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Nationals right-hander Mason Thompson will undergo Tommy John surgery on Friday, with Mark Zuckerman of MASNsports.com among those to relay the news.
As noted by Zuckerman, this will be the second time the righty will be undergoing the procedure, with the first occurring when he was a high schooler.
A couple of weeks ago, it was reported that Thompson would be shut down due to an elbow injury. At that time, manager Dave Martinez confessed that the team was “a little concerned,” so they likely had some inkling that today’s news was possible.
It’s undoubtedly a frustrating setback for both Thompson and the team. The now-26-year-old came over to the Nationals from the Padres in the 2021 Daniel Hudson trade and now has 106 games of MLB experience under his belt between those two clubs.
He has logged 103 1/3 innings, allowing 4.53 earned runs per nine. His 17.7 percent strikeout rate and 10 percent walk rate are both subpar, but his 51.1 percent ground ball rate is quite strong.
The Nats are rebuilding and will likely have plenty of innings available for young pitchers this year, allowing them to continue to develop while showcasing their abilities to the league.
Unfortunately, Thompson won’t be able to take advantage of that opportunity. Since Tommy John rehab generally takes over a year, he’ll miss the entire 2024 season and perhaps the early portions of 2025 as well.
The club will have to pivot to other options with Thompson no longer in the mix for this year’s bullpen innings. They have given minor league deals to various veterans such as Derek Law, Matt Barnes, Richard Bleier, Luis Perdomo and Jacob Barnes.
The Nats will likely transfer Thompson to the 60-day injured list once they need his roster spot. If that comes to pass, he’ll spend the whole year there, receiving major league pay and service time.
He would cross three years of service in that scenario and qualify for arbitration next winter, though missing the entire year will make him unlikely to receive a substantial raise.
The Nats could also designate him for assignment, but injured players can’t be put on outright waivers, meaning he’d have to be put on release waivers. They could then try to re-sign him to a minor league deal, but Thompson would be free to explore opportunities with other clubs.
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Keith Hernandez roasts Astros with trash can joke
New York Mets broadcaster Keith Hernandez is never going to let the Houston Astros live down their 2017 cheating scandal. Hernandez made a crack about the 2017 Astros during Sunday’s game between the Mets and Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wi. One fan in attendance was dressed up in an Oscar the Grouch costume, complete with a trash can lid on his head. Hernandez did not miss the opportunity to take a shot at the Astros, who infamously used trash cans to relay pitches to their hitters in 2017. “Where’s the rest of the trash can? Is he giving signs?” Hernandez joked. It has been eight years since the Astros used the trash cans, and roughly five-and-a-half years since it became public knowledge. Very few members of that 2017 team are still part of the Houston roster. Plus, the Astros were not even playing in this game. In spite of all that, the franchise itself will never live the sign-stealing down. That keeps getting proven over and over again. Hernandez is not exactly one to pull punches. It’s not exactly a shock that he is the one making a comment like this.
Rasmus Andersson Turns Down Huge Long-Term Offer from an NHL Team
Calgary Flames defenseman Rasmus Andersson is entering the final year of his six-year, $4.55 million AAV contract, and uncertainty surrounds his future. Speaking with Sweden’s Expressen, Andersson shot down false rumors about where he’s willing to go, and revealed he turned down a lucrative long-term offer from another NHL team. All of this took place roughly six weeks ago, says the blueliner. He cited family reasons as to why he’s being particular about his next move. Still, as picky as he might be, rumors he’s only willing to go to Vegas are not true. “But I have not given Calgary a team, that I only want to play with one team,” he said. “That is not true…” He did get an offer from another team, likely not the Golden Knights. “I wasn’t keen on moving my family there and signing a long-term contract,” Andersson explained, adding that he provided the Flames with a list of teams he’d consider signing with if traded. However, the team that offered him a deal wasn’t on that list. He explained, “I communicated that decision to Calgary. I said if you want to trade me, this is the number of teams I can think of signing for. But this wasn’t one of them.” The Flames and Andersson Aren’t Talking Any Longer Talks with Calgary have since gone silent. Speculation is that he’s not heard about a trade option or extension in over a month. Whether the Flames have stopped looking for now, or teams haven’t lined up with trade offers, it sounds like nothing is imminent. All that said, Andersson is expected to draw significant trade interest before the 2026 deadline if an extension isn’t reached. His situation will be one of Calgary’s most closely watched storylines this season.
Standout performances from Week 1 of NFL preseason: Rookie, backup QBs shine
The first week of the 2025 NFL preseason is officially in the books. Even though the games and results do not matter, there is still reason to pay attention to standout performances from around the league. Here are some of the best from this week's games. TreVeyon Henderson, RB, New England Patriots The Patriots need some game-changers on offense, and they may have found one in second-round pick TreVeyon Henderson. Henderson put on an immediate show in the Patriots' preseason opener, returning the opening kickoff 100 yards for a touchdown, rushing for 18 yards on his only carry and catching three passes. Skylar Thompson, QB, Pittsburgh Steelers Thompson is not likely to make the Steelers roster, but that doesn't mean he can't find a spot on another team. Especially if he puts together a strong preseason performance. He did exactly that on Saturday night against the Jacksonville Jaguars, completing 20-of-28 passes for 233 yards and three touchdowns. With Aaron Rodgers unlikely to play in the preseason and Will Howard injured, Thompson should get plenty of reps to audition for other teams. Tanner McKee, QB, Philadelphia Eagles Following the offseason trade of Kenny Pickett, McKee is now pretty much cemented in as the Eagles' backup, and he had to give them a lot of confidence in his ability following his preseason performance against the Bengals. McKee torched the Bengals defense to the tune of 20-of-25 passing for 252 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. It is a nice continuation for McKee following his promising debut a year ago when he threw for 323 yards, four touchdowns and zero interceptions in his two appearances. Blake Corum, RB, Los Angeles Rams The Rams already have a starting running back in Kyren Williams, but there is nothing wrong with having a second productive player at the position. Corum didn't make the expected impact in his rookie season, but he had a promising preseason debut this year with two touchdowns in the first quarter against the Dallas Cowboys. Rookie quarterbacks Cleveland's Shedeur Sanders got the week off to a promising start by throwing two touchdowns against Carolina, taking a big step forward in his quest to win the team's starting quarterback job and to silence the critics following his slide in the draft. Jaxson Dart, one of the Giants' first-round picks, also had a strong showing by going 12-of-19 with 154 yards and a very impressive touchdown pass. Tennessee Titans rookie quarterback Cam Ward, the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, also had a strong debut by leading a touchdown drive and developing an instant connection with veteran wide receiver Calvin Ridley. Abdul Carter, DE, New York Giants Carter did not play a ton of snaps for the Giants, but he was a force when he did play. He recorded a quarterback pressure on all three of his pass-rush snaps and showed the type of quickness and speed that made him one of the best players in the 2025 NFL Draft class. Cam Little, K, Jacksonville Jaguars Look, when you kick a 70-yard field goal, you deserve to get some added recognition, whether it counts as an official league record or not. Little made all four field goal attempts, as well as an extra point, in the Jaguars' preseason debut.
Kevin Durant Takes Subtle Shot At Stephen Curry; Reveals Why Warriors Fans Hate Him: 'They Will Never Recover'
Kevin Durant typically has no filter when interacting with fans online. But this time, while answering fan questions on X, Durant inadvertently ended up taking a shot at Stephen Curry. When a fan asked him why he thinks Warriors fans hate him, he seemingly pointed at Curry's fans. "Them finals MVPs, they will never recover," said Durant in response. One of the biggest debates for Stephen Curry's legacy had been that until 2022, he hadn't won a Finals MVP award despite winning three NBA championships before that. In 2015, Andre Iguodala received the Finals MVP award instead of Curry, and in 2017 and 2018, Kevin Durant was awarded the Finals MVP, and not Curry. Therefore, Durant seems to believe that since he won two Finals MVPs over Curry, loyal Warriors fans who love Curry started criticizing Durant. This planted the seed that developed into Warriors fans disliking Durant, despite him winning two titles with them. Let's take a look at Durant and Curry's performance in 2017 and 2018 to see if Durant was really better than Curry in those two seasons' Finals runs against the Cavaliers. In the 2017 NBA Finals, Durant averaged 35.2 points, 8.2 rebounds, and 5.4 assists in five games played. He shot 55.6% from the floor and 47.4% from beyond the three-point line. In the same year, Curry averaged 26.8 points, 9.4 assists, and 8.0 rebounds while shooting 44% from the field and 38.8% from beyond the arc. In the 2018 NBA Finals, Durant averaged 28.8 points, 10.8 rebounds, and 7.5 assists as the Warriors swept the Cavaliers. He shot 52.6% from the field and 40.9% from beyond the three-point arc. Meanwhile, Curry averaged 27.5 points, 6.8 assists, and 6.0 rebounds while shooting 40.2% from the field and 41.5% from beyond the three-point line. In both seasons, it is evidently clear that Durant contributed a lot more than Curry in almost every aspect and hence was justified in being awarded the two Finals MVP awards. However, since Curry ended up not winning the Finals MVP award in four consecutive visits to the NBA Finals from 2015 to 2018, his fans unfairly blamed Kevin Durant for stealing the award from him. Curry and Durant have a lot of mutual respect, but his fans evidently drove Durant out of the Warriors. According to NBA Insider Marc Spears, the Warriors fans regularly gave Curry MVP chants, and that did not sit right with Durant until very late with the Warriors. Spears hinted that these chants made Durant feel like Warriors fans did not fully embrace him. If Warriors fans did not criticize Durant as much as they did, maybe Durant could have made a return to the Warriors now instead of joining the Rockets? The world of possibilities and "what-ifs" here is endless.
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