Category: Baseball

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. achieved what started to look impossible. Can his Toronto Blue Jays follow suit?

The defending American League champions have underperformed all season, following the lead of their superstar and $500 million man, who, entering Sunday, Sept. 13, had not hit a home run at Rogers Centre this season – a 75-game power outage for a man who once hit 48 in a season.

But Guerrero got off the schneid with his first Canadian longball this season, the middle of back-to-back-to-back shots off Baltimore's Trevor Rogers that had the home crowd chanting his name and his teammates giddy with joy.

And now, after spending almost the entire season on the wrong side of .500, the Blue Jays are just one game out of a playoff berth and up to No. 13 in USA TODAY Sports' power rankings.

Just like Vladdy, who now has eight home runs this season, can the Blue Jays prove it's never too late?

They have a golden opportunity to make up ground this week, trailing the Cleveland Guardians by one game and the AL Central-leading Chicago White Sox by 1½. Those two meet in a three-game series, while Toronto takes on the Detroit Tigers. Now 75-75, the Blue Jays haven't been two games above .500 since April 1, when they were 4-2.

If they can reach those "heights" in the final 12 games, a very unlikely playoff spot may be in the offing.

Here's a look at our updated MLB power rankings entering the week of Sept. 14:

1. Milwaukee Brewers (-)

• Will clinch NL Central this week and should break franchise record for wins (97) next week.

2. Los Angeles Dodgers (-)

• Edwin Diaz looking a lot closer to getting shut down than returning from rehab assignment.

3. Tampa Bay Rays (+1)

• Victor Mesa (.845 OPS) gives them another power bat for the postseason.

4. Atlanta Braves (-2)

• Never a bad week when you essentially clinch the division. But a first-round bye might be too much to ask.

5. New York Yankees (-)

• Cam Schlittler closing in on Cy Young Award, but let's pump the brakes a tad on MVP talk.

6. Chicago Cubs (-)

• Get a potential glimpse of playoff series with three games against Atlanta this week.

7. Boston Red Sox (+1)

• Wiped the floor with the AL Central this year, going 19-9.

8. Philadelphia Phillies (-1)

• Jesus Luzardo's shoulder inflammation is, at least for now, a significant concern.

9. San Diego Padres (-)

• Jackson Merrill, 23, is a 25-25 man.

10. Arizona Diamondbacks (+1)

• Now three games behind the Padres; need to make sure that final-weekend series isn't simply a lottery ticket.

11. Chicago White Sox (-1)

• Have held at least a share of first place in the AL Central since July 4. Will take a half-game lead into Cleveland.

12. Cleveland Guardians (-)

• For the second consecutive year, they can seize control of division on last homestand.

13. Toronto Blue Jays (+2)

• Dylan Cease in dead heat with Brewers' Jacob Misiorowski for major league strikeout lead.

14. Houston Astros (-1)

• They still might win the AL West, but sweep at hands of Tampa Bay shows playoff stay might not be long.

15. Miami Marlins (-1)

• Somehow won the season series against Dodgers.

The Pittsburgh Pirates made a move over the weekend, assigning rookie outfielder Esemerlyn Valdez to the 10-day IL with a hamstring injury sustained running to first base. The Pirates will bring outfielder Ronny Simon back from Triple A as a replacement. Simon was brought up last week but sent back down on Ryan O’Hearn’s return.

The 22-year-old Valdez has been a pleasant suprise this season for the Pirates, hitting .232 with 17 homers and 47 RBIs over 72 games played. But with just 14 games left in the season, we’ve likely seen the last of Valdez this year.

Simon has been having a great year at Indianapolis, hitting .334 with 7 homers and 72 RBIs, and he’s played in 10 games at the big-league level, going 9-for-35 (.282) on the season with 2 RBIs.

Until Valdez went down, the Bucs were finally looking mostly healthy again, and they responded by going 4-2 on their Chicago road trip. The team is back to .500 but still stand 5.5 games back of a Wild Card spot and are unlikely to make the playoffs.

The Bucs are off today but will return to action tomorrow when they start a three-game set at home against the Milwaukee Brewers. They then have two more series at home, with three each against the Kansas City Royals and St. Louis Cardinals, before wrapping up the 2026 MLB season on the road against the Detroit Tigers. So finshing strong is still a possibility, but the playoffs only happen with a complete collapse of the teams in front of them.

So with Steelers season underway and off to a 1-0 start, the Bucs kept it interesting almost all the way until football season, and that’s more than we can say for years past.

NJ.com | Bob Klapisch ($): Gerrit Cole has been stung by the largest home run bug I’ve seen in a while, seven long balls over two starts against the Padres and Mets. The Yankees have lost both of those games, unsurprising when your starter spots his opponent that many runs. The presumptive #3 in a playoff rotation, figuring out what’s eating at Cole is necessary should the team still want him to start what could be a decisive Wild Card win-or-go-home game. Klapisch brings a couple possible causes to the current problem, and that’s what needs to be identified before anything can be fixed.

New York Daily News | Peter Sblendorio: After taking two of three from the Mets, the Yankees control their own playoff destiny to a point. Their magic number is down to one, a win over the Twins on Monday or a Blue Jays loss to Detroit would send New York back to the postseason. While a division title is improbable, but not impossible, the first Wild Card slot seems all but ensured, giving the club home field in a best-of-three series.

New York Post | Mark W. Sanchez: The Yankee bullpen has ranked amongst the best in baseball, but the eighth and ninth guys in your relief corps are always going to be borderline — see Hanner, Bradley. Clarke Schmidt, an established MLBer, has completed his rehab assignment returning from Tommy John surgery, and is set to be activated during this week’s series in Minnesota. Schmidt is likely a much better option to fill in one of those bullpen slots, boosting the floor of a squad that boasts a pretty high ceiling.

Gothamist | Catalina Gonella and Jill Webb: The South Bronx is dealing with a breakout of Legionnaires’ disease that has infected eight and killed one New Yorker, and the Yankee Stadium cooling tower appears to be one of the possible sources. Ten different towers have tested positive for Legionella bacteria, and the City has ordered all of them to be cleaned and sanitized by Monday morning. Hopefully this will be enough to quell this outbreak, and nobody else will be at risk of being sick.

How Phillies could get creative with Andrew Painter if they reach October originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Andrew Painter’s path back to the Phillies was supposed to answer whether he could help their rotation down the stretch.

Nine starts into his second major league stint, he has done that — and created another question in the process.

If the Phillies get where they want to go in October, what is the best way to use him?

Painter has a 3.58 ERA and 1.15 WHIP since returning on July 31, holding opponents to a .690 OPS, the 11th-lowest mark among qualified starters over that span.

It has been a drastic turn from his first 14 major league outings, when he posted a 7.06 ERA, 1.66 WHIP and allowed a .901 OPS.

The stuff has changed, as have the results.

Painter spent time in the minors after being demoted in June, working on the shape of his four-seam fastball. The pitch has carried noticeably more ride since his return, averaging 18.2 inches of induced vertical break in one recent start after sitting much flatter earlier in the season.

Its velocity hasn’t gone anywhere, either. Painter has reached 99.6 mph with the four-seamer this season.

During his first stint, hitters missed on just over 10 percent of their swings against the fastball. Since his return, that number has climbed to just under 22 percent. The added ride makes it harder for hitters to get on top of the pitch, while his hard changeup gives him another offering that can come out of a similar tunnel before separating late.

It’s a much more complete repertoire than the one hitters faced earlier in the year.

The Phillies aren’t making October plans for Painter just yet. Don Mattingly made that clear when asked recently whether the rookie could eventually be deployed differently in the postseason.

“We don’t want to put the cart in front of the horse,” Mattingly said on Sunday.

He and president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski have more immediate business to handle with the Phillies still trying to secure a postseason spot and position themselves once they get there.

Still, Mattingly didn’t dismiss the possibility.

“I think we have to look at all options,” he said. “Try to put your best guys together.”

Painter isn’t attached to one, either.

“I trust what this organization wants,” Painter said. “I’m bought in on whatever they want, so if that’s something that’s gonna help the team win, I’m willing to do it.”

If the Phillies get there, there are a few ways that could look.

THE RANGER ROLE

The most intriguing possibility might be turning Painter into a gun for hire.

Stay ready. Don’t attach him to a particular inning or even necessarily a particular start. When an October game reaches the point where the Phillies need one of their best arms, use him.

They’ve done it before.

Ranger Suárez became exactly that type of weapon during the Phillies’ 2022 run. He started Game 3 of the NLCS, then returned two days later to record the final two outs of the pennant-clinching Game 5. In the World Series, Suárez recorded two critical outs in relief in Game 1 before coming back four days later to throw five scoreless innings as the Game 3 starter.

Painter could give the Phillies a right-handed version of that flexibility.

Maybe a starter runs into trouble in the fourth inning and they need someone capable of taking the game through the sixth. Maybe they have a lead and don’t trust the middle of the bullpen with the most dangerous part of an opposing lineup. Maybe Painter works two innings in one game and remains an option to start later in the series.

His improved fastball makes the shorter bursts particularly interesting.

Painter wouldn’t need to manage his workload for five or six innings or worry about seeing a lineup for a third time. He could be focused on just two or three outs.

Painter has already thought about what that could feel like.

“I’d be able to rear back a little bit and let it eat a little bit more,” he said. “I’m sure velo would tick up a little bit. We’ll just be able to empty the tank early.”

That is essentially the Ranger role — don’t worry about defining the job before the series. Have one of your better arms ready when the game tells you it needs him.

THE FOURTH STARTER

The simplest option remains letting Painter do what he’s doing now.

Start.

He wouldn’t enter a three-game Wild Card Series as one of the Phillies’ first three rotation options. But advancing out of that round creates an entirely different puzzle because rest, usage and the opponent suddenly matter more than a regular-season rotation order.

The Phillies have dealt with that before. In 2022, they considered leaving their No. 4 starter off the Wild Card roster altogether so he would remain available to start Game 1 of the NLDS if the Wild Card Series went the full three games.

Painter could find himself in a similar opening.

It doesn’t necessarily have to be the fourth game of a series. Depending on how many Wild Card games the Phillies play and which starters they use, their fourth arm could be needed almost immediately in the next round.

Matchup and familiarity could become part of the calculation, too.

Aaron Nola, who’s throwing the ball well right now as well, has years of postseason experience and would likely own the trust advantage if both pitchers were available on equal rest. But October pitching decisions aren’t always as simple as lining up a depth chart. How recently has an opponent seen Nola? How many times has it faced him? Has it seen Painter at all? Which repertoire provides the better matchup?

Painter’s second stint has at least made that a legitimate conversation.

If his next few starts continue on the same track — especially with sharper command — there may be no need to get particularly creative.

THE PIGGYBACK

There is a third possibility that falls somewhere between giving Painter his own start and waiting to deploy him as a Ranger-style stopper.

Build a game around two pitchers from the beginning.

The Phillies did exactly that last October against the Dodgers.

Facing elimination in Game 3 of the 2025 NLDS, they started Nola but never intended to treat it like a conventional start. Nola attacked the Dodgers as if he only needed to see them once, facing eight hitters across two scoreless innings before Suárez took over to begin the third.

Suárez handled the bulk from there, allowing one run over five innings in an 8-2 Phillies win.

It was a planned one-two punch rather than a reaction to a starter struggling.

The Phillies could create something similar with Painter.

Left-hander Nestor Cortes presents one possibility if he’s built up enough by October. The veteran left-hander is only beginning to stretch back out, pitching an inning Tuesday with Single-A Clearwater and another Saturday with Triple-A Lehigh Valley.

Stylistically, the contrast would be difficult to miss. Cortes can disrupt timing with deception, angles and a completely different velocity band before handing the game to Painter’s upper-90s fastball and power changeup. The Phillies could also reverse them depending on the opposing lineup, allowing Painter to attack early before changing the look completely.

Nola could theoretically be part of a piggyback again, too. His current trajectory makes another intentionally abbreviated start less obvious than it was last October, when he entered that Dodgers game coming off an injury-riddled regular season. But the precedent is key.

They don’t have to make any of these decisions yet, though.

Painter still has two starts left in his regular-season rookie campaign. Cortes is still building up. The Phillies still have to earn their way into October before deciding how the pitching staff should look once they get there.

If they get there, they are no longer wondering whether Andrew Painter can help them.

They can decide how.

All three of Burnes, Gallen, and Soroka returned from the IL this week. Which do you expect to have the biggest positive impact on the team?

James Attwood: Probably Soroka. Burnes is still pitch-limited and is still looking for the feel and timing on his breaking pitches, especially the curve. Gallen has had a rough go of things for two years now. Soroka has at least been mostly good when healthy. If he can get stretched back out to 80 pitches and if he can find most of his form from earlier this season, he could help the team save the bullpen somewhat during the run-in to October.

Spencer: Burnes and it isn’t close. I think having Gallen “start” is telling of how they’ll be used. I think that deflates both Gallen and Soroka’s value. Plus we need Burnes or it’s over for this entire window. That might need to wait for 2027*, but it’d be nice to see it this year too.

Makakilo: My view is Soroka will have the biggest positive impact. Looking at their first games back, Sokoka had the best FIP and best expected statistics (xOBP allowed and xSLG allowed). My view is Burnes will have the second biggest positive impact.

Justin: I think Soroka will, but I want Burnes to. I don’t want to be a pessimist, but Burnes hasn’t pitched in essentially over a year. Other than whatever rehab stints or bullpens he has done.

Ben: I lean towards Soroka because he can either start or work as a longman out of the bullpen. My faith in Gallen has been thoroughly destroyed where I worry about how effective he can truly be in the rotation. And while Burnes looked pretty good in his first start, I worry that he’ll be on such a strict pitch count that his impact will be limited as well. So by default, I think the guy who was an excellent number-two in the rotation behind Eduardo Rodriguez should be a huge impact player down the stretch.

Justin Martinez seems to be rounding in to form nicely. Is there a way for him to force himself into high leverage innings before April of next year?

James Attwood: If the team makes it to the playoffs, he may well be in high leverage in October. It seems quite likely that, should everyone remain healthy and should there be a season in 2027, Martinez may enter April penciled in as the team’s closer.

Spencer: Probably but I’d be hesitant. Let him just have success without adding extra stress. He and Nelson (when back) would be my top choices for high leverage innings should one of the current group falter.

Makakilo: Pitching decisions will likely be decided on by game situations and data about batter/pitcher matchups. A few weeks may not be enough time to significantly change the data.

Justin: I want to make a smartass comment about baseball not being played in April, but….

I would go into ST with a competition for the closer role, but J. Mart has a leg up on everyone else. Please no signings of the next Brad Boxberger or Fernando Rodney.

Ben: He’s looked great in his first few games back, but it’ll be tough for him to force his way into those leverage positions while the team has an embarrassment of riches in the bullpen with Taylor Clarke, Kevin Ginkel, Juan Morillo, Brandyn Garcia, and Jonathan Loaisiga all providing tremendous value. Unless one of those pitchers falters, I suspect the team will slow roll Martinez back into the fold rather than throwing him right back into the high leverage role he clearly can occupy.

What’s your best prediction for the three NL Wild Card teams? Bonus points for how many wins the team on the outside looking in will have

James Attwood: Let’s get a bit optimistic. I could see the Padres being the one left without a seat. They might finish with 87 wins and still be on the outside looking in.

Spencer: I expect Chicago takes the top spot. Philly and AZ tie for the second and third with 86 wins. Padres will be first out with 85.

Makakilo: Predict Cubs, Phillies, and Dbacks. Predict the team on the outside will have 88 wins.

Justin: Unfortunately, I think it will be the Phillies, Padres and Cubs. We finish with 86 wins. I do think it is very possible that the final series against the Padres will be essentially a playoff series, though. In the preseason wins prediction article, I had the team at 84 wins. Blake 92 and Wes at 95 as the high water marks, with the low win total being 79 by Spencer and DBE. The average was 84.2 wins.

Ben: I think the three current holders (Phillies, Cubs, Padres) are the most likely finalists unfortunately. The race for the third spot will almost assuredly come down to that final series between the Padres and the D-Backs unless the Padres somehow stumble down the stretch or the D-Backs go on a huge run. Between now and then, the D-Backs face off against the Marlins, Rockies, and Yankees while the Padres go against the Rockies, Marlins, and Dodgers. So we’ll all become Dodgers fans for a couple days and hope they don’t have everything sewn up already by that point and roll over to San Diego.

Justin Martinez threw the second immaculate inning this season for the Diamondbacks. What’s the coolest moment in Diamondbacks history you’ve seen in person?

James Attwood: Way too many fun experiences over the years. With over 25 years of attending games, I have been to over a thousand of them. One moment that does really stick out to me is a VERY OLD memory. Micah Owings was just coming onto the scene as a pitcher with pop in his bat. Owings, a pitcher at the time, was tabbed to enter the game as a pinch hitter. The opposition actually made a pitching change to help the team face off against a pinch-hitting pitcher. It didn’t matter. Owings went deep and had the entire stadium laughing at and jeering the opposition manager.

Spencer: I don’t live in Phoenix so my in person Diamondbacks options are slim to say the least. Home opener 2019 was cool. As a kid I was at the game where Mark Grace had to pitch. Does that qualify as cool?

[Ed. note] Yes, yes it does

Makakilo: In 2017, I was at an exciting game in person. The following quote is from my article that posted on 1 December 2017.

“First let’s set the scene. It’s the Wild Card elimination game against the Rockies, bottom of the seventh inning. The D-backs have a 1-run lead. The two teams have scored 11 runs so far; the game is too close to call. An outstanding pitcher, Pat Neshek is on the mound. His statistics are impressive! (2017 regular season ERA of 1.12 with Phillies and 2.45 with Rockies. 2014-15 post-season ERA of 2.08.)”

“Lovullo makes a bold move by not pinch hitting for Bradley. Archie Bradley walks to the plate with two outs and men on first and second. He works the count to 2 balls and 2 strikes. The crowd is extremely loud. He spits out a sunflower husk. He hits that next pitch into the outfield gap and the ball bounces to the wall. Cheering is felt more than heard. The third base coach windmills wildly as Lamb and Descalso race home. Archie Bradley rounds second base with long strides and slides into third base with a triple.”

Justin: In terms of being physically at Chase Field, I saw Andy Green’s first MLB home run. I know he was just a cup of coffee AAAA player, but I still think that is kind of neat.

Most uncool moment was Rusty Ryal hitting a comebacker and knocked out Hiroki Koroda. He had to be stretchered off.

On TV, I watched Edwin Jackson’s no hitter, JD Martinez’ 4 homer game and others.

One of the Snakepitfests just happened to be the game that the Dbacks retired Gonzo’s number. IIRC, it was already preplanned that we would have the Snakepitfest on whatever date it was and it was a great coincidence that the team announced it would be the day they retired Gonzo’s jersey. Chris Young hit a walk off home run to win it….after Aaron Heilman blew a save allowing 2 home runs in the top of the 9th.

https://www.baseball-reference.com/boxes/ARI/ARI201008070.shtml

Ben: I haven’t been privileged enough to see that many moments in-person, but watching the no-hitter from Tyler Gilbert back in 2021 during his first major league start was an extremely cool moment. But I could also pick out basically any single moment from that 2023 postseason run as well.

You’ve watched baseball long enough to know an inherent truth: stars cannot save you. This is not football, where having one of the best quarterbacks alive can gift you a .500 season as the starting point. It’s certainly not basketball, where having one of best players is synonymous with having one of the best teams.

You watched Barry Bonds break the single-season home record for a team that still missed the playoffs. You watched Tim Lincecum win a Cy Young on a team that finished 18 games below .500.

And if you thinks this is just a San Francisco Giants thing, well, it’s not. The Los Angeles Angels employed Mike Trout and Shohei Ohtani for six straight seasons, and won exactly zero postseason games. While Ohtani has left and found greener pastures, Trout has put together one of the greatest careers in MLB history and, more than 17 years since the day he heard his name called at the draft, is still in desperate search of his first playoff win. Not a series win; a game. Nine measly innings.

So yes. Stars very much cannot save you.

But an absence of stars will kill you, swiftly and emphatically. This is a newts and salamanders situation: not all stars play for good teams, but all good teams have stars. Plural.

The Giants entered the season with two stars, one on each side of the ball: Logan Webb and Rafael Devers. And while those two were far from the only reason that the season started as sideways as a 2004 Paul Giamatti film, you can at least draw something of a line connecting the team’s record after six weeks (14-23) to Webb’s ERA (5.06) and Devers’ OPS (.593).

Those two eventually course-corrected to varying levels. Webb mixed enough good in with the bad to make his third-straight All-Star appearance, while Devers turned the calendar in a hurry and, since the start of May, has been third in both OPS and wRC+, behind only presumptive MVPs Pete Crow-Armstrong and Yordan Alvarez.

The Giants, of course, did no such course correcting, reminding us once again of today’s lesson: stars cannot save you.

We spent much of the summer watching Devers smash home run after home run and remembering that lesson. But occasionally that aforementioned corollary — an absence of stars will kill you — would rear its head.

On Sunday, in a 6-4 loss that resulted in a sweep at the hands of the San Diego Padres, the Giants were reminded of that corollary. It was a starless Sunday at Oracle Park, unless you were one of the fans sitting in the bleachers watching the first Sunday of the NFL season, instead.

The Giants found themselves emphatically starless. Webb was pitching, yes, but just two starts removed from the worst outing of his career, and leaking oil in a big way. He didn’t look himself. He didn’t look the part of an ace or a star.

And Devers? Shortly before the game began, the Giants announced that he had been placed on the 60-Day Injured List with a core muscle injury, ending his season.

One star who, for now, is not a star. One star who, for now, is not healthy. It’s a good recipe for a forgettable baseball loss.

As if to hammer home this point, the Peacock broadcast displayed the Giants nine-player lineup next to the team they played for when the season began. Just two of the players (Jung Hoo Lee and Christian Koss) were on the Giants. Just one other (Brett Harris) was on a different team’s MLB roster. Despite that, just two (Bryce Eldridge and Drew Gilbert) began the season for the Giants’ AAA affiliate. Two more (Shay Whitcomb and Andrew Knizner) were on different teams’ AAA affiliates. And finally, two more (Jonah Cox and the debuting Scott Bandura) had opened the season for San Francisco’s AA team.

Just for good measure, the Giants turned to three players off of their bench: one more (Osleivis Basabe) who started the year in AAA, and two more who began the season down in AA (Drew Cavanaugh and Turner Hill). When Webb’s night was over, he was replaced by Matt Wilkinson, whose first appearance of the season was his AA debut. He handed things over to the third and final pitcher, Trent Harris, who began the season in AAA.

A distinct lack of stars, especially when it became apparent that Webb was all too hittable on this night. He loaded the bases before recording an out, ceding back-to-back singles to open the game, and following them up with an uncompetitive double. An unproductive out was only temporary respite before Jackson Merrill smacked a two-run double.

It was not just a first inning thing, as we’ve sometimes seen from Webb. A Samad Taylor leadoff single and steal put the Giants leader in trouble immediately to start the second, and Taylor would later score on a single by Fernando Tatis Jr., who would later score on a home run by Manny Machado.

And with that, it was clear what kind of a night it would be.

Webb would mostly settle in after that, but the damage was done. He’d give up just one more rally, when Ethan Salas cracked a triple (his first career hit) in the fourth inning, and scored on another Tatis single.

If you’re looking for a silver lining, Webb’s strikeouts returned for this game, as he whiffed seven batters, while walking just one. But it’s hard to search too hard for a silver lining given the eight hits and six runs in five innings. Really, the silver lining came from what happened after Webb left: Wilkinson allowed just one hit in three shutout innings, while Harris pitched a perfect ninth.

The offense, tasked with undoing a large early deficit without Devers, tried, but fell short. Knizner made it clear that there would be fight, when he blasted a two-run homer in the second inning to give the team life.

But an opportunity was squandered in the fourth, when Eldridge led off with a single and Cox followed with his greatest weapon: the bunt single. Bandura, in just his second career at-bat, struck out, before Whitcomb blooped a single to load the bases.

The situational opportunities still haunt the Giants, though, as Knizner hit a fly ball that wasn’t deep enough to score Eldridge, before the inning ended on a Harris fly ball.

They would chip away an inning later, though. San Diego turned to a lefty reliever for the fifth inning, and Koss led off with a single and a stolen base, before Gilbert worked an impressive same-handed walk. A double steal put the Giants in position for a big inning, but they could only get one run out of it, after Lee had an unproductive out and Eldridge ground into an RBI fielder’s choice.

They chipped away an inning later, and this time it was in memory-making fashion: Bandura, who became the franchise record-setting 67th player to appear in a game for the Giants this year, led off the inning with a single, his first career hit, which he celebrated by taking second on an error. He would later score the first run of his career, when Koss brought him home with a clutch two-out single.

But just as the Giants have grown accustomed to poor situational hitting, they’ve grown accustomed to bizarre plays on the field, and Koss had a new one for us: with Koss at first and Cavanaugh at second, Basabe ground into what figured to be an inning-ending out. Xander Bogaerts, however, tried to get the out the short way, and threw to second too late. Koss, not anticipating this, ran right through the bag; rather than an infield single, the Padres had Koss — and then, after pivoting 90 degrees, Cavanaugh — in an easy backyard pickle.

Once the shenanigans arrive, you know the game is over. And it was. The Giants tried again in the eighth, when Bandura drew a leadoff walk and Hill worked a two-out walk. They tried again in the ninth, when Eldridge bopped a two-out single, and Cox worked 10 pitches out of Yuki Matsui.

But on the 10th, he struck out swinging, and the game was over.

All credit to the kids. They’re fun. And they’re making memories.

But it’s hard to win without stars.

During his time as the control partner of the San Diego Padres, the late Peter Seidler was aggressive with spending money to build a core of players for the team he loved. Signing Manny Machado to a long-term contract and then extending him when he had an opt-out option, Seidler committed a total of $470 million to Machado for his contract covering 2019 through 2033.

Fernando Tatis Jr. and Jake Cronenworth added to core

When Seidler and general manager A.J. Preller recognized the exciting talent of the Padres’ young shortstop, Fernando Tatis Jr., they negotiated a 14-year contract extension that committed him to the Padres through 2034 and pays $340 million.

Infielder Jake Cronenworth, the Padres defensive specialist at multiple positions, was given a much smaller contract at seven years and $80 million to anchor the infield while being able to play all four infield spots. Cronenworth’s contract presently looks to be a bargain for a player that will never be a superstar but is steady and reliable while playing excellent defense at multiple spots.

The team will likely believe that all of those contracts were justified in the long run. Even Machado, who is on a Hall-of-Fame career track, was a defensible decision based on his contract being the one that established the organization as being serious about contending and his standing as the team’s leader on and off the field.

Xander Bogaerts’ addition is a puzzle

The head scratcher, the player signed to a contract that seemed a massive overpay at the time and even more so now, is shortstop Xander Bogaerts. There is no denying he was a superstar in his time with the Boston Red Sox, earning multiple World Series championships. When his contract ended with Boston, the Padres outbid everyone else in the running. The Red Sox infamously offered Bogaerts a 4-year, $90 million contract, then upped it to six years and $160 million. The Cubs were rumored to have offered him a multi-year, $200 million contract.

The Padres blew all those offers out of the water, signing Bogaerts, 30-years-old at the time, to an 11-year, $280 million deal that carried through the 2033 season, when Bogaerts will be 41 years old.

It was a puzzling decision by Seidler and the Padres. They already had multiple shortstops on the roster with Tatis being a blooming superstar. In his first year with the Padres, Bogaerts hit a respectable .285/.350/.440 with 19 home runs and 58 RBI. That 2023 season was his best as a Padre.

Offensive struggles

Since the 2023 season, Bogaerts has declined offensively each year. Some of that can be attributed to injuries, with a broken shoulder and broken foot affecting his 2024 and 2025 seasons.

So far in 2026, Xander Bogaerts has been relatively healthy. With a hamstring scare and a ball fouled off his foot in August, Bogaerts left those games but was never held from a game or placed on the injured list. Despite having no significant injury this season, Bogaerts is having his worst season as an MLB player. At 33-years-old, Bogaerts is at the back end of his peak production as a professional player. A players’ peak years are considered to be between the age of 27 and 32 with production tailing significantly after that age. 

With seven years remaining on his contract, Bogaerts is in the declining years of his career. With a look at his stats, it appears his hitting is the first to go. 

Bogaerts started the season strong in 2026. In April, he hit .292/.382/.472 with five home runs and 15 RBI. He had a good spring, hitting .286 with a .819 OPS, so his strong start was very encouraging. Unfortunately, May brought expectations back down to earth. Hitting .204 in May and .211 in June, Bogaerts managed just six extra-base hits in 51 games. 

July was even worse, hitting .167 with a .523 OPS in 24 games. In 27 games in August, Bogaerts hit .212 with a .674 OPS, with seven extra-base hits and 11 RBI.

For September’s 10 games, Bogaerts is pushing his numbers up as the team is making a playoff push. Hitting .314/.415/.371 with a .786 OPS, Bogaerts is following a trend in his career of improving his numbers during the last month of the season.

Strong defense

If there is one silver lining to the Bogaerts situation, it is his defense at shortstop. After switching him to second base for 85 games in 2024 to accommodate Ha-Seong Kim at shortstop, Bogaerts has been their primary shortstop. From 2023 through this season, Bogaerts has been in the 80th percentile or above in Outs Above Average as a shortstop. In 2025, he finished in the 93rd percentile with seven OAA. He has improved his arm strength during his time with the Padres, even though it continues to be below average. 

It seems unlikely that a drastic improvement in his offense will occur at this point in his career. Bogaerts, an admired leader on the team, will need to work over the next offseason to evaluate what needs to change. Looking at his Baseball Savant page, Bogaerts has not lost bat speed or exit velocity over his time with the Padres. He does not strike out more or chase more than in past years. At best, his stats portray an average to below-average major league hitter. That is borne out in his status as the No. 8 hitter in the Padres lineup, a spot unfamiliar to a player with Bogaerts’ past pedigree.

Machado made swing changes this past offseason in order to improve his bat speed and exit velocity, he has not recovered from the slump those changes threw him into. He is also having the worst year of his career in batting average numbers. Machado is still the best power hitter on the team and leads in RBI, but players need to show caution when reworking their swings as they age.

Bogaerts can still be a valuable player for the Padres if he can improve his offense to average. His underlying numbers indicate he still can do that. Bogaerts will have to make the adjustments all aging players must make. 

It is too late to live up to the contract he signed. Both Bogaerts and Machado will long be done as players before the Padres stop paying them. What Bogaerts needs to focus on is adjusting his game so he can be a contributor for as long as possible.

As the playoffs approach, get used to seeing what the Yankees did in Sunday’s 2-0 win: an inning each from Brent Headrick, Paul Blackburn and David Bednar.

Actually, if you’ve been paying attention, you’ve seen that trio plenty already this season, and it’s served the Yankees well.

But the Yankees will also have to decide whether it’s sustainable to keep up this pace, since Headrick has pitched the most games in the majors and entered Sunday ninth in the majors among relievers with 73 ¹/₃ innings pitched.

Blackburn is fifth on the list at 76 ²/₃ innings pitched, and among closers, only Cleveland’s Cade Smith has outpaced Bednar’s 64 ¹/₃ innings following Sunday’s victory.

Prior to the game, Aaron Boone said he’d “prefer a little lighter load along the way” with some of the high-leverage relievers, but he noted over the past few weeks, they’ve looked to reduce their workload in order to provide “a bit of a reset.”

But Boone also said as they continue to chase the Rays in the AL East and look to hold off the Red Sox for the top AL wild-card spot, that they’ve “still got to be disciplined not overusing them, even when it’s the most critical game. They’re all ready to roll. Any time we have a chance to win a game, I’m gonna go to them.”

It worked again Sunday, as the three relievers combined to toss three shutout innings in relief of the brilliant Cam Schlittler.

Blackburn, in his first full season as a reliever, said it’s been an adjustment getting used to the workload of a reliever, but he feels prepared to pitch frequently both down the stretch and into the playoffs.

“Mentally, that’s where we are and what we believe in,’’ he said. “We’ll probably pitch every day in the playoffs. We’re ready for that, and that’s a good thing for us. It’s not gonna surprise us. We know how to go out there with whatever we’ve got that day.”

Headrick, who has emerged as the pen’s top lefty this season, credits the work he did in the offseason, both in getting stronger and refining his secondary off-speed pitches to allow for better outings.

“To be able to contribute all season long is something we’re proud of as a group,’’ Headrick said. “We know all these games are a mini-test for the postseason, but we don’t look ahead to the end of the year. We just want to keep going.”

As pitching coach Matt Blake has noted, the Yankees have emphasized giving pitchers complete days off from throwing in an effort to keep them fresh for when it matters most.

He’s aware the plan might not work and they’ll only know at the end of the year.

But Sunday was another outing in which they got just what they wanted.

Being able to leave Kansas City with a big series win but unfortunately missing out on an opportunity to get the Diamondbacks first sweep since July 10-12 against the Dodgers, the Dbacks came back to Phoenix to start their final homestand of 2026 against another team who is also still in the fight for a chance to play October in the Texas Rangers.

Only 0.5 games back of the Padres with 15 games left to play, the time to start sweeping teams instead of just winning the series is now, as the Snakes have to stop relying on other teams to help them out in the race and start to focus on taking care of their own business when it really matters.

Fixin’ To Score Some Runs

After seeing the offense go through the last week or so with an offense that has been borderline non-existent, Saturdays 9 run outburst was a nice change of pace as the Dbacks would actually come through in clutch situations, going 4 for 6 with runners in scoring position and keeping their foot on the gas pedal and not letting up with just a 4-1 lead after 5 innings. 

Brandon and I discussed that it was indeed nice to see them breakout like this, we also questioned why they still seem to go nearly half of every game with a seemingly lifeless approach at the dish before they do all their scoring in one inning and then disappear from then on. We asked ourselves if this is something that is more so on the players, as they are the ones that have to actually perform when it matters, or if hitting coach Joe Mather and the assistant hitting coaches are the ones to look at for the gameplan they are giving these hitters night in and night out.

What the Heel Do You Mean He Was Safe?

After getting an early 1-0 lead in the second innings thanks to a Tim Tawa triple followed by a Pavin Smith RBI single (He’s still not good, I don’t care if he finally came through this one time with a runner in scoring position) the Dbacks looked to be in the driver seat as Big Game Brandon Pfaadt was cruising through 4 innings, looking like he could go well into the late innings of Saturday night’s ball game. Sadly a big 6 run 5th inning from the Rangers would take that hope and spit on it right in front of us as that was all the Rangers would need to score for the rest of the night to hang onto the win.

The big controversy from this game however came during that 6 run inning, where the Diamondbacks were denied a potential inning ending double play as Corey Seager was called safe at 1st base due to Pfaadt’s foot coming off the bag. Torey Lovullo decided to challenge that call and the replays that were shown to the fans made it appear that Pfaadt’s heel was on the bag, but the replay officials in New York decided there wasn’t sufficient evidence to overrule the original call and Seager remained safe at 1st. That turned what could have been a 2-1 deficit going into the bottom of the 5th into the Rangers rallying with 2 outs and putting up 4 more runs.

Brandon and I were both in agreement that this was indeed a big momentum swing, it wouldn’t have been as big of a deal if the inning ended with a 3-1 Rangers lead or even a 4-1 lead, but with the way the offense has been swinging it as of late it felt like that sucked all the life and momentum out of the offense and they couldn’t seem to recover and make a comeback.

Death By Errors (And Corey Seager)

In need of a big series win in Sunday’s rubber match the Snakes would have their ace of the 2026 season on the bump as they would need AceRod to do his AceRod things but Corey Seager would decide tro turn back the clock to the 2023 Fall Classic and get the Rangers an early 2-0 lead. Rodriguez would bounce back and settle in a bit with a Gabriel Moreno solo shot cutting the Rangers lead in half going into the 5th.

Looking for a big shutdown inning and getting the offense back in the dugout and ready to get to work again, the Diamondbacks defense picked the worst time to commit 2 very costly errors when they can’t afford any kind of sloppiness down the stretch, with Nolan Arenado botching a grounder that he makes probably 99% of the time and Lars Nootbar getting caught in between wanting to layout for a line drive and letting it one hop to him, thus leading to 2 runners coming around to score.

Brandon and I talked about how those 2 big errors that lead to 3 unearned runs on Eduardo’s statline in the 5th ended up being the deciding factor in Sunday’s crushing defeat as the Dbacks would drop this one by just 1 run. Yes it is a shoulda/coulda/woulda situation, but in a must win game like this one those errors are just something that cannot happen if this team wants to actually catch and overtake the Padres for the final wild card spot.

Time To Reel In A Sweep

Dropping this series while the Padres actually took care of their own business and swept the Giants have the Diamondbacks 2.5 games back and going into a 3 game series against the Marlins, who just took 2 of 3 from the Dodgers and who also swept the Snakes in their earlier series in Miami this year. With the Diamondbacks being more than a month removed from their last series sweep, we both agreed that they are due and due in a big way for another sweep. A 2.5 game deficit isn’t that big of a gap to make up but with how the Padres have been playing as of late (winners of 7 straight) it feels like every game going forwards is a must win if the snakes want to have any hopes in making it into the dance in October and a anything less than either a series win or even a sweep of the Marlins could be the final nail in the coffin for the Diamondbacks playoff hopes in 2026.

Before Sunday’s game, Astros manager Joe Espada gave an update on the status of 3B Carlos Correa:

It has not been determined how many games Correa will require on a rehab assignment, although the Sugar Land Space Cowboys season ends September 20. Whether they will require Correa to play the full week for Sugar Land or just have him get his feet wet to get his timing and get him back to the big league roster to help a floundering offense is unknown.

The Astros offense, usually heavily reliant on it’s big 3 of Jeremy Pena, Yordan Alvarez and Isaac Paredes, has been scuffling with Pena mired in a massive slump and Yordan dealing with a power outage. Only Paredes has continued to produce. Getting Correa back and performing would be a big shot in the arm for the offense.

It is also unknown where Correa will play, with a recent report from Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic indicating the team is considering Correa at 2B, which would move Alvarez to LF and Altuve to DH.

The Colorado Rockies were eliminated from the playoffs a week ago, but there are still plenty of other teams who will be playing. So far, the Tampa Bay Rays and Milwaukee Brewers are the only two teams who have officially clinched postseason berths. The White Sox have a half-game lead over the Cleveland Guardians for the AL Central title; the Houston Astros have a 1.5-game lead over the Texas Rangers in the AL West; the Atlanta Braves have a five-game lead over the Philadelphia Phillies in the NL East; and the Los Angeles Dodgers have a 9.5-game lead over the San Diego Padres.

However, the Wild Card games are where things get a little interesting.

In the American League, the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox and Cleveland Guardians own the Wild Cards. However, the Toronto Blue Jays are just one game back and the Texas Rangers are 2.5 games back.

In the National League, the Chicago Cubs, Philadelphia Phillies and San Diego Padres are currently in. But the Arizona Diamondbacks are just 1.5 games behind the Padres, and the rest of the NL teams are six games back or more.

All that’s to say, which team(s) will you be rooting for in the postseason? Which storylines are you watching for the rest of the season? Who are you rooting for to get the final postseason spots?

Let us know in the comments!

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

We need to see Payton Tolle on the Fenway mound this October. We NEED to see it.

Tolle is forging a real connection with the fans the stands at Fenway. It’s not just the hugs. It’s not just the strikeouts. It’s everything. It’s the way he bounces onto the mound to start each inning. It’s primal scream he unleashes after a big strikeout to end a threat. It’s the fact that he’s a man who finds himself exactly where he belongs, every night at 7:10 PM (or in the case of this oddly timed rain delayed game, 4:55 PM).

Tolle threw 9 straight fastballs for strikes to start tonight’s game against the Royals. An immaculate inning. And it looked so easy that a part of me thought he was just going to keep doing it, just keep throwing heater after heater, strike after strike. (Ultimately, he threw a ball on his second pitch of the second, but he still ended up getting the strikeout of Unc King Salvador Perez.)

From there the Royals didn’t even look interested in trying to hit him. They would not remotely threaten until the sixth, when they put the first two men on only for Tolle to strand them both, finishing his outing with an emphatic swinging K of Matthew Lugo.

Tolle’s fellow phenom, Roman Anthony, has had a more difficult time connecting with the crowd. Dogged by injuries and whispers that he’s perhaps too regular of a presence around Seaport on the weekends, Anthony has far more doubters than a player of his prodigious talent should. He needs more nights like tonight, when he effortlessly laced a gamebreaking single to the opposite field in the seventh.

The Red Sox quietly needed this win, I think. It’s been a sleepy week of baseball around these parts. And with an off-day tomorrow and then a tough final road trip of the season looming, it was important for the Sox to leave Fenway on a high note. Tolle and Anthony — who may be the two most important figures connected with the Sox over the next decade — delivered.

Three Studs

Payton Tolle: All I wanted was for him to escape this game without spraining an ankle trying to field a bunt on wet grass. He delivered far more than that, striking out 7 over 6 and letting the Royals know they had no shot right form the first pitch.

Caleb Durbin: For a while it looked like Durbin’s second inning homer just barely over the monster might be the only run of the game. As it was, though, he would subsequently score the go-ahead run on Roman’s seventh inning knock.

Willson Contreras: Two hits and three times on base is certainly not a bad way to return to the lineup.

Two Duds

Erik Miller: Yikes. He came on for Tolle to start the 7th and just absolutely could not throw a strike, showing terrible control for his first time with the Sox. Unfortunately, this is who has been for most of his career, and we’re going to have to hope this is just a momentary return to old (bad) form.

Aroldis Chapman: This is a harsh dudship. Chapman struck out the side in the 9th and got the save. But, like Miller before him, he also struggled with his control, walking 2 and needing 25 pitches to get through the inning. He’s an old dude who has gone through extended rough patches vis a vis his control before; this is something to keep an eye on.

Play of the Game

I guess it’s not actually one play, but, come on, it’s the entire first inning.

Christian Scott’s best start in six weeks was one of his strongest this season, but it wasn’t enough to get the Mets a Subway Series win.

Two pitches derailed the right-hander Sunday: A splitter that Ben Rice hit into the right field seats leading off the game for the Yankees and the four-seamer Austin Wells crushed for a homer in the third. Those blasts accounted for two of the three hits and the only runs against Scott in the 2-0 loss at Yankee Stadium.

Scott’s start was only the second best in this series rubber game; Cam Schlittler allowed one hit over six shutout innings with eight strikeouts. Scott went six innings and struck out seven.

Scott’s takeaway from his solid performance on such a big stage?

“That I can compete anywhere against anybody,” Scott said. “Cam threw a great game today. When you give up solo home runs and he gives up no runs through six, it’s tough to beat him. But I feel that I can go out and compete against anybody and put my stuff against anybody’s.”

In the larger picture, the Mets received quality starts on consecutive days from two of the young building blocks in their rotation. A day earlier, rookie Zac Thornton allowed two earned runs over seven innings in the Mets’ lone victory in the series.

“It’s good to see them do it here,” interim manager Andy Green said. “I don’t think there is a one of us that knows those two guys that would have doubted they would do it here. Pitchers have bad games. But this park was not going to rattle either of those guys. I don’t see playoff atmospheres rattling those guys. I don’t see anything really getting in their way from being what they can be.”

Scott’s start was his 31st straight in which he allowed four earned runs or fewer, extending his franchise record for a pitcher beginning his major league career. He’s pitched to a 3.76 ERA in 22 starts this season.

“I’m grateful to be here,” said Scott, who missed last season rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. “But at the same time, I feel I can help this team win a lot of games.”

Scott said he’s most pleased that he’s transitioned from thrower to pitcher.

“I feel I have been able to locate my off-speed pitches a lot,” Scott said. “I have the cutter, and I am able to throw the changeup more, just rounding out my repertoire and the weapons that I have, but overall I just feel like I have been attacking the strike zone a little bit better than earlier in the year. Just keep that pace up and take it into next year.”

The A’s beat the Mariners 8-7 on Sunday afternoon in Sacramento. Looks like Seattle will be joining us on the couch this October. We love a walk off!

More to come…