Seemed like even Munetaka Murakami’s bobblehead parked one today. | Chicago White Sox
When Jeremy Peña led off the game with a homer off Erick Fedde, it seemed to portend a rough day for the White Sox. It portended wrong.
It only took two Sox batters to turn things around. Sam Antonacci led off the bottom of the first with a walk, and then Munetaka Murakami started his celebration of his own bobblehead day.
Peña tied the game at two with another solo shot in the third, so Murakami struck back by grounding in a run in the bottom of that inning to make it 3-2. Then in the fourth, Braden Montgomery decided to at least stall of the next Astro dinger for an inning.
Still, Taylor Trammell did the solo-shot bit for Houston in the fifth to tie it again in the fifth and it looked like the Astros would have another big sixth inning as they’d had the first two games of the series, but they left the bases loaded and were apparently so discouraged by the failure they gave up on offense for the rest of the day.
Not so the White Sox, who hadn’t hit a homer in a week and decided to make up for that all in one day. Miguel Vargas went deep in the bottom of the sixth to make it 5-3, and then it was time to sit back and have fun.
Chase Meidroth parked one to lead off the seventh, and the bobblehead man drove in two more runs with a single:
Then Andrew Benintendi decided there might as well be a cheap run, too, and blooped a 68 mph RBI to make it 9-3, White Sox.
Not enough long ball? Of course not. Even .171 hitter Junior Perez, a defensive replacement, got in on the action with a two-run shot. And that gave one more at-bat to the man of the hour … and day … and he showed his appreciation.
Make that six RBIs on the day for the bobblehead, and five long balls for the Sox — a season high.
The final score was 12-3, running Chicago’s record to 55-49 with the Yankees heading to town tomorrow and putting Gerrit Cole on the mound for the opener of a four-game series. With the Guardians losing to the Rays (understandable) for their fifth loss in a row and the Tigers falling to the Royals again (huh?), the lead in the AL Central is now 2 1/2 over Cleveland, 3 1/2 over Minnesota, and six over Detroit.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - JULY 26: Jacob Misiorowski #32 of the Milwaukee Brewers reacts after striking out the side in the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies at American Family Field on July 26, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by John Fisher/Getty Images) | Getty Images
When Jacob Misiorowski is feeling right, there is no better pitcher in baseball. Misiorowski was feeling right on Sunday afternoon against the Colorado Rockies and he absolutely blew them away.
Misiorowski hit 104 MPH four times in the first inning en route to striking out the side. Then he struck out the side again in the 2nd inning, and then struck out Willi Castro to start the 3rd. That meant seven consecutive strikeouts to start the game for Misiorowski, which set a new franchise record that was previously held by Quinn Priester with six.
Then Misiorowski allowed contact for once, with Troy Johnston flying out to center. Misiorowski promptly responded by striking out the next five batters after that. He was at 12 strikeouts across 13 batters.
“That’s pretty impressive. Yeah, there’s nothing more impressive than that.” Pat Murphy said.
However, Cole Carrigg spoiled the fun, lifting a 2-2 fastball up in the zone at 102 MPH over the left field wall for a solo home run to break up the perfect game, no-hitter, and shutout. A hit-by-pitch of Willi Castro gave the Rockies another baserunner, but Misiorowski induced a grounder from Troy Johnston to end a 30 pitch fifth inning.
That inning would be Misiorowski’s last as the Brewers continue to play it cautiously building him back up from his two week layoff in and around the All Star Break. He finished with 83 pitches and could’ve gone out for the 6th, but Pat Murphy ultimately decided to turn this game over to the bullpen.
Misiorowski threw 66 fastballs, all of them at 100+ MPH. He set a new record for most 103+ MPH pitches in a game with 33 of them. The previous record was 12. He also threw seven pitches at 104+ MPH.
Meanwhile, the Brewers offense was peppering the Rockies pitching staff. The Crew put up three runs in the first inning with a double from Jackson Chourio, a single from Brice Turang, and a double from William Contreras.
That was all the Brewers could scratch across until the 6th inning, when they sent 10 men to the plate. The inning started with an Andrew Vaughn solo home run, his fourth of the year. Jake Bauers and Gary Sanchez drew back-to-back walks, then the extended rookies Luis Lara and Cooper Pratt slugged back-to-back doubles.
“They’re going to be very consistent, good baseball players. I think that the reason the organization signed them long-term is they sensed in them that this is how they play and they’ve been really steady” Pat Murphy said.
Third Base Joey Ortiz made it three straight doubles continue to extend the lead. It was also Ortiz’s second extra-base hit of the day as he continues his torrid stretch.
The Brewers scored five runs in the 6th and then piled on a few more in the 7th with four straight hits. A Bauers single, Sanchez and Lara doubles, then a Pratt single.
They would tack on another in the 8th off position player pitching Brett Sullivan.
Milwaukee tallied nine doubles in this game, tying a franchise record with the sixth instance of it. The last time the Crew hit nine doubles in a game was July 6, 2008 against the Pirates.
The Brewers used five relievers out of their bullpen to cover the final four innings. Chad Patrick couldn’t finish the 6th, but Aaron Ashby only took one pitch to do so. Grant Anderson gave up a solo home run to Willi Castro in the 7th. Then Craig Yoho had a 1-2-3 eighth inning and Bryse Wilson secured the 9th.
Next up for the Brewers will be a trip out to the West Coast against the San Francisco Giants and Los Angeles Angels.
Apr 21, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Texas Rangers relief pitcher Cole Winn (60) walks off the field during the game between the Rangers and the Pirates at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
The Texas Rangers scored four runs but the Seattle Mariners scored six runs.
In the span of a couple of pitches, a rather large swing in the fates of these two teams perhaps transpired and not in a way that favored the Rangers.
Texas had already won the first two games of this series — so that’s good! — but leading 3-1 in the seventh with a chance to further bury the Mariners went wasted when the Rangers turned to leverage grim reaper Cole Winn who promptly allowed a three-run home run and then a solo shot on back-to-back pitches.
While the three-run bomb off the bat of Dominic Canzone was deflating, it turns out the solo homer by Randy Arozarena that immediately followed was nearly as critical as Ezequiel Duran hit a solo home run in the eighth but that was Texas’ only baserunner after the Winn disaster in the seventh. And then the M’s reclaimed their insurance run in the top of the ninth.
Texas can still win the series tomorrow but today can be marked down as a massive wasted opportunity with potential considerable division implications.
Player of the Game: Joc Pederson legged out a hustle double and scored the game’s first run in the first inning in a time when things were much more jolly in Rangers Land.
Up Next: To win the series and right today’s wrong, the Rangers will need to beat George Kirby, the human Rangers slayer. Meanwhile, Texas will counter with RHP Kumar Rocker. Good luck.
The Monday afternoon finale from The Shed is again scheduled for 1:35 pm CDT and will be carried on the Rangers Sports Network.
Jul 26, 2026; Arlington, Texas, USA; Seattle Mariners left fielder Randy Arozarena (56) celebrates in the dugout after his solo home run against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Globe Life Field. Mandatory Credit: Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images | Jim Cowsert-Imagn Images
Mariners 6, Rangers 4
14th pick of the 2018 Draft: Logan Gilbert, -0,12 WPA 15th pick of the 2018 Draft: Cole Winn, -0.55 WPA
Mighty bad: J.P. Crawford, -0.16 WPA Molto bene: Dominic Canzone, +0.60 WPA
Jul 26, 2026; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; Colorado Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer makes a pitching change in the sixth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Benny Sieu-Imagn Images | Benny Sieu-Imagn Images
The Colorado Rockies played a game of two acts today — both dominated by the Milwaukee Brewers. They were barricaded early by Jacob ‘Les Mis’ Misiorowski, but were eventually brought down by a barrage of offense in the late innings.
They mustered five hits — including two solo homers — but also struck out 15 times. Kyle Freeland was saddled with his 100th loss in his 250th start after pitching 5.1 innings and allowing five runs on six hits with one walk and two strikeouts.
Misiorowski looked down upon the Rockies for almost his entire outing, as expected. He came out firing, striking out the first seven Rockies he saw. That not only set a Brewers franchise record for most consecutive strikeouts to start a game, but also set a Rockies record for most consecutive strikeouts to start a game.
Troy Johnston put the ball in play in the third inning, but ‘Les Mis’ kept racking up the strikeouts — setting another record of becoming the first pitcher since at least 1920 to strike out 12 of his first 13 hitters in the game. He threw 66 fastballs of his 83 pitches, and every single one was over 100 mph.
“That’s like a one-of-one fastball,” manager Warren Schaeffer said postgame, “103 with all that extension. It’s hard to react to that and he just throws it all the time. To me, it’s a one-of-one pitch. It’s elite. There’s nothing really much else to say.”
It was not a great way to kick things off. But then birthday boy Kyle Karros hit a liner to right to break the streak, setting the table for his alliterative teammate in the next at-bat.
Despite the struggles of the rest of the team, Cole Carrigg broke through the barricade (perfect game) in progress by sending a 101.9-mph fastball 361 feet over the opposite field wall to make the score 3-1.
According to Sarah Langs, that was the fastest pitch a Rockies player has homered off of under pitch tracking (2008). Hilariously, the ball only had an exit velocity of 98.2 mph.
Not to be outdone, Willi Castro said “Drink With Me” and added his own solo shot in the seventh to bring the Rockies within six. (More on how they got there later.)
The Rockies got a few more baserunners in the sixth with back-to-back singles by Mickey Moniak and Hunter Goodman. Unfortunately, though, they were unable to bring either one home and the score remained 3-1.
TJ Rumfield singled in the ninth to record the Rockies’ fifth hit, but he was also stranded.
The Brewers offense got started early, scoring three runs in the first. Jackson Chourio got things going with a leadoff double, and then was brought home on a soft bunt ground ball back to Freeland, which Freeland fielded poorly, making an error that allowed Chourio to score. Andrew Vaughn flied out to right, but then William Contreras doubled to bring Brice Turang to third. A wild pitch allowed Turang to score, and Jake Bauers grounded out to first to score Contreras. Gary Sánchez grounded out to third to end the inning, but the Brewers had a 3-0 lead after just one inning.
But they cooled off in the middle innings, as Freeland only allowed two hits after that tough first inning.
“After the first inning, he settled in,” Schaeffer said. “That’s a really good hitting team and he battled through that lineup and was efficient. He took the ball with 72 pitches into the sixth inning and he gave us all he had. He gave us a chance to win, for sure, especially against Mis. He kept the score low and gave us a shot.”
“I obviously didn’t set the tone the way I wanted to,” Freeland said after the game. “Giving up three in the first is not a good way to start the day, and putting your offense behind the ball and them having to fight back immediately. Not giving them any sort of momentum was not good. But innings 2-5 were good. I was able to settle in and then the sixth inning just unraveled on us completely.”
Like Javert, the Brewers came back with a vengeance in the later sixth inning. Vaughn homered right out of the gate to make the score 4-1. Then, Contreras struck out swinging but Bauers walked after a failed challenge by Freeland. Freeland was then lifted in favor of Jimmy Herget, and Bauers stole second. Sánchez then walked, and Luis Lara doubled to score Bauers. Cooper Pratt said “Drink With Me” and doubled to score two more Brewers. Joey Ortiz also doubled, but then Chourio grounded out on a swinging bunt to score Pratt. Turang walked, but then Vaughn struck out to end the inning.
For those keeping score at home, the inning started with a score of 3-1 and ended with a score of 8-1.
Things didn’t get better in the seventh with Victor Vodnik on the hill, as four-straight hits — a single by Bauers, doubles by Sánchez and Lara, and a single by Pratt — scored two more runs. Luckily, Ortiz grounded into a 6-4-3 double play to end the inning, but the damage was done.
The Brewers recorded 14 hits in the game, and nine were doubles. That tied another franchise record, as well.
The Rockies have an off day tomorrow as they head west to San Diego for a quick two-game set against the Padres. It’ll be a battle of the Michaels, as Michael Lorenzen will face Padres’ right-hander Michael King.
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 26: CJ Abrams #5 of the Washington Nationals begins to run after making a home run trot as crew chief Jordan Baker #71 signals no home run in the third inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Nationals Park on July 26, 2026 in Washington, DC. The call was challenged by Washington and overturned to be ruled a home run. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It was not pretty in the 9th inning, but the Nats held on to secure a much needed 10-7 win over the Diamondbacks. With the win the Nats are only a game out of the third Wild Card spot with the trade deadline on the horizon. The offense did not skip a beat without Curtis Mead. Now it is time for Paul Toboni to go and get some bullpen reinforcements.
From the outset, this game just felt like a shootout. Miles Mikolas and Kohl Drake were not fooling anyone on the mound. Even the outs they were getting were loud contact. Even though things did not fully set ablaze early on, it was still 3-2 after four innings.
After the D-Backs added another run in the 5th, the Nats exploded in the bottom of the inning. After Nasim Nunez walked to start the inning, the Snakes let Kohl Drake face James Wood for a third time. That proved to be an unwise decision, with the Nats star outfielder punishing a hanging curveball for his first homer of the second half, and 29th of the season.
Later in the game Wood hit another home run, that turned out to be a key piece of insurance. After a slow start to the second half, Wood showed up in a massive way in this big game. He now has 30 home runs for a second straight season. Wood joins Adam Dunn as the second Nat to do that, which honestly surprised me when I saw the stat.
However, Wood was not the only Nats star to go deep that inning. Wood’s partner in crime, CJ Abrams had a huge game of his own. After homering in the third, Abrams did it again in the 5th inning, crushing a ball out the yard for his 27th long ball of the season. He is having the best month of his career in July.
CJ Abrams is the hottest hitter on the planet. Post-All-Star break, Abrams leads MLB in OPS (1.632), HR (7) and RBIs (15). He has more homers by himself in the second half than the Blue Jays, Orioles, Mariners, Twins, White Sox, Cardinals and Angels. pic.twitter.com/cv0pOWJZIJ
There have been plenty of Abrams trade rumors lately, but this stretch is showing that Abrams is just too good to trade. Unlike the Juan Soto situation, the team has a good shot of being competitive in the near future. This team can make a run with Abrams on the team. Also, they need to push as hard as they can for an extension this offseason. CJ Abrams is part of this team’s solution.
Even after the Mead trade, this offense showed just how potent they can be this afternoon. They just tore through the D-Backs pitching staff this afternoon. Having success against a rookie starter in Drake was not overly surprising, but they put a beating on the Snakes solid bullpen as well.
Jonathan Loaisiga and Brandyn Garcia are both high velo arms who are having great seasons. That did not phase the Nats though. They roughed up both of those guys on the way to yet another win.
However, that win did not come easily in the 9th inning. Handed a 10-5 lead, Matt Krook came out and walked three straight hitters before being yanked. That is just something you cannot do as a major league pitcher. It also showcased the glaring hole on the Nats roster. Paul Toboni owes it to this clubhouse to bring in some bullpen help at the deadline. This group has just done too much to be let down like this. They did not blow it today, but we have seen that sort of thing happen too many times.
Nats take down the DBacks and snag a massive series win in the NL Wild Card hunt, but that bullpen monster hasn’t gone anywhere
It seems like Toboni is trying to thread the needle between buying and selling. He said this morning that he wanted to give this team a shot. If he is serious about that, he needs to bring multiple bullpen arms through the door. This is a good team with one flaw that is fatal, at least as it stands right now.
Even though the bullpen almost ruined the fun, Clayton Beeter eventually put out the fire to give the Nats the win. With this curly W, the Nats are right in the middle of the playoff race. They face a Blue Jays team whose season has not gone according to plan after this. That gives them another opportunity to collect some wins in the lead up to the deadline.
One last piece of fun from today was the performance of Brady House. The 23 year old is back in the show after the Mead trade. His impact was loud in his return to DC. House hit two doubles in this contest. He looked comfortable at the plate, especially in his at bats against lefties. House has plenty of room to grow, but man can he mash lefties.
Welcome back to the show, Brady House.
He’s crushed three balls and doubled two times. This ball was laced 109 MPH off the bat. His dominance vs LHPs from before he got sent down has carried over today. pic.twitter.com/nBHyMtf7eJ
Overall, this was an excellent series win. This is a series they had to win to truly remain in the mix, and they did it. Before the deadline, I want at least two bullpen arms and maybe a starter as well. The offense is an absolute buzzsaw, and has me dreaming really big if this team can manage to find even average pitching.
Jul 26, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Cincinnati Reds shortstop Elly de la Cruz (44) rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run against the St. Louis Cardinals in the third inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Joe Puetz-Imagn Images | Joe Puetz-Imagn Images
With heat indexes in triple digits, the St. Louis Cardinals wrapped up their weekend series against the Cincinnati Reds Sunday. Kyle Leahy was a trooper and not only gave the Cardinals a quality start, but also set a career-high for strikeouts. However, the St. Louis Cardinals bullpen would once again become an issue late.
The St. Louis Cardinal s were first to score in a back-and-forth affair Sunday afternoon. In the bottom of the 2nd inning, Alec Burleson led off with a double. Masyn Winn singled which gave the Cardinals runners at first and third with no outs. José Fermín gave the Cardinals a 1-0 lead with a sacrifice fly to left. Unfortunately, that’s the only run the Cardinals would get in the 2nd inning as Nelson Velázquez lined out to center and Pedro Pagés fouled out to the catcher.
The St. Louis lead wouldn’t last long as Elly De La Cruz caught up with an 88 mph Kyle Leahy slider and launched it 410 feet for a homer tying the game at 1-1 in the top of the 3rd inning.
The Cardinals would seize the lead again in the bottom of the 3rd inning when Iván Herrera met an 81 mph sweeper and gave it a 411 foot ride giving St. Louis a 2-1 lead.
The Cincinnati Reds matched the Cardinals again in the top of the 5th inning when Ke’Bryan Hayes hit a 91 mph four-seam fastball just far enough for a game-tying 387-foot home run locking the game at 2-2. That would be the last damage that Kyle Leahy would allow as he completed 6 strong innings striking out a career-high 9 batter while allowing just 6 hits and walking only 1.
With the game tied 2-2, the St. Louis bullpen entered the equation. Luis Gastelum did a solid job of keeping the Reds quiet in the top of the 7th inning. The Cardinals would threaten (sort of) in the bottom of the 7th inning when Lars Nootbaar would reach with a leadoff walk. Blaze Jordan flied out to deep center for the first out followed by Bryan Torres grounding out which moved Nootbaar into scoring position at second, but JJ Wetherholt was unable to make anything other than a groundout to first happen which ended the Cardinals scoring opportunity.
Ryne Stanek was the next St. Louis bullpen representative in the top of the 8th inning. He set the Reds down 1-2-3 which was a pleasant development. In the bottom of the 8th inning, the Cardinals would try to mount a two-out rally which started when Alec Burleson ripped a ball down the right field line which glanced off of Nathaniel Lowe’s glove. Masyn Winn moved Burleson into scoring position when he singled up the middle. That left the Cardinals 8th inning fate in the hands of José Fermín. He ended up reaching base to load the bases when the Cardinals successfully challenged catcher’s interference. Unfortunately, Lars Nootbaar flied out to left field to end the bottom of the 8th inning. The Cardinals RISP woes continue.
George Soriano entered the game in the top of the 9th inning as the TV dudes said Riley O’Brien was under the weather. All he needed to do to give St. Louis a walk-off opportunity was to keep the Reds off the board and he was successful as he only allowed an infield single to Marte.
Would the St. Louis Cardinals offense rise up and shock the world by scoring a run for a walk-off winner? Blaze Jordan weakly grounded out to first to lead off the bottom of the 9th inning off of Reds reliever Brock Burkes who made odd barking sounds after each pitch which was distracting. Jimmy Crooks was the next bat with an opportunity for hero status. He unfortunately struck out, but the Cardinals still had JJ Wetherholt with a chance to end the game in a great way. He did the opposite with a strikeout sending the game to extra innings.
The top of the 10th inning was Matt Svanson’s responsibility for the Cardinals. Tyler Stephenson was the Reds free runner at second base. It only took 2 pitches before he was standing at third as Jimmy Crooks allowed a passed ball to the backstop which the official scorer may have called a wild pitch, but this one’s on Crooks. He easily scored on a single by Sal Stewart to right field giving the Reds a 3-2 lead. Elly De La Cruz followed that with a single of his own giving Cincinnati runners at first and second with nobody out. Arroyo then laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt moving runners up to second and third with just one out. Manager Oli Marmol then turned to Justin Bruihl for a lefty-on-lefty matchup against JJ Bleday. Could Bruihl be a hero and hold the Reds to just one extra innings run? Spoiler Alert: NOPE. He struck out Bleday for the second out which was crucial. The Cardinals then intentionally walked Suarez to load the bases setting up a force at any base. That brought up Lowe who already had two hits on the day. He sadly added another single to that effort which scored two more Reds giving Cincinnati a 5-2 10th inning lead.
We had heard about the bad reputation of the Reds bullpen. Could the Cardinals do anything against them? Well, Jordan Walker nearly injured himself tripping over first base on a ground out with free runner JJ Wetherholt at second base. Iván Herrera did manage a single into left moving JJ over to third which brought up Alec Burleson as the potential tying run. He looped a ball over short for a single scoring Wetherholt and bringing up the potential winning run to the plate in the form of Masyn Winn. Nathan Church smartly took Burleson’s place at first as the tying run pinch-runner. Masyn sadly struck out which brought up José Fermín as the Cardinals final hope with two outs. He flew out to left to end the game and give the Reds the series victory. BUMMER.
The St. Louis Cardinals begin a crucial 4-game series versus their arch rivals the Chicago Cubs at Busch Stadium Monday night. According to MLB.com, the Cubs will start LHP David Peterson. The Cardinals starter is to be determined. First pitch set for 6:45pm Monday night at Busch Stadium with the TV broadcast available through Cardinals.tv.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JULY 26: Ozzie Albies #1 of the Atlanta Braves forces out Jackson Holliday #7 of the Baltimore Orioles at second base to start a double play in the second inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on July 26, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Orioles tied the game in the 9th, had a golden opportunity to win the game in the 10th, but ultimately fell to the Braves 3-2 in 11 innings.
Things truly felt like they lived and died on the outcome of a pivotal 10th inning. After Tyler Wells worked out of a two-on, nobody-out jam in the top of the 10th, Baltimore went to the bottom of the inning looking to walk off the Braves for the second game in a row.
With Manfred Man Sam Huff on second, Dylan Beavers started the inning with a walk that saw Huff move to third on a wild pitch. Atlanta then chose to walk Pete Alonso to load the bases for Gunnar Henderson. The Orioles’ star SS only needed a fly ball to win the game, but instead lined into a double play at first. That put everything on Taylor Ward’s shoulders, but he could only pop up the ball behind first to send things to the 11th.
In the 11th, Austin Riley led off the top of the inning with a double to left that scored Atlanta’s Manfred Man Jorge Mateo. With the Braves up 3-2 in the bottom of the 11th, Coby Mayo opened the inning with a strikeout and Tyler O’Neill followed up with a groundout. Leody Taveras walked to keep the game alive and Atlanta chose to intentionally walk Jackson Holliday to face Huff. The O’s third-string catcher stung a ball to third, but Riley easily converted it into the final out to sink the O’s.
Baltimore came into the 9th down 2-1, looking to get the best of Braves’ All-Star closer Raisel Iglesias. The normally pinpoint Iglesias quickly fell behind 3-0 against Christian Encarnacion-Strand, fought back to 3-2, but ultimately walked the Orioles’ leadoff hitter. Tyler O’Neill then came to the plate representing the winning run, got ahead 2-0, but ended up striking out on a changeup low and in.
Then things really got crazy. With Coby Mayo pinch-running for CES, Leody Taveras grounded a would-be double play ball to Ozzie Albies at second. Instead, Albies did his best Bill Buckner impression, allowing the grounder to go through his legs and Mayo to go third with one out. Albies would somewhat redeem himself against Jackson Holliday, as the Orioles 2B sent a sharp grounder to his Braves counterpart that Albies snagged and fired to first for the second out.
The sharp defensive play possibly prevented the winning run in Taveras from scoring, but allowed Mayo to come home and tie the game at two. Jeremiah Jackson then had a chance for the O’s second 9th-inning walkoff in a row, but instead grounded out to send the game to extras.
The rally in the 9th was set up by a majestic home run from Pete Alonso in the 8th. With the O’s down 2-0 and one out, lefty reliever Dylan Lee hung a slider to Alonso, who blasted it 419 feet into the left field bleachers for his 22nd homer of the season. After the offense had struggled to deliver all game, the Alonso blast breathed belief back into Camden Yards.
The Orioles found themselves in that early hole thanks to a less-than-sharp Shane Baz and a suspect defensive performance behind their starter. Baz came into Sunday’s outing having not issued a walk in two consecutive starts, but that same level of command was absent against the Braves. Despite a leadoff single by Drake Baldin, the right-hander was able to work a scoreless first after Ozzie Albies lined into an unassisted double play at first and Matt Olson struck out on a 3-2 knuckle curve.
The Orioles’ defense let their starter down in the 2nd as the Braves got on the board first. Clean-up hitter Michael Harris II led off the inning with a single to center that skipped off the heel of Colton Cowser’s glove, allowing the Braves’ CF to move to second. Mauricio Dubón then lifted a fly out to center that allowed Harris to move to third with one out. With the Orioles’ infield drawn in, Dominic Smith slashed a single past Christian Encarnacion-Strand at the hot corner, bringing home Harris and giving Atlanta a 1-0 lead.
Baz would avoid any further damage in the 2nd after Austin Riley grounded into a double play, but you could tell early on that the 27-year-old wasn’t operating at the peak of his powers. The right-hander would work around another Baldwin single to post a scoreless 3rd, but through three innings he’d thrown 51 pitches and gone to a full count on five of the first 11 batters he faced.
That lack of command came back to bite Baltimore and Baz in the 4th. Olson led off the inning with a double off the right-field scoreboard after a Baz knuckle curve caught a little too much of the plate. Harris then won a seven-pitch battle with a productive groundout to first to move Olson to third. Dubón almost brought home Atlanta’s second run on a grounder to short, but Gunnar Henderson looked the runner back before firing to first for the second out.
That brought up Smith, who delivered yet again. The Braves DH lifted a fly ball to shallow left that, off the bat, looked very catchable. However, a false first step from Dylan Beavers forced him to attempt a sliding catch and the sinking fly ball bounced just under his glove for an RBI single. Baz would end the frame with a walk of Riley and a punch out of Mike Yastrzemski to leave the deficit at two runs.
After a 32-pitch 4th inning, Baz came back out for the 5th, sitting at 83 pitches. He’d get a quick ground out from Jim Jarvis, but after Baldwin reached again via walk, Craig Albernaz decided Baz’s afternoon was done. With a final line of 4.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R (1 ER), 2 BB and 2 Ks, it was the first start of the 27-year-old’s time with the Orioles where he failed to complete at least 4.2 innings.
Early in the game, the Orioles consistently failed to capitalize on the few scoring opportunities they had against starter Reynaldo López and the Braves bullpen. In the first, Pete Alonso reached on a worm-burning single through the right side and moved to third on a bloop two-out single by Taylor Ward. That brought up the scorching-hot Encarnacion-Strand, who only managed to lift a weak fly ball to right to strand both runners.
An inning later, No. 9 hitter Chadwick Tromp came up with one out, Colton Cowser at second and Jackson Holliday at first. However, instead of keeping the rally going, Tromp rolled a ball to short for a rally-killing 6-4-3 double play.
Baltimore would have another opportunity to put runs on the board in the 4th, but again it went by the wayside. Taylor Ward led off the inning with a well-placed single to center for his second hit of the afternoon. CES and Cowser couldn’t do anything to advance the leadoff base runner, with Encarnacion-Strand again flying out to right and Cowser going down on strikes. Leody Taveras almost ended the inning with a strikeout, but strike three skipped past Baldwin and allowed Taveras to reach. Holliday immediately wasted the opportunity, though, popping to left on a first-pitch curveball.
Until the 9th inning rally, the only unit that could truly hold their heads high was the Orioles bullpen. Left-hander Josh Walker relieved Baz in the fifth against Albies and proceeded to shut down the Braves’ 2 through 7 hitters to keep the game within reach.
Anthony Nunez took over in the 7th and, despite issuing two walks, picked up two massive strikeouts to post another scoreless inning. Albert Suárez entered in the top of the 8th for his first appearance since July 8th. In both the 8th and 9th, Suárez worked around a one-out walk to keep the Braves at bay and set the stage for the Orioles’ comeback.
BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - JULY 26: Matt Olson #28 of the Atlanta Braves celebrates with Austin Riley #27 after scoring in the fourth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on July 26, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In a game where (according to FanGraphs) the Atlanta Braves had a 7.4 percent chance of winning in the bottom of the tenth inning, Atlanta somehow ended up victorious after Austin Riley’s go-ahead RBI double in the 11th inning held up and brought us to the final score of 3-2.
Early on, this one was a pitchers’ duel, where runs were very difficult to come by and it was tough sledding for the hitters on both sides while the starters were out there. Fortunately, the Braves were able to scratch a couple of runs across the plate in the first few innings of this one while Reynaldo López and the defense were busy putting in work to keep Baltimore quiet.
The first run scored in this game was another reminder of just how important defense is in big league baseball and this time, it was the Braves who were the beneficiaries of a defensive gaffe. Michael Harirs II led off the second with a single that ended up turning into a trip to second base after Colton Cowser booted the ball while fielding the ball in the outfield. Mauricio Dubón moved Harris over to third with a flyout and then Dominic Smith shot one past Christian Encarnacion-Strand at third base for an RBI single that plated the first run of the game for Atlanta.
The lead stuck in the second inning after Reynaldo López was able to escape a mini-jam in the second inning by getting an inning-ending double play. Jim Jarvis fielded the grounder and helped to turn the double play, which was really nice to see as Walt Weiss’s faith in his rookie shortstop paid off with this particular defensive play.
Once the fourth inning rolled around, it was still 1-0 Braves and fortunately, they were able to add a tiny bit of breathing room during this frame. Matt Olson led off the fourth with a double and while the next two batters went down in order, Dominic Smith was once again in line to make a big moment happen. This time, Smith hit a shallow liner to left that Dylan Beavers nearly made a diving catch on. Beavers trapped it instead of making the catch and Olson was able to saunter home from third base to make it a 2-0 game.
For Reynaldo López, the two RBI singles from Dominic Smith ended up being plenty of run support as López was able to keep Baltimore quiet while he was out there. López finished his day with 5.2 innings pitched and just five hits and one walk allowed with six strikeouts as well. Most importantly, López didn’t give up any runs while he was out there as he kept the recently-potent Orioles lineup guessing and chasing instead of doing any type of real damage while he was out there. This was certainly a bounce-back effort for Reynaldo López following two rough starts in his most recent outings.
Once it was turned over to the bullpen, Dylan Dodd was able to get four outs by dusting off the bottom of the sixth inning and covering the seventh inning without incident. Dylan Lee got the ball for the eighth inning and there was an incident that he had to deal with, as he hung a slider to Pete Alonso and all anybody could do about that was watch it fly as Alonso crushed it into the seats in left field for a solo shot that made it a 2-1 game. Fortunately, that was the only blemish for Lee as he retired the next two batters in order and the Braves left the eighth inning with the one-run lead intact.
The Braves were unable to add on in their half of the ninth inning, so that meant that it was once again on Raisel Iglesias to finish off a game. This time he had zero room for error with the one-run lead and unfortunately, we ended up getting one of those Iglesias outings where the leadoff runner gets on and trouble awaits. Iggy walked CES to get the inning started and could’ve had at least another out after he got Leody Taveras to hit a grounder directly to Ozzie Albies. Somehow, Ozzie let the ball go right through his legs and that made it runners on the corners instead of two out.
Jackson Holliday then picked up a productive out (thanks to an impressive play from Ozzie, go figure) to plate the pinch-running Coby Mayo to tie the game at two runs apiece. While Iglesias was able to avoid any further trouble, it was certainly frustrating to see that sequence of events push this one into extra innings.
Once we got to extra innings, the tenth was a frustrating one as well but one that somehow saw the Braves escape with the game still tied. After Atlanta did nothing in their half of the tenth, the Braves found themselves in a bases-loaded, nobody out situation after Danny Young walked a trying-to-bunt Dylan Beavers and then they intentionally put Pete Alonso on.
Walt Weiss was forced to break out the five-infielder situation by bringing Mauricio Dubón onto the right side of the dirt but as it turned out, all he needed was Matt Olson at first base. Gunnar Henderson hit a liner that went right into Olson’s glove and then Olson scampered to first base to step on the bag and beat Pete Alonso by a hair for an astonishing double play. Tyler Kinley then entered the game for the final out and got Taylor Ward to pop out in shallow right to miraculously escape the tenth.
After Baltimore somehow wasted a bases-loaded, nobody-out situation in extra innings, the baseball gods duly rewarded Atlanta as Austin Riley doubled home the pinch-running Jorge Mateo to put Atlanta back in front. The double was especially impressive as Riley legged it out and ended up at second thanks to the extra hustle. The Braves were unable to add on so it was once again time to hold on to a one-run lead for the win.
Kinley went back out there for the 11th inning and while Kinley was able to sit down the first two batters in order, he walked Leody Taveras. This prompted another gutsy managerial decision from Walt Weiss, who intentionally walked Jackson Holliday in order to force the O’s to use Sam Huff, who has a wRC+ of -11 across 13 games and 33 plate appearances so far this season. Weiss played the statistical matchup and it paid off, as Huff hit a ground ball to Austin Riley who fielded it cleanly and hurled it to Matt Olson at first base in order to finish off what turned out to be an astonishingly improbable victory for the Braves.
That’s now three series wins in a row for the Braves to start the second half of this season and this was the most dramatic one so far — and that’s including the stressful Padres series as well. The Braves have simply been finding ways to win lately and this was the wildest way that they’ve figured out to win recently (and probably all season). Atlanta will now travel to New York to face the Mets and the confidence oughta be sky-high as Atlanta gets on the plane following this wacky victory.
Jul 26, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Twins left fielder Austin Martin (16) reacts at second base after hitting a double during the first inning against the Athletics at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images | Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images
In the game thread intro today, I relayed the story of Randy Poffo the baseball prospect turning into Randy “Macho Man” Savage the iconic professional wrestler. In a game this afternoon that the Minnesota Twins absolutely needed to have in the win column, they indeed proved to be “Cream of the Crop!” over the Unattributed Athletics.
In an immediate reversal of recent trends, the Twins got off to a rousing start in this one. After a nice 1-2-3 first inning from SP Connor Prielipp (filling in for an ailing Joe Ryan), Austin Martin doubled to lead off B1 and was brought home on a Royce Lewis fielder’s choice. After Royce swiped the second bag, Kody Clemens shot a ball into the RCF gap and barreled for third base. Not only did he make it, but the throw got away from A’s third baseman Tommy White (the error was charged to SS Alika Williams) and went out of play, allowing Kody to trot home with the Little League homer! 3-0 MN.
A wild sequence kept the runs coming in B2: with the bases loaded (Alex Jackson single, Brooks Lee walk, Martin walk), Byron Buxton rocketed a ball to SS—which was caught and Lee doubled off 2B. Well, until MN manager Derek Shelton made the earmuff gesture and the corporate umpires in NYC decided the call was safe. Before the first pitch to Ryan Jeffers was thrown, A’s P Luis Morales balk-balk-balked and the resulting base paths merry-go-round led to a run (and an A’s batting coach ejection). Now given the chance to swing away, Jeffers did just that—lining a single that scored Lee & Martin. 6-0 MN.
By B4, the Franchise Formerly Known as Oakland looked defeated—another Twins run (Ryan Kreidler) coming in on a throwing error from C Jonah Heim on a steal-of-third attempt. 7-0 MN.
Okay, maybe not—A’s slugger Nick Kurtz did clobber a Cole Sands T6 offering just out of CF Luke Keaschall’s reach and into the bullpen. Fortunately, Prielipp’s final line of 5.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K was a god-send on short notice. 7-3 MN.
Back to the inept A’s in B6. After a Kreidler ground-rule double and a steal of 3B, LF Tyler Soderstrom looked to record an easy out on Martin’s lazy fly—until the sphere clanked off the leather and sent Kreidler home & Austin into 3B. 8-3 MN.
Alas, even the apathetic A’s were not bad enough to make it easy pickings for the Twins’ bullpen. In T7, the A’s juiced the bases off Sands and then Tommy Nance immediately walked in a run. Two more green-&-yellow denizens would come around on a fielder’s choice and a sac fly. In fact, the final out would need to be recorded on a diving catch from RF Clemens. 8-6 MN.
How often do a see it: a guy ends the inning with a nice defensive play and bangs a triple batting second the subsequent half-frame. That was Klobberin’ Kody in B7—coming around to score on a Keaschall sac fly. 9-6 MN.
MOAR RUNZ in B8: Lee single—Kreidler double—Jeffers single. In fact, 13 hits in all for our beloved boys of (a very hot) summer. 11-6 MN.
After Kody Funderburk dominated T8 and Travis Adams wobbled through the 9th (allowing two runs), the Twins finally, mercifully—for those sweltering in the seats—recorded the victory.
Your Final: Minnesota Twins 11, Athletics 8.
The Chicago White Sox won today—but both the Detroit Tigers & Cleveland Guardians lost. Meaning: the Twins are still very much alive & kicking in the AL Central!
Zach’s Zealot
The fill-ins: Prielipp recovered from a blister issue to spot-start for Ryan admirably, while Jackson made his Twins debut at first base and even recorded a nice scoop to turn a double play!
Zach’s Zombie
The heat (again): temperatures threatening triple digits in the Twin Cities. Hopefully all the Target Field rooters made it out of this one alive and back to A/C of some kind.
A home off day Monday is followed by the Bobby Witt-less Kansas City Royals coming to town for three clashes (Tues. night, Wed. night, Thurs. afternoon).
The Baseball Hall of Fame induction ceremony took place on Sunday afternoon and included San Francisco Giants' Jeff Kent, Atlanta Braves' Andruw Jones and Carlos Beltran, who entered Cooperstown as a member of the Mets.
Despite similar numbers with New York as he had with the Kansas City Royals, who he broke into the league with, Beltran chose to don a Mets cap in the Hall of Fame after spending seven seasons in Queens because of what the city and organization meant to him, not only as a player, but in life once his playing days were over.
"It means a lot when I think about my career and I think about the choices that I had," Beltran said in a video conference on Sunday. "I remember going through the process of the choices, I had the Royals, I had the Mets and I had no logo and I felt that I wanted to be identified with an organization. And even though with the Royals and the Mets I had similar numbers, I felt that I was able to grow the most with the Mets, in every experience that I had there. The good ones, the bad ones, the controversies, whatever. That was the organization that I felt where I became the best version of myself, plus being able to work with them in the front office when Billy [Eppler] was the GM and now with David [Stearns] and [assistant GM] Eduardo [Brizuela].
"They also have invested in me so I felt that I wanted to wear their cap. I feel proud to be a Met and even though sometimes for people to hear that and be like ‘What are you talking about? What is so proud to be a Met?’ But yes I’m proud. I’m proud because I leave very good moments there, but I also leave incredible challenges. But I was able to go through all of them and I grew as a person so I’m very happy to represent the New York Mets at Cooperstown."
In 839 games with the Mets, Beltran slashed .280/.369/.500 with 149 home runs, 559 RBI, 100 stolen bases and a 31.1 WAR -- the highest WAR he had with any of the seven clubs he played for in his career.
Following his playing career, the outfielder also had and continues to have a life within baseball, currently serving as a special assistant to Stearns. For a brief moment in 2019, Beltran was also named the manager of the Mets, although he and the club mutually agreed to part ways shortly after the announcement due to his connection with the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal that took place in 2017.
Beltran, who was the only player explicitly named in MLB's official investigative report, spoke at the time about his part in that controversy and why he decided to step down before managing a single game in New York, saying there was no world in which MLB would allow him to manage after various other people of the Astros' coaching staff were suspended due to their part in the scandal.
However, after more than six years from the controversy and New York once again in need of a manager, Beltran's name has come up as a potential candidate to lead the Mets. Earlier this month, Beltran said he's flattered by the mere mention of his name as a managerial candidate, and he noted he did discuss the role with the Mets, but he didn't believe stepping in as interim manager was the right move for him at the time.
"The respect that I have for Carlos Mendoza when Carlos was part of the Mets is super [high]," Beltran said. "Carlos is a great human being. I love being around him. I told him that one of the reasons why I wanted to be close to him was because I wanted to be around him as much as I could with the experiences of dealing with the situations in the clubhouse, the players.
"Baseball for me is a passion, no doubt about that and yes I had conversations with a few people in the organization and I don’t know I just didn’t feel it was the right thing for me to do. And I have to tell you, having the opportunity to manage, I will say, that that’s probably on my bucket list, but now I work as an advisor to the organization and I love the work that I do because it gives me the opportunity to be around the people that are making the decisions and it allows me to give my perspective on situations, players, strategies or whatever comes when it’s related to winning.
"Yes I understand that my name has been mentioned about being a manager and all that and I’m proud of that. It’s kind of like when your name comes out and they say ‘hey man you have a chance to be in the Hall of Fame’. Just the fact that people thought that I could become Hall of Fame, I take that very positively and just the thought that people can think that I can manage a major league ball club, I also take that very positively, but at the same time, I don’t know, I gotta think deeply about what my next step is gonna be."
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - JULY 26: Tyrone Taylor #28 of the New York Mets celebrates with Luis Robert Jr. #88 and Carson Benge #3 of the New York Mets after hitting a three-run home run during the sixth inning of the game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Citi Field on July 26, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by Dustin Satloff/Getty Images) | Getty Images
On this, the day of Carlos Beltrán’s Hall of Fame induction, the Mets pulled together some offensive production, defensive plays, and quality relief pitching to come up with a win against the Dodgers and avoid the season sweep with a final score Mets 8, Dodgers 3.
The day started less optimistically, when Freddy Peralta gave up a double right away at the top of the first inning to Shohei Ohtani. Ohtani reached third when Freddie Freeman grounded out to Brett Baty at second base. However, it took Peralta eleven pitches to get there, and seven pitches to walk Max Muncy, one batter later. By the time Mookie Betts lined out to end the top of the first, Peralta’s pitch count was 25.
At the bottom of the first, A.J. Ewing tapped a double into center field that Andy Pages couldn’t quite get his glove on. Francisco Lindor followed him with an RBI single into center field, allowing Ewing to easily score. Bo Bichette hit a grounder into left field for a single, but the next three batters could not make anything happen. The first inning ended with Lindor and Bichette stranded, but the score was Mets 1, Dodgers 0.
When Peralta came back out for the second inning, he was able to work a 1-2-3 inning thanks to a beautiful play by Taylor to Baty to throw out Teoscar Hernández at second base. Despite the replays showing that Hernández was likely safe, the Dodgers did not challenge, and the top of the inning was over. Taylor led off the bottom of the second inning by being hit by a pitch but was stranded on first base.
The third inning was rough for Peralta as his pitch count ballooned again. Eliezer Alfonzo led off with a ground-rule double that stayed fair when it bounced off the foul line in right field and into the crowd. Pages walked, and after seven pitches, Freeman smacked an RBI double to left field, allowing Alfonzo to score and Pages to reach third base. Max Muncy grounded out, but Pages scored and Freeman moved to third. Mookie Betts flied out to end the suffering, but the Dodgers had taken the lead, 2-1. At the bottom of the third inning, Benge drew a two-out walk in the bottom of the third, but then Jorge Polanco flied out to end the inning and, you guessed it, strand Benge on first.
At the top of the fourth inning, Edman bounced a single off Alfonso Márquez’s knee. Márquez was the first base umpire today. When Kyle Tucker tapped a ball to first base, Jared Young missed the grab initially, and when he recovered, Peralta was not covering first base for the subsequent throw. As a result of this series of events, Tucker reached first on the fielder’s choice, and Edman reached second on Young’s error. Hernández capitalized on the situation with an opposite-field single to load the bases with no outs. Alfonzo grounded out to first when Baty threw to Young. However, Young dropped the ball on the transfer, eliminating any chance of a play at second. On the same play, Edman came home to score and increase the Dodgers’ lead, and the runners moved up to second and third. During the next at-bat, Pages flied out, but that was the end of Peralta’s outing, after four innings and the score Dodgers 3, Mets 1.
Baty walked and was stranded in the bottom of the fourth inning, but after a very quiet fifth inning, the Mets offense woke up at the bottom of the sixth inning. Benge and Luis Robert, Jr. (pinch-hitting for Jared Young) walked to start things off. Taylor came up and belted a three-run homer in to left field to put the Mets ahead. Baty grounded out and Luis Torrens struck out, but the score was now Mets 4, Dodgers 3, and there was hope in the Mets’ heart again.
After Cionel Pérez worked two excellent innings, Brooks Raley came in for the top of the seventh, and retired all the batters in order. Ewing walked to lead off the bottom of the seventh, and reached second base after Freddie Freeman lost his glove tagging Lindor out at first. Bichette dribbled an infield hit down the third base line, and Ewing beat out the throw to reach third. During Benge’s at-bat, a passed ball by Dalton Rushing allowed Ewing to score. Jorge Polanco walked after that. Marcus Semien had replaced Baty at second base in the shuffle when Robert replaced Young, and he clobbered a soaring three-run home run that flew over left field. After Taylor grounded out to end the seventh inning, the score now stood at Mets 8, Dodgers 3.
Luke Weaver still came out for the eighth inning, presumably to get some work, but his outing was not as smooth as most have been for him. Weaver gave up lead-off single to Freeman. Semien was able to smother it, but when he came up, it seemed like he might have tweaked his neck or shoulder. He did stay in the game, though. With two outs, Edman knocked a single into right field to bring up Tucker, and Weaver hit him with a pitch to load the bases. Fortunately, Hernández grounded out when Weaver was able to grab the softly-hit ball and get it to Baty at first base, ending the scoring threat from the Dodgers in the eighth inning.
At the top of the ninth, Devin Williams replaced Weaver. Rushing led off for the Dodgers and tapped a cue ball down to left field that Bichette could not grab. However, after that Alex Call pinch-hit for Ohtani and struck out. Williams struck out the final two batters and the game ended as the Mets won, 8-3.
The Mets will face the Braves tomorrow in the start of a new series. Zac Thornton will start for the Mets and face off against Martin Pérez for the Braves. First pitch is at 7:10 PM ET.
Dodgers reliever Will Klein reacts after giving up a three-run home run to the Mets' Marcus Semien in the seventh inning of the Dodgers' 8-3 loss Sunday. (Dustin Satloff / Getty Images)
Dodgers reliever Will Klein had just induced the Mets’ Marcus Semien to whiff on a high heater. In a 1-1 count, Klein, who had struggled with command, went back to the fastball, knowing he could throw it for a strike.
What Klein wanted to be an outside pitch drifted in, and Semien connected for a three-run home run that sent the Dodgers to an 8-3 loss Sunday at Citi Field.
“Gave him a fastball, and he’s ready for it, and put it out there,” Klein said. “When you’re ahead and you’re dictating things, that’s a pop up, or they have to think about other stuff when I’m throwing off-speed in the zone. But I haven’t been, and so it’s really easy just throwing a fastball there, even if it’s in a spot that should be harder to hit, if you’re behind and the guy is a good hitter, it’s a lot easier for them to make that commitment and put a barrel to it.”
Despite failing to pull off the sweep, the Dodgers went 6-3 on their East Coast swing and won series against the New York Yankees, Philadelphia Phillies and Mets.
“It’s great,” manager Dave Roberts said Saturday night. “It seems like we’ve been on the road a long time, but the travel has been nice as far as staying in this time zone. We’re finding ways to win. So that’s the main thing. That’s the object of the game.”
The Dodgers’ All-Stars, as well as Roberts and his coaching staff, left for Philadelphia two weeks ago. The rest of the team met them in New York for three games against the Yankees. Then they traveled to Philadelphia for a three-game set, took a detour to Washington to visit the White House before returning to New York.
“It’s been a long road trip — especially for the guys who went to Philly for the All-Star Game,” right fielder Kyle Tucker said. “Being able to come out of the break and play some really good teams and put together really competitive at-bats and great innings from our pitching staff is huge. Some of the guys are kind of grinding in terms of how long they’ve been away from L.A. It’s kind of part of it. You’ve got to come out and play regardless and they’ve done a great job of that.”
Even so, the Dodgers (67-39) played cleaner baseball on this extended road trip — a couple baserunning mistakes aside — than they did in the homestand before the break.
Maybe the Dodgers just needed time off to reset.
“I thought we played really good baseball all road trip,” Freddie Freeman said. “I am looking forward to going home.”
Against the Mets (44-62) on Sunday, the first couple innings didn’t look promising. After Shohei Ohtani led with a double and Max Muncy drew a two-out walk, both were left stranded.
The Mets took the lead in the first when Dodgers starter Emmet Sheehan gave up a lead-off double to A.J. Ewing before Francisco Lindor sent a low changeup into shallow right field for an RBI single.
The Dodgers’ three-up, three-down second inning ended when Teoscar Hernández tried to stretch a single into a double and ran into an out. Then, Sheehan hit Tyrone Taylor with a pitch to start the bottom half of the inning.
Dodgers pitcher Emmet Sheehan delivers during the second inning of an 8-3 loss to the New York Mets on Sunday. (Yuki Iwamura / Associated Press)
Sheehan retired the next three batters as the Dodgers started to take control. They pulled into the lead with a two-run third inning, powered by doubles from Eliéezer Alfonzo — his second double in as many appearances — and Freddie Freeman.
The Dodgers manufactured another run the next inning with a pair of singles, an error by Mets first baseman Jared Young, and a run-scoring double play.
Sheehan gave up one run and three hits, striking out five over five innings.
As the Dodgers bullpen took over in the sixth, however, the game slipped away. Jack Dreyer walked two batters and recorded just one out in the sixth inning before Roberts replaced him with Evan Phillips.
In a 1-1 count, Phillips threw a sinker on the inside edge of the strike zone, and Taylor lifted it into the left-field stands for a go-ahead three-run homer. Phillips, who last week talked about rewiring his rehab mindset, has already surrendered four home runs in just seven outings.
“I think some of it was probably just me really trusting him,” Roberts said. “And I really do trust him. But there’s some work, some rust that needs to be kind of dusted off. So I think right now I’m going to kind of give him different looks and get his feet kind of under him and get some traction.”
A run-scoring passed ball from Dalton Rushing and Semien’s three-run blast in the seventh ultimately sealed the win for the Mets.
Klein, who issued two walks and gave up a single before the homer, said he’s been working to recapture the feeling of driving down the mound, as opposed to getting stuck over the rubber.
“It turned back into, ‘Please just throw a strike,’ instead of when I was going really well, it’s just, ‘I’m going to challenge you right here, and you’re not going to get it.’” Klein said. “So I think I just need to do a better job getting back to that and finding where I was a month ago.”
Jameson Taillon was a solid if unspectacular member of the Cubs rotation the last two years.
This year, though, the long ball got him, and then a hamstring injury kept him out about six weeks. Since his return he’s made two starts and they’ve both been, well, terrible. Sunday’s game at Pittsburgh was yet another example of Taillon giving up way too many home runs, three of them, including a grand slam by Ryan O’Hearn.
The Cubs did make a pretty good comeback attempt, but it fell a run short in an 8-7 loss to the Pirates.
Let’s rewind to the beginning of this one.
No one scored in the first, and that wasn’t because Jamo was fooling anyone. Brandon Lowe — who’s just feasted on Cubs pitching all year — singled with one out.
Lowe took off for third, apparently convinced that Bryan Reynolds’ ball was going to fall for a double. But Michael Conforto made a nice catch and, with Lowe standing on third, had an easy inning-ending double play. A note on the double play from BCB’s JohnW53:
The first-inning double play by Michael Conforto to Michael Busch was the Cubs’ first this season started by a right fielder making a catch. The previous one was started by Willi Castro at home against the Brewers on Aug. 19 of last year.
Their first this year started by a left fielder was by Ian Happ on Friday.
They have not had one this year started on a catch by a center fielder. They had three last year, in March and July by Pete Crow-Armstrong, then by Kevin Alcántara on Sept. 7 at home against the Nationals.
Nice “swim move” slide there by Conforto, incidentally.
A note on Ramirez’s hit from John:
Pedro Ramirez’s second-inning single made today’s game the Cubs’ 4,788th in a row on the road with a hit, tying the Pirates’ National League record. The Cubs last were hitless on the road Sept. 9, 1965, when Sandy Koufax pitched a perfect game against them at Dodger Stadium.
The Yankees hold the big league record of 5,366 and counting, since Sept. 20, 1958.
That lead did not last long. Esmerlyn Valdez took Taillon deep leading off the bottom of the second to tie the game. O’Hearn walked and one out later, Shawn Ross, playing in just his second MLB game, got his first MLB hit and home run, a two-run blast. I don’t usually show these for Cubs opponents but holy hell look how that ball was demolished [VIDEO].
So it’s 3-1 Cubs and Taillon got hit hard again in the third. With one out, Lowe singled, Reynolds doubled and Valdez walked to load the bases, and O’Hearn unloaded them with his slam. Now it’s 7-1 and that’s three home runs in three innings off Taillon in this game. To save a bit of bullpen work Craig Counsell had Taillon work the fourth, and the Pirates didn’t score.
So since Taillon’s return from the IL, that makes two starts, 8.1 innings pitched, 11 hits and four walks allowed (1.800 WHIP), 11 earned runs (11.88 ERA) and five home runs allowed. All told, Taillon has served up 25 home run balls this year in just 76 innings. Only Jeffrey Springs of the A’s has given up more homers and he’s thrown 26.2 more innings than Taillon. And, the Cubs have now lost seven of Taillon’s last eight starts — and the one they won, which was the last time they played in PNC Park, the game was tied when Taillon left after five innings and he’d given up two homers in that one. Over those eight starts: 7.82 ERA in 35.2 innings, 1.626 WHIP, 13 (!) home runs allowed.
This just can’t continue. Give Javier Assad that rotation spot until the Cubs can pull off a trade for a starting pitcher. Taillon’s next start would come up against the Yankees at Wrigley Field and do you want him facing Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, Jazz Chisholm Jr. and the rest of the Yankees? I sure don’t, and I hope the Cubs brass doesn’t either.
That’s it for my TED Talk, now back to this game.
The Cubs did mount a decent comeback attempt and didn’t wait too long. In the top of the fourth, Nico Hoerner led off with a single and stopped at third on a double by Conforto.
That was a productive inning and the Cubs trailed by only three, with five innings to go. They’ve made big comebacks in PNC Park before. Could they do it again?
Well, you know the answer to that, but they did make a good attempt. Ryan Rolison got touched up for a run in the fifth and that turned out to be a very important run indeed for the Pirates.
The Cubs couldn’t do anything in the sixth or seventh, but made it 8-5 in the eighth. Busch led off with a double and went to third on a single by Ian Happ. That continued Happ’s PNC Park record on-base streak, now at 44 games.
Aaron Civale threw two scoreless innings of relief, the sixth and seventh, and Trent Thornton made his first appearance since he was hit on the foot last Monday at Wrigley Field. He looked 100 percent to me and retired the Pirates scoreless in the eighth after a leadoff single.
Well. Back to within one, and there’s only one out. Unfortunately, Busch grounded out and Happ struck out to end the game.
The Cubs actually did quite well in this game with RISP, going 5-for-11. They scored seven runs, which most times will win you the game. The Cubs are 33-4 this year when scoring at least seven runs, and three of the four losses were when scoring exactly seven (this is the other such loss). This one’s on Jamo, and no, I am not recommending a DFA. Maybe he’s not 100 percent from the hamstring, maybe there’s something else nagging at him. Get him back on the IL and, as I said above, let Assad make that next start (probably Friday). Or who knows, maybe the Cubs can make a deal for a starter before then.
In any case, winning series on the road is still good, and the Cubs will take it. The Brewers are well on their way to crushing the Rockies at the time of this recap posting, so the Cubs will drop back to seven games behind in the NL Central. The Phillies, who trailed the Cubs by 3.5 games for the top wild card spot beginning today’s action, will play the Yankees tonight in NBC’s featured Sunday Night Baseball game.
The Cubs move on to St. Louis, where they will open a four-game set against the Cardinals Monday. David Peterson will start for the Cubs. At this writing the Cardinals do not have a starter listed for Monday’s series opener, but presuming they stay on rotation, it should be Hunter Dobbins, who threw six scoreless innings against the Angels last Wednesday. Game time Monday is 6:45 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network.
