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Happy Monday, all. How are we faring after last night’s split?

The National League Division Series has had its fair share of drama. While we were hand-wringing about Chris Sale and the prospect of a bullpen game (where we need not have worried, because Ray Kerr is a hero?), Brewers/Padres has been unreal. A potential game-tying home run in Game 1 foiled by… the closed roof (but maybe not, as the analytics say it only would’ve been a homer in Houston).

And a two-out, two-strike, two-RBI walkoff single off Mason Miller to bring the series back to San Diego with the Friars down 0-2. Gut punches, for sure. There truly isn’t anything like postseason baseball stress.

The AL is back in action tonight with the White Sox up 1-0 over the Cleveland Guardians. The Rays one-hit the Yankees and only needed a Jonathan Aranda home run to take their lead in the series.

I will leave you with this interview Brent Suter did with former Brave Kevin Pillar and co-host Cody Allen. He chats about the team, the “ace of all aces” in Chris Sale, how underratedness of Matt Olson, and much more.

The comments are yours. Have at it!

Aaron Boone is sure Cam Schlittler is built for moments like getting the start against the Rays in the ALDS.

During his conversation with the media ahead of Game 2 on Monday, the Yankees’ skipper responded to comments about Schlittler’s confidence when the lights are brightest. The Division Series was a bit bumpier for him in 2025 than the Wild Card Series showdown with Boston, so he’ll look to put that behind him. The 25-year-old righty will be making his second career ALDS start and will look to continue his current postseason hot streak as New York faces Tampa Bay.

“You never know a result is going to be in a given game, but he’s certainly equipped to handle it,” Boone stated. “He’s got a ton of confidence and is fearless in these spots.”

During his previous postseason outing, Schlittler barred the Red Sox offense from gaining an edge in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, throwing six and a third scoreless innings and racking up 10 strikeouts. It’s no surprise that he showed up and shelled out, following the discourse behind his rivalry with New England fans and media outlets.

The Yankees will have the opportunity to head back to the Bronx, with hopes of a split series, and have Max Fried take the mound for the Game 3 start against Tampa Bay. Boone also announced that Carlos Rodón would get the nod in a possible Game 4 at Yankee Stadium, which New York would very much like to force tonight rather than waiting until Wednesday.

You won’t want to miss a second of Schlittler’s outing as the Yankees face off against the Rays in Game 2 of the Division Series Monday at 8 p.m. EST.

Cam Schlittler will look to continue his hot streak in the postseason as he prepares to take the mound for Game 2, with a Yankees lineup that will battle Freddy Peralta to even up the Division Series.

After a disappointing Game 1 performance in the Trop, the Yankees offense will attempt to even the score before heading back to the Bronx for the third meeting in this best-of-five series. Schlittler, who had a dominant performance in the first meeting of the Wild Card Series against Boston, is poised to be efficient from the bump and keep the Rays’ offense at bay with a lights out performance.

Let’s get into the Yankees lineup. Boone decided to leave it unchanged from Game 1, with Ben Rice in the leadoff spot as DH, followed by Cody Bellinger at left field and Luis García Jr. in the hole, starting at first.

Spencer Jones, who struck out twice in the ALDS opener, will take the cleanup spot and start at right field over Heliot Ramos.

Here’s the question that lingers in my mind: Has Trent Grisham made enough of an impact to keep starting at center field? Spencer Jones, one of the youngest presences on the Yankees’ postseason roster, has put forth competitive at-bats while also playing the field efficiently. Is it the better move to put Jones in center field and play Heliot Ramos at right field? Boone experimented with this in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series, and although Ramos struggled offensively, Jones tallied a hit and brought in two runs. Putting Grisham at right field and keeping Jones at center is also an option worth considering. Grisham was effective offensively in the Wild Card Series, getting the start in Game 2 against Boston, but struggled defensively as he was too slow to chase down a shallow fly from Red Sox fielder Nate Eaton.

Keeping the middle of the order unchanged with Jazz Chisholm Jr. at second, George Lombard Jr. at shortstop, and Grisham at center will hopefully work out better for the Yankees this time against Peralta. It would be hard for them to do much worse than they did against Drew Rasmussen two night sago.

Although his decision-making ultimately cost the Yankees a shot at evening the score on Saturday night, Austin Wells remains the starting catcher, the only player to record a hit against Rasmussen, and Ryan McMahon will make the start at third.

It would also be nice to see Giancarlo Stanton in a pinch hitting position against either Peralta or one of the Rays’ relievers, giving him a chance to add to his extensive postseason legend.

Here’s a look at the Rays’ starting lineup, which also remains unchanged from Game 1.

If the Pinstripes can get the win on the road, the path to the ALCS will be much clearer as they return to the Bronx. Hopefully, it will give the Yankees enough momentum to shut down the Rays and make their first return to the Championship Series since 2024.

The Seattle Mariners announced Monday that both Cal Raleigh and Josh Naylor have undergone surgery to address nagging injuries that impacted them throughout the 2026 season. Both players are expected to be fully healthy and ready for the start of Spring Training.

Raleigh underwent surgery on his left (non-throwing) shoulder for debridement of his AC joint. The injury was just another ding on Raleigh’s disappointing 2026, which saw him make his first trip to the injured list for an oblique strain he’d attempted to labor through. Raleigh looked far better in the season’s second half, mustering a 120 wRC+ after a dismal 72 during the first half, so this seems to have been a more genuinely manageable ailment than the oblique issue in the early parts of the year. While foreknowledge of the shoulder trouble was not known, it may have played a role in some of Raleigh’s defensive difficulties in 2026, and hopefully a winter of proper rest will see the Big Dumper back in better stead.

For Naylor, the surgery was TFCC (triangular fibrocartilage complex repair) on his right (non-throwing) wrist, which the Mayo Clinic describes as “minimally invasive” and carrying a recovery timeframe of at least 1-2 months before returning to normal activity and utilization. The wrist issue was more well-known from an early point in the year, and impacted Naylor obviously in his swing and approach at the plate. Adopting a more slap-hitting style and hitting the final two of his 10 home runs on August 8th, Naylor attempted to compensate with his knack for base stealing and improved glovework at first base, but still failed to meet the mark in his first full year with the M’s.

Both players managed 95 wRC+ on the year, down 15-25 points from their career lines as comfortably above-average bats, and Seattle will need them to return to those lines for next year to offer a proper bounce back to form.

Yesterday’s action in the NL saw the Braves pull even with the reigning champion Dodgers and the Brewers take a comanding 2-0 lead over Manny Machado and the and Padres. Today, we shift back to the AL, with the White Sox and Rays looking to extend their series leads.

From a former Orioles perspective, neither the White Sox nor Guardians have any former O’s in the lineup. Cleveland was the organization that gave us current manager Craig Albernaz, so let that sway your rooting as it may. In the nightcap, the Rays are a pretty easy root for against the Yankees. As is well documented, Tampa is littered with former O’s like Cedric Mullins, Jorge Mateo, Brian Baker and Tyler Wells—though neither of the position players get the start tonight.

Chicago White Sox at Cleveland Guardians, Game 2, 5pm ET

Probable pitchers: LHP Anthony Kay (10-9, 4.44 ERA) vs. RHP Gavin Williams (14-8, 3.76 ERA)

Where to watch: TBS/HBO Max

The White Sox won Game 1 behind a two-run, left-on-left home run from Munetaka Murakami against Guardians All-Star Parker Messick. Perhaps the win will give Chicago confidence to complete the upset. Perhaps its a sign that the regular season is repeating itself, as the White Sox went 1-2 in Cleveland during both road trips to Progressive Field this year.

The Guardians’ 26-year-old right-hander Gavin Williams will look to lead Cleveland to a tied series between the AL Central rivals. Williams made four starts against the White Sox this year, posting a 3.98 ERA across 20.1 IP while striking out 28—though the Guardians only went 1-3 in those games. Opposing Williams is 31-year-old lefty Anthony Kay. In his first season back in the big leagues after spending two years in Japan, Kay only faced the Guardians once, posting a line of 6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB and 4 Ks in a 9-5 White Sox win.

New York Yankees at Tampa Bay Rays, Game 2, 8pm ET

Probable pitchers: RHP Cam Schlittler (14-6, 1.95 ERA) vs. RHP Freddy Peralta (10-11, 4.42 ERA)

Where to watch: TBS/HBO Max

After almost being not hit by Drew Rasmussen in Game 1, the Yankees will turn to presumptive AL Cy Young winner Cam Schlittler to try to keep their season alive. Schlittler faced the Rays twice in Tropicana Field this season; the first time he delivered one of his “poorer” starts of the season, allowing 3 runs over 5 innings while punching out 8 in a 5-4 Rays win. The next time, at the beginning of July, Schlittler was his usually dominant self—tossing 8 innings of one-run ball with another 8 Ks in a 5-1 Yankees win.

The future Cy Young winner will be opposed by trade deadline acquisition Freddy Peralta. After struggling to a 4.99 ERA across 22 starts with the Mets, Peralta has looked like a different pitcher since heading south to Tampa. In 10 starts for the Rays, the 2x All-Star has a 3.25 ERA with 43 Ks in 55.1 innings. He was even better across the month of September, pitching to a 0.96 ERA over 28 innings last month. Peralta faced the Yankees only once this season, posting a line of 5 IP, 2 H, 3 ER, 6 BB and 4 Ks back in May with the Mets. The longtime former Brewer has a 1.69 ERA and .116 average against in the Trop this year.

Probably safe to say that both results in the National League Division Series went in the way most readers of the SnakePit wanted, with the Padres and Dodgers both losing. The NL gets a travel day today, as the series relocate to San Diego and Atlanta respectively, before resuming on Wednesday. So, today, it’s the American League’s time to shine, with the Rays and White Sox both seeking to build on their victories in Game #1. The latter was probably more of a shock, but Chicago appear so far to be taking inspiration from the 2023 D-backs. They are currently 3-0 in the post-season, all their games on the road and against teams with more wins in the regular season. Maybe it’s a papal thing?

Here are the games on order today

• Chicago White Sox @ Cleveland Guardians 2:00 pm (1-0), TBS
• New York Yankees @ Tampa Bay Rays 5:00 pm (0-1), TBS

LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers are now in Atlanta in what his whittled to a best-of-3 National League Division Series, with the Braves suddenly in the driver’s seat as the home team on Tuesday and Wednesday.

The Dodgers starting rotation is their biggest advantage, which is one reason Sunday night was so frustrating. Blake Snell was up against a bullpen game, but flung the Dodgers into their own relief parade with a slog of a start, wading through the muck with five walks and 90 pitched in only 3 2/3 innings. That was undoubtedly bad, but also the Dodgers as a team only allowed three runs in Game 2, the same as they allowed in Game 1’s win.

That’s a winnable game, but the offense wasn’t up to the task, facing a slew of Atlanta relievers with standout performances over the two days.

Prior to Game 1, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts was asked how the Dodgers could capitalize on facing a slew of Braves relievers instead of starting pitchers.

“The advantage for us is we have an opportunity to not let their pitching staff come up for air, and how do you do that? You have to exhaust the starter. You have to get in their pen, and you have to have them deploy arms as soon as possible and get that carousel going and continue to beat starters. Then you can suffocate them,” Roberts said Friday. “We have an opportunity to really expose them if we take the right at-bats and the right approach.”

Atlanta used bullpen games in each of the first two games but the Dodgers haven’t faced any of the 10 Braves pitchers in more than one appearance yet, so the exposure hasn’t yet materialized. But they did get shut down by three different Braves pitchers over extended stretches on Saturday and Sunday.

Let-hander Dylan Dodd pitched three scoreless innings to start Game 1, and struck out four of his 11 batters faced. Dodd totaled 49 2/3 innings in his 48 appearances this season, and the three innings matched his career high, also done on April 12 and May 23.

Ray Kerr, another left-hander, has impressed mightily since returning to the Braves in August, after missing over two years following Tommy John surgery. Kerr got 10 outs to start Atlanta’s wild card closeout win over the Phillies on Thursday, then followed up with 2 2/3 innings to start Game 2 against the Dodgers. Kerr left with two runners on base in the third inning, but Will Smith followed with a first-pitch groundout against Grant Holmes to end the inning, part of the Dodgers’ 0-for-8 performance with runners in scoring position.

None of those runners in scoring position came against Didier Fuentes, who retired 11 Dodgers in a row before Max Muncy homered against him with two outs in the ninth inning, pulling the Dodgers to within a run. They did not bring across the equalizer.

The only exposure the Dodgers got were within the same game of these bulk outings, as Dodd and Kerr each faced 11 batters and Fuentes faced 12. In the seven combined plate appearances the second time seeing these pitchers, the Dodgers got two hits (Mookie Betts single off Dodd in Game 1, Muncy home run) and a walk (Betts in Game 2 against Kerr).

Boogeyman

The specter of Chris Sale loomed over this series from the start, even though he hasn’t yet thrown a pitch. The Braves 37-year-old ace pitched into the seventh inning in Game 1 of the Braves’ wild card series on Tuesday — and was on the hook for a loss before Austin Riley rescued Atlanta with a three-run homer — and then got four outs on Thursday in Game 3 to close out the Phillies.

Sale starting in Game 2 against the Dodgers was a possibility, however remote, because the left-hander going in Game 2 could also conceivably start again in Game 5 on four days rest. A Game 2 start would have also been on four days rest, in a loose definition considering he got four outs on a “throw day” on Thursday in between. Sale hasn’t pitched on four days rest since April.

“I know him at 80 percent is really good, but that’s what it came down to,” Braves manager Walt Weiss said Sunday afternoon. “We’ve given him extra rest all year, and it’s served him very well. It allowed him to do what he did the other night, I think all the extra rest he’d gotten.”

Sale started on five days rest 13 times this season, and with six or more days rest 12 more times. In those 25 starts, the left-hander had a paltry 1.89 ERA and 31.3-percent strikeout rate. The Dodgers are well aware of Sale’s prowess, having faced him twice this season.

Los Angeles actually beat Sale on May 8 at Dodger Stadium, with run-scoring hits by three different left-handed batters, which felt like cashing in a winning lottery ticket. Freddie Freeman, who homered off Sale that night, captured the conundrum that comes with facing the 6’6 lefty.

“I would have taken a broken-bat bloop against Chris,” Freeman said. “He’s one of the toughest left-handed pitchers you can face. He’s coming from behind you.”

That was the Dodgers’ only regular season win against the Braves, with Atlanta winning each of the next five matchups, including three one-run wins in Atlanta three and a half months later. On August 27, Sale turned back to the clock to hit triple digits on the radar gun while shutting out the Dodgers with 11 strikeouts for his first complete game in seven years.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto was on the tough-luck end of that Sale shutout, having only allowed a solo home run to Drake Baldwin to open the game, but otherwise kept the Braves off the board into the seventh inning. That same pitching matchup returns in the pivotal Game 3 at Truist Park on Tuesday night.

The Braves entered the postseason in the position some semi-recent Dodgers teams have endured, simply running out of healthy and effective starting pitchers by the end of September, and into October. Right now, Atlanta essentially has two starting pitchers in Sale and Tyler Mahle, the latter an acquisition from the San Francisco Giants at the trade deadline.

Mahle while with the Giants pitched seven scoreless innings in a win over the Dodgers in San Francisco on April 22. Since joining the Braves, the right-hander allowed two or fewer runs in nine of his 10 starts, with a minuscule 1.91 ERA with 54 strikeouts against only 10 walks. That includes seven innings with just one run allowed last Wednesday in Game 2 of the wild card round against the Phillies.

After Saturday’s Game 1 loss in the NLDS, it sounded at the time like Weiss was trying to talk himself into the Braves having enough depth to survive the series.

“Look, you’ve got Sale and Mahle still, a much more rested bullpen,” Weiss said Saturday night. “I don’t have any worries about that, about having enough pitching. We’ve got plenty of pitching.”

Now in a tied series and his two actual starting pitchers rested and ready to go, Weiss is looking more and more correct. The Dodgers have their work cut out for them in Atlanta.

We have just two games today.

White Sox @ Guardians 5:00 Eastern: White Sox are up 1-0.

Lineups:

Yankees @ Rays: 8:00 Eastern. The Rays are up 1-0.

Cam Schlittle 14-6, 1.95 ERA vs, Freddy Peralta (10-11, 4.42).

The lineups aren’t up as I type this.

After an odd little off day Sunday (largely because of NFL games that MLB didn’t want to compete with on TV), the American League Division Series resume today.

4 p.m. CT: White Sox at Guardians (White Sox lead series 1-0)

TV: TBS, truTV, HBO Max (streaming). Announcers: Alex Faust, Ron Darling and Lauren Jbara.

Anthony Kay, LHP vs. Gavin Williams, RHP

Kay pitched 1.1 innings on Saturday and threw 22 pitches so he’s likely an opener here.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com preview

7 p.m. CT: Yankees at Rays (Rays lead series 1-0)

TV: TBS, truTV, HBO Max (streaming). Announcers: Brian Anderson, Jeff Francoeur and Lauren Shehadi.

Cam Schlittler, RHP vs. Freddy Peralta, RHP

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com preview

White Sox at Guardians

White Sox lead, 1-0

First pitch: 5:00 PM EDT
TV: TBS/truTV
Probable pitchers: Anthony Kay, LHP (CWS), Gavin Williams, RHP (CLE)

Yankees at Rays

Rays lead, 1-0

First pitch: 8:00 PM EDT
TV: TBS/truTV
Probable pitchers: Cam Schlittler, RHP (NYY), Freddy Peralta, RHP (TB)

Today, we switch to the American League Division Series. Two games:

• White Sox at Guardians, Game 2: 5:00 pm
• Yankees at Rays, Game 2: 8:00 pm

Let’s talk about it.