Category: MLB

The Rays are in the midst of one of their most successful seasons. As the road trip continues at “The Trop”, we sit down exclusively at The Crawfish Boxes with a familiar face and friend, the one and only Dewayne Staats. He’s  called over 7,000 games and has been with Tampa Bay since their inception back in 1998.

Q: How much have the Rays benefited this season being pushed in their divisional race by New York? 

A: I actually think the Yankees benefit from being pushed by the Rays. Regardless of how the race ends, I really think this club has been focused on its own performance: self critical, self pushed, self accountable.  It very well may come down to the final week in the Bronx.

Q: This upcoming weekend should feature some quality baseball from both sides who each are expected to reach and play significant games in October. What do you expect this weekend?

A: Astros are a test every series they play. The Rays play the schedule one series and one game at a time. There is plenty of respect for the Astros talent, which serves as a motivation for the Rays.

Q: Are there any weaknesses on this Rays club beyond starting shortstop? 

A: This roster has been really interesting as and perhaps a throwback a decade or two ago.  Not just home runs and strikeouts, but a roster depending on a variety of baseball talents.  The top three or four hitters in the lineup sport extra base hit power/production. Beyond that is a ‘manufacturing’ of runs utilizing a variety of skills including speed, moving runners, being smart and aggressive.  Like most teams, overcoming injuries is always present. Athleticism and versatility has helped this team.

Q:     Finally, what would say to Houstonians who grew up with you in their living rooms back in the 70’s & 80’s calling Astros Games?

A: My years in Houston were a dream come true.  I was a Colt45/ Astro fan growing up in the Midwest listening to Gene Elston. Gene answered my letters and was a major figure in me pursuing a Major League Baseball career.  He was a very special force in my life.  My daughters were born in Houston.  We own a place there as well as Florida, and still have great family and friends there including Todd Kalas.

Twenty five years ago today, the world irrevocably changed. There was “the world before 9/11” and “the world after 9/11”. On September 10, 2001, the Minnesota Twins played their last game in that old world.

Opening up what was to be a four-game series at Detroit’s year-old Comerica Park, the Twins sent Joe Mays to the mound to oppose the Tigers’ knuckleball-ing starter Steve Sparks.

The visitors got on the board first in the top of the second inning when a Corey Koskie triple was paid off via a David Ortiz sacrifice fly. 1-0 MIN.

A similar sac from Brandon Inge tied the contest in B3, plating Damion Easley. 1-1.

In a sequence that probably would have netted some early defensive work with manager Tom Kelly the next day were the world’s trajectory not about to wobble, errors from Koskie at 3B & Cristian Guzman at SS gave DET a 2-1 lead in B5.

Fortunately, a T8 leadoff single from Luis Rivas eventually came around to score on a Koskie RBI knock. 2-2.

After Mays finished eight strong frames (4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K), the Twins would complete the comeback in T9. This time it was Torii Hunter hammering a leadoff triple and trotting home on a Matthew LeCroy sac fly.

“Everyday” Eddie Guardado entered for the save and punched out both Tony Clark & Randall Simon before inducing a game-ending fly out from Shane Halter.

Your Final: Minnesota Twins 3, Detroit Tigers 2.

That night, 19,456 fans attended a baseball game. They ate hot dogs, peanuts, & Cracker Jack and guzzled soda & beer. They were treated to a tight back-and-forth sporting contest. The Twins moved to within 6 games of AL Central front-running Cleveland (spoiler alert: MN wouldn’t catch them).

The next time the Minnesota Twins baseball club assembled on a diamond was September 18, 2001—and it was a different world.

Twenty five years later, let’s remember that monumental moment in history, reflect on its significance, and hopefully learn the right lessons going forward so as not to let that particular strand of history ever repeat itself.

Good morning, baseball fans!

The San Francisco Giants are playing a home series this weekend, which means it’s time to take a look at what Oracle Park has on deck for fans.

Oddly enough, they have no events or giveaways posted for tonight’s game. That’s kind of unusual. If I missed something, please feel free to weigh in down in the comments.

However, Saturday will feature Dog Days Part 2 as the special event for the day. Fans with special event tickets will be able to bring their canine buddies to the park to partake in an on-field parade. Also, I don’t know if I’m interpreting this wrong or if this is how it’s always been done, but their website says, and I quote, “All dogs must have a ticket to enter the ballpark and sit in the designated Dog Days section.” I kind of always assumed that the dogs got in on their owners’ ticket. (Since, you know, they are dogs and completely unaware of the concept of tickets and money.)

Anyway, there will be a giveaway for Saturday’s game as well. The first 15,000 fans in attendance will receive a Willy Adames long sleeve jersey giveaway.

Sunday is a big one, as it is Pediatric Cancer Awareness day at the park. This requires a special event ticket as well, and those attending with said tickets will receive a beanie giveaway for both themselves and for a child who is going through cancer treatment.

Additionally, the first 15,000 fans in attendance will receive a Logan Webb football jersey giveaway.

If you’re headed to a game this weekend, have fun!

What time do the Giants play today?

The Giants begin this weekend series against the San Diego Padres tonight at 7:15 p.m. PT.

I think the Brewers are now officially close enough to clinching a postseason berth — they can do so as soon as this weekend — that we can start talking about plans for the postseason without jinxing anything.

So, who is going to pitch? What is going to be the plan? I’m going to take a look first at the starting rotation, then the bullpen.

First: a quick reminder on postseason roster rules. Anyone who was either on the Brewers’ 40-man roster or their 60-day injured list as of September 1 (at 12 p.m. ET, technically) is eligible for the postseason roster. Players who were in the minor league system but not on the 40-man roster on August 31 need to be injury replacements, and they need approval from the league, but are likely also postseason eligible (for example: the Dodgers are calling up Josue De Paula from Double-A today, and presumably the league would approve him for postseason eligibility because he’s replacing Shohei Ohtani on the active roster). The Brewers haven’t added anyone since September 1 (aside from minor leaguer Ben Moore, who will not be eligible), so they don’t have to worry about this. Rosters in the postseason are 26 players, and teams can replace players who are injured within a round with approval from the commissioner’s office (though the injured player then cannot return during that round).

The Starters

The Brewers would need four starters (with caveats about bullpen games) in both the NLDS and the NLCS; the schedule is such that in both series, the first four games happen within five days. There are two guys who we will unquestionably see start games this postseason: Jacob Misiorowski and Logan Henderson. After that, things get murky.

If we’re assuming that Brandon Sproat’s adventure on Wednesday night eliminated him from any real consideration for the rest of the season (he was optioned on Thursday morning), that means that there are four healthy players currently on the Brewers who could conceivably pitch in a postseason starting rotation. Here are those players’ numbers since the trade deadline on August 3:

• Dustin May: 6 games (all starts), 23 1/3 innings, 6.17 ERA, 5.20 FIP, 21 strikeouts, 10 walks
• Robert Gasser: 6 games (all starts except one injury replacement outing when he pitched 5 1/3 innings), 29 innings, 4.34 ERA, 4.20 FIP, 29 strikeouts, 13 walks
• Shane Drohan: 6 games (five starts), 26 1/3 innings, 6.15 ERA, 5.53 FIP, 26 strikeouts, 15 walks
• Kyle Harrison: 6 games (all starts), 27 innings, 5.67 ERA, 6.91 FIP, 33 strikeouts, 13 walks

When three of the four options for your number three starter have an ERA above 5.60, that’s not ideal. Harrison in particular doesn’t look like an option right at this moment — after he returned from about a month on the injured list in early August, he allowed just four earned runs in his first four starts back. In his last two, he’s been crushed: nine earned runs in 3 2/3 innings against the Cubs on August 31 and six runs (four earned) in 3 2/3 innings against the Reds on September 6. Even in his good outings earlier in August, he was routinely struggling with velocity and command.

The Brewers might like Drohan more as a multi-inning bullpen guy. As a starter this season, Drohan has allowed a .777 opponent OPS. His command is better. His WHIP is way better — 1.414 as a starter versus 0.975 as a reliever. He has a 4.83 ERA in 87 2/3 innings as a starter and a 1.69 ERA in 26 2/3 innings out of the bullpen. Drohan has been valuable as an innings-eating starter this season, but he’s pretty clearly more effective as a reliever.

May has been an enigma as a Brewer. His first two starts were excellent: he combined for 13 innings and three runs allowed. Then he gave up seven runs in two innings against the Mariners, took a line drive off his back on the first pitch in his next outing and left early, then had two shaky outings in which he couldn’t complete five innings against the Rangers and Reds, combining for eight innings and six runs allowed between them.

At times this season, May has looked like a guy who could start in the postseason, but right now, it doesn’t look that way. He has very little experience out of the bullpen, though: he’s only got 14 appearances out of the bullpen in his entire career, and 12 of those came in 2019 and 2020, when he was a brand-new major leaguer.

The last guy here is Gasser. His overall numbers this season are mediocre; he owns a 92 ERA+ and a FIP and ERA that are exactly the same (a pedestrian 4.43). But while his numbers since the trade deadline are overall not great (even if they’re better than any of these other options), he’s trending in the right direction. Over his last three outings, Gasser has a 2.51 ERA and 3.38 FIP in 14 1/3 innings, and as we reach the end of the season, his velocity is actually going up.

Based on the data we have here, Gasser is the one who has looked the best lately. Of course, we could see some shifts in how we feel about any of these guys between now and the end of the regular season. Right now, I’d expect Misiorowski and Henderson to be the one and two guys and Gasser and May as three and four, though with extremely short leashes on the latter two.

The Relievers

A big part of the reason why the Brewers can afford to be aggressive with their somewhat shaky back end of the rotation in the postseason is that they’ve got a lot of options, particularly amongst pitchers who could go more than an inning. As we saw during last year’s postseason, this type of reliever is critical in the way the game is played these days.

If we assume that Miz, Henderson, Gasser, and May all make the postseason roster, that leaves nine more openings for pitchers. Here’s who we’ve got as options:

• Trevor Megill and Abner Uribe are obvious no-brainers at the back of the bullpen.
• Aaron Ashby is also a no-brainer, and DL Hall has pitched well enough lately that he’s also moved into the “no-brainer” category. Both players could pitch two innings if you needed them to.
• Antonio Senzatela’s numbers haven’t been great since he came to the Brewers, but he seems certain to have a role in this bullpen in the postseason; if nothing else, he’s an extreme groundball pitcher who could be used in a spot where you really need a double play.
• JoJo Romero has only pitched five times for the Brewers, but he’s a veteran, and he’s been fine. I wouldn’t categorize him as “high-leverage,” but I think he’s got a spot.
• Chad Patrick was excellent out of the bullpen last postseason. He hasn’t been great this season, but he’s been fine, and I think he’s certain to be included.

That’s seven, and then we have to address the two guys who were chopped from the rotation. Drohan is almost certainly going to be in the bullpen if he’s not in the rotation. That leaves a question mark for Harrison. He could probably play a role out of the bullpen, but I think we need to see what happens with him between now and the end of the season — I could see him pitching well in a couple more starts and getting him back into the rotation conversation, or I could see him ending up on the injured list. Those two things seem about equally likely to me.

If it’s not Harrison, then we’ll have some question marks. Bryse Wilson is on the injured list, but even if he were healthy, ideally you don’t want to have a mop-up guy on your postseason roster. Grant Anderson has been part of the squad all year, but he’s on the injured list currently and hasn’t looked good lately. We’re likely to see a few options from Triple-A Nashville get cycled through between now and the end of the season, particularly in the wake of Sproat’s demotion on Thursday. Potential options could be a starter type, like Coleman Crow, Garrett Stallings, or Colton Gordon, who are all already on the 40-man roster, or a reliever. Potential options there:

• Why not Jared Koenig? Koenig is also on the 40-man roster already, and he’s been good for the Sounds, to the tune of a 2.50 ERA in 18 innings. But his velocity is still way down — his fastball has averaged just 92.8 mph in the minors this season, compared to 95.9 mph last season. Not a lot of faith that this would go well.
• Blake Holub, who has a 2.13 ERA in 50 2/3 innings out of the Nashville bullpen this season. He throws in the mid-90s and has some Brewers-y traits.
• Cameron Wagoner started the season at Double-A Biloxi and earned a promotion after he had a 2.03 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 26 2/3 innings. He’s been good at Triple-A, too: just one run allowed in 10 outings that cover 11 1/3 innings, though his peripherals have taken a bit of a step back. Wagoner can reach the upper 90s, and he’s good at limiting walks, which is certainly a plus.
• There could be a surprise, like Rob Zastryzny, who has been hurt all year but is currently on a rehab assignment with the Sounds.

If Holub or Wagoner were to be the option, the Brewers would have to get permission from the league (at least as far as I understand the rule) to include them on the postseason roster, since they weren’t on the 40-man on September 1. Zastryzny would require a 40-man slot — and I believe they could just leave him on the 60-day IL until the end of the season if they choose not to activate him, because he didn’t start his rehab assignment until there were fewer than 30 days (the maximum allowed for a rehab assignment) remaining in the season.

Guesses

This will probably change before the end of the season, whether that’s because some pitcher who has been poor shows us something or because someone gets hurt. But here’s my best mid-September guess at what the postseason pitching staff will look like:

Starters (4): Jacob Misiorowski, Logan Henderson, Robert Gasser, Dustin May

High-Leverage Relievers (4): Trevor Megill, Abner Uribe, Aaron Ashby, DL Hall

Middle Relievers (2): Antonio Senzatela, JoJo Romero

Long Relievers (3): Shane Drohan, Chad Patrick, Kyle Harrison

I’d also expect the hooks to be exceptionally quick for Gasser and May, with those games looking almost like bullpen games, just with a starting pitcher at the beginning. I’m thinking three-ish innings for each.

I’m least confident about the Gasser/May/Harrison situation. Harrison and May in their last couple of outings have looked essentially unusable in a postseason situation, but it seems likely that at least one of them will need to make a start or two for the Brewers this postseason. That’s the biggest spot to keep an eye on for me.

If one or both looks unplayable, then my attention turns to the likely revolving door of relievers (in the Sproat roster spot) that we’re likely to see over the next couple of weeks. Might one of those guys be able to make a big postseason impact?

What do you think?

Ever wonder how a sportswriter can end up with 50 pairs of new underwear and two overstuffed suitcases on a short scheduled reporting trip?

I traveled to San Diego in September 2001 to interview and write about Tony Gwynn’s Hall of Fame career coming to an end weeks later.

It was early Tuesday morning, Sept., 11, when the phone rang in my hotel room at the Mission Valley Marriott near Qualcomm Stadium. I groggily reached for the phone, answered, and it was a friend from Atlanta.

“Did you hear what happened in New York?" she breathlessly said. “A plane just crashed into the World Trade Center."

OK, I figured someone accidentally crashed their private plane, thanked her for the call, and went back to sleep.

The phone rang 15 minutes later.

A second plane crashed, into the South Tower of the World Trade Center.

This time, I stayed awake, glued to the TV set like the rest of America.

Commissioner Bud Selig postponed all 15 games that day, extended the postponements until Friday, and then again for three more days until Sept. 17. It was the longest regular-season stoppage, outside of a players’ strike, since World War I shortened the final month of the 1918 season.

Sitting in my hotel room that morning, unable to take my eyes off the TV, I was contemplating what to do next when the phone rang.

It was Gwynn.

He knew I had traveled into town to do a cover story on him for “Baseball Weekly” and we were set to talk at the ballpark.

He asked how I was doing, if I needed anything, and whether I still wanted to do the story.

I assured him I still did, so he invited me to come by his house in suburban Poway, and we’d have lunch.

I pulled up in my rental car the next day, and Gwynn greeted me at the door with blue shorts, a gray shirt, and an orange cap. He plopped down on the recliner in his living room. And we talked.

And talked. And talked. And talked.

We talked for hours. There was no better interview in baseball than Gwynn. There may never have been a better person, either. He was an absolute joy to cover. If you wanted to talk about baseball, Gwynn was there to talk as long as you desired.

You could be a pimple-faced kid from a local high school, or a grizzled veteran from “60 Minutes,’’ and Gwynn would treat each reporter with identical respect. It didn’t matter how big your newspaper’s circulation was, or whether you were local or national, Gwynn would provide the same access.

He was everyone’s favorite.

This day, with the living room TV showing the heartbreaking devastation in New York, Gwynn had all the time in the world.

“It’s just unbelievable what happened,” Gwynn was saying. “You see it over and over, and still can’t believe it. Life as we knew it before, is over. Life is going to change. And now that it’s going to change, you want to be in a little more control in your life."

On this edition of the Pirates Prospect Update series, we take a look at catcher Axiel Plaz, who has been enjoying a nice season with the Greensboro Grasshoppers.

The Pittsburgh Pirates signed Plaz as an international free-agent in the winter of 2022, and since then the Dominican catcher has risen the ranks to being one of the best prospects in Pittsburgh’s system. In his first season of professional baseball he was named to the All-Star team for the Dominican Summer League after hitting .382 with a 1.206 OPS.

What has plagued Plaz has been inconsistent play due to injuries. 2024 saw the 21-year-old catcher limited to just 84 games after suffering numerous injuries. Then in 2025 Plaz was out of action with a broken finger and only appeared 66 games as a result.

The proof is in the pudding when Plaz is healthy however, as he continues to emerge as a strong player at the plate. During his time in Bradenton he ranked near the top in categories like exit velocity, barrel and hard hit percentages. His power continues to develop, but he is capable of hitting to all fields and has changed his approach at the plate which has resulted in far less swing and miss strikeouts.

Now in 2026, Plaz has played the most games to this point in his professional career, currently at 94 with Greensboro. At the plate this year Plaza has knocked in 18 home runs along with 74 RBIs. This season he’s slashing .305/.389/.513 with a .902 OPS. He was also just awardSouth Atlantic League Player of the Week honors.

Plaz has an overall prospect rating of 50, with his defense needing some work if he wants to be a big league catcher one day. His arm is plenty strong, and he’s proven that he’s capable of making hard throws from behind the plate. His defense is subpar though as his receiving has lacked consistency. That being said the Pirates are seemingly still looking for their catcher of the future so there’s ample opportunity for Plaz to move up the ranks and continue to improve in the minor leagues.

Axiel Plaz is the seventh ranked prospect in the Pirates’ system.

ESPN | Associated Press: The Yankees recalled Anthony Volpe Thursday in a corresponding move as Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit the IL. The promotion was anticipated after Chisholm left Tuesday’s game with what was later diagnosed as a sprained right thumb. After he was displaced from his starting job at shortstop, Volpe went on a heater at Triple-A and was recently named the International League’s Player of the Week after going 11-for-21 with three homers from September 1-6 while bouncing between shortstop, second, and third. He projects to split time with José Caballero at the keystone in the absence of Chisholm, who has said he expects to return on September 22. Volpe’s return couldn’t have gone better, the newly minted second baseman going 3-for-4 with a grand slam on his first day back.

New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: ($) Will Warren’s start on Wednesday, in which he allowed one run across six innings of work, may strengthen his case for a playoff role. The right-hander, who has a 2.22 ERA over his last five outings, ranks behind some of his more experienced rotation mates but could end up a valuable bullpen piece in October. “He can serve a lot of roles potentially,” said his manager, Aaron Boone. “He’s been incredibly durable, but he’s got weapons, and I do like the tick up in his stuff, which seems to be there the last three, four times out.” As Boone alluded to, Wednesday’s start was Warren’s third straight in which his velocity increased.

NJ.com | Bob Klapisch: David Bednar got a ringing endorsement from an authoritative source on Tuesday. No less than Mariano Rivera praised the Yankees closer while watching him pitch, saying “David reminds me of myself. The thing I love about David is that he goes after hitters, which is what I always tried to do. He doesn’t mess around. And he has the ability to put things behind him – good or bad – and move forward.” When informed of the Hall of Famer’s compliment, Bednar was reportedly moved. “Wow, that’s really great to hear,” he said. “Coming from someone like Mariano, that’s amazing.”

Hudson Valley Renegades | Joe Vasile: Luis Serna just wrapped up an exemplary season for the High-A Hudson Valley Renegades. The 22-year-old, ranked as the Yankees’ 18th-best prospect by MLB Pipeline, led the South Atlantic League in several pitching categories, including ERA (4.32), strikeouts (140), opponent’s average (.224), and WHIP (1.19). (An important caveat — only four pitchers in the league threw enough innings to qualify for the rate stats.) The 140 punchouts also set a Renegades record, surpassing the 138 Drew Thorpe recorded in 2023. “He had a career season for himself without a question,” said Renegades pitching coach Ryan Mossman. “He was throwing more strikes with his fastball and improved his slider quite a bit. [Some changes to his arsenal] made him able to better gameplan for lineups and go out there and execute and dominate the way he did this year.”

The worst team in baseball made Max Fried work for almost every out. 

The Yankees star pitcher was effective — allowing one run and one hit with seven strikeouts in a 10-3 win over the Rockies on Thursday — but inefficient in his third start back from the injured list, lasting just 3 ⅓ innings after throwing just 48 of his 80 pitches for strikes. 

“They saw a lot of pitches, they were having some good at-bats and not chasing,” Fried said. “I felt like I was getting ahead, then throwing some non-competitive pitches. … It was just a weird outing where I was executing in certain counts, but I also had a lot of bad misses that caused a lot of deep counts. Going 80 pitches and not getting through four [innings] is not ideal. I didn’t want to put the bullpen in that position, but they did a great job picking me up.” 

Since returning from a bone bruise in his left elbow for the second time this season, Fried has given up one run in each of his three outings (12 ⅔ total innings). Thursday’s lone run allowed came on a 431-foot home run by Colorado’s Kyle Karros that hit the second deck in left field. 

Fried, who threw 63 pitches in his first start back and 72 in his previous outing, had moments when he looked like this season’s early Cy Young candidate, striking out four consecutive batters. He also displayed the rust of a starter who has thrown less than 38 innings since mid-July, walking the leadoff hitter in his final two innings. 

Fried (4-4, 2.73 ERA) has gone 11 straight starts without picking up a win — most recently earning one April 27 — after going 19-5 last season, though he has allowed fewer than two runs in five consecutive outings. 

“I’m feeling good, liking the progress so far, hitting my marks,” Fried said. “I felt like I could’ve definitely stayed in that game and kept going … I’m just gonna keep building.” 

Soon, the Yankees will need much more from the owner of the largest contract ever given to a left-handed pitcher. 

Fried has no doubt he will deliver. 

“We’re looking forward to having me being completely built up for the end of the season and the playoffs,” Fried said. “They’ve had a plan. As much as I would love to fast-forward the plan and just say, ‘Let’s throw it all out the window,’ they’ve got a lot of really smart people here who work really hard to try to make sure I’m gonna be healthy for when it matters most.”

Jazz Chisholm Jr. expects to be back on the field before the playoffs begin. 

Chisholm — who sprained his right thumb after diving into second base Tuesday — is sporting a brace on his hand and will be shut down from baseball activities for 7-10 days, but the Yankees second baseman doesn’t believe his absence will last much longer because he is “confident in [his] healing abilities.” 

“It’s not that bad, I don’t think,” Chisholm said before Thursday’s 10-3 win over the Rockies. “I think we should be good in 10 days or so.” 

Chisholm has reason for optimism. Last season, he missed less than five weeks with an oblique injury after being given a return timeline of 4-6 weeks. 

In 2024, the recently acquired Yankee returned from a sprained left elbow in less than two weeks. 

“He does have a history of being a fast healer,” manager Aaron Boone said. “There’s truth to that. If you look at his injury history, he’s kind of beaten the timeline every time. But we’ll listen to the thumb, listen to his body and see how he recovers.” 

After hurting his thumb this week, Chisholm said he was unaware of the severity of the injury. Only after he returned to the field and bounced a throw to first base did he realize he needed to be removed. 

“When it first happened, it just went completely numb,” said Chisholm, who was replaced by Anthony Volpe on the active roster. “I didn’t have any feeling in it. That’s how come I didn’t know how bad it was until I tried to throw the baseball and couldn’t feel the ball.” 

Before being placed on the 10-day injured list, Chisholm finally appeared to be breaking out of his season-long slump. 

The two-time All-Star — who opened the season by setting the goal of becoming the second 50-50 player in history — has posted a career-worst .232 batting average and .715 OPS this season, with 19 home runs and 40 stolen bases. But over his past 29 games, the 28-year-old is hitting .295 with an .832 OPS. 

Following this weekend’s Subway Series, the Yankees travel to Minnesota and Arizona, then return for a season-ending, seven-game homestand, beginning exactly two weeks after the injury occurred. 

Chisholm anticipates being back by then, giving himself the opportunity to shed any rust before the only month that matters. 

“It’s frustrating, but right now the goal is to win a World Series,” Chisholm said. “Right now, all I’m thinking about is getting healthy and being back ready for October, honestly.”

The Yankees' series finale against the Rockies offered plenty of buzz thanks to the return of Anthony Volpe.

Recalled to take over for the injured Jazz Chisholm Jr. at second base, the 25-year-old was in the Yankees' starting lineup, and he delivered. 

Volpe went 3-for-4 in his first game with the Yankees since Aug. 1, but drove in a career-high five RBI, punctuated by a grand slam that put the game away for good. 

"Great results but good at-bats," manager Aaron Boone said after the 10-3 win. "Excited for him, he hasn’t done anything but continue to work and grind and got his way back here. And obviously had an impact on this game."

Once the organization's top prospect and groomed to be the shortstop of the future, inconsistencies on both sides of the ball led to Volpe's demotion in early August. Volpe used his time in Triple-A to learn some new positions and to tweak his swing. 

And while Volpe's defense at second was competent enough for the Yankees to start him there at the big league level, the offensive improvements shown in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre were eye-opening. 

When Volpe was demoted, he was hitting .240 with one home run and 19 RBI across 56 games with the Yanks. In 28 games with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, his offensive production exploded. He started with a .205 average and by the time his time with Triple-A was up, he was batting .264 with 10 home runs.

Volpe credited the culture the most for his offensive improvements.

“[Coach Shelley Duncan] down there is amazing. He takes in everyone," Volpe explained after the game. "I wasn’t alone when I was there. It was me, [Jasson Dominguez], and [Max] Schuemann. And the guys there... [Oswaldo] Cabrera, I feel like I got so close to him, but to see his positivity and how he’s enjoying playing and having fun, if you don’t do that down there, you’ll stick out like a sore thumb."

ANTHONY VOLPE PUTS AN EXCLAMATION POINT ON HIS RETURN WITH A GRAND SLAM! pic.twitter.com/Dk67cQVALE

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) September 11, 2026

"You root for games like that, especially with how hard he’s been working and everything he’s been doing in Triple-A," Max Fried said of Volpe. "Coming up, new position for the first time up here and made an immediate impact…great teammate, works hard and really couldn’t be happier for him." 

Volpe called the last 24 hours an "unexpected whirlwind" and admitted that he wasn't sure that he'd even be back with the Yankees after two-plus seasons of sub-par play.

"Felt like I had an opportunity and it’s weird the way it happened. You don’t want someone to get hurt, but nothing’s guaranteed," Volpe said. "I thought I’d never be back up here, so trying to make the most of it.

"I wanted to be back up here, helping and contributing. When you’re down there, there’s no guarantees. You work really hard for yourself and for the player you feel can help the organization. Can’t control it, so I never thought I was going to be back here in this moment, but I wanted to be ready and prepared in case something happens."

What Volpe wasn't prepared for was the reaction from the Yankee Stadium crowd. From the moment he was introduced in the starting lineup, the Yankees fans -- who many booed and shunned him -- welcomed Volpe back. And when he hit the grand slam, the fans chanted his name and Volpe responded with a curtain call.

After the game, Volpe couldn't even describe the moment, saying he "blacked out" but appreciated the fans and said he'll remember it for a long time. But the young infielder understands that to re-establish himself, there's more that needs to be done.

"That’s why this is a special place, for sure," he said. "You wouldn’t trade it for anything in the world, but still a lot of work to do."

Anthony Volpe says he wouldn't trade having the Yankee Stadium crowd chant his name for the world pic.twitter.com/0oLB1uQlZh

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) September 11, 2026

Departing Houston with a series win had the Diamondbacks ahead of the Padres by a half of a game yet again with them hoping to add to that lead with a series against the Kansas City Royals on deck. As mentioned in the last episode, the Royals offense is one of the weaker parts of their roster but they make up for that lack of offense with solid starting pitching as Michael Wacha and Noah Cameron, who have been really sharp over their last month or so, would be a tough matchup for a Diamondbacks offense that has failed to do much against starting pitching over their last few series.

Labor Day Rollercoaster

The Diamondbacks offense must have been jealous of the national holiday and decided they wanted their own time off the clock as they would be blanked for the first 9 innings of the game with Noah Cameron, who was the American League Pitcher of the Month for August, continuing where he left off the prior month. Most of the time being blanked for 9 innings would result in a loss, but thanks to the D’Backs and their bullpen going toe to toe with Noah Cameron and the Royals bullpen we would get to see some extra innings excitement yet again.

After both teams decided being held scoreless was for suckers and putting up 9 combined runs, the rollercoaster of a ride that was the 10th would end with Dennis Santana walking the high wire and recording his first save as a Snake and stranding the royals tying run in scoring position. Normally a 5-0 lead would be more than enough for the Diamondbacks bullpen to get the job done, but unfortunately Gerardo Carrillo’s continuous struggles since being recalled from Triple A Reno had both Brandon and I wondering if this was Carrillo struggling mechanically or if opposing teams have finally had enough film to study and figure out how to attack.

I Fell Down Into A Burnes-ing Ring Of Fire

The main headline for Tuesday night’s game in Kansas City would be the return of Diamondbacks $210 Million dollar ace in Corbin Burnes. It was no secret that Burnes would be very limited in his first outing on a Major League mound in over 450+ days, a few lengthy at-bats from Royal hitters had Burnes only able to get through 3 innings and just under his 60 pitch limit. Most pitchers who return from Tommy John surgery take time to find their form again, and that was no difference for Corbin as he would top out at 94 MPH and struggle with his command of his arsenal (especially his curveball).

Brandon and I both agreed that we didn’t expect or want Corbin to go out there and go full throttle and pitch at 100% effort, and that while we would hope that his next outing can be a bit longer with some more efficient and clean innings, we are just happy to have him back at a time when the Diamondbacks can use as much starting pitching as they can get their hands on.

Zac Is Back (Threat)

Wednesday’s series finale would see the return of not 1 but 2 more starting pitchers from the IL as both Zac Gallen and Michael Soroka would be back on the mound in the same game. As I said previously the Diamondbacks would be looking for any starting pitching help they could get their hands on, but I’m not sure Zac Gallen would really be any more help than what the Snakes were getting from youngsters Mitch Bratt and Kohl Drake. Gallen has struggled the last few years with the long ball and a subway $5 foot long meatball sub to Carter Jensen would see that issue also return from the IL. Soroka also served up his own $5 foot long meatball sub to Bobby Witt Jr that would be the difference maker in the D’Backs 5-2 loss, but Soroka is being paid nearly 1/3rd of what Gallen is earning while having an ERA that is nearly half of Zac’s 6.22 so he has earned a little more leniency.

Brandon and I discussed if it’s really worth it to let Zac Gallen continue to go out there and struggle start after start. With only 15 games left in the regular season the Diamondbacks can’t really afford to have a borderline auto-loss every 5th day as they fight for a spot in October. We both agreed that it would be a different conversation if the offense wasn’t struggling as much as it has been as of late, but with the bats already having a hard time giving their good starters in Rodriguez and Pfaadt any kind of run support it doesn’t seem like a smart plan if the Diamondbacks actually want to win enough games to make it into October.

Hook, Line and Ranger

The Diamondbacks kick off the last homestand of 2026 with a rematch of the 2023 fall classic as they would welcome in the second place Texas Rangers for a 3 game set. While this isn’t the same Rangers roster we saw back in 2023, they are a deeper and more dangerous one than what we just saw in Kansas City as the first 6 hitters in their order all have an OPS of .700+. Thankfully for Snakes fans the 2 best starters on the team in Eduardo Rodriguez should be getting the ball in 2 of the 3 games so if there was any hope in limiting the Rangers firepower and getting a series win or even a series sweep, then those 2 will hopefully have a big part of that potential success.

We’ll start with South Bend tonight.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were hijacked by the Quad Cities River Bandits (Royals), 3-1. The River Bandits win the best-of-three Division Series 2 games to 0 and advance to the Midwest League Championship Series. South Bend season ends now.

Nazier Mulé started and took the loss, although he pitched well. Mulé allowed one run on two hits over three innings. The one run scored on a pop fly that landed just fair down the line in left in the second inning for a double. Mulé walked two, hit one batter and struck out three.

South Bend’s bad luck continued in the sixth inning when reliever Cole Reynolds gave up another RBI double on a soft pop up that landed near the line just beyond first base.

South Bend could not do much against Quad Cities starter and the Royals’ top prospect Kendry Chourio. He held South Bend without a hit through four innings and while he did give up a pair of singles in the fifth, the Quad Cities bullpen bailed him out.

The only South Bend run came in the seventh inning when center fielder Caden Sorrel, playing in his first game in High-A, singled home second baseman Reginald Preciado. Both Sorrell and Preciado were 2 for 4.

Reliever Anhuar Garcia hit a batter with the bases loaded in the top of the eighth to give the River Bandits their two run lead back. South Bend went quietly in the eighth and ninth to end the season.

It was a disappointing loss for South Bend, who had one of their best seasons in memory. But that happens in baseball.

Here’s Sorrell’s RBI single. His first hit looked a lot like this one too.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs were stuck in the mud against the Toledo Mud Hens (Tigers), 9-1.

Connor Noland started and took the loss. Noland gave up three runs on four hits over four innings. One of those hits was a two-run home run. Noland struck out three and walked one.

Justin Steele came on to pitch the fifth inning in a rehab assignment. His first inning went poorly as he allowed two runs on three hits. He was better in the sixth inning as Steele hit a batter, but that runner was thrown out trying to steal. He then gave up another hit before recording a strikeout to end the inning without any more damage.

The final line on Steele was two runs on four hits over two innings. He struck out three and walked no one while hitting that one batter.

You can take this as you wish.

I agree that center fielder Justin Dean misjudged that fly ball into a triple.

Shelby Miller threw the seventh inning and did well. He allowed a leadoff bunt single, but that runner was thrown out trying to steal and he retired the other two batters, striking out one.

But Jaxon Wiggins struggled in relief, allowing four runs on four hits in just two-thirds of an inning in the eighth. He also walked two while striking out no one.

The only Iowa run came on an RBI groundout in the fourth inning by right fielder Kevin Alcántara. Alcántara went 1 for 4.

Left fielder Chas McCormick was 1 for 3 with a double and a walk.

Iowa only had four hits tonight.

Omaha was 1 for 3 trying to steal off of Owen Ayers.

Steele’s second strikeout.

Steele’s three strikeouts [VIDEO]

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies overthrew the Birmingham Barons (White Sox), 4-1.

Brody McCullough was strong tonight as he got the win after giving up five scoreless innings. McCullough allowed three hits. He walked three and struck out seven.

Jackson Brockett then gave the Smokies three more scoreless innings, giving up just one hit and walking just one. He struck out four.

DH Alex Ramírez was the hero tonight, going 3 for 4 with a walk and two RBI.

Second baseman Alex Madera went 2 for 3 with a walk and two runs scored.

Knoxville banged out ten hits tonight, but all of them were singles.

The Rockies hung around for most of Thursday night at Yankee Stadium.

Then the seventh inning happened.

Colorado had just pulled within two runs when the Yankees answered with six in the bottom half, capped by Anthony Volpe’s grand slam, and turned a quiet, almost competitive game into a 10-3 rout.

The loss completed a three-game sweep and dropped the Rockies to 55-91, while New York improved to 84–62. John Schreiber earned the win for the Yankees, while Ryan Feltner fell to 5-10.

For much of the night, though, the final score did not match the feel of the game. The Yankees grabbed an early lead, but Feltner settled in, Colorado kept finding small openings and New York never quite put the game away.

Until they did.

Feltner digs a hole, then settles in

Feltner’s first two innings looked like they might lead to another short night.

Ben Rice opened the first with a single and advanced on a wild pitch before Luis García Jr. crushed a two-out changeup for his 30th home run of the season.

There were flashes of good stuff mixed into the trouble. Feltner struck out Cody Bellinger on a well-sequenced first-inning plate appearance, leaning on his changeup to finish him on a foul tip.

The command, particularly with the fastball, was much less consistent.

That carried into the second. Ryan McMahon singled, Austin Wells walked and recently recalled Anthony Volpe flicked an inside fastball into left field to score McMahon. Rice followed with a groundout that advanced both runners, and Bellinger’s sacrifice fly stretched the lead to 4-1.

Feltner needed 46 pitches to get through the first two innings.

Then, almost abruptly, he settled in.

He worked a nine-pitch, 1-2-3 third and followed with another clean inning in the fourth. After Volpe’s RBI single in the second, Feltner retired 10 consecutive Yankees before Bellinger finally broke the streak with a double in the fifth.

Even that nearly became an out.

Bellinger lifted a towering drive to right, where Jordan Beck tracked it all the way to the wall and leapt with his glove over the fence. Beck caught the ball, but his collision with the wall knocked it loose and back onto the field. Instead of a home run, Bellinger settled for a double.

Feltner made the play matter. He struck out Jasson Domínguez and got García to pop out in foul territory, ending his night by retiring 12 of the final 13 hitters he faced.

His final line — 5.0 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 2 K — looks fairly pedestrian, but the outing had two very different halves.

Feltner’s four-seam fastball averaged 93.9 mph, about a tick below his season average, and the Yankees hit it hard when they put it in play. He also struggled to consistently locate it.

The secondaries gave him a way through it.

Feltner used his changeup 18% of the time, exactly in line with his season usage, and generated three whiffs on nine swings. The slider was arguably his best pitch, generating three whiffs on seven swings while avoiding hard contact.

He did not suddenly become dominant after the second inning. The Yankees continued to hit some balls hard, including a 109.7 mph flyout from Spencer Jones in the third.

What changed was Feltner’s efficiency.

His pitch counts by inning went 25, 21, 9, 17 and 11. Once he stopped fighting the zone, he let the defense work and gave the Rockies five innings after an opening that looked headed somewhere much worse.

The Rockies make Fried work, but little else

Max Fried was much better, although Colorado did make him work for it.

Connor Norby battled through a nine-pitch plate appearance in the first and appeared to earn a walk before Wells challenged the pitch. ABS overturned the call, turning ball four into strike three. Hunter Goodman then chased a curveball well below the zone to end the inning.

That curveball was good all night.

Fried threw it 19% of the time, above his season rate, and generated four whiffs on five swings. He also leaned heavily on his cutter while largely shelving the four-seam fastball.

Kyle Karros did punish one of those four-seamers in the second, crushing it for his 11th home run of the season and Colorado’s first hit of the game.

The Rockies otherwise did most of their damage to Fried’s pitch count rather than the scoreboard.

Beck walked to lead off the third and reached third when Norby got aboard on McMahon’s throwing error, but Goodman grounded into a forceout to end the threat. TJ Rumfield worked a seven-pitch walk to start the fourth, and Cole Carrigg extended his at-bat before Fried buried a curveball in the dirt for the strikeout.

Aaron Boone had already visited the mound. After Carrigg struck out, he went to the bullpen.

Fried finished with 3.1 IP, 1 H, 1 ER, 2 BB and 7 K, but needed 80 pitches to get there.

It was a peculiar sort of success for Colorado. They made an excellent pitcher labor.

They just did not score.

Colorado finally finds a spark

That problem followed the Rockies into the Yankees bullpen.

Carrigg doubled with two outs in the sixth, but another successful Yankees ABS challenge turned an apparent ball four to Karros into strike three and ended the inning.

Colorado finally broke through again in the seventh.

Adael Amador worked a seven-pitch at-bat before grounding out, then Beck lined a 98.9 mph drive to center that Jones chased down with a sliding catch.

Tovar kept the inning alive with a two-out walk.

Boone went to Brent Headrick, and McCarthy jumped the first pitch he saw, driving it off the wall in right-center. Tovar scored from first and McCarthy raced into third with his ninth triple of the season.

Suddenly, it was 4-2.

Norby followed with a six-pitch walk, bringing Goodman to the plate with two on and the tying run involved.

Goodman managed only a weak fly to left.

It was another opening.

And another missed opportunity.

The seventh finally breaks it open

Zach Agnos had already escaped trouble in the sixth.

Jones singled, Wells walked and Volpe reached on a hard one-hopper that Tovar did well simply to knock down. The bases were loaded, but Carrigg tracked Rice’s deep fly to the warning track to end the inning.

Agnos came back out for the seventh, and the traffic finally caught up with him.

Bellinger doubled to open the inning. Domínguez walked. The two then executed a double steal, putting both runners in scoring position with nobody out.

García grounded to Rumfield at first and both runners held, giving Agnos a chance to escape.

Jones erased it with his third hit of the night, lining a single up the middle to score both runners. Carrigg came up firing from center, but his throw sailed over Goodman and reached the backstop as Jones advanced to second.

The Yankees led 6-2.

Agnos got Lombard to pop out, then walked McMahon.

Warren Schaeffer had seen enough.

Jimmy Herget entered and immediately walked Wells to load the bases.

Then Volpe ended the suspense.

The Yankees’ No. 9 hitter got a 1-1 sinker and drove it to right field for a grand slam, turning a game that had spent most of the night hovering within reach into a 10-2 blowout. Volpe finished with five RBI.

Agnos’ pitch data showed just how dangerous his two innings had been. Seven of the eight balls put in play against him were hard-hit, with an average exit velocity of 98.1 mph. He survived the sixth, but couldn’t escape the seventh.

The offense leaves too much behind

Colorado did scratch across one more run in the eighth.

Zac Veen pinch-hit for Carrigg and worked a seven-pitch walk after falling behind 0-2 against Luis Gil, laying off several upper-90s fastballs in the process. Amador followed with a single that was deflected in right, allowing Veen to score and Amador to advance on the error.

The ninth inning offered one final, almost painfully tidy summary of Colorado’s night.

Tovar singled. McCarthy singled. Vimael Machín, pinch-hitting for Norby, singled in his Rockies debut.

Then Goodman flew out too shallow to score Tovar.

Rumfield did the same.

And Veen struck out.

Game over.

Final thoughts

The Rockies finished 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position and left 11 runners on base.

Over the three-game sweep, Colorado struck out 36 times, went 1-for-13 with runners in scoring position and stranded 19.

They had chances. They just did almost nothing with them.

There were still a few small positives. Veen showed good discipline against premium velocity, Machín picked up a hit in his Rockies debut, and Amador continued to look more comfortable in his latest opportunity. The sample remains small, but his at-bats increasingly look like those of a hitter who belongs.

Up next

The Rockies open a three-game series against the Detroit Tigers tomorrow night at Comerica Park, with first pitch scheduled for 4:40 p.m. MDT.

Mason Adams (0–0, 3.95 ERA, 17 K) will make his third career start for Colorado. Detroit will counter with veteran left-hander Framber Valdez (9–10, 4.17 ERA, 119 K).

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks! 

We’re back with a new Breaking T shirt, featuring Milwaukee’s young outfielder.

After they dropped an “Air Lara” shirt in August, they’re back with a “Luis Aura” shirt this time around. Lara, still just 21, has continued to shine defensively, making a huge catch late in Monday’s win over the Cubs before adding an exclamation point on offense with a walk-off single on Tuesday night.

That’s why our friends at Breaking T created this brand-new “Luis Aura” shirt.

Luis Lara has been making big play after big play in 2026, and fans in the Cream City have definitely taken notice. The 21-year-old rookie has an aura about him that has Milwaukee fans excited for both the present and the future.

• Officially licensed by MLB Players, Inc.
• Super-soft, durable t-shirts and hoodies
• Designed and printed in the USA
• Free returns and exchanges

Click here to get a Luis Aura shirt, and be sure to check out their full line of Brewers’ merchandise here.

After their first day off in September on Thursday, the Brewers will continue their stretch of NL Central foes as they’ll host the Reds for three games in Milwaukee, the second time they’ll see Cincinnati in the last two weeks, as the Reds took two of three in Cincy last weekend. The Brewers are coming off of a sweep of the Cubs to balloon their NL Central lead to 10 games over the rest of the pack, sitting at 91-56 with 15 games left. The Reds, who sit in last place, are 69-77 after being swept by the Dodgers to begin the week.

Since the last time these teams met, the Reds have activated right-hander Graham Ashcraft and third baseman Ke’Bryan Hayes from the IL, with left-hander Sam Moll designated for assignment and utility man Edwin Arroyo optioned to Triple-A Louisville in the corresponding moves. The Brewers have only lost Grant Anderson, who was placed on the 15-day IL with biceps tendinitis. He was replaced on the active roster by Brandon Sproat, though Sproat was demoted once again on Thursday, with the corresponding move expected to be a recall of right-hander Garrett Stallings to shore up the bullpen. Jake Bauers is also continuing to deal with a variety of lower-body injuries, and the Brewers have opted to focus on managing the injuries rather than putting him on the IL.

Just to remind you of what these two teams bring to the table offensively and on the mound, here’s a quick rundown of both squads.

Milwaukee is hitting .257/.339/.400 (.739 OPS ranks fourth), with 137 homers (last), 742 runs scored (third), and 143 steals (fourth). The Reds are hitting .230/.308/.398 (.706 OPS ranks 23rd), with 196 homers (fourth), 611 runs scored (25th), and 102 steals (11th).

On the mound, Milwaukee ranks second in the majors with a 3.56 team ERA, including a 3.63 starter ERA (fifth) and a 3.46 bullpen ERA (fifth). They’ve struck out 1,406 batters (second) over 1,312 2/3 innings. Cincinnati ranks 27th with a 4.73 team ERA, including a 4.78 starter ERA (27th) and a 4.68 bullpen ERA (25th). They’ve struck out 1,186 batters (20th) over 1,293 innings.

Probable Pitchers

Friday, September 11 @ 6:45 p.m.: RHP Dustin May (6-9, 4.69 ERA, 3.51 FIP) vs. LHP Andrew Abbott (6-10, 4.43 ERA, 4.78 FIP)

May had two really solid starts to begin his Milwaukee tenure, but since that time, he went two innings and allowed seven runs against the Mariners, recorded just one out and exited after being struck by a liner against the Mets, and has had two so-so starts against the Rangers and Reds. Overall, he’s made six starts totaling 23 1/3 innings for the Crew, with a 6.17 ERA, 5.20 FIP, and 21 strikeouts. As mentioned above, his last outing came against these Reds, as he went 3 2/3 innings before a rain delay forced an early exit. He allowed two runs on five hits and no walks, striking out five on 56 pitches. Both of May’s starts against the Reds have come this season, as he’s totaled 9 2/3 innings with three runs allowed and 13 strikeouts.

Abbott has had a rough fourth season in 2026, as he has a career-worst 4.43 ERA and 4.78 FIP over 29 starts, which matches his current career-high from a year ago. He went four innings against Milwaukee last weekend, allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits (one homer) and no walks, striking out five in Cincinnati’s eventual 5-3 win. Abbott is 3-4 with a 3.62 ERA and 52 strikeouts over 54 2/3 innings across 10 career starts against Milwaukee.

Saturday, September 12 @ 6:10 p.m.: TBD vs. RHP Brady Singer (6-13, 5.03 ERA, 5.16 FIP)

The Brewers haven’t announced a starter for either Saturday or Sunday, but these spots would fall to Shane Drohan and Kyle Harrison unless the rotation changes. Based on recent comments by Pat Murphy, it seems possible that Harrison will have a very short leash with a long reliever behind him. I’d bet that we will see both Drohan and Harrison in some shape or form on Saturday and/or Sunday. With that in mind, here’s a quick rundown on each.

Drohan is 7-5 with a 4.09 ERA, 3.61 FIP, and 115 strikeouts over 114 1/3 innings in his rookie season. He got hit hard by the Reds last weekend, allowing six runs on five hits (two homers) and two walks while striking out five over four frames, but his offense bailed him out to eventually win 10-7. Drohan has made three starts against the Reds this season, with worse results in each successive outing. Overall, he’s totaled 14 innings with eight runs allowed (5.14 ERA) and 17 strikeouts.

Harrison is 10-4 with a 3.66 ERA, 4.03 FIP, and 134 strikeouts over 110 2/3 innings this season, though he’s been roughed up by the Cubs and Reds in his last two outings, giving up 15 runs (13 earned) over just 7 1/3 innings, allowing 19 hits (six homers) and six walks to seven strikeouts. In four career starts against Cincinnati, Harrison is 0-1 with a 6.27 ERA and 24 strikeouts over 18 2/3 innings.

Singer hasn’t had a great season, but he remains in the rotation despite his 6-13 record, 5.03 ERA, and 5.16 FIP over 28 starts. He picked up the win against Milwaukee last weekend, though it wasn’t pretty — he went five innings, allowing six runs on four hits (one homer) and six walks, striking out three in Cincinnati’s eventual 12-8 victory. Singer is 3-2 with a 4.70 ERA and 30 strikeouts over 30 2/3 innings in six career starts against Milwaukee.

Sunday, September 13 @ 1:10 p.m.: TBD vs. RHP Chase Burns (15-3, 2.73 ERA, 3.09 FIP)

See above for rundown on Milwaukee’s potential starters for Sunday.

Burns, 23, is a former No. 2 overall pick and the lone probable starter to not have pitched in last weekend’s series. He’s turned in a great sophomore season, with a 15-3 record, 2.73 ERA, 3.09 FIP, and 176 strikeouts over 148 1/3 innings, though he’s on a very strict innings limit as we near the end of the season. He worked three scoreless innings on just 44 pitches against the Dodgers his last time out, allowing no hits and a walk while striking out five, though the Reds would ultimately lose 6-3. Burns has a 2.35 ERA and eight strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings against Milwaukee for his career, including six innings of two-run ball in a victory back in early July.

How to Watch & Listen

Friday, September 11: Exclusively televised on Apple TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Saturday, September 12: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Sunday, September 13: Brewers TV; listen via radio on the Brewers Radio Network (620 WTMJ in Milwaukee)

Prediction

The Brewers are rolling, and there’s a solid chance they can lock up a postseason spot this weekend, while the Reds have struggled after taking two of three over Milwaukee last weekend. Give me the Crew to win two of three.