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. You could say Mike Shildt left it all out on the field during his team's game against the Yankees on Monday night. The Padres manager cast aside his lineup card, a pen and even his glasses while arguing balls and strikes in the eighth inning at Yankee Stadium. It turned out that emotion was just the spark San Diego needed. Soon after Shildt got tossed, the Padres mounted a big rally in the Bronx on their way to a 4-3 victory. And Shildt did get his glasses back. It was a rather unique ejection and got us thinking about some of the more memorable (read: fiery) on-field interactions between managers and umpires.
1. Lou Piniella, Aug. 26, 1998: Lou's hat kick
Sweet Lou had a bunch of huge blowups during his managerial career. Perhaps none is more famous than the time he nearly kicked his cap across the state of Ohio after getting ejected from a game in Cleveland.
2. Lloyd McClendon, June 26, 2001: An actual stolen base McClendon got ejected for arguing a call at first base, so the Pirates manager decided to just take the bag with him as a parting gift. |
3. Earl Weaver, Sept. 17, 1980: Five and dive
The Tigers-Orioles game on this evening began at 7:34 p.m. ET. By 7:39 p.m., Weaver had been ejected and then engaged in one of the most memorable back and forths with an umpire. 4. Billy Martin, May 30, 1988: Martin, dirt get tossed
We've seen managers kick dirt on umpires before. The oft-irascible Martin was guilty of that here. But then he took the extra step of throwing infield dirt on an ump. |
5. Phillip Wellman, June 1, 2007: Minor League madness
It didn't occur in the Majors, but we couldn't leave out Wellman's epic meltdown as the manager of the Double-A Mississippi Braves. Using the rosin bag as a grenade is next level. -- Brian Murphy |
- Padres @ Yankees (7:05 p.m. ET, MLB.TV, TBS): The man the Yankees traded away for Juan Soto, Michael King, takes the mound against them, and he's been everything San Diego could have asked for at the front of its rotation this season. The Padres hope to get Jackson Merrill back tonight, which gives their dangerous lineup even more depth.
- Pirates @ Cardinals (7:45 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): Paul Skenes has had a few uncharacteristically rough starts so far this season, and the worst of those came against this same Cardinals team in early April. They knocked him around for a career-high five earned runs, so it will be interesting to see if Skenes makes some adjustments against them tonight. Willson Contreras has come on strong of late for St. Louis, with multi-hit performances in four of his past six games.
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The Yankees are in a tough situation with Devin Williams. New York acquired the two-time Trevor Hoffman National League Reliever of the Year Award winner from the Brewers in December to shore up the back of its bullpen. But Williams lasted less than a month in the closer role before his subpar performance necessitated a change. Any hope that Williams would regain his form away from the ninth inning went out the window on Monday, when he had yet another high-profile meltdown after entering in the top of the eighth frame against the Padres. It was the third time since April 19 that Williams was responsible for a blown lead in a game the Yankees eventually lost. The right-hander now owns a 10.03 ERA and a 1.97 WHIP in 11 2/3 innings on the year. Williams' struggles echo the turbulence another big-name closer encountered across town when he made his New York debut in 2019. That would be Edwin Díaz, who blew seven saves and had a 5.59 ERA in his Mets debut after being acquired from Seattle. Díaz was able to turn things around the following season, but Williams doesn't have that kind of time -- he's headed for free agency at the end of 2025 -- and neither do the Yankees. The Bronx Bombers may be able to let Williams try to work things out in lower-leverage situations for a bit, with Luke Weaver, Fernando Cruz and Mark Leiter Jr. pitching well and Jonathan Loáisiga's return from elbow surgery on the horizon. But for a team with championship aspirations, that's likely not going to be enough. If Williams can't right the ship, reinforcing the bullpen will have to move near the top of their Trade Deadline checklist. -- Thomas Harrigan |
As the resident know-it-all for all things Cubs, it's my duty to note that May 6 is the anniversary of the "Kerry Wood Game" -- considered by some the greatest pitching performance in history. (His Game Score of 105 is still the highest ever for a nine-inning start.) Kid K came into that 1998 game at Wrigley as a flamethrowing prospect who hit 100 (before everyone was doing it) and left it a full-blown phenom. The big right-hander from Texas overwhelmed a first-place Astros lineup that boasted two future Hall of Famers, allowing only an infield hit (maybe?) and hitting one batter, while striking out an MLB-record-tying 20 with overwhelming heat and a magical curveball that danced in the afternoon air. As Jeff Bagwell put it, "I just never saw a ball break like that." That quote is from an oral history Alyson Footer compiled in 2018 to commemorate the 20th anniversary of Wood's gem as told by those who lived it, and the lore of that special day remains a riveting read. -- Ismail Soyugenc |
The subject of glioblastoma and brain cancer, in general, is personal for Mike Hazen, the D-backs' general manager, as it is for me. My brother was diagnosed with glioblastoma in 2011. Miraculously, he is one of far too few survivors of this vicious, fast-growing and aggressive brain tumor.
Before his wife Nicole passed away in August 2022, Hazen made two promises -- to ensure she would never be forgotten, and to do everything he could to make sure other families don't have to go through what the Hazens went through during Nicole's cancer battle of two-plus years.
Nicole's fighting spirit lives on through the Nicole Hazen Fund for Hope, which is making an impact on patients. Mike hopes his story, his platform and the D-backs' willingness to champion the fund can inspire the support of even those who have never been affected by this disease. Tonight, the D-backs host Brain Tumor Awareness Night.
-- Anthony Castrovince |
Pick one of the day's games, open up your board and see if you can get bingo with these baseball occurrences. It's our favorite way to play this classic. Play free >> |
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