Category: Baseball

This is a different Yankees lineup and look, with George Lombard Jr. flourishing early, Spencer Jones given a runway and Luis García Jr. and Heliot Ramos working themselves into the mix with their new club. 

And yet this is the same Yankees problem: a lineup lacking a pulse without the heart of the team. 

Hours after Aaron Judge declared he would return at some point this season, the batting order he left behind played as if it wanted to convey to the captain that he better hurry up. 

A problem that recently has been partially disguised by excellent pitching and Lombard bursting on the scene had nowhere to hide Wednesday, when the Yankees were silenced 3-1 by the Cardinals in a slog of a game marked by frequent pauses of play and virtually no excitement while the home team was at bat. 

The 37,425 on hand in The Bronx waited through a 68-minute rain delay before the game started, then groaned as Yankee Stadium lights continually turned off in the early innings, then ran for cover during a brief sixth-inning downpour, then checked their phones as a Cardinals pitcher slipped on a slick mound in the seventh, prompting the grounds crew to hustle over and rake the dirt. 

The few left by the end were not rewarded for their patience as the Yankees (64-51) dropped the series, fell 4 ¹/₂ games back of the Rays and slipped to a single game clear of the Red Sox for the top wild-card spot. 

“I thought [Cardinals starter Andre] Pallante was good, but we gotta get it done,” manager Aaron Boone said after his group finished with four hits, none of which arrived with runners in scoring position (0-for-10), and looked as if most of its at-bats came with the lights out. “We got to come through in those situations.” 

The Yankees have scored more than five runs in four of their past 43 games, a startling drought regardless of personnel, spanning a stretch in which they are averaging 3.3 runs per game. The entire stretch has come without Judge, whose fractured rib has threatened to derail the team’s season, though Wednesday he began some light activities. 

Hollow bats give the pitching staff and defense little margin for error, and Will Warren and arguably Trent Grisham in center field were not perfect. 

Warren rolled through four innings before encountering trouble in the game-deciding fifth. With runners on the corners and two outs, young standout JJ Wetherholt put a good swing on a sweeper — “Hindsight, probably throw a different pitch,” Warren bemoaned — that became a high drive to center field. 

“Off the bat I thought I had a pretty good chance at it,” Grisham said. “As I was going back, it just kind of kept going.” 

Grisham got turned around on the play, then decided to play the ball off the wall. The ball did not hit the wall, short-hopping it and going for a two-run double, which was followed by another double for the only three runs St. Louis would need. 

The Yankees had many opportunities in the middle and late innings and wasted them. There was an inning-ending double play from Austin Wells; a near breakthrough in which three walks and a hit by pitch scored one run before Ryan McMahon struck out with the bases loaded; García stranding two with a groundout; and an otherwise exuberant Lombard swinging through Ryne Stanek heat with two runners on board. 

Lombard (1-for-4 with a few standout defensive plays again) continues to entertain and inspire hope, but when virtually anyone else was at the plate, the Yankees looked hopeless. 

The night’s leadoff hitter, Grisham (0-for-5), is 8-for-71 (.113) in his past 20 games. 

Spencer Jones (0-for-4), who had shown enough to keep his big league spot while Jasson Domínguez was optioned, has gone 0-for-15 in his past four games. 

Chisholm (0-for-2 with two walks) is 1-for-17 in his past five games. 

Asked what was missing in the threats that did not quite become rallies, Grisham summed it up well: “Hits.”

After a rain delay that prevented the start of the game for an hour and then multiple lights failures causing brief stoppages, the Yankees looked like they were mostly still waiting for the game to start, even after it did.

On the mound, Will Warren was coming of a scoreless outing against the Cubs in his last start, and while he wasn’t awful in this one, he wasn’t great. In his 5.1 innings, he allowed three runs on seven hits and a walk. All of the runs off him came in a frustrating sequence, where he couldn’t get out of a jam despite having two outs.

That being said, the reason for the defeat fell much more on the Yankees’ offense. While they did have their chances, recording eight walks on the night, as a team the Yankees combined for just four hits, none of which came with runners on. While Tuesday night provided a glimmer of hope, the Yankees still only managed two in that game, and they followed that up with just one in this one.

A rainy, dreary game proved to be just that for the Yankees, as they fell to the Cardinals 3-1 on Wednesday night.

The teams traded zeroes for a while, but the Cardinals eventually broke through against Warren in the fifth. Blaze Jordan and Jimmy Crooks got Warren for singles to put two on, but Warren was on the verge of escaping the inning after Austin Wells successfully challenged a ball four into a strike three. However, JJ Weatherholt and Iván Herrera got Warren for a pair of two-out doubles, scoring three runs for St. Louis.

The Yankees didn’t do much against Cardinals starter Andre Pallante, but they finally got something going in the sixth inning. Ben Rice started things off with a walk and ended up on third after a wild pitch/catcher throwing error gifted him two bases. Luis García Jr. then knocked Pallante out after drawing a walk following an 11-pitch battle. George Soriano came in and hit Heliot Ramos with a pitch loading the bases. Over the next two plate appearances, the Yankees didn’t do a ton of swinging as Soriano continued to struggle to find the zone. In two consecutive full count situations, the Cardinals’ catcher Herrera challenged a pitch initially called a ball. The first one — to Spencer Jones — was overturned into a strike, but the second — to Jazz Chisholm Jr. — was indeed a ball, walking in a run to get the Yankees on the board. However, the Yankees couldn’t capitalize further with the bases left loaded.

After leaving a couple on in that inning, that became a bit of a theme for the Yankees going forward. They left more runners on in the seventh, eighth, and ninth innings. Paul Goldschmidt hit one to the warning track and Ben Rice drew a walk in the ninth, but that was the extent of any rally, as the Yankees dropped the game and series.

In his second career MLB game, George Lombard Jr. didn’t do anything as notable as his homer on Tuesday, drawing a walk, but also striking out with two on to end the eighth. However, he did make a couple very nice plays in the field, including this one in the third inning.

The Yankees will get tomorrow off before welcoming the Braves to town for a weekend series. Max Fried is expected to get the ball for the Yankees against his old team, while Atlanta’s starter hasn’t been announced at time of writing.

Box score

That was unexpectedly fun, given the pitching matchup. The suddenly lukewarm Jays are 3.0 out of the third wildcard and a mere seven games below .500.

It took a while to figure Hunter Brown out. A Jesus Sanchez walk and a reached on error by Kazuma Okamoto that was promptly erased by a double play were all they managed through five innings.

Meanwhile, the Astros were onto Jameson Taillon early. Two walks and a hit loaded the bases with one out in the first. He escaped that jam, but a Jose Altuve home run in the third, followed by a pair of singles and a double, put the Astros up three. Taillon rallied to record a clean fourth, but the Jays found themselves in a hole they didn’t appear likely to climb out of.

Then, in the sixth, Myles straw broke up the no hitter with a double to left. Okamoto brought him home with a single to put Toronto on the board, and Jesus Sanche homered to tie the game at three.

Things settled there for the rest of the regulation innings. Spencer Miles had taken over and handled the fifth cleanly. He got into trouble in the sixth, giving up a leadoff single and a double, but good fielding by Nathan Lukes prevented the lead runner from scoring, and he buckled down to escape the inning with the tie still in place.

Steven Okert and Mason Fluharty exchanged hitless sevemty innings. Bryan Abreu did the same in the top of eight, while Tyler Rogers worked around a single with the help of a caught stealing by Brandon Valenzuela. Closers Josh Hader and Louis Varland each handled the ninth without trouble.

Finally, in the tenth, Ernie Clement lead off with a home run. Woth the Mandred Man on, that staked the Jays to a 5-4 lead. With the Jays leverage relievers either burnt or now playing for the Twins, Chase Lee got the call to lock it down. He got some help when Yordan Alvarez, leading off, was gunned down trying to stretch a single by Nathan Lukes. It scored the automatic runner, but gave Lee clean bases to work with. He got a pair of fly outs to end the game.

Jays of the Day: Clement (0.26), Sanchez (0.24), Lee (0.20), Varland (0.14), Rogers (0.11), Miles (0.10), and we’ll round up on Fluharty (0.09)

Less So: Taillon (-0.14), Springer (-0.11), and we’ll excuse Lukes (-0.10) for his fielding additions.

It’s off toWrigley Field tomorrow to make up a game that was rained out back in June. Dylan Cease (7-5, 2.41) will face David Peterson (6-7, 5.52). It’s a day game, as the Jays will have to hop back on the plane to get to Philly for their weekend series. First pitch is 2:10pm ET.

CLEVELAND — Jorge Polanco is trying to swing his way back to productivity.

The veteran DH took about 300 swings Wednesday before the Mets faced the Guardians at Progressive Field, according to Andy Green, leaving the interim manager cautiously optimistic that success would follow.

Polanco delivered with a 2-for-4 performance that included his second homer of the season (and first since April). The third-inning blast snapped his 0-for-26 skid.

“After putting a lot of work in it feels great,” Polanco said following the 6-5 victory in 10 innings.

Polanco began the night with a paltry .388 OPS as the poster child of president of operations David Stearns’ failed offseason overhaul.

“Sometimes the sweat equity gets you rolling again,” Green said of Polanco’s workout. “There’s a ton of ability in him. There’s a long track record. If you’re out there watching him there’s a good swing. He’s got a lot of things going for him.”

Polanco, who arrived on a two-year contract worth $40 million, has dealt with Achilles and wrist injuries that have limited him to 30 games this season.

Sammy Stafura, acquired by the Mets in a trade Monday, was named the South Atlantic League (High-A) Player of the Month for July. The shortstop led the league in homers (14), RBIs (35), slugging percentage (.926) and OPS (1.305) among other offensive categories.

The Mets traded Luke Weaver to the Pirates for the 21-year-old Stafura.

Jefry Yan became the seventh Mets player to make his major league debut this season — joining Nate Lavender, Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, Nick Morabito, Matt Seelinger and Zac Thornton.

Brett Baty, whose previous outfield appearances this season have been in right field, got the start in left Wednesday. Green indicated such an alignment was a product of wanting to keep Benge in right field.

“When you look out at this outfield, this is one of the biggest right fields in baseball and I think we know how good Carson is in right field,” Green said. “It’s a tighter left field, obviously a very big wall. If [Baty] has confidence in that position, which he does, that turns out to be his best position, especially at this field, and it keeps from jerking Carson back and forth.”

The Yankees could not muster any offense, falling to the Cardinals 3-1 on Wednesday night and dropping the series.

Will Warren couldn't follow up his best start of the season and the Yankees left 11 runners on base and were hitless (0-10) with runners in scoring position.

Here are the takeaways...

-Warren got through the first four innings easily, but the Cardinals got to the right-hander in the fifth. After giving up two singles, JJ Wetherholt hit a double over the head of Trent Grisham in center to give St. Louis a 2-0 lead. Ivan Herrera followed up with a ground-rule double to push that lead to three.

Warren would start the sixth, but the Cardinals would get another runner on and knock the right-hander out of the game. 

Kervin Castro was the first out of the bullpen, and he stranded a couple of runners to keep the score 3-0 and put a bow on Warren's night. Warren allowed three runs on seven hits and one walk while striking out five batters across 5.1 innings. 

-But the story of this game was the offense's ineptitude. The Yankees were shut out through the first five innings and were able to scratch across a run when Jazz Chisholm Jr. walked with the bases loaded. 

-George Lombard Jr. had a solid second game as a big leaguer. He went 1-for-3 and made some smooth plays on defense.

He had a chance to give the Yankees the lead in the eighth. With two outs and runners on first and second. However, the youngster struck out on three pitches.

-Heliot Ramos went 1-for-3 with a double, his first hit as a Yankee. Luis Garcia Jr. went hitless but walked in his four at-bats.

Game MVP: JJ Wetherholt

The rookie's two-run double was the difference in this one.

Highlights

Heliot Ramos' first hit as a Yankee! pic.twitter.com/oggYRSEPei

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 6, 2026

THE SUMMER OF GEORGE.

WHAT A PLAY BY GEORGE LOMBARD JR.! pic.twitter.com/xSvU7iimoS

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 6, 2026

What's next

The Yankees have an off day on Thursday before welcoming the Braves for a three-game series starting Friday. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

Max Fried (4-3, 3.12 ERA) will take the mound. The Braves have not announced a starter.

After a somewhat brief rain delay, the Cardinals were on the receiving end of another good start by Andre Pallante and he finally got some run support when the St. Louis bats woke up mid-game, but would it be enough to earn a victory? Spoiler Alert: YES.

The New York Yankees starter Will Warren and the St. Louis Cardinals Andre Pallante didn’t allow much offense for the first half of the game. Both the Yankees and Cardinals only managed two hits apiece through the first 4 innings. That changed in the top of the 5th when the Cardinals finally put some hits together starting with a leadoff single by Blaze Jordan. After Bryan Torres grounded into a fielder’s choice which forced Jordan at second, Jimmy Crooks laced a single to right giving St. Louis runners at first and second with just one out. Cesar Prieto struck out on a well-called ABS challenge from New York for the second out, but JJ Wetherholt provided some lightning off his bat as he launched a ball that bounced off of the centerfield wall for a double which scored both Torres and Crooks giving the Cardinals a 2-0 lead.

JJ Wetherholt wouldn’t be standing on second base long as Iván Herrera hit an almost identical double to center with the difference being that his bounced into NY’s hall of fame plaque section for a ground rule two-bagger scoring JJ and giving St. Louis a 3-0 lead.

It looked like the Yankees might answer the Cardinals 3-run top of the 5th with a rally of their own in the bottom of the 5th, but Andre Pallante proved he has some Harry Houdini tendencies. With one out, McMahon walked followed by another single from George Lombard Jr., but Andre got a ground ball out of Wells that turned into an inning-ending double play.

The bottom of the 6th inning would be a shining example of how frustrating the second half of the Cardinals season has been. Without even one hit, the New York Yankees would get a gift run from several St. Louis Cardinals mistakes and bad decisions. After getting the first out in the bottom of the 6th, Pallante walked both Rice and Garcia Jr. Rice would end up advancing to second on a Pallante wild pitch that Herrera retrieved and then fired the ball into center field because sometimes we make bad judgements. That would end Pallante’s time on the mound with a respectable 5 1/3 innings giving up just 3 hits while striking out 4. He would end up with an earned run after reliever George Soriano hit Ramos with a pitch to load the bases and two batters later a walk to Jazz Chisholm Jr. walking in a gift run reducing the Cardinals lead to 3-1.

The Cardinals bullpen would transition to Justin Bruihl in the bottom of the 7th after Soriano struck out Lombard Jr. He was greeted by former Cardinal pinch-hitter Paul Goldschmidt who cracked a double down the left field line. Grisham kindly fouled out to third on the first pitch he saw and then Bruihl created unnecessary drama by walking Rice. It fortunately didn’t lead to damage as Luis Garcia Jr. grounded out to Prieto at second to end the Yankees 7th inning.

After the Cardinals failed to add to their lead in the top of the 8th inning, it was Ryne Stanek’s turn to hold the Yankees down in the bottom of the 8th inning. He was successful getting the first two outs, but then lost his control walking Chisholm Jr. and McMahon. That brought up the Yankees young gun George Lombard Jr. He fortunately (for the Cardinals) found his mojo again and struck out Lombard Jr. on three straight pitches.

The Cardinals would threaten in the top of the 9th inning as Blaze Jordan led off with a single to left. After Bryan Torres struck out, Jimmy Crooks doubled off of the left field wall, but Jordan had to hold up at third base as he had to make sure the ball wasn’t caught. Masyn Winn came off the bench to pinch-hit, but he grounded out without scoring Jordan which meant it was up to JJ Wetherholt to come up with a two-out hit. Instead, he walked on four straight pitches to load the bases bringing up Herrera with a prime chance to give the Cardinals some extra breathing room going into the bottom of the 9th. Somehow, he watched three straight strikes pass him by even though one was likely a ball, but Cardinals had no challenges left and that’s the way it goes lately.

That left the bottom of the 9th in Riley O’Brien’s hands with just a two-run lead. He got Goldschmidt to fly out to deep right field on the first pitch. O’Brien then got Grisham to ground out for the second out which meant Home Run Derby contestant Ben Rice was next. Riley walked him to bring up Sanchez as the potential tying run. O’Brien ran the count full, but ended up striking out Sanchez looking giving the Cardinals a nice series win in New York.

The St. Louis Cardinals get a badly-needed day off Thursday before they kickoff a weekend homestand vs the Colorado Rockies Friday night. Kyle Leahy will be the starter for the Cardinals while the Rockies give the ball to RHP Ryan Feltner. First pitch is set for 7:15pm central time at Busch Stadium. The game’s TV broadcast will be available through Cardinals.tv

At long last the losing streak is over. It took a wild game, but the Nats are back in the win column thanks to some overdue clutch hitting and a bunt that will be remembered for years to come. This was a hard fought 11 inning win, but the Nats will take anything they can get right now.

In the beginning of the game it felt like more of the same. The Nats threatened with first and third with nobody out. Unlike recent games, they were at least able to get one run across, but it could have been much more. 

Unsurprisingly, the Nats were not able to keep that one run lead for long. The normally slap hitting Luis Arraez launched his first homer as a Phillie. Later that inning the Phillies were also able to scratch across another run.

However, Jake Irvin was very good outside of that inning. He threw 5.2 innings of two run ball and kept the ball off the barrel outside of that Arraez homer. It was a much needed step in the right direction for the 29 year old righty. The offense was still struggling to get anything going though.

After new Nat Will Dion got a double play to get out of the 6th, the Nats desperately needed some offense. That is exactly what Brady House provided them, crushing a hanging sweeper out to right center. It was his first career pinch hit homer, and that could not have come at a better time.

Following a Jacob Young double, the Nats were able to finally cash in with RISP thanks to CJ Abrams. This was a monster night from the Nats shortstop who truly put the team on his back. He had three hits and was on base four times. Abrams even made a nice defensive play.

With James Wood injured and Luis Garcia Jr. traded, so much of the responsibility is going to have to fall on Abrams. He is the only true heavy hitter in the lineup right now and is the man other teams will circle. Tonight he rose to the occasion and dragged the Nats out of the mud.

His heroics in the 11th inning basically won the Nats this game. In the 11th inning, Abrams hit a triple that just stayed in the yard to give the Nats the lead. When nobody else on the team could deliver in the clutch, Abrams was the guy who came through.

However, it was a journey to even get to that 11th inning. New Nats reliever Yovanny Cruz showed electric stuff but his command was not on point today. It is easy to see the potential of Cruz, but tonight was not his night. Tom Cosgrove did a good job limiting the damage and cleaning up Cruz’s mess though.

Overall, the bullpen did a nice job. They kept the Nats in the game and gave the team opportunities to come back. Finally, they were actually able to come back tonight. It was a great show of heart and determination by a team that has looked flat and under manned lately.

The best moment of the night came after Abrams’ at bat though. The Nats were in a predicament because they got rid of the DH after Andrew Pinckney pinch ran for Abimelec Ortiz. That meant the pitcher was due up third in the lineup in the 11th and the bench was empty.

Blake Butera called upon Miles Mikolas to pinch hit for Clayton Beeter. A seasoned National League veteran, Mikolas spent several years in the NL back when pitchers hit. Out of all the pitchers, Mikolas was most capable of handling the bat and dropping down a bunt. That is exactly what he did, pushing a perfect bunt to the first baseman which scored Abrams.

That moment brought the dugout and the fans some joy we have not seen for a week or two. The smiles in the Nats dugout were very big. They only got bigger when the Nats opened up the floodgates in Philly. The boys put up 6 runs in the 11th, making it a 10-4 game.

In his first outing off the IL, Brad Lord delivered a 1-2-3 inning to give the Nats a much needed win. The seven game losing streak is over, and hopefully that loosens up the guys. After Abrams got that hit with RISP in the 7th, it felt like a weight was lifted off their shoulders. Hopefully the offense can keep the momentum rolling and get a split in Philly tomorrow.

Clippers 8, Mets 4

The Clippers offense had a field day against Mets top pitching prospect Jonah Tong. George Valera, Kody Huff, and Milan Tolentino went back to back to back. Ralphy Velazquez also hit another HR. He now has 5 home runs in his last 8 games.

Logan Allen had a solid start, he allowed just one earned run in 5 innings pitched while striking out 3. His ERA on the season is down to 4.37. Carlos Hernandez got the save in a scoreless inning of relief where he struck out 2 batters. His ERA on the season is now at 2.57.

RubberDucks 2, Patriots 3

Nolan Schubart continues his awesome season. He went 1-3 with a HR and a walk. He is hitting .321 with a 1.011 OPS since being promoted to AA.

The highlight of this game for the RubberDucks was Ryan Degges’s fantastic AA debut. He struck out 8 batters and walked just 2 in 4.1 scoreless innings where he allowed just one hit.

Captains 1, Lugnuts 6

This wasn’t the best game from the Captains. They’re missing multiple key players in Caceres and LaViolette due to injuries. Welbyn Francisca went 1-3 with a walk. Luis De La Cruz went 2-4 and is hitting .375 with an .875 ops since being promoted to Lake County.

Nelson Keljo had a very Nelson Keljo type start. He struck out 6 batters in 3 innings but he also gave up 3 runs. His ERA is up to 4.50 since being promoted to High-A.

Howlers 12, Warbirds 5

This was a great game for the Howlers offense. Jonathan Martinez went 3-5 with a HR, a double, and 4 RBIs. Dauri Fernandez went 1-3 with a walk and a 2 RBI triple. Gabriel Rodriguez went 2-4, Jose Pirela went 3-5 with a 2 run HR.

Miguel Flores allowed 3 runs in 5.1 innings pitched and walked 3 batters and had just 2 strikeouts. His ERA is down to 5.20 on the season. Keegan Zinn struck out 5 batters in his 2.2 innings of relief while allowing an earned run on 3 hits.

The highly-anticipated return of Kyle Harrison to the Milwaukee Brewers rotation went as well as anyone could have imagined. Through five innings, Harrison blew the doors off the Pirates hitters, allowing just one hit, a single, and striking out 10, including each of the last eight batters he faced.

And then, as Harrison went out to warm up for the 6th, everything came to a screeching halt. Harrison was clearly in some discomfort as he called for the athletic trainer and ultimately exited the game after five innings and just 69 pitches.

Shortly thereafter, the Brewers announced that Harrison exited the game with cramping in both calves.

“Thought I could manage go out for the 6th, but threw those warm up pitches and the body was telling me it’s locking up” Kyle Harrison said.

That brings a welcome sigh of relief for the Brewers after Harrison was just activated from the IL after missing nearly a month with a forearm issue.

On the offensive side, the Brewers missed a golden opportunity in the first inning against Paul Skenes. Brice Turang drew a leadoff walk, advanced to second on a wild pitch and advanced to third on a deep flyout from Jackson Chourio. With the infield drawn in and one out, Garrett Mitchell struck out looking on a ball that was clearly off the plate, but Mitchell opted not to challenge, despite arguing the call. William Contreras then grounded out softly to Skenes to end it.

But the Brewers were able to get to Skenes eventually. In the 4th inning, Mitchell started the rally with a one out walk, then stole second base and advanced to third on a throwing error from Endy Rodriguez. Contreras walked to set up runners at the corners for the embattled Christian Yelich. Yelich delivered with an RBI double to right to put the Brewers on the board.

“That was really special…happy for him. He had two really good at-bats, ran the bases unbelievably. Yeah it was big, it was huge.” Pat Murphy said.

They weren’t done though, as Andrew Vaughn promptly followed with a 2 RBI single that shot through the drawn in infield on the right side. That put the Brewers up 3-0 as they got the crooked number on Skenes. Skenes had to throw 34 pitches to get through that 4th inning.

Skenes was chased after five innings, allowing three runs with four walks. The Pirates went to their bullpen with trade deadline addition Lake Bachar for the 6th and Contreras greeted him rudely with a solo homer into the Brewers bullpen.

The middle of the order combo of Yelich and Contreras has drawn a lot of heat lately, Yelich especially. But both were able to come through in big moments with some big hits. Murphy asked the fans to support Yelich through his struggles and remember what he’s done for the organization. The fans responded with ovations for him in each of his at-bats.

“It was cool to see the support from the fans tonight. It obviously hasn’t been the greatest last couple of months for me, but definitely appreciate that tonight.” Yelich said.

Kyle Harrison gets the win in his return to the mound. The fact that it was just muscle cramps that forced his exit is good news for the Brewers. Yelich and Contreras coming through to plate some runs also is a good sign. The Brewers will look to secure the series victory on Thursday afternoon as Dustin May makes his Brewers debut.

There is no sugarcoating it: this was a deeply unpleasant game. It didn’t look that way for most of it. Early on there was a charming, cheering, homer clanging off the foul pole from a most unlikely hitter, and later on the Phillies looked like they were in position for a walk-off thriller. But it got bitter, fast, and ended in a fashion that was drawn out and miserable, putting you to bed like a glass of warm, curdled milk.

Andrew Painter hit the first batter, CJ Abrams, who then stole second. Abimelec Ortiz singled to right, putting runners on the corners, none away. He got the next two out, but a liner from Keibert Ruiz darted past the outstretched glove of new Keystone State keystone man Luis Arraez, scoring one. A nice play from Painter finished the inning with a 1-3 putout.

The Phillies soon tied it on a homer from the least likely batter: Luis Arraez, who had hit just four homers this season, sent a sinker sailing to right field, where it bounced off the foul pole. Arraez is attempting the audacious feat of setting a new speedrun record for becoming beloved in Philadelphia; he might just do it. The Phillies scored another on a sacrifice fly from Justin Crawford.

Though he had pitched solidly through four (3 hits, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) Painter was pulled prior to the fifth with left hamstring tightness. An injury would be terribly timed for the team, and deeply unfortunate for a young player who’s faced his share of adversity this season; it is to be hoped that his hamstring ailment will prove to be minor. Tim Mayza took over, and navigated through the inning without incident.

Orion Kerkering was up next, and did the same. The Phillies offense remained largely quiet in the sixth, though Bryce Harper made it to base via walk and then got himself caught in a pickle.

Brooks Raley made his Phillies debut in the seventh. A pop-up, a strikeout, and he was one out away from making his debut a clean one. The Nationals called in Brady House to pinch-hit, and he took a sweeper to the house, tying the game with a homer to right. The next batter, Jacob Young, sent one and the same direction, though fortunately not quite as far; the ball bounced off the wall, and Young arrived at second. He didn’t stay long, as Abrams knocked one through the left side of the infield to score him, and to give the Washingtons the lead. Raley struck out a National to end the frame, but the Phillies were behind the 8 ball. They had allowed as many runs as they had hits on the night.

The comeback attempt began with Alec Bohm working a walk, and Brandon Marsh knocking a little dribbler into center, with the ball bouncing perfectly off the mound and past a National glove to land safely in the grass. J.T. Realmuto had a rough at-bat, spending the team’s second challenge on a fastball that just caught the outside of the zone, then taking strike three on a slider well outside of it. A frustrating moment, but one that did not linger: Bryson Stott slapped a single to center soon after, and the game was tied. A pinch-hitting Derek Hill flew out, Kyle Schwarber was hit by a pitch, and soon Trea Turner came to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded. It was about a year between grand slams before Hill treated the Phillies to one earlier in the week; it was to be hoped that Turner would make the wait for the next much shorter. Sadly, it was not to be, as he flew out.

Jonathan Bowlan took the eighth. Big Bad John, as his entrance music refers to him, lived up to the nickname, putting a trio of opponents down in order. The Nationals pitchers who took the eighth, Tom Cosgrove and Orlando Ribalta, don’t have nicknames that are nearly as imposing, but accomplished the same feat.

With the game tied at three, Jhoan Duran and his dramatic entrance made their appearance. Like Christmas morning, his appearance is expected, yet no less welcome for it. He quickly got two outs, then allowed a single to Young, and another, this once bouncing off his glove, to Abrams. Fortunately, the next Nat grounded into a 4-3 putout, giving the Phillies the chance for walk-off glory.

But they wouldn’t grab it in the ninth. Stott made it to base via the free pass, but no other damage was done.

Thus we went to extras, with José Alvarado on the mound. Andrew Pinckney, a pinch-runner making his MLB debut, was the designated runner. His debut was not without error: he slipped as he prepared to advance on a fly ball, and failed to reach third, and as such denied the Nationals an advantage. But they would threaten anyway, loading the bases on a hit by pitch and walk. Alvarado then walked in the run for the Nationals, before closing the inning with the next batter.

The Nationals brought in pitcher Clayton Beeter, facing the top of the lineup. Hill was the designated runner, though he was not content to stay at second, stealing third as soon as he could. Schwarber battled across nine pitches before succumbing to the punch-out. Turner lined one out to right, where Dylan Crews made a stunning diving catch to record the out; Hill scored, but it was hard not to feel disappointed by what could’ve been. Harper walked, but made the third out trying to steal second. Worse still, his right hand got tangled up under him as he slid, and he appeared to be in some pain, though it didn’t stop him from continuing to play.

In the 11th, with two runners on, Derek Hill came running towards center to play a long fly ball. As he leapt, he hit his head against the wall. Thankfully, he was able to get up and walk off the field under his own power. Bryan De La Cruz replaced him, with the Phillies now down by two. They were down by three once Miles Mikolas bunted a runner in from third. Caleb Killian was pulled with one out and two runners on. Chase Shugart came in, and surrendered a grounder up the third base line to put the visitors up by five; they were up by six soon after.

The Phillies could not score in their half of the 11th, and this bitter affair came to a bitter end.

The Phillies are 61-54. They’ll conclude the series against the Nationals tomorrow at 6:05.

CLEVELAND — Jefry Yan announced his arrival to the major leagues Wednesday night with a dance party.

A leap. A split. A ground slap.

Three times in the sixth inning the rookie reliever celebrated — twice for strikeouts and once for recording the final out with the bases loaded. He departed to boos at Progressive Field.

“I was really excited, but I was also a little nervous,” Yan said through an interpreter after the Mets beat the Guardians 6-5 in 10 innings. “I wanted to get in and out of there right away, but got into a little trouble. I was able to dig deep and get out of that inning.”

The Mets received what they needed not only from Yan but also from others in their reconstructed bullpen following the trade deadline — closer Devin Williams was also unavailable due to what interim manager Andy Green termed arm fatigue.

Bo Bichette’s RBI single in the 10th brought in the go-ahead run before Daniel Duarte got the final three outs with the automatic runner left stranded.

The victory was the second straight for the Mets, who received three homers for a second straight night: Brett Baty, Jorge Polanco and Carson Benge all went deep.

Yan, who peaked at 101 mph, added the most sizzle. The 29-year-old lefty, who spent four years removed from affiliated baseball after his release from the Angels organization in 2016, was known in the minor leagues for his high strikeout rate, but also his demonstrative punctuation after getting Strike 3.

It took Yan only one batter — Angel Martínez took a called third strike leading off the sixth — to show it off. He leaped into the air with a split and pounded the ground with his palm. Yan celebrated again, after striking out Chase DeLauter. His final act was getting Jo Adell to ground into a force-out with the bases loaded, prompting another celebration. Boos followed.

“I don’t care about that, they can do what they want there,” Yan said. “They are paying for their tickets. If they want to yell at me, if they want to boo me, they can do what they want. I’m in my zone, and I am going to enjoy my game any way that I want to.”

Green appreciated all of it.

“It’s real stuff,” Green said. “You think about the road traveled to get to that mound today … it’s really impressive. To get out of a bases-loaded jam, to get your first punch-out, it’s excited for him. He deserves that.”

Christian Scott needed 96 pitches to get through five innings in which he allowed three earned runs on six hits and two walks with seven strikeouts. It followed Scott’s longest start of the season, six innings against the Braves in the nightcap of a doubleheader last week.

Back-to-back homers from Baty and Polanco in the third inning gave the Mets a 2-0 lead. Baty’s homer was his seventh of the season and fourth since July 10. The disappointing Polanco had not homered since April 11 — he returned to the lineup in early July after missing nearly three months with Achilles and wrist injuries.

Jared Young’s RBI double in the fourth gave the Mets a 3-0 lead. The run was unearned following Angel Genao’s double error on Benge’s grounder.

A.J. Ewing got fooled on a drive to center in the fourth that became a double for Nathaniel Lowe, putting runners on second and third after Adell’s leadoff walk. Travis Bazzana stroked an RBI single to slice the Mets lead to 3-1, but Scott escaped the inning by getting the next two outs.

Scott allowed two runs in the fifth after loading the bases on two singles and a walk with nobody out. Lowe’s two-run single tied it 3-3.

Benge homered in the sixth to give the Mets a 4-3 lead. It was the second straight game with a blast for the rookie Benge, whose 13 homers are the most among active Mets players. Juan Soto, who is on the injured list, leads the team with 21 homers this season.

Patrick Bailey and Genao each delivered an RBI single in the seventh to give the Guardians a 5-4 lead following Young’s fielding error.

The Mets loaded the bases in the ninth with two outs before Ewing’s grounder was misplayed by Brayan Rocchio, allowing the tying run to score.

Other than the two unearned runs the Guardians scored in the seventh with Dedniel Núñez on the mound, the Mets bullpen was spotless.

“There’s a lot of guys trying to show they belong and pitching really well,” Green said.

He may no longer be a Cub, but first baseman Jonathon Long was named International League Player of the Month. Long hit .371/.446/.652 in July for Iowa.

Good news from the I-Cubs and Smokies, but the Pelicans got no-hit.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs defeated Indianapolis (Pirates), 5-3 in ten innings.

There were three major league pitchers rehabbing in this game in Indianapolis. Edward Cabrera started and dominated Indy over four innings. He allowed just one unearned run on one hit. Cabrera struck out eight and walked no one. He threw 55 pitches and 41 of them were strikes.

Hoby Milner came up next and got through the fifth inning unscratched, but then faced the first two batters of the sixth and the both reached, one on an error and one on walk. The runner who reached on a walk came around to score after Milner was relieved by Collin Snider, so Milner’s final line was one unearned run on one hit and one walk over 1+ innings. He struck out two.

Daniel Palencia came on to pitch the seventh inning and gave up the lead. Palencia’s finished with a line of one run on one hit and two walks over two-thirds of an inning. He struck out one.

Jordan Wicks came on to finish off the seventh inning with no further damage and then went the rest of the way for the win. Wicks’ threw 3.1 scoreless innings and gave up just one hit. He struck out three and walked two.

Catcher Owen Ayers doubled home the automatic runner in the top of the tenth and then later scored a second run in the tenth on an error. Ayers went 2 for 5 with two RBI and the one run.

Center fielder Chas McCormick went 2 for 4.

Here’s a strikeout by Cabrera.

RBI single for Hayden Cantrelle, who went 1 for 3 with a walk.

A great catch by shortstop Ben Cowles.

Ayers’ RBI double in the tenth.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies swept a doubleheader from the Chattanooga Lookouts (Reds) , 4-0 and 4-1.

Dawson Netz and Tyler Ras combined on a seven-inning one-hitter in game one. Netz pitched the first five innings and gave up one hit. He struck out four, walked two and hit one batter.

Ras pitched the final two innings and retired all six batters he faced. He struck out four of them.

First baseman Miguel Useche hit a solo home run in the second inning. Useche went 2 for 3.

Third baseman Dom Krupinski hit his first two home runs in affiliated ball in game one. They were both solo shots, one in the fourth inning and one in the seventh. Krupinski went 2 for 3. It was Krupinski’s first game in Double-A.

Useche’s home run.

Krupinski’s first home run.

Krupinski makes it two.

Tyler Schlaffer kept the Lookouts scoreless over the first four innings of game two on two hits. He struck out four and walked one.

Grayson Moore threw the fifth and sixth innings, retired all six batters he faced, and got the win. Moore struck out three.

Catcher Miguel Useche hit his second home run of the day in game two. It came with the bases empty in the fifth inning and was his third with the Smokies and tenth overall. Useche went 1 for 3 with a walk.

DH Andy Garriola was 2 for 4 with two RBI.

Useche’s home run in game two.

South Bend Cubs

South Bend and Cedar Rapids were tied 1-1 in the third inning when the rains came. They’ll finish this game tomorrow (Thursday) and then play a seven-inning nightcap.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were swept in a doubleheader by the Columbia Fireflies (Royals), losing the continuation of yesterday’s suspended game 3-1 and were no-hit in game two, 5-0.

Anhur Garcia pitched the first 2.2 innings of this game yesterday before the rains came. He kept the game scoreless on two hits. Garcia struck out one and did not walk anyone.

David Bracho took the mound when play resumed today and took the loss. Bracho surrendered three runs on four hits over 3.1 innings. Bracho struck out four and walked no one.

Right fielder Caden Sorrell was 2 for 4 with a stolen base and a run scored in the second-round pick’s first professional game.

Sorrell’s first pro hit.

Emilio Ramos started game two, gave up five runs over 2.2 innings and took the loss. Ramos walked four and struck out two.

The Pelicans were no-hit in game two. They only had three baserunners in the seven-inning contest: two walks and a dropped third strike.

The Mets are in the midst of a lost season, in genuine competition to be the worst team in all of baseball this year. The Guardians are a team that is in a playoff hunt. You would not necessarily know that to be the case based on how the first two games in this series have gone. The Mets won the opener last night, and tonight they withstood a back-and-forth affair to ultimately come out on top in extra innings with a 6-5 victory.

The Mets got the scoring started in the top of the third when Brett Baty led off the frame with an opposite field homer off Tanner Bibee. Jorge Polanco, who entered the game in the midst of a gruesome 0-for-26 stretch, followed that shot with a line drive shot to right field of his own, making it a 2-0 ballgame. The Mets would add to their lead just one inning later; Carson Benge hit a one-out grounder that third baseman Angel Genao (making his major league debut) threw past first base and into the stands, allowing the runner to go to second. Jared Young—who had been robbed of an extra-base hit in his first at-bat on a terrific running catch by Petey Halpin in center field—lined another ball to the right field corner. Benge came around to score on the double, and the Mets now led 3-0.

Christian Scott, meanwhile, held the Guardians off the board in the first three innings without much trouble, but he faltered in the bottom of the fourth. A leadoff walk was followed by a double to quickly put runners on second and third with nobody out, and Travis Bazzana proceeded to line a single to left to bring home Cleveland’s first run of the night. The Guardians still had runners on first and third with nobody out, but Scott hunkered down, inducing a ground ball to first for out number one and then striking out the next two batters to get out of the inning with just the one run scoring.

Scott would unfortunately find himself in trouble once again just an inning later, loading the bases on two singles and a walk with nobody out. He struck out Jo Adell for the first out, but Nathaniel Lowe then hit a single to right to bring two runs home and tie the game. Scott did manage to get the next two outs to keep the Guardians from taking the lead, and that would prove to be the end of his night. His final line—5 innings, 6 hits, 2 walks, 7 strikeouts, 3 earned runs—belies a so-so outing, but it is worth noting that he was throwing with some increased velocity.

Meanwhile, the Mets came right back and re-took the lead in the top of the sixth, as Benge hit a two-out solo shot to right field—his second homer in the series—to give the Mets a 4-3 lead and end Bibee’s night. Young greeted new pitcher Erik Sabrowski with a triple to left field—his second extra-base hit of the evening—but Francisco Alvarez then struck out to end the inning with just the one run having scored. Thus, the Mets had a very slim lead to work with, and it was in the hands of their new-look bullpen to try to hold it.

Jefry Yan was the guy out of the bullpen in the bottom of the sixth. The 29-year-old rookie lefty was making his major league debut, and he quickly introduced his signature strikeout celebration after punching out the leadoff hitter. He then loaded the bases on two singles and a walk, but struck out his second batter—and had another jumping celebration—and then induced a groundout to end the inning and secure the lead for the Mets. Unfortunately, the same did not end up being true the following inning. Dedniel Núñez came on for his first major league outing in over a year in the seventh, and the first batter he faced reached base when Young could not cleanly field a grounder at first base. He came close to getting out of the inning after getting the next two outs via strikeout and groundout, but three straight singles followed—the second an RBI single off the bat of Patrick Bailey, and the third an RBI single by Genao, who made up for his earlier error by getting four hits at the plate in his major league debut. The two runs against Núñez—who struck out Steven Kwan to end the inning—were unearned, but nevertheless, the Guardians now led 5-4.

The Mets could not capitalize on a leadoff double from A.J. Ewing in the top of the eighth. Chayce McDermott came on for his Mets debut, and the former Dodgers pitcher tossed a scoreless inning (working around an ugly error in left field from Christian Pache, who came on as a defensive replacement and proceeded to drop a fairly routine fly ball with two outs). The Guardians then brought on closer Cade Smith to try to close things out in the top of the ninth. Young led off the frame with a walk, but Smith then got Alvarez to pop out and struck out pinch hitter Luis Robert Jr. to bring the Mets to their final out. Polanco then hit his second extra-base hit of the night, this one a double to put runners on second and third. Marcus Semien followed that by walking to load the bases and bring Ewing up to the plate. The speedy rookie his a grounder up the middle, and shortstop Brayan Rocchio couldn’t field it cleanly on the run. That error brought allowed Young to score from third, making it a 5-5 ballgame. Lindor struck out with the bases loaded to keep it tied, and McDermott—coming out for a second inning of work—worked around a leadoff walk in the bottom of the inning to send the game to extras.

The Mets quickly took the lead in the top of the tenth, as Bo Bichette greeted new pitcher Matt Festa by lining a single to right to score the ghost runner from second. Bichette did get thrown out trying to stretch the single into a double, and Festa rebounded by striking out the next two batters. Thus, new pitcher Daniel Duarte came on to try to hold the one-run lead (notably, Devin Williams appeared to be unavailable tonight despite the save opportunity). Kwan bizarrely tried to bunt to lead off the inning and popped out to third base. Duarte then issued a one-out walk to put runners on first and second, but he then got the final two outs—via a pop-out and groundout—to end the game and give the Mets the victory.

The Amazins will now go for the unlikely sweep tomorrow afternoon.

SB Nation GameThreads

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Box scores

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Daniel Duarte, +44% WPA
Big Mets loser: Dedniel Núñez, -40% WPA
Mets pitchers: +19% WPA
Mets hitters: +31% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: A.J. Ewing reaching on fielding error in the ninth, +30.5% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Patrick Bailey RBI single in the seventh, -24.6% WPA

The Guardians are in the easy part of their schedule but that doesn’t matter when you leave 15 runners on base. When that happens, you lose 6-5 to the Mets.

Bibee was fine. 5 2/3 innings, 10 strikeouts. Really hurt by the long ball, giving up 3 (three) homers tonight. One to Jorge Polanco (.445 OPS). 4 runs, 3 earned, which brings us to the main topic(s) of tonight’s recap — Angel Genao and the Guardians defense.

Genao was as good as you could expect in his MLB debut, going 4/5 with 4 singles and the (then-) go-ahead RBI in the 7th. He got his first of four consecutive hits on the first pitch he saw in his first MLB at-bat.

Genao made a fielding error in the 4th that the Mets immediately took advantage of, driving in the runner who reached on error to make it 3-0 Mets.

The Guardians tried their best to come back tying the game by the 5th, then giving the lead away in the 6th, and then taking it right back in the 7th.

The Guardians were up 5-4 going into the 9th but, of course, Cade Smith couldn’t throw the ball over the plate. With the bases loaded and two outs, he managed to induce a weak groundball to short, but Rocchio couldn’t come up with the ball. The Mets tied the game there, sending it to extras.

For a reason I truly will never be able to understand, the Guardians brought in Matt Festa for the 10th… which went exactly as expected. He immediately gave up the go-ahead run on a Bo Bichette RBI-single. Bichette who, for what it’s worth, was thrown out advancing to second by Jo Adell. Festa retired the next two Mets.

To the bottom of the 10th. Steven Kwan hit over .400 in July. He bunted to lead off the inning. The ball lifted up into the air and was caught by Mets 3B Bo Bichette. DeLauter walked. Adell popped out, and Lowe groundout out. That was the ballgame.

Foster Griffin will make his Guardians debut in an effort to salvage what has been an entirely humiliating series so far against the bottom-feeder Mets. Of course, it’ll be McLean on the mound for New York opposite Griffin.

This week, my young nephew is attending summer Vacation Bible School. In terms of biblical tales involving heroes, he could have gotten a similar education by flipping on the ballgame tonight and observing Noah Cameron’s mound arc sinking the Minnesota Twins.

The starting pitchers—Dean Kremer in his MN debut & Cameron for the Kansas City Royals—matched zeros for the first three innings in this contest. Kremer because he had solid stuff—Cameron because he is a corporeal being in the past month who throws with his left arm.

In the top of the fourth inning, the Twins built an exceedingly odd rally when Josh Bell walked, Kody Clemens hit into what looked to be a fielder’s choice until Bell deked out the KC infield by simply stopping on the way to 2B, and Royce Lewis bunted for a hit. Bases loaded…zero outs…time for the offense to break out, right?!

Somehow these batsmen made taking the lead anticlimactic: a Victor Caratini GIDP RBI followed by a Brooks Lee strikeout. 1-0 MN.

In B5, it was the Royals who’d dink-&-dunk their way (two singles & a walk) to bases loaded and one out. Kyle Isbel would sock a sac fly to tie the game, followed by a a 346-ft moonshot from Carter Jensen—into Austin Martin’s glove a few feet from the fence. Phew! 1-1 tie.

That would be it for the MN-debuting Kremer: 5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K, 88 pitches.

After Tommy Nance tossed a scoreless 6th, Michael Massey mashed an A.J. Minter meatball 422 feet over the RF fence to lead off B7. 2-1 KC.

Jeff Hoffman would make his Twins debut in B8 and set the Royals down 1-2-3 with 2 Ks.

Circling back to Cameron, his final line tonight: 8 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K.

There would be no need for a B9. KC reliever Steven Cruz entered and retired the side on 16 pitches, 0 H, & 1 K.

Your Final: Kansas City Royals 2, Minnesota Twins 1.

After upper management patched some bullpen holes, it suddenly ceases to matter because Twins lumber-wielders couldn’t hit water if they fell out of a boat (maybe an ark?) right now.

0-for-August continues.

Zach’s Zealot

• Kremer & Hoffman: Solid Twins Territory debuts.

Zach’s Zombie

• The entire offense (again): This is getting ridiculous. Two hits & 9 K’s.

Egg-cellent Elocution

• falcontimmy’ssingle-word exclamation about sums this one up

Who’s Got Next

• One more with KC tomorrow night, followed by a trip across the border to Cheeseville over the weekend.