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The San Francisco Giants welcome the Minnesota Twins to Oracle Park tonight to begin a three-game series.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be right-hander Blade Tidwell, who enters tonight’s game with a 4.56 ERA, 4.75 FIP, with 42 strikeouts to 21 walks in 53.1 innings pitched. His last start was in Tuesday’s 10-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, in which he allowed two runs on three hits with four strikeouts and a walk in six and two thirds innings

He’ll be facing off against Twins right-hander Zebby Matthews, who enters tonight’s game with a 4.74 ERA, 4.80 FIP, with 107 strikeouts to 39 walks in 125.1 innings pitched. His last start was in the Twins’ 5-4 extra innings win over the New York Yankees last Wednesday, in which he allowed just two hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in six innings.

Game #157

Who: San Francisco Giants (64-92) vs. Minnesota Twins (73-83)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

When: 6:45 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

The Tigers got their week going in high-scoring fashion with a 9-2 victory over the Nationals.

The postseason hunt might be over for the Tigers this season, but there was still baseball left to play, and hopefully more games to win in the final week of the season. They opened the week with a three-game series against the Nationals, and for the first game we got to see highly touted rookie River Ryan, a main piece of the Tarik Skubal trade, in his Tigers debut. He was up against DJ Herz for the Nationals.

Ryan got things underway nicely in his debut with a three-up, three-down inning, including striking out the first batter he faced on a nasty changeup. Gleyber Torres walked to open the home half, then on a wild pitch from Herz, he advanced to second. Hao-Yu Lee hit a ground-rule double, bringing Torres home and putting the Tigers on the board early.

With one out, Eduardo Valencia singled with a liner into left, bringing Lee home. Valencia just keeps hitting.

Ben Malgeri doubled, but two outs followed, leaving him stranded. We must also acknowledge how savage the camera and production crew for the Tigers are because of this.

In the second, Dylan Crews got a one-out single, then Jorbit Vivas walked to put two men on. But then next two batters were out, getting Ryan out of the very minor jam. The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the home half.

Jacob Young doubled to start the second. With two outs there was a pause in play as Abimelec Ortiz needed to walk off an uncomfortable foul. When he finally came back he lobbed a blooper that looked like it might drop, but Malgeri swept in to get the final out of the inning.

That was all she wrote for Ryan, who was always going to be on a short leash for his debut game. He went 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K on 43 pitches. He had a strong fourseam and sinker pairing, with really good differentiation between the two. Despite giving up three hits, he showed solid command of a deep mix of high quality pitchese and should be a nice addition to the rotation with frontline starter upside. Just stay healthy, River.

Valencia got a two-out double in the bottom of the inning, but the Tigers weren’t able to bring him in.

Keider Montero replaced Ryan in the fourth inning. He gave up a one-out walk to Dylan Crews, but then got the next two batters out in order. In the bottom of the inning Dingler took a leadoff walk, but one out later, it was Javier Baez who got to play game hero, with a two-run homer to left.

In the fifth, Young got a one-out single, but the Nationals weren’t able to turn it into anything. Up against reliever Luis Perales, Riley Greene got a one-out walk in the home half, then Valencia got his third double of the night. Ben Malgeri then hit a three-run homer, taking the Tigers to a 7-0 lead.

Dillon Dingler doubled off the outfield wall in a hit that looked awfully close to leaving the park, but there was no doubt about the ball going over the fence when Spencer Torkelson homered to bring two more runs in.

Baez drew a walk, but two outs followed and the Tigers went back to their dugout after extending their lead to 9-0.

In the sixth, the Nationals went 1-2-3. In the bottom of the inning Lee hit a leadoff single, but the next three batters went down in order to quickly end the threat.

The Nationals once again went three-up, three down in the top of the seventh. Josiah Gray was the new Nationals pitcher for the home half and Dingler got a single with a little thanks to second base, where the ball hit and bounced safely into the outfield. His good luck swiftly ended when Torkelson grounded into a double play. A pinch-hitting Zach McKinstry ended the inning with a lineout.

Drew Sommers came in for the eighth. James Woods got a one-out single, and then with two outs a pinch-hitting Yohandy Morales homered for the Nationals’ first two runs of the night. They’d have to settle for just those as the next out ended the inning. Lee got a two-out double in the bottom of the inning but the Tigers weren’t able to bring him home.

Beau Brieske came out to close things down for the Tigers in the ninth, and he did just that, getting the side out in order. The Tigers claimed victory for the first game of the series.

Final: Tigers 9, Nationals 2

Note: We will have companion podcasts all week for our season wraps for each affiliate, so look out over on the right rail on Tuesday for our South Atlantic League champion Winston-Salem Dash season wrap podcast!

The Winston-Salem Dash finished 73-58 (.557) in the regular season, good for fourth out of 12 teams in the South Atlantic League. The Dash went 38-28 in the first half and 35-30 in the second half, and somewhat ironically it was their weaker part, the five-over second half, that punched their ticket for the postseason. The Dash got off to a fast start, going 15-9 in April and never finishing worse than .500 in any month. Among teams in the Sally, Winston-Salem ranked second in OPS (.822) and runs scored (826). Although the Dash ranked eighth in ERA (4.98) and runs allowed (727), their run differential (+99) was third in the South Atlantic League.

The Dash pulled off an massive upset over Bowling Green (82-48) in the Division Series, beating them two games to zero; among 120 teams in the full-season minors, only three teams finished with a better record than the Hot Rods.

Incredibly, W-S was not finished, as it faced Greensboro in the Championship Series; somehow despite sporting a phenomenal 82-50 record that ranked in the Top 10 of all minors teams this year, the Grasshoppers were merely the third-best club in the Sally.

Not that it mattered to the Dash: In Game 1 of the title series, Winston-Salem scored eight runs in the second to propel themselves to a 15-8 victory. Since this was another best-of-three series, suddenly the Dash were one win away from taking the cake. Game 2 was an entirely different type of matchup, but once again, the Dash found a way to bring home the win by a score of 2-0. Just like that, the Dash had won the South Atlantic League Championship, and given that the Barons entered this season with back-to-back titles, this marks the third season that a White Sox affiliate has won it all.

Starting with the Top 30 White Sox prospects who got serious playing time with the Dash, we will start with the South Side Sox and MLB No. 2 White Sox prospect, infielder Caleb Bonemer. Bonemer, 20, opened the season with Winston-Salem, where he performed admirably. Bonemer slashed .238/.381/.556 (139 wRC+) in 61 games. On top of that, Bonemer stole 10 bases in 13 attempts (76.9%). To top it off, Bonemer proceeded to post a .261/.379/.545 (140 wRC+) slash line in 71 games for the Barons. No matter how we slice it, this was another sizable step forward for Bonemer, who plays shortstop, third base, and he even got some reps in center field at the tail end of the season. Bonemer’s performance with the Dash was strong enough to get him onto the South Atlantic League All-Star team.

Infielder Javier Mogollón, 20, MLB’s No. 12 White Sox prospect and No. 25 at South Side Sox, also made a big impact with the Dash. Mogollón started the season with Kannapolis, where he slashed .257/.357/.442 (112 wRC+) in 57 games. After being promoted to Winston-Salem on July 28, Mogollón made even more of an impact, slashing .268/.385/.487 (122 wRC+) in 34 games to wrap up the regular season. Mogollón, who plays second base and shortstop, added a bullet point to his resume  in the postseason. Mogollón launched a clutch, three-run homer to tie the game with two outs in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the Division Series against Bowling Green (82-48). The Dash proceeded to win that game in the 10th. In addition, Mogollón hit a two-run triple in Game 2 to help complete the sweep. On paper, Mogollón’s defense should be a strength moving forward, as MLB Pipeline grades his run tool at 60, his arm tool at 55, and his field tool at 50.

In 111 games, all with the Dash, shortstop Kyle Lodise, 22, slashed .230/.380/.440 (118 wRC+). Like Bonemer and Mogollón, Lodise was part of a strong infield that reached base quite often. Lodise also swiped 42 bases in 51 attempts (82.4%), as he was a major threat after reaching base. Lodise is MLB’s and South Side Sox’s No. 13 White Sox prospect, and he is living up to the hype since the White Sox drafted him in the third round in 2025.

Outfielder George Wolkow, 20, was also with the Dash for the entire season, and he provided some pop. Wolkow, MLB’s No. 14 White Sox prospect and at No. 15 with South Side Sox, went to Downers Grove North High School in the greater Chicago area. Wolkow slashed .239/.317/.446 (95 wRC+), and he led the team with 22 homers and 100 RBIs. Wolkow also swiped 15 bases, although he was caught seven times for a success rate of 68.2%, slightly below the cutoff that indicates an attempt is worth the risk. Wolkow’s main issue is his strikeout rate, which was 32.1%, an area to work on as he advances through the system.

Center fielder Ely Brown, 22, was great at getting on base and causing mayhem afterward. Brown slashed .275/.399/.372 (113 wRC+) in 113 games, all with the Dash. Brown also went 26-for-35 (74.3%) on stolen base attempts, as he showed that he has plenty of speed. While he doesn’t project to hit for much power, Brown’s high on-base skills paired with a 55-grade glove in center field make him an intriguing profile moving forward. Brown closes the season as MLB’s No. 21 White Sox prospect. In the preseason he ranked as the No. 99 White Sox prospect with SSS, an indication that we were caught sleeping on Brown, but also that he made a significant rise in 2026.

Ryan Burrowes, 22, played 88 games with the Dash before being promoted to Birmingham for his final 36 games. Burrowes, MLB’s No. 23 White Sox prospect and No. 42 before the season with SSS, excelled with Winston-Salem, slashing .261/.379/.421 (115 wRC+) and going 34-for-43 (79.1%) on stolen base attempts. Burrowes primarily plays shortstop, although he also got playing time at second base and third base this summer. In a smaller sample size, Burrowes struggled with the Barons, slashing .228/.329/.283 (74 wRC+), but he has a relatively high floor, thanks to his speed and defensive ability.

Infielder Colby Shelton, 23, is MLB’s No. 24 White Sox prospect and ranked No. 44 before the season with SSS. Although he spent most of the season with the Barons, it is important to highlight Shelton’s contributions to the Dash. Mainly a second baseman who also plays shortstop and third base, Shelton could not be stopped during his 31 games with the Dash. He slashed .339/.464/.661 (184 wRC+) in the early going to help the Dash get off to a fast start to the season. Shelton proceeded to slash .211/.289/.434 (88 wRC+) with the Barons, although he did pick up the pace down the stretch after struggling early on after the promotion.

Although the Dash had many MLB Top 30 prospects on the hitting side, they were much lighter with the arms. The only Top 30 prospect with at least 25 innings with the Dash was reliever Mathias LaCombe, 24. LaCombe was dominant during those 25 innings, posting a 2.88 ERA and a 3.54 FIP, striking out 12.60 per nine innings. LaCombe is MLB’s No. 18 White Sox prospect (No. 21 preseason with SSS), and although his ERA was 6.27 in 18 2/3 innings with Birmingham, his FIP (4.10) was much better. LaCombe actually climbed all the way up to Triple-A Charlotte by the very end of the season, an indication of the esteem the organization has for him.

Roch Cholowsky, 21, is likely someone you have heard of. Cholowsky, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft, made his professional debut, but he only played nine games. In that limited sample, Cholowsky slashed .167/.326/.333 (81 wRC+). Although the overall slash line in the small sample was subpar, Cholowsky had a 15.2% walk rate and a .185 BABIP, as luck was not on his side. Plus, at some point Roch injured his wrist with the Dash, which likely impacted his production and led to him getting shut down for the season early. Nonetheless much of Cholowsky’s value stems from his defense at shortstop, where his elite glove cemented his status as the top overall pick.

Unranked right-hander Jake Curtis, 24, served as the undeniable MVP of the Winston-Salem pitching staff. Curtis is outside MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 White Sox prospects but made a large impact, and he spent the vast majority of the season with the Dash. In 80 1/3 innings with Winston-Salem, Curtis posted a 3.14 ERA and a 3.16 FIP. Control was a large part of his success, as Curtis only walked 1.37 batters per nine innings, and he only allowed 0.74 homers per nine innings. Considering the South Atlantic League average ERA hovered around 5.04 (even if skewed somewhat by Asheville’s 7.39 mark), Curtis’s production went a long way.

Although Curtis was the most valuable pitcher overall, unranked (by MLB, but held in high esteem by South Side Sox, at No. 26 overall) left-handed pitcher Grant Umberger, 24, was on fire in the postseason. In the regular season, Umberger posted modest numbers in 120 2/3 innings, all with the Dash, as he had a 4.70 ERA and a 4.88 FIP. However, Umberger was extremely valuable in the playoffs, where he had two starts, and he was magnificent in both of them. Against Bowling Green, Umberger picked up 11 strikeouts while only allowing one run on three hits in 6 1/3 innings in the series clincher. Unbelievably, Umberger topped that in Game 2 against Greensboro, when he allowed three hits in 7 2/3 shutout innings. In that game, Umberger also struck out 11, as he finished the postseason with a 0.64 ERA, 22 strikeouts, and three walks. What a way to wrap things up.

First Pitch (CT):8:45 PM
TV: Twins.TV
Radio: TIBN/830 WCCO/102.9 The Wolf /Audacy App
Know Yo’ Foe:McCovey Chronicles

The Twins were officially eliminated from playoff contention yesterday, but they’ve been emotionally eliminated for a few weeks now. Honestly, being eliminated this late in the game is truly a testament to how milquetoast the entire American League has been this year. Even the “good” teams (Rays, Yankees, Red Sox) have some pretty glaring holes due to injuries. Someone will get hot and make a run to the World Series, but I have to imagine whoever emerges from the NL gauntlet will be heavily favored in the Fall Classic.

But onto today. Minnesota has fully transitioned to 2027 evaluation mode, meaning there’s some weird stuff going on such as Bailey Ober pitching out of the ‘pen yesterday. Today, that means 27-year-old former first round pick Aaron Sabato will make his major league debut.

Sabato is similar to Ben Ross, who was called up a few weeks ago. Not in size, stature, or skillset, but just by way of likely being more of a Quad-A type hitter rather than an actual MLB contributor. That being said, he’s a right handed bat with a ton of power who has crushed lefties the past two seasons, albeit with bad swing-and-miss numbers. Sabato has a .937 OPS against lefties vs a still respectable .857 mark against righties (keep in mind the average International League OPS is around .800). But the real difference comes from his strikeout and walk numbers. Against righties, Sabato has struck out in 26% of his PAs and walked just 6.2% of the time. Against southpaws, those numbers drastically improve to 23% and 17%, respectively.

It’s possible Sabato hits well enough to carve out a bench role, but if you asked me right now, I would assume he’s dropped from the the 40-man in the offseason. It’s possible the big righty is a late bloomer, but this is likely the Twins giving the nod to an organizational warrior as they wrap up the season.

But hey, I would love nothing more than to be proven wrong!

The Giants, meanwhile, have had so many injuries they’re running out an entire roster of organizational warriors. They currently have 9 position players and 13 pitchers on the Major League IL. Those players collectively account for $133.08M of their $196M payroll this season, so there are a lot of 25-28 YO rookies even the most baseball-obsessed bloggers have never heard of before. It’s been a rough year in the Bay, both on and off the field.

UPDATE: I made this post before Jung Hoo Lee and Bryce Eldridge were placed on the IL prior to the game today. The Giants now have exactly 0 opening day starters remaining and don’t have a single player on the active roster making more than $1M. It’s bad, folks.

Lineups

The Wild Card Race.

My final prediction in the preseason was that the Diamondbacks would win 85.1 games. With 82 wins, the Diamondbacks could exceed my prediction, which would give me joy. I’d rather be wrong with the Diamondbacks heading to the playoffs.

The Obvious.  The Diamondbacks odds of being the third NL Wild Card are small, but non-zero. They need to sweep the final six games (3 games vs Rockies and 3 games vs Padres). And either the Phillies or the Padres need to lose nearly all their games.

The Subtle and Profound.  Torey Lovullo’s comments after Sunday’s game were subtle and profound.

“…We know where we are in the standings. There’s not a damn thing we can do about it, other than go out and play our finest game on Tuesday in Colorado.” — Torey Lovullo

The Difference that Matters. Sweeping this series (or not) is the difference that matters.

Rockies Players to Watch.

Former Diamondbacks Jake McCarthy splits his playing time between left field and center field, with a little bit of right field.  After a career worst season with the Diamondbacks, with the Rockies his 113 OPS+ is backed up with 15 homers and 80 RBIs. McCarthy’s comments seemed to say his improvement was due to trying to hit line drives to all fields, batting at the top of the lineup, and more consistent at-bats.  Two huge difference makers follow:

• His batting performance is better at Coors than Chase.  At Coors his OPS was 1.111 in 2025 and .904 inn 2026. At Chase his OPS was .598 in 2025 and .310 in 2026.
• He increased his percentage of fast swings (swings greater than 75 MPH).  Per Baseball Savant, the percentage of fast swings increased from 7.8% in 2025 to 15.4% in 2026.  That’s nearly double!

“I think it’s getting back to what makes me good.  I think last year I sort of got away from doing what I do well. I think that’s being competitive on a daily basis. When I reflect on last year, I think a lot of at-bats ended in a pop-out or just early, weak contact. I’m trying to hit as many line drives around the field as possible. I’m sure the big outfield of Coors (Field) does help.” —  Jake McCarthy

Pitching Matchups.

Announced Diamondbacks Pitchers (as of Monday morning):

Michael Soroka.  In his latest start, he allowed 1 earned run in 5 innings.

Merrill Kelly.  In his latest start, which was against the Marlins, he allowed 3 earned runs in 4.2 innings. However, the Marlins scored an unearned run, and one run was the margin of victory for the Marlins.

Eduardo Rodriguez. In his latest start, which was against the Yankees, he allowed 7 earned runs (5 of which were in the first inning) in 5.1 innings. How well he fares in the first inning will be an early indicator of the Diamondbacks winning chances.

Announced Rockies Starters (as of Monday morning):

Kyle Freeland.  In his latest start, be allowed 1 earned run in 5 innings.

Mason Adams. In his latest start, which was against the Padres, he allowed 6 earned runs in 4.1 innings. Six runs was the margin of victory for the Padres.

Not yet announced.

Game start times follow:

Tuesday, 5:40 PM MST.

Wednesday, 5:40 PM MST.

Thursday, 12:10 PM MST.

Mets prospect Jonathan Santucci capped his fantastic season by being named an Eastern League All-Star on Monday.

Santucci continued climbing his way through the system this year. 

The left-hander started the season pitching with Double-A Binghamton before working his way into Syracuse’s starting rotation down the stretch. 

Before his promotion he led the Double-A level in strikeouts (120), was fifth in ERA (3.57), eighth in innings pitched (90.2), and eighth in WHIP (1.24). 

He struggled to the tune of a 5.24 ERA after joining Syracuse, but held his opponent to two runs or fewer in three of his last five outings of the season. 

Overall, Santucci led all minor league pitchers with 163 strikeouts, marking the second straight year a Mets pitching prospect accomplished the feat (Jonah Tong). 

The 23-year-old former second-round pick out of Duke is the second-ranked prospect and top-ranked pitching prospect on SNY’s midseason Top 30 list.  

According to SNY’s Joe DeMayo, Santucci looks the part of a mid-rotation starter who should enter the Mets’ rotation mix some time next season. 

There are only six games left in a truly miserable San Francisco Giants season, but there’s finally some good news: those six games just got a lot more interesting. On Monday afternoon, before kicking off their penultimate series of the season, the Giants announced that two thrilling youngsters are headed to the team: infielder Marcelo Mayer and outfielder Bo Davidson.

Both players are also jumping straight into the lineup. Mayer, who was activated off of the 10-Day Injured List, will serve as the designated hitter, while Davidson, who had his contract purchased from AAA Sacramento, will be in right field.

For Mayer, it will be his organizational debut. The 23-year old lefty, who was the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft, joined the Giants at this year’s trade deadline, in exchange for lefty reliever Erik Miller and outfield prospect Carlos Gutierrez. Widely considered a top-20 prospect in all of baseball a year ago, Mayer struggled during two stints in the Majors with the Boston Red Sox, hitting .223/.278/.346 (71 wRC+) in 70 games. But he has all the potential in the world, was a successful hitter at every level of the Minor Leagues, is still extremely young, and is a very talented defensive player.

Mayer was on the Injured List when the Giants acquired him, and shortly after began a rehab assignment. Unfortunately he had a setback fairly quickly, and was shut down. He now returns to the Giants without having made a second rehab appearance, and hasn’t played in a game since August 18. Hopefully we get to see him play some second base before the season ends, as he’ll likely be playing there a lot next season.

As for Davidson, he gets to cap a brilliant year with an MLB debut. The 24-year old lefty slugger has been one of the best stories in the Giants organization in recent history, as he rose from an undrafted free agent out of a junior college, to one of the top prospects in the system (and on top 100 lists), and now to a Major Leaguer.

Davidson, who plays quality defense, has good speed, and displays strong contact skills, but whose real calling card is his power, split the season between AA Richmond and AAA Sacramento, and dominated each level. He was an All-Star in the AA Eastern League, where he posted an .861 OPS and a 122 wRC+, and then took it to a whole new level in the AAA Pacific Coast League, where he finished the year with a .923 OPS and a 138 wRC+. Across the two levels, Davidson hit an organization-leading 29 home runs in 125 games.

While players like Victor Bericoto, Turner Hill, Drew Gilbert, and Jonah Cox have put forth impressive auditions this year, it’s very possible that the Giants traded Heliot Ramos in large part because they were confident that Davidson could be an everyday player next year.

Since Davidson was going to need to be protected from the Rule 5 Draft in the offseason, it made sense for the Giants to roster him and give him a little taste of the Majors before 2027.

For as exciting as the additions of Mayer and Davidson are, they come with a cost: they are replacing first baseman Bryce Eldridge and outfielder Jung Hoo Lee, whose seasons are presumably over. Eldridge is being placed on the 7-Day Concussion List, retroactive to September 18, though Tony Vitello said it’s unlikely that he’ll play again this year. Lee is headed to the 10-Day Injured List with a groin contusion, which officially ends his season.

With Lee’s injury, only Christian Koss and Landen Roupp remain from the Opening Day roster. Pretty wild!

To make space on the 40-man roster for Davidson, the Giants designated reliever Philip Abner for assignment.

The Athletics, currently 61-95, are just a week away from completing their fifth consecutive season with a losing record, but their biggest problem currently is addressing the vacancy at general manager.

The A's have been searching for a permanent replacement in the front office for over a month since parting ways with longtime general manager David Forst, who spent 27 seasons with the franchise, on Aug. 7.

The team would like to fulfill the vacancy before the season ends next week.

Assistant general manager Dan Feinstein was put in place in the interim while the search prolongs. It's not going to happen in the blink of an eye, but it is reflective of the state of the team overall - there are major holes that need to be filled.

"David has been an integral part of the A's and our success for nearly three decades," team owner John Fisher said in a statement. "His leadership, dedication, and commitment to this team have helped shape our baseball operations department and position us for the future. We are grateful for everything David has done for our organization."

Welcome to the last off day of the 2026 regular season.

I very much enjoyed putting a little Braves logo emoji status at work today as a nod to yesterday’s division-clinching win. Any similar displays? Let’s hear ‘em.

Tonight’s Action

With the NL East champs resting after sweeping and celebrating, there’s only three other games you can tune into tonight if you’re craving baseball. It is mostly eliminated teams playing each other for some exercise and for a strong regular season finish: Nationals at Tigers and Twins at Giants. But storms are derailing an important matchup for the AL wild card picture: the Orioles and Blue Jays are 5 and 3 games back of the last WC spot, respectively. But they’re set to start shortly at Camden Yards.

ICYMI

Some good reads and fun Feed prompts for your evening, courtesy of the BP staff, including Demetrius with some optimism on how this resilient team could fare in the weeks to come (Braves’ division-clinching resiliency could pay off in Postseason), Ivan’s deep numbers-based dive on a truly bizarre team and season (This is the weirdest Braves team I’ve seen), and the imminent return of Robert Suarez per AA.

Six games left! This year has flown by. The floor is yours for reminiscing, predictions, questions, and anything else on your mind. I leave you with one of the best videos coming out of yesterday’s clubhouse shenanigans (outside of everything Brent Suter).

I don’t know about you, but I already miss baseball even though there are still two series to go. For the St. Louis Cardinals, those final 6 games of the 2026 campaign will be completed on the road with the first stop being in Pittsburgh starting Tuesday night. There’s little at stake other than pride, but there are some individual player achievements that are possible for St. Louis.

Scheduled Starting Pitchers

Tuesday night – Andre Pallante (RHP 12-7, 3.70 ERA, 104 SO) vs Jared Jones (RHP 4-6, 4.17 ERA, 109 SO)

Wednesday night – Matthew Liberatore (LHP 5-14, 5.36 ERA, 148 SO) vs TBD

Thursday – Kyle Leahy (RHP 10-5, 3.65 ERA, 129 SO) vs Paul Skenes (RHP 10-11, 3.91 ERA, 192 SO)

Pittsburgh Pirates Jared Jones has won 2 of his last 3 starts, but his most recent outing on September 16 was a no-decision against the Brewers as he threw 5 innings allowing 7 hits and 3 earned runs. Paul Skenes has only won 1 of his last 3 starts and his most recent was not memorable as he allowed 6 hits and 5 earned runs on September 18 as he threw 6 innings and got no decision.

Players to Watch According to MLB.com

Second baseman Brandon Lowe leads the Pirates with 33 home runs and 93 RBI’s.

Centerfielder Oneil Cruz has 20 homers and 67 RBI’s with a .280 batting average.

First baseman Ryan O’Hearn has 18 homers, 73 RBI’s and a .264 average.

Left fielder Bryan Reynolds has 17 home runs, 71 RBI’s and a .262 average.

Right fielder Esmerlyn Valdez has 17 homers, 47 RBI’s and a .247 average.

It’s not breaking news that the Pittsburgh Pirates and St. Louis Cardinals will not be bothered with playoff baseball in October, but there are individual achievements still within reach. As of this writing, Alec Burleson leads the National League in RBI’s with 111, but Sal Stewart is right on his heels with 110. Pete Crow-Armstrong trails both of them with 105. Jordan Walker has been stuck at 28 home runs and hasn’t launched a long ball since September 1 against the Dodgers. I would love to see him get a couple more to make the 30 home run plateau, but even more would like to see him return to the swing decisions of early 2026 Jordan Walker and not 2025 Jordan Walker. JJ Wetherholt has 17 home runs, but Pittsburgh is his hometown area and he loves hitting at PNC Park. It’s not crazy to think he could reach the 20 home run mark before this season is over next weekend.

As we enter the final 6 games of the season, the St. Louis Cardinals are 3 games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates and have the same record as the Miami Marlins. The Washington Nationals only trail St. Louis by 3 games. The Cardinals need to win 5 of the final 6 games to end the season with a .500 record. That seems unlikely with a weekend trip to Milwaukee waiting for the Cardinals, but dominating the Pittsburgh Pirates in their own park would at least give them a fighting chance. We’ll see how that goes starting Tuesday night.

It's a new dawn for the Tampa Bay Rays.

On Monday, Sept. 21, the Rays revealed new road uniforms that bridge the past with the present.

The Rays are bringing back their road grays after shelving them in 2022 and are putting "Tampa Bay" and the ray logo back on the front of a primary jersey for the first time since 2007. That year was when the franchise rebranded and dropped "Devil" from their team name. There's a blue to yellow ombré that brings a sunshine feel to the uniform and pays further tribute to their history.

Team representatives said they want to be intentional about representing the Florida city they've called home since joining the MLB in 1998. The Rays came under new ownership last summer when a group led by Patrick Zalupski bought the team from Stuart Sternberg for a reported $1.7 billion. There has been an emphasis on commitment to Tampa Bay, including plans for a new stadium in the city.

"These uniforms celebrate our long-term commitment to Tampa Bay," Ken Babby, Rays Chief Executive Officer, said in a statement. "As our team travels the country, we do so with tremendous admiration for our home. Tampa Bay is always in our hearts and that's why we will wear it across our chest."

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Elsewhere in the league, the Athletics received criticism for leaving Oakland and are in the process of moving to Las Vegas.

In March, the Rays asked fans for input on what they hope for in new uniforms and they listened to the feedback.

"We are particularly proud that our fans helped choose this design, and we love the fact they want the baseball world to see 'Tampa Bay' when we play on the road," Babby continued.

The road grays replace the Rays' current road uniforms, which are a navy jersey with "Rays" on the front.

Besides on the jerseys, the ombré, which harkens back to the Devil Rays days, also appears on "TB," which originated in 1998, on the team's hats and batting helmets. The original black backdrop is swapped for the team's current navy base.

The Rays will debut the uniform on Tuesday, Sept. 22 during the second game of a double header against the New York Yankees.

The news comes weeks after Tampa Bay became the first team in the MLB to clinch a playoff spot this year. They did so with a walk-off home run from Junior Caminero to beat the Houston Astros. The Rays currently lead the American League with a 95-60 record.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Tampa Bay Rays bring back city name, gray jerseys for road uniforms

Shohei Ohtani’s swing is among the most dangerous in baseball. The Los Angeles Dodgers will have only five games to get it ready for the playoffs, barring any setbacks.

There have been many of them for Ohtani, who’s missed the past 12 games while dealing with issues to his left knee and right biceps. He’s expected to be back in the Dodgers' lineup in the team's upcoming series against the San Diego Padres. There will be only five games left in the regular season.

Because of Ohtani’s lingering knee issues, the Dodgers have shut him down from pitching. But they’d still like him to bat – and a swing that has generated a team-leading 30 home runs this season and 263 over the last six seasons.

In his last 24 games before going on the injured reserve list, however, Ohtani hit .198 (19-for-96) with 34 strikeouts.

It raises a premature, although not outrageous, question involving the four-time MVP: At some point, in some cases, might the Dodgers be better off with Ohtani out of the lineup?