Category: Baseball

Given that Nick Lodolo excelled on such a high level last season, the spotlight has been aimed almost solely at the frustrating blister issues that he has dealt with all season. Most everyone will point to those as the reason why his numbers this year are pretty poor compared to what we know he can do, and that makes sense on the surface.

Right?

For whatever reason, it’s been buried a bit that Brady Singer dealt with blister issues at the tail end of spring training, too. And, if you look at how he started the 2026 season, you’ll notice that he was pretty, pretty awful for a time. Blisters don’t just happen and heal, they get into your head in terms of what types of pitches you feel comfortable throwing, and that can completely alter the way you approach batters of all ilks from both sides of the plate.

If you can’t throw the pitch you want in the big spot, well, things can go awry in a hurry.

Whether or not Singer would pin his poor early form on that blister (and the time he took off to let it heal) we may never know. What we do know, though, is that he turned things around in a major way once June rolled around, and across his last 7 starts (38.2 IP) he’s pitched to a 2.79 ERA, 3.93 FIP, and struck out more than a batter per IP (40 K). That’s the Brady Singer the Reds traded Jonathan India for, that’s the Brady Singer who showed up down the stretch in 2025.

For the last place 2026 Reds, though, that Brady Singer might end up getting traded away sooner than later. That’s just what happens when you’re 9 games under .500 and he’s a pitcher who’ll be a free agent at season’s end.

It’s with that context that we get to watch Singer pitch tonight in Coors Field as the Reds open the second half of their season on the road against the Colorado Rockies. It’s about 94 degrees with humidity at a higher level than usual out here in Denver as monsoon season swells up from the south, and that’s the perfect scenario for some serious offense to erupt. So, it’s interesting that the Reds, who’d obviously like to showcase Singer as much as possible in pitcher-friendly environs in the event they end up having to be sellers, chose to roll with Singer at Coors as they stack their rotation out of the gate.

Nothing like sending out a guy who’d turned the corner to get blasted for 8 ER in 3 IP in the land where balls fly (in the precise circumstances where that will likely happen).

Anyway, if he spins a gem, it may actually expedite his departure from the Reds barring them turning this 9-game road trip into a miracle success story. As teams gear up for the trade deadline in just two and a half weeks, each additional start they can get out of an acquired starting pitcher stacks that much value on their shoulders, and another brilliant one from Singer might just be the catalyst the Reds need to make that call.

We’ll see what Brady can do on the field, first. Obviously, the Reds are still crossing their fingers, toes, eyes, etc. that they can somehow make a run at this thing, and the first step towards that happening falls on the right shoulder of their soon-to-be free agent. Maybe, just maybe, that makes him their soon-to-be traded righty if things don’t go perfect in a hurry.

Here’s how the Reds will line up behind Singer on Friday, with first pitch set for 8:40 PM ET.

Baseball is back again. After a four-day reprieve with the All-Star break, the Milwaukee Brewers have a game to play. They begin a nine-game homestand with a three-game series against the Miami Marlins.

The Brewers made a couple of moves during the break to shuffle the roster a little. Lance McCullers Jr. was acquired from the Houston Astros, and he has been activated off the IL. McCullers will initially pitch out of the bullpen, according to manager Pat Murphy. Lefty Jared Koenig was optioned to the minors as the corresponding move. Murphy said Koenig will head to Arizona first to try to work on some things before he reports to Nashville.

Despite the poor air quality in Milwaukee due to Canadian and Minnesota wild fires, the Brewers will be playing this game and the roof is open.

On the mound, Logan Henderson will start the second half for the Crew. He was solid in his return from the IL earlier this month, going 5 1/3 IP with just three runs allowed in the Brewers 8-4 win over the Cardinals. Henderson has a 3.18 ERA on the season.

For the Marlins, they will have their ace, Sandy Alcantara on the bump. Alcantara has not quite been the same as he was prior to his Tommy John surgery but is turning in a solid season with a 3.99 ERA with 20 starts and 130 2/3 IP. He leads the league in innings pitched and has been a reliable option for the Fish. Alcantara has historically done well against the Brewers with a 3.14 ERA in eight games.

The Brewers lineup will have all the regulars in there. Yelich, Chourio, and Turang will make up the top of the order, followed by Contreras, Bauers, and Mitchell. Rounding out the bottom of the lineup will be Pratt, Frelick, and Ortiz.

The Marlins offense is led by Liam Hicks, Otto Lopez, and Xavier Edwards. Kyle Stowers, Heriberto Hernandez, and Griffin Conine make up the middle of their order. Then Jakob Marsee, Joe Mack, and Javier Sanoja round out the bottom of the starting nine. That makes five lefties and a switch hitter in the lineup against the right-handed Henderson.

It’s Cerveceros Night at the ballpark and the Brewers will be wearing their City Connect uniforms. The final push to the postseason begins as the second half gets underway at 6:40 p.m.

The Cleveland Guardians postponed their Friday, July 17 game against the Pittsburgh Pirates as dangerous air quality due to smoke from Canadian wildfires rendered conditions unhealthy for players and fans.

It marked the third time in seven seasons that a game was postponed due to extreme wildfire smoke. It delayed the start of the second half for the Pirates and Guardians coming off the four-day All-Star break. They will play a split doubleheader Saturday, with games at 1:10 and 7:10 ET.

In Cleveland, the air quality index remained in the "dangerous" zone as determined by the Environmental Protection Agency well into the midday hours Friday, registering 272 early in the day still at 242 90 minutes before the scheduled first pitch. Readings between 201 and 300 are deemed "very unhealthy," and a health alert is issued. Readings above 300 are classified as "hazardous."

It was a similar scenario in Chicago, where Major League Soccer's Fire postponed their game Thursday when the AQI reached 597. The late-morning AQI remained above 300 and was forecast to stay near 250 by 7 p.m. CT, when the Cubs were scheduled to play host to the Minnesota Twins. No announcement has been made regarding that game.

TONIGHT’S GAME: The Astros will open the second half of play tonight at Daikin Park as they welcome in the Orioles for a three-game series.

RHP Peter Lambert (8-5), the Astros most consistent starter of the first half, will get the start for Houston opposite RHP Dean Kremer (1-2) and the Orioles.

RIDING THE LAMBO: RHP Peter Lambert, who was a minor league free agent signing this offseason, leads the club in wins and among AL pitchers ranks third in opponent average (.201) and eighth in ERA (min. 85IP).

Lambert pitched last year for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in the NPB, posting a 3.98 ERA (55ER/124.1IP) with 111 K’s in 23 starts.

THE SLOW TURNAROUND: After a slow start to the season, the Astros are 27-20 since May 21, which is the best record in the AL in that span.

On that date, the Astros were 20-31, 11 games under, which is their low water mark for the season.

JP’S NIGHT: SS Jeremy Peña will host little leaguers from East End Little League today for July’s Peña’s Pals, which is a program that celebrates kids and their development in academics, character building and making healthy choices.

Additionally, 10,000 fans in attendance will receive a Jeremy Peña Short Sleeve 90s Hoodie Jersey, presented by Sire Spirits, as tonight’s giveaway.

THIS WEEKEND’S TELECASTS: All three games of this series will be televised by Space City Home Network with Todd Kalas, Geoff Blum and Lauren Callender on the call.

Sideline reporter Julia Morales will rejoin the broadcast next week.

GET ‘EM EARLY: The Astros rank first in the AL and second in MLB in 1st-inning runs with 60.

Overall, the Astros rank fifth in the AL in runs (428) immediately behind tonight’s opponent, the Orioles (432).

ON THE DEFENSIVE: The Astros rank third in the AL in fielding pct. (.988) and their 42 errors are the second-fewest in the AL.

1B Christian Walker has led the way, as he has not committed an error in his 94 games played at 1B.

Dating back to last season, Walker has not made an error in his last 122 games at 1B (last error was Aug. 23, 2025 at BAL).

THE 2027 SCHEDULE: The 2027 regular season schedule was announced by Major League Baseball yesterday, which revealed Astros Opening Day as Thursday, March 25 vs. TEX.

The Astros schedule is also highlighted by weekend series against the Yankees (April 23-25), Cubs (May 14- 16), Mariners (June 25-27), Padres (July 30-Aug. 1), Phillies (Sept. 17-19), and others.

WEDNESDAY’S TRADE: Announced on Wednesday, the Astros traded RHP Lance McCullers Jr., LHP Colton Gordon, and cash considerations to the Brewers in exchange for prospect OF Jadyn Fielder.

McCullers leaves behind a legacy as one of the most-accomplished postseason pitchers in Astros history, making 19 postseason appearances (12 starts) and posting a 3.47 ERA (28ER/72.2IP) en route to two World Series championships.

TODAY’S ROSTER MOVES: The Astros have selected OF Lucas Spence (#28) to the Major League roster and have reinstated RHP Kai-Wei Teng from the 15-day IL.

Additionally, OF Brice Matthews has been placed on the 10-day IL with a left knee sprain.

ON THE MEND: The Astros have seven players on the Major League Injured List.

Updates on a few:

RHP Hayden Wesneski (rt. elbow surgery) is sheduled to pitch at Triple A tonight…he has made three rehab appearances so far, last pitching for Triple A Sugar Land on July 11 vs. ABQ (1ER/4.2IP)…he fanned seven in the outing on a season-high 61 pitches.

RHP Ronel Blanco (rt. elbow surgery) has made five rehab appearances, last starting on July 12 vs. ABQ (0ER/4.1IP), in which he tossed 68 pitches.

RHP Mike Burrows (rt. elbow neuritis) has reported to West Palm Beach to begin a throwing progression.

LHP Bennett Sousa (lt. elbow inflammation) made two rehab appearances for the FCL Astros over the All-Star break, tossing 1.0 scoreless inning in each outing. He last pitched on Wednesday (16 pitches).

OF Brice Matthews (lt. knee sprain) is currently participating in light baseball activities in Houston.

ALL-STAR ALVAREZ: DH Yordan Alvarez started and hit second for the AL in this week’s All-Star Game, going 1×2 with a single and a run scored.

This marked the fourth All-Star selection for Alvarez (2022-24, 2026) and the second time that he was voted as a starter (also in 2024).

MVP-CALIBER: DH Yordan Alvarez is a strong MVP candidate, currently leading all of baseball in OPS (1.059), OBP (.426), SLG (.633), and total bases (221).

Additionally, he ranks first in the AL in HR (31), first in RBI (70), first in XBH (48), tied for first in hits (111), second in batting average (.318), second in runs (65), and fourth in walks (63).

WHAT A HALF!: DH Yordan Alvarez hit 31 homers prior to the break, which are the most in a first half in club history, topping OF Lance Berkman, who hit 29 homers in the first half of the 2002 season.

Alvarez is on pace to hit 51 homers on the season, which would represent a new franchise record, topping the 47 homers hit by 1B Jeff Bagwell in 2000.

TAP FOR SUCCESS: Astros hitters have won an MLB-best 70 ABS challenges and lead the Majors in challenge success rate (61%).

2B Jose Altuve has been successful on 15-of-21 challenges (71%), ranking second in the Majors in challenges won.

3B Isaac Paredes (11-for-12) has been the most efficient regular challenger for the team and was successful in his first 11 challenges on the season.

WHAT A RELIEF: LHP Josh Hader is 3-1 with 10 saves (in 10 chances), has a 1.17 ERA (2ER/15.1IP), 25 strikeouts in 15.1 innings, a .115 (6×52) opponent average, and a 0.91 WHIP in 17 appearances.

He has not allowed a hit in 13 of his 17 appearances.

THE 2026 FUTURES GAME: The Astros top two prospects, OF Kevin Alvarez and IF Xavier Neyens, represented the club in the All-Star Futures Game, which was played last weekend in Philadelphia.

Both prospects, which played the first half of the season for Class A Fayetteville, are considered top 100 prospects per MiLB.com, with Alvarez ranking 69th and Neyens 87th overall.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Friday, July 17, 7:10 p.m. CT

Location: Daikin Park, Houston, TX

TV: Space City Home Network

Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)

The Yankees and Aaron Judgegot the results back from re-imaging over the All-Star break and the slugger's ribs have not healed enough for him to resume baseball activities.

"We're still waiting on one more doctor to take a look at it. Kind of see how we progress forward the next couple weeks, but it’s definitely a positive sign," Judge said before Friday's series opener with the Dodgers.

Judge had the re-imaging done Wednesday, but the organization is waiting for Dr. Gregory Pearl to give his opinion on the next steps. Judge is hopeful they'll learn more by the time Friday's game is over or on Saturday.

When asked whether the doctors need to see full healing before he can start baseball activities or whether it's about pain tolerance, the reigning MVP gave his take, but ultimately said he's going to follow what the doctors say.

"I think it's more of once we see it kind of healing all the way through, I think part of it's healing, the other part of it's still trying to bridge together," Judge said. "So I think that's what we're trying to wait and see if we can kind of get some confirmation of what we can start doing.

"I'm going to wait for the doctors to tell us what to do and what they see when they look at it, but I think it's some positive news."

Judge did say he has no reason to believe he won't play this season, saying "I don't see why not."

But he confirmed that he has not started any sort of activities. Everything he has done is just lower-body and conditioning.

Judge said he's feeling "10 times better" since injuring his ribs on a dive in the outfield back in April, and is itching to start doing baseball activities, but the organization is being cautious with their captain. He doesn't believe he'll need a spring training-style ramp-up -- he said he hates "wasting at-bats" in a rehab game -- but once they hear back, he'll discuss with the organization on next steps. 

Prior to the injury, Judge was slashing .248/.375/.533 with 17 home runs and 38 RBI in 59 games.

The Yankees have been up and down since Judge landed on the IL. They enter play Friday with a 54-42 record, overcoming a 5-15 stretch, and are now riding a four-game winning streak. 

It's a stark difference from the 2023 season when Judge broke his toe slamming into a wall at Dodger Stadium, which cost him 45 games and the Yankees their season.

Manager Aaron Boone believes this year's team is different despite Judge's absence.

“We weren't as good a team then," Boone said. "We weren't equipped to handle that and feel like we are much more equipped now with some of our depth and some of our young players that are now integral parts of the team.

"And I think outside of the 10-game stretch where we're terrible, for the most part, we have played well and better than when that happened in '23." 

A big part of the Yankees' resilience has been Paul Goldschmidt's revival, Cody Bellinger's consistency and the emergence of Ben Rice. All of whom Judge credits as part of what's kept the team afloat.

"It's been tough, but we got a lot of great guys in this clubhouse have been holding their own and kind of carrying the weight of this team," Judge said of not playing. "Goldie, Belli, what they've been doing;  Ben Rice has been... It's been fun to watch, but that's been tough sitting on the sidelines."

Texas Rangers lineup for July 17, 2026 against the Atlanta Braves: starting pitchers are Cal Quantrill for the Rangers and Chris Sale for the Braves.

Texas begins the second half of the season with a three game set in Atlanta. Chris Sale is on the mound for the Braves, so Skip Schumaker has all the righties out there.

The lineup:

Foscue — DH

Langford — LF

Nimmo — RF

Jung — 3B

Burger — 1B

Duran — SS

Cauley — CF

Diaz — C

Lopez — 2B

6:15 p.m. Central start time. Rangers are +175 underdogs.

Aaron Boone provided the latest on a bevy of injured Yankees prior to Friday's series opener against the Dodgers...

The plan for Fried

At this point, we already know that Max Fried is preparing to begin a minor league rehab assignment on Friday night with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. 

First pitch against Worcester is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. 

The left-hander is expected to throw around 50 pitches his first time out. 

Boone said that Fried will make at least one more outing following this one, and then the team will decided whether or not to activate him before being fully built up. 

Friday is Fried's first outing since May 13 due to a bone bruise in his elbow. 

He had been in the midst of a bit of a rough stretch prior to the injury, allowing 3+ runs in each of his last three outings to bring his ERA up to 3.21 for the season. 

Getting Fried back sooner rather than later would be a nice boost for New York's rotation, though. 

Rodón, Schmidt taking steps forward

While neither Carlos Rodón or Clarke Schmidt are nearly as close as Fried is, both are trending in the right direction. 

Rodón threw about 10 pitches in a short bullpen session today, Boone said. 

The skipper also revealed that Schmidt is set to face live hitters for the first time on Saturday. 

Schmidt, of course, has been slowly progressing his way back after he was forced to undergo the second Tommy John procedure of his career last summer. 

As long as things keep going as planned, he has a chance to be back in the mix next month. 

That's when Rodón is expected to rejoin New York's rotation as well, as he continues to ease his way back following an elbow inflammation scare that forced him to the sidelines earlier this month. 

Stanton too, but still no return date

Giancarlo Stanton has also taken a step forward, as Boone revealed he's begun a running program. 

The big man still remains without a timeline for a return, though. 

Stanton hasn't appeared in big-league action since April 24 against the Astros. 

He originally sustained the calf injury jogging between first and second, then re-tweaked it while running the bases during his build up in mid-June at Yankee Stadium. 

Stanton hasn't logged a full season since his first as a Yankee, and this is his seventh IL stint since 2021. 

He had been enjoying some success at the plate being going down this time, ripping three homers and six doubles while driving in 14 runs over his first 24 games of the season. 

The Yanks still hope expect him to return at some point this season. 

Lombard Jr. makes his return

George Lombard Jr. has officially been activated from the Triple-A IL, and will make his return to the lineup during Fried's outing on Friday night. 

The top prospect is back playing shortstop and batting leadoff. 

Brian Cashman said shortly before the All-Star break that Lombard could potentially be an option in the big leagues at some point down the stretch of the regular season. 

The team feels he's already ready to take that next step defensively at shortstop and third base, and he's closed the gap he had coming into this season offensively. 

Lombard had a .381 OBP and .765 OPS in Triple-A before going down with the injury. 

How Red Sox can buy and sell at trade deadline without wrecking season originally appeared on NBC Sports Boston

A few weeks ago, there was no doubt: The Red Sox would have to be sellers at this year’s trade deadline.

Yet after an absurd stretch of winning (10 straight and 15 of 17 entering Friday night), that plan is on hold as everybody in baseball — and the Red Sox themselves — assess just how good this year’s team can be.

With the winning has come calls for Breslow to buy at the deadline and supplement a roster that could use some offensive help. Doing so, however, would prevent chief baseball officer Craig Breslow from trading away some veteran assets that could help bring some players to Boston who could help this year and beyond.

Or would it?

MassLive’s Chris Cotillo laid out a plan on Early Edition that could simultaneously accomplish multiple goals for a Red Sox team that will surely want to stay in playoff contention for the rest of the year.

That plan would involve trading away starting pitcher Sonny Gray (age 36 years old) and closer Aroldis Chapman (38) and bringing in offensive help from a player (or players) who are under contract beyond the 2026 season.

“The reason I think that’s important is that the free-agent class this year is horrible for bats. Jazz Chisholm is like the best one. It’s not a market where you can go and pay for a bat,” Cotillo explained. “So if a Byron Buxton is available or a C.J. Abrams in a blockbuster, probably worth investigating now because the options aren’t gonna be there in the winter.

“And I think, honestly, that shouldn’t preclude them from cashing in on a chip like Gray or Chapman. They’re in their late 30s, they’ve had unbelievable seasons so far, especially Gray. And I think you’re gonna get a premium for those guys.”

Cotillo noted that the rise of Jake Bennett (who improved to 5-3 with a 2.35 ERA on Friday afternoon) along with the consistency of Payton Tolle and Connelly Early could allow the Red Sox to withstand a loss of Gray — especially if Garrett Crochet is able to return at some point. He also added that the bullpen could survive with Garrett Whitlock in the closer’s role instead of Chapman.

“So it’s a cop-out to do a little of both sometimes. They’re just in such a unique situation where they can add a controllable bat — I think they’ll try to do that — and then also, if the prices get to a certain point, it would be stupid not to listen on Gray and Chapman, considering what they are and their contracts and all that,” Cotillo said.

While there would certainly be quite a bit of pushback from fans who might interpret such moves as giving up on the season, Cotillo said that such a slightly longer-term approach could put the Red Sox in a better position in the coming years.

“I think it would be a smart hedge, honestly, to do both,” he said. “Heart of hearts, I think the smart thing to do would be a little buying, a little selling, set yourself for next year in the lineup, move a piece of your roster that you can get by without. … But easier said than done, as always, this time of year.”

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The Los Angeles Dodgers are slight -115 moneyline favorites tonight against the New York Yankees in the first game out of the All-Star break, but my Dodgers vs. Yankees predictions are taking the home side.

Roki Sasaki’s loud-contact issues are a bad fit against a Yankees lineup that still wins through lift and power, while Gerrit Cole gives New York a pitching edge.

Here are my free MLB picks for Friday, July 17.

Who will win Dodgers vs Yankees today: Yankees moneyline (+101)

If the New York Yankees are going to make a charge in the AL East, there's no better time than now against the best team in baseball, the Los Angeles Dodgers. I’m playing them down to -110.

Roki Sasaki's biggest flaw runs into New York’s best offensive path. Sasaki has allowed a 12.8% barrel rate and 44.9% hard-hit rate, and his four-seamer has been hit for a .606 SLG.

These are all things the Yankees excel at, arriving at this game with the highest barrel rate in baseball, the third-highest hard-hit rate, and several strong hitters against the heater.

COVERS INTEL:Sasaki’s 9.4% walk rate is above MLB average, giving New York a traffic base before its power bats get to swing.

Dodgers vs Yankees Over/Under pick: Over 9.5 (+105)

I’m playing the Over because both offenses have a clear matchup path. Sasaki’s fastball and barrel issues give New York a real chance to do damage early, even without Aaron Judge.

Gerrit Cole is the better starter, but this is still the Dodgers’ lineup. And he hasn't been "vintage Cole" either. L.A. can punish his elevated-contact profile, with Cole allowing a 9.2% barrel rate and 40.3% hard-hit rate this season.

I projected 10.1 and would play this to -115.

Dodgers vs Yankees weather

Slight bump for the offenses with temperatures above 80F at first pitch and a slight breeze going toward left-center field. Keep an eye out for any time changes or a postponement due to bad air quality in the NYC area stemming from Canadian wildfires.

Dodgers vs Yankees odds

• Moneyline: Dodgers -110 | Yankees -106
• Run line: Dodgers -1.5 | Yankees +1.5
• Over/Under: Over 9.5 | Under 9.5

Dodgers vs Yankees trend

The Yankees have hit the moneyline in four of their last five games (+3.25 Units / 50% ROI).

How to watch Dodgers vs Yankees and game info

Dodgers vs Yankees latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Welcome back to your regularly scheduled program of Atlanta Braves baseball.

The roster has been released, and let’s just say it’s an exact copy-and-paste of how they ended the half.

Facing the Texas Rangers tonight, Drake Baldwin will be leading off with Brewer Hicklen returning to the lineup to take over right field and batting ninth.

Chris Sale is taking the mound and looking for a surge in offensive production as the second half of the season kicks off. No more quiet bats or late starts. It’s time to set the tone at Truist Park to show up how they did in the earlier half of the season… at least, Braves country could only hope.

The Braves avoided a sweep to end the first half of the season with this same lineup. Can they surpass where they left off?

Find out tonight at 7:15 p.m. ET

The Yankees waited six weeks for reimaging on Aaron Judge’s right rib, only to essentially be told: try again soon.

The back-to-back American League MVP underwent imaging on Wednesday that showed healing in his rib, but not enough to clear him for baseball activities just yet.

He and the team were still waiting to hear back from a rib specialist to see if he might be able to get the green light to at least begin some upper-body exercises, which would represent a minor victory since has not been able to do any of them for the six weeks since he was diagnosed with the injury.

As of Friday afternoon, though, Judge remained in a holding pattern as the Yankees opened the second half of the season without him — as they will continue to be for the foreseeable future.

“Definitely a positive sign that we’re seeing some healing,” Judge said. “Part of it’s healing, the other part of it’s still trying to bridge together. I think that’s what we’re trying to wait and see if we can get some confirmation of what we can start doing.”

Judge indicated was “definitely” confident he will still be able to get back on the field this year – “I don’t see why not,” he said, which manager Aaron Boone echoed.

“I feel good about the fact that he’ll be back,” Boone said. “But it’s just a matter of when.”

It remains to be seen how long Judge would need to get himself ready to play in games once he is cleared to resume baseball activities, though at this point, getting back at some point in August might be wishful thinking.

GM Brian Cashman had cautioned last week that the Yankees did not expect Judge’s rib to be fully healed yet. But they were at least hoping he would be cleared to do more than the lower-body exercises he has been limited to since the start of June.

That said, they do not want to push Judge too soon because if he were to suffer a setback, it could potentially jeopardize his ability to play again this season.

“[There were a] couple weeks that were tough, really couldn’t do a lot, but now we’re feeling 10 times better,” Judge said. “That was my big complaint, ‘Well if I’m feeling better, how about we start moving?’ But I think they just don’t want to start adding baseball activities and other stuff and all of a sudden we have a setback and it pushes everything back. I think they want to be sure it’s healing up the right way so we can get back as soon as we can.”

Asked if he would need the equivalent of spring training (six weeks) once he does start baseball activities, Judge indicated he was hoping for a shorter runway – including not wanting to “waste” at-bats in a rehab assignment, though skipping one altogether seems unlikely and it is still well off in the distance.

Before they opened the second half with a showdown series against the Dodgers, the Yankees were still waiting to hear back from Dr. Gregory Pearl – the same specialist they consulted with for the original diagnosis – to determine what Judge will be able to do in the coming days and when his next round of imaging would be. Since the beginning of June, he has mostly been limited to lower-body exercises like walking on the treadmill, and briefly riding an exercise bike before they “shied away from that.”

In the meantime — with the Yankees entering Friday 18-19 without Judge and three games back of the Rays for the division lead — the painful waiting game continued.

“It’s been the worst,” Judge said. “I want to play. That’s why I’m here, that’s why I get paid, to play big games for the Yankees. Especially with the team we have, how special it is, how special this group is, I want to be a part of everything. It’s been tough, but we got a lot of great guys in this clubhouse that’ve been holding their own and kind of carrying the weight of this team. [Paul Goldschmidt], [Cody Bellinger], what they’ve been doing, Ben Rice, it’s been fun to watch.

“But it’s been tough sitting on the sidelines.”

Good afternoon everyone, it’s time to dive back into the mailbag and answer some of your questions. Remember to send in your questions for our weekly call by e-mail to pinstripealleyblog [at] gmail [dot] com.

Michael G. asks:The Reds seem to be falling out of the race. Would Stephenson make some some sense? He’s a free agent at year end and healthy.

Stephenson would, and right now I’d say he’s the fallback option if the Yankees can’t pry Ryan Jeffers or Hunter Goodman away from Minnesota or Colorado. It’s not a priority pick, because Stephenson’s offensive capacity is nowhere close to those two with just an 86 wRC+ this season, but when you compare that to what the Yankees have gotten out of their catchers it’s still an upgrade. The main reason that Stephenson could end up in pinstripes though is that the Rockies have been hesitant to include Goodman in trade talks because they see him as a building block towards getting out of the gutter, while the Twins have managed to stay in the playoff race despite hovering around .500 basically the whole season. Things could shift on either front, but if they both stand firm and the Yankees end up with neither of them then Stephenson becomes an option that the team more readily considers.

Darth_Lazarus asks: Given he’s had a month or so adjustment period before he starts hitting with every promotion, does it make sense to contemplate bringing up Lombard? Assuming he’d come up around the deadline would he have time to be ready for playoff pitching?

There’s been plenty of speculation about whether George Lombard Jr. will see the field in the Bronx this year, fueled in equal parts by his strong rise through the organization’s minor leagues as well as the lack of enthusiasm for the current shortstop options in José Caballero and Anthony Volpe. I think I’d be more gung-ho about the potential of Lombard making an impact on this year’s title hunt if he hadn’t gotten injured and missed the last month of playing time, because it looked like he’d turned a corner on Triple-A pitching and was starting to put the pieces together. Now he’ll need to get back into the rhythm again and absolutely rake in a short period of time to warrant a shot with enough time to adjust to the major league level, but to his credit his rehab games in Rookie ball have already gone swimmingly with a pair of homers in as many games. It’s not out of the realm of possibility, but it’s also a pretty significant gamble to mess with the development time of the organization’s top prospect when there are questions still to be answered about his contact rate that could cause major issues against major leaguers.

While there’s a narrow window for this timeline to work out, at the very least it’s not one inhibited by the Trade Deadline. The Yankees won’t be going out to get a shortstop from another team, and it’s also not likely that they’ll be looking for infield help anywhere that could impact this situation. Caballero and Volpe may not be inspiring choices to stick in the starting lineup, but they’re also far from the biggest problem with this roster — both are hitting to a 95 wRC+, just a shade below average in an offense that’s been far more feast or famine elsewhere, and while I sympathize with people who just simply have Anthony Volpe Fatigue at this point due to the occasional boneheaded play his defense overall has looked much closer to his first couple of seasons than his terrible play last year. The onus is on Lombard to impress enough to make his way onto the roster rather than an outright need that has to be addressed here and now, and if he does then there’s a world where his high ceiling plays a part in New York’s October baseball lasting longer than a week or so.

BetweenthePinstripes asks:Has the league shifted towards being more aggressive with promoting younger prospects to the big leagues? If so, are there (relatively) new financial incentives for teams to accelerate a prospect’s development?

We’re sticking with Volpe as the topic here for a minute, as this question was asked in tandem to a response that Derek Jeter had over the All-Star break when asked about the Yankee shortstop. You can read the full comments that Jeter gave here, but I’ll highlight the ones that were pulled out for this question in particular.

“I think as a young player, it’s obvious the Yankees have made a commitment to Anthony….They’re committed to allowing him to continue developing at the major league level. At times, fans get frustrated watching that, but every player goes through it. Every player has gone through bumps in the road. Most of the time, those bumps happen in the minor leagues….It’s tough to go through growing pains at the major league level.“

There are new incentives for top prospects in particular, namely the Prospect Promotion Incentive baked into the last CBA that prompts teams to start promising rookies right away on their Opening Day rosters instead of stashing them in the minors long enough to earn another year of control over their contracts. The return is that they’ll be rewarded with a draft pick if said players win Rookie of the Year or finish in the top three for an MVP or Cy Young Award before they become arbitration-eligible.

The Yankees have not gotten lucky enough to qualify for these picks, though you could argue that this clause in the CBA has still brought about a wave of teams leaning on prospects earlier than expected as the team brought up Cam Schlittler midway through last year and had Ben Rice debut midseason the year before that despite not having had significant time spent down in the minors. Neither one of those players were considered to be contenders to become the players they are now, but they got their shot because the team wasn’t as concerned with holding out for team control as much as they were seeking help for a sudden hole the team needed to fill. It could’ve easily been a journeyman fill-in or a Triple-A mainstay that could’ve been elevated for the starts needed at the time, and that would’ve been the old Yankees’ operating procedure, but the door is more open now than it felt a decade ago. Whether that constitutes a faster pace than there has ever been or if it’s just a course correction from how conservative teams have been with prospects prior to the past few years is a different conversation, but there’s definitely been a notable enough shift.

Welcome back from the All-Star Break, everyone! Hopefully the Rays are well-rested and recharged, because their second half is getting started with a doubleheader against the Red Sox. In the afternoon game, we had Griffin Jax on the mound for the Rays up against Jake Bennett for the Sox.

Jonathan Aranda got a one-out walk in the first, but he was the Rays’ only baserunner for the inning and they left him stranded. Jax did turn it around, though, getting the Red Sox out in order in the home half.

The Rays went 1-2-3 in the top of the second. In the bottom of the inning, things started to go badly for Jax almost immediately. Caleb Durbin singled, then Masataka Yoshida doubled, putting to runs in scoring position. With one out, a Jarren Duran sac fly scored the first run of the game for the Sox. Carlos Narvaez followed that with a single to score one more. Jax did get the final out of the inning, but the Red Sox were up 2-0 after two.

The Rays went three-up, three-down in the third. Anthony Seigler started the home half with a single, but was eliminated in a force out off the bat of Ceddanne Rafaela. Rafaela then stole second. Two outs followed, though, getting the Rays out of the jam.

Junior Caminero proved he’s feeling just fine after his ASG injury with a one-out single in the fourth. Unfortunately the next two batters were out in order to leave him stranded. Yoshida came out swinging in the home half, with a leadoff home run. Jax did collect the next three outs in order, thankfully.

If you need baserunners to score runs, the Rays weren’t doing a great job of catching up on the Red Sox’s lead. They went 1-2-3 in the fifth. In the home half, Seigler got a one-out single, but the Red Sox left him stranded.

Nick Fortes got a free bag in the sixth, getting hit by a pitch to start the inning, but the Rays went down in order after him. While Jax had been doing a creditable job of staying out of trouble through most of the game, in the bottom of the sixth, things really fell off the tracks. Durbin was hit by a pitch to start the inning, then Yoshida singled. Romy Gozalez walked to load the bases. A single by Duran scored two runs. That was it for Jax, who was replaced by Chris Roycroft, but the bleeding didn’t stop. Narvaez singled to score one more run. And then Tsung-Che Cheng singled, bringing one more runner home. Seigler grounded into a double play, which the Rays desperately needed, but then Rafaela doubled to score yet another run. Wilyer Abreu was intentionally walked, but it didn’t help anything because Durbin singled, scoring another run. By the time the Rays got the final out of the inning, the Red Sox were up 9-0. After accounting for the runners on base when he was pulled, Jax’s final line for the game was 5.0 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 1 BB, 6 K, 1 HR on 85 pitches. Rough times.

Alec Gamboa replaced Bennett in the seventh, and he continued the trend of getting the Rays out in order. With two outs in the home half, Narvaez hit a solo home run. The Rays managed to stop the bleeding there, but with a 10-run lead for the Red Sox, perhaps they should just start saving their energy for the evening game.

Taylor Walls got a one-out double in the eighth, but the Rays left him out there, and no runs scored. The Rays opted to save their bullpen by the bottom of the eighth, bringing in Ben Williamson to take on the Sox. He got the first two outs before giving up a single to Abreu on a 44mpg Eephua pitch, which is just about the funniest sentence I’ll write today. I love a position player pitching. Durbin then singled as well. No runs scored, though, so Williamson might have been one of the most effective pitchers of the game.

With two outs in the top of the ninth, Ryan Vilade squeaked in a single, but it wouldn’t be enough to mount a comeback. The Rays fell to the Sox, but hopefully in game two the results will be a little different.

Final: Red Sox 10, Rays 0

At the midseason break, the 50-45 White Sox find themselves in the most ideal place one could ask for: Tied for first with Guardians, in one of the weakest MLB divisions — second to only the AL West by a couple of games, and with their starters all healthy. For a team seeking to finish better than .500 with a manageable path to the postseason, Chicago is finally poised to be buyers at the trade deadline on August 3.

To outlast the Guardians and fend off the Twins and Tigers, the Sox must amend their starting pitching deficit. The starters sit in the middle of the pack with a 4.32 ERA, 1.31 WHIP and .245 batting average allowed. While those figures seem acceptable, the club has allowed the third-most runs among winning teams in the American League (419).  The culprit lies in a quasi five-man rotation that has yet to produce a reliable ace at home and on the road. While Davis Martin occupies that spot at Rate Field, his 4.72 ERA, .289 batting average allowed and 21 walks away from home nullifies his Cy Young candidacy. 

Luckily, there are a handful of starting pitchers who can offer decent value before the leaves start to turn.

Michael Wacha, Royals
Affordable rental arms are hard to come by, but Wacha fits the bill. His modest 3.77 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 2.2 WAR are attractive, but his value jumps when factoring in his 12 quality starts and working relationship with White Sox pitching coach Zach Bove. Wacha’s dramatic drops in efficiency and accuracy are worth the tradeoff for his nearly 15 years of pitching expertise and upside he offers for two, or potentially three months of service. The Sox love dealing with the Royals, so why not get another trade done?

Foster Griffin, Nationals
Griffin is expected to be a hot commodity on the trade block. The impending free agent came back from a three-year hiatus playing for Japan’s Yomiuri Giants looking like a brand-new pitcher. Griffin went from a frustrating reliever, to put it nicely, to a more polished starter, earning a 2.77 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 109 strikeouts while pitching six or more innings in more than half his starts. Aside from two really poor outings, Griffin is one of the biggest stories of Washington’s rebuild under its new front office. The Sox must pursue Griffin if they’re looking to be serious competitors for the remainder of the season. 

Logan Webb, Giants
If the Sox are looking to push their chips in this season, Webb wouldn’t be a bad option. Although the Giants will command a higher price tag for the 2023 NL Cy Young runner-up, Webb’s current pitching and resume speaks for itself. He holds a 3.44 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP, and his complete game against the Marlins is a strong indicator that the awful Giants haven’t taken advantage of his prowess this season. The Sox may need to overpay in a league where three division leaders have a three-game lead on the third-place team, but Chicago shouldn’t be sparing a penny given the shortage of starters with contracts expiring this year.