Category: Baseball

The Red Sox have clinched a postseason spot. It was… anticlimactic.

The Sox allowed 4 runs before recording a single out yesterday and never made it a competitive game against the Rays, only securing their playoff berth via the Braves defeat of the Astros. They are just 9-8 over the month of September and have dropped each of the last 2 series. The team’s OPS+ of 84 is the lowest monthly mark they’ve posted all season — yes, even worse than the dreadful April (albeit just barely).

After a remarkable roller coaster of a season, we find ourselves in a weird spot. In terms of on-field results, nothing of consequence has really happened this month. The most important things that are happening relative to the Red Sox right now are happening in the trainer’s room. Will Willson Contreras and Ceddanne Rafaela recover in time for the playoffs? Can Roman Anthony find his rhythm after a lengthy injury stint? What can Garrett Crochet and Tanner Houck do, if anything, to salvage two otherwise lost seasons?

This entire month of September baseball has felt less like a playoff race and more like a second spring training. The games don’t matter. It will be an actual, physical struggle to play the final few games of the season. We’re in playoff purgatory.

But the sting of Champagne last night was real. Playoff baseball is coming. And the truth of the matter is that if the Sox give us a memorable October, we won’t care how September felt.

Use this space to talk about whatever you want and, as always, be good to one another.

Jake Cronenworth extended his hitting streak to 10 games with a two-run home run in the bottom of the second inning and he added a second two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to lead the San Diego Padres to a 7-3 win, and season sweep, over the Miami Marlins at Petco Park on Sunday.

Cronenworth, who got the start at third base to allow Manny Machado to have a DH day, held his own at the hot corner, but it was his offensive performance that stood out. Cronenworth put the Padres on the board with a two-run home run that gave them a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning. He later added an RBI-double in the bottom of the fourth inning to make the score 3-0, and added a second two-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning that put the game out of reach, giving San Diego a four-run lead.

The offensive outburst by Croneworth was in support of Padres starting pitcher Walker Buehler, who had one of his best starts of the season. His final line is a bit misleading thanks to a three-run home run by Javier Sanoja that pulled Miami within a run with the score 4-3. Buehler had been cruising through his outing and was trying to complete seven innings, but he was pulled after the home run. He finished with a final line of three runs allowed over 6.2 innings. Buehler allowed three hits with two walks and six strikeouts.

The Padres’ offense allowed Buehler to work with a lead throughout the game and even after he allowed the home run to Sanoja in the top of the seventh, Fernando Tatis Jr. offered an immediate response in the bottom of the inning. The superstar connected on a one-out solo home run, giving him 25 homers on the season, that pushed the San Diego lead to 5-3 before Cronenworth added on in the bottom of the eighth inning.

The hot hitting that seemed to take off when the Padres went to Colorado continued in the series finale with the Marlins. San Diego banged out 10 more hits to give them 33 hits throughout the three-game series with Miami. The output at Petco Park over the weekend followed the four-game series against the Rockies where the Padres totaled 52 hits.

With the win, the magic number for San Diego to clinch a playoff berth is two. Any combination of Padres wins and Arizona Diamondbacks losses that equal two will put the Friars in the playoffs. That could come as early as their next game if the Padres win and the Diamondbacks lose. San Diego remains tied with the Chicago Cubs for the top Wild Card spot and one game ahead of the Philadelphia Phillies. The Cubs hold the tiebreaker of over the Padres thanks to their head-to-head record this season.

San Diego has the day off today, but travels to Los Angeles for a three-game series against the Dodgers, which begins Tuesday at 7:10 p.m.

Padres News:

• Padres manager Craig Stammen confirmed the team is lining Michael King up to pitch the final day of the season if it comes down to a win-or-go-home game against the Diamondbacks.

• El Paso wrapped up the regular season with a 2-1 loss.

Baseball News:

• The Atlanta Braves completed a sweep of the Houston Astros and clinched the NL East Division.

• The Boston Red Sox clinched a postseason berth with a win over the Tampa Bay Rays.

• Pete Crow-Armstrong almost hit for the cycle and led the Chicago Cubs to a win over the Cincinnati Reds.

• Nolan Arenado hit a grand slam to lift the Arizona Diamondbacks over the New York Yankees.

• Gavin Williams pitched the Cleveland Guardians past the Athletics with a 1-0 win.

• The Toronto Blue Jays used a four-run seventh inning to beat the Texas Rangers.

• The Philadelphia Phillies topped the New York Mets, 7-2.

The Guardians managed to sweep the Athletics this weekend and their magic number to clinch a playoff berth is 3 with 6 to play. (Magic number is six to win the division and get a first round bye).

Zack Meisel and T.J. Zuppe covered the playoff scenarios on the Selby is Godcast today.

We are rooting for the Royals and then Rockies, the Mariners and the Athletics, the Mets and the Twins, and the Orioles and Reds. We want the White Sox, Rangers, Astros and Blue Jays to lose, in other words.

But, today, we take a breath.

Good morning.

Shawn McFarland writes that the patchwork pitching for the Texas Rangers finally came undone in the series finale loss to Toronto on Sunday.

Kennedi Landry writes that despite the Sunday setback, the Rangers embark on the season’s final week atop the American League West by a game.

McFarland writes that the Rangers are gasping, panting, and wheezing toward the finish line but they do so with their goal still in sight.

Landry notes that the Rangers will have to forge ahead without Cal Quantrill as their second half rotation savior landed on the IL for the remainder of the regular season.

McFarland checks out the scenarios for the remaining week of the season where the Rangers are still vying for the postseason.

MLB dot com’s Brent Maguire checks out what’s still at stake in the season’s final week with, among them, the AL West still undecided.

And, ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel ranks the potential playoff rotations as the Rangers would probably just be happy with a healthy arm or two.

Have a nice day!

Okay, the Braves clinched the division. It felt like it was a long time coming at some point, and then they reeled off a sweep of the Astros in Houston, and here we are. That it happened without any kind of collapse is a testament to just how profoundly bizarre the 2026 Braves team is: they continue to maintain the fourth-best record despite a below-average wRC+ and position player fWAR rank, carried entirely by pitching and the ability to win when outproduced. (Seriously, after June I figured that the team would collapse if the offense didn’t rebound to notably above average, irrespective of what else happened. Instead, the team continued to be below-average offensively through any cut except something like, mid-July onward, including July-onward, August-onward, and September and the best it could register through any arbitrary starting point through the present was 12th, but here we are. Way to go Braves, sorta.)

But, today, I want to ask about something that many of you may not care about, but has been bugging me for a while.

If you recall, in the offseason, I ran a long series of posts like this. In those posts, I provided some commentary on projected production for a handful of Braves players, and then y’all submitted guesses/prognostications of WAR production for each, as well as a confidence level.

Well, the season is nearly in the books, and it’s time to score them. (There’s also a few other questions scattered in there, including how the Braves’ rotation would perform, their overall record, whether they’d miss Jonah Heim, etc. etc. The question of how to score those is a little different, though related, but probably simpler.) The problem is, I’m not actually sure how to score them. I could pick one of the methods that has rattled around my head, but I figured I’d throw it to you all, in case there’s some kind of consensus or crowdsource-based solution that works better than anything I’ve been able to come up with.

The “issue” is that everyone submitted a single guess, and a single confidence level, but WAR is a cardinal value. Sure, we could score things by just going, “if you were right, you get a point multiplied by your confidence level; if you were wrong, you lose a point multiplied by your confidence level,” but this means that if a guy had a 3-WAR season, someone who picked 4 WAR would lose the same number of points as someone who picked 0 WAR, assuming the confidence was the same. We could do “distance from” but that raises the question of how the math should work — is it like, you get +X (where X is confidence) if you nailed it, you get zero (irrespective of confidence) if you’re 1 WAR off, and you start losing points scaled by confidence for being 2 WAR off or more? Anyway, you get the idea — it’s complicated-ish, or more to the point, there’s just a lot of ways to go about it.

I’d say the two main criteria are: 1) you want to reward people for being closer (and reward less or punish more for being further); and, 2) you want to scale things by confidence. But other than that, how we get there is what I’m soliciting input on.

So, whadda ya got? (For me, discussing this is probably more interesting than whatever else transpires with the Braves at this point.)

The Tampa Bay Rays, the New York Yankees, and the Boston Red Sox have all punched their ticket to the postseason. With the final week of the 2026 MLB regular season already upon us, several other American League squads are playing for a place in October, too.

Even the Rays and Yankees technically have to decide who wins the AL East, with the former enjoying a hefty advantage heading into the final week, needing just one win over the Bombers to secure it. After that, there are two wide-open divisions and an exciting competition for the last Wild Card spot.

Here’s where every team stands in the race:

Tampa Bay Rays

Remaining games: 4 @ Yankees, 3 @ Phillies
Current record: 95-60
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 1st in AL East (6 games ahead of NYY)

Final week outlook: The Rays have been, far and away, the top team in the American League by win-loss record, and unless something really crazy happens, they will enter the postseason with a first-round bye and wait for the winner of the battle between the top two Wild Cards—the Yankees and Red Sox—in the Division Series. They’ll still try to play competitive games after clinching, as they certainly wouldn’t say no to having home-field advantage over NL teams in a potential World Series matchup* as they seek their first championship in franchise history, but the pressure this week is much lighter.

*We’re keeping the focus on the AL in this post, but for those curious, Tampa Bay’s 95-60 record currently trails the Dodgers’ 96-60 and the Brewers’ 98-58. Atlanta trails at 92-64. The Dodgers have the Padres and Giants to end 2026 while the Brewers have the Phillies and Cardinals, and the Braves have the Reds and Marlins.

New York Yankees

Remaining games: 4 vs. Rays, 3 vs. Orioles
Current record: 89-66
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 2nd in AL East (6 games behind TB); 1st in Wild Card race (5.5 games ahead of 2nd Wild Card spot, held by BOS)

Final week outlook: Unless they sweep the Rays and Orioles, the Yankees virtually have no chance of winning the AL East crown. Instead, they will likely enter the postseason as the top Wild Card team, as they have a healthy cushion over the Red Sox, their likely foe in the Wild Card round. The odds of that series being at Fenway rather than Yankee Stadium are extremely low, especially since New York has the tiebreaker over Boston.

Boston Red Sox

Remaining games: 3 vs. Guardians, 3 vs. Cubs
Current record: 84-72
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 3rd in AL East, 2nd in Wild Card race (5.5 games behind NYY for top WC spot, 4 games ahead of CHW, owners of the 3rd WC spot)

Final week outlook: The Red Sox are highly unlikely to move from the second AL Wild Card spot, since they have a four-game cushion over the White Sox, owners of the third slot, and are 5.5 games behind the Yanks for the top one. They’ve been all but locked into this spot for awhile now and just clinched their playoff berth yesterday with Houston’s loss to Atlanta.

Cleveland Guardians

Remaining games: 3 @ Red Sox, 3 @ Royals
Current record: 81-75
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 1st in AL Central (1 game ahead of CHW)

Final week outlook: Eyeing their third consecutive division title and seventh since 2016, the Guardians are currently one game up in the race for the AL Central, but need to avoid a tie with the White Sox at the top because Chicago owns the tiebreaker. Cleveland is peaking at the right time, though, and José Ramírez is finally starting to show some signs of a breakthrough at the plate. If that’s the case, they will be dangerous with a strong young core and two aces at the top: AL strikeout leader Gavin Williams and Rookie of the Year contender Parker Messick. Second baseman Travis Bazzana isn’t too shabby of a rookie, either.

Chicago White Sox

Remaining games: 3 @ Royals, 3 vs. Rockies
Current record: 80-76
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 2nd in AL Central (1 game behind CLE), 3rd in Wild Card race (3 games ahead of HOU and TOR, 5 ahead of BAL)

Final week outlook: Chicago’s lack of quality starting pitching seems to have caught up to them in September, but they are still a dangerous team that is trending towards its first postseason appearance since 2021. They have a chance to win the AL Central: all they need to do is finish in at least a tie with the Guardians, and though both the Pale Hose and Guards will face the Royals this week, the Southsiders have an easier other foe in the Rockies. Remember, winning the division would likely even give Chicago the second seed in the AL and a first-round bye to face the victor of the AL West/last Wild Card matchup.

It’s already been an improbably great season for the White Sox, as merely getting a winning season would’ve been a huge success for a team that lost a modern record 121 games in 2024 and 102 last year. But missing out at this point would still be quite the disappointment.

Texas Rangers

Remaining games: 3 vs. Mets, 3 @ Twins
Current record: 78-78
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 1st in AL West (1 game ahead of HOU)

Final week outlook: If the Rangers finish with more wins than the Astros, they will capture the AL West despite their thoroughly mediocre record (the Mariners’ deeply disappointing 2026 really made the division a mess). It’s a key week in Texas, as the range of outcomes is wide: they could win the division and finish as high as the second seed if they can best the AL Central champ’s line; they could be the final Wild Card squad, or they could miss the playoffs entirely for the third year in a row since winning it all in 2023 behind two-time World Series MVP Corey Seager.

It’s important to note that the Rangers need to beat the Astros by at least one game to take the AL West crown because Houston owns the tiebreaker. The Rangers own tiebreakers against the Orioles, Guardians, and Blue Jays, and lost against the White Sox and, as explained, the Astros. The AL West winner is a near-lock to face the worst Wild Card team in the first round, though they will host the best-of-three.

Toronto Blue Jays

Remaining games: 3 @ Orioles, 3 vs. Reds
Current record: 77-79
Current position in division/Wild Card race: tied with HOU for 4th in Wild Card standings, 3 games behind the 3rd spot (CHW)

Final week outlook: Last year’s AL champs can’t win their division: their only path to the playoffs is the third and final Wild Card spot. With that in mind, however, they would need to finish ahead of both the White Sox and the Rangers because both of them own the tiebreaker against Toronto. It sure doesn’t help that ace Dylan Cease was scratched from his next start and is undergoing an MRI.

The Jays tied the season series against Houston, which, in the event of a tie at the third WC spot between them, would take us to intra-divisional record to decide. There, Toronto is 25-24 against AL East opponents, and the Astros are 22-24 vs. AL West foes, presently giving the Jays the edge, though that could change this week since they both face intra-divisional rivals.

For what it’s worth, Toronto won the tiebreakers against the Guardians and the Orioles.

Houston Astros

Remaining games: 2 @ Mariners, 4 @ A’s
Current record: 77-79
Current position in division/Wild Card race: tied with TOR for 4th in Wild Card standings, 3 games behind the 3rd spot (CHW)

Final week outlook: Much like the White Sox in the AL Central, the Astros are one game behind in their division and own the tiebreaker against the Rangers, so all they need to do is catch them by the end of the week. They have lost three straight, though, with a -59 run differential, so despite the best efforts of MVP frontrunner Yordan Alvarez, they aren’t particularly good. We have seen plenty of mediocre squads make it in the past, so they definitely have a chance — especially since they get to play the mostly-hapless M’s and A’s this week.

Houston can still qualify via the last Wild Card, but the division presents a smoother path. Since we’re running through them, they own tiebreakers vs. the White Sox, Guardians, and Rangers, losing vs. the Orioles and tying vs. Toronto.

Baltimore Orioles

Remaining games: 3 vs. Blue Jays, 3 @ Yankees
Current record: 75-81
Current position in division/Wild Card race: 6th in Wild Card standings, 5 games behind the 3rd spot (CHW)

Final week outlook: At this point, the Orioles need a miracle to get in. They needed to sweep the Brewers this past weekend to put themselves in a position to compete. Instead, they got swept themselves. Baltimore won tiebreakers against the White Sox and the Astros, and lost against the Rangers, Guardians, and Blue Jays. But again, they have essentially no shot whatsoever. That final weekend series in the Bronx could’ve been interesting; alas.

The Phillies were given some good news yesterday when Jesus Luzardo was cleared to start throwing in a possible return to the team in time for the playoffs.

All signs point to the Phillies treating Luzardo as a reliever to begin the postseason. When asked if the Phillies are entertaining either scenario — Luzardo as a starter or Luzardo as a reliever — Mattingly said, “Yes.”

It’s interesting that the team is considering doing this with Luzardo considering what he has meant to the rotation this year. It does speak to the confidence they have in Aaron Nola continuing his late season resurgence and how that effectiveness would carry over into the playoffs. But with Luzardo possibly moving to the bullpen for the first round of the playoffs, the question about usage with him becomes noteworthy.

How would they even use him?

If it is the wild card round, does he only pitch in one game? They can’t possibly expect him to go back to back games at all during a three game series, especially when there is no off day at all in that round. Even then, when in a game is he deployed? Would he only be used before Duran? Is he used a fireman whenever there is trouble brewing? Is there a strict inning he can be used in? These are all interesting questions to consider.

Meet the Mets

The Mets said their final goodbye to Queens for the 2026 season while Howie Rose said his final goodbyes to the airwaves. I suppose the rest doesn’t matter quite as much.

Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, MLB.com, Newsday, New York Daily News, New York Post

With the final home games of the season complete, Howie Rose, voice of the New York Mets is now Howie Rose, retired voice of the New York Mets.

While his retirement remains on schedule and official, Howie Rose’s retirement ceremony will be taking place during next season’s opening weekend, whenever that may be.

A retirement is not complete until there’s a GQ profile and Howie’s retirement is no exception.

With Carlos Beltran and Andy Green on the field this weekend, it was a gathering of former, current, and potentially future Mets managers.

Laura Albanese penned a farewell to Howie Rose as the voice of Mets fans and as a voice who stepped into his broadcast booth.

Around the National League East

The Atlanta Braves handed the Astros a sweep-securing 4-2 loss and, at the same time, clinched their first NL East title since 2024.

Doing what they’ve done best all season, the Washington Nationals bullpen blew a game late and resulted in another loss for the not-quite-last-place team.

Sandy Alcantara, fresh off of closing a game, extended his major league innings lead and that’s just about the end of the good news for the Marlins in their 7-2 loss to the Padres.

Around Major League Baseball

As the last out of the Braves’ clinching win went into the books, the Boston Red Sox secured a postseason spot of their own in one of the season’s most improbable comeback stories.

In the middle of Sunday’s Cubs game, Michael Busch fouled a ball towards the on-deck circle and hit Alex Bregman directly in the cheek, sending the third baseman out of the game and setting him up for a nasty selfie later.

Terrible news for the San Francisco Giants and baseball as a whole, Duane Kuiper announced a diagnosis of throat cancer that has kept him out for a few days, but won’t keep him away from Mike Krukow’s send-off this coming week.

A pair of kicks to the teeth to cap off a failed season, the Blue Jays announced Dylan Cease is getting and MRI and a skipped start while Vladimir Guerrero Jr. left Sunday’s game with back tightness.

Jacob Misiorowski made an abbreviated start and got just one step closer to the Cy Young Award as the Milwaukee Brewers set a new franchise record with their 98th win of the season.

The Steinbrenner family is selling 16% of the Yankees at a valuation of more than $12B to private equity firm Apollo.

Curtis Pride, Bob Costas, and Albert Pujols, among others, are at the forefront of a push to get Dummy Hoy, the first deaf major leaguer, a spot on the veteran’s committee ballot and, from there, Cooperstown.

A pair of post-clinch roster moves for the Dodgers included placing Tarik Skubal on the bereavement list and calling up Emmett Sheehan in his place.

This Date in Mets History

On this date 25 years ago, Mike Piazza’s home run had a chance.

LOS ANGELES — Kyle Tucker didn’t start on Sunday, one day after fouling a ball off his right knee, but the Dodgers right fielder insisted that he felt fine. This was more of a chance to pair a rest day for Tucker with Monday’s scheduled off day for the team.

“[The off day] wasn’t planned. I just felt that after he took one off the knee, this would have been 10 in a row for him,” manager Dave Roberts said Sunday. “He’s playing well, played a lot. It’s a chance to give him two days, then six in a row to finish the season.”

The injury was in a much higher spot on his leg than the right shin fracture that cost him two months on the injured list during the 2024 season while with the Houston Astros.

Tucker did pinch-hit in the eighth inning on Sunday, and he’s second on the Dodgers in games played (148), starts (141), and plate appearances (602), trailing only Freddie Freeman in all three categories. Tucker is playing the best baseball of his season at the moment with five home runs in his last 10 starts, hitting .417/.500/.972 since September 9.

Notes

Speaking of playing in the outfield on Tuesday, the Dodgers will likely activate center fielder Andy Pages off the injured list to play in the series opener against the San Diego Padres, after he missed the last 27 games after a fastball broke his left hand on August 21.

Pages at the end of this season will have two years, 155 days of major league service time and will be eligible for salary arbitration for the first time as a Super Two player, among the top 70 percent in service time among major leaguers with two years but not yet three years of service time. MLB Trade Rumors last week projected the cutoff for Super Two players this offseason to be two years, 134 days.

Longtime Dodgers third base coach Joey Amalfitano and knuckleballer Charlie Hough were honored on the field at Dodger Stadium prior to Sunday’s game as the 2026 winners of the the Tommy Lasorda I Bleed Dodger Blue Award. This is the fifth year of the award, timed close to Lasorda’s birthday, which is Tuesday.

Good morning, baseball fans!

We have reached the final week of San Francisco Giants baseball for the year. So let’s take a last look at what’s on deck for this week.

First up, the Giants welcome the Minnesota Twins to Oracle Park tonight for a three-game series. After that, they’ll have Thursday off and then the Los Angeles Dodgers come to town for the final series of the year.

As much as I loathe having to watch the Dodgers beat the Giants, I have to say that I’m most interested in that series this week because it will feature all the fanfare of the end of the season. I enjoy the Willie Mac Award ceremony and seeing all of the former players come back to visit. So I’m going with that one.

Which series are you most interested in this week?

What time do the Giants play today?

The Giants begin this series against the Twins tonight at 6:45 p.m. PT.

Good morning.

• It’s clinching season, even if the Cubs have to wait until at least Tuesday. But on Sunday, the Braves clinched the NL East title. Mark Bowman reports.
• Jesús Cano writes that the Braves title is a tribute to the team’s depth overcoming injuries. (The Athletic sub. req.)
• Dayn Perry has three reasons why the Braves can win the World Series.
• The Red Sox also clinched a Wild Card playoff spot. Ian Browne examines how what once looked impossible became a reality.
• Mike Axisa has three reasons why the Red Sox can win the World Series.
• Brent Maguire has nine things that are still at stake over the final week of the season.
• One player to watch on all 30 teams the rest of the season.
• Theo DeRosa has a list of players who have turned their seasons around in the second half. Yes, Alex Bregman is at the top of the list.
• Longtime Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper missed this weekend’s games in Los Angeles after Kuiper announced that he was diagnosed with throat cancer. Kuiper intends to broadcast Giants home games this week and says he will be there for the sendoff of his longtime partner Mike Krukow, who is retiring. Kuiper also insists he will beat the cancer. Get well and keep fighting, Kuip.
• Longtime Mets broadcaster Howie Rose said goodbye to Mets fans as he broadcast his final game before retirement.
• Manny Randhawa has one player from each playoff team looking for their first World Series ring after many tries.
• One of those players is Yankees slugger Aaron Judge, but Judge went back on the injured list with a strained calf.
• Bryan Hoch notes that Judge is frustrated by his injury-filled season but he expects to be back in the lineup by the playoffs. His manager, Aaron Judge, isn’t so sure.
• Mike Axisa has three questions for the Yankees and Judge as he goes back on the IL.
• Reds pitcher Chase Burns went to the injured list with a strained groin and is out for the rest of the season.
• The Blue Jays are fighting for a final Wild Card spot, but they got no help as ace Dylan Cease underwent an MRI on his sore shoulder. No decision has been made yet, but manager John Schneider admitted he could be out for the year.
• Jay Jaffe looks at Orioles first baseman Pete Alonso and his return to Citi Field.
• We got some good medical news on Mets current first baseman (and former Cub) Jared Young, (The Athletic sub. req.) who suffered a concussion in a collision with Mets pitcher Nolan McLean.
• Dayn Perry looks at how the Cardinals and Nationals can build upon their promising 2026 seasons to make the playoffs next year.
• Jesse Rogers talks to Jacob Misiorowski’s Brewers teammates to find out what it’s been like to see every game of his season this year. Kind of an oral history of Misiorowski’s season.
• Pete Crow-Armstrong isn’t the only 24-year-old NL Central star having a great season. Jay Jaffe breaks down Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz’s breakout campaign.
• Bruce Schoenfield speaks to players about the upcoming labor war and finds out how the union is building solidarity in advance of a likely lockout. This is also how I found out that the Padres’ Jake Cronenworth is married to White Sox broadcaster Brooke Fletcher.
• And jeez, if you want to dislike umpire Laz Diaz more, Diaz goes off to Bob Nightengale about how “nasty” MLB has become in advance of his retirement. He’s angry at ABS, video review, umpire scorecards, mic’d up umpires and pretty much everything else that holds umpires accountable.
• C. Trent Rosecrans has a profile of Louisville Bats manager Pat Kelly, who has more minor league losses as a manager than anyone else. (The Athletic sub. req.) All I have to say is do you have any idea how good a minor league manager you have to be to set the record for minor league losses? Really, really good.
• The Braves celebrated Bill Lucas, who 50 years ago in 1976 became the first ever Black general manager in the game.
• Russell Dorsey polled a bunch of front office executives to ask them who are the best candidates for team president/general manager jobs this winter? Carter Hawkins got some votes.
• Orioles general manager Mike Elias said that manager Craig Albernaz will return in 2027. Jake Rill reports.
• Jon Becker examines the Giants issues with their 40-man roster this winter as they have to clear spots for 16 players currently on the 60-day injured list. That’s not even counting the players they need to protect from the Rule 5 draft. And the Giants only have one player reaching free agency this winter too.
• Jonathan Mayo has the candidates for the MiLB Awards, which I forgot was even a thing. Anyway, Cubs top prospect Josiah Hartshorn is nominated in one category.
• In the game threads this past week, I mentioned that you should never make the first or third out at third base and that led to a whole discussion. Well, Ben Clemens may have been listening because he examined whether or not that old piece of baseball wisdom really makes sense. (Answer: yes. Especially don’t make the third out at third.)
• Dodgers reliever Seth Halvorsen can hit 100 miles per hour on the radar gun, but he hit the Giants’ Drew Gilber with this 32.6 mph pitch. It’s the slowest HBP of the Statcast era.
• Pirates first baseman Ryan O’Hearn practices a between-the-legs glove flip before every game and on Saturday night, he finally used it to retire the Royals Michael Massey at first base.
• And finally, we have two stories on the effort to get deaf 19th-century ballplayer Billy “Dummy” Hoy into Cooperstown. Bob Nightengale has the non-playwalled story on Hoy and Daniel Brown handles the details on Hoy for The Athletic. (sub. req.) As both articles note, Hoy may have been responsible for the development of umpire signals, although that claim is contentious among historians.

Triple-A: Charlotte Knights (CWS) 7, Norfolk Tides 4

A tough year for Trace Bright concluded with another dud, as the 25-year-old right-hander gave up six runs on three home runs in four innings. Bright started the season with Double-A Chesapeake, posting a 3.82 ERA and 1.17 WHIP in six starts there, but the transition to Triple-A proved tougher. (This isn’t unheard of, just worth noting.) In 21 appearances (20 starts) for Norfolk, Bright went 2-11 with an ERA of 7.70 and a 1.70 WHIP. He gave up lots of hits, as a .315 opposing average and .867 OPS attests, but he also walked more than four batters a game. Adjustments will have to be made.

After Bright’s four six-run innings, the bullpen was pretty good. Christian Heberholz surrendered a run on a hit, a walk, and a sac fly. But after him, Alex Pham, Yaramil Hiraldo and Andrew Magno each threw a scoreless inning. Hiraldo actually finishes the year with a very impressive 1.00 ERA and 0.72 WHIP in 18 appearances for Norfolk. Same deal, 28-year-old left-hander Andrew Magno, who appeared in 47 games and posted an ERA of 1.70.

On offense, the Tides got a really nice day from Enrique Bradfield, who totaled seven bases, tripling and scoring in the first and homering in the fifth. The speedy outfielder finishes the year with a .263 BA and .707 OPS. Third baseman Bryan Ramos doubled home Norfolk’s third run in the sixth inning, and scored the fourth on a wild pitch. Second baseman Aron Estrada was called up to Norfolk only five games ago, but he went 3-for-5 to help pad a really nice 7-for-20 line (.350 BA, .909 OPS) on the season. Same with catcher Ethan Anderson, who singled and walked, leaving him with a .389 BA and 1.309 OPS in five games at Triple-A, too. Tavian Josenberger had two hits and a walk.

The Tides finish the season at 58-89, tenth in the International League East.

Box Score

Good morning, Purple Row!

After gathering feedback and doing some deliberating, we’ve decided to make last week’s Rockpile experiments permanent. Since the minor league season has ended, today will be the final daily Pebble Report, but we will continue to post a separate links roundup every morning.

Once the MiLB season starts up again, we will see if we want to keep the links separate or fold them back into the Rockpile. But that’s a future Purple Row problem.

In the meantime, here’s what’s going on with the Rockies and around MLB. (It was a busy weekend!)

Rockies News & Links

• Feltner growing into new ‘piggyback’ role after Sugano’s strong start | MLB.com — Ryan Feltner competed with Chase Dollander during spring training for a chance to make the starting rotation. Feltner beat out Dollander for the rotation spot, but as the season has gone on, Feltner has been used out of the bullpen twice (three times after yesterday’s game). And both times have been his best outings of the season. Thomas Harding asks the ‘cerebral right-hander’ for his thoughts on his new potential role, as the Rockies continue their pitching experimentation.
• Rockies slugging prospect Condon caps career year with Triple-A homer (of course!) | MLB.com — Charlie Condon (No. 2 PuRP) has had an up-and-down (though mostly up) season in Triple-A after making a case for himself not only to make the Opening Day roster out of spring training, but also to be promoted numerous times throughout the season. He ended his season on a high note, though, with a home run in the final game of the season. Look for my end-of-season interview with him as tomorrow’s Pebble Report Spotlight!
• Helton humbled by permanent reminder of his greatness at statue unveiling | MLB.com — After unveiling a statue of legend Larry Walker on August 23, the Rockies unveiled another one of legend Todd Helton. Thomas Harding recaps the Hall of Famer’s remarks on the honor.
• Renck: Rockies legend Todd Helton gets a statue that perfectly captures his greatness | Denver Post ($) — Troy Renck offers his thoughts on Helton’s statue unveiling, remembers the Hall of Famer’s career in Colorado, and recalls how Helton got to be as great as he was.
• Zac Veen’s discipline implies career revival is on the way with Rockies | Denver Gazette ($) — Zac Veen was recalled to the Rockies in mid-August and has been performing much better at the big-league level than he did during his first cup of coffee in 2025. Kevin Henry chronicles Veen’s mini-renaissance and looks towards the outfielder’s potential future with the franchise.

Around Baseball

• Nolan Arenado grand slam lifts Diamondbacks in home finale win over Yankees | Arizona Sports — Nolan Arenado has had a career revival in Sedona Red this year, including hitting a go-ahead grand slam that ultimately proved to be the game winner against the Yankees on Sunday. He has hit 27 home runs this season, the most he’s had since 2023.
• Umpire Laz Diaz calls out ‘nasty’ MLB climate as he ends storied career | USA Today — Laz Diaz is one of three umpires who are retiring at the end of 2026 after taking a buyout from MLB. The others are Angel Hernandez and C.B. Bucknor. Bob Nightengale got an exclusive interview with Diaz as he finishes up his career, which covers the evolution of the game as well as some of Diaz’s more memorable moments.
• Cubs’ Alex Bregman undergoing tests after ‘terrible accident’ | ESPN — In a scary moment on Sunday, Alex Bregman was hit in the face by a foul ball while he was standing in the on-deck circle. Bregman underwent X-Rays and CT scans, and it has not yet been determined if he’ll fly back to Chicago with the Cubs, who just finished up a series with the Cincinnati Reds. But Bregman posted an update on Instagram saying he was OK, which is great news.
• ‘Stayin Alive’ Red Sox cap turnaround, clinch playoff spot | ESPN — The Boston Red Sox have been an excellent story in 2026, as they were 15.5 games out of first place on June 24th and have gone 52-25 since to clinch a playoff berth. According to the article, “The Red Sox are the fourth team to make the playoffs after being 14-or-more games under .500 in a season in the World Series era (since 1903). Two of the three previous instances made the World Series, with the Boston Braves winning it in 1914.”
• Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper diagnosed with throat cancer, started treatment last week | The Athletic ($) — Long-time Giants broadcaster Duane Kuiper was diagnosed with throat cancer and has started undergoing treatment. This comes on the heels of Mike Krukow’s retirement announcement. Kuiper will be unable to call the Monday and Wednesday games of the Giants’ final season, but he’ll call Tuesday and the final series against the Dodgers.

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The bullpen blew another lead as the Royals dropped the series in Pittsburgh on Sunday.

“I feel bad for the guys because they really competed hard and we could have won all three games,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro said. “In games like this, people always remember the big hit late in the game, but usually these games are won or lost earlier, and we didn’t capitalize on some opportunities. It was a tough weekend and a tough road trip. We didn’t play our best.”

The bullpen also blew a lead on Saturday.

“We go with Cruzy there and we really have a lot of confidence in him,” Royals manager Matt Quatraro told reporters in Pittsburgh. “He’s been throwing the ball well and Lowe just had another big hit for them.”

Jaylon Thompson writes the Vinnie Pasquantino capped off a hot series with a pinch-hit home run.

Captain Salvador Perez started Sunday’s game at first base. The Royals are rotating Pasquantino, Perez and Jac Caglianone in the batting order down the stretch. Pasquantino made the moment count. He finished 5-for-9 in the three-game series and has now homered six times in his last 20 games.

“My role is changing a little bit, so trying to get use to that,” Pasquantino told reporters in Pittsburgh. “Felt pretty comfortable. You kind of know in those situations you want to be aggressive. You want to try to get a good pitch to hit. See the situation in the game and try to make something happen.”

John Perotto at MLB.com writes about how Carter Jensen set the club rookie home run record.

However, Kansas City’s loss didn’t completely dampen the evening for Jensen. The 23-year-old catcher’s 25th home run, a solo shot off fellow rookie Bubba Chandler in the third inning, set the franchise single-season rookie record. Bob Hamelin had previously held the mark since 1994, when he connected 24 times in a strike-shortened season. Hamelin, known as “The Hammer,” won the American League Rookie of the Year Award.

“It means a lot to me,” said Jensen, who’s enjoying a milestone-filled season in the leadoff spot. “There is a lot of hard work that is put into this. I don’t think this is the end of my story. I’d like to think that it’s just the beginning. It’s been a really fun ride, especially to take it with such great teammates and coaches.”

MLB Pipeline lists a breakout prospect for each team, with Justin Lamkin for the Royals.

Lamkin showed signs that a breakout was coming in his first Spring Training, and he carried that into the season by moving past High-A Quad Cities after only six starts and striking out 15 over 11 1/3 innings in his first two Double-A starts. His regular season ended there with a shoulder strain, but he’d shown enough when healthy to become Kansas City’s third-ranked pitching prospect. He’s slated to appear in the Arizona Fall League, and his 91-94 mph fastball and 80-83 mph slider (the latter of which had a 55 percent whiff rate in ‘26, per Synergy) along with his above-average control will gain a bigger audience.

On Monday, Kansas City’s Special Committee for Legal Review will review the petition requiring a public vote for a downtown stadium.

The Athletics will interview former Royals executive Mike Groopman for their GM opening.

Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman is sent to the hospital after a foul ball hits him in the face while in the on-deck circle.

The Red Sox, who fired their manager earlier this year, clinch a playoff spot.

The Braves sweep the Astros to clinch a playoff spot.

What does the playoff bracket look like right now and what are the tiebreaker scenarios?

Will Aaron Judge be available for the playoffs?

Rays pitcher Shane McClanahan will miss the last week of the regular season.

Mariners manager Dan Wilson is unlikely to return next year.

The Orioles are unlikely to make changes with executive Mike Elias or manager Craig Albernaz.

How did the Nationals significantly improve their farm system so quickly?

The Giants have 16 players on the 60-day Injured List, which will make for some interesting 40-man roster decisions.

Olivia Miles breaks Caitlin Clark’s WNBA rookie scoring record.

College football fans are falling out of love with pregame shows.

Could Canada join the European Union as an “associate member”?

A study shows quick cancellations are hurting streaming viewership.

An autonomous plane makes a cross-country flight.

Your song of the day is Her’s with What Once Was.

Welcome to week 26 of our 2026 NL Central Power Rankings — let’s rank some teams!

1. Milwaukee Brewers (98-58); 5-1 this week; Clinched NL Central

The Brewers just keep rolling, with another 5-1 week as they took two of three from the Pirates in Pittsburgh before sweeping the Orioles on the road, guaranteeing a winning road trip with three games to go.

Jackson Chourio, Bo Naylor, and William Contreras all homered this week, while Joey Ortiz led the team with seven hits, including a double and a triple. It was a fairly balanced attack overall, as 12 players had at least one RBI, led by three apiece for Chourio, Christian Yelich, and Cooper Pratt.

Robert Gasser led the rotation with one of the best starts of his young career, working seven scoreless in a 1-0 win on Saturday night, allowing just three hits and three walks while striking out a pair. Jacob Misiorowski made two short starts, totaling eight scoreless innings with a team-high 11 strikeouts. Shane Drohan, Chad Patrick, Antonio Senzatela, Garrett Stallings, and Abner Uribe all had scoreless weeks for the bullpen, totaling 13 2/3 innings with 17 strikeouts.

Milwaukee now wraps up the road trip with three games in Philadelphia before returning home for three games with the Cardinals next weekend.

2. Chicago Cubs (87-69); 4-2 this week; Magic Number of 1 for NL Wild Card

The Cubs had a solid week against the Braves and Reds, taking two of three from both to move to 87-69 on the season and putting them one step closer to clinching a playoff spot, as their magic number sits at just one, meaning they need a win or a D-backs loss to lock things up.

Pete Crow-Armstrong is just stat padding his NL MVP victory at this point, slugging four homers, swiping two bags, and driving in nine as part of a 10-hit week to lead the Cubs. Six others added a homer apiece, including Michael Conforto and Seiya Suzuki, who each had six hits on the week.

David Peterson, Shota Imanaga, Kevin Gausman, and Matthew Boyd all turned in solid starts this week. Peterson led the way with a pair of victories, allowing two runs over 12 innings with 14 strikeouts, while Imanaga went six innings with one run allowed and eight strikeouts. Gausman went 5 2/3 innings with two runs allowed and six strikeouts, and Boyd went five innings with two runs allowed (one earned) and four strikeouts. Daniel Palencia, Colin Rea, Caleb Thielbar, and Ryan Zeferjahn totaled 7 1/3 scoreless innings for the bullpen, striking out eight.

Chicago closes out the regular season with a three-game set at Wrigley against the Marlins before visiting the Red Sox for three games over the weekend.

3. Pittsburgh Pirates (79-77); 4-2 this week; Eliminated from Postseason

The Pirates started the week with a pair of losses against the Brewers but bounced back to win four straight, salvaging the finale against Milwaukee before sweeping the Royals.

Brandon Lowe slugged four homers and drove in eight this week, while Oneil Cruz and Rafael Flores added two homers each. Konnor Griffin tied Cruz and Flores with nine hits this week, with three doubles and four RBIs.

Wilber Dotel turned in the best week among Pittsburgh’s “starters” as he worked as the opener and made two relief appearances, totaling 4 2/3 innings with one run allowed and four strikeouts. Brandon Eisert, Antwone Kelly, Mason Montgomery, and Yohan Ramírez combined for 15 1/3 scoreless innings in relief, striking out 17, with Montgomery picking up three saves.

Pittsburgh wraps up the regular season with three games against the Cardinals at PNC Park before three games in Detroit against their interleague rivals.

4. St. Louis Cardinals (76-80); 2-4 this week; Eliminated from Postseason

The Cardinals had another rough week, going dropping two of three to both the Giants and Nationals to wrap up their home slate for 2026.

Iván Herrera helped guide St. Louis to a win on Sunday with a pair of homers as part of a six-hit week, while Leo Bernal and Alec Burleson also homered this week. Bernal also led the team with nine hits, driving in four.

Quinn Mathews turned in a pair of solid outings, totaling 13 2/3 innings with four runs allowed and 11 strikeouts. Matthew Liberatore also had a quality outing, going six frames with one run allowed and two strikeouts, while George Soriano and Ryne Stanek led the bullpen, totaling 2 2/3 scoreless innings with three strikeouts.

St. Louis spends the last week of the season on the road, as they’ll visit the Pirates and Brewers for three games apiece.

5. Cincinnati Reds (72-84); 2-5 this week; Eliminated from Postseason

The Reds are just waiting for the 2026 season to come to a close, as they’re coming off yet another rough week, losing three of four to the Dodgers and two of three to the Cubs in their final homestand of the season.

Elly De La Cruz led the offense with two homers and a double as part of a seven-hit week, also swiping three bases. JJ Bleday, Dane Myers, and Sal Stewart also homered, with Stewart’s six hits ranking second on the team.

Andrew Abbott had the best start of the week, which isn’t saying much, as he went just 4 2/3 innings with one run allowed and five strikeouts. While the rotation had a rough week, the bullpen fared much better — Tejay Antone, Graham Ashcraft, Brock Burke, Luis Mey, Emilio Pagán, and Tony Santillan totaled 15 scoreless innings, striking out 15.

Cincinnati closes out the year on the road, visiting the Braves and Blue Jays for three games each.