Today’s 3:05 p.m. CT start marks the third of 4 consecutive day games for the Royals, including tomorrow’s series finale in San Francisco…that means 7 of the Royals first 10 games will be played during the day, and they’re scheduled for 64 day games overall this season, which would match 2021 for their 2nd most in team history, trailing only last season, when they played a club-record 69 day games.

VS. GIANTS: The Royals began their Interleague schedule with a win yesterday over the Giants, improving to 14-6 (.700) all-time vs. San Francisco, which marks the Royals best win percentage vs. any opponent and is also the best win percentage by any team vs. the Giants…Kansas City has pitched to a 3.22 ERA in 20 regular season games vs. the Giants, which is its lowest mark against any single opponent, ahead of its 3.47 ERA in 16 games vs. the Mets…the Royals have gone 5-1-0 in 6 completed season series with the Giants, and 2022 marked the first year in club history in which the Royals lost the season series (1-2)…these totals do not include postseason play, as Kansas City fell to San Francisco in 7 games in the 2014 World Series.

Salvador Perez’s solo HR in the 8th inning yesterday was his 171st hit in Interleague play, breaking a tie with Alcides Escobar (170) for the 2nd most in Royals history, trailing only Alex Gordon (210)… yesterday’s HR was Salvy’s 95th career Interleague RBI, breaking a tie with Gordon for the club record.

SERIES SPEAKING: With yesterday’s win, the Royals put themselves in position to secure a series victory with another win today or tomorrow…the Royals went 3-7 in National League ballparks last season—including a win here in San Francisco—and their only series win came at Coors Field, where they took 2 of 3…the Royals didn’t win a road series last year until April 26-28, when they went 2-1 in Chicago vs. the White Sox, and they finished last season 1-11 in their last 12 road series, the only win coming last Sept. 2-4 in Detroit.

PACE OF PLAY: The new pitch timer rules implemented for 2023 have already produced dramatic results through the first nine days of the season…through 106 games that have ended in 9 innings, the average game time has been 2 hours, 37 minutes, and only 15 of the 106 games (14.1%) lasted at least 3 hours… the Royals 8 games have averaged 2 hours, 28 minutes, which is 9 minutes below the league average and is tied for the 2nd-fastest average time in the young season, ahead of only the Twins (2:24)… compared to 9-inning games across the Majors last season, average time of game is down 26 minutes, while batting averages are up from .243 to .249, runs per game are up from 8.6 to 9.1 and stolen base success rates have jumped from 75.4% to 79.8%…the current success rate of steals would shatter the Major League record set in 2021 at 75.7%

TODAY’S STARTERS: RHP BRADY SINGER (1-0, 1.80)
BRADY SINGER is making his 2nd start of the season and 65th of his career today vs. San Francisco…it’s his 2nd career start vs. the Giants and 1st since last June 13… Singer is in his fourth season in the Majors and was selected by Kansas City in the 1st round (18th overall) of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Florida.

1ST WIN: Singer led the Royals to their 1st win in Monday’s 9-5 victory over the Blue Jays at Kauffman Stadium, in which he allowed 1 run on 2 hits and 3 walks in 5.0 innings, with 3 strikeouts…he allowed just two baserunners through the first 4.0 innings, but stranded both in the 2nd and took a 7-0 lead into the 5th, when he issued 2 walks and a double but escaped with just 1 run allowed thanks to a double play.

HIGH NOTES: Over his last 11 starts dating back to Aug. 9, 2022, Singer is 7-1 with a 2.53 ERA (19 ER in 67.2 IP) and .229 opponents’ average (56-for-245)…the Royals are 9-2 in those outings and he has held opponents to 1 run fewer in 7 of those 11 starts.

A STAR IS BORN: Singer pitched a career-best 153.1 innings in 2022 in a career-high-tying 27 appearances (24 starts)…he began the season in the bullpen, but only pitched in 3 of the Royals first 16 games before being optioned to Triple-A on April 28…he returned on May 17 and made a team-high 24 starts from that point on.

Upon joining the starting rotation last May 17, Singer went 10-5 with a 3.11 ERA (51 ER in 147.2 IP), 8th best in the American League from May 17 through season’s end…his 10 wins were the most by a Royal since Jason Vargas tied for the Majors lead with 18 in 2017…Singer’s 3.23 ERA (55 ER in 153.1 IP) for the season was the 5th best by a Royal (min. 150.0 IP) in the Wild Card Era (since 1995), trailing only Zack Greinke in his 2009 Cy Young Award-winning season (2.16), James Shields in 2013 (3.15) and 2014 (3.21) and Yordano Ventura in 2014 (3.20)…the last Royal with a lower ERA than Singer’s and a higher win percentage (.667) was David Cone during his 1994 Cy Young Award-winning season, in which he went 16-5 (.762) with a 2.94 ERA (56 ER in 17.12 IP).

Singer made 7 starts last season in which he pitched at least 7.0 innings and allowed 1 run or fewer, which tied for the 4th-most such starts in the American League, trailing Martín Pérez (9), Justin Verlander (8) and Shohei Ohtani (8)…it was the most such starts by a Royal since Edinson Vólquez had 7 in 2015, and the last Royal with more such starts was Shields (10) in 2014.

He had a career-high 12 strikeouts last July 23 vs. Tampa Bay, a game in which he did not allow a hit until the 6th inning…his 12 strikeouts here the most by a Royal in three years, and he followed that start with 10 strikeouts over 7.0 scoreless innings—with just 1 hit allowed—on July 28 at Yankee Stadium…in doing so, he became the seventh Royal with back-to-back 10-strikeout starts, joining Nate Karns (May 8-13, 2017), Ventura (Aug. 27-Sept. 2, 2015), Greinke (April 18-24, 2009), Bret Saberhagen (July 4-9, 1989), Bill Butler (July 15-20, 1969) and Kevin Appier, who had a franchise-record three straight such starts in 1996.

Brady recorded 7.0 scoreless innings in back-to-back starts last May 17 and May 22 upon his return from Omaha, and extended his scoreless streak—which began on April 10—to 18.2 innings before it was snapped on May 28 in Minnesota, marking the longest scoreless streak by a Royal since Wade Davis recorded 22.0 consecutive scoreless innings in 2015.

SPRING FORWARD: Brady followed his 2022 breakout season with an eventful spring, going 1-0 with a 2.13 ERA (3 ER in 12.2 IP) in 4 starts with the Royals, recording 18 strikeouts (12.8 K/9) and 2 walks (1.4 BB/9)…he also pitched 2.0 innings in the World Baseball Classic for Team USA, who lost in the championship game vs. Team Japan.

CHANGE OF TUNE: Brady threw 182 changeups in 24 starts in 2022, which accounted for 8.0% of his 2,273 pitches after returning from Triple-A Omaha on May 17…that total was more than double the 88 changeups he threw in 27 starts in 2021, which equaled 3.8% of his pitches thrown…after returning from Omaha on May 17 with a focus on mixing in the changeup, Singer went 10-5 with a 3.11 ERA (51 ER in 147.2 IP), after going 9-15 with a 4.67 ERA (103 ER in 198.1 IP) in his previous 42 career appearances (39 starts)…from May 17 through season’s end, opponents went 8-for-34 (.235) vs. the changeup.

CASTING CALLS: In 24 starts after his May 17 recall last year, Brady induced a called strike on 478 of his 2,273 pitches (21.0%), 2nd most in the Majors, trailing only Adam Wainwright (519)…Singer’s rate of 21.0% called strikes led the Majors after his recall (min. 1,500 pitches), ahead of Wainwright (20.8%)…since his 2020 debut season, Singer’s called-strike rate of 20.9% ranks 2nd in the Majors (min. 3,000 pitches), trailing Wainwright’s rate of 21.2%.

WALK THIS WAY: Singer issued 35 walks in 153.1 innings in 2022 for a 2.05 BB/9, a significant improvement on the rate he recorded in his first two seasons from 2020-21, when he issued 76 walks in 192.2 innings for a 3.55 BB/9…Singer’s walk rate in 2022 was the best by a Royal (min. 150.0 IP) since James Shields posted a 1.74 BB/9 in 2014…Singer’s 4.29 K/BB ratio (150 K/35 BB) tied Nestor Cortes for 10th best in the American League in 2022 (min. 150.0 IP) and was the 4th-best mark in franchise history, trailing only Zack Greinke (4.75 in 2009), Bret Saberhagen (4.49 in 1989) and Danny Duffy (4.48 in 2016).

Singer had 9 starts in 2022 in which he pitched at least 5.0 innings and did not issue a walk, which matched the 3rd-most such starts in the American League, trailing only Corey Kluber (13) and Jameson Taillon (12)…Brady’s 9 starts with at least 5.0 innings and no walks matched the 5th-most such starts in franchise history, trailing only Paul Byrd (13 in 2002), Saberhagen (10 in 1985 and 1989) and Doug Bird (10 in 1976).

VS. GIANTS: In his only previous outing vs. the Giants last June 13 here in San Francisco, Singer did not factor into the decision of a 6-2 Royals loss, despite allowing just 2 runs on 2 hits and 5 walks in 5.0 innings, with 5 strikeouts…that was only his 2nd—and most recent—start in a National League ballpark, the 1st coming on Aug. 4, 2020 of his rookie season at Wrigley Field, where he suffered a 5-4 loss after allowing 4 runs in 5.0 innings.

Singer went 0-2 with a 7.88 ERA (7 ER in 8.0 IP) in 2 Interleague starts as a rookie in 2020, but in 5 starts vs. National League opponents since the 2021 season, he’s 3-0 with a 2.43 ERA (8 ER in 29.2 IP) and .194 opponents’ average (20-for-103) and just 1 home run allowed (0.3 R/9).

ON THE ROAD: Brady is making his 1st road start of the 2023 season today, after going 2-3 with a 3.99 ERA (26 ER in 58.2 IP) in 12 road outings (10 starts) last year…he held opponents to 2 runs or fewer in 5 of his 10 road starts last season, including 6.0 scoreless innings last Sept. 17 at Fenway Park, which marked his last road win…Singer is seeking his 1st win in a National League park, as he’s 0-1 in 2 previous starts, including 1 here last June 13.

SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS NOTES:

TODAY’S GAME: SF will look to level the series with Kansas City this afternoon after dropping yesterday’s home opener 3-1…the Giants haven’t lost two straight games at home to open a new season since 2015 when they lost five straight to open the home schedule to Colorado and Arizona.

ROSTER MOVES: C Austin Wynns (#14) was selected to the Major League roster and C Roberto Pérez was placed on the 60-day IL with a right rotator cuff strain…additionally, IF/OF Darin Ruf was signed to a minor league contract and C Joey Bart will begin a rehabilitation assignment with Triple-A Sacramento.

JEKYLL & HYDE: The disparity in the Giants offense early on in wins and losses has been dramatic as the numbers below illustrate.

ARRIVEDERCI!: Despite not hitting a homer yesterday, the Giants 15 homers this year through seven games are still second-most by a Giants team through its first seven games of a season behind only the 2003 Giants that hit 16 in their first seven games…the ’03 team also holds the mark through eight games with 18.

Giants, Most Home Runs Through Seven Games (All-time)
Year, Team Home Runs
2003 SF Giants 16
2023 SF Giants 15
1947 NY Giants 14
Year, Team Home Runs
2016 SF Giants 14
Three Tied 12

STRENGTH IN NUMBERS: The Giants have 10 different players that have at least one homer so far in 2023 tied for most in the Majors with the Tampa Bay Rays…for reference, SF had 23 different players hit a homer last year, tied for second-most in MLB with the A’s…Cincinnati had the most with 25 different players with at least one homer.

THE COMFORTS OF HOME?: LHP Sean Manaea will make his \first start for SF today (second appearance)…in his career the southpaw has traditionally been a better pitcher in his home ballpark than on the road, posting a 3.68 career ERA in 79 home games compared to 4.49 ERA in 81 road games…that was on display last year as well as you’ll see from the chart below courtesy of Stats, LLC.

MLB, Largest Difference Between ERA at Home/on Road — 2022
Player, Team Home ERA Road ERA Difference
Dakota Hudson, STL 2.84 5.78 -2.94
Charlie Morton, ATL 3.05 5.72 -2.67
Patrick Corbin, WAS 5.17 7.75 -2.58
Sean Manaea, SD 3.62 6.16 -2.54
Alex Cobb, SF 2.68 5.20 -2.52
(home better; min 10. starts each split)

SLICE OF PIE: Through seven games, the Giants have scored 66.7% of their runs (26-of-39) via the homer.

SUPER SMASH BROS: Entering play today, Giants hitters rank seventh in their percentage of balls that are classified as hart-hit (95+ mph) at 43.1%…Kansas City checks in second at 48.1% in the chart below (Sports Info Solutions).

MLB, Hard HIt Percentage Leaders — 2023
Team Hard-Hit %
Los Angeles-NL 52.0%
Kansas City 48.1%
St. Louis 47.5%
Tampa Bay 46.6%
Team Hard-Hit %
Baltimore 45.0%
Los Angeles-AL 43.2%
San Francisco 43.1%

RIGHT-O!: All 15 of the Giants home runs this season have come off right-handed pitching…in fact each of the Giants last 18 homers have come off righties dating to last year…in 2022, SF tied for 18th in home runs vs. RHP (114) (Stats, LLC).

HOMELAND: SF went 44-37 at home in 2022 and in the Gabe Kapler-era (2020-pres.), the Giants have played good baseball here on the shores of McCovey Cove…since 2020, SF is 117-79 (.597) at Oracle Park, sixth-best in MLB and third-best in the NL in that stretch…only the Dodgers (140-58, .707) and Braves (117-76, .606) have been better NL clubs at home since 2020.

WE USED TO BE ROY-ALS (ROY-ALS): Four of 26 players on SF’s active roster today used to play for the Royals…LHP Scott Alexander (6th round, 2010), RHP Jakob Junis (29th round, 2011) and today’s SF starter LHP Sean Manaea (1st round, 2013) were all originally drafted by the Royals before eventually making their way to San Francisco…IF/OF Matt Beaty was an NRI in Kansas City’s camp this year before being acquired by SF on Opening Day so he never played a regular season game with Kansas City.

KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND: After day games during each of the six games on the road trip, SF kicks off its first homestand of the year with — yup — three more day games…according to Stats, LLC, the nine straight day games to open the year is the longest stretch by a Giants team since moving west in 1958… the previous longest streak to open a season was a seven-game stretch to open the 1995 campaign.

TODAY’S STARTER – SEAN MANAEA LHP #52
WITH THE GIANTS: Begins first season with Giants…signed two-year, $25 million contract with San Francisco this offseason after spending 2022 with San Diego…Manaea does have an opt-out after this season in the deal.

LAST OUTING: Piggybacked off starter Anthony DeSclafani last Monday at Chicago-AL…the lefty allowed three runs on two hits, one being a home run by OF Luis Robert, and two walks while striking out one across 2.0 innings of relief.

VS. KANSAS CITY: Has faced Kansas City four times during his career, the most recent outing coming with San Diego in 2022…Manaea was tagged for six runs on 10 hits over 4.0 innings on Aug. 28 of last year at Kauffman Stadium…in his last two starts vs. KC (last year and one in 2021), Manaea has allowed 11 runs on 19 hits in 9.0 innings.

LONG TIME NO SEE: Was selected in the first round (34th overall) by the Royals in the 2013 MLB Draft out of Indiana State University…was later traded to Oakland at the 2015 deadline in exchange for utility player Ben Zobrist…likely to face-off with Manaea in the batter’s box today is Kansas City IF Hunter Dozier, who was selected by the Royals with their first first round pick, eighth overall, out of Stephen F. Austin State University…the two were teammates in

2014 at High-A Wilmington.
2023 SPRING TRAINING: Manaea worked out at Driveline in the offseason and saw an increase in velocity this spring, reaching 96 mph after averaging 91.2 mph in 2022…he was 2-1 with a 4.08 ERA, 14 strikeouts, a 0.96 WHIP and a .215 opposing batting average across 17.2 innings in five games (four starts).

LAST SEASON: Was 8-9 with a 4.96 ERA (87er, 158.0ip) in 30 games (28 starts) for San Diego…he struck out 156, the second highest mark of his career, in his first National League season…allowed 29 home runs, a career-high…his 1.65 home runs per nine innings were the most among pitchers with at least 150.0 innings.

FROM DIEGO TO THE BAY: All eight seasons in Majors have been with California teams, pitching for Oakland 2016-2021, and San Diego in 2022…despite the Giants being his third team, Gabe Kapler is Manaea’s second MLB manager as former Oakland skipper Bob Melvin also left for San Diego in 2022.

APRIL FLOWERS: Manaea’s not been one for slow starts to a season…Including his one career March start, the first month of a campaign has been the lefty’s most dominant…in 23 career March/April games (22 starts), Manaea has a 3.16 ERA (47er, 133.2ip), 126 strikeouts, 1.00 WHIP, .189 opposing batting average and a monthly best 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings over 133.2 innings…two of Manaea’s three career shutouts have been in April, including his no-hitter vs. Boston on April 21, 2018.

CALIFORNIA LOVE: Was 6-3 with a 3.62 ERA, 1.21 WHIP, and .229 opposing batting average in 74.2 home innings in 2022… his road ERA was 6.16…Manaea’s career ERA at home is 3.68 compared to 4.49 on the road.

NHL Preview: Colorado Avalanche (47-24-6) at Los Angeles Kings (45-24-10)

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NHL Preview: Colorado Avalanche (47-24-6) at Los Angeles Kings (45-24-10)

COLORADO AVALANCHE NOTES:

TONIGHT’S GAME
COLORADO AVALANCHE (47-24-6, 100 PTS) at LOS ANGELES KINGS (45-24-10, 100 PTS)
8:38 p.m. MT / 7:38 p.m. PT – Crypto.com Arena
Altitude / 92.5 FM
The Colorado Avalanche continues their four-game California road trip tonight in Los Angeles against the Kings … The Avs opened the trip with a pair of wins in San Jose … Tonight’s contest is the first half of a back-to-back for the Avs, who finish this road swing in Anaheim tomorrow night … The Avs are 12-2-0 in their last 14 games, 19-5-1 in their last 25 contests and 27-7-3 in their last 37 games … The Avalanche have won eight consecutive road games, one shy of equaling the longest road winning streak in franchise history … Colorado is 12-1-0 in its last 13 road contests and 15-2-1 in its last 18 away from the Mile High City.

ON THE CALL
Altitude: Marc Moser (play-by-play), Mark Rycroft (analyst), Kyle Keefe (reporter)
Altitude Radio: Conor McGahey

LAST GAME
April 6 – Colorado 6, San Jose 2 at SAP Center
Mikko Rantanen notched his third hat trick of the season and surpassed the 50-goal mark for the first time in his career as the Avalanche beat the San Jose Sharks, 6-2, at SAP Center … Rantanen also had an assist and Nathan MacKinnon added a four-point night of his own (1g/3a) … Ben Meyers scored twice for his first career multi-goal game and Matt Nieto and Samuel Girard added two assists each.
SF: 31 SA: 23 PP: 0-1 PK: 1-1
The Avalanche won their eighth consecutive road game, the second longest streak in franchise history, and matched their single-season franchise record with 26 road wins … The Avs are 12-1-0 in their last 13 road contests and 15-2-1 in their last 18 The Avalanche reached 100 points for the second straight year and ninth time in franchise history The Avs are 12-2-0 in their last 14 games, 19-5-1 in their last 25 contests and 27-7-3 in their last 37 games Rantanen became the Avalanche’s first 50-goal scorer since Milan Hejduk in 2002-03 … He joined Hejduk and Joe Sakic (twice) as the only players since the franchise relocated to score 50 … Mikko is the fifth player in franchise history to hit the 50-goal mark … He’s the third Finnish-born player in NHL history to score 50 goals, joining Jari Kurri (four times) and Teemu Selanne (three times) Rantanen reached the milestone exactly 20 years to the day that the last Avalanche player, Hejduk, potted his 50th on April 6, 2003 Rantanen’s hat trick was his third of the season, the first player in Avalanche history to record three hat tricks in a single season … A Nordiques player had three hat tricks in a season on five occasions but Rantanen is the first to do so since the team moved to Denver Rantanen notched his 10th multi-goal game of the season, joining Sakic (12 in 1995-96) as the only players in Avalanche history to have double-digit multi-goal games Rantanen moved into a tie with Peter Forsberg (217) for eighth place on the franchise’s all-time goal list MacKinnon scored the game-winning goal for the third consecutive game, matching the franchise record … Michel Goulet tallied three straight GWG from Dec. 3-10, 1983, Keith Jones from Nov. 6-9, 1996 and Milan Hejduk from Dec. 27, 2000–Jan. 2, 2001 MacKinnon has 67 assists on the year, the most by an Avalanche player since Peter Forsberg had 77 in 2002-03 MacKinnon’s notched his 34th multi-point game of the season, one shy of the Avalanche record (since relocating) set by Sakic (35) in 1995-96 Rantanen has 10 points (4g/6a) in three games this month, while MacKinnon has nine points (5g/4a) in three April contests Girard had two assists and was a career-best +5 … His two assists gives him 35 points for the season, a new career high … It was Girard’s 28th career multi-assist game, tying John-Michael Liles for fifth place on the franchise’s multi-assist list by a defenseman Toews set a career high with a +5 rating … He paces the team and ranks third in the NHL with a +41 plus/minus rating this season … He is a league-best +122 since joining the Avalanche in 2020-21, by far the best in the NHL

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
Apr. 3 – Ben Meyers recalled from the Colorado Eagles (AHL)
Apr. 1 – Ben Meyers reassigned to the Colorado Eagles (AHL) … Brad Hunt cleared waivers

CURRENT INJURIES
Pavel Francouz – lower body (Feb. 14 – present)
Darren Helm – lower body (April 4 – present)
Gabriel Landeskog – knee (Oct. 12 – present)
Artturi Lehkonen – finger (March 15 – present)
Cale Makar – lower body (April 4 – present)
Josh Manson – lower body (March 4 – present)
Total Man-Game Lost: 435

TONIGHT’S OPPONENT – LOS ANGELES KINGS
The Avalanche and Kings close out the season series with the third and final matchup of 2022-23 … This is the lone meeting in Southern California, as the first two games took place in Denver … The Avs are 0-1-1 against the Kings this year … Los Angeles’ Dec. 29 overtime victory snapped the Avalanche’s nine-game winning streak against the Kings … That was the longest winning streak by either team in this series …. Colorado is still 9-1-1 in its last 11 versus LA and 13-4-2 in the last 19 matchups since the start of the 2018-19 campaign.

SCHEDULE vs. KINGS
Dec. 29 vs. LOS ANGELES (O, 4-5)
Mar. 9 vs. LOS ANGELES (L, 2-5)
Apr. 8 @ Los Angeles

RECORD vs. KINGS
THIS SEASON 2021-22 ALL-TIME SINCE 1995-96 PLAYOFFS
Overall: 0-1-1 Overall: 3-0-0 Overall: 67-67-16 Overall: 49-45-12 Series (record): 2 series (2-0)
Home: 0-1-1 Home: 1-0-0 Home: 38-30-6 Home: 28-21-3 Record Overall: 8-6
Road: — Road: 2-0-0 Road: 29-37-10 Road: 21-24-9 2001 CSF (W, 4-3), 2002 CQF (W, 4-3)

LOS ANGELES KINGS NOTES:

APRIL 8 vs. Colorado Avalanche – 7:30 PM PT // Venue: Crypto.com Arena // TV: Bally Sports West // Radio: iHeartRadio

  • The LA Kings host the Colorado Avalanche for the third, and final, meeting between these two clubs this season (5-4 SOW on Dec. 29; 5-2 W on Mar. 9).
  • The Kings aim to sweep the season series vs. Colorado for the seventh time in franchise history and the first since the 2017-18 season (3-0-0).
  • Tonight’s game marks the second to last home game of the season for the Kings (Apr. 10 vs. VAN).

WARM-UPS
1) Forward Phillip Danault has four goals over his last three games against the Avalanche, including a multi-goal effort (2-0=2) when these two teams last met on March 9 in Denver.

2) No Pacific Division team has scored more goals against the Central Division this season than the Kings (75).

3) Blake Lizotte’s 1.84 penalties drawn-per-60 minutes ranks fourth in the league among all skaters (min. GP: 70).

4) The Kings (5-for-5) are one of five teams to be perfect in coach’s challenges this season: Calgary (7-for-7), Chicago (5-for-5), Philadelphia (5-for-5) and Toronto (6-for-6).

5) Only Carolina (41) and Boston (35) have more wins when outshooting their opponents this season than the Kings (34).

vs. COLORADO ALL-TIME:
All-Time Record: 75-62-8-5
Home: 42-25-5-4
Away: 33-37-3-1
OT: 11-5 (5 ties)
Shootout: 4-4
2021-22: 0-3-0
2022-23: 2-0-0

FRANCHISE LEADERS vs. COLORADO:
Anze Kopitar* – 60 GP, 56 PTS (18-38=56)
Luc Robitaille – 40 GP, 52 PTS (32-20=52)
Marcel Dionne – 25 GP, 39 PTS (16-23=39)
Wayne Gretzky – 16 GP, 39 PTS (9-30=39)
Dustin Brown – 60 GP, 38 PTS (16-22=38)
*-denotes active roster player

LAST MEETING vs. COLORADO: Mar. 9, 2023 – LAK 5 at COL 2
Venue: Ball Arena
LAK Goals: Kempe (31, 32), Vilardi (22), Danault (17, 18)
COL Goals: Rodrigues (13), MacKinnon (27)
Goalies: LAK: Korpisalo (W; 28 saves – 30 shots) COL: Georgiev (L; 26 saves – 30 shots)
LAK PP: 0-for-4
LAK PK: 2-for-3

2022-23 REMAINING REGULAR-SEASON SCHEDULE:
Mon., April 10 | vs. Vancouver Canucks | 7:30 p.m. PT | Bally Sports West | LA Kings iHeart Radio Audio Network
Vladislav Gavrikov has seven points (1-6=7) in eight career games against the Canucks.

Thurs., April 13 | at Anaheim Ducks | 7:00 p.m. PT | Bally Sports West | LA Kings iHeart Radio Audio Network
The Kings wrap up their 2022-23 regular-season schedule with a visit to the Honda Center in Anaheim.

INJURY & MGL REPORT
Player, Games Missed, Date(s), Status
F Trevor Moore, 23 games, Dec. 27 – Jan. 31 (upper-body); Feb. 23 – Mar. 6 (upper-body)
F Alex Iafallo, 23 games, Oct. 18 – Dec. 3 (lower-body)
F Brendan Lemieux, 18 games, Nov. 14 – Dec. 20 (lower-body)
F Arthur Kaliyev, 18 games, Dec. 22 – Jan. 31 (lower-body)
F Carl Grundstrom, 15 games, Jan. 19 – Feb. 26 (lower-body)
F Gabriel Vilardi, 14 games, Nov. 27 (lower-body); Jan. 19 – Feb. 13 (undisclosed); Mar. 28 – Pres. (upper-body)
F Kevin Fiala, 10 games, Mar. 11 – Mar. 25 (lower-body), Mar. 30 (lower-body), Apr. 2 – Pres. (lower-body)
D Sean Durzi, 9 games, Nov. 19 – Nov. 22. (lower-body); Mar. 9 – Mar. 25 (lower-body)
F Quinton Byfield, 6 games, Oct. 27 – Nov. 5 (illness)
D Mikey Anderson, 4 games, Apr. 1 – Pres.
F Viktor Arvidsson, 3 games, Oct. 13 (illness); Oct. 25 (illness); Jan. 11 (illness)
D Alex Edler, 2 games, Apr. 4 – Pres. (upper-body)
D Drew Doughty, 1 game, Dec. 11 (lower-body)
2022-23 Total Regular-Season Man-Games Lost: 146

RECENT TRANSACTIONS (as of 4/7/23)
Mar. 20 – Rights to Cole Krygier (D) acquired from Florida in exchange for future considerations.
Mar. 25 – Cole Krygier (D) signed to a two-year entry-level contract with an AAV of $837,500.
Mar. 28 – Jordan Spence (D) loaned to Ontario (AHL).
Mar. 31 – Tobias Bjornfot (D) recalled on emergency basis from Ontario (AHL).
Apr. 5 – Jordan Spence (D) recalled on emergency basis from Ontario (AHL).

LA KINGS TEAM NOTES:
BEST IN THE WEST AT HOME
In 39 games at Crypto.com Arena this season, the Kings have established a record of 25-10-4 with 54 points for a points percentage of .692%, topping all Western Conference teams and placing fifth in the league overall:

Best 2022-23 home points percentage
Team GP PTS% (record)
Boston Bruins 39 .859% (32-4-3)
Tampa Bay Lightning 39 .756% (27-7-5)
Toronto Maple Leafs 40 .725% (26-8-6)
Carolina Hurricanes 40 .713% (27-10-3)
LA Kings 39 .692% (25-10-4)

No team has been better at home since the resumption of the regular-season following the NHL All-Star break (Feb. 4 – Feb. 6) than the Kings, who have a 11-1-2 record and .857% points percentage. With 25 wins at Crypto.com Arena on the year, the Kings sit one win away from tying the franchise record for most home wins in a single season set three times: 26 wins in 1990-91, 2005-06 and 2015-16. Should the regular-season end today, the team’s .692 home points percentage would be the fourth-best in franchise history:

Best Kings seasons at home (based on PTS%)
Season PTS% (record)
2012-13 .813% (19-4-1)
1990-91 .713% (26-9-5)
2014-15 .695% (25-9-7)
2022-23 .692% (25-10-4)
1974-75 .688% (22-7-11)

KOPI VS. THE AVS
Captain Anze Kopitar skates into Crypto.com Arena with the second-most points against the Avalanche among active skaters behind Winnipeg’s Blake Wheeler (23-35=58):

Most points vs. Colorado among active skaters
Player GP Points
Blake Wheeler 41 58 (23-35=58)
Anze Kopitar 60 56 (18-38=56)
Patrick Kane 57 54 (20-34=54)
Jonathan Toews 54 53 (24-29=53)
Brent Burns 72 48 (17-31=48)

The last time the Kings and Avalanche met on March 9, Kopitar recorded his 26th career three-assist outing for his 279th multi-point game of his career and 14th against Colorado. Only Marcel Dionne and Luc Robitaille have more multi-point games vs. the Avalanche than Kopitar:

NHL Preview: Vegas Golden Knights (49-22-8) at Dallas Stars (43-21-14)

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NHL Preview: Vegas Golden Knights (49-22-8) at Dallas Stars (43-21-14)

VEGAS GOLDEN KNIGHTS NOTES:

GOLDEN KNIGHTS UPCOMING GAMES
Golden Knights 2022-23 Record: 49-22-8, 106 points (24-15-1 at Home, 25-7-7 on Road)

DATE OPPONENT TIME (PT) TELEVISION RADIO SPANISH RADIO
Apr. 8 at Dallas Stars 12:30 p.m. ABC Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM None
Apr. 11 vs. Seattle Kraken 7 p.m. AT&T SportsNet Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM Deportes 1460 AM
Apr. 13 at Seattle Kraken 7:30 p.m. ESPN Fox Sports 98.9 FM/1340 AM None

GOLDEN KNIGHTS LAST GAME RECAP
April 6 – Vegas Golden Knights 5, Los Angeles Kings 2
Chandler Stephenson led the way with three points (1-2—3) as the Vegas Golden Knights (49-22-8) defeated the Los Angeles Kings (45-24-10), 5-2, on Thursday night at T-Mobile Arena. Less than a minute after the Kings had a goal called back due to an offside, Phil Kessel found the back of the net to give the Golden Knights a 1-0 lead at 2:54 of the first. Ivan Barbashev, Chandler Stephenson and Nicolas Roy added goals of their own as Vegas carried a commanding 4-0 lead into the first intermission. Jonathan Marchessault scored 1:02 into the second to make it a 5-0 game, but the Kings tacked on two goals as Vegas held the 5-2 lead through 40 minutes. The third period passed by without a goal as the Golden Knights earned the 5-2 victory.

LAST GAME BY THE NUMBERS

  • The line of Kessel, Barbashev, and Stephenson all found the back of the net within three minutes of each other in the opening period to put Vegas up 3-0
  • Stephenson registered his second three-point game of the season, all of which came in the first period
  • Barbashev posted his fourth multi-point performance after 20 games in a Vegas jersey
  • Jack Eichel’s assist on Roy’s goal extends his assist streak to eight games for the second-longest assist streak by a Golden Knights player
  • Laurent Brossoit had another strong performance in net, stopping 30 shots and posting a .938 save-percentage
  • With their win over the Kings, the Golden Knights increased their season total to 106, their highest total since the inaugural 2017-18 season (109 points)

Rulers of the Realm
The Golden Knights are currently battling for first place in the Pacific Division (3x previously) and Western Conference (1x previously). Vegas leads both the division and conference with 106 points, closely followed by Edmonton (103 points) and Los Angeles (100 points) for both titles. The Golden Knights can clinch home-ice for round one of the postseason if they get at least one point in Dallas.

Against the Stars
Saturday’s meeting marks the third and final this season with Dallas. The Golden Knights are 8-3-2 all-time against the Stars and 5-1-1 when at American Airlines Center. The last time these two teams met, Vegas fell in a shootout, 3-2, at T-Mobile Arena. Michael Amadio scored in the second period to give Vegas a 1-0 lead. Two minutes later, Wyatt Johnson knotted the game for the Stars at 1-1. In the final period, Jack Eichel gave the Golden Knights a 2-1 edge with 4:36 to play. Roope Hintz then tied the game at 2-2 to send it to overtime. In the shootout, Vegas went scoreless, while Jason Robertson and Roope Hintz converted for Dallas to win it. The Golden Knights will look to level the series as they trail, 0-1-1 this season against the Stars.

2022-23 Season DAL Series: 0-1-1 (Home: 0-1-1, Road: 0-0-0)
Jan. 16 – at Vegas (Vegas 0, Dallas 4)
Feb. 25 – at Vegas (Vegas 2, Dallas 3 SO)
Apr. 8 – at Vegas

2021-22 Season DAL Series: 2-1-0 (Home: 1-0-0, Road: 1-1-0)
Oct. 27 – at Dallas (Vegas 3, Dallas 2)
Dec. 8 – at Vegas (Vegas 5, Dallas 4)
Apr. 26 – at Dallas (Vegas 2, Dallas 3 SO)

DALLAS STARS NOTES:

LAST DALLAS STARS GAME
April 6, 2023 – STARS 4 vs. FLYERS 1
Led by Joe Pavelski’s three-point night (1-2—3), the Stars scored four unanswered goals and never looked back in a 4-1 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers in front of a sellout crowd of 18,532 at American Airlines Center on Thursday. Pavelski extended his goal streak to five consecutive games and became the fourth player in NHL history to record a five-game goal streak at age 38 or older. Jason Robertson (2-0—2) potted two goals for his fourth consecutive multi-point game, while Colin Miller (1-0—1) lit the lamp for the second consecutive game and third time in his past five overall. Jamie Benn (0-1—1), Wyatt Johnston (0-1—1), Evgenii Dadonov (0-1—1), Tyler Seguin (0-1—1) and defenseman Miro Heiskanen (0-1—1) added assists, while goaltender Jake Oettinger improved to 34-11-11 with a 24-save performance.
PP: 2-2 | PK: 2-2 | SF: 30 | SA: 25 | DAL TOI: M. Heiskanen (23:29 – game high) | Attendance: 18,532 (sellout)
Three Stars: 1. DAL – J. Pavelski 2. DAL – J. Robertson 3. DAL – C. Miller

UPCOMING GAME SCHEDULE
Date Opponent Time (CT) Location TV/Radio
Sat, April 8, 2023 Vegas Golden Knights 2:30 p.m. American Airlines Center ABC/KTCK
Mon, April 10, 2023 Detroit Red Wings 6 p.m. Little Caesars Arena BSSWX/KTCK
Wed, April 12, 2023 St. Louis Blues 6:30 p.m. Enterprise Center TNT/KTCK
Thu, April 13, 2023 St. Louis Blues 7 p.m. American Airlines Center ESPN/KTCK

RECENT TRANSACTIONS
April 2 – Recalled goaltender Scott Wedgewood from Texas (AHL) and loaned goaltender Matt Murray to Texas (AHL)
April 3 – Recalled defenseman Thomas Harley from Texas (AHL)

INJURIES
Man-games lost, 2022-23: 76

NAME INJURY GAMES
MISSED DATES
D Miro Heiskanen Upper body 3 Oct. 25-29
G Jake Oettinger Lower body 4 Nov. 1-8
F Denis Gurianov Upper body 6 Nov. 11-21
F Roope Hintz Lower body 1 Nov. 19
Upper body 7 Jan. 10-21
Lower body 1 April 6-pres.
F Joel Kiviranta Lower body 11 Feb. 8-Mar. 4
F Luke Glendening Undisclosed 11 Feb. 18-Mar. 13
G Scott Wedgewood Undisclosed 1 Feb. 22-25
Undisclosed 14 Mar. 1-28
F Tyler Seguin Lower body 6 Mar. 11-21
F Mason Marchment Lower body 11 Mar. 14-pres

TODAY’S GAME: The Stars close out their three-game homestand against the Western Conference-leading Vegas Golden Knights this afternoon at American Airlines Center. (2:30 p.m. CT, TV: ABC, Radio: The Ticket 96.7-FM/1310-AM). Much like the Stars are fighting for supremacy in the Central Division, the Golden Knights are neck and neck the Edmonton Oilers for the top spot in the Pacific. This is the third and final meeting between the Stars and Golden Knights in the regular season, which has seen Dallas take the first two. Following today’s game, the Stars will hit the road for games Monday at Detroit and Wednesday at St. Louis before wrapping up the 2022-23 regular season next Thursday against St. Louis.

GOT A LOT TO TALK ABOUT IF YOU STILL WANNA LISTEN

  • The Stars are 2-0-0 vs. the Golden Knights this season, winning both games on the road (4-0 on Jan. 16 and 3-2 in a shootout on Feb. 25).
  • Dallas is 5-6-2 all-time vs. Vegas, including a 2-3-2 mark at home.
  • The Stars enter tonight’s game with points in six of the past seven games (4-1-2) against the Golden Knights.
  • Captain Jamie Benn (1-2—3) and forward Ty Dellandrea (0-3—3) pace the Stars in scoring vs. Vegas this season with three points apiece in two games.
  • Benn enters today’s game with three goals and seven points (3-4—7) in 12 career games vs. Vegas.
  • Forward Roope Hintz lit the lamp in the closing seconds of regulation on Feb. 25 to give him three goals and six points (3-3—6) in eight career contests against the Golden Knights.
  • Forward Tyler Seguin scored in the opening game between the two clubs to give him seven points (3-4—7) in 13 career games vs. Vegas.
  • Forward Joe Pavelski leads active Stars in goals (5) and ranks second in points (5-4—9) in 13 career games against the Golden Knights.
  • Forward Max Domi leads active Stars in assists (11) and points (1-11—12) in 14 career games vs. Vegas.
  • Forward Evgenii Dadonov has two goals and four points (2-2—4) in six career games against his former club. Dadonov recorded 43 points (20-23—43) in 78 regular season games with the Golden Knights in the 2021-22 season.
  • Forward Jason Robertson is averaging a point a game in his career against the Golden Knights with five points (3-2—5) in five games.
  • Defenseman Colin Miller was part of the inaugural Vegas squad that went to the Stanley Cup Final in 2018. Miller spent two seasons with the Golden Knights, amassing 70 points (13-57—70) in 147 career regular-season games and 10 points (4-6—10) in 26 postseason contests.
  • Goaltender Jake Oettinger recorded his third shutout of the season (fifth of his career) in Dallas’ 4-0 victory over Vegas at T-Mobile Arena on Jan. 16. Oettinger is 3-0-0 with a 1.27 goals-against average and .962 save percentage in three career appearances against the Golden Knights.
  • Netminder Scott Wedgewood is 1-1-1 with a 2.75 GAA and a .934 SV% in three career appearances vs. Vegas.

2022-23 REGULAR SEASON SCHEDULE
Jan. 16 at Vegas – W, 4-0
Feb. 25 at Vegas – W, 3-2 (shootout)
April 8 vs. Vegas

MLB Preview: Houston Astros (3-5) at Minnesota Twins (5-2)

MLB Editor
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MLB Preview: Houston Astros (3-5) at Minnesota Twins (5-2)

HOUSTON ASTROS NOTES:

TODAY’S GAME: The Houston Astros, the reigning World Series champions, will play the middle game of their three-game series with the Twins today in an afternoon matinee…the Astros will try and even the series behind RHP Luis Garcia, who’s won his last three career starts opposite the Twins… he’ll be opposed by RHP Joe Ryan, who allowed four runs in a 4.0-inning start against the Astros last season.

ABOUT GARCIA:RHP Luis Garcia is making the second start of his fourth MLB season (2020-23) and is coming off a strong 2022 campaign in which he ranked tied for fourth in the AL in wins (15), ninth in opponent average (.222) and 10th in strikeouts per 9.0 (8.98)…he finished his season by winning seven consecutive decisions over his last eight starts.

RUN OF SUCCESS: In addition to capturing the 2022 World Championship, Houston has played in three of the last four and four of the last six World Series, earning two championships along the way (2017, 2022)…the Astros have also advanced to the ALCS an MLB-record six consecutive seasons (2017-22).

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 2,096 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 General Manager 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.

LASTING LEGACY: This series is another reunion with Twins SS Carlos Correa, who spent his first seven Major League seasons (2015-21) with the Astros, prior to joining the Twins prior to the 2022 season…Correa’s name will likely always be tied to the Houston franchise for many reasons, including through his younger brother IF J.C. Correa, who’s currently a utility player for the Astros Double A affiliate, the Corpus Christi Hooks.

SEASON SWEEP: The Astros swept the Twins in 2022, winning all six of their games, including three games in Minnesota…the Twins were one of three teams the Astros swept the season series from in 2022, also the Tigers (7-0) and Mets (4-0).

YESTERDAY’S DECISION: The Astros lost yesterday’s series opener to the Twins by a score of 3-2 in 10 innings on an RBI single by Twins 2B Kyle Farmer…2B Mauricio Dubón (2×4, RBI) had a strong game for the Astros and was the temporary hero after he singled in the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th… on the day, the Astros offense was held in check by RHP Sonny Gray (1ER/7IP), who fanned a career-high 13 hitters…on the
Astros side, RHP José Urquidy (1ER/5.1P) started for Houston and pitched solidly, working around a litany of baserunners, including seven hits allowed.

EARLY LEAGUE LEADERS: LF Yordan Alvarez ranks second in the AL in RBI (10)…RF Kyle Tucker is tied for second in the AL in homers (3) and tied for third in walks (6)…1B José Abreu ranks tied for seventh in the AL in hits (11).

EARLY RETURNS: 1B José Abreu has opened his career with the Astros on an eight-game hitting streak, which ties as the longest streak in the Majors this season…per Elias, Abreu is the fourth player in club history to begin their Astros career with at least an eight-game hitting streak, joining IF Scott Moore (9g in 2012), IF Jeff Keppinger (8g in 2009) and OF Román Mejias (8g in 1962)…Abreu’s eight-game hitting streak is the longest to open a season in his 10-year career, surpassing his previous high of four games.

RACKIN’ UP RBI: LF Yordan Alvarez is off to a characteristically strong start into the young season, as he’s hitting .320 (8×25) with a double, two homers, 10 RBI and a 1.019 OPS…this marks just the 11th time in club history for a player to record 10-plus RBI within the Astros first eight games of a season (RF Kyle Tucker also did so in 2021).

SEÑOR CIEN: LF Yordan Alvarez connected for his 100th career homer on Monday vs. DET, becoming the 19th player in franchise history to reach the 100-homer mark…Alvarez reached that mark in 372 games, the fastest by an Astros player, topping 1B Lance Berkman, who hit his 100th career homer in his 452nd game.

BOMBS AWAY: RF Kyle Tucker has connected for a team-leading three home runs on the young season, which ranks tied for second in the AL…Tucker is looking to improve upon his career high of 30 homers, which he reached in 2021 and 2022.

MISSING PIECE: The Astros are playing without 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 (5g) and IF David Hensley (3g), who have combined to hit .276 (8×29) in their starts at the keystone.

FULL SLATE: Yesterday was scheduled to be the first time this season for all four of the Astros full-season minor league affiliates to be in play, but incredibly all four games were affected by weather…today’s Astros minor league schedule now features three doubleheaders and one game that will follow a resumption of last night’s suspended game.

TAYLOR ON ASSIGNMENT: LHP Blake Taylor, on the IL with a left elbow strain, has made three scoreless appearances so far while on an injury rehab assignment with Triple A Sugar Land… because Taylor began the season the the Major League injured list, he’s not eligible to be activated until April 11.

TODAY’S ASTROS STARTER: RHP LUIS GARCIA
LAST START – 4/2 VS. CWS: made his season debut on 4/2 vs. CWS allowing 3 runs on 7 hits and striking out 4 batters through 5.0 IP

SPRING TRAINING: made four appearances for Houston this Spring Training and another two for Team Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic.

• pitched great in both of his WBC appearances…tossed 4.0 scoreless innings, while striking out 7, against the vaunted Dominican Republic on March 11, in Venezuela’s 5-1 win…also pitched on March 18 vs. Team USA, tossing 4.0 innings and allowing 2 runs…allowed a double and a homer to Astros teammate RF Kyle Tucker. ABOUT GARCIA:Venezuelan starter has pitched in parts of 3 seasons (2020-22) in Houston, going 26-17 with a 3.57 ERA (129ER/325IP) in 63 games (57 starts)… is on his 3rd consecutive Opening Day roster.

• enters the season riding an active 7-game winning streak, which dates back 8 starts to Aug. 12…in those 8 outings, worked to a 3.20 ERA (16ER/45IP).

• has dominated right-handed hitters in his career, limiting them to a .193 average (120×622)…lefties have hit almost 70 points higher against Garcia, posting a .259 average (151×582)…in 2022, those numbers were close to evening out as he limited righties to a .213 (67×315) average and lefties to a .234 (64×274) mark.

GARCIA’S NEW LOOK: Prior to it being outlawed this season, had one of the most unique windups in the Majors, which was a mix of rocking a baby and a salsa dance… his windup was developed during the 2020 season as he worked at the Astros Alternate Training Site over the summer…Garcia did not have a strong origin story for his windup, instead saying he wanted a windup that he felt could be repeatable.

• according to Astros Pitching Coach Josh Miller, this offseason, Garcia simply returned to his windup style he used throughout his career prior to 2020 to get back in compliance with Major League rules.

VS. THE TWINS: set to make his 5th career start vs. the Twins…owns a 2.66 ERA (6 ER/20.1 IP) in 4 career starts against the Twins…has gone 1-1 with a 2.89 ERA (3 ER/9.1IP) in 2 career starts at Target Field.

GARCIA IN 2022: Had a strong second full season in 2022, finishing the year as a 15-game winner, while making 28 starts…ranked T-4th in the AL in wins, 9th in opponent average (.222) and 10th in strikeouts per 9.0 (8.98).

• got his outs via the strikeout and fly ball, as he ranked 5th in the AL in fly ball percentage (43.6%) among those with 150+ IP.

• tossed the 8th immaculate inning in club history on June 15, 2022, at TEX, striking out 1B Nathaniel Lowe, 2B Ezequiel Duran and 3B Brad Miller in the frame…later was joined in that game by RHP Phil Maton, who also tossed an immaculate inning in the 7th inning against those same three hitters…according to MLB.com’s records, marked the first time in MLB history for a game to feature 2 immaculate innings.

GARCIA IN THE 2022 POSTSEASON: went 1-1 in the postseason with a 1.59 ERA and 6 strikeouts in 5.2 IP, working solely as a reliever.

• helped the Astros to the 2022 World Series title by tossing 5.0 scoreless innings in relief in the Astros 18-inning win in Game 3 of the ALDS at SEA…pitched the final 5.0 innings of the Astros win, allowing just two hits and no walks…became the second Astro to work 5.0 scoreless in relief in a postseason game, joining LHP Framber Valdez (Game 1 of the 2020 AL Wild Card Series at MIN)…Garcia was also just the second pitcher in postseason history to work 5.0-plus scoreless relief innings which all came in extras, joining RHP Yusmeiro Petit (6IP in Game 2 of the 2014 NLDS vs. SF).

MINNESOTA TWINS NOTES:

THE TWINS: Opened their 63rd season in Minnesota and 14th at Target Field with a walk-off victory against the Astros yesterday evening…today they will play the second of three against the ‘Stros and play the series finale tomorrow afternoon…after this series, the Twins will host the White Sox for three games from Monday-Wednesday.

SONNY SHINES IN OPENER: The Twins beat the Astros yesterday at Target Field by a score of 3-2 in 10 innings…Sonny Gray was the starter but did not factor into the decision, allowing one run on four hits in 7.0 innings pitched…Gray set a career-high with 13 strikeouts, fanning exactly half of the batters he faced (26)…13 strikeouts were also the most for a Twins starter since Francisco Liriano had 15 on July 13, 2012 vs. Oakland…the offense recorded 11 hits, three from Jose Miranda, who drove in the game-tying run in the bottom of the 10th…Kyle Farmer drove in the game-winning run with a single, his second career walk-off…the other was in his major league debut with the Dodgers on July 30, 2017 vs. San Francisco.

Gray’s 13 strikeouts marked the most by a Twin in their Home Opener, passing the previous record of 10, done by Bert Blyleven in 1974 vs. Chicago-AL and José Berríos in 2019 vs. Cleveland.

The Twins drew 38,465 in attendance for the Opener, their 12th Home Opener sellout in Target Field’s history…184th sellout in Target Field history overall.

The game was played in 2:47, marking the Twins’ shortest extra-inning game since May 28, 2011 vs. Los Angeles-AL (2:43).

IT’S A WALK-OFF: Yesterday marked the fifth Home Opener walk-off win for the Twins (since 1961):

DATE SCORE NOTES
4/7//23 vs. HOU 3-2 Twins score 2 in bottom 10, Kyle Farmer singles up the middle.
4/5/04 vs. CLE 7-4 Twins score 3 in bottom 11 on a three-run homer from Shannon Stewart.
4/7/87 vs. OAK 5-4 Kent Hrbek hits RBI single in bottom of 10th.
4/12/66 vs. KCA 2-1 Sandy Valdespino hits RBI single in bottom of ninth.
4/12/65 vs. NYY 5-4 César Tovar hits RBI single in bottom of 11th.

KINGS OF THE HILL: Through seven games, Twins starting pitchers have combined to post a 1.12 ERA (40.1 IP, 5 ER), with 12 walks, 52 strikeouts, while holding batters to a slashline of .165/.237/.273…below are their ranks among all starting staffs in Major League Baseball: ERA BAA FIP WHIP HITS ALLOWED K’s OPS
MIN – 1.12 MIA – .165 TB – 1.98 LAD – 0.81 MIA – 22 MIN – 52 MIN – .510
LAD – 2.30 MIN – .165 LAD – 2.61 MIN – 0.87 MIN – 23 CWS – 51 LAD – .522
TB – 2.61 LAD – .187 MIN – 2.73 TB – 1.08 LAA – 29 TEX – 46 MIA – .553
LAA – 2.61 LAA – .206 HOU – 2.99 MIL – 1.13 NYY – 29 TB – 45 TB – .583
MIL – 3.08 MIL – .217 NYY – 3.19 LAA – 1.16 CHC/MIL – 30 3 tied – 44 LAA – .629

TAKING TURNS: Below are the Twins starters through the first seven games:
DATE/OPPONENT STARTER W/L IP H R ER HR BB K
3/30 at Kansas City Pablo López W 5.1 2 0 0 0 3 8
4/1 at Kansas City Sonny Gray W 5.0 3 0 0 0 4 1
4/2 at Kansas City Joe Ryan W 6.0 3 1 1 1 2 6
4/3 at Miami Tyler Mahle W 5.0 5 1 1 0 1 7
4/4 at Miami Kenta Maeda L 5.0 3 1 1 1 0 9
4/5 at Miami Pablo López ND 7.0 3 1 1 1 1 8
4/7 vs. Houston Sonny Gray ND 7.0 4 1 1 0 1 13
TOTALS 4-1 40.1 23 5 5 3 12 52

ADDITIONALLY: The one run-or-fewer allowed by Twins starters in each game marks the second such single-season streak in Twins history (1961-present), alongside a similar seven-game streak from May 20-26, 2022 (Elias Sports Bureau).

TWINS AND ‘STROS: The Twins and Astros are playing each other today for the second of six scheduled games in 2023…the Twins are 36-42 all-time against the Astros in the regular season, including a record of 25-33 since Houston joined the American League in 2013.

Yesterday’s win over the Astros snapped a six-game losing streak to Houston and marked the Twins’ first win over them since August 8, 2021 at Minute Maid Park…first win over the Astros at Target Field since June 12, 2021.

SERIES-LY SPEAKING: A victory today would secure the second 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 split their two previous series this season, going 3-0 at Kansas City from March 30-April 2 and 1-2 at Miami from April 3-5.

BUCK SEASON: Byron Buxton has nine hits in 25 at-bats to start the season, recording multiple hits in four of six games…he has reached base in all six games and 11 total times in 27 plate appearances (.407 OBP)…since 2021, Buck is hitting .362 (51-for-141) with 13 doubles, 14 home runs, 25 RBI, 31 runs scored, a .412 on-base percentage, a .766 slugging percentage and a 1.178 OPS in 37 March/April games…in that span, he leads baseball in slugging, is second in OPS and batting average, and fifth in OBP…in 2021, he was named American League Player of the Month for April.

Last season, Buck hit .351 (13-for-37) with four doubles, six home runs, 11 RBI and a 1.361 OPS in his first 10 games.

TICK TOCK: Through seven games, the Twins average time of game is 2:24 minutes, the fastest in baseball…their longest game this season has been 2:47 — 10 innings yesterday, while their shortest was 1:57 on Tuesday at Miami…last season, the Twins average time of game was 3:07, a difference of 43 minutes to this season.

HIGH DEF HIGHLIGHTS: The Twins’ most expansive renovation of their home ballpark since it opened in 2010, the “Scoreboard 2.0” project further enhances the Target Field fan experience by delivering best-in-class LED technology for the venue’s main and auxiliary videoboards and other digital displays, along with a pair of creative, interactive and signature elements: An updated “Minnie & Paul” Celebration Sign rising above the ballpark in centerfield, and a revolving, illuminated Baseball Medallion sitting atop the “Twins Tower” in the rightfield corner…the $29.5 million project, which also replaced all previous videoboard control room equipment prior to the 2022 season, was funded equally by the Twins and the Minnesota Ballpark Authority’s Ballpark Capital Reserve Fund.

STARTING PITCHER – JOE RYAN 41
Making his second start and appearance of 2023 and his first start at Target Field this year…also his 34th career start and appearance.

Facing Houston for the second time in his career…lost to Astros May 10, 2022 in one previous start (4.0 IP, 4 R/ER, 4 H, 5 BB, 3 K).

Led Twins pitching staff in wins (13), innings pitched (147.0) and strikeouts (151) last season.

LAST TIME OUT: Ryan earned the win against the Kansas City Royals in his first start of the 2023 season April 2, tossing 6.0 innings and allowing one run and three hits with two walks and six strikeouts opposite Brad Keller…was supported with six runs, including two home runs from Joey Gallo…Twins won 7-4 to sweep the series…his lone blemish was a two-out solo home run by Royals outfielder Edward Olivares in the bottom of the second inning…was first Twins starting pitcher to complete 6.0 innings and record a quality start this season, his 13th quality start of his career…improved to 5-0, 1.20 ERA (30.0 IP, 4 ER) with nine walks and 32 strikeouts in five career starts vs. Kansas City.

JOE VS. THE ‘STROS: Today Ryan faces the Astros for the second time in his career…lost to Houston May 10, 2022 at Target Field, allowing four hits and four earned runs in 4.0 innings with a career-high five walk and three strikeouts…Ryan allowed two hits and a walk to start the fifth inning before being removed with the Twins trailing 3-0…tied four other starts for the shortest start of his career… is looking for his first career win vs. an American League West opponent…has gone 0-4, 5.87 ERA (23.0 IP, 15 ER) with 16 walks and 21 strikeouts in five previous starts against the AL West.

RIGHT ON TARGET: Ryan will make his first home start of 2023 today…in 18 career starts at Target Field, Ryan is 7-5, 3.50 ERA (97.2 IP, 38 ER) with 33 walks and 105 strikeouts…on the road, Ryan has gone 9-4, 3.62 ERA (82.0 IP, 33 ER) with 21 walks and 82 strikeouts in 15 starts…owns a 9.7 strikeout-to-walk ratio and a 1.02 WHIP at home in his career, slightly better than his 9.0 strikeout-to-walk ratio and 1.07 WHIP in road starts…Ryan’s 105 strikeouts at Target Field rank ninth among active players.

LEFT/RIGHT: Kansas City’s left-handed batters went hitless in 12 at-bats vs. Ryan on Sunday with one walk and three strikeouts…over his career, Ryan has slightly better splits against left-handed hitters than righties, with lefties batting just .187 with a .611 OPS since his debut in 2021…right-handed hitters are hitting .217 with a .680 OPS off Ryan…in 2022, lefties slashed .202/.288/.348 against Ryan with eight home runs and 56 strikeouts…his .202 opponent batting average vs. lefties ranked ninth in the American League last season (min. 50.0 IP).

THE ARSENAL: Ryan utilized a three-pitch mix in his 2023 debut against Kansas City…he threw his fourseam fastball for 55.0 percent of his pitches and showcased his retooled changeup and slider for the remainder of his offerings…here’s a look at the Ryan’s repertoire from his first start, per Baseball Savant:

PITCH (AVG. MPH) PCT. (# OF PITCHES, VS. RHB/LHB) RESULTS
4-Seam Fastball (92.2)…………….55.0% (44 pitches, 24/20)………. .273 (3-for-11), 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 K
Split Finger (83.2)…………………….25.0% (20 pitches, 3/17)………………………….. .000 (0-for-9), 2 K
Sweeper (82.0)…………………………20.0% (16 pitches, 16/0)………………………….. .000 (0-for-1), 1 K
ARyan’s 2-2 fastball to Royals infielder Bobby Witt Jr. in the bottom of the first inning on
Sunday recorded at 96.0 mph, the fastest pitch of his career.

2022 NOTES:
Made Twins Opening Day roster, the first of career…spent nearly all season with Minnesota.

Was club’s Opening Day starter April 8 vs. Seattle, allowing two runs in 4.0 innings pitched with four walks and four strikeouts and was dealt the loss in a Twins 2-1 defeat…became second rookie in franchise history (since 1901) to start on Opening Day, joining Tom Hall on April 8, 1969.

Posted 20.0-scoreless inning streak from April 15-May 3, longest for a Twins pitcher on season.

Went 3-1, 1.17 ERA (23.0 IP, 3 ER) with six walks and 25 strikeouts in four April starts, the lowest ERA for a rookie in March/April (min. 20 IP) in Twins/Senators history (since 1901).

Threw 100-plus pitches in seven of 27 starts, including a season-high of 110 August 9 at Los Angeles-AL…also most for Twins starter in 2022.

Went 3-0, 1.09 ERA (24.2 IP, 3 ER) with eight walks and 27 strikeouts in final four starts from September 13-20.

Led Twins staff in wins (13), innings pitched (147.0) and strikeouts (151), and ranked second
in starts (27).

HAPPY DAYS: In 13 career daytime starts, Ryan is 7-3, 2.43 ERA (70.1 IP, 19 ER) with 22 walks and 62 strikeouts…has won his last two starts in day games, combining to throw 13.2 innings and allow only one run and six hits with four walks and 11 strikeouts…pitched a career-high 7.2 innings vs. Cleveland September 18, 2022 in a daytime start (0 R/ER, 3 H, 2 BB, 5 K)…Ryan is 9-6, 4.28 ERA (109.1 IP, 52 ER) with 32 walks and 125 strikeouts in 20 career night starts.

CAREER NOTES
• 2023 marks his sixth professional season, including 2020.

• In 2022, his first full major-league season, was Twins Opening Day starter and led both the club and all AL rookies in wins (13), innings pitched (147.0) and strikeouts (151).

• Made his major league debut for the Twins on September 1, 2021 vs. Chicago-NL (L, 5.0 IP, 3 H, 3 R/3 ER, 1 HR, 1 BB, 5 K).

• Helped Team USA win the silver medal in baseball at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics… went 1-0, 1.74 ERA (10.1 IP, 2 ER), one walk and eight strikeouts in two starts.

• Acquired by the Twins on July 22, 2021 from the Tampa Bay Rays, alongside righthanded pitcher Drew Strotman, in exchange for designated hitter Nelson Cruz… learned about the trade while in Japan with Team USA.

• In 2020, was part of the Rays 60-man player pool and spent the summer at the alternate training site in Port Charlotte, Florida…ranked by Baseball America as the No. 12 prospect in the Rays system following the season.

• In 2019, was named Rays minor league Pitcher of the Year after going 9-4, 1.96 ERA (123.2 IP, 27 ER) in his first full professional season…divided the year between Low-A Bowling Green (6 starts), High-A Charlotte (15 games, 13 starts) and Double-A Montgomery (3 starts).

• Garnered several other awards in 2019, including: MiLB.com organization All-Star honors, Baseball America High Class A All-Star, two-time Florida State League Pitcher of the Week (June 17-23 and August 5-11) and Rays minor league Pitcher of the Month for July and August.

• Made professional debut in 2018 for Short-A Hudson Valley…went 2-1, 3.72 ERA (36.1 IP, 15 ER) in 12 games (7 starts) for the Renegades, with 14 walks and 51 strikeouts.

• Selected by the Rays in the seventh round of the 2018 First-Year Player Draft out of Division II California State University, Stanislaus.

• Went 8-1, 1.65 ERA (98.1 IP, 18 ER) in 14 starts as a senior at Stanislaus and led all divisions of college baseball with 127 strikeouts…earned three selections to All-America teams, including first team All-America honors by the Division II Conference Commissioners Association…pitched three seasons at California State University, Northridge before transferring to Stanislaus.

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