Category: Baseball

Meet the Mets

The Mets were shut out by Aaron Nola and the Phillies 3-0 at Citi Field, spoiling a strong outing by Nolan McLean. Nola took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and the Mets threatened in the later innings, but could not score against the Phillies’ bullpen. But of greater concern than the score of the game was a horrific collision in the sixth inning between Nolan McLean and Jared Young that resulted in Young being carted off the field.

Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, MLB.com, Newsday, New York Daily News, New York Post, The Athletic

Jared Young was taken to the hospital after last night’s scary collision, but the Mets noted that he had feeling in his extremities. Thankfully, his CT scan came back negative. Though he was exhibiting concussion symptoms, manager Andy Green said the Mets are optimistic that the worst outcomes were avoided.

Ironically, before the harrowing events of last night, Will Sammon of The Athletic wrote a piece about how Jared Young is making a bit for the everyday first base job with his strong play this season.

Cameron Weston, a right-handed reliever whom the Mets claimed off waivers from the Orioles earlier this month, was called up from Triple-A yesterday. Xzavion Curry, who started on Wednesday night, was optioned to Triple-A.

With Robert Stock’s injury, the Mets will now go with a five-man rotation the rest of the way.

“He’s just been doing it for such a long time where people don’t know him as anything else but the voice of the Mets,” Pete Alonso said of Howie Rose in his return to Citi Field. On Sunday, Rose will call the last game of his storied career as his broadcasting accomplishments are celebrated at Citi Field.

Howie Rose spoke to Ian O’Connor of The Athletic about his childhood, inspiration to become a broadcaster, battle with cancer, his favorite calls, and more in an extensive interview well worth a read. “I never dreamed of being Curt Gowdy or Pat Summerall or any of the national guys,” he said. He only wanted to call games for New York.

The Mets chose to keep their catchers at the trading deadline this year. It will be interesting to see what they do this offseason, writes Will Sammon of The Athletic.

“It was his 300th. I gotta give him props,” said Mets owner Steve Cohen in response to a video that’s been going around of him applauding Pete Alonso’s home run the other night.

“On Tuesday night at Citi Field, the 2026 Mets season reached either a rather humiliating new low or a moment of catharsis, depending upon your point of view,” writes Jay Jaffe of FanGraphs about Pete Alonso’s 300th home run, calling the response from the crowd “unorthodox,” but “understandable.”

Jonathan Santucci struck out six over 5 1/3 innings in his final start for Syracuse this year and is primed to become the second consecutive Mets pitcher to lead the minor leagues in strikeouts.

Around the National League East

The Phillies claimed right-handed pitcher José Urquidy off waivers from the Chicago White Sox yesterday.

Around Major League Baseball

With their win over the Reds last night, the Dodgers clinched their fifth straight NL West title.

The Astros moved into first place in the AL West, as Yordan Alvarez blasted his 40th home run of the season.

The White Sox are also back in first place, thanks to a strong night from Munetaka Murakami in their 3-1 victory over the Tigers.

Anthony Castrovince of MLB.com built his 2026 All-Debut Team, made up exclusively of not just rookies, but rookies who made their debuts this season. Carson Benge is his starting right fielder.

Speaking of rookies, Jeffrey Paternostro of Baseball Prospectus continued his series taking a look at matriculated prospects from BP’s top 101 list.

Mario Delgado Genzor of Baseball Prospectus did a deep dive into the AL MVP race, which will be won by someone not named Shohei Ohtani or Aaron Judge for the first time in a decade.

It has been the tale of two seasons for Fernando Tatis Jr., due at least in part to a change in his batting stance. But there is a lesson about statistics to be learned here too, writes Ben Clemens of FanGraphs.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Vasilis Drimalitis previewed the final home series of the season between the Mets and Phillies.

This Date in Mets History

On this date in 1963, the Mets played the final professional baseball game at the Polo Grounds, losing to the Phillies—who they are also playing today—5-1.

The Atlanta Braves enjoyed an off day Thursday before heading to the Lone Star State for a weekend series with the Houston Astros. The Braves enter play with a four-game lead in the NL East and are coming off a series loss to the Chicago Cubs. The Astros also lead their division and enter play with a 77-76 record. 

Tyler Mahle, Grant Holmes, and Martín Pérez are each penciled in to start. They will face off against Peter Lambert, Hayden Wesneski, and Hunter Brown. The series gets underway tonight at 8:10 ET.

MLB News:

Houston Astros outfielder Jake Meyers reportedly suffered a season-ending injury after fouling a ball off his left knee cap. He was placed on the minor league injured list. 

The Washington Nationals reinstated right-hander Josiah Gray from the 60-day injured list. Once he makes it into a game, it will be his first MLB appearance since April 2024. 

From the Feed:

Here is the current state of the playoff chase. 

The Guardians were off yesterday and the White Sox beat the Tigers on one swing to take the division lead back.

They did pitch Grant Taylor for like 35 pitches, so, hopefully that helps the Tigers in future games.

The Rangers lost to the Red Sox, so the Guardians are two games up on both the Blue Jays and Rangers for the third wildcard spot.

The NL West continues to run through Los Angeles, as the Dodgers clinched their 13th division title over the last 14 seasons with an 8-2 victory over the Cincinnati Reds on Thursday.

The Dodgers secured their 93rd win— matching their regular season total from last year— thanks in large part to a huge game from Kyle Tucker. Tucker launched his second home run of the four-game set in Cincinnati and collected four hits in five at-bats, finishing just a triple shy of the cycle. For what has undoubtedly been a disappointing first year with his new team, Tucker gave fans a prelude for what they can potentially see from him in October.

Tucker spoke with David Vassegh of SportsNet LA while celebrating their division-clinching win about settling for a double in his final at-bat, noting he wouldn’t have made it safely to third base in his cycle pursuit.

“I tried my best. I don’t think I was going to get there. I probably would’ve been thrown out halfway, but it’s all good.”

Tucker also spoke about the challenges and hurdles he faced repeatedly this season, expressing gratitude for his teammates continuing to stick with him throughout the highs and lows.

“This group is awesome. Everyone supports each other through the ups and downs. We all know where we want to be at the end of the year, and we all just try to help each other out to get there. This is a great group to play with, to play behind, so everyone is super supportive. Everyone knows what we gotta get done.”

With only nine games left for the Dodgers in the regular season, team president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman gave an optimistic update on Shohei Ohtani, noting that they expect him to return from the injured list before their season finale, per Jack Harris of the California Post.

“He’s doing well,” Friedman said, as the team celebrated another National League West title around him at Great American Ball Park. “He’s progressing well.”

“I expect him back in the regular season,” Friedman declared.

Two months ago, Tarik Skubal was still the ace of a Detroit Tigers team on a downward trajectory. On Thursday, Skubal was celebrating the opportunity to pitch in the postseason for a third consecutive season, this time for the reigning two-time World Series champions.

Skubal hopes that the celebrations from Thursday were the first of many more to come as the march for the three-peat is officially in motion, per Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times.

“First of many,” he said. “… This is checking a box, and once we get to postseason baseball and doing all that stuff, I think it’s going to be a ton of fun.”

Skubal also reflected on the resiliency of this year’s Dodgers, noting their ability to bounce back after a rough month of August with a current record of 11-5 in the month of September, per Sonja Chen of MLB.com.

“I think there was no panic from this group,” Skubal said. “I think that’s why in big moments, pressure doesn’t really get to these guys.”

The Red Sox have just nine games left in the regular season before an all-but-inevitable trip to battle the Yankees in New York for the Wild Card game. 

Boston’s magic number sits at three entering play on Friday, so the ballclub still has business to take care of to ensure a return to the postseason. With that said, literally everyone has spent a month preparing for a playoff rematch after the series loss in New York in August (and last October). 

We’ve gone in depth about the lineup and what the rotation should be for the best-of-three clash. OverTheMonster’s Bob Osgood provided a well-detailed outlook of the bullpen you should also read. 

Now is a great time to emphasize how each bullpen could decide the fate of the series, though let’s focus on why the Red Sox should LOVE their depth of relievers heading into The Bronx. 

Personally, I believe the Red Sox have been at their best in the postseason when there’s a true closer to turn to in the ninth along with depth starters to jump into the Swiss army knife, multi-inning role to battleize the group. Well, Aroldis Chapman remains as good as any closer in baseball and if he’s ready to go by the end of his rehab stint, getting Tanner Houck for multiple innings (as they did in the 2021 postseason) is fairly massive for Boston. 

Not to mention the steady work of elite setup man Garrett Whitlock and the ever-awaited return of Garrett Crochet. The Red Sox, however, will have to be very mindful of when to deploy him. There’s a real chance given the pace of his ramp-up that Crochet may only throw once – two innings at absolute most – for the entire series. Chad Tracy will have a real decision to make when to fire off his “secret” weapon. 

Like every facet of the roster, the Red Sox should feel worlds better about the state of the roster heading into this postseason compared to last year. Especially if the bullpen looks something like this:

LHP: Aroldis Chapman
RHP: Garrett Whitlock
RHP: Tyron Guerrero
LHP: Erik Miller
RHP Greg Weissert
RHP Brayan Bello
LHP Garrett Crochet
RHP Tanner Houck

Given the rotation and bullpen firepower for Boston and New York, scoring really could be at a legitimate premium in the series. That’s pretty cliche when discussing playoff baseball, but the elite pitching on both sides cements that notion entering the likely seventh all-time playoff meeting between the Red Sox and Yankees. 

Will the Red Sox bullpen ultimately decide the series? You tell us.

Triple-A: Charlotte Knights (White Sox) 5, Norfolk Tides 1

Norfolk and Charlotte entered the eighth inning with the game tied at one, but Alex Pham allowed four runs in the top of the eighth. Pham allowed a leadoff single, walked a batter, and allowed a go-ahead single to Korey Lee. Pham allowed another run-scoring base hit and walked another batter before recording the first out of the inning. Charlotte scored its fourth run on a fielder’s choice and capped the scoring with a sacrifice fly.

Norfolk starter Jake Dykhoff limited the Knights to one run on two hits over five innings of work. Dykhoff, a former minor-league free agent, walked two and struck out three. Christian Herberholz tossed a pair of scoreless innings before Pham let the game slip away.

Yaramil Hiraldo struck out the side during a clean ninth inning.

Norfolk’s only offense came from another home run from Ethan Anderson. The switch hitter launched his first Triple-A home run on Wednesday night from the left side of the plate. Yesterday he went deep while batting right-handed. The Orioles selected Anderson in the second round of the 2024 draft.

Box score

Friday’s schedule

Norfolk: vs. Charlotte, 6:35. Starter: Trey Gibson

Happy Friday, everyone! Lots of little news bites to keep you busy this morning while you’re pretending to do work, or just enjoying your coffee. We look at some of the Mets’ woes, from terrible offseason choices, to their fanbase missing Pete Alonso, to a new and rough-looking injury. We also check in on some injured superstars, as Shohei Ohtani is feeling a little closer to normal, while Aaron Judge was pulled from a game. Uh oh.

We’ll also see which MLB managers might want to start refreshing their resumes, update you on the WPBL postseason, and share the cutest first pitch ever.

Let’s just get right into it.

• Davy Andrews has a fun article that aims to help the TV action character Reacher find better baseball aliases to use at shady motels. Fans of the show will get a kick out of this.
• Tom Verducci spotlights Tarik Skubal and how he’s going to be a difference-maker for the Dodgers this postseason.
• Verducci also looks at a change the Dodgers made to Skubal’s approach on the mound.
• It’s not time to start worrying about Jesus Luzardo’s arm… yet. Story by Michael Baumann.
• The Dodgers have clinched their 13th NL West title in 14 years. Story by Sonja Chen.
• Jessica Camerato reports that the Nationals are in extension talks with Cade Cavalli.
• Fabian Ardaya shares that Shohei Ohtani is feeling “normal…ish”. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Karl Rasmussen breaks down seven terrible offseason moves the Mets made that could ruin their future.
• Food for thought, what if divisions were arranged by payroll?

• The return of Pete Alonso to Citi Field has Mets fans turning against their own team. Story by Jay Jaffe.
• Kiri Oler keeps us up to date on the advancing WPBL postseason.
• Keith Law admits which prospects he was wrong about. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• The Phillies have claimed Jose Urquidy off waivers from the White Sox. (MLB)
• Brian Murphy looks at six numbers that have defined the Rays’ tremendous season.
• Karl Rasmussen looks at the 10 biggest breakout stars of the 2026 season.
• The Yankees pulled Aaron Judge in the sixth inning of Thursday’s game against the Twins due to lower leg tightness. (ESPN)
• Ken Rosenthal thinks these six managerial positions are the ones most at risk right now. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• Most adorable first pitch EVER.

• Jared Greenspan shares that A’s prospect Ryan Lasko, who was paralyzed in an outfield collision, has been released from his rehab facility, receiving a standing ovation from the clinic’s staff.
• Davy Andrews explains why we won’t be seeing a pitcher join the 120 club this season.
• Ben Clemens tries to make sense of Fernando Tatis Jr’s up and down season.
• Keegan Matheson looks at the personal connection behind George Springer’s Clemente Award nomination.
• How Tommy Pham made a literal elevator pitch to get activated by the White Sox and then immediately made it worth their while. Story by Karl Rasmussen.
• Mets’ Jared Young was carted off the field last night following a collision with one of his teammates. (ESPN)
• Brittany Ghiroli and Sam Blum explain why the sale of the Angels will be unlike anything else we ever see again. (The Athletic subscription required.)
• This is tremendous.

And tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster. Make it so.

The The Star, Jaylon Thompson writes about Maikel Garcia’s goal for next season:

Kansas City Royals third baseman Maikel Garcia has one specific goal in mind heading into the 2027 campaign: Stay healthy.

…In total, Garcia missed 67 games due to injuries…

Garcia added more weight this offseason. However, the added strength caused unforeseen problems in his lower half. It caused the hamstring issues to persist as Garcia never really felt quite like himself.

At MLB.com, Anne Rogers… wait, a second:

Scratch that. At MLB.com, Steve Schaeffer wrote that the Royals still have things to play for:

Jensen makes himself known in ROY race

Jensen is finishing his first full season in the Majors so strongly that he might be included on some Rookie of the Year ballots. After going 2-for-3 with a walk on Thursday, he has reached base in 20 consecutive games and has produced an RBI in his last seven contests. 

With 24 homers, Jensen is tied with Bob Hamelin (1994) for the Royals’ rookie home run record. Eighteen of Jensen’s home runs have come from the leadoff spot, matching the club record shared by Johnny Damon (1998) and Alex Gordon (2011)…

Top thief?

Bobby Witt Jr. has led the American League in batting average, hits, doubles and triples all at some point during his five-year Major League career, and this season, he has a chance to add a stolen base crown. Witt has 42 steals and was tied for the AL lead before Tampa Bay’s Chandler Simpson passed him with a pair (44) on Thursday.

Blog Time?

At Royals Keep, Mike Gillespie names “3 Big Royals Names Who Should Not Be In Club’s 2027 Plans”:

Isaac Collins Should Not Return To The Royals

Picollo’s offseason quest to add pop to KC’s outfield corps produced Collins and Lane Thomas. Thomas is gone, dealt to Atlanta at the midsummer trade deadline, and Collins hasn’t produced enough to warrant a 2027 return. After going 0-for-2 against Houston Tuesday, he’s slashing .220/.326/.335 with six homers and 40 RBI in 135 games, and is hitting .133 this month, hardly the kind of numbers that inspire hopes of a big 2027. Yes, he walks a bit over 12% of the time, but that’s not enough for a club so lacking in big bats.

And although he’s under team control through the 2030 season, the Royals need the roster spot he’d occupy if they bring him back. Triple-A outfielders Carson Roccaforte and Gavin Cross are enjoying good seasons — through Tuesday in a campaign split between the Storm Chasers and Double-A Northwest Arkansas, Roccaforte had 35 homers, 94 RBI, 30 steals, and was slashing .259/.341/.527 with an .868 OPS, and Cross had homered 17 times, driven in 52 runs, stolen 25 bases, and was slashing .248/.307/.437 with a .744 OPS in 114 games for Omaha. KC will have to find room for Roccaforte, Cross, or both, on next season’s 26-man roster — it’s time for each to get major league shots.

Blog Roundup:

• Darin Watson at U.L.’s Toothpick: This Date In Royals History–1976 Edition: September 17 – Once again, it’s not easy, but the Royals eke out a win over Chicago
• Matthew Swigonski at KOK: Carter Jensen’s record-breaking Royals rookie season is flying under the radar
• Jeff Wayman at The Diamond Chronicles: Royals Eliminated from Postseason

This is probably be a record for the shortest Friday Rumblings ever. I could put in an MLB section, but then I’d have to write about the Dodgers winning yet another NL West crown with their infinity payroll.

My last couple of weeks have included everything from replacing a hot water heater to a work mess to pink eye. And I know I’m missing items there, but if I spent time listing even more, well, no one wants to hear that. Suffice to say, it’s been a week. Or a couple of weeks.

Today’s OT will get finished up and moved to next week and we’ll have fun with it there.

We haven’t revisited Just Shapes and Beats yet this year. We’ve done all the boss levels, but there are still some fun ones to listen to. This is probably the most chill song in the game: “The Art of War” by Chipzel.

The journey to the Rockies rotation has been anything but an easy path for Ryan Feltner. 

Since the Rockies signed the Ohio State righty on June 13, 2018, the Rockies organization has placed Feltner on the injured list 10 times, ranging from the 7-day IL to 60-day. The result has been a career line that shows improvement, especially in 2024, but also limited time on the roster. After an injury-plagued 2025, Feltner has rebounded to have a fairly healthy year this season.

In the era of increased pitching injuries, an average pitcher will make 25-30 starts in a relatively healthy season. If the best kind of ability is availability, Feltner — who turned 30 earlier this month — will hit that range for the second time in his career with one more appearance this season. Even though he’s played more in 2026, his ERA is also the highest it’s been since 2023. All things considered, Feltner hasn’t played consistently enough, or effectively enough, to be a staple in the rotation moving forward.

But what if the rotation isn’t where Feltner belongs?

Perhaps Feltner would have more longevity, consistency and success as a reliever for the Rockies.

While Feltner, Colorado’s fourth-round pick in the 2018 draft, has only come out of the bullpen twice this year, both performances were impressive. Most recently, Feltner relieved Kyle Freeland on Sept. 15 to earn the Rockies lone victory against the Padres. He threw five scoreless innings, giving up only three runs and one walk with five strikeouts. His other relief appearance came against Atlanta on Aug. 30 when he gave up one unearned run (zero earned) across four innings on five hits, two walks and six strikeouts.

At the same time, Feltner has put up some good numbers as a starter, recording five quality starts this season. He’s also never pitched more than six innings in an outing, and has posted four starts when he pitched four innings or fewer. His ERA has ballooned, though, and if you subtract the scoreless relief innings, the 6.10 mark is the highest he’s posted since his rookie year.

Entering this season, Feltner and Chase Dollander battled for a rotation spot, with the runner-up headed to the bullpen. At that time, Feltner edged out Dollander for the rotation. Dollander pitched the first month of the season in relief, only to return to the rotation before hitting the IL with a season-ending elbow injury in mid-May that required internal brace surgery.

When it comes to Feltner’s health, he’s been the victim of some serious bad luck.

Feltner had a September taste of MLB action when he was called up in 2021, but really vied for a spot in the rotation since 2022. That season, he didn’t face any significant injuries, but struggled to find success in moving up and down from the Rockies to the Isotopes.

In 2023, the freak skull fracture happened on a come-backer, but Feltner proved incredible resolve to return toward the end of the season, only to face shoulder inflammation in his throwing arm. In 2024, Feltner was healthy and it showed. He put up the best ERA of his career, the most appearances, the most innings pitched, and most strikeouts.

Feltner then backtracked last year. He posted a 0.6 rWAR, making him the team’s second-best starting pitcher, but he only made six starts. Back and shoulder injuries even limited his Triple-A time, where he only made seven appearances. 

Considering the 2025 season, it is impressive that Feltner has only had one IL stint this season. He’s been able to stay on the field to post the second-most appearances and innings in his career. But those starts haven’t translated to success as Feltner has gone 5-9 in his starts, while the Rockies have gone 8-14 when he starts.

Going from the rotation to the bullpen is a move most starters don’t want to make, but just look at Antonio Senzatela. The veteran pitcher went from one of the hardest-hit starters the last few seasons to a very solid reliever in 2026, as evidenced by his trade to the Milwaukee Brewers, who are currently the best team in baseball.

On the other hand, it’s not like the Rockies are overflowing with starting pitching depth. If Feltner leaves the rotation, a solid arm needs to take his place to help the Rockies take the next step forward in their organizational progression toward being a winning baseball team.

As Purple Row’s Skyler Timmins wrote about earlier this week, both the already struggling rotation and bullpen have really dropped off in the tail end of the season. How to build better, more sustainable pitchers in Colorado — as well as determining who’s a starter and who’s a reliever — will be a major long-term project for Paul DePodesta & Co.

Feltner is making $2.5 million this season and has two more years of team control. It will be fascinating to see where he ends up.

On the Farm

Triple-A:Salt Lake Bees 10, Albuquerque Isotopes 5

The Bees jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning and never looked back in a win on Thursday night. Charlie Condon hit his 26th homer, Tyler Freeman hit an RBI double and RBI single, and Nic Kent hit an RBI double and scored a run on a Jose Cordova sac fly to account for Albuquerque’s scoring. Chad Stevens went 2-for-4 and scored two runs. Freeman finished with three hits. Eiberson Castellano took the loss after giving up two runs on four hits with four walks and three strikeouts.

Double-A:Reading Fightin Phils 5, Hartford Yard Goats 4

The Hartford Yard Goats season came to an end on Thursday night after Reading won Game 2 in the Eastern League Division Series. Considering the Fightin Phils won Game 1 on Wednesday 21-4, at least Hartford put up a good fight on Thursday. The Yard Goats got down 3-0 midway through the third, but rallied back. Braylen Wimmer hit a two-run double in the bottom of the third to cut the deficit to 3-2.

In the eighth, Jared Thomas hit a solo homer to narrow the Reading lead.

Cole Messina did the same in the ninth, but it wasn’t enough in the end.

Fearing his career was over, veteran Quintana now set for return to rotation | MLB.com

Jose Quintana will pitch again for the Rockies this season. Being out since mid-May with a left elbow strain, Quintana is back thanks to hard work and a positive attitude. Quintana was originally scheduled to pitch Friday, but likely won’t anymore since he’ll probably only pitch a few innings and the bullpen was exhausted on Thursday in a 9-2 loss to the Padres.

What they said couldn’t be done: Nomo’s Coors no-no 30 years later | MLB.com

It’s absolutely wild that Hideo Nomo threw a no-hitter 30 years ago on Sept. 17, 1996. After a two-hour rain delay. On a chilly fall night. When the Rockies were a decent team with the Blake Street Bombers. Relive the night with all the hype and details in Manny Randhawa’s piece.

Tucker’s near-cycle clinches LA’s 5th straight NL West title, 13th in 14 years | MLB.com

Despite injuries and ups and downs, the Dodgers have done it again. They keep winning the NL West and 2026 is no different.

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

The Mets. We don’t like them. We would like to beat them.

I cannot guarantee victory over the loathed blue and orange club. I can guarantee some links.

Phillies News

José Urquidy has made his way to Philly from the ChiSox via waivers.

Brandon Marsh’s season has hit a bumpy patch. ($)

Jesús Luzardo’s injury is a problem. But maybe not reason to panic. ($)

MLB News

Relievers who might be a big deal this postseason.

A breakout prospect from each club.
A 25-year-old mystery from a Fall Classic past.
Where’s the next two-way star?

It’s the final regular season homestand and it’s one of the tougher matchups. Atlanta Braves Pre/Post Game Host, Barrett Sallee from 680 The Fan joins us exclusively at The Crawfish Boxes to break it all down.

Q: Astros fans immediately flashback to the 2021 World Series against Atlanta. There’s still 5 members from that squad on the Braves. When you prepare your pre/post-game coverage tonight, will you reflect or reference that matchup?  

A: Yeah, we will definitely discuss the 2021 World Series. That was one of the most improbable runs we have seen in the sport in a very long time. It’s not often that a team that’s below .500 at the deadline makes a run like that, especially with two trade deadline pickups as the MVPs of the NLCS and World Series. As far as specific coverage, we haven’t figured that out yet. But it will definitely be a topic of conversation, especially for local callers after the network coverage wraps up.

Q:Let’s begin with the top of the order, it seems like there’s been a variety of combinations and most of them have worked.    

A: Walt Weiss has moved players all over the lineup this season. Typically, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drake Baldwin are No. 1 and No. 2 depending on righty or lefty matchups. However, Harris has popped up to the leadoff spot a few times over the last few weeks. It’s been a challenge for the top of the lineup at times this season. Acuña was hurt, then Baldwin, then Acuña again. Things have settled down lately, and we have seen Olson entrenched in that No. 3 spot behind Acuña and Baldwin, wherever they pop in on any given day. Olson has been in a bit of a slump lately. He’s always been a streaky hitter, but this one seems to be longer than others that we have seen in the past. However, when he breaks out of them, he does in a BIG way. Those three can be the most dangerous top 3 in baseball if they’re all healthy and cooking at the same time. Hopefully we will see that for the rest of the season and beyond. 

Harris is a massive reason that the Braves have been successful this season. Historically, his slumps and hot streaks have been extremely low and extremely high, with nothing in between. However, this year he has been solid all season. The slumps haven’t been long, and certainly not as noticeable. The hot streaks have been incredible, which is why you see his offensive productions so high this year when compared to other seasons. 

Q: What has Chris Sale has meant to this rotation this season?

A: Sale might not win the Cy Young Award again this season, but there’s no doubt that his contribution to this team is as valuable as any other pitcher to any other team in the league. He has received very little run production, but finds ways to give his team chances to win every single game. He truly doesn’t care about his win/loss record. He goes in to every start with the only goal of giving his team a chance to win. If he has a great game and the Braves lose, he is not a happy camper. Some pitchers say things like that, but don’t really mean it. Chris REALLY means it.

He has been pushed back in the rotation quite a few times for two reasons this year. The first is to give him a little extra rest to keep him fresh and secondly, to set up matchups against good pitchers and teams to set the tone. I compare the way that Weiss uses Sale to that of a college coach in the midst of a conference schedule. Every team always has that “Friday starter.” The guy that you trust more than anybody else, and can go out and dominate not only to set the tone for the series, but also protect the bullpen for the remainder of the series. Sale has thrived because of it.

More than anything else, though, is that his mindset has permeated throughout the clubhouse. He wants to win, plain and simple. That’s all this team wants to do. If any starter or any hitter goes out and has a great day, but the team loses, that’s a bad day. The younger guys – pitchers and hitters alike – have all taken to this mindset.

Q:Are the Braves built for a deep run this postseason?

A: The Braves are definitely built for a postseason run. While the offense has gone through some rough spots – June and August to be specific – we know how dangerous it can be. Plus, the ability of the pitching staff to keep them in games really helps. The biggest reason, though, is the bullpen. We have seen Dylan Dodd and Didier Fuentes escalate their games to become much higher leverage pitchers than they were early on. When you factor in Raisel Iglesias and (hopefully) Robert Suarez, the Braves have one of the best bullpens in the game.

Q: What would be your overview on pitcher Grant Holmes ?

A: Grant has really come along this season. He has a bulldog mentality. There have been times where, whether it’s for the team or himself individually, he has been in pressure-packed situations. He has come through in every single one of them. His slider has been nasty essentially the whole season. When he gets in trouble, it’s because of walks. However, he told us a few months ago that he really toned down his intensity. As a result, his command has become much sharper and he’s been able to go deeper in games. He really has a chip on his shoulder, too. He was a first round draft pick who essentially spent a decade in the minors. He belongs, we all know he belongs, and he’s going to show everybody that he belongs every time he takes the hill.

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

Only nine games remain on the Orioles’ 2026 schedule. We’re down to single digits now. Tonight, the Orioles begin their final homestand of the season, hosting the MLB-best Brewers and the wild card-hopeful Blue Jays before finishing their year at Yankee Stadium.

You’d be forgiven if you thought the Orioles’ homestand actually started four days ago, considering how much adulation and support the CitiField crowd was giving to the Orioles (well, one particular Oriole). The positive energy coming from the Mets fans seemed to bolster the Orioles’ spirits, lifting them to a series sweep. It also helps that the Mets are a truly dreadful team.

The Orioles don’t figure to get the same kind of help this weekend from the Brewers, who hold the best record in baseball and have already clinched the NL Central. If the O’s intend to keep their hot streak going, they’re going to need to bring their A game, such as it is. The pessimistic take is that the Orioles will get a cold dose of reality now that they’re facing competent teams, and that this homestand is almost certainly when the O’s will be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.

But if you’re the optimistic type who’s holding out hope that the Birds can still make a late run at this, they’re going to need to play practically flawless baseball from here on out, and they’re going to need some help to knock out their wild card competitors, too. Right now it’s hard to pinpoint exactly which teams are their wild card competitors, since the AL Central and AL West divisions are very much up for grabs. The White Sox and Guardians are tied for the Central division lead (with the White Sox holding the tiebreaker), and in the West, the Astros hold a one-game lead over the Rangers (and the tiebreaker). The O’s are three games behind for the third wild card spot, currently held by the Guardians. The Rangers and Blue Jays are two games back.

With so many mediocre teams in the mix, the math gets complicated. To catch the Guardians, the Orioles would need to be four games better than them for the remaining nine games (since Cleveland holds the tiebreaker). But if the Guardians were to take the AL Central lead and knock the White Sox into the wild card race, the O’s would only need to be three games better than Chicago, since the Orioles hold the tiebreaker. Of the West teams, the Orioles hold the tiebreaker against the Astros but not against the Rangers, so however that division shakes out will affect the Birds as well. And then there’s also the Blue Jays to contend with, though the Orioles will have a chance to beat them head-to-head in their three-game series next week.

There are a lot of moving parts, and very little time for all of those parts to move in the Orioles’ favor. In all likelihood, three or four days from now there will be no need for O’s fans to keep track of the various wild card permutations. But if you’re keeping an eye on the out-of-town scores just in case, the Guardians are hosting the Athletics this weekend, the White Sox hosting the Tigers, the Astros at home against the Braves, and the Blue Jays and Rangers are facing each other in a pivotal wild-card battle in Texas. Happy scoreboard watching!

Links

Orioles make plans to bring back Povich – School of Roch

Cade Povich is the only realistic choice to replace Kyle Bradish, but see, this is why it’s hard to really believe the Orioles have any kind of chance of running the table.

What went wrong with the post-2023 Orioles? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com

This is a question that would require a novel-length analysis to really delve into, but Rich Dubroff valiantly tries to sum it up in a few paragraphs.

Luis De Leon is emerging as someone that could help the 2027 Orioles – Steve Melewski

The rookie lefty didn’t exactly endear himself to O’s fans by losing his first two major league games, but he’s quietly pitched pretty well since then.

Jon Meoli: Pete Alonso has given the Orioles his best. They’re on the verge of wasting it. – The Baltimore Banner

At least Pete is signed for four more years after this one. I just wish I could feel confident that the Orioles won’t waste all of those, too.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Two former Orioles pitchers were born on this date: 2021-22 righty Marcos Diplán (30) and the late lefty Harvey Haddix (b. 1925, d. 1994), who finished his career with the O’s from 1964-65.

On this date in 1976, Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, then playing for Cleveland, appeared in the final game of his 21-year major league career. Appropriately enough, it came against the Orioles, and befitting of Frank’s stellar career, it was an RBI single. It came as a pinch-hitter in the eighth in a 3-2 O’s win at Cleveland Stadium.

One year later, another Orioles legend got his moment as the O’s celebrated “Thanks, Brooks” Day to honor the retiring Brooks Robinson. A sellout crowd of 51,798 packed Memorial Stadium to cheer on the beloved longtime Oriole in an hour-long pregame ceremony. Brooks received a minutes-long standing ovation from the crowd as he rode in a car around the warning track, greeting fans. Despite insisting on no gifts, Robinson was presented with a new car, replacement Gold Glove awards for the ones he had donated to charity, and even third base itself, given to him by his replacement at the position, Doug DeCinces.

And on this date in 1991, yet another legendary O’s Hall of Famer had a day to remember. Cal Ripken Jr. hit his 30th homer in a loss to the Red Sox, making him the first shortstop in major league history to have a 30-homer, 40-double season. He finished the season with a career-high 34 homers as well as 46 doubles on his way to winning his second AL Most Valuable Player Award.

From a regular season standpoint, the 2026 season ends Sep 27. For teams like the Cardinals, their minds’ eye has already started to turn toward the 2027 season. However, transactions (for the most part) that begin to shape the organization’s talent pool won’t really begin until after the World Series ends, or very early in November.

This off-season portends a bit of a unique feature in that the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expires on Dec 1, and the universal expectation is that transactions will freeze at that point and the players will be locked out of MLB facilities. This will create the MLB version of NCAA’s quiet period, inconveniently overlapping with the time most MLB teams conduct the most extensive roster reshaping exercises of the year. Unless there is a surprise early agreement on a new CBA, expect that the Winter Meetings won’t include player transactions (free agent signings or trades) and the Rule V draft will not occur (on the last day of those meetings). The Winter Meetings themselves may not even occur.

Given this backdrop, what is in store for the Cardinals as they continue to reshape their roster and strive to re-acquire a playoff contending team?

First, I want to take a look back at what this new management team did to reshape the roster in their first year at the helm. Some will remark that this management team has been around longer than a year, which is fair, but they really didn’t get their fingerprints on the major league roster until last November. This article focuses on that roster, not the MiLB side, which has been changing for a longer time. Let’s look a year ago.

When the 2025 season ended, the Cardinals had wrapped up with 78 wins and a retirement party for outgoing POBO John Mozeliak. Change was in the air and hopes were high. As I look at the 40-man roster at the time, it seemed an extensive roster reshaping might be in order. 78-win teams will create that impression. At the time, I counted up 21 pots that could undergo some churn (and hopefully, improvement). See below.

Mikelos was expected to depart via free agency and did. King was non-tendered, as expected. Ten spots on the 40-man roster needed upgrades. A year later, all but one (Prieto) have been moved on. Although the path from then to now was a bit circuitous, I think it fair to opine that in general, improvement has been achieved.

Thompson ended 2025 on the 60-day IL but was not added back to the 40-man when it expired. He remained in the organization, however, but he has not pitched since. I suspect his career is over.

Additionally, one could look at the established veterans on the roster and anticipate that some, if not all, could be dealt as the Cardinals transitioned from one core set of players to another. Their contracts represented a tangle, but management put up the cash to make transactions happen. Here we look up a year later, and all seven indeed have moved on.

That covered the pending departures. Moving on to anticipated adds.

Many 40-man roster changes are instigated by the need to bring on prospects who needed Rule V protection or were ready to make their MLB debuts even if they don’t need protection. The player situations coming out of the 2025 season are shown below, along with some obvious acquisition needs that would be met via trade or free agency.

In the first column, we have the players that could have been projected for MLB debut in 2026 before needing 40-man protection. Three were indeed added to the 40-man and promoted. Henderson suffered a long-term injury and his future is cloudy.

The second column identified players needing 40-man protection. Baez, Bernal, Mautz, Torres and Hjerpe were protected. Love, Hansen and Mendoza were not. All protected players saw their MLB debut and most project as part of the future. The ones that were not added? Hard to say these were mistakes. Winquest was overlooked in this list and got drafted in the Rule V (and returned).

The last column identified the obvious needs (before any MLB roster transactions occurred). Dustin May effectively replaced Mikolas. Justin Bruihl effectively replaced John King and they were added to the 40-man when acquired. Several other pitchers were added later as well, such as Stanek, Shuster, Bruihl, Soriano.

One complicating factor seemed particularly acute last year. At the end of 2025, in addition to the aforementioned Thompson, the Cardinals were carrying 3 pitchers with long-term injuries that would carry over into the 2026 season. This had the effect of freezing three 40-man spots, rendering them unusable until recovery occurred. Roby and Hence were already on the 40-man, and in spite of the injury, Hjerpe did get added. Hjerpe eventually made it back and had his MLB debut recently and he required a 40-man spot when he returned. Roby was handled differently. In 2026, he wasn’t actually placed on the MLB 60-IL but was optioned to MiLB and from a 40-man standpoint treated as a player in the minors. He did pitch in game conditions in order to preserve the option year. He will pitch in the AFL. Hence did not make it back and was subsequently removed from the roster.

Without getting into individual players and situations too much, I think a couple of observations about the overall process may be instructive for how this management team operates.

While the opportunities for churn were obvious a year ago, we should note that it really took almost a full year (not just the off-season) to accomplish “churning” 22 out of the 23 spots (deductions) and 11 more additions. For example, there was much teeth gnashing when Pozo remained on the roster coming into the 2026 season. Heck, if I could see the need for roster upgrade in September, 2025, why would that not be done by when the 2026 season opened? Answer: Sometimes it takes a little longer. At the end of the day, they got there.

The process itself is not complete. I look at this an iteration number one of the transition. I suspect we face another this next year (not just the off-season), complicated by CBA machinations.

Note the imbalance of subtractions and adds from the minor league system last year. The Cardinals chose to add a number of one-and-done players to fill out their MLB roster, many of whom were already off the roster by the end of 2026 (Pushard, Shuster, Blewett, et.al.). This appears to have been by design, to provide roster flexibility as prospects ascend. Keep this in mind. The main path for these guys coming in? Spring training non-roster-invitees (NRI).

When compared to prior years, the amount of churn after 2025 was high. I think most agree the roster had grown stale and this churn was necessary, if sad at times, as we saw favorite players depart. What I think we learned is that this management team is methodical, but not necessarily conservative. Turning over half the roster is not “passive”. Fans can squeal about whether Baez should have come up in July instead of August, but realistically, the indirect path led to the needed changes.

How might this apply to this upcoming off-season? If they follow a similar recipe, it should look about like this:

Soon after the World Series, expect the Cardinals to decline option years on Urias and Stanek. I anticipate a much more limited roster clean-up this off-season (to start with), which I will explain more in the next section. I see 3-4 guys being removed from the roster as part of a general clean-up and another 3 potentially being non-tendered. They will need these spots cleared to make room for new prospects being added, and these are the guys I anticipate going first.

For each of these three non-tender candidates, their performance, projected role and arbitration salary make their spots tenuous at best. It is possible they could end up in the traded category, if another team wants to jump the line before the non-tender deadline.

As to the Free Agents and clean-up spots, I’ve heard these being referred to a “organic changes”. They occur every year with every team and this (or something like it) is this year’s edition. Urias and Strzeleki are already gone, being DFA’ed in the 3rd week of September. Both players were at various stages of injury recovery and the timeline on the season was running out. With the writing on the wall, I anticipate both transactions were done with the players knowledge and acceptance.

Last, two 40-man roster spots may free up in February if Rajcic and Dobbins get placed on the 60-day IL for the 2027 season. Similar to Fitts and Roby last year, they may choose to option these guys and put them on the MILB full season injured list. This decision will likely depend on how many MLB additions they bring into camp for Spring Training.

In total, I expect only 8-9 spots to open up over the off-season. A fair bit different than last year.

Moving on the the potential additions the Cardinals will have to consider as they map out 2027:

I’ll start with the Rule V protection column. As described in a prior article, I anticipate that these six players will be the players moved on to the 40-man. Might be one or two more or less, probably depending on if they see some of the new outfielders as better alternatives to Scott II.

In the IL-60 column, Rajcic must be moved back to the 40-man as the IL-60 list expires at season’s end, so he looks like an addition. This leads to my roster math … seven players on, eight or nine players depart (free agents, 40-man, non-tender). This isn’t a statement that the other 32 spots don’t need upgrading, it is recognition that they free up those spots when someone is ready to fill them (trades, free agency). By November, they’ll need seven spots just to protect their own assets, so they will focus there first.

Looking down the road, it seems prudent to expect the Cardinals will continue to promote up some of their high-ceiling prospects (the first column) through the course of the 2027 season, but likely not coming on Opening Day. In constructing their 2027 roster, they must be mindful to allow for up to 7 spots to churn mid-season as these phenoms matriculate. Realistically, the 40-man roster will need at least half-a-dozen players on it that they do not expect to be with the team come this time next year, to allow for these promotions.

As you look at potential roster improvements (listed generally in the external acquisition column), the team will have pretty much two alternatives. One, they can go out and acquire players that upgrade these areas, or they can wait for some of the uber-prospects to master AAA and be promoted.

If they choose to wait, they will be faced with either coming out of spring training 2027 with a roster largely unchanged from the one that ends 2026 or acquiring a series of short-term upgrades that can be displaced when the uber-prospects are ready as 2027 progresses (or perhaps longer).

There will be some trickiness here, because those yet unidentified, short-term upgrades will displace existing roster members. Bruihl? Torres? Rincon? Peirera? Mautz? Fermin? Winquest? It speaks to the improvement of the overall roster that these decisions will be a bit tougher this go-around than last year.

A third option is to trade off from the core set of players and more radically approach upgrading the roster. Herrera? Burleson? Winn? All are possibilities, but this seems somewhat remote, but a non-zero probability.

So, at the end of the day, I see 3 pathways:

1. Keep the roster mostly intact, except for the organic changes related to free agency, non-tenders and a couple of fringe players,
2. Obtain a number of short-term upgrades and displace role players, and/or
3. Deal off from the core set of players to upgrade the roster in the areas of need (3b, CF, SP, RP, bench).

Remember, the Cardinals will have about 30 days to execute whichever approach they choose before the lock-out starts. They will also likely have a short window post-lockout, but that will be a mad scramble that will be difficult for this methodical group to navigate.

The Detroit Tigers dropped the series opener to the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on Thursday night, 3-1. Framber Valdez struggled early, giving up all three runs that the home team would score in the first inning and the offense simply had no answer for the opposing pitching staff.

Getting the start in Game 2 for the Motor City Kitties is right-handed rookie Andrew Sears, who has had mixed results in his four appearances so far. The 24-year-old has put up a perfectly mediocre 4.50 ERA and 4.10 FIP so far in two games as a starter, allowing 11 hits (one home run) and three walks while striking out nine, along with a pair of hit-by-pitches over 10 innings since being moved into the rotation.

The ChiSox have a righty rookie of their own taking the bump on Friday night in David Sandlin, who will make his fifth start of the 2026 campaign. The 25-year-old has put up a 4.15 ERA and 3.83 FIP over 21 2/3 innings as a member of Chicago’s rotation, but a rough outing that saw him surrender eight earned runs over four frames prevents him from having much more impressive numbers.

Take a look below at how the two match up in the second of the four-game series this weekend.

Detroit Tigers (72-81) vs. Chicago White Sox (78-75)

Time (ET): 7:40 p.m.
Place: Rate Field, Chicago, Illinois
SB Nation Site:South Side Sox
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 154: LHP Andrew Sears (0-1, 5.40 ERA) vs. RHP David Sandlin (2-2, 5.64 ERA)

SEARS

SANDLIN

Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. The Brewers have officially clinched the NL Central, and they’re now on the verge of clinching their first-round bye. They’re also nearing a franchise record for wins (97-65 last season) and have a realistic shot at becoming the first 100-win team in franchise history. Lots to still play for (even if it’s somewhat symbolic) over these last 10 days.

Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-baseball sports, the Brewers, you name it. As long as it’s appropriate and is allowed by our moderators, it’s fair game here.

You know the drill.

This is now an open thread: