Visma-Lease A Bike rider reflects on his stunning Grand Tour debut that has proved ‘the work had all been worth it’
When Matthew Brennan sat down with his team before the race to study this year’s Vuelta a España route, the young Briton had limited expectations for his Grand Tour debut. Fast forward a few weeks and the 21-year-old from Darlington is the youngest rider ever to win five stages in a single Grand Tour.
He is also the youngest to win back-to-back stages. His fifth win was the seventh for his Visma‑Lease A Bike team in this Vuelta, the highest number they have ever achieved at this level, surpassing the tallies of six set at the 2022 Tour de France and this year’s Giro d’Italia.
In the middle of the fifth inning, this looked like another one of those Diamondbacks games, which have been all too common lately. They were trailing 1-0 to the Rangers, starter Merrill Kelly was out, and the team had never really looked like scoring. But they then exploded for nine runs in the fifth and sixth innings, to give Arizona their biggest offensive production since August 28. It was a much-needed start to the last home-stand of the season, allowing the D-backs to keep pace with the Padres, and close a game on the Phillies. In individual marks, Corbin Carroll hit his 20th home-run of the season, and Justin Martinez threw just the fifth immaculate inning in franchise history.
The first inning was quick on both ends, Kelly and MacKenzie Gore, who threw eight innings of one-run ball against Arizona in Texas, needed only 20 pitches between them to get the first six outs. However, Kelly’s second inning was a real grind, as he struggled to locate his change-up, missing his spots by a wide margin. He was getting ahead of the hitters: four of the five batters faced went 0-2, and the other was 1-2. But there were then three full counts, two walks, and a total of 31 pitches thrown. As zeros go, it was about the least convincing one possible. A pair of one pitch outs in the third helped get Merrill somewhat back on track.
It was only temporary, however. After a 1-2-3 fourth, Kelly recorded only one out in the fifth, and that was on a sacrifice bunt. After a lead-off walk, and that sacrifice, he hit the next batter, and an RBI double into the right-field corner brought home the game’s first run, giving Texas a 1-0 lead. With men on second and third and one out, they threatened to score more, and Torey Lovullo had a quick hook. Kelly’s night was over after just 4.1 innings and 80 pitches, allowing one run on two hits and three walks with three K’s. Kevin Ginkel inherited the jam, and performed magnificently, stranding both runners on a just shallow enough fly and groundout, around another HBP to load the bases.
In hindsight, that proved to be the night’s turning point, because the Arizona offense finally showed up. Jordan Lawlar got things going with a double, Ryan Waldschmidt walked, and after Ildemaro Vargas failed to bunt them over, he slapped a ground-rule double to left-field instead, tying up the game. Ketel Marte then extended his hitting streak to nine games since coming off the injured (and restricted) list, with the third double in four batters, which made it 3-1 to Arizona and chased Gore. Gabriel Moreno then singled Marte home, making it 4-1. The D-backs loaded the bases before Lawlar grounded out in his second at-bat of the inning.
We then got to see something very special in the top of the fifth. Martinez took over from Ginkel, and threw the ultimate shutdown frame, in the shape of an immaculate inning: nine pitches, nine strikes, three strikeouts (above). These are rare: less common than no-hitters or hitting for the cycle, with just 123 instances since the feat was first recorded in 1889. It was the fifth immaculate inning in franchise history – here’s the full list:
Randy Johnson, August 23, 2001 vs. Pittsburgh Pirates
Byung-Hyun Kim, May 11, 2002 vs. Philadelphia Phillies
Wade Miley, October 1, 2012 vs. Colorado Rockies
Michael Soroka, March 30, 2026 vs. Detroit Tigers
Justin Martinez, September 11, 2026 vs. Texas Rangers
Yes, that’s the second immaculate inning thrown by a Diamondback this season. Though that fact is probably less impressive than the Astros’ Luis Garcia and Phil Maton, who threw their immaculates in the same game, against the same Rangers on June 15, 2022. Actually, the same three batters – Nathaniel Lowe, Ezequiel Durán and Brad Miller – were struck out in both frames. None of them were involved tonight: Durán is the only hitter to have been a part of three immaculate innings.
The Arizona offense came right back out in their half of the sixth, and tacked on five more runs. Waldschmidt was hit by a pitch, and one out later, Marte notched another RBI double, to make it 5-1 to Arizona. Moreno singled Marte home for the second inning in a row (6-1), and after the second out, Corbin Carroll hit his 20th home-run of the season, making it 8-1. As Preston noted on Twitter, Corbin is the first player ever with multiple 20 HR, 20 SB, 15 3B seasons. Nolan Arenado then followed with his team-leading 24th home-run to finish off the scoring for the Diamondbacks, with their ninth and final run.
The remainder of the game was largely a procession. Old “friend” Jordan Montgomery shambled out of the Rangers bullpen to pitch mop-up. Or, as kilnborn put it in the GDT, “And the Rangers decide to put a non-pitcher on the mound, since they’re down by 8+.” He retired all six batters faced, which would normally have been a point of pain. But by that point, my third cider was kicking in, and I couldn’t give a damn. Vargas, Marte, Moreno and Arenado all had two-hit games. Marte now has an .838 OPS since returning to the field, which seems solid enough to me. Hopefully, tonight might get Carroll, and the bats in general going consistently.
Click for details at Fangraphs Never forget: Ildemaro Vargas, +19% God Bless America: Ginkel, +14%; Marte, +11%
Never remember: Corbin Carroll, -5%
A very entertaining Gameday Thread, though that may partly be the cider talking. So apologize for any typos! I’m going off the rec path tonight, and giving it to Prof, for a comment which ended up being highly prophetic, in a discussion about whether or not Arizona leave more people on base than other teams (answer: no).
Ask, and ye shall receive… As mentioned, the Padres won, but the Phillies lost. That keeps the D-backs one-half game back of the Padres, with the Phillies and Cubs now level, three games in front of the Diamondbacks. After that solid start to the series, we’ll reconvene tomorrow for an earlier game – 5:10 pm – with Brandon Pfaadt on the mound for Arizona.
Sep 11, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Athletics right fielder Lawrence Butler (4) celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a two-run home run against Seattle Mariners starting pitcher George Kirby (not pictured) during the third inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Wow. It took an extra inning for it to be decided but the A’s came out on top thanks to some late-game heroics from an unexpected hero. The Athletics took the first game of the series against the Mariners, walking them off en route to a 6-5 victory. Seattle’s playoff hopes are on life support.
Springs solid again
The A’s had veteran southpaw Jeffrey Springs on the bump tonight. It’s no secret he’s in the final month donning the Green & Gold but there’s no reason his tenure has to end on a low note.
Springs had literally just seen these guys, pitching against them within the past week. That start was in Seattle though and he’s been much better on the road. How would he do against them in the hitters ballpark that is the Athletics’ current home?
Seattle struck first tonight, going small-ball to bring in a run in the first against Springs to give the M’s a quick lead. They’d go small-ball again in the second for their second run, pushing across that baserunner off a groundout. That was all the damage Seattle could muster tonight against the lefty though as he would toss three more innings without allowing another run.
The veteran did his job tonight and departed with a chance at a victory. His bullpen would let him down yet again but he did what he needed to do, which is impressive considering his year in Sacramento. He’s lined up to take on the Rays next time out, a much tougher opponent.
Offense musters just enough
On the other side of the ball, the Athletics’ offense was going up against Mariners righty George Kirby, a familiar foe for the A’s in the past few years. While Seattle was able to get a quick run against Springs, the A’s pushed across two against Kirby in the first inning. Rookie outfielder Henry Bolte got things started with a single then promptly stole second base (his 20th of the year). Veteran Jeff McNeil followed him up with an RBI double, and that was soon followed by an RBI single off the bat of Max Muncy:
After just two batters the A’s had tied this game, and a couple more and we’d take the lead (briefly). Seattle tied it up but that was only for a short time.
A couple innings later, Lawrence Butler stepped to the plate with a runner on and delivered the big blast of the game, a two-run shot to make it a 4-2 A’s lead:
That was home run #14 on the year for Butler, and one that the A’s desperately needed. That’d power the offense for the next few frames as the rest of the lineup struggled to add on.
Mariners fight back
After Springs’ night was done, manager Mark Kotsay turned to right-hander Scott Blewett. Just like his name would suggest, tonight he blew it as he’d allow Seattle to tie this game right back up with a two-run home run in the sixth. It was now 4-4 with just a few more innings to go.
A couple of uneventful innings took this one to extras, giving Seattle an advantage to get that go-ahead run. The A’s almost got out of the top of the tenth without allowing the ghost runner to score but a two-out hit brought him home to give Seattle their first lead since the first. The A’s were down and they only had three outs to make some magic happen.
Time to go home!
Down a run. Down to their last three outs. The A’s needed a big hit to at least keep this game going. Well, Donovan Walton wanted to get home early it seems. Leading off the bottom of the tenth with a man on second the journeyman connected on a walk-off two-run home run, sending the A’s home winners:
Now that’s how you play spoiler. Tonight might have been the stake through Seattle’s heart and we’re all about it. Two wins in a row for the A’s and we’re now a full 3 1/2 games over the Angels in the AL West. The little wins.
The series continues tomorrow night, same time same place. It’ll be left-hander Gage Jump taking the ball for the home squad while the M’s will counter with Bay Area native Bryan Woo. Should be a good one!
Sep 11, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays second baseman Ernie Clement (22) slides into second base with a double ahead of the tag from Baltimore Orioles shortstop Gunnar Henderson (2) during the ninth inning at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Orioles 7 Jays 4
This one couldn’t have gone much worse.
Dylan Beavers homered on the second pitch of the game.
Then, in the bottom of the first, the Jays had two on and one out, and Vladimir Guerrero was picked off first—just bad baseball. With a runner on second, he wasn’t going anywhere. It looked like the Orioles put a play on: pitch low and outside to the right-handed-hitting Alejandro Kirk and catch Samuel Basallo throws straight to first. Vlad was out, and it wasn’t close.
The second inning was even worse. The Orioles started the inning with four straight singles (2-0). Then a double (4-0). And another single (6-0). After that, Max Scherzer got the next 12 outs without giving up a hit. Barn doors and horse.
Max Scherzer ended up going 5 innings, allowing 7 hits, 6 earned runs, 1 walk and 3 strikeouts. The only good thing was he ate 5 innings.
The Jays got a run in the fourth, a Kazuma Okamoto home run (his 31st of the season).
One more in the sixth: Nathan Lukes led off with a single, Okamoto doubled. And Andrés Giménez drove in the run with a groundout.
And two more in the ninth. With two outs, Ernie Clement doubled, and Brett Bateman homered 7-4 after that. We got singles from George Springer and Vlad, to bring the tying run to the plate. But Kirk ground out to end the game.
That, and a Guardians win, puts the Jays two games back of the last Wild Card spot.
We had 10 hits. Bateman had 3, including the home run. Springer and Okamoto (with a home run) had 2 each. Kirk, Smith and Giménez had 0 fors.
Ricky Tiedemann, Braydon Fisher (giving up a run), Paul Sewald and Brendon Little each pitched an inning of relief.
Jay of the Day: Let’s give it to Okamoto (0.08 WPA, for a 2 for 4, home run).
Other Award: Scherzer (-0.34), and let’s give one to Vlad (-0.04 plus the base-running mistake.
Tomorrow we have Kyle Bradish (7-13, 3.91) vs. Spencer Miles (as opener) and Spencer Arrighetti (as bulk guy).
We still aren’t at the ‘have to run the table’ point, but it is getting closer.
On the upside, we had a very nice supper for my middle son’s birthday. All three of our boys came out, and it was a very nice evening.
The sun indeed may be setting on the White Sox. | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
This may come as somewhat of a shock, but the White Sox lost again Friday night. I know, who could’ve seen it coming that the team that has looked like a dumpster fire since late August would once again do everything possible to lose a game.
I don’t even know how to feel, but I do know I feel numb. Just another game where the White Sox gave false hope, had plenty of opportunities to grab the win, and instead tripped over their own feet and got caught with their pants around their ankles.
It’s usually a great sign to get a homer on the first pitch of the game, which Chase Meidroth did later than usual thanks to a 70-minute “rain delay” to start the game. That was followed by a Randal Grichuk double, six total bases on three pitches that got fans hopeful that the team wouldn’t completely choke. Unfortunately, the starting burst was followed by a weak ground out and two awful at-bats that ended in strikeouts.
Say I’m a pessimist or “not a real fan,” I don’t care; anybody that’s been following this team lately with a pulse knew what kind of game we were in store for. It was at that time I started checking the score of the Cleveland Guardians, game knowing what was bound to happen. Like a fool who believed in the White Sox, I also believed that maybe the Guardians wouldn’t pull a win out of their hat late.
As we kept our eyes on the Cleveland score, the White Sox immediately gave back a run in the first. They never like holding a lead for long, and what are the White Sox if not predictable?
Then they gave up a run in the second. Then they gave up another run in the third. Then they gave up another run in the fourth. Anthony “Kiss of Death” Kay strikes again, ladies and gentlemen.
Sure they were down 3-2 in the fifth, but they had the bases loaded! Surely they have to come through in the clutch at some point right?!
Wrong again.
Tristan Peters pinch-hit for Brenton Doyle and looked so bad Will Venable might as well have had himself suit up and take a few pitches. Seriously, this team is hitting less than .200 this month. Even crazier, the White Sox have one sacrifice fly in their last 50 opportunities, back on August 22 against the New York Mets.
It was right at that time that Sox fans everywhere probably scoreboard-watched to see that the Guardians mounted a late comeback to escape with another victory. I would go over the rest of the White Sox game but it just followed the same script it has for the last few weeks, so why bother? The White Sox had some inconsequential hits, immediately failed when anyone got into scoring position, and the opposing team coasted to a win. Congrats, I just described each loss since the All-Star break, ho-hum.
It’s so predictable that I legitimately typed up the first half of the previous paragraph, saw they had the bases loaded with one out and didn’t bat an eye returning to this writeup knowing they’d find a way to blow it. Would it shock you to hear that the White Sox immediately struck out on an awful pitch and then flew out to score zero runs in another prime opportunity?
I don’t even know if mad is the term to describe the feelings towards the White Sox right now. It’s more of a disbelief than anything else. For the last two weeks or so, the same exact scenario has played out every day. It’s like a baseball version of “Groundhog Day,” except there’s no happy ending.
The one positive from this game was that the White Sox didn’t give too much false hope. The bullpen *cough cough* Trevor Richards *cough* melted down faster than Bobby Knight in the 1980s.
The White Sox still hold a lead in the division and are in a playoff spot right now, but just one glance at our game thread tells you that confidence is as low as possible for a team in first place, being chase by another mediocrity. Hopefully the White Sox can still find a way to sneak into the playoffs, one way or another. At this point, however, I don’t know who they’re going to be able to beat to get in there. At least we have the weekend?
Runners-Up Randal Grichuk: 2-for-4, 2B, K Jake Rogers: 0-for-0, 2 BB, willing to shave his walrus stache in order to get the White Sox out of their hirsute slump Kyle Teel: 2-for-2
Cold Cat Trevor Richards: 2 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, BB, 2 K
Runners-Up Colson Montgomery: 0-for-4, BB, 3 K Braden Montgomery: 0-for-4 Anthony Kay: 4 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, BB, 2 K, LOSS (9-9) Miguel Vargas: 1-for-5, SB, crazy hustle on a missed foul pop which at least indicated some heart
Sep 11, 2026; Phoenix, Arizona, USA; Texas Rangers shortstop Ezequiel Duran (20) gets ready to hit against the Arizona Diamondbacks in the first inning at Chase Field. Mandatory Credit: Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Texas Rangers scored a run but the Arizona Diamondbacks scored nine runs.
It’s pretty ironic that in the span of about an hour, the 2026 Texas Rangers were laid to rest at Chase Field.
I’ve watched nearly 150 games of this baseball team this season and have written about how a moment or sequence was “like the entire season in a nutshell” so often that I’m pretty sure I’ve developed a peanut allergy.
How about we try this sequence on for size:
In a 0-0 game in the top of the fifth, Skip Schumaker offered up a free out by asking Nicky Lopez to bunt before the Rangers scored the first run of the game off last season’s failed savior Merritt Kelly only to see the middle of the order leave the bases loaded and viciously squeeze all the air out of the balloon despite the fresh lead.
In the bottom of the inning, MacKenzie Gore, whose starts have bled together at such a predictable cadence that it has begun to feel like he has given up four runs in some random inning every other day for these last six months, allowed a double, walk, ground-rule double, and then go-ahead two-run double without collecting an out.
Schumaker finally saw enough and brought in Jakob Junis, who you may recall allowed four runs without registering an out in yesterday’s tragedy. Junis immediately allowed the fourth run to score.
Now down 4-1, if you’re wondering if Texas showed some fight or pride after a demoralizing but familiar turn of events, the answer is a resounding no. Instead, they saw nine pitches and they went for nine strikes for an immaculate inning with each strikeout coming via a swing and miss each more pathetic than the last.
In the bottom of the inning, the Diamondbacks scored five more runs.
Pass the Planters.
Player of the Game: Josh Sborz.
Up Next: The Rangers will be on the field for a baseball game tomorrow in Arizona. Or maybe it will be a wake. First pitch is scheduled for 7:10 pm CDT.
PHOENIX (AP) — Arizona Diamondbacks hard-throwing reliever Justin Martinez had an immaculate inning in the sixth against the Texas Rangers, striking out three straight batters on nine pitches.
The 25-year-old Martinez made quick work of Wyatt Langford, Evan Carter and Jake Burger with one foul ball, three called strikes and five swinging strikes. His fastball topped out at 102.6 mph.
Martinez missed much of the last two seasons because of Tommy John surgery and recently returned from the injured list. He hasn’t given up a earned run over eight outings this year.
The immaculate inning was fifth in Arizona’s history dating to 1998. Michael Soroka last accomplished the feat for the D-backs earlier this season on March 30.
MILWAUKEE (AP) — The Milwaukee Brewers are heading to the playoffs, and baseball’s best team left no doubt.
Garrett Mitchell hit the Brewers’ first grand slam of the season, one of four homers for Milwaukee in a 20-0 rout of the Cincinnati Reds on Friday night that secured a playoff berth that had long been inevitable.
Manager Pat Murphy celebrated with a toast to his players and clubhouse staff. Afterward, the locker room was subdued, because these Brewers (92-56) hope to accomplish much more.
This will be Milwaukee’s fourth straight trip to the playoffs and eighth in nine seasons.
“It’s not something to take lightly because it’s really hard to do,” Murphy said. “We want to see how far we can go and how complete this can be. Remember that the message to the team is that we checked off one box, but we’ve got a lot more to go.”
Perhaps the biggest hurdle will be knocking off the two-time World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers, should the teams meet again. The Dodgers swept the Brewers in the NL championship series last year.
Entering Friday, the Brewers were last in the majors in home runs, but they rank near the top in batting and on-base percentage, and they hope an elite starting rotation led by Jacob Misiorowski can carry them deep into October.
Next up for the Brewers will be wrapping up the NL Central title. They lead the Chicago Cubs by 10 games, and their magic number is four.
Still, Friday’s achievement was worth a moment of reflection.
“You have to celebrate the moment, no matter how big or small,” Mitchell said. “With how long a season is, you have to be able to celebrate the moments when you have them. You never know when you’re going to get them, and you never know when the last one’s going to be. So, a small toast.”
ST LOUIS, MISSOURI - AUGUST 7: Alec Burleson #41 of the St. Louis Cardinals looks on during a game against the Colorado Rockies at Busch Stadium on August 7, 2026 in St Louis, Missouri. (Photo by Joe Puetz/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s been said that it’s not how you start, but how you finish. That’s a good thing because Matthew Liberatore’s first pitch of the game got torched, but he didn’t finish poorly at all. Would that be enough for the St. Louis Cardinals to win the first game of their homestand against the Chicago White Sox? The Cardinals offense and bullpen would ultimately have to answer that question. Fortunately, the middle of the Cardinals lineup would show up big time.
After a brief rain delay, Matthew Liberatore threw his first pitch which was a 93 mph four-seam fastball. It left the bat of Chicago White Sox leadoff man Chase Meidroth faster than that and traveled 398 feet into the left field plants for an immediate 1-0 White Sox lead. Former Cardinal Randall Grichuk followed that with a double to the right field wall and it looked like the wheels might come off of Liberatore’s wagon right out of the gate. Fortunately, he pitched around the Grichuk double and a walk later in the first only allowing that lone White Sox run on the homer.
The Cardinals bats answered in the bottom of the 1st inning when they were gifted a base when White Sox starter Anthony Kay hit Iván Herrera with a pitch. Alec Burleson made them pay when he ripped a double into the right field corner which scored a hustling Herrera tying the game at 1-1.
St. Louis would take the lead in the bottom of the 2nd inning when Leo Bernal ripped a double into the left-centerfield gap. Thomas Saggese singled to center which moved Bernal to third. Leo then scored when Masyn Winn grounded out to give the Cardinals a 2-1 lead.
We all had a sense of the wrong kind of Deja vu in the top of the 3rd inning when Chicago White Sox leadoff man Chase Meidroth launched an 88 mph Matthew Liberatore changeup into nearly the same spot he hit his first home run over the left field wall tying the game 2-2.
The Cardinals bats did not go for a nap for a change as St. Louis rallied for another run in the bottom of the 3rd inning when Jordan Walker led off with a solid single to center then advanced to second on a groundout from Alec Burleson. Joshua Báez added a single of his own to center which scored Walker giving the Cardinals a 3-2 lead.
Matthew Liberatore would get the Cardinals 1 out into the top of the 5th inning before he would be lifted by manager Oli Marmol for Gordon Graceffo. He would leave with a runner on 1st with a line of 4 1/3 innings pitched allowing 6 hits and 2 earned runs striking out 2 and walking 3. Not his best start of the year by far, but not his worst either and he did keep the Cardinals in the game unlike a few other outings. Graceffo would run into potential trouble for his part of the 5th as the White Sox would eventually load the bases with a walk and hit-by-pitch, but he’d strike out Peters to end the White Sox threat with no runs scored.
I haven’t heard an official nickname given, but I like the idea of Alec Burleson, Joshua Báez and Leo Bernal being known as the “killer B’s”. They lived up to that billing in the bottom of the 5th when they followed a nice Jordan Walker double to left with a single, double and single consecutively to give the Cardinals 3 more runs to increase the lead to 6-2.
Oh, the eternal question (or at least the one for the second half of this season) is whether the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen could hold that lead. Luis Gastelum entered the game in the top of the 6th inning and trouble appeared to follow him. After getting Montgomery to ground out for the first out, Antonacci and Teel both reached on singles to give the White Sox a scoring threat with runners on first and second with just one out. That situation was worsened by a Gastelum walk to Meidroth which loaded the bases for Randall Grichuk. Luis struck him out as Grichuk helped the cause by swinging at some balls out of the zone. It would come down to a crucial at-bat by Miguel Vargas. He connected with an 85 mph sweeper and drove it to the centerfield wall that Nathan Church bumped into as he caught the ball for the final out of the White Sox 6th. Whew!
The St. Louis defense had some nice highlights Friday night, too, especially Nathan Church who made two difficult catches including one in the top of the 7th where he slammed into the centerfield wall saving reliever Justin Bruihl some heartache.
Joshua Báez came about as close as you can come to hitting a home run in Busch Stadium without actually hitting a home run in the bottom of the 7th inning. He turned on an 89 mph slider and hit it off of the padding at the top of the left field wall that came back into the field of play which was confirmed to be a double after a crew chief’s review. He would eventually score anyway when Leo Bernal smacked a RBI single to left making it 7-2 Cardinals.
Bruihl would not get bailed out in the top of the 8th inning when he hit Antonacci with a pitch and then gave up a single to Teel allowing the White Sox runners on first and third with no outs. That inspired Oli Marmol to remove Justin for Ryne Stanek. He struck out Meidroth who had homered twice earlier in the game for the first out in the White Sox 8th. That brought up Munetaka Murakami who has 31 home runs on the season, but Stanek got him to ground into a force out at second for the second out, but a run scored on the play reducing the St. Louis lead to 7-3. Stanek would escape the top of the 8th when Vargas grounded out to Urias at third for the final out helped by a nice play by Burleson at first who had to be creative snagging the throw from Urias.
I remember the days when the St. Louis Cardinals would have a 4-run lead going into the top of the 9th inning and I’d feel comfortable with that number. This year? Not so much. Riley O’Brien was brought in to handle the middle of the White Sox lineup starting with Colson Montgomery. He struck him out on 3 pitches. No problem. Next up was Benintendi. He flew out innocently to Victor Scott II who was a defensive replacement in right. Tristan Peters was the last home for the White Sox. He grounded out weakly to Burleson. No drama in the 9th? Pinch me, I must be dreaming. More of this please!
The Cardinals will have a big Saturday with the entrance into the St. Louis Cardinals Hall of Fame by Albert Pujols, Yadier Molina and Bill Sherdel Saturday night starting at 5pm. After that, it will be game 2 of the weekend series as Kyle Leahy will start the first few innings for the Cardinals. Luis Castillo gets the start for the White Sox. First pitch Saturday night is set for 6:15pm and the game broadcast will be available via Cardinals.tv.
BALTIMORE, MD - SEPTEMBER 08: Travis Bazzana #37 of the Cleveland Guardians hits a three-run home run in the second inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 08, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Guardians pulled out a huge victory in the series opener in Minnesota, and it would once again be off the back of some excellent pitching. Parker Messick looked incredibly solid again, as he got through 5.1 innings, striking out 5, and giving up just 3 hits. He would only be touched for 1 run, when the Twins strung together 2 of their 3 hits off him back to back in the 2nd inning. After that, he was able to keep the Twins quiet.
In a similar fashion, Taj Bradley was able to keep the Guardians’ offense in check, giving up just 1 hit through 6 innings. The Guards were able to draw 4 walks off him and made a handful of very loud outs, but couldn’t find any outfield grass.
After the 6th, it would become a battle of the bullpens. The Twins brought in A.J. Minter to pitch the 7th, and the Guardians came out swinging. The first 3 hitters would all swing at the first pitch they saw, and after a Travis Bazzana single, Angel Martínez would crank an absolute moonshot 445 feet into the 2nd deck in left center field, giving the Guardians a 2-1 lead.
The twins would answer back in the bottom half of the inning on an RBI single by Kaelen Culpepper, making it a 2-2 game. That would be all the scoring until the 9th.
Travis Bazzana lead off the 9th with a walk, his 4th time reaching base in the game. After David Fry popped out attempting to bunt Bazz to 2nd, it would be Martínez again coming up big lining a double down the right field line, putting runners on 2nd and 3rd with just 1 out. Angel Genao would pinch hit for Austin Hedges and draw a key walk to load the bases and bring up Mr September himself, Brayan Rocchio. On the 2nd pitch of the at bat, Yoendrys Gómez would spike a changeup that got away from Twins catcher Ryan Jeffers, allowing Bazzana to score the go ahead run on the wild pitch. Rocchio would cap off the AB by smoking a 2 run double in the right center field gap, giving the Guardians a 5-2 lead.
Mariah Carey thaws all year to own the months of November and December.
In the bottom half of the 9th, it would be Cade Smith on to get the save. After a pop foul out to David Fry and PH single, Cade would get a weak ground ball off the bat of Walter Jenkins to first baseman David Fry. He would step on the bag and throw a perfect seed to Rocchio, who tagged out the runner, completing the double play and sealing a 5-2 victory for the Guardians. All in all, Cade Smith needed just 9 pitches to throw a scoreless 9th for his 36th save of the season.
The Guards look to lock up a series win tomorrow afternoon at 4:10 pm Eastern time. At the time of writing, the probable starter for the Guards is unknown, but it sounds like an opener situation leading to Joey Cantillo (9-9, 4.00 ERA) as the bulk guy out of the pen. The Twins’ probable starter is listed as Connor Prielipp (4-7, 5.25 ERA).
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 11: Drake Baldwin #30 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates his walk-off double with teammates during the eleventh inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park on September 11, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Braves had ‘em all the way. Yep, had ‘em all the way. At least, that’s what we’ll tell ourselves whenever a scintilla of a memory of this game pops into our brains, right? It took 12 innings, a brief blip from Chris Sale, and run-scoring scrambles in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh, another huuuuge hit from Ha-Seong Kim, and finally, a walkoff rope off the bat of Drake Baldwin, but the Braves ultimately prevailed in the opener of the final series against their division rivals.
How do you recap this game? It felt like living a few different lifetimes. I guess we’ll just go sequentially, but this is a game that warrants watching the highlights.
After a 45-minute weather-related delay, things got started and Sale pretty much picked up where he left off. The top of the Philadelphia order went down on a flyout and two nasty strikeouts. Aaron Nola retired the first two Braves he faced, but then Matt Olson broke a two-week homerless slide with a slice the other way that juuust managed not to go foul and instead became his 38th longball of the year. A homer from the recently homer-shy Braves offense seemed to be an auspicious sign, but things quickly took a turn for the worse.
After the first two outs of the eighth, Edmundo Sosa caught a Sale slider and yanked it for a single. Sale then issued a rare walk to Bryan De La Cruz of all people, and then hit J.T. Realmuto with the next pitch, loading the bases.
***Derek Hill complaints interlude***
I freakin’ hate the Derek Hill 2026 phenomenon. In case you’re not aware, Hill is A) massively outhitting a terrible xwOBA, B) has an insane amount of WPA despite not actually performing well in higher leverage consistency, but C), most annoyingly, the White Sox traded Hill and some international bonus pool money to the Phillies for essentially nothing of value, after Hill played a key role in starting that whole Braves June swoon thing before the trade. If not for Derek Hill, this series probably wouldn’t even have much drama. Anyway…
***Interlude end***
Hill couldn’t get a hold of Sale’s 1-1 four-seamer down the middle, but he did get a hold of the next pitch, barreling it for a bases-clearing double that turned the game around. It’s possible that if the Braves were actually playing Hill to pull, Michael Harris II could have flagged it down, but that is absolutely not where they were playing him.
Sale recovered to strike out Kyle Schwarber, and then he pretty much resumed his business-as-usual pure domination. He faced just one over the minimum the rest of the game, with a leadoff walk erased on a double play and a two-out Luis Arraez the only other non-out yielded by him and his defense. Sale finished with a 6/2 K/BB ratio in seven innings of work — not hyper-dominance, but another strong outing for the ace.
Unfortunately for the Braves, they couldn’t really do much against Nola, either. They put two on with two out in the bottom of the second, but Nola struck out Sean Murphy on three pitches. In the third, Ronald Acuña Jr. doubled and Olson walked, but Harris and Mauricio Dubon couldn’t bring them home via weak contact. There was another runner stranded in the fourth, and Acuña hit into a double play to erase a Baldwin leadoff single in the fifth… only for Ozzie Albies to hit into a double play of his own after Nola clipped Dubon in the sixth.
In the seventh, though, things got a little closer. Leading off the frame, Austin Riley scooped an 0-1 sinker below the zone from Nola and absolutely demolished it, 110 mph off the bat and an estimated 434 feet of distance, to make it a 3-2 game. Mike Yastrzemski followed with a bloop single, and then Murphy barreled one to center… but that one was caught. Still, the Phillies removed Nola and inserted Jose Alvarado. The big left-hander punched out both Baldwin and Acuña, blowing away the latter on 98 mph inside the zone.
Dylan Lee and the defense got through the eighth (walk, double play, flyout), but Alex McFarlane (the guy victimized by Acuña in Philadelphia) got three outs in the air around a bloop single by Dubon in the bottom half of the inning. Bryce Harper blooped a double into the corner off Lee in the ninth, and Lee eventually gave way to Mederos, but the Phillies were kept off the board.
So, in the ninth, the Phillies went to Jonathan Bowlan, not wanting to use Jhoan Duran three days in a row. Bowlan struck out Riley, but Yastrzemski connected for a seeing-eye single, giving him a perfect 3-for-3-with-a-walk evening. And then, all hell broke loose for pretty much the rest of the game.
Murphy swung at an 0-1 slider from Bowlan and hit a hard smash between the second base bag and Trea Turner at shortstop. DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who was called up today to replace the injured Lane Thomas and had pinch-run for Yastrzemski, blazed around the bases. This probably would have set up a first-and-third situation, except that Hill misplayed the ball in center, and Keirsey sprinted home, tying the game. The Braves could’ve won it right then, but they didn’t — Bowlan plunked Baldwin, but then Acuña flied out and Olson’s hard-hit ball towards center was easily cut off by Turner for the third out.
So, the tenth, with Raisel Iglesias on the hill. Pinch-hitter Justin Crawford singled on Iglesias’ first pitch to score the free runner. The Phillies didn’t do much else, and Chase Shugart came on to pitch for the home half of the inning. Harris moved Brewer Hicklen (pinch-running for Olson as the free runner) to third with a groundout, and Dubon skied a first-pitch sweeper about neck-level to center, just deep enough for Hicklen to score. Both Hicklen and Dubon were so pumped about this turn of events — I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone go quite so berserk over a regular season, non-walkoff sacrifice fly.
The 11th started promisingly as Turner fouled out against Didier Fuentes on the first pitch. And, it did end promisingly, but not without a lot of drama. On a 2-0 pitch, Harper hit what probably should’ve been a fairly routine liner to Olson, but it didn’t end up a clean play and the Phillies had runners on the corners. Fuentes got ahead of Arraez 0-2, but the latter then pulled off his bread-and-butter, a 68 mph go-ahead single through the left side on a 99 mph fastball on the inner edge. A strikeout, a walk, and a grounder sent the game to the fateful bottom of the 11th.
Things first looked really bad (after looking really good): Riley grounded out, failing to advance the runner to third. The Phillies swapped to veteran lefty Brooks Raley. Then, Dominic Smith, who came in to play first because of Hicklen pinch-running for Olson, popped out on the first pitch. Uh-oh. It was all up to Ha-Seong Kim, but we’ve seen this story before: Kim smashed a hanging changeup 106 mph into left field, tying the game. Up next was Drake Baldwin, and that’s where this one ends. Baldwin battled Raley for a few pitches, and then hooked a sweeper on the low-outside corner into the right-center gap for a walkoff double. Kim flew around the bases, and no throw came… with Kim’s bellyflop, the Braves pushed the division lead back to five games and avoided a Sale start letdown.
Josue De Paula made his major league debut with the Los Angeles Dodgers as the defending champions earned a 6-2 victory against the Miami Marlins at LoanDepot Park on Friday, Sept. 11.
He will serve as the designated hitter for the Dodgers for this weekend series, filling in for two-way star Shohei Ohtani. Those are big shoes for the organization's top prospect to fill.
Coming into Friday’s game, Mets starter Nolan McLean had allowed four earned runs in his last five outings and was making a great final push for the National League Rookie of the Year award.
But on Friday against the Yankees, the right-hander wasn’t at his best and gave up five earned runs on a career-high 10 hits allowed in five innings. The big blow came in the second inning when Cody Bellinger took him deep for a three-run shot that gave the Yanks a 4-1 lead, one they wouldn’t relinquish in an eventual 6-4 win.
“If you don’t have your best stuff, teams are gonna beat you and I didn’t have my best stuff tonight,” McLean said. “The Yankees are a good team and they came out and beat me.”
While McLean admitted to not having his best stuff overall on Friday night at Yankee Stadium, he said the pitch to Bellinger, a curveball down in the zone, was where he wanted it.
“I was happy where I put that pitch,” McLean said. “I didn’t wanna leave the zone too much and not get the swing and put him on base. He was able to kinda dig it out and kinda ride through his front side a little bit and put it in the seats. It’s unfortunate, but that guy’s good at baseball too so it’s part of it sometimes.”
The home run was the first McLean has allowed on his curveball, a pitch that has mystified hitters since the rookie entered the league.
It wasn’t just the homer by Bellinger, though, that did damage against McLean.
In the first inning, the rookie was put in immediate danger following two singles and a walk before a third single in the inning brought home a run. The right-hander also fell behind a lot of hitters and interim manager Andy Green thought he could’ve been more aggressive, especially on the inside of the plate.
“I think Nolan had the opportunity to probably attack in more than he did today and you can feel from the beginning they were living out over [the plate], so it wasn’t necessarily his best day,” Green said. “There was opportunity to probably get in more aggressively than he did though.”
As for Bellinger’s home run, Green agreed with his young pitcher that the lefty slugger “hit a couple of nice pitches.” Bellinger finished 2-for-4.
Not only was McLean’s start the first of the Subway Series, but it also came on the 25th anniversary of the attacks on 9/11, which put things into perspective for the 25-year-old who was just a couple of months old when the events transpired.
“It was awesome. Awesome fans, awesome city,” McLean said of the energy at the stadium. “I think that’s what’s ultimately most important about tonight – the people who died trying to help others and the people who were in those buildings; it’s awesome to see that many people show up and support it.”
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 11: Drake Baldwin #30 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates his walk-off double with teammates during the eleventh inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park on September 11, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Todd Kirkland/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Braves had ‘em all the way. Yep, had ‘em all the way. At least, that’s what we’ll tell ourselves whenever a scintilla of a memory of this game pops into our brains, right? It took 12 innings, a brief blip from Chris Sale, and run-scoring scrambles in the ninth, tenth, and eleventh, another huuuuge hit from Ha-Seong Kim, and finally, a walkoff rope off the bat of Drake Baldwin, but the Braves ultimately prevailed in the opener of the final series against their division rivals.
How do you recap this game? It felt like living a few different lifetimes. I guess we’ll just go sequentially, but this is a game that warrants watching the highlights.
After a 45-minute weather-related delay, things got started and Sale pretty much picked up where he left off. The top of the Philadelphia order went down on a flyout and two nasty strikeouts. Aaron Nola retired the first two Braves he faced, but then Matt Olson broke a two-week homerless slide with a slice the other way that juuust managed not to go foul and instead became his 38th longball of the year. A homer from the recently homer-shy Braves offense seemed to be an auspicious sign, but things quickly took a turn for the worse.
After the first two outs of the eighth, Edmundo Sosa caught a Sale slider and yanked it for a single. Sale then issued a rare walk to Bryan De La Cruz of all people, and then hit J.T. Realmuto with the next pitch, loading the bases.
***Derek Hill complaints interlude***
I freakin’ hate the Derek Hill 2026 phenomenon. In case you’re not aware, Hill is A) massively outhitting a terrible xwOBA, B) has an insane amount of WPA despite not actually performing well in higher leverage consistency, but C), most annoyingly, the White Sox traded Hill and some international bonus pool money to the Phillies for essentially nothing of value, after Hill played a key role in starting that whole Braves June swoon thing before the trade. If not for Derek Hill, this series probably wouldn’t even have much drama. Anyway…
***Interlude end***
Hill couldn’t get a hold of Sale’s 1-1 four-seamer down the middle, but he did get a hold of the next pitch, barreling it for a bases-clearing double that turned the game around. It’s possible that if the Braves were actually playing Hill to pull, Michael Harris II could have flagged it down, but that is absolutely not where they were playing him.
Sale recovered to strike out Kyle Schwarber, and then he pretty much resumed his business-as-usual pure domination. He faced just one over the minimum the rest of the game, with a leadoff walk erased on a double play and a two-out Luis Arraez the only other non-out yielded by him and his defense. Sale finished with a 6/2 K/BB ratio in seven innings of work — not hyper-dominance, but another strong outing for the ace.
Unfortunately for the Braves, they couldn’t really do much against Nola, either. They put two on with two out in the bottom of the second, but Nola struck out Sean Murphy on three pitches. In the third, Ronald Acuña Jr. doubled and Olson walked, but Harris and Mauricio Dubon couldn’t bring them home via weak contact. There was another runner stranded in the fourth, and Acuña hit into a double play to erase a Baldwin leadoff single in the fifth… only for Ozzie Albies to hit into a double play of his own after Nola clipped Dubon in the sixth.
In the seventh, though, things got a little closer. Leading off the frame, Austin Riley scooped an 0-1 sinker below the zone from Nola and absolutely demolished it, 110 mph off the bat and an estimated 434 feet of distance, to make it a 3-2 game. Mike Yastrzemski followed with a bloop single, and then Murphy barreled one to center… but that one was caught. Still, the Phillies removed Nola and inserted Jose Alvarado. The big left-hander punched out both Baldwin and Acuña, blowing away the latter on 98 mph inside the zone.
Dylan Lee and the defense got through the eighth (walk, double play, flyout), but Alex McFarlane (the guy victimized by Acuña in Philadelphia) got three outs in the air around a bloop single by Dubon in the bottom half of the inning. Bryce Harper blooped a double into the corner off Lee in the ninth, and Lee eventually gave way to Mederos, but the Phillies were kept off the board.
So, in the ninth, the Phillies went to Jonathan Bowlan, not wanting to use Jhoan Duran three days in a row. Bowlan struck out Riley, but Yastrzemski connected for a seeing-eye single, giving him a perfect 3-for-3-with-a-walk evening. And then, all hell broke loose for pretty much the rest of the game.
Murphy swung at an 0-1 slider from Bowlan and hit a hard smash between the second base bag and Trea Turner at shortstop. DaShawn Keirsey Jr., who was called up today to replace the injured Lane Thomas and had pinch-run for Yastrzemski, blazed around the bases. This probably would have set up a first-and-third situation, except that Hill misplayed the ball in center, and Keirsey sprinted home, tying the game. The Braves could’ve won it right then, but they didn’t — Bowlan plunked Baldwin, but then Acuña flied out and Olson’s hard-hit ball towards center was easily cut off by Turner for the third out.
So, the tenth, with Raisel Iglesias on the hill. Pinch-hitter Justin Crawford singled on Iglesias’ first pitch to score the free runner. The Phillies didn’t do much else, and Chase Shugart came on to pitch for the home half of the inning. Harris moved Brewer Hicklen (pinch-running for Olson as the free runner) to third with a groundout, and Dubon skied a first-pitch sweeper about neck-level to center, just deep enough for Hicklen to score. Both Hicklen and Dubon were so pumped about this turn of events — I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone go quite so berserk over a regular season, non-walkoff sacrifice fly.
The 11th started promisingly as Turner fouled out against Didier Fuentes on the first pitch. And, it did end promisingly, but not without a lot of drama. On a 2-0 pitch, Harper hit what probably should’ve been a fairly routine liner to Smith (who came in to play first after Hicklen pinch-ran for Olson), but it didn’t end up a clean play and the Phillies had runners on the corners. Fuentes got ahead of Arraez 0-2, but the latter then pulled off his bread-and-butter, a 68 mph go-ahead single through the left side on a 99 mph fastball on the inner edge. A strikeout, a walk, and a grounder sent the game to the fateful bottom of the 11th.
Things first looked really bad (after looking really good): Riley grounded out, failing to advance the runner to third. The Phillies swapped to veteran lefty Brooks Raley. Then, Smith popped out on the first pitch. Uh-oh. It was all up to Ha-Seong Kim, but we’ve seen this story before: Kim smashed a hanging changeup 106 mph into left field, tying the game. Up next was Drake Baldwin, and that’s where this one ends. Baldwin battled Raley for a few pitches, and then hooked a sweeper on the low-outside corner into the right-center gap for a walkoff double. Kim flew around the bases, and no throw came… with Kim’s bellyflop, the Braves pushed the division lead back to five games and avoided a Sale start letdown.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - JULY 12: Josiah Hartshorn #27 of the Chicago Cubs takes batting practice before the MLB All-Star Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 12, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Matt Dirksen/Chicago Cubs/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With the South Bend season over, first baseman Josiah Hartshorn, shortstop Angel Cepeda and outfielder Michael Gupton were promoted from South Bend to Knoxville.
Knoxville second baseman Drew Bowser, second baseman Dom Krupinski and right-hander Jacob Wallace were moved to the Development List to make room.
Terrific start tonight for Braxton Garrett, who allowed just one unearned run on two hits over five innings. Garrett walked two and struck out four as he picked up the win.
First baseman Kevin Alcántara hit a three-run home run in the seventh inning. It was his 20th home run this year, 21st counting the one in the majors. Alcántara went 2 for 4 with a walk and two runs scored.
Second baseman James Triantos doubled twice in a 3 for 4 night. He drove in two.
Third baseman Owen Miller went 3 for 5 with a stolen base. He drove in one and had one run scored.
DH Owen Ayers was 2 for 5 with a double. He had one RBI and scored one run.
Right fielder Chas McCormick opened the scoring with an RBI single in the first inning. McCormick went 2 for 5 with a double.
Center fielder Justin Dean was 2 for 5 with two runs scored.
Starter Jake Knapp allowed one run in the first, one in the second and three more in the third. Knapp’s final line was five runs on three hits over 2.2 innings. One of those hits was a solo home run in the first and another one was a three-run home run in the third. Knapp walked five and struck out two.
Grayson Moore relieved Knapp in the third inning, retired the next seven batters in order over the next 2.1 innings and got the win. Moore struck out two.
Tyler Schlaffer gave up two runs in the bottom of the sixth to make it close, but then he retired the side in order in the seventh. That left things up to Tyler Ras, who was six-up, six-down in the eighth and ninth innings for the save. Ras struck out four.
Catcher Ariel Armas hit a two-run home run in the third inning, his seventh on the season. Armas went 1 for 5.
DH Alex Ramírez went 3 for 4 with two walks and two steals. He scored once.
Center fielder Kane Kepley was 2 for 5 with a walk and four steals. Kepley scored twice.
In his Double-A debut, shortstop Angel Cepeda went 2 for 4 and scored one run.
Right fielder Josiah Hartshorn also made his Knoxville debut. Hartshorn was 1 for 3 with two walks and a sacrifice fly. He also stole a base. Hartshorn had two total RBI and scored one run.
Smokies baserunners went 11-for-11 in stealing bases tonight. Second baseman Alex Madera was 1 for 2 with three walks and two steals. He scored one run. Shortstop Karson Simas was 1 for 4 with a walk and two more steals. Simas scored one run and drove in one.
The 19-year-old Hartshorn’s first hit in Double-A.
#Cubs No. 1 prospect Josiah Hartshorn picks up his first Double-A hit and RBI in his first at bat! pic.twitter.com/MDS4UZ8poF
