Covering the Bases: The best stuff happening in MLB this week
Welcome to theScore's roundup of everything you need to know from around MLB. We'll touch on the notable storylines, biggest trends, most shocking plays, and some other cool things. Let's dive in!
What everyone's talking about 👇
Acuña shades Snitker: In a since-deleted tweet, Braves superstar Ronald Acuña Jr. implied his manager has a double standard. The 2023 NL MVP may have a point, considering Brian Snitker removed him from a game in the past for a lack of hustle but didn't do the same for Jarred Kelenic. Read more ...
Judge hitting over .400: This might be the best version of the two-time AL MVP. Aaron Judge is off to a ballistic start, slashing .415/.513/.734 with seven homers and 26 RBIs. In comparison, he was hitting .191 with four homers and a .702 OPS through 25 games last season.
Mets are budding juggernaut: New York has already put together separate win streaks of six and seven games. Pete Alonso is on a mission, Francisco Lindor keeps coming up clutch, and Kodai Senga has allowed two earned runs all season. The biggest sign the Mets are a wagon is that all the early winning has come without significant contributions from Juan Soto.
Who's hot? 🔥
Tyler Mahle: The righty is having a Texas-sized resurgence, posting a 0.68 ERA and 0.83 WHIP through 26 2/3 innings after making just 12 starts over the previous three seasons. Mahle isn't allowing opposing batters to square him up: He's held them to a microscopic 3.4 H/9 without surrendering a home run.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto: It's becoming clearer who the Dodgers' best and most reliable starting pitcher is. Yamamoto has dominated, allowing just three earned runs in 29 innings while striking out a ridiculous 38 batters.
Pete Crow-Armstrong: The Cubs' lineup has been one of baseball's best in April, and Crow-Armstrong is a huge reason. The dynamic 23-year-old is slashing .294/.339/.549 with five home runs and 10 stolen bases, already having accrued the third-most fWAR (1.8) in MLB.
Who's not? 🥶
Joc Pederson: No hitter is having a rougher start to the campaign. Pederson's slash line dropped to .066/.174/.098 due to an unfathomable 0-for-41 skid, and the slugger remains without a home run or RBI on the year.
Jeimer Candelario: The Reds' highest-paid position player continues to scuffle in the second year of his $45-million contract. Candelario's been worth minus-0.6 fWAR while slugging just two home runs and holding the lowest batting average (.118) among qualified hitters.
Jordan Hicks: Hicks' second year as a starting pitcher is off to a brutal start after flashes of success in the role in 2024. The hard-throwing righty has allowed an NL-worst 20 earned runs through five starts, walking 13 batters and surrendering 29 hits in 27 1/3 innings pitched.
You love to see it 😍
If you love an underdog story, Caleb Durbin will put a smile on your face. The 5-foot-6, 25-year-old collected two hits in his debut after reaching the majors from humble beginnings at a Division III school (Washington University).
Pirates fans lined up for miles for the highlight of the season ... the Paul Skenes Rookie of the Year bobblehead giveaway. Team owner Bob Nutting gets his fair share of criticism, but he decided that every fan in attendance should get one after witnessing the chaos when he pulled up to the ballpark.
Phillies reliever Matt Strahm is basically a Nicolas Cage doppelganger. So, naturally, he'd have a glove with the Declaration of Independence on it.
We can't believe this happened 🤯
Pirates infielder Enmanuel Valdez was called out after hitting a triple because he lifted his hand off the base while asking for a timeout following an injury on the slide.
Boston Red Sox prospect Andy Lugo celebrated a walk-off single in extra innings with a bat flip so high that it scraped the clouds.
The bat boy in Cleveland is loving the Yankees' new facial hair policy.
Michael Sansone, a pitcher for the Red Sox Single-A affiliate, had to change uniforms in the ninth inning because he wore the wrong color. We have no idea how this happens.
(Video source: MLB.com)
Sound smart among your friends 🧠
Steven Kwan continues to be a statistical anomaly. He has four home runs and a .889 OPS on the season despite barreling the ball just 2.4% of the time and posting the league's second-lowest hard-hit rate at 20%.
They said what? 🗣️
Logan Webb after laughing at one of his teammates passing gas in the locker room: "Farts are always funny, not going to lie."
Jazz Chisholm Jr. on dodging pieces of a broken bat instead of fielding a grounder: "I want to make every play out there for my guy, but at the same time, you don't want to die."
Rowdy Tellez had some thoughts on his collision with Alan Roden during the Mariners-Blue Jays game: "For a physics major like he is, you would think he would know those things that when a littler person tries to run over somebody that's bigger, it's not going to go well."
Kirby Yates was pretty bummed about allowing a walk-off homer to former Rangers teammate Adolis García: "I really don't like facing my friends."
What to watch this weekend 📺
Pirates @ Dodgers: The Skenes-Yamamoto matchup, tentatively scheduled for Friday night, could be one of the best of the season.
Phillies @ Cubs: Two of baseball's highest-powered offenses go head to head in a showdown at Wrigley Field.
Blue Jays @ Yankees: A tasty pitching duel on tap Saturday with a revitalized Kevin Gausman against Max Fried, who flirted with a no-hitter in his last start.