Category: Baseball

The Dodgers and Reds continue their series on Tuesday in Cincinnati, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound.

Tuesday is Yamamoto’s 27th start of 2026, the lone Dodgers starting pitcher to remain active and in the rotation all year. He’s at 172 innings, needing only two innings to surpass his MLB regular season high of 173 2/3 innings set in his 30 starts in 2025. Yamamoto’s 6.62 innings per start is tops in the majors.

Right-hander Rhett Lowder starts for the Reds on Tuesday. He allowed seven runs in 3 1/3 innings to the Dodgers last Wednesday at Dodger Stadium. The winning pitcher that night was Yamamoto, who struck out 10 in seven innings.

Tuesday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Reds
• Ballpark: Great American Ball Park, Cincinnati
• Start time: 3:40 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

The series opener between the White Sox and Guardians will determine the AL Central. If that sounds overdramatic, perhaps you haven’t watched the last two weeks of South Side baseball.

Chicago limps into this game looking to right many wrongs. In their last 10 games, they’ve lost seven and produced a -9 run differential. The bats hit .179 with runners in scoring position, going a measly 14-for-78, and the rotation is out of steam. Starters have averaged 3.57 runs allowed in their last seven games before getting yanked in the middle of the fifth. Coming out of this slow stretch, the South Siders will be playing with a deck stacked against them.

Walking onto Progressive Field hasn’t been easy for this organization: Since 2020, the Sox are 16-28 in Cleveland, and that’s including the three-game series the Guardians took earlier this year. The White Sox haven’t swept the Guardians in a series in the last six years, and the story only gets uglier going back to the late 2010s. Not only does Cleveland have home-field advantage this week, but they just wrapped up a 6-4 record in their last 10 games and are eager to reclaim their spot as the division leader, which they last shared with the Sox on July 21. This match between the hungry Guardians and white-knuckling Sox will be a major tone-setter for the final 13 games of the year.

With a rotation crawling towards the end of the season, Sean Newcomb is once again an opener for the White Sox, against Gavin Williams, who has been all over the place in terms of quality outings this year. Williams has endurance on his side, averaging just short of six innings pitched per game, but Newcomb has been successful as an opener.

Here’s how the Sox line up at the plate:

And here’s how the Guards match up against them:

Don’t miss the first pitch, at 5:40 p.m. CDT on CHSN and ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM.

Happy Monday.

There was a roster move today, Jesús Sánchez was claimed off waivers the the Diamondbacks. Not really surprise that someone picked him up. There is power there, we just didn’t get it to come out.

And some real roster moves:

• Rudy Martin Jr. has been put on the IL with a left hamstring strain.
• Brendan Cellucci LHP has been called up. He has a 3.06 ERA in 46 appearances, mostly with the Bisons. In 53 innings he allowed 44 hits, 26 walks and 59 strikeouts.
• Davis Schneider has been called up. In August, for the Bisons, he hit .250/.421/.607 with 3 home runs, 8 walks and 8 strikeouts. I feel a little better about him coming up considering he was actually hitting the ball some, and not just taking walks.
• And Ricky Tiedemann has been optioned to Buffalo.

And there are some injury notes:

• Trey Yesavage will throw three innings tomorrow (well, hopefully throw three innings) for the Bisons. If all goes well, he may be up soon after that.
• Anthony Santander will play with the Bisons ‘through this week’. We knew he wasn’t likely to be coming up right away. He’s going to have to show he can hit some.

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Tonight’s lineups:

Mets lineup

Francisco Lindor – SS
Juan Soto – LF
Bo Bichette – 3B
Carson Benge – RF
Jared Young – DH
Marcus Semien – 2B
A.J. Ewing – CF
Brett Baty – 1B
Francisco Alvarez – C

SP: Jonah Tong – RHP

Orioles lineup

Dylan Beavers – LF
Pete Alonso – 1B
Gunnar Henderson – SS
Coby Mayo – 3B
Jackson Holliday – 2B
Christian Encarnacion-Strand – DH
Heston Kjerstad – RF
Colton Cowser – CF
Carlos Narvaez – C

SP: Brandon Young – RHP

First pitch: 7:10 PM EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

There are no poop emojis to be found on this meter. There aren’t even any down arrows to be found on this meter. I think that might be a first? It’s a shame it took until [checks notes] September 2026 when the team is already well out of the playoff race to achieve this feat. But scoring double-digit runs four times in the past two weeks and having three contests in which the team hit three or more home runs over that same span will do it. The Mets are fifth in baseball in position player fWAR and tied for third in baseball in wRC+ in this 12-game span, despite yesterday’s shutout loss. Juan Soto, still ramping up slowly from injury, isn’t even at the peak of his powers right now and they’re still doing this. What a weird baseball team.

Player	Last week	This week
Francisco Alvarez, C
Brett Baty, UTIL
Carson Benge, OF
Bo Bichette, 3B
A.J. Ewing, OF
Francisco Lindor, SS
Nick Morabito, OF	—
Christopher Morel, 1B/DH
Cristian Pache, OF
Marcus Semien, 2B
Juan Soto, OF
Luis Torrens, C
Mark Vientos, 1B/3B
Jared Young, 1B/DH

We’ll start with A.J. Ewing, who has probably had the starkest turnaround of anyone on the roster from the last meter to this one. Ewing was mired in a months long slump and he has finally broken out of it to the tune of a fantastic 174 wRC+ in his last 45 plate appearances. He’s already hit two home runs in the month of September after not hitting any at all in the month of August. In the Marlins series, Ewing had two three-hit games, driving in five in those two games alone. Overall, he leads the team in hits with 15. He has driven in nine runs in total, scored eight runs, walked four times, and stolen a base. He has continued to hit the ball decently hard this whole time, and the hits are finally starting to come in bunches for him in the season’s final month.

Meanwhile, Carson Benge has cooled off some as he tries to make his final push for the NL Rookie of the Year title. Though Benge is one of many Mets with double digit hits, he has just a .213 batting average in his last 54 plate appearances with six walks and only two extra-base hits—good for a 79 wRC+. He has scored seven runs, but driven in just three and struck out a whopping 16 times to lead the team. He was right on the cusp of red arrow territory, but he does lead the team in stolen bases with three and continues to make Superman style catches in the outfield.

But the third—perhaps less heralded—rookie on the team Nick Morabito is hitting extremely well, putting up a 121 wRC+ in 22 plate appearances. Morabito was called up when rosters expanded and has comported himself well in the big leagues with his big highlight being a bases-clearing double that gave the Mets some key insurance in the victory in the final game of the Rays series. That was the only one of his five hits that went for extra bases, but he also walked three times and scored three runs.

But despite also only having 22 plate appearances over the past 12 games, one could argue that Brett Baty is the hottest hitter on the team with his 236 wRC+ in that span. In the same game as Morabito’s big RBI extra-base hit, Baty also hit a bases-clearing double in the third that gave the Mets a 6-0 lead at the time. In fact, despite having less than half of the plate appearances as the everyday players, Baty is second on the team in RBIs over this two-week span with ten. That’s because of his seven hits, all but one of them went for extra bases: four doubles and two home runs. Baty has been making contact with the ball; he has struck out just twice in those 22 plate appearances.

Since returning from the injured list, Mark Vientos has also been reduced to a part-time role, but has performed well. He has four hits, including two home runs, and two walks in 16 plate appearances. He has also scored three times and driven in four runs. Jared Young continues to see the lion’s share of the at-bats at first base and he has earned it by continuing to hit. Young put up a 110 wRC+ in 42 plate appearances over the past two weeks, leading the team in runs scored with 12. He also walked five times and drove in three runs. Of his ten hits, two went for extra bases, including the final home run of Saturday’s dinger bonanza against the Yankees.

Speaking of that dinger bonanza, it is no surprise that Francisco Lindor leads the team in RBIs with thirteen. That includes two home runs on Saturday—a grand slam and a solo shot. In fact, all 12 of Lindor’s hits are either singles or home runs. He also leads the team in long balls with six and is second only to Young for the team lead in runs scored with ten. With a 129 wRC+ in his last 59 plate appearances, the Mets’ shortstop is in his usual second half groove.

Nestled right between Ewing’s team-leading 15 hits and Lindor’s 12 hits is Bo Bichette’s 13 hits—the second-highest mark on the team. Four of those 13 hits went for extra bases, including two home runs. Bichette scored eight runs and drove in seven runs. Bichette is also tied with Benge for the team lead in walks with six. All told, Bichette put up a 118 wRC+ in 55 plate appearances as he continues to have a solid second half.

Of the Mets’ big hitters, Juan Soto has ironically put up the worst numbers over the past two weeks with a 90 wRC+ in 54 plate appearances. He hasn’t been quite 100% since coming off the injured list, but he is still Juan Soto, as evidenced by his moonshot that was one of the Mets’ six home runs on Saturday. That home run was one of three home runs for Soto—the only Met besides Lindor to go deep more than twice over the past two weeks. Soto also hit two doubles, making half of his ten total hits extra-base hits. Soto scored nine runs and drove in six runs. He also reached base via the walk six times to match Benge and Bichette’s total, but one of those walks was intentional. Unfortunately Soto leads the team with three double plays grounded into, but he did steal a base, which is a good sign that his calf is feeling good.

Francisco Alvarez bounced back from his poop emoji mark from the last meter with an unremarkable but solid 84 wRC+ in 31 plate appearances. His six hits include four singles and two home runs. He scored three runs and drove in four. Unfortunately, he is also back to striking out a lot. He struck out 12 times against just two walks. Meanwhile, Luis Torrens has stayed hot with five hits and a walk in just 17 plate appearances. Three of those five hits went for extra bases—two doubles and a home run. Torrens drove in a whopping seven runs in just six games and all seven of those RBIs came in two of those games. He drove in four runs in the Mets’ wild victory in the series finale in Miami and then followed that up with a three-RBI performance at Yankee Stadium on Saturday in which he was responsible for one of the Mets’ six home runs.

Christopher Morel had just 11 plate appearances and appeared in only five of the Mets’ 12 games covered by this meter, but he had the game of his life in the insane series finale in Miami in which the Mets and Marlins combined for 39 hits. Morel had three of those hits, including a home run in the third inning and a crucial RBI single in the seventh that helped see the Mets go back in front (ultimately for good, but just barely). Morel had just one other hit in the four other games he played in combined.

Marcus Semien continues to putter along playing mostly every day and putting up okay-but-not-great offensive numbers. In 45 plate appearances, he posted an 87 wRC+. He racked up nine hits—six singles and three doubles—driving in three runs and scoring eight runs. He also walked five times while striking out only three times.

Cristian Pache is batting 1.000 for this meter; he hit a single in his only plate appearance over this two-week span and scored a run. He appeared in four games in total.

1921
The 58-79 White Sox were bad, a seventh-place team in the eight-member American League. But with an 11-8 loss to the Yankees at Comiskey Park, things were about to get a lot worse, as the defeat was the first of 11 straight — ALL coming at home.

The skid slid the White Sox down to 58-90, still comfortably ahead of basement-dwelling Philadelphia but contributing to one of the worst homestands (2-12) in club history — one that ended with four losses in five games against the Athletics, in fact.

The 11-game losing streak remains tied for the seventh-longest in franchise history.

As exemplified from this post-Black Sox fall from grace, the White Sox were about to enter the longest and darkest era for the franchise, mostly godawful losing seasons until 1951.

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1931
A decade later, things weren’t much better in Chicago, as the White Sox started a 10-game losing streak with a 12-8 loss at Fenway Park. Starter Tommy Thomas and reliever Vic Frazier really took it on the chin during a six-run Red Sox seventh inning, as Boston pushed ahead, 8-4. But two-run hits by Luke Appling and John Kerr in the top of the eighth evened things back up. That’s when Lou Garland lost the game for the White Sox, surrendering four runs right back to the Carmines.

The loss dropped the White Sox to 55-85, en route to a 56-97 finish that at the time was the worst record in White Sox history. The South Siders would win just six games in September and went 1-13 to finish the season — beginning on this day.

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1952
In a 17-inning game in Chicago, Sox pitcher Saul Rogovin struck out 14 Red Sox in 15 innings of work. But it was Luis Aloma who got the decision over two innings of relief; in the bottom of the 17th, four two-out singles by Sam Mele, Minnie Miñoso, Sam Dente and Rocky Krsnich delivered the 4-3 win.

It was the first game of a doubleheader; the nightcap was suspended by darkness. This was also the second 17-inning game played against Boston in two years.

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1967
The day after the Sox beat Cleveland, 1-0, in 17 innings, they continued their mastery over them by winning, 4-0, in 10.

It was Cisco Carlos on the mound, going the distance and allowing only five hits.

The Sox won the game when Don Buford hit a grand slam off in the 10th inning of of Orlando Pena, scoring Tommie Agee, Duane Josephson and Joe Horlen. It was the first walk-off grand slam in team history.

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1974
White Sox first baseman Dick Allen called a team meeting to announce he was retiring from baseball. Allen would win the American League home run title, despite missing the final two weeks of the season! Allen was fighting serious injuries to his shoulder and leg from previous seasons, and was frustrated with the effort being put forth by many teammates. However, the way Allen walked out on the Sox left a bad taste in the mouths of many fans.

White Sox GM Roland Hemond later traded Allen’s rights to the Atlanta Braves for catcher Jim Essian. Allen would return and see action with the Phillies and A’s before retiring for good in 1977. 

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1997
Carlton Fisk had his No. 72 retired in a ceremony before the White Sox took on Cleveland. Because he was released unceremoniously in 1993, and also for being denied entry to the locker room during the 1993 ALCS, Fisk asked that owner Jerry Reinsdorf and GM Ron Schueler be absent from the pregame ceremony.

As if things couldn’t get worse, the game was also remembered for manager Terry Bevington using five pitchers in a five-run eighth inning — and going to the mound that inning to call in Keith Foulke to the game — with no one was warming up in the bullpen when he called for the change! Bevington ended up using an MLB-record nine pitchers in the nine-inning game. The Sox lost, 8-3, to fall 7 1⁄2 games behind first-place Cleveland.

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1998
In a five-hour, 12-minute slugfest at Tiger Stadium, the White Sox upended Detroit in 12 innings, 17-16. Chicago jumped to a 5-0 lead after their second bats, were up 12-8 heading into the seventh-inning stretch, and even held on to a 12-10 lead in the bottom of the ninth. But Detroit scored a flurry late, and and RBI double and single tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, 12-12, with the bases full and one out. Bill Simas wriggled out of that jam, and the two clubs traded three-spots in the 10th.

In the 12th, Ray Durham led off with a solo homer and Craig Wilson went back-to-back, making it 17-15, White Sox. Detroit got one back in the bottom of the 12th on a fielder’s choice ground out, but the game ended with a Bobby Higginson (whose two-run homer in the 10th kept the game going at 13-13) strikeout.

The White Sox scored their 17 runs on 19 hits, with three steals and three errors; Detroit had 22 hits for their 16 runs, with two errors. Wilson went 4-for-7 with two homers, four runs and five RBIs and Albert Belle also drove in five on a 5-for-8 day that included three doubles and a runner thrown out at home plate. On the other hand, Robin Ventura went 0-for-6 in the mauling and Frank Thomas just 1-for-5, although the pair combined for five walks.

The 17 runs were the most-ever scored by the White Sox in a game that went to extra innings.

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2017
It was a record-setting afternoon for a couple of White Sox players in the team’s 17-7 blowout of the Tigers at Comerica Park.

White Sox outfielder Avisaíl García went 5-for-5 with seven RBIs and two runs in the game, in addition to a walk. Rookie second baseman Yoán Moncada went 4-for-5 with two walks and five runs, and first baseman José Abreu went 4-for-5 with three runs. 

García became the second White Sox player with five hits and seven RBIs in a game. The other was Carl Reynolds against the Yankees on July 2, 1930 in New York. Moncada, meanwhile, tied Hall-of-Famer Tim Raines’franchise record with his five runs; Raines originally set the record against the Red Sox in Boston on April 18, 1994.

The White Sox pounded out 25 hits in the 2017 game.

The fresh arm express continues to run in September, with Emmet Sheehan optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City ahead of Monday night’s series opener against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park, one day after he pitched six scoreless innings on Sunday in Miami.

Paul Gervase was called up from Triple-A to give the Dodgers an extra arm in the bullpen, after the Dodgers used four relievers Friday, three on Saturday, and four more on Sunday against the Marlins. Monday is the fourth day of a stretch of 10 game days in a row for the Dodgers, their final extended stretch of games this season.

This had nothing to do with Sheehan’s performance, as he allowed only one run in 11 2/3 innings last week after getting called back up from Oklahoma City himself, with 15 strikeouts. But Sheehan is on the outside looking in when it comes to the Dodgers’ postseason rotation, and the team might also get Roki Sasaki at some point this week from a blister on his right middle finger.

Gervase last pitched on Friday for Oklahoma City, striking out four in a four-out save in a scoreless outing to close out a win over Sugar Land. On the season, the 6’10 right-hander had a 4.56 ERA and five saves in 38 games in Triple-A, with 66 strikeouts and 35 walks in 47 1/3 innings.

This is the fifth stint in the majors this season for Gervase, who has a 2.35 ERA in four appearances for the Dodgers, with eight strikeouts and five walks in 7 2/3 innings.

Citing recent record-setting prices for sports franchises, the uncertainty of an upcoming lockout and the monopoly Major League Baseball franchises have on their territories, a minority investor in the Atlanta Braves sent a letter to the teams' board of directors urging it to sell the franchise.

The Monday, Sept. 14 letter from Breach Inlet Capital Management, a boutique investment firm, to Atlanta Braves Holdings' board of directors outlined several reasons why the time would be right for a sale.

Most notably, the firm cited the recent sale of the San Diego Padres for $3.9 billion to Jose E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones, and the pending $4 billion sale of the Los Angeles Angels from Arte Moreno to Stan Kroenke, both of which greatly exceeded those franchises' estimated valuations.

The Braves' value was most recently estimated at $3.35 billion by Forbes, seventh among major league franchises; the Angels were valued at $2.8 billion in those estimates. The club controls a development - the Battery - that's adjacent to Truist Park and has been the envy of other franchises seeking a similar build-out that allows it to control revenues that don't need to be shared with other MLB franchises.

The Braves were spun off from Liberty Media in in 2023 yet John Malone, the chairman of Liberty Media, remains the largest shareholder in the club. Terry McGuirk remains the club's CEO and control person, a role he assumed when Liberty purchased the club in 2007 for an estimated $460 million.

The Braves declined comment on the letter. Malone in 2024 cooled the notion of a Braves sale in an interview with Sportico, saying comments from Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei that did not rule out a franchise sale were misinterpreted.

Breach Inlet Capital's letter to the Braves, signed by founder and portfolio manager Chris Colvin and published by Business Wire, cites its "fiduciary duties obligate it to act in the best interest of shareholders" in urging a sale; according to Fintel, Breach Inlet Capital's investment in the Braves comprises roughly 13.5% of its portfolio, with a value most recently disclosed at $40.4 million.

It suggests the Braves' board and Malone "should capitalize on the current backdrop and not assume valuations for sports teams will keep climbing at these rapid rates into perpetuity," and, citing the player strike of 1994-95 and the impending lockout in December, "should not hope that history does not repeat itself and should instead capitalize on the MLB’s current momentum ahead of a potential extended lockout."

Additionally, Breach Inlet Capital cited changes to the tax code that "disadvantage the Braves relative to privately owned MLB teams" while noting that it views "every MLB team as a monopoly with scarcity value." The Braves' history, their significant footprint in a growing segment of the Sun Belt and the presence of the Battery add significantly to the club's value.

"If (Malone) is unwilling to sell and believes that (the franchise) is worth significantly more than its current trading price," wrote Colvin, "we encourage him to submit a proposal to take the Company private."

Colvin acknowledged that while MLB's media rights are up for bid en masse following the 2028 season, he projects that the eye-opening prices for the Padres and Angels already reflect what's expected to be a leaguewide windfall.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Braves minority investor urges club to sell while MLB club values high

Monday notes…

• EIGHT HUNDRED: The Cubs’ first run tonight will be their 800th of the season. They have scored an 800th run in only 12 seasons since 1901, most recently 2023, when they finished with 819, their eighth most in a season. This century, they also scored 808 in 2016, 814 in 2019, 822 in 2017 and 855 in 2008. Those 855 are the Cubs’ third most ever, behind 998 in 1930 and 982 in 1929. At their current average of 5.33 per game, the Cubs will finish this season with 863. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• MONDAY, MONDAY: The Cubs are 10-6 on Monday, for a winning percentage of .625, their second best on any day of the week after .769 (10-3) on Thursday. They are .583 (14-10) on Saturday and Wednesday, and .565 on Tuesday (13-10). At home, the Cubs are .800 (8-2) on Monday, second to .833 (5-1) on Thursday and .615 (8-5) on Saturday. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• PLAYING THE WINNING TEAMS: The Cubs are 39-33 this season in games against opponents that had winning records going into each game. They are 23-13 at home. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• HOME RUN NOTE: The Cubs lost yesterday despite hitting the game’s only home run. They are 37-10 when they have hit more homers than they have allowed, including 22-9 when they have allowed none. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)

Cubs lineup:

Your Monday night lineup.

Tune in live on @WatchMarquee. pic.twitter.com/XEMsYPtWkh

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) September 14, 2026

Braves lineup:

First of 3️⃣ in Chicago#BravesCountrypic.twitter.com/YDDJF8HlQq

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) September 14, 2026

David Peterson, LHP vs. Reynaldo Lopez, RHP

David Peterson has had some good games for the Cubs and some not so good. Overall, though, since that stinker against the Cardinals in early July: 11 games (10 starts), 3.17 ERA, 1.444 WHIP, 49 strikeouts in 54 innings. That’ll play.

Peterson has not faced the Braves this year. He has done so quite a bit in the past as a former NL East pitcher. Current Braves are batting .250 (35-for-140) against him with five home runs, four of those by Matt Olson. But he has also struck out Olson 11 times in 24 at-bats.

Do good tonight, David.

Reynaldo Lopez missed almost all of last year with shoulder issues, then some knee problems have had him on the IL twice this year.

He has made one start since his most recent return from the IL, Sept. 6 vs. the Rays, and was touched up for seven hits and six runs in 4.2 innings.

His only appearance against the Cubs this year was 1.1 innings of relief May 14 in Atlanta. He allowed one run — a solo homer by Ian Happ.

Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network. It’s also on MLB Network (outside the Cubs and Braves market territories).

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

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Braves site Battery Power. If you do go there to interact with Braves 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.

Pete Alonso, the Mets’ all-time home run leader, made his return to Citi Field on Monday as the Baltimore Orioles came to town for the start of a three-game series. 

“When the schedule came out, it’s one of those days where I knew it was coming, but we’ve been playing a lot of important ball down the stretch,” Alonso said. “I knew it was coming, but it definitely came quicker than expected. I obviously lived a lot of life here.”

A second-round pick of the Mets in 2016 out of the University of Florida, Alonso made his major league debut in 2019, when he cracked the Opening Day roster. He went on to play seven seasons with the Mets, slugging a franchise-record 264 home runs, perhaps none bigger than his game-winning homer against the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2024 Wild Card series, which he called his “moment” with the franchise, also declaring that the 2024 season was his favorite year as a pro.

“It’ll be definitely different, but there are so many good memories here,” Alonso said of his first game back in Queens. “I played with so many good people, talented people. It’s going to be interesting to see what kind of emotions bubble up, because you can never really anticipate things that happen, but the entire time I’ve just been super gracious because there’s some great people over on the other side.”

Alonso re-signed with the Mets following the 2024 season, but after posting a career-low .788 OPS, he returned on just a one-year contract rather than a multi-year extension. Then, after a much better season in 2025, Alonso cashed in as a free agent, inking a five-year, $155 million deal with Baltimore. 

“For me, I’m so stoked to be an Oriole and be a part of this organization,” Alonso said. “I’m happy, family’s happy, teammates are incredible, staff is incredible. I feel very, very fortunate to be here, and I also feel very fortunate to play all the years I have with the Mets. 

“Two things can be true at the same time. I’m very happy and appreciative of my time that I spent as a Met, and I’m beyond grateful and appreciative for the Baltimore Orioles.”

Alonso is starting at first base and hitting second in the Orioles lineup on Monday night, and he’s sure there will be plenty of emotions evolved as he’s reintroduced to a Mets fan base that supported him for quite some time. 

“Honestly, I’m very gracious and appreciative of all the years of support,” Alonso said of Mets fans. “It’s really special to have that. … I’ve been an Oriole now for almost a complete year, and to still have that support, it really means a lot. So, I’ll always much appreciate it.”

It’s no accident that a team with a losing record might reach the postseason for the first time in a full Major League Baseball season.

You have to have a lot of terrible play to pull that off. And, more specifically, a significant number of teams that greatly disappointed in 2026.

Oddly enough, many of them are still in playoff contention with roughly a dozen games remaining. That doesn’t mean they haven’t significantly underperformed, though, not unlike an NFL team canning its coach even if the bottom’s not falling out.

With that, we examine the six most disappointing teams this season – even if one or two still have a decent shot at the playoffs:

6. Toronto Blue Jays

Projected win totals (USA TODAY Sports, betting consensus): 91, 91.5

Record: 75-75

In a sense, the Blue Jays have played their way off this list, back at .500 and just a game out of the final American League wild-card spot. But they were expected to do much more than simply tread water.

Injuries have not helped, of course. They lost starter Cody Ponce for the season during his first start, waited three months for Shane Bieber to return from offseason arm woes and twice lost playoff hero Trey Yesavage to the injured list. Catcher Alejandro Kirk’s 63-week absence due to a left thumb fracture might have been the biggest blow, though somewhat amazingly, Toronto is 35-35 with Kirk in the lineup, 40-40 without him.

Still, Vladimir Guerrero Jr.’s mysterious power outage has been shadowing the team all season long. He finally hit his first homer of the year at Rogers Centre in the club’s 75th home game and still has just eight homers and a .700 OPS, nearly 10% below average.

There’s still time for Vlad and Co. to rewrite the script, particularly with the Blue Jays’ sell-but-upgrade maneuvering at the deadline that landed them starter José Soriano. But the window to prove they’re more than just a frustrating .500 team can’t narrow much more.

5. San Francisco Giants

Projected win totals: 82, 82.5

Record: 62-88

For all the furrowed brows and moderate takes regarding Tony Vitello’s leap from Tennessee to the Giants’ dugout, the season itself should have been relatively nondescript. All Vitello had to do was win between 79 and 81 games and the difference would have been virtually indistinguishable from predecessors Bob Melvin and Gabe Kapler.

Gentle reader, that’s not what happened.

It’s been a disaster by the Bay, most of the fingerprints on this crime scene belonging to club president Buster Posey but Vitello not exactly putting out the fire with his bullpen usage and lineup decisions. All of that’s to be expected from a first-year manager, but a franchise with a $200 million payroll was unwise to entrust such a steep learning curve to a coach conditioned for 70 games to be the entire season, not the 40% mark.

Now, thanks to injuries and trades, the Giants lineup looks largely like a Class AAA bunch, particularly now that Rafael Devers’ season was unfortunately halted due to a core injury as he closed in on a 40-homer campaign. Yet he’s proven he’ll be the lineup cornerstone the Giants envisioned when they dealt for him in June 2025.

Beyond that? Vitello will be back. Posey will be back. Bryce Eldridge, finally given runway at midseason, has an .814 OPS and looks like a potential star at 21. Yet a large portion of the rotation must be reconstructed and turnabouts in health and performance will be needed from veteran Posey signees Willy Adames and Matt Chapman.

The good news is the Giants won’t likely be on this list in 2027, simply because the expectations will be appropriately low.

4. New York Mets

Projected win totals: 87, 88.5

Record: 69-80

It’s easy to forget about these guys, given that it’s been nearly three months since the club mercifully fired manager Carlos Mendoza and some five months since a disastrous start that laid bare club president David Stearns’ questionable offseason.

Yeah, it’s true that he basically tried to replace Pete Alonso with Jorge Polanco, guaranteed Bo Bichette $42 million per year to switch leagues and positions and burned a decent chunk of prospect capital to acquire starter Freddy Peralta.

Nobody quibbled with that last move, because nobody expected Peralta’s hits per nine innings to soar by 51% from year-to-year, his ERA a ghastly 4.99. Peralta has been a little better after a trade to the Rays – posting a 0.97 WHIP in a much-smaller eight-start sample – though not so drastic that the water in Queens or the advanced info they shared with him somehow made him forget how to pitch.

On one hand, the 2026 outcome is a disaster relative to the $301 million invested in this roster. Perhaps the early injuries to Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto doomed them, though the confirmation that Brett Baty and Mark Vientos are below-league average hitters showcased that their organizational depth wasn’t what they thought it was.

Still, though, there were bright spots: Carson Benge is having a Rookie of the Year-caliber season. Fellow rookie A.J. Ewing’s speed and defense are useful in the outfield and on the basepaths. Soto is a machine, posting a 156 adjusted OPS and 25 homers in 98 games despite his calf and back woes. Jared Young, the 30-year-old first baseman, got to play more than 22 games for the first time in his career and flourished.

And Nolan McLean more or less established himself as the ace, or at least a rotation fixture for years to come. Christian Scott’s late-season showing displayed he might be ready to join McLean in that group. The rest?

That’s up to Stearns, who must have a better winter (or spring, given the lockout) than he did the last time around.

3. Baltimore Orioles

Projected win totals: 85, 77.5

Record: 72-78

The thinking was that a young position-player nucleus simply needed to be supported by reliable starting pitching and a veteran slugger with clubhouse presence. Pete Alonso absolutely delivered on the latter. The pitching? Eh, Baltimore’s starter ERA dropped from 4.65, 24th in the majors, to 4.38 (20th) with the additions of Shane Baz and Chris Bassitt and the emergence of right-hander Brandon Young.

Yet that young nucleus continued an unsettling pattern of injury and regression and eventually was busted up after the startling Aug. 3 trade of catcher Adley Rutschman to the division rival Boston Red Sox. The club maintained the sheen of contention for the next month – until Rutschman came back to Baltimore, crushed two homers in his first game as a Camden Yards visitor and jump-started a four-game Red Sox sweep.

So now what?

You wonder if club president Mike Elias has the answers to that or is wondering the same thing himself. Is the club close enough to continue fortifying the core? Or is he eyeing the free-falling production of franchise shortstop Gunnar Henderson – whose weighted runs created plus has dropped from 154 in 2024 to 120 in 2025 to 100 this year – and thinking Henderson will get the Rutschman treatment at the deadline in 2027 or ’28?

Elias certainly seemed bent on getting something for Rutschman while he could. Henderson, a Scott Boras client, isn’t likely to agree to a club-friendly extension like teammates Samuel Basallo, Baz and Kyle Bradish did. And so what seemed like a limitless future when the club won 101 games in 2023 only brings more franchise inflection points.

Sure, the club’s failures this year aren’t too far off what some might have predicted. Yet the lackluster present and cloudy future makes this a decidedly disappointing campaign.

2. Detroit Tigers

Projected win totals: 90, 86.5

Record: 70-79

Much like the Mets, it’s easy to memory-hole how bright 2026 looked. And it’s easy to blame much of it on Tarik Skubal’s six-week absence to remove loose bodies from his left elbow. And to accept at face value that they “had” to deal him when they were just 2½ games out of a wild-card spot at the trade deadline.

But Skubal alone can’t account for the 13-26 record they posted while he was gone, nor the 23-24 mark while he was on the active roster. And all of that came with a Rookie of the Year effort from Kevin McGonigle, who’s banged out 151 hits and a .798 OPS.

It did not help that the large, go-for-it investment in lefty Framber Valdez was a mild disaster. Or that veteran Justin Verlander lasted just one start. And a lineup that had too many holes and punches out way too often (1,295 times, sixth in the AL) sputtered for much of the season.

Now, after World Series aspirations, the Tigers find themselves in the middle. The good news? McGonigle and rookie outfielder Max Clark are good enough to build around. All-Star Riley Greene still has two more seasons before free agency.

And perhaps the fruits of the Skubal deal – starter River Ryan, most notably – bubble up to Detroit in 2027. It still doesn’t seem right, though, that the Chicago White Sox are playing for the division title this week while the win-now Tigers are picking up the pieces.

1. Seattle Mariners

Projected win totals: 92, 90.5

Record: 70-80

The phrase “World Series hangover” gets tossed around pretty easily when it comes to the defending champion – and even the runner-up – in a given year. Yet it’s hard to recall a club’s LCS loss following it around like the Mariners’ seven-game elimination at the hands of Toronto a year ago.

George Springer didn’t just prevent the Mariners from their first World Series berth with a go-ahead three-run seventh-inning homer. The fallout has lingered, from the man who gave up the go-ahead shot (Eduardo Bazardo, who has a 4.04 ERA) to the manager pushing the buttons (Dan Wilson, beloved in Seattle yet seemingly exhausting fans’ patience).

Still, that doesn’t explain the travails of Cal Raleigh, who went from a 60-homer season to a .180 batting average and .660 OPS. Nor the weak production from Josh Naylor, a 2025 hero who re-signed for $92.5 million yet has 10 homers and a league-average OPS. Nor the enduring struggles of several members of the vaunted rotation, most notably Bryce Miller (4.56 FIP) and Bryan Woo, who has a 5.23 ERA in 16 road starts compared to 2.36 in 12 outings at home.

The Mariners have teased and frustrated plenty of times in recent years. Yet an underperformance this significant typically comes with consequences. Whether that’s simply a coaching staff shakeup or managerial or front office adjustments remains to be seen.

Amazingly, the Mariners aren’t totally out of it, entering play Monday, Sept. 14 five games out of the AL West lead with 14 to play. Yet they’d have to go 11-1 simply to get to .500 – an unlikely act from a club that’s been a big letdown all season.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ranking MLB's 6 biggest disappointments of 2026 regular season

The Texas Rangers have announced their minor league award winners for 2026. They are:

Tom Grieve Minor League Player of the Year: Rafe Perich

Nolan Ryan Pitcher of the Year: Dalton Pence

Reliever of the Year: Louis Marinaro

Defender of the Year: Yolfran Castillo

True Ranger Award: Evan Siary

Perich, a 24 year old switch hitting corner infielder who was the Rangers’ 7th round pick out of Lehigh in 2024, had a middling 2025 season, splitting the year between low-A and high-A, ultimately slashing .231/.347/.330 in 398 plate appearances. Starting at Hub City this year, Perich has had a breakout campaign, slashing .315/.401/.586 with 27 homers, 59 walks and 104 Ks in 551 plate appearances between Hub City, where he played 38 games, and Frisco, where he played 78 games. Perich has primarily played third base, and after the Texas League playoffs wrap up, I wouldn’t be surprised if he joins Round Rock for the end of the AAA season.

Pence, a 24 year old lefthanded pitcher who the Rangers took out of the University of North Carolina in the 11th round in 2024, split the 2025 season between low-A and high-A, putting up a 2.73 ERA in 82 innings spanning 18 starts and 13 relief appearances. Returning to Hub City to start 2026, Pence ended up moving to Frisco after five starts, then to Round Rock after 11 appearances with Frisco. In 114.1 innings over 22 starts and two relief appearances, Pence struck out 117 batters, walked 45, and recorded a 2.44 ERA.

Marinaro, a 22 year old lefthander signed as an undrafted free agent last summer out of St. John’s, spent the season at low-A Hickory. He had a 3.08 ERA in 52.2 innings over 36 appearances, with 70 Ks against 22 walks and just one homer. Over his last fifteen appearances, Marinaro allowed just two runs over 26.1 innings, striking out 34 and walking 11.

Castillo, a 19 year old shortstop out of Venezuela who was part of the Rangers’ 2024 J-2 class, signing for $647,500. After a strong debut that year in the Dominican Summer League, Castillo came stateside in 2025, spending most of the year in the Arizona Complex League before moving to low-A Hickory once the complex league season ended. Castillo is described by Baseball America as being the organization’s best defensive infielder. For the season, Castillo is slashing .288/.390/.416 in 542 plate appearances over 119 games with Hickory and one game with Hub City, with 70 walks, 74 Ks and 55 steals in 65 attempts.

The True Ranger award honors a player who represents the core values of the organization on and off the field, per the release from the team. Siary, a 22 year old righthander selected in the 8th round out of Mississippi State in 2025, had four appearances with Hickory after signing last year. This year, he made 22 starts covering 109 innings, with a 3.30 ERA.

The players will be honored and presented with their awards before Saturday’s game against Toronto.

Ahead of Monday's series opener against Pete Alonso and the Baltimore Orioles at Citi Field, the Mets got up close and personal with two of the organization's most promising prospects, infielder Mitch Voit and starting pitcher Jonathan Santucci.

Voit and Santucci were brought to Citi Field after it was announced on Sunday that they were each recipients of the Mets' 2026 Player Development Awards, with Voit securing Player of the Year while Santucci took home Pitcher of the Year.

"It's a credit to our minor league scouts and coaches, because they've been able to hunt for moments, and see how they respond to everything," Andy Green said of the organization's two award winners, who sat amongst the crowd of reporters during his pregame presser. "Once you get to a certain level, they're all talented, but it's about their mentality and perseverance."

Voit echoed Green's praise for the organization.

"Credit to the staff; in every single area of my game, I'm significantly better than I was a year ago when I was here," Voit declared. "It's iron sharpening iron, and it's what has allowed me to be here [accepting the award] today."

Still just 21 years old, Voit is No. 5 overall in SNY's latest ranking of the top 30 Mets prospects.

"In Mitch's case, he can do a lot of impressive things on the baseball field, but what has really impressed me is learning about the type of person he is when things aren't going his way," Green said of the versatile infielder. "I believe in and gravitate toward people who are wired that way because those types of people help you win baseball games at the big league level."

Voit has slashed .347/.430/.517 with two home runs and 18 RBI since being promoted from High-A Brooklyn to Double-A Binghamton in late July, and has been spending the lion's share of his games playing shortstop.

He spoke to the media in the news conference room just across from the big-league clubhouse with a big smile.

"We were with him during spring training, and he gave these incredible speeches. He really has the ability to inspire," Voit said of Green, who was solely the Senior Vice President of Baseball Development before taking on the Mets' interim manager role in late June. "Coming from him, it's an incredible honor. He knows how hard we work, and we'll continue working so one day we can be here."

Meanwhile, Santucci has been carving up hitters at Triple-A Syracuse as of late. The Mets' top pitching prospect in SNY's aforementioned top 30 rankings, the southpaw has recorded 37 strikeouts and completed 29 innings in seven starts at the highest level of minor-league baseball since he was promoted on July 28.

"Santucci has been outright dominant in his last three outings," Green lauded. "The stuff is real."

Santucci himself has been inspired by fellow left-handed starter Zac Thornton. This season, the 24-year-old rookie has emerged from the Mets farm system and has already established himself as an effective member of the team's starting rotation.

"It's awesome to see him and all of his success," Santucci beamed. "Being with him in [High-A] Brooklyn last year and [Double-A] Binghamton to start this year, I love the way he attacks hitters... he goes right at them and good things happen when you do that, which has shown when he's been on the mound [with the Mets] given what he's done so far."

Of course, Green refused to let the young guns have their moment in the sun without reminding them that the hardest part of their prospect development - the potential transition and adjustment to the big-league level - is still to come.

"There's still more of the mountain to climb before the opportunity at the highest level belongs to them," Green concluded.

"I'm excited to see where their journey will take them."

It was a nail biter, but the San Diego Padres came away from it with a seven-game win streak and back-to-back sweeps for the third time this season. It was a great game to cap off the sweep. Ethan Salas finally notched his first big-league hit with a triple in Oracle Park, Fernando Tatis Jr. went 3-for-4 with two RBI and Manny Machado launched his 27th home run of the season.

The Friars will now turn to the Colorado Rockies to round out their penultimate road trip of the 2026 season. It’s a four-game set in the hitter-friendly environs of Coors Field. With the way the Padres have been swinging their bats lately (37 runs in their last six games; 6.2 runs per game), they should have no problem keeping the good vibes rolling.

Taking the mound

Tomoyuki Sugano (COL) v. Casey Mize (SD)

Sugano has been surprisingly good in the hitter-friendly confines of Coors Field. That said, he’s still pitched to a 5.30 ERA. But that number goes down to 4.96 at home compared to 5.64 away. It’s an interesting split to have when Colorado is known for being a hitter’s dream.

The righty has been particularly awful recently. In his last seven starts, Sugano has pitched to a 7.71 ERA across 35 innings pitched. In his last three starts, he’s surrendered a whopping 14 runs (16.0 IP). If San Diego’s recently potent lineup can take advantage of that, they would be well on their way to their eighth straight win.

Since joining the Padres, it’s no secret that Mize has struggled. He’s posted a dismal 6.34 ERA in his first seven games. Much of that is believed to be due to a groin injury that Mize has been pitching through. It was reported earlier this week that that injury was the reason many scouts decided against Mize, lowering his trade stock.

But Mize is coming off of a pretty decent start. He hurled five innings of one-run ball against the Washington Nationals on Tuesday. He entered the sixth inning and allowed two to reach base before manager Craig Stammen pulled him for Randy Vásquez. Vásquez promptly gave up a two-run double, allowing both of Mize’s runs to score. If not for that, it would have been viewed as a gem.

Batter up!

The ball was flying out of the stadium in San Francisco. The Padres’ lineup went a blistering 34-for-113 in the series with 11 walks. Of that group, none has been hotter than Jackson Merrill. The center fielder has been on an insane tear lately, hitting .429/.433/.929 with a 1.362 OPS.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., 2B
2. Dustin Harris, RF
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Luis Campusano, C
5. Jackson Merrill, CF
6. Austin Hays, DH
7. Xander Bogaerts, SS
8. Jake Cronenworth, 1B
9. Samad Taylor, LF

It seems likely that Ty France could return this series from the paternity list, though the Padres haven’t announced if that will be for the series opener. It very well could be, with France slotting back into the fourth spot in the order. If it does, it would likely bump Campusano down to the sixth spot.

Relief corps

Nick Pivetta worked a solid four innings, giving up two runs. After that, it got shaky. Kyle Hart pitched a two-run fifth inning before David Morgan struggled to get out of the sixth. Wandy Peralta finished the sixth and pitched a perfect seventh inning. Randy Vásquez endured a shaky eighth inning before Yuki Matsui slammed the door in the ninth.

The Friars got exactly what they needed: rest for their high-leverage relievers. The group had been taxed after pitching in Games 1 and 2. That will leave them available for the series opener in Colorado. Griffin Canning, Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon and Bradgley Rodriguez will be the freshest arms for San Diego, with Canning first out of the ‘pen if Mize doesn’t make it through at least five innings.

I spend a lot of my spare energy trying to defend Stephen Vogt in my mind, but I was at a loss after the Guardians’ loss on Saturday to the Twins.

Ok, so, the Guardians decided prior to the game that they wanted to get through three innings with Daniel Espino and Franco Aleman. Aleman has been the worst reliever on the roster and just got demoted today. The point of an opening reliever is to make sure a good reliever gets a chance to pitch meaningful innings, not to make sure your worst reliever faces the bottom of the order, but ok, I get it. Aleman came in to face #8, #9 and #1. If he gets into trouble, you have Cantillo hot and get Aleman out right away.

…Except Cantillo was throwing early in the pen and Aleman just. Kept. Pitching.

Started the inning by getting a pop-out, great. But, then he allowed a homer to debuting rookie Emmanuel Rodriguez. It turns out a 95 mph fastball down the heart of the plate was a poor decision.

Luke Keaschell then followed with a 5-pitch at-bat ending in an 80 mph line drive that just fell in front of Angel Martinez. I think this is where Vogt and I diverged. Surrendering an 111 mph homer and then a weak contact single is a nightmare to a rookie pitcher like Aleman who has shown some signs of not being able to maintain composure. Maybe Cantillo was not quite ready yet, but it sure seemed like this was the moment to go and get him.

Instead, Aleman throws a wild pitch… immediately… and then surrenders a 60 mph bloop single to Brooks Lee. Now, Vogt HAS to get Aleman out. From the wild pitch to the SECOND bad-BABIP event, it’s time. Yet, Vogt trusted Aleman getting weak contact and left him in to face Kody Clemens who crushes RHP. Clemens got an 83 mph line drives single in front of Kwan to score another run. Another weak contact single. Ok, surely, this is enough. Get Cantillo in here.

Folks, Stephen Vogt left Aleman in for FOUR MORE BATTERS. I just cannot for the life of me figure out why. Yes, he struck out Josh Bell which seems to have fooled Vogt into thinking he had righted the ship. Yes, his pitch count was still low. Yes, he did not surrender a hit over 93 mph after the Rodriguez homer. It still seems unconscionable to leave Aleman in after this run of events and allow him to HIT two Twins batters before finally getting Cantillo in to end the inning. By then, the damage was done and the Twins had scored the four runs they needed to win the game.

In order for the Guardians to make the playoffs and have a chance in those playoffs, Vogt cannot afford any more of these errors. He has to adjust to the game unfolding in front of him and not allow numbers to cloud his feel for the ability of his pitchers to handle a situation, or let his ideal plan get in the way of adjusting to new circumstances.

I think, as a whole, Vogt makes great pitching decisions as far as getting guys in and out of games. I know opener games are tricky. But, I hope what happened with Aleman on Saturday was a one-time mistake and that it will not be the one game the Guardians needed to make the postseason because I still can’t quite figure out how Cleveland’s manager was the last to realize that Aleman had to be removed.