Category: Baseball

Chicago Cubs third baseman Alex Bregman suffered facial fractures when he was hit in the head by a foul ball on Sunday, according to ESPN.

Bregman was standing in the on-deck circle preparing for his at-bat when his teammate Michael Busch checked his swing and fouled off a pitch from the Cincinnati Reds’ Luis Mey. The ball struck Bregman in the face, and he immediately jogged toward the Cubs’ dugout with his hand covering the left side of his face. He was taken to hospital for X-rays and CT scans.

ESPN reports that the 32-year-old will not require surgery and hopes to return for the postseason.

“He got hit in the left cheekbone essentially, under the eye,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said after the game. “He was bleeding from his nose a little. There’s some swelling. It’s a terrible, terrible accident. We hope he’s OK.”

Bregman posted a photo of ⁠himself on Instagram. His eye was swollen and there was blood on his cheek. “Thanks for all the messages yall. ​I’ll be back,” Bregman said.

Bregman is batting .262 with 26 home runs and 89 RBIs after signing a $175m, five-year free-agent deal in January.

“It just happens so fast,” Busch said. “[Mey] is throwing the ball hard and it comes off hard. Any time it enters the head area, it’s always a scary thing. We try to focus on the game, but it’s tough. Hopefully he’s OK, first and foremost.”

Blue Jays 3 Orioles 4

Sometimes you make the right moves and yet they don’t work out.

Bottom of the eighth Mason Fluharty pitching. He gave up a leadoff walk. Then got a pop out and a fly out. With Pete Alonso up, John brought in Tyler Rogers. I liked the call. But….Alonso hit his third pitch a mile (well 400 feet) and that was the ball game. It was Alonso’s second home run of the day. And fifth in his last six games.

We scored three in the first and the batters went on strike after that.

In the first, Brett Bateman and Alejandro Kirk each walked to start the game. Nathan Lukes singled one home. George Springer singled in Kirk. And Sean Keys hit a sac fly for out third (and last) run.

We got two on with no outs in the third but Keys flied out and Kazuma Okamoto ground into a double play. Other than that, there were a bunch of three up three down innings.

Other than the bullpen blowing the game, it was much like the most of the season. We couldn’t score. Just 6 hits in all, all singles. Springer had two of the singles.

Added to the fun was an awkward catch by Bateman in the second inning, where his left knee hit the ground hard. He came out of the game, limping. They say nothing structural, but I wouldn’t be surprised if he is done for the season.

Trey Yesavage started (or opened) and gave up Alonso’s first home run, but that was his only hit allowed, and he had three strikeouts.

Brendan Cellucci got the next four out, three of them strikeouts.

Chad Dallas got eight outs, giving up an Gunnar Henderson home run.

José Rodríguez got three outs.

And then Fluharty and Rogers. The Rogers’ pitch? Missed the spot, it was mean to be on (of just off) the inside edge and instead it was pretty much center cut. These things happen. Maybe score more than three runs and this wouldn’t matter. That’s pretty much baseball, there will be that pitch that isn’t where it was supposed to be and, if you are lucky, you will hit it well. I always laugh when baseball people say ‘he only made one mistake’. No, pitchers make mistakes all the time, and most of the time, it still isn’t a home run. But the time that they hit the mistake, it can go a long way.

Jays of the Day: Dallas (0.13 WPA), Springer (0.12) and Rodríguez (0.11)

Other Award: Rogers (-0.62, hardly fair really), Okamoto (-0.13), Keys (-0.11) and Smith (-0.10).

Anyway, it has been a ride. I’ve said that I’ve lived through a lot of Jays seasons when we didn’t have meaningful baseball in September. This year, we made it this far with meaningful baseball, which makes it better than most years.

Tomorrow we have Max Scherzer (3-8, 6.07) vs. Chris Bassitt (8-5, 4.64). A 6:30 Eastern start time (barring rain).

The Dodgers have lost this gamble once before. But that won’t stop them from placing the same wager again.

Rather than take every precaution to ensure Shohei Ohtani doesn’t worsen the injuries to his right arm and left knee, the Dodgers will prioritize giving him at-bats to get him ready for the playoffs.

Ohtani is expected to be activated from the 15-day injured list Wednesday, and manager Dave Roberts said the plan is for him to play in every one of the five games that remain in the regular season.

“He’ll need those live at-bats,” Roberts said.

This feels reckless — and unnecessarily risky, especially when considering what happened the last time the Dodgers were in this position, just earlier this month. 

Ohtani was experiencing discomfort in his arm and knee. The Dodgers downplayed the severity of his injuries, with general manager Brandon Gomes claiming the physical problems weren’t responsible for his hitting slump and shouldn’t require him to be placed on the IL. 

So much for that.

Roberts described Ohtani as being “pain-free” Sunday, but acknowledged he was still experiencing “discomfort you can play through.” Certain levels of discomfort can be tolerated — until they can’t be, of course. That’s been the story of Ohtani’s season.

When Ohtani started feeling pain in his knee, he insisted he could pitch through it. Until he couldn’t.

When he started to be affected in the batter’s box by the throbbing in his arm and knee, he claimed he could play it. Until he couldn’t.

Roberts said Ohtani’s condition has improved over the last two weeks. But Roberts also didn’t claim Ohtani was completely healthy. 

“Is he 100%?” Roberts said. “Probably not.”

In other words, what bothered Ohtani when he landed on the IL still bothers him, just not as much.

This is a problem.

What happened earlier this month showed that if Ohtani plays too many games with these particular injuries, he will reach a point where he won’t even be able to take the field.

Why not give Ohtani every other game off? Will playing five more regular-season games instead of three make that much of a difference? Because the question isn’t whether Ohtani can make it through the next five games. The question is how much closer these games will push him to the point of no return.

The objective should be to make sure Ohtani is available in some capacity throughout the entire postseason, not only at the start of it. If he has to be gradually work his way into form over the playoffs, so be it.

Ohtani would almost certainly reject such cautious thinking. He doesn’t like half-measures. Ohtani takes big swings without much regard to the consequences.

So, if he’s going to use the final week of the regular season to prepare for the playoffs, he’ll probably do so with visions of being an impact player. He doesn’t want a Kirk Gibson moment; he wants to be Mr. October.

Before he went on the IL, Ohtani offered a realistic assessment of his health, saying he didn’t expect to be at 100% between now and the end of the season. But he said he believed he could overcome his physical problems by making adjustments to his swing.

“With some creativity, I think I can make up for what’s not right,” Ohtani said in Japanese. “Another way to say it is that it’s an opportunity to create new ways to compete.”

At the time, that meant learning how to hit with one arm and one leg.

The Dodgers let him, and Ohtani ended up on the IL.

Once again, it sounds as if Ohtani is determined to squeeze in as many at-bats as possible, and once again, it sounds as if the Dodgers will let him try.

This approach has significant upside — and downside, too.

Download The California Post App, follow us on social, and subscribe to our newsletters

After failing to score in their previous two games, the Orioles hardly looked like a team capable of overcoming an early three-run deficit. That’s why they play the games.

Shane Baz allowed three runs in the top of the first, but Baltimore held Toronto off the scoreboard for the final eight frames. Pete Alonso launched his 39th and 40th home runs of the season, and the O’s completed the comeback with a 4-3 win at Camden Yards.

Toronto kickstarted their early rally by taking advantage of a silly mistake. Baz ran the count full to leadoff hitter Brett Bateman before holding the ball for too long. The home plate umpire called Baz for a pitch timer violation, and Bateman trotted to first base. Alejandro Kirk followed by working the count full and eventually walking the old fashioned way.

Nathan Lukes delivered Toronto’s first hit of the day with a single to left field, and the Jays scored their first run three batters into the game. George Springer followed with another run-scoring single, and Sean Keys plated the third run of the game with a sacrifice fly. Baz allowed another single to Kazuma Okamoto, but the former Ray rebounded by retiring Josh Smith and Andrés Giménez.

The Orioles could have let this one spiral, but Baz settled in after the crooked number in the first. He delivered a clean second and used an inning-ending double play to erase a walk and single in the third. He retired the side in order in the fourth, faced the minimum in the fifth, and went three-up, three down in the sixth.

Baz returned to the mound and recorded a pair of outs in the seventh before giving way to Yennier Cano. He exited the game with 6.2 innings, 5 hits, three walks, and three earned runs allowed. Baz kept the Birds in the game with the quality start, but the team continued to struggle in the run support department.

Pete Alonso certainly did his part. The power-hitting first baseman stole some momentum back with his 39th home run in the bottom of the first. Alonso smoked a ball 101 MPH that cleared the scoreboard in right field. The blast marked Alonso’s MLB-best 17th opposite-field home run and continued to build his RBI lead in the American League.

The Orioles did not record their second hit until Gunnar Henderson lined a ball 105 MPH to deep center field. The ball smacked off the wall, and Henderson raced all the way to third with only one out. Unfortunately, Coby Mayo struck out and Christian Encarnacion-Strand flew out to leave Henderson at third.

Baltimore waited to record its third hit until Henderson returned to the plate with two outs in the sixth. The shortstop delivered another screaming line drive, but this one cleared the fence. The solo shot marked Henderson’s 24th homer and trimmed Toronto’s lead to one.

Encarnacion-Strand led off the seventh with a single to left, but Carlos Narváez failed to bunt him over. Samuel Basallo started the game behind the plate, but Narváez entered after Basallo took multiple foul balls off his body. Narváez popped his bunt up to the pitcher, and Rece Hinds grounded into an inning-ending double play.

Baltimore completed the comeback in the eighth with a free pass and another big fly from their team MVP. Christian Franklin pinch hit for Colton Cowser and worked a leadoff walk. Jeremiah Jackson and Dylan Beavers failed to move the potential tying run into scoring position, but Alonso proved he was in scoring position all along.

The Jays summoned submarine pitcher Tyler Rogers in hopes of avoiding the long ball, but Rogers left a ball belt high to Alonso. The slugger hooked the ball and sent it toward Mr. Splash to give Baltimore a 4-3 lead.

Yennier Cano had already returned to post a zero in the eighth, and Baltimore went with Rico Garcia in a save situation. Garcia struck out Keys and Okamoto before retiring Smith to end the game.

The win pushed Baltimore to 76-81 and dropped Toronto to 77-80. Chicago holds the final wild card spot at 80-76.

Baz rebounded, and Gunnar smoked a couple balls, but go ahead and write Pete Alonso’s name in the comments for the Most Birdland Player of the Game.

It’s a new week here at BCB After Dark: the coolest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and join us. We’re so happy to see you. There’s no cover charge. The dress code is casual. We still have a couple of tables available. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last week I asked you if you thought Pete Crow-Armstrong will win the home run crown. With six games to go, he’s now tied with Kyle Schwarber with 45. When I wrote this last week, PCA “only” had 44.

It was close, but 52 percent of you think that Crow-Armstrong will either win the title outright or tie with Schwarber and share the crown.

Here’s the part with the music and movies. You can skip that if you want. It’s not like I’ll know.

We’re just two days away from the 100th anniversary of saxophonist John Coltrane’s birthday. Of course, Coltrane was a part of the first great Miles Davis Quintet (or Sextet) and played on the seminal jazz album, Kind of Blue in 1959.

Here’s Davis and Coltrane playing “So What” from that album live in New York in 1959. Trane’s solo starts around the 2-minute mark and you’ll notice that other than pianist Wynton Kelly and drummer Jimmy Cobb who provide the beat, the rest of the band just leaves the stage and just lets Coltrane do his thing.

It’s not like I haven’t been watching movies this past weekend. I’ve finally watched director Robert Altman’s The Long Goodbye (1973) with Elliot Gould as detective Philip Marlowe, moved from the ‘40s to the ‘70s, but still portrayed as an anachronism. I’ve also been trying to keep up with Turner Classic Movies rundown of every film director Stanley Kubrick ever made.

So what I’m trying to say that I’ve spent too much time watching films and not enough time writing about films. I didn’t have to time to give these films that I’ve seen the attention they deserve.

So I just thought I’d throw it over to you to talk about your favorite films from either Kubrick or Altman. Do you like Spartacus or Dr. Strangelove better? M*A*S*H or The Player? Are you still in awe of 2001: A Space Odyssey? Do you love Nashville? Or compare the two: Eyes Wide Shut or A Prairie Home Companion, to mark their respective final films.

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music and movies.

First, an announcement from the Double-A Southern League.

Just in case you can’t see that, three Smokies were named to the Southern League All-Star team. Catcher Owen Ayers hit .304/.417/.591 with 16 home runs in 65 games in Knoxville before moving up to Triple-A Iowa.

Dawson Netz made 17 starts and seven relief appearances for the Smokies, totaling 85.2 innings. He struck out 103 and walked 35 en route to a record of 7-4 and an ERA of 2.94.

Brooks Caple joined the Smokies in May after five starts in Low-A South Bend. He made 16 starts and one relief appearance. He went 4-4 with a 3.24 ERA in Double-A. Caple pitched 86 innings and struck out 82 while walking just 25.

With the minor league season now over, I’m going to ask you for your pick for the Cubs Minor League Player of the Year. I’m just including position players in this vote and I’ll try to let you vote on the Minor League Pitcher of the Year either tomorrow or Wednesday.

As I see it, there are three candidates for Cubs Minor League Player of the Year. The official award that the Cubs will announce shortly is named after Buck O’Neil, so if you want, this is your vote for the Buck O’Neill Award.

The first is one I’ve already mentioned, 25-year-old catcher Owen Ayers. Ayers started the year in High-A South Bend (having spent the first two years of his professional career entirely in Low-A Myrtle Beach) and blew threw that level in just 11 games. He hit six home runs in those 11 games.

Ayers spent the middle part of the season in Double-A, and I’ve listed his numbers for Knoxville above. That got him promoted to Triple-A Iowa for his final 49 games, where he slowed down a little with the major league balls that didn’t fly quite as far. But he still did well in Iowa, posting a line of .247/.365/.356 with three home runs. Ayers also made big strides with his defense behind the plate, going from someone we hoped could stick behind the plate to someone we know can catch, even if we don’t know ultimately how good he’ll be defensively. We do know he has a strong arm as he threw out 41 out of 146 batters trying to steal over the three levels.

Between the three levels, Ayers’ final line was .289/403/.526 with 25 home runs and 13 steals.

The next candidate went through three levels this season, going from Myrtle Beach to Knoxville. Outfielder/first baseman Josiah Hartshorn was a sixth-round pick out of high school last year and didn’t make his professional debut until this year. At only 19, he was a dominating hitter through the two levels of A ball. Hartshorn only played 11 games in Myrtle Beach before his promotion and only three regular-season games in Double-A.

So Hartshorn spent most of the year in High-A, where he was named to the Midwest League All-Star Team. For South Bend, Hartshorn hit .297/.405/.560 with 18 home runs and 12 steals in 83 games.

Hartshorn’s overall line between the three levels was .284/.407/.518 with 26 doubles, five triples and 23 home runs. He stole 17 bases. He set a South Bend Cubs record with 85 RBI and he had 112 RBI total.

The third candidate only played in two levels, 22-year-old outfielder Kane Kepley. Kepley was an absolute menace in South Bend, hitting .254/.435/.424 with seven home runs and 50 steals over 93 games. He did pretty much the same thing in Double-A. He only hit .212 with the batting average, but he had a .382 OBP and three home runs and 20 steals over just 32 games.

Overall, Kepley hit .243/.422/.401 with with ten home runs and 70 steals. He was only caught stealing six times. Kepley struck out way more than he walked with 120 walks to 89 strikeouts over 595 plate appearances. (You can add his 22 hit-by-pitches to his walk total if you’d like.) He’s also a very good defensive center fielder.

So who is your pick for the Buck O’Neill Cubs Minor League Player of the Year?

Thank you for stopping by. Please get home safely. We want to see you again. Recycle any cans and bottles. Don’t forget any personal items. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow night for more BCB After Dark.

This season marks the sixth since the Rockies traded Nolan Arenado to the St. Louis Cardinals. For the first time since he left Colorado, the Rockies aren’t paying part of his salary this season.

The eight-time All-Star third baseman is having a resurgence with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2026, hitting .247/.322/.455 with 27 homers and 82 RBI. Thanks to his grand slam that helped the Diamondbacks beat the Yankees, Arizona has a slim playoff chance as it is four games out of the NL Wild Card race with six games left. The slam was Arenado’s third of the season and the ninth of his career, with the most famous in my mind being the walk-off Father’s Day grand slam for the cycle in 2017.

Now, Arenado and the Diamondbacks are coming to town as the Rockies host their final home series of 2026. At 35, and with one year remaining on his contract, Arenado’s career is winding down. While the Diamondbacks’ odds of making the playoffs aren’t high, they at least exist.

With all the history, the breakup and the time since, how do you feel about Nolan Arenado now?

Are you cheering him on in his career and this series?

Is it still too soon?

Would you rather the Arenado & Co. earn a Wild Card spot over the Phillies, Padres or Cubs?

Let us know in the comments!

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

Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s return from a right thumb sprain is near, meaning the Yankees face some interesting decisions. 

The second baseman could be activated from the injured list as soon as Tuesday’s doubleheader against the Rays, and while the corresponding roster move appears simple (Max Schuemann), the potential lineup moves bear watching. 

After Chisholm got hurt diving into second base Sept. 8, the Yankees called up Anthony Volpe to get some run at the position he had mostly transitioned to at Triple-A, and he made the most of it.

In the 10 games since Volpe was recalled, he has started at second base nine times (José Caballero started the other) and mostly looked sharp, batting .286 with a .753 OPS and four steals. 

Whether Volpe has done enough to warrant at-bats once Chisholm returns remains to be seen. Shortly before he was called back up, the natural shortstop had also started to mix in some third base, starting three games there, though Aaron Boone would only offer, “We’ll see,” when asked whether that could be an option for Volpe with Chisholm back. 

“First things first, getting Jazz back and then we’ll figure it out as the week unfolds how I want to play it,” Boone said. 

The Yankees have not gotten much offensive production from their third basemen this year, especially of late. Since returning from his own thumb sprain Sept. 1, Ryan McMahon has hit just 6-for-40 (.150) with a .402 OPS, with Caballero starting at third over him Sunday against a righty. Amed Rosario has often started at third against lefties, and while he has not hit in line with his career numbers, the Yankees continue to believe he will. 

Boone could also platoon Volpe and Chisholm at second base, as the lefty-hitting Chisholm is batting only .221 with a .654 OPS against lefties. But the pending free agent had just been starting to get hot in a disappointing season, hitting .391 with a 1.028 OPS over his last 15 games before getting hurt. 

If and where Volpe fits on the playoff roster is just one of the many decisions they will have to consider over this final week of the regular season. 

“You know it’s going to take a lot of players and a lot of people when you get to spring training and the season unfolds,” Boone said. “We’ll have hopefully some tough decisions to make when we’re setting postseason rosters and things like that. But that’s a better problem to have.” 

Clarke Schmidt was expected to see the team doctor early this week after experiencing biceps cramping while warming up Sunday, which kept him from entering the game. The right-hander had just made his return from Tommy John surgery and is trying to carve out a role in the playoff bullpen. 

Ryan Weathers (left forearm flexor strain) could also have a role in a playoff bullpen, but first the lefty will need to face hitters this week as he tries to show the Yankees he could jump right into postseason action without pitching in a game since he got hurt Aug. 22.

The San Francisco Giants welcome the Minnesota Twins to Oracle Park tonight to begin a three-game series.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be right-hander Blade Tidwell, who enters tonight’s game with a 4.56 ERA, 4.75 FIP, with 42 strikeouts to 21 walks in 53.1 innings pitched. His last start was in Tuesday’s 10-3 win over the St. Louis Cardinals, in which he allowed two runs on three hits with four strikeouts and a walk in six and two thirds innings

He’ll be facing off against Twins right-hander Zebby Matthews, who enters tonight’s game with a 4.74 ERA, 4.80 FIP, with 107 strikeouts to 39 walks in 125.1 innings pitched. His last start was in the Twins’ 5-4 extra innings win over the New York Yankees last Wednesday, in which he allowed just two hits and two walks with eight strikeouts in six innings.

Game #157

Who: San Francisco Giants (64-92) vs. Minnesota Twins (73-83)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

When: 6:45 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: NBC Sports Bay Area

National broadcast: n/a

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM

The Tigers got their week going in high-scoring fashion with a 9-2 victory over the Nationals.

The postseason hunt might be over for the Tigers this season, but there was still baseball left to play, and hopefully more games to win in the final week of the season. They opened the week with a three-game series against the Nationals, and for the first game we got to see highly touted rookie River Ryan, a main piece of the Tarik Skubal trade, in his Tigers debut. He was up against DJ Herz for the Nationals.

Ryan got things underway nicely in his debut with a three-up, three-down inning, including striking out the first batter he faced on a nasty changeup. Gleyber Torres walked to open the home half, then on a wild pitch from Herz, he advanced to second. Hao-Yu Lee hit a ground-rule double, bringing Torres home and putting the Tigers on the board early.

With one out, Eduardo Valencia singled with a liner into left, bringing Lee home. Valencia just keeps hitting.

Ben Malgeri doubled, but two outs followed, leaving him stranded. We must also acknowledge how savage the camera and production crew for the Tigers are because of this.

In the second, Dylan Crews got a one-out single, then Jorbit Vivas walked to put two men on. But then next two batters were out, getting Ryan out of the very minor jam. The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the home half.

Jacob Young doubled to start the second. With two outs there was a pause in play as Abimelec Ortiz needed to walk off an uncomfortable foul. When he finally came back he lobbed a blooper that looked like it might drop, but Malgeri swept in to get the final out of the inning.

That was all she wrote for Ryan, who was always going to be on a short leash for his debut game. He went 3.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K on 43 pitches. He had a strong fourseam and sinker pairing, with really good differentiation between the two. Despite giving up three hits, he showed solid command of a deep mix of high quality pitchese and should be a nice addition to the rotation with frontline starter upside. Just stay healthy, River.

Valencia got a two-out double in the bottom of the inning, but the Tigers weren’t able to bring him in.

Keider Montero replaced Ryan in the fourth inning. He gave up a one-out walk to Dylan Crews, but then got the next two batters out in order. In the bottom of the inning Dingler took a leadoff walk, but one out later, it was Javier Baez who got to play game hero, with a two-run homer to left.

In the fifth, Young got a one-out single, but the Nationals weren’t able to turn it into anything. Up against reliever Luis Perales, Riley Greene got a one-out walk in the home half, then Valencia got his third double of the night. Ben Malgeri then hit a three-run homer, taking the Tigers to a 7-0 lead.

Dillon Dingler doubled off the outfield wall in a hit that looked awfully close to leaving the park, but there was no doubt about the ball going over the fence when Spencer Torkelson homered to bring two more runs in.

Baez drew a walk, but two outs followed and the Tigers went back to their dugout after extending their lead to 9-0.

In the sixth, the Nationals went 1-2-3. In the bottom of the inning Lee hit a leadoff single, but the next three batters went down in order to quickly end the threat.

The Nationals once again went three-up, three down in the top of the seventh. Josiah Gray was the new Nationals pitcher for the home half and Dingler got a single with a little thanks to second base, where the ball hit and bounced safely into the outfield. His good luck swiftly ended when Torkelson grounded into a double play. A pinch-hitting Zach McKinstry ended the inning with a lineout.

Drew Sommers came in for the eighth. James Woods got a one-out single, and then with two outs a pinch-hitting Yohandy Morales homered for the Nationals’ first two runs of the night. They’d have to settle for just those as the next out ended the inning. Lee got a two-out double in the bottom of the inning but the Tigers weren’t able to bring him home.

Beau Brieske came out to close things down for the Tigers in the ninth, and he did just that, getting the side out in order. The Tigers claimed victory for the first game of the series.

Final: Tigers 9, Nationals 2

Note: We will have companion podcasts all week for our season wraps for each affiliate, so look out over on the right rail on Tuesday for our South Atlantic League champion Winston-Salem Dash season wrap podcast!

The Winston-Salem Dash finished 73-58 (.557) in the regular season, good for fourth out of 12 teams in the South Atlantic League. The Dash went 38-28 in the first half and 35-30 in the second half, and somewhat ironically it was their weaker part, the five-over second half, that punched their ticket for the postseason. The Dash got off to a fast start, going 15-9 in April and never finishing worse than .500 in any month. Among teams in the Sally, Winston-Salem ranked second in OPS (.822) and runs scored (826). Although the Dash ranked eighth in ERA (4.98) and runs allowed (727), their run differential (+99) was third in the South Atlantic League.

The Dash pulled off an massive upset over Bowling Green (82-48) in the Division Series, beating them two games to zero; among 120 teams in the full-season minors, only three teams finished with a better record than the Hot Rods.

Incredibly, W-S was not finished, as it faced Greensboro in the Championship Series; somehow despite sporting a phenomenal 82-50 record that ranked in the Top 10 of all minors teams this year, the Grasshoppers were merely the third-best club in the Sally.

Not that it mattered to the Dash: In Game 1 of the title series, Winston-Salem scored eight runs in the second to propel themselves to a 15-8 victory. Since this was another best-of-three series, suddenly the Dash were one win away from taking the cake. Game 2 was an entirely different type of matchup, but once again, the Dash found a way to bring home the win by a score of 2-0. Just like that, the Dash had won the South Atlantic League Championship, and given that the Barons entered this season with back-to-back titles, this marks the third season that a White Sox affiliate has won it all.

Starting with the Top 30 White Sox prospects who got serious playing time with the Dash, we will start with the South Side Sox and MLB No. 2 White Sox prospect, infielder Caleb Bonemer. Bonemer, 20, opened the season with Winston-Salem, where he performed admirably. Bonemer slashed .238/.381/.556 (139 wRC+) in 61 games. On top of that, Bonemer stole 10 bases in 13 attempts (76.9%). To top it off, Bonemer proceeded to post a .261/.379/.545 (140 wRC+) slash line in 71 games for the Barons. No matter how we slice it, this was another sizable step forward for Bonemer, who plays shortstop, third base, and he even got some reps in center field at the tail end of the season. Bonemer’s performance with the Dash was strong enough to get him onto the South Atlantic League All-Star team.

Infielder Javier Mogollón, 20, MLB’s No. 12 White Sox prospect and No. 25 at South Side Sox, also made a big impact with the Dash. Mogollón started the season with Kannapolis, where he slashed .257/.357/.442 (112 wRC+) in 57 games. After being promoted to Winston-Salem on July 28, Mogollón made even more of an impact, slashing .268/.385/.487 (122 wRC+) in 34 games to wrap up the regular season. Mogollón, who plays second base and shortstop, added a bullet point to his resume  in the postseason. Mogollón launched a clutch, three-run homer to tie the game with two outs in the ninth inning of Game 1 of the Division Series against Bowling Green (82-48). The Dash proceeded to win that game in the 10th. In addition, Mogollón hit a two-run triple in Game 2 to help complete the sweep. On paper, Mogollón’s defense should be a strength moving forward, as MLB Pipeline grades his run tool at 60, his arm tool at 55, and his field tool at 50.

In 111 games, all with the Dash, shortstop Kyle Lodise, 22, slashed .230/.380/.440 (118 wRC+). Like Bonemer and Mogollón, Lodise was part of a strong infield that reached base quite often. Lodise also swiped 42 bases in 51 attempts (82.4%), as he was a major threat after reaching base. Lodise is MLB’s and South Side Sox’s No. 13 White Sox prospect, and he is living up to the hype since the White Sox drafted him in the third round in 2025.

Outfielder George Wolkow, 20, was also with the Dash for the entire season, and he provided some pop. Wolkow, MLB’s No. 14 White Sox prospect and at No. 15 with South Side Sox, went to Downers Grove North High School in the greater Chicago area. Wolkow slashed .239/.317/.446 (95 wRC+), and he led the team with 22 homers and 100 RBIs. Wolkow also swiped 15 bases, although he was caught seven times for a success rate of 68.2%, slightly below the cutoff that indicates an attempt is worth the risk. Wolkow’s main issue is his strikeout rate, which was 32.1%, an area to work on as he advances through the system.

Center fielder Ely Brown, 22, was great at getting on base and causing mayhem afterward. Brown slashed .275/.399/.372 (113 wRC+) in 113 games, all with the Dash. Brown also went 26-for-35 (74.3%) on stolen base attempts, as he showed that he has plenty of speed. While he doesn’t project to hit for much power, Brown’s high on-base skills paired with a 55-grade glove in center field make him an intriguing profile moving forward. Brown closes the season as MLB’s No. 21 White Sox prospect. In the preseason he ranked as the No. 99 White Sox prospect with SSS, an indication that we were caught sleeping on Brown, but also that he made a significant rise in 2026.

Ryan Burrowes, 22, played 88 games with the Dash before being promoted to Birmingham for his final 36 games. Burrowes, MLB’s No. 23 White Sox prospect and No. 42 before the season with SSS, excelled with Winston-Salem, slashing .261/.379/.421 (115 wRC+) and going 34-for-43 (79.1%) on stolen base attempts. Burrowes primarily plays shortstop, although he also got playing time at second base and third base this summer. In a smaller sample size, Burrowes struggled with the Barons, slashing .228/.329/.283 (74 wRC+), but he has a relatively high floor, thanks to his speed and defensive ability.

Infielder Colby Shelton, 23, is MLB’s No. 24 White Sox prospect and ranked No. 44 before the season with SSS. Although he spent most of the season with the Barons, it is important to highlight Shelton’s contributions to the Dash. Mainly a second baseman who also plays shortstop and third base, Shelton could not be stopped during his 31 games with the Dash. He slashed .339/.464/.661 (184 wRC+) in the early going to help the Dash get off to a fast start to the season. Shelton proceeded to slash .211/.289/.434 (88 wRC+) with the Barons, although he did pick up the pace down the stretch after struggling early on after the promotion.

Although the Dash had many MLB Top 30 prospects on the hitting side, they were much lighter with the arms. The only Top 30 prospect with at least 25 innings with the Dash was reliever Mathias LaCombe, 24. LaCombe was dominant during those 25 innings, posting a 2.88 ERA and a 3.54 FIP, striking out 12.60 per nine innings. LaCombe is MLB’s No. 18 White Sox prospect (No. 21 preseason with SSS), and although his ERA was 6.27 in 18 2/3 innings with Birmingham, his FIP (4.10) was much better. LaCombe actually climbed all the way up to Triple-A Charlotte by the very end of the season, an indication of the esteem the organization has for him.

Roch Cholowsky, 21, is likely someone you have heard of. Cholowsky, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2026 draft, made his professional debut, but he only played nine games. In that limited sample, Cholowsky slashed .167/.326/.333 (81 wRC+). Although the overall slash line in the small sample was subpar, Cholowsky had a 15.2% walk rate and a .185 BABIP, as luck was not on his side. Plus, at some point Roch injured his wrist with the Dash, which likely impacted his production and led to him getting shut down for the season early. Nonetheless much of Cholowsky’s value stems from his defense at shortstop, where his elite glove cemented his status as the top overall pick.

Unranked right-hander Jake Curtis, 24, served as the undeniable MVP of the Winston-Salem pitching staff. Curtis is outside MLB Pipeline’s Top 30 White Sox prospects but made a large impact, and he spent the vast majority of the season with the Dash. In 80 1/3 innings with Winston-Salem, Curtis posted a 3.14 ERA and a 3.16 FIP. Control was a large part of his success, as Curtis only walked 1.37 batters per nine innings, and he only allowed 0.74 homers per nine innings. Considering the South Atlantic League average ERA hovered around 5.04 (even if skewed somewhat by Asheville’s 7.39 mark), Curtis’s production went a long way.

Although Curtis was the most valuable pitcher overall, unranked (by MLB, but held in high esteem by South Side Sox, at No. 26 overall) left-handed pitcher Grant Umberger, 24, was on fire in the postseason. In the regular season, Umberger posted modest numbers in 120 2/3 innings, all with the Dash, as he had a 4.70 ERA and a 4.88 FIP. However, Umberger was extremely valuable in the playoffs, where he had two starts, and he was magnificent in both of them. Against Bowling Green, Umberger picked up 11 strikeouts while only allowing one run on three hits in 6 1/3 innings in the series clincher. Unbelievably, Umberger topped that in Game 2 against Greensboro, when he allowed three hits in 7 2/3 shutout innings. In that game, Umberger also struck out 11, as he finished the postseason with a 0.64 ERA, 22 strikeouts, and three walks. What a way to wrap things up.

First Pitch (CT):8:45 PM
TV: Twins.TV
Radio: TIBN/830 WCCO/102.9 The Wolf /Audacy App
Know Yo’ Foe:McCovey Chronicles

The Twins were officially eliminated from playoff contention yesterday, but they’ve been emotionally eliminated for a few weeks now. Honestly, being eliminated this late in the game is truly a testament to how milquetoast the entire American League has been this year. Even the “good” teams (Rays, Yankees, Red Sox) have some pretty glaring holes due to injuries. Someone will get hot and make a run to the World Series, but I have to imagine whoever emerges from the NL gauntlet will be heavily favored in the Fall Classic.

But onto today. Minnesota has fully transitioned to 2027 evaluation mode, meaning there’s some weird stuff going on such as Bailey Ober pitching out of the ‘pen yesterday. Today, that means 27-year-old former first round pick Aaron Sabato will make his major league debut.

Sabato is similar to Ben Ross, who was called up a few weeks ago. Not in size, stature, or skillset, but just by way of likely being more of a Quad-A type hitter rather than an actual MLB contributor. That being said, he’s a right handed bat with a ton of power who has crushed lefties the past two seasons, albeit with bad swing-and-miss numbers. Sabato has a .937 OPS against lefties vs a still respectable .857 mark against righties (keep in mind the average International League OPS is around .800). But the real difference comes from his strikeout and walk numbers. Against righties, Sabato has struck out in 26% of his PAs and walked just 6.2% of the time. Against southpaws, those numbers drastically improve to 23% and 17%, respectively.

It’s possible Sabato hits well enough to carve out a bench role, but if you asked me right now, I would assume he’s dropped from the the 40-man in the offseason. It’s possible the big righty is a late bloomer, but this is likely the Twins giving the nod to an organizational warrior as they wrap up the season.

But hey, I would love nothing more than to be proven wrong!

The Giants, meanwhile, have had so many injuries they’re running out an entire roster of organizational warriors. They currently have 9 position players and 13 pitchers on the Major League IL. Those players collectively account for $133.08M of their $196M payroll this season, so there are a lot of 25-28 YO rookies even the most baseball-obsessed bloggers have never heard of before. It’s been a rough year in the Bay, both on and off the field.

UPDATE: I made this post before Jung Hoo Lee and Bryce Eldridge were placed on the IL prior to the game today. The Giants now have exactly 0 opening day starters remaining and don’t have a single player on the active roster making more than $1M. It’s bad, folks.

Lineups

What had the potential to be a juicy showdown this week in The Bronx may not be worth the squeeze for the Yankees. 

Even if they go all out to sweep the Rays in a four-game series, they still would need to keep winning and get some help on the final weekend of the regular season to complete a comeback and take the AL East.

If they lose even one game to the Rays at Yankee Stadium, though, the race would be over, with Tampa Bay popping champagne as division champs and the Yankees all but locked into facing the Red Sox in an AL wild-card series next week. 

Of course, right up until the Yankees are officially eliminated from the AL East race, they will try to catch the Rays, beginning by starting Carlos Rodón and Max Fried in Tuesday’s doubleheader. But if what seems inevitable comes to fruition — they trail by six games with seven to play — the Yankees can turn their attention to the arguably more important things awaiting them in the coming days. 

“It’s tough,” José Caballero said as the Yankees packed their bags after losing a second straight winnable game to the Diamondbacks on Sunday at Chase Field. “We fight for this the whole season, but at the end of the day, we’re already in the postseason, so that’s what we look forward to. Just be better and learn from little mistakes and play clean baseball in the postseason.” 

Even if the Yankees pull off a sweep of the Rays, any combination of two Yankees losses (against the Orioles) or Rays wins (against the Phillies) would mean the Rays still win the division. 

It would behoove the Yankees to get some early clarity on the division, allowing them to focus on some housekeeping this week. Doing so would give them an opportunity to rest their most heavily used relievers; set up their rotation order how they choose to face the Red Sox (Cam Schlittler or Gerrit Cole in Game 1?); and figure out how to handle second base (with Jazz Chisholm Jr. returning), third base and right field (with Aaron Judge sure looking like he might miss the wild-card series with a right calf strain). 

“You got to make sure guys are in a good spot going in, but we’re going to show up and try to win the games Tuesday and we’ll keep going from there,” manager Aaron Boone said. “We’ve been through a lot as a team this year already and we’ve answered the bell at mostly all the turns. Looking forward to hopefully playing a good week of baseball and building some momentum going into the postseason.” 

The Yankees have had their chances to chase down the Rays before sharing the field with them again. The last time they saw each other, shortly before the All-Star break in July, they split a four-game series, with the Yankees leaving Tropicana Field trailing the Rays by four games. 

Since then, the Yankees have gone 38-24, which represents the fifth-best winning percentage in the majors during that span. The problem is that the Rays have posted the second-best winning percentage in that time (41-23), gaining two full games on the Yankees. 

The closest the Yankees have gotten to the Rays during that span was 1 ¹/₂ games, but that was way back on July 28. 

“They’ve put together a great season to this point and put themselves in a great position,” Boone said. “Got a ton of respect for the season they’ve had so far. Hopefully we’ll cross paths beyond Tuesday at some point in the future [the ALDS].” 

The Yankees have gone 3-6 against the Rays this season, meaning they would have to sweep this four-game series to secure the tiebreaker should the teams finish the season with the same record. 

“They play their game,” said Caballero, who was a Ray for a season and a half before the Yankees acquired him last summer. “It’s tough to play them, playing the way they play. They did a good job during the whole year, pitching-wise as well. They have some good pitching. That’s why they’re at the top of the American League. But at the end of the day, it’s about what we do in the postseason. The 162 first games, it doesn’t matter. The clock starts [in the] postseason.”

The Wild Card Race.

My final prediction in the preseason was that the Diamondbacks would win 85.1 games. With 82 wins, the Diamondbacks could exceed my prediction, which would give me joy. I’d rather be wrong with the Diamondbacks heading to the playoffs.

The Obvious.  The Diamondbacks odds of being the third NL Wild Card are small, but non-zero. They need to sweep the final six games (3 games vs Rockies and 3 games vs Padres). And either the Phillies or the Padres need to lose nearly all their games.

The Subtle and Profound.  Torey Lovullo’s comments after Sunday’s game were subtle and profound.

“…We know where we are in the standings. There’s not a damn thing we can do about it, other than go out and play our finest game on Tuesday in Colorado.” — Torey Lovullo

The Difference that Matters. Sweeping this series (or not) is the difference that matters.

Rockies Players to Watch.

Former Diamondbacks Jake McCarthy splits his playing time between left field and center field, with a little bit of right field.  After a career worst season with the Diamondbacks, with the Rockies his 113 OPS+ is backed up with 15 homers and 80 RBIs. McCarthy’s comments seemed to say his improvement was due to trying to hit line drives to all fields, batting at the top of the lineup, and more consistent at-bats.  Two huge difference makers follow:

• His batting performance is better at Coors than Chase.  At Coors his OPS was 1.111 in 2025 and .904 inn 2026. At Chase his OPS was .598 in 2025 and .310 in 2026.
• He increased his percentage of fast swings (swings greater than 75 MPH).  Per Baseball Savant, the percentage of fast swings increased from 7.8% in 2025 to 15.4% in 2026.  That’s nearly double!

“I think it’s getting back to what makes me good.  I think last year I sort of got away from doing what I do well. I think that’s being competitive on a daily basis. When I reflect on last year, I think a lot of at-bats ended in a pop-out or just early, weak contact. I’m trying to hit as many line drives around the field as possible. I’m sure the big outfield of Coors (Field) does help.” —  Jake McCarthy

Pitching Matchups.

Announced Diamondbacks Pitchers (as of Monday morning):

Michael Soroka.  In his latest start, he allowed 1 earned run in 5 innings.

Merrill Kelly.  In his latest start, which was against the Marlins, he allowed 3 earned runs in 4.2 innings. However, the Marlins scored an unearned run, and one run was the margin of victory for the Marlins.

Eduardo Rodriguez. In his latest start, which was against the Yankees, he allowed 7 earned runs (5 of which were in the first inning) in 5.1 innings. How well he fares in the first inning will be an early indicator of the Diamondbacks winning chances.

Announced Rockies Starters (as of Monday morning):

Kyle Freeland.  In his latest start, be allowed 1 earned run in 5 innings.

Mason Adams. In his latest start, which was against the Padres, he allowed 6 earned runs in 4.1 innings. Six runs was the margin of victory for the Padres.

Not yet announced.

Game start times follow:

Tuesday, 5:40 PM MST.

Wednesday, 5:40 PM MST.

Thursday, 12:10 PM MST.

Mets prospect Jonathan Santucci capped his fantastic season by being named an Eastern League All-Star on Monday.

Santucci continued climbing his way through the system this year. 

The left-hander started the season pitching with Double-A Binghamton before working his way into Syracuse’s starting rotation down the stretch. 

Before his promotion he led the Double-A level in strikeouts (120), was fifth in ERA (3.57), eighth in innings pitched (90.2), and eighth in WHIP (1.24). 

He struggled to the tune of a 5.24 ERA after joining Syracuse, but held his opponent to two runs or fewer in three of his last five outings of the season. 

Overall, Santucci led all minor league pitchers with 163 strikeouts, marking the second straight year a Mets pitching prospect accomplished the feat (Jonah Tong). 

The 23-year-old former second-round pick out of Duke is the second-ranked prospect and top-ranked pitching prospect on SNY’s midseason Top 30 list.  

According to SNY’s Joe DeMayo, Santucci looks the part of a mid-rotation starter who should enter the Mets’ rotation mix some time next season.