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Happy Easter! What we lack in Peeps and chocolate-covered eggs, we make up for in baseball. Saturday’s brand was different, filled with magic, surprise, and, most of all, drama. The Rangers, Rays, and Red Sox walked their games off, the Marlins and Rockies almost came back from seemingly insurmountable holes, and the Mariners and Blue Jays needed 12 innings to decide their game. Saturday brought twists, turns, and a taste of the theatre. Now, let’s take a deeper look.
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Today’s Headlines
Texas-Sized Walk-Off
In the battle between the 2023 World Series-winning Texas Rangers and the 2024 champion Los Angeles Dodgers, the past won out. Doing so, however, wasn’t easy, nor did it lack theatrics. Texas entered the bottom of the ninth with just three hits on its ledger. Catcher Kyle Higashioka accounted for two of those hits and wasn’t due up anytime soon. To make matters worse, ex-Ranger Kirby Yates was on the bump. Nonetheless, the Rangers set to work. First baseman Josh Smith fouled off two of the first three pitches he saw before lacing a lead-off double. A single would tie the game, but a home run? Well, wouldn’t that be even better? That sentiment wasn’t lost on outfielder Adolis García. García worked a 1-1 count and then blasted a letter-high fastball. The ball soared above the green, then the dirt, before landing in the bleachers for a well-earned walk-off.
The Cubs Keep Clubbing
The Chicago Cubs‘ offense can’t cool down. A day after putting up 13 runs on the Arizona Diamondbacks, the Cubs scored another six on Saturday. Responsibility for that rests on a few shoulders. Kyle Tucker tallied two RBI, as did Michael Busch and Seiya Suzuki. But the hows don’t matter as much as the totality of things. The Cubs’ 143 runs scored are the most in the majors, and it’s not even close. The second-place Yankees trail the Cubs by 21 runs. 21! This Chicago offense is the real deal and might be the engine that drives this organization back to the playoffs for the first time since 2020.
Tellez, Seattle Say No More
The Seattle Mariners and Toronto Blue Jays had an interesting competition on Saturday. Toronto led 2-3 in the top of the seventh before rookie Ben Williamson waylaid a high sinker to tie the game. Afterward, a new status quo settled in as neither team capitalized on their chances. As a result, the game headed to extras, and it’s here that things became goofy. Toronto went one-two-three despite its ghost runner in the 10th, Seattle designated Rowdy Tellez (yes, that Rowdy Tellez) as its ghost runner an inning later, and then Toronto didn’t cash in during the 11th with a man on third and just one out. Randy Arozarena broke the tie, and then Tellez hit a towering, game-sealing grand slam to end the odd affair.
Rays Rally
Down 8-4 and facing All-Star closer Devin Williams in the bottom of the ninth. The odds don’t get more stacked than that. Or at least, that’s what conventional wisdom would say. The Rays say, let’s play ball. Rookie Chandler Simpson breathed life into a rally with a one-run double, Yandy Díaz pumped more with a one-run single, and Brandon Lowe fully resuscitated the Rays with a two-run, game-tying double. All the Rays needed now was one more. One more clean inning from their bullpen and one more run from their offense. Edwin Uceta supplied the first, and Jonathan Aranda the second. Aranda aired an inside fastball deep to right-center and ended the night then and there. Rays win 10-8.
Mize and Blue
Casey Mize has the eye of the tiger. The Detroit starter doubled down on his strong start Saturday, pitching seven innings while only allowing one run. He worked, deep, efficiently, and, most surprisingly, without flair. Mize struck out just three batters and instead relied on 11 groundballs to carry him through the afternoon. Regardless of how he’s gotten his outs, Mize now touts a 2.22 ERA and a 0.95 WHIP through his first four starts. And that’s with a four-run-allowed performance against Minnesota last week. Mize always had the guts. Now, he’s got the glory.
Greene Hits a Red Light
Hunter Greene looked like a Cy Young contender entering Saturday. His 0.98 ERA was second in the NL, his 1.69 FIP trailed only Logan Webb and Paul Skenes, and his 31 strikeouts were tied for sixth-most. There was little doubt. But then Greene went up against the Baltimore Orioles and their offense. The O’s made Greene look like mincemeat, notching five hits — three of which left the yard — and a pair of walks en route to scoring five runs. It’s the first time Greene’s allowed five or more runs since June 25, 2024.
Crews and Wood Wallop Colorado
If the Washington Nationals want to escape the cellar, they need stars to get them onto the stairs. Luckily, they seem to have a pair. Outfielders James Wood and Dylan Crews combined for three home runs, six hits, and eight RBI in Saturday’s win against the Rockies. While a worthy career day for Crews, being part of stat lines like this is starting to feel normal for Wood. The second-year outfielder is hitting .253/.356/.573 with seven home runs, 17 RBI, and a .929 OPS. Wood can get the Nationals on the way back to contention. He’ll only need more days like these from his teammates.
Best Moments From Yesterday
Hike!
José Caballero channelled his inner Jason Kelce on Saturday with a between-the-legs toss for a double play.
Shohei Ohtani: Pitcher, Hitter, Dad
Congrats to Shohei Ohtani and wife Mamiko Tanaka. The couple is officially first-time parents.
"Welcome to the Ohtani family!"
Congratulations to Shohei Ohtani and his wife Mamiko on the birth of their daughter! ❤️
(via shoheiohtani/IG) pic.twitter.com/NrDJ2AhPeQ
— MLB (@MLB) April 19, 2025
Pitt Fest
What happens when the Pittsburgh Pirates sell Paul Skenes bobbleheads? Well, the whole city shows up. If only Pittsburgh’s offense did the same.
This line in Pittsburgh for Paul Skenes bobblehead day 🤯 pic.twitter.com/oZSMCvG08p
— MLB (@MLB) April 19, 2025
Roden, meet Rowdy
Blue Jays rookie Alan Roden unconventionally met Rowdy Tellez.
Alan Roden slammed into Rowdy Tellez at full speed during a play at first.
Roden was down on the field for a bit with the #BlueJays' training staff and John Schneider… but he's staying in the game. pic.twitter.com/EzlbTvrOXU
— Keegan Matheson (@KeeganMatheson) April 19, 2025
Bader and Blooper
Harrison Bader had quite the night between last night’s unfortunate foul tip and this.
@mntwins Bader and Blooper is the duo we didn’t know we needed #mlb #harrisonbader #mascot
Return of the Mike
Friendly reminder that Mike Trout can still look like Mike Trout.
Injuries and Other Moves
⚾ The Snakes are shedding their skin. The Arizona Diamondbacks made a flurry of moves on Saturday, but none bigger than placing reliever A.J. Puk on the 15-day IL with left elbow inflammation. Relievers Bryce Jarvis and Joe Mantiply, meanwhile, were demoted to Triple-A. Drey Jameson, Juan Morillo, and J.P. Feyereisen will try to bolster Arizona’s bullpen while infielder Grae Kessinger was DFA’d to make room on the 40-man.
⚾ As if things couldn’t get worse for the Colorado Rockies, the team placed shortstop Ezequiel Tovar on the 10-day IL with a left hip contusion. That’s not the end of it, though. Outfielder Brenton Doyle heads to the bereavement list, and pitcher Austin Gomber transfers to the 60-day IL as he continues to rehab left shoulder inflammation. Outfielder Jordan Beck and utilityman Aaron Schunk will come up from Triple-A to compensate for the moves.
⚾ Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen was added to the 15-day IL yesterday due to forearm tightness. Evan Phillips, thankfully, is just coming off the 15-day IL himself and will replace Treinen on the active roster.
⚾ New York Mets third baseman Mark Vientos exited Saturday’s game with groin discomfort. While the cause of Vientos’ discomfort isn’t clear, Vientos did make a leaping grab in the fourth inning before being replaced by Brett Baty in the fifth.
⚾ Welcome back, Liam Hendriks. The Boston Red Sox activated baseball’s resident good guy from the injured list and demoted Friday night’s starter, Hunter Dobbins.
⚾ The Chicago White Sox placed starter Martín Pérez on the 15-day IL with left elbow inflammation. The move might explain part of Pérez’s problems on Friday. He allowed four runs on five hits and two walks against the Boston Red Sox in his worst start thus far. Fellow veteran starter Jared Shuster will replace Pérez.
⚾ It’s not every day you get to promote an All-Star. That’s what the Pirates did on Saturday, elevating former closer David Bednar back to the Bigs while reliever Tim Mayza hits the shelf due to a lat muscle strain in his throwing shoulder.
⚾ San Diego’s seeing some shakeup. Padres outfielder Jason Heyward will be sidelined with left knee inflammation for at least 10 days. Tirso Ornelas will join San Diego in Heyward’s place.
⚾ The Rays expect outfielder Richie Palacios to miss four to six weeks as he recovers from a right knee sprain.
⚾ Sticking in Florida, the Miami Marlins will be without Griffin Conine due to a dislocated shoulder. Conine sustained the injury during a head-first slide into second base.
⚾ Giants infielder Casey Schmitt’s left oblique strain is sending him to the 10-day IL and promoting David Villar to the majors.
⚾ The Detroit Tigers announced that reliever John Brebbia has a right triceps strain. The injury shifts Brebbia onto the 15-day IL and leaves an open roster spot for left-hander Bailey Horn.
⚾The Kansas City Royals demoted struggling outfielder MJ Melendez on Saturday. Veteran outfielder Mark Canha, now fully recovered from a left abductor strain, takes Melendez’s place on the roster.
Articles You Should Read
Sunday Notes: Penn Murfee’s Cut-Ride Came Because He Couldn’t Get a Grip – David Laurila, Fangraphs
MLB Players With Eye-Popping Statcast Data So Far In 2025 – Eli-Ben Porat, Baseball America
Fantasy Baseball Coverage
