Tenacious pitching was the star of the show last night in Arlington, with a great deal of excellent defense from both sides, as well. Oh, and Lady Luck too. Plenty of plays come down to skill, but sometimes, fortune just has to favor you, too. To wit, Fernando Cruz could practice this throw all day long and still chuck into left field about half the time at the very least. I couldn’t believe that Ryan McMahon was actually able to make something from it. So factor his skill into the equation! Great win for the Bombers. Now, to see what young gun Elmer Rodríguez has to offer against Nathan Eovaldi in his MLB debut.
Here’s what else was going on among notable teams around the Junior Circuit.
The mini-three-game winning streak that actually began just before Alex Cora was fired has come to a close, and it was at the hands of one of the most anticipated pitchers of the season. Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage was one of the stories of their memorable 2025 World Series run, dominating the Yankees, Mariners, and Dodgers at different points that postseason despite having just three career starts to his name before October. So he’s actually still Rookie of the Year-eligible entering 2026, though he’ll have to overcome the obstacle of shoulder inflammation that put him on the shelf in the season’s first calendar month. (The incredible Kevin McGonigle will also be a massive hurdle until [if??] he slumps.)
The pressure is on Yesavage to not only look sharp but also get the pitching-ravaged Jays back on track amid a subpar beginning to 2026. He got off on the right foot on Wednesday, firing shutout ball at Rogers Centre, allowing four hits and striking out three, fanning Willson Contreras to end his night. Yesavage could no doubt have lasted longer than 5.1 innings, but the Jays cut his outing at 74 pitches since they’re still building him back up.
On the other side, fellow rookie Payton Tolle wasn’t as sharp as he was last time out against the Yankees. The Jays plated two in the third on a Kazuma Okamoto single that scored Andrés Giménez and the doubling Vladimir Guerrero Jr. The three hits that Tolle surrendered in that inning were the only ones he allowed, but his bad control burned him in the fifth. With two down, he walked Myles Straw and Ernie Clement on a combined 10 pitches, moving his free pass total to four on the night.
Interim skipper Chad Tracy gave Tolle the hook with Guerrero due up. Zack Kelly offered no relief, as Guerrero singled in an insurance run. Boston failed to muster a hit against the Toronto bullpen, which saw Jeff Hoffman throw an encouraging perfect seventh and Louie Varland tighten his newly-found grasp on the closer’s job by striking out Roman Anthony, Wilyer Abreu, and Trevor Story in order in the ninth.
Tampa Bay Rays (18-11) 1, Cleveland Guardians (15-16) 0: The other notable debut from Wednesday was the first career game for top Guardians prospect Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 pick of the 2024 MLB Draft. He went hitless with a pair of walks, but his Cleveland teammates only mustered four hits combined against a tough Nick Martinez and Tampa Bay bullpen. Martinez kept them off the board to lower his season ERA to a surprising 1.70, and though Tanner Bibee was only burned by an RBI single from Jonathan Aranda, that was enough to beat the punchless Guardians. The Rays quietly have the second-best record in the American League behind the Yankees.
Baltimore Orioles (14-15) 5, Houston Astros (11-19) 3: Taiwanese righty Kai-Wei Teng’s first start for the Astros had an inauspicious beginning, as Gunnar Henderson and Samuel Basallo both doubled in a two-run first for Baltimore. Houston got one back on a solo shot from Brice Matthews, but Pete Alonso countered with a two-run blast off Ryan Weiss and Adley Rutschman added insurance later with his second RBI single of the ballgame. Shane Baz threw 5.1 innings of one-run ball for the win and Ryan Helsey was perfect in the ninth.
Detroit Tigers (15-15) 2, Atlanta Braves (21-9) 5: The Braves continued their torrid start to 2026, gradually jumping out to a 5-0 lead against Detroit on the strength of a Ronald Acuña Jr. run-scoring double, an RBI knock from Mike Yastrzemski, and a two-run homer by Ozzie Albies against Tyler Holton. Veteran Martín Pérez’s inexplicably good run continue with five innings of zeroes before giving way to the Atlanta bullpen. The Tigers’ only damage was a two-run dinger in the ninth by Wenceel Pérez. Aaron Bummer recovered to get the final two outs to secure the victory.
Seattle Mariners (15-16) 7, Minnesota Twins (13-17) 1: The magic pixie dust from Minnesota’s unexpected 11-7 start has just about worn off, as they lost their 10th game in their last 12. Byron Buxton’s fifth-inning solo shot off Logan Gilbert was their only scoring, and after five scoreless innings, ace Joe Ryan faltered late on RBI singles from Josh Naylor and Cole Young. Naylor removed any doubt from the outcome of this matchup with a three-run blast in the eighth, and the M’s cruised.