Detroit’s Spencer Torkelson could write his name in the franchise record book when the visiting Tigers open a three-game series against the red-hot Atlanta Braves on Tuesday.

Torkelson matched the franchise mark by hitting a home run in his fifth consecutive game on Sunday against Cincinnati. Another blast would also make him the first major leaguer with a six-game home run streak since Rafael Devers in 2024.

“Just seeing the ball well and just proud of the way I’ve stuck with my plan and my approach and putting my A-swing on a lot of pitches,” Torkelson said.

Torkelson tied Hank Greenberg, Rudy York, Vic Wertz, Willie Horton and Marcus Thames for the franchise record when he took Pierce Johnson deep in the seventh inning on Sunday.

Over the last six games, the first baseman is batting .409 (9-for-22) with five homers and six RBIs. He didn’t have a home run this season before the streak began.

“When my approach is right, I feel like I can hit everything without really trying to hit everything,” Torkelson said.

Torkelson will face Atlanta left-hander Martin Perez (1-1, 2.70 ERA) in the series opener. The Tigers will send right-hander Casey Mize (2-1, 2.51) to the mound.

Atlanta comes off winning two of three from Philadelphia. It became the first team to 20 wins with Sunday’s 6-2 win in the rubber match.

Detroit beat the Reds 8-3 on Sunday to salvage one win from their three-game series.

The Braves have swept their three-game series against the Tigers in each of the last two seasons.

Perez has made five appearances (three starts) this season. In his most recent start on April 17, he tossed six scoreless innings against the Phillies. In his last outing on Wednesday, he worked three innings of relief against Washington.

Perez has made 18 appearances (16 starts) in his career against the Tigers, going 2-7 with a 5.12 ERA. He made three appearances (two starts) against Detroit last year while a member of the Chicago White Sox and went 0-2 with a 5.27 ERA in 13 2/3 innings.

With the emergence of rookie JR Ritchie and the impending return of Spencer Strider, the Atlanta rotation is in flux.

Perez, Ritchie and Bryce Elder will start against the Tigers, with Reynaldo Lopez temporarily moving to the bullpen “for now,” according to Atlanta manager Walt Weiss, to work out a mechanical flaw in his delivery. Lopez allowed four runs in one-plus inning during his last start against Washington on April 21.

“Our rotation right now, to be honest with you, is series to series,” Weiss said. “I gave you the rotation for the Tigers, but we go to Colorado, I believe, after that and we don’t know what it’s going to be there. It’s series to series with the rotation right now.”

Mize will make his sixth start and has won his last two decisions, most recently a 5-2 victory over Milwaukee last Wednesday. He pitched six innings and allowed one run against the Brewers and has given up only two runs over the last 18 1/3 innings. Mize has allowed one or fewer runs in four of his appearances.

Mize has never beaten the Braves, going 0-2 with a 4.66 ERA. He faced Atlanta one time in 2025 and took the loss after giving up three runs in 5 2/3 innings.

–Field Level Media

Indiana Fever stars Kelsey Mitchell and Sophie Cunningham remain committed to upstart women’s basketball league Project B despite some earlier mixed messages about how the WNBA’s new CBA might affect their desire to play overseas.

Mitchell told reporters last week that it would take a “drastic, unique situation” to play overseas after the new CBA increased player salaries from a maximum of around $250,000 to $1.4 million.

However, she told Front Office Sports on Saturday that the nature of Project B — a touring league with seven two-week long tournaments across Europe, Asia, and Latin America from November 2026 to April 2027 — provides her with the flexibility to return to the United States in between the 5-on-5 league’s tournaments.

“There’s a big difference, and I think people recognize what that difference is,” said Mitchell, a 2025 All-WNBA First-Team selection. “Project B gives you a chance to do both, go in and come out, whereas (with) overseas basketball you’ve gotta be over there, eight months or seven months, just to get everything you want.”

Mitchell, 30, is entering her ninth WNBA season. She is a three-time All-Star and averaged a career-high 20.2 points last season and finished fifth in the MVP balloting.

Her Fever teammate Cunningham is also still committed to playing for Project B, which she said she initially signed with out of a desire for “security” when it was unclear whether a 2026 WNBA season would happen amidst the ongoing CBA talks.

Project B will reportedly pay out seven-figure salaries starting at $2 million and offer players equity in the league.

“When they’re offering that type of money, plus the signing bonus, plus having equity in the company, it’s a no-brainer. I have financially smart people around me, and they’re like, ‘You got to do it. Your body’s got to suck it up,'” said Cunningham, who will also be a WNBA analyst for USA Network this coming season while continuing to co-host the “Show Me Something” podcast with reality TV star West Wilson.

Cunningham, 29, spent her first six WNBA seasons with the Phoenix Mercury before being obtained by Indiana before last season.

The 6-foot-1 Cunningham averaged 8.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 30 games (13 starts) in 2025 before she sustained a season-ending MCL tear in her right knee. She has averages of 7.9 points and 2.8 rebounds in 212 career games (105 starts), with 305 career 3-pointers and 154 steals.

“When companies pour into us, they really see our value,” Cunningham said. “That’s not just on the basketball court — that’s just in life as a businesswoman.”

Both players signed one-year deals with the Fever, with Mitchell making $1.4 million on a supermax deal and Cunningham earning $655,000 for the season.

Mitchell and Cunningham are among 13 players who were announced as participants for Project B, which will play in various countries. Play is expected to begin in November, with the last stop slated to be Tokyo from March 26-April 4, per FOS.

–Field Level Media

Two teams coming off impressive weekend series meet when the Colorado Rockies visit the Cincinnati Reds in the opener of a three-game series Tuesday night.

The Reds have been one of the better stories in the National League to open the season. They’ve won all 11 of their games decided by two runs or less in racing to the top of the NL Central. Cincinnati dropped an 8-3 decision to the Detroit Tigers Sunday but still took two of three in the series and have won nine of 12 heading into the series with the Rockies.

Colorado is coming off a road sweep of the New York Mets, in which they allowed just four runs in the three-game set, capped by a Sunday doubleheader of 3-1 and 3-0 victories. Colorado has already won 13 games before the month of May after winning just 43 in all of 2025.

The series opener features a compelling contrast on the mound. The Reds will hand the ball to right-hander Chase Burns (2-1, 2.57 ERA), who has emerged as a cornerstone of their young rotation. Burns has been dominant early this season, recording 30 strikeouts in his first five starts and allowing two or fewer runs in four of those outings.

Colorado counters with veteran right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano (2-1, 3.42 ERA). Sugano has been a stabilizing force for a Rockies rotation that has struggled with depth, providing the experienced veteran presence the team was looking for heading into the season.

The Reds’ offense continues to be sparked by Elly De La Cruz, whose combination of speed and power remains a nightmare for opposing pitchers. Complementing him is third baseman Sal Stewart, who leads the team with a .291 batting average and a .385 on-base percentage.

Cincinnati had 10 home runs in the just-completed series against Detroit and has 37 homers on the season. The Cincinnati bullpen has been very reliable, though it was rocked for six runs in four innings of Sunday’s loss to the Tigers. Detroit scored four in the seventh and two more in the eighth after starter Rhett Lowder left with a 3-2 lead after five innings.

“Early on our guys were fine,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “It went (bad) from there. I know it’s early. No matter what time of year it is, that’s a hard way to win.”

Francona has had to lean on his bullpen in the first month of the season as the rotation has dealt with inconsistency from Andrew Abbott and injuries that have sidelined Nick Lodolo and Hunter Greene.

Colorado outfielder Troy Johnston leads the club with a .315 average and a .371 OBP. As for the pitching, despite posting the second-most relief innings in MLB early on, the Rockies have maintained high efficiency. A shift in philosophy under new pitching coaches has improved the performance of young arms like Jaden Hill.

Five pitchers have at least one save for the Rockies, with veteran Antonio Senzatela and Victor Vodnik combining for six saves in their eight chances.

“There are 15, 16 or 17 guys who will ultimately take on a lot of the innings here,” Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer said of the bullpen. “The talent base of the pitching is there… the guys have to keep progressing.”

–Field Level Media