Phoenix, AZ - February 19, 2026: Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Evan Phillips (59) at Los Angeles Dodgers' media day during spring training in Camelback Ranch, Phoenix, AZ on February 19, 2026. (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
Thirteen months and two days after undergoing Tommy John surgery, Dodgers reliever Evan Phillips was activated off the 60-day injured list on Monday by the Dodgers ahead of their three-game series against the Colorado Rockies at Dodger Stadium.
Phillips had an extensive rehab assignment, appearing in 12 games over 30 days with Triple-A Oklahoma City. The right-hander had a 1.80 ERA with 13 strikeouts and five walks in 10 innings for the Comets, with his last game coming last Friday, a perfect frame with two strikeouts against Sugar Land. This was essentially spring training for Phillips, who pitched on back-to-back days on June 24-25, and appeared in parts of two innings on June 28, usual items on the checklist for relief pitchers building up for their season.
Jake Eder, who was on the minor league injured list in Oklahoma City, was released to make room on the 40-man roster for Phillips. Paul Gervase was optioned to Triple-A to open the active roster spot. Gervase pitched in two of the four games for which he was active on this stint in the majors. Eder, acquired from the Washington Nationals on April 1, piched in four games for the Dodgers and allowed a run on three hits in four innings, with one strikeout and one walk.
Also on Monday, the Dodgers added pitcher Carlos Durán to the 40-man roster and designated catcher Chuckie Robinson for assignment.
Durán was originally developed by the Dodgers but was traded to the A’s in April 2025 for outfielder Esteury Ruíz. Durán signed a minor league contract to return to the Dodgers in December, and was a non-roster invitee in spring training. In 30 games for Oklahoma City, Durán has a 3.86 ERA and two saves with 50 strikeouts and 25 walks in 35 innings. He’ll remain with the Comets, only now on the 40-man roster.
Robinson started six games behind the plate to backup Dalton Rushing before getting optioned over the weekend in favor of Eliezer Alfonzo. Robinson had two hits in 23 at-bats with the Dodgers, both hits coming on June 23 at the Minnesota Twins.
SCOTTSDALE, ARIZONA - FEBRUARY 27: Zac Veen #13 of the Colorado Rockies advances to second base on a wild pitch against the San Diego Padres during the fifth inning of a spring training game at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick on February 27, 2026 in Scottsdale, Arizona. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Minor League Baseball announced today that Albuquerque Isotopes outfielder Zac Veen (No. 9 PuRP) has been named Pacific Coast League Player of the Month for June.
The PCL Player of the Month award for June goes to Mr. Veen!
He slashed .366/.385/.782 with 13 doubles, four triples, seven homers and 19 RBI. Also led the PCL with 37 hits and all of MiLB with 79 total bases in June.
Over 24 games in June, Veen slashed .366/.385/.782. This includes 13 doubles, four triples, seven homers, and 19 RBI. He led the PCL in hits (37), doubles, total bases (79), and tied for first in triples during the month of June. In addition, Veen led minor league baseball in total bases.
His 24 extra-base hits in June were second-most for an Isotopes player in a month since at least 2005. Scott Seabol and Ryan Ritter each collected 25 extra-base knocks in May 2006 and May 2025, respectively.
Add to that, Veen hit safely in 23 of 24 games during the month and compiled a 25-game hit streak from May 27-June 25, the third-longest in Isotopes history. Additionally, he tied a franchise record with three doubles on June 23 when the Isotopes met the Salt Lake Bees before launching a pair of leadoff home runs later in that series.
This marks the ninth time in team history an Albuquerque player has won PCL Player of the Month: Scott Seabol (May 2006), Ryan McMahon (June 2017), Mike Tauchman (May 2018), Taylor Motter (July 2021), Wynton Bernard (August 2022), Elehuris Montero (May 2023 and July 2024) and Ryan Ritter (May 2025).
This is Veen’s first Player of the Month award of his career.
Jun 15, 2026; St. Louis, Missouri, USA; St. Louis Cardinals starting pitcher Dustin May (3) reacts after an inning ending double play against the San Diego Padres during the seventh inning at Busch Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Curry-Imagn Images | Jeff Curry-Imagn Images
The St. Louis Cardinals begin a brutal 5-game series over just 4 days against the Milwaukee Brewers Monday night at Busch Stadium. The Cardinals will give the ball to Dustin May while the Brewers will assign Shane Drohan the starting duties. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45pm central time and the game TV broadcast will be available on Cardinals.tv.
May 23, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; A view of the signage above the main scoreboard before the game between the San Francisco Giants and the Chicago White Sox at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images | Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images
George Springer has joined the team in San Francisco, but there is no word that he’s been added to the roster and he isn’t in the lineup tonight, which is something that we could have an explanation about. Of course, as soon as I hit publish the team will make an announcement.
The lineup they have posted:
Today’s Lineups
BLUE JAYS
GIANTS
Ernie Clement – 2B
Heliot Ramos – RF
Nathan Lukes – RF
Luis Arraez – 2B
Vladimir Guerrero – 1B
Casey Schmitt – 3B
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Rafael Devers – DH
Sean Keys – DH
Jung Hoo Lee – CF
Alejandro Kirk – C
Willy Adames – SS
Daulton Varsho – CF
Bryce Eldridge – 1B
Myles Straw – LF
Victor Bericoto – LF
Andres Gimenez – SS
Eric Haase – C
Kevin Gausman – RHP
Landen Roupp – RHP
Shi Davidi tells us that Vladimir Guerrero’s back has been bothering him more than he’s admitted to us. Which make sense. Players don’t need to tell everyone if they are hurting.
It explains why he is skipping the All-Star game.
Back things are weird, one day it will feel good and the next you are back to hurting. Back issues happen when you are are in shape or out of shape or in shape. With the rather violent action of a swing, it would be pretty hard for you back to improve if you are taking several swings a day. I think a few days off might do him good. Or at least it can’t get all that worse.
It is Stampede, here in Calgary, and it is a busy time for me, so posting will be a little hit and miss this week. There are a lot of things going on.
AKRON, OHIO - MAY 26, 2026: Parks Harber #26 of the Richmond Flying Squirrels bats during the first inning against the Akron RubberDucks at 7 17 Credit Union Park on May 26, 2026 in Akron, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
A busy weekend for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates! Let’s jump into all the action that happened on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday.
All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.
News
Some shocking news came across the farm over the weekend: Low-A San Jose LHP Braydon Risley was released. Risley was a 19th-round pick in last year’s draft, and had been having a decent debut season, with a 4.80 ERA, a 4.70 FIP, and a Pitcher of the Month award in the Cal League in May. I don’t want to speculate as to the exact why for this release — hopefully we get details at some point — but, put simply, drafted players do not get released in their debut seasons because of their on-field performance (and even if they did, Risley has been too good to be a consideration for that reason). This is almost certainly an off the field matter, and likely a severe one, given that he was released rather than placed on any sort of leave.
In happier news, AA Richmond center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) was named Player of the Month in the Eastern League, while High-A Eugene center fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) was named Player of the Week in the Northwest League.
In injury news, Richmond catcher Adrián Sugastey was placed on the 7-Day IL, while AAA Sacramento LHP Matt Wilkinson was activated off the IL. Sacramento outfielder Grant McCray will begin a rehab assignment in the Arizona Complex League.
And finally, some shuffling of Quad-A relievers. The Giants designated RHP Gregory Santos for assignment, and outrighted him to Sacramento when he cleared waivers. They also claimed RHP Eric Cerantola off of waivers from the Royals, and assigned him to Sacramento. Cerantola is a 26-year old who was taken in the 5th round in 2021. He has a 2.67 ERA and a 4.31 FIP in AAA this year, with 43 strikeouts in 30.1 innings. He made his MLB debut earlier this year.
AAA Sacramento (45-39)
Friday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the El Paso Chihuahuas 4-2 [box score] Saturday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the El Paso Chihuahuas 8-6 [box score] Sunday: Sacramento River Cats lost to the El Paso Chihuahuas 11-2 [box score]
Well, not a good weekend for the River Cats, that’s for sure.
It was also an odd weekend. The biggest oddity appeared on Sunday, when LHP Joe Whitman (No. 26 CPL) made an appearance out of the bullpen. Whitman, the team’s compensation round pick in 2023, was arguably the best starting pitcher in the Eastern League while in AA this year, and received a well-earned promotion to AAA. He’s had a few bumps and bruises as one expects in AAA, but had been fairly solid through 5 starts. And then came this bizarre bullpen outing.
As Roger Munter notes in his must-read Minor Lines, Sunday was Whitman’s scheduled start, but the River Cats were also welcoming LHP Matt Wilkinson back into the fold after a rehab stint. Still and all, I would have assumed that would mean the team would piggyback them, but instead they used Whitman like a true reliever, bringing him into the game in the 4th inning, with 2 outs and a runner on base, and only keeping him out there through the 5th inning. He wasn’t sharp, unfortunately, giving up 2 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run in 1.1 innings, though he needed just 18 pitches to do so.
In all, it turned into a day of using starters in brief stints: Wilkinson lasted just 3.2 innings as he gave up 3 hits, 2 walks, and 3 runs, with 3 strikeouts, while RHP Carson Seymour came in later and tossed 2 rough innings, allowing 5 hits, 1 walk, and 2 runs, with 3 strikeouts. So not a great day for any of those starting pitchers, but they all did better than the rehabbing pitcher on Sunday, as RHP Jason Foley faced 4 batters and didn’t retire any of them, giving up a double, a single, and 2 walks, which ultimately resulted in 4 earned runs after Seymour’s struggles allowed all the inherited runners to score. A day to forget for the pitchers, and it’s really been a rough scene for Foley, who has a 7.80 ERA and a 5.26 FIP during his rehab assignment, with just 10 strikeouts in 15 innings. Not sure what the Giants will do about that situation.
Friday’s starter was the biggest pitching bright spot, as RHP Blade Tidwell (No. 9 CPL) was strong through 5 innings, giving up 5 hits, 2 walks, and 2 unearned runs, while striking out 6 batters. That said, the unearned runs thing feels a little cheap, since it involved an error by Tidwell himself, and then an ensuing home run … 2 things that feel a little antithetical to a run being “unearned.” Still, it was a solid showing, even if it took him 97 pitches to get through 5 innings. RHP Trent Harris (No. 29 CPL) pitched a perfect inning with 2 strikeouts later in the game, as he continues his glorious run … he’s now allowed runs in just 1 of his last 16 outings, which spans more than 2 months. That’s brought him down to a 3.96 ERA and a 4.73 FIP, despite an ugly start to the year.
Also nice relief outings for RHPs Braxton Roxby (2 no-hit innings with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts) and Wilkin Ramos (2 perfect innings with 1 strikeout), and LHP Nick Zwack (1 perfect frame with 2 strikeouts).
In the batter’s box, left fielder/right fielder Will Brennan continues to be the team’s best offensive player post-outrighting. The lefty had a lovely weekend, hitting 4-12 with a home run, a double, a hit by pitch, and no strikeouts.
The 28-year old veteran has a 7-game hitting streak, and has collected 10 hits through 5 games in July. And since getting designated for assignment and outrighted, he’s gone 21-57 with 1 home run, 6 doubles, 3 walks, and just 3 strikeouts. It’ll be an uphill battle to get back on the roster, but we’ll see if the Giants trade any of their outfielders in the next month.
Speaking of which, center fielder/left fielder Turner Hill just continues to look comfortable in AAA. He had another majestic weekend, hitting 4-10 with a double, a walk, a hit by pitch, and, like Brennan, no strikeouts. The 27-year old undrafted free agent has an .843 OPS and a 125 wRC+ since getting promoted, with strong outfield defense and 15 stolen bases in 61 games. He’s kind of a left-handed hitting Jonah Cox Lite!
Finally, the up-and-down play continued for catcher Jesús Rodríguez (No. 16 CPL). After not getting an at-bat on Friday, the contact savant went 2-5 with a home run and a stolen base on Saturday, though he also committed an error. But on Sunday, he went 0-5 with 2 strikeouts. He’s really been scuffling since getting optioned just over a month ago, and his season numbers in AAA are down to a .777 OPS and a 106 wRC+.
Friday: Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Harrisburg Senators 7-0 [box score] Sunday: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Harrisburg Senators 6-5 [box score]
No Saturday game for the Squirrels, as their holiday game was lost due to poor weather. Not very patriotic of the weather if you ask me!
But 2 games was all that was needed for third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) to shine. Harber put on a superstar showing in both games: on Friday, he cemented the blowout win by smashing a 3-run home run in the 7th inning, as part of a 3-4 day that featured a sacrifice fly and his 1st stolen base of the season.
Yeah Taylor and Travis just got married but have you heard Parks Harber hit another bomb? 💥 pic.twitter.com/dEfIB0G5fT
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 4, 2026
And on Sunday? Well, he one-upped himself, going 2-4 with a pair of big flies. What a weekend!
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 5, 2026
Harber hit the ground running after missing the start of the season with an injury, but fell into a bit of a slump for a while. I think it’s safe to say that the slump is well behind him at this point! Over his last 8 games, the righty is hitting 13-32 with 3 homers, 3 doubles, 3 walks, and 6 strikeouts. It’s brought his OPS back to .897 and his wRC+ to 136, though he still has a 25.1% strikeout rate.
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 5, 2026
Interestingly, after moving strictly to the outfield for a while, Harber is back to playing third base. Is it a coincidence that his time in the outfield coincided with the Giants having a hole in their outfield, and his move back to third coincides with Matt Chapman’s injury? I’d say yes, but given the trajectory they’ve put some of their prospects on this year, who knows!
Richmond’s other offensive star had a nice weekend as well, if a little quieter, as center fielder Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) hit 4-8 with a double, a walk, 2 stolen bases, and a strikeout. After a stunning June in which he posted a 1.072 OPS, the 24-year old lefty is off to a similarly hot start to July, with a .984 OPS through the 1st 4 games. He’s up to an .861 OPS and a 121 wRC+, with 13 stolen bases in 15 attempts.
Second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 32 CPL) had a lovely time at the yard, hitting 2-6 with a home run and a walk. He’s up to a .779 OPS and a 112 wRC+ on the year, and the 22-year old switch-hitter has more than doubled his isolated slugging over his prior stops in Richmond.
— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 4, 2026
A great pitching performance on Friday, led by LHP Greg Farone, who had one of his best performances of the year. The 2024 7th-rounder threw 6 shutout innings, giving up just 5 hits, 0 walks, and 2 hit batters, while striking out 5. It’s been a struggle of a year for the 24-year old southpaw, who was given a rather aggressive assignment in his 2nd season, and has just a 6.17 ERA and a 6.18 FIP. His June was particularly bad — he allowed 15 walks and 17 earned runs in 21 innings — so it’s nice seeing him start July on the right foot.
He was followed up by another player who has been having a tough season but had a great game: RHP Shane Rademacher. The 25-year old UDFA, who is in his 3rd season, threw 3 no-hit innings to end the game, with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts. After a really rough start to the year, Rademacher — who is pitching strictly in relief this year — has started to find a rhythm. He’s allowed 4 runs in 14.2 innings over his last 6 games, after ceding 16 earned runs in 22 innings over his 1st 13 outings.
LHP Charlie McDaniel pitched 6.1 innings on Sunday, which was impressive, though he allowed 7 baserunners and 3 runs, with just 3 strikeouts. The undrafted free agent, who turned 25 on Saturday, has a 5.04 ERA and a 4.15 FIP in 6 starts since getting promoted.
High-A Eugene (49-32)
Friday Game 1: Eugene Emeralds lost to the Vancouver Canadians 5-3 (7 innings) [box score] Friday Game 2: Eugene Emeralds beat the Vancouver Canadians 9-0 (7 innings) [box score] Saturday: Eugene Emeralds beat the Vancouver Canadians 8-2 [box score] Sunday: Eugene Emeralds lost to the Vancouver Canadians 5-3 [box score]
It was a very nice weekend for the farm system’s power hitters … while Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) was bashing homers in the Eastern League, center fielder/right fielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) was doing the same in the Northwest League. Jordan has really been turning things on lately following a June swoon, and this weekend emphasized that. After going 0-4 with a strikeout in the 1st game of Friday’s doubleheader, Jordan turned on the burners: over the weekend’s final 3 games, the ultra athletic righty hit 8-13 with 2 home runs, 2 doubles, and 1 strikeout.
The 2024 4th-rounder, who recently turned 23, now has an .846 OPS and a 122 wRC+, and in his last 7 games has hit 13-29 with 8 extra-base knocks, which earned him Player of the Week honors. Perhaps most encouraging is that Jordan, who still has quite a big swing-and-miss issue, has only 3 strikeouts in his last 11 games.
And now, for the GRAND FINALE!
Dakota Jordan extends his team lead in HR, sending his 15th and 2nd of the game out of the ballpark. @Kota_1k is on an absolute TEAR leading up to the All-Star Future’s Game.#RootedHerepic.twitter.com/fnZZZRAOYO
Plenty of other nice offensive performances, including from left fielder Carlos Gutierrez (No. 18 CPL), who hit 5-14 with 2 doubles, 2 walks, a stolen base, and 3 strikeouts, bringing his OPS to .796 and his wRC+ to 115, with 19 stolen bases in 20 attempts. The middle infield duo of Jhonny Level (No. 3 CPL) and Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL) had up-and-down weekends, with Level going 4-17 with 2 doubles, 3 strikeouts, and a caught stealing, and Kilen hitting 3-17 with a home run, 2 doubles, and 3 strikeouts. Level now has a .756 OPS and a 102 wRC+ since a promotion, while Kilen has an .818 OPS and a 118 wRC+ in his 1st full season.
A nice weekend for corner outfielder Jakob Christian (No. 40 CPL), who hit 3-10 with a home run, a double, a walk, a hit by pitch, and 3 strikeouts, bringing his OPS to .828 and his wRC+ to 123. Christian is showing off a ton of power and getting on base at a fantastic clip, but still really struggling with strikeouts, with a 31.3% rate.
Also homering were catcher Onil Perez and first baseman Robert Hipwell, who each knocked their 3rd dinger of the year in otherwise rough offensive seasons. Catcher Jancel Villarroel (No. 42 CPL) only played twice, but hit 5-7 with a double and a walk, boosting his OPS to .857 and his wRC+ to 131. What a season for the 21-year old!
The pitching star was LHP Jacob Bresnahan (No. 11 CPL), who nearly pitched a complete game during the 7-inning 2nd game of Friday’s doubleheader. The just-turned 21-year old finished with 6.1 shutout innings in which he allowed just 2 hits, 2 walks, and a hit batter, though he only struck out 3. After an injury delayed his start, and then he pitched with a fair amount of rust, Bresnahan has started to really turn his season around … he’s all the way down to a 3.19 ERA, though his 4.50 FIP points to some of the issues he’s been having after back-to-back Pitcher of the Year campaigns to start his career.
While Bresnahan’s strikeout totals were low in this one, it was his 3rd straight excellent outing, as he’s now gone at least 6 innings in 3 straight games, giving up just 7 hits, 4 walks, and 1 run in 18.1 innings over that time. Quite impressive! The strikeouts are a touch concerning, as he’s gone from 12.0 per 9 last year to just 9.7 this season, but that’s still an OK number. And while his home runs have gone in the wrong directions — from 0.2 per 9 last year, to 1.0 this year — he’s also only allowed 35 hits in 53.2 innings, which is extremely impressive.
RHP Niko Mazza also had a great start, as he continues to sport a great ERA/bad FIP combo meal. Mazza pitched on the holiday and went 6 innings, while giving up 5 hits, 1 walk, 2 hit batters, and just 1 run. The 24-year old 8th-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft threw 56 of 85 pitches for strikes but, like Bresnahan, only struck out 3 batters. That was out of character for the Southern Mississippi alum, who has boosted his strikeouts per 9 innings from 8.7 in his debut season (in Low-A) to 10.9 this year. And, just like last year, he has an ERA in the 2s (2.63) despite an FIP in the 4s (4.09).
Part of the reason for that high FIP is the walks (he’s issued 5.5 per 9 innings), so the singular walk in this game was a nice change of pace, despite the 2 hit batters.
RHP Gerelmi Maldonado (No. 21 CPL) pitched a no-hit inning with a walk and a strikeout, and it was his 4th straight game without allowing a hit (though he’s walked at least 1 batter in all 4 appearances). The 22-year old’s stuff remains absurd: in 19.2 innings this year, the triple-digit flamethrower has struck out 29, while giving up just 11 hits … but he’s walked 27.
Low-A San Jose (49-32)
Friday: San Jose Giants beat the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 6-5 [box score] Saturday: San Jose Giants beat the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 14-6 [box score] Sunday: San Jose Giants beat the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes 7-2 [box score]
The Baby Giants are officially rolling … they not only swept the weekend, but swept the series, and ride into Monday’s off-day on a 7-game winning streak.
They used the long ball for this weekend’s success, smacking 8 home runs over the 3 games, with at least 2 dingers in each contest.
A pair of those home runs came from someone who is quickly starting to look like one of the breakout players of 2026: right fielder Jose Astudillo. Power numbers in the Cal League shouldn’t be taken too seriously, especially for a 22-year old, but still: Astudillo has always been a sensational contact hitter and a strong defender, but now he’s added in power. Over the weekend he went 5-11 with 2 home runs, 2 doubles, 2 walks, 2 strikeouts, and an outfield assist, bringing his OPS up to .940 and his wRC+ to 132 (and running his hitting streak to 18 games). The .353 batting average and 5.9% strikeout rate, which rank 2nd and 1st, respectively, out of the 88 Cal League hitters with at least 150 plate appearances? We’ve come to expect that. But the .190 isolated slugging and the 6 home runs? That is a shock for someone who entered the year with just 1 career home run in 110 games. Hopefully it can continue!
Don't think it's possible to be hotter than Jose Astudillo right now. His second two-RBI hit of the night, this one an absolute no-doubter. pic.twitter.com/BOmOfvGPA5
He wasn’t the only San Jose hitter to go yard multiple times, though the other was less surprising: left fielder Lisbel Diaz (No. 31 CPL) went 3-5 with a pair of home runs and a walk on Saturday, though he went 0-9 with 3 strikeouts in the other 2 games. Not only have we grown accustomed to Diaz hitting homers (he’s 3rd in the system with 13 this year), but he’s playing down a level, as he couldn’t join High-A Eugene on their trip north of the border, so he bopped down to California.
A LISBEL LASER.
Lisbel Diaz hits his second home run of the game, and the Giants have reached double digits in the run column for the NINETEENTH TIME this season! pic.twitter.com/Ini2tsKYen
Third baseman Dario Reynoso continued to rebound from a little slump he had going, as he went 5-12 with a home run, 2 doubles, 2 walks, a stolen base, and 5 strikeouts. Reynoso, who has a .942 OPS and a 133 wRC+, continues to put on a show: his .295 batting average ranks 22nd out of those aforementioned 88 Cal League hitters, while his .241 isolated slugging mark is 10th, and his 14.5% walk rate is 19th. But the 31.1% strikeout rate and 14.8% swinging strike rates remain terrifying, though they are improvements over his 2025, so at least there’s that.
FIREWORKS IN THE FIRST AGAIN!
Dario Reynoso blasts his 11th homer of the year (109 EV) and for the second night in a row, Giants score first on the long ball. pic.twitter.com/TTcFaJ1k80
Shortstop Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL) played quite well, hitting 4-11 with a home run, 2 walks, and 1 strikeout. Last year’s 4th-round pick has taken a while to get going, but has been much better lately, and now has a .729 OPS and an 82 wRC+, though the 27.2% strikeout rate is a touch concerning for the 22-year old. His July has been excellent following a tough June.
Lorenzo Meola with another mammoth home run, the Giants ELEVENTH home run this series. pic.twitter.com/boTQT2LDdq
First baseman Jeremiah Jenkins and left fielder Oliver Tejada both homered over the weekend as well. Jenkins, who hit 2-12 and added a double, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts, now has an .866 OPS and a 115 wRC+; Tejada, who went 1-3 with a walk and a strikeout in his only game, is 2-14 through 4 games since getting promoted.
And another one!
Oliver Tejada with his first HR of the season, and the Giants take a 4-0 lead. pic.twitter.com/S11y94Ok6d
There were a pair of bits of big news on the pitching front. On the unhappy side was the aforementioned release of LHP Braydon Risley, who made his final appearance for the organization on Friday. It showed off his strengths and his weaknesses, as he allowed 7 baserunners and 3 runs in just 4.1 innings, but also struck out 7 batters. Hopefully we find out at some point why he was released less than a year after getting drafted.
The happier side of the news was that RHP Keaton Winn continued his rehab assignment on Sunday. He pitched for the 2nd time in his rehab, and for the 1st time in San Jose, and gave up a hit and a walk in a scoreless inning. Hopefully he’s back in the San Francisco bullpen soon.
Following Winn was RHP Sam Bower, who had a wonderful game, throwing 4 shutout innings and allowing just 2 singles and 0 walks, while striking out 6. Bower, the 2022 11th-round pick who, due to injuries, didn’t debut until this season, is starting to find his rhythm and kick his rust and dust off. He still has just a 4.62 ERA and a 4.80 FIP in his debut season, but in his last 2 starts has allowed just 5 hits, 0 walks, and 0 runs in 9 innings, with 12 strikeouts. Trending up!
LHP Ricardo Estrada started on Saturday and had a funny start. The 24-year old from Mexico gave up just 3 hits and 1 run in 5 innings, but walked 4 batters (he also struck out 6). He has just a 4.17 ERA and a 5.80 FIP on the year.
Perhaps the most exciting news in this game was that designated hitter Reggie Crawford returned following an injury. He played part of Friday’s game and hit 2-2 with 2 runs batted in, and in 5 games this year is 5-14 with a home run, 2 walks, and 4 strikeouts.
By now you’re likely all familiar with Crawford’s story and career path (and if you want more there, I recommend reading Justice delos Santos’ recent profile). After Crawford began hitting again following his countless pitching injuries, it felt extremely cruel that he quickly suffered an injury playing first base. But it’s great that the injury didn’t linger, and hopefully he can get back in a rhythm of playing regularly this summer.
Speaking of injured players returning, shortstop Josuar González (No. 2 CPL) is still healthy, though the Giants have slow-playing him a little bit following his second hamstring injury. He played in Friday’s game and went 0-2 and was caught stealing, but also drew 2 walks and stole a base. He’s still only played 20 games in the ACL, but the 18-year old superstar prospect is 23-61 with 7 extra-base hits, 15 walks, just 15 strikeouts, and 6 stolen bases in 7 attempts. I can’t wait to see him in San Jose later this year.
His counterpart, shortstop Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) also only played once, but went 1-4 with a triple, a hit by pitch, and a strikeout. He’s slowed down a little bit following his unreal start, but he still has a .939 OPS, a 119 wRC+, and just a 17.7% strikeout rate … stunning numbers for a 17-year old middle infielder in his debut season. The future is bright! Which is good, because the present is fairly ugly.
First baseman Evan Estevez had a nice weekend as well, going 3-8 with a 2-run home run, though he also struck out 4 times. The 18-year old has struggled in his stateside debut, with just a .723 OPS and a 76 wRC+. He’s shown some good power (he now has 5 home runs and 11 extra-base hits in 43 games), but his contact skills are really taking a hit, as he has just a .231 average and a 37.1% strikeout rate.
As was the case in San Jose, the big news on the Complex League pitching front was RHP Keaton Winn kicking off his rehab. Before he went up to the Cal League, Winn pitched a perfect inning on Friday at Papago, while striking out 2. He was replaced by AA RHP Logan Martin, who is also rehabbing. Martin tossed 2 perfect innings with 3 strikeouts. Martin has now made 3 rehab appearances and allowed just 1 baserunner (a walk) in 5 innings. Hopefully he’s back in Richmond very soon.
Otherwise, the pitching over the weekend was not very good. RHP Luke Mensik did strike out 6 batters in 4 innings on Friday, but also gave up 6 baserunners and 5 runs. The 18-year old, who was taken in the 17th round of last year’s draft (for a nearly $500K bonus), has just a 5.08 ERA and a 5.87 FIP in his debut season, though he has 9.6 strikeouts per 9 innings and a lovely 50.5% groundball rate.
Dominican Summer League Black (14-11)
Friday: DSL Giants Black beat the DSL Mets Orange 5-4 [box score] Saturday: DSL Giants Black lost to DSL Arizona Black 11-10 [box score]
Saturday was an extremely DSLy game. The DSL Giants Black drew 8 walks and were hit by 3 pitches … and issued 13 walks while hitting 3 batters. Gotta love it.
It was a good weekend for the Camacaro brothers. Third baseman/shortstop Keiberg, the older of the 2, went 3-8 with a solo home run, 2 walks, a stolen base, and 2 strikeouts. Second baseman Alexander hit 3-7 with a double, 2 walks, a stolen base, and a strikeout. Keiberg, a 19-year old in his 4th season, is putting up career numbers, with a .957 OPS, a 137 wRC+, a 12.7% strikeout rate, and 13 stolen bases in 24 games. That’s a dramatic improvement over last year, when he had a .620 OPS, an 89 wRC+, a 24.6% strikeout rate, and just 7 stolen bases in 33 games. Alexander, an 18-year old in his 2nd season, has a .736 OPS, a 91 wRC+, and 9 stolen bases in 24 games … those aren’t great numbers but, like his brother, they’re dramatic improvements over last year’s debut (.483 OPS, 56 wRC+, and 0 stolen bases in 17 games).
A few pitchers kept their low ERAs intact: 18-year old RHP Jeremiah Jones tossed 2 no-hit innings with a strikeout, though he walked 3, lowering the 2nd-year player’s ERA to 2.53 (albeit with a 4.97 FIP); 21-year old RHP Lender Bracho tossed 3 scoreless frames with 3 hits and 2 strikeouts, and now has a 1.72 ERA (but a 5.33 FIP) in his 3rd season; and 22-year old RHP Brayan Cabello retired all 4 batters he faced with a strikeout, lowering his blissful ERA to 0.49, though his FIP is 4.50 and this is his 5th season.
Dominican Summer League Orange (14-11)
Friday: DSL Giants Orange beat the DSL Blue Jays Blue 7-6 (7 innings) [box score] Saturday: DSL Giants Orange lost to the DSL White Sox 3-2 (7 innings) [box score]
First baseman Fernando Pena, who is normally a catcher, went 0-1 on Friday, but drew a walk and was hit twice. The 19-year old, who is in his 3rd season, has now been hit 9 times in just 24 games. There’s something about catchers that just leads to getting hit all the time! Combined with his 17.3% walk rate and his .319 average, all those plunkings have given Pena a .495 on-base percentage (and also a 1.017 OPS and a 153 wRC+).
The best players for the DSL Orange team were on the mound, though. RHP Omar Calcurian, a 21-year old in his 3rd season, pitched 2 shutout innings with 2 hits, 1 walk, and 3 strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 1.45 (like nearly all DSL pitchers with good ERAs, his FIP is way behind, at 5.25). After striking out just 17 batters in 33 innings last year, Calcurian already has 19 punchouts this season, in just 18.2 innings. 19-year old RHP Kendry Castro tossed 3 scoreless frames on Saturday with 2 hits, 0 walks, and 2 strikeouts, lowering his ERA to 1.64 (and again … 4.13 FIP). Castro has really done a great job improving command: after walking 29 batters in just 15.2 innings in his debut season in 2024, he issued 18 walks in 33.2 innings last year … and has given up just 2 walks in 11 innings so far this season.
Home run tracker
15 — Dakota Jordan x2 — [High-A] 13 — Lisbel Diaz x2 — [10 in High-A; 3 in Low-A] 11 — Parks Harber x3 — [AA] 11 — Dario Reynoso — [Low-A] 9 — Gavin Kilen — [High-A] 9 — Jeremiah Jenkins — [Low-A] 8 — Lorenzo Meola — [Low-A] 7 — Jesús Rodríguez — [2 in MLB; 5 in AAA] 6 — Jakob Christian — [High-A] 6 — Jose Astudillo x2 — [Low-A] 5 — Evan Estevez — [ACL] 4 — Diego Velasquez — [AA] 3 — Robert Hipwell — [High-A] 3 — Onil Perez — [High-A] 3 — Keiberg Camacaro — [DSL] 2 — Will Brennan — [AAA] 2 — Oliver Tejada — [1 in Low-A; 1 in ACL]
The Marlins were in Sacramento facing the Athletics on Sunday, and Perez recorded seven perfect innings on 92 pitches. He retired all 21 batters he faced before being pulled to begin the eighth inning.
Miami Marlins starting pitcher Eury Perez (39) throws a pitch against the Athletics during the sixth inning at Sutter Health Park. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
A’s fans chanted “Shame!” at the team as they came in to remove Perez.
His replacement, Lake Bachar, gave up a leadoff walk in the eighth and a single to end the perfect game and no-hitter almost instantly. Bachar would give up five earned runs on four hits before Michael Petersen came in to try and stop the bleeding.
For the ninth, Pete Fairbanks got the ball. He gave up three runs of his own, and the Marlins nearly blew the 9-0 lead they had held all afternoon.
Eury Pérez threw 7 perfect innings (92 pitches) at the A's today.
He was replaced by Lake Bachar to begin the 8th, and the A's got a leadoff walk to end the perfect game, followed by a single to end the no-hitter.
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) July 5, 2026
Perez, who was making only his third start since returning from the injured list, was a mere six outs away from securing the first perfect game in franchise history.
“There was a part of my heartstrings pulling at his opportunity to keep on going, but I have to think about Eury and our organization, our team and what’s best moving forward to give us a chance to continue winning games,” Marlins manager Clayton McCullough said postgame.
“Going into this game, 90-plus was the pitch count, but…us looking to play beyond the regular season, Eury’s going to be an important part of that. He had it really going today,” McCullough continued.
Miami Marlins starting pitcher Eury Perez (39) hands the ball to manager Clayton McCullough (86) after being pulled as catcher Joe Mack (80) looks on in the sixth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field. Isaiah J. Downing-Imagn Images
The possibility of seeing the Marlins in October doesn’t seem that far-fetched these days. They’ve won nine of 12 overall, including the weekend sweep of the Athletics. They are in a statistical tie for the final wild-card spot. All-Star shortstop Otto Lopez, who homered in Sunday’s thriller, was named the NL Player of the Week.
Which, for the Dodgers, comes with one big question:
Go after two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal? Or largely stand pat with a roster containing virtually no glaring needs?
Trade deadline season is here. For the Dodgers, that means deciding whether they want to pursue two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect Trade deadline season is here. For the Dodgers, that means deciding whether they want to pursue two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal.Getty Images
That’s the decision California Post baseball writers Dylan Hernandez and Jack Harris are discussing on the latest episode of the Dodgers Post podcast, as they look ahead to the team’s deadline plans with less than a month to go until the Aug. 3 occasion.
Dylan makes the case the Dodgers don’t have any holes, and don’t need to mortgage their future on a pitcher who –– for all his talent –– is also a pending free agent who could be gone next year. Jack wonders if the team needs to hedge against potential pitching injuries over the second half of the season, and whether that’s worth dealing from a farm system that will be important for the club to count on to provide talent in the coming years.
Elsewhere, the two recount an emotional day at Dodger Stadium, as rookie catcher Eliezer Alfonzo made his MLB debut on the same day he learned his sister and stepmom had been found dead in the rubble of the recent Venezuelan earthquakes.
They also recap other talking points from another Dodgers series win over the Padres.
Later, they take reader comments, including one on the differences between “reasons” and “excuses” for Roki Sasaki’s recent struggles.
And, as always, they finish with some trivia and predictions –– plus throw in a little World Cup talk at the end.
All that and more on the latest episode of the Dodgers Post podcast. Subscribe on YouTube or follow along on Apple and Spotify.
TAMPA, FL - MARCH 21: Owen Murphy of the Atlanta Braves pitches during the game between the Atlanta Braves and the New York Yankees at George M. Steinbrenner Field on Saturday, March 21, 2026 in Tampa, Florida. (Photo by Vincent Mizzoni/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The series finale between the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets is about to start shortly and as usual, Walt Weiss spoke with the media ahead of the game and gave his thoughts on various hot
On Owen Murphy
“Good for him [earning a call-up],” began Weiss when talking about Owen Murphy. “He’s going to protect us out of the ‘pen. We’ve been running with a seven-man ‘pen for a while so at some point that’s going to run its course — and it probably has. [Murphy] will protect us with the ability to go long. He’s on schedule with his starts and he’s got a full tank of gas.” I went on to ask Weiss about whether or not this could potentially lead to an opportunity to start at some point but Weiss made it pretty clear that for this stint in the majors, Owen Murphy will be sticking to his role of being a bulk guy.
On the state of the farm system
Walt Weiss was then asked about how important it’s been to have a conveyor belt of talent being able to come up and make contributions to the team so far this season. “It’s important, critical, even,” stated Weiss. “We’re not like the other markets who go out and make a big splash in the free agency, so I think we do a really nice job of doing a little bit of everything. You gotta rely on your system and scouting and development and I think they’ve done a nice job when it comes to player development.”
“We’ve come a long way in a couple years prospect-wise,” continued Weiss. “A couple of years ago, we were talking about our system being dried up and now all of a sudden, there’s quite a few prospects.”
On Austin Riley’s attempts to get back on track
Austin Riley is coming into the final game of this series against the Mets with three hits and three RBI over the past couple of games. We’ve been here before in terms of Riley looking good for a brief spell before going back to struggling but Weiss is still backing his third baseman to eventualy get it going for real at the plate.
“He’s certainly putting in the work,” stated Weiss when it came to what he’s seen from Austin Riley behind the scenes lately. I’ve talked about how there’s a tipping point where it goes from physical to mental at times and I’m not sure that’s the case with Austin but speaking from experience…he’s putting in the work and he’s got a really good track record so it makes you believe that it’s going to work out.“
“We’ve got some recent examples with Ozzie and Harris last year. He really struggled in the first half of last season and then he finished strong and carried it into this year,” continued Weiss. “It’s nice to have a recent example that gives you hope and I’m sure it gives Austin hope that he can turn this thing around and end up having a really good second half and a really good season.”
Jun 21, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws a pitch against the New York Mets in the first inning at Citizens Bank Park.
Zack Wheeler’s absence from the 2026 MLB All-Star Game isn’t sitting well with some folks.
After Wheeler wasn’t named to the National League’s All-Star roster for the Midsummer Classic at Philadelphia’s Citizen’s Bank Park despite an impressive comeback from thoracic outlet syndrome, his agent B.B. Abbott ripped the snub.
Jul 1, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws a pitch during the second inning against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Citizens Bank Park. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“Major League baseball knows (about Wheeler’s injury recovery),” he added. “Everybody knows what he’s been through. And to not do what you needed to do to let this guy be honored in his home ballpark, it’s ludicrous.”
Wheeler’s Cy Young-caliber 2025 season ended abruptly in August after the discovery of a blood clot near his right shoulder.
Following thoracic outlet surgery in September, Wheeler missed the first few weeks of 2026 before returning April 25. He’s been just as dominant as he was before the injury.
Across 13 starts this season, the 36-year-old has gone 8-1 with a 2.36 ERA and 0.93 WHIP. He also has 84 strikeouts in 80 innings.
Jun 21, 2026; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia Phillies starting pitcher Zack Wheeler (45) throws a pitch against the New York Mets in the first inning at Citizens Bank Park. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Wheeler has also held hitters to a .580 OPS this season, ranking fourth in the NL behind All-Stars Jacob Misiorowski, Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
But it still wasn’t enough for an All-Star bid, as Wheeler wasn’t one of the five NL starting pitchers on the players’ ballot.
“They’re going to think that I’m grandstanding and on a soapbox,” Abbott said. “Quite frankly, I don’t care because it’s the right thing to do on this particular player. To be able to come back from something that not a lot of players can come back from – and certainly can’t return to the level of excellence that he has – it shows a real lack of acknowledgement by Major League Baseball to what he’s done up to this point.”
Although Wheeler didn’t make the cut, the Phillies still have five All-Stars in Bryce Harper, Kyle Schwarber, Brandon Marsh, Christopher Sánchez and Jhoan Durán.
Along with Wheeler, they’ve all been instrumental in turning around the Phillies’ season after a 9-19 start to a 50-41 mark — good for second in the NL East — entering Monday’s slate.
ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA - JULY 3: Caleb Durbin #5 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates with a shower of seeds after hitting a home run in the fifth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Angel Stadium of Anaheim on July 3, 2026 in Anaheim, California. (Photo by John McCoy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After finishing off a sweep of the Angels last night, the Red Sox are suddenly 8-2 in their last ten contests. Not only has this nearly cut the number of games they’re below .500 in half (from 14 to 8), but it’s also left them in a significantly better place in relation to the third Wild Card, even if it doesn’t appear that way on the surface.
With a quick glance, the only headline this hot stretch lends is Boston cutting the number of games they trail the third Wild Card by two, from six behind to four behind. But in terms of traffic? They’re in a whole different world. For more on that crucial detail, let’s take a look at the standings at the end of play on June 24th (just before the aforementioned ten game stretch began):
When the Red Sox left Colorado after that mortifying series loss to the Rockies, they not only had the worst record in the American League and trailed a Wild Card spot by six games, but they also trailed teams not holding a playoff spot like the Astros, A’s, and Rangers by five games each. This is why I’ve included that final column on the right side of the table: It puts into context how the Red Sox aren’t just chasing the Blue Jays; they’re chasing an entire pack of tightly bunched teams.
More specifically, we can add up all the cumulative games they trail the third Wild Card spot by at any given moment. For instance, on that June 24th snapshot, if you add up all the games the Red Sox trailed, there were a cumulative 30.5 games between them and a playoff spot.
So the obvious question becomes, “how does that compare to now?” Well, let’s take a look at the current Wild Card standings using the same format:
Game changer! Despite that top number not dropping all the much, the cumulative games the Sox trail the third Wild Card by has plunged from 30.5 to 11. In other words, in terms of distance they trail, they’ve only made up a third of the ground they need to cover in relation to the third Wild Card. But in terms of density and traffic? This 8-2 stretch knocked out about two thirds of the task at hand.
If this were a NASCAR race, they’ve gone from nearly losing the lead draft to being right in the middle of the big, gnarly pack. They still have plenty of work to do and more cars to pass, but they’re solidly in the race for the first time all summer. (Also, if you believe in run differential, they probably have a better engine under the hood than anybody around them as they’re the only team in the first seven spots on that board sporting a positive run differential.)
Oh, and it actually gets even better when you look above the teams listed in the standings I posted here. Both the Mariners and the Guardian are only 1.5 games ahead of the Rangers, and the White Sox are just a game above that. In other words, there’s additional teams that can stumble and fall back into the pack even if the Rangers, Astros or Twins go on a hot streak and threaten to pull away. A few weeks ago, the traffic was nestled just below the line. But now? The traffic is more concentrated just above the line — A subtle, but extremely important change.
With the Mariners leading the AL West at 47-44 and the White Sox leading the AL Central at 47-42, there’s a pretty hard lid on the ceiling of each of those divisions. This works almost as an insurance policy to prevent the likelihood of the third Wild Card rising much above .500 all year. In order for that to happen, two teams from the same division would need to vastly outperform expectations between now and the finish line, and if you’ve watched as much late night American League baseball as I have this season, the thought of that should provide a nice chuckle. (As a collective group, these teams suck!)
For this reason, FanGraphs still projects the third AL Wild Card to come in at a historically disgraceful 80-82. Personally, I think it lands a couple of games above that with things being rearranged at the trade deadline and somebody breaking out a little bit, but overall, something drastic would need to happen to move the target in a significant way.
This is all a long way of saying that despite Boston’s horrific play for most of the season, a playoff spot is still right there if they get some guys back after the All-Star break and go on another small hot streak. Personally, I find it absurd MLB has lowered the bar this much and needs to address the issue in the upcoming CBA (add it to the list), but it’s the reality we’re looking at now.
Finally, I have one last thought rolling around in my head before we wrap this up: The next six games before the All-Star break might be Boston’s most vulnerable window. With the Contreras suspension looming, Connelly Early and Ranger Suarez banged up, and the continued lack of timelines for Roman Anthony and Garrett Crochet, they could get themselves in real trouble over the next few days and erase much of the progress they’ve made. However, if they grind things out and get into the break with say a mere 3-3 record from here, then all of a sudden they have time to regroup before they resume play on July 17th. If they’re still sitting just four games out of a playoff spot with a bunch of timelines on the table to get guys back, things could get interesting in a hurry!
Attleboro, MA - March 26: Bishop Feehan senior Brody Bumila throws a pitch during a scrimmage on March 26, 2026. (Photo by Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images) | Boston Globe via Getty Images
Brody Bumila, the 6’9”, 255 lb. prep lefthanded pitcher out of Massachusetts who throws over 100 mph, has a damaged UCL, per multiple reports. Bumila had internal brace surgery on his elbow last May, and returned to throw as well as ever for much of the spring, though a decline in both velocity and command in his final few starts raised concerns about his health. Those concerns, it turns out, were valid.
I had debated about whether to do a draft write-up on Bumila, as the Rangers have generally stayed away from high school pitchers in recent years. However, I’ve seen him mentioned as a possibility with the Rangers a couple of times — including in the June 29 BA mock draft — and you have to think the Rangers’ president of baseball operations has a soft spot for giant pitchers who also play basketball (Bumila led his high school team to the state championship this year).
Bumila is a good athlete for his size, and has shown good ability to throw strikes and repeat his delivery for a prep pitcher with his build. He has a relatively low arm slot and great extension, which makes his fastball play up and gives him good rising movement at the top of the zone. His secondaries, though, are way behind his fastball. Jen McCaffrey has a write-up on him for the Athletic that came out today, hours before the news of his UCL injury came out.
Bumila had gone from a likely first rounder to someone who could slip into the second round, based on the reports from the prognosticators, even before the news of the UCL damage. The fact that Bumila will likely need UCL surgery — either another internal brace surgery or Tommy John surgery — is likely to exacerbate that slide.
Bumila is a University of Texas commit, and so has the opportunity to play for a top team in one of the top conferences if he doesn’t end up getting signed by a drafting team. However, he’d most likely be sitting out all of the 2027 baseball season for the Longhorns with a medical redshirt. He’d also be running a risk in regards to whether, and how well, he’d come back after two elbow injuries, with the possibility of getting a lower payday after three (or more) years in college. You also have the uncertainty surrounding the future of the draft — if you’re a high school player who is being offered top two round money right now, you have to consider the possibility that the landscape and bonus structure for the 2029 draft could look much different than it does now.
As we’ve discussed quite a bit, the Rangers have not shied away from taking pitchers who are injured, or coming off of injuries, in the draft in recent years. If the organization feels comfortable with his medicals and their medical staff’s ability to get him back to 100%, he could be a high risk, high reward selection in the second or third rounds.
BRONX, NY - MAY 24: Designated hitter Yandy Díaz #2 of the Tampa Bay Rays reacts after hitting a double during a game between the Tampa Bay Rays and New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on May 24, 2026 in the Bronx, New York. (Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
SAN FRANCISCO — In the eyes of Tony Vitello, it’s a shame the All-Star break is so late.
In his past life as a college coach, his season would be long over by now. His new reality as the manager of one of professional baseball’s most disappointing teams, however, means he’s barely past the halfway point — and yet there’s still probably not enough time left to correct course.
“With the way the first half has gone, it’d be great if the All-Star break actually split the season in half,” the first-year San Francisco Giants manager said. “You might as well divide the season into halves and make sure we have a positive second half. Where that leaves us when you combine the two, you don’t have much control over it. But what’s in the past is in the past.”
Despite rookie manager Tony Vitello’s insistence, the San Francisco Giants will not get a reset for their abysmal season following the MLB All-Star break. Getty Images
That was the gist of the message the manager tried to get across when he called a team meeting over the weekend at Coors Field, where they emerged 15 games below .500 (37-52).
Ostensibly, it served the purpose of announcing the team’s two All-Stars — Logan Webb and Luis Arraez — but Vitello hoped to use the opportunity for something more.
“He said something good the other day,” Webb said. “I think we were at the midway point and to try to sort of pretend like the first half didn’t happen, which obviously you can’t. But try to.
“Pretend you’re restarting the season a little bit. You’ve just got to put your head down and work and hope things will turn around.”
Ace Logan Webb was named the NL Pitcher of the Month for June and to the MLB All-Star game. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
But when you’re stuck in the mud, taking that second step isn’t any easier.
“I think the entire first half, we’ve kind of been looking around, like trying to place our finger on, OK, how’s our offense doing well, how is the pitching doing well, and we can’t seem to put together wins?” catcher Eric Haase told the Post. “I think it was just a good reminder: We’re not playing bad baseball — we’re just not winning.”
It’s been a very rocky season for rookie manager Tony Vitello. Christopher Hanewinckel-Imagn Images
It only took a day for that incongruency to come to a head again. The Giants slugged four home runs and their pitchers kept Colorado at bay for seven innings in Sunday’s series finale.
But in the end, they returned home nursing a 2-4 record on the road trip and a second straight series loss after their bullpen failed to protect the lead. Once again, a team that still hasn’t swept a series or won more than three games in a row proved to be allergic to momentum or motivation.
They didn’t have time to catch their breath descending from the mile-high altitude. They don’t have another day off until they get four in a row next week. They can only hope the All-Star break provides the ultimate reset button.
Since the actual midpoint of the season, they entered Monday at 4-4.
“We want to finish this half strong. We want to go into the break with that confidence that the next half is going to be better,” first baseman Bryce Eldridge said. “We all have confidence that that’s gonna happen. It’s just a matter of continuing to work and continue to put that together.”
After a slow start to the season, Rafael Devers has turned it around and been great since May. AP Photo/David Zalubowski
And that means the task at hand is likely only going to get tougher, given that whatever parts of this oil tanker run aground still in working condition are expected to be sold off by the Aug. 3 trade deadline.
Given those circumstances, what would Vitello like to see his squad do differently in the second half?
“A little more attitude on the field, which is tough when times are tough,” he said. “Just the mentality, the verbalization of the word ‘attack.’ Attacking presence. Attacking even when you feel you caught a bad break or we didn’t make a play behind you. Setting the tone.”
That means attacking their pregame defensive drills, which he’s been pleased with. And on the bases, “I do think we’ve kicked up the aggressiveness a little bit,” he said. “It would probably be more beneficial to kick it up a lot.”
Primarily, his pitchers need to throw strikes.
Only two teams are in the zone less often than the Giants’ staff.
“We have a whole group of very hard-working players that want to win. I know the standings may not show it, but we do. We want to win,” said Webb, the one pitcher who hasn’t had trouble throwing strikes. “We’re trying our best to win. Not that it makes it any better. But I think when you do that and you have a group of talented players, things will turn around at some point. I don’t know when it will turn around. I can’t tell you that. But that’s the goal here.”
As for himself, Vitello didn’t offer much in terms of self-reflection.
“Just improve,” he said. “It can be a bunch of little different areas, but just improve.”
TORONTO, CANADA - JULY 01: Freddy Peralta #51 of the New York Mets pitches against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on July 01, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Chris Tanouye/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Mets lineup
A.J. Ewing – CF Juan Soto – LF Bo Bichette – 3B Francisco Lindor – DH Carson Benge – RF Jared Young – 1B Francisco Alvarez – C Brett Baty – 2B Ronny Mauricio – SS
SP: Freddy Peralta – RHP
Braves lineup
Michael Harris – CF Ozzie Albies – 2B Matt Olson – 1B Drake Baldwin – C Mauricio Dubón – LF Dominic Smith – DH Austin Riley – 3B Mike Yastrzemski – RF Jim Jarvis – SS
SP: Reynaldo López – RHP
Broadcast info
First pitch: 7:15 PM EDT TV: SNY Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 05: Luis García Jr. #2 of the Washington Nationals bats against the Pittsburgh Pirates at Nationals Park on July 05, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Jamie Sabau/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Astros may not be the conquering force they once were, but they remain a dangerous team. Yordan Alvarez is the biggest driver of that, and the Nats can’t let the Astros DH beat them on his own. The Nats will look to bounce back from a series loss against the Pirates as they continue this home stand.
Jacob Young is back in the lineup for the Nats. He will patrol center field while Daylen Lile is in left and Dylan Crews is in right. James Wood will take DH duties tonight. Nasim Nunez will be back at second base, while Drew Millas is behind the plate. Miles Mikolas will get the start this evening.
The focal point of this Astros lineup is the ferocious Yordan Alvarez who is hitting .320 with 29 homers. Jose Altuve, Christian Walker and Isaac Paredes are solid supporting pieces, but make no mistake, Yordan is the star of the show. The top of the Astros lineup has been elite, but they do not have the most depth. Mike Burrows has not had the season the Astros envisioned when they traded for him this offseason, but he will look to get going tonight.
The last two games against the Pirates were tough, but this team has been good at bouncing back this season. They will look to stay above .500 in this interleague clash. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats.
