MLB Sends Strong Message Before Dodgers-Mets Series
MLB Sends Strong Message Before Dodgers-Mets Series originally appeared on Athlon Sports.
The New York Mets entered the MLB offseason with renewed optimism after finishing with an 89-73 record and advancing to the National League Championship Series (NLCS) with playoff wins over the Milwaukee Brewers and Philadelphia Phillies.
Advertisement
Building on that run, the Mets have taken 2025 by storm, currently owning a 37-22 record, leading the NL East by one game over the Phillies.
Across the country, the 2024 Los Angeles Dodgers claimed the NL West with a 98-64 regular-season mark, then navigated the playoffs with victories over the San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series and the Mets in the NLCS before going on to capture its eighth World Series title over the New York Yankees.
In 2025, the Dodgers have maintained their status as the team to beat in the National League, holding a 36-23 record, leading the NL West by two games over the Padres.
Now, two of the best teams in baseball will meet for a four-game series starting on Monday night, a moment the MLB took little time to celebrate, posting on Instagram with the caption, "The stars are out for an epic clash in Los Angeles ⭐ The @mets and @dodgers meet for a four-game set starting TONIGHT!".
New York is led by the heavy-hitting of Francisco Lindor, Pete Alonso and Juan Soto, who each have 49+ hits, 28+ RBIs and 10+ home runs on the 2025 season.
Advertisement
Despite missing Sean Manaea and Frankie Montas for extended periods, the pitching rotation has thrived as well, thanks to contributions from Kodai Senga, Tylor Megill and newcomers Clay Holmes and Griffin Canning.
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) and right fielder Juan Soto (22).© Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images
Though Dodgers' star Shohei Ohtani has been held out of the pitching rotation as a precaution while recovering from a 2023 Tommy John revision, his impact with the bat is undeniable: he ranks among league leaders with a .293 average, a 1.045 OPS, a .655 SLG and 22 home runs, the second most in the MLB.
The Dodgers' offense leads the National League with 343 runs scored, 97 home runs and a .268 average.
Advertisement
With both the Mets and Dodgers firing on all cylinders, the stage is set for an epic showdown between two clubs who look poised for a deep October run.
Related: MLB Reacts to Major Mike Trout News on Friday
Related: Braves Dealt Major Pitching Staff Loss on Friday
This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 2, 2025, where it first appeared.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Times
18 minutes ago
- New York Times
Cincinnati Reds place starter Hunter Greene on IL, sign veteran lefty Wade Miley
CINCINNATI — Just minutes before a scheduled MRI, the Cincinnati Reds placed starter Hunter Greene on the injured list with a right groin strain. Greene said he felt discomfort on his last two pitches in the fifth inning of Tuesday's victory over the Milwaukee Brewers and left the game. Tuesday was his third start back from the IL, which was one of the reasons the team returned him to the IL. Advertisement 'We stayed here for a while last night, we talked to him, we talked to trainers,' Reds manager Terry Francona said. 'Since it happened once and this is twice, we've got to figure this out. And then his lower back was starting to (affect him) and we're trying to figure out if it's related. We've got to get him healthy. It was kind of an easy decision even without seeing the MRI.' The Reds signed veteran left-hander Wade Miley to fill Greene's spot in the rotation and transferred right-hander Rhett Lowder to the 60-day injured list. Sunday, Miley exercised the opt-out of his minor-league deal and became a free agent. The 38-year-old is coming back from a hybrid ulnar collateral ligament surgery, which combines traditional Tommy John surgery with an internal brace, that he underwent last May while with the Brewers. Miley made seven minor-league starts this year, including a five-inning, two-run performance last Friday for the Triple-A Louisville Bats. Because he wouldn't be ready to pitch again until Wednesday, Miley said Reds president of baseball operations Nick Krall told him he'd have a place in the team's bullpen, but wanted to let Miley explore an opportunity to start elsewhere. Miley said he talked to a couple of other teams, but was happy to return to the Reds. Miley's family is in Cincinnati for the season, so he spent the time 'being dad' and coaching baseball games and practice for his son Jeb. Miley was already expected to be in the Reds' bullpen on Wednesday, but Greene's injury created an opening for him in the rotation. Francona said Miley would be available to pitch out of the bullpen Wednesday, but if he didn't, he'd start Monday in Cleveland. In 2021, Miley threw a no-hitter for the Reds against then-Cleveland manager Francona's Guardians at Progressive Field. Advertisement 'It was a situation where the five starters here were throwing the ball great, and I was pretty open with Nick, like I don't want to mess with that,' Miley said. 'Physically, I think I'll be fine in the bullpen, but they allowed me to see if there were any starting jobs out there, and at the end of the day, here we are.' Miley, a Red in 2020 and 2021, was a consistent and popular figure in spring training, and Wednesday's news generated excitement in the Reds' clubhouse. 'He was in full uni at 8:30 this morning when I thought I was the only one here,' Francona said. 'It's really welcome. We've been waiting for him, there's no getting around it. He's a bright light, man.'
NBC Sports
19 minutes ago
- NBC Sports
Rangers at Rays Prediction: Odds, expert picks, starting pitchers, betting trends and stats for June 4
It's Wednesday, June 4, and the Rangers (29-32) are in Tampa to take on the Rays (31-29). Kumar Rocker is slated to take the mound for Texas against Shane Baz for Tampa Bay. After winning seven of their last 10 games, the Rays have climbed into second in the AL East. They picked up the win in the first game of the series yesterday, 5-1. Drew Rasmussen pitched five shutout innings, only gave up one hit, and struck out eight batters. Let's dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two. We've got all the info and analysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch tipoff, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts. Follow Rotoworld Player News for the latest fantasy and betting player news and analysis all season long. Game details & how to watch Rangers at Rays Date: Wednesday, June 4, 2025 Time: 7:35PM EST Site: George M. Steinbrenner Field City: Tampa, FL Network/Streaming: FanDuel Sports Network Sun, Rangers Sports Network, Victory+ Never miss a second of the action and stay up-to-date with all the latest team stats and player news. Check out our day-by-day MLB schedule page, along with detailed matchup pages that update live in-game with every out. Odds for the Rangers at the Rays The latest odds as of Wednesday: Moneyline: Rangers (+106), Rays (-125) Spread: Rays -1.5 Total: 9.0 runs Probable starting pitchers for Rangers at Rays Pitching matchup for June 4, 2025: Kumar Rocker vs. Shane Baz Rangers: Kumar Rocker, (1-3, 8.10 ERA) Last outing (Athletics, 4/23): 1.2 Innings Pitched, 5 Earned Runs Allowed, 7 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 2 StrikeoutsRays: Shane Baz, (4-3, 4.92 ERA) Last outing (Houston Astros, 5/29): 5.2 Innings Pitched, 3 Earned Runs Allowed, 7 Hits Allowed, 0 Walks, and 3 Strikeouts Rangers: Kumar Rocker, (1-3, 8.10 ERA) Last outing (Athletics, 4/23): 1.2 Innings Pitched, 5 Earned Runs Allowed, 7 Hits Allowed, 1 Walks, and 2 Strikeouts Rays: Shane Baz, (4-3, 4.92 ERA) Last outing (Houston Astros, 5/29): 5.2 Innings Pitched, 3 Earned Runs Allowed, 7 Hits Allowed, 0 Walks, and 3 Strikeouts Rotoworld still has you covered with all the latest MLB player news for all 30 teams. Check out the feed page right here on NBC Sports for headlines, injuries and transactions where you can filter by league, team, positions and news type! Top betting trends & insights to know ahead of Rangers at Rays With Shane Baz toeing the rubber betting the Rays on the Money Line is showing a profit of 2.48 units In his last 5 home starts on the mound the Rays pitcher Shane Baz has an ERA of 7.96 With Shane Baz as the opener betting the Rays on the Run Line would have returned a 3.79-unit profit in 2025 If you're looking for more key trends and stats around the spread, moneyline and total for every single game on the schedule today, check out our MLB Top Trends tool on NBC Sports! Expert picks & predictions for tonight's game between the Rangers and the Rays Please bet responsibly. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem, call the National Gambling Helpline at 1-800-522-4700. Our model calculates projections around each moneyline, spread and over/under bet for every game on the MLB calendar based on data points like past performance, player matchups, ballpark information and weather forecasts. Once the model is finished running, we put its projection next to the latest betting lines for the game to arrive at a relative confidence level for each wager. Here are the best bets our model is projecting for Wednesday's game between the Rangers and the Rays: Moneyline: NBC Sports Bet is recommending a play on the Tampa Bay Rays on the Moneyline. Spread: NBC Sports Bet is leaning towards a play ATS on the Texas Rangers at +1.5. Total: NBC Sports Bet is staying away from a play on the Game Total of 9.0. Want even more MLB best bets and predictions from our expert staff & tools? Check out the Expert MLB Predictions page from NBC Follow our experts on socials to keep up with all the latest content from the staff: Jay Croucher (@croucherJD) Drew Dinsick (@whale_capper) Vaughn Dalzell (@VmoneySports) Brad Thomas (@MrBradThomas)
USA Today
28 minutes ago
- USA Today
New York Giants great Justin Tuck thinks these 2 MLB stars could play NFL football
New York Giants great Justin Tuck thinks these 2 MLB stars could play NFL football Being a professional athlete takes a tremendous amount of hard work and effort, and there has to be some natural athletic talent that provides the foundation. What sport an athlete plays isn't always dependent on what they enjoy, but rather what they are good at. For instance, Russell Wilson was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in 2010 and was later acquired by the New York Yankees. Now he's the starting quarterback for the New York Giants. Wilson isn't the only NFL player to have a baseball career, although the most famous is Bo Jackson. This begs the question, though: Are there any professional baseball players who could make it in the NFL? Retired Giants defensive end Justin Tuck appeared on The 611 Podcast and was posed this very question. "On the baseball side, I gotta go with [Aaron] Judge, man. I'm sure there's more, but he's so different than the typical baseball player just looking at him. I would definitely put him as my number one draft pick of a guy who probably could play football," Tuck said. Tuck goes on to discuss that the 6-foot-7, 282-pound right fielder could potentially be a wide-receiving tight end who is capable of running routes. "He can use his size, his speed, and I'm assuming he can catch," Tuck said. Pretty solid assumption about an outfielder, especially one who played football as a wide receiver in high school. Judge wasn't the only one Tuck picked, though. The other player he mentioned is Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz. "I feel like Cruz from the Reds. He's just an athlete, like I don't know what position he would play. Wide receiver, safety, whatever, but that dude, his speed, his length. . . He looks like he's not afraid of contact," Tuck said. "He'd be my sleeper." The conversation continued around what position Cruz could play, and Tuck reiterated that basically, any skill position would suit him. And if you've ever watched Cruz play, you know exactly what he's talking about. It's unlikely either of these players would ever make the leap to the NFL, but it's always fun to speculate on how athletes would perform in a different game.
