Category: Baseball

Welcome back to Rays Reacts, which was a little light in the vote tally this time around! I know it’s summer, but I do encourage all to vote. We have them cross-posted to The Feed on the front page now, so please do not hesitate to make your way over an vote.

Last week we asked about the rotation confidence, so this week I took a step farther back and asked about your biggest worry generally. The answer was timely!

The Rays did not dominate the homestand this time around, losing by four+ runs in two of three to Balitmore, and putting up only two runs on Sunday on their way to a 2-5 W-L over seven games. But the Rays were battling, splitting the four games decided by one run.

If you think that means the Rays have a bad offense, the data hasn’t really backed it up. Since August 1 the Rays have a third best offense in baseball with a 114 wRC+, with an MLB best .282 AVG, fourth best .338 OBP, and sixth best .432 SLG, while also leading MLB with 24 steals, second overall in runs scored (97), and despite the reputation for small ball, a ninth highest tally of 23 HR. You can imagine all of those numbers improve if you make that ranking AL-only.

Given that the Rays are heating up at the plate, its reasonable to be concerned the team might be peaking too early and cool down in September, but thus far all signs point to a Rays offense that is clicking — particularly after the added protection of Liam Hicks.

If you enjoy staying dialed into the offense, you can consider some prop bets regarding the Rays offense at FanDuel, who sponsored this post.

Go Rays!

The Kansas City Royals have no shot at making the playoffs this year and no shot at a winning record. They are playing out the string, not quite mathematically eliminated but counting down the days until they are—recent winning streak notwithstanding. This is not ideal. Ideally, we’d be freaking out about every game because the Royals are in the thick of the playoff race and every game matters to the standings.

But there are benefits the games not mattering whatsoever to the standings. Teams that are in this position have a superpower: they can just try stuff. When teams are really bad, you can risk significantly more downside, which incentivizes playing high-risk, high-reward players over low-risk, low-reward ones.

This is precisely why the Royals should be putting Tyler Tolbert in the lineup every day.

Now, that sounds a little crazy on the surface, I know. The Royals drafted Tolbert out of the University of Alabama in the 13th round of the 2019 MLB Draft. It is, of course, an honor to be drafted at all and a testament to one’s talents. But also, like, every team in the league declined to pick him up a dozen times before Kansas City selected him because Tolbert’s tools weren’t as loud or as refined as the competition. Even now, the 5’ 10” Tolbert isn’t exactly a physically imposing force or the biggest threat at the plate.

Except…Tolbert is making it work.

Beginning the year, Tolbert’s use case on the roster was a sort of Terrance Gore pinch runner specialist. Tolbert has always been a great swiper of bags; he stole 55 bases in 2021, 60 in 2022, 50 in 2023, and 48 in 2024 as he slowly climbed the ladder. Tolbert then stole 21 bases in 23 tries last year in his first year in the big leagues.

But it has been Tolbert’s bat that has been intriguing. Yes, he’s run a sub-.150 isolated slugging percentage—and sometimes much lower than that—pretty much every year since getting drafted. Tolbert has countered that with a solid contact rate and an ability to draw a walk, and it’s translated to the big leagues in his small sample size 168 plate appearances.

So, why should the Royals play Tolbert? That’s easy: Tolbert has untapped potential that simply isn’t in his direct competitors, aka John Rave, Michael Massey, Kyle Isbel, and Nick Loftin. With the possible exception of Rave, who all of a sudden is a huge bat speed and barrel rate guy, we know who those guys are: they are decent players without standout tools who are gonna give you 0.5 to 1.5 Wins Above Replacement over the course of a year. That’s not bad! We’ve all seen the Royals trot out way worse guys.

Tolbert, however, does have that standout tool. He’s in the 93rd percentile in sprint speed, which allows him to make plays that the others just can’t—both on the bases and in the field. And since Tolbert has also played all around the diamond, he’s the rare sort of utility player who can handle center field and shortstop. Finally, although it’s a small sample size, Tolbert leads all of Rave, Massey, Isbel, and Loftin with a .313 expected weighted on base average. That’s lower than his luck-fueled current slash line, but it also means that there’s some fire behind the smoke.

There are downsides to Tolbert, too. Anybody who’s watched the Royals this year has seen Tolbert get picked off, make mental mistakes, and generally not do the small things that you’d expect a player like him to do. And there’s the fact that it is still unlikely Tolbert can hit enough to stick as a regular because of the lack of power, which will probably suppress his ability to draw walks.

Remember, though: the risk of downsides is something the Royals can live with when other contending teams can’t. And trying to determine if they can get a cost-controlled regular center fielder is well worth the effort and the risk.

Back in early April, I provided a list of all the Colorado Rockies walk-up songs. Since then, however, there have been many changes, so an update seemed in order.

So here’s what (most of) the boys at 20th and Blake are jamming to these days.

Zach Agnos — Colt Ford featuring JJ Lawhorn’s “Answer to No One” (from the beginning)

Jordan Beck — A$AP Rocky’s “Everyday” (:16-:32)

Brennan Bernadino — Roughnexk’s “Run Dem Mouth” (:05)

Cole Carrigg — John Summit & Absolutely’’s “Don’t Believe It” (from the beginning)

Willi Castro — Chimbala’s “Che Che” (:11)

Jeff Criswell — Mac Miller’s “BlueWorld” (from the beginning)

Chase Dollander — Kai Uriah’s “Bound 2 Be” (from the beginning)

Ryan Feltner — Collective Soul’s “Where the River Flows” (from the beginning)

Kyle Freeland — Machine Gun Kelly’s “Raise the Flag” (from the beginning)

Braxton Fulford — Kanye’s “Follow God” (from the beginning)

Hunter Goodman — Cody Johnson’s “Til You Can’t” (0:59)

Tanner Gordon — T.I’s “Whatever You Like” (from the beginning)

Jimmy Herget — Beastie Boys’ “Sabatoge” (from the beginning)

Welinton Herrera — Yo Soy Papa’s “Lapiz” (4:06)

Jaden Hill — YoungBoy Never Broke Again’s “Bruce Wayne” (Best Clean Version from YouTube) (1:02)

Troy Johnston — Lou Bega’s “Mambo No. 5” (0:03)

Kyle Karros — Toro & Moi’s “The Difference Flume” (0:36)

Jake McCarthy — Led Zeppelin’s “Stairway to Heaven” (6:40)

Juan Mejia — El Alfa x Farruko’s “Scarface” (from the beginning)

Mickey Moniak — Eddy Grant’s “Electric Avenue” (from the beginning)

Connor Norby — Kid Ink’s “Sunset” (chorus)

José Quintana — La Moral’s “Criss 7 Ronny, lil Silvo” (from the beginning)

T.J. Rumfield — Nitty Gritty Dirt Band’s “Fishin’ in the Dark” (0:41)

TJ Shook — AC/DC’s “You Shook Me All Night Long” (from the beginning)

Tomoyuki Sugano — HUNTR/X’s “Golden” (0:55)

Brett Sullivan — Big X Tha Plug’s “Holy Ground” (0:26)

Sterlin Thompson’s — Alice in Chains’ “Would” (0:47)

Keegan Thompson’s — Kayne’s “Waves” (from the beginning)

Ezequiel Tovar — Corridos del Rey’s “Ayer Hable Con Dios” (0:15)

Zac Veen — Travis Scott ft. Playboy Carti’s “FE!N” (:15)

Let us know your favorites (or musical suggestions!) in the comments.

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

The time has come. Rafael Devers is back in Boston. As a member of the San Francisco Giants. It will be his second time facing the Sox since the trade in 2025. The first series was in San Francisco and the second is here in his old home.

It’s been…a bit of a time since the trade. The Giants got a slugging first baseman and the Red Sox got a lot of freedom.

Logan Webb hasn’t been himself this year with a number of blowups. He started the season allowing 7 runs (6 earned) against he Yankees. Gave up 6 to the Padres in June, 7 to the Rockies in July, and 5 to the Blue Jays. But he’s been better in August. Over three starts he’s allowed just two runs in 20 innings. That’s 6.0 shutout innings and two 8.0, 1-run outings. Webb’s strikeouts are down from 26.2% in 2025 to 19.6% in 2026, although he’s got 17 in his last 20 innings. Sonny Gray, the 15 game winner, will open the series. He’s on another roll this season. Over his last three starts and he’s at 19 innings with two runs allowed. As hot as Webb.

Blade Tidwell came over to the Giants at the deadline in 2025 for Tyler Rogers, the reliever now with the Blue Jays. He’s made 13 starts for San Francisco this season. Over 27 innings he has 20 strikeouts and 10 walks. Lst time out was a 4.1 inning,, 6-run outing against the Rockies. He’s facing Patrick Sandoval who is coming off a disaster of an outing. His last time out he lasted just 4.0 innings and he allowed 7 runs. The Pirates were all over his offerings. Did the Sandoval magic run out? At least with the off-day on Thursday the bullpen is rested.

The Giants don’t have a starter listed for Sunday. Carson Whisenhunt took a turn in the rotation after Tidwell the last time out and allowed 7 runs (6 earned) in 4.0 innings. Jake Bennett looked less like himself the last two times out. Against the Pirates he just didn’t have his normal stuff. He’s piling up innings and has entered some uncharted territory in that regard. The off-day got him a extra day of rest. Hopefully that will help him get back on track in what has been a great rookie year.

Rafael Devers has 25 home runs and is hitting .244/.317/.471. As a member of the Red Sox he slashed .279/.349/.510 over parts of 9 seasons.

Willy Adames has hit 19 homers. He wasn’t moved at the deadline despite rumors.

Matt Chapman, one of the other big contracts the Giants were looking to move remains on the IL.

Watch out, two games are on national TV this weekend. Not much NESN fun.

Probable Pitching Matchups

Friday, August 21: Logan Webb (3.50 ERA / 3.17 FIP) vs. Sonny Gray (2.66 ERA / 3.48 FIP)

Saturday, August 22: Blade Tidwell (4.33 ERA / 3.79 FIP) vs. Patrick Sandoval (4.76 ERA / 3.67 FIP)

Sunday, August 23: TBD (— ERA / — FIP) vs. Jake Bennett (3.46 ERA / 2.99 FIP)

When/Where to Watch

Friday, August 21: 7:10 PM ET on NESN

Saturday, August 22: 7:15 PM ET on FOX

Sunday, August 23: 3:15 PM ET on NBC/Peacock

The Tigers are five games under .500 and traded their two-time Cy Young winner, Tarik Skubal, to the Dodgers at the trade deadline. And yet, they are just 1.5 games back of a Wild Card spot in what has become a race for mediocrity. The team has lost six of their last eight, and have a tough six-game homestand against the Rays and Dodgers following their weekend at Kauffman Stadium.

Detroit Tigers (61-66) vs. Kansas City Royals (55-74) at Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, MO

Tigers: 4.54 runs scored/game (12th in MLB), 3.90 runs allowed/game (6th)

Royals: 4.19 runs scored/game (22nd), 4.97 runs allowed/game (27th)

Who’s hot:

• Hao-Yu Lee has turned it on in his rookie seasons, hitting .338/.390/.500 over his last 29 games.
• Michael Massey is hitting .357/.373/.589 with three home runs in 16 games this month.

Who’s not

• Dillon Dingler homered in three straight games earlier this month, but has hit 3-for-48 (.063) in 12 games since then.
• Isaac Collins is hitting .189/.271/.305 in 30 games since the All-Star break.

Interesting matchups:

• Bobby Witt Jr. has hit just .130 (3-for-23) with five strikeouts in his career against Framber Valdez
• Gleyber Torres is hitting just 3-for-28 (.107) in his career against Michael Wacha.

• Troy Melton has allowed two or fewer runs in 13 of his 14 starts and he has the lowest ERA in baseball for anyone with 80+ innings pitched.
• Noah Cameron has allowed five runs in 37.2 innings in his last five starts, a 1.19 ERA over that time.
• Drew Anderson has given up four runs in 12.2 innings (2.84 ERA) in three starts since joining the rotation, but has yet to go more than five innings.
• Michael Wacha is on pace to become the first Royals pitcher to lead the American League in innings pitched since James Shields in 2013.
• Framber Valdez has a career 2.51 ERA in 28.2 innings at Kauffman Stadium, but he is just 2-3 against the Royals in 11 career games.
• Lefties are hitting just .156/.200/.222 against Daniel Lynch IV this season.

The Tigers have 28 blown saves, second-most in baseball. Kenley Jansen blew a lead in his last outing against the Pirates, but he did not allow a run in any of his nine outings in July. Overall he has 16 saves in 21 opportunities. Kyle Finnegan has the tenth-highest FIP of any qualified reliever.

The Royals have dropped six of ten to the Tigers this year, although they took two out of three from them at home back in early May. At 8.5 games out of the Wild Card race, the Royals are too far away to realistically get back in it. But they can certainly play a spoiler to what has been an underwhelming Tigers squad.

In the year of the rebuild, the St. Louis Cardinals remain in playoff contention. They are making us start to believe in ending a playoff drought. With the Cardinals just 2.5 games out of a postseason spot, this season may end up with people asking more “what ifs” than expected.

This October dream stays alive with St. Louis winning five straight series and have another opportunity to make things interesting this weekend. Not even two weeks after their last matchup, the Cardinals can continue their run up the standings with a three-game series against the Phillies. Philadelphia currently holds the second Wild Card spot and are 4.5 games up on the Redbirds. A sixth straight series win paired with losses by the Diamondbacks and Padres would likely put St. Louis back in the final playoff spot. On August 21, 2026.

Cardinals fans can start scoreboard watching after continued hot stretch

The first “what if” looks at how the Cardinals could have actually swept all five games and to some, the fact they ended up with just a series win is a bummer. The bullpen, be it usage or makeup, is another “what if” for the season as the group’s 22 blown saves are second most in the majors (Colorado is first with a whopping 32). Alas, the fact remains that the Cardinals have the potential to make the postseason. On August 21, 2026.

This opportunity comes in Philadelphia with two of the three Phillies starters repeating from last meeting. The Cardinals have used any chance to manipulate the rotation to protect the arms from either injury, innings limits, or exposure to tough opponents. That strategy remains in the three-game weekend set.

*Projected starters based on FanGraphs Roster Resource*

GAME ONE: Hunter Dobbins vs. Jesus Luzardo

GAME TWO: Michael McGreevy vs. Andrew Painter

GAME THREE: Kyle Leahy vs. Cristopher Sanchez

To open up yet another big series, the Cardinals are going to roll with Hunter Dobbins as he continues his tryout for next season’s rotation. He has been exactly what was expected in his stints with the big league team and can be at least penciled into the 2027 staff. Following Dobbins is Michael McGreevy who is looking to extend his streak of allowing three runs or less to five straight starts. In the finale, Kyle Leahy will attempt to keep trimming his ERA while the front office has an eye on his innings pitched this season. After 88 frames last year, Leahy has already surpassed 120 innings and has been limited to five innings in each of his last three starts.

The only different starter the Cardinals will face this series is lefty Jesus Luzardo, who has been phenomenal since the All-Star break. On the season, he is 11-5 but Luzardo is 3-1 with a 2.48 ERA, 0.95 WHIP, and more than a strikeout per inning. Jordan Walker has seen the Phillies starter the most, but none of the five Cardinals with experience hitting against Luzardo have had much success.

The other two Phillies starters are hoping for a repeat performance from the last series. Andrew Painter doubled his season win total and put together one of his best outings against St. Louis on August 10. In his follow up performance, Painter gave up five runs on six hits (two homers) in five innings. Closing the series off is All-Star lefty Cristopher Sanchez, who threw six shutout innings against the Cardinals but was saddled with a no-decision in a pitcher’s duel against Andre Pallante. Sanchez got a win in his most recent start, throwing six innings of one-run ball against the Marlins.

An off day is finally coming on Monday once the Cardinals finish their run of 20 straight games on Sunday. The schedule gets a little easier on Tuesday with the Orioles and Pirates coming to Busch to finish the month.

As we sit back and watch the latter part of this Astros season unfold, there are plenty of things to debate about the direction of the organization.

You can criticize Jim Crane for some of the decisions he has made in recent years. You can question Dana Brown and some of his personnel moves. You can point to mistakes in free agency, trades that haven’t worked out, or decisions that have contributed to the Astros finding themselves fighting their way back into contention.

But there is one area where this organization deserves a tremendous amount of credit: knowing when to say no.

More specifically, knowing when not to hand out massive, long-term contracts to players approaching or entering free agency.

For years, Astros fans have watched some of their favorite players leave Houston because Crane and the organization weren’t willing to match the enormous contracts being offered elsewhere. At the time, those decisions were often unpopular. Fans become attached to players. They remember the home runs, playoff performances and championships and understandably want to keep the band together.

But baseball can’t be run on emotion.

And once again, Kyle Tucker appears to be providing another example of why.

Watching Tucker struggle mightily in a Dodgers uniform is difficult for some Astros fans because he was one of their own. He developed in the organization, became an All-Star-caliber player and was an important part of Houston’s success.

But he also wanted to be paid like a superstar.

He got his money, a boatload of it. And once you sign that type of contract, the expectations change. You’re no longer simply a really good player who came through the Astros’ system. You’re being paid to be one of the faces of a franchise and one of the best players in baseball.

That means you have to perform like it.

Right now, Tucker is falling well short of those expectations.

Even during his best seasons in Houston, I remained steadfast in my belief that Tucker was never going to be the type of superstar player worthy of one of baseball’s biggest contracts. He was an excellent player. He could be an outstanding complementary piece on a championship team and perform at a very high level.

But there’s a difference between being a great player and being the player an organization builds around while paying him superstar money.

I never saw Tucker as the latter.

He never appeared to embrace the responsibility or personality that comes with being the highest-paid, and presumably best player on a team. That’s not necessarily a criticism of who he is as a person or teammate. It’s simply part of the equation when you’re deciding whether to commit hundreds of millions of dollars to a player for the better part of a decade.

The Astros decided he wasn’t worth that commitment.

We’ve seen this movie before.

George Springer left. Gerrit Cole left. Justin Verlander eventually left. Framber Valdez left. Tucker left via trade because they knew they weren’t going to pay him. There have been others, and while every situation was different, the philosophy behind many of those decisions has remained remarkably consistent.

Houston has generally refused to allow sentimentality or fan pressure to dictate massive long-term contracts.

More often than not, history has vindicated that approach.

That’s why I don’t understand the people who feel sorry for Tucker.

He made his choice. The Dodgers made theirs. Tucker received the financial security and enormous contract he wanted, and with that comes the responsibility of performing at the level that contract demands.

That’s professional sports.

And I’m certainly not shedding any tears for the Dodgers.

For years, Los Angeles has operated with financial advantages almost no other organization could match, aggressively spending while using deferred money to assemble a roster filled with some of the most expensive players in baseball.

Eventually, those bills come due.

Now the Dodgers are dealing with the long-term consequences of enormous contractual commitments, including deferred money that will remain on the books for years to come.

There’s a certain irony to it.

While other organizations, including Houston,have been criticized for refusing to hand out decade-long contracts and seemingly unlimited amounts of money to keep their stars, the Dodgers have largely taken the opposite approach.

Spend the money. Keep adding stars. Worry about tomorrow when tomorrow arrives.

Well, eventually tomorrow arrives.

And that’s where Jim Crane’s philosophy deserves some appreciation.

You don’t have to agree with everything Crane has done. You don’t have to defend every decision Dana Brown and the Astros’ front office have made. There are legitimate criticisms to be made about how this organization has operated in recent seasons.

But refusing to allow emotion to dictate long-term contracts has been one of Houston’s greatest organizational strengths.

It’s incredibly difficult to watch a homegrown star leave. It’s even harder when that player is still productive and fans believe ownership should simply “pay the man.”

Sometimes the best contract in baseball is the one you don’t sign.

The Astros have understood that better than most.

Kyle Tucker may ultimately turn things around. He’s talented enough to do it, and one difficult stretch doesn’t erase everything he has accomplished.

But the larger point remains.

When you’re handing out superstar money, you need superstar production, not just this year, but for years to come.

Houston decided that wasn’t a gamble worth taking.

And as we watch another former Astro attempt to live up to the enormous contract he received somewhere else, Jim Crane’s willingness to say goodbye rather than overpay is looking pretty smart once again.

Nobody needs to feel sorry for Kyle Tucker. He got exactly what he wanted.

Nobody needs to feel sorry for the Dodgers, either. They knew exactly what they were buying.

And Astros fans shouldn’t apologize for recognizing that sometimes letting a star walk isn’t being cheap.

Sometimes it’s just good business. What do you think Astros fans? Let me know your thoughts.

Seaver King is not knocking on the door of the big leagues, he is banging down the door. King is on the type of heater that should be impossible for Paul Toboni to ignore. At this point, there are no baseball related reasons for Seaver King to be in Rochester. 

In King’s last 11 games, he has 8 home runs, tearing the International League to shreds. After a very difficult first pro season, the former 10th overall pick has emerged as a top 50 prospect in the sport. The combination of power, speed and contact skills are just undeniable.

For the season, King is hitting .325 with a .970 OPS between Double-A and Triple-A. The 23 year old has 18 homers and 13 steals on the season, showcasing his dynamic traits. Honestly, his profile reminds me of a right handed CJ Abrams. With the Nationals offense sputtering badly thanks to trades and injuries, the Nats desperately need a spark.

When the offense was rolling, the Nats could afford to have Nasim Nunez in the lineup because things were fine even with a weak bat. However, Nunez just sticks out like a sore thumb when the offense is slowing down. Nunez has just not been an MLB caliber hitter for most of the season, and things are reaching a boiling point now.

In August, Nunez is 7 for 56 with a .335 OPS. That would be bad even for a pitcher back when they hit. Nunez has played 16 games in August and has not scored a single run. That is just not sustainable and not something you can have in your lineup. For the second half as a whole, Nunez is hitting just .178 with a .435 OPS. 

Even if King does not completely hit the ground running, it would be tough for him not to be a massive offensive upgrade over Nunez. With James Wood and now CJ Abrams out, this team needs all the offense it can get. We are also at the point where King can retain his rookie status heading into next season. There is genuinely no baseball related reason for King not being the starting shortstop.

The only possible explanation for the Nats not calling up Seaver King this season is fear of a lockout. If King does get added to a 40-man roster, he will not be able to play in minor league games. The calculation here is how long do the Nats think the lockout will last? Unless it cuts into multiple months of the season, I think the right move is to call up King.

With how he is hitting right now at AAA, I honestly don’t think he would gain that much from bullying the opposition there for a month or so. However, if the Nats really think this could be a season ending lockout, maybe the right move would be to keep King down.

One thing that should absolutely not be an explanation though is anything to do with Nunez. Sure, King probably won’t be as good defensively at shortstop, though Nunez has struggled in his small sample size at short this season. However, the offensive gap is going to be so big that it will make up for any defensive drawbacks. 

For context, in Nunez’s only stint in AAA, which was last season, he hit .254 with a .652 OPS. King is just blowing those numbers out of the water with a .318 average and .956 OPS. These players are just on a different planet offensively. King may not be the defender Nunez is, but he does provide speed on the bases and improving defense.

Funnily enough, Spencer Nusbaum put out a sourced column about how King should not be expected anytime soon on August 16th. Since that article came out, King has gone nuclear. In the 4 games since then, King has a homer in every game and hit two last night. He has also racked up 10 RBIs and 26 total bases. I don’t know about you, but I think the kid is ready.

This has been a step forward season for the Nats so far, but it is really teetering. The team has been leaking oil badly this month. I wrote about how King is a guy who can provide a spark a couple days ago. The former Wake Forest star has only made that case stronger in the last few days.

For the first time all season, the Nats need a spark offensively. There is a very easy solution to their woes and that would be to call up Seaver King for Nasim Nunez. Whether or not the Nats do it is a different story though. If they do not call up Seaver King, the reason will not be baseball related because the numbers are just slapping us in the face.

There is no sugar coating it, the Atlanta Braves have sputtered on offense this month. Only eight teams have scored fewer runs in MLB. They are facing the best pitcher on the planet right now in Jacob Misiorowski, in dire need of a win as the Phillies are creeping up the standings.

The Braves have only had three players with a wRC+ over league average for the month of August, and those players are Matt Olson, Mike Yastrzemski, and Austin Riley. Because of this, it has been interesting to see what the lineup will be everyday.

Dominic Smith was great to start the season, but has struggled mightily for some time now. One of the biggest head scratchers that fans point out is why he keeps getting at-bats. He has a wRC+ 36.0 percent below league average this month better than only Albies, Murphy, and Jarvis.

This trend continued today, but fortunately Dubón is at SS instead of Jarvis.

No player in today’s lineup has faced Misiorowski in more than three ABs, and none of them have an OPS higher than .666. Maybe one of the reasons Smith got the start is he is one of the four Braves to hit a single of The Miz. The other three players to hit a single are Albies, Dubón, and Riley. Interestingly, two of the three hottest hitters this month for the Braves are hitting eighth and ninth.

The Brewers are bringing a solid lineup against Sale.

Chourio has a .917 OPS against Sale in his career in twelve ABs. We also need to keep an eye on Contreras, Ortiz, and Vaughn. All three of these hitters have an OPS north of .803 in seven or more ABs.

The Braves need to score early if they want to win. The Brewers’ bullpen has been the best in MLB since the start of the month in terms of ERA, and it is not even close.

First pitch is at 4:10 EDT.

Despite that heartbreaking loss to the Astros last weekend and the enormous loss to the Brewers on Monday, that nine-game road trip wasn’t a complete disaster for the Mariners. A 4-5 record against two of the best teams in baseball plus a series win against the division leader kept Seattle on the fringe of the playoff picture. And now they’re calling up Kade Anderson to start Saturday’s game. Even if the team doesn’t get its act together to make a run over the last few weeks of the season, at least we get the excitement of the debut of the team’s top prospect to enjoy.

The Cubs started off this year extremely hot and cold — they famously had two separate 10-game win streaks within a four week period followed by a 10-game losing streak a week later. A ton of injuries to their pitching staff prevented them from finding much consistency, but they’ve finally found some reinforcements and have settled in as one of the better teams in the National League. They have the best record in the NL since the All-Star break, and are making a late season push for the NL Central lead.

The Cubs have assembled one of the best lineups in baseball and a lot of that is thanks to MVP candidate Pete Crow-Armstrong. In addition to his gold-glove defense in center field, he’s taken an enormous step forward at the plate this year. He’s currently 1.3 fWAR ahead of Shohei Ohtani’s combined 7.0 fWAR batting and pitching total and 2.3 fWAR ahead of Bobby Witt Jr., the AL’s WAR leader. Behind him, Seiya Suzuki, Alex Bregman, and Michael Busch combine fantastic approaches at the plate with enough pop to make them each extremely dangerous to pitch to. Even though the bottom of Chicago’s lineup doesn’t look so formidable, they excel at getting on base; the Cubs are tied with the Brewers for the major league lead in walk rate but hit for so much more power that the team’s wRC+ is seven point higher than Milwaukee’s.

Probable Pitchers 

Updated Stuff+ Explainer 

• Stuff+ scores for Mariners starters

Matthew Boyd finally put together a healthy season last year, making more than 30 starts in a season for the first time since 2019. It also happened to be the best season of his career; he set full-season bests in ERA, FIP, and fWAR. His strikeout rate wasn’t as high as it had been earlier in his career, but his walk rate was the lowest it’s ever been, leading to the second highest strikeout-to-walk ratio of his career. A couple of minor injuries have forced him to miss a couple of months of this season and they’ve prevented him from finding his groove. He’s been much less effective across the board with his strikeout rate falling to the lowest it’s been since 2017.

David Peterson had carved out a nice role for himself as a back-end starter and sometimes long reliever on the Mets over the last few years. Unfortunately, like the Mets’ season, everything unraveled this year. His ERA ballooned over six, though his peripherals painted a much nicer picture. The runs kept flowing no matter how good his FIP was, and he was shipped to the Cubs in late June. A groundball specialist, he relies heavily on a sinker to get batters to pound the ball into the dirt. He’s also got a pretty good pair of breaking balls and a decent changeup to round out his arsenal.

An extreme fly ball pitcher, Shota Imanaga’s success is directly tied to his home run rate. Last year, he was tied for the fourth most home runs allowed and he’s already just two homers behind 2025’s total this season. He pitches up in the zone with a fastball with tons of carry and then changes a batter’s eye level with splitters and sweepers down in the zone. The approach works well when he’s inducing swings and misses, but as soon as balls start flying over the fence, he starts to really struggle.

The Big Picture:

The Angels did the Rangers and Mariners a favor by taking two of three from the Astros this week. Los Angeles will get another chance to disrupt the division standings with a series against the Rangers this weekend. The Athletics will get a shot at playing spoiler, too; they’re playing in Houston this weekend.

The Wild Card standings are far too messy to parse clearly right now, suffice to say that the Orioles, who had been holding the final Wild Card spot to start this week, are now two games back and the Twins and Rangers have clambered to the top of the pile for now.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Orioles fans and fans across the country.

When I asked the question for this week’s poll of Orioles fans, it looked like the team might be on the verge of going somewhere, and it might actually matter when their injured players returned and how soon. They have spent the days since heading in the wrong direction. Oops.

Whether it ends up mattering or not, it seems like all of these four injured Orioles are going to make their way back this season. Samuel Basallo has already returned, with Blaze Alexander and Félix Bautista not far behind. Ryan Helsley is also out there somewhere. Whose return will help the most? Here’s what you said:

Basallo was the overwhelming choice, and when you’ve seen what the catchers have been doing in the time after the Adley Rutschman trade where Basallo was still on the injured list, it’s no surprise why. Carlos Narváez has three hits in 38 at-bats as an Oriole, none of which have gone for extra bases. That’s rough. This is going to have to improve somehow for the Orioles to yet again turn the operation around in a good direction.

We’ll have to see how that catching situation shakes out for the short term, though, since the Orioles did have Basallo play first base on Thursday. Maybe that’s about being cautious with Pete Alonso’s calf or maybe it’s about being cautious with Basallo’s shoulder.

Alexander came in second, which is fitting since he’ll probably be back next. If he can come back hitting like he was before he got hit on the hand, that will make a positive impact on the Orioles lineup. They don’t have a high batting average guy without him.

This week’s survey is sponsored by FanDuel.

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Pirates fans and fans across the country.

This week’s question dealt with Pittsburgh Pirates injuries. The Bucs have a lot of them. Oneil Cruz, Konnor Griffin, Ryan O’Hearn, Endy Rodriguez, Spencer Horwitz, Jered Triolo and more have all spent significant time out of the lineup this season. The Bucs have certainly had multiple issues this season, but injuries have absolutely been one of them.

What we asked this week was, if the Pirates were mostly healthy, do you think they are a Wild Card team? Here’s what you said:

A slim majority of you feel the Bucs would make it if they were healthy. I tend to agree, but you never know what might happen if the injury bug did something different.

Our friends at FanDuel are not super optimistic about the Bucs’ playoff chances. The Pirates are +2200 odds, meaning a $100 bet will get you $2200 back if they make it. You feeling postive? That’s a big payout.

Thanks for voting. We’ll be back soon with more.

Through June, the 2026 Red Sox were 37-47 and 13 games out of first place in the AL East. They’d fired their long-time manager Alex Cora after a 10-17 start and “Chief Baseball Officer” Craig Breslow seemed destined for the fate of all the team’s top baseball execs after Theo Epstein broke the franchise’s championship drought: fired before the end of the season.

Instead, it’s sort of worked itself out in that the elevation of triple-A manager (and former Diamondback) Chad Tracy has helped reinvigorate the team (they’re 58-42 with him as the manager) and the underperforming talent — their lineup was projected to be a fair bit better than league average — really stepped up. They went 21-4 in July (+54 Run diff.) and are 10-8 in August (+40). So, the losing Giants roll in to town less for a “revenge” series with Rafael Devers (and possibly Marcelo Mayer) in tow and more like a proper spanking by a playoff-bound team. Boston is +5.5 in the AL Wild Card.

What has been the Giants’ biggest lead in the 3-Wild Card era?

Eh, who cares.

The 2026 Giants are maybe playing to avoid 100 losses, but then again maybe not. Do a search for “Buster Posey 100 losses” and the tone of the results is that the team is resigned to this being the case. I guess I should’ve figured as much given how little people seemed to care before the season about the Giants needing to have a winning season to avoid having five consecutive non-winning seasons for the first time in franchise history.

I guess the standards are lower now?

That makes sense. The Dodgers are so much better, and so is most of the league. The Giants won their three championships. Most living fans just think 100 losses or several years of losing are just the norm after a run of success. Call it the tankification of fandom. Or the NFL infantilization of all sports.

For what it’s worth, the Red Sox last had a 100-loss season in 1965. In 2012 they lost 93 games and 91 in 2014. These are just 3 instances of 17 where the Red Sox have lost at least 90 games. That’s 17 seasons out of 126.

This year will be just the 13th time the Giants have lost at least 90 games, and that’s out of 144 seasons. Only the three teams from the New York era make this list: 1943 (55-98), 1946 (61-93), and 1899 (60-90). Otherwise, San Francisco can boast that some of the losingest teams in franchise history belong to the city:

1985: 62-100
2017: 64-98
1984: 66-96
1996: 68-94
2007: 71-91
1979: 71-91
2008: 72-90
1992: 72-90
1974: 72-90

Anyway, Boston has had the second-best lineup in the sport (118 wRC+) since July 1st (trailing only the Nationals), but have actually scored the most runs in that span by far: 240 to #2 Cubs’ 231. The Giants have scored 170 (23rd) and have hit 9% worse than the league average (.233/.303/.378 — 91 wRC+). Boston has also had the most valuable pitching (+7.9 fWAR) compared to the Giants’ 12th-most valuable (+4.5).

A couple of highlights from both teams: Bryan Bello went from the worst starter in the sport (10.35 ERA in 7 GS and 31 IP) to one of the best relievers (0.85 ERA in 57.1 IP). Boston, whose pitching coach is former Giants’ pitching coach Andrew Bailey, has used him as more of a bulk starter pairing him with an opener in all but one of his appearances since mid-July.

The Giants seemed like they had done the same thing with Adrian Houser, who had a 5.73 ERA through his first 14 games this season (all starts), but since being pushed to a long reliever he’s posted a 1.50 ERA in 42 IP (11 G). He did get a start in an outing 10 days ago and it worked, but the Giants resumed the follower/bulk role in their sole win against Cleveland the other day. So, you know, as much as Giants fans have hated it, openers work.

Rafael Devers has faced his former team just once since the big trade, and it was that Oracle Park series that took place soone after. So, is his 2-for-12 indicative of what’s going to happen in this series, or will his career .884 OPS at Fenway assert itself?

Erik Miller has appeared in 7 games for Boston since the Giants traded him, and in 7.1 IP he’s struck out 12 and walked only 3. Walks and health are the biggest issues with his game, but otherwise, he can be a dominant reliever. The Giants don’t figure to be much competition against the Red Sox in general, but seeing Miler mow down Devers and Jung Hoo Lee will certainly be tough to watch.

With two lefties starters in the series, maybe this will be a great opportunity for Victor Bericoto. That Green Monster has to seem awfully tempting.

Series Overview

Who: San Francisco Giants (52-75) at Boston Red Sox (68-59)
Where: Fenway Park | Boston, Massachusetts
When: Friday at 4:10pm PT, Saturday at 4:15pm PT, Sunday at 12:15pm PT
National broadcasts: FOX TV (Saturday), NBC/Peacock (Sunday)

Projected starters
Friday: Logan Webb (RHP 8-7, 3.50 ERA) vs. Sonny Gray (RHP 15-3, 2.65 ERA)
Saturday: Blade Tidwell (RHP 0-0, 4.33 ERA) vs. Patrick Sandoval (LHP 1-2, 4.76 ERA)
Sunday: TBD vs. Jake Bennett (LHP 7-6, 3.46 ERA)

Prediction time

Logan Webb has yet to beat the Red Sox in his career and although his start in game one would seem like the best chance to win a game in this series, I’ll predict that the Giants will instead win a game in spite of Webb’s start. Maybe he’s bad and they win anyway or he’s great (he has a 0.90 ERA in 20 IP this month) and they lose but then pick up a win in some other game. Predicting sweeps is such a bummer. I kinda like this .333 run they’re on. It really turns the screws on how the front office thought it had built a good team but all they’re being shown is that they’re a different kind of losing one. Too good to totally tank, not good enough for literally anything else.

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 you how much money you’d be comfortable giving Jac Caglianone in a theoretical contract extension:

I promised you when I asked the question that I had done the math and come to my own conclusion. I’ll share that here first. So, first I estimated how much he might get through arbitration, if he keeps playing as well as he has this year. I used multiple similar players to come up with these numbers:

2027 (pre-arb): $1 million

2o28 (pre-arb): $1 million

2029 (arb 1): $5 million

2030 (arb 2): $13 million

2031 (arb 3): $18 million (this could be a bit lower if he is 1B/DH only by now)

That would pay him about $38 million over the next five seasons. Round it up to $40 for simplicity’s sake. He would hit free agency ahead of his age-29 season in 2032. I suspect by that point, regardless of where he has played for his career up until then, he will be considered a 1B/DH and not an outfielder. Still, on the open market at 29, he could make a lot of money if he even consistently hits as well as he has this year, to say nothing of how much better he could still get.

So, I think to buy out a couple of those free agent years, you’re probably looking at at least $20 million. That would give you 7 years/$80 million. I think if the Royals can lock him into that, they should do it yesterday. I’d go to 7/$90 million without blinking, especially if a chunk of that could be shifted into playing time and/or All-Star Appearance incentives. This is why these early extension deals always look so club-friendly compared to free agent contracts. The early money for these guys is just so low compared to what they can command on the open market.

Royals fans, you surprised me, because more than one-third of y’all are willing to give him $140 million for those seven years. Even if we were talking eight years, I don’t think the Royals should necessarily have to top $120 million. The comparison of Kevin McGonigle is important here because Kevin has been an equal hitter to Jac while playing better defense (higher up the defensive spectrum, too) and running the bases better. This is similar to the reason Jac is never going to get paid as much as Bobby Witt Jr. He and Bobby have hit about as well as each other this year, but Bobby does everything else so much better.

Another quarter of you were willing to give him $15 million a year, and that seems closer. Though even that would be 7/$105. I wouldn’t complain if the Royals did that deal, but it’s also not my money. Though they do need to consider what the salary floor or Competitive Integrity Tax might force them to do starting next season.

I think the 19% of you who believe the Royals should just wait and see are going to be disappointed, unless you’re hoping to wait and see Jac leave after the 2031 season. These extensions are a give-and-take of offering security to players in order to pay less later. There comes a point where the security is not worth the losses incurred by not just going to free agency. The Royals got to Bobby just before it was too late, and they still had to pay an incredible sum to get it done. If they had waited until even partway through that third season (his MVP-runner-up 2024) they wouldn’t have been able to keep him for even the amount they gave him.

If the Royals intend to extend Caglianone, this is the time to get it done. Here’s hoping they celebrate the completion of the next step of their stadium deal by keeping our large Italian little brother in town for the long term.

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