SAN FRANCISCO, CA - SEPTEMBER 13: Matt Wilkinson #71 of the San Francisco Giants pitches during the game between the San Diego Padres and the San Francisco Giants at Oracle Park on Sunday, September 13, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Bryan Kennedy/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Well folks, for worse and most certainly for better, the season is almost over. It’s time for the penultimate game of the 2026 campaign for the San Francisco Giants, who host the playoff-bound Los Angeles Dodgers.
For San Francisco, lefty Matt Wilkinson makes the final appearance of his debut season. The 23-year old nicknamed “Tugboat” has made seven appearances and five starts this year, and is 1-3 with a 3.65 ERA, a 4.24 FIP, and 18 strikeouts to four walks in 24.2 innings. Tugboat was excellent his last time out, tossing five shutout innings against this same Dodgers team.
For LA, it’s former Giant Blake Snell. The two-time Cy Young Award-winning lefty has made just eight starts in his second season with the Dodgers, and is 4-1 with a 1.86 ERA, a 1.73 FIP, and 52 strikeouts against 16 walks in 38.2 innings. Snell made one start early in the year, then missed a few months; since returning, he’s yet to give up multiple runs in a game.
Enjoy the baseball, everyone. You’ll miss it when it’s gone, as hard as that is to believe.
Jonah Tong | (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images)
The Mets failed to score in the first six innings of their game against the Nationals this afternoon, but with the team trailing 1-0 in the top of the seventh, A.J. Ewing’s three-run home run turned the game on its head. And Ronny Mauricio made it back-to-back home runs right after that, giving the Mets a 4-1 lead.
Brett Baty, who notably started at shortstop today while Francisco Lindor served as the team’s designated hitter, single in the top of the eighth, prompting an error by Nationals shortstop Nasim Nuñez that allowed Carson Benge to score the team’s fifth run of the day.
Mauricio hit another home run, a two-run shot in the top of the ninth while hitting right-handed after hitting his first home run while batting left-handed. Those two home runs weren’t enough to salvage his major league stat line for the season, but if that’s how he ends the season, it’s a good note on which to do so.
Jonah Tong fared very well in his final start of the season, as he gave up just the one aforementioned run, struck out nine, walked one, gave up three hits, and threw 87 pitches in five innings of work. It’s a small sample, certainly, but Tong finishes the major league portion of his season with a 3.82 ERA and a 3.30 FIP in 30.2 innings. And while Mets manager Andy Green made it clear before the game that Tong is not guaranteed a spot in the rotation heading into the 2027 season, as a fan, you’d much rather see Tong put up the numbers that he did this year than the ones he did when he was called up late in the 2025 season.
The Mets’ bullpen was great, too, with Dedniel Nuñez striking out three in a scoreless sixth inning before Nate Lavender, Devin Williams, and Tobias Myers threw one scoreless inning each. And none of them allowed a hit.
With that, the Mets’ disappointing, underwhelming, last-place-in-the-division season comes to its conclusion tomorrow afternoon at 3:05 PM EDT. And as bad as things have gone, we’ll be longing for more Mets baseball—and better results—very soon after that game ends.
Big Mets winner: A.J. Ewing, +44% WPA Big Mets loser: Brett Baty, -12% WPA Mets pitchers: +27% WPA Mets hitters: +23% WPA Teh aw3s0mest play: A.J. Ewing hits a three-run home run in the top of the seventh, +49% WPA Teh sux0rest play: Brett Baty strikes out in the top of the fourth, -8% WPA
TORONTO (AP) — Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Max Scherzer said Saturday he will wait until the offseason to decide whether he wants to play a 20th major league season in 2027.
Scherzer is expected to start on short rest against Cincinnati in Sunday’s season finale, a chance to pitch in front of his family for the final time this year.
A two-time World Series champion and three-time Cy Young Award winner, Scherzer is 3-9 with a career-worst 6.14 ERA in 17 starts this season. He went 5-5 with a 5.19 ERA in 17 starts with the Blue Jays in 2025.
The 42-year-old has a career record of 224-126 in 500 games, including 491 starts. He started at Baltimore in the first game of a doubleheader last Wednesday, allowing four runs in five innings. Scherzer struck out seven, boosting his career total to 3,550.
Last month, Scherzer moved into ninth place on the career strikeout list with a 10-strikeout game against Seattle, passing Hall of Famer Gaylord Perry. It was the first time this season and 115th time in his career that Scherzer had fanned 10 or more in a game.
Scherzer’s former teammate Justin Verlander is the only other active pitcher with more than 3,500 strikeouts. Verlander had 3,554 heading into his final career start against Pittsburgh on Saturday. The 43-year-old Verlander announced in July that this would be his final year.
Arizona’s first-round pick in the 2006 draft, Scherzer debuted with the Diamondbacks in 2008. He has also pitched for Detroit, Washington, the Los Angeles Dodgers, the New York Mets and Texas.
An eight-time All-Star, Scherzer won his first World Series title with the Nationals in 2019. He got another ring with the Rangers in 2023.
Scherzer started Game 7 of the World Series against the Dodgers last November, the 33rd postseason appearance of his career. He pitched 4 1/3 innings of one-run ball and left to a rousing ovation from Toronto fans, but the Blue Jays lost 5-4 in 11 innings.
The Mets homered three times to defeat the Nationals 7-1 on Saturday afternoon in D.C.
Here are some takeaways..
-- First pitch was bumped from 4:05 p.m. to 12:35 p.m. due to inclement weather in the forecast. There was some rain falling during the early innings, and the wind was whipping at Nationals Park from the get-go, as numerous balls hit in the air were blown back to the infield dirt from the outfield grass.
-- Jonah Tong struck out four batters over the first two innings before running into trouble in the third. A HBP, single, and wild pitch put two in scoring position with nobody out, but Carson Benge made another tremendous catch and Tong's fifth and sixth K's helping him escape with just one run against.
The young right-hander allowed a leadoff single in the fourth then settled into a groove to end his day strong. Tong retired the next six hitters he faced through the fifth, closing his line with just the one run allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out a career-high nine batters on 85 pitches.
Tong pitched to a 3.81 ERA across seven big-league outings this season.
-- The Mets' offense was held in check by Connelly Early and Jake Irvin over the first six innings, but they were finally able to jump in front in the seventh. New York saw their eight and nine hitters, A.J. Ewing and Ronny Mauricio, go back-to-back with two out blasts to make it a 4-1 ballgame.
-- Mauricio wasn't done there, as he left the yard again in the ninth, this time lifting a two-run shot from the right-side of the plate. It was just the 25 year old's third homer in the majors this season, and his first career multi-homer game.
-- The bullpen was solid working behind Tong. Dedniel Nunez earned the victory after striking out the side in his scoreless inning, Nate Lavender followed that with a perfect inning of his own, then Devin Williams had a strong second outing back from injury, before Tobias Myers put on the finishing touches.
Mets pitchers retired 16 consecutive Nats in order from the fourth to one out in the ninth.
-- Brett Baty had to wait seven innings before getting an opportunity in his first start at shortstop, but he handled it smoothly, cleanly fielding a routine grounder before throwing Keibert Ruiz out at first. Baty botched his second opportunity, booting a grounder on the backhand in the ninth.
-- Benge not only continued building his Rookie of the Year case in the field, he also did so with the bat. The sweet-swinging lefty has three more hits on the afternoon -- singling in the fourth, singling again leading off the seventh, then busting out of the box a hustle double in the eighth.
-- It wasn't all good news for the Mets in this one, as Juan Soto was forced to leave the game in the top of the ninth after being hit by a Richard Lovelady pitch on the right hand. Soto was in some clear discomfort before making his way off the field alongside the Mets' trainers.
Soto reached base three times before leaving, singling twice to go along with the HBP.
Game MVP: Ronny Mauricio
Mauricio took full advantage of the rare big-league start, recording his first multi-homer game.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 25: Jacob Degrom #48 and Danny Jansen #9 of the Texas Rangers look on against the Minnesota Twins in the second inning at Target Field on September 25, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) | Getty Images
First Pitch: 3:10 pm CDT TV: Twins.TV Radio: TIBN / WCCO 830 / The Wolf 102.9 FM / Audacy
Last night, you got Joe Ryan and Jacob deGrom. This afternoon, you get Bailey Ober and Nathan Eovaldi. After another full season of Saturday previews, all I can tell you is that after last night’s veteran matchup resulted in whatever competitive remnants of the Twins lineup whomping a multi-time Cy Young Award winner, I throw up my hands in telling you what to expect out of today’s game.
In his final start of 2026 (unless a half-dozen American League teams are erased from our timeline before the postseason starts), Bailey Ober will attempt to keep his ERA+ at 100 or better in order to statistically cement a cobbled-together, league-average season of 25 starts. This year, Ober crossed double-digit career bWAR in his sixth season with the Twins, and proved that maybe there’s a little X-factor involved in being a proven mid-rotation starter.
There is also reason to believe that this winter’s roster crunch could see the physically-declining Ober non-tendered if the Twins deem his short-term outlook not optimistic enough to warrant the price tag on a final year of arbitration. If true, it calls to mind the feeling of last September, when the Twins’ organizational direction was an enormous question mark, and every game felt like it could be the last time you saw [insert Twin here.]
For now, though, we get to enjoy the Bearded Nightmare as he takes the bump on a gloomy final Saturday of the 2026 season.
Jun 14, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Texas Rangers pitcher Nathan Eovaldi (17) talks to his teammate during the eighth inning against the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
HOUSTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 20: Mauricio Dubon #14, Ozzie Albies #1 and Mike Yastrzemski #18 of the Atlanta Braves celebrate a three-run home run during the sixth inning against the Houston Astros at Daikin Park on September 20, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Joe Buvid/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Join us and discuss today’s game in the comments below!
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Saturday, September 26, 4:10 p.m. ET
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 12: Julio Rodríguez #44 of the Seattle Mariners looks on from the dugout between innings against the Athletics at Sutter Health Park on September 12, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Scott Marshall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Julio Rodríguez has a new favorite phrase in English, one he said a couple of times at a pregame media availability on Friday: the devil’s in the details. Interestingly, it’s a newer phrase, not appearing in Bartlett’s until the latter half of the 20th century, likely as a permutation on a saying most notably linked to the fussy, fastidious German architect Mies van der Rohe that “God is in the details.”
Today, “the devil’s in the details” is a cautionary phrase, warning against how seemingly insignificant details can mushroom in importance and ruin an enterprise. It’s not an inapt way to look at the 2026 Seattle Mariners season.
While there were disappointments up and down the roster – Julio’s loss of roughly half the wins he accrued last year wasn’t even the biggest delta change on the roster, a dubious distinction belonging to Cal Raleigh – it was still a huge step back for Seattle’s 25-year-old centerfielder, who posted his worst season by wRC+ and lowest power numbers since 2024, when he lost over two weeks to an ankle sprain.
This year it was a concussion that zapped Julio’s value, holding him back from his typical late-season push. Julio has finished the second half strong his entire career:
Obviously, the pre- and post- concussion numbers are essentially baked into that data, since the injury occurred on July 3, but just to break them out specifically:
Julio pre-concussion: .259 average, .424 slugging, 21% K, 117 wRC+ Julio post-concussion: .239 average, .383 slugging, 24% K, 93 wRC+
Julio declined to divulge all the details of how the concussion affected him, but said it was a “new and different” experience that he had to adjust to on the fly.
“It’s something that —when you play a game where you have to react, be sharp, and that has to do a lot with balance and your eyes and all that, it’s definitely different.”
“Being through that process has shown me how much I actually use my brain to hit, and how much my body actually goes through while I’m playing baseball. It made me appreciate the things I do a little bit more, grateful for the talent and all the things I get to do on the baseball field. Because what we do is not normal, and it’s not normal for the human body to be doing it at this level. And I’m just grateful that I got back on the field, and that I got to play again.”
What professional athletes do is not normal, but Julio is adamant this won’t be his new normal. While he’s pleased with his preparation and ability to stay healthy overall – the concussion notwithstanding, and certainly not his fault – he’s not happy with the results, saying his big takeaway from this season is learning to pay attention to details.
“There’s a lot of little things I could have done better, personally…Results-wise, I feel like I could have done more. I could have done more, I could have impacted the team a little bit more.”
“I know we cannot control results. This is a game of process and all that, but I believe in my talent. I believe in the the way that I play the game, and I just think I have more in the tank. I feel I have more, and that’s something that I’m gonna try to bring more of next year.”
One thing that has been a constant for Rodríguez even when his bat is slower to heat up is his defense. Once tagged as a big-bodied corner outfielder/DH type, Julio dedicated himself to improving his speed and defense. While his stolen base numbers did decline slightly this season – also a career-worst but still over 20, giving him his fifth consecutive 20-20 season and making him the first player in MLB history to start his career with five consecutive 20-20 seasons – his defense, for the first time, looked porous. In each of his four previous seasons, Rodríguez ranked in the top 10% or better for center field defense by Statcast’s Fielding Run Value; this year, he’s fallen below the 40th percentile. The eye test has agreed with his poor defensive numbers: there have been multiple instances this season where Rodríguez’s play in center hasn’t looked anything like his past self. He’s been tentative on certain fly balls, overly aggressive on others, and other times has just flat out lost the ball while trying to track it, plays he would have made easily in other years.
Reading over his comments about the concussion, specifically the ones about reaction time and using your eyes, points toward the fact that even when returned from the concussion IL, his ability to process and track balls and MLB speeds was negatively impacted. But Rodríguez also says he got away from his defensive approach – maybe leading to him being caught in-between on some of those fly balls – and needs to refocus this off-season on what he knows works for him.
“Just getting back to the basics,” he said when asked about how he – and the team as a whole – can improve defensively. “I feel like that’s what it is for me. I tried some things, didn’t work out, and then I got back to my basics, the things I do really well on defense, and feel like that helped me to even it out a little bit.”
“Team-wise, we need to continue to bring the focus in, continue to take care of the little things. We all know that we’re better than this. We all know it, and it didn’t show. Now, it’s about how we respond. Progress isn’t linear, and I do believe you have to struggle in order to realize who you are, and then what do you do about that?”
Those devilish details again. In addition to the defense, Rodríguez also noted what went wrong for him offensively, and how he tried to turn his season around.
“I wish I had the answer right right then and there. But I feel like with time, you know, it kind of showed me. I started being a little bit more late. I started chasing a little bit around the zone. Little things here and there. I feel like that’s what got me away [from my approach].”
“But like I said, we had a lot of lessons [as a team], and I’m looking forward to putting things in motion. The things I learned this year to try to be better for next year.”
Like his teammates, Julio looks forward to starting fresh next year and putting this miserable season behind them. One of the biggest lessons he and his teammates learned? Past success doesn’t guarantee future results. Maybe the pre-season noise about how winnable the AL West was caused the team as a whole to look too far in advance, take things for granted.
“At the end of the day, you can be as good as you were like last year, but each year is a new year. I have learned this,” said Rodríguez. “This this is my fifth season. I have learned that it doesn’t matter what you did the year before, the game is gonna touch you differently. It doesn’t matter how you prepare; the game is always gonna have a new a new question for you.”
“You know, when you focus so far ahead, you can miss some little details. There’s a saying that the devil’s in the details, and I think that’s true. It’s something that I had to learn personally for myself too, and we all should continue to focus on and get better.“
Even with the disappointing season, Rodríguez says he believes in the team and their talent level. The job now is to pick themselves up and understand why this happened and how to stop it from happening again.
“When you get hit in the mouth, you either cover up or you do something about it. That’s what happened to us. We got hit in the mouth. So how do we respond to that? And I do believe we have the pieces. I do believe we’re gonna be doing the right things to to ascend from this. But it’s all about that response.”
“Nobody can avoid getting hit, in life or in baseball. It doesn’t matter where it’s at. But it’s how you take that hit and continue to move forward. That’s what sets people apart.”
As for how this can this team move forward and fix its lackluster execution, Julio has his new mantra in mind.
“The devil’s in the details,” he repeated, taking care to emphasize each word.
“Take care of the details, and I feel like everything is going to be fixed. Stop waiting for things to happen. Actually do the things I live for that creates those those opportunities. Take care of the little details, and you’re gonna be fine.”
The devil’s in the details. Maybe, as Van der Rohe was fond of saying, God is, too.
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 29: A general view of the Nike sneakers worn by Kazuma Okamoto #7 of the Toronto Blue Jays against the Washington Nationals during the eighth inning at Nationals Park on July 29, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Game 161. Are there any other sports that play 162 games in a season? Can you imagine if MLB played just 17 games a season? It would be a whole different spot.
So, I had a night last night. Men’s Night Out, a charity thing for my wife’s church. I’m the least religious person you’ll ever meet, but this is for a very worthy charity. And there are drinks. I’ve gone with friends for the last few years. They put on a very good meal, and silent auction, door prizes and raffles.
All was good, until I had a cigar, along with my scotch. I have one cigar a year, and it has never bothered me before. But, last night, i had to sit for awhile. It is possible I’m getting old. I always thought that only happened to other people.
It has been that sort of year. Hurt my back playing squash, I’ve never hurt my back before. Tore ligaments in my foot playing tennis, never done that. Thought it was all healed, then played squash last week and found out otherwise.
Anyway, enough complaining.
Today’s lineups:
Today’s Lineups
REDS
BLUE JAYS
Carlos Jorge – CF
Brett Bateman – CF
Elly De La Cruz – SS
Nathan Lukes – RF
Sal Stewart – 1B
Vladimir Guerrero – DH
Eugenio Suarez – DH
Alejandro Kirk – C
JJ Bleday – LF
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Tyler Stephenson – C
Sean Keys – 1B
Hector Rodriguez – RF
Josh Smith – LF
Juan Brito – 3B
Andres Gimenez – SS
Matt McLain – 2B
Ernie Clement – 2B
Rhett Lowder – RHP
Trey Yesavage – RHP
Go Jays Go.
"There's just nothing better than that. That’s baseball at its pinnacle… That's just a lifelong memory. That's a baseball memory."
After struggling offensively and patching together a pitching staff, the San Diego Padres hit their stride shortly after the All-Star break. Playing under .500 baseball up to July 23 (50-53), the Friars have a 39-17 record since then. The MLB trade deadline brought in two starting pitchers who have not dominated since their arrival but have helped stabilize the rotation. Nick Pivetta’s return gave the organization a third starter, joining Michael King and Walker Buehler as bulldogs at the start of the rotation.
With that, the offense figured it out, and the stars are playing like stars, with the role players making big contributions. Sweeping the Miami Marlins to start the week, the Padres took two of three from the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chavez Ravine to clinch a Wild Card spot for the third straight season and for the fifth time in the past seven seasons.
They now return home to play the Arizona Diamondbacks, but not for a playoff spot. Their results against the D-backs will be part of a series of games to determine ranking in the Wild Card race and home-field advantage in the first round of the playoffs.
The Chicago Cubs played a day-night doubleheader against the Red Sox in Boston, with the threat of a nor’easter complicating their games. The Cubs were swept by the Red Sox in those two games. Heading into the weekend the Padres had to match the Cubs in wins to hold onto their top Wild Card spot and host the Wild Card round for the NL.
The Arizona Diamondbacks are playing for their playoff lives, still one game back of the Philadelphia Phillies with two games left to play. The Padres could have clinched home-field for the Wild Card Series had they beat the Diamondbacks in the first game of their series.
Primetime Ethan Salas
The Padres did what many in baseball thought was a bad idea. They promoted 20-year-old top prospect Ethan Salas to the major leagues on Sept. 1. Bringing a rookie into a playoff race is a gamble at best. Bringing a 20-year-old catcher into a playoff race could be viewed as foolhardy.
Salas went 0-for-15 to begin his big league career. He struck out, flew out, and grounded out through those at-bats while making adjustments to MLB pitchers. Since that inauspicious start, Salas is 8-for-20 with a triple, two home runs, and five RBI. He has also guided the pitchers through some sticky at-bats while being more effective than he has any right to be with his ABS challenges.
Salas played 17 games with Triple-A El Paso before being summoned to San Diego. That was his only exposure to the ABS system before starting for the Padres. In his 14 challenges, he has won nine while saving his pitchers from multiple tight spots. He flipped base-on balls three times and got a strike call on a previously called ball in a very important spot.
Challenging a David Morgan called ball that would have walked Shohei Ohtani in a bases-loaded situation, Salas correctly identified a strike, and Morgan ultimately struck Ohtani out. That was a turning point in the win on Wednesday.
Far from being in a situation too big for him, Salas is now prompting many to think he should be the starting catcher for the first round of the playoffs.
The youngest player in the major leagues, Salas was not legally allowed to drink the alcohol poured on him during the Padres postgame celebration in the Dodgers’ visiting clubhouse after clinching their spot. Sparkling Martinelli’s clutched in hand, Salas was doused in beer and champagne as his teammates celebrated with him.
His first hit on Wednesday night broke the no-hitter that Tyler Glasnow had going in the sixth inning, scoring on a Dustin Harris sac fly. He followed that up by driving in the winning run in the seventh inning with a single, Xander Bogaerts scoring. He was a key contributor in the series win with his bat and his defense. His teammates celebrated his first playoff experience during their postgame party.
Big-time Tatis
Fernando Tatis Jr. has had a remarkable season for the Padres. After infamously going until May 30 without a home run, Tatis caught fire. Hitting 25 homers since then, Tatis sits third on the team behind Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill. His 82 RBI is also third, behind the same two players. Since the All-Star break, Tatis is hitting .308/.386/.615 with a 1.001 OPS.
Pushing the envelope, Tatis has upped his stolen base total to 38, the most on the team. Like many of his teammates, Tatis has scorched the baseball in September. His batting average of .341 is his best for any month this season, with a 1.088 OPS while hitting two doubles, a triple, eight homers, and amassing 15 RBI.
Second-half offense
Tatis and Jackson Merrill have led the team offensively in the ceremonial second half. They have been supported by multiple standouts around them. As a result, the Padres offense has gone from being the worst in MLB for a large portion of the first half to being a top two team since the break while hitting .267 with a .777 OPS.
The pitching has three strong starters, more than enough for a short series. The bullpen, with the return of Jason Adam to supplement the already lethal arms, could be considered the most accomplished in the playoffs.
The Padres rank third in the majors since the break with 5.12 runs scored per game. The offense’s remarkable turnaround highlights the organization’s philosophy of playing better as the season goes on. Although hard on the Friar Faithful, the first-half Padres have consistently struggled while the second-half Padres inevitably turn it on.
The last hurdle to leap is sustaining that offense through the playoffs. All Padres fans remember the remarkable lack of offensive production that has occurred at some point in the playoffs over the past two seasons.
Home field advantage
The Padres are 49-30 at home. Their road record is 40-41; that is a significant improvement over their eight games under .500 from just a month ago. Only the Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, and Dodgers have better home records, all of them division winners. There is no better home environment in baseball than Petco Park. The team thrives on the energy sent to them from the stands filled with the Friar Faithful.
Mason Miller, speaking with reporters after the win against the Dodgers on Wednesday, acknowledged their desire to play their Wild Card series at Petco Park.
“Just trying to get a home playoff series at Petco. We know how special that place is.”
There is also a big financial advantage to the team with a home series. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune detailed the expense of a traveling party for a Wild Card series away from home versus the benefits reaped from playing at home.
Sending the team and the party that accompanies them is about a $1 million expense. Playing at home, with the accompanying revenue created, equals an approximate $3 million profit for the team. It’s not too difficult to figure out which the Padres prefer.
Pitching preferences
Michael King told the hitters he didn’t want to pitch this weekend. Quoted by Kevin Acee in his Thursday Padres newsletter, King made his preference clear.
“I told them I’d be really mad on Sunday if I had to pitch. So it’s very fun to not have to gameplan for the Diamondbacks and plan for whoever we got.”
Casey Mize and Walker Buehler were slated to start the first two games versus the D-backs. The game on Sunday will likely be a bullpen game that should include Rándy Vásquez. Mize has been less than dominant for the Padres with a 6.64 ERA and that continued with the series-opening loss on Friday.
King will start the first game of the Wild Card Series, with Nick Pivetta and Walker Buehler lining up nicely to follow, as needed.
Roster moves and injury updates
Jason Adam returned to the team for the Dodgers’ games and pitched on Thursday for three outs. Manager Craig Stammen stated a desire to find a soft landing spot for Adam but that wasn’t possible with the Dodgers’ series. Coming in to get the last out in the fifth inning with one pitch, Adam got two more outs in the sixth before leaving the game after throwing five pitches.
Griffin Canning was sent to the Arizona complex while Alek Jacob was DFA’d to make room on the 40-man roster for Adam.
Gavin Sheets and Miguel Andujar were both with the team in LA for the clinching of a playoff spot. Both are ready to be activated, and the Padres have signaled that Sheets will be the first to see action. No roster moves have occurred yet.
Luis Rengifo, who had surgery on his torn ACL, was in the clubhouse celebrating with his teammates on Thursday night. Sporting a crutch while he danced and partied, Rengifo had plastic wrap on his surgically repaired leg.
Joe Musgrove reportedly is throwing on a regular basis but has not been able to ramp up to bullpens. There is no stated plan for what is ahead for Musgrove.
Rámon Laureano has been in Arizona working on his rehab but will not be ready for any playing time this season.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 23: Dalton Rushing #68 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on during the game against the San Diego Padres at Dodger Stadium on September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Meg Oliphant/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers on Friday activated Dalton Rushing from the injured list on Friday as expected, in a last-ditch effort to get him some potential pinch-hitting opportunities to prepare for what would be his role if he’s active at all in October.
Rushing ideally would have been the Dodgers’ backup catcher in October, coming off a fine first full major league season. He filled in as the main catcher for two months while Will Smith was sidelined with a neck injury. Rushing is hitting .249/.332/.466 with 12 home runs. Among the 51 major league catchers with at least 200 plate appearances this season, Rushing’s 120 wRC+ ranks seventh.
In the Dodgers’ last 49 games, Rushing has played in five of them, batting a total of eight times, without a hit.
“The circumstances of his situation, it’s just tough. To be hurt, be back, then to be hurt again, and then to take three pinch-hit at-bats potentially and then to say, ‘Hey, you’re in the roster,’” manager Dave Roberts said of Rushing on Thursday. “But what he’s done for us this year certainly deserves some consideration. That’s kind of giving him the respect and thoughtfulness for what he’s done for us.”
Switch-hitter Alex Freeland was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City to make room for Rushing. Freeland was called up on September 1 and played in 17 of the 22 games for which he was active, including 10 starts, hitting .250/.413/.389. On the season, Freeland led the Dodgers with 67 starts and 579 defensive innings at second base, and hit .234/.327/.325 with an 86 wRC+, including .253/.351/.354 with a 101 wRC+ as a left-handed hitter.
The timing of Freeland’s option means his 10 days won’t be up in time to make the Division Series roster. But one would imagine he’d be in consideration for October option should the need for an infielder arise.
The Cubs played the Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome in March 2025 | | Al Yellon
Sunday afternoon at 2:05 p.m. CT, the Cubs and Boston Red Sox will play Game 162 of the 2026 regular season at the home of the Tampa Bay Rays, Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla., a neutral site. The Cubs played there earlier this year, taking two of three from the Rays back in April, and the Red Sox, who as an A.L. East team travel there twice a year, lost five of the six games they played in the Trop this year — and just wrapped up the second of the two series less than a week ago, last Sunday.
With that, I thought I’d post this history of Cubs neutral site games.
The Cubs have played 34 neutral site games in the Modern Era, 31 regular-season games and three World Series games. Here’s a brief review of all of the Cubs’ neutral site games since 1900.
May 9, 10, 11 and 12, 1911: vs. New York Giants at Hilltop Park, New York
These were made necessary by a fire at the Polo Grounds in April 1911; the Giants played at Hilltop Park, home of the then-New York Highlanders until late June. The Highlanders wouldn’t be named “Yankees” until 1913. The Cubs split the four games.
Sept. 26 (doubleheader), 28 and 29, 1914: vs. Boston Braves at Fenway Park
The Braves’ home at the time, South End Grounds, had a smaller capacity than Fenway, which was only two years old at the time. Imagine this happening today:
On August 3, 1914, Red Sox President Joseph Lannin sent a telegram to Braves President James Gaffney offering the use of Fenway Park (free of charge) in place of the smaller South End Grounds where the Braves played their home games. A month later, on September 3, Gaffney wired Lannin that the Braves would play their remaining home games at the American League park.
Though the Braves had used Fenway Park before, they officially called the ballpark home for the rest of the 1914 regular season.
The Cubs lost all four games; those were the “Miracle Braves” on their way to a World Series title.
May 20, 21, 22 and 24 and July 22, 23, 24 and 26, 1915: vs. Braves at Fenway Park
The Braves continued to use Fenway Park as their home field until Braves Field opened on Aug. 18, 1915. More sweeps: The Cubs won all four games in May and lost all four games of the July series.
While you might say these weren’t “neutral site” games as the Braves used Fenway as their home for 87 total home games from late 1913 through mid-1915, the Retrosheet link lists them as neutral site and says “fire at Huntington Street Grounds” and “delay in opening of Braves Field” are the reasons for the switch. I’m going to go with Retrosheet and consider the 12 games the Cubs played against the Braves at Fenway in 1914 and 1915 as “neutral site.”
Sept. 5, 6 and 7, 1918: World Series Games 1, 2 and 3 vs. Red Sox at Comiskey Park
Major League Baseball and the Cubs decided that the team’s home World Series games would be played at Comiskey Park, which was known at that time as “The Baseball Palace of the World.” Erected in 1910, Comiskey Park held twice as many people and had an upper deck, so MLB and the two teams could split more cash from gate receipts by using the White Sox’s ballpark.
June 25, 1956 and June 5, 1957: vs. Dodgers at Roosevelt Stadium, Jersey City, New Jersey
The Dodgers wanted a new stadium to replace aging Ebbets Field. The minor-league team in Jersey City had departed after 1950 and officials there thought having some Dodgers games in Jersey City might help them attract another team. The Dodgers played seven games there both in 1956 and 1957. There was an option to renew the deal for another three years, but the Dodgers left for Los Angeles after the 1957 season.
March 29 and 30, 2000: vs. Mets at the Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
These were the first MLB games played outside North America. The Cubs and Mets were chosen for these games because of the popularity of Sammy Sosa and Mike Piazza in Japan at the time. The Cubs won the first game 5-3 behind a strong outing from Jon Lieber and lost the second one 5-1 on an 11th-inning grand slam by Benny Agbayani. I attended these games in Tokyo. The second one ran nearly four hours until 11 p.m. local time and had it run another 30 minutes it would have caused a transit mess, as back in that day Tokyo subways stopped running at 11:30 p.m.
Here are articles I wrote on the 20th anniversary of those games on March 29 and March 30, 2020.
Sept. 9, 10 and 11, 2003: vs. Expos at Hiram Bithorn Stadium, San Juan, Puerto Rico
The Expos played 22 games in San Juan in both 2003 and 2004, and the Cubs were part of that in 2003. These games were important for the Cubs in their race toward the NL Central title that year. The Cubs lost two of the three and ended the set one game out of first place. I went to these games as well; one thing I remember is the large number of fans who had taken the short flight from the Dominican Republic to see Sosa play. The games drew 15,632, 18,002 and 12,559 in a stadium with a capacity of about 20,000.
The Cubs won the first game of the series 4-3, lost the second 8-4 and lost the third 3-2.
Sept. 14 and 15, 2008: vs. Astros at Miller Park, Milwaukee
These two games were moved to Milwaukee due to Hurricane Ike bearing down on the Houston area. The first one was historic:
Carlos Zambrano threw the Cubs’ first no-hitter in 36 years in the first of the two games. Incidentally, part of that video is from the Houston TV feed and you can hear Jim Deshaies, then an Astros broadcaster, calling some of it. It was officially a “neutral” site, but due to the proximity to Chicago, nearly all of the 23,441 in attendance were Cubs fans. I went to this one, too, the first Cubs no-hitter I had seen in person. It took another 16 years for the Cubs to throw one at Wrigley Field, by Shōta Imanaga, Nate Pearson and Porter Hodge against the Pirates Sept. 4, 2024.
Big Z’s no-hitter was the first at a neutral site. Walker Buehler and three Dodgers relievers threw the second one May 4, 2018 at Estadio de Beisbol Monterrey in Monterrey, Mexico, the first no-hitter thrown outside the U.S. or Canada.
What’s been nearly forgotten from those two 2008 games in Milwaukee is that the Cubs almost no-hit the Astros the next day as well. Ted Lilly took a no-hitter into the seventh inning before Mark Loretta singled with one out to break it up. It was the only hit the Astros had in a 6-1 Cubs win, and that was more MLB history:
The Cubs became the first team in major league history to throw a no-hitter and one-hitter in back-to-back games.
Eighteen years later, the Cubs are still the only team to do that.
Aug. 18, 2019, vs. Pirates in the Little League Classic at Williamsport, Pennsylvania
The Cubs embraced the spirit of Little League ball, having fun with kids before and during the game, especially Anthony Rizzo:
The Cubs are scheduled to meet the Toronto Blue Jays in the 2027 Little League Classic on Aug. 19, 2027.
Aug. 11, 2022, vs. Reds in the Field of Dreams Game at Dyersville, Iowa
The Cubs scored three runs in the first inning and got five shutout innings from Drew Smyly and defeated the Reds 4-2. Here’s my recap of the game, and this is an scene that will be remembered forever, Cubs and Reds players walking onto the field together, out of the cornfield:
June 24-25, 2023, vs. Cardinals at London Stadium, London, England
The Cubs pounded Adam Wainwright for seven runs in the first four innings of the Saturday game in London and cruised to a 9-1 win. Ian Happ smashed two home runs for the Cubs.
On Sunday, behind Marcus Stroman, the Cubs raced out to a 4-0 first-inning lead, then a key error by Trey Mancini led to three unearned Cardinals runs. The bullpen couldn’t hold the lead and a ninth-inning Cubs rally fell short. The Cubs lost 7-5.
Here are highlights from the Cubs’ 9-1 win on June 24, 2023:
And here are highlights from the 7-5 loss to the Cardinals in London June 25, 2023:
March 18-19, 2025, vs. Dodgers at the Tokyo Dome, Tokyo, Japan
The Cubs traveled 7,000 miles to Asia only to lose both games.
In the first game, Shōta Imanaga no-hit the Dodgers for four innings (though he walked five), then Ben Brown got hit hard in the fifth and the Dodgers defeated the Cubs 4-1.
In the second contest, the Dodgers scored five runs in four innings off Justin Steele and cruised to a 6-3 win. That included a home run by Shohei Ohtani that was pretty clearly fan interference, but that was never going to be called in Ohtani’s home country.
CINCINNATI, OHIO - SEPTEMBER 15: Rhett Lowder #25 of the Cincinnati Reds throws a pitch against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Great American Ball Park on September 15, 2026 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Elly De La Cruz reached his 30-30 milestone during Friday night’s loss to the Toronto Blue Jays, meaning the Cincinnati Reds now have a pair of games left in their 2026 season with roughly nothing left to play for.
That’s true for most of the roster, in all honesty. For Rhett Lowder, though, there’s at least the chance to finish the season on something of a positive note after he’s been mostly bashed around all season. He gets the start today opposite fellow rookie Trey Yesavage, who has had a much more positive 2026 campaign.
Carlos Jorge is back in the leadoff spot, while Juan Brito is mercifully playing 3B so that we don’t have to watch Ke’Bryan Hayes out there.
First pitch is set for 3:07 PM ET. Here’s how both teams will line up to begin things:
SAN FRANCISCO ― When it's all said and done, no one is looking at the San Francisco Giants' 2026 season as a success but instead a learning curve. If anyone is willing to learn, it's first-year baseball manager Tony Vitello.
A weekend matchup against the Giants' longtime rival, the Los Angeles Dodgers, will conclude the rookie season for Vitello. The Giants were handed their 95th loss of the season after losing to the Dodgers in a 2-0 shutout in front of a sold-out crowd of 40,770 at Oracle Park in San Francisco on Friday, Sept. 25. The series continues through Sunday.
Two games remain in the season, and it's to the drawing board for Vitello and the Giants. The first-year skipper understands that improvements need to be made in order for this team to be winners.
"A lot of takeaways are little, but they pile up over 162 games, which we're close to. They pile up for sure. I think one of the conversations or many of the conversations that I've gone over in the last week are there needs to be improvement in all areas," Vitello told USA TODAY Sports. "And I'm not exempt from that. I don't think anyone is exempt from that. I think improvement is needed. There's a lot of information. Information is power. You got to take it and you got to make it useful."
Vitello on first MLB season: "Strikes and gutters"
No one could have predicted the kind of season the Giants would have, especially with a first-year MLB manager. Vitello was a gamble coming in from a successful college coaching stint of seven seasons at Tennessee, leading the Vols to its first college World Series in 2024.
There was optimism that the fresh face could bring a new energy, changing the momentum in the Bay Area. Then reality struck.
A number of player injuries prevented the team from fielding its best lineup. Several players were also dealt at the trade deadline, like Heliot Ramos and Robbie Ray. They suffered critical losses early in the season. On top of that, superstars and individuals paid like stars were a shell of themselves, statistically. It was an overall rocky start to the year and they never recovered.
Were there good moments throughout the 162 games, sure. Milestones were achieved, walk-offs and comeback wins were celebrated.
With growth comes growing pains. There were plenty of those during the 2026 season between dugout-clearing fights, bad losses, ejections, and a number of head-shaking moments.
Vitello quoted The Big Lebowski's "strikes and gutters" when describing the learning curve as a manager.
"Ups and downs. Big Lebowski said 'strikes and gutters.' You gotta manage both, which I think has always been a challenge, but it's just at this level it's more relentless. It's every day. Fortunately, (I) got really good people to lean on to make it an enjoyable year, despite the record," Vitello told USA TODAY. "But I don't think anybody that will ever step foot in this park is satisfied with the results and the outcome.
You can only control so much of those but you can control a lot on how you approach getting to those outcomes and results. Those have to be attacked relentlessly, attacked with a passion."
Giants lock in on young prospects going into offseason
Towards the end of the season, San Francisco has been forced to take a look at younger prospects on the team due to injuries to projected starters and stars such as Harrison Bader, Casey Schmitt, Matt Chapman, Daniel Susac and a number of pitchers in their bullpen.
Some of the younger cats getting playing time have been taking full advantage of their opportunities. Third-base coach Gary Pettis has taken notice of those making noise and a name for themselves such as Jonah Cox, Turner Hill, Víctor Bericoto and Christian Koss.
"Cox would be one of the guys that comes to mind right away. Exciting player, can do a lot of things. Then you have Turner out in left field, Victor Bericoto. I mean, Christian Koss has done a good job for us at shortstop. You know, Kavanaugh behind the plate," Pettis told USA TODAY Sports. "We've got a lot of guys that have been given an opportunity to play, and so far they're handling it well. But I also think that they're learning the difference between playing minor league baseball and major league baseball, mentally."
Giants pitcher Dylan Smith is another one of those players making the most of their opportunities to play, especially as he looks to plug a bruised bullpen. Smith was traded from the Detroit Tigers to San Francisco at the start of the 2026 season. He's been determined to put in the necessary work to find a place on a team in need of pitching.
"The biggest part I'll say is just the hard work and determination. Like, you have to go out there each and every day, and you have to go prove yourself," Smith told USA TODAY Sports. "You got to go out there and dominate and attack the hitters. And (you) got to do it every day, you know can't have no days off, especially being in the bullpen. Each time, it matters."
Although not a starter, Smith appeared in 48 games. He has four saves in 2026 as a reliever. Overall, he's posted a 1-6 win-loss record with a 3.31 ERA and 1.30 WHIP. He's delivered 48 strikeouts in 51.2 innings pitched.
Against the Dodgers on Friday, Sept. 25, Smith pitched one inning and struck out three batters. No hits, runs or batters walked were allowed. He is looking to find a home in San Francisco, an organization scraping for pitchers to improve its bullpen after multiple injuries all year long.
"I feel like you gotta build on each and every opportunity that you get, you know," Smith said. "I feel like as long as we have each other's back and we go out there and compete and do what we do, then I feel like the bullpen's gonna be fine."
San Francisco's young players still have building blocks to develop in order to be a more competitive team in the future. The potential is there in the Giants' organization; Vitello said it's about making valuable use of their time during the offseason.
"(I think) rounding things out with some of these guys and making sure they attack the offseason the right way. This offseason will be more important than arguably any offseason in the big leagues. It's always a time to separate yourself from people," Vitello told USA TODAY. "Whether it's you as an individual trying to grab a job, or reach some individual goals and ultimately a team is made up of individuals so if the team is going to be better, that's gotta be a key.
"So I think that's gotta be done before anything," he added. "Obviously you got to refresh a little bit too. But a big thing is again, the information piece, reflect back on some things. You do have the benefit of slowing things down or watching a replay and saying what if, or this and changing some things. I don't think that can wait until it's start time. It's gotta be put in place ahead of time and then maybe that message is relayed ahead of time to the players as well."
ATLANTA, GA - SEPTEMBER 22: Michael Harris II #23 of the Atlanta Braves lays down a bunt in the second inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Truist Park on September 22, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Matthew Grimes Jr./Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Walt Weiss is putting Michael Harris back at the leadoff spot, hoping he can get the centerfielder going after a difficult September, as we approach the playoffs. Austin Riley was bumped back up to the fifth spot, as he has perhaps been better in the second half, but has had a monthly best wRC+ of just 101 this season. If there were ever a time for Austin to turn it around, this postseason sure would be a fun time for it.
Meanwhile, the fish are rolling with a familiarly unimpressive lineup in a game with nothing but draft stakes for them. They also helpfully note that the roof will be closed in their stadium.
