AROUND THE HORN
Tigers, Guardians:
The threat of thunderstorms and an ominous forecast postponed Saturday’s game between the Tigers and Guardians more than three hours before the first pitch. This is the fifth weather postponement for the Guardians at home this season.
Yankees: White Sox star shortstop Tim Anderson accused Yankees slugger Josh Donaldson of making a racist remark by calling him Jackie Robinson during Saturday’s game against New York. “He just made a, you know, disrespectful comment,” said Anderson, who is Black, “Basically, it was trying to call me Jackie Robinson. Like, ‘What’s up, Jackie?’” “I don’t think it was called for,” Anderson added after the Yankees’ 7-5 win at Yankee Stadium. Major League Baseball is investigating the incident and speaking to those involved. Anderson, an All-Star who is among the leading Black voices in baseball, told Sports Illustrated in 2019: “I kind of feel like today’s Jackie Robinson ... because he changed the game, and I feel like I’m getting to a point to where I need to change the game.” Donaldson said that in the first inning, “I called him Jackie.” The white ballplayer also said he has “joked around” with Anderson in the past using the same reference and mentioned the 2019 Sports Illustrated interview. Robinson broke the MLB color barrier in 1947. Every team in the big leagues has retired his No. 42 to honor Robinson.
Phillies: Bryce Harper returned to the Phillies lineup as the designated hitter on Saturday after he missed the previous five games because of soreness from a platelet-rich plasma injection in his right elbow. The reigning NL MVP hit third for the Phillies against the Dodgers and right-hander Mitch White. The 29-year-old Harper is batting .305 with nine home runs, 14 doubles, 27 RBIs and a .634 slugging percentage. He has been playing exclusively at designated hitter since injuring his arm on a throw from right field last month. He last played the field at Miami on April 16. “The last couple of days were tough for me,” Harper said before the game. “Woke up yesterday feeling good and today feeling better, as well.”
Mets: The Mets on Saturday placed pitcher Max Scherzer on the 15-day injured list with a left oblique strain. The move is retroactive to Thursday. Scherzer left his start on Wednesday night after experiencing tightness in his side. An MRI performed Thursday revealed a moderate to high-grade internal oblique strain, according to the Mets. Scherzer is expected to be out six to
eight weeks. It is another blow to the Mets’ rotation. Ace Jacob deGrom has not pitched yet due to a stress reaction in his right scapula, and Tylor Megill is on the IL with right biceps tendinitis.
Blue Jays: Bo Bichette hit two home runs, pitcher Alek Manoah matched his careerhigh with eight innings, and the Blue Jays beat the Reds 3-1 on Saturday. Bichette’s first was solo home run off Reds right-hander Hunter Greene in the fourth, No. 50 of Bichette’s career, and added a two-run blast off Luis Cessa (2-1) in the seventh. All six home runs this season have tied the game or given the Blue Jays the lead. Greene allowed one run and four hits in six innings, walking two and striking out six. Manoah allowed one run and seven hits to snap a three-start winless streak