Category: Baseball

It’s that time where I give you a rundown of what happened in baseball yesterday. However, we’ve already got a recap on this site that did that. Chase DeLauter was the only MLB player to drive in an earned run yesterday, yet the Guardians still lost. I don’t want to talk about it.

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As I just said, the only run that scored all day was off the bat of Chas—

I guess we could talk about how Slade Cecconi generated 5 swings and misses in 1 inning?

Or the big controversy in LA, where Shohei Ohtani is staying in the lineup even though his billion dollar contract isn’t producing any hits yet?

We’re through two games in both the ALCS and NLCS, and the games have all been pretty riveting, if you’ve had the stomach to watch them with the Yankees long since eliminated. The Rays capitalized on some uncharacteristic sloppy play from Jose Ramirez to tie the ALCS at a game apiece last night, while the two-time defending champs find themselves with their backs just about up against the wall, needing to win tonight to avoid a 3-0 hole against the Brewers. It’s a matchup of lefties, Los Angeles throwing out Blake Snell, Milwaukee countering with Robert Gasser, one in which there’s a disparity in notoriety; Snell’s got two Cy Youngs, while Gasser’s got two seasons in which he’s been above replacement level to his name. Still, don’t underestimate Gasser or Milwaukee, with Gasser finding a way to make it work to the tune of a 3.87 ERA this year, and the Brewers of course finding a way to make it work night after night this season.

On the site today, get caught up with Madison’s review of last night’s Game 2 in St. Petersburg, and Josh’s writeup of the 2026 Yankees Team MVP, who could be none other than Cam Schlittler. Later, Kevin profiles Joe Girardi on the former catcher and manager’s 62nd birthday, and Jonathan discusses Mike Pinsky, a Yankees front office employee who’s competing in the current season of Survivor!

Today’s Playoff Matchup:

National League Championship Series Game 3
(Milwaukee leads 2-0)

Los Angeles Dodgers vs. Milwaukee Brewers
(LHP Blake Snell vs. LHP Robert Gasser)

Time: 8:00 p.m. EST

TV: FOX/FS1/FOX ONE

Venue: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles, CA

Questions/Prompts:

1. Do you think it’s time for the Dodgers to pull Shohei Ohtani from the starting lineup?

2. Who do you favor the rest of the way in the ALCS with the series now tied?

The Athletic | Chris Kirschner ($): The Yankees have ten men that will be free agents after the World Series, including one of the starting infielders and the established closer. They also face a winter of deep labor uncertainty, potential changes to compensation as underlined by a new CBA, and a possibility of lower revenue for 2027 if there are lost games. All those factors come together, along with what can reasonably be expected out of those ten guys going forwards, to set out the players the Yankees should try and retain, and who gets to test the market on their own.

New York Post | Greg Joyce: Speaking of free agents, David Bednar represents perhaps the most interesting question for the Yankees. Over the past few years the club has avoided long-term, big money contracts for closers, while routinely churning out excellent bullpen units. Still, Bednar seems extremely comfortable in New York, and though his velo was down a tick this season, sure has the numbers to back up investing in him long term.

New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: It seems likely Aaron Boone will return for his last year under contract as manager, but there’s no guarantee in continuity across the entire coaching staff. Matt Blake is also a free agent, and the talented pitching coach will likely have several offers from other MLB teams if the Yankees don’t return his services. Austin Wells’ failed triple wasn’t Luis Rojas’ fault, but the Yankee third base coach has drawn ire in his tenure before and could also be on a hot seat.

NJ.com | Adam Zagoria: On his radio program Tuesday, Michael Kay openly asked what Aaron Judge means when the Yankee captain says the team needs to go “all in”. The Yankees consistently lead the AL in payroll, and of the two teams that spend more than them, the Yanks are a much better run organization than the Mets. Still, it does always feel like the club leaves something — runs, talent, whatever — on the table every year since 2009.

Joe Girardi isn’t blaming Aaron Boone for the Yankees’ shortcomings, but believes a deeper-rooted culture issue might have contributed to the team being swept in the ALDS.

The former Yankees skipper tore into the team’s fundamentals, pointing to a pair of costly postseason blunders that underscored his concerns during an appearance on “The Show with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman.”

“There are things that happen and you wonder, ‘Is someone saying anything?’” Girardi said on The Post podcast.

Girardi cited Austin Wells’ baserunning blunder in Game 1 and Jazz Chisholm Jr.’s disastrous throw in an error-filled Game 2 as examples of the team’s fundamental failures — and the concerning response to those mistakes.

Chisholm, in particular, said, “I’d probably still try to throw it,” if given a do-over, despite the result of the play.

“You said you would’ve done the same thing over again? No! You can’t do the same thing again — it didn’t work!” Girardi added. “Some of the base running cues, the sliding over the bases, someone’s gotta say, ‘Enough is enough!’”

Girardi, who managed the Yankees from 2009-17, noted that the sloppy play needs to be addressed during the regular season, especially with underperforming players.

He referenced infielder Anthony Volpe, who had been New York’s incumbent shortstop the past three seasons before being demoted to Triple-A midseason.

“I think it happened with Anthony Volpe,” Girardi added. “I think he was better when he came back up because he sent down and said, ‘Hey, I can’t keep doing what I’m doing, it’s not working.'”

Girardi, 62, knows the trappings and challenges of managing the Bombers all too well. He led the club to a World Series title in 2009 but, despite reaching the ALCS in 2017, he was let go as skipper and replaced by Boone.

In what’s expected to be a transformative offseason for the Yankees, Girardi went to bat for Boone, whose future has come under fire in the wake of another abrupt postseason exit.

Girardi said that 2026 is arguably Boone’s best year, citing the team finishing with the American League’s second-best record despite a rash of injuries and down seasons from key players.

“Can you say that that’s his fault? I don’t think so,” Girardi said. “To me, that’s not his fault. I just don’t think the guys had the years that they projected them to have, or some of the guys just aren’t as good as they thought they would be.” 

After a stunning, come from behind, full team effort that lead to a huge Win in last night’s Game 1, the Guardians were back in action tonight at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida for Game 2 of the ALCS. On the mound for the Rays would be former Brewer/Met and 2026 Trade Deadline acquisition Freddy Peralta, who really turned his season around once joining Tampa Bay. Opposing him for Cleveland would be the Guardian All Star Parker Messick, who would be looking to rebound from a shaky 1st postseason start last week in Chicago. It was well documented that Parker is a local kid, from Plant City, Florida, and would have a lot of family in the crowd tonight. But as good as his career stats are vs the Rays, the Playoffs are a different Beast…

Right from the jump it was clear that Cleveland’s game-plan was to attack Peralta early. Kwan singled on the 2nd pitch of the game, and Jose, Chase & Adell ALL swung at the first pitch (Jose and Adell popped up while Chase had a 3 pitch swinging K). 7 pitches and 5 were swung at, so clearly they want to get after him early (of course, Lowe would strike out on 8 pitch at bat to start the 2nd), which makes sense considering he doesn’t typically go deep into starts and Cash is likely to go all hands on deck, desperate for a Win to avoid going down 0-2 and hitting the road (only so many teams can be as comfortable as Cleveland is in that scenario). Bazzana would follow Lowe’s K with a single to CF and take 2nd on a Wild pitch. But all Cleveland could muster up was a Hedges HBP as Halpin and Rocchio struck out to continue our early game woes. The third wasn’t much better, as Kwan and Jose went down pretty quickly (Jose 2 quick pop ups, just 3 pitches seen) before Chase started a new K-less streak by drawing an 8 pitch walk before Jo Adell would fly out. The more you watch, the more you understand the approach to attacking Peralta early, as he was really starting to get comfortable out there through 3 relatively clean innings, just 2 singles, a walk and 4 K’s. 

For as much fun as nearly every Guardian is having at the plate the last few days, Brayan Rocchio is probably not one of them. Since Rocctember ended, he’s hitting just .111, going 2-17 with just 2 singles. You can see him chasing a lot and swinging harder than usual, suggesting that he’s pressing at the plate compared to how calm and relaxed he’s looked recently when the pressure has turned up. A few people were suggesting a Genao start tonight- I wasn’t one of them but I wouldn’t have blamed Vogter if he went that way, looking to shake things up.

Meanwhile Parker Messick was continuing where he left off in Chicago- getting the job done but looking a tad shaky doing it. In the 1st inning he gave up a 2 out double down the line to Junior Caminero before striking out Mesa to end the threat. His 2nd inning started with an infield single, that was immediately doubled up on a slow groundball from the fastest man in the sport. Yes you read that correctly- usually a GIDP isn’t possible with Chandler Simpson running, but Rocchio ripped a seed to 1st to complete the 4-6-3 DP. Messick would lose a 2 out, 6 pitch battle to Ben Williamson, but immediately turned and picked him off at 1st to retire the side. Watching that half inning, I was hoping that the defensive magic would help Parker get a little comfortable out there and carry it into the 3rd.

Well, it wasn’t comfortable but it wasn’t harmful either.

Back to back singles from the 8-9 duo to start the inning and we were in trouble with the top of the order coming up. A 3-1 count to Yandy Diaz is not what you want, but sitting here I turn to my Dog (animal, not pal, although she is my pal too) and say “why not a groundball here?” as Yandy grounds into a tailor made 4-6-3 double play! Aranda would shortly follow with a groundball out of his own to Trav and just like that, Magic Man Parker Messick does it again!

0-0 through 3.

To the 4th inning we go and yeah, THIS is the Freddy Peralta I remember. Not the guy who suited up in Orange and Blue this year in Queens. For whatever reason, that marriage did not work at all, and Peralta was dealt after just 3+ months as a Met. But he looks very comfortable now, just pumping heat through the middle of our order, striking out Lowe and getting weak pop ups from Trav and Hedgie. It SHOULD be noted that Greedy Petey Halpin did hammer a single into RF in this inning, proving that he probably deserves more time in the starting lineup.

In the bottom half of the inning, Caminero would work a walk (after Hedges missed a pretty obvious strike 3 challenge!), which would be the 3rd straight leadoff man to reach for Tampa. A bad trend that Parker and the Guardians are eventually going to regret. Especially with a huge review in the next batter- another grounder to Bazzana…. would it be an another 4-6-3 double play? Was Rocchio off the bag? Was Lowe? A lot hanging in the balance that turned out just be a regular 4-6 put out. After a big K to Johnny DeLuca, Chandler Simpson does the ONE thing he does, hits a high chopper to Short and Rocchio just can’t get it over in time, and Mesa smartly takes 3rd with all eyes on Simpson. Messick, in hot water for the first time, answered by getting a 2 out groundball to his 3rd basemen, who couldn’t play it off the lip, letting the ball thru and the first run to score. Next up was Liam Hicks who knocked in 2 more and it was 3-0 Rays in the blink of an eye.

To me, this inning summed up the Rays and Guardians pretty well this season. In that inning alone we saw a leadoff walk, hustle to beat out a GIDP, hustle to beat out an infield single, a concentration error from someone who lets them happen more often than he should (usually resulting in runs), a mental error from TWO guys who should know better, and not being able to limit the damage. Yeah. The 2026 Guardians are a team that plays with fire all too much, eventually always getting burnt. Meanwhile the Rays do all the little things right, hustle their tails off and make you make plays to beat them. Sound familiar? More on that later.

To the 5th inning and you can just feel a bad aura from Jose, who knows this should still be a tie game if he either charges that grounder or gets his whole body in front of it (or if a number of things before that happen to not breathe in so much extra life!). That bad aura can’t last long though if the Guardians want to take this series, because you can just tell that the reason this team ran off 4 straight games in 6 days was because of how loose they’ve been playing, and the energy they’ve been feeding off of has come directly from #11. Jose would single and steal, and Chase would work a long walk as well- but Jo Adell hit a 2 out line drive right to the Centerfielder and the Guardians would move to 0-3 with RISP on the night (tho it feels way worse).

Side note- and I know this is gonna make me sound like a classic old man baseball fan- this Rays team loves to show off. I know that’s kinda how sports are now, even in baseball where I once counted 11 types of celebrations on ONE homerun (Ronald Acuña I will never forgive you), but man this team REALLY wants to let you know it when they do something. It started yesterday with Caminero playing almost even with the pitcher’s mound. That wasn’t in the gameplan, it’s not like the Guardians are a good bunting team, he wants to play up that close to show you he’s not afraid. So when he caught a liner from Rocchio there, he just HAD to do the Dikembe Finger waive to let you know. And I know I’m not just imagining it, this is the guy who set the record for the longest homerun Trot in the history of the game. For reference, Colby Mayo has an inside the park homerun where he would’ve scored 3 times in the time it took for Caminero to circle the bases…

I KNOW, make baseball fun, and all that. But there’s a difference between being fun and taking every opportunity to soak up the spotlight. And no, I am NOT suggesting he faked the injury last night (even if that was the longest injury delay I have ever seen for a guy that stayed in the game who also had a delayed reaction to said collision). He was definitely shaken up on that. But, ya know… no no no not gonna suggest that, let’s just keep it clean here.

Back to the game and frankly, with the way Peralta was pitching, it was hard to imagine that the Guardians were ever gonna score tonight, making that calamity of mistakes in the 4th slightly more forgivable than if this were a night where we could score 2-3 runs and make a run at a 2-0 series lead. Peralta would go 6 innings scattering 4 hits (all singles) and 2 walks while striking out 6. His night came to and end with one tiny whimper of a firework when Bazzana took him to the deepest part of the ballpark, flying out 400 feet with nothing to show for it.

While Freddy was the Sum of All Fears for the Guards; Parker was living all night in Clear and present Danger. He would go 5 innings giving up 6 hits and 2 walks while only striking out 3. The 3 runs he gave up were all unearned, tho, he’d be the first to tell you that they’d have zero had he pitched better. Back to back nights an All Star and Cy Young Finalist hopeful gave up just a little too much and the team paid dearly for it. Shawn Armstrong would give up an infield single (how many throws to First can the Rays beat out in one game? Seriously they are going for a record!) but otherwise pitched a clean 6th as we headed to the final act.

Thru 6, 3-0 Rays.

Onto the 7th and the Guardians looked thrilled to face anyone but Freddy Peralta. On in relief was former Clevelander Kevin Kelly, who would work himself into trouble by way of walking pinch hitter Patrick Bailey and giving up a single to Steven Kwan. With 1 out and 2 on for our Hero Jose Ramirez, the Guardians were looking for a big hit. Jose wouldn’t provide it, and it was up to Chase DeLauter

DeLauter would come up big with our first hit with RISP on the night! A double down the line that unfortunately only scored 1 (I gotta see a better replay to see if Kwan should’ve went), but put the tying run at 2nd for Jo Adell. Could we see more late heroics from the middle of the order again?

Thank you, Jonathan Frakes. No. Not this time… But the Guards DID finally get on the board, showing the resiliency and never-quit attitude we’ve grown to love over the last month and change. And with a quick 1-2-3 inning from the Armstrong/Herrin combo, the Guards would return to the plate with 6 outs left, their backs against the wall, a spot that they’ve excelled in time and time again.

Sadly, this would not be one of them. Tonight was not our night at the plate, and honestly a day off for travel might do everyone some good. The Guardians would lose to the Rays 3-1, evening the series at 1 game a piece. On the positive, we came to Tampa, split the series and shifted home field advantage our way. On the negative, we had the 1 seed on the ropes and gave them 3 runs in a game we lost by 2. It’s fair to be frustrated but also need to keep in mind; a lot has gone our way recently and there is a lot of baseball left.

Finally, I wanted to point out the familiarity when watching these two teams. The Rays play a very similar brand of baseball to the one we’ve gotten used to over the last few years. While Cleveland has been better at it over the course of 3 seasons, the Rays were much better at it over the last 162 games. But hey/ that doesn’t mean Cleveland can’t be better over a 7 game series! Just gotta bounce back and limit the mental errors, and avoid giving Tampa extra chances/at bats. They WILL capitalize, as we saw tonight.

Game 3 will be Thursday evening when Gavin Williams takes the mound once again facing (I believe?) Nick Martinez. Should be a fantastic pitching matchup between one guy coming off a record setting Game 5 vs one who completely owns the Cleveland Guardians. Time to see what we’re made of, again.

ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. — With the crowd chanting his name, a fired-up Freddy Peralta pumped one fastball after another past hitters all night long.

Peralta threw six innings of four-hit ball, Liam Hicks lined a two-run single after José Ramírez’s fielding error and the Tampa Bay Rays beat the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 Tuesday night to even the ALCS at 1-1.

Game 3 of the best-of-seven series is Thursday night in Cleveland.

The former Mets starter threw the hardest pitch of his big league career at 99.4 mph and relied on his four-seam fastball on 71 of 99 pitches — his 71.7% usage was his highest since June 11, 2019.

“It’s no secret that I trust in my fastball a lot and it’s my best pitch,” Peralta said.

Peralta’s 96.9 mph average fastball velocity was 2.6 mph above his season average.

“It plays a big role, the adrenaline,” Peralta said. “And also I define myself as a competitor, and I like these kind of games. I’ve always said in the past, that I enjoyed this as a Dominican pitcher. I grew up watching the games in D.R., and that’s the game that you see. And I got used to that because I grew up watching it. And I feel that I have that in me, in myself. And that’s the way that I feel when I am on the mound in these kind of games.”

Peralta pumped a fist and screamed joyfully walking off the mound in the sixth after fanning Petey Halpin swinging at a 3-2 changeup.

“I just enjoyed the moment because it was a really good at-bat,” Peralta said. “It wasn’t an easy game since the first pitch that I threw until the last one. It was a lot of competition between me and the hitters. … I think that was why I was fired up like that.”

Ramírez, whose two-run homer in Game 5 of their AL Division Series against Chicago helped the Guardians become the 11th team to overcome an 0-2 deficit in a best-of-five series, misplayed a grounder in the fourth inning that led to three unearned runs against rookie lefty Parker Messick.

Junior Caminero walked to start that inning and Victor Mesa Jr. grounded into a forceout originally ruled a double play. The Rays challenged the calls at both first and second and Mesa was ruled safe when a video review overturned the out decision by first base umpire Mark Ripperger.

After Jonny DeLuca struck out, Chandler Simpson beat out a high chopper to shortstop, and the Mesa reached third standing up when Ramírez failed to cover the bag.

Ben Williamson followed with a grounder that scooted underneath Ramírez’s glove and between his legs after the ball hit the edge where the artificial turf met the infield dirt. The third baseman played back rather than charging.

“It’s a little bit faster here this type of surface,” Ramirez said through a translator. “It’s frustrating. I feel bad.”

Williamson reached second and Simpson went to third. Hicks drove the next pitch to right-center for a 3-0 lead, electrifying the towel-waving, cowbell-ringing crowd of 32,125 fans at Tropicana Field.

Peralta and three relievers didn’t need any more support.

“I think the velocity really stood out,” Rays manager Kevin Cash said of Peralta.

Kevin Kelly got two outs in the seventh, retiring Ramírez on a fly ball to center with two runners on.

Lefty Ian Seymour replaced him and Chase DeLauter lined an RBI double to the right-field corner.

Seymour struck out Jo Adell swinging at a changeup, leaving runners at second and third. Seymour pitched a 1-2-3 eighth and Bryan Baker finished with a perfect ninth for his fourth postseason save.

Acquired by the Rays from the Mets at the trade deadline, Peralta turned around his season in Tampa Bay going 5-2 with a 3.25 ERA in 10 starts after posting a 4.99 ERA for New York.

He pitched his latest gem in front of Mets owner Steve Cohen, who was in attendance.

“We have a good relationship,” Peralta said of Cohen. “I think he’s awesome. And I’m happy that he was here watching, not watching me, watching the Rays.”

Messick, who grew up going to Rays games at the Trop, took the loss after giving up six hits and the three unearned runs in five innings.

Cleveland had won four straight in the postseason for the first time since winning their first six playoff games in 2016 on the way to a World Series berth.

The 98-win Rays swept the Yankees before a 7-3 loss in Game 1 on Monday.

That was their first loss in two weeks. Now, they’re back on the winning track and need three more in a series that’s reduced to a best of five to advance to their third World Series.

Welcome back to BCB After Dark: the hippest spot for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in and join us. It’s always good to see a friendly face. There’s no cover charge. The dress code is casual. There’s a two-drink minimum, but it’s bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last evening, I asked you who was the Cubs’ Pitcher of the Year for 2026. Admittedly it was a lot of bad choices, but you tied between Shōta Imanaga and Ben Brown, with both of them getting 24 percent of the vote.

On Tuesday night, I don’t normally do an movie stuff. But I always have time for tunes and you’re free to join us.

For our collection of Halloween jazz for October, we have a cocktail lounge classic in Peggy Lee singing the theme song to the sixties television show “Bewitched.” I bet some of you didn’t even know the theme song had lyrics.

I feel like I should have a martini in my hand while I listen to this. Maybe one of you can wiggle their noses and whip one up for me.

Welcome back to everyone who skips the music.

Colin Rea was not listed among my candidates for Cubs Pitcher of the Year, but at least one of you put in a plug for him in the comments. I think the best you can say about Colin Rea at this stage of his career is he’s a dependable innings eater. He can start and he can relieve. He’s thrown over 120 innings in each of the last four seasons and 137 this past year over 19 starts and 15 relief appearances. In that time, Rea went 4.34 with a record of 8-8. He struck out 101 batters and walked 47. Both Baseball-Reference and Fangraphs had Rea’s WAR last year at 0.4. That’s, well, just a little bit better than replacement value. Which means it’s somewhat below average. But hey, this isn’t Lake Woebegone. At least half the players have to be below average.

The Cubs have a $7.5 million team option on Rea with a $1 million buyout. So essentially, it will cost the Cubs $6.5 million to keep him around in 2027. (Assuming they play a full season in 2027, which isn’t a guarantee.) Would you pick up that option?

On the one hand, Rea has done everything the Cubs have asked of him. He’s not spectacular out there, but he’s not terrible. He’s someone who can fill in when someone gets hurt and won’t complain in between appearances.

On the other hand, Rea is going to be 36 years old next season. His ERA this past year was kind of “meh” at 4.34, but his expected ERA was a poor 5.35. His fielding independent pitching (FIP) was a below average 4.80. It wouldn’t be unfair to say that what little success that Rea had in 2026 was because of the Cubs defense and that the Cubs might be able to get another pitcher who replicate that performance for less salary.

So would you bring Colin Rea back for a third season? Or more precisely, would you pick up his team option? Because technically, the Cubs could possibly decline the option and try to sign him back for less.

Thanks for everyone who stopped by tonight. We enjoyed hosting you. Get home safely. Recycle any cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow evening for more BCB After Dark.

They will wake up in Cleveland still loving José Ramírez. That will never change, nor, likely, will Ramírez’s regard for the city he’s insisted on making his baseball home.

Yet the love affair between future Hall of Famer and scrappy municipality hit a most unpredictable speed bump, right around the time a ground ball skidded off the very edge of the artificial turf on Tropicana Field’s infield.

Ramírez, the beloved third baseman whose playoff heroics drove the Cleveland Guardians into a commanding position in this American League Championship Series, failed to stay down on a ground ball off the bat of Tampa Bay’s Ben Williamson with two outs in the fourth inning of a scoreless game, runners at the corners, the Guardians still in position to take a commanding 2-0 series lead.

It was a ball he’d fielded thousands of times in his 14-year career. This time, though, he appeared to eyeball the grounder hitting the dirt. Instead, it clipped off the turf and skidded right between his legs. Victor Mesa Jr. scampered home with the game's first run.

And if there's any team you don't want to leave the door open, it's the Rays.

"When they smell blood," says Guardians manager Stephen Vogt, "they take it and run."

Seconds later, after a Liam Hicks two-run single, a scoreless game turned into a three-run Tampa Bay Rays lead and eventually, a series-tying 3-1 victory Tuesday, Oct. 13 at Tropicana Field.

A costly two-out error from Jose Ramirez gets the Rays on the board pic.twitter.com/1KLyjAQl50

— Talkin' Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) October 14, 2026

To that point, it seemed the Guardians were still in control. Ramírez played hero in Game 1, his leadoff single sparking a go-ahead, eighth-inning rally, his RBI double and daring break for third base keying a put-away rally in the ninth.

Sure, Cleveland rookie starter Parker Messick and Rays right-hander Freddy Peralta were locked in a pitchers' duel. But Messick kept getting ground-ball double plays when he needed them. The Guardians had played flawless ball with their backs against the wall since falling down 2-0 in their AL Division Series against the Chicago White Sox.

Since then? Win-win-win-win, just like the song says. They were grooving.

Which is what made their franchise cornerstone giving it away so shocking.

"José Ramírez," says Rays manager Kevin Cash, "is as good as any third baseman there is in the game."

After the ball skidded by him, all Ramírez could do was stare at his glove and furrow his brow, the telltale sign Ramírez is not right. Tropicana Field roared around him.

The Dodgers never waver in their game plan for the regular season: win enough games to secure a bye in the opening round of the playoffs and, in so doing, afford players all the down time they need during the summer to be in top form come fall. They do not need to hurry anyone off the injured list so they can squeak out another National League West title.

Unfortunately for the Dodgers and their increasingly perilous hope of a three-peat, they did not follow that game plan with Shohei Ohtani. The Dodgers failed Ohtani this summer, and now all that remains is for them to cross their collective fingers and hope for the best.

Hope, as they say, is not a strategy.

The Dodgers should drop Ohtani from the postseason roster.

They won’t. They won’t even take him out of Wednesday’s lineup.

Amid headlines about how the Dodgers might have benched Ohtani for Game 3 of the NL Championship Series, manager Dave Roberts said the thinking was more about coupling Tuesday’s day off with a second consecutive day of rest.

“It was never a benching,” Roberts said.

Read more:Dave Roberts says Shohei Ohtani is adamant he feels good enough, will remain in lineup

Roberts drew a parallel between what might have happened with Ohtani and what did happen with Freddie Freeman during the NLCS two years ago, when the Dodgers provided what the manager called a “reset” — a day off for the team, followed by a rest day for Freeman.

“And he ends up winning the MVP in the World Series,” Roberts said.

Freeman had been playing with a bad ankle for three weeks, and even then he had been more productive that October than Ohtani has been in this one. Ohtani has been playing with a bad knee and biceps for three months, and the Dodgers already have tried intermittent rest.

They tried that in September, twice. They touted their bye week before the start of the playoffs. They talked up their three days off before the start of the NLCS.

They went 0 for 4. Enough already.

Roberts said the Dodgers — not just Ohtani, but the coaching staff and the training staff — see progress. True, no doubt. But we’ve heard similarly encouraging words after each of Ohtani’s rest breaks.

“We’re listening to Shohei, and we’re going to support the crap out of him and believe in him,” Roberts said, “and that’s it.”

Ohtani said Tuesday that his symptoms have subsided since the Dodgers put him on the injured list, for the minimum stay. That was a month ago.

On Tuesday, he said his approaches can alternate between “focusing on reducing the symptoms and getting rid of the pain and/or just making sure that I’m moving well in the swing.”

There is no evidence so far that this might work, and an uncomfortable and increasing body of evidence that it might not.

Ohtani is batting .150 in the playoffs, with three hits in 20 at-bats. Of the 39 players with at least 20 at-bats this postseason entering play Tuesday, only three have a lower OPS than Ohtani’s .411.

One of them, Dodgers catcher Will Smith, has one hit in 23 at-bats. But he is hitting the ball hard: in the NLCS, one ball hit at 102 mph, another at 101, and every ball hit harder than the one Ohtani hit the hardest.

That exit velocity: 86 mph.

He has not pulled a ball in the series for a hit, or for an out.

Over his major league career, he has homered once every 14 at-bats.

He has not hit a home run since Aug. 18, a span of 107 at-bats. He has driven in one run since then; the Dodgers batted him cleanup in Game 2.

And, since hitting that last home run, Ohtani is batting .036 against fastballs thrown 95 mph or harder. The average fastball in this postseason: 96.2 mph, according to analyst Mike Petriello’s close-up of all the different ways Ohtani’s swing is fouled up.

Breaking balls? Brewers reliever JoJo Romero threw him one low and away in Game 2, and Ohtani lost his bat as he lunged to make contact.

When Ohtani spoke with reporters before the playoffs started, he said he might not know the full extent of his injuries or what he might need to do to rehabilitate them until after the postseason.

Read more:Plaschke: Dodgers' three-peat dreams are on life support as the deflated heroes return home

“I haven’t been able to get a good grasp of the root cause of all this,” he said then. “I think that process is going to happen during the offseason, when I’m going to have a little bit more time to be able to address it. But as of now, it’s something I’m just going to have to manage.”

The Dodgers did not need Ohtani to win the NL West. They needed to shut him down for an extended period to maximize their chances of winning in October.

They failed to do that. They believed a few days of rest would allow them to nurse Ohtani through the rest of the season.

One big swing in October, and who cares? Ask Kirk Gibson, who hobbled to bat and then hit one of the most dramatic home runs in World Series history.

Here is what the Dodgers ought to keep in mind: That was the only at-bat Gibson took in that 1988 World Series.

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Dodgers are facing the Brewers in the NLCS for the second year in a row, and they’re getting the attention of Los Angeles.

Blake Snell, who was a hero in the postseason last year for the Dodgers, is paying attention to everything Milwaukee is doing on and off the field in the second go-around.

“I noticed how they talk, a lot of one-on-one competition is a key for them. The way Pat Murphy talks to the team is way different than last year,” Snell said. “So I understand that.”

A year ago, the Brewers finished the regular season 97-65, the best record in baseball.

When they met Los Angeles in the NLCS, they were swept.

A year later, the roles are reversed.

“How do you counter that? How do you get them into a different place? I think They’re in a good spot now, especially being up 2-0 but adversity hits and that’s when thoughts start racing,” Snell said.

The Dodgers are certainly facing early adversity in the series as they’re in a 2-0 deficit in Milwaukee.

Both Tarik Skubal and Yoshinobu Yamamoto had their shortest postseason outings in their careers on Sunday and Monday night. Skubal was pulled after throwing 80 pitches through five innings, while Yamamoto was sent to the showers following 75 pitches through 2 ⅔ innings.

In Game 1, Los Angeles got NL CY Young candidate Jacob Misirowski to exit early after he tossed 4 ⅓ innings on 94 pitches, giving up five hits.

When they faced the Brewers bullpen, the Dodgers only mustered up two more hits and squandered scoring opportunities in the sixth, eighth, and ninth innings.

With Yamamoto’s early exit in Game 2, Los Angeles exhausted their bullpen by using seven different pitchers, who gave up a combined four runs.

Snell is set to take the mound when Game 3 begins on Wednesday night and will need to pitch deep to get the Dodgers out of the hole they’ve dug.

Snell has made only one start this postseason, and it was 10 days ago. And didn’t necessarily go the distance.

In Game 2 of the NLDS against the Braves, Snell gave up only three hits and one run. But also threw 90 pitches in 3 ⅔ innings.

In the NLCS last year, Snell threw an eight-inning game that featured 10 strikeouts against the Brewers.

So with Game 3 on the horizon, it begs the question.

Which postseason version will the Dodgers get from Snell?

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani spoke passionately Tuesday with Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. He acknowledged that he’s playing with pain.

He flat-out insisted, though, that he can not only play, but that he’s close to being the most feared hitter in the game again.

Roberts listened.

Roberts believed him.

So Ohtani will be back in the Dodgers’ lineup Wednesday for Game 3 (8 p.m. ET FOX) of the National League Championship Series, trying to not only save the Dodgers’ season, but preserve their dynasty.

“He wants to be in there and help us win a ballgame,’’ Roberts said, “and win a championship. … He was very convicted that he is on to something mechanically. He was adamant that he can help us. He's well enough to help us win a baseball game. So that's all I needed to hear.’’

The facts say that Ohtani is compromised, playing with a sore left knee and inflamed right biceps, which is reflected by his ugly slump: No homers since Aug. 18. Batting .157 with one RBI since Aug. 19. Hitting .150 with no extra-base hits and seven strikeouts this postseason.

Roberts told Ohtani that he’d be glad to give him the next game or two off, even with the Dodgers' season on the brink, but Ohtani didn’t want to hear a thing about it.

It would be different if this were the regular season, but not now, not with this urgency.

The Dodgers are down 2 games to zero to the Milwaukee Brewers, and if Ohtani took time off, the next time he might be playing again would be spring training − whenever that is with a looming lockout.

Aaron Boone has the support of one former Yankees manager to keep his job after another failed season ended in the ALDS. 

Former skipper Joe Girardi, the last Yanks manager to lead the team to a World Series title, went to bat for Boone during an appearance on “The Show with Joel Sherman and Jon Heyman” released Tuesday. 

Indications are Boone will return to The Bronx next season, but calls for his job have come since the Yankees were swept out of the playoffs by the Rays last week. A poll conducted by The Post showed that more than 10,000 out of 12,507 voters wanted to see Boone given the boot. 

But when asked if Boone had a shelf life, Girardi said he didn’t think so. 

“I think you could argue this was his best year of managing,” Girardi said on the show. “I think he got the most out of this team during the course of the season with all they had to deal with. And the way they won games, he had to flip the way they won games. They had to win them from a pitching standpoint, different from some of the years past where they would win by just outslugging people. He couldn’t do that this year. And I think he ran the bullpen extremely well and got the most out of those guys.” 

When it came to one major issue during the 2026 season for the Yankees, Girardi felt it was the lineup but argued that its struggles shouldn’t lie at the feet of Boone. 

“Can you say that that’s his fault? I don’t think so,” Girardi said. “To me, that’s not his fault. I just don’t think the guys had the years that they projected them to have, or some of the guys just aren’t as good as they thought they would be.” 

Boone has managed the Yankees for nine seasons and the ballclub has only reached the World Series once during his time as skipper. 

LOS ANGELES — Shohei Ohtani has done very little at the plate for his last 24 games, is dealing with injuries to his left knee and right biceps, and has looked lost at times at the plate during the postseason. Yet the Dodgers are still sticking by their injured super star, with Ohtani set to start yet again in Game 3 of the National League Championship Series on Wednesday night.

“He’s adamant he feels good enough to be in there. He’s close to finding something with his swing. I feel great about it,” manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday just before the Dodgers workout at Dodger Stadium. “He was very convicted that he is onto something mechanically. He was adamant that he can help us. He’s well enough to help us win a baseball game. So that’s all I needed to hear.”

Reports after Game 2 in Milwaukee said the Dodgers were considering sitting Ohtani amid his struggles, which include three singles and three walks in 24 plate appearances thus far in October. Roberts on Wednesday made clear if Ohtani sits it wouldn’t be a benching, but rather a reset or recovery day.

“It’s kind of what we did with Freddie [Freeman] in 2024. He was ailing, wasn’t feeling great, give him a couple days potentially to then reset, and he ends up winning the MVP in the World Series,” Roberts said. “It’s more of, ‘Hey man, if you’re not feeling good enough that you feel like you can perform up to your ability, then we’ll pivot, give you a couple days.’”

Ohtani this season has been affected by left knee irritation which caused him to miss the All-Star Game, and he was shut down from pitch after his July 3 start. His attempts to ramp up again pitching were eventually halted, and Ohtani also dealt with right biceps inflammation that landed him on the injured list in September.

“It’s everything. It’s the upper body, it’s the knee, and he’s just not perfect. He’s not,” Roberts said. “But in his words, he’s ready to go.”

Since returning from the injured list, Ohtani has eight hits in 37 at-bats (.216) with one extra-base hit, a double.

“The symptoms have subdued a lot, especially when I was on the IL, spending that time just being able to reduce the symptoms,” Ohtani said Tuesday, through interpreter Will Ireton. “As of now with the swing, it’s a daily process of trying different things, different feel on a daily basis.”

Ohtani hit his last home run on August 18, with 110 plate appearances since and just one run batted in.

“The symptoms shouldn’t be the reason why I can’t hit, and even if the injuries happen by accident, I take full responsibility,” Ohtani said, through Ireton. “I take that as an opportunity for me to just take full responsibility for it. Today it’s going to be another process for me to tinker and try new things.”

After batting second in the Dodgers’ first two playoff games, Ohtani batted fifth in Game 3 of the National League Division Series in Atlanta, and has batted fourth in the three games since. Roberts didn’t say exactly where Ohtani might bat in the lineup in Game 3, but said likely somewhere between second and sixth.

“No one knows what’s going to happen tomorrow and the ensuing days,” Roberts said. “At the end of the day in this big moment, we’re listening to Shohei, and we’re going to support the crap out of him and believe in him, and that’s it.”

Shohei Ohtani emerged from the visiting dugout at American Family Field with a bat in his hand, and the mass of media members scattered in foul territory up the third-base line shifted his way, pulled by the magnetic force that is Ohtani’s stardom.

Monday marked the third straight day Ohtani had hit on the field, after a multi-round session off the pitching machine on the workout day and batting practice before each of the first two games of the National League Championship series against the Milwaukee Brewers. But the novelty of the move — Ohtani only took batting practice on the field a few times during the regular season, always in the midst of a slump — had yet to fully wear off.

“The results, take full responsibility,” Ohtani said through interpreter Will Ireton on Tuesday. “That’s all I can really say, why the results haven’t been where I wanted it to be. But I think there’s different approaches to this, whether that be focusing on reducing the symptoms and getting rid of the pain and/or just making sure that I’m moving well in the swing.”

That break of routine for the start of the NLCS did not pay off in terms of results. But after a conversation with Ohtani, manager Dave Roberts said Tuesday that he felt “great” about playing Ohtani in Game 3 of the NLCS, even though Ohtani is still physically compromised by nagging right biceps and left knee problems.

“He’s adamant he feels good enough to be in there,” Roberts said. “He’s close to finding something with his swing. … Yeah, he wants to be in there and help us win a ballgame and win a championship. Great conversation, and I’m excited about having him in there.”

Read more:Dodgers will consider sitting Shohei Ohtani after offense struggles in Game 2 NLCS loss

Roberts made clear that he wasn’t ever considering “benching” Ohtani, but rather weighing whether it would make sense to give him a couple days to “reset,” similar to how they approached Freddie Freeman’s ankle injury in 2024, giving him two days off during that postseason run.

“The symptoms have subdued a lot, especially when I was on the IL, spending that time just being able to reduce the symptoms,” Ohtani said. “As of now with the swing, it’s a daily process of trying different things, different feel on a daily basis.”

Though Ohtani’s arrival kicked off the Dodgers’ back-to-back championships, this isn’t his first time slumping in the postseason. His bat went quiet in the 2024 World Series (two for 19). And between his two-homer game to open last year’s wild-card round, and Game 4 of the NLCS when the two-way star authored the best individual game ever played, he went four for 33.

The difference this time is Ohtani, who has hit three singles in 20 postseason at-bats, isn’t fully healthy. But he was adamant that he would still be able to find a way to produce regardless.

“Over the course of this long season, there’s only really a short period of time when my mechanics is completely in sync,” he said. “So it’s just really kind of just going back and forth, finding the right parts of the swing and managing just the different parts of the swing. So it’s a constant, ongoing process that’s headed in the right direction.”

When healthy, Ohtani has the ability to break out of even the most dire of slumps with an otherworldly performance, like that three-homer (as a hitter), 10-strikeout (as a pitcher) all-timer. Opposing pitchers still have taken a cautious approach to facing him.

This version of Ohtani, however, hasn’t hit a home run since Aug. 18, a little over three weeks before he landed on the injured list. He’d played through nagging knee and biceps injuries for most of the season. But by the first week of September, the Dodgers could no longer argue that his poor performance wasn’t necessarily connected to his ailments.

Now, the stakes are as high as ever. Trailing the Brewers 2-0 in the best-of-seven series, the Dodgers desperately need to put themselves in the best possible position to win Game 3 and avoid four straight win-or-go-home contests. And to do so, they need to know what kind of production Ohtani is physically capable of.

“I’ve never wavered in my belief in him,” Roberts said. “The work that he’s putting in — shoot, he squared the bunt in Game 2 to potentially get on base. That just speaks to whatever it takes to help the team win. He’s always been about the team, whether it’s hitting first, second, fourth, or wherever, right? So for me, just hearing his conviction, that’s what I wanted to hear.”

The communication between Ohtani and the team on injuries has been a work in progress in his third year with the Dodgers.

“We certainly had a lot of communication with him throughout the year, and worked together really well in terms of how to go about this,” president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said in late September.

Read more:Plaschke: Dodgers' three-peat dreams are on life support as the deflated heroes return home

“And I think in his mind, he just thought that what he was dealing with was more minor, because it wasn’t like he would see a doctor and go, ‘Oh my God, you have this ailment.’ There were just a number of different things that were bothering him. And I think in his mind, he thought the best way to help the team was to go out and play, which I respect. But us staying really connected and sharing that information, I think, will be really important going forward.

“And again, the communication back and forth has been awesome. The fully sharing exactly how he’s feeling, maybe not as awesome. But again, I would rather [have] that with a guy than the other side of that.”

So, Ohtani kept trying to work his way back to the mound for weeks after receiving a lubricating Orthovisc injection in his knee at the beginning of the All-Star break. And when his biceps injury flared again, and the discomfort extended up through his neck, the Dodgers put off an IL move as long as possible.

Roberts said Ohtani’s conviction lined up with what the manager was hearing from the Dodgers hitting coaches and medical staff.

“No one knows what’s going to happen tomorrow and the ensuing days,” Roberts said. “At the end of the day in this big moment, we’re listening to Shohei, and we’re going to support the crap out of him and believe in him, and that’s it.”

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.