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Pittsburgh Pirates Star Oneil Cruz to Compete in the MLB’s Home Run Derby

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It’s batter up for Oneil Cruz. 

The 26-year-old Dominican professional baseball center fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates, who made headlines over the weekend for an inspiring high-speed throw, has accepted an invitation o compete in Monday’s Home Run Derby in Atlanta.

Oneil CruzCruz is the fifth player to commit to the competition, held one day before the MLB All-Star Game.

The others are Ronald Acuna Jr. of the Atlanta Braves, Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners, James Wood of the Washington Nationals and Byron Buxton of the Minnesota Twins.

“I’m really, really happy just because that’s what I do,” Cruz said ahead of Tuesday night’s game at Kansas City. “I like to hit balls far. I think I’m going to enjoy it a lot.”

Cruz, 26, is known for having a powerful bat and regularly delivers some of the hardest-hit homers.

His home run May 25 at home against the Milwaukee Brewers had an exit velocity of 122.9 mph and was the hardest-hit homer in the 10-year Statcast era. 

But Cruz has never hit more than 21 in a season, and that was in 2024. He’s on track to set a high this year and has 15 in 80 games.

“They’ve been trying to get me in the Home Run Derby for the last couple years, but last year, I was coming back from an ankle injury and was not feeling that good at that time,” Cruz said. “But I’m in a good spot right now.”

Cruz has 55 career homers in 324 games with the Pirates.

Cruz will be the first Pittsburgh player to participate in the Derby since Josh Bell in 2019.

Other Pirates to be part of the event were Bobby Bonilla (1990), Barry Bonds (1992), Jason Bay (2005), Andrew McCutchen (2012) and Pedro Alvarez (2013).

“Oh, man, I can’t wait to see him hit down there,” Pirates manager Don Kelly said. “He’s going to make Atlanta look small after seeing him hit [batting practice] down there last year and the year before. Just really excited for him and the opportunity he’s got to go be a part of that.”

Overall, Cruz is batting just .203 this season but leads the National League with 28 steals.

Among the players to turn down an invite to the eight-player field are two-time champion Pete Alonso of the New York Mets, Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies and 2024 runner-up Bobby Witt Jr. of the Kansas City Royals.

Defending champion Teoscar Hernandez of the Los Angeles Dodgers recently turned down a spot as a consideration to nagging injuries.

Top power threats Aaron Judge of the New York Yankees and Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers also are expected to skip the event.

Oneil Cruz Nabs Runner at Home Plate with Incredible 105.2 MPH Throw

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Oneil Cruz is armed and dangerous…

The 26-year-old Dominican professional baseball center fielder for the Pittsburgh Pirates made a 105.2 mph throw to nab the Seattle Mariners‘ J.P. Crawford at the plate on Sunday, the second-hardest thrown ball to produce an outfield assist since Statcast started tracking in 2015.

Oneil Cruz“It was unbelievable, honestly, one of the best plays that I’ve seen live,” Pirates interim manager Don Kelly said. “To be able to make that going that way and across his body and throw back to home as accurate as it was, just an amazing play.”

It was one of few highlights for the Pirates, who were shut out by Seattle for a third straight game, losing 1-0.

The fastest throw from the outfield that produced an out in Major League Baseball‘s Statcast era was 105.5 mph by Aaron Hicks of the New York Yankees in 2016.

Cruz’s throw was the fastest of any kind by a Pirates outfielder. The one-hopper to the plate came as a surprise to Crawford, who did not slide on the play.

With one out in the first inning, the Mariners’ Jorge Polanco lined a single to left-center off All-Star right-hander Paul Skenes. Cruz ranged to his right, fielded it and threw on a line toward catcher Henry Davis.

The ball bounced directly into Davis’ mitt and he made the tag, much to Skenes’ surprise as he backed up the play behind the plate.

“Yeah, I had the best seat in the house. That was unbelievable,” said Skenes, who struck out 10 in five scoreless innings. “Henry played it perfectly, too. It feels lucky, but I know Henry and Oneil created luck for me there.”

The 6-foot-7 Cruz was already a Statcast hero of sorts.

In May, he had the hardest-hit ball since Statcast started tracking, a home run at PNC Park that left the bat at 122.9 mph and splashed into the Allegheny River.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Takes Lead Among American League First Basemen in MLB All-Star Voting

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is taking the lead…

The 26-year-old Dominican-Canadian professional baseball first baseman for the Toronto Blue Jays, a four-time MLB All-Star, has jumped ahead of seven-time MLB All-Star Paul Goldschmidt of the New York Yankees for the top spot at first base in the American League as the first stage of Major League Baseball‘s All-Star Game balloting nears its conclusion.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.,Guerrero, who will tie a franchise record if he’s selected by the fans for a fourth time, has garnered 1,192,604 votes for a season that has him batting .279 with 10 home runs and 39 RBIs through 76 games. Goldschmidt, the National League’s MVP in 2022, remains in striking distance with 1,118,501 votes.

Also going for a franchise record is Atlanta Braves outfielder Ronald Acuna Jr., who seeks a fifth MLB All-Star nod from the fans that would match Hall of Famer Hank Aaron and Dale Murphy for the most in Braves history.

Acuna, who would get to play in front of his home fans July 15 at Truist Park, jumped two spots in the latest tabulations to rank fourth among National League outfielders with 1,140,061 votes. His leap is likely due to the .396/.504/.698 slash line he has produced — along with 29 runs and eight home runs — in 27 games since returning from the injured list May 23.

Seattle Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh looks well on his way to his first All-Star appearance as he leads the majors in home runs with 31. His 1,901,389 votes are tops among all American League catchers and rank second overall in the AL.

Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani, who have combined to win five of the past eight Most Valuable Player awards, continue to lead the way in overall voting.

Judge, the New York Yankees slugger who paces the majors in batting average (.367), on-base percentage (.468) and slugging percentage (.727), leads all players with 2,699,483 fan votes.

Ohtani, who has amassed an MLB-best 76 runs to go with a .291 batting average, 26 homers and 11 steals, leads in the NL with 2,521,718 votes.

This year’s All-Star Game balloting process features two stages of fan voting. The current stage runs through Thursday. At that point, the top two vote-getters at each position (including six outfielders) in each league will engage in a runoff to determine which players will start July 15 at the Atlanta Braves’ Truist Field.

Here are the top American League vote-getters at each position:

Catcher: Seattle’s Cal Raleigh
First base: Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Second base: Detroit’s Gleyber Torres (1,133,888)
Shortstop: Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson (1,120,791)
Third base: Cleveland’s Jose Ramirez (1,780,631)

The top three AL outfielders are Judge and Detroit’s Riley Greene (1,370,098) and Javier Baez (901,969). Baltimore’s Ryan O’Hearn (937,205) leads AL designated hitters.

Ohtani and his Dodgers teammates are well-represented among the National League’s top vote-getters at each position:

Catcher: Los Angeles’ Will Smith (2,099,944)
First base: Los Angeles’ Freddie Freeman (2,095,672)
Second base: Arizona’s Ketel Marte (1,561,235)
Shortstop: New York’s Francisco Lindor (1,641,053)
Third base: San Diego’s Manny Machado (1,683,022)

The top three NL outfielders are Chicago’s Pete Crow-Armstrong (2,005,630) and Kyle Tucker (1,219,866) along with Los Angeles’ Teoscar Hernandez (1,366,537).

Ohtani’s total votes put him in first place in DH voting for the NL, followed by San Francisco’s Rafael Devers (1,103,085) and the Cubs’ Seiya Suzuki (641,687).

Lin-Manuel Miranda Producing Film “Molina: The Story of the Father Who Raised an Unlikely Baseball Dynasty”

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Lin-Manuel Miranda is helping bring the story of a baseball dynasty to life…

The 45-year-old Puerto Rican Tony Award winning actor, singer, songwriter, rapper, filmmaker and librettist and Luis Miranda, Jr.’s Viajes Miranda is producing Disney’s feature project Molina.

Lin-Manuel MirandaThe film is based on the New York Times best-selling autobiographical book Molina: The Story of the Father Who Raised an Unlikely Baseball Dynasty by Bengie Molina.

Oscar-nominated screenwriter Jose Rivera, who also hails from Puerto Rico, is writing the script.

Viajes Miranda is producing alongside Rideback’s Jonathan Eirich and Diana Nabatoff of Tiara Blu Films, who secured the rights to the book.

Rideback’s Nick Reynolds is an executive producer.

Molina’s autobiography is the backbone of the story that tracks the life and upbringing of Bengie, Jose and Yadier Molina – the only three brothers to all play Major League Baseball at the same time – with a focus on their father Benjamin’s journey with the boys as he set them on the path to success.

Incredibly, the three Molina brothers from Puerto Rico all made it to professional baseball’s highest ranks, all became catchers, and all won World Series rings.  Ad Loading

The Molina Brothers, MLBMiranda was nominated for two original song Oscars for Disney films: “Dos Oruguitas” from Encanto and “How Far I’ll Go” from Moana. 

He recently penned the songs from the studio’s profitable Mufasa, which made $175M after all ancillaries after a $722M global gross. Miranda’s filmed live stage version of his multi Tony-winning Hamilton was acquired by Disney and streamed during the COVID-19 pandemic becoming a huge hit on the service.

Seattle Mariners Claim Leody Taveras from Texas Rangers

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Leody Taveras is headed to the Emerald City.

The Seattle Mariners the 26-year-old Dominican professional baseball outfielder off waivers from their American League West rival Texas Rangers on Tuesday.

Leody TaverasThe Mariners also designated right-hander Luis F. Castillo for assignment.

Taveras spent the first six years of his Major League Baseball career with Texas and started all five games of the Rangers’ 2023 World Series win over the Arizona Diamondbacks in center field.

But the Rangers placed Taveras on outright waivers after Sunday’s game against the Mariners.

Taveras was batting .241 with one home run, eight RBIs and six stolen bases through 30 games. He’s a career .240 hitter with 39 homers, 168 RBIs and 72 stolen bases since making his major league debut in 2020.

Meanwhile, Castillo, 30, made two starts earlier this season and pitched to a 7.71 ERA, with seven walks to just five strikeouts. He previously had not played in the big leagues since 2022 with the Detroit Tigers.

Jose Quintana Becomes First Milwaukee Brewers Pitcher to Win First Four Starts for Team Since CC Sabathia in 2008

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Jose Quintana has joined special company…

The 36-year-old Colombian professional baseball pitcher has become the first Milwaukee Brewers pitcher to win his first four starts for the team since CC Sabathia in 2008.

Jose Quintana,“To hear his name, I mean, he’s … a Hall of Fame pitcher,” Quintana said about Sabathia. “It’s good to hear that. He’s great. I’m really glad to be in the same position as him. CC was one of the best pitchers in the game. I followed him a lot. I faced him a couple of times.”

Quintana (4-0) helped Milwaukee snap a four-game losing streak in a 7-1 win Sunday afternoon over one of his former clubs, the St. Louis Cardinals.

Quintana struck out six in five innings to pick up the victory. He allowed one run on five hits and three walks. He has given up just three runs in 23 2/3 innings over the four starts.

“He’s been a godsend,” Milwaukee manager Pat Murphy said. “He was around the zone all day. Typically, he stayed relentless.”

All six of Quintana’s strikeouts against St. Louis were called third strikes.

“That was a cool part of the game,” Quintana said. “I’m happy with that. When I’m getting them looking, that means sometimes they’re sitting on another pitch or maybe looking the other way. It’s good to get strikeouts.”

His two biggest punchouts came when the Cardinals put two runners on base in the third inning with one out in the third. Quintana escaped the jam when he fanned Brendan Donovan and Nolan Arenado on sinkerballs.

“My sinker is moving way better,” Quintana said. “It’s good to get a couple of punches with that pitch. It’s good to be aggressive.”

The only St. Louis run off Quintana came in the fifth inning when Donovan hit an RBI double.

The Brewers signed the well-traveled Quintana as a free agent in March. He agreed to a one-year, $4.25 million contract.

Quintana spent the past two seasons with the Mets, who signed him to a two-year, $26 million deal prior to the 2023 campaign. Milwaukee is Quintana’s eighth big league team.

Earlier this month, Quintana became the fourth active pitcher to record victories over all 30 MLB teams.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Agrees to 14-Year, $500 Million Contract Extension with Toronto Blue Jays 

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Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is celebrating a massive pay day…

The 26-year-old Dominican-Canadian professional baseball first baseman, a four-time MLB All-Star and son of Baseball Hall of Famer Vladimir Guerrero, and the Toronto Blue Jays have agreed to a 14-year, $500 million contract extension, pending a physical, per ESPN.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.,The no-deferral deal keeps the homegrown star in Toronto for the rest of his career, and comes as the 6-5 Blue Jays are in the midst of a road trip that took them to Fenway Park to meet the Boston Red Sox on Monday. Guerrero went 2-4 with a run and a walk in that game, a 6-2 Toronto victory.

Guerrero had said he would not negotiate during the season after the sides failed to come to an agreement before he reported to spring training. But the sides continued talking and sealed a deal that is the third largest in Major League Baseball history, behind only Juan Soto‘s 15-year, $765 million contract with the New York Mets and Shohei Ohtani’s 10-year, $700 million pact with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Blue Jays, snakebit in recent years by Soto and Ohtani signing elsewhere, received a long-term commitment from their best homegrown talent since Hall of Famer Roy Halladay.

They had tried to sign Guerrero to a long-term deal for years to no avail. Toronto got a glimpse of Guerrero’s talent when he debuted shortly after his 20th birthday in 2019 and homered 15 times as a rookie. Guerrero’s breakout season came in 2021, when he finished second to Ohtani in American League MVP voting after hitting .311/.401/.601 with 48 home runs and 111 RBIs.

Guerrero followed with a pair of solid-but-below-expectations seasons in 2022 and 2023, and in mid-May 2024, he sported an OPS under .750 as the Blue Jays struggled en route to an eventual last-place finish. Over his last 116 games in 2024, the Guerrero of 2021 reemerged, as he hit .343/.407/.604 with 26 home runs and 84 RBIs.

With a payroll expected to exceed the luxury tax threshold of $241 million, the Blue Jays ended the season’s first week atop the American League East standings. Toronto dropped to 5-3 on Friday after a loss to the Mets, in which Guerrero collected a pair of singles, raising his season slash line to .267/.343/.367.

Between Guerrero and shortstop Bo Bichette‘s free agency after the 2025 season, the Blue Jays faced a potential reckoning. Though Bichette is expected to play out the season before hitting the open market, Guerrero’s deal lessens the sting of Toronto’s pursuits of Ohtani in 2023 and Soto in 2024.

Toronto shook off the signings of Soto and first baseman Pete Alonso with the Mets, left-hander Max Fried with the New York Yankees and infielder Alex Bregman with the Boston Red Sox to retool its roster.

Toronto gave outfielder Anthony Santander a heavily deferred five-year, $92.5 million contract, brought in future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer on a one-year, $15.5 million deal, bolstered its bullpen with right-handers Jeff Hoffman and Yimi Garcia, and traded for Platinum Glove-winning second baseman Andres Gimenez, who is hitting cleanup.

Toronto’s long-term commitments will allow for significant financial flexibility. In addition to Bichette and Scherzer, right-hander Chris Bassitt and relievers Chad Green and Erik Swanson are free agents after this season. After 2026, the nine-figure deals of outfielder George Springer and right-hander Kevin Gausman also come off the books.

Building around Guerrero is a good place to start. One of only a dozen players in MLB with at least two seasons of six or more wins above replacement since 2021, Guerrero consistently is near the top of MLB leaderboards in hardest-hit balls, a metric that typically translates to great success.

Like his father, who hit 449 home runs and batted .318 over a 16-year career, Guerrero has rare bat-to-ball skills, particularly for a player with top-of-the-scale power. In his six MLB seasons, Guerrero has hit .288/.363/.499 with 160 home runs, 510 RBIs and 559 strikeouts against 353 walks.

Originally a third baseman, Guerrero shifted to first base during the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. Had the Blue Jays signed Alonso, they signaled the possibility of Guerrero returning full time to third, where he played a dozen games last year.

With the extension in place, the 6-foot-2, 245-pound Guerrero is expected to remain at first base and reset a market that had been topped by the eight-year, $248 million extension Miguel Cabrera signed just shy of his 31st birthday in 2014.

Yoan Moncada Among Record 26 Cuban Players on MLB’s Opening Day Rosters

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Yoan Moncada is officially part of part of Major League Baseball Opening Day history.

The 29-year-old Cuban professional baseball third baseman made his Los Angeles Angels debut at his former home, Rate Field, drawing a walk in his only plate appearance during the opening game.

Yoan MoncadaIn the process, Moncada helped his native Cuba make MLB history, with a record 26 players on MLB‘s Opening Day rosters.

Cuba’s total topped its previous high of 23 in 2016, 2017 and 2022.

In all the percentage of Opening Day players born outside the 50 states remained at 27.8%, matching its lowest level since 2016.

There were 265 players from 18 nations and territories outside of the 50 states among 954 players on Opening Day active rosters and injured, restricted and inactive lists, the commissioner’s office said Friday.

The Dominican Republic led countries outside the U.S. with 100, down from 108 last year and 110 in 2020.

Venezuela was second at 63, followed by Cuba (26), Puerto Rico (16), Canada (13), Japan (12), Mexico (11), Curacao and Panama (four), South Korea (three), Aruba, Australia and Colombia (two) and Bahamas, Brazil, Germany, Honduras, Nicaragua and South Africa (one apiece).

Philadelphia Phillies‘ Jesús Luzardo was listed as “miscellaneous.” Born in Peru, he’s of Venezuelan descent.

The Houston Astros and San Diego Padres topped teams with 16 international players each, with the Astros having a share of the lead for the fifth straight season

They were followed by the Atlanta Braves (14), the New York Mets (13) and the Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins (12 each).

Jose Trevino Agrees to Three-Year Contract Extension with Cincinnati Reds 

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Jose Trevino is still seeing red(s).

The 32-year-old Latino professional baseball catcher and the Cincinnati Reds have agreed on a three-year contract extension through the 2027 season.

Jose TrevinoThe deal, which includes a club option for 2028, is worth $15 million, sources confirmed to ESPN, and includes $11.5 million in newly guaranteed money.

He’ll begin the season as the Reds top catcher. Tyler Stephenson is sidelined by an oblique injury; he last played March 11, was scratched the following day and had an MRI on March 13.

Trevino, who was set to become a free agent at the end of the season, hit eight home runs with 28 RBIs in 73 games for the New York Yankees last season. He was acquired by the Reds in December for right-hander Fernando Cruz and catcher Alex Jackson.

In seven major league seasons, Trevino is a career .236 hitter with a .637 OPS, 32 home runs and 141 RBIs in 399 games with the Texas Rangers (2018-21) and New York Yankees.

An MLB All-Star and a Gold Glove Award winner in 2022, he was 1-for-5 with a walk in four postseason games last fall.

Pete Alonso Agrees to Two-Year, $54 Million Contract with New York Mets

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Pete Alonso won’t be leaving the New York Mets anytime soon.

The 30-year-old half-Spanish American professional baseball player, nicknamed “Polar Bear,” and the New York Mets are in agreement on a two-year, $54 million contract, per ESPN, ending a lengthy free agency with a return engagement to the only team for which he has played.

Pete AlonsoThe deal, which is pending a physical, includes an opt-out after the first season, sources said. Alonso will make $30 million this year.

Alonso, whose 226 home runs since his 2019 debut are second in Major League Baseball (MLB) behind Aaron Judge‘s 232, heads back to Queens to join a lineup that added outfielder Juan Soto on a record-breaking 15-year, $765 million contract this winter.

Though New York considered pivoting away from Alonso after discussions on a deal with him reached an impasse, talks resumed amid a market that did not value him similarly to the long-term deal he sought at the outset of free agency. First basemen in their 30s who hit and field right-handed are seen by teams as risky — even ones who have consistently produced like Alonso.

After hitting a rookie-record 53 home runs in 2019, Alonso’s consistent run production helped buoy the Mets through lean years and made him a fan favorite and franchise cornerstone. Alonso rejected a seven-year, $158 million contract extension from the Mets in the summer of 2023, hoping to strike riches on the open market, even when saddled by draft-pick compensation after turning down a one-year, $21.05 million qualifying offer from the Mets.

A long-term deal never materialized, leaving Alonso with limited choices. Though the San Francisco Giants and Toronto Blue Jays were among the teams that expressed interested in Alonso, coming back to the Mets was always the likeliest possibility, even as owner Steve Cohen publicly expressed frustration with the trajectory of negotiations.

Alonso’s production declined over the past three seasons, with his OPS decreasing from .869 to .821 to .788. His FanGraphs wins above replacement dropped from 3.8 to 2.8 to 2.1, and his 34 home runs in 2024 were a career low for a full season.

Still, Alonso remained capable of special moments. With the Mets facing elimination, trailing 2-0 in the ninth inning of a wild-card series game against Milwaukee in early October last year, Alonso tattooed a changeup from Brewers closer Devin Williams to the opposite field for a three-run home run that held up to send New York to a series against Philadelphia. Alonso homered twice against the Phillies and once more in a six-game NLCS loss to the eventual World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers.

Alonso’s postseason bona fides — a .278/.429/.574 line in 70 plate appearances — added to his allure for the Mets, who now can lead off star shortstop Francisco Lindor and bat Soto, Alonso and emerging star third baseman Mark Vientos in the 2-3-4 holes. The Mets’ deep roster includes outfielders Brandon Nimmo, Starling Marte and Tyrone Taylor, catcher Francisco Alvarez, second baseman Jeff McNeil, young infielders Ronny Mauricio, Luisangel Acuna and Brett Baty, as well as Jesse Winker (who re-signed as a free agent) and Jose Siri (acquired in a trade with Tampa Bay).