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The Tigers avoided a shutout in their first game back after the break with a 2-1 win over the Angels, scoring both their runs in the ninth inning.

Welcome back from the break, everyone! Hopefully the Tigers are feeling refreshed and rested after their downtime, because we’re starting the second half on the West Coast. Perhaps it’s us, the viewers, who need to be well-rested in that case, because we have some late games coming down the pipeline. In our first game back, the Tigers are taking on the Angels and as we have recently observed, they actually do worse against struggling teams, so this could be a rough weekend. To open the series, the Tigers had Troy Melton on the mound up against Reid Detmers for the Angels.

In the top of the first, Dillon Dingler got a two-out single, but the Tigers weren’t able to convert the baserunner. The bottom of the first was rough on Melton. Zach Neto opened the inning with a single, then with one out, Nolan Schanuel walked. Jorge Soler walked behind him. Melton was throwing with heat, but his command wasn’t where it needed to be. Josh Lowe grounded out with the bases loaded to score the first run of the game. Melton did get out of the jam, but he used 27 pitches to get through the first inning. That said, the results could have been much worse given the jam he pitched out of.

The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the top of the second. In the bottom of the inning, Vaughn Grissom took a leadoff walk. Then he finally got his first strikeout of the game, hopefully that might get his head back in the zone. Melton did indeed have better luck in this inning, getting the next three outs in order.

With two outs in the third, Matt Vierling singled, but the Tigers left him stranded. In the bottom half, Mike Trout got things going with a leadoff double. Schanuel walked. Melton once again pitched out of the jam, though, getting the next three outs in a row.

It was a case of deja vu in the fourth as Riley Greene hit a two-out double. But as with the previous instances of the Tigers getting a man on base, the team left him stranded. Grissom hit a leadoff single into left to start the home half. Logan O’Hoppe, with one out, grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Ben Malegeri got a one-out double in the fifth. But yet more RISPy business as the Tigers failed to capitalize on the baserunner. Neto kicked off the home half with a leadoff single that caused Zach McKinstry to literally slip on his butt stopping the ball, turning the fielding into a Buster Keaton routine that resulted in no outs. Mike Trout struck out, then Neto got caught in a rundown before getting tagged out.

The Tigers went out in order in the top of the sixth, but more importantly, Dan Petry got to put the glove he’s been keeping in the booth to use as he actually caught a wild foul. With two outs in the home half, Melton’s day was done, and Keider Montero came in to get the final out. Melton’s final line was 5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9 K on 94 pitches. If not for the command issues and the walks, it would have been a really strong start. As it was, only giving up a single run was great. He’s got some work to do, but the raw potential is definitely there. He really turned things around in the later innings, so decidedly not worried about Melton.

Ryan Zeferjahn came in out of the Angels’ bullpen in the seventh, and he got the Tigers out in order. And, hey, Tigers, I don’t know if you considered it, but getting a single run at some point would be both cool and helpful. Montero got the Angels out in order in the bottom of the inning.

Sam Bachman was the new Angels pitcher for the eighth inning. Vierling got a two-out single. With McGonigle on a 3-2 count, Vierling stole second. The Angels challenged the safe call at second. By some miracle, the call actually stood (it looked very likely he was out, but not a certainty). It ended up not mattering because McGonigle struck out. Montero continued working in the bottom of the inning and just made the Red Sox look silly, going down in order. So good.

Kirby Yates came in for the ninth, and the Tigers were down to their last chance to make something happen. Dingler was hit by a pitch to start the inning. James Outman came in to pinch-run for Dingler. With one out, Outman stole second. Riley Greene walked. With two outs, Hao-Yu Lee came in to be the hero, hitting a double to score two runs.

Samy Natera Jr. came in and got the final out of the inning. In the home half, Montero was back on the mound, and hit Jorge Soler, putting the leadoff man aboard. Jose Siri singled after showing bunt multiple times. The second out of the inning led to a challenge, though it was a really great play between McGonigle and Torkelson. The call on the field was upheld for the second out. Montero kept it together despite the threat of two runners in scoring position and got the final out of the inning. The Tigers managed to sneak a win out of their first game back from the break.

Final: Tigers 2, Angels 1

The Milwaukee Brewers got their second half started with a thrilling pitcher’s duel walk-off victory over the Miami Marlins 2-1.

Most of the scoring was done in the fifth inning on a pair of solo shots. Griffin Conine took Logan Henderson deep to right-center to give the Marlins a 1-0 lead. The Brewers then answered back in the bottom half of the 5th with a solo shot to left from Joey Ortiz off Sandy Alcantara.

There was essentially nothing else going on offensively for either team before or after that. Until the 9th inning, when the Brewers started to mount their rally. Joey Ortiz got things started with a two out single against Marlins closer Pete Fairbanks. He then stole second base, Christian Yelich drew a walk and put two runners on for Jackson Chourio.

Chourio ended up striking out looking on a pitch that was outside the zone, but even with two ABS challenges remaining, Chourio did not challenge. So this game went to extra innings.

Craig Yoho was handed the 10th inning and went three up, three down in a scoreless frame, even though he started with a runner on second. Yoho has continued to pitch well. That set the Brewers up perfectly for the bottom of the 10th with the heart of the order due up. Brice Turang and Jake Bauers punched out. They couldn’t put a ball in play, until Garrett Mitchell stepped up to the plate.

With two outs, Mitchell drove a single through the middle and Jackson Chourio was waved home. The throw from Jakob Marsee was up the first base line and the Brewers were able to walk off the Marlins 2-1.

That wasn’t the only heroic effort from Mitchell on the night. He made two incredible running, leaping catches deep in the gaps to rob the Marlins of extra bases and taking the lead late in the game.

And immediately after those catches was when Mitchell came up clutch at the plate.

“I kind of told myself the inning before, ’if I get up here, I’m going to end this game’ That’s just my internal thought process, so when I went up there I just kind of went up there free and trying to be aggressive.” Garrett Mitchell said.

Logan Henderson went five strong innings in this game. The athletic trainer checked on him in the 5th as he was dealing with a forearm cramp. He shooed the trainers away and was able to finish the inning, but was removed after that inning with just 73 pitches.

“He started messing with his arm and he said he threw a cutter and his forearm cramped. Well with his injury history, we weren’t going to take any chances. he said he wanted to continue but we wouldn’t want to take any chances” Murphy said.

The bullpen threw five shutout innings behind Henderson. Chad Patrick, Aaron Ashby, Abner Uribe, Trevor Megill, and Craig Yoho each covered one inning apiece, with Yoho ultimately getting the win in the 10th for his first career MLB victory.

Also in this game, Sal Frelick exited in the fourth inning with right shoulder soreness. Murphy said postgame that they will get some imaging done, but “I suspect he won’t be able to go anytime soon”. So it sounds like an IL stint could be coming for Frelick. Frelick suffered the injury on a throw in from the outfield the inning before.

The Brewers have reached 60 wins in just 97 games played, the quickest time to reach 60 wins in franchise history. They are the second team in baseball to reach 60 wins this year, behind, of course, the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Shane Drohan and Max Meyer will duel things out on Saturday afternoon as the series against the Marlins continues.

Gabriel Hughes gave the Colorado Rockies a start they could win with Friday night.

The offense did not do enough with it, and the bullpen could not keep the game close once he left.

Hughes allowed two runs across 5.1 innings, but Colorado managed only six hits and no walks in a 7-2 loss to the Cincinnati Reds at Coors Field.

The Rockies fell to 39-60. Cincinnati improved to 44-52.

Colorado tied the game in the fifth and remained even into the sixth. The Reds then hit consecutive home runs against Jimmy Herget and scored in each of the final four innings.

Meanwhile, Brady Singer retired the first 12 Rockies and never allowed the offense to build sustained pressure.

Hughes continues to look like a big-league pitcher

Gabriel Hughes gave up a leadoff single to Elly De La Cruz and an RBI double to Sal Stewart before recording an out, but the inning did not get away from him.

JJ Bleday moved Stewart to third with a flyout. Hughes then struck out Spencer Steer and froze Eugenio Suárez with a called third strike to strand the runner.

Hughes retired eight straight hitters beginning with those final three outs of the first inning.

Cincinnati continued creating traffic, but Hughes repeatedly worked through it. Tyler Freeman threw Stewart out at third base to end the third inning after Bleday singled sharply to right.

Hughes stranded Suárez following a one-out double in the fourth, then picked De La Cruz off first to finish the fifth.

He opened the sixth by striking out Stewart with an 84.5 mph sweeper below the zone. Hughes walked Bleday on his 82nd and final pitch before the Rockies went to the bullpen.

Hughes finished with 5.1 innings, five hits, two earned runs, two walks and six strikeouts. The second run charged to him scored after he left.

The pitch mix supported the line. Hughes used six pitches, led by 41 four-seam fastballs. The pitch averaged 92.3 mph, topped out at 94.6 and produced 12 called strikes and three whiffs.

He paired it with a slider and sweeper in the mid-80s and a curveball that averaged 78.7 mph. The separation gave hitters three distinct velocity bands to cover, while his breaking pitches accounted for five of the six strikeouts.

The arsenal worked because Hughes attacked the zone. He threw 63% of his pitches for strikes, put 59% in the zone and delivered first-pitch strikes to 15 of the 21 hitters he faced.

Cincinnati hit seven balls hard, but Hughes paired eight whiffs with 16 called strikes and did not allow a home run. More importantly, he continued showing that traffic does not have to become a big inning. He looked like a big leaguer.

“There is a lot to love with how he carries himself,” manager Warren Schaeffer said postgame. “It is a really difficult environment when you first get to the big leagues, and you are making your first two starts after putting in a lot of time in the minor leagues. So for him to show the confidence out there on the mound is a big deal.”

Singer keeps the Rockies quiet

Brady Singer controlled the game with a sinker-slider combination that accounted for 81 of his 96 pitches.

The sinker averaged 91.7 mph, while the slider sat at 82.4. That separation kept Colorado from settling into one speed, and the slider generated 11 whiffs on 26 swings.

Singer finished seven innings with four hits, two runs, no walks and six strikeouts. He generated 17 whiffs and posted a 31% called-strike-plus-whiff rate.

Colorado put 20 balls in play against him, but 11 were grounders and the average exit velocity was 85.2 mph.

TJ Rumfield finally broke up the no-hit bid with a bloop single to begin the fifth.

Kyle Karros followed with a grounder that could have become a double play, but De La Cruz’s throw pulled Stewart off first. Karros ran hard and remained aboard.

Willi Castro then singled to right, moving Karros to third, and Troy Johnston tied the game with a sacrifice fly. De La Cruz later mishandled Freeman’s grounder, but Ezequiel Tovar grounded into a forceout to end the inning.

Colorado had tied the game, but it never forced Singer away from his preferred plan.

The sixth inning changes the game

The Rockies turned to Jimmy Herget after Hughes walked Bleday.

The game changed almost immediately.

Steer drove a 90.6 mph sinker 404 feet to left for a two-run homer. Suárez followed by sending an 80.3 mph sweeper over the left-field wall, turning a 1-1 tie into a 4-1 deficit.

Herget retired the next two hitters, but the Reds had created the separation Singer needed.

Cincinnati added another run in the seventh after Tovar’s throwing error put Ke’Bryan Hayes on second. De La Cruz followed with an infield single off Victor Vodnik, and Stewart drove Hayes home with a sacrifice fly.

The run was unearned, but it widened a game Colorado was already struggling to chase.

Castro supplied the Rockies’ best answer in the bottom half. He lifted an 83.1 mph slider 382 feet to left for his eighth home run, cutting the deficit to 5-2.

The next two Rockies grounded out.

Colorado creates chances but does not finish them

The Rockies produced scattered opportunities after Singer’s early dominance, but none developed into a full rally.

Jake McCarthy singled to begin the sixth and stole second after Mickey Moniak flew out. Hunter Goodman struck out, and Rumfield flew out to leave McCarthy stranded.

Colorado threatened again against Brock Burke in the eighth. McCarthy reached on a hit-by-pitch, and Cole Carrigg lined a pinch-hit single to center.

Carrigg then made a nifty slide to avoid the force at second on Goodman’s grounder, leaving runners at second and third with two outs rather than ending the inning with a double play.

Rumfield flew out to right.

The Rockies finished 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position, recorded no two-out RBI and did not draw a walk.

Cincinnati kept adding runs.

Steer opened the eighth with an inside-the-park home run after his drive kicked away from McCarthy in deep right-center. Freeman retrieved the ball, but Tovar’s relay came home on an in-between hop that Goodman could not handle.

De La Cruz added a 434-foot solo home run against Jeff Criswell in the ninth.

Johnston doubled with two outs in the bottom half, but Freeman grounded out to end the game.

Final notes

Castro led the Rockies by going 2-for-4 with a home run and one RBI. He was Colorado’s only player with multiple hits.

McCarthy went 1-for-3, was hit by a pitch and stole his 16th base. Carrigg singled in his only plate appearance and remained in the game in center field.

Goodman finished 0-for-4 with three strikeouts.

The Rockies recorded six hits, struck out eight times and stranded six runners.

Steer drove in three runs and homered twice, including the inside-the-park homer. De La Cruz went 4-for-5 with two runs and his 16th home run.

Singer earned the win and improved to 4-9. Hughes fell to 0-1 despite delivering another encouraging start.

The offense was flat, and the bullpen allowed a close game to become a comfortable Cincinnati win. Still, Hughes gave the Rockies something meaningful to carry forward.

His arsenal had enough shape and velocity separation. He attacked the strike zone. He missed bats and managed traffic.

The result was disappointing.

The start was not.

Up next

The Rockies and Reds continue their series Saturday afternoon at Coors Field.

Cincinnati will start right-hander Chase Lowder, who enters at 3-6 with a 4.91 ERA and 59 strikeouts.

Colorado is expected to start right-hander Tomoyuki Sugano, but the Rockies had not officially announced their starter.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:10 p.m. MDT. The game will be available on Rockies.TV and Reds.TV.

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We’re into the second half of the season now, folks (not numerically, just post All-Star break), a stretch where a bunch of contending teams are going to go head-to-head in an attempt to separate the wheat from the chaff.

So which one are the Orioles?

More chaff than wheat … but only for the first seven innings! The Orioles were playing catch-up the whole game, with Houston building a 1-0, then 2-1 lead off O’s starter Dean Kremer as the Birds were kept in check by Houston righty Peter Lambert over six one-run innings in which he struck out 10. But, just like a (hopeful) late season playoff run, they stormed ahead with two runs in the top of the eighth. Adley Rutschman hit a ground-rule double deep to the right corner off reliever Bryan King, and Taylor Ward homered (his seventh) into the stands to put Baltimore up 3-2, their first lead of the game.

And, despite a depleted bullpen asked to cover five innings, that lead held. Anthony Nunez covered two innings, Grant Wolfram was messy but didn’t blow it, and new guy Cam Sanders, acquired in a cash trade from Pittsburgh on Monday, pitched a critical inning of his own, entering in the seventh with the bases loaded and one out before whiffing Isaac Paredes and getting Christian Walker to pop out. Andrew Kittredge was steady in the eighth, and Tyler Wells held on in a crazy ninth.

As for the O’s Dean Kremer, look, this wasn’t his best start. He struggled with command all night and only lasted four innings on 83 pitches. But to his credit, he did one thing particularly well: keep the Astros from scoring bunches of runs. He allowed just two of those and gave his team a chance to write a late-inning comeback.

Kremer put his team in a one-run hole in the first inning. The O’s starter walked leadoff hitter Jeremy Peña and did what everybody said not to do before this series: he pitched to Yordan Alvarez [groan],  a man hitting nearly 90 percentage points better than the rest of his team. Kremer left a low fastball in the middle of the zone and Alvarez doubled off the center-field wall, driving in Peña. Talk about a one-man wrecking crew.

We were still in the first with no outs, and Isaac Paredes singled. But Kremer fought. He got a big-boy strikeout of cleanup hitter Christian Walker, deploying a healthy amount of sinkers. Battling against José Altuve, Kremer went to a 3-2 count before he drew a bouncing double play ball. Inning over; further damage avoided.

It never got easy for him tonight, but Kremer kept limiting the damage. In the second inning, he threw 30 pitches and walked two. But he got out of it, aided by a Rutschman-to-Holliday caught stealing. Battling, Kremer sandwiched a walk of Lucas Spence, making his MLB debut, between two strikeouts. Laborious but scoreless.

For the better part of innings, Houston’s Peter Lambert shut the Orioles down with his nasty right-to-left stuff, sort of like the mirror image of a lefty. The Orioles got their first and only run off him in the third inning, as Lambert lost his finesse and walked three. Coby Mayo figured him out first, smacking a cutter with ease into the outfield. The next two hitters made quick outs. But Adley Rutschman and Taylor Ward worked a pair of walks, looking like tough ABs the both of them. Pete Alonso came up with the bases juiced. Lambert threw him a lot of junk, but he just missed with Pitch No. 7. It was his third walk of the inning, and it tied the game, 1-1.

Still no smooth sailing for Dean Kremer, but also no collapses. The Astros made it 2-1 in the third on two hits and a sac fly. But a stronger Kremer kept the Astros at bay with a quick one-two-three fourth. Looks like he’d found his stuff! Regrettably, we’d see no more of Kremer after that. He was pulled after 83 pitches and four innings.

In the fifth, the O’s turned to Anthony Nunez, and to their defense. Catcher Christian Vázquez hit a one-handed ball over the infielders, but Jackson Holliday, dancing and prancing like a deer, made a running over-the-shoulder catch. Peña hit a warning-track shot that Colton Cowser reeled in with ease. And after Alvarez walked (his third time on base), Paredes cued a foul ball towards first that Pete Alonso made a great running catch on.

Grant Wolfram took the baton in the seventh, and frankly, he made kind of a mess. He allowed a leadoff single and two walks. But, if you have a sense of drama, you can see that all Wolfy did was tee up a great chance for Cam Sanders’ early heroics with his new team. Sanders whiffed Isaac Paredes and got Christian Walker (really ineffective tonight) to pop out. It was a big escape.

That set the stage for the O’s late heroics off a new Houston reliever, Bryan King. Not King’s night, as Adley and Ward hit back-to-back extra base hits, putting the Birds up for the first and final time.

The Orioles don’t quite have a closer right now, but Tyler Wells impersonated one just convincingly enough in the ninth inning. It got dicey, though: with one out, he allowed a single, then a flyout, then a walk. But Christian Walker couldn’t come through with two men on, swinging through a Wells fastball instead.

The Orioles were behind all game, but they came out on top tonight. The wins count all the same. And with this one, the O’s have leapfrogged Houston in the standings, with only three teams currently separating them from a wild card spot. Time to start stacking more of these!

Who was your Most Birdland Player tonight? Taylor Ward, with the go-ahead home run? Cam Sanders, who escaped a bases-loaded jam in his Orioles debut? Adley Rutschman, with a double and a caught stealing?

Durham Bulls 8, Charlotte Knights 2
Coming out of the midseason break, Charlotte looked sluggish in its 8-2 loss to Durham. The only two runs came from a two-out Bulls throwing error in the top of the first and Ryan Galanie’s RBI single in the fourth. In the end, Charlotte put more men on base with walks than hits. It also didn’t help that Jonathan Cannon took the mound to start the game. Cannon wore out his time, earning four runs, walking three, and giving up a three-run homer. Jaden Woods doubled Durham’s runs in the eighth to drive the Knights into the ground, but at least Tanner McDougal looked sharp in his one-hit, two-inning appearance as he makes a strong case to make his season debut before the trade deadline.

Rocket City Trash Pandas 5, Birmingham Barons 3
The Barons attempt to come back from a two-run deficit to overcome a well-deserved win over the Trash Pandas. Starter Lucas Gordon effectively limited the damage from his seven hits allowed, holding the Trash Pandas to two runs while striking out five. Jackson Kelley was a serviceable reinforcement, but Mathias LaCombe didn’t have the Birmingham debut he expected. LaCombe finished the seventh but not without sacrificing two runs and a walk to weigh on his Double-A stats.

Although LaCombe’s rough outing put a damper on the game, the Barons refused to be pushed around. Dylan Campbell blasted a two-run shot to bring the Barons within one run, as was Boston Smith’s solo home run in the second, but the two jacks weren’t enough to push Bham over Rocket City.

Bowling Green Hot Rods 5, Winston-Salem Dash3
Winston-Salem came out of the rain delay parched for offense. The Dash did nothing to support starter Justin Sinbaldi, who put on his best performance of the year, holding Bowling Green to one run while striking out eight in five frames. Fortunately, Jeral Perez served the Dash a tall drink of water by cranking a two-run homer in the seventh to knot the contest at two apiece. Then, Ely Brown provided Winston-Salem with an RBI single to help the Dash claim the lead. But it was short-lived.

The Dash’s 3-2 lead evaporated in the ninth almost as quickly as the White Sox suddenly became a winning team. Garrett Wright hoped to secure a save, but walking Tony Santa Maria and then allowing him to steal second put him in deep water quickly. Walking Nathan Flewelling shortly thereafter made matters worse and set up Aric McAtee allowing a walk-off bomb that ruined Winston-Salem’s comeback. Let’s blame it on the rain delay, rather than shaky bullpen pitching, shall we?

Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 9, Myrtle Beach Pelicans 1
Kanny decided to go from zero to 60 in their first game of the second half, shutting out Myrtle Beach in a competition that was hardly a fair fight. In the second frame, Alexander Albertus put the CBs on the board first with an RBI single, then Jaden Fauske squeaked two runs out of a dribbler by playing musical bases after he saw Homer Bush Jr bobble the throw in. That put opened the scoreboard to more small-ball play for Kannapolis to widen their lead while Gabe Tanner worked his magic on the bump. Building on last week’s momentum, Tanner twirled another shutout, but this one was for six innings. Tanner provided more than enough for the Ballers to cruise through the game and secure their 45th win.

ACL White Sox 12, ACL Reds 10 (9 innings, July 16)
Runs? Oh, there were plenty. After seven innings of the regulation Complex League play, the contest was knotted at 11. Both sides battled it out until the ninth, when the ACL White Sox walked it off on a wild pitch and a sac fly. The fireworks included solo bombs from Marcelo Ácala and Jose Mendoza, plus rehabber Adam Fogel went deep twice, driving in four. The bats even showed up in the clutch, going 6-for-17 with runners in scoring position. It wasn’t exactly a pitching clinic, but who’s complaining?

DSL Athletics 12, DSL White Sox 3 (July 16)
The DSL White Sox, allergic to scoring, struggled in this one as well. Out of 51 teams, they’re scraping along at 34th in runs, and today’s showing was more of the same: nothing doing until the fifth, when All-Star Sebastian Romero finally cracked a double and Ronald Cardozo (also an All-Star) managed to bring him home. After that, the Sox cobbled together a run on a balk, then another on a wild pitch — pure charity from the A’s arms. Otherwise, the bats were silent, with a ghastly 1-for-14 showing with runners in scoring position. On the mound, starter Roderic Ramirez got shelled, surrendering seven runs on seven hits over two innings.

ACL Guardians 7, ACL White Sox 3 (July 17)
The ACL Guardians took advantage of an unambitious ACL White Sox team. The ACL Sox traded six hits and a pair of walks for Jose Mendoza’s RBI single in the sixth. In exchange for the hard work, the pitching staff was equally effective. Opener Felix Doroteo could’ve fared better in his brief outing, but it was Fabian Ysalla’s 10 hits and five runs that served as the tipping point for the Guardians’ win. On the bats’ side, going 1-for-12 with runners in scoring position and leaving seven stranded isn’t redeeming, either. Neither the lineup nor the arms put on their best show, but that’s just how it’s been this summer for the Complexers.

DSL Blue Jays Red 5, DSL White Sox 0 (July 17)
Three hits, 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position, and a fielding error kept the DSL Sox off the board in Camelback Ranch. Although the DSLers didn’t have to deal with the smoke that’s blanketing the Midwest and East Coast, they couldn’t hit the ball even if it were right in front of them, based on their 13 strikeouts accumulated. Emmanuel Rodriguez accepted his third loss of the season after leaving with two runs allowed in 1 2/3 innings, although the lack of run support isn’t his fault. Franchel Crisostomo was tagged with three runs in the third, which buried the ailing White Sox. While it’s hard to find a gem in the rough, Jhoriel De La Rosa’s 3 1/3 scoreless innings deserve praise.

NEW YORK — Dave Roberts didn’t indulge the narrative.

But the clock was ticking on Roki Sasaki nonetheless.

This weekend, Blake Snell will begin a rehab assignment for the Dodgers. That means, within a month, the team will have to boot someone from its rotation to make room for his return.

Going into the All-Star break, the natural answer appeared to be Sasaki, who finished the first half of the season with a rotation-worst 5.33 ERA.

So, Roberts was asked Friday, how important would these next couple weeks be for Sasaki, as Snell gets close to making his return?

“Well, Snell is starting a rehab assignment, but I wouldn’t say he’s getting close,” Roberts said.

“Nice try,” the veteran manager then added with a sly grin.

Alas, it turned out no public pressure was needed for the 24-year-old phenom to finally turn a corner.

In the Dodgers’ 2-1 win over the Yankees on Friday night, Sasaki delivered his most promising outing as a member of the Dodgers’ rotation.

With his fastball playing up at a career-best 100.1 mph average, and his splitter coming out so deceptively that catcher Dalton Rushing joked, “I had trouble catching [it] for half the game, so that’s a pretty good sign,” Sasaki blew the Yankees’ lineup away in a 5 ⅔-inning gem that included only one unearned run.

“Very impressive,” Roberts said afterward. “Gosh, I mean, the velocity, he dialed it up.”

“That,” Rushing added, “was about as quality as we’ve seen him this year.”

Indeed, while Roberts might not have said so pregame, Sasaki desperately needed this.

A night in which he threw more 100 mph fastballs (21) than he had in the entirety of his career as an MLB starter previously (14). 

A night in which he went on the attack, put an opposing lineup on their heels and coupled his triple-digit velo (his 21 pitches of 100+ mph were also the most by any Dodgers pitcher since the league began tracking pitch speeds in 2008) with an assortment of swing-and-miss breaking stuff.

A night in which, finally, he looked every bit the part against a legitimate contending team; even if Aaron Judge remains sidelined with a rib injury.

“It’s one game, so I can’t say anything declarative,” Sasaki said in Japanese. “But it’s the lower body. I reviewed how I use that part, and I think that went well.”

This is what the Dodgers had expected to see when they signed the much-hyped Sasaki out of Japan last year. This is what they’d been waiting to see over his turbulent transition to the majors in the season and a half since.

Granted, as Sasaki noted himself, it was only one game. He has flashed potential before, only to quickly revert to inconsistent form.

Then again, in much the same way Yoshinobu Yamamoto leveled up in a Yankee Stadium start back in 2024, the Dodgers are hoping that Sasaki just did the same.

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In his postgame address with reporters, Roberts went so far as to make that comparison unprompted.

“It sort of reminded me of when Yamamoto was here a couple years ago, and that performance he put out, when the velocity and everything ticked up,” Roberts said. “It’s a good team over there, on the road, and to battle his emotions and go out there and put forth that effort that he did tonight was fun to watch. So, hopefully, he continues to build on that and keeps getting confidence.”

Sasaki’s stuff stood out from the get-go, highlighted by a tantalizing sequence against former MVP Paul Goldschmidt to punctuate a 1-2-3 first inning.

At the start of the at-bat, Sasaki pumped a 101.8 mph fastball over the plate for strike one. It was the hardest pitch he had thrown in the majors. After that, Sasaki climbed the ladder with a 101.7 heater that Goldschmidt fouled off. Three pitches later, Sasaki fanned him with a slider in the dirt.

“I got a big smile on my face when I saw 102,” said Roberts, who noted that Sasaki put in “a lot of work over the break” following his staggeringly inconsistent start to the campaign.

“I was upset I didn’t get an All-Star break,” Sasaki quipped, “so I unleashed that.”

The rest of the night, Sasaki kept on dealing, holding his 100 mph velocity while breezing through a five-hit, one-walk, five-strikeout performance.

He escaped a two-on, one-out jam in the third by inducing a double-play grounder from Ben Rice with a first-pitch splitter.

He bounced back from his lone run in the fourth, which only scored with the help of a couple defensive mistakes: Andy Pages letting a runner reach third on a double after dropping the ball in the outfield, and Rushing whiffing on a forkball for a run-scoring passed ball.

Unfazed, Sasaki continued to cruise, going blow-for-blow with former Cy Young winner Gerrit Cole before finally being removed at 94 pitches following a pair of singles in the sixth.

It only lowered his season ERA to 4.98 but encapsulated so much of the potential he has been trying to unlock.

“After that first inning … it was pretty exciting,” Roberts said. “With Roki, there’s times where he gives up a couple, then he settles down, or he’s good until he’s not. So today he was good all the way through.”

Remaining this good moving forward will be the challenge now, with Sasaki still needing to show more consistency with his delivery to cement a longer-term rotation spot.

Whether he can remains a question even Roberts couldn’t answer.

“I guess time will tell,” Roberts said. “I guess it’s in that bucket.”

But now, at least, he has given himself the perfect template to follow.

“I just go back to the conviction that he has,” Rushing said. “Watching him compete on the mound, there was a little bit of a different animal out there tonight.”

The second half of the season is officially underway.   Unfortunately for Houston, they’ve started off on the wrong foot, disappointing the assembled crowd of 31,867 with a late inning blown lead.   Orioles 3 Astros 2.    The Orioles have now won five in a row and have passed Houston in the wildcard standings.    

Peter Lambert’s career high ten strikeouts would be wasted as reliever Bryan King’s struggles continued.   In the top of the 8th, Adley Rutschman would double deep to right, moments later scoring on Taylor Ward’s homerun. King has now allowed three homeruns in each of his last three outings.    

Jeremy Pena led off things with a walk and was brought home for the game’s first run on Yordan Alvarez’s 18th double of the season.   For Alvarez, it would represent his 71st RBI.    

In the third inning, the O’s would tie things up at 1-1.  Pete Alonso would draw a bases loaded walk, sending home Coby Mayo.  Lambert would walk three straight batters in the inning, his only real trouble during an otherwise fantastic outing.   In the bottom of the frame, Pena and Alvarez would continue their 1-2 punch, each reaching safely on a pair of singles.   Isaac Paredes would bring home Pena on a sacrifice fly, making it 2-1.     That would be the score until King’s shortcomings.   

Dean Kremer entered the night having a perfect career 4-0 record verses Houston.   However, on this night, he’d last just four innings, throwing 83 pitches.    Kremer allowed four hits, walked three and struck out five.    Baltimore would utilize six different arms in victory.    

Late on Friday night, the Astros would have plenty of chances.    In the bottom of the seventh, they’d load the bases but failed to expand their lead.    In the ninth, Pena and Paredes would reach, but once again, Christian Walker failed to deliver, striking out to end the game.    

Odds & Ends:

Lucas Spence made his MLB debut.  In his first AB, he drew a walk after completing a 9-pitch sequence.    Spence would also single in the bottom of the seventh, notching his first hit in the major leagues.       

Pete Alonso has now played in 514 consecutive games.    

Saturday contest will be the 100th game of the 26′ season for the Astros.  Spencer Arrighetti will take the mound; he’ll be opposed by Trevor Rogers.    First pitch set for 3:10pm CDT.    Game promotion will feature a Christmas in July theme.   

It is Friday night.

The Orioles have won a fifth straight game. No, really! Taylor Ward hit a go-ahead home run in the eighth inning, helping the O’s in a game where they only got five hits. A parade of pitchers, starting with Dean Kremer and including brand new Oriole Cam Sanders, contributed to holding the Astros to just two runs in the game, capped by Tyler Wells getting through the ninth inning that included having to get out Yordan Álvarez, which he did! The Orioles passed the Astros in the wild card standings with this victory.

YOU KNOW WHAT MUST BE DONE.

The Royals wasted opportunity after opportunity all night until, finally, they didn’t. Carter Jensen got his first walk-off hit as a Royal with a two-run single in the bottom of the tenth to give the Royals a 7-6 victory.

Seth Lugo had a really good bounce-back start tonight. He only struck out 3 while walking 2, but he also allowed 2 runs (1 earned) in 6 innings. His first quality start since July 1st, and only his second since June. He gave up some hard contact in the first inning, starting things off by giving Jac Caglianone a home run-robbing opportunity (successful) in right, followed immediately by a leaping grab by Isaac Collins in left. As funny as it was to see the difference in how high the two guys can get when leaping, it was a bit scary for how the game would go.

Lane Thomas gave the Royals an early lead with the longest home run of his career leading off the bottom of the second.

The Royals wasted a further opportunity when Salvador Perez was hit by a pitch and Michael Massey singled. In the bottom of the third, Carter Jensen led off with a double and the Royals couldn’t advance him.

In the top of the fifth, the Padres got runners at second and third with one out, and the Royals chose to bring the infield in. Lugo did exactly what he wanted, forcing a groundball to second, but it clanged off of Massey’s glove into center to allow both runs to score and the Padres to take the lead.

In the bottom of the sixth, Thomas led off again and singled to left. Vinnie Pasquantino drew a walk, and with runners on first and second, Salvador Perez hit a routine groundball to Xander Bogaerts at shortstop. Bogaerts double-clutched and then threw the ball into the outfield. That allowed Thomas to score and Vinnie to advance to third. But with runners at first and third, Massey struck out, and Nick Loftin gave them another double play opportunity that they didn’t screw up. Still, the game was tied.

It remained that way even after Steven Cruz pitched the seventh and John Schreiber pitched the eighth. Then Jac Caglianone led off the bottom of the inning with a single to right. Tyler Tolbert immediately pinch ran for him and then stole second, making sure to keep his hand on the bag at all times. Lane Thomas grounded to second, sending Thomas to third, and all Vinnie needed to do was get the ball in the air. Unfortunately, he hit a dribbler back to Adrian Morejon. The contact play was on, and despite Tolbert’s attempt to deek Morejon, he was thrown out at home. But the Royals weren’t done there.

Vinnie stole his fourth bag of the year, which led to a weird sequence where Morejon threw a strike to Salvy before the Padres decided to intentionally walk him and face the lefty, Massey. Massey watched two 100+ MPH sinkers to get down two strikes, but he wasn’t watching the third.

Alex Lange-xiety came on for the ninth inning and got two outs before, who else, Ty France whacked a game-tying home run.

The Royals weren’t done wasting opportunities, either. In the bottom of the ninth, the Padres went to Mason Miller. Miller is so good as a reliever that there was some buzz early in the year about him winning the Cy Young award. That seems unlikely as long as The Mis stays healthy for the remainder of the year, but he’ll get some votes. He came into the game with an ERA under 1.00, 2.5 fWAR as a reliever midway through the season, and he had struck out 72 in 49.2 innings – nearly 2 batters per inning!

Isaac Collins doinked a single just on the line in left field, then Carter Jensen ripped a double off the base of the wall in right. Miller intentionally walked Bobby to get to Tyler Tolbert, so the Royals pinch-hit Josh Rojas. He struck out. Lane Thomas struck out. Vinnie Pasquantino struck out.

In the top of the tenth, Matt Quatraro looked at his rogues’ gallery of a bullpen and, perhaps at random, chose Lucas Erceg to try to preserve the tie. Coming into the inning, the Padres had not gotten a hit with a runner in scoring position. Most Royals fans, I think, knew that was about to end.

Erceg got some awkward swings from Miguel Andujar on sliders away, but eventually gave up a double bouncing down the first base line to give the Padres a lead they would not relinquish. To no one’s surprise, the pain didn’t end there. Erceg bobbled a Sung-Mun Song sacrifice bunt attempt into runners at first and third with no outs. Fernando Tatis Jr. smoked a single over the drawn-in infield to drive in another run with Song running to third. Song scored on a sacrifice fly by Bogaerts to give us our final score.

By rule, the Royals were set to send three batters up in the bottom of the tenth, even though everyone knew the game was over. The Padres knew it so well that they sent Kyle Hart – with a career 6.78 ERA – to earn his first career big league save.

Salvy managed to get one off the end of his bat into left to send Vinnie to third while Salvy went to first. Michael Massey got an infield single to give the Royals a pity run, but surely that would be the end. Nick Loftin attempted to bunt the tying run into scoring position, but his bunt was too good, and Kyle Hart made the mistake of fielding the ball. It seemed like it might go foul, but it definitely never had a chance of being an out. Collins went to the plate with the bases loaded and the tying run at second. He hit a slow roller to the right side, and the Padres could only get one out; the Royals had gotten the game within one for Carter Jensen. I was already telling my dad about how the Padres would walk Bobby again after they got Carter out to face Rojas and finish the game.

Carter watched a sinker down the middle and then swung at another, hitting a soft roller into left past the diving Bogaerts. It was a good thing the ball was hit so softly because it allowed Loftin to score the winning run from second.

Lucas Erceg gets an undeserved win, Seth Lugo and Mason Miller get nothing for their hard work. Alex Lange got his first blown save as a Royal. As noted at the top, Carter got his first walk-off hit. The Royals were 1-for-15 with runners in scoring position heading into the bottom of the tenth. They finished the night 5-for-20. It was one of the more improbable wins the Royals have ever earned. Perhaps the most improbable of this disappointing year.

The Royals can get a series victory tomorrow afternoon. Griffin Canning will pitch for the Padres; the Royals still have TBD as of this writing. It won’t be Stephen Kolek as the Royals want him to make a rehab start before returning to the big league club following his extended absence on the family medical emergency list. The game will start at 3:10 PM Central. See you then.

Gerrit Cole was dominating the Dodgers on Friday night through six innings, allowing just three singles and the Yankees staked him to a 1-0 lead.

However, Cole came out in the seventh with already 90 pitches under his belt. He battled with Mookie Betts, but the shortstop worked a walk, forcing manager Aaron Boone to come out.

Southpaw Brent Headrick was already warmed up in the bullpen to potentially face the left-handed Max Muncy, but Boone had a conversation with Cole, and he left the veteran out there.

Cole and Muncy battled, but a 90 mph slider over the heart of the plate resulted in a two-run shot, the decisive blow in a 2-1 loss.

"I was feeling the situation out," Boone said of the decision after the game. "Obviously, in hindsight, I probably should grab him there. Pitched so well. I felt like he was competitive back in the Mookie at-bat. I felt like he had enough to get Max and jumps out in front of him. But then [Muncy] got a mistake. 

"I got Headrick teed up there. That's on me. I should probably get him there, even though it felt like he was in a good place and obviously threw the ball great tonight."

Boone asked Cole if he had one more batter in him, and Cole said he did, but the longtime Yankees skipper recognized his mistake and needed to take the decision out of his player's hands. 

"That falls on me," Boone reiterated. 

"I looked at the pitch. It's not where I wanted, but I looked at the swing and it was pretty excellent," Cole said of the Muncy at-bat. "But yea, it stinks."

The homer put a damper on what was Cole's best start since elbow surgery more than a year ago. He threw a season-high 103 pitches and struck out eight batters in that formidable Dodgers lineup. 

Despite the loss, Cole and Boone are encouraged by the right-hander's performance and what it could mean as the Yankees start the second half of the season. 

"Back-to-back outstanding outings for him. And tonight was really good," Boone said of Cole's outing. "I thought he was just really sharp. I thought he used all his pitches, his secondary well. The change up right away, especially for some of their lefties, was a factor. He spun the ball well, and then I thought he was really spotting his fastball, which had life to it. He threw the heck out of the ball."

"It's nice to push the stamina to, get back out there and, for an extra hitter and just keep going for it," Cole said. "Keep competing, so that's great. Learning opportunity physically and obviously, hitting deeper into the second half, a good learning opportunity as well that it's not over till it's over. You got to keep making pitches, especially against, a great team like the Dodgers."

Following Friday's start, Cole is now 3-5 and lowered his ERA to 3.93 and has now allowed three runs or fewer in seven of his 10 starts, including two runs or fewer in six of those starts.

The Yankees will look to bounce back when they take on the Dodgers again Saturday night. 

Well, I guess the four day break didn’t solve everything that’s wrong with the Blue Jays. This one got out of hand early, with the eventual winning run scoring in the second inning. The pitching was bad, and while the offence managed three home runs they were still held to just seven hits by an unimposing White Sox pitching staff composed mostly of their own castaways.

17 days to the deadline, so if they’re going to get anything going it has to be now. Personally, I wouldn’t bet on it.

No need to go through all the details, but as a quick recap:

• Spencer Miles had a 1-2-3 first inning, but Chicago jumped him for five in the second on three singles, a double, and a Sam Antonacci home run. He’d pull it together and keep the game within reach for two more innings, but a lead-off single in the fifth would knock him out.
• Adam Macko allowed the inherited runner and two of his own to cross, on a single, a walk and a Colson Montgomery double.
• Patrick Corbin had a decent sixth, working around a single, but a single, walk and error would load the bases in the seventh. Derek Fisher gave up a triple to Braden Montgomery, misplayed by Myles Straw in the right field corner, that scored all three inherited runners. A sac fly cashed Montgomery for the White Sox’ 12th.
• CJ Van Eyk, in his MLB debut, mopped up with two scoreless innings, allowing just one hit and striking out one. Welcome to the show CJ, it’s usually more exciting than this.
• The Blue Jays’ first run came in the third. Ernie Clement was hit by Anthony Kay’s pitch, moved to third on a Vladimir Guerrero jr. line single, and after Kazuma Okamoto walked he scored on a George Springer ground out.
• The second, third, and fourth were all solo home runs. Luis Urias went out to left in the fourth, Springer did the same in the fifth, and Brandon Valenzuela took it down the right field line in the sixth.
• Other than that, Clement had a pair of hits, Alejandro Kirk chipped in one of his own and walked twice, Okamoto was hit by a pitch, and Sean Keys walked for Guerrero in the ninth.

Jays of the Day: Nobody qualifies, but Clement and Kirk each got on three times, it’s not their fault that it didn’t matter.

Less so: Miles (-0.32), Macko (-0.10), Varsho (-0.10)

We’re back tomorrow at 3:07pm ET. Shane Bieber (0-1, 7.64) will try to get his season going against Davis Martin (9-4, 3.41).

The season may be 162 games long, but there are certain games that hold more weight than others. In the case of the White Sox, there are few that will hold as much weight as tonight’s game being the first after the All-Star break. It set the tone for the second half, which will be crucial for a White Sox team that finds itself right in the thick of the AL Central race. With a tough road game and the lights shining bright on the forever awful Apple TV, the White Sox continued their dominance over the Toronto Blue Jays in a 12-4 runaway.

Coming into the game, the story was who would prevail in a pitcher’s duel between Anthony Kay and Spencer Miles. Both pitchers struggle to produce many missed swings, and live off of producing weak contact. It was a question on who was sharpest, and Kay won the battle. He certainly wasn’t flawless, but the White Sox got to Miles early, scoring at ease early against one of the better recent pitchers in the American League.

When going up against a pitcher like Miles, it’s important to take what you’re given. Trying to do too much usually is what gets teams in trouble. Fortunately, the White Sox knew exactly what was needed of them and jumped all over the righthander, who only lasted four innings and surrendered five runs.

The story of the night was “the other guys,” and no, I’m not talking about the 2010 movie classic by Adam McKay. Miguel Vargas and Munetaka Murakami are obviously crucial to the success of the White Sox, but it’s going to be the other guys who are going to need to step up if this team wants to win the division. And in a game where Vargas and Murakami struggled, Sam Antonacci and both Montgomerys carried the load.

In the second inning that saw Chicago score five runs, none of them came from the bats of Murakami or Vargas. Toronto fought back with two runs of their own over the third and fourth innings before a Colson Montgomery double with the bases loaded brought in three runs to spike the lead to 8-2; during that same inning, Murakami walked while Vargas struck out.

The role players don’t need to play like stars every night, but if they can pick up the slack here and there when the two All Stars are struggling at the plate, that will be the difference in the AL Central race. With all due respect to Cleveland, Minnesota and Detroit, none of those teams can compete with Chicago’s depth if players like Antonacci continue to step up.

Unfortunately for the White Sox, games aren’t decided in just five innings, so there was still some baseball to be played. In an odd move, Will Venable took Anthony Kay out after just four innings, having struggled through 83 pitches. It was surprising to see the skipper not at least give Kay a chance at going five and collecting the win. On the other hand, it did give fans a chance to suffer from heart palpitations as they watched, so who’s to say whether it was the right call or not.

With a six-run lead, a blown game by the bullpen probably would’ve led to screaming and loud sobbing that could’ve been heard all the way to Canada. Instead, the bullpen only slightly struggled with the golden goose of an 8-2 game.

In what was hopefully more of a “one-off” performance, reliever Trevor Richards struggled to keep the ball in the park. Over five outs, he allowed four hits and two runs thanks to a pair of solo home runs. Luckily, the White Sox would put the game away in the seventh, rendering any other sketchy bullpen work moot. But Seranthony Domínguez mopped up for one out in the sixth and long reliever Tyler Schweitzer brought the game home with three scoreless innings to earn his first major league win.

All in all, it’s hard to complain about a win, especially one of this nature. It is a little odd to see the White Sox score more than 50 runs over their last four games on Friday, but as long as the games keep going in our favor we might as well embrace the chaos.

Game MVP
Colson Montgomery (SS): 2-for-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B, BB, K, 12% WPA

Runners-Up
Sam Antonacci (LF): 2-for-5, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, 12% WPA
Braden Montgomery (RF): 1-for-5, 3B, 2 R, 4 RBI, SB, 0% WPA
Chase Meidroth (2B): 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 9% WPA
Tyler Schweitzer (LHRP): 3 IP, H, BB, 3 K, first career WIN (1-0), 40-of-54 strikes, 1% WPA
Andrew Benintendi (DH): 1-for-2, R, K, 8% WPA

Cold Cat
Trevor Richards (RHRP): 1 2/3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, K, 2 HR, -2% WPA

Runners-Up
Miguel Vargas (3B): 1-for-4, R, 2 K, -4% WPA
Tristan Peters (CF): 1-for-4, RBI, -2% WPA
Kyle Teel (C): 1-for-5, 2B, RBI, 3 K, 8% WPA

The season may be 162 games long, but there are certain games that hold more weight than others. In the case of the White Sox, there are few that will hold as much weight as tonight’s game being the first after the All-Star break. It set the tone for the second half, which will be crucial for a White Sox team that finds itself right in the thick of the AL Central race. With a tough road game and the lights shining bright on the forever awful Apple TV, the White Sox continued their dominance over the Toronto Blue Jays in a 12-4 runaway.

Coming into the game, the story was who would prevail in a pitcher’s duel between Anthony Kay and Spencer Miles. Both pitchers struggle to produce many missed swings, and live off of producing weak contact. It was a question on who was sharpest, and Kay won the battle. He certainly wasn’t flawless, but the White Sox got to Miles early, scoring at ease early against one of the better recent pitchers in the American League.

When going up against a pitcher like Miles, it’s important to take what you’re given. Trying to do too much usually is what gets teams in trouble. Fortunately, the White Sox knew exactly what was needed of them and jumped all over the righthander, who only lasted four innings and surrendered five runs.

The story of the night was “the other guys,” and no, I’m not talking about the 2010 movie classic by Adam McKay. Miguel Vargas and Munetaka Murakami are obviously crucial to the success of the White Sox, but it’s going to be the other guys who are going to need to step up if this team wants to win the division. And in a game where Vargas and Murakami struggled, Sam Antonacci and both Montgomerys carried the load.

In the second inning that saw Chicago score five runs, none of them came from the bats of Murakami or Vargas. Toronto fought back with two runs of their own over the third and fourth innings before a Colson Montgomery double with the bases loaded brought in three runs to spike the lead to 8-2; during that same inning, Murakami walked while Vargas struck out.

The role players don’t need to play like stars every night, but if they can pick up the slack here and there when the two All Stars are struggling at the plate, that will be the difference in the AL Central race. With all due respect to Cleveland, Minnesota and Detroit, none of those teams can compete with Chicago’s depth if players like Antonacci continue to step up.

Unfortunately for the White Sox, games aren’t decided in just five innings, so there was still some baseball to be played. In an odd move, Will Venable took Anthony Kay out after just four innings, having struggled through 83 pitches. It was surprising to see the skipper not at least give Kay a chance at going five and collecting the win. On the other hand, it did give fans a chance to suffer from heart palpitations as they watched, so who’s to say whether it was the right call or not.

With a six-run lead, a blown game by the bullpen probably would’ve led to screaming and loud sobbing that could’ve been heard all the way to Canada. Instead, the bullpen only slightly struggled with the golden goose of an 8-2 game.

In what was hopefully more of a “one-off” performance, reliever Trevor Richards struggled to keep the ball in the park. Over five outs, he allowed four hits and two runs thanks to a pair of solo home runs. Luckily, the White Sox would put the game away in the seventh, rendering any other sketchy bullpen work moot. But Seranthony Domínguez mopped up for one out in the sixth and long reliever Tyler Schweitzer brought the game home with three scoreless innings to earn his first major league win.

All in all, it’s hard to complain about a win, especially one of this nature. It is a little odd to see the White Sox score more than 50 runs over their last four games on Friday, but as long as the games keep going in our favor we might as well embrace the chaos.

Game MVP
Colson Montgomery (SS): 2-for-4, 2 R, 3 RBI, 2B, BB, K, 12% WPA

Runners-Up
Sam Antonacci (LF): 2-for-5, 2 R, HR, 2 RBI, 12% WPA
Braden Montgomery (RF): 1-for-5, 3B, 2 R, 4 RBI, SB, 0% WPA
Chase Meidroth (2B): 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 9% WPA
Tyler Schweitzer (LHRP): 3 IP, H, BB, 3 K, first career WIN (1-0), 40-of-54 strikes, 1% WPA
Andrew Benintendi (DH): 1-for-2, R, K, 8% WPA

Cold Cat
Trevor Richards (RHRP): 1 2/3 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, K, 2 HR, -2% WPA

Runners-Up
Miguel Vargas (3B): 1-for-4, R, 2 K, -4% WPA
Tristan Peters (CF): 1-for-4, RBI, -2% WPA
Kyle Teel (C): 1-for-5, 2B, RBI, 3 K, 8% WPA