Category: MLB

After testing the MLB Draft waters, Blake Grimmer has opted to withdraw his name from this month’s event. He will instead return to Tennessee baseball for another season in Knoxville.

The announcement was made on Wednesday afternoon.

Grimmer hit .283 with 13 home runs and 36 RBIs during the 2026 season, which was his first full season as a starter. He will be a redshirt junior next season, where he can play either first, second or third base. Grimmer hit .18 with four home runs during the 2025 season. He redshirted during Tennessee’s 2024 national title season.

Grimmer eventually settled in the No. 2 spot in Tennessee’s lineup for Josh Elander after dealing with an injury that cost him the early portions of the season. The former top 150 overall prospect in the class of 2023 will now be one of Tennessee’s top returners next season.

After playing second base for much of last season, Grimmer will likely slide elsewhere with former Air Force second baseman Wyatt Hanoian now in the lineup. Hanioan hit .357 with 49 RBIs last year for the Falcons.

The MLB Draft is set to begin on July 11th, where Elander and the staff will get a clearer picture of next year’s roster.

The Major League Baseball Players Association is seeking to expand major league rosters by 60 players to open the regular season in their latest proposal with MLB on Wednesday, with teams rosters increasing from 26 players to 28 players for the first 15 days of the regular season.

It was one of several proposals designed to increase roster size that also included the ability for players to be placed on the 60-day injured list before clubs are required to submit 40-man rosters, enabling clubs to protect more players.

The union is also seeking to reduce the number of times a player can be optioned to the minor leagues in a season from five times to three.

It also wants to reduce the amount of time a team can protect minor league players from being subjected to the Rule 5 draft beginning in November before the Collective Bargaining Agreement expires on Dec. 1, 2026.

When they started this road trip, the Dodgers already had one of the better road records in all of baseball, but in one fell swoop, they’ve taken that into unserious territory. Winners of seven of their last eight games away from home, the Dodgers now have a 30-16 record on the road, with the latest of these 30 wins representing the number 1.000 of Dave Roberts’ career.

To claim that the offense has been outstanding in this road trip might not do it justice; it has averaged seven runs per game throughout these eight duels, scoring nine in each of the first two games against the Athletics in West Sacramento. Between these two matchups, a total of five different hitters have left the yard: Shohei Ohtani, Andy Pages, Max Muncy, Tommy Edman, and Miguel Rojas. Definitely looking to join in on the fun for this series finale will be Mookie Betts, the leader in home runs on this road trip with three. A’s starter J.T. Ginn has been the team’s ace this season, but having handled Gage Jump with relative ease, the Dodgers offense will likely be unfazed by the best the A’s have to offer.

On their pitching side of things, the Dodgers will most likely go with a bullpen game, having pushed Shohei Ohtani back a couple of days. Roki Sasaki will take the ball on Thursday night against the Padres when the Dodgers return home, while Ohtani pitches on Friday.

Wednesday’s game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Athletics
• Ballpark: Sutter Health Park, West Sacramento
• Start time: 6:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

Mets lineup

Carson Benge – RF
Juan Soto – DH
Bo Bichette – 3B
Francisco Lindor – SS
A.J. Ewing – CF
Francisco Alvarez – C
Jared Young – 1B
Brett Baty – 2B
Tyrone Taylor – LF

SP: Freddy Peralta – RHP

Blue Jays lineup

Nathan Lukes – RF
Vladimir Guerrero – 1B
Kazuma Okamoto – 3B
Daulton Varsho – CF
Alejandro Kirk – C
Yohendrick Pinango – LF
Ernie Clement – 2B
Sean Keys – DH
Andres Gimenez – SS

SP: Spencer Miles – RHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 3:07 PM ET
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

Someone (rightfully) corrected me that the Sunday series finale versus the Giants was not the end of June, as we had one more left to play on June 30. In my defense, I was thinking it was the last series of the month, and thus it was basically done.

Well, June said “I got one more [Braves loss] in me” – the Braves dropped the Cardinals series opener yesterday in similar fashion: giving up homers while not hitting homers. Dismal, abysmal, etc. 

Let’s start fresh. Please be good to us, July. 

The Braves will be looking to equalize the series this evening with Reynaldo López (3-1, 3.47 ERA) on the mound. Making his second start since re-joining the rotation, López will be looking to build upon his outing versus San Francisco. With his ~60 pitch limit, he went three innings, gave up one run, and struck out one. He settled down after the first inning where the run scored. Here’s to hoping that those 57 pitches go a long way for his confidence and that he can stifle a productive Cardinals lineup for however long he’s allowed to stay on the mound. We’ll see if the Grant Holmes long-relief bullpen move sticks or if Hurston Waldrep can find more command in a longer relief outing than his season debut.

Only three Cardinals have seen Reynaldo before with a maximum of two at-bats: Alec Burleson, Ivan Herrera, and Mayn Winn. Herrera and Winn have one strikeout apiece, and Winn also worked a walk once.

The Braves are hoping to find their powerstroke (or any stroke at all, really) against 25-year old Michael McGreevy (3-6, 3.12 ERA). Utilizing a seven-pitch mix and unafraid to fill up the strike zone, McGreevy has delivered quality starts in four out of his last five outings. His most recent appearance was six scoreless against June’s hottest team, the Miami Marlins. We’re hoping for more of a final line like his June 19 start versus the Royals: L, 5 IP, 8 H, and 5 ER. 

In some fun symmetry, only three Braves have seen McGreevy before with limited experience. The new guys Dominic Smith, Joey Bart, and Mike Yazstrzemski have nine at-bats in total. Dom Smith has the lone hit of the group with a double. 

Is “pride of Georgia Tech” Joey Bart the only one allowed to hit homers around here? Ozzie Albies, I’m not talking to you, you’re fine. It’s a new month. Let’s get after it, boys.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Wednesday, July 1, 7:15 p.m. ET

Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA

TV: BravesVision

Streaming: MLB.tv

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan

To think the AL West is so flawed this season that 3 teams, hovering just above or below the .500 mark, are clustered within 2 games of one another battling for 1st place.

Trouble is the A’s are not one of those teams. Now 6 games under .500, with a better team on the IL than on the field and an ERA north of 6.00 at home, the A’s enter July on a precipice trying to avoid falling more clearly out of any possible playoff picture. Numerically they’re still relevant so long as you don’t watch the actual performance.

Here are some random eyeball notes as the calendar turns to July and the A’s hope a new month brings a new level of play to a hobbled and reeling club…

Henry Bolte, CF

Bolte has been one of the bright spots, still maintaining a 110 wRC+ and keeping Lawrence Butler out of CF. There has been plenty to like, from his .370 OBP to 11 stolen bases in just 44 games.

Where the Eyeball Scout is less impressed than the stats is Bolte’s CF play so far. It hasn’t been bad, mind you, but Fangraphs gives him above average ratings with +2 DRS and +2 OAA. That’s not quite what I have seen. Last night provided one latest example of a “Bleday read” where Bolte’s initial step was back followed by an arc route in for a shallow fly ball that fell in.

A key difference between Bleday and Bolte, of course, is that Bolte’s elite sprint speed allows him to outrun the majority of his mistakes — but that doesn’t mean he can afford to get poor reads or jumps often, as sometimes the lost ground is simply too much to make up.

I have seen some tangible improvements from when Bolte first arrived, such as not overthrowing the cut off man recently. He still does not take charge as much as you would ideally like, a case in point being the drive to the left-center field wall that Joey Meneses missed because he finds catching fly balls either hard or a nuisance. Thanks to his speed, Bolte got there in time to catch it, but deferred to an outfielder known to be terrible at fielding.

In any event, I’m still optimistic that Bolte can be at least an average CFer if not better, but I kind of expect the metrics to catch up to my eyes and for him to settle in at only being average now. Still, at a premium defensive position, “average” at age 22 is not a bad thing. I just think there is a lot of work yet to do.

Max Muncy (ours)

I won’t harp on this too much because I wrote about it recently, but with each passing day far from getting more comfortable and improving, in fact Muncy’s 3B defensive metrics continue to slide.

After last night’s game, in which I thought an E-5 absolutely should have been charged on a sharply hit ball Muncy ‘ole’d’ to his left, here is how his 3B numbers look: 342.2 innings (38 full games), -12 DRS, -7 OAA.

It’s bad enough that the A’s need to make it a priority not to play him there, whether it means DHing him, benching him, or optioning him.

Obviously the timing is poor with both Jacob Wilson and Zack Gelof sidelined, but since Muncy is not hitting much anyway (.235/.299/.409 for the season now with a 32.9% K rate), the A’s would in fact be a better team with McNeil-Williams-Kuroda-Grauer or Kuroda-Grauer-Williams-Hernaiz at 2B, SS, 3B.

You could even make a case for calling up Tommy White even though his inflated stats at AAA are still below league average. The reasoning would be that White has made only 2 errors in 28 games at 3B and that if you are going to get limited range and a below average bat at 3B it may as well come with more sure-handed defense and fewer strikeouts.

But for now the A’s best bet is probably a “defense first” arrangement that puts a somewhat ghastly bottom 1/3 of the order out there in the name of run prevention. A team giving up over 6 runs/game at home, lately 9, could use all the run prevention possible.

Jeffrey Springs

Not to beat up on someone when they’re down, but some of the numbers on Springs are eye-popping. And by that I mean you want to take the nearest skewer and pop out your eyeballs to avoid seeing the next start.

Springs threw only 27 innings in June yet still managed to serve up 12 HRs. Yes, folks, that’s a HR every 2.5 innings on his way to a cool 10.00 ERA for the month.

Here’s what the Eyeball Scout has to say about it. Is it truly THAT hard for a pitcher to learn a 2-seam fastball, aka a sinker, that is mostly a different grip on a familiar pitch? I understand that “hey, add this new pitch” is popular with fans in theory and hard for pitchers in practice, but we’re not talking about an unusual pitch like a forkball or a knuckle-curve here.

The A’s know they play their home games in a launching pad ill suited to extreme fly ball pitchers. How, in 1.5 seasons, have they not been able to help Springs develop just a serviceable pitch that sinks, one he could bring out only at home if he wanted, just to keep balls from flying out of the park left and right?

If you’re wondering how dire the situation is, after last night Springs’ home ERA for the season stands at 6.79 with 16 HR in 54.1 IP. Overall, when it comes to serving up the long ball Springs is alone atop the American League, his 27 tied with Shota Imanaga.

In a game of adjustments, this old dog (33) needs to learn one new trick or he is simply not equipped to survive, let alone thrive. Adapt or perish, as they say.

Glimmer of hope alert: With Shohei Ohtani’s start pushed back to Friday, the A’s have a match up that is actually somewhat favorable on paper: JT Ginn against a “bullpen game”. Let’s hope July greets the A’s better than June sent them off.

It is getting increasingly difficult for the Cincinnati Reds to continue to keep prospect Hector Rodriguez stashed down with AAA Louisville.

Hector struggled a bit during his first taste of AAA ball during the back half of 2025, hitting just .260/.304/.405 in 230 PA after ripping his way through the AA Southern League with the Chattanooga Lookouts. But during the 22 year old’s first full season with the Louisville Bats, he’s established himself as more than capable of crushing the pitching at that level.

For the full season, he’s hitting an impressive .283/.362/.527 (.889 OPS) with 18 homers through 354 PA. The left-handed hitter has pummelled right-handed pitching to the tune of .299/.389/.578 (.967 OPS) with 14 of those homers in just 247 PA, and his work of late has been even more thorough.

So thorough, even, that he was just named the International League’s Player of the Month for June, as the Bats relayed on Twitter.

The 1.014 OPS during the month featured 8 long balls, but over his most recent 32 games he’s been even more red hot. That span has seen him hit .319/.409/.689 (1.098 OPS) with 11 homers and 27 runs scored in just 137 PA, the kind of run through the AAA level that should, in theory, spark promotion discussion – especially when it’s coming from one of their top five prospects.

As the Cincinnati Reds themselves fall deeper and deeper into ‘seller’ mode ahead of the August 3rd trade deadline, a path to the majors may become much, much clearer for Hector. JJ Bleday and Noelvi Marte have stamped out pretty clear everyday roles in the outfield, but any potential moves of Eugenio Suarez or Nate Lowe would open up more time on the infield corners for Spencer Steer and, therefore, more space to rotate another bat through the DH spot on a regular basis. And if that series of events happens, Hector’s going to get his first shot at showing the performance at AAA was only the beginning.

Detroit Tigers (37-49) vs. New York Yankees (48-37)

Time/Place: 1:35 p.m., Yankee Stadium
SB Nation Site: Pinstripe Alley
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Pitching Matchup: RHP Troy Melton (4-1, 2.39 ERA) vs. RHP Will Warren (7-3, 3.75 ERA)

San Diego Padres (43-41) at Chicago Cubs (48-38), July 1, 2026, 11:20 a.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Wrigley Field – Chicago, Ill.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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I’m going to take one small moment to complain about something. Because MLB has insisted on divvying up games between some one thousand different broadcasters, I was unable to watch and recap Sunday’s loss to the Red Sox. Me being in Canada, I was also tapped to recap the Fourth of July game to give my beloved fellow staff members some time off, and I almost always have a regular recap on Sundays. All that is to say that while the Yankees are playing their worst baseball possible, I have four games in six days that I am contractually obligated to give analysis on.

Ergo, Yankees, for me, please give me more to discuss than yesterday. All that mattered in Tuesday’s loss was Cam Schlittler giving up four home runs. I am hopeful that Will Warren does not do that himself, and while getting four hits for the first time in a week was a step forward, I hope the lineup manages to triple that.

Warren has hit a bit of a rough patch. His outing last weekend against the Red Sox was bad on its face, five earned runs allowed and not a single strikeout in 5.2 innings pitched. In his last four starts though, he’s managed a 5.49 ERA and while he’s done a good job of keeping the ball in the yard, a 4.2 percent K-BB%—for my money the single best pitching stat—terrifies me. With so many injuries, the Yankee lineup was bound to take a step back, and the rotation needs to be better in games the team is going to have to scratch and claw to score in. Warren did miss the Tigers series last week so it’ll be his first time seeing this squad in 2026.

Troy Melton goes for Detroit, having a very good season from a pure run prevention standpoint, but would merit plenty of articles in 2013 exposing the difference between ERA and FIP. The market can stay irrational longer than you can stay solvent, to be sure, but he does not strike many men out and gives up a lot of fly balls. It’s Yankee Stadium, where 92-mph exit velo flyouts can turn into home runs, so hopefully that spells good news for the Yankees.

I guess you’d call this the B- lineup, due in part to a spat of food poisoning going around the clubhouse (no joke). Cody Bellinger is back in left field and batting third, but Austin Wells is batting seventh and even with the illnesses afoot, that seems far too high. We’re also trying an experiment with José Caballero in center field. Whatever happens today, it should at least be interesting.

How to watch

Location: Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY

First pitch: 1:35 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, Detroit SportsNet

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | WXYT 97.1 FM (DET)

Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.TV (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

This game could be a little spicier than your average Wednesday get away day game. After the brawl last night, the temperature is hot in this series. After the Red Sox took the first game, the Nats struck back thanks to a gem from Cade Cavalli. Now the teams do battle one last time.

Interestingly, CJ Abrams is getting the day off in this one. That means Nasim Nunez will play short and Jorbit Vivas will play third. Daylen Lile will be the DH in this contest, meaning James Wood is in left, Jacob Young is in center and Dylan Crews in right. Andres Chaparro is preferred at first base, but Luis Garcia Jr. will be looming on the bench. Brad Lord will be the opener for Andrew Alvarez.

Willson Contreras has had quite the series, and since no punishments have been dished out yet, he will be playing first base and hitting cleanup. Nate Eaton, Andruw Monasterio and Connor Wong will all get their first starts of the series. Payton Tolle is a massive lefty with a nasty heater and he will be getting the ball this afternoon.

Game Info:

Stadium: Fenway Park

Time: 1:35 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

There is a powder keg of emotion leading up to this one. Hopefully everyone is on their best behavior and will let the playing do the talking. This is also a key rubber match for both teams. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

Yay, another baseball game

Here’s the Guardians lineup:

Here’s the Rangers lineup:

Let’s go, Guardians!