A scheduling coincidence will ensure that either the New York Mets or Los Angeles Angels will win on Friday night.

Good thing, because both teams need all the help they can get.

The Mets will begin a nine-game road trip Friday by visiting the Angels in Anaheim, Calif., in an interleague matchup between two struggling teams.

Christian Scott (0-0, 6.75 ERA) is slated to start for New York against fellow right-hander Walbert Urena (0-3, 4.76).

The Angels were off Thursday after sustaining their sixth straight loss Wednesday with a 3-2 setback in 10 innings to the Chicago White Sox.

The Mets headed west after closing a discouraging homestand Thursday with a 5-4 loss to the Washington Nationals. New York lost six of nine games on the homestand and have lost 17 of their last 20 games overall to fall to a majors-worst 10-21 this season.

The 20-game span is the worst for the Mets since a 3-17 skid from May 25 through June 15, 2018, while the 31-game start is the third-worst in franchise history.

Even the 1962 club, which lost a then-modern-record 120 games, was 12-19 through 31 games.

The Mets squandered a 4-3 advantage on Thursday, the eighth time they’ve led in a defeat during their 20-game tailspin. New York has scored four runs or less 17 times in the last 20 games.

“Not good enough, obviously — not a secret,” Mets manager Carlos Mendoza said. “That’s not going to do it. You’ve got to start winning series. Period.”

The Angels arrived home in the throes of a similar slump. The three-game sweep by the White Sox marked the fourth straight series loss for Los Angeles, which has dropped 10 of its last 11 games.

The Angels have scored three runs or less eight times in the 11 games and have squandered a lead five times in the 10 defeats. Los Angeles was one out away from victory in the ninth inning of Wednesday’s series finale vs. Chicago before Ryan Zeferjahn gave up a game-tying RBI triple to Sam Antonacci.

Zeferjahn, Drew Pomeranz and Joey Lucchesi were charged with a combined four blown saves in the last four games as the Angels search for a closer to replace Jordan Romano, who was designated for assignment Sunday and released a day later. Lucchesi also was designated for assignment Wednesday.

“It’s really tough — especially just one more out and I couldn’t do it,” Zeferjahn said. “We battled all day today, and it really (stinks). But we’re picking each other up still no matter what. I think we’ll get back on track soon.”

Scott, who was recalled from Triple-A Syracuse when Kodai Senga (lumbar spine inflammation) was placed on the injured list Tuesday, hasn’t pitched since April 23. He didn’t factor into the decision on that day after giving up one run while walking five over 1 1/3 innings in the Mets’ 10-8 win over the Minnesota Twins. The start was the first in the majors for Scott since he underwent Tommy John surgery in September 2024.

Urena took the defeat in his most recent start last Saturday after allowing four runs over 3 2/3 innings in the Angels’ 12-1 loss to the Kansas City Royals.

Both Scott and Urena will make their first career starts against the opposition on Friday.

–Field Level Media

The surging Seattle Sounders will try to continue their excellent away form when they visit struggling Sporting Kansas City on Saturday afternoon.

The Sounders (6-1-1, 19 points) tied the best eight-game start in club history with a 2-1 home victory over FC Dallas last Saturday, powered by first-half goals from Jesus Ferreira and Jordan Morris. Away from home, Seattle is unbeaten in its last four in the league since a loss at Real Salt Lake on Feb. 28.

The Sounders’ bright start comes despite a lengthy injury list that last weekend included center backs Yeimar and Kim Kee-hee as well as attacking midfielders Albert Rusnak and Paul Arriola. The latter three were questionable for this weekend, manager Brian Schmetzer suggested to reporters this week.

Whoever suits up, Schmetzer admitted the journey to the Midwest to play Kansas City, amid its six-match losing streak across all competitions, could be mentally challenging, especially with three big home matches against San Diego FC, the San Jose Earthquakes and the LA Galaxy to follow.

“It makes them dangerous,” Schmetzer said of Kansas City’s struggles. “… It’s a trap game in some ways. I don’t want (my team) thinking about the home games. We have to continue — because we’ve been very good on the road this year — we have to continue good road form.”

Dejan Joveljic has four goals for SKC (1-7-1, 4 points) but his teammates have combined for only three, contributing to what is now a three-match scoreless streak in all competitions.

First-year manager Raphael Wicky saw his side succumb to its worst defeat yet last weekend, a 5-0 drubbing at the hands of the Chicago Fire.

Wicky thought a scoreless first half against Chicago might have been one of his side’s top showings, only for the Fire to take the lead and begin a second-half onslaught when Philip Zinckernagel scored on the rebound of a saved penalty in the 51st minute.

“I felt like from a defensive standpoint, this has probably been the best 45 minutes from our team,” Wicky said of the first half. ” … With that, we stay in games. With that, we are competitive. And that was the plan. The plan worked really well until the penalty, and then we lose ourselves and that is obviously also a pattern.”

–Field Level Media

Despite clear signs that the future of LIV Golf looks murky at best, Bryson DeChambeau continues to say he is committed to the 5-year-old upstart league, Flushing It Golf reported Friday.

DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith remain some of LIV’s biggest stars, although their future in the league appears in doubt after it was revealed that the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund no longer will provide funding beyond this season.

DeChambeau remains undaunted, saying he is not exploring a return to the PGA Tour at the present time

“I’m working as hard as I can to find a solution,” DeChambeau told Flushing It Golf. “I’m committed to making team golf work in the best way possible. I think there’s a place for it in the ecosystem and I want to continue to grow the game across the world. That’s always been our mission, and it’s never been more true than now.”

LIV is now working on a junior golf initiative, according to DeChambeau.

“We’re building a bunch of junior golf events right now and each (LIV) team is looking to build junior golf academies,” he said. “That’s something that we’ve been working on for almost three or four months now. “We’re looking to host an event here coming up, probably in the next, I’d say, couple of months.”

In June of 2022, DeChambeau joined LIV on a reported $125 million contract that is set to expire at the end of this season. He was reportedly seeking a $500 million deal to stay with LIV before the league’s funding issues were revealed.

“We’re still working on a potential contract,” DeChambeau said. “I haven’t given up on that and I think there will be a solution. But as of right now, my job is to help make the league work after this year. I just feel like I have a responsibility. I’ve put a lot of effort into it. So that’s what I’m going to do, we’re going to make this work.”

Even with reports that LIV has increased revenue streams in five years of operation, it is likely nowhere near enough to fund the league as it had been operating in its early years.

“There’s a lot of moving parts like in any business,” DeChambeau told Flushing It Golf after he withdrew from last month’s event at Mexico City. “It’s a startup, right? And so there’s going to be times where we’re squeezed and punched. This is one of those moments. But I’m going to do everything in my power to make it work and I really see the value in franchise golf.”

DeChambeau, 32, prevailed in a playoff in consecutive weeks in March by winning at both LIV Golf Singapore and LIV Golf South Africa. The two-time U.S. Open champion has won five individual LIV Golf titles.

DeChambeau did have the opportunity to return to the PGA Tour earlier this year through the Returning Member Program but declined. That program was developed as Brooks Koepka departed LIV for his return to the PGA Tour earlier this year.

–Field Level Media

Two teams that finished April with at least a share of the lead in their respective American League divisions go head-to-head to begin May when the Cleveland Guardians face the Athletics on Friday night in West Sacramento, Calif.

Cleveland left-hander Joey Cantillo (1-1, 2.97 ERA) and Athletics right-hander J.T. Ginn (0-0, 3.24) are the scheduled starters in the opener of the three-game series. The Guardians are seeking to repeat a series win earned in their first-ever trip to West Sacramento last June.

To do so, they’ll have to deny the A’s a fourth consecutive series win. The Athletics took two of three from the Seattle Mariners, Texas Rangers and Kansas City Royals to move atop the AL West at a season-best three games over .500.

Leading the way has been 23-year-old Nick Kurtz, whose two-run, tie-breaking double in the second inning of Thursday’s 6-3 win over the Royals temporarily stole the headlines from a start in which he’s drawn a major-league-leading 33 walks.

“When he got here, there was an advanced approach for his age,” A’s manager Mark Kotsay said about his second-year first baseman after the win. “The main thing we’re seeing is … being patient, being selective, getting his walks, getting on base.”

The Guardians limited Kurtz, who had just 37 games of major-league experience at the time, to a 2-for-11 series performance with one solo homer and one walk when they visited Sacramento last June.

Kurtz exacted a measure of revenge a month later in a rematch series in Cleveland, going 7-for-12 with four doubles, a triple, a home run and a walk.

He has never faced Cantillo in what will be a lefty-on-lefty matchup. Cantillo has allowed just seven home runs against left-handed hitters over 45 games in his three-year career.

The 26-year-old is coming off his first loss of the season at Toronto, a hard-luck 5-3 defeat last Saturday in which he allowed three runs but just one earned in five innings.

He has never faced the A’s in his career.

Also a third-year big-leaguer, Ginn has just one inning of experience against the Guardians. That came last July 18 in Cleveland, when he entered the game in the fifth inning with the A’s down 7-1 and allowed one run. The A’s lost 8-6 after a late-inning rally fell short.

In his most recent outing, Ginn was pulled in the fourth inning from a game the A’s led 2-0 at Texas last Sunday. The A’s went on to win 2-1, but he did not get a decision.

He’ll see a Guardians team kicking off a seven-game trip after losing two of three at home to the Tampa Bay Rays. The club had Thursday off following a 3-1 victory in the series finale, which had them alone atop the AL Central before the Detroit Tigers won Thursday to draw even.

Fans in West Sacramento will get their first look at Guardians prospect Travis Bazzana, the No. 1 pick in the 2024 draft, three spots ahead of where the A’s selected Kurtz.

Bazzana, a 23-year-old Australian, is still looking for his first big-league hit after going 0-for-6 with two walks in two games against the Rays, but he is confident that he’s ready for the big time.

“I would’ve hoped by 2026 I was able to impact this team,” he told reporters during his debut series earlier in the week. “I’m feeling really strong and in a perfect place to really help the team win.”

– Field Level Media

The Seattle Mariners found their mojo on the road.

Now they’ll try to bring it back home.

The Mariners just completed a 5-1 trip to St. Louis and Minnesota after losing eight of their first nine road contests and will host the Kansas City Royals on Friday night in the opener of a three-game series.

The Mariners scored three runs in the top of the ninth inning Wednesday in a 5-3 win over the Twins.

“A really good way to end the road trip,” Mariners manager Dan Wilson said. “A nice 5-1 road trip; we’ll take that every time.”

Cole Young’s two-run single up the middle with the infield drawn in put Seattle ahead on Wednesday.

“That was a lucky, lucky hit,” said Young, a second baseman in his first full major league season. “I’m just happy I got the job done.”

Young, 22, has six go-ahead or game-tying RBIs in the seventh inning or later this season, the most in MLB.

“It’s just calming myself down and not trying to be someone I’m not,” Young said. “I’m not trying to be a hero in every, every situation. Just pass the baton. I’m just trying to get on base, and I feel like that’s helped me out a ton.”

Young went 11-for-22 on the trip, with two doubles, a home run and eight RBIs. He has driven in at least one run in six consecutive games, the longest active streak in the majors. He is batting .286 this season, with three homers and 19 RBIs.

“He doesn’t let the game speed up on him,” Wilson said of Young. “He’s got really good control of his emotion. The moment doesn’t seem too big for him, which is huge. And then being able to see the pitch, let it get deep enough and not chase. He’s not afraid to go the other way with it. He’s done it several times for us, and almost every time he has used the middle of the field and opposite field.”

The Royals, who are in the American League Central cellar, fell 6-3 to the Athletics on Thursday in West Sacramento, Calif. Kansas City left 12 runners on base and went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position.

“We got to keep giving ourselves those opportunities and cash them in,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “We didn’t do that (Thursday).”

Kansas City is 3-12 on the road this season, averaging just 2.6 runs a game there.

“Move on, keep working. It’s a long season,” said Royals infielder Maikel Garcia, who homered Thursday. “We’re going to get a lot more chances with men on base. Just keep believing in ourselves.”

Friday’s series opener is scheduled to feature Royals left-hander Cole Ragans (1-4, 5.00 ERA) against Mariners right-hander Bryan Woo (1-2, 3.86).

Ragans is coming off his first victory of the season, 12-1 over the visiting Los Angeles Angels on Saturday. He allowed one run on five hits over six innings, with no walks and a season-high 11 strikeouts, one shy of his career-best.

Ragans is 0-0 with a 2.53 ERA in three career appearances against Seattle, including two starts.

Woo will try to bounce back from his worst start of the season, in which he gave up seven runs on nine hits in just three innings Saturday in St. Louis. He didn’t receive a decision as the Mariners rallied to win 11-9.

Woo, who hadn’t allowed a home run all season until that point, gave up four homers to the Cardinals on a windy afternoon at Busch Stadium. He is 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in one previous start vs. Kansas City.

–Field Level Media

Kei Nishikori, once ranked as high as No. 4 in the world, will retire from tennis at the end of the 2026 season.

The 36-year-old Japanese trailblazer made the announcement Thursday via social media.

“Since I was a child, I have been passionate about tennis and I have continued to pursue it with only one dream in my heart: ‘I want to compete on the world stage.’ Reaching the ATP Tour, playing at the highest level of competition, and maintaining a presence in the Top 10 is something I am extremely proud of,” he posted to X. “Whether in victory or defeat, the special atmosphere I felt in packed arenas is irreplaceable.”

Nishikori was the first Japanese man to be ranked in the top 10 in the world.

He has won 12 titles, 451 tour matches and just over $26 million on the ATP Tour.

It was March 2, 2015, when Nishikori was ranked No. 4 amid tennis’ brightest stars. That week, Novak Djokovic was No. 1, followed by Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. After Nishikori, at No. 5, was Andy Murray.

Those four opponents combined to win 69 Grand Slam titles. Nishikori never won one, with his best result coming in 2014 when he defeated Djokovic to reach the U.S. Open final, which he lost to Marin Cilic of Croatia.

Nishikori has competed this season in ATP Challenger events. His most recent ATP Tour event came in 2025 at Cincinnati.

“My love for tennis and my belief that I could become a stronger player always brought me back to the court. I feel that all of these experiences have enriched and shaped my life. I am deeply grateful [for] my family and to everyone who has supported me at all times,” Nishikori wrote. “To be honest, I still wish I could continue my playing career. Even so, looking back on everything up to this point, I can proudly say that I gave it my all.

“I am truly happy to have walked this path. I will cherish every moment of the remaining matches and fight to the very end.”

–Field Level Media