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Tonight was the originally scheduled final set of games for the 2022-23 NHL regular season, with 30 teams in action. Thanks to a pair of postponements — due to flooding at Bridgestone Arena in Nashville and a wild winter storm hitting Buffalo — there will be two games tomorrow (Colorado AvalancheNashville Predators and Buffalo SabresColumbus Blue Jackets), though those games may be largely irrelevant to final playoff seeding based on what happens tonight.

Let’s dive in to the implications of each of tonight’s games, which includes a doubleheader on ESPN:

Boston Bruins at Montreal Canadiens, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): The Bruins are locked in to the No. 1 seed throughout the playoffs, and have already set records for regular-season wins and points. While load management isn’t a prevalent strategy in hockey compared to other sports, there may be some Bruins that get a maintenance day here. As for the Canadiens, thanks to a loss against the Islanders on Wednesday, they’re currently No. 5 in the draft lottery standings. They cannot get into the top 3, but a win here coupled with a Coyotes loss puts them sixth.

New Jersey Devils at Washington Capitals, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): New Jersey authored one of the most epic turnarounds in recent history, going from a lottery team to hosting a first-round playoff game — and they can move up even higher if things break properly. They’re currently a point behind the Hurricanes, but have an edge in regulation wins; any outcome that results in them tying (or besting, obviously) the Canes in the standings would thus give them the Metro Division title. The Capitals are eighth in the draft lottery standings, but a win could push them as far down as 11th — the good news is that thanks to the latest lottery rules, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots, meaning they’d still be eligible to reach No. 1.

Pittsburgh Penguins at Columbus Blue Jackets, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): A loss to the Blackhawks on Tuesday put the Penguins in a bad spot, and the Isles’ win against the Canadiens Wednesday sealed the deal to boot the Pens from the playoff field. Pittsburgh will finish in the bottom 3 of the draft lottery. Heading into this contest, the Blue Jackets stand alone in the basement of the league standings, giving them the best draft lottery odds. They can move down as far as No. 3 based on the outcomes of the games involving the Ducks and Blackhawks.

Toronto Maple Leafs at New York Rangers, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): These two teams are both locked in to their playoff positions: the Maple Leafs will host the Lightning in the Atlantic Division bracket, while the Rangers will be the No. 3 seed in the Metro, visiting either the Devils or Hurricanes to start their postseason journey. However, there are some milestones in play: Mitchell Marner has 99 points, William Nylander has 39 goals, Mika Zibanejad also has 39 goals, and Adam Fox is four points away from hitting a new single-season high (he had 74 last season).

Ottawa Senators at Buffalo Sabres, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): Both of these teams entered the season as potential disruptors of the Atlantic Division hierarchy. That didn’t quite happen, but the Sabres made it to the final week still alive for a spot, while the Senators have been playing effective spoilers the past month. A win in regulation by the Sens would push them ahead of the Sabres in the standings (and behind them in the draft lottery order); neither club is in range to land the No. 1 pick if they win a lottery draw, but they’d move into the top 5 in what is being billed as a very strong class of prospects.

Carolina Hurricanes at Florida Panthers, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): The math is simple for the Canes: Win this one in any fashion and they clinch the Metro Division title, and a first-round date either with these very same Panthers. Lose in any fashion, and they could wind up as the No. 2 seed (and play the Rangers) based on what the Devils do in their game. As for Florida, the Islanders’ win on Wednesday night means that they need two points to stay in the first wild-card spot and get the Metro winner in Round 1; a loss means that they’re shipping up to Boston.

Detroit Red Wings at Tampa Bay Lightning, 7 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): Tampa Bay will take on Toronto in the first round, so in theory they don’t have much on the line here. But, they’ve lost four straight games (and 8 of 11 going back to March 19), so it might be good to get back on the positive side of the scoreboard once before the postseason begins. The Red Wings sit ninth in the draft lottery standings, and a win could drop them as far as 11th. That reduces their draft lottery chances, but does keep them in range of getting the No. 1 pick should they win the first draw.

Winnipeg Jets at Colorado Avalanche, 8 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): The Avalanche are duking it out with the Stars for the Central Division crown, and a win here means they’ll have 107 points, with a game on the docket against the Preds on Friday. The Stars have 106 points, with a return match against the Blues tonight; a Dallas win tonight coupled with a Colorado loss of any kind against Winnipeg clinches the division for the Stars (due to the regulation win tiebreaker). The Jets are locked in to the second wild-card spot, which most likely means a first-round date with the Pacific Division champ (currently the Golden Knights).

St. Louis Blues at Dallas Stars, 8 p.m. (ESPN): Don’t adjust your device: these teams did just play last night, a 5-2 win by the Stars. If the Stars win again tonight, that puts them at 108 points, ahead of the Avs when it comes to the Central Division’s No. 1 seed regardless of tonight’s game for Colorado. However, the Avs have a game tomorrow, and could jump back over the Stars should they win that final one. The winner of the Central gets the top wild card, which is currently the Kraken. Meanwhile, the Blues are locked in to a top-11 spot in the draft lottery, meaning they could land the No. 1 pick with a lot of luck, jumpstarting a reboot that began with their in-season trades of Ryan O’Reilly and Vladimir Tarasenko.

Minnesota Wild at Nashville Predators, 8 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): The Wild’s loss to the Jets on Tuesday locked them in as the Central’s No. 3 seed, so they’ll visit either the Stars or Avalanche to begin the postseason. Meanwhile, the Predators will be in the bottom 3 of the draft lottery standings, entering the first offseason of new GM Barry Trotz’s tenure.

Philadelphia Flyers at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): It’s a rematch of the 2010 Stanley Cup Final! These two franchises have obviously seen more competitive days, and both are in the mix to win the draft lottery and boost their rebuilds. The Flyers are locked in to the No. 7 spot in the lottery standings, while the Blackhawks are currently third, but could drop to fourth with a win and a regulation loss by the Sharks.

San Jose Sharks at Edmonton Oilers, 9 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): The Oilers have been one of the NHL’s hottest teams of late, winning eight straight games, and going 17-2-1 since March 1. The Pacific Division crown is theirs with a win here and a regulation loss by the Golden Knights; any other result and they’ll be the No. 2 seed and host the Kings to begin their playoff path. The Sharks are fourth in the draft lottery standings and can’t get any lower, but can move up to No. 3 if they lose in regulation and the Blackhawks win.

Los Angeles Kings at Anaheim Ducks, 10 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): L.A. has been leaking oil a bit heading into the home stretch, going 8-5-2 since March 11. They can’t get any higher than the No. 3 seed in the Pacific, but they can fall back into a wild-card spot with a regulation loss and a win of any kind for the Kraken. The Ducks are currently second in the draft lottery and would move up to first if they lose in regulation and the Blue Jackets earn one or more points against the Penguins; they can also fall to third if they earn more standings points tonight than the Blackhawks.

Vancouver Canucks at Arizona Coyotes, 10 p.m. (NHL Power Play on ESPN+): Both of these teams have been eliminated from the playoffs for a while, but their precise lottery position remains to be determined. The Yotes are one point ahead of the Canadiens in the standings (with one fewer regulation win), so they will hope to avoid a regulation win here to give themselves the best chance at remaining No. 6 in the standings. And, Yotes forward Clayton Keller is one point behind Keith Tkachuk for the single-season Coyotes scoring record (86), all the more impressive given that he broke his leg March 31 of last season. The Canucks are currently 10th, and can climb as high as 8th or go as low as 11th based on a win (and the results for the Capitals, Red Wings and Blues).

Vegas Golden Knights at Seattle Kraken, 10:30 p.m. (ESPN): In the nightcap, the Golden Knights are looking to lock in the No. 1 seed in the Western Conference with a win of any kind or a loss in overtime or shootout. A regulation loss coupled with a win of any kind for the Oilers makes Edmonton the West’s No. 1 seed. The Kraken are in the first wild-card spot and can’t be caught from behind. However, a win for Seattle combined with a regulation loss for L.A. would push the Kings down to the wild card and the Kraken up to the No. 3 seed in the Pacific.

Jump ahead:
Current playoff matchups
Today’s schedule
Last night’s scores
Expanded standings
Race for No. 1 pick

Current playoff matchups

Eastern Conference

A1 Boston Bruins vs. WC2 New York Islanders
A2 Toronto Maple Leafs vs. A3 Tampa Bay Lightning
M1 Carolina Hurricanes vs. WC1 Florida Panthers
M2 New Jersey Devils vs. M3 New York Rangers

Western Conference

C1 Dallas Stars vs. WC1 Seattle Kraken
C2 Colorado Avalanche vs. C3 Minnesota Wild
P1 Vegas Golden Knights vs. WC2 Winnipeg Jets
P2 Edmonton Oilers vs. P3 Los Angeles Kings


Thursday’s games

Note: All times Eastern. All games not on ESPN, TNT or NHL Network are available via NHL Power Play, which is included in an ESPN+ subscription (local blackout restrictions apply).

Boston Bruins at Montreal Canadiens, 7 p.m.
New Jersey Devils at Washington Capitals, 7 p.m.
Pittsburgh Penguins at Columbus Blue Jackets, 7 p.m.
Toronto Maple Leafs at New York Rangers, 7 p.m.
Ottawa Senators at Buffalo Sabres, 7 p.m.
Carolina Hurricanes at Florida Panthers, 7 p.m.
Detroit Red Wings at Tampa Bay Lightning, 7 p.m.
Winnipeg Jets at Colorado Avalanche, 8 p.m.
St. Louis Blues at Dallas Stars, 8 p.m. (ESPN)
Minnesota Wild at Nashville Predators, 8 p.m.
Philadelphia Flyers at Chicago Blackhawks, 8:30 p.m.
San Jose Sharks at Edmonton Oilers, 9 p.m.
Los Angeles Kings at Anaheim Ducks, 10 p.m.
Vancouver Canucks at Arizona Coyotes, 10 p.m.
Vegas Golden Knights at Seattle Kraken, 10:30 p.m. (ESPN)


Wednesday’s scoreboard

Watch “In the Crease” on ESPN+ for highlights from every game.

New York Islanders 4, Montreal Canadiens 2
Dallas Stars 5, St. Louis Blues 2
Calgary Flames 3, San Jose Sharks 1


Expanded standings

Atlantic Division

Points: 133
Regulation wins: 53
Playoff position: A1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 135
Next game: @ MTL (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 109
Regulation wins: 41
Playoff position: A2
Games left: 1
Points pace: 110
Next game: @ NYR (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 96
Regulation wins: 37
Playoff position: A3
Games left: 1
Points pace: 97
Next game: vs. DET (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 92
Regulation wins: 36
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 93
Next game: vs. CAR (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 87
Regulation wins: 29
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 2
Points pace: 89
Next game: vs. OTT (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 85
Regulation wins: 31
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 86
Next game: @ BUF (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 80
Regulation wins: 28
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 81
Next game: @ TB (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 68
Regulation wins: 21
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 69
Next game: vs. BOS (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E


Metropolitan Division

Points: 111
Regulation wins: 38
Playoff position: M1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 112
Next game: @ FLA (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 110
Regulation wins: 39
Playoff position: M2
Games left: 1
Points pace: 111
Next game: @ WSH (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 107
Regulation wins: 37
Playoff position: M3
Games left: 1
Points pace: 108
Next game: vs. TOR (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 93
Regulation wins: 36
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 0
Points pace: 93
Next game: None
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 90
Regulation wins: 31
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 91
Next game: @ CBJ (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 79
Regulation wins: 27
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 80
Next game: vs. NJ (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 73
Regulation wins: 26
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 74
Next game: @ CHI (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 57
Regulation wins: 15
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 2
Points pace: 58
Next game: vs. PIT (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E


Central Division

Points: 106
Regulation wins: 38
Playoff position: C1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 107
Next game: vs. STL (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 105
Regulation wins: 34
Playoff position: C2
Games left: 2
Points pace: 108
Next game: vs. WPG (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 102
Regulation wins: 34
Playoff position: C3
Games left: 1
Points pace: 103
Next game: @ NSH (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 95
Regulation wins: 36
Playoff position: WC2
Games left: 1
Points pace: 96
Next game: @ COL (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 90
Regulation wins: 29
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 2
Points pace: 92
Next game: vs. MIN (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 81
Regulation wins: 27
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 82
Next game: @ DAL (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 69
Regulation wins: 20
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 70
Next game: vs. VAN (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 58
Regulation wins: 18
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 59
Next game: vs. PHI (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E


Pacific Division

Points: 109
Regulation wins: 37
Playoff position: P1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 110
Next game: @ SEA (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 107
Regulation wins: 44
Playoff position: P2
Games left: 1
Points pace: 108
Next game: vs. SJ (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 102
Regulation wins: 36
Playoff position: P3
Games left: 1
Points pace: 103
Next game: @ ANA (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 100
Regulation wins: 37
Playoff position: WC1
Games left: 1
Points pace: 101
Next game: vs. VGK (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 100%
Tragic number: N/A

Points: 93
Regulation wins: 31
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 0
Points pace: 93
Next game: None
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 81
Regulation wins: 24
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 82
Next game: @ ARI (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 16
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 1
Points pace: 61
Next game: @ EDM (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

Points: 58
Regulation wins: 13
Playoff position: N/A
Games left: 2
Points pace: 60
Next game: vs. LA (Thursday)
Playoff chances: 0%
Tragic number: E

P — Clinched Presidents’ Trophy; Y — Clinched division; X — Clinched playoff berth; E — Eliminated from playoff contention


Race for the No. 1 pick

The NHL uses a draft lottery to determine the order of the first round, so the team that finishes in last place is not guaranteed the No. 1 selection. As of 2021, a team can move up a maximum of 10 spots if it wins the lottery, so only 11 teams are eligible for the draw for the No. 1 pick. Full details on the process can be found here. Sitting No. 1 on the draft board for this summer is Connor Bedard, who has been lauded as a generational talent.

Points: 57
Regulation wins: 15

Points: 58
Regulation wins: 13

Points: 58
Regulation wins: 18

Points: 60
Regulation wins: 16

Points: 68
Regulation wins: 21

Points: 69
Regulation wins: 20

Points: 73
Regulation wins: 26

Points: 79
Regulation wins: 27

Points: 80
Regulation wins: 28

Points: 81
Regulation wins: 24

Points: 81
Regulation wins: 27

Points: 85
Regulation wins: 31

Points: 87
Regulation wins: 29

Points: 90
Regulation wins: 29

Points: 90
Regulation wins: 31

Points: 93
Regulation wins: 31

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Sources: QB Pyne leaves Mizzou, seeks 4th team

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Sources: QB Pyne leaves Mizzou, seeks 4th team

Missouri quarterback Drew Pyne has entered the portal as a graduate transfer, sources told ESPN on Tuesday.

Pyne is looking to move to his fourth school after stints at Notre Dame, Arizona State and Missouri. He’ll be a sixth-year senior this fall.

Pyne joined Missouri last year as a backup for senior starter Brady Cook. He earned one start, leading the Tigers to a 30-23 comeback win over Oklahoma while Cook was sidelined by ankle and wrist injuries.

Missouri brought in former Penn State quarterback Beau Pribula via the transfer portal this offseason. He’ll compete with redshirt junior Sam Horn and true freshman Matt Zollers, the No. 86 overall recruit in the 2025 ESPN 300, for the opportunity to start this season.

Pyne, a former ESPN 300 recruit, began his career at Notre Dame and started 10 games for the Fighting Irish in 2022. He threw for 2,021 yards on 65% passing and scored 24 total touchdowns with six interceptions while winning eight of his starts.

After the Irish brought in grad transfer quarterback Sam Hartman, Pyne transferred to Arizona State but appeared in just two games with the Sun Devils before an injury forced him to sit out the rest of the season.

Pyne played 211 snaps over six appearances for the Tigers last season and threw for 391 yards on 60% passing with three touchdowns and three interceptions.

The NCAA’s spring transfer window opens April 16, but graduate transfers are permitted to put their name in the portal at any time. More than 160 FBS scholarship quarterbacks have already transferred this offseason.

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What’s going on with Rafael Devers? Putting his historic strikeout streak into context

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What's going on with Rafael Devers? Putting his historic strikeout streak into context

There are slow starts, there are slumps, and then there is whatever Rafael Devers is going through.

The 28-year-old three-time All-Star for the Boston Red Sox has been one of baseball’s best hitters since 2019, posting three 30-homer seasons, three 100-RBI seasons and a whole bunch of doubles.

His first five games of 2025 have been a nightmare. It’s the early-season equivalent of dealing Babe Ruth to the New York Yankees. Johnny Pesky holding the ball. Bucky Dent. The ball rolling through Bill Buckner’s legs. Aaron Boone. Just to name a few Red Sox references. Here’s how those games unfolded for Devers:

Game 1: 0-for-4, three strikeouts
Game 2: 0-for-4, four strikeouts
Game 3: 0-for-4, three strikeouts, walk, RBI
Game 4: 0-for-4, two strikeouts, walk
Game 5: 0-for-3, three strikeouts, two walks

Along the way, Devers became the first player to strike out 10 times in a team’s first three games of a season — and that’s not all.

He became the first player to strike out 12 times in a team’s first four games. And, yes, with 15 strikeouts through five games he shattered the old record of 13, shared by Pat Burrell in 2001 and Byron Buxton in 2017. Going back to the end of 2024, when Devers fanned 11 times over his final four games, he became the fourth player with multiple strikeouts in nine straight games — and one of those was a pitcher (the other two were a rookie named Aaron Judge in 2016 and Michael A. Taylor in 2021).

With Devers struggling, the Red Sox have likewise stumbled out of the gate, going 1-4 after some lofty preseason expectations, including an 8-5 loss to the Baltimore Orioles in the home opener Monday. To be fair, it’s not all on Devers: Jarren Duran, Devers and Alex Bregman, the top three hitters in the lineup, are a combined 11-for-62 (.177) with no home runs.

But there is one question weighing heaviest on the minds of Red Sox Nation right now: What is really going on with Devers?

It’s easy to say his head simply isn’t in the right space. Devers made headlines early in spring training after the Red Sox signed Bregman, saying he didn’t want to move to DH and that “third base is my position.” He pointed out that when he signed his $331 million extension in January of 2023, the front office promised he would be the team’s third baseman.

That, however, was when a different regime was in charge. Bregman, a Gold Glove winner in 2024, is the better defensive third baseman, so it makes sense to play him there and move Devers — except many players don’t like to DH. Some analysts even build in a “DH penalty,” assuming a player will hit worse there than when he plays the field. While Devers eventually relented and said he’d do whatever will help the team, it was a rocky situation for a few weeks.

But maybe it’s something else. While Devers avoided surgery this offseason, he spent it trying to rebuild strength in both shoulders after dealing with soreness and inflammation throughout 2024. He didn’t play the field in spring training and had just 15 plate appearances. So maybe he is still rusty — or the shoulder(s) are bothering him.

Indeed, Statcast metrics show his average bat speed has dropped from 72.5 mph in 2024 to 70.3 mph so far in 2025 (and those are down from 73.4 mph in 2023). His “fast-swing rate” has dropped from 34.2% in 2023 to 27.9% to 12.2%. Obviously, we’re talking an extremely small sample size for this season, but it’s clear Devers isn’t generating the bat speed we’re used to seeing from him.

That, however, doesn’t explain the complete inability to make contact. Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters after the series in Texas that Devers had made alterations with his foot placement — but was having trouble catching up to fastballs. Following Monday’s game, Devers told reporters (via his interpreter) that, “Obviously this is not a position that I’ve done in the past. So I need to get used to it. But I feel good, I feel good.”

Which leads to this question: Does this historic bad start mean anything? Since the DH began in 1973, three DHs began the season with a longer hitless streak than Devers’ 0-for-19 mark, so let’s dig into how the rest of their seasons played out:

  • Don Baylor with the 1982 Angels (0-for-20). Baylor ended up with a pretty typical season for him: .263/.329/.424, 24 home runs.

  • Evan Gattis of the 2015 Astros (0-for-23). Gattis hit .246 with 27 home runs — not as good as he hit in 2014 or 2016, but in line with his career numbers.

  • Curtis Terry with the Rangers in 2021 (0-for-20). Terry was a rookie who ended up playing just 13 games in the majors.

Expanding beyond just the DH position, I searched Baseball-Reference for players in the wild-card era (since 1995) who started a season hitless in at least 20 plate appearances through five games. That gave us a list of … just seven players, including Evan Carter (0-for-22) and Anthony Rendon (0-for-20) last season. Both ended up with injury-plagued seasons. The list also includes Hall of Famer Craig Biggio, who was 0-for-24 for the Houston Astros in 1995. He was fine: He hit .302/.406/.483 that season, made the All-Star team and finished 10th in the MVP voting. J.D. Drew started 0-for-25 through five games with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2005; he hit .286/.412/.520, although an injury limited him to 72 games.

But none of those hitters struck out nearly as often as Devers has.

So let’s focus on the strikeouts and expand our search to most strikeouts through the 15 first games of a season. Given his already astronomical total, Devers is likely to rank high on such a list even if he starts making more contact. Seventeen players struck out at least 25 times through 15 games, topped by Yoan Moncada and Miguel Sano with 29, both in 2018. Not surprisingly, all these seasons have come since 2006 and 12 since 2018.

How did that group fare?

They were actually OK, averaging a .767 OPS and 20 home runs. The best of the group was Matt Olson in 2023, who struck out 25 times in 15 games, but was also hitting well with a .317/.423/.650 line. He went on to hit 53 home runs. The next best season belongs to Giancarlo Stanton in 2018, his first with the Yankees. He finished with 38 home runs and an .852 OPS — but that was a big drop from his MVP season in 2017, when he mashed 59 home runs. His strikeout rate increased from 23.6% in 2017 to 29.9% — and he’s never been as good.

Indeed, that’s the worrisome thing for Devers: Of the 16 players who played the season before (Trevor Story was a rookie in 2016 when he struck out 25 times in 15 games, albeit with eight home runs), 13 had a higher OPS the previous season, many significantly so.

As Cora argued Monday, it’s a small sample size. “You know, this happens in July or August, we’d not even be talking about it,” he said.

That doesn’t really sound quite forthright. A slump, even a five-game slump, with this many strikeouts would absolutely be a topic of discussion. Still, that’s all the Red Sox and Devers have to go on right now: It’s just a few games, nothing one big game won’t fix. They just hope it comes soon.

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Veteran pitcher Lynn retiring after 13-year career

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Veteran pitcher Lynn retiring after 13-year career

Longtime St. Louis Cardinals right-hander Lance Lynn announced Tuesday that he has retired from Major League Baseball after 13 seasons.

“Baseball season is upon us and I’m right here on the couch and that is where I’m gonna stay,” Lynn said on his wife’s podcast, “Dymin in the Rough.”

“I am officially retiring from baseball right here, right now.”

Lynn, 37, spent much of his career with the Cardinals (2011-17, 2024) but also has pitched for the Minnesota Twins (2018), New York Yankees (2018), Texas Rangers (2019-20), Chicago White Sox (2021-23) and Los Angeles Dodgers (2023).

Last season with the Cardinals, he started 23 games and had a 7-4 record with a 3.84 ERA, throwing 117⅓ innings and striking out 109.

The two-time All-Star has a career record of 143-99 with a 3.74 ERA in 364 games (340 starts), tossing 2,006⅓ innings. He ranks sixth in that category, as well as in wins, among active pitchers. Ahead of him in each category are three sure Hall of Famers — Justin Verlander, Max Scherzer and Clayton Kershaw.

Lynn, on Tuesday, made it clear that he may be spotted on the baseball field … just not in a major league game.

“There might be something a little fun around the corner upcoming weekend, so stayed tuned,” Lynn said. “But from Major League Baseball, I am done pitching.”

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