Sep 27, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) celebrates in the locker room after win against the Tampa Bay Rays and clinching a playoff spot at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Now we can breathe a sigh of relief. Taking a much needed win to make the playoffs, the Phillies are waking up today in Atlanta to prepare for the wild card round against the Braves. It should at least be entertaining.
Happy Monday, Camden Chatters! The 2026 regular season has ended. And for the Orioles, the end of the season was a literal washout. Yesterday’s game between the Orioles and Yankees was technically delayed for about three hours yesterday, but I think we all knew the game wasn’t going to be played. The weather in New York was too severe and for the duration of the delay, the Yankees never even submitted a lineup.
But they had to pretend the game might be played, because MLB had just sent the Red Sox down to Tampa to play a game against the Cubs due to the same storm. So now the Yankees have an extra day off ahead of the Wild Card series in New York. I’m not saying it was a conspiracy. But I’m not saying it’s not a conspiracy.
Going into yesterday, there were two playoff spots yet to be finalized. The AL West had to be determined, as did the final spot on the NL Wild Card race. The Astros won and head to the playoffs with an 81-81 record. And the Phillies, who had almost frittered away their playoff spot, won to keep it at the last minute.
There is no baseball today. The Wild Card round kicks off tomorrow with four games.
But not for the Orioles. For the Orioles, the off-season begins today. And they have a lot of things to work on. If I were going to pick one thing I am looking to see improve, I am going with defense. The most disheartening part of this season was seeing plays that should have been made not be made. And on a regular basis.
Here at Camden Chat, we’re jumping right into the offseason. We have already started prospect reviews. Player reviews are coming, along with looks ahead at the 2027 season. Of course, a lot of that depends on if and when the 2027 season begins.
Henderson on Orioles’ season: ‘A failed year for us’ – Baltimore Baseball This is a few days old, but shockingly, there isn’t a lot of news right after an 82-loss team gets rained out of a meaningless game. Rich Dubroff has the transcript of Gunnar Henderson’s interview with press a few days ago.
Birthdays and History
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! You have three Orioles birthday buddies. Grant Jackson (b. 1942, d. 2021) had an 18-year career, five-plus of which were spent with the Orioles. He pitched in 209 games for the Orioles from 1971-76 before the Orioles traded him to the Yankees in that big nine-player trade in June 1976.
Also born on this day in history are former Orioles Mike DeJean (56) and Todd Frohwirth (b. 1962, d. 2017).
On this day in 1953, the American League owners agreed to move the St. Louis Browns to Baltimore. Good day for us!
In 1958, Gus Triandos stole the only base of his Major League career.
In 1971, the Orioles swept a doubleheader with the Red Sox to give them 100 wins for the third straight season.
In 2011, the Orioles played the most exciting game you’ll ever see from a 93-loss team. Down 3-2 with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, three straight his from Chris Davis, Nolan Reimold, and Robert Andino gave the Orioles a 4-3 walkoff victory. Moments after the Orioles won, the Rays walked off the Yankees in Tampa. The combination of games knocked the Red Sox out of the playoffs. The Red Sox had been two games up in the AL East on August 27th before going 7-20 in September.
In 2023, the Orioles beat the Red Sox again. But this time it was their 100th win of the season. Much preferable.
And one year ago today, the Orioles finished the season with a 3-2 loss to the Yankees. Kyle Bradish allowed two runs in four innings. Rico Garcia took the loss. Jordan Westburg and Gunnar Henderson hit back-to-back home runs.
In the four seasons since MLB changed its playoff format in 2022, two teams have played in the wild card series and gone on to win the World Series: the 2023 Texas Rangers and 2025 Los Angeles Dodgers.
Here's how USA TODAY Sports' MLB reporters and editors see the best-of-three wild card series playing out:
Slugger Yordan Alvarez, who will win the American League MVP, carried the Houston Astros on his back to the AL West title.
Tampa Bay Rays third baseman Junior Caminero, who should finish runner-up, led the Rays to the best record in the American League.
Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler, who will win the AL Cy Young award, will be pitching Game 1 against the Boston Red Sox. Milwaukee Brewers All-Star pitcher Jacob Misiorowski, who will win the NL Cy Young award, will be pitching Game 1 when the Brewers face the winner of the San Diego Padres-Chicago Cubs series.
Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong, who will unseat Shohei Ohtani as the NL MVP, will be trying to get the Cubs past the Padres in their three-game series at Petco Park in San Diego in a rematch of a year ago.
And, oh, how this postseason field is littered with future Hall of Famers from everyone from Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman of the Dodgers, Manny Machado of the Padres, Jose Ramirez of the Cleveland Guardians, Chris Sale of Atlanta, Aaron Judge of the Yankees, Jose Altuve of the Astros and Bryce Harper of the Phillies.
There are players who have been a postseason fixture like Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman, who will be playing in his 10th consecutive postseason with his third different team, and Judge who hopes to play in his ninth postseason in 10 years.
There are aged veterans like 39-year-old Cubs reliever Caleb Thielbar, 38-year old Red Sox closer Aroldis Chapman, 37-year-old Freeman, 37-year-old Sale and 36-year-old Sonny Gray of the Red Sox.
And then there are the real kids, like 20-year-old Ethan Salas of the San Diego Padres, who will be the youngest catcher to ever appear in the postseason, along with 22-year-old outfielders Jackson Chourio of the Brewers, Roman Anthony of the Red Sox and Justin Crawford of the Phillies.
Now that the postseason field is set with eight teams playing in the wild-card round beginning Tuesday, here is one player from each team who could have the biggest impact on whether they’ll still be playing into the weekend.
Chicago Cubs
Third baseman Alex Bregman
A week ago, he didn’t know whether he could play another game this year n when he suffered multiple fractures in his face after being hit by a foul ball near the on-deck circle. Well, he proved he’s back by going 4-for-4 with two home runs Sunday in his second game since the injury. If Bregman resembles the same guy that hit .298 with 19 homers and 53 RBI with a 1.000 OPS in his last 60 games, he could make sure the Cubs’ offense is too powerful to stop. He has begun taking ground balls but has been restricted to DH duties since his return.
San Diego Padres
Pitcher Michael King
The Padres’ rotation has been a mess all year outside of one pitcher. King was 12-10 with a 3.21 ERA, leading the team with 185 innings. King will start Game 1 against the Cubs. If he struggles and the Padres lose, they could have a short-lived postseason, relying on Nick Pivetta, who just returned from the injured list and Walker Buehler. The Padres have the best bullpen in the land, but they’re going to need King to dominate if they’re going to have a prayer of winning their first World Series in franchise history.
The Phillies near-historic collapse made a mess out of their rotation, with ace Zack Wheeler having to pitch Sunday just to save their season. Now, they may no choice but to turn to Luzardo, who rejoined the Phillies’ staff Sunday for the first time since Sept. 7 when he was shut down with shoulder inflammation. Luzardo needed just four pitches to get three outs in the eighth inning of their clinching game. The Phillies now must decide whether he’d be more valuable to them as their emergency starter or out of their beleaguered bullpen. Yet, no matter what role, the Phillies badly need him.
“I feel like I'm prepared to give the team whatever they ask, whatever they need,” Luzardo told reporters Sunday.
Atlanta
Pitcher Chris Sale
The old man produced yet another Cy Young-caliber season, 14-9, 2.16 ERA, joining Hall of Famer Randy Johnson as the only lefties to strike out 200 or more batters in nine seasons. Yet, after Sale, there’s a steep dropoff with Tyler Mahle and Grant Holmes following him in the rotation. Simply, if Atlanta is going to have a deep run, they need to win every time Sale pitches, or they’ll be in deep trouble.
Boston Red Sox
First baseman Willson Contreras
He has been their best hitter all season, hitting .276 with 27 homers and 81 RBI, but missed eight consecutive games after being hit on the right hand with a pitch Sept. 17. He returned Sunday as their DH and is expected to be fine for the postseason where he’s badly needed as their biggest offensive weapon.
“That’s so much what the postseason is about," Red Sox manager Chad Tracy told reporters Sunday, “these big moments where one swing can change a game. So. that power and that presence in the middle of the order is important."
The Yankees are expected to be without Aaron Judge for their heavyweight bout against the Boston Red Sox, and with their offensive struggles, they have to rely on their pitching. And who better than Schlittler, the Boston kid who Red Sox love to hate. The Red Sox not only let him get away, but he he continues to get his revenge, going 2-1 with a 0.74 ERA in four career starts against Boston. Schlittler will win the Cy Young award this year with his 1.95 ERA in 33 starts during the season, but for him to really be a Yankee hero, he needs to dominate in October, too.
The White Sox will go only as far as their starting rotation will lead them, and it starts with Martin (9-8, 3.95 ERA). He had a sensational first half, going 9-4 with a 3.41 ERA, but has struggled since the All-Star break with a 0-4 record and 5.12 ERA. He had a clunker in his last start Saturday against the Colorado Rockies, unable to get through the first inning. The White Sox can ill afford another early ouster or they’ll be ousted themselves before they can even enjoy a few good helpings of Texas barbeque.
Houston Astros
Slugger Yordan Alvarez
The Astros, the first team in MLB history to win a division in a full season without a winning record, need to rely on the same guy who carried them on his back all season. They go as Alvarez goes. Alvarez, who slashed .316/.432/.601 with 42 homers and 106 RBI this season, has plenty of postseason experience. He has slashed .294/.393/.551 in 60 postseason games. Alvarez must continue to terrorize the opposition for the Astros to keep their season alive. If Alvarez is shut down, so will the Astros’ season.
DETROIT, MI - SEPTEMBER 26: Justin Verlander #35 of the Detroit Tigers hugs his daughter Genevieve before leaving his final game against the Pittsburgh Pirates during the sixth inning at Comerica Park on September 26, 2026 in Detroit, Michigan. (Photo by Duane Burleson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
All things come to an end, and on Saturday we witnessed a really poignant ending to the career of one of the greatest pitchers and greatest Detroit Tigers of all time. Justin Verlander, with minimal preparation and no buildup, took the mound against the Pittsburgh Pirates in Comerica Park, and managed to turn back the clock one last time. It wasn’t a great outing, but it was a very solid one as Verlander tossed 5.1 innings of two-run ball with six strikeouts. There was certainly nothing left in the tank when his wife Kate Upton, and manager A.J. Hinch, sent young Genevieve Verlander to the mound to take her father home for keeps. There also wasn’t a dry eye in the house.
The game is the game, and it keeps on moving. An extremely disappointing 2026 season for the Tigers is now over, and our attention now turns entirely to assessing where things went wrong, and how the club can turn things around in 2027 as we face a very difficult and uncertain offseason.
On Sunday afternoon, something far more important to the Tigers franchise and its future was in play as River Ryan took the mound as he begins the work of getting back into form after a few injury plagued seasons. Fans can’t control anything, but even we know that you have to be about the process over the results, and you can only really look backwards for a little while. The phrase, “we’ll get them next year,” is a rueful joke as much as anything else when times are hard, but it does embody something fundamental about being a sports fan, and about life in general. In so many ways, the lessons sports teaches are intertwined with all the lessons life tries to teach to everyone.
There’s no reason to weep too much over the retirement of an extraordinarily wealthy athlete with an incredible career behind him, and a lovely family to focus his full attention on. Objectively we all know this. We’re sad to see Verlander ride off into the sunset as one of the all-time great Detroit Tigers, but in some ways these things really aren’t about the individual athlete. They have their own distinct perspective on their lives and careers. This is more about us as fans of the game.
Sports and the legacies of their greatest practitioners and teams articulate the passing of time for all of us as sports fans. We think about where we were, and maybe more precisely, who we were, when we first recognized that a Justin Verlander or a Barry Sanders was a generation defining talent. We remember the performances, the big moments, the highs and lows, but we each remember them within the context of our own lives and memories. Some of the sadness we feel in a moment like Saturday’s is much more about our own sense of the passing of time, the passing of people from our lives, the way this old world just keeps changing.
For younger fans, this can all just feel too sentimental and nostalgic as they prepare to try and conquer the world in their own ways. For all of us who’ve already fought some or most of our battles, a little nostalgia is natural and appropriate. Justin Verlander’s presence in the game frames whole eras of our lives at this point.
For myself, Justin Verlander was a major force in actually getting me back into baseball. Growing up in the 80’s, the 1984 Tigers’ World Series championship team was the defining sports team of that whole era, only giving way to the Bad Boys era Pistons at the end of the decade. I grew up pitching and playing shortstop, wanting to be Alan Trammell and Jack Morris. But owner Tom Monaghan was apparently satisfied with one World Series title, and rarely did they sniff another opportunity.
By the early 90’s my family had moved out of state at a time when Sportscenter was still new, and it was difficult to follow your favorite teams from afar. Between the Tigers slide into mediocrity, the frustrations of the first decade and a half of Mike Ilitch’s ownership, the strike, and then the steroid era, baseball pushed me away. Of course, I was in my early 20’s then with plenty of other interests to occupy me as well.
It wasn’t until 2004-2005 that I really came back to the game, partly driven by Trammell’s presence as manager, but also by the Tigers attempts to turn things around after the catastrophic 2003 season. But it was in 2006 that a young rookie starter with a ridiculous level of arm talent started making waves, and it was initially watching Justin Verlander that rapidly drew me all the way back into a full-on obsession with the game.
The next few seasons featured frustration as Verlander tried to overcome a habit of slow starts to his seasons followed by furious finishes. The first no-hitter of his career on June 12, 2007 against the Brewers served notice, but the Tigers were collectively spinning their wheels. The global financial crisis of 2007-2008 took its toll on the region as it did everywhere, and the Tigers were disappointing in the wake of the painful 2006 World Series loss to the Cardinals. There were some rough years for many in 2007-2009. The pain of Game 163 against the Minnesota Twins broke some in the fanbase for years to come.
Many feared that Dave Dombrowski would never get the roster mix right and build a consistent winner. That Jim Leyland just didn’t have enough feel for his pitching staff anymore. Even the acquisition of Miguel Cabrera didn’t seem to make enough differences. At the same time, something else happened in 2009 as Verlander put together the first of his many Cy Young award worthy seasons. While he still struggled through March and April as usual, for the first time he was pretty dominant the entire rest of the way, topping 240 innings with a 3.45 ERA and a 2.80 FIP with the highest strikeout rate of his career to date.
For myself, after moving back to the Detroit area after over a decade on the west side of the state, that was the first season I ever saw him pitch live, and must-see-JV was already a thing before it became a slogan. Over the next few seasons I made a point of catching Verlander starts whenever possible and became more and more invested in his struggles to finally put everything together for a full season.
We know what came after that, as Verlander embarked on a good season in 2010 and then ultimately leveled up into an absolute monster in his AL MVP and Cy Young winning 2011 campaign. He finally developed the slider that would become a trademark pitch for him, and he also perfected his three gears approach to pitching, realizing he could get early outs at 92-93 mph, ramp up into the mid-90’s the second time through the order, and then empty the tank from 96-101 mph the rest of the way, even far beyond 100 pitches per outing. We may never see something like that again.
No-hitters suddenly seemed like a likely enough possibility that fans went to pieces when he gave up his first knock in the fourth inning. On May 7, it became a reality as he blanked the Blue Jays for his second no-no. Another one seemed possible at any time, but instead the third wouldn’t arrive until 2019 with the Astros when he blanked the Blue Jays in the Rogers Centre for the second time. Verlander became the face of baseball on the pitching side during those years. He was on the cover of video games and doing commercials. He felt like the ultimate diva style ace, hyper competitive, cocky verging on downright surly at times, approaching every start like a prize fight with himself as the reigning and defending champ.
By now I was long since fully hooked on baseball again, and pitching specifically, watching and reading everything I could find on pitching mechanics and pitch development. The timing was great, as for three years, Verlander wasn’t just the ace of the Tigers, he was the most consistently dominant pitcher in baseball and doing things rarely seen in the game. The combination of command, velocity, breaking stuff, and durability was hard to process, with few precedents in the game before him.
Yet the Tigers still couldn’t get it done, despite an enormous amount of talent and a lot of good times and spectacular individual performances. Miguel Cabrera finally put it all together in 2012-2013 and was the best hitter in baseball. By 2012, Max Scherzer was running with Verlander neck and neck, and ultimately surpassing him while the latter’s velocity slipped in 2014 and his body barked at him all season long.
At the end of that season, Scherzer went on to a spectacular five year run with the Washington Nationals. Cabrera had peaked only to immediately start a process of physically breaking down that would only accelerate in the years ahead. Verlander too appeared to have finally passed his peak in his ninth full season in the league. He was into his early 30’s now, and by that point it’s hard not to expect a rapid decline in performance in the not too distant future.
Right about then, I started writing for Bless You Boys, and suddenly Justin Verlander was my subject. The timing was good. I was convinced he had another full act in him and in 2015. Verlander, at the urging of then girlfriend Kate Upton, spent that offseason working with Dr. Annie Gow, a physical therapist who helped him restore his flexibility, strength and mobility. He came into 2015 spring training highly optimistic and early reports indicated that his velocity was back. Then came an injury, initially reported as a triceps strain, but which was actually a lat strain instead. For the first time in his career, the Tigers horse, as Jim Leyland would refer to him, went on the injured list. Verlander had already had two full acts in his career, the early years to 2009, and his run from 2010-2014. There had to be a third. As it turned out, there was far more than that to come, but no one could’ve but Verlander himself could’ve predicted it at the time. He did always say that he wanted to pitch into his 40’s until the wheels came off. Well here we are.
Skepticism over a return to form in 2015 reached a fever pitch in May and into June as Verlander was unable to get on the mound. Finally, the rehab work began and he made a start with the Toledo Mud Hens at the beginning of June. Afew of us here at BYB, including former site manager Kurt Mensching, went down to see his second rehab start in Toledo. This will always remain a vivid memory for me.
Prior to the game, as Verlander warmed up in a Jurassic Park themed jersey down the third base line, looking quite out of place, the big board showed the Belmont Stakes, where American Pharoah won the first horse racing Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978. Verlander took the mound sitting 94-95 mph, and carved through most of the Cleveland Triple-A squad with ease. He looked very good. The one exception was this skinny little shortstop who cranked a solo shot off one fastball and roasted a very hard hit single his second time up. Francisco Lindor would go on to become quite a player, to no surprise for anyone paying attention that day. What was key though, was that Verlander looked good, and so I was loudly opining on the site about a huge resurgence coming the rest of the season.
Betting on Justin Verlander rarely steered me wrong. I had him on a dynasty league team from 2007 until I finally and somewhat painfully dropped him last season. It’s Justin Verlander, so of course he went on to be the best pitcher in the American League and probably all of baseball again in the second half of the 2015 season. His velocity started ticking back up to the high 90’s peaks. The breaking stuff was crackling. He was back.
MLB debuted Statcast that summer, and sure enough, Verlander was up at the top in terms of spin rates and riding action, as predicted. There was plenty to write about as we tried to digest this huge inflow of new information about the game, and Verlander was an ideal outlier specimen to study, trying to understand exactly how to optimize pitches with spin.
On August 26th, we were back to old times as Verlander took a no-hitter into the ninth inning against the Angels, only for Chris Iannetta to drop a line drive on the chalk of the left field line, one of the more crushing hits I can remember by an opposing team outside of the postseason. Pablo Sandoval still has the most devastating blows against Verlander from the 2012 World Series Game 1, obviously. The point is, Justin Verlander was back, and while I was already convinced it was coming, I never could’ve imagined it would be 12 more seasons, most of them still great, until he finally hung up his spikes.
And while Verlander was back in form, one couldn’t really say the same about Miguel Cabrera and Victor Martinez. Max Scherzer had left in free agency after the 2014 season, and things were just never the same again. There’s another life lesson. You can go back in life, in all senses of the phrase, but when you get there it won’t be the same because you are no longer quite the same person either.
2016 was another real disappointment for the team as they crumbled down the stretch. On the Verlander front it was still great to watch Verlander build on 2015 and put together another Cy Young award caliber season only to be robbed by two Tampa area reporters who didn’t even cover baseball at that point. Kid Rick Porcello took home the hardware, and Kate Upton, by now engaged to Verlander, let fly with the legendary tweet that sent old Twitter into a frenzy.
Still, by 2017 it was clear that the magic was gone from the Tigers. Verlander’s magic was still running strong and his last second trade to the Houston Astros on August 31, 2017 was the final blow of that era. Many Tigers fans cheered the bittersweet sight of him winning his first ring with another club, but what gnawed at me was seeing the Astros ditch his twoseam fastball entirely and help him reach a new level of performance. I have always wondered how much greater his career could’ve been with better coaching and more information. In 2018 and 2019, he was better than ever, finally taking home another Cy Young award in 2019 and racking up 300 strikeouts in a season for the first time. By then, his future Hall of Fame credentials were long since assured.
Finally, after 14 years of greatness, Verlander’s UCL gave way in 2020. The Astros cheating scandal, and the entire culture of that front office in those years, tarnished his ring. Jeff Luhnow was banned for life. AJ Hinch was fired. Verlander’s career seemed to be coming to an end in a fairly dark place and time and he took some deserved heat from hiding of most of the Astros’ conduct. You had to wonder if Verlander would ever be the same, and if he would ever get another chance. We probably should’ve known better. Reinvigorated by the birth of his daughter, he rehabbed back into peak form and stormed back in 2022 to his third AL Cy Young award. He would go on to his second World Series title with the Astros.
By this point, Verlander was rarely on the minds of most Tigers fans anymore. The Astros didn’t pursue him too hard that offseason, and instead he signed a large short-term contract with the Mets, rejoining Max Scherzer for a half season. He was traded back to Houston at the trade deadline with Steve Cohen footing some of the bill, played there in 2024, and then left for a quiet but solid season with the San Francisco Giants in 2025. There were times where it felt like Verlander might make a brief fit for the Tigers one more time, but when that didn’t happen, it felt like chances of a reunion were probably done.
Instead, we did finally get that reunion. It didn’t go the way anyone hoped, but here at the end of his career, I’m still very glad he returned to Detroit. His reaction to coming home made it pretty clear that his heart never really left the Motor City, and that despite his success in Houston, he always viewed himself as a Tiger first and foremost. His wife is from Michigan. He got his start here. He became Justin Verlander here. In his own comments about the team, the fanbase, and the city, you can see him processing everything I’m writing about here, reminiscing on both the good times and the bad, feeling older for noticing how much time has passed and how much things have changed.
Verlander will hopefully go on to a long and fruitful retirement and finally be a full-time dad. His stature in the game is unassailable, and the way things are trending, we’ll never see his like again. His words over the last week have made it all but a certainty that his preference is to go into the Hall of Fame as a Tiger. We’ll see how that turns out when he’s eligible in five years. Expect the number 35 to be retired and added to the outfield walls, and in time a statue will be added on the concourse. Detroit does not forget its legends.
It’s entirely normal too to be skeptical about all this adulation. This is a more cynical era that the days when players like Babe Ruth and Willie Mays made their legends. But if Justin Verlander isn’t a baseball legend to future generations than who will be? He was hyper-competitive, he understood what he owed to the fanbase and to the game, there was never any drama, he took relatively team friendly extensions twice and never showed the slightest inkling of leaving until the Tigers forced his hand with a deadline decision at a time where they were clearly going into teardown mode. And most importantly, Justin Verlander was one of the greatest pitchers of all-time. He was everything you could ask and more from a Detroit athlete.
Verlander wasn’t able to give us that final act this season. But he was able to dig down and provide one more beautiful performance and a memory that will stick with many of us forever. For all the young fans out there looking for their Justin Verlander, a player that will help define an era or two for them in their lives and as sports fans, I hope Kevin McGonigle and Max Clark achieve this level of stature, accomplishment, and longevity in the game for you all, and not just for the Tigers’ benefit. Even for the greats, it’s hard to have multiple great eras in a baseball career. Don’t take it for granted if we’re so fortunate. A career like Justin Verlander’s may never be seen again.
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 01: José Caballero #72 of the New York Yankees throws during warm ups prior to Game Two of the American League Wild Card Series between the Boston Red Sox and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday, October 1, 2025 in New York, New York. (Photo by Michael Urakami/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The regular season was buried in the rain yesterday, but for over a week now, the Yankees have had their eyes on October. OK fine, due to how Major League Baseball lined it up this year, we have to be pedantic and talk about late September first. The Wild Card Series against the Red Sox begins tomorrow night, and that will determine whether or not the Yankees actually make it to the literal month of October. If they win Game 1, then they’re guaranteed of that since at minimum, Game 3 would be October 3rd, but of course the Yanks want to go deeper than that. How’s it gonna shake out? To quote Aaron Boone for the millionth time this season, “We’ll see.”
All systems are go for us on the site today as we preview the Wild Card Series and more. Josh and Peter will preview Boston’s pitching and hitting, and Peter will also take a separate more bird’s-eye view and argue why the Yankees can take home their 28th championship this year. I’ll have the Rivalry Roundup summing up the Game 162 action yesterday, Kevin will celebrate the 131st birthday of the Yankees’ first World Series champion center fielder, Estevão will run the monthly GM poll so that we can get a pulse on the feelings before the playoff run, Jeremy will run through the best plays of September, and Madison will put out the prompt for mailbag questions.
Today’s Matchup:
Offday
Questions/Prompts:
1. Any big late Yankees playoff roster predictions?
2. Dan Wilson became the first managerial casualty of the offseason yesterday. Who will be the next?
Welcome to a postseason where virtually every participant is looking over their shoulder, wondering if their two-man rotation can hold up, if their moribund lineup will wake up, if their shaky bullpen can hold up.
Little wonder that in a season that produced the first .500 division champion in major league history that the participant in MLB’s popular bracket challenge will have their flaws. On paper, anyway, one team has far fewer than the rest.
Yet they’re also due for things not to go their way.
With that, ranking MLB’s playoff teams by best chance to win the World Series:
Of course it’s more fun to go faux contrarian and anoint someone else the favorite. We’re not that silly.
For a minute, it seemed the trade for Tarik Skubal was kind of ho-hum. Very quietly, the dude was not quite as dominant as his previous AL Cy Young Award campaigns. But he is locked the hell in again, posting a 33-6 strikeout-walk ratio his last five starts. Simply nobody can match up with Skubal and Yoshinobu Yamamoto to start a playoff series.
Beyond that, Tyler Glasnow has struck out 49 in his last 34 1/3 innings. Blake Snell has all of October to work his way back into form. And did you check out the September OPS for Teoscar Hernandez (.998), Mookie Betts (1.136) and Kyle Tucker (.919)?
Sho-who? This three-peat would be far less dependent on the great Ohtani.
They were two-and-out in their past two playoff appearances, but now the Rays have graduated beyond the wild-card series and await the Red Sox-Yankees winner. They narrowly won the season series against both clubs and acing this ALDS test might be their stiffest challenge in getting to the World Series.
Like many lower-revenue, highly-analytical clubs, there’s always the question of whether their act will translate to the postseason. Will a club that ranked 22ND in home runs run into enough balls? Will their contact-happy offense keep things moving or prove ineffective against nastier stuff?
And will No. 2 starter Nick Martinez continue his All-Star run, or will his lack of punch (just 109 strikeouts in 180 innings) be a liability?
These are all the question marks. They don’t take away the fact this is a fantastic team, one that’s proven the class of the AL over six months.
No, really, we mean it this time: This, this 2026 season, this is the year for the Brewers.
Don’t look now, but this is the eighth postseason in nine years for the Brewers, a title-less run nearly akin to the ‘90s Braves or the Dodgers from the previous decade. Yet no one openly wonders what’s wrong with the Brewers in October or if they’ll finally get to a World Series, already.
But those diminished expectations come from the lower-revenue, plucky-Midwesterners leitmotif assigned the Brewers. And on the other hand: The more times you get in the tournament, the better your chances of winning.
And these guys have Jacob Misiorowski, impending Cy Young Award winner, ready to unleash from Game 1. Whether they can bridge the gap from Miz to the rest of a pitching staff that will be relied on 2 through 13 is the major question.
Enjoy Misiorowski’s explosive fastball. Then pull up a chair and get to know DL Hall and Shane Drohan and Abner Uribe real well. You’ll be seeing a lot of them and their ability to get outs will likely determine if this 103-win joyride will continue.
If you’re staring at every other postseason game wondering why starters are going two or three or four innings, Yankees games might feel like comfort food.
Even moreso than the Skubal- and Yamamoto-led Dodgers, the Yankees line up four deep in their rotation, with the strident and cocksure Cam Schlittler leading the way in Game 1 against the Red Sox. And then it’s Max Fried, and Gerrit Cole, and Carlos Rodón, with Will Warren swinging into a handy long guy/spot starter situation. Kind of nice!
Yeah, pitching will have to be their backbone because Aaron Judge almost certainly won’t be around for the wild-card round, or perhaps any stage of these playoffs. Still, despite a fair amount of slug in the lineup and that starting rotation, it will come down to how effective their relievers can be in multiple appearances.
5. Cleveland Guardians
They have one thing the Yankees and Red Sox and Braves do not: A first-round bye. They will need it, as starting pitching is their backbone and any advantage to line up more optimally than their opponent will be cherished.
On top of that, it’s the White Sox-Astros winner that will come out of the chute and face the Guardians, who can hit the survivor with Gavin Williams (239 strikeouts) and Parker Messick () right out of the gate.
Yet it’s the age-old question with Cleveland: Will it slug enough in October? The Guardians rank 27 TH in the majors in homers – only Milwaukee hits fewer among playoff teams – and 26 TH in OPS.
They’re also fairly green: Rookies Chase DeLauter and Travis Bazzana rank second and third on the team in home runs and Bazzana can provide instant offense with his power and speed. Will the young guys hold up under the playoff pressure at a time their club can’t necessarily rely on three hits in an inning to score runs?
Here they are, folks: The worst offense in the major leagues throughout the month of September. But don’t let them get hot.
Seriously.
For these Phillies, the getting there was by far the hardest part in this, their fifth consecutive postseason trip. They got tantalizingly close to an epic choke job but righted the ship just at the end and now the basic facts of this club remain:
Few teams can match up with Zack Wheeler, Cristopher Sanchez and Jesus Luzardo.
Perhaps the most encouraging sign in their Game 162 clincher – beyond the offense appearing sentient – was Luzardo throwing an inning for the first time since he came up with a balky shoulder three weeks ago. Now, the Phillies’ grand separator – their fantastic starting pitching – is back.
They face a massive obstacle in wild card Game 1: The great Chris Sale. But perhaps their harrowing escape may engender the proper devil-may-care attitude it takes to slay a giant like Sale, a result that would flip that wild-card series on its ear. Then, it’s get the ball to Sanchez for Game 2, escape Atlanta and line up Wheeler and a hopefully whole Luzardo for the NLDS.
Volatile team, these Red Sox. As if it wasn’t enough getting their possible Hall of Fame manager fired only to run off a 15-game winning streak, win 21 of 25 in July and clinch the No. 2 wild card going away, now the Red Sox loom as the most mysterious club this postseason.
Can they topple the Yankees? Will Payton Tolle end up a national folk hero? Can Willson Contreras swing a bat after getting hit on the hand late in the year? Will Roman Anthony take to October or fold? Can Ceddanne Rafaela stay healthy?
Will Chad Tracy stay on point managing his first postseason games?
Yeah. These guys can win it all or go two-and-out against the Yankees.
Can you win a World Series back-to-front? In other words, can the game’s deepest bullpen be the bulwark of a championship team?
The Padres may find out. Trade acquisitions Robbie Ray and Casey Mize were hit hard after their arrivals in San Diego, hardly alleviating the pressure on a Mason Miller-led unit that can only hope the Rays and Michael Kings and Walker Buehlers of the world can deliver them a lead.
The good news: No offense has been hotter since the All-Star break: The Padres are second to the Cubs in slugging, first in batting average (.269) and third in runs. Their wild-card series should be a doozy in an activated Petco Park.
Yet Adrian Morejon and Bradgley Rodriguez and Miller have a way of quieting things down in the late innings. Whether they have the wherewithal to last all October is another question.
9. Atlanta Braves
Simply, no path is tougher: Phillies, followed by Dodgers followed by, probably, the Brewers. If they get to the World Series by toppling Sanchez and Misorowski and Skubal and Yamamoto, more power to them.
But it’s a significant ask, particularly when the pitching thins out after Sale and recently acquired Tyler Mahle. Keep an eye on recently activated reliever Robert Suarez. If he and closer Raisel Iglesias can make it a seven-inning game, the Braves will be tough.
Like the Braves, it’s a long road, one that begins at Petco Park in a rematch of last year’s wild card series. Can the Cubs hammer their way to the World Series?
That would certainly run counter to the notion that great starting pitching needs to get you there. We’re not entirely sure an amalgam of Kevin Gausman, Matthew Boyd and Clay Holmes will cower many opposing lineups.
The Cubs ranked 18th with a 4.27 rotation ERA and while the weaker arms are marginalized in the postseason, it’s hard to win without a true bell cow. Yet with Alex Bregman, pending MVP Pete Crow-Armstrong and a built-for-postseason hitter like Nico Hoerner, the games will not lack for excitement.
Sorry: You finish .500, you get punished in the rankings.
The Astros have a chance to turn the playoffs on their ear, should they make a deep run while getting in with a subpar record and avoiding the beasts of the AL East until the ALCS thanks to the format. Folks will be screaming mad if they’re still around while two of the Yankees, Red Sox and Rays have gone home.
Yet the Astros seem to thrive on wearing the black hat. They also have homefield advantage in the wild-card series, where their lineup that led the majors in home runs will take aim at the Crawford Boxes.
They’re not expected to do much. And if they do, you’ll probably hear about it.
Somebody’s gotta be No. 12 and at the risk of being accused of hating fun, we need to drop the White Sox here. They are a fantastic story, even without any papal blessings. The world really does need to get familiar with Tristan Peters and Sam Antonacci and Miguel Vargas, who have dazzled the South Side all summer and revived a sagging franchise.
It’s just real hard to envision them pitching enough to seriously threaten for the AL pennant. Yet if they can sneak away with two wins in Houston, they’ll be plenty familiar with the Guardinas, who would await in an all-AL Central ALDS.
PHOENIX, ARIZONA - SEPTEMBER 19: Aaron Judge #99 of the New York Yankees looks on from the dugout during sixth inning of the MLB game against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Chase Field on September 19, 2026 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Christian Petersen/Getty Images) | Getty Images
New York Post | Greg Joyce: The Yankees will hand the ball to Cam Schlittler in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series against the Red Sox, the team announced Sunday. After reportedly considering opening their playoff run with Max Fried on the hill, they instead chose their presumptive Cy Young Award winner. “He wants the ball, and he’s ready to go,” manager Aaron Boone said simply. Fried is now lined up to start Game 2, with Gerrit Cole in wait should a Game 3 be needed.
Daily News | Gary Phillips: ($) Despite his hopes of returning for this week’s Wild Card Series, Aaron Judge has not engaged in baseball activities since injuring his calf on September 16th. “I know he was on the treadmill a little bit yesterday, so not a whole lot yet,” said Boone of his star’s progress. Judge and his manager did not see eye to eye when discussing his injury last week, with the Yankees captain pushing back on the idea that he would not be ready for the first round.
Associated Press: The Yankees’ season ended at Game 161, with a rainout Sunday that will not be made up. This weekend’s nor’easter caused Saturday’s game to be rescheduled to Friday, but with the playoffs looming there was no time to reschedule Sunday’s affair. With a win in that game, they would have been the first franchise in history to finish with the same record (94-67) in three straight seasons. The Yankees had played 162 games in all non-shortened seasons since 2002.
Playbill | Meg Masseron: A revival of Damn Yankees is coming to Broadway, with Neil Patrick Harris set to star. Previews will begin on March 24, 2027, the day before the Yankees are set to start their season. The production was announced Sunday at a press conference at Yankee Stadium.
FRISCO, TX - SEPTEMBER 06: David Hagaman #31 of the Amarillo Sod Poodles looks on during the game between the Amarillo Sod Poodles and the Frisco RoughRiders at Riders Field on Sunday, September 6, 2026 in Frisco, Texas. (Photo by Charisma Jones/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
Introduction
With the regular season now over for both Major League and Minor League Baseball, I think now would a be good time take a look at the best individual performance at each position in the Diamondbacks farm system. For the sake of the reader and my own sanity, we’re going to look at just the starting battery and infield corner positions today, otherwise this would be a very long read.
Before I do that, I want to congratulate the D’Backs Double-A affiliate, the Amarillo Sod Poodles, on winning the Texas League Championship. Winning a championship is great for the development of the younger players on the team, especially those who might not have had the best individual season this year. That said, about half the players mentioned in the next few articles will be players on that team.
Starting Pitcher
David Hagaman is the clear and obvious answer for the best starting pitcher in the Diamondbacks farm system in 2026, and the pitcher most likely to actually be named the Dbacks MILB pitcher of the year. There really isn’t much competition, especially knowing the context behind the numbers.
Hagaman, who was acquired in last summer’s Merrill Kelly trade, started the year assigned to high-A Hillsboro in the pitcher friendly confines of the Northwestern League. Across 15 games, Hagaman put up 71⅓ innings with a 3.03 ERA, 4.10 FIP, and 4.15 xFIP. Adjusted for the League that works out to a very impressive 61 ERA- and a slightly less impressive 84 FIP-. His 10.85 strikeouts per nine innings and 28% strikeout percentage are very impressive as well. That alone might not be enough to make him pitcher of the year, but what he did after being promoted to Double-A Amarillo, in the much more hitter friendly Texas League that cemented him as the organization’s pitcher of the year.
Hagaman started seven games, putting up 35 ⅓ innings with a 2.55 ERA, a 3.22 FIP, and a 3.79 xFIP. His strikeout percentage went up to 32.4% and 11.72 strikeouts per nine innings. He also walked less batters, going from 10.7% to 8.5%. In the hitter friendly Texas league, that translates to a 43 ERA- and a 75 ERA-. Hagaman did struggle with walks though in his post season outing in the Texas League division series and the championship to a lesser extent. It’ll be interesting to see if he returns to Double-A next season, gets promoted to Triple-A Reno, or possibly even has a chance at making his MLB debut with a strong showing in spring training. My first article going in depth on Dbacks pitching prospects has a scouting report if you’re interested in reading more about him, which you can read here.
Catcher
Gabriel Moreno has won the NL batting title, which I’m pointing out now because it really helps show just how strong the Diamondbacks organization is right now at the catching position from top to bottom, and how many of them had very good seasons this year, which is how this turned into another multi part series.
The Dbacks reinforced that position of strength after using their first round pick on a well regarded college catcher, Ryder Helfrick, who went on to have a solid professional debut in the Low A level California League. Despite putting up a solid triple slash line of .245/.327/.521 with a 104 wRC+ in just 24 games, that’s just 24 games, so he’s not the All Star here.
Jhosep Villarroel put up eye popping numbers in his 47 games this summer, but he’s also a 17 year old in the Dominican Summmer League, so you have to take these number with a massive grain of salt, which is why he’s not my All-Star but another honorable mention. That said his numbers are REALLY good, it’s just a small sample size and he’s very young. Combined between the two Dbacks DSL teams he hit .303/.500/.485 with a .493 wOBA and a 148 OPS+. Villarroel will almost certainly make his stateside debut with either the ACL Dbacks or Visalia Rawhide next season, which will give us a much better chance to evaluate him as a prospect.
It’s also not Alberto Barriga, who tore up the pitcher friendly Northwestern League for 40 games, hitting 259/.345/.490 with a 113 wRC+. The reason he’s not is that he struggled in the extremely hitter friendly Texas League after being being promoted, hittng just 237/301/362 with .302 wOBA and 55 wRC+ in 57 Games. He’s one of the players mentioned in the intro who I think will benefit a lot from the experience gained in Amarillo’s championship run. Barriga’s probably the most unique of the catching prospects here, so I am really looking forward to seeing how he adjust next season.
Ivan Luciano has a very solid argument based on his above average play in 2026. Luciano spent the majority (85 games) of the season in Visalia, where he hit 264/.375/.441 with .372 wOBA and a 109 wRC+. In the 12 games in Hillsboro after being promoted, he hit .279/.380/.465 with a .383 wOBA and 122 WRC+. Combined across the two levels, Luciano put up a solidly above average tripleslash of .266/.376/.444 with a .374 wOBA and 111 wRC+. One of his teammates (at the beginning of the season) has a much stronger argument based on his numbers, and that’s Carlos Virahonda.
Carlos Virahonda started the year with 48 games in Visalia in which he hit .273/.359 /.508 .383 wOBA and 115 wRC+. He was then promoted to High A Hillsboro and in 50 games, and a in much more pitcher friendly league, where he’d hit .272/.393/.468 with a .391 wOBA and a 127 wRC+. He’d then finish his season playing in four games with Double A Amarillo, where he’d go 4 for 15 with a pair of doubles and a homerun, while getting plunked three times to give him a .267/.389/.600 and a 134 wC+. In 108 games combined across all three levels, Virahonda hit .272/.377/.493 with 18 HRS, a .388 wOBA and a 122 wRC+. To cap it all off, he also had a fantastic post season with Amarillo, playing a key role offensively.
If you’d like to read a more in depth look at the catchers, check out this article from earlier this season.
Third Base
Danny Serretti could have easily been an all-star at second base, but he had slightly more innings as a third baseman. There also really aren’t any other obvious candidates at the position, unlike second base which is just as stacked as catcher, so we’re sticking Serretti here. I had an article focused on Serretti’s background prior to this season, which you can read here if you are so interested.
Serreti spent a lot of time going back and forth between Amarillo and Reno, even coming back to play a key role in Amarillo’s championship. In 74 games in Amarillo he hit 272/.418/.510 with a .413 wOBA and a 124 WRC+. In 35 games in Reno, he hit .316/.421/.513 with a .419 wOBA a .357 xWOBA, and a 129 wRC+. His walk percentage fell slightly from 17.8% to 14.9%, but I’d attribute that to the higher batting average, which is backed up by his strikeout percentage staying within .3% of each other, with Serretti striking out 22.4% in Amarillo and 22.7% in Reno. As a whole, Serretti finished his season hitting 287/419/.511 with 19 homeruns, 11 stolen bases, a .415 wOBA and a 126 wRC+ in 109 games.
The only other third baseman in the same ballpark (at times literally) was LuJames Groover, who was above average in Reno but struggled at the MLB level in 2026.
First Base
Finally, at least for this week, we have another position with a single clear and obvious choice.
Manuel Pena broke out in a big way in 2026, hitting 26 homeruns in 61 games with Amarillo, while also putting up a triple slash line of .311/354/.673 with a robust .428 wOBA and 134 wRC+ in the first half of the season . After being promoted to Reno he’d cool down significantly, but overall in 112 games he would hit .305/.345/.555 with a 108 wRC+ with 31 HRs. The only other first baseman who had better numbers in the Dbacks farm system were Pavin Smith and Tyler Locklear and I don’t think anyone reading this wants to hear more about either player.
That’s it for now! Next time, I’ll look at the middle infield and outfielders.
Today’s guest columnist is Chris Koras, partner and head of sports at Working Capital Partners.
In December 2022, I flew to the Dominican Republic to break a year-long contract stalemate. Our firm represented Rafael Devers. The Boston Red Sox had sent ownership and front-office executives to settle the negotiation directly with the player, hoping relationship leverage would carry the economics. It moved nothing.
We ended the negotiation in writing. Devers would play the season and enter free agency. Days later, facing the credible threat of losing a third consecutive star on the eve of ticket sales opening, Boston moved, agreeing to a record $331 million deal. It worked for one reason: Devers could afford the outcome he was threatening, and the Red Sox could not. Resolve is credible only when you can survive your own threat.
While an individual superstar can force a club’s hand in an isolated free-agency window, the landscape for league-wide labor disputes has fundamentally shifted. Over the past three years, ownership has built a systemic financial wall designed specifically to neutralize that exact leverage across an entire union.
Every negotiation ends at someone’s limit. MLB players are about to go looking for ownership’s, but the ground beneath that search has moved. Ownership wants a salary cap to give clubs long-term certainty over their largest cost. Buyers underwrite predictable margins at higher multiples than volatile ones. The cap is the prize.
Franchise valuations track those long-term economics over on-field performance. Stan Kroenke agreed to buy a controlling stake in the Los Angeles Angels at a record $4 billion valuation—a price that held despite a decade of losing seasons. In modern baseball, parity is a public position; valuation is a fiduciary commitment.
The institutional capital driving those valuations has arrived faster than the market realizes, operating on two distinct fronts: asset equity and debt insulation. Since MLB admitted private equity in 2019, firms including Arctos Partners, Sixth Street and Sportsology have taken minority stakes across 18 of the 30 teams.
Crucially, structures have matured past equity into standing credit facilities. Ares Management lent directly to the San Diego Padres, while Yankee Global Enterprises recently completed a $2.6 billion financing agreement with Apollo Sports Capital to refinance debt and buy out limited partners—all with the December labor expiration and cap proposals already public.
Institutional buyers price a work stoppage as a routine discount rather than a reason to walk away. When a lockout hits, a team’s operating cash flow goes dark, but an owner’s liquidity remains intact through standing institutional bids and private debt.
This insulation changes how ownership calculates risk. A lost or shortened season is a one-time expense, absorbed once. A structural salary cap recurs annually and is capitalized permanently into franchise value at a high multiple. The MLB Players Association estimates the league’s proposed cap changes would cost players over $500 million annually. Applied across 30 franchises trading at revenue multiples, the resulting equity appreciation runs into the tens of billions.
Trading a temporary delay in multibillion-dollar media rights for a permanent reduction in labor costs is a straightforward corporate calculation. The downside got cheaper because it is temporary; the upside got larger because it is permanent.
The players approach this lockout with far less financial architecture. While the MLBPA’s $415 million reserve is impressive compared with the $171 million held prior to the last labor fight, the distinction between the two sides remains structural. A union reserve is a savings account that amortizes—drawn down by legal fees, operations and support for members until it is gone. Ownership’s capital position revolves. It is a bank.
To weaponize this advantage, the 30 clubs have withheld roughly $75 million each in central-fund distributions, amassing a $2 billion liquidity holdback. Conversely, the players’ obligations remain individual, unfinanced and absorbed across 1,200 separate household clocks. A mortgage or tuition payment due in January is paid by an individual household, whether the stadium gates are open or locked.
When traditional lenders decline a career without conventional collateral, alternative capital fills the void—often on terms heavily stacked against young players. Fernando Tatis Jr. took $2 million from Big League Advance as a teenage minor leaguer in exchange for 10% of his future major league earnings, a stake worth $34 million after his contract extension. A judge recently upheld that agreement. When the vast majority of minor leaguers never reach the majors, the arithmetic clears only when the terms on the few who do are punitive enough to fund the rest. Through a long winter, more young players will be forced to sell off pieces of their future just to stay afloat.
Ownership is bringing an institutional balance sheet to a labor fight. Sixty years of union solidarity will be tested by an opponent that no longer needs a baseball season to survive its own demands.
Labor must modernize its financial architecture to counteract this evolution. Relying purely on cash reserves is no longer viable when ownership utilizes revolving institutional liquidity. To retain leverage at the bargaining table, players must establish contemporary financial counterweights, such as union-backed credit lines secured by collective IP and licensing rights, player-driven liquidity funds offering non-dilutive capital to protect younger players from predatory arrangements, and syndicated loan structures to help players maintain household finances through extended work stoppages.
Baseball’s labor pool cannot meet modern Wall Street tactics with a 1970s financial strategy; creating institutional liquidity is essential to preserving player leverage.
Chris Koras is partner and head of sports at Working Capital Partners. He was previously head of baseball at Klutch Sports and an executive at REP1, where he represented the firm’s capital partner, led the baseball division and oversaw its player negotiation operations. During his tenure, REP1 negotiated billions in player contracts and completed a successful sale of the firm.
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) is congratulated by left fielder Juan Soto (22) after hitting a solo home run during the second inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park in Washington, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. The home run was Lindor's 300th career home run.
WASHINGTON — Francisco Lindor wanted to get it over with before this season concluded.
Hitters seldom go to the plate trying to hit home runs, but Lindor was in that mode Sunday and succeeded. His second-inning blast served as career homer No. 300 in the Mets’ 6-4 loss to the Nationals.
“I wasn’t trying [to homer] the past couple of days, I was just trying to have good at-bats,” Lindor said. “And then today I said, ‘I am going to try to hit a home run.’ It doesn’t work out that way all the time, but today it did. Some way it worked out, so it’s not something I am going to take into next year.”
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) is congratulated by left fielder Juan Soto (22) after hitting a solo home run during the second inning against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park in Washington, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. The home run was Lindor’s 300th career home run. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Lindor, who missed two months with a calf strain, finished his season with 21 homers and a .732 OPS.
“To hit 300 [homers] you have got to be healthy for a long time,” Lindor said. “The trainers here, in Cleveland, my people, have helped me a lot to stay on the field. It seems like it’s a day for me, but it’s for all these people that wish me to be better day in and day out that made me better.”
Sean Manaea allowed five earned runs on seven hits and one walk over six innings to conclude his season with a 4.78 ERA.
The lefty said his focus this offseason will be building up velocity. Manaea struggled this season to maintain consistency with his fastball.
“At least having that for spring training, at least from the [start] and then my breaking ball,” Manaea said.
Manaea appeared on the right track at midseason — he had a brutal three months to begin the season — but concluded with a 6.35 ERA over his final seven starts.
“I would say [this season] was a disappointment — we didn’t as a team do what we needed to do,” Manaea said. “I personally didn’t need to do what I needed to do. There were flashes of some really good times. There was also a lot of negative things. Overall, I would say it was a disappointment.”
Carson Benge went 3-for-5 for a third straight multihit game. He batted .462 over his final 10 games this season.
Ronny Mauricio finished his season with a bang: He blasted his third homer in two days.
If that was the end for Max Scherzer, he went out exactly how you’d expect.
The 42-year-old three-time Cy Young winner emptied the tank in what could have been the final start of his Hall of Fame career Sunday, throwing 114 pitches over seven innings in the Toronto Blue Jays’ 5-1 win over the Cincinnati Reds.
And he did it on just three days’ rest.
The eight-time All-Star allowed just one earned run on six hits, walked one and struck out seven in his final appearance of the 2026 season.
“That was amazing,” Scherzer told reporters postgame. “The adrenaline starts kicking in, the fans start getting in, and that’s when I could start feeding off of the crowd here at the Rogers Centre. I really could just reach back and just felt like I was unlimited.”
The game also prompted one memorable scene for the final chapter of Scherzer’s career.
While already at over 100 pitches on the afternoon, Blue Jays manager John Schneider walked toward the mound as if he were finally coming to take the ball.
Scherzer quickly turned him away, which popped the audience at the Rogers Centre.
Schneider instead turned around as the former ace powered through the rest of inning.
“If that doesn’t sum up Max Scherzer, I don’t know what does,” Schneider said afterward.
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31) exchanges words with manager John Schneider (14) during the seventh inning of an MLB game against the Cincinnati Reds at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Ontario, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Classic Mad Max.
He finished the inning and walked off the mound to a standing ovation, tipping his cap as teammates waited for him outside the dugout.
It looked like a farewell, and it might have been, though nothing is yet official.
Max Scherzer gestures to fans during the game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on Sunday, September 27, 2026. MLB Photos via Getty Images
Scherzer has not announced his retirement and said Saturday that he will wait until the offseason before deciding whether to return for a 20th major-league campaign.
“I’ve talked to everybody in my inner circle, and we all kind of feel the same way,” Scherzer said. “We don’t need to make a decision today. Get to the offseason and just see how things unfold.”
He also noted MLB’s forthcoming contentious labor negotiations between the league and the Players’ Association, which has left many predicting a lockout at least to begin the 2027 season.
“We’ve also got a lot of uncertainty next year with all the labor issues,” Scherzer said, “so you just don’t know how the season’s going to happen or unfold, or what opportunity is going to be in front of me.”
Toronto Blue Jays pitcher Max Scherzer (31) hugs first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (27) after being relieved during the eighth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Rogers Centre in Toronto, Sunday, Sept. 27, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson answers reporters' questions before a game against the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington, Sunday, September 27, 2026.
A year after Dan Wilson led the Mariners to the American League Championship Series, he is out as manager of the club.
Wilson had announced that he would not be returning to manage the club after the Mariners’ season-finale win over the Angels.
“This season has been very difficult, and of course the results have not been what any of us had expected,” Wilson said. “As a result, it was concluded that today is my last day as manager of the Seattle Mariners.”
The Seattle Times reported that Wilson informed the Mariners he was moving on prior to the start of Sunday’s game.
Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson, facing, greets bullpen catcher Fleming Báez (66) after a win over the Los Angeles Angels in a baseball game, Sunday, September 27, 2026, in Seattle. AP Photo/Lindsey Wasson
The team also confirmed the change in a statement released on Sunday evening, thanking Wilson for his time with the team and saying that after “much discussion” between president of baseball operations Jerry Dipoto and Wilson, “it was concluded that a new direction is best for 2027 and beyond.”
“I want to thank Dan for his efforts over the past two years and specifically recognize his role in our club advancing to Game 7 of the ALCS in 2025,” Dipoto said in a statement.
“I’ve appreciated the opportunity to lead this team the past two years,” Wilson said in a statement. “While this season has not gone the way any of us expected, I’m proud that the players in the clubhouse showed up each day to try and compete and battle in each game they played. I’m confident that the 2026 season doesn’t accurately reflect the talent, passion and desire of our players and know that bright things are ahead for this group.”
Wilson had been a catcher for the Mariners during his playing career and took the role of manager after Seattle let go of Scott Servais in the midst of the 2024 season.
Seattle Mariners manager Dan Wilson answers reporters’ questions before a game against the Los Angeles Angels at T-Mobile Park in Seattle, Washington, Sunday, September 27, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The 57-year-old helped Seattle reach the ALCS while finishing the regular season 90-72 and winning the American League West.
The Mariners did not play to the same level of success in 2026 and missed the playoffs with a 76-86 record. He went 187-171 overall.
Wilson said postgame that the club has some interest in moving him to a different role in the organization and he would discuss it with his family.
DENVER, COLORADO - JUNE 30: Mickey Moniak #22 of the Colorado Rockies puts on a purple home run jacket after a first inning solo home run against the Miami Marlins at Coors Field on June 30, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Through the ups and downs of a full 162-game season, it’s still hard not to be romantic about baseball.
As this afternoon’s game put a bow on the 2026 Colorado Rockies season, we want to hear about the things — big or small — that are on your mind. With the team marking a 15-game improvement and with several young players emerging as core lineup pieces, there were plenty of fun moments and strong individual or team performances.
As we head into the long offseason and immediately start the countdown to spring training, which 2026 memories are sticking with you?
Is it an overall performance? Like Hunter Goodman’s hot start into the home run race, TJ Rumfield making a name for himself in the Rookie of the Year conversation, or Tomoyuki Sugano mastering Coors Field early in the season and getting up to double-digit wins.
Maybe it’s a specific game or milestone? Back to Goodman, seeing him hit his 40th (and 41st) home run yesterday was big. Jake McCarthy had a day back on August 8th, becoming one of a few players with four hits, two homers, and two stolen bases in a game. Connor Norby notched his first career grand slam in the 13-1 win over the Washington Nationals on August 26th. The Rockies being on the right side of a 20-burger was nice too, when they beat the A’s 23-9 out in Las Vegas on June 14th.
Maybe an overall vibes thing? The emergence of the purple home run jacket was a great time.
Was it a Coors Field memory? Attending both the Larry Walker and Todd Helton statue unveiling games are up there for me, as is getting one last hot dog combo from Diamond Dawgs before Joyl Watkins’ retirement after being a ballpark staple for 31 years.
Let’s dwell on some of the good things from the year. Give us your favorite memories, moments, performances, and players in the comments!
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 27: Corey Seager #5 of the Texas Rangers reacts to a 6-4 loss against the Minnesota Twins after the game at Target Field on September 27, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Twins 6, Rangers 4
And that’s that.
I wrote that Saturday’s win against the Twins was a reminder of what the Rangers can look like when they are playing well.
Sunday’s season finale, though, was a reminder of what the Rangers looked like overall in 2026.
The starting pitcher struggling physically, unable to give you innings.
A makeshift bullpen leaned on too heavily, that ultimately couldn’t get the job done.
A starting lineup missing a couple of key bats, that was quiet for much of the game before rallying late, only to see the comeback fall short.
Having a chance until the end against underwhelming opposition, but still not being good enough.
It was a minor miracle the Rangers were still in the race until the end. Not just in the race, but in control of their own destiny with a week left to go.
And they lost two consecutive series against teams playing out the string.
The Rangers never quit. You had guys playing hurt, guys battling to get back, a flawed team that hung in there and didn’t give up.
They just weren’t good enough, even in a division where no one finished above .500.
MacKenzie Gore hit 94.4 mph with his fastball, averaging 93.2 mph. Chase Silseth touched 97.5 mph with his fastball. Robert Garcia’s fastball maxed out at 94.6 mph. Tyler Alexander touched 92.2 mph with his sinker. Jakob Junis’s fastball hit 93.8 mph. Jordan Montgomery reached 92.6 mph with his sinker. Cody Bradford’s fastball maxed out at 90.0 mph.
Brandon Nimmo had a 105.7 mph single. Elias Diaz had a 104.1 mph home run. Corey Seager had a 104.0 mph home run. Ezequiel Duran had a 101.1 mph groundout.
