Category: MLB

The pain hasn’t gone away. It may be somewhat dulled, but it remains.

The Dodgers returning to The Bronx this weekend — their first trip here since clinching the 2024 World Series at the Stadium — is a reminder of what could have been.

“The disappointment of getting to the end and playing for it all and coming up short, that’s one of those things that leaves a scar,” manager Aaron Boone said before the Yankees’ game against the Dodgers on Saturday was rained out and will be made up on Sunday as a split doubleheader. “You want to be in a position to be in a World Series and play for it all. We had that opportunity and came up short. So there’s pain and disappointment that comes with that, and it’s part of our baseball journey.”

That World Series only went five games but was evenly played, with the Yankees blowing leads in Game 1 and Game 5.

The Yankees were up 5-0 in the clincher, but a series of errors and misplays enabled the Dodgers to rally for the crown in the Yankees’ first trip to the Fall Classic since winning it all in 2009.

The Dodgers entered this series as owners of the best record in baseball despite a number of major injuries to the likes of Edwin Díaz, Tyler Glasnow, Will Smith and Blake Snell.

They remain the heavy favorites to not only reach the World Series again but win it for the third consecutive year.

The Yankees have plenty of their own maladies, most notably Aaron Judge’s fractured right rib.

Regardless, this could end up being a World Series preview.

“Any time we play the Dodgers, whether it’s here, whether it’s in [Los Angeles], it’s always big. It always feels big,” Boone said. “There are a lot of eyeballs on it, obviously. These are the kinds of series that I think are good for the 162-[game season]. You have the grind of the 162; you have those different series that feel a little bigger. This is one of those.”

PHILADELPHIA — As someone with no-trade protection in his contract, Bo Bichette controls whether he will remain with the Mets beyond Aug. 3.

Bichette has indicated he’s in no hurry to leave.

And yet, the third baseman stopped short Saturday of saying he would block any trade proposal that involves him.

“That hasn’t been brought to my attention right now, so I don’t have an answer,” Bichette said before the Mets lost to the Phillies 6-1 at Citizens Bank Park.

Bichette is a long shot to be traded given he can opt out of his three-year, $126 million contract after the season.

The uncertainty of his status affects his trade value.

His offensive surge over the past six weeks has increased the likelihood he will opt out.

But Bichette said he doesn’t anticipate a decision on that front until after the season.

“I signed here because I believed in the talent here and it’s exciting to play for an organization that was trying to win,” Bichette said. “The reason I signed the contract was to have freedom for my own career, so I guess it would be too early to tell.”

Bichette entered the day with an .844 OPS over his previous 36 games dating to June 3.

It’s the kind of right-handed production that would be hard to replace next season if Bichette departed.

The Mets have plenty of pitchers that figure to move before the trade deadline, but most of the position players they might look to deal have significant dollars remaining on their contracts.

Bichette was asked if the direction the organization appears headed will factor into whether he opts out of his contract.

“I think there’s a lot of positive things here, and also some things that haven’t gone right,” he said. “Obviously, that is something everybody can see, but everything will be taken into account.”

What are the positives?

“There’s a lot of young players they have brought up, a positive outlook for the future,” Bichette said. “And then on top, the organization is still trying to win. It’s not an organization that is OK being mediocre. It’s an organization that wants to win and wants to win the World Series and that is the goal. You couple that with a lot of good young players who have a really bright future. That’s a positive thing.”

The youth movement includes rookies Nolan McLean, A.J. Ewing and Carson Benge, in addition to Christian Scott.

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No member of that group is expected to be available in trade talks.

Bichette began the day with a .253/.297/.372 slash line overall after sputtering into early June.

Bichette said he hasn’t spent much time wondering why his success didn’t arrive earlier.

“I can’t do anything about those first two months,” Bichette said. “I wish I had gotten off to the better start and who knows if the season would have gone differently not just for me, but for the team as a whole. I can’t do anything about it.”

Bichette knows firsthand that a turnaround for the Mets next season isn’t a far-fetched notion.

He was part of a Blue Jays team that finished last in the AL East in 2024 before going to the World Series last year.

“We had a lot of injuries [in ’24] and I was one of them,” Bichette said. “I don’t know if I have ever been this far out of [the playoff race] before, but we were definitely not in a good place.”

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Arizona Diamondbacks fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

The second half of the 2026 season is now under way, the D-backs having played their first two games after the break at Chase Field against the Cardinals. But if this week’s poll results are anything to go by, we should likely be hoping that the rest of the season is more successful than the first. It has certainly been a very mid team. While slightly surpassing preseason expectations from the sports books, the current projected tally of 83 wins is almost in line with the average prediction of 84 wins, from the SnakePit writers back in March. There have been ups and downs, certainly, and it’s fair to say that the wins haven’t all come from the expected places.

For example, who had Eduardo Rodriguez and Michael Soroka as the two best starting pitchers? Previous form would not exactly have suggested that. But here we are, with E-Rod coming off an All-Star appearance – and one where he pitched better than the NL starter. On the other hand, there are players who haven’t been as good as expected. Ketel Marte has underperformed his usual high standards, Lourdes Gurriel Jr. has been a disaster, and I’m sure we don’t need to rehash the first-half autopsy report in regard to first base, designated hitter and center field. But in the final analysis, what did we think of the first half? Well, the SnakePit has spoken with (almost) one voice…

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Yeah, it’s kinda hard to argue with that conclusion. It hasn’t been a disaster, certainly. Second place in the NL West is nothing to be ashamed of, with the Diamondbacks ahead of both the Padres and Giants, despite both sides outspending Arizona by some margin. The team is still in the hunt for a wild-card spot, and it’s worth noting that theie remaining schedule is more favorable than the five teams currently ahead of them in that race. On the other hand, they’ve been outscored by the opposition, which suggests they are “lucky” to be above .500 at the break. If that’d change going forward, it would be helpful and much appreciated.

From the SnakePit point of view, “Meh” is very much the worst outcome, in terms of fan engagement. If this were the Mets, there would be an endless stream of articles to be written on how things can be fixed, who should be fired, etc. If this were the Dodgers, while the “race” for the division has all the dramatic tension of a state funeral procession, there would be a lot to celebrate, the bandwagon continuing to increase in size as we head towards the inevitable post-season. But this? There’s only so many times I can rehash the mediocrity of first-base, or remind people not to take statistics from Reno at face value.

Obviously, I’d prefer a 2023-style second half. Though that boat may already have sailed. I keep forgetting that D-backs team went into the break tied for the lead in the division, having been ahead by as many as four games in mid-June. Now, despite the very pleasant sweep of the Dodgers before the break, they still sit 11.5 games ahead of us – no other division leader is up by more than five games. It’s all going to be about the wild-card race for the next two and a half months, and hopefully the 2026 Arizona squad will be in that conversation until the final pitch of the regular season, on Sunday September 27th in San Diego.

Detroit Tigers (44-52) vs. Los Angeles Angels (38-60)

Time/Place: 10:07 p.m., Comerica Park
SB Nation Site: N/A
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Pitching Matchup: LHP Tarik Skubal (5-4, 3.06 ERA) vs. RHP Grayson Rodriguez (3-2, 7.55 ERA)

The All-Star Game and the MLB Draft are behind us. The Rockies drafted 21 total players over the course of two days, and have signed two undrafted free agents. You can keep track of all the action here.

Earlier this week, we asked who was the best Day 1 pick for the Rockies. It was a close race, but Georgia catcher Daniel Jackson edged out UCLA right-handed pitcher Logan Reddemann for that honor.

Meanwhile, only 21% of folks said Kentucky shortstop Tyler Bell — the Rockies’ first pick, 10th overall — was the best pick of the draft.

Do you agree with the results? Which player intrigues you the most from this draft? Let us know in the comments!

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Hopefully the Nats did not get all of the runs out of their system in one night. After last night’s 23 run explosion, the Nats will look for a series win against the A’s tonight. As we saw last night, this is a hitter friendly yard and the A’s bullpen is also very hitter friendly.

With a righty on the mound, Blake Butera will make some tweaks. Luis Garcia Jr. will get his first start after the break. Dylan Crews is the only pure right handed hitter in the lineup, hitting 9th. Jose Tena, Keibert Ruiz and Jorbit Vivas will be in the lineup. Zack Littell will make his first start of the second half.

The A’s are also making a couple tweaks. Long time Met Jeff McNeil will be in the lineup in the 9 spot. Another veteran in Jonah Heim will be in the lineup, and he will be the DH. Otherwise, it is a lot of the same faces as last night. J.T. Ginn has had a breakout year and he is on the mound tonight.

Game Info:

Stadium: Sutter Health Park

Time: 10:05 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

The late night Nats are back this evening, with a 10:05 start. If you stayed up last night, you got to see a show. Hopefully that will be the case again in this one. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

Hitters at the bottom of the roster typically take at-bats in pregame sim games, essentially serving as pawns against rehabbing pitchers several hours before the start of real games.

So it felt notable that Anthony Volpe (along with Ali Sánchez) stepped into the box against Clarke Schmidt on Saturday afternoon in The Bronx.

Before the game scheduled for Saturday night was postponed by rain, Volpe was set to be out of the lineup for a second straight game.

Presuming a nod in one end of Sunday’s doubleheader, he likely will start in one game of this series; just as he started in one game of the previous series in Washington; just as he started in one game in the series at Tampa Bay that preceded Washington.

There are a pair of Shortstop Watches going on, both with George Lombard Jr. and the Yankees’ trade deadline.

But at the moment, José Caballero is separating himself as the shortstop receiving the bulk of playing time.

Manager Aaron Boone still called it a “day-to-day” situation, but there is no denying that Caballero is winning the battle most of the days.

During Friday’s series-opening loss to the Dodgers, Caballero went 0-for-4 but still contributed a pair of head-turning plays.

He robbed a hit from Kyle Tucker by ranging up the middle, gloving the ball with a lunging stab and finishing the play with a spin and throw.

Later, he made a nice basket catch in shallow center field with his back to home plate to take away a bloop single from Dalton Rushing.

His defense at shortstop has been solid, and his arm is better than Volpe’s.

Neither has hit enough to firmly seize the job, but Caballero (.688 OPS) has been the slightly better option than Volpe (.668).

That’s particularly true of late, with Volpe slashing .222/.276/.222 in his past 10 games — perhaps a reflection of a hitter’s numbers suffering amid sporadic playing time.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

“I think both guys have come in with a focus and are ready to play and all hands on deck,” Boone said after Saturday’s game was rained out. “In both cases, I feel like [they] have a very team-first attitude, and that’s the way we need it.”

There are no known plans for Volpe to see time at another position.

Boone cited Caballero’s experience as a utilityman in dictating him switching positions when a need in the outfield or at second or third base arises, leaving Volpe to play shortstop.

Those instances, though, largely have dried up since Trent Grisham and Ryan McMahon returned from injury, giving the Yankees more stability and less need of a utility player.

Thus, Caballero’s time elsewhere and Volpe’s time on the field have dipped.

Such a development is significant considering the Yankees watched Volpe win the everyday shortstop job in spring training 2023 and have rarely challenged him since.

The Derek Jeter-loving New Jerseyan played in 472 of 486 games from 2023-25, a constant presence with a bat that did not develop as hoped.

It is possible that, at some point this season, Lombard becomes the new hope at shortstop.

The 21-year-old, who had begun to conquer Triple-A competition before suffering a pair of finger sprains in mid-June, returned to action Friday and went 2-for-3 with a home run and a walk for Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.

He also had launched a homer in each of his rehab games in the Florida Complex League, so the top prospect may be announcing that his bat is ready.

Boone said “it’s possible” that Lombard can become a factor this season and acknowledged that “we’re having those conversations internally” regarding how much the club will have to see from Lombard before a promotion — which would arrive in the midst of a playoff chase for a team with World Series hopes.

“It’s no secret how highly we think of George,” Boone said of Lombard, who could be used as a trade piece for a difference-maker, though such a blockbuster would be a surprise. “He’s just getting back now from a fairly short IL stint. Had a good game [Friday] night, obviously, and so he’s certainly more and more in his development pushing himself into the conversation.”

Last night, the Athletics kicked off the second half the same way they finished the first half, suffering an embarrassing 23-4 defeat to kick off this three-game series against the Washington Nationals.

The team’s change at pitching coach did not provide an immediate boost, as several A’s pitchers combined to allow 18 runs in another disastrous performance at Sutter Health Park.According to OptaSTATS, during this 10-game skid, the A’s have made unwanted history, becoming the first MLB team to post an OPS that low (.575) while allowing an opponent OPS that high (1.019).

Tonight, the A’s can even this series and collect just their second win of the month. Before the game, the team made several roster moves following its latest humiliating loss.

Right-handed reliever Justin Sterner, who was one of two pitchers that allowed six runs yesterday, lands on the injured list with right knee chondromalacia, otherwise known as runners knee. If that was the cause of his recent struggles, hopefully his performance will improve once he returns from the injury.

The A’s recalled right-hander Geoff Hartlieb to take his place in the bullpen. First baseman Joey Meneses was designated for assignment to open a 40-man roster spot. The 34-year-old went 3-for-20 in nine games with the Athletics over the past few weeks. Now the club has five days to find a trade partner or place Meneses on waivers.

Speaking of trades, the A’s sent Aaron Civale, who had been designated for assignment a few days earlier, to the Chicago Cubs. The veteran pitcher returns to the team he finished the 2025 season with. In return, the “Green and Gold’ received minor-league pitcher Aiden Moffett, an undrafted free agent out of West Virginia. Moffett has struck out more than a batter per inning this season, but he has also issued 42 walks in just 22⅓ innings between the Arizona Complex League and Single-A.

Moving to tonight’s game, A’s right-hander J.T. Ginn will make his 19th start of the season. The 27-year-old enters his first outing of the second half with a 7-6 record, a 3.67 ERA, a 1.25 WHIP and 93 strikeouts over 103 innings.

Ginn ended his breakout first half on a sour note. He exited his start in Detroit after four innings because of an illness. A few days later, he imploded in the A’s final game before the All-Star break against the Chicago White Sox, allowing six runs in the bottom of the first inning and erasing his team’s early 1–0 lead.

This evening, the Athletics desperately need a quality start from Ginn. He must keep the ball down in the zone, trust his sinker to generate ground-ball outs and avoid mistake pitches. That will not be easy, as the Nationals have scored the most runs in the majors, but Ginn has proven to be the one starter the A’s can consistently count on when he takes the mound.

He will face off against Nationals’ right-hander Zack Littell, who is 7-6 with a 4.90 ERA through 19 appearances, including 12 starts, in his first season in the nation’s capital. Yesterday, the A’s offense struggled against Cade Cavalli’s overpowering arsenal. Littell presents a different challenge. With just 57 strikeouts in 90 innings, he relies on keeping hitters off balance and generating weak contact rather than overpowering them. That approach has paid off recently, as the 30-year-old has pitched well over his last three appearances, though he has earned just one win during that stretch.

Littell will face off against this A’s lineup:

While the team’s pitching has received most of the criticism, its offense has also failed to meet expectations.

Catcher Shea Langeliers needs to carryover his All-Star Game performance into games that actually matter. With Henry Bolte on the bench after a tough game in the series-opener,Lawrence Butler shifts to center field. Donovan Walton gets a second straight start at second base, while Jonah Heim and Jeff McNeil make their first starts of the series.

One of the club’s top prospects, Tommy White, is out of the starting lineup after making his MLB debut and collecting his first hit last night. Given the A’s record and the absence of Nick Kurtz, it is surprising to see Tommy Tanks not playing, but hopefully McNeil will prove the doubters wrong.

Ginn will go up against this lineup for Blake Butera’s Nationals:

For the A’s to have a chance to force a rubber match tomorrow, Ginn and the relievers who follow him must keep Washington’s offense in check.

Follow the Game:
Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, KVMX 92.1/105.5, A’s Cast

The Mets' poor defense and lackluster offense continued to hurt them during Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Philadelphia Phillies, as the team committed three errors and had just three hits.

Francisco Alvarez's throwing error in the bottom of the fifth inning on a pickoff attempt moved Kyle Schwarber from first to third base, putting him in position to score on a single later in the frame. Then, in the sixth inning with Philadelphia up 6-1, Francisco Lindor's relay throw to third base went wild, allowing Bryce Harper to advance to second base easily and giving him his third straight game with an error.

Luckily, Lindor's mistake didn't add to the Phillies' lead, but it did continue the trend of poor defensive mistakes for the 2026 Mets as the star shortstop is already up to six errors in only 42 games this season. After the loss, he was asked if what interim manager Andy Green described as "sloppy play" is creating a mental block for the team across the board and took blame for his mistakes, saying his level of play needs to improve.

"I can't really speak about everybody else. From my point of view, he's right, it was sloppy. It's not to the level that I expect myself and it's not the level that people expect us to play here," Lindor said. "For me, defense, it's the most important thing and it's been not good, not good at all. I'm letting down the pitchers that have worked extremely hard. 

"Thankfully, tonight, my error didn't lead to a run. However, it lead to high-leverage situations. Where it was just we could have pitched with someone on first and third. Overall, just got to get better. When it comes to mental mistakes, yeah, that was a mental mistake today. I got a little fast and tried to make something happen and I wasn't fully aligned to go to third base."

Lindor, who owns a career .980 fielding percentage and had made just 55 errors in his first five seasons with the Mets, said the team needs to be better about "turning the page" after a mistake and continue to support each other when they happen.

"You got to focus on what you have in front of you," Lindor said. "And as soon as you make that error, try to focus on turning the page and then expect the ball to be hit back to you. It's one of those where per game, it's happened a little too much. But with that being said, everybody is working... you just got to rely on each other and have the mentality of picking each other up."

He added: "We know each other, we're here for each other and we know nobody's going to make the mistakes. At the end of the day, everybody cares for each other here. As a defensive player, I want to get it done for the pitcher. And in the same thing, the pitchers want to help us when we mess up. And when we're on offense, we want to score for everybody to have the lead and help the pitchers be a little more comfortable. Everybody trusts each other here and we're playing for each other.

After missing 57 games, it was expected that Lindor would take some time to reacclimate at the plate, but not on defense. When asked if there has been a bit of an adjustment period for him defensively since returning on June 24, Lindor said that either way, he needs to get back to his "standard."

"I've never really thought about it, but there have been some plays that have gone a little fast," Lindor said. "I don't know if it's missing time or if it's just, I got to just get better. The way I view it, bottom line, I just got to get better. 

"I don't know if it's a time thing, to me, that's not an excuse. I'm back on a major league field, I got to play like a major league player. I got to play to the standard that the New York Mets want and I got to play up to my standard as well."

Green and the team believe that Lindor can get back to that level this season, especially when they get "on the attack defensively." The 32-year-old noted that returning to full form is a "high mountain" he plans on climbing the rest of the season.

"He's a guy that we believe in, we'll continue to believe in," Green said. "He's got a long track record of being one of the absolute best shortstops in baseball. Have confidence that he will be that before this season is out."

The Orioles may or may not be a good team. But right now, they’re pulling off a heck of a lot of improbable wins.

The O’s stunned the Astros in Houston for a second straight game, somehow emerging with a 4-2, 11-inning victory to extend their season-best winning streak to six. It was a game the Birds seemingly had no business winning. Their offense was a no-show throughout regulation, squandering nearly every scoring opportunity, as the top five hitters in the lineup were a combined 0-for-19. The Birds faced certain doom in the bottom of the 10th when the Astros put the winning run on third base with nobody out. But Tyler O’Neill made a game-saving defensive play and later drove in the Orioles’ go-ahead run, and new reliever Cam Sanders locked it down with a perfect 11th for the save.

Let’s jump right ahead to the most unbelievable part of this ridiculous game, the Orioles’ Houdini act in the bottom of the 10th. The clubs were locked in a 2-2 tie and the Astros loaded the bases with nobody out against Andrew Kittredge. The O’s, for all intents and purposes, were screwed. Doomed. Destined for defeat. There’s no escaping this. The Astros didn’t even need a hit to win. A well-placed grounder or a deep fly ball. Or a walk, or a wild pitch, or a hundred other possibilities. The O’s had only two outfielders, with center fielder Leody Taveras coming in to give the Birds a five-man infield. Only a miracle would keep this game alive for the Orioles.

Apparently, folks, miracles do occur. Jose Altuve lofted a fly to center. Right fielder Tyler O’Neill had to range over to make the catch, and Nick Allen, the runner from third, tagged up and busted toward the plate. O’Neill fired the ball toward home with such force that he knocked himself off his feet. His throw sailed a bit up the third-base line, but catcher Samuel Basallo snagged it and made a great tag of Allen as he slid past. OUT! DOUBLE PLAY! Wow! I didn’t think O’Neill had any chance of cutting down the runner, especially with a somewhat off-line throw, but incredibly, it worked out.

The O’s weren’t done flashing great defense. Now with runners at second and third, the next batter, LaMonte Wade Jr., tried to catch the Orioles off guard with a bunt, laying it down the third-base line. This time it was Kittredge himself who dazzled defensively, racing over to barehand the ball and whipping a strong, accurate throw to first to just nip the runner. One false move — a bobble by Kittredge or an off-line throw — would’ve resulted in a hit and scored the winning run. Kudos to the veteran Kittredge for keeping his cool and making the play. The Orioles, amazingly, had escaped the jam unscathed and lived to play another inning.

The momentum back on their side, the O’s took the lead for good in the top of the 11th. With Gunnar Henderson on second base as the free runner, Taylor Ward drew a leadoff walk. Astros righty Enyel De Los Santos very nearly got out of it, striking out Pete Alonso and Samuel Basallo, but once again it was O’Neill who played the hero. On his slow grounder to second, Altuve was late to get to the ball, and O’Neill — hustling down the line at an uncharacteristically speedy 29.3 feet per second — beat the throw to first. Henderson, who never stopped running, scored all the way from second base with the go-ahead run. Taveras followed with an RBI single to add some insurance, making it 4-2.

With the Orioles having already used all their high-leverage relievers, Craig Albernaz turned to newcomer Cam Sanders to secure the save in the bottom of the 11th. Sanders had made a fantastic first impression the previous night in his O’s debut, escaping a bases-loaded jam and notching the win, and he was no less impressive this time around. He coolly retired all three batters he faced, including a game-ending strikeout of Dezenzo that clinchde an outstanding O’s win. In his first two games as an Oriole, Sanders has earned both his first major league win and his first major league save. Can’t get much better than that.

What a victory. Before the extra-inning heroics, it seemed like this game was destined to be another of those frustrating Orioles defeats in which they only have themselves to blame. Their offense, specifically, was a source of constant frustration in the first nine innings. They failed to take advantage of Astros starter Spencer Arrighetti, who was a control-challenged mess, walking four batters and plunking another over the course of his five innings.

For example: in the third inning, Arrighetti issued back-to-back walks, bringing up Gunnar Henderson. You would think Henderson might take a pitch or two from a guy who couldn’t find the strike zone. You would think! Instead, Gunnar hacked at the first pitch and popped out to short. (He went 0-for-5 in this game and is hitless in the series. If you thought the All-Star break might cure what’s ailed Gunnar, sad to say he seems more lost at the plate than ever.) Taylor Ward then flied out on a 3-0 pitch, ending the inning.

The frustration only mounted in the fourth. Again, Arrighetti got himself into immediate trouble with an Alonso walk and Basallo HBP. Dylan Beavers followed with a produtive at-bat, lashing a double down the right-field line. Alonso scored, Basallo moved to third, and the O’s were up 1-0 with runners at second and third and nobody out, on the verge of a big inning.

But the next three Orioles put up some pathetic at-bats. Colton Cowser and Christian Encarnacion-Strand, making his Orioles debut, were each retired on the first pitch, failing to score the runner. And Jackson Holliday completed the trifecta of ineptitude by striking out. Ouch. Even after Arrighetti left the game, the O’s biffed another rally in the sixth when Cowser grounded into a double play with two runners on. Remember those two weeks or so when it seemed like Colton had finally figured things out? Those were nice. Now he’s 5-for-44 in his last 18 games, looking hopeless again.

Still, Trevor Rogers nearly made the slim one-run lead hold up. Rogers wasn’t perfect, but he was able to pitch himself out of nearly every threat the Astros tried to put together. One came right off the bat in the bottom of the first, when the Astros had three hits but didn’t score, thanks to a double play and a strikeout.

Rogers dodged a jam again in the fifth. A pair of singles put two aboard for the dangerous Yordan Alvarez, the American League’s best hitter in, oh, basically every category. Rogers made a big pitch when he needed to, retiring Alvarez on a grounder up the middle. The 1-0 Orioles lead was still intact.

But the O’s couldn’t count on Rogers to be flawless forever, and in the bottom of the seventh, the branch snapped. After retiring the first batter, Rogers gave up back-to-back singles that put runners at the corners, ending his night at 99 pitches. For Rogers, it was his fifth straight start of one or fewer runs allowed, lowering his ERA to 4.28. He’s been fantastic since the start of June.

Sadly, he wasn’t rewarded with a win. The Astros’ Nick Allen laid down a perfect squeeze bunt against Rico Garcia that plated Zach Dezenzo from third, tying the score. The Orioles really should have scored a few more runs earlier, huh? Garcia at least got out of the inning without further damage, starting an impressive couple of innings by the bullpens. Yennier Cano and Tyler Wells each worked a perfect inning for the Orioles, while Bryan Abreu and Josh Hader did the same for the Astros, sending the 1-1 tie into extra innings.

Briefly, the O’s got the upper hand in the top of the 10th. An Encarnacion-Strand single moved the free runner, Taveras, to third base, and pinch-hitter Jeremiah Jackson laid down a squeeze bunt to bring him home. It was the Orioles’ first run since the fourth inning, giving them a 2-1 lead.

The lead slipped away in the bottom of the 10th against Kittredge, which began with an Allen bunt single and an Alvarez game-tying RBI double, followed by a Henderson error. That set up the aforementioned bases-loaded, no-out jam and the wondrous escape that followed. The Orioles were facing defeat right in the face. And they said, “Not today.”

Who is your Most Birdland Player, Camden Chatters? Is it Tyler O’Neill for his game-saving throw to the plate and his go-ahead single? Andrew Kittredge for escaping a jam (albeit one of his own making)? Trevor Rogers for another strong outing? Let us know in the comments.

I barely have the words to describe my excitement with this streak and my amazement with this team. I’m going to try.

Boy, these Red Sox are winning in every way possible. Yesterday with a starting gem and powerful offense in Game 1, then a bullpen game holding the line in Game 2. This afternoon’s bout did something different.

The beginning of this game was back-and-forth-two runs for the Rays, Sox snatch it right back; Sox grab one, Rays get one very soon thereafter. Jahmai Jones, welcome to Boston with a two-run shot in his first start as a member of the Sox! Wilyer Abreu torched one over the center field fence, 435 feet, and that was the last time the Sox would have the lead for a bit. Yeah, the top of the 4th is when starter Patrick Sandoval collased, just dishing meatballs and giving the Rays a two-run lead. In the top of the 7th, Jonny DeLuca’s solo shot snuck into the Monster seats and it felt like the air deflated out of the crowd; it looked like this was the end.

Not so fast.

Andruw Monasterio opened the bottom of the seventh with a double. Jarren Duran reached on a fielding error by Rays first baseman Ryan Vilade combined with Cole Sulser not actually touching first base—a gift, but this team knows what to do with gifts. Masataka Yoshida pinch hit and grounded into a fielder’s choice that scored Monasterio. That’s one. Anthony Seigler strikes out, now there are two outs. Then Ceddanne Rafaela, down to two strikes, lined a double to make it a one-run ballgame.

The Rays went to Garrett Cleavinger. Whether the thinking was to get a lefty on lefty look against Abreu is a question for their dugout, just my hypothesis. Either way, it didn’t work. Full count. Fenway on its feet. Abreu demolished a two-run shot to the bullpen and both the crowd—and Abreu himself—completely lost it. 7-6. This is the type of frame that has defined this win streak. Don’t go down quietly.

Whitlock threw a clean eighth. Chapman walked two in the ninth—and made everyone in the ballpark chew their fingernails—then slammed the door for save number 21.

49-48. Twelve in a row. And for the first time since March, the Boston Red Sox are above .500. This was the first time all season the Red Sox have won a game being down three runs or more at some point—they were 0 and 34 before this. At some point you stop calling it a hot streak and just BELIEVE.

Studs

Wilyer Abreu (2-for-3, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 2 R, 1 BB)

Four home runs in two games. The last Sox to have back-to-back multiple home run games was Mookie Betts in 2018. The solo shot in the third gave the Sox the lead. The two-run blast in the seventh won the game. Something has clicked for him over the last week that wasn’t completely there most of this season—harder contact, pulling the ball with authority, doing it against all types of pitching. The Sox need it to keep going. If you’re not watching Wilyer Abreu right now, you should be.

Jahmai Jones (1-for-1, HR, 2 RBI, 1 R)

Acquired this week for basically a bag of peanuts, pinch hit in Game 2 of yesterday’s doubleheader, and goes deep in his first start at Fenway Park. The two-run shot in the second off Seymour set the tone for the day, tying the game after going down 2-0 quickly. Walk into a clubhouse riding a 12-game win streak and maybe the nerves don’t hit the same way. Whatever the reason, Jones swung like he’d been there all summer. Well, for only one at-bat. T’is the life of a utility guy!

Ceddanne Rafaela (1-for-4, 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R)

The line is quiet but the hit was enormous. Down two with two outs and two strikes in the seventh, Rafaela poked a double down the line to make it a one-run game and set up the Abreu moment. That’s not an easy spot. Cedd was not giving that at-bat away. Also he continues to define what it means to be a Gold Glove defending center fielder.

Duds

Patrick Sandoval (5.0 IP, 9 H, 5 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K)

Nine hits in five innings is a lot. He kept the Rays to five runs and struck out five, which is good enough to give his team a chance—and the offense did the rest—but that’s not the outing you draw up. Hopefully a one-off and not a sign that opposing lineups are starting to figure him out. The only good thing is he got long enough and the Sox pulled it back to where they didn’t need to use Brayan Bello!

Anthony Seigler (0-for-4, 3 K)

A golden sombrero on a day when the offense scraped together just six hits. Not the time. He did have an awesome reaction to Willy’s game-winning homer.

Play of the Game

Do I even have to explain it? Of course it’s Wilyer Abreu’s second homer.

The Rays continued their miserable play coming out of the break and extended their losing streak to four games with a 7-6 loss in Boston thanks to an all too familiar script of poor pitch execution and defensive miscues. The loss gave Boston its twelvth consecutive victory while reducing the division lead over the Yankees to two games.

There was hope early in this contest when the Rays scored two runs in the second thanks to a leadoff double by Ryan Vilade and a butcher boy single by Chandler Simpson that had the potential to knock out Willson Contreras who got this close to home plate before Simpson pulled back the bunt to swing away:

Nick Fortes would later drive in Simpson with a single of his own, but that lead would be short-lived as Rays pitching could not deliver a shut down inning. Every time the Rays have had a lead in this series until this moment, the Red Sox have come back to at least tie the game and the bottom of the second would be no different.

After a ten-pitch at bat to Andrew Monasterio which ended with an overturned strike three call, Jahmai Jones and his 23 OPS+ came in and deposited a hanging sweeper 407 feet to tie the game:

The game would remain tied until Wilyer Abreu jumped all over a misplaced 2-1 fastball from Seymour and drilled it out to dead center:

Seymour, coming into this game, had an OPS of .492 when ahead in the count, .644 when even in the count, and 1.156 when behind in the count. Those numbers got worse after this homer. Seymour would go on and retire Willson Contreras, who turns out, would be Seymour’s last batter of the game. Cash went to a quick hook with Seymour entrusting a well-rested A-pen to get 18 outs. The thought process could have been to go for the win here with the unfavorable matchup on Sunday. For three innings, the move looked like a stroke of genius as Kevin Kelly and Casey Legumina held the Red Sox to a single run over three innings. Fans were likely feeling pretty good with a 6-3 lead after a solo homer by Jonny DeLuca in the top of the 7th. Then, the bottom of the 7th inning happened.

The inning began with a legged out double by Andrew Monasterio, who took advantage of Simpson’s throwing arm and got into second because the throw was rushed, offline, and short of second base where an average throw nails him. Jarren Duran would then reach base because Ryan Vilade and Cole Sulser could not cleanly pull off a PFP play. Vilade’s lob was a little high, but Sulser still failed to touch the bag with either of his last two steps. Sulser nearly pitched his way out of it getting an RBI groundout from Masataka Yoshida and a fortunate strikeout of Anthony Siegler who swung through a misplace strike 3. Sulser’s night would be over after allowing a two-out double to Cedanne Rafaela, and Garret Cleavinger was brought into clean up the mess and face the red-hot Abreu.

Abreu has historically been terrible against lefties. Coming into 2026, he had hit .205 against them with a 62 wRC+ and two home runs in 145 plate appearances. Abreu has turned that around, and then some, in 2026 with a .345 average against lefties and a 162 wRC+ in 127 plate appearances and continued that success taking a full-count misplaced fastball into the bleachers for his second homer of the game and his second consecutive multi-homer game:

The Rays would mount a two-out rally in the 9th on back to back walks off Aroldis Chapman, but both runners would stay there and the club has now lost four consecutive contests while Boston simply cannot do anything wrong. Staff ace Sonny Gray takes the mound tomorrow as the Rays attempt to dig themselves out of a hole they’ve mostly constructed themselves with defensive and pitch execution issues.

This stretch of baseball coming out of the break has simply been about as unwatchable as this team has been in some time, and it could not come at the worst possible time.

On a day that started with so much bad news, Sal Frelick going on IL, Brandon Woodruff needing surgery, and Brice Turang getting scratched, the Brewers still continue to plug along and win ballgames as they secured an 8-6 win over the Miami Marlins.

Shane Drohan was excellent once more, completing 6 innings for this third consecutive start. Drohan ended up with a career-high in strikeouts with nine. He started the day with three punchouts in the 1st inning and also struck out the side in the 5th.

Drohan did have to work around a little trouble in the 2nd inning when the Marlins put on their best Milwaukee Brewers impression. They dropped in a medium-hit double, had two bunt singles, a hard hit single, a fielder’s choice and a sacrifice fly to put three runs on the board.

The Brewers had to scratch and claw their way back after that. It started in the bottom of the 2nd, which began with a Garrett Mitchell single. He ended up scoring on a sacrifice fly from Braden Shewmake. Milwaukee would then scratch another run across in the 3rd inning. Jackson Chourio led off the inning with a walk, then stole second base, before William Contreras ripped a double off the top of the wall to bring Chourio home.

That stolen base was just one of seven steals on the day for the Brewers.

“I’m glad to be on this side of it because when I was in Houston, we were worried about that, cause you run wild over here. High percentage, pick good times to run, and it puts a lot of pressure on defenses. So being on this side, it’s a lot more fun.” Braden Shewmake said.

Jackson Chourio stole two bases to get up to 10 steals on the year. Shewmake, Mitchell, Joey Ortiz, and Christian Yelich all had steals. Luis Lara also stole a base, the first of his young career. Lara had 24 stolen bases for Triple-A Nashville this year and had 40+ each of the past two seasons.

The Brewers were still down by a run heading into the 6th inning. Shewmake led off the inning with a 110.4 MPH double to right, which was followed by walks from Joey Ortiz and Christian Yelich. The bases were then loaded for Jackson Chourio, who immediately slapped a single to center to give the Brewers the lead.

A few batters later, Garrett Mitchell also delivered with a hustle double to bring home two more runs and the Brewers were up 6-3.

They’d get some insurance that turned out to be very crucial in the 7th when Christian Yelich drove an opposite field double that brought home two more runs to make it 8-3.

That would be much needed as Pat Murphy tried to squeeze a second inning out of Craig Yoho to get through the 9th without using another leverage arm. But Yoho put two runners on then gave up a three run blast to Griffin Conine and the game was within two.

“You want to preserve somebody that hasn’t pitched yet. You know Yoho’s down tomorrow anyways, right? Regardless. One inning today, eight pitches, and he’s going good. He’s not pitching tomorrow anyways, so why use another guy?” Pat Murphy said.

Murphy had to turn to Megill anyways, and Megill shut down the three batters he faced and the Brewers were able to secure an 8-6 win over the Marlins.

They have a chance to sweep the Marlins tomorrow with Robert Gasser on the mound. Eury Perez will be pitching for Miami.

The second time was the charm for Anthony Rizzo.

While sitting in the outfield bleachers at Wrigley Field during the Cubs’ 6-2 win over the Twins on Saturday, the former Chicago first baseman was able to get his hands on a homer hit by Chicago infielder Michael Busch — with his infant son in his arms.

The fans surrounding Rizzo cheered as he held the ball in the air after tracking it down, with the 36-year-old then holding his son high above his head.

The Marquee Sports broadcast booth was also in disbelief once Rizzo got the ball.

“You gotta be kidding me!” announcer Jon Sciambi exclaimed.

Even Busch was baffled at the chances of Rizzo catching his home run.

“I thought that was super, just like mind-blowing,” Busch told reporters, according to The Associated Press. “Who knows how things work out, but I thought that was pretty cool.”

Rizzo’s catch comes nearly a year after he botched a similar home run ball in the stands in embarrassing fashion.

During a game in September, Rizzo attempted to catch a homer — standing up and waving his arms to clear out the fans — from Moisés Ballesteros, only to see the ball bounce right out of his hand and into the seats behind him.

Despite the blunder, Rizzo erupted into cheers alongside the fans.

Rizzo has been in Chicago since Friday, taking part in celebrations for the Cubs’ 10th anniversary of their 2016 World Series title.

He threw out the ceremonial first pitch ahead of Friday’s game as the Cubs revealed the logo for the 2027 All-Star Game, which will be held at Wrigley Field.

“Just the 2016 team, what they did for this city and the championship that they brought was obviously a big deal,” Busch told reporters. “You could just tell from the fans how much they were loved and how much joy they brought to the city.

“And then Rizzo was kind of a cornerstone for them.”