Zack Greinke Reaches 2,500 Strikeouts

On Tuesday night, Zack Greinke reached a big time milestone.

Greinke, 35, recorded the 2,500th strikeout of his career during a 3-2 loss to the San Diego Padres at Petco Park. The right-hander became the 37th pitcher all time to gain entry into that exclusive club with his third strikeout, when he the Padres’ Franmil Reyes in the fourth inning.

“We all need to sit back and appreciate what that means and who we have throwing for us every fifth day,” D’backs manager Torey Lovullo told mlb.com of Greinke. “He’s a very special, special pitcher.”

Greinke finished with five strikeouts, giving him 2,502 for his career.

“I haven’t thought about it at all,” Greinke told mlb.com of the milestone. “I didn’t even know that it happened.”

Among active pitchers, only CC Sabathia of the New York Yankees, Justin Verlander of the Houston Astros and Max Scherzer of the Washington Nationals have more strikeouts than Greinke. Seattle Mariners right-hander Felix Hernandez has 2,501 career strikeouts.

Greinke went seven innings, allowing three runs and four hits. He took the loss, falling to 6-2 with a 2.89 ERA.

Source: Orlando Sentinel

Rookie Keston Hiura Hit His First MLB Homer

Keston Hiura hit a home run on Sunday, his first in the big leagues.

Hiura, the Brewers' top prospect and the No. 15 overall prospect according to MLB Pipeline, lined an 83 mph slider from Atlanta starter Mike Foltynewicz over the left-field wall in the fifth inning. The solo home run gave the Brewers a 2-1 lead.

MORE: Watch 'ChangeUp,' a new MLB live whiparound show on DAZN

Hiura, the Brewers' first-round draft pick in 2017, entered the day hitting .200 in his first 20 at-bats since being called up early last week from Triple-A San Antonio. The second baseman has been hailed for his offensive potential since leading the NCAA in batting average (.442) as a junior at UC Irvine in 2017. The 22-year-old right hander hit 28 home runs with a .914 OPS in 202 minor league games, and sprayed hits all over the field.

Yasiel Puig Crashes Into Wall Making Catch, Exits Game With Injury

MLB.com reports:

One of the precious few good moments the Reds had during Sunday’s 8-3 loss to the Dodgers ended up having some negative consequences.

In the top of the sixth inning, right fielder Yasiel Puig made a fantastic leaping catch in foul territory. But the impact of landing on the ground left him with a sprained right shoulder. He batted in the bottom of the sixth and left the game before the eighth inning. He is considered day to day for a return.

“I’m feeling a little bit tight and hurt in my right shoulder,” Puig said. “I took that AB and after that, I told them all I don’t feel good and I’m coming out of the game. The doctor checked my shoulder.”

As reliever Michael Lorenzen was in a bases-loaded situation with two outs, Dodgers pitcher Hyun-Jin Ryu lifted a foul ball. Running at full speed toward the right-field line, Puig crashed into the wall as he jumped for the inning-ending catch while reaching over into the seats.

After he landed back on the dirt, Puig appeared to be grabbing at his left elbow.

“I hit my elbow on the concrete, but I feel fine from that part,” Puig said.

Puig softly grounded a ball back to Ryu for the second out in the bottom of the sixth.

“The time I swung, I felt it a little bit more after the swing than the beginning,” Puig said.

Jesse Winker moved from left field to right field to replace Puig while Jose Peraza went from second base to left field.

Cody Bellinger Hits 17th Homer, Still Batting Over .400

Bellinger's 17th HR pads Dodgers' lead 

Cody Bellinger's 17th home run of the season is a two-run shot that gives the Dodgers a 4-0 lead over the Reds.

Watch video HERE.

The biggest differences between the Bellinger of last season, which he ended playing in a platoon, and his MVP-level production so far this season are his increased contact and hard-hit rates. Entering Wednesday, Bellinger was making contact on 82.2% of his swings — up from 72.4% last year. His swinging strike rate has dropped from 12.3% to 7.5%. In 2018, he hit the ball hard 40.1% of the time. This year, that number has jumped to 52.8%.

The combination generated one of the best starts in major league history. Bellinger won the National League player of the month award for March and April. He was the best player in baseball. He led the majors in an assortment of categories. He banged 14 home runs. And then he stopped hitting them. He admitted that would’ve spelled trouble last year, when he performed below expectations, particularly against left-handed pitchers. “I think it was just, ‘Oh, what do I got to do today to get hits, hits, hits, hits, hits,’” Bellinger said, “When you don’t get hits it’s depressing. So it’s a different mind-set.” Source: LA Times

Vladimir Guerrero Jr Hits First Homer... And Then Does It Again In Same Game

MLB.com reports:

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s pregame line of questioning revealed his intentions Tuesday night.

During batting practice, he quizzed Toronto manager Charlie Montoyo about the ground rules for Oracle Park’s right-field wall that distinguished balls hit in play from home runs.

Obviously, power was on Guerrero’s mind. And he established it in awe-inspiring fashion, belting the first two home runs of his Major League career as the Blue Jays thumped the San Francisco Giants, 7-3.

Guerrero’s performance reinforced what the baseball world sensed long before his April 26 debut: This is no ordinary rookie.

• Box score

At 20 years and 59 days old, Vladito is the youngest player to homer in Blue Jays history. Danny Ainge went deep at 20 years, 77 days old on June 2, 1979. Guerrero also became the third-youngest player in Major League history to hit his first two career home runs in the same game. Only Brian McCall in 1962 (19 years, 248 days) and Manny Machado in 2012 (20 years, 35 days) achieved this more quickly.

Coincidentally, Guerrero returned to the site of one of his father’s greatest slugging feats. It was here at Oracle Park where the elder Guerrero, playing for the Angels, defeated Toronto’s Alex Rios to win the Home Run Derby preceding the 2007 All-Star Game.

Felix Hernandez Reaches 2,500 Strikeouts

CBS Sports reports:

Felix Hernandez became the 36th pitcher with 2,500 career strikeouts on Saturday, fanning Red Sox rookie Michael Chavis in the second inning to cross the threshold. 

At 33 years and 33 days, "King Felix" is the sixth youngest pitcher to reach 2,500 strikeouts. Here are the five ahead of him:

1. Nolan Ryan: 31 years, 101 days
2. Walter Johnson: 31 years, 197 days
3. Pedro Martinez: 32 years, 221 days
4. Tom Seaver: 32 years, 287 days
5. Bert Blyleven: 33 years, 0 days (on his birthday)

Unfortunately, for Hernandez, his day soon fell apart. He started the third inning but didn't finish it, ending his day with a final line that included six hits, seven earned runs, and three walks. 

Hernandez is the second pitcher to cross 2,500 strikeouts this season, by the way, joining Nationals ace Max Scherzer. CC Sabathia, meanwhile, surpassed 3,000 strikeouts two weeks ago.

Albert Pujols Reaches 2,000 Career RBI's, Joins Aaron And A-Rod

MLB.com reports:

Albert Pujols knew it the second it left his bat.

Like the future Hall of Famer has done so many times through his storied career, the 39-year-old Pujols went deep in Thursday’s third inning, slamming Ryan Carpenter’s hanging fastball into the left-field stands. He admired his long ball before starting his trot around the bases, and for good reason.

Pujols’ sixth homer of the season made him the third player to reach 2,000 career RBIs and put an exclamation point as the Angels exploded for 16 hits in a 13-0 win over the Tigers at Comerica Park, helping Los Angeles leave the Motor City with the series win.

Pujols’ home run was part of a 1-for-4 day and ended an 0-for-15 skid, which dated back to Saturday. The homer had a projected distance of 415 feet, according to Statcast. It was his 639th, leaving him 21 shy of Willie Mays for fifth all time.

Pujols joined Hank Aaron and Alex Rodriguez as the only members of the 2,000-RBI club, and he could be the only one to join it for some time. Tigers slugger Miguel Cabrera is the next closest to reaching the feat with 1,649.

• A complete guide to Pujols' 2,000 RBIs

The RBI record book can be bit confusing for a couple of reasons. For starters, RBIs did not become an official statistic until 1920, which means that the Elias Sports Bureau does not consider Babe Ruth and Cap Anson to be members of the 2,000-RBI club, even though you will see them listed as having reached that milestone on certain sites, such as Baseball Reference, which retroactively includes all RBIs accrued prior to 1920. Per Elias, the only players to officially accrue 2,000 RBIs are Aaron, Rodriguez and now Pujols.

• Third place or fifth? Let us explain

Additionally, due to the uncertain nature of record-keeping in the early part of the 20th century, some discrepancies exist between the stats provided today by different historical data providers. For example, some sources list Lou Gehrig as having 1,995 RBIs, while Elias has him at 1,994.

All-time RBI leaders, per the Elias Sports Bureau
1) Hank Aaron: 2,297
2) Alex Rodriguez: 2,086
3) Albert Pujols: 2,000
4) Barry Bonds: 1,996