It was a brutal week for the Rainiers, dropping five of six to the Salt Lake Bees on the road. This team has weathered a substantial amount of turnover as of late and is certainly down several of their core players, but with plenty of injury issues still present on the big league roster, it looks unlikely they’ll see substantial reinforcements anytime soon. As a Triple-A affiliate, such is life.
Seattle, WA
Seattle Seahawks 90-Man Roundup: Will Artie Burns Keep Backup Nickel CB Role?
With OTAs wrapping up across the NFL, the Seattle Seahawks will open training camp at the VMAC in just under two months, officially ushering in the first season under new coach Mike Macdonald.
In preparation for the new incoming season, we’ll be detailing every member of the Seahawks 90-man roster over the next several weeks, diving into scheme fits, exploring best- and worst-case scenarios and predicting what to expect from each player entering the 2024 campaign.
Entering his third season with Seattle in 2024, will Artie Burns maintain his role in the Seahawks defense despite an injection of young talent?
A four-star recruit out of the football factory at Miami Northwestern Senior High School, Burns stayed local for college and signed with Miami, which was only about 12 miles away from where he played prep ball. Playing three seasons with the Hurricanes, Burns broke out in 2015 when he started all 13 games and piled up 36 total tackles, six interceptions, and five passes defensed. After earning All-ACC honors, he was drafted 25th overall in the 2016 NFL Draft by the Steelers and was solid in his first two seasons, starting 25 games and posting 119 total tackles, four interceptions, 26 passes defensed and four tackles for loss. In 2018, Burns started just six games with no interceptions and Pittsburgh did not pick up his fifth-year option, allowing him to sign with the Bears ahead of the 2020 campaign. He suffered a torn ACL in the preseason and missed the season before returning to play in 11 games in 2021. Burns signed with Seattle in March 2022 and has regularly moved between the practice squad and active roster since while also missing time due to groin and hamstring injuries.
Throughout his eight years in the NFL, Burns has been a serviceable outside and slot corner at 6-0, 187 pounds, adding nickel to his repertoire in 2023. Last season, in Pete Carroll’s defense, Burns played 232 defensive snaps with 87 percent of those coming as the nickel corner, per Pro Football Focus. He was also a regular contributor on punt and kick coverage. Burns is a willing run stopper from the slot corner position and has good speed and quickness to keep up with the dynamic receivers he is often matched up against.
Outplaying rookie sixth-round pick DJ James and third-year defensive back Coby Bryant in training camp and the preseason, Burns maintains his backup slot corner role into the regular season and sees a similar number of snaps to last season behind Devon Witherspoon on the depth chart while continuing to contribute on special teams.
With ample younger prospects now on Seattle’s roster, Burns, 29, shows the least upside and has his role filled by a combination of James and Bryant. Since Bryant can also play safety in the Seahawks defense, Burns is cut at the end of the preseason and brought back on the practice squad as an emergency veteran option.
Burns’ extensive NFL experience gives him an edge over Bryant and James from a reliability standpoint, but his age could be a deterrent to a new coaching staff that may want to get its younger players game snaps early on. It’s also possible that Bryant’s versatile status in the defense has him competing mostly for a role at safety, which would leave the backup nickel role to a two-man race between Burns and James — both of whom would be quality options to be on the field at the same time in a dime package.
When it comes down to it, Burns, Bryant, and James are all likely to stick around with the Seahawks as slot corner and special teams coverage options, with one or two making the active roster. If Bryant’s role becomes more defined, that situation will be more clear. Unless Burns is outplayed by other young corners further out on the roster bubble, he should at least have a practice squad spot reserved. Regardless, it will be a fun competition to watch as Burns tries to play a third season with one team for the second time in his career.
Buddha Jones | Devin Richardson | TaMerik Williams | Rason Williams II | Ro Torrence | Nathan Pickering | Dee Williams | Devere Levelston | Kobe Lewis | Sunny Anderson | Mike Novitsky | Max Pircher | Easton Gibbs | Hayden Hatten | Garret Greenfield | Carlton Johnson | Matt Gotel |George Holani | Cody White | Ty Okada | Drake Thomas | McClendon Curtis | Easop Winston Jr. |Nelson Ceaser | Jonathan Sutherland | Lance Boykin | Joshua Onujiogu | Patrick O’Connell |Jack Westover | Raiqwon O’Neal | Tyler Mabry | Dareke Young | Tremayne Anchrum | DJ James
Seattle, WA
Seattle Mariners Minor League Roundup – Week Nine
It was unsurprisingly a tough week for most Rainiers this week after the thorough butt-kicking they took, but longtime Mariner farmhand Colin Davis had a fantastic showing offensively. Collecting 12 hits that included two homers, Davis raised his season OPS to .887 and has been one of the better performers for this ballclub. They need someone to step up and replace the offensive output Colt Emerson provided for this lineup, and so far, Davis has done an excellent job at doing just that.
The Travs continued their winning ways against Springfield this week, taking four of six from the pesky Redbirds. They maintain their spot atop the division and are in prime position for the first half crown.
Bouncing back from his first tough start last week, Kade Anderson was back to his usual self against the Cardinals, working 4.2 scoreless innings back home in DSP. The lefthander whiffed seven and walked two, allowing just three hits on the afternoon. Anderson’s season ERA sits at 1.63 and has a great chance to lead the Texas League for the rest of this 2026 season; the M’s head brass have indicated a promotion to Triple-A is unlikely at this point in time. Still just 21 years old, it’s fair to be cautious with his promotion schedule, though getting him closer to fans in the PNW would certainly be a big perk for the Rainier faithful.
With as much fanfare as the top names get on this roster, former 19th rounder Charlie Pagliarini has led the way for this Traveler offense and has been on an absolute tear during the month of May. An infielder out of Fairfield University, Pagliarini is a Three-True-Outcome type of bat that’s displayed impressive power this season, mashing his way to a season OPS of .892. Over the last several weeks, Pagliarini is slashing an absurd .392/.483/.716 with a ~20% K% and ~14% BB%, routinely hitting the ball incredibly hard and explaining away at least some part of his elevated BABIP. At 25, Pagliarini is a candidate for Triple-A this season and could be the latest in a long line of Mariner developmental successes.
The Frogs were unable to even the series in Sunday afternoon’s bout against the Dust Devils and ended up dropping the weekly slate by a score of four to two. The Frogs aren’t officially eliminated just yet, but with a middling record in a lopsided race, a first half title is looking tougher and tougher by the day.
Jonny Farmelo had a very impressive showing at the plate this week, managing a 6-18 series with an even 5:5 K/BB ratio. Farmelo has utilized his speed to get plenty of extra-base knocks this year, and though the stolen bases are coming inefficiently right now, they’ve begun to trend up as of late after a middling start to the season. Now with a season OPS at the .799 mark, Farmelo’s solid month of May is a great sign of positive things to come for the rest of the season.
Though his legendary hit streak was thwarted at 25 games this week, it’s worth reflecting on just how gaudy a month Felnin Celesten has been having. Playing excellent shortstop defense essentially every day, Celesten has managed a .409/.512/.667 slash line with as many strikeouts as walks. It’s unfortunate he was just a few games away from breaking the league’s all-time record, but his incredible achievements over the past few weeks deserve to be celebrated thoroughly. There have been very few months in the history of the Northwest League better than what he’s been able to accomplish in the month of May, and it seems likely he’ll be on his way to Arkansas once the first half comes to a close.
It was a weird week for the 66ers, as despite excellent offensive production throughout the entire series, the pitching was unable to hold up their end of the bargain, ultimately leading to a narrow series loss. For context, Inland Empire averaged over 8 runs a game this series, yet only managed to win two games. Peak minor league baseball.
Corner outfielder Aiden Taurek has been torching the baseball for the better part of a month at this point, and this past week was no exception. Collecting eight hits on the week, half of Taurek’s knocks went for extra bases and ultimately raised his monthly OPS to .995, a whisker shy of the coveted 1.000 barrier. Taurek was an OBP machine in his brief taste of pro ball last July, but now tapping into more power, Taurek looks like a very sneaky bat that could fly through this system over the next few seasons.
Another week, another excellent start for Mason Peters. One of the only bright spots for this pitching staff all week, Peters continued his reign of terror over the California League and looks a step ahead of his competition. Lowering his season ERA to 1.74, Peters’ three shutout innings featured just four baserunners all day, and he matched that total with four punchouts of his own. He’ll be on the shortlist for Everett this summer.
In case you missed it, Baseball America ($) published a piece featuring Yorger Bautista as a major breakout candidate this season, as his batted ball metrics and swing decisions have ascended several grades on the 20-80 scale through the early goings of this season. Accomplishing this without sacrificing any bit of power whatsoever, Bautista has the underlying metrics that scream a big jump in production is coming. He could be a real threat to see the California League some time this summer and has the tools to be a mainstay on top 100 prospect lists for years to come.
Seattle, WA
Natisha Hiedeman, Flau’jae Johnson lead Seattle Storm to 97-85 win over Mystics
SEATTLE, WA – MAY 24: Awa Fam #11 of the Seattle Storm handles the ball during the game against the Washington Mystics on May 24, 2026 at Climate Pledge Arena in Seattle, Washington. (Scott Eklund / NBAE / Getty Images)
SEATTLE – Natisha Hiedeman tied her career high with 24 points, rookie Flau’jae Johnson scored a season-best 17, and the Seattle Storm beat the Washington Mystics 97-85 on Sunday in a game that featured 75 total free throws, including 52 in the second half.
Seattle’s Awa Fam, the No. 3 overall draft pick, made her WNBA debut and finished with 10 points in 20 minutes. The 6-foot-4 center, who turns 20 on June 17, joined the Storm on Friday after helping Valencia win the Spanish League title. She scored her first WNBA points with a layup off a pick-and-roll with Johnson late in the second quarter.
Seattle made a season-high 13 3-pointers on 28 attempts and hit 32 of 34 (94%) shots from the line.
The Mystics hit 35 of 41 (85%) from the foul line, and shot just 20% (4 of 20) from beyond the arc.
Stefanie Dolson scored 16 points with perfect shooting. She went 3 of 3 from the field, 2 of 2 from 3-point range, and 8 of 8 from the line for the Storm (3-4). Zia Cooke added 10 points.
Dominique Malonga, who leads the Storm in scoring (16.0 points per game) and rebounds (7.3), missed her fourth consecutive game due to the concussion protocol.
Sonia Citron led the Mystics (2-3) with 16 points. Kiki Iriafen, Georgia Amoore and Angela Dugalic added 13 points apiece, and Shakira Austin had 12.
Hiedeman hit a 3-pointer that gave Seattle the lead for good early in the second quarter, and her long floater with 1.8 seconds left in the period made it 49-37. The Mystics trailed by double figures throughout the second half.
Johnson made 7 of 12 from the field and finished with seven rebounds and five assists.
Seattle beat Connecticut 77-59 on Friday to snap a three-game skid.
Up next
The teams play again Wednesday in Seattle.
The Source: Information in this story came from The Associated Press.
MORE STORM NEWS FROM FOX 13 SEATTLE
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Seattle, WA
Where to watch Washington Mystics vs Seattle Storm on May 24: TV channel, start time and streaming
The WNBA has returned with a brand new collective bargaining agreement and a league full of loaded rosters as the 2026 season tips off.
A rookie class headlined by Dallas Wings top pick Azzi Fudd, Minnesota’s Olivia Miles and Washington’s Lauren Betts is ready to make a mark in the pros while the defending champion Las Vegas Aces look to keep their dynasty alive with a fourth title in five years.
As the the season gets going under a new media rights deal, it can be tough to figure out which channel each team is playing on every night. Here’s everything you need to know to tune in when the Seattle Storm host the Washington Mystics on Sunday.
What time is Washington Mystics vs Seattle Storm?
Tip off between the Seattle Storm and Washington Mystics is scheduled for 6 p.m. (ET) on Sunday, May 24.
How to watch Washington Mystics vs Seattle Storm on Sunday
All times Eastern and accurate as of Sunday, May 24, 2026, at 6:08 a.m.
Watch the WNBA all season on Fubo
WNBA scores and results
See scores, results for all of today’s games .
See WNBA scores, results from May 23
Odds for WNBA games today
The latest WNBA odds can be found below from the best sports betting apps . Some odds may include games scheduled on future dates.
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