Sports
Rockies ride upstarts' late contributions into matchup vs. D-backs
May 22, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Colorado Rockies right fielder Sterlin Thompson (30) scores a run against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the ninth inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images Mickey Moniak, the Colorado Rockies’ top offensive player this season, was placed on the 10-day injured list Friday due to a right ankle injury.
The transaction opened the door for Sterlin Thompson to join Chad Stevens as unlikely game-winning heroes.
The two players who were Triple-A teammates at mid-week will look to help the Rockies win for the second straight game on Saturday night against the Arizona Diamondbacks in Phoenix.
Stevens, a 27-year-old infielder, was recalled from Albuquerque on Thursday and started the past two games. Thompson, 24, was recalled Friday to fill the roster spot of Moniak.
Both Stevens and Thompson stepped up in the ninth inning of Friday night’s 3-2 win over Arizona. Thompson doubled with one out in the ninth for his second career hit, and Stevens followed with the tiebreaking single, his third major league hit.
“It’s crazy getting the hit and then Chad bringing me in,” said Thompson, who served as the designated hitter while playing in his fourth big-league game. “It’s a great moment. Playing Triple-A together this year, it’s just find a way to win, and both of us did that in the top of the ninth.”
Thompson will get some at-bats in the short term, but there’s no telling how long his second stay in the majors will be. He played in three games earlier this month and was sent back down to Albuquerque when outfielder Tyler Freeman was activated from the paternity list on May 19.
Of course, the Rockies also don’t want to play without Moniak for long. He is batting .280 and leads Colorado with 12 homers and 28 RBIs in 43 games.
“Mickey never wants to go on the IL,” Colorado manager Warren Schaeffer said. “He’s a warrior. He’s a battler. It’s just honest, man-to-man conversation about what’s best for him, what’s best for the team. He agrees.”
Colorado rallied from a 2-0 deficit on Friday to halt Arizona’s season-best five-game winning streak. The Diamondbacks beat the Rockies 2-1 in Thursday’s opener of the four-game set.
Lourdes Gurriel Jr. drove in both Arizona runs on Friday but departed in the sixth inning with left hamstring tightness after making a sliding catch on TJ Rumfield’s fly to shallow left.
Diamondbacks manager Torey Lovullo said Gurriel is “day to day” and will undergo imaging on Saturday.
“It’s unfortunate and we’ll try to figure out what that means,” Lovullo said.
Gurriel said the injury occurred while he was running.
“It doesn’t seem to be too serious,” he said through an interpreter.
Right-hander Zac Gallen (2-4, 4.78 ERA) has had success against the Rockies and will take the ball on Saturday. Gallen is 9-1 with a 3.41 ERA in 18 career starts vs. Colorado.
Gallen ended a seven-start winless stretch in his last turn when he defeated the San Francisco Giants 12-2 on Monday. He gave up two runs and four hits over six innings.
Gallen, 30, allowed 17 runs and 19 hits in 14 1/3 innings over his previous three starts, losing each.
Ezequiel Tovar is 6-for-13 with a homer against Gallen. Hunter Goodman (2-for-8) also has taken Gallen deep.
Right-hander Michael Lorenzen (2-6, 7.03 ERA) will start for the Rockies on Saturday. He will look to halt a four-start losing streak. He has allowed 19 earned runs and 29 hits in 20 innings during the span.
The 34-year-old gave up seven runs (six earned) and nine hits over 4 2/3 innings in an 8-6 loss to Arizona last Sunday in Denver. He served up homers to Corbin Carroll and Gurriel.
Lorenzen is 3-2 with a 3.77 ERA in 11 career appearances (three starts) against the Diamondbacks. Carroll (2-for-8) has homered twice against him.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Mets' Juan Soto (illness) scratched from lineup vs. Marlins
May 22, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; New York Mets designated hitter Juan Soto (22) looks on against the Miami Marlins during the fourth inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images Slugger Juan Soto was scratched from the New York Mets’ starting lineup for Sunday’s game against the host Miami Marlins due to an illness.
Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said Soto came to the ballpark on Sunday with a fever to go along with body aches.
“Soto’s ill, so he is out of the lineup,” Mendoza said prior to the game. “… He’s been battling the past three days, show up with fever today, body aches, didn’t have much sleep. Hopefully he recovers.
“There’s a lot of people for the past week have been dealing with this. Kind of a like a flu going around.”
Soto originally was slotted in the lineup as the team’s designated hitter and No. 3 in the lineup. Instead, MJ Melendez will serve as the team’s DH.
Soto, 27, belted a solo homer in New York’s 2-1 loss to Miami on Friday. The four-time All-Star and 2020 National League batting champion has a team-leading 10 homers to go along with 21 RBIs and a .294 batting average in 37 games this season.
–Field Level Media
Sports
Crazy Raccoon rally to win 2026 Champions Clash
A backlit keyboard is part of the gear online video game streamer Jordan Woodruff uses in his Gilbert home.
Jordan Woodruff
Crazy Raccoon won the final two maps to secure a 4-3 victory over Twisted Minds on Sunday in the grand final of the Overwatch Champions Series 2026 Champions Clash in Tokyo.
Crazy Raccoon overcame a 3-2 deficit by posting a 2-1 victory on Oasis and 3-1 triumph on Suravasa in the best-of-seven series.
By winning the double-elimination Overwatch 2 event, Crazy Raccoon qualified for this summer’s Midseason Championship in Paris.
?2026 OWCS Champions Clash?
CR #1 WORLD CHAMPION
LETS GOOOOO ????#CRWIN #Overwatch#OWCC #OWCS2026 #OWEsports pic.twitter.com/6vQgaxXBHG— Crazy Raccoon (@crazyraccoon406) May 24, 2026
Crazy Raccoon got off to a fast start with a 2-0 win on Ilios and 1-0 victory on Circuit Royal before Twisted Minds responded with a flourish. Twisted Minds recorded a 4-3 win on King’s Row, 3-2 victory on New Junk City and a 104.37m-62.65m triumph on Runasapi.
Crazy Raccoon advanced to the grand final with a 3-1 win over ZETA DIVISION.
Again, Crazy Raccoon won the first two maps — a 2-1 victory on Ilios and a 5-4 decision on Circuit Royal — before ZETA DIVISION responded with a 3-1 win on Suravasa. Crazy Raccoon ended the match with a 3-2 victory on King’s Row.
ZETA DIVISION fell behind quickly in their lower-bracket final against Twisted Minds, who secured a 2-1 win on Ilios and 3-1 victory on Suravasa. ZETA DIVISION answered with a 5-4 triumph on King’s Row, but Twisted Minds advanced to the grand final following a 3-2 decision on Circuit Royal.
Champions Clash prize pool (pool is crowdsourced and TBD):
1. Crazy Raccoon, qualifies to Midseason Championship
2. Twisted Minds
3. ZETA DIVISION
4. Virtus.pro
5-6. Dallas Fuel, Weibo Gaming
7-8. All Gamers, Spacestation Gaming
–Field Level Media
Sports
Angels fans have clear message: 'Sell the team'
May 23, 2026; Anaheim, California, USA; Los Angeles Angels fans gather outside Angel Stadium before the game between the Los Angeles Angels and the Texas Rangers to protest the Angels team owner Arte Moreno. Mandatory Credit: Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images Los Angeles Angels fans are making it clear that they want owner Arte Moreno to sell the team.
Buoyed by the operators of various Instagram accounts — such as Angels Boycott and Angels Central — fans have held organized protests at Angel Stadium recently. The protests are expected to culminate with Sunday’s game against the Texas Rangers in a matchup that will be aired nationally on Peacock from Anaheim, Calif.
On Friday, Angels fans were asked to wear all black and be vocal. On Saturday, more than 100 fans gathered at the main entrance to the stadium before the Angels-Rangers game to protest Moreno’s ownership.
That followed a protest on Thursday among fans seated in an otherwise empty upper deck, who drew attention to their cause by following the new shirtless “tarps off” trend. Chants of “Sell the Team” and vulgar expressions directed toward Moreno have been heard throughout the stadium.
Angels fans have many issues with the team, but they boil down to performance. The Angels have not had a winning record since 2015 (85-77), and they are on their sixth manager, Kurt Suzuki, since Mike Scioscia departed after the 2018 season.
The Angels enter play Sunday with an MLB-worst 19-34 record.
The Angels Central page said this about the campaign:
“The chants will continue all season long because this is no longer just about wins and losses. It’s about accountability, leadership, and the future of the franchise. We are not rooting for wins anymore, we are rooting for change.
“For the first time in a long time, Angels fans are united behind one common goal, change in ownership. And the frustration is directed at the person that is responsible for holding this organization hostage. Arte Moreno.”
The Angels joined the American League in 1961 with entertainer Gene Autry as their owner. Upon his death in 1998, his widow, Jackie Autry, took over the team.
The Walt Disney Co. took over ownership until 2003, selling the Angels to Moreno after the team won its only World Series title in 2002.
Moreno paid $183.5 million for a franchise now valued by Forbes at $2.8 billion, placing it No. 11 among MLB teams in valuation.
In August 2022, Moreno announced he was taking the first steps toward selling the club. And with several interested suitors, a sale was considered a done deal.
But the follwing January, Moreno said the team had “unfinished business” and was off the market.
A perennial contender in the first decade of the 2000s, the Angels have made the playoffs just once since 2009, being swept in three games in 2014 by the Kansas City Royals in the American League Division Series.
Those are the only three playoff games in the career of Mike Trout, a three-time American League MVP.
The Angels’ issues are numerous.
First, Moreno has been criticized for his failure to spend money on free agents to pair with two of the biggest stars of this generation — Trout and Shohei Ohtani, who combined to win five MVP awards in an Angels uniform. And when Moreno did spend money, it turned out to be poorly spent.
Before the 2012 season, the Angels signed 32-year-old Albert Pujols to a 10-year, $240 million contract, and his numbers with the Angels didn’t come close to replicating his first 11 seasons with the St. Louis Cardinals.
After Anthony Rendon won the 2019 World Series with the Washington Nationals, the Angels signed him to a seven-year deal worth $245 million. He is no longer with the team — an agreement was made to make deferred payments to honor the final year of his contract — and he played in only 257 games. He produced 22 home runs and 125 RBIs. In 146 games with the Nationals in 2019, he hit 34 homers and drove in 126 runs.
Off the field, the Angels and the city of Anaheim — the owner of Angel Stadium — have been trying to reach an agreement about a stadium lease and renovations.
The team’s lease runs through 2032, and the team wants renovations to the stadium, which opened in 1966 and doesn’t include the upgrades of modern stadiums. It is the fourth-oldest venue in the majors.
Anaheim mayor Ashleigh Aitken has informed Moreno that the team needs to shed its Los Angeles designation and become the Anaheim Angels again — the franchise held that name from 1997-2004 — before substantial talks can take place.
The California state Assembly also unanimously passed a bill called the “Home Run for Anaheim Act,” which would require the team to reinstitute the former team name as a condition for any future stadium redevelopment, lease or sale agreement. It requires approval by the state Senate.
–Field Level Media
Mets' Juan Soto (illness) scratched from lineup vs. Marlins
Crazy Raccoon rally to win 2026 Champions Clash
