PHILADELPHIA — Phillies slugger Bryce Harper was ejected in the seventh inning of Friday's game against Detroit for arguing a called third strike on a check swing.
The Phillies scored three runs in the seventh to tie the game 3-all and had two runners on base with two outs when Harper faced Tigers reliever Will Vest.
Harper tried to check his swing on a full-count changeup from Vest, but third base umpire Vic Carapazza rang up the Harper, who ripped his helmet off his head in a outburst and shouted as he waved his arms at Carapazza.
Harper was promptly tossed and kept his helmet with him as he walked into the dugout.
“I left the batter's box walking toward him, so I think it was warranted,” Harper said.
Harper said after the Phillies beat the Tigers 5-4 that he had yet to see the replay, which seemed to indicate he went around with his swing.
“Can't get thrown out in that situation, especially with the ninth inning possibly coming around and my at-bat coming up,” Harper said.
Ryan Helsley made his Mets debut on Friday night and premiered his signature walk-out from the bullpen to the Citi Field crowd.
Similar to Diaz's "Narcos" walk-out, the lights in the stadium go dark as the bell tolls throughout the stadium as AC/DC's "Hells Bells" begins to play as Helsley makes his way to the mound.
Of course, this is the song made famous by Hall of Famer Trevor Hoffman but Helsley has made it his own over the years and has now brought it to Flushing.
But a killer walk-out entrance is nothing without the performance to back it up, and Helsley did. Pitching in a tied game in the ninth, Helsley allowed two hits but struck out three batters to get out of trouble. He became just the sixth Mets pitcher ever to strike out three batters in his debut inning. That performance gave his new team a chance to walk off the Giants. Unfortunately for the Mets, San Francisco would push across the ghost-runner in the 10th to take the 4-3 win.
Despite the result, Helsley's new manager and teammates were impressed with the right-hander.
"He was pretty good. 100 first pitch," Carlos Mendoza said with a smirk after the game. "Around the strikezone, it’s a really, really good fastball then you look at the breaking ball, the slider and some of those pitches, you keep the hitters guessing…. He’s a pretty tough at-bat. He’s a pretty elite arm right there."
Helsley was one of three relievers the Mets acquired before the trade deadline, along with the Giants' Tyler Rogers and the Orioles' Gregory Soto, days prior. All three hope to give the Mets a boost in the bullpen and depth for a deep postseason run.
"Lights out. He was all over it," David Peterson said of Helsley after the game. "We’re all excited for all the guys we brought over. Now that we’re passed [the trade deadline], this is our group and we’re ready to continue all the way to the end of the year."
The Yankees' group of trade acquisitions made a dreadful first impression on Friday night, as multiple leads were blown in a stunning and inexplicable 13-12 loss to the Marlins at LoanDepot Park.
Here are the takeaways...
-- There couldn't have been any legitimate complaints about the early pace of play, as both starting pitchers worked efficiently and held everyone hitless through the first three innings. Janson Junk, the former Yankees farmhand, induced four groundouts and three flyouts in his three perfect frames, while Carlos Rodón struck out four and allowed a walk during the same stretch. But the blemish-free outing didn't last long enough for Junk.
-- The Yankees' bats woke up in the fourth, as back-to-back singles from Trent Grisham and Jasson Dominguez disrupted Junk's rhythm. A flyout to right from Cody Bellinger allowed Grisham to advance to third, and after a steal of second from Dominguez with one out, Giancarlo Stanton ripped a three-run homer to left that broke the ice. The veteran slugger's ninth blast of the season had a scorching 116 mph exit velocity, and it was his first homer at LoanDepot Park since Sept. 28, 2017. At that time, Stanton was playing his final games with the Marlins.
-- While the no-hit bid remained alive for Rodón through four innings, the veteran southpaw had to circumvent a jam due to free passes. He allowed a leadoff walk to Agustin Ramirez, who ultimately reached third with stolen bases that followed strikeouts. With two outs and Ramirez just 90 feet away from home, Rodón walked another to set up runners on the corners, but he craftily left the mound unscathed by fanning Kyle Stowers.
-- Junk's woes continued in the fifth, as the Yankees posted another three-spot to increase their lead to a comfortable 6-0. The rally began with a one-out single from Anthony Volpe, who then stole second with two outs and reached home on an RBI single from Dominguez. A walk from Grisham and another stolen bag from Dominguez set up two in scoring position for Bellinger, who wound up driving in the pair with a single to right. It marked the Yankees' second lead of six-plus runs in as many games.
-- Rodón experienced hiccups of his own after the Yankees padded their cushion. He lost the no-hit bid by allowing a leadoff single to Eric Wagaman, and in the ensuing at-bat, he served up a two-run homer to Javier Sanoja that cleared the wall in right. Rodón recovered with a sweat-drenched uniform, striking out two with another walk sandwiched in between. But he couldn't complete the inning, as his fifth walk of the outing prompted manager Aaron Boone to leave the dugout and take the ball. Rodón threw 107 total pitches (61 for strikes) and punched out nine.
-- Despite using Jonathan Loaisiga as the closer in Thursday's win, the Yankees turned to the right-hander as Rodón's replacement with two outs in the fifth. The strategy quickly backfired, as Loaisiga plunked Otto Lopez to load the bases and then allowed a two-run bloop single to Liam Hicks that cut the Yankees' lead to 6-4. But the inning could've been far worse, as Ryan McMahon stopped the bleeding with a slick snag at third that robbed Stowers of a knock and the Marlins of more runs. In the end, Rodón was charged with four earned runs -- his season ERA is now 3.34.
-- The Yankees didn't take kindly to the Marlins' round of punches. After a quiet sixth inning against reliever Valente Bellozo, they rapidly produced another three runs in the seventh, as singles from Volpe and Austin Wells preceded a towering three-run homer to right from Grisham. It was a milestone dinger off the foul pole for Grisham, who now has a career-high 19 homers on the year.
-- The seventh inning was a nightmare for the Yankees' newly acquired relievers. Jake Bird made his debut first, and after loading the bases via a single, double, and walk, he served up a one-out grand slam to Stowers that suddenly cut the Yankees' lead to 9-8. David Bednar then took the mound, and after recording the second out, he allowed a game-tying blast to Sanoja that sent the crowd into a frenzy. In the blink of an eye, Bednar gave up three more hits, and the stunning six-run rally from the Marlins put them ahead, 10-9.
-- Somehow, the Yankees' seventh-inning stench wasn't as strong as the game's drunken breath. Just four pitches into the eighth, Volpe knotted the score at 10-10 with a mammoth solo homer to left off Lake Bachar. In spite of his incessant defensive blunders at shortstop, Volpe now has 17 homers this season, and he's hit .438 (7-for-16) over his last four games. Bednar returned for a second inning of work and kept the game tied by retiring the Marlins in order with two strikeouts.
-- While the Yankees' newest relievers failed to impress, their newest third baseman and utilityman stepped up when it mattered most. After a two-out single from Ben Rice off reliever Anthony Bender, speedster Jose Caballero entered as a pinch-runner and managed to steal second. The hustle from Caballero paid off, as McMahon stepped up to the plate and delivered a go-ahead RBI single to center. Then, six pitches later, Volpe delivered an insurance run, crushing a double to deep center that increased the Yankees' lead to 12-10.
-- Camilo Doval was tasked with closing out the ninth, and his Yankees debut also brought misery. He blew the save in brutal fashion, as Sonoja and Jakob Marsee scored the game-tying runs with one out when a single to right from Xavier Edwards trickled past Caballero's glove. Then, moments later, Ramirez nubbed a ball in front of the plate that forced Wells chasing and allowed Edwards to slide in head-first for the winning run. A stunning collapse for the Yankees, and their worst loss in recent memory.
Game MVP: Javier Sanoja
The second-year infielder found himself in the middle of several Marlins rallies, and finished the night 3-for-5 with a home run and three runs scored.
Dom Smith beat his former team Friday night, smacking an RBI single in the 10th inning off Edwin Díaz to lift the San Francisco Giants to a 4-3 victory over the Mets in front of a sellout crowd of 42,777 at Citi Field.
The Mets had a late chance with the Fab Four coming up in their half of the 10th inning. The top of the order had started a rally in the eighth inning, but couldn’t do it again. The Mets left the bases loaded in the 10th inning when Ronny Mauricio struck out for the final out against Giants closer Randy Rodriguez.
It was the fourth straight loss for the Mets, who fell to 62-48.
Here are the takeaways...
-The Mets rallied for two runs in the eighth inning, thanks to the top of their lineup. With one out, Brandon Nimmo walked and Francisco Lindor lined a single to right. Juan Soto hit a ball off the foot of Giants reliever Joey Lucchesi, the former Met, and the ball bounded into left field for an RBI single. Pete Alonso followed with a sac fly to center off Jose Butto – his Mets teammate as recently as two days ago – to knot the score at 3-3. Lindor had been in a 0-for-13 slide before his hit and Soto had been 0-for-8.
-With the Mets trailing, 3-0, in the seventh, Pete Alonso led off with a rocket over the fence in right-center, his 23rd home run of the season. It was also the 249th of his career, bringing him within three home runs of tying Darryl Strawberry’s franchise record of 252. Before the homer, which traveled 414 feet and had an exit velocity of 110.1 miles per hour, according to Statcast, Alonso had been mired in a 0-for-19 skid. It was Alonso’s second homer since July 10.
-In his first inning of work as a Met, Ryan Helsley, acquired from the Cardinals this week, allowed two singles but struck out three in a scoreless ninth with the score tied. His high-octane fastball, which got as high as 101.4 miles per hour, finished off one strikeout and his slider ended the other two. Fans seemed entertained.
-David Peterson, perhaps predictably, pitched well yet again and provided the Mets some length. He gave up two runs and four hits over six innings and has now thrown at least six innings 14 times this season. Except for a slight wobble in the second inning, Peterson did not give the Giants much. In that frame, he walked the leadoff man, Matt Chapman, and then gave up a single to Wilmer Flores and then an RBI double to Casey Schmitt. The second Giant run scored on Jung Hoo Lee’s RBI grounder and broke Peterson’s streak of four straight starts allowing one earned run or fewer. Friday’s start was Peterson’s 21st of the season, matching his career high set in each of the previous two seasons. He also achieved a new career-best for innings pitched in a single season with 127. He started the night with 121 innings, the exact number he set as a personal best last year.
-Friday was the first time all season the Mets had lost a home start by Peterson. They had won the first 10. It is the second-longest such streak in club history, according to the Elias Sports Bureau. In 1989, the Mets won the first 11 games started by David Cone.
-Mark Vientos extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a single to center with one out in the fifth. It was the Mets’ first hit of the game off Ray. One out later, Luis Torrens singled up the middle to give the Mets two baserunners, by Tyrone Taylor grounded out to end the inning.
-In the sixth inning, Alonso missed a foul pop-up by Flores and was charged with an error. It was harmless, though, as Flores flew to right shortly thereafter and the Mets escaped the inning unscathed.
-Giants lefty Robbie Ray, who lost to the Mets last Saturday in San Francisco, threw seven sharp innings, allowing only one run and four hits. Ray struck out six and walked one and lowered his ERA to 2.85.
Game MVP: Dom Smith
Smith played for the Mets from 2017-22. His clutch pinch-hit extended his hitting streak to six games and made him 11-for-his-last-33 (.333).
Freddie Freeman hits a two-RBI double during the first inning of the Dodgers' 5-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday night. (Jason Behnken / Associated Press)
Then, in a serendipitous twist, it gave him a lightning-bulb epiphany about his recently ailing swing.
At the end of a long day during last week’s homestand — when Freeman was hit by a pitch on July 20, immediately removed from the game to get an X-ray, then informed he somehow hadn’t sustained serious injury — the first baseman received a comical video edit on Instagram from a friend. A light reprieve at the end of a stressful afternoon.
Freeman got a chuckle out of the clip in which the couple who were infamously shown at a recent Coldplay concert are edited to look like they are instead reacting to his iconic slam.
But, while rewatching his Fall Classic moment, Freeman also drew an observation from something in his batting stance.
“I’m more in my front ankle,” Freeman said of his stance during the at-bat.
It was a subtle, but profound, contrast to how he had been swinging amid his recent two-month cold spell — reminding him to reincorporate his legs more into his mechanics and not lean as far back in his setup at the plate.
So, for the rest of that evening, Freeman thought about the difference (which, he joked, kept him up for much of the night). The next afternoon, he went straight into the Dodgers’ batting cages, focused on driving into his front ankle in an attempt to get his swing realigned.
“It’s a different thought of being in your legs when you’re hitting,” said Freeman, who had started the season batting .371 over his first 38 games, before slumping to a .232 mark over his next 49 contests. “It’s just more [about leaning] into my front ankle. It’s helping me be on time and on top [of the ball].”
“We’ll see,” he added with a chuckle, “how it goes in the game.”
Ten games later, it seems to be going pretty well.
Since making the tweak on July 21, Freeman is 14 for 39 (.359 average) with two home runs, four extra base hits, 10 RBIs and (most importantly) a renewed confidence at the plate.
After collecting his first three-hit game in a month Tuesday in Cincinnati, then his first home run in all of July the next day against the Reds, he stayed hot in the Dodgers’ series-opening 5-0 defeat of the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday, whacking a two-run double in the first inning and a solo home run in the fifth in front of a crowd of 10,046 at Steinbrenner Field (the New York Yankees’ spring training park serving as the Rays’ temporary home).
“That visual helped him kind of tap into something,” manager Dave Roberts said recently of Freeman’s post-meme swing adjustment. “He is early, for a change. Versus being late, chasing.”
On Friday, Freeman said he is no longer thinking about the ankle cue.
“I’m just getting in the box and swinging now,” he said. “I've been taking some pitches, working a couple of walks, getting deeper in counts, hitting the pitches I need to hit. ... It's just been, [get] in the box and [be] on time.”
Still, he acknowledged, the meme-inspired swing thought might have served as a helpful reset.
“I feel like I've been grinding for six, seven weeks ... but obviously I'm trending in a great direction right now,” he said. “I just try and ride it. I know my work is usually going to end up working at some point.”
Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw delivers during a 5-0 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Friday. (Jason Behnken / Associated Press)
Indeed, Freeman’s turnaround is something the Dodgers — who also got six scoreless innings out of Clayton Kershaw on Friday, lowering his season earned-run average to 3.29 in 13 starts — are expecting out of several superstar sluggers over the final two months of the regular season.
During Thursday’s trade deadline, the team didn’t splurge on big-name acquisitions. The only addition they made to their recently slumping lineup (which ranked 28th in the majors in scoring during July) was versatile outfielder Alex Call from the Washington Nationals.
Instead, both Roberts and club executives have preached of late, the team is banking on players like Mookie Betts (who is batting .237), Teoscar Hernández (who has hit .217 since returning from an adductor strain in May), Tommy Edman (who has hit .211 since returning from an ankle injury in May) and even Shohei Ohtani (who leads the National League in home runs, but is batting only .221 since resuming pitching duties in June) to play up to their typical, potent standards.
“I think if you look at it from the offensive side, as far as our guys, they’ll be the first to tell you they’ve got to perform better and more consistently,” Roberts said. “That’s something that we’re all counting on.”
For much of the summer, Freeman had been squarely in that group of underperforming veteran stars.
But his recent rebound (regardless of what triggered it) is providing a template for the rest of the lineup to follow — the start, the Dodgers continue to hope, of more roster-wide improvements over the stretch run.
“Five or six months ago in spring training, we were talking about how great of a team we have,” Freeman said. “We still have that great of a team. Obviously, some of us haven't played as well, so it's on us to get going. And a few of us are getting going right now. I think we're going to be just fine going forward.”
He’d had to wake up in the wee hours to catch a flight from Minneapolis to Philadelphia. And once he arrived, the Phillies’ new closer didn’t have much chance at a peaceful hotel snooze.
“I’m not sleeping because my little boy, he’s got a lot of energy,” Duran said.
At Citizens Bank Park, all was well on the energy front.
Duran made his elaborate entrance, locked down a 5-4 win over the Tigers in four pitches and enjoyed his first post-trade deadline taste of Phillies fans’ passion.
“I can see they love baseball,” he said. “They do everything for baseball, so I love that.”
Duran spent his first four MLB seasons in Minnesota, where he saved 74 games and compiled a 2.47 ERA. By many metrics, he’s been elite this year. According to Baseball Savant, Duran ranks in the 99th percentile in off-speed run value, barrel percentage and ground ball percentage. Duran has allowed a single home run. His four-seam fastball’s averaged 100.2 mph.
New Phillies outfielder Harrison Bader saw Duran’s Twins dominance firsthand.
“Plain and simple, he has close-the-door stuff,” Bader said pregame. ”That’s the best way to describe it. … Baseball happens, maybe he puts runners on, he’s got strikeout stuff to go and strike out three in a row.”
The Phillies did their best to make Duran feel at home in his debut.
The flashing lights and pulsating music and virtual flames were ready to roll as he jogged out for the ninth inning. Duran did so wearing No. 59 because Phillies manager Rob Thomson offered it up.
“He was very respectful,” Thomson said. “I called him and we were chit-chatting. I just said, ‘Hey look, the number really doesn’t mean much to me, but if it makes you feel better, I’m all-in.’ He said, ‘Well, you know, yeah …’ And I said, ‘Then it’s yours.’
“The only one that’s upset at this point is my wife because all her merchandise has 59 on it. Now we’ve got to go find her new stuff.”
Thomson’s switched to No. 49, which he said is to honor Yankees great and friend Ron Guidry.
Following the Phils’ three-run seventh inning and two-run eighth, the night culminated in Duran’s ninth.
“It looked good from my locker,” Bryce Harper quipped after his seventh-inning ejection. “We all know what it was like in Minnesota when he came into the game. Lights-out stuff.”
Thomson described Duran as “electric.”
“Four pitches. The first pitch was a 98 mph split,” he said. “I don’t know if I’ve seen that before. He threw strikes. He was calm, cool. It was great.”
Duran’s first pitch was technically his splinker, a go-to splitter-sinker hybrid. In fact, so were his second, third and fourth pitches.
After he grabs some shut-eye, there’s a lot left to show.
It didn't take long for the Mets to show their appreciation for reliever Jose Butto.
Days after trading Butto in the Tyler Rogers deal with the Giants, the organization played a video tribute at Citi Field before the series opener between the Mets and San Francisco.
Take a look at the tribute video, highlighting Butto's best moments as a Met, and the 27-year-old -- now in a Giants uniform -- giving the fans a salute.
Two days after being traded to the Giants, José Buttó gets a tribute video at Citi Field 💙🧡 pic.twitter.com/beJ5446HeK
Butto, who posted a 2.55 ERA for the Mets last season, had struggled for New York this season. He entered Friday's game with a 3.64 ERA and 1.38 WHIP in 47.0 innings over 34 games.
Over his four years in the big leagues, all with the Mets, Butto recorded an 11-9 record with a 3.45 ERA and a 1.126 WHIP to go along with 163 strikeouts in 167.0 innings pitched. Of his 74 appearances, he made 15 starts for the Mets.
But what they came away with — right-handed relievers Brock Stewart and Paul Gervase to bolster the bullpen, and versatile outfielder Alex Call to round out the lineup — are the kind of moves that “just raises the floor for our ballclub,” manager Dave Roberts said Friday.
“I feel we did get better,” Roberts said, before echoing the front office’s hope that the Dodgers’ biggest improvements over the final two months of the season come from the star-studded, but underperforming, core they already have in place.
“I think we’ve got a pretty dang good team. I think if you look at it from the offensive side, as far as our guys, they’ll be the first to tell you they’ve got to perform better and more consistently. That’s something that we’re all counting on … I love our club. I really do. Now it’s up to all of us to go out there and do our jobs.”
The job for the Dodgers’ two biggest acquisitions, Stewart and Call, will be clear from the get-go.
Stewart, a former Dodgers swingman from 2016 to 2019, has reinvented himself in the second half of his career. Unlike his first stint in Los Angeles, when he threw in the low 90s and was a fringe long reliever on the roster, Stewart is now a higher-leverage relief option, with a mid-to-upper 90s fastball and swing-and-miss sweeper he has used to dominate right-handed hitters this season.
“At the end [of his first Dodgers stint], he lost the velocity and was trying to figure out if he could hang on and who he was at that point,” Roberts recalled. “Obviously, he’s put in a ton of work to sort of find himself again. He’s had nothing but success. I’m excited to see this version of him. He certainly shouldn’t lack for confidence.”
Stewart won’t fix the Dodgers’ ninth-inning problems — with their closer role up in the air ever since struggling offseason signing Tanner Scott went on the injured list with an elbow injury — but could get some save situations “in the right situation,” Roberts said — for instance, if a run of right-handed hitters (who are batting just .104 with a .327. OPS against him this year) are up at the end of the game.
“I trust the guy, I trust the player, what he’s become,” Roberts said. “So for me, if the situation calls for it tonight and he’s in the ninth inning, I’ve got all the confidence.”
Gervase, a 6-foot-10 right-hander the Dodgers acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays in exchange for catcher Hunter Feduccia as part of a three-team trade on Wednesday night, was also on the active roster Friday. He comes with just five previous career MLB appearances, but a deceptive delivery aided by his long-limbed extension on the mound.
“I don't know a whole lot about him,” Roberts said. “I know he's got a big arm. He's got some extension, some rise, but I haven't seen him."
The arrival of Stewart and Gervase did coincide with yet another loss in the bullpen. Veteran right-hander Kirby Yates, another offseason signing who has disappointed with a 4.31 ERA this season, was placed on the injured list because of lingering discomfort in his pelvic and lower-back area. He went back to Los Angeles to get further testing.
“In the last, call it, two weeks, he hasn't felt great,” Roberts said. “Hasn't been injured, in his words, which is why he kept pitching and competing. But we flew him home this morning to look at the doctor and kind of get some tests to see if there's something that's kind of been aggravating him. Something's just not right, exactly. So we're trying to suss that out."
In the lineup, Roberts said Call — a 30-year-old right-handed-hitting journeyman who found a niche with the Washington Nationals the last few seasons as an on-base threat capable of grinding out tough at-bats — would mix in at all three outfield spots.
“[He is] a tough, feisty hitter,” Roberts said. “I certainly see him playing versus left. But I think he’s pretty much a neutral guy. Slugs a little more against left, but gets on base against right. I’m going to try to keep him in there a couple times a week.”
Call said he wasn’t shocked to learn he had been traded on Thursday, and was excited by the “chance to compete in the playoffs and win a World Series” with a first-place Dodgers team.
“For me, I am going to grind out at-bats, put the ball in play, take my walks, make it tough on the pitcher,” said Call, who has hit .297 with the Nationals in 102 games over the last two seasons. “Just really make the [pitchers] work so that hopefully they're tired when the top of the order comes back around or whatever.”
Roki Sasaki facing hitters
Internally, the Dodgers are hoping rookie Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki can also serve as a de facto late-season addition after missing the last several months with a shoulder injury.
And this week, the right-hander took a key step in his recovery process.
Sasaki faced hitters for the first time since getting hurt in a simulated inning this past week in Arizona, Roberts said, and is scheduled to throw two more simulated innings on Saturday.
The team has been targeting a late-August return for Sasaki, who had a 4.72 ERA in eight starts this season before going on the IL.
Tyler Rogers may be a New York Met now, but a part of him remains at Oracle Park.
The veteran right-hander reliever, whom San Francisco traded to New York on Wednesday, “donated” his beloved beer fridge to the Giants’ clubhouse, ensuring a tradition that began under his brother Taylor Rogers will continue.
“It was a parting gift,” Tyler told reporters before Friday’s series opener between the Mets and Giants at Citi Field in Queens, also making sure to note that there is “a lot of wine” in the fridge, as well.
Rogers spent his entire MLB career with the Giants before Wednesday’s deal, and was their longest-tenured player. Over seven seasons, he appeared in 392 games, tied for the third-most of any MLB pitcher dating back to his 2019 rookie season.
In those games, the 34-year-old posted a 2.79 ERA and 1.10 WHIP and was regarded as one of the most dependable late-inning relievers in all of baseball.
But with the Giants floundering as the 2025 MLB trade deadline approached, president of baseball operations Buster Posey sent Rogers to the Mets for right-handed pitcher José Buttó, right-handed pitcher Blade Tidwell (the Mets’ No. 10 prospect) and outfielder Drew Gilbert (No. 12 prospect).
Despite Rogers’ departure, he can be sure his “parting gift” will continue to refresh his former teammates for years to come.
It didn’t take long for Mike Yastrzemski to ingratiate himself with his new team.
A little over 24 hours after he was traded from the Giants, the veteran outfielder smacked a two-run homer in his first at-bat with the Kansas City Royals on Friday night.
Yastrzemski would go on to fly out in his final two plate appearances in the Royals’ 9-3 road win over the Toronto Blue Jays.
Just before Thursday’s MLB trade deadline, the Giants sent Yastrzemski — their longest-tenured player, who had been with the team since his debut in 2019 — to Kansas City in exchange for minor-league pitcher Yunior Marte.
Yastrzemski hit 114 home runs over his seven seasons in San Francisco before his second-inning shot with his new club, his ninth of the 2025 MLB season. The 34-year-old outfielder, a fan favorite during his time in the Bay, will be a free agent at the end of the year.
The Yankees avoided the worst-possible news on Aaron Judge's right elbow last week, and it now appears the superstar slugger may only face the minimum amount of time on the injured list.
Before their road series opener against the Marlins on Friday, manager Aaron Boonetold reporters the plan is for Judge to get live at-bats in Tampa on Sunday, in anticipation of him being activated on Tuesday or Wednesday against the Rangers.
While the Yankees' captain isn't scheduled to begin a throwing program for another week-plus, his flexor tendon strain didn't preclude him from taking on-field batting practice with teammates on Friday.
Judge received a PRP injection earlier this week to expedite the healing process. If all goes well with the bat this weekend, the reigning AL MVP will return as the Yankees' designated hitter. His temporary absence from the field will consequently mean some defensive work for Giancarlo Stanton.
The second half of July wasn't kind to Judge. Since the All-Star break, he's slashed an uncharacteristic .160/.267/.400 with two home runs, four RBI, and 11 strikeouts (25 at-bats).
Here’s Aaron Judge taking some swings during pregame batting practice in Miami, as expected. pic.twitter.com/3VAmAyO4Ru
One day after being acquired in a trade with San Francisco, Doval took the mound in a save situation for New York with the Yankees holding a 12-10 ninth-inning lead over the Miami Marlins.
While Doval got burned by a costly error in right field, the flame-throwing reliever didn’t do himself any favors either, allowing two hits and a walk en route to a blown save in his first action with the Bronx Bombers.
Newly acquired utility man Jose Caballero was at fault for the blunder in right that helped seal the Yankees fate, putting Doval in a hole he couldn’t overcome.
It was Doval’s fifth blown save in 20 opportunities this year, matching his total from the entire previous campaign with two months to go in the regular season.
After earning MLB All-Star honors and logging a league-high 39 saves during the 2023 MLB season, Doval has seen his numbers across the board dip.
Doval’s stuff is electric and when he’s on, he’s as exciting as any reliever in the sport.
Unfortunately for Yankees fans, they’ll have to wait for another day to see Doval in the light that led him to become a fan favorite during his time in San Francisco.
However, August started much differently for the Giants, who showed they haven’t given up on 2025 with a gritty 4-3 win over the New York Mets in 10 innings at Citi Field on Friday night.
“We talked before the game — what happened, happened. We got ourselves into this situation, but we still have the big pieces that we brought in,” starter Robbie Ray told reporters postgame. “The core group of guys are here still. We didn’t do a major overhaul, so this team is still good enough to win.
“To be able to come out after the rough homestand and win the first one here is big.”
It certainly wasn’t pretty, as San Francisco relinquished a 3-0 lead entering the bottom of the seventh. Ray didn’t earn a decision despite a commanding seven innings, only surrendering an impressive opposite-field homer to Mets slugger Pete Alonso.
In the eighth inning, Juan Soto grounded what was likely a would-be inning-ending double-play ball up the middle at shortstop Willy Adames. Instead, the ball kicked off pitcher Joey Lucchesi’s toe, over Adames’ head and into left field. The Mets tied it one batter later, and it felt like the Giants might never escape their summer slide.
But unlike the previous week, the Giants still grinded out a win. After going 0-for-23 with runners in scoring position during last weekend’s series against the same Mets team, pinch hitter Dominic Smith came through when his team badly needed it. With a runner on third and one out, the former Met knocked a line-drive single in the 10th inning for the eventual game-winning RBI.
“We’ve been losing a lot of games because we haven’t been playing clean baseball,” Adames said postgame. “We know that we have to be better and play more games like that and try to execute. I feel like for us, today was a big game to start getting in a different mood, because it’s been tough. The boys are feeling it, and they knew that tonight we had to make an adjustment and go out there and try to win that game, no matter how. And it went our way. I mean, it almost didn’t — it was crazy. But we found a way to end up on top.”
One more hurdle remained, though. San Francisco had traded their typical eighth- and ninth-inning relievers, Tyler Rogers and Camilo Doval, to the Big Apple in the prior two days.
Hours after being named the Giants’ closer, Randy Rodriguez showed he’s ready for the big-city lights in New York. The 2025 MLB All-Star stranded the bases loaded in the bottom of the 10th, pumping 100 mph past Ronny Mauricio to earn the save.
Perhaps symbolically, within the hour, Doval blew the save in his first appearance for the Yankees down in Miami.
Back in Queens, Rodriguez’s effort in an unfamiliar spot didn’t go unnoticed by his teammates.
“Obviously, Randy coming in, in that situation, and shutting the door, that was amazing,” Adames stated. “That showed the courage that he has and the kind of pitcher he is.”
“For [Rodriguez] to be named the closer, and coming in the first game after being named the closer in a pressure situation — extra innings, up one — and being able to lock it down was huge,” Ray added.
Now, the Giants, who currently sit six games out of a playoff spot, hope this emphatic win can kickstart a timely resurgence. The team was vocal about still having their core pieces in place — Adames, Matt Chapman and still-new addition Rafael Devers, among others — and the belief they can salvage the season.
“I’ll tell you right now, you saw the fight in these boys,” Smith told NBC Sports Bay Area’s Laura Britt and Shawn Estes on “Giants Postgame Live.” “We don’t give up. We don’t quit. We still believe in this group. We still know we’ve got two months left, and we’re going to finish strong no matter where we’re at. So I just look forward to capitalizing and having fun with this win, but we’re not done.
“We’ve still got our core group of guys here, so just beware — that’s all I’m saying.”
"We don't give up. We don't quit. We still believe in this group."
The Phillies packed plenty of drama into their first game after the trade deadline.
They came back Friday night for a wild 5-4 win at Citizens Bank Park over the Tigers in their series opener, improving to 62-47 overall.
Ranger Suarez started for the Phils and pitched well, allowing three runs and four hits in seven innings. He struck out five Tigers and walked none.
Gleyber Torres tagged Suarez for a three-run home run in the third inning, bashing a cutter 404 feet.
The Phillies’ efforts to hit Tigers starter Jack Flaherty were futile. Max Kepler flew out to the center-field warning track in the bottom of the third. With two outs in the fourth, Nick Castellanos fouled off a 3-1 fastball and whiffed at a knuckle curveball.
Edmundo Sosa picked up the Phils’ first knock, doubling off the top of the left-field wall with two outs in the fifth. He stayed on second base, though. The inning ended when Trea Turner popped up to shortstop.
Outside of the third inning, Suarez was highly effective and efficient. He reached seven innings pitched for the first time since June 29.
Flaherty exited after the first batter of the seventh. Castellanos lined a leadoff single and lefty reliever Tyler Holton entered.
Otto Kemp pinch-hit for Brandon Marsh and flared a base hit to right field, moving Castellanos to third. That brought another pinch-hitter to the plate in Harrison Bader and the home crowd’s volume seriously jumped at the trade deadline addition’s Phillies debut. Bader continued the rally with a four-pitch walk.
The Phils ultimately evened up the game. Bryson Stott produced a sacrifice fly and Turner’s single to right drove in Castellanos. Kyle Schwarber made it 3-all with a scorching single (113.7 mph exit velocity).
Bryce Harper came to the plate, fell behind 0-2, and then watched three straight balls. He thought he saw a fourth, but third base umpire Vic Carapazza ruled that Harper swung on a low slider.
The call outraged Harper, who removed his helmet, yelled at Carapazza and got ejected.
Though Harper was obviously not near the same page on the swing call, he said postgame that he “can’t get thrown out in that situation, especially with the ninth inning possibly coming around an my at-at coming.”
He also didn’t see the ejection as hasty.
“I left the batter’s box coming toward him, so I think it was warranted,” Harper said.
The sharp downturn in the Phils’ fortunes bled into the eighth inning. Wenceel Perez cleared the right-field fence for a go-ahead homer off of Orion Kerkering.
The Phillies bounced right back. Castellanos singled and chugged home on a Kemp double down the left-field line.
Two infield singles gave the Phils an improbable lead. Sosa squibbed a ball in front of home plate and Brenan Hanifee’s wide throw to first base pulled Spencer Torkelson off the bag. Stott followed with a grounder to short and narrowly beat Javier Baez’s one-hop throw.
New closer Jhoan Duran was up next and made a fantastic first impression with a 1-2-3 save.
Game 2 of the series features a juicy pitching matchup.
Zack Wheeler (9-4, 2.56 ERA) and Tarik Skubal (10-3, 2.09 ERA) are the scheduled starters on Saturday. Wheeler has 172 strikeouts this season, Skubal 171. First pitch is set for 4:05 p.m. ET.
Rollins and Wade go on the Wall
The Phillies inducted former general manager Ed Wade and former star shortstop Jimmy Rollins into their Wall of Fame in a pregame ceremony.
Ryan Howard spoke before Rollins, who he called his “little big bro.” Chase Utley unveiled the two new Wall of Fame plaques.
Rollins wasn’t short on charisma and humor. Recalling the Phillies’ choice to pick him in the second round of the 1996 MLB draft, Rollins noted he was grateful to be listed at 5-foot-9 instead of his true 5-7.
Aaron Nola, Joe Ross and David Robertson all pitched Friday in the first game of Triple A Lehigh Valley’s doubleheader against the Worcester Red Sox.
Nola tossed three innings and threw 47 pitches in his rehab start, allowing no runs and three hits. Ross logged one scoreless inning. Robertson conceded three runs in one inning of work and took the loss.
Alec Bohm fielded pregame grounders at Citizens Bank Park. He’s progressing well in his rehab from a fractured rib, according to Phillies manager Rob Thomson.
“They’re going to increase the tee and toss today, so he’s going to get some more swings, see how he feels,” Thomson said. “He’s moving around pretty good right now.”
The Phillies packed plenty of drama into their first game after the trade deadline.
They came back Friday night for a wild 5-4 win at Citizens Bank over the Tigers in their series opener, improving to 62-47 overall.
Ranger Suarez started for the Phils and pitched well, allowing three runs and four hits in seven innings. He struck out five Tigers and walked none.
Gleyber Torres tagged Suarez for a three-run home run in the third inning, bashing a cutter 404 feet.
The Phillies’ efforts to hit Tigers starter Jack Flaherty were futile. Max Kepler flew out to the center-field warning track in the bottom of the third. With two outs in the fourth, Nick Castellanos fouled off a fastball and whiffed at a knuckle curveball.
Edmundo Sosa picked up the Phils’ first knock, doubling off the top of the left-field wall with two outs in the fifth. He stayed on second base, though. The inning ended when Trea Turner popped up to shortstop.
Outside of the third inning, Suarez was highly effective and efficient. He reached seven innings pitched for the first time since June 29.
Flaherty exited after the first batter of the seventh. Castellanos lined a leadoff single and lefty reliever Tyler Holton entered.
Otto Kemp pinch-hit for Brandon Marsh and flared a base hit to right field, moving Castellanos to third. That brought another pinch-hitter to the plate in Harrison Bader and the home crowd’s volume seriously jumped at the trade deadline addition’s Phillies debut. Bader continued the rally with a four-pitch walk.
The Phils ultimately evened up the game. Bryson Stott produced a sacrifice fly and Turner’s single to right drove in Castellanos. Kyle Schwarber made it 3-all with a scorching single (113.7 mph exit velocity).
Bryce Harper came to the plate, fell behind 0-2, and then watched three straight balls. He thought he saw a fourth, but third base umpire Vic Carapazza ruled that Harper swung on a low slider.
The call outraged Harper, who removed his helmet, yelled at Carapazza and got ejected.
The sharp downturn in the Phils’ fortunes bled into the eighth inning. Wenceel Perez cleared the right-field fence for a go-ahead homer off of Orion Kerkering.
The Phillies bounced right back. Castellanos singled and chugged home on a Kemp double down the left-field line.
Two infield singles gave the Phils an improbable lead. Sosa squibbed a ball in front of home plate and Brenan Hanifee’s wide throw to first base pulled Spencer Torkelson off the bag. Stott followed with a grounder to short and narrowly beat Javier Baez’s one-hop throw.
New closer Jhoan Duran was up next and made a fantastic first impression with a 1-2-3 save.
Game 2 of the series features a juicy pitching matchup.
Zack Wheeler (9-4, 2.56 ERA) and Tarik Skubal (10-3, 2.09 ERA) are the scheduled starters on Saturday. Wheeler has 172 strikeouts this season, Skubal 171. First pitch is set for 4:05 p.m. ET.
Rollins and Wade go on the Wall
The Phillies inducted former general manager Ed Wade and former star shortstop Jimmy Rollins into their Wall of Fame in a pregame ceremony.
Ryan Howard spoke before Rollins, who he called his “little big bro.” Chase Utley unveiled the two new Wall of Fame plaques.
Rollins wasn’t short on charisma and humor. Recalling the Phillies’ choice to pick him in the second round of the 1996 MLB draft, Rollins noted he was grateful to be listed at 5-foot-9 instead of his true 5-7.
Aaron Nola, Joe Ross and David Robertson all pitched Friday in the first game of Triple A Lehigh Valley’s doubleheader against the Worcester Red Sox.
Nola tossed three innings and threw 47 pitches in his rehab start, allowing no runs and three hits. Ross logged one scoreless inning. Robertson conceded three runs in one inning of work and took the loss.
Alec Bohm fielded pregame grounders at Citizens Bank Park. He’s progressing well in his rehab from a fractured rib, according to Phillies manager Rob Thomson.
“They’re going to increase the tee and toss today, so he’s going to get some more swings, see how he feels,” Thomson said. “He’s moving around pretty good right now.”
