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The MLB Home Run Derby was a hard act to follow during Monday’s ESPN programming from Petco Park in San Diego, but the All-Star Legends and Celebrity Softball Game had its fair share of action worth tuning in for.

A mix of former players and high-profile personalities took the field Sunday for the annual exhibition, and as Monday’s telecast revealed, the American League defeated the National League 8-7.

In the sixth and final inning, teen actor Cameron Boyce tried to tag up to score the tying run—only to run into a brick wall: Ballers star Omar Benson Miller.

MLB GIFS shared the replay:

Miller didn’t have much sympathy for Boyce, who took the brunt of the collision at home plate:

NL manager and former Olympic softball pitcher Jennie Finch reacted to the final play:

There were less painful highlights from the game, though.

New Orleans Saints quarterback Drew Brees provided some fireworks for viewers who were still buzzing from Giancarlo Stanton’s Derby triumph, socking a homer in the top of the first, as MLB GIFS showed:

The superstar signal-caller’s solo dinger was much to the Saints’ liking:

Before Brees revived his career in New Orleans, he played for the San Diego Chargers, so he got a great reception from fans.

As a former MLB outfielder, Curtis Pride was basically cheating by playing in the contest. He jacked a two-run homer over the moved-in fence in the bottom of the first to put his squad up 2-1.

Gallaudet University, where Pride is the head baseball coach, shared footage of the long ball:

Actor Jamie Foxx led off the bottom of the second by calling his shot, invoking Babe Ruth as he prepared to take on another former New York Yankees star, David Wells.

MLB GIFS showed what else happened before Foxx took a swing:

Foxx wound up legging out a single and came around to score to make it 3-2.

Former NFL linebacker-turned-actor Terry Crews showed off his impressive physique by arriving at the plate with his shirt off.

Cut4 provided the visual spectacle:

The Roman deity-esque sculpture of a man had a less aesthetically pleasing at-bat, swinging and missing to strike out on that trip to the batter’s box.

Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Evan Longoria wrestled with the dilemma of poking fun at Crews while also minding his manners:

Billy Bean—not to be confused with Oakland Athletics executive Billy Beane—ripped a home run down the right field line to help the National League stay within striking distance.

But it was the AL’s game thanks to Miller’s plate-blocking and perhaps an ill-advised gamble by Boyce.

MLB couldn’t have hoped for a better or more comical conclusion. Given the success of this year’s contest, there’s no reason the game can’t continue as an All-Star tradition.

However, with the revamped Home Run Derby format injecting new excitement into the festivities leading up to the All-Star Game, the legends and celebrities have their work cut out for them if they want to outshine the game’s best power hitters.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Miami Marlins outfielder Giancarlo Stanton was the home run king Monday night in San Diego. With 20 home runs in the final round, Stanton toppled defending champion Todd Frazier 20-13 in the 2016 MLB Home Run Derby in Petco Park.  

Stanton was a more than deserving winner based on the totality of his performance. Baseball Tonight shared the distances of the longest home runs, and he owned a monopoly on the list:

His 61 homers over the course of the event were also a Derby record, per Baseball Tonight. Jose Fernandez’s pre-Derby prediction pretty much came true, via MLB:

Here’s how the event shook out:

The Derby didn’t take long to get going as Corey Seager and Mark Trumbo combined to hit 31 home runs in the opening matchup of the first round. Seager looked to have one foot in the semifinals with 15 homers until Trumbo clinched passage to the next round with 16. He closed his round with eight straight home runs. His last dinger went 479 feet and narrowly missed hitting the scoreboard in left field:

According to MLB, 10 of Trumbo’s homers traveled more than 440 feet. Fox Sports: MLB provided the perfect reaction for the Baltimore Orioles outfielder:

Sports Illustrated‘s Kenny Ducey noted not everybody enjoyed Trumbo’s show of power:

Stanton stepped to the plate next. Although the Marlins star is tied for 16th in MLB with 20 home runs, he entered the event as many fans’ favorite to win.

And he more than lived up to expectations, hitting 24 homers in the first round. MLB.com’s Daren Willman shared the distance and exit velocities for each of the 26-year-old’s two dozen home runs:

Watching the right-handed slugger simultaneously motivated and discouraged The Ringer’s Robert Mays:

MLB.com’s Michael Clair felt sorry for Robinson Cano, whose matchup in the first round was with Stanton:

In the other half of the bracket, Adam Duvall eliminated Wil Myers, and Frazier knocked Carlos Gonzalez.

The semifinals pitted Stanton against Trumbo, which was a good enough clash that it could’ve closed out the Derby, and nobody would’ve complained.

Occasionally, the break in between rounds can have an adverse effect on hitters. The new format has streamlined the process a bit more to cut into the down time, but there was still a question as to how much Stanton and Trumbo had left in the tank.

Stanton put those doubts to bed early on, picking right up from where he left off in the first round. He socked 17 home runs. San Francisco Giants outfielder Hunter Pence couldn’t help but be in awe of Stanton’s impressive physique:

Fernandez came in with the assist to help Stanton celebrate his round, via MLB GIFs:

Trumbo began the semifinals with a bang, sending a moonshot into left field that hit the scoreboard. That was the highlight of his round, though, as his power looked to be slowly receding. He headed into the 30-second bonus time needing five home runs to tie Stanton, and he ran out of time before he could chase down his opponent.

In the other semifinal, Frazier advanced with a 16-15 win over Duvall. Frazier once again benefited from going second. That allowed the Chicago White Sox star to know exactly what he needed to advance to the final.

Frazier also used his one allowed timeout strategically—down 15-12 with 90 seconds remaining. The short break allowed him to recover, and he did just enough to top Duvall.

Last year, 15 homers were enough to give Frazier the Derby title in the final against Joc Pederson. That total wasn’t going to cut it against Stanton, who hit 20 in this year’s final.

Despite having already hit more homers in the first two rounds than he ever has in a single season (37), Stanton looked no worse for wear. BuzzFeed’s Lindsey Adler thought the final was already over at that point:

Frazier got off to a slow start, with just three homers in the first minute. That ultimately doomed him, since he needed to hit for power at a superhuman pace in order to track down Stanton. And without the benefit of the bonus round, he couldn’t repeat as champion.

Neither Stanton nor Frazier will be playing in Tuesday’s All-Star Game, which could be a blessing in disguise. They could use an extra day of rest to recover from the Home Run Derby.

While the 2016 Derby couldn’t match last year’s edition in terms of drama, Stanton’s incredible showing more than made up for it. With any luck, he’ll be back to defend his crown in front of a home crowd in Miami in 2017.

Post-Derby Reaction

For Stanton, a native of Panorama City, California, near Los Angeles, winning this year’s derby was a little more special.

“For sure being on the West Coast and taking the flight out here just for this, you know. I figure it’s a waste if I don’t bring this bad boy home,” he said, per the Associated Press (via ESPN.com). “I had a great time. I had a blast.”

Stanton also discussed strategy and how he tried to conserve energy for later on in the event: “When I get a few in a row I would kind of bump it up 5 to 10 percent. But most the time I stuck at 80-90 percent. I knew I could do it endurance-wise. I was just hoping my swing didn’t fall about.”

“It was impressive,” said Frazier of the final, per Daryl Van Schouwen of the Chicago Sun-Times. “I said it would be an epic home run battle and it stepped up to the name. I thought I had a chance when I needed 20, but he deserved it. He put on a great show. I hope everybody enjoyed it.”

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The World Team picked up its first win in the MLB All-Star Futures Game since 2009 on Sunday in San Diego, beating the United States, 11-3.  

Boston Red Sox prospect Yoan Moncada earned MVP honors, per MLB on Twitter. He finished the game 2-for-5 with two runs batted in and one run scored. The 21-year-old, who sits fifth on MLB.com’s prospect rankings, put the World Team ahead in the top of the eighth inning with a two-run home run:

The Boston Herald‘s Jason Mastrodonato noted the homer was somewhat surprising since it came off a left-handed pitcher, Anthony Banda:

On June 13, ESPN’s Jim Bowden reported the Red Sox would listen to trade offers for almost any prospect with the exception of Moncada and Andrew Benintendi, who also played in the Futures Game. After seeing Moncada’s towering homer, it’s not hard to see why Boston would covet the Cuban star so heavily.

Aside from Moncada, nobody else shone brighter than Alex Bregman, whom MLB.com ranks as the 18th-best prospect in baseball. The Houston Astros minor leaguer went 3-for-5 and was a home run short of the cycle. MLB.com’s Daren Willman noted how hard Bregman struck the ball Sunday:

According to the New York Post‘s Joel Sherman, the No. 2 overall pick in 2015 may not need much seasoning before he’s ready for the bigs:

Bregman scored the first run of the game when Cleveland Indians prospect Clint Frazier doubled into center field in the bottom of the third inning. Frazier then came home on a fielder’s choice off the bat of New York Mets prospect Dominic Smith.

Baltimore Orioles prospect Chance Sisco gave Team USA a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth with a solo home run:

Baseball America‘s Kyle Glaser thought the homer must’ve felt extra sweet for Sisco:

The World Team trimmed the deficit to 3-2 in the top of the sixth on a double by Eloy Jimenez and a single by Josh Naylor. In the bottom half of the inning, Carson Kelly nearly tacked on another run for the United States. Instead, Manuel Margot, representing the hometown San Diego Padres, reached over the fence and saved a home run:

Baseball America‘s Ben Badler noted Margot has already earned a reputation for his stellar defensive work in the outfield:

His catch proved pivotal, as it allowed Moncada to give the World Team the lead in the top of the eighth. The World then broke the game open in the ninth. It dropped seven runs on the U.S. to go ahead 11-3. Three of the runs came on a mammoth homer from Jimenez, a 19-year-old in the Chicago Cubs’ system.

The home run wasn’t even his best play from the day. Jimenez somehow tracked down this foul ball off the bat of Dylan Cozens:

MLB.com’s Mike Petriello revealed how far Jimenez had to run before making the catch:

The Futures Game has been a great showcase for some of the best young talents in the game. Jake Arrieta, Francisco Lindor, Noah Syndergaard, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper, Nolan Arenado and Clayton Kershaw are among the more notable stars who have played in the event.

Most of this year’s participants are at least a few years away from becoming impact players on their major league teams, but they offered a glimpse of what may be to come down the road.

Postgame Reaction

“It’s an experience I will never forget in my life,” said Moncada of his MVP win Sunday, per Mastrodonato.

He also talked about his go-ahead homer: “I wasn’t looking for a home run or anything, I just wanted good contact and the home run came about. It just came like a normal home run.”

Jimenez also discussed his incredible catch.

“That is the craziest catch I’ve made,” he said, per CSN Chicago’s Dan Hayes. “I was just looking for something up and I saw it and that happened. Very fun. Very, very fun. It was crazy, crazy.”

For Bregman, playing in the Futures Game was an exciting experience, but he also has his eye on the big leagues.

“Not everybody gets this opportunity. I was just trying to soak it in and have fun,” he said, per USA Today‘s Steve Gardner. “I’m excited for the future. I want to help the Astros win games now … I feel like I can contribute and whenever that time comes, I’ll be ready.”

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Los Angeles Angels appropriately began the Fourth of July holiday weekend with a bang, defeating the Boston Red Sox 21-2 on Saturday at Fenway Park.

Fox Sports: MLB might have discovered the source of Los Angeles’ explosion:

The bulk of the Angels’ scoring came in the top of the seventh inning, when they dropped 11 runs on Boston. C.J. Cron and Carlos Perez both hit two-run home runs in the frame, while Albert Pujols drove in three runs with a double.

SportsCenter shared the play-by-play of the destruction:

What was perhaps the most surprising was that the Angels scored 20-plus runs without Mike Trout bringing a single runner home. Trout went 2-for-5, and Sporting News’ Jesse Spector couldn’t believe the 2014 American League MVP didn’t get in on the fun:

Cron tied a franchise record, going 6-for-6 with two homers, five RBI and five runs scored. According to Stats researcher Anthony Masterson, Chone Figgins is the only other Angels player who has posted six hits in a nine-inning game.

Perez finished one hit short of matching Cron, going 5-for-6 while leading the team with six RBI. Pujols tacked on another five RBI while going 2-for-5.

The Angels’ rout couldn’t have come at a worse time for Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz, who had allowed seven combined earned runs in his last two starts. He exited Saturday’s contest after 4.1 innings, having surrendered six runs, three of which were earned.

ESPN.com’s Scott Lauber thinks Boston’s earlier optimism about the veteran right-hander is looking worse as the season progresses:

While the heavy defeat counts for only one loss, it’s not the kind of response Red Sox fans wanted to see after the team went 10-16 in June.

At least Boston has the chance to move on quickly, as the Red Sox and Angels will wrap up their series Sunday at 1:35 p.m. ET.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Carlos Santana’s solo home run off Darwin Barney in the top of the 19th inning helped end this season’s longest Major League Baseball game to date, with the Cleveland Indians extending their winning streak to a team-record 14 games in a 2-1 marathon victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Friday.

The Indians came into the game as the hottest team in baseball, owning the longest winning streak in the American League since the Oakland Athletics won 20 straight in 2002.

After the win, they celebrated with an appropriate GIF on Twitter:

The Blue Jays have rebounded nicely after a slow start, posting a 15-12 record in June, to enter Friday’s contest 5.5 games behind the Baltimore Orioles in the American League East.

Josh Tomlin and Marcus Stroman were the starting pitchers, combining to allow just two runs on 12 hits with 14 strikeouts over 12.2 innings. Both teams combined to use 19 pitchers in the contest.

Toronto was short-handed from the start, as star Edwin Encarnacion and manager John Gibbons were both ejected in the first inning for arguing with the home plate umpire. 

Both teams squandered their opportunities to end the game earlier. The Blue Jays had the bases loaded with two outs in the bottom of the 14th, but Josh Donaldson grounded out to first base.

The Indians had the bases loaded with one out in the top of the 18th against Ryan Goins, a position player, but Chris Gimenez grounded into a double play that killed the rally. Santana eventually put Cleveland ahead with a solo shot to lead off the 19th inning.

Following Gimenez’s play, Grant Brisbee of McCovey Chronicles humorously noted what his future may hold:

Usually, asking a position player to pitch is a recipe for disaster, but Richard Griffin of the Toronto Star noted Goins has history on the mound:

Per MLB.com’s Jordan Bastian, this was Cleveland’s longest game in 23 years:

This game started at 1:07 p.m. ET, which led Eric Alper of SiriusXM to list a multitude of things that happened around the world by the time it finally and mercifully came to an end after 7 p.m. ET:

In total, the Indians and Blue Jays went 2-for-22 with runners in scoring position. Both of Cleveland’s extra-base hits came off the bat of Santana, who also doubled in the third inning and scored on Jason Kipnis’ RBI single.

This was an exciting game to watch, but both teams will feel the lingering effects when they turn around and play again Saturday afternoon.

Yet the most important thing was getting the win. Cleveland was able to persevere, somehow. Toronto has one of the best lineups in baseball, so don’t expect the offense to be held down much longer, especially against a potentially unknown or untested pitcher tomorrow.

Post-Game Reaction

Cleveland manager Terry Francona had some fun with his original starting pitcher when the game finally ended, per Bastian:

The Indians’ pitcher of record offered his take on the way things wound up playing out, per Bastian:

Per Paul Hoynes of the Cleveland Plain-Dealer, Francona was able to get serious in praise of Bauer and the rest of his team for their effort over 19 innings:

What Trevor did was above and beyond. We’re pretty fortunate that he can do it and that he’s willing to do it. Because one slip up and we go home. 

You get so invested in a game like that. It shocked everybody. It feels good to win. It’s the kind of game you wish you were playing at home because one bad pitch or slip up from going home with a loss after a long day.

On the losing side, per Mark Zwolinski of the Toronto Star, Barney described his mindset going to the mound: “All I was trying to do is not hurt anyone, you don’t want to see anyone get hurt in a situation like that.”

Toronto catcher Russell Martin, who was one of three Blue Jays ejected, told Zwolinski about the problems he was having with home-plate umpire Vic Carapazza:

I told him the first curveball (of his at bat in the 13th inning), I had that pitch being away. And then he said, ‘I don’t want to hear it.’ Then I was like, ‘It’s still away.’ As I’m walking away, he threw me out of the game. I wasn’t being aggressive, didn’t tell him that he sucked personally, I didn’t tell him that he was bad. I didn’t do anything like that. All the things that everybody in the ballpark were thinking, I didn’t say that.

Stroman simply told Zwolinski “no comment” when he was asked about Carapazza, which is probably a good way for him to ensure MLB doesn’t fine him. 

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

Chicago Cubs slugger Kris Bryant is one of baseball’s brightest young hitters, and he demolished Dan Straily and the Cincinnati Reds in an 11-8 Cubs victory Monday.

Bryant finished 5-for-5 with three home runs, six RBI and four runs scored, which etched his name into the baseball record book, per MLB‘s Twitter account:

Normally, that would be plenty of run support for the Cubs and their major league-leading 2.83 team ERA. Yet Bryant still needed some help from his teammates.

Ace Jake Arrieta pitched poorly, allowing five earned runs on four hits and five walks in five innings, but he still earned a win—thanks in part to a homer of his own.

Bryant started the night with a run-scoring double off Straily in the first inning and later scored on Miguel Montero’s sacrifice fly. In his next at-bat, Bryant smashed his first home run to left-center field in the third inning.

He hit a three-run jack halfway up the second deck in left in the fourth to give Chicago a 7-3 lead, as Statcast showed:

That was his last at-bat against Straily, who allowed seven earned runs on nine hits and three walks in 3.2 innings.

In the sixth, Bryant doubled off Michael Lorenzen, and in the eighth, he hit a solo shot off Ross Ohlendorf.

ESPN Stats & Info noted the 24-year-old set a Cubs record—and an offensive standard for the season:

Bryant’s season totals also received a nice boost, per CSN Chicago’s Christopher Kamka:

Per Ryan M. Spaeder of Sporting News, Bryant has been on a hot streak of late:

Spaeder also noted Bryant’s performance put him in the most exclusive of categories:

CBS Chicago’s Joe Ostrowski found a way to compare Bryant to Bryant’s childhood teammate, Bryce Harper:

While Bryant may not be in line for that type of money yet, he showed how dangerous he can be with his dominant performance Monday.

He is already among baseball’s elite sluggers in only his second big league season. And with a Cubs lineup that ranks fourth in the majors in runs around him, Bryant should have an ample number of opportunities to crush the ball the rest of the year.

Statistics courtesy of ESPN.com unless otherwise noted.

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Los Angeles Dodgers left-handed pitching phenom Julio Urias made his highly anticipated major league debut Friday night at Citi Field against the New York Mets. 

However, the 19-year-old’s inaugural trip to the mound on the MLB stage didn’t go as smoothly as the Dodgers would have liked in the 6-5 loss. Over the course of 2.2 innings, Urias allowed three earned runs and five hits while walking four batters and striking out three.

A complete overview of his line can be viewed below: 

Urias’ evening started in strong fashion, as he struck out Curtis Granderson with a wicked fastball that cut across the plate:

Although Urias was coming off a 27-inning scoreless streak in the minor leagues, he proceeded to give up a double to the next batter before uncorking a wild pitch that advanced him to third base.

Three batters later, Neil Walker doubled and Juan Lagares singled in back-to-back at-bats to give the Mets an early 3-0 cushion.

Urias settled down in the second inning, but his command turned shaky in the third, forcing manager Dave Roberts to pull him after he loaded the bases with two outs.

Following Urias’ abbreviated stint, Bleacher Report’s Scott Miller observed that the rising star’s “command wasn’t sharp” and that he “looked nervous.”

Urias’ debut may not have lived up to the hype, but there are brighter days ahead on the major league bump. After all, he became the youngest player to start a game since Felix Hernandez in 2005, according to MLB.com’s Ken Gurnick.

Looking ahead, Urias could have a future in the Dodgers bullpen as the season progresses.

“[Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew] Friedman said that after Friday night’s start, the club would assess whether it would be a one-time spot start or whether Urias could work his way into the rotation or bullpen,” Gurnick wrote. “Urias has never pitched more than 87.2 innings in a season, and that is the biggest hurdle for management to clear in determining just how much to ask of him.”

Postgame Reaction

“This is the best day of my life, as it is for any big league player making a debut,” Urias said through an interpreter, according to Bleacher Report’s Danny Knobler. “I’ll never forget anything that happened. This is the happiest day of my life.”

And while Urias struggled from a consistency standpoint in terms of balls and strikes, Granderson took note of the southpaw’s poise. 

“He didn’t look rattled. He didn’t look nervous by any means, especially with a packed house, on the road,” Granderson said, per ESPN.com’s Doug Padilla. “I thought he held his composure very well.”

With Urias’ first start a thing of the past, one key member of Los Angeles’ front office broke down how the rest of the season could shake out of the 19-year-old. 

“The first day is just not important,” Dodgers president Stan Kasten told USA Today‘s Mike Vorkunov. “It’s now how we get him involved and into a routine and build him up. Even this year we’re not going to be relying on him to be in the rotation. But whatever we get out of him this year as a 19-year-old is gravy because we know his career is going to be terrific.”

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The Los Angeles Dodgers took down the San Diego Padres, 9-5, on Sunday in an epic 17-inning marathon.

With the score knotted at 5-5 after the eighth inning, the game remained tied until a Yasiel Puig single to center field drove in Howie Kendrick and Adrian Gonzalez in the top of the 17th frame. Puig appeared to celebrate the hit as he left the batter’s box, according to Bill Plunkett of the Orange County Register:   

The gesturing may have been an expression of relief, as Puig struggled for much of the day leading up to the critical RBI, per Andy McCullough of the Los Angeles Times:

Puig proceeded to steal second base, and a wild pitch from Luis Perdomo on the ensuing at-bat allowed Joc Pederson to score from third. Puig later scored thanks to a fielder’s choice off the bat of Carl Crawford.

Ross Stripling finished off the game in the bottom of the inning, ending the longest contest in MLB this season, per ESPN Stats & Info:

USA Today‘s Bob Nightengale shared how much time elapsed between the opening pitch and the final out:

Even Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw got in on the action, though not in his usual role, per Baseball Tonight:

Stripling, who chipped in three innings of work, earned the win, while Perdomo picked up the loss. The two were part of an extensive group of pitchers used in the game, according to CBS Los Angeles:

Kenta Maeda started for the Dodgers, tossing five innings and allowing four runs. Colin Rea went five innings for the Padres, giving up three runs.

Making the victory sweeter is the fact that Los Angeles came back from a 4-0 deficit to eventually force extra innings on the road at Petco Park. 

Christian Bethancourt’s RBI single and Wil Myers’ three-run triple in the fifth inning gave the Padres a four-run lead. The Dodgers got three runs back in the sixth inning before a seventh-inning home run by Justin Turner and an eighth-inning jack by Kendrick put the away team in front.

Melvin Upton Jr. then drilled a triple in the bottom of the eighth frame to score Myers and tie the game for the next eight innings. 

After the game, Gonzalez took to Twitter to share his thoughts:

The win bumps the Dodgers to one game below .500 on the season at 22-23, while the Padres’ forgetful record drops to 19-26. Both teams play Monday night, with Los Angeles hosting the Cincinnati Reds at Dodger Stadium and San Diego traveling to play the San Francisco Giants at AT&T Park.

Postgame Reaction

As it turns out, the Dodgers and Padres are no strangers to playing such lengthy games, per ESPN Stats & Info:

The game was so long that Dodgers catcher A.J. Ellis could barely remember who started on the mound for his club, per Plunkett:

McCullough also noted Stripling will be removed from his next scheduled start, and reliever Chin-hui Tsao was not able to contribute in the game due to some discomfort:

Ellis was not the only one who forgot about the day’s pitchers. It even slipped Rea’s mind that he took the hill as the Padres’ starter Sunday

“There were times in the 15th or 16th inning where I didn’t realize that I pitched today,” Rea said, per Kirk Kenney of the San Diego Union-Tribune. “It seemed that long ago.”

Padres manager Andy Green was upset that the loss ultimately fell to Perdomo, per Kenney:

What I hate more than anything is I hate it for Luis Perdomo. The kid pitched really, really well. Didn’t deserve that fate.

Attacking the strike zone the way he did, I couldn’t be more pleased with him today. Out of everything, I think that’s the toughest part of that one.

Although it was a wild and likely draining game, it is still very early in the regular season. Both teams must quickly recover and focus on playing consistent baseball, as the Dodgers and Padres each have work to do if they hope to make a run at the postseason.

Read more MLB news on BleacherReport.com

The Washington Nationals lost five of their last six games coming into Wednesday’s contest, but Max Scherzer wasn’t about to let them lose another. All the dominant right-hander did was tie a major league record with 20 strikeouts in one game as he led Washington to the 3-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers.

Here is a look at Scherzer’s final stat line:

Scherzer joined Roger Clemens, Kerry Wood and Randy Johnson as the only pitchers in baseball history to strike out 20 batters in a nine-inning start, as MLB highlighted:

Clemens did it twice for the Boston Red Sox (1986 and 1996), Wood did it in 1998 for the Chicago Cubs and Johnson did it for the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2001, per Jay Jaffe of Sports Illustrated. Scherzer was particularly efficient during his outing Wednesday, as ESPN Stats & Info and Jayson Stark of ESPN.com pointed out:  

One of those record holders gave a shoutout to the newest member of the 20-strikeout club:

Ben Nicholson-Smith of Sportsnet noted making history is business as usual for the Nationals pitcher:

Will Brinson of CBS Sports said Scherzer’s latest feat is even more extraordinary than a no-no:

Scherzer was already making history through eight innings, as Mitch Goldich of Sports Illustrated realized, citing numbers from Baseball-Reference.com:

The Nationals were struggling to keep up with the math: 

Former U.S. Rep. John Dingell located the few guys in the stadium Scherzer didn’t retire on strikes:

While he was incredible against his former team at Nationals Park on Wednesday, Scherzer had struggled some in 2016 coming into the start. He was sporting a 4.60 ERA, 1.28 WHIP and 46 strikeouts in 43 innings before the 20-strikeout effort, and there was perhaps some concern about how the 31-year-old was responding after he threw a career-high 228.2 innings last season.

He was also coming off an abysmal performance against the Chicago Cubs on Friday, when he allowed seven earned runs and four home runs in five innings. However, on Wednesday he appeared to find his old stuff that had resulted in an ERA of 2.90, 3.15 and 2.79 in the last three years, respectively.

Tom Fornelli of CBS Sports implied the turnaround was bound to happen eventually:

Scherzer has been a dominant strikeout pitcher for most of his career, and he’s tallied more than 200 in each of the last four campaigns:

He received some help Wednesday from Danny Espinosa, who drilled a solo home run in the seventh inning. It proved to be the difference, as the Tigers scored in the top of the ninth to trim the deficit to a single run.

Despite their recent struggles, the Nationals were 20-13 coming into play Wednesday and only one game behind the New York Mets in the loss column in the National League East. If Scherzer continues to pitch like he did Wednesday, he could lead Washington back to the postseason after it missed out in 2015.

Postgame Reaction

While Wood offered his congratulations on Twitter, Clemens responded after the game, per Jose de Jesus Ortiz of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch: “Haven’t seen it, but fantastic.”

Mark Zuckerman of MASNSports.com noted “Scherzer took particular pride in doing this [versus the] Tigers” and shared the pitcher’s takeaway: “Those are tremendous hitters. This is for real.”

Nationals manager Dusty Baker echoed that, per Chris Iott of MLive.com:“That was the best performance I’ve seen in person. … He wanted it. You could tell he was psyched before the game against his former teammates.”

Tigers slugger J.D. Martinez was asked what it is like being behind in the count against Scherzer, per Jason Beck of MLB.com: “It’s like a horror film. He’s got three pitches that can put you away.”

Scherzer summarized his outing, per Katie Strang of ESPN: “Strikeouts are sexy. To strike out 20, that’s sexy.”

It’s hard to argue with that.

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The Boston Red Sox avoided getting swept Sunday by taking down the rival New York Yankees 5-1 on Mother’s Day behind some phenomenal pitching.  

Steven Wright continues to be a revelation for Boston. The 31-year-old knuckleballer breezed through the night, allowing just one run and three hits to throw his first career complete game. Wright is now 3-3 with a sparkling 1.52 ERA.

David Ortiz blasted two home runs, while Dustin Pedroia and Xander Bogaerts provided two more to hand Luis Severino the loss. He is now 0-5 on the season and looks to be a possible candidate for demotion, according to NJ Advance Media’s Brendan Kuty. 

This edition of Red Sox-Yankees was one of the faster games one will ever see between the two, which the Boston Herald‘s Evan Drellich acknowledged after the final pitch: 

Severino started off rough. After the Yankees pitcher walked leadoff man Mookie Betts, Pedroia homered to right field to put the Sox up 2-0. According to ESPN Stats & Info, it was all about being in the right place for Pedroia:

The Boston Globe‘s Dan Shaughnessy reported Sunday that Pedroia showed struggling Boston ace David Price pictures of his delivery from past seasons in an attempt to help the 30-year-old. That led Barstool Sports’ Jared Carrabis to tweet: 

The 22-year-old Yankees righty recovered nicely, though, as Newsday‘s Erik Boland noted:

Severino continued that streak to 10 batters before Ortiz jacked a 97 mph pitch into the right field stands to give Boston a 3-0 lead in the fourth inning.

It was a historic homer for Ortiz, per Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe and ESPN Stats & Info: 

Ortiz made the most of the dinger as he took his time around the basepath, per MLB.com’s director of baseball research and development, Daren Willman:

Meanwhile, Wright was cruising. He threw only 53 pitches through five innings. By comparison, Severino had 86 after five. This caused WEEI.com’s DJ Bean to heave some high praise toward Wright while possibly slighting Price:

According to Spotrac, Price is making $30 million this season, the first of the seven-year, $217 million deal he signed in the offseason.

Drellich noted that both pitchers were pitching well through five innings:

The difference was that Wright was making quick work of the Yankees, while Severino faced tougher at-bats and made two mistakes on the homers to Ortiz and Pedroia.

Yet Ortiz was not done, as he took Severino yard again to right field for his second of the night to pad Boston’s lead to 4-0 in the seventh inning. NESN’s Tom Caron noted that Ortiz is playing his best against the Yankees in 2016:

Jared Diamond of the Wall Street Journal mentioned that this could be bad news for the Yankees moving forward:

Severino‘s night ended after Brock Holt singled to right two batters later. MLB.com’s Bryan Hoch acknowledged that Severino pitched well for most of the night, but allowing three home runs is never a recipe for success:

It took until the seventh inning until before any Yankee was in scoring position. Starlin Castro doubled to right on the team’s second hit of the night. Castro returned the favor by getting thrown out at third after contemplating taking home on an errant pitch. This was poor baserunning—or perhaps something else, according to Bean: 

Castro’s blunder stifled any type of momentum the Yankees had. Wright proceeded to shut them down to finish the complete game. Bogaerts added some extra insurance with his homer off of Chasen Shreve in the eighth inning, which the Providence Journal‘s Tim Britton said is familiar territory for the shortstop:

The only bright spot for the Yankees was a bullet from Brett Gardner to throw out Hanley Ramirez in the ninth inning. While it was a great throw, its only real significance was keeping the score from becoming 6-0 at the time.

Gardner then followed that up with a home run in the ninth inning to spoil Wright’s shutout.

Despite still dropping the series, there is no need to panic for Boston. The team is a legitimate contender in the American League East, and behind a strong pitching staff—assuming David Price gets back to his usual dominance—and a rejuvenated offense that leads the American League in runs, the Red Sox look like a team that could be a factor come October.

Star reliever Aroldis Chapman is set to return Monday from suspension, but the Yankees still have some problems to sort out before getting too excited about their marquee offseason acquisition. The team needs to find consistency with its lineup and starting pitching staff. New York ranks among the worst in baseball in runs scored and ERA.

Unless these areas improve, its heralded bullpen will not be of much use.

Postgame Reaction

Heading into the season, Wright was an afterthought with the addition of Price and the presence of other highly paid guys like Rick Porcello, who is a year into a four-year, $82.5 million contract.

It now appears Wright will be a key part of manager John Farrell’s rotation moving forward, per Abraham:

Not only is Wright’s performance providing Boston with wins like Sunday’s, but it’s also giving Price some room for error as the team continues to win despite his struggles. When he gets back to form, this rotation will be stout.

Ortiz, who single-handedly provided Wright with enough run support, was happy to get his team the win and to do so on a special day, per Britton:

His performance also drew the attention of Cubs lefty Jon Lester, a former Red Sox pitcher:

The problems continue to mount for the Yankees. With Jacoby Ellsbury and Alex Rodriguez already out with injuries, Castro indicated that he also banged himself up Sunday, according to Hoch:

New York is struggling to score runs, and losing another key part of the lineup would further hinder its attempt to turn the season around, but it does not appear that Castro’s injury is too serious.

Manager Joe Girardi also shut down talk that Severino is facing a demotion after his slow start, per ESPN.com’s Wallace Matthews:

This is a good approach for now. Severino is showing signs of improvement, as he pitched well for most of the night Sunday. He just needs to start seeing some results to boost his confidence. If his slide continues for a few more starts, it may then be time to send him down to find his game before he loses faith in it.

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