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CHICAGO — A recent 2-7 road trip left the Chicago Cubs six games under .500, but their manager is staying positive about their playoff hopes thanks to a weak NL Central.

“Thank goodness for the s—ty play of everybody in the division,” David Ross said with a smile Tuesday afternoon, before the Cubs (21-26) beat the visiting New York Mets 7-2 to begin a nine-game homestand.

Six games separate the five teams in the division, led by Milwaukee but with only a .542 winning percentage. With their win Tuesday, the Cubs are 4½ games back of the Brewers.

“The story of our season so far is we’ve struggled in high leverage situations, both offensively and pitching wise,” president of baseball operations Jed Hoyer said Tuesday. “We’re seventh in wOBA offensively, and seventh in wOBA from a pitching standpoint. That looks great. There’s only a couple teams that are in the top group in both but we’ve been really poor in high-leverage situations.

“That’s the reason our record isn’t flipped or even better.”

According to Fangraphs, the Cubs’ offense ranks 30th in MLB in offensive clutch rating with a -6.02 mark. For context, the Twins are 29th at -2.37 and the Padres are 28th at -1.68. Meanwhile, Chicago is tied for 28th in clutch rating for pitching.

“It’s a hard thing to put your finger on,” Hoyer said. “Is it pitch selection? Is it pitch execution? Is it putting the right people in the right place to succeed at the right time? Offensively, it’s the same thing. Are we swinging at the right pitches? Are we trying to do too much? It’s a hard thing to pull apart.”

Hoyer was asked about Ross’ comments regarding the division. In any of the other five — save the AL Central — the Cubs would be no less than 8½ games out of first place.

“Certainly, it’s great that no one is running away with the division but ultimately the standard has to be high and you have to build a team and win at every level,” Hoyer said. “You can take some solace in that [the weak division] but it ultimately doesn’t make me feel any better about our record.”

The Cubs hope to get a boost in the clubhouse and on the field when righty Kyle Hendricks (shoulder) returns to a big league mound for the first time in almost 11 months. That will happen at the end of the week.

Additionally, the team expects Cody Bellinger (knee) to be back soon while the offense rides the hot start (8 home runs in 11 games) of second-year infielder/outfielder Christopher Morel. But there may not be many answers or immediate help in a struggling bullpen — save righty Codi Heuer‘s (Tommy John) return. At the moment, the team doesn’t possess a clear-cut closer after the struggles of Michael Fulmer.

“If I’m being candid, I feel like I’ve put Rossy in a tough spot,” Hoyer said. “That’s an area [the pen] we’ve had so much success with. … We’ve done a good job of finding relievers that could come in and find high-leverage innings at a relatively low cost on one-year deals. We’ve been building bullpens like that for a while. This year that hasn’t worked yet. That’s on me.”

The Cubs are just 2-10 in one-run games, giving some context to an overall positive run differential despite a record well below .500. The team generally plays very good defense but it hasn’t made up for other areas which are subpar.

“We’re subject to the criticism,” Ross said. “We have to be better and play better … but we’ve always tried to take care of ourselves and when we’re buttoned-up and playing good, clean baseball and executing from pitch to pitch that’s the best version of us. We have to get back to that first and then worry about the division as we play better baseball.”

Hoyer understands the situation the team is in as Memorial Day approaches.

“It’s not early forever,” he said. “We need to bank some wins.”

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Ohtani, Tatis hit again as L.A.-S.D. feud boils over

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Ohtani, Tatis hit again as L.A.-S.D. feud boils over

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani took a 100 mph fastball to his right shoulder blade in the bottom half of Thursday night’s ninth inning, marking the eighth time a batter had been hit in another tension-filled series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres.

Anger filled Dodger Stadium, by which point a sold-out crowd had mostly filed out. Players were ready to spill out of the dugout once more. But Ohtani raised his left hand and vigorously waved off teammates as he made his walk toward first base, clamoring for peace.

The fireworks had already taken place.

A half-inning earlier, Fernando Tatis Jr. took a 93 mph fastball to the right hand by Dodgers rookie right-hander Jack Little. It marked the second time in a span of three days that Tatis and Ohtani had been hit by pitches almost immediately after one another. More notably for the Padres, it marked the fifth time the Dodgers had hit Tatis since the start of the 2024 season, including three times over the past nine days.

Padres manager Mike Shildt walked toward Tatis and yelled in the direction of the opposing dugout. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts ran onto the field and shoved Shildt before being separated. Both bullpens and dugouts emptied, though order was restored before punches were thrown.

By the end of the night, two managers, one bench coach (Brian Esposito) and one pitcher (Robert Suarez, whose pitch hit Ohtani) had been ejected. The Padres held on for a 5-3 victory, and afterward, Padres star third baseman Manny Machado, a central character in this rivalry, said the Dodgers had better “pray” Tatis is not seriously injured.

“They need to set a little candle up for Tati tomorrow,” Machado said. “Hopefully [the scans] comes back negative. That’s not a good spot to get hit. I don’t care who it is, I don’t care who’s on the mound.”

Tatis wore a bandage on his right hand after the game and sounded dejected when asked how he was feeling.

“Not good,” he said.

Initial X-rays were inconclusive, Tatis added. A CT scan will determine the extent of his injury on Friday.

The Dodgers have hit Tatis a total of six times in his career. The 28 other teams have combined to hit him four times, according to ESPN Research.

“Just clean it up,” he said. “I’m here to play baseball.”

The Padres and Dodgers played five tight National League Division Series contests last fall — the Dodgers won the final two games while facing elimination, shutting the Padres out for 24 consecutive innings — but did not meet this season until June. Thursday’s contest marked the seventh time they had played one another in a span of 11 days. The Dodgers took two of three from San Diego last week, then three of four at Dodger Stadium this week — and every game seemed to bring with it some animus.

On Monday night, Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages was plunked in the left elbow guard, screamed in the direction of Dylan Cease, then later said he felt he was hit intentionally, perhaps because the Padres thought he was relaying signs from second base the prior inning. The following night, Tatis was hit by a Lou Trivino sinker to the upper back in the top of the third, and Ohtani got hit in the right leg by a Randy Vasquez fastball in the bottom half, triggering Roberts’ first ejection of the season. Later, Machado took issue with umpires not ejecting Dodgers reliever Matt Sauer when he hit Jose Iglesias in the left wrist after warnings had been issued.

Thursday took the emotions of this series to another level.

Trivino, who also hit Tatis when he led off the game from Petco Park on June 10, struck Bryce Johnson in the knee in the seventh inning. Two batters later, Tatis was brushed back by another Trivino fastball, prompting Shildt to scream in his direction. Tatis getting plunked again two innings later, after Roberts had begun to empty his bench while trailing 5-0, set everything off.

Shildt said he wasn’t sure if it was intentional. By now, he said, that’s beside the point.

“We got a guy who’s getting X-rays right now, is one of the best players in the game, fortunately on our team, and this guy has taken shots, OK?” Shildt said. “And before this series, and I can back this up with complete evidence, the track records speak for themselves — teams that I manage don’t get into altercations like this because teams that I manage don’t throw at people. But also, teams I manage don’t take anything.

“And after a while, I’m not going to take it. And I’m not going to take it on behalf of Tati, I’m not going to take it on behalf of the team, intentional or unintentional. It’s really that simple. That’s how this game is played. And if you want to call that old-school, then yeah, we’ll play old-school baseball.”

Roberts noted that Little, who sparked the benches-clearing incident when his pitch hit Tatis, was making his major league debut.

“Obviously,” Roberts said, “I think anyone knows there was no intent.”

“And so as [Shildt] comes out, and he’s yelling at me and staring me down, that bothers me,” Roberts added. “Because, to be quite frank, that’s the last thing I wanted. I’m taking starters out of the game, trying to get this game over with and get this kid a couple innings. I took that personal. Because I understand the game, and I understand that it doesn’t feel good to get hit.”

Roberts said he believes the Padres intentionally hit Ohtani with a pitch Thursday night, echoing the same sentiments from Tuesday.

“This is a right-handed pitcher going crosscourt to hit Shohei up and in,” Roberts said of the pitch, which came on a 3-0 count. “That’s a hard throw. And I don’t know how many left-handed hitters Suarez has hit with the fastball, but clearly there was intent behind it.”

With the series over, the Dodgers hold a 3½-game lead in the NL West over the second-place San Francisco Giants, fresh off acquiring Rafael Devers. The Padres trailed by five games.

They won’t see the Dodgers again until August.

“We’re going to get after it for the next two months,” Shildt said, “and they’ll be on the schedule two months from now, and we’ll be ready.”

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Pirates reliever swipes at fan he says crossed line

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Pirates reliever swipes at fan he says crossed line

DETROIT — Pittsburgh Pirates reliever Dennis Santana was involved in an altercation with a fan he said “crossed the line” during the second game of Thursday’s doubleheader with the Detroit Tigers, and at one point, he was seen leaping and swiping at the person.

“You guys know me — I’m a calm demeanor type of person,” Santana said after the game through an interpreter. “I’ve never had any issues for any of the teams I’ve played for. This guy crossed the line a few times.”

Santana declined to disclose what the fan said.

“He crossed the line, and I’d like to leave it at that. I’ve never had anything like this happen in my eight years in baseball,” he said.

In videos posted to social media, Santana can be seen pointing out the fan to a police officer before jumping and swinging at the person, who is in the front row above the Pittsburgh bullpen at Comerica Park.

Santana did not complain about how security officers handled the situation.

“My job is as a pitcher, not as security, so I can’t discuss their job,” he said. “I respect them and what they do.”

The fan appeared to be wearing a Tigers hat and a shirt honoring Pirates Hall of Famer Roberto Clemente.

After jumping at the fan, Santana was escorted away by Pirates bullpen personnel and held back by a teammate.

Santana entered the game in the ninth inning, pitching to one batter before the game was delayed by rain. The Pirates won 8-4.

Santana said he discussed the incident with Pirates manager Don Kelly.

“He knows I regret what I did,” Santana said. “You know I’m a professional.”

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Rays’ Bigge hit by foul ball in dugout, carted off

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Rays' Bigge hit by foul ball in dugout, carted off

TAMPA, Fla. — Rays pitcher Hunter Bigge was carted off the field in a frightening scene and taken to a hospital after getting struck in the side of his face by a foul ball lined into the Tampa Bay dugout Thursday night.

Bigge was placed on a backboard and gave a thumb-up before being driven by ambulance to a nearby hospital for tests. He never lost consciousness and was able to converse with first responders, Rays manager Kevin Cash said.

In the top of the seventh inning, Baltimore Orioles catcher Adley Rutschman sharply pulled a pitch into the Tampa Bay dugout on the first-base side, and the ball hit Bigge, a 27-year-old right-hander currently on the 15-day injured list with a lat strain.

Emergency medical personnel quickly arrived to attend to Bigge. After several quiet minutes, as visibly concerned Rays players knelt in the field, Bigge was loaded onto a stretcher and carted off. He received a standing ovation from the Steinbrenner Field crowd.

The ball left Rutschman’s bat at 105 mph, according to Statcast.

The game resumed after an eight-minute delay, and Baltimore held on for a 4-1 victory.

Bigge was selected by the Chicago Cubs in the 12th round of the 2019 amateur draft from Harvard and made his major league debut for them on July 9 last year. He was traded 19 days later to Tampa Bay along with Christopher Morel and minor leaguer Ty Johnson for All-Star third baseman Isaac Paredes.

In 32 career appearances, including one start, Bigge has a 2.51 ERA and one save. This season, he has a 2.40 ERA in 13 relief outings covering 15 innings.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

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