Category: MLB

New York Post | Jon Heyman ($): While rumors will still swirl around landing Tarik Skubal, the Yankees seem to be prioritizing high-end relief help and a new catcher at the trade deadline. Heyman tells us that the Padres’ Mason Miller and Minnesota backstop Ryan Jeffers will be the club’s two biggest targets as we get closer to the deadline, and while both would likely help the team, the price for Miller especially will be steep. San Diego seems willing to shed payroll, but the dominant reliever is only going into his first year of arbitration this winter, and the prospect cost the Padres gave up a year ago may still be weighing on the minds of the front office.

New York Daily News | Peter Sblendorio: Cody Bellinger is an All-Star for the first time since his 2019 MVP campaign, and he is savoring every bit of the experience. You could build a case that Belli deserved the trip to the Midsummer Classic last year, but being an indispensable part of the Yankees this season and one of the game’s best defensive players made him an easy selection for Philadelphia. Now the only thing left is to mirror his first half performance as we turn into the dog days of summer.

As an added bonus, Bellinger became the fourth Yankee to win All-Star Game MVP, joining a quartet with Derek Jeter, Mariano Rivera, and Giancarlo Stanton (the most recent winner, in 2022). It was a mostly quietly affair in the Midsummer Classic, but Bellinger had the two-run single that put the American League on the board in the first inning against the normally pristine Cristopher Sánchez. Teammate Ben Rice followed with an RBI single of his own and the AL won, 4-0.

NJ.com | James Mertz: Carsten Sabathia III, the oldest son of the former Yankee great CC Sabathia, was drafted in the 20th round of this year’s MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers, another of CC’s old teams. Carsten eschewed his father’s path to pitching, instead standing 6-foot-4 as a slugging first baseman for the University of Houston. He started out at Georgia Tech and also played a couple summers with the Yankees’ old Double-A affiliate, the Trenton Thunder, which is now a college wood-bat league team. It’ll be a long way to the majors from here, but congrats to the kid nevertheless.

FanGraphs | Jay Jaffe: This doesn’t directly cover the Yankees — thankfully — but it’s one of my favorite recurring series of the year. Keeping your players above replacement level sounds easy, but every year teams leave runs, and therefore wins, on the table by having guys that can’t out-produce a hypothetical Quad-A’er. The Yankees don’t feature the worst right side of the infield, even if we’re all kinda disappointed in Jazz Chisholm Jr., and indeed being above replacement level is a good reason why they’re in a real division hunt.

When you pitch a shutout, you’re gonna win.

Someone has to be on the opposite end of that, and playing the role of Tanner Bibee tonight was a group of 9 NL pitchers who gave up 4 runs. 4 runs too many.

10 men pitched for the AL, but we’re focusing only on Parker Messick and Cade Smith because they deserve it. The broadcast paid some attention to Smith, because he was undrafted and Bryce Harper marveled at his pitches while mic’d up, but they completely ignored Messick, who pitched a 1-2-3 inning. It took him just 10 pitches, which ruined their interview plans for that inning. But worry not, they found infinite more amounts of time for things that were not All-Stars Playing Baseball.

The worst pitcher of the night was Something O’Brien, for the NL. Not because he gave up a bunch of runs, but because he came up and in on Let’s Go Former Farmhand Junior Caminero and drilled his hand. X-rays were negative, so hopefully JC is out of the woods safe.

Unrelated Chart Time

Good Joke Time (since last week’s embedded joke to end a Wednesday post didn’t embed for some reason)

PHILADELPHIA — Cam Schlittler was not going to pitch Tuesday, but he traveled to the All-Star Game anyway because the event is about more than an exhibition. 

It’s an opportunity for a 25-year-old, hard-throwing pitcher in his first full season in the majors to seek out a 43-year-old, hard-throwing pitcher in his last season in the majors. 

Schlittler met the retiring Justin Verlander at dinner Monday night, had a quick conversation and was planning to further pick his brain during warmups and during the game Tuesday, the two talking in the dugout during the 4-0 American League victory at Citizens Bank Park. 

There are few pitchers like Schlittler, who almost exclusively throws three different kinds of fastballs, but Verlander and Schlittler share a unique ability — even in today’s game of flamethrowers — to throw hard. 

When Verlander was breaking into the league, he was known for often increasing his velocity deeper into games, saving a reserve of gas for when he needed it. 

That is the kind of ability that “great” pitchers have, Schlittler said, being able to “flip that switch when they want to throw harder.” 

That is the type of conversation Schlittler may have had in mind with Verlander. 

“I wouldn’t say I can really control when I throw my hardest,” said Schlittler, whose average pitch — that’s pitch, not fastball — has been thrown at 95.9 mph this year. “I feel like I don’t know my body well enough to do that yet. I feel like I need more experience.” 

X-rays on the left pinkie of Junior Caminero came back negative after the Rays star was drilled by a fastball from Cardinals righty Riley O’Brien in the fourth inning. 

Caminero went down, remained down for several moments, then got up and made no motion toward first base, instead walking off the field, into the dugout and through the tunnel. 

Juan Soto said he had a “great” time at the game, which included a fourth-inning single that was one of just three NL hits. 

He also chatted at length with Yordan Álvarez before the game, having told reporters Monday that he wanted to pick the brain of the Astros slugger. 

“It’s incredible to hear something from such a hitter and a guy that can hit that much,” Álvarez said Tuesday afternoon. “I think it’s going to be something interesting if we get to catch up.” 

Asked Monday which hitter’s brain he wanted to pick, Juan Soto immediately told reporters, “Yordan Alvarez.” 

“It’s incredible to hear something from such a hitter and a guy that can hit that much,” the Astros star, who said he’s talked with Soto in the past, said Tuesday through an interpreter. “I think it’s going to be something interesting if we get to catch up.”

Pete Crow-Armstrong was 9 years old, maybe 10. He can’t remember for sure. But he clearly remembers the scene: a journey from his San Fernando Valley home to Angel Stadium, for a game featuring Derek Jeter and the New York Yankees.

Jeter wasn’t an outfielder, though. Crow-Armstrong sat in right-center field, with a great view of an Angels’ phenom.

“I absolutely followed Mike Trout,” Crow-Armstrong said. “I would have followed him if he were in freaking Seattle.

“He was — he still is — the only one to ever really do what I’ve ever seen him do in my life.”

A decade and a half later, in an All-Star Game that was short on drama and long on tributes to Trout, the hometown hero and future Hall of Famer, Crow-Armstrong shared center field with Trout.

“That,” the Chicago Cubs’ star said, “is a cool nugget I’ll always keep with me.”

With a two-run single in the first inning from All-Star Game MVP and former Dodger Cody Bellinger giving the American League the only runs it would need, the AL shut out the National League on Tuesday, 4-0.

The three Dodgers in the NL starting lineup — Freddie Freeman, Max Muncy and Andy Pages — went hitless.

Justin Wrobleski, the lone Dodgers pitcher, gave up a home run to former Dodger Miguel Vargas but pitched two innings and struck out five, the most strikeouts in an All-Star Game since Hall of Famer Pedro Martinez struck out five in 1999 — and, before that, Fernando Valenzuela did it in 1986.

Trout went hitless in three at-bats. After he grounded out in his final at-bat, Freeman enveloped him in an impromptu bear hug.

“I love Freddie,” Trout said.

There was a fireworks show after the fourth inning, with kids riding bicycles onto the field a la “The Sandlot.” Trout offered swing tips to one of the kids. Freeman played catch with another.

“One of the cooler moments I’ve ever been a part of on the baseball field,” Freeman said. “It makes you feel like a kid again.”

Before the game, Freeman addressed his fellow NL All-Stars, followed by Bryce Harper and Chris Sale. Freeman channeled his inner Ferris Bueller, reminding his younger peers to stop and appreciate every moment.

“It’s going fast,” Freeman said. “There’s a lot going on. Make sure you take a step back.”

Trout savored every moment with friends and family, including his two sons, in the festivities. In an interview with MLB Network, his 2-year-old scampered off the stage. His 5-year-old, asked if he would be a better player than his dad, said yes.

“It’s special to be able to sit back and remember the special experiences when you were a kid,” Trout said. “It’s a full circle. Just trying to enjoy every minute of it.”

He got a nice ovation from the Philadelphia crowd, which he knew better than to take for granted. The crowd engaged in lively and targeted booing: mascots Mr. and Mrs. Met; the guy who beat the Phillies’ Kyle Schwarber in the home run derby on Monday; a guy who played for the Houston Astros when they beat the Phillies in the World Series four years ago; anyone playing for the Dodgers or any of the Phillies’ NL East rivals.

Juan Soto, especially. But not Trout.

“It means a lot,” Trout said. “I know how Phillies fans are when an opposing player comes in here, and it’s usually boos.”

As he spoke with the media, Junior Caminero of the Tampa Bay Rays walked by.

“I love you,” Caminero said.

Trout had just saluted a fellow All-Star, Detroit Tigers rookie shortstop Kevin McGonigle, who like Trout grew up in the area, rooting for the Phillies. McGonigle was 6 when Trout made his major league debut.

“The way he plays the game, it’s like a young Trout out there, just with how hard he plays,” Trout said.

Trout turns 35 next month, far closer to the end of his career than the beginning. Justin Verlander is retiring at the end of the season, and Freeman said he hoped Trout’s accomplishments would not be lost amid the Verlander accolades at the All-Star Game.

“I know Justin’s been getting his flowers the last couple days, and rightfully so,” Freeman said. “Mike deserves it until he retires, because he’s one of the best players of all time.”

Read more:Shaikin: To seize 2028 Olympics spotlight, does MLB really need draconian participation rules?

Verlander was all too happy to share the legacy of Trout in the AL clubhouse, and not just for the benefit of the twentysomethings in the room.

“He took the baseball world by storm,” Verlander said, “one of those generational talents that does everything — great outfielder, great baserunner, all the pop you would want. He was a complete player and generational talent for a reason.

“I always loved watching him play. I remember sitting there watching him hit a triple, and — I forget the teammate, but he was literally hitting me on the leg, like, watch him run, watch him run. He was, like, floating. He’s a once-in-a-generation guy for a reason.”

By his standards, Trout was unusually reflective after the game. He was the dominant player of the previous decade, but before Tuesday he had not taken an All-Star at-bat in this decade.

He grew up here, watching Chase Utley and Jimmy Rollins play for the Phillies. Now he has youngsters like Crow-Amstrong and McGonigle telling him they grew up watching him.

“It makes you feel like you’ve done something,” Trout said. “For me, since day one, I’ve always played this game how I saw a lot of guys when I was young, watching Utley and JRo and Jeter. Play the game right. Play the game hard.

“You never know when it’s your last.”

Get the best, most interesting and strangest stories of the day from the L.A. sports scene and beyond from our newsletter The Sports Report.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

It’s Tuesday night of All-Star Week here at BCB After Dark: the grooviest gathering of night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the heat. There’s no cover charge. We’ve still got a few tables available. The hostess can seat you now. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last night I asked you if you could/did watch the Home Run Derby. I thought a lot of you would not have watched it because it was on Netflix and you didn’t subscribe, but the top answer was that 34 percent of you did have Netflix and didn’t watch the Home Run Derby anyways. Another 31 percent said that you didn’t have Netflix but would not have watched it even if you did. So almost two out of three of you just didn’t want to watch it.

On Tuesday nights I don’t normally do any movie stuff. But I can take a quick jazz break for those of you interested.

Tonight we have a performance from the Jackie McLean Quintet at the Mt. Fuji Jazz Festival in 1986. Joining McLean on sax is Woody Shaw on trumpet, Cedar Walton on piano, Buster Williams on bass and the drummer is Billy Higgins.

This is “Cool Struttin’”

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music and movies.

Since it’s the All-Star Break, which is the traditional midway point of the baseball season even if it falls a little later than that these days, I thought I’d ask you to update your predictions for the Cubs this season.

As things stand now, the Cubs are 54-42, 12 games over .500. Personally, I think that’s pretty good considering all the injuries the Cubs have suffered to their pitching staff. A lot of you have compared this year’s Cubs team to the 1985 team that similarly suffered a ton of pitching injuries. That team went on a 13-game losing streak in June and never really snapped out of the funk. In contrast, this year’s Cubs team has gone 25-16 since they suffered a ten-game losing streak in May.

Of course, the problem is that while the Cubs suffered a cold spell in May, the Brewers got hot and went 19-7 in May and 17-10 in June. They’ve cooled off some in July and the Cubs have gotten within five games of the Brewers in the NL Central. But that’s still a lot to overcome in the second half. But the Cubs are in first place in the Wild Card standings, which brings with it a home series for Wild Card round. The Phillies are a half-game behind the Cubs and the Marlins are 2.5 games back of the Cubs and holding the third and final Wild Card spot. The Cardinals are 3.5 games behind the Cubs and are the first team out of the postseason in the National League.

Fangraphs gives the Cubs a 14.7 percent chance to win the Division and a 61.1 percent chance to get the Wild Card. That also gives them a 24.2 percent chance of missing the playoffs altogether.

But the computer models used by Fangraphs don’t account for any possible moves made at the deadline. Nor are they infalible.

So what’s your pick for how the Cubs are going to finish this year?

Thanks for stopping by. We’re always glad to see you. Tell your friends about us. Get home safely. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow for more BCB After Dark.

Whatever it is about the All-Star Game that puts a chokehold on the National League should be studied. Once again, the American League prevailed, shutting out the NL in Philadelphia, 4-0. If you had the NL being held to three hits on your bingo card, then congrats, you win, because the bats were borderline silent, and they never even had opportunities with runners in scoring position, leaving all five base runners stranded. The AL now has a 49-45 all-time record in the Midsummer Classic, which doesn’t sound so bad until you look at the most recent years.

Outside of the first inning, there wasn’t much offensive action from either side. The pitching, however, was extremely on point and easily highlighted why they were all named All-Stars. American League starting pitcher Dylan Cease looked as good as ever, striking out the side but losing a battle to Freddie Freeman and walking him for the lone blemish in his hitless outing. He used 24 pitches to get through the inning, mainly because the NL batters kept fouling pitches off, but Cease was able to buckle down and showcase his strikeout ability on the main stage, all while mic’d up.

The AL used 11 arms throughout the game, and the NL bats completely rode the struggle bus, only getting three hits the entire game while striking out a whopping 15 times. In fact, 10 of 11 AL pitchers recorded at least one strikeout, and Bryan Baker only tossed 1/3 of an inning in the ninth, so I think we can let him off the hook. Cease ended up with the win after his three-strikeout frame, and the next seven out of the bullpen earned a hold. On top of that, the AL defense was on point, and even though many fans were annoyed that Ernie Clement was voted in from the fans, he made the best play of the night in the field.

Juan Soto finally gave the NL its first hit in the bottom of the fourth off Joe Ryan, who struck out Freddie Freeman and CJ Abrams to end any potential threat. The bats were silent again for several more innings, until Pete Crow-Armstrong singled up the middle in the bottom of the eighth, but once again, nothing came from it.

In what was essentially garbage time in the bottom of the ninth, Baker entered to get the last out for the AL, but Otto Lopez came up to bat with two outs and ripped a base hit out to right before Baker forced a ground out to end the game. Lopez deserves a lot more recognition on the national level, however, as he’s been having a phenomenal year for the Marlins, and ranks fifth in WAR in all of baseball while holding the top batting average (.334). Think Luis Arraez, but with a bit more power while being an above-average fielder and stealing plenty of bases.

The AL All-Stars had a lot more success at the plate, though they were, too, a bit sporadic. The AL posted seven hits and went 2-for-7 with runners in scoring position while leaving six on base, which is seven more opportunities than the NL had, so they’ll take what they could get tonight.

Unfortunately for hometown starter Cristopher Sánchez, he got off to a rocky start, allowing three of the four AL runs and taking the loss. Sánchez started off on a high note by striking out Mike Trout to begin the game, but things got a bit out of hand fairly quickly, and the AL nearly batted through the lineup. Yordan Alvarez flashed his dominance at the plate in his first at-bat, mashing the first hit of the game and later coming around to score. Sánchez had walked Shea Langeliers and Bobby Witt Jr. to load up the bases, but worked a ground out by Junior Caminero to get two outs.

All three runs scored with two outs, as both New York Yankees All-Stars drove back-to-back RBI singles to take a 3-0 lead. Cody Bellinger mashed a 101 mph, two-run single up the middle, and Ben Rice followed suit with an even harder ball (107 mph) hit up the middle to tack on one more. Belli’s two-run single held up throughout the game, even with the Miguel Vargas bomb, and he ended up being named the All-Star Game MVP.

The AL bats quieted down for several innings, sprinkling a few hits throughout the game, but the NL bullpen was fairly solid as well. Riley O’Brien took over in the third, and a pitch got away from him and hit Junior Caminero in the hand in his second at-bat, forcing him to leave the game with Miguel Vargas taking over for him the rest of the way. Thankfully, it sounds like X-rays were negative on Junior’s hand, and he still expects to start the next series beginning Friday.

Miguel was the first of the White Sox to enter the game, and he smoked a 104.3 mph line out to his buddy Andy Pages out in center in his first at-bat, but he still found a good pitch to hit and was seeing the ball as well as he usually does. And he displayed that in his next at-bat, absolutely demolishing a 433-foot solo shot into the second deck out in left field to add an insurance run for the AL, 4-0. Vargas’ long ball was the lone extra-base hit of the entire game, and it just happened to be off of his old Dodgers teammate Justin Wrobleski. It sure was a beauty.

Tristan Peters was the next sub for the South Siders, entering the game to play right field for Bellinger in the bottom of the sixth, and caught a fly ball from William Contreras shortly after entering the game. Munetaka Murakami also eventually came into the game in the bottom of the seventh to play first, and both he and Peters each got one at-bat, and sadly struck out. I appreciated Peters using a challenge because why not, but he didn’t win this one. Mune was dealt a rough hand in having to face Mason Miller, and he, too, struck out on a 102 mph fastball. We’ll take 1-for-4 with a bomb, though, so thank you, Miguel, for picking up your teammates. Strikeouts or not, it was awesome to see these guys on this stage and that the White Sox are relevant and playing meaningful baseball again.

PHILADELPHIA –– Earlier this season, it was Hall of Fame pitcher and current TBS broadcaster Pedro Martínez who gave Justin Wrobleski the nickname “The Shark.”

On Tuesday night, Wrobleski epitomized the moniker by doing something no one had accomplished since Martínez himself more than a quarter-century earlier.

In a two-inning relief appearance in Major League Baseball’s 96th All-Star Game, Wrobleski turned in one of the best individual showings in the National League’s eventual 4-0 loss at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia.

He struck out the side in the top of the seventh, punctuating a dominant 12-pitch inning by blowing a 97-mph fastball past Rays slugger Yandy Díaz.

Then, after returning to the mound in the eighth, Wrobleski bounced back from a solo home run to Miguel Vargas — his former minor league teammate in the Dodgers farm system — by registering two more punchouts to make some Midsummer Classic history.

Not since Martínez in 1999 had a pitcher struck out five batters in an All-Star Game (the all-time record is six).

Among Dodgers pitchers in the event’s history, Wrobleski tied Fernando Valenzuela (1986) and Don Drysdale (1959) for the most in franchise history.

When informed of his feat postgame, Wrobleski flashed a smile and took a second to let it register.

“Feels pretty cool,” he said.

But then, before indulging any further in his performance, he cracked a self-deprecating chuckle to point out its one flaw.

“Except for [that] I gave up a home run,” he said. “That’s what’s on my mind right now.”

Indeed, the homer was memorable, with Vargas going down to get a low slider and blasting it to the second deck in left field for an insurance-adding solo shot.

“I’m super happy for him, and he’s having an awesome year,” Wrobleski said of his former teammate. “That was cool to see. It just sucks that he hit it off of me.”

Still, Wrobleski’s outing will go down as another highlight moment in his own breakout season, as well –– coming on a night made all the more meaningful by coinciding with his 26th birthday.

“I’m super blessed and lucky to have the chance to do this,” Wrobleski said. “There’s not many guys in history that have had that chance. So pretty cool to play on my birthday. My family’s here. Got to talk to them all day. And yeah, it was super fun.”

That Wrobleski even reached this All-Star Game was an underdog story in and of itself.

This time last year, the left-hander was in the minor leagues, overhauling his pitch arsenal after a rocky start to the season. By October, he had worked his way into a roster spot in the bullpen and pitched important innings in the World Series, but still entered the winter seemingly squeezed out of the Dodgers’ 2026 rotation plans.

Since getting a shot to start early in the season, however, the former 11th-round draft pick has emerged as one of the game’s most productive pitchers, going 10-2 in the first half of the campaign with a 2.69 ERA that ranked seventh in the National League.

“For whatever reason, I’ve always believed I could do it,” said Wrobleski, who has been overcoming odds since a college career that saw him play at three different schools and undergo Tommy John surgery months before getting drafted. 

“Even when it doesn’t look like it’s been something that’s possible, or hasn’t looked like this dream is going to work out, I’ve always had the belief that God’s given me the talent, and I have the ability to be able to do all this stuff. And it’s great to –– not fulfill that –– but prove that I can be really good at the major league level.”

Ironically, the only thing Wrobleski had been missing for most of this year was the ability to put hitters away with two strikes. Over his first 86 ⅓ innings, he recorded only 53 strikeouts. His reliance on soft contact had, to some, made his success feel unsustainable.

In recent weeks, however, Wrobleski has found added life on his fastball, more bite on his secondary stuff and a renewed confidence in his ability to do more than just limit damage.

He struck out 11 batters in a June 30 start against the Athletics and nine more against the Rockies last week to help him earn a last-second All-Star selection as a replacement on the NL roster.

Then came Tuesday, when he showcased his continued development on one of the sport’s biggest stages.

“I’ve been kind of learning and continuing to grow and figure out how to strike guys out and where I can go for a miss,” said Wrobleski, who got two of Tuesday’s Ks on high heaters and the other three on sweepers both in and out of the zone.

“Obviously, in a situation like this, guys are gonna swing a little bit more. But yeah, I made some good pitches today, I got some strikeouts and hopefully can build off that in the second half.”

Wrobleski’s season has gone so well that he has even allowed himself to lean into “The Shark” nickname — something he seemed initially hesitant about after it was bestowed by Martínez in a social media post in June.

For his red carpet entrance on Tuesday, Wrobleski revealed an embroidered shark on the inside of his custom-made jacket.

“We’re trying to roll with it,” he joked. “The people seem to like it.”

After Tuesday’s historic performance, he’s continuing to validate his burgeoning reputation.

Three members of the DSL White Sox squad have been named to the 2026 DSL All-Star Game: Ronald Cardoza (C), Yordany Marte (RHP), and Sebastian Romero (OF). Cardoza is hitting .316/.426/.607 with a 1.033 OPS while Romero owns a slash line of .289/.391/.608 with a .999 OPS. Marte is 0-2 with a 3.12 ERA and 1.37 WHIP. The three players will represent Chicago’s rookie affiliate at the game on Sunday, July 19.

ACL Angels 9, ACL White Sox 1
Not much to write home about in this one. The ACL White Sox (15-38) didn’t muster a run until the fifth, when Osniel Castillo laced a leadoff triple and rehabbing Billy Carlson followed with an RBI single to center. The Sox tacked on one more in the seventh while trailing 9-1 as Adam Fogel worked a two-out walk before Marcelo Ácala ripped an RBI double to left. Too little, too late, though. Reinder Gomez was the only hurler to hold the Halos scoreless, tossing one frame and allowing just one hit and striking out one. Giving up nine runs is rarely a winning formula, and the offense didn’t do the pitching staff any favors, going just 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position while leaving 10 on base.

DSL Cubs Blue 6, DSL White Sox 4
The DSL White Sox (11-20) gift-wrapped this one with three fielding blunders and a passed ball, leading to three unearned runs. The White Sox did showcase some offense, though, as Ronald Cardozo cracked a solo shot in the fourth, and then the bats tried to rally in the seventh. Jose Suarez launched a two-run bomb, Hector Hernandez legged out a triple, and Dionys Medina dribbled an RBI grounder to plate three tallies. Unfortunately, the damage was already done — too many mistakes and just not enough late-game magic.

ACL White Sox 4, ACL Padres 3 (July 13 — 7 innings)
The ACL Sox trailed 3-1 to the Padres, then finally put up a crooked number in the fifth. Landon Hodge and Adam Fogel, patient enough to draw back-to-back walks, set the table. Jose Mendoza knocked a single to pack the sacks. The Padres’ pitcher promptly lost the plot with a wild pitch, and Hodge scored. Marcelo Ácala froze for strike three, but another wild pitch let Fogel trot home. Alejandro Cruz hit an RBI single for the go-ahead. Fidel Montero took it from there with four shutout innings, allowing just one hit and one walk.

DSL White Sox 2, DSL Cubs 0 (July 14, suspended, bottom of the first)
The Sox took control early in the top of the second. Fernando Graterol drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly before Sebastian Romero added an RBI single. It was Romero’s 34th RBI of the season, tied for sixth-most in the DSL, and gave the Good Guys a 2-0 lead.

Box Score

The All-Star Game took place on Tuesday night in Philadelphia, but it was a one-sided affair the whole way. A three-run first inning by the AL gave them a lead that they would hold throughout the game, finishing with a 4-0 victory over the NL.

Even though the hometown ace, Cristopher Sánchez, got the start in this one, pitching at home didn’t help him at all. The AL sent eight men to the plate in the first. The big two hits were an RBI single by Cody Bellinger that scored two, and another RBI single from Ben Rice that scored the third run. Before the NL could even bat, they were down 3-0.

Once they were up to bat, the AL pitching staff nearly held them in check completely. The NL had just two baserunners — a hit and a walk — through the first six innings. They didn’t record their second hit until the eighth inning. As a whole, they struck out 15 batters while allowing just three hits and two walks.

The fourth run for the AL came in the eighth inning, when Miguel Vargas hit a solo home run off Justin Wrobleski. That accounted for the final score of the game.

William Contreras was the lone Brewer to appear in the game. He entered in the fourth inning and caught the next three innings. He got one at-bat in the game, which was a fly out in the sixth inning.

The Brewers kick off the second half of the season on Friday evening at home. They will face the Marlins, who have fought their way into the third Wild Card spot, but also entered the break on a three-game losing streak. No pitchers have been announced for that series yet. First pitch on Friday is set for 6:40 p.m.

Nothing beats summer baseball. 

MLB paid homage to the iconic fireworks scene from “The Sandlot” by recreating the masterpiece at Citizens Bank Park during the All-Star Game. 

The recreated spectacle started with the playing of Ray Charles’ famous “America the Beautiful” for the entire Philadelphia crowd before children in Phillies jerseys peeked through a gate in the fence along the right field foul line.

The kids then came inside the ballpark and waved in several others who rode bicycles onto the field while fireworks shot off in the background. 

An American flag was projected on screens throughout the stadium, and kids continued to make their way toward the middle of the infield before dropping their bikes. 

Players from both teams stood side by side near their dugouts with what appeared to be sparklers, while select players, like Phillies outfielder Brandon Marsh, stood with acting fans on the field. 

Some kids exchanged baseball cards with players, and Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman was playing catch with a young fan.

Released in 1993, “The Sandlot” is an iconic baseball movie that features a scene where the kids play under the fireworks on the Fourth of July. 

The scene also includes Charles’ song, which echoed throughout the ballpark on Tuesday. 

Following the moment, the game resumed with the American League leading the National League 3-0. 

A pair of Yankees, Ben Rice and Cody Bellinger, got the scoring started to make it 3-0 in the top of the first before Miguel Vargas extended the AL’s lead to 4-0 with a homer in the eighth inning, a score that would hold in an American League victory. 

The pageantry of the night, which included the starting lineups signing a document similar to the Declaration of Independence, was fitting for America’s 250th birthday.

The American League shutout the National League 4-0 on Tuesday in the 2026 All-Star Game. Here’s some notes I took.

Keeping Score:  I decided to watch the All-Star Game this year. Not only that, I decided to score the All-Star Game this year. I recently found my old scorebook and thought it’d be fun, since I’m here recapping this with you anyways. The first game in this scorebook is a Félix Hernández complete game from Opening Day 2011. The last is both halves of a doubleheader between Washington State University and Cal State Northridge in Pullman that I covered for the school paper in 2017. In between there’s the Mariners/Marlins game that was played in Seattle because of a U2 concert in Miami; a game from the Tokyo Dome that I woke up at 2 a.m. for, per my diligent notes; a game started by Blake Beavan that I did not proceed to score after the first inning; the Red Sox first game after the Boston Marathon bombing; a 2013 WBC game; a 2017 WBC game; and a bunch of losing Mariners baseball. I’m not quite sure what the point of scoring games is in 2026, with technology and such. But I’m adding to my corporeal collection of bizarre baseball games that I might not otherwise remember.

Star-Less: The 2026 All-Star Game was relatively starless. No Aaron Judge. No Shohei Ohtani. Yes Ernie Clement. I won’t lie and say that this adds to my interest in the All-Star Game, as I watch pretty much every year, albeit more passively. But it is cool that we’ll get to see a lot more of the B+ quality of player that I think makes the league so interesting these days. My takeaways from the starting lineups are that I think it’s cool CJ Abrams is batting fourth for the NL. What a year it’s been for him. The other takeaway is I initially wrote Freddie Freeman’s team in my book as “ATL” rather than “LAD.” I’m not sure what that means, but it’s the first mistake on what’s sure to be a rather messy scorecard.

The Pregame: I’m writing this as the lineups are being announced. Each player is entering through an MLB-branded Liberty Bell and jogging a few feet to a podium, where they’re signing what appears to be the starting lineups on a large, old-timey document using quill and ink. What I’ve gotten out of this All-Star week is that Philadelphia really wants you to know that their culture is boxing, the founding fathers, and booing other teams players. The only players who didn’t get booed on announcement were the Phillies players and the Philly-born players (like Mike Trout). After all the players were aligned on the chalk — a process that took a bit more than 30 minutes — the Mastercard Kids4Techᵀᴹ entered and shook all the players hands. 

The Post-Pregame: Play ball! Er, commercial break… Washington’s Lottery, North Idaho College, RnR RV Center, some sort of sponcon game show called Beat Shazam… and Play Ball! Er, no let’s hear from our hosts tonight, Joe Davis and John Smoltz, who I haven’t seen since the postseason. They’re interviewing Justin Verlander, and hinting at a second interview with Verlander later in the game. I’m already not loving this experience. Play ball! Er, commercial break… Claude, Mastercard, World Cup, Dodgers Yankees on Saturday, 75 Years Of Jack In The Box, North Idaho College. Play Ball! Er, Ben Stiller narrating an All-Star Game Carnival interstitial. I’m starting to think this game starts at 5:30 and not 5 like they advertised. Play ball! Er, Mike Trout is from Philadelphia let’s see what he’s got to say to Tom Verducci. Not much, apparently. Play ball! Hey, there’s Crisotopher Sanchez warming up on the mound. We’re actually about to star this thing! Er, sorry, Bryce Harper is talking to Ken Rosenthal. Play ball…

Cristopher Sánchez Has The Runs: Sánchez did not have it tonight, which was disappointing. He got Trout to strikeout leading off with a nasty changeup. Then he gave up a single, a walk, an out, a walk, a single, and a single — the game was 3-0 AL by the time Sánchez struck out Riley Greene to end it.

Dylan Cease, Mic’D Up: I don’t know why they did this, but it wound up being pretty great. FOX mic’d up both Dylan Cease and Shea Langeliers in the bottom of the first. Initially, Davis tried to ask him questions like an interview, and Cease wasn’t having it. But Davis backed off, and it turned into a nice conversation between Cease and Langeliers, calling pitches, discussing locations, mouth-over-glove type stuff. Smoltz didn’t quite catch the magic that was happening and interjected a few dumb questions. “Shea, how have your challenges been this year?” “Uh, I think they’ve been OK.” Cease was similarly unimpressed with Smoltz calling pitches for him. But Cease did ultimately strike out the side. It was a great inning, and the best of way, way too many in-game interviews that took place in this one.

Justin Verlander, Praise Be: The second inning returned with the aforementioned Verlander-themed pitchers roundtable. They had a bunch of other pitchers mic’d up in the dugout, like Jacob Misiorowski and Cam Schlittler, though none of their mics worked well enough to hear most what was said. Davis and Smoltz asked them to say very nice things about Verlander, and asked Verlander to offer some sage wisdom. It was awkward but quick as the AL went down in order in the top of the second. Unfortunately, it was too quick, as they brought it back for the bottom of the inning, which was just as awkward. They glossed over the All-Star facetime for Eduardo Rodríguez and Parker Messick, who each pitched clean innings, in favor of the conversation. Lame. The only good thing was the reminder that Verlander is about to go away.

Yee-ouch: Riley O’Brien smoked Junior Caminero in the left hand in the third inning. He seemed to be in considerable pain and laid on the ground for a while. Then he hopped up and ran right into the locker room. O’Brien looked a bit sheepish. Yikes. The broadcast later reported that Caminero’s hand was not broken.

Ray Charles, Mmmkay: I looked away for a commercial break after the fourth and looked up to some sort of interstitial with narration about baseball and nostalgia but its not actually nostalgia or something — I don’t know, I missed the point. Then we jumped back to the broadcast with the Phillies playing a recording of Ray Charles singing America The Beautiful. All of a sudden a bunch of kids on bikes started riding around the field and talking to the players. There was tons of fireworks, which created tons of smoke for the last half of the game. Was this like a halftime show? An interactive theater art piece? Who was this for? OK, back to commercial.

The Mariners Were Here: Randy Arozarena pinch hit for Riley Greene in the sixth inning and faced Raisel Iglesias with a runner on first. He quickly grounded out to shortstop. Arozarena later caught a ball in the outfield. Then he got a single off Jhoan Duran in the ninth. The Mariners were here.

Birthday Boy: Whoa what a performance from Justin Wrobleski on his 26th birthday. He got the seventh for the NL and struck out the side on 12 pitches. His velocity was way up, looking much more like the reliever version of himself from last year, and not so much like the crafty lefty starter that made him an All-Star this year. There were several great one-inning pitching performances tonight, and this was the best so far.

Hey, C’mon It was His Birthday: I wrote the above point before knowing Wrobleski would come back out for a second inning. He made his only mistake of the night by hanging a slider to Miguel Vargas, who hit a towering, 433-foot homer into the second deck in left to extend the AL’s lead to 4-0. He hit so hard that Pete Crow-Armstrong, the latest in-game interview, couldn’t help but give an “Oh god” from his place in centerfield. Wrobleski would punch out the next two batters, finishing his two innings of work with five strikeouts.

Bryan Baker, Shutout: Suddenly it was the ninth and Aroldis Chapman entered the game. He got two batters out. Then for the sake of extending things a bit longer, John Schneider brought in Bryan Baker to get the final out. After another long commercial break, Baker threw one pitch and got the final out. The AL shutout the NL, allowing just three hits with 15 strikeouts. This game was an exhibition, but it felt like a lot of baseball I’ve watched this year.

MVP: Cody Bellinger won MVP, for his two run single in the first. Cool.

Final Thoughts: This was fun. I enjoy the All-Star Game for what it is. Most of it is tedious, and my attention goes in and out, but every year there’s a thing or two that I enjoy. The Cease/Langeliers conversation was great. Wrobleski was fun to watch. There was also a fun Mason Miller vs. Munetaka Murakami at bat (Miller struck him out) that felt exceptionally All-Star-y. I feel as if I’ve done something productive.

The American League scored three first-inning runs and went on to a largely uneventful 4-0 win over the National League on Tuesday night in Philadelphia.  

The NL managed only three hits. The game featured only one extra-base hit, an eighth-inning solo home run by Chicago White Sox third baseman Miguel Vargas.

Using a total of 11 pitchers, the AL racked up 15 strikeouts. They produced the first shutout in an All-Star game since 2013.  

Here are the top takeaways 

-Perhaps the No. 1 takeaway, unfortunately, was the noticeable lack of star power in the game. Some of that was due to bad luck, with Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani out due to injuries, while Tarik Skubal is just back from his elbow injury.  

But some of it was an avoidable problem, with some of the game’s best pitchers out because they pitched on Sunday, the final day games are played before the All-Star break. 

-Jacob Misiorowski, the hardest-thrower in baseball, and Paul Skenes, reigning NL Cy Young Award winner, both fell into that category, as did ZackWheeler, though he originally went unselected for the team and then turned down an honorary offer to be part of the team.  

In any case, MLB could solve the problem by pushing the All-Star Game back to Wednesday, which seems reasonable since the break has been extended in recent years, as most teams don’t resume until Friday.  

As it turned out, pitching dominated anyway, as is often the case in these games, but it's the star power that fans want to see, especially in the form of power arms and high velocity.  

-Cam Schlittler fit into that category also, though he chose to sit out, citing the need to rest up for the second half of the season. Though there seemed enough uncertainty that if Blue Jays manager John Schneider had been willing to name him to start the game, Schlittler could have been convinced to pitch. 

-With so little offense in the game, the Yankees’ Cody Bellinger was named the MVP, thanks to his two-run single in the first inning that gave the AL a 2-0 lead. 

He and fellow Yankee Ben Rice had a big impact early in the game, each driving in runs off NL starter Cristopher Sanchez.  

Bellinger came up with the bases loaded and two outs, and on a 2-2 count, lined a single up the middle off a 95-mph sinker from Sanchez, driving home the first two runs of the game.  

Rice followed with a similar single up the middle on a 1-0 pitch, a 97-mph sinker that Sanchez left belt-high, to make it 3-0 for the AL.  

Both Bellinger and Rice came up with runners in scoring position again in the third. However, Bellinger flied out to Juan Soto in left and Rice struck out swinging – both against Cardinals’ right-hander Riley O’Brien.

-Soto, who was booed loudly by Phillies’ fans during introductions (along with players for the Yankees, Dodgers, and Braves), struck out in the first inning for the NL team against Blue Jays right-hander Dylan Cease, swinging and missing at an 0-2 fastball on the outside corner at 94 mph.  

In his second at-bat against Twins right-hander Joe Ryan, Soto hit a hard ground ball up the middle for a single. It was the NL’s only hit until Pete Crow-Armstrong singled in the eighth inning.  

-In the second inning, FOX tried what play-by-play announcer Joe Davis called a “round-table discussion” with three pitchers, Justin Verlander, Schlittler, and Misiorowski, as well as game analyst John Smoltz, and it didn’t go particularly well.  

First of all, the top of the second inning went quickly, 1-2-3, allowing for only one answer from each pitcher. Same for the bottom of the second, another 1-2-3 inning, and neither Misiorowski nor Schlittler was expansive with their answers, leaving Verlander to do most of the talking about his Hall of Fame career.  

In retrospect, it was a bad idea, trying too hard to be creative. FOX would have been better off simply interviewing Verlander, who seemed most comfortable talking from the dugout.  

-Then there was the in-game interview with Kyle Schwarber during his at-bat in the third inning. I get that FOX wants to try to spice up the telecast, but it’s rare when these interviews turn out to be worth doing.  

Schwarber seemed to be a willing participant, trying to offer his thoughts on the at-bat, but his earpiece kept falling out, and he was frantically trying to put it back in between pitches before hitting a hard ground ball to second for the final out of the inning.  

At least the interview with Bobby Witt Jr. at shortstop during the same inning was going well, with Witt offering enthusiastic answers, but then Davis and Smoltz had to cut that short when Schwarber came up to hit.  

FOX tried the at-bat interview once more, with Bryce Harper in the sixth against Guardians reliever Cade Smith, and it did produce a little humor, as he challenged a called strike, the first challenge of the game. However, Harper’s heart wasn’t really in it.  

“Why not?” he joked, before admitting: “That’s a strike.” 

And sure enough, the call was confirmed and Harper went on to strike out swinging at a splitter in the dirt.

PHILADELPHIA — Willson Contreras, for better or worse, leaves all his emotions on the baseball field.

For two days at the 96th Major League Baseball All-Star Game, it made for fantastic entertainment as the passion of the Philadelphia fan was no match for the Venezuelan All-Star from the Boston Red Sox.

Heck, Contreras did not find a man on the field he could not hug during the Tuesday, July 14 game at Citizens Bank Park. He engulfed home plate umpire Alan Porter in a hug. Ran directly at San Francisco Giants second baseman Luis Arraez after a force out – and then wrapped his countryman in a warm embrace.

And, perhaps most poignantly, shared the field with brother William – yes, they hugged at home plate – for the first time in an All-Star Game.

A night earlier, Contreras successfully met the challenge of the Philly fan, advancing past the first round of the Home Run Derby while hometown favorite Bryce Harper was eliminated. Come Tuesday night’s introductions, the crowd at the Bank roared thunderous boos on Contreras, who cupped his hand to his ear.

In short: A lot.

"Man, a lot of stuff. Hanging out with the guys, a bunch of new guys we’ve played against," says Contreras. "You don’t know them as a person. You meet them here. I’m glad to get the invitation to the All-Star Game to meet new guys, new faces.

"Having my family here. Playing with my brother. The Home Run Derby – the fans booing me. There’s a lot of memories I made in two days."

Those feelings were mutual. Contreras is such a force of nature, he couldn't help but energize an AL squad that won for the 11th time in 13 All-Star Games, a 4-0 conquest over the NL. Kansas City Royals shortstop Bobby Witt Jr. has known Contreras a good while - they share an agency, Octagon - and said it was eye-opening to share a dugout with the 11-year veteran for the first time.

"The way he plays the game - hard - it's a lot of fun to be on his side," says Witt. "He loves it. He loves whenever anything like that is going on, so it's special to be around."

One could say few were as deserving. See, Contreras won’t be able to play in the Red Sox’s first game of the second half, serving the final game of a suspension imposed when he had an on-field tiff with Washington Nationals pitcher Cade Cavalli, who told Contreras, "Sit down, boy!" after striking him out.

Contreras did not take kindly. And he simply could not return quietly to the dugout.

Major League Baseball’s night to celebrate its own has finally arrived. The 96th Midsummer Classic took place tonight at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia. This is the fifth time an All-Star Game has been held in Philly, but the first time at Citizens Bank Park.

The A’s were represented by two deserving All-stars, Shea Langeliers who was the American League (AL) starting catcher, batting third in the lineup and Nick Kurtz who unfortunately couldn’t play due to his thumb injury. 

The American League jumped out to a quick 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning against the Phillies hometown starter Cristopher Sánchez thanks to a Yordan Alvarez base hit, walks to our own Shea Langeliers, and Bobby Witt Jr. and then singles by the Yankees Cody Belanger and Ben Rice.

Shea led off the third inning against the Cardinals closer Riley O’Brien and singled to centerfield. He was erased on a fielder’s choice by Witt.

Through three innings, the American League hurlers have given up no hits and only one walk to protect their 3-0 lead. That streak ended when Juan Soto singled to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning against Joe Ryan of the Twins. He was stranded at first when the inning ended.

MLB captured the spirit of the game during the fifth inning ceremony with kids riding their bikes to the stadium and breaking through the outfield fence to join the major leaguers on the field for a fireworks display set to the classic version of America the Beautiful performed by Ray Charles.

Pitching continued to dominate for both sides. Through seven innings the National League only mustered one hit while the American League only had five hits.

The AL added to their lead with the first extra base hit of the game in the top of the eighth, a monster homer by the White Sox Miguel Vargas. Headed to the bottom of the eighth the American League led 4-0.

Aroldis Chapman, the Red Sox closer, entered the game in the bottom of the ninth to finish off the National League batters. After two outs, Chapman was replaced with Bryan Baker of the Tampa Bay Rays.  Otto Lopez of the Miami Marlins got the third hit of the game with two outs in the ninth. But Baker slammed the door, giving the American League their first shutout in 13 years.