ATLANTA, GA - AUGUST 14: Atlanta Braves outfielder Mauricio Dubón(14) mislays a line drive to left field in the first inning of the MLB game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Atlanta Braves on August 14, 2026, at Truist Park in Atlanta, GA. (Photo by John Adams/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
There couldn’t have been a worse start to a series after coming off a high from the last one.
…Well, I guess there could always be worse.
The Atlanta Braves fell to the Arizona Diamondbacks in a 2-0 shutout to open their series on Friday night.
The first run was kicked off by Arizona’s Geraldo Perdomo on a Gabriel Moreno RBI at the top of the first inning. And the second was a homer hit by Tim Tawa in the top of the ninth to cap off the night.
Chris Sale pitched through his usual six innings, but gave up five hits and one earned run with a total of nine strikeouts. Besides the first run, Sale did a solid job at holding the rest of the offense off. Plus, it wasn’t his fault the Braves’ offense was quiet throughout the night.
It wasn’t until Tyler Kinley came in for Dylan Dodd that the next run would be scored beyond the fence.
Same story, different team. Not the best way to start, especially against a team that’s putting up similar results through the eye test.
But that’s why there’s always tomorrow.
Until then, rest well, Braves Country. We’ll return to gear up for tomorrow in hopes of turning things around.
TORONTO, ON - AUGUST 14: Alejandro Kirk #30 of the Toronto Blue Jays hits an RBI double in the sixth inning during a game against the New York Yankees at Rogers Centre on August 14, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. (Photo by Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Gerrit Cole was a tough assignment, but the pitching staff was more than up for the challenge of winning the pitching duel and the offence took advantage of their opportunities and did just enough.
There was bad news, though. Vladimir Guerrero jr. left the game after being kicked in the side of the head sliding into third. We haven’t recieved an update on his condition yet, but he looked shaken in the dugout after the play and went into the tunnel for concussion tests. Hopefully it’s minor, but they may be without their star first baseman for a little while.
Shane Bieber was very good today. He wasn’t missing many bats, but he kept the Yankees’ hitters off him for the most part and worked efficiently. He also got some sold defence behind him and benefited from mistakes like George Lombard jr. inexplicably rounding second advancing on a line single straight to Nathan Lukes and getting caught in a rundown at third.
The Yankees got their first chance in the fourth, when Spencer Jones doubled to centre field and advanced on a fly out to put a man on third with one out. Bieber got a pop out and a fly out to escape, though. He cruised through the fifth, picking up a his third and fourth strikeouts. He finally slipped in the sixth, though, catching too much of the plate with a fastball that Trent Grisham chipped just over the fence into the Yankees’ bullpen in right. He retired the next three batters to get through the inning. It was an excellent start, and it was justice that the Jays were able to take him off the hook for the loss.
The Jays could do nothing with Gerrit Cole. They manufactured one chance in the second. Alejandro Kirk worked a walk and Andres Gimenez lined a double into the right field corner. Kirk was only able to make it to third, though, and Cole struck Kazuma Okamoto out and got a ground out from Jesus Sanchez to end the inning. Cole then set the next seven Jays in order before a one out Okamoto single in the fifth. That was stranded.
Finally, the offence woke up in the sixth with the help of a bizarrer play. Brett Bateman hit a ground ball single to open the bottom of the sixth. After Nathan Lukes grounded into a fielder’s choice, Vladimir Guerrero jr. hit a ground ball single to advance Lukes to second and give the Jays their first runner in scoring position since the second. George Springer grounded to third. Ryan McMahon stepped on the bag and threw over to first for what would have been a double play except that the throw was a bit off and popped the glove off Luis Garcia jr.‘s hand. Vlad went for third and Garcia made the ill advised decision to throw it back across the diamond. McMahon, running back to the bag to try to catch it, had to jump to try to avoid a sliding Vlad and ended up kicking him in the side of the head and sprawling. Vlad had the presence of mind to get up and go home, but looked shaken in the dugout after the play. That tied the game at one. One pitch later, Alejandro Kirk lined a ball to the left field wall for a double that plated Springer to put Toronto in front 2-1.
Vlad went into the tunnel for a concussion evaluation and was replaced by Charles McAdoo. Tyler Rogers relieved Bieber for the seventh. He allowed just a ground ball single. Paul Blackburn took over for the Yankees. He retired the first two batters before Ernie Clement and Bateman reached on back to back singles. A pop out prevented the runners from scoring.
Rogers returned to get the first out in the eighth before handing it over to Mason Fluharty, who got two soft fly outs. In the bottom half, Bradley Hanner made his MLB debut. It started well, as he struck out McAdoo and Springer, but the Alejandro Kirk welcomed him to the show with a home run to right, extending the Jays’ margin to two.
Louis Varland came in for the save. He must be tired with all the work he’s gotten in the last week, so he was in no mood to mess around. The Yankees were set down in order on four pitches.
Jays of the Day: Kirk (0.27), Bieber (0.17), Rogers (0.15)
Less so: Sanchez (-0.11)
We’ll be back tomorrow at 3:07pm ET. Cy Young frontrunner Cam Schlittler (10-6, 2.21) will take the mound for the Yankees. The Jays haven’t announced a starter. This was to have been Jameson Taillon’s third turn with the club, but he’s on the IL with forearm tightness. That leaves Simeon Woods-Richardson (2-7, 6.23) as the logical next man up.
SAN FRANCISCO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 08: Landen Roupp #65 of the San Francisco Giants pitches against the Detroit Tigers in the first inning at Oracle Park on August 08, 2026 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images) | Getty Images
It’s time for a new series and we’ve got two very bad teams pitted against each other: in the orange corner, the San Francisco Giants, and in the purple corner, the Colorado Rockies.
Righty Landen Roupp takes the mound for the Giants for the 24th time this year. The 27-year old is 7-11 on the season, with a 4.22 ERA, a 3.52 FIP, and 123 strikeouts to 57 walks in 123.2 innings. Roupp bounced back from a mini slump in his last start, giving up just one run in 5.1 innings against the Detroit Tigers, though he walked five batters. He has the most losses in the league, currently.
For the Rockies, it’s left-hander Kyle Freeland, who makes his 22nd start. The 33-year old is having a tough year, as he’s 3-10 with a 6.63 ERA, a 4.65 FIP, and 96 strikeouts to 26 walks in 112.2 innings. He lasted just 4.1 innings in his last start, but in the start before that he threw a complete game against the Kansas City Royals, with just one run allowe.
The Yankees had a late lead with Gerrit Cole dealing, but a defensive blunder allowed a two-run inning, as New York fell to the Blue Jays, 3-1, on Friday night in Toronto.
Up 1-0 in the sixth, the Jays had two runners on and one out. George Springer hit a groundball to Ryan McMahon. McMahon stepped on third for one out, but the throw to Luis Garcia Jr. at first took his glove off as he tried to scoop. Garcia tried to get Vladimir Guerrero Jr. at third base, but he threw it into left field, not noticing that no one was covering. Guerrero and George Lombard Jr. collided at third, as the ball went into the outfield, but Vlad was able to score. Alejandro Kirk followed with an RBI double to give the Blue Jays a 2-1 lead. McMahon and Garcia were given errors on the play.
It was enough for the Blue Jays as the Yankees' offense. New York left four runners on base and went 0-for-3 with RISP.
Here are the takeaways...
-Cole pitched on a tightrope early, as Toronto had runners on second and third with one out in the second inning. Cole struck out Kazuma Okamoto and got Jesus Sanchez to ground out to end the threat.
After that defensive misplay pushed two runs across, Cole finished the inning, but that two-spot put a damper on the right-hander's night. He allowed two runs on five hits and two walks through his six innings, while striking out five.
-On the offensive side, the struggles continued. Lombard made a baserunning blunder, straying too far off second on a Trent Grisham single in the third, and the team wasted a leadoff double from Spencer Jones in the fourth. Jones was on third with one out before Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Heliot Ramos flew out to end the inning.
Grisham lined a home run (359 ft, 100.3 mph) over the right field wall for his 16th of the season. The blast put the Yankees up 1-0 in the sixth.
-The Yankees bullpen kept the Blue Jays off the board until the eighth. Bradley Hanner, making his major league debut, struck out the first two batters on the night, but Kirk launched his fifth home run of the season to give Toronto an insurance run.
-Shane Bieber held the Yankees at bay. Aside from allowing the Grisham homer, the former AL Cy Young winner allowed just four hits and one walk across six innings while striking out five.
-The Yankees had just five hits. Grisham had two with Jones, Chisholm and McMahon reaching base via the hit.
Game MVP: Alejandro Kirk
The Blue Jays backstop drove in two of the team's three runs.
The Mets had just one hit through five innings, but woke up in the sixth inning and would go on to beat the Washington Nationals, 4-1, on Friday night.
New York has now won seven of their last 10 games.
Here are the takeaways...
-- Francisco Lindor's season-long defensive issues continued Friday night. The SS misplayed a ball up the middle in the top of the third inning, allowing CJ Abrams to score and give the Nationals an early 1-0 lead. It's Lindor's ninth error of the season in just his 65th game (he had 13 errors in 2025 over 158 games).
-- Although Lindor made up for the mistake later in the bottom of the sixth inning, crushing a breaking ball to left field for a solo home run that tied the game at 1-1. The homer off of LHP Andrew Alvarez was just his fourth from the right side of the plate this year and 12th home run overall.
New York then found a way to take the lead as Bo Bichette reached first on a strikeout-wild pitch, Luis Robert Jr. singled against Jake Bird, and Carson Benge drove in the run to go up 2-1.
-- Robert Stock took the mound for the first time since his rough start against the Pirates (eight earned runs in 3.0 IP) and put together a solid outing. He allowed one unearned run on three hits with five strikeouts and three walks over 4.1 IP and a career-high 84 pitches.
The 36-year-old started strong, leaving two Nationals stranded in the first inning and tossing a quick 1-2-3 second inning. Washington got to him in the third, scoring an unearned run on Lindor's error, but he powered through to leave two runners stranded. Stock bounced back for a four-batter fourth inning and came back out for the fifth, but was pulled after a walk and hit-by-pitch.
-- LHP Nate Lavender cleaned up in the fifth, recording two flyouts on three pitches to keep it a 1-0 game. Jonathan Pintaro pitched a scoreless sixth inning thanks to a 4-6-3 double play with two Nats on base, and kept it going with a 1-2-3 seventh inning.
-- Jared Young gave the Mets an insurance run in the bottom of the seventh, blasting a hanging curveball 408 feet to right field to make it 3-1. The inning stayed alive after two walks and Bichette took advantage, tacking on another with an RBI single to push the lead to 4-1.
-- Pitching with a three-run lead, RHP Daniel Duarte breezed by the Nats in the eighth with a scoreless frame. Kodai Senga ran into some trouble in the ninth, allowing a single and hitting a batter, but was able to record his second career save by striking out Abimelec Ortiz on a ghost fork.
Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani throws in the outfield at Dodger Stadium before a game against the Kansas City Royals on Aug. 11. (Eric Thayer / Los Angeles Times)
Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani took the bullpen mound at Dodger Stadium, with president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman and pitching coach Mark Prior looking on, and began his first bullpen throwing session in more than three weeks.
Friday marked an important step in Ohtani’s throwing progression. He threw 34 pitches before the Dodgers’ game against the Milwaukee Brewers, appearing to mix in different pitch types.
Although Ohtani hasn’t landed on the injured list for lingering inflammation and soreness in his left knee, he hasn’t pitched in a game since July 3.
After Ohtani received a lubricating Orthovisc injection in his knee at the beginning of the All-Star break, the Dodgers hoped he would pitch against the Philadelphia Phillies on July 22. But as they monitored his response, it became clear he wasn’t going to be ready.
Instead, Ohtani threw a 31-pitch bullpen. But his recovery regressed, and he was shut down from throwing.
“At the end of the day, he wants to be healthy,” manager Dave Roberts said earlier this week. “He wants to be there in the postseason. I think that did check him up. If you look at how we kind of paused things — we all want to be smart and careful. I’m happy that we’ve done that with him.”
Ohtani restarted catch play on Aug. 7. And after playing catch three more days this week, Ohtani and the Dodgers determined he was ready to throw off the mound again.
“Rather than rush the progression of this I would rather make sure we’re headed in the right direction,” Ohtani said last week. “Making sure we’re taking the right steps.”
Ohtani is expected to go through a bullpen progression and then advance to throwing live batting practice — although Roberts said earlier this week he didn’t know how many of each he’d need before returning.
Because the Dodgers want to keep Ohtani in the lineup, he’ll have to build up in games rather than going on a minor-league rehab assignment.
Ohtani did something similar last season, but then, he was returning to the mound for the first time since 2023 elbow surgery.
“Having kind of done that — an inning here, an inning there and then you sort of build up during the season, absolutely,” said Roberts when asked if 2025 could serve as a blueprint. “And I think he’s seen what that buildup can lead to and how it looks. I certainly feel that he’ll buy in.”
Injury updates
Catchers Will Smith (neck) and Dalton Rushing (elbow) each took steps in their hitting progressions. Both took batting practice before the game.
Aaron Boone didn’t get to see the end of Friday’s Yankees-Blue Jays game from the dugout.
The Yankees skipper was ejected from the top of the sixth inning of the Bombers’ 3-1 loss by home plate umpire Vic Carapazza over a disagreement about balls and strikes.
Luis Garcia Jr. was up with two outs in the sixth and took a breaking ball from Blue Jays starter that appeared to be well below the strike zone, but Carapazza called it a strike.
"What'd you say? I didn't hear you." "I thought it was down"
Yankees manager Aaron Boone (17) talks with the home plate umpire against the Toronto Blue Jays during the sixth inning at Rogers Centre on Aug. 14, 2026. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Boone uttered something, and then Carapazza took off his mask and looked toward the first base dugout and said: “What’d you say? I didn’t hear you.”
“I think it was down,” Boone replied calmly.
New York Yankees Manager Aaron Boone argues with home plate umpire Vic Carapazza and is ejected in the sixth inning during a game against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on August 14, 2026 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Getty Images
However, that was seemingly enough for Boone to get tossed for the fourth time this season and the 50th of his managerial career, tying him for 25th all-time.
Boone then came storming off the bench and got in the home plate umpire’s face before exiting for the clubhouse.
Aug 14, 2026; Detroit, Michigan, USA; Chicago White Sox first baseman Munetaka Murakami (5) celebrates in the dugout after hitting a solo home run against the Detroit Tigers in the fourth inning at Comerica Park. Mandatory Credit: Lon Horwedel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The Detroit Tigers started another crucial series with a division rival, as the AL Central-leading (for now) Chicago White Sox came to town for the first of a three-gamer. The White Sox showed why they’re leading the league in runs scored as they pummelled the ball relentlessly on their way to a 9-5 win.
Jackson Jobe made his second start of the year for the Tigers, after spending time on the Injured List earlier this year recovering from last year’s Tommy John surgery. He looked great in his first start, in San Francisco: five innings, one hit, one walk and four strikeouts. Having him in the rotation for the rest of the year, contributing the quality innings of which we know he’s capable, sure would help the Tigers chase down a playoff spot.
The White Sox decided to put on a little Pitching Chaos themselves and have Sean Newcomb open; he’s done this a few times over the past few years, so this wasn’t going to be his first rodeo. Besides, for both of 2017 and 2018 he was a full-time member of the Atlanta rotation, acquitting himself decently well before moving to a relief role in a few stops around the major leagues between then and now. Staying healthy has been Newcomb’s main problem over the years.
Jobe started the game in a pretty unusual way: by hitting two batters on the back foot with consecutive off-speed pitches. That’s not what you want to do against the American League’s top run-producing lineup, obviously — and with two outs a single to left put Chicago up 1-0 with runners on the corners. But Jobe got Colson Montgomery to swing and foul-tip a 98-mph fastball into Dillon Dingler’s mitt and the damage was thusly contained. He threw 25 pitches in the first inning; given that he’s still building up to full strength that meant his outing was probably going to be on the short side anyway, but in the second he only needed nine pitches to get those three outs.
Newcomb got the first out of the bottom of the second, and Old Friend™ José Urquidy came in for him. Remember Urquidy, very briefly, at the end of last season? Well, former teammate or not, Spencer Torkelson greeted him with a single, and after a strikeout Ben Malgeri connected on a low changeup for a two-run home run, putting the Tigers ahead 2-1.
The Tigers added to that lead in the bottom of the third: with two out, Kevin McGonigle singled and Eduardo Valencia followed with yet another extra-base hit, a double that scored McGonigle and put the home team up 3-1.
Alas, the White Sox then did what they do better than anyone else in the league: score a bunch of runs. A single to lead off the fourth was followed by a Tristan Peters two-run home run to even the game at 3-3. They took the lead 4-3 on a Munetaka Murakami solo home run two outs later, and Miguel Vargas followed with a double. A walk ensued, then a Braden Montgomery triple scored another pair of runs to make it 6-3 and end Jobe’s day. Jacob Waugespack was brought in to douse the flames and thankfully he did, coaxing a fly ball out of the other Montgomery for the final out.
Jobe’s final line was not pretty: 3 2/3 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 1 BB, 4 K and a pair of home runs. On the radio broadcast, Andy Dirks said it looked like Chicago’s hitters knew what was coming, and I can’t help but wonder if he was tipping his pitches a touch. Also, remember, he’s still coming back from Tommy John surgery, and history has shown it takes a while to really regain your sharpness.
After that, things settled down for a while, and Enmanuel De Jesus took over in the top of the sixth. With one out Murakami walked and Vargas blasted a long home run to left for an 8-3 lead, though.
Things got quiet again until the bottom of the seventh when Malgeri struck again for another home run to lead off the inning, narrowing the lead to 8-4. Max Clark followed with a sharp line drive to right-centre; Braden Montgomery dove for it and missed, and Clark motored around the bases for a triple.
A Gleyber Torres groundout scored Clark to make it 8-5. Huascar Brazobán, who’d taken over for Urquidy to start the sixth, departed in favour of Grant Taylor; it’s been a rough week with a heavy load for the White Sox, so burning as many of their good relievers as possible may just help the Tigers the rest of the weekend, if nothing else.
De Jesus got the first out of the top of the eighth and Ty Madden stepped in to promptly give up another Vargas home run for a 9-5 score.
In the bottom of the inning, Colt Keith hit a double the opposite way with one out to show the Tigers weren’t quite finished yet. He advanced to third on a Torkelson groundout, but a Zach McKinstry groundout stranded him there. They didn’t do much in the ninth either against lefty Bryan Hudson, and that was the game.
As you might have seen, Thursday’s combined shutout victory against Cleveland was pretty unique, as it was the first time since 2014 that a team had shut out another without striking anybody out. Who was that previous team? You might know them as the Detroit Tigers; Rick Porcello went the distance, shutting out Oakland while throwing a Maddux.
Keider Montero started Thursday’s whiffless masterpiece. His strikeouts-per-nine-innings has actually gone down this year, from 7.1 last year to 6.0 this year so far.
You know what else has gone down by about one per nine innings this year for Montero, too? Walks. Last year, 3.1 (oooh); this year, 2.0 (aaah).
Since pitches have been routinely counted in 1988, Greg Maddux has the most Madduxes, as you might imagine. Know who has the second-most? I sure didn’t, and I never in a million years would have guessed Zane Smith, but hey, there you are.
On this day in 1901, Gustave Whitehead claimed to have flown an airplane in Connecticut. Did he beat the Wright Brothers by over two years? Not too many people seem to believe it. No photographic evidence of his machines being off the ground exist, nor did he keep detailed documentation about it.
SAN DIEGO, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 10: Robert Gasser #54 of the Milwaukee Brewers looks on from the dugout before the game against the San Diego Padres at Petco Park on August 10, 2026 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Orlando Ramirez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Brewers started their series against the Dodgers last night with a big comeback win. After being swept in San Diego, it was not looking good as they were down two in the ninth inning last night. However, a three-run inning capped a comeback for them as they took the series opener. The Brewers will try to build off that tonight in game two against the Dodgers.
Robert Gasser makes the start tonight for the Brewers. He’s coming off of a shorter start against the Twins, where he allowed three runs in 4 2/3 innings. This is Gasser’s second start this season against the Dodgers. In his first start against them, he allowed four runs on four hits and four walks in 4 1/3 innings, striking out four. So far this season, he has a 4.57 ERA and 4.51 FIP. He hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a start since the All-Star Break, and has allowed three or fewer runs in 10 of his 13 starts.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers will turn to their top starter, Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Over 21 starts this season, he has a 2.65 ERA, 3.43 FIP, and 127 strikeouts compared to 32 walks. Yamamoto is coming off of a shorter start, pitching just 5 2/3 innings against the Diamondbacks. He did not allow any runs, but allowed three hits and three walks while striking out six. The Brewers faced him back in March, and scored just one run off of him in seven innings. He allowed seven hits and one walk in that start while striking out three.
There’s good news and bad news on the injury front tonight. The bad news is that the bullpen took another hit, with Abner Uribe being placed on the IL with a right forearm flexor strain. It’s not a serious injury, as the images on it came back clean. It will be a few days of rest for him before he returns to throwing. Grant Anderson was recalled to fill his roster spot.
Meanwhile, there are other positive injury updates. Brice Turang remains day-to-day and can hit, but tomorrow will be a critical day to decide if an IL stint is needed. Meanwhile, Sal Frelick is making progress on his rehab assignment and could return soon if play in the field goes well. Frelick is playing in right field for Nashville tonight and hit a home run in the game. Finally, Cooper Pratt is also recovering well and will only need a near minimum IL stint, but will need a rehab assignment.
Most of the same players are in the lineup, but it has been shifted around a bit. Garrett Mitchell is leading off with Jackson Chourio behind him. Jake Bauers is back at first base and batting first, while Andrew Vaughn remains at third base and bats fourth. Christian Yelich and William Contreras move up to fifth and sixth in the lineup, and Luis Lara is back in the lineup batting seventh. David Hamilton and Joey Ortiz fill out the lineup.
First pitch is at 9:10 p.m. It will be on Brewers.TV and the Brewers Radio Network.
LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - AUGUST 12: Tyler Glasnow #31 of the Los Angeles Dodgers looks on prior to the game against the Kansas City Royals at Dodger Stadium on August 12, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Katelyn Mulcahy/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Tyler Glasnow made his third minor league rehab start on Friday night for Triple-A Oklahoma City, and this was his best yet. Glasnow struck out eight batters in 3 2/3 innings against the Albuquerque Isotopes, a Colorado Rockies affiliate.
Glasnow only allowed three balls in play among his 13 batters faced, and didn’t allow a ball hit into the outfield until a harmless flyout in the fourth inning. He walked two and ran a few other deep counts, getting him pulled at 67 pitches, one out shy of the planned four innings.
Isotopes hitters had trouble with Glasnow’s secondary pitches. He threw his slider, knuckle curve, and curveball a total of 23 times, and induced seven of his 11 total swinging strikes on those pitches.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said Monday at Dodger Stadium that Glasnow is expected to make one more minor league rehab start after this one, during which he will stretch out to roughly five innings and 75 pitches, before potentially returning to the Dodgers.
Much like when activating Blake Snell earlier this week, the Dodgers will need a corresponding move to make room on the 40-man roster, because Glasnow is on the 60-day injured list. But that return looks much more tangible now than it did two weeks ago.
Colorado Rockies starting pitcher Kyle Freeland (21) throws a pitch in the first inning of the MLB National League game between the Cincinnati Reds and the Colorado Rockies at Great American Ball Park in downtown Cincinnati on Tuesday, April 28, 2026. The Reds led 4-1 after three innings. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
Colorado enters Friday night at 48-73, two games behind the 50-71 Giants for fourth place in the NL West. The Rockies went 1-2 in St. Louis, then took two of three from Arizona before Thursday’s off day, leaving them 3-3 through the first six games of the trip.
This is also the final series between Colorado and San Francisco in 2026. The season series is tied 5-5, and the Giants have outscored the Rockies by only four runs across those 10 games.
San Francisco spent June and July hovering around .500, going 24-27 with a minus-3 run differential. August has looked different. The Giants are 3-8 this month, their injured list is crowded and the roster has thinned since the trade deadline.
Rafael Devers provides the most obvious threat with 24 home runs. His .467 slugging percentage ranks among the top 40 hitters in baseball, so there is real thump in the bat, but it comes with a less imposing .788 OPS. Beyond Devers, there is not much power in the lineup.
But there is still enough competence to turn mistakes and free baserunners into runs, which makes Kyle Freeland’s command especially important tonight.
Freeland enters at 3-10 with a 6.63 ERA, 1.50 WHIP and 96 strikeouts across 112.2 innings.
In his last start against St. Louis, he allowed three runs across 4.1 innings, but only one was earned after a two-out passed ball extended the bottom of the first inning and led to a two-run double. From there, the contact was mostly manageable — five hits, three hard-hit balls and an 83.7 mph average exit velocity on 16 balls in play — but he also walked three hitters.
Freeland’s command has generally remained one of his strengths. His 5.1% walk rate ranks among the best in baseball, while his cutter and sweeper have been the strongest parts of his six-pitch arsenal.
While it would be great for Freeland to continue avoiding the hard contact that has so often plagued him, he must return to keeping walks off the board against a potentially pesky Giants offense tonight.
Taking the ball opposite Freeland is 27-year-old righty Landen Roupp.
Roupp enters at 7-11 with a 4.22 ERA, 1.29 WHIP and 123 strikeouts across 123.2 innings.
Roupp allowed only one earned run across 5.1 innings in his last start despite walking five and striking out only three. Even with all that traffic, hitters produced just two hard-hit balls on 15 balls in play with a 79.6 mph average exit velocity.
That is, in part, how Roupp has survived the walks.
Roupp can absolutely strike hitters out, but he is not an overpowering strikeout pitcher. His 23.6% strikeout rate is only a little above league average, while his 25.3% whiff rate is almost exactly league average. He has still recorded 123 strikeouts across 123.2 innings.
His real separator comes when hitters do make contact. Roupp has allowed an 86.1 mph average exit velocity with a 29.0% hard-hit rate and 4.2% barrel rate, all comfortably better than league average, while generating ground balls at a 51.8% clip.
He works from a low arm slot and relies on movement. His sinker has strong arm-side run and drop, and he pairs it heavily with a changeup against left-handed hitters. Against righties, the curveball becomes a bigger part of the plan. It has generated a 34.9% whiff rate this season and gives Roupp a legitimate put-away pitch. He is also comfortable repeating pitches rather than falling into an obvious hard-soft pattern.
Recently recalled Zac Veen starts in right field after going 1-for-3 with a strikeout in his return to the major league lineup on Wednesday. His lone hit was not a quiet one: Veen drove a 104.7 mph home run 407 feet to right-center field.
Connor Norby makes his third straight start at second base and is still looking for his first hit with the Rockies. He is 0-for-5 with two walks and two strikeouts through seven plate appearances, but the contact has been better than the line, including balls hit at 99.4 and 101.6 mph.
Jake McCarthy leads the Rockies on Fridays with a .328 average, .949 OPS and .597 slugging percentage through 18 Friday games. His seven doubles and five stolen bases also lead the team on Fridays.
In a late-night tilt at Oracle Park, tonight’s game may come down not to who creates the most chances, but to who makes the most of them.
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - AUGUST 08: Seth Lugo #67 of the Kansas City Royals pitches in the first inning against the Chicago Cubs at Kauffman Stadium on August 08, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Amy Kontras/Amy Kontras/Getty Images) | Amy Kontras/Getty Images
Before the 2025 season even came to a close, there were a few things people around baseball knew.
The Royals needed outfield help.
The Royals coveted Taylor Ward
The Angels were finally willing to part with him at a price the Royals could pay.
The Royals “had depth” at starting pitching
Quickly, the rumored trade became Kris Bubic for Taylor Ward. It was only a matter of time. But then something weird happened. On November 19th, Taylor Ward was traded to a 2024 Wild Card team that had missed in 2025 for a pitcher who had shown flashes of brilliance but had been hurt far too often. Except it was to the Orioles for Grayson Rodriguez instead of to the Royals for Kris Bubic.
Rumor has it that the Angels had actually agreed to the latter deal but backed out of it when the Orioles offered Rodriguez. As a Royals fan, it’s easy to assume the Angels ended up making the better deal. But Bubic has actually been worth far more than Rodriguez this season as both have continued to deal with injuries; at least Bubic had a handful of high-quality starts before his problems began. Rodriguez has a 7.20 ERA thanks to a lack of command or control this season, leading to walks and home runs aplenty.
It’s difficult to say whether Taylor Ward would have been enough to keep the Royals afloat this year. It seems unlikely given that injuries overwhelmed the team after the rough start. But he wouldn’t have hurt the team. So, yeah, I’m hoping for a little revenge in Anaheim of Los Angeles tonight.
There’s very little in the way of positive results for Rodriguez so far this season. He throws a four-seamer that averages 96 MPH, a changeup, a slider, and a curveball. His changeup gets above-average whiffs, and that’s about it. All of his pitches get hit hard. He throws the fastball, which grades well even if the results aren’t there, more than half the time. The changeup mostly gets thrown to lefties, the slider mostly to righties, and the curveball barely gets used either way.
Seth Lugo, the Royals starter for tonight, couldn’t be more different if he tried. We all know what he’s about, but let’s check out the pitching summary page for him as a refresher anyway.
His summary includes more pitches than I’ve ever seen listed before. It’s just too bad there’s so much dang blue. He throws every single breaking pitch I’ve ever heard of, minus the screwball and knuckle-curve. And for all I know, the knuckle-curve gets folded into the normal curveball there. He also throws every variety of fastball. He doesn’t throw a splitter, a palmball, a vulcan-change, a kick-change, a knuckleball, or a forkball. And you almost have to wonder why he hasn’t folded variations on all of those pitches into his repertoire as well. Or, well, maybe he has, and he just doesn’t throw them often enough for them to be included on this already number-littered image.
Lineups
Facing a right-hander for the first time in nearly a week, the Royals have put Carter Jensen and his .299 OBP back in the leadoff spot. For what it’s worth, he leads the team with 4.12 pitches per plate appearance, 20th in MLB. He’s also in the 75th percentile for chase and 61st percentile in walk rate. The problem is that he’s only in the 19th percentile in whiff rate and 10th percentile in strikeout rate. So, basically, there are arguments on both sides of him batting leadoff. Since he enjoys it, the at-bats can only help his development, and wins and losses don’t matter at this point, I’m all for letting him do it.
With Salvador Perez out of the lineup after Wednesday’s injury, Carter Jensen is back behind the dish, and Josh Rojas will be the Designated Hitter. You all know I love me some Josh Rojas: Designated Hitter. Nick Loftin, who might have the least raw power on the team (it’s between him, Tyler Tolbert, and Luke Maile; the other two aren’t in the lineup), will bat cleanup.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - JUNE 22: Justin Wrobleski #70 of the Los Angeles Dodgers walks to the dugout prior to the game between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Minnesota Twins at Target Field on Monday, June 22, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Michael Turner/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The battle between the Dodgers and Brewers shifts to national television on Saturday afternoon, with a pair of All-Star starting pitchers on the mound on Fox.
Jacob Misiorowski is the National League Cy Young Award favorite, leading the majors in ERA (1.76), xERA (1.93), strikeouts (204), strikeout rate (40.6 percent) and strikeout-minus-walk rate (34.6 percent).
Justin Wrobleski is trying to turn around a rough three start stretch during which he has allowed nine home runs, leading to 16 runs allowed (15 earned) in 13 2/3 innings.
Joe Davis will call Saturday’s game for Fox, in the booth with John Smoltz and with reporter Ken Rosenthal also on the broadcast.
New York Yankees left fielder Heliot Ramos (34) reacts after striking out swinging with two runners on to end the sixth inning during a game against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday, August 9, 2026, at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, NY. (Jason Szenes)
The outfielder has been eager to do just that. Except in his first handful of games with his new team, despite hitting the ball hard, he has not gotten much in the way of results, which is where human nature starts to kick in and perhaps work against him to an extent.
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“Probably just trying to do too much,” Ramos said Friday at Rogers Centre. “Because I see the ones that I hit not landing. I feel like you’re going to get out — things happen, baseball happens, you’re going to get out. So whenever that happens, I’ve tried to do too much and that’s when the strikeouts happen.”
Entering Friday’s game against the Blue Jays, Ramos was batting 2-for-25 with two doubles, 10 strikeouts and three walks in his first eight games as a Yankee. That included being 0-for-6 with two walks against lefties, whom the right-handed hitter had been brought in to mash.
In the extremely small sample size, Ramos has struck out at a higher rate (33.3 percent) than he did with the Giants (26.8 percent), which he was quick to point out.
“That kind of sucks for me,” he said. “But when I hit it, I hit it. So I’ve been feeling pretty good. I just have to stay within myself. I haven’t been chasing a lot, so that’s something I like. I just want to stay positive, stay consistent with it.”
New York Yankees left fielder Heliot Ramos (34) reacts after striking out swinging with two runners on to end the sixth inning during a game against the Atlanta Braves on Sunday, August 9, 2026, at Yankee Stadium. Jason Szenes for the New York Post
The underlying numbers have been more encouraging.
On the 15 balls he has put in play as a member of the Yankees, Ramos’ average exit velocity was 93.8 mph, a tick up from his season average (92 mph) that ranks in the 88th percentile. Of the seven balls he had hit at 95 mph or higher — registering as hard-hit balls — six had gone for outs.
“OK, for not having any results, really,” manager Aaron Boone said of Ramos’ at-bats. “He’s squaring the ball up a fair amount. He’s just got to get some to fall and get him going, get him settled a little bit more. I haven’t felt like, ‘Oh man, he’s struggling,’ even though he obviously hasn’t gotten results. Because there’s been a number of balls he’s hit on the screws, lined out to right, lined out to center some.
“He’s having competitive at-bats. He’s had some tough matchups in there along the way as well. He doesn’t feel like a guy that’s scuffling to me.”
New York Yankees left fielder Heliot Ramos (34) hits a double during the fourth inning when the New York Yankees played the Atlanta Braves on Friday, August 7, 2026, at Yankee Stadium. Jason Szenes for the New York Post
On the day he acquired Ramos, Brian Cashman indicated the outfielder was going to get everyday at-bats in August while the Yankees tried to get healthy. Cody Bellinger appears to be the closest (of himself, Giancarlo Stanton and Aaron Judge) to coming back, potentially going out on a rehab assignment by next week before a return, at which point Ramos could slide into a platoon role in right field.
The Yankees have been playing Ramos in left field so far to help him get settled after the trade — since that is where he had predominantly played with the Giants this season — though he is expected to make the move to right field once Bellinger gets back.
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In the meantime, the 26-year-old Ramos is just trying to get his feet underneath him, 11 days removed from the trade that upended his baseball journey and threw him squarely into a playoff race.
“It’s definitely strange,” Ramos said. “A lot going on, for sure. I feel like I haven’t had the time to sit back and just enjoy where I’m at right now. I have been trying to work and produce. I just want to bring the help. So everything has kind of been quick for me. But I’m getting there.”
Apr 15, 2026; West Sacramento, California, USA; Texas Rangers starting pitcher Kumar Rocker (80) delivers a pitch against the Athletics during the first inning at Sutter Health Park. Mandatory Credit: Dennis Lee-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
