Category: Baseball

After hitting a game-tying home run on Tuesday night, Pete Alonso’s 1st-inning homer on Wednesday kick-started a long-ball barrage that propelled the Orioles to a 7-1 win over the Mets.

It took eight plate appearances against his former team for Alonso to finally hit his 300th career home run Tuesday in Queens. It only took one plate appearance Wednesday for Alonso to launch number 301. After fouling off back-to-back 2-2 pitches from Mets starter Xzavion Curry, Alonso destroyed a hanging curveball to put the Orioles up 1-0 in the 1st.

And just as the Polar Bear’s homer Tuesday propelled the O’s to an extra-inning victory, his long ball Wednesday set the tone for another Baltimore victory.

Christian Encarnacion-Strand started off the 2nd inning by reaching on a double after a pop-up down the left-field line dropped between a trio of befuddled Mets. After Samuel Basallo hit a groundout to the right side to send CES to third, it looked like the O’s might manufacture a run. Instead, Curry left a slider over the plate to Jeremiah Jackson, who blasted a homer to left for the second game in a row.

The homers would continue to fly in the 3rd inning. After Alonso and Gunnar Henderson picked up two quick outs to begin the inning, Coby Mayo worked a five-pitch walk to extend the frame. Curry then fell behind CES 2-0 and tried to beat the Orioles’ 3B with a 90mph fastball at the top of the zone.

Encarnacion-Strand was all over the fastball, though, hitting the ball so hard over the left field fence that Mets’ LF Juan Soto didn’t even bother to move. One pitch later, Samuel Basallo pounced on a splitter left in the heart of the plate, sending a moonshot over the CF fence for back-to-back solo shots.

The early offensive onslaught made life easy for Orioles starter Chris Bassitt. The 38-year-old former Met largely breezed through 6.2 innings. He started his evening with two quick outs against Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto, with Alonso making a diving stop to steal a single from Soto. Bo Bichette would reach on a high chopper down the third-base line and moved to second after an errant throw by CES. The runner didn’t faze Bassitt, who got Carson Benge to fly out to left to end the 1st.

Bassitt would repeat that feat in the 2nd. After two quick outs from Jared Young and Marcus Semien, A.J. Ewing slapped a single to left to extend the inning. After Ewing stole second, Bassitt again stranded a runner in scoring position as Brett Baty struck out looking on a high curveball.

The veteran right-hander breezed through the 3rd inning, opening the frame with back-to-back strikeouts of Luis Torrens and Lindor. Soto then finished Bassitt’s first 1-2-3 inning with a flyout to right.

The only blemish on Bassitt’s outing came in the 4th inning. The Orioles’ righty started the inning by getting Bichette to ground out and Benge to fly out. He’d then get ahead 1-2 on Young, only to lose him to a six-pitch walk. A Bassitt balk gave the Mets their third runner in scoring position. He then left a 2-1 sinker at the top of the zone to Semien, who served it into left field to push across the Mets’ only run.

From there, Bassitt went into cruise control. He pitched another 1-2-3 inning in the 5th, punctuating the frame with a strikeout of Lindor. He mowed through the heart of the Mets order in the 6th on 10 pitches, clinching his fifth quality start of the season.

After his starter only needing 77 pitches to get through six innings, Craig Albernaz sent Bassitt back out there for the 7th. For the first time all game, the leadoff hitter reached against the vet, as Young lined a single to center. Bassitt would set down the next two hitters, but a two-out single from Brett Baty finally chased him from the game. After fellow former Met Anthony Nunez came in and struck out Luis Torrens, Bassitt’s line closed at 6.2 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB and 6 Ks.

The O’s would get an unnecessary insurance run in the 9th, finally pushing across a run without the ball leaving the park. CES led off the final frame with double sprayed down the right field line for his third extra-base hit of the evening. Basallo then picked up his second hit of the night, sending a 109mph laser to right field for an RBI single. After the brief rally in the top of the inning, Yennier Cano entered in the bottom of the 9th and worked around a two-out single to clinch the Orioles’ sweep of the Mets.

The win puts the Orioles 2.5 GB of the AL’s third wild card spot heading into this weekends series against baseball’s best team, the Brewers. Afte the Guardians beat the White Sox earlier on Wednesday, the O’s are now chasing Chicago for that final playoff berth. Chicago starts a four-game set against the Tigers tomorrow, and a loss in the series opener would put the O’s only 2 GB heading into Friday.

Facing a bullpen game against the Washington Nationals should have resulted in a lot of offense for the Phillies. But despite drawing 13 walks, the Phillies’ offense couldn’t seem to get going, and could only manage to score three runs. Fortunately, those three runs were plenty because Zack Wheeler was dominating, and led the Phillies to a 3-0 win.

The Phillies had a chance to establish a sizeable lead in the first. Facing reliever Jared Simpson, with one out, three straight batters walked, and Alec Bohm brought one of them home with an RBI single. Luis Arraez walked to force another run home, which prompted the exit of Simpson. Riley “The Great” Cornelio entered and retired J.T. Realmuto and Brandon Marsh to end the threat.

I’m not sure if it was intentional or not, but the Nationals’ pitchers spent the majority of the game not throwing strikes, and the Phillies not making them pay for it. Yes, they walked 13 times overall, but it probably could have been even more than that as the Phillies’ batters bailed them out by repeatedly swinging at balls out of the zone.

The offense might have been frustrating, but Zack Wheeler was not. Whatever issues he was dealing with a few weeks ago seem to be behind him as he was in complete control on Wednesday. In his seven innings, he gave up just four hits, and two of those were infield singles.

The Phillies gave him a little more breathing room in the seventh when Bryce Harper singled and Arraez hit a double to make it 3-0.

Unfortunately, a double play kept them from scoring any more in that inning, and another double play in the ninth, killed a bases loaded, one out threat.

It ended up not mattering. Jose Alvarado came in after Wheeler, and while it’s too much to hope that he’d pitch a clean inning, he was able to work around the one walk he issued to deliver a scoreless frame.

Jhoan Duran was asked to preserve the shutout, and he did so with little difficulty, striking out two of the three batters he faced.

At this point in the season, every win is important, and this win allowed the Phillies to creep closer to securing a playoff spot. They’ll attempt to creep a little closer on Thursday when they travel to New York to begin a four-game series against the Mets.

The Mets' spot starter let up four homers and the offense mustered seven hits in their 7-1 loss to the Orioles on Wednesday night.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Pete Alonso, receiving a standing ovation for the third night in a row, took Xzavion Curry deep in the first inning to give the O's an early 1-0 lead. It wouldn't be the last homer Curry would allow, as former Mets prospect Jeremiah Jackson launched a two-run shot in the second. 

In the third, Christian Encarnacion-Strand hit a two-run shot and then Samuel Basallo followed up with a solo shot. 

-- Robert Stock was originally scheduled to start, but was placed on the IL. Curry was called up to start and was not effective. He allowed six runs on six hits and one walk across three innings. However, the relievers behind Curry did their job, especially Jefrey Yan. The southpaw was recalled Wednesday when the Mets placed Daniel Duarte on the IL and he pitched three perfect innings. Jack Weisenburger pitched two scoreless innings before giving up a run in his third and final inning of work.

-- Chris Bassitt was on the mound for the Orioles and the former Met had one of his best starts of the season. The right-hander went 6.2 innings -- tying a season-high -- allowing one run on five hits and one walk while striking out six. 

-- Marcus Semien had the only RBI for the Mets, an RBI single in the fourth that scored Jared Young. Francisco Lindor went 1-for-4 with two strikeouts but remains at 299 home runs for his career. A.J. Ewing went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles. He was the only Met to have a multi-hit game.

Game MVP: Chris Bassitt

Bassitt gave Baltimore just what they needed. After the O's had to use seven relievers in Tuesday's win, Bassitt gave Baltimore length and effectiveness.

Highlights

An RBI single for Marcus Semien pushes across the first run of the game for the Mets pic.twitter.com/TneDJ2yW36

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 17, 2026

Jefry Yan strikes out the side in the 6th pic.twitter.com/2hwEjdUk5r

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 17, 2026

Jack Weisenberger picks off Colton Cowser on the third disengagement! pic.twitter.com/628EjmmIHR

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 17, 2026

What's next

The Mets start a four-game series with the Phillies on Thursday. First pitch is set for 7: 15 p.m.

Nolan McLean (11-9, 3.24 ERA) will take the mound against Aaron Nola (6-10, 4.69 ERA). 

Shohei Ohtani’s aching right arm. Freddie Freeman’s throbbing right knee. Edwin Díaz’s disastrous form on a minor-league rehabilitation assignment.

Whatever problems surfaced in recent weeks, the Dodgers were able to convince themselves they could overcome them.

The reason: Even with Ohtani unable to pitch, they had the most talented starting rotation of this era.

Suddenly, that source of comfort is a major concern.

Blake Snell departed his start in Cincinnati on Wednesday after just one inning with what was described as a tight left groin.

Consider that Tyler Glasnow traveled directly home from Miami rather than to follow the Dodgers to Great American Ball Park for their four-game series against the Reds, and there are reasons to be worried.

Very worried.

With an inconsistent offense and combustible bullpen, the Dodgers were going to be heavily dependent on their starting pitching in the playoffs.

That rotation could now be unraveling.

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The last time Snell strained his left groin was when he was pitching for the San Francisco Giants in 2024. He was sidelined for a month.

For what it’s worth, Snell is convinced this particular injury isn’t severe and plans to make his next start, according to people familiar with this situation. 

“Stopped before it got too bad,” one of the people said.

Then again, weren’t similar claims once made about Ohtani?

As for Glasnow, he remains on track to pitch on Friday.

Manager Dave Roberts said Glasnow skipped the Cincinnati leg of the trip to better prepare for his starting assignment at Dodger Stadium against the San Francisco Giants.

“Get him acclimated to Pacific Standard Time,” Roberts said.

By sending Glasnow back to Los Angeles, the Dodgers spared him a three-hour flight from Miami to Cincinnati.

Glasnow was sidelined for 3 ½ months because of back problems, and Roberts intimated something could be wrong with him after his most recent start. In his last two appearances, the 6-foot-8 right-hander gave up a combined eight runs, 11 hits and seven walks in 10 innings.

The questions about Snell’s and Glasnow’s health came at a time when the rotation was coming together before the postseason.

Snell in particular was sharp after returning from an elbow cleanup that cost him three months. Before his early departure on Wednesday, Snell was 4-0 with a 1.04 earned-run average since he was activated from the injured list on Aug. 11.

Snell wasn’t the only Cy Young Award-caliber pitcher rounding into shape.

The day before Snell scaled the mound, it was Yamamoto’s turn to do so, and last year’s World Series Most Valuable Player pitched seven scoreless innings in a 4-0 win over the Reds.

The seven-inning start was the third in a row for Yamamoto, who improved his record to 14-8 and lowered his earned-run average to 2.51.

“I feel really good and I don’t have any physical problems,” Yamamoto told reporters in Japanese. “I want to treat practice each and every day with importance and go into October in the best condition.”

The opening game of the series was started by Tarik Skubal, the two-time Cy Young Award winner who was acquired from the Detroit Tigers before the trade deadline.

Skubal pitched seven scoreless innings of his own in a 4-1 victory over the Reds. In his previous start, which was also against the Reds but at Dodger Stadium, Skubal pitched 7 ⅓ innings.

“Just getting in a rhythm,” Skubal said.

Just last week, the Dodgers had a playoff rotation that would have looked to other teams like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse.

Now, there’s a chance they could be forced to send Roki Sasaki and Emmet Sheehan to the mound in playoff games.

The Dodgers could conceivably win a championship with a rotation of Yamamoto, Skubal, Sasaki and Sheehan but that would require their offense to be productive.

How much can the Dodgers count on that, considering the physical problems Ohtani and Freeman have encountered? And how would using Sasaki as a starter instead of a reliever affect their bullpen?

Snell removed himself from his start on Wednesday so the Dodgers wouldn’t have to find out. The question is whether he did so in time. Their season depends on it.

The Dodgers needed one win to clinch their 13th NL West title since 2013. Instead, they were forced to go with an impromptu bullpen game, and the Cincinnati Reds slugged their way to a 6-2 victory on Wednesday.

The Dodgers created havoc on the base paths in the first inning, as a single and two walks helped load the bases against left-hander Andrew Abbot, but Miguel Rojas flew out to center field to keep the game scoreless.

In his first start at Great American Ball Park since tossing a no-hitter with the San Francisco Giants in 2024, Blake Snell allowed a two-out single to Sal Stewart, only to pick him off trying to advance to second base in a scoreless first inning. That inning was all that Snell could go on Wednesday, as he ended up leaving early due to left groin tightness, leaving the bullpen to do the heavy lifting. Blake Treinen worked around a leadoff baserunner in a scoreless second inning in replacement of Snell.

After Mookie Betts connected for his second single against Abbot in the third inning, Will Smith brought home the game’s first run with an RBI double off the base of the right-center field wall.

Seth Halvorsen was the next man up out of the bullpen, but he was unable to keep the Dodgers in front as he allowed a two-out, two-run home run to Elly De La Cruz to give the Reds their first lead of the series. It was the fifth home run for De La Cruz against the Dodgers this season, and he has driven in all three runs for the Reds against Los Angeles this week.

Both Tommy Edman and Betts worked a walk against Abbott to begin the top of the fifth inning, but the Reds southpaw got two straight outs before being pulled after tossing 98 pitches over 4 2/3 innings. Julian Garcia needed just one pitch to get a weak fly ball out from Teoscar Hernández to escape further trouble.

Bobby Miller made his first big league appearance since tossing three innings against the Washington Nationals on September 6, tossing 2 1/3 innings on 47 pitches while allowing a run via a solo home run from Dane Myers to give the Reds a two-run lead.

The Dodgers proceeded to load the bases again in the top of the sixth against Garcia, and Edman cut the deficit to one run by bringing home Kyle Tucker on a groundout to first. Tejay Antone came in to face Mookie Betts with two on and two outs, and a leaping catch by De La Cruz at short helped the Reds get out of the jam with their lead intact.

Miller allowed a single to Stewart before plunking Tyler Stephenson to put the first two hitters on base to begin the top of the sixth inning. He managed to get one out before being pulled for Alex Vesia, and the Reds capitalized with a bloop RBI single from Juan Brito to give the Reds a two-run lead once again.

The Reds put runners at the corners against Jack Dreyer with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning, and Sal Stewart connected for his third single of the game, driving home Matt McLain from third base to make it a three-run lead for Cincinnati. A walk to Eugenio Suárez loaded the bases, and pinch-hitter T.J. Friedl knocked home De La Cruz to make it a four-run lead, but a strong throw from Tommy Edman gunned down Stewart at home for the third out.

Left-hander Kris Bubic made his Dodgers debut on Wednesday, pitching a scoreless eighth inning while allowing just one hit and picking up his first two strikeouts with his new team.

Game particulars

• Home runs— Elly De La Cruz (28), Dane Myers (7)
• WP—Julian Garcia (3-3): 1 IP, 2 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout
• LP—Seth Halvorsen (1-2): 1 IP, 2 hits, 2 earned runs, 0 walks, 0 strikeouts

Up next

The Dodgers wrap things up in Cincinnati on Thursday (9:40 a.m. PT) before they head back home for their final homestand of the regular season. Brady Singer goes for the Reds while the Dodgers have yet to announce their starter.

The Athletics faced the Tampa Bay Rays, looking to even the series and force a rubber match Thursday afternoon. The Rays staved off the A’s comeback attempt, prevailing 4-3 in another tightly contested affair between these two small-market clubs.

Rays Strike First

A’s left-hander Brady Basso struggled this evening. After recording the first two outs of the bottom of the first inning, he allowed three consecutive doubles, giving the Rays a 2-0 lead. Tampa Bay scored two more runs in the second inning to double its advantage. Meanwhile, Rays starter Nick Martinez was sharp early, retiring the first six hitters he faced.

Athletics Start Comeback Attempt

In the bottom of the third, the visitors began their comeback against Martinez. Playing in his hometown, first baseman Tommy White led off the inning with his third career home run, a solo shot that just cleared the left-field fence.

With two outs, fellow rookie Henry Bolte hit his 11th home run of the season, a solo shot to center field that cut the deficit to 4-2.

After allowing the first two batters of the bottom of the third to reach safely, Basso retired the next two hitters. Right-hander Seth Johnson replaced him and struck out Jorge Mateo to strand the two inherited runners. Johnson kept the score unchanged, striking out four Rays over 2 1/3 scoreless, hitless innings of relief.

A’s Inch Closer

For a second straight night, the Rays removed their starter after five innings, likely as a precaution with the playoffs around the corner. Martinez could have pitched deeper into the game, having throwing just 72 pitches over five innings while allowing two runs. Right-hander Kevin Kelly took over in the sixth.

The first batter he faced, Athletics second baseman Jeff McNeil, doubled to left. McNeil promptly scored the A’s third run on designated hitter Shea Langeliers’ RBI single to center. Kelly rebounded to strike out the next three hitters, preserving his team’s one-run lead.

Athletics left-hander Drew Rom pitched the bottom of the sixth, making his first relief appearance since his re-call from Triple-A Las Vegas. He recorded two outs after allowing a leadoff double before making way for right-hander Scott Blewett, who secured the final out of the scoreless inning.

White turned in his best game in a while, accumulating three-hits. He opened the seventh inning with his second single of the game, but Kelly quickly shut down the potential game-tying rally. Athletics left fielder Carlos Cortes has yet to make the most of his everyday playing time, while it is difficult to expect much offensive production from third-string catcher Brian Serven.

Rays’ Bullpen Seals the Deal

After the A’s failed to score in the top of the eighth against Rays left-hander Cam Booser, Blewett and left-hander Hogan Harris combined to keep it a one-run game heading into the ninth inning.

According to Martin Gallegos, A’s beat reporter for MLB.com, Harris became the fourth A’s reliever since 2012 with at least 70 games pitched and 15 saves in one season. Can you name the other three players?

Right-hander Cole Sulser, not All-Star closer Bryan Baker, entered for the save opportunity. Leading off the ninth, A’s third baseman Zack Gelof just missed a game-tying home run, hitting a 407 foot fly out to center field. Sulser retired the side in order, securing his third save of the season and another series victory for the American-League best Rays.

Takeaways and Preview for Tomorrow’s Game

Back-to-back one-run losses sting for the A’s, especially after recording several close wins during their last homestand. Even though their run of series victories came to an end, tonight was another encouraging competitive display against a really good team. The Athletics’ bullpen did not allow a run, Bolte’s strong second half continued and White performed well in front of family and friends.

The Athletics will try to avoid a season sweep against the Rays Thursday afternoon. Left-hander Jeffrey Springs is expected to take the mound against his former team. The Rays will counter with right-hander Drew Rasmussen, who has formed a formidable duo with Martinez at the front of their rotation this season.

MINNEAPOLIS — For a few teasing moments Wednesday afternoon, it looked as if the Yankees might sneak away with a sweep in a game that was overshadowed by Aaron Judge’s early exit with an injury.

Like when Anthony Volpe lifted a two-run, two-out double to tie the game in the ninth inning.

Or when Ali Sánchez gave the Yankees their first lead of the day with a single in the 10th inning. Or when José Caballero put them back on top with a sacrifice fly in the 11th.

Or when they loaded the bases with no outs in the top of the 12th and looked primed to break the game open for good.

Instead, they just delayed the pain and frustration until the bottom of the 13th, when a bouncing ground ball slipped under the glove of George Lombard Jr. and sent the Twins to a 5-4 win at Target Field.

“Obviously a lot of good things, but not enough good things,” manager Aaron Boone said. “Tough one, obviously, when you got a chance to sweep and heading into an off-day. But we got to get over that and get ready for a good Diamondback club.”

On a day when Judge left the game in the top of the sixth inning with right lower leg tightness, the Yankees dropped to four games back of the Rays (pending their Wednesday night game) for the division with 10 games to play.

The walk-off “single” came off the bat of Victor Caratini against John Schreiber, and while it took a bounce off the mound, Boone acknowledged it was a play Lombard “expects to make and we know he can make.”

But the Yankees had plenty of other chances to win the game before it got to the 13th inning, even after they mustered just four hits through the first eight innings against right-hander Zebby Matthews and the Twins bullpen.

That best one came in the 12th inning, when they loaded the bases with no outs for Heliot Ramos, who had pinch hit for Judge in the sixth inning.

Ramos did just about the worst thing possible by hitting a chopper back to the mound, where Travis Adams started a 1-2-3 double play before Sánchez struck out to squash the threat.

Schreiber pulled off a Houdini escape in the bottom of the frame on just two pitches, when he intentionally walked the leadoff man, picked off the automatic runner at second base and then got an inning-ending double play.

Before the game went haywire, Carlos Rodón was solid, giving up two runs across six innings, extending his franchise record with a 25th consecutive start in which he has allowed three runs or fewer.

The left-hander’s velocity was down across the board in his first three innings but started to tick back up by the fourth inning.

“I just started off a little slow, a little tight,” Rodón said, indicating that was not totally out of the norm. “It loosened up on me going out the next few innings, so that was nice.”

The Mariners take the field again Wednesday, looking to avoid being swept by the worst team in the American League only a day after clinching their first losing season since 2019.

In the offseason prior to the 2019 season, the Mariners went back to the drawing board and kicked off the rebuild that ultimately led to their first playoff appearances since 2001. Yusei Kikuchi, a left-hander out of NPB, signed with the Mariners as one of the first moves of this rebuild, and would become the team’s lone All-Star in 2021 before leaving in free agency.

Somewhat fittingly, Kikuchi gets the nod for the Angels on Wednesday. He’ll be countered by George Kirby, who was the Mariners’ first-round pick in the 2019 MLB Draft. Go figure.

Lineups

With the Mariners facing a lefty, Taylor Ward will make his first start of the series against his former team. Weston Wilson will also round out the lineup at third base.

Game Information

First Pitch: 6:38 p.m. PDT

TV:Mariners.TV

Radio: Ol’ Reliable

New level? No problem. 

Jefferson Rojas has settled right in following his promotion to Triple-A, putting together his second straight strong showing on Wednesday night. 

The Mets’ top prospect wasted no time getting the team on the board, singling on the second pitch he saw in the bottom of the first, before coming around to score on a Ronny Mauricio double.  

Rojas did some damage of his own just two innings later, jumping all over a first-pitch slider, lifting it 398 feet to deep right for his second homer in as many games. 

The two-run blast was his 26th on the minor league season.

He singled again on the first pitch he saw in the bottom of the fifth but was stranded, then reached a fourth time with an eight-pitch walk leading off the seventh. 

Rojas finished his day 3-for-3 with the homer, two singles, two runs scored, and two RBI. 

The 21-year-old has now reached six times over his first nine at-bats through two games with Syracuse. 

He's hitting a strong .276 with 26 homers, 27 doubles, 20 stolen bases, 90 RBI, and a .838 OPS on the season. 

Rojas has done nothing but continue to add to his impressive resume as he looks to work his way into the big-league mix heading into his first spring training with the organization. 

Also with Syracuse, Ryan Clifford lifted his second homer since returning from the Development List. 

Recently named organizational Pitcher of the Year, Jonathan Santucci had a bit of an up-and-down start, allowing four runs (three earned) on three hits and three walks across 5.1 innings of work. 

With six more Ks, Santucci is up to 163, which is top among minor leaguers for the season. 

Roster moves

The Arizona Diamondbacks made the following roster moves. The D-backs’ active roster is at 28 and the 40-man roster is at 40.

• Reinstated from the 60-day injured list: RHP Ryne Nelson (strained right elbow; retro to June 16)v
• Designated for assignment: RHP Derek Law

So, that’s now… Seven starters on the active roster for the D-backs? Kinda. Given the lack of length in his rehab outings, it looks like Nelson will instead be joining Zac Gallen in working out of the bullpen the rest of the way, which will be interesting. Nelson had made 15 appearances this year, purely as a starter, but does have experience out of the bullpen, in particular last year, when he came on in relief ten times. Small(ish) sample size, but he has actually been significantly better in that role. He has a 2.82 ERA across 44.2 IP, compared to 4.43 over his 93 starts. His starts this year were higher still, at 4.97.

I am a little surprised to see the team make room for Nelson by dumping Derek Law. In some ways, it is a case of, “easy come, easy go.” He’d not pitched in the majors since 2024 due to injury, and began the year on the Injured List. After a couple of rehab outings and another IL stint, he joined the Reno Aces in August, and was then quickly promoted to the major-league roster, making his first appearance there on August 29. He allowed a run in his first outing, but since then has tossed 7.2 scoreless frames across six outings, decent numbers. But with no minor-league options remaining and a free agent at season end, I guess the math didn’t add up.

I’m going to be taking my own advice this evening and stepping outside to touch grass. Well, not literally. It’s still summer in Arizona, so you really don’t want to step outside, and the grass died several months ago. But I’m going to put the phone away for the evening and fully commit to other pastimes! I’ll check back in around 9:30 pm, in the hopes of seeing a series win, in advance of tomorrow’s off-day.

With less than two weeks remaining in the 2026 Major League Baseball season, the San Diego Padres have firm control of the third and final National League Wild Card postseason position. 

The magic number is nine, and with a little luck, they can clinch a playoff berth against division foe, the Arizona Diamondbacks, at Petco Park next weekend. Any combination of Friars wins and Diamondbacks losses totaling nine allows the Brown & Gold to pop some champagne and celebrate.

2026 regular season has been a grind

That’s all well and good; the path to the postseason has been a grind. The season has been a Jekyll and Hyde campaign: the bats went silent early on, and so did the team’s ability to win games.

The Friar Faithful criticized the club for failing to take advantage of lesser teams on the schedule. It seemed like the Padres were playing down to their opponents. 

Once the lineup found consistency at the plate and the starting rotation came together to produce quality starts, the wins have come in bunches. All of it has helped to maintain a 2.5-game lead over the D-Backs in the Wild Card standings.

Wild Card standings wide open

The two teams will meet in the final regular-season series at Petco Park on Sept. 25-27. No need to analyze the series, as the Friars can make it meaningless by continuing to win. The magic number dwindles; the D-Backs will lose ground to make up the deficit, as games are removed from the schedule. 

At worst, Arizona wants to be trailing by three games heading to San Diego.

The Padres will likely open on the road against the Atlanta Braves in the Wild Card round. However, the club is narrowing the gap on the Philadelphia Phillies and Chicago Cubs in the standings. 

Both teams are struggling to play .500 baseball, keeping the Friars in the hunt to gain ground in the Wild Card race. Because San Diego lost the season series to the Phillies and Cubs, they don’t hold the tiebreaker and must finish ahead of both teams in the standings to advance.

But before we get ahead of ourselves, the Padres must first clinch a postseason berth.

Brian Wolfe, a standout pitcher at Servite who played three seasons with the Toronto Blue Jays, has died at age 45, his wife shared Tuesday on Facebook.

“I’m am sorry to write this but after a really really difficult and torturous battle Brian Wolfe passed away early this morning,” Rachell Wolfe wrote.

No other details have been provided.

Wolfe was one of Orange County’s most dominant high school pitchers during the late 1990s. After going 8-0 with an ERA of 0.27 as a sophomore in 1997, he was the Friars’ ace the next two seasons.

Read more:'Nobody was cooler' than former Kings coach and beloved broadcaster Barry Melrose, who sold the U.S. on hockey

Honored both years as a member of The Times’ All-Orange County team, Wolfe went 11-2 with a 1.37 ERA and a county-best 139 strikeouts as a junior and was 12-0 with a 1.30 ERA and nearly 100 strikeouts as a senior.

After committing to Cal State Fullerton in the fall of 1998, Wolfe opted to sign with the Minnesota Twins organization after being drafted in the sixth round (179th overall) the following summer. He spent the next several years working his way up through the minor leagues with the Twins, Milwaukee Brewers and Blue Jays before making his major league debut with Toronto as a relief pitcher in 2007.

Wolfe appeared in 72 games over three seasons with the Blue Jays, compiling a 5-5 record and a 3.81 ERA in 82.2 innings pitched. He became a free agent after the 2009 season and spent the next nine years playing in Japan with Nippon Professional Baseball, playing for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (including the 2013 season as teammates with Shohei Ohtani), Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (winning the Japan League title in 2014 and 2015) and Saitama Seibu Lions.

Former MLB outfielder Brandon Barnes posted a tribute to Wolfe on Wednesday, calling his fellow Orange County native “one of my best friends and a mentor.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

San Diego Padres (82-69) at Colorado Rockies (56-95), September 16, 2026, 5:40 p.m. PST

Watch: Padres.TV

Location: Coors Field – Denver, Colo.

Listen: 97.3 The Fan

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Last night was fun.

The Colorado Rockies snapped a grueling eight-game losing streak —their longest of the season — with a commanding 9-3 win to snap the San Diego Padres eight-game winning streak. Now, the Rockies look to take a series lead with today’s third match-up!

Mason Adams (0-0, 3.38 ERA) takes the mound, looking for his first win in the big leagues. Adams looked great in his last outing on the road against the Detroit Tigers. He worked five innings with the only blemish being a Max Clark home run. He continues to pound the zone and now has 22 strikeouts in 18.2 innings of work against nine walks. The walks themselves have mostly come in bunches in an inning as he as walked at least three batters in two of his three starts.

Home runs have been a common occurrence for him thus far, as he has allowed five total home runs, at least one in each start. In his first start at Coors Field, Adams worked 4.2 innings, allowing three runs on eight hits against the St. Louis Cardinals. However, he did strike out seven while allowing just one walk in 4.2 innings. The recipe for success is that Adams has to work quickly and efficiently to put batters away. He has a pitch limit around 75 pitches, so if he can get through five and keep the Rockies in the game, it’ll be a successful start once again.

The Padres will send out veteran lefty Robbie Ray (12-8, 3.57 ERA). Ray enjoyed an excellent season in San Francisco, where he went 10-6 with a 3.08 ERA over 22 games. However, he hasn’t had as much success since being traded to the Padres. In seven starts with San Diego, Ray is 2-2 with a 5.35 ERA. The issue for Ray is that he is walking as many batters as he is striking them out. With 25 strikeouts and 24 walks in 33.2 innings, he’s dealing with a lot of traffic and has a 1.57 WHIP. He’s especially been beat up in September, allowing 10 runs on nine hits over his 7.1 innings of work across two starts.

Ray last faced the Rockies on July 10 at Coors Field. He was solid in that outing, allowing just one run on four hits over five innings with six walks and four strikeouts. He had faced the Rockies in the start before that in San Francisco on July 4, where he recorded a quality start. The Rockies have to be patient and make Ray throw strikes. This start will be his fourth against the Rockies this season. He is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA in 15 innings with 14 strikeouts and 11 walks and just one home run allowed.

First Pitch: 6:40 pm MDT

TV: Rockies TV

Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM; KNRV 1150 (Spanish)

Padres SB Nation Site: Gaslamp Ball

Lineups:

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