Mike McCann's Field of Fotos

April 30th, 2019: CC Sabathia becomes the 17th pitcher with 3,000 career strikeouts, as he fans former teammate John Ryan Murphy in the 2nd inning of the Yankees 3- 1 loss to the Diamondbacks. He’s just the third lefty to reach the milestone, joining Steve Carlton and Randy Johnson. April 30th, 2018: The Giants rally for three runs in the last of the 9th to edge the Nationals 6-5. Nick Hundley walks it off with a two-RBI single with two outs off reliever Brad Hand. April 30th, 2017: Anthony Rendon is a one-man wrecking crew, going 6-for-6 with three homers and 10 RBI as the Nationals put up a football score on the Mets, winning 23 – 5 in Washington. He joins Walker Cooper as the only two players ever to have 6 hits and 10 RBIs in one game. April 30th, 2014: The Dodgers beat the Twins 6-4 at Target Field for the 10,000th victory in franchise history. Zack Greinke improves to 5-0, giving up just one unearned run in 6 innings. April 30th, 1993: The Phillies wrap up their winningest Apri...

  ...you share it with Scott Kingery . An outstanding 2018 spring training led to his jumping to the Phillies from Double A. Instead of just handing him a regular job at 2nd or 3rd base or the outfield, Gabe Kapler decided to turn him into Philadelphia's version of Ben Zobrist.  If anything, that held back his progress. He never developed a consistent swing and started 2021 at the alternate site before a series of injuries led to his recent recall. Also on today's cake and candles list: Zach McKinstry , a 33rd round draft pick who beat the odds and is now a backup player on the Dodgers, where he hit .296 during the 60-game season. Rookie Davis , the onetime Yankee prospect who pitched briefly for the Reds and Pirates. His given name, BTW, is William. Chad Huffman , an outfielder-1st baseman whose 21 major league games came with an almost seven-year gap: nine with the 2010 Yankees, and a dozen with the '17 Cardinals. Kelly Shoppach , a catcher who spent parts of nine seasons...

What a huge game Tuesday night for Vladmir Guerrero Junior !  The Blue Jays budding superstar belted three home runs, two off future Hall of Famer Max Scherzer -- one of them a grand slam -- in a 9-5 TD Bank Dunedin win over the Nationals. That slam, by the way, ended Max's 19-inning shutout streak! At 22 years and 42 days, he became the youngest player ever with a three homer, seven RBI game. Of course, Vlad knows something about Hall of Fame talent: his father is one. And he joins a unique club: both Guerreros have homered off Scherzer -- his father connected when Max was with the Tigers in 2010 and '11. In a still-young season when offensive numbers have been down across the board, Vlad Jr is sizzling.  After losing more than 40 pounds last off-season, he's jumped out of the gate batting .360 with a .484 on-base percentage. This is one young player living up to expectations.  ( My images are from a 2019 Blue Jays/Yankees game in New York and a 2016 Nationals/Braves gam...

Monday was Throwback Night at Camden Yards. No, the Orioles didn't have a promotion honoring franchise legends such as the Robinsons, Weaver, Palmer or Ripken. Instead, the night's pitcher reminded us of the dominant force he once was -- years ago and 200 miles away up I-95. Matt Harvey , whose star once shined so brightly for the Mets, hadn't done much after making the Orioles team in spring training: a win, a loss, two no-decisions and an ERA over 5.  He hasn't posted a winning season since 2015, when he and the Mets last made the World Series.  Yet, when he took the field against the Yankees, something kicked in. Maybe seeing New York on his opponents' shirts tapped a reservoir of the special sauce lost long thought lost. For the first five innings, all he allowed was a Gio Urshela single and couple of walks. He retired 11 batters in a row and looked unbeatable. And even when the Yankees broke through with a 6th inning run on back-to-back doubles by Stanton and J...

 ...not a no-hitter, at least according to then-Commissioner Fay Vincent's 1991 rules update. In the nightcap of Sunday's doubleheader in Atlanta, Madison Bumgarner worked all seven innings, holding the Braves without a hit . His Diamondbacks teammates did their part, scoring five in the top of the first before the veteran lefty even reached the mound, en route to a 7-0 victory.  The only baserunner, Ozzie Albies, reached on Nick Ahmed's 2nd inning fielding error and was quickly erased on a double play. That was it. Otherwise, the other 20 Atlanta batters  were retired. Plain and simple. These rules for a no-hitter were clearly drawn up not anticipating baseball being played during a pandemic. It makes me pivot to another onetime Giant, Mike McCormick, who was also affected by the 1991 decision: on June 12th, 1959, he threw five official innings of no-hit ball, and a 6th inning single by Richie Ashburn was erased when the inning couldn't be completed due to a rain stor...

April 23rd, 2013: BJ and Justin Upton hit back to back homers in the 5th inning of the Braves 10 - 2 win over the Rockies in the second half of a day/night doubleheader at Colorado. Its the 27th time in major league history that brothers homered in the same game -- but only the second time over consecutive at-bats. Lloyd and Paul Waner of the Pittsburgh Pirates were the first to accomplish it on Sept. 15, 1938. April 23rd, 2000:  Bernie Williams and Jorge Posada each hit home runs left and right-handed in the Yankees 10-7 win over the Blue Jays at Toronto's Skydome. It's the first time ever that a pair of switch hitters accomplished the feat in the same game for the same team. April 23rd, 1999: Cardinals third baseman Fernando Tatis becomes the first player ever to hit two grand slam homers in the same inning! Both came off Chan Ho Park of the Dodgers in a 12-5 St. Louis victory. Tatis never had produced a grand slam in the big leagues (and had just 24 in 225 previous games) --...

Bryce Harper delivered in the clutch Wednesday for a Phillies team that coming off back-to-back bullpen meltdowns. Having just squandered a 4-1 lead moments earlier, on a Giants rally that included former Phillie Darin Ruf crushing a three-run pinch homer and left fielder Andrew McCutchen dropping a fly ball followed by an RBI single, Harper's talent and determination turned the game around. Batting with two outs and no one on in the bottom of the 7th, Harper crushed a Camilo Doval pitch to center for a game-tying home run. Two innings later, Harper walked to lead off the last of the 9th. Brad Miller's fourth hit of the day moved him into scoring position. Andrew Knapp completed the comeback with an RBI single that brought home Harper for the victory. While one could say, "It's just one win, it's still mid-April," this one likely meant a little more to the guys in white and red. It prevented a series sweep... by the Giants... managed by the former Phillies sk...

  ...you share it with the pitcher who holds the record for most games appeared.  Jesse Orosco  worked in 1252 games over 24 seasons in four decades.  Best known as a Met, where he claimed his place in history by nailing down the last out in game seven of the 1986 World Series, Jesse is also in that select circle who've played for both New York teams -- though his 15-game Yankee stint in 2003 produced forgettable results (with an ERA over 10).     Zack Godley won 15 games for the 2018 Diamondbacks -- while leading the NL in hit batters and wild pitches. After struggling for Arizona, Toronto and Boston the last couple of seasons, he went unsigned over the winter, before signing a minor league deal with the Brewers during March.  Edwin  Rios is the latest impressive prospect to graduate from the Dodgers farm system. Ironically, his roster spot used to belong to someone he shares April 21st with. Joc Pederson smacked 130 home runs in seven L....

A parade of strikeouts symbolized the Yankees futility in Sunday's loss to the Rays. Judge (three times) and Frazier and Stanton... fans in the park and on TV witnessed too many whiffs. Overswinging and under-contacting -- did I just coin a term for what looked like futile waves of the wand? Brian Cashman deserves some credit for meeting the media Monday, although his "stay the course" comments will hardly calm the angry sports talk radio callers. Five wins and 10 losses -- lowlighted by a complete inability to compete with the budget-conscious Tampa Bay Rays will do that. Is there a quick answer? Maybe, when Luke Voit returns from knee surgery in mid-May. Or if Brett Gardner starts taking at-bats from the out-of-synch Aaron Hicks. Perhaps when the club's new starting pitchers Jamison Taillon and Corey Kluber settle down and make it through six innings. No, it's not 1966, when the aging, broken down Yankees staggered to a 4-16 start under Johnny Keane. Or 1989, wh...

Five nights after meeting in the nightcap of Tuesday's Citi Field doubleheader, Aaron Nola and Marcus Stroman returned to the mound, and were in their individual ways, superb. Nola authored his first complete game shutout as a Phillie. The 143rd start of his career was an absolute masterpiece, as he held the Cardinals lineup featuring Nolan Arenado, Yadier Molina and Paul Goldschmidt to just two hits, while striking out 10. No walks, no one hit by pitch. Just an old fashioned dominating performance.  Stroman turned in his finest effort since joining the Mets at the 2019 trade deadline. Working at normally hitter-friendly Coors Field, the Long Island native took advantage of cool weather to keep the Rockies in check. His line: eight innings, one run, four hits and a nifty fielding play, as he snagged a hot grounder, and then with momentum forcing him toward 3rd base, he got just enough on a throw that bounced and rolled toward 1st baseman Pete Alonso more like a golf shot. Bottom...

April 16th, 2009:  The Indians spoil the opening of the new Yankee Stadium with a 10-2 victory. After CC Sabathia and Cliff Lee author six innings of 1-1 ball, Cleveland grabs the lead in the 7th when Jhonny Peralta hits a two-run double off Jose Veras, the Grady Sizemore puts the game way with a grand slam off Damaso Marte. Before the game, John Fogerty performed his classic song "Centerfield," then Kelly Clarkson sang the national anthem. Johnny Damon had the Yanks first hit in their new home; Jorge Posada, the first home run. (The Yankees had won 16 of their final 17 openers at the previous Stadium, across 161st Street.) April 16th, 2000:  Chuck Finley of the Indians strikes out four batters in the same inning for a record third time in his career. Facing the Rangers at Jacobs Field, he gets Tom Evans, Royce Clayton, Chad Curtis (who takes first base on a passed ball) and Rafael Palmeiro in the 3rd inning. But Texas took a 1-0 lead that inning when Ivan Rodriguez drove...

April 15th, 2015: The Mets host the Phillies at Citi Field on Jackie Robinson Day. New York won it 6-1, as every player donned the number 42 worn with such grace and greatness by the man who made baseball truly America's game. Jackie made his Dodgers debut on April 15th, 1947. Retiring 42 across baseball is a marvelous symbol. Let's not overlook his excellence as a scholar-athlete in high school and college. Before he integrated the major leagues, he excelled in four sports at UCLA. To this day, he is the only Bruin to letter in four different sports. Along with Babe Ruth, he remains one of the two most important baseball players of all time. And his legacy only looks more impressive through the lens of time: as a sports figure, as an activist, as an American hero. Paul Sorvino, who grew up a Brooklyn Dodger fan, is not only a respected actor, but a gifted sculptor. He created the image of Jackie commissioned for a 2016 event in New York's Times Square.  I asked him what R...

How's this for an irony: one year, one month and one day after the last game I attended, I was back in a ballpark. Back putting my Canon t5i through the paces. Soaking in the action first hand. Monday night's rainout forced what I'd rather call a traditional doubleheader, though with both games scheduled for seven innings, that's not quite accurate. While nothing is quite the same in 2021, it was many steps closer to what we've embraced over the decades. Tack on perfect spring weather and a 4:00 start with plenty of sunshine, I felt an inner joy that had been missing since March 12th, 2020.  On the field, Dominic Smith of the Mets connected for a home run; and the home run apple -- now a 40-year Flushing tradition -- rose to celebrate the moment. Smith, who is developing into a first rate hitter, circles the bases... ...and trades elbow bumps with teammate Brandon Nimmo, who scored ahead of him. It was also my first in-person experience with a seven-inning doublehea...

  Kyle Higashioka  waved the big Yankee bat Monday night. Maybe,0 to be clearer -- the backup catcher had what appeared to be the only effective bat. He homered twice and drove in all the Yankee runs in their 3-1 victory over the Blue Jays. Connecting off Robbie Ray in the 5th and Ryan Borucki in the 8th, Higashioka not only powered the Yankee offense, but also guided Gerrit Cole and a trio of relievers through a stellar evening, holding Toronto to just five hits -- and at one point, retiring 20 straight batters. Backup catchers aren't supposed to draw a lot of attention -- except when they're difference between winning and losing. But with so many Yankee hitters off to sluggish starts, the spark Higashioka and Odor have provided the last two games can't be overlooked. Number 66 in your scorecard, Kyle Higashioka. ( My images of Kyle Higashioka are from Yankees games in the summers of 2019 [top] and 2018 [side] .) 

The Yankees had been struggling; Rougned Odor had been struggling. At least for one day, Sunday, it was a perfect match, as the longtime Rangers infielder made his Yankee debut -- and drove in the go-ahead run in an 8-4 10 inning victory that prevented a Rays weekend sweep. Still just 27, this two-time 30 home run hitter was designated for assignment by Texas last month after four consecutive declining seasons. But the Yankees, who have turned reclamation projects Gio Urshela and Aaron Hicks into vital cogs in their offense, saw something convincing them Odor had something left in the tank. It was just one early-season game, but Odor took advantage of a scoring chance -- on a club whose clutch hitting had been awful for the past 10 days. We'll see how much Sunday's GWRBI translates into playing time, especially for a player with a suspect glove. But on a club where so many had trouble delivering in crunch time, Odor was a welcome addition.  

April 9th, 2010: Jeff Francoeur and Rod Barajas each homered twice in the Mets 8-2 victory over the Nationals at Citi Field. Not only was it first time at Citi Field that the Mets produced such a "double double," it's only the third time in team history that a pair of Mets players hit two home runs in a home game. Joe Christopher and Hawk Taylor did it at Shea Stadium on June 20th, 1964, matching Frank Thomas and Marv Throneberry from August 2nd, 1962 at the Polo Grounds. April 9th, 2009: Nick Swisher becomes the first Yankee to drive in four or more runs in his first start with the team since Roger Maris had four RBIs on April 19, 1960. The right fielder plates five runs in the Yankees 11 - 2 win over the Orioles at Camden Yards -- their first win after starting the season 0 and 2. April 9th, 1996: In a game played under a mix of rain and snow, Andy Pettitte pitches effectively in the Yankees home opener, a 7-3 win over the KC Royals. The Yanks grab the lead in the botto...