On the heels of a huge extension in San Diego, here are three things we’ll be keeping an eye on around the baseball world throughout the day today:
1. Dodgers, Braves streaking:
The reigning World Series champions are off to a phenomenal start, having won their first seven games in a row. After sweeping the Cubs out of Tokyo last month, the Dodgers then swept the Tigers out of Dodger Stadium and since then have taken two of three from the Braves. As noted by Fabian Ardaya of The Athletic, the 7-0 start to the season matches the 1933 Yankees for the strongest start to a season of any reigning World Series champion in history, and is also the Dodgers’ best start to the regular season since they relocated to Los Angeles in 1958.
On the other side of things, Atlanta can’t buy a win. They’re the only club that’s yet to win a game this season, and their nine runs scored across six games is tied for the fewest in the majors. The Dodgers will attempt to keep the good times rolling at 5:38pm local time tonight with lefty Blake Snell (3.12 ERA in 2024) on the mound, while Atlanta will counter with righty Bryce Elder (6.52 ERA in 2024) as they try to stop the bleeding.
2. Padres also streaking:
Phenomenal as the Dodgers’ start to the 2025 campaign has been, they’ve not been able to put away their division rivals. The Padres have gotten off to almost as strong of a start, winning all six of their games to this point in the season. They were the beneficiaries of Atlanta’s struggles for the first four games of the year, and since then have taken the first two games of their series against the Guardians to run up a 6-0 record on the season. They’ll be going for their second consecutive sweep today at 1:10pm local time in San Diego with right-hander Dylan Cease (3.47 ERA in 2024) on the mound. Cleveland, meanwhile, will counter with righty Ben Lively (3.81 ERA in 2024). Fortunately for the Guardians, they’re not in as dire straits as the Braves are after taking two of three in their opening series against the Royals.
3. Tucker looks to continue homer streak:
There’s a fourth noteworthy streak going on in the National League at the moment, although this one isn’t about the club’s records. After scuffling during the Tokyo Series, newly-acquired Cubs star Kyle Tucker has looked more like himself at the plate since the club returned stateside. Overall, he’s hitting an incredible .353/.450/.853 in 40 trips to the plate across eight games. He leads all of baseball with 12 hits, five doubles, 11 RBI, and 29 total bases, but the streak in question has to do with the long ball.
Tucker’s homered in four consecutive games after hitting a long ball off newly-minted A’s starter Luis Severino last night, and he’ll go for a fifth straight homer against A’s lefty Jeffrey Springs at 12:35pm local time in West Sacramento this afternoon. He’d become just the fifth Cubs player in history to have five games in a row with a homer, joining Sammy Sosa in 1998, Ryne Sandberg in 1989, and Hack Wilson in 1928… as well as teammate Michael Busch, who accomplished the feat just last year.
