Baseball

Kyle Ross-USA TODAY Sports On Sunday afternoon, a pal of mine was straight up not having a great time watching his favourite baseball staff. The Phillies, defending NL champions and consensus favorites to return to the playoffs this 12 months, have been shedding to the Rockies. They’d already finished that when this weekend and are heading into the final week of April underneath .500. So he got here up with an attention-grabbing principle: With so many gamers leaving Phillies camp to play within the World Baseball Classic, maybe the interruption in spring coaching had a deleterious impact on the staff’s preparation and/or chemistry. Then he requested me if I knew of anybody who’d studied the difficulty. I stated no and nearly let the matter drop proper there. Looking on the statistic...

As we strategy the top of the primary month of the season, we’ve seen some groups carry out surprisingly effectively whereas a few of final yr’s prime groups have struggled. Those traits will likely be put to the check this week in a number of notable matchups. Here are 5 sequence to look at through the week of April 24: Astros (12-10) at Rays (19-3)3 video games (Monday-Wednesday) Head to go: The Astros went 5-1 in opposition to the Rays in 2022, together with a three-game sweep in Tampa in September. They additionally met within the 2019 and 2020 playoffs, with every workforce successful one sequence. Storyline: Are the Rays taking the torch from the Astros? These groups have mixed for the previous 4 AL pennants, with Boston in 2018 being the final different workforce to earn one. They a...

Matt Chapman put a goal on proper subject lengthy earlier than the season began. And he isn't lacking. Chapman's scorching begin to 2023 has been pushed by one factor above all else: elite opposite-field energy. He appears like a lefty slugger within the right-handed batter's field. The Blue Jays third baseman mentioned he was going to do that, when he made the adjustment that permit him unlock the correct facet of the sector: switching from a leg kick to a toe faucet in his swing, motivated by his low batting common and excessive strikeout totals in his first yr in Toronto and closing yr in Oakland. "I wasn’t making enough contact, I wasn't driving the ball to right field and wasn't behind the baseball as much," Chapman informed Sportsnet early in Spring Training. "I was kind of out and a...

SEATTLE -- Throughout an MLB profession filled with great highs and downright puzzling lows, Cardinals shortstop Paul DeJong has all the time had a knack for being a robust starter. It’s the half after the robust begins that has tended to journey up DeJong up to now, however he's hoping he's resistant to that taking place now with a new-and-improved plate strategy that definitely yielded stellar outcomes on Sunday. DeJong, now 29 with 5 years of MLB service time, homered in his first huge league at-bat in Colorado again in 2017. The shortstop, who was demoted to Triple-A final yr following two-plus seasons of hitting struggles, homered in his first recreation again with the Cardinals on July 30. On Sunday, in his first recreation again after spending a lot of the previous month on rehab as...

CHICAGO — James Outman and Max Muncy every homered twice because the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Chicago Cubs 9-4 on Saturday. Muncy hit a two-run homer within the seventh in opposition to Mark Leiter Jr. and a solo drive within the ninth off Brad Boxberger, tying the New York Mets’ Pete Alonso for the mo...

Chipper Jones skilled the joys of being the No. 1 total decide within the 1990 MLB Draft and acquired baseball’s biggest honor when he was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in 2018. In between, he earned eight All-Star choices, one Most Valuable Player Award and a World Series title. Jones debuted with the Braves in 1993 and remained with the group by way of his retirement on the finish of the 2012 season. The iconic third baseman received a world championship throughout his 1995 rookie season and helped the membership advance to the postseason 14 occasions. Here are 10 moments that outlined Jones’ profession. 1. Four-homer sequence vs. MetsJones cemented his solely NL MVP Award and propelled the Braves to a NL East title with the 4 homers he hit throughout a three-game sequence towards...

PHOENIX — Fernando Tatis Jr. hit his first dwelling run since getting back from an 80-game drug suspension, driving a fastball into the left-center stands to provide the San Diego Padres a 1-0 lead towards the Arizona Diamondbacks on Saturday evening. It was Tatis‘ first homer since 2021. The 24-year-old m...

SAN FRANCISCO -- The Giants lastly have their first successful streak of 2023. Joc Pederson supplied a key spark in his return from the injured listing on Sunday, lining an RBI single within the first inning and scoring the successful run from first base on Mike Yastrzemski’s double within the backside of the eighth to assist the Giants rally for a 5-4 win over the Mets at Oracle Park. The victory secured a cut up of this four-game collection with the Mets and marked the primary time the Giants (8-13) have gained back-to-back video games this 12 months. “Huge,” Pederson mentioned. “It’s a playoff team over there. We’ve lost some games we should have won. It’s frustrating, but to build on it and beat a good team like that -- we can take that momentum and continue going.” Pederson, who was a...

BALTIMORE — Once Kyle Gibson made it by means of the primary inning, it was easy crusing. Gibson tied a profession excessive with 11 strikeouts within the newest spectacular outing by a Baltimore starter, and Ramón Urías hit a three-run double to raise the Orioles to their fifth straight victory, 5-1 over ...

The newest version of MLB.com’s weekly Power Rankings incorporates a new workforce atop the checklist, a shakeup among the many remaining golf equipment within the prime 5, and a shocking surge from a National League Central membership that continues to lift eyebrows early on this season. Biggest Jump: The Pirates stay essentially the most shocking workforce of the season thus far after successful seven straight video games final week to enhance to 16-7. Pittsburgh jumped seven locations within the rankings, from No. 19 to No. 12. The Bucs opened the week with a three-game sweep of the Rockies in Denver and adopted that up by taking 4 straight from the Reds at PNC Park. With an thrilling mixture of younger, rising stars and veterans together with franchise icon Andrew McCutchen, that is a ...