Baseball News
Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. The Brewers bounced back nicely this week, as they maintained (and even slightly outplayed) the Cubs this week to stay atop the NL Central with just over a month to go.
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You know the drill.
This is now an open thread:
The Phillies are about to face an Arch-enemy. Not in the sense of their most loathed foe, but in the sense that their opponent plays under an arch.
On to the links.
Phillies news
Helping first responders is personal for Kyle Schwarber.
Bryson Stott has shined bright in the new-look Phillies infield. ($)
MLB news
Seattle is calling up LHP Kade Anderson, the #1 pitching prospect in the sport, for his MLB debut.
The stolen base was resurrected by a few timely rules changes. Is it dying again? ($)
The Brewers earned a 22-0 triumph over Seattle a few days back. But there have been bigger blowouts.
An oddity began last November when the Cardinals chose to carry an almost unheard of five catchers on the 40-man roster. At the time, Pedro Pages, Ivan Herrera, Jimmy Crooks, Yahel Pozo and Leo Bernal occupied those spots. While five was pretty unusual, some explanation could be found due to the uncertainty of Ivan Herrera, who would undergo off-season elbow surgery and was mired in a deep throwing slump. Still, 12.5% of the roster being dedicated to catching seemed to create pinch points in other areas. How would this resolve? Many advocated for clearing up this apparent roster logjam.
As spring turned to summer, concerns about Herrera’s health dissipated, but the view on his throwing remained a tempest. In spite of the varied opinions, it had become apparent that the Cardinals see Herrera as a legit option at C (to the chagrin of many who looked at the CS rate), catching him regularly on the short end of a 60:40 rotation. Further evolution has led to an additional split, where Jimmy Crooks has taken the primary catching duties with Pedro Pages on the shortest end of a now three catcher rotation. Herrera’s slice is largely unchanged, although he isn’t bolted to the same two pitchers anymore. Meanwhile, Pozo was DFA’ed when roster needs elsewhere became acute, and picked up by Baltimore (who now, interestingly, carry 3 catchers). Perhaps the Cardinals have discovered the new market inefficiency.
Yet even four catchers on the 40-man seems an unusual allocation, particular over a longer period of time. Even more pressing, another one young catcher (if you haven’t heard) by the name of Rainel Rodriguez has played well enough at A+ and then AA that his name enters almost any catching conversation, even though his name does not yet appear on the 40-man roster. He is quite precocious. This isn’t article about Rainel, but if it was, I would be regaling you with statistical accomplishments he has achieved already that compare quite favorably to some of the league’s top hitters over the last generation.
All this leads many pundits and fans to comment that this situation needs resolution. Many expected Pages to be moved at the trade deadline. To think a bit asynchronously, does 4 catchers on the 40-man roster really require resolution? Granted it is unconventional, but does it really require some management intervention? If so, when?
Complicating any future plan is the difficulty in evaluating each of the individual players and more so, figuring out who might be the best fit on a roster that in and of itself is undergoing more churn. For instance, it seems the club preferred Pages defense, but his offense really doesn’t fit well on this weak-hitting roster. If the club had more good hitters, he would be a better fit.
Some look at Crooks as a better blend of offense and possibly even superior defense, but in his second go at MLB really has done little to impress. Some underlying metrics do support the notion of his blend, but how long might it take to emerge?
Bernal, unseen in the MLB, is a mystery, with widely varying views of both his offense and defense. Some evaluators believe Crooks far superior defensively, others with the opposite point of view. Which is it? And how do they tell? As we’ve seen, catching at the MLB level is different than Memphis or elsewhere in the minor league circuit.
Ivan Herrera’s offensive chops are now well established. He is clearly the best hitter of the current group, although Rainel seems destined to challenge that. Ivan’s offense is prolific enough that Oli works very hard to get his bat in the line-up each and every day. His offense is enough that some might argue he is an everyday bat if not an everyday catcher, and this leads to some advocating for a position change.
Rainel seems a bit of a mystery defensively, but it is becoming very clear that his bat has the chance to be very special. Special enough that the arguments around Herrera are extended to RainRod even more emphatically. Many will say a bat like that needs to be in the line-up every day and not subjected to the rigors of MLB catching. I have no good argument for that point of view. Unless he is Pudge Rodriguez or Yadi Molina defensively, they say, catching is not where his greatest value is to be found.
How does all this unfold? Straight up, I don’t know. But based on conversations I’ve had and actions I’ve observed, I’m developing a framework for how it could unfold.
Many people expected Pages to be moved at the deadline and, absent that, to be moved this winter. Possible, but I’m not so sure on the timing. Some believe that this off-season, the Cardinals need to choose a path and that RainRod is going to be the ultimate victor in this positional competition. The goal for them becomes to “sell high” and get prospect returns from some of the others. Again, I’m not so sure. Let’s be clear, I’d suspect if the right deal came along, they’d probably take it. But I’m beginning to suspect that is not their primary plan going forward.
Let’s unpack this individually first, then treat these guys as a group to try and formulate that framework.
Pages will not be eligible for arbitration until the end of the 2027 season. That is an important consideration, in the sense that there really isn’t pressure to move him. He is major league minimum salary for 2027 and there is no alternative that would be cheaper. But, but…wouldn’t they rather have a pitcher using that 40-man spot?
I’m going to publish an update that looks at 40-man issues that might be appearing this fall. You will get the details next week, but it turns out there really isn’t a significant 40-man roster pressure, pitchers or otherwise. The Cardinals have lots of pitchers in the pipeline, but only a few need 40-man protection. They are in zero danger of losing a needed pitcher even if the keep all 4 catchers on the 40-man roster. Unconventional? Certainly. Possible. Yes. Achievable. Definitely. It turns out management has finessed the 40-man roster, as a whole, quite nicely. Read the article next week, in the meantime trust me that the 40-man roster can handle 4 catchers for another year or so. On to the individuals:
Crooks is a runway guy. He has enough scouting data and underlying metric to forecast the potential for better offense and better defense than Pages. So, he gets runway. That runway will run into next year, almost certainly.
Bernal is also a runway guy. He profiles different than Crooks in how he gets there, but he also projects to be better offensively and defensively than Pages (and perhaps Crooks). He will get his shot, in St. Louis, unless someone blows Bloom and Company away with a trade offer.
Herrera is an established top-flight hitter. They’ve played him EVERY day. If that doesn’t speak volumes, I don’t know what will. I don’t know if they view him as cemented in at C, but there is no data to suggest he will be moving on to another team or another position. Moving him to another team would be problematic in that it would leave them with the need to acquire another top-flight hitter when they are short of that talent already. Again, the right offer might dislodge him, but that seems the less likely path.
That leaves RainRod. As each day passes, the confidence that his bat will be special grows. He keeps doing things that only Hall of Fame caliber players have done before him. I’m not projecting HOF status for him (it’s a wee bit soon), but his trajectory is unmistakable. I would think of him as untouchable, so a trade seems unlikely. Given his trajectory, a position switch seems unlikely too. Remarkably, he is too close to MLB already and learning a new position would require they slow down his ascension. That seems counter-productive. He is getting time at 1B, which I find notable if I think some about Alec Burleson’s primary weakness as a hitter (LHP platoon splits).
So, how does all this work?
Let’s introduce the idea I think of as Three-into-Four. Hear me out.
The three is this equation are the catchers: Today, the three are Pages, Crooks, Herrera. By this time next year, good chance the three are Crooks, Herrera and Bernal. Much beyond that horizon comes another name. Rodriguez. That is the three part of 3into4.
To understand the Four, let’s go conventional. Most teams carry 2-3 catchers on their 40-man and carry two catchers on their active roster, right? The Cardinals (today) are clearly not “most teams”. Conventionally, each team has a DH (either a dedicated one or a rotation through), a primary C, and backup C and a primary first baseman. That is the Four I write of.
Now, let’s move off conventional and look at the Cardinals rather unconventional situation, and picture this scenario. They have some challenges:
How can these be made to work to advantage? Let’s look at next season for starters, and leave RainRod out of the discussion on the assumption that his ETA is really more like 2028. I’m not writing that in stone, but positing that to understand the strawman I think the Cardinals have built around this situation.
Start with the idea that out of 3 catchers, on any given day, one can catch and one can DH, so they can always play 2 of them. Remember that Crooks is a LH batter, Herrera a RH batter and Bernal a switch hitter. Flexibility exists here. The biggest obstacle here isn’t carrying 4 catchers. It is ridding themselves of the notion that DH is a position to rotation various players through. In this strawman, DH will be a spot to rotate a solid hitting catcher into to keep their bat in the line-up while protecting them physically from the rigors of catching.
It looks like this:
When there is an LHP on the mound, in addition to one catching and one DHing, the last one can play first base (likely Bernal, who is working there at AAA). This approach would serve to alleviate the LHP platoon split presented when Alec Burleson plays 1B or DH with an LHP on the mound. This approach requires that Bernal’s bat be MLB ready. When?
When there is an RHP on the mound, Crooks or Bernal catches (depending on matchup and who caught yesterday) and Herrera DHs, with Burleson manning first.
This approach actually results in a 40-30-30 catching ration (with Herrera now on the long side of the platoon, although not catching any more than this year). The allocation of most of the DH spots to catchers on days they aren’t catching ends up with each guy getting into around 120 games, which tends to be on the high side for a catcher. It preserves their body, though, and results in end of the season flexibility to go with a hot hand.
At some point in time, RainRod will be ready and, bluntly, when he is, he dislodges one of the three. It is not only hard to predict exactly when this may happen, but also who he dislodges. Who is dependent on performance we have yet to see as well as any MiLB action RainRod encounters at other positions. Maybe a catcher. Maybe a first baseman. Maybe a third baseman. Hard to say. But until the day RainRod arrives, it strikes me that the current catching carousel can continue without pressure to make a move. This will allow the team to let development and competition settle out who goes and who stays in due time, not under any pressure to “get something done”.
Where does Pages fit in all this? I think he has a spot until they are ready to bring Bernal up, and then, not. Will that be out of 2027 spring training? Who knows? But I can begin to see how they have a plan to let all this organically work itself out without feeling pressure to make a move and try to pick the winner of this derby too early.
For those of you who think the Cardinals need to clear this up this coming off-season, don’t expect it to occur that fast unless a mind-blowing offer accompanies it.
The Detroit Tigers have been in a bit of a slump of late, having lost five of their last six, which includes a sweep at home at the hands of the Chicago White Sox and dropping two of three on the road to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Just when they were one game from reaching the .500 mark, things once again came unraveled for the Olde English D.
The Motor City Kitties now move on to the second leg of their current road trip with three games against the Kansas Royals — who have won five straight and six of the last seven — at Kauffman Stadium this weekend. Still well within striking distance of a wildcard spot in a weak American League playoff race, AJ Hinch’s squad could really use a strong showing against the division’s bottom dwellers.
First up on the mound for the Tigers is left-hander Framber Valdez, who has had two straight rough outings after posting a pair of quality starts to open up August. Over the 32-year-old’s last 11 1/3 innings, he has put up a 6.35 ERA and 5.47 FIP, allowing 11 hits (one home run) and nine walks while striking out eight, hitting a batter and throwing a wild pitch.
Valdez has faced Kansas City twice this season — both in Detroit — with varying results. On April 14, he tossed seven frames of one-run ball on four hits and two walks with a strikeout for a no-decision in a 2-1 team win; on July 26, he served up three runs (two earned) on four hits (0ne home run) and three walks with four strikeouts over five frames, also failing to figure in the decision in an eventual 5-4 loss.
For the Royals, fellow southpaw Noah Cameron will take the mound in the series opener coming off the best start of his two-year career. The 27-year-old tossed a complete-game shutout against the Los Angeles Angels, allowing just a single hit and walk while striking out eight in a 3-0 home win.
Cameron has taken on the Tigers twice this season, and like Valdez, produced much different results between the two. On May 10 in Kansas City, he allowed three runs on four hits and three walks while striking out four over four frames for a no-decision in a 6-3 team loss; on July 24 in Detroit, he threw seven innings of scoreless ball on two hits and three walks while striking out eight also for a no-decision in an eventual 2-1 loss.
Take a look at how the two match up on Friday night below.
Time (ET): 8:10 p.m.
Place: Kauffman Stadium, Kansas City, Missouri
SB Nation Site:Royals Review
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 128: RHP Troy Melton (7-1, 1.71 ERA) vs. LHP Noah Cameron (7-8, 4.16 ERA)
| Player | G | IP | K% | BB% | GB% | FIP | fWAR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Melton | 14 | 84.1 | 22.2 | 7.6 | 42.7 | 3.55 | 1.6 |
| Cameron | 24 | 138.1 | 21.7 | 7.4 | 38.5 | 3.58 | 2.6 |
MELTON
CAMERON
NJ.com | Randy Miller ($): Randy talks the thorax with Dr. Spencer Stein of NYU Langone, who discusses how Aaron Judge’s lingering rib injury could influence how the reigning MVP plays when he returns. Stein’s personal opinion is that the Yankee captain will still be vulnerable, and that he should not be allowed to dive when he gets time in the outfield. Giancarlo Stanton’s return will likely plug up the DH slot to a certain extent, meaning Judge will have to play the field, but keeping his bat in the lineup is of paramount importance and that will likely mean a shift in what he’s allowed to do out in right.
New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: Speaking of, the last thing the Yankees can afford right now is another injury. After jamming his hand into the bag in an ill-advised attempt to stretch a single into a double, Ryan McMahon was able to play through the ache until being removed in the eighth inning. Initial x-rays were negative and Mac was confident that nothing of import was wrong, even as José Caballero got the start at third in last night’s finale with the Orioles.
FanGraphs | Jay Jaffe: “Competitive balance” will be the order of the day for MLB this winter, as the league will look to institute a salary cap in CBA negotiations, citing the need to restore that so-called balance with the smaller-market teams in the sport. Well, the AL Wild Card race is a pretty balanced one right now, with a whole bunch of mediocrity fighting it out for the chance to be a road team in a best-of-three series come October. It’s very competitive right now, so I hope this is what ownership wants.
New York Post | Mark Suleymanov: Happy trails to former Yankee Jon Berti, who announced his retirement from professional baseball after eight years in the bigs. Berti had a strong WBC with Team Italy, but it wasn’t enough to interest any MLB franchises, and it’s time for the next phase of his life. Best of luck Jon, we’ll always have the memory of you starting at first base in the playoffs.
RHP Mike Burrows tossed 4.2 scoreless innings in his second major league rehab appearance as the Sugar Land Space Cowboys (33-15, 65-57) held on for a 3-2 victory over the Oklahoma City Comets (27-20, 68-53) on Thursday night at Constellation Field.
Burrows kept the Comets off the board through his 4.2 innings of work, taking a no-hitter into the fifth, giving up just three base runners on a pair of walks and a hit batter in his first four frames of work. Oklahoma City broke up the no-hitter with a leadoff single in the fifth before Hye-seong Kim stole second and moved into scoring position. Burrows responded with a strikeout and a fly out before RHP Alimber Santa entered and struck out the lone batter he faced to strand the runner and keep the Comets scoreless.
Burrows made his second major league rehab appearance since being placed on the injured list on July 7 with right elbow neuritis. Burrows made his longest outing of his rehab assignment, tossing 4.2 scoreless innings while allowing just one hit, walking two and striking out five. Across his two rehab appearances, Burrows has thrown 9.0 scoreless innings, allowing four hits while walking three and striking out eight.
The scoring started early on both sides. Unfortunately, when the dust settled, the Angels had far more runs on the board. Angels 18 Astros 3.
The night began with patience on display. Astros hitters would sit back, watching Grayson Rodriguez start things by throwing 12 of his first 14 pitches for balls. The result was issued walks to Lamont Wade Jr and Yordan Alvarez. A single from Isaac Paredes would load up the bases and then the Angels compounded their issues with a throwing error by Vaughn Grissom. Moments later, a wild pitch would result with two runs on the board. However, that promising start would be short-lived.
For their part, the Angels would also score in the first inning. Wade Meckler led things off with a hit and was brought in on a Zach Neto single to right field. It was Neto’s 55th RBI of the year, and he was just getting started.
In the 2nd inning, the Angels would string together three straight hits to begin the frame. Moises Ballesteros doubled, and a single from Vaughn Grissom brought him home. Josh Lowe then singled and Tyler Heineman would lay down a sacrifice bunt which would score Grissom. The Astros would then take their turn with a miscue of their own, thanks to a throwing error by Peter Lambert which would expand LA’s lead to 4-2.
In the fourth inning, the Angels would extend their lead. Josh Lowe would start things with a single. Moments later, a double from Adam Frazier would bring Lowe home. Peter Lambert would then begin to labor, issuing walks to Meckler and Trout. Neto would then register another RBI, bringing home Frazier with a single which in turn knocked Peter Lambert out of the game. Lambert’s final line was 3.2 IP with 9 runs and 8 hits allowed. The early outing forced the Astros to once again tap into their bullpen early. Bryan King would inherit the bases loaded and wouldn’t be able to stop the bleeding. Ballesteros and Grissom would do more damage and when it was finished, they had put up 6 runs in the frame.
A scary moment occurred in the 5th when Wade Meckler was hit in the helmet by King. Meckler would have to leave the game. It went bad to worse, as LA would add four more runs, three of them coming on a moon shot to deep center from Zach Neto. 14 runs would be on the board after five innings, marking the most allowed in any single game this season by Houston. King would allow 5 runs on the night.
With the blowout firmly in effect, Tatsuya Imai would see action for only the third time in August. Zach Neto would add him to his personal hit parade with a two run, two out RBI double making things 16-2. Neto would go 5-6 on the night in total, driving in 7 RBI’s.
The loss means the Astros have now dropped four of their last five series, taking 2 of 3 from the Giants being the lone outlier. It also means that they’re back even at the .500 mark at 64-64. The best metaphor at this stage might be that the A.L. West race will be ultimately won by the fastest turtle.
Odds & Ends:
LaMonte Wade Jr started in place of Christian Walker, and hit leadoff as Jeremy Pena got the night off. Pena is day to day with a hand injury. Wade would strike out 3 times on the night. Borderlining on the ridiculous, Wade would actually come on to pitch the 9th inning. His first pitch was clocked at 40 mph. he next series of pitches resulted in a double by Peraza and a 2-run homer by Denzer Guzman.
The Astros will send Hayden Wesneski for the opener of the A’s series Friday Night. Houston is now 2-4 on this current homestand.
Houston has scored just 8 runs over their last 4 contests.
The person who left the Pelicans game last night in an ambulance was Pelicans pitcher Geovanny Vasquez, who suffered from a “heat-related illness.” He was held overnight and released. He is back with the team.
The Iowa Cubs roasted the Toledo Mud Hens (Tigers), 5-4 in ten innings.
Connor Noland pitched the first 3.1 innings and surrendered just one run on four hits. He walked two and struck out four.
Shelby Miller relieved Noland in the fourth inning as part of his rehab assignment. He faced two batters and struck out both of them. However, one runner inherited from Noland did score on a wild pitch by Miller.
Eduarniel Nuñez pitched the eighth and ninth innings, didn’t allow a run and got the win. Nuñez allowed just one hit. He walked one and struck out three.
After the I-Cubs took the lead in the top of the tenth, Luis Peralta came on to pitch the bottom of the ninth. He stranded the automatic runner on third and got the save. Peralta retired all three batters he faced, striking out the last one.
The I-Cubs were one out away from losing in the top of the ninth when second baseman James Triantos hit a game-tying double that missed being a home run by inches. Triantos was 1 for 4 with the double, a walk and a steal. He also scored one run.
Left fielder Chas McCormick went 3 for 5 with two doubles. He doubled in a run in the fourth inning and scored a run in the sixth. He also hit into a double play in the tenth which he didn’t get an RBI for, but it did plate what turned out to be the winning run.
First baseman BJ Murray was 2 for 4 with a double and a sac fly. Murray scored on McCormick’s double in the fourth.
McCormick’s RBI double.
An RBI double for shortstop Ben Cowles, who was 1 for 2 with two walks.
Here’s Triantos’ game-tying double off the top of the wall.
The Knoxville Smokies split a doubleheader with the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Marlins), winning the completion of Tuesday’s game 16-5 and losing the seven-inning nightcap 6-1.
Dawson Netz started game one on Tuesday and got in one inning before the rains came. The first batter of the bottom of the first doubled, but then he retired the next three in order to end the threat. Netz struck out two.
When the game resumed today in the second inning, Connor Schultz took the mound with a 9-0 lead. Schultz got the win after allowing five runs on six hits over four innings. Schultz walked two and struck out four.
The Smokies scored nine runs in the first inning on Tuesday, highlighted by a three-run home run by left fielder Andy Garriola. It was Garriola’s 21st home run this year. He went 2 for 5 with four total RBI, with both hits and all four RBI coming on Tuesday in the first inning.
Catcher Ariel Armas hit a solo home run in the sixth inning tonight. It was Armas’ fifth home run this year. Armas went 2 for 5 and scored twice.
Third baseman Edgar Alvarez had a two-run single in the first. Alvarez went 3 for 4 with a walk. He scored twice.
Right fielder Alex Ramírez went 2 for 4 with a walk and three RBI. Ramírez scored one run.
Second baseman Alex Madera was 2 for 4 with a double and a walk. He had one RBI and one run scored.
Center fielder Kane Kepley went 1 for 3 with two walks and a stolen base. He scored three runs and had one run batted in.
Garriola’s home run.
A two-run double for Miguel Useche, who went 1 for 3 with two walks.
The Armas home run.
Brody McCullough started game two and got the loss. McCullough was bashed for five runs on seven hits over 3.2 innings. One of the five runs was unearned. McCullough walked three and struck out one.
The only run in game two came on a home run in the third inning by shortstop Karson Simas. It was his fifth home run this year.
Center fielder Kane Kepley went 1 for 2 with a walk and a steal. That’s both of the Smokies hits in game two.
The Simas home run.
The South Bend Cubs were washed ashore by the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers), 5-2.
South Bend got a good start from Nazier Mulé, who surrendered just one run on four hits over 5.1 innings. Mulé struck out six and walked two.
Jose Romero got called upon to protect a 2-1 lead in the top of the ninth. Instead of collecting the save, he got the loss after getting hammered for four runs on two hits and two walks over just one-third of an inning. He did not strike anyone out.
First baseman Josiah Hartshorn was 2 for 3 with a double and a walk.
Not your normal “strike ‘em out, throw ‘em out” double play.
The Myrtle Beach Pelicans were blanked by the Fayetteville Woodpeckers (Astros), 1-0.
Chase Meyer turned in a good start with four scoreless innings. Meyer allowed four hits and walked two while striking out four.
Hayden Frank didn’t pitch poorly either, but he gave up a run in the top of the eighth and got the loss. Frank pitched four innings and gave up the one run on three hits. He struck out four and walked one.
The Pelicans had just two hits. Left fielder Darlyn De Leon was 1 for 3 with a walk. Center fielder Derik Alcanatara was 1 for 4 with a double.
Cody Bellinger finally played in a baseball game, this time with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Thursday night, his first rehab start since landing on the IL in July.
The Yankees outfielder batted second and served as the DH for the Rail Riders. He went 1-for-3 on the evening.
In his first at-bat, Bellinger hit a 96 mph sinker in on his hands through the right side and underneath the Charlotte shortstop's glove. Bellinger flied out to right field in his second at-bat and popped out to the shortstop in his third at-bat.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone told the media earlier this week that Bellinger is expected to play two rehab games -- likely Thursday and Friday -- before the team decides whether to bring back the outfielder. The Yankees skipper said that Bellinger could be activated as soon as Sunday's series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays.
In 102 games before his hamstring injury, Bellinger slashed .259/.350/.420 with 11 home runs and 53 RBI.
A base hit for Cody Bellinger in the first at-bat of his rehab assignment pic.twitter.com/joCOSH5pqb
— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 21, 2026
Before the game was suspended in the eighth inning due to inclement weather - with the High-A Brooklyn Cyclones trailing the Asheville Tourists by seven runs - Sammy Stafura had already struck out twice.
Stafura, who played shortstop and batted leadoff tonight, did draw a walk as the first batter of the ballgame.
The 21-year-old, who was acquired from the Pittsburgh Pirates in exchange for Luke Weaver, is yet to hit the ground running within the Mets organization. He sits at a .627 OPS through his first 11 games with Brooklyn.
In the Binghamton Rumble Ponies' 7-5 loss against the Altoona Curve on Thursday evening, Mets top overall prospect Jefferson Rojas batted leadoff, while 22-year-old third baseman James Reimer batted second and served as the designated hitter.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Rojas hit a one-out opposite-field (right field) double. He moved up to third base on a passed ball, and came home to score tagging up on Reimer's sacrifice fly.
Rojas now sports a very impressive .822 OPS at Double-A. His OPS was .800 at the time of the trade, which sent him from the Chicago Cubs' farm system to that of the Mets in exchange for Clay Holmes and Tyrone Taylor.
Elsewhere in this game, CF Chris Suero singled on a groundball up the middle, but also struck out twice.
Infield prospect Mitch Voit was hit by a pitch on Tuesday, Aug. 18, and did not feature in Thursday's game as a precaution.
A trio of top 30 prospects - LF Nick Morabito, 2B Émilien Pitre, and 3B Billy Amick - all tallied base hits in the Syracuse Mets' 5-0 win over the Worcester Red Sox on Thursday night.
In the bottom of the first inning, Morabito led off the game with a walk before promptly stealing second base.
Pitre drew a walk after Morabito's stolen base, and legged out an infield single in the seventh inning.
Amick hit a solo shot in the fourth inning off highly rated right-handed pitching prospect Gage Ziehl.
Billy Amick blasts his first homer in Triple-A! pic.twitter.com/26IKNu58Dr
— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 21, 2026
The Texas Rangers scored two runs but the Washington Nationals did not score any runs.
The Rangers didn’t have a hit with RISP all evening despite ten chances and they also left eight on base, signifying ample opportunities that did not bear fruit. Were it any other night, we would perhaps be bemoaning these facts.
The Rangers have lost dozens upon dozens of games this season in situations where the offense puckered their butt holes with prime occasions to break open games. Tonight, however, they had Jacob deGrom looking like he had spent a few days doggy paddling in the Fountain of Youth to render the ineptness with the lumber practically moot.
Despite the misfiring with men on base, all deGrom and the high leverage arms of the bullpen ultimately needed was one tally. They got that run when Corey Seager smacked a solo home run in the bottom of the third inning.
A couple of innings before Seager’s oppo dong, deGrom struck out former Rangers farmhand Abi Ortiz for his second K of the night which gave him 2,000 for his career. deGrom became the 95th pitcher in big league history to strike out 2,000 batters and the second quickest to reach the mark in both appearances (272, behind Randy Johnson’s 262) and innings (1,660 1/3, behind Chris Sale’s 1,626 IPs).
With runs at a premium, the Rangers needed deGrom to do more than just reach personal milestones, and the veteran delivered with one of his best outings with Texas spanning six shutout frames.
Following deGrom was the trio you want from the ‘pen. Jakob Junis worked around a couple of baserunners with a big double play in a scoreless seventh. Deadline acquisition Chase Silseth struck out two in a scoreless eighth. And then Jacob Latz earned his 25th save of the season with a scoreless ninth after Nicky Lopez gave the closer a cushion with a sacrifice fly insurance run in the top of the ninth.
Overall, the quartet of pitchers combined to allow just one hit as the Rangers to claimed the series with a couple of shutouts bookending their own shutout defeat.
Player of the Game: deGrom went six innings on 94 pitches. He allowed just one second inning single, walked one batter, and struck out ten. He looked ten years younger right when the Rangers really needed an outing like that from the veteran.
Congrats on 2,000 Ks!
Up Next: The Rangers will see the hated Angels arrive in Arlington for a series where LHP MacKenzie Gore will make the start for Texas opposite LHP Reid Detmers for Anaheim.
The Friday evening first pitch from The Shed is scheduled for 7:05 pm CDT and you can borrow someone’s login to watch it on Apple TV.
BALTIMORE — As the regular season approaches the final month, it’s becoming even more clear that the Yankees and Rays remain the best teams in a historically weak American League.
Whether the Yankees have enough firepower to catch Tampa Bay will be determined over the next six weeks, but the Yankees closed this road trip in style.
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Try it freeThey won their fourth straight Thursday, completing a sweep at Camden Yards with a convincing 6-1 victory over the Orioles.
Even as they’ve remained firmly in the playoff picture without their best player, the Yankees still rarely make it easy on themselves, scratching out runs and relying extensively on their rotation and top relievers.
But Thursday, as they seemingly got some potentially positive news on Aaron Judge, they also looked like a team that’s poised for a strong finish.
Not only do they have their longest winning streak since before the All-Star break, they played about as complete a game as possible to finish a sweep of the Orioles.
Thursday’s win featured a sterling effort from Gerrit Cole, contributions from two trade deadline acquisitions — Heliot Ramos and Luis García Jr. — who have mostly slumped since getting to the Yankees, as well as an opposite-field homer by Spencer Jones.
They got back to within four games of first-place Tampa Bay and moved to four games up on the Red Sox for the top spot in the AL wild-card race.
Against right-hander Kyle Bradish — who tossed six shutout innings against the Yankees in May — the lineup this time had more success, as the Yankees scored at least five runs in consecutive games for the first time since July 9-10.
“It was good to get some cushion,’’ manager Aaron Boone said. “We got the lead and were able to add to it.”
A three-run third inning started with back-to-back singles by Jones and Austin Wells and was aided by a costly error.
With runners on the corners, José Caballero hit a potential double-play ball, but shortstop Gunnar Henderson dropped Jackson Holliday’s throw from second.
Jones scored on the play, and the Orioles failed to record an out.
Trent Grisham then grounded into a double play, but Ben Rice singled in a run and Ramos — just 2-for-33 in his previous 10 games — delivered a double to make it 3-0.
Cole, after allowing a one-out single to Pete Alonso in the first, retired 11 straight batters before Dylan Beavers took him deep to start the bottom of the fifth.
That was the only blemish for Cole, who struck out eight in six innings to pass Roger Clemens for 12th all time in franchise history.
Ryan Yarbrough finished the game with three scoreless innings, which allowed the Yankees to rest their high-leverage relievers.
Cole and Yarbrough had some breathing room in part because García opened the sixth with a homer, his 25th of the season and second with the Yankees.
Jones went the other way with two outs in the inning for his sixth home run.
It was the rookie’s first homer since he went deep in back-to-back games three weeks ago.
Jones attributed the three-hit night to adjustments he made with his timing — and the knowledge he’s been getting regular playing time for most of the month.
With Cody Bellinger due to return from a strained hamstring in the coming days — and Ramos not going anywhere — Jones may end up back in the minors, but as Boone noted, the lefty swinger has the ability to “leave any part of the ballpark.”
After dropping three in a row earlier in the trip, the Yankees head back to The Bronx to open a 10-game homestand Friday against the Blue Jays.
In their current state with the injuries and the offense struggling, almost every game the Yankees play ends up being a close one. Despite it often feeling like a grind just to get a couple runs, they still have managed to put up a not terrible record in recent weeks. However, actually stringing multiple wins together in a row has proven a tough task.
Well on Thursday night against the Orioles, the Yankees actually did a couple things they hadn’t in a little while. For one, they got the win to finish off a sweep. It was the Yankees’ first sweep in over a month, with their last coming July 10-12 over the Nationals. Also, the five-run margin matched a 10-5 win over the Mariners back on August 12th, and those games mark the largest victories the Yankees have had in some time.
On the mound in this one, Gerrit Cole looked very good. He ended up going six innings, allowing one run on four hits and a walk. He struck out eight batters, taking him to the century mark for the year. That’s extra impressive considering that he missed the start of the year while still recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Meanwhile, a balanced offensive display helped the Yankees give him a solid amount of run support, allowing the Yankees to actually win in a semi-comfortable manner, beating the Orioles 6-1.
The Yankees struck first, picking up a couple runs off Bradish in the third. After Spencer Jones and Austin Wells started off the inning with single, the O’s gave them a gift, when Gunnar Henderson failed to catch the throw to second on a possible double play ball. Jones was at third and would’ve scored on that play no matter what, but the error allowed the Yankees to put up a crooked number. Trent Grisham then did ground into a double play, but it put Wells at third, from which he scored on a Ben Rice single. Heliot Ramos then showed some signs of life with a long double off the right field wall, narrowly missing a homer.
Rice chugged all the way around to score the third run of the inning.
Cole worked in and out of some trouble in the first inning but then cruised through the next couple. Baltimore did eventually get on the board in the fifth, though. Dylan Beavers took Cole deep for the O’s first run of the game.
However, the Yankees immediately answered that run and added on more. Luis García Jr. and Spencer Jones both crushed deep shots in the sixth for solo homers to give the Yankees that breathing room back.
Hoping to get through the last couple innings drama-free considering the well-used bullpen, the Yankees picked up some insurance in the eighth. With García on after a single, Jazz Chisholm Jr. got a hit deep into the right field corner. García scored as Chisholm raced all the way to third with a triple. The offense could’ve added a little more breathing room, but the contact play felled them again. Before the night ended, Jones did pick up his third hit in a nice little day for him.
The Yankees ended up going to the bullpen after the sixth, wrapping up Cole’s strong day. Ryan Yarbrough came in for the seventh, with the Yankees hoping he could eat up a good chunk of the remaining innings to help that bullpen. In the end, he ate all of them. Yarbrough went nine up, nine down, recording the save to finish off the sweep.
Having wrapped up their road trip on a good note, the Yankees will now return home this weekend. Starting tomorrow night at 7:05 pm ET, the Yankees will open up a three-game set against the Blue Jays. Cam Schlittler is expected to go for the Yankees, while Toronto has not announced their starter as of yet.
Jacob deGrom still has his fastball at 38 years old.
The Rangers ace struck out the first two batters of his start on Thursday night in Arlington, Texas, then tipped his hat to the crowd after becoming the 95th pitcher in MLB history to reach 2,000 strikeouts.
DeGrom (9-8, 3.77 ERA) went on to pick up the win by pitching six scoreless innings with 10 strikeouts in the Rangers’ 2-0 win.
“Maybe whenever my career is over I’ll look at that kind of stuff,” deGrom said. “But even when the season’s over, I’m like, ‘I’ve got to figure out a way to get outs the following year.’”
He reached the milestone against the Nationals, whom he’s struck out more than all but two other teams, facing them a plethora of times during his time with the Mets.
The historic punchout came in deGrom’s 272nd game and 1,661st inning pitched. He’s the second-fastest pitcher by both metrics to reach the milestone, trailing Randy Johnson (262 games) and Chris Sale (1,626 innings pitched).
Reaching 2,000 strikeouts has been a long time coming for deGrom, who has battled through injuries that held him to fewer than four innings in two of his last three starts.
The longtime Met has spent the past four seasons with Texas, but most of his career success — and strikeouts — came in Queens. In nine seasons in New York, deGrom showed himself to be one of the most memorable pitchers of the 2010s, winning back to back Cy Young Awards in 2018-19.
His 2018 campaign was arguably one of the most dominant in MLB history, as he maintained a mind-boggling 1.70 ERA over 217 innings while striking out 269 batters.
deGrom is fourth in Mets history with 1,607 Ks while topping the franchise leaderboards for career strikeouts per nine (10.9) and ERA (2.52), among many others.
Since leaving the Mets, deGrom has stayed dominant despite undergoing his second Tommy John surgery in 2023, six starts into his Rangers tenure.
The surgery seems to have paid off, and he’s considered one of the most successful pitchers to undergo the procedure twice. In 2025, his first full season since winning his second Cy Young, deGrom struck out 185 batters with a 2.97 ERA and finished eighth in voting for the award.
His 2026 season, though, has been the worst of his career. Through 23 starts, deGrom posted a 3.95 ERA. Although under league average, it’s far his career worst and over a run above his career average.
The below-.500 Rangers sit in second place in an abysmal American League West division and are just ½ game back for the third AL wild-card spot. If they make the playoffs, manager Skip Schumaker is almost certain to turn to deGrom for a Game 1 matchup.
As the trade deadline neared earlier this month, deGrom reportedly invoked his no-trade clause to stay with the Rangers despite interest from the Braves, among other teams.
— with AP
There are just 35 games remaining in the 2026 season, if you can believe that! The Colorado Rockies are sitting at 50-77 after an unfortunate sweep at the hands of the Los Angeles Dodgers. They need 13 more wins to avoid 100 losses for the fourth straight year, and the overwhelming majority of Rockies fans believe they will do it.
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