TORONTO, ON - SEPTEMBER 25: Cincinnati Reds Infielder Sal Stewart (27) smiles during the MLB regular season game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Toronto Blue Jays on September 25, 2026, at Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON, Canada. (Photo by Julian Avram/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
The Major League Baseball Players Association (MLBPA) is going to be front and center in the news all offseason given the December 1st expiration date of the current Collective Bargaining Agreement between it and Major League Baseball itself. The MLBPA, repping the players themselves, is a labor union that wields a lot of power in brokering the future of the game on behalf of those that get on the field and play it, but there’s a whole lot more to it than just signing documents.
It’s a participatory organization. The players from all 30 franchises – both major and minor league – are a very, very active part of said group. Part of that includes putting their voices together to determine their Players Choice Awards at the end of every regular season, something they’ve done every year since 1992.
They announced their award winners on Wednesday morning, and Cincinnati Reds rookie Sal Stewart was tabbed the ‘Outstanding Rookie’ for the National League on the back of his 32 homer, 111 RBI breakout campaign in 2026.
Since 1992, the Players Choice Awards have celebrated excellence across Major League Baseball, recognizing performance, leadership, perseverance, and impact on and off the field. The awards are especially meaningful to players, because they’re determined through a vote of their… pic.twitter.com/J3PjBkP9AP
It’s the second significant RoY award taken home by Sal, who was also named the 2026 Sporting News National League Rookie of the Year last week. This one, though, holds a little bit more prestige and personality given that it was voted on by the players themselves. Nothing like being celebrated by a jury of one’s peers!
This award, though, doesn’t come with any tangible compensation. That’s reserved for the BBWAA Jackie Robinson Rookie of the Year Award, and that will be announced on November 9th. Keep in mind that if Sal takes home that one, the Reds will be comped with an extra draft pick at the end of the 1st round in next summer’s draft (as well as the overall draft bonus pool bonus money bump that comes with it).
Either way, congrats to Sal who is stacking up a pretty impressive amount of hardware after his first full season in the big leagues.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — Just three outs from winning the first World Series title in franchise history, the Milwaukee Brewers’ bullpen finally faltered.
Left-hander Aaron Ashby retired all seven batters he faced in Game 4 against Tampa Bay and broke Andrew Miller’s record for scoreless innings by a reliever in one postseason. But manager Pat Murphy pulled Ashby with one out in the 11th.
Murphy had used six pitchers already and turned to Antonio Senzatela, who got two outs to finish that inning. The right-hander began the 12th with a one-run lead after rookie Cooper Pratt put the Brewers ahead 3-2 with a solo homer.
However, third baseman Joey Ortiz made a throwing error on Junior Caminero’s leadoff grounder, and that proved costly.
“I’m human. I knew what I was walking into. I just didn’t do the job there,” said Drohan, who hadn’t pitched since Oct. 15 against the Dodgers in the National League Championship Series.
Drohan made 19 starts in 33 appearances and posted a 4.19 ERA during the regular season.
“We thought Drohan could come in and face the lefties there,” Murphy said. “It seems like the ball was up a little bit. It was a little flat, but we learned from it. ... If the first guy hits a groundball, double play, we’re not even talking about it. He threw strikes. Give him some credit, it was a tough situation. But we’re in the 12th inning and we’re drained a little bit.”
Ortiz, one of the team’s best fielders, took the blame for his error after entering the game as a substitution because Murphy removed David Hamilton for a pinch hitter.
“I’ve got to make that play. Just no excuse about it, no matter what anyone says,” Ortiz said.
At least the Brewers can turn to ace Jacob Misiorowski in Game 5 on Wednesday night. Their relievers have allowed nine earned runs over 61 2/3 postseason innings.
Ashby passed Miller with a 1-2-3 ninth, followed with a perfect 10th, retired the first batter in the bottom of the 11th and left the game not having allowed a run in 18 innings over nine postseason appearances.
“One of those cool things, I guess, but more so that loss stings,” Ashby said. “It’s part of our story and I think the boys are fired up to get back in here tomorrow.”
Said Brewers captain Christian Yelich: “He’s been awesome for us. He loves the ball. I’m sure he would’ve kept pitching.”
Ashby pitched the final three innings to close out an NLCS sweep of the Dodgers on Oct. 15, and got five outs in both Games 1 and 2 against the Rays.
“He was disappointed he was coming out but I said, ‘We’ve got to be mindful of your health, and we’ve got to be mindful of winning the whole thing,’” Murphy said. “`If you’re going to win the whole thing, you have to understand that we can’t drain you today or risk injury today.’ He’s thrown a lot. Luckily, we got out of that situation, and it didn’t hurt us.”
Ashby, who was 13-3 with a 3.12 ERA in 71 relief appearances during the season, has been untouchable in October. He’s allowed five hits, walked three and has 20 strikeouts.
Miller had the longest streak of consecutive scoreless relief innings within one postseason with 16 in 2016 for Cleveland. Including the regular season, Ashby has thrown a career-best 22 2/3 straight scoreless innings.
Ashby had struggled in the postseason before this one. He allowed nine runs — eight earned — in 9 1/3 playoff innings over 10 appearances in 2021, 2024 and 2025.
Ashby’s fastball reached 99 mph but his velocity went down as he accumulated 31 pitches.
“The velo was down quite a bit,” Murphy said. “We can tell when Ashby’s ball doesn’t have the same movement and the same finish. So it was time (to take him out).”
Ashby understood the decision.
“I think I had an idea of why he was coming out,” Ashby said, referring to his velocity. “I feel good, but probably a part of throwing a lot of innings. Felt good to keep going but we have more games now, try and recover as well as I can tonight and be ready to go as soon as possible.”
Brewers closer Trevor Megill struck out the only batter he faced to end the eighth. He should be available in Game 5.
WASHINGTON, DC - JUNE 10: Retired Yankee and Congressional candidate Mark Teixeira speaks with members of the Republican team ahead of the Congressional Baseball Game at Nationals Park in Washington, DC, United States, on June 10, 2026. (Photo by Nathan Posner/Anadolu via Getty Images) | Anadolu via Getty Images
Morning, all!
Defector has an article up about former Ranger Mark Teixiera, who is expected to be elected to Congress next month.
The Tampa Bay Rays somehow pulled off a walkoff to stave off a World Series sweep by the Brwers.
The Rays are only the fifth team in MLB history to force a game 5 after being down 0-3 in a World Series. None of the previous teams that have accomplished that feat have forced a game 6, much less won the title.
Zack Wheeler’s return to the mound was one of the Phillies’ biggest success stories of 2026. Now, he’s being recognized by the players who witnessed it firsthand.
The Major League Baseball Players Association announced Wednesday that Wheeler was voted the National League Comeback Player of the Year as part of its annual Players Choice Awards.
The 36-year-old right-hander received the honor after returning from venous thoracic outlet syndrome, which required surgery to remove a rib after doctors discovered a blood clot near his right shoulder in August 2025.
Wheeler made his season debut April 25 and returned to form, posting a 14-5 record with a 3.00 ERA and 193 strikeouts across 162 innings in 28 starts.
In a video released by the MLBPA announcing the award, several pitchers around the league praised Wheeler’s ability to overcome an injury that initially raised questions about his future.
Resilience is an understatement. 🙏 Congratulations Zack Wheeler on being recognized as the 2026 Players Choice Awards NL Comeback Player!@Philliespic.twitter.com/v3bAOPCUY6
“He’s a special player. He’s had a tremendous career,” Yankees right-hander Cam Schlittler said. “You see the injuries can be, you know, a setback and then rehab can be a tough process. I was very impressed.”
Orioles pitcher Chris Bassitt recalled his initial reaction to Wheeler’s diagnosis, believing the injury could potentially bring his career to an abrupt end.
“What I thought at the time was like he doesn’t deserve to go out like this,” Bassitt said. “He deserves to have a path where he can choose when he’s done.”
Wheeler also offered a glimpse into the uncertainty of his recovery, detailing the multiple procedures required to restore proper blood flow.
“This is one of these surgeries that, you know, just isn’t really that common,” Wheeler said. “So a lot of uncertainty around it. At the same time, you got to keep a positive mindset.”
That mindset helped Wheeler return to the level of performance his peers had grown accustomed to seeing.
And for a pitcher who has spent more than a decade competing against some of baseball’s best, the recognition carried particular significance.
“I always thought when we vote on these every year that this would be one of the cool awards to win,” Wheeler said. “The ones that the players vote on is the guys that you’re competing against, playing with, guys who know what it takes to be good day in and day out.”
Wheeler could soon add another honor to his résumé.
He is also a leading candidate for MLB’s separate NL Comeback Player of the Year Award, which will be announced Nov. 11. Unlike the Players Choice Awards, which are voted on by major league players, MLB’s honor is determined by a vote of the 30 MLB.com club beat reporters.
MILWAUKEE, WI - OCTOBER 11: A general view outside American Family Field prior to Game One of the National League Championship Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, October 11, 2026 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. (Photo by Aaron Gash/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
With the Milwaukee Brewers still looking to wrap up the World Series after the Rays eked out an extra-innings win in Game 4, fans will once again have the opportunity to attend a watch party at American Family Field in a potential clinching Game 5 tonight.
The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. CT tonight, and the parking lots will open at 4:30 p.m. with ballpark gates opening at 5 p.m. Tickets for Brewers season seat members go on sale this morning at 10 a.m. and the general public at 12 p.m. at brewers.com/postseason.
Tickets cost $15 each, and fans may purchase up to six tickets per person. Parking is $15 in preferred lots and $10 in general parking.
Fans can also enjoy access to select food and beverage locations, interactive fan activities, mascots, Brewers entertainment, and shopping at the team stores.
5 Apr 1999: Pitcher Kevin Appier #17 of the Kansas City Royals winds back to throw the ball during the game against the Boston Red Sox at Ewing M. Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Missouri. The Red Sox defeated the Royals 5-3Mandatory Credit: Tim Umphrey /Allsport | Getty Images
TThe Royals have employed several underrated players in their history, but in my opinion, none have been as overlooked on a national level as Kevin Appier. The Royals drafted the California native with the ninth pick of the first round of the 1987 draft. The ’87 draft had some players. Ken Griffey Jr. went number one. Jack McDowell (we’ll talk about him later) went with the fifth pick. Craig Biggio and Albert Belle went later in the first and second rounds, respectively. Other notables were Travis Fryman, Reggie Sanders, and Steve Finley. The Royals picked up Jeff Conine in the 58th round. The draft is a crazy crapshoot.
Appier quickly made his way through the Royals’ minor league system and made his major league debut on June 4, 1989, at the age of 21. He bounced between Omaha and Kansas City for parts of two seasons before becoming a mainstay in the Royals’ rotation.
Appier was listed at 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds, though he looked bigger. He had a distinctive motion, reminiscent of Bob Feller and Goose Gossage, two other guys who could bring the heat. During his windup, Appier would drop his right arm low, with his left shoulder high, then violently deliver the pitch. He had an excellent fastball, especially in his younger years, complemented by a terrific slider and forkball. Batters had to work to get a hit off Appier.
Appier had a nice rookie season and ended up winning the Rookie Pitcher of the Year award. He should have won the Rookie of the Year award, but ended up in third, behind Sandy Alomar and Kevin Maas. This wouldn’t be the last time Appier got screwed over by the voters.
His best season would have been 1993, when he posted an 18-8 record. He made 34 starts that summer and threw almost 239 innings while posting an ERA of 2.56 to go along with five complete games. It was good for a 9.3 bWAR season, which was tops in the American League by a wide margin.
Jack McDowell (remember him?) won the American League Cy Young Award with his 22-10 record and 3.37 ERA. Randy Johnson, with a 19-8 record, 308 strikeouts, and a 3.24 ERA, took second. Appier, in one of the most criminal oversights in recent history, took third.
Unfortunately, WAR was not around at the time to illustrate just how badly the voters mangled the Cy Young voting.
The MVP race was nearly as bad. Frank Thomas won the award thanks to gaudy home run and RBI numbers. Appier finished way down the ballot, at No. 24, unbelievably behind two teammates: Jeff Montgomery at No. 13 and Greg Gagne at No. 22!
Look, I understand that bWAR is not a perfect measurement, but one thing it has done is illustrate just how badly award voters have done in past years.
Speaking of statistical measurements, one that I’ve always thought was pretty solid was pitching game score. In Appier’s 16-year career, he had 23 games in which his game score was 80 or better. Of those 23 games, his win-loss record was 16-7.
Do you know how hard it is for a team to lose a game when the pitcher throws an 80 or better game? It’s almost impossible, but the Royals somehow found a way to do it! All seven of those losses came by one run. Six of them came by the score of 1-0.
This illustrates a second point. Appier had the misfortune of playing for some absolutely horrible Royals teams. Because of this, he made only one All-Star team, in 1995.
Think about that for a moment. The guy was one of the top three or four pitchers in baseball over the decade of the 1990s and made only one All-Star team!
It’s also important to remember that the ’90s were a decade of offensive firepower. Steroids. Juiced baseballs. You name it, the ’90s had it.
During his career, Appier threw two two-hitters and two one-hitters. When he was on, he was a threat to throw a no-hitter any time he took the mound.
On July 7, 1990, in a game at Tiger Stadium, Appier gave up a clean leadoff single to Lou Whitaker. That was it. He did walk four Tigers to go along with six strikeouts. The Royals won that game, 4-0. The walks kept the game score at just 87.
He was even better on July 27, 1993, in a game against the Rangers at Kauffman Stadium. On that hot evening, Appier held Texas hitless until the seventh inning, when alleged juicer Rafael Palmeiro somehow pulled a low-and-away slider over the right-field wall.
Appier walked only one and struck out 11, going the distance in the 1-0 loss. The game scored 91. The Royals collected nine hits off Kenny Rogers that night, including three by Gary Gaetti, but went 1-for-6 with runners in scoring position and, in the most Royal fashion, somehow couldn’t plate a single measly run.
His highest game score came on September 15, 1995, in a homecoming game at Anaheim, when Appier struck out 13 Angels while walking only one as part of a three-hit complete game. That masterpiece scored a 93. The Royals won that game, 5-0. Joe Vitiello (remember him?) stroked a home run.
Appier missed almost all of the 1998 season with a torn labrum. When he realized the Royals were not serious about winning, he requested a trade and was obliged. In July 1999, the Royals sent him to former rival Oakland for Jeff D’Amico, Brad Rigby, and Blake Stein. Not a memorable trade on the Royals’ behalf for an organizational legend.
Appier was 31 at the time and, following surgery, was heading into the tail end of his career, but he could still summon the magic. He pitched two seasons in Oakland, followed by one in New York with the Mets and two more with Anaheim, before returning home for one last injury-plagued stint with the Royals.
Appier made the postseason twice, once with Oakland in 2000 and again with Anaheim in 2002. He picked up a ring that year as the Angels bested the Giants in the World Series.
Over his career, Appier finished with a record of 169-137 and almost 2,600 innings of work. He recorded 1,994 strikeouts with an ERA of 3.74. That was good for almost 55 bWAR. His name still dots the Royals’ top 10 single-season and career pitching record books.
He was inducted into the Royals Hall of Fame in 2011. He made seven Opening Day starts in his 13 years with the club and was their Pitcher of the Year on three occasions.
I’ve always felt like Royals fans appreciated Appier, then and now. It’s a shame he wasn’t given his due on a national stage because, during his peak, he was one of the very best in the game.
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 27: Ben Williamson #15 of the Tampa Bay Rays is doused in Gatorade by Ryan Vilade #26 after hitting a walk-off one-run single in the 12th inning to win Game Four of the 2026 World Series presented by Capital One between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday, October 27, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Good morning everyone!
We sure witnessed a wild World Series game last night. Let’s get to all of that and more in today’s batch of links.
MLB Postseason scores…
Former Mariner Ben Williamson became a postseason hero with his walk-off 12th inning hit against the Brewers to keep the Rays alive in a 4-3 win. Milwaukee will get another chance to clinch the series in Game 5 tonight.
In Mariners news…
In case you missed it, it appears that former Astros manager Joe Espada and Cubs director of player development Jason Kanzler are finalists for the Mariners’ managerial opening. They hope to make a final decision by the end of the month.
This is super interesting to keep in mind as we prepare for a long winter with lots of projecting for the 2027 season ahead of us.
Anders’ pick…
Over at The Stranger, friend of the site Matthew Roberson wrote about the weird AI obsession that Seahawks Vice Chair (and son of the owner) Neal Khosla has.
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - AUGUST 31: Mark Vientos #27 of the New York Mets celebrates after hitting a home run in the seventh inning against the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on August 31, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/Getty Images) | Getty Images
About a week or so ago (right around the second anniversary of this moment), I was bombarded online with videos of Mark Vientos’s first inning solo home run off Yoshinobu Yamamoto in Game 4 of the 2024 National League Championship Series (a moment I remember far too well, as I was in attendance for the game). I was skeptical of Vientos up until this point in his career, but his 2024 regular season, combined with his exceptional postseason performance, made me eat my words and admit to myself that he was a future star for the Mets. Vientos is, after all, one of only five players to homer off Yamamoto in the postseason, joining a group that includes Juan Soto, Manny Machado, Kyle Schwarber, and Jackson Churio—a truly star-studded list. Now, that home run and his terrific 2024 season only serve as a reminder of what he could have been, and how far his star has fallen.
For the second straight season, Vientos failed to perform to the standards that he set during his breakout 2024 campaign, when he slugged a career-best 27 homers, posted a career-best 131 wRC+ and 2.8 fWAR, and followed that with five home runs, 14 runs batted in, and a 176 wRC+ in 13 postseason games. As a reminder, his numbers did dip precipitously in 2025, as he finished the year with a 96 wRC+ and 0.3 fWAR in 121 games. He also managed just 17 home runs and saw his OPS dip from a career-best .837 in 2024 to .702 in 2025. Despite the decline, there was some hope that maybe 2025 was the outlier, and not 2024.
Heading into 2026, Vientos was not a lock to earn an everyday spot in the lineup, especially with some new additions threatening his playing time. He began the year as a right-handed platoon designated hitter, mostly seeing time against left-handed pitching, but injuries to Jorge Polanco opened the door for Vientos to snag some reps at first base, perhaps opening the door for more playing time. When he did see the field, he spent most of the time at first base, logging just over 519 innings at the position, but his -3 DRS proved that Vientos was not the long-term solution for first base.
That brings us back to Vientos’ bat, which is what he’s here for. As mentioned, he got plenty of chances to DH, and he failed to hit when his name was written on the lineup card. He actually started off the year red-hot, picking up hits in ten of his first 21 at-bats, which included three straight multi-hit efforts in San Francisco on April 3-5. At that point, he was hitting .476/.522/.714 and looked to, perhaps, be on his way to a bounce-back season.
Not so fast! Lest you think this was a precursor for things to come, it was not meant to be, as he went hitless over his next 23 at-bats to plunge his slash line to .227/.255/.341. Carlos Mendoza continued to give the 26-year-old playing time to try and get him out of his funk, but he ended April on an 8-for-32 stretch after snapping that long hitless drought. He also demonstrated an alarming power outage, as he ended April with just two home runs and three doubles, and for someone who was in there to slug homers and drive in runs, this was not what you wanted to see. He broke out from that funk a bit in May, putting together his lone multi-home run effort on May 3 against the Angels and picking up five home runs and six doubles in the month. Despite that, he still ended the month hitting .225/.260/.390 on the year.
His playing time further diminished, and he recorded just seven hits across 48 at-bats in June. He was relegated to late-game pinch hitting opportunities against left-handed pitchers, and with good reason. While his overall numbers were not good across the board, they were downright putrid against right-handers. He finished the year with a 48 wRC+ and a .182/.229/.309 slash line in 159 at-bats against righties. Comparatively, he posted a much more respectable 119 wRC+ with a .252/.296/.513 slash line in 115 at-bats against south paws. While those numbers will hardly put him on the road to Cooperstown, they are, at the very least, playable. He also struck out a ton against righties, picking up 44 Ks against them against 27 Ks against lefties. That, understandably was why Mendoza, and eventually Andy Green, played him the way they did.
Misfortune befell Vientos when he got struck by a pitch on July 9 that resulted in a fractured hand and a lengthy Injured List stint. He would not return until August 31, with the Mets’ season well over. He recorded 37 at-bats over the final few weeks of the year and contributed eight hits, including one homer, which failed to impress. In all, he concluded 2026 with 13 home runs, 41 runs batted in, a 78 wRC+, a .652 OPS, and -1.1 fWAR in 87 games.
As a result, Vientos may very well may have played himself off the Mets’ roster. While he is still under team control, he really is a man without a role in New York. He doesn’t hit well enough to serve as Designated Hitter, and it’s hard to roster someone solely to DH or pinch hit against left-handed pitching. His defense at first and third are mediocre, to put it kindly, and he really is just eating a valuable spot on the 26-man roster. He has three more years of team control and is entering his first year of arbitration this winter. He is probably a good “Change of Scenery” candidate, and the promise of his bat is probably enough to entice a team to give him a shot. It’s very likely this is exactly how the front offices approaches the Mark Vientos Problem this winter.
It really is a shame, because Vientos was one of the many great stories from the 2024 season. A kid from Connecticut who grew up a Mets fan putting it all together and having himself a terrific postseason…what could be a better sell? It was the perfect set up for what could have been a long, productive career in orange and blue. That story looks like it may not play out that way in the end, and it looks like Vientos will either not play a significant role in New York going forward, or will find himself suitinwg up elsewhere in 2027.
UNITED STATES - OCTOBER 11: Isaiah Drake #4 of the Glendale Desert Dogs bats during the game between the Desert Dogs and the Saguaros at Surprise Stadium on Sunday, October 11, 2026 in Surprise, AZ United States. (Photo by Jill Weisleder/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
(6-13) Glendale Desert Dogs 1, (10-9) Salt River Rafters
Tate Southisene, SS: 0-3, .863 OPS
Isaiah Drake, LF: 1-3, 2B, .532 OPS
Logan Samuels, RP: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K, 3.00 ERA
Owen Hackman, RP: 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 K, 1.00 ERA
The offenses on both sides were sluggish as good pitching ruled the day, but even with that two Braves prospects had a decent showing at the plate. Tate Southisene did go hitless, but with a solid flyout and two other batted balls over 100 mph on his register for the game it’s hard to say he had a terrible day out there. He wasn’t able to square one up and add to his breakout performance for Glendale, but as long as the hard contact is there the performance will keep pace. Southisene has looked terrific with his swing decisions and ability to cover the strike zone, and there is little from this fall that you could point to as a negative. Isaiah Drake has not put in the same level of performance this fall, but finally broke through in this game with a double on a bouncer that snuck into left field for his first extra base hit of the fall and the only from a Desert Dog this game. It was one of two hits for the team in the game, though Drake’s only involvement in Glendale’s run-scoring second was grounding into an inning-ending double play during which the go-ahead and eventual winning run scored. Drake has done a good job of making contact so far this fall, but it’s the ability to consistently get to hard contact that has been the problem. A shutout pitching performance from Glendale ruled the day, and two Braves relievers contributed mightily to that effort. Logan Samuels came in with a runner on second base in the sixth inning and retired the first batter he faced to strand the runner and maintain the lead. He then added a scoreless frame in the seventh inning with only a hit batter to mar the day. Owen Hackman continued his strong work this fall with a scoreless save. He did allow a one-out single, but bounced back with a strikeout in a huge spot and got a weak ground ball to end the game. Hackman has done a great job of commanding the strike zone this fall, though he has carried over his struggles with finding consistent swing-and-miss with his secondaries.
ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) — All-Star slugger Junior Caminero injured his left foot during the Tampa Bay Rays’ late rally in Game 4 of the World Series on Tuesday night but said he’ll play Wednesday in Game 5.
Caminero began limping after reaching on a throwing error by third baseman Joey Ortiz leading off the 12th inning, the start of a dramatic comeback for a 4-3 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers that kept the Rays’ season alive. Caminero ran first-to-third on Liam Hicks’ single before being replaced by pinch-runner Cedric Mullins.
Caminero didn’t reveal the extent of his injury but said it didn’t matter with Tampa Bay on the brink of elimination.
“If my foot is broken,” Caminero said, “I’ll play tomorrow.”
The 23-year-old Caminero had 42 home runs and 101 RBIs while playing all 162 games during the regular season. He has just one homer and five RBIs in 13 games this postseason.
The Rays are hitting .195 with a single home run in the World Series. Manager Kevin Cash believes his team needs its best hitter in the lineup to keep its season going.
“He’ll play tomorrow on one leg,” Cash said. “I’ll make sure of it.”
“Just being out here, being so grateful to be playing baseball again, feeling healthy while you’re playing,” he said during a recent interview on The Phillies Show podcast. “It’s definitely given me a new love for the game.”
Miller, a 22-year-old shortstop/third baseman, remains one of the Phillies’ top prospects even though he missed most of the 2026 season with a stubborn lower back issue that kept him from playing until September.
He helped Double A Reading rally to win the Eastern League Championship and has now moved on to the Arizona Fall League, where he was hitting .300 with a .571 on-base percentage and a .467 slugging percentage in his first 10 games for the Surprise Saguaros. The league runs through Nov. 11.
“Just playing baseball again, it’s been so much fun,” he said. “I think I took it for granted, honestly, my whole career so far. To have it taken away from me for a long time and getting back and having that itch again and that love and fire for the game. There’s nothing like it.”
Miller had a strong season, registering an .825 OPS with 14 homers, 42 RBIs and 59 stolen bases in 116 games at Double Reading and Triple A Lehigh Valley in 2025. There was a lot of talk that he could challenge for a spot on the big-league roster sometime in 2026. Then spring training arrived. A lower back issue that had bothered him on occasion over the years popped up again in spring training. From February through the summer, he had the Phillies’ medical staff searched for answers.
In June, the young player had a procedure called a radiofrequency ablation of the facet joints in his lower spine. “Basically, they find the pain and burn the nerve,” he said. Results from the procedure were only so-so. Miller found the pain relief he was looking for when he and team athletic trainers visited the TB12 Performance and Recovery Center in Tampa. The facility is co-owned by former NFL great Tom Brady. It specializes in optimizing recovery and eliminating pain through massage and other techniques that work on soft tissue.
Along with the folks at TB12 and Justin Ahrens of the Phillies’ athletic training staff, Miller has come up with an hour-long daily routine that keeps him on the field – pain free. The routine includes some yoga and jiu-jitsu techniques, some stretching and massage ball work.
“It’s all about keeping those joints lubed up,” he said with a laugh. “We’re at a point now where I feel 100 percent. I told my trainer the other day, it’s not even a thought anymore. When I wake up, it used to be how’s my back feeling, can I bend over and touch my toes? Now, I can swing a bat right out of bed, which is great.”
Miller expects to continue his back-maintenance routine throughout his career. Cole Hamels had to do that, as well. Like Miller, he had a lower back issue as a young minor-leaguer. He found a back-specific strength and conditioning program that helped him pitch until he was 36 and win 163 games.
“Back pain is no joke,” Miller said. “I have a checklist that I do before I even hit in the cage. I’ll probably do it the rest of my career. It just makes you feel great in general.”
Miller and Hamels have more in common than just overcoming back issues. Both dropped in their respective drafts, allowing the Phillies to swoop in and get them. Hamels fractured his pitching arm between his sophomore and junior year in high school. Many teams backed off him over health concerns, but the Phillies did their homework and nabbed him with the 17th overall pick in 2002.
Miller was projected to be a Top 10 pick in 2023 before he fractured the hamate bone in his left hand in the first at-bat of his senior season in high school. He did not play a game after that. Some teams moved on, but the Phils liked what they’d seen enough in previous seasons and summers to select him 27th overall.
“I’m glad I ended up here,” he said before the 2025 season.
Though he missed much development time in 2026, Miller believes he can make the jump to Philadelphia in 2027. It is an opinion shared and vocalized by president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski.
“We think we’ve got a really, really good player,” Dombrowski said earlier this month at his end-of-season news conference. “You see all the young players who jumped into playing this year. Aidan Miller, when he’s healthy, is as good as any.”
With an aging core roster and a huge payroll, the Phillies desperately need to inject some cost-effective, productive youth into their mix. Miller plays two positions where there could be openings in 2027 as third baseman Alec Bohm is likely to move on in free agency and shortstop Trea Turner could be subject to a position change.
Miller’s style of hitting would seem to fit the Phillies well. On a team that lacks overall plate selectivity, he has it. In Arizona, he has walked 18 times and struck out just 10.
“I’m a pretty picky hitter,” he said. “My approach is to try to hit a line drive to center field. I like to work at-bats and hit something hard.”
During his long summer rehabbing his back injury, Miller didn’t pay much attention to what was going on in Philadelphia.
“There was a point when I was hurt that I wanted no part of watching baseball,” he said. “I’d do my rehab, go home and go fishing. I wanted to take my mind off baseball and not pay attention. I wasn’t on the field and I didn’t want to go through it with my mind.”
Now he’s back on the field, smiling and succeeding.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - SEPTEMBER 29: John Schreiber #56 and Austin Wells #28 of the New York Yankees celebrate after defeating the Boston Red Sox in game one of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on September 29, 2026 in the Bronx borough of New York City. (Photo by Al Bello/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Since the abolition of the post-deadline waiver trades, a new trend has arisen around the majors. After the Trade Deadline, if some teams are headed towards missing the playoffs, they will opt to put a player with an expiring contract on waivers, seemingly mainly just to get the last couple months of their contract off the books. The Yankees themselves did that with Harrison Bader in the doomed 2023 season.
This past season, the Yankees ended up being the beneficiary of one of those moves, as they picked up reliever John Schreiber for nothing. Schreiber was having a pretty solid season already, and he put in a good couple months for the 2026 Yankees.
Schreiber is an eight-year major league veteran, who had been playing for the Royals for the last three seasons. Other than arguably his 2022 with the Red Sox, he’s never been an especially dominant reliever, but with a career 120 ERA+, he’s been a pretty good one.
Prior to going on waivers, he had been solid but not spectacular in 2026. His 3.65 ERA with the Royals graded out to an above average 116 ERA+, however there was one glaring issue. Schreiber was walking a good amount of people. In Kansas City, he had issued 22 walks in 49.1 innings. That was a major reason why his FIP ended up so out of whack from his ERA. That’s also why FanGraphs WAR rates him in the negatives for 2026 but he put up a totally respectable reliever WAR number according to Baseball Reference.
However as a team, the Royals weren’t particularly going anywhere. On August 29th, the team opted to put him and the rest of his expiring $3.75 million contract on waivers. (They were definitely out of it at the Trade Deadline too, so why they wouldn’t flip Schreiber for just anything seems short-sighted to me, but I don’t make the big bucks.) Luckily for the Yankees, he ended up making it through to them and they claimed and acquired Schreiber on the 31st.
In addition to generally just being a solid reliever having a fine season, Schreiber also had one big thing going for him: he is very good against right-handed hitters. For his career, he allows a .587 OPS against righties and .439 in 2026 in particular. The Yankees’ bullpen was already pretty solid in general, but that aspect added another dimension.
Adding him so late in the season, the Yankees only used Schreiber in 11 games, but it’s hard to have any complaints with what he did. He allowed just two earned runs in 11 innings and dropped his walk rate as well. We felt compelled to give him an incomplete grade as he wasn’t around for that long, but if you had to pin me down, I’d personally go B+.
As for the future, Schreiber is now a free agent. While bringing him back wouldn’t cost that much exactly, there will probably be plenty of suitors, considering how good he’s been against righties over the years. That being said, if the Yankees wanted to, I wouldn’t be opposed to seeing him get another season working with Matt Blake.
See more of the Yankees Roster Report Card series here.
ST. PETERSBURG, FL - OCTOBER 27: Ben Williamson #15 of the Tampa Bay Rays celebrates with teammates after hitting a walk-off RBI single in the 12th inning during Game Four of the 2026 World Series presented by Capital One between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday, October 27, 2026 in St. Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Julio Aguilar/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Key Dates for the MLB Hot Stove These are the key dates and decision milestones for the upcoming, likely abbreviated 2026 MLB Hot Stove.
Other MLB News
Rays Walk Off Brewers in 12 to Force Game 5 Ben Williamson sent the Milwaukee Brewers back to their hotel, forcing them to wait at least one more night before potentially celebrating their first-ever World Series trophy.
ST PETERSBURG, FLORIDA - OCTOBER 27: Chandler Simpson #14 of the Tampa Bay Rays celebrates after hitting a Single during the twelfth inning against the Milwaukee Brewers in game four of the 2026 World Series at Tropicana Field on October 27, 2026 in St Petersburg, Florida. (Photo by Jamie Squire/Getty Images) | Getty Images
With the season on the line as the Milwaukee Brewers took a 3-2 lead in the top of the 12th inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 4 of the World Series, the home team rallied for two runs in the bottom of the 12th inning and the Rays won the game and avoided the sweep. Milwaukee and Tampa Bay will meet today at 5 p.m. with the Brewers needing one win to earn their first championship in franchise history. Meanwhile the Rays would like to send the series back to Milwaukee with a win.
For baseball fans, a 12-inning World Series game is just what you want — more baseball. For Brewers fans it was probably excruciating to know your team was that close to closing out the series and completing a dominant postseason run. Fans without a rooting interest in the series, just wanted a good competitive series that allowed them to hang on to baseball for as long as possible. With a looking lockout likely coming when the CBA expires in December, it’s hard to say when or in the most dire circumstances, if baseball returns.
The optimists hold out hope a deal can be reached to avoid a lockout altogether. The pessimist says the 2027 season will be at least cut in half if not lost completely as the owners and players reach a stalemate about a potential salary cap and salary floor. With all the uncertainty surrounding the game, fans should enjoy the baseball that is left. If you’re not a fan of the Brewers or Rays, then root for more games. It should be an exciting finish to the season and fans should hope the offseason is held off just a bit longer between the top seeds from the National and American leagues.
Padres News:
Reliever Jeremiah Estrada missed a chunk of the 2026 season with injury. How did that affect his grade from Gaslamp Ball’s Lincoln Zdunich?
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 1: Baltimore Orioles pitcher Josh Walker (61) reacts after pitching in the sixth inning during a game between the Baltimore Orioles and the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 1, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Josh Walker has learned not to take it personally. Well, to be honest, I haven’t actually asked him, but you figure somebody DFA’d seven times in his career—twice by his current team—has developed some thick skin.
He’s also developed his game in this, his fourth season, and it was good news for us, because the unsung lefty was an essentially costless addition to the team, and turned out to be one of its best relievers, with a 2.08 ERA in 30 1/3 innings, 29 strikeouts, a 1.19 WHIP, and his first big-league save. Along the way he put up 18 straight scoreless outings, the longest such streak by an Oriole in a decade.
You may have heard this story, or one like it, before. Walker was taken in the late rounds of the draft (in 2017, by the Mets, out of the University of New Haven), then saw his career delayed by injury/bad luck. First, a car accident left him needing elbow nerve-transposition surgery. Then the pandemic wiped out the 2020 season.
When Walker finally reached the majors, he got hit hard: an 8.10 ERA in fourteen games in 2023 and a 5.11 ERA in ten games in 2024. The Mets DFA’d him, then traded him to Pittsburgh. From there, waivers, waivers, waivers, as Walker made stops with the Pirates, the Blue Jays (a 7.20 ERA in three games in 2025), the Phillies, Baltimore, Atlanta, and Baltimore again. The O’s DFA’d him too, to clear room for Shane Baz, and he cleared waivers in January.
Walker entered 2026 with a 6.59 career ERA, little in the way of expectactions, and his season started like this: a May call-up, an option, another call-up, another option, a doubleheader 27th-man cameo, an on-paper move, and then, around August, a quiet turn into the most reliable arm in the Orioles bullpen. This was around the time he posted an 18-inning scoreless streak.
With Keegan Akin out due to injury, Josh Walker became Craig Albernaz’s most trusted lefty out of the ‘pen. And one of its most valuable, his 0.9 WAR ranking behind only Rico Garcia and Tyler Wells among relievers.
So what turned Walker from discarded over most of his career to indispensable this year? It’s not so much changed stuff: his four-seamer averaged 93.0 mph this year, slightly slower than before, and his slider was much the same as ever.
But the pitch mix was indeed different. As a rookie Walker was close to a two-pitch pitcher: 65% four-seamers and 33% sliders. This year, he threw 38% sliders, 27% sinkers, 25% four-seamers, and about 10% changeups. The changeup, in particular, was new: he didn’t throw the pitch at all in 2024 or 2025, and this season it was his best strikeout pitch, with a 44% whiff rate and a .172 xwOBA (the slider was close behind, at a 32% whiff rate and .195 xwOBA). Walker mostly threw the change mostly against righties, who actually hit him much worse than southpaws.
Improved, too, was Walker’s control. While Walker’s strikeout rate of 23% wasn’t much to write home about, he did avoid hard contact, with the lowest barrel, sweet-spot, and xwOBA rates of his career.
He also got ahead in counts. His first-pitch strike rate was 62.1%, up from 50% as a rookie, and his walk rate fell from 12.5% to 9.5%. It appears that, because Walker was able to land his offspeed stuff, hitters could no longer sit on his four-seamer.
So, is the Walker revival smoke and mirrors, or something to rely on next year? Mostly the former, I’m happy to report. His 3.33 FIP says the ERA is somewhat too flattering. But his 2.70 xERA, which accounts for the quality of contact he allowed, backs up his stinginess, and there is barely a gap between his actual and expected wOBA (.265 and .255), speaking to the weak contact he allowed. That said, we don’t have a huge sample size from him (30 innings), and relievers who thrive on weak contact, as opposed to strikeouts, are more prone to year-to-year swings than pure flamethrowers.
Still, this version of Walker seems convincing. A four-pitch lefty who throws strikes, has a real weapon against righties, and limits hard contact definitely has a role to play in the bullpen. And he’s still on a pre-arbitration salary. After seven DFAs, Josh Walker has earned the right to be taken seriously—and perhaps some prime real estate in next year’s bullpen, too.
