As the only Major League Baseball wild card series that didn't end in a sweep, the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies will play their winner-take-all Game 3 in primetime on Thursday, Oct. 1.
The NL East rivals had played the opening game (2 p.m. ET) of MLB's quadruple-header on Tuesday and Wednesday – and were penciled in for the same in Game 3 – but the other three series wrapping up in two pushed the lone game back to 8 p.m. ET.
Atlanta won the opener at Truist Park, rallying on Austin Riley's clutch three-run homer in the eighth inning, but Philadelphia survived Game 2 with its own late heroics, getting back-to-back home runs from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper in the eighth inning to tie it up. Alec Bohm's solo home run in the top of the 10th gave the Phillies the win, forcing the decider in Georgia.
The winner of the Braves-Phillies series will head to Los Angeles to face the Dodgers in the best-of-five NL Division Series, which begins on Saturday, Oct. 3.
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Sep 30, 2026; San Diego, California, USA; Chicago Cubs dugout looks on in the ninth inning against the San Diego Padres during game two of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Petco Park. Mandatory Credit: Denis Poroy-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
It ain’t over ‘til it’s over. But it’s over.
The Cubs lost Game 2 of the National League Wild Card Series 4-1 to the San Diego Padres. The Friars advance to the Division Series and eliminate the Cubs, 2 games to 0.
The Cubs came out just as mildly as they did in Game 1 with the team going down in order, striking out twice, in the first inning. Cubs starter Kevin Gausman, pitching with an injured left, non-throwing shoulder, got off to a better start than Matthew Boyd the game before, retiring the Padres in order in the first.
The problems started in the second inning for Gausman, who allowed a leadoff double to Ty France down the left field line. Next up, Jackson Merrill hit a slow roller to shortstop Dansby Swanson who had no choice but to eat the ball, putting runners on first and third and no outs. After Merrill stole second, Xander Bogaerts singled to right field to make it 1-0. Next up, a sac fly by rookie catcher made it 2-0. Gausman then got a pair of ground out to stop the bleeding, but with the Cubs offense stuck in park, 2-0 seemed like a tall mountain to climb.
But the Cubs did have chances. Matt Shaw walked and Carson Kelly singled to lead off the third inning to put runners on first and second with no outs. But Dansby Swanson struck out, Pete Crow-Armstrong popped up and Alex Bregman flew out to end that rally before it even got started.
The Cubs would finally break through, sort of, in the fourth inning. After Michael Busch flew out to start the inning, three straight baserunners would reach for the Cubs, leading to their first run of the series. Seiya Suzuki singled, Ian Happ walked and then Nico Hoerner singled home Suzuki.
At that point, Padres manager Craig Stammen pulled Pivetta in favor of Bradgley Rodriguez. He shut down the Cubs and they could not push the tying run across the plate, even after Kelly was hit to load the bases with two outs.
But the Padres struck back in the bottom of the fourth. After Bogaerts doubled with one out, manager Craig Counsell went to the bullpen and Daniel Palencia. Palencia struck out Salas, but then pinch-hitter Gavin Sheets crushed one 394 feet deep into the right field bleachers to make it 4-1. Honestly, it wasn’t a bad pitch. Palencia threw Sheets a 101 mile per hour fastball low and inside. But Sheets was ready for it and clobbered it.
Against the strong Padres bullpen, that was all they needed. After Rodriguez, the Padres got one inning out of Jason Adam, two out of Adrian Morejon and one out of Mason Miller. Miller struck out Ian Happ and then gave up a double to Nico Hoerner, But Miller struck out pinch-hitter Michael Conforto and got Carson Kelly to ground out to short to end the game and the Cubs’ season.
It’s not hard to see what went wrong for the Cubs in this series. The team didn’t hit. Pete Crow-Armstrong, Alex Bregman and Michael Busch went a combined 0 for 20 with a walk. After three hits on Tuesday, the team only managed five hits tonight and the first extra base hit didn’t come until Hoerner’s double in the 9th. Of the Cubs eight hits in this series, Nico Hoerner had four of them.
That ends the Cubs 2026 season. Here’s to 2027 being better. Or even 2027 actually happening.
Al will have a full recap and/or post mortem with video at 8 am Central tomorrow.
Now that the Yankees are heading to the American League Division Series to take on the Tampa Bay Rays, the next question is: who will start Game 1?
Cam Schlittler took the mound in Game 1 of the Wild Card Series and is expected to be called upon to start Game 2 against their AL East rivals, so it makes sense for Gerrit Cole -- who was going to start WC Game 3, if it went that far -- to be the starter. However, the team isn't going to divulge that information just yet.
"We'll talk about that," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said of the Game 1 starter. "Obviously, Gerrit's lined up for that. Carlos [Rodon] is very much in play for that. We have a ton of confidence in both guys. I think they're both throwing the ball really well. That will be what we do here these next couple of days as we get ready It's possible. It's definitely possible. Again, it's a long ways away."
Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake told the media, including The Athletic's Chris Kirschner, after Game 2's win that a decision on the Game 1 starter has yet to be made and reiterated what Boone said -- it'll either be Cole or Rodon.
The ALDS starts this Saturday, so a decision will be made really soon. But who is better suited to start the pivotal first game of the series?
Cole's last start came against the Rays back on Sept. 23, a week after the Yankees' Wild Card Series clinching win. In that start, he struck out eight batters and allowed two runs on three hits and three walks across 5.2 innings.
His last postseason start came in the now-infamous Game 5 of the 2024 World Series against the Dodgers. He pitched 6.2 innings, but allowed five unearned runs. His career postseason ERA sits at 2.77 across 22 starts.
"[Expecting] some good baseball. Just excited," Cole told SNY's Nikki Lattarulo of what he expects from the next series after Game 2. "I haven’t pitched in a while. Looking forward to getting back out there."
Despite being down for about 10 days before his potential Game 1 start, Cole didn't say whether it's difficult being down that long, but is looking forward to when he pitches.
"It’s the postseason, man. There’s no expectations," he said. "You play when you’re told to play and that’s a beautiful thing."
Whether it's Cole or Rodon, the Yankees are confident in whoever toes the slab for them. It's been that way all season as they led all of MLB with a 3.24 team ERA.
"There's no question I feel great about those guys, obviously. That's been the biggest strength for us throughout the year," Boone said of his rotation. "It sustained us. It got us through some difficult times. And I feel like they're all in a good place right now. That's one of the ways we're going to have to do it, obviously leaning on the strength of those guys. But I like where they're at."
"Stick to our evaluation process and what we do, and our preparation," Cole said of how the team can keep their momentum. "We played well, but we’ll look back, see what we could have done better and get ready for the next series."
The best-of-five series with the Rays begins Saturday at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Fla.
Scouting ballplayers can be a grueling, inexact science and, as Damon Oppenheimer knows, “there’s times when we look dumb as hell.”
But Oppenheimer, the Yankees’ director of amateur scouting, and the rest of the folks who work in scouting and player development for the club had a moment in the AL Wild Card Series sweep of the Red Sox. The series was a showcase for homegrown Yanks, even with one of the best drafted-and-developed Yankees ever -- Aaron Judge -- missing because of a calf injury.
“The players are the ones who make us look smart, right?” Oppenheimer said. “We’ve got a great group that’s giving us a chance to look smart now.”
Cam Schlittler and Ben Rice, both mid-round picks from Massachusetts, were the stars of Game 1. But other drafted and developed kids had impactful roles in the series, too. Six homegrown Yanks, including Schlittler, started Game 1; four started in Game 2. If Judge were playing, each number would be higher.
So might these: The five homegrown position players who started in either or both games -- Rice, Spencer Jones, George Lombard Jr., Austin Wells and Anthony Volpe -- combined to go 15-for-34 in the series (.441) with 11 runs scored and 11 RBI.
The Yankees are often thought of solely as big-money, big-game hunters who target the brand-name mercenaries hitting the free agent market every winter. Sure, they’ve got those on the roster -- Max Fried, Gerrit Cole, Cody Bellinger, etc. -- and they have baseball’s third-highest payroll overall. They’re not afraid to write a check to fill a need.
But the club is churning out contributors via their farm system, too. And that’s without having a top-10 pick since they selected a shortstop named Derek Jeter back in 1992. Since then, in fact, they’ve had just five first-round picks as high as the teens.
Coming up together and contributing is, as Rice put it, “super fun. All of us came up with one another in a way. There was some overlap. Maybe a couple guys were ahead of others. But now we're all here in the big leagues. And it's been so cool seeing each guy have success and carve out their own role."
“Definitely a tight-knit group and we take pride in that.”
Sep 29, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; New York Yankees pitcher Cam Schlittler (31) reacts during the sixth inning against the Boston Red Sox during game one of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Yankee Stadium. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
Schlittler, who dazzled with 6.1 shutout innings and 10 strikeouts in Game 1, was the fourth pitcher drafted and signed by the Yankees to start the opener of a postseason series for the team, joining Andy Pettitte (five times), Ron Guidry (three times) and Jim Beattie (once).
Rice went 4-for-5 in Game 1 with a solo homer and a grand slam, driving in six runs overall. He’s the fifth player in club history with six RBI in a postseason game. He and Schlittler had the two loudest performances of what Aaron Boone called “one of those really special nights at Yankee Stadium.”
Lombard Jr., the 21-year-old former first-round pick who took over shortstop late in the season, became the second-youngest Yankee to make his postseason debut (a 19-year-old Mickey Mantle was the youngest). Lombard was only the fifth Yankee ever to have three hits in his first postseason game and he’s the first Yankee since Jeter in 1996 to total four hits over his first two playoff games.
And there’s more: Jones reached twice in his playoff debut in Game 1. In Game 2, he was an unlikely catalyst for a six-run sixth inning that wrecked the Red Sox. Jones struck out, but reached first on a dropped third strike. Jones, who is 6-foot-7 and 240 pounds, is incredibly fast for such a big fella. Then he stole second and advanced to third on a throwing error and later scored.
“That was just really impressive,” Bellinger said of Jones’ heady dash. “And, you know, it lit a fire in our dugout for sure.”
“I couldn’t believe he was there,” added Boone. “I saw the ball squirt away a little bit, didn’t think that much of it, looked up and I was like, ‘Oh – he’s safe.’”
Volpe, a player who perhaps has elicited as much fan handwringing as anyone in pinstripes, ever, did not play in Game 2, but he’s reached base in 18 of his 22 career games in the postseason, including Game 1. Before Rice, he was the last Yankee to hit a grand slam in the postseason, in the 2024 World Series.
Wells, who had flopped against lefties this season, knocked in the first run of the series against southpaw Payton Tolle. He was 3-for-6 overall with two runs and four RBI and has a 1.136 OPS over his last 14 postseason games.
“All the kids that the scouts saw and then our player development guys finished off,” Oppenheimer said. “It’s fun.”
Oppenheimer said his phone was buzzing during Game 1: Texts from folks who work for the team or elsewhere in the industry, noting how many draft picks were soaring, especially Rice and Schlittler. “You get a lot of people reaching out to you and congratulating you,” Oppenheimer said.
Afterward, when talking to the players, he heard it again. Schlittler, for instance, was talking up Matt Hyde, the scout responsible for Schlittler, Rice and Volpe. After Game 1, “Cam is telling me, ‘Matty Hyde’s the GOAT,’” Oppenheimer said.
“I mean, that doesn’t happen. That’s not normal, that a guy’s made that kind of an impact on that kind of a player. So it’s really fun.”
Schlittler even name-checked Hyde during his postgame news conference during his answer on him and Rice being proud of their status as “mid-round guys.”
“Yeah, we love it,” Schlittler said. “We have a lot of conversations with Matty Hyde and I know he’s proud of us. And we wouldn’t be here without him.”
“He’s done a hell of a job for us, as have other guys that all took a part in these guys, too,” Oppenheimer said. “It’s quite a story.”
The whole series was a “watershed” moment for Yankees scouts, Oppenheimer said.
“The guys (scouts) work for this stuff for years and years and it’s just what culminates with the relationships that they’ve all built with these guys and maintained with them through their whole minor-league career,” he added.
“It’s about the players and that’s what scouts will always tell you. But our guys are obviously very excited and very happy and they feel satisfaction, sure.”
The San Diego Padres took care of business in the wild card round, finishing off a sweep of the Chicago Cubs with their 4-1 win in Game 2 at Petco Park on Wednesday, Sept. 30.
Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado powered the Padres to a blowout win in Game 1 on Tuesday. Their bats cooled off in Game 2 (they went 1-for-8 collectively), but the Padres found offense elsewhere and the bullpen put in a strong performance to finish off the sweep.
Now comes October, in a literal sense.
Here's everything you need to know about the Padres' NLDS opponent, the Milwaukee Brewers:
Who will the Padres play in the NLDS?
The path for San Diego only gets tougher from this point on as it's now set for a meeting with Milwaukee, the National League's No. 1 seed, in a best-of-five NLDS series. The Brewers finished the regular season with the best record in baseball – 103-59 – for the second consecutive year, surpassing 100 wins for the first time in franchise history.
Jacob Misiorowski will almost certainly get the ball in Game 1. The 24-year-old Cy Young front-runner represents the toughest test for the Padres' scorching bats. His 252 strikeouts this season led the big leagues, and he carries a ridiculous 0.80 WHIP into the postseason. Logan Henderson is lined up behind him for Game 2, but the Brewers rotation gets murkier from there. Dustin May slumped down the final stretch, and Kyle Harrison struggled with a dip in his velocity, but he rebounded nicely in his final three starts.
The Brewers won't slug their way to wins, but their lineup thrives on stringing hits together and sustaining rallies. Whether that can be a winning strategy in the postseason remains to be seen, but it was enough to get them in this position in the first place.
The National League Division Series between the San Diego Padres and Milwaukee Brewers starts with Game 1 on Saturday, Oct. 3. Here's the full schedule for the best-of-five series. All times ET.
NOTE: All NLDS games will air on Fox or FS1 and can be streamed on Fubo.
Game 1, Saturday, Oct. 3: Padres at Brewers, 8:30 p.m.
Game 2, Sunday, Oct. 4: Padres at Brewers, Sunday, 4 p.m.
Game 3, Tuesday, Oct. 6: Brewers at Padres, Time TBD
Game 4, Wednesday, Oct. 7: Brewers at Padres, Time TBD (if necessary)
Game 5, Friday, Oct 9: Padres at Brewers, Time TBD (if necessary)
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LOS ANGELES, CA - AUGUST 1, 2026: Dodger fans Haruya Shibata, left, and Yoshiko Shibata, visiting from Japan, wear towels on their heads for shade during he Southern California heat wave before the game against the Boston Red Sox at Dodger Stadium on August 1, 2026 in Los Angeles, CA. (Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
The San Diego Padres closed out their wild card series with a 4-1 victory over the Chicago Cubs on Wednesday night, completing a two-game sweep. That means the Padres will play the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Division Series. It also clarifies the start time for the Dodgers NLDS Game 1 on Saturday, now a 1 p.m. PT start time at Dodger Stadium, televised by Fox.
The Dodgers in the NLDS will play the winner of Thursday’s wild card Game 3 between the Atlanta Braves and Philadelphia Phillies at Truist Park in Atlanta. That game will be played at 5 p.m. PT on Thursday, televised by NBC and streamed by Peacock.
PHOENIX, AZ - SEPTEMBER 24: The inside of Chase Field goes dark as the game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and San Francisco Giants is interupted by a twenty-minute power outage in the seventh inning of a MLB game at Chase Field on September 24, 2011 in Phoenix, Arizona. (Photo by Ralph Freso/Getty Images) | Getty Images
How ya feeling?
Preston Salisbury: Unsurprised and also disappointed. The best this team has will never be good enough. That’s unbelievably frustrating.
samath: The Diamondbacks’ Game 162 was scheduled for 3am here in Singapore. I wasn’t planning on waking up for it, but when I did wake up naturally at 5am, I couldn’t fall back asleep as I wondered what had transpired. I turned on my computer in time to watch the top of the 9th in Philadelphia and then the rest of the Diamondbacks’ last game of the season.
It’s now 6am and while those were both disappointing results, I’m glad I managed to see them live with you all, something I haven’t had the privilege to do too much this year. Feeling a sense of finality with it all. And exhaustion — I’m going back to bed after writing this.
Spencer: Fine. I projected 79 wins on the year. So I’m just pleased the team over performed.
James Attwood: Frustrated and somewhat disappointed. But, they took the season all the way to Game 162, which greatly exceeds the expectations I had for this team, given the injury concerns and the payroll issues.
Makakilo: Unhappy. My definition of success is black and white: Did the Diamondbacks reach the playoffs? Perhaps, missing on the last day fo the season feels worse than missing by a mile.
1AZfan1: Wish I was getting ready to watch the Diamondbacks in the playoffs, so a little disappointed.
Ben: Disappointed. Frustrated by my disappointment. This is the third straight season they’ve missed the postseason by an agonizing margin and it feels a little like we as fans are the proverbial Charlie Brown with the postseason as the football and the rest of the league acting as Lucy.
ISH95: Disappointed. A little numb. I drank the Koolaid a lot this season, for some reason, and really thought they had a shot, but ultimately, the deficiencies we knew they had at the beginning of the season turned out to be true.
The Diamondbacks outperformed almost everyone’s preseason expectations. What went right to make this happen?
Preston Salisbury: Actually, very little went right. Gabriel Moreno was great and became just the fifth catcher to win a batting title. The emergency signing starting pitching was good. E-Rod finally earned his keep. But Marte, Carroll, and Perdomo all fell short of expectations, and the entire medical staff across the entire organization needs to be shown the door.
samath: ERod and the bullpen were amazing, better than we could have ever hoped.
Spencer: Eduardo Rodriguez. Michael Soroka. Rookies like Waldy, Fernandez and Lawlar having month(ish) stretches of great production (and the team sitting then when necessary).
James Attwood: Mike Hazen’s haul of pitching from the last two seasons, plus a few savvy flyers being taken led to the Diamondbacks having a mostly dominant bullpen. As the season wore on, the cream rose to the top and they largely carried the team for two months.
Makakilo: During the preseason, my last prediction was 85.1 wins. Instead they had 86 wins. Their wins were very close to my preseason expectation.
1AZfan1: The buy-low, bullpen volatility strategy Hazen’s been chasing for a decade finally hit and we had a competent bullpen. That and E-Rod, Soroka and Pfaadt hit in a big way alongside the shrewd trade for future Hall of Famer Nolan Arenado.
Ben: Both Michael Soroka and Eduardo Rodriguez turning back the clock to look like co-aces, Gabriel Moreno having the best single-season performance as a catcher in franchise history (https://www.sports-reference.com/stathead/tiny/bzNwP), and having an excellent bullpen for probably only the second time in the Mike Hazen era.
ISH95: Well I think the biggest thing is that Eduardo Rodrgiuez got to talk to a different pitching coach at the WBC and figured some stuff out. Shout out Johan Santana. Beyond that, Soroka living up to the top of his expectations, and bullpen volatility bouncing our way for once.
On the flip side, the Diamondbacks missed the playoffs by a single game for the second time in three years. What went wrong?
Preston Salisbury: Nothing, really. They just aren’t good enough. They’ll never be good enough.
samath: Zac Gallen turned into a pumpkin. Merrill Kelly aged as we might have expected. Corbin Burnes didn’t manage to contribute positively in his return.
Spencer: Two games I think technically right? [Ed. Note this is correct. Left the question as was, however, as that is what people had answered] Gallen and Kelly. Carroll had a “down” year. Perdomo also wasn’t quite as impactful as you’d have hoped after 2025. Being forced to rely on the likes of Pavin, Tawa, Vargas, Fernandez and McCann for long stretches.
James Attwood: Unlike 2025, there is not one incident I would point at. Last year there was one decision that changed everything. This year, the team let plenty of games they should have won, slip away. On the flip side, they stole some games too. What went wrong? I would say the team’s health record for the season was a primary contributor to at least a dozen of their losses this year. Even bigger though, what went wrong for Arizona is that San Diego went 18-6 in September, with AZ hanging one of those losses on them. This was simply the Padres’ year for being hot down the stretch, not really any different than 2017’s Rocktober.
Makakilo: As an optimist, my article on Tuesday was a rare look at the dark side. It walked through 11 reasons, and concluded four reasons dominated. Link to the article follows: https://www.azsnakepit.com/e/98076
1AZfan1: Technically 2 games, but we were alive in Game 162 so point understood. This is a tough question because you could look at this at the micro-level or the macro-level. The micro view would zoom in on particular games that were given away. The failures of the last homestand against Texas/Miami stand out alongside that Boston series where we looked dead in the water after Ketel no-showed.
On the macro-level, our failure to field a replacement-level 1B through the ASB was fairly maddening. Not having a consistent 4th starter behind E-Rod/Soroka/Pfaadt was another fairly big failure. Gallen was downright awful, Merrill was inconsistent, and Ryne was nowhere near his previous levels of success (when he was even healthy). I think I mostly fall in line with the macro view of the roster construction/player failures than the singular failures of a certain game.
1AZfan1: No because we didn’t even make the playoffs. Still, I’d rather have 3 straight seasons like our ’24-’26 than the last 3 seasons that the Rockies or Giants have had.
Ben: There are plenty of reasons, ranging from the individual (Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly taking serious steps back) to the macro (going a terrible 1-5 against the mediocre Marlins). It doesn’t help that Corbin Carroll had a miserable second half, Geraldo Perdomo regressed from an unsustainable 2025, and there were injuries that severely hampered several players the team expected to get back in the latter half of the season.
ISH95: Injuries. That’s the biggest thing. I don’t think anyone expected Gallen to be an ace, and Kelly finally aging a little can’t exactly be a surprise, but the ongoing onslaught of injuries that this team faces year in and year out is eternally holding us back. Ken Crenshaw has been the Director of Sports Medicine and Performance for nine years now, and that’s after he held the role of Head Athletic Trainer for 12 before that. It seems pretty obvious to me that it’s time for a new voice in that role.
Was the season a success?
Preston Salisbury: No. Only one team get to succeed in a season, and that’s going to be the Dodgers yet again
samath: Yes. They gave us entertaining baseball (led all of MLB in comeback wins with 47), keeping playoff hopes alive right down to the wire (controlled their own destiny in game 161, eliminated while playing game 162).
Spencer: I am disappointed. But yes the season was a success. The team over performed more than they under performed. Moreno is now definitively the best catcher in baseball. For the first time in a few years we have a lot of money leaving the books (Gallen, Gurriel, Soroka) without the need to replace too many pricey positions. While that last part is a non-factor for fans, it helps Kendrick and/or his replacement.
James Attwood: Yes. By pretty much every measure, they exceeded expectations. They also exceeded the underlying numbers and beat their Pythagorean win number. The team should still be playing baseball in October this year, but they drew the short straw of odd circumstances.
Makakilo: No
Ben: Yes, as frustrating as it is to miss the playoffs again, there was some excellent development of several young players including Ryan Waldschmidt, Tommy Troy, and Jordan Lawlar. That doesn’t mean there aren’t holes in the roster that need to be addressed for next season, but it does give me some hope on player development moving forward.
ISH95: What even is success? Is it something that can be clearly defined, or in the words of a specific Supreme Court ruling “I’ll know it when I see it”? The goal for every team is to win the World Series. Yes. Obviously, only one team will do that though, so it seems a very absolutist way of looking at things, and I am no Sith. Red doesn’t go well with my complexion. So based on what this team actually set out to do this season, which was survive with a massacred pitching staff and a bullpen with enough question marks to make the Riddler jealous, I’d say the season was a massive success. However, next season, those will not be the starting points of the season, so success has to look different.
What will be your favorite moment from this season looking back?
Preston Salisbury: Right now I’m still in “what was the point?” mode. Maybe the Nootbaar slam in SF since it flew right over my head?
samath: Here are a few:
Ryan Waldschmidt’s two walkoff homers in August, against the Dodgers on August 7 and the Cubs on August 25.
Ildemaro Vargas’s blazing start to the season, capped off by going 4-for-4 on May 1 to push his batting average to .404.
The two consecutive sweeps of the Giants in May, highlighted by Marte’s walkoff 3-run homer with 2 outs on May 19.
Sweeping the Dodgers at Dodger Stadium to end the first half.
Spencer: I don’t have a single moment off the top of my head. So I’ll be generic and say having a meaningful game to watch at 162. It’s not common and it was fun!
James Attwood: In a season like this one, with so many come from behind victories, there are too many candidates to choose just one. But, if I am going to pick something that really stood out and changed the outlook of the season for a bit, it would be the debut of Jose Fernandez and his crushing two long balls after just arriving as an injury replacement.
Makakilo: With two games left in the season, I made a screen shot of the Wild Card race. The Diamondbacks had 86 wins and the Phillies had 87 wins. I imagined three paths to the playoffs for the Diamondbacks. The Diamondbacks were riding a 6 game winning streak, while the Phillies had a 3-game losing streak. I felt optimistic!
1AZfan1: Jose Fernandez epic debut with a walk-off homer is the moment that sticks out the most to me right now.
Ben: I think I’ll choose the game on August 9th when the D-Backs won the series against the Dodgers to secure the season series against them. It’s their best record against the Dodgers since 2018.
ISH95: Sweeping the Dodgers was beautiful. I told a coworker that it was my world series, and it turns out it sadly was correct.
Three hours before David Bednar struck out Caleb Durbin to end the series, Cody’s father, Clay, threw out the ceremonial first pitch to his son before Game 2. The elder Bellinger played for the Yankees from 1999 to 2001 and was part of two World Championship teams.
"I definitely appreciate it. I'm able to appreciate it in the moment," Bellinger said. "That was a cool moment, just a great game. Happy I was able to contribute, and we've got a lot more work to do. So obviously enjoy the moment, understand how cool it is, but keep on going."
2x World Series Champion Clay Bellinger threw out tonight's ceremonial first pitch to his son, Cody Bellinger! 🙌 pic.twitter.com/mSy10CwbfJ
After grounding out in his first two at-bats, Bellinger singled in the fifth to score Austin Wells, extending New York’s lead to 2-0.
The next inning proved to be a death knell for the Red Sox as Garrett Whitlock, the fourth Boston pitcher, began his 35-pitch meltdown by giving up a sacrifice fly to Wells, scoring one run, and allowing Jazz Chisholm to score another on Ryan McMahon’s ground out. After Game 1 hero Ben Rice, the team’s home run leader and another left-handed nuisance for Boston, was intentionally walked, Bellinger came up to the plate, looking to put the game away.
The scouting report on Bellinger is straightforward. He hit 17 home runs and drove in 73 runs this season. The 2019 NL MVP likes the ball down, feasting on breaking pitches and posted a .555 slugging average on that pitch in 2026.
Bellinger, who has a career .268 average against left-handed pitching, said there isn't a formula to his success against southpaws.
"No secret sauce. For me, just take it as another at-bat. Felt like when I was playing baseball coming up, didn't hear too much about the match-ups. I was just playing baseball," Bellinger said.
Whitlock’s first pitch was a slow changeup that landed outside, but instead of coming back with something different, he threw the same pitch again. This time, his changeup didn’t break and landed right in the middle of the plate, letting Bellinger turn on it and drive it 360 feet to right-center field, sending the New York dugout and the sellout crowd at Yankee Stadium into a frenzy. All four of Bellinger’s RBIs on Wednesday came with two outs.
"I think with where we were at in today's game, we pretty clearly knew who we were going to throw," Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said. "Those are the best ones we have to offer. So it was pretty obvious that we were going to be aggressive in using that group. Like I said, they swung the bats. Didn't work out. They swung the bats extremely well, so got to give them credit, it was frustrating."
Before Game 2, Yankees manager Aaron Boone said he was going to take an “all-hands-on-deck" approach against Red Sox starter Sonny Gray, who lasted only 70 pitches before Tracy went to his beleaguered bullpen to try to stop the bleeding they couldn’t in Game 1.
"We have some guys that are good left on left. Some of their guys aren't necessarily lefty specialists. There are a couple that were really tough that we had some success against," Yankees manager Aaron Boone said.
"I think the experience of playing against that so much this year – they faced so many guys for months there where we were very left-handed where in the fifth inning every day it was one lefty and then another one because that's how they attack us. So I'd like to think some of that familiarity and reps and all that prepared us well."
The stark contrast is that Rice and Bellinger, the two big left-handed bats in the lineup, had more RBIs combined than the Red Sox had all series, where New York scored 90% of the total runs in the two-game beatdown.
Boone was surprised by the margin of victory against their AL East rivals.
"As I said, kind of all year but even going into this series, that was a scary team to us, especially as well as they pitch. So for us to have the offensive outbreaks that we had here these last two nights and late, credit to those guys," Boone said.
"That was very satisfying to play that well in these two games. And that's what it was. They played great and beat a really good team that deserves a lot of credit for, was down and out in the middle of the season and fought their way back to being a no-doubt into the playoffs by the end."
With the team down in Game 2 of the Wild Card Series against the Yankees and Sonny Gray on the mound, Tracy pulled his AL Cy Young contender and it immediately backfired.
Gray had only thrown 70 pitches through 4.2 innings when the Red Sox skipper came out of the dugout. Down 1-0, the right-hander had just given up a single to Ben Rice, putting runners on the corners with two outs. Tracy went to left-hander Erik Miller to handle the left-handed Cody Bellinger.
Miller replaced Tolle in Game 1 and gave up a solo shot to Rice that energized the Yankees' offense. On Wednesday, Miller allowed an RBI single to Bellinger, once again putting the Yankees up 2-0 and energizing the offense.
"We're trailing. We're struggling to score runs. And when you get in spots where struggling to score runs and you're already trailing, you feel like you've got to be aggressive and go," Tracy explained after the 9-2 loss. "So they're getting back to the top part of the lineup. They get a couple of hits against them. See if you can put it out. And if you can put it out, you know, kind of lined up to where we want it to go. And that just didn't work."
Tracy said he was aware of Bellinger's reverse splits -- Bellinger batter .274 against lefties as opposed to .259 against right-handers -- but he reiterated his confidence in his bullpen's ability after a stellar season.
"With [Garret] Crochet, [Garret Whitlock] and [Aroldis Chapman] towards the back end there, and they were able to string a bunch of hits and we couldn't stop the bleeding there," he said. "It was pretty obvious that we were going to be aggressive in using that group. Like I said, they swung the bats. Didn't work out."
After the Red Sox escaped the fifth being down just two runs, Crochet and Whitlock imploded, allowing seven runs across the next two innings, including a six-spot in the sixth that put the game out of reach.
But the strongest sentiments surrounding Tracy's decision came from Gray himself.
The veteran right-hander was visibly frustrated with the move and voiced it after the game.
"I think I’m the best pitcher in the American League going through the order a third time. That’s a fact," Gray said. "I would have liked to have lived or died in that moment. But that’s the competitor that I am. You can ask the guys and they felt the same way. I felt strong. I felt confident, felt convicted. What can you do, you know?"
Reporters did ask Gray's teammates, including Willson Contreras, who didn't give a response when asked his thoughts about Gray being pulled. The first baseman simply did a zipped-mouth gesture.
But had plenty to say when asked how the team could be better next season.
"It's not enough when you have talent, or you have data, or computers that are telling you what to do. This is baseball," Contreras said. "The data is here to help us...but you need experience and to bet on the guys to win games."
The 36-year-old had an incredible regular season. He finished with an 18-5 record and a 2.72 ERA.
He had retired nine of his first 11 batters before surrendering a go-ahead solo homer to Luis García Jr. in the fourth inning. And although he bent a bit in the fifth, he felt he could have gotten out of the inning.
"I would have liked to have been trusted in that moment," he said.
"I'm the best pitcher in the American League going through the order for a third time. I would've liked to live or die with me in that moment...ask the guys in here if they felt the same way. I felt strong, confident."
The Yankees’ offense needed to get something going in Wednesday's Game 2.
While they carried their lead over the Red Sox heading into the bottom of the sixth, Boston had just cut the deficit in half and was turning things over to ace Garrett Crochet in relief.
The left-hander showed no ill effects making his first appearance since April 25 due to shoulder inflammation, setting Spencer Jones down on a nasty sweeper out of the zone.
That breaking ball danced far enough away from catcher Adley Rutschman, though, allowing Jones to book it down the first base line.
Rutschman took too long to get the ball and first baseman Willson Contreras caught it on the back, rather than the front, part of the bag, allowing Jones to beat out the bang-bang play (after review).
Jones continued causing havoc on the bases from there, as he quickly stole second and then made his way over to third on a poor Rutschman throw into shallow center.
Fellow rookie George Lombard Jr. singled him home a few pitches later.
“Across the game there are errors, there are things you can’t control, ” Crochet said. “You choose how you respond -- I got behind 2-0 to Lombard, I came back in the count, didn’t put him away but executed the pitch, that’s kind of the game.”
From there, the Yanks quickly loaded the bases and ended the left-hander's return.
New York manufactured two more runs before Cody Bellinger delivered the big blow, lifting a three-run shot over the right-center fence to make it a 7-1 ballgame.
While it goes down as a K in the books, it was Jones’ wheels that got the Yanks going, en route to the sweep-clinching commanding victory.
“That was great hustle,” Bellinger said. “Baseball is such a crazy game, anytime you can get on base, that was really impressive and really lit a fire in our dugout, for sure.”
García, who had spent his career with the Nationals until the trade deadline and had never played a postseason game before pinch hitting Tuesday, earned the start a night later and immediately demonstrated why he always is in the lineup against opposing right-handers.
The ice-breaking swing of what would become a 9-2, going-away blowout of the Red Sox to clinch the wild-card series belonged to García, who made sure his first trip to October (or technically late September) would be memorable.
In a scoreless game in the fourth inning with former Yankee Sonny Gray dealing, García stepped to the plate and stepped up. He got a 1-2 sweeper that was not poorly located — right at the bottom of the strike zone — but showed off a violent swing and rare power, clubbing the pitch 387 feet into the bleachers in right-center to begin another strong night for the Yankees offense.
When the Yankees traded for García, the fit did not look natural. He was another first baseman on a team that had two (Ben Rice and Paul Goldschmidt) or maybe a DH on a team that was awaiting a return from its DH (Giancarlo Stanton).
New York Yankees first baseman Luis García Jr. reacts as he rounds the base on his solo home run in the fourth inning during Game 2 of the Wild Card against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026. Robert Sabo for New York Post
But a swing like García’s, which produced 30 total homers this season and seven after the trade, will be shoehorned into lineups regardless. And further injuries, such as another calf strain to Stanton, ensured García would be a factor either way.
While sitting against lefty Payton Tolle on Tuesday, García looked around and breathed in an atmosphere he had never experienced before.
New York Yankees first baseman Luis García Jr. rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run in the fourth inning of Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, Wednesday, September 30, 2026. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“The experience is very different, actually — just seeing the atmosphere around the ballpark, the fans standing from pitch one all the way to the end, very different,” García said Wednesday afternoon through interpreter Marlon Abreu. “At the same time, very exciting. You can feel the excitement in the air.”
Also in the air was a home run and a pair of singles in the fifth and sixth innings, including a rare left-on-left knock against Erik Miller on a play that ended with Ben Rice gunned down at the plate.
Given a chance — a first in the series and a first in his career — García did some of everything to ensure he would have more playoff chances this weekend.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. didn’t play in Game 1 of the wild-card series against the Red Sox, the latest setback in what’s been a trying year for the second baseman.
But as with any player, the narrative of a season can change quickly this time of year, and Chisholm is looking to do just that.
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“We’re moving on,’’ Chisholm said after the Yankees beat Boston 9-2 in Game 2 on Wednesday in The Bronx to clinch a spot in the ALDS against the Rays.
“I didn’t care if I played or not today, as long as we win,’’ Chisholm said. “[Aaron] Boone’s done a great job. I always think my manager has done a great job, especially when we’re winning.”
Chisholm did his part after a year in which he put up career-worst numbers at the plate, had mental lapses in the field and was part of the infamous Blow Pop controversy while playing second base in a June game in Detroit.
Flemming later apologized, but Chisholm doesn’t seem to have forgotten, as he capped his productive return to the lineup by running wild on the bases again in the seventh inning of a lopsided win.
New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. celebrates with first base coach Dan Fiorito after hitting a single in the sixth inning of Game 2 of the American League wild-card series against the Boston Red Sox at Yankee Stadium, Wednesday, Sept. 30, 2026. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
“I just wanted to keep things going,’’ Chisholm said. “No lead is safe in baseball and I’m just here to win. If [Flemming] wants to hate, he can hate.”
On this night, though, Chisholm had bigger goals, like advancing in the postseason.
After seeing Anthony Volpe get the nod at second Wednesday, Chisholm had a fantastic catch in shallow center — with his back to the infield — to rob Adley Rutschman of a hit in the sixth.
New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. hits a single in the sixth inning of Game 2. Robert Sabo for New York Post
“I practice that play almost every day,’’ Chisholm said.
And then he contributed to a rally in the bottom of the inning with a single, his second on a 2-for-3 night.
And with the game well in hand in the seventh, he walked, swiped second base standing up, then swiped third and scored on an Austin Wells single.
Before the game, Boone said he debated starting Volpe and Chisholm in each of the first two games before splitting them.
“Both days, I’ve considered it, absolutely,’’ Boone said. “Anthony’s come up and done a really good job. He did a really good job when he went down [to the minors] of just getting to work and creating that versatility for himself. He’s come up and performed well and played well. But I also feel like Jazz is an important part of this, especially moving forward. And we’re going to need both guys to win big. Ultimately, that’s where I fell on it.”
There were some people in the organization who preferred Volpe’s steadiness over Chisholm’s potential explosiveness.
And over his final 18 games of the regular season — which was interrupted by an injured-list stint because of a sprained right thumb — Chisholm heated up at the plate, with a .939 OPS.
He also led the Yankees with 41 stolen bases this year.
Chisholm showed his value in the postseason last year, when he didn’t start in Game 1 of the wild-card series but responded by scoring from first base on a Wells single in Game 2 and adding a pair of hits in the Game 3-clinching win.
With the Yankees headed to the ALDS to face Tampa Bay, Boone will have plenty of lineup decisions to make.
Few will likely be more impactful than second base, where Volpe has looked solid despite a lack of experience at the position, but Chisholm offers more offense against righty pitching.
It’s not a position battle many would have seen coming as recently as three weeks ago, when Volpe made his first start in the majors at second.
New York Yankees second baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. celebrates on the field. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
But this is not your ordinary Yankees team, not with Aaron Judge out with a calf injury, and rookies at shortstop and in center field.
ATLANTA, GEORGIA - SEPTEMBER 29: Trea Turner #7 of the Philadelphia Phillies is picked off and caught stealing second base against Ha-Seong Kim #7 of the Atlanta Braves during the third inning in game one of the National League Wild Card Series at Truist Park on September 29, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Edward M. Pio Roda/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Well it’s here, the terrifying game 3 to decide whether the Braves’ season is over and against a division rival. They’ll have to go into it facing likely Zack Wheeler and without a true starting pitcher of their own. It is expected that Grant Holmes will play a major role and that Ray Kerr will have a role to play as a good matchup for the lefties at the top of Philly’s lineup before the back of the bullpen can take over. A lack of offseason/trade deadline starter additions plus a plague of injuries and prospects not taking the leap led us here to the Braves having no answer for a game 3 starting pitcher despite having the luxury of lining their staff up for this series. If they win this issue won’t go away and if they lose it will be discussed for months of what could be a long offseason. Buckle up. Meanwhile, their one big starter addition in Tyler Mahle has given them more than they could have reasonably expected with two months of great pitching after the deadline and 7.0 innings of one run ball in game 2. He might be a good one to bring back to Atlanta.
The Padres are leading the Cubs at the time of writing, but their result will determine the timing of the Braves’ game 3. A Padres win send the Braves and Phils to primetime, but a Cubs win relegates them to their typical 2pm timeslot for this Wild-Card round.
Everybody loved Murakami's interview when the White Sox clinched a spot in the MLB playoffs a week earlier, so the 26-year-old took it to a new level in the alcohol-soaked clubhouse in Houston, answering questions in English while declaring himself – and his interpreter – to be drunk.
Murakami hit 35 home runs in the regular season after coming over from Japan, an incredibly impressive rookie campaign for the slugger and went 1-for-8 with two runs in Chicago's wins over the Astros.
The White Sox will face the Cleveland Guardians in the best-of-five AL Division series beginning on Saturday.
When you're celebrating a MLB Postseason victory 21 YEARS in the making, who needs a translator? ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/MoRtoLbZid
With the Yankees clinging to a two-run lead, Jones led off the bottom of the sixth against Garrett Crochet, one of the game’s premier lefty pitchers, just coming back from a five-month absence because of a shoulder injury.
Jones whiffed, but Crochet badly bounced the third strike, and it got away from Adley Rutschman.
Jones hustled down the line, and after initially being ruled out, reached first when the call was overturned.
“When he gets it going, he can really go,’’ Aaron Boone said.
The 6-foot-7 Jones then attempted to steal second, and Rutschman’s throw went into center, allowing Jones to get to third.
“Speed is something I’ve always had,’’ Jones said. “I’m glad it worked out. It was a fun night.”
Spencer Jones steals second base and moves to third on a throwing error in the sixth inning of the Yankees’ 9-2 AL wild card series-clinching win over the Red Sox on Sept. 30, 2026 at the Stadium. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
There have been a few of those lately for the 25-year-old, who has contributed in numerous ways down the stretch after getting off to a 4-for-24 start with 12 strikeouts in his first 10 games in the majors.
When Jones returned to The Bronx later in the season, he had improved his approach at the plate and showed he could hit in the majors.
Jim Hendry, special assistant to GM Brian Cashman — who was among the Yankee scouts who evaluated Jones while he was at Vanderbilt — said the fast development shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.
“Big guys like that, it takes them longer to adjust,’’ Hendry said prior to the game. “Sure, they’re gonna strike out a lot. They’ve got more holes to figure out how to fix. But you know when they do, they can be special.”
As Hendry noted, the Yankees “have always liked big players.”
Still, there aren’t many examples of players Jones’ size hitting well, with Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton being two exceptions.
Right fielder Spencer Jones is safe at first base after striking out on a wild pitch during the Yankees’ Game 2 series-clinching win over the Red Sox. JASON SZENES FOR NEW YORK POSTSpencer Jones steals second base and moves to third on a throwing error in the sixth inning of the Yankees’ Game 2 series-clinching win over the Red Sox. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Jones is trying to become another, and the Yankees have seen some promising signs in the second half of the season.
As they’ve dealt with the lengthy absence of Judge because of rib and calf injuries, multiple injuries to Trent Grisham, as well as another disappointing season from Jasson Domínguez, Jones has been thrust into an important role.
He had a pair of solid at-bats against Tolle, and Aaron Boone said Wednesday that he considered having Giancarlo Stanton pinch hit for Jones to lead off the bottom of the seventh against another southpaw, Alec Gamboa.
Instead, Boone stayed with Jones, who singled.
Among the reasons Boone stuck with Jones was the success he’d had versus lefties in the majors — just part of what’s developing into a well-rounded game for the former first-round pick.
“It’s hard in the modern game to hit when you’re 6-foot-7,’’ Hendry said. “But when you do it well, you don’t have to worry about launch and other things. When you’re that big, the ball lifts itself. He’s still got a lot of work to do, but he’s becoming a good player already.”
