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A win is a win, but when you’re the Atlanta Braves looking to break out of a scoring slump, you can’t help but look forward to a bit more.

Regardless, in a game filled with questionable calls and moments of minimum effort, the Braves managed to take a 4-2 win against the Milwaukee Brewers to close out their trip to Wisconsin.

The Braves put themselves on the board first with an RBI double from Mauricio Dubón, bringing Ozzie Albies home in the top of the second inning.

The Brewers answered back in the third with a run of their own off an RBI single, tying the contest at 1-1.

After adding another run in the fourth, it was a costly fielding error in the top of the sixth that helped the Braves pull away with a 3-1 lead. And that run ended up being much needed, because the Brewers went on to score in the bottom of the eighth, cutting into Atlanta’s lead just when it looked like the Braves might be all out of runs for the night.

But a homer from the leadoff man, Michael Harris II, sparked the Braves’ offense once again in the top of the ninth, giving Atlanta one final pull-away from its opponent and ending the night on a positive note. It was also his career-best 21st home run.

Tyler Mahle had a decent outing in his fourth appearance with Atlanta, finishing with 5.0 innings pitched, six hits allowed, one earned run, two walks and four strikeouts. His ERA dropped to 4.41.

Mahle has shown that he can be a considerably solid starter, but more importantly, a consistent one. Adding that to what the team has in Chris Sale, at least there’s a bright side to the Braves’ constant rotation scrutiny. While there are still plenty of questions surrounding the rotation, Mahle’s recent outings have given Atlanta something it needs: another starter it can rely on to give the team a chance.

Will it be enough to take on the Dodgers at Truist Park?

First, a much-needed break before the return home. But until then, let’s enjoy the win.

Box Score

With really good starts by Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson behind them already in this series, Brewers starter Shane Drohan had a lot to live up to. But not all low-scoring games are pitchers duels. This wasn’t an especially attractive game of baseball, but it was at least close until the end. Atlanta, however, playing to avoid a sweep, was just able to keep the Brewers at arm’s length all night and Milwaukee once again struggled with runners in scoring position.

With one out in the first, Drohan allowed his first baserunner on a free pass to Ronald Acuña Jr. But a couple pitches later, Drohan induced a double play from Matt Olson and he faced the minimum in the first. Tyler Mahle also faced the minimum in the first: he got three groundouts in a row from the top of the Brewers’ order, and we were off.

The first hit of the game came when Ozzie Albies hit a slow roller to short; Joey Ortiz took just a beat too long, and Albies beat the throw by a half a step. Drohan came back with a strikeout of Drake Baldwin, but Lane Thomas jumped on the first pitch he saw and knocked a solid single to center fielder Garrett Mitchell (while he was chatting with the broadcast team during the game). The Braves continued to barrel up Drohan, as Mauricio Dubón hit a ball just inside the right-field line that bounced over the fence for a ground-rule double, which scored the first run of the game.

A five-pitch walk to Austin Riley loaded the bases with one out and prompted a visit from Chris Hook, but from there Drohan buckled down. Sean Murphy popped out to Andrew Vaughn in foul territory for the second out, and Michael Harris II struck out to end the inning.

With one out in the bottom of the second, the Brewers got their first hit when Vaughn lined a single into left field. Christian Yelich then came up swinging at the first pitch and lined a single through the hole up the middle to make it back-to-back singles. A Joey Ortiz walk loaded the bases, and the Brewers had Mahle on the ropes. The batter was Mitchell, and with nowhere to put him, Mahle fell behind 3-0, but he was able to come back for a strikeout. Mahle fell behind Hamilton 3-0, too, but he was robbed of a hit and a couple RBI by a sliding Acuña to end the inning. It was about as far as a pitcher can bend without actually breaking, but Mahle was through two scoreless.

Drohan had a painful start to the third, as Acuña—who, I remind you, had just robbed the Brewers of a couple runs—lined a ball off of Drohan’s “backside” that deflected for an infield single. Olson, though, grounded into his second double play of the game—a beauty of a play by Hamilton, who was in a shift but ranged way over to his left to pick up Olson’s ground ball, stepped on the bag, and made a difficult throw to first for a 5-3 double play. After a bit of a battle, Albies went down swinging to end the inning.

Jackson Chourio hit a hard ground ball that Olson made a nice play on at first base to start the bottom of the third. Brice Turang picked up a one-out single, and William Contreras made nice contact but Albies made a nice play to get Contreras at first. The fielder’s choice advanced Turang to second though, which was big when Jake Bauers hit a line drive to right on the next pitch for a single that scored Turang ahead of Acuña’s throw. Vaughn struck out to end the inning, but Bauers’ RBI single had tied up the game at one.

With Rob Manfred in the booth (booooo), Baldwin got the Braves off to a good start in the fourth by hitting a double into the right-field gap. Thomas, who was next, picked up his second hit on a hard line drive to right; Baldwin held at third, but Atlanta was in business with runners on the corners and nobody out. Dubón helped Drohan out by popping out to shallow left on the first pitch he saw, and Riley struck out. Drohan was one batter away from getting out of it, and he induced a ground ball, but Hamilton slipped while fielding Murphy’s slow grounder and a run scored. Harris flew out to end the inning, but the Braves had restored their lead.

Yelich walked to start the bottom of the fourth, but Ortiz grounded into a double play to erase the baserunner. Mitchell squared to bunt, but a fastball got away from Mahle and Mitchell got plunked on his right wrist. He was clearly in pain. (Mitchell stayed in to run, but was later replaced in the field by Luis Lara; the word was a “right forearm contusion.”) Hamilton smoked a ball with two outs, but for the second time in the game he was robbed of a hit, this time by Albies, who snagged his 1o1 mph line drive for the third out.

Drohan walked Acuña to start the fifth, and he stole second with Olson at the plate. Drohan was able to strike out Olson, but with one out Albies snuck a single just over the glove of Ortiz and into left field. Acuña aggressively rounded third but got a late stop sign, and before he could get back to third, Contreras, who already had Chourio’s throw from left field, got him trying to get back to the base. Baldwin flew out, and the Brewers were through another scoreless inning.

Chourio grounded out for the third time in the game on the first pitch of the bottom of the fifth. Turang then struck out on three pitches, but Contreras extended the inning with a two-out single to center. Bauers, though, grounded out, and the Braves maintained their 2-1 lead.

Drohan was done after five innings; he wasn’t very good, but he managed to hold the Braves to two runs in five innings despite eight hits and three walks. There was a lengthy delay during Thomas’s at-bat to lead off the sixth; Contreras accidently put his foot on Thomas’s while new pitcher Grant Anderson was winding up, but the explanation given was that, since it happened before the pitch, it wasn’t catcher’s interference. After the delay, Thomas grounded out. Anderson walked Dubón with one out—his 30th walk, adding to his career high!—and Riley followed with a single to put runners on the corners. With Murphy batting, Riley stole second, perhaps trying to goad Contreras into a throw, but he held onto the ball while staring Thomas down.

Anderson got Murphy looking for the second out, and Pat Murphy went to play matchups by going to DL Hall to face Harris. Hall did his job and got a weak ground ball from Harris, but Vaughn—who needed to hustle with Hall covering first—misplayed the ball, Harris had an infield hit, and Thomas scored from third. Acuña flew out to left to end the inning, but the Braves had their lead up to 3-1.

The Brewers got a fortunate break in the bottom of the sixth. After Vaughn singled to right, Yelich hit what maybe should’ve been a 3-6-3 double play. But Vaughn did a good job getting in Olson’s throwing lane, and Olson’s throw to second bounced off of his head. Vaughn and Yelich were both safe, and the Brewers were in business with nobody out. That was also the end of Mahle’s day, as Walt Weiss went to his bullpen for righty Didier Fuentes.

Fuentes did exactly what the Braves needed. For the second tiem in the game, Ortiz grounded into a double play, and with Vaughn at third and two out, Lara, in his first at-bat, grounded out to end the inning. Hall had no trouble in the top of the seventh, and retired Atlanta’s 3-5 hitters in order.

After Hamilton flew out to left to start the bottom of the seventh, Chourio hit his fourth ground ball of the game, but this one was slow enough that he could beat it to first for an infield hit. After Turang popped out, Contreras lined another single to right, which gave Bauers a shot with two on and two out. He got a pretty good pitch to hit on 2-2 but swung under it, and the Braves held their 3-1 lead through seven complete.

Bryse Wilson replaced Hall in the eighth. Riley picked up his second hit on a two-out single, but Murphy lined out to end the inning. The Brewers, though, needed offense. Yelich did his part: with one out, he lined a double into the right-field gap off of the lefty Dylan Lee. Ortiz, though, continued his tough day with a strikeout, but Lara’s second at-bat was a beauty. On the ninth pitch of a lengthy battle, he lined one past Olson at first and into the right-field corner for a stand-up triple, which made it 3-2. The Brewers sent Gary Sánchez to the plate, which was countered by Weiss bringing on his closer, Raisel Iglesias, with two outs in the eighth to attempt a four-out save. Sánchez, in front of the Little Leaguers, hit a big-league pop-up for the third out, but the Brewers had halved the lead.

With the lead at one, Murphy went to Aaron Ashby rather than sending Wilson out for a second inning of work. He maybe should’ve stuck with Wilson; Ashby left an 0-2 slider too close to the zone and Harris knocked it out for his 21st home run of the season, restoring Atlanta’s two-run lead. Ashby recovered; Acuña grounded out, then the Brewers were almost harmed by tonight’s lack of ABS technology in Williamsport, as a perfect 0-2 pitch to Olson was called a ball. But a couple pitches later, Olson struck out on a 3-2 slider, and an Albies fly out ended the top of the ninth.

Milwaukee had the top of the order up in the bottom of the ninth. Chourio hit his fifth ground ball of the game up the middle for a solid single, and after a wild pitch in a 2-0 pitch advanced Chourio, and Turang walked a pitch later. Contreras then got into one and hit it deep to the right-field gap, but the ballpark held it—it would’ve been a homer in seven of the league’s ballparks, though American Family Field was not one of those seven. (Remember—this game would’ve been in Milwaukee if not for tonight’s festivities.)

In any case, a couple pitches later, Bauers, on a check swing, hit a weak comebacker to the mound that started a 1-6-3 double play to end the game. The Braves took game three of the series with a 4-2 victory.

This game, despite its low score, was a slog. Drohan and Mahle together allowed 19 baserunners in just ten combined innings, though only three of them scored; the bullpens settled things down a bit after that. The Brewers were bitten again by their lack of timely hitting; they were just 2-for-12 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11 runners on base. Only two of Milwaukee’s 11 hits went for extra bases (Yelich’s double and Lara’s triple, which came in succession in the eighth).

The Brewers get the day off tomorrow before starting a series with the Mets in New York on Tuesday evening.

The baseball world was slow to recognize the contributions of the greatest players in Colorado Rockies history. When Larry Walker was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame back in 2020, he did so on his 10th and final chance on his last ballot of eligibility. Four years later, Todd Helton got the call in his sixth year of eligibility.

For a variety of reasons and biases, national sportswriters took their time in granting the two legends their place in the game’s history.

The Rockies were quicker to honor Helton, retiring his number 17 in 2014, the season after his retirement. They were a little slower on the draw than they could have been with Walker, who retired in 2005 but didn’t have his jersey retired until 2021 alongside a celebration of his Hall of Fame induction.

Beyond the retired numbers, Rockies fans have long clamored for the club to do more to celebrate these greats around the ballpark. Finally, fans got their wish.

The Rockies announced plans this year to unveil statues of both Walker and Helton, with the first taking place today and the latter coming soon on September 19th.

Between the Hall of Fame inductions, the jersey retirements, and the statues, all of the celebrations are long overdue and beyond well-deserved for these two. Coors Field is already one of the best ballparks, but the new additions will make it even better.

There’s often discussion about where the line should be drawn around how many players are honored by a franchise and how that should be done. Some argue that teams retiring too many numbers can cause that recognition to lose some of its meaning.

I’ve always enjoyed the Denver Broncos approach to celebrating team legends. They’ve historically been selective in retiring numbers but have a robust Ring of Fame. They host meaningful celebrations for new inductees and honor all Ring of Famers by enshrining their names inside the stadium and building statues of each outside. While I don’t think a newer team like the Rockies can expect to have as many players celebrated as a historically rich team like the Broncos, I do think the model is a nice one.

So after this, what comes next for other great players in Colorado baseball history now that the Rockies built a new future for honoring the past with the Walker and Helton statues?

• What’s your threshold for who should get their number retired and/or receive a statue?
• Would you like to see the Rockies reserve those honors for only the players who make it into the MLB Hall of Fame? Or would you like to see the franchise recognize more of its own players where MLB won’t?
• With all of that, who should get the next statue outside of Coors Field? Charlie Blackmon? Some or all of the Blake Street Bombers? Matt Holliday? Nolan Arenado? Anyone else?

Give us your thoughts on memorializing Rockies legends below!

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Rangers 5, Angels 3

• Your Texas Rangers have won their fifth straight home series.
• And, thanks to the Houston Astros blowing a 6-0 lead against the Sacramento A’s, your Texas Rangers are in first place in the American League West.
• Yes, yes, its a tie in the West with Houston, and the Astros hold the tiebreaker so the Rangers are effectively a game back, but spare me all that nitpicking.
• At least for now.
• The Rangers also are tied for the third Wild Card spot with Cleveland. Texas does hold the tiebreaker advantage over the Guardians, having won 4 of 6 against them, so we have that going for us.
• The last time the Rangers lost a series at home was a month ago, when they lost two of three to the White Sox of Chicago, the very same team they are playing on the road starting Monday. I’m not sure if that’s an omen or not.
• I remain a Cal Quantrill skeptic.
• Nonetheless, he continues to exceed expectations.
• This is now five straight starts where Quantrill has given up 0 or 1 earned run.
• With six shutout innings in this start, Quantrill has now allowed one run in his last nineteen innings.
• He has lowered his ERA on the season to 2.90.
• I will note that Quantrill has a 4.01 FIP and 4.61 xFIP to go with the 2.90 ERA, which is why its not unreasonable to be skeptical about whether he can continue to do this.
• But it doesn’t change what has occurred so far.
• I will acknowledge that I got concerned in the eighth inning, when Peyton Gray allowed a homer to Zach Neto, and then Tyler Alexander allowed two more runs, bringing the tying run to the plate before Chase Silseth got the final out.
• I don’t mean to alarm anyone, but Peyton Gray is kinda trending in the wrong direction. He’s allowed three home runs in his last four outings, and five in his last 12 outings, after allowing just three in his first 33 appearances.
• I was also a bit concerned when Jacob Latz started the ninth by allowing Christian Moore to smoke a ball to the wall for a double, once again putting the tying run at the plate.
• It was fine, though, in part due to intentionally walking Mike Trout with two outs.
• Also, shoutout to Elias Diaz, whose success challenge on a 1-0 pitch to Moises Ballesteros, right after the intentional walk to Trout, turned a 2-0 count into a 1-1 count, ultimately leading to a game ending K of Ballesteros.
• Texas even managed to put some runs on the board, in a novel change from recent games.
• Ezequiel Duran, starting in center field as part of an effort to get some more offense going, allowing Cody Freeman and Justin Foscue to both start in the infield against a lefty and have the newly recalled Logan O’Hoppe start at DH, homered for the Rangers’ first run of the game in the second. Cody Freeman tripled home O’Hoppe later in the inning, and then scored on an Elias Diaz sac fly. Diaz added a home run in the fifth.
• Yes, your first place Texas Rangers were led by Duran, Freeman, Foscue, and Diaz today.
• To be fair, Corey Seager was 2 for 3 with in the game with a HBP, and Wyatt Langford was 2 for 3 with a walk, and Langford hit a double that put Seager on third so that he could score on a Brandon Nimmo sac fly for what was the final Ranger hit of the game.
• And, not to belabor the point or anything, but Seager and Langford getting their grooves on simultaneously would be a very fine thing indeed.
• Cal Quantrill topped out at 95.2 mph with his sinker, averaging 93.8 mph, and 94.3 mph with his fastball, averaging 93.4 mph. Peyton Gray hit 94.4 mph with his fastball. Tyler Alexander’s fastball hit 92.4 mph. Chase Silseth threw one sinker at 95.4 mph. Jacob Latz touched 95.3 mph with his fastball.
• Wyatt Langford had a 108.3 mph GIDP. Elias Diaz had a 106.3 mph sacrifice fly, a 106.1 mph fly out, and a 103.7 mph home run. Elias ate his Wheaties this morning. Cody Freeman had a 104.5 mph groundout. Brandon Nimmo had a 103.6 mph sacrifice fly. Corey Seager had a 100.6 mph single. Jake Burger had a 100.5 mph ground out. Logan O’Hoppe had a 100.4 mph single. Ezequiel Duran’s homer was 100.1 mph.
• Let’s be happy with the Rangers. At least for now.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs roasted the Toledo Mud Hens (Tigers), 4-2.

Braxton Garrett had his best start as a Cub, getting the win after tossing five shutout innings. Garrett allowed just two hits. He struck out seven and walked just one.

Eduarniel Nuñez had to bail out Jayden Murray in the eighth inning and then pitched the ninth to get the save. Nuñez’s final line was no runs on no hits over 1.1 innings. He did walk one batter while striking out one.

Right fielder Chase McCormick hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning, his 12th on the year. McCormick was 2 for 4 with a walk.

Matt Shaw played seven innings at shortstop today in a rehab assignment. Shaw was 1 for 3 with an RBI double and a walk. He also scored on McCormick’s home run.

Shaw’s RBI double.

The McCormick home run.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies let the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Marlins) get away, 4-3.

Starter Dawson Netz took the loss after he allowed three runs on three hits over three innings. One of those hits was a two-run home run. Netz walked two and struck out two.

Catcher Miguel Useche hit a solo home run in the fourth inning. It was Useche’s 11th home run this year and fifth with the Smokies. Useche went 1 for 4.

Third baseman Alex Madera was 3 for 4 with a stolen base. He scored once.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs calmed the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers), 3-2.

Anhuar Garcia pitched the first five innings and allowed just one run on three hits. The one run came on a fourth inning home run. Garcia struck out four and walked no one.

Noah Edders threw the next three innings, giving up one run on three hits. He struck out four and walked two.

Luis Rujano retired the side in order in the top of the ninth and got the win when South Bend walked it off. Rujano did not strike anyone out.

Shortstop Angel Cepeda singled home pinch hitter Jose Escobar in the bottom of the ninth to win the game. Cepeda was 2 for 5.

DH Josiah Hartshorn singled Escobar (who had walked) over to third before Cepeda’s walk-off single. Hartshorn went 1 for 3 with two walks and a stolen base.

Catcher Justin Stransky doubled and scored on a sac fly in the third inning. Stransky went 1 for 3 with a walk.

That’s all four hits South Bend had today. They were enough.

A nice 1-4-3 double play.

Ethan Conrad and Cepeda showing off their arms.

Cepeda’s walk-off.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were swept in a doubleheader by the Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Astros), 6-2 and 6-1.

Riely Hunsaker started game one and took the loss after surrendering four runs on three hits and two walks over 4+ innings. He struck out five and walked two.

Myrtle Beach had just two hits in game one. Catcher Jose Silva was 1 for 1 with two walks and one run scored.

Freddy Rodriguez started game two and took the loss after giving up two runs on four hits over five innings. Rodriguez struck out four and walked no one.

The Pelicans only had four hits in game two but one of them was a solo home run by right fielder Caden Sorrell. It was Sorrell’s second home run. He went 1 for 3.

Sorrell’s home run.

Despite losing 2-1 to the Chicago White Sox on Sunday afternoon in walk-off fashion for the second time in the series, the Mets had a couple of things worth celebrating during the series finale.

Kodai Senga takes next step as reliever

After pitching the ninth inning in Saturday’s 10-5 win, Senga was back on the mound on consecutive days for the first time in his career and although he allowed a game-ending home run in the process, he and the Mets can check off another box as the former starter continues to make the transition to the bullpen.

“For him it’s good to get that under the belt and to have done that,” said interim manager Andy Green. “... I think overall Senga’s got something done now that he hadn’t done and that’s good for us.”

In a 1-1 game and New York off on Monday, it seemed like the perfect time to introduce Senga to pitching in back-to-back games as he’ll have extra time to recover from the appearance. The hope is that the right-hander, who has fallen into the closer role, comes out of the experience feeling good and healthy so that he can possibly do it again this season and beyond.

In fact, Green is hardly concerned with the result of the outing and called it a “step forward” for Senga who has been solid as the team’s new closer during Devin Williams’ absence.

For his part, Senga was disappointed in the outcome but said he had “no big issues” being on the mound.

“I felt good today,” he said via an interpreter. “I had no doubts being out on the mound, believed that I could do it and it was partly my decision to go out there and say that I’m ready to pitch today.”

As for the results, a walk-off solo shot to Tristan Peters on a 3-1 fastball in the middle of the zone, it reminded Senga just how different closing a game is compared to starting, how intense a closer’s job is and how important it is to the success of a team.

“It’s kind of like a moment of realization that I’m in a position where the game could end potentially in one pitch with one swing of the bat,” he said. “Seeing the ball like that, it just kind of dawned on me that that’s the type of role that I’m playing right now.”

Nolan McLean becoming an ace

Before the White Sox walked it off against the Mets’ bullpen, McLean had shut them down for six scoreless innings while allowing just one hit. It was the rookie’s third consecutive start allowing one earned run or fewer and it lowered his ERA to 3.21.

Still, the outing wasn’t without its hiccups as the right-hander walked four and hit a batter, both for the second straight start. In fact, McLean had to work out of a two-out jam in the fourth inning after a single and two walks loaded the bases, which he did by striking out Andrew Benintendi – one of three strikeouts, all looking, in the frame.

Aside from that, McLean was in control all day and has easily been New York’s ace in his first full season in the big leagues.

“Just a really good mix today,” Green said. “Those are good hitters that have been swinging really well against us all series, having tough at-bats. I thought he was on the attack all day, mixed, it was hard, really unpredictable, hard to know what he was gonna do so I felt good about what he did today. Six strong innings.”

After running into some struggles in May that raised his ERA to as high as 4.40, McLean was able to put that behind him and has been dominant ever since, looking like the pitcher that burst onto the scene last year in eight starts as he tries to finish this season strong.

“I feel good. I wouldn’t say stronger or any better than I felt to start the season, it’s just every time I go out there I’m trying to learn and I’m hopefully doing a better job of that,” he said.

With 31 games remaining for the Mets this season, the rookie, who has pitched 148.2 innings in 26 starts, will likely have about five or six starts left and is “fairly confident” he won’t run into any possible fatigue that often shows up for pitchers setting career-highs in innings pitched.

“I think I’m still behind what I threw last year so I got some room to go to continue to grow and continue to build those innings up,” he said. “Ideally it’s 200 [innings] every single time, once you start a season your goal is to get to 200 innings.”

McLean won’t get to 200 innings this season but there’s no doubt that he’s trending in the right direction to get there soon and continue to be the ace for a talented Mets pitching staff for a long time.

In fact, McLean’s sights seem to only be set on helping his team win games and he isn’t worried about anything else when he’s on the mound like the Rookie of the Year award, even though he’s certainly in the running – one of two Mets rookies who are.

“My job is to go out there and try to put my team in the best position to win and overall if you control that good things tend to happen,” he said. “I think any competitor would like to win the award but I don’t pay too much attention.”

Meanwhile, McLean’s teammate, Carson Benge, added to his case for ROTY with another two-hit game on Sunday, including a double and a run scored. The outfielder went 6-for-13 in the series and is up to a .278 average at the plate with a .765 OPS as he continues to be on fire following a slow start to his career.

The worst pitching staff in baseball the last two months got blown out again. 

The Mariners lost 19-2 against the Cubs on Sunday. Bryce Miller pitched and was bad early and often, again failing to get through five. The relievers behind him were bad, too, eventually leading to Jhonny Pereda and Weston Wilson on the mound. There weren’t many positive takeaways from this one.

The game started out pretty fun, though. Randy Arozanea led off the first with a homer, after hitting two last night, including a spectacular walkoff. The Mariners were going for a sweep in this one, largely on the back of Arozarena’s play, so this felt like an auspicious start.

Things looked even better when Victor Robles injected a bit of chaos in the second. He drew a walk, stole second, and then stole third. The throw to try to get him was wide, and he came around to score on the play. This felt a lot like the version of Robles we haven’t seen since 2024. It was fun.

Miller for his part had cruised through the first two innings, a stranded walk his only blemish. Then came the third, which began with a 2-0 lead. Miller hung a curve to Michael Conforto, who snuck a weak, shallow homer over the fence to lead off. He seemed to move on, getting two quick outs. But then he completely lost the zone. Miller walked Seiya Suzuki, then Michael Busch, then Alex Bregman to load the bases. Up stepped Ian Happ, who went out of the zone to crush a well-located splitter off the foul pole in right.

Miller went back out to face the lineup for a third time in the fifth. He proceeded to walk the bases loaded before recording an out. He did eventually get a groundout, which scored a run to make it 6-2. But his day was done before getting through five. Six runs on two hits and seven walks.

“I just have to be more competitive,” he said after the game. “It’s felt like all of my walks in the last month or month and a half have scored, but when you have seven walks, I mean, what do you expect?  It’s super frustrating. Like I, I don’t feel like that team beat me at all. I gave it to them. You get that many free passes, that’s what happens.”

Miller said he’s at his best when he’s focused on attacking in the moment.

“I think the last month I’ve been kind of thinking ahead too much, and thinking of like, what do I need to do to this batter, the next batter, the next inning, to get out of this with a good line and keep us in it. That’s not what I do when I’m at my best. You know, it’s got to be this pitch, this moment, this at bat, one at bat at a time, one pitch at a time.”

It was another bad outing for Miller. He of course was the starter in the 22-0 clobbering earlier in the week, which proceeded much like this one. He struggled to get through five and ultimately couldn’t, leaving tons of outs to cover for the bullpen behind him. Miller was electric to begin the year but has an ERA over 7 since the beginning of July. Asked after the game if a switch to the bullpen might be in the future, Miller said, “No, that hasn’t been a thing.” Wilson was asked the same question: “We’re looking at all different options as we approach the end of the season here. We’re looking at everything. Obviously we want to keep our rotation intact,  but we’ll see how things shake down here in the next few days.”

The Mariners offense was pretty non existent after falling behind. They managed just one base runner from the fourth through eighth innings. Robles picked up another single in the ninth against the Cubs position-player pitcher, though that was all they managed.

The Cubs, of course, were using a position-player pitcher in the ninth because they were up 19-2 at that point. Michael Rucker took the mound in the eighth with the game at 7-2. I’ve largely defended Rucker this year, as he’s pitched pretty OK in comparison to a truly awful bullpen around him. In fact, he actually entered the day leading the staff in WAR since the All-Star break, as one of the few bright spots out of the pen. He did not pitch OK Sunday (perhaps because of the massive workload heaped onto him this week). He got two quick outs, then gave up a pair of singles to score a run and a homer to score two more. Then he gave up a single, a hit by pitch, and two walks to score another run. It was 11-2 when he handed the ball to catcher Jhonny Pereda to try to close out the inning. Pereda gave up a single to make it 12-2 then a grand slam to make it 16-2. Weston Wilson pitched the ninth and gave up three more runs.

It’s the second time this week the Mariners got beat so bad they had to essentially forfeit. The pitching staff has been truly awful in the second half of the season, far and away the worst pitching staff in the majors. They’re down to -0.7 since the All-Star break, nearly a full win worse than the Rockies. They begin a three-game series against the Phillies on Monday.

SEATTLE — Well, THAT felt better.

Ian Happ’s grand slam in the third inning gave the Cubs the lead and eventually they put together a 17-hit, nine-walk, 19-run pounding on the Mariners, winning 19-2 and salvaging the final game of the series.

Things did not start out that way. Randy Arozarena, who hit the crushing walk-off homer Saturday evening, led off this one with a long ball off Shōta Imanaga, another “you have got to be kidding me” moment.

Imanaga struggled through the first two innings, allowing another run on a throwing error by Carson Kelly, issuing a couple of walks and hitting a batter, and things just were not going well for him at all.

Fortunately, things didn’t go well for Mariners starter Bryce Miller, either, and the Cubs gave him a parting gift for his 28th birthday today. Michael Conforto led off the third with a home run [VIDEO].

Not only did that bring the Cubs within one, it also put Conforto back into a tie with Kyle Tucker. Both players have 11 home runs this year.

After Miller retired the next two Cubs, he walked the bases loaded, with Seiya Suzuki, Michael Busch and Alex Bregman all drawing bases on balls.

That brought up Happ [VIDEO].

That was Happ’s 22nd home run and the 195th of his career. Happ grand slam facts from BCB’s JohnW53:

Ian Happ’s grand slam was the Cubs’ . . .

Sixth of the season (one more than all of last year and as many as in 2024)
367th in the regular season since 1876
343rd since 1901
156th on the road since 1876
sixth by Happ; his previous one was their first of last season, on April 18 at home vs. the Diamondbacks)
…
Happ now is among five players tied for the fifth-most slams in team history. The others are Javier Baez, Kris Bryant, Derrek Lee and Aramis Ramirez.

Bill Nicholson, Sammy Sosa and Billy Williams hit eight. Ernie Banks hit 12.

Happ’s blast seemed to let the entire team and fanbase exhale after the two walk-off losses the last two days.

Imanaga, though, struggled in the third and after allowing hits to the first two Mariners he faced in that inning, he was removed for Aaron Civale, who retired the next three hitters without incident. About Imanaga’s brief outing, from John:

Shota Imanaga’s 2.0-plus innings pitched was the shortest of his 80 career starts as a Cub. He had been lifted after 3.0 innings twice: June 21, 2024, at home vs. the Mets (10 runs on 11 hits, including three homers), and July 25, 2025, at the White Sox (seven runs on seven hits, including three homers).

The game went 5-2 into the fifth, when Miller — who I was surprised was allowed to start that inning as he had thrown a ton of pitches — walked the bases loaded yet again, this time Pete Crow-Armstrong, Suzuki and Busch.

Bregman hit into a force play that made it 6-2 [VIDEO].

The Cubs might have scored more runs in that inning, as Happ was hit by a pitch to re-load the bases with one out. But Nico Hoerner hit into this weird double play, with a safe call at third overturned for the third out [VIDEO].

Civale breezed through a scoreless fourth and fifth and the Cubs put one more on the board in the sixth to make it 7-2. Pedro Ramirez led off with a single and took second on a single by Tyrone Taylor, who was batting for Conforto. Carson Kelly hit into a double play, moving Ramirez to third, where he scored on this infield grounder that PCA beat out for a hit [VIDEO].

Civale gave up a single in a scoreless sixth, the only baserunner he allowed in four solid innings of relief. Civale’s been really good for the Cubs in whatever role he’s been asked to perform, and those four innings were needed after Imanaga’s early departure.

The game went to the eighth still 7-2 and that’s when the Cubs put things way out of reach, and most of it was off old friend Michael Rucker — and all the runs scored after two were out.

Nico led off with a single and was forced at second by Ramirez. After Taylor struck out, Kelly blooped a ball into short left and when the Mariners were slow to play the ball, Ramirez scored all the way from first [VIDEO].

That made it 8-2 and Kelly took second. That wound up not really mattering when PCA smashed his 33rd home run of the year [VIDEO].

Now it’s 10-2 and the Cubs are not anywhere close to being done. Suzuki singled, Busch was hit by a pitch and Bregman walked. This is the third time the Cubs have had the bases loaded in this game, and Happ came to the plate with a chance for a second slam. It didn’t happen, but he did walk to force in run number 11 [VIDEO].

With the bases still loaded and the Cubs up by nine, Craig Counsell sent Gabriel Arias to the plate to bat for Hoerner, facing position player Jhonny Pereda for the Mariners. Arias singled in run number 12 [VIDEO].

That left the bases loaded for Ramirez — batting right-handed! [VIDEO]

Grand slam fact from John:

The Cubs had hit two grand slams in a game only three times before today:

Aug. 16, 1890 vs. the Pirates: Tom Burns and Malachi Kittridge
June 3, 1987 vs. the Astros: Brian Dayett and Keith Moreland
Sept. 5, 2021 vs. the Pirates: Matt Duffy and Frank Schwindel

So this is the first time they have done it outside Chicago — in their 9,789th road game.

And about that nine-run eighth, from John:

The nine-run eighth inning was the Cubs’ biggest of the season. They scored eight in their 23-3 pummeling of the Padres at home on July 1. They also had one eight-run outburst last year.

Caleb Thielbar threw a 1-2-3 eighth for the Cubs and then the Mariners’ second position player pitcher of the game, Weston Wilson, moved from third base to the mound.

That gave the Cubs a chance to pour it on. Kevin Alcántara, who had replaced PCA in center, led off with a sing.e Suzuki and Busch also singled to load the bases yet again. A sac fly by Bregman made i1 17-2 [VIDEO].

Happ followed with a single, re-loading the bases. A fielder’s choice by Arias made it 18-2 and Ramirez followed with a single, completing the Cubs scoring for the afternoon.

With the Cubs up by 17, Kelly was sent to the mound for the ninth. He allowed a one-out single but got out of the inning scoreless. Here’s the final out, a nice throw by Arias to Busch [VIDEO].

A note about Kelly’s mound outing:

More fun facts on this laugher from John:

The nine-run eighth inning was the Cubs’ biggest of the season. They scored eight in their 23-3 pummeling of the Padres at home on July 1. They also had one eight-run outburst last year.
…..
This was the 18th game of the season in which the Cubs have scored at least 10 runs. They began the day one ahead of the Nationals and two ahead of the Dodgers.

The Cubs had 22 double-digit games last year, after having had only 12 in 2024. They had 24 in 2023 after just six in 2022.The nine-run eighth inning was the Cubs’ biggest of the season. They scored eight in their 23-3 pummeling of the Padres at home on July 1. They also had one eight-run outburst last year.

Loved my time in Seattle, a great city with lots to see and tons of good restaurants. Would have been nice to have two wins instead of one, but this game eases the sting of those walk-off defeats, a little, at least.

The Cubs remain two games ahead of the Phillies, who also won Sunday, for the first wild card spot. At this writing the Brewers and Braves are playing in the Little League Classic and the Brewers trail, for whatever that’s worth.

The flight to Phoenix for the Cubs will undoubtedly be a happy one after this blowout. They’ll open a three-game series against the Diamondbacks at Chase Field Monday evening. Kevin Gausman will start for the Cubs and Merrill Kelly goes for Arizona. Game time Monday is 8:40 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network.

After Sunday's 8-3 win over the Toronto Blue Jays, Cody Bellinger's return and Carlos Rodón's second start back were chief among the Yankees' top developments. Here are some highlights of what Bellinger, Rodón and Aaron Boone said following New York's three-game series victory.

Bellinger's first game back

Playing for the first time since July 25 when he suffered his left hamstring strain and one day later went on the 10-day injured list, Bellinger emerged healthy.

"I felt really good," Bellinger said. "Honestly, I felt like 100 percent. Running after those balls and on the bases, I felt really good."

Bellinger's 1-for-4 afternoon at Yankee Stadium saw him rebound from an 0-for-3, two-strikeout start with a leadoff single in the seventh inning.

"OK -- I think he was expanding a bit early on in his first couple, and then he got into a 3-1 count against a tough lefty to square it up against and smokes the ball up the middle," Boone said. "So, that was good to see ... a good way for him to kind of finish in his first game back after it felt like he expanded the zone more than he wanted to, got himself into a good count and was able to sting one against a tough lefty there at the end."

Three at-bats later, Jazz Chisholm Jr.'s two-out home run to right field scored Bellinger and padded New York's 7-2 lead against Toronto (64-68).

"I felt all right," Bellinger said. "I felt like I was a little jumpy early on, and in that fourth at-bat I was able to settle down a little bit. It's obviously nice to get some results in the first and obviously to get the win as well."

Through 103 games this season, Bellinger is slashing .259/.349/.418 with 11 home runs and 53 RBI.

He gets Monday off before the Yankees (74-56) begin a three-game series against the Houston Astros with Tuesday's 7:05 p.m. opener in the Bronx.

Rodón's room for improvement

Building upon last Tuesday's 3-1 win at the Baltimore Orioles, in which he threw 39 strikes on 66 pitches over four innings, Rodón again went four frames Sunday.

His second start back from an IL stint that sidelined him from the Yankees since June 28 due to left elbow inflammation was a 76-pitch, 42-strike outing with two runs (one earned) one two hits while striking out two and walking two.

"It's good," Rodón said. "Obviously, there's some things I want to refine and obviously be in the zone a little more -- crisper with strikes and just attacking and getting ahead. So, there's things I can work on."

Rodón is in line to start Saturday's 1:05 p.m. game against the Boston Red Sox, a four-game series that stretches from Friday through Monday at Yankee Stadium.

"Obviously, hopefully, totally built up," Boone said of Rodón's ramp-up period. "I think he's in a really good place. I think his stuff, physically, is where it needs to be -- and, hopefully, he just continues to get a little bit sharper as he does build up here and expect him to be a key contributor in our rotation moving forward and what we hope is beyond the regular season."

In the early 90s, I was a freshman at a college in L.A., and I’d struck up a kind of dating / friendship thing with a very out-of-my-league lady; much my superior in looks, decency, and maturity. It wasn’t destined to last and it didn’t.

I did spend some time at her parents’ house, in the San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe. One weekend — maybe over Thanksgiving? I don’t remember — her grandparents were visiting, too. The grandparents were very rich old Southern types who grumbled over all the troublemakers in labor unions and such.

After dinner, we retired to the veranda / back porch / deck, and Gramps was getting comfortably sloshed on mint juleps. It was a pleasant evening to watch the daylight fade and the stars begin to appear. At one point, there was a light moving in the distance, and Gramps said, “I do declare I believe that to be one of those there U.F.O.s.” Others suggested an airplane or weather balloon, yet Gramps wasn’t having none of it. “Nope, no sir, that there is most assuredly a U.F.O.” He wasn’t terrified or angry, it was just like saying what he wanted for dessert. We let him have the point.

Later that evening, I watched a movie with my lady friend. What was it? Close Encounters, of course. (She didn’t like it.)

A few years after I left that college (I’ve left a few), there was an awful mass suicide event by members of the “Heaven’s Gate” cult, who believed that via dying, the aliens would come collect their souls for the afterlife. Where were their mortal remains found? In that very same San Diego suburb of Rancho Santa Fe.

And, of course, the most well-known comic book / sci-fi / fantasy convention is the San Diego Comic-Con.

So I don’t think the Twins lost this game because the Padres are simply a better baseball team. I think the Twins lost because of interference by the Aliens.

The game was scoreless in the 3rd when Fernando Tatis, Jr. hit a 396-foot solo homer, which accomplished two purposes; it gave his team the lead, and signaled to the Padres’ astral buddies that the team was requesting some assistance.

Now, the hyper-powerful beings from Planet Beeblebrox have mastered transwarp drive, but even so, they can’t just show up immediately. They’ve gotta gas up, finish hovering the dog, etc. So it took them a while to arrive, during which time Brooks Lee was able to tie it up with a dinger of his own. (One of four hits the Twins got off Padres starter Walker Buehler.)

When the Twins hit homers to tie the game, it doesn’t signal any extraterrestrial helpers; it signals the Twins pitchers that they can relax and let the other team threaten to take the lead right back. Which is precisely what starter Bailey Ober proceeded to do, giving up one-out singles to Tatis Jr. and Jake Cronenworth. (By the way, the cinematographer on Blade Runner was Jordan Cronenweth.) Happily, Ober got one of his three strikeouts today by whiffing Manny Machado, and Ty France got revenge on his former team via flying out to end the inning.

The cloaked spacecraft arrived during the sixth inning, first causing Kaelen Culpepper to botch a routine grounder. E.T.s can’t prevent baserunning gaffes, though, and Kody Funderburk picked Jackson Merrill off. Other Kody (Clemens) almost failed to get the tag down in time, and Merrill was originally called safe; the call was overturned on review.

Then Xanax the Merciless leveled his potent Mind Control beam at the pitching mound. First, the Percepto Ray causd Funderburk to imagine that the hitters were all ten feet tall; he walked two batters, the second on four pitches. Derek Shelton brought Jeff Hoffman to replace the obviously hypnotized Funderburk.

With Hoffman, the space invaders switched tactics; they’d forgotten to charge up the Percepto Ray battery before leaving, and it only had enough juice left to make Hoffman walk the next hitter. Needing new tactics, Xanax fired up the Esteeminator beam. A voice went into Hoffman’s head. It said, “you’re not as intimidating as Trevor Hoffman in a Padres uniform. You’re not even as intimidating as Dustin Hoffman in Hook.” Seeds of doubt planted, Hoffman put a slider right over the middle and Luis Rengifro punished it; two runners scored.

Then the voice told Hoffman, “you don’t want to make the wildcard round, anyways. That’s extra work. You don’t want extra work. You’ve already worked hard enough.” Hoffman thought, “dang straight!” and invited Tatis Jr. to knock in two more.

Since you can count, you’ll realize that this only amounts to a 5-1 score, and the final score was worse than that. Well, by this point, the aliens had seen all the gambling ads at Petco, so they decided to win a few memecoins by messing with Travis Adams and Taylor Rogers, too. You want clips? Here’s where the clips are. Tatis Jr. hit another moonshot, by the way, don’t you wish the Twins had had a guy that good in the last 10 years? Me too.

The sweep leaves the Twins 2.0 games out of the final wildcard spot. Three teams are ahead of them, and one of those — the Blue Jays — won’t be facing an opponent with a winning record the rest of the season. The sweep is also the first time the Twins have been swept by San Diego before, per gintzer.

Comments of the game go to artistformerlyknownasgoose for “We’re stuck in a simulation that’s glitching out” and sandwiches for “‘Atteberry: “The middle innings have not been kind to the Twins.” Dude, almost no inning has been kind to the Twins.”’ Sorry I couldn’t help with the thread folks, I had to cook squash. Is squash boring? Yes. But it protects you from mind control rays.

The Twins fly to Sacramento (I still can’t believe I’m typing that phrase) for an 8:40 start tomorrow, featuring LHP Jeffrey Springs against our own Daniel Zebulon Matthews. By Grabthar’s hammer, this sweep shall be avenged.

Live long and klaatu barada nikto.

Astros fans, after what can only be described as a disastrous homestand, it may be time to start thinking about something much bigger than whether this team can somehow find a way into the playoffs this season.

It’s time to start thinking about the state of the Houston Astros.

Not just for the remainder of this season, but for next year and beyond.

There is an old belief in professional sports that the worst thing a franchise can be is average. If you’re really bad, you’re going to get high draft picks and opportunities to replenish your farm system with elite young talent. You can trade veteran players for prospects, create financial flexibility and potentially accelerate a rebuild.

When you’re really good, the benefits are obvious. Free agents want to play for you. Players with no-trade clauses are more likely to approve deals to join you. It’s easier to convince ownership to spend money at the trade deadline because you’re adding a piece or two to a legitimate championship contender.

But being stuck in the middle?

That’s where things get dangerous.

Houston Rockets fans should be very familiar with that territory. For years, the Rockets found themselves good enough to avoid completely bottoming out but not good enough to seriously contend for a championship.

That’s the situation the Astros have to be careful about falling into now.

Playing around .500 and flirting with a Wild Card spot can create the illusion that you’re closer than you really are. The same can be said for playing in a division where nobody has completely separated themselves from the pack. You look at the standings and convince yourself that if you can just get hot for a couple of weeks, you’re right back in it.

Maybe you are.

But then what?

More often than not, a mediocre team either misses the postseason altogether or sneaks into October and gets eliminated quickly, which is exactly what happened to Houston two seasons ago when the Tigers knocked the Astros out in the Wild Card round. Last season, the Astros missed the postseason entirely on the back of a tiebreaker.

That’s why Jim Crane has some incredibly difficult decisions coming.

And they go far beyond simply deciding the futures of General Manager Dana Brown and Manager Joe Espada.

Those decisions will obviously receive much of the attention, but Crane has to answer a much bigger question:

What exactly are the Houston Astros now?

Are they still a legitimate World Series contender that needs a couple of significant additions?

Or are they an aging team whose championship window is rapidly closing and needs to begin thinking about its next era?

Those are two completely different paths, and the worst thing the organization can do is refuse to choose one.

If Crane believes this core still has another legitimate World Series run in it, then go for it.

Really go for it.

That means accepting that maintaining a championship-caliber roster requires taking risks. It means making aggressive trades. It means being willing to commit significant money in free agency. It may even mean overpaying a player or two because that’s sometimes the cost of filling holes when you’re trying to win immediately.

The Astros have historically been reluctant to make those kinds of long-term financial commitments, and there are understandable reasons for that.

We’ve seen what happens when those moves go wrong.

The Jose Abreu contract is the most obvious recent example. Crane and the Astros spent significant money trying to fill a major need, and it simply didn’t work. There have been other moves that haven’t produced the expected return, so nobody should blame Crane for being apprehensive about throwing huge amounts of money at another free agent.

But if you’re going to keep telling everyone the championship window is open, eventually you have to make moves that reflect that philosophy.

Crane has repeatedly maintained that as long as he owns the Astros, the window to compete for a World Series championship will remain open.

That’s exactly what Astros fans want to hear.

The problem is that the results of the last several seasons suggest Houston is moving further away from another championship rather than closer to one.

That’s where this becomes uncomfortable.

At some point, an organization has to distinguish between believing in its championship culture and trying to recreate something that no longer exists.

Nobody wants the greatest era of Astros baseball to end.

This franchise went from being an organization that couldn’t get over the hump to becoming one of the standards of Major League Baseball. World Series appearances became almost expected. Playing deep into October became normal. Winning the AL West wasn’t the goal anymore—it was simply the first step toward the real goal.

That’s an incredible legacy, and everyone involved deserves credit for it.

But that success can’t become the reason the organization refuses to acknowledge when it’s time to change direction.

If this season ends up looking a whole lot like last season, Crane has to seriously evaluate whether continuing to patch holes and chase one more playoff run is actually helping the franchise or simply delaying an inevitable transition.

Because there is another option.

Press reset.

That doesn’t necessarily mean tearing everything down and accepting five years of 100-loss baseball. It doesn’t have to mean a complete rebuild.

It could mean making difficult decisions on veteran players while they still have trade value. It could mean prioritizing young talent and rebuilding organizational depth. It could mean creating payroll flexibility so that when the next Astros core begins to emerge, the franchise has the resources to surround it with established talent.

Most importantly, it would mean having a direction.

That’s what Astros fans should be thinking about as they watch the remainder of this season.

Not simply, “Can they still win the division?”

Not simply, “Can they grab a Wild Card?”

Ask the bigger question:

If they do, are they actually good enough to do anything once they get there?

Because if the answer is no, then Houston may be approaching a crossroads that Crane and this organization can no longer avoid.

Either believe this team can still contend and make the aggressive moves necessary to give it a legitimate chance to win another World Series, or acknowledge that this incredible run is nearing its conclusion and start building the foundation for the next one.

Just don’t get caught in the middle.

In professional sports, that’s often the hardest place to escape.

So what do you want them to do, Astros fans?

Take another big swing and try to extend the Golden Era one more time?

Or, if this season ends the way last season did, accept that this may be as good as it gets with the current group and begin figuring out how to build the next great Astros team?

Jim Crane may soon have to make that choice.

And it could be the most important decision he’s made since buying the Houston Astros.

I have to admit, I was dupped, dead wrong, lured in by ghosts of seasons past along 501 Crawford Street.   On the heels of taking the series in San Francisco, I told anyone who would listen that the Astros would “pad their lead” during the upcoming 9 game homestand against the likes of the Mariners, Angels and A’s.   Instead of winning each of those series, they dropped each of those series.   The most devastating loss occurring Sunday afternoon. A’s 7.    Astros 6.

With the loss, the Astros have now dipped below the .500 mark, sitting at 65-66.    

Things started off promising enough.    In the first, Jeremy Pena and Yordan Alvarez started things with back-to-back singles.     Isaac Parades would bring home Pena on a deep sac fly to score the game’s first run.    Jose Altuve then came up and cleared the bases with a two-run HR.    It was 3-0.    

The Astros would increase their lead further the very next inning.    Cam Smith, Yordan Alvarez and Isaac Paredes each drew walks loading the bases.    Parades walk was generated by a pitch clock violation of all things.    Then Altuve followed suit and walked as well for good measure which brought in Cam Smith.  After two innings of baseball, it was 4-0.  

In the bottom of the fourth, Isaac Paredes homered to left field, with Pena on base from a throwing error, and that 2 run blast made things 6-0.     From there the unthinkable happened.    

Cristian Javier was rolling through 4 innings, striking out 8.     Then the roof caved in during the 5th.  Donovan Walton led off the frame with a single, Darell Harnaiz walked and then Brian Serven would serve us a 3-run home run.    That sequence gave the A’s life and chased Cristian Javier from the game in favor of Enyel De Los Santos. 

Henry Bolte would then single, Zach Gelof would reach on a hit pitch, and Lawrence Butler would get in on the act with an RBI Double.     The bleeding wouldn’t stop.    Tommy White singled to shallow right and two more runs would cross the plate, chasing De Los Santon for Kai-Wei Teng.    Just like that, the ballgame was tied 6-6.

Javier’s final line was 4 IP, with 3 ER and 4 hits, a pair of walks and the aforementioned 8 K’s.    De Los Santos was charged with 3 ER on 3 H in 0.1 IP.

From that moment on, the Astros would once again call upon their bullpen to attempt to save the day as they’ve done so often.    Today Steven Okert, who has been among the most reliable Astros pitchers all season, couldn’t hold the line. He would surrender a solo HR to Max Muncy to give the A’s a 7-6 lead they would not relinquish.

Josh Hader did come on in the 9th and struck out a pair in a perfect 9th, but one questions “why” Hader continues to pitch in games in which the Astros are losing late.      

Hogan Harris came in to record his 13th save of the year for the A’s.   

Odds & Ends

Yordan Alvarez officially passed Jeff Bagwell with his 28th intentional walk of the season.   He was intentionally walked three times on Sunday.    

Omar Lopez managed Sunday’s contest in Joe Espada’s absence due to a family emergency.

The Astros now travel to New York for a 6-game stretch against the Yankees and Mets.    The Yankees have named Will Warren as their game one starter for Tuesday Night.