Category: Baseball

Following the loss of infielder Ben Williamson to a likely season ending hamstring strain, the Rays have signed INF Jorge Mateo to a major league deal. Mateo is expected to fill Williamson’s role in the right handed side of a second base platoon role, while also serving as the back up short stop. The move also allows rookie Carson Williams to return to Triple-A for every day playing time as he looks to sure up his control of the strike zone against off-speed pitches.

Mateo was released by the Atlanta Braves on August 9th, who signed with them as a free agent following five seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, after he struggled mightily while batting at Truist Part (43 wRC+ in 53 PA at home, 106 wRC+ in 84 PA away). That could just be an anomaly, however, as Mateo is being signed for his defense and speed, not his bat.

To make room on the roster, the Rays have designated RHP Trevor Martin off the 40-man roster, due to right handed relief being the greatest position of depth on the 40-man roster.

Martin made his major league debut this season and pitched 11.1 innings in relief, allowing eight runs (five earned) and four walks against seven strikeouts. In 27 games at the Triple-A level he held a 3.09 ERA and 3.91 FIP with a 25.0% K-rate and 11.2% BB-rate. A third round pick in the 2022 draft, the Rays converted him to starting pitching as a professional from a collegiate relief role, but he has been a relief prospect since the start of the 2025 season. FanGraphs recently rated him No. 40 in the Rays organization pre-2026 draft thanks to his climbing velocity and recent addition of a splitter. If the Rays are lucky, they just might be able to pass him through waivers and stash the big man back in Durham.

Here is the team’s press release:

The Tampa Bay Rays have signed infielder Jorge Mateo (HOR-hay muh-TAY-oh) to a major league contract and recalled right-handed pitcher Jesse Scholtens from Triple-A Durham. To make room on the active and 40-man rosters, the club optioned right-handed pitcher Michael Grove and infielder Carson Williams to Durham and designated right-handed pitcher Trevor Martin for assignment. Mateo will wear No. 9.

Mateo, 31, appeared in 65 games with the Atlanta Braves this season, batting .240/.285/.380 (31-for-129) with six doubles, four home runs, 11 RBI, eight walks, 29 runs scored, and 10 stolen bases on 11 attempts. The right-handed batter hit .316 (25-for-79) with eight extra-base hits and 11 RBI across his first 37 games through the end of May, a stretch he concluded by tallying RBI in each of his final four games to end the month, including consecutive games with a home run for the second time in his career from May 30-31 at Cincinnati. His average sprint speed of 30.3 feet per second leads all major league infielders and ranks third overall behind the Athletics Henry Bolte (30.6) and Texas’ Cam Cauley (30.5), according to Baseball Savant. Additionally, Mateo’s average arm strength of 88.3 mph is ninth fastest among major league shortstops.

Since the beginning of the 2022 season, the six-foot, 200-pound infielder’s 16 defensive runs saved are tied for 11th most among major league shortstops despite playing fewer innings at the position than each of the 10 players ranked ahead of him in that span. Mateo has batted .350 (21-for-60) in 18 career games at Tropicana Field, tallying eight doubles, one triple, five RBI, four walks, nine runs scored, and a .907 OPS. It marks the highest career batting average at the ballpark by any active player (minimum 50 at-bats).

The Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic native signed with the Braves on Jan. 20, was designated for assignment on Aug. 3, and was released on Aug. 9. He spent the previous five seasons (2021-25) with the Baltimore Orioles after the club acquired him from the San Diego Padres ahead of the 2021 trade deadline. In 2022, Mateo became the third player (fourth instance) in Orioles history to lead the American League in steals after swiping a career-high 35 stolen bases, joining Brian Roberts (2007) and Luis Aparicio (1963-64). He began his major league career by playing 22 games with the Padres in 2020.

In 555 career games spanning seven seasons (2020-26), Mateo has slashed .223/.268/.365 (319-for-1,432) with 77 doubles, 12 triples, 34 home runs, 132 RBI, 81 walks, 212 runs scored, and 116 stolen bases.

Thursday notes…

• GETTING TO THE TOP: The Cubs are 37-16 since June 11, the best record of any team. With their loss last night, the Red Sox are 37-17. The Rays are 34-21; the Brewers, 33-22. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• COMING FROM BEHIND: Last night’s win was the Cubs’ 37th of the season after they trailed at some point, most by any team. The Diamondbacks have 36 comeback wins. The Cubs’ 37 wins have come in 50 different games in which they erased a deficit. They have won 10 in a row, 12 of 13 and 22 of 24, beginning on June 11, when they rallied to win at Colorado, starting their current surge. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• DURING THE DAY: The Cubs are only 8-11 in day games on the road this season, but they are 7-6 in days games on the road following night games. They are 9-2 on Thursday, their best record on any day of the week. They are 14-6 on Wednesday and 12-7 on Tuesday. They are 5-1 on the road on Thursday, also their best. They are 8-3 on Wednesday and 7-3 on Tuesday. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: Shawon Dunston’s two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth completes a Cubs comeback from a 5-1 deficit and they defeat the Pirates 9-8 at Wrigley Field. It happened 40 years ago today, Wednesday, Aug. 13, 1986.

Lineups were not available at posting time. Please check BCB social media for today’s lineups.

Kevin Gausman, RHP vs. Cade Cavalli, RHP

Kevin Gausman was solid in his first Cubs start last Friday in Kansas City.

He has not faced the Nats since 2024 and so only three of the current Nationals have faced him. CJ Abrams, who is having a really good year, is the only Nat who has hit him at all — 4-for-6. So, stop Abrams and Gausman can probably handle the rest of the Nats lineup.

With Foster Griffin traded, Cade Cavalli takes over as the Nats’ best starter. He’s had a solid year and has allowed three or fewer runs in all of his last 11 starts.

He was the Nats’ Opening Day starter against the Cubs and allowed three runs in 3.2 innings on a chilly, windy day at Wrigley Field March 26, which probably has little or no predictive value for today’s game.

Here is the weather forecast for the area around Nationals Park.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Nationals site Federal Baseball. If you do go there to interact with Nationals fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

Tonight, Major League Baseball returns to Dyersville, Iowa, for the Field of Dreams Game between the Philadelphia Phillies and Minnesota Twins. It’s fantastic that the event has returned, as the 1989 film is one of my favorites and has inspired memories and reflections of my own.

Childhood memories

One summer day in the early 2000s, my oldest brother had the impulse to build a baseball field. So, he tied the closest thing we had to a steel drag mat to our dad’s ancient Subaru Leone (I think that was the car) from the 80s and drove it around the empty acre of dirt next to the house.

While he was in the car, my job as the youngest brother was to wander the field and pick up as many large rocks as I could carry in my shirt and use them to weigh down a line of boards flat on the ground that served as our outfield fence. We then created a backstop by propping up a chain-link fence on three poles, and tried to compile a mound of dirt as best we could to pitch from.

Despite a total lack of measuring that left us with a tiny right field—and an abundance of weeds, rocks, Chico bushes, and ankle-twisting rodent tunnels—it was our own Field of Dreams.

It wasn’t heaven, but it was perfect.

I have so many memories of taking batting practice out there with my brothers and the slog of tracking down every ball we hit, only to inevitably lose one somehow (legend says there are still baseballs out there to this day). It also served as our annual home run derby venue, where we obliterated the surplus of rotten apples that fell off our trees. I also spent many years using an old wooden shovel handle to smack rocks I tossed up to myself to work on my hand-eye coordination while my dog Misty chased them.

That field helped forge my love of the game, and inspired so many pursuits in baseball, including writing for Purple Row.

Baseball marks the time

I recently watched Field of Dreams on a whim in preparation for the game, and one of the moments that always stands out is the monologue by James Earl Jones’s character, Terrance Mann.

“The one constant through all the years, Ray, has been baseball. America has rolled by like an army of steamrollers. It has been erased like a blackboard, rebuilt and erased again. But baseball has marked the time. This field, this game: it’s a part of our past, Ray. It reminds us of all that once was good, and could be again.”

Baseball has always been a significant part of my life. My dad loved the game and passed that on to my three brothers and me. The oldest and I became the fanatics and played the game, while the other two became casual enjoyers of the sport.

The sport is always a constant through the good times and the bad. When my dad first learned of his cancer diagnosis in 2024, Rockies baseball helped him endure that time. After he passed, baseball has continued to serve as a healing salve for me.

To me, the essence of the speech in the movie is that baseball is about hope and believing that things can be better than they were yesterday. It stands as a constant testament to the inherent childlike simplicity of throwing, hitting, and catching a ball. Baseball is what dreams are made of.

It’s a game that can heal people, giving them a sense of community and the courage to believe. The best adage in sports is that there is “always next year.” Seems like every year, no matter how foolish it may be, I enter a Rockies season with a decent amount of optimism that things could be better. I see others who share that same sentiment time and time again. Whether or not that is true depends on your perception, but 2026 has shown that things can still be bad, yet much better than the previous year.

If you build it

So as the Phillies and Twins step onto that cornfield diamond in Iowa tonight, I won’t just be watching a game between two major league teams. I’ll be thinking of a dusty acre, an old Subaru Leone, a wooden shovel handle, and a father who shared his love of the game. The Rockies—and baseball itself—might break our hearts now and then, but every pitch brings a chance to remember where we came from and believe in what comes next. That’s the magic of the game. It marks our time, keeps our memories alive, and always promises that tomorrow could be better.

Whether it’s played in a pristine, corn-rimmed stadium in Dyersville or on a rocky patch of dirt next to the house, baseball has a way of holding up a mirror to our lives. Tonight’s Field of Dreams game is a reminder of why we fall in love with this sport in the first place. For baseball fans—and for anyone who has ever built a field in their own backyard—sometimes the score matters a lot less than the sanctuary the game provides. There’s always next year, always next season, and always another dream waiting out in the corn.

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

The Cincinnati Reds have lost ace Hunter Greene not only for the rest of the 2026 season, but likely all of 2027 as well.

Greene underwent his second Tommy John surgery on Wednesday, Aug. 13, after doctors discovered the damage to his right elbow was too extensive for them to opt for a less-invasive internal brace procedure that could have allowed him to return to action for the second half of next season.

The expected recovery time for the full elbow reconstruction is 12-18 months, which would probably mean he wouldn't return to the mound until the start of the 2028 season.

Greene, 27, is one of the hardest-throwing pitchers in baseball, but injuries have been a problem for him throughout his major league career.

He has never made more than 26 starts or pitched more than 150⅓ innings in any of his five seasons with the Reds. He hit both of those career highs in 2024, when he went 9-5 with 169 strikeouts and a 2.75 ERA. That success earned him his only All-Star berth and an eighth-place finish in the NL Cy Young balloting.

Greene was shut down during spring training and had surgery to remove bone chips in his pitching elbow.

He allowed eight runs in 3⅓ innings when he made his season debut in June, followed by a fantastic second start against the Chicago Cubs − tossing seven scoreless innings and struck out 12. However, the elbow soreness soon returned and the Reds put him back on the injured list at the end of the month with a 2-2 record and 6.83 ERA.

Hunter Greene contract

Greene signed a six-year, $53 million extension with the Reds in 2023. Scheduled for unrestricted free agency after the 2029 season, Cincinnati has a $21 million team option for 2029 with a $2 million buyout.

• 2026: $8.3 million
• 2027: $15.3 million
• 2028: $16.3 million
• 2029: $21 million (club option, $2 million buyout)

The Dodgers haven’t had a three-inning save yet in 2026, and as a host of the Three-Inning Save podcast I was starting to wonder whether this team actually has the juice to repeat as champions, again. Everything was setting up perfectly for that shortcoming to be rectified on Wednesday night.

Landon Knack was called up earlier in the day, a clear sign this was a reset day for the bullpen, like we’ve seen from Charlie Barnes and Cole Irvin in just the last month and a half. Eric Lauer pitched a splendid six innings and threw 107 pitches, already his season high, and the Dodgers were up 4-2. This was the perfect opportunity to go for a three-inning save.

But the Dodgers left Lauer in the game, to face the lefty-hitting Josh Rojas to open the seventh. He struck out on five pitches, giving Lauer a season-high 6 1/3 innings but that ensured there would not be a three-inning save.

Knack still came in to fulfill his clear role, to give the bullpen a night off. He allowed a pair of singles in the seventh inning but was otherwise fine, and pitched the final 2 2/3 innings for an actual save, since he entered with a lead of three or fewer runs. It was by all definitions a perfectly effective outing, and will get Knack several handshakes and pats on the back as he’s optioned to Triple-A on Thursday in favor of another fresh arm for the bullpen.

Knack now has one save in each of his three major league seasons to date, including a four-inning save in Milwaukee on August 13, 2024 and the final 3 2/3 innings of the regular season last September 28 in Seattle.

Since saves became official in 1969, the Dodgers have 19 saves of exactly eight outs. Before Knack on Wednesday, the last such game was 39 years ago.

On June 8, 1987, Brian Holton relieved Orel Hershiser with the bases loaded and one out in the seventh inning against the Braves in Atlanta, with a 6-1 lead. Holton struck out Glenn Hubbard then induced an inning-ending groundout by future Hall of Famer Ted Simmons to extinguish the threat. Because the tying run was on deck when Holton entered, this was a save situation.

Holton stranded a single in a scoreless eighth inning, then allowed a two-run home run to Andres Thomas in the ninth inning before getting the final three outs for the first save of his career.

“I just stunk that inning,” Hershiser told Sam McManis of the Los Angeles Times after the game. “I came out because I couldn’t throw the ball over the plate.”

“Brian had a 12-to-6 curveball that was an optical illusion. That was a huge major league tool for him,” Hershiser said in the ninth inning of the SportsNet LA call of Wednesday’s game. In the LA Times game story, McManis described the pitch that struck out Holton as a “slow curve.“

Holton would collect two more regular season saves in his career. Nine days after the save in Atlanta, Holton pitched the 11th inning of a win in Houston, then protected a 9-6 lead on June 26, 1988 against the Reds in Cincinnati.

The right-hander also allowed one run in six innings of relief during the Dodgers championship run in the 1988 postseason, also saved the Dodgers’ NLCS Game 5 win in New York. Holton entered with one out in the eighth inning with a two-run lead, and the tying runs on base. He stranded them both and earned a save, one day after Hershiser saved Game 4 with a surprise extra-inning relief effort.

Mike Marshall was the very definition of a multi-inning reliever, and won a Cy Young Award in 1974 with the Dodgers will setting records that likely won’t ever be broken, with 106 appearances and 208 1/3 innings. Marshall had an eight-out save that season, on May 18 in St. Louis, but what I love about his season is that he had saves of every number of outs from one to 12 that season.

Mike Marshall 1974 saves by inning

• 4 innings: two (May 15, August 25)
• 3 2/3 innings: one (May 22)
• 3 1/3 innings: two (May 26, August 10)
• 3 innings: five (April 29, May 31, June 28, July 7, August 1)
• 2 2/3 innings: one (May 18)
• 2 1/3 innings: one (April 28)
• 2 innings: one (September 6)
• 1 2/3 innings: three (July 7, August 21, September 23)
• 1 1/3 innings: one (May 20)
• 1 inning: two (August 2, August 4)
• 2/3 inning: one (July 3)
• 1/3 inning: one (June 14)

We have an afternoon game today, 3:00 Eastern. The Jays now have a 15.6% chance of making the playoffs, which is almost double than what it was a couple of weeks ago. The next couple of weeks well tell us a lot. After today’s game, they play six games (home and road) against the Yankees and three game in Tampa against the Rays.

There isn’t all that much for Jays’ news.

Brendon Little is off on Paternity Leave, on his birthday yet.

Lazaro Estrada is back. I think he’s been optioned five times this year, which is the limit. But I don’t know if it works the same when you are up for a Paternity Leave. And I’m not sure that the Jays would be worried about having to put him on waivers.

And there is this.

Well, ok. Let’s see how long it lasts until they complain they can’t hear each other.

Today’s lineups. Okamoto is back playing third. Springer is back as DH. And McAdoo is still leading off. No Bateman against the lefty.

Cynicism is very much in this summer. If it were an ice cream flavor it would be flying off the shelves in the midst of the late-summer humidity—which has only exacerbated everybody’s foul moods. Every lighthearted mention of something cool or good that took place in the world tends to be habitually followed up with a grouchy “yeah, but have you heard…?”

For instance, hey, the Yankees keep winning more often than they lose despite not having many of their most impactful players. Yeah, but did you see that the Rays have won nine straight games? Yeah, but did you see Will Warren’s dud of a start? That guy can’t be relied upon! Yeah, but did you know we’re out of milk? The HORROR!

But the fact remains: the Yankees remain good despite it all. They even added another come-from-behind victory to their stash last night, overtaking the Mariners ahead of the final bend and switching on the turbo thrusters in a 10-5 series-clinching triumph. And what’s more, the Red Sox are crashing down to earth, giving the Bombers additional breathing room in the top Wild Card spot as they try to burn some sage or do whatever it takes to stop the white-hot Rays.

Never lacking for starting pitching, the Yankees get the luxury of turning to Max Fried in the finale as they aim for a sweep of Seattle. Fried was a bit bumpy in the first two innings of his previous start, in which he faced his former friends in Atlanta for the first time. But after allowing a leadoff single in the third, he didn’t allow a single baserunner the rest of the way, twirling a scoreless 6.1-inning performance which proved instrumental in allowing the Bombers to complete an invigorating rally later in the evening. (As an aside: I was there for that game, and you can see me on the broadcast amongst a sea of fired-up fanatics in the right field seats after Ben Rice’s game-tying hit.)

The Mariners also never lack for starting pitching—though several of their top-flight arms have underachieved this year. Not so with Logan Gilbert, who remains among the most consistent right-handed starters in MLB. Gilbert did the best he could to stifle those incendiary Rays last time up, notching a quality start with two runs over 6.2 innings (Tampa won anyway). His previous time out he completed seven full innings against a Minnesota team that can really hit, permitting three runs on five hits. The M’s are in a massive funk, but if New York completes the sweep, the 29-year old is not likely to be the main reason why.

Trent Grisham won last night’s game belt in the clubhouse, and for good reason. New York’s leadoff man stepped up with a three-hit, two-homer, 4-RBI night which helped the Yankees reach double-figures in the run column for the first time since a 12-4 win on July 9th over none other than Tampa. Naturally, he’s back in that leadoff spot this afternoon ahead of Ben Rice and Spencer Jones, who doubled twice out of the three-hole last night. Luis Garcia Jr. bats cleanup, then George Lombard Jr. hits fifth, the highest up in the order he’s gone so far. Jazz Chisholm Jr. hits sixth ahead of José Caballero who will play right field—he, Ryan McMahon and Ali Sánchez bring up the rear.

With Fried on the mound, the Mariners will give lefty-hitting infielder Cole Young the day off. Young has been among the M’s most reliable starters, but he will sit along with rookie shortstop Colt Emerson (a more understandable decision there; Emerson has not had the same caliber of start as his 21-year old shortstop counterpart in the opposite dugout). Leo Rivas and Weston Wilson, two guys hitting below the Mendoza Line, draw in. No complaints here.

How to watch

Location: Yankee Stadium — The Bronx, NY

First pitch: 1:35 pm ET

TV broadcast: YES, Mariners.TV

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY), Seattle Sports 710 AM (SEA)

Online stream: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)

For updates, follow us on BlueSky, Twitter, and Instagram, and like us on Facebook.

PHOENIX — These skids have happened virtually every year he has managed the Los Angeles Dodgers and although Dave Roberts should be numb to it by now, knowing they’ll ultimately wind up on the other side, it doesn’t make the pain any less tolerable.

“I hate it," he tells USA TODAY Sports, “I absolutely hate it. I just wish it didn’t happen at all, but it always does."

The Dodgers, who just came off a seven-game losing streak, dropping 15 of 24 games and were 42-42 over six weeks, hope to be coming out of their funk at the right time.

EXCLUSIVE: Roberts sounds off on anti-Dodgers hate and LA legacy

The begin a four-game series Thursday night at Dodger Stadium against the Milwaukee Brewers, who are once again perched with the best record in the National League – but were swept by the Dodgers in last year’s NLCS.

Now, they meet again for the battle for the No. 1 seed, with the Dodgers entering Wednesday night two games behind the Brewers, who also had the best record in MLB last year.

Roberts implored his team to wake up Monday before they played the Kansas City Royals, reminding them that if they don’t finish with the top two records in the National League, they’ll be without a first-round bye and forced to play at least two extra postseason games.

It happened last year, too, but had no ill effect.

Detroit Tigers (59-61) vs. Cleveland Guardians (59-62)

Time/Place: 1:10 p.m., Comerica Park
SB Nation Site:Covering the Corner
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Pitching Matchup: RHP Keider Montero (8-7, 3.38 ERA) vs. LHP Parker Messick (9-6, 2.57 ERA)

The next “biggest game of the year” starts now:

Here’s the Guardians’ lineup:

Here’s the Tigers’ lineup:

Let’s go, Guardians!

We are about two months out from the North Carolina Tar Heels’ heartbreaking loss in the finals at the College World Series. In the weeks since, the 2026 MLB Draft was also held, and a number of UNC players have since begun their professional careers. With some time having passed from that, let’s take a look in on how the Diamond Heels are now fitting into their new homes.

In total, six Tar Heels were selected in the 2026 MLB Draft, all six of them opted to sign and begin their minor league careers.

The first two Heels off the board were both selected by the Boston Red Sox. Shortstop Jake Schaffner went 20th overall and came to terms on a $2 million signing bonus. His first taste of pro ball has come with the High Single-A Greenville Drive in the South Atlantic League, where he’s put up a .797 OPS in six games through Monday. Meanwhile, Boston then took Super Regional hero Owen Hull 67th overall and inked him to a $1.2 million bonus. Hull is also in Greenville and has also played in six games, putting up a 1.014 OPS. He’s shown a good eye, drawing five walks in six games, continuing on one of his calling cards from college. More notably, they both rank among the Red Sox top ten prospects according to one outlet that covers that aspect.

The third round saw two Tar Heels picked, the first of which was pitcher Jason DeCaro, who went 80th to the Pirates, signing with them for $1,297,500. As teams sometimes tend to do with pitchers, they’ve taken it slowly with DeCaro, as he hasn’t appeared in a minor league game yet. Fellow UNC rotation member Ryan Lynch went a little bit later to the Padres at the 97th pick, and he also has not taken the mound in a live game yet.

A couple rounds later, catcher Macon Winslow was selected by the Phillies and came to terms with them. In six games so far, he has just three hits, but one of them was a home run and he’s also shown a pretty good eye, drawing three walks. That has his OPS sitting at .754 in that small sample size.

The final UNC player picked this year was reliever Matthew Matthijs, who went in one of the last rounds of the draft, the 17th at 520th overall, going to the Mariners. Like the other pitchers on the list, he hasn’t appeared in a real game as of yet.

Among the undrafted free agents, pitcher Joe Charles has struggled in the Mets’ system so far, while catcher Colin Hynek didn’t record a hit in his first two games with a Cubs’ affiliate.

Other than the fact that all six Tar Heels ended up signing with their teams, there wasn’t a lot substantial to talk about just yet. We’ll be sure to check in on this year’s drafted Tar Heels towards the end of the season as they have a little more time to play in their various organizations. Best of luck to those six, and any other former UNC players around the minor leagues over the rest of the 2026 MiLB season.

Thanks to their mostly poor play since the All-Star break, the Phillies currently find themselves out of a playoff spot. While there’s still plenty of baseball left to be played, it certainly isn’t early anymore.

The last two opponents they’ve faced have been mediocre, but that didn’t stop the Phillies from dropping both series. They’ll move on to play another mediocrity in the Twins, who may be without their best offensive player in Byron Buxton (currently on the IL, but he is close to a return) and best pitcher in Joe Ryan. Then again, mediocrity would be a step up from what we’ve seen from the Phillies in recent weeks.

The series will be a bit wacky with Thursday night’s opener being the Field of Dreams game (hope you have Netflix), and we’ll have yet another Friday night without a game. Then again, this entire season has been a little wacky for the Phils, so they should be used to it.

Opposition research: Kody Clemens

I understand why the Phillies sold Kody Clemens to the Twins in early 2025. They had a glut of lefthanded hitting outfielders, and while he had been a nice enough bench piece, you never really got a “they have to give this guy a chance to play every day” vibe from him.

He put together a solid season for the Twins in 2025, serving as a utility player who mostly played against righthanded pitching. He wasn’t spectacular, but he was better than Max Kepler who the Phillies handed the left field job to last year.

This season, he’s been an everyday player, and while his on-base percentage is unideal (.280) he’s got a solid .747 OPS with 20 home runs. He also hit an “ultimate grand slam” this year. (Matt Strahm has had a tough time of it this season.)

He’d still be an awkward fit in the Phillies’ outfield alongside fellow lefties Brandon Marsh and Justin Crawford, but it’s frustrating to see a player they basically gave away succeeding elsewhere.

Hating on the Twins

After winning World Series titles in 1987 and 1991, it has been a rough few decades for the Twins. Since 1991, they’ve won a total of two playoff series and haven’t gotten past the ALCS. For a while there, they couldn’t even win a single playoff game, dropping 18 in a row.

The Twins rarely sign big free agents, and one of their most notable signings was Carlos Correa, who only chose them because he failed a physical with two other teams. Their current franchise player is Byron Buxton who has been really adamant about staying with the Twins, perhaps because anyone trading for him would likely become enraged when he takes his annual trip to the Injured List.

Trivia

Last week’s answer: Roberto Alomar tied Paul Molitor’s 12 hits in the 1993 World Series. MG77 was correct.

This week’s question: The Phillies defeated the Twins in the 2025 regular series finale by a 2-1 score in ten innings. Who drove in the winning run via a sacrifice fly?

Additional thought about the series

John Stolnis went into more detail about Thursday’s Field of Dreams game, but I’m just hoping the Phillies can play non- embarrassing baseball in this showcase. Maybe they can avoid any horrid fielding mistakes, and Aaron Nola can somehow limit his home runs allowed to one or fewer.

The Twins have Josh Bell on their roster, and we think of him as a Phillie-killer, but they’ve actually kept him in check in recent seasons. Over the past two seasons, he’s batting just .190 with two home runs against them in 23 games. He did take Nola deep once last season, but these days, only hitting one home run off of Nola is probably below average.

Luis Castillo did his best executioner impression last night, slicing up his old squad, and now Chicago heads into the rubber match with a chance to boot the Reds out of town licking their wounds. For that to happen, though, the Sox need Davis Martin to show up as someone other than the batting practice pitcher he’s been lately.

Martin’s season has taken a pretty ugly turn since June, and the recent numbers aren’t doing him any favors. Over his last seven starts, he owns a 7.80 ERA and 1.77 WHIP, and his outing in Boston was especially brutal. Martin was tagged for nine runs over five innings in the 14-2 loss, with the White Sox later saying he had been tipping pitches. Hopefully that explains at least some of the carnage, because Chicago desperately needs him to get back on track. With Castillo giving the bullpen a much-needed breather by tossing seven scoreless innings last night, Martin’s job today is simple: keep the Reds from putting up a crooked number early and give the offense a chance.

Cincinnati counters with lefthander Andrew Abbott, who enters the afternoon 6-7 with a 3.92 ERA and 1.39 WHIP. Those numbers certainly aren’t terrifying, so this feels like an opportunity for the Sox offense to build on last night rather than making another opposing pitcher look like a Cy Young candidate. Abbott has been hittable, and Chicago needs to make him work, get traffic on the bases and — this is always the important part — actually do something with it.

Here’s how Will Venable will send them out against Abbott:

This is how the Reds will line up versus Martin:

Last night belonged to Castillo. Today, the spotlight shifts to Martin. A solid outing would go a long way toward quieting some concerns about his miserable pitching of late, and more importantly, it would give the South Siders a chance to take two of three from Cincinnati. Win the rubber match, take the series and move along. Sounds easy enough, right?

First pitch has been moved up an hour to 12:10 p.m. CDT due to weather. The game will be televised on CHSN and can be heard on ESPN Chicago 1000.

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The Chicago Cubs put on an absolute show yesterday.

Following a 12-run outburst, Kevin Gausman is in the perfect spot against the Washington Nationals to help the blue and white win their fourth straight, so we're running back Chicago on the moneyline (-138 at Polymarket) as part of my Cubs vs. Nationals predictions.

Let’s dive into my MLB picks for Thursday, Aug. 13, and sweep the board once more.

Who will win Cubs vs Nationals today: Cubs moneyline (-142)

The Chicago Cubs' offense is simply on another level right now. They've scored 30 runs across their last three games and own the highest wRC+ in baseball as a result. In other words, they've been pretty unstoppable.

Enter Washington Nationals starter Cade Cavalli, who's had issues limiting the long ball this season. Over his last five starts, he's surrendered seven homers, and his 40.6% hard-hit rate ranks in the top 20 among qualified starters.

Cavalli's going to play right into the Cubs' power stroke, so expect more traffic on the base paths for Chicago tonight.

I'd play this one up to -150. 

Looking for more plays? Tap into Colby Marchio's MLB moneyline picks for Thursday.

COVERS INTEL:Kevin Gausman's 3.84 xERA is among the best of his career, and he's finding his home in Chicago quite quickly following his trade from the Blue Jays. In his lone start with the Cubs, Gausman tied a season-high seven innings, allowing just two earned runs and four strikeouts. 

Cubs vs Nationals Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 runs (-116)

With the Cubs' offense going up against Cavalli, who's prone to the long ball, the Over is the only play today. Not only has the ball been flying off his arm, but Nationals Park is home to the 10th-most homers and third-highest xwOBAcon this year.

Look for Pete Crow-Armstrong to also continue his blistering pace in the NL MVP odds; he's now recorded 12 hits (three homers) over his last eight games.

Cubs vs Nationals home run prediction: Pete Crow-Armstrong (+365)

Crow-Armstrong enters today cruising toward the NL MVP, owning an elite 12.3% barrel rate, a career-high 48.6% hard-hit rate, and a .473 xSLG. His 8.8% solid contact rate is not only a career high, but reflects the offseason adjustments he's made to get to this spot. 

Meanwhile, Cavalli relies heavily on a 97 MPH four-seam fastball, a pitch that PCA has been able to eat up this season. Adding to the case are PCA’s splits — he’s hit 20 of his 27 homers against righties this season.

More home run prediction for Thursday can be found with our resident expert Josh Inglis.

Cubs vs Nationals weather

The weather will be perfect for baseball tonight, with temperatures reaching 89F prior to first pitch, giving the ball a little extra air under it.

Cubs vs Nationals odds

• Moneyline: Cubs (-142) | Nationals (+133)
• Run line: Cubs -1.5 (+122) | Nationals +1.5 (-127)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-116) | Under 8.5 (+108)

Cubs vs Nationals trend

I'm loving the Over tonight, which is 6-0-1 in the Cubs' last seven games as a road favorite. Find more MLB betting trends for Cubs vs. Nationals.

How to watch Cubs vs Nationals and game info

Cubs vs Nationals latest injuries

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