Sports
MLB roundup: Yankees homer early and often, overrun Orioles
Apr 29, 2025; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; New York Yankees first baseman Ben Rice (22) hits a home run during the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images Ben Rice homered in each of the first two innings and Aaron Judge hit one of New York’s four first-inning solo shots as the Yankees belted the host Baltimore Orioles 15-3 on Tuesday.
Yankees starter Carlos Rodon took a perfect game into the sixth inning while his teammates kept doing damage at the plate. New York’s first three batters of the game — Trent Grisham, Judge and Rice — homered, and then with one out, Cody Bellinger knocked one over the fence. Austin Wells added a ninth-inning blast.
The Yankees became the first team in major league history to open a game with three straight home runs twice in the same season.
It was a rude treatment for Kyle Gibson, who was in his first big-league game of the year and back with the Orioles after being one of the team’s best pitchers in 2023. Gibson (0-1) was tagged for nine runs on 11 hits in 3 2/3 innings. He walked two and struck out two.
Rangers 15, A’s 2
Adolis Garcia and Wyatt Langford both had three-run doubles in the sixth inning as Texas broke out of a scoring slump with an onslaught against the Athletics in Arlington, Texas.
Texas entered the game with the fewest runs (87) in the majors but scored more times than in its previous six games combined (12). That helped Texas starter Jacob deGrom (1-1) earn his first victory since April 23, 2023. He pitched six scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out seven and not walking a batter. Every Rangers player had at least one hit in the season-high 18-hit attack, led by three hits each by Leody Taveras, Josh Smith and Marcus Semien. Kyle Higashioka also had a three-run double.
Jacob Lopez (0-1), making his first start of the season, allowed three runs on six hits in 2 2/3 innings. Shea Langeliers had a two-run homer in the seventh to account for the Athletics’ only runs.
Dodgers 15, Marlins 2
Shohei Ohtani opened with a home run, Teoscar Hernandez had four hits and four RBIs and Los Angeles increased its winning streak to four games with a rout of visiting Miami.
Hernandez and Freddie Freeman each had two doubles, Andy Pages homered and Tommy Edman drove in three runs for the Dodgers’ offense, which has come to life with 39 runs over the past four games. Matt Sauer (1-0) gave up one run in five innings en route to his first major league win. He allowed five hits and no walks while striking out four.
Dane Myers had three hits and an RBI and Ronny Simon also drove in a run for the Marlins. Sandy Alcantara (2-3) was rocked for seven runs on seven hits and five walks in 2 2/3 innings in his sixth start since returning from Tommy John surgery. He fanned two. Miami has dropped four consecutive games, one off its season-worst streak.
Mariners 5, Angels 3
Jorge Polanco homered twice and drove in all five runs as Seattle defeated visiting Los Angeles.
Right-hander Bryce Miller (2-3) pitched five scoreless innings for the American League West-leading Mariners, who won their third in a row and 14th in 19 games. Miller allowed just two hits, struck out six and worked around a career-high five walks. Andres Munoz worked a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his 11th save in as many opportunities. Munoz is tied for the major-league lead in saves and has yet to allow a run in 15 appearances this season.
O’Hoppe homered for the Angels, who lost their fourth straight.
Braves 8, Rockies 2
Matt Olson had three hits and three runs scored, Michael Harris II drove in three runs and visiting Atlanta handed Colorado an eighth straight loss.
AJ Smith-Shawver (1-2) allowed two runs on four hits, with one walk and five strikeouts, over 5 1/3 innings. He left in the sixth inning after being hit on his right elbow with a 105 mph comebacker by Ryan McMahon. Austin Riley had two hits and two RBIs for Atlanta, which outhit the Rockies 14-6 and won for the ninth time in 11 games. Nick Allen drove in two runs and Ozzie Albies, Sean Murphy and Eli White each had two hits.
Michael Toglia homered and drove in two runs for Colorado, which has lost 16 of its last 17 to fall to a major-league-worst 4-25. Hunter Goodman had two hits.
Royals 3, Rays 1
Freddy Fermin went 3-for-4 with an RBI, Michael Lorenzen crafted six strong innings, and Kansas City opened a six-game road trip by beating Tampa Bay.
Fermin was hit in the hand in the seventh inning while attempting to bunt but stayed in the game and produced an insurance run with a two-out RBI single in the ninth. Lorenzen (3-3) allowed just one run on four hits. He fanned four and walked two in his second consecutive quality start as the Royals won for the seventh time in eight games.
Tampa Bay’s Junior Caminero homered and doubled in a 3-for-4 showing. Yandy Diaz went 2-for-3 with a double and a walk as the Rays had their five-game winning streak end. Rays starter Taj Bradley (2-2) yielded two runs on five hits in seven innings, with three walks and two strikeouts.
Cubs 9, Pirates 0
Carson Kelly, Pete Crow-Armstrong and Seiya Suzuki cracked two-run homers and Chicago starter Shota Imanaga teamed with three relievers to blank host Pittsburgh.
Pirates starter Andrew Heaney (2-2) retired the first 11 batters he faced, but Suzuki popped a double and Kelly followed with a homer to trigger a three-hit, three-RBI night. Suzuki added three hits and three runs. Heaney allowed five hits, three walks and four runs over 4 ? innings.
Imanaga (3-1) fired five shutout innings while scattering six hits and fanning three, but he left with leg cramps after Andrew McCutchen’s leadoff double in the sixth. Daniel Palencia, Caleb Thielbar and Tom Cosgrove wrapped up the shutout. Joey Bart and Isiah Kiner-Falefa poked two hits apiece for the Pirates.
Brewers 7, White Sox 2
Caleb Durbin smacked a two-run single to key a four-run sixth, Isaac Collins belted his first home run and Freddy Peralta pitched six strong innings to lift the visiting Milwaukee Brewers to a 7-2 win against the Chicago White Sox on Tuesday.
Andrew Benintendi and Luis Robert Jr. connected on back-to-back home runs in the first inning off Peralta (3-2), but the White Sox managed just two other hits against Brewers pitching. Peralta scattered two runs, three hits and three walks with five strikeouts as the Brewers won consecutive games for the first time since taking three in a row April 15-18.
White Sox reliever Bryse Wilson (0-1) allowed three runs, two hits and three walks in 3 1/3 innings. Six pitchers combined to allow 10 walks and eight hits for the White Sox, who have lost six of eight and 12 of 15. The Brewers’ Joey Ortiz was the only player with two hits.
Phillies 7, Nationals 6
Bryson Stott sprinted home on a wild pitch to give Philadelphia a chaotic victory over visiting Washington.
Washington’s Nathaniel Lowe hit a go-ahead three-run homer against Orion Kerkering with two outs and two strikes in the top of the ninth to put the Nationals ahead. However, the Phillies rallied for two runs against Kyle Finnegan in the bottom half with Johan Rojas’ sacrifice fly tying the contest prior to Stott scoring the winning run.
Trea Turner finished 4-for-4 with two runs for Philadelphia. Leadoff counterpart CJ Abrams was among the hitting stars for Washington, going 4-for-5.
Red Sox 10, Blue Jays 2
Wilyer Abreu hit a three-run blast to lead a five-homer barrage, and visiting Boston defeated Toronto.
Jarren Duran, Alex Bregman, Kristian Campbell and Rafael Devers added solo home runs for the Red Sox in the opener of the three-game series. Bregman and Abreu each had three hits. Boston got seven strong innings from left-hander Garrett Crochet (3-2), who allowed two runs, four hits and three walks while striking out six.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a two-run home run for the Blue Jays, who were returning from a 1-5 road trip.
Astros 6, Tigers 4
Yainer Diaz produced a go-ahead, two-run single in the sixth inning, and Houston tacked on three runs an inning later to rally past Detroit for its fourth consecutive home series victory.
Diaz knocked in three runs, and he and teammate Christian Walker each had two hits. Astros reliever Bennett Sousa (1-0) pitched 1 2/3 scoreless innings and earned his first major league win since 2022.
Gleyber Torres had three hits, including a home run, and drove in three runs for the Tigers. Kerry Carpenter opened the game with a homer. Reese Olson (3-2) allowed three runs on four hits over 5 2/3 innings.
Mets 8, Diamondbacks 3
Francisco Lindor, Starling Marte and Pete Alonso homered as host New York beat Arizona for its 10th victory in the past 12 games.
Tyrone Taylor had a pair of RBI hits and Jose Azocar added a run-scoring single for the Mets, who were back at home Tuesday following a 19-5 win over the Washington Nationals on Monday afternoon. The 27 runs in a two-game span are the most for the Mets since they scored 30 runs in a doubleheader split with the Philadelphia Phillies on Aug. 16, 2018.
Jorge Barrosa had two RBIs via a fifth-inning double and a ninth-inning groundout for the Diamondbacks, who have lost five of six. Randal Grichuk doubled in the eighth and scored on a throwing error by third baseman Mark Vientos.
Padres 7, Giants 4
Xander Bogaerts homered and knocked in three runs as San Diego snapped a four-game losing streak with a win over visiting San Francisco.
Manny Machado, Jason Heyward and Elias Diaz each had two hits for the Padres. Nick Pivetta (5-1) fanned nine while allowing three runs in 5 1/3 innings.
Willy Adames homered among his two hits for the Giants, and LaMonte Wade Jr. hit a two-run double. Logan Webb (3-2) was pounded for five runs on nine hits in five innings.
Guardians 2, Twins 1
Kyle Manzardo opened the ninth inning with a walk-off home run as Cleveland snapped a three-game skid with a victory over visiting Minnesota.
After a weather delay of more than three hours before first pitch, Manzardo, who had two of Cleveland’s six hits for the game, ended the long night. His drive off Louis Varland (1-2) went well over the right field wall to help the Guardians even the four-game set at one win apiece. Cleveland starter Tanner Bibee allowed only Ty France’s fifth-inning home run and four other hits in seven innings.
Chris Paddack was nearly as solid for the Twins, permitting just Bo Naylor’s solo homer and three other hits in five innings. The Twins fell to 0-6 with him on the mound this season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Why Mike Tomlin Will Be Perfect Television Fit for NBC
Mike and mic loomed as a natural fit after the talkative Mike Tomlin resigned as Pittsburgh Steelers coach in January.
As with his Steelers teams of 19 seasons, Tomlin doesn’t figure to have a losing record as a TV studio analyst, either.
A report Tuesday from The Athletic cemented Tomlin’s long-anticipated transition. He’ll join the NBC “Sunday Night Football” pregame show “Football Night in America” beginning this season.
Surely, video editors and social media managers already have their popcorn ready.
That’s “popcorn” as in the salty snack, not the alternative definition Tomlin once served up during a press conference.
“You know, there’s been popcorn,” Tomlin said. “It hasn’t been any one man specifically; it’s been popcorn. But you can’t have popcorn.”
Asked to expound, Tomlin explained “popcorn” as: “A splattering of incidences. One here. One there. One there.”
That’s some tasty imagery, indeed.
Sustained coaching success boosted Tomlin’s profile as a would-be analyst. He guided Pittsburgh to a 193-114-2 regular-season record, while his 8-12 postseason mark included a 1-1 record in the Super Bowl.
His unique turns of phrase, however, set him apart. In a broadcast climate rife with programs and platforms for former players and coaches to fill, Tomlin, 54, should climb seamlessly into the mix at “FNIA,” a leading national brand.
“I think Mike is great at painting pictures, and those sayings, those Tomlinisms, they can immediately have a context,” Tony Dungy, Pro Football Hall of Fame coach and Tomlin’s mentor, told NFL Films in 2021.
Per The Athletic, Fox also coveted Tomlin as a replacement for Jimmy Johnson, who’s retiring from its “Fox NFL Sunday” show.
At NBC, Tomlin will fill a void left by Dungy, who NBC did not retain for an 18th season. While various reports have stated that the “FNIA” lineup could undergo further shuffling, host Maria Taylor and analysts Jason Garrett and Devin McCourty are expected back.
In late 2015, “FNIA” explored Tomlin’s well-documented physical resemblance to actor Omar Epps, showing photos of either man and asking Steelers fans and Tomlin’s wife, Kiya, whether it was Tomlin.
Tomlin never should be confused with Epps’ Darnell Jefferson, the cocky freshman running back from 1993’s “The Program.” That character aimed to impress college coed Halle Berry with a forced, hyperintelligent vocabulary that indubitably would make Tomlin roll his eyes.
“I don’t think a lot about the things that I say, to be honest with you,” Tomlin once said when asked about the origins of his oft-celebrated, “The standard is the standard.”
He continued: “I’m just trying to use words to vividly capture the imagination of our guys so that they can remember the messages so they can somehow be ingrained in their mind so they can somehow make it come alive inside stadiums on the grass. By whatever means we get that done, I’m for it.”
Substitute “inside stadiums on the grass” with “on sofas across the nation,” and there’s Tomlin’s value to any network suitor.
NBC doesn’t want viewers to leave their couches, of course. But with Tomlin aboard, they may well leap from them – or at least sit up – while hanging on every word.
Sports
Nolan Schanuel, Jose Soriano help Angels defeat Blue Jays
Apr 22, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels designated hitter Mike Trout (27) runs after hitting a home run during the fifth inning against the Toronto Blue Jays at Angel Stadium. Mandatory Credit: William Liang-Imagn Images Nolan Schanuel homered and also had a three-run, go-ahead double and Jose Soriano continued his historic start to the season with five more shutout innings as the Los Angeles Angels snapped a four-game losing streak with a 7-3 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Wednesday afternoon in Anaheim, Calif.
Soriano extended his scoreless inning streak to 24 2/3 innings while lowering his ERA to 0.24, the lowest ERA in a pitcher’s first six starts to a season since earned runs became official in both leagues (1913) with a minimum of 30 innings pitched. Soriano, who allowed seven hits and struck out four, has allowed just one run – a home run by Atlanta catcher Drake Baldwin – in 37 2/3 innings. He also became the first pitcher since at least 1900 to allow one total run (or fewer) in his first six starts to a season.
Mike Trout homered, walked twice and scored twice and Logan O’Hoppe and Bryce Teodosio each had two hits for Los Angeles. Brent Suter (1-1) picked up the win, striking out two during one inning of hitless relief.
Ernie Clement went 3-for-5 with an RBI and Nathan Lukes and Andres Gimenez each had a double and two hits for Toronto, which had a three-game winning streak snapped. Tommy Nance (0-2) suffered the loss allowing two runs in 1 1/3 innings of relief.
Los Angeles took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on Jo Adell’s bases-loaded sacrifice fly, driving in O’Hoppe who had singled.
Schanuel made it 2-0 in the fourth when he led off the fourth with his third home run and first since March 28, a 371-foot line drive just over the fence in right-center.
Trout extended the lead to 3-0 in the fifth when he drilled a 428-foot homer to the back of the bullpen in left, his eighth of the season. It was the 796th extra-base hit of Trout’s career, tying the team record set by the late Garret Anderson.
Toronto parlayed a walk and three hits, including an RBI double by Lukes and an RBI single by Clement, into three runs in the seventh to tie it, 3-3.
The Angels answered with four runs in the bottom of the seventh to regain the lead, 7-3. Trout walked, stole second and went to third on a single by Adell. One out later, Yoan Moncada walked to load the bases. Schanuel then followed with an opposite-field double into the left field corner to clear the bases and give Los Angeles a 6-3 lead. Vaughn Grissom drove in Schanuel with a bloop single to right.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Raptors identify areas to improve while down 2-0 to Cavs in series
Apr 20, 2026; Cleveland, Ohio, USA; Cleveland Cavaliers guard Donovan Mitchell (45) passes while being defended by Toronto Raptors forward Brandon Ingram (3) during the first half during game two of the first round of the 2026 NBA Playoffs at Rocket Arena. Mandatory Credit: David Dermer-Imagn Images The Toronto Raptors need to decrease turnovers and get more scoring from Brandon Ingram on Thursday night in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round playoff matchup against the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers.
The Cavaliers lead the best-of-seven series 2-0 after their wire-to-wire 115-105 home victory Monday.
The Cavaliers have defeated the Raptors in 12 consecutive playoff games to equal the NBA postseason record for a winning streak against one opponent.
The Raptors, who are home for Games 3 and 4, committed 22 turnovers Monday for a total of 40 leading to 44 points over the first two games.
“I think it really came down to turnovers,” Raptors coach Darko Rajakovic said after Game 2. “They really cost us.”
Ingram, who often was Toronto’s top scorer in the regular season, had 17 points on 5-for-9 shooting in the first game, a 126-113 setback on Saturday, and seven points (3-for-15) on Monday.
“I’m confident I won’t miss all my shots and find a rhythm,” Ingram said at practice on Wednesday. “It’s tough when you feel like you’re not doing your job. But I like to sit in disappointment for a little bit, see where I went wrong, and then get back into the fight.”
“We need him to continue being aggressive in shooting,” Rajakovic said. “I’ve got absolute support for him. He’s going to make his shots.”
Cleveland forward Dean Wade scored eight total points over the two games, but he started both and is a key to the defense.
“We had it in the back of our minds to start Dean anyway because that five-man lineup has been so great for us all year,” Cavaliers coach Kenny Atkinson told cleveland.com after Game 2. “But the more we watched film as a staff, we just kept saying, (Ingram) is the head of the snake, so we need to put our best perimeter defender on him.’ That’s Dean.”
Wade, in his seventh season, all with the Cavaliers, said he enjoys the defensive role
“Sometimes, it’s a thankless job and I had to learn to love it,” he said. “But, man, I love it. I really do.”
Toronto center Jakob Poeltl also has struggled. He had two points and four rebounds in only 9:26 on Monday.
“He needs to be part of the solution for us,” Rajakovic said Wednesday. “He needs to be more aggressive. He needs to dominate the glass. … He’s going to be a big part of Game 3, and I believe he’s going to perform really well.”
The Raptors were without Immanuel Quickley (strained right hamstring) for the first two games, but the injury is improving.
“We’ll see where he’s at tomorrow,” Rajakovic said.
With Ingram struggling, Scottie Barnes led Toronto with 26 points on Monday and RJ Barrett added 22 points.
Donovan Mitchell scored 30 points for Cleveland in Game 2, James Harden added 28 points and Evan Mobley scored 25 points.
The February trade for Harden, an 11-time All-Star guard and the league MVP in 2018, has helped Mitchell.
“I mean, I can go stand on the wing,” Mitchell said. “And like I always say, you have a guy that can create his own offense for himself and for others. … it just makes it tough (to defend).
“And there’s also possessions where you can just go stand in the corner and allow him to be him. It’s definitely better on the body, I’ll tell you that. That’s one thing.”
Atkinson agreed.
“That’s part of it, right?” the coach said. “Keeping (Mitchell’s) usage at a reasonable level. Donovan can get worn down. So again, these are reasons why you bring James Harden on board.”
–Field Level Media
Why Mike Tomlin Will Be Perfect Television Fit for NBC
Nolan Schanuel, Jose Soriano help Angels defeat Blue Jays
