Jul 29, 2022 4 min read

Naquin traded to Mets

Tyler Naquin went to the first-place Mets from the last-place Reds and was on the bench for Friday night’s series opener at Miami.

New York acquired the left-handed-hitting outfielder and lefty reliever Phillip Diehl from on Thursday night in a deal for two teenage minor leaguers, outfielder Hector Rodríguez and right-hander Jose Acuña.

“It’s fun, exciting news. It’s been a whirlwind the last couple of hours,” Naquin said. “We have a good ballclub. It’s cool to look forward to that.”

Naquin, a first-round draft pick 10 years ago, was batting .246 with seven homers and 33 RBIs in 56 games for the Reds. He homered and drove in two runs Thursday afternoon in a 7-6 loss to the Marlins.

Outfielder Travis Jankowski was designated for assignment by the Mets, who also recalled left-hander Sam Clay and right-hander Stephen Nogosek from Syracuse and optioned left-hander David Peterson to the Triple-A farm team.

Naquin was drafted 15th overall by Cleveland in 2012 and made his major league debut in 2016, finishing third in AL Rookie of the Year voting after posting an .886 OPS in 116 games. While in Cleveland, he was teammates with current Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor and pitcher Carlos Carrasco.

Judge first to 40

Aaron Judge became the first player in the majors with 40 home runs this season with a two-run drive for the New York Yankees against the Kansas City Royals on Friday night.

The 6-foot-7 Judge robbed a home run from MJ Melendez to begin the game, then hit an estimated 449-foot homer in the third inning for a 3-0 lead. It was his second homer in three at-bats after he hit a game-ending drive in the ninth inning of a 1-0 win against Kansas City on Thursday night.

The four-time All-Star is on pace for 64 home runs in his final season under New York’s control. The club record is 61, set by Roger Maris in 1961. Judge, Maris and Babe Ruth in 1928 are the only Yankees with at least 40 homers by the end of July, per MLB.com.

Philadelphia’s Kyle Schwarber came into the night second in the majors with 32 homers. Judge hit a career-high 52 homers while winning AL Rookie of the Year in 2017.

Former Temple baseball coach dies

James “Skip” Wilson, who led Temple baseball to a pair of College World Series appearances and 1,034 wins in 46 seasons as the program’s head coach, has died. He was 92.

Temple said Wilson’s daughter told the school he died Tuesday from complications from a stroke.

The all-time winningest coach in any sport at Temple, Wilson guided the Owls to 12 NCAA Tournaments and 12 conference championships during his tenure, from 1960 to 2005. He earned his 1,000th win on March 14, 2004, when the Owls defeated Manhattan 10-9 and he finished his career with a record of 1,034-824-27 (.556).

Anaheim signs defenseman

The Anaheim Ducks signed John Klingberg to a one-year, $7 million contract on Friday, landing the top defenseman on the NHL free agent market.

The offensive-minded Swede is leaving Dallas, where he had spent his entire NHL career while racking up 71 goals and 303 assists in eight seasons with the Stars. He had six goals and 41 assists last season, although he was a career-worst minus-28.

Klingberg’s offensive skills and shot-blocking capability give an immediate boost to the Ducks, who can also use his right-handed shot and puck movement on the power play. Klingberg scored 20 points while Dallas had the man advantage last season, and he has 148 career points on the power play.