PHOENIX, ARIZONA - APRIL 17: Draymond Green #23 (R) of the Golden State Warriors stands with head coach Steve Kerr during the second half of an NBA play-in tournament game at Mortgage Matchup Center on April 17, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. The Suns defeated the Warriors 111-96. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
There are a lot of questions facing the Golden State Warriors ahead of the 2026-27 NBA season. Some of them are complex and nuanced, but some of them are as simple as can be. Such as: who starts?
Golden State kicked off training camp on Monday in Hawaii, and that question is one that likely won’t be answered for weeks. Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Steve Kerr revealed that three-time All-Star Draymond Green will definitively be in the starting lineup. Add in the obvious starter — Steph Curry — and that leaves three spots up for grabs.
And according to Kerr, all three of those spots are there for the taking. After emphasizing that Green would be a starter, the team’s coach — who re-signed for two years this offseason — was asked if there’s an open competition for the other three positions. “Yeah. For sure. Yeah,” Kerr said while nodding his head. “Nothing has been decided at this point.” Because the prior question had been about Gui Santos, Kerr added, “Gui’s right in there, in the mix for being a starter.”
Steve Kerr made it clear yesterday that Draymond Green will remain in the starting lineup with Steph Curry
Today, I asked if the other three spots are an open competition: “Yeah, for sure. Nothing has been decided.” pic.twitter.com/6uDSwFHkcf
There are lots of good options for Kerr to choose from, including Santos, newcomer Brandon Williams, and rookie Yaxel Lendeborg, among many others. Choosing a starting lineup, however, is made more difficult due to the serious injuries that will sideline Jimmy Butler III and Moses Moody for the first few months of the season, the constant injuries and ailments that Kristaps Porziņģis (who is currently out indefinitely) deals with, and the fact that Al Horford doesn’t play back-to-backs. As such, it seems likely that the Warriors will not have a set starting lineup this season, and will rotate through a few different options.
While it will likely be a while before we know who suits up when the season begins on October 21, Kerr did reveal the starting five for Sunday’s preseason opener: Curry, Green, Lendeborg, Horford, and Brandin Podziemski.
The NHL preseason was shorter this year, and I'm sure there weren't many fans complaining about that.
Everyone had four games to get through, make their cuts and start playing meaningful hockey. Sounds pretty good when you're sitting at home waiting for the regular season to start.
What about the players though?
The Edmonton Oilers lost 6-5 in overtime to the Vancouver Canucks on Tuesday night, and Tristan Jarry brought up the shortened preseason afterward, albeit without making it an excuse.
“It's the first game of the season. It's always always tough,” Jarry said. “It was a short preseason, so I think just learning from every game, whether it's the ups, the downs, and just being better every single game.”
Well, it was definitely short.
The NHL cut the preseason to four games this year as part of the new Collective Bargaining Agreement, extending the regular season going from 82 games to 84. The league's preseason schedule lasted eight days, beginning Sept. 19 and ending Sept. 26, before the regular season started three days later.
That left the Oilers with four games and a handful of practices to prepare for game No. 1.
Veteran players weren't necessarily playing all four of those games either. Under the new CBA, players with at least 100 games in the NHL are restricted to two exhibition games, meaning some players entered the regular season with two preseason games and a few weeks of practice together.
Jarry also spent the entire offseason working on his game with goalie coach Pete Aubry. Babcock talked prior to Tuesday night about Jarry improving his conditioning and stabilizing his game, but even he only got five periods of preseason before the games started counting.
That's not a lot of hockey before somebody asks you to start an NHL season. The same goes for everyone trying to learn Babcock's system. Edmonton has a new head coach, players moving around the lineup and several injuries that forced Babcock to spend camp trying different combinations. Then suddenly it's Sept. 29 and Vancouver is in town.
The old preseason certainly had its problems, though, don't get me wrong. Nobody needed weeks of random hockey, and fans weren't exactly sitting around in June counting down the days until preseason started.
So fans got what most of us wanted. Preseason ended quickly and the regular season started sooner.
Four exhibition games might sound like plenty when nobody cares about the score. That said, it might feel a little different for the guys expected to have everything figured out the second those games start counting.
However, it is up to the team itself to maximize it's preseason, and if the Oilers failed to properly prepare their players for this season, they can hardly blame the CBA.
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DENVER, CO - FEBRUARY 4: Scoot Henderson #00 of the Portland Trail Blazers, Player Development Coach Pooh Jeter of the Portland Trail Blazers, & Assistant Coach Scott Brooks of the Portland Trail Blazers look at film before the game on February 4, 2024 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2024 NBAE (Photo by Garrett Ellwood/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
On Thursday, Marc Spears of Andscape reported that the team had hired Pooh Jeter as the new Director of Pro Scouting, a move made by Amsler.
Pooh Jeter has been hired as the Lakers’ new Director of Pro Scouting, source told @andscape. The LA native previously worked with the Trail Blazers as Player Development Coach and Assistant GM of NBA G League Rip City Remix. Jeter was hired by new Lakers asst GM Eric Amsler. pic.twitter.com/Jkc11MiJtD
Jeter had a lengthy professional career overseas with stops in Ukraine, Spain and China, among other countries. He had a brief stint with the Sacramento Kings and spent some time with the shortly-lived G League Ignite.
After retiring, Jeter joined the Blazers as a player development coach and assistant GM of the team’s G League franchise, Rip City Remix. Shortly after being hired, he spoke with SLAM about his new role and his career in basketball up to that point in an informative interview for fans looking for more insight into him.
While Amsler’s hiring already dispelled the notion, this further pushes back against the idea that the team was in a hiring freeze during the transition from Mark Walter to Bob Iger and Josh Kushner. And the quicker the team can build out its scouting department, the better it is for everyone involved.
Obviously, everyone is going to bring with them an inherent knowledge of the league, few more so than Amsler himself, but the quicker the staff can be built out, the quicker the franchise and this year’s Lakers can reap the benefits of having a fully fleshed-out scouting department.
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 29: The Wild Card base logo is seen before Game One of the Wild Card Series between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park on September 29, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
And then there was one. Three of the four wild-card games proved to be pretty dull, with the Red Sox, Cubs and Astros rolling over with the lightest of struggles. So that just leaves the Phillies and Braves. Game #1 saw Atlanta come back from behind to take victory, while the roles were reversed in Game #2. So that sets the stage for a “winner takes all” Game #3 tonight in Atlanta. Enjoy it, because it’s the only baseball you are going to get today or tomorrow, before the Division Series get under way on Saturday. That’ll be another four-game slate, and might be the last such of the post-season, if one or other NLDS is a sweep. Because we then go into staggered games, the ALDS getting a day-off on Sunday.
Philadelphia Phillies @ Atlanta Braves (1-1): 5:00 pm, NBC/Peacock
Starter question: it’s likely to trivial to bother with a poll, but who do you want to win this one?
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Alec Bohm #28 of the Philadelphia Phillies runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the tenth inning in game two of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Blink and you’d have missed it: three of four wild card series are already over in two games. The Yankees, Padres, and the White Sox all punched their tickets to the Division Series yesterday. There were good storylines in all three. Too bad, so sad, for the Red Sox and their truly MIA offense (but Adley went 0-for-4 and I am rather bummed). The White Sox ended a 21-year drought in which they hadn’t won a playoff series. And the Padres downed the Cubs, and now get to face the presumptive NL Cy Young Award winner in Milwaukee’s Jacob Misiorowski.
So that leaves just one game today: the Braves vs. the Phillies, for all the marbles. In Game 1, the Braves took a stunning come-from-behind win on a Philadelphia bullpen collapse, but Philadelphia staved off elimination in Game 2.
For Philly, it’ll be right hander Aaron Nola on the mound. Nola had a 4.50 ERA in three starts against Atlanta this season. MLB.com suggests we might see ace Zack Wheeler entering the game in relief, despite being on short rest. With everything on the line, certainly could be.
As for the Braves, it’ll be southpaw Ray Kerr appearing as an opener, presumably to handle lefty sluggers Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber at the top of the lineup. After that, righty Grant Holmes (10-6, 3.44 ERA in the regular season) is expected to handle most of the innings.
LOS ANGELES — The full schedule for the Division Series round was announced by Major League Baseball on Thursday, giving us the start times for potentially all five games of the Dodgers’ first postseason round.
When the series shifts to the Eastern time zone, Game 3 on Tuesday will be televised at 3 p.m. PT, with Wednesday’s Game 4 also starting at 3 p.m. PT, if necessary. Both Games 3 and 4 will be televised by FS1.
If there’s a Game 5 in the Dodgers’ NLDS, it will be back at Dodger Stadium on Friday, October 9, with a 5 p.m. PT start time on Fox.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 29: Ronald Acuna Jr. #13, Michael Harris II #23, and Mike Yastrzemski #18 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate defeating the Philadelphia Phillies in game one of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 29, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Only one Wild Card series made it to three games. Phillies and Braves play at 8:00 Eastern.
Aaron Nola (7-12, 4.67) vs. Ray Kerr (0-0, 1.47 in 9 games, 1 start 18.1 innings).
Today’s Lineups
PHILLIES
BRAVES
Trea Turner – SS
Drake Baldwin – C
Kyle Schwarber – DH
Ronald Acuna – RF
Bryce Harper – RF
Matt Olson – 1B
Alec Bohm – 1B
Michael Harris – CF
Bryson Stott – 2B
Mauricio Dubon – SS
Bryan De La Cruz – LF
Mike Yastrzemski – LF
Edmundo Sosa – 3B
Austin Riley – 3B
J.T. Realmuto – C
Ozzie Albies – 2B
Justin Crawford – CF
Dominic Smith – DH
Aaron Nola – RHP
Grant Holmes – RHP
In the other Series:
White Sox beat the Astros thru Divine Intervention. Always good to have a fan with red phone to God himself. 7-3 for the Sox yesterday. It was a fun game to watch.
Yankees thumped the Red Sox 9-2. Normally I’d be thrilled to see the Red Sox beaten so bad, but by the Yankees? Lots of complaints from the Red Sox players. A little weird that the Red Sox did their whole home run celebration for a home run that cut the lead to 6 in the seventh inning, but just be you I guess. And Red Sox players complaining that they use computers was interesting. I don’t think computers caused them to get just four hits. The Yankees had 14 hits.
And the Padres won 4-1 knocking the Cubs out, so now I don’t have a team to cheer for. Kevin Gausman had a rough time, giving up 3 runs in 3.1 innings.
Lakers coach JJ Redick had a meeting with Luka Doncic on Wednesday, something he plans to do with each player.
What did they talk about?
Leadership.
“It’s something he’s really excited about,” Redick said at Lakers practice Thursday.
The Lakers belong to Doncic after LeBron James left for the 76ers in free agency after eight seasons in Los Angeles, including leading the Purple-and-Gold to their first championship in 10 years in 2020.
It has now been six long years since the Lakers sat atop the league.
For a 17-time championship franchise, that’s an agonizingly long stretch. Doncic is next in line to carry them back to that lofty position. And to do so, he’s going to have to get a bit uncomfortable.
See, Doncic leads by example. He’s never going to be the loudest guy in the locker room. That’s just not him.
But the Lakers need more out of him.
He needs to be aware of how he carries himself. How he reacts to things. How he responds in tough moments.
Los Angeles Lakers player Luka Doncic (77) poses during media day at UCLA Health Training Center on Monday, September 28, 2026, in El Segundo, Calif. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“I think as a leader you can always grow,” Redick said. “That’s part of most good leaders that I know at least — they have that growth mentality. I think Luka has a growth mentality as a player. And I don’t think there’s any reason to believe that it won’t extend that to leadership.
“He recognizes that the vocal side of things is one thing, the body language — both positive and negative— is another thing. That’s a focus is just having great body language. This group of guys is going to follow him and AR [Austin Reaves]. That’s just the reality. They’re going to follow those two guys, and that’s a huge responsibility for both of those guys.”
Obviously, being the head of a team is nothing new for Doncic. He became the youngest player in EuroLeague history to win the MVP award at age 19 while playing for Real Madrid en route to carrying it to the championship. He led the Mavericks to the Finals in 2024.
But everything is different with the Lakers.
They’re one of the biggest teams in the world. The spotlight is blinding. The microscope is unforgiving.
Doncic is aware of that. He says he’s ready for it.
When asked now that James is gone, how it feels to be the Lakers’ torchbearer, he didn’t hesitate.
“I was in this position in my career a lot of times, so it’s not new to me,” Doncic said. “But I feel great. I feel excited. And like I said, I’m ready to go.”
Austin Reaves, Head Coach JJ Redick, and Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers pose for a portrait during NBA Media Day at the UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, California, Monday, September 28, 2026. NBAE via Getty Images
Doncic wants to win his first championship. He wants to make the Mavericks deeply regret stunningly trading him to the Lakers in February 2025. He wants to prove that he’s the best player in the league.
Now is his chance.
He had his fingerprints all over the roster this offseason.
Doncic wanted to keep playing with Reaves. The Lakers signed him to a four-year, $180 million deal, the richest contract in NBA history for a player who went undrafted.
Doncic wanted Walker Kessler as the team’s franchise center. They sent two unprotected first-round picks and two first-round pick swaps to Utah to acquire him, signing him to a four-year, $130 million deal.
When asked if Redick has seen anything extra from Doncic in terms of how badly he wants to win this year and his focus on leadership, he flashed a smile.
“I mean, he paid for a private plane for 14 guys or 16 guys to fly to Slovenia,” Redick said, referring to Doncic hosting a four-day minicamp in Slovenia for the first time in his career. “That’s pretty extra.”
Redick said that ever since Doncic came to the Lakers, he has been in a leadership role of sorts, even when he was playing alongside James.
Luka Doncic of the Los Angeles Lakers attends Los Angeles Lakers Media Day at UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, California, Monday, Sept. 28, 2026. Getty Images
“The idea that he wasn’t in a leadership position or didn’t have moments of leadership over the last season and a half that we had him is just false,” Redick said. “I think it’s different without certain people on the team. Naturally, there’s a void. We talked about that all summer.”
Things are different now. And Doncic needs to fill that hole fast.
The Lakers not not only need him to be an offensive wizard, but they need him to pay attention to the small things. He needs to complain less to officials. He needs to hustle on defense. All eyes are going to be on him. The small moments matter the most.
And above all, he needs to be the leader of one of the most heralded franchises in sports.
There’s a long line of superstars who came before him, including Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Magic Johnson, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant and James.
He’s next. He’s now.
And Redick believes, he’s ready.
“He’s pretty much seen everything in the NBA at this point,” Redick said. “Beyond just being a vocal leader and being a great teammate, he has a wealth of knowledge to share.”
New York Yankees' Trent Grisham bunts during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of baseball's American League Wild Card Series, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in New York.
The most memorable swings of the Yankees’ wild-card triumph belonged to Ben Rice, Luis García and Cody Bellinger, whose home runs changed games.
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But the Yankees offense tormented the Red Sox’s pitching staff with lengthy, quality at-bats, timely hitting, simply making contact when contact was required and plenty of speed that Yankees teams of recent vintage did not have.
It was just two games. But they were two games that provided a blueprint for how the attack, particularly if it continues to lack the power of Aaron Judge, operates at its best.
In the two games, the Yankees went 9-for-20 with runners in scoring position and struck out just 14 times. A team that in the past has waited for the knockout blow instead scratched out whatever it could, perhaps best exemplified by Wednesday’s sixth inning.
Against Garrett Crochet, Spencer Jones looked overwhelmed in chasing a strike-three sweeper in the dirt — but then showed off rare speed in reaching first base on a wild pitch that did not get that far away from Adley Rutschman.
New York Yankees’ Trent Grisham bunts during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 of baseball’s American League Wild Card Series, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026, in New York. AP Photo/Frank Franklin II
Jones then stole second, advanced to third when the throw trickled into center field, and scored on the next pitch because George Lombard Jr., who just needed to put the bat on the ball, singled for a two-run edge.
After a Jazz Chisholm Jr. single that put runners on first and second, Trent Grisham — who had zero sacrifice bunts and zero bunt singles during the regular season — bunted nicely to third base and beat out a poor throw from Caleb Durbin.
With the bases loaded, none out and Garrett Whitlock in the game, the Yankees used more small ball to gain separation. Austin Wells lifted a sacrifice fly that scored a run. Ryan McMahon, who earlier in the at-bat attempted a safety squeeze, only sent a Whitlock changeup 1 foot in the air, but the soft chopper to third base scored another.
And two batters later, Bellinger poked a homer just deep enough to right to remind they can play big ball, too.
“I thought we did a lot of good things offensively,” Boone said, “whether it was obviously a couple big long balls, Spencer legs out a strikeout to start the big inning, the stolen base comes into play, we put some balls in play, a couple of really well-computed bunt situations.”
Among those to make his postseason debut Wednesday was Brent Headrick, who retired the only batter he faced.
David Bednar, who tossed a scoreless ninth inning, owns a 1.29 ERA (seven innings, one earned run) with 10 strikeouts in six career playoff games.
The Yankees are expected to have a workout day Friday in St. Petersburg, Fla.
The Yankees outrighted righty Alexander Cornielle, who had been designated for assignment Tuesday, off the major league roster and onto the roster of the FCL Yankees.
In the midst of a joyous but not raucous celebration in a Yankees clubhouse that was drenched but not flooding, Cody Bellinger provided perspective about what the club had done and had not done.
“We were here last year,” the veteran outfielder said after his three-run home run Wednesday added some late thunder in a sweep of the Red Sox in the wild-card series. “We were at this [upcoming] series.”
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Bellinger did not finish the sentence, but this upcoming series is when their run ended.
The location and opponent will be different, but the Yankees’ next series mirrors the hurdle they could not climb over last year: an ALDS matchup with an AL East champion whom the Yankees could not catch and is built on a contact-hitting approach and also flourishes at home.
Playing the role of the Blue Jays this year are the Rays, whom the Yankees did not solve in the regular season.
Will the 2026 Yankees be any different than the 2025 version?
Beginning Saturday in St. Petersburg, Fla., they will find out.
New York Yankees left fielder Cody Bellinger connects on a three-run home run off the Boston Red Sox in the sixth inning during game two of the 2026 American League wild-card series at Yankees Stadium in The Bronx, New York, Wednesday, September 30, 2026. Jason Szenes for NY Post
“We have, hopefully, a long month in front of us,” manager Aaron Boone said. “And we know the next obstacle is a really challenging one with the Rays, but I love how [we are] playing the game.”
The Yankees are thriving on the backs of a series of aces — Cam Schlittler and Max Fried combined for 12 ¹/₃, one-run, five-hit, 16-strikeout innings against Boston, thus not even requiring Gerrit Cole and Carlos Rodón to pitch — as well as an offense that, for two games at least, collectively stepped up without Aaron Judge.
But they only played Tuesday and Wednesday because the league-best Rays seized control of the division June 28 and never really were threatened afterward, finishing 4 ½ games clear of the Yankees.
Tampa Bay won the season series, taking seven of the 13 games. The Rays dominated on their home turf — a term here used literally — in winning five of the seven head-to-head contests, including a memorable sweep in April in which the Rays continually put the ball in play and the Yankees continually showed their defense was not up for the challenge.
No team in baseball made as much contact as the Rays (18.8 percent strikeout rate), who play the same brand of baseball as the 2025 Blue Jays who so frustrated the Yankees’ staff — and have more speed, tops in the American League in steals.
Tampa Bay Rays’ Junior Caminero (13) celebrates after hitting a two-run home run in the first inning during a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Saturday, Sept. 26, 2026. Getty Images
No team bunted, either for sacrifices or hits, than the Rays, who play their home games at Tropicana Field, where they try to use the hard and fast artificial turf to their advantage, putting constant pressure on the opposing defense.
Where the 2025 Blue Jays had Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the 2026 Rays have Junior Caminero.
Their rotation’s ERA (3.51), anchored by All-Stars Drew Rasmussen and Nick Martinez, only trailed the Yankees’ (3.30) in the AL. Their solid bullpen helped them go 25-14 in one-run games.
For the entirety of the season, they essentially did everything well.
“They’re a good team. Pitch well. Hit for power. Hit for contact,” Bellinger said. “… We’re going to have to play good baseball.”
That will mean the club’s defensive questions — maybe most notably in center, where Trent Grisham’s hamstring or effort level gifted an extra base to Boston on Wednesday — will go under the microscope. Whether Boone favors a platoon bat or a surer defender at several positions will be curious.
New York Yankees designated hitter Ben Rice reacts after connecting on a grand slam off of the Boston Red Sox in the eighth inning during Game 1 of the 2026 American League Wild Card series at Yankees Stadium in The Bronx, New York, Tuesday, Sept. 29, 2026. JASON SZENES FOR NEW YORK POST
Not as curious as whether Judge — two-plus weeks removed from his calf strain and doing “everything I can” to be ready, he said — will talk his way onto a roster that at least did not need him for one round.
In explaining how they knocked around the Red Sox so easily, several Yankees referenced the club’s depth — Ben Rice and Bellinger may have led the team’s attack, but the lineup received contributions from just about everyone — that it will need to lean on with or without Judge.
“Keep playing like we’re playing, and trusting one another,” said José Caballero, who knows the Rays better than anyone. “We know that we have a deep team that we can beat anyone and just keep trusting the guys behind us.”
And if the Yankees are going to get past the Rays — and an ALCS opponent and whoever awaits in the World Series — their rotation would have to continue buzzsawing through opposing lineups.
“It’s always good to celebrate,” said Schlittler, set up to start Games 2 and 5. “Hopefully we get to do it a couple more times.”
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 30: Matt Olson (28) of the Atlanta Braves hits an RBI single in the first inning during the Atlanta Braves versus Philadelphia Phillies game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series on September 30, 2026 at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Only one game today, but it’s a goodie. Winner-take-all. One team’s season continues on to the next round to take on the Dodgers. The other begins their offseason far earlier than expected. We love do-or-die games here at Athletics Nation, and tonight’s matchup between the Philadelphia Phillies and their division rivals the Atlanta Braves should be a great way to spend your Thursday evening.
Phillies at Braves (5:00 PM EDT)
The Braves have left-handed reliever Ray Ker (0-0, 1.97 ERA) opening the game for them tonight. He’ll likely be only asked to handle the first inning or two before making way for the bulk pitcher, right-hander Grant Holmes (10-6, 3.44 ERA). The former A’s prospect has blossomed with Atlanta over the past couple of years and now will be asked to soak up the middle innings of a must-win contest for his squad. No pressure.
Philadelphia meanwhile has a more standard approach to tonight’s starter. They’re sending out longtime Phillie Aaron Nola for the critical Game 3. The former Cy Young finalist is far past his heyday when he was constantly putting up ace-like numbers. While those days are long behind him he’s still capable of tossing a gem every now and then. The Phillies need vintage Nola tonight if they want to advance to take on the Dodgers.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Alec Bohm #28 of the Philadelphia Phillies runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the tenth inning in game two of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to OCTOBER BASEBALL.
We have for you another Thursday baseball discussion thread, but this time, featuring 100% more playoffs! Which, of course, means no Royals 🙁
Only one game today as three of the four Wild Card series ended in sweeps yesterday.
First, the White Sox knocked out the Astros. Crane’s Boys are out! No great shock.
The Yankees disposed of the Red Sox last evening. Not much of a series as the nonJudgemental Yankees smoked Boston to the tune of 18-2 over two games.
Lastly, the Padres swept the Cubs, winning last night 4-1. I hope you agree with me that the playoffs just became 10 times more enjoyable with the Cubs eliminated.
The only series left is Philadelphia vs Atlanta. The Braves took game one on Tuesday 5-3 with three runs in the bottom of the eighth. Last night, the Phillies scored twice in the top of the eighth to tie the game at 3-3 before winning it in extras, 4-3. Alec Bohm, somewhat of a local kid—went to high school in Omaha before attending Wichita State—hit a home run in the top of the tenth to give the Phillies a lead it would not relinquish.
The pitching matchup will be Aaron Nola for the Phillies against Ray Kerr for the Braves.
Nola, a 12-year vet, all with Philadelphia, finished the season only 7-12 with a 4.67 ERA (3% below league average) and a 4.87 FIP. He also allowed the most home runs with 37. This will be his 12th career playoff start.
The Braves counter with Ray Kerr, more of an Opener than a Starter. The 31-year-old lefty only opened one game for the Braves this season, which was his last outing against the Marlins. He fared well, going three innings in which he walked one, allowed two hits, but didn’t give up any runs. He only pitched in nine games this season, but in that limited action, which totaled 18-and-1/3 innings, he sported a 1.47 ERA, 3.97 FIP while striking out 11 and walking two.
More importantly, Kerr faced the Phillies twice in September, and held them scoreless over both outings. In those two appearances, he pitched 6-and-1/3 innings, allowed two hits while walking zero batters and striking out five. None of his four inherited runners came around to score.
Kerr has never before pitched in the playoffs.
You can catch the game on NBC or Peacock at 7:00 p.m. CDT.
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 11: Matt Olson (28) of the Atlanta Braves slaps five with coach Tommy Watkins (84) after hitting a solo home run in the 1st inning of the Friday evening MLB game between the Atlanta Braves and the Philadelphia Phillies on September 11, 2026 at Truist Park in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by David J. Griffin/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Hello, October. We would like more Braves games this month.
The Braves will don the Friday home red uniforms tonight in order to bring those dominant vibes to this Wild Card series finale. Whatever it takes – just win today.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 30: Alec Bohm #28 of the Philadelphia Phillies runs the bases after hitting a home run against the Atlanta Braves during the tenth inning in game two of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 30, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Wednesday brought an entertaining day of games as most of the Wild Card matchups wrapped up. The Chicago White Sox rolled over the Houston Astros 7-2 to take the series and will head to Cleveland to face the Guardians next. The New York Yankees offense continued to torment the Boston Red Sox 9-2 and will head off to face the Tampa Bay Rays. The San Diego Padres then finished off the Chicago Cubs with a 4-1 victory and will now square off against the Milwaukee Brewers.
The only game slated for today is between the Philadelphia Phillies and Atlanta Braves. The Phillies pulled off a 4-3 victory in extra innings to even the series. Now, it’s do-or-die to see which team will move on and face the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Here are the details:
Philadelphia Phillies (1-1) at Atlanta Braves (1-1) — 6:00 pm MDT
Pitching matchup: Aaron Nola (7-12, 4.67 ERA) vs. Ray Kerr (0-0, 1.47 ERA)
TV/Radio: NBC/Peacock, ESPN Radio, MLB Gameday Audio (Phillies and Braves local radio feeds)
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 26: Rafael Devers #16 of the San Francisco Giants reacts as he rounds the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the fifth inning of their game against the Cincinnati Reds at Oracle Park on August 26, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
On March 25, 2026, the San Francisco Giants began what would quickly prove to be the worst season in franchise history. You don’t need me to explain all the things that went wrong, but don’t worry: it’s a long and cold offseason, so I will in due time.
A few hours before that horrific journey got underway, I published an article with 26 predictions for the ‘26 season. Now, more than six months later, I can say with confidence what so many of you have uttered to me in the comment sections of articles over the years: you should not listen to a damn word that comes out of my mouth.
The smartest thing I said in the 5,000 blabbering words came before I even got to the predictions. I stated in the intro that the bulk of the predictions were optimistic, justifying it as such: “Because if you’re a Giants fan who doesn’t have optimism on March 25, when will you have it?”
If only I knew just how true that question would be. Tucked at the start of an article where I look as capable of intelligence as Sam Hentges looks capable of accepting the queer community, I accidentally dropped the smartest sentence I’ve ever written. Go figure.
I thought I should revisit those 26 predictions. Publicly reflecting on past predictions is not something I often dabble in, because 10% of the time it looks braggadocios and 90% of the time I’m just admitting to being bad at my job, which my bosses have informed me I should stop doing. But in a season where the bad news rained down from the ownership suites to the front office to the coaching staff to the players to the broadcast booth, it seemed only fair that I get in on the action.
So here are my 26 predictions, starting with the one I got the most wrong, and ending with the one I got the most right (yes, there were a few accurate predictions).
Feel free to tell me how dumb I am in the comments. Just don’t expect me to learn from it.
Tier 6: Seriously, why do you ever listen to me?
These are the predictions that are so wrong they defy explanation.
For years, my sister and I have had an idea wherein I let her write a game recap for me. To paint a picture of my sister’s understanding of sports: once she texted me from a bar bathroom saying she was being hit on by a college football coach, and wanted to know if there was any intelligent talking point she could bring up. I told her to mention the new rule wherein if the shortstop runs backwards into the goal you get extra points. I figured this was such a ludicrous joke that she would know immediately that I was teasing her. She called me an hour later to berate me for embarrassing her in front of an attractive man. This is a true story.
Anyway, we’ve both long thought it would be funny if she wrote a recap for me, on account of her knowing absolutely nothing about sports. It would be entertaining and, no doubt, stupid. The following predictions are so bad, that I had to stop and think about if I let her moonlight for me in this article. Sadly, she did not.
26. The Giants finish second in the NL West and make the postseason
I’m gonna go make a cup of tea. You can have these 10 minutes to guffaw audibly.
Okay, I’m back. Still laughing? Damn. I deserve that. I’m laughing too, honestly.
The Giants, of course, missed the playoffs. Not only did they miss the playoffs, but they missed the playoffs by 23 games. Worse yet, they missed out on second place in the NL West by 26 games. There were only four teams in the Majors — including the Giants — that were 26 games behind first place, and the Giants were 26 games behind second place, in a division where second place was the second-furthest away from first place.
In other words, this prediction really could not have been more wrong. Let’s move on.
25. Gregory Santos will be their best reliever
My stubbornness really showed itself with this prediction. I was adamant that the Giants signing Santos — once one of their top prospects — to a Minor League deal was one of the best moves of the offseason. I held that stance even when he struggled in Spring Training and even when he started the year in the Minors and even when he struggled in the Minors, and even when he was called up and almost immediately optioned.
And then he was designated for assignment with no corresponding move. Just removed from the 40-man roster because the Giants would rather have 39 players than employ Santos. Not only that, but he didn’t even get to make me look smart, because no one else picked him up.
Santos ended the year with five innings pitched, one strikeout, a 3.60 ERA, a 4.50 FIP, and 0.0 fWAR. Which, in fairness, did make him one of the team’s best relievers.
24. Bryce Eldridge has a distinctly mediocre season
Before you all call me a hater, I contextualized this as a mostly good thing. I ended my blurb on Eldridge by saying, “He’ll see pitches and gameplans that he’s never been exposed to before. He’ll struggle to tread water. And if he holds his own, just at an average level, that will be a sign of how good he is, not how bad he is.”
I stand by that. If Eldridge had posted a league-average wRC+ of 100, I would have been very encouraged and optimistic about who he would be in 2027.
Instead, Eldridge looked more than comfortable. He looked like a veteran in the batter’s box, controlling at-bats, controlling the zone, outsmarting pitchers, drawing walks, and hitting for both average and power. His 131 wRC+ ranked 25th out of 205 Major League hitters (minimum: 400 plate appearances), directly ahead of Fernando Tatis Jr. and Kyle Schwarber.
If I was going to be wrong about a prediction, this was the one. So at least there’s that.
23. Willy Adames and Rafael Devers start the season hot
There was a lot of fear-mongering surrounding Adames and Devers going into the season. Adames has a history of slow starts, got off to a brutal opening to his Giants tenure in 2025, and was having a rough Spring Training. Devers had been fairly awful in his first month with the Giants, and looked lost in Scottsdale.
I thought nothing of it. Spring Training means so little, and I figured these two established sluggers would hit the ground running when the season began.
Instead, when April came to a close, Adames was hitting .197/.240/.352 and Devers .207/.248/.289. And the season was essentially over.
22. Luis Matos has a big year … somewhere
I wrote this shortly after the Giants designated Matos for assignment. My thought was that a bad team would claim him and give him some run. I recognized there was little reason for optimism, admitting that, “This is not rooted in anything analytical: it’s really hard to look at Matos’ stats and underlying metrics and find a reason for optimism. Instead, it’s just a vibes and hope-based bold prediction, that the Matos who has shown flashes over the years finally puts it all together.”
Well friends, I regret to inform you that he did not. Matos was not claimed by a bad team that would give him some steady run, but instead by the playoff-bound Milwaukee Brewers, who gave him all of 21 plate appearance before designating him for assignment. This time he wasn’t claimed, and he was outrighted to Milwaukee’s AAA affiliate, where he posted a measly 77 wRC+ across the year.
Tier 5: No one ever accused me of being smart
These predictions are wrong. Incorrect. Inaccurate. Just plum not right.
But they’re not as brain-meltingly idiotic as the last batch was. Those first five are enough to bar me for life from applying to the BBWAA. These ones are just wrong, but less embarrassing.
21. Logan Webb throws multiple complete game shutouts
In hindsight, this was even bolder than I imagined. Webb entered the season having thrown just two complete game shutouts in his career, and I thought he’d get to that mark multiple times this season alone. Not only did Webb not have multiple complete game shutouts, but no player in the Majors threw multiple complete games, period. Forget the shutout. No one even went nine innings on more than one occasion.
Webb did throw one complete game, but, hilariously, it was a loss in which he only had to pitch eight innings.
20. We get more bullpen heat
As I mentioned, I wrote the initial predictions article on Opening Day, which meant the Giants had already informed me of some of their thinking for the year. They had released the Opening Day roster, and I was pleasantly surprised to see that both Keaton Winn and Caleb Kilian had made the cut. With Joel Peguero rehabbing an injury and Santos tuning up in AAA, I thought this was the year that we see some modern gas from the Giants bullpen.
Instead, they traded Kilian and Erik Miller. They broke Winn by pitching him three games in a row, an atrocity from which he never recovered. Peguero made it through just 11.1 innings before suffering a season-ending injury. Santos never panned out. The closest heat in the Minors, Will Bednar, saw his velocity take a tumble as he was demoted down to AA. Blade Tidwell was used primarily as a starter.
And as such, only the late-late reunion with Camilo Doval left the Giants with any notable heat coming out of the bullpen at the end of the season.
19. Tony Vitello doesn’t get thrown out early on
Before the season began, there was a common thought that Vitello would be quick to get ejected, given the energy and fire that he brings to managing. I thought it would be the opposite: that Vitello would be so conscious of wanting to be in the fight with his players that he would view an ejection as an abandoment.
I’m still not sure I’m wrong, given the quotes he’s had after his ejections. But even if he views it that way, his actions suggest otherwise. Vitello was thrown out in just the 10th game of the season, and led the Majors with seven ejections on the year.
18. They have five 20-homer hitters
This one ended up looking tremendously dumb, as the Giants fifth-best home run hitter this year was Drew Gilbert, who had just 11 blasts. They had only six players clear the double-digit mark, and I thought five would get to 20?!?
You can see the vision. Devers and Adames were locks. Matt Chapman and Heliot Ramos were likely to get there with full, healthy seasons. All it would take was one player popping, be it a leap for Casey Schmitt or Jerar Encarnación, or an early promotion for Eldridge.
As it was, just three players hit the 20-homer barrier, and only just, as Adames and Schmitt both had 21.
17. We see Tim Lincecum
Can you blame a boy for hoping?
16. Someone plays 160 games
This one was trending towards accuracy. Only an out-of-the-blue Devers injury reveal kept him from getting to the mark for the second straight season. As such, he ended up 12 games shy of 160, and this prediction ended up looking dumb. The Giants only had six players who appeared in 100 games, which is pretty jarring.
Tier 4: Wrong, but not idiotically so
I had to make a new tier just to hide how many of these I got wrong. The incorrect predictions take us all the way into the top 10, so I’m hedging on the predictions where yes, I was wrong, but by a slim enough margin that I don’t look foolish. In a few instances, I’m even technically right, but spiritually wrong. It’s a purgatory of sorts.
15. Heliot Ramos rebounds in the right ways
I’ve always been a fan of Ramos, and I’ve always been a believer. One of the things about Ramos’ game that has inspired confidence from me has been his ability to make offseason adjustments.
When he was struggling to make an impact in the Majors, while going outside the zone and hitting balls straight into the dirt, he spent an offseason controlling the zone and lifting the ball. When he broke out as an All-Star on the back of hitting lefties at a historical pace, but struggling against righties, he spent the winter learning how to hit right-handers. And when he came back last year with a renewed ability to hit righties, it was accompanied by a huge step back in his slash line against southpaws, and an even larger step back in his defense.
So I thought this year he would address those things, and improve his defense while getting back to his lefty-mashing ways. And by the letter of the law, I think this prediction was right. He raised his Fielding Run Value from second percentile all the way to … third percentile. Although honestly even that is overselling it, since it’s probably just due to less playing time this year.
Ramos did rebound against southpaws, as he hit posted a 150 wRC+ against lefties. But the performance against same-handed pitchers suffered, and ultimately Ramos was not only a much worse player this year than last year, but he was also traded.
14. ABS has no impact on Patrick Bailey’s defense
ABS definitely impacted Bailey’s defense. After three consecutive seasons of being 100th percentile in both framing and fielding run value, Bailey dipped to 79th and 84th percentile, respectively. I don’t think the new technology hurt the Gold Glover as much as many people feared, and it seems there were other things going on that led to his defensive decline. But ABS certainly had some negative impact.
13. They have three All-Stars
The Giants had two All-Stars, which I guess makes this prediction 66.7% right. Or maybe it only makes it 50% right, since each team is guaranteed at least one All-Star. Luis Arráez was a lock for the team, and Webb made it even though he probably didn’t deserve it.
You can envision a world where they had three All-Stars, though. If Robbie Ray’s heater started a few weeks earlier he could have wiggled his way on. Schmitt and Jung Hoo Lee certainly warranted some consideration, and if Devers had played his season in reverse he would have easily made the team.
12. Rafael Devers is a Gold Glove finalist
MLB hasn’t announced the Gold Glove finalists yet, so technically this one isn’t wrong yet. But given that Devers didn’t grade out very well by any defensive metric, we can put this one in the “wrong” bin.
Still, I think in spirit this prediction had some accuracy to it. Devers had some bad moments, but he also had some excellent moments at first base, and looked like he could hold down the position for years to come (though it still remains to be seen how the Giants will handle time at first with both Devers and Eldridge). Perhaps I’m just desperate to find something to paint in a positive light, but I was impressed by Devers’ defense this season.
11. They figure out second base
On the surface, this one is very, very, very wrong. The Giants traded away their All-Star second baseman, and ended the year by cycling through a combination of five backups who risk being DFA’d this offseason, while mixing in a center fielder here and there.
And yet, no one expects the Giants to pursue a second baseman this offseason, because it does feel like they have all the options they need. Whether it will be Schmitt, Marcelo Mayer, or a rotating cast that includes Jonah Cox remains to be seen. The Giants are a long ways away from figuring out second base, but they surely think they have the answer. Now they just need to figure out what it is.
Tier 3: I’m right … kind of
This small tier has the predictions that I’m not really sure about. They’re kind of right, but they’re kind of wrong. We can debate them … hypothetically speaking, of course. Hopefully we all have better things to do than actually debate these.
10. They swing another big deadline deal
This one is technically correct, but I’m not sure it’s accurate in spirit. The Giants made a number of big deals at the deadline, to make nothing of the Bailey trade in May.
Here’s how I described the prediction: “I don’t expect the Giants to redo the Devers trade this summer, and take Bryce Harper or Fernando Tatis Jr. off someone’s hands, though I’d love to see that. But I still think they make a big trade. Likely that means giving up a few of their best prospects for a young, cost-controlled talent, but if they struggle in the standings, it could mean parting ways with some of their MLB-level players, and really re-upping the farm.”
If you squint they did the latter, but I don’t think the trades they made quite qualify. Ramos, Kilian, and Miller were the only players under contract in 2027 that they traded and, especially with the season Ramos was having, none of those names are particularly notable. I think to call this prediction accurate, the Giants needed to have traded one of their core players, or one of their core prospects, and Bailey was too early to be a deadline deal. We’re dealing with semantics here.
9. Daniel Susac survives the year, but…
I labeled this one as a double prediction: “I think Susac survives the year and plays well, but [Jesús] Rodríguez also becomes a huge part of the team at some point, be it as a second baseman, a third catcher, a fourth outfielder, or a super-utility player. There’s room at the table for both of them.”
Susac didn’t really survive the year in the literal sense, given that he suffered a season-ending injury, but he survived the year in the baseball sense, in that he was not returned to the Athletics as a Rule 5 rejectee. And he even enters the offseason as the team’s starting catcher, though truthfully, I’m not entirely ready to declare that he played well.
Rodríguez, however, did not establish himself this year, in part because of his own injury. It’s a little bit hard to parse this prediction because I was assuming that Bailey would still be the franchise catcher, and Susac and Rodríguez would be battling for a backup role.
8. Adrian Houser is replaced
Houser was, indeed, replaced. In mid-June he was moved from the rotation to the bullpen. But, amid a slew of trades and injuries, he kind of returned to the rotation late in the year. In his fourth-to-last game of the season, he pitched five innings, but the Giants used an opener. In his third-to-last game of the season, he started and pitched six innings. In his second-to-last game of the season, he entered in the third inning and pitched five innings. And in his final game of the season, he started before leaving early with an injury.
So this one is kind of a shrug.
Tier 2: I’m right, but you’re not impressed
I only got seven of my 26 predictions right. That’s a pretty nice batting average though, so I can’t be too upset.
Still, it’s pretty easy to get predictions right if that’s your main goal. All you have to do is hug the trunk of the prediction tree, and never step out onto any limbs. Rafael Devers will hit a home run and Logan Webb won’t get traded and The federal government will intervene with the Giants over inclusive hats were all obvious things. I could have included them in my predictions post and upped my winning percentage.
Instead, I tried to at least be a tiny bit bold. But in a few cases, I took the easy way out. These are the correct predictions that probably elicit a “well, duh” from you.
7. There are more Tommy John surgeries coming down the line
This was my lone prediction that was unequivocally negative. And it brings me no joy that I was correct. It seemed that the Giants unparalleled luck with avoiding Tommy John surgeries couldn’t last forever, and when Hayden Birdsong kicked off the spring by needing TJ, I assumed it was just the first domino falling … or the second one, if you want to go back to Randy Rodríguez late last year.
It took awhile for the other dominoes to fall, but fall the most certainly did. First Trevor McDonald, and then Carson Whisenhunt, and finally Tidwell. You could see it coming a mile away, but it doesn’t make it any more enjoyable.
6. Kyle Harrison dominates them
For a while this year, it started to look like the Harrison-for-Devers trade was backfiring in a big way. Devers spent the start of the season looking like he forgot how to hit baseballs, while Harrison made a very strong bid for the All-Star game.
Their trajectories reversed as the season went on, with Devers being the third-best hitter in all of baseball from the start of May until the end of the season, while Harrison fell apart down the stretch (after his first August start, Harrison had a 2.84 ERA and a 2.91 FIP; he ended the season with a 4.20 ERA and a 4.03 FIP).
But along the way, the most predictable thing happened: Harrison dominated the team he grew up rooting for, and was drafted and developed by.
On June 2, the Brewers hosted the Giants. Harrison took the mound sporting a 6-1 record and a 1.57 ERA. He only pitched 5.2 innings in the game, but still struck out 12 batters, while allowing just six baserunners and one run. And you weren’t even mad.
5. The rotation looks worse entering the offseason than last year
This wasn’t exactly a bold prediction either, what with Ray and Tyler Mahle both set for free agency, even if the Giants hadn’t traded them. The hope was that some of the youngsters would become reliable enough options that San Francisco would have the bones of a solid rotation entering the offseason, but sadly that didn’t happen. Not only that, but Webb took quite a step backwards, while Landen Roupp struggled following a strong start to the year.
Last winter, the Giants entered the offseason with a rotation that had question marks. This winter, they enter it with a rotation in shambles.
4. The bullpen will look dramatically different at the end of the year
This was an obvious one, for two reasons: three key bullpen contributors (Jason Foley, Sam Hentges, and Joel Peguero) all began the year on the Injured List, and bullpens always have a lot of turnover.
But they don’t always have this much turnover. As evidence, I present a blurb from this original prediction: “I think the eight arms in the ‘pen for Game No. 162 will have more than 50% turnover from the octet that will be behind the outfield wall at Oracle Park tonight.”
I said that forgetting that the team gets an extra arm because of the September rules, and I still dramatically undersold it.
Of the eight bullpen arms the Giants started the year with, four ended the year injured (Winn, Brubaker, José Buttó, and Matt Gage); two were traded (Miller and Killian); one was released (Ryan Borucki), and one was in AAA (Ryan Walker). Exactly zero of the Opening Day relievers were available to pitch in the final series of the year.
Tier 1: Even a broken Brady is right three times a year
We’re left with just three predictions. Three out of 26 that make me actually look like I potentially know a thing or two.
And you know what? I’ll take it.
3. They have a top-five farm by the end of the year
This was one of the predictions I most wanted to get correct. And admittedly, it took a lot going right for me to get there. Had I been correct about my most egregious prediction — that the Giants would make the playoffs — then I probably would have been wrong about this prediction, because the Giants don’t climb to the elite ranks of farm systems if they trade away Jhonny Level and Bo Davidson instead of trading for Ramon Marquez, Henry Lalane, Joniel Hernandez, and so many others.
Despite graduating Eldridge, the Giants are widely viewed as a top-five farm system now, and there’s no shortage of reasons why. They’ve made excellent trades, they’ve signed big-name international free agents, and they’ve developed players well. The future is exciting, which is good because the present sure ain’t.
2. Harrison Bader and Luis Arráez go in different directions
It’s hard to imagine a prediction being more right than this one, and I’m not even sure if the No. 1 prediction on this list is more right. The reason this one isn’t a spot higher is simply because I hedged my bets.
I didn’t say that Bader will be awful and Arráez will be great; I just said that one of them will struggle, and the other will excel.
My reasoning was fairly simple. There were reasons to be excited about both players (strong defense and an excellent offensive year in 2025 for Bader; preternatural contact skills for Arráez), and reasons to be exceedingly skeptical (poor underlying metrics with no history of sustained offensive success for Bader; awful defense and downward-trending offense for Arráez). There seemed to be a good chance that one of those gambles would work out, and one would not.
I had no idea how intensely that would be true. Bader’s first (and likely last) season with the Giants could not have been more of a disaster. He was one of the worst players in all of baseball when on the field, posting a 49 wRC+ with mediocre defense, while accruing a whopping -0.4 fWAR in just 30 games. He dealt with multiple injuries, and then officially lost his season when, while rehabbing a foot injury, crashed a scooter into a fire truck in the marina in the middle of the night. The Giants docked his pay for the second half of the season, and will almost certainly look to void his contract for 2027.
Arráez, on the other hand, did the opposite. He rejuvenated his defensive reputation, going from a tire fire at second base to someone who will almost surely be a Gold Glove finalist. His spiraling offensive production course corrected, as he posted a 121 wRC+ with the Giants (though that number went tumbling down the stairs with the Phillies). He led all Giants players in fWAR (3.8) despite playing in just 105 games before being traded. He represented the team at the All-Star Game and brought them back an impressive haul at the deadline.
Bader was the Giants worst player this year and Arráez their best. I’ll pat myself on the back for this one. But not as much as for the next one…
1. The Giants have more debuts this year than last year
In hindsight this doesn’t look like a particularly bold prediction. But if you go back to the start of the year, it was far from obvious. The Giants hadn’t protected a single player from the Rule 5 Draft, and as such had just two players on the 40-man roster — Susac and Jesús Rodríguez — who had yet to debut. Buster Posey had earned a bit of a reputation in his first year for being very cautious with promotions, not just in the lower levels of the Minors but from the Minors up to the Majors. And the bulk of the AAA talent that seemed ready to contribute — Eldridge, Gilbert, Whisenhunt, and Tidwell — had debuted the year prior.
So it wasn’t all that easy to see how the Giants would have more players debut than the six that played their first MLB game in 2025.
But my goodness did they. And I put this prediction at No. 1 on the list because they blew past my prediction entirely, and mocked it as they did so.
In all, the Giants had a hilarious 18 different players make their MLB debut this season (and that number should have been 19, but they did Zach Morgan dirty). 18!
For this year, this prediction made me look smart. Just don’t expect me to try it again next year.
