WASHINGTON — Otto Lopez’s two run homer capped a six-run ninth inning and the Miami Marlins rallied past the Washington Nationals 6-2 on Sunday.
Esteury Ruiz bunted for a hit leading off the ninth against Max Kranick (0-1), Griffin Conine and Leo Jiménez each walked, and Tom Cosgrove replaced Max Kranick and hit Jakob Marsee to force in a run.
Joe Mack hit a sac-fly to center, bringing Conine across to tie the game. As Andrew Pinckney threw wildly to third trying to get Jiménez, the ball went into the dugout and Jiménez advanced to make it 3-2.
Heriberto Hernández walked, Marsee stole home on a double steal and Lopez hit a 400-foot homer into the Marlins bullpen to push the lead to 6-2.
Marlins starter Janson Junk allowed a run on four hits in 4 2/3 innings of work, and Dax Fulton (1-0) picked up his first career win.
Jorbit Vivas had two hits and two walks for the Nationals. CJ Abrams, making his first start at second base with the Nats, had a leaping catch on a line drive in the sixth.
Miami second baseman Xavier Edwards left the game with left elbow and left thumb discomfort following a collision with Vivas on a tag play during a steal attempt in the fifth. Edwards said after the game he was feeling better but will have imaging done on his left thumb on Monday.
The Nationals took a 1-0 lead after Nasim Nuñez hit an RBI double in the fifth. Daylen Lile made it 2-0 in the eighth on a sac-fly.
Washington’s Andrew Alvarez allowed two hits, walked three and struck out six in six-plus innings.
Yeah, yeah, Zebby Matthews is on the other team. But if you retire the first 17 and almost complete the game, you rate a photo op. | Getty Images
Other than the first inning Friday night, the White Sox had mostly been dependent on big help from the Twins to score runs this series, and this time the Twins forgot to help.
Particularly unhelpful was Zebby Matthews, who retired the first 17 Sox and only needed 89 pitches to get through the first eight innings, only losing his prospective Maddux when he went past 100 pitches in the ninth. There were a few moderately well-hit balls, none harder than 101 mph, but the perfect game was broken up in the sixth inning by a 78 mph Drew Romo bloop after only the second time Matthews had thrown three balls. That was followed by a 70 mph Sam Antonacci-sliced double, and would have meant White Sox runs had Matthews not done some fancy fumble recovery on Tristan Peters leadoff dribbler:
The first solid hit for the Sox was a 105 mph line shot by Peters (who else?) in the eighth.
In the bottom half, the Sox got their best play of the game, courtesy of Miguel Vargas:
Matthews would lose the shutout when Antonacci and Vargas singled in the ninth (Vargas running his on-base streak to 16, though his consecutive games with a walk ended at 10, one short of the team record) and Antonacci scored on a Braden Montgomery single off reliever Jeff Hoffman. But the slumping Colson Montgomery popped up to end the game, and that was that.
Colson was also a key to how the Twins got a big lead, though his misplay won’t show up in the records. That’s because in the first inning he threw a double play relay about a bazillion feet wide of first. You can’t anticipate a double play, of course, so on the books that was just a force out because the runner didn’t advance. But had the play been properly made an ensuing walk, Josh Bell single and and Trevor Larnach double wouldn’t have existed to bring in three runs.
The Twins added single runs in the third and seventh, the latter on a Luke Keaschall homer off José Urquidy, who otherwise pitched well and long enough (five innings, three hits, just the one run) to save the bullpen for the big upcoming series in Houston. That makes Urquidy’s Sox pattern terrible game, great game (vs. the Cubs!), terrible game, pretty darned good game — the good ones on the even-numbered appearances. They just have to figure out how to skip Uriquidy’s fifth time out and skip right to the sixth.
The Sox record is now 72-64, and with Cleveland walloping the Royals, the lead is back to the 3 1/2 games it was before the weekend series began, with the magic number sticking at 23. It’s now on to Houston for four games, Anthony Kay on the mound against Peter Lambert in the first one on Monday night.
The Mets (61-76) were bested in the team's series finale against the Houston Astros (69-68), their third straight series loss.
Here are the takeaways...
-- It was a battle of rookie pitchers between New York's lefty Zac Thornton and Houston's righty Ethan Pecko.
-- Astros star shortstop Jeremy Peña led off the game with a 435-foot home run. The Mets offense responded in kind during the bottom half of the first inning, when Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto socked back-to-back solo shots to take a 2-1 lead. Peña tied the game back at two apiece in the second inning with a single up the middle to score catcher Yainer Diaz, who reached base earlier in the inning after being plunked by Thornton.
-- After a leadoff walk in the bottom half of the fifth, A.J. Ewing stole second base after getting Pecko to burn both of his mound disengagements. Diaz's throw was wide of the bag and skittered into center field, allowing Ewing to move up to third. Marcus Semien walked to put runners on the corners, but catcher Luis Torrens grounded into a double play to kill the relay while scoring Ewing to retake the lead for the Mets, 3-2.
-- Thornton was sharp in his 11th career start, striking out five, walking one, and allowing two earned runs on six hits across five full innings and 97 pitches. Now through 61.1 innings, he sports a 2.93 ERA and 1.16 WHIP.
-- Facing right-handed reliever Jonathan Pintaro with a man on second basein the sixth, Astros lefty Lamonte Wade Jr. stepped to the plate as a pinch hitter and cranked a two-run homer to take the lead back. Bo Bichette laced a one-out double down the left-field line in the bottom half of the frame, but he was stranded there and the score remained 4-3.
-- Left-handed reliever Jefry Yan worked the Mets into trouble in the seventh inning. With one out and the bases loaded, Daulton Varsho hit a ground ball to first base. Jared Young stepped on the bag for the force out, but his throw to the plate sailed well over the head of Torrens, and two Astros runners scored as a result of the error, extending their lead to 6-3.
-- With two men on base and two outs away in the eighth, Carson Benge popped out as he represented the tying run in the last big chance. Astros closer Josh Hader surrendered a two-out double to A.J. Ewing, who really needed that as he laced it 104.3 mph off the bat into the right-center gap, en route to securing a scoreless ninth for his 21st save of the season.
Game MVP: Lamonte Wade Jr.
Wade's third pinch-hit home run of his career was the turning point in the ballgame, giving the Astros a lead they wouldn't relinquish.
The Mets will travel to Tampa Bay to take on the Rays on Monday, Aug. 31 at 6:40 p.m.
For the Mets, Robert Stock (7.40 ERA, 1.94 WHIP in 20.2 IP) will take the mound. The Rays are slated to send out southpaw starter Ian Seymour (4.21 ERA, 1.15 WHIP in 107.0 IP)
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - AUGUST 30: Ezequiel Duran #20 of the Texas Rangers hits a solo home run against the Milwaukee Brewers in the third inning at American Family Field on August 30, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Texas Rangers scored seven runs while the Milwaukee Brewers scored four runs.
Today’s game started with the Rangers failing to score on an opportunity with RISP in the top of the first inning and then Kumar Rocker allowing the first four Brewers to reach in Milwaukee’s half as the Rangers trailed 2-0 after the first frame for a third consecutive game in this series.
By this point, the gulf between the Rangers and Brewers felt so apparent that you would have been forgiven if you just tuned out and assumed the Rangers would lose and be swept. Instead, Texas showed a little resolve and, after a two-out rally from the bottom of the order, scored a run in the top of the second. An inning later, Ezequiel Duran’s 15th home run of the year tied the game.
A couple of innings after that, in the top of the fifth, it was Duran again who delivered with a two-run ground-rule double to give Texas their first lead of the weekend.
Meanwhile, there was only enough bullets for two more innings from Rocker after his usual first inning struggles. On the plus side, Rocker kept the Brewers off the board after the first four batters while the Rangers were rallying. However, it took 86 pitches for Rocker to complete his three innings, which meant the bullpen was in for a heavy workload.
Luckily, piecing together relief worked out. Tyler Alexander handled a couple of scoreless innings. Adam Macko contributed a scoreless frame. Jordan Montgomery was touched up for a two-run home run, but Jacob Junis and Jacob Latz nailed down the win.
The reason the home run off Montgomery wasn’t devastating was because the Rangers kept adding to their total with Joc Pederson hitting a solo home run in the sixth and Jake Burger and Cody Freeman driving in a couple of extra insurance runs on a pair RBI singles in the seventh.
Are the Rangers now better than the Brewers? No. Did the Rangers have a pretty miserable road trip against a couple of first place squads? Yes. Could the Rangers somehow still make the playoffs? Apparently so.
I’m mostly just glad I got to see the Rangers fight their way back from a poor start against a good team with a well-played game of baseball. Sometimes it doesn’t have to be any deeper than that.
Player of the Game: Surely no one would have believed coming into this season that Duran would become Texas’ best player but for better (the Solution’s ascension) or worse (the players above him in the pecking order being injured or disappointing or both), here we are.
Today Duran drove in three of the Rangers’ seven runs with one of them erasing another early deficit and the others acting as the big go-ahead blow in a comeback win. If there was one regular for the Rangers who looked like he could hang with the Brewers this weekend, it was Duran, and his efforts today was a primary reason for Texas avoiding a sweep.
Up Next: The Rangers head back home to open up a series against the Athletics. RHP Jacob deGrom is expected to take the mound for Texas opposite LHP Gage Jump for not-Oakland.
The August finale first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 7:05 pm CDT and will be telecast via the Rangers Sports Network.
SPLITTING THE DIFFERENCE: This is the 22nd of the Cubs’ 45 series in which they have split the first two games. There was no third game after one series. The Cubs were 9-11 in third games of the others, including 6-6 after losing, then winning. At home, they are 2-5 overall and 1-4 after winning, then losing. The lone win was vs. the Twins on July 19. They have lost to the Yankees and Tigers since then. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
LIGHTING UP: Tonight’s game will be the first of five in a row under the lights at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have played five straight night games at home, without a road trip in between, three times before: June 4-8, 2017 (3-2): won vs. Cardinals; won, won and lost vs. Marlins; lost vs. Rockies; Sept. 15-20, 2020 (3-2): won twice vs. Guardians; after day off, won, lost and lost vs. Twins; April 18-22, 2022 (1-4): won, lost and lost vs. Rays; lost twice vs. Pirates. So this will be the first time the Cubs have played five in a row in two series vs. National League opponents. Before 2017, the longest such streak had been four games, Sept. 12-15, 2005 (1-3): lost, won and lost vs. Reds; lost vs. Cardinals. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
LIKE NIGHT AND DAY: The Cubs are 46-29 in night games this season. They finished 49-38 last year. They are 18-12 at home under the lights this year. They wound up 21-11 a year ago. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
RUNS ON THE BOARD: The Cubs scored in six of the eight innings in which they batted yesterday. They had done that twice before this season. They also scored in six of nine twice. Their four innings with three runs each were the most of the same “crooked number” they have scored in any game this season. They scored two runs three times in three games. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: In a crazy game at Wrigley, the Cubs go down 6-1 to the Dodgers in the top of the third. They tie it up with a five-run third, two of the runs scoring on wild pitches by Tommy John. The game goes to extras tied 8-8, and the Cubs walk it off 9-8 on a home run by Jim Hickman in the 11th. It happened 54 years ago today, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 1972.
As you know, Shōta Imanaga really struggled in his last start last Sunday in Seattle, throwing 72 pitches and allowing five hits and two walks in just two innings. Fortunately, Craig Counsell got him out of there and the Cubs won the game.
Imanaga had a 2.67 ERA and 1.099 WHIP in 12 starts prior to that, covering 67.1 innings, including 10 strikeouts against the White Sox Aug. 17 at Wrigley Field. So let’s hope last Sunday was a one-off and he’ll be hack to that tonight.
Chase Burns was the Reds’ No. 1 pick (second overall) in 2024 out of Wake Forest, and he’s been Cincinnati’s best starter all year. He’s been a bit shakier recently, allowing five runs in two of his last four starts.
He has not faced the Cubs this year. His only career appearance against them was 1.1 scoreless innings of relief Sept. 20, 2025 in Cincinnati.
Burns throws hard. Cubs hitters often have trouble with guys like this. Hopefully today is better.
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The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.
You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).
At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.
The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.
You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.
Aug 30, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers left fielder Teoscar Hernandez (37) celebrates at home plate with first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) after hitting a two-run home run against the Detroit Tigers in the sixth inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The start of Sunday’s game was delayed 58 minutes by rain, and the Dodgers offense was delayed by two months of mediocre hitting. But they scratched together enough to end a dismal road trip on a relatively high note, beating the Tigers 6-1 at Comerica Park to secure a series win in Detroit.
Freddie Freeman and Miguel Rojas were instrumental in the Dodgers’ first two scoring chances in the series finale. A Freeman walk and Rojas double put two runners in scoring position in the second inning, but Michael Tucker and Kiké Hernández each struck out to strand them. In the fourth inning, Freeman and Teoscar Hernández singled, putting runners on the corners, then a Rojas sacrifice fly gave the Dodgers a run.
It was the first time the Dodgers scored first in a game since last Sunday against the Pirates.
The sixth inning brought another Freeman hit, this time his 579th career double that moved him into sole possession of 24th place all-time, followed by Teoscar Hernández unloading on a pitch for his first home run in 27 days, snapping an 80-plate-appearance drought.
The Dodgers’ first multi-run inning since Wednesday in Atlanta gave the Dodgers another lead.
The eighth inning was almost unrecognizable, as the Dodgers just kept putting people on base and added something called — I had to look this up — “insurance runs.” Sure, two of them scored on wild pitches, but beggars can’t be choosers, and the Dodgers will take the runs wherever they can get them.
Tyler Glasnow was magnificent in his second start back, pitching on four days rest and was sharper than on Tuesday in Atlanta. He retired his first nine Tigers on Sunday and his last 10, completing seven innings with six strikeouts.
In between the Tigers strung together two singles in the fourth inning, with a wild pitch in between that allowed a run to score. Those were the only two hits against Glasnow, who also walked a batter.
As bad as the offense as been, the final four games of the road trip brought hope, as the Dodgers started all four of their projected playoff starting pitchers — Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tarik Skubal, Blake Snell, and Glasnow (before considering when or if Shohei Ohtani might be available to pitch), and as a team allowed only five runs over the last four games.
Yes, the Dodgers were only 2-2 in those games and that’s a problem. But if they get any sort of offense to back this pitching staff, that’s their path to success in October. But for now, they’ll take a win to close out a ho-hum August.
The Dodgers are off on Monday before starting a nine-game homestand. First up is the St. Louis Cardinals, beginning Tuesday night (7:10 p.m., SportsNet LA) with Eric Lauer on the mound for Los Angeles.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - MARCH 26: A general view of Wrigley Field with American flag and 150th anniversary banner prior to the matchup between the Chicago Cubs and the Washington Nationals on March 26, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Daniel Bartel/Chicago Cubs/Getty Images) | Getty Images
We know what Chase Burns has done for the Cincinnati Reds so far in 2026. He owns a stellar 14-3 record on the season, and even though pitcher win/loss is a mostly meaningless stat, it’s telling given just how bad the Reds have been more often than not this season. He has pitched to a 2.77 ERA across 25 starts, and the 139.2 IP he has logged so far is already a career high.
What we don’t know is just how much more the Reds plan on letting him show this year.
Burns hinted after his most recent start – perhaps his worst outing of the year on the road in San Francisco – that the club would likely begin to carve off some innings at the end of his starts that he’d have otherwise pitched through. The plan is not to shut him down for good, not to move him to the bullpen, and not to really ‘skip’ him in the rotation; rather, we might just see him tasked with chucking 75-80 pitches every fifth day instead of 95-100.
Our first real chance to see that plan develop will be everyone’s, as that comes on Sunday Night Baseball under the bright lights of a national audience in Chicago as the Reds and Cubs wrap their series in Wrigley. Despite being absolutely obliterated on Saturday, the Reds can still actually walk away with a series victory if Burns & Co. can fly their own W this evening.
First pitch is slated for 7:20 PM ET, and you’ll be able to view it on either NBC or streaming via Peacock.
Here’s how the Reds will line up behing Burns, including rookie Edwin Arroyo getting his first career big league start at the hot corner:
DETROIT, MICHIGAN - AUGUST 28: Teoscar Hernández #37 of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrates scoring a run in the eighth inning with Mookie Betts #50 while playing the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on August 28, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Tigers were in this one as long as their pitching held up, and that lasted about six innings. A good start from Framber Valdez got a bit spoiled at the end, and then the bullpen fell apart in the late innings. More to the point, the Tigers managed just two hits on the day. The offense’s slump is now about three weeks old after a great run from June 1 into early August.
The rubber match of this series featured Framber Valdez taking on Tyler Glasnow after the Dodgers decided against pitching Shohei Ohtani. The greatest player in the game, probably of all-time, is dealing with right biceps soreness and some knee issues, and it’s shown in his production at the plate recently as well as keeping him off the mound. The game was delayed about an hour due to light, but steady rain throughout the region.
Things started well for the Tigers when they finally peeled the tarp off the field. The top of the first saw Valdez racked up three quick ground outs of Shohei Ohtani, Tommy Edman, and Mookie Betts in an eight-pitch first inning.
Tyler Glasnow doesn’t throw quite as hard as his peak seasons, but it’s still a pretty great fastball. Gleyber Torres, Colt Keith, playing first base again with Spencer Torkelson on the bench, and Kevin McGonigle grounded out in quick succession in the bottom half.
The second started less auspiciously, as Valdez got ahead of Freddie Freeman 0-2, and then missed with four straight, though one probably could have been challenged by Dillon Dingler. The lefty bounced back by carving up Teoscar Hernandez on three pitches, whiffing him on a curveball down, but Miguel Rojas yanked a curveball into the left field corner for a double. Freeman held at third, but the situation wasn’t great. In a 2-2 count, Valdez doubled up on curveballs, and while Kyle Tucker appeared to check his swing, the third base umpire disagreed and rang him up. So it was up to Enrique Hernandez. Valdez spotted two good sinkers at the bottom of the zone to get ahead 0-2 and then dusted him with another one that was right down the middle to escape the jam and keep the Dodgers off the board.
Glasnow locked up Dingler with a good curveball for the first out of the bottom half. Brett Callahan grounded out to second, and while Zach McKinstry put up a better battle, he punched out to end the inning.
Ben Rortvedt flew out to open the third. Ohtani, who has done nothing in this series, finally hit a ball hard, but it was straight to Keith at first for the second out. Dingler challenged a first pitch to Edman that was called a ball and got that changed to a strike, and he grounded out to Javy Báez at shortstop. The Tigers went in order in the bottom of the third, with Max Clark hammering a ball to center that Hernandez ran down.
In the fourth, Valdez got Betts for the first out, but single from Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez followed. Rojas lifted a sacrifice fly to McKinstry in right field to plate Freeman, and it was 1-0 Dodgers. Tucker’s misery continued with a ground out to end the inning.
With a run on the board, things loosened up a bit. Gleyber Torres led off the bottom half with a single to center. A wild pitch advanced him to second, but Keith struck out swinging. McGonigle was up next, however, and he battled through a long at-bat and then drilled a one-hopper into left center field for a single to score Torres and tie the game 1-1. That knock was McGonigle’s 140th on the year, passing Al Kaline’s rookie mark.
Glasnow isn’t the quickest guy to the plate, and McGonigle tried to take advantage but was cut down by Rortvedt trying to steal second. Dingler drew a walk, but Callahan lifted a fly out to left to end the inning.
Valdez whiffed Enrique Hernandez with another good curveball to start the fifth, but Rortvedt lined a single to center as the lineup turned over. The lefty got ahead of Ohtani, and then fired a pitch that was classified as a 90.7 mph sinker up and in to get the whiff, but it looked like a changeup with late drop that tied the superstar into knots. Edman grounded out to end the inning.
Glasnow buzzsawed through the Tigers in a 1-2-3 bottom half.
Valdez was creeping toward 80 pitches as the sixth got underway, but he was throwing a heck of a game to that point. After a lengthy duel, he popped up Betts and Keith made the play. A 1-2 curveball down and in to Freeman was smoked down the right field line for a double. The Tigers were warming the bullpen with Tyler Kinley up as Teoscar Hernandez dug into the batter’s box. Unfortunately, Valdez left a changeup well up in the zone, and it got mashed to left for a two-run homer. 3-1 Dodgers.
Valdez got Rojas and Tucker, but the damage was done. He finished his outing at 105 pitches, but at the end of what could have been a really good outing, one bad pitch spoiled the start to a degree.
Báez and Torres grounded out in the bottom half as Glasnow continued to cruise for the most part. Colt Keith hammered a drive to right at 108 mph off the bat, but it was right to Tucker for the final out.
Tyler Kinley took over in the eighth for his second outing since the Tigers claimed him off waivers from the Braves last week. Enrique Hernandez greeted him with a solid single. Rortvedt tried to move him to second, but whiffed and Hernandez was leaning way off of first base and Dingler backpicked him. Kinley locked up Rortvedt with a curveball for the second out and Ohtani grounded out to first.
McGonigle was up first in the bottom half against Glasnow, who was still short of 80 pitches and looking very good. The star rookie lined out to left to start the frame. Dingler hit one hard as well, but right out to Enrique Hernandez in center. Callahan bit on an 0-1 curveball, and then grounded a fourseamer to Edman to end the inning.
Tanner Rainey was up next for the Tigers, and he got Edman to start the eighth. Mookie Betts, however, got a 3-1 fastball on the inner third and pulled it to left for a one-out double. Rainey then fell behind to Freeman as well and walked him. He dialed up 99 mph against Teoscar Hernandez, but was still wild. Dingler tried to backpick an aggressive Betts at second, but Torres whiffed on a poor throw and allowed both baserunners to advance. Rainey then drilled Hernandez to load the bases, and things were going off the rails.
Dave Roberts sent Max Muncy to hit for Rojas, looking for a big hit to put this one away. Rainey bounced an 0-1 slider that squirted away from Dingler, and Betts scored from third as everyone moved up 90 feet. Muncy pulled an RBI single through the right side, and now it was 4-1 Dodgers. This is the story on Rainey. He’s always had the stuff, but the 33-year-old has always had miserable command.
Rainey missed with two more pitches to Tucker and then fired one way wild that scored Teoscar. And then he walked Tucker too. That was finally the end of his day as Tigers fans let their displeasure be known. Kyle Finnegan took over and punched out two to mercifully end the inning. 6-1 Dodgers.
Kyle Hurt took over in the eighth for the Dodgers. Zach McKinstry banged a grounder up the middle but Mookie Betts made a great play to retire him for the first out. The right-hander fell behind against Hao-Yu Lee and eventually walked him. Max Clark got ahead in the count, but Hurt worked back even and whiffed him on a good changeup down, and Báez bounced out to Betts to send us to the ninth.
Jacob Waguespack took over for the Tigers, facing Ohtani to start the inning. Shohei watched a well located 2-2 heater down and away in the zone for strike three. Edman spanked one to left center field but Max Clark easily ran it down right before the warning track. Betts lined out to Callahan in left, and it was last call.
Seth Halvorsen and his triple digit gas took over to close this out for the Dodgers. Torres popped out. Keith grounded out. McGonigle flew out to center field, and the Dodgers had a 2-1 series victory. The Dodgers pitch really well and have a talented, deep bullpen, but even so the Tigers scored just four runs in the three-game series.
The Tigers head out to Minnesota to start a series with the Twins on Monday night. They’ll finish the week with a set in Cleveland, starting with a doubleheader on Friday.
Promoted Málaga slump to 4-0 defeat at the Bernabéu
Como defeat Napoli; Jones makes Inter debut in win
Real Madrid maintained their perfect start to the season in La Liga with a comfortable 4-0 home win over promoted Málaga on Sunday, scoring three times inside 30 minutes before adding a late fourth.
Jude Bellingham’s brilliant solo opener, an own goal by the Málaga goalkeeper, Alfonso Herrero, and a sharp Kylian Mbappé volley in effect settled the contest before half-time, with the substitute Arda Guler wrapping up the victory in added time at the Bernabéu.
TORONTO, ON - August 30 Max Scherzer #31 of the Toronto Blue Jays reacts on the bench at the end of the 7th inning after getting his 10th strike out and now being 9th on the all time strike out list in MLB history.The Toronto Blue Jays beat the Seattle Mariners 7-0 at the Rogers Centre in MLB baseball actionAugust 30 2026 Richard Lautens/Toronto Star (Richard Lautens/Toronto Star via Getty Images) | Toronto Star via Getty Images
The Mariners got swept by an old man.
The sources of embarrassment in this 2026 Mariners season keep getting weirder and less likely. Max Scherzer, the oldest player on any active roster in the majors — and perhaps the worst — dominated the Seattle lineup for seven innings on Sunday, wracking up 10 strikeouts and allowing just one hit. The Mariners didn’t pitch well, continuing a months-long trend as the worst pitching staff in the majors. But it ultimately didn’t matter how many runs they gave up (it was seven runs) because they got blanked by a pitcher who, as staff writer Eric Sanford put it, grew up with a rotary phone.
Scherzer entered the day with a 7.02 ERA and 6.32 FIP in 2026. That’s understandable, because he’s 42. But he’s clearly not a good pitcher anymore, and the only reason he’s still employed is because Hall of Famers generally get to dictate when they hang it up, even if that’s a bit too late (something the Mariners are entirely familiar with).
Whatever it is that motivates Scherzer to keep pitching, to take the weekly punishment from batters two decades his junior, he found it on Sunday. He struck out 10 over seven innings, allowing just one hit and one walk and no runs. That’s good for a Game Score of 84, which makes it the 30th best performance of his career in start number 487. The performance set all sorts of obscure age-related records. Most importantly, Scherzer passed Gaylord Perry for the ninth most strikeouts of all time at 3,535. I also thought this was a neat from Sarah Langs:
Scherzer did all this primarily with a 93 mph fastball that generated eight whiffs on 19 swings. I’m not sure it would have mattered how hard he was throwing, as the Mariners lineup looked pretty lifeless on Sunday. The top three in the order struck out nine times in 15 plate appearances. The only hit of the day came in the fourth, when Cal Raleigh doubled off the top of the wall in right field. A Taylor Ward walk in the eighth is the only other base runner the Mariners would manage the rest of the way.
Logan Gilbert got the ball to oppose him. He struggled out of the gate, walking Brett Bateman to lead off the first, then giving up a two-run homer to Alejandro Kirk. Gilbert needed 32 pitches to get out of the first. This was concerning. Mariners starters have failed to get through five innings in six of the last 14 games, including Saturday’s start by Kade Anderson. An already bad and shallow bullpen has been severely overworked while being forced to cover those innings. The Mariners have far and away the worst pitching staff in the majors since the All-Star break, all but ending any notion of finishing this season above .500. I’m less concerned about the starters pitching well at this point, so much as surviving in games long enough to avoid position player pitchers and the “can you believe how bad the Mariners lost” headlines in the national media. It’s OK to lose, just do it quietly. (Unfortunately, the offense was the one to make headlines Sunday.)
Gilbert, to his credit, ultimately settled down and made it through five. I almost wonder if he knew this was the task, because really started pounding the zone and ramping up his efficiency. That worked for a couple quick innings and got him into the fifth. This is where the Mariners defense reminded us of their role in the staff’s struggles. Myles Straw got on with a seeing-eye single, and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a grounder that J.P. Crawford simply whiffed on, which somehow turned into a double to make it 3-0. Gilbert finished the inning, and his day was done. It wasn’t a great performance, but he did the bare minimum, which is a lot more than his teammates have done in recent weeks.
On came the bullpen. Gabe Speier was up first, he gave up a very high but not very deep homer to Kazuma Okamoto that Julio nearly caught. I’d stepped away for a moment to tend to a pork shoulder in the kitchen, and I’d asked the commentariat what happened, seeing some groaning. I liked this decsritpon from commenter andrewgolfsalot:
Were I describing it in baseball terms I’d say that he took a pretty good route to a moon ball. He got to the wall, timed his jump rather well, and then the ball ticked off the pinky edge of his glove as if he somehow misjudged left to right.
Were I describing it in camping terms, I’d say that he woke up right on time to make a hike to a slightly above average attraction. He packed the exact right amount and type of snacks for the hike. His pace was perfect. He kept himself hydrated throughout the journey. And then when he got to the destination and took out his phone to take pictures of the attraction, he dropped his phone and the camera broke.
At this point, the game was over, though Nick Davila, who returned to the roster this morning with Emerson Hancock placed on the IL, got in the game and gave up three more runs. I don’t really know how because of the aforementioned pork shoulder, but I see two doubles, two walks, and a hit by pitch on his line. I imagine it wasn’t pretty.
The loss for the Mariners caps a sweep in Toronto and sinks them to 64-73. This feels… final. It’s the type of loss that has me working on my Dan Wilson obit. I don’t think he makes it home from the road trip. I’m not even sure whether he shows up in Boston on Monday. I’ve been pretty up front about my feelings on this issue. I hold Wilson harmless for most of the season, and I’m far more likely to blame a team building philosophy that led to Crawford whiffing on that grounder in the fifth inning. Regardless, nothing is going well at the moment. We still have another month of this.
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - AUGUST 30: Matthew Liberatore #32 of the St. Louis Cardinals walks to the top of the mound after giving up a solo home run to Jared Triolo #19 of the Pittsburgh Pirate during the fifth inning at Busch Stadium on August 30, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Scott Kane/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With JJ Wetherholt being sent to the injured list, the St. Louis Cardinals lineup for Sunday was somewhere south of inspiring. Matthew Liberatore on the mound, due to his recent struggles, wasn’t a reason for optimism either. The good news is that baseball games are played on a field and not on paper or limited to expectations. The bad news is Pirate homers and sloppy play would doom the Cardinals Sunday afternoon at Busch Stadium even though they made a game of it in the later innings.
Matthew Liberatore started the game with the one thing you don’t want to start a game with: a walk to Pirates leadoff man Triolo. Fortunately, he didn’t score in the top of the 1st as Matthew was able to pitch around it. The top of the 2nd inning wouldn’t have the same result. After Brandon Lowe doubled to leadoff the Pittsburgh top of the 2nd, Esmerlyn Valdez did not miss a 93 mph Liberatore four-seam fastball as he blasted it just inside of the right field pole for a 2-run homer giving the Pirates an early 2-0 lead.
The Pittsburgh Pirates had their leadoff man reach base in each of the first 3 innings including the top of the 3rd when O’Neil Cruz hit a ball off of the bottom of the left-centerfield wall to leadoff. Liberatore was able to strike out both Reynolds and Flores Jr. and looked like he would get out of the inning unscathed when Lowe popped up to Gold Glover Ramón Urías at third. Unfortunately, the Gold Glover would not perform at Gold Glover standards as the ball hit his glove and fell helplessly to the ground allowing Cruz to score and up the Pirates lead to 3-0. If the past couple of weeks for the Cardinals could be summed up in one play, this would be it.
The Cardinals would begin to show some signs of life in the bottom of the 3rd inning when Thomas Saggese slapped a one-out single to right field. Bryan Torres followed that by beating out an infield single. Both St. Louis runners advanced to second and third on Herrera’s groundout which brought up RBI stud Alec Burleson. He tomahawked a high Ashcraft fastball to deep right-centerfield, but it was hauled in by Mangum for the final out of the Cardinals 3rd inning. So close.
While the St. Louis bats remained quiet, the Pittsburgh offense kept the game from being completely boring as Triolo crushed an 84 mph changeup and launched it into Big Mac Land in the upper deck of left field increasing the Pirates lead to 4-0.
The Cardinals would finally score in the bottom of the 5th inning when Ashcraft handed out a 2-out walk to Torres after Thomas Saggese singled. Ivan Herrera would make them pay with a solid single up the middle scoring Thomas and giving St. Louis a run cutting the Pirates lead to 4-1.
Alec Burleson would reach the 100 RBI mark with a single to right after that bringing the Cardinals a little closer at 4-2. Jordan Walker’s broken bat pop-out would end the Cardinals 5th inning.
How to assess Matthew Liberatore’s performance Sunday? Well, he almost got the team through 6 full innings. That’s a plus. He also struck out 9 which is moderately impressive. Matthew walked 2 and gave up 3 earned runs not counting the Urias blunder. He ended Sunday with a pitch count of 107. Add one pitch clock violation to his numbers, too. Not his best outing of the season, but not his worst either. This likely won’t quiet down the discussion about whether Liberatore should remain in the rotation or go back to being a middle innings reliever anytime soon.
Ryne Stanek was brought in to finish the top of the 6th inning for the Cardinals. He came in throwing strikes and kept the Pirates from adding to their advantage keeping St. Louis close. The Pirates answered in the bottom of the 6th inning as they took Ashcraft out of the game and brought in Kirby Yates in relief. Nolan Gorman barely missed greeting him with a leadoff home run that landed in the glove of right-fielder Valdez standing with his back next to the wall. Jose Fermin followed that with a weak pop-out for the second out. Nathan Church struck out to end the Cardinals 6th.
Luis Gastelum got himself into trouble in the top of the 7th inning as he walked two and gave up a two-out single to Lowe which scored one and gave the Pirates back their 3-run lead at 5-2. Fortunately, he struck out Valdez stranding two Pittsburgh runners on base and keeping the damage to just one Pirate run.
The Pirates would try to help the Cardinals climb back into the game in the bottom of the 7th inning when relief pitcher Doval would walk Urias to leadoff the inning. That would cost Pittsburgh as Thomas Saggese moved Urias to third base when he singled up the middle and then Torres would lift a sacrifice fly to center scoring Ramon and reducing the Pirates lead to just 2 at 5-3. That lead would be cut to just one after Ivan Herrera turned on a 99 mph fastball and ripped it into the left field corner for a RBI double scoring Saggese making it just 5-4.
Alec Burleson, who earlier in the game became the first Cardinal with 100 RBI’s since Albert Pujols, was up next with a chance to bring St. Louis even or give them the lead. Doval walked him on 4 straight pitches bringing up Jordan Walker with an opportunity to do big damage. Both runners moved up a base on a really slow delivery from Doval putting both of them into scoring position. Jordan unfortunately couldn’t do anything with that opportunity as he struck out on an 88 mph slider for the second out. Pittsburgh went to the bullpen for Yohan Ramirez to face Nolan Gorman. Nolan barely missed giving the Cardinals the lead when he turned on a two-strike 81 mph sweeper, but pulled it foul by just a few feet. Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades, though. Gorman kept the next 98 mph four-seam fastball fair, but lined out directly into the glove of right-fielder Valdez to end the Cardinals 7th.
Manager Oli Marmol brought in Gordon Graceffo to handle the top of the 8th inning. He was able to shut the Pirates down 1-2-3 with a couple of groundouts and a strikeout. The Pirates brought in Luke Weaver to try and keep the Cardinals down in the bottom of the 8th inning. Jose Fermin greeted him with an opposite field single to put the potential tying run on first. Nathan Church was unable to move him into scoring position as he flied out to left for the first out. Ramon Urias struck out on three straight pitches for the second out. Thomas Saggese grounded out for the final out of the Cardinals 8th.
Gordon Graceffo stayed in the game for the top of the 9th. Other than a two-out single he gave up to Reynolds, he was successful in at least giving the Cardinals a chance in the bottom of the 9th inning after he struck out Flores Jr. after 11 pitches. The Pirates handed the ball to Mason Montgomery in the bottom of the 9th inning. Joshua Baez was sent up as a pinch-hitter on his t-shirt day at Busch Stadium. He led off with a hard groundout to third for the first out. Ivan Herrera was up next for the Cardinals. He popped out to first for the second out. The Cardinals final hope was 100 RBI man Alec Burleson. He unfortunately grounded out to second for the final out.
The St. Louis Cardinals begin a long west coast swing as they’ll take on the Los Angeles Dodgers Tuesday night. The Cardinals have not yet announced a starter yet, but the Dodgers are expected to start LHP Eric Lauer. First pitch scheduled for 9:10pm central time and the game broadcast will be available via Cardinals.tv.
SACRAMENTO, CA - AUGUST 01: Manager A.J. Hinch #14 of the Detroit Tigers walks to the mound during the game between the Detroit Tigers and the Athletics at Sutter Health Park on Saturday, August 1, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Don Collier/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Former Astros manager A.J. Hinch still has strong ties to Houston and to franchise owner Jim Crane. However, according to Bob Nightengale of USA Today, he is not interested in leaving his managerial job in Detroit for the Astros front office. From Nightengale:
While Detroit Tigers manager A.J. Hinch still is beloved in the Houston Astros organization and has a strong relationship with owner Jim Crane, he has no interest at this time of filling their GM vacancy. He received a contract extension from the Tigers at the end of last season and wants to remain in the role.
The Astros are expected to hire a GM with a strong analytics background.
BROOKLYN, NEW YORK - AUGUST 24: (L-R) Samantha Busch, Ashley Rodón and Carlos Rodón attend the Carlos Rodón Foundation 2026 Willow Gala at the Refinery on August 24, 2026 in Brooklyn, New York. (Photo by Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for the Carlos Rodón Foundation) | Getty Images for the Carlos Rodó
It’s Sunday once more, and you know what that means — it’s time for our weekly social media roundup! It was rivalry week in the Bronx, with the Houston Astros and Boston Red Sox coming to town to play seven games in six days. The on-field action only tells us half the story of this week, however. And so, without further ado, let’s get started!
The Carlos Rodón Foundation
This week, Carlos Rodón and his wife Ashley hosted this year’s Carlos Rodón Foundation Gala, and as always, the Yankees came out in full force.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - AUGUST 30: Mason Adams #38 of the Colorado Rockies pitches during the first inning against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on August 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Colorado Rockies and Atlanta Braves wrapped up their season series today, one that was tilted fully in favor of the Braves. Atlanta took all six games, first sweeping a series at Coors Field back in May with 8-6, 9-1, and 11-6 wins, before breaking out the brooms again at Truist Park this weekend.
The two clubs are at opposite ends of the spectrum right now. The Braves lead the NL East and are trying to hold onto the 2-seed in the MLB playoffs. We don’t need to rehash where the Rockies are at.
For as wide as that gap is, the Rockies kept the games in this late August series close but couldn’t muster quite enough to steal any. Today’s game was the Rockies best shot, but a lack of offense cost them another one-run game.
A strong second start from Mason Adams, with a hiccup in the third
In his MLB debut, Mason Adams faced the league’s highest run scoring team in the Washington Nationals and performed well, surrendering only one run through four innings. He faced another tough test today against a Braves lineup that is top 10 in hitting and scoring.
Through the first two innings, you couldn’t have asked for more from the rookie. He made good use of his four-seam fastball early and struck out his first batter faced in Drake Baldwin on three straight strikes, finishing him off with a curveball. While he walked his second batter in Ronald Acuña Jr., he bounced back well and escaped with a scoreless first, picking off Acuña Jr. to end the inning after getting Matt Olson to fly out.
Adams posted a quick 1-2-3 second inning, using just eight pitches, including a three-pitch strikeout of Ozzie Albies.
The first hit for Atlanta came in the bottom of the third. Unfortunately for Adams, it was a solo home run from Sean Murphy. That was followed up by an Austin Riley double launched into left field that nearly left the yard as well. A wild pitch from Adams moved Riley to third before he was brought home by Acuña Jr. Adams was able to escape with the Rockies down 2-0.
To his credit, which was very well-earned, Adams responded with two more strong, clean innings. He gave up a single and a walk in the fourth but also notched another strikeout and prevented any more damage. He got another strikeout in the fifth and got Acuña Jr. to hit into a double play.
Adams ended his day without any run support and the Rockies behind 2-0. He went 5.0 innings allowing five hits, two earned runs, five strikeouts, and two walks. Aside from the third inning, it was another strong starting performance from the new guy.
After the game, manager Warren Schaeffer celebrated his outing. “I thought he attacked the zone well today. I’m not going to say he did anything wrong today. I thought that Mason was exceptional. You have to put all things into consideration here. I mean, this is the guy’s second big league outing.”
Mahle remains locked in, Rockies bats remain cold
Tyler Mahle has looked sharp as of late. He picked up wins in two of his last three starts and has kept runs to a minimum through most of his recent stretch. On the other hand, the Colorado offense has gone cold in recent weeks, unable to get any traction going through consistent hitting.
Whether it was Mahle cruising, the bats continuing to struggle, or a little of column A, a little of column B, the Rockies did not pose a threat for much of the game.
Mahle had his way with the Rockies today, sitting down batters left and right. In particular, Colorado had no answer for his fastball nor his splitter. He posted an incredible 44% whiff rate with his four-seamer, along with a 29% whiff rate for his splitter, logging 17 swings and misses with those two pitches. He had six strikeouts through the first five innings and would end his day with nine.
Mahle ended his stellar day at 6.2 innings with five hits and one run allowed, with nine strikeouts and no walks.
A spark to start a dominant bullpen performance from Feltner
The Rockies offense was in a bad way through the first five innings. After a couple hits to start the game off, Mahle retired 10 straight batters heading into the fifth inning. Mickey Moniak struck out to make it 11 straight before Troy Johnston singled. That would go nowhere, though, as Brett Sullivan followed up grounding into a double play.
Finally, in the sixth inning, Jake McCarthy would provide a spark. Ending a 33-inning home run drought for the team, McCarthy launched a solo shot to right field, making it a 2-1 game. That would be the only ding against Mahle in this one. The purple home run coat was a welcome sight, despite the Georgia heat.
After a busy bullpen night on Saturday, Ryan Feltner entered to replace Adams in the bottom of the sixth with the game one run closer. Feltner was expected to be the starter on Saturday but was scratched with an illness.
Feltner showed up today with a fantastic bullpen performance. Feltner worked through the sixth, seventh, and eighth innings without giving up any runs and notching three strikeouts with three hits surrendered.
Late inning excitement
During Feltner’s stretch of work, the Rockies managed to tie the game up. In the top of the eighth inning, the Rockies played small ball and parlayed a Brett Sullivan leadoff single into a run, thanks to a Ryan Ritter sacrifice bunt and a Connor Norby single to bring him home.
As noted, Feltner worked hard to keep the Rockies in the tie game, working out of a jam in the bottom of the eighth by striking out Albies and Murphy with Michael Harris II on second.
The Rockies trusted Feltner to keep going in the bottom of the ninth inning. That proved to be a wise choice.
Feltner took those two strikeouts from the bottom of the eighth and extended it to five straight strikeouts, sitting down the side with masterful pitching to take the game into extra innings. After getting Austin Riley to strike out on a foul tip, he got Mike Yastrzemski and Baldwin to go down swinging.
Schaeffer praised Feltner’s long bullpen performance. “I thought Felt was awesome, I thought he was no nonsense. He just went right at guys. He looked good coming out of the pen.”
Potential fireworks turn into a dud in extras
The Rockies were set up well to steal the game late. Sadly, that didn’t come together.
After tying the game late and getting strong pitching to keep them in it, the Rockies couldn’t cash in during extra innings. With Mickey Moniak on second to start the tenth, three straight Rockies batters went down. Cole Carrigg, who pinch hit earlier, popped out, Sullivan struck out, and Veen flew out to end the top of the inning.
The Braves made them pay quickly. With Baldwin as the runner on second, Acuña Jr. hit a line drive to second to put runners on the corners. Olson quickly delivered a walk-off single, hitting a hard ground ball just past first into right field.
Schaeffer noted that “you have to execute in the big moments to beat good teams. And we did not do that today in the tenth inning.” The Rockies played a gutsy game on the road, but weren’t able to get the job all the way done in Atlanta.
Up next
August slipped away into a moment in time, but the Rockies have one more game left in the month. The Rockies head home for a series against the Baltimore Orioles (67-69) that will turn the calendar to September.
First up is a Monday night matchup with a 6:40 p.m. MT first pitch.
Tanner Gordon is set to start for the Rockies. Gordon is 1-4 across seven starts and 19 total games. He brings in a 5.38 ERA and a 1.43 WHIP with 69 strikeouts. He got the win in his last start, going seven innings and surrendering just one run against the Washington Nationals.
Kyle Bradish is projected to be the Orioles’ starter. Bradish is 7-12 through 26 starts this season, with a 4.03 ERA, a 1.41 WHIP, and 133 strikeouts. The O’s are currently in the mix in the Wild Card race, sitting one game out of the last spot.
