Issue #648
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!
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Yesterday’s schedule included a typical Friday full slate of games (15), though there was one rainout. Here are the results (link to all game box scores):
CLE 1, PHI 0 - As I suggested yesterday that it could be, this game was a great pitcher's duel, with both starters throwing eight shutout innings: CLE SP Gavin Williams (8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 11 K) and PHI SP Cristopher Sánchez (8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K). Pinch hitter Kyle Manzardo hit a one-out, solo HR in the top of the ninth off Phillies closer Jhoan Duran. That was all Cleveland would need as their closer Cade Smith blanked the Phillies in the bottom of the ninth to earn his MLB-leading 17th save. Of note, Sánchez extended his scoreless streak to 37.2 IP, only a few shy of the franchise record of 41 held by Hall of Famer Grover Alexander.
CWS 9, SFG 4 - This game was tied 0-0 through three innings when the White Sox erupted for nine runs in the top of the fourth. Most of that damage came off of SFG SP Trevor McDonald (3.2 IP, 3 H, 7 ER, 1 BB, 4 K). The Giants finally got to CWS SP Davis Martin for four runs after that (5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), but then three White Sox relievers kept them from scoring further. Munetaka Murakami went 1-3 with a walk, a double, 2 runs, and 3 RBI.
TBR 4, NYY 2 - NYY SP Gerrit Cole made a strong 2026 debut (6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 2 K), while TBR SP Nick Martinez allowed nine hits but only one run (6 IP, 9 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K), giving up a HR to Austin Wells in the fifth. The Rays came alive in the top of the eighth, scoring four runs off Yankees reliever Tim Hill. The Yankees got one back in the bottom of the frame, but then Tampa Bay closer Bryan Baker pitched a scoreless ninth for his 14th save.
HOU 4, CHC 2
NYM 1, MIA 2
PIT 2, TOR 6
MIN 8, BOS 6
DET 4, BAL 7
WSH 4, ATL 5
SEA 2, KCR 0
LAD 1, MIL 5
COL 3, ARI 2
ATH 3, SDP 7
TEX 6, LAA 9
STL vs. CIN - postponed
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Today’s Trivia Question
Although he has cooled off from his hot start, Oneil Cruz is so far having a better offensive season than he did last year, with 10 HR, 16 SB, and a .252 average. But he is still striking out often, with an MLB-leading 80 strikeouts over the Pirates' first 51 games. That is a pace for 254 strikeouts, which would shatter the all-time record... which is 223 and held by which player?
(Trivia answers are provided for paid All-Star subscribers of the Baseball Buffet.)
🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉
Row 1: Zack Wheat, Deacon Phillippe, Augie Galan
Row 2: Lennie Pearson, Billy Hoy, Jordan Zimmermann
Currently active players who were born on May 23 include TBR Jonathan Aranda, TEX Michael Helman, and LAD Paul Gervase.
Today’s Matchups
Today we have a full slate of games (15), including a double-header between the Cardinals and Reds due to the postponed game yesterday, but with one game already postponed due to bad weather (NYY/TBR). Here are a few of the matchups that caught my eye (and here is the full schedule):
NYM Freddy Peralta vs. MIA Max Meyer - Peralta is usually pretty good, and Meyer is off to a good start this year with a 2.85 ERA and 60 K in 53.2 IP
LAD Roki Sasaki vs. MIL Robert Gasser - game two of this series between two leading NL clubs, and with Sasaki coming off his best start of the year
ATH J.T. Ginn vs. SDP Lucas Giolito - Ginn had a no-hitter through eight innings in his last game against the Angels, but faces a stronger club in the Padres here. Giolito is making only his second start of the year, after signing late as a free agent.
Other starters toeing the rubber today include PIT Paul Skenes, DET Framber Valdez, PHI Zack Wheeler, and SEA George Kirby.
Baseball Quote of the Day
A recent Birthday Boy (May 18th) was Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson, so I thought today I'd circle back and share some quotes from him (curated from the collection at The Baseball Almanac):
"A baseball swing is a very finely tuned instrument. It is repetition, and more repetition, then a little more after that."
"Every hitter likes fastballs just like everybody likes ice cream. But you don't like it when someone's stuffing it into you by the gallon. That's how you feel when (Nolan) Ryan's throwing balls by you."
"You don't face (Nolan) Ryan without your rest. He's the only guy I go against that makes me go to bed before midnight."
"When you've played this game for ten years and gone to bat seven-thousand times and gotten two-thousand hits do you know what that really means? It means you've gone zero for five-thousand."
"So many ideas come to you (when slumping) and you want to try the all but you can't. You're like a mosquito in a nudist camp. You don't know where to start."
"To walk out (in Spring Training) and feel your spikes in the grass is a good feeling."
"The only way I'm going to win a Gold Glove is with a can of spray paint."
"In the building I live in on Park Avenue there are ten people who could buy the Yankees, but none of them could hit the ball out of Yankee Stadium."
"I didn't come to New York to be a star, I brought my star with me."
"Fans don't boo nobodies."
⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
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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