Category: MLB

Frustration gets the best of Suarez as Phillies see winning streak come to end originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

CINCINNATI — It wasn’t just one pitch that threw off the night for Phillies pitcher Ranger Suarez, though it certainly did seem to play a big part.

After striking out Matt McLain to start the third inning, Suarez allowed consecutive singles before getting TJ Friedl to bounce into a fielder’s choice. After going 0-2 on Spencer Steer, Suarez appeared to freeze him with a sinker. The pitch appeared to be in the strike zone, so much so that Suarez made his way to within about 10 feet of catcher Rafael Marchan and home plate umpire Will Traynor.

Three pitches later, Steer hit a two-run double to plate the Reds’ first runs in what would become a 6-1 loss for the Phillies at Great American Ballpark.

That lack of a strike call may have started a bad night for Suarez, who again jawed with Traynor in the sixth, but it wasn’t the only thing that was wrong with the left-hander on this night.

In fact, things haven’t been going well for quite some time for Suarez. In his last six starts, which have composed of 35 1/3 innings, Suarez has given up 46 hits and 24 earned runs for a 6.11 ERA during that span.

“I think I could have gotten out of those innings with way less damage than we did,” Suarez said. “I think I just mentally blocked at that point and I just stopped trying to execute those pitches. I think I was just throwing the ball.”

His manager didn’t like the reaction from his pitcher too much, either.

“You got to shut that down. If it did (affect Suarez), you can’t let that happen,” Rob Thomson said. “You got to stay focused, stay composed and keep pitching. Those things are going to happen. The iPad on the bench, it just barely ticked that, but who knows how those boxes are. I don’t know if they’re accurate or not. But, that’s something you can’t control and you’ve just got to keep pitching.

“Because of his last few outings, I think he wants to do well and maybe he’s just off a little bit. But he’s got to shut that down.”

Before the game, Thomson was answering a question about the possible availability of starter Aaron Nola. Thomson said they’d have to wait on how Nola pitched and felt after starting Tuesday in Lehigh Valley, then said the organization would “have to see where Ranger is at after tonight’s game.”

Suarez insisted that he’s fine.

“I felt good,” he said. “I felt better than last time out. Overall, I felt better and look what happened. I missed a couple, that’s the game. I wouldn’t say it’s fatigue. I feel good, actually. I know I’ve had a couple of rough starts and I realize wondering if it could be fatigue, but it’s not. I just think about it as having to look back at those pitches that were missed, that I missed, and getting better at that point.”

And Nola appears ready, if not just about ready, to rejoin the team after being out since May 14. Tuesday against Buffalo, Nola pitched 5 2/3 innings and allowed four hits, two earned runs. He didn’t walk anyone and struck out 11.

“He says he’s fine and he was really good the first two innings,” Thomson said of Suarez. “And then his command was off. The rest of his outing, really, he was getting ahead the first two innings. The third through the sixth, he was a lot of behind in the count, then he’s got to come in with too many pitches in the middle of the plate and he paid for it.”

The loss snapped a four-game win streak by the Phillies, with all the wins coming at the beginning of this 10-game road trip. The only thing that slowed down Cincinnati was a 28-minute rain delay following the sixth.

After getting through the first seven batters of the game without a hitch, Suarez allowed 12 of the next 21 batters to get on base via hits or walk. There was a home run, a bunch of singles, a couple of doubles, a hit batter, a pair of walks. Pretty much any way there was to get on base, the Reds did it off Suarez, who fell to 8-6 and had his ERA climb to 3.28, the first time it’s been that high since his fourth start of the season.

“Other than fatigue, I don’t think so, because he hasn’t complained of anything,” Thomson said of what could be behind Suarez’s struggles. “That’s the only thing I can really attribute it to. We’ll see.

“Nola had a good game tonight so we’ll see how he’s feeling tomorrow. Punched out the side in the first, third and fifth. Really threw well, 84 pitches so we’ll see how he is tomorrow. We’ll go to a sixth man, or bump him (Suarez), or something.”

There’s been a lot of news surrounding the Phillies’ pitching staff of late. It was revealed last week that Zack Wheeler was having shoulder soreness, though he and the team insist he’s fine. They picked up closing sensation Jhoan Duran at the trade deadline. Veteran David Robertson made his debut with the team on Monday. Reliever Jose Alvarado will come back from his suspension in about a week and Nola seems to have completed his rehab. And now they will have to figure out what is going on with Suarez.

After winning eight of their last 10 and playing such good baseball, a dud was bound to happen at some point. That’s somewhat expected in a 162-game season. But the supposed red flag on Suarez put a damper on what was already a damp night all around. A Bryce Harper home run in the ninth, his 18th of the year, saved the Phillies from being shut out.

“I think it’s mostly about getting on track on my starts and trying to replicate whatever we did during the first half of the season,” Suarez said. “As far as the mentality, it’s more about throwing those bad starts away and trying to start fresh and be better. I feel good.”

Tylor Megill took a big step towards a potential late-season return on Tuesday.

The big Mets starting pitcher made his first rehab appearance down with Double-A Binghamton, though he wasn’t particularly sharp.

Megill retired the first two batters he faced, then struggled to put the inning away as the next two reached on a walk and single, but he punched out the cleanup hitter to escape without any damage.

He needed 23 pitches to battle his way through the opening frame. 

Binghamton’s offense handed Megill a 3-0 lead in the bottom half of the inning, and he picked up two more strikeouts in the second, but ended up being pulled after allowing a pair of singles. 

Luis Moreno entered and retired the next batter easily to close his line with no runs allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out four in just 1.2 innings of work.

Megill did mix in his full arsenal as he threw 41 pitches, 27 of which were strikes.

The right-hander has been sidelined since the middle of June due to a right elbow sprain. 

He was putting together another inconsistent campaign prior to the injury, pitching to a 3.95 ERA and 1.36 WHIP with 89 strikeouts across 14 big league starts.

It’ll be interesting to see how the Mets utilize Megill when he is ready to return. 

Frankie Montas' spot in the rotation is open at the moment with him sliding to the bullpen, but all signs point to the team calling up top prospects Brandon Sproat or Nolan McLean to jump into the mix. 

Megill has just seven appearances in his career as a reliever. 

What we learned as Giants' hopes of chasing Padres down fade with lifeless loss originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

• BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO — As the season started to collapse on the last homestand, the Giants at least could lean on one fact. They had seven games left against a San Diego Padres team they were hoping to chase down.

Their destiny was in their own hands, but it now looks like the Padres might instead put the final nail in the coffin. They have dominated the first two games of this stretch of seven meetings in 10 days, getting a 5-1 win Tuesday after a similar performance Monday.

The Giants are two games under .500 for the first time all year. They’re now nine games behind the Padres, who are a game behind the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NL West race. 

The long first inning Monday included a strange run on both sides. Robbie Ray got two quick outs, but Tyler Fitzgerald slipped on a popup to right, letting it fall for a two-out bloop. After a double put two in scoring position, Ray stumbled on the mound and got called for a balk that brought a run home. 

The Giants countered in the bottom of the inning after two-time Gold Glove Award winner Manny Machado couldn’t handle a line drive hit right at him. That put two on for Wilmer Flores, who hit a swinging bunt that died in front of Machado, tying the game. 

Wilmer with a PERFECT swinging bunt to tie it 🤌 pic.twitter.com/6wfUH3jmZ9

— SF Giants on NBCS (@NBCSGiants) August 13, 2025

From there, it was all Padres.

The Giants scored one run for the second consecutive game and have totaled just four over their last four games, failing to reward the 145,000 fans who have come through the gates at Oracle Park. They have dropped 12 of 13 at home and fell under .500 in home games, which seemed impossible to accomplish earlier this year when it seemed they were walking someone off every other night. 

Long Day For Ray

Ray became just the 10th big leaguer to throw at least 113 pitches in a game this season and the first Giant. It was his highest count since he came back from Tommy John surgery and the fifth-highest of his career. Ray had thrown 110-plus pitches just one other time since turning 30. 

The Giants have pushed Ray and Logan Webb hard in recent weeks, in part because they traded away two of their best relievers. This was Ray’s fourth consecutive start of at least 100 pitches, and he hasn’t seemed to wear down at all. The Padres put four runs on his line, but three of them came in the first couple of innings, with Jose Iglesias doing most of the damage with a two-run homer that hit the top of the wall and bounced over. 

Welcome Back

Before Saturday, Fitzgerald had never played a game in right field at any level. The Giants got him some experience in center and left the previous two seasons, but the need right now is in right, where they have been going with left-handed hitters Drew Gilbert and Grant McCray. Desperate for offense and a better matchup against Cortes, they recalled Fitzgerald, who started in right field for Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday and Sunday. 

It was a somewhat windy night, and Fitzgerald misjudged the popup in the first. He looked much more comfortable after that and resembled a seasoned right fielder in the fifth when Manny Machado smashed one to the track. Fitzgerald got a good jump and easily got into position to make the catch. 

Fitzgerald was hitless in two at-bats, flying out twice. He said before the game that he feels more comfortable than he did in his last big league stint, but he’s still searching for his 2024 power swing. 

Dom Barrels 

It’s tough to get a long hitting streak going when you’re not an everyday player. Sometimes you’ll get just one shot to swing the bat, and that was the case for Dominic Smith on Tuesday. 

Smith pinch-hit for Fitzgerald with two on and one out in the sixth and bounced a single to right, extending his streak to 15 games, the longest of his career and longest active streak in the big leagues. He then was replaced by Gilbert, a pinch-runner. It was the third time that Smith has extended his streak as a pinch-hitter, which had not been done by a Giant since 1936.

The streak is the longest by a Giant since Donovan Solano reached 17 games in 2020. It didn’t lead to any runs, though. Patrick Bailey and Heliot Ramos followed with popups, stranding all three runners. 

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Yankees manager Aaron Boone provided some updates prior to Tuesday’s game against the Twins…

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Aaron Judge update, Stanton back-to-back in OF

As SNY's Andy Martino reported Monday, the Yankees still don't have an exact date for Judge’s return to the outfield, but Boone said it’s possible he could be back out there during this weekend’s series with the Cardinals.

“Throwing program is going well, he seems to be improving each time, so we’ll see,” he said. 

Judge hasn’t played the field since July 25 due to a flexor strain in his elbow.

He was able to be activated from the IL this week, but has been limited to DH duties.

With that being the case, the team has been forced to run the oft-injured Giancarlo Stanton out in right field for the first time since 2023. 

Stanton has moved around pretty well in his first few opportunities out there, and now Boone is turning to him in back-to-back games for the first time to keep both big bats in the lineup. 

“I was tempted to do it Sunday after the Saturday game,” the skipper said. “He ended up getting a few innings at the end, but he’s responded well to it physically and we want to keep his bat in there too.” 

Ben Rice back behind the plate with Wells struggling

With Rice swinging a hot bat and Austin Wells struggling mightily, Boone decided to turn to the lefty slugger at catcher for the second consecutive game on Tuesday. 

It’s not just his offense that’s caught the team’s eye; they’ve also liked what they’ve seen defensively despite his limited big-league experience at the position. 

“He’s done a really good job,” Boone said. “He hasn’t done it a lot at this level, so there’s still some things to learn, but we’ve been really pleased with how well he’s handled it. Him now from two months ago is a lot different -- he’s gaining confidence and just playing really well.”

Boone hasn’t spoken with Wells about his playing time, but he does expect him to play a big role for this team down the stretch.

Wells is slashing a lowly .130/.186/.204 over his last 16 games. 

After sitting out the last two, he is expected to be back behind the plate for Wednesday’s series finale. 

“We all get consumed with the now and what’s happening,” he said. “This is just a couple of days in the long stretch of the season, part of it is, we have other guys who are really pushing for more playing time. But Austin is going to be fine and will continue to play a big part for us.” 

Loáisiga close to a return

The Yanks could have a bit of a bullpen crunch real soon.

Loáisiga appears to be closing in on a return after throwing a side session Tuesday.

“He should be in play anytime starting soon because he wasn’t down long,” Boone said. “We’ll decide if we want to get him live, in a game, and how long it’ll be, but he should be pretty close to coming back.”

Loáisiga has been sidelined for about a week with mid-back tightness. 

Fernando Cruz and Ryan Yarbrough are also close to being back with the club.

The Mets are moving Frankie Montasto the bullpen, potentially paving the way for Nolan McLeanorBrandon Sproat to join the starting rotation on Saturday against the Mariners at Citi Field.

Manager Carlos Mendoza said McLean and Sproat are in the discussion to come up to pitch on Saturday, but a final decision has not been made regarding who will make that start against Seattle.

Mendoza noted that Paul Blackburn, who is in the midst of a rehab assignment, is not an option to pitch for New York that day.

Both McLean and Sproat have been excelling for Triple-A Syracuse.

McLean last pitched on Aug. 10, tossing 4.0 innings of one-run ball while allowing two hits, walking two, and striking out seven.

He has allowed more than two earned runs just once since May 15.

Split between Double-A Binghamton and Syracuse this season, McLean has a 2.77 ERA and 1.12 WHIP with 127 strikeouts in 113.2 innings.

Sproat's last start came on Aug. 7, when he allowed three tuns on three hits in 6.0 innings while striking out four. He had been on an absolute heater before that start, allowing a total of two earned runs over his last six starts -- a span of 33.0 innings.

The right-hander got off to a rough start this season for Syracuse, but -- as is noted above -- has been dominant for over a month. Overall this year, Sproat has a 4.10 ERA and 1.25 WHIP with 86 strikeouts in 101.0 innings.

As far as Montas, he had struggled badly after making a strong season debut on June 24.

In eight appearances (seven starts), Montas had a 6.38 ERA (5.26 FIP) and 1.55 WHIP in 36.2 innings while allowing 11.0 hits per nine.

He was used behind an opener on Saturday against the Brewers in Milwaukee, but needed 72 pitches as he labored through three innings while allowing three runs (one earned).

Montas signed a two-year, $34 million deal this past offseason that contained a player opt-out after the season. Given his struggles and demotion to the bullpen, it feels all but certain that Montas will not opt out.

Bullpen joining in on the fun for red-hot Phillies originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

CINCINNATI — With proven bats littered throughout the lineup and a starting pitching staff that has been among the best in baseball, it’s a real good sign that the Phillies’ bullpen has been more than pulling its weight lately.

It has heavily contributed to a run that has seen the Phillies win five of their last six series and seven of their last eight games heading into Tuesday’s contest with the Cincinnati Reds.

After the Phillies got three scoreless innings from the bullpen in Monday’s 4-1 win over the Reds, the relievers have allowed just one earned run in the past 23 2/3 innings for a 0.38 ERA.

No question the addition of closer Jhoan Duran has been a boost to a group that has had its struggles this year, but that alone can’t be the reason for the good showings of late.

Jordan Romano’s difficulties this year have been numerous, as he’ll be the first to tell you, but he’s gone eight of his last nine outings without giving up a run or a hit. He picked up the win Monday with a perfect seventh inning.

“During the course of the year, every facet of the team goes through ebbs and flows,” Romano said. “I think we’re just kind of flowing right now, everyone is doing their job. Duran has been a huge addition, having that guy in the ninth to lock it down and then everybody just kind of trickles from there, has been a huge help. Everyone just kind of going well right now.”

So well that the team has upped its lead over the Mets to six games and is still looking to get some pitching reinforcements with Jose Alvarado expected to join the bullpen next week after serving his 80-game suspension and starter Aaron Nola perhaps also being back as soon as next week.

“I see a lot of good arms and a lot of guys that don’t have any fear to go in there,” David Robertson, who joined the team on Sunday and made his debut Monday, said. “I’ve only been here two days and so far I feel like I’ve walked in here with open arms and these guys are doing their thing. I’m just so happy to join them and be a part of this ‘pen.”

It’s a good group to be a part of right now.

“I think we’re still getting the good pitching and with the Duran and Robertson additions now we’ve got a lot of length, options in the bullpen,” Rob Thomson said. “We’re getting some timely hitting right now and everybody is contributing. A good little run here.”

Health updates

After throwing on flat surface for a bit Tuesday, hours before the game, Zack Wheeler wandered to the side of the field by himself, in front of the Phillies’ dugout, and worked on his windup. He didn’t throw the ball as it appeared he was more looking at his footwork leading up to going into the windup.

Wheeler has been dealing with shoulder soreness for the past few weeks and his start on Sunday in Texas saw a dip in his velocity on all his pitches. After the game, in which Wheeler went five innings and threw 83 pitches, both he and Thomson said all was good, that there was nothing major to worry about.

Monday, Thomson said Wheeler felt great and is on schedule for his next start, which is scheduled for Friday in Washington. He reiterated that on Tuesday, saying that Wheeler will throw a bullpen Wednesday, then be good to go.

Nola was scheduled to start Tuesday for the Lehigh Valley IronPigs and if all goes well he may be back to Philadelphia very shortly.

“We’re still talking about that one,” Thomson said. “We’re going to wait until he gets through this, talk to him tomorrow, see where he’s at, see where Ranger (Suarez) is at after tonight’s game.”

Thomson said Nola’s limit was 85 pitches.

The reference to Suarez could be a hint that, if Nola is good enough to come up to the big club, Thomson is leaning toward using a six-man rotation at points down the stretch. Suarez has had a dip in velocity his past few outings. Over his last five starts, he’s allowed 18 earned runs in 30 innings (5.40 ERA).

Friday is decision day for the Phillies and third baseman Alec Bohm. Thomson said Bohm will flip-flop between third and designated hitter in Lehigh Valley this week before a decision is made with him.

The World Series could end in November this year. Major League Baseball can do without all the "Mr. November" jokes, so the league took a creative step last year: a flexible start date for the World Series.

It's not easy to cram a four-round postseason in a month. But it's even less ideal if the World Series teams roll through the league championship series, then sit around for close to a week before the World Series starts.

MLB unveiled this creative reform last year: If both World Series teams complete the league championship series in no more than five games, the start of the World Series would move up three days. Nothing kills interest in an everyday sport like a week off before the most important games of the season.

The reform did not come into play last season. Although the New York Yankees won the American League Championship Series in five games, the Dodgers needed six games to complete the NLCS.

Read more:Yoshinobu Yamamoto rocked by Zach Neto and Angels as Dodgers' NL West lead falls to 1

When MLB announced its postseason schedule Tuesday, the flexible start date for the World Series was gone. With the Dodgers coming within one victory of making that happen last season, league officials and television partners had the chance to prepare for two possibilities for the start of the World Series. The uncertainty of what date to promote, and the need for alternate travel plans and hotel blocks, left the parties with the thought that a fixed date for the World Series remained a better plan.

The World Series this year is set to start on Friday, Oct. 24, with a possible Game 7 on Saturday, Nov. 1.

The wild-card round starts Tuesday, Sept. 30, with the division series round starting Saturday, Oct. 4. The teams with the top two records in each league earn a bye in the first round and advance directly to the division series.

If the postseason started Tuesday, the Dodgers (68-51) would be the No. 3 seed in the NL, behind the Milwaukee Brewers (74-44) and the Philadelphia Phillies (69-49). The wild-card teams, in order of seed, would be the Chicago Cubs (67-50), San Diego Padres (67-52) and the New York Mets (63-55).

In that scenario, the Dodgers and Mets — the NLCS combatants last season — would meet in the wild-card round this season.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

On the latest episode of The Mets Pod presented by Tri-State Cadillac, Connor Rogers and Joe DeMayo have the perfect diversion from the struggling Mets -- an exclusive interview with Mets legend David Wright.

The guys talk to No. 5 about stories from his number retirement day, behind the scenes tales from the production of his SNY documentary, the 2015 trade deadline, his thoughts on the current team, his choice of the best Mets uniform ever, and all the details of the Battle of the Badges Game between the NYPD and FDNY that David is hosting at Citi Field on Sunday Aug. 17.

Later, Connor and Joe dive down deep (and low) to talk about the current mess that is the Mets, including the pitching problems, the hitting problems, and all the other problems.

The show also goes Down on the Farm to reveal what’s behind the recent success of Brandon Sproat, and opens up a loud Mailbag to let the listeners let it all out as well.

Be sure to subscribe to The Mets Pod at Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts.

It’s no secret that the Mets have been scuffling, having lost 11 of their last 12 games, but owner Steve Cohen isn’t losing faith.

With the Mets beginning a six-game homestand (the final game is in Williamsport, Pa., but the Mets are technically the home team against Seattle) on Tuesday night against the Atlanta Braves, Cohen took to X (formerly Twitter) to send a message to the fans.

“We haven’t been playing well but I still believe in this team,” Cohen wrote. “I will be at [Citi Field] the next 3 games rooting the Mets on. LGM”

While the Mets have been struggling to score runs and haven’t seen their starting pitchers go deep into games, the silver lining is that at 63-55, the Mets still currently hold the third and final NL Wild Card Spot, sitting 2.0 games ahead of the Cincinnati Reds.

Now 6.0 games behind the Phillies in the NL East standings, the Mets still have plenty of time to play catch-up, especially considering that 13 of the team’s 19 remaining August games are against the sub-.500 Braves, Nationals, and Marlins.

The Mets will also host the Phillies for three games from Aug. 25-27, and then play a four-game set in Philadelphia in September, and both series could go a long way towards determining the NL East champion.