Kyle Schwarber has entered the chat. The Phillies’ DH has five home runs in his last four games, propelling him to the top of the league leaderboard. Schwarber is now tied with Aaron Judge with 16 home runs. Munetaka Murakami is one back after “only” homering once over the weekend.
1. Olson moves into the top 10
Braves first baseman Matt Olson was in the lineup for the 823rd consecutive game on Sunday. He moved into the top 10 on the all-time leaderboard, breaking a tie with Gus Suhr (h/t Sarah Langs of MLB.com). Olson’s streak dates back to May 2021. If he can keep it going this season, he’ll pass Eddie Yost (829) and Stan Musial (895) to move to eighth place. The 32-year-old Olson is unlikely to chase down Cal Ripken Jr., but he’s been a remarkably consistent presence in the Atlanta lineup. The veteran has posted a 117 wRC+ or better in each of his first four years with the Braves.
2. “Tater” launches first home run
Tigers infielder Gage Workman broke a 3-3 tie in the sixth inning on Sunday against the Royals with a two-run homer off Nick Mears. It was the first long ball as a big leaguer for the 26-year-old, whose middle name is synonymous with home run. Workman was a fourth-round pick in 2020. Detroit lost him in the Rule 5 draft last year, but he failed to stick for too long with the Cubs and White Sox. Workman has put together some strong campaigns in the minors, including an 18-homer, 30-steal season at Double-A in 2024. He’s getting a chance in the big leagues with Kerry Carpenter on the IL. “He has crushed Triple-A pitching pretty much all season and has earned his right to be on a callup list whenever the opportunity came open,” manager A.J. Hinch told reporters, including Jason Beck of MLB.com.
3. Orioles struggling against southpaws
Baltimore will welcome the Yankees to Camden Yards for a three-game series. The Orioles will have two shots to beat a left-handed starter for the first time this season. Per Roch Kubatko of MASN, the club is 0-9 with a .569 OPS against southpaws this season. Ryan Weathers will get the ball for New York on Monday. Max Fried is lined up for Wednesday. Baltimore has multiple lefty mashers performing below career norms. Pete Alonso is hitting .195 with two home runs in 45 plate appearances vs. lefties. He has an .828 OPS against them for his career. Taylor Ward had a massive .311 ISO against lefties last season. That number is down to .167 this year. All sample sizes are relatively small right now, and even more so for handedness splits, but it’s been a slow start for the Orioles against lefties.
Photo courtesy of Kirby Lee, Imagn Images
