Author: MLB Baseball News, Scores, Standings, Rumors, Fantasy Games

Count me shocked that the Mariners were able to win one of their games against that trio of lefty starters the Red Sox rolled out last weekend. That win on Sunday wrapped up a 3-3 homestand and pushed the team another game ahead of their division rivals. Now the team embarks on a midwest road trip through Pittsburgh and Cleveland.

Game	Time	Mariners Starter	Pirates Starter	Mariners Win%	Pirates Win%
Game 1	Tuesday, June 23 | 3:40 pm	RHP George Kirby	RHP Mitch Keller	51.6%	48.4%
Game 2	Wednesday, June 24 | 3:40 pm	RHP Bryan Woo	RHP Braxton Ashcraft	49.1%	50.9%
Game 3	Thursday, June 25 | 9:35 am	RHP Bryce Miller	RHP Bubba Chandler	49.7%	50.3%

Overview	Mariners	Pirates	Edge
Batting (wRC+)	102 (7th in AL)	107 (3rd in NL)	Pirates
Fielding (FRV)	-20 (14th)	-15 (15th)	Pirates
Starting Pitching (FIP-)	89 (3rd)	87 (2nd)	Pirates
Bullpen (FIP-)	90 (2nd)	103 (10th)	Mariners

With a ton of young talent matriculating into the big leagues and a starting rotation anchored by Paul Skenes, the Pirates looked poised to break out of their long rebuilding cycle this year. They actually spent money on a few free agents in the offseason and traded for some more talent to bolster the lineup. They were rewarded with a quick start to the season, running a 16-11 record through April 25. They’ve fallen back towards .500 since then, though they’re still in the thick of the NL Wild Card hunt. 

Player	Position	Bats	PA	K%	BB%	ISO	wRC+
Spencer Horwitz	1B	L	288	13.2%	13.5%	0.179	137
Brandon Lowe	2B	L	317	25.6%	10.4%	0.265	126
Bryan Reynolds	LF	R	335	21.2%	14.6%	0.197	145
Ryan O’Hearn	RF	L	257	22.6%	7.8%	0.176	115
Nick Gonzales	3B	R	292	17.8%	5.5%	0.081	100
Endy Rodriguez	C	S	85	23.5%	18.8%	0.176	133
Marcell Ozuna	DH	R	217	29.0%	8.8%	0.117	64
Jake Mangum	CF	S	176	16.5%	5.7%	0.063	101
Jared Triolo	SS	R	152	25.0%	7.9%	0.044	67

The Pirates signed Ryan O’Hearn to the largest free agent contract for a position player in franchise history this offseason. That’s pretty incredible from an organizational standpoint and that it ended up being O’Hearn who set that record. To his credit, O’Hearn has been a solid first baseman and corner outfielder for the past three years and he’s been just as good for the Pirates this season, rocking a 115 wRC+. They also traded for Brandon Lowe and that has worked out wonderfully; he’s leading the team in home runs with a 126 wRC+. Among the holdovers from last year, Bryan Reynolds has bounced back from a dismal season in 2025 to lead the team with a 145 wRC+. Unfortunately for the Pirates, young phenom Konnor Griffin has been sidelined with a forearm injury for the past month.

Probable Pitchers 

Updated Stuff+ Explainer 

• Stuff+ scores for Mariners starters

Pitcher	IP	K%	BB%	HR/FB%	GB%	ERA	FIP
Mitch Keller	82.1	18.4%	8.8%	8.6%	40.6%	5.25	3.98
George Kirby	90	21.1%	5.6%	10.1%	50.4%	4.10	3.42

Pitch	Usage vRHB	Usage vLHB	Velocity	Stuff+	Whiff+	BIP+	xwOBA
Four-seam	39.3%	38.5%	93.4	93	78	98	0.380
Sinker	35.2%	12.8%	92.3	88	123	60	0.429
Cutter	4.1%	10.8%	89.9	83	84	135	0.246
Changeup	1.9%	15.2%	88.9	81	85	63	0.348
Curveball	3.3%	13.5%	78.2	89	110	72	0.295
Slider	16.20%	9.10%	87.5	103	63	102	0.319
Sweeper	37.40%	11.50%	82.2	103	66	124	0.277

Mitch Keller has been a solid, if uninspiring mid-rotation starter for the last five years. He’s also been incredibly consistent in that time; his FIP hasn’t risen above 4.08 and hasn’t fallen below 3.80. Despite that consistency, his peripherals look the worst they’ve been since 2021; his strikeout rate has fallen to 18.4% and his walk rate has jumped up to 8.8%. Only some good home run luck has allowed him to keep his FIP inside that range mentioned above. He’s always been a tinkerer, and this year, he’s reintroduced a cutter to his repertoire. The real issue is that his other two fastballs have been crushed by opposing batters and the rest of his secondary pitches haven’t been able to make up the difference.

Pitcher	IP	K%	BB%	HR/FB%	GB%	ERA	FIP
Braxton Ashcraft	90.2	26.3%	6.0%	9.3%	46.3%	3.18	3.04
Bryan Woo	89	24.9%	4.5%	7.8%	35.8%	3.94	3.08

Pitch	Usage vRHB	Usage vLHB	Velocity	Stuff+	Whiff+	BIP+	xwOBA
Four-seam	26.1%	35.9%	97.1	92	84	99	0.307
Sinker	23.7%	8.9%	96.8	102	140	100	0.323
Splitter	0.0%	8.7%	91.9	87
Curveball	20.3%	28.4%	85.0	131	126	93	0.207
Slider	30.0%	18.1%	92.0	100	102	121	0.258

Between Paul Skenes, Konnor Griffin, and a host of other top prospects on the Pirates roster, it’s been easy to overlook Braxton Ashcraft. He was a top prospect in his own right and had a strong debut season last year, compiling a 2.71 ERA and 2.78 FIP in 18 relief appearances and eight starts. The Pirates were pretty cautious with his workload last year but have given him a full-time role in the starting rotation this year and he’s run with the opportunity. He’s got a pair of excellent breaking balls that more than make up for the lack of a strong fastball. Nearly half of his pitch mix is made up of those breaking balls, and their quality is such that he doesn’t really need an offspeed pitch to keep left-handed batters at bay. He can just spin a curveball or bury a slider to a lefty and generate enough swing and miss to thrive.

Pitcher	IP	K%	BB%	HR/FB%	GB%	ERA	FIP
Bubba Chandler	74	21.1%	13.1%	9.4%	34.3%	4.62	4.73
Bryce Miller	40	30.5%	3.5%	12.5%	40.7%	1.58	2.95

Pitch	Usage vRHB	Usage vLHB	Velocity	Stuff+	Whiff+	BIP+	xwOBA
Four-seam	51.0%	54.3%	98.4	104	99	109	0.345
Sinker	12.2%	3.6%	97.9	100	0	0
Changeup	9.8%	26.8%	91.8	93	84	111	0.277
Curveball	3.0%	4.1%	85.6	114	0	0
Slider	24.0%	11.3%	89.7	113	112	112	0.298
Sweeper	11.7%	3.9%	87.7	113	0	0

Among the non-Skenes pitching prospects in Pittsburgh’s pipeline, Bubba Chandler had the most hype. And while Ashcraft is having the type of season we expected from Chandler, Chandler probably has the higher ceiling once he fully develops. A lack of command is the biggest area he needs to address — an issue that’s led to a 13.1% walk rate this year. His fastball is fantastic with velocity and carry at the top of the zone. His tremendous arm speed helps his changeup really play up, though he’s still working on developing his trio of breaking balls. Once he figures out his command and finds a bit more consistency, he’ll be a top of the rotation arm for the Pirates. Until then, he’s a work-in-progress.

---

The Big Picture:

Team	W-L	W%	Games Behind	Run Diff	Recent Form
Mariners	40-39	0.506	—	+17	L-W-L-L-W
Athletics	38-40	0.487	1.5	-54	L-W-W-L-L
Rangers	38-40	0.487	1.5	-10	L-W-L-W-W
Astros	37-43	0.463	3.5	-43	W-W-L-W-L
Angels	32-48	0.400	8.5	-41	L-L-W-W-L

Team	W-L	W%	Games Behind	Run Diff	Recent Form
Rays	43-32	0.573	+5.5	+7	L-W-L-W-L
Guardians	41-38	0.519	+1.5	-8	W-L-W-L-L
Blue Jays	39-39	0.500	—	-23	W-W-L-W-W
Athletics	38-40	0.487	1.0	-54	L-W-W-L-L
Rangers	38-40	0.487	1.0	-10	L-W-L-W-W

The Rangers managed to climb back into a tie with the Athletics after winning their weekend series against the Padres and winning the first game of a series against the Marlins yesterday night. For their part, the Athletics wound up splitting their four-game series against the Angels last weekend and will start a three-game set against the Giants tonight. The Astros are also lurking at 3.5 games back in the division; they won their series against the Guardians over the weekend but dropped the first game of their series against the Blue Jays yesterday.

The Detroit Tigers called up outfielder Ben Malgeri on Tuesday, sending utilityman Trei Cruz back to Triple-A Toledo. To open a 40-man roster spot for Malgeri, RHP Burch Smith has been moved to the 60-day injured list. They also announced a lot of promotions throughout the farm system on Tuesday. Typically, the Tigers start moving prospects from around this point in the year until the post-draft, post-trade deadline part of the calendar, so we should see a fair amount of movement over the next 5-6 weeks. The big moves today were the promotion of outfielder Brett Callahan and infielder John Peck from Double-A Erie to Triple-A Toledo.

Cruz didn’t get much of a look at the show, but he wasn’t really swinging the bat to his best ability in Toledo when initially called up. Let him try and heat up and he should be back at some point. Meanwhile, the 26-year-old Malgeri was long thought as just an org outfielder but has really improved his game over the past two seasons. A right-handed hitter who can play center field but is much better suited to the corners, Malgeri hits lefties well but has balanced out his splits more this season. He’s been a popular choice to replace Jahmai Jones, but the Tigers still aren’t there yet. Congrats to Malgeri on making it to the Show.

The Tigers today selected the contract of OF Ben Malgeri from Triple-A Toledo. Malgeri joins the first major league roster of his career and will wear uniform number 53. 

OF Trei Cruz was optioned to Triple-A Toledo following last night's game. 

To make room for Malgeri on the…

— Tigers PR (@DetroitTigersPR) June 23, 2026

You can find more on Callahan and Peck on our midseason farm system update on the front page at Bless You Boys. Callahan in particular has been on a tear and the 24-year-old left-handed hitting outfielder is clearly ready for the next challenge. Peck still has a little more work to do in terms of his plate discipline, but the right-handed hitter can play anywhere on the infield including shortstop. The duo are an athletic, well-rounded pair of players on track to give the Tigers some bench and utility options next year, and if they break out further with the bat they could become future regulars.

Reliever Moises Rodriguez, who throws a hellacious sinker that gets up to 100 mph, though more commonly 98, with a pretty good breaking ball, has been placed on the 7-day injured list. He generally throws strikes when he needs to, but still needs to command the sinker at least more consistently to push his way into conversation for the Tigers bullpen. Hopefully it’s a minor injury.

ROSTER MOVES⬇️ pic.twitter.com/yMP2DGEM2M

— Erie SeaWolves (@erie_seawolves) June 23, 2026

There were plenty of other promotions as right-handed starter Hayden Minton and first baseman Garrett Pennington were promoted from High-A West Michigan to Double-A Erie. Infielder Max Burt will also move up with them to help backfill Peck’s role.

From Lakeland, right-handed starter Charlie Christensen and reliever Eliseo Mota were promoted from Single-A Lakeland to West Michigan. Christensen’s big extension, low arm angle, and nasty slider-changeup combination have given young hitters fits in the Florida State League. He feels like a future reliever, as his sinker is underpowered and relies more on deception than raw stuff, but the 22-year-old out of Central Arkansas, the Tigers’ 13th rounder last summer in the draft, looks like another bargain that is paying off so far. Mota is a 23-year-old right-handed reliever who is underpowered, but has been punching tickets left and right in Lakeland.

Finally, outfielder Patrick Lee has been reinstated to West Michigan from his rehab assignment in the Complex League.

Presumably we’ll get more corresponding moves in the days to come, although some of it may simply be the release of some minor league veteran players brought in to fill out depth roles in the system. News keeps emerging today, and we’ve updated this article twice already as new news rolls in. Apologies for any confusion.

The middle of the season is just about here (no, the All-Star Game is not the middle of the season), which means it’s good to stop and take stock of how the Phillies have been doing. It’s pretty simple for me to list all the of the ways that Kyle Schwarber has improved this year and condense it into 800-900 words, but instead, what do you think?

What has surprised you the most this year so far, good or bad?

If there is a “something else”, what is it? Let us know and check back this week for the results and a little bit of digging into it.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Phillies fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

The Boston Red Sox saw their season come to an end during Monday’s sickening loss to the Colorado Rockies.

If we’re all being honest with each other, there were already nails being hammered into the coffin — the utter shit show that was the final two innings of that game just happened to be the final one.

The Red Sox collectively puked on themselves, shit down their legs, and pulled out a gun to shoot themselves in the foot, eventually leading to a 3-2 walk-off loss at Coors Field. Willson Contreras, Masataka Yoshida, and Marcelo Mayer put together useless at-bats while clinging onto a two-run lead. Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman, both of whom barely pitch anymore, couldn’t get anyone out. Jarren Duran completely butchered the final play of the game, leading to the game-winning run.

It’s about as bad as it sounds, yet was somehow wholly unsurprising.

Boston has been facing an uphill battle for months, with a collection of deep-rooted issues all hindering the performance of the baseball team — the hitting program clearly sucks, identifying quality pitchers has been anything but a consistent endeavor, there was and still continues to be an odd power struggle happening between ownership, the front office, and the coaching staff, etc. I just don’t think people were quite ready to admit that things are as bad as they are… until now.

It’s not like losing to a bad team is enough to declare the season dead, it’s doing it in the fashion they did it. You can’t just start finding new ways to lose at this point! It’s supposed to be formulaic— you fall behind by a couple of runs and the offense isn’t good enough to climb out of a hole. Chapman can’t blow saves! Duran can’t revert back to being a butcher! Yoshida can’t be uncompetitive with a chance to add insurance!

Yet, that’s what happened. The Red Sox officially hit rock bottom, squandering an opportunity to kick off the most important week of their season with an impressive and/or formulaic victory over an inferior opponent.

If they can’t show fight against this team and under these circumstances, they never will.

It’s over folks.

The Red Sox are dead, so enjoy the time off before they get interesting again — which is either when they do something wildly dramatic or after the lockout.

It might be a while…

It is no secret that the Astros OF has performed poorly offensively this season, threatening to be their worst offensive OF of all time.

Young prospects Cam Smith, Brice Matthews, and Zach Cole have not performed well. Former prospect Joey Loperfido has battled both injury and underperformance. CF Jake Meyers has shown none of the contact ability he showed for the first time last season.

In fact, the OF who has hit the best for them that is currently on the active roster (no, Yordan doesn’t count) has been Taylor Trammell, but despite his solid average has a meager OPS as there has been no power in his offense.

LaMonte Wade Jr. performed well in his 4 games with the team before suffering a hamstring injury that currently has him sidelined.

With that, it is notable that the Astros promoted OF Lucas Spence to Triple-A Sugar Land today.

Outfielder Lucas Spence has been promoted to Triple-A.

The 23-year-old was having a big June hitting .356 with 5 doubles, 2 triples, 4 home runs and 19 runs batted in over 17 games for the Hooks. #Astrospic.twitter.com/fSedYvwPFg

— Astros Future (@AstrosFuture) June 23, 2026

The Astros under GM Dana Brown have shown a propensity to push young players quickly, and Spence is a young lefthanded hitting OF who can play all three OF positions.

According to MLB.com, Spence is currently ranked as the Astros #10 overall prospect. He is considered an above average fielder with a plus arm and plus speed. His hit tool is still a work in progress and he is not considered a power hitter.

However, he has had a tremendous month of June at Double-A Corpus Christi, where he has hit for strong power, as noted in Jimmy Price’s post on X above.

With the Astros OF floundering at the plate, a strong representation from Spence at Triple-A could earn him a call up and an opportunity with the big league club, similar to how Zach Cole got a shot late last season (one that the team liked enough that they had hoped he could take another step forward and claim a regular job this spring, but alas…).

It is certainly worth watching.

The Yankees’ catching carousel keeps moving along, as only days after getting sent down to Triple-A, J.C. Escarra is once again back with the big-league club to replace Ali Sánchez, who was placed on the paternity list. This move comes a day after Sánchez had to leave early in a game against the Tigers, having been hit on the wrist by a four-seam fastball, something we don’t recommend.

Sánchez, who was starting against the left-hander Framber Valdez, was replaced midgame by Austin Wells, who will once again share the catching duties with Escarra, leaving the Yankees currently without a right-handed catching option on the roster. While an X-ray was negative, according to New York Post reporter Greg Joyce, we still await news on a potential CT scan to fully determine the extent of the damage done by this HBP — particularly, whether Sánchez will indeed require an IL stint. In the short term, Sánchez’s wife was expecting anyway, so the roster logistics allow him to go on the paternity list as they welcome a new baby into the world. The Yankees can work out any IL details at a later time.

After right-hander Casey Mize toes the rubber tonight, the Yankees will seemingly face not one, not two, not three, but four consecutive southpaw starters, beginning with the greatest that MLB currently has to offer in Tarik Skubal. If Boston follows its current rotation, then Connelly Early, Payton Tolle, and Jake Bennett will pitch their first three games this weekend. In fact, New York will face Skubal twice in this short period with multiple series against the Tigers, and being obligated to start a lefty catcher at all times is not ideal. So it goes.

Prior to tonight’s game, the Yankees made the following roster moves:
•Recalled C J.C. Escarra (#25) from Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
•Placed C Ali Sánchez on the paternity list.

— Yankees PR Dept. (@YankeesPR) June 23, 2026

Astros SS Jeremy Pena left last night’s game with a cramp in his right hamstring. This is the same hamstring he injured previously in the season (although manager Joe Espada incorrectly identified it as the left hamstring in his post-game presser).

Pena was removed from the game as a precaution as the team doesn’t want him to re-injure himself, particularly at a time when he is playing well and his importance to the team cannot be higher.

Here are Pena’s comments after last night’s game where he explains what happened and that he doesn’t think it will cost him much time:

Jeremy Pena left tonight's game in the 6th inning.
He spoke with the media in Toronto afterwards. pic.twitter.com/piZV4m6ITr

— Space City Home Network (@SpaceCityHN) June 23, 2026

The 2026 American League pennant race is a lot like a drunk cousin at Thanksgiving. Fun for a while as long as the cranberry sauce stays off the floor, we might even get a good story or two, but… how is this actually going to end? 

By my calculations, there are five teams that could currently win the American League but only about 2.5 that could win the World Series. Several preseason contenders (looking at you Boston Red Sox) have just had the worst time, and even the ones that aren’t 14.5 games back in their division before July 4 have to figure out pretty quickly if this is a “we can fix this” year or a “we can fix this next year” year (looking at you Houston Astros). Everyone is scrambling so much we should make some eggs.

With that said, MLB still needs someone to come out of the AL and lose to the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, so we may as well get to work on cleaning up the cranberry sauce off the hardwood. It’s a Top Five and man, did I struggle to get to five — heck, there are only five teams with a winning record; it’s late-June!

5. Cleveland Guardians 

Made Up Award: The “I’m only here for the free Mimosas” Award for team that’s just happy they made the list

“Hey, wait, we are four games above .500 what is this?” Listen, Guardians, you’re lucky you even made this list. The Texas Rangers are sitting in the wing ready to come on stage and take this award if you don’t hush up and just be happy about this. 

Cleveland has not gotten nearly enough press for being a complete analytical fraud when teams like the Rays and St. Louis Cardinals distract the masses. Cleveland scores fewer than four runs per game (only the Red Sox and Padres are worse), has a negative run differential despite leading their division. The AL Central has been putting up hilarious season after hilarious season since I was in high school.

You may ask why the Chicago White Sox, one of the fun stories of the season and a legit threat to pass Cleveland in this division, did not make the cut over such a lame division leader, but I just don’t know if I can trust the pitching long term. As silly as the Guardians are offensively, their pitching has been solidly better than the White Sox all year, and pitching projects. Cleveland probably isn’t this bad at hitting, and even if they are, they’ve limited scoring to the point where I can reasonably bank of them for the division. That, by default, puts them in the fifth-best spot. God, what a mess.

4. Toronto Blue Jays

Made Up Award: The Two-outs away from winning the World Series Award for 2026 hangover

From the first All-Star voting returns, you’d think that the Blue Jays were on 116-win pace. Imagine my surprise when I learned they not only had a losing record, but probably should be even worse than they are. Coming off the crushing World Series loss, the Blue Jays have had nothing offensively, cratering from over five to just over four runs per game from 2025 to 2026. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. is having a notable down year, and it’s no longer too early to worry about.

Pitching has been alright, and Dylan Cease looks like he was worth the cash the Jays shelled out to bring him in. But guys we’re four teams in, this is our third AL East team and they aren’t even above .500. That’s the energy we’re bringing to this World Series revenge tour. That is not the energy you want in that situation.

3. Tampa Bay Rays

Made Up Award: The Metaphysics Award for the team that is not good on paper but is fourth by default

I wrote many more words than should be allowed about how MLB’s bunting boom was a Tampa Bay Rays-filled load of nothing, and their offensive cool down has shown just such a situation. They have basically been middle of the road since that piece came out, 14-16 in their last 30 — good enough to still be number three on this list but not good enough for me to take their high-contact approach seriously. 

The Rays being twelve games over .500 with a run differential of only eight doesn’t just suggest they’re a total mirage, it ruthlessly demands it. I wanted, with every fiber of my spiritual and corporeal being, to put the Toronto Blue Jays above the Rays here just to further cement the anti-bunt agenda, but I simply could not do it. The math would not math.

2. Seattle Mariners

Made Up Award: The “I don’t even know that guy” Award for distancing themselves from the Red Sox and Astros 

There was a real chance that Boston, Houston and Seattle could make up a true Axis of Meh after all three got off to abysmal starts. Credit to the Mariners, though, for turning things around while their friends continued down the path to the dark side. The Astros are actually not all that far back from the Mariners, but if we’re just talking trend lines? The Mariners are your dark horse AL team. Yes, we have a “dark horse” at number two on the list. I never said this would be a chill experience.

The Mariners started out the season essentially unable to hit but with elite pitching. That’s still … basically the case, though the offense has naturally stabilized behind better performances from Julio Rodriguez and have now brought back a hopefully healthy Cal Raleigh. The latter will need to start producing some power again if the Mariners want to bring this team to October, but the theory that starting pitching = gravy when the leaves start falling mostly works for me. 

1. New York Yankees

Made Up Award: The Statcast Nerd Award for the only AL team that is actually good on paper

There are three, yes three, teams in the American League with a Pythagorean win expectation over .500, and two of them (the next two teams on the list) are barely scraping above the line. The Yankess, though, are actually underperforming: at 46-30, both FanGraphs projection models have them between three and four wins better than they actually are. In this econom—er, American League?!

There is, frankly, no possible argument for any other team to be the favorite in the AL right now beyond certain amorphous Yankees curse logistics that I wouldn’t personally take too much stock in. They have the underlying qualities of a good team, and have managed to produce enough of a cushion for themselves that Aaron Judge’s injury timetable shouldn’t be of too much concern. 

I am a believer in the long-term projection value of contact quality, and the Yankees are a contact quality machine. In an American League full of teams trying to cheat death by bunting a lot, this is where I’d invest my beans.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Brewers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

We’re back with another Reacts Survey, and after discussing the All-Star Game last week, we’re asking about the MLB Draft this week!

While the MLB Draft may not be as flashy as the drafts of the other Big 4 sports, it’s arguably more important due to just how many players are drafted and just how many never pan out.

The Brewers, who hold the No. 25 overall pick in this year’s draft, have become one of the better drafting teams in recent seasons. While some of their early to mid-2010s picks weren’t great, recent first-round picks include Brice Turang (2018), Garrett Mitchell (2020), and Sal Frelick and Tyler Black (2021). Top prospects in the system today also include 2024 first-rounders Braylon Payne (team No. 12) and Blake Burke (No. 15), and 2025 first-rounders Andrew Fischer (No. 6) and Brady Ebel (No. 13).

They’ve also found success in later rounds, including Cooper Pratt (2023 sixth-round pick signed away from Ole Miss), Bishop Letson (2023 11th-round pick), Marco Dinges (2024 fourth-round pick), Josh Adamczewski (2023 15th-round pick), and Luke Adams (2022 11th-round pick), all of whom rank among the team’s top prospects. That’s without even mentioning active MLB players, like Jacob Misiorowski (2022 second-round pick), Brandon Woodruff (2014 11th-round pick), and Craig Yoho (2023 eight-round pick).

Over the last 10 years, the Brewers have heavily emphasized position players with their first-round picks. Since 2016, Milwaukee has had 15 picks in the first round (including Competitive Balance picks); of those, two were pitchers, five were outfielders, five were left-side infielders, and three were right-side infielders.

Beyond the No. 25 pick, the Brewers also have picks No. 66, 102, 130, and 163, as well as one pick in each of the last 15 rounds (20 picks total).

The draft is less than three weeks away, beginning Saturday, July 11 in Philadelphia and wrapping up the next day. Which position would you like to see the Brewers prioritize in the draft? Weigh in below, and stay tuned for results later this week!

1919
White Sox center fielder Happy Felsch tied a 15-year-old record set by Harry Bay for most chances in a nine-inning game: 12. He had 11 putouts and one assist (Jack Graney, doubled off of first base) in the 3-2 loss to Cleveland at Comiskey Park.

That record still stands in the American League, since tied by has not been surpassed. The first to tie was White Sox center fielder Johnny Mostil, on May 22, 1928. In 1977 (ironically the same season another White Sox center fielder, Chet Lemon, set a mark for season chances), Lyman Bostock matched Felsch’s and Mostil’s mark.

In the NL, Earl Clark of the Boston Braves had 13 errorless chances in 1929, which remains the MLB single-game, outfielder-chances record.

---

1937
The beginning of a 55-year baseball career for Bob Kennedy got underway, as the White Sox signed him two months before his 17th birthday. A native Chicagoan, Kennedy was an infield star at Morgan Park High School. Oddly enough, the night before his signing, Kennedy was working at Comiskey Park — as a popcorn vendor during the Joe Louis-James Braddock heavyweight title fight!

Kennedy would be in Chicago playing while still a teenager, at the end of the 1939 season. He would go on to play three separate stints and 10 seasons total with the White Sox as part of his 16-year career. After retiring after the 1957 season, Kennedy went on to both manage and general manage in the majors, staying active as an executive through the 1992 season.

His son, Terry, also played in the majors.

---

1956
It was first of the two great fights between Yankees and White Sox players; almost one year later, June 13, 1957, the second one took place.

In this one Bob Grim (uncle to former White Sox director of business development and broadcasting Bob Grim) threw one high and tight to outfielder Dave Philley in the home half of the sixth inning. The ball glanced off of Philley’s shoulder and bounced into his batting helmet, knocking it off. Philley charged the mound, as the benches and bullpens emptied. Both players swung at each other, as the rest of the teams held each other back. 

Order was restored after about 20 minutes. Philley was tossed from the game. Grim was allowed to stay in, but perhaps was shaken; the White Sox tagged him for two runs — RBIs from Sherm Lollar and Luis Aparicio — in Chicago’s 2-0 win.

---

1957
In front of the 10th-biggest road crowd and thus 10th-biggest regular season crowd ever for a White Sox game, the Pale Hose split a doubleheader at Yankee Stadium, in front of 63,787 fans.

The opener was a 9-2 drubbing, as Billy Pierce wore it for the White Sox (seven earned in five innings). But the South Siders got back to just a half-game behind the first-place Yankees with a nightcap triumph, 4-3. Dick Donovan went eight strong but faltered in the ninth, knocked out of the box by a Mickey Mantle three-run blast without recording an out; Paul LePalme came in and put out the fire, weathering the tying run on third and winning on second by striking out ex-Sox Darrell Johnson to earn the save.

---

1958
The White Sox purchased the contract of pitcher Turk Lown from the Reds. Lown and teammate Gerry Staley, also acquired via the purchase route in 1956, gave the White Sox one of the top bullpens in baseball during the late 1950s/early 1960s. They were especially effective during the 1959 AL pennant season. That year, Lown went 9-2 with a 2.89 ERA and 15 saves. Staley also had 15 saves that year, and the pair led the league in that category. 

Lown’s best pitch was a blazing fastball that was among the best in baseball. The first time he faced both Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams, Lown threw nothing but fastballs and struck them both out on three pitches.

---

1960
With a two-out, ninth-inning home run that would ultimately prove fruitless in a 5-3 loss at Baltimore, Roy Sievers began a 21-game hit streak that would end in a tie for seventh-longest in White Sox history when it ended on July 19.

The South Siders went 14-7 during Sievers’ tear, as he scorched AL pitching at .405/.516/.772 and struck out just six times in 97 plate appearances! The slugger would finish seventh in MVP voting in 1960.

His hitting streak remains tied for 11th all-time in franchise history.

---

1963
White Sox catcher J.C. Martin set an American League record and tied a major league one by being involved in three double plays in a 2-0 loss at Cleveland. Martin had two strike-out/throw-out double plays, and was also in the middle of a third base-to-catcher-to-first base twin killing. Martin’s record would later be tied by another Sox catcher, Ed Herrmann.

And in both cases, the Sox would lose the game!

---

1983
With an 8-6 win over the Twins, the White Sox climbed to a winning record, at 34-33, for the first time all season. Big scoring was bunched into the front of the game, with the score 7-6, White Sox, through four innings. Floyd Bannister allowed FOUR home runs and six earned overall, but came away with the win to improve to 3-8 on the year. The middle of the White Sox order (Harold Baines, Greg Luzinski, Greg Walker) went 7-for-13 with two doubles, a homer, five runs and five RBIs to fuel the win.

The White Sox would fall back to .500 the next day but otherwise begin a historic tear through the final 95 games of the season, going 65-30 to finish with 99 wins and an AL West title.

 

 

Last week, we learned that Garrett Crochet had been cleared to throw weighted plyometric balls as he attempts to recover from two injuries: the initial shoulder inflammation that landed him on the IL, and the subsequent lat tightness that has kept him on it for much longer than anyone anticipated. Yesterday he was reevaluated and, while he is said to be improving, he still has not been cleared to start throwing baseballs. It’s starting to look like a lost season for the one-time Cy Young contender. (Brent Maguire, MLB.com)

But who’s excited for some positive Trevor Story injury news!?!? It’s now been a month since Story had surgery to repair a sports hernia and things are looking good. “He’s actually progressing pretty nicely,” Chad Tracy said. “Let’s call it ‘running,’ it’s not full-bore sprinting, but he’s jogging at a pretty good pace. He has actually swung a bat off a tee a little bit. He’s got a ways to go but he’s in a better spot than I’d figure I’d see him at this point.” (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)

And it looks like Romy Gonzalez has dodged an injury scare, too. After having his rehab assignment paused due to hip flexor tightness, he’s been cleared to play again and will be back in action today. (Evan Cormier, NESN)

Trevor Story and Romy Gonzalez aren’t going to be saving the Red Sox season, and they might not be able to save Craig Breslow’s job, either. And if you’re wondering exactly how hot the Red Sox CBO’s seat is right now, here’s one MLB insider who expects Breslow to remain in charge at least through the trade deadline:

.@ByRobertMurray believes Craig Breslow will be making the decisions for the Red Sox at the deadline. Doesn’t believe he’s on the hot seat, but mentions “heavy” talks about his future in the offseason.

Also, he noted that Boston is still considered a desirable place for top… pic.twitter.com/n6IpOrsDON

— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) June 22, 2026

Those trade deadline discussions will no doubt involve Sonny Gray, who is a pending free agent and, thus, likely to be a hot commodity. Gray has a no-trade clause in his contract, but he doesn’t sound like he’s going to be unwilling to move. “If someone came to me from the Red Sox and made a decision that that’s the direction that this team was going to go, I would be open for a conversation. Whatever happens from then, only time will tell. But I would be open for a conversation.” (Tim Healey, Boston Globe)

Whatever happens at the deadline, one thing is clear: the Red Sox need to find their next big bat. (Rob Bradford, WEEI)

Nick Morabito

Week: 6 G, 21 AB, .333/.462/.810, 7 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 3 HR, 5 BB, 5 K, 4/4 SB (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 64 G, 234 AB, .256/.364/.415, 60 H, 9 2B, 2 3B, 8 HR, 33 BB, 64 K, 22/24 SB, .319 BABIP (Triple-A) / 5 G, 11 AB, .000/.083/.000, 0 H, 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1 BB, 9 K, 0/0 SB, .000 BABIP (MLB)                    

Earlier this season, people were discussing Nick Morabito in the same breath as Carson Benge or AJ Ewing, and with good reason: through the first month of the season, he was hitting .268/.371/.463 with four doubles and four home runs in 23 games for the Syracuse Mets, good for a 116 wRC+.

Unfortunately for Morabito, and for everyone else out there, things took a turn for the worst in the month of May, as the outfielder hit .234/.355/.297 until May 19, when the Mets called the 23-year-old up to the majors for roughly a week to balance out the bench. After going hitless in 11 at-bats, drawing a walk, he was optioned back down to Syracuse on May 25th, where he had a strong week, going 6-23 with a pair of extra base hits and three walks, finishing out his May hitting .241/.353/.333 with 3 doubles, a triple, and a home run.

Prior to this past week, Morabito’s June was looking grim. Coming into the week, he was hitting .227/.320/.295, but thanks to his performance against the Tides, he is hitting .256/.364/.415.

As expected, the red flags that presented themselves in his profile last season, such as his elevated strikeout rate, have continued to bite Morabito, but to his credit, he responded by making improvements in other facets of his game. His walk rate has improved, up from a 9.8% in 95 games with High-A Brooklyn and 9.6% with Double-A Binghamton to 11.6% in 63 games with Syracuse. His batted ball data, however slight, has improved, with fewer groundballs and more line drives and flyballs. His hit spray, though slight, is more efficient, with his pull and up-the-middle rates up a bit and his opposite field rate down.

There is no doubt in my mind that Morabito will be called back up to the majors at some point between now and when he decides to call it a career, and with his speed and ability to play centerfield, there is no doubt in my mind that he will carve himself a nice little niche as a bench player. While he does not have particularly loud offensive tools, there are clear avenues for Morabito to improve which might then raise his potential standing even further, from bench player to perhaps more.

Jonathan Santucci

Week: 1 G (1 GS), 6.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K (Double-A)

2026 Season: 13 G (13 GS), 62.2 IP, 50 H, 29 R, 26 ER (3.73 ERA), 31 BB, 75 K, .311 BABIP (Double-A)

I wouldn’t exactly call the season that Jonathan Santucci is having so far a breakout, but in a season that has been a fairly big let-down for many of the Mets’ top prospects for various reasons, the southpaw is one of the few whose stock is, at minimum, holding. The left-hander threw a shutout performance for just the second time this season, dropping his ERA .40 points, to 3.73. He relied on his bread-and-butter, his fastball-slider combination, for six of the seven strikeouts he recorded in the ballgame, striking out four batters with his fastball, two batters with his slider, and one batter with his changeup.

Santucci was promoted to Double-A Binghamton last season around this time and made 10 starts with the Rumble Ponies, posting a 2.52 ERA in 50.0 innings, allowing 33 hits, walking 18, and striking out 63. When combined with his performance there this season, the left-hander has a cumulative 3.20 ERA in 112.2 Double-A innings, allowing 83 total hits, walking 49, and striking out 138. Assuming that he does not suddenly take a major step back, it would seem like Santucci is due for a promotion to Triple-A Syracuse sometime in the next few weeks.

When he eventually is promoted, how likely is it that his solid season continues? Looking at Santucci as a whole, two things stick out at me that could be problematic: his limited pitch mix and his poor command of that limited pitch mix.

Santucci throws a fastball, slider, and occasional changeup. In 2025, he added a more traditional curveball to his arsenal and claims that he still throws it, but the pitch is so identical to his slider that it is difficult to tell the two apart. While his fastball is an average-to-above average pitch and his slider a definite above-average pitch, the viability of a two-pitch pitcher outside of the bullpen is suspect. Clouding matters, both pitches play down when the left-hander is having trouble commanding either pitch on any given day.

Control and command has been an issue for Santucci going back to his time at Duke, and while it looked like he made some strides with his control last year, any such gains if they were legitimate seem to have disappeared. The left-hander currently has a 4.5 BB/9 rate, a below-average Zone%, and an extremely sub-optimal 44.4% F-Strike%. The southpaw has only thrown six or more innings three times this season, and in those three games, he has had an average or better strike rate, throwing 56 strikes in 87 pitches (64%), 60 strikes in 92 pitches (65%), and 60 strikes in 92 pitches (76%). In games where he has thrown fewer than six innings, Santucci has averaged a below-average 58% strike rate, with individual games ranging from 63% to 49%.

Slinging the ball from a three-quarters arm slot with a long arm action through the back and a pronounced weight shift to his back leg during his wind-up, the left-hander is unlikely to ever have pinpoint control. While a large preponderance of Santucci’s strikeouts come from getting batters to expand the zone on his fastball or slider, improving his command of both pitches- especially once in the International League, where the league-wide walk percentage is roughly 10% thanks to a strike zone that is defined as slightly smaller as compared to Double-A thanks to the ABS system- will be imperative to his future value as a baseball player.

Players of the Week 2026

Week One/Two (March 27-April 5): Hayden Senger/Cam Tilly

Week Three (April 7-April 12): A.J. Ewing/Christian Scott

Week Four (April 14-April 18): Randy Guzman/Jose Chirinos

Week Five (April 21-April 26): A.J. Ewing/Channing Austin

Week Six (April 30-May 3): A.J. Ewing/Jonah Tong

Week Seven (May 5-May 10): Ryan Clifford/Jonathan Santucci

Week Eight: (May 12-May 17): Jacob Reimer/Zach Thornton

Week Nine: (May 19-May 24): Ryan Clifford/Channing Austin

Week Ten: (May 26-May 31): Ryan Clifford/Jose Chirinos

Week Eleven: (June 2-June 7): Vincent Perozo/Frank Camarillo

Week Twelve: (June 9-June 14): JT Benson/Nick Carreno

2026 MLB Draft Preview: Carson Wiggins scouting report.

The 2026 is about a month away — the first round kicks off on July 11, 2026 — so its time to start offering capsule looks at players the Texas Rangers could select with their top picks. The Rangers’ first round pick is at #16, their second round pick is at #54, and their third round pick is at #89.

Leading up to draft day, we will be doing writeups of some of the players who could end up getting selected by the Rangers with one of their first three picks. Today we are looking at University of Arkansas pitcher Carson Wiggins.

Carson Wiggins is a 6’5″, 215 lb. righthanded pitcher who is a draft-eligible sophomore at the University of Arkansas. He turned 21 earlier this month. Coming out of high school in Roland, Oklahoma, in 2024, he was a top 100 draft prospect, but went undrafted due to signability concerns. His brother, Jaxon Wiggins, is also a pitcher who was drafted by the Cubs out of the University of Arkansas in the second round in 2023, and who was a consensus top 100 prospect coming into the 2026 season.

Wiggins is described as a “flamethrower,” with a fastball that has been clocked as high as 102 mph, and that averaged 98.7 mph in 2025, per MLB Pipeline. His fastball has good rising action and is a legit swing-and-miss pitch. He pairs the fastball with an excellent slider with good movement that also gets whiffs. He has a curveball and changeup, as well, though he apparently rarely used them pitching for the Razorbacks.

Wiggins is big and athletic, and his delivery isn’t high effort. However, his control is an issue, and he has a lot of improvement he needs to make in his command of his pitches.

Wiggins was used as a reliever as a freshman, throwing 14 innings over 14 games. He faced 59 batters and struck out 20 of them, but also walked seven unintentionally and threw six wild pitches. His freshman season was cut short due to an elbow issue that resulted in internal brace surgery, and he didn’t pitch this year. He has reportedly been throwing sides, however, and is healthy and ready to go for the MLB Draft Combine this week.

Baseball America has Wiggins at #123 on their board. MLB Pipeline has Wiggins at #84 on their board. Kiley McDaniel puts Wiggins at #145 on his top 150 list. Keith Law’s rankings have Wiggins at #71 on his board. Fangraphs has Wiggins at #40 on their board. Baseball Prospectus does not have Wiggins on their top 30 draft board.

Given how little he has pitched the past two seasons, there are a lot questions about Wiggins. Some of those should be answered when he throws at the Combine, and if he does well and shows he is 100%, he presumably would move up on draft boards. His brother missed his junior season at Arkansas due to Tommy John surgery and has blossomed as a pro, though an elbow injury this year has put Jaxon on the shelf most of 2026.

Wiggins has TORP potential as a starter, though in order to stick as a starter in the pros he is going to have to improve his command significantly and develop his third and fourth pitches. If a team wants to use him as a reliever, he could move quickly, with his fastball/slider combo making him a potential late inning weapon.

The Rangers have not been scared off by college pitchers coming off of injury, and Wiggins would appear to be ready to resume game action post-draft. Wiggins does have extra leverage as a draft-eligible sophomore who would presumably be eligible for an injury redshirt for 2026, meaning he would potentially have three years of eligibility remaining.

Previously:

Liam Peterson

Tyler Bell

Aiden Robbins

Jared Grindlinger

Logan Reddemann

Cooper Harris

Justin Lebron

Cameron Flukey

Derek Curiel

Hunter Dietz

Logan Hughes