DETROIT, MI - AUGUST 30: Tyler Glasnow #31 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches during the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park on Sunday, August 30, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Zack Belsky/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Dodgers and Miami Marlins continue their weekend series with an afternoon game on Saturday at loanDepot Park, a 4:10 p.m. start time locally and 1:10 p.m. back in Los Angeles.
Tyler Glasnow takes the ball for Los Angeles, making his fourth start since returning from the injured list.
Right-hander Tyler Phillips starts for the Marlins. He started the season in the bullpen but since joining the rotation has a 4.23 ERA and 4.91 xERA in 17 starts. He’s lasted exactly five innings even times, and pitched deeper into the game three times — six innings on June 22, 7 1/3 frames on June 28, and 5 1/3 innings on August 13.
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 29: Andrew Abbott #41 of the Cincinnati Reds delivers a pitch against the Chicago Cubs during the second inning at Wrigley Field on August 29, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Isaac Wasserman/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Cincinnati Reds are in Milwaukee on Friday where they’ll begin a three-game weekend series at American Family Field against the Brewers.
Andrew Abbott (6-10, 4.43 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 152.1 IP) gets the starting nod for the Reds in the opener opposite Brewers starter Dustin May (6-9, 4.69 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 132.1 IP).
ATLANTA — The Phillies have found different ways to lose lately. Too many outs on the bases. Too many late leads slipping away. Too many chances to finish games that they haven’t finished.
Friday had all of it.
The Phillies led three different times from the ninth inning on, got go-ahead hits from Justin Crawford and Luis Arraez in extras and still walked off the field with a 6-5 loss to the Braves in 11 innings. The bullpen let them down again. So did the fundamentals.
And after another night where they had chances to put a game away and couldn’t, the Phillies are now five games back in the division.
What did we see from our end?
THE FUNDAMENTALS, AGAIN
The Phillies have spent the last week giving away outs and bases at exactly the wrong time. Friday brought another one.
Bryce Harper doubled to open the ninth with the Phillies still holding a one-run lead. Alec Bohm followed with a ground ball to the left side. Harper broke toward third, then stopped. He wound up caught in no man’s land between second and third and was tagged out.
Instead of having a runner in scoring position with one out and a chance to add insurance, the Phillies handed Atlanta an out.
It’s become too familiar lately. The Phillies have had baserunning mistakes pile up over the last week, part of a stretch in which their fundamentals have slipped as the games have only become more important.
Against a team chasing you in the standings, with a bullpen that has been shaky lately, those extra 90 feet and extra outs matter. They mattered Friday.
THREE CHANCES, NONE FINISHED
Jonathan Bowlan entered the ninth trying to protect the lead. He couldn’t.
Bowlan allowed the tying run, marking the fifth time in his last six outings that he has surrendered a run.
Then came extras.
Justin Crawford came off the bench in the 10th and attacked the first pitch he saw, ripping a go-ahead single to put the Phillies back in front, 4-3. Crawford entered the night batting .348 with runners in scoring position this season.
Another big spot. Another big swing from the rookie. And another lead the bullpen couldn’t hold.
Chase Shugart allowed the automatic runner to score in the bottom half, sending the game to the 11th.
The Phillies went back ahead again. Luis Arraez went the other way for an RBI single after Harper singled, Bryson Stott walked and Crawford grounded out.
A 5-4 lead. One more chance.
Shugart returned for the bottom of the 11th and recorded one out before Don Mattingly went to Brooks Raley. Raley got the second.
Then Ha-Seong Kim, batting .126, shot a two-out single through the left side to tie it. Drake Baldwin followed with a walk-off double.
Three different Phillies leads disappeared from the ninth inning on.
That’s the part that will stick. The bullpen has struggled lately to keep games where they belong. Friday was another one.
VINTAGE NOLA REMAINS
Aaron Nola did his part.
He gave the Phillies 6 1/3 innings of two-run baseball against a Braves lineup seeing him again just eight days after his best start of the season.
The familiarity didn’t hurt him.
Nola pitched to contact, leaned less on his four-seamer and turned more to his changeup, a pitch that has become increasingly effective for him.
Matt Olson’s first-inning homer hugged the foul pole. Austin Riley’s seventh-inning shot came on a sinker below the zone that he reached down and drove out.
Neither changed what Nola was able to do overall.
For the second straight start, he generated a chase rate of at least 45 percent. Both came against the Braves.
They’re the only two starts this season in which he’s reached that mark and the first time in his career he’s done it in consecutive outings.
BREAK THE DAM
The Phillies finally did some damage against Chris Sale.
Entering Friday, Sale had allowed three earned runs over 19 innings in three starts against Philadelphia this season. The Phillies matched that total in one inning.
With two outs in the second, Edmundo Sosa singled, Bryan De La Cruz worked a seven-pitch walk and J.T. Realmuto was hit by a pitch. Derek Hill followed by lining a three-run double into the left-center field gap.
It gave the Phillies a 3-1 lead and was the biggest swing they had produced against Sale all season.
It also continued a trend from their right-handed bench bats. Since Hill was acquired on June 11, Hill, Sosa and De La Cruz are batting .329/.368/.576 with runners in scoring position, with 11 extra-base hits and 50 RBI over 97 plate appearances.
The Phillies badly needed more production from that side after struggling so much against left-handed pitching early in the season. They got it Friday.
It just wasn’t enough.
The same issues that followed them through the homestand followed them to Atlanta. And after another game they had multiple chances to finish, the Phillies are now five games back in the division.
Jun 23, 2026; Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates center fielder Jake Mangum (28) scrambles safely back to first base on a steal attempt as Seattle Mariners starting pitcher George Kirby (68) drops the ball during the second inning at PNC Park. Mandatory Credit: Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Logan Gilbert’s incredible play at the plate in yesterday’s Mariners win wasn’t just a clutch moment in the game; it also underscored a fun little storyline this season, where Gilbert has gone from the worst Mariners pitcher at controlling the running game to the…[checks notes, checks them again]…best? That’s right, after being one of the worst Mariners pitchers by Statcast’s Net Bases Prevented (which sums how many bases a pitcher prevents runners from advancing with outs created on the basepaths), this year Gilbert is the best of the starting staff.
It’s understandable if you would have guessed Gilbert to be the worst, not the best – he and Bryce Miller (who was the worst starter last year at controlling the running game) have not only the slowest pitching pace on the team, but in the big leagues in general. Gilbert’s pitch tempo of 18.6 seconds ranks in the bottom 6% of MLB, as does Miller’s, and pitchers who are slower to the plate tend to leave themselves more susceptible to the running game. But Gilbert has made a concerted effort to improve in that area, and it’s paying dividends, even as he himself admits he’ll never be master of the pickoff.
The starter who is actually the worst at controlling the running game might surprise you, though – or maybe not, if you’ve been watching the 2026 Seattle Mariners closely. George Kirby’s -5 Net Bases Prevented ranks not only worst on the staff, but bottom 5% in MLB.
Despite being one of the quicker Mariners starters to the plate, Kirby has historically been one of the worst on staff at controlling the running game. This wasn’t an issue for the 2023-24 iterations of Kirby, who steadfastly refused to issue free passes, or even 2025 Kirby, who walked more hitters but also posted a career-high strikeout percentage of 26% after coming back from an early-season shoulder injury. But the 2026 version of George Kirby is striking out the lowest percentage of hitters in his career, under 20%, while also walking the same number of hitters as his 2025 self – still well below MLB average, but not the utterly miserly raters of his 2023-4 selves. That’s led to an increase of bodies on the basepaths, and when runners reach base, they take advantage.
In Kirby’s last start against the A’s, with the A’s ahead 2-0, Zack Gelof led off the fourth inning with a single. Kirby was able to retire Lawrence Butler on a flyout, but during Butler’s at-bat, Gelof stole second, which set up a two-out RBI for the A’s when Max Muncy singled, costing the Mariners a run. The A’s were able to get another run in that inning thanks to a passed ball on catcher Cal Raleigh, and all of a sudden the A’s had doubled up their lead, putting the Mariners in a hole they wouldn’t be able to overcome.
For a team that’s scuffled to find offense, gifting opposing teams runs on preventable things like walks and stolen bases has been deleterious, to say the least. (The Mets’ double steal against Kirby in a 7-1 loss on June 3 felt like a particularly brutal humiliation ritual and, looking back, felt like one of the signs this team wasn’t headed to the post-season.) But the final score doesn’t always reflect how pivotal some of these steals can be. Looking at the Padres’ decisive 8-3 win over the Mariners back on May 17th, it’s hard to remember that was a close game up until a nightmarish sixth inning. But in the fifth inning, the Padres were able to double up their lead essentially for free when Xander Bogaerts led off with a walk, then swiped second and third consecutively and scored on a Ty France single.
As the broadcast team points out here, part of what makes Kirby so susceptible to the stolen base, despite his quicker pitch tempo, is his large leg kick. Because of his delivery, there’s probably a ceiling to how well Kirby will be able to control the running game, which is hopefully offset by his pace to the plate and ability to limit free passes – both of which are controllables that Kirby could do a better job of controlling. One other aspect that Kirby could control, though, is his mentality on the mound.
Kirby has spoken extensively this year about working on the mental side of his game to be more comfortable with contact and let go of outcomes once runners reach base. In the past, says Kirby, he’s lost focus being frustrated about executing a pitch and yet allowing a hit on what he considers a well-executed pitch. This year, he’s been working on redirecting his focus instead to the hitter in the box and continuing to execute and hopefully cap the damage at the plate.
“That’s a big thing for me,” Kirby said back in April after a particularly good start against the Astros. “Once that guy gets on base, you can’t do anything about it anymore. You just have to lock in a go back to thinking about the competition between you and the hitter. They got on, doesn’t matter, just go attack the next guy. I think that really helps flush all the negative energy after a couple hits.”
It’s a delicate balance – keeping the focus on the at-bat but not forgetting about the runner entirely. But it’s not entirely correct that a pitcher can’t do anything about a hitter who reached base, because they can matter. For the famously-intense “Furious George”, managing the mental side of the game has always been one of his challenges. But it’s a balance he’s going to have to navigate, because giving up free runs is something to really be furious about.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani chats with a coach in the dugout during the first inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles on Tuesday, Sept. 8, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Then there was the unexpected twist, with Eric Lauer being transferred from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day injured list — a procedural move that will effectively end his season.
However, the state of Lauer’s injury and the Dodgers’ sudden need to clear a 40-man roster spot for De Paula meant that the veteran left-hander was the odd man out in Friday’s roster shuffle.
And by going onto the 60-day IL, he now won’t be eligible to be activated until after the scheduled end of the World Series — dashing whatever slim hopes he still had of breaking into the Dodgers’ postseason roster.
Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Eric Lauer reacts after giving up back-to-back home runs during the second inning of a baseball game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday, Sept. 2, 2026, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Jayne Kamin-Oncea
Lauer was unlikely to do so even if he had stayed healthy. But he was at least in the conversation thanks to the 3.78 ERA he posted in his first 13 outings with the Dodgers, before a three-inning, seven-run clunker that precipitated his IL placement a couple weeks ago.
The good news for the Dodgers: They still have plenty of pitching depth without Lauer — or the now one-way Ohtani, for that matter.
Roki Sasaki could return from the injured list as soon as Sunday, having progressed enough from a finger blister to be an option to start the Dodgers’ series finale against the Marlins.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki, left, and Shohei Ohtani chat in the dugout during a baseball game against the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday, Sept. 10, 2026, in Los Angeles. AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill
Edwin Díaz and Kris Bubic are also on the mend, though Díaz will throw at least one more minor-league rehab outing in Triple-A this weekend before being an option to return, per Roberts.
Ohtani’s status remains less clear. Roberts said the Dodgers had no specific diagnosis for his recently bothersome arm issue beyond the “biceps inflammation” designation he was given for Friday’s IL placement. He said the slugger’s left knee “is still sore,” too.
For now, Ohtani will remain shut down from hitting through at least the weekend, as the team tries to give his body rest before he begins ramping up for a targeted Sept. 23 return to the lineup (the soonest he will be eligible to come off the IL).
Ohtani’s next steps, Roberts added, will be based off the way he feels in the coming days.
“I think there’s a good amount of communication going on, which is also what led us to the IL, given how he’s felt,” Roberts said. “And then kind of going forward, take a few days from swinging the bat, and then let’s sort of reevaluate in the coming days and see what works.”
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NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 11: Francisco Lindor #12 of the New York Mets is seen during batting practice while wearing a hat in support first responders on the 25th anniversary of 9/11 before the game between the New York Yankees and the New York Mets at Yankee Stadium on September 11, 2026 in The Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Mets Lineup
Francisco Lindor – SS
Juan Soto – LF
Bo Bichette – 3B
Mark Vientos – DH
Carson Benge – RF
Marcus Semien – 2B
Christopher Morel – 1B
A.J. Ewing – CF
Francisco Alvarez – C
Nolan McLean – RHP
Yankees Lineup
Ben Rice – DH
Cody Bellinger – LF
Aaron Judge – RF
Luis Garcia – 1B
Spencer Jones – CF
George Lombard – SS
Ryan McMahon – 3B
Austin Wells – C
Anthony Volpe – 2B
Carlos Rodón – LHP
Broadcast info
First pitch: 7:05 pm EDT TV: WPIX Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App 92.3 HD2
25-year-old Guardians LHP Parker Messick made his MLB debut last August, and so far the results have been pretty spectacular. Even if they’re helped a little by a lucky batting average on balls in play (he’s at .264 for the season, the MLB average is .289). That’s not a crazy outlier though, I don’t think. Messick relies heavily on a 94-ish fastball and slightly slower sinker; that combo has been dynamite for him this season. He’ll frequently mix in a change, less frequently some breaking stuff.
75 years ago, Bill Veeck pulled one of his signature wacky baseball stunts. He signed 3’7” Eddie Gaedel to the Browns’ roster and had him pinch-hit in a game. Gaedel drew a walk — obviously his strike zone was small — and Veeck replaced him with a pinch-runner. The pinch-runner didn’t score
Now, Veeck owned the St. Louis Browns at that time, not the team in Cleveland. (So this is kinda the wrong week for this post. I thought this happened in Cleveland, until I started writing it.)
But Veeck had owned the Indians for four years, selling them in 1950 when he needed money for a divorce settlement. And had done some notable things with the team, like signing the first Negro League player to join the American League, Larry Doby. (When manager Lou Boudreau introduced Doby to the team, three players refused to shake his hand — and Veeck got rid of all three.) In 1949, Veeck signed Satchel Paige, the oldest rookie to ever play in MLB at the age of 41; he’d pitch 155.2 innings over two seasons for the team (and then became a two-time All-Star with the Browns).
Veeck claimed the idea of using a small person as a pinch-hitter was his own notion… however, there’d been a 1941 story in The Saturday Evening Post called “You Could Look it Up” by James Thurber, author of “The Secret Life of Walter Mitty.” You can read the Thurber story here, if you like. It has paintings by Norman Rockwell which are very detailed and striking, as usual:
(By the way, if you think Rockwell’s paintings were all light-hearted Americana… that is not so.)
After buying the Browns, Veeck came up with the idea for a 50th-anniversary celebration of the American League. One concept for the promotion was kind of a “circus day,” which took place in between two games of a doubleheader on August 19th, 1951. There were acrobats, baseball clown Max Patkin, a band featuring Satchel Paige on drums, and finally, a birthday cake with Eddie Gaedel inside. (Veeck’s PR man had found Gaedel through his membership in the American Guild of Variety Artists, a performer’s union, and they’d smuggled Gaedel into the hotel room wrapped in blankets.) Apparently, sponsor Falstaff Beer was unimpressed by how blah “midget jumps out of birthday cake” was. They didn’t know what was coming next. (Neither did the Browns players.)
As leadoff hitter Frank Saucier approached the plate in the home half of the 1st inning, manager Zack Taylor signaled for a pinch-hitter, instead; it was Gaedel, in a uniform with the number “1/8.” Umpire Ed Hurley thought it was a joke, until Taylor showed him Gaedel’s contract. (For $15,400, which amounted to $100 per game, which was all Gaedel would get, and he knew it — but he liked the idea of the publicity.) Veeck had carefully instructed Gaedel before the game to NOT swing at anything (and he’d taken a $100,000 life insurance policy out on Gaedel in case anything bad happened.) Gaedel played the moment up; he even gave Saucier the customary butt slap as he headed to the dugout.
Of course, Gaedel took the four-pitch walk. When he got to first base, “he stopped two or three times and took his hat off, and bowed to the crowd,” Saucier remembered years later (per this story by The Guardian’s Frederic Frommer. “‘When he came back to the dugout, I said, “Eddie, you really kind of clowned that up a bit, going to first, didn’t you?” “And he said, “Man, I felt like Babe Ruth.’”
Eddie Gaedel was born June 8, 1925 in Chicago. Both his parents and his sibling were regular-sized. Per this SABR article by Brian McKenna and this one by Eric Robinson, while Gaedel did graduate from high school, he wasn’t comfortable traveling far from home, and instead worked various jobs in the region. Like riveting, since he was able to crawl into tight spaces. He’d also perform in traveling rodeos, circuses, do store openings, that sort of thing. In 1945 the music label Mercury Records opened in Chicago, and hired Gaedel for some publicity stuff as the “Mercury Man.” Here’s a picture of the old Mercury logo, along with the only known signed photo of Gaedel. It was sent by Gaedel to a fan for free, and later sold at auction for $6,960.
Gaedel did pretty well off the attention from the game, making $17,000 over the next few weeks for various appearances and promotions, including a minor-league at-bat in Syracuse, Illinois. Hollywood was interested and Mercury Records liked the idea of Gaedel touring California, but he didn’t want to go that far for that long. He would do other promotional appearances for Bill Veeck later, after Veeck bought the White Sox. One involved appearing via helicopter with several other little people dressed as Martians; they then used “ray guns” to capture the Sox’s shortest fielders, Luis Aparicio and Nellie Fox.
Gaedel died on June 18, 1961, after going to a bowling alley. At home, his mother discovered him unconscious and covered in horrific bruises; he’d been badly beaten. He wouldn’t regain consciousness. One of the SABR writers suggests that Gaedel was a aggressive sort (he was known to drink quite a bit), but it’s impossible to know if he was just cranky overall or cranky towards bullies and insulters; one incident arose when some policemen called him “a little boy.” Chicago police never found whoever killed him.
At Gaedel’s funeral, Bob Cain showed up — the pitcher for the Tigers who’d walked Gaedel that day. Asked later why he’d flown in for the funeral (Cain never met Gaedel), he said, “because, I’ve been a goodwill man and speaker for all these years and the midget was my best story. I owed him that one.”
Sometimes the HOF has a Gaedel jersey on display, sometimes it’s a life-size cutout, like here. Guess who the other jersey belonged to? That’s right, Nick Punto. (It was not Nick Punto.)
Twenty-five years ago, Victor Saracini was on United 175 when it hit the South Tower of the World Trade Center. Patrick McGuire was working on the 84th floor of the same tower.
Their kids didn't know each other yet. Brielle Saracini, whose father had been the plane's pilot, and Sean McGuire met years later, as grieving 10-year-olds, at a camp for children who lost a parent on Sept. 11, 2001. They later fell in love, got married, and Friday night, they threw out the first pitch together at Yankee Stadium.
Brielle Saracini and Sean McGuire both lost their fathers on 9/11.
They met in 2003 at Camp Better Days, which was established to support families affected by those tragic events.
The whole night, with the Yankees and Mets playing each other, was built around the anniversary of the terrorist attacks that hit 13 miles south of the stadium, the Pentagon and in Shanksville, Pennsylvania, killing 2,977. The Yankees planned a pre-game ceremony with honor guards from the NYPD, FDNY and Port Authority Police, plus a group of 2001 Yankees alumni.
Current players laid a wreath at the 9/11 memorial in Monument Park earlier in the day. A giant flag covered the outfield for the anthem, sung by the opera tenor James Valenti, with Lee Greenwood following him with "God Bless America." FDNY Lt. William Arce gets the seventh-inning stretch. The Tunnel to Towers Foundation and Tuesday's Promise are being honored too.
The Mets and Yankees have been tied to 9/11 for 25 years
Members of the 2001 New York Yankees are in the Bronx to commemorate 25 years since 9/11.
Members of the 2001 Yankees are on hand tonight in the Bronx: Joe Torre, Jorge Posada, Paul O’Neill, Tino Martinez, Scott Brosius, Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter. pic.twitter.com/0LdFbVidTu
2001 Yankees Jorge Posada, Paul O'Neill, Tino Martinez, Scott Brosius, Mariano Rivera and Derek Jeter - along with manager Joe Torre - are on the field before tonight's Mets-Yankees game pic.twitter.com/EctjH0590v
The nation anthem was dedicated to Valenti's father and a friend who died on 9/11.
Internationally acclaimed opera tenor James Valenti performs the national anthem prior to the Mets-Yankees game in the Bronx. pic.twitter.com/CCbc523VL4
The Yankees and Mets continue to support 9/11 charities 25 years later.
Since 2001, the New York Yankees Foundation has been honored to support five 9/11-related charities: @TuesPromiseOrg, @Tunnel2Towers, @nycpolicefdtn, the New York & New Jersey Port Authority Police Department, and the @FDNYFoundation.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 06: Yordan Alvarez #44 of the Houston Astros hits a home run in the first inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Daikin Park on September 06, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
TONIGHT’S GAME: The Houston Astros (75-72) open a 3-game series tonight vs. the Tampa Bay Rays (87-59) at Tropicana Field.
Rookie RHP Miguel Ullola (0-0, 3.86 ERA) will make his 1st ML start at 6th appearance for the Astros as he takes on Rays RHP Drew Rasmussen (14-5, 2.88 ERA). Ullola is serving as an opener tonight.
9/11 REMEMBERANCE: Today, MLB is recognizing the 25th anniversary of the deadly terrorists attacks that took place on Sept. 11, 2001. Games being played at all ballparks will include special tributes and pregame ceremonies. All players, managers, coaches and umpires will wear special caps with a “We Shall Never Forget” side patch.
ASTROS-RAYS: The Astros took 2 out of 3 games from the Rays when they met at Daikin Park earlier this season, July 3-5.
Fourth of July Fireworks: The Astros defeated RHP Drew Rasmussen and the Rays, 10-8, on July 4th. HOU tallied 5 runs on 6 hits vs. Rasmussen in his 5.0 IP. Yordan Alvarez led the way with 2 HR and 6 RBI.
Astros-Rays History: The Astros are 45-49 all-time vs. TB in the regular season.
Postseason: The two clubs have met twice in the postseason, with the Astros defeating TB in the 2019 ALDS, 3-2, and the Rays topping the Astros in the 2020 ALCS, 4-3.
MIGGY’S FIRST TIME: Tonight will be the 1st Major League start for rookie RHP Miguel Ullola. He has made 5 relief appearances for the Astros, with his last coming on Sept. 6 vs. ARI when he hurled a scoreless 8th inning in a 3-2 Astros loss. Although tonight will be his 1st ML start, Ullola has experience as a starter in the minor leagues. 86 of his 152 career minor league appearances are as a starter. At Triple A Sugar Land this season, 10 of his 39 appearances were as a starter. Overall at Sugar Land, he tallied 90 strikeouts in just 66.1 IP while allowing just 45 hits for a .192 opp. avg.
YESTERDAY’S RECAP: The Astros edged the Phillies at Citizens Bank Park yesterday afternoon in a 2-1 pitcher’s duel. Cam Smith was the hero with a solo HR in the top of the 9th off closer Jhoan Duran to snap a 1-1 tie. RHP Cristian Javier was solid, allowing just 1 run on 3 hits in 6.0 IP. RHP Bryan Abreu (5-3) earned the win in relief while LHP Josh Hader earned his 25th save in as many chances with a scoreless 9th inning. With the win, the Astros took 2 of 3 from PHI in the series.
CAM CAN: Cam Smith has homered in his last 3 games, going 5×10 with 4 RBI in that span.
MR. CRISTIAN: Yesterday’s starter RHP Cristian Javier has been outstanding in his last 2 starts, posting a 1.64 ERA (2ER/11IP) while allowing just 4 hits and 2 runs over 11.0 innings of work with 13 K’s. Yesterday was Javier’s 1st app. at Citizens Bank Park since he started the combined no hitter in Game 4 of the 2022 WS. In his 2 starts at CBP, he has now allowed just 3 hits in 12.0 IP with 14 K’s.
ROAD WARRIORS: Tonight is the 4th game (2-1 thus far) of a 6-game road trip for the Astros. Since going 1-9 on the first road trip of the 2026 season, the Astros have gone 37-25 (.597) on the road since April 14, which ranks third in the Majors in that span. More recently, they are 21-13 (.618) on their last 6 road trips (includes current trip).
TOUGH DRAWS: Including tonight, in the last 3 games, the opposing starters that the Astros have faced have a combined win-loss record of 43-15. LHP Cristopher Sanchez (17-5), RHP Zack Wheeler (12-5) and RHP Drew Rasmussen (14-5). The Astros are 1-1 in those games thus far.
MEASURING UP: The Astros are 29-20 (.592) vs. teams currently at .500 or above. They own a winning record vs. several clubs that are in the AL postseason hunt: 5-1 vs. BOS, 5-2 vs. CWS, 4-2 vs. CLE, 2-1 vs. TB, 9-4 vs. TEX.
THE HIT MAN:Jose Altuve collected his 2,500th career hit on Wed. night at PHI, becoming the 103rd player in ML history to reach this milestone. Freddie Freeman was the last player to reach 2,500 hits, which took place on June 9 of this year at PNC Park vs. PIT. Freeman (2,587) and Altuve (2.502) are the 2 active hits leaders in the Majors.
ON THE OFFENSIVE: The Astros lead the AL in SLG (.410), rank 2nd in HR (193), 4th in OPS (.725) and T-4th in runs scored (662).
SLOW AND STEADY RECOVERY: Since starting the season with a 20-31 record after 51 games, the Astros are 55-41 (.573) in their last 96 games (since May 22). That is the 2nd-best record in the AL in that span, behind only the Boston Red Sox.
STARTING STRONG: In the last 10 games, Astros starters have combined for a 2.78 ERA (17ER/55IP). The Astros are 6-4 in that span. Additionally, the Astros are 10-6 in their last 16 games, during which the starters have posted a combined 3.17 ERA (29ER/82.1IP).
TRIPLE THREAT:Yordan Alvarez, who is a solid candidate for the AL MVP Award, currently ranks 1st or 2nd in the AL in all three Triple Crown categories…he enters today leading the AL in batting avg. (.310), while ranking 2nd in HR (38) and RBI (96). Alvarez also leads the Majors in OPS (1.017), SLG (.590) and OBP (.427).
Rare Feat: Since Carl Yastrzemski won the AL Triple Crown in 1967, there has been just one Triple Crown winner in the Majors, Miguel Cabrera in 2012 (AL).
CHALLENGING STRETCH: The Astros are 6-4 thus far while in the the midst of a stretch of playing 4 consecutive teams (CWS, ARI, PHI, TB) with winning records, 2 of which are leading their respective divisions (CWS, TB), one that would qualify for the playoffs as a WC (PHI) and another that is 0.5 game out of a WC spot (ARI).
DOWN ON THE FARM: Single A Fayetteville has advanced to the Championship Round of the Carolina League playoffs after last night’s 8-1 win over Fredericksburg, which clinched their best-of-three series. They will await the winner of the Hickory vs. Kannapolis series.
TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY: 2001 – Major League Baseball games come to an immediate halt for a full week following the deadly terrorist attacks. The Astros were scheduled to host the SF Giants on this night. The Astros would resume play on Sept. 18 at SF.
1999– In a 5-3 win over the Cubs in the Dome, RHP Jose Lima earns his 20th win of the season, hurling 7.1 strong innings. Tony Eusebio goes 2×3 with a HR and 2 RBI. Lima becomes the Astros first 20-game winner since RHP Mike Scott went 20-10 in 1989.
1967 – Jimmy Wynn sets a franchise record with his 37th and final HR of the season in an 11-10 win over the Cubs in the Dome. Wynn’s single-season, franchise HR record would stand until Jeff Bagwell hit 39 HR in 1994.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Friday, September 11, 6:10 p.m. CT
Location: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL
TV: Space City Home Network
Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; KTRH 740 AM; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)
May 3, 2025; Cumberland, Georgia, USA; General views of the field and grounds crew during a rain delay before the start of the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park. Mandatory Credit: Dale Zanine-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Friday Night showdown for the NL East will commence after a brief delay. The Braves have announced that the start time for tonight’s contest will shift from 7:15 pm ET to 8:00 pm ET.
Due to inclement weather in the area, the start time of tonight's game will be at 8:00 pm ET.
ATLANTA, GA - AUGUST 28: A general view in the fifth inning during the game between the Atlanta Braves and the Colorado Rockies at Truist Park on August 28, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Here we go, folks! The Atlanta Braves went up to Philadelphia and got a split in a four-game series against the Phillies last week and now they’ll have to hold serve against this same Philadelphia team a week later if they want to ensure that their hold on the NL East lead is as sturdy as possible as the calendar begins to wind down. Will Chris Sale continue to come up big for the Braves? Can Atlanta figure out a way to do some damage against Aaron Nola? Hopefully we’ll be talking about a win for the Braves once the night is over!
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 08: Drew Rasmussen #57 of the Tampa Bay Rays signs autographs for fans prior to the game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Atlanta Braves at Truist Park on Tuesday, September 8, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Kathryn May/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Shohei Ohtani was officially placed on the injured list on Friday.
After months of speculation surrounding a plaguing biceps and knee injury, the Dodgers conceded their two-way player isn’t 100%. The California Post’s Dylan Hernandez and Jack Harris discussed the seriousness of Ohtani’s absence with the former stating there’s a possibility the four-time MVP completely misses the playoffs.
“He’s done for the season,” Hernandez said on The Dodgers Post. “[The Dodgers] are just pretending he’s not. He’s done for like all intents and purposes.”
Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani reacts after fouling a ball off his foot during the seventh inning against the Reds. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Ohtani is just 6-for-52 since late August. That is not a typo.
And so, does Hernandez really believe Ohtani won’t return in 2026?
“I think there’s a decent chance that he won’t. I think that even if he does come back — you’re counting on like a Kirk Gibson type moment…” Hernandez told Harris, who was much more optimistic about Ohtani’s looming return.
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The California Post’s Dylan Hernandez and Jack Harris discuss Shohei Ohtani’s injury and potential playoff impact on The Dodgers Post.
“I think it’s possible he doesn’t play in the regular season,” Harris said. “There’s no chance he’s not going to play in the playoffs.”
The Dodgers have been extra cautious with a number of their star players as they nurse injuries throughout the regular season. Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow are prime examples of the Dodgers’ decision to limit their stars in the regular season in order to be fully healthy in October.
But a different approach was taken with Shohei Ohtani. Whether that was the right choice by the Dodgers remains to be seen.
“With every other player, their MO is to be cautious, is to shut them down, is to play for October. And the fact that they couldn’t do that with the most important player on their team is a failing either of the way they manage him, of the way the two sides work together,” Harris said.
The back-to-back World Series champions have seemingly sustained a self-inflicted wound by their mismanagement of Ohtani. Despite his ongoing struggles at the plate, the Dodgers were reluctant to admit anything was wrong with their two-way star.
Hernandez gave fans a piece of advice as the next few weeks unfold.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani sits in the dugout during a game against the Cincinnati Reds on Monday, September 7, 2026, in Los Angeles. Wally Skalij for CA Post
“The Dodgers have proven themselves to be horrible sources of information regarding Ohtani,” Hernandez said.
“So, don’t listen to anything that they say. Use your eyes.”
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 08: Kazuma Okamoto #7 of the Toronto Blue Jays reacts after he hit a single against the Athletics during the sixth inning at Sutter Health Park on September 08, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
We are starting a series with the Blue Jays tonight.
The team says Dylan Cease won’t be starting tomorrow, they will hold him back until Sunday. It will be some sort of bullpen day with Arrighetti being the bulk guy or starter.
The recap is likely to be late tonight, we are going out for my middle boy’s birthday and then coming back here for dessert.
No Rudy Martin in today’s lineup. I was wondering why Yohendrick Piñango wasn’t the choice, but I see that he’s having a hard time of it in September.
