PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 18: Paul Skenes #30 of the Pittsburgh Pirates pitches in the first inning during the game against the Kansas City Royals at PNC Park on September 18, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images) | Getty Images
St. Louis Cardinals vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, September 24, 2026, 12:35 p.m. ET
The Pittsburgh Pirates are facing off in the finale a three-game set inside PNC Park against the St. Louis Cardinals. It’s the final game of the season at PNC Park, so the Pirates hope to send their fans home with a win.
Kyle Leahy (10-5, 3.65 ERA) will start for the Cardinals. He only went 3 innings in his last start on September 18 against the Washington Nationals, giving up 5 hits and 6 earned runs in a 9-1 loss at Busch Stadium. Likey has not made it to the 5th inning in any of his last 5 starts, so that opens the door for the Pirates to pounce early. One of those games was against the Pirates back on August 29, when he only went 3 innings, giving up 4 hits and 1 run in a 6-2 loss.
Paul Skenes (10-11, 3.91 ERA) is making his final start of the season for the Pirates. After an up-and-down year for the third-year ace, Skenes will hope to go out on a high note against the Cardinals, whom he lost to back on April 30 when the Cardinals were last at PNC Park in a 10-5 defeat.
Location: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA
Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Pitching Matchup: Kyle Leahy (10-5, 3.65 ERA) vs. Paul Skenes (10-11, 3.91 ERA)
BD community, this is your game thread against the St. Louis Cardinals. Chime off in the comments section below.
LOS ANGELES, CA - SEPTEMBER 23: Manny Machado #13 of the San Diego Padres hits a home run during the game between the San Diego Padres and the Los Angeles Dodgers at UNIQLO Field at Dodger Stadium on Wednesday, September 23, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Nicole Vasquez/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The San Diego Padres got punched in the mouth in their series-opening loss to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Tuesday night, but they bounced back to even the series at a game a piece with a 5-1 win on Wednesday night. Manny Machado hit what proved to be the game-winning home run in the top of the fourth inning to give the Padres a 2-0 lead. The Dodgers would manage to score a run in the bottom half of the inning but that was all they would get. San Diego tacked on two more runs in the top of the fifth inning and a single run in the top of the ninth inning to earn the four-run win.
Padres starter Robbie Ray engaged in a pitchers duel with Dodgers starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto. The starters went three scoreless innings before either surrendered runs in the fourth inning. Despite only pitching 3.1 innings, Ray was removed from the game because he had thrown 84 pitches. Yamamoto meanwhile pitched six innings. Ray allowed one run on seven hits with a walk and two strikeouts. Yamamoto allowed four runs on five hits with a walk and four strikeouts. Only two of the four runs allowed by Yamamoto were earned. The other two runs came as the result of an error made by the right-hander on a bunt from Dustin Harris. The ball was bunted back to the mound and Yamamoto fielded it and threw wildly to third base. The ball sailed past Max Muncy and went into foul territory allowing Ethan Salas to score to give San Diego a 3-1 lead.
Machado added his third RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly to right-center field that allowed Fernando Tatis Jr. to tag up and score from third base, sliding in just ahead of the throw from Andy Pages to push the Padres’ lead to 4-1. San Diego scored the final run of the game in the top of the ninth inning after Samad Taylor drew a one-out walk. Taylor then stole second and third base, and scored when Freddy Fermin chopped a ground ball over the left side of the infield to put San Diego ahead, 5-1.
The Padres played a less than perfect game. They finished 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position and they were outhit by the Dodgers 10-8, but they finished on top on the scoreboard. However San Diego did get a major contribution from Salas who started the game behind the plate. The 20-year-old got his first taste of the Padres-Dodgers rivalry and he was pivotal with ABS challenges. Salas challenged three balls and all were overturned to strikes.
Perhaps the most critical challenge came when the bases were loaded in the bottom of the fourth inning. David Morgan was behind in the count 3-1 against Shohei Ohtani with the bases loaded. Morgan hit the top outside corner of the zone and the pitch was called a ball. Salas challenged and got the strike to make the count 3-2. Morgan would go on to strikeout Ohtani to end the threat and the inning and the game went from possibly being tied at 2-2 to the Padres maintaining a 2-1 lead.
San Diego reduced the magic number to one and took over the top Wild Card spot in the National League after the Chicago Cubs and Philadelphia Phillies lost. The Padres have a chance to clinch a playoff berth before they even take the field with the Arizona Diamondbacks playing early against the Colorado Rockies. If the Diamondbacks lose, the Padres are in. San Diego can also take care of business with a win over Los Angeles tonight at 7:10 p.m.
San Diego added Jason Adam back to the bullpen prior to the start of the game against Los Angeles. Griffin Canning was assigned to the ACL and Alex Jacob was designated for assignment,
SEATTLE, WASHINGTON - SEPTEMBER 23: Josh Naylor #12 of the Seattle Mariners reacts after hitting a walk off RBI single in the 10th inning against the Houston Astros at T-Mobile Park on September 23, 2026 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by Jack Compton/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Last night’s walk-off win aside, it hasn’t been an ideal first year for Josh Naylor in Seattle after joining the team at the trade deadline last year for a thrilling run to the playoffs, followed up by signing the largest contract of his career this off-season: a contract that represented stability for Naylor, who is on his fourth organization with the Mariners, and a fanbase that was quick to embrace the soft-spoken, cerebral, often enigmatic Canadian.
It was, most everyone agreed, a slam-dunk of a deal for both sides: a round peg in a round hole for the Mariners, seeking help at first base; a steady producer at the plate who would balance out some of the Mariners’ more volatile strikeout-prone bats; veteran leadership for a young team. And for Naylor, a fast favorite with the fanbase, long(ish)-term stability, a chance to establish some roots in a community and a clubhouse after earning a more permanent place, helping the Mariners to a fairy tale-esque run down the stretch.
Unfortunately, 2026 has been anything but a fairy tale for the Mariners on the field, last night’s walk-off aside.
“It was tough as a team this year,” admitted Naylor. “We didn’t accomplish what we wanted to.”
Despite the rough season, Naylor has enjoyed integrating himself in to the Seattle community, both in the clubhouse and beyond. He and his wife Chantel have made a point to explore the state on off-days. They’ve also attended various Seattle sporting events, especially hockey games, something they’re both passionate about and hope to pass on to their young son. Naylor says the family plans to drop in to Seattle this winter to take in some football and hockey, although the family also plans to spend significant time back in Ontario with their son, as Naylor says he wants him to experience the Canadian winters he did as a child.
“I can’t wait to get him on skates,” he said.
[At this point we should note Naylor’s child is not yet one year old. Canadians: Very Serious about their hockey!]
The Naylors have also gotten involved locally with Ronald McDonald House, continuing on the charity work Naylor did with that organization while with Cleveland. Naylor, whose family is deeply important to him, is passionate about supporting families undergoing times of stress.
Maybe because family is so important to him, Naylor has also made a point to put his arms around the younger players, especially his infielders, a responsibility he shares with J.P. Crawford. The two famously took rookie Colt Emerson shopping to buy his first big-league suit, advising on cut and color (lavender!). They also “co-parent” second baseman Cole Young, who maybe doesn’t realize exactly how lucky he is to have not one but two veteran players watching over him.
“We sit by each other on the plane,” said Naylor. “If we’re not talking baseball, we’re talking TV shows or video games or whatever. But I try to take him under my wing a little bit. J.P.’s done a great job taking him under his wing, too, and I’m close to J.P., so he’s just kind of along for the ride now too.”
“We try to spoil him. We take him to the stores and stuff. Spoil him with that. Spoil him with just, like, personal time, me and him and a few other guys. We play video games every night together, and then we just talk about the day. Talk about future of baseball and our future, as individuals. We just became really, really close teammates, which is awesome.”
It’s a selfless act, to pour so much into another player, so much so that it makes one wonder if Naylor is either mimicking something that was given to him or seeking to avenge something he wasn’t given in his career. But he shrugs off the insinuation that this is some kind of karmic scales-balancing.
“I just think it’s good to be a good person, regardless of your status or age,” he said.
“I just think it’s nice to be nice.”
Whether it’s passing something along or being the change he wants to see, the effect is the same.
“If you can, if you see an opportunity to help, you help. If you need to seek help, seek help. But I don’t want to say it’s something that was done to me or not done to me. I just think it’s it’s good to be a good teammate, especially if you know someone is younger than you in experience-wise—not necessarily age, but just game experience—and you see they did something, maybe just get in their ear a little bit, say hey, that was awesome, or hey, you know, maybe try this or that.”
“I just try to be a source of confidence for people here. You know, whether it’s on a personal level or a baseball level, I just try to be there for you. If you need me to watch your kids for you because you want to go out with your wife, I’ll watch your kids for you. If you want to have a conversation about baseball and go back and forth on a topic? I’m more willing to do that. I try to be a really good friend first, and then an even better teammate after that. That’s just my goal in my career and my life.”
One thing Naylor has been monitoring is the improvement in his second baseman; he’s hopeful Cole Young will win a Gold Glove this year, and credits the work Cole has put in to get him to that level as well as the coaching he’s gotten from Perry Hill, or “Bone.” Naylor says he doesn’t want to speak on behalf of rookie Colt Emerson, but that he knows what it’s like to feel the pressure as a rookie in a big-league infield.
“Your first year it’s kind of tough because you may not know what to expect, and then the days get harder the worse you do. That’s at least what I felt. The days get tough if you’re not succeeding, and then you push a little bit harder to succeed, and then you probably fail a little bit more.”
“Every young guy goes through it at some point in their career, where you fail and it sucks, and you try a little bit harder the next day and maybe fail a little bit more and then it sucks more, and then you finally succeed and it’s like—ah, I didn’t need to try so hard for three or four weeks. I was really relaxed today and it worked out.”
It’s a hard-won mindset Naylor is trying to impart to his young infield-mates, something he says is eased by the daily infield practice mandated by Hill: exposure therapy to reading balls off endless fungo bounces.
“We’re all humans, so we make mistakes at times, but being prepared for anything is the mentality,” Naylor said, while noting he appreciates the opportunity to watch his fielders – who he says he wants to help win Gold Gloves – improve. “Helping someone get to their best level in life, and then also in their in their field, whether it’s sports, whether it’s academics, whatever the case is, I think it’s super cool to see someone succeed in their in their favorite thing to do.”
As much as he likes to see others learn, Naylor considers himself a perpetual student of the game.
“I think you can learn a lot from others. I try to learn a lot from people, whether they’re younger or older than me, whether they have five years less than me or five years more than me. I don’t really judge them on their time in the game or age. I just judge them on their knowledge. I think knowledge is power, so I try my best to take information from every source I can. Coaches, players, retired players. I like to learn. I think if you have a lot of tools in your toolkit, you’ll benefit at the end of the day. If you kind of limit yourself to being like a one-trick pony, it kind of hurts you sometimes. And I’ve been both. I’ve been the one-trick pony, and then I had to learn that it’s a game of adjustments and a game of kind of maybe doing things different sometimes.”
No one can accuse Naylor of being a one-trick pony; he’s one base shy of tying his record from last year, an impossible-seeming 30 bags from a slower-footed first baseman. Naylor credits fellow Canadian Dave McKay, the first base coach in Arizona, for teaching him a ton about the mechanics of stealing bases, as well as Mariners first base coach Eric Young Jr. for helping him study pitchers and understand advance scouting to triple his stolen base output for the second consecutive year.
“I just try to find ways to win,” said Naylor.
Naylor does not shy from doing what it takes to win. Some of his best accountability partners? His brothers, Bo and Myles.
“I try to improve my whole game every off season. I try to look back at the season—where I failed, what I didn’t do as well, and how it can get better, and then God willing, get better. In the off season you have a lot of time to think, you’re not really playing the game anymore. So I try to do a lot of thinking with my brothers, and we break down each other’s games and talk to each other a lot.”
He credits brother Bo with helping him get his swing back over the All-Star Break to where it was over the second half.
“We spent the All Star Break together, and he like broke down everything in my swing. And he said, you know, you need to start going back to this and doing this again and doing that. And he really helped me tremendously. He’s a big voice in my career and someone I listen to every day and talk to every day or every other day.”
While the off-season is likely coming sooner than anyone had hoped, Naylor is ready to reconnect with the helpers who have helped him, his brothers.
“I look forward to just spending time with them, just discussing baseball while we’re watching a TV show or a movie, sitting in our backyard, or I don’t know, walking our dogs in the snow. Just chit chatting about how we can get better together. That’s something we do every off-season, just try to get better together.”
Clearly, Naylor is close with his family, now centralized three time zones away from Seattle, but isn’t unhappy about the choice he’s made to sign here. For the deep thinker Naylor, the first year is just the beginning.
“I’ve really enjoyed this organization,” said Naylor. “That’s why my wife and I chose to be here. Love the guys here. Coaching staff’s awesome. City’s beautiful. I look forward to kind of getting more comfortable here, and maybe I observed a lot this year just to see how things are ran.”
It helps, too, that the fanbase has embraced him so well – something Naylor is appreciative of, especially the fans who shout encouragement when he is struggling (“that doesn’t happen everywhere”) – and have been freely expressing their creativity in supporting him. Is a bunch of grown men in sailor suits (“Naylor’s Sailors”) a little weird? Maybe so, but who cares.
“Everyone’s weird in their own way. But that’s what makes you so beautiful and so perfect for who you are. And if you’re not willing to accept it, you’re not willing to accept it, that is what it is. But for those who are, I think you get the best out of the person if you’re willing to accept who they are. And you have a ton of different personalities in this sport, and in life in general. I think everyone is who they’re meant to be.”
LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani got a hit in his return to the Los Angeles Dodgers’ lineup after missing two weeks with right biceps discomfort.
He went 1 for 4 with two strikeouts and a walk while batting second as the designated hitter against the San Diego Padres.
“He looked good,” manager Dave Roberts said. “At-bat quality good, there wasn’t any chase, I thought he hit the ball hard his first at-bat, just missed a homer in that other at-bat, took a walk. It just felt like he wasn’t sped up at all and I think he came out of it pretty well.”
A roar went up from Dodgers fans as Ohtani walked to the plate to Michael Bublé’s “Feeling Good.” He promptly lined a 2-1 pitch from Padres starter Robbie Ray into right field and the fans got loud again. Ohtani was out at second base when Will Smith grounded into a fielder’s choice to third.
“Tonight showed that he’s in a good spot physically,” Roberts said.
Ohtani didn’t speak to the media afterward. He’ll be back in the lineup for the series finale.
Mookie Betts was in Ohtani’s usual leadoff spot, where he’s been since the two-way superstar went on the injured list on Sept. 8.
Betts is hitting .366 with six home runs, 21 RBIs, 13 walks and 18 runs scored in 18 games in September. He’s tied for third in the major leagues with 26 hits in September, and also ranks among National League leaders over the same timeframe in extra-base hits, RBIs, total bases, doubles and runs.
Ohtani last played on Sept. 7 against Cincinnati and came in hitting .277 with 30 homers, 80 RBIs, 89 runs scored and 80 walks in 134 games. He appeared physically compromised at the plate, shaking out his arm and wincing at times.
“A few weeks ago you could see that he couldn’t hit a fastball, he was underneath everything and it was a slower swing,” Roberts said before the game. “Just controlling the swing, the barrel, I think that’s something I’ll look at and obviously stuff like the wincing, but I don’t expect to see any of that.”
Roberts said he likely would have Ohtani leading off and Betts hitting second against right-handed pitching.
Roberts expects to see a focused Ohtani at the plate.
“It’s go-time for all of us and I think he’s in a good spot,” Roberts said. “He’s getting ready for the postseason. His mind should be there and my bet is that that’s where it’s at.”
In other moves, pitcher Tarik Skubal was reinstated from the bereavement list. He is scheduled to start at San Francisco. Reliever Kyle Hurt was optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City.
Rookie Josue De Paula sent back to minors, could return for postseason
With Ohtani’s return, Josue De Paula was sent down to Triple-A to join the Comets in the Pacific Coast League playoffs against the Las Vegas Aviators. De Paula had been in the lineup as the DH.
De Paula quickly became a fan favorite during Ohtani’s absence. The 21-year-old New York native reached base safely in 10 of his first 11 games in the majors. He went 2 for 3 with a run scored and a walk while notching his first career triple in the Dodgers’ 7-0 win over the Padres.
“He performed more than admirably,” Roberts said. “This also just gives us an opportunity to potentially have him back for the postseason. He’s a part of the conversation and he’s earned that, and that’s what I told him.”
If De Paula makes the postseason roster, he would serve as a pinch hitter.
“Josue has been awesome,” said Andrew Friedman, president of baseball operations. “Injected some real life and energy into our team.”
DENVER, COLORADO - SEPTEMBER 22: Idedmaro Vargas #6 of the Arizona Diamondbacks rounds third base to score on a Gabriel Morena double against the Colorado Rockies during the first inning at Coors Field on September 22, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Matthew Stockman/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Team News
D-backs live to fight another day in playoff chase with win over Rockies “We know where we stand,” Kelly said. “The ball’s not only in our court. There’s a couple balls bouncing in other people’s courts. We know that you know our backs are against the wall a little bit, and we do need a little bit of a miracle to get to where we want to go. So I think that maybe takes away a little bit of that playoff feel factor. But obviously, we all know that we have to win every single day.”
How did the Diamondbacks perform at Chase Field this season?
“One of the things we talk about at the beginning of the year is protect our turf,” manager Torey Lovullo said. “I feel like our home record indicates that these guys have been very engaged and played good baseball in front of a home crowd. … I want teams to know when they’re walking down the hall and coming off their bus and into their clubhouse that they’re getting ready to play a tough game and it’s going to be a dog fight.” https://arizonasports.com/mlb/arizona-diamondbacks/how-did-the-diamondbacks-perform-at-chase-field-this-season
Small breeds of dogs live longer than larger breeds.
Smaller breeds have a life expectancy of 12-14 years. Larger dogs, on the other hand, have a life expectancy of around 8-10 years. For giant breeds, they can live as short as 5 years up to 8 years.
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl has the most mistakes in a movie in the 2000s.
With the constant pressure of TV or movie productions, errors are pretty much inevitable. A little continuity blip here and a stray Starbucks cup there, it can be easy for little errors to slip the editor or director’s notice. However, in all film history, The Curse of the Black Pearl is said to have the most film errors at 105 “goofs”.
Portugal is the top country for cork production.
Out of 2,200,000 hectares of cork forest worldwide, 34% is in Portugal. With annual cork production at 200,000 tons, 49.6% comes from Portugal. They must be serious about their wine.
This has been one of those series. You know, the one where the Cubs make solid contact but it finds a glove. I mean, not a lot of solid contact in these first two games. But when they do, it finds a defender. Meanwhile, the Marlins feel like they’ve had a never ending run of seeing eye grounders. It feels whiny to say that. But I’m not whining about the occurrence. The Cubs have done it to other teams plenty. It’s definitely part of the game. Were I going to whine, it would be about the timing of it. Between that and the storm bearing down on Boston, these were the last things the Cubs needed right now. I suppose, of the two, the pesky Marlins are the more frustrating one. If the Cubs could win these games, those games might not matter, or at least would matter less. The most important clinch of all hasn’t happened yet.
It’s early for me to write about Scoreboard Watching, but I look at scores across baseball and I tip my cap to the also-rans of MLB in 2026. They understand their role as spoilers here in the final playoff push. I look around the league and I see the Mets beating the Rangers, the Royals beating the White Sox, and of course the Marlins beating our Cubs. No doubt I hate seeing the Marlins doing this, but if they were doing it to the Padres or the Phillies, I’d be delighted. So I get it.
It’s all just disappointing because the pitching has done its job in this series, save the 12th inning Tuesday. As painful as that was to watch, I’m not going to throw a bullpen under the bus that got the game to the 12th inning. That wasn’t teams exchanging runs as you sometimes see in modern extra inning games. That was the bullpen closing the door for several innings and giving the offense a plethora of opportunities to win the game.
Two games into this series, the offense has four runs in 21 innings. Even those four runs feel a little fluky. Certainly the Tuesday rally benefitted from a miscue by the Marlins defense. The other three runs in the series have come from a few of those seeing eye type of hits that have benefitted the Cubs. Both the wind blowing in and the absence of Alex Bregman have paired with an effective job by the Marlins staff to frustrate the Cubs for two straight nights.
It’s not hard to imagine the Marlins coaching staff talking to their team about these games being what a playoff atmosphere is. The Cubs are a team that is in a position that the Marlins are trying to get to. They’ve been playing these games for a little while now. Before this, it was the Padres. Before that it was the Diamondbacks. Before that it was the Dodgers. After this, it will be the Braves. That’s a brutal stretch to be sure. Credit where it is due, they are 6-5 with four to go in this stretch of 15 straight games against playoff teams. Young, hungry and aggressive.
As to the Cubs, I staked out my position a little while ago. Your mileage may vary. But I believe this team will answer the bell, be ready to go and not be intimidated by any team in the playoffs. That isn’t me saying they’ll win. Heck, I’m not saying they won’t get blown out. But they aren’t going to be a team moping around because they struggled some in September. That doesn’t mean they didn’t blow all kinds of good opportunities. It could result in them having to go on the road for games that should have been in Wrigley. We aren’t going to know that before at least Friday. If whomever is that first opponent isn’t ready to play, the Cubs are going to make them hate life. If that team is sharp, it may be tough for this Cub team.
I’m not about to jump off of the bandwagon. I see a bunch of people doing so. It’s okay, I’ll see you all back next week after the Cubs win their first game. Don’t forget to at least keep an eye out for Pete Crow-Armstrong to find his 40th stolen base of the season. He has a flair for the dramatic, don’t be surprised if he finds a homer or two and possibly the MLB home run championship. It’s been a great season. You made it this far, stay on the ride.
Three Positives:
Michael Busch had a pair of singles and scored one of the two runs.
Dansby Swanson had a single and a walk. He drove in both runs.
The pitching was pretty good and one of them ought to get some love. I’ll give the kudos to Kevin Gausman. One out shy of a quality start. He allowed only two runs and struck out seven. He also made a neat play for that last out. And he threw the full 100 pitches that cap the day of most major leaguers these days. Hopefully, he just needs an ice back and a chiropractic visit after that last play and will be fine.
Game 158, September 23: Marlins 3, Cubs 2 (87-71)
Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.
THREE HEROES:
Superhero: Dansby Swanson (.115). 1-3, BB, 2 RBI
Hero: Jacob Webb (.095). 1.1 IP, 6 BF, H, BB, 2 K
Sidekick: Michael Busch (.057). 2-4, R
THREE GOATS:
Billy Goat: Carson Kelly (-.215). 0-1, DP
Goat: Ryan Rolison (-.173). 0.2 IP, 4 BF, 2 H, R, K (L 9-2)
Kid: Miguel Amaya (-.111). 0-3
WPA Play of the Game: Dansby Swanson’s two-run single with two outs in the sixth inning tied the game. (.270)
Marlins Play of the Game: The two-run homer by Kyle Stowers with one out in the fifth for the first two runs of the game. (.241)
Cubs Player of the Game:
Game 157 Winner: Pete Crow-Armstrong received 31 of 63 votes.
Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)
The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.
Alex Bregman +26
Pete Crow-Armstrong +25.5
Shōta Imanaga +15
Carson Kelly +13.5
Ben Brown +13.5
Jameson Taillon -13
Dansby Swanson -14
Nico Hoerner -16
Caleb Thielbar -17.5
Seiya Suzuki -20
Scoreboard Watching: The Phillies and Cubs both lost. That leaves the two of them tied. The Padres defeated the Dodgers and moved into the first Wild Card slot, the Cubs second by tiebreaker and then the Phillies. The Diamondbacks won and are serious about making all of these teams sweat a little. I still feel very confident that in some order it will be the Padres, Cubs and Phillies.
Up Next: The series finale. The Cubs have now lost three of five to the Marlins. In general, the Cubs were good against the best teams and mediocre against everyone else, the obvious exception being the Brewers. The Cubs can split the season series with a win in the finale. Matthew Boyd (9-5, 4.06) will get the finale. Boyd snapped a long, rough streak with a good start last time out. He allowed one run over five innings and beat the Reds in Cincinnati. He did not face the Marlins in Miami.
28-year-old righty Tyler Phillips will start for the Marlins. The 2015 16th round pick of the Rangers (468 overall) is 5-6 with a 3.45 ERA. He beat the Cubs in Miami. He allowed three runs over five innings. He’s split his year between the rotation and bullpen, appearing in 36 games and making 19 starts. He has two saves. He’s been a part of the Marlin plan of having the back three-fifths of their rotation limited to five innings or less. It was June 28th the last time he threw more than six. There is only one other game he’s thrown more than five and that was back on August 13 against the Pirates. When he gets in trouble, it’s usually walks. He walks almost four per nine innings. That’s not an insane number by any means. But for a guy on a limited pitch count to begin with, that’s not optimal.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - SEPTEMBER 22: Bryce Harper #3 of the Philadelphia Phillies reacts during a game against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citizens Bank Park on September 22, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The game was 4-1 in favor of the Brewers, but the Phillies had something <ahem> brewing.
On Wednesday night, needing a victory to help lower their magic number by a game, with one out in the seventh inning, Kyle Schwarber was plunked by pitcher DL Hall, followed by an infield single by Trea Turner. The team had done nothing with runners in scoring position all night long, but any chance that they can get with that happening, they would take it. The lineup card stated that Bryce Harper would stride to the plate as it was his turn in the order. What would he do?
August was Harper’s best month of the year. His .333/.496/.573 wasn’t his top slugging percentage of this season, but as far as actual production on the field, his 194 wRC+ during the month meant he had few peers during that month in terms of offensive production. While the batting average is nice and the slug is perfectly cromulent, if you’re like me, it’s the fact that he ended up on base half of the time he came to the plate that astounded. That’s treading into Bondsian territory.
It also coincided with a new approach that he and the team took: take pitches. A novel concept, it seemed to have been something that eluded the lineup as an offensive approach for many days. Swinging early and often, attacking pitches if they were in the zone, these were the hallmarks of the Phillies lineup these past few playoff years. In 2026, once August hit, it’s as though Harper decided that swinging less, particularly chasing less, was what he wanted to do in order to be more productive at the plate.
And whaddaya know, something crazy happened. Once Harper decided to swing/chase less, he actually started to become more productive at the plate.
Now, I’m not saying that it is a direct corollary that swinging less equals more production at the plate. It clearly has to do with more with the fact that he wasn’t chasing pitching out of the zone and getting himself out. But it simply cannot be a coincidence. Harper was good this year for most of the year, the usual cold and hot streaks aside, but during August, he was in a god-like mode when hitting. The team started to win more often too and it seemed like the entire offense was hitting well as a result of Harper swinging a hot bat.
However, it is no coincidence that I left the month of September in those charts.
Look at how the things have flip flopped. He’s swinging more and has exited that god mode when at the plate. While he’s been fine this month (.278/.346/.375 prior to Wednesday), it’s mostly just that – fine. The team has needed him to do more, only for him to not be there. I can’t help but believe that his sudden change in approach at the plate – swinging more often – has led to a drop in his production.
Anecdotally, it feels like each time Harper is stepping to the plate, particularly with runners on, he is swinging at the first pitch, no matter where it is. If it also feels to you like he is swinging at missing early in the count more and not just at the first pitch specifically, it could be the fact that pitchers have decided to change their pitch mix to him and he is deciding to jump on the first good fastball he sees.
However, the plan has changed against Harper this year.
There has been a noticeable jump in how pitchers are doing the whole fastball/changeup thing while decreasing the amount of breaking pitches he sees. How has Harper fared against this combination?
You guessed it, by swinging and missing at those offspeed pitches more often.
Granted, it’s the natural game of cat and mouse that pitchers and hitters have played since the dawn of the baseball age and Harper is caught in the middle of that. He’s still getting hits, but a 300 points loss in OPS is an issue.
The first pitch that Harper saw from Hall in that seventh inning, he drilled straight into the plate back to the pitcher for the second out of the game.
If the Phillies are going to do anything in the playoffs, Bryce Harper needs to be productive at the plate. While he did have good months during the season, August showed that a certain approach at the plate was one that worked for him and led to Phillies wins.
As Jack put it in the season three finale of “Lost”, we have to go back.
CLEVELAND, OHIO - AUGUST 20: Angel Martínez #1 of the Cleveland Guardians singles on a ground ball to second base in the sixth inning against the San Francisco Giants at Progressive Field on August 20, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Russell Lee Verlinger/Cleveland Guardians/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Angel Martinez has had a good season for the Cleveland Guardians. Is what he is showing us likely to be repeatable?
Angel Martinez has a 110 wRC+ and a .306 xwOBA with a 22/3 K/BB%. Since coming back from a broken foot, Martinez has put up a 130 wRC+, but with identical K/BB% and xwOBA. Martinez has a 132 wRC+ against RHP and a 99 wRC+ against LHP, but a 125 wRC+ against LHP for his career. One would guess his splits against LHP will improve if he can continue to hit, period. But, there are questions if a player with Angel’s lack of walks and chase rate can sustain what he has done in 2026.
If you are like me, you may remember another fun Guardians’ outfielder who had a geeat season for them while chasing at an unsustainable rate. Oscar Gonzalez (in his age 24 season just as Angel is right now) had a 123 wRC+ with a .325 xwOBA, a 19.6/3.9 K/BB%, 47% chase rate, 21% line drive rate, 51% groundball rate and a 28% fly ball rate. He was a truly awful fielder putting up -6 DRS in two years and -12 OAA in the same time period. Gonzalez washed out of the MLB and has struggled to hit in the NPB so far, doomed by poor defende, an inability to stay disciplined at the plate and the failure to lift the ball with any consistency.
Angel Martinez is not a good defensive outfielder but he appears to be capable of average play in right field (1 DRS and 0 OAA) and not being Gonzalez level bad in left (-3 DRS and -2 OAA). I think we can be reasonably optimistic he can improve some given switching to the outfield was a late move for him, so he shouldn’t be unplayable… but he will also probably not be an asset out there.
The bigger issue is his underlying numbers, specifically his chase rate. Martinez has a 22% line drive rate and a 39% ground ball rate and a 39% fly ball rate. He pulls the ball almost 50% of the time, so he has the ability to make his best swings matter as seen in his 17 homers this season. But, the elephant in the room is Angel’s 42% chase rate. That’s about as bad as any starting player in MLB can manage, while still a little short of Gonzalez’s number. Both Gonzalez and Martinez make contact when they chase in the mid-60% range, but Martinez offers an 82% contact rate overall. He doesn’t miss any pitches in the zone, where Gonzalez would miss JUST enough to make his chase issues that much more glaring.
I want Angel Martinez to succeed. He is a truly special person and has saved this team multiple times. However, if pushed on this issue, I would have to guess that Martinez will probably not be a major league hitter longterm if he continues to chase at a 42% rate. If he can lower it to more of the 35% rate he flashed his first season, I am convinced that would be enough to make him a major league starter, especially if it resulted in his walk rate creeping closer to 6% and his opportunities to punish more pitches in the zone increasing. He has that dog in him with a 131 wRC+ in high leverage situations this season, and a general positive spirit that lights up the field. But, without showing he can lower that chase rate and increase the walk rate, I fear our Guardian Angel’s success may be as ephemeral as the dearly departed (to Japan) SpongeBob.
Angel fans… pin your hopes on his pulled fly-ball abilities, his knack of punishing meatballs when he sees them and his defensive mediocrity. Maybe he can find a little more of his minor league plate discipline (walk rate of 9.9% for his career on the farm) having established himself in the big leagues. If so, watch out, because an Angel Martinez who will take a walk even 7% of the time is an MLB All-Star. And, while there is no guarantee that can happen… it’s an exciting possibility that is not entirely out of the realms of reality.
Angel Martinez can enter 2027 with a starting outfield position in front of him, from my view. However, it would be wise to have plenty of depth just in case the chase issues that plagued another former Guardians’ outfield revelation come back to decimate Angel’s numbers as well. Here’s hoping Angel can rise above!
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 08: Andres Chaparro #87 of the Washington Nationals rounds the bases after hitting a home run during the eighth inning against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on September 08, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Entering 2027, there are going to be a few position battles to watch. There should be plenty of competition on the pitching staff in particular. However, one spot that intrigues me is the first base/DH position. It looks like there will be at least three players battling it out for that first base spot and I wanted to break things down.
For most of the season, there has been a lot of rotation at the first base and DH spots. Until he was traded, Luis Garcia Jr. got the at bats against righties. His platoon partner varied. At one point it was Curtis Mead, before the Aussie grabbed the third base role. Then it was Andres Chaparro, who had a great second half. With Garcia gone, there is now a lot of uncertainty.
Following the Garcia trade, the plan was for Abimelec Ortiz to slide into that role of being the first baseman against righties. However, that has not gone according to plan. Ortiz is hitting just .194 with a .592 OPS in 42 games. Despite having some promising batted ball data, Ortiz has not done enough to take the spot.
Ortiz is currently running a .220 BABIP in MLB despite 80th percentile pull-air, good launch angles, and great exit velocities (so the numbers are simply not representative of his performance at the plate). I'm disappointed to see the swing decisions being quite a major issue,… pic.twitter.com/QcmY65L6zm
I am not giving up on Ortiz, but you also cannot hand him a big role unless he shows a lot next spring. He has really gotten exposed after a hot start. In his last 28 games, Ortiz is hitting just .143 with a .390 OPS. The 24 year old has not been able to make the adjustments after pitchers figured out how to attack him.
However, the Nats have shown that they like to platoon a lot and Ortiz is the only left handed bat in the mix. This could give him a longer leash and put him in the mix for playing time. It also means the Nats could look to go outside the organization for a left handed first base option. Unfortunately, there are not a lot of left handed corner infield profiles set to hit free agency.
That either means they will give Ortiz more runway, or they will give more responsibility to their right handed bats. I think that second option is the way to go. Andres Chaparro has finally broken out of that Quad-A label this second half and has established himself as a big league slugger.
Since the break, Chaparro is hitting .292 with 10 homers and a .962 OPS. The 27 year old has consistently provided clutch hits and a lot of power. He has arguably been the team’s best hitter in the second half. Given his production, I would feel confident in giving Chappy a larger role, much like what the team did with Curtis Mead.
Andrés Chaparro since the All Star Break (48 games):
Chaparro has also shown an ability to hit right handed pitching when given the opportunity. In 71 AB’s against righties, Chaparro is hitting .296 with an .888 OPS. His numbers against righties are actually better than they are against lefties. That is impressive for a guy who is mostly known as a lefty crusher.
Obviously, Chaparro has locked down a roster spot for next season. However, I think he has made a strong case for every day playing time. Platooning is part of this front office’s philosophy, but I think the gap between Ortiz and Chaparro is wide enough to ignore that. Unless Ortiz takes a big offseason leap, Chaparro needs to be playing more next season.
There is also a third name that is making his case. For most of the season, Yohandy Morales was dominating in AAA. His surface level numbers in Rochester were better than Ortiz’s. However, some underlying concerns with Morales made the front office hesitant to call him up. Morales chases a lot, whiffs more than you would like and hits the ball on the ground quite a bit.
That is usually a very bad combination. However, Morales made it work in the minors thanks to how hard he hits the ball. The Nats finally gave Morales a shot in September, and he looks a lot like he did in AAA. Morales has yet to draw a walk and he strikes out a lot. He has still been productive thanks to his power though.
In 15 games, Morales is hitting .279 with 4 homers and a .930 OPS. That raw power is making up for some of the holes in his profile. So far, Morales has a 92.5 MPH average EV, a 64.5% hard hit rate and a 16.1% barrel rate.
All of those numbers are elite and his power has been super impressive. The home run he hit yesterday was an example of his truly elite raw power. It is rare to see a righty hit one out the other way in a big ballpark like Comerica but that is exactly what Morales did.
Yohandy Morales did this at the MiLB level all season. He has some unnaturally good power into the opposite field gap
His 4th HR comes in his 42nd PA…he has yet to take a walk in his young career pic.twitter.com/nwgAr69qqD
He has put his name in the mix for a roster spot in 2027. The difficult part is finding a way to fit both Morales and Chaparro. Ideally you would want a lefty to be part of a platoon. However, these two right handed bats have looked so much better than the left handed Ortiz.
This creates a bit of a dilemma for Paul Toboni this offseason. It was mentioned on the broadcast that the Nats are working on Morales’ third base defense. However, Brady House also needs playing time and has looked good since being recalled from AAA.
Honestly, this is a position to watch in the offseason. I could see a world where one of Chaparro, Morales or even House get traded this offseason. There is a lot of overlap with their offensive skillsets. Maybe they give Ortiz another shot or they try to find a left handed corner bat.
I don’t necessarily think you have to have a left handed bat in the mix. However, from everything we know about this front office, I am not sure they agree with that. The impressive showings by Chaparro and Morales, combined with Ortiz struggling has put the Nats in an interesting position this offseason. Paul Toboni will have to figure out what he wants to do with these corner bats.
Automated ball-strike system or ABS is being used for review as Arkansas Razorbacks take on Tennessee Volunteers during the SEC baseball tournament at Hoover Metropolitan Stadium in Hoover, Ala. on Wednesday, May 20, 2026. Arkansas Razorbacks defeated Tennessee Volunteers 8-4. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
Entering the 2026 season, the introduction of the automated balls and strikes challenge system was a major topic. Throughout the early part of the season, we were heavily focused on who was winning or losing challenges, and what the best strategies for hitters and for pitcher and catchers were to get the most calls in their favor without squandering challenges in low leverage spots. As the season went on, the whole process became more natural and integrated into the approach on both sides of the ball. In low leverage situations, you absolutely better be correct. In higher leverage situations, it’s more reasonable to take a shot at a pitch the hitter or catcher feels is really a borderline call. And so, the game of baseball changes and keeps moving.
Having watched the evolution of the technology unfold in Low-A and Triple-A, there was less of an adjustment period for fans who do follow the minor leagues. Indeed, the real annoyance for prospect writers now is the dark mode at High-A and Double-A, where there is no public Statcast data, and players who broke into full season ball using the system are then left up to the widely varying skills of minor league umpires through two levels, before getting back to ABS ball in Triple-A. Evaluating hitters in particular through those changing rule sets is a bit trickier.
Overall, the league did a really good job developing and implementing the ABS system. It’s quick enough not to impede the flow of the game much, and the two challenge allotment keeps it from being used excessively. We could argue about whether there should be one challenge allowed or three, or whether teams should automatically get an additional challenge in the eighth and ninth innings to help insure that in the highest leverage situations and most pressure packed moments, that the game isn’t decided by the umpires, but overall I’d call it a pretty solid success.
As a somewhat older fan now, do I love every aspect of it? Not really. Catchers used to be able to expand the zone with their target, and if the pitcher hit the glove without much movement required, you could expand the edges of the strike zone, which rewarded pitchers with good command. On the other side of it, if that catcher set up inside and you missed your target by two feet, it was never a strike even if it techically caught the by the book strike zone. Those differences have really taken some getting used to over the past few years as the system was tested in the minors.
And of course, this impacts how the game is played and how it will be taught and played moving forward. The strict zone now enforced really puts even more emphasis on raw stuff, because you have to be able to draw whiffs and weak contact in the zone. The emphasis on velocity, spin, and nasty offspeed stuff over precision command is only going to continue to grow, and the soft tossing command artists of the past have very little space in the game at this point. Such is the way of things as ambiguity becomes a problem to be solved rather than just a fact of life.
The benefits are there as well though. Watching a game end on a really bad ball or strike call was one of the more infuriating things in sports. Perhaps that sort of thing does build character, but it always felt brutal to be on the wrong end of one of those calls. Taking more of the umpire’s discretion out of the game was necessary, and it doesn’t help that the explosion of legal sports gambling has only added suspicion about games or individual pitches or plays in the major sports being rigged somehow. This short-circuited a lot of those concerns in baseball, at least in terms of the umpires.
What do you think? After a year of the ABS, do you like it or not? What would you change if you were running the Show?
The “forever and ever” caption suggests that the proposal took place Sept. 3 — an off day for the Yankees between series in California against the Angels and Padres.
Several significant others of Yankees teammates were quick to toast the couple in the comments section.
“My heart!!!!! Let’s get these two married!!! ” wrote Ava O’Connor, who is dating outfielder Spencer Jones.
The couple got engaged on Sept. 3. Austin Wells / Instagram
“The best off day in the history of off days,” wrote Carlos Rodon’s wife, Ashley.
“SCREAMING CRYING,” wrote Ben Rice’s girlfriend, Sara Falkson.
It is unclear when the couple first started dating. They announced that Nielson was expecting a child last November in one of the first public signs of a relationship.
Before the big day, Wells has an important postseason in front of him.
The engagement took place in California. Austin Wells / Instagram
The 27-year-old catcher has somewhat rebounded from a miserable start to the season, pushing his average up to .185 after dipping down to .150 in July.
Wells, who is respected by the Yankees for his skills behind the plate, will likely be a mainstay in the lineup during the postseason.
That will begin next week when the Yankees in all likelihood will take on the Red Sox in a best-of-three wild card series in The Bronx.
Wells did have perhaps his biggest moment in pinstripes when the rivals met last season in the same round, driving home the game-winning run with an eighth-inning single in Game 2.
Austin Wells hits an RBI double during the second inning of a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, N.Y., on Aug. 23, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post
The Yankees evened the series that night and went on to win Game 3 the following evening.
Now, Wells and the Yankees will look for an even deeper postseason run with Nielson no doubt cheering him on from the stands.
A’s catcher Brian Serven left Wednesday’s game after fouling a pitch straight into his face and underwent a CT scan, according to manager Mark Kotsay.
It’s possible he could miss the team’s final four games.
“We’re not sure,” Kotsay said about Serven’s availability, per USA Today. “Right now, he’s getting a CT scan and they’re taking a look at the swelling area on the face. Scary moment for sure.
“Fortunately, looking at the video replay, the ball hit the bat, it also bounced off the earpiece. So we’re hoping that with the combination of that, in that direct impact area underneath the eye … There was a good amount of swelling.”
Brian Serven had to leave the game mid at-bat after a foul ball struck him in the face pic.twitter.com/cLSruT4QX3
In the sixth inning of the A’s 7-3 home win over the Angels, Serven squared up to bunt a 94-mph changeup from righty Jose Fermin.
The ball ran in on Serven and went straight off the bat and into his face, dropping him to the ground immediately while he touched the left side of his face.
Kotsay and a trainer immediately attended to him.
Athletics catcher Brian Serven (10) gets hit by a pitch during the sixth inning against the Los Angeles Angels at Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento, California, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
“Oh, no,” one A’s broadcaster said after watching the scary scene. “Goodness.”
Serven remained on the ground for a lengthy period before returning to his feet, and Jonah Heim replaced him mid at-bat and flied out to center for the first out of the inning with the A’s leading 5-3.
Kotsay reportedly said the team will know more Thursday morning about his status, with the team beginning a season-ending four-game home set against the Astros later that night.
Athletics’ Brian Serven, middle, walks off the field after being hit by the pitch during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Los Angeles Angels, Wednesday, Sept. 23, 2026, in West Sacramento, Calif. AP Photo/Scott Marshall
Serven, 31, is in his fourth season in the majors and first with the A’s.
He’s slashed .179/.220/.385 across 28 games.
The former 2016 first-round pick of the Rockies has appeared in 129 career games and has tallied 11 homers and 34 RBIs while posting a .554 OPS.
He previously spent time with the Rockies from 2022-23 and the Blue Jays in 2024.
October isn't about six months of numbers. It's about who is hot right now, for three days or seven, and that can be anyone from a slumping star, a middle reliever nobody outside the clubhouse has heard of and a player coming back from an injury – (Aaron Judge, anybody?).
Here's the X-factors for each playoff contender, the ones who could swing a series.
Freddy Peralta was a disaster for six weeks after Tampa Bay acquired him from the New York Mets on Aug. 3, a 7.17 ERA over his first four starts with the Rays. Over his last five starts, he's allowed just three earned runs in 28 ⅔ innings (0.94 ERA). He's not entirely fixed, though. His outing on Sept. 13 was a near no-hitter against the Houston Astros, but it still took 86 pitches to get through five innings because he walked three. If the newer version of Peralta shows up in October, the Rays have three dependable arms when including Drew Rasmussen and Nick Martinez. If the wild version shows up, the Rays might be walked out of the playoffs. If the version from August shows up, they are in trouble.
The Yankees postseason hangs on the health of Aaron Judge. Just back after missing three months with a broken rib, Judge seemed to be getting back into form when he left the series finale against the Twins on Sept. 16 with a right calf strain. Manager Aaron Boone said the team is planning for Judge "not being a part" of the Yankees' wild-card series, but Judge insists he shouldn't be ruled out. New York has to hope it's just part of the ramp-up process, because without Judge in the lineup, the Yankees' October could be very short.
Garrett Crochet hasn't pitched in a competitive game since April 25. The Red Sox ace has missed almost the entire season, first with the shoulder inflammation, then a lat strain. He's been ramping up over the past two weeks, throwing his sweeper off a mound for the first time on Sept. 11, and Boston is skipping a minor league rehab assignment entirely, aiming instead to get him into live batting practice in the season's final week. The plan, if he's ready, isn't to start him. It's to use him in short relief, like he did as a rookie with the White Sox. The Red Sox rallied to get into contention without him. If he can be effective with essentially no tune-up, that's a heck of a playoff weapon.
Colson Montgomery is a 24-year-old having a 30-homer season, and striking out at a rate that's putting him in the company of the biggest whiff totals in White Sox history. He is also going through a brutal cold stretch at the wrong time: 4 for his last 49 with 29 strikeouts during that span. Getting hit by a pitch on Sept. 16 didn't help, though X-rays came back clean. After leading the AL Central from July 4 until Sept. 16, the White Sox are still on the Cleveland Guardians' tails. In a race that tight, Montgomery is either a middle-of-the order threat, or an easy out and nobody will know which until it happens.
Cleveland Guardians
Cleveland traded for Jo Adell on Aug. 3, needing a jolt of power while Jose Ramirez was still finding his timing back from hamate surgery. The Guardians got a hitter who's two different players depending on who's on the mound. Against left-handers this year, he has hit .321 with a .593 slugging percentage. Facing righties, he's hit .209 and been close to unplayable. Since the trade he's hit three home runs of at least 450 feet. How much of a factor he is for the Guardians depends on how many left-handers that they face and if manager Stephen Vogt is willing to sit him against the rest.
Houston Astros
Hunter Brown was a Cy Young contender for Houston in 2025 with a 2.43 ERA that put him in the conversation for the American League's best pitcher. A shoulder strain cost him from April to mid-June, and the version that came back still throws just as hard, but he's lost the command that made him elite. His walk rate has nearly doubled since returning, and his ERA over that stretch has run closer to 4.75 than the number that made him a star a year ago. Houston doesn't have much rotation depth to lean on if he's off. Cristian Javier has an ERA over 5, and the Astros have already turned to a bullpen game just to get through a rotation turn. Tied with Texas heading into the final week of the season, the Astros need Brown to find himself or it will be a short October.
If the Rangers get in, they'll go as far as Jacob deGrom lets them, and lately that has meant something different every turn through the rotation. DeGrom left an August start against the Angels after two innings with triceps fatigue. Three weeks later, he struck out 12 over six shutout innings against Seattle – then left that game early, too, this time with groin tightness. He came back on schedule and pitched through it against Boston with eight strikeouts over five innings. His ERA sits at 3.86 for the season. At 38, deGrom's stuff still looks like peak deGrom, but whether his body holds up long enough to carry the Rangers in October is the question.
Ronald Acuna Jr. has played 100 games in a season only five times in his career, and this (barely) is one of those years. A hamstring strain cost him from June 9 to late July, and for a former MVP, his season line is pretty modest. He's hitting .259 with 20 home runs for the season, buoyed by an 18-game stretch where he hit .366 with 10 extra-base hits. Then he fouled a ball off his leg on Sept. 22, leaving the game with a left shin contusion. If Acuna can get back and pick up where he left off, that's the X-factor the Braves need.
The Phillies rotation looked settled heading into September. Then Jesus Luzardo went on the injured list with left shoulder soreness, and Cristopher Sanchez, who has a 2.93 ERA for season, has put up a 4.48 ERA since July 1. That leaves Zack Wheeler as the only starter the Phillies don't have to worry about – even if he is coming off thoracic outlet surgery last year. Aaron Nola has a 3.03 ERA since the All-Star break, a real turnaround from a rocky start, and Andrew Painter has been nearly as good since midseason. How many of those arms steps up in October is going to be the difference between the Phillies celebrating or going home early.
Trevor Megill opened the season so poorly that he briefly lost the closer's job. He posted a 14.40 ERA in April that included a blown save against Toronto. He turned it around with an 0.86 ERA over a 20-outing stretch that carried into July, but lately it looks like the heavy workload could be catching up (5.40 ERA in September). Milwaukee has the best record in baseball and a first-round bye, which will bring some much-needed rest for its closer. Which version of Megill shows up in October will determine how far the Brewers go.
The Cubs' ninth inning is still up for grabs. Jacob Webb had it and put up a 24-appearance scoreless streak until he blew consecutive saves and has allowed 11 earned runs in his past nine innings. Daniel Palencia wants it back. He has a 100 mph fastball and 22 saves from a year ago, but he looked rusty coming off elbow inflammation in August, before stringing together enough clean outings that manager Craig Counsell called it the best stretch yet. Whoever is closing in October will hold the Cubs' fate in his hands.
Shohei Ohtani hadn't played in nearly two weeks, before returning Sept. 23. His two-way comeback ended for good in late August with biceps soreness that has since spread into his knee and neck. He says he feels good, but the Dodgers have already said he probably won't be at full strength in October. His season line, a .900 OPS with 30 home runs, still reads like an MVP, but since Aug. 8 he was hitting .198. Whether he can play at his elite level might be the single biggest X-factor heading into October.
San Diego Padres
The Padres rotation lost four projected starters to injury this year: Joe Musgrove, Lucas Giolito, Yu Darvish and Bryan Hoeing all done for the season. Michael King has emerged as the ace, and Walker Buehler has a 3.15 ERA over his past nine starts. Behind them it's a question mark. Nick Pivetta just came back from injury, and deadline pickups Robbie Ray and Casey Mize have settled in and a shaky start. Which of these arms the Padres can trust heading into October will make the difference.
For most of the Mets, taking on the Rangers in Texas this week just marks the second to last series of the season.
For two of them, though, it serves as a homecoming.
It’s an actual homecoming for Brett Baty, who was raised just hours away from Globe Life Field.
For Marcus Semien, the circumstances are a bit different.
Semien, of course, spent the last four years manning second base for the Rangers before being shipped to the Mets this offseason in the Brandon Nimmo deal.
While it’s two different situations, both had a very similar feeling after hitting big homers late to help the Mets pull ahead of the Rangers and play spoiler once again on Wednesday night.
“It was cool to go out there and greet the people who came to support me,” said Baty, who crushed a dagger pinch-hit grand slam. “You only get to play in Texas so many times in a year playing in New York, so it was really cool."
“Go-ahead homer in the eighth is obviously a good feeling,” Semien added. “Coming back here after four good years -- I really enjoyed playing here, it’s a place I love to play, so it felt really good doing that in that last at-bat.”
The 36-year-old Semien is now up to 15 homers and a .625 OPS in what he perfectly summed up as a “roller coaster” first season rocking the orange and blue.
He knows it’s much too late to salvage it, but is simply looking to finish the year strong.
That’s exactly what the red-hot Baty has been able to do over the past 50-plus games.
After an up-and-down start of his own, the lefty-hitting slugger has settled into a groove at the plate, hitting .282 with 21 extra base-hits and a .850 OPS since the end of June.
“He’s a weapon for us,” Semien said.
“This is who he is,” manager Andy Green added. “Our goal will be to get to that earlier in the season, but he’s having confident at-bats, has a ton of power, and is using the whole field -- he’s just had good at-bat after good at-bat.”
NEW YORK, NY - AUGUST 29: Gerrit Cole #45 and Cam Schlittler #31 of the New York Yankees talk before the second game of a doubleheader against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium on August 29, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by New York Yankees/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Over the past two seasons, Carlos Rodón has been one of the best pitchers in baseball. After winning 18 games and finishing sixth in Cy Young voting in an All-Star 2025, he’s been even better when healthy this year, posting a 2.67 ERA that would be fourth-best in the AL if he had enough innings to qualify. Since returning from the IL in mid-August, it’s 1.89. Come October, most teams would be thrilled to hand him the ball in Game 1 of any series. The Yankees are expected to bounce him to the bullpen for the Wild Card round. So deep is their rotation, fronted by Cam Schlittler, Max Fried, and Gerrit Cole, that Rodón is expendable.
When Aaron Judge went down last week with a calf injury, it was a gut punch. After holding the line without him for most of the year, the excitement of the Yankees captain returning for the stretch run was immediately punctured. Aaron Boone relayed that Judge is expected to miss the Wild Card round. While Judge himself pushed back on that assessment Wednesday, given the timing of his injury and narrow margin for recovery, it’s fair to question when he’ll be able to contribute. Judge is one of the premier difference-makers in the sport — by whatever metric you use, he’s been one of the two best players in the league for the past decade. When a team loses a player of that caliber, it’s easy to lose hope. But not only is this Yankees team still competitive, it should still be considered the favorites in the AL.
The rotation is the primary reason why. Schlittler has the Cy Young wrapped up and is squarely in the MVP conversation, leading the league in ERA while punching out 234 (and counting). He’s the kind of dominant hurler that can take over a playoff series—as he did last October—giving even a dormant offense a massive leg up. Fried, who won 19 games last year and finished fourth in Cy Young voting, has a 2.80 ERA through 20 starts and remains the game’s most consistent run preventer. And, despite concerns during a slump in early September, Cole has mostly looked like the same pitcher he was before missing a year and a half to Tommy John surgery. The Yankees’ bullpen, led by quietly elite closer David Bednar and boosted by reclamation projects Brent Headrick and Paul Blackburn, has the second-lowest ERA in the game. On the strength of those two units, the team has allowed the fewest runs in baseball. If good pitching beats good hitting, the Yankees are already well on their way.
But let’s not bury the Yankees offense yet, either. To be certain, it’s been an uneven year. In addition to spending nearly the whole season without Judge, Jazz Chisholm Jr. has underperformed, Ryan McMahon has been an offensive black hole (even after last night, his season wRC+ is just 76), Yankees catchers have hit below the Mendoza line, and Anthony Volpe played his way out of the starting shortstop job. Still, among AL playoff teams, only the White Sox have scored more runs. Ben Rice is tied for the AL lead in homers with 41 and has been one of the best hitters in baseball, Luis García Jr. and Paul Goldschmidt form a strong platoon at first, and Cody Bellinger has been his usual All-Star caliber bat. Murderers’ Row, this lineup is not. But they stack up perfectly fine against the rest the AL has to offer, even without their best hitter.
Central to the Yankees’ chances is the state of their competition. The AL was taken to the woodshed this year by the NL, who dominated interleague play and stacked up four teams with a run differential above 100 to the AL’s one. That one is the Yankees, who came out 48 runs ahead of the Rays despite losing out on the AL East title. Eighty-five wins or so should carry the day in the AL Central while the AL West leader will likely land right around .500. The Rays’ extreme overperformance of their Pythagorean win total this year surely speaks to their ability to play together as a team and manager Kevin Cash’s knack for playing matchups. However, it also leaves open the question of how their style of play will transfer to October baseball, where they’ve really succeded with Cash just once (in the COVID-affected 2020).
The Yankees will face the Red Sox in the Wild Card round, a team that’s arguably also without its best playoff weapon, starter Garrett Crochet. At best, he’ll be in the bullpen, likely rusty. As Jon Morosi notes below, the Yankees’ pitching staff has held Boston at bay throughout their matchups this season.
Yankees fans are justified in worrying about Aaron Judge's injury. But remember:
NYY is 7-6 vs. BOS, and Judge played in 3 of those games.
The Red Sox have averaged only 3 runs per game vs. the Yankees.
The Yankees have given up the fewest runs in @MLB.@MLBNetwork
There’s also precedent for teams making deep playoff runs while their superstar watched from the bench. Ronald Acuña Jr. missed the entire 2021 postseason as his Braves (buoyed by six shutout innings from Fried in the decisive Game 6) took the title. The 1972 A’s lost Reggie Jackson to a torn hamstring in the ALCS while winning their first pennant in 41 years but still bested the Big Red Machine in the Fall Classic. The Yankees have also found ways to win in October without much from Judge. While his presence surely impacted how opposing pitchers tackled the Yankees’ lineup, Judge batted .161 through the first two rounds of the 2024 playoffs as the Yankees nonetheless won the pennant. And while they had a red-hot Giancarlo Stanton and another all-world hitter, Juan Soto, to pick up the slack that year, the Yankees also had a significantly weaker pitching staff.
A lot can happen quickly in the postseason, and a resurgent and hungry Red Sox squad is certainly a threat, particularly in a best-two-out-of-three series. The Rays loom as well, with the regular-season standings telling a compelling story about their winning formula, and whatever teams rise from the ashes of the Central and West cannot be dismissed. Teams like the 2006 Cardinals and 2023 Rangers prove that anything can happen if you just get into the dance. But the Yankees have a formula of their own that’s even more compelling, even without their captain. In a lackluster AL, the Yankees still have the strongest pitching staff and most talented roster overall. Let the games begin.
