Community Picks: San Diego Padres 0% vs Arizona Diamondbacks 0%

Welcome to The Walk Off, the nightly MLB recap from Big League Stew. Here we'll look at the top performers of the night, show you a must-see highlight and rundown the scoreboard. First, we start with a game you need to know about.   Houston Astros outfielder George Springer doesn't seem like the prototypical leadoff hitter, but he's definitely enjoying his time in the role. Springer's two home runs out of the No. 1 spot helped lead the Astros to victory over the Baltimore Orioles on Thursday. [ Join a Yahoo Daily Fantasy Baseball contest now ] Springer wasted no time getting to work. The 26-year-old led off the bottom of the first inning by smashing the second pitch he saw from Kevin Gausman deep to left for a solo home run.  He would strike again in the fifth inning. This time, Springer worked Gausman for an eight-pitch at-bat before clobbering an 85 mph splitter. Springer finished the night 2-for-4, with two runs scored and two RBI in the 4-2 victory . Through 48 games, Springer is hitting .270/.364/.492. Hitting out of the top spot in the lineup is a new development for Springer. He's started the club's last three contests hitting leadoff, with Jose Altuve moving to the second spot in the order. The move could stick, as the Astros have won all three of those games. Following the win, Houston is 20-28 on the year. TOP PERFORMERS Carlos Gonzalez: Gonzalez got the Colorado Rockies offense going in Thursday's 8-2 win over the Boston Red Sox. In the fifth inning, Gonzalez put the Rockies on the board, smacking a two-run shot against Red Sox starter Clay Buchholz. That hit seemed to open the flood gates, as Buchholz would allow four more runs the following inning. Gonzalez finished the game 2-for-4, with one run scored and two RBI. Jose Fernandez: Fernandez turned in a vintage start for the Miami Marlins against the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday. The 23-year-old lasted seven innings, giving up just one run on six hits. Fernandez had some of his best swing-and-miss stuff, striking out 12 Rays during the contest. The Marlins offense did their part, scoring nine runs of support for their ace in the 9-1 victory . The Marlins have now won Fernandez's last six starts. [Elsewhere: Jackie Bradley Jr.'s hitting streak was snapped at 29 games ] Gerrit Cole: Cole had just an average start on the mound for the Pittsburgh Pirates during the club's 8-3 win over the Arizona Diamondbacks on Thursday, but his all-around contributions stood out. Cole lasted five innings, giving up one unearned run on seven hits. His performance at the plate is what set him apart. Cole went 2-for-2 during the contest, including a three-run homer in the second inning that put the Pirates ahead early.  MUST-SEE HIGHLIGHT Bryce Harper has been in a bit of a slump in May. Prior to Thursday's game, he was hitting .194 during the month. If he was frustrated by his recent performance, Harper seemed to take out all his aggression on a baseball during Thursday's contest.  In the sixth inning, Harper channeled all that anger into one swing , sending a ball to the third deck in right field at Nationals Park. The ball traveled 434 feet officially, but it certainly seemed like a lot more to anyone watching. The hit lifted the Nationals over the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2-1 win . THE REST OF THE SCOREBOARD   Blue Jays 3, Yankees 1: J.A. Happ held New York to just one run on three hits over seven innings. Roberto Osuna worked a scoreless ninth for the save, and hasn't allowed a run in 12 2/3 innings. Brewers 6, Braves 2: Ryan Braun hit his second home run in as many days as the Brewers completed a sweep of the Braves. White Sox, Royals: PPD: This game was postponed. A makeup date has not been determined at this time. More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports:   - - - - - - - Chris Cwik is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at christophercwik@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @Chris_Cwik Continue to Article

May 27, 2016 1:40:am EST

Max Scherzer doesn't care how many batters he strikes out or how dominant he looks on the mound. The St. Louis Cardinals realized last month how effective he can be when he's in a groove. Scherzer seeks a fourth consecutive solid start as the Washington Nationals continue their four-game series with the visiting Cardinals on Friday night. Continue to Article

May 26, 2016 10:19:pm EST

Max Scherzer doesn't care how many batters he strikes out or how dominant he looks on the mound. The St. Louis Cardinals realized last month how effective he can be when he's in a groove. Scherzer seeks a fourth consecutive solid start as the Washington Nationals continue their four-game series with the visiting Cardinals on Friday night. Continue to Article

May 26, 2016 10:19:pm EST

  Arizona Diamondbacks Chief Baseball Officer Tony La Russa hasn’t managed a baseball game in more than four seasons, but he’s still willing to go to extraordinary lengths to defend his record in the job. La Russa entered the broadcast booth of the Pittsburgh Pirates television crew Tuesday during a game at PNC Park after hearing broadcaster Greg Brown characterize him as being a manager who always believed in retaliating for players being hit with pitches. The topic was discussed during the broadcast because Pittsburgh pitcher Arquimedes Caminero had hit Arizona players Nick Ahmed and Jean Segura with pitches earlier in the game. [Elsewhere: Is Wade Boggs throwing shade at Red Sox with Yankees ring? ] Brown described the confrontation during the broadcast. He said he purposely moved out of sight of cameras while arguing with La Russa in an effort to try to keep the disagreement between them. He said he had no plans to revisit the incident after it was over until he read comments from La Russa about it in an Arizona newspaper on Thursday. Here is how La Russa explained his decision to enter the broadcast booth and confront Brown to the Arizona Republic newspaper . "I never have stood for inaccuracies,” La Russa said, “so I corrected the inaccuracies. "It’s about taking responsibility. If you’re going to speak untruths then you’re going to get challenged and you should be responsible for what you say. I am. I reacted." [Elsewhere: Derek Jeter wants to own a team and help baseball grow ] Brown bristled at the suggestion that something he said in his orginal characterization of La Russa's history was inaccurate. He said the fact that La Russa chose to speak about it led to him needing to explain his side of things during Thursday's broadcast. "Well, now I react. I didn’t speak any untruths. I spoke completely accurately, and I’ll stand by every word I said. Again, I didn’t want it to get to this point. I don’t want to get in any more squabbles, but I need to tell my side of the story. And that’s that." It seems extremely thin-skinned and amateurish of La Russa to invade the broadcast booth of an opposing team on the road to refute comments being made about his record as a manager and how that approach might be currently affecting the thinking of the Arizona organization. First and foremost, the broadcasters work for the Pirates and are free to share their opinions on all things related to the game and the people and personalities on both sides. Brown could have been much harsher in his assessment of La Russa and his history and how he was perceived in baseball. Brown's comments weren't intended insults or shots at La Russa. La Russa may not agree with what he heard, but there is a time and place to address that with the broadcaster or journalist involved and disrupting the broadcast is not the time for it. It's simply unprofessional. If Brown had a bone to pick with La Russa, do you think La Russa would be OK with him choosing to walk into, say, a scouting meeting and make his points? Of course not. You have to wonder how La Russa would have handled the situation if it was Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully reminding his audience of La Russa's history. It's doubtful he would have handled it the same way. More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports: - - - - - - - Kyle Ringo is a contributing writer to Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at kyle.ringo@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo Continue to Article

May 26, 2016 7:49:pm EST

  Arizona Diamondbacks Chief Baseball Officer Tony La Russa hasn’t managed a baseball game in more than four seasons, but he’s still willing to go to extraordinary lengths to defend his record in the job. La Russa entered the broadcast booth of the Pittsburgh Pirates television crew Tuesday during a game at PNC Park after hearing broadcaster Greg Brown characterize him as being a manager who always believed in retaliating for players being hit with pitches. The topic was discussed during the broadcast because Pittsburgh pitcher Arquimedes Caminero had hit Arizona players Nick Ahmed and Jean Segura with pitches earlier in the game. [Elsewhere: Is Wade Boggs throwing shade at Red Sox with Yankees ring? ] Brown described the confrontation during the broadcast. He said he purposely moved out of sight of cameras while arguing with La Russa in an effort to try to keep the disagreement between them. He said he had no plans to revisit the incident after it was over until he read comments from La Russa about it in an Arizona newspaper on Thursday. Here is how La Russa explained his decision to enter the broadcast booth and confront Brown to the Arizona Republic newspaper . "I never have stood for inaccuracies,” La Russa said, “so I corrected the inaccuracies. "It’s about taking responsibility. If you’re going to speak untruths then you’re going to get challenged and you should be responsible for what you say. I am. I reacted." [Elsewhere: Derek Jeter wants to own a team and help baseball grow ] Brown bristled at the suggestion that something he said in his orginal characterization of La Russa's history was inaccurate. He said the fact that La Russa chose to speak about it led to him needing to explain his side of things during Thursday's broadcast. "Well, now I react. I didn’t speak any untruths. I spoke completely accurately, and I’ll stand by every word I said. Again, I didn’t want it to get to this point. I don’t want to get in any more squabbles, but I need to tell my side of the story. And that’s that." It seems extremely thin-skinned and amateurish of La Russa to invade the broadcast booth of an opposing team on the road to refute comments being made about his record as a manager and how that approach might be currently affecting the thinking of the Arizona organization. First and foremost, the broadcasters work for the Pirates and are free to share their opinions on all things related to the game and the people and personalities on both sides. Brown could have been much harsher in his assessment of La Russa and his history and how he was perceived in baseball. Brown's comments weren't intended insults or shots at La Russa. La Russa may not agree with what he heard, but there is a time and place to address that with the broadcaster or journalist involved and disrupting the broadcast is not the time for it. It's simply unprofessional. If Brown had a bone to pick with La Russa, do you think La Russa would be OK with him choosing to walk into, say, a scouting meeting and make his points? Of course not. You have to wonder how La Russa would have handled the situation if it was Los Angeles Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully reminding his audience of La Russa's history. It's doubtful he would have handled it the same way. More MLB coverage from Yahoo Sports: - - - - - - - Kyle Ringo is a contributing writer to Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at kyle.ringo@yahoo.com or follow him on Twitter! Follow @KyleRingo Continue to Article

May 26, 2016 7:49:pm EST