Gerrit Cole injury update: NY Yankees ace 'concerned' about elbow problems
Gerrit Cole injury update: NY Yankees ace 'concerned' about elbow problems
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A's are 'getting excited' as they prepare to play the 2025 season in Sacramento
Bob Nightengale and Gabe Lacques give a temperature check on the Athletics ahead of the MLB season.
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New York Yankees pitcher Gerrit Cole said he is awaiting the results of imaging on his bothersome right elbow and hopes to know more soon, less than a month before the regular season begins.
Cole pitched for 2 2/3 innings in his spring training start against the Minnesota Twins on Thursday and was blitzed for six runs and five hits.
Cole, 34, said that after the start, the elbow started to give him issues and he was concerned about what imaging on the elbow might show.
'We have an initial idea, but we're going to wait to see exactly what everybody says before we come to our conclusion,' Cole said to MLB.com. 'I've still got some hope. I'm still just waiting for the experts to weigh in.'
Cole, the 2023 American League Cy Young Award winner, didn't make his first start last season until June due to an elbow injury. He ended up going 8-5 with a 3.41 ERA in 17 starts.
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New York Times
12 minutes ago
- New York Times
Restored superstar Ronald Acuña Jr., sharpening Spencer Strider give Braves reasons to believe
ATLANTA — The Braves started 5-13, have already endured a pair of seven-game losing streaks, and still had the fifth-worst record in the National League after beating the hapless Colorado Rockies 4-1 on Saturday to clinch a second consecutive series after losing each of the previous six. But the way they won Saturday, and specifically contributions from Spencer Strider and Ronald Acuña Jr., help explain why this team believes it can be the first to ever make the playoffs after losing its first seven games in a season. Advertisement 'It's why you like seeing (Acuña and Strider) healthy and on the field, because those guys are what this game's all about,' said manager Brian Snitker, whose Braves have won four of five games since losing 14 of the previous 17. Strider had 13 strikeouts in six scoreless innings in his sixth and best start in 2025, after beginning the season on the injured list recovering from internal-brace elbow surgery and missing another month with a hamstring strain that happened five days after his season debut. Strider and relievers Rafael Montero and Dylan Lee totaled 19 strikeouts, a franchise record for a nine-inning game and a Rockies franchise record for hitters in a nine-inning game. As important as Strider can be in a rotation that already has aces Chris Sale and Spencer Schwellenbach, even more important for the Braves is Acuña, their superstar and dynamic leadoff man, who's back to being a player you can't take your eyes off. Acuña hit a two-run homer in the second inning Saturday and has hit .387 with seven home runs in 20 games since coming off the IL. He leads NL qualifiers in average and OPS (1.178) since he was activated May 23, and in the past five games, he's hit .632 (12-for-19) with three homers and four multi-hit games. Yeah, he's back. He's reminding everyone why he was widely considered one of baseball's two or three best players before his second ACL tear in late May 2024 and season-ending surgery that sidelined him until three weeks ago. Acuña has been so productive in such a short span that some are beginning to wonder if he might make the All-Star team for the fifth time despite his late start. The 2025 All-Star Game will be played in Atlanta on July 15. 'Yeah, it would be incredible,' Acuña said through a translator. 'Obviously, it would just be completely different to any of the other ones that I've been to, being here at home. I really hope I get to participate in it and if I do, I'm gonna enjoy it to the max.' Advertisement But he also said, 'I'm not too focused on numbers in regards to padding the stats to make the All-Star Game or anything. My main concern is just doing anything I can to help the team win and enjoying myself out there on the field.' The only thing missing from his game so far is stolen bases. He hadn't attempted one until stealing Friday when the batter had a 3-2 count, more to avoid a double play than a pure steal. Acuña hasn't been stealing at every opportunity like he did before surgery, and that's by design. He's been prudent about it, as the team hoped he'd be, because having him healthy for the rest of the season is far more important than getting a bunch of stolen bases. 'I felt ready to start running since I've come back, but I think we just have to approach it with some tact,' he said. 'Just sort of alter the way I'm playing, because obviously we want to stay healthy and we want to avoid any injuries. So I felt ready and good, but we're just taking a strategic approach about it.' He hit a 410-foot homer Saturday on a pitch that few others could hit like he did — a 98 mph fastball from Chase Dollander that was above the strike zone and on the outer half of the plate, and Acuña still pulled it and drove it far beyond the left-field fence. 'That was (up) around his neck, it seemed like,' Snitker said. 'I don't know how he tomahawked the heck out of that thing.' Unlike in 2022, when Acuña struggled with residual soreness from July 2021 surgery on his right ACL and had trouble rotating in his swing, he's shown no lingering effects from last year's left-knee surgery. 'I know just from personal experience, the second time you have a long-term rehab process, you're more prepared to handle it, mentally more so than anything,' said Strider, who had Tommy John surgery five years before his 2024 elbow surgery. 'I think he would say that to you, just knowing what to expect and knowing how to make that process a beneficial one rather than an impediment or a setback. You see the difference. Advertisement 'Just the work ethic and the focus and the positivity that I saw from him through this process gave me a lot of confidence that he would be exactly where he is right now. And certainly we're beyond grateful to have him out there.' Acuña also had a single and a walk Saturday, and has reached base at least three times in five consecutive games. It's the longest such streak in the majors this season and Acuña's longest since a five-gamer in April 2023, early in a career-best season when he hit .337 with 41 homers, a majors-leading 73 stolen bases and an NL-best 1.012 OPS and 171 OPS+, earning all 30 first-place votes for league MVP. He appears to be in even better condition now than then, leaner and more muscular in the legs and upper body, and Acuña was asked Saturday how he feels physically compared to his 2023 MVP season. 'Much better,' he said, smiling as he held one of his two young sons, Jamal, during a postgame interview. Acuña always had an elite outfield arm, but this season he's made more consistently great throws than before, clocking in the upper-90 mph range and rifling throws from the corner that have left a few base runners looking toward him with expressions of both respect and surprise. 'Yeah, it's a little frustratingly easy for him,' Strider said, laughing. 'As much time as I've spent trying to throw the ball, he just kind of picks them up with his eyes closed and rips them. He's just an unbelievable athlete, and that's obviously something he knows. And his skill is playing the game free and easy and confident. And of course, your health is a major factor in being able to do that, being in a position to do that. 'And him dominating that rehab process the way he did put him in this position to be confident and be in that flow state that you're used to seeing him in, and we're reaping the benefits of it.' The Braves also hope to reap the benefits of a healthy Strider, who maintained his best velocity of the season Saturday for the first five of his six innings. He had a season-high 96.4 mph average velocity on his fastball, up 1.1 mph over his season average, and threw 15 pitches at 97.0 or higher, all in the first five innings, topping out at 98.1. Advertisement All but two of his 87 pitches were fastballs (50) or sliders (35), and the latter pitch was even more effective. Strider induced 23 swings apiece with the fastball and the slider, getting seven whiffs on fastballs and 17 on sliders. 'I repeated (the slider) better, or the command was repeated better, than in the last start,' Strider said, 'but we were just in the zone a lot. I think they were aggressive, and we were able to exploit that with the off-speed.' Strider only issued one walk — that to start the sixth inning — and allowed three hits. But he downplayed the performance and said he would've liked to pitch more innings, but used too many pitches in the sixth inning. Snitker, however, voiced the opinion of everyone else who watched. He saw Strider pitch a lot more like pre-surgery Strider than he had before Saturday. 'I think Spence took a big step forward,' Snitker said. 'Because he held his velocity longer than he has, and his stuff was really good. And Ronald just keeps going. He's just swinging the bat really good and having great at-bats.' They're still 13 games back in the NL East and seven games under .500 (31-38), but the Braves have reasons to believe they are just getting started. And the two biggest ones are Acuña and Strider. (Top photo of Ronald Acuña Jr.: Edward M. Pio Roda / Getty Images)
San Francisco Chronicle
14 minutes ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Strider's 13 strikeouts lead Braves to 4-1 win over Rockies
ATLANTA (AP) — Spencer Strider recorded 13 strikeouts in his first win of the season, Ronald Acuña Jr. stayed hot with two hits, including a two-run homer, and the Atlanta Braves beat Colorado 4-1 on Saturday. The loss left the Rockies with the worst record through 70 games in the modern era. Colorado (13-57) surpassed the 1932 Boston Red Sox, who were 14-56, for the worst 70-game mark since 1901. The Rockies set another team record for a nine-inning game with 19 strikeouts, also a nine-inning record for Atlanta pitchers. The resurgent Braves have won consecutive series after falling 10 games under .500 while losing six straight series. They have outscored the Rockies 16-5 in the first two games of the series after setting a scoring high in Friday night's 12-4 win. DETROIT (AP) — Tyler Stephenson hit a grand slam in a six-run fifth inning and Cincinnati beat Detroit. Elly De La Cruz, Spencer Steer and Matt McLain also homered for the Reds, who had been outscored 22-7 in the last two games. The American League-leading Tigers are 4-2 in their last six games but have given up double-digit runs in each loss. Brady Singer (7-4) got the win, giving up one run on four hits in six innings. He walked three while striking out four. Jack Flaherty (5-7) allowed seven runs on five hits — including three homers — and five walks in 4 2/3 innings. MARLINS 4, NATIONALS 3 WASHINGTON (AP) — Jesús Sánchez homered in the seventh inning, and Miami held off Washington. Miami clinched its sixth series victory of the season and first since taking two of three from the Los Angeles Angels on May 23-25. The Marlins have won consecutive games for the first time since May 24-25. Washington dropped its seventh in a row, matching a May 6-13 skid for its longest of the season. The Nationals scored two runs in the ninth off Anthony Bender — one on a wild pitch, another on a misplayed grounder — and had the bases loaded with none out. But Bender got Amed Rosario to fly out to shallow left, and Calvin Faucher earned his seventh save when he induced James Wood to pop up to shortstop. The Marlins used three pitchers to cover the first 2 1/3 innings before giving way to Janson Junk (1-0). The right-hander allowed only two baserunners in 5 2/3 shutout innings, the longest outing of his career. CUBS 2, PIRATES 1 CHICAGO (AP) — Dansby Swanson homered, Matthew Boyd pitched six sharp innings and Chicago beat Pittsburgh. Swanson connected against Ryan Borucki (1-3) with two out in the sixth inning, giving Chicago a 2-1 lead with a solo drive into the bleachers in left-center. It was his 13th homer of the season. Swanson struck out swinging against Mike Burrows in his first two at-bats of the afternoon. But Burrows departed after retiring Seiya Suzuki on a popup to first for the first out of the sixth. Andrew McCutchen went deep for last-place Pittsburgh, which had won six of eight. It was McCutchen's 18th homer at Wrigley Field, tops for a visitor to the iconic ballpark among active players. Boyd (6-3) retired 14 in a row after McCutchen connected with one out in the first. The left-hander, who signed a $29 million, two-year deal with Chicago in free agency, improved to 6-0 with a 2.25 ERA in six home starts this year. ATHLETICS 4, ROYALS 0 KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Jacob Lopez became the latest pitcher to shut down Kansas City with six innings of three-hit ball, Max Muncy and Lawrence Butler hit homers, and the Athletics won. Lopez (1-4) walked one and struck out nine while winning for the second time in his big league career. His other victory came on Oct. 1, 2023, when Lopez allowed five runs while pitching for the Rays in a game against Toronto. He was recalled from Triple-A Las Vegas last month and had been 0-3 with a 6.88 ERA in three games since. Michael Kelly pitched two perfect innings in relief and Hogan Harris finished off the four-hitter for the A's. Muncy followed a leadoff walk by Tyler Soderstrom in the second inning with his fifth homer of the year, a line-drive into the A's bullpen off Kansas City starter Michael Lorenzen. Lawrence homered off reliever Daniel Lynch IV in the seventh. Lorenzen (4-7) allowed three runs on four hits and four walks over six innings. He struck out four. ASTROS 3, TWINS 2 HOUSTON (AP) — Rookie Cam Smith hit a tiebreaking RBI single off closer Jhoan Duran with two outs in the ninth inning to give Houston a victory over Minnesota. Duran (4-2) walked Christian Walker with one out in the ninth and he moved to third on a two-out single by Jake Meyers. Smith then singled on a grounder to center to score Meyers for his first career walkoff hit and Houston's fourth straight victory. Closer Josh Hader (3-0) struck out two in a scoreless ninth for the win. Both teams got strong performances from their starters. Houston's Hunter Brown allowed three hits and two runs with a career-high 12 strikeouts in seven innings. Minnesota's Joe Ryan yielded two hits and two runs while fanning seven in seven innings. Yainer Diaz hit a two-run homer for Houston in the third and Brooks Lee tied it with his shot in the fifth that extended his career-long hitting streak to 14 games. Bryan Abreu struck out three in a scoreless eighth for the Astros. PHILLIES 3, BLUE JAYS 2 PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Max Kepler hit a tiebreaking home run in the eighth inning to lift Philadelphia to a victory over Toronto. Cristopher Sánchez pitched seven strong innings for Philadelphia, which managed just four hits while winning its fourth in the last five. The Phillies will try for the three-game series sweep behind ace Zack Wheeler on Sunday. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. had an RBI double for the Blue Jays. Toronto had won 12 of 14 before dropping the first two in Philadelphia. The Phillies once again played without two-time NL MVP Bryce Harper, who is sidelined indefinitely with a wrist injury. Orion Kerkering (5-2) pitched a scoreless eighth, and Matt Strahm tossed a 1-2-3 ninth for his third save. ORIOLES 6, ANGELS 5 BALTIMORE (AP) — Cedric Mullins and Gary Sánchez hit back-to-back home runs to give Baltimore the lead and Félix Bautista finished off the victory over Los Angeles with his second straight save. Mullins hit his 11th home run, a two-run shot off Angels starter Tyler Anderson in the sixth, and Sánchez followed with his first homer with the Orioles for a 6-4 lead. Bautista topped 100 mph for the first time since 2023 on a fastball to Mike Trout before Trout flied to right field for the second out in the ninth. Bautista walked Taylor Ward before striking out Logan O'Hoppe on the ninth pitch of the at-bat and his 22nd pitch in the inning. Bautista has 14 saves in 15 opportunities. Trout homered high off the foul pole in left field after Zach Neto drew a leadoff walk from Orioles starter Tomoyuki Sugano to give the Angels a 2-0 lead in the first. It was his 11th home run this season and the 389th of his career. LA's Luis Rengifo hit solo homers from both sides of the plate for the third time in his career after entering with just one on the season. He homered off lefty Keegan Akin to give the Angels a 4-3 lead in the sixth and again off right-hander Andrew Kittredge in the eighth to cut it to 6-5. Gunnar Henderson and Jordan Westburg had RBI singles in the third to give the Orioles a 3-2 lead. Anderson (2-4) allowed six runs on nine hits in five innings. He is 0-4 in 10 starts since beating the Giants on April 18. CARDINALS 8, BREWERS 5 MILWAUKEE (AP) — Nolan Gorman hit a three-run homer, Willson Contreras added a solo shot in the ninth inning and St. Louis beat Milwaukee to snap a six-game losing streak. William Contreras hit a leadoff homer for Milwaukee that capped the scoring as the brothers both homered in the ninth inning. Victor Scott had two RBIs for the Cardinals. Gorman's homer, which chased starter José Quintana (4-2), made it 7-1 in the fifth. Masyn Winn singled to lead off the game, Iván Herrera followed with a walk and Alec Burleson added a single that drove in Winn to give the Cardinals the lead for good. Jackson Chourio hit a leadoff triple in the fourth and scored on a passed ball by Pedro Pagés. Sal Frelick hit a two-run double and Chourio followed with an RBI single in the fifth that trimmed Milwaukee's deficit to 7-4. RAYS 8, METS 4 NEW YORK (AP) — Taylor Walls and Yandy Díaz had two hits and two RBIs apiece and Tampa Bay remained hot with a win over New York. Junior Caminero homered to lead off a five-run fourth inning for Tampa Bay, which has won eight of its last 11 games and leads the majors with a 17-6 record and 134 runs scored since May 20. Josh Lowe and Brandon Lowe each finished with two hits and an RBI. Drew Rasmussen (6-4) won his fifth straight decision despite allowing seven hits and four runs in five innings. He struck out three. He had allowed two runs over 29 innings in his previous five starts. Brandon Nimmo had three hits and two RBIs while Brett Baty and Ronny Mauricio each homered for the Mets, who lost consecutive games for the first time since a three-game skid from May 18-20. RANGERS 5, WHITE SOX 4, 11 INNINGS ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Adolis García delivered his his sixth career walk-off hit with an RBI single with two out in the 11th inning to give Texas a victory over Chicago. García hit a line drive to the wall in center field on the first pitch from reliever Tyler Alexander (3-7), scoring automatic runner Evan Carter. It was the only hit allowed by Alexander in three innings. Rangers starter Jacob deGrom allowed two runs in six innings and struck out six. He left after throwing 82 pitches, trailing 2-1. Jacob Latz (1-0) pitched two hitless innings and struck out three for the win. Chicago's Kyle Teel ended deGrom's stretch of 15 scoreless innings with a sacrifice fly in the fourth, and Luis Robert Jr. followed with an RBI single for a 2-0 lead. Josh Smith doubled leading off the fifth against reliever Brandon Eisert and scored on a one-out double by Corey Seager, cutting the deficit to 2-1. Smith went 2 for 5 — his sixth straight multi-hit game — and scored two runs. Wyatt Langford greeted reliever Grant Taylor with a single in the seventh. Seager walked for a career-high ninth straight game and Marcus Semien doubled to tie it. Seager scored on a wild pitch for a 3-2 lead. Mike Tauchman tied it with an RBI single in the eighth for Chicago, and Michael A. Taylor's pinch-hit RBI double in the ninth pulled the White Sox even at 4-all. RED SOX 4, YANKEES 3 BOSTON (AP) — Hunter Dobbins pitched six shutout innings to beat New York for the second time in a week, and Boston won its fourth straight game. A week after saying he'd rather retire than pitch for the Yankees because his father was drafted by New York twice before being traded — and then having to defend his dad's story midweek — Dobbins (4-1) struck out five and gave up two singles. Dobbins earned the victory against the Yankees last Sunday, too, when he worked five innings and allowed three runs, two on a first-inning, two-run homer by Aaron Judge. Judge went 0 for 4 with three strikeouts on Saturday, dropping his major league leading average from .390 to .384. Greg Weissert got the final three outs for his second save despite giving up a run. Austin Wells flew out to the track in center with two runners on. Carlos Rodón (8-5), who entered 7-1 with a 1.90 ERA in his previous 10 starts, gave up four runs (three earned) on seven hits in five-plus innings. DIAMONDBACKS 8, PADRES 7 PHOENIX (AP) — Geraldo Perdomo's bases-loaded triple tied the game and Josh Naylor's infield hit scored Perdomo with the winning run as Arizona scored five times in the ninth to shock San Diego. It was 7-3 going to the ninth. Pavin Smith, Gabriel Moreno and Alek Thomas singled against Padres closer Robert Suárez (1-2), working in a non-save situation. Ketel Marte beat out an infield hit to score a run and set the stage for Perdomo, who lined one into the right-field corner to score all three runs. Adrian Morejon relieved and Naylor, on the first pitch, hit a grounder to first but Perdomo beat the throw home. The Padres scored four runs in the seventh to take a 5-3 lead on Fernando Tatis Jr.'s bases-loaded single and Manny Machado's two-run double off Ryan Thompson, who had relieved starter Zac Gallen. Eugenio Suárez's three-run homer in the fifth off Ryan Bergert put the Diamondbacks ahead 3-1. Suarez's homer, his 20th, tied Corbin Carroll for the team lead.
Associated Press
14 minutes ago
- Associated Press
Hunter Dobbins caps an eventful week with his 2nd win over the Yankees
BOSTON (AP) — Hunter Dobbins had quite the week. First, he said last weekend that he'd rather retire than pitch for the Yankees because his father was drafted by New York twice before being traded. Then, he goes out and beats the Yankees. A few days after his comments about never wanting to pitch for New York, he ends up having to defend his dad's story about being drafted by the Yankees in response to a New York Post article that cited multiple official databases and the Yankees' own records that couldn't confirm Lance Dobbins ever having played with the organization. Then on Saturday night, Dobbins (4-1) follows up by going six shutout innings in Boston's 4-3 victory over New York, his second win over the Yankees in less than a week. 'It's a lot of fun. I'm more worried about just the win column, whether it's against them or anybody,' he said. 'My job is to try and help this team win as many ballgames as we can, and pitch in meaningful playoff baseball games. That's what I'm more focused on.' But he realizes what it means to the fanbase in this longtime rivalry, with the Red Sox fans heard chanting about the Yankees outside the park before he spoke in an interview room. 'Yeah, I love being able to perform and get those wins for the fans here,' he said. 'They deserve it. It's a great city, passionate fanbase, so being able to get those wins — especially twice in one week — means a lot, and looking forward to trying to build on that going forward.' In his victory over New York last Sunday, Dobbins held the Yankees to three runs over five innings, two on a first-inning homer by Aaron Judge. On Saturday night, Judge went 0 for 3 against him, striking out twice on curveballs. 'It was just kind of scouting,' Dobbins said of his game plan against New York's slugger after Garrett Crochet struck him out three times in the series opener Friday. 'Crochet has an electric fastball. I can throw it hard, but the shape isn't quite as elite,' he said. 'So we knew we had better weapons to go at him with, so I felt like we did a good job of kind of keeping a balanced attack throughout the order.' Dobbins struck out five and gave up only two singles on Saturday. ___ AP MLB:
