Game Recaps
Soroka’s 10 K’s – and immaculate inning – pave way to win in home opener by Steve Gilbert [Dbacks.com]
A sellout crowd greeted the Diamondbacks on a festive night that featured a triple and homer from Corbin Carroll and a stellar Arizona debut for Michael Soroka, who recorded the fourth immaculate inning in franchise history.
And while things did get a little too interesting, the end result was all that mattered — a 9-6 win over the Tigers in the home opener at Chase Field.
D-backs Secure First Win
of 2026 in Stressful Fashion by Alex D’agostino [Arizona Sports]
Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander Paul Sewald fired a 92 MPH fastball past Tigers first baseman Spencer Torkelson, capping off a 1-2-3 ninth inning.
The D-backs had won their first game of the season 9-6, as Sewald locked down his first save back in the closer’s role.
It was not, however, an easy victory. Arizona held an 8-0 lead as late as the seventh inning, but watched that lead evaporate in an ugly bullpen meltdown. But it would not end in as disappointing a manner as many others have.
Diamondbacks News
Diamondbacks’ new ribbon boards causing problems for fans on Opening Day by Alex Weiner [Arizona Sports]
The Arizona Diamondbacks are in problem-solving mode, according to a team spokesperson, as the new ribbon boards at Chase Field are causing view obstructions for fans, particularly those sitting in the 300 level.
The D-backs, in partnership with Daktronics, had ribbon boards installed below the 200 and 300 sections around the ballpark, along with a shorter board underneath the suites.
Several fans sitting in the front row of the 300 level explained that they had to lean forward or bring multiple seat cushions to see the field, as they could no longer watch the game between the rails.
Diamondbacks Call Up Exciting Infield Prospect by Alex D’Agostino [SI]
Fernandez, Arizona’s newly-crowned No. 27 prospect, has been an exciting prospect to watch ahead of the 2026 season. He surged for 17 home runs in 2025 with Double-A Amarillo, then came on strong in Cactus League play with a .280/.308/.840 slash.
Both offensively and defensively, Fernandez stood out to Arizona’s coaching staff this spring.
“You guys saw him all spring training long, a very exciting player, very youthful, continuing to climb through the system and learn and grow about our concepts, and just plugs right in,” manager Torey Lovullo said.
Around the League
Night of firsts as Bader’s blast sends Giants into win column by Maria Guardado [MLB]
The Giants checked off several key firsts in Monday night’s series opener against the Padres at Petco Park.
They got their first home run of the season. They got their first quality start. And most importantly, they got their first win.
MLB 2026: Best, worst automated balls-strikes challenges by Jeff Passan [ESPN]
Just like with the pitch clock, the advent of robot umpires did not break Major League Baseball. The automated ball-strike system (ABS) debuted in the major leagues Wednesday after years of testing in the minor leagues, and in the 47 games since, exactly 94 calls have been overturned. Some were egregious, others by literal millimeters. The general consensus, based on in-stadium fan reaction and seamless integration into television broadcasts: Not only does ABS work, it makes the game better.
Skeptics and holdouts remain — just as they do with the pitch clock two seasons after it was added. Unlike the complaints about the pitch clock that mostly concern one’s personal preferences, the criticisms of ABS are rooted in math and logic. The system’s margin of error (approximately 1/6th of an inch, according to the league) is larger than some of the calls being overturned. And if the system is as good and accurate as the league says, does it not make sense to utilize it for all ball-strike calls?
The 50 Most Eyebrow-Raising Team Promotions of 2026 by Kiri Oler [FanGraphs]
There’s not an obvious cat equivalence to the ever popular Bark in the Park events held annually by most teams, but that hasn’t stopped a couple of clubs from trying.
Saturday, August 29 has been declared Caturday at Nats Ballpark. Back in 2012, Washington launched its initial Natitude Campaign as a tone-setter for the fanbase, but over time it devolved into a sarcastic rallying cry that rang out only when things weren’t going great for the club. Then last spring, with a new wave of young stars on the rise, the team attempted to reignite the bit with Next Gen Natitude and a hype video that was roughly as inspiring as the 2025 Nationals. But this year, the Nats have finally struck the correct chord with a Next Gen Catitude shirt that I would happily wear to the gym, should one fall into my possession.
Cody Ponce Going For Imaging With Knee Discomfort by Anthony Franco [MLB Trade Rumors]
Blue Jays starter Cody Ponce left tonight’s season debut on a cart in the third inning. The team has only announced the injury as right knee discomfort.
Ponce stumbled while trying to field a chopper off the bat of Rockies center fielder Jake McCarthy (video provided by Shi Davidi of Sportsnet). The big righty was unable to field the ball cleanly, then tried stopping abruptly to pick it up. He tweaked his right leg, took a few more steps, then went down on the dirt a little to the left of first base.
Cam Schlittler’s Improved Cutter Hints at Future Breakout by Michael McDermott [Mike’s Hardball Blueprint]
At surface value, it appears that the right-hander added nearly 8” of lift to his cutter based on his 2025 and 2026 pitch shape data. If you look at the raw data from Baseball Savant, his cutter went from an average of 4.9” induced vertical break in 2025 to 12.5” in 2026. That also came with a velocity jump from 92.0 MPH to 95.0 MPH.
Based on those metrics, it certainly appears that Schlittler has morphed a mediocre cutter into a “plus-plus” offering. I agree with that on principle, but his 2025 data may be an example of how improperly identified pitches can muddy the aggregate metrics. That’s an important thing to consider when you look at pitch data from an analytical lens.
