The 21-year-old had never gone past six rounds before Hrgovic defeat and his corner should have adapted strategy
The end, when it came for Moses Itauma, was as shocking as it was worrying. Late on Saturday night, moving into the championship rounds of his first world heavyweight title fight, the 21‑year‑old had dictated the pace and dazzled Filip Hrgovic with his speed and skill. The 34‑year‑old Croat admitted that he believed Itauma had won each of the first eight rounds. And yet, in the fateful ninth, Itauma stumbled and weaved across the ring like a dazed and drunken kid. He looked lost and utterly spent.
Exhaustion had reduced him to the point where, as the experienced Hrgovic tore into him, Itauma also resembled a rag doll on the ropes. With the final two punches Hrgovic sunk a right into Itauma’s sagging body before nailing him with a pulverising left cross. It was so clearly over in that desolate moment that three things happened almost simultaneously.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 21: Ty France #25 of the San Diego Padres hits a two-run home run against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Petco Park on August 21, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Padres fans and fans across the country.
In the end, it was not close. To be honest, that was to be expected.
Ty France was the overwhelming answer to the Gaslamp Ball Reacts Survey poll question this week. “Who has been more impressive so far this season?” Respondents had the choices of France, Luis Campusano, Walker Buehler or Bradgley Rodriguez. Looking back, it would have been appropriate to add Yuki Matsui to the list of candidates as well, but France would probably remain the top choice.
The right-handed slugger has been stellar defensively for the Padres this season, despite a bobble on a play on Saturday night. The fielders, Manny Machado, Xander Bogaerts and Jake Cronenworth all seem to enjoy having a Gold Glove Award winner manning first base. It allows them to make throws without the pressure of having to make them perfect. France himself is not perfect, but more often than not, if he can get to a throw he does and that results in more outs and less traffic on the bases for San Diego pitchers.
France came into the 2026 season as a minor league invite, but he has taken full advantage of his second opportunity with the Padres. There is no reason to think he would not receive a multi-year contract offer that would start in 2027 if the season is not lost due to a lockout. France added to his season totals with a home run int the second game of the series against the Tampa Bay Rays. He is currently hitting .287 after 355 at-bats. He has 19 home runs with 59 RBI and 47 runs scored. France has also walked 30 times. He has been entrenched as the No. 4 hitter in the San Diego lineup and there have been calls from some fans the the Padres to slide him up to the No. 3 spot in front of Machado who has been struggling as of the late.
If France can continue his level of play he should be rewarded in the offseason, but for now his ability to maintain his level of play could be a key factor in whether or not the Padres make the postseason.
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NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR - MAY 21: Lazaro Montes #33 of the Arkansas Travelers looks on from the dugout during the game between the Springfield Cardinals and the Arkansas Travelers at Dickey-Stephens Park on Thursday, May 21, 2026 in North Little Rock, Arkansas. (Photo by Caton Marsh/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
Longtime baseball reporter Francys Romero reported Sunday evening that Cuban OF Lazaro Montes will be called up to the Seattle Mariners, with Daniel Kramer of MLB.com reporting that the move is expected ahead of Tuesday’s game in Boston, coinciding with the expansion of rosters to 28 for September call-ups. Montes is in transit to Boston but is not necessarily expected to be activated for Monday’s series opener at the Red Sox.
Montes has been one of the most powerful sluggers in the minor leagues since arriving in pro ball after training in the Dominican Republic as a teenager. Progressing through the same program that produced Astros slugger Yordan Alvarez, the comparisons for the titanic lefty have been common. They’re not quite accurate, however. Montes is a huge kid, a 21 year old listed at 6’5, 210 whose frame is as massive as his smile. Like Alvarez, while he moves well for his size, his gait and foot speed are never going to reflect as plus defensively, though Montes has good baseline athleticism that helps him make many 50/50 plays despite middling range. Moreover, his arm is absolutely massive, a profile similar to an early-career Nelson Cruz. Not just that, but Montes is a high-effort player in all phases, occasionally stunning opponents with his pace and hustle.
But that’s not the main thing Lazaro Montes is all about. The reason he’s been a top-100 prospect and one of the most anticipated hitting prospects in years for Seattle is gargantuan power that’s seen him club 21 homers in 2024 across 542 PA at a teenager, then 32 a season ago between High-A and Double-A, and now 38 big flies in 537 PA across Arkansas and Triple-A Tacoma. At every level, Montes has been a variation of highly consistent, slugging massively, walking prominently, and whiffing most of the time he’s not doing one of those two options.
It’s made for a fascinating profile, with a .247/.365/.556 line this season that features a 14.3% walk rate and a 30.7% strikeout rate. The in-zone contact rate on Montes’ swings (and contact rate overall) is poor enough that there are plenty of folks who simply don’t think he can be a big leaguer in an effective long-term capacity, despite doing devastating damage most of the time he makes contact. Montes has a 71.1% in-zone contact rate and 64.4% contact overall on swings in his ~200 plate appearances with the Rainiers, where Statcast data is tracked throughout the Pacific Coast League publicly. The only qualified hitter worse than that at the big league level is 1B Munetaka Murakami of the Chicago White Sox, who is at 70.5% and 60.7% respectively. Nobody else is below 77% for in-zone contact, and even if you drop the big league split to minimum of 200 PAs, it’s only Murakami lower.
The key for Montes is what he does on contact. His hard hit rate in Tacoma is 56.8% per Statcast, which is again a number in company with only Murakami, James Wood, Oneil Cruz, Nick Kurtz, Pete Alonso, and Aaron Judge. His hardest hit ball in Triple-A this year is 116.3 MPH, which ties Wood, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Elly De La Cruz for 8th-hardest in MLB all year. His average exit velocity would be third-highest in MLB behind just Cruz and Wood, right ahead of Yordan. The more likely outcome than instant stardom is something closer to what we’ve seen from Jordan Walker, Coby Mayo, or Jac Caglianone, all of whom share similar offensive profiles, explosive strength, and risk of whiff in their swing.
The choice of Montes makes sense in terms of production, he’s crushed every level at every age he’s been assigned. His profile, however, is an intriguing one to see, and may be indicative of Seattle’s willingness to hope for a hail mary, looking to Lazaro to bring their season back from the dead with a deluge of big flies. Being called up in September will not impact Montes’ ability to be a rookie in 2027, nor disrupt his eligibility for the Prospect Promotion Incentive picks the have ample value to clubs. Whether Montes posts daily or in a part-time role may depend on what the M’s are valuing in their final month of play.
CHICAGO — Rookie Sal Stewart homered for the third straight game to help offset two more home runs by Pete Crow-Armstrong, and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago Cubs 7-5 on Sunday night after rain delayed the start 25 minutes.
Dane Myers hit a go-ahead homer off Shoto Imanaga (8-10) leading off the fifth inning and Tyler Stephenson followed with a two-run shot after a single by Elly De La Cruz for a 6-3 lead. De La Cruz left after that with left quad tightness.
Stewart homered for the 31st time — off Trent Thornton — for the Reds’ final run in the seventh.
Crow-Armstrong homered leading off the first against Chase Burns (15-3) to give the Cubs the lead. It his fourth in seven at-bats after hitting three Saturday in a 17-5 victory over the Reds. The NL’s MVP front-runner hit his 38th homer — a solo shot off Reds closer Emilio Pagán in the ninth before the right-hander finished off his 19th save.
Burns allowed three runs — two earned — on six hits in 5 2/3 innings as Cincinnati beat the Cubs in the rubber game of the series after losing six of seven matchups previously.
Michael Conforto had an RBI single in the second to put Chicago up 2-0.
Héctor Rodríguez hit his fourth homer — a three-run shot that put the Reds ahead 3-2 in the fourth — but Ian Happ walked and scored an unearned run on a throwing error by Rodríguez in right field to tie it in the bottom half.
Imanaga surrendered six runs on eight hits in five innings on a day the Cubs inducted pitcher Jon Lester, catcher Jody Davis and late broadcaster Vince Lloyd into their Hall of Fame.
Hall of Famer Greg Maddux threw wild on the ceremonial first pitch with more than 20 members of the Cubs’ 150th anniversary team in attendance.
Up next
Reds RHP Brady Singer (5-12, 4.72 ERA) was set to start Monday night in Cincinnati opposite Padres RHP Michael King (8-9, 3.23). The Cubs haven’t announced a starter Monday night against the visiting Brewers and LHP Kyle Harrison (10-3, 2.79).
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 30: Dane Myers #17 and Sal Stewart #27 of the Cincinnati Reds celebrate after defeating the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on August 30, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Yes, Pete Crow-Armstrong blasted another pair of homers on Sunday night just 24 hours after he hit a trio of bombs off Cincinnati Reds pitching during Saturday’s 17-5 embarrassment by the Chicago Cubs. Yes, the Chicago Cubs jumped out to an immediate lead in the process, as PCA’s first blast of the night came in the Bottom of the 1st off Reds ace Chase Burns to open the game’s ledger.
From there on, though, the scrappy Cincinnati club took matters into their own hands on the Sunday Night Baseball national stage, and in doing so head home after a long three-city road trip west with as series victory on which they can most definitely hang their hats.
Hector Rodriguez helped turn the tide with a massive left-on-left three-run homer over the RF wall in Wrigley Field, and both Dane Myers and Tyler Stephenson followed in the Top of the 5th with moonshot blasts into the bleachers beyond the LF wall.
Then, Sal Stewart went to work on the Chicago bullpen in the Top of the 7th with a solo shot out to CF that carried some 418 feet. That blast meant the NL Rookie of the Year frontrunner officially homered in each game of the series.
That gave the Reds a 7-spot, and that was enough for their pitching staff to hold onto in the eventual 7-5 win.
Burns, to his credit, shrugged off the rain delay and early poor umpiring to pour in 5.2 IP of 2 ER ball on exactly 100 pitches before being pulled. He had PCA struck out in their first PA against one another in the Bottom of the 1st in a steady rain, but the home plate ump missed the call (and Stephenson opted against challenging in the game’s first PA for his pitcher), and PCA hit his homer on the very next pitch.
The lone real blemish on an otherwise impressive night by the young core of the Reds was that Elly De La Cruz exited early after hustling down the 1B line out of the box. He was pretty clearly in at least a bit of discomfort, and it was later reported that he’s got some quad tightness.
Fortunately, it appears all parties may be mostly OK. Charlie Goldsmith reported after the game that manager Terry Francona has some confidence that Elly may even be right back in the lineup as early as tomorrow.
Tito said there’s a chance Elly plays tomorrow. Don’t think the quad is very bad.
DENVER, COLORADO - JULY 31: Hunter Goodman #15 of the Colorado Rockies prepares to bat in the first inning against the Kansas City Royals at Coors Field on July 31, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
For most of the season, my attention stays pretty firmly on the Colorado Rockies.
That will not change down the stretch, but the losses are starting to stack up again. The Rockies are 4-11 over their last 15 games, and that can get frustrating.
Sometimes it is nice to look up and see what else is happening around baseball, and as the calendar nears September, it is a good time to do exactly that.
While not a particularly good division, the AL West might be the least settled division race of all. Houston sits at 69-68, just one game above .500. Texas is 67-70 and two games back, while Seattle sits at 64-73 and five games out. Houston does not exactly look interested in running away with the division, but Texas and Seattle have not shown much desire to take it from them, either. Personally, I would not mind a Houston-less October.
Then there are the White Sox. Two years removed from losing 121 games, Chicago is 72-64 and leads the 69-68 Guardians by 3.5 games in the AL Central. Can they finish off one of baseball’s more unexpected division titles — or can the Rockies perhaps play spoilers in the final days of the season?
Both Wild Card races still leave room for a late surprise. Cleveland holds the final AL spot, but Baltimore is just one game back, Toronto is 1.5 out and Texas sits two back. In the NL, Arizona holds the final spot by just a half-game over San Diego, while Miami remains 3.5 games out.
Meanwhile, Yordan Alvarez enters the stretch run hitting .320 with 37 home runs and 93 RBI. He leads the American League in all three categories, putting a Triple Crown firmly within reach.
On the mound, Jacob Misiorowski owns a 1.73 ERA with 222 strikeouts in 151 innings. If he can stay below 2.00 and reach 250 strikeouts, he would be the first pitcher to accomplish both since Jacob deGrom in 2018.
And the National League home run race is of particular interest to us Rockies fans. Kyle Schwarber leads the league with 40, Matt Olson has 37, and Hunter Goodman is tied with Pete Crow-Armstrong at 36. Goodman has already produced two three-homer games this season, so we know he can hit them in bunches.
Those are a few things I will be watching.
What about you? What race, milestone, player or team has your attention as we head into September?
SAN ANTONIO, TX - MARCH 21: Pascal Siakam #43 of the Indiana Pacers and Victor Wembanyama #1 of the San Antonio Spurs looks on during the game on March 21, 2026 at the Frost Bank Center in San Antonio, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photos by Michael Gonzales/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Earlier this summer, sports streaming service DAZN announced a major exclusive streaming deal with New York-based sports teams. In the announcement, Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp, citing NBA sources, mentioned it would not be the only NBA deal for the 2026-2027 season, specifically mentioning the Spurs, among other teams, with deals in the works.
Since the initial story, two more teams have made it official. Washington Wizards and other D.C. sports broadcaster, Monumental Sports, announced a partnership with DAZN, growing upon its pre-existing infrastructure. More interestingly for Spurs fans, though, is the deal with the Indiana Pacers.
The Pacers and the NBA made the announcement recently, stating that DAZN will be the exclusive provider of regular-season Pacers games via a team-branded streaming service set to be available on most all devices very soon. That is great for Indiana fans; however, what Spurs fans will be interested to learn, as they await a deal of their own, is the price offerings.
First off, DAZN will be providing 22 regular season games for free on the DAZN app, with 15 of them being simulcasted over-the-air. This was expected, as Sports Business Journal originally reported, to “draw in viewership.”
For the remainder of the games, access beyond the Paywall is priced at $119.99/year with the option of an Early Bird Season Pass carrying a 50 percent discount for those who sign up before October, coming out to $59.99 for the season. Monthly options are also available at $19.99/month. Pacers season ticket holders will be gifted a free season pass as an added perk.
NBA League Pass subscribers should note these prices are only applicable within the Indiana geographical market. Pacers games will still be broadcast nationally via the League Pass app or TV provider subscription.
While it should be reiterated that none of this applies to the San Antonio Spurs, it could be an indicator of what is to come. Indianapolis has notable similarities to San Antonio in terms of market size and cost. That doesn’t make it unfathomable to think a Spurs-flavored offering would look very similar.
Nonetheless, while nothing is confirmed, a deal will need to be done soon as the season is less than two months away.
HOUSTON, TX - DECEMBER 17: James Harden #13 of the Houston Rockets takes a three point shot defended by Ricky Rubio #3 of the Utah Jazz in the fourth quarter at Toyota Center on December 17, 2018 in Houston, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Tim Warner/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Why is there a picture of James Harden? Read on.
Welcome to Part Two of three covering what I believe is a high stakes season (in terms of sports for entertainment) for the Houston Rockets. One of the reasons to divide the team into the three parts, management, players and coaching, is to look at the relative strengths, weaknesses, and pressures on each. Another is ask the question: can a team be successful without all three elements being strong on their own, and also working at least fairly well? If by success you mean, finish with a decent record, make the playoffs, the yes, that’s very possible. We’ve seen it with these Rockets, and not that long ago we saw LeBron James drag not particularly impressive Cleveland teams to the NBA Finals (albeit in a pretty weak Eastern Conference).
If by success you mean make conference Finals, maybe an NBA Finals, then no, I don’t believe a team can do that, absent a truly generational player like James at his peak. If a team lacks that, and I’d argue, for example, the Knicks who almost swept three rounds of NBA playoffs do lack such a player, then the other elements of coaching and players must be good as well. I think higher level success in the playoffs is won at the margins. Those margins, those fine distinctions are where an inadequate coach, an incoherent roster, or players who are unsuited to their roles, will limit success.
Or sometimes the distinctions and margins are not really a razor’s edge at all. Sometimes they’re a dull axe blade.
The question is this: are the Rockets players suited to run the offense and defense they’re being asked to run? If the players job on the court is to run their coach’s scheme, and in essence it is, rather than it solely being a series of discrete actions that can then be quantified and ranked, are the Rockets players fit for this job?
Well, yes and no. That sounds weasely but it isn’t. Yes on defense, no on offense.
This isn’t the usual question of, (perceived as a bag of stats and measures), is an individual player any good? That’s a good question to ask, of course, but it’s also now the easier one to ask, as we now have a welter of public information, and of course even more is available to teams and other professionals. It can be a way of answering the same question, of course, as well.
What it can’t answer as well is: Is this player any good at what he’s being asked to do, and might he be better asked to do something else, or do things differently?
The Rockets defense is very good. We might perceive it as having slipped from when it was fun, but it’s still good for 6th in the NBA. That’s in a title winning range (title winning teams are almost always top 10 in both offense and defense, and usually around top five in one of those if not both). It’s not a particularly creative scheme of defense, and it doesn’t seem to have a number of go to moves, when it appears an opponent has solved it over the course of playoff games. The go to move is “try harder and maybe let’s try a zone”. This has worked, but in my opinion is exhausting, and costs the team in various ways. Reflexively adding more defense when points are what’s needed is an odd way of looking the world, but the Rockets defense isn’t in need of fixing, particularly.
The Rockets, though, are suited to playing good to great defense in the style they are being asked to play. If Kevin Durant weren’t the defensive equivalent of a coat rack on the court, except when he sniffs a badass block in the air, the rest of it would look better. I think a lot of “glaring mistakes” by other players are a result of him not really guarding anyone on certain possessions, or even attempting to fight through screens.
There’s more to say about other players and issues they have: Sengun isn’t really a rim protector, Sheppard is targeted on defense, Tari Eason makes bizarre choices. That said, those are the kind of things other teams are routinely able to live with. Especially with defenders like Amen Thompson, and let’s be fair, Jabari Smith, on the court. (I think Jabari and Amen were asked to play outfield for Durant a lot.)
So I’d say this group of players is fit to run the defensive scheme they are asked to run. We’ll leave the question of “Is what they’re being asked to do good enough?” for tomorrow.
Now for the “no”. Are the Rockets players suited to run the offense they run? No. Absolutely not. Why?
This one’s easy, because essentially the Rockets under Udoka run a less complex version of the offense the Rockets ran at the peak of James Harden’s and Mike D’Antoni’s tenure. That specific offense typically starts at the top of the three point arc, with an initiator who is capable of breaking down a defender off the dribble and either passing him by or getting him on his hip for a driving finish and maybe a foul. If that doesn’t work, the center (usually) sets a screen that gives him the space to get to the rim, and the screener also rolls to the rim sometimes for easy dunk finishes. Young Clint Capela was a star in this role. If the rim is closed off, and the center covered, the initiator can pass out to the perimeter where shooters are waiting in the left corner, and at other points on the arc. Or it the attack can be reset elsewhere on the court.
In the case of Harden and MDA, the Rockets took a player who wasn’t especially highly valued early in his career, and gave him a crucial role, in PJ Tucker. Tucker was a rugged defender who could defend above his size, and could make corner threes. The other players can also shoot 3pt shots, and hopefully one of them can also initiate (Chris Paul) or get his own shot (Eric Gordon).
That’s how that offensive approach worked (circa 2017) when it was going well. That is, without much exception, what the Rockets attempted to do in 2025-26.
Do any of the current Rockets resemble any of the key parts here much? Are the players fitted for the roles they need to play in this scheme?
No. They aren’t.
First, there’s no James Harden, an offensive player so dangerous in his prime that one team literally doubled him with a player always following behind him, so he couldn’t shoot his step back three point shot. (Hello, Ricky Rubio pic!) Is there anyone even resembling that player on the Rockets roster? Again. No. It certainly wasn’t Kevin Durant. There is no one player who can individually break down the defense and get a good shot from a contested position at the start of the possession. Not one in any quantity anyway, and the Rockets offense generates that problem, and question, nearly every single offensive play, for these Rockets. Without James Harden, or anyone close.
Well, what about other spots? Is there a center that operates off that player the Rockets don’t have? One that gets easy looks off the threat of the initiator and his movement? No. There’s a mobile center, without a lot of vertical ability, who is really better set in space closer to the basket, and allowed to pass to moving teammates, where he can be special, and create and operate fluidly.
Does such a center as the Rockets actually have clash with the Hardenesque Scheme? Yes. Violently. It doesn’t mesh. They’re in the same space by the basket, and surprise, since that almost always happens, you know who else is in that space? You know who else values that same real estate close to the basket? Kevin Durant. So given the scheme, the center, and KD, who else might want to occupy this same court space? That’s right, the defense. NBA defenses can get away with playing a college scheme to beat the Rockets when it really counts. All they really have to do is close the paint, and nothing really works, barring a hot shooting night.
Now, are there fairly reliable shooters in the corner, waiting for a pass? Sometimes there’s Jabari Smith (36%) or Reed Sheppard (39%), but oftentimes there’s Amen Thompson (21%). (PJ Tucker took 74% of his 3pt shots from the corner, where he shot 38% for his career, peaking at 45%.) In this Rockets offense Amen (23%) is in the corner more than Reed (49%). Amen shoots the easiest three pointer in the game at 23% from the corner, where he takes 58% of his threes. Worse, though, because Amen knows he’s such a bad shooter, he often passes up the open shot the offense laboriously generated, often leading to a grenade to someone else. Sheppard shot 49% from the corner, where he shot 14% of his threes, Smith went 37% from the corner and shot 35% of his threes from there. No, I can’t make it make sense.
Once again, players that aren’t suited for a role are put in that role anyway, to fit a certain scheme.
In fact almost the entire Rockets roster, including “fits anywhere” Kevin Durant don’t, haven’t, and won’t, fit this approach. Historically (yes, we can refer to Durant’s career ‘historically’ at this point) Kevin Durant has always been best off ball, and not dribbling unless he’s trying to get to his middie. Which is EXACTLY why you cast him the the James Harden Role. A role that requires, demands, insists upon, an immaculate handle, and coolness under pressure when passing, and an ability to get anywhere on the court to force the defense into problematic positions. If you thought you saw that from Durant last season, welcome KD Burner Account! If you think Fred VanVleet is some sort of James Harden analog at 32, well, it’s nice that you read the Dreamshake, Mrs VanVleet. At least he can dribble, if not get a shot at the rim.
I could go on, and have, but I think that’s enough for now.
So, by my reckoning the players are fine, and even very good at the defense they’re being asked to play, and they’re almost entirely unsuited to the offense they’re asked to play. And yet they still can score. That, to me, is actually a fantastic sign for the future of these players (wherever they end up). Imagine what they could do if they did what they were good at, instead of doing some weird cosplay of the the 2017 Rockets offense?
Knoxville Smokies infielder Edgar Alvarez (25) celebrates hitting a double during a Minor League baseball game between the Knoxville Smokies and Birmingham Barons at Covenant Health Park in Knoxville, Tenn., on June 2, 2026. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
The I-Cubs got a very good start from Javier Assad, who allowed just one run on three hits over 5.1 innings. Assad struck out five and walked no one.
Jaxon Wiggins gave the I-Cubs 1.2 innings of scoreless relief. Wiggins allowed one hit. He did not walk anyone and struck out one. Since moving to the bullpen, Wiggins has thrown 6.2 scoreless innings and has allowed just two hits.
Antoine Kelly got the loss when he allowed two runs on two hits over two-thirds of an inning in the top of the ninth. Kelly walked three and struck out one.
Iowa’s lone run came on a solo home run by second baseman James Triantos in the fourth inning. It was Triantos’ ninth home run this season. Today, he went 2 for 4.
Catcher Owen Ayers was 1 for 3 and was hit by a pitch.
Assad was helped by some great defense in right field from Chas McCormick.
Connor Schultz started and lasted four innings, allowing two runs on six hits. He struck out four and did not walk anyone.
Yenrri Rojas handled the next two innings, didn’t allow a run on one hit, and got the win because Schultz didn’t go five. Rojas walked one and struck out one.
First baseman Edgar Alvarez had a huge night, going 3 for 5 with a double and a solo home run in the second inning. It was Alvarez’s 11th home run this year. Alvarez had four total RBI and scored twice.
DH Miguel Useche was 3 for 4 with a double. He drove in two and scored once.
Alex Madera went 2 for 4 with a two-run triple and a walk. Madera scored one run.
Anhuar Garcia threw the first four innings and surrendered two runs on six hits. Garcia struck out five and walked no one, so that makes a decent line look even better.
JP Wheat gave up three runs in the bottom of the eighth, as well as two inherited runners allowed two score, to take the loss. Wheat’s final line was three runs on four hits over two-thirds of an inning. He did not walk anyone and he struck out one.
Catcher Logan Poteet hit two home runs this afternoon. The first one came with a man on in the fourth inning and the second one was a solo shot in the top of the ninth. Poteet now has 21 home runs this year, seven of which came with South Bend. Poteet was 3 for 4 with a walk and four runs scored.
Right fielder Alexey Lumpuy went back-to-back with Poteet in the ninth as South Bend got a two-out rally going again. Lumpuy also had a bases-loaded triple in the seventh inning and an RBI single in the sixth for five total RBI. Lumpuy went 3 for 5 with the triple, the home run and a stolen base.
Center fielder Leonel Espinoza was 2 for 4 with a double and an RBI single. He also scored one run.
DH Kade Snell went 3 for 5 with a steal. He scored three times.
First baseman Josiah Hartshorn was 1 for 2 with two walks, a stolen base and a sac fly. He scored one run.
The Pelicans got off to a good start with Freddy Rodriguez, who allowed just one run on two hits over four innings. The one run came on a second-inning home run. Rodriguez walked three and struck out four.
Fenuel James then pitched the next three innings and retired all nine batters he faced. He struck out three.
The wheels came off when the Pelicans held an 8-1 lead going into the bottom of the eighth and they allowed nine runs in the inning to blow the game. Jhon Cabral allowed five runs on three hits and two walks without retiring a batter. The loss then went to John Alkire II who did managed to get three outs, but not before giving up two inherited runners and four runs of his own. Alkire gave up three hits and two walks. He struck out one.
DH Alexis Hernandez hit a solo home run in the sixth inning, his third on the season. Hernandez came a triple shy of the cycle as he was 3 for 4 with a double and the home run. He had two runs batted in and scored twice.
Third baseman Derniche Valdez homered twice with solo shots in the sixth and eighth innings. Valdez went 2 for 4. He now has ten home runs this season.
Valdez’s home run in the eighth came back-to-back with a solo home run by center fielder Darlyn De Leon, who hit his fourth home run with a man on. De Leon went 1 for 4.
Second baseman Juan Cabada was 2 for 5.
Eli Lovich with an RBI double. Lovich was 1 for 4.
And, mostly, about his own underwhelming play over recent weeks, in which his lack of form at the plate has amplified the Dodgers’ teamwide slump.
This time, however, there was no magic from the 32-year-old superstar; no towering swing nor transformational moment to remind the baseball world of his stature as its premier player.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani hits a line drive for an out against the Detroit Tigers during the eighth inning on Saturday, Aug. 29, 2026, in Detroit. AP Photo/Paul Sancya
“Obviously,” manager Dave Roberts said, “we still got to get Shohei on track.”
Sunday mirrored many of Ohtani’s recently underwhelming performances: There was poor pitch selection, leading to his 11th multi-strikeout game out of 27 this month. There was a flawed approach with his swing even when he did make contact, leading to three batted balls that, despite being hit hard, all failed to escape the infield.
As a result, Ohtani’s numbers aren’t looking as formidable as they once did: His batting average is down to .280 — the lowest it has been since the end of May. His .908 OPS still ranks top-five in the majors, but would mark his worst in a season since 2022.
More importantly, Ohtani’s OPS is also now well behind Crow-Armstrong’s, which rose to .944 following his tour de force Saturday.
Ohtani’s OPS is also now well behind Pete Crow-Armstrong’s, which rose to .944 following his tour de force Saturday. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Side by side, the stat lines of the two MVP candidates no longer look quite so similar as Ohtani is slashing .280/.379/.529 with 30 home runs and 80 RBIs while Crow-Armstrong is up to .282/.377/.567 with 36 home runs and 89 RBIs.
More than that, Crow-Armstrong also continues to pace Ohtani in value-based advanced metrics like wins-above-replacement (9.1 to 6.9, per Fangraphs), thanks to the surplus value he generates as the game’s top center fielder.
After three consecutive, unanimous MVP honors, and four total in his career, Ohtani has gone this year from frontrunner to next-best.
For the Dodgers, the bigger priority is getting his offense back on track first.
“Once we get him going,” Roberts said, “[our offense is] going to be fun to watch.”
As he’s done all year during Ohtani’s return to a full-time two-way role, Roberts downplayed the correlation between his star player’s recent pitching ramp-up and decline in offensive production.
After three consecutive, unanimous MVP honors, and four total in his career, Ohtani has gone this year from frontrunner to next-best. AP Photo/Jose Juarez
The skipper said Sunday that Ohtani’s problems are isolated to a variety of routine hitting flaws.
“Sometimes he’s taking balls that are good pitches to hit, then expanding. Other times, I think the direction, the intent is a little too much to the pull side,” Roberts said. “So I think with Shohei, it’s a combo.”
Where Ohtani’s pitching plan could impact his hitting, however, is in the way he dedicates his limited time over the rest of the regular season.
Every hour spent playing catch in the outfield, or grinding through a bullpen session, or (if he does get back in the Dodgers’ rotation) preparing for a start is one he can’t spend working on his swing, or getting extra time in the batting cages, or maximizing his potential as the game’s most fearsome slugger.
Team officials are conscious of that balance, and it will be taken into account once they return to Los Angeles this week and decide on next steps for Ohtani as a pitcher.
“Hopefully we can get home, get him in a better spot physically, mentally, whatever it is,” Roberts said, after revealing Saturday that the four-time MVP is still “not 100%” with his multiple injuries.
“Everyone goes through these things,” he added. “But we gotta get him going.”
As much as Ohtani’s MVP chances will depend on it, so too could the Dodgers’ season.
Because regardless of whether he’s pitching or not, their offense will always first and foremost revolve around him.
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The Buffalo Sabres took great steps ahead this past season, finishing in first place in the highly-competitive Atlantic Division, then winning their first-round Stanley Cup playoffs series against the Boston Bruins before falling to the Montreal Canadiens in Round 2.
That success means that the TheHockeyNews.com’s 2025-26 grades for Sabres players will be largely positive. And in this “Sabres Grades” file, we’re focused on goaltender Colten Ellis.
Ellis didn’t get a ton of playing time playing behind veterans Alex Lyon and Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, but one of the reasons Buffalo traded young netminder Devon Levi is that Ellis had leaped over Levi in Buffalo’s goaltending depth chart. Ellis is now looking like Buffalo’s goalie-of-the-future, but the beginning of his NHL career has been much to the Sabres’ liking.
Colten Ellis
Position: Goaltender
Grade: B+
The Skinny: Ellis put forth a terrific rookie NHL season, appearing in 16 games and posting an 8-4-2 record, a 2.90 GAA, a .903 save percentage and one shutout. Those numbers weren’t going to get Ellis a Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s top goalie, but the 25-year-old showed enough last year to push himself up the Sabres’ organizational depth chart.
Ellis has established himself as a strong netminder at the American League level with the Springfield Thunderbirds, posting strong years in 2023-24 and 2024-25. He needs more opportunity, but given that Luukkonen and Lyon both are under contract next season, more playing time may be hard to come by – at least, so long as the injury bug doesn’t sideline one or both of that goalie tandem.
Ellis is entering the final season of his current two-year contract, so he’s got all the motivation in the world to play more and play well this coming season. Lyon is also in the final year of his contract, and that means Ellis could push Lyon out the door. And if that’s what happens and Buffalo benefits from a step-up season from Ellis, Sabres GM Jarmo Kekalainen has the option to trade Lyon or Luukkonen and make Buffalo’s goaltending tandem into a 50/50 games split.
That’s a column for another day. This file is about last season, and while Ellis didn’t finish off the 2025-26 season particularly well, he had enough strong stretches to convince Buffalo to retain him.
Ellis is shaping up to be a long-term fixture in Western New York, and if he continues progressing, Ellis could be a significant part of a Sabres team capable of winning a championship.
The Mets prospects put up some huge feats and produced a bit of history on Sunday. Here's the latest roundup of what's going on down on the farm...
Mitch Voit, Jefferson Rojas homer at Double-A
Three of the top 10 in SNY's Mets Top 30 Prospects featured in the Binghamton Rumble Ponies' 14-5 win over the Reading Fightin Phils: No. 1 Jefferson Rojas, No. 5 Mitch Voit, and No. 8 Jacob Reimer.
Voit batted leadoff and had a hot bat all night. He went 3-for-4 with two walks, a strikeout, and 3 RBI, including a two-run home run in the fifth inning.
Not to be outdone, Rojas batted third, went 3-for-6 with 4 RBI, and clobbered a two-run shot of his own. He also struck out twice.
Reimer reached base just once, going 1-for-6 with a double.
Meanwhile, No. 23 Chris Suero and No. 29 Eli Serrano III each came to bat five times. Suero worked two walks while going 0-for-3 with a strikeout, while Serrano knocked an RBI double, reached on a single, stole a base, and struck out twice.
BIG FLY VOIT
Mitch Voit (@Mets No. 4 prospect) deposits a go-ahead two-run home run! 💣
Both of his Double-A home runs have come from FirstEnergy Stadium.
— Binghamton Rumble Ponies (@RumblePoniesBB) August 30, 2026
Jefferson Rojas (@Mets No. 1 prospect) belts a two-run home run 🚀@MLBPipeline's No. 76 prospect is up to 22 HR this season and 7 HR since being traded to New York.
— Binghamton Rumble Ponies (@RumblePoniesBB) August 30, 2026
Sammy Stafura homers for Brooklyn
The Mets' No. 3 prospect (who came over in the Luke Weaver trade) connected on the first home run of his time with the Mets in the top half of the fifth. He liked doing it so much on Sunday that he didn't wait too long to do it again in the ninth.
Playing about forty minutes from his childhood home against the Hudson Valley Renegades, Satafura finished the afternoon 2-for-4 with a walk, a strikeout, and three batted in on those two round trippers.
He's now batting .285 with a .949 for the year at High-A.
There weren't quite the same eye-popping prospect performances for the Syracuse Mets in their 8-0 victory over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs.
No. 15 Nick Morabito batted leadoff, picking up a single, reached on a catcher's interference, and drew a walk in five times up with a stolen base for good measure. Batting sixth in the order, No. 27 Billy Amick went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts.
The real story here was conducted by Mets veterans currently playing at Triple-A. Rehabbing Mark Vientos blasted a trifecta of home runs, going 4-for-5 on the day with 5 RBI. Ronny Mauricio was 2-for-5 with an RBI.
Most notably, Tobias Myers was one of six relievers who combined for a no-hitter. Myers pitched three full innings and struck out one batter, facing the minimum nine batters without issuing a walk.
MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN - AUGUST 30: Elias Díaz #35 and Jacob Latz #67 of the Texas Rangers celebrate after defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 7-4 at American Family Field on August 30, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Patrick McDermott/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Rangers 7, Brewers 4
Well will you look at that…the Rangers can win a game!
On the road, even!
And in a game where Kumar Rocker only went three innings!
Kumar Rocker, man…
Just four days ago, we marveled at the fact that Sean Burke threw 92 pitches against the Rangers in just three innings, and the White Sox still won the game.
Rocker didn’t match the eight walks Burke issued in his three innings of work. He did match the three innings pitched and two runs allowed, however, while coming just short of Burke’s pitch total.
Rocker needed 86 pitches to get through three innings.
That’s not good. It is, in fact, bad.
Rocker only faced 17 batters. That means he averaged over 5 pitches per batter.
Its kind of remarkable he lasted that long. The Brewers’ first four batters all reached. 20 pitches into the game for Rocker, two runs were in, two runners were on base, and there were no outs in the inning.
Rocker managed to retire nine of the next 13 batters he faced, seven on strikes. Three of the four batters he didn’t retire reached via the walk.
By the time Rocker got the hook after the third, the Rangers had tied it up, so at least he wasn’t going to be tagged with a loss, whatever happened.
I guess you know, though, that the Rangers didn’t lose, so he wouldn’t have gotten tagged with a loss anyway.
Tyler Alexander — an unsung hero of your 2026 Texas Rangers — gave the team two innings of shutout work to get the team to the fifth inning. Adam Macko, Jordan Montgomery, Jakob Junis and Jacob Latz each contributed an inning apiece after that.
I imagine the hope was that it was not going to be a save situation, with the Rangers getting seven runs on the board by the time Montgomery came in for the bottom of the seventh. A two out, two run homer by Gary Sanchez narrowed the lead, though, making it a little closer and less comfortable than we all would have liked.
Still, it gave Jacob Latz the opportunity to pick up his first save in a week, in his first appearance for the Rangers in a week.
Losing streaks are bad for getting your closer work. They are good for getting your closer lots of rest, though.
The seven runs the Rangers scored are a reminder that sometimes the Rangers can hit the ball and it can find the dirt or the grass, and they can run like the wind down to first, and sometimes even second or third, without making an out.
And eventually they can even come all the way home and score a run.
This is actually the third time in the last six games that the Rangers have scored at least seven runs, so maybe my sarcasm isn’t necessarily warranted.
The dynamic duo of Elias Diaz and Ezequiel Duran got the Rangers on the board, and then the lead, with Diaz hitting a two out ground rule double right after Cody Freeman had put up a two run double of his own in the top of the second, and then Duran homering in the third to tie the score.
Duran added a ground rule double of his own in the fifth to bring home Corey Seager and Wyatt Langford, who had walked to start the inning and then advanced on a Brandon Nimmo groundout.
Joc Pederson homered in the sixth for some necessary (it turned out) insurance, and then a sequence of singles and an error brought two more insurance runs that weren’t necessary, but which are fun nonetheless.
Pederson had a chance to blow it open in the seventh, with the bases loaded and two outs. He could have homered again, giving the Rangers 11 runs, tying their season high.
It would have been great had he done that.
Pederson didn’t, however.
I guess its okay, though. The Rangers won anyway.
Rangers wins…they are so emotionally uplifting, aren’t they?
Kumar Rocker touched 95.8 with both his fastball and his sinker, averaging 94.2 mph with each pitch. Tyler Alexander maxed out at 94.2 mph with his fastball. Adam Macko’s fastball topped out at 95.8 mph. Jordan Montgomery’s sinker reached 92.7 mph. Jakob Junis hit 92.9 mph with his fastball. Jacob Latz’s fastball topped out at 97.3 mph.
Brandon Nimmo had a 105.7 mph single. Corey Seager had a 104.7 mph single and a 104.7 mph groundout. Evan Carter had a 103.9 mph groundout and a 101.9 mph fly out. Ezequiel Duran had a 103.3 mph double. Joc Pederson had a 100.8 mph home run.
A return to the cozy confines of the Shed, and hopefully a return to winning more often than losing for a while.
With the 26th overall pick of the 2022 NHL Entry Draft, the Montreal Canadiens selected forward Filip Mesar. So far, the former first-round pick has struggled to take much of a step forward in his development.
Mesar appeared in 71 games during this past season with the Laval Rocket, where he recorded nine goals, 18 assists, and 27 points. This was after he had four goals and 18 points in 42 games for Laval during the 2024-25 season.
With numbers like these, Mesar has yet to have that big breakout year in the AHL. He has also still not made his NHL debut for Montreal. With that, things have been rocky with the first-round pick's development.
As a result of this, it is clear that the 2026-27 season is a big year for Mesar. The Canadiens prospect forward needs to take a serious step in the right direction with his development. This is especially so when noting that he is entering the final season of his entry-level contract.
With Mesar being 22 years old, there is still time for him to improve. However, if he continues to struggle in the AHL, it will only create more questions about his future with the Habs organization.
