When a player begins a season on a hot streak, it’s obvious. When that streak comes later, perhaps on the heels of a season-opening slump, it can get a bit lost. First impressions are hard to shake. That’s the situation facing these five prominent hitters. Each started slowly, falling below

Giancarlo Stanton, Aaron Judge, Masahiro Tanaka, Didi Gregorius, James Paxton, Dellin Betances and Troy Tulowitzki, Yankees Stanton was scratched from what would have been his second Minor League rehabilitation game with Class A Advanced Tampa on Tuesday due to tightness in his left knee. Stanton went 1-for-3 with a home

It can feel like a bit of a dubious achievement to win a Comeback Player of the Year Award. After all, to come back from some setback, you have to have fallen back in the first place. Mike Trout isn’t winning any Comeback of the Year Awards because he’s the

CHICAGO -- Long before he inserted Javier Báez into a pinch-hitting spot in the ninth inning against the Phillies on Tuesday night, Cubs manager Joe Maddon wasn’t even certain his star shortstop was available. Earlier in the day, Baez had undergone an MRI on his bruised right ankle, which kept

HOUSTON -- Sometimes, this is what you get with a Justin Verlander start. You get a flirtation with magic. You get dominance. You get something you might just remember. This is why it’s an event every time he steps on a Major League mound. This is also why Cooperstown beckons.

ST. PETERSBURG -- Sometime shortly after his second strikeout of the game, Clayton Kershaw was faced with a decision. He was either going to be in for a rough ride Tuesday night, or the Rays were. The decision was an easy one for the Dodgers’ ace, who went on to

SAN DIEGO -- Zack Greinke reached a big career milestone on Tuesday night at Petco Park, but he also saw a personal streak end in untimely fashion. The D-backs’ right-hander recorded his 2,500th career strikeout when he fanned Franmil Reyes in the fourth. Two innings later, Greinke’s streak of 178

NEW YORK -- A day after offering tight-lipped silence in response to his tiff with Nationals outfielder Adam Eaton, the Mets’ Todd Frazier fired back, alluding to an incident between the two while they were White Sox teammates in 2016. Frazier offered no details about the incident, chalking Eaton’s behavior

CHICAGO -- Much like Phillies right-hander Jake Arrieta in Monday’s matchup at Wrigley Field, Cubs lefty Cole Hamels will face off against his former team for the first time in his career at 8:05 p.m. ET on Wednesday night. The game can be seen live on MLB.TV. The southpaw was

NEW YORK -- As the ball traveled in an arc over the left-field foul pole, Pete Alonso hopped down the first-base line, body turned toward left, watching its flight. Afterward, Alonso would say that he knew for sure the ball was staying fair. That did not stop Alonso, in the

BALTIMORE -- Clint Frazier's first at-bat on Tuesday produced a barreled line drive that landed in the glove of left fielder Dwight Smith Jr., and as he returned to the third-base dugout, the Yankees outfielder permitted himself a chuckle. If his luck didn't improve soon, he promised hitting coach Marcus

BALTIMORE -- Giancarlo Stanton was scratched from what would have been his second Minor League rehabilitation game with Class A Advanced Tampa on Tuesday due to tightness in his left knee. Stanton went 1-for-3 with a home run on Monday in his first contest with the Tarpons. Speaking after the

NEW YORK -- Amed Rosario swung down on the ball, beating it into the ground as the stopwatch clicked on. The Mets’ fastest player chucked his bat, dropped his head and sprinted. At shortstop, Trea Turner edged forward, thought better of that plan and took a healthy step back, fielding

The Orioles set an unfortunate record Tuesday night after becoming the fastest team in Major League history to give up 100 home runs in a season. Yankees outfielder Clint Frazier smacked his second long ball off Baltimore starter David Hess in the fifth inning of the Orioles’ 11-4 loss at

ST. PETERSBURG -- Dodgers reliever Pedro Báez survived a scare Tuesday night when X-rays came back negative after he was struck by a line drive in the seventh inning against the Rays. He was diagnosed with a right upper leg contusion, and the Dodgers will monitor daily how the injury

TORONTO -- Rowdy Tellez had only ever done it five times in his professional career before Tuesday night. The left-handed-hitting slugger sent two balls out of the park at Rogers Centre in the Blue Jays' 10-3 win over the Red Sox, driving in five runs in his first two-homer game

MILWAUKEE -- Before Tuesday night, Sonny Gray’s first season in Cincinnati hadn’t exactly gone the way he, or the Reds, had hoped. Gray was winless in his first nine starts and had a 4.30 ERA. But against the Brewers, the right-hander offered a glimpse of what once made him one

ANAHEIM -- Marwin Gonzalez was just about the only Twins starter that didn’t get off to a hot start this April -- but that feels like a long time ago now. Gonzalez, who’s been banged up and out for the last two games with a sore finger, didn’t skip a

ANAHEIM -- The Angels received good news and bad news on the injury front on Tuesday, as designated hitter Shohei Ohtani was back in the lineup after being hit by a 94-mph fastball on his right ring finger in Monday’s 3-1 loss, while shortstop Andrelton Simmons was diagnosed with a

CLEVELAND -- Khris Davis’ return to the A’s lineup was short-lived. Davis left Tuesday night's 5-3 Oakland win over Cleveland at Progressive Field in the third inning due to lingering effects from his left hip contusion. Davis got a day off to rest on Monday, but he was back at

SAN DIEGO -- In the middle of their lineup, the Padres are getting what they paid for. That’s $444 million worth of production, to be exact. For most of the season, the rest of the San Diego offense has slumped. The lineup isn’t deep enough, and it’s been reeling from

MILWAUKEE -- The Brewers scratched Christian Yelich from the starting lineup on Tuesday after he experienced back spasms, marking the second time in the past three weeks that MLB’s home run leader has been sidelined by a back issue. Yelich missed part of seven games in late April and early

CLEVELAND – Just as Roberto Perez’s bat seemed to be heating up, the Indians catcher is facing a bit of a setback. After getting hit in the face mask with a foul ball in the third inning of Cleveland's 5-3 loss to the A’s on Tuesday night, Perez remained in