NEWSLETTER
The Cubs-Dodgers game has been banged due to weather (boo), but there’s plenty of other baseball stuff to discuss (hooray!).
Mets Wild Comeback in Philly
According to FanGraphs, the Mets had a 0.2 percent chance of beating the Phillies heading into the top of the ninth inning on Thursday night. The Phillies led the Mets 7-1 with three outs to go, but Buck Showalter’s guys weren’t going down without a fight.
Here’s how the Mets plated seven runs in the ninth to take the lead:
• Francisco Lindor two-run home run (7-3 PHI)
• Mark Canha RBI single (7-4 PHI)
• J.D. Davis RBI double (7-5 PHI)
• Brandon Nimmo two-run single (7-7)
• Starling Marte RBI double (8-7 NYM)
Check it out:
Down 7-1 ➡️ Up 8-7
A simply Amazin' 9th for the @Mets.
(MLB x @coronaextrausa) pic.twitter.com/wpXa0MV8Sd
— MLB (@MLB) May 6, 2022
According to SNY, this is the first time the Mets have erased a deficit of six runs or more in the ninth inning to come from behind and win in the last 25 years! The Mets had lost 330 straight games when trailing by six or more entering the ninth inning before their wild comeback in Philadelphia last night.
Reds’ Historically Bad Start
Since splitting a four-game series with the Atlanta Braves to open the season, the Reds have won just one game and dropped 20 as they’ve sputtered out of the gates to an atrocious 3-22 start. On Thursday, Cincinnati lost to the Milwaukee Brewers, marking their ninth consecutive loss and their third straight sweep. The Reds are now in the historically bad territory. The 2022 Reds’ 3-22 record is tied with the 2003 Detroit Tigers for the second-worst mark in league history. Only the 1988 Orioles started worse through 25 games at 2-23.
The Reds’ .120 winning percentage puts them on pace for the worst record in MLB history by winning percentage. The 1899 Cleveland Spiders had a .130 winning percentage and finished the season with a 20-134 record. In the past, the Reds would have had a silver lining to look forward to amid all this stinkage, a sure-fire shot at landing the top pick in the following season’s draft.
That’s not the case anymore, however. Under the new CBA, the odds of landing the top pick in the draft top out at 16.5 percent, meaning the Reds could end the season with one of the worst records in MLB history and still not land the top pick in next season’s draft. That would be the worst-case scenario, but one that might actually come to fruition. Yikes. (But also, yeah that’s the point).
More on the historically lousy start:
If the Reds maintained their .120 win% they would finish the year with 20 wins (.123). If they played .333 baseball the rest of the year (the 2nd worst right now) they would finish with 48 wins. The worst record since the 162 game expansion in 1962 was the 62’ Mets with 40 wins. https://t.co/0Q8146Uef6
— Caleb Webb (@calebgwebb) May 6, 2022
Ken Rosenthal has more on the Reds’ start and plenty of other topics around the league:
Latest notes:
*Reason for Reds’ collapse
*Guardians on the offensive
*Yankees on the defensive
*Diamondbacks looking intriguing
*Kuhl thriving with Rockies
*Showalter’s early tip on Drew Smith
*Rise of Twins’ Durán
*Early trade thoughts
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) May 6, 2022
Happy Kerry Wood 20K Day!
Today marks the 24th anniversary of one of MLB’s most incredible pitching performances, Kerry Wood’s 20 strikeout performance against the Houston Astros. I’m a White Sox fan who grew up in Bridgeport. Still, the Cubs’ availability on WGN, their afternoon starts, and my extreme baseball nerdery prompted me to take in my fair share of Cubs games as a kid, and this one, in particular, is one I’ll never forget. I was not in school that day, and I can’t remember exactly why, maybe a doctor’s appointment or something, but whatever.
Either way, I watched this game, and it was an absolute treat. You’ll remember that it was more impressive because the Astros lineup was lethal.
The greatest game ever pitched was on a rainy day at Wrigley. 5/6/98 #KidK #20strikeouts #KerryWood pic.twitter.com/8uq7OhY8sK
— OBVIOUS SHIRTS® (@obvious_shirts) May 6, 2022
Every year when this date comes up, I look back at a story my good friend Austin Bloomberg wrote on his experience that day in 2018. Check it out; it’s a read worth your time today. Craig Biggio, Jeff Bagwell, Moises Alou, man… that lineup was something else.
22 years ago, Kerry Wood struck THIS lineup out 2️⃣0️⃣ times 🔥 pic.twitter.com/hhyX7UjyHY
— Cubs Talk (@NBCSCubs) May 6, 2020
Correa Injury Makes Way For Royce Lewis’ MLB Debut
Carlos Correa was hit by a pitch twice on Thursday night, and the belief is that the final HBP caused Correa to suffer a broken finger. Jon Morosi reported this morning that Correa’s initial evaluation revealed a non-displaced fracture of his right middle finger. The highest-paid infielder in baseball will undergo further testing today. If the non-displaced fracture is confirmed, Correa would have a shorter recovery time than a displaced fracture.
Regardless, the Twins will be without Correa for some time. Correa’s absence paves the way for the Twins to promote the first-overall selection in the 2017 MLB Draft, Royce Lewis, to the majors for his MLB debut.
The former No. 1 overall pick is making his MLB debut 👀
The Twins will promote Royce Lewis, the top pick in the 2017 MLB Draft, to replace Carlos Correa, a source told The Athletic.
More: https://t.co/yF3YTwWBi0 pic.twitter.com/uwb5WuVJ1a
— The Athletic MLB (@TheAthleticMLB) May 6, 2022
Lewis, 22, has been tearing the cover off the ball in Triple-A this season, boasting a .993 OPS in his first 24 games. The one-time prep star is hitting .310 with three home runs and 11 RBI for the St. Paul Saints.
Odds and Ends …
• Baltimore outfielder Austin Hays mocked Carlos Correa’s home run celebration after hitting a home run to give the O’s the lead over the Twins last night. The Orioles topped the Twins 5-3 on Thursday night.
Austin Hays mocking Carlos Correa's home run celebration after hitting a bomb to take the lead over the Twins 👀pic.twitter.com/ijk3PoF5Uc
— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) May 6, 2022
• Shohei Ohtani is truly appointment viewing:
Welcome to the Ohtani Sho! 🔥
(MLB x @coronaextrausa) pic.twitter.com/K6CQhNiM2S
— MLB (@MLB) May 5, 2022
• With Rapsodo, Codify, and high-speed imaging turning pitch creation and modification into a science, we’re treated to something new and improved every season. This year’s early trend; is the sweeper, a hybrid mixture of the traditional curveball and slider. Corey Kluber is one of the pitchers tossing baseball’s trendiest pitch, and Emma Baccallieri discussed the rise with Kluner recently:
I asked the question that absolutely everyone has been dying to know (Corey Kluber, you famously do not classify your breaking ball, so what button do you have your catchers press for it on PitchCom) https://t.co/lABdID2M4M
— Emma Baccellieri (@emmabaccellieri) May 6, 2022
• Ken Rosenthal dives into a new trend at the dish that is undoubtedly a good sign for the quality of the product on the field:
Encouraging news on the action front: According to MLB, 2022 has the highest rate of plate appearances resulting in a ball in play since 2017. https://t.co/e5HGNFtJhn
— Ken Rosenthal (@Ken_Rosenthal) May 5, 2022
• Mike Trout is mashing the baseball this season, sporting a 1.118 OPS through his first 22 games:
The 🐐 stands alone atop this week's Hitter Power Rankings. pic.twitter.com/IS5cy9GMiz
— MLB (@MLB) May 6, 2022
