Sports
Former No. 2 overall draft picks duel as Reds, Rangers wrap series
Mar 30, 2026; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Reds starting pitcher Chase Burns (26) pitches against the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first inning at Great American Ball Park. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-Imagn Images The future may be now for Cincinnati Reds right-hander Chase Burns.
The 23-year-old took a no-hitter into the fifth inning in his first start of the season before giving up one hit, walking three and striking out seven in a 2-0 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Monday. It was his first major league win after going 0-3 in 13 appearances last season.
Burns (1-0, 0.00 ERA) threw 78 pitches and will take the mound again Sunday when the Reds try to sweep the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas.
“I have said probably a million times, if he works ahead, and he will get better at it, it gets very exciting,” Reds manager Terry Francona said. “Our plan this spring was to get him in position to make these starts. We want him to make every start and pitch a lot. His future is bright, but I think the present will be OK, too.”
Burns, the No. 2 overall selection in the 2024 MLB Draft, has never faced the Rangers.
The Reds are struggling at the plate, hitting only .203 as a team, but Sal Stewart is off a great start with a .407 average.
He had an RBI single in the Reds’ two-run first inning Saturday. It turned out to be the hit of the game as Cincinnati was shut out from then on.
Stewart’s fast start is needed as stars Elly De La Cruz (.219) and Eugenio Suarez (.226) are struggling. Both have struck out 13 times.
Suarez does lead the team with six RBIs and Cruz leads the team with three home runs but has driven in only four runs.
The Rangers are hitting .243 as a team, but Texas has some key starters who are languishing.
No. 2 hitter Wyatt Langford is hitting .167 with 10 strikeouts, adding three on Saturday.
Josh Jung is hitting .143 and Joc Pederson is 0-for-14 after an 0-for-4 Saturday.
After Jake Burger walked to lead off the ninth inning, Pederson hit into a double play.
“We just couldn’t get anything together after a couple of hits or a walk or whatever,” Rangers manager Skip Schumaker said. “We just couldn’t string anything together.”
Schumaker isn’t too worried about his young sluggers, especially Langford.
“It is a 162-game schedule,” he said. “I told him those balls will start falling. It is frustrating to hit the ball hard and not get anything for it, but he will be all right.”
Evan Carter is hitting .273 and Schumaker is looking to play the left-handed hitter more against left-handed pitching.
“I gotta give him a chance against lefties and see how it goes,” Schumaker said. “He will get his chances and he will get better.”
The Rangers will send right-hander Jack Leiter to the mound Sunday.
The 25-year-old is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA after beating the Baltimore Orioles 5-2 in his first start. He allowed two earned runs in five innings and struck out eight.
Schumaker was impressed by what he saw in that outing from Leiter, who was the No. 2 overall draft pick in 2021.
“The changeup was elite,” Schumaker said after the game. “Righty, lefty didn’t really matter. It just seemed like a carryover from his last start last year. And I think this is who he’s going to be. You are going to see more of this version of Jack throughout the year.”
Leiter is 1-0 against the Reds with a 0.00 ERA after beating Cincinnati in his only career start against them last April. He allowed one hit over five innings.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Cubs, Guardians set for Easter doubleheader after rainout
Mar 29, 2026; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Cubs pitcher Shota Imanaga (18) delivers during the first inning against the Washington Nationals at Wrigley Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images The Chicago Cubs were not going to waste an opportunity to take batting practice Saturday, even after their scheduled game at the Cleveland Guardians was postponed due to impending thunderstorms.
They wrapped up the session before heavy rains arrived and even got in some on-field work. The teams now will play a traditional doubleheader on Sunday.
Guardians manager Stephen Vogt knows how the weather can change quickly in the city.
“It’s Cleveland, so we know how the weather goes,” Vogt said. “Today, I was out in the yard playing Wiffleball in shorts and a T-shirt before coming to the ballpark because it was 80 degrees and beautiful.
“When we saw the forecast, we all agreed that we wanted to play both (Sunday), instead of messing around with Chicago having to make another trip here later in the season.”
Cleveland will start right-hander Slade Cecconi (0-1, 12.46 ERA) in the opener and left-hander Parker Messick (1-0, 0.00 ERA) in the second game. The Guardians have won two straight, including a 4-1 victory Friday in their home opener over the Cubs.
Chicago is sending right-hander Edward Cabrera (1-0, 0.00 ERA) to the mound in Game 1 and left-hander Shota Imanaga (0-1, 7.20 ERA) in Game 2.
“Imanaga tunnels the ball really well,” Vogt said. “We’ve seen him a couple of times over the last few years and we know when he’s executing, he’s tough.
“We’ve got to lay off the split and can’t go chasing him underneath. We have to try and get him up in the zone and hopefully go to work.”
The Cubs placed 2025 NL Rookie of the Year runner-up Cade Horton on the injured list Saturday. He only threw 17 pitches and one scoreless inning Friday before leaving with right forearm discomfort. Left-hander Riley Martin was recalled from Triple-A Iowa.
Horton’s next start was slated for Wednesday, but manager Craig Counsell could opt for a bullpen game.
“Cade is very important to us,” said Colin Rea, who pitched 3 1/3 innings immediately after Horton was lifted. “Hopefully, he caught it early, and hopefully it’s nothing too bad and he doesn’t miss too much time.”
Martin, who is set to make his major league debut, has spent six years in the minor leagues, compiling a 24-13 record and 3.76 ERA in 174 appearances (three starts).
Counsell was scheduled to speak with reporters in the dugout Saturday but opted not to do so once the game was called off. Cubs players were already stretching and went through with their activities.
Center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, who committed to attend Vanderbilt before turning pro, did joke with the media about his basketball skills. The 24-year-old said he could have been a a sixth-year senior for the Commodores in the NCAA Tournament.
Cecconi has not faced Chicago, while Cabrera lost his only start against Cleveland, giving up five runs in 5 1/3 innings last Aug. 14 while with the Miami Marlins.
Imanaga is 1-0 with a 5.23 ERA in two career starts against Cleveland, allowing five homers in 10 1/3 total innings. Messick will pitch against the Cubs for the first time.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Andy Pages, Dodgers chase series sweep vs. Nationals
Mar 30, 2026; Los Angeles, California, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages (44) runs to first base after hitting a single against the Cleveland Guardians in the second inning at Dodger Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images Los Angeles Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages might have been overlooked during spring training on a star-studded roster, but his hot start has everyone taking notice.
Pages is hitting 15-for-30 (.500) with three homers for the Dodgers, who look to complete a three-game series sweep of the host Washington Nationals on Sunday.
Pages slugged a three-run homer among his three hits in the Dodgers’ 10-5 victory on Saturday. The 25-year-old has homered in back-to-back games with multiple hits in five straight games.
“He’s having a great start,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think that what we’re seeing is he’s taking professional at-bats. He’s controlling the zone. He’s fighting when he gets two strikes. He is hitting to all fields. Right now, he’s showing he’s a complete hitter. And that’s really good to see.”
Roberts is monitoring the status of star shortstop Mookie Betts, who exited in the middle of the first inning of Saturday’s game due to right lower back pain and was replaced by Miguel Rojas.
Roberts said Betts would have an MRI exam on Saturday night and will likely miss the series finale.
Even if Betts is out for an extended period, the Dodgers boast a loaded lineup that finally appears on track and has homered six times in the last two games.
“I think pitching against us would suck, for sure. Glad I don’t have to do it,” Dodgers starter Tyler Glasnow said. “I think talking to other guys even on other teams, there’s just no break. There’s no ‘Pitch around this guy to get to this guy,’ because everyone is good at baseball. It makes it really hard. It’s nice to be on this side of it.”
Washington has lost four straight and been outscored 23-11 in the first two games against Los Angeles. One bright spot has been the play of shortstop CJ Abrams, who has homered in three straight games and has 12 RBIs through eight games.
Los Angeles will send right-hander Roki Sasaki (0-0, 2.25 ERA) to the mound in the series finale for his first career appearance against Washington.
The 24-year-old Sasaki allowed one run on four hits over four-plus innings in a 4-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians last Monday. The outing marked a step forward after Sasaki posted a 15.58 ERA over 8 2/3 innings in spring training.
Washington will counter with left-hander Foster Griffin (1-0, 3.60), who allowed two runs over five innings in a 13-2 win over the Philadelphia Phillies last Monday.
The 30-year-old Griffin impressed in his first appearance in the majors since Sept. 22, 2022. He spent the last three seasons pitching in Japan.
“I felt very confident going in with the changes that I made in Japan as well as the scouting report we put together,” Griffin said.
After his promising Nationals debut, Griffin faces another challenging matchup in his first career appearance against the Dodgers. Washington manager Blake Butera said his starter won’t be easily rattled.
“He’s like a tactician out there,” Butera said. “Just the way he thinks through how he wants to attack hitters, he’s like a silent assassin. He’s a pretty quiet guy, but you see he’s always paying attention to what’s going on so he’s never really surprised at any moment.”
–Field Level Media
Sports
Alice Pereira Delivers Knockout of the Year Contender at UFC Vegas 115
UFC Vegas 115 was another night filled with that trope that a card that seems weak on paper and is filled with a lot of unknown names can be more entertaining than some of the bigger cards the UFC puts on. From Renato Moicano’s submission win over Chris Duncan, to any of the other exciting finishes on the night, to a seemingly soccer-kick KO (that wasn’t a KO), which generated a lot of controversy, UFC Vegas 115 was a fire card.
And yet, one of the bigger highlights from the night came from the undercard. And for the second straight week, a fight on a UFC card has produced a Knockout of the Year contender. Last week, it was Alexa Grasso sending Maycee Barber into oblivion. This week, it was the strength of the hard-hitting Alice Pereira.
First of all, no, Alice Pereira is not related to Alex Pereira. But when you look at what Alice Pereira did on this night, it might be hard for some fans not to draw a connection between the two.
During the UFC Vegas 115 prelims, Alice Pereira squared off with Hailey Cowan. The first round proved well for Pereira, known as “Golden Girl.” Pereira was able to beat her opponent to the (literal) punch, using her quickness and power to batter Cowan during the opening five minutes. Cowan, in fact, was visibly bruised around her face as a result of that frame.
But Cowan is a tough fighter who was not to be deterred. In the second round, Cowan landed a major slam in the center of the Octagon, and it appeared that she was in control of the action. Cowan was unable to do much with her ground game, however, and she didn’t seem to put up much of a fight as Pereira got the action back to the feet.
And then, just as round two was coming to an end, Pereira unleashed a devastating knee that landed directly on Cowan’s face. Cowan dropped in a heap, and the referee quickly stepped in to wave off the fight.
It was definitely a needed performance from Pereira. She dropped her UFC debut to Montse Rendon at Noche UFC 3 in September, a performance that Pereira has openly admitted she’d like to move on from. Well, here, move on is what she did.
Pereira displayed the power that got her attention from the UFC in the first place. And the thing is, even though her name is “Golden Girl,” she isn’t an elderly woman from the classic TV show. Pereira is just 20 years old.
Imagine what this power turns into if she continues to develop well over the next five years.
Cubs, Guardians set for Easter doubleheader after rainout
Andy Pages, Dodgers chase series sweep vs. Nationals
