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Cheese. There are so many things one can do with cheese: Slice it, grate it, liquefy it, bake it, melt it. Its possibilities are endless. Home runs are no different. They come in their own sizes and circumstances. For instance, Saturday saw a walk-off home run, a leadoff inside-the-park home run, a grand slam, a homer as part of a cycle, one player hit two in the same inning, and that same player hit a third later that game. Variety. It really is the spice of life.
Oh, and Happy Father’s Day!
Today’s Headlines
Phillies Pound Peralta
New York Mets starter Freddy Peralta started his night all right. A pop-out from Philadelphia Phillies shortstop Trea Turner and a fly-out from slugger Kyle Schwarber gave Peralta two early outs. Yet what started as a pleasant evening soon became a 15-3 beatdown in Philly’s favor. Phillies first baseman Bryce Harper started the scoring right after Schwarber’s flyout with a solo shot. Two doubles in the second made it 3-0. Peralta’s nadir came in the third: Home run, double, single, fly out, double, double, strikeout, walk, and single. Round and round the Phillies went. That single was the final straw for the Mets. They’d pull Peralta after 10 earned runs and 80 pitches in 2.2 innings pitched. Statistically speaking, it is the worst start of his nine-year career. His ERA is now 4.83.
That doesn’t even cover everything. That’s just everything that happened with Peralta on the bump. After his removal, Schwarber hit his second home run of the evening. He’d hit a third in the seventh. Harper went on to hit for the cycle, a first in his career, and needed just five innings to do so. Every Philly starter recorded a hit except one. Pitcher Cristopher Sánchez lowered his ERA to 1.80. So much for Peralta’s swell beginnings.
Ozzie Ozzie Oxen Free
Saturday’s game between Milwaukee and Atlanta opened on an Ozzie Albies homer. So why not end the same way? Only this time, it gave Atlanta a 3-2 walk-off win rather than an early lead. Here’s the situation: After a brilliant pitching bout between Atlanta’s Chris Sale and Milwaukee’s Kyle Harrison, Atlanta is down 2-1 entering the bottom of the ninth. Atlanta either replays yesterday’s style, a late comeback win, or burns its negative. First baseman Matt Olson opts for the former. He strokes a single to give Albies his moment. Paying it forward, Albies jumps all over a low-and-away sinker from Milwaukee reliever Aaron Ashby. Albies’ bat cracks. The fans get to their feet. And together, they watch a wall-scraping walk-off. That’s two home runs and one bookending game for Albies.
Blue Jays Bat Away The Bears
Ahead 5-0 through six over the visiting Toronto Blue Jays, the Chicago Cubs had this one in the bag. Yet two innings later, it was 8-5, Toronto. And despite Chicago loading the bases with no one out in the eighth, the game would end 8-6. It’d all be shocking if Chicago’s season weren’t pocked with the occasional cavalcade of misfortune. Yesterday’s pain started with the recently reinstated Daulton Varsho volleying a three-run shot in the seventh. In the eighth, the heart of Toronto’s order chipped in. Catcher Alejandro Kirk and first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. tied the game with back-to-back RBI singles. Third baseman Kazuma Okamoto then delivered them home along with the dagger, belting a three-run bomb for Toronto’s eighth and final unanswered run. The only bag Chicago got was the one over its head.
The Young Pup Beats the Yanks
The Cincinnati Reds have been licking their wounds as of late. But not on Saturday during a 10-3 beatdown of the New York Yankees. Reds third baseman Sal Stewart was the alpha dog. The 22-year-old went 2-for-4 with six RBI. Having hit for six RBI in a game before, Stewart joins elite company. The only other players of his age or younger with multiple six-plus RBI games are Hall of Famers Jimmie Fox and Mel Ott, and Yordan Alvarez and Hal Trosky. Two of Stewart’s total came off an RBI that put Cincy ahead early. One came from a sacrifice fly. And four when things were well in hand with a bases-clearing double.
First baseman Spencer Steer served as Stewart’s littermate offensively. While Steer went 1-for-5, his three-run homer put the game out of hand. Together, Steer and Stewart combined for all nine runs scored.
Bazzana Ball
With no José Ramírez, the Cleveland Guardians needed a new sled dog. Instead, they got a kangaroo in Saturday’s 8-1 win over the Houston Astros. The aforementioned animal came in the form of Travis Bazzana. The 23-year-old went 4-for-4, hit two home runs, collected 10 total bases, tabbed a career-high five RBI, and raised his OPS from an already-impressive .783 to a well-above-league-average .845. In the core of Chase DeLauter, Angel Martínez, and Brayan Rocchio, Bazzana is hopping above them all right now. And Cleveland will need him to keep doing it.
By The Numbers
⚾ 1932. The Phillies became just the second team in MLB history to have one player hit for the cycle while another hit three home runs in the same game. The first and only team to accomplish the feat before tonight? The 1932 Yankees, when they did so in Philadelphia, no less.
⚾ 100. Miami Marlins infielder Otto Lopez became the first player to reach 100 hits this weekend. His .332 batting average, unsurprisingly, leads the majors.
⚾ 16. The Minnesota Twins stomped the Arizona Diamondbacks 16-8. It’s their most runs in a game this season.
⚾ 13. The Marlins are also an MLB-best 13-4 in June and 39-38 on the season. Senora to basement dwelling.
⚾ 7. The Pittsburgh Pirates are back to their old tricks. The club has lost Paul Skenes‘ last seven starts. In those starts, he has a 4.03 ERA.
⚾ 4. With another homer yesterday, Cubs outfielder Pete Crow-Armstrong is up to four in his last five games. And if that weren’t impressive enough, here are his numbers over his last 15: .452/.500/.968 with eight home runs and 1.420 OPS.
Best Moments From Yesterday
Schwarber Squared
Kyle Schwarber is now one of the rare MLB hitters to go deep twice in the same inning.
KYLE SCHWARBER'S SECOND HOMER OF THE INNING!
THIS ONE GOES 457 FEET 😱 pic.twitter.com/VAkLMItzIY
— MLB (@MLB) June 21, 2026
J.P. Stands For Just Perfect
J.P. Crawford starts what might be the prettiest double play this season.
This is just ridiculous from J.P. Crawford 🤯 pic.twitter.com/RgyfLFqixn
— MLB (@MLB) June 21, 2026
Suzuki and Clark
The Cubs may have lost. But at least they’re having fun.
Classic.@WatchMarquee pic.twitter.com/fx0JHCVqSp
— Christopher Kamka (@ckamka) June 20, 2026
Shohei’s Back
Shohei Ohtani better enjoy the good moments while he can. Sleepless nights and crying days await him.
Shohei Ohtani homers in his first game since the birth of his second child 🫶 pic.twitter.com/wDDgD9UDVv
— MLB (@MLB) June 21, 2026
Manny’s Money
In an otherwise bleak season for Manny Machado, this is a bright spot.
DEEP IN THE HEART OF TEXAS pic.twitter.com/qnYIvnKciC
— San Diego Padres (@Padres) June 20, 2026
All The Pretty Bases
Paul Skenes‘ home run problem interestingly manifested itself thanks to Jake McCarthy.
JAKE McCARTHY LEADOFF INSIDE-THE-PARKER! pic.twitter.com/uVdLaFZnie
— MLB (@MLB) June 21, 2026
Unc’s Still Got It
An underrated part of Ichiro Suzuki’s job with the Mariners: Clips like this.
Ichiro taking part in some infield drills 👑 pic.twitter.com/t6Bnnf3Jtg
— MLB (@MLB) June 21, 2026
Injuries and Other Moves
⚾ The Orioles placed catcher Adley Rutschman on the seven-day concussion injured list. The move comes on the heels of a ball hitting Rutschman on the head while running. Outfielder Michael Siani will join the O’s, while catcher Samuel Basallo picks up a bulk of the catching responsibilities.
⚾ Bad news for the Dodgers bullpen. Elbow inflammation is sending mainstay Blake Treinen to the IL. It’s about as ominous a diagnosis as any pitcher could hear. Nonetheless, LA recalled right-hander Chayce McDermott.
⚾ The Blue Jays added outfielder Daulton Varsho and infielder Lazaro Estrada back to the active roster. Varsho comes off the 10-day IL, while Estrada returns from a stint on the 60-day IL. Pitcher Brendon Little and infielder Charles McAdoo are the casualties of the move. Varsho and Estrada are just the start of Toronto’s reinforcement, with starter Shane Bieber expected to be activated this Monday.
⚾ Not done there, Toronto also traded for infielder Luis Urías from the Arizona Diamondbacks. Urias goes north for cash and will join Toronto’s Triple-A affiliate in Buffalo.
⚾ Speaking of Arizona, the IL continues to rattle. The Diamondbacks placed starter Michael Soroka and Jordan Lawlar on the IL. Soroka was felled by a glute injury on Friday, while Lawlar strained his hamstring that same night. Tim Tawa and southpaw Phillip Abner will join the club in the meantime.
⚾ The Boston Red Sox infield is getting a shakeup. Regular contributor Isiah Kiner-Falefa landed on the IL with left forearm inflammation. Anthony Seigler comes up from Triple-A and is Kiner-Falefa’s de facto replacement. The 27-year-old Seigler hit .290/.409/.435 in 37 games for Triple-A Worcester.
⚾ Matt Moore keeps living. The Kansas City Royals signed the veteran reliever to a minor league deal on Saturday. Moore hasn’t pitched professionally since 2024. If he can crack KC’s roster, it’ll be his ninth team in 13 seasons.
⚾ In other reliever news, the A’s placed reliever Mark Leiter Jr. on the 15-day IL with a right hip impingement. Fellow veteran reliever Geoff Hartlieb will join the A’s from Triple-A and fill in for Leiter.
⚾ The Houston Astros traded right-hander Jayden Murray to the Cubs. The 29-year-old has just 17 MLB career appearances, sporting a 4.68 ERA in them. Chicago sent first baseman Cameron Sisneros back to Houston. Down in Double-A, Sisneros is hitting .256/.404/.372 with a .776 OPS.
⚾ The Los Angeles Angels granted veteran starter Taijuan Walker his release. Walker, a recent signee, made two subpar starts in Triple-A before being granted his walking papers.
⚾ It’s a one-two punch for San Francisco Giants outfielder Jared Oliva. The organization first activated Oliva off the 60-day IL only to DFA him on Saturday.
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