The Yankees almost let another one slip away against the Colorado Rockies, but they did just enough to win 5-4 on Sunday and win the series.

Here are the takeaways…

– After a 3-for-4 day from the leadoff spot in Saturday’s blowout win, Paul Goldschmidt kept his hot bat going with another multi-hit game in the series finale. Hitting leadoff once again, Goldschmidt got things started with a single and came around to score the game’s first run in the first inning. The first baseman added another hit in the fifth and scored again on Aaron Judge‘s run-scoring double that broke a 2-2 tie.

In his first season in New York, Goldschmidt has been fantastic with a .347/.401/.492 slash line in 52 games. The 37-year-old has mostly split his time between leadoff and his more traditional cleanup spot in the batting order this season and while he’s had success either way, he’s really taken to leading off for the first time in his career, amassing 22 hits in 61 at-bats so far.

– Along with Goldschmidt, Judge also finished with multiple hits as he continues to love his first time hitting at Coors Field. The right-fielder went 2-for-4, including the aforementioned go-ahead double off Jake Bird.

– However, the player with the best day at the plate was No. 7 hitter J.C. Escarra. The backup catcher led all Yankees with three hits, including a double, and two RBI. Escarra’s first hit came in the second which scored Anthony Volpe who tripled to lead off against Antonio Senzatela. He also singled in the fourth and drove in an insurance run in the eighth to make it 5-3 after the Rockies got a little closer. Making his MLB debut at 30 years old, Escarra is hitting .244.

– Will Warren got the start for New York and pitched four innings, allowing two earned runs on two hits and two walks while striking out seven. Both runs surrendered came in the first inning after he loaded the bases with nobody out, but the 25-year-old did well to escape the jam without further damage.

The right-hander was well on his way to go deeper into the game with his pitch count at only 57 pitches, but a lengthy rain delay in the top of the fifth inning — right after the Yanks re-took the lead — knocked him out of the game.

After a rough April where he pitched to a 5.63 ERA in six starts, Warren has enjoyed a much better May (2.38 ERA in five starts) and has 41 strikeouts in 26.2 innings.

– Following the rain delay, Jonathan Loáisiga entered the game and went 1.2 innings. Mark Leiter Jr. followed with 1.1 scoreless innings before Devin Williams also had a clean outing in the eighth, featuring three strikeouts, to set up Luke Weaver.

With a two-run lead, Weaver was ambushed by Mickey Moniak who homered to lead off the frame and made it a 5-4 game. Things got interesting after back-to-back one-out singles put the tying and winning runs on base, but the Yankee closer steadied himself and retired the next two hitters to give New York a series win over the hapless Rockies.

Game MVP: J.C. Escarra

In addition to leading the offense with his three-hit performance, his third and final hit to give the Yanks a two-run lead turned out to be the difference as Colorado attempted a ninth-inning comeback.

Highlights

J.C. Escarra brings home Anthony Volpe to tie the game!

(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/pawrXjM3we

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) May 25, 2025

Aaron Judge puts the Yankees in front 💪

(via @Yankees) pic.twitter.com/YiOzLwGMzs

— Yankees Videos (@snyyankees) May 25, 2025

What’s next

The Yankees continue their West Coast road trip with a three-game series against the Los Angeles Angels starting on Monday night. First pitch is scheduled for 9:38 p.m.

New York has yet to announce its starter, but the team will face RHP Jack Kochanowicz (3-5, 5.03 ERA).

Angels manager Ron Washington knew his team needed cultural adjustments.

It wasn’t just handling the 40-man roster general manager Perry Minasian assembled. The 73-year-old skipper, in his second season leading the Halos, identified a characteristic missing from last year’s Angels. Washington said his goal was for the Angels to become a family.

Looking back on two weeks ago, when the Angels stumbled to a 17-25 record after a hot start to begin the season, Washington said he felt the buy-in to the family ideology already seeped into the walls of the clubhouse — featuring a roster makeup mixing veterans with postseason success along his young starters across his infield. The results, however, were yet to come.

“My clubhouse was already jelled,” Washington said. “We just had to start playing good baseball.”

Read more:Why Angels manager Ron Washington thinks ‘things can go way better than you think’

The Angels didn’t just play good baseball. They were the best in baseball across the last two weeks. With seven of eight victories coming on the road — a three-game sweep of the Dodgers and a four-game sweep of the Athletics — the Angels riddled off an eight-game winning streak. The run was the franchise’s best since 2014 when the Angels won 10 straight and clinched a postseason berth (their most recent playoff appearance).

“We’re not going to win them all,” said shortstop Zach Neto, referring to Saturday’s loss to the Marlins that broke the Angels’ streak. “It was a matter of time. But we’ve been playing really good baseball. It’s another day today. We get to come out, play, play the game we all love.”

After dropping Saturday’s game to the Marlins (21-30) in 6-2 fashion, the Angels (25-27) couldn’t respond Sunday, falling 3-0 to Miami to lose the weekend series. Marlins right-hander Edward Cabrera sailed through 5 2/3 shutout innings, striking out 10 as the Angels’ offense struggled to produce for back-to-back days and tallied just three hits.

“I don’t think we’re ever going to reach that roll,” Washington said postgame about the Angels’ offense, compared to their winning streak bat-to-ball skills. “We’re going to get to the point where we swing the bat well, and I’m at the point right now where I knew we wasn’t going to be doing what we did, but I thought we would be consistent throughout the lineup and making something happen, but the pitching [Miami] threw at us the past couple days thought otherwise.”

Saturday and Sunday’s offensive production featured the opposite of the Angels’ winning streak.

Read more:Angels defeat Shohei Ohtani and rival Dodgers, but they aspire for much more

Players such as veteran outfielder Taylor Ward were hitting the cover off the ball. The 31-year-old former first-round pick tallied a hit in each game of the eight-win run, hitting a home run in five of the contests amid a 10-game hitting streak and franchise-tying nine-game extra-base hit streak. On Sunday, both streaks came to a close. Ward struck a ball down the line just foul in the sixth inning, striking out to end the inning instead of bringing two runners in scoring position home.

The Angels, as a whole, socked 19 home runs across the eight-game stretch — the power appeared to help them surge to third place in a division more than up for grabs.

“Everyone’s whacking homers all the time,” said Jack Kochanowicz, the Angels’ second-year starting pitcher who shut down the Dodgers for 6 ⅔ innings of one-run ball on May 16. “It’s just good vibes in here right now.”

As Angels first base coach Eric Young Sr. put it, last year’s team featured young upstart talent — Neto, catcher Logan O’Hoppe and first baseman Nolan Schanuel — trying to make a name for themselves on a roster circling the drain of the American League West.

In 2025, all three have taken the next step.

Read more:Shaikin: The Angels have the longest playoff drought in MLB. What exactly is the plan?

“They’re playing better baseball than they did last year,” Washington said. “They are more consistent right now than they were last year. Are they a finished product? Not by a long shot, but we like the progress. And that’s what the game of baseball is — progression.”

O’Hoppe (.272 batting average, 14 home runs and 30 RBI) is slugging almost .100 points higher than a year ago to a .543 clip. Neto (.284 batting average, eight home runs and 19 RBI) is hitting close to .300 for the first time in his career, coming back from a right-shoulder surgery that kept him out of action to begin the season. Schanuel (.281 batting average, .382 on-base percentage and has walked just as much as he’s struck out with 26 apiece) has developed into the Angels’ surefire everyday first baseman in his second full season at Angel Stadium.

The trio has year in, year out All-Star potential should the Angels play their cards right. O’Hoppe is under team control until 2029, while Neto and Schanuel are under team control until 2030.

“We realize, the veterans realize, that those guys are going to be the leaders of the Angels in the future, if not now,” Young said. “They probably have more leadership than they know, because we can’t let them know too much right now because they are still young, but they are learning and processing.”

Read more:Shaikin: Angels ownership could learn something from Athletics’ purposeful rebuild

And despite the eight-game turnaround turning into a two-game skid to end the weekend against the Marlins, Young knows the Angels could turn it back around on a dime.

“I don’t remember in my major league career going on an eight-game winning streak,” he said. “And you know, you always say, ‘Hey, we’re gonna start a new one today.’ Well, you never know, it’s got to start somewhere.

“So why not go out there and win today?”

The Angels will have their next chance to jump back in the win column Monday when the New York Yankees come to Angel Stadium for a three-game series.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Shohei Ohtani faced live batters in a throwing session Sunday afternoon for the first time since his 2023 elbow surgery. Then he did the other thing he’s good at, crushing a leadoff homer against the New York Mets.

Facing countryman Kodai Senga, Ohtani cranked the ball 108.2 mph to the second deck at Citi Field, with Statcast projecting the distance at 411 feet. It was Ohtani’s 18th homer of the year, tying him with Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber for the MLB lead.

It was also only the second homer Senga had allowed all season.

Prior to the game, Ohtani threw to teammates Hyeseong Kim and Dalton Rushing, in addition to game-planning and communication coach J.T. Watkins. He threw 22 pitches through five at-bats, getting two strikeouts and one walk. 

That checked off another important box in his path to returning to pitching and again becoming the two-way superstar who earned a $700 million contract in free agency.

Kim made hard contact twice, including a comebacker to Ohtani, which he fielded on a hop, and a line drive to right field. Seeking assurance, Ohtani asked outfielder Teoscar Hernández if he would have caught the ball. 

Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior told reporters that Ohtani mostly threw fastballs at 94-95 mph, but got up to 96-97. He also threw a splitter and a couple of sweepers in what Prior felt was an encouraging session. 

“It’s a big step getting on a mound, facing hitters,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on Saturday, via the New York Daily News. 

Roberts added that the next step would be amping up his velocity while also throwing his slider. Ohtani added breaking pitches during a session for the first time this week. 

Dodgers pitchers currently rank 11th in the NL (and 22rd in MLB) with a 4.14 ERA. Starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki are all on the injured list, along with relievers Blake Treinen, Evan Phillips and Kirby Yates. So Ohtani being able to contribute will be welcomed. The question is when that will be, and Ohtani isn’t yet at the point where doctors, executives and coaches are ready to project any kind of timeline. 

Shohei Ohtani faced live batters in a throwing session Sunday afternoon for the first time since his 2023 elbow surgery. Then he did the other thing he’s good at, crushing a leadoff homer against the New York Mets.

Facing countryman Kodai Senga, Ohtani cranked the ball 108.2 mph to the second deck at Citi Field, with Statcast projecting the distance at 411 feet. It was Ohtani’s 18th homer of the year, tying him with Aaron Judge and Kyle Schwarber for the MLB lead.

It was also only the second homer Senga had allowed all season.

Prior to the game, Ohtani threw to teammates Hyeseong Kim and Dalton Rushing, in addition to game-planning and communication coach J.T. Watkins. He threw 22 pitches through five at-bats, getting two strikeouts and one walk. 

That checked off another important box in his path to returning to pitching and again becoming the two-way superstar who earned a $700 million contract in free agency.

Kim made hard contact twice, including a comebacker to Ohtani, which he fielded on a hop, and a line drive to right field. Seeking assurance, Ohtani asked outfielder Teoscar Hernández if he would have caught the ball. 

Dodgers pitching coach Mark Prior told reporters that Ohtani mostly threw fastballs at 94-95 mph, but got up to 96-97. He also threw a splitter and a couple of sweepers in what Prior felt was an encouraging session. 

“It’s a big step getting on a mound, facing hitters,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said on Saturday, via the New York Daily News. 

Roberts added that the next step would be amping up his velocity while also throwing his slider. Ohtani added breaking pitches during a session for the first time this week. 

Dodgers pitchers currently rank 11th in the NL (and 22rd in MLB) with a 4.14 ERA. Starters Tyler Glasnow, Blake Snell and Roki Sasaki are all on the injured list, along with relievers Blake Treinen, Evan Phillips and Kirby Yates. So Ohtani being able to contribute will be welcomed. The question is when that will be, and Ohtani isn’t yet at the point where doctors, executives and coaches are ready to project any kind of timeline. 

The Baltimore Orioles might be one of the worst teams in MLB right now. But on Sunday, it was the Boston Red Sox who were doomed by a comedy of errors.

In the final game of a four-game series, the Orioles beat the Red Sox 5-1 in Boston on Sunday. Baltimore sealed the game with a wild two-run Little League home run from designated hitter Ryan O’Hearn in the eighth inning.

Things went about as bad as they could have for Boston on this play: O’Hearn’s hit went deep into right-center, where a miscommunication between Red Sox outfielders Wilyer Abreu and Ceddanne Rafaela led to an awkward attempt to get the ball into the infield.

Rafaela eventually tossed the ball toward infielder Marcelo Mayer — who just got called up to the majors on Saturday to replace the injured Alex Bregman. But Rafaela’s throw badly overshot Mayer’s glove and actually hit O’Hearn as he safely stood on second base.

From there, Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson ran in for a score while O’Hearn sprinted to third. Mayer did his best to follow, but his ball went way wide of third baseman Nick Sogard; as a result, O’Hearn slid into third and kept running to home plate for the score.

O’Hearn’s unconventional two-run homer brought the Orioles’ lead to 5-0. The Red Sox eventually scored in the bottom of the ninth, bringing the final score to 5-1. 

The loss sealed a 2-2 series split for Boston against the worst team in the AL East.

Sunday’s loss felt like the latest in a series of embarrassments for the Red Sox. Starting pitcher Walker Buehler returned to the mound Sunday, days after being ejected alongside Boston manager Alex Cora for yelling at an umpire. Buehler allowed four hits and two runs in five innings.

The call-up of Mayer has also had some mixed results. The young infielder scored Boston’s only run off an Abraham Toro RBI single, but he was also a key part of the disastrous eighth inning.

O’Hearn had a great game overall, hitting a solo homer in the sixth inning — to nearly the exact same spot in the outfield.

With the win Sunday and a 2-1 win over the Red Sox on Saturday, the Orioles move to 18-34 on the season — leaving plenty of room for improvement. But at least Baltimore has a great highlight clip.