A look at what’s happening around the majors today:
ACE SEEKS BLACKJACK
Yankees ace Gerrit Cole can set an AL record by winning his 21st consecutive regular season start when New York hosts the AL East rival Rays. Cole’s 20-game run matches Roger Clemens for the best in AL history, and Hall of Famer Carl Hubbell holds the major league record at 24. Cole hasn’t lost a decision in the regular season since May 22, 2019, against the White Sox while with Houston.
LOOK OUT
Angels star Mike Trout saw two fastballs from Shaun Anderson sail near his head in the ninth inning of Tuesday’s 8-2 loss to San Francisco, and that caught the attention of both teams.
Los Angeles manager Joe Maddon didn’t see anything malicious in the matchup, but did point to Anderson’s inexperience. the 25-year-old righty was a rookie last year.
”That’s just a young man who’s not ready to be here. That’s all that is,” Maddon said. ”That’s why we’ve got to be careful as we move things further along that we don’t bring up guys who aren’t ready to particularly pitch with command because that’s where people can get hurt. That’s got to be watched.”
Giants manager Gabe Kapler said he wanted to get Anderson some work in the ninth because he hadn’t pitched in a while.
”I will be very direct. Scott hasn’t been on the mound in five days. He was a little jumpy. We don’t throw at people,” Kapler said.
The teams now shifts from Anaheim to San Francisco for two games.
FRESH STRIPES
The Tigers will debut another prized pitching prospect when Casey Mize starts against the White Sox. A night after left-hander Tarik Skubal allowed four runs in two innings in his first big league appearance, Mize will try to do better. The right-hander was the first overall pick in the 2018 draft and helped form a dominant rotation at Double-A Erie with Skubal last year.
NEW TEAM, NEW START
Matt Harvey is set to make his debut for the Kansas City Royals, trying to resurrect a career that’s been filled with starts and stops for the former All-Star.
The 31-year-old Harvey is scheduled to start the second game of a seven-inning doubleheader against Cincinnati at Kauffman Stadium. Once dominant with the Mets, Harvey did well enough for the Reds in 2018, but was 3-5 with a 7.09 ERA for the Angels last year.
Harvey pitched in the minors for Oakland late last season and signed with the Royals last month.
”It’s not strange. It’s more exciting than anything,” said Harvey, who pitched against the Royals for the New York Mets in the 2015 World Series.
The Reds have been out of action since a player returned a positive test Friday night. They had home games against Pittsburgh called off Saturday and Sunday, then had Tuesday night’s game in Kansas City postponed and rescheduled as part of this doubleheader.
UP AND DOWN
The Red Sox have lost nine in a row, their worst skid since dropping 10 straight in 2014. Michael Chavis struck out five times in a 13-6 loss to Philadelphia on Tuesday night. Lefty Kyle Hart will try to end the slump and earn his first big league win when he starts against Jake Arrieta and the Phillies at Fenway Park. … Corey Seager and the Dodgers have won seven in a row and own the best record in the majors at 18-7. They sent the Mariners to their seventh straight loss, 2-1 Tuesday. The teams went straight from Dodger Stadium, where it was 102 degrees for the first pitch, to the airport for the two-hour flight to Seattle, where Los Angeles sends Julio Urias (2-0, 2.53) against Taijuan Walker (1-2, 4.05 ERA). … Alex Bregman and the Astros have won a season-high six straight after beating Colorado 2-1 at Muinute Maid Park. The clubs now open a series at Coors Field when Houston’s Framber Valdez (1-2, 1.90) opposes Ryan Castellani (0-0, 1.04).
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