Astros right-hander Spencer Arrighetti gets another crack at the Rangers on Thursday. Arrighetti carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning against Texas two starts ago. His teammates no-hit the Rangers earlier this week. Keep a close eye on the hit column today.
1. MLBPA shares proposal
Collective bargaining discussions are underway with the MLBPA releasing its first official proposal on Wednesday. The league is expected to counter with its own proposal on Thursday. The current collective bargaining agreement expires on December 1. Talks appear to be ahead of schedule this time around. Back in 2021, the league didn’t counter the MLBPA’s initial proposal until August. Negotiations that offseason led to a lockout, but didn’t result in missed games.
2. Ohtani dominates again
Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani tossed six hitless innings on Wednesday against the Rockies. He also chipped in a leadoff home run for good measure. Ohtani lowered his ERA to 0.82. As ESPN points out, it’s the ninth-lowest ERA heading into June among pitchers who have thrown at least 50 innings since 1913. It’s also the lowest mark in Dodgers history through a pitcher’s first nine starts (h/t Alden Gonzalez of ESPN). Ohtani has allowed one earned run or fewer in all but one outing this season. In a hotly contested NL Cy Young race, he’s emerging as one of the top candidates.
3. Ashby wins again
Wins aren’t the most reliable indicator of a pitcher’s effectiveness, but they’re still fun to track, especially when a surprising name is atop the leaderboard. Brewers left-hander Aaron Ashby has managed to pile up a league-leading nine wins, despite working as an opener and middle reliever. The lefty tossed two scoreless innings on Wednesday against the Cardinals. The Brewers pushed two runs across in the eighth inning to take the lead, and Trevor Megill slammed the door to secure the win for Ashby. Guardians right-hander Gavin Williams also picked up his eighth win with a quality start against the Nationals. Chris Sale of the Braves and Davis Martin of the White Sox will go for their eighth wins on Thursday.
Photo courtesy of Jayne Kamin-Oncea, Imagn Images
Negotiating in the media is never a wise move and usually doesn’t mean anything good.
ASHBY