Issue #647

The goal with The Baseball Buffet series is to provide the best daily dose of relevant baseball info in a smart-brevity format (mostly short bullets, getting to the point, with quick analysis/insights.) Think of it like what baseball fans of a certain age would look forward to in their morning newspaper’s sports section each day!

⚾ Welcome! Today is Free Friday! ⚾

NOTE: The Baseball Buffet has recently moved to a tiered model, with free subscribers receiving a shortened daily edition, and paid All-Star subscribers receiving the full buffet each day. The exception is Free Fridays, when everyone gets the full issue!

As is typical on Thursdays, yesterday’s schedule included a partial slate of games (7), as some teams were travelling or otherwise had the day off. Here are the results (link to all game box scores):

  • CLE 3, DET 1 - DET SP Casey Mize pitched fairly well (6.2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 4 K), giving up two runs in the third inning. Patrick Bailey added a solo HR in the eighth, and that is all the Guardians would need in this one. CLE SP Joey Cantillo pitched well (5.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 6 K), and five Cleveland relievers limited the Tigers to just one run from a solo HR by Dillon Dingler in the eighth. Hunter Gaddis struck out two in the ninth to earn his first save of the year.

  • PIT 6, STL 2 - Brandon Lowe hit a solo HR in the first inning off STL SP Dustin May (5.1 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), and Henry Davis also connected for a solo HR later in the seventh. Meanwhile, PIT SP Braxton Ashcraft had 9 K in 7 IP (4 H, 1 ER, 2 BB), only allowing a HR to Iván Herrera in the third.

  • NYM 2, WSH 1 - WSH SP Cade Cavalli pitched well with 9 K in 7 IP (4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB), but the two runs the Mets scored in the third inning were all they would need. NYM SP David Peterson did well (5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 3 K), and four New York relievers pitched scoreless innings, including Devin Williams who earned his 7th save.

  • ATL 9, MIA 3 - The Braves jumped on MIA SP Sandy Alcantara early (6 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 0 BB, 3 K), with HRs by Michael Harris II in the first, and Mike Yastrzemski in the second. Harris hit another HR late in the game, and Yastrzemski was 3-3 with a double on the day. Meanwhile, ATL SP Spencer Strider had 9 K in 6.1 IP (4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB), though he allowed three solo HRs, one to Owen Cassie and two by Kyle Stowers.

  • TOR 2, NYY 0 - NYY SP Carlos Rodón pitched well (5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K), but the one run he allowed, plus a solo HR by George Springer in the seventh, were all the Blue Jays needed. They went with a bullpen-day approach, with five pitchers combining for a shutout, including Jeff Hoffman who struck out two in the ninth for his 4th save.

  • ATH 3, LAA 2 - Nolan Schanuel hit a 2-run HR in the bottom of the first, but then ATH SP Luis Severino settled in and pitched well (7 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 10 K). LAA SP José Soriano (6.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K) also pitched well, giving up a run in the sixth and another in the seventh that tied the game 2-2. It stayed knotted at two through nine, and Angels reliever Ryan Zeferjahn came in for the top of the tenth. He intentionally walked Nick Kurtz, but then hit Brent Rooker with a pitch to load the bases. Tyler Soderstrom hit a grounder and the Angels got the out at home, but then Zack Gelof hit a grounder that allowed Kurtz to score. Athletics reliever Mark Leiter Jr. pitched a scoreless bottom of the tenth and earned his 4th save.

  • COL 1, ARI 2 - COL SP Zach Agnos, always a reliever in both the majors and the minors, pitched five shutout innings (5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K). The Diamondbacks scored one in the sixth to support ARI SP Eduardo Rodriguez who threw seven scoreless frames (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K). The Rockies tied the game in the eighth, but then in the bottom of the ninth, with runners on first and second Corbin Carroll was the hero with a walk-off single. With the victory, Arizona has now won five in a row.

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Standings

Here are the current MLB standings, with thanks to the website Plain Text Sports for the formatting. (See also the official, more detailed standings at MLB here.)

  • Cleveland has won six in a row to build up a healthy 3.5 game lead in the AL Central.

  • The Rays have won four in a row, and now own both the best record in baseball (by percentage), and a 4.5 game lead over the Yankees in the AL East.


Who’s on the move?

In this section I won’t list 26th-man moves, or every time a team shuttles relievers back and forth to AAA to keep a stock of fresh arms in the bullpen. I’ll mostly focus on the biggest, more impactful injury list changes (for a full list, see all the latest MLB transactions).

🤕 Injured Lists

  • COL CF Brenton Doyle - 10-day IL (left oblique contusion)

➡️ Traded

  • The Reds traded RF Rece Hinds to the Marlins for minor league RP Zach McCambley


MLB Leaders

The current batting average leaderboard is filled at the top with players I wouldn’t have expected to see this high this long into the season:

  • .342 - MIA Otto Lopez

  • .326 - DET Riley Greene

  • .325 - ARI Ildemaro Vargas

  • .325 - PHI Brandon Marsh

  • .324 - COL Troy Johnston

  • .321 - ATH Shea Langeliers

  • .319 - SDP Luis Arraez

  • .319 - PIT Nick Gonzales

  • .316 - TBR Yandy Díaz

  • .316 - MIA Xavier Edwards


Current Hitting Streaks

The following guys are on active hitting streaks of seven or more games:

  • 11 - PHI Alec Bohm

  • 11 - MIL Jake Bauers

  • 11 - CIN Spencer Steer

  • 9 - ARI Corbin Carroll

  • 8 - PIT Konnor Griffin

  • 7 - LAD Shohei Ohtani

  • 7 - MIA Xavier Edwards

  • 7 - PHI Trea Turner


Today’s Trivia Question

Which team so far this year ranks last in home runs? (Hint: they are nonetheless in first place in their division.)

For the answer, see the bottom of this full edition of The Baseball Buffet.


On this day in baseball history…

Here is what stands out to me for this day in baseball history. All quoted descriptions are from baseball-reference.com.

📅 On May 22…

  • 1913: The Reds acquire Heinie Groh. "The Giants send Red Ames, Heinie Groh and outfielder Josh Devore to Cincinnati for P Art Fromme and infielder Eddie Grant. The little-used Groh will star in Cincinnati, and eventually manage the team. Devore will be sold to the Phillies in August. Grant, a starter until today, will not play until June 4th, so there is some confusion about whether he was sold on that date or part of today's trade."

  • 1968: Willie Stargell hits 3 HR and nearly a fourth. "At Wrigley Field, Pirates slugger Willie Stargell hits three home runs and just misses a fourth in a 13 - 6 rout over the Cubs. "Pops" also hits a single and a double which bounces off the railing in left field fence back onto the playing field."

  • 1990: The Reds want nothing to do with Andre Dawson. "Andre Dawson sets a major-league record when he is intentionally walked five times during a 16-inning, 2 - 1 Cubs win over the Reds. Cincinnati issues seven intentional passes altogether to tie a major-league record set by Houston in 1984."

  • 1991: Dennis Eckersley picks off Kenny Williams... again. "Oakland reliever Dennis Eckersley picks off Toronto pinch-runner Kenny Williams in the 9th inning of a 2 - 1 A's victory. Eck's last pick-off occurred four years ago when, on June 29, 1987, he picked off a White Sox runner, none other than Kenny Williams."

  • 1998: Mike Piazza is traded... again. "The Mets acquire catcher Mike Piazza from the Marlins in exchange for OF Preston Wilson, P Ed Yarnall and a player to be named. Piazza has barely spent a week with Florida, following a trade from the Dodgers."


🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

Al Simmons, Tommy John, José Mesa

Al Simmons (1902-1956)

  • Hall of Famer

  • 20-year major league career, spanning from 1924-1944, spending 12 seasons with the Athletics and the rest spread across six other clubs

  • Played CF early in his career and then shifted to mostly playing LF

  • He never won an MVP Award, but he was in the top five in the voting six times, and received down-ballot consideration in four other seasons.

  • He was an RBI machine, posting 100+ RBI in twelve seasons with highs of 157 in 1929, 165 in 1930, and 151 in 1932.

  • He scored 100+ runs six times, and had 200+ hits six times. He hit 20+ HR six times, but never more than 36 in a season.

  • He won the AL batting title in 1930 with a .381 average, and again in 1931 with a .390 mark.

  • Overall had 2,927 hits, 307 HR, 1,828 RBI, a .334/.380/.535 slash line, and a 133 OPS+

Tommy John (1943)

  • 26-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1963-1989, playing mostly with the White Sox, Dodgers, Yankees, and Angels

  • He missed the 1975 season due to what baseball-reference.com calls an "Eponymous Surgical Procedure," of course referring to Tommy John Surgery that so many pitchers have had since.

  • Four-time All-Star

  • He won 20+ games three times, all after having the surgery

  • Overall had a 288-231 (.555) record, a 3.34 ERA, and a 111 ERA+

José Mesa (1966)

  • 19-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1987-2007, playing for the Indians, Phillies, Orioles, and five other clubs

  • Two-time All-Star, including in 1995 when he led the AL with 46 saves to go with a tidy 1.13 ERA

  • Had 30+ saves six times

  • Overall had 321 saves, a 4.36 ERA, and an even 100 ERA+

Currently active players who were born on May 22 include STL Jordan Walker, TEX Ezequiel Durán, MIN Zebby Matthews.

Today’s Matchups

Today is a typical Friday, loaded with a full slate of 15 contests. Here are a few of the more interesting matchups (see full list at MLB):

  • CLE Gavin Williams vs. PHI Cristopher Sánchez - Williams has been inconsistent lately but has 73 K in 61.1 IP on the season, while Sánchez has a 1.82 ERA on the year

  • TBR Nick Martinez vs. NYY Gerrit Cole - this series between the AL East front-runners kicks off with Martinez who has a 1.51 ERA, up against Cole, who is making his 2026 debut after missing part of 2024, all of 2025, and the first part of this season due to Tommy John surgery

  • LAD Justin Wrobleski vs. MIL Logan Henderson - game one of this series between two top NL teams

Additional starters who are hurling from the hill today include HOU Spencer Arrighetti, TOR Kevin Gausman, BOS Payton Tolle, SEA Logan Gilbert, TEX Jacob deGrom, and CWS Davis Martin.

Hitter Watch
The following hitters have done well historically against the SP they are facing today:

  • HOU Christian Vazquez, 4-9, HR, 2 doubles vs. CHC Jameson Taillon

  • ATL Matt Olson, 4-15, 2 HR, 2 doubles vs. WSH Miles Mikolas

  • ATL Michael Harris II, 5-11, double vs. WSH Miles Mikolas

  • KCR Salvador Perez, 7-19, 2 HR, double vs. SEA Logan Gilbert

  • KCR Bobby Witt Jr., 7-14, HR, vs. SEA Logan Gilbert

  • LAA Zach Neto, 4-8, HR, 2 doubles vs. TEX Jacob deGrom

  • LAA Adam Frazier, 5-12, double vs. TEX Jacob deGrom

The following hitters have not done well historically against the SP they are facing today:

  • KCR Maikel Garcia, 2-13, 2 K vs. SEA Logan Gilbert

  • TEX Danny Jansen, 1-10, 3 K vs. LAA Grayson Rodriguez

  • SDP Ramón Laureano, 1-13, 5 K vs. ATH Jeffrey Springs

Pitcher Watch
The following pitchers have done well against players on the team they are facing today:

  • ATH Jeffrey Springs, 46 AB, 2 HR, 13 K, 3 BB, .196/.239/.357 vs. SDP hitters

  • ARI Michael Soroka, 53 AB, 1 HR, 17 K, 3 BB, .208/.268/.349 vs. COL hitters


Baseball Quote of the Day

One of today's Birthday Boys is Tommy John, so here are a few quotes from him:

"You're going to feel good. But no matter how much you rehab you do, you can't speed up the healing process. I would rather see a guy come back in 14 months and pitch seven, eight or nine more years then come back in 10 months and get hurt again. You cannot mess with mother nature and father time. Nature will heal it if you give it time."

"My philosophy has always been simple: Believe in yourself."

"When they operated, I told them to put in a Koufax fastball. They did -- but it was Mrs. Koufax's."

"I'd never have been able to win 288 games without the surgery. We're going to be linked forever."

"If you work hard everyday and bust your tail on every play, eventually people will notice and word will get around."

"Always give a hundred percent, and you'll never have to second-guess yourself."

⚾ Enjoy the games today! ⚾


Today’s Trivia Answer

Brewers. They have only hit 33 HR so far this year, which is three less than the Red Sox. I'll note the Brewers have played the fewest games of any team this year with 47, which is 3 or 4 fewer than some other teams. But still, they have one of the best records in baseball once again even with a lack of much HR power. Last year they had the best record during the regular season, while coming in 22nd out of 30 in total team home runs.


Good Reads

Here I am providing one or more links to baseball articles I’ve enjoyed recently, whether by writers at MLB.com or elsewhere.

See recent issues of The Baseball Buffet for more good reads!

Did you know? I wrote a 600+ page book with the same title as this newsletter/blog? Now Taking the Field: Baseball’s All-Time Dream Teams for All 30 Franchises was published in early 2019, by ACTA Sports. It is available at Amazon and most other major booksellers.

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