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Sean Manaea’s first rehab start with High-A Brooklyn was far from smooth sailing, but it was an important step forward as he works toward a return to the New York Mets.
Friday’s outing in Wilmington marked Manaea’s first game action since suffering a right oblique strain early in spring training, which ultimately landed him on the 60-day injured list. After striking out the leadoff batter on four pitches, he gave up back-to-back singles and plunked the cleanup hitter to load the bases.
With two outs, Wilmington's T.J. White singled on a grounder to shortstop Marco Vargas, clearing the bases after a throwing error allowed the runner from first to score. The following batter drove in White for the fourth run of the inning before Manaea ended the 26-pitch frame with a strikeout.
The left-hander finished the night with four runs allowed (three earned) on four hits over 1.2 innings, recording two strikeouts and no walks. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza had said the plan was for Manaea to get two “ups” and throw around 35 pitches; he was ultimately pulled after 36.
Sean Manaea's rehab outing for Brooklyn is complete.
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) June 6, 2025
Final line: 1.2 IP, 4 H, 4 R (3 ER), 0 BB, 2 K, 36 pitches (26 strikes)
He also hit a batter and 2 fielding errors were made behind him pic.twitter.com/mkpYKavdFp
Manaea, 33, reinvented himself in Queens after signing a “prove-it” deal in January 2024, increasing his sinker/sweeper usage and revamping his arm angle. The veteran southpaw emerged as the team’s ace, posting a 12–6 record and 3.47 ERA over a career-high 181.2 innings, with a 24.9% strikeout rate and 8.5% walk rate.
Sean Manaea revamped his delivery to throw from a lower arm angle.
— MLB (@MLB) October 14, 2024
It seems to be working pic.twitter.com/TR49LsfJYu
Though Manaea ran out of gas in the Mets’ NLCS Game 6 loss, he allowed just five runs over 17 innings in his first three postseason starts (2.65 ERA). A month after exercising his opt-out clause, the Mets re-signed him to a partially deferred three-year, $75 million contract—making him the highest-paid starter on the team.
Read More: Mets’ Edwin Díaz pokes fun at brother about potential NLCS matchup
Despite opening the season without Manaea and offseason addition Frankie Montas, the Mets’ rotation has been among the best in baseball. As of Saturday morning, their starters rank first in MLB with a 2.86 ERA.
Manaea will need several more rehab starts to build up to 90-plus pitches before the Mets consider activating him. In the meantime, they have plenty of depth to rely on with Kodai Senga, Clay Holmes, David Peterson, Griffin Canning, Tylor Megill, and Paul Blackburn. Montas could also return soon.
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Tigers Skipper Reveals 'Very Concerning' Initial Injury Update On Colt Keith
Things are not looking great for the Detroit Tigers right now in more ways than one. They are struggling on the field by dropping seven of their last 10 that includes a sweep against their division rival Cleveland Guardians. Their once comfortable AL Central lead is now down to 3.5 games, which is nerve-wracking based on what else occurred on Thursday. As if this sweep wasn't enough, the Tigers delivered some brutal news when it comes to Colt Keith. He was pulled from the matchup with what was described as back tightness, and based on what manager A.J. Hinch said after the game, it doesn't sound good. "He was coming off and all he was saying to me was, 'I got to come out of the game. I got to come out of the game,'" Hinch said via Cody Stavenhagen of The Athletic. "It's very concerning this time of year, especially when he was that passionate about something going on in his back/side/rib region." By the sounds of it, things appear as if Keith's season is in jeopardy with just nine games remaining before the playoffs get underway. The 24-year-old had slashed .254/.332/.409 with 13 home runs and 44 RBI through 136 games going into Thursday, showing some real flashes of brilliance at times. If he is indeed out, the Tigers have a couple of options, but none of them are ideal. Back To Platooning Zach McKinstry and Andy Ibáñez Detroit went into the season with a major question mark at the hot corner. Their inability to sign Alex Bregman in free agency and then the injury suffered by utility man Matt Vierling has been a major reason why there's been a revolving door at third base. Because of that, outside of Keith, Zach McKinstry and Andy Ibáñez are the only two players with over 100 plate appearances at that position. The Tigers will likely now have to back to platooning with those two players, which is far from ideal. The pair has been prone to extreme streakiness, but this strategy is probably still the safest and most likely option. Jace Jung Jung was supposed to be the heir apparent to the position after Detroit missed out on Bregman, but he did not seize his opportunity. He was largely dreadful when he did get the chance to play, which forced the Tigers to send him back to Triple-A Toledo. He has had a solid season in Triple-A, though, slashing .252/.370/.447 with 17 home runs and 74 RBI in 110 games played. But in 18 games for Detroit, his OPS was right around the .350 mark and he simply could not get going. Jung has struggled in his limited big league opportunities, but the Tigers may not have much other choice than to give him another shot with Keith picking up this injury. Kevin McGonigle Admittedly, this one is a complete long shot. The Tigers have said repeatedly that McGonigle is not getting called up this year, so asking him to make his debut in the midst of a tight divisional race before the playoffs get underway is unlikely. Desperate times call for desperate measures, though, and the fanbase is going to clamor for their top prospect to be called up in order to save the day. No matter who the replacement winds up being, the fact that Keith is going to miss some time could be the final blow to a team who has fought through tons of adversity this year but may just be running out of steam at the worst possible point. The next move is to wait and see on just how significant the injury is for Keith, but if it's serious, it would likely spell the end of his season. More Tigers News
Reporter offers theory on why Kirk Cousins has not been traded
There have been multiple injuries to starting quarterbacks through the first two weeks of the NFL season, which has led to speculation that the Atlanta Falcons might finally trade Kirk Cousins. It does not sound like that is close to happening. Ian Rapoport of NFL Media reported on Thursday that no teams have reached out to the Falcons about trading for Cousins despite injuries to Cincinnati Bengals' Joe Burrow, San Francisco 49ers' Brock Purdy, Minnesota Vikings' J.J. McCarthy, New York Jets' Justin Fields and Washington Commanders' Jayden Daniels. Cousins was once considered the type of player who would generate buzz if a team's starting QB were to go down. So why hasn't it happened? According to Rapoport, the Falcons have no real incentive to trade Cousins. Cutting the 37-year-old never made sense, as Atlanta has to pay Cousins anyway, hence why the asking price has not dropped significantly. "He is a proven starting quarterback who happens to be the backup quarterback. If Michael Penix gets hurt, Cousins will step in there," Rapoport said. "That allows the Falcons to drive a very, very hard bargain. In other words, if you're going to trade for Kirk Cousins, if you're a team that says, 'Alright, we gotta have this guy,' you're gonna have to pay some of the salary and you're gonna have to give up a real draft pick. That is the luxury the Falcons have. "If they've got to keep him, they can just keep him because he's an excellent, excellent backup quarterback. Perhaps that is why we have not seen a deal yet, but every time there is a real, long-term quarterback injury, we're gonna have the same conversation this season." Kirk Cousins was benched for poor play in 2024 Cousins lost his job to Michael Penix Jr. midway through the 2024 season. The four-time Pro Bowl quarterback got off to a decent start in his first season with Atlanta, but then played poorly for a stretch. Cousins finished with 3,508 yards, 18 touchdown passes and a career-worst 16 interceptions. There were numerous trade rumors involving Cousins during the offseason, but nothing materialized. That is mainly because he is only in the second year of a four-year, $180M contract. The Falcons do not seem eager to eat much of that salary in a trade, unless a team were willing to make it worth their while with draft-pick compensation. A desperate team could still want Kirk Cousins The Bengals are bracing for a lengthy absence for Burrow, who could potentially miss the remainder of the season. The other quarterbacks who have gotten hurt are not expected to be sidelined for very long. It is possible that teams aren't desperate enough this early in the season to give up assets for Cousins. There also seems to be a belief among some that Cousins' skills have declined, which makes it tougher for the Falcons to ask for much in a potential deal.
Packers Get Good News Regarding TE Tucker Kraft’s Knee Injury
Adam Schefter of ESPN reports that Packers TE Tucker Kraft had “a little scare but all good” regarding the knee injury he suffered during Thursday’s practice squad. “I think he will be OK,” Schefter’s source added. The Packers were optimistic that Kraft’s knee injury wasn’t a season-threatening issue, but they had to get tests run before saying for certain. It’s still unclear whether he will be able to play in Week 3. Kraft, 24, was a two-year starter for South Dakota State and earned first-team All-American honors in 2021 and third-team in 2022. The Packers selected him in the third round with the No. 78 overall pick of the 2023 NFL Draft. He’s in the third year of a four-year, $5,537,934 rookie contract that included a $1,027,588 signing bonus. In 2025, Kraft has appeared in two games for the Packers and caught eight passes for 140 yards and two touchdowns.
Colts defender's backhanded compliment is actually a warning for Titans rookie QB Cam Ward
Indianapolis Colts linebacker Zaire Franklin has been doing his film study ahead of Sunday's game against the Tennessee Titans, and it sounds like he is looking forward to facing rookie quarterback Cam Ward. Ward threw the first touchdown pass of his NFL career in Tennessee's 33-19 loss to the Los Angeles Rams in Week 2. He showed off both his athleticism and arm strength while rolling out to his right and throwing the ball back across his body into the end zone. The end result was a nine-yard touchdown pass to Elic Ayomanor, but the ball probably traveled more like 40-50 yards in the air. Franklin was asked on Wednesday about the impressive throw. He praised the former Miami star for his physical talents but said he hopes Ward tries to make a throw across his body like that against Indy. "I hope he throws that play again. It wasn't a good throw, but he's a talented player," Franklin said. "He can make all those throws. His arm angle, obviously, is exceptional. He's got zip on the ball. Like I said, he's the No. 1 overall pick for a reason. "I was a fan of him in college. When you know you got a guy like that that's able to make plays, you just gotta make sure you stay on your assignments. But hopefully he throws that ball again." Ward has had mixed results early on Through his first two NFL two games, Ward has completed just 50.8% of his passes for 287 yards and a touchdown. He has yet to throw an interception, which is a positive sign. Ward also played a bit better in Week 2 against the Rams than he did in Week 1 against the Denver Broncos, when he completed 12 of 28 passes for 112 yards. One of the most difficult things for a rookie quarterback to do in the NFL is protect the ball. Ward's touchdown pass to Ayomanor was a sight to behold, but Franklin is right that it is the type of throw that can lead to disaster in the NFL. Tennessee's coaching staff will do their best to make sure Ward does not have to rely on making plays like that.
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