Jul 22, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott (5) throws out Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Andy Pages (not pictured) during the ninth inning at Citizens Bank Park. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Last weekend, the Phillies hosted some guests from New York. This weekend, they’re hosting some more guests from New York. But the pinstriped ones, this time. As everyone knows, Philadelphia and New York have a longstanding mutual fondness for each other, so surely it’ll be a happy reunion, buoyed by fond memories of 2009 (and 1950).
Sep 10, 2024; San Francisco, California, USA; General view of the helmet used by the Milwaukee Brewers before the start of the first inning against the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Stan Szeto-Imagn Images | Stan Szeto-Imagn Images
Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. We’re now a week into the second half, and the Brewers got out to a strong start with a sweep of the Marlins and a series win against the Mets, extending their NL Central lead as we’re approaching the two-thirds mark on the season. They’ll welcome the Rockies to town this weekend (and host the Brewer Alumni Legends Game on Friday night) before hitting the road for visits to the Giants and Angels beginning Monday.
Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-baseball sports, the Brewers, you name it. As long as it’s appropriate and is allowed by our moderators, it’s fair game here.
PHILADELPHIA — Every single team in baseball with a winning record, and even those hovering close to .500, say they plan to be aggressive at the trade deadline.
They want their fans to believe it. They want their players to believe it. They even are trying to convince themselves to believe it.
If they don’t get the pieces they want by Aug. 3, they can at least shout to the world they tried.
Will the Milwaukee Brewers, who already have a fat seven-game lead in the NL Central, cough up two of their top prospects for two months of Tarik Skubal, if the Detroit Tigers trade him?
If you listen to GMs and executives throughout baseball, they believe the Tigers’ front office wants to trade Skubal with the uncertainty of the value of that draft pick in the next collective bargaining agreement. They could acquire a back-end starter and another prized piece for the future, while trying to convince their fanbase and players that they aren’t really surrendering.
Then again, if they trade Skubal, why stop there? Might as well dump pending free-agent starter Casey Mize, too.
In an informal survey of executives and scouts, here are the top five teams expected to be most aggressive at the Aug. 3 deadline:
1. Los Angeles Dodgers
Yes, they already won two World Series championships.
Yes, they have no glaring holes, they’re running away with the NL West, and will have closer Edwin Diaz back in a few days, two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell and four-time MVP Shohei Ohtani back on the mound in a few weeks, and All-Star catcher Will Smith by the end of the season.
So, what’s the urgency?
Well, rival executives believe the Dodgers plan to be greedy, and are infatuated with the opportunity of becoming the first National League team to win three consecutive World Series championships.
If Tarik Skubal indeed becomes available, as executives are now predicting, the Dodgers are all in, and have the prized farm system and starting pitching depth to pull it off. They have nine players in MLB’s Pipeline’s Top 100 List.
They may not really need Skubal, but it sure beats facing him in the postseason.
Besides, if they grab Skubal now, they can help him house-hunt early before signing him as a free agent this winter.
2. New York Yankees
There’s some panic in those waters in New York, who are watching the season slip away from them. They saw the Tampa Bay Rays skip past them, and now the Boston Red Sox are looming large in their rear-view mirror.
If the Yankees weren’t stressing out, executives say, why in the world did they activate starter Max Fried after making just one rehab start since going on the IL two months ago. Fried pitched three innings for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre against Worcester, throwing 52 pitches, and was called up Wednesday to pitch the second game of a doubleheader against Pittsburgh .
He certainly dominated, giving up just one hit in five innings, but couldn’t they have given him at least a second rehab start, if not a third?
The Yankees are desperate for a backup catcher and have their eyes on Ryan Jeffers from the Minnesota Twins, crave All-Star closer Mason Miller of the San Diego Padres, and would love to find another bat.
Meanwhile, they’ll be praying Aaron Judge returns before October to save their season.
3.Tampa Bay Rays
The Rays, who projected internally that they’d win 90 games this season, are now smelling blood in the water.
There are no powerful teams in the American League. They don’t have the Dodgers, Phillies or Atlanta standing in the way. Just get into the dance, and they’ve got a chance to be the last one waltzing across the World Series stage in October.
The Rays, who have sent a scouting army out at every major-league ballpark, believing that if they land Skubal, and a bat like second baseman Luis Arraez, a catcher like Ryan Jeffers or an outfielder like Heliot Ramos, this could be the year they return to the World Series for the first time since 2008.
It also doesn’t hurt that a nice playoff run would look awfully nice for the local politicians when they vote to approve the Rays’ new ballpark.
The Phillies privately will tell you that they should have won one World Series since 2021, if not a ring for each hand.
Now, they enter the pennant stretch with perhaps their most flawed team since this run began. They are in desperate need of a late-inning reliever, and would love to bring back Jeff Hoffman of the Toronto Blue Jays. They need a right-handed bat, and Daulton Varsho could be this year’s version of Harrison Bader for them. They could use another starter, too, and will be in on everyone from Skubal to Robbie Ray to Clay Holmes.
Dave Dombrowksi, Phillies president of baseball operations, isn’t about to sit back and watch his team get a year older without making major moves, no matter the cost.
5. Boston Red Sox
It was just two weeks ago that the Red Sox were preparing to sell, unloading ace Sonny Gray, closer Aroldis Chapman, and maybe first baseman Willson Contreras, too.
They were 32-46, 15 ½ games out of first place in the AL East
Funny what a 15-game winning streak can do to put those plans in the shredder.
The Red Sox, who are hunting down the Yankees and the Rays with a 20-3 record since June 25, now plan to be aggressive buyers.
They’ve got plenty of money in the coffers after unloading Rafael Devers last summer, and have no hesitancy acquiring big stars. They made attempts to acquire Angels center fielder Mike Trout in the past, and this time have their eyes on Angels shortstop Zach Neto or shortstop C.J. Abrams from the Washington Nationals. They also salivate over the idea of having Shea Langeliers behind the plate.
And, oh, wouldn’t Craig Breslow, who has been a punching bag all season, love to get the last laugh.
In what is becoming an annual habit, the St. Louis Cardinals are back-sliding going into and coming out of the All-Star break. Some view it as natural regression for a team that over-achieved in the first half of the season. As we approach the two-thirds point of the season, lack of depth gets exposed. Regression can be harsh that way, no?
Of course, the obvious approaching point is the trade deadline, which will be a mere 10 days away when you read this article. I’m not going to try to predict what will happen there or advocate for buy or sell or both. Today I’m going to try and peek under the covers at the key drivers that will guide Cardinal decision makers not only as they approach the trade deadline, but in decisions to be made in the final third of the season.
There are numerous advocates for the Cardinals to add talent for the 2026 stretch run. They are certainly positioned to compete (mathematically, anyway) and there is merit to the argument that you never know when you might be back in this position again. Next year is a long way away and a lot can go wrong, given time.
Others advocate for a more “stay the course” approach. Continue to treat 2026 as a rebuild year and continue to add more for the future, even potentially at the expense of the now. A good plan should be followed, right?
Other articles are out on VEB proposing who are candidates to be moved and discussing the pros and cons of each potential move. Interesting fodder, for which I don’t have any more names to add, but do have some sense that we might be surprised a bit. What might management be considering and what might we learn from the actions they take?
One thing that seems certain is that the Cardinals have likely narrowed down their question marks on the position player side from where they were last year at this time. In this runway year, some youngsters have emerged and some have not and a few idle.
Last year at this time, the whole outfield was a mess. Now, it seems like the problem area has really narrowed to CF (what is Nathan Church, exactly?). Do you think management would agree with this view? That said, a key outfield question revolves around Joshua Baez and where they see his development. If they think he is ready now, it seems like a Nootbaar trade at the deadline might be an action they take. If they think he needs more time, then maybe not so fast on breaking Noots lease on Arenado’s home. They have control for all of next year if they want. Seems to me that how they handle Nootbaar will tell us much about how they view Baez’ future.
Likewise, at this time last year the key question was wither Wetherholt? I’d propose that question has been answered emphatically, with the exclamation point added with that 8-year contract extension. If one wondered how they could improve the 2B position from Donovan, the answer is clear. Winn, Wetherholt and Burleson seems like a pretty solid group. Does management hold this view? It strikes me that the key question on the infield is … what do they do with third base?
Interestingly, the catcher position, for all the reputed depth that exists, is probably the most murky position right now and remains largely unchanged since this time last year. Pozo is now off the roster, but that wasn’t hard to see coming, nor was it a strategic move. Where do they go from here? Perhaps the trade deadline will bring more clarity, but this might be something that evolves through the end of the season. At some point, doesn’t Crooks need to start impressing? Maybe he is just pressing.
On the pitching side, the starting rotation has provided some surprising stability. Not necessarily the quality they need to form a contending team, but surprisingly closer than many of us would have thought coming in. As discussed in earlier articles, there is depth and some intriguing tools in the minors, but the stat lines suggest that the higher-end talent is still a bit away from MLB ready. Does management hold this view? In ways, it seems easier to envision the 2028 or 2029 rotations than the 2027 rotation. Odd in a way.
If you follow that line of thinking, one could wonder if management sees an asymmetry between the timeline of the position player core and the pitching core. If one sees an emergence of supreme pitching talent 2028 and beyond, one might recognize that some of the position player core will be nearing the end of their control years. Their actions at the trade deadline might help us understand their views on this, as well as their actions on the contract extension front.
Then there is the bullpen. Bullpens are primarily rebuilt in the off-season and get more attention when a team is ready to contend, when teams can assemble a puzzle from multiple available pieces. The current Cardinal bullpen certainly needs rebuilt, yes? There isn’t one or two deadline pieces that could fix this mess, in my view. If the Cardinals did that, it would tell me they have a very different view of things. My personal expectation is that soon, maybe not by August 3, but soon, is that we may start to see some starters migrating toward bullpen roles as a more long-term fix. What/who the Cardinals acquire (or trade away) at the deadline could tell us much about how they view this.
In the way issues have a tendency to inter-connect, I wonder how much management views the current starting pitching alignment as exposing the bullpen. I was reading a Brewer article yesterday bemoaning how it had been weeks since a starter got an out in the 8th inning and how much that exposed the bullpen. I think the Cardinals starters have gotten an out in the 8th maybe twice all season, and thought we’d be excited to see a starter get an out in the 7th. Boy, it is funny how perspectives can be so different. I wondered how much improvement in the rotation would actually help the bullpen and if management views this or is more inclined to think that 5-and-dive is the nominal strategy for starting now and deepening the reliever corps is the right direction.
Then there is the bench depth of this team. As they narrow down the main areas of concern (CF, 3B, C), one thing that has emerged this year is that the role players don’t fit very well, in the sense that they seem to not fill the obvious holes very well. My short-hand for describing this is that the role players they have are not great hitters and also not very good defenders (nor apparently are they particularly good base runners). These roles are necessary, because there are always situations where a mainstay needs a day off or a distinct platoon disadvantage arises or a pinch runner would be handy, but when the current set gets inserted, the games become clogged with poor quality PAs, extra K’s, missed fly balls, pick offs, plays not made. The result is a normally crisp team that competes every AB loses its margin for error and the play quality erodes noticeably. How does management fix this? More than proposing a deadline trade, I’m looking to see their actions to understand their view and their strategy. Might they seek to build this out with young talent or bring in vets of the type that are everyday players on 2nd-tier teams but better suited as role players on playoff-teams? Or, maybe like the bullpen, they will wait to fix this problem until all the main holes are plugged. Ergo, I see their aggressiveness in this area being a barometer of how close they think they are to contending. That they really didn’t do much with the bullpen last off-season told us a lot about how they viewed their chances at contending and by extension, how poor they saw the odds were meant little was to be invested. How much they do about the bench in the next couple months will tell use how they view 2027.
The last area of analysis is the plethora of struggling, young vets at AAA. Gorman, Scott II, Saggese, Prieto, Fernandez. All these guys occupy 40-man spots and 28-man spots on the AAA active roster. Blocking can happen at all levels. How do they view their future? I suspect the results at AAA the last couple months are not eliminating any misgivings they might have. We are all aware they don’t like giving up on guys and I’m OK with that, but the road does end at some point. It’s an uncomfortable part of this business and gets avoided in the same way we don’t like to contemplate or discuss our own mortality. But it is there and needs addressed. Likewise, and perhaps more concerning, there isn’t a lot of talent exploding up the pipeline threatening to push them off the 40-man. There is a bit of a double-edged sword here. Do they move on and bring in new pieces or …? Is now the point they start re-populating the position player side of the pipeline, similar to how they rebuilt the pitching over the last year? The 2026 Draft seemed a step in that direction. Theoretically, they could wait it out another year or two. But what would that tell us about the competitive timeline and how might that worsen the asymmetry between pitcher and position player groups?
From what I can gather, it is questions like this (and the underlying internal analysis they’ve done on this) that will guide how they will proceed this deadline and throughout the last third of the season, more so than an observation that they could use another leverage arm in the bullpen (which they could, but…). Their actions, choices and direction taken over the next weeks should help reveal more of the plan (and their expected timeline).
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JULY 31: DJ LeMahieu #26 of the New York Yankees hits a grand slam in the top of the second inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on July 31, 2024 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After a day off, the Yankees head down to Philadelphia. It’s almost exactly two years since New York’s last trip to Philly, and that one was a doozy. The Yankees swept a three-game set with the Phillies which featured a blowout in Game 1 and thrillers in both Game 2 and 3. The Yankees won the second game in extra-innings in what was one of the more bizarre and exciting contests of the season, and the last game featured a grand slam from DJ LeMahieu of all people:
The series was also Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s breakout party with the Yankees, with the recently acquired infielder smashing four homers in the first two games. Let’s hope for something similar this time around!
Matt will get you prepped for the matchup in Philly with our series preview, while Madison will keep you covered on anything you might have missed on Thursday. We’ll also get a interesting trade target from Nick, who looks at Mets pitcher Freddy Peralta. Later, our Yankees Birthday series continues with Sam’s profile of Joe Oliver, and Madison delivers the answers to this week’s mailbag.
Today’s Matchup:
New York Yankees at Philadelphia Phillies
Time: 6:45 p.m. EST
TV: Apple TV
Venue: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
Questions/Prompts:
1. What did you think of the Yankees using Will Warren in the ninth inning on Wednesday night?
2. As we head to Philly, who do you think is the favorite in the NL East?
Max Clark and Brett Callahan posted three hit games as the Hens crushed Bats pitching all game long to win quite comfortably on a bullpen day.
Callahan led off the second with a line drive double to right. New veteran backup catcher Carlos Pérez, signed as Tomas Nido’s replacement, struck out, and Cal Stevenson flew out, but Andrew Navigato came through with an RBI single for a 1-0 lead. Max Anderson scored from third on an Eduardo Valencia double play ball in the third.
Jack Little gave the Hens two scoreless frames to start this off. Dariel Fregio allowed a run in the fourth, and Andre Granillo, another recent Tigers pickup, surrendered two in the fifth as the Bats took a 3-2 lead.
It was all Mud Hens from there.
In the bottom of the sixth, Stevenson singled, and after Navigato struck out, Max Clark and Jace Jung singled to score the run. A wild pitch plated Clark for a 4-3 lead.
Burch Smith made a rehab appearance in the seventh, and hurt himself after throwing two pitches. Tyler Mattison had to take over and he did a nice job pitching around a one-out single. Mattison has allowed runs in only one appearance since May. The problem is that he melted down and was charged with six earned runs in that one game. Otherwise, he’s got 13 scoreless apperances out of his last 14, but he continues to issue way too many walks.
Callahan singled with two outs in the seventh, and Carlos Pérez drew a walk. Stevenson then smoked a middle-middle fastball for a three-run homer to right field. 7-3 Hens.
Clark’s third hit of the day was a single to lead off the bottom of the eighth, and Jung followed with a single of his own. Max Anderson struck out, but Gage Workman singled to score both runners and take second on an error on the play. Singles from Valencia and Callahan followed, and then the new guy, Mr. Pérez, introduced himself with a three-run shot to left field to cap the scoring.
Callahan: 3-5, 3 R, RBI, 2B, 2 K
Clark: 3-4, 2 R, BB, K, SB
Perez: 1-3, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR, 2 BB, K
Stevenson: 3-5, 2 R, 3 RBI, HR, K
Mattison: 2.0 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 2 BB, 3 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start on Friday night.
The SeaWolves got a win in this series after the two teams traded blows for nine innings, with the SeaWolves just barely surviving a scary bottom of the ninth to hold on.
Kenny Serwa gave up two in the bottom of the first, but settled in for four scoreless afterwards.
With one out in the top of the third, Seth Stephenson singled. Peyton Graham flew out, but Justice Bignie and Andrew Jenkins singled, scoring Stephenson, with Bigbie stretching his franchise record hit streak to 22 games. Garrett Pennington then crushed a three-run jack to take a 4-2 lead.
Garrett Pennington crushes a 3-run homer to left center to give the SeaWolves a 4-2 lead. It’s his 3rd home run with Erie and his 17th overall this year. pic.twitter.com/pNmdRZJM3z
In the top of the fifth, Graham led off with a single and then stole second and third to reach 53 stolen bases on the year. Bigbie singled him home, and Jenkins walked. An EJ Exposito single made it 6-2 SeaWolves.
Colin Fields, back from the injured list, allowed two runs in the bottom of the sixth. Yoniel Curet gave up a run in the eighth to make it 6-5 SeaWolves.
In the top of the ninth, the SeaWolves finally looked to have put this one away. Stephenson led off by reaching on an error and then stole second. Graham singled him to third. A lineout from Bigbie was followed by an attempt to back pick Graham at first that went awry, and Stephenson scored while Graham took third. A fly ball from Jenkins worked as a sacrifice to score Graham.
So it was 8-5, and they appeared to have it in the bag. Instead, Eric Silva walked the leadoff man and then gave up a two-run shot to Frederick Benco. Silva then gave up a single and a walk and the Peorians were going nuts.
Fortunately, a sacrifice bunt was then attempted and Bennett Lee pounced on it and threw out the lead runner. Silva struck out the next hitter and popped out the next to survive and pick up the save.
Graham: 2-5, 2 R, K, 2 SB
Bigbie: 3-5, 2 R, RBI, K
Pennington: 1-5, R, 3 RBI, HR
Serwa (W, 5-7): 5.0 IP, 2 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 3 K
Coming Up Next: First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. ET on Friday night.
Whitecaps pitching was great in this one, but so was the Chiefs’ pitching, and they walked this off with the only run of the game to take their third straight over West Michigan.
Lucas Elissalt continues his recent good run after struggling early this year. He fired five innings of one-hit ball with five strikeouts in this one. Zack Lee gave them two perfect innings. Eliseo Mota handled the eighth, but couldn’t avoid giving up a run in the bottom of the ninth.
Bryce Rainer had the day off.
Santana: 2-3, BB, K
Elissalt: 5.0 IP, 0 R, 0 H, BB, 5 K
Coming Up Next: It’s an 8:05 p.m. ET start on Friday.
Cale Wetwiska was back on the bump with another good short outing as he ramps up his workload, and the Flying Tigers cranked three home runs, including a second straight walkoff winner from Edian Espinal, to win on Thursday.
Wetwiska’s velocity wasn’t peak but he was 95-96 mph throughout his three no-hit innings of work, issuing one walk and striking out four.
Carson Rucker opened the scoring with a solo shot, his 10th home run of the season, to start the bottom of the second inning. Andrew Pogue succeeded Wetwiska but allowed a run to Jupiter in the top of the fourth. In the bottom half, Hunter Dobbins hit his sixth homer of the season to make it 2-1 Lakeland.
Carson Rucker crushes the first pitch of the inning to put Lakeland up 1-0. It’s his 10th home run of the year, and it left his bat at 108.4MPH and went 422 feet. pic.twitter.com/wSFDLZjnzS
Antonio Florida took over for Lakeland in the sixth and was wild. He hit a batter and walked the next, eventually surrendering two runs that made it 3-2 Hammerheads.
In the bottom of the seventh, Jack Goodman was hit by a pitch to start the inning. Nick Dumesnil walked with one out, and a successful challenge from Espinal drew a walk as well, loading the bases. Goodman scored on a a Rucker ground out to tie the game, but that was all they’d get.
Win Scott cleaned up the sixth for Florida and spun a scoreless seventh. Donye Evans took it from there and was pretty good, allowing two hits without a walk in two innings of work, while striking out three.
With one out in the bottom of the ninth, Dumesnil reached on an error. Espinal jumped on a 2-1 slider on the inner edge and cranked it to right to put this one to bed with a walkoff homer.
🚨Flying Tigers Walk-Off Win🚨
Edian Espinal with a 2-run walk-off blast to give Lakeland a 5-3 win. He hit a walk-off double last night. This is his 6th home run of the year. @AaronArnstein with the call. pic.twitter.com/4yycjuyHLZ
The FCL Tigers closed out their Complex League season with a win over the Yankees fueled by good pitching. Jack Bushell gave them a scoreless frame to start off in a rehab appearance. Alemain Cruz gave up two runs in four inning of work but did punch out four to just one walk. Maddox Long then collected eight outs, allowing just one hit and a walk while striking out five.
Gabriel Rosado led the offense with a pair of knocks, two runs scored, an RBI, and a walk drawn. Steven Madero and Angel De Los Santos were involved as well, while outfielder Roberto Campos drew a pair of walks in a rehab appearance. He should be back in Erie next week.
DENVER, COLORADO - JULY 19: Tyler Stephenson #37 of the Cincinnati Reds catches in the ninth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on July 19, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Athletic | Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal: The Yankees are desperate for catching help at the deadline and, according to Rosenthal and Sammon, Cincinnati Reds’ Tyler Stephenson could become an alternative for them. The soon-to-be-30 backstop boasts a 92 wRC+ this year and a 104 mark for his career. The Bombers are also said to be following Ryan Jeffers closely, but they have a lot of competition.
New York Daily News | Pete Sblendorio: Will Warren, who has made 19 starts for the 2026 Yankees, made a surprise relief appearance on Wednesday night in his first game of the second half. He got the ball in the ninth inning in a save situation, and even though he surrendered a single to the first batter he saw and walked the last one, he gave his team two outs in a gutsy performance in an unfamiliar role. Sblendorio wonders if the right-hander, who boasts a 4.00 ERA for the season, could be a factor in the bullpen: his velocity was up in comparison to what it usually averages in starts, and he might be squeezed out of a rotation spot, so it might be a worthwhile experiment. For now, he has been announced as Sunday’s starter.
New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: The Yankees are always on the lookout for relief pitching help, and while it’s not the most pressing need at the moment, the thought of getting Mason Miller via trade from the San Diego Padres is surely exciting. Phillips explains that while George Lombard Jr. should be off limits, the Yankees have enough pieces to complete a deal if they decide to pursue one, identifying the fact that the Friars would love controllable starting pitching and the Bombers have Warren, Clarke Schmidt, Elmer Rodríguez, Carlos Lagrange, Ben Hess, Bryce Cunningham, Chase Hampton, Thatcher Hurd and Henry Lalane. He listed other potential pieces that might interest San Diego: Dax Kilby, Jasson Domínguez, and Spencer Jones. The likelihood of a deal is still low, though, as the Padres would have to be ‘blown away’ by an offer to consider parting with the star closer.
MLB.com | Bryan Hoch: The league’s official site posted a piece with every team’s deadline approach. Hoch wrote that the Yankees are expected to pursue a platoon partner for Austin Wells, another bat as cover for Aaron Judge’s uncertain injury situation, and a swing-and-miss reliever.
The New York Yankees visit Citizens Bank Park for a weekend series beginning Friday night.
It doesn’t matter where they go — Tampa Bay, Boston, Houston, Miami — it’s always an event when the Yankees come to your town. From The Babe to those 27 World Series titles, they’re the most storied franchise in pro sports. So, it’ll be exciting to have them in Philadelphia these next few days. Both the Yankees and Phillies are locked in tight playoff races. It’s an important series for both clubs.
Though they play in different leagues, and though the Yankees can boast about having 25 more World Series championships than the Phillies, the two teams share some interesting history and common threads.
Let’s look at a few of them, just for fun:
AT THE HELM
Three straight Phillies managers, including current skipper Don Mattingly, have deep Yankee bloodlines. As a player, Mattingly was one of the most beloved Yankees ever. He played 14 seasons for the club, won an MVP award, a batting title and made six All-Star teams. His No. 23 is retired.
Mattingly succeeded Rob Thomson, who initially came to the Phillies as a bench coach under Gabe Kapler after 28 years working as a big-league coach, minor-league manager and farm director for the Yankees.
Thomson became Phillies manager in 2022 when Joe Girardi was fired. Girardi won three World Series as a player with the Yankees. He skippered the club for 10 years and beat the Phillies in the 2009 World Series.
Phillies pitching coach Caleb Cotham pitched for Girardi’s Yankees in 2015. Girardi was influential in bringing him to Philadelphia.
MR. OCTOBER
Hall of Famer Reggie Jackson became synonymous with the Yankees when he homered in three straight at-bats to help them win the 1977 World Series.
Reggie grew up just outside of Philadelphia, in Wyncote, and was a star athlete at Cheltenham High School. He attended his first big-league game in 1956 at Connie Mack Stadium, but he wasn’t there to see the Phillies. He was there to see the visiting Brooklyn Dodgers and his idol, Jackie Robinson.
“We sat in the left field bleachers, 50 cents, my dad took us,” Jackson told us in 2022. “We ate popcorn and rooted for the Dodgers because they had Black players. I wasn’t a Phillies fan until they got Dick Allen. I rooted for him and, of course, I played against him. In my mind, he’s a Hall of Famer.”
Allen was finally elected to the Hall of Fame in December 2024.
1950 WORLD SERIES
The Yankees won five straight World Series from 1949 to 1953. Their second in that stretch came against the 1950 Phillies, the Whiz Kids, who made the World Series for the first time since 1915.
The Yankees won the first two games in Philadelphia by scores of 1-0 and 2-1 and went on to sweep the Phils in four games. Joe DiMaggio famously homered off Robin Roberts in the top of the 10th to give the Yankees the lead in Game 2 at Shibe Park.
It wasn’t unusual for players to sneak a smoke in between innings in those days. Legend has it that DiMaggio asked a young Philadelphia cop to hold his cigarette before going to the plate in the 10th. That young cop was named Frank Rizzo and he eventually became Philadelphia’s mayor.
2009 WORLD SERIES
Fifty-nine years after their first World Series meeting in 1950, the Phils and Yanks battled again in the 2009 World Series. Cliff Lee decided to skip the police-escorted team bus and take a cab to Yankee Stadium for Game 1. He got stuck in gridlock traffic and jumped on a subway. He followed fans in Yankee jerseys to the stadium and arrived less than two hours before first pitch, much to the relief of team officials who were worried he wouldn’t make it. The always-cool Lee then went out and struck out 10 in a walk-free complete-game win.
Chase Utley hit five home runs in the series but the Phils lost in six games. After the final loss, Phillies owner John Middleton famously told Ryan Howard, “I want my (bleeping) trophy back.” All these years later, the quote still applies.
(Getty Images)
FREE AGENT BATTLE
After the 2009 season, the Phillies acquired Roy Halladay in a trade with Toronto and shipped Cliff Lee to Seattle.
A year later, Lee became a free agent.
The Phillies, Yankees and Texas Rangers all entered the bidding.
The Yankees offered the most money, something in the neighborhood of $140 million over six years, and were willing to go higher. But Lee chose to sign with the Phillies for five years and $120 million. That ticked off the Yankees, who were used to getting what they wanted.
Lee had initially been angry that the Phillies traded him away after the 2009 season, but Scott Proefrock, then a Phillies assistant general manager under Ruben Amaro Jr., worked hard to rebuild the relationship. Lee’s wife also had a say in the decision to come to Philadelphia. Yankee fans had given her an earful in the Bronx when he pitched for Texas in the 2010 postseason and she didn’t want to go there.
THE BABE A PHILLIE?
It could have happened.
Way back in 1914, Babe Ruth was a teenage phenom with his hometown Baltimore Orioles of the International League. Jack Dunn, who ran the Orioles, offered Ruth and two other players to the Phillies for $19,000. Phillies owner William Baker scoffed at the offer, saying he wouldn’t pay that much for the entire International League. In fairness, Philadelphia Athletics owner/manager Connie Mack also passed on a chance to acquire Ruth. The rest, as they say, is history.
Baker was a bit of a cheapskate. A year after he passed on Ruth, Baker’s Phillies made the World Series but were beaten by the Boston Red Sox, who were shrewd enough to take Dunn up on his offer but foolish enough to turn around and sell Ruth to the Yankees in 1919.
Some 106 years after Baker passed on The Babe and said he wouldn’t pay $19,000 for the entire International League, another Phillies owner mentioned Ruth. Angered by a 2020 media report that claimed the team was dangling ace Zack Wheeler in trade talks, Middleton said, “If they offered me Babe Ruth, I wouldn’t trade him.”
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SCHILLING SHINES
The Phillies were awful in 1997. They finished 68-94, tied with the Chicago Cubs for the worst record in the NL.
The Yankees, by contrast, won 96 games that season. They won the World Series the year before, starting a run of four titles in five years.
Fed up with losing and fired-up for a chance to face the star-studded lineup, Phillies ace Curt Schilling turned a Labor Day start against the Yanks that year into his personal World Series. A crowd of 50,895 turned out at Veterans Stadium (the Phils averaged just 18,403 that year) and saw Schilling strike out 16 over eight walk-free innings in a 5-1 win.
High-priced flop Hideki Irabu pitched for the Yankees that day. The Phillies tagged him for five runs in three innings. After leaving the game, Irabu smashed a sprinkler head in the visiting clubhouse. How rude.
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THE PURSUIT OF PETTITTE
Andy Pettitte struggled through a difficult season with the Yankees in 1999. Yankees boss George Steinbrenner ordered general manager Brian Cashman to trade the left-hander before the July deadline.
Phillies general manager Ed Wade wanted Pettitte badly. He built a package around pitcher Adam Eaton, outfielder Reggie Taylor and others.
Optimism for a deal was so high that Phillies pitcher Carlton Loewer offered to give up his No. 46 for Pettitte. The Phillies presented the best offer, but Pettitte ended up staying put as Steinbrenner told Cashman to pull the pitcher off the table less than an hour before the deadline. The Phillies front office put a lot of hours into trying to pull off that deal. There were a lot of disappointed folks when it didn’t happen.
CASHMAN TO PHILLIES?
Brian Cashman is in his 29th season as Yankees general manager. It is one of the most remarkable runs in sports history, especially considering the high-pressure market he works in and the man he once answered to.
But in the fall of 2005, Cashman strongly considered leaving the Yankees. His contract was set to run out on October 31 of that year. He’d grown tired of the politics, the backstabbing and the drama of the Yankees’ dueling front offices in the Bronx and Tampa. The Phillies had just fired Wade. Cashman had the Phillies in his sights. He even privately mentioned it to some old college buddies who’d grown up as Phillies fans.
“I had to weigh what was next and the Phillies, obviously, had an opening,” Cashman told us at the time.
Ultimately, Cashman had a meeting of the minds with George Steinbrenner. He received assurances that things would change and his authority would be respected. He signed a three-year contract extension with the Yankees as the Phillies hired Pat Gillick.
“I think the Phillies hired the most qualified general manager,” Cashman told us in November 2005. “You can line Pat up with anybody in the game and he might stand tallest of all. I believe I would have gotten an interview, though it would have been tough to compete with Pat Gillick.”
A STAR IS BORN
In March 2004, 20-year-old Cole Hamels was beginning his second season in pro ball. He had made just 18 starts, all at the Single A level, when the Phillies decided to take a peek at him in a spring-training game against the Yankees in Tampa. The game was carried live on ESPN. John Kruk was part of the broadcast team.
Hamels, the Phillies’ top pick in the 2002 draft, did not disappoint. In fact, he dropped jaws. He struck out Derek Jeter, Alex Rodriguez and Tony Clark, all on changeups, in the fifth inning. From that moment on, Hamels seemed destined for the stardom that arrived in October 2008 when he was NLCS and World Series MVP.
Jul 23, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; Arizona Diamondbacks first baseman Tyler Locklear (31) hits a one run single against the St. Louis Cardinals during the eighth inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
In the Dbacks Cardinals season finale, it was all Dbacks Thursday afternoon! On what would’ve been an off day for this team, the Dbacks had to go back to St. Louis today to play a makeup game as they were rained out earlier this month, and boy this one came at the perfect time as this offense and Brandon Pfaadt are rolling!
Pfaadt ran into a little bit of trouble in the first inning as he got papercutted to death. He was not giving up hard contact at all, but balls kept finding holes and before Pfaadt could even get settled in, the Cardinals had a 2-0 lead with nobody out. This likely would have been a moment that would have snowballed for Pfaadt earlier this year, however this version of Brandon Pfaadt was able to lock it in and hold the Cardinals to just the 2 runs and get out of the first inning. After the first, Pfaadt was in total control holding the Cardinals offense scoreless over the next 5 innings, and needing just 87 pitches to get through 6. Pfaadt is now 5-0 since being recalled from Reno and he has come up huge when this team needed him the most and the season was on the line.
On the offensive side, Tyler Locklear wasn’t even supposed to start today as he was a late addition due to Ketel Marte experiencing some lower back tightness before the game, but boy did he finally break through today. Locklear went 3-5 today including his first home run of the season and finished a triple short of the cycle. Really feel good for Locklear to get off to such a hot start as he has been battling back and forth from the minors to the majors the past couple of seasons, and has been struggling with injury. If he continues to produce at first base, that would be a massive development for this team!
Gabi Moreno also continued to look like the hottest hitter on planet earth going 3-4 but having some great at bats and coming through with guys on base getting 2 RBI’s. Ildemaro Vargas and Adrian Del Castillo also both added 3 hit performances today as this offense appears to finally be firing on all cylinders! They had a couple of big innings as they put up 3 runs in the 4th and 5 runs in the 8th inning driving this offense to 10 runs on the afternoon marking double digit run production in back-to-back games.
The Dbacks will now head to DC as they have the Nationals this weekend who are just 2 games back behind the Dbacks for the 3rd wild card spot. Eduardo Rodriguez gets a chance Friday to bounce back from his lone rough outing of the season his last time out. This weekends games and whether or not the offense can continue to stay hot may very well dictate the rest of the season for these boys as the front office is in the final stages of deciding whether to buy or to sell. Having exciting, must-watch baseball this time of year is certainly a treat!
PHILADELPHIA, PA - JULY 12: Josiah Hartshorn #27 of the Chicago Cubs bats in seventh inning of the MLB All-Star Futures Game at Citizens Bank Park on July 12, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Matt Dirksen/Chicago Cubs/Getty Images) | Getty Images
I’m sure we’ll have an official post on this when the Cubs issue a press release, but 2B/OF James Triantos has been promoted to the Cubs for his major-league debut. Outfielder Kevin Alcántara has been sent down to Iowa.
Right-hander Jacob Wallace moves from the rookie ball ACL Cubs to Double-A Knoxville. The Cubs signed Wallace as a free agent on July 2.
Left-hander Drew Pomeranz has cleared waivers and has been assigned to Triple-A Iowa. We’ll see if Pomeranz reports or elects free agency soon enough.
Jaxon Wiggins started this game and took the loss. Wiggins allowed three runs on five hits over 2.2 innings. Wiggins struggled to find the plate as he walked three and struck out two.
Right fielder Brett Bateman went 2 for 3 with a double. He scored both Iowa runs.
Starter Brody McCullough did not allow a hit over 4.2 innings. Unfortunately, he exited in the fifth and Frankie Scalzo Jr. let an inherited runner score on the first Trash Panda hit of the game, so McCullough was charged with one run. McCullough walked three and struck out three.
Scalzo gave up three more runs in the sixth, but the Smokies came back and tied the game. However, Tyler Santana entere the game in the bottom of the ninth with the score still tied 4-4. Santana allowed three hits and the walk-off run in just one-third of an inning to get the loss. Santana did not have a walk or a strikeout.
Catcher Ethan Hearn put the Smokies up 1-0 with a home run in the fourth inning, his fourth on the season. Hearn went 1 for 4.
Center fielder Andy Garriola tied the game up 4-4 with a three-run home run in the seventh inning. it was Garriola’s 18th home run this year. Garriola went 2 for 4 with the home run and a walk.
Third baseman Jefferson Rojas was 2 for 5 with a double. He scored on Garrioila’s home run.
Second baseman Alex Madera went 2 for 4 with a stolen base.
Ethan Flanagan started and got the win with five strong innings, allowing just one run on three hits. The one run came on a third-inning home run. Flanagan struck out four and walked one.
Ben Johnson gave the Cubs two good innings of relief after Flanagan, allowing no runs on one hit. He walked one and struck out one.
Luis Rujano started the ninth and got into trouble. After Rujano gave up a run, Ethan Bell came into the game with a man on first and one out. The runner on first got thrown out trying to steal second base and being down two in the ninth, that seems like a dumb decision. Then Bell got a fly out to center to end the game and get the save.
First baseman Josiah Hartshorn cranked a massive two-run home run in the seventh inning. It was Hartshorn’s first home run in two weeks. It was also his 16th on the year and 11th with South Bend. Hartshorn went 2 for 3 with a double, the home run and a walk. He scored three times.
Right fielder Jose Escobar was 2 for 4 with an RBI triple.
Shortstop Angel Cepeda was 2 for 4.
Center fielder Kane Kepley went 0 for 3 with two walks and his 46th stolen base. Kepley scored on Hartshorn’s blast.
This ends the Arizona Complex League for the year. The Mesa Cubs finished at 20-39. Believe it or not, that’s not even last place. They finished above the Athletics in their division and had a better overall record than the White Sox as well.
The MLB players’ union submitted a proposal on July 21 in response to the MLB draft proposal of last month. The MLB negotiating team proposed ending the drafting of high school and junior college players, instituting a draft for international players, decreasing the bonus pool for both domestic and international players, and decreasing the draft to 12 rounds as part of their major overhaul.
In response, the MLBPA submitted a proposal to retain a 20-round draft that includes high school – and junior college-aged players. They want players to be eligible for the draft after their sophomore year despite their age (currently required to be 21 by Aug. 1 of their draft year).
They propose keeping the bonus pool system the same and growing it with league revenues, with small-market teams adding up to $2 million to their pool in a single draft over the next five years. The small market teams would also get another $1 million in bonus pool money for making the playoffs.
MLB proposed eliminating the competitive balance picks and the players’ association would retain them with small-market/low-revenue teams getting a pick in round A (after first and second rounds) or round B (after second or third rounds). The current system penalizes teams with a 75% tax and would lose their first round pick for going over their pool by 5%.
They propose reducing the tax penalties for teams that go over their draft pool. They could go over by up to 15% without losing a draft pick. This allows teams to compete with the college NIL money that players are now receiving.
Allow teams in small markets to sign up to two players taken by the third round to major league contracts. It would mean subtracting that player’s slot amount from the team’s pool no matter how much money the player signed for.
Move the draft from July to June and allow trading of picks in the first round up until two hours before the draft begins. The draft was moved to July from June by the league in 2021 to add more drama to the All-Star break and attempt to increase fan interest. The league also proposed a system for trading picks.
There was nothing in the proposal addressing the international player draft that MLB proposed.
Jaden Fauske put up another 3-for-3 night on his hot streak with a double, walk, and a run scored | (Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
Norfolk Tides @ Charlotte Knights — Postponed due to weather The Knights and Tides will make up Thursday’s game as a part of a doubleheader on Friday, July 24.
Montgomery Biscuits 6, Birmingham Barons 4 A three-run eighth inning for the Biscuits (46-46) was the difference in this one, as the Barons (35-58) fumbled the lead to drop their second of the series, 6-4. Even though he gave up a home run, lefthander Lucas Gordon put together a decent enough start for Birmingham to win the game, but the bullpen couldn’t hold up its end of the bargain. Gordon surrendered three runs on three hits with two walks and four strikeouts, but Pierce George gave up a game-tying double followed by a go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth that immediately sent their chances of winning off a cliff.
The Barons outhit Montgomery, 10-6, with 60% of those mashed for extra bases: four doubles and two home runs. B-ham went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position and left five on base, and the Biscuits were nearly identical on that front except they left four on instead. Anthony DePino (one) and Colby Shelton (two) accounted for three of the four two-baggers and posted two hits apiece. The long balls, however, were both solo shots, one by Jorge Corona and the other by Adam Fogel.
Cold Cat Pierce George (RHRP): 1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, BB, HR, Blown Save, LOSS (1-1) Lucas Gordon (LHSP): 5 IP, 3 H, 3 R, 2 BB, 4 K, HR, 2 Balk Boston Smith (C): 0-for-4, K, E
Winston-Salem Dash 1, Greensboro Grasshoppers0 — Opener The opener to Thursday’s doubleheader was a pitching duel from start to finish, with the Dash (51-41) persevering to defeat the Grasshoppers (57-35), 1-0. Righthander Jake Curtis made his third start of the year with Winston-Salem despite working out of the bullpen for the majority of the season, and held Greensboro to just two hits while striking out three in his five innings, earning his fourth win of the season. The bullpen was just as elite, not allowing another hit for the rest of the game as Max Banks recorded a hold and Garrett Wright snagged his third save of the season.
Offensively, the Dash posted five hits but went just 1-for-5 with runners in scoring position, as Arxy Hernández’s RBI double in the bottom of the fourth was just enough. Hernández was 2-for-3, and James Taussig scored the lone run of the game and also roped his 11th double of the season for the other extra-base hit.
Runners-Up Arxy Hernández (3B): 2-for-3, RBI, 2B Max Banks (RHRP): 1 IP, 0 H, K, Hold Garrett Wright (RHRP): 1 IP, 0 H, K, Save James Taussig (LF): 1-for-3, R, 2B
Cold Cat Ryan Burrowes (SS): 0-for-3 Ben Hartl (C): 0-for-2, K Alex Ungar (RF): 0-for-2 Bryce Eblin (2B): 0-for-2, K
Greensboro Grasshoppers 7, Winston-Salem Dash 6 — Nightcap A bullpen implosion for the Dash (51-42) gave the Grasshoppers (58-35) the edge in game two, splitting the doubleheader after the loss, 7-6. Justin Sinibaldi turned in a solid five innings, allowing two runs on five hits, but once the game was handed over to the bullpen with a two-run lead, 4-2, things snowballed out of control fairly quickly.
Lefthander Christian Oppor made his first appearance with Winston-Salem, but didn’t even manage to get an out before giving up four runs and getting yanked. A pair of walks and a double loaded the bases up, and he walked a run in before Seth Keener replaced him and four more runs scored: four to Oppor and one to Keener, with Oppor receiving the L while the latter rightly was given a blown save.
Four Winston-Salem batters put up at least two hits, but it was Calvin Harris who led the day with three RBIs from a two-run tank and an RBI ground out. A whopping eight of the Dash’s 10 hits were for extra bases, with seven doubles. George Wolkow and Bryce Eblin each doubled twice, accounting for four of Winston-Salem’s seven doubles, while James Taussig added his second double of the day.
Columbia Fireflies 2, Kannapolis Cannon Ballers 1 Both teams scored in the first inning and then never again, leaving the Fireflies (48-45) to outlast the Cannon Ballers (47-46), 2-1. Columbia outhit Kannapolis by one, 7-6, but the Ballers went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left eight on base, unable to string anything together.
Despite a solid outing from righthander Gabe Tanner, he ended up with the loss, allowing just two runs on five hits with a walk and two strikeouts over six frames, but the bats couldn’t support him on the other end. Jaden Fauske and Javier Mogollón held up the offense. Fauske recorded three of Kannapolis’ six hits, going 3-for-3 with a walk and a double while scoring the Ballers’ lone run. Mogollón drove him home with a double of his own. Fauske has been on a heater, posting eight hits in his last 13 at-bats with a .464 OBP in July (51 ABs), continuing to strengthen his case for a promotion to Winston-Salem.
— Kannapolis Cannon Ballers (@Kcannonballers) July 23, 2026
MVP Jaden Fauske (LF): 3-for-3, R, BB, 2B
Runners-Up Javier Mogollón (2B): 1-for-4, RBI, K, 2B Gabe Tanner (RHSP): 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, BB, 2 K, Loss (3-3) Daniel Wright (RHRP): 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 K Alexander Albertus (1B): 1-for-3, BB, K, CS
Cold Cat Matthew Boughton (SS): 0-for-4, K Nick McLain (CF): 0-for-4 Christian Gonzalez (RF): 0-for-4, 2 K Efren Teran (3B): 0-for-4, K
ACL White Sox 4, ACL Dodgers 1 The ACL Dodgers (25-35) scored one run early in the first, but the ACL White Sox (19-41) fought back for a run in the third and three more in the fourth to pull away with a 4-1 win. Pitching from the Sox rookies was spot on, as Justin Fuson paved the way with six excellent frames, allowing one run on five hits while striking out six. Earning his second save of the season, Reinder Gomez shut the Dodgers down in the final inning to seal the W.
All but three starters logged a hit on the day, though only two of their four runs were earned with the help of the Dodgers’ defense. Yordani Soto was the only batter to put up more than one hit, including an RBI double, though Jackson Appel kicked off the fourth-inning rally with a solo homer that gave the White Sox the lead. The ACL Sox otherwise went just 2-for-10 with runners in scoring position, leaving four on base.
DSL Cardinals 13, DSL White Sox 8 It was quite a chaotic game in the DSL, with the Cardinals (17-18) getting the win, 13-8, by putting up 12 runs in the first three frames. The White Sox (12-23) attempted to claw back in the top seventh with eight runs before they ultimately fell short. Roderic Ramírez had a rough outing, allowing nine runs on six hits and two walks, while also racking up four wild pitches in his 1 1/3 innings.
Five runs were given up in the first — the first run being the only one that was earned — all with two outs, and Ramírez was actually pulled out of the game as he was floundering, unable to get the third out. Christopher Romero struck out the only batter he faced to finally get out of the first, just for Ramírez to re-enter in the second and give up four more. The only thing that “saved” Ramírez’s outing on paper was the fact that the defense committed three errors, leading to eight of the nine runs being unearned.
The DSL Sox pitching was all over the place, not just Ramírez, as Sox pitchers accounted for eight of the 12 wild pitches in the game and hit two batters along the way. On the other side of the ball, the bats were dormant for the majority of the game, but the Sox nearly erased a 13-run deficit in the top of the seventh, going on an eight-run rally with no outs before falling short with three strikeouts to end the game with the bases loaded. Both Sebastian Romero and Fernando Graterol posted multi-hit days, driving in three and two runs, with Romero’s coming from a three-run bomb in the seventh.
Trump even cracked a few jokes with the team Thursday during the outdoor ceremony in the Rose Garden.
Perhaps one of the funniest moments from the 2025 World Series celebration in the nation’s capital was when the president asked Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani a hilarious question.
President Donald Trump made Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto laugh during the Dodgers’ White House visit. AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Donald Trump to Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Shohei Ohtani:
Ohtani and Yamamoto laughed along with the rest of the Dodgers’ personnel who erupted into smiles. Trump sang the Dodgers’ praises for nearly 20 minutes in a recap of the team’s success throughout the 2025 season, culminating in LA’s epic World Series win in a thrilling Game 7 against the Blue Jays.
Shohei Ohtani shook hands with President Donald Trump during the Dodgers’ White House visit. AP Photo/Alex Brandon
Three notable Dodgers absent from the White House visit were Mookie Betts, Kiké Hernandez and reliever Edgardo Henriquez. Betts revealed he likely wouldn’t join his teammates at the Oval Office for family reasons.
The Dodgers traveled to Washington on their off-day during a nine-game road trip. This marked the second consecutive year that the team commemorated a World Series title at the White House.
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There was uncertainty surrounding the Dodgers’ visit this year after scheduling conflicts prevented the team from making a stop at the White House during their opening road trip to kick off the season, which began with a three-game series against the Nationals.
Pittsburgh acquired right-handed reliever Ron Marinaccio from the Padres on Thursday, the team announced.
San Diego received international signing bonus pool considerations in return for Marinaccio.
Padres pitcher Ron Marinaccio delivers during the fifth inning during a game against the Blue Jays at Petco Park earlier this season. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Marinaccio, 31, has experienced a down year so far this season, holding a 4.79 ERA with 38 strikeouts through 47 innings.
Marinaccio can help out a depleted Pirates bullpen that’s without Chris Devenski and Evan Sisk.
Outside of his 2026 season, the Toms River, N.J., native has had a rather successful MLB tenure since being called up to the Yankees four seasons ago, posting a career 3.02 ERA and 149 strikeouts in 125⅓ innings from 2022-25.
In order to make room for Marinaccio, the Pirates opted to designate Dennis Santana for assignment, who had a 6.05 ERA through 44 appearances this season.
Pittsburgh’s move to DFA Santana comes just three days after the righty got into a wild brawl with Yankees infielder Jose Caballero.
Dennis Santana (left) is restrained by teammates Rafael Flores Jr. (43) and Ryan O’Hearn (29) as Austin Wells moves in during an altercation after the eighth inning of the Pirates’ loss to the Yankees on July 20, 2026 in The Bronx. Getty Images
The two started waking towards each other before teammates had to hold them back, with both benches and bullpens clearing.
“If you get frustrated, I’m winning,” Caballero told reporters, according to MLB.com. “For me, it’s a battle in the box. I’m trying to win the battle. If you’re not concentrating 100 percent, I think I’m winning.”
Santana, however, insisted that he was upset with the “game speed” rather than Caballero himself.
“It was the game speed. I’m not used to that,” Santana said. “People waiting too much at home plate. It frustrated me a little bit. With baseball, you have to be quick. It’s nothing against him.
Tigers ace Tarik Skubal is the biggest name in the rumor mill ahead of the trade deadline, and he has been connected with the Yankees, but the two-time Cy Young winner has made it clear he does not want to be dealt.
Speaking with the media Thursday afternoon, including The Athletic's Cody Stavenhagen, Skubal said that his desire is to stay in Detroit for the remainder of the 2026 season.
“I think we have a chance to win a World Series,” Skubal said. “I’ve said that since spring training. That’s never changed. That belief in this team has never changed throughout the season. … Going into spring training, the whole offseason, I’ve never been more motivated to try to win a World Series for this city, the team that drafted me in 2018 and helped develop me. That’s always been the goal, and that will never change unless I’m told I’m on a different team.”
Skubal is an impending free agent and many in the industry believe that his price tag will be too much for the Tigers in the offseason. However, what complicates matters is Detroit's recent string of wins. Following Thursday's 4-3 victory over the Royals, Detroit is 27-16 since June 1 and sits 6.0 games behind the White Sox for the AL Central lead and 4.0 games back of the third Wild Card spot.
In a weak AL, the Tigers are certainly not out of the playoff hunt.
As for the Yankees side of things, many in the industry believe New York has the assets Detroit is looking for in a potential Skubal deal. The Athletic's Will Sammon and Ken Rosenthal reported earlier this week that Detroit is looking for a controllable starting pitcher plus quality prospects. Among the list of teams, which includes the Dodgers, Brewers, Rays, Phillies and Braves, the Yankees have what the Tigers could use in Will Warren or Ryan Weathers.
But with the Yankees getting Max Fried back, the priority seems to be in bolstering the bullpen and picking up a right-handed bat, preferably a catcher.
In any case, how the Tigers handle the Skubal situation by the Aug. 3 deadline, or whether the Yankees will pursue Skubal, is unclear, and the southpaw doesn't expect a conversation with the front office about his future with the club.
“Those questions are not for me,” Skubal said. “I don’t know how they handle the business on that side. Been around it a couple times and (other players) didn’t have any idea until about five minutes before you guys did. I assume that’s how it’s going to be handled because that’s how most things are handled.”
Skubal is set to take the mound for the Tigers on Friday, in what could be his final start with Detroit.
