Category: MLB

Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. The Brewers are back in the National League Championship Series for the second consecutive season and the third time in the last nine years, and they’ll face the Dodgers once again — the third time facing L.A. in the NLCS, and their fourth time facing them in the postseason. Milwaukee was swept a season ago, but they’ve improved from last season, while the Dodgers mostly maintained their status quo. Does the Crew have what it takes to get past them this time?

Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-baseball sports, the Brewers, you name it. As long as it’s appropriate and is allowed by our moderators, it’s fair game here.

You know the drill.

This is now an open thread:

The NLCS is set. The ALCS isn’t. The Senior Circuit’s juggernaut is still in play, while the Junior Circuit, regardless of the outcome of the Division Series, will be sending an underdog to the Fall Classic. (Can you really call the Rays an underdog when they’ve been one of the best teams in baseball this season? That’s a semantic question I don’t particularly care to get into).

On to the links.

Phillies news:

Who will the Phillies consider for the manager position?

The Inquirer staff look at the Phillies who are about to hit free agency and weigh in on who should stick around and who should be given their farewells. ($)

Three relievers who could become starters, including Jonathan Bowlan. ($)

MLB news

MLB has made a proposal to shorten the season and lengthen the division series, along with allowing the division winner in the Wild Card round to pick their opponent.

All of the impending free agents. All of them.

Jimmy Fallon is publishing two kids books about baseball: one for Dodgers families, one for Yankees families. Someone oughta write one for Phillies kids.

Hello, friends.

There are 166 days remaining until the next scheduled Orioles game. Whether an Orioles game (or any MLB game) happens on that date or any time close after is not something we are going to know until probably mid-February, when spring training begins. I’m already dreading having nothing going on in December and January, not that I expect anyone reading this to share the particular concerns of running a baseball blog.

For now, there are the playoffs as a diversion. Except, there won’t be any games played today. Both National League series wrapped up in four games, setting up a Dodgers-Brewers NLCS rematch. Their division series would have played Game 5 today. That wasn’t needed after all.

There will be one more division series game played on Friday. The Guardians-White Sox series is going five games. They will be traveling today. Cleveland piled on the runs against Chicago to knot their series at 2-2. They staved off elimination after losing both games at home to start the series. It won’t mean much if they lose their last home game as well. This Game 4 happened to be the first time all postseason that a team that scored at least four runs lost the game. The White Sox managed this because they gave up many more than four runs in the process.

Seeing these games play out, it really calls to attention what the good teams and good-enough teams have that the Orioles do not. Maybe if they had managed to sneak in, they might have had enough to knock off the Astros, and you could probably argue there’s better pitching in the O’s stable than what the White Sox have been able to bring to bear this postseason. Mostly though, the Orioles aren’t on this level. Certainly not on the level of most of the teams that will play in the league championship series round.

Can it be better next season? That’s the question we all want to know the answer to. The labor situation means that this is not a great offseason to be a team trying to enact different plans for your players, because coaches and management will not be able to check in with anybody after the lockout hits on December 1. It will take until spring training – whenever that comes along – to start to see who really did the work and who was, as Chris Bassitt recently put it when assessing the 2026 team, just checking the boxes.

Orioles stuff you might have missed

What process are the Orioles trusting? (Defector)
It’s always worth reading when Defector turns its sights on the Orioles, even though you know this only happens when things aren’t going well.

Orioles missteps testing limits of fan support (The Baltimore Sun)
The team managed to draw around 25,000 more fans this year than last year. If things don’t improve early next year, I wonder what that picture is going to look like.

Six Orioles ranked in MLB Pipeline’s top 100 (MASN)
Is this worth anything? Here’s an indirect way of answering that: The last time the Orioles had six top 100 prospects on this list was at the start of the 2023 season. These were the prospects: Colton Cowser, DL Hall, Jackson Holliday, Heston Kjerstad, Grayson Rodriguez, Jordan Westburg. You don’t need me to tell you what those six players collectively contributed to the 2026 Orioles.

2026 Orioles draft report card (Baseball America)
Subscription required to see the thoughts on this year’s draft. People like it! For now.

Birthdays and Orioles anniversaries

Today in 1966, the Orioles won their first World Series title by finishing a sweep of the Dodgers. Frank Robinson hit a home run that scored the game’s only run; Dave McNally pitched a four-hit shutout as the O’s knocked off the defending champions.

In 1971, the Orioles beat the Pirates in Game 1 of the World Series. McNally featured again, throwing a three-hit complete game as the O’s won, 5-3.

In 1996, Jeffrey Maier happened. I’m never going to be over it until the Orioles win a title in my lifetime.

In 2014, the Orioles reached a contract extension with J.J. Hardy in between the division series and ALCS rounds of the postseason. Although this seemed exciting at the time, Hardy had negative value in two of the three years of the new contract.

There are a few former Orioles who have birthdays today. They are: 2015-16 reliever Chaz Roe, 2013 four-game outfielder Jason Pridie, and 2001-13 infielder Brian Roberts. Today is Roberts’s 49th birthday, so an extra happy birthday to him.

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday to you as well! Your birthday buddies for today include: French scandal figure Alfred Dreyfus (1859), baseball Hall of Famer Rube Marquard (1886), The Beatles member John Lennon (1940), movie maker Guillermo del Toro (1964), University of Maryland basketball standout Juan Dixon (1978), and professional organizer Marie Kondo (1984).

On this day in history…

In 1806, Prussia launched the War of the Fourth Coalition against Napoleonic France. Nine months later, the war was over and Prussia lost half of its territory in the peace settlements.

In 1919, the Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago White Sox in the World Series, a series that is now known for the Black Sox scandal.

In 1986, The Phantom of the Opera opened in London. The musical is still continuously running in the West End, though its record-setting Broadway run ended in 2023. Phantom is only the second-longest-running West End musical, trailing the previous year’s Les Miserables – also still running continuously there since its premiere.

**

And that’s the way it is in Birdland on October 9. Have a safe Friday.

The Atlanta Braves are heading into an important offseason after another NL East title ended with a disappointing postseason exit. While the team put together a 94 win season, there is still work to be done if Atlanta hopes to make a deeper playoff run in 2027. With plenty to evaluate from the past season, it’s time to look at what went right, what fell short, and what changes could help the Braves get back to the World Series.

MLB News:

Major League Baseball has proposed a shorter regular season and changes to the playoff format. The Players Association is working to review the proposals.

The ALDS is headed to Game 5 after Thursday’s matchup between the Cleveland Guardians and Chicago White Sox.

The Ringer | Ben Glicksman: The Yankees have, famously, not beaten a team seeded higher than them in October under Aaron Boone’s leadership*. There are a number of structural problems with the organization, and it’s never entirely clear how much influence any manager has in MLB in 2026, but a case is starting to be made on the beat that it’s time to move on from Boonie. He still has a year on his contract, but any manager on a one-year deal should feel some shaky ground anyway.

*Save for a best-of-three 2020 Wild Card Series in Cleveland with no fans in attendance. Make of that what you will.

New York Daily News | Peter Sblendorio: Anthony Volpe nearly had the biggest moment of the Yankees’ playoff run, a home run that tied the decisive Game 3 at four runs apiece. Upon further review, that fourth run was taken back, and Volpe was sent to second base. It was at best a mercurial season for the former top prospect, who with Jazz Chisholm Jr. set to hit free agency now finds himself as a potential Opening Day starter at second base in 2027, even after losing the shortstop job. (Chisholm says he wants to stay, but at least right now, it seems like it won’t be a match.) On a roster with so many question marks for this winter, Tony Fox is one of the bigger ones.

New York Post | Dan Martin: Speaking of question marks, here’s a helpful list! The biggest cloud to clear is how many games the 2027 season features, as labor strife needs to be resolved before anything else starts to matter. The Yankees have to agree to new contracts with both Brian Cashman and Matt Blake, as well as QO decisions for Chisholm and David Bednar. That’s just the start of the to-do list for a very busy, very uncertain winter.

FanGraphs | Ben Clemens ($): We close with a little more pan-baseball news, as Clemens breaks down the optimal ways to deploy a starting rotation in October. The Chris Sale Wild Card decision loomed large at the time, and didn’t end up mattering in Atlanta’s NLDS loss to the Dodgers. FanGraphs has made their playoff coverage a subscriber-only feature, but it’s still a worthwhile read.

Phillies Arizona Fall League tracker: Following Aidan Miller, other prospects originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Phillies’ season has ended, but 10 of their prospects are continuing their seasons in the Arizona Fall League.

The group is headlined by Aidan Miller, the organization’s No. 2 prospect and MLB Pipeline’s No. 59 overall prospect. Miller is one of nine Phillies playing for the Surprise Saguaros. Catcher Luke Davis is playing for the Scottsdale Scorpions.

The Fall League features prospects from all 30 major-league organizations across six teams. Each team plays a 30-game schedule. The season began Oct. 3 and concludes with the championship game Nov. 14.

This tracker will be updated throughout the Fall League season.

Last updated: Oct. 8

Statistics through games played Oct. 7

Surprise was off Wednesday. Davis did not appear in Scottsdale’s 4-3 win over Peoria.

Phillies position-player tracker

Phillies pitching tracker

Aidan Miller, INF

Miller entered 2026 as the Phillies’ top-ranked position-player prospect, but a back injury kept him out until September and required surgery in June.

He returned to play four regular-season games between the Florida Complex League and Double-A Reading, going 4-for-12 with three doubles, two walks and two RBIs. Miller remained with Reading during its run to the Eastern League championship and started all four playoff games at third base, his first professional action at the position.

Miller was originally assigned to the Arizona Fall League in 2025 but did not play because of his back. He has started at third base and designated hitter through his first two games this fall.

He opened the Fall League with one hit and two walks against Scottsdale. Miller followed by reaching base five times against Glendale, going 2-for-3 with two walks and a hit by pitch.

Aroon Escobar, INF

Escobar spent the entire 2026 season with Reading, where he hit .230 with a .332 on-base percentage and .347 slugging percentage in 132 games. He finished with 12 home runs, 17 doubles, 69 RBIs and 27 stolen bases.

His production improved late in the season. Escobar hit .372 with three home runs and 11 RBIs over 12 games in September.

Escobar is eligible for the Rule 5 draft this offseason. The Phillies must add him to their 40-man roster to prevent another organization from selecting him.

He went 1-for-4 with a walk in his Fall League debut before going hitless in four at-bats against Salt River.

Dante Nori, OF

Nori is the only member of this year’s Phillies group who also played in the 2025 Arizona Fall League.

The Phillies’ 2024 first-round selection was limited to 67 games with Reading this season because of a stress fracture in his hip. He hit .244 with a .318 on-base percentage and .360 slugging percentage, recording three home runs, five triples, 13 doubles, 26 RBIs and 17 stolen bases.

Nori also represented Italy in the World Baseball Classic before beginning his minor-league season.

He opened the Fall League by going 2-for-5 with a triple, one RBI and one run scored against Scottsdale. He went hitless in five at-bats in his second game.

Kehden Hettiger, C/1B

Hettiger played 61 games for Reading in 2026, hitting .191 with a .317 on-base percentage and .348 slugging percentage. He recorded eight home runs, eight doubles and 20 RBIs.

The left-handed-hitting catcher missed time with knee injuries during the season. He did not play during August before returning to Reading in September.

Hettiger threw out 24 percent of attempted base stealers during the regular season.

He has three hits and two walks through his first two Fall League games. Two of his three hits have been doubles.

Luke Davis, C/1B

Davis is the lone Phillies player not playing for Surprise. Scottsdale needed another catcher, so Davis was assigned to the Scorpions while the other nine Phillies prospects joined the Saguaros.

Davis hit .201 with a .367 on-base percentage and .336 slugging percentage over 188 plate appearances in 2026. He finished with four home runs and 23 RBIs while playing primarily for High-A Jersey Shore.

He drew 39 walks against 51 strikeouts during the regular season.

Davis walked in his lone plate appearance in Scottsdale’s opener against Surprise. He then went 0-for-3 with two walks against Mesa. He is hitless in three at-bats but has reached base three times through two games.

Keegan Batka, RHP

Batka began the season with Single-A Clearwater and finished it with Reading.

The 24-year-old made 35 relief appearances across three levels, posting a 3.14 ERA and 1.10 WHIP over 51⅔ innings. He struck out 69 batters, walked 17 and recorded seven saves.

Batka began the season with 12⅓ consecutive scoreless innings over his first 10 appearances with Clearwater. He later pitched 24 games for Jersey Shore before making one appearance for Reading.

He allowed two earned runs on two hits over one inning in his Fall League debut.

Ryan Dromboski, RHP

Dromboski made 18 starts and one relief appearance between Jersey Shore and Reading. He went 3-10 with a 5.56 ERA and 1.44 WHIP over 81 innings, striking out 80 and walking 40.

The South Jersey native spent most of the season with Jersey Shore, where he posted a 4.89 ERA over 73⅔ innings. He allowed four earned runs over his final 20⅔ innings at that level.

Dromboski made two starts for Reading in September. He struck out eight over five innings in his second Double-A start.

He worked 3⅓ scoreless innings in his Fall League debut, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out one.

Estibenzon Jiménez, RHP

Jiménez pitched exclusively as a reliever in 2026 after making 60 starts over his first five professional seasons.

The right-hander went 7-0 with a 2.38 ERA and 1.21 WHIP in 35 appearances across four levels. He struck out 51 batters over 45⅓ innings and converted all seven of his save opportunities.

Jiménez spent most of the season with Reading, where he posted a 2.84 ERA and recorded seven saves in 28 appearances.

He earned the save in his first Fall League appearance, striking out two during a perfect ninth inning against Salt River.

Kevin Warunek, LHP

Warunek made 17 appearances across four levels during a season that included multiple stints on the injured list.

The left-hander went 3-0 with a 3.43 ERA and 1.48 WHIP over 21 innings. He struck out 26 and walked 12.

Warunek pitched for the Florida Complex League Phillies, Clearwater, Jersey Shore and Reading. His final regular-season appearance came with Reading on Sept. 12, when he worked one scoreless inning.

He allowed one earned run on two hits over one inning in his Fall League debut against Salt River. Warunek struck out one and did not issue a walk.

Andrew Walling, LHP

Walling replaced Jose Peña Jr. on the Surprise roster. Peña remained at the Phillies’ complex in Clearwater while recovering from elbow discomfort.

Walling was limited to 11 appearances with Triple-A Lehigh Valley after suffering an elbow sprain. He went 0-1 with a 9.58 ERA and one save over 10⅓ innings. The left-hander struck out 16 and walked 15.

Walling was placed on the injured list in May and transferred to the 60-day injured list in July.

He allowed one hit over a scoreless inning in his Fall League debut against Salt River. Walling struck out one, did not issue a walk and needed 12 pitches to complete the inning.

Which Phillies played in Arizona last year?

Eight Phillies prospects appeared for Surprise during the 2025 Arizona Fall League season:

• Dante Nori, OF
• Bryan Rincon, INF
• Dylan Campbell, OF/INF
• Eiberson Castellano, RHP
• Jack Dallas, RHP
• Jaydenn Estanista, RHP
• Daniel Harper, RHP
• Tommy McCollum, RHP

Miller and Carson DeMartini were included in the Phillies’ original group, but neither played. Campbell and Rincon replaced them before the season began.

Nori hit .308 with a .386 on-base percentage and .436 slugging percentage in 12 games. He recorded one home run, two doubles, seven RBIs and two stolen bases.

Campbell hit .304 with a .419 on-base percentage and .625 slugging percentage in 19 games. He finished with four home runs, one triple, four doubles and 16 RBIs.

Dallas allowed one earned run over nine innings. Estanista posted a 5.63 ERA with 10 strikeouts over eight innings. McCollum recorded a 3.60 ERA with seven strikeouts over five innings.

Surprise defeated Peoria, 9-4, to win the 2025 Arizona Fall League championship.

Hagen Smith and Grant Taylor have been all over this American League Division Series for the Chicago White Sox, the rookie Smith starting two games and Taylor saving a pair himself as the papal-powered South Siders pushed their division rivals from Cleveland to the brink of elimination.

Yet like a volatile stock, Smith and Taylor and the White Sox are experiencing the cruel playoff reality of diminishing returns.

And as their stuff flattens out and Guardians hitters get more familiar with their repertoires, a 2-0 ALDS lead evaporated into the black of Rate Field.

Now they’re all in a free fall, with one faint chance to catch themselves.

Odds are, the White Sox’s season ends in a decisive Game 5 Saturday, Oct. 10 at Cleveland’s Progressive Field. It’s been a great run, their climb back from 121- and 102-loss seasons into the playoffs a well-documented, feel-great story.

But minus the horses traditionally associated with playoff teams, the White Sox are trying to head-fake their way through these playoffs with the ever-popular “pitching chaos,” where pretty much everybody pitches at least every other day, both to maximize platoon advantages and camouflage your own deficiencies.

ALDS: Guardians or White Sox will pay for agonizing Game 4

It looked great when the White Sox won their first four postseason games, sweeping Houston in the wild-card series. Now?

They are just the latest club to prove this approach unsustainable – the latest illustration of Major League Baseball’s starting pitching crisis.

Hey, we know it’s not 1968 anymore, nor 2012, or even 2022. The starting pitcher is nearly extinct, in a global sense, a hard reality evidenced by four of the eight wild-card teams opting for bullpen games in Game 1 of their playoff openers.

Grim.

Our current predicament is more than a decade, maybe two, in the making. Teams opted to protect young pitching “assets” in the minor leagues, babying them and putting significant governors on innings.

And everyone blew out their arms, anyway.

The max velocity revolution exacerbated all those problems. For every Jacob Misiorowski, there were dozens of other pitchers who either blew out or could not pair power with precision consistently and ended up in a bullpen somewhere.

Which brings us to White Sox-Guardians.

In retrospect, it’s kind of remarkable the White Sox won 84 games, what with just three guys – Anthony Kay, Sean Burke and Davis Martin – making more than 15 starts. In this ALDS, Kay has been reduced to opener or situational guy, Martin virtually invisible and Burke a bulk pitcher.

CHICAGO — José Ramírez homered and drove in three runs, and the Cleveland Guardians beat the Chicago White Sox 9-5 on Thursday night to send their AL Division Series to a winner-take-all Game 5.

Patrick Bailey also went deep as the Guardians won for the second consecutive day in Chicago after beginning their postseason with two straight losses at home.

Jo Adell hit a two-run single to cap a six-run sixth inning for the AL Central champions.

Cleveland is looking to become the first major league team to come back from a 2-0 deficit in a best-of-five playoff series since the 2017 Yankees accomplished the feat against, well, Cleveland.

Teams with a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five postseason series have gone on to win 83 of 93 times.

Game 5 is back in Cleveland on Saturday night, and the winner will open the American League Championship Series at Tampa Bay next Monday.

“As we’ve battled back and forth with these guys, obviously fitting that it’s going to come down to this,” White Sox manager Will Venable said. “It’s been how the back and forth has been all year.”

Chicago’s bullpen — one of its biggest strengths in a surprising season — is suddenly looking very tired. Grant Taylor was hit hard after pitching 5 1/3 scoreless innings over the first two games of the series, allowing four runs and four hits without retiring any of the six batters he faced during Cleveland’s rally in the sixth.

Miguel Vargas homered late for the White Sox, who flopped in their second straight bid to clinch a postseason series at home for the first time since the 1906 World Series against the Chicago Cubs.

Sam Antonacci drove in two runs.

Game 2 starter Gavin Williams got the last three outs on two days of rest for Cleveland after Vargas began the ninth with his first postseason homer.

It was the first career relief appearance for Williams, who could start Game 5 as well.

The right-hander threw 18 pitches after throwing 98 on Monday. He was the seventh Guardians reliever as the teams combined to use 15 pitchers in a game that took 3 hours, 39 minutes.

Williams went 14-8 this season and led the AL with 248 strikeouts.

Cleveland trailed 2-0 before rallying in the fifth. Bailey led off with a pinch-hit homer, and Steven Kwan chased Erick Fedde with a one-out single.

Jordan Hicks came in and Ramírez drove a 99.9 mph fastball deep to right-center for just his second homer since Sept. 1, a span of 26 games. The seven-time All-Star had surgery after he broke a bone in his left hand on a swing June 13.

It was Ramírez’s first postseason homer since 2024 and No. 5 overall. He also starred in Game 3, finishing with two hits and two RBIs in Cleveland’s 9-3 victory.

Chicago responded with two runs in the bottom half, sending a charge through the crowd of 39,920. Antonacci was hit by a pitch from Tim Herrin with the bases loaded, and Brenton Doyle made it 4-3 with a sacrifice fly.

The White Sox had the bases loaded with two down, but rookie Braden Montgomery struck out swinging against winning pitcher Erik Sabrowski.

Antonacci has been plunked 33 times this year, including a franchise-record 29 in the regular season.

The rookie became the first player in postseason history to be hit by a pitch with the bases loaded multiple times in a career, after he was also plunked in the same situation in Game 3.

Losing pitcher Anthony Kay started the sixth for Chicago, but the left-hander was replaced by Taylor after Travis Bazzana’s RBI double tied it at 4.

Bailey greeted Taylor with a run-scoring single, and Cleveland started to pull away.

Walks by Brayan Rocchio and Kwan loaded the bases for Ramírez, who made it 6-4 with an infield single. Chase DeLauter added another run-scoring single before Adell capped the outburst with a liner to right that drove in Kwan and Ramírez.

“They’re making really good swing decisions. They’re making contact. We talked about how good a job they do of doing that,” Venable said. “When you walk guys, they make you pay. We were able to get away with it a couple times the first couple games. These last two, just weren’t able to.”

Adell hit a three-run triple during Cleveland’s Game 3 victory. He has four hits, three walks and six RBIs in the series.

With a second opportunity to seal the series at home, the White Sox (84-78) laid an egg against the Guardians (85-77), who tied the series with a 9-5 victory. The only ongoing Division Series is tied at two, and the only remaining game will happen in Cleveland.

Left-handed pitcher Hagen Smith got the start for the South Siders. Smith issued a six-pitch walk to Steven Kwan to open the game, but he retired José Ramírez with a fly out to medium-deep center. From there, Smith nearly got out of the first inning with a modest 11-pitch workload. The White Sox had a chance to turn a 3-6-1 double play when Chase DeLauter hit a grounder to first. Murakami made a quick throw to second, but on what was turning out to be a close play at first, Smith failed to handle Colson Montgomery’s return throw. As a result, DeLauter was safe at first.

Jo Adell proceeded to work an eight-pitch walk to extend the inning, and Nathaniel Lowe drew yet another eight-pitch walk. That increased Smith’s pitch count to 27, and the bases were suddenly loaded with two outs. In addition, Kyle Teel used a challenge on the 3-2 pitch to Lowe that missed the bottom of the zone by 2.2´´, not a wise challenge. At that point, Erick Fedde entered the game for his first appearance of the series. Fedde’s task was to retire Angel Martínez, and on a 1-2 sweeper, he did just that. Martínez chased the sweeper in the dirt, and the threat was gone. The crowd for this blackout game collectively exhaled and cheered.

Cleveland lefty Parker Messick got off to a strong start against the White Sox, retiring three of four batters he faced in the first. The only White Sox hitter to reach was Miguel Vargas, who drew his sixth walk of the series. Vargas drew that walk with two outs, and Messick struck out Murakami to strand Vargas at first.

Fedde got through the top of the second without drama, and things appeared to be looking up when Tommy Pham drew a leadoff walk in the White Sox half. However, Brenton Doyle looked at a 3-2 fastball that caught plenty of the plate, Teel chased a changeup in the dirt, and Braden Montgomery struck out swinging. Braden got ahead in the count at 2-0, and the third pitch was incorrectly called a strike. The rookie thought of challenging the pitch, but held off due to potentially using up the team’s the second ABS challenge just two innings into the game. Braden struck out two pitches later.

After another strong inning by Fedde in the top of the third, the White Sox offense got down to business in the bottom half. Colson Montgomery hit a soft grounder back to the mound. Messick attempted to field the ball with the glove behind his back, but he could not gather it cleanly. The ball squirted off to the side, and Colson had an infield single. Chase Meidroth followed with a double to the left field corner. Colson advanced to third, and the White Sox had a pair in scoring position with no outs. Randal Grichuk struck out swinging at a fastball above the zone, but Vargas worked an excellent plate appearance to draw a seven-pitch walk and load the bases. In a high-leverage spot, the stage was set for Murakami, who also displayed an excellent batting eye by drawing a six-pitch walk to force in the game’s first run. With the boisterous crowd going wild, Messick was removed from the game with the bases loaded and one out. Right-handed reliever Shawn Armstrong took over to face pinch-hitter Sam Antonacci, who replaced Pham. On Armstrong’s first pitch, Antonacci took advantage of a breaking ball that caught a large part of the plate and lined it toward right-center. DeLauter ran it down, so Antonacci had to settle for a sacrifice fly, but that was enough to double the lead. Armstrong got Doyle to line out, but the damage was done. The White Sox led by a score of 2-0 after three, and Cleveland’s ace was already out of the game.

After a quiet fourth inning, the Guardians offense came to life in the fifth, finally managing to put themselves on the board. Catcher Patrick Bailey entered the game as a pinch-hitter and launched a solo homer against Fedde, who had been cruising up until that point. After a line out by Brayan Rocchio and a single by Kwan, Fedde’s strong outing was over with a runner on first and one out. Jordan Hicks took over on the mound and got a favorable call on the first pitch he threw to Ramírez. However, Ramírez was expecting another high fastball, and this time, he turned on it and drove it over the wall in right-center. Just like that, the Guardians had a 3-2 lead and plenty of momentum.

The White Sox were not behind for long. Meidroth added to his strong performance with a leadoff walk, and although Tristan Peters struck out, Vargas drew yet another free pass. That prompted a pitching change, as Tim Herrin replaced Armstrong on the mound. That move nearly backfired immediately in spectacular fashion, as Herrin’s first pitch to Murakami was a hanging curveball that Murakami crushed. Off the bat, it looked like it could be trouble, but Murakami was barely early on it, and the ball drifted foul down the right field line. Two pitches later, however, Murakami lined a single to left to load the bases. Up to the plate stepped Antonacci, who was hit by yet another pitch. Antonacci seems to be a magician when it comes to HBPs, and this was his fourth one already this postseason. This HBP forced in the tying run, and the White Sox still only had one out. From there, Doyle got the job done with a sacrifice fly to drive in Vargas, and suddenly, the White Sox were back in front, 4-3.

The back-and-forth battle continued in the sixth, when Anthony Kay took over on the mound for the White Sox. After retiring Lowe to open the inning, outs were difficult for Kay and the White Sox to collect. Kay hit Martínez, who proceeded to steal second despite an accurate throw by Teel. With Martínez on second, Bazzana hit a liner to right. Braden Montgomery appeared to have a bead on it, but he could not track it down. Martínez scored, and Bazzana parked at second with a double to tie the game at four. At that point, with the game being in the balance, Grant Taylor took over.

Taylor entered the game as the MVP of the series with +3.42 cWPA (Championship Win Probability Added). Taylor relinquished that spot with this outing, which went as poorly as it could have gone. The first batter against Taylor was Bailey, who poked a grounder through the left side for a go-ahead RBI single. That put the Guardians ahead, 5-4, and they were not done. Taylor issued back-to-back walks to Rocchio and Kwan to load the bases for Ramírez. Taylor got Ramírez to hit a curveball into the ground, and it appeared the White Sox would be able to pick up at least one out. However, Meidroth, who was playing in, did not field it cleanly, and everyone advanced 90 feet safely. From there, the situation got out of hand. DeLauter drove in an insurance run with a single, and Adell continued his attack on White Sox pitching with a two-run single. Incredibly, Adell became the eighth consecutive Guardian to reach base safely, and the score was 9-4. Finally, Taylor’s nightmarish outing was over after failing to retire any of the six batters he faced.

After the dust of that top of the sixth inning settled, the game intensity plummeted given Cleveland’s lead. What was surprising, however, was that after that bizarre sequence, nobody scored again until the bottom of the ninth. Part of that was because Cleveland put Cade Smith in the game to open the bottom of the eighth, even though Cleveland had a five-run lead. Smith shut the White Sox down in the eighth, but the Vargas got the best of Smith in the ninth, launching a solo homer to open the frame.

Miguel Vargas goes yard! https://t.co/B2Bn1TdnMG

— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) October 9, 2026

That cut the deficit to four, but the South Siders were still deep in the woods. Smith proceeded to walk Murakami before being pulled after 31 pitches. Another surprising development occurred when presumed Game 5 starter Gavin Williams took over on the mound in relief of Smith. Antonacci was the first batter to face Williams, and he singled to bring the potential tying run to the on-deck circle. As a result, there was a glimmer of hope for the White Sox, who had runners on first and second with no outs in a 9-5 game. However, Williams got pinch-hitter Andrew Benintendi to chase a couple of breaking balls in the dirt for the first out, and Williams got into a groove from there. Teel worked an intense plate appearance, but on the eighth pitch, Teel grounded into a fielder’s choice at second base out for the second out of the inning. With the potential tying run still in the on-deck circle, Braden Montgomery hit a soft liner to left that appeared to have a chance of falling for a single. However, Kwan, who has won four Gold Gloves, got a good jump on the ball to make a nice catch. As a result, Williams iced the game, though he needed 18 pitches Cleveland surely didn’t want to burn.

The White Sox will be back in action on Saturday in Cleveland at 7 p.m. CT. This time, there will be no wiggle room, as the winner of that game will take the series and face the Rays (98-64) in the ALCS. TBS/HBO Max and TruTV will televise Game 5, and WMVP 1000 AM will have the radio coverage. We will see you then for a crucial matchup.

MVP
Sam Antonacci (PH-DH): 1-for-2, HBP, 2 RBI, K, 0.18 WPA

Runners-Up
Erick Fedde (RHRP): 3 2/3 IP, 2 ER, 3 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 0.12 WPA
Bryan Hudson (LHRP): 1 2/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 K, 0.02 WPA
Tyler Davis (RHRP): 2 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 0.01 WPA
Munetaka Murakami (1B): 1-for-3, RBI, 2 BB, SB, K, 0.17 WPA
Chase Meidroth (2B): 1-for-4, 2B, BB, 0.13 WPA
Miguel Vargas (3B): 1-for-2, HR, 3 BB, SB, 0.09 WPA
Colson Montgomery (SS): 2-for-4, K, 0.03 WPA

Cold Cat
Grant Taylor (RHRP): 0 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 2 BB, 0 K, -0.43 WPA

Runners-Up
Jordan Hicks (RHRP): 2/3 IP, 1 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 1 K, -0.22 WPA
Anthony Kay (LHRP): 1/3 IP, 2 ER, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 K, -0.19 WPA
Hagen Smith (LHSP): 2/3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 0 K, -0.02 WPA
Braden Montgomery (RF): 0-for-5, 4 K, -0.12 WPA
Kyle Teel (C): 0-for-4, BB, 2 K, -0.06 WPA

CHICAGO — The big winner in Game 4 of the ALDS was the Tampa Bay Rays.

Seriously. The Cleveland Guardians and Chicago White Sox burned through their pitching staffs just to get to a Game 5 on Saturday, Oct. 10, when they'll both likely have to do it all over again. Then one of them will have to head straight to Florida for Game 1 of the ALCS on Monday, Oct. 12, the arms of their pitchers hanging by a thread.

The Rays, meanwhile, are chilling, having completed their sweep of the New York Yankees on Wednesday, Oct. 7. They could enjoy Cleveland's 9-5 win that forced Game 5, watching their would-be opponents beat each other up while the Rays pitchers are getting another breather and manager Kevin Cash is lining up his pitching staffs and batting order exactly how he wants them.

No word on whether the Rays are sipping margaritas and mai tais while they wait.

The Cleveland Guardians are still alive.

They forced a Game 5 in the American League Division Series with a 9-5 win over the Chicago White Sox on Thursday, Oct. 8 amid a blackout at Rate Field.

In the fifth inning, José Ramírez hit a go-ahead, two-run home run to put the Guardians up 3-2. With the count 0-1, the third baseman was tossed a fastball by White Sox pitcher Jordan Hicks just above the strike zone. He smacked it hard and watched it sail into the bullpen in right field. Steven Kwan also scored after hitting a single.

Earlier that inning, Patrick Bailey hit a solo home run to put the Guardians on the board. Cleveland had not hit a home run in the first three games of the series.

Whether you’re an optimist, a pessimist, or a realist, the 2026 San Diego Padres season will look different to you. The dramatic swings within the 162-game regular season gave many Padres fans whiplash.

The bullpen’s excellence remained the one constant throughout the season. That part of the roster showed consistency until the very end of the year. Ultimately, the overuse of the relief corps resulted in fatigue and inconsistency during the past month.

Just about every other aspect of the team’s performance was as unpredictable as any season could be. 

The offense and starting pitching weren’t reliable, but the effort was always there. 

The Padres had weaknesses 

There was never a real starting rotation. Michael King was excellent all year, a staff ace. The rest were a patchwork and could not provide reliability.

The offense took almost four months to find its feet. Going from almost the worst in baseball to a top-five offense is a credit to the players and the coaches who put in the work.

The bench was a rotating cast of characters. Injury was a major factor, and without the scouting and coaching within the organization, the Padres would have been floundering by midseason. 

Being led by a rookie manager with several coaches who were also rookies at their jobs has inherent risk. Mistakes were made; there can be no denying that fact. Craig Stammen would be the first to acknowledge it. Those mistakes were not the reason this team faltered in the postseason.

An overworked bullpen

All through the season, the bullpen was used to buoy the starting pitchers. When the starters failed to provide length, the relievers stepped in and propped them up. That strategy will eventually catch up with you. As the regular season wound down and the postseason began, the wear and tear on the trusted arms in the bullpen began to show.

Both Mason Miller and Adrián Morejón exceeded career numbers for innings. Both showed the results of that strain as the season was finishing.

Bradgley Rodriguez, a 22-year-old rookie, lost velocity as the regular season concluded and had to be given rest. He also lost some effectiveness, allowing more hits and runs.

In the postseason, the repeated use of the trusted core of relievers resulted in David Morgan, Randy Vasquez, and Wandy Peralta never seeing the field during any of the six games played.

The postseason offense

What is the answer to why the Padres offense goes missing during the postseason? 

Manny Machado was exceptional, defying logic that would dictate a decline in performance with age. He had a .350 batting average with a 1.080 OPS, hitting a homer with three RBI. Fernando Tatis Jr. had two home runs with three RBI but only hit .167 with six strikeouts in 24 at-bats. Jackson Merrill hit .292 but had no extra-base hits with eight strikeouts in 24 at-bats. 

The lack of execution with runners in scoring position was the death knell for this team. In the divisional series, the Padres were 4-for-23 with 30 left on base over the four games. 

This is the third straight postseason with the Padres’ offense underperforming when the lights are the brightest. Role players made minimal contributions, while Merrill and Tatis didn’t provide what was needed. 

There is an explanation for the failures of the Padres in the postseason. The challenge is for the organization to find the answers.

Looking forward

Both Xander Bogaerts and Machado are still performing, despite their advancing ages. The window of opportunity for this team should remain open as long as they are both contributors on the positive side.

The young core of Tatis, Merrill, Luis Campusano, and the newly arrived Ethan Salas provides talent to build around. 

Re-signing Ty France should be an offseason priority. He wants to be here and has been their most consistent player all season. He should also be named the team MVP.

Starting pitching must be a focus this offseason. Retain Michael King; that comes first. Decide what role Randy Vasquez will be filling. Use the offseason to assess what Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta can do going into next season. Move on from Yu Darvish unless he decides he can pitch next year.

Walker Buehler, Casey Mize, and Robby Ray are all free agents. The team needs more stability and length than what those three have provided.

Jhony Brito should be recovered from his Tommy John rehab and needs to be assessed for what he can contribute. It seems clear neither Griffin Canning nor JP Sears can be contributors for this team.

The bench includes Gavin Sheets and Miguel Andujar. The team can retain Samad Taylor and/or Dustin Harris, but a permanent solution for left field is not among those players.

Unfortunately, Jase Bowen has no clue how to hit major league pitching.

Sung-Mun Song is a defensive marvel, but can someone teach him how to hit?

The rules could change

The offseason labor situation will impact everything the Padres need to do for the next season. When that season begins is not even clear at this point.

Padres general manager A.J. Preller and his team have a lot of work to do, but they won’t know the guidelines they have to work within until the labor dispute is settled.

New owners José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones got an exciting introduction to owning a Major League Baseball team. Hopefully, that will just whet their appetite for more.

There is potential and excitement for this Padres organization, once the labor situation is decided. 

They are so close to the final step that will take them all the way.

The Cleveland Guardians are storming.

The team hit two home runs in the fifth inning in Game 4 of the American League Division Series against the Chicago White Sox on Thursday, Oct. 8 at Rate Field.

José Ramírez hit a go-ahead two-run home run to put the Guardians up 3-2. With the count 0-1, the third baseman was tossed a fastball by White Sox pitcher Jordan Hicks just above the strike zone. He smacked it hard and watched it sail into the bullpen in right field. Steven Kwan also scored after hitting a single.

Ramírez was the first batter Hicks faced after coming in for Erick Fedde.

Earlier that inning, Patrick Bailey hit a solo home run to put the Guardians on the board.

Cleveland had not hit a home run in the first three games of the series.

With a victory, the White Sox win the series. Whoever wins the series will face the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Championship Series.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: José Ramírez hits go-ahead home run for Guardians in ALDS Game 4

The votes are in, and Yankees fans are out for change after an ugly sweep at the hands of the Rays ended the Bombers’ season in the ALDS. 

A poll conducted by The Post showed — unsurprisingly — that respondents want Aaron Boone gone after the ballclub fell well short of the lofty expectations bestowed upon it, with nearly 85 percent of more than 11,000 voters calling on the Yankees to give him the boot. 

“I’ve been calling for Aaron Boone’s firing for years, and not for any specific baseball reason. Just the simple fact that he hasn’t won with the talent on that team. George [Steinbrenner] would have fired him long ago,” one person commented on The Post’s website. 

Boone has not won a championship since taking over as manager in 2018, making just one World Series appearance — a 2024 loss to the Dodgers — in nine seasons at the helm. 

Whether poll participants will get their wish from general manager Brian Cashman is uncertain, with the longtime GM calling Boone a “really good manager.” 

Those same poll participants, though, aren’t generally fans of the general manager, with 73 percent (8,535) calling for Cashman’s job. 

Cashman has been general manager for 29 seasons — including four World Series titles (1998, 1999, 2000, 2009) and seven American League pennants. 

However, Cashman has faced plenty of criticism over his allegiance to Boone and the personnel moves he’s made over the past few seasons as the championship drought has dragged on. 

“Cashman should go or change the organization’s approach to hitting,” another voter commented. “Need to stop relying on the home run. That doesn’t work in the playoffs against better pitching. Concentrate on putting the ball in play and minimize strikeouts. Get players that can hit .270-.280. Play baseball the way it’s supposed to be played. Also, we need a typical leadoff hitter, not have Rice or the likes of Grisham batting leadoff.

A stat shown on the TBS broadcast showed Tampa opponents made 188 errors this year against them. Most in the majors. That’s because they make contact and force you to make a play. If Cashman won’t dictate that change then he must go.” 

A majority of poll participants also want to see Jazz Chisholm Jr. (91 percent), Trent Grisham (88 percent) and slugger Giancarlo Stanton (86 percent) get the boot. 

Anthony Volpe saw his stock rise among those who took part in the polling, with 79 percent saying he should stay with the team. 

“Stanton, Chisholm gotta go. Yanks need [a] catcher big time,” another voter explained in a comment. “Stop playing with Volpe’s head [and] make him [the] everyday second baseman. Rice, Jones, Bellinger, Judge, Lombard, Volpe should be everyday. Add a 3rd baseman and catcher and lineup is set. Pitching, if healthy, is set. Boone time for a change.” 

Pat Murphy is taking the Brewers in seven.

The Milwaukee manager didn’t hold back when discussing the upcoming National League Championship Series against the Dodgers.

“We’re going to do our best to stay with them and beat them in 7 games.”

“We’re gonna be more ready than we were last time, I believe. That doesn’t guarantee anything but we got to be ready for what they say is the best team in baseball, but we think we are,” Murphy said after the Brewers defeated the Padres in the NLDS Wednesday night.

The Dodgers also faced Milwaukee in the NLCS last season, but the Brewers have played arguably better baseball in 2026. LA swept the Brewers on their way to the World Series in 2025.

This year, the Brewers have largely been unstoppable with a roaring offense and NL Cy Young candidate Jacob Misiorowski. In the same way, the Dodgers have also looking sharp with a 100-win season and a lights-out rotation full of aces.

While Milwaukee boasts the best record in baseball, the Dodgers own back-to-back World Series titles to support their efforts in October.

The series won’t be easy for either team.

It’s a matchup poised for great baseball as the small-market Brewers take on the sport’s juggernaut. And the Dodgers have shown that spending money doesn’t guarantee a championship unless a team has all the right pieces.