Category: Baseball

The magic number is 1.

With tonight’s 6-3 win, the Braves have won the series, thrown a grenade into the crab bucket that is the AL West, and that NL East title is so close, you can almost taste the champagne.

The Braves’ return to winning games with the longball has been a welcome sight. But they had to come back to win in this one (and would do so in grand fashion).

Stop me if you’ve heard this one before – the Braves had a promising start in the first inning, no runs would score, and then the opposing starting pitcher would settle in as they went ice-cold at the plate.

Today’s variation of this season-long pattern featured a leadoff double from Drake Baldwin (that would’ve been a home run in 26/30 ballparks) and walk by Ronald Acuña Jr. But a Matt Olson flyout, Michael Harris II forceout, and Mauricio Dubón popout sent us to the home half of the first, where Isaac Paredes hit an absolute rocket (that would’ve been a homer in only 11/30 ballparks) off Grant Holmes to make it 1-0.

The Astros would add on after a Jeremy Peña leadoff triple and Paredes’ RBI single to make it 2-0 in the third.

Outside of allowing a walk to Sean Murphy and single to Acuña Jr. in the fourth, Hayden Wesneski worked his six-pitch arsenal effectively to keep the Braves off the board. The fifth was particularly nasty with the bottom of the order all hitting first-pitch groundouts (although Mike Yastrzemski and Murphy hit theirs 100+ mph, just right at perfectly-positioned corner infielders).

Wesneski had the pitch count in a great spot going into the top of the sixth. However, it was deja vu all over again with two on with no outs via a Drake broken bat single and Ronald working another walk. This prompted a mound visit as Matt Olson strolled up to the plate. Thankfully, first-inning history did not repeat itself… but it was messy.

Matt’s sharp single to center and an aggressive send of Drake got the Braves on the board, 2-1, but Ronald got thrown out at third in the process. This prompted the removal of Wesneski after 79 pitches; reliever Bennett Sousa got Harris and Dubón to fly out to end the frame. Final line for Wesneski: 5.1 IP, 4 hits, 1 earned run, 3 walks, and 3 strikeouts.

Holmes has fared better on the road, and he ends up logging another quality start tonight: 6 innings, 8 hits, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, and 4 strikeouts with 87 pitches.

AJ Blubaugh relieved Sousa in the top of the seventh and got Ozzie Albies to fly out to start the inning. But things would snowball after a rally by the bottom of the order (!): consecutive singles by Yaz and Austin Riley and a walk by Murphy had the bases loaded with one out. The Astros brought in Bryan Abreu, who struck out Baldwin. But Ronald Acuña Jr. had yet to be retired tonight, and the reports of his inability to hit a fastball may have been greatly exaggerated. Abreu’s second pitch was launched for Ronald’s second hit of the night to go with his two walks. Except this was no single – this was a go-ahead gram slam to make it 5-2, Braves.

(Also, way to represent in H-Town, Braves Country. Whew.)

Victor Mederos worked a 1-2-3 seventh. Dubón led off the eighth with a single off new reliever Logan VanWey, but was erased by an Ozzie double play. But Yaz, who started the rally in the last frame, added another run with a casual homer to (where else?) left center to make it 6-2.

Dylan Lee got two quick flyouts before a spot of trouble began. A walk to Paredes and Jose Altuve’s bunt single set the table for Yainer Diaz’s RBI double to make it 6-3. This brought pinch-hitter Nelson Velázquez as the tying run to the plate, but Lee struck him out on five pitches.

Nothing of note in the top of the ninth except Drake battling and winning a ten-pitch at-bat with a single up the middle.

Raisel Iglesias came out for the bottom of the ninth for his second straight night of work and our closer logged yet another 1-2-3 inning to close the book on this Braves series win.

The Braves improve to 91-64 and will go for the series sweep tomorrow afternoon at 2:10 pm ET. But let’s be real – we’ll also be tuning in for Mets/Phillies at 1:10 pm ET. Merry (maybe) clinch-mas eve to all, and to all a goodnight.

The Texas Rangers scored six runs while the Toronto Blue Jays scored two runs.

At the last possible moments, the Rangers appear to have stumbled upon a winning formula.

Over the last week or so we’ve been privy to some victories where the Rangers have scored early, forced the opponent’s hand by scratching and clawing their way on base before threatening small ball chaos, and utilized a string of heroic turns from unsuspecting pitchers who have provided multiple effective innings when forced into duty.

If that’s the key to victory for Texas, they followed the plan to a Texas T tonight. The Rangers indeed scored early when Josh Jung lifted a first inning opposite field solo home run. Not satisfied with just one run, Texas plated two more in the bottom of the second inning when Toronto starter Jose Soriano walked leadoff hitter Wyatt Langford, hit Nicky Lopez, and then saw Langford score via an errant throw by Blue Jays shortstop Andres Gimenez.

Despite having an aching ankle from getting struck by a pitch, Lopez scampered in the score the third run on a Soriano wild pitch.

Those runs felt pivotal for Texas as one out into the second inning Mr. Quality Start Cal Quantrill exited the game with an disquieting injury. I guess carrying the Rangers on his back over the last month or so has finally caught up with the recently-excellent righty. Quantrill had left his previous start with back tightness, but tonight’s early exit was listed as right lat tightness, which isn’t great news for the Rangers going forward.

It wasn’t great news at the time either as the Rangers were suddenly without this summer’s most consistent starter in a crucial game. Former playoff hero Jordan Montgomery was pressed into duty and, like many others over the last week or so, he acquitted himself well. Montgomery entered in a 1-0 game and exited after 3 2/3 innings and 51 pitches having not allowed a hit and with Texas up 3-0.

Another 2023 World Series legend followed Montgomery with Nathan Eovaldi coming in to pitch the sixth. After tossing 46 pitches on Wednesday against Boston, Eovaldi was less effective in his inning of work but he worked around a run to help bridge the bullpen to the late innings.

Like last night, the Rangers took getting scored upon personal as after Toronto made it 3-1, in the next half inning Texas scored three more runs highlighted by a Langford hurdle at home on a sac fly.

Wyatt Langford JUMPS OVER THE CATCHER AND SCORES 😮 pic.twitter.com/mMYkpcRmzg

— MLB (@MLB) September 20, 2026

With the majority of the game managed by a trio of historically starting pitchers, the actual relievers got to work with Robert Garcia, Chase Silseth, and Jacob Latz combining to allow one run (a seventh inning solo home run off Garcia) as the Rangers maneuvered their way to another victory on this homestand.

And so, for the first time since they were 60-59 back on Aug 10, the Rangers are back above .500. It’s a fine time to do so, too, as because the Houston Astros lost tonight after allowing a seventh inning grand slam to Atlanta, the Rangers are now alone atop the American League West.

Player of the Game: Montgomery has been a bit of an unusual afterthought this season when considering his place among the October 2023 legends, but tonight he left his mark on his second stint with Texas but coming in into an emergency situation and pitching lights while the Rangers were grabbing control of the game.

For his effort, Montgomery was the winning pitcher in a big league game for the first time since Aug 2024 when he was pitching for Arizona.

Up Next: The Rangers close out this series with an opportunity to sweep the Blue Jays with RHP Jacob deGrom set to make the start for Texas against a pitcher to be named for Toronto.

The Sunday afternoon first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 1:35 pm CDT and will be aired on the Rangers Sports Network.

Noah Cameron didn’t have his best stuff tonight, but he held things together and the offense just kept chipping away. Jac Caglianone had his first two hits since injuring his arm/elbow and Nick Loftin had his second career four-hit game. In the end, though, the three players acquired from the Rays during the offseason played key roles as the Pirates defeated KC 6-5.

Noah Cameron finished the night allowing 4 runs in 6 innings while striking out 6 and walking 2. Those are very mediocre numbers and represent one of his worst starts since late July. If you had told Royals fans that was how you interpreted this outing sometime any time in June or July they’d have tried to have you committed. But that’s the world we’re living in now. The damage was done primarily on two hits, a pair of two-run homers. The first was by Ronny Simon in the bottom of the second, a switch-hitter who hadn’t hit a dinger in his first 121 at-bats. But Cameron left him a changeup in the middle, and Ronny didn’t miss. Ronny, by the way, was originally signed by the Rays out of the Dominican Republic.

The second home run was hit by tonight’s center fielder, Jake Mangum. Mangum came over in a trade alongside Brandon Lowe and Mason Montgomery from the Rays during the offseason. This pitch was a little better, a backfoot slider that didn’t quite get to the back foot.

The final blow was, what else, a two-run home run by a former Ray. This time it was the aforementioned Lowe banging one to right center off of Steven Cruz. It was the final blow.

The Royals offense was churning for most of the night, despite facing one of the nastiest pitchers in baseball this season. They got one run back quickly in the top of the third when Carter Jensen broke the Royals’ rookie record for home runs in a season.

Carter now takes aim at the record for home runs by a rookie catcher set by Mike Piazza and Rudy York. He’ll only need… 11 more to surpass their total of 35 each. Still, Carter could become the first rookie catcher to lead his team in RBIs since Piazza led the Dodgers in 1993. His 76 leads Salvador Perez by 4 with 7 games left, and the latter only playing part-time.

The Royals answered the Pirates’ home in the fourth by scoring two more of their own in the fifth. Bobby Witt Jr. led off with a single and Jac Caglianone, in his first game back following a one-game suspension for injuring his hand after a bad at-bat Thursday, took a walk to bring the tying run to the plate. The Royals successfully performed a double steal to put runners at second and third with no outs for Vinnie Pasquantino. Vinnie, unfortunately, could only manage a routine grounder to first to score Bobby and advance Jac. That brought up Michael Massey.

Ryan O’Hearn’s acrobatic play cost the Royals a baserunner and who knows what else. Nick Loftin followed that with a single of his own, and John Rave flied out to center to end the inning. If Massey had been on first, it doesn’t take much imagination to see him going to third on Loftin’s single and scoring on a Rave sacrifice fly to tie the game then and there.

Still, by this point, as you can tell from the clip above, the Royals had gotten into the Pirates’ bullpen. That would become important when they turned to Camilo Doval in the seventh inning. Bobby led off again; this time he hit a single off of Doval, but Doval chose to sling it in the general direction of first anyway. That allowed Bobby to go to third. Jac Caglianone added his second single of the night, this one to the opposite field, to score Bob and tie the game. Pasquantino singled, and Jac went all the way to third. Massey struck out, but Loftin came through again with his fourth hit of the night to give the Royals the lead. Unfortunately, Vinnie was stranded at third as Rave and Kyle Isbel each made outs to end the inning.

After Lowe’s home run in the bottom of the eighth, the final piece of that Rays trade from the previous offseason made his appearance. Mason Montgomery is the Pirates closer, and close he was planning to do. For a moment, it seemed like the never-say-die Royals had one last trick up their sleeves. Jac Caglianone took a tough walk – he reached base four times on the night. Tyler Tolbert ran for Jac and stole second, still with no outs. Salvador Perez was batting for Vinnie because Montgomery is a lefty, Salvy battled but struck out. Maikel Garcia pinch-hit for Massey and flew out softly to right. Up came Nick Loftin, looking to re-tie the game and mark his first career five-hit affair. Sadly, he popped out in foul territory on a terrific sliding grab by Pirates catcher Henry Davis.

The Royals fell to 67-88 on the season. They still haven’t won a series in September and have only two chances left. No matter the outcome of tomorrow’s game, they will have had a losing road trip. It’s been a resounding thud of a final month after those sweet couple of weeks at the end of August. Tomorrow’s game is in danger of rain, and with both teams officially eliminated from the playoffs, it’s possible the game is canceled and never made up. However, if it is played, Michael Wacha (3.34 ERA, 4.32 SIERA) will pitch for the Royals. As of this writing, the Pirates have not yet announced their starter. The game will start at 12:35 PM Central Time.

With the threat of rain in the forecast for the Mets' home finale against the Phillies, legendary radio broadcaster Howie Rose may have signed off for the final time on Saturday night.

Amid the uncertainty, Rose wrapped up Saturday's 10-3 win over the Phillies in a way only he could.

"Here's the pitch. Swing and a bouncing ball wide to first, backhanded by [Brett] Baty, throws off balance in time to Myers. Put it in the books!" Rose punctuated with his signature call. "The New York Mets have made it two out of three against the Philadelphia Phillies this weekend, with one more on the schedule, which we hope will be played tomorrow. As Tobias Myers finishes the Phillies off in the ninth inning."

And then with SNY play-by-play announcer Gary Cohen standing behind him, Rose signed off from the game to throw to the postgame show.

PUT IT IN THE BOOKS! The @Mets celebrate Carlos Beltrán the right way with a huge 10-3 victory over the Phillies to take the series!@HowieRose@KeithRaad@PatMcCarthy_@MetsBooth#LGM

Lots to listen to postgame and make sure to tune in live here: https://t.co/TmVvIFMPbxpic.twitter.com/3OXPkd8GQu

— Mets Radio 880 (@metsradio880) September 19, 2026

As the Mets Radio 880 crew continued their postgame show, they played a recording of Mets broadcasters and players, both past and present, including Steve Gelbs, Kevin Burkhardt, John Franco and David Wright, to thank Rose for his 20-plus-year career of calling Mets games.

Rose, of course, joked about the scenario in which Sunday's game would be played and asked whether they'll have to play the recording once again before he thanked his colleagues and the fans.

"Anybody who knows me knows how much The Beatles mean to me. I'm going to say now before anything else, to quote a Beatles song, it's all too much," Rose said.

Rose later added, "I don't want to think this was it, even though in my mind I treated today as though it very well might be. And whether we play tomorrow or they play tomorrow or not, I preemptively want to say how much you all mean to me. And when I'm saying 'you all' right now, it's not only covering my friends here in the booth and my colleagues, but I want to speak solely to you, the Met fan. I've used the term forever, 'kindred spirits,' and I think that you understand that any one of you could be where I'm sitting here, in this booth. We have very similar backgrounds... The point is that I feel like I know you. And more importantly, I feel like you know me. We've been together for the entirety of my time in this booth. And if I ever doubted that, or thought that was an exaggeration, believe me, it's hit home over these last couple of weeks this retirement announcement has somewhat gotten.

"When I really reflect on it, I have to quote the best to ever do it, Vince Scully. When Vin retired, just about a decade ago. He spoke to the fans and said, 'you know, I needed you more than you ever needed me.' And I didn't really understand that. But reading the comments on everything that has been written...to hear the love that you sent to my family and me, I think I know what Vin meant now."

Rose said he won't be a stranger to Citi Field. He'll likely still be the MC for Opening Day, number retirements and other ceremonies at the stadium. He'll even visit the booth from time to time. But a choked-up Rose wanted to say one last thing to his friends, colleagues and listeners.

"Just know that I love you all."

"Just know that I love you all."@HowieRose signs off from tonight's broadcast, which could be his final one in the Mets radio booth 🫶 pic.twitter.com/yYLTEHLjE6

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) September 20, 2026

Back in August, the Mets planned a pregame ceremony for Rose before the team's final home game. But as Mets world awaits to see if the weather cooperates, Rose said the organization will hold the ceremony next season if they cannot do it Sunday. 

So whether it's this Sunday or 2027, Rose will be properly acknowledged. 

Tarik Skubal faces Yunior Marte as the Dodgers take on the San Francisco Giants on Saturday.

Tonight’s #Dodgers lineup vs. Giants: pic.twitter.com/T7EfGMgbyg

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) September 19, 2026

SATURDAY GAME INFO

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Giants
• Stadium: Dodger Stadium
• Time: 6:10 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 (Spanish)

After failing on Friday, the San Francisco Giants will try once again to Beat LA, as they visit the Los Angeles Dodgers for the sandwich filling of a three-game series.

Rookie Yunior Marté takes the mound for the Giants, as the 23-year old right-hander makes the fourth appearance and second start of his debut MLB season. Marté, who was called up directly from AA, has yet to get a decision, but has a 2.45 ERA, a 4.87 FIP, and nine strikeouts to six walks in 14.2 innings. His last outing was his best, as he threw five scoreless innings against the San Diego Padres in relief.

For the Dodgers, it’s their newest superstar toy, lefty Tarik Skubal. Acquired at the trade deadline, Skubal, who is a reigning two-time Cy Young Award winner, has made 24 starts for the Dodgers and Detroit Tigers this year. He’s 10-7 on the season, with a 2.70 ERA, a 2.50 FIP, and 173 strikeouts to 25 walks in 146.2 innings. In his last outing, Skubal threw seven scoreless frames against the Cincinnati Reds.

Enjoy the game, everyone. Beat LA!

Lineups

Giants

1. Jonah Cox — CF
2. Turner Hill — LF
3. Victor Bericoto — DH
4. Jung Hoo Lee — RF
5. Brett Harris — 1B
6. Shay Whitcomb — 3B
7. Andrew Knizner — C
8. Osleivis Basabe — 2B
9. Christian Koss — SS

RHP. Yunior Marté

Dodgers

1. Mookie Betts — SS
2. Freddie Freeman — 1B
3. Will Smith — C
4. Max Muncy — 3B
5. Teoscar Hernández — LF
6. Kyle Tucker — RF
7. Josue De Paula — DH
8. Tommy Edman — CF
9. Alex Freeland — 2B

LHP. Tarik Skubal

Game #155

Who: San Francisco Giants (64-90) vs. Los Angeles Dodgers (94-60)

Where:Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, California

When: 6:10 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

First Pitch: 8:38 pm CDT
TV: Twins.TV
Radio: TIBN / WCCO 830 / The Wolf 102.9 FM / Audacy

The kids have been showing out a bit in Anaheim, providing one of the only remaining reasons to watch 2026 Twins baseball as this underwhelming season has normalized itself to fall back in line with preseason projections. Now, it’s our pleasure to watch Walker Jenkins hit the first groove of his big-league career, and Emmanuel Rodriguez show off his skills on both sides of the ball; and as we do that, veteran Joe Ryan heads back to the mount as he continues to give us a glimpse of what we might expect from the right-hander in 2027.

27-year-old Reid Detmers sits on 199 strikeouts heading into tonight’s contest, which the Central timezone eyeballs might hope doesn’t dip back into extra innings, but a subsection of Angels nerds might, because did you know that Joe Mauer has a more recent walk-off hit than Mike Trout does?

The Twins officially have a losing record, but every win down the stretch here gives us a more respectable record to look back upon; additionally, the Detroit Tigers are just a game ahead of Minnesota, meaning a third-place finish remains on the table. That said, the Twins are the next American League team on the chopping block, tied with the Seattle Mariners as the closest teams to outright elimination.

(The Mariners, however, have the AL West in play, as a miraculous final week could technically catch them up to a division-leading pair of teams who do not yet have winning records.)

GO TWINS GO!

The Dodgers conclude their penultimate home series of the regular season, taking on the San Francisco Giants on Sunday afternoon at Dodger Stadium. After dropping four of their first five games to the Giants this season, the Dodgers have beaten their longtime rivals three games in a row through Friday night, all in Los Angeles.

It’ll be a bullpen game for the Dodgers on Sunday.

Sunday game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Giants
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium
• Start time: 1:10 p.m.
• TV: SportsNet LA, MLB Network (out of market)
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Everyone gets their moment in a baseball season. Andruw Monasterio has had his moments. Tony Seagulls, too. Nick Sogard. Mickey Gasper has had so many moments that they ceased to be moments and just became what Mickey Gasper does. It’s one of the things that makes the sport great, that no season concludes without special contributions from everyone.

Brayan Bello was hunting for his moment tonight.

The man who, as a young pitcher was all too often and all to unfairly compared to Pedro, has had one of the strangest seasons I can ever remember a starting pitcher having. He started the season as one of the longest-tenured Red Sox players. He quickly became a starting pitcher who forgot how to start baseball games. He then transformed into one of the best relievers in the game, albeit in a highly specialized role that barely made him a reliever at all.

Tonight he was dominant. He needed just 55 pitches to cruise through 5 innings. He struck out 11. He took the Sox into the 9th inning having allowed a single run, this one via the only homer he’s allowed since July 12. But Brayan Bello did not get his moment. Three 9th inning singles off Garrett Whitlock cost the Sox the game and the chance to clinch a playoff spot.

Brayan Bello will be on the postseason roster in some capacity, but this was probably the last meaningful start he’ll make in 2026 and his postseason role is unclear at this stage. Baseball is great and baseball is cruel like that. But hopefully his moment will be waiting for him in October.

Three Studs

Brayan Bello: 8 IP, 11 K, 5 H, 0 BB, 1 HR, 1 ER. Love you, Brayan.

Roman Anthony: After leading off yesterday’s game with a homer, he once again got the Sox on the board with an RBI double. He’s not exactly tearing things up, but he’s productive after a long layoff.

Caleb Durbin: It was Durbin who Anthony drove in, and Durbin was one of only two hitters in the Sox lineup to collect multiple hits.

One Dud

Garrett Whitlock: The bullpen is in a weird spot right now, and Whitlock was called on to make the save in lieu of the injured Aroldis Chapman. He… did not make the save. Hopefully he’s getting this out of his system before the playoffs.

Carson Benge is in a league of his own.

The Mets rookie outfielder recorded three hits, including a solo home run, breaking Pete Alonso’s Mets rookie record for hits in a season (156) in the process Saturday in New York. The Mets beat the Phillies 10-3 as the Philadelphia bullpen suffered another meltdown while they continue to struggle down the home stretch of the season.

Benge’s record-breaking hit came on a check-swing dribbler in the eighth inning that scored a run and gave the Mets their final 10-3 advantage. The Mets trailed 3-1 early in the game before Francscico Alvarez hit a go-ahead three-run home run in the fifth inning. The Mets added six more runs against the Phillies bullpen to put the game out of reach.

Christian Scott got the start for the Mets and sailed through the first three innings before running into trouble in the fourth. Bryce Harper led the inning off with a ground-rule double before advancing to third base on a groundout from Luis Arraez. Alec Bohm then knocked an RBI single up the middle. With two on and two outs, J.T. Realmuto hit a liner to the left-center field gap that Juan Soto was able to chase down to end the inning and keep the game tied 1-1.

Harper was back up in the bottom of the fifth against Scott and hit a sacrifice fly to score Kyle Schwarber as Philadelphia took a 2-1 lead. Jefry Yan relieved Christian Scott and gave up a run on another RBI single from Bohm.

Alvarez flipped the game in a big way with his three-run home run in the fifth inning against Phillies starter Andrew Painter. Marcus Semien reached on a lead-off walk, and Brett Baty extended his on-base streak to 13 straight games with a single, before Alvarez blasted his homer. He entered the game on a 0-for-10 streak but went 2-for-4 with a walk.

Despite Painter striking out four straight batters after giving up the home run to Alvarez, Phillies manager Don Mattingly replaced him with former Mets reliever Brooks Raley. The Mets ripped four straight hits against Raley, including an RBI single from Baty. In his first Major-League action since July 6, Ronny Mauricio drew a bases-loaded walk against Chase Shugart to put the Mets up 6-3. Francisco Lindor had a chance for a grand slam, but flied out to deep center to end the inning.

The Mets left no doubt with four more runs in the eighth inning. Lindor earned a bases-loaded walk before Juan Soto, Bo Bichette, and Benge added RBI singles against Phillies reliever Orion Kerkering.

This was Benge’s 11th game with at least three hits in his record-setting rookie campaign. But it wasn’t just Benge that made Saturday a historic day for the Mets. The club retired Carlos Beltran’s number in an emotional pregame ceremony. Meanwhile, longtime voice of the Mets Howie Rose gave a farewell speech on the radio broadcast. His final game behind the microphone is supposed to be Sunday’s, but the chance of rain muddies the outlook for Sunday’s 1:10 PM EDT game. Weather permitting, Jonah Tong is scheduled to start for the Mets in the final game of the Phillies series.

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Francisco Alvarez, +24% WPA
Big Mets loser: Francisco Lindor, -8% WPA
Mets pitchers: +3% WPA
Mets hitters: +47% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Francisco Alvarez’s three-run home run, +25.3% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Alex Bohm’s RBI single, -11.5% WPA

We have reached the point in the season where each win is critical. With as well as the Cubs and Padres are playing right now, the Phillies need to win as many games as they possibly can, playing with some kind of verve in order to make the playoffs.

What we’re getting is another embarrassing performance like we saw today.

It wasn’t all bad. Andrew Painter made two bad pitches in this game, one to Carson Benge in the second inning.

BYE BYE BENGE!

Carson Benge's 19th home run of the year! pic.twitter.com/ZlRDW977oP

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 19, 2026

Another was made to Francisco Alvarez in the fifth inning when the Phillies were in desperate need of a shutdown inning after taking a 3-1 lead.

Francisco Alvarez puts the @Mets back on top! pic.twitter.com/XQXYxT3INI

— MLB (@MLB) September 19, 2026

Even after the Mets taking a 4-3 lead, the Phillies had a chance. Only down a run, the offense had just scored three whole runs the inning prior! They were capable of getting more.

Yet this supposedly invisible barrier that is three runs has apparently prevented them from scoring any more or any less than that. Having met their quota, they proceeded to enter a cocoon of swinging at pitches out of the zone and having rather useless at bats.

Then came the bullpen.

Brooks Raley? He can’t get guys out any more.

Chase Shugart? Fine I guess, but do you really have any faith in him.

Jose Alvarado? Hey – he didn’t give any runs!

Orion Kerkering? I’ll almost guarantee he has an “injury” which caused him to bad today. Nevermind all the weeks before where he continually gave up runs in key situations.

The lackadaisical way the team seems to be going about these games is grating on the nerves. The plate appearances they are having are some of the more inept ones we’ve seen from the team, even among the many games they have struggled. There is chase, confusion and quite honestly, the fewer pitches Brandon Marsh sees at the plate, the better. The bullpen outside of Jhoan Duran and maybe Alex McFarlane is just one giant gas can sent into fire after fire.

This is not a good team right now and they should be embarrassed by how they are playing.

On the day of Carlos Beltran’s number retirement ceremony at Citi Field, a special and joyous occasion for the club and all those involved, Mets owner Steve Cohen made sure to also address the elephant in the room – what’s been bubbling up for many Mets fans this season, particularly this past week.

Speaking with the SNY booth in the fourth inning on Saturday, Cohen was asked about the recent shenanigans that happened at the ballpark during the team’s last series with the Baltimore Orioles.

In what was Pete Alonso’s first time back in Queens since he left the Mets in free agency over the offseason, fans came out in droves and gave the first baseman quite the reception. Not only did they give Alonso a standing ovation in his first at-bat, standard for a former beloved player coming back to his old ballpark, but fans were also actively cheering for Alonso’s success every time he went to the plate.

Things got murky when Alonso, who was chasing his 300th career home run, hit the milestone by hitting a game-tying home run against Kodai Senga in the top of the ninth inning, which caused the stadium to erupt in cheers – odd for a home ballpark. 

The Mets went on to lose that game in extra innings and during the postgame, players, including Sean Manaea, admitted to being surprised by the response of the home fans seemingly cheering against their team.

“You can’t make it up, it was just so crazy,” Cohen said on Saturday. “The fans, they’re passionate and when they feel something they’re gonna let you know and I’m okay with that. Pete hits his 300th home run and it was sort of poetic. It was sort of amazing that it all occurred at the same time.”

Cohen seemed to understand where the fans were coming from, letting their frustration out for a player they believed deserved to be a lifetime Met.

Of course, that’s not how things turned out, and in the midst of a disappointing season, it made it all the more painful.

“I’ll say it again, it didn’t surprise me,” Cohen said about the fan’s response to Alonso’s return. “I can remember being at a previous Mets event the previous year and the fans were vocal on Alonso and listen, it’s hard to say goodbye to a homegrown player. Obviously he’s well liked and a great Met and those decisions got made and unfortunately we gotta look forward and look forward to ‘27 and what we’re gonna do. 

“But it was weird because we got past the trade deadline and the team was playing well and you got a sense that fans were really getting excited and then Pete came in and we kinda reversed course for three days, but now I think we’re back on track again.”

It’s true, prior to Alonso’s homecoming, despite the lost season, fans seemed to be invested in the team because of the young talent that spurred hope for the future, as well as the team’s improved performance on the field, albeit too late.

Still, Cohen believed that what the Mets had been building was enough to garner enthusiasm for what’s to come, even if it came during a second consecutive season missing the playoffs.

“I think that’s what the fans like,” he said. “We’re playing young, we’re playing athletic. We’ve developed a lot of players in a very short period of time and so that’s something you can really look forward to. So it’s true, two things can be true: a lousy season, but still something to look forward to.”

Something else Mets fans can look forward to is help arriving for president of baseball operations David Stearns – both in terms of the front office as well as a manager.

Cohen talked about the search for somebody to lead the team and what he wants to see out of his next manager, a conversation that fittingly happened during Beltran’s number retirement ceremony.

“I see the manager’s role as mostly about culture and bringing the locker room together,” the owner said. ‘I think the actual managerial decisions are, I would say, 20-30 percent of what they do and the rest of it is trying to galvanize your ball club and trying to get them in the right frame of mind and I’m looking for someone that can bring out the best in their ball players.”

As for the front office, Cohen mentioned that he’s “identified some things that we can do better” and talked about bringing in extra voices to the mix to help out.

“We’re going to try to add certain voices into the front office that I think will be helpful and I know David supports that, and I’m looking forward to, when we make those decisions, to announce them,” he said.

Cohen continued: “It doesn’t have to be a GM, it could be other ways to support David and the front office and I think the whole point is to get more opinions in the front office and people who are either pretty good at evaluating talent or people who have been in those positions before in the front office – in high positions – and help David out and help the team out as far as getting a different point of view.”

Cohen was also asked how he deals with, as he described it, such passionate fans that are always eager to give their two cents in how to run the team.

“Everyone’s got an opinion, I'll tell you that,” he said. “…And frankly, there’s some good ideas out there, so my ears are open.”

We’re getting down to the wire, folks – barring some miracle, there is exactly one week left of Mariners baseball. It’s been a tough season and I can’t say I’m sad about it coming to an end, but it’s always tough to put baseball away for another off-season, especially when a potential lockout looms and we don’t know when exactly it will come back. I’m going to try hard to enjoy these last seven games, no matter what, which is definitely easier to do in games against the Rockies than it will be when the Astros come to town.

Reminder that tomorrow is our annual meetup/softbaLL game/watch party. We’d love to see you there if you’re able to come! Details here.

Lineups:

Montes, check. Arroyo, check. A rare day off for Cole Young (rare in the meaning of actually rare, not rare as in “a rare walk from George Kirby”).

Tonight’s squad against the Rockies. #TridentsUppic.twitter.com/pouldrNK6u

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) September 19, 2026

Weird to see the Rockies embrace minimalism after seeing their City Connects last night, but here you have it:

Saturday starters ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/OuflUaQGej

— Colorado Rockies (@Rockies) September 19, 2026

News:

No news, good news, things of that nature. Hey have you downloaded the app yet? Please download the app. I ask you for so little and give you so much. The Mariners are not helping me out in this arena so I need you to.

Today’s game information:

Game time: 5:10 PT

TV: Mariners TV (Goldsmith/Mentink)

Radio: 710 AM Seattle Sports (Rizzs/Hill Jr.)

Last night was a good night for the Yankees, seeing the team put up five runs in the first paired with a good Gerrit Cole outing to cruise to a 9-2 win over the Diamondbacks. The club also picked up a game on the Rays as the AL East leaders dropped the opener of their series to the Red Sox. Tonight, the Yankees have two goals: get the win to stay in a hypothetically-competitive division race (all but necessary since Tampa Bay avenged the loss with a 2-1 win over Boston this afternoon), and build out a little more breathing room in the Cy Young race.

Dylan Cease had his worst start of the year on Friday for the Blue Jays, going just 2.2 innings and walking six. He and today’s Yankee starter Cam Schlittler have had a heavyweight bout atop the Cy leaderboard all year, and while Cam’s pulled away a bit in recent weeks, he can start to put the finishing touches on his case tonight. He hasn’t allowed more than one earned run in a start since August 3rd (!!), making us all maybe expect a bit too much from the righty who can seemingly do no wrong. Schlittler has thrown 45 innings across those aforementioned seven starts, so he’s not a five-and-fly guy, and his 1.00 ERA in that stretch is just…a farce.

Brandon Pfaadt is having the best season of his young career, with a 3.77 ERA and 4.06 FIP that are both significant steps forward after a pretty lost 2025. He doesn’t strike many men out though, and a 45 percent ground ball rate means heavy sinking fastballs in the zone. There will be pitches to hit from Pfaadt; you just need to be able to elevate them.

Ben Rice had himself a fantastic game cleaning up last night and is bumped up to the leadoff spot tonight, with
Luis García Jr. getting the nod over Paul Goldschmidt at first base. Spencer Jones reportedly has a sore left foot, which means we get José Caballero in center, and I’m going to withhold comment on that decision for now.

It’s an 8:10pm Eastern start but not a national broadcast, this one’s on YES. The Diamondbacks will be celebrating their 2001 World Series championship throughout the evening, which seems kind of lame because you can’t really “win” a championship when you didn’t have an opponent.

How to watch

Location: Chase Field – Phoenix, AZ

First pitch: 8:10 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, DBACKS.TV

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | Arizona Sports 98.7 FM, La Campesina 101.9 FM & 860 AM (AZ)

Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

Saturday Night Schlittler. #RepBXpic.twitter.com/yalRHJo5JI

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) September 19, 2026

Born in '98. Crowned in '01.

Coverage of today's pregame ceremony starts at 4:30 pm on https://t.co/m4uNou7HKrpic.twitter.com/yRV6v8DKTa

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) September 19, 2026

Miami Marlins (76-78) at San Diego Padres (85-69), September 19, 2026, 5:40 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Petco Park – San Diego, Calif.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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It’s KPop Demon Hunters Night 💫 pic.twitter.com/MGF5YOqEGo

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) September 19, 2026

Game 2.

📺: https://t.co/CoO4Nlpkc8
👂: @MarlinsRadio, @radiomambi710, @1043wqam
⏰: 8:40 PM ET#FightinFishpic.twitter.com/fwhZ6rRMUo

— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) September 19, 2026

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