Category: MLB

Red Sox report card: Grading position players' 2026 seasons originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

The Boston Red Sox’ 2026 regular season isn’t over yet, but we’re just about ready to turn the page to playoff baseball

Boston punched its ticket to the postseason earlier this week, completing a miraculous turnaround that included a 30-5 stretch after starting the season 32-46. Chad Tracy, who was officially named the 49th manager in franchise history on Tuesday, deserves immense credit for leading the club through adversity. He deserves an “A” grade for his performance as the Red Sox’ skipper this year.

How about the players? We handed out grades for each position player in our end-of-season report card:

Note: All grades are relative to players’ preseason expectations.

Catchers

Adley Rutschman

Grade: C

When the Red Sox traded four of their top prospects to Baltimore for Rutschman at the deadline, they hoped he’d look more like the elite switch-hitting catcher he was at the start of his career. His bat appeared to be returning to form with the O’s before he suffered a wrist injury that landed him on the injured list.

Offensively, Rutschman has been a major disappointment so far with Boston. The former No. 1 overall draft pick has hit just .214 with a .668 OPS in 28 games with the club, and he has played through an elbow issue for the last month. He remains an elite defensive backstop, but the Red Sox didn’t give up the farm for his glove. To be worth what they gave up, Rutschman has to be one of their most dependable bats.

Connor Wong

Grade: C-

Wong was better this season than last, but that isn’t saying much. While his offensive numbers were fine for a backup catcher, he was below-average defensively behind the dish. He and Carlos Narvaez’s struggles led Craig Breslow and Co. to overpay for Rutschman.

Infielders

Willson Contreras, 1B

Grade: A+

Contreras is one of the biggest reasons the Red Sox are a playoff team. He was acquired in the offseason as Boston’s much-needed right-handed bat, and he exceeded even the loftiest expectations with a team-high 27 homers through 129 games. The veteran also provided an emotional spark with his fiery passion on the field, and he has already emerged as a vocal leader in his first year with the team.

Nick Sogard, UTIL

Grade: A-

Sogard has gone from being labeled a “4A” player to a useful, impactful depth piece for Boston. His defensive versaility is his biggest strength, but he has also become an offensive threat with competitive at-bats throughout his time with the big-league club this season.

Trevor Story, SS

Grade: D

After playing in 157 games last season, the oft-injured Story spent most of 2026 on the injured list after undergoing sports hernia surgery. While he has been a bright spot since his return from the IL, his performance when healthy was mostly disappointing. His combination of unavailability and limited production — both offensively and defensively — gives him one of the lowest grades on our report card.

Caleb Durbin, 3B

Grade: A-

Durbin’s nightmare start to the season is the only thing keeping him from a solid A. Since June, he has been an above-average hitter and an elite defender at the hot corner. His contributions helped fuel Boston’s miraculous turnaround.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa, UTIL

Grade: B-

Kiner-Falefa’s midseason injury hurts his grade, but he has largely delivered what the Red Sox needed from him after signing him to a one-year deal last winter. Boston wanted a reliable, versatile defender off the bench, and he has been just that when healthy. His offensive numbers are below-average, just as they’ve been throughout his big-league career.

Andruw Monasterio, INF

Grade: B

When the Red Sox acquired Monasterio from Milwaukee, he was expected to simply provide infield depth off the bench and perhaps jump between Triple-A and the majors. He exceeded those expectations by playing an enormous role during Boston’s historic turnaround.

Monasterio provided defensive versatility with starts at shortstop, second base, third base, and first base. He also posted an OPS above 1.000 while the Red Sox went on their incredible run, and had his own signature moment when he belted a game-winning two-run homer in the 10th inning against the Athletics in July.

His production over the final two months fell off a cliff, so that hurts his final grade. Still, it was a successful season for Mona.

Anthony Seigler, INF

Grade: B-

Seigler played in only 49 games for Boston this season, but the offseason addition gave the club a much-needed jolt when he was called up in June. His upbeat presence immediately made a positive impact on the team’s chemistry.

Performance-wise, Seigler did his part by helping to stabilize the second base position. He posted a 105 OPS+, which is more than anyone expected from him when he was acquired as part of the Durbin deal.

Mickey Gasper, DH/1B/C

Grade: A

Gasper wasn’t expected to be a meaningful contributor to the big-league club entering the season. Even a modest output would have given him a decent grade.

After becoming a lineup regular in May, he was sent back down in late June with unimpressive numbers. Boston gave him another shot in mid-August, and he went nuclear.

Gasper put up Ted Williams and Barry Bonds-like numbers for a solid 13-game stretch after being called back up on Aug. 17. He has cooled off since, but he has 10 homers and an .845 OPS in 64 games this season. That’s “A” worthy.

Outfielders

Jarren Duran, LF/DH

Grade: D

Duran ranks third on the team with 20 homers. He’s one stolen base shy of perhaps the worst 20/20 season in MLB history.

The 2024 All-Star was one of the club’s greatest disappointments in 2026. He was one of the worst qualified hitters in baseball, posting a 75 OPS+ with 163 strikeouts in 146 games. His solid defense keeps him from a failing grade.

Ceddanne Rafaela, CF

Grade: A+

Rafaela took another significant step forward at the plate in 2026, making him one of Boston’s best all-around players as his glove remained elite in center field. He set career highs in batting average (.282), on-base percentage (.317), and slugging percentage (.760), and he’s a no-brainer for his second straight Gold Glove award.

Wilyer Abreu, RF

Grade: A

Like Rafaela, Abreu has blossomed into an outstanding all-around player. He took another step forward this season with a career-high 24 homers and 74 RBI to go with his elite defense in right field. He also leads the American League with 37 doubles.

Abreu is a streaky hitter, but when he’s on, few are more dangerous. His defense is just the cherry on top.

Roman Anthony, LF/DH

Grade: D

After entering the season with MVP-level expectations, Anthony struggled mightily. The 22-year-old hit just .229 with one homer and a .675 OPS before suffering a torn ring finger ligament on May 4. He didn’t return until Aug. 30, and he hasn’t done much since to quiet the naysayers.

Anthony’s sophomore season was severely disappointing. He’ll look to make fans more optimistic about his future with a strong postseason performance.

Masataka Yoshida, LF/DH

Grade: C+

Yoshida entered the season without a defined role due to the club’s outfield/DH logjam. He was solid when given the chance, posting a .746 OPS in 87 games before going down with a season-ending hamstring injury. He just didn’t make enough of an impact to get inside the “B” range.

Eli White, OF

Grade: B

The Red Sox didn’t give up much to get White at the deadline, and he proved to be a useful depth outfielder with game-changing speed during his 27 games with the club. Unfortunately, his season is over due to a Lisfranc repair in his right foot.

Jahmai Jones, LF/DH

Grade: A-

Boston acquired Jones from the Detroit Tigers for a player to be named later, hoping he could return to form as a lefty masher. He did just that, hitting .321 with a 1.067 OPS in 34 games.

Ex-Red Sox

Marcelo Mayer, INF

Grade: F

The former top prospect entered 2026 with plenty to prove after failing to impress and suffering a season-ending injury in his rookie season. His sophomore campaign was even worse, as he hit .220 with a .594 OPS in 70 games before going down with yet another injury. He was shipped to the San Francisco Giants at the deadline in exchange for left-handed relief pitcher Erik Miller.

Carlos Narvaez, C

Grade: F

After breaking out with Boston in 2025, Narvaez hit just .187 with a .535 OPS in 62 games this season before being sent to Baltimore in the Rutschman deal.

The Dodgers received two key reinforcements making their returns from injury on Tuesday, as both Andy Pages and Roki Sasaki played a factor into the team’s 7-0 shutout win over the San Diego Padres.

The Dodgers are preparing to get the final Infinity Stone added to their gauntlet, as two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani is expected to return from the injured list for Wednesday’s game against San Diego. Whether Ohtani will remain in the leadoff spot in the starting lineup is still up in the air, as Mookie Betts has been swinging a red-hot bat at the leadoff spot in his absence, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.

“I do think I should think through the Mookie vs. left situation, but I have to think about the entire lineup structure,” Roberts said. “That’s probably the way it’s going to fall out, but I haven’t totally decided yet.”

Roki Sasaki made his first bullpen appearance since the 2025 World Series on Tuesday, as he logged a scoreless top of the fourth inning while allowing just one hit and striking out two.

Although Sasaki has vastly improved in the second half this season before suffering a blister to his pitching hand— 5.33 ERA in first half, 2.97 ERA in second half— the plan is to once again have him out of the bullpen for the postseason for a second consecutive year, per Chen.

“It’s just showing that whatever it takes to help us win, knowing that any inning he throws in the postseason is going to be huge,” manager Dave Roberts said. “He clearly understands that.”

Josue De Paula is making a strong case for making the postseason roster, as the 21-year-old rookie is slashing .323/.500/.581 while becoming the first Dodger rookie with at least a .500 on-base percentage over his first 11 games since Corey Seager in 2015.

De Paula has spent the bulk of his time in the big leagues serving as the designated hitter, filling the void Ohtani left behind. With Ohtani expected to return from the injured list on Wednesday, the next test for De Paula is to see how he can handle himself in the outfield defensively, per Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times.

“All the reports that we’ve gotten from our minor-league staff are right on cue,” Ebel said. “He’s been working, he’s bringing it right here to the major leagues. And it’s a pleasure for me, with some energy, coming out early every day — hasn’t missed. We’re working on game situations, ground balls, left, right, right at him, fly balls, shags during BP. So we’re on the right track.”

Top of the morning to you, Purple Row!

Well, friends, since it’s the final week of the 2026 regular season, teams are looking ahead to what comes next. For some, it’s preparing for the postseason, while teams like the Rockies are looking forward to what comes next after the World Series.

The Rockies and Arizona Diamondbacks continue their series tonight with Mason Adams facing off against the veteran Merrill Kelly. Meanwhile, the playoff push continues across the league as teams fight for the few spots remaining in the Wild Card. It’s a fun time of the year in the final sprint!

Now, here are some links to kick off your Wednesday.

Rockies News & Links

• Freeland soaking it all in ahead of potential final home start with Rockies | MLB.com — Tuesday was perhaps the last time Kyle Freeland takes the mound at Coors Field. As the season winds down, Freeland has been well aware this could be the end of his Rockies tenure, so he’s taken the time to enjoy and soak in every last minute with the team he grew up rooting for.
• Offseason Outlook: Colorado Rockies | MLB Trade Rumors — MLB Trade Rumors always does some great content and this article gives a quick overview of free agents, salary obligations, and arbitration candidates heading into the 2026 offseason.
• Assessing the Futures of Kyle Freeland and Other Rockies’ Pending UFAs | Rockies on SI — Ben Fisher gives an outlook on the potential decisions concerning the pending free agents for the Rockies.
• Affected by Altitude Episode 226: Statuesque | Rocky Mountain Rooftop — This week, Evan Lang and I discuss the Todd Helton statue, the seasons of Willi Castro and Gabriel Hughes, and close out with a round-up for the 206 minor league season.

Around Baseball

• Judge likely to miss Wild Card Series with ‘moderate grade’ calf strain | MLB.com — The New York Yankees got some bad news about Aaron Judge’s availability in the first round of the postseason. Manager Aaron Boone announced that Judge was dealing with a “moderate grade” right calf strain and that the team isn’t planning on activating him for a potential Wild Card series against the Boston Red Sox. Judge has been down most of the year with injury, so it may not be the worst news for the Yankees, but it certainly doesn’t help.
• Red Sox award Tracy with 3-year deal; Breslow’s options for ’29, ’30 picked up | MLB.com — The turnaround for the Boston Red Sox from being dead in the water to clinching a playoff spot has been one of the fun stories of the 2026 season. To reward his efforts, the Red Sox took off the interim tag of Chad Tracy, officially making him the 49th manager in club history. Additionally, Boston has picked up the options of chief baseball officer Craig Breslow through 2030.
• When Will the Angels Be Competitive Again? | FanGraphs — Dan Szymborski dives into the prospects of how quickly the Los Angeles Angels could turn things around under new owner Stan Kroenke. It’s worth a read and ultimately, it may not be as easy a turnaround as fans may hope for.
• How Walt Weiss found the balance that guided the Braves to a NL East title | The Athletic ($) — Former Rockies manager Walt Weiss has had a much easier time in his second stint as a big league manager, guiding the Atlanta Braves to another NL East title. He reflects on the lessons he learned leading struggling Rockies teams and also points to the great working relationship he has with Braves president of baseball operations Alex Anthopoulos.

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Happy Friday, everyone! We’ve got some big manager news, and for once it isn’t anyone getting fired. Two interim managers have been able to remove “interim” from their titles as the Mets and Red Sox make things official with Andy Green and Chad Tracy. We also know two players who might not be participating in the postseason, at least not right away. Aaron Judge will miss the Wild Card for sure, and Joc Pederson will be sidelined into the postseason.

Also, we look at Paul Skenes, who is pointing to the WBC as a possible culprit for his pitching issues, and we have some questions about the Angels.

Let’s just get right into it.

• Ben Clemens makes a case for Kyle Harrison in the postseason.
• Jay Jaffe tries to make sense of all the potential tiebreaker scenarios in the final week of the season.
• Michael Baumann gets into how things look for the Yankees now that Aaron Judge is back on the bench and might miss the Wild Card series.
• Brian Murphy looks at how this week might change things in the MVP frontrunner races.
• Nick Selbe looks at how the Angels managed to find themselves with an elite starting rotation.
• The big stories that matter in the final week of the season. Story by Karl Rasmussen.
• Paul Skenes has suggested that participating in the WBC may have contributed to his velocity dip this season. (ESPN)
• Robert Murray looks at why players won’t budge on a salary cap.
• The Mets will be standing by their interim manager.

Andy Green has agreed to a three-year deal to remain Mets manager after this season. Green took over as interim manager when Carlos Mendoza was fired in late June. He had insisted he wanted to return to the front office after the season, but he’ll continue in the dugout.

— Jorge Castillo (@jorgecastillo) September 22, 2026

• Ryan Phillips explains why hiring Andy Green is both safe and a leap of faith for the Mets.
• Dan Szymborski wonders, “When will the Angels be competitive again?”
• Joc Pederson is heading to the IL with a hand fracture, but hopes to be back for the postseason. Story by Kennedi Landry.
• Jason Beck reports that Justin Verlander will make one final start this weekend before he retires.
• Jenna West shares the Rays’ new road gray jerseys. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• This is kind of crazy.

The MLB strike zone as actually called was nearly 500 square inches in size in 2015.

This year, it's 411 square inches. It's gotten 16% smaller in 11 years, and pitchers are still throwing strikes 64% of the time.https://t.co/nN0Pc5qPebpic.twitter.com/nWuBHGf8Fu

— JJ Cooper (@jjcoop36) September 22, 2026

• Davy Andrews makes an MVP case for Bobby Witt Jr.
• Zack Wheeler reaches 2000 career strikeouts. Story by Todd Zolecki.
• Tom Verducci looks at the good and the bad going on with the Phillies ahead of the postseason.
• The Athletic staff rank postseason pitching rotations. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Another interim manager is sticking around for the long haul.

The Boston Red Sox have removed the interim tag from manager Chad Tracy's title and signed him to a three-year contract with a club option for 2030. Tracy took over as manager following Alex Cora's firing when Boston was 12-17. The Red Sox are 74-55 since.

— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) September 22, 2026

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.

Good morning, baseball fans!

There are any number of reasons why the San Francisco Giants have had a really terrible, awful, no-good, cruddy 2026 season. And sure, we could go through the likely reasons for that. But that kind of feels like an off-season thing. And we still have a handful of games to endure.

But you know who doesn’t have to endure any more of the 2026 season? The entire 2026 roster! Everyone’s season is over. Which just adds another heaping dose of misery to a team with an abundance of it already.

I think we’ve probably already done one of these posts this year, but if so, that was really early and before we knew just how bad the season was going to go.

And while I was initially planning to write about the outcome of the WPBL Championship game that took place yesterday afternoon, I am also old and will probably be asleep by the end of the game. So we’ll talk about that tomorrow.

Instead, it’s time for another round of my favorite game: Wrong Answers Only! Because I think we could all use the laughs.

Today’s topic: What is the cause of the Giants’ cursed 2026 season?

Last time, I went through a lengthy tale about Buster Posey buying a cursed object from a farmer’s market. So this time, I think I’m going to give the blame to Netflix. See, they were out in McCovey Cove for Opening Day this year, and I can’t help but think someone took something out of the water that they weren’t supposed to. A cursed home run ball that was never fished out of the water by kayakers. Or perhaps it was, and they were cursed too and put it back. Hard to say. But it’s definitely Netflix’s fault somehow.

What’s your best absurd reason for why this team has been cursed this year?

What a difference a year can make. Unfortunately.

One year ago at this time, Esteban Mejia’s career was on a very different trajectory. The Dominican right-hander, a 2024 international signing, was coming off of an excellent first season stateside, one in which he flashed both dazzling results — a 2.45 ERA and 11.8 K/9 as an 18-year-old for Low-A Delmarva — and a jaw-dropping repertoire, headlined by a four-seam fastball that touched 102 mph, along with a devastating changeup and gyro-like slider.

On MLB Pipeline, he’d skyrocketed from an unranked prospect to #8 in the O’s system. Baseball America went even further, listing him as one of MLB’s 100 best prospects, with BA’s Josh Norris raving, “He produces outings that burrow in your brain and stay there for weeks.”

Sure, Mejia walked a few too many hitters, but what teenaged pitcher doesn’t? This kid was a star in the making, the Orioles’ fastest-rising and most electric pitching prospect, and 2026 was going to be his year to shine. As I wrote last October, “If 2025 was the year that Mejia broke out onto the prospect scene, 2026 could be the year that he rises to the very top of it.”

Oh, 2025 Paul. How young and naïve you were.

Mejia did not, as it turns out, rise to the very top of the prospect scene this year. In fact, when the updated lists are published, he may be nowhere to be found at all. His 2026 season was an unmitigated disaster, one that may have irreversibly wrecked his prospect status and left him scrambling to rebuild his nascent career.

Opening the season with a repeat engagement at Delmarva, things went off the rails for Mejia almost immediately. His first start was solid enough — six strikeouts, three walks, and one hit in 4.1 innings at Salem — but in his home debut a week later, he allowed five baserunners and three runs without getting out of the first inning.

Mejia was plagued by an inability to throw strikes, which reached a nadir on April 17 in Fredericksburg. In that game, Mejia issued an astounding eight walks — twice as many as he’d ever had in a single outing — in 2.1 innings of work. He threw twice as many balls (42) as strikes (21) and uncorked two wild pitches. In the first inning alone, he walked the first three batters, then plated two runs on a balk and a wild pitch, and walked the next two batters to force home another. Even for a pitcher with a career 5.4 BB/9 rate entering the season, this was a whole new level of wildness.

Mejia returned in his next start with a gem — four scoreless innings, eight strikeouts, just one walk — and it seemed like his Fredericksburg outing might’ve been a fluke. But then things continued to unravel. Over his next six starts, Meija struggled to an 8.83 ERA and walked 26 batters in 17.1 innings, including three outings of five or more walks.

By the end of June, Mejia was 15 games into his season and had yet to work five innings in any of them, carrying an 8.08 ERA and averaging more than 12 walks per nine innings. It should be said that Mejia averaged less than a hit per inning, so batters weren’t exactly smoking the ball when they put it in play, but they rightly decided that there was little reason to swing if the pitcher was just going to put them on base anyway. The Orioles had seen enough, and pulled Mejia off the roster for a month to place him on the development list, working on a specialized throwing program with the right-hander to try to get his control back on track.

I keep revisiting Josh Norris’s remark about Mejia’s outings that “burrow in your brain.” Sadly, there were plenty of those in 2026, and this time that’s not a compliment.

The most brain-burrowing of those outings came in back-to-back starts on July 29 and Aug. 4, after Mejia’s return to the Shorebirds’ active roster. In those two outings combined, Mejia faced 11 batters. He retired none of them. The first outing, against Hickory, went single, single, hit by pitch, single, double, single, wild pitch, walk. The second outing, once again versus his nemesis Fredericksburg, lasted four batters. All four were walks, and all four came around to score, inflating Mejia’s ERA to 10.20.

Good news was hard to come by for Mejia in 2026. Even when it looked like he was briefly getting his act together in mid-August, tossing three straight scoreless outings with only three walks in 8.1 innings, he came unglued in his final two. He walked all three batters he faced in an Aug. 27 outing against — you guessed it — Fredericksburg, then was torched for six runs in 1.2 innings in his season finale Sept. 6, the fourth time he’d given up six or more runs.

You may want to avert your eyes as I present Mejia’s full 2026 season stats. He was 0-9 with a 9.80 ERA, and he issued 70 walks (and six HBP for good measure) in 52.1 IP, for an average of 12.0 walks per nine innings. Twelve! To call it a dismal season would be an understatement. For a pitcher who was primed for a breakout to fall apart instead was a tough pill to swallow for Mejia and the Orioles.

As I cautioned in last year’s Mejia post (if I may once again be tacky and quote myself): “He’s a long way from MLB, and there’s a whole lot that could go wrong on his journey up the minor league ladder. Baseball history is littered with prospects who dominated at the lower levels but hit a wall once the competition got tougher, stalling out their careers without ever getting a sniff of the majors.”

It’s safe to say that something went wrong for Mejia. A lot of things. As quickly as his stock exploded in 2025, it imploded in 2026. And if it’s ever going to return, it’ll require a heck of a lot of hard work and perhaps a complete mechanical overhaul on Mejia’s part. The Orioles’ development staff has a long offseason ahead trying to figure out how things went so haywire for the young righty and what, if anything, can help him get back on track in 2027. Throwing strikes, of course, is priority number one, but that’s easier said than done.

At 19 years old, Esteban Mejia’s baseball story isn’t finished yet. It just got a lot more complicated.

If you sign a pitcher to a $130 million contract, you’re an MLB decision-maker (Hello! Hire me! I have good ideas and work fairly hard!) If you’re not an MLB decision-maker and have the capacity to read my first sentence without taking it literally, you’ll want that $130 million pitcher to pitch in big games. The Boston Red Sox signed Ranger Suarez to a 5-year, $130 million contract shortly after losing Alex Bregman to the Chicago Cubs this offseason.

Suarez wasn’t making top dollar over the first eight years of his career, but he was pitching in big games. He threw in 11 postseason games for the Philadelphia Phillies, posting a 1.48 ERA on his way to four wins and one save. With one week remaining in the regular season, Suarez is lined up to start game three of the Wild Card series, although Chad Tracy said not to read into that yet. Despite Tracy’s guidance, I’m choosing to read into it.

Suarez has been streaky this season. He posted a 2.10 ERA over five starts in June. In August, he registered a 5.70 ERA. If you believe in pitcher streakiness, you’ll be pleased to know the lefty has allowed just two earned runs over his last three starts (19.2 innings). Is this the start of a hot streak, or just some fortunate outcomes over a short sample? To quote the owl from the Tootsie Pop commercial, let’s find out!

Suarez is typically effective against lefties, although he hit some blips during the middle of the season. He sees mostly right-handed hitters, though the Yankees are likely to keep both Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger in the lineup, as well as potentially Austin Wells and Jazz Chisholm. When Suarez got into trouble against lefties this season, it was primarily by missing the edge of the zone too often, falling behind in counts, and walking hitters. In August, he walked 15% of the lefties he faced. In September, he’s only seen 28 lefties, but he’s dialed it in.

Suarez has simplified his approach, increasing his sinker and slider usage. He’s thrown the sinker on the arm side where it can jam hitters, rather than trying to back door it.

His slider was also located low and on the glove side, which translated to a 50% chase rate. Suarez also increased his first-pitch strike percentage from 55% in August to 68% in September. When Suarez is ahead, hitters are forced to swing at more pitches on the edges, and it translates to easy outs. Bellinger and Rice both hit pitches on the inside part of the plate well. In a few meetings this season, Suarez has opted to pitch primarily away from them. If Suarez does pitch against the Yankees, it will be interesting to see if he tries to jam them or continues to pitch away. Either way, his sinker/slider combination has been very effective over the past few weeks.

Righties are the bigger question for Suarez. Fortunately, the Yankees’ right-handed hitters without Aaron Judge in the lineup aren’t as daunting. Paul Goldschmidt and Heliot Ramos are the two biggest names, while George Lombard has also hit lefties well in his debut season. Ramos and Lombard each have plenty of strikeouts in their game, as does Jose Caballero. Amed Rosario is also often in the lineup against lefties, but he’s posted a wRC+ of just 6 — yes, you read that correctly — 6 against lefties over the past two months.

Back to Suarez. Over his last three starts, he’s held righties to a .190 batting average while striking out 24.5% of them. He made some notable changes to his approach as well. He’s made changes to both his usage rates and how he’s deployed them.

For most of the season, he’s led with his cutter against righties. It’s been effective, as he’s thrown it high and inside where it can jam hitters. In September, he’s backed off the usage and thrown it more on the arm side. The strike rate has fallen, but the different approach might be helping his other pitches be more effective.

He’s made up for the lower cutter usage by increasing his sinkers to righties. Here’s a look at the heat map for most of the season and September.

Early in the season, he almost exclusively kept his sinker away from righties. More recently, he’s used the whole plate, throwing it down and away as well as inside. The strike rate is up, while the contact against it is weak. With the cutter more on the arm side, it might be more difficult for hitters to pull the trigger on the sinker, leading to an increase in called strikes.

The other notable change Suarez has made is slashing his changeup usage. For much of his career, his changeup has been his best pitch against righties. The swinging strike rate has been between 15 and 20%, with weak contact against it. This season, the zone rate and chase rate are below his usual marks, leading to a strike rate below 50%. From the beginning of the season through the end of August, the pitch accounted for 17% of his offerings to righties. Over his last three starts, he’s used the pitch just 8% of the time. He’s thrown it in just four two-strike counts in September, despite it being his second most used pitch against righties for most of the season. While it’s a good pitch when it’s working, it hasn’t been a weapon for most of this season.

Suarez’s deep arsenal means it can look very different for him on a given day. After returning from injury in July, he used five pitches over 14% of the time. As the Red Sox inched closer to securing a playoff spot, he cut the changeup and covered that portion of the plate with a sinker. It’s an approach that’s worked, but could be exposed as hitters are more ready for it. While most of the games this week are largely meaningless, how Suarez approaches righties in his final start of the season is something to watch, and could be a tell for how he performs in the playoffs.

Garrett Crochet ruined Game 1 for the AL Wild Card series last year for the Yankees.

And he could be looking to inflict damage on Boston’s AL East rivals once again.

The sidelined lefty ace said he hit 96 mph in a live batting practice session Tuesday and believes he can contribute in the postseason.

“The way that … just went, I could go get outs,” Crochet said, according to the Boston Globe. “It depends obviously what role they want me in. It’s not really for me to say. I know myself and I know my body, and the biggest thing was that I felt good out there. Felt like I was able to ramp up intensity to a place that I haven’t gone yet. Tomorrow is going to be a big deal, seeing how I recover.”

The Yankees and Red Sox are seemingly on a collision course for a second straight Wild Card clash, although Boston has yet to secure the No. 5 seed.

The loser of the AL Central battle between the Guardians and White Sox can still overtake Boston for that date in The Bronx next Tuesday.

Boston entered last postseason with Crochet anchoring its rotation off a season that earned him second place in the AL Cy Young voting but question marks in the rotation after him.

This time around, Boston has established starters but Crochet is the question mark.

Crochet is closing in on five months since he last pitched in an MLB game after landing on the injured list in April with left shoulder inflammation, having last started April 25.

He did not pitch up to his standards in his six outings before being sidelined, posting a 6.30 ERA while allowing 33 hits and five homers in just 30 innings.

It’s uncertain how Boston would use him in the postseason due to the long layoff and the team having quality starters.

Lefties Peyton Tolle, Ranger Suarez and Jake Bennett plus righty Sonny Gray give Boston four capable starters to match up with the Yankees.

Last season, Crochet dominated the Yankees in Game 1, striking out 11 while allowing just one run in 7 2/3 innings in Boston’s 3-1 victory.

Brayan Bello lasted just 2 1/3 innings in a Game 2 loss and rookie Connelly Early logged only 3 2/3 innings in the decisive Game 3 loss.

“He’s definitely making progress,” Boston manager Chad Tracy — fresh off his promotion to full-time skipper — said, per the Boston Globe. “Again, it’s ‘see how he feels tomorrow.’ I know that there’s a lot of conversation around that because we’re only a week away from the postseason now. So determining how does he feel coming out of that [and] what does this weekend look like is going to be the next step.

“What that looks like now, I don’t know. I just know that whatever it is, it’s going to be done with Garrett’s best interest in mind, making sure that we’re doing it right.”

Crochet noted that he would “feel bad” taking someone’s spot on the roster, and said he would accept whatever the front office decides.

With the season ending Sunday, Boston does not have any soft landing spots to allow Crochet to face major-league hitters in a true game environment before the playoffs begin.

Boston ultimately may just have to trust that its star pitcher can return with no hiccups.

“You’re considering all those things,” Tracy said, per the Boston Globe. “We have to consider it and just be very, very mindful of, again, what are we potentially exposing him to and what can he give us really?”

Morning, all!

Marcus Semien is in town with the Mets for the first time since being traded last offseason and reminisced about his time with the Rangers.

The Rangers have placed Joc Pederson on the IL, retroactive to Saturday, but are hopeful he will be available if they make the playoffs.

Pederson also missed time in 2025 due to a broken hand after being hit by a pitch.

Ezequiel Duran’s time in the Dominican Winter League last year has paid off to the tune of the eighth highest WAR in the American League.

Tim Cowlishaw thinks the Rangers have an advantage over Houston in these final games by having earlier start times than Houston.

Of course, that also depends on the Rangers winning games, and last night that didn’t happen in part because of weak defense.

Not to be outdone by the defense, the Rangers’ offense last night was 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position.

Jake Burger’s assessment of the game and misplays amounted to “it sucks”

Free of charge for the discerning reader.

Happy birthday to Willie Greene, and a mighty host of others.

Today in baseball history, in 1908 – Giants P Christy Mathewson and Cubs P Three Finger Brown battle in what is perhaps the most controversial game ever played. The score is 1-1, with two outs in the last of the 9th when Fred Merkle‘s failure to touch second base after an apparent game-winning hit by Al Bridwell scoring Moose McCormick from third costs the Giants a 2-1 win; the umpire calls Merkle out and rules the game a tie. Merkle’s “boner” will eventually cost the Giants the flag, and other stories as well.

Today in baseball history:

• 1845 – The Knickerbocker Base Ball Club is formed, and Alexander Cartwright‘s 20 rules, presented on September 13th, are adopted.
• 1902 – Cy Young eases to his 32nd win as Boston pounds the A’s, 14-1.
• 1911 – Walter Johnson gives up a two-run homer in the sixth inning to Joe Jackson, the eighth four-bagger the Big Train has allowed this year. Johnson had given up just two in the previous four seasons. 
• 1936 – Pitching in the tenth straight Giants game, Carl Hubbell notches his 16th consecutive victory, his 26th of the year. He will resume the streak next year to reach a record 24 wins in a row.
• 1962 – LA Dodgers shortstop Maury Wills breaks Ty Cobb’s 1915 MLB steals record, recording his 97th steal on his way to 104.
• 1967 – The Red Sox are in third place, also a half game out, after dropping a 7-5 decision to Baltimore. Carl Yastrzemski‘s 42nd home run had given the Red Sox a 5-4 lead, but a Brooks Robinson home run in the 8th inning wins it for the O’s.
• 1979 – Lou Brock steals base No. 938 to break Billy Hamilton‘s unofficial record in a ten-inning St. Louis victory over the Mets, 7-4. The Cardinal outfielder broke Ty Cobb‘s mark of 892 in 1977.
• 1983 – Steve Carlton becomes the 16th pitcher in major league history to win 300 games and the Phillies inch closer to the National League East title with a 6-2 win over the Cardinals.
• 1998 – Craig Biggio is 3 for 5 and swipes No. 50 to become the only player besides Tris Speaker in 1912, to have 50 doubles and 50 steals in a year.
• 2000 – Joining Frank Robinson, the Devil Rays’ Fred McGriff becomes only the second player in major league history to hit 200 homers in both the American and National League.
• 2022 – Albert Pujols, who has announced his retirement at the end of the season no matter what happens, becomes the fourth player to reach the 700-home run mark — after Babe Ruth, Hank Aaron and Barry Bonds. He does so by going deep twice, first off Andrew Heaney in the third inning and then off Phil Bickford in the fourth for No. 700.

Today in Cubs history:

• 1905 – In Chicago, Christy Mathewson and Carl Lundgren hook up in a tight pitchers’ duel, decided in Chicago’s favor on a mental error by Giants 2B Bill Dahlen. With two on and two out in the 5th inning, Dahlen bobbles a grounder and touches second base as the runner arrives. Dahlen, thinking that he has the third out, rolls the ball to the mound. But ump Bob Emslie calls the runner safe. Johnny Evers, the runner on third base, alertly scores on the play for the game’s only run. The loss stops Matty’s win streak at 11 games.
• 1907 – In Chicago, the Cubs clinch the pennant by beating the Phillies, 4-1. Chicago pulls off a triple play in the 5th inning to help seal the win.
• 1933 – The Cubs beat the Reds, 7-1, with Paul Derringer losing his 27th game for the last-place Reds, the most losses since George Bell in 1910. Gabby Hartnett hits a grand slam for the Cubs.
• 1959 – The Cubs continue to dash the Giants’ pennant hopes as Cal Neeman‘s 10th-inning home run gives Chicago a 9-8 win. The Cubs won the day before, 5-4, on George Altman‘s ninth-inning, two-run home run.
• 1965 – A 20-game winner in 1964, Larry Jackson loses his 20th game of this season, as the Phillies sweep a twin bill from the Cubs, 11-5 and 7-4. Jackson is the first pitcher since Murry Dickson of the 1951–1952 Pirates to follow a 20-win season with 20 losses.
• 1998 – Sammy Sosa breaks an 0 for 21 slump, hitting his 64th and 65th home runs as the Cubs build a 7-0 lead over the Brewers. Milwaukee fights back, however, and scores three in the last of the 9th when Chicago OF Brant Brown drops a routine fly ball with the bases loaded and two out to allow three Brewers to score. Rod Beck is on the mound when the Merkle-like error occurs (Fred Merkle’s boner occurred exactly 90 years ago). With his eight total bases, Sammy has now topped the 400 mark.
• 2000 – At Wrigley Field, the Cardinals defeat the Cubs, 6-5, despite 1B Mark Grace‘s 1,000th career RBI for Chicago. 
• 2001 – Sammy Sosa becomes the first player in history to hit three home runs in a game three times in a season. Despite his trio of blasts, the Cubs still lose to the Astros, 7-6.

Cubs Birthdays:Gonzalez Germen, Chris Volstad, Willie Greene*, Tony Fossas, Dennis Lamp, Oscar Zamora, Mack Stewart, Joe Kelly.

Today in history:

• 1779 – John Paul Jones aboard the USS Bonhomme Richard defeats the British frigate HMS Serepis and becomes the United States first well-known naval hero.
• 1780 – British Major John Andre reveals Benedict Arnold‘s plot to betray West Point.
• 1806 – Lewis and Clark return to St Louis from Pacific Northwest.
• 1862 – US President Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation is published in northern newspapers.
• 1875 – Billy the Kid is arrested for the first time and jailed after receiving clothing stolen from a Chinese laundry but escapes two days later.
• 1926 – “Upset of the Decade”: Gene Tunney defeats defending champion Jack Dempsey by 10-round unanimous decision at Sesquicentennial Stadium (later known as JFK Stadium) in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, for the world heavyweight boxing title.
• 1952 – Undefeated Rocky Marciano knocks out defending champion Jersey Joe Walcott in the 13th round at Municipal Stadium, Philadelphia, for the world heavyweight boxing title.
• 1957 – President Dwight D. Eisenhower orders US troops to support the integration of nine Black students at Little Rock Central High School in Arkansas after a white mob forces them to withdraw.

Today in music history:

• 1945 – First Cavalcade of Jazz outdoor concert is held at Wrigley Field, Los Angeles, featuring Count Basie, Valaida Snow, and others.
• 1957 – “That’ll Be the Day” single by Buddy Holly and The Crickets reaches No. 1 in the US.
• 1969 – Northern Star, the student newspaper for Northern Illinois University, starts rumors that Paul McCartney is dead.
• 1974 – John Lennon‘s single “Whatever Gets You Thru the Night,” featuring Elton John, is released in the US; it is Lennon’s only solo No. 1 single during his lifetime.
• 1980 – Reggae legend Bob Marley‘s final concert at Stanley Theatre in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
• 1982 – Columbia Records releases “The Nylon Curtain,” singer-songwriter Billy Joel‘s eighth studio album.
• 2016 – Shawn Mendes releases his album “Illuminate”, debuting at No. 1 on the US Billboard 200.

*pictured.

Zack Wheeler has reached a number that only 96 other pitchers in the history of the game have reached by striking out his 2,000th hitter on Tuesday night.

I will go so far as saying that his is the greatest free agent signing in team history.

On to the links.

Phillies news:

• The bullpen and how they use all the players available there will be just one thing to watch during this final week of the season ($).
• Dave Dombrowski is going to wait until the season is over before talking about Don Mattingly’s future ($).
• Dan Baker, legendary PA announcer at Citizens Bank Park, celebrated his 80th birthday by giving away a lot of his Phillies stuff to a local university.

MLB news:

• The Red Sox and Mets decided to keep their interim managers around for a while longer, Chad Tracy getting his options picked up while Andy Green added on three years.
• Justin Verlander will get one last chance to pitch in Detroit this Saturday before he calls it a career.
• There’s weather a’comin’ to Boston this weekend and that could have some major baseball implications to the pennant chase.

Good morning Birdland,

For a while now, we have been able to lean on the crutch that the Orioles were still “mathematically alive” in the AL playoff race. There is a chance, perhaps even an inevitability, that it will no longer be a matter of math after today. The Orioles elimination number is at one, and they play two games today. The same is true for the Blue Jays. Both teams need to sweep today and hope that the White Sox and Rangers are suddenly sapped of all talent, much like the basketball players in the 1996 hit film Space Jam. Unfortunately, as far as I know, that movie was not based on a true story.

It’s likely to be a bummer of an end to the Orioles home slate in 2026. Double-headers can be cool, but a split admission isn’t ideal for really anyone. The weather is expected to be cloudy and cool, peaking in the mid-60s this afternoon, with 10 mph winds and a low chance of rain. I would guess that attendance to the afternoon start will be rather pitiful.

The Orioles do not have a starting pitcher named for either game today on their website just yet. But it sounds like Chris Bassitt is confirmed for Game 1 to take on Max Scherzer in a rematch of last week’s face-off in Toronto. As for Game 2, both teams are quiet. Craig Albernaz seems to be picking between Trey Gibson and Cade Povich. It might depend on what happens in the opener with both teams possibly treating it like a playoff game, since it pretty much is one.

Also, Pete Alonso will be named the Most Valuable Oriole some time today. That is not confirmed, but the announcement for MVO is slated for this date, and Alonso is really the only choice at the top of the ballot. It will be interesting to see how some other names finish further down the list. I would expect Trevor Rogers, Brandon Young, and Shane Baz to get some love, as will Gunnar Henderson despite his struggles, and you might even see Rico Garcia among the vote-getters.

Links

Orioles confronted by doubleheader today and possible elimination in Wild Card race | Roch Kubatko
Roch has more daily updates, including the possibility that Samuel Basallo’s season could be done a little early. The team has concussions concerns coming out of Monday, and it’s obvious that he hasn’t been quite right since coming off of the IL anyway.

Mariners Lose Scout Behind George Kirby and Jonny Farmelo to Orioles | Yahoo! Sports
Apparently, this is a nice get by the Orioles. Joe Doyle, the reporter credited with most of the information in this story, explains that Ty Holub was courted by multiple organizations and chose to return to the Orioles, where he worked under the prior front office regime from 2013-17 as a baseball operations assistant.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand’s glasses are a distinctive feature on a distinctive player | The Baltimore Banner
CES is one of the positives coming out of this season. It’s nice to read up a little more on him. Unless he is traded this offseason, he would seem like a lock to return to the Orioles in 2027. Jordan Westburg’s rehab is likely to bleed into the start of the season, and it’s possible that Coby Mayo sees time elsewhere on the field to get his bat into the lineup more often.

Candidates to add to Orioles’ 40-man roster | Baltimore Baseball
As is explained in the article, there may not be a Rule 5 draft to protect players from this offseason. But you will still probably see the O’s (and other teams) add a handful of interesting youngsers to their 40-man roster sometime this fall.

Orioles birthdays

Is it your birthday? Happy birthday!

• Willie Greene turns 55 today. He spent part of the 1998 season with the Orioles, acquired from the Reds in a deadline swap for outfielder Jeffrey Hammonds. Greene played in just 24 games for the O’s and had a .608 OPS in that time.
• Pete Harnisch is 60 years old. An Orioles’ first-round pick in 1987, the right-handed pitcher debuted with them at the major league level in 1988 and stuck around through ‘90 before he was part of one of the most lop-sided deals in team history. The Orioles sent him, along with Steve Finley and Curt Schilling, to the Astros in exchange for Glenn Davis. Harnsich was an all-star in his first season with Houston and had a few more impressive years after leaving Baltimore.
• The late Marcelino López (b. 1943, d. 2001) was born on this day. He played in three seasons for the Orioles between 1967-70. In total he had a 3.23 ERA over 147.2 innings with the O’s.

This day in O’s history

1958 – Orioles pitcher Jack Harshman hits two home runs to help himself to a 3-2 win over the Washington Senators.

1967 – A Brooks Robinson homer in the eighth inning lifts the Orioles to a 7-5 win over the Red Sox.

1997 – The Orioles use three early runs off of Roger Clemens to hold onto a 3-2 win against the Blue Jays.

1999 – A 13-game winning streak comes to an end for the Orioles as they lose 9-6 to the Athletics in the first part of a double-header. They bounce right back in the evening with a 12-4 win led by Albert Belle’s four-double performance.

2002 – The Orioles lose their 26th game in 30 chances as Jay Gibbons’ two-homer showing isn’t enough and the Red Sox prevail 5-4 in 15 innings.

2013 – Not only do the Orioles lose 5-4 to the Rays, but Manny Machado suffers a season-ending injury when he steps awkwardly on first base and twists his knee.

The Detroit Tigers missed a chance to secure a series win over the visiting Washington Nationals on Tuesday night, dropping the second of the three-game series, 3-1. Despite tossing a quality start, Drew Anderson was saddled with the loss while the offense barely made a peep at Comerica Park.

Making his final start of the 2026 campaign in Game 3 is left-hander Framber Valdez — the lone survivor from the Tigers’ pitching rotation from the beginning of the season. While his overall numbers fall significantly short of what one would expect for his level of pay, the 32-year-old has been a mostly steady presence on the pitching staff, save for his short suspension in May.

Valdez is finishing the season on a strong note, having put up a 1.50 ERA and 3.71 FIP over his three games in September, allowing 12 hits (one home run) and seven walks while striking out 13 plus a hit-by-pitch across 18 innings to earn a pair of wins along with a loss.

For the Nats, fellow southpaw Richard Lovelady will take the mound looking to give the team a series win in his sixth start of the season. The 31-year-old journeyman was with the New York Mets to begin the season and served primarily as a back-end reliever; he has become something of a Swiss Army arm for Washington since acquiring him in a trade in mid-April.

Lovelady has not thrown more than two innings in an appearance this season, so he ostensibly will be serving in the opener role on Wednesday.

Here is a quick look at the stats for both pitchers in the series finale.

Detroit Tigers (74-84) vs. Washington Nationals (74-84)

Time (ET): 1:10 p.m.
Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan
SB Nation Site:Federal Baseball
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 159: LHP Framber Valdez (10-11, 4.06 ERA) vs. LHP Richard Lovelady (3-4, 3.86 ERA)

Player	G	IP	K%	BB%	GB%	FIP	fWAR
Valdez	30	168.2	17.5	8.7	55.4	4.19	1.8
Lovelady	36	32.2	18.9	13.2	43.1	5.06	-0.2

VALDEZ

LOVELADY

Leading off yesterday’s doubleheader, Carlos Rodón pitched like a man who had something to prove. In a way, he does. He may be asked to step aside if the club needs a three-man rotation for a potential Wild Card series next week, widely viewed as the fourth guy sitting outside the Yankees’ Big 3 in their rotation, Cam Schlittler, Max Fried, and Gerrit Cole. Rodón’s also had to answer doubts all year as he’s dealt with numerous injuries, starting the season on the IL after offseason elbow surgery and a hamstring injury in spring training, before hitting the IL again with elbow inflammation over the summer. He’s been nails through it all, posting a 2.67 ERA in 16 starts, saving his best for last in the form of an eight-inning masterpiece Tuesday afternoon.

Rodón’s performance forces some interesting questions for the Yankees, particularly when it comes to their strategy should they face the Red Sox in a best-of-three. How should the Yankees deploy Rodón next week?

First off, you can make a compelling argument that they should just start the man. By any measure, he’s been the club’s third-best starter this season, behind Schlittler and Fried and ahead of Cole. Cole has been more durable throughout the season, but Rodón’s been in better form down the stretch, posting a 1.89 ERA in seven starts since coming off the IL a second time. Why not just roll with the hot hand?

The Yankees seem likely to go with Cole, preferring to defer to both Cole’s extensive track record and status over Rodón’s superior recent performance, a decision that’s both debatable and reasonable. Should that be their move, the strategic implications run deeper.

They could use Rodón in something of a piggyback role, letting him eat multiple innings in support of one of their top starters (perhaps Cole, the team’s shakiest starter lately?). They could let him air it out in a one-inning relief role for one series, or even deploy him as a lefty specialist, choosing to bring him in if and when the opposing lineup presents a lane of left-handed hitters.

It’s not at all a simple decision, in no small part because there’s another plausible idea here: keep him in reserve for a potential ALDS. If the Yankees burn all four of their top starters in some fashion in the ALWC, they’d be forced to start Will Warren in Game 1 of the ALDS should they advance. The difference between Rodón and Warren isn’t exactly massive, and Warren has been strong down the stretch as well, but saving Rodón for the ALDS allows the Yankees to ensure that every game is started by one of their top four pitchers.

It’s a complicated calculus; every tactical decision you make in one postseason game or series has major strategic consequences on every future game and series. Rodón could be an extra relief weapon in a Wild Card series, he could be held in reserve for a future series, and you could even argue he should just start against Boston. What do you think? What should the Yankees do with Rodón?

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On the site this morning, Matt reviews Tuesday night’s American League action, and John ruminates on Moneyball, the movie, released on this day 15 years ago. Later, Jonathan’s entry in our Yankees Birthday series features a fan favorite from a bygone era, Joba Chamberlain, and Josh discusses Aaron Judge’s calf injury, and the Yankees’ continued reluctance to be forthright whenever Judge gets hurt.

Today’s Matchup:

New York Yankees vs. Tampa Bay Rays

Time: 7:05 p.m.

TV: Amazon Prime Video, Rays.TV

Venue: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

Reading Fightin Phils 13, Erie SeaWolves 4 (box)

SeaWolves pitching held up in the postseason about as well as one could hope as the club had similar issues to their parent club all year. The magic finally evaporated in the sixth inning of Tuesday’s Game 2 of the Eastern League championships, as the Phils launched a pair of grand slams to bury the SeaWolves and claim the title.

Things started off with plenty of promise in the must-win elimination game. Peyton Graham drew a leadoff walk and Zyhir Hope blasted a two-run homer before an out had been recorded in this one.

Zyhir Hope mashes a 2-run homer during Double-A playoff action for the @erie_seawolves 🚀

The @tigers' top prospect was one of just 3 Minor Leaguers with 25+ HR, 25+ SB, 100+ RBI this year: pic.twitter.com/gEgo3bl36z

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) September 22, 2026

The SeaWolves got leadoff singles in the second from Chris Meyers and E.J. Exposito, and after Izaac Pacheco struck out, the Phils turned quickly to their bullpen and got flyouts from Seth Stephenson and Graham to escape the jam.

Lucas Elissalt cruised early on, giving up just a leadoff single in the third, which he stranded. Elissalt’s velocity was up nicely much of the summer, but it’s been back down more in the low 90’s recently, suggesting he was running out of gas. In the fourth, he gave up a leadoff single to Dante Nori, and then hung sliders to Aidan Miller who doubled, and Chris Heredia, who singled. With a run in and Miller on the third, Elissalt bounced a breaking ball and Luke Shliger failed to block it. It was ruled a wild pitch and Miller scored to tie the game. Elissalt collected himself and struck out the next hitter, ultimately escaping the jam, but the weak SeaWolves bullpen made that at most the best of a set of bad options.

In the top of the fifth, Pacheco singled, and Stephenson bunted him to second base. A Graham ground out moved him to third, and the Phils turned to a lefty to deal with Hope, eventually walking him. Thayron Liranzo pulled a ball to third that went for an error, scoring Pacheco to re-take a 3-2 lead, but that’s all they’d get.

Thayron Liranzo hits a 2-out chopper to 3rd, but Aiden Miller’s throw is low and Izaac Pacheco scores to put Erie up 3-2 in the 5th. pic.twitter.com/nZBoXM6BTl

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) September 23, 2026

Elissalt got three quick outs in the bottom of the fifth, but Tony Cappuccilli stuck with him in the sixth and it all blew up in their face. Three line drive singles started the inning, and that was the end of Elissalt’s outing. Colin Fields took over and promptly walked in a run. Caleb Ricketts was up next, and he lifted a grand slam just over the right field wall to make it a 7-3 Reading lead. Eventually Zane Barnhart had to take over, and he allowed an inherited runner to score. 8-3 Reading.

Yikes. Caleb Ricketts hits a grand slam off a Colin Fields to put Reading up 7-3 in the 6th. The SeaWolves are in trouble. pic.twitter.com/yCSL0ySFsw

— Tigers ML Report (@tigersMLreport) September 23, 2026

From there the bullpen continued its meltdown. They allowed a run in the seventh, and then Tanner Kohlhepp dug himself a deep hole in the bottom of the eighth. Wandisson Charles took over and allowed a Carson DeMartini grand slam.

E.J. Exposito hit a solo shot in the ninth, but this was long out of reach by that point.

Congrats to the SeaWolves on a good season. Ultimately they fell victim to the same thing that plagued the Tigers all year. There just aren’t many legit pitching prospects in the upper levels of this system, and that better change pretty quickly. Right now it’s Andrew Sears and Elissalt alone, with only Moises Rodriguez, Yuniel Curet, and Yilber Diaz as notable relief prospects. Jake Miller’s injuries the past two years make his future extremely uncertain. Ben Jacobs, Cameron Flukey, Kelvis Salcedo, and Cale Wetwiska offer hope in 2027, but aren’t going to approach major league readiness until 2028 most likely. Michael Massey, probably the top pure relief prospect in the system, will hopefully join them now that he’s recovered from Tommy John surgery.

Point being, the Tigers have another nice wave of position prospects coming in 2027, but internal help for the pitching staff is still another year away for the most part.

Hope: 1-3, R, 2 RBI, HR, BB

Exposito: 2-4, R, RBI

Meyers: 2-3, 2B, BB

Elissalt (L, 1-1): 5.0 IP, 5 ER, 7 H, 0 BB, 5 K

This concludes the season for Tigers Prospect Daily as well. On behalf of David Rosenberg and myself, thank you very much for following along, and for your comments, prospect discussion, and support. It means a lot to us, and never fear, we have plenty of season-ending prospect coverage coming in October, and we’ll be tracking Zyhir Hope, Bryce Rainer, and the rest of the Tigers’ Arizona Fall League contingent starting in two weeks.