MLB News & Moments You Should Know - 5/26

Stay updated on everything baseball with our morning MLB News & Moments articles. We’ve got you covered to keep you in the know.

Today’s Headlines

Joc Pederson Hits 4 Homers in Under 48 hours

Grab your pearls. Joc Pederson is on fire.

The Giants outfielder returned to the west coast before the 2022 season, signing a one-year, $6 million dollar contract with the San Francisco Giants. So far, the 30-year-old is rewarding the Giants with 11 HR, 24 RBI, and a .936 OPS in 104 AB. His latest hot streak is making that signing look even smarter.

On Tuesday, Pederson became the fourth Giants player to hit 3 HR and 8 RBI in a game. Yesterday, he kept the streak going with this blast off of Thomas Szapucki:

HE IS HIM 🥶 pic.twitter.com/hlnDwT2QXP

— SFGiants (@SFGiants) May 25, 2022

Pederson has 4 HR and 10 RBI in the past 2 games, a much-needed spark for the 24-19 Giants who hope to catapult their way back to the top of the NL West.

A Dodgers’ Streak Comes to an End

The Los Angeles Dodgers are a great team. That’s a fairly objective statement to make, as the 2020 World Series Champions present a deadly lineup of Mookie Betts, Freddie Freeman, Trea Turner, and a rotation anchored by Walker Buehler, Julio Urías, and the future Hall-of-Famer Clayton Kershaw. They’ve been so good that up to this point in the season, they had not been shut out. That all changed yesterday.

The first team to shut out the mighty 2022 Los Angeles Dodgers is Erick Fedde’s Washington Nationals.

— Chelsea Janes (@chelsea_janes) May 25, 2022

Facing the Washington Nationals, the Dodgers were blanked and lost 1-0. It’s not that they played poorly; Urías went 6 strong innings and the lineup took walks and hit the ball as they always do. But it was the pitching combination of Erick Fedde, Carl Edwards Jr., Kyle Finnegan, and Tanner Rainey that silenced the powerful Dodgers.

The Dodgers still hold a 29-14 record and are atop the NL West, and the Nationals are sitting at a 15-30 record, but this is a win the Nationals should be happy about. Beating L.A. is always tough, and shutting them out is even harder.

Slumping in Seattle

The Seattle Mariners made a lot of noise coming into the 2022 season. Acquiring Jesse Winker and Eugenio Suárez, and hoping for strong contributions from rookies Jarred Kelenic, Julio Rodríguez, Matt Brash, and George Kirby, it seemed that the M’s were destined to shake up the AL West.

However, up to this point, the Mariners have taken a far bumpier road than expected. They are currently 2-8 in their last 10 games and have fallen to last place in the AL West with an 18-27 record. It’s not a lack of talent, but one of consistency. Julio Rodríguez has been hot, but Jesse Winker, Abraham Toro, and Eugenio Suárez are struggling to find a solid pace. 2021 Cy Young Winner Robbie Ray has had flashes of brilliance mixed with a few rough starts, while Marco Gonzales and Chris Flexen are failing to capitalize on fairly solid 2021 seasons.

It’s still early in the season and Seattle could absolutely go on a run, but these struggles are worrisome for an organization that hopes to make the playoffs for the first time since 2001.

Best Moments From Yesterday

The Force is Strong With This O

There are a lot of great personalities in baseball. Miguel Cabrera, Joey Votto, Jazz Chisholm Jr., Ronald Acuña Jr. The list could go on and on. I think Colton Cowser would be a fair addition after this information was revealed:

According to his roommate John Rhodes, O's prospect Colton Cowser is building a 7,500-piece LEGO millennium falcon on their dining room table. Rhodes hasn't been able to eat there for weeks.

"We love Colton. Colton is Colton." pic.twitter.com/2zZRID5CHL

— Paul Mancano (@PaulMancano) May 25, 2022

Cowser was the Baltimore Orioles‘ first-round pick in the 2021 draft, going as the fifth overall pick. The 22-year-old has had a fairly solid start to his year, slashing .250/.375/.394 thus far in minor league action. We will watch his career (and the progress of his Millenium Falcon) with great interest.

A Duel in D.C.

I discussed the Nationals-Dodger matchup earlier, but one of the best games within the game came in this at-bat between Juan Soto and Julio Urías. Soto is one of the most prolific young hitters in the league, with an unbelievable eye and ability to get hits when it seems impossible. Urías is a young arm that has profiled to be an ace for years and flashed that potential last year with 20 wins and a 2.96 ERA in 185.2 IP. The two had a great battle during yesterday’s game.

Take 2 minutes to watch this fun at bat between Julio Urías and Juan Soto

Two of the best in the game battling it out and having an absolute blast pic.twitter.com/SnPbA5q5zC

— Blake Harris (@BlakeHHarris) May 25, 2022

Baseball is awesome because of moments like this, and I look forward to these two battling for years to come.

A Giants Win and Giant Vibes

The San Francisco Giants took on a tough New York Mets team and won 9-3 yesterday. After scoring those 9 runs in the first two innings, the Giants felt fairly comfortable the rest of the game and let their strong bullpen carry them to a win. This Giants’ faithful felt the same way.