RJ Hamster
The fan who’s been to 10,000 baseball games
Tuesday, May 05
Welcome to The Pregame Lineup, a weekday newsletter that gets you up to speed on everything you need to know for today’s games, while catching you up on fun and interesting stories you might have missed. Today’s edition is brought to you by David Adler.
Imagine going to 10,000 baseball games. It seems impossible, right? Ten thousand games.
If you went to 162 games a season — every game for one MLB team — it would take you almost 62 years to get to 10,000. If you went to a mere 81 games a season — “just” every home game — it would take you over 123 years.
But somehow one Mets superfan has done it.
On April 26, “King” Mike Casiano attended his 10,000th professional baseball game — the first game of a doubleheader between the Mets and Rockies at Citi Field.
Our Matt Monagan talked to Casiano about his incredible, decades-long journey to 10,000. It’s truly unbelievable.
Casiano went to his first game on May 26, 1963, when his dad took him to Yankee Stadium at 10 years old.
He started attending games regularly in the late ’70s, and by the early ’80s, he was going to over 100 games a year. Since 1989, he’s been going to over 200 a year.
How in the world does one man hit those numbers? A lot of doubleheaders, road trips, multi-city game days, Minor League ballparks and more.
Casiano has seen 13 no-hitters during his quest. He’s seen games in Tokyo, London, Puerto Rico, Mexico and Australia. His favorite stadiums are Wrigley Field and Fenway Park, as well as the old Tiger Stadium, PNC Park, Oracle Park and the old Comiskey Park.
His favorite games he’s ever attended are, of course, Games 6 and 7 of the 1986 World Series, when the Mets defeated the Red Sox in one of the greatest Fall Classics of all time.
And there’s so much more to Casiano’s story. Read it all here.
WE MIGHT HAVE A NEW CY YOUNG FAVORITE
Yesterday’s news of Tarik Skubal’s surgeryinstantly turned the American League Cy Young race on its head.
So who’s the favorite now? Without the guy who’s dominated the league for the last two years, it’s anyone’s award.
Well, in the hours after Skubal left a power vacuum in the AL, the Yankees’ rising star stepped in to make his Cy Young case.
Cam Schlittler threw 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball to beat the Orioles at Yankee Stadium, and he’s just on a heck of a run. The 25-year-old flamethrower leads the American League with five wins and a 1.52 ERA, and he’s tied for third with 53 strikeouts, just a few behind league leader Dylan Cease (56).
Schlittler even dialed up the six fastest pitches of his young career last night. He topped out at 101.3 mph, which is half a tick harder than his previous career-high velo of 100.8 mph from last year’s Wild Card Game gem against the Red Sox.
Heck, with numbers like that, Schlittler’s not just on Cy Young watch, he’s on Triple Crown watch.
Other AL Cy Young contenders like Cease, José Soriano, Jacob deGrom and even Schlittler’s own teammate Max Fried might have something to say about that. But just watch out for this kid.
GAMES OF THE NIGHT
We’ve got the Phillies on a heater, deGrom in New York and Ohtani on the mound in tonight’s trio of must-watch games. For info on how to watch every game this season, go to MLB.com/Watch.
A’s at Phillies (6:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV)
The Phils are 6-1 under Don Mattingly, and not only do they have ace Cristopher Sánchez going in the series opener against the A’s, they’re also getting closer Jhoan Duran back.
Rangers at Yankees (7:05 p.m. ET, MLB.TV)
Jacob deGrom vs. the Yankees is always a treat. This is deGrom’s second start in a row against the Bronx Bombers, and he was awesome in the last one in Texas — but was outdueled by Schlittler. We’ll see what he can do in Round 2 at Yankee Stadium opposite Yanks prospect Elmer Rodríguez, who’s making his second MLB start.
Dodgers at Astros (8:10 p.m. ET, TBS/MLB.TV)
The One-Way Ohtani experiment continues, as Shohei will pitch but not hit once againagainst the ‘Stros. Ohtani, who just won his first career Pitcher of the Month Award, takes a 0.60 ERA into tonight’s start.
AROUND THE LEAGUE
The biggest stories around the league today include the Murakami-Judge home run race, a touching tribute by the Yanks, Jackson Chourio’s season debut and more.
• Murakami and Judge trade punches
Just after Aaron Judge retook the MLB home run lead with his 14th of the season, Munetaka Murakami equaled him yet again with his own 14th home run. The early-season home run race between the reigning AL MVP and the former Japanese league MVP has been thrilling to watch.
And for all the questions about whether Murakami would be able to hit high velocity in the Majors … well, his latest home run was off a 98.1 mph fastball from Angels ace José Soriano. And that’s Murakami’s second homer off a 98-plus mph heater this season. He’s the only hitter in MLB with more than one.
• Theeee Yankees win!
The Yankees paid tribute to the late, great John Sterling, who passed away yesterday, in a series-sweeping win at Yankee Stadium. When Judge hit his 14th homer, Michael Kay borrowed one of Sterling’s trademark home run calls on the TV broadcast: “It is high, it is far, it is gone! Aaron Judge, a Judgian blast! Here comes the Judge!” And after the final out of the game, the Yanks played a recording of Sterling’s signature “Yankees win, theeee Yankees win!” call.
Other broadcast booths around baseball also joined in and mirrored Sterling’s iconic calls.
• Chourio’s electric debut
Brewers star Jackson Chourio erupted for four hits in his 2026 season debut, and they were all smoked: a 108.3 mph double in the first inning, a 102.8 mph single in the third, a 105.7 mph single in the fifth and a 109.2 mph double in the ninth. The 22-year-old had been on the injured list since Opening Day due to a fracture in his left hand that he suffered while playing for Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic.
• Olson hits No. 300
Matt Olson hit his 300th career home runyesterday, as the Braves slugger went deep off Mariners ace Logan Gilbert. But is the 400-home run club in reach for Olson? Is the 500-homer club?
• Benge breakout incoming?
Mets top prospect Carson Benge has looked a lot better at the plate lately — and in the field, with his pulchritudinous catches. The 23-year-old had another home run and diving catch yesterday in the Mets’ win over the Rockies, and Benge is hitting .303 with a .906 OPS over his last 11 games.
• Fly the W a dozen times
The Cubs have now won six games in a row — and 12 games in a row at Wrigley Field — thanks to Michael Conforto’s pinch-hit, walk-off home run last night against the Reds. The Cubs have taken over first place in the NL Central, and their win streak at Wrigley is their longest since a 14-gamer in 2008. (The team record at the Friendly Confines is 18 straight wins back in 1935.)
USE THE FORCE, LUKE
Yesterday was Star Wars Day (May the 4th … be with you). And while a lot of teams celebrated with Star Wars-themed promotions, there was also this fun nugget: Luke hit a home run.
Not Skywalker. Raley.
The Mariners slugger used the Force to hit a clutch three-run homer in Seattle’s comeback win over the Braves.
Ironically, home runs by players named “Luke” are pretty rare on Star Wars Day. Only three Lukes on record have homered on May 4. But we have gotten Luke home runs two years in a row!
- Luke Raley (Mariners) — May 4, 2026
- Luke Maile (Royals) — May 4, 2025
- Luke Appling (White Sox) — May 4, 1947
Now we’ll get back to you when there’s a home run by a “Han Solo” …
BEAT THE STREAK
Can you Beat the Streak? Try to top Joe DiMaggio’s record hitting streak of 56 games by selecting a player each day to record a hit. If you get to 57, you can win $5.6 million. Plus, there’s a chance to win unique weekly prizes.
Seiya Suzuki has been raking, particularly against lefties, and he gets a struggling one tonight in the Reds’ Andrew Abbott. Abbott has a 5.97 ERA and has allowed at least five hits in every start this season without a ton of strikeouts.
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