Category: MLB

The Mets are in the midst of a lost season, in genuine competition to be the worst team in all of baseball this year. The Guardians are a team that is in a playoff hunt. You would not necessarily know that to be the case based on how the first two games in this series have gone. The Mets won the opener last night, and tonight they withstood a back-and-forth affair to ultimately come out on top in extra innings with a 6-5 victory.

The Mets got the scoring started in the top of the third when Brett Baty led off the frame with an opposite field homer off Tanner Bibee. Jorge Polanco, who entered the game in the midst of a gruesome 0-for-26 stretch, followed that shot with a line drive shot to right field of his own, making it a 2-0 ballgame. The Mets would add to their lead just one inning later; Carson Benge hit a one-out grounder that third baseman Angel Genao (making his major league debut) threw past first base and into the stands, allowing the runner to go to second. Jared Young—who had been robbed of an extra-base hit in his first at-bat on a terrific running catch by Petey Halpin in center field—lined another ball to the right field corner. Benge came around to score on the double, and the Mets now led 3-0.

Christian Scott, meanwhile, held the Guardians off the board in the first three innings without much trouble, but he faltered in the bottom of the fourth. A leadoff walk was followed by a double to quickly put runners on second and third with nobody out, and Travis Bazzana proceeded to line a single to left to bring home Cleveland’s first run of the night. The Guardians still had runners on first and third with nobody out, but Scott hunkered down, inducing a ground ball to first for out number one and then striking out the next two batters to get out of the inning with just the one run scoring.

Scott would unfortunately find himself in trouble once again just an inning later, loading the bases on two singles and a walk with nobody out. He struck out Jo Adell for the first out, but Nathaniel Lowe then hit a single to right to bring two runs home and tie the game. Scott did manage to get the next two outs to keep the Guardians from taking the lead, and that would prove to be the end of his night. His final line—5 innings, 6 hits, 2 walks, 7 strikeouts, 3 earned runs—belies a so-so outing, but it is worth noting that he was throwing with some increased velocity.

Meanwhile, the Mets came right back and re-took the lead in the top of the sixth, as Benge hit a two-out solo shot to right field—his second homer in the series—to give the Mets a 4-3 lead and end Bibee’s night. Young greeted new pitcher Erik Sabrowski with a triple to left field—his second extra-base hit of the evening—but Francisco Alvarez then struck out to end the inning with just the one run having scored. Thus, the Mets had a very slim lead to work with, and it was in the hands of their new-look bullpen to try to hold it.

Jefry Yan was the guy out of the bullpen in the bottom of the sixth. The 29-year-old rookie lefty was making his major league debut, and he quickly introduced his signature strikeout celebration after punching out the leadoff hitter. He then loaded the bases on two singles and a walk, but struck out his second batter—and had another jumping celebration—and then induced a groundout to end the inning and secure the lead for the Mets. Unfortunately, the same did not end up being true the following inning. Dedniel Núñez came on for his first major league outing in over a year in the seventh, and the first batter he faced reached base when Young could not cleanly field a grounder at first base. He came close to getting out of the inning after getting the next two outs via strikeout and groundout, but three straight singles followed—the second an RBI single off the bat of Patrick Bailey, and the third an RBI single by Genao, who made up for his earlier error by getting four hits at the plate in his major league debut. The two runs against Núñez—who struck out Steven Kwan to end the inning—were unearned, but nevertheless, the Guardians now led 5-4.

The Mets could not capitalize on a leadoff double from A.J. Ewing in the top of the eighth. Chayce McDermott came on for his Mets debut, and the former Dodgers pitcher tossed a scoreless inning (working around an ugly error in left field from Christian Pache, who came on as a defensive replacement and proceeded to drop a fairly routine fly ball with two outs). The Guardians then brought on closer Cade Smith to try to close things out in the top of the ninth. Young led off the frame with a walk, but Smith then got Alvarez to pop out and struck out pinch hitter Luis Robert Jr. to bring the Mets to their final out. Polanco then hit his second extra-base hit of the night, this one a double to put runners on second and third. Marcus Semien followed that by walking to load the bases and bring Ewing up to the plate. The speedy rookie his a grounder up the middle, and shortstop Brayan Rocchio couldn’t field it cleanly on the run. That error brought allowed Young to score from third, making it a 5-5 ballgame. Lindor struck out with the bases loaded to keep it tied, and McDermott—coming out for a second inning of work—worked around a leadoff walk in the bottom of the inning to send the game to extras.

The Mets quickly took the lead in the top of the tenth, as Bo Bichette greeted new pitcher Matt Festa by lining a single to right to score the ghost runner from second. Bichette did get thrown out trying to stretch the single into a double, and Festa rebounded by striking out the next two batters. Thus, new pitcher Daniel Duarte came on to try to hold the one-run lead (notably, Devin Williams appeared to be unavailable tonight despite the save opportunity). Kwan bizarrely tried to bunt to lead off the inning and popped out to third base. Duarte then issued a one-out walk to put runners on first and second, but he then got the final two outs—via a pop-out and groundout—to end the game and give the Mets the victory.

The Amazins will now go for the unlikely sweep tomorrow afternoon.

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Daniel Duarte, +44% WPA
Big Mets loser: Dedniel Núñez, -40% WPA
Mets pitchers: +19% WPA
Mets hitters: +31% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: A.J. Ewing reaching on fielding error in the ninth, +30.5% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Patrick Bailey RBI single in the seventh, -24.6% WPA

The Guardians are in the easy part of their schedule but that doesn’t matter when you leave 15 runners on base. When that happens, you lose 6-5 to the Mets.

Bibee was fine. 5 2/3 innings, 10 strikeouts. Really hurt by the long ball, giving up 3 (three) homers tonight. One to Jorge Polanco (.445 OPS). 4 runs, 3 earned, which brings us to the main topic(s) of tonight’s recap — Angel Genao and the Guardians defense.

Genao was as good as you could expect in his MLB debut, going 4/5 with 4 singles and the (then-) go-ahead RBI in the 7th. He got his first of four consecutive hits on the first pitch he saw in his first MLB at-bat.

First plate appearance, first pitch and first hit all out of the way for Angel Genao. pic.twitter.com/anQXauHc2V

— Tim Stebbins (@tim_stebbins) August 5, 2026

Genao made a fielding error in the 4th that the Mets immediately took advantage of, driving in the runner who reached on error to make it 3-0 Mets.

The Guardians tried their best to come back tying the game by the 5th, then giving the lead away in the 6th, and then taking it right back in the 7th.

Angel Genao, the man you are.#GuardsBallpic.twitter.com/VLG6Nfobcc

— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) August 6, 2026

The Guardians were up 5-4 going into the 9th but, of course, Cade Smith couldn’t throw the ball over the plate. With the bases loaded and two outs, he managed to induce a weak groundball to short, but Rocchio couldn’t come up with the ball. The Mets tied the game there, sending it to extras.

For a reason I truly will never be able to understand, the Guardians brought in Matt Festa for the 10th… which went exactly as expected. He immediately gave up the go-ahead run on a Bo Bichette RBI-single. Bichette who, for what it’s worth, was thrown out advancing to second by Jo Adell. Festa retired the next two Mets.

To the bottom of the 10th. Steven Kwan hit over .400 in July. He bunted to lead off the inning. The ball lifted up into the air and was caught by Mets 3B Bo Bichette. DeLauter walked. Adell popped out, and Lowe groundout out. That was the ballgame.

Foster Griffin will make his Guardians debut in an effort to salvage what has been an entirely humiliating series so far against the bottom-feeder Mets. Of course, it’ll be McLean on the mound for New York opposite Griffin.

This week, my young nephew is attending summer Vacation Bible School. In terms of biblical tales involving heroes, he could have gotten a similar education by flipping on the ballgame tonight and observing Noah Cameron’s mound arc sinking the Minnesota Twins.

The starting pitchers—Dean Kremer in his MN debut & Cameron for the Kansas City Royals—matched zeros for the first three innings in this contest. Kremer because he had solid stuff—Cameron because he is a corporeal being in the past month who throws with his left arm.

In the top of the fourth inning, the Twins built an exceedingly odd rally when Josh Bell walked, Kody Clemens hit into what looked to be a fielder’s choice until Bell deked out the KC infield by simply stopping on the way to 2B, and Royce Lewis bunted for a hit. Bases loaded…zero outs…time for the offense to break out, right?!

Somehow these batsmen made taking the lead anticlimactic: a Victor Caratini GIDP RBI followed by a Brooks Lee strikeout. 1-0 MN.

In B5, it was the Royals who’d dink-&-dunk their way (two singles & a walk) to bases loaded and one out. Kyle Isbel would sock a sac fly to tie the game, followed by a a 346-ft moonshot from Carter Jensen—into Austin Martin’s glove a few feet from the fence. Phew! 1-1 tie.

That would be it for the MN-debuting Kremer: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 88 pitches.

After Tommy Nance tossed a scoreless 6th, Michael Massey mashed an A.J. Minter meatball 422 feet over the RF fence to lead off B7. 2-1 KC.

Jeff Hoffman would make his Twins debut in B8 and set the Royals down 1-2-3 with 2 Ks.

Circling back to Cameron, his final line tonight: 8 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K.

There would be no need for a B9. KC reliever Steven Cruz entered and retired the side on 16 pitches, 0 H, & 1 K.

Your Final: Kansas City Royals 2, Minnesota Twins 1.

After upper management patched some bullpen holes, it suddenly ceases to matter because Twins lumber-wielders couldn’t hit water if they fell out of a boat (maybe an ark?) right now.

0-for-August continues.

Zach’s Zealot

• Kremer & Hoffman: Solid Twins Territory debuts.

Zach’s Zombie

• The entire offense (again): This is getting ridiculous. Two hits & 9 K’s.

Egg-cellent Elocution

• falcontimmy’ssingle-word exclamation about sums this one up

Who’s Got Next

• One more with KC tomorrow night, followed by a trip across the border to Cheeseville over the weekend.

The Mets let a three-run lead slip away before fighting back to beat the Cleveland Guardians, 6-5, in extra innings.

New York rallied in the ninth and tied the game at 5-5 thanks to Brayan Rocchio's fielding error on A.J. Ewing's hard grounder with the bases loaded. Bo Bichette then put the Mets back up with an RBI-single down the right field line in the 10th inning and Daniel Duarte found a way to close it down and get the save.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Defense was on display early by both teams. Carson Benge made a spectacular running catch in the right field corner to end the first inning, and then Guardians CF Petey Halpin smashed into the wall to rob Jared Young of extra bases in the top of the second inning. Bo Bichette stuck with the theme in the bottom of the second and made an over-the-shoulder grab in shallow left field for the third out

-- After four of the first six Mets batters struck out, Brett Baty and Jorge Polanco (who snapped an 0-for-26 streak) launched back-to-back home runs in the top of the third inning off Tanner Bibee, giving New York a 2-0 lead.

Young got his revenge in the fourth inning, ripping an RBI double to right field that extended the Mets' lead to 3-0.

-- Christian Scott looked strong early on, but let a 3-0 lead slip away, allowing three runs on six hits over just 5.0 innings. He struck out seven and walked two, earning a no-decision as he exited with the score tied.

The right-hander was dealing through the first three innings, allowing just one hit with a HBP. He ran into some trouble in the fourth inning with runners on second and third and no outs, but limited the damage to one run on Travis Bazzana's RBI single. Scott held onto the 3-1 lead by getting three straight outs, including back-to-back K's.

Scott found himself in another sticky situation in the fifth, loading the bases with no outs. Cleveland won the battle this time around as Nathaniel Lowe tied the game up at 3-3 with a one-out, two-run single. The righty got out of it with a strikeout and flyout, but it ended his night after 96 pitches.

-- Benge put the Mets back ahead, 4-3, with a solo home run for the second straight day. This time, Benge lifted it just over the outstretched arm of Adell in right field. Young then stayed hot and tripled on a shot that deflected off Steven Kwan's glove and took a roll, but he was left stranded on third base.

-- Jefry Yan escaped a bases-loaded jam in the sixth in his team debut, striking out Chase DeLauter (with his patented celebration) and getting Adell to ground into a forceout. Dedniel Núñez made his return to a major league mound in the seventh inning, but it didn't go well. Young's fielding error led to Núñez allowing a game-tying RBI single to Patrick Bailey and the go-ahead RBI to Angel Genao (his fourth hit of the game) as Cleveland went up 5-4.

Game MVP: New York's bullpen

Yan, Núñez, Chayce McDermott, and Duarte combined to throw five strong innings of relief and keep the Mets in the game.

Highlights

Carson Benge makes a LONG run for the out! pic.twitter.com/52kHzh0eGo

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

Bo Bichette goes over the shoulder to make the catch! pic.twitter.com/3fGlv1UPya

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

Brett Baty clears the 19-foot wall for an opposite-field home run! 💣 pic.twitter.com/njDhglYLNY

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

BRETT BATY AND JORGE POLANCO GO BACK-TO-BACK!

Polanco snaps an 0-for-26 slump! pic.twitter.com/zdcpWFm8IL

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

Jared Young rips an RBI double! pic.twitter.com/RB2Kj1eojF

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

Christian Scott with back-to-back strikeouts to avoid further damage in the 4th pic.twitter.com/w4wnR8jtMK

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 5, 2026

Carson Benge homers for a second straight night!

The Mets take the lead back! pic.twitter.com/DuPC3oK6UV

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 6, 2026

Jefry Yan's first MLB stirkeout!

And an ELECTRIC celebration! pic.twitter.com/jMaFxMSwg2

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 6, 2026

THIS GAME IS TIED!

Brayan Rocchio can't make the play and the tying run scores! pic.twitter.com/LisRplryME

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 6, 2026

Bo Bichette gives the Mets the lead in the 10th

Bichette is thrown out at second base pic.twitter.com/jUd6r8Ze8W

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 6, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Guardians wrap up their series on Thursday at 1:10 p.m. on SNY.

Nolan McLean (7-7, 3.29 ERA) takes the mound for the first time this month, going against LHP Foster Griffin (12-3, 3.06 ERA).

 

Noah Cameron continued his recent run of success and decided to dominate the Twins for a second start in a row. That allowed the Royals to win 2-1 despite having some struggles at the plate of their own.

We had a good old-fashioned pitcher’s duel between maybe not the most likely of starters. Both Noah Cameron and Dean Kremer were very effective. Kremer saw the minimum through three innings thanks to a double play and Noah only saw one over in that time frame thanks to a single from Ryan Jeffers in the first inning. It was Kremer’s debut as a Minnesota Twin after he was acquired at the trade deadline. He availed himself well, matching his best start of the season back at the beginning of July by going 6 innings and only giving up 1 run.

Noah Cameron also gave up only 1 run, though his in part had to do with the defense behind him. In the 4th inning Josh Bell walked to lead off. Kody Clemens followed that with a groundball to second base that Michael Massey fielded in front of Bell who stopped and back-pedaled a bit. Massey decided to throw to first too late to get the out and Jac Caglianone couldn’t get the ball back to second in time, so they ended up with no outs. Then Royce Lewis bunted it well to the right side and got a single to load the bases. Cameron induced a double play, but the run from third scored and gave the Twins a 1-0 lead. A strikeout ended the inning.

The Royals first run came in the 5th which started out with back-to-back singles from Massey and Isaac Collins. Loftin tried to bunt them over but popped it a little too hard and the Twins were able to get the force at second leaving it first and third with one out. John Rave came up next and walked the bases loaded for Kyle Isbel. The Royals’ center fielder managed to left one deep enough to center to get the sac fly and the first run of the game for Kansas City. It would remain tied 1-1 into the 7th.

Kremer exited after 6 innings and it was starting to look like the two would duel to a draw, but Noah Cameron just kept on going. He took care of the 7th with a foul-out followed by two strike outs after which his offense decided maybe he deserved to be in line for the win. Michael Massey was up to lead off in the bottom half of the 7th when AJ Minter took over from the Twins’ bullpen. Minter grooved a cutter middle middle and Massey deposited it near the fountains (maybe in) in right field. Royals up 2-1.

Despite being over 90 pitches, Cameron came out for the 8th inning as well. Trevor Larnach, Ryan Kreidler, and Austin Martin all went down swinging as Noah put the exclamation point on the end of a stellar day. He struck out the final five Twins he faced to end with a line of 8IP, 2H, BB, ER, 9K. That is an impressive start, and it was his third impressive outing in a row. Hopefully, this portends great things to come from the young St. Joe native.

Bobby Witt Jr. tried to give the Royals another insurance run in the bottom of the 8th, but his home run was robbed.

That set up Steven Cruz who was sent out to close this one for KC. No one reached base and he struck out Clemens to seal the victory. It was an uneventful 9th inning, which for this team has been a fairly rare thing for this team when protecting a lead. The Royals take the series and go for the sweep tomorrow. They are 10-8 since the break and playing reasonably good baseball minus the travesty of a series in Colorado.

The San Diego Padres made a splash at the trade deadline on Monday. They added two starting pitchers that will undoubtedly fix the “pitching chaos” issue that the team’s coaches and front office have had to address over the past couple of weeks. The additions of Casey Mize and Robbie Ray will help flesh out a rotation that has struggled mightily this season and recently consisted of two starters who haven’t actually been all that great themselves in Michael King and Walker Buehler.

Both Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta have begun rehab assignments in their attempt to return from injury. It is wise not to count on either of them for any help in a stretch run to secure a playoff spot for a team on the outside looking in.

Two other pitchers figure to be significant in the next 48 games of the regular season. The last starting spot has to be filled by someone. And the bullpen needs a dominant lefty to complement the force that is Mason Miller.

The Padres definitely have the lefty in Adrián Morejón. They might have their fifth starter too.

Enter Rándy Vásquez

Right-hander Rándy Vásquez wasn’t scouted and signed by the Padres. The New York Yankees did that in 2018. He was acquired as part of the trade that sent Juan Soto to the Yankees in 2023, along with fellow pitchers King and Jhony Brito. 

Vásquez has great stuff. He has a seven-pitch mix that he has used to dominate at times. He has also had issues with consistency with his mechanics and an inability to be aggressive with his pitches. He nibbles around the outside of the plate and walks too many hitters. 

From the start of this season to mid-May, Vásquez was the best starter the Padres had. He pitched to a 2.68 ERA in 50.1 innings and nine starts. Then things fell apart, and over his next 33.2 innings he had a 7.75 ERA, ending up on the injured list with a right ankle contusion after being hit by a batted ball.

It would not be a stretch to say that the 16 days he spent on the IL were not because of the contusion. That was a handy excuse to spend some time working on his approach, both mechanically and mentally. A coaching staff that features head pitching coach Ruben Niebla has appeared to be challenged with trying to keep Vásquez locked in. The Jekyll and Hyde nature of his performances frustrated fans while keeping the coaches on their toes. Finding that sweet spot that makes him a consistent pitcher has not occurred so far.

After coming off the injured list on July 19, Vásquez has been working in whatever role the team has asked. He has started and been a bulk reliever while appearing in six games and two starts. Over that time, he has thrown 15.6 innings and allowed three earned runs, for a 1.73 ERA.

His season started by featuring increased velocity on his four-seam fastball, and then we saw that velocity drop as the season went on and his stuff deteriorated. 

Since returning from the IL, he has shown that 94-96 mph fastball and a sinker that sits 94-95 mph. After the offense spotted him six early runs in his start against the Diamondbacks on Tuesday, Vásquez threw 80 percent first-pitch strikes to the Snakes’ offense.

We have seen what Vásquez can do; the secret is to unlock some consistency with his performance. His start against Arizona gave the Padres their first quality start since Walker Buehler pitched on June 3. That needs to change for this team to be a playoff contender. 

Maybe Rándy Vásquez can help change that narrative. 

As a pre-arbitration player (free agent in 2031),  Vásquez is the only pitcher on the roster who can be counted on to return next year into the starting rotation. It’s a priority to keep working to keep him right.

Adrián Morejón

It is no secret that lefty reliever Adrián Morejón is a quiet assassin. What may not be as well known is that his path to get there makes his success all the more meaningful.

Morejón defected from Cuba in 2015, at the age of 16. He went to the Dominican Republic to train and was declared an international free agent in 2016. He signed with the Padres in July of that year and was given an $11 million bonus. After working his way up in the minor league system, Morejón was named to the All-Star Futures Game as a Double-A pitcher in 2019. Right after his appearance, the Padres promoted him to the major league team, and he made his debut as a major league pitcher. He missed some time during his debut season with a left forearm strain. 

He also missed most of 2020 with a shoulder injury, making his debut in August and pitching in nine games overall.

In 2021, he left a start in April with forearm tightness and subsequently had Tommy John surgery. After missing the rest of that season, and after his rehab stint in the minors in 2022, Morejón returned to the Padres in June but was again on the injured list with shoulder inflammation after only a couple of appearances. He returned that year, pitching only out of the bullpen and had a 4.24 ERA in 34 innings.

In 2023, Morejón sustained a left elbow sprain in spring training and missed most of the major league season while attempting to rehab the injury. He appeared in nine innings over eight appearances.

Finally healthy in 2024, Morejón pitched exclusively out of the bullpen. He established himself as a dominant lefty reliever with a 2.83 ERA in 63.2 innings with 71 strikeouts to 21 walks. He continued that trend last season, earning an All-Star nod and finishing with a 2.08 ERA in 73.2 innings pitched.

There was a discussion in the offseason about returning Morejón to the starting rotation, but it was quickly dismissed as being too risky, as well as depriving the bullpen of a dominant force.

Morejón has shown he can stay healthy and dominate as a high-leverage reliever in the Padres bullpen.

Highly desired by other teams at the recent trade deadline, Morejón expressed his desire to be a Padre after the deadline passed. He was quoted in an article by San Diego Union-Tribune writer Annie Heilbrunn on July 29.

“I know what’s going on for the trade deadline. I try not to think too much about that because it’s a little bit hard for me because I (have played) for 10 years with the Padres, so I don’t like if (a trade) happens. I prefer to stay here. I know it’s not my decision, but that’s why I try to pitch good, trying to help the team win.”

In a clubhouse interview on the Sunday before the trade deadline, Morejón made his feelings clear.

“Everybody knows that I want to stay here,” Morejón said through interpreter Pedro Gutierrez. “Even with free agency coming, they know I want to stay. This is the organization I’ve been a part of for more than 10 years. I’ve sacrificed a lot. I’m proud to be a member of the Padres. Hopefully that will continue.”

He has been used aggressively during the first two-thirds of this season by the team. He leads all Padres relievers with 60 innings pitched and has a 3.00 ERA. For the team to get where they want to go, Adrían Morejón is a key to their success. He could be the best lefty reliever in baseball right now. He definitely has the best ERA for all left-handers with his innings count. His ability to pitch more than one inning, as well as span his appearances over back-to-back games, makes him not only their best left-handed option but also highly flexible and reliable.

Despite his injury history, Morejon has found his role on the Padres and in baseball. Keeping him for the future should be a high priority for this team and the new owners. 

Another MLB trade deadline has come and gone, setting the stage for a playoff run for some teams or a build towards the future for others.

This was a pivotal one for the Colorado Rockies’ new front office. Much was made about whether the Rockies would be more active than they have been historically, whether they would move all or most of the veteran pieces acquired in the offseason, and whether they would trade or build around some of their buzzy emerging stars.

The Purple Row team produced a number of pieces on those – and other – questions, grading the team’s overall day, considering players that could have been dealt (like Brennan Bernardino), and surveying readers’ feelings about Colorado’s moves.

Looking across MLB, the trade deadline is the fork in the road for all of the risers and fallers leaning into their fates.

Around the division, the San Francisco Giants positioned themselves as sellers, the San Diego Padres attacked a big weakness, the Diamondbacks held steady, and the Los Angeles Dodgers inevitably landed Tarik Skubal in the splashiest move of the deadline.

• Back in our NL West preview before the season started, we examined the potential impact of Luis Arráez’ arrival on the Giants playoff hopes. PECOTA projections had San Francisco holding steady compared to 2025 when they finished 81-81, third in the division and within reach of the final NL Wild Card spot. With the addition of Arráez, it felt like the Giants could parlay his reliable offensive production into a run at the playoffs. They did not… At 48-66 as of this writing, San Francisco floundered this season and shipped Arráez off to the 61-53 Philadelphia Phillies.
• The Padres are 59-55, third in the division, and are middle of the pack for pitching (a team ERA of 4.15 at this point in the season, good for 16th in MLB). They acquired pitchers Robbie Ray and Casey Mize to bolster their rotation.
• We probably don’t need to beat a dead horse – or a potentially dead 2027 season – but the Dodgers scooped up star ace Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers sparking conversation around the league about their World Series chances and about potential salary cap implications.

Across the league, there were a few movers and shakers that stood out:

• The Milwaukee Brewers, emerging as strong National League contenders, didn’t get quite as splashy as some expected, but added pitching help via Dustin May, JoJo Romero, and long-time Rockie Antonio Senzatela.
• The AL-leading Tampa Bay Rays pushed their chips in on rental pitcher Freddy Peralta. They also made a move for Liam Hicks, a young catcher to build around with several controllable years left. Hicks poses both a near-future boost and a long-term solution.
• The Boston Red Sox, riding a scorching 21-4 July (now at 24 victories in their last 28 games), looked to further jockey their way into the playoff picture by adding catcher and 2019 #1 overall pick Adley Rutschman from the Baltimore Orioles, along with relief pitcher Erik Miller and utility bat Eli White to try and flesh out their lineup around a solid core.
• At the bottom of the league with a 43-70 record, the Los Angeles Angels are leaning into a rebuild. At the deadline, they dealt Logan O’Hoppe, Chase Silseth, Jo Adell, Kirby Yates, José Soriano, and others, offloading those veterans and replenishing their farm system with prospects.

With all of the trades in the rearview as teams head into the closing months of the season, we want your thoughts on the moves:

• Which team’s trades (or lack thereof) surprised you the most?
• Which trade that didn’t happen would you like to make happen?
• Who do you think will have the biggest impact on their new squad?
• Thinking ahead, what are your bold predictions for what this year’s trades will set up for the offseason?

Let us know below!

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The Red Sox are 30-5 in their last 35 games. It just keeps going.

Willson Contreras exited the contest early with an illness while Boston took care of business behind a fantastic night on the mound and a few timely swings at the plate with a 4-0 victory. 

Here’s three takeaways from Wednesday night’s win. 

SONNY BOUNCES BACK

Boston’s veteran had started an honestly scheduled regression over his past two starts with 12 earned runs allowed over 12 innings. Gray looked much more like himself in the style of someone who had been one of baseball’s more efficient starters since returning from the injured list of May. 

Gray spun the ball at his best against the American League Central leaders with six scoreless innings. He allowed just three hits and walked two batters with eight strikeouts en route to his 14th victory of the season, tied with Phillies ace Cristopher Sanchez for the most in MLB. 

WILYER WON’T STOP SLUGGING
Abreu smashed his ninth home run since the All-Star break to drive the Red Sox offense. That mark leads the majors since in less than three weeks since the season resumed. The swing broke a tie with Washington’s CJ Abrams with eight long balls in that stretch. 

Wilyer Abreu smacks his 20th home run of the season! pic.twitter.com/5MKS1LMIzL

— MLB (@MLB) August 6, 2026

Abreu is the second Red Sox hitter to slug 20 homers on the season (stunning!), joining Willson Contreras with 23. 

BROADCAST PROPS

Major shoutout to NESN in the network’s third annual Women’s Celebration Game. Emma Tiedemann has done the play-by-play and each season and provided another strong call Wednesday night in an eventful night at Fenway Park.

Alanna Rizzo provided color commentary for the second straight season among an all-female broadcast crew for NESN, including Nicole Menner and The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey. 

Tonight we're proud to present the Women's Celebration Game with an all-female broadcast crew! 🙌 📺

Make sure to tune into NESN for a historic night in Boston ✨ pic.twitter.com/sbl6c8H0Mv

— NESN (@NESN) August 5, 2026

The Atlanta Braves took on the Miami Marlins in game two of the series looking for their seventh straight win. The Braves are tied with the Cubs for the most runs scored since the start of July and are seventh best since the All-Star Break. The Marlins are twentieth in MLB in runs since the start of July and in the bottom three since the break. The Braves are 6-2 against the Fish so far this season.

Bryce Elder was the starter for the Braves tonight. He had a 3.00 ERA since the start of July, but his FIP north of seven plus his BABIP shows he has had fortune on his side. The first inning went great for him. He was able to retire the side via two fly outs and a strikeout. The first did not go much better for the Braves facing the Marlins’ staff ace Eury Pérez (if he is the ace is arguable of course). Acuña was able to get a single, but that was the only offense.

Elder did his job again in the second by retiring the side. He had a strikeout and two ground outs. He made it through two innings only pitching sixteen pitches. The Braves busted the game open in their half of the second. Albies led it off with a walk, followed by a Dubón single to put runners on the corners. Austin Riley then kept his hot streak going and hit a ground-rule double after a Lane Thomas pop up to score the first run of the game.

Riley puts us on the board!#BravesCountrypic.twitter.com/JmGJ7a09u9

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 5, 2026

Sean Murphy struck out, but then Drake Baldwin scored both runners with a clutch two-out single to make the score 3-0. The inning finally ended with an Acuña strikeout.

In the third inning Elder finally gave up his first baserunner with a walk of Marsee walk but settled down to sit down the next three hitters. In the bottom of the third Olson struck out, but the Braves’ newest cleanup hitter Michael Harris had a ground-rule double of his own to have the same amount of doubles on the year as his jersye number (23). Albies flied out, but Dubón came through again with yet another two-out RBI when he hit a single to score Harris to make the score 4-0. He also stole second base, followed by a Lane Thomas walk. Unfortunately, Riley’s hot streak did not continue in this at-bat and he struck out with two runners on to end the third inning.

Elder continued arguably his best start of the season in the fourth when he induced two pop ups and a fly out to sit down the side in order. The fourth was not exactly the best inning the for the Braves’ offense as Eury Pérez was able to strikeout the side.

Elder somewhat struggled in the fifth in comparison to the rest of his innings tonight. He induced a ground out, but then he walked Caissie and gave up a double to Marsee. Somehow Elder was able to get out of this jam with only one earned run. Mack grounded out to score the run and then Sanoja flied out on a deep ball to left. In the bottom of the fifth Harris singled, but it was the only offense for the Braves outside of that.

Walt Weiss showed faith in Elder after making it this far on so few pitches and left him in to pitch the sixth. It paid off as he once again retired the side, picking up a strikeout of Stowers. Pérez was finally pulled from the game and it was the right choice as Calvin Faucher was able to strikeout both Thomas and Riley. It looked like there may be some momentum as Sean Murphy singled for his first hit since coming back and Baldwin singled as well. Acuña struck out though, so no more runs were scored.

Believe it or not, Bryce Elder pitched the seventh inning, giving the bullpen a second game in a row where the starter went at least six innings. Weiss’ faith paid off. Elder was able to sit down three of the four hitters faced. The only baserunner was via an error from nine other than Austin Riley. The Braves were sat down in order in the seventh. Of note, Matt Olson yet again did not reach base this game, which is a rarity these days.

Dylan Dodd came in to pitch the eighth ended Elder’s arguably best performance of the season. Elder pitched 7.0 innings of one hit ball where he surrendered one run with two walks and had three strikeouts. Elder did all of this in only eighty-four pitches. Dodd started the inning off getting a strikeout, but gave us a scare after that. Sanoja and Edwards both singled back-to-back. After a mound visit Dodd was able to get Stowers to fly out. Weiss then decided to bring in Fuentes who promptly got Lopez to ground out on one pitch. to end the top of the eighth. Austin Riley singled in the eighth for his second hit of the game, but that was the only offense for the Braves.

The Braves possible future closer Didier Fuentes stayed in the game and got the save by retiring the side and picking up two strikeouts

The key to the game tonight was Bryce Elder proving the doubters wrong and pitched an absolute gem of a one hit game. Only showing weakness in one inning of seven. The Braves’ offense also had multiple clutch two-out RBI. Austin Riley also appears that his turnaround might actually be for real.

The Braves won their seventh game in a row and look to sweep the Marlins tomorrow when Martín Pérez takes the mound while they look to become the second team in MLB this season to win seventy games.

First pitch tomorrow is at 7:15 EDT.

The Orioles continued to shake off the post trade deadline doldrums tonight with another win over the Angels. We all know the saying of pitching, defense, and three-run homers. Well tonight it was pitching (excellent), defense (not embarrassing) and three home runs. The end result, a 5-2 victory and the series with win one game to go.

Even with five runs scored, for most of this game the Orioles’ offense felt lackluster. But just as they did last night, they clustered their few hits together early and relied on a pinch-hit homer late.

Through three innings, the Orioles had just one baserunner, a first-inning single by Gunnar Henderson. But in the fourth, they struck. After Henderson worked a one-out walk, Tyler O’Neill stepped to the plate against the lefty starter Reid Detmers. O’Neill has taken a lot of heat from Orioles fans, for good reason. But he’s been very good since the beginning of July. And what he did at the plate in this at-bat was a thing of beauty. He took a 3-1 fastball deep into the night. It landed 426 feet away in the left field seats.

The next batter, Coby Mayo, did even better. He jumped on a curveball and sent it to the same part of the ballpark. It landed 436 feet away. That’s bragging rights!

Those three runs were all the Orioles would need, though they did add some insurance later to take the edge off. Trevor Rogers had another very strong game, especially early on.

Through five innings, he allowed just one hit and it was a total fluke. In the second, Travis D’Arnaud hit a ground ball almost exactly to where Jackson Holliday was positioned up the middle. But before the ball got to his glove, it hit square on the corner of second base and ricocheted past him. Rotten luck. But Rogers didn’t let it sway him. He retired the 10 batters with ease.

With the Orioles up 3-0 in the sixth, Jose Siri led off. As Ben McDonald and Kevin Brown joked about activating the Siri on people’s iPhones, Ben said “Hey Siri, what’s the score?” just as the Siri at the plate took Rogers yard. Not my favorite bit they’ve done. But Rogers got the next three batters to end the inning and keep the Orioles lead at two runs.

Detmers exited after that inning and relief pitcher Shaun Anderson pitched two innings with just a single allowed to Mayo. The way Rogers was cruising, things didn’t feel too dire, but that went away in a hurry in the seventh.

Rogers started the inning and allowed just his third hit of the night, a single by Nolan Schanuel. Craig Albernaz opted to pull Rogers from the game at that point. He was at 93 pitches and I think if the lead had been bigger he might have been given at least another batter. Instead, new Oriole Alex Hoppe came in to make his Orioles debut.

If you’re not familiar with Hoppe, he is a 27-year-old rookie who appeared in 24 games out of Seattle’s bullpen with a 5.79 ERA. He gives up a fair number of hits and walks more guys than you want to see out of the bullpen. Anyway, the first thing he did as an Oriole was throw a wild pitch to allow Schanuel to get into scoring position. After a lineout and a groundout, Schanuel was on third. He scored on a single, the run added to Rogers’s ledger.

Hoppe was replaced by Rico Garcia, who got the final out. But the Orioles’ lead was cut to just one run. The book was closed on Trevor Rogers with a line of 6+ IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 BB, 9 K. Another good start. His nine strikeouts is a season high for him.

Jackson Holliday walked to lead off the bottom of the seventh inning, but was unable to score. He made the final out getting caught stealing with leadoff guy Christian Franklin at the plate. Speaking of the rookie, I’m fine with letting the guy get time to see how he does. But maybe pull the plug on him batting leadoff, ok? At least until he has more than zero Major League hits.

The idea of the Orioles bullpen getting through two more innings without allowing a run made me pretty nervous. But the eighth inning was very good to the Orioles. Yennier Cano looked great and went three-up, three-down. He did make a boneheaded mistake challenging a pitch that was so far out of the strike zone that the graphics people didn’t have a measurement to put up. But aside from that, well done Yennier.

The bottom half of the inning got off to a tough start, but ended well. Pinch-hitter Dylan Beavers struck out, as did Pete Alonso. Alonso took an 0-for-4 with two strikeouts tonight. Angels pitcher José Fermin threw way inside to Henderson. Given how shiny he was, I’m gonna say the ball slipped out of his sweaty, sweaty hand. Gunnar contorted out of the way but the ball caught his jersey for the HBP.

O’Neill was scheduled to bat next, but Albernaz opted for Leody Taveras instead. I was not impressed by this move. O’Neill struggles against lefties, but he’s been hot. And Taveras struggles against everyone. Lately, “struggles” is probably a generous way to put it. But Taveras came through with a home run! It wasn’t quite as majestic as those hit by O’Neill and Mayo. It bounced off the groundskeepers shed in right field. But they all count the same on the scoreboard. Two huge insurance runs made the score 5-2. You win this one, Alby.

Andrew Kittredge came in to pitch the ninth, which is a lot less stressful when it isn’t a one-run game. The Angels went quietly to end the game. Orioles win, 5-2! Strong pitching and three home runs were the winning formula. They go for the sweep tomorrow at 12:35 with Brandon Young on the mound.

The Los Angeles Dodgers and Freddie Freeman are both optimistic the 10-time All-Star avoided a serious injury in the fifth inning of Wednesday's 7-6 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.

Freeman took a 91-mph fastball to the hand at the plate on the first pitch from Shota Imanaga. He took a second to grimace in pain, but finished his at-bat two pitches later with a flyout to center field before being subbed out defensively by Kiké Hernández for the home half of the inning.

"We had to get Freddie out of the game," manager Dave Roberts told reporters. "He got hit in the hand, but fortunately X-rays were negative. So, that was another positive."

Freeman echoed his manager's optimism and told reporters he expects to be in the lineup for the Dodgers' series opener against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Friday.

"That's what I get for swinging at a ball at my face," he said, according to The Athletic's Fabian Ardaya.

Freddie Freeman said he expects to be in the lineup on Friday.

His hand got jammed between the ball and the bat on this pitch he fouled off.

"That's what I get for swinging at a ball at my face," he said. https://t.co/RkIhNb2290pic.twitter.com/FJeMkqhEjE

— Fabian Ardaya (@FabianArdaya) August 5, 2026

Losing Freeman for any period of time, let alone an extended one if he would've broken his hand, would have been a major blow to a slumping Dodgers team that has been swept in two consecutive series amidst a season-worst six-game skid. In 112 games this season, Freeman has posted the National League's third best batting average (.310) and a top 10 OBP (.385) and OPS (.870). The 36-year-old is on track for his best individual season in the last three years, no longer hampered by a nagging ankle injury that forced him to miss time at the end of the 2024 regular season and that he re-aggravated early in 2025.

Even with the team's overall rough stretch, Freeman has continued to swing the bat well. He finished off July with a 3-for-4 night with an RBI and he's slashed .412/.444/.412 through the first five games of August. The rest of the lineup showed signs of life with a late rally at Wrigley Field on Wednesday and while it wasn't enough to get the win, it was an encouraging sight for Roberts.

"I liked the fight," Roberts told reporters. "It sucks to lose. It absolutely does, but we're going to win again."

That'll be a lot easier with Freeman in the lineup.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Freddie Freeman injury update: Dodgers star expects to play next game after scare

The Athletics faced the Cincinnati Reds in the middle game of this three-game interlegaue series. Once again, A’s starter Jacob Lopez turned in a quality start and gave his team a chance to win, only to receive no help from the bullpen and a struggling offense in a 3-2 loss, the Green and Gold’s seventh straight defeat.

Early Action

The A’s took the lead before most fans found their seats. The first batter of the game, right fielder Lawrence Butler, hit his seventh home run of the season against Reds starter Rhett Lowder to put the visitors in front 1-0.

LEADOFF LAW 😮‍💨 pic.twitter.com/bw8ZRclYnh

— Athletics (@Athletics) August 5, 2026

Lopez prevented an immediate response from the Reds, striking out the side in the bottom of the first inning. The Reds tied the game the following inning. With two outs, right fielder Noelvi Marte stole second base and then scored on catcher Jose Trevino’s RBI single.

Both teams Waste Scoring Chances

Lopez minimized the damage by striking out the next batter for his sixth strikeout of the game through two innings. The A’s southpaw recorded two more strikeouts in the third inning as the Reds stranded the go-ahead run at second base.

In the fourth inning, a walk and a single gave the Athletics their first scoring opportunity with a runner in scoring position. However, the A’s could not capitalize, as Donovan Walton grounded right back to Lowder to end the inning and keep the game tied at 1-1.

Reds Take the Lead

The Reds took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning. Second baseman Matt McLain hit his ninth home run of the season, a two-out solo shot off Lopez. The inning ended when Butler threw out Reds shortstop Elly De La Cruz as he attempted to stretch a single into a double.

Back and Forth We Go

Cincinnati’s lead did not last long. With one out in the sixth inning, Athletics left fielder Tyler Soderstrom singled, then raced around the bases to score the game-tying run on catcher Jonah Heim’s RBI double.

Heim ties it up 🤝 pic.twitter.com/HOHaBE5FkI

— Athletics (@Athletics) August 6, 2026

That was all the A’s offense mustered, as Lowder retired the next two hitters and stranded the go-ahead run at second base. The Reds’ right-hander completed six strong innings, allowing two runs on four hits. He did a good job of keeping the ball on the ground, inducing eight groundouts.

A’s Bullpen Blows

In the bottom of the sixth, the A’s brought in right-handed reliever Hayden Juenger. Lopez turned in another solid start, allowing two runs on four hits over five innings. He struck out nine, and more importantly, walked just one batter.

At 87 pitches, Lopez could have returned to start that inning, but A’s manager Mark Kotsay decided to switch pitchers, a decision that ultimately backfired. Juenger found himself in trouble immediately, allowing back-to-back singles to begin his outing. The first hit was a play he should have made, as it was a grounder hit directly back at him. The hosts regained the lead, 3-2, on Marte’s one-out sacrifice fly.

After both teams pushed across a run in the sixth inning, neither team scored in the seventh and eighth, keeping the Reds’ one-run lead intact heading into the final frame. A’s right-hander Scott Blewett pitched two scoreless innings of relief to keep the game within reach.

Last night, the Athletics put up a fight against Reds’ closer Emilio Pagán, but tonight he retired the side in order to secure his second consecutive save and the Reds’ second straight series victory.

In Cincinnati’s hitter-friendly ballpark, the A’s offense delivered another disappointing performance, remaining quiet for most of the contest. The trio of A’s players who recently received contract extensions — Jacob Wilson, Tyler Soderstrom and Lawrence Butler — combined for just two hits, a lack of production the team cannot afford with so many of its starters sidelined by injuries.

Speaking of injuries, if Wilson’s ailments are affecting his performance, it may make sense for the A’s to give him additional time to recover, especially with the team’s playoff hopes out of reach.

It seems like the Athletics may not win a game for the rest of the season. This evening’s loss makes the A’s losers of 12 straight series and winless in their last 14 series played.

Tomorrow morning, the team will look to salvage the series finale and finally end its losing streak. Right-hander Mason Barnett will start for the A’s. He will be opposed by Reds’ talented left-hander Andrew Abbott, who will look to take advantage of the injury-depleted A’s lineup.

Jefry Yan struck out his first big league hitter in the sixth inning Wednesday night. He celebrated with a style all his own.

He jumped off the mound, hung in the air for a beat and came down with one leg shot out underneath him, most of the way into a split.

Jefry Yan records his first career strikeout and has the celebration to match! pic.twitter.com/2aW0HdrViM

— MLB (@MLB) August 6, 2026

This had been one of the most anticipated moments of what is left of the New York Mets' season.

Yan has been doing some version of this for five years, through the Marlins system, winter ball at home in the Dominican, a season in Japan and a Rockies spring training that turned him into a clip everybody had seen by April. Some nights it's finger guns. Some nights he calls the out himself, arm cocked like an umpire.

He has gotten a lot of practice recently. He touched 101.6 miles per hour with his fastball this month and struck out better than half the hitters he faced. He also walked almost one in six.

He turns 30 this month. The Angels signed him at 16, he blew out his elbow at 19, and he spent five years outside of affiliated baseball, roofing houses in Arizona and delivering appliances.

So, he's earned the right to enjoy his time on the mound. It's just that other teams in the big leagues may not find it as enjoyable. Asked if the big leagues called for him to tame it down a bit, he said no.

Interim Mets manager Andy Green told reporters that opposing clubs have mostly decided he's harmless, a guy enjoying himself rather than a guy running them down. Hopefully for Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor, teams continue to feel that way down the stretch when they are fighting for a playoff spot against the Mets.

For New York fans though, at least this is something exciting and fun after what has already been a brutal season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Why Mets pitcher Jefry Yan nearly did the splits after first MLB strikeout

Detroit Tigers (55-58) vs. Seattle Mariners (55-59)

Time/Place: 9:40 p.m., T-Mobile Park
SB Nation Site:Lookout Landing
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Pitching Matchup: RHP Drew Anderson (4-4, 4.24 ERA) vs. RHP Bryan Woo (7-8, 4.56 ERA)

Player	G	IP	K%	BB%	GB%	FIP	fWAR
Anderson	40	63.2	28.3	8.7	47.9	3.80	0.5
Woo	21	120.1	24.5	5.2	38.6	3.20	2.9

2/3 in Seattle

⚾️ 9:40 PM ET
📺 @WatchDSN
📻 @971theticketxyt
🏟️ T-Mobile Park pic.twitter.com/vf3oAhytBP

— Detroit Tigers (@tigers) August 5, 2026

Back at it for Game 2 with Bryan on the bump. #TridentsUppic.twitter.com/Fak8KMwjB0

— Seattle Mariners (@Mariners) August 5, 2026

A plane flew over Wrigley Field ahead of Tarik Skubal's Los Angeles Dodgersdebut on Tuesday, Aug. 4. It was supposed to read, "The Dodgers ruined baseball"... if it weren't upside down.

The fumbled stunt, funded by sports gambling company Underdog, was intended as a jab at the back-to-back World Series champions — and their projected $322 million payroll — in the wake of their blockbuster trade for the best pitcher in baseball.

"We just want to say what every fan is already thinking," Underdog said in a statement to USA TODAY Sports. And in that aspect, they accomplished just that. Just look at the replies under Jeff Passan's tweet when he broke news of the trade on Saturday night.

"They ruined the sport I love," wrote @murphyJacks0n.

"We need a lockout," @owennoble81 tweeted. "This is crazy."

And from several more accounts, "the Dodgers have ruined baseball."

Dave Roberts sat behind the podium at Dodger Stadium on Sunday, Aug. 2. The Dodgers had just acquired Skubal in exchange for prospects Zyhir Hope, River Ryan and Brady Smith the night before. The dust had yet to settle on the bombshell trade that added the reigning back-to-back Cy Young winner to the back-to-back World Series champions — and to a rotation that, when healthy, includes 2025 World Series MVP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, two-time Cy Young winner Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani when Roberts was asked by legendary Los Angeles Times columnist Bill Plaschke if he felt "unbeatable."

"We gotta play well," Roberts said. "Baseball's baseball. We gotta play the games, but I like our club."

But in the four games since acquiring Skubal, the Dodgers have done anything but.

They dropped Sunday's series finale to the Boston Red Sox in a sloppy 8-4 blowout at home before flying to Chicago for a three-game series against the Cubs. After dropping each of the first two games in similar uninspired fashion — including Skubal's debut on Tuesday — LA found itself again in an early hole at Wrigley Field on Wednesday.

Eric Lauer, who has been a stabilizing presence in the rotation since his arrival via trade from the Toronto Blue Jays in May in the wake of injuries to Glasnow and Snell, was knocked around for six earned runs — tying his total from the entire month of July — on 11 hits and he gave up two homers to Pete Crow-Armstrong in four innings. This time, however, the Dodgers finally showed fight with a five-run eighth inning thanks to a pair of big swings from Ohtani and Max Muncy. Mookie Betts also had an encouraging 4-for-5 day at the plate, none bigger than his line-drive single to left field earlier in the frame to advance Kyle Tucker to second and set the table for Muncy.

But their early struggles proved too much to overcome. The Cubs held on for a 7-6 win, cementing the second consecutive series in which the Dodgers have been swept and pushing their season-worst losing streak to six games.

"I liked the fight," Roberts told reporters postgame. "It sucks to lose. It absolutely does, but we're going to win again."

A baseball season is a rollercoaster. No team, not even the Dodgers and their seemingly infinite money, cruises its way through 162 games. The Dodgers are in a slump, a bad one, but nothing more. They'll get Snell back in the rotation sometime in the near future, and Glasnow's timetable isn't far behind now that he's begun a rehab assignment with Single-A Ontario. August is not October.

That's exactly what fans of MLB's other 29 teams are afraid of.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: The 'bad for baseball' Dodgers are just bad ... for now