Category: Baseball

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year, we ask questions of the most plugged-in Kansas City Royals fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Earlier this week, we asked if y’all wanted to watch Jac Caglianone play in the home run derby

I have to admit, I’m surprised by these results. Almost all of the comments I saw on the poll were quite negative in one way or another toward Jac Caglianone participating, but perhaps I should take that as a sign that the comments aren’t actually representative of much.

In the end, not just a plurality, but a full majority of voters think Jac belongs in the Home Run Derby, hitting his hammers, jacks, and whatever other word play we can come up with to signify his home runs. A full 53%! And yeah, after this poll question went up, Jac had a two bomb night in Tampa Bay, including a mammoth shot that absolutely went further than the 444-foot estimate and line drive hit so hard that it cleared the centerfield fence before it could drop enough to stay in the park.

31% of voters felt that while Jac might “deserve” a trip to the derby, they hoped he wouldn’t go. Most of you who voted that way fear that it would wreck his swing, I imagine. If he does get to participate, you can take solace in the fact that every study on the subject has debunked this myth.

16% of fans just don’t think Jac would be one of the best possible contestants. And to those people, I submit the above highlight video. Watch those two bombs again and tell me the guy who can hit those doesn’t have a place in the derby. At the very worst, Jac Caglianone deserves to go on the same merits that saw Oneil Cruz selected last year. He hits the absolute tar out of the ball on a regular basis, and there simply can’t be eight more people in MLB who would be more fun to watch strut their stuff like that.

Last year, MLB The Show developer Sony San Diego studios brought back an in-game prediction game that had been part of the series previous for the Home Run Derby. Players were encouraged to guess who would win the derby, who would hit the longest home run, who would hit the most home runs in a round, and which league would win the All-Star Game itself. Once I knew who was in the field, guessing who would hit the longest dinger was a no-brainer for me; it was always going to be Oneil Cruz. Cruz indeed hit the longest blast at an estimated 513 feet. Outside of maybe Giancarlo Stanton or Cruz again, Jac has the best chance among current MLB players to outdo that.

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The Chicago Cubs won the first three games of this series while scoring 9+ runs in each.

My Cubs vs. Mets predictions and MLB picks are banking on more of the same as they look to complete the sweep on Thursday night.

Who will win Cubs vs Mets today: Cubs moneyline (-110)

The Chicago Cubs have feasted on right-handed pitching over the past two weeks, ranking seventh in wOBA, eighth in OPS, and first in walk rate.

They should get to Freddy Peralta, who has allowed four runs or more in four of his past six starts — and has simply not lived up to expectations with the New York Mets.

Matthew Boyd is unlikely to provide much length in his return, but the Cubs should be able to patch things together against an offense sitting 22nd in runs and 29th in OBP. 

Back Chicago to -120.

COVERS INTEL: Freddy Peralta ranks in the 31st percentile in pitcher run value.

Cubs vs Mets Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (-115)

At least 13 runs were scored in each of the first three games, and I’m expecting more fireworks in tonight's finale.

Chicago has plated 6+ runs in six consecutive games and scored five or more in eight of the past 10. The Cubs are firing on all cylinders at the plate and can be relied upon to do heavy lifting.

Boyd has given up multiple runs in four of five starts and will be making his first MLB appearance since May 3. Behind him is a taxed bullpen; New York should score.

Play the Over to -130.

Cubs vs Mets weather

Temperatures are expected to approach 80 with 15-mile-per-hour winds blowing out. Clear boost to the offenses.

Cubs vs Mets odds

• Moneyline: Cubs -110 | Mets -110
• Run line: Cubs -1.5 (+155) | Mets +1.5 (-180)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (-110) | Under 8.5 (-110)

Cubs vs Mets trend

The Mets have cashed the Over in 13 of their last 23 games for +6.3 units and a 25% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Cubs vs. Mets.

How to watch Cubs vs Mets and game info

Cubs vs Mets latest injuries

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Welcome in to Friday Junior's MLB player props & best bets for June 25.

One pitcher is entirely unhittable right now, while the other is a prime target for a blowout. Tonight’s card centers around two massive pitching angles: backing the sheer dominance of Cristopher Sánchez and aggressively fading a fading Zac Gallen. Here is how we are exploiting the mismatch.

Let's dig in to my top MLB picks for Thursday.

Best MLB strikeout props and starting pitcher picks today

Player	Pick	Odds
Cristopher Sánchez	Over 6.5 Strikeouts	+107
Zac Gallen	Under 3.5 Strikeouts	-103
Zac Gallen	Over 2.5 Earned Runs	-141

Strikeout prop: Cristopher Sanchez Over 6.5 Strikeouts (+107)

Sure, the Washington Nationals have been one of the most dangerous offenses in baseball this season, but they have yet to face a pitcher of Cristopher Sánchez's caliber. On the year, Washington owns a 38.1% strikeout rate against left-handed pitching at home. Over their last 12 games against southpaws, that number still sits at 25%.

Meanwhile, the Philadelphia Phillies' ace has been on an absolute tear, posting a 28.54% strikeout rate and 31.09% whiff rate this season. He draws a Nationals lineup that features five hitters striking out above the league average. Sánchez also enters with an elite rating on Batters-Box. In 47 elite-rated starts, he has recorded 6+ strikeouts 57.45% of the time and 7+ strikeouts 42.55% of the time.

Take this down to even money, but do not pay any juice.

• Time: 6:45 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: NATS, NBCSP

Strikeout prop: Zac Gallen Under 3.5 Strikeouts (-103)

If you enjoy my write-ups, first off, thank you. Secondly, you are going to hear me mention Zac Gallen's name a lot today.

The Arizona Diamondbacks right-hander draws an offense that is not only on fire, but simply does not strike out. According to Batters-Box's current season dataset, the St. Louis Cardinals have zero hitters above the league-average strikeout rate.

They also have five hitters in their projected lineup with a strikeout rate of 15% or lower over their last 60 at-bats against right-handed pitching. As a team, St. Louis owns just a 15.9% strikeout rate over its last 12 games.

On the other side, Gallen owns the lowest matchup strikeout rate on the board today, per Batters-Box. Over his last five starts, his strikeout rate has dipped below 10%.

I find it hard to envision him shoving here. He has struggled for much of the season, the Cardinals' bats have been scorching hot, and I expect that to continue.

Go for the Under.

• Time: 7:45 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: CARD, ARID

Earned Runs Prop: Zac Gallen Over 2.5 Earned Runs (-141)

One of the worst-rated pitchers on today's slate happens to be Diamondbacks right-hander Zac Gallen, who brings a poorly rated matchup ISO, hard contact rate, and ground ball rate to the table.

Away from home this season, Gallen owns a 7.68 ERA and 6.00 xERA while allowing 48% hard contact and an 11.5% barrel rate.

To make matters worse, he draws seven, yes, SEVEN elite-rated St. Louis Cardinals hitters, according to Batters-Box's current season ratings.

Over their last 12 games, the Cardinals have been squaring the ball up all over the yard, posting a 122 wRC+, .782 OPS, .345 wOBA, and .151 ISO. With that many bats in a premium spot tonight, how could I not back the Cardinals against Gallen's noodle arm?

If you are not in the juice-paying business, the Cardinals First Five Team Total Over 2.5 is another great way to attack this matchup.

• Time: 7:45 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: CARD, ARID

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I want everyone to be honest with themselves. Ignoring the sequencing, did you think the Cubs would be on a pace for more than 87 wins? I did. So yeah, I’m a little disappointed where this half of baseball ended up. I don’t have to convince any of you that this team left wins on the table. Though if we are being honest, this team stole a ton of games in the first half too. It absolutely won more than a handful of games that should probably have been lost while losing more than a handful that probably should have been won. It has been that kind of an odd season.

But the team approaches today’s halfway point of the season at 43-37 and going 9-3 over their last 12 after having dropped to 34-34. Certainly, if you’d listed all of the injuries this team would face over the first 80 games, I wouldn’t have thought they’d win even 43. And yet, we’re left feeling a bit like they’ve underachieved. The only reason that ends up mattering is that the road ahead looks really bumpy and problematic.

I’ve always said that the whole thing about too many teams being in front of you is fairly overrated. The only question that matters when you fall behind the pace is if you are capable of stringing together the type of 10-game winning streak or 15 wins in 20 games type of stretch that really makes up ground. If you are that type of team, you can work your way through a crowd.

The problem for this team is that the projection going forward just can’t be very optimistic. Maybe the lineup and some let up in new injuries in the second half allows the team to play .500 or a little better ball the rest of the way. Playing .500 the rest of the way nets 84 wins. I’ll eat my hat if that is even within a few games of a playoff spot in this year’s NL.

I don’t see how this team can get on any kind of sustained streak and I don’t know how you’d convince this front office and ownership group that you can give up the kind of talent necessary to swing a needle moving trade. Without a needle moving trade, you are relying on healthy productive returns and development from within. I can allow myself to think of Matthew Boyd making strong contributions down the stretch. Do I think Jameson Taillon can? What would I be basing that on? He hasn’t had real sustained success in quite some time.

This team has been excellent against NL East teams struggling at the time the teams meet. This team has otherwise been extremely ordinary. The Cubs are 12-1 against the Phillies and Mets and 31-36 against the rest of the league. After this series, the Cubs will be done with both. The Cubs presently have more wins against the NL East (14 in 19 games) than the Central (8 in 17 games). There are a heck of a lot more games left against the Central than the East.

This series has been a lot of fun. Just prepare for a rough road ahead.

Game 79 Positives:

• The Dansby Swanson game, the Dansby Swanson series. Holy cow. Two homers, seven runs driven in.
• Michael Busch, a solo homer, a walk, a hit by pitch. Two runs driven in and one scored.
• Ian Happ, a double, a walk and a hit by pitch. He scored a run.

Game 80 Positives:

• The Mets defense isn’t ours and their pitching may be in further disarray as a result.
• Nico Hoerner with a three-double game and three runs scored.
• Dansby Swanson, three more hits, one a triple and four runs driven in and one scored. Stole a base. First Cub ever to have three straight four+ RBI games. 15 runs driven in already in the series. Already a record vs. the Mets.
• Pedro Ramirez with a three-hit, four-run, two RBI, two stolen base game.

Game 79, June 24: Cubs 10, Mets 3 (42-37)

Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.

THREE HEROES:

• Superhero: Dansby Swanson (.347). 2-4, 2 HR, 7 RBI, 2 R
• Hero: Michael Busch (.274). 1-3, HR, BB, HBP, 2 RBI, R
• Sidekick: Ian Happ (.082). 1-3, 2B, BB, HBP, R

THREE GOATS:

• Billy Goat: Pedro Ramirez (-.184). 0-3, SH
• Goat: Seiya Suzuki (-.081) . 0-5
• Kid: Javier Assad (-.061). 5 IP, 21 BF, 5 H, 2 BB, 3 ER, 5 K (W 6-1)

WPA Play of the Game: Dansby Swanson’s sixth inning three-run homer gave the Cubs a three run lead. (.356)

Mets Play of the Game: Jared Young’s two-run homer with no outs in the fourth opened the scoring in the game. (.194)

Cubs Player of the Game:

Game 80, June 24: Cubs 10, Mets 5 (43-37)

THREE HEROES:

• Superhero: Pedro Ramirez (.261). 3-5, 2B, 2 RBI, 4 R, 2 SB
• Hero: Dansby Swanson (.200). 3-5, 3B, 4 RBI, R, SB
• Sidekick: Nico Hoerner (.156). 3-5, 3 2 B, 3 R

THREE GOATS:

• Billy Goat: Shōta Imanaga (-.167). 5.1 IP, 20 BF, 4 H, BB, 4 ER, 4 K (W 5-6)
• Goat: Michael Busch (-.137). 0-5
• Kid: Seiya Suzuki (-.103). 0-5, DP

WPA Play of the Game: A.J. Ewing’s two-run homer with two outs in the second gave the Mets a two run lead.(.207)

Cubs Play of the Game: Dansby Swanson’s RBI-triple with a runner at second and no outs in the sixth inning gave the Cubs a 5-4 lead (.182).

Cubs Player of the Game:

Game 78 Winner: Pete Crow-Armstrong over Dansby Swanson 59-50 (113 total votes).

Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)

The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.

• Michael Busch +20
• Pete Crow-Armstrong +19
• Ben Brown +13.5
• Carson Kelly +12.5
• Michael Conforto +9
• Jacob Webb/Jameson Taillon -8
• Edward Cabrera -9.5
• Phil Maton -10
• Caleb Thielbar -13
• Seiya Suzuki -22.5

Dansby Swanson is +7 over the Cubs last six games to leave the bottom of the leaderboard.

Up Next: The fourth and final game of this series and seventh and last game of the season series. The Cubs are a perfect 3-0 in the series and 6-0 on the season against the Mets. Matthew Boyd (2-1, 6.00) returns. He’ll face Freddy Peralta (5-6, 4.83).

2026 MLB Draft Preview: Peyton Bonds scouting report.

The 2026 is about a month away — the first round kicks off on July 11, 2026 — so its time to start offering capsule looks at players the Texas Rangers could select with their top picks. The Rangers’ first round pick is at #16, their second round pick is at #54, and their third round pick is at #89.

Leading up to draft day, we will be doing writeups of some of the players who could end up getting selected by the Rangers with one of their first three picks. Today we are looking at Rutgers outfielder Peyton Bonds.

Peyton Bonds is a 6’5″, 230 lb. righthanded hitting centerfielder who just wrapped up his junior season at Rutgers. Bonds is the son of Bobby Bonds, Jr., and the nephew of Barry Bonds. Undrafted coming out of high school in New Jersey in 2023, he spent his freshman season at Campbell, then transferred to Rutgers, where he has played the past two seasons. Bonds turns 21 next month.

Bonds has a good hit tool and an ability to make contact that belies his bloodlines, at least as far as his grandfather goes. MLB Pipeline praises his bat-to-ball skills and his bat speed. He also puts up impressive exit velocities. However, his present in-game power is lacking — he has just 16 homers in three years of college ball. Given his size and bat speed, it would seem that he should be able to hit for power, but he has had a high groundball rate in college. A team that drafts him is going to be looking to work with him on getting the ball in the air consistently.

There appear to be differing opinions on his speed, with BA putting it at plus and MLB Pipeline at average. However, it appears he’s seen as good enough defensively to stick in center field. MLB Pipeline says he earns praise for his instincts, makeup and “passion for the game.”

Bonds put up a .267/.341/.427 slash line in 170 plate appearances at Campbell as a freshman while going 14 for 14 on stolen base attempts. Upon transferring to Rutgers as a sophomore, he slashed .300/.384/.430, with 45 Ks against 21 walks in 258 plate appearances while stealing 16 bases in 18 attempts. He took a step forward in 2026, though he missed time due to a hamstring injury suffered in April. He slashed .352/.436/.535 in 166 plate appearances, walked 16 times against 21 Ks, and was 13 for 15 on the basepaths.

Baseball America has Bonds at #109 on their board. MLB Pipeline has Bonds at #74 on their board. Kiley McDaniel puts Bonds at #93 on his top 150 list. Keith Law does not include Bonds on his board. Fangraphs has does not have Bonds on their board. Baseball Prospectus does not have Bonds on their top 30 draft board.

Bonds is a guy who has shown significant improvement year-over-year, going from an underwhelming performing in the Colonial League as a freshman to being one of the best position players for Rutgers as a sophomore, and then the best player on the team this year. That sort of improvement would show an ability to adapt and show significant growth which, along with the high makeup grades, could indicate greater potential upside, as well as a greater likelihood of Bonds getting the most out of his abilities.

Despite his size and pedigree, he’s not a toolshed like his grandfather and uncle. His father was a grinder who was an 18th round pick in 1992 who barely played above A-ball, who spent seven years playing in the Padres and Giants systems, then five more in the Indy Leagues. Bonds should go well before the 18th round.

Bonds is someone who would seem to profile as a second to fourth round pick. If the reports on the defense are correct and he’ll be able to handle center field going forward, it gives him a decent floor. His ability to succeed long-term in the majors, though, likely will be dependent on his ability to elevate the ball, and convert the impressive exit velocities into extra base hits instead of 6-3s.

Previously:

Liam Peterson

Tyler Bell

Aiden Robbins

Jared Grindlinger

Logan Reddemann

Cooper Harris

Justin Lebron

Cameron Flukey

Derek Curiel

Hunter Dietz

Logan Hughes

Carson Wiggins

The other day, we posted a poll about which thing has been most surprising this season for the Phillies. The results:

Brandon Marsh’s tenure with the Phillies have been something of a roller coaster. His acquisition in 2022 was met with a bit consternation as the Phillies had to send Logan O’Hoppe back to the Angels in return. At that time, O’Hoppe was seen as the heir apparent to J.T. Realmuto and his inclusion for what some called a platoon player was seen as an overpay by Dave Dombrowski.

I think it’s safe to say that that trade can be deemed a success.

However, in the years since then, the allure of the platoon was too strong for Rob Thomson. Marsh was summarily chained to the bench whenever a southpaw has been on the mound opposing the team, though the numbers behind the decision were sound (.202/.276/.309 in 393 PA against LHP from 2022-25). This year, those numbers have perked up quite a bit (.273/.305/.429 in 82 PA against LHP), leading to his getting more time against southpaws. It doesn’t hurt that the team didn’t have a right handed option better than Marsh to take on that platoon with him, but it reminds me a bit of Chase Utley when he first came to the majors. One of his bugaboos was that he also struggled with left handed pitching, but it was plainly obvious he just needed to be exposed to them more often, his natural hitting talent great enough that he should have been able to be successful.

Marsh’s success against left handed pitching has carried over and led to greater overall numbers, his ability to mash right handed hitting remaining the same. In fact, since the beginning of last season, Marsh’s 121 OPS+ is eighth among all outfielders in the game. He’s been good for a while, so his success this year shouldn’t be too, too surprising. But in a season in which some things have been good, some things have been bad, you voted Marsh’s year as the most surprising thing about them.

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1903
It was a tale of two games.

The first nine innings, played to a tie, was full of hitting and sloppy fielding (12 errors, six per team). The second nine, also played to a tie, featured a pitcher’s duel that ended in the dark.

The White Sox and Highlanders (Yankees) played the longest game in American League history (and just shy of the MLB record set a year earlier between the Colts and Pirates), squeezing in 18 innings in fewer than four hours.

The game was tied on a barrage of late hits from the Highlanders, and the White Sox only escaped the innings thanks to a deft catch by catcher Ed McFarland in foul territory that doubled up a New York runner.

From there, it was goose eggs, as White Sox reliever Roy Patterson and New York sub Jesse Tannehill ended up pitching longer than the starters in the game — Patterson giving up seven hits and two runs over 9 ⅔ innings, Tannehill nine and one over 11 frames.

The White Sox flubbed two chances to score in the final two frames. In the 17th, Frank Isbell led off with a double and was sacrificed to third — but Lee Tannehill hit a comebacker to the mound and Isbell was caught off of third, to be thrown out at home. And with two outs in the 18th, Ducky Holmes got on with a bunt and then moved to third on a hit-and-run with Fielder Jones. Jones stole second base, but Danny Green could muster only a weak tap to second base.

At approximately 7:15 p.m., umpire Jack Sheridan called the game, to objections from neither team. The White Sox were stalled at 25-24 and in fifth place in the AL, on their way to falling to 60-77 and seventh by season’s end.

1940
It was Bill Webb Day at Comiskey Park, honoring the Chicago native, longtime White Sox third-base coach and newly-promoted farm system director. Webb never played for the White Sox (over his 14-year pro career, Webb in fact appeared in just five MLB games, with the Pittsburgh Pirates in 1917) but spent the majority of his post-career time in Chicago.

Webb’s story has a sad end, however, as he died just three years later, at age 47, after suffering a heart attack while driving to work at 35th & Shields.

1953
White Sox manager Paul Richards was regarded as one of the smartest people ever to lead a baseball team.

With the Sox going for a series sweep of New York and leading 4-2 in the ninth inning, Richards brought in pitcher Harry Dorish to relieve Billy Pierce. Only Richardsdidn’t remove Pierce from the game — he moved him to first base! After Dorishfaced two hitters, Pierce was brought back to the mound to end the game — which he did, getting Johnny Mize to hit into a force out and then striking out pinch-hitter Bill Renna.

Richards pulled off this maneuver at least twice as the White Sox skipper, the first time on May 15, 1951 at Boston. In both cases, the pitchers involved were Dorish and Pierce. 

Years later, baseball writer Rob Neyer began tracking these moves in a historical database, and one of his readers termed the maneuvers “Waxahachie Swaps.” Richards, who also made these swaps twice as Baltimore Orioles manager, was known as the Wizard of Waxahachie (Texas).

1961
Completing a doubleheader sweep and four-game series sweep of the Washington Senators at Comiskey Park, the White Sox ended a long homestand with a 15-1 record, one of two (1906) in team history. Normally such a run, during these White Sox glory years, would have ended with the White Sox well better than .500 and leading the AL, but the 1961 team had started slow; the homestand began with the Pale Hose 21-33, 14 1⁄2 games out and flirting with the basement of the AL. By the start of the next road trip, Chicago had re-set itself, at 36-34, 9 1⁄2 games out and in fifth place.

The White Sox could only make it to fourth place in 1961, where they finished the year, at 86-76. It was their worst finish in the standings in 10 years.

1962
With the team stuck at .500 in a season that aspired to a pennant, the White Sox made two off-day trades, picking up reliever Dean Stone and left fielder Charlie Maxwell.

Stone came over from the Houston Colt .45s for Russ Kemmerer and finished out the season well as the part-time closer for the club. Over 29 games he tallied nine saves along with a 3.26 ERA/3.38 FIP and 0.7 WAR. The White Sox sold Stone to Baltimore in the offseason, where he played his final season. Kemmerer, a similar relief pitcher as Stone, actually ended up providing the same 0.7 WAR value for Houston in 1962, so this was a win-win deal. Incidentally, this was the first trade the White Sox had ever made with the Colt .45s.

Maxwell cost the White Sox outfielder Bob Farley and gave the White Sox a nice punch in the outfield for the rest of 1962, tallying 1.4 WAR over 69 games. Maxwell played one more season with the White Sox and was released very early in the 1964 season, ending his career. Farley fared poorly for Detroit (-0.5 WAR) in 1962 and was out of baseball after that season.

Ultimately, the White Sox fell short of the 1962 pennant, finishing 85-77 and fifth in the AL. It was Chicago’s poorest placing since 1950.

1964
An overflow crowd of 52,712 jammed Comiskey Park to watch the White Sox hammer the Cubs, 11-1, in the annual “Boys Benefit Game.” 

The Sox, who played as the “visiting” team that night, hit four home runs, including back-to-back-to-back shots in the third inning. The home runs were hit by Ron Hansen, Tommy McCraw and Jerry McNertney. Floyd Robinson also had a home run. 

What was significant, however, was the fact that fans were allowed on the outfield grass behind ropes, because there wasn’t any room left in the park. It was the last time fans have ever been permitted to stand on the playing field for a game. 

The game ranks No. 6 all-time in attendance at old Comiskey Park, which is by extension No. 6 all-time in White Sox and Chicago baseball annals.

1991
White Sox pitcher Jack McDowell fired the first shutout for the home team at new Comiskey Park, blanking the Mariners, 4-0. Jack was masterful on the day, and carried a no-hitter into the eighth inning. He’d end up with a three-hitter, and seven strikeouts. 

2006
With the White Sox trailing the Houston Astros, 9-2, in the eighth inning at U.S. Cellular Field, second baseman Tadahito Iguchi hit a three-run home run to narrow the deficit to 9-5. In the ninth inning, Iguchi connected again, this time for a grand slam to tie the game.

The Sox lost the game in the 13th inning, but Iguchi set a franchise record, as the White Sox had hit grand slams in three consecutive days. Scott Podsednik hit a grand slam two days earlier, and Joe Crede did so the day before.

2016
The White Sox tied the franchise record, first set in a 29-6 blowout in 1955, by blasting seven home runs in a single game. It took place against the Blue Jays at U.S. Cellular Field.

But there was one problem … they lost the game, 10-8.

It was only the third time in baseball history a team hit that many home runs in a game and lost (Detroit, in 1995 and 2004). The Sox players to hit home runs were Brett Lawrie (two), Dioner Navarro, J.B. Shuck, Tim Anderson, Alex Avila and Adam Eaton.

Feelings of deja vu in Triple-A and Double-A as the Comets and Drillers experienced similar results to those of the previous day.

Player of the day

Chase Harlan had been one of the standout performers not only with the Tower Buzzers but across the whole Dodger minor league system when he got promoted to High-A earlier this week. In the first game with the Loons, Harlan recorded half of the team’s six RBI in a win over the Lugnuts.

Through 58 games, Harlan has an OPS above 1.000 and nearly as many RBI (48) as he does strikeouts (52), looking like he won’t have much issue adjusting to the promotion.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

Providing a sort of carbon copy of the previous day’s game, the Comets once again fell on the losing end of a game decided by one run in which the bulk of its offense came from the rehabbing Teoscar Hernández. The two-run shot in the third inning from Hernández accounted for all of the Comets’ RBI in a 4-3 loss, with the other run coming on an error.

Opportunities were there for a bigger output, but the Comets finished the game 0 for 10 with runners in scoring position, wasting Alek Thomas’ three-hit effort, which accounted for a third of the team’s total hits.

Hernández might have had a big game, but other known big leaguers did not so much. Starter Landon Knack only recorded four outs before being removed in the middle of the second inning, and reliever Evan Phillips also allowed a run in the third.

Double-A Tulsa

What is it more rare, one might wonder: to lose a second consecutive game by a score of 10-1 or for a starting pitcher to allow four runs without conceding a single hit? All of this happened to the Drillers against the Hooks, as starter Peter Heubeck could not find the strike zone in the first inning, walking six hitters before being pulled in the opening frame.

Mike Sirota did not homer like the day before, but he did record a hit to take his on-base streak to a whopping 60 games. Other than that, there was very little to talk about concerning the offense that finished the game with just four hits.

High-A Great Lakes

Promoted after a phenomenal start to the year in Ontario, Chase Harlan started his Loons career on the right foot, recording a pair of hits and three RBI in the cleanup spot, the protagonist of a 6-2 win away from home against the Lugnuts.

The Loons took the lead with a first-inning home run from Emil Morales and never looked back, supported by five scoreless frames from starter Aidan Foeller. There was the potential to see a rare four-inning save from Isaac Ayon, but three solid innings were enough, and Alex Makarewich came out for the final frame.

Single-A Ontario

Eleven hits and 15 walks drove forward one of the Tower Buzzers more complete offensive performances of the season, beating the Rawhide 13-9. Freshly activated leadoff hitter Kendall George was one of the few who struggled before being removed for pinch-hitter Oswaldo Osorio, who hit an important three-run shot in the late innings. However, the Tower Buzzers had their secondary leadoff hitter cooking: second baseman Javier Herrera reached in all five of his plate appearances with a hit and four walks, scoring three of Ontario’s 13 runs.

After going through a homer drought between the end of May and the start of June, teenager Ching-Hsien Ko has once again found his power stroke. Ko was responsible for one of the Tower Buzzers’ three homers, his third in the last six games.

Transactions

Outfielder Kendall George was assigned from the Drillers to the Tower Buzzers, activated off the injured list, while starter Landon Knack began a rehab assignment with the Comets.

Wednesday’s scores

• Reno 4, Oklahoma City 3
• Tulsa 1, Corpus Christi 10
• Lansing 2, Great Lakes 6
• Visalia 9, Ontario 13

Thursday’s schedule

• 4:05 p.m. PT: Great Lakes (Jakob Wright) at Lansing (Samuel Dutton)
• 5:00 p.m. PT: Tulsa (Christian Zazueta) vs. Corpus Christi (James Hicks)
• 6:35 p.m. PT: Oklahoma City (Charlie Barnes) vs. Reno (TBD)
• 6:35 p.m. PT: Ontario (TBD) at Visalia (Connor Foley)

JP Sears was called up to the majors to take the start for the San Diego Padres against the Atlanta Braves in their series finale at Petco Park in place of Lucas Giolito who landed on the injured list with right elbow inflammation earlier in the week. Sears might have been one of the few pitchers Padres fans did not want to see on the mound in place of Giolito, but he was the minor league arm who was available and he got the call. Sears answered the call and delivered just what the Padres needed in a 5-2 win which resulted in a three-game sweep of the Braves.

Sears lasted 5.2 innings and allowed two runs on five hits with two walks and five strikeouts. The two runs allowed by the left-hander came on a two-run home run by Joey Bart, which pulled Atlanta within a run of San Diego, making the score 3-2. The Padres provided an answer in the bottom half of the inning when Samad Taylor lobbed a ball over the outfield which dumped into shallow right field, allowing two runs to score to put San Diego ahead, 5-2.

The Padres bullpen was short due to Griffin Canning lasting just 0.2 innings on Tuesday night. San Diego needed just three pitchers, while working their typical game-winning formula, but with different personnel. David Morgan completed 1.1 scoreless innings without allowing a hit, Wandy Peralta completed one scoreless inning allowing a hit and Jason Adam pitched a scoreless ninth inning to earn the save.

Ty France provided the offensive spark for the Padres. He opened the scoring in the game with a solo home run in the bottom of the third inning. He also hit a sacrifice fly and tacked on a double to finish 2-for-3 at the plate with two runs and two RBI. Taylor and Bogaerts also had multi-hit games.

San Diego is off today, but will return to action against the Los Angeles Dodgers on Friday at 6:45 p.m.

Padres News:

• Which pitcher will be the first to be knocked out of the rotation? Based on their recent play, Griffin Canning and Lucas Giolito are each making a case for why it should be them.

• There was a lot of movement throughout the San Diego minor league system and Cheri Bell of Gaslamp Ball tries to sort through it to track everyone down.

Baseball News:

• The Philadelphia Phillies got their second comeback win in as many days over the Washington Nationals.

• It has been reported the Chicago Cubs are acquiring David Peterson from the New York Mets.

• Paul Goldschmidt hit two home runs and led the New York Yankees to a win over Tarik Skubal and the Detroit Tigers.

• The Los Angeles Dodgers completed a sweep of the Minnesota Twins with a 4-3 win.

• The San Francisco Giants hit two ninth inning home runs to stun the Athletics.

• The Los Angeles Angels used two rallies to get a walk-off win over the Baltimore Orioles.

• The Arizona Diamondbacks topped the St. Louis Cardinals, 9-4.

• The Cleveland Guardians needed extra innings to beat the Chicago White Sox.

• The Colorado Rockies earned another comeback win over the Boston Red Sox.

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The Kansas City Royals will look for a second straight series win when they take on the Tampa Bay Rays on Thursday, June 25.

With a distinct pitching advantage, my Royals vs. Rays predictions and MLB picks have the AL Central bottom-dwellers coming up aces as the road dog against a Tampa side that’s struggling to string together wins.

Who will win Royals vs Rays today: Royals moneyline (+124)

The Kansas City Royals' offense has done heavy lifting this series, but pitching should carry them Thursday.

Seth Lugo has allowed one earned run or fewer in three of his last four starts, and the Tampa Bay Rays have historically been kept off balance with his high-spin curveball with a sinking and four-seam fastball.

Tampa’s offense is batting .222 in the series with 26 strikeouts. On the mound, the Rays will use opener Casey Legumina and funnel innings into a taxed bullpen (4.59 ERA).

With the cleaner starting edge and a more stable path through nine innings, I’d back the Royals up to -120.

COVERS INTEL: Lugo has dominated the Rays in his career, going 3-0 in three starts with a 1.86 ERA and 15 strikeouts. He’s pitched into the sixth inning in each of those starts.

Royals vs Rays Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (-103)

Even though Lugo has proven to shut the Rays down, Kansas City could be doing much of the heavy lifting to get to the Over themselves.

They’ve hit .283 collectively as a team in this series, pounding out 26 hits and 17 runs, and they’ll get to work over a not-so-great bullpen again Thursday.

For their struggles this series, totaling just eight runs in three games, the Rays are generally a better scoring team at home, where they own the best record in the AL.

They’re just outside the Top 10 in runs scored at home, at 4.69. The Over has hit in each of the last two games, and I like the trend to continue — though I would play it tight to that 8.5 line.

Royals vs Rays weather

Dome.

Royals vs Rays odds

• Moneyline: Royals +127 | Rays -133
• Run line: Royals +1.5 | Rays -1.5
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 | Under 8.5

Royals vs Rays trend

Five of KC's last six games have gone Over the total. Find more MLB betting trends for Royals vs. Rays.

How to watch Royals vs Rays and game info

Royals vs Rays latest injuries

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I know that no one really wants to remember last year, but the trip to San Francisco was a bit of a fulcrum point. Or, maybe, not a fulcrum point, but the part where the Braves were flipped off the deep end by a lever atop a diabolically-positioned fulcrum. Or something.

Specifically, the 2025 Braves ended May at 27-30. Not good, but playoff odds were still at about 50 percent, given the roster, the expanded playoffs, yadda yadda yadda. When 85 wins can give you a playoff spot, winning seven more games than you lose over four months isn’t really that hard of a sell. They then lost four straight at home, including two one-run losses to the Diamondbacks — the latter of which involved giving up a seven-run ninth to turn an easy win into another disaster. Just like that, playoff odds went from 1-in-2 to 1-in-3, because, well, 27-34 is a lot harder to overcome than 27-30.

Then they got to San Francisco, and the bottom more or less dropped out. The Braves were swept, first with two consecutive walkoff losses, and then another one-run loss. Playoff odds were now down to 1-in-4. It was their fifth straight one-run loss; they wouldn’t have another one-run loss until the last game of June. Part of the kicker, too, was that after this visit to San Francisco, they went 11-8 for the rest of June — exactly the kind of improvement they’d have needed before the meaty part of the skid. But since that meaty part existed, it wasn’t near enough.

The Braves right now are… it’s not similar, but the vibes (which were near-immaculate for two months) are similarly doomer-ish. The Braves have lost 10 of 13, they’ve lost four in a row for the first time all season, they’ve been officially swept for the first time all season, and it goes on. The lineup is both injured enough to look like those random 2025 lineups with a bunch of warm bodies, but instead of the stories being about exciting resurgences from scrapheap pickups like Dominic Smith and Jorge Mateo, the only thing to really talk about is how nearly the entire team, including, say, Matt Olson, has gone from jumping all over hittable pitches to a revolting combination of staring at strikes, swinging at balls, and weak contact without any super-noticeable reduction in swing speed. Probably the biggest killer was rushing Drake Baldwin back because the Braves decided they couldn’t live with worse-than-a-pitcher offensive production from their fill-in catchers, only to have Baldwin hit like those catchers upon his return. Nothing has killed the team more than going from a best-in-class to a worst-in-class spot, and then keeping the worst-in-class stuff going even without Sandy Leon. Without the elite-ish hitting, the run prevention (or lack thereof) is more exposed, as the Braves have had to make tougher pitching management decisions while also taking the foot off the proverbial pedal in terms of actually orienting those decisions towards winning today’s game. Combine that with stuff like, “now is the perfect time to give Chris Sale more rest” and, yeah, it’s a mess.

But, this is about San Francisco and the Giants, who won two games (and had a third rained out) in Atlanta not long ago. The Giants aren’t good, and they followed their time in Atlanta by getting swept in Miami, though they have won their first two against the Athletics in a couple of very low-scoring games. If the Braves can’t recover here, it might just be that same early-June slide from 2025, just… much, much longer given how good April and May were.

On a related note, I’m of two minds about the press discussion (or lack thereof) regarding the team. Early on, before we knew what was going to happen, a lot of staffers and players were giving sound bites about how Walt Weiss differed from Brian Snitker because he was more vocal, animated, and willing to put himself in opposition to players to get a specific reaction. In other words, they were suggesting that he’d get steamed when things weren’t going his way. Of course, that was basically irrelevant for two months when everything was going his way… but we’ve heard nothing about any sort of steaming or internal boot-to-butt antics.

On the flip side, though, it may be disingenuous to expect any management impetus when the players could (but probably wouldn’t? probably?) point to management decisions as a contributing factor to the disharmony. I don’t think any players would come out and say it, but they’re as aware of the load management and the pushing Sale back as anyone. So, who knows — maybe we aren’t hearing anything about Weiss metaphorically spear-tackling his guys because really everyone needs a spear-tackle. But that’s really a side note.

Anyway, hope the things get better soon, but given that the Braves don’t seem very committed to making them better, we’ll see whether San Francisco is more of the same or a turnaround that is best described as fortuitous rather than some other adjective, because I’m not sure there’s much of a middle ground.

After missing over a month with a shoulder sprain, Walker Jenkins is back in Triple-A and just one step away from the big leagues. He played four rehab games between Single-A and High-A, going 9-for-16 with a pair of homers. A couple days later, he faced off against reds rehabber Hunter Greene in his first at bat since returning to Triple-A and blasted a 99 mph fastball to the center field wall for a 108.7 mph triple. The Twins’ prized outfield prospect is looking MLB-ready and could be just weeks away from his major league debut.

His sweet lefty swing generates an impressive blend of contact and power. At just 21 years old, his 112.3 mph max EV and 90th percentile in the 107 range are well above average and give him a chance to develop plus power as he continues to mature. His plus hit tool has translated seamlessly throughout the minors, and it is only getting better. With strong contact rates and high line drive rates, he could push close to the .300 batting average mark in the majors, although that may drop if he leans into more of a power-focused approach. With strong discipline and good spin recognition, Jenkins has more walks than strikeouts in Triple-A this season. He is a complete hitter with no considerable weaknesses and is remarkably polished for his age.

It’s not just the bat, though. The Twins are getting an asset in every aspect of the game. Jenkins probably won’t be an aggressive base-stealer, but he is a good runner and can provide value on the bases. Defensively, he is a capable centerfielder, but with Buxton in the way, he will slot nicely into right field, where his plus arm and good range are expected to be reminiscent of what Max Kepler did out there for so many years.

The Twins are trotting out Austin Martin, Trevor Larnach, Kody Clemens, and Kyler Fedko in the corner outfield right now, all of whom have controllability beyond this season. At the same time, they have Emmanuel Rodriguez, Alan Roden, Matt Wallner, and Hendry Mendez waiting across the river along with Jenkins. This overcrowding issue in the outfield has been on the horizon for a couple years and the Twins have reached a position where they now have to deal with it. Something has to give. The consensus opinion is likely that Larnach or Clemens should be traded, but those two have been two of the Twins most consistently productive bats. Would the team be willing to trade one or two of the prospects for a big league pitcher?

There are countless potential outcomes, but if there is one certainty in this crossroads, its that Walker Jenkins is a franchise cornerstone, and a spot will undeniably be there for him when the team decides that its time for his major league career to begin.

I’ve always been a fan of Dansby Swanson. He plays elite defense and, up to this year, his bat always played well enough.

This season, Swanson got off to a very slow start. He had a decent run for a few weeks in April, then went into an extended slump that had him batting .175/.281/.306 after last Tuesday’s loss to the Rockies at Wrigley Field.

I’m not sure what’s gotten into Swanson over the last six games but let’s hope this hot streak sticks around. After driving in seven runs in the doubleheader opener Tuesday afternoon with a three-run homer and grand slam, Swanson went 3-for-5 with four RBI in the nightcap, helping lead the Cubs to a 10-5 win over the Mets and a doubleheader sweep.

Also, the Mets are a really, really bad defensive team. They made six errors in this game, making half the Cubs’ 10 runs unearned. It was the first time any team had made six errors in a game against the Cubs since the Pirates made seven errors Sept. 7, 2012, a game the Cubs won 12-2. In fact, this is so rare in modern baseball that it hadn’t happened in seven years. Before this game, the last time any team had made six errors in a game was… the Cubs, on April 1, 2019, in Atlanta.

Before I get to the facts of this game, you need to read this. A team record was set by Swanson in the doubleheader — details from BCB’s JohnW53:

Dansby Swanson’s 11 RBI on Wednesday are the most since 1901 by a Cub in a doubleheader.

Billy Williams had nine (two, then seven) on Wednesday, Aug. 21, 1968, at home vs. the Braves.
In the first game, he singled home one run each in the third and seventh. After the second one, Ernie Banks homered to give the Cubs a 5-4 lead, and that is how the game ended.

Williams hit a two-run homer in the third inning of the second game, added a sacrifice fly in the fifth to tie the score at 5, broke the tie with a two-run single in the sixth and doubled home two runs in the eighth to make the score 9-5. The Cubs won, 11-5.

That record stood for less than two years, until Monday, July 6, 1970, when Ron Santo drove in 10 (two, then eight) at home vs. the Expos. He smacked a two-run, fourth-inning homer as the Cubs won the opener, 3-2.

Then he knocked in eight in the rematch, with a grand slam in the first, a bases-loaded walk in the fourth and a three-run homer in the sixth. He came up in the seventh with runners on first and second, and one out, and grounded into a double play. The Cubs won, 14-2.

No Cub had more than seven after Santo until Swanson on Wednesday. Williams had seven on Aug. 8, 1971, and Ryne Sandberg had seven on June 13, 1990.

Now, let’s begin at the beginning.

The Cubs took a 1-0 lead in the second on a pair of doubles. Nico Hoerner was first, then Carson Kelly drove in Nico [VIDEO].

The Mets came back with a three-run second off Shōta Imanaga. Unfortunately, all three of the runs scored on homers, which has been an issue for Imanaga all year. Francisco Alvarez hit a solo shot and after a single, A.J. Ewing hit a three-run blast.

The Cubs didn’t wait too long to take the lead back. In the top of the fourth, Hoerner doubled for the second time in the game. Kelly reached on the Mets’ second error of the game, with Hoerner taking third.

A single by Pedro Ramirez scored Nico [VIDEO].

A wild pitch advanced the runners to second and third. Swanson then singled in Kelly to tie the game 3-3 [VIDEO].

Ramirez took third on that hit and scored on this excuse-me bunt by Pete Crow-Armstrong [VIDEO].

As you will hear in comments from Swanson below, PCA was actually trying to do that — he’s been practicing it, according to Dansby.

The Mets tied the game in the bottom of the fourth with another home run off Imanaga, this one a solo shot by Mark Vientos. About all the homers given up by Imanaga, from John:

This was the 10th game in his three-season career as a Cub in which Shota Imanaga has surrendered at least three home runs.

That ties him with Steve Trachsel (1994-99) and Kyle Hendricks (2015-23) for the third most by any Cub since 1901.

Ferguson Jenkins did it 11 times in 1966-73 (never in his return in 1982-83) and Warre Hacker did it 12 times in 1950-56.
Hacker made 140 starts; Jenkins, 347; Trachsel, 190; and Hendricks, 270. This was just Imanaga’s 70th.

The Cubs took the lead back in the top of the sixth. Ramirez led off with a double and Swanson, again, came through, this time with a triple [VIDEO].

After PCA walked — that gives him eight walks in his last six games — Matt Shaw hit into a force play, scoring Swanson [VIDEO].

Imanaga was left in to face Francisco Lindor to lead off the bottom of the sixth. Shōta retired Lindor and then gave way to Gavin Hollowell to face Bo Bichette.

Didn’t matter. Bichette homered anyway, off Hollowell, to make it 6-5. Hollowell finished off the rest of the sixth without incident, and Hoby Milner threw a scoreless seventh.

The Cubs increased their lead to 7-5 in the eighth thanks to two Mets errors. Ramirez reached on the first one, by Bichette, then stole second. One out later, this happened [VIDEO].

The Mets defense was just awful. Just you wait, there’s more of that to come.

Trent Thornton threw a scoreless eighth and then the Cubs put the game away in the ninth. And all of it happened after the first two Cubs were routine outs.

Hoerner doubled, his third two-base hit of the game. This is, we hope, a good sign for Nico, who has been in a terrible slump for two months. His 21 doubles are now tied for third in MLB.

Kelly followed, reaching on an error by Vientos, with Hoerner taking third.

Another single by Ramirez scored Nico [VIDEO].

That wasn’t an error on Marcus Semien, but it could have been — that’s just poor defense. Kelly took third, and Ramirez moved up to second on his second steal of the game.

Swanson drove in both runners with this hit [VIDEO].

Jacob Webb threw the ninth. He issued a pair of two-out walks, then, appropriately, Swanson caught the ball for the final out [VIDEO].

Here are a couple of amazing run-scoring facts from John. First, on scoring six or more runs in consecutive games:

The Cubs have scored at least six runs in six consecutive games. They had not had a streak that long in more than 26 years, since they had six in a row April 22-28, 2000. That was the last of 10 previous streaks that ended at six.

Their last of more than six was eight, April 16-26, 1970. They had had eight three times before, in 1920, 1925 and 1930.

The team record since 1901 is nine, done twice: Aug. 31-Sept. 8, 1929, and June 29-July 5, 1937

And, on scoring in double digits in both games of the doubleheader:

The Cubs had not scored at least 10 runs in both games of a doubleheader in more than 82 years, since May 21, 1944, when they beat the Braves at Wrigley Field by 15-1 and 14-5. The second game was called after eight innings.

They had done it in only five earlier doubleheaders:
Aug. 21, 1935: lost, 13-12, and won, 19-5, at Philadelphia
Aug. 6, 1932: won, 10-9 and 10-8 in 11 innings, at Philadelphia
Sept. 2, 1929: won, 11-7 and 12-10, at home vs. Cardinals
Sept. 26, 1912: won, 11-10 and 10-0, at home vs. Reds (second game six innings)
May 30, 1908: won, 10-2 and 11-2, at St. Louis

So, Wednesday was the seventh time, fourth on the road and first sweep on the road in nine-inning games in 118 years and 27 days.

Wednesday’s doubleheader was the Cubs’ 858th since their last with two double-digit games and their 421st on the road.

Also, check this out. Seven hits with RISP is excellent for one game, but having 25 at-bats with RISP in one game is just an insanely large number.

Here’s Swanson on his big day and series [VIDEO].

And here are Craig Counsell’s postgame comments [VIDEO].

I have written here before on how much defense matters. The Cubs have elite defense at almost every position. The Mets are, to be blunt, terrible. It showed in this game. Errors aren’t the only measure, either. You can read almost every defensive metric available and it will show how far superior the Cubs are to the Mets. Further, this elite defense might help David Peterson, who the Cubs just acquired from the Mets in trade. We’ll likely find out more about that this weekend in Milwaukee, because I suspect Peterson will start one of the games against the Brewers.

In the meantime, the Cubs can go for an unlikely sweep of the Mets Thursday evening at Citi Field. Matthew Boyd will be activated from the injured list to start this game for the Cubs. The Mets will counter with Freddy Peralta. Game time is again 6:10 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network.

The Phillies came into the 2026 season with an almost unprecedented number of players returning to the team yet again for another year. However, one player that was new was Justin Crawford, as it was all but guaranteed that the top prospect would be the Phillies starting center fielder to begin 2026. And that’s exactly what happened, as Crawford made his MLB debut on Opening Day and is still with the Phillies as we creep closer to the All-Star break.

Crawford was and is a polarizing player. The merits of his skill set and approach have been hotly debated as he progressed through the Phillies minor league system. Some believed that his groundball heavy hitter’s profile and low walk rates coupled with moderately high strikeout rates would make it difficult for Crawford to be a productive major leaguer. Others believed that his speed and ability to make contact coupled with good exit velocities would make him into a regular for a contending team.

Well, we are now 73 games into Justin Crawford’s MLB career as of yesterday. He’s slashing .243/.301/.339 with two home runs and nine stolen bases. Crawford started the year off well enough, hitting .267 with a .700 OPS through his first month in the big leagues. But he cratered in May, hitting just .195 with a .565 OPS as the Phillies began to platoon him to keep him away from left-handed pitching, against which he’s hitting .143 with a .374 OPS and a strikeout rate of 23.1%. He’s had a better June, hitting .275 with a .648 OPS through 18 games played as of June 24th. When things have gone well, Crawford’s contact ability and speed have been a welcome addition to the bottom of the Phillies lineup. When things have gone poorly, Crawford has been an automatic out and a black hole of offensive production with uncompetitive strikeouts.

Defensively, Crawford has been uneven at best, as he still looks like an unfinished product in center. Defensive metrics have their own biases and limitations, especially at this point in a season, but Crawford currently grades out as one of the worst defenders in baseball by defensive runs saved (-6) while being below average in outs above average (-2) and fielding run value (-2). By the eye test, Crawford has made some spectacular plays in center but has also struggled with routes at times and missed balls that should have been caught, especially by someone who possesses his speed.

The book is far from written on Justin Crawford’s rookie season, let alone his MLB career. But we have now read the first few chapters and should have a better idea of the type of player he is and possibly could be. So, has your opinion of Justin Crawford changed since the season began?