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Jose Altuve is still learning to play left field for the Houston Astros. On the surface, it doesn’t seem hard, but there are intricacies at the MLB level that make it a little more complicated. But one unforeseen side effect has been that Altuve doesn’t feel quite as prepared to take his customary leadoff at-bats. So he asked manager Joe Espada if he could bat second behind shortstop Jeremy Peña. That happened for the first time this season Monday, and it paid immediate dividends as Altuve hit a go-ahead two-run homer (with Pena aboard) in the sixth inning to spark the Astros to an 11-4 victory. We shall see how long this plays out, but Pena and Altuve each had a pair of hits.
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Today’s Headlines
Nimmo Finds Himself — For A Game
Reading a box score can be an art. Often, you need a few details from the notes in the box to reconstruct what happened. Other times, something just jumps out at you. Brandon Nimmo’s line did the latter. The center fielder tied a club record when he drove in nine runs by going 4-for-6 with two homers and also scored four times in the New York Mets‘ 19-5 win over the Washington Nationals to split their four-game wraparound series. Nimmo hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning and a grand slam in the seventh as the Mets scored 16 of their 19 runs in the sixth inning or later. It was a much-needed game from Nimmo, who entered Monday with a .192/.239/.337 slash line. Nimmo had 12 RBIs in his first 27 games.
Martinez, Reds Win Fifth Straight
Are the Cincinnati Reds starting to find their groove? Could be. Thanks to some strong defense, right-handed starter Nick Martinez picked up his first win of the season as the Reds topped the St. Louis Cardinals 3-1. Martinez allowed one run over six innings, while three relievers combined for three hitless innings as the Reds won their fifth in a row. Elly De La Cruz extended his hitting streak to 12 for the Reds.
O’s Get Pick-Me-Up
Teams aren’t yet ready to hit the panic button, but as we come to the end of the first full month of the season, a little urgency is hitting teams that have expected better results so far. One of those is the Baltimore Orioles, who had won just two of their last nine games with the New York Yankees coming to town. Right-handed starter Tomoyuki Sugano tossed five shutout innings, designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn hit a three-run homer, and center fielder Cedric Mullins casually robbed a homer as the Orioles beat the Yankees 4-3. The importance of getting a win was shown by the Orioles throughout the game with Sugano bellowing after an inning-ending strikeout and giving an emphatic fist pump following Mullins’ robbery to end the fifth. That was all punctuated when closer Félix Bautista struck out Yankees sluggers Aaron Judge and Cody Bellinger to finish off his fourth save.
Best Moments From Yesterday
White Sox Connect With Bulls
The new City Connect uniforms for the Chicago White Sox might look like a more famous Windy City team. That is because they are a crossover with the NBA’s Chicago Bulls. Honestly, these aren’t White Sox unis; they are Bulls baseball unis with a White Sox logo on the hat and sleeve.
A Ring For You, Too
Imagine going from the World Series champion Dodgers to the Miami Marlins. That is what Clayton McCullough did in order to realize his dream of becoming an MLB manager. McCullough visited his former team for the first time, and they had a present waiting for their former first base coach.
Injuries and Other Moves
⚾ The Baltimore Orioles made a flurry of moves. The O’s put third baseman Jordan Westburg (strained hamstring) and catcher Gary Sánchez (inflamed right wrist) on the 10-day injured list. They also promoted right-hander Kade Strowd from Triple-A to make his MLB debut and claimed left-hander Walter Pennington off waivers from the Kansas City Royals. After the game, the Orioles said they will be calling up right-handed starter Kyle Gibson to start today against the Yankees.
⚾ Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed starter Tyler Glasnow went on the 15-day injured list due to right shoulder inflammation. Glasnow left Sunday’s start while warming up before the second inning.
⚾ Atlanta signed outfielder Eddie Rosario, who had been released by the Dodgers. Utilityman Jarred Kelenic was sent to Triple-A. Rosario returns to an Atlanta team that he helped lead to the 2021 World Series title, being named MVP of the NL Championship Series.
Articles You Should Read
Orioles have a problem with their offense — Andy Kostka, Baltimore Banner
A White Sox view of a weekend in West Sacramento — James Fegan, Sox Machine
Suarez joins the four-HR club, albeit in defeat — Jay Jaffe, FanGraphs
Fantasy Baseball Coverage
“Orioles have a problem with their offense” <-(title of a linked article at the bottom)
The TL;DR should read:
"They ignored their rotation, let their free agents walk, and have had injured core players. It's not exactly great for morale or chemistry to start off like this after such an exciting season last year. These are not action figures, they're human beings.
Henderson was down to start the year and clearly hasn't settled in, or isn't healthy yet. Cowser was just as important as the bigger names early in the season last year, (he went through a brutal stretch right afterward, but so it goes). He's a spark plug, a table setter, and a crowd favorite. The team love his ability to play the entire OF, run well, get on base at a decent clip, and swing an okay bat that blows up at times. He gets volume, (and a loooooong leash), that's rare on that team… when he's healthy. The other guy they had even higher expectations for, (and also got a lot of playing time… when he was healthy, due to his versatility), is Westburg and his CI/MI eligibility, 125 wRC+, .216 ISO, 18 HR, & 6 SB in 109 games last year. He's been dealing with (different), small, nagging stuff all season before finally landing on the IL yesterday. One might think that the reason for the litigation amongst the family is because the team went to the guy with the expensive habits."
; )
I feel for you, Baltimore. Doesn't matter, in the end, because they're going to make money hand over fist this season. People are still going to go to their games and spend way more than they should on cheaply made stuff, cirrhosis, and coronary artery disease, and the owners are going to keep going to the bank with it instead of to player representatives, because they're not being held accountable by their fans (like so many others). It hasn't been long since there's been little to cheer for in Camden Yards, unless they held draft watch parties or something. It's not like they had no shot, they were just not interested in winning for a while there, and clearly, nothing's changed. The main point of the Orioles to their ownership is as an attraction, not as competitors.