Category: Baseball

The Tigers went to Minnesota to open a three-game series with their playoff hopes hanging by a thread. They did nothing to assuage their fans’ fears on Monday night, dropping said series opener by a 11-1 score.

Starting for the Tigers was Jackson Jobe, making his fifth start this year after recovering from Tommy John surgery. He’s struggled with walks: his past two starts have seen him walk three batters in sub-five-inning outings, throwing 86 pitches in each. His stuff has looked good so far, though.

Taj Bradley started for the Twins, and he’s been a solid part of their rotation this year; he started his career with a few years in Tampa, and they traded him to Minnesota midway through the 2025 season. His walk rate has really crept up this year to something you shouldn’t see in a starter: it was 3.8 per 9 innings coming into today. That wasn’t a problem tonight, though.

Minnesota got on the board in the bottom of the first: a leadoff double by Luke Keaschall was followed by a productive groundout and a sacrifice fly by Old Friend™ Kody Clemens. Did you know Clemens had over 20 home runs this year? I sure didn’t.

The Twins and Tigers traded nice 5-6-3 double plays in consecutive innings. You don’t see that too often.

Clemens wasn’t done, though: he mashed a high curveball into the right-field seats for his twenty-third home run of the year to lead off the bottom of the fourth, and the Twins were ahead 2-0. Kevin McGonigle had a rough inning in the field, too: a ground ball slipped under his glove, and on a throw in from the outfield which would’ve nabbed a runner at second base, he just straight-up dropped it. But a routine fly ball to left field got the Tigers out of the inning without further damage.

Keaschall led off the fifth by reaching base on an error by Hao-Yu Lee at third base, and he stole second. He drew a pickoff attempt by Jobe (heh) which plunked him, so let’s just say that the defence wasn’t great overall. Clemens walked at the end of a twelve-pitch battle, and Ryan Jeffers followed that with a three-run home run to make it a 5-0 game.

The Tigers got on the board against Bradley with a leadoff no-doubter home run by Lee, going 439 feet into the bullpen to make it a 5-1 game.

Gleyber Torres followed with a sharply-struck single and Colt Keith walked, and you had to wonder, hey, are the Tigers getting something going here? Well, McGonigle flew out to the wall in right field, advancing Torres to third, but alas, Dillon Dingler then hit into a double play and the inning was over. The above clip is, truly, the Tigers’ only highlight of the game.

Jobe’s night was done after five innings, and his final line was 5 IP, 6 H, 5 R (4 ER), 2 BB, 4 K. So, the control was a little better and the stuff looked decent, but those results just weren’t there. The Twins came into tonight’s game tied for the most runs scored in the American League, so they aren’t exactly pushovers.

Yilber Díaz followed, and while he has a lively arm, he apparently has some trouble controlling where that ball might just end up. He walked the leadoff batter, and after nicely fielding a popup, he walked the next two batters to load the bases with one out. Brooks Lee followed and he cleared said bases with a single; he got thrown out trying to stretch it into a double, but as the old saying goes, “That’s like closing the barn door after all the horses have run out.”

Meanwhile, Bradley hummed right along into the seventh, and put the maraschino cherry on top of the sundae by striking out Lee on his final pitch of the night; if you round up, it was a 100 mph four-seam fastball and moving all over the place. Tip your cap.

Díaz carried on into the eighth and served up a solo home run to lead off the inning, making it a 9-1 game. But then he got three straight flyouts, so, hooray, I guess?

That extra run allowed Zach McKinstry to take the mound, and John Peck made his Major League debut as a defensive replacement at third base amongst a flurry of defensive changes. McKinstry gave up some runs, of course, but at that point pretty much nobody cared.

Final score: Twins a lot, Tigers not enough

Numbers and Notes

• As mentioned, Kody Clemens has over twenty home runs. But did you also know he leads the American League with six triples? I sure didn’t know that, either.
• It’s been a while since Spencer Torkelson’s last home run. It was in that Baltimore game near the end of July that we shan’t discuss further.
• On this day in 1886, an earthquake estimated to be about 7.0 on the Richter scale hit Charleston, South Carolina. If you thought to yourself just now, “I don’t think South Carolina is on any major fault lines,” you’re right: but it’s close to a minor fault line in the middle of the North American Plate, and those cracks can definitely produce earthquakes.

Tonight’s game at Fenway Park was capital-B Baseball. Yesterday the Red Sox lost 16-1 to the Yankees in ways that were humiliating in line wit what losing to the Yankees naturally implies, especially around Labor Day. Just over a day later, they won as good a regular season game as you’ll ever seen. It was a 9-8 extra innings walk-off after several comebacks against the Mariners generally but specifically Randy Arozarena, who had a Randy Arozarena Game, and overtook all of Boston’s leads but the last one. The last one came on a Trevor Story single in the bottom of the 10th to end it. Before that, they played the hits: Mickey Gasper went deep again, because of course. Jarren Duran did too, because why not? Payton Tolle hugged a dude!

And yet all these feats were repeatedly and rudely refuted by the M’s, not just Randy but Cal Raleigh, whose sleeves are too short and seemed to have put it out of reach at 8-5 in the 7th:

But no. The Sox would and could not be denied. Story didn’t just have the hit to end it, he had the critical slap in the 8th to bring it within a run. After Aroldis did his thing in the top of the ninth (scare the crap out of us while being objectively impressive but [redacted]) Roman Anthony came out and hit a leadoff triple and scored on a sac to left to tie it. Once the Sox dispatched the top of the 10th and came back up, they moved the fake runner to 3d and the M’s walked ‘em loaded and went to a 3-1 count before this happened:

“Nine-eight in 10.” That’s great stuff, Obie. I can’t lie.

Mariners 8, Red Sox 9

Staying home when you feel sick: Randy Arozarena, +0.49 WPA
Going into the office and infecting your co-workers: George Kirby, -0.32 WPA

Game Thread Comment(s) of the Day

Manny Gonzalez worked four innings in 90-degree heat and humidity Monday night before his vision went blurry behind the plate.

The home plate umpire left the Padres-Reds series opener Aug. 31 at Great American Ball Park with heat exhaustion, MLB umpire supervisor Randy Marsh said. The game stopped for 14 minutes and finished with a three-man crew. MLB said Gonzalez suffered heat illness and was receiving care.

It was 90 degrees with 61% humidity at first pitch in Cincinnati.

As the Reds took the field for the top of the fifth, Gonzalez was in trouble. Third-base umpire Tom Hanahan got to him first. Reds head trainer Sean McQueeney followed, then medical staff from both clubs ran out. Gonzalez sat on the grass while they worked on him.

He walked off with the Reds' assistant trainer Tomas Vera, down to the medical area under the ballpark. He was also dehydrated and his blood pressure was up, according to reports.

Most of the delay was due to equipment change. D.J. Reyburn had been working first base. To call balls and strikes he had to put on the gear for working behind the plate, including his chest protector, mask and metal-toed shoes.

Hall of Famer Barry Larkin was calling the game on Reds' television and recalled an awful moment from his playing days.

On April 1, 1996, Opening Day at Cincinnati's Riverfront Stadium, the Reds and Expos were seven pitches in when home-plate umpire John McSherry called time. He said something to Reds catcher Eddie Tausbensee and started for the tunnel. He signaled for the second-base umpire to take his spot, and then collapsed, face down on the warning track. He was 51, and he was pronounced dead at University Hospital of a heart attack.

Larkin was 31 and playing shortstop.

"Scary stuff. Very hot and humid today," he said Monday night during the broadcast of teh Reds' game vs. the San Diego Padres.

Gonzalez left on his own feet and the game resumed.

He is 46 and in his 14th season on the MLB umpiring staff. He became the first full-time big league umpire from Venezuela when he was promoted in 2013 and has worked five postseason series and the 2017 All-Star Game.

"It just brings back some awful memories for me, when I was on the field and John McSherry was behind home plate," Larkin said on the broadcast.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Umpire Manny Gonzalez leaves Reds vs. Padres game with 'heat illness'

The Athletics’ losing streak hit four games on Monday night. The team dropped their series opener in Texas against the Rangers 8-1. The starting pitching wasn’t great, the bats were silent against a generational talent, and that all adds up to another loss. The team is now 53-85 going into September. Pain.

Rangers jump on Jump

Lefty Gage Jump got the ball tonight, the 19th of the season for the rookie. The left-hander had an easy 1-2-3 bottom of the first but that was the highlight from his evening.

Texas would score in each of the next four innings, totaling seven runs. Jump clearly did not have his best stuff in this one and it became more evident the longer the game went. He’d ultimately make it to the fifth but was unable to finish that inning, departing with runners on the bases.

• Gage Jump: 4 1/3 IP, 6 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 2 K, 91 pitches

Not a great night for Jump. Not a lot to say but to try and learn from it and move on. He’s now sporting a 5.15 ERA in his rookie season and a personal goal of his should be to get that number below 5. He’s lined up to take on the Mariners in Seattle this coming weekend.

Bats silent against deGrom

On the other side of the ball, the A’s offense was listless against Texas’ future Hall of Famer Jacob deGrom. Right fielder Lawrence Butler collected a leadoff single in the second but that was literally the entirety of the Athletics’ offense through the first seven innings. deGrom showed why he’s ticketed for Cooperstown when he hangs his cleats up. A vintage performance and you can’t do anything but tip your cap to him.

The final frames

Righty Chris Roycroft came on for Jump and finished the fifth, then proceeded to pitch the sixth and seventh as well before Jose Suarez pitched the eighth and gave up that eighth run. deGrom departed after his seven strong frames and the Texas bullpen did their job. The A’s managed to push across a run in the top of the ninth to break up the shutout thanks to a pair of hits and an Darell Heraniz sac fly, but that was it for the A’s.

Not a good night in any facet. Jump did not look like he had his best stuff and got knocked around again. The offense managed one hit for the first eight innings before pushing across a meaningless run in the ninth. That’s not going to cut it against a team that’s in playoff contention and has more motivation to win. September can not come soon enough.

The series continues tomorrow night, same time same place. For the A’s, it’s still technically up in the air. The team doesn’t have a scheduled starter and it would be J.T. Ginn’s turn up in the rotation. He’s already far exceeded his career high in innings pitched though and the team is skipping him this time around:

J.T. Ginn will not make his scheduled start tomorrow. A’s want to get him a couple of extra days of rest, so he’ll likely pitch in Seattle. Tomorrow’s starter still TBD as of now.

— Martín Gallegos (@MartinJGallegos) August 31, 2026

No word yet on who will take his spot.

The Rangers on the other hand know exactly who is getting the start in the middle game of the series. That’ll be lefty MacKenzie Gore, a high-upside southpaw who has had his ups and downs in his first year pitching in Texas. This’ll be his fourth start of the year against the A’s; he’s 1-1 and has allowed eight runs in 15 1/3 frames.

The Mets scratched out a 3-2 win over the AL-leading Tampa Bay Rays in their series opener on Monday night.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Making the most out of his opportunity with New York this season, Robert Stock put together the best start of his career against the Rays, recording his first major league win since 2019 and his first win ever as a starting pitcher.

The 36-year-old, able to flip the switch after a terrible start against the Milwaukee Brewers at Citi Field in which he allowed seven earned runs on 10 hits in four innings his last time out, was at the top of his game and managed to shut out the team with the best record in the AL for 5.1 innings.

-- As if that wasn’t impressive enough, it was also the first time Stock has thrown a pitch in the sixth inning as a starter. Of course, the right-hander has only made nine starts in his career (six of them coming this year), but if it wasn’t for interim manager Andy Green taking him out after just 72 pitches (50 strikes), Stock could’ve been out there even longer.

-- The excellent outing by the right-hander also came in the midst of a low-scoring affair with New York clinging to a 1-0 lead. Stock was put to the test in the fifth inning when a fly ball single and a ball deflected off of Bo Bichette’s glove at third put the first two batters on. Stock’s unlucky streak in the inning continued when Francisco Lindor, who made a nice play to end the third inning, couldn’t come up with an easy ground ball tailor made for a double play which loaded the bases with nobody out. 

-- But Stock didn’t flinch at all and kept going, getting a pop out and a strikeout for the first two outs of the frame. With a chance for the right-hander to exit the inning unharmed, Jonathan Aranda lined a ball to left field that had trouble written all over it, but the former Ray Christopher Morel, not known for his glove, made a beautiful leaping grab to end the inning and save three runs. Morel made another great play in the sixth with an outfield assist at second base.

-- For good measure, Stock went back out for the sixth and struck out home-run hitter Junior Caminero as the icing on the cake of a well-deserved outing which lowered his season ERA to 5.88. 

-- Offensively, the Mets didn’t have much luck in the beginning against Rays starter Ian Seymour who struck out seven batters his first time through the lineup. New York was able to put runners on first and third with nobody out in the fourth thanks to a leadoff double by Bichette and a single by Carson Benge and eventually pushed across a run on Mark Vientos’ double play. 

-- That was it for the Mets until the seventh inning when Vientos, in his first game back from the IL, led off with a solo home run off Seymour to double the team’s lead. The home run was Vientos’ 12th of the year and came after he hit three in his final rehab game for Triple-A.

A single later in the inning by Morel chased Seymour out of the game and brought in Casey Legumina who Marcus Semien greeted with a pop fly single that landed in no-man’s land. Francisco Alvarez came through with an RBI single two batters later which gave New York a 3-0 lead. 

-- Daniel Duarte gave both of those runs back in the eighth with his third straight appearance in which he’s been scored upon after nine straight scoreless appearances and a superb showing as the eighth inning guy.

-- Kodai Senga then came in for the save in the ninth of a one-run game and shut the door for Stock and the Mets, earning his fifth save in five tries.

-- Every single starter in the lineup had at least one hit, except for Lindor who went 0-for-4 from the leadoff spot. A.J. Ewing had two hits.

Game MVP: Robert Stock

The veteran journeyman recorded his first win in seven years.

He's here, he's there, he's everywhere!

Francisco Lindor makes the play! pic.twitter.com/QIUt8JTM7I

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 31, 2026

The Mets score a run as Mark Vientos grounds into a double play pic.twitter.com/uEXE5BZrii

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 31, 2026

Christopher Morel makes the leaping catch to get the Mets out of trouble in the 5th! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/5qxbaGQF7P

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 31, 2026

Robert Stock caps off 5.1 scoreless innings by striking out Junior Caminero! pic.twitter.com/BD7F59vD0q

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 1, 2026

Christopher Morel throws out Chandler Simpson at second! pic.twitter.com/fVGjZN5D6I

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 1, 2026

WELCOME BACK, MARK VIENTOS!

He returns to the lineup with a home run! pic.twitter.com/2ix2OKDjLV

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 1, 2026

Francisco Alvarez goes the other way to make it 3-0 Mets! pic.twitter.com/BOwVhfAUtW

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 1, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Rays continue their three-game series on Tuesday night with first pitch scheduled for 6:40 p.m. on SNY.

LHP Sean Manaea (4-6, 4.55 ERA) takes the mound for New York and will be opposed by former Met RHP Freddy Peralta (6-11, 5.11 ERA).

Rafael Devers belted his 30th home run of the season on Monday, Aug. 31 as the San Francisco Giants went on to defeat the Atlanta Braves, 7-3, at Truist Park just outside downtown Atlanta.

Devers hit a solo home run in the 1st inning, setting the tone for his Giants. He plastered the 87-mph cutting pitch from the Braves' Bryce Elder, sending it 403 feet to right field.

Both teams went back and forth with Atlanta taking a 3-2 lead through five innings before San Francisco notched four runs in the top of the sixth, including an Osleivis Basabe home run, to take a commanding 6-3 lead. Jonah Cox added a solo homer to extend the lead and seal the deal in the ninth.

The Giants record is 57-81 after their victory against the Braves.

Rafael Devers hits milestone in MLB career

It was the fifth time in Devers' 10-year MLB career that he has hit at least 30 home runs in a season, though the year marks the first time in his career with back-to-back seasons of 30 home runs or more.

Devers' career-high for home runs in a seasons is 38 in 2021 as a member of the Boston Red Sox.

Devers has now hit a 50 home runs in a San Francisco uniform during his time with the Giants.

Devers is batting .251 with splits of .328/.485/.814 in the 2026 season. He's added 131 hits and 78 RBIs.

The Giants have 24 games remaining on the schedule.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Rafael Devers notches fifth season with 30 home runs in Giants' win

On the eve of the final month of their 2026 season, the Mets got the best start of Robert Stock’s career in their series opener against the Rays tonight in St. Petersburg. Having entered the game with a 7.40 ERA in five major league starts this season, Stock cut his ERA by well over a run by throwing five-and-one-third scoreless innings against the American League East-leading Rays.

Stock struck out four, didn’t walk anyone, and threw 72 pitches, 50 of which were strikes. He gave up five hits along the way, but the most impressive part of his outing was the fact that he got out of quite a jam in the bottom of the fifth inning. After giving up a leadoff single to Cedric Mullins, he gave up a smoked infield single to Jonny DeLuca, who hit a line drive that tipped off the end of Bo Bichette’s glove at third base and ricocheted to Francisco Lindor—who unfortunately couldn’t turn it into an out by air or via a throw to first base—at short.

That play was no fault of Lindor’s, but the next one was. Richie Palacios hit a chopper to the vicinity of second base, where Lindor was in perfect position to turn a double play. Instead, he botched the play and saw the ball bounce off his glove. Officially, it was ruled a hit, but even though you can’t ever assume a double play in official scoring, Lindor certainly should’ve been charged with an error.

That left the bases loaded, and that set things up for Stock to really shine. He induced a foul pop out and struck out the formidable Yandy Díaz for the first two outs of the frame. And he escaped the jam with an unexpected defensive gem by Christopher Morel, a bat-first player who managed to get back and reach a well-hit line drive that looked destined to go over his head, in left field.

As for the Mets’ scoring, Mark Vientos got them on the board when he grounded into a double play with nobody out and runners on the corners in the top of the fourth. Vientos plated the Mets’ second run of the night in much more convincing fashion when he drilled a home run to left-center field in the top of the seventh. And later in that inning, Francisco Alvarez brought home the Mets’ third run of the night with a single that plated Cristian Pache, who had entered the game as a pinch runner for Morel earlier in the inning.

And speaking of Morel and his unexpected defense, he notched an outfield assist to end the bottom of the sixth inning with Nate Lavender on the mound in relief of Stock. Chandler Simpson tried to stretch a single into a double, but Morel threw him out at second by a wide margin.

With a 3-0 lead heading into the bottom of the eighth thanks to scoreless appearances by the aforementioned Lavender and Dedniel Núñez, the Mets’ bullpen bent but didn’t break. Daniel Duarte, who’s been excellent in his time in the big leagues this year, gave up two runs on three hits. He recorded just two outs and had runners on second and third before giving way to Chris Devenski, who thankfully got a ground ball back to himself that he managed to corral and turn into an inning-ending and run-saving out.

After old friend Steven Matz put up a zero in the top of the ninth, the Mets handed their one-run lead over to Kodai Senga. He issued a leadoff walk, but after getting a ground out and a fly out, he struck out Yandy Díaz looking to end the game and earn the save—preserving a win for Stock, his first since 2019.

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Win Probability Added

WPA to follow

The Yankees spent the previous week engaged in high-visibility home series against two of their most hated rivals: the Astros and Red Sox. They ultimately came out ahead in the aggregate thanks to grabbing three of four from Boston. And did they ever enjoy Sunday afternoon’s 16-1 drubbing. A happy flight across the country brought them to sunny Orange County, where they will engage in a decidedly less intense three-game set with the Angels.

The Perry Minasian Era in Anaheim ended with a decisive thud in June, when the Halos let go of their general manager of the past seven seasons as they trudged through another lost campaign. The Angels sit in the basement of the AL West once again, entering this series with a 52-85 record. The equally moribund Athletics have occasionally slipped past them in the race to the bottom every so often, but an active seven-game losing streak rectified that real fast. They remain the worst kind of bad team: a bad team that isn’t even fun to watch. Not to mention the fact that Mike Trout, All-Star that he was this season, is in year four of an extended decline from the ranks of the league’s elite players.

With all that said, tonight’s pitching matchup promises plenty of talent. Elmer Rodríguez, just a few weeks removed from his 23rd birthday, will make a second start in his latest big-league cameo. It’s easy to forget that this will only be the righty’s sixth start up in the Show, considering that MLB debut in Arlington came all the way back in April. All the while, he’s continued to pitch well in International League play, earning these additional opportunities when mainline guys like Max Fried have hit the shelf. Last time out against Houston, Rodríguez earned his first MLB quality start—though the offensive explosion which would have earned him his first MLB win came an inning later than it needed to. At least it happened at all. He gets another shot at it tonight.

Rodríguez’s opponent on the mound is a young man who has quietly pieced together a great rookie season: 22-year-old Walbert Ureña. Ureña made the Angels’ pitching staff out of spring training as a reliever, and pitched in their season opener before being optioned back to the minors. He came back in mid-April and quickly earned a spot in the rotation which he isn’t due to relinquish anytime soon. With September on the horizon, Ureña boasts a 2.94 ERA; and the peripheral stats back it up. Sure, he throws hard, but his changeup has been the X-factor: a dead fish-type offering which misses bats and avoids the barrel on contact. Batters have posted a meager .156 batting average and .251 slugging percentage against it.

In other words, this ain’t your average late-season battle between two young hurlers who were virtually unknown outside of prospect circles before 2026. It’ll likely be one worth staying up late on the East Coast for. Join us! Let’s have some fun.

Ureña will face a lineup that begins with a lefty stack; Ben Rice, Cody Bellinger, and Luis Garcia Jr. will make up the top. Amed Rosario hits cleanup ahead of a second trio of lefties: Trent Grisham, Jazz Chisholm Jr., and Spencer Jones. José Caballero takes shortstop and Austin Wells does the catching.

How to watch

Location: Angel Stadium — Anaheim, CA

First pitch: 9:38 pm ET

TV: YES, ABTV

Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280; KLAA 830, Angels ES

Streaming: MLB.tv

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

From Coast to Coast. #RepBXpic.twitter.com/c5DsbyrQm5

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) August 31, 2026

New series starts tonight 🌃

📺: @WatchABTV, FOX 11 PLUS (KCOP)
📻: @AngelsRadioKLAA, AM830 App [Spanish]#RepTheHalo x @FBMSupplypic.twitter.com/LmMW5RXS6C

— Los Angeles Angels (@Angels) September 1, 2026

Roster moves

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

• Reinstated from the 10-day injured list: INF Ketel Marte (left knee inflammation)
• Optioned to Triple-A Reno: INF Jose Fernandez

Well, there is is. Not exactly the best-kept secret as far as roster moves go, but after the initial drama, followed by the resulting ripple of shock-waves through the organization, media and fandom, here we are. Marte is back. He spoke to the media before the game. I don’t have much to say in regard to his comments. They basically sound like what I would want to hear: “I’m going to stand in front of my teammates like a man. I don’t want any of my teammates to go through what I went through that morning… I’m going to stand up in front of them, ask for forgiveness. We’re human, we all commit mistakes.” But actions speak louder than words.

Some folk (on Twitter, natch) are Shocked and Appalled™ that Marte didn’t have anything to say to fans. I’m entirely unbothered by that. He didn’t “wrong” me, so I do not feel he needs to apologize. Torey Lovullo and his team-mates? Absolutely. But the amount of impact Marte’s actions had on me, personally? You would need an electron microscope to spot that. I was more bothered this weekend by putting together an elliptical machine, which took “Some assembly required” to previously unknown heights. If the company would care to offer an apology for that, my DMs are open. But Marte? Nah. We’re good.

It will, however, be very interesting to see what kind of reaction he gets from the crowd, when he comes to the plate in the first or second inning tonight. I’ve a feeling it’ll be a mix: if I had to make a prediction, probably equal amounts of cheers and boos, but a majority of polite applause and/or indifference. It’s going to be difficult to draw much conclusion, especially as I’ve a feeling there will be a lot of Phillies fans at Chase tonight, whose opinions on the topic are not exactly relevant. [Last time Philadelphia played here, the series averaged around 36,500, although that was a weekend set.] Hitting a home-run will probably help soothe any ruffled feathers!

And so it ends…

Just as the Atlanta Braves were on a hot streak, the San Francisco Giants took the power back in this makeup game with a 7-3 win.

The Giants’ Rafael Devers set the tone with a home run in the top of the first inning. Matt Olson answered right after in the bottom half with an RBI groundout to bring Drake Baldwin in and put the Braves on the board.

A Michael Harris II home run then gave the Braves a 2-1 lead in the second inning.

Money 💸 money 💸money 💸#BravesCountrypic.twitter.com/qCt2qWEcSK

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) August 31, 2026

San Francisco wouldn’t let them have the last word, however, after knocking in an RBI single of their own in the top of the fifth to tie things back up.

A back-and-forth matchup formed right after, as the Braves reclaimed the lead with an RBI single from Baldwin to drive in Sean Murphy. But then the Giants answered back in the very next inning with a homer to tie the game at 3-3 in the sixth.

A pattern was forming here… but who would break it?

Unfortunately, Braves Country, it was the Giants.

San Francisco drove in four more runs to shut the Braves down, turning what had been a competitive back-and-forth matchup into a 7-3 final. More importantly, the loss snapped the Braves’ seven-game win streak just before they head out on their road trip to Washington.

You can’t win them all, and it was a decent showing from the Braves’ offense early on as they tried to regain their lead every time San Francisco answered back. And they almost had a promising ninth inning, opening the frame with two runners on base and no outs.

It just wasn’t enough to force a comeback, however, as the Braves ultimately fell into the losing column.

But what about the defense?

Pitching through 5.1 innings, Bryce Elder allowed eight hits and gave up five runs, along with three walks and three strikeouts. His ERA climbed to 4.11, and Elder is showing a different version of himself than the one Braves Country was getting adjusted to seeing at the beginning of the season.

So now, it’s a question of what exactly the problem is: Is it mechanics? A lack of confidence? Or is it something completely different that encompasses all of the above?

At this point, one could just hope that Elder figures it out before his next outing and that he and Greg Maddux can come up with a new plan of attack on the mound.

The Braves had a seven-game win streak going into this one, so while the loss stings, it doesn’t erase what they were able to build over the past week. Now, the focus shifts to Washington and finding a way to get back to the version of this team we witnessed just a week ago.

Until then, Braves Country, look forward to a series in Washington and the Braves’ chance to bounce back.

On September 1st, major league rosters expand to 28-players, and tomorrow the Mets are reportedly calling up right-handed pitcher Justin Hagenman and right-handed outfielder Nick Morabito.

The plan for Hagenman is to have him start on Wednesday against Tampa Bay, giving an extra day of rest to the Mets’ young trio of Christian Scott, Nolan McLean, and Zac Thornton heading into the weekend series with the Giants.

Hagenman appeared in nine games for the Mets in 2025, starting one game, and did not pitch vey well, putting up a 4.48 ERA over 23.2 innings. Hagenman fractured a rib during spring training and has been on the shelf all year. Wednesday’s start will be only his fourth game of the 2026 season, getting one rehab start in St. Lucie, Binghamton, and Syracuse, giving up home runs in two of those games.

Hagenman was not promised any starts beyond Wednesday, according to Gary Cohen on the Mets’ broadcast.

Morabito appeared in five games for the Mets earlier this season, before A.J. Ewing emerged as the Mets’ everyday center fielder, and was hitless in 11 plate appearances. At Triple-A Syracuse, Morabito hit .254/.355/.388 with 13 home runs and 42 stolen bases.

Here are the lineups. For the Phillies:

Nola Night#RingTheBellpic.twitter.com/9uKfGPBo5F

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) August 31, 2026

For the Diamondbacks:

End of August pic.twitter.com/lHFcBYVPx4

— Arizona Diamondbacks (@Dbacks) August 31, 2026

Let’s talk about it.

The Yankees are getting closer and closer to receiving their captain back.

Aaron Judge traveled with the team for their West Coast trip against the Angels and Padres so that he can continue ramping up his baseball activities. 

Manager Aaron Boone said prior to Monday’s opener that the team feels good about where he’s at, and a potential return for New York’s next homestand appears to be on the table.

“It’s possible,” the skipper said. “I’m not gonna put a date on it, but those things are in play, it’s just getting the durability and workload build up on him is the biggest thing now.”

Judge has been sidelined since late-May due to a stress fracture in his rib. 

The slugger has been progressing steadily in his recovery over the past few weeks, and he recently told reporters that he hoped to not require a minor league rehab assignment. 

He also skipped the assignment when he missed 42 games to a toe injury two years ago, but did briefly appear in Triple-A coming back from an oblique strain in 2019. 

Judge had 17 homers, a .375 OBP, and a .907 OPS over 59 games before going down. 

The Yankees' offense has been up-and-down with him sidelined, but they enter play on Monday coming off a strong series in which they broke through for 26 runs to take three out of four from the rival Red Sox. 

Folks, Orioles baseball is getting quite interesting of late. The Birds have been playing capable, credible baseball, and now they’re within one game of the last Wild Card. The offense is, maybe not humming, but it’s providing thump and interest. And lots of power: the Orioles have 31 home runs in their last 18 games.

That shouldn’t change as they head to Coors Field in Denver, notorious for its thin air and propensity for dingers. Also because the Rockies are the worst team in the league, to include their pitching.

Colorado’s starter today looks to fit this mold. Tanner Gordon is a 28-year-old righty who’s been in the league since 2024 and has just 42 games under his belt (30 starts). He’s posted an ERA of 8.65, 6.33 and 5.38 in parts of three seasons thus far, this year being his best. Gordon is considered to have a nice changeup, and not a ton else. His four-seamer has a run value of -4; his slider -5, his curveball -6, and his sinker -3. I know which one I’d want to hit. He doesn’t walk too many batters, though, so that’s nice.

To face this right-handed behemoth, the Orioles are sending up a lot of lefties, as you’d guess: six, in fact, in Holliday, Henderson, Beavers, Basallo, Cowser, and Taveras. Holliday bats leadoff, followed by Iron Man Pete Alonso, who refuses to miss time with his sore calf. Coby Mayo, hitting .308 with 8 RBI in his last week, is batting cleanup. It’s also good to see Basallo getting the start at catcher, since he’d just recently taken a foul ball to his throwing hand.

For Baltimore, and giving a tired-looking starting rotation something of a breather, is Cade Povich, called up today for this start. (To make room for Povich, the Orioles optioned right-hander Anthony Nunez, who’s 3-2 with a 4.29 ERA in 44 games.) In six games (five starts) with the big-league club this year, Povich is 2-1 with a 4.45 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. His walks, usually a problem, are slightly down from last season (3.45 per game to 3.18).

Will the balls be flying out of Coors Field tonight?

Orioles lineup

1. Jackson Holliday 2B
2. Pete Alonso 1B
3. Gunnar Henderson SS
4. Coby Mayo DH
5. Dylan Beavers LF
6. Samuel Basallo C
7. Blaze Alexander 3B
8. Colton Cowser CF
9. Leody Taveras RF

LHP Cade Povich

Rockies lineup

1. Jake McCarthy CF
2. Connor Norby 2B
3. Hunter Goodman C
4. TJ Rumfield 1B
5. Willi Castro 3B
6. Mickey Moniak RF
7. Jordan Beck LF
8. Troy Johnston RF
9. Ezequiel Tovar SS

RHP Tanner Gordon