Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today's games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Thanks for being here. A good craftsman never blames his tools. But what else was Mets third baseman Mark Vientos supposed to do last night? In the sixth inning of New York's game versus the Pirates at Citi Field, Pittsburgh first baseman Jared Triolo hit a sharp one-hopper toward the hot corner. But Vientos had it lined up. Displaying proper baseball fundamentals, he followed the ball as it entered his glove. He also followed the ball as it exited through the back of his glove. Triolo's scorcher found its way through a void in the webbing of Vientos' glove for a gift double, leading to a game-tying run for the Pirates. Vientos could laugh about the whole ordeal later when the Mets eventually triumphed, 2-1, but in the moment all he could do was look at his glove and wonder why it betrayed him. |
• Red Sox @ Tigers (6:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): Our first Cy Young poll of the season showed there could well be a repeat winner in the AL, and you need only glance at Tarik Skubal's past six starts to see why. In 37 innings over that span, he has allowed four runs, struck out 50 batters and walked only one. There's a lot going right in Motown, including the career renaissance of Javier Báez, who looks every bit as electric as he once did with the Cubs. |
• Angels @ Padres (9:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): The Fernando Tatis Jr. show is once again the main event in San Diego. His 430-foot walk-off home run last night -- the first of his career -- saved the Padres from dropping their third straight game, and Petco Park predictably went ballistic. They can take the series from the Angels tonight, and these are the ones they need to win to keep pace with the Dodgers out west. |
• Athletics @ Dodgers (10:10 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): The A's proved they can hang with the big boys, routing L.A. in the opener of this series last night. But they face a tough test tonight in early NL Cy Young favorite Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who has been carrying a depleted Dodgers pitching staff (more on that below). |
Fans at last night's game in San Francisco were treated to a few celebratory extras as the Giants hosted Korean Heritage Night -- a Jung Hoo Lee Korean-themed jersey, a K-pop performance and a range of Korean food options -- but the biggest perk didn't arrive until the eighth inning. That's when Lee drilled a three-run homer that pretty much put away the D-backs and, more importantly, sent his own personal fan club into a frenzy.
The "Hoo Lee Gans," with their matching T-shirts and wigs of fire, have been cheering Lee on from the upper deck at Oracle Park, 51 fans at a time, in a nod to the former Korea Baseball Organization star's number both in his home country and with the Giants. Last night's homer was Lee's first in front of the Hoo Lee Gans, who of course erupted when he hit it out. And whether you're fluent in his native language or not, you'll want to listen to the Korean call of Lee's homer right here. -- Tom Vourtsis |
Roki Sasaki's MLB debut on March 19 in Tokyo against the Cubs featured eight pitches at 99 mph or higher. Sasaki didn't always know where those fastballs were going -- he walked five batters in three innings against Chicago -- but his stuff was tantalizing. Since then, Sasaki's control problems have persisted, his fastball has declined, and now he is on the injured list with a right shoulder impingement. He hasn't hit 99 mph on the radar gun since that game in Japan, and as his average fastball velocity has settled to 96 mph, opposing hitters are just not missing it. Batters are slugging .494 with six home runs in 79 at-bats against Sasaki's heater. Meanwhile, his 10.1% whiff rate is tied for the lowest on a four-seamer from any pitcher (min. 50 plate appearances ending on that pitch).
There is a lot that Sasaki needs to work on. He's not fooling anyone, and he has the second-highest walk rate among qualified pitchers. While an IL stint isn't ideal, it gives the 23-year-old a bit of a break from the MLB spotlight. That might be something he needs right now.
-- Brian Murphy
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When Isiah Kiner-Falefa was a kid growing up in Hawaii, his grandpa always told him that baseball was in his blood. The current Pirates shortstop, through the aforementioned maternal grandad, is a distant cousin of legendary Bucs slugger and Mets broadcast icon Ralph Kiner. But it wasn't until Monday night at Citi Field that IKF was finally able to knot those family ties by meeting the late Hall of Famer's son, Scott. Scott Kiner brought along gifts for his second cousin once removed, including books, pictures and a charcoal painting of his dad. "I've got the chills," Kiner-Falefa said. "This is awesome. This is a long time coming for me." |
Meanwhile, one night later and on the other side of the country, perhaps the cutest family-related moment of the baseball season took place. As the Dodgers celebrated Mookie Betts bobblehead night, his adorable son, Kaj, 2, threw out the ceremonial first pitch to dad. But first, Kaj, dressed in Mookie's trademark No. 50 jersey, took the ball and took off running past the mound before being scooped up by his mom, Brianna, and taken to the mound for his big throw to pops. -- Ed Eagle |
Can you guess today's mystery player using clues like age, league, division, position and place of birth? You'll have nine tries to get it right. Good luck! Play here >> |
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