Ildemaro Vargas is one of the best stories in baseball right now. The veteran utility infielder is 34 years old, and he’s in what’s technically his fourth stint with the Arizona Diamondbacks.

He’s also MLB’s batting average leader and the architect of three historic hitting streaks.

Although the D-backs suffered a 13-1 defeat to the Milwaukee Brewers on Thursday, stomaching a sixth loss in their past nine games, the switch-hitting Vargas stacked two more hits. He’s notched a hit in each of his 23 outings this season and now is tied for the second longest hit streak to start a season since 1940, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs.

He’s matched the mark Édgar Rentería set in 2006 with the Atlanta Braves. Rentería wound up making his fifth and final All-Star team that season.

Vargas needs to hit safely in seven more games to tie Ron LeFlore for the longest such streak. LeFlore opened the 1976 campaign with a hit in the first 30 games he played for the Detroit Tigers that year, in which he earned All-Star recognition for the first and only time in his career.

As for Vargas’ second hit streak, well, that one dates back to last season. Since 2025, he’s tallied a hit in 26 consecutive appearances. That’s the longest active streak in the big leagues, and it’s tied for the longest ever by a Venezuelan player. Wilson Ramos, then a catcher for the New York Mets, accomplished that feat during the 2019 season.

Vargas’ third hit streak has a place in D-backs history, as he’s hit safely in 19 straight road outings, according to the Arizona Republic, which reported Thursday that, in continuing that streak from last season, Vargas has leapfrogged Junior Spivey and Stephen Drew for the franchise’s road-game hitting streak record.

He’s doing all of this while batting an MLB-best .378, an average that increased after his two-hit performance versus the Brewers on Thursday.

For reference, Vargas came into the season as a career .257 hitter. What’s more, he already has six homers in 2026. He’s tied a single-season career high in the long-ball department. Vargas also blasted six big flies in 2019, but he played in 92 games that season.

His name is scattered across a handful of MLB offensive leaderboards at the moment. Back in December, he came back to the organization on another minor-league deal. He made the Opening Day roster and has enjoyed a head-turning, hit-filled start to what’s suddenly evolving into an All-Star caliber year.

The Knicks face the Hawks tonight at State Farm Arena in Game six of their Eastern Conference first-round series. New York leads the series 3-2, and a win would close out the series, sending them to the second round to battle either the Boston Celtics (boo) or the Philadelphia 76ers (also boo). The Knicks mostly breezed through the last two games against Atlanta and are favored tonight.

Tip-off is 7:00 pm EST on ESPN. This is your game thread. This is Peachtree Hoops. Please don’t post large photos, GIFs, or links to illegal streams in the thread. Make your dead ancestors proud. And go Knickerbockers!

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Down 3-2 in the series, the Denver Nuggets still enter Game 6 as favorites — a shift driven largely by Minnesota’s backcourt injuries in Game 4.

With that context, these Nuggets vs. Timberwolves predictions and NBA picks expect the Timberwolves to empty the tank at home against Nikola Jokic and company on Thursday, April 30.

Nuggets vs Timberwolves prediction

Who will win Nuggets vs Timberwolves Game 6?

Timberwolves: Minnesota may have gone into Denver to win a Game 7 just two years ago, but this isn’t 2024.

Why not take care of business at home? Why not reward home fans? 

And more pressing, why not throw every wrinkle and adjustment at the Nuggets now rather than wait for a Game 7?

The added day between Games 5 and 6 should work in the Timberwolves’ favor, with a more experienced coaching staff and a more variable lineup getting an extra day to adjust after the Game 5 loss.

Nuggets vs Timberwolves best bet: Nikola Jokic Under 29.5 points (-112)

At the very least, Denver Nuggets’ superstar Nikola Jokic has looked tired in this series. He found more space inside in Game 5 and had his first efficient game of the series, yet Jokic still scored only 27 points.

And that is not because he played significantly fewer minutes. For someone so upset about a last-second layup in Game 4, Jokic still made a show of trying to embarrass a Minnesota Timberwolves’ rookie in the final seconds of Game 5.

Jokic played more than 37 minutes, and his 27 points stand out — especially since that’s his high-water mark in this series.

Credit Rudy Gobert. He has matched Jokic’s physicality and minutes this series, making the Serbian’s life miserable.

The Timberwolves should play their most aggressive defense of the series in Game 6. It’s stronger with Anthony Edwards and Donte DiVincenzo on the floor, but it can still hold up without them.

And even if it doesn’t show up, there hasn’t been any evidence that Jokic has the energy to post a 30-point masterpiece the way he so often has in the past.

Nuggets vs Timberwolves same-game parlay

There is distinct logic in expecting the Nuggets’ role players to come up short on the road, thus turning a few potential Jokic assists into nothing but missed shots.

Such missed shots should help Minnesota’s transition game, which needs to be a key piece of the Timberwolves’ offense.

Nuggets vs Timberwolves SGP

• Nikola Jokic Under 29.5 points
• Nikola Jokic Under 9.5 assists
• Timberwolves +5.5

Our “from downtown” SGP: Timberwolves prevail

This is the Timberwolves’ best chance, and do not underestimate their ability to adjust.

That is the hallmark of any team enjoying postseason success in the modern NBA, and Minnesota reached the Western Conference Finals in each of the last two springs. Some adjustments were clearly made.

If this week’s adjustment catches the Nuggets off guard, that should yield a Timberwolves win. In particular, keep an eye out for Terrence Shannon Jr. getting downhill or Minnesota trying to play a four-out lineup around Julius Randle to capitalize on his ability to draw multiple defenders and find an open shooter.

Nuggets vs Timberwolves SGP

• Nikola Jokic Under 29.5 points
• Nikola Jokic Under 9.5 assists
• Timberwolves moneyline

Nuggets vs Timberwolves odds for Game 6

• Spread: Nuggets -5.5 (-110) | Timberwolves +5.5 (-110)
• Moneyline: Nuggets -240 | Timberwolves +195
• Over/Under: Over 225.5 (-110) | Under 225.5 (-110)

Nuggets vs Timberwolves betting trend to know

Denver has fallen short of its team total in four of the five games in this series. Find more NBA betting trends for Nuggets vs. Timberwolves.

How to watch Nuggets vs Timberwolves Game 6

Nuggets vs Timberwolves latest injuries

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Franz Wagner will miss his second straight game for the Orlando Magic in their NBA playoff series versus the Detroit Pistons.

Wagner has been ruled out for Friday’s Game 6 with a calf strain that also sidelined him in Game 5’s 116-109 loss in Detroit, according to the NBA’s injury report. The Magic have a 3-2 series lead in their first-round matchup with the Pistons and can close it out with a win.

If Detroit was to force a Game 7 for Sunday, it appears unlikely Wagner would be available for that contest, as well. If Orlando finishes the series, then the question becomes whether Wagner can play Game 1 of a second-round matchup.

Despite Wagner missing Game 5, the Pistons still had to fight for a seven-point win and needed 45 points from Cade Cunningham. Paolo Banchero made up for Wagner’s absence with 45 points of his own, but Orlando seemingly would have found a way to win with its second-leading scorer in the lineup.

Calf strains are injuries that can linger, and teams tend to take extra caution due to the extra stress they put on Achilles tendons. Wagner’s strain, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania, initially wasn’t viewed as significant enough for the Magic to rule him out until medical staff evaluated how he responded to treatment.

Wagner sustained the injury late in Monday’s Game 4 win over Detroit that gave Orlando a 3-1 series lead. He was considered questionable on Tuesday, but clearly wasn’t ready to go in time in Detroit.

The fifth-year forward left in the second half of Monday’s game with the injury. He spent time on a sideline exercise bike while he was considered questionable to return, but was ultimately limited to 24 minutes. Wagner told reporters after the game he was scheduled to have an MRI on Tuesday. The Magic went on to a 94-88 victory despite his injury.

Wagner has averaged 16.8 points, 5.5 rebounds, 3.5 assists and 2.8 steals during the first-round series. He’s been instrumental for the eighth-seeded Magic, who are one win away from an upset of the top-seeded Pistons.

A high-ankle sprain limited Wagner to 34 games during the regular season. But he averaged 20.6 points, 5.2 rebounds and 3.3 assists per game when healthy.

In addition to Wagner being out, Jonathan Isaac (sprained left knee) is listed as questionable for the Magic. Tobias Harris (left ankle sprain) and Kevin Huerter (left adductor strain) are also questionable for the Pistons. Huerter sat out Game 6.

The specific shape of the first-round playoff matchup between the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets has changed quite a bit from how we initially expected it to look, for a number of reasons — chief among them, Kevin Durant’s ongoing injury woes and a brutal Game 3 collapse that pushed Ime Udoka’s club to the brink of elimination. The fundamental underpinnings of the matchup, though, remain largely the same: The Rockets are a big, athletic, physical, very good defensive team that should be able to impose its collective point-preventing will on a Lakers squad that, without Luka Dončić and (until Game 5) Austin Reaves, struggles to consistently generate and cash in on good looks.

It didn’t seem that way in the early stages of this series, when the Lakers were getting just enough LeBron James low-post playmaking, just enough complementary-piece shot-making, and just enough help from a defense that was holding the Rockets nearly 12 points per 100 possessions below their regular-season offensive efficiency mark. But if you scratched the surface on that 3-0 lead, it didn’t look quite as commanding as it seemed — and the Lakers don’t look quite as formidable, now that the Rockets have returned serve with a pair of wins that have extended their season, and this series, to Game 6 back in Houston on Friday.

“As much as we got to defend, you also got to score in this game, too,” James told reporters after Game 5. “I don’t think we did that at a good rate.”

That’s the thing, though: They weren’t scoring at a particularly good rate in the first three games, either.

Entering Game 4, the Lakers were scoring 112.4 points per 100 non-garbage-time possessions, according to Cleaning the Glass — a rate that would’ve had them rubbing elbows with the Chicago Bulls and Sacramento Kings in the offensive rankings during the regular season. Over the past two games, that already-bottom-five-caliber output has plunged even deeper into the offensive basement, with L.A. producing just 102.3 points-per-100 in Games 4 and 5.

That 10-point offensive rating gap is massive — the difference between a garden-variety bad offense and some real mid-Process Sixers-level stuff. Some of it stems from Udoka electing to more frequently downshift, leaning into more small-ball, switch-heavy lineups that can deploy Houston’s collective length and quickness to close up driving gaps and prevent the Lakers from prying open and expanding an advantage.

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“This is a top-10 defense the entire season,” Lakers head coach JJ Redick told reporters after Game 4. “It’s obviously very challenging without your two leading scorers to generate offense. We’ll take a look at the process again on that end, as well.”

Some of it can be attributed to L.A.’s series-long struggles to hold on to the ball. The Lakers committed 39 turnovers in Games 4 and 5 — including 10 by James, who took the blame for L.A. so frequently coming up empty by kicking away possessions. Twenty-seven of those 39 cough-ups — nearly 70% — were live-ball turnovers, according to PBP Stats. The Rockets made the most of those opportunities, scoring 24 points per game off Lakers giveaways — a rate that would’ve led the league during the regular season.

A lot of it, though, comes down to just converting the chances they get.

“We just got to make shots,” Marcus Smart told reporters. 

After shooting 46.1% from 3-point range through the first three games of the series, the Lakers have made just 12 of their 49 triple tries (24.5%) in the last two. And while the 49 is arguably just as big a problem as the 12, it’s also not out of the ordinary for a team that finished tied for 22nd in the NBA in the share of its shots that came from beyond the arc during the regular season, and that is still missing its highest-volume long-ball generator with Dončić on the mend.

So: If the Lakers aren’t going to suddenly start jacking up a Mazzulla-ball level of long-range shots, they have to cash out on the ones they can create. In the first three games, they did just that. They were still taking a bunch of tough shots, generating the lowest shot quality of any team in the playoff field; they were just making them more frequently and efficiently than you’d expect, with Smart, Luke Kennard and Rui Hachimura all making at least half of their 3-pointers.

Over the last two, though, the Lakers’ long-range luck has evened out:

The Rockets have sold out to limit the looks for the formerly hot-shooting Lakers. All-Defensive Teamer Amen Thompson has cranked up the pressure on Kennard, holding the early-series hero to just one point on two shot attempts with one assist and two turnovers across nearly 60 possessions when they were matched up in Games 4 and 5, according to NBA Advanced Stats. (The just-returned Reaves took Kennard’s place in the starting lineup to begin the second half of Game 5; while Kennard did close the game, he went without a shot attempt in the fourth quarter.)

Shifting the length of Jabari Smith Jr. — 6-foot-11 with a 7-1 wingspan — onto Smart has helped vaporize his clean looks, too. The veteran guard is 6-for-15 from the field and 3-for-9 from 3-point range over the past two games, with 10 turnovers mitigating his seven assists.

“We’ve always been a good defensive team,” Smith told reporters after Game 5. “It’s just the mental side and where to be, who to close out on and tendencies, follow the game plan. We’ve just been locking in on that the last few games, and I think it’s been working.”

That much is clear. Games 4 and 5 were two of the Lakers’ dozen-worst half-court offensive performances of the campaign, and also represent the first time L.A. has been held under 100 points in consecutive games all season.

What’s less clear: Whether the Lakers can turn the tide back in their favor with their complementary pieces misfiring, with LeBron missing two-thirds of his shots outside the restricted area (and all nine of his 3s) since playing 45 minutes to pull out Game 3, with Reaves going 4-for-16 from the floor in his return as he shakes the rust off, with only one day off between Games 5, 6 and, if necessary, 7, and with Dončić not coming back any time soon.

The Lakers have reason for optimism: the prospect of Reaves finding his footing to provide a jolt to the offense, the continued verve shown in the middle by Deandre Ayton, and the vast libraries of big-game experience that LeBron can bring to bear in finishing off a cornered opponent that’s threatening to push him to the brink. But they’ve also got reasons to be concerned — the same ones they had two weeks ago, just arrived at in a circuitous fashion.

“We knew this was going to be a tough series, and it’s turned out to be exactly what we expected,” Smart said after Game 5. “Now the fun begins.”

No one can deny that the members of the United States figure skating team are elite athletes. Throwing a pitch, however, might not be part of their skill set.

Several members of the 2026 U.S. figure skating team, including members of the gold medal-winning team from Milan, appeared at Citi Field on Thursday. The group then threw out the ceremonial first pitch — or pitches — ahead of the New York Mets’ game against the Washington Nationals, in a series of chaotic, entertaining attempts.

First up was pairs skater Ellie Kam and Danny O’Shea, with Kam lobbing the ball from atop O’Shea’s shoulders, where it went well wide of Andrew Torgashev. Then the “Quad God,” Ilia Malinin, threw a ball slightly more on frame to Torgashev — who dropped it.

Ice dancer Emilea Zingas was lifted by partner Vadym Kolesnik in preparation to receive a pitch from Amber Glenn. Glenn did a graceful jump before throwing a pretty terrible pitch that went high over Zingas’ glove.

The only successful pitch from the whole group went from Evan Bates, part of the silver medal-winning ice dancing duo, to skater Jason Brown. Bates lobbed an overhand pitch that landed in Brown’s glove, which the pair quickly celebrated.

Here’s a full video of the moment, which has a whole lot to unpack.

The skating team was in town for Stars on Ice, a cross-country tour that showcases Team USA’s skaters in the months after the Olympics. Stars on Ice is set to perform at Prudential Center in New Jersey on Friday, hence their presence in the tri-state area.

(New York went on to lose 5-4 to the Nationals — though considering that the Mets have only won three of their last 20 games, it feels difficult to blame Team USA’s appearance.)

The Mets weren’t the only team to have a celebrity first pitch on Thursday: The Pittsburgh Pirates brought out Punxsutawney Phil, the weather-predicting groundhog. Notably, Phil’s pitch (with the help of his human handler) was much cleaner.

Stars on Ice will continue its tour of the Eastern Seaboard this weekend before heading into the Midwest. It is unclear whether the skaters will attempt any more first pitches on those upcoming stops — or if those will go any better than the attempts on Thursday.

While managing the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2013, Don Mattingly oversaw a midseason turnaround that called for a greater escape than the one his Philadelphia Phillies need to make it out of the National League cellar this season.

Two games into his run as the Phillies’ interim manager, there’s optimism that the former Dodgers and Miami Marlins skipper can get a team with the largest payroll in franchise history back on track toward the postseason after Rob Thomson’s firing.

Philadelphia has won back-to-back games for the first time since the first week of April. In Game 1 of a split doubleheader against the San Francisco Giants on Thursday, the Phillies emerged victorious in walk-off fashion.

The 3-2 comeback win was clinched with an infield single from rookie outfielder Justin Crawford, who, according to MLB.com’s Sarah Langs, joined Baseball Hall of Famer Scott Rolen as the second Phillies player in the last 50 years with multiple walk-off RBI at 22 years old or younger.

The Phillies (11-19) entered the ninth inning trailing the Giants (13-17) by one run. Facing a 2-1 deficit, Adolis García reached first on an infield single of his own. He scored on a game-tying Bryson Stott triple down the right-field line.

Soon after, with Stott still on third and two outs, Crawford went the opposite way, sending a ground ball to shortstop. Crawford, a 2022 first-round pick of the Phillies, raced to first and beat the throw, plating Stott in the process.

The Phillies’ lone run before that came in the bottom of the first inning, after the Giants staked themselves to a 2-0 lead in the top half of the frame.

Philadelphia designated hitter Kyle Schwarber lifted a 91-mph cutter from San Francisco starter Logan Webb 406 feet into the second deck of the right-field seats.

With that swing, Schwarber became the ninth active MLB player to hit 350 home runs. It was his 10th big fly of the season and 197th dinger with the Phillies, whom he started playing with during the 2022 campaign.

The Phillies, who took the series opener 7-0 on Tuesday, are making up Wednesday’s rained-out game in Game 2 of Thursday’s doubleheader.

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