ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - JULY 12: Former Tampa Bay Rays Player Evan Longoria waves during his #3 retirement at Tropicana Field prior to a game between the Tampa Bay Rays and the Seattle Mariners on July 12, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The greatest player in franchise history, Evan Longoria, will be on hand throw out the ceremonial first pitch before game four of the 2026 World Series between the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers.
Originally drafted by the Rays as the 3rd overall selection of the 2006 draft, Longoria rapidly reached the big leagues by April 2008 and cemented himself as the team’s third baseman for the next decade, completely shattering franchise records along the way. During his 2008 campaign, Longoria became the first player in team history to be awarded the Rookie of the Year.
During his 10-year long tenure with the Tampa Bay Rays, Longoria hit .270/.341/.483 with 261 homeruns, registering a 123 wRC+ over 1,435 games played. The first four years of his career, Longoria was on a Hall of Fame trajectory as he averaged 6.7 fWAR per year, but then injuries began to take a toll on his performance. Still, Longoria provided the Rays with solid defense and offensive production throughout the second half of his time with the Rays.
In 2011, Evan Longoria provided fans with a lifetime memory when he punched the team’s ticket to the postseason with a walk-off homerun during Game 162 to finalize an incredible month long comeback.
To go along with 2008 Rookie of the Year award, Longoria won three Gold Gloves for Tampa Bay and took him a Silver Slugger award in 2009; Longoria also received MVP consideration in six of his 10 seasons with Tampa Bay, placing as high as 6th twice (2010 & 2013). Longoria twice hit three homeruns in a single game and hit for the cycle in 2017, just the second player in franchise history to do so.
Following the 2017 season, Longoria was traded to the San Francisco Giants and played decently for five years, averaging 1.4 fWAR per season. Longoria’s last hurrah came in 2023 with the Arizona Diamondbacks, with whom he reached the World Series.
Evan Longoria officially retired as a member of the Rays in 2025. Then earlier this year, the Rays retired the #3 and inducted Longoria into the Tampa Bay Rays Hall of Fame.
LOS ANGELES — With the Dodgers season now concluded, we have some distance to look back at the television and radio broadcasts for the team in the 2026 regular season.
Joe Davis called 88 games on SportsNet LA, right in line with his 87 games in each of 2023, 2024, and 2025. The extra game locally this year came on July 19 at Yankee Stadium. The day before, Fox was set to televise Dodgers-Yankees with Davis on the call, but the game was rained out. The makeup game, during the day on Sunday, was televised by SportsNet LA with Davis and Orel Hershiser on the call, followed by a nightcap that was on NBC.
He said one of his favorite parts of SportsNet LA broadcasts this year was doing profiles of former Dodgers players, giving a glimpse into sometimes obscure players and telling the stories of folks the audience might not have known.
Here’s one example of one of those in-game profiles by Davis, on August 28 when the Dodgers played the Tigers in Detroit. Davis came back from break to start the top of the sixth inning talking about Goody Rosen (who folks here might remember from a Dodgers Rewind in September 2022).
“Happy Dodger birthday to Goodwin ‘Goody’ Rosen, who was from Canada, played center field for the Dodgers in the late 1930s, from 1937 through 1939, and then didn’t appear in another major league game for five years,” Davis said on the broadcast. “He was in the minors for four seasons before World War II opened up a bunch of roster spots across every team. So he comes back up, in 1945 Goody hits .345 for the Dodgers, but he was in his mid-30s by now so he only played one more season, retired from the big leagues. Kept on playing though, he played some semi-pro baseball and some fast-pitch softball for the Canadian national team. Goody lived to be 81 years old.”
Rosen’s story was interwoven by Davis into the first three pitches of the sixth inning, while Tommy Edman was batting, and harkened back to an older era when baseball broadcasts included more storytelling.
Stephen Nelson was on play-by-play for the other 57 SportsNet LA games in 2026, and also called 59 games on AM 570 radio, plus four more radio games in the postseason when the Dodgers were on the road. He also called all three exhibition Freeway Series games against the Angels on March 22-24.
The most prolific TV pairing for the Dodgers on SportsNet LA this year was Davis and Hershiser at 58 games with Nelson and Hershiser next with 27 games.
Eric Karros called 34 games, 19 with Nelson and 15 with Davis. Karros was also in the SportsNet LA booth alongside Nelson for three Freeway Series games in March.
Jessica Mendoza called 17 games for SportsNet LA, 11 alongside Davis and six with Nelson.
Dontrelle Willis also made his return to local Dodgers broadcasts this season for the first time since 2023, calling all seven games of a road trip through Miami and Cincinnati from September 12-18, two games with Davis and five alongside Nelson. Willis was the analyst for all four Dodgers games exclusively on Apple TV, with Wayne Randazzo on play-by-play.
Willis during the series in Miami on September 13 was inducted into the Marlins Hall of Fame. In that same game, Josue De Paula hit his first major league home run, a towering 416-foot blast to right field.
“First of all, what a bomb for your first hit in the big leagues. But being with Dontrelle that road trip was so fun. He hadn’t called a game for SNLA since 2023, which was my first year. And we’ve been trying to get him back. Because it’s just pure energy and joy,” Nelson recalled. “So, D-Train’s energy, combined with the energy Josue brought with that swing an in general down the stretch, was just a fun thing to be part of. And I’m so pumped for his future. It couldn’t be brighter.”
The other two games on SportsNet LA featured Nomar Garciappara as analyst alongside Joe Davis on April 26 against the Chicago Cubs, and Clayton Kershaw making his broadcast booth debut on August 25 against the Braves in Atlanta, also alongside Davis. Kershaw was also a part of some NBC Sports telecasts this season as an analyst sitting near the dugout.
Here are the television broadcaster pairings for all Dodgers regular season games in 2026.
Broadcasters
Games
W-L (Pct)
Runs scored
Runs allowed
Davis & Hershiser
58
34-24 (.586)
4.41
3.16
Nelson & Hershiser
27
20-7 (.741)
5.30
3.78
Nelson & Karros
19
12-7 (.632)
6.42
5.11
National TV games
17
9-8 (.529)
5.00
4.06
Davis & Karros
15
12-3 (.800)
527
3.13
Davis & Mendoza
11
4-7 (.364)
4.73
5.82
Nelson & Mendoza
6
4-2 (.667)
4.00
2.33
Nelson & Willis
5
2-3 (.400)
4.60
4.00
Davis & Willis
2
2-0 (1.000)
4.00
0.50
Davis & Garciaparra
1
1-0 (1.000)
6.00
0.00
Davis & Kershaw
1
0-1 (.000)
3.00
4.00
Freddie Freeman was trying to get Kyle Karros to look at his dad, Eric Karros, in the Dodgers broadcast booth.
Six times this season Colorado Rockies third baseman Kyle Karros played against the Dodgers when Eric Karros, Kyle’s father, was calling games. Karros would go out of his way to avoid acknowledging the relationship, almost to comical effect, at times simply referring to “the third baseman.”
After a Karros single at Dodger Stadium on May 26, first baseman Freddie Freeman was laughing with him and continuously pointing up to the Dodgers broadcast booth, where Eric Karros was calling the game, trying to get a reaction.
“I’m obviously a few years behind EK in terms of being a father to two boys. So I look up to him in many respects there; how he and Trish have raised Kyle and Jared,” Nelson recalled. “But calling a game with him hitting as Kyle homered off [Miguel] Rojas at Dodger Stadium was just awesome. And hilarious. He was so so proud but he was trying to be impossibly professional those Rockies series.
“Then later in the year, at Colorado. Kyle was hurt. And we were talking about him. Our director cut to a shot of Kyle in the Rockies dugout and he was looking up. I’m looking at him, and I’m like ‘I think he’s looking at you,’ and we start waving and Kyle smiles and waves back. That’s the good stuff, man.”
Charley Steiner missed nearly all of the 2024 and 2025 seasons while battling multiple myeloma and a broken back. But he gradually worked his way back in 2026, calling 35 Dodgers games on radio. In the beginning of the year he called one home game per series, and started the year calling the first three innings, then four, five, six, seven, and eventually on August 15 he called his first complete game of the season, a game Steiner felt was among the most important calls of his career.
Monday at age 80 was the most prolific of all Dodgers announcers in 2026, calling 155 regular season games and all eight postseason games on radio, after calling 27 spring training games with Tim Neverett on SportNet LA.
“I’m so fortunate to have Mo. I’m his partner, he’s my partner,” Steiner said. “We’re friends, and Duane [McDonald, producer and engineer] in the booth, it’s a nice — it’s family.”
“What a rare and special and unique character, and yet for twenty-something years we’ve been together, whether it’s in the booth, on the bus, in the airplane, at dinner. To be part of that, it’s a wonderful group,” Steiner added, on his long relationship with Monday. “When you do it for so long, and are so close, yeah, we just go out and play.”
Radio pairings here are fudged a little bit, as the 25 games that Steiner called but did not finish were also counted for Neverett (16 games) and Nelson (nine), so there’s some double counting here.
MINNEAPOLIS, MINNESOTA - SEPTEMBER 2: Drew Anderson #38 of the Detroit Tigers delivers a pitch against the Minnesota Twins during the first inning at Target Field on September 2, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Matt Krohn/Getty Images) | Getty Images
One of the easier decisions Scott Harris will have to make about his roster for 2027 will also be one of the first of the offseason. The Detroit Tigers hold a $10 million club option on right-handed pitcher Drew Anderson, and they seem certain to exercise it. With a long lockout looming, and minimal free agent movement expected until a new CBA in place, the Tigers can’t really afford to let major league caliber pitchers walk at such a reasonable price.
After four years almost exclusively as a starting pitcher in Japan and South Korea, Anderson’s return to the major leagues went pretty well overall, despite him having to flex back and forth between the bullpen and a starting role. He made 11 starts for the Tigers, posting a 2.61 ERA with a 4.45 FIP as a starting pitcher. Out of the bullpen, he had a 4.63 ERA with a 4.11 FIP across 56.1 innings of work. That’s not far from a full season’s work out of the bullpen, and yet he managed 51.2 innings as a starter as well. That versatility is something the Tigers sorely need with a reasonably deep group of rotation options and a bullpen that is still weak on the right-handed side of the equation.
Anderson was a little too prone to free passes and home runs, but he also posted one of the team’s best strikeout rates in a relief role. His FIP numbers say he had things go his way in his time as a starter, but Anderson does keep the ball on the ground as well, posting a 48.4 percent ground ball rate on balls in play. Combined with a 12.4 percent swinging strike rate compared to the league average of 10 percent and a high chase rate, Anderson has plenty to operate with.
Over the course of the season, the Tigers helped him dial in his pitch mix, relying mainly on his fourseamer, nasty kick change, and his curveball. They experimented with his slider more in late April and May, but it did not go well and they rightly ditched that pitch more and more as the season progressed and turned to the curveball instead. He only threw the slider 4.8 percent of the time, yet it accounted for three of the 16 total home runs Anderson allowed on the year. More work is required before it’s more than a show-me pitch.
The issue with keeping Anderson is that while he was pretty useful as a starting pitcher, he’s going to have a hard time cracking the rotation next year without some injuries. Framber Valdez, Jackson Jobe, Troy Melton, River Ryan, Keider Montero, and, if finally healthy, Reese Olson, are probably all ahead of him on the starting depth chart. At least to start the year, Anderson is going to be in the bullpen, and he’s just not a great fit for high leverage relief either. He functions best as a fifth starter or as a bulk and middle relief arm, and he’ll have to be more consistent next year for that to change.
The Tigers have at least three lefties to hold down that side of the bullpen in Drew Sommers, who should be a high leverage option next year, Brant Hurter, and Tyler Holton. That leaves five spots for right-handers. Will Vest’s status is a big question mark, and the Tigers have Kyle Finnegan under contract already for 2027 after a tough 2026. The situation is really uncertain on that side of the bullpen. There’s clearly room for Anderson, and with free agency bound to be delayed this offseason, the Tigers will almost certainly keep him, but the only problem he helps solve for them is depth.
The issue with high leverage relief work is that Anderson’s curveball and kick change are his big swing and miss pitches. The changeup is clearly the nastiest pitch he’s got, but the big movement and the feel required to spot it down make him vulnerable to leaving too many hangers up in the zone under pressure. At least, that was how it looked this year. His fastball doesn’t get hit very hard, but it’s certainly not the type of whiff generating heater that most good high leverage relievers possess. The x-factor is his 80 mph curveball, which he used more and more as the year went on and he was moved into the rotation and really needed a strong third pitch. He racked up a 33.3 percent whiff rate on it, and while it has a similar tendency to get crushed when left up in the zone, it’s a lot simpler pitch to grip and rip under pressure.
One of the changes Anderson made in his years playing overseas was lowering his arm angle. He averaged 42 degrees this year, whereas in his major league seasons prior to going to Japan and South Korea, his arm angle was averaging 49 degrees. The lower arm slot, without other adjustments, can produce less induced vertical break, which usually leads to fewer whiffs. On the plus side, Anderson now averages over 95 mph with a few extra inches of extension than he did earlier in his career when he was averaging 92-93 mph. The tradeoff for more velo and extension is probably worth it, but with modest ride and not much run, it’s almost more like a cut fastball. It worked out, as hitters hit .215 with a meager .356 slugging percentage, and those numbers are backed up well by Statcast’s expected metrics, but it’s not that easy to see where more whiff inducing movement is going to come from.
Anderson gets 82 percent spin efficiency on the fourseamer, so they could possibly work on that to get more ride, but with his arm angle that may just add more run rather than ride, and sometimes that hurts a pitcher more than it helps them. Anderson’s fourseamer has pretty similar traits to Jack Flaherty’s fastball, and that bodes well for it as Flaherty’s fourseamer is rarely hit hard in the air either. They just aren’t going to miss a ton of bats with it either. Those slightly gyrospin fourseamers are more about getting a little late, seam-shifted movement to miss barrels rather than to generate big whiffs.
An argument in Anderson’s favor is that pitching late innings relief is not what he’s used to doing. He also had to deal with a different baseball than they use in South Korea. It’s possible that those factors just required more acclimation time than the Tigers could give him once the injuries started piling up left and right in April and May. Perhaps with his experience gained he’ll do a better job in setup situations with a lead next year and just feel more comfortable all around, no matter how the Tigers deploy him.
Anderson is worth the $10 million on the open market. There’s no buyout cost if the Tigers choose otherwise, but really it’s a pretty easy decision to pick up the club option. He may not fit perfectly into the Tigers needs in terms of specific relief roles, but he does in terms of their need for more right-handed depth, and he offers some bat missing ability and a solid ground ball profile. Figuring out exactly what to do with him in the bullpen is a little more complicated. Still, having him in house makes it a little easier to wait out the CBA negotiations and then try to target pitching in free agency once everyone knows where they stand with the new ruleset. And possibly Anderson’s improved second half says he was settling in and bound for a stronger second season back in the big leagues next year.
EVERETT, WA - JUNE 07: Outfielder Jonny Farmelo #15 of the Everett AquaSox hits the ball foul during a game between the Eugene Emeralds and Everett AquaSox on June 7, 2026 at Funko Field in Everett, Washington. (Photo by Henry Rodenburg/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Despite finishing with the second best overall record in the Northwest League this year, the Frogs were unable to clinch a playoff spot this season, falling just short with steady and consistent play that was unable to ever ascend high enough on the standings for a half-season crown. Playing in the compact confines of Everett’s home ballpark, the AquaSox offense posted absolutely massive numbers on the season, leading the league in multiple major categories at the plate including homers, runs, OPS, and stolen bases. The pitching, though fighting an uphill battle with the aforementioned home ballpark, held their own, and gave them a chance to win on a nightly basis. It’s obviously disappointing to miss the postseason with as good as they played all season, but the individual successes up and down this roster are impossible to ignore and deserve to be celebrated.
Team Performance
First Half Record: 33-33 (+22 Run Differential)
Second Half Record: 34-32 (+37 Run Differential)
Final Record: 67-65
Team ERA: 4.96 (fourth in Northwest League)
Team OPS: .834 (first in Northwest League)
Stat to Know: Led Northwest League with 193 home runs (29 more than second place)
Season Stars
Felnin Celesten
Where else to start than with the newly crowned Northwest League MVP? Celesten had the bounceback of all bounceback seasons and managed to take home some serious hardware this 2026 season after an outstanding year at the plate. Slashing .314/.409/.534 at the level with 18 stolen bases, Celesten’s ranginess at shortstop and switch hitting ability made him a massive threat for the AquaSox for much of the year and ultimately led to his well deserved promotion to Double-A. Despite struggling a bit after his promotion and ending the season on the IL, his 2026 was undoubtedly one for the ages and has positioned him as one of the best prospects in this system.
After a successful stint with the Nuts after his drafting in 2025, Stevenson hit the ground running with the Frogs and got off to a torrid start to his 2026, and despite some struggles in the middle of the year, a strong stretch run to close out the season kept his season numbers in a great spot. Stevenson’s season was largely what most would have expected from the power-hitting backstop: lots of walks, lots of strikeouts, lots of homers, and great defense. The whiff is going to concern some evaluators and could in theory leave him off some Top 100 lists this offseason, but the floor is still rather high considering the quality at which he does everything else on the diamond, and his defense behind the plate alone might just be enough to get him to the big leagues one day. Stevenson is set to slate somewhere in the the top ten organizationally and will look to prove his approach can work against Double-A pitching next season.
With his first full season in his young professional career, Farmelo mashed his way through the Northwest League and earned his way up to Double-A by season’s end. The speedy centerfielder was aggressive in all facets of the game; his 41 stolen bases were second best in the entire system (five behind Nick Becker), and though his whiff was elevated, he managed to slug just enough to make it work and produce effectively. In an ideal world, Farmelo is able to maintain the level of thump he’s been able to reach while cutting back on the raw whiff rates, but that’s obviously much easier said than done and may prove to be an unsuccessful venture. Should that be the case, Farmelo will need to continue to show he can be an elite defensive centerfielder with major game power and game-changing speed on the basepaths in order to reach his fullest potential, and if his strong end to the year is any indication, he’s well on his way to doing just that.
Sleepers
Brandon Eike
Eike probably deserves to be in the “stars” section for the monstrous year he had for the Frogs, but given he isn’t considered a Top 30 prospect by most all outlets, we’ll highlight him here and show him the love he deserves. Launching 29 homers on the year and slugging his way to an OPS of .892, Eike was a consistent force in the middle of the Everett lineup and proved to be invaluable for this Frogs roster. There’s a ton of swing-and-miss in his profile and the overall abilities outside of the slug are somewhat limited, but if Eike can continue to hit the ball with authority as he ascends through the upper-minors, the raw production may prove to be too good to overlook.
Crushed. Brandon Eike now tied for the league lead in home runs. Best sound ever. pic.twitter.com/L05jjsT2I3
Yet another deserved “star”, Jimenez’s 2026 was just as good, if not better, than the aforementioned Eike. After a few years of toiling in the low minors, Jimenez put together a truly outstanding year this season, revitalizing his prospect pedigree a bit after some general fatigue. The 23 year old posted a .926 OPS on the year with 20 stolen bases and a K-rate of just 21%. His 14.6% walk rate made him a constant threat on the basepaths, and his simple lefty swing managed to do a ton of damage for him at the plate. He’ll assuredly get a shot to shine at the Double-A level next season, and should he continue to find sustained success, he’ll undoubtedly play himself up prospect boards.
Colton Shaw
The best pitcher on this staff all season, Shaw’s sinker-sweeper combination was just what the doctor ordered for his homer-friendly home ballpark, and he used that tandem to lead the staff in just about every major pitching category. Shaw’s lower launch gives his sinker some wicked action and allows it to tunnel well with his secondaries, making him an incredibly interesting arm to watch for in 2027. The M’s have strongly gravitated toward high-command sinkerballers in recent classes, and though it may just be a blip, it seems to be an organizational preference that they’ve identified as a market inefficiency they can capitalize on. Colton Shaw’s certainly done his part in proving that notion right, and his outstanding 2026 makes him one of a handful in this organization with a very strong “up arrow” next to his name.
Dust Devils had no chance vs Colton Shaw tonight. Final line: 6IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 11K, 14 whiffs, 81 pitches, 58 strikes. pic.twitter.com/C4FFBwvdkj
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - AUGUST 07: Pitching coach Carl Willis #51 of the Cleveland Guardians looks on Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on August 07, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Michael Reaves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
In the end-of-season press conference, Chris Antonetti indicated the Guardians would be looking to make upgrades to their starting rotation and their bullpen this offseason. What could those upgrades look like?
As the month of November unfolds, we will do deeper dives into the names that become more obviously available, but this article is a chance to bring up some pitchers who may be a good fit for Cleveland for fans looking to do some searching and analyzing. In future articles, we will break down statistics, ages, and contract projections, but this post is “food for thought.” We know we will only have about one month before the lockout begins so it is possible that the Guardians make a move before baseball settles in for a long winter’s (and spring’s?) nap. Without further ado, here are some ideas to ponder:
Free Agent Options: S-Tier: Tarik Skubal, LHP. Analysis: Not happening.
A-Tier: Trevor Rogers, LHP, Kevin Gausman, RHP, Freddy Peralta, RHP, Brandon Woodruff, RHP Analysis: Very, very unlikely… but the Guardians can feel free to surprise me and sign one of these guys if they want (even Guasman who is old and I hate for hitting Jose intentionally). Rogers is my favorite of the bunch and has the best extension (a trait the Guardians’ love), but he’s getting a huge deal that is, obviously, highly unlikely to come from Cleveland.
B-Tier: Robbie Ray, LHP, Casey Mize, RHP, Patrick Sandoval, RHP, Jack Flaherty, RHP, Foster Griffin, LHP, Tyler Mahle, RHP Analysis: It’s this part of the market where I can imagine the Guardians potentially deciding to put their hat in the ring IF those ALCS checks cleared and IF David Blitzer liked that taste of getting close to a World Series. Mize is my clear choice among this bunch (also has the best extension), but there is something to like about each option in here. Ultimately, I expect these players to get contracts longer than what the Guardians are comfortable offering, but they are definitely worth monitoring as the offseason progresses.
C-Tier: Shane Bieber, RHP, Matthew Boyd, LHP, Zac Gallen, RHP, Shota Imanga, LHP, Kris Bubic, LHP, Walker Buehler, LHP, Brady Singer, RHP Analysis: I am very interested in Cleveland as a place where Bieber or Gallen could try to rebuild their values as starting pitchers for a year to try for one more free agent contract. We know what Bieber can offer and Gallen has good extension numbers and a strong track record…. up until 2025. Can he rediscover the ability to be a front of the rotation arm? That’s the question. A reunion with Boyd would be fun, and Buehler and Imanga both are decent pillow-contract/Guardians’ fix-a-pitcher options. Bubic and Singer both fit as “Guys the Royals Couldn’t Figure Out But Maybe We Could,” but, notably, the Dodgers couldn’t fix Bubic and the Reds couldn’t fix Singer, so Singer is probably the pitcher with more meat on the bone. Singer had HORRIBLE numbers last season but he does have an elite extension profile. I would keep an eye on him as someone the Guardians may be in on for a very inexpensive one-year deal or a minor-league contract. Of this bunch, count me as most excited about Imanga because it would be a chance to open a path into the market for Asian players… but, aside from that, give me a Bieber reunion counting on him and Carl to rediscover the magic.
Some potential trade candidates to monitor: Reid Detmers, LHP, Angels Sandy Alcantara, RHP, Marlins Eury Perez, RHP, Marlins Joe Ryan, RHP, Twins Taj Bradley, RHP, Twins Logan Gilbert, RHP, Mariners Bryan Woo, RHP, Mariners George Kirby, RHP, Mariners Bryce Miller, RHP, Mariners Jose Soriano, RHP, Orioles
Analysis: Aside from Alcantara, Detmers and Ryan, I don’t think anyone on this list is LIKELY to be traded, but all are in the realm of possibility. Understand that to get any of these arms, the Guardians would be parting with multiple top prospects. The one exception would probably be Alcantara who probably could be had for a package of lesser prospects if the team is willing to take on his contract… but the package would still need to be guys with some solid, major league potential. Every one of these pitchers has potential to pitch at the front of a playoff rotation, so I am on-board with the Guardians pursuing them and sacrificing serious prospect capital to get a deal done. Just know… it would hurt if they pulled it off. Detmers is my favorite of the bunch.
In the 2024 offseason, the Guardians needed starting pitching and managed to snag Luis Ortiz and Slade Cecconi, though neither pitcher seemed especially available. Some names to consider along these lines are Andrew Alvarez of the Washington Nationals, Gabriel Hughes of the Rockies, and Carmen Mlodzinski of the Pirates. Each pitcher has some interesting underlying metrics that indicate a better pitching group could get more out of them. Alvarez and Mlodzinski are both 27, so in the age range where a trade is something teams consider, while Hughes is only 25 and would cost more because of that. However, I’d like to, again, highlight Hughes who gets ELITE extension release as a pitcher the Guardians would be poised to maximize if they could pry him free from Colorado.
Which pitcher catches your eye as a Guardians’ fan? Let us know in the comments below
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Robert Gasser delivered in the World Series unlike any left-handed starter since Sandy Koufax.
Gasser faced the minimum over six dominant innings, pitching the Milwaukee Brewers to the brink of their first championship in a 10-1 win over the Tampa Bay Rays on Monday night.
He’s the first starter to face the minimum over six in a World Series game since Curt Schilling for the Arizona Diamondbacks in Game 7 of the 2001 Fall Classic.
The last lefty to do it was Koufax, a Hall of Famer who spun his gem in Game 5 of the 1965 World Series.
The 27-year-old rookie nicknamed Bobby Diesel allowed a single to Yandy Diaz leading off the game but erased him on Chandler Simpson’s fielder’s choice. Catcher William Contreras then threw out Simpson attempting to steal second after Simpson slid off the bag.
Gasser retired 12 in a row until a leadoff walk to Victor Mesa Jr. in the sixth. Nick Fortes followed with a double-play groundout, and Taylor Walls grounded out to second on Gasser’s final pitch.
Gasser, who began the season in Triple-A Nashville, earned the win with six scoreless innings on one hit, one walk and three strikeouts. He is the first Brewers starter this postseason to record an out in the sixth inning.
“It’s a special opportunity that we all have to be here,” Gasser said. “To be nervous or scared would only be cheating myself and my teammates.”
Second baseman Brice Turang, who helped Gasser with three hits and two RBIs, was hardly surprised Gasser kept his cool.
“He’s very chill,” Turang said. “He drives chill, too. He’s really slow at driving. Everything about him is just chill.”
A second-round pick by San Diego in 2021, Gasser joined Milwaukee in a then-maligned deal for All-Star closer Josh Hader in 2022. He made his major league debut in 2024 but had Tommy John surgery on his left elbow after just five starts.
He struggled to regain his form until late in 2026, when he finished the regular season with a 1.67 ERA in his final six appearances.
“A big word is belief,” Gasser said. “I haven’t changed much over the years from mechanics to velocity. I think it always comes down to, ‘Do you believe in yourself?’”
No question, the Brewers believe in him.
Milwaukee has won four straight road postseason games, three of them started by Gasser. That includes five scoreless innings in Game 3 of the NL Championship Series at Dodger Stadium.
Prior to this year, Milwaukee had lost 12 straight postseason road games since 2018, matching the longest skid in major league history set by the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins from 1925-87.
“He’s been great for us all year, all postseason,” Brewers captain Christian Yelich said. “And he’s got that steady heartbeat. The moment’s never too big for him, and you know when he goes out there, you’re gonna have a great chance to win the game.”
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 26: A general view of Tropicana Field during Game Three of the 2026 World Series presented by Capital One between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on Monday, October 26, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Kelly Gavin/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Good morning, baseball fans!
The 2026 MLB Playoffs continue today with Game 4 of the World Series between the visiting Milwaukee Brewers, who hold a 3-0 series lead over the Tampa Bay Rays, who are just trying to stay alive for another game.
Tonight’s game begins at 5:00 p.m. PT, airing on Fox/Fox One, with national radio coverage available on ESPN Radio.
As of the time this is being written, the Brewers have not yet announced a starting pitcher. Whoever it ends up being will face off against Rays right-hander Griffin Jax, who ended the regular season with a 3.53 ERA, 3.76 FIP, with 116 strikeouts to 35 walks in 112.1 innings pitched. His last start in this postseason was in the Rays’ 3-2 loss to the Cleveland Guardians on October 15th, in which he allowed three runs on five hits with two strikeouts and two walks in four innings.
Personally, I’ve got to root for the Rays tonight. As much as I am hoping the Brewers take the series, a sweep is only fun if it’s your team doing it (as in 2012). I’d love to see the Rays come back and at least make the series a little more interesting. But I wouldn’t be unhappy to see the Brewers win it all tonight, either.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - SEPTEMBER 30: David Peterson #19 of the Chicago Cubs pitches in the National League Wild Card game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on September 30, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Matt Dirksen/Chicago Cubs/Getty Images) | Getty Images
So far this offseason, we have talked about some of the bigger names on the free agent market. That includes the likes of Michael King, Adrian Morejon and Brandon Lowe. Today I want to discuss some under the radar targets that have surprising upside. David Peterson, Kris Bubic and Kyle Hart all have risk, but they also have the ability to outperform their contracts.
For fans of the NL East, Peterson is the biggest name here, so let’s start with him. The lefty spent parts of 7 seasons with the Mets before being traded to the Cubs in June. Since 2022, Peterson has had his ups and downs, but has been largely reliable. He has thrown at least 105 innings every year and has posted a WAR of at least 1.
After a dreadful start to 2026, the trade reinvigorated Peterson. He posted a 3.70 ERA with the Cubs and was arguably their best pitcher after the All-Star break. Following the midsummer classic, Peterson posted a 2.73 ERA with 67 strikeouts in 66 innings.
David Peterson stays hot with another quality start:
The 31 year old southpaw is not a flashy pitcher by any means. He throws his two low-90’s fastballs over 50% of the time. However, those offerings play up due to Peterson’s elite extension. His slider, changeup and curveball give him a trio of solid secondary pitches. Peterson relies heavily on ground balls, which makes his ERA heavily reliant on BABIP, but his FIP has generally been in the mid to high 3’s throughout his 5 year run.
Peterson will be more expensive than the free agents the Nats have signed over the past few years, but compared to a King or Peralta, he will be cheaper. Something in the ballpark of 3-years $33 million should get it done. One potential issue I would have is that Peterson is fairly reliant on a good defense, but I like his steadiness. He is a solid arm, who can make playoff starts when he is at his best.
Kris Bubic is also a soft tossing lefty, but he is very different from Peterson. The 29 year old lefty has a very high ceiling but his injury prone nature makes him a big risk. However, that risk is also a potential opportunity for the Nats. If Bubic hits, he can be a true middle of the rotation starter while not being paid like one.
Over his last 217.2 innings, Bubic has a 2.98 ERA with a 2.91 FIP and 227 strikeouts. The problem here is that he has only thrown 217.2 innings since 2023. This season, Bubic suffered from forearm and shoulder issues, which is obviously terrifying. However, he got back on the mound at the end of the year and threw in the playoffs for the Dodgers.
In 2025, the one season where Bubic was relatively healthy, he had a 2.55 ERA in 116.1 innings and made the All-Star game. Bubic’s fastball only averages 92, but it has elite ride from a lower slot which makes it a very good pitch. He also has a filthy changeup which plays beautifully off the fastball. His sweeper and slider cap off a very complete arsenal.
With his injury issues, Bubic will likely have to take a one-year deal, maybe with a club option. If Paul Toboni is hunting for upside on the free agent market, this would be a great opportunity. We have seen injury prone pitchers suddenly stay healthy before, with Shane Baz and Jacob Degrom being recent examples.
LHP Kris Bubic [29 y.o.]
2026 stats: 14 games (9 starts) 3.76 ERA 3.54 FIP 25% K%/12% BB% 49% GB%
Given the nature of his injury history, he is due for a 1+1 (club option) contract as high as $10-15M for 2027. His versatility in both a rotation and bullpen role could excite… pic.twitter.com/5oOilu3JHy
If the Nats can somehow keep Bubic healthy, he would be a great signing. He might not be able to be a full time starter, but I think he could provide value as a reliever if that is how you keep him healthy. Bubic is the type of high upside, lower cost move I could see the Nats making.
One of the Nats biggest needs this offseason is a matchup lefty. Paul Toboni tried so hard to find a left handed reliever who could consistently get left handed hitters out. He never really got his guy though. Thankfully, there are plenty of lefty relievers on the market.
There are top tier guys such as Alex Vesia and Adrian Morejon. This class also has a nice second tier consisting of JoJo Romero, Brock Burke, Sean Newcomb, Gregory Soto and more. However, I have a third tier option that could outproduce that second tier in 2027.
We will see if the Padres pick up Kyle Hart’s $2.5 million club option, but if they don’t I like the lefty. On the surface, this sounds weird. He posted a 4.92 ERA this year and the 33 year old has a 6.25 ERA in his career. However, his peripherals and stuff tell a different story.
Despite that 4.92 ERA, Hart had a 3.63 FIP and xERA. Hart did a fantastic job of limiting hard contact and getting ground balls. His velocity also went up by over 2 MPH after being moved to a full time bullpen role. If you are looking for a stuff demon, Hart is a sneaky option.
Kyle “The Hartthrob” Hart is awesome and that sweeper is a nasty. Not sure I agree with having him go 2 innings as the opener but I don’t think Randy would have done too much better that second inning anyway. Defense didn’t help him, but that run was probably scoring regardless. pic.twitter.com/QjDSWUrnee
— Francis Alipranti (Papa Frank) (@fxalipranti_) June 28, 2026
In addition to the harder fastball, Hart also introduced a splitter, which got very good results. Batters hit just .163 against the pitch with a 39.4% whiff rate. That helped him a lot against right handed hitters. Hart’s sweeper is also a very strong weapon against lefties.
He has never fully turned that stuff into results, which is why the Padres might not pick up his option. After all, he is out of minor league options and was left off the playoff roster. However, I think he could be primed for a late career breakout entering his age 34 season. Hart will be quite cheap and I think he could outperform better known options such as JoJo Romero or Brock Burke.
None of these three arms are perfect, but they would not be sleeper options if they were. However, I think Peterson, Bubic and Hart all have the ability to outperform their contracts by quite a bit. You would be taking a risk, but the reward could be huge and the price won’t be massive.
Chicago White Sox outfielder Patsy Dougherty, circa 1910. (Photo by FPG/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Patrick “Patsy” Dougherty undoubtedly had his most success elsewhere as a big leaguer. In his sophomore season in Boston, he hit two home runs in a World Series game (one of them an inside-the-parker) to help secure a title in the very first Fall Classic. A few years later, he won another championship with the White Sox, in one of baseball’s most famous World Series.
In between those two stops, he spent some time in New York, manning the outfield. And getting in a fistfight with his manager. But let one who has never wanted to fight their boss cast the first stone. (And he isn’t the last man in franchise history to get into it with his manager, obviously.) Finally, in an historical quirk, he’s specifically linked to the name “Yankees,” and might be the first player ever officially referred to by that famed moniker.
Patrick Henry “Patsy” Dougherty Born: October 27, 1876 (Andover, NY) Died: April 30, 1940 (Bolivar, NY) Yankees Tenure: 1904-06
The son of an Irish immigrant, Dougherty grew up in southwestern New York, with his family settling in Bolivar. He drew attention on his high school team and gradually made the climb from the prep ranks to town ball to the minors and then to California late in 1901. They had a winter league back then, and his manager in LA happened to also be the skipper of Boston’s new American League club. So Patsy broke in with Boston in 1902 and hit the cover off the ball. He hit .342 as a rookie (a career-best) with a .407 OBP (ditto) and .805 OPS (likewise). He followed that up with a sensational sophomore season in 1903 that saw him pace the Junior Circuit in at-bats, runs, and hits, while hitting .331. Not a bad first two years.
That year, he also starred in a game against the New York Highlanders that one would expect to be a pitcher’s duel. Cy Young versus Jack Chesbro. That’s supposed to be a battle of the titans. Instead, it was more like a sustained exchange of artillery fire. The Highlanders outlasted the Americans 15-14 and Dougherty hit for the cycle.
Come playoff time, Dougherty etched his name in baseball history. With a pair of round-trippers in Game 2 of the World Series against Pittsburgh, he became the first player to homer twice in a World Series game. It was all part of an .827 OPS series as Boston won the first Fall Classic, five games to three ina best-of-nine.
In 1904, his bat fell off and, perhaps due to that, Boston was willing to move him. It might also have had something to do with Dougherty pushing to be paid more, after two pretty darn good first seasons in the big leagues. Either way, Boston moved him. In June 1904, the Americans sent him to New York for the somewhat-infamous Bob Unglaub.
The Boston Herald trumpeted “DOUGHERTY AS A YANKEE,” the first time on record the club was referred to by the name that has become ubiquitous. Meanwhile, Boston fans were furious, seeing through the club’s justifications of Dougherty’s defensive lapses being reason to send him packing. Le plus ca change, as they say.
Patsy quickly adjusted to life in New York. Though his bat never rebounded to its peak in Boston, he was still comfortably above-average with the stick for New York (120 OPS+ in 1904 after the trade). The Highlanders, unfortunately, missed the playoffs. Boston beat them out by 1.5 games to take home the American League pennant, with his new teammate and ace Chesbro uncorking a wild one to doom them in the penultimate game of the season.
Dougherty may not have been the greatest defender though, in fairness to Boston’s front office. On August 15th, 1905, Dougherty dropped two fly balls in left field, costing New York against Detroit and prompting The New York Times to declare “DOUGHERTY’S MISTAKES DEFEAT NEW YORK.” He also went through the worst offensive season of his career, coinciding with the Highlanders slipping to sixth place in the Junior Circuit.
1906 saw another contract dispute between Dougherty and his club. Worse, he got in a fistfight with New York skipper Clark Griffith. Unsurprisingly, he was gone from New York shortly after. Dougherty abandoned the team for the Tri-State League and found himself banned from the American League by president Ban Johnson.
Eventually, in July, the Chicago White Sox managed to massage things with Johnson and purchased his contract. He struggled down the stretch and was putrid in the World Series (2-for-20) but won his second World Series title nonetheless, as the “Hitless Wonder” White Sox pulled off an all-time upset against the crosstown rival 116-win Cubs of “Tinker to Evers to Chance” fame.
Dougherty spent the rest of his career in the Windy City and rediscovered his stroke, remaining a productive big-league hitter through his final season in 1911. Reputedly wealthy due to investments during his playing days, Dougherty began working at a bank shortly after his retirement, where he remained for almost three decades.
Patsy Dougherty died of a heart attack on April 30, 1940. He would have been 150 years old today. Happy birthday to a man nearly as old as the National League itself.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer must like Aaron Civale a lot, because he’s acquired him not once, but twice.
The White Sox waived him at the end of August 2025 and the Cubs claimed him. He pitched just five times in September, but very well: 2.08 ERA, 0.538 WHIP and one save in 13 innings, with 14 strikeouts. That was good enough for 0.3 bWAR — in just five appearances, that’s pretty impressive.
(Incidentally, as well as the White Sox have done in trades lately, their acquisition of Civale in June 2025 was a terrible deal on their part — they got him for Andrew Vaughn, who’s done quite well in Milwaukee, while Civale posted a 5.37 ERA in 13 starts for the Sox.)
Anyway, the Cubs let Civale walk in free agency last offseason and he signed a one-year, $6 million deal with the A’s, who put him in their rotation. He wasn’t any good there, either, posting a 5.42 ERA and 1.621 WHIP, with 16 home runs allowed in 74.2 innings. (In fairness, part of that was due to the A’s minor league home park, Sutter Health Park, where 238 home runs were hit in 2026. That led MLB… tied with Wrigley Field.)
On July 18, the Cubs traded a minor league prospect named Aiden Moffett to the A’s for Civale. Trust me when I say I don’t think the Cubs will miss Moffett. In 17 relief appearances combined between the Cubs’ Arizona Complex League team and Low-A Myrtle Beach, Moffett walked 42 batters in 22.1 innings and no, that is not a typo, that’s a 34.1 percent walk rate, which is just awful.
Civale, meanwhile, turned into an impressive reliever for the Cubs. In 18 appearances covering 36.2 innings, he posted a 1.77 ERA and 1.064 WHIP, allowing just two home runs and striking out 33. He posted his first save of 2026 July 30 against the Cardinals, striking out Lars Nootbaar to end the game. Just look at this nasty curveball! [VIDEO]
This hints that maybe, just maybe, late-career Civale (he turns 32 in June) could be a useful relief piece in 2027. Now, relievers are fungible, as we all know, but over 24 career relief appearances (52 innings) Civale has a 2.52 ERA and 1.019 WHIP and 51 strikeouts and only 13 walks.
Keep that up and that’s a really good setup type guy.
If I were the Cubs I’d offer him a one-year deal at $4 million with a $6 million team option for 2028 and a $1 million buyout, to be a bullpen piece.
PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA - JUNE 5: Steward Berroa #39 of the Philadelphia Phillies during a game against the Chicago White Sox at Citizens Bank Park on June 5, 2026 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Phillies won 8-6. (Photo by Hunter Martin/Getty Images) | Getty Images
A fact that may interest you about Steward Berroa: His name is Steward, not Stewart as most people probably assumed when they heard it for the first time. (I tried to find a way to work in a Denethor joke.) Sadly, there wasn’t all that much else interesting about Berroa or his contributions to the 2026 Phillies.
This was his third major league season, spending the previous two with the Blue Jays and Brewers. The Phillies purchased him from Milwaukee in early June and stashed him in AAA for most of the year. He was called up at the end of May and appeared in six games before returning to the minors for the remainder of the season.
Oh, he also pitched a game for Lehigh Valley, so that’s slightly interesting!
The stats: 6 games, .143/.143/.143, 0 HR, 0 RBI, -0.1 WAR
What went right
He got an RBI single in his Phillies debut, but that was about it as far as major league accomplishments go.
In the minors, he had a good on-base percentage (.363) along with 15 stolen bases.
He also had a child in June, so good for him!
What went wrong
He only batted .251 with five home runs in 242 plate appearances with Lehigh Valley.
The future
He’s a switch hitter with good speed and defensive ability, so it might be worth keeping him around as a “Quad-A” outfielder next season. Maybe he’ll be a late bloomer, but it doesn’t seem like he’ll ever hit well enough to stick for long on a major league roster.
Grade: D
He had an RBI and he wasn’t the worst reserve outfielder the Phillies trotted out there this season, but that was a low bar to clear.
It's been all Brewers so far in this year's World Series, with Milwaukee up 3-0 over the Tampa Bay Rays as it looks to finish the four-game sweep tonight in St. Petersburg. After tallying 10 runs in Game 3, the Brew Crew have outscored the Rays 18-7 through three games.
Ahead of Game 4, get everything you need to know below, including TV/streaming information, the full World Series schedule and more.
How to watch Rays vs. Brewers 2026 World Series Game 4
When: Tuesday, Oct. 27
Where: Tropicana Field - St. Petersburg, Florida
Time: 8:00 p.m. ET
TV: FOX, FOX Deportes
Streaming: FOX One
Rays vs. Brewers 2026 World Series schedule and results
NORTH LITTLE ROCK, AR - APRIL 22: Bryce Mayer #6 of the Corpus Christi Hooks pitches during the game between the Corpus Christi Hooks and the Arkansas Travelers at Dickey-Stephens Park on Wednesday, April 22, 2026 in North Little Rock, Arkansas. (Photo by Braeden Botts/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
The 2026 season had some big time performances and breakout prospects. I narrowed down the top four offensive performers in the Astros system for the 2026 season and put them on a list below. Check them out!
Mayer, the Astros Minor League Pitcher of the Year in both 2025 and 2026, put together an even better season in 2026. The right-hander started a bit slow but quickly turned things around, posting a 2.61 ERA with 100 strikeouts over 69 innings in Double-A. Mayer earned a promotion to Triple-A, where he posted a 5.45 ERA but still showed his ability to miss bats, striking out 40 over 33 innings. He finished the season with a system-leading 140 strikeouts, further establishing himself as one of the top pitching prospects in the Astros system. Read more here.
Beck was signed as an undrafted free agent following the 2024 draft. The 19-year-old had a breakout season for the Woodpeckers. In pitched in 22 games and posted a 2.80 ERA with 102 strikeouts over 86.2 innings. He also pitched once in the post-season allowing 1 run over 4.2 innings. Beck went from a potential afterthought to a top 20 prospect in the system with a dominant performance in 2026. Read more here.
After a breakout 2024 season, Nezuh struggled some in 2025 but he re found his form in 2026. The rtight-hander started the season in Double-A and had a 3.97 ERA with 80 strikeouts in 65.2 innings. He was promoted to Triple-A where he was even better posting. 3.58 ERA with 44 K over 37.2 innings. He totaled 124 strikeouts over 103.1 innings and put himself in contention for a big league spot next season. More on him here.
Hertzler dealt with a few injuries early in his career but finally had a healthy season and was able to show what he could do on the mound. The right-hander started in Asheville dominating with a 2.72 ERA over 10 starts. He was promoted to Double-A where he posted a 4.20 ERA over the final 40.2 innings of his season. He was nearly unhittable this season holding opponents to just a .183 BAA.
Perez had a mini breakout in 2025 but had a really strong season in 2026. The right-hander started in Fayetteville and had a 4.23 ERA with 103 strikeouts over 89.1 innings. He was promoted to Asheville where he posted a strong 4.35 ERA, in a hitter’s paradise, with 29 K over 20.2 innings. He finished the year third in innings pitched and second in strikeouts in the Astros system.
Potter was a fifth-round pick by the Astros in 2025, and while he worked as a closer in college, Houston transitioned him into a starting role as a professional. The right-hander opened the season with Single-A Fayetteville and pitched extremely well, posting a 2.11 ERA with 70 strikeouts over 59.2 innings. He earned a promotion to High-A Asheville, where the results were a little more uneven with a 6.75 ERA, though he still struck out 16 batters over 9.1 innings. Read more here.
Santos was drafted by the Astros in the second round of the 2020 draft and has taken a long road through the system, spending multiple seasons in rookie ball before eventually reaching Double-A. After moving to the bullpen this season, Santos has posted a 2.91 ERA with 100 strikeouts over 65.0 innings. He finished the season on a tear posting a 1.09 ERA with 65 strikeouts over 41.1 innings including a 0.77 ERA over 11.2 innings in Triple-A. He probably did enough to earn a good look next Spring Training. Read more here.
SACRAMENTO, CALIFORNIA - JUNE 29: Max Muncy #3 of the Athletics takes a lead off first base in the third inning during a game against the Los Angeles Dodgers at Sutter Health Park on June 29, 2026 in Sacramento, California. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Good morning A’s fans!
We got our first bit of after-season Athletics news yesterday morning. Infielder Max Muncy has undergone surgery on his left knee, but he should be ready for Spring Training:
If we’re being exact, it was a debridement to fix some damaged cartilage in that knee, which usually comes with a 6-8 week recovery timeline. It’s a relatively small surgery so Muncy should have plenty of time to rehab and get ready for next season.
The former 1st-round pick hasn’t quite figured it out in the big leagues yet. He made his major league debut in mid-2025 but struggled on both sides of the ball in his first taste. Not the best rookie debut but considering he was just 22 in his first year and getting sporadic playing time there was plenty of reason to believe he just needed more at bats in his second season.
That’s what he got in 2026. After a strong spring training won him the starting third base job, Muncy failed to deliver for the second consecutive year. Injuries and ineffectiveness were the calling cards for the right-handed hitter. Overall he hit .230/.296/.387 with nine home runs. A bit better than the previous year but still not great. Add in the hugely negative reviews he got on defense and he was worth -1.2 WAR in 2026. Not what the A’s were hoping for from a former high draft pick.
Entering next year, the pressure is going to increase for the now-24-year-old. Muncy has crushed Triple-A pitching but needs to figure out how to adjust to major leaguers. Even if Muncy does make the improvements needed in the batter’s box, he’ll also need to work on his defense. He was one of the worst defensive third basemen in the league last year so it’s unlikely the A’s are going to try that experiment again unless he arrives in February a different person in the field.
He got some very brief outfield work in the corners last year but the A’s will presumably have everyday players at those spots, and there’s just better backup options for those positions before Muncy anyway. There doesn’t really seem to be an obvious clear role for him on next year’s team if the A’s are trying to improve.
He’s entering his final option year so this coming season could be the final chance he gets with this organization. Hopefully the injury he suffered early in the year just threw him off for the whole season, and he can come back and start living up to his draft pedigree next year. The A’s could use a boost like that.
Meanwhile the World Series continues tonight as the Brewers are just one win away from hoisting the Commissioner’s Trophy. By the looks of things this series is all but sewn up. Even if they weren’t up 3-0, the Brewers just look like the better team. The only question now is will the Brew Crew end it tonight, tomorrow, or in Game 6 in front of their home fans back in Milwaukee?
And remember, with the end of the World Series comes the beginning of the offseason. Luis Severino will have five days to decide on his club option for next year while the A’s have to decide whether to bring Jeff McNeil and Jeffrey Springs back on expensive contracts. McNeil and Springs are seemingly easy calls to reject, and for a while it seemed Severino would obviously accept his option. But there’s word going around that he may decline it simply because he hates Sutter Health Park that much. He’s not getting any younger and this team still could be a year or two away from contention. We’ll be finding out the answers soon enough.
First pitch is at 5:00 PST. Until then! Have a good Tuesday everyone.
A’S IN THE AFL TODAY (10/26) C Cole Conn: 1-5, SB, R RHP Jared Johnson: 2 IP/2 H/1 ER/1 BB/0 K/Win RHP Kenya Huggins: 0.2 IP/1 H/0 ER/2 BB/2 K Mesa Solar Sox win 13-12
A complete emasculation. Brewers batters swatted seven consecutive hits and scored eight runs with two outs in the fifth. Brewers pitchers shut down Tampa Bay hitters all night. Milwaukee is up 3-0 and can clinch its first World Series title on Tuesday.
May 1, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; San Francisco Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (14) reacts to a strike during the third inning against Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Pablo Robles-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
2026 stats:.146/ .213/ .183, 15 wRC+, -0.1 fWAR over 30 G, 89 PA w/ Giants
In game 4 of the division series against the White Sox, the Guardians turned a 2-0 deficit into a 9-4 lead, helping them claim the series in a winner-take-all game 5. You’d be forgiven if you did a double-take watching that game as a distantly familiar face launched a pinch-hit solo homer then later delivered a tie-breaking RBI single that sparked a game-defining rally.
Hey…wasn’t that the guy who was the worst offensive player in the league when he was on the Giants?
Yeah — that was Patrick Bailey. Same dude who played just 30 games for San Francisco before being traded on May 9th to the Guardians. The move surprised many. It was aggressive. It wasn’t universally panned either. The catcher was a man of extremes: a number-one glove and dead-last bat. His 89 plate appearances through April were excruciating to watch. He hit .146 with a .183 slugging percentage. A .396 OPS. A 15 wRC+. He had somehow accrued a -11 batting run value in a month. Those numbers are bad, and somehow they still don’t really do justice to how bad he was. Watching his at-bats was the sensory equivalent of blowing hot air into your eyeballs with a hair dryer. Trying to hit a baseball was a desperate, feckless act for Bailey, like an accountant, recently stranded on a desert island, rubbing two pencils together to start a fire. He’d leave the batter’s box as cold as it was when he arrived.
Was he really that bad? I mean I’m having fun tooting the hyperbole horn, but that 15 wRC+ ain’t a lie. Perhaps the better question is was he going to stay that bad? No he wasn’t, and no, he didn’t. Looking at the batted-ball metrics and expected stats, it was pretty clear Bailey wasn’t getting a fair shake (his BABIP with the Giants was .186). Things evened-out in Cleveland. Bailey batted .228 for the rest of the year as a Guardian with a .292 OBP (256 PA) and a respectable .390 slugging percentage — 30 points higher than his previous career best mark he posted as a rookie in 2023. His 90 wRC+, while still below average, is good for the highest of his young career. Over 33 at-bats in the postseason, Bailey slashed .273/ .333/ .455 with two homers and four runs batted-in — one less rib-eye than he had as a Giant.
Sift around in the muck and the mire of early 2026, and it’s pretty easy to track the logic of the trade. Everyone else was doing bad, and Bailey was the worst of the bunch. The catcher’s plate-appearances were a black hole that Buster Posey and pretty much everyone else was tired of getting sucked into. Something needed to be done, and Bailey gave Buster a decent-sized head to roll without causing mass clubhouse panic. It served as a hopeful wake-up call without looking completely rash or reactionary in the moment. While the move sacrificed defense, it was defensible. Back-up catcher Daniel Susac was off to a hot start, and Posey wanted to find ways to get players like Jesus Rodriguez and Eric Haase more at-bats. Bailey was relatively young, under team control, and had some serious value as a two-time Gold Glove winner. This was a person with elite skills in a particular area who knew how to shepherd a flock of pitchers over the hills and through the valleys of an at-bat, an inning, a game, and a season. While the institution of the ABS system limited some of his stand-out talents as a pitch-framer, there was still some room for the artistry with selling balls-and-strikes.
Bailey had value, and Posey turned him into a draft pick, a pitching prospect with a Major League nickname (who would end the year allowing just one earned run over 8 innings against LA, as well as a Shohei strikeout), and an immediate (though not sustained) offensive boost from catching reinforcements. Three days after Bailey’s trade, Eric Haase homered twice off Yoshinobu Yamamoto — a shellacking that heralded Yamamoto’s meltdown against Milwaukee in the National League pennant. You could see the shadows of past demons passing across his glazed over eyes in that 3rd inning. Brice Turang, Jake Bauers, and Christian Yelich were just descendents of one man: Haase.
Posey and Tony Vitello replaced Bailey with an aggregate of five names. Daniel Susac boasted the most staying power. He’s 6’ 4’’ with a cannon for an arm, but after a hot start, Susac produced nominally better (94 wRC+) at the plate than Bailey did for Cleveland and was limited by injuries to his elbow and back before being shut down by a season-ending knee cap fracture in early August.
Trading Bailey sacrificed clarity. Plans A, B, and C had to be scrapped due to injuries. The position became a Guess Who? Game. Andrew Knizner? Sounds familiar… Drew Cavanaugh, who started the year in Double-A Richmond, Virginia, ended up making the most appearances at catcher for San Francisco. Offensively, he ended up ranking about the same as Bailey. Defensively, he was nowhere close.
It’s hard to argue that the Giants “won” the trade based on how the year panned out. Bailey found level at the plate. He moved out, moved on, and served up postseason dramatics for Guardian fans while the Giants’ cohort watched from their couches wringing their hands about a move made in May.
