Phillies postseason bound for fourth consecutive season

Phillies postseason bound for fourth consecutive season originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Sunday might not have ended in a clubhouse champagne celebration and a clinch of the NL East for the Phillies but there’s still grounds to celebrate.

With the Dodgers’ 10-2 win over the Giants, the Phillies have officially secured their fourth straight trip to the playoffs.

They can send a quick thanks to the Dodgers before shifting gears Monday when the Phillies open up a three-game series in Los Angeles. There’s still a ton to play for, including a first-round bye, awarded to the top two seeds. The Phillies currently have a 4.5-game lead over the Dodgers for the No. 2 seed and are up 2-1 in the tiebreaker.

The Phillies’ magic number for securing the NL East sits at one. Clinching the division rests solely in the Phillies’ hands Monday as the Mets have the day off.

It’s simple, win and in. Or, since they’re already in … win and claim the division for the second straight season.

Mets rally to beat Rangers, snap losing streak on Pete Alonso's walk-off three-run homer

The Mets rallied to walk off the Texas Rangers on Sunday afternoon at Citi Field.

New York finally brought their eight-game losing streak to an end. 

Here are some takeaways...

- After going 1-for-10 with runners in scoring position on Saturday, the Mets picked up right where they left off in the early going of this one. Some wildness from Rangers lefty Jacob Latz gifted them a pair of golden opportunities in the first and second, but they were unable to take advantage and stranded five. 

Latz retired the next six Mets in order, but they finally manufactured a run in the fifth, as Francisco Alvarez led off the inning with a double and then hustled home two batters later on Juan Soto's RBI groundout to first. 

- Luckily for New York, Nolan McLean continued his tremendous start to his career. The young right-hander fell behind each of the first four batters he faced 2-0, but he rebounded nicely to limit Texas to just one baserunner while striking out four over the first three innings.  

McLean gave up singles to Joc Pederson and Rowdy Tellez in the fourth, but he used a double play and his fourth punchout of the afternoon to escape the threat. He then picked up three more strikeouts in the fifth, the last of which was on a curveball to Wyatt Langford with two men on and two outs. 

McLean found himself in danger after being handed the lead, as a hit by pitch and bloop single put runners on the corners with just one out, but he rolled another double play to end his day on a high note. He recorded another quality start, giving up five hits and a pair of walks while striking out seven across six shutout innings. 

- Brandon Nimmo gave the Mets what appeared to be some big insurance, leading off the bottom of the sixth with an opposite-field solo home run -- it was Nimmo's 23rd long ball of the season, but just his first extra-base hit since the calendar flipped to September. 

- For the second straight day, though, New York's bullpen entered and gave the lead right up. Brooks Raley retired two around a single and HBP in the seventh, before turning things over to Reed Garrett, who issued a walk and then gave up a game-tying two-run single to the lefty-hitting Pederson. 

- Tyler Rogers put together a scoreless eighth, then Edwin Diaz came on and found himself in danger in the ninth. The Rangers pushed a man to third with just one out and Diaz somehow escaped, as Francisco Lindor plucked a liner just off the ground and threw to third for the double play. 

- After the Mets went quietly in the bottom half of the ninth, Ryne Stanek struck out two to strand the ghost runner in the 10th, before Pete Alonso crushed an opposite-field three-run homer to secure the victory. 

It's Alonso's fifth-career walk-off home run, the most in franchise history. 

Game MVP: Pete Alonso

The big man delivered the big blow to save the day after another bullpen meltdown.

Highlights

What's next

The Mets have a much-needed off day on Monday before starting a three-game set with the Padres. 

Clay Holmes (11-8, 3.75 ERA) is set to take the ball against Michael King (4-2, 2.87 ERA) at 7:10 p.m. on SNY. 

World's Shortest, Concise Rangers Preview Ever

Dennis Schneidler-Imagn Images

Patrick Hoffman is a superior journalist with an Argus eye for the Rangers.

The Man was asked for the shortest possible Rangers X-Ray and Hoffman delivered: Here's his September Song:

1. "Examining the Rangers, I find that there are more questions than answers:"

2. "One of the major questions is, do the Blueshirts have enough defensive depth? Frankly, I don't think so."

3. "What kind of impact will Mike Sullivan have on the team? History shows that – with Pittsburgh – he had trouble making the playoffs with Sidney Crosby, Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang and Erik Karlsson in his lineup."

4. "My estimation is that Igor Shesterkin will bounce back, but I'm not sure about Jonathan Quick. He's getting up there in age and proved to be leaky throughout last season."

5. "Conclusion: "As of this writing, I see them as a bubble team!" Kudos to Pal Patrick for being fast, furious and – unlike the Rangers –  infallible!

Giants miss chance to make up wild-card ground with aces on mound vs. Dodgers

Giants miss chance to make up wild-card ground with aces on mound vs. Dodgers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — At about 6:45 p.m. on Saturday evening, the Giants were feeling pretty good about their situation. 

They took the field knowing the New York Mets had lost an eighth straight game then immediately went out and put four runs on Clayton Kershaw, whose path to Cooperstown is paved in part by years of dominance at Oracle Park. With their own ace on the mound, the Giants had a real opportunity to take control of the NL wild-card race. 

Life, however, can come at you pretty fast this time of year. 

At 4:15 p.m. on Sunday, the Giants walked off the field having lost a second straight game. Their two co-aces, moved up a day so that they both could face the Los Angeles Dodgers, combined to give up 11 runs over the weekend. Across the country on Sunday, the Mets got a walk-off homer from Pete Alonso, the type of swing they have been missing for weeks. 

After a 10-2 loss to the Dodgers on Sunday, the Giants are 1.5 games back of the Mets, who hold the tiebreaker. They once again are chasing, hoping for a little bit of help, and also a lot more success next weekend at Dodger Stadium.

“It’s disappointing,” manager Bob Melvin said. “We were just talking about that [in the clubhouse]. We win the first game, we score four runs in the first inning yesterday — it feels pretty good. To be where we are today, it’s disappointing. It got away from us in a hurry.

“We gave up a lot of hits and a lot of runs to a team that makes you work. If you don’t throw it over the plate, they end up wearing you out.”

The Dodgers had 35 hits and 23 runs over the final two games of the series, and it appears they finally have flipped the switch after an inconsistent summer. That would be bad news for a Giants team that has four games at Dodger Stadium next weekend and once again will have to find a way to get to what right now is the hottest starting staff in the game.

Tyler Glasnow had allowed just one hit until the seventh on Sunday and ended up giving up one run on three hits. On Friday, Yoshinobu Yamamoto gave up one hit and struck out seven over 10 innings. His dominance wasn’t rewarded because Justin Verlander matched him and Patrick Bailey hit a walk-off grand slam

The Giants used Thursday’s day off to move Logan Webb and Robbie Ray up a day to follow Verlander, and it didn’t pay off at all. Like Webb a day earlier, Ray was knocked out after allowing the first three runners to reach in the fifth inning. 

Ray said he feels great physically and noted his fastball was as firm as it’s been all year. But he sprayed the ball around early, and the Dodgers will always make you pay for a lack of command. 

“I felt, out of the stretch, a little bit like my front side was getting a little too quick. I was missing a lot arm-side,” Ray said. “I just wasn’t able to really get on top of it like I was out of the windup. I was just kind of fighting that all day, really.”

The Giants hoped that moving Webb and Ray up could lead to a huge weekend. Instead, they’ll now try to figure out how to get through a series at Chase Field, where the Arizona Diamondbacks are still very much alive. They were the only team in the jumbled wild-card mess to win their weekend series, and they’ll enter this week just half a game behind the Giants. 

None of this will be easy, at least until the Giants get to their final series against the Colorado Rockies. To make sure that one counts, they’ll need to fare better against Dodger pitching. They’re going to see Yamamoto, Kershaw and Glasnow again next weekend, and also could face young right-hander Emmet Sheehan, who is throwing well and has had plenty of success against the Giants early in his career. 

Melvin said the staff would get together and discuss whether a change is needed next weekend. There’s not much you can do when Yamamoto is hitting his spots, but Glasnow was wild in the early innings on Sunday and the Giants couldn’t take advantage.

“You’re always in between, whether or not you want to make him work or try to get that fastball early in the count. Nothing really worked today,” Melvin said. “We’ll talk about changing our approach. We have to do something different.”

It goes without saying that the Giants also will have to pitch a lot better next weekend. Webb and Ray will get another shot at the Dodgers, and the latter didn’t think there would be any carryover. He has been in this division a long time and had good starts at Dodger Stadium as well as rough ones. 

Next week’s games were always going to be huge, but there’s a bit of added pressure after a rough 48 hours at Oracle Park. The Giants didn’t lose any ground to the Mets this weekend, but they did lose three days on the calendar, and right now that’s just as important. 

“It’s frustrating obviously, but we’re still in it,” Ray said. “We’re a resilient team. We’ve shown that we’re able to bounce back from stuff like this. We’ve just got to put this behind us, go on the road and win one game at a time.”

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Phillies can't polish off NL East title vs. Royals as Nola falters in middle innings

Phillies can't polish off NL East title vs. Royals as Nola falters in middle innings   originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Phillies’ division-clinching champagne is on hold.

The club couldn’t record an NL East-sealing seventh consecutive win Sunday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park, falling to a 10-3 loss to the Royals. 

A Mets loss would’ve been sufficient for the Phils to clinch, but New York snapped an eight-game skid Sunday with a 5-2 victory in 10 innings over the Rangers. 

Aaron Nola faltered in the middle innings as the Phillies looked to polish off a second straight division title. The 32-year-old righty pitched six innings and allowed six hits and six runs. He struck out five and walked one.  

Kyle Schwarber gave the Phils a first-inning edge when he smoked a first-pitch jack to left-center field off of Royals lefty Noah Cameron. He’s now at 52 homers, six shy of Ryan Howard’s all-time franchise mark set in 2006.

Two batters later, J.T. Realmuto slugged away on another first pitch and went yard. 

Coming off of six scoreless innings his last outing, Nola retired the first nine Royals in order. Kansas City swung freely and Nola’s command was sharp. He threw strikes on 24 of his first 29 pitches, established his fastball early and threw high-quality curveballs at the right moments. 

Nola’s smooth sailing didn’t continue forever. Michael Massey walked to lead off the fifth inning. With one out, Jac Caglianone belted a Nola curve 404 feet to right-center for a game-tying home run. 

The Phils managed a baserunner in the second, third and fourth innings but couldn’t score. Cameron tossed a 1-2-3 fifth. 

Kansas City hammered Nola in the sixth. The Royals hit for the cycle in the inning and built a 6-2 lead on Salvador Perez’s three-run homer. 

They tacked on a couple more runs in the seventh against Tim Mayza and ultimately eased to a blowout win. Perez kept rolling, poking a two-RBI knock to right.

Cameron quieted the Phillies’ bats through seven innings. After five straight games with double-digit hits, the Phils only had five Sunday.

One more road trip 

The 89-61 Phillies will travel to Los Angeles for a three-game series with the Dodgers that starts Monday night. They’ll then head to Arizona and play a three-game set against the Diamondbacks.

Phils manager Rob Thomson wants to secure a postseason bye and try to beat out the Brewers for the National League’s No. 1 seed. Milwaukee entered Sunday two games in front of the Phillies. 

Turner ‘looks like he’s ahead of schedule’ 

Trea Turner took ground balls and hit off a tee Sunday. Thomson is encouraged by his progress as he rehabs from a Grade 1 right hamstring strain. 

“I hate to say it, but it looks like he’s ahead of schedule,” Thomson said. “You hear that all the time, but he’s doing really well.”

Thomson also noted that Alec Bohm (left shoulder inflammation) felt “really good” Sunday as he ramped up his rehab. The Phillies are hopeful Edmundo Sosa (right groin tightness) will return to action Tuesday. 

Phillies can't polish off NL East title vs. Royals as Nola falters in middle innings

Phillies can't polish off NL East title vs. Royals as Nola falters in middle innings originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

The Phillies’ division-clinching champagne is on hold.

The club couldn’t record an NL East-sealing seventh consecutive win Sunday afternoon at Citizens Bank Park, falling to a 10-3 loss to the Royals. 

A Mets loss would’ve been sufficient for the Phils to clinch, but New York snapped an eight-game skid with a 5-2 victory in 10 innings over the Rangers. The Phillies watched the bottom of the ninth and 10th innings from the clubhouse. Pete Alonso’s walk-off home run confirmed they wouldn’t celebrate Sunday.

Aaron Nola faltered in the middle innings as the Phillies looked to polish off a second straight division title. The 32-year-old righty pitched six innings and allowed six hits and six runs. He struck out five and walked one.  

Kyle Schwarber gave the Phils a first-inning edge when he smoked a first-pitch jack to left-center field off of Royals lefty Noah Cameron. He’s now at 52 homers, six shy of Ryan Howard’s all-time franchise mark set in 2006.

Two batters later, J.T. Realmuto slugged away on another first pitch and went yard. 

Coming off of six scoreless innings his last outing, Nola retired the first nine Royals in order. Kansas City swung freely and Nola’s command was sharp. He threw strikes on 24 of his first 29 pitches, established his fastball early and threw high-quality curveballs at the right moments. 

Nola’s smooth sailing didn’t continue forever. Michael Massey walked to lead off the fifth inning. With one out, Jac Caglianone belted a Nola curve 404 feet to right-center for a game-tying home run. 

The Phils managed a baserunner in the second, third and fourth innings but couldn’t score. Cameron tossed a 1-2-3 fifth. 

Kansas City hammered Nola in the sixth. The Royals hit for the cycle in the inning and built a 6-2 lead on Salvador Perez’s three-run homer. 

“Just the one big inning,” Nola said when asked about what he wants to clean up before the playoffs. “It’s kind of hit me all year this year.” 

The Royals tacked on a couple more runs in the seventh against Tim Mayza and ultimately eased to a blowout win. Perez kept rolling, poking a two-RBI knock to right.

Cameron quieted the Phillies’ bats through seven innings. After five straight games with double-digit hits, the Phils only had five Sunday.

One more road trip 

The 89-61 Phillies will travel to Los Angeles for a three-game series with the Dodgers that starts Monday night. They’ll then head to Arizona and play a three-game set against the Diamondbacks.

Phils manager Rob Thomson wants to secure a postseason bye and try to beat out the Brewers for the National League’s No. 1 seed. Milwaukee is two games in front of the Phillies. 

“They’re big,” Thomson said of the Dodgers games on deck. “You’ve got the bye that’s involved, and they’re a good club and we’re going to their place, which is going to be raucous. It’s a big series.”

Turner ‘looks like he’s ahead of schedule’ 

Trea Turner took ground balls and hit off a tee Sunday. Thomson is encouraged by his progress as he rehabs from a Grade 1 right hamstring strain. 

“I hate to say it, but it looks like he’s ahead of schedule,” Thomson said. “You hear that all the time, but he’s doing really well.”

Thomson also noted that Alec Bohm (left shoulder inflammation) felt “really good” Sunday as he ramped up his rehab. The Phillies are hopeful Edmundo Sosa (right groin tightness) will return to action Tuesday. 

What we learned as Giants go down without a fight in series finale vs. Dodgers

What we learned as Giants go down without a fight in series finale vs. Dodgers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO — There was some good news for the Giants this weekend. They did get the help they needed.

The Cincinnati Reds got swept up the road in Sacramento, and the New York Mets lost two of three to Bruce Bochy’s Texas Rangers. The National League wild-card race is still wide open, but the Giants weren’t able to capitalize as others struggled. 

They got blown out Sunday, losing 10-2 to the Los Angeles Dodgers and dropping the series after a thrilling win Friday night. With 13 games remaining, the Giants are 1.5 games back of the Mets, who hold the tiebreaker. 

After walking it off Friday, the Giants had Logan Webb and Robbie Ray going for a series win. But both had disappointing outings. 

Ray and Dodgers right-hander Tyler Glasnow both struggled with their command early on, but Glasnow found a way to settle in. Ray didn’t make it out of the fifth. 

The left-hander walked four, and when the final one was followed by a single and a double, the Dodgers were off and running. For a second straight day, they exploded in the fifth inning. This time it was a Michael Conforto single that was the big hit, and a fourth run scored in the inning on a balk by Joel Peguero, who appeared to be having issues with his PitchCom.

The Giants now will travel to Phoenix for a big three-game series against the Arizona Diamondbacks before visiting Dodger Stadium. Here are three things to know from the final day of a 3-3 homestand. 

Well, That Didn’t Work

The Giants took advantage of the off day on Thursday to slide Webb and Ray up a day and have them both face the Dodgers. That could pay off ultimately, as it will allow Webb to pitch Game 162 on short rest if the Giants need a win that day, but it certainly didn’t help in this series. 

A day after Webb left with the bases loaded and no outs in the fifth, Ray was knocked out after allowing the first three Dodgers to reach in the fifth. Combined, the co-aces gave up 11 runs and pitched just eight innings in the two games. Ray was charged with five earned on Sunday and walked four, and it could have been worse early on. He walked three in the second inning and loaded the bases for Shohei Ohtani, but he blew a fastball past him to temporarily get back on track.

Ray had good velocity, hitting 96 mph a couple of times in the first, but he sprayed the ball most of the afternoon. He threw just 58 of 98 pitches for strikes. 

Starting Off

If the Giants want to get to the MLB playoffs, they’re going to have to have a solid series at Dodger Stadium next week. If they do make it, they might end up going right back to Los Angeles for the wild-card round. At some point, they’ll need to figure out the Dodgers’ starting pitching, which is no easy task. 

Yoshinobu Yamamoto struck out 10 and allowed just one hit on Friday, and Glasnow gave up just one run on three hits on Sunday. In between, the Giants did get to Clayton Kershaw.

If the Dodgers stick to their current rotation plans, the Giants will see all three again next weekend, along with young right-hander Emmet Sheehan, who has allowed just two hits in 15 career innings against the Giants. 

#RevengeSeason

Conforto entered the day with a .194 average and .632 OPS. His first season in Dodger blue has been a rough one, but man, he loves facing the Giants. 

Conforto homered on Friday night and came off the bench Sunday for a back-breaking single through a drawn-in infield. In six games at Oracle Park this season, he went 9-for 18 with two homers and seven RBI. Last season as a Giant, Conforto hit .216 at Oracle Park with two homers and 15 RBI in 58 appearances. He has driven in more runs against the Giants (seven) this year than anyone else. 

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Mets' Clay Holmes to start on Tuesday vs. Padres, with Sean Manaea potentially coming out of bullpen

With the Mets having an off day on Monday, the team has a chance to get a little creative with their starting pitching plans heading into the upcoming three-game series with the San Diego Padres.

According to manager Carlos Mendoza, the Mets will start Clay Holmes on Tuesday in what would normally be Sean Manaea’s turn in the rotation.

Depending on how Sunday’s series finale against the Texas Rangers goes, the Mets could then “potentially” use Manaea in a piggybacking tandem situation, bringing the lefty out of the bullpen behind Holmes.

"We still need to get through today, but Clay is going to start on Tuesday," said Mendoza. "That’s all we know there."

After stepping up to become the Mets’ ace down the stretch and in the playoffs in 2024, this season has been one to forget for the veteran Manaea, who re-signed with the club on a three-year, $75 million contract in the offseason.

After an oblique injury in spring training and then a setback involving loose bodies in his left pitching elbow, Manaea’s regular season didn’t begin until mid July, and he hasn’t looked like the same pitcher the Mets saw last season.

In 11 starts, Manaea has pitched to a 5.76 ERA and has allowed 52 hits, including 10 home runs, in 50.0 innings. Since the start of August, Manea has an ERA of 7.71.

The Mets enter play on Sunday a half-game ahead of the San Francisco Giants for the final NL Wild Card spot.

Kurtz hits 493-foot grand slam, longest MLB homer this season

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Nick Kurtz launched a 493-foot grand slam — the longest home run in the majors this season — and the Athletics hammered Hunter Greene early in an 11-5 victory Saturday night over the Cincinnati Reds.

Brent Rooker also went deep and rookie Carlos Cortes hit a two-run shot for his third homer in two games as the Athletics handed Cincinnati another costly loss. Jacob Wilson provided a pair of RBI doubles.

Greene, an All-Star last year, was tagged for five runs, four hits and four walks over 2 1/3 ineffective innings, raising his ERA from 2.59 to 3.01.

With a chance to gain ground in a crowded wild-card race, the Reds (74-74) lost their second consecutive game to the Athletics (69-80) and remained 1 1/2 games behind the skidding New York Mets for the final National League playoff spot.

San Francisco is a half-game back of the Mets.

Tyler Stephenson’s three-run homer for Cincinnati tied it 5-all in the fourth. Wilson put the A’s back ahead with an RBI double in the seventh, Lawrence Butler added a run-scoring single in the eighth and Kurtz sent a 2-2 fastball from Scott Barlow soaring over the high batter’s eye in straightaway center field to make it 11-5.

It was the 31st homer for Kurtz, a rookie slugger who hit four in one game earlier this season.

Brady Basso (1-0) retired the side in order on six pitches in the seventh for his second big league win.

Key moment

Reds reliever Nick Martinez (10-13) gave up a leadoff double to Shea Langeliers in the seventh and walked Rooker with one out before Wilson doubled off Graham Ashcraft to give the Athletics a 6-5 lead.

Key stat

Kurtz’s 493-foot drive was the longest by an A’s player since Statcast tracking began in 2015. It surpassed Mike Trout’s 484-foot homer April 19 with the Angels for the longest in the majors this year.

Up next

Reds LHP Nick Lodolo (8-7, 3.10 ERA) pitches against RHP Luis Morales (3-1, 2.73) in the series finale Sunday.

Dodgers put All-Star catcher Will Smith on 10-day injured list with bruised right hand

LOS ANGELES (AP) — All-Star catcher Will Smith was placed on the 10-day injured list Saturday by the Los Angeles Dodgers because of a bruised right hand.

The move was made retroactive to Wednesday. The team recalled catcher Chuckie Robinson from Triple-A Oklahoma City before a 13-7 victory in San Francisco over the Giants.

The defending World Series champions lead the NL West by 2 1/2 games over San Diego.

The 30-year-old Smith, an All-Star each of the past three seasons, is batting .296 with 17 homers, 61 RBIs and a .901 OPS in 110 games. It’s the first time he’s been on the injured list this year.

Robinson rejoins the Dodgers after they optioned him to Triple-A on Monday.

Mets 2025 MLB Wild Card Watch: Playoff odds, standings, matchups, and more for Sept. 14

With 13 games remaining in the regular season, the Mets are looking to hold off a handful of teams for the final Wild Card spot in the National League.

Here's everything you need to know ahead of play on Sept. 14...


Mets: 76-73, 0.5 games up on Giants for third Wild Card

Next up: vs. Rangers, Sunday at 1:40 p.m. (Nolan McLean vs. Jacob Latz)
Latest result: 3-2 loss to Rangers on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 vs. TEX, 3 vs. SD, 3 vs. WSH, 3 @ CHC, 3 @ MIA
Odds to make playoffs: 69.5 percent
*Mets hold tiebreaker over Giants by virtue of winning the season series, while Reds hold tiebreaker over Mets

Giants: 75-73, 0.5 games back of Mets 

Next up: vs. Dodgers, Sunday at 4:05 p.m.(Robbie Ray vs. Tyler Glasnow)
Latest result: 13-7 loss to Dodgers on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 vs. LAD, 3 @ ARI, 4 @ LAD, 3 vs. STL, 3 vs. COL
Odds to make playoffs: 16.9 percent

Reds: 74-74, 1.5 games back of Mets

Next up: @ Athletics, Saturday at 4:05 p.m. (Nick Lodolo vs. Luis Morales)
Latest result: 11-5 loss to Athletics on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 @ ATH, 3 @ STL, 4 vs. CHC, 3 vs. PIT, 3 @ MIL
Odds to make playoffs: 9.4 percent

Diamondbacks: 74-75, 2.0 games back of Mets

Next up: @ Twins, Saturday at 1:10 p.m. (Nabil Crismatt vs. Bailey Ober)
Latest result: 5-2 win over Twins on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 @ MIN, 3 vs. SF, 3 vs. PHI, 3 vs. LAD, 3 @ SD
Odds to make playoffs: 4.1 percent

Cardinals: 72-77, 4.0 games back of Mets

Next up: @ Brewers, Saturday at 2:10 p.m. (Miles Mikolas vs. Jose Quintana)
Latest result: 9-8 loss to Brewers on Saturday
Remaining schedule: 1 @ MIL, 3 vs. CIN, 3 vs. MIL, 3 @ SF, 3 @ CHC
Odds to make playoffs: 0.5 percent

Mets vs. Rangers: How to watch on Sept. 14, 2025

The Mets (76-73) look to end their eight-game losing streak as they take on the Texas Rangers (79-70) on Sunday at 1:40 p.m. on PIX11. 

Here's what to know about the game and how to watch...


Mets Notes

  • Nolan McLean has not allowed more than two earned runs in any of his five major league starts, posting a 1.42 ERA
  • Juan Soto is just the third player ever to have a season with 40 homers, 30 stolen bases, and 100 walks, joining Barry Bonds and Jeff Bagwell
  • Francisco Lindor is just 3-for-his-last-28 (.107/.138/.143) over his last seven games


RANGERS
METS
Josh Smith, SSFrancisco Lindor, SS
Wyatt Langford, CFJuan Soto, RF
Joc Pederson, DHPete Alonso, 1B
Adolis García, RFBrandon Nimmo, LF
Rowdy Tellez, 1BMark Vientos, 3B
Josh Jung, 3BJeff McNeil, 2B
Alejandro Osuna, LFStarling Marte, DH
Travis Higashioka, CCedric Mullins, CF
Cody Freeman, 3BFrancisco Alvarez, C

How can I watch the game online?

To watch Mets games online via PIX11, you will need a subscription to a TV service provider and live in the New York City metro area. This will allow fans to watch the Mets on their computer, tablet or mobile phone browser.

To get started on your computer, go to the PIX11 live stream website and follow the site's steps. For more FAQs, you can go here.

ICYMI in Mets Land: Mistakes pile up in loss to Rangers, Brandon Sproat's strong home debut wasted

Here's what happened in Mets Land on Saturday, in case you missed it...


'Fault lies with Martin for Hearts defeat' – what the pundits said

BBC's chief sportswriter Tom English on BBC Sportsound: Rangers are in a desperate, desperate state. We keep saying Russell Martin can't survive this but we don't know what's in the minds of the Rangers owners. On the face of it, this team is going nowhere under Russell Martin.

Former Rangers forward Rory Loy on BBC Sportsound: Big changes need to happen, I'm not alluding to the manager necessarily but they need clear the air talks with Nico Raskin and to get him back in the team and get it put to bed.

They maybe don't win this game with him in the side but they're certainly much better.

The two weeks Russell Martin has had on the training pitch, they look like they've got worse. That loss is on the manager, there's been excuses before but I don't think there's any today [Saturday].

McInnes has 'empathy' for 'fine man, fine manager' Martin

Derek McInnes described under-pressure Rangers counterpart Russell Martin as "a fine man, a fine manager" as his Hearts side ended an 11-year wait for a win at Ibrox amid chants from the stands for the home head coach to be sacked.

Martin insisted afterwards that he had no intention of quitting despite becoming the first Rangers team boss since 1978 to fail to win any of his first five league matches in charge.

Asked by BBC Scotland whether he had any sympathy for the former Rangers defender, McInnes said: "More than a bit, a huge lot. I didn't like that today. It's so unfair on a manager, I don't like it at all.

"He is a fine man, he's a fine manager and, when results don't always come at clubs, especially clubs this size, it's more than just the manager for me. That is tough on him.

"It's early on in the season. He's a new manager and, likewise with myself, I am just in at Hearts and, if we were still sitting towards the bottom end of the table and integrating loads of players and trying to kind of implement what we want to do, you'd be asking for that understanding. And, as managers, that's all we ask for."

While Rangers sit third bottom of the Scottish Premiership after the 2-0 defeat, Hearts are three points clear at the top before reigning champions Celtic face Kilmarnock on Sunday after taking 13 points from a possible 15.

"I enjoyed my team, but it was hard to ignore that and it was hard not to have empathy of course," former Rangers midfielder McInnes, who has been previously linked with a return to Ibrox as manager, added after a chorus of boos greeted Martin's exit up the Ibrox tunnel.