Category: MLB

The Orioles backed themselves into a corner where they probably need to win every remaining game or all but one remaining game in order to make the postseason. They responded to being in that corner by sweeping the Mets, a not very good team, in a series where the Mets fans were all continually cheering for the best Orioles player. Now they are back in Baltimore to face the team in MLB with the best record so far this season, the Milwaukee Brewers.

Milwaukee has been laying waste to just about all comers as this season goes along. Their 95-58 record is the best thing anybody has going on this year. They have already clinched their division title, and at this point they only “need” to win games to make sure they stay ahead of the Dodgers for the #1 seed in the National League. The back-to-back champions are currently at 93 wins. That one isn’t a done deal yet for the Brewers.

One part of why the Brewers have been able to do this is the absolute freak Jacob Misiorowski, a second-year starting pitcher who’s taken a big leap this year after a mixed bag rookie season a year ago. Misiorowski is averaging over 100mph on his fastball and it’s proving mostly unhittable, which is how he’s been able to drop a 1.89 ERA and 0.812 WHIP on the league. As of this writing, it seems that we will not see Misiorowski pitch in this series, though the Brewers do have a TBD for Sunday and until that turns into someone else, I guess it might be him.

The bullpen is holding up its share of the weight as well. There are six relievers, including former Oriole DL Hall, who are sitting with a 3.50 ERA or better. Hall, in fact, has a 2.17 ERA through 43 games. Closer Trevor Megill has a 0.902 WHIP in his 57.1 innings. You are doing pretty well as a closer if you are allowing fewer than one baserunner per inning pitched. It is a very good way to seal wins.

The Brewers have also scored more runs than anybody else in baseball. They have been able to do this in part because there are six decent-to-great hitters in their regular lineup, plus two guys on the bench (including former Oriole Gary Sánchez) who are doing well in their reserve opportunities. They’re getting a breakout season from first baseman Jake Bauers at age 30, another “good hitting, great defense” season from Brice Turang, and even former Oriole Joey Ortiz, who was absolutely terrible at the plate a year ago, has bounced back to decent.

These guys are helping themselves out by cashing in the scoring opportunities that they do get. Their split with runners in scoring position is nearly 60 points higher than their regular batting. This is the #1 number among all MLB teams. (The Orioles, with a .759 OPS with RISP, are in 10th.)

This is a complete team that hasn’t had much postseason success despite fairly dominant regular seasons. They have won their division five times since the 2018 season, with two wild card bids, and have advanced past the first round in which they played just twice. That gives them the edge over the Mike Elias era Orioles in two ways: They’ve actually been consistently good, and they’ve actually won a few playoff games here and there.

The Orioles are inferior to this team in basically every way and they’ve got to manage to sweep this series or at the absolute worst win two out of three. Yeah, good luck with that.

As of this writing, the Orioles are listing TBD as their starting pitchers for every game of the series. Very helpful for bloggers who are trying to say something informative about the series. It appears likely that Cade Povich will be recalled from Norfolk to start one of the games.

Game 1: Friday, 7:05pm Eastern

• BAL starter: TBD
• MIL starter: Dustin May – 4.49 ERA, 3.42 FIP, 1.287 WHIP in 28 games (Cardinals then Brewers)

May was a well-regarded pitching prospect so long ago that people were hoping that the Orioles would be able to pry him loose from the Dodgers in the Manny Machado trade, and disappointed when they did not manage to do so. Due to a variety of injury challenges (and one global pandemic) he hasn’t pitched a full season worth of starts in his seven-year career until this season. Dean Kremer, the pitcher the Orioles actually got, has more than doubled May’s career bWAR to date.

The 29-year-old 6’6” righty appeared to be a victim of bad luck with the Cardinals earlier this year, allowing a .322 BABIP that probably wasn’t all his fault. Since joining the Brewers, May’s BABIP luck has improved (.288) but he’s getting substantially worse results, probably because he’s now giving up home runs and other hard contact like it’s going out of style. There does exist the possibility that the Orioles will show up with a game plan that allows them to take advantage of this.

Game 2: Saturday, 7:05pm Eastern

• BAL starter: TBD
• MIL starter: Robert Gasser – 4.30 ERA, 4.32 FIP, 1.266 WHIP in 19 games

Gasser is in his third season with the Brewers, though he had to get Tommy John surgery just five starts into his MLB career and as a result, he’d only pitched in seven major league games before this season. He started this season out with Milwaukee’s Triple-A team and eventually was added to the MLB club, since when he’s done… fine. He has the same ERA+ as Trevor Rogers this season. That feels less bad when you’ve got a guy doing what Misiorowski has done at the top of the rotation as compared to what has happened with Orioles starting pitching.

The Statcast peripherals for Gasser are not good. He has been particularly vulnerable to giving up hard contact. He does not get many ground balls, he does not throw the ball hard, he does not get a lot of swing-and-miss and he doesn’t get batters to chase very often outside of the strike zone. Absolutely none of which means that the Orioles offense will do well against him on Saturday. Gasser is left-handed.

Game 3: Sunday, 7:20pm Eastern

• BAL starter: TBD
• MIL starter: TBD

Note: This game airs on Peacock and only on Peacock.

Double TBD. Sheesh. Get it together, teams.

**

How do you think this series is going to go for the Orioles? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

With a suspended meeting in Triple-A and Tulsa losing a winner-take-all matchup, it was an eventful day despite a low number of games in the Dodgers’ minor league system.

Player of the Day

In a game where hits were incredibly difficult to find for the Drillers, recently promoted outfielder Charles Davalan recorded one of his team’s RBI in a 6-4 loss.

Elected the Midwest League MVP for his efforts in High-A with the Loons, Davalan ends the year positively, even with Tulsa failing in its final objective.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

Both offenses were rolling through the first four before the rain put a stop to this game. Austin Galthier left the yard with a two-run shot, and twice hitting with runners in scoring position, first baseman and cleanup hitter Matt Gorski drove in a run with an out.

While the Chihuahuas had already gone to the bullpen in the fourth inning, Charlie Barnes was the only Comets pitcher to appear in this one before its suspension. The left-hander was averaging nearly 20 pitches per inning and running into all kinds of trouble.

It’ll be Hyeseong Kim coming to bat in the top of the fifth when the game resumes later today. Kim is one of only two Comet hitters yet to reach safely in this game.

Double-A Tulsa

For a team that was nearly outhit four to one by their opponent, the Drillers did about as decent a job at staying competitive as they could’ve hoped: eventually losing 6-4 to the Cardinals and saying goodbye to the postseason, dropping the Division Series in three.

Cardinal starter Liam Doyle refused to let the Drillers put the ball in play, allowing five walks but striking out eight in 3.2 innings and ultimately only letting across one earned run.

Despite their hitting struggles, the Drillers managed to take a 3-2 lead in the seventh thanks to an Elijah Hainline sacrifice fly. However, relievers Christian Suarez and Jacob Kmatz both allowed multiple runs in the eighth and ninth to quickly surrender control of the game to the Cards.

Not only did Tulsa finish the game without a homer while the Cardinals had three, but they didn’t even record an extra-base hit, limited by three strikeout games from Mike Sirota and Jake Gelof.

Partially responsible for the game being so close, starter Christian Zazueta had a productive performance, allowing just a pair of runs in five innings, both of them solo shots. Zazueta recorded seven of his 15 outs via strikeout as he was inducing whiffs at will, ultimately undone by his team’s lack of run support.

High-A Great Lakes

The Great Lakes Loons were eliminated by the Dayton Dragons in the Division Series, losing it two games to one.

Class-A Ontario

The Ontario Tower Buzzers were swept by the Lake Elsinore Storm in the Division Series.

Transactions

The Dodgers optioned Bobby Miller back to Triple-A and called up Landon Knack.

Thursday’s scores

• Springfield 6, Tulsa 4
• El Paso 5, Oklahoma City 5 – suspended game will resume today

Friday’s schedule

• 4:05 p.m. PT: OKC and El Paso resume yesterday’s suspended game tied 5-5 in the top of the first inning
• The regularly scheduled Friday matchup between OKC (Christian Romero) and El Paso (Jhony Brito) will start after the end of the first game. It’ll be a seven-inning affair.

As you know, the Cubs hold the tiebreaker over the three teams closest to them in the Wild Card race, the Phillies, Diamondbacks and Padres.

This is extremely important because the Cubs are now tied with the Phillies entering Friday’s action after the Phillies beat the Mets Thursday, and lead the Padres by one game, as San Diego also won on Thursday.

The Cubs lead the Diamondbacks by five games and thus the magic number for the Cubs clinching a Wild Card berth is four.

The magic number for the Cubs to clinch the first wild card over the Phillies is 9. But for the Phillies to surpass the Cubs, their number is 10, due to the tiebreaker.

Tankathon has the Phillies with the toughest strength of remaining schedule of the four clubs (third). The Padres are ninth, Cubs 14th, and Diamondbacks 16th, with nine games remaining for all four teams.

Here are the remaining schedules for all four Wild Card contenders. Home games in boldface.

Cubs, 9 games (3 home, 6 road)

at Reds (3), Marlins (3), at Red Sox (3)

The Reds are in disarray at this point, having lost eight of their last 10. The Marlins are just 31-44 on the road, though they did just take two of three from the D-backs in Phoenix.

The interesting series is the last one, as both the Cubs and Red Sox will be jockeying for postseason positioning.

Phillies, 9 games (6 home, 3 road)

at Mets (3), Brewers (3), Rays (3)

The Phillies do get to finish their season with a six-game homestand — but with both series against the teams with the best records in their respective leagues.

So hopefully the Brewers do the Cubs a solid and beat up on the Phillies. And Cubs fans will have to hold their noses and root for the Mets this weekend.

Padres, 9 games (6 home, 3 road)

Marlins (3), at Dodgers (3), Diamondbacks (3)

As noted, the Marlins did win a series in Arizona, and they will be facing the Padres on the road just before heading to Wrigley.

Diamondbacks, 9 games (3 home, 6 road)

Yankees (3), at Rockies (3), at Padres (3)

The D-backs play a pair of teams, one in a postseason spot and fighting for one. In between they face one team way out of it. The D-backs and Padres have split their first 10 games this year, and the teams also have split at each other’s parks, 2-2 in San Diego and 3-3 in Arizona.

If Arizona is eliminated before that final weekend (or even if they aren’t), they could help out the Cubs by defeating the Padres.

Fasten your seat belts!

October is starting to come into focus.

Several MLB teams have already locked up postseason berths, but many of baseball's biggest races remain unsettled. The American League Central and AL West are still up for grabs, the final AL wild-card spot remains hotly contested and jockeying for National League wild-card positioning could continue until the season's final days.

Here's every team that has clinched a playoff berth, along with the clubs that could be next and what the postseason bracket would look like if the season ended right now.

MORE: Dodgers have won the NL West again. Now what? 4 biggest questions entering playoffs

Major League Baseball's 2026 regular season has two weekends to go, with contenders still jockeying for position and some postseason spots still very much up for grabs.

The Cleveland Guardians managed to run down the Chicago White Sox in the American League Central and it looks like the race will go down to the final days of the season. Just two years after setting an MLB record with 121 losses, Chicago has the chance to get back to the postseason for the first time in five seasons.

The big race to watch in the National League is the wild card, with the Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres all in contention to secure the top wild card spot – and host the best-of-three wild card series.

The NL Central (Milwaukee Brewers) and NL West (Los Angeles Dodgers) titles have already been clinched, leaving four of baseball's six divisions still not secured. The AL West race also features the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers within one game – and the team who comes in second likely missing out on the playoffs.

Here's the latest look at the MLB postseason picture:

Good morning, LSB.

The Rangers lost a crusher last night, 4-3 to the Red Sox.

Shawn McFarland writes that Texas no longer has any margin for error with these kinds of losses.

Kennedi Landry says the team remains optimistic with 9 games left.

She also says they better get over it, because in come the Blue Jays for another massive series.

Elsewhere Nathan Eovaldi says he’s good to start after his clutch bullpen appearance.

Justin Foscue has had a nice surprise run as the Rangers leadoff hitter vs. lefties.

McFarland also has an injury update, including on MacKenzie Gore after his Wednesday start.

The MLB Pipeline guys name a breakout prospect from each team this season.

And Ruben Sierra is the latest guest on Evan Grant’s podcast.

That’s all for this morning. The Rangers start up a crucial wildcard series with the Blue Jays tonight at 7:05 with Kumar Rocker on the mound for Texas.

Happy Friday and Go Rangers!

Every series looms large at this point, so the Guardians find a three-game set against one of the worst teams in MLB playing a big part in their pursuit of a playoff spot.

The Athletics are 61-92 with a -214 run differential, since 8/4 they are 23rd in team wRC+ at 91, ninth in baserunning runs above average at 1.4, 27th in Defense at -15, 28th in starting pitcher ERA at 6.17 (5.16 FIP), and 23rd in bullpen ERA at 4.53 (3.75 FIP).

The Guardians are 78-75 with a -7 run differential, since 8/4 they are 11th in team wRC+ at 101, 18th in baserunning runs above average at -0.9, sixth in Defense at 0.9, 21st in starting pitcher ERA at 4.57 (4.12 FIP), and fourth in bullpen ERA at 3.11 (3.39 FIP).

Put the ball in play, get to the starters, and play solid, fundamental baseball with good plate discipline and good things will happen vs. The A’s.

Matchups:

Game One, Friday, 7:10PM, Barnett, RHP 7.08 ERA (6.98 FIP) vs Espino, RHP/Cantillo, LHP

Game Two, Saturday, 6:10PM, Lopez, LHP 5.02 ERA (5.07 FIP) vs. Bibee, RHP

Game Three, Sunday, 1:40PM, Perkins, RHP 6.14 ERA (4.73 FIP) vs. Williams, RHP

Let’s get it done, Guardians!

Xander Bogaerts has not been the most productive player at the plate for the San Diego Padres this season, but that was not the case against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Thursday. Bogaerts fell a single short of the cycle while leading the Padres to a 9-2 win over the Rockies to give them a 3-1 series win.

Bogaerts led off the second inning with a solo home run that tied the game at 1-1. He followed that with an RBI-triple later in the second inning. Bogaerts returned to the plate in the top of the fourth inning and hit a ground rule double, leaving him five innings to get a single to complete the cycle. His first opportunity came in the top of the sixth inning, but he was called out on an ABS strike-three. Bogaerts got his last chance for a single leading off the top of the ninth inning, but he struck out swinging to end his night at the plate.

Michael King started on the mound for San Diego, and he got into trouble with the first batter of the game. Jake McCarthy connected on a leadoff triple and scored one batter later when Connor Norby hit an RBI-single to give Colorado a 1-0 lead. King settled in after the first and completed six innings allowing two runs on seven hits with two walks and six strikeouts. The most impressive part of his start considering where he was pitching, was that the right-hander did not allow a home run.

Bogaerts was not the only Padres player to have a successful day at the plate. Dustin Harris turned in a 3-for-5 day with a run scored and three RBI. Ty France finished 3-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Jake Cronenworth and Samad Taylor each had two hits in the game. The only two San Diego starters not to record a hit in the game were Manny Machado and Luis Campusano. However, Machado did record an RBI.

The start from King combined with the nine-run, 15-hit performance from the offense allowed Padres manager Craig Stammen to give his high leverage bullpen arms their third day off in a row. Yuki Matsui and Griffin Canning combined the final three innings of the game for San Diego.

The Padres return to Petco Park to open a three-game series with the Miami Marlins tonight at 6:40 p.m.

Padres News:

• Lake Elsinore wins California League Championship for the first time since 2021 with solid start from 2026 first round pick Coleman Borthwick.

• The Padres are trying to stay loose in the clubhouse as the regular season winds down and the players took time to answer a question that not many would have asked.

Baseball News:

• The Los Angeles Dodgers clinched the NL West with a win over the Cincinnati Reds.

• The Houston Astros hit five home runs to beat the Kansas City Royals.

• Aaron Nola pitched the Philadelphia Phillies past the New York Mets.

• The Washington Nationals are working to extend pitcher Cade Cavalli.

• The Pittsburgh Pirates knocked off the Milwaukee Brewers to win the season series.

Last week Matt Blood, the Orioles’ vice president of player development and domestic scouting, was let go after seven years with the organization. It’s too early to say definitively why, but one narrative that’s seeped into the mainstream is that the front office is unhappy with how the Orioles’ draft picks have panned out. Recall that the Orioles were rewarded for years of tanking by picking in the top five of the draft four years running from 2019 to 2022, landing No. 1 overall twice (Adley Rutschman in 2019, Jackson Holliday in 2022), alongside star college outfielders Heston Kjerstad and Colton Cowser. Well, so far, the returns are underwhelming. Kjerstad still hasn’t stuck as an everyday big leaguer. The jury’s out on Cowser and Holliday. And Rutschman, the centerpiece of the whole rebuild, is now wearing Red Sox red after Baltimore traded him to Boston at the deadline. Mike Elias’s front office gets credit for stockpiling prospects, especially athletic left-handed college hitters who play up the middle, but that’s a pretty thin return out of the draft.

But while the merits of the Orioles’ drafting strategy may require further assessment, one thing the regime seems to have quietly done quite well at is turning up players nobody else wants anymore. I’m referring to the waiver wire pickups, the “for cash” trades, the minor-league deals not even the biggest Orioles sicko paid attention to when they were announced. Despite all the sour feelings around this season, we might ask, is this front office actually good at finding value where the market says there isn’t any? There are a couple names that give cause to think this.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand is one. A fourth-round Twins pick in 2021, he came to Cincinnati in 2022, mashed as a rookie in 2023 (.270, 13 homers in just 63 games), then lost most of two seasons to a wrist fracture. After a lousy, injury-shortened 2025 (.208, -0.6 bWAR in just 36 games), the Reds designated him for assignment and shipped him to Baltimore on April 13, 2026 for cash considerations, after Ryan Mountcastle got hurt. In 51 games since, CES has delivered a .277/.326/.520 with an .846 OPS and 35 RBIs in 51 games. He’s been one of the Birds’ best clutch hitters, and is hitting close to .300 over his last month. He’s also playing a good third base, too, allowing the Orioles to replace the injured Jordan Westburg’s production without relying too much on the dangerous “Coby Mayo at 3B” experiment. Seriously impressive value.

The Orioles bullpen is full of random guys like this. Granted, some arms are random and not-great, but some are pretty exciting. The gold standard here remains Yennier Cano, one of four arms (along with Cade Povich) that Baltimore got from Minnesota in July 2022 for Jorge López, an emotionally tough trade at the time that has aged pretty well, in fact. From a terrible 9.22 ERA in Minnesota that year, Cano became an All-Star in 2023, posting a sterling 2.11 ERA in 72 2/3 innings with 65 strikeouts, and though he hasn’t returned to that form, with periods of up and down efficacy, he’s posted 1.3 WAR across three seasons since, and has looked good this season, with a 3.06 ERA and a new two-year extension.

Another is Rico Garcia, a fellow journeyman and a waiver wire pickup last August after he did stints with both New York teams in 2025. Garcia competently appeared in 20 games for the O’s last season and has been a revelation this year, with career bests in ERA (2.94) and innings (64 1/3). The right-handed Garcia, with his wicked changeup, is the guy Orioles manager Craig Albernaz turns to to clean up bad bases-loaded situations.

And let’s not forget the run of waiver claims that built the 2022-23 roster’s supporting cast. Ramón Urías is a huge one. Claimed off waivers from the Cardinals in 2020, he went on to win a Gold Glove and post 10.5 WAR in six seasons before Baltimore flipped him to Houston at the 2025 deadline for pitching prospect Twine Palmer. Jorge Mateo, acquired off waivers from San Diego in August 2021, led all of MLB in stolen bases in 2022 and won a Fielding Bible Award as the league’s best defensive shortstop before injuries eroded his value and the Orioles finally let his option lapse this past November. Cionel Pérez, plucked off waivers from Cincinnati in November 2021 right after he’d posted a 6.38 ERA there, immediately ran a 1.40 ERA in his first Baltimore season. The lefty was great until he wasn’t. And Danny Coulombe, acquired from Minnesota in March 2023 for pure cash, gave the Orioles a 2.81 ERA and then a 2.12 ERA over two years before elbow surgery.

Even before that, there was Tyler Wells. Baltimore took the big righty in the Rule 5 draft from the Twins in December 2020 and not only did he stick with the team, he became a valuable swingman for them between 2021-26, with 5.3 WAR in that stretch. Wells had real high points—he was arguably the O’s best starter in the first half of 2023 (3.18 ERA, 103 strikeouts in 104 2/3 innings), although he continued to battle injuries and inconsistency. Tommy John surgery cost him basically all of 2024 and 2025 but he came back in September 2025 and was throwing well enough by mid-2026 (2.67 ERA in 54 innings) that Baltimore actually got something for him: they traded Wells to Tampa Bay at the deadline for pitching prospect Michael Forret.

I should also mention the grandaddy of this whole approach, Anthony Santander, even though he predates Elias. Baltimore grabbed the talented but oft-injured switch-hitting outfielder in the December 2016 Rule 5 draft, and though he struggled to justify the pick for a couple of years, by his mid-to-late twenties he turned into a legitimate middle-of-the-order threat, racking up 11.0 bWAR across eight seasons in Baltimore before cashing in on a five-year, $92.5 million deal with Toronto. Tony Taters is the platonic ideal of the genre: a player another team was essentially happy to lose, acquired for nothing, who became an All-Star.

I don’t want to overstate things. Whether this list is probative of anything depends on your baseline (are others teams also succeeding by scavenging?). But it’s at least persuasive. This front office seems to be very good at scouting random, unappreciated talent, acquiring it, and in some cases, flipping it for something. You can’t build a playoff team this way. But as a low-cost pipeline for finding two, three, four wins a year out of players other organizations had already discarded, the record over the last five-plus years is hard to disagree with, and Encarnacion-Strand and Rico Garcia suggest that the pipeline isn’t slowing down.

Just a few short weeks ago, there was legitimate reason to doubt Zack Wheeler. He was in the midst of easily his worst stretch of starts as a Phillie and arguably the worst of his career, as he had an 8.51 ERA across six starts dating from the end of July to the end of August. It was only natural for alarm bells to start ringing louder and louder, as for all his success in the past, the fact is that Wheeler is still a 36-year-old pitcher coming off of major surgery. 

The most unusual part of Wheeler’s struggles was his lack of command, as his walk rate during the month of August peaked at 14.1%. His velocity was still good, but Wheeler could not locate his pitches and was getting hit hard. 

Fast forward to now in the middle of September, and it looks like Wheeler has regained his form. Over his last four starts dating back to August 30th, Wheeler is 3-0 with a 1.04 ERA. His walk rate has dropped back down to 8.0%, as he’s issued only 8 free passes while striking out 29. Wheeler has been able to go back to limiting hard contact as well, as he’s allowed just 4 extra base hits (three doubles and a HR) over that span. It’s a welcome sight to see as the Phillies fight to clinch a postseason spot, especially now in the absence of Jesús Luzardo. 

It’s strange to consider that Wheeler was a problem for so long, as he’s been one of the few things the Phillies could absolutely count on since he arrived in Philadelphia. It was the first time where there was serious and legitimate doubt about whether he could still perform at the level expected. After all, this is a fanbase that witnessed injury rob Roy Halladay of a graceful decline period. It’s completely understandable for there to still be some scars to consider when discussing an aging ace like Wheeler. But if these last few starts are any indication, the Zack Wheeler that has been one of the best pitchers in the sport for over five years is very much still in there. 

So, has Zack Wheeler regained your confidence? Do you feel comfortable in thinking his struggles are now firmly in the rear-view mirror?

The Braves’ headlong dash through a sea of contenders is nearly over. They enjoyed an off day on Thursday, they have three against the Astros in Houston, and then a couple of series against non-contenders and that’s it, the regular season is done.

While the Braves’ position is almost assured (they’ve nearly clinched a playoff berth and they could theoretically fall out of the division lead but aren’t very likely to), the same cannot be said for the Astros.

At 77-76, the Astros are a game ahead of the Rangers in the division race. The Rangers are also two games back of last Wild Card spot (where the AL Central leaders are currently tied), so it is possible that the AL playoff field involves just the AL West winner, as the final spot goes to the AL Central runner-up.

The Braves have three with the Astros. They are only favored (and even then, barely so) in the first game of the series.

The Astros then end the season on a road trip, with two in Seattle and four in Sacramento. By game-by-game odds, they’ll win 4-6 of their remaining nine games.

The Rangers have a weekend set at home with the Blue Jays, continue the homestand against the Mets, and then end the season in Minnesota. By game-by-game odds, they’re also in 4-6 of nine territory, but their odds are slightly better.

So, what the Braves do against the Astros can really tip the scales one way or another. If the Braves sweep, that could really mess up the Astros. If the Braves get swept, that could put the Rangers in the drivers seat. A non-sweep probably won’t have as much of an impact, but could still matter.

The Astros have a lot more to play for at this point, but the Braves can hopefully extract at least a win in three games.

Happy Friday, everyone. The Tigers will be doing their best to topple their division rivals this weekend as we head towards the final week of the season (what? How did that happen??) We have a few little tidbits to get you started for your Friday, including a look at our former ace Tarik Skubal, and our other former ace Justin Verlander who is making headway towards coming back for one final start next weekend.

We also check in on some injured Tigers, some injured superstars, and see which MLB managers might want to freshen up their resumes.

So let’s just get right into it.

Detroit Tigers News

• If you want to hurt your own feelings, you can read this Tom Verducci spotlight article on Tarik Skubal and how he’s going to help the Dodgers in the postseason.
• If you’d like further pain, you can read this story about the tweaks the Dodgers have made to Skubal’s approach on the mound.
• A little roster update.

And a more general medical update on what’s going on with injured Tigers. Looks like Justin Verlander did a bullpen session this week, making it more and more likely we’ll see him pitch over Verlander weekend next week.

MLB News

• A’s prospect Ryan Lasko who was paralyzed in an outfield collision, has been released from his rehab facility.
• If you’re a fan of the show Reacher you’ll get a real kick out of this article that aims to help Reacher find better baseball aliases.
• Mets fans at Citi Field seem to be turning against their own team as they remember how much they miss Pete Alonso.
• Will we ever see a pitcher hit 120mph? Maybe, but it’s not likely to be this year.
• Making sense of Fernando Tatis Jr.’s baffling season statistics.
• Keeping up with the WPBL postseason.
• It’s not time to get worried about Jesus Luzardo’s arm… yet.
• Six numbers that have defined a tremendous season for the Rays.
• The Dodgers have clinched their 13th NL West victory in 14 years.
• The personal connection behind George Springer’s Clemente Award nomination.
• The Nationals are in contract extension talks with Cade Cavalli.
• Which MLB managerial jobs are most at risk? ($)
• Seven terrible offseason moves the Mets made that might be hurting their future.
• The 10 biggest breakout stars of 2026, and no Kevin McGonigle is not on the list.
• The literal elevator pitch that Tommy Pham used to get activated by the White Sox, and how he made it worth their while.
• Judge Watch: The Yankees pulled Judge in the sixth inning on Thursday due to lower leg tightness.
• Mets’ Jared Young was carted off the field last night following a collision with one of his teammates.
• Shohei Ohtani is feeling “normal…ish.” ($)
• Keith Law admits which prospects he was wrong about. ($)
• What would the divisions look like if they were grouped by payroll?

• Cutest first pitch of all time.

• It’s not Miggy stealing nachos, but this is pretty delightful.

• A question for the dads: do you go for the catch?

• Well, dangit.
• No sweep.
• Winning streak is over.
• No longer in first place.
• And with the Astros and the White Sox winning, the Rangers are one out in the division and two out in the Wild Card race, and are tied with Toronto.
• And things seemed to be going so well for a while.
• Tyler Alexander did his opening thing. Cody Bradford struck out the side in his first inning of work and cruised along until being lifted in the sixth after allowing a one out hit. The Rangers caught a break when Adley Rutschman’s blast to left center off of Chase Silseth, who reliever Bradford, bounded into the seats for a ground rule double, meaning that Wilyer Abreu, whose single had chased Bradford, had to stop at third rather than scoring.
• Top of the seventh inning, the Rangers had a 3-0 lead, and things seemed under control.
• Robby Ahlstrom, asked to handle the seventh, walked the first two batters he faced, then gave up a scarily-deep fly ball to Nick Sogard. After a Roman Anthony RBI groundout, Jakob Junis came in to get the final batter and, we figured, take care of the eighth inning.
• I will note that Ahlstrom was a curious choice to pitch the seventh. I assumed that the Rangers didn’t want to use Junis, and so were saving Robert Garcia for the eighth, and that’s why Ahlstrom pitched the seventh. That turned out not to be the case, given that Junis was brought in when Ahlstrom got into trouble.
• Ahlstrom hadn’t pitched in a week, and had a 5.94 ERA and 4.97 FIP coming into the game. In his first nine major league games, Ahlstrom allowed one run. Since then, prior to yesterday’s game, Ahlstrom had a 7.67 ERA and 5.73 FIP in 27 innings.
• He’s not someone you’d think a playoff contender would be wanting to rely upon in the late innings of a close game.
• Kind of makes you think maybe the Rangers should have gone out and gotten another reliever or two at the deadline, no?
• Meanewhile, a walk and a hit by pitch from Junis to start the eighth meant an early end to his night, with Jacob Latz summoned for a six out save.
• Latz has done the six out save before this year. He had seven of them coming into this game. An eighth wasn’t too much to ask for, was it?
• Apparently it was. Trevor Story parked a 2-2 pitch into the bleachers, flipping a 3-1 Rangers lead into a 4-3 deficit. And that, as things shook out, was that.
• The bats seemed poised to do good things early on. A Josh Jung home run put the Rangers up in the first, and a pair of walks by Wyatt Langford and Jake Burger in the second, followed by a pair of bunts sandwiched around a Danny Jansen single, made it a 3-0 game. Could the Rangers knock Sonny Gray out early, make this a blowout, or at least a nice comfy game?
• No, dear reader, they could not. In fact, after the Ezequiel Duran pop out with Jansen on second that ended the second inning, the Rangers didn’t get another runner in scoring position all game.
• Texas only had five hits all game — two of them from the much-maligned Danny Jansen. The other two were Jung’s first inning homer and a one out Corey Seager single in the eighth that was prompted erased by a Jung GIDP.
• Just to make it extra hurty, Jake Burger came up as the winning run in the bottom of the ninth after Wyatt Langford drew a one out walk, only to hit into a game ending double play.
• Oh loss, where is your sting? Oh defeat, where is your victory?
• Oh, wait, here it is. Loss’s sting and defeat’s victory are right here. Don’t know how I missed seeing them.
• Tyler Alexander’s fastball hit 92.2 mph. Cody Bradford touched 90.5 mph with his fastball, averaging 88.6 mph. Chase Silseth’s fastball maxed out at 96.8 mph. Robby Ahlstrom reached 96.3 mph with his sinker. Jakob Junis topped ouat at 93.3 mph with his sinker. Jacob Latz’s fastball hit 95.9 mph. Jordan Montgomery’s sinker touched 91.7 mph.
• Jake Burger had a 107.9 mph groundout. Wyatt Langford had a 104.8 mph fly out. Josh Jung had a 104.8 mph fly out and a 102.3 mph GIDP. Corey Seager had a 100.1 mph single.
• Shake it off, and handle Toronto.

The Mets continue a four-game series against the Phillies at Citi Field on Friday night at 7:15.

Mets Notes

• Francisco Lindor enters play on Friday with 299 career home runs
• A.J. Ewing is hitting .362/.424/.569 with three homers and three doubles in 66 plate appearances over his last 16 games
• Zac Thornton was terrific in his last start, allowing two runs in seven innings against the Yankees in the Bronx while giving up five hits, walking one, and striking out four

Today's Lineups

The Yankees squandered a chance to sweep the Twins Wednesday, dropping a 13-inning gut punch that diminished their chances of catching up to the Rays in the AL East. They’ll head to Phoenix this weekend for a three-game set against the Diamondbacks, who’ve dropped consecutive series and are hanging by a thread in the NL Wild Card race. With a four-game set against the Rays looming next week, this series against Arizona will be crucial in determining if the Yankees control their own destiny heading into the season’s final week. Let’s take a look at the likely starting pitching matchups.

Friday: Gerrit Cole vs. Eduardo Rodriguez(9:40 pm ET)

Tonight at Chase Field, all eyes will be on Gerrit Cole. Aside from the importance of the game on its own merits, it will be a crucial opportunity for the longtime Yankees ace to show whether he can still be counted upon as a frontline starter this postseason. After posting an exemplary 3.11 ERA in his first 16 starts back from Tommy John surgery, he’s stumbled in his last four, allowing 15 runs in 22.2 innings. Most concerning has been his battle with the long ball, having allowed seven in his last two starts. With Cam Schlittler, Max Fried, and Carlos Rodón firing on all cylinders, a strong outing tonight will help reassure the Yankees that Cole’s recent struggles are just a blip and that he belongs squarely in their playoff rotation.

Cole will face a fellow veteran hurler who’s in the midst of a career year. At the age of 33, Eduardo Rodríguez made his first All-Star team this year and has been a rock for the D-Backs, going 15-6 with a 2.62 ERA that quietly ranks fourth in the NL. Opponents are hitting below the Mendoza line against his heater and are slugging just .335 against his changeup, his top complementary pitch. The latter weapon has been particularly effective against righties, against whom the southpaw has fared batter this year than his fellow lefties. Rodríguez labored his last time out, allowing six runs in 5.1 innings, though only three were earned as the D-Backs committed two costly errors in the fifth.

Saturday: Cam Schlittlervs. Brandon Pfaadt (8:10 pm ET)

When the conversation turns from Cy Young to MVP, you’ve entered rarified air. If the season ended today, Cam Schlittler’s 2026 would rank second in Yankees history in WHIP (0.904) and eighth in ERA (1.95). He’s already seventh in strikeouts (228) and could easily crack the top three with two more representative outings. The last time Schlittler allowed more than a run in one of his starts was on August 3rd. He allowed no runs and one hit in his last outing as he ran roughshod over the Mets. At this point in the season, Schlittler is as close to a sure thing as it gets.

He’s lined up to face Brandon Pfaadt. A hero of the D-Backs’ run to the World Series in 2023, Pfaadt has struggled to establish himself in the intervening years. After spending some time in the bullpen and in the minors this year, he rejoined the rotation on June 30 and has been lights out ever since, going 7-2 with a 2.83 ERA over 12 starts. That ERA was as low as 2.38 before his last outing, a six-run implosion in which he allowed 10 hits to the Rangers in 6.1 innings. Pfaadt doesn’t get many strikeouts but also walks few, relying on soft contact generated by his six-pitch mix to work through lineups.

Thursday: Will Warren vs. Corbin Burnes (4:10 pm ET)

Will Warren may have nine lives. In mid-August, it looked like his days in the rotation were numbered with Rodón scheduled to return from injury. Instead, with Fried and Ryan Weathers landing on the shelf, the 27-year-old got a reprieve. He’s made the most of it, going 2-0 with a 1.38 ERA in his last five outings (four starts) while allowing just two home runs. While he’s unlikely to crack the playoff rotation barring injury, Warren has helped reassert himself as a valuable asset in the bullpen this postseason and in the rotation going forward.

The D-Backs are scheduled to hand the ball to Corbin Burnes. After signing a six-year megadeal with Arizona before the 2025 season, he made only 11 starts before missing a year-plus to Tommy John surgery. Burnes has made just two outings since his return and has looked rusty. His last time out, the former Cy Young Award winner allowed five runs in 4.2 innings to the Marlins. He threw just 75 pitches in that start as he continues to ramp up, and it’s unclear if he’ll be permitted to shoulder a full starter’s workload this time out.