Category: Baseball

Mets lineup

1. A.J. Ewing – LF
2. Juan Soto – DH
3. Bo Bichette – 3B
4. Francisco Lindor – SS
5. Carson Benge – RF
6. Luis Robert – CF
7. Jared Young – 1B
8. Marcus Semien – 2B
9. Francisco Alvarez – C

Sean Manaea – LHP

Dodgers lineup

1. Shohei Ohtani – DH
2. Andy Pages – CF
3. Tommy Edman – 3B
4. Freddie Freeman – 1B
5. Mookie Betts – SS
6. Miguel Rojas – 2B
7. Kyle Tucker – RF
8. Teoscar Hernández – LF
9. Dalton Rushing – C

Roki Sasaki – RHP

Broadcast info

First pitch: 7:10pm EDT
TV: WPIX
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

Even after last night’s disappointing loss, the Royals have still won five of seven coming out of the All-Star Break. That’s not nearly enough to get them back into contention, but at least potential trade pieces like Seth Lugo, Michael Wacha, and Matt Strahm have performed well.

One player who sadly hasn’t rebounded is tonight’s bulk reliever, Noah Cameron. Beck Way will open the game for him as the Royals continue to push the righty into more important relief work while they scramble to see if they have anyone who can be counted on even half the time in their bullpen.

I tried looking into Noah’s body of work earlier this week to see if I could find a glaring flaw with him that led from his terrific May into the awful June and July, and I really didn’t see much of use. His sinker is awful, and I don’t understand why he throws it, but he’s not throwing it more than usual. His average arm angle has ticked back up after dropping nearly 10 degrees from last season at the start of this year. The curveball lost about 100 RPMs from the good stretch to this bad stretch, which is probably a big part of the problem. If it were up to me, I’d have him ditch his sinker and four-seam fastball, lead with the cutter, throw a lot of sliders and changeups, and try to figure out what happened to his curveball. But those are probably far too simple and far too significant changes to make, especially in the middle of the season. So we’re just going to have to hope Brian Sweeney has a better idea than me.

The Tigers are going to pitch Tarik Skubal instead, in what might be his final start in Detroit as a Tiger. Or it might not. The Tigers have been winning a lot lately and might decide to go ahead and see if they can finish off the miraculous comeback. Your guess is as good as mine. What is clear is that Skubal is still one of the best pitchers we’ve ever seen. So good luck to the offense.

Lineups

The offense, in need of luck in the best of times, will still be without starters Bobby Witt Jr. and Maikel Garcia. But Jac Caglianone will also miss a third straight game after injuring his shoulder in Tuesday’s contest. Salvador Perez, the third-worst qualified hitter in all of MLB, will bat third for the Royals today as he continues his hunt for career home run 318. I guess getting him some extra at-bats before his body completely falls apart to chase that record makes sense. Somewhere. Speaking of Salvy’s body falling apart, this will be his first start at catcher in almost a month. He’s been hurting but still played first or DH for almost that entire time. He did slash .250/.325/.485/.810 over that span.

After a successful layover in St. Louis, the D-backs head on for another series against a team who might kinda sorta have playoff aspirations. Though it depends who you ask. According to Jack’s chart, the Nationals either have a 6.1% chance of making the post-season… Or a 30.1% chance. Quite a radical difference in perception there. I suspect a difference in methodology, and perhaps also the degree to which past performance is weighted compared to future projections. As discussed in the preview thread, Fangraphs really does not like their chances going forward, projected the third-worst run differential and record in the majors for Washington the rest of the way.

Hopefully, the D-backs can deliver a couple more of the expected losses this weekend. Smallish sample, but they have been the best team in the National League since July 1st, with an 11-6 record over that time. The 99 runs scored over that time trails only the Braves in the majors, while the 72 runs allowed is also well above-average. Also of note: the Diamondbacks have just one loss by more than three runs over their last twenty games. This is in sharp contrast to earlier in the season, where it seemed they would get blown out almost every series. Even when they lose, the games are typically competitive. That’s a good sign, I feel.

Made it back from the Titanic exhibition. Certainly learned a lot, though disappointed there was no Nekkid Kate Winslet exhibit. 🙂 They did have a nice recreation of the staircase, and on entrance you were given a “boarding pass” representing one of the passengers, and their background. At the end, you learned whether or not they survived. Everyone in our group did not. The most impressive bit was a room where you sat in a lifeboat, and the LED walls around depicted the ship sinking, while the radio messages from the Titanic were played. Let’s just say, we won’t be going on a cruise in the near future. All told, recommended.

The Dodgers were supposed to have two games on Fox during this road trip, but last Saturday in The Bronx rain got in the way and postponed the middle game against the Yankees. So we’ll have to settle on a single Fox game on the road trip, on Saturday against the Mets at Citi Field.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto starts for the Dodgers, coming off his first complete game of the season last Sunday against the Yankees. Mets rookie Nolan McLean has been excellent so far this season with a 3.34 ERA in 20 starts, including only two earned runs allowed over his last four starts combined.

Saturday game info

• Teams: Dodgers at Mets
• Ballpark: Citi Field, Queens
• Start time: 4:15 p.m. PT
• TV: Fox
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

All signs do not point to the Cincinnati Reds being huge sellers at the trade deadline in the next week and a half. Nick Krall confirmed as much to The Enquirer’s Gordon Wittenmyer this week, suggesting that in lieu of rebuilding they are going to ‘retool’ with an eye on still being competitive (for them) in the 2027 season.

Cincinnati Reds president Nick Krall talked with the Enquirer this week about his job security and the Reds' wide-open mind at the MLB trade deadline. https://t.co/FGSQ4VnnRK

— Enquirer Sports (@ENQSports) July 22, 2026

What does seem increasingly clear, though, is that the Reds – barring a miracle win streak this week – will likely shed their veterans on the roster who are set to reach free agency at season’s end. Some of those will be easier to find takers than others what with salary obligations, performance, and positional demand, but one guy who seems almost certain to be dealt is righty Brady Singer.

Every team needs a workhorse starter with upside, and Singer has pitched well enough over the last two months that his durability and trend-line will have suitors galore. The Reds won’t land a superstar prospect for him, but there will be enough interest that not dealing him would be a complete non-starter, so it sure seems like one of the key cogs in the team’s rotation will be elsewhere down the stretch.

That brings us to Rhett Lowder, who’ll get the start on the road in St. Louis on Friday night as the Reds open their series against the Cardinals. He has pitched to just a 5.75 ERA and 1.64 WHIP for Cincinnati so far in 2026, sliding down to the bullpen when the rotation was fully stocked for a trio of appearances and fresh off being shelled for 8 ER in 2.1 IP in the hellscape that is Coors Field in the July heat his last time getting a start.

With just 72.0 IP with the Reds this season (and 5.0 IP with AAA Louisville), Lowder’s got plenty of innings he can log between now and the season’s end if he can manage to throw the ball over the plate and be more pitch efficient. And the obvious portion of the entire piece is that once Singer leaves, there are going to be a lot of innings down the stretch for pitchers specifically like him to begin to soak up.

Hunter Greene will be an every fifth day guy until season’s end, his March elbow surgery meaning he’s not going to slam into any innings limit this year. Andrew Abbott will presumably be tasked with going every fifth day for the rest of the season, too, his track record showing that’s not going to be much of a problem. Beyond those two, though, there is a whole lot up in the air for the Cincinnati rotation as ace Chase Burns will inevitably be throttled at some point after having already logged 107.2 IP this year. Nick Lodolo, you’ll recall, is on the IL for the second time with blister problems, and given that he’s reportedly working on a whole new grip for his breaking ball he’s a wild card in terms of how much – and how deep when he does – he’ll be able to work as a starter.

It all leaves a pretty open door for Lowder, Cincinnati’s 1st round pick from back in 2023. Not only will the Reds be giving him a pretty long leash due to the simple need for someone, anyone to pitch 6 innings every fifth day, but they’ll be eyeing just what Lowder can do as a big league starter as they retool their roster for 2027. Can he be a rotation cog? Just how much will they need to invest this winter to replace Singer, or will Lowder take the job and run with it?

In theory, Burns/Greene/Abbott/Lodolo/Lowder looks like a pretty stout rotation for next season. Lowder, though, is clearly the biggest question mark of the bunch, and how well he seizes the opportunity in a post-Singer world will dictate a ton of the direction the front office takes in addressing their roster on a shoestring budget this winter.

Lowder gets his first post-Coors chance to show he’s up for it tonight in Busch Stadium with the Reds season (and full deadline plans) in the balance.

Here’s how the Reds will line up to begin tonight’s game in St. Louis, with first pitch set for 8:15 PM ET:

First of three in St. Louis

Powered by @PNCBankpic.twitter.com/CwlIwqqmNH

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) July 24, 2026

Chicago Cubs vs. Pittsburgh Pirates, July 24, 2026, 6:40 p.m. ET

The Pittsburgh Pirates are back at home for a weekend series at PNC Park when they take on the NL Central rival Chicago Cubs.

Jared Jones is on the bump for the Bucks for the first time since July 18, when he pitched five innings in a 7-1 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on the road. He gave up three hits and one run in his first win since June 4, snapping a six-game drought where he didn’t pick up a victory.

The Cubs are countering with Matthew Boyd, who is making his 11th start of the season for Chicago. Boyd was injured for most of the day in June, but he returned to the lineup on June 25. He pitched 4.2 innings, giving up four hits against the New York Mets. Since then, he has made four starts and has picked up the victory in each of those contests, improving his record to 6-1. As a team, the Cubs are 8-2 when Boyd pitches, making this a difficult matchup for Pittsburgh.

The game plan for the Pirates tonight should be to attack Boyd early in the game, putting him on the ropes and forcing Chicago to get to their bullpen early in the first game of this series.

Location: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA

Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh

Pitching Matchup: Matthew Boyd (6-1, 4.15 ERA) vs. Jared Jones (2-1, 4.05 ERA)

BD community, chime off in the comments section below.

With the Mets currently 17 games under .500 and 17.5 games back of first place in the NL East, there has been plenty of buzz around who the team will move by the 2026 MLB Trade Deadline.

New York has already informed teams they are open for business, SNY MLB Insider Chelsea Janes reported on July 16, and likely to deal players on expiring contracts. Janes noted everyone except Carson Benge, A.J. Ewing, Christian Scott, Nolan McLean and Juan Soto is said to be available, even including star shortstop Francisco Lindor as those potentially on the block.

While it does not mean that Lindor will be among those traded by Aug. 3 at 6:00 p.m., it does mean the Mets and president of baseball operations David Stearns are open to listening to offers. When asked about ruling out the possibility of trading the five-time All-Star and four-time Silver Slugger on Friday ahead of their series opener against the Dodgers, Stearns didn't give a straight answer.

"I'm not going to rule out or in any specific player on anything. I don't think that's wise for me to do," Stearns said. "What I will say is, we've got a group of young players and we've got some potential Hall-of-Famers, future Hall-of-Famers, that we view as our core. We expect them to be our core."

Stearns went on to say the team is being "open-minded" ahead of the trade deadline while expecting to "compete in 2027, adding they aren't "going to close any paths" at this time on who may or may not be dealt in next 10 days.

He was then asked if he considers Lindor part of the "core" he referred to going forward, and loosely included him, but did not make it clear if he's unavailable in trade talks.

"I think what I said was we have a group of young players who we are really excited about, we have some couple guys who are likely headed to Cooperstown one day, and we would consider that grouping of players our core," Stearns said. "I'm not going to get into specifics of who exactly is a name or who exactly we are or not going to trading right now."

After missing 57 games and returning from the injured list on June 26, Lindor owns an .808 OPS with four home runs and 11 RBI over 21 games. He's recently found some rhythm and is trending toward putting up his usual strong numbers by the end of the season (as noted in more depth here).

Meanwhile, Lindor also spoke with Janes on July 19 prior to the team's game against the Philadelphia Phillies and let it be known he is not bothered by the hypothetical trade buzz since it's all coming from outside of the clubhouse. 

Since Stearns did not rule anything out Friday, fans can only wait and see what will happen over the next week-plus with Lindor and other Mets who could potentially be playing elsewhere for the remainder of the 2026 season.

"I'm not going to rule out or in any specific player on anything. I don't think that's wise for me to do. What I will say is, we've got a group of young players and we've got some potential Hall of Famers, future Hall of Famers, that we view as our core. We expect them to be our… pic.twitter.com/O6s4shL7ZB

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) July 24, 2026

The Yankees come to town for a three game series starting on Friday night. The Phillies will go with lefthander Jesus Luzardo for the opener.

Friday night at the Bank#RingTheBellpic.twitter.com/aw7WBPR3LF

— Philadelphia Phillies (@Phillies) July 24, 2026

The Yankees starter will be righthander Cam Schlittler. The All-Star is 9-6 with a 2.20 ERA on the season.

Cam on the bump at the Bank. #RepBXpic.twitter.com/R75zKMFc49

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) July 24, 2026

Game time is 6:45 PM and it will be televised exclusively on Apple TV

On Thursday, for the last time in 2026, all seven of the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates were in action. Here’s everything that happened!

Link to the 2026 McCovey Chronicles Community Prospect List (CPL)

All listed positions in the roundup are the position played in that particular game.

---

News

There’s huge — albeit expected — news today. On Glen Kuiper’s podcast, farm director Kyle Haines revealed that teenage phenom shortstops Josuar González (No. 2 CPL) and Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) are headed to Low-A San Jose now that the ACL season is over. The moves aren’t official yet, so it’s not clear when those two will join the team, but very, very, very exciting.

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AAA Sacramento (54-42)

Sacramento River Cats beat the Oklahoma City Comets (Dodgers) 4-2 [box score]

It’s not often that you see a team win in the Pacific Coast League without an extra-base hit. But that’s exactly what the River Cats did, which can only mean one thing: great pitching.

Despite the strong pitching performance, it was a so-so day for the starter, LHP Matt Wilkinson. Tugboat did a lot well … primarily the fact that he only gave up 3 baserunners all day, while pitching 4 innings. All 3 of those baserunners were hits (he had 0 walks against 4 strikeouts), and 1 of those hits cleared the yard, with Wilkinson giving up 2 runs on the day.

On paper, that seems like a decent enough day, despite what it does to an ERA. A strikeout per inning, no walks, and fewer hits than innings is all a good sign. Despite the few baserunners, though, Wilkinson did need 66 pitches to get through the 4 innings, an average of 16.5 per inning. Questions remain as to how Wilkinson’s stuff will translate to the Majors … his stuff is funky and has given him 10.1 strikeouts per 9 innings at the level, but it’s hard to project that to the Majors when his average fastball velocity is a tick under 90 mph. You just don’t see a lot of that operating at the highest level of baseball, unless you’re strictly watching Tyler Rogers.

We may get an answer soon enough. Tugboat’s overall numbers (4.03 ERA, 4.94 FIP) aren’t great, but the Giants rotation is about to have some holes that need filling. If they think he’s ready — or even if they anticipate protecting him from the Rule 5 Draft this offseason — his time could be coming.

A great relief showing from RHPs Braxton Roxby and Carson Seymour, with the former throwing 3 shutout innings with 3 hits, 0 walks, and 2 strikeouts (albeit with 2 errors), while the latter tossed 2 scoreless frames with a hit, no walks, and 3 strikeouts. Seymour’s been looking a little bit better lately, and the move to high-leverage relief seems to be suiting him. It’s still not an overwhelming approach (he has just 8.2 strikeouts per 9 innings), but a 3.79 ERA ought to get him some looks in the bullpen again this year, even if he has a 4.66 FIP.

The best offensive days belonged to a trio of hitters who have been performing well lately: designated hitter Scott Bandura, left fielder Turner Hill, and first baseman Dayson Croes, as all 3 reached base 3 times: Bandura hit 1-3 with 2 walks to bring his OPS to .810 and his wRC+ to 115; Hill went 1-2 with 2 walks and an outfield assist, pushing his OPS to .895 and his wRC+ to 137; and Croes hit 2-3 with a walk (though he was caught stealing), and now has a .718 OPS and a 90 wRC+.

Scott Bandura gets us on the board with an RBI single ‼️ pic.twitter.com/WnvFdrtUHJ

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) July 24, 2026

Hill hits 🤝 Bo goes home pic.twitter.com/6JJMKkZ2kt

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) July 24, 2026

Have a Day-Son!!

Croes singles to extend our lead by another run pic.twitter.com/keph8gs8Be

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) July 24, 2026

A nice day for Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL) who made his AAA center field debut, while hitting 1-3 with a walk, a stolen base, and a strikeout. Nice to see him in the center of the grass. As for the other AAA newcomers, third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) hit 1-5 with a strikeout, and catcher Adrián Sugastey went 1-3 with a sacrifice bunt, a strikeout, and an error.

AA Richmond (55-36)

Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Hartford Yard Goats (Rockies) 3-1
Box score

Not a good overall game for the Squirrels, but it featured a superstar performance, as RHP Yunior Marte (No. 25 CPL) showed off just how much potential he has with an utterly sensational start. Marte went 7 innings deep in this game (you don’t see that often in the Minors … or heck, the Majors!), and didn’t give up a single run. He allowed just 4 hits in those 7 innings, walked 2, and struck out 6. It was far and away his best start since getting promoted to Richmond in early June.

The soon-to-turn 23-year old might be considered a tier below the bigger name pitchers in the system (Carson Whisenhunt, Blade Tidwell, Jackson Flora, Carson Bolemon, Kaden Waechter, Keyner Martinez, Jacob Bresnahan, Argenis Cayama, and Luis De La Torre), but he’s a damn good pitcher, and someone who clearly still has MLB starter potential. He’s done exactly what you want a player to do when they move up a level … he’s gotten better. The overall numbers (4.36 ERA, 4.05 FIP) aren’t necessarily an improvement (he had a 3.74 ERA and a 4.09 FIP in High-A), but that’s largely due to a flurry of home runs he’s allowed, which is both something that can be corrected, and something that’s subject to variance.

But, since getting promoted, he’s bumped his strikeouts from 8.5 per 9 innings to 10.0, while lowering his walks per 9 from 4.0 to 2.7. It’s not even a small sample size thing, either, as he’s pitched the exact same amount of innings (43.1) at both levels this year. He has to be thrilled, and the Giants have to be thrilled.

The next step for Marte, who came over in the Mike Yastrzemski trade, is to just be less hittable. He’s getting those strikeouts and limiting those walks in large part because he’s living in the zone more, and the result is that, despite the same amount of innings thrown, he’s allowed twice as many home runs in AA as in High-A, with 13 more hits total.

RHP Christian Alvarado again showed off the heat, striking out 4 batters in 1.2 innings, though he gave up a hit, a walk, and a run. Since the Giants signed the 31-year old, who hadn’t pitched in the Minors since 2019, he’s struck out a stunning 18 batters in 8.2 innings, against just 2 walks and 6 hits.

A bad day on offense, with just 5 total hits and 1 walk drawn. Still, a pair of players had nice games: center fielder Trevor Cohen (No. 15 CPL) and third baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 31 CPL). Cohen hit 2-4 with a double and a strikeout, raising his OPS to .681 and his wRC+ to 80 through his first 6 AA games. Velasquez hit 2-3, as he continues his tear: over the last 21 games, he’s now 29-64 with 1 home run, 6 doubles, 12 walks, and just 8 strikeouts, which has brought the 22-year old switch-hitter’s OPS up to .823, and his wRC+ to 126. With Harber, Croes, Nate Furman (No. 39 CPL), and Osleivis Basabe, it seems there’s not room for Velasquez in AAA … otherwise he would almost surely be there. He’s earned it.

Diego Velasquez stays hot 🔥

It's a 12-game on-base streak and we're on the board tonight! pic.twitter.com/hUisHWzJcZ

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 23, 2026

Tough days for the non-Cohen AA newcomers, as shortstop Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL) and designated hitter Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) both went 0-4 (the latter with 2 strikeouts), while catcher Jancel Villarroel (No. 42 CPL) hit 0-3 with a strikeout.

And then this happened:

Fireworks show went haywire at the Richmond Flying Squirrels game, Double-A affiliate of the Giants pic.twitter.com/qRloUnFmDs

— Jomboy Media (@JomboyMedia) July 24, 2026

High-A Eugene (56-37)

Eugene Emeralds lost to the Everett AquaSox (Mariners) 10-2
Box score

Well, this was a bad game for the Emeralds. No one had a worse day than the starter, as RHP Hunter Dryden had an absolute ERA-buster of a performance, giving up 10 hits (including 3 home runs) in just 3.1 innings, while also walking 2 and allowing 9 runs to score. Yikes. Shake it off, Hunter!

After a strong start to the year, Dryden, a 17th-round pick in 2024, has really hit a wall. In his first 7 games of the season, he gave up just 8 earned runs in 26.1 innings. But since then, in 11 outings, the 24-year old has ceded 36 earned runs in 44 innings, bringing him up to a 5.63 ERA and a 5.82 FIP. Hopefully he can right the ship and end the year on a strong note. He certainly needs to get the home runs in check … he’s allowed 13 in 70.1 innings this year.

RHP Brayan Palencia had a nice relief outing, though, giving up just 1 hit in 2.2 scoreless innings, though he didn’t have any strikeouts. Palencia has given up just 3 hits and 1 run in 7 innings this month, but on the year he’s really struggled with strikeouts, as the 23-year old has just 22 of them in 30.1 innings … with 18 walks. That’s led to a 5.93 ERA and a 6.90 FIP, and you have to think his spot on the domestic reserve is a little warm, as this is his 6th season of pro ball. He’s also given up 6 home runs in those 30.1 innings, which isn’t helping his case.

Not much at all on offense, though first baseman Zander Darby once again left the yard, hitting 1-4 with a solo blast, but also striking out twice. Darby, a 23-year old lefty taken in the 12th round in 2024, has shown off quite a bit of power this season. He’s got 10 home runs and a .173 isolated slugging, but he’s also striking out 33.2% of the time which is a fairly damning number … there’s a lot of juice in the bat, but Northwest League pitchers have really stymied him. He had just an 18.4% strikeout rate in Low-A San Jose last year, in a 244-plate appearance sample size … but after getting promoted to Eugene at the end of last season, he struck out 42.0% of the time … and now this. In all, it’s still a .775 OPS and a 106 wRC+, but a lot to work on.

Speaking of things to work on, designated hitter Jhonny Level is going through one of the only slumps of his young, exciting career, as he hit 0-4 with a strikeout. Level is 0-12 over his last 3 games, though this was his only strikeout in that time span. He’s 4-24 since his last extra-base hit, and if you’re at all worried, well … don’t be. The 19-year old switch-hitter is 3.5 years younger than his peers in the Northwest League, is holding his own (.740 OPS, 96 wRC+), and is striking out just 16.4% of the time. It’s all very exciting, with or without the slumps.

As for the newcomers, second baseman Isaiah Barkett hit 2-4 with a strikeout, and right fielder Jose Astudillo went 0-4.

Low-A San Jose (54-39)

San Jose Giants lost to the Ontario Tower Buzzers (Dodgers) 7-5
Box score

This was not a good or interesting game for the Baby Giants. Their offense had only 3 hits all day (though they drew 10 walks!) and their pitchers gave up 15 hits. There’s really no need to dwell on this one. Designated hitter Jeremiah Jenkins played well, hitting 1-3 with a double, 2 walks, and a strikeout, which brought him up to an .885 OPS and a 117 wRC+. The 23-year old, who was taken in the 14th round in 2014, has shown tremendous power this season (his .258 isolated slugging ranks 6th out of 90 Cal League hitters with at least 150 plate appearances this year), but the lefty is striking out 30.5% of the time, which is a fairly damning number at such a low level of the Minors.

Shortstop Lorenzo Meola (No. 23 CPL) only hit 1-5 with a strikeout, but did have a triple as his extra-base hit parade continues. Last year’s 4th-round pick now has an extra-base knock in 7 straight games, and 15 total in his last 13 games. It’s been an exceptional month for the righty, as he’s hit .386/.456/.786, which has erased his slow start and brought him up to a .814 OPS and a 100 wRC+ on the year. Still, it’s a touch damning that he missed the waves of promotions, but maybe that will change with fellow shortstops Josuar González and Luis Hernández coming to town.

Lorenzo Meola rips a 3B, the first hit of the night for the Giants, his SIXTEENTH extra base hit of the month! Coming into tonight's game, Meola was sporting a 1.278 OPS. pic.twitter.com/jpdTS8H26C

— San Jose Giants (@SJGiants) July 24, 2026

All of the pitchers got rocked, but RHP Alix Hernandez did strike out 6 batters in 2.2 innings, while RHP Evan Gray struck out 5 in 2.2 frames. Hernandez, who allowed 7 baserunners and 3 runs, is up to 11.9 strikeouts per 9 innings … but with a 4.21 ERA and a 5.41 FIP. Gray, who gave up 6 baserunners and 1 run, has 10.7 strikeouts per 9 … but a 5.34 ERA and a 5.25 FIP.

Arizona Complex League (34-26)

ACL Giants lost to the ACL D-backs 5-1 (7 innings) [box score]

And with that, the ACL season comes to an end. It’s a bummer for people who were enjoying watching/following rookie ball … but tremendously exciting for those who wanted it to end so the top names could get promoted.

There really wasn’t much of note at all in this game. The ACL Giants only had 3 hits on the day, but their departing stars each collected one, as second baseman Josuar González (No. 2 CPL) and shortstop Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) both went 1-3, the latter with the team’s lone RBI.

On the pitching front, Low-A RHP Argenis Cayama (No. 13 CPL) continued his rehab with 2 innings, though they didn’t go well, as he allowed 2 hits, 1 walk, 1 hit batter, and 2 runs, without any strikeouts. Cayama is still searching for his sharpness as he rehabs … hopefully he’ll be back in San Jose now that the ACL season is over.

RHP Melvin Pineda ended the Complex League season on a high note, striking out 1 batter in a perfect inning. The strikeout wasn’t surprising, as he ended the ACL season with a staggering 54 of them in 26.2 innings … the lack of a walk was, however, surprising, as he finished with 22 of them.

Now that the ACL season is over, we wait to see what prospects will be joining González and Hernández on the journey to A-ball. I’m particularly curious about outfielder Rayner Arias (No. 38 CPL) … he had another disappointing season, finishing below the Mendoza line and posting a .702 OPS and a 78 wRC+. But Arias, who had the other hit in this game, started to figure things out as the season went on: after posting a dismal .285 OPS in May, he had a .782 OPS in June, and a 1.178 OPS in July. In his final 7 games of the season, he hit 6-19 with 3 home runs, 3 walks, and 3 hit by pitches.

Dominican Summer League Black (22-14)

DSL Giants Black beat DSL Arizona Black 4-2 (7 innings) [box score]

A pair of players who had really nice hitting games, as designated hitter Dennys Riera went 1-3 with a go-ahead 2-run home run, while first baseman Alessandro Duran hit 2-2 with 2 doubles and a hit by pitch. Riera, a 21-year old who was a notable signing in 2022 but had never really been able to put things together, is having a career year, with a .903 OPS, a 123 wRC+, and just a 15.1% strikeout rate. Will that get him the call to the states after 5 years in the DSL? Duran, who was also signed in 2022, is hitting a touch below league average, and it wouldn’t be surprising if this is his final year in the system.

A nice start for 20-year old RHP Simon Colmenares, who gave up 3 hits, 2 walks, and 1 run in 4.1 innings, with 4 strikeouts. This is essentially his debut season (he pitched 3 innings last year), and it hasn’t gone too well, with a 6.17 ERA and a 5.60 FIP.

Dominican Summer League Orange (21-16)

DSL Giants Orange lost to the DSL Mets Orange 9-2 (7 innings) [box score]

Very bad pitching in this game, so we’ll just focus on 3 hitters: 19-year old right fielder Brandon Vasquez hit 2-3 with a triple and a walk, bringing him up to an .804 OPS and a 107 wRC+, far and away the best stats in his 3-year career; 18-year old third baseman Yeison Oviedo went 1-2 with a walk, a hit by pitch, and a stolen base, bringing him up to an .871 OPS and a 128 wRC+, with 7 stolen bases, dramatic improvements in his 2nd season; and 19-year old left fielder Ricardo Crespo hit 2-3 with a stolen base, boosting his OPS to .880 and his wRC+ to 151, the result of a laughable 32.5% walk rate in his 3rd season.

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Home run tracker

10 — Zander Darby — [High-A]
3 — Dennys Riera — [DSL]

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Friday schedule

Sacramento: 6:45 p.m. PT vs. Oklahoma City (SP: Cesar Perdomo)
Richmond: 4:05 p.m. PT vs. Hartford (SP: Charlie McDaniel)
Eugene: 7:05 p.m. PT at Everett (SP: Jacob Bresnahan)
San Jose: 7:00 p.m. PT vs. Ontario (SP: TBD)

Reminder that almost all MiLB games can be watched on MLB TV

For nearly two full years, Brayden Taylor looked like another minor leaguer whose career would stagnate once he reached Double-A.

Originally selected by the Rays as the 19th overall selection in the 2023 draft, Taylor has an excellent debut campaign, hitting .242/.361/.516 with 5 HR over 108 PA over the remaining minor league season. He followed that up by torching High-A in 2024, hitting .269/.389/.513 with 14 HR and 26 SB, registering a 154 wRC+ over 383 plate appearances.

With his stellar play, the Rays promoted Taylor to Double-A on July 30th, 2024; he hasn’t been able to move past Montgomery since that promotion.

Brayden Taylor is a 5-tool player but none of his tools are much above average. He is a solid defender with a good arm; there’s some pop in his bat but no one would consider him a true power threat. His hit tool is decent but he won’t win any batting titles. That gives you a player whose five tools all grade around 50 or 55.

During his first full year in the Rays system, Taylor displayed exactly what type of player that could translate into. From August 4th, 2023 through July 27th, 2024, Taylor hit .263/.383/.514 with 19 HR over 491 plate appearances.

But once in Double-A, Taylor struggled to adapt to the more advanced pitching and his strikeouts skyrocketed. Over 125 plate appearances in Double-A in 2024, Taylor hit .194/.290/.435 with 6 HR, registering a 113 wRC+.

Despite his struggles in Double-A, Taylor was ranked as the Rays 2nd best prospect entering 2025 and 65th overall in the game by Baseball America.

But the disappointing end to 2024 merely foreshadowed his bleak 2025 campaign. He suffered through mechanical issues and just plain old bad luck. After 437 plate appearances, Taylor hit just .173/.289/.286 with 8 HR, registering a 77 wRC+; the 77 wRC+ was among the bottom 20% of the league.

It can be said that Taylor was among the unluckiest players in all of minor league baseball in 2025. He finished the year hitting .173, which was the 2nd lowest batting average in MiLB, which at least in part was due to a .229 BABIP. There were 607 players who had at least 400 plate appearances last season and Taylor’s .229 BABIP was the 2nd lowest behind Juan Baez’s .226 clip.

The Rays did do some tinkering with Taylor in July to try to get the former first round pick going and he did have slightly more success over the second half of the year (97 wRC+ over 173 PA). After the season, Taylor was sent to the Arizona Fall League, where he hit .264/.400/.472. According to FanGraphs, the Rays had Taylor alter his hand and bat positioning.

It precipitated a swing change — his hands are starting lower and his bat is more vertical than before — that has him covering elevated fastballs much better than he was. Taylor is missing far fewer in-zone pitches with this new swing

By 2026, Taylor had vanished from prospect rankings, completely dropping on Baseball America’s top 30, falling all the way to 39th.

Prior to the season, Taylor spoke to David Laurila of FanGraphs and went into elaborate detail of his swing changes and the struggles he had endured over the past two years. The purpose of changing Taylor’s swing would be to allow his swing stay through the zone longer and thus have a better opportunity to make better contact.

“The biggest thing we focused on was my hip line,” explained the lefty-hitting Taylor. “My hips were staying too far uphill with my leg lift. Instead of bringing my leg straight up and down, we worked on bringing it to my midsection to keep the hips online so that I can be in a better position at launch.

“Doing that changed my bat path,” he added. “Instead of my body being so uphill, and the bat just coming up and out of the zone, the adjustment allowed me to stay in the zone a lot longer. The bat being in the zone a lot longer is what I want. I want to be able to hit through seven baseballs, not come up and hit only one of them. Right? I want to have that adjustability to be able to stay through it and hit as many balls as I can.”

Taylor began the 2026 season back in Double-A and entering his last year before being eligible for the Rule 5 draft, a pivotal season in a minor leaguer’s career.

After one month, it looked like more of the same from Taylor as he finished April hitting .162, but a low BABIP suggested bad luck may be an issue; Taylor’s walk (15.0%) and strikeout (17.5%) numbers were solid.

In early May, Taylor missed several games but returned to game action on May 8th. The following day, his season and possibly career completely turned around.

From May 9th through July 23rd, Brayden Taylor has hit .329/.415/.605 with 14 HR over 248 PA, registering a 165 wRC+. He has kept a solid strikeout rate of 24.6% over that stretch of time. His BABIP is .396 but he was due for regression considering his previous bad luck over the past two seasons. Despite his poor start to the season, Taylor now ranks 13th among all Double-A hitters with a 136 wRC+ and his overall BABIP is .325 which ranks 52nd of 170 qualifying hitters.

"SEE YA LATER" – Brayden Taylor (probably) pic.twitter.com/0coudyffhe

— Montgomery Biscuits (@BiscuitBaseball) July 19, 2026

Meanwhile Taylor still has the plus speed and plus defense that had made him a top prospect.

Of course, the argument can be made that Taylor now has over two years of experience at the Double-A level and is getting old for the level. Baseball America hasn’t believed in his turnaround enough to push him back in the Rays top 30. However, FanGraphs in their latest update actually has Brayden Taylor among the top 100 prospects in the game at 75th overall and 6th overall in the Rays system and that’s including the Rays draft class of 2026.

Taylor changed his swing and is less vulnerable to elevated fastballs than he has been in the past. He’s going to get to power and play plus-plus defense at second and third base, or viable defense at shortstop if the Rays need him to. 

At this point in the season, Taylor is slated to post the highest average, on-base, and slugging percentage numbers of his career while also reaching a new career high in homeruns hit as well as posting the lowest strikeout rate of his career.

The next step for Taylor will be seeing if he can maintain this type of production at the next rung of the minor league ladder in Triple-A Durham.

The 2026 season has not been a fairy tale follow-up to the historic 2025 campaign for the Seattle Mariners. The .500-hugging club has sounded less like a well-oiled machine and more like my favorite Steel-type evolutionary line from the fifth generation of the Pokémon games. But the second half has been where Seattle has turned things on this decade, with winning records every second half since 2021 and better records post-All-Star Break than prior in all but one campaign. To make the playoffs and defend their AL West crown, they’ll need to do so once more, and for that they’ll need to address some of their clear weaknesses ahead of the August 3rd trade deadline. The sooner they make a move, the sooner they can improve, and the Jerry Dipoto/Justin Hollander Mariners have frequently been willing to come out swinging ahead of the final rush.

This summer, Seattle’s solutions are a bit clunky, but their needs are clear. I’ve been told lists are bullet points are an AI thing but like the mighty em dash and superfluous similes, the robots can drag them from my warm, meaty mitts or rust in hell.

1. At least one potent righty bat. Seattle’s been one of the worst teams in the league against left-handed pitching, and while it’s unsurprising given the lefty-dominated nature of their roster since day one, it’s been exacerbated by absences and/or ineffectiveness from Cal Raleigh, Julio Rodríguez, and Victor Robles, as well as craterous performance from Rob Refsnyder and Leo Rivas who were hoped to have some stabilizing skill against southpaws.
2. Long and/or impact relief. Seattle has been running a combination of the piggyback and a six-man rotation for most of the year, flexing the luxury of their stellar rotation depth but forcing difficult and narrow usage of their bullpen. Injuries to Matt Brash and Cooper Criswell, along with a lack of emergence from any of The Pile to this point, have left the M’s pen bifurcated. This split is between an “A” pen of Andrés Muñoz, Eduard Bazardo, Gabe Speier, and Jose A. Ferrer, and a “C or D+” pen of Nick Davila, Cole Wilcox, and Michael Rucker at present, which has also featured Alex Hoppe and now-departed Casey Legumina, among others. It’s left Seattle close to punting several close games when they’ve trailed due to not wishing to exhaust their top arms, but with only seven options to use, they’re putting out unproven arms whose performance is more mop-up than lockdown.
3. Ace. Yes, Seattle currently has “too many” starters. No, they’re not of a caliber easily upgraded on. But this M’s roster’s weakest positions thus far are catcher, first base, and the left side of the infield writ large. At all four positions, Seattle has players under contract extensions, the least lengthy of which obviously being J.P. Crawford. Any major righty bat acquired will either fill a corner outfield or third base role, but despite his recent struggles and possible injury, Crawford has looked and graded out at least fine at the hot corner to be lower-priority in terms of replacement seeking. In terms of what is available on the market, the possibility of consolidating the M’s rotation into a stronger five is a real pathway forward, even if every permutation is painful.

There is some overlap in each deal, which are designed to be possible individually as centerpiece moves. However, with some tweaking, multiple deals could be done as one. As a reminder, these are projected fits, based on my evaluation of an appropriate deal. All of the players targeted have been listed due to fit and public reporting that they are at minimum available in trades per industry sourcing.

1. The Giant fit

Seattle Mariners acquire OF Heliot Ramos& RHP Jason Foley
San Francisco Giants acquire OF Jonny Farmelo& RHP Christian Little

Circle pegs for circular holes. Seattle’s easiest solution to their issues against lefties is acquiring someone who has hit them excellently his whole career. Their easiest pathway to improving their bullpen depth is adding a decent, low-cost reliever capable of leverage work. Easy, meet peasy.

The selling point on Ramos is that he fits the mold of position players Seattle has targeted at deadlines past. Rarely willing to go for a true “rental” beyond depth bullpen arms (which Brubaker would be) in this second window of Dipoto-era contention, Ramos would join Seattle in his final year of pre-arbitration. In 1547 plate appearances, mostly consolidated over the past three years, the 26 year old has a .258/.316/.425 line, good for a 107 wRC+ 3.5 fWAR in 376 games as of Friday, July 24. Drafted 19th overall in 2017 out of Leadership Christian HS in Puerto Rico, Ramos spent several years creeping up prospect lists and was seen as a likely impact bat with some defensive limitations that would push him to a corner outfield role sooner rather than later. Despite debuting in 2022, poor performance and oblique injuries dimmed his star by age 23, but he put up a strong age 24 campaign in 2024. 2025 and 2026 have been a bit behind that pace, but he’s hit and performed ably this year at a 107 wRC+ and career-best barrel rates and expected batting average, weighted on-base, and slugging. His BABIP has been high for an average runner, but when your hard hit rate is over 50% you are not purely getting lucky.

Crucially, Ramos crushes lefties. He’s crushed them his whole career, and he’s crushing them this year. Around league-average vs. RHP, in 433 plate appearances vs. LHP at the big league level, he’s gone .282/.346/.510 with a 135 wRC+ and an 8.3% walk rate against 25.6% strikeouts. He’s been a tick better at 144 wRC+ this year. He’s the only right-handed hitter to ever hit a splash down ball into McCovey Bay in San Francisco, and has room still to improve on his plus power.

Ramos has managed to slug reasonably despite playing in Oracle Park, a locale notoriously hard to homer in that is actually more challenging for sluggers than T-Mobile Park. While the park does give greater opportunity for gap triples, Ramos is more of a glide double or big fly kind of guy. That does make Ramos a shade more all-or-nothing, as he’s run career-high strikeout rates and low walk rates. However, as a defensive fit, Ramos is at least a neutral move compared to Luke Raley and/or Randy Arozarena in an outfield corner, with a strong arm that should fit in the relatively tame dimensions of T-Mobile Park.

It’s with an eye to those players that this move also makes sense, with Ramos potentially slotting in to fill the space in the next three years as Seattle likely will be looking to replace the departing Randy Arozarena. Whether Ramos would be a full-time player as he’s been the past three years or a sort of 0.8 FTE type in pairing with Raley, Dominic Canzone, and Brendan Donovan over the next couple years, there is a hand-in-glove sort of fit with a player as talented and consistently decent, while still so young.

Foley receives fewer words, but solves a need. He’s a career reliever who grew into a high-leverage role with the Tigers before injuries wiped him out for all of 2025. Dealt this winter in a package to the Giants, he was expected to miss Opening Day but has only gotten into two games thus far, one against Seattle. He’s a sinker-heavy righty with a groundball profile that helps him be hyper-efficient, and he was deployed as both a closer and a fireman in his time with Detroit. In his first year of arbitration, Foley is earning $2 million, but won’t likely see that sum rise significantly next year due to the time he’s missed the past two years, making him an undisruptive add for the M’s financially as well.

The prospect cost is recognizable. I prefer keeping Michael Arroyo to Farmelo, the former of whom Seattle is hoping prospers as a player not unlike Ramos himself. That might mean he’s a more sensible player to deal away, with Farmelo still projecting like a plus center fielder, but I also prefer Arroyo’s bat and skillset overall. Farmelo was recently promoted to Double-A, and fits the Giants’ need for a rangy outfielder who can handle their massive confines, something Arroyo decidedly has not shown an acuity for. He’s also been more swing-and-miss prone than any of Seattle’s top prospects save for Lazaro Montes, at a lower level. And yet, he is performing well at just age 21, having lost significant reps to a brutal ACL injury that seems physically well in his past. He has a case to be the likeliest position player star in Seattle’s system currently. Little is a slower burn righty, whose managed to miss bats in multi-inning work with High-A Everett in his age 22 season. Highly touted as a prep, he’s gone from Vanderbilt to LSU to the pros, finding his best outcomes in the bullpen. While this return might disappoint one hopeful Giants fan, I do think it stings enough to be in the right range while still being sensible given Ramos will see his salary grow in the next three years.

Conclusion: Do it. The Mariners should make this move for their immediate and mid-term future. The Giants are profoundly in need of the exact talent ceiling and positional fit that Farmelo affords. Seattle gets a player both younger and with a longer track record of hitting than Casey Schmitt, who has also been suggested as a target, at the cost of some defensive versatility.

Alternatively… OF Luis Robert Jr. of the Mets is a more expensive, less healthy option Seattle could target, whose salary and inconsistency would make him less prospect-intensive to acquire. He’s similarly scorched southpaws all career long. Unlike Ramos, he’s on an expiring deal, making him more equivalent to the Yonder Alonso deal of 2017. Unlike Byron Buxton, who has a similar skillset and injury bug but is vastly more consistent as a performer, Robert is sure to be available. Unlike Seiya Suzuki, it’s easier to make the move fit with a non-contender than a contender.

2. Lock Down the Pen

Seattle Mariners acquire LHP Adrian Morejon, RHP Jeremiah Estrada, & OF Ramón Laureano
San Diego Padres acquire RHP Emerson Hancock, 2B/OF Ryan Bliss, & OF Carlos Jimenez

If you want to solidify Seattle’s bullpen, the NL West has ample options to satisfy. I put together similar deals with the Colorado Rockies (centered on RHP Antonio Senzatela and RHP Victor Vodnik or RHP Jimmy Herget, which would likely require a bit less in return) and Arizona Diamondbacks (RHP Kevin Ginkel and RHP Ryan Thompson, even cheaper but firmly upgrading the depth of the pen). But for impact, San Diego has the goods, and the clubs are in conversations already. I don’t believe Seattle will target Mason Miller or Louis Varland, the two most impactful relievers on seller teams. It’s not been their MO in years past to extend major resources for the most volatile type of player, and until this year they’ve managed to whip up at least one solid arm internally annually.

But Morejon and Estrada are in a second tier, leverage arms who can and have been deployed flexibly with years of strong performance to point to in their resumés. Morejon is simply one of the five or 10 best relievers in baseball over the past three years, ranking fourth in fWAR since the start of 2024 with 5.2, trailing only Cade Smith of Cleveland (7.2), Miller (7.0), and Jhoan Duran of the Twins and Phillies (5.2).

The 27 year old Cuban has managed 191.1 innings of relief in that time, also fourth-most, while appearing in the sixth-most games (182). An expiring free agent, pitching early and often is nothing new for Morejon, who debuted in the Cuban National Series (the nation’s top domestic league) at the age of 15 and in MLB at just 20 years of age. He’s sat in the upper-90s his entire career, and since transitioning to a bullpen role in 2022 has largely locked down late innings for San Diego. Set for free agency this winter, Morejon is a tricky candidate for a qualifying offer, as his early-career injuries and inconsistency kept his arbitration salaries low but his youth and track record should yield a decent return. San Diego is likely to get better value in trading him than what might be a huge spike in payroll they’re not keen to risk given the lofty salaries already on the books.

That latter point is the purpose of Laureano’s inclusion, although the fiery veteran could feature in a late season platoon role if he’s able to return healthy from the hip labrum surgery he had in June to address nagging discomfort he’s been facing for years. More likely, he’ll simply continue his rehabilitation by turning right instead of left when he arrives at the complex in Peoria. What this does allow of interest to San Diego beyond merely shaving $6.5 million (prorated) from their salary is to scoot much closer to being under the luxury tax threshold.

For 2026, MLB has set the tax threshold at $244 million for clubs. San Diego currently is around $10-15 million above that level, and would be exceeding the tax for the second consecutive year, incurring a 30% additional tax on any payroll over that $244 million level. With new ownership and a seeming desire to continue contending while resetting their tax status (and with it some of their additional draft pick and international bonus pool circumstances as well), moving Laureano helps save San Diego more money than he’s owed while also improving their future prospects more directly.

That leaves Estrada, who is nearing the conclusion of rehabbing knee inflammation that sidelined him for a month and a half. The 27 year old is under contract for three years after this one, albeit all arbitration, which will make him a player not as lightly parted with. He’s another flamethrower, though his velocity has been down two ticks this year, perhaps in part connected to his knee issues. What Estrada excels at is getting punchouts, profiling much more as a leverage, shutdown arm than the multi-inning type.

Personally, I’ve found Estrada’s style and stuff to be some of my favorite in the majors for years. He throws a four-seamer with excellent ride and a Fernando Rodney-esque splitter and a delivery that looks like he’s uncorking from an Adirondack chair. He can handle hitters of all handedness, and gives Seattle an incredibly imposing pen to lean on night in and night out for multiple years.

The cost is sizable, as it should be, but in keeping with prices at 2025’s deadline which saw controlled relievers like Duran and Varland dealt for well-regarded prospects that were nonetheless not necessarily top-100 names. Ryan Helsley, a strong comparable to Morejon this year, cost an array of lower minors players but none earth-shattering.

Still, this is a big deal purely by number of names exchanged. That’s always worrisome in trade prognostication, but I think it’s a fair fit. San Diego doesn’t want to tank, they want to reload cheaply. Hancock immediately can justify the deal himself if he continues performing as he’s done in this breakout season. He’ll be under contract through 2030 if desired, not hitting arbitration until 2028. The measurable and meaningful improvements in his repertoire are reflected in his results and his peripherals, even with some BABIP fortune. But he’s had 105.1 good innings this year after 165.2 pretty rough ones, and never dominated in the minors up to his pedigree. The deal will take a bit more breadth.

For the Friars, again, this move prioritizes depth and proximity. Bliss is not included as a major piece, he’s simply more useful for San Diego than he is for Seattle, where he could actually play a useful role or be allowed the chance to try. San Diego’s upper minors infield depth is ghastly and old in baseball terms. More important is Jimenez, who fits in an area of cavernous absence in San Diego’s system. Low-to-mid-minors outfielders are few and far between for the Padres, and Jimenez is in the midst of a breakout campaign of his own. The 23 year old Dominican does everything well, albeit nothing extraordinarily, and should be slated for a taste of Double-A Arkansas imminently if not dealt. Blocked from playing center due to Jonny Farmelo’s presence, he can handle all three outfield spots while slashing for impressive power and plate discipline from the left side. I went back and forth on Korbyn Dickerson in this spot, your mileage may vary, largely contingent on how highly you value Hancock.

Conclusion: Yes, with a bit of teeth-gnashing. It is against my strongest instincts to deal starters for relievers, or anything for relievers, really. But it’s what the M’s need, it drains the six-man rotation morass, and deals from areas of relative strength in Seattle’s system. If Dan Wilson has 6-7 excellent arms in the bullpen, it also removes a degree of the grousing as to who is used when. They’ll all be worth using!

Alternatively… Too many to name. Seattle is in a great spot in terms of buying for bullpen help, as they don’t need an ace closer to improve, just to displace the three or so least effective arms with competency. Every non-contending club has at least one or two arms who could be had for a small prospect return. I’ll note that if clearing salary is particularly important to San Diego as I expect it to be, adding in LHP Yuki Matsui would make sense in this deal, and likely allow Seattle to save on prospect cost in some capacity. Matsui is owed $13.5 million over the next two years in addition to the remainder of $5.75 million this year. He’s been able to out-pitch his peripherals as an extreme fly ball arm, but doesn’t make a ton of sense for San Diego as constructed.

3. Twin Aces on a Five Card Draw

Seattle Mariners acquire RHP Joe Ryan, 3B/2B Royce Lewis, &LHP Taylor Rogers
Minnesota Twins acquire RHP Emerson Hancock, RHP Luis Castillo, OF Lazaro Montes*, and cash

If you’ve read this far, you’ve spent a lot of time in the tasteful mundanity of most midseason moves. This is a step further out there. The Twins are “evaluating” their options at this deadline, with Ryan clearly the silver medal option for anyone opting out of the Tarik Skubal sweepstakes. I have seen no clear indication of the M’s going for Skubal, and while Ryan specifically has had no clear smoke, he’s part of a Twins roster that’s been evaluated for numerous fits with Seattle’s needs. I’ve put together a trade above which fits Minnesota’s seeming desire to continue contending in the Buxton era, save money at a premium, and find some impact bats. This deal allows for all three, with some questions.

Ryan is under contract for a little over $6 million this year, and while he has a mutual option for 2027, those are functionally non-existent and never taken, meaning he’ll instead default to his final year of arbitration. He’d be liable to make a sum well into eight figures, still less than he’d get on the open market but not a titanic discount. He’s been much like Castillo in his earlier years: an absolute stalwart with a fastball-heavy repertoire that’s not quite made him a Cy Young contender, but a playoff starter for any team in baseball. Ryan is in the midst of his best season as a pro, with a 3.38/3.42/4.00 ERA/FIP/DRA that’s put him at 2.5 fWAR thus far, on par with George Kirby, Jacob deGrom, and Drew Rasmussen in the 19-22 range by fWAR headed into Friday. He’s a fly ball pitcher who would be better served in Seattle than the bandbox of Target Field in Minnesota, even in summertime.

Ryan’s appeal is the allowance of consolidation of resources. Trading in two good arms for one great one is not always the right move, but for Seattle it is at this moment. While moving Castillo to a less-contending club is a tough move for the veteran, it’s liable to happen in most permutations of a move this year, and Minnesota is neither completely out of it in 2026 nor a longshot to be right in the mix for the AL Central in 2027. That’s the appeal of Castillo, even at a loftier price point, which Seattle might still need to pay down somewhat. While clearing Ryan, Rogers, and Royce allows for some money off the books, Minnesota is not a big spender and may prefer to add in Josh Bell or Victor Caratini to offset some costs.

What Lewis and Rogers add is more a fit for Seattle’s needs than they are for Minnesota’s. The Twins have Lewis off his normal 3B role at present, letting longtime top prospect Brooks Lee get his reps at third. Demoted at one point this year, Lewis is splitting time between the non-shortstop positions defensively, and has been an above-average hitter for his career with still-decent numbers against southpaws this year. Displacing Buddy Kennedy for Lewis is a plus at a minimum, and the former first overall pick can see if a change of scenery lets him find a 2024 Victor Robles-like rejuvenation. Rogers has had a poor season, but the southpaw seems to be a victim of a .351 BABIP more than entirely over the hill if his 5.45 ERA vs. 3.96 FIP have any merit. He’ll also clear another $2 million prorated for Minnesota this year.

*The inclusion of Montes here is conditional. It’s hard to imagine Minnesota eating most of Castillo’s salary. There could be a chance to include a third club like the Cubs who are less penny-pinching, but we’re already out on our skis a ways. Montes fits the bill for Minnesota, with their compact ballpark limiting the impact of his subpar range and allowing his prominent power to play up. The club that boasted the “Bomba Squad” not so long ago has been seeking sluggers like Montes for years, from Trevor Larnach to Alex Kiriloff to Matt Wallner to Max Kepler. I see Montes as a mitigation for Castillo’s salary here, which could also be something Minnesota wishes to move on from before the deadline themselves.

Conclusion: I’m interested, but it’s still a bit tricky. While I strongly support consolidating Seattle’s strengths here into an ace, especially if Detroit continues their resurgence, the prices for Ryan could skyrocket beyond a move like this. I wouldn’t expect a move like this, even though it might make for a real splash.

Alternatively… As a Mariners fan, there is something sinister in trade proposals for the beloved aces of losing franchises. Not every fanbase has something as potent as the relationship between Seattle and Félix Hernández, but I don’t wish the experience on anyone. Moreover, with the Red Sox surging, they too are likely out of the easy fit range for someone like Sonny Gray, and Kevin Gausman apparently is still sore from all the important games he’s lost against the M’s such that they are on his no-trade list. It’s Ryan or run another play.

ICYMI, here’s today’s roster move.

Friday notes…

• BACK-TO-BACK: The Cubs have lost back-to-back games only twice in their last 40 played, since a third straight loss, at home to the Athletics, on June 3. They fell twice at home to the Cardinals on July 3-4, then at Baltimore on July 9 and at Cincinnati the next day. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• WINNING ON THE ROAD: The Cubs are 27-23 on the road. They finished 42-39 last year, their first full season with a winning record since 2018, when they were 44-37. They were 15-12 in the 60-game 2020 season. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• DIVISION RIVALS: The Cubs are 13-13 vs. their Central Division opponents. The Pirates are 17-12 within the division; the Brewers, 19-10; and the Cardinals, 15-13. The Reds are 6-22. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: The Cubs overcame a 4-1 deficit in Milwaukee with a five-run seventh and defeated the Brewers 6-5, increasing their NL Central lead to 7.5 games. It happened 10 years ago today, Sunday, July 24, 2016.

Cubs lineup:

Got weekend plans in Pittsburgh.

Tune in live on @WatchMarquee. pic.twitter.com/oa9pyHSbYR

— Chicago Cubs (@Cubs) July 24, 2026

The Pirates lineup was not available at posting time. Please check BCB social media for the Pirates lineup.

Matthew Boyd, LHP vs. Jared Jones, RHP

Matthew Boyd since returning from his knee injury: five starts, 2.57 ERA, 1.143 WHIP. He’s been really good and has thrown 90+ pitches in each of his last three starts, so shouldn’t be pitch limited tonight.

He has not faced the Pirates this year. Last year he had a 4.50 ERA in three starts covering 14 innings, which was two good outings and one pretty bad one. The bad one was in September when he was running out of gas. He should be better tonight.

Jared Jones was being talked about as a 1-2 along with Paul Skenes in the Pirates rotation two years ago, then he missed part of 2024 and all of 2025 with “internal brace” surgery, something different from Tommy John surgery. He’s made nine starts this year and started off kind of shaky, but over the last three: 1.20 ERA, 0.533 WHIP, 23 strikeouts and only three walks in 15 innings.

He appears to be a bit pitch-limited as he has maxed out at 81 this year and 75 over those last three starts. So, get to him early, if possible.

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MLB.com Gameday

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The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

In a news conference ahead of Friday's game against the Los Angeles Dodgers, Mets pitcher Clay Holmes addressed the uncertainty surrounding his immediate future with the ballclub.

With the MLB trade deadline set for 6 p.m. on Monday, Aug. 3, the Mets have already indicated that they are open for business, and Holmes is one of many players who could be on the move.

"There's a lot that can happen, a lot of different scenarios," the veteran hurler stated. "It does feel like the team is going to make some moves; what those are, we don't know."

Holmes, 33, has a player option following the 2026 season, and it was recently reported that the right-hander was open to inking an extension.

"I'm grateful to have an opportunity here with the Mets, and have been since I signed here," the pitcher said.

However, Holmes revealed today that the possibility of extending his time in Queens is still up in the air.

When asked if there had been any progress on a contract extension with the Mets, Holmes replied, "I don't think there's been a ton there. It's one of those situations where there's a few different scenarios the team can go, and it boils down to what the team thinks is best for the organization long-term."

Meanwhile, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearns declined to comment when asked the same question during his regularly scheduled news conference ahead of the team's series opener with the Dodgers.

Holmes recently made his first rehab start since he was sidelined with a right fibula fracture sustained on a comebacker during his start against the Yankees on May 15.

"It's a unique scenario, the timing of this injury, the unforeseen circumstances with the team," lamented Holmes. "Sometimes it's easy to let your mind wander, there's a lot of things out there that you can't control which will have some impact on your future. As an athlete, especially me right now, I want to be pitching my best during these last two months, whether that be here [with the Mets] or somewhere else."

"You want to leave a place better than you found it. Hopefully things are better here when I leave, whenever that is," he concluded.

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.

BetweenthePinstripes asks:Which AL team would be the toughest opponent for the Yankees in the playoffs?

It’s well known how mediocre the Junior Circuit has looked this year, and while the Yankees are unfortunately playing down to that level themselves as well it at least means that there isn’t an overwhelmingly threatening matchup to look out for. That is, of course, depending on how much you’re buying into Boston’s sudden charge back into the picture. The Red Sox used a four-game sweep of the Yankees at the end of June as a launching pad to spring into a 15-game winning streak, claiming a slim lead for the final Wild Card spot and putting themselves within shouting distance of the Yankees and Rays.

Boston’s offense isn’t anywhere close to what was expected entering this year — Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony haven’t factored in at all and Jarren Duran has been outright bad, while Willson Contreras has been the big addition for the lineup and Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu have done enough to keep them afloat while contributing on defense. The real strength of the team has been their pitching staff: offseason acquisition Ranger Suarez has been the ace the team needed with Garrett Crochet missing most of the year, Payton Tolle has taken a major leap in his first full season in the majors, and Sonny Gray continues to thrive in his post-Yankees career. Former Yankee Aroldis Chapman looms in the back of their ‘pen enjoying a renaissance season where he’s simply dominated, and former Yankee farmhand Garrett Whitlock rebounded to serve as a fantastic setup man beside him. Have the Yankees woken up a team that was expected to be competitive this year but just struggled out of the gate, or are they enjoying a hot stretch over the summer that they can’t sustain? The field certainly didn’t punish their sluggish first three months as Boston now sits with the second-best run differential in the AL, and there’s a very real possibility that they line up as the Yankees’ first postseason matchup whether that’s in the Wild Card Round or the ALDS.

Unfortunately for New York, their other threat also sits within their own division. The Rays may not be running away with the AL East, but they’ve held onto the top spot for a while now and have proven to be a thorn in the Yankees’ side. The core of their offense is a greater threat than Boston’s, led by the powerful bat of Junior Caminero and featuring plus performance from Yandy Díaz and Jonathan Aranda with Chandler Simpson proving to be a nuisance every time the Yankees have faced Tampa as well. Their rotation is no slouch either, with Shane McClanahan back in the fold looking like he never missed a beat alongside Drew Rasmussen building off of his breakout 2025. Nick Martinez has stepped into the rotation and become a strong No. 3, though his expected stats tell a story of regression waiting to hit. I think Boston is the scarier threat to face in a short round like the Wild Card while Tampa would be more annoying in the ALDS, but either way they sit one and two on the board of teams to look out for.

As for the rest of the field, I just don’t see much competence coming from the Central or West this year. The West in particular is a mess, with no one capable of running away with a division begging to be taken. The Mariners have been major disappointments, the Rangers have been middle of the pack on both sides of the ball, and the Astros are fighting against rapids just trying to breach a .500 record. The Central has been better but not by much, with the White Sox surprisingly ahead but feeling like a team that would put the wild in Wild Card. Cleveland is always around but uninspiring, and Minnesota is technically in the mix but has felt like a team that knows they should sell for weeks. Things could get shaken up dramatically at the deadline, but of this bunch I only see Seattle having the pieces to put something truly crazy together, and they might just be better off waiting to promote their own top prospects rather than deal any of them.

ConorGallogly asks:We have Rodríguez, Beck, De los Santos, Cruz, Hanner on 40-man and in AAA, plus Castro just called up, and Lagrange, Reyzelman, and Cohen in AAA, but not on 40-man. Does any player listed, or any other current minor leaguer make our playoff roster this season? How many starts do we need outside of Schlittler, Cole, Fried, Rodón, Warren, & Weathers for the rest of the season? Can Rodríguez cover them effectively?

If the team stays healthy, then the most likely one of this group I can see making a playoff roster is Yovanny Cruz. He looked mighty impressive in his short stints in the majors, and his minor league numbers have been excellent enough to warrant another look whenever the team desires. They haven’t pulled that trigger often though, insisting on running out Camilo Doval and Jake Bird with regularity when at least one of them could easily get booted from the bullpen at this point. The Trade Deadline will likely bring with it another arm or two, and the rotation will be slimmed down to four come October meaning some of those starters will get used in relief as well so I don’t think the likes of Elmer Rodriguez or Brendan Beck have a shot this time around. Carlos Lagrange was a possibility to get fast-tracked for the bullpen, but his initial struggles combined with his shoulder injury will probably shut the door on that opportunity.

The most interesting name of the group is Bradley Hanner, a reliever picked up over the offseason and stashed away in the minors for depth purposes after pitching in the Twins and Guardians’ organizations without reaching the majors. Hanner’s been extremely effective in Triple-A for the RailRiders, pitching to a 2.30 ERA with 53 strikeouts in 43 innings, and with an opt-out in the contract looming the team chose to add him to the 40-man roster while sliding Aaron Judge over to the 60-day IL. That begs the question of what will happen to his roster spot once the Captain is healthy again, but if he manages to get a shot before then perhaps someone else will take the blow. I’d still rank Cruz as a likelier addition to the roster than Hanner based on him actually appearing with the team this year, but both are a bit of a long-shot currently.

Lidbit asks:Yankees third base situation is atrocious: DJ $15 million, McMahon $16 million, Rosario $2.5 million. Collectively well below MLB average offense and the defense? Well the Yankees have lowest third base fielding percentage in MLB! Not counting the other night’s McMahon muff! Aside from the Josh Donaldson fiasco, how does this rank among Cashman’s recent misadventures?

It’s up there as one of the worst-rostered positions we’ve seen the Yankees roll out throughout this competitive window, though I think that letting a concussed Anthony Rizzo provide next to nothing for as long as they did was a worse mishandling than what’s going on at the hot corner currently. However, I think it’s as bad as it is mainly because the faults of each player cascade into the other: relying on DJ LeMahieu in 2025 to be an everyday part of the lineup when he hadn’t shown those capabilities in years (to say nothing of extending his contract an additional year to spread out the luxury tax hit) was an obvious error that led Cashman to seeking a warm body that could at least field the position. That in turn led to overexposing Rosario when McMahon’s struggled at the plate in April and May, which let pitchers figure out how to deal with him while simultaneously hurting the team’s defense. If the LeMahieu aspect of this equation was wiped clean for this year and his contract was off the books a year earlier it looks a lot less messy and would probably give them the room to try and find a fix at this year’s deadline, but with as much money tied down as there is already other positions simply have to take priority.

Johnny1944 asks: Will Stan ever heal?

Allegedly, though I have no idea what he’ll do if he ever does make it back onto the field this season.

The Miami Marlins (52-51) welcome the San Diego Padres (50-53) to South Beach this weekend. It is a crucial three-game set for both teams’ playoff hopes. Each club has struggled following the All-Star break. The loser of this series will kiss their postseason chances goodbye.

Thursday Results

The Padres fell short for a second consecutive day, as a late-game rally ended in a frustrating 6-5 defeat to the Atlanta Braves. The loss dropped them to 2-5 on their 10-game, three-city road trip.

The Friars began the scoring with a three-run rally off of Braves ace Chris Sale. A fielding error by left fielder Mauricio Dubón aided the offense, as it was followed by a bases-loaded walk to Fernando Tatis Jr. and a two-run single by Luis Renglio. But that lead was short-lived.

After Padres opener Kyle Hart pitched a scoreless first inning, Griffin Canning came into the contest as the bulk pitcher. His struggles continued with the first batter he faced. Michael Harris II homered on the second pitch of his at-bat. The Braves scored four more runs in the fourth inning, as Ozzie Albies hit a solo home run and Dominic Smith followed with a three-run blast. 

Atlanta closed out its scoring with Drake Baldwin hitting a solo home run off Matt Waldron in the seventh inning. The Friars came back with a two-run shot by Ty France. The bats tried to rally in the ninth inning, but to no avail.

Taking the mound: German Marquez (SD) vs Ryan Gusto (MIA)

The Marlins waited until this morning to name their starting pitcher for this afternoon’s game. The club is trying to fill a void left by star pitcher Max Meyer, who recently went on the injured list with a neck strain.

The team has chosen right-hander Ryan Gusto (0-2, 4.70 ERA), who has worked out of the bullpen and been a spot starter this season. He has a deep pitching repertoire, as Gusto does not throw particularly hard. But the right-hander will use his four-seam, cutter, and breaking ball to strike out left-handed batters. The movement keeps them off-balance during their at-bats. 

The Marlins have struggled to begin the second half of the 2026 season, as the team is 1-9 in their last 10 games. At the All-Star break, the club held the final wild card position. But now, the Marlins find themselves two games back of the Arizona Diamondbacks. 

German Marquez (4-2, 5.24 ERA) takes the ball and is determined to end the Padres’ recent slide. He has pitched better since coming off the IL. Marquez has become more effective by working on a pitch count that allows him to go through an opposing lineup once. 

The right-hander has averaged three-plus innings since returning to the starting rotation. But to be effective, Marquez must avoid contact, which is impossible with the lowest strikeout rate (13.8%) among all major league starters. 

The offense scored 21 runs in the four-game set against the Braves. The hope is the bats remain alive this weekend. It would be the perfect time for Miami native Manny Machado to put on a show for the home folks. He leads the Friars with 22 HRs and 59 RBIs. 

Today’s lineup

Fish 🔙 home

🤝: @PNCBank
📺: https://t.co/pMAEOPHNJ8
👂: @MarlinsRadio, @radiomambi710, @1043wqam
⏰: 7:10 PM ET
🏟️: Roof status: CLOSED#FightinFish // https://t.co/ZrOdIbYDTIpic.twitter.com/iGcjWTPz6S

— Miami Marlins (@Marlins) July 24, 2026

New series in Miami 🌴 pic.twitter.com/Q2zzxg0VYo

— San Diego Padres (@Padres) July 24, 2026