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

This year has been a very busy time for rookies signing extensions. Some of the biggest prospects have signed shortly after, or even before, being called up to the majors. It might be time for Kansas City to join the crowd, get Jac Caglianone signed up, and snag a couple of extra years of control.

First, let’s look at what the rookies have been signing for to get a feel for how the market is valuing top prospects. I am doing a mix of pure rookies and a few guys who signed after getting some big-league time, so hopefully we can triangulate a little bit.

Things to keep in mind while we go through a bunch of names and numbers: Jac is 23, and his prospect ranking from FanGraphs going into 2025 was 47th. It climbed as high as 18th before he lost prospect status. Those rankings, along with your track record as it develops, are the biggest factors that shape a contract’s size and length. Then it is just a matter of finding a balance of risk and reward for both the team and the player that gives both sides what they want. I will start with the best rookies, but the best comp is in the middle of the write-up.

Kevin McGonigle

McGonigle will turn 22 in mid-August, so he signed his extension at the very beginning of his age-21 season. The deal was announced by the Tigers on April 15, when he had amassed career totals of just 18 games played and one home run. He was ranked similarly to Cags at the beginning of 2025—54th per FanGraphs—but the 2026 list had him at fifth, so he had climbed into one of the truly elite prospect spots.

Kevin has mostly played third base this year, with a sprinkling of shortstop as well. He is listed at 5’9″ and just 187 pounds. That does not sound like a third baseman, but he has some pop despite being on the smaller side. His deal was for eight years and $150 million, with escalators that could push it to $160 million.

There are no options on the deal, so it runs straight from 2027 through 2034, which means this year was not part of the extension. That gets the Tigers three years of free agency, while McGonigle will be going into his age-30 season when he gets to test the open market. So far, he has been absolutely fantastic for Detroit, posting 4.1 fWAR this season.

Konnor Griffin

Griffin was the consensus #1 prospect in baseball coming into 2026. He was drafted ninth overall in 2024 out of high school, and he had just turned 20 when he signed this extension. This is an unusual player—you just do not see many people at the MLB level before they turn 20. When it does happen, they tend to be the cream of the crop. Juan Soto, Mike Trout, and Ken Griffey Jr. come to mind.

Despite his relative youth, Konnor has held his own as a rookie. He has been almost exactly league average with the bat and just a touch below average defensively at shortstop. He has also been hurt a couple of times and was recently moved to the 60-day IL. His future looks bright, but 2026 is not going to be a banner rookie campaign for the phenom.

His deal was for nine years and $140 million, with $10 million in incentives similar to McGonigle’s. He will still hit free agency at 29 because he is so young. The last year of the deal is 2034, the same as McGonigle’s, because 2026 is included. Both of these deals were very similar and straightforward, especially compared with more complex extensions like Bobby Witt Jr.’s or Julio Rodríguez’s.

Colt Emerson

Since JJ Wetherholt’s deal is similar to the first two and just smaller, I am going to move on to someone from a different stratum of prospect world. This is the closest comparable for Caglianone from a prospect ranking status perspective. Colt Emerson was 41st going into 2025 and started this year at 11th, both just a bit ahead of where Jac ranked at the same points. The big differences are that Emerson is younger and had not debuted with the Mariners when he signed this extension.

He has struggled a bit since being called up in the middle of May. He had a phenomenal first couple of weeks, an okay June, and has been in a terrible slump in July, posting a wRC+ of -15. It is hard to get into the negatives for that stat, but when you are hitting .132 with no extra-base hits, it can be done. Defensively, he has been pretty good, though not great.

He just turned 21 on Monday, so he is doing pretty well thus far, assuming he can get out of the slump.

His deal was announced at the end of March by Seattle with a guaranteed $95 million. It is, again, eight years through 2034, but it has more escalators that could add another $35 million or more to the total. It is similar to the first two deals but trimmed down and more incentive-oriented since he is not quite as much of a sure thing as the others. He will also hit free agency at 30.

This is the prevailing theme of these deals: get a guaranteed bag while making sure you hit free agency around or before your 30th birthday. Bobby’s opt-out is after his age-30 season too. This is probably the closest talent comp, with the age difference complicating how Caglianone might want to structure such a deal.

Cooper Pratt

Pratt is nearly 22, so he is ancient compared to his peers so far in this article. He also was not a consensus Top 100 prospect, instead falling more into the bottom-end or honorable-mention tier. Like several others on this list, he signed before making his debut and has since graduated to Milwaukee as their starting shortstop.

Cooper gets on base, has very limited power, and plays good defense. If he had more power, he would be grouped with the other guys. Since he does not, he received a guarantee of $47.5 million through 2033, and the team then has two options at $15 million each for 2034 and 2035.

He got less money and may not reach free agency as soon if things go well. I include him because of Jac’s very rough start, which took some of the shine off and might make a deal structure like this more palatable, with less guaranteed money and more incentives. It will cost more than this to get Caglianone to sign, especially since his draft bonus was $7.5 million versus Pratt’s $1.35 million.

I want to talk about some guys who are not rookies before we move on to Jac, though.

Tyler Soderstrom

I think we need to discuss Soderstrom, who had a similar pedigree in some ways, though that was shaped by being drafted out of high school rather than college. It then took Tyler a couple of runs at the big leagues before he put it all together last season, posting 3.4 fWAR and a 125 wRC+ over a full 2025 campaign.

He then signed a seven-year extension this January at age 24, which would be very similar to what Jac would be doing if he signed this coming offseason. He is even a first baseman who moved to the outfield. This is a very strong comparison for Jac.

His deal is for seven years and guarantees $86 million. There is a club option for an eighth year that would push that number to $111 million, and there are some escalators that could push it even higher. That option year would be for 2033, Tyler’s age-31 season, and the option is worth $27 million with a $2 million buyout.

To go past age 30, teams have to start paying a bigger premium to buy those years. He would have been out of arbitration before 2031, and Caglianone will not be a free agent until 2032. His deal could look something like this, just shifted slightly because of that one-year difference.

The Athletics signed a very similar deal with Jacob Wilson, though for a smaller dollar amount, just a few weeks after the Soderstrom deal.

Pete Crow-Armstrong

PCA is another similarly aged outfielder with a longer and bumpier path in the big leagues so far. This deal was signed before he became the best player in baseball this year, as he currently leads MLB in both fWAR and bWAR. He kind of did that last year too, before falling off a cliff in the second half.

His value comes much more from defense than Cags’, but I still thought it was worth taking a look at.

PCA signed the deal on his 24th birthday, and it did not affect his salary this season, his final pre-arbitration year. Starting next year, he will make $110 million over six years. Like most of these deals, the Cubs are buying two years of free agency, and then it is just a matter of whether there are options beyond that. This one has no options, and it shows how those years become much more expensive to buy out as you get closer to free agency, since he will make $30 million per year.

Would the Royals extend Jac midseason? I do not know, but the way the season is going, they could use a nice distraction. More importantly, is Cags an extension guy, or is he going to “bet on himself” and try to reach free agency as early as possible?

The looming CBA negotiations play into this, with a possible salary cap and other changes that might shift the economic landscape of the game. Again, he already got $7.5 million to sign with the team originally, which is significantly more than most of us will make in our lifetimes. There are a lot of moving parts to these deals.

Since he will be a free agent in 2032 at age 28, going into his age-29 season, it is reasonable to say he might be interested in getting a guaranteed $80-plus million in exchange for giving up a year or two of free agency, but two years is probably the maximum. Also, large first basemen can struggle to get big deals as they age. It took Pete Alonso a couple of trips through free agency to get the deal he wanted, and it was less than he had originally floated.

I am assuming a 29-year-old Jac Caglianone will not be in the outfield, since he already has a 15th-percentile range rating there. The arm does make up for the range a bit.

If I were Jac’s representatives and the Royals wanted two years of free agency, the second one would need to be a player option or a very expensive team option. That being said, the team watched him struggle mightily last season, and though he has performed well in 2026, it has been a bit uneven. April was okay, May was bad, June was great, and now July is back to being bad again.

Do you want to guarantee that much money to a player with known chase issues who is probably going to be a bit streaky? Salvador Perez is—and always has been—that guy, and it has worked out just fine. I think the structure would end up looking something like this.

2027: $1 million salary and a $5 million signing bonus

2028: $1 million

2029: $9 million

2030: $12 million

2031: $18 million

2032: $22 million

2033: $32 million team option with a $2 million buyout

That’s a guarantee of $70 million, which is about where I would be comfortable if I were the Royals. He does not get the full Soderstrom amount until he shows more consistency. If the team picks up the option, he gets to $100 million, so the deal still carries nine-figure money.

He looks like he will be worth this, and there is still a lot of upside for the team. I do wonder whether that 40-plus-homer potential makes him wait and avoid signing anything until he shows that elite power over a full season. It all depends on his risk tolerance because $70 million guaranteed is a ridiculous amount of money.

The Royals could also push some of the guaranteed money down a bit more and build in $40 million or $50 million in incentives if Jac would prefer that structure. It is something I assume the team will explore. The math just changes depending on how sure either they or Jac want to be before getting a deal done.

By this time next year, he could be anywhere from not extendable to needing $150-plus million guaranteed, so these negotiations are always a matter of timing.

Earlier this week, Camden Chat colleague Paul Folkemer examined how the prospects on our preseason top 20 prospects ranking have been performing this season. That group of players are a mix of exciting, interesting, and disappointing. There are other players in the Orioles system right now who didn’t crack that list before the season who look like they might be heading higher up the next incarnation of an O’s prospect list, if they don’t get traded sooner. Here are ten more prospects (and one non-prospect) worth some attention for what they’ve done so far this season:

Creed Willems – C/1B

A slow-developing prospect since the Orioles gave him a $1 million overslot bonus five years ago, Willems has finally made it to Triple-A for his age 23 season and he’s been getting some decent results, batting .259/.358/.431 in 70 games. This includes 13 homers, though at the same time he’s only hit two doubles. That’s peculiar.

Willems just missed about three weeks with a hamstring injury, returning earlier this week. If you’d rather see him instead of Sam Huff or Chadwick Tromp, you’re not the only one. They probably want to make sure that Willems is recovered from the hamstring before considering bringing him up into this situation. I suspect they don’t want to bring him up for a short-term absence, so we won’t see Willems this year unless either Adley Rutschman or Samuel Basallo are going to miss extended time.

Yaqui Rivera – RHP

You’ve got to be pretty good as a reliever to be worth mentioning as a prospect. Rivera, who’s only in his age 22 season, is hitting that level, holding batters to a .179 average between Chesapeake and Norfolk this season. Since joining the Tides, he’s struck out 39 batters in 32 innings. I’ve got a concerned eye on his 5.3 BB/9. It’s working out for him for now.

Bonus: Andrew Magno – LHP

He’s 28 and he’s a journeyman reliever, so he doesn’t count as a prospect in any sense, but this Tides lefty has a 0.98 ERA in 32 games. The idea of him may feel better than your least favorite member of the current Orioles bullpen. It does for me.

Ethan Anderson – C/1B

The 2024 Orioles draft class seemed like it was cursed a year ago. Its top three picks, Vance Honeycutt, Griff O’Ferrall, and Anderson, all largely flopped at High-A. The O’s promoted O’Ferrall and Anderson to Double-A this year anyway and Anderson’s looked like he’s fighting away that curse. 22 years old and still about two years younger than the average competition at the level, Anderson has batted .270/.369/.520 in 68 games.

That’s really good and mighty interesting from the switch hitter, though there’s an extreme home/road split going on here. Anderson has posted a 1.174 OPS at home and only .562 on the road. One way he hasn’t avoided the curse is that he’s on the injured list right now as a result of an ankle injury and it’s unclear when he’ll be back in action to continue building his stock.

Brandon Butterworth – IF/OF

One of the sextet of minor leaguers the Orioles received in last July’s Padres deal. Butterworth has only played in 35 games with the Baysox, though he’s back in action now. Solid results over those 35 games: .264/.377/.481. Good walk rate, good power, good speed. This is his age 23 season, so these numbers are less interesting than Anderson’s at the same level, but he’s got some things going for him and if they’re still going like this by season’s end, he’ll be a guy worth following more next season. No known connection to the syrup.

Micah Ashman – LHP

Acquired from the Tigers for Charlie Morton last year, this 23-year-old lefty reliever has been trashing Double-A over the 2026 season: 1.83 ERA in 23 games, 14.7 K/9 Like Anderson above, some odd stuff going on in the splits, including that Ashman has been much worse facing lefty batters than righties so far this season (.776 OPS allowed to lefties, .574 to righties). He’s also got a big home/away split except in the opposite direction of Anderson: .549 OPS at home, .807 OPS away.

Victor Figueroa – 1B/DH

Another of the players from the depths of that Padres trade. Figueroa is 22 and playing for High-A Frederick. He leads all Orioles minor leaguers with 22 home runs, which makes him a fun big guy to root for to beat the odds. There are some long odds to beat; he’s got a 32% strikeout rate for the season. A 1B/DH is going to have to hit and that kind of swing and miss will be tough to keep the homers going at higher levels of the minors.

RJ Austin – IF/OF

Third round pick last year, Austin has also missed some time with an injury this year, only 50 games of action. It’s gone well when he’s played, and for the season he’s working on a .271/.374/.422 line, with 27 stolen bases in 31 attempts. That’s basically “What would it look like if Enrique Bradfield had just a little bit of power?” – which is, like all of these guys, interesting! I don’t know how Austin compares defensively, and High-A is farther off from the majors.

Caden Hunter – LHP

The sixth round pick by the Orioles last year was assigned to Low-A to begin the season, where he was old for the level but nonetheless wrecking that competition. This has continued after a promotion to Frederick: 1.83 ERA, 54 strikeouts in 39.1 IP for the Keys. Walk rate is a little high (4.5 BB/9 between both levels) so there’s stuff to work on. It’s going well against these lower-level hitters, anyway: .513 OPS allowed across 250 PA. Need to see what happens in the high minors.

Twine Palmer – RHP

Arrived from the Astros for Ramón Urías last July, Palmer had a horrendous debut with the organization with Delmarva after that deal. It’s gone better for him at Frederick. This is just his age 21 season and he’s holding batters to a .206/.314/.286 line overall. Walk rate is higher than you want so there’s stuff to work on. There’s also good stuff going on, like only three homers allowed to 291 batters. It’s made for a 3.49 ERA overall.

Jaiden Lo Re – IF

Fifth round pick from an Arizona high school last year only took 20 games in the rookie Florida Complex League to convince the Orioles to send him up to a full-season affiliate, where he’s continued to look interesting. Across 30 games for Delmarva, he’s batted .340/.454/.453. Intriguing stuff for someone who’s just 19. The homer power isn’t there yet, only one so far in 131 PA. They’re playing him all over the infield. If he can sustain this next season, he’ll be a real top notch prospect.

**

Can the Orioles turn any of these guys, one way or another, into useful major leaguers? That will say a lot about the team’s chances of success next year and beyond.

Good morning A’s fans.

The squad couldn’t get out of Arizona with a win, getting swept by the Diamondbacks to drop the record to a tough 43-59. That’s a disappointing outcome after their strong start to the season, and the Green & Gold will be at home watching October baseball on their couches for the sixth consecutive season.

There’s still two-plus months of baseball left to go though, and the attention should be focused on how to be more prepared for next season, the final year before the team makes its move to Las Vegas. They want to hit the ground running when they enter their new digs and that means making some noise next year. If they’re going to do that they’ll need to address some holes and questions on the roster. And one of the biggest questions they have is: what is going on at third base?

Over the next couple of months the team needs to try out the internal options at the hot corner. Former first rounder Max Muncy was given first crack at it this season but failed to deliver on his lofty draft status. He’s now back with the big league squad and may get some more starts at third to hopefully show some improvement, and it’s not impossible he seizes the job over the final few weeks. But they’ve also started toying with him in the outfield so we know how the club feels about his glove on the infield right now.

Zack Gelof has made some appearances there this year but with seven errors at a new position for him he isn’t the long-term option there. Plus he’s more valuable as a versatile piece that Mark Kotsay can move around.

Then there’s the young guys in Tommy White and Joshua Kuroda-Grauer. The rookies have just made his big league debuts and both have hit well in their small sample. There was never much doubt about White’s bat and he’s shown that so far having gone 7-for-16 through his first four games. Small sample, yes.

The question is about his glove at third base. If White can prove to be passable at third then the club can cross off two positions to address this offseason since they could then plug Kuroda-Grauer at the keystone. On the other hand if the glove isn’t up to par then that makes juggling all the young position players harder moving forward since White’s only other positions (first base, DH) are blocked next year (Nick Kurtz, Brent Rooker(?)). And we haven’t even welcomed star prospect Leo De Vries into the fold yet.

There’s lots of things that’ll happen over the next couple months that determine how next year unfolds. If the A’s want next year to be a success they had better use the short time left this season to try to get as many answers as possible, from third base to the outfield to the entire pitching staff.

No A’s baseball today. Have a great one guys.

A’s Coverage:

• A’s drop series finale in a big way, 15-5 to the Diamondbacks
• A’s roster moves: Ginn to IL, Barnett recalled
• A’s fall in extra innings 6-5 to Arizona
• Hot Topic: Who Is The “Real Langeliers”?
• A’s Beat Diamondbacks 5-2
• A’s place rookie Joshua Kuroda-Grauer on injured list with ruptured testicle
• Passan: A’s ‘have zero desire’ to trade Shea Langeliers
• Another ‘step in the right direction’ for Lopez in hunt to regain rookie form
• Blogfather Saves The Day With Pearls Of Most Excellent Advice
• Thinking out loud: Mic’d up Cease, Langeliers work through 3-K 1st in ASG
• What will the Athletics do leading up to Trade Deadline after cold streak?
• A’s Add Next Wave of Prospects in 2026 Draft
• Athletics Get Hitting Help by Claiming Hot Bat off Waivers
• Former A’s top draft pick Muncy learning outfield with Aviators
• Langeliers’ 5-year journey from top prospect to All-Star starter
• Injuries Providing Cover For Some Inconvenient Truths
• Breaking Down the A’s Alarming Trends Heading into the Break
• Jamie Arnold can’t wait for the A’s future. Triple-A Vegas is another story.

MLB News and Interest:

• 15 straight! Red Sox tie 1946 squad’s franchise-record winning streak
• Royals trade for reliever Pearson, former top prospect, from Houston
• Padres Discussing Wandy Peralta In Trade Talks
• Royals’ Bobby Witt Jr. placed on IL for first time in career
• Jose Ramírez back for Guardians, batting second in return to lineup
• Yankees activate Fried early for doubleheader vs. Pirates
• Garrett Crochet Targeting Return From IL By Playoffs
• Nationals Reportedly Considering Keeping Foster Griffin
• Trade rumors: Robert Jr., Rays, Giants bats, Marlins
• Rockies Getting Interest In Various Players
• Salvador Perez ties George Brett’s Royals record with 317th HR
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

A quick rising prospect who could make his big league debut this year?

A’s prospect Ryan Magdic is being promoted to Triple-A Las Vegas, per source. This will be his third stop this season as he continues performing well, combining for a 3.09 ERA in 21 games between High-A and Double-A with 62 strikeouts and nine walks in 58 1/3 innings.

— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) July 22, 2026

Great show of support for prospect Ryan Lasko, who suffered a life-changing injury a couple weeks ago:

A’s are wearing T-shirts in support of Ryan Lasko. All A’s Minor League affiliates will be wearing them today. pic.twitter.com/lxf33wPl7k

— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) July 22, 2026

And a great update!

A’s manager Mark Kotsay wanted to share this photo today of Ryan Lasko, who is in good spirits with his family in New Jersey. pic.twitter.com/3KKOuhK6Vb

— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) July 22, 2026

Doesn’t stop with the A’s:

For Ryan. 🧡#22Strongpic.twitter.com/ql2tiCK7Hi

— Las Vegas Aviators (@AviatorsLV) July 22, 2026

Tuesday’s top minor league player:

A’s Prospect of the Day is 3B Michael Brooks who went 3 for 4 with a HR, a double & a walk to help @stocktonports win on Tuesday…https://t.co/g0CAtruStIpic.twitter.com/BiRikfueVe

— Bill Moriarity – A's Farm (@AthleticsFarm) July 22, 2026

Team News

D-backs start crucial stretch before Trade Deadline with 15-run outburst
Closer Justin Martinez should be back from Tommy John surgery not long after the Aug. 3 Deadline, while starters Corbin Burnes and Ryne Nelson could be back in September.

On the position player side of things, outfielders Tommy Troy, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. and Jordan Lawlar could also all be back in August.

That’s eight players and a lot of depth.

“Doesn’t seem like there’s a huge swath of them that’ll be coming back right at the Deadline,” Hazen said. “So there may be some bridging to get from that period at the Deadline to when some of them come back. I still contend this team could look much different going through August and September when everybody gets back, regardless of what we do at the Deadline.”

https://www.mlb.com/dbacks/news/james-mccann-nolan-arenado-homer-in-d-backs-win-vs-a-s

Diamondbacks score season-high 15 runs to secure series win over Athletics

“I feel like we needed a win like that,” third baseman Nolan Arenado told Arizona Sports. “I feel like every game we played in lately, it’s been tight and a lot of stressful innings. For us to come out today, day game after a long game yesterday, and put up runs like that against a great arm, it was a great win.” https://arizonasports.com/mlb/arizona-diamondbacks/15-runs-secure-series-win-athletics

Ryan Waldschmidt crushes 1st major league home run, and it went a long wayhttps://arizonasports.com/mlb/arizona-diamondbacks/ryan-waldschmidt-crushes-1st-major-league-home-run-and-it-went-a-long-way

D-backs move top prospect, Nogales native Demetrio Crisantes to Triple-Ahttps://arizonasports.com/mlb/arizona-diamondbacks/nogales-prospect-demetrio-crisantes-triple-a

Ryan Waldschmidt's first career homer is a 2-run blast!

He makes it a SEVEN-run inning for the @Dbacks 😳 pic.twitter.com/gYtBlTw4s9

— MLB (@MLB) July 22, 2026

The Diamondbacks hit three home runs 425+ ft in the fifth inning

It’s the third time a team has hit 3 homers 425+ ft in an inning under Statcast, joining:

4/27/19 MIN 8th
5/20/17 OAK 5th pic.twitter.com/cC3vy9xS4A

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 22, 2026

Other Baseball

Salvador Perez ties George Brett’s Royals record with 317th HRhttps://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/49426984/salvador-perez-ties-george-brett-royals-record-317th-hr

Orioles end Red Sox’s record-tying 15-game winning streakhttps://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/49428964/orioles-end-red-sox-record-tying-15-game-winning-streak

Yankees’ Caballero hit with pitch clock violation in crackdownhttps://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/49427759/yankees-caballero-hit-pitch-clock-violation-crackdown

Will The Padres Move Mason Miller?
https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2026/07/will-the-padres-move-mason-miller.html

Angels reportedly fire self-proclaimed ‘Baseball Spy’ after he was caught filming Rockies coaches
https://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/article/angels-reportedly-fire-self-proclaimed-baseball-spy-after-he-was-caught-filming-rockies-coaches-184948567.html

Umpires told Jose Caballero that the league office is "done with" his pitch clock antics pic.twitter.com/CDWxhak82H

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) July 22, 2026

longest win streaks under a manager who did not manage the team's opening game that year:

1890 Phillies: 16, Bob Gi. Allen
1884 St. Louis Maroons: 16, Fred Dunlap
2026 Red Sox: 15, Chad Tracy *active
1932 Cubs: 14, Charlie Grimm

h/t @EliasSports

— Sarah Langs (@SlangsOnSports) July 22, 2026

Anything Goes

This day in history:

https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/july-23

This day in baseball:

https://www.baseball-reference.com/bullpen/July_23

Croissants are not French.

You might associate croissants with French lifestyle, but the croissant is actually from Vienna. In the 13th century, it was known as a kipferl, a denser bread made in the distinct crescent shape.

The hair of a reindeer is hollow.

The hair inside their noses are also efficient heat exchangers that warm up the cold air they breathe in. This makes them good insulators.

‘Deja reve’ is the term used for an experienced previously encountered in a dream.

Deja reve translates to ‘already dreamt’. It suggests that this phenomenon can lead us to better understand why dreams occur by physiologically observing the brain during this occurrence. 

With all four affiliates on the road, three wins represent quite the collective effort.

Player of the day

Stealing home plate in a double steal is quite the achievement. Stealing it when you only have two SB on the season is all the more impressive. This was just one of the accomplishments from Logan Wagner to lead the way in a 4-2 win for the Loons over the Lugnuts.

Wagner is now up to 41 BBI in 2026 as the only Loons player to score and drive in at least one run in this game, finishing it 2 for 4 with a walk. Wagner’s .901 OPS is the best by any hitter who started the game yesterday on either side.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

When all of your production boils down to a single plate appearance in a sac fly from your ninth hitter, things aren’t headed in a promising direction, with the Comets losing 7-1, hitless in 10 at-bats with runners in scoring position. It was Miller’s 51st RBI on the season in a game in which no Comet recorded multiple hits.

Christian Romero, who came into this game with an 8-2 record, suffered his third loss, allowing four earned runs in just as many innings. Getting in on the action at the team’s earliest convenience, Edwin Díaz earned two outs on 19 pitches, removed before completing a full inning with a run allowed and a closely monitored pitch count.

Double-A Tulsa

A rally in the first that led to four runs, starting off with a Mike Sirota RBI single—one of his three hits in the game—was enough for the Drillers to beat the Ytabelers 5-3.

Mike Sirota singles to send Kendall George home and the Drillers are on the board‼️ pic.twitter.com/r52yrNMEqK

— Tulsa Drillers (@TulsaDrillers) July 22, 2026

Even though they only scored one run in the following eight innings, the top three in the order, with Kendall George, Josue De Paula, and the aforementioned Sirota, all recorded multiple hits.

While the Drillers were able to put the ball in play consistently, only striking out twice, their pitching staff had a far easier time securing strikeouts. Patrick Copen and Christian Suarez, the latter of whom earned the win with three scoreless innings, led a 13-K effort.

High-A Great Lakes

Isaac Ayon’s quality start, tossing 6.2 innings of two-run ball, bought enough time for the Loons offense to deliver with two runs in the seventh, beating the Lugnuts 4-2 on the road. Dilan Figueredo finished the game off with a save, completing 2.1 scoreless innings—it was Figueredo’s fifth save on the season.

Will Wagner hit the game’s only home run and was responsible for half of the Loons’ four RBI. Working together with Emil Morales who was on first, Wagner stole home plate to score the Loons’ third run of the game.

Single-A Ontario

Leaving most of their scoring until the late innings, the Tower Buzzers managed to come from behind on the road and beat the Giants 6-5. Making it happen with the bat and on the basepaths, leadoff hitter Jaron Elkins scored a couple of runs in a 2-for-4 performance with multiple stolen bases, making it 32 on the year, only caught six times.

Leading 6-4 in the ninth, the Tower Buzzers had a major scare with the Giants loading the bases with no outs. It took a timely double play induced by Jose Vasquez and one more out secured by Jecsua LIborius to strand the tying run at third base.

Transactions

The Tulsa Drillers activated shortstop Sam Mongelli and placed Kyle Nevin on the injured list. Edwin Díaz is now with the Comets, progressing on his rehab assignment. The Comets also activated righty Ryder Ryan.

Wednesday’s scores

• Sacramento 7, Oklahoma City 1
• Arkansas 3, Tulsa 5
• Lansing 2, Great Lakes 4
• San Jose 5, Ontario 6

Thursday’s schedule

• 4:05 p.m. PT: Great Lakes (Tyler Gough) at Lansing (Jorge Marcheco)
• 4:35 p.m. PT: Tulsa (Payton Martin) at Arkansas (Nico Tellache)
• 6:30 p.m. PT: Ontario (TBD) at San Jose (TBD)
• 6:45 p.m. PT: Oklahoma City (TBD) at Sacramento (Cesar Perdomo)

Morning, all!

Corey Seager is expected to begin a rehab assignment next week, which would mean he would return to the lineup against Houston July 31.

Rookie Cam Cauley was one of the few bright spots in last night’s loss to the White Sox.

As has often been the case this season, Texas failed to capitalize on opportunities to put runs on the board.

It seems likely that the Rangers will need to try to find a catcher before the trade deadline, seeing as how both of their catchers are on the IL with elbow issues.

A mixed night for the Phillies’ affiliates on Wednesday. The IronPigs and Fightin’ Phils fell, but the three lower-level teams were swinging the bats well and came away with wins.

Indianapolis 2, Lehigh Valley 1

Despite a home run by Otto Kemp and six strong innings by starting pitcher Kolby Allard, the IronPigs fell to the Indians on Wednesday night.

6-strong innings and 6 strikeouts for Kolby Allard! 🌀 #ironpigs#baseballpic.twitter.com/XD4JnRmxRQ

— Lehigh Valley IronPigs (@IronPigs) July 22, 2026

Kemp’s first inning home run was the lone offensive highlight in a four-hit showing by the ‘Pigs, and for a while it looked like it might hold up. But the Indians tied it up against Allard in the sixth and then scored the go-ahead run in the eighth against reliever Kyle Backhus.

Harrisburg 12, Reading 2

It was a bad night for the Reading pitching staff, giving up 15 hits – including two home runs – as the Senators racked up 12 runs. Starting pitcher Kyle Brnovich got through the first inning unscathed, but then proceeded to allow seven runs over the next four innings.

The Fightin’ Phils’ offense didn’t do much better. The lone highlight came in the fifth when Raylin Heredia singled home a run and Aroon Escobar followed with an RBI groundout.

Jersey Shore 5, Brooklyn 3

Nick Biddison’s two run homer in the ninth inning gave the BlueClaws a walkoff victory over the Cyclones.

Walk-Off HOME RUN for Nick Biddison! Claws Up! 🦀⚾
🤝 @jag_pt_pic.twitter.com/XFCLNCSfrO

— Jersey Shore BlueClaws (@BlueClaws) July 22, 2026

The ‘Claws fell behind 2-0 in the first inning, but starting pitcher Cody Bowker steadied himself, pitching four scoreless innings after that, while striking out a total of eight batters. Reliever Gabe Craig blew the save in the ninth, thanks in part to his own fielding error.

In addition to Biddison’s heroics, the Claws’ offensive leaders were Tyler Pettorini (two hits, three runs) and Brandon Lewis (two hits, one RBI)

Clearwater 11, Daytona 1

A five run third inning put the Threshers on top and they didn’t look back, bashing the Tortugas’ pitching staff for 11 runs. Alirio Ferrebus was the biggest producer, going 4-5 with four RBI, including a three-run home run. Jonathan Hogart also chipped in a three-run home run.

Alirio Ferrebus is back! He roped this opposite-field double 101.4 mph to bring in a first inning run for the @Thresherspic.twitter.com/DsQwFHGIwF

— FuturePhils (@FuturePhils) July 22, 2026

Pitching-wise, starter Matthew Fisher allowed just one run in his four innings, and Luis Avila pitched three scoreless innings to earn the save.

DSL Phillies 10, DSL Yankees 2

The Phillies scored six runs in the first two innings to cruise past the Yankees. Juan Parra had a triple and a home run to lead the offensive outburst, while Edwin Ramirez, Sebastian Saenz, and Jose Tovar each had multi-hit games.

Right now, CJ Abrams is a man on a mission. That mission is to prove he can maintain his performance levels over a full 162 game season. Over the past couple seasons, Abrams has had excellent first half numbers before falling off in the second half. Since the All-Star Break, Abrams is doing everything he can to crush that narrative.

CJ Abrams in the 2nd half by year:

2022: .598 OPS | 69 wRC+
2023: .733 OPS | 95 wRC+
2024: .586 OPS | 64 wRC+
2025: .633 OPS | 75 wRC+

Now HR’d in 3 straight games. Would be enormous if he can finally lock in this 2nd half pic.twitter.com/V6ayZHGXdf

— AT (@BaseballWRLD_) July 22, 2026

While this tweet has four years of data, the problem has really only been in the last two seasons. Back in 2022, Abrams was just getting his feet wet in the league and in 2023 he was actually better in the second half. It was actually that run towards the end of the 2023 season where Abrams truly burst on to the scene.

However, the past couple years have been rough. 2024 was especially disastrous with the whole casino disaster ending his season early. The 2025 fall off was not pretty, but the whole team outside of Daylen Lile was lifeless that second half. It was just a difficult season where the vibes were not high.

Entering this year though, Abrams’ second half was going to be what everyone was watching. If he did not put things together down the stretch this year, he would be in the dreaded MacKenzie Gore territory. 

Abrams’ first half went according to plan, with the 25 year old having his best first half yet. He hit .275 with 20 homers, 67 RBI and an .862 OPS, being named the starting shortstop for the National League. Abrams was not quite as electric in June, but he still hit 6 homers and posted a .708 OPS. That is not an amazing month, but it was just a regular down month rather than a collapse. Even the best players usually are not elite every single month.

To say Abrams has been back to his best in July would be an understatement. He is having his best month of the season, with a .350 average and 1.099 OPS. In the last two seasons, Abrams has had a wRC+ below 100 in July, but right now it is sitting at 187. 

He took things to another level on this road trip. The 25 year old set a career high when he hit his 21st home run of the season in Sacramento. Abrams took a 99 MPH heater to straight away center field on one of his most impressive swings of the season. Seeing the usually pull happy Abrams take a ball to center like that was great to see.

CJ Abrams has now hit a career high 21 home runs this season. pic.twitter.com/kPZyQvM627

— Nationals Communications (@NationalsComms) July 19, 2026

That swing seemed to really lock him in because Abrams was an absolute menace in Colorado. He had 7 hits, including three home runs in the series, absolutely carrying the Nats offense. In the first two games of the series, Abrams hit home runs in both, including a two homer game in the Nats loss the other night. That meant Abrams homered for three straight games, the second time he has done that this year.

He did not make it four straight yesterday, but that was arguably his most impressive performance. Abrams had four hits in the Nationals 8-0 win, which brought the team back over .500. He was using the whole field and just smoking tough pitches. We saw a very complete version of Abrams in this series. The two time All-Star got his OPS back over .900 and raised his batting average to .286.

CJ Abrams just went over a .900 OPS on a 4-hit day. Batting average just under .290. This is incredible.

(📸Sol Tucker/Nats.Talk) pic.twitter.com/DwuE9C4sS5

— Nats.Talk (@TalkNats) July 22, 2026

If you want to go into some more advanced numbers, Abrams now has a 144 wRC+ and a .384 wOBA. His career highs before this season were 107 and .324, which he did last season. He has also set career bests in more traditional stats like home runs, RBI’s and WAR. It is not even August yet, and Abrams is having a career year.

We still need to see Abrams keep up the good work in August and September. However, his second half is off to a smashing start. Right now, he is 11 for 26 with four home runs since the All-Star Break. 

One thing that will loom over Abrams for the next couple weeks are the trade rumors ahead of the deadline. Personally, I find an Abrams trade this deadline to be quite unlikely. However, there will be persistent rumors, and a trade is not out of the picture. Right now, Abrams is doing a great job drowning out the noise and the Nats just keep winning.

Heading into the season, Abrams was open about his goal of finishing strong. He talked about how he improved his work habits and diet in an attempt to sustain for the whole 162. Abrams really does seem like he has matured a lot since that incident a couple years ago. He has developed into a team leader and a guy that the younger players look up to.

Abrams is always talking in the dugout, usually about what the pitcher is doing and spreading wisdom to his teammates. Maturity is not my only reason for confidence though. It is clear that this coaching staff, especially on the hitting side, is a lot better. If Abrams does go on a mini slump, like he did in June, it will be corrected.

In the past, slumping hitters often spiraled out of control for months at a time. However, under Matt Borgschulte, those adjustments are being made. There are times where James Wood struggles to make contact, but they do not last as long as they did last season. 

Between the coaching staff, Abrams’ maturity and the overall competitiveness of the team, I am confident that this is the year where Abrams finishes strong. The early returns are excellent, but we still have a couple more months to go. CJ Abrams is having a career year, and hopefully this is the first of many elite seasons that Abrams has with the Nationals.

Michael King deserved better than what he got. The San Diego Padres starter completed six innings and scattered five hits while allowing just one run to the Atlanta Braves. The Padres did nothing to support him on offense and his night ended with Atlanta holding onto a 1-0 lead. Jackson Merrill helped out in the top of the seventh inning with a solo home run to tie the game, but that was all the offense could muster in support of King.

San Diego and Atlanta entered the eighth inning with the teams still tied at 1-1. The Padres went down in order in the top of the eighth inning. Wandy Peralta took the mound in the bottom half of the frame and had a complete meltdown that saw the Braves score four runs on three hits with a walk in just 1/3 of an inning pitched. He was replaced on the mound by Randy Vasquez who had his own struggles over 2/3 of an inning as he allowed two more runs on four hits with a strikeout.

The six-run inning by the Braves set the stage for the Padres in the top of the ninth. The game appeared all but over before the San Diego offense suddenly came to life. Pinch-hitter Sung-Mun Song flied out to start the frame, but Xander Bogarts walked and Jake Cronenworth doubled to put runners at second and third. Gavin Sheets followed with an RBI-single to make the score, 7-2. Sheets advanced to second base on a wild-pitch and the Padres had runners at second and third with one out. Fernando Tatis Jr. stepped to the plate and hit a triple that got under the glove of Atlanta center fielder Michael Harris II and rolled all the way to the wall. The hit by Tatis made the score, 7-4.

San Diego tacked on its final two runs when Luis Rengifo connected on a two-run home run off Atlanta closer Raisel Iglesias to make the score 7-6 before he struck out Manny Machado and Ty France to end the game. Based on the recent success and only being down a run, those were the two batters the Padres would have wanted at the plate, neither of them were able to come through in a big moment.

San Diego will try to win Game 4 in Atlanta to force a split this morning at 9:15 a.m.

Padres News:

• Decisions loom for Padres president of baseball operations and general manager A.J. Preller and the two San Diego players who will get most of the attention this deadline season are Mason Miller and Ethan Salas.

• Tom Krasovic of the San Diego Union-Tribune believes the newfound power of Fernando Tatis Jr. could have an effect on how the Padres approach the trade deadline.

• Left-handed reliever Wandy Peralta is drawing trade interest according to MLB insiders.

Baseball News:

• Winning streak ends at 15 games for the Boston Red Sox.

• Dalton Rushing led the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 9-5 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

• The Kansas City Royals squeaked past the San Francisco Giants, 5-4.

• Cade Cavalli helps the Washington Nationals get a shutout win over the Colorado Rockies.

• The Arizona Diamondbacks thumped the Athletics, 15-5.

• The Houston Astros handed the Miami Marlins another loss, extending their losing streak to nine games.

Before we close the book on the Red Sox historic 15-game winning streak and move on to the rest of the regular season tomorrow, I want to take a step back and marvel at what we just witnessed — because, folks, it really was nothing short of extraordinary.

If you told me at the beginning of the year that the 2026 Red Sox were going to tie the franchise record for consecutive wins at 15 straight games, I would have been delighted and surprised, but not shocked. On paper, they had some really good pieces on this roster, and theoretically, any streak of this magnitude would have been powered by some version of the following:

• Garrett Crochet leading the charge from the top of the rotation.
• Ranger Suarez slotting in nicely and making his three turns during the streak.
• Roman Anthony becoming a superstar.
• Jarren Duran recapturing the magic of his 2024 season.
• Trevor Story finding a way to repeat 2025.
• Connelly Early or Johan Oviedo making a leap and contributing to the wins through the stretch.
• Marcelo Mayer blossoming into an everyday player and making an impact.
• The best hitter on the team all year by nearly 200 OPS points not being suspended for five games in the middle of the streak.

In reality, exactly none of those things happened. It’s crazy enough the Red Sox did this without Crochet, Anthony, Story, and Oviedo, who they’ve been missing virtually all year, but for the streak to come exactly as things got even worse is a borderline miracle. Remember, Connelly Early made his last start in that Nationals series on the final day of June and went on the IL just before all this started. Ranger Suarez did make one start early in the streak against the Angels, but he left in the third inning, which basically turned that game into an unexpected bullpen night.

In other words, as ridiculous as this Red Sox team going on a heater would have sounded in late June, the one way you kind of sort of could have seen it happening would have been on the back of their excellent rotation. And while numbers wise that’s mostly what happened, doing it with right as Early and Suarez went on the shelf is truly next level stuff, venturing into uncharred waters in bizzarro world.

(Random side note here: Ranger Suarez getting sick and not being able to come off the IL last night probably did cost the Sox win No. 16. By all accounts, his groin injury was healed and he was ready to come back, but an illness delayed his return until this weekend. If he doesn’t get sick, there’s a 99.9% chance he delivers a much more competitive outing than Eduardo Rivera gave us last night, And given the buzz in the crowd and the fact that it was also Venezuela Celebration night at Fenway Park, there’s a decent chance the Red Sox find a way to pull that one out with a starter from Venezuela making a comeback and rocking a strong outing on the mound.)

Getting great pitching with a depleted rotation is one thing, but it only gets more amazing when you step back and realize the Red Sox managed to win 15 games in a row with Willson Contreras suspended for five games in the middle of it.

Do you know where the Red Sox rank as a team in home runs this year in the American League? That would be dead last. So when you take Contreras, who has been by far the best bat throughout the 2026 season, out of the lineup, it should’ve resulted in disaster. Instead, the Sox averaged five runs per game through that stretch and got random contributions from guys all over the lineup.

You’d also think that maybe Jarren Duran, who has been productive in the past and shown brief power explosions within his dreadful 2026 season would’ve covered some of that gap. Instead, he batted .170 with a .569 OPS during the 15-game streak, and .125 with a .336 OPS during the five games Contreras was out. Seriously, how the hell did the Sox win all this games?!?

Even once Contreras did come back, they were still winning in highly improbable fashion. This includes their biggest comeback of the entire season Saturday against the Rays, and the fact that during each of the last four games of the streak, the Sox got outhit by their opponent. In order to make this work, they had to go from a team that was getting none of the hits in high leverage situations early in the season, to a team getting seemingly all of the hits in high leverage situations. No one guy stood out, and that’s probably why it worked so well.

Whoever you want to credit most, this team deserves an immense amount praise for finding a way to work as a cohesive unit while shorthanded with the season teetering on a the cliff’s edge. Regardless of how things play out from here, these guys earned a spot in a storied history book.

For the rest of our lives, whenever any Red Sox team goes on a double digit winning streak, a graphic will pop up on the screen showing the longest Red Sox winning streaks of all time, and sitting there right next to an absolutely loaded 1946 team will be this group of “dawgs that just want to win” as Anthony Seigler put it. It will be another magnificent reminder that every once in a while, baseball produces the seemingly impossible.

This Red Sox team — and I emphasize THIS Red Sox team — tied the franchise record for most consecutive wins. This is the same group that couldn’t muster a winning streak longer than three games as of a month ago and was setting daily records of futility not seen since the Depression-era Red Sox of the 1930s. Somehow it was THIS group that pulled off the inconceivable.

Not the 2004, 2007, 2013, or even 2018 powerhouses. Not one of those 1970s teams that always got off to hot starts before letting glory slip through their fingers, and not one of those 1910s squads that won four World Series in seven years that we know only from black and white photographs. No, it was this 2026 group who basically ended up together by accident after huge pieces of the roster either didn’t perform or ended up on the IL.

Now what could be more absurd and wonderful than that?

Braves brunch baseball is back on the menu, folks.

The things to like about last night’s game? Runs on the board for the good guys (albeit late), ultimately not snatching defeat from the jaws of victory, and guaranteeing a series split.

No need to relive the bad or discuss the ninth inning other than the totally normal Iggy save.

The Braves have a golden opportunity to win a series against the Padres at home for the first time since 2018 (!) with their ace on the mound.

At this point in the season with our rollercoaster rotation, it almost brings tears to the eyes to see Chris Sale set to start. Sale (10-6, 2.06 ERA) twirled a gem in his last time out with seven shutout innings against the Texas Rangers. He threw 89 pitches, only surrendered two hits, and struck out six in a rare occasion for Braves starters this season: pitching 6+ innings. He also recorded career strikeout #2,700.

Other than that, July’s been a mixed bag for Chris with the frustrating rain-shortened outing in St. Louis and the five innings of three-run ball versus the Mets in the July 4th laugher.

The Padres did not face Sale when the Braves were in San Diego, but Manny Machado leads the team in ABs against him (11-for-35, .355 AVG, and .993 OPS). Xander Bogaerts is next-highest, 7-for-22. They have a homer apiece. Fernando Tatis Jr. and Gavin Sheets also have a homer off Sale in a smaller sample size. We’re hoping for more of what Jake Cronenworth has going on: he’s 0-for-10 with 6 K’s.

For the finale, the Padres will call upon starter Griffin Canning (1-8, 6.67 ERA). The former Angel/Met struggled mightily against the Braves when he faced them on June 23. Wandy Peralta served as an effective opener, but Canning only recorded two outs in the second inning. He gave up three earned runs before departing, and a fourth one scored after Kyle Hart walked in an inherited runner. Canning’s career versus the Braves: 7.2 IP, one loss, and a 12.91 ERA.

Since that game in San Diego, Canning hasn’t fared much better. The longest he’s lasted in his last four starts is 4.2 innings. His best outing in that bunch is when he held the Dodgers to one run in four innings of work. 

With Sale pitching and the reemergence of the Braves offense in July, this one has the makings of a decisive win #60 to take the series and end the homestand on a high note. We’ll see what the lunchtime baseball has in store. 

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Thursday, July 23, 12:15 p.m. ET

Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA

TV: BravesVision

Streaming: MLB.tv

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan, Los Bravos

The Cubs took an early lead, only to see it vanish when Colin Rea allowed a three-run homer. Then the offense basically vanished, and the game was put out of reach when the pen gave up an additional run in the late innings.

Oh, you think I’m talking about Wednesday’s 5-1 Cubs loss to the Tigers. That is, in fact, an accurate description of what happened Wednesday evening at Wrigley Field… but it is also an accurate description of last Friday’s 5-2 loss to the Twins — a three-run homer served up by Rea was the difference in that game, too.

This is what happens when the guy who’s your sixth or seventh starting option winds up in the rotation for an extended period due to injuries. Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer now has 11 days to address that issue before MLB’s Trade Deadline. Let’s hope he finds the right answer, or answers.

Let’s have a look back at this one.

Rea had a 1-2-3 first and then the Cubs didn’t waste any time getting on the board. Seiya Suzuki hit a one-out homer in the bottom of the inning, his 17th [VIDEO].

The Tigers tied the game in the second on a solo homer by Spencer Torkelson. Later in that inning, Ian Happ made this nice grab of a sinking liner [VIDEO].

Then Detroit hit that aforementioned three-run shot in the fourth. Riley Greene led off with a double and Rea walked Torkelson. Rea did get the next two hitters to fly to left. Then came the three-run homer, by Hao-Yu Lee, giving the Tigers a 4-1 lead.

A three-run deficit in the fourth doesn’t sound insurmountable, but the Cubs offense was completely moribund the rest of the game. After Suzuki’s homer, the Cubs got just two runners past first base — a two-out double by Happ in the fourth, and then Happ taking second on defensive indifference after drawing a two-out walk in the ninth. They seemingly had a chance in the sixth when Pete Crow-Armstrong reached base when Tigers starter Keider Montero couldn’t handle his comebacker leading off the inning. One out later Montero was out of the game for reliever Drew Sommers, who got Michael Busch to hit into an inning-ending double play.

Credit to Ryan Rolison, Gavin Hollowell and Caleb Thielbar for keeping the Cubs in the game. Those three combined for three shutout innings, allowing one hit and striking out six. Tyler Ferguson, though, allowed a run in the ninth to make it 5-1, though it might as well have been 50-1 the way the Cubs offense was shut down by Tigers pitching.

Honestly, there isn’t much else to say about this game. Credit to Montero, who allowed just three other baserunners after Suzuki’s homer, and the Tigers pen. Here are Craig Counsell’s postgame remarks [VIDEO].

Final note on this game from BCB’s JohnW53:

This was the Cubs’ third game of the season in which their only run came on a homer. The first two were six days apart, May 25 and 31, when they lost at Pittsburgh, 2-1, and at St. Louis, 5-1.

They had four such games last year, two of them at home. They also had four in 2024, after having had seven in 2023 and six in 2022. Back in 2018, they had a team-record 14.

The Cubs have played 516 one-run, one-homer games since 1901, an average of four. They won 56 of them, lost 456 and tied four.

Incidentally, the weather was great Wednesday in Chicago, maybe the nicest day of the summer so far… temps in the 70s, clear skies, light winds, no humidity. That brought out the second-largest Wrigley crowd of 2026 to date, 40,512. Too bad they all couldn’t see a win (though many in the Wrigley crowd were Tigers fans).

It’s not the end of the world, but the Cubs really have to do better than 3-3 on a homestand against two mediocre teams. And they would have, if Alex Bregman had just taken ball four from Kenley Jansen on Monday instead of swinging and missing. This homestand makes the Cubs’ record against AL teams this year 12-18, which is… not good. They lost a game to the Brewers in the NL Central after Milwaukee won on Wednesday, so the Cubs trail by seven games. The Phillies lost to the Dodgers, so the Cubs continue to lead them by 1.5 games for the first wild card spot.

The Cubs have Thursday off — and then they will play 17 days in a row, having lost their next scheduled off day Aug. 7 for a makeup game against the Blue Jays for the June 21 rainout. The first of those 17 straight games, 10 of which will be on the road, will be Friday against the Pirates at Pittsburgh. Matthew Boyd will start the series opener for the Cubs and his opponent will be Pirates right-hander Jared Jones. Game time Friday is 5:40 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network.

Here are five things to watch and predictions as the Yankees hit the road to take on the Phillies in a three-game series starting Friday...

---

Jose Caballero chaos

Caballero's pitch-clock antics have finally drawn the ire of MLB. In Game 1 of Wednesday's doubleheader, Caballero was assessed a pitch-clock violation in what the umpiring crew revealed was a mandate from the league.

The league believes Caballero's gamesmanship is closer to being deceitful to the pitcher and will not be tolerated moving forward. Caballero was not in the starting lineup for Game 2, so we couldn't see how he and the Yankees will adjust to this new enforcement. We'll certainly see it this weekend, and you can expect more disagreements with the umpires. 

Can the offense wake up?

While Caballero combats with the umpiring crew, it's sort of overshadowed the Yankees' continued offensive ineptitude. 

After clawing their way back in Game 1 on Wednesday before falling in extra innings, the Yanks mustered just two runs in the nightcap. While it was enough to split the doubleheader, the offense will need to do more if they hope to keep pace with a formidable Phillies lineup, and the starters they are planning to utilize -- more on that later.

Since they've returned from the All-Star break, the Yankees have scored more than three runs just once (Monday) and have plated two runs or fewer in four of six games.

Going up against Philadelphia's stud southpaws

The Yankees will likely miss Zack Wheeler this weekend, but two of the three Phillies starters are nothing to scoff at. 

Jesus Luzardo will take the mound in the series opener and has had a solid season, with a 3.43 ERA, and the southpaw has dominated of late.

Over his last seven starts, Luzardo has allowed just seven earned runs across 42.1 innings (1.49 ERA). He's also struck out 63 batters during that span, including 18 over his last two starts (12 IP). 

And then we have the series finale on Sunday when the Yankees will go up against Cristopher Sanchez, the All-Star Game starter for the National League and one of the front-runners for the NL Cy Young Award. Sanchez has not fared well lately, allowing 24 earned runs across 39.1 innings (5.49 ERA) over his last seven starts. 

However, Sanchez has allowed just five runs in his last two starts while striking out 14 batters. 

The Yankees will have their hands full with these two. 

Shuffling the pitching plan

Inserting Max Fried back into the rotation has shuffled the Yankees' pitching schedule a bit. It was changed even more when Aaron Boone used Will Warren in relief on Wednesday. 

Warren was scheduled to start Friday's series opener, but the right-hander will now go Sunday. Cam Schlittler will start Friday, with Ryan Weathers taking the mound on Saturday. With so much shuffling, how will the pitchers react?

Bullpen warriors

The Yankees bullpen, with its flaws, has been generally effective as the lineup has struggled. With Paul Blackburn and Brent Headrick becoming key pieces, the bullpen has solidified a bit, but can they continue to roll? Fernando Cruz, who has been dominant for most of the season, has struggled of late and gave up the lead in extras in Game 1 of the doubleheader on Wednesday.

And when we see Camilo Doval, how will he perform? The Yanks don't know what they'll get out of Weathers or Warren, so the bullpen will need to be nails this weekend. Luckily, the off day Thursday should help.

Predictions

Who will the MVP of the series be?

Cody Bellinger

Bellinger has struggled, but his at-bats have looked much better lately.

Which Yankees pitcher will have the best start?

Cam Schlittler

Between Warren, Schlittler, and Weathers, it's hard to pick against the Cy Young front-runner.

Which Phillies player will be a thorn in the Yankees' side?

Trea Turner

The shortstop has had a down year, but his power numbers have been great of late, smashing four long balls in his last seven games.

It’s no secret that the Phillies bullpen needs help. That was true even before they lost Brad Keller for the season, as every reliever not named Jhoan Duran has been at best inconsistent or at worst downright brutal. They’ve already churned through many of their options on the 40-man roster, hoping to find some stability somewhere before looking to address the issue at the trade deadline.

Curiously however, one name they haven’t really tried is Alex McFarlane. The 25-year-old has been called up to the Majors twice this season but has only appeared in one game, pitching the ninth of a 9-5 game lass night. In the minors, he has yet to even pitch above Double-A despite logging a 2.06 ERA in 32 appearances this season with 47 strikeouts in 35 innings for Reading. However, those gaudy strikeout numbers also come with an extremely high walk rate, as McFarlane has issued 18 free passes in his 35 innings of work. For his minor league career, McFarlane has posted a walk rate of at least 12% every year since his first full season in professional ball in 2023. That walk rate is at least part of the reason why the team still hasn’t promoted him to Triple-A or used him more in the majors.

Yet they’ve elected to carry him on the major league roster twice, thus starting his service clock. The team is running out of viable internal options to try in their bullpen to see if they can alleviate some of the pressure before the trade deadline arrives. The time may be approaching where the Phillies will have to give McFarlane a bigger role either with a promotion to Triple-A or by actually seeing what he has with extended use in the Majors.

So, should the Phillies give Alex McFarlane a real chance in the bullpen? Should they send him to Triple-A first or see what he does against MLB hitters right now?