BOX SCORE

The Cubs kicked off their longest road trip of the season so far on Tuesday at Nationals Park in Washington D.C.

They couldn’t have drawn up a better start.

The Cubs offense erupted for four runs in the fifth inning to win the first game of a three-game set against the Nationals 8-3. Chicago (38-22) plays nine games on the road beginning Tuesday as they begin a stretch of 26 games in 27 days.

Here are three takeaways from the win over the Nationals (28-32):

Busch’s league

The Cubs offense has had so many contributors that some of them may be going under the radar – Michael Busch tops among them. The first baseman was 3-for-3 on Tuesday with three RBI and was a double shy of the cycle.

That performance moved his OPS to a whopping .895. His OPS would be the best on 10 of the other 14 teams in the National League among qualified hitters. It’s second-best on the Cubs and yet you might consider him as the fourth-most fearsome hitter on this lineup. That’s just how deep they are.

We’re reaching a point where you expect Kyle Tucker, Seiya Suzuki and Pete Crow-Armstrong to be this level of production offensively. But they will have slumps at points throughout this year – it’s the nature of the game – and having multiple options who can carry an offense is vital.

While Tucker is nursing his jammed right ring finger, the offense didn’t skip a beat, thanks in large part to Busch on Tuesday. That’s the sign of a good offense and what makes this 60-game start feel like it’s sustainable.

PCA’s historic pace – and achievement

Speaking of strong offensive performances, Crow-Armstrong continued to shine – and did something he rarely does on Tuesday. The center fielder garnered a pair of walks – the second time in his career he’s had a multi-walk game with both coming in the last three games.

The Nationals saw firsthand how much chaos he can cause on the basepaths. He led the four-run fifth inning with a hustle double, stole second and allowed Carson Kelly to reach first base on a groundball to third base. That’s because José Tena fielded the ground ball from Kelly, Crow-Armstrong broke home, forcing Tena to charge to third and not make a throw. He scored a batter later and stole another base in the sixth.

He is on a historic pace to start the year, too.

That’s a solid performance after he went 5-for-22 (.227) on the homestand – a “cold streak” for Crow-Armstrong you might say. He quickly got back on track.

Lefty’s wild

Cade Horton is experiencing a lot of firsts as he continues his rookie campaign. Tuesday he had a unique one – facing a lineup comprised entirely of lefties.

The Nationals are only the second team to use nine hitters from the left-side – two of them were switch hitters – joining the Cleveland Guardians. Despite what might have appeared to be a platoon advantage, Cade Horton pitched into the sixth inning and kept the Cubs in the game.

The rookie allowed just three earned runs on six hits in 5.1 innings, throwing 77 pitches. He allowed a leadoff double to James Wood to start the inning, struck out Nathaniel Lowe and allowed a single to Luis García Jr. Counsell turned to Caleb Thielbar to turn around Josh Bell who struggles from the right side. It worked, Bell grounded into an inning-ending double play.

There may be a few more righties in the lineup on Wednesday when Matthew Boyd takes the mound. But the Cubs have not named a starter for Thursday’s finale – Colin Rea is in line for that day, but they could opt to use an opener to combat the platoon advantage. Lefties have an .897 OPS against Rea.

The Bethlehem Area School District hosts an academic signing ceremony for the top 10 seniors from each high school Wednesday, June 4, 2025, in Bethlehem. Modeled after an athletic signing day, the event highlights the achievements of the district’s highest-ranking students and their post-secondary commitments.

Originally Published: June 4, 2025 at 4:10 PM EDT

If the first round of the regional play is any indication, high school baseball fans are in for a treat the rest of the week.

Check out just some of the highlights from the first day of action on Tuesday. Semifinals in five Southerna California and five Northern California divisions are set for Thursday.

Several Southern California games were either suspended or postponed due to rain or lightning or both. See all the brackets for all divisions at the bottom of the page.

No. 1 De La Salle 7, No. 8 Del Oro 3: Stanford-bound junior shortstop Tyler Spanger and Cal-Poly commit second baseman each had three hits and Brandan “Bubba” Vargas drove in three runs with a double and single as the host Spartans (27-4) cruised to victory. Carson Moore had three hits for Del Oro, which finished 15-19. De La Salle, winners of 17 of 18, now get St. Mary’s-Stockton which defeated the Spartans to open the season, 4-1.

No. 4 St. Mary’s 4, No. 5 Valley Christian 3: For a second straight season, St. Mary’s delivered a walk-off late, in this case Mississippi State-bound Dax Hardcastle with a leadoff homer in the bottom of the seventh. It was the seventh homer of the season for the No. 73 prospect in the country, according to Baseball American. Cal-bound winning pitcher Tanner Grove not only went the distance, allowing two hits for the Rams (26-8), but he supplied a three-run homer. Christian Navarez homered for Valley Christian (25-8-1).

No. 3 Serra 2, No. 6 College Park 1: A bases loaded walk to Tyler Harrison in the 12th inning ended this one for the host Padres (27-6), coming off their first Central Coast Section title since 2009. Harrison doubled and scored the team’s first run in the fourth. Desbond Cobb doubled and scored College Park’s only run int he fifth. Kelley Crawford, Aiden Waters and Davis Minton combined to allow just five hits and a run, while striking out nine for the Padres, who host Los Gatos on Thursday.

No. 7 Los Gatos 9, No. 2 Franklin 8: A five-run rally in the sixth gave the visitor’s a 9-4 cushion, but then the Wildcats to hold off the home team, which scored one in the sixth and three in the seventh. Brayden Smith drove in three runs with a double and Rowen Smith added a two-run double for Los Gatos (25-5). Brandon Williams and Royal McKinney each drove in a pair of Franklin (26-8).

No. 1 Yuba City 5, No. 8 Hollister 1: Brody Miller doubled in a pair of runs, Eliaja Moncher added an RBI double and Wyatt Lane had two singles, an RBI and run as the Honkers bot a fine performance from winning pitcher Ashton Decker (four hits allowed in 5.2 innings). A two-run rally in the second was all Yuba City needed, and a three-run rally in the sixth put it away.

No. 5 Lodi 3, No. 4 Casa Grande 0: Landon Beasley fired a four-hitter with three strikeouts and three walks as the visiting Flames (26-9) pulled off the mild upset. Andrew Fichtner and Noah Hufford had two hits apiece for Lodi, which now travels to Yuba City.

No. 6 Acalanes 9, No. 3 Chico 3: The red-hot Dons (18-10-1) went on the road to shock the Panthers (28-2) as Ando Butner blasted a two-run homer and Drew Asadorian and Dominic Patitucci drove in two runs apiece. Winning pitcher Branson Smith struck out seven and allowed five hits in five innings. Jordan Neugebauer drove in three runs for the home team.

No. 2 Saint Francis 5, No. 7 Central Catholic 0: The battle-tested and host Lancers (21-10) got a four-hit gem from Nick Chow and a homer and double by Henry Dommer to move into the semifinals. Saint Francis, out of the rugged West Catholic Athletic League, will host Acalanes Thursday.

No. 1 Roseville 9, No. 8 California 4: Freshman Benjamin Jordan had two doubles, a single and three RBIs and teammate Jacob Welch also drove in three runs with a pair of hits, leading the host Tigers (22-11) to the victory, utilizing a five-run uprising in the fourth to blow it open. Both teams had 11 hits.

No. 4 Fowler 2, No. 5 Lincoln 1: After the visiting Fighting Zebras broke a scoreless tie with a run in the sixth, The Redcats (29-3) answered with two runs in the bottom half on just one hit. Lincoln’s Landyn Plautz and Jackson Cook combined on a one-hitter in defeat.

No. 3 Rancho Cotate 7, No. 6 Kingsburg 2: Luke Morie drove in two runs and Cooper Reichert added a single, double and an RBI as the host Cougars (17-13) moved into the semifinals. Winning pitcher Camden Hennington went the distance, allowing four hits while striking out four. Eric Garcia had an RBI single for Kingsburg (21-12).

No. 2 Carmel 9, No. 7 Morro Bay 0: The host Padres (21-10) used four pitchers to scatter three hits and an eight-run fourth-inning rally to cruise into the semifinals. Matt Maxon was the hitting star with three hits, four RBIs including a home run. Bo Lewis also homered and had two RBIs. Luca Rocha pitched four innings and allowed a hit to pick up the win. Morro Bay finished 26-7.

No. 1 Woodland Christian 10, No. 8 Durham 0: Jayden Badhesha and Parker Howard combinedon a four-hitter with eight strikeouts in a game that last 4.5 innings due to the mercy rule. Badhesha also blasted a homer and drove in four runs, while Armaan Badhesha added three RBIs for the Cardinals (27-6).

No. 5 Menlo School 2, No. 4 Las Lomas 0: Jackson Flanagan pitched the first six frames and allowed five hits while striking out six, while freshman Reid Plamondon fired a scoreless seventh as the visitor’s pulled out the quarterfinal win. A two-run double by Zach Roeder, another freshman, in the first inning was all the Knights (22-8) needed.

No. 3 Santa Clara 10, No. 6 Oakland Tech 9: Zach Gallegos’ RBI single in the bottom of the seventh capped a wild comeback for the host Bruins (28-3), who trailed 7-2 in the third inning. But two run rallies in the third, fourth and fifth inning gave the home team an 8-7 lead, Tech fough back to score twice in the sixth to take the lead again, but Santa Clara wouldn’t be denied, with single tallies in sixth and seventh. John Depner, Drew Diffenderfer and Jaxton Chao all drove in two runs. For Oakland Tech (16-12-1), Lee Tshosane had a triple and Isaac Estow, Eijah Rucker and Hayden Burton all doubled among the team’s 10 hits.

No. 2 West Valley 9, No. 7 Arcata 8: Ryton Miller and Manny Sleezer drove in two runs apiece and Degan Palos, Gunner Church, Mason McFadden and Gabe Lyman each drove in one for the host Eagles (23-4) which fell behind 8-7 in the seventh after a four-run rally from the Tigers (17-12). But the home team had a two-run uprising of its own to win it.

No. 1 Etna 6, No. 8 Maxwell 0: Kyle Fowle fired a two-hitter with five strikeouts and Clayton Harris blasted a home run and Noah Hubbard drove in three for the host Lions (19-7).

No. 4 Los Molinos 13, No. 5 Swett 3: An eight-run rally in the sixth not only broke open a close game, but it also ended the game due to the mercy rule. The Bulldogs (24-6) now travel to top seed Etna., while the NCS champion Warriros finished 14-8-2 despite a double and two RBI from Adan Miranda.

No. 6 Lincoln 16, No. 3 Vacaville Christian 4: The visiting Mustangs (17-15) got a two-run homer from Nicholas Chiu and three RBIs each from Jerry Hou and Everett Carvalho to breeze past the Falcons (19-7). Lincoln struck for seven in the sixth to put this one to rest. Dester Palmer had three hits and two RBI and Aidan Castaneda added three hits and three runs, leading a 16-hit attack. Zacahry Romeo and Evan Varty had two hits each for the Falcons.

No. 2 Stevenson 5, No. 7 Torres 2: The host Pirates (20-8) used two RBIs from Jack Bucich and doubles by Reggie Bell, Phinn Thomas, Jacob Hall and Brady Mugan to move into the semifinals. Winning pitcher Thomas struck out 10 and gave up one hit.

No. 1 St. John Bosco 2, No. 8 St. Augustine 1: An RBI double from Moise Razo gave the Braves (28-4) the lead and pitchers Brayden Krakowski and Griffin Tagliaferri made it stand up against the San Diego Section powers, which finished 20-12-1.

No. 5 Villa Park 5, No. 4 Granite Hills 4: Nate Lewis drove in three with four hits including the go-ahead knock in to the top of the ninth for the Spartans (25-7) to hand Granite Hills (24-1-2) its first defeat. Villa Park tied it at 4-4 in the top of the seventh with a run. Val Lopez also had three hits and Aidan Young blasted a home run. Tommy Entrekin drove in three runs with two hits and Brodey Vicars, a sophomore, had three hits for Granite Hills, which outhit Villa Park 13-12.

No. 3 Crespi 4, No. 6 Mater Dei 3: Mikey Martinez had a three-run homer and Jackson Eisenhauer fired two innings of shutout relief to lift the Celts (25-3) to the home win over the Monarchs (19-15).

No. 7 Patrick Henry 2, No. 2 Santa Margarita 0 (suspended): Of all things, lightning postponned this first-round game in the fourth inning. The game will resume Wednesday.

No. 4 Eastlake 4, No. 5 Glendora 1: Winning pitcher Nick Romero struck out 11 and gave up three hits in six innings before giving way to freshman Luca Yriqui, who got the save. Hamza Hatahet drove in three runs with a double and Kalani Jaurequi added an RBI double for the Titans (21-10-1). Glendora finished 23-11.

No. 6 Point Loma 6, No. 3 El Camino Real 4: Druw Frost led a 12-hit attack for the Pointers with three hits and an RBI. Point Loma scored three in the top of the seventh to go up 6-1 before the Royals made a game of it with three in the bottom half. Hunter Reddeg, Dylan Upjohn and Michael Hall all had two hits for the winners. Winning pitcher Phoenix Brant gave up four hits in 6.1 innings.

No. 1 Dos Pueblos 10, No. 8 St. Anthony 2

No. 5 University City 5, No. 4 Birmingham 2: AJ Curry had two hits and winning pitcher Thiago Quillin gave up five hits and struck out four, before Trevor Lee pitched two scoreless innings. University improved to 21-12 and now travels to Goleta to face the Chargers.

No. 3 Venice 5, No. 6 Trinity Classical Academy 2: Venice (29-3) scored two in the third and two in the fifth and held Trinity (22-4) scorelss the final three frames.

No. 2 Mt Carmel 5, No. 7 Eisinore 0: Jack Grassa fired a one-hitter with nine strikeouts and Kelle Leuck drove in three runs with a double as the Sundevils (22-12) cruised into the semifinals. Jacob Farias had the Tigers’ only hit.

No. 1 Banning 3, No. 8 Lemoore 2: Angelo Duarte had a walk-off single in the seventh and teammate AJ Herrera added two hits and two RBIs for the Pilots (23-9). Tyson Kinter went 3-for-3 for Lemoore (18-13).

No. 5 Rancho Mirage 7, No. 4 Ramona 3: Edward Carlin, Jaden Labit and Jaime Ochoa had two hits each for the Rattlers (19-13), who got a complete game win from Zachary Berrntsen, who struck out eight. Zack Nightingale hit a solo homer for Ramona (23-8).

No. 2 Ridgeview 13, No. 7 Notre Dame 3: Keisyun Allen, Jacob Quintero and Joel Gutierrez each drove in two runs for the Wolf Pack (22-11).

No. 1 Corcoran 9, No. 8 University 5: The Panthers broke open a close game with three runs in the bottom of the sixth. Ethan Chavez had two hits, two RBIs and two runs and Elijah Muthana added two hits and two RBIs for the Panthers (26-4). Winning pitcher Brennan Botill, a freshman, struck out nine in 4.2 innings. Jacob Santos had two hits and two RBIs for University (15-16).

No. 3 Pioneer 6, No. 6 Mountain View 3: A four-run uprising in the first was all the host Titans (18-14) needed to pull out the first-round win.

No. 7 High Tech SD 3, No. 2 Fillmore 1: Devon Caris fired a three-hitter with five strikeouts leading the visiting Storm (17-10) to the upset win over the Flashes, who finished 15-18. Junior Montes had two hits for the winners.

Here are the brackets for the NorCal and SoCal regionals:

Bookmark High School on SI for all of the latest high school sports news.

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app: 

Download iPhone App | Download Android App

The PIAA boys volleyball and girls lacrosse postseason got underway for two Beaver Valley schools on June 3. Here is a look at how the two area teams fared in their opening round matchups.PIAA 2A girls lacrosse first roundWyomissing 18, Quaker Valley 7Quaker Valley gave Wyomissing everything that it could handle as it fell to the undefeated District III champion in the first round.The team finishes the year 11-6, closing a strong campaign, qualifying for the state playoffs for the second time in three seasons.Need a break? Play the USA TODAY Daily Crossword Puzzle.

PIAA 2A boys volleyball first round

Ambridge 3, Obama Academy 0

Ambridge shook off its WPIAL Class 2A championship loss to Shaler by sweeping City League champion Obama Academy on the road to open up its PIAA playoff run.

The team rolled through the match with a 25-17, 25-12 and 25-5 wins in the three-set victory. The team will now face District 10 champion Meadville at a site and time to be determined on June 7.