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The Houston Astros announced they have claimed OF Nelson Velazquez off waivers from the St. Louis Cardinals. To clear a spot for him on the 40-man roster, they have designated UT Shay Whitcomb for assignment.

Velazquez, 27, is a right-handed hitting outfielder with experience at all three outfield spots. He was batting .216 with a .289 OBP and .722 OPS for the Cardinals, albeit in only 74 AB. He posted 4 doubles, 4 HR and 12 RBI. In his time at Triple-A Memphis, he batted .232 with a .344 OBP and .764 OPS.

For his career at the MLB level, Velazquez has hit .213 with a .287 OBP and .719 OPS with 35 HR and 99 RBI in 626 AB.

Whitcomb, 27, has never been given any kind of a real opportunity with the Astros. Whitcomb only has 96 MLB AB across 57 games spanning 3 different seasons in Houston. This season at Triple-A Sugar Land, he is batting .274 with a .338 OBP and .758 OPS. He has 9 HR and 52 RBI, he has also stolen 23 bases in 25 attempts.

Whitcomb’s lack of opportunity at the MLB has negatively impacted his numbers, as he has less than double the number of AB as he does games played, indicating he is often only getting 1 AB in a game late. This year for the Astros he was only 3 for 23, but with 2 HR and 5 RBI, across 17 games.

Whitcomb’s lack of opportunity in both being called up and in getting playing time clearly demonstrated he was not a part of the team’s vision. The fact he was not recalled while Zach Dezenzo struggled so badly reiterated that fact.

Mea culpa for the delay in getting to the rest of the “By the Numbers” series for a busy Cubs trade deadline. While the deadline was moving fast and furious, I was moving out of my old apartment of 10 years and into a new place a few blocks away. Something had to give to get all the boxes packed in time. It was a good reminder that every trade is accompanied by a physical move for players and their families. Let me tell you, the stress of all of that is real, and we should have some grace for young guys making big moves on the field and off of it.

But the numbers that inspired those moves are still highly relevant so today let’s take a closer look at the stats that sent former first round draft pick Braxton Garrett to Chicago:

The Chicago Cubs are acquiring left-hander Braxton Garrett in a trade with the Miami Marlins, sources tell ESPN.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 3, 2026

The team context numbers haven’t shifted much since I wrote up the Kevin Gausman early last week, so refer to this piece for the Cubs ranks offensively and among starters/relievers. One number that has moved considerably is the Cubs playoff odds at FanGraphs. Those improved from 93.5% the night before the Gausman addition to 98.8% today:

While those numbers have shifted slightly for the better with the addition of Gausman, they (mostly) still explain the Cubs making a move for Marlins lefty Braxton Garrett.

Garrett had Tommy John UCL revision surgery (similar to what Justin Steele is trying to work his way back from) in December 2024. His original surgery was in June 2017, shortly after he was drafted as the seventh overall pick. He’s not a free agent until 2029 and does have an option remaining. This is a solid addition to the Cubs longer term plans, but may not be an impact arm for 2026. The Cubs recalled Garrett on August 6 but optioned him back to Iowa without using him in a game.

The arsenal and stats

It’s a little tricky to speculate on Garrett’s current pitch mix given the lack of innings he’s thrown in the big leagues since 2024, when he only threw 37 MLB innings and 34.2 MiLB innings before being shut down in September and ultimately getting surgery in December. He’s only thrown a full season in the majors once in 2023, when he put up an impressive 159.2 innings with a 3.66 ERA off a 3.68 FIP while striking out 23.7 percent of the batters he faced and walking just 4.4 percent of batters.

With that caveat, when last we saw Garrett pitch he had a five pitch mix with a sinker he throws 31.7 percent of the time at 90.5 MPH, paired with an 82.8 MPH sweeper he threw 26 percent of the time (32 percent of the time to lefties), an 87.5 MPH slider he threw 18 percent of the time (21 percent of the time to righties). He pairs those offerings with an 84.1 MPH change-up and 77.6 MPH curveball he throws 8.8 percent and 8.3 percent of the time, respectively. He also mixes in a fourseam about 7.5 percent of the time. You can get an idea of what that looked like a few years ago below:

It’s a deep arsenal that allows him to tailor his pitches to lefties and righties. In 2023 it resulted in a 49.1 percent ground ball rate which would play nicely with the Cubs defenders behind him.

Garrett has made just two MLB starts this season, both of them in May. That resulted in 4.1 innings pitched with mixed results that sent the southpaw to the Marlins Triple-A team where he’s thrown 77.2 innings total in 2026, 46.1 of them since he was sent down in May. That body of work resulted in a 3.30 ERA off a 3.68 FIP along with a 26.6 percent strikeout rate and a 7.3 percent walk rate.

Unfortunately, that body of work needs a caveat the size of Lake Michigan on it, because his last two starts have looked pretty disastrous. You can see his game logs from FanGraphs since May 27 below:

Date	Team	Opp	GS	W	L	ERA	IP	TBF	H	R	ER	HR	BB	IBB	HBP	WP	BK	SO
2026-07-30	MIA (AAA)	STL	1	0	1	13.50	4	20	7	7	6	2	1	0	0	2	0	3
2026-07-23	MIA (AAA)	@BOS	1	0	1	23.62	2.2	19	8	7	7	0	2	0	1	1	0	3
2026-07-18	MIA (AAA)	@WSN	0	0	0	0.00	1	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	2
2026-07-08	MIA (AAA)	TBR	1	1	0	1.50	6	24	5	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	6
2026-07-01	MIA (AAA)	@MIL	1	1	0	0.00	8	27	3	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	8
2026-06-24	MIA (AAA)	STL	1	0	0	0.00	4	19	3	1	0	0	2	0	1	0	0	4
2026-06-17	MIA (AAA)	@TBR	1	1	0	0.00	6	22	5	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	9
2026-06-10	MIA (AAA)	ATL	1	1	0	0.00	6	22	1	0	0	0	4	0	1	0	0	6
2026-06-03	MIA (AAA)	MIL	1	0	0	1.93	4.2	18	3	1	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	5
2026-05-27	MIA (AAA)	@CHW	1	0	0	4.50	4	17	2	2	2	1	3	0	0	0	0	5
	MIA (AAA)		9	4	2	3.30	45.4	192	37	20	17	4	14	0	5	3	0	51

It is possible that Garrett could throw impact innings for the Cubs in 2026, but it’s also just as likely he could not. It’s also unclear to me if they view him as a starter or reliever for the final two months of the season, but I imaging they are hoping for him to work out the kinks in Des Moines and consider any innings he gives the Cubs this season a bonus.

The Return

Jonathan Long is a solid right-handed hitter who turned 24 in January and is blocked indefinitely by Michael Busch. To give you an idea of how much they believe in Long’s bat, the Cubs had him taking reps at third base last season when Matt Shaw was struggling at the plate. In a full season at Triple-A in 2025 he slashed .305/.404/.479 with 20 home runs in 607 plate appearances. In 2026 with the Cubs he hit .283/.365/.455 with 12 home runs through 452 plate appearances. There are rumors he could be called up imminently by the Marlins. Jace Beck is a 26-year old right handed reliever with a solid fastball that sits around 96 miles per hour. He pairs that with a slider, splitter and curve according to Brooks Baseball. He made his Triple-A debut for the Marlins yesterday and it was a rain-shortened, four-inning no-hitter.

Takeaways

Controlled pitching was extremely expensive this trade deadline so the Cubs pivoted to the shore up their rotations in the future. This is an excellent flyer on a formerly elite prospect. If the pitch lab can figure out what’s been ailing Garrett in his last few outings and keep him healthy this deal could be outstanding over the next three seasons, even if Long is mashing at the plate and Beck is dazzling as a middle reliever for the Marlins.

Fresh off of the Trade Deadline, the Yankees have had an interesting week. They dropped a series to the Cardinals where their offense exploded in the opener only for the bullpen to have a rare disappointing performance and then disappeared for the next two games, bringing them into a series with a red-hot Atlanta team that probably didn’t inspire much confidence. The offense again failed to show at times, scoring nine runs total, but they walked away with a series victory thanks to excellent starting pitching and some timely rallies late on Friday.

The biggest headliner surprisingly hasn’t been either of the two players brought over via trade, but the Yankees’ top prospect: George Lombard Jr. Called up on Tuesday, the 21-year-old shortstop has supplanted Anthony Volpe as the starter and run with the opportunity thus far, slugging a pair of home runs and making defensive plays that haven’t been seen in the Bronx for a while. Combine that with signs of life from Austin Wells’ bat this month and the aforementioned additions in Luis García Jr. and Heliot Ramos, and there’s the promise of potential offense now, even if it isn’t consistent yet. Do the Yankees have enough to get their offense in gear and survive the stretch run, or are they going to need more turnarounds from the bottom of the lineup? Can the rotation continue to hand in stellar turns through their order, and is the bullpen starting to show cracks or just coming down to Earth from an unbelievable past few months? If you have questions like these, or anything else on your mind, send ‘em in for a chance to be featured in our Yankees mailbag.

Answers will run on Friday afternoon. All questions received by the night of August 13th will be considered. You can leave your submissions in the comment section below or by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.

For players to retain their all-important rookie eligibility, they must meet not exceed the following thresholds in a previous season:

• 130 ABs for position players
• 50 IP for pitchers
• 45 days on an active ML roster for position players and pitchers

It can be relatively simple to manage a player’s workload so they don’t exceed 130 ABs or 50 IP, but the time requirement of 45 days can be trickier. For that reason, many teams will wait to call-up rookies until it would be mathematically impossible for them to accrue 45 days of active series time. That cut-off date this season is August 13th. The reasons for wanting a player to retain rookie eligibility in a subsequent season are driven by limiting service time to ensure that player doesn’t burn through any pre-arb years before they’re able to consistently contribute in the majors. Waiting for this cut-off date helps ensure a player doesn’t earn “Super Two” status in which they would get to arbitration one year faster.

This isn’t something that just the Rays or small market teams engage in; all teams do it. The league has tried to incentivize teams to get their young players up to the majors with their prospect promotion incentives (PPI) in recent years, but that really only applies to the best talent. There are at least a handful of guys in every organization who could be decent role players on that team’s ML roster, but there isn’t much incentive to promote them to the majors and potentially exhaust an arbitration year when that same role could be filled by a veteran waiver claim.

The Rays have a few players who are in Durham that could find themselves joining the ML roster once August 13th rolls around. There isn’t a ton of impact potential waiting in Durham, but there are a few guys who could fill a supporting role as the team looks to win the division. Some of these players would also make sense to fill a roster spot when we get to September and rosters expand.

Here are my top four candidates:

• RHP Ty Johnson: He began the year in Durham’s rotation but was moved to the bullpen in late July. His velocity has jumped a couple ticks on both of his pitches in a relief role and could be a solid multi-inning weapon or high-leverage arm in the majors. Johnson would need a 40-man spot to join the ML club.
• RHP Alex Cook: It’s been an up and down year for Cook who was added to the 40-man roster this offseason. He pitched a few innings already, so he would need to join the team a few days after the 8/13 cut-off in order to retain his rookie eligibility for 2027. The Rays like his strike-throwing and mid 90s fastball from a lower release height, and he could carve out a nice role near the back of the bullpen.
• RHP Alexander Alberto: Alberto has been a slow-burn development project in the farm, but he appears to have unlocked another gear with his command this season. A ground-ball machine, he features an upper-90s cut-fastball from an outlier release. Alberto would need a 40-man spot to join the big league club, and he would become a minor league free agent if he isn’t on the 40-man roster by the end of the season. It’s a potential high-leverage arm if he can maintain his command gains.
• RHP Evan Reifert: Similar to Alberto’s situation, Reifert is set to become a minor league free agent at the end of this season. His command and health have kept him in AAA for two seasons now, but his breaking ball is one of the better put-away pitches in the minor leagues – it’s one of just three pitches with a wOBA under .200 and a whiff% above 50% in AAA this season. It’s a high-leverage profile if he can continue to throw strikes the way he has over the last month.

Beyond the rookies they could bring up from Durham, the Rays do have a few others who could help the team in September when rosters expand. The following players are already on the 40-man roster, making them logical additions for the major league side:

• C Kenny Piper: He earned his ML debut last week when the Rays needed a catcher while they waited for Liam Hicks to get to Colorado. Piper is the best defensive catcher in the system; he’s a plus receiver and excellent at controlling the run game – posting caught stealing rates at of 37% this season in Montgomery and 42% in the Dominican Winter League this offseason. He’s unlikely to impact the game offensively, but he has shown a knack for pulling the ball in the air.
• INF Oliver Dunn: A LHB who can play multiple positions on the dirt (including SS), Dunn has shown plus power metrics with above-average plate skills and just enough contact ability to make it work in-game. He’s already on the 40-man and has seen some time in the majors with the Rays this season.
• RHP Joe Boyle: The command has fluctuated this season, but his stuff is as good as ever – especially since adding a breaking ball this spring and cutting some vert from his offspeed pitch. Boyle would likely be limited to a relief role while he continues to develop his feel for his secondaries – potentially as a multi-inning guy who can turnover a lineup.
• RHP Mason Englert: Maybe the inverse profile of Boyle, Englert fills up the zone with fringy stuff and has excellent feel for his offspeed pitch. His plus command has served him well as he has transitioned to a starting role. Englert could eat some innings in the Rays rotation if they need someone to come in and throw strikes.
• RHP Hunter Bigge: After adding a new offspeed pitch this offseason, Bigge has struggled at times to find the zone. His upper-90s fastball still plays and his stuff is sharp across the board, but his command has kept him in Durham for most of this season. He has shown solid command since the start of July however and could contribute in the majors down the stretch.
• RHP Trevor Martin: He made his ML debut this season and performed well in his six appearances. Martin isn’t going to blow anyone away with his stuff, but his lower release and solid command helps his arsenal play up a bit. Martin will throw a lot of strikes and could work as a middle reliever.

There are also some players in Durham that could add some flexibility to the Rays roster, but wouldneed a 40-man spot:

• C Logan Driscoll: He showed some promise on both sides of the ball a few years ago in the majors before an injury took away his 2025 season. He was released, but re-signed and worked his way back to Durham. He’s a LHB with solid plate skills and plus receiving.
• INF Nick Madrigal: A similar defensive profile to Dunn, Madrigal is a high-contact, high-ground ball RHB the Rays signed and sent to Durham in June. His skillset fits the Rays offensive identity well, and he has nearly 1,000 PAs in the majors, plus a 135 wRC+ in Durham thus far.
• OF Jack Suwinski: Suwinski underwent a swing change this offseason that has helped him reach a new level. It’s easy plus power from the left side with an improved hit tool that should allow him to be an above-average offensive contributor in the majors if he were to get the opportunity. His fringy defensive profile will likely limit him to a corner OF role, but his impact with the bat should be more than enough to make up for any defensive shortcomings.
• LHP John Rooney: Rooney is a bit of a wild card as he has missed a large portion of this season due to injury. He features a low 90s fastball from a lefty side-arm slot and a big sweepy breaking ball around 80mph. His deception and stuff could help him put away LHB with ease, but his command and limited arsenal have given him trouble against righties.

The Rays have plenty of internal options they could call on to supplement their roster as we approach the end of the regular season. While it is a possibility that we could see someone in AA make the jump to the majors (Piper technically did it despite having already spent time in AAA), I don’t think any of those players are ready for an opportunity in the majors, even if it’s just a cup of coffee.

All of the potential call-up guys in Montgomery have lots of development left: Theo Gillen struggles to consistently get the ball in the air and is still working on his defensive game, Caden Bodine has a chase rate near 40% and is allowing runners to steal bases at a 90% success rate in AA, Jadher Areinamo also has a chase rate near 40% and has dealt with some injuries throughout the year, and Jackson Baumeister has struggled to find the zone on and off all season. I don’t have many concerns about most of these profiles long term, but they simply don’t look like they’re capable of filling a major league role this season.

I’m looking forward to seeing what decisions the Rays make when they have the opportunity to add some talent from AAA to the big league roster.

Maybe this will be the week Major League Baseball’s playoff logjam finally breaks. (Note: It won’t be).

Alas, there’s decent potential for a little more separation within the packs of several playoff races, even as the week begins with 21 teams within 3½ games of a postseason berth, and 24 within 5½.

It’s an awful lot of mediocre baseball for one year, though perhaps this is how it’s all supposed to work out, what with almost every series carrying at least a scintilla of meaning (sorry, Rockies-Giants). With that, a look at five series this week that could significantly impact the races:

Boston Red Sox at Toronto Blue Jays

When: Monday-Thursday, Rogers Centre

Key matchup: Wednesday – Red Sox LH Ranger Suarez vs. Blue Jays RH Jose Soriano

Outlook: No, the defending AL champions aren’t dead yet, entering the week 3½ games out of a wild-card spot. They’re also coming off three consecutive series victories over St. Louis, Houston and Philadelphia, if we don’t count a makeup loss to the Cubs. A four-game sweep would pull them within four of the Red Sox, though they’d certainly need more help to reel them in.

As for the Red Sox, they finally dropped a series for the first time since July 1 when the Athletics won a pair at Fenway Park, just as Boston closed within a half-game of the Yankees for the No. 2 wild card. Is there hope for a division title? Probably a key moment for Boston to validate that its 32-5 run was the mark of a good team, not a streaky one.

Milwaukee Brewers at Los Angeles Dodgers

When: Thursday-Sunday, Dodger Stadium

Key matchup: Saturday – Brewers RH Jacob Misiorowski vs. Dodgers LH Tarik Skubal

Outlook: Hey, you can’t spend your whole life parsing which 82-win team will land on the proper roulette space come late September. Here we have four games with the two best teams in the National League (apologies to Atlanta), though Milwaukee is trending up and the Dodgers are experiencing their annual late-summer malaise.

Ready for Referendum No. 10,836 On The Game Absolutely Needs/Doesn’t Need A Salary Cap? Surely these four games will speak symbolic volumes. While we’re not guaranteed the dream matchup of The Miz vs. Skubal come Saturday – the Dodgers are folding Blake Snell into the rotation Tuesday – it’s lining up as such. Be nice to have such a get-your-popcorn moment during a final two months that’s more a march to mediocrity. And what a seven-day trip for the Brewers, taking on the red-hot Padres before heading north.

Chicago White Sox at Detroit Tigers

When: Friday-Sunday, Comerica Park

Key matchup: Saturday – TBD vs. Tigers RH Troy Melton

Outlook: Otherwise known as the series where Detroit very likely could slide into first place.

Say what? If you devote your life to Baseball Transactions Minutiae you might have missed the fact that the Tigers have won seven of their past nine games since Tarik Skubal’s final start, thereby making the trade of Skubal regrettable and embarrassing. The Tigers are a very good bet to win the AL Central at this point and then look around in October like, "Geez, we could sure use another ace for these short playoff series."

Right now, that guy is Melton, who has been dynamite since returning from elbow inflammation May 24, with a 1.46 ERA in 13 starts. The White Sox have occupied first place for 47 of the past 48 days and fended off the challengers by taking two of three from Cleveland during the weekend. Yet they’ve lost five of their last eight, and the drumbeat that their joyride might be nearing an expiration date will only grow louder.

San Diego Padres at Cleveland Guardians

When: Friday-Sunday, Progressive Field

Key matchup: Friday – Padres RH Michael King vs. Guardians RH Gavin Williams

Outlook: Just call this one the Naylor Bowl. Perhaps the Quantrill Qup. The Franmil Fiesta. The frequent trading partners now meet at a crossroads for both clubs. The Guardians have tumbled since adding Foster Griffin, Jo Adell and others at the trade deadline, losing five of six. Yet like the Tigers, they’re holding a pair of tickets that could be cashed at year’s end, still lurking four games behind the White Sox in the Central and 1½ out of a wild card. They start the week with three at Detroit.

The Padres have no such luxury: It’s wild card or bust and now they’re just a game back of both Philadelphia and Arizona. And they are coming on strong: Jackson Merrill has eight homers and a 1.127 OPS over his past 21 games, while trade additions Casey Mize and Robbie Ray, though stumbling in their first starts, add needed rotation stability.

Seattle Mariners at Houston Astros

When: Friday-Sunday, Daikin Park

Key matchup: Friday – Mariners RH George Kirby vs. Astros RH Peter Lambert

Outlook: We hesitate to include this one, as the designation "AL West champion" best be ignored this year, given that there’s a decent chance the winner might be .500 or worse. Yep, there’s a lot of time left but the coming week looks very make-or-break for the Mariners, who start with three games at Yankee Stadium. Bryan Woo has been terrible on the road – a 6.71 ERA vs. 1.96 at T-Mobile Park – and he’s slated to start twice this week.

The Astros enter the week with a half-game lead over Texas and 3½ over the Mariners. They also have the presumed MVP, Yordan Alvarez. Time for some separation? Nah, this is the 2026 AL West.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Everyone's still alive: 5 MLB series that could impact the playoff chase

Texas Rangers lefthanded starting pitcher Dalton Pence has been named the Pacific Coast League Pitcher of the Week for the week of August 3-9. Pence threw five shutout innings for the Round Rock express in their game at Sacramento — a notoriously hitter-friendly park — while allowing just two hits and one walk, striking out six.

Pence was the Rangers’ 11th round pick out of the University of North Carolina in 2024 as a redshirt sophomore who had worked almost exclusively in relief in his two seasons pitching for the Tar Heels after missing 2022 due to Tommy John surgery. The Rangers, seeing him as a potential rotation candidate, inked him to a $350,000 bonus and had him make his professional debut in 2025 at low-A Hickory, where he generally threw two to three innings per appearance. He moved up to high-A Hub City half way through the year and in the final couple of months of the season started getting stretched out to something closer to a starter’s workload.

Pence has taken a big step forward in 2026. He started at Hub City, but was promoted after just five starts there, striking out 30 of 98 batters faced while walking just five and putting up a 2.59 ERA. 11 appearances for Frisco, covering 55 innings, so Pence log a 2.77 ERA with 61 strike outs, though his walk rate rose a little, as he issued 23 free passes. Pence had a rough go of it in his first start for Round Rock, allowing three runs in 1.2 innings against Reno, but clearly bounced back strong.

Pence came into the season as the #16 prospect on the Baseball America Texas Rangers list, and has moved up to #13 on the most recent rankings. MLB Pipeline has Pence at #8, though they haven’t included this year’s draftees on their most recent rankings.

1959
White Sox infielders Nellie Fox and Luis Aparicio appeared together on the cover of Sports Illustrated. The headline read, “Magic Up The Middle, Fox And Aparicio.”

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1960
A 6-0 whitewash ended a three-game set with the Yankees at Comiskey Park on a sour note, losing two of three and falling to 61-47. That said, this three-game set, a Monday-Wednesday series no less, set the all-time Comiskey Park and Chicago attendance record for three games: 144,840. The Sox drew 48,323 to a 9-1 trouncing of New York on Monday night, lost 7-4 in front of 48,408 on Tuesday night, then wound things up with this day game, with 48,109 in the stands.

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1978
Kevin Bell provided all the offense for the White Sox in a 7-3 loss at Toronto. Bell slammed home runs deep and out to left field at Exhibition Stadium, a solo blast in the fifth inning and a two-run shot in the seventh. It marked the first time that a White Sox player had ever homered twice from the No. 9 spot in the lineup.

It was also Wilbur Wood’s final start in the major leagues (he would relieve in one more game after this), and not one he was happy with: seven innings, seven hits, five earned runs, six walks, three Ks and a homer. Wood fell to 10-10 with the loss, and the White Sox a season-worst 20 games worse than .500, at 46-66.

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1981
The White Sox brought the most significant work stoppage in MLB history at the time to an end with a 7-1 win at Boston. Harold Baines doubled in Ron LeFlore in the first inning and the White Sox never trailed. Future 1983 heroes Richard Dotson and LaMarr Hoyt started and ended the game, but it was middle innings-eater Dennis Lamp who earned the win.

In the bastardized, split-season format used only in 1981 due to the strike, the White Sox were tied for first, at 1-0 — in the “true standings,” at 32-22, they were just 1 1⁄2 games behind first-place Oakland.

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1990
The odds had to be a million to one. For two of the smallest players in Major League Baseball, the impossible happened.

In the second inning of a doubleheader nightcap at Comiskey Park, Craig Grebeck and Ozzie Guillén hit back-to-back home runs off of hard-throwing Nolan Ryan. It was part of a four-run inning in a 5-1 win and a sweep of the two games.

Making matters even more incredible was that both Grebeck and Guillén pulled their shots. Craig reaching the left-field seats and Ozzie right field! It was Grebeck’s first career home run, and the only one he’d hit in 135 plate appearances in his rookie year.

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1993
With his career fading, the White Sox dealt franchise all-time saves leader Bobby Thigpen to the Phillies for pitcher José DeLeón. Thigpen saved a then-major league record 57 games in 1990 but was never the same afterwards, posting lower and lower save numbers in the years after the mark was set.

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2009
In an aggressive move that ultimately backfired, the White Sox claimed two-time All-Star Alex Ríos off of waivers from the Toronto Blue Jays. Rios was hitting .264 at the time, with 14 home runs, 62 RBIs and 1.5 WAR — but was also due $58.6 million through 2015.

Rios’ tenure with the White Sox was a mixed bag, playing poorly after being claimed in 2009, and in the ballyhooed 2011 “All-In” season (-2.5 WAR combined) but flashing the talent that got him claimed by GM Ken Williams in the first place in 2010 (3.3 WAR) and 2012 (4.8 WAR).

Rios was off to a so-so start in 2013 (1.4 WAR) before the White Sox dealt him to Texas for Leury García. The deal off-loaded more than $20 million the White Sox were on the hook for, but overall, doling Rios out $37.2 million to produce 7.0 WAR in his career on the South Side was a significant overpay.

García went on to play 10 seasons on the South Side, producing 4.4 WAR for the club.

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2024
With another loss to the Cubs, this one 3-1 at Sox Park, the White Sox were now underwater as a franchise, at 9,581-9,582. It marked the first time since Aug. 14, 1956 that the White Sox carried a losing record as a franchise.

To add insult to injury, by falling to an unfathomable 28-91 on the year the White Sox now were in sole possession of the second-worst start to a season in AL-NL major league history, trailing only the woebegone 1915 Philadelphia A’s.

Tarik Skubal will take the mound at Dodger Stadium on Monday, Aug. 10, with a lot more at stake than anticipated.

It will be a chance for the dominant pitcher to win over fans during his first home start in a Los Angeles Dodgers uniform. But it’s more crucial than that.

Skubal, the two-time Cy Young Award winner acquired by the Dodgers this month, has a team to help rescue.

Since acquiring the lefthander, the Dodgers have lost so much that Skubal might have thought he had been traded back to the Detroit Tigers. Actually, while the Dodgers have lost eight of nine games, the Tigers have won six of eight games.

Yes, Dodgers world has spun off of his axis.

That is why Skubal needs to be more than a great pitcher. As the Dodgers begin a three-game homestand against the Kansas City Royals, he needs to function like a superhero, minus the cape perhaps.

In his first start for the Dodgers, Skubal gave up two runs in six innings against the Chicago Cubs and Los Angeles lost 5-1 at Wrigley Field. Skubal struck out six, walked two, gave up a home run and said he liked his stuff.

That stuff’s not good enough for now.

Over the past nine games, the Dodgers have failed to score three runs or more four times and are averaging 3.22 games per games. During that same stretch, the Dodgers opponents have scored 5.7 runs per games.

Skubal needs to handcuff the Royals and spark the Dodgers.

Now.

Tarik Skubal blunders during interview

On Aug. 7, Skubal appeared on Barstool Sports’ “Pardon My Take’’ and blundered. The host pointed out how difficult it must have been for Tigers fans to lose Skubal.

“And it sucks for me too,’’ Skubal said. “This wasn’t the way the season was supposed to go…

“I would love to play my whole career in Detroit. You know, I would love to. And hopefully those negotiations can pick back up in November once the playoffs are done.’’

Los Angeles doesn’t need its prized acquisition publicly entertaining the idea of returning to Detroit, much less before making his first start at Dodgers Stadium since the trade.

Over the past 24 games, Los Angeles is 9-15. And over the past 42, the Dodgers are 21-21, an extended stretch over which they have not played like favorites to win their third consecutive World Series title.

The Dodgers need a spark. It should come from the mound Monday from a pitcher who's focused on his new home.

Welcome to Los Angeles, Tarik Skubal.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tarik Skubal will make Dodgers home debut at crucial time