Category: Baseball

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The Chicago Cubs welcome the Cincinnati Reds to Wrigley Field for a weekend set, trading at 64% on Polymarket.

My Reds vs. Cubs predictions break down why the hosts will come out on top in a high-scoring game.

Read my free MLB picks for Friday, Aug. 28 below.

Who will win Reds vs Cubs today: Cubs moneyline (64%)

The Chicago Cubs own the best offense in baseball (5.19 runs per game), and they’ll be licking their chops today when they face Cincinnati Reds starter Rhett Lowder.

The right-hander owns a massive 5.14 xERA (10th percentile) and .266 xBA (16th percentile), while ranking in the 15th percentile in pitching run value.

The Cubs have been on fire at the dish this week, led by Ian Happ, who’s sporting an insane 1.335 OPS with 10 RBI. As a club, Chicago leads the majors in runs (39), SLG (.512), and OPS (.858) over the last seven days.

Take the Cubs up to 67%.

COVERS INTEL: The Cubs are batting .301 (third in MLB) with a .373 wOBA (second in MLB) against the sinker, which is Lowder’s most utilized pitch (29.2%).

Reds vs Cubs Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (50%)

We know Lowder has been lousy, but David Peterson has been just as bad for Chicago.

The southpaw has a 4.84 xERA and .271 xBA, with a pitching run value in the ninth percentile. The Reds’ offense is also much more respectable against left-handed pitching, as they sit eighth in MLB in OPS vs. southpaws (.731).

The Cubs have cashed the Over in eight of Peterson’s last 10 appearances, while the Over is 2-0 in their two prior games against Lowder this season.

The Over is the play up to 52%.

Reds vs Cubs home run prediction: Ian Happ (19%)

What a week it’s been for Happ.

The Cubs outfielder leads the majors with 10 RBI over that span while batting .350 with a ridiculous 1.335 OPS and three dingers to boot.

Happ has hit eight of his 23 home runs against either the sinker or the slider — Lowder’s two main offerings.

Happ’s on fire and we’re getting a great price on him to go yard again. Play him up to 21%.

Reds vs Cubs weather

Wrigley Field will see clear skies with temperatures in the mid-70s and light winds pushing in from right field.

Reds vs Cubs odds

• Moneyline: Cincinnati (37¢) | Chicago (64¢)
• Run line: Cincinnati +1.5 (56¢) | Chicago -1.5 (47¢)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (46¢) | Under 8.5 (55¢)

Reds vs Cubs trend

The Cubs have covered the run line in 28 of their last 45 games (+16.10 Units / 31% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Reds vs. Cubs.

How to watch Reds vs Cubs and game info

Reds vs Cubs latest injuries

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Hickory was rained out.

Andrew Susac went 0.2 IP for Hub City, walking three and allowing four runs.

Paxton Kling was 2 for 3 with two walks and two stolen bases. Gleider Figuereo had a hit. Maxton Martin had a hit. Eduardo Mejia had a hit and a walk. Chandler Pollard had a hit.

Hub City box score

Eric Loomis threw a scoreless inning for Frisco, striking out two and walking one. Leandro Lopez struck out three and walked one in three shutout innings. Josh Trentadue struck out two and walked one in two scoreless innings.

Frisco box score

Round Rock starter Winston Santos allowed one run in 3.2 IP, striking out six and walking two. Ben Peoples struck out two in 1.1 scoreless innings. Michel Otanez struck out two in two shutout innings. Emiliano Teodo allowed five runs in 0.1 IP, walking two. Joe Russ allowed four runs in 1.1 IP, walking two and striking out one. Marc Church allowed a run in 0.1 IP, walking two.

Round Rock box score

Welcome to rivalry weekend. The Yankees will take on the Red Sox in the Bronx after dropping two of three to the Astros. After scoring 16 runs in the first two games of the series the bats only got a single run in the finale.

On the other side, Boston has been rolling since the All-Star break, going 27-12. Since the season got back underway, they have a team OPS of .796, and in the month of August that number currently sits at .810. The Red Sox swept the Giants at home before taking two of three from the Marlins down in Miami most recently. 

After a day off, Boston’s pen is rested and ready. However, they are a little banged up as former Yankee Garrett Whitlock, who is having an exceptional season with a 2.05 ERA and an impressive 0.89 WHIP, and Justin Slaten, a trusted arm, are both currently on the injured list.

Expect to see a healthy dose of the toxic lefty Aroldis Chapman, who is having a great season with 30 saves and a 1.81 ERA, along with another former Yankee in righty Greg Weissert, who is 3-2 with a 3.93 ERA. Boston’s early-game lefty reliever is Erik Miller, who is sporting a 2.09 ERA with a 1.28 WHIP, and they often call on righty journeyman Tyron Guerrero, who has 17 holds and a 1.07 WHIP this year.

The Yankees’ pen took a big blow this week when it was announced that Fernando Cruz was diagnosed with a partial UCL tear. Heading into the weekend, closer David Bednar should be fresh after not being used in the Astros series. Most of the regulars should be ready after Justin Topa grinded out the last bit of last night’s game. Going four games in three days is always tough, and with a trip to the West Coast looming, I would expect the bullpen to shuffle a good bit over the weekend.

This weekend series features a twin bill on Saturday, which is a makeup for the game that was rained out back in June. This will be the last time these two teams meet until a possible October showdown. Currently, Boston holds a 5-4 advantage in the season series, further adding to the need for the Yankees to win this series. Now, let’s dive into the pitching matchups.

Friday: Cam Schlittler vs. Patrick Sandoval (7:15 p.m. ET)

It is not hard to gush over how great Schlittler has been this season and boy, do the Yankees need him to be that guy tonight, coming in with an impressive 11-6 record, a 2.17 ERA, and a 0.96 WHIP to top it off. In three starts against Boston this season, Schlittler is 1-1 with a 0.96 ERA across 18.2 innings. This will be Schlittler’s fifth start in August. So far in the month, he has a 1-0 record with a 2.95 ERA, and over his last three outings he has only given up a single earned run each time out. The young ace will look to set the tone in game one and simply do what he has done when he faces his hometown team.

Sandoval, a lefty, takes the hill for Boston to counter Schlittler. This will be Sandoval’s ninth start of the season coming off his rehab for Tommy John surgery. In his eight starts since returning, he has posted a 1-2 record with a 4.54 ERA and a 1.76 WHIP. Sandoval primarily throws a slider, changeup, and sinker, profiling as the crafty lefty who relies on deception and movement. The Yankees might be able to take advantage of the rust, as Sandoval has walked 18 batters in 39.2 innings thus far.

Saturday Game 1: Carlos Rodón vs. Jake Bennett (1:05 p.m. ET)

The Yankees will send Rodón out for game one of the doubleheader. He has made two starts since coming back off the injured list due to elbow inflammation. The veteran lefty went 4.0 innings in each outing, giving up an earned run in each and throwing 66 and 76 pitches, respectively. As Peter detailed back on Monday, Rodón has been using his sinker more since he returned. Injuries have limited him to 11 starts, but in those starts Rodón has posted a 3.15 ERA, with 58 strikeouts across 54.1 innings. Rodón pitched five scoreless innings against the Boston Red Sox on June 28, allowing just one hit and four walks while striking out six.

Boston sends their second straight lefty to the hill in Bennett for game one. Bennett faced the Yankees back on June 27. He picked up the win while allowing just one run over 6.1 innings in that game. The Red Sox rookie has an 8-6 record with a 3.49 ERA and 67 strikeouts in 15 appearances on the season. The 6-foot-6 southpaw has a low three-quarters arm slot with a high leg kick, with an arsenal that features a four-seamer, sinker, changeup, and cutter.

Saturday Game 2: TBA vs. TBA (7:15 p.m. ET)

As of Thursday night, neither team has announced a starter for the second game of the doubleheader. It is expected that the Yankees will activate and roll Max Fried following his recovery from a recurring bone bruise, while Boston has indicated they might do a bullpen game featuring a heavy dose of righty Brayan Bello, who has fared well in a bulk role since losing his rotation spot.

Sunday: Will Warren vs. Ranger Suárez (1:35 p.m. ET)

The Sunday matinee features the ever-present William Warren. Warren might not be your favorite pitcher on the team, but you have to respect his availability and how hard he fights each outing. Warren has made 25 starts on the year and has posted an 8-6 record with a 4.39 ERA and 126 strikeouts. In his last start, he went 5.0 innings and gave up two earned runs against the Astros. It is very possible the tiebreaker for the season series with Boston comes down to Warren’s right arm.

If Sunday’s game has that much storyline, the Red Sox counter with offseason signing Suárez. The veteran lefty has been average at best so far in August, giving up nine earned runs in 18.1 innings of work. However, in his last start he worked 5.0 innings of one-run ball against the Marlins. Suárez has faced the Bombers twice in 2026. In his first start back in April, he lasted only 4.2 innings and gave up four earned runs, taking the loss. Suárez looked much better against the Yankees the second time around in June when he tossed 6.1 innings of one-run ball.

All these lefties make me feel like a Heliot Ramos, earn your pinstripes series is loading and ready to launch. What do you predict for this weekend? Who takes the season series?

The Detroit Lions enter their final preseason game with likely most of their roster spots decided, but one that may still be up in the air is the backup quarterback job.

Entering training camp, there likely wasn’t going to be much drama at the position. However, Teddy Bridgewater’s abrupt retirement midway through camp forced the Lions to pivot. While undrafted rookie Luke Altmyer has been with the team all offseason, suddenly thrusting a 23-year-old into the backup position wasn’t something the Lions were willing to do unopposed. So they quickly added nine-year veteran Josh Dobbs to the room.

But thus far in camp, Altmyer has continued to get the bulk of the backup reps. And what seemed like a far-fetched approach—letting Altmyer be the backup to veteran Jared Goff—now seems closer to reality than ever.

On Thursday, Lions coach Dan Campbell asked what he needs to see from Altmyer to have the confidence that he can handle such a critical role.

“Consistency. Just play good smart football,” Campbell said. “We don’t need some wild throws, whatever. Be able to run the offense, be efficient, make smart decisions, even if that means that you’re punting the ball. That’ll be the most important thing. We don’t want the wild plays and then there’s an ill-advised throw across the middle for an intercept—those won’t get it done. So just be smart, take what’s there, run the offense and that’ll go a long way.”

It hardly seems like a coincidence that Campbell would bring up the example of an ill-advised pass over the middle that was intercepted. That could be fresh in his mind because Altmyer’s competition, Josh Dobbs, did exactly that in the team’s second preseason game last week.

But under Dan Campbell, the Lions have seemingly preferred to have a veteran set of eyes behind Goff. Be it Bridgewater, David Blough, or Kyle Allen, the Lions almost always wanted a seasoned player among the quarterback reserves, with the lone exception being 2024 (Hendon Hooker, Jake Fromm).

Campbell admitted they prefer to have experienced players at quarterback, but that won’t trump overall talent when it comes to cut-down day.

“I mean, you would like that because those guys have played, there are real reps. They’ve been under real fire in real football games and that is important. But that’s not the end all be all, either,” Campbell said. “If you think there’s somebody to work with here and that he’s shown enough progress and he’s only going to get better, then we don’t close our eyes to that either.”

Further complicating the Lions’ decision is the amount of roster gymnastics they could try to perform to keep both players around. Because Dobbs is a veteran, the Lions could opt to cut him, not subject him to waivers, and bring him back later either on the practice squad or 53-man roster. But at the same time, how likely is it that Altmyer would get claimed on waivers if Detroit opted to cut him? Last year, there were only 27 total waiver claims after initial NFL roster cuts, and just one of them (Tommy Devito) was a quarterback. So the Lions could keep Dobbs on the roster, and bring back Altmyer assuming he clears waivers.

Regardless, the Lions won’t make that decision until after Saturday’s preseason finale against the Indianapolis Colts. It’s unclear how the Lions will share the load between Altmyer and Dobbs on gameday, but their performance could be the tipping point for a difficult decision.

The New England Patriots played a horribly boring and just downright horrible game on Thursday in Cleveland to close out their preseason. Even though their 37-13 loss to the Browns was disappointing very much from start to finish, there are always lessons to be learned.

Let’s get into what the Patriots’ final preseason contest of 2026 taught us about the team.

Depth concerns

The Patriots didn’t play any starters on Thursday night, and, truthfully, they probably didn’t play many backups either. The lack of depth was still startling. They were outmatched at pretty much every position on the field, and blown out by a team that could be one of the worst in football this year. The Browns also didn’t start anyone of consequence, so it’s not like they were facing tougher competition.

It just illustrates the point that head coach Mike Vrabel had made last week about New England’s depth. When looking at the starter level, the Patriots have gotten significantly better as a team. If you start to look down the depth chart, that falls apart pretty quickly. It is like that for a lot of teams, but the Patriots need to continue to string good drafts together and find competent UDFAs to help fill out that depth. The hope is that they can do that moving forward, because it was tough to watch some of the guys out there on Thursday.

RB3 competition heating up

Hassan Haskins isn’t going to be returning kicks any time soon, but he did look good running the ball. He ran tough and picked up yards even while getting hit behind the line of scrimmage. Conversely, Lan Larison had two straight drops when he was on the field, and, while JaMichael Hasty had a few nice runs, I don’t think he’s the guy who the Patriots want as their third back either.

This all might be moot, because Jam Miller didn’t even have a carry, which could signal that the Patriots already know that he’s the RB3, and they didn’t really need to see anything else from him on Thursday night. If I had to put money on it, I’d put my money on Miller, but I guess we’ll find out this weekend.

Gabe Jacas, error repeater

The Patriots knew that they might not be getting the best out of Gabe Jacas early on with him missing time in the spring and at the beginning of camp, but I can’t imagine they thought he would look quite this bad in actual game action. What worries me is not the lack of production when it comes to rushing the quarterback, or even stopping the run, but the fact that he keeps making the same mistakes. He is continually burned on bootleg, RPO, and option plays, and instead of holding the outside integrity, he comes flying in and gives up the edge.

It’s happened in every game that he’s played in. At a certain point, you need to ask whether or not he’s ever going to figure it out. I know we’re not even into the regular season of his rookie year, but I would love to see more from him particularly against replacement-level opponents. Until he figures it out, the Patriots simply cannot put him out on the field on a regular basis — which is not good news considering that he currently projects as the team’s third edge.

For the love of god, please sign Christian Gonzalez

The depth shouldn’t even matter when we’re talking about Christian Gonzalez, but my goodness, it was even worse than anyone could have expected. Kindle Vildor looked awful, Karon Prunty played okay, but had trouble finishing his tackles. Meanwhile, Kobee Minor and Marcellas Dial Jr. both had horrendously bad plays that led to touchdowns. Again, this should have next to no impact on the Patriots signing one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL, but it certainly can’t hurt.

Not sure what exactly the hold up has been for the Patriots, or why they wouldn’t be willing to extend one of not only their best players, but one of the best players in the league, but there is no excuse to them not getting something done.

Dominated at the line of scrimmage

The Patriots obviously didn’t play any starters, or even a lot of second-stringers, but they were completely dominated on both sides of the line. I thought that Caleb Lomu was able to hold his own when he was in there, but I didn’t see much from anyone else on the offensive line. On defense, they got almost no pass rush and couldn’t stop the run either. It was as bad of a night as you could imagine, with no one showing much of anything.

I really like the starters that they have on both sides of the ball, but, as soon as guys start going down, there isn’t a lot of depth behind them. 

Do we have a punter competition?

New England brought in a new punter, Matt Haack, because Bryce Baringer got banged up in the game against the Eagles last weekend. Haack had four punts in his Patriots debut, with thrree of them pinning the Browns inside the 20, including a 63-yarder that was downed at the 2.

Baringer looked pretty solid in camp, and it’s clear that kicker Andy Borregales is comfortable with him as his holder. That said, Borregales went 2-for-2 on field goal attempts on Thursday night, and the punts looked great from Haack as well. I think there’s going to be a conversation about which punter to keep starting the season, especially with Baringer a little banged up.

Kyle Williams might be a one-trick pony, but it’s a heck of a trick

There was a whole lot of concern at the beginning of camp about Kyle Williams. He wasn’t getting enough time with the starters, and people were worried that he was on a worrisome trajectory. Well, he might not be a WR1 at this point in his career (or maybe ever), but he had consistently shown that he does one thing extremely well: he is untouchable on a go-route, especially with no safety help.

This single skill should be enough to earn him a few looks a game from Drake Maye, one of the best deep ball throwers in the NFL. I am hoping that he will eventually add more tools to his bag, but having the ability to quickly win off the line and consistently beat coverage deep is a valuable skill, and one which I believe is going to be an important part of the Patriots offense this year.

Namdi Obiazor makes a few plays

On a night where most guys looked terrible, sixth-round draft pick Namdi Obiazor looked at least pretty good. Starting linebackers Robert Spillane and Christian Elliss weren’t dressed, and neither was the injured Khalil Jacobs, leaving Obiazor to look like the best linebacker on the team on Thursday.

Granted, that might not be a high bar, but the youngster nonetheless was one of the few defenders to show up on Thursday. It also helps that he plays a bunch of special teams. This, plus his potential to develop into a player on defense, would be a big boost for a team who doesn’t have any noteworthy long-term depth behind Spillane and Elliss.

Behren Morton is unimpressive

I have mostly liked what I’ve seen from Behren Morton in training camp, and when he has been given reps, he has made pretty good decisions. He looked pretty poised for a rookie, and looked to be a good candidate to eventually become a backup to Drake Maye. All of that went out the window on Thursday.

Morton looked frazzled, made some really bad decisions, and missed on a few throws that could have been big plays — all while going against players who mostly will be out of a job come Sunday night. Ultimately, I think he’s a good guy to keep on the practice squad to see if you can develop him into a usable backup, but, after seeing what I saw Thursday, I’m not going to be super upset if someone claims him off of waivers if the Patriots cut him this weekend. 

Cutdown day is looming

The Patriots have to trim their roster from 91 all the way down to 53 by Sunday afternoon, and they have some tough decisions to make. The first few they are going to have to make involve injuries. Will Harold Landry and/or Brenden Schooler be ready to start the season, or be ready to play in the first few weeks? If not, they are going to have to put them on injured reserve and bring them off when they’re ready. Bryce Baringer is in the same boat; it didn’t sound serious, but they are going to have to make a decision, and putting him on IR could give them a few weeks to figure out whether or not it’s working with Matt Haack.

Lastly, as mentioned before, they have to figure out what to do with the depth. Is it possible that they cut below 53 and claim or sign a few guys who get released? Or do they find another way to fill out their roster? All these questions will be answered by Sunday, and, of course, just because someone is on the practice squad doesn’t mean they won’t play this year. It is still a good line of demarcation for the season, and should signal to everyone that real football is right around the corner.

Of course, in order not to miss any Patriots moves, please make sure to regularly visit our roster cuts tracker.

Last year was a tough one for top-end tight ends, as both George Kittle, Tucker Kraft and Brock Bowers had injury trouble that derailed their fantasy seasons. That left Tre McBride to pick up the slack, catching a crazy 126 passes to set the NFL record for receptions in a season. At this point there is a real chance all three of those injured stud tight ends might be available for Week 1!

We had some fresh talent infuse the tight end position last season, with three rookies putting up strong numbers. Tyler Warren, Colston Loveland, and Harold Fannin Jr. all proved their fantasy worth and look to build on their strong rookie campaigns. It’s nice to have those guys added to what is usually a pretty shallow pool of top fantasy tight ends.

In twelve team leagues that start one tight end, there are often not enough capable fantasy tight ends to go around. This year I’d be happy with eleven of this group being my starter. And since we can wait longer to pick up a TE starter we like, we don’t have to waste a second or third round pick on a stud.

Tight end injuries

George Kittle, 49ers

Kittle ruptured his Achilles in 2026 and is trying to play in Week 1 of the 2026 season at the age of 33! The odds are stacked against him, but I wouldn’t put it past him to have yet another strong year in Kyle Shanahan’s offense. We get a discount on him this season, but for good reason.

Tucker Kraft, Packers

Kraft was absolutely on fire to start last season, putting up 32 receptions for 489 yards and six touchdowns through seven and a half games. Unfortunately, a torn ACL ended his amazing start. All signs point to him playing in Week 1 and Kraft is only 25 and going into his fourth season. I’m not as worried about him as I am Kittle.

Late round TE pick

Terrance Ferguson, Rams

There aren’t many late round tight ends who will have a chance or the ability to be a top fantasy player this year. There are good, solid players who can be useful, but they aren’t going to exceed expectation very often. But, the Rams have Terrance Ferguson, who is a field stretching tight end and if give a chance, could put up big numbers. The question is if he will get that chance. The Rams have plenty of tight ends and will mix and match them, giving none enough consistent work for fantasy greatness. But, the Rams need a WR3 behind Puka Nacua and Davonte Adams. Ferguson could fill that role from the tight end position and it’s worth taking a flier on him to see if that happens.

Tight end PPR Rankings

It was a night to remember for Chris Sale and the Atlanta Braves, who completed the sweep of the Los Angeles Dodgers after Thursday’s 1-0 win. Sale was dominant, throwing his first shutout since 2019. He went the distance, throwing a complete game and allowing just five hits. He struck out 11. 

Drake Baldwin accounted for the Braves’ lone run. He launched a homer on the first pitch of the game, and the Atlanta lineup was unable to plate a run after that. 

Up next, the Colorado Rockies come to town for a weekend series at Truist Park.

More Braves News:

Reliever Robert Suarez is nearing a return to the mound, per report. 

David McCabe launched his second Triple-A homer on Wednesday. More in the minor league recap. 

MLB News:

The Los Angeles Dodgers have placed right-hander Roki Sasaki on the 15-day injured list with a blistered finger. He returned to LA on Thursday for further evaluation.

From the Feed:

Check out Chris Sale’s son’s reaction as he headed to the mound for the ninth inning.

Here we are again. The NFL season is right around the corner and it’s time to get all our ducks in a row. Below you will find my PPR wide receiver rankings for the season, along with injury news and a couple late round targets.

Overall, we saw the fewest 100+ reception games from wide receivers last season as we’ve had in a long while. With just six receivers hitting that mark, we can see that teams are spreading the ball around a bit more, while also relying more on the run game. We still have our handful of studs who we know will dominate if healthy and then a nice group of receivers who have great upside and strong fantasy floors a bit later in drafts.

Running backs on the other hand, don’t have those safe floor plays in the 4th and 5th rounds. In a vacuum, I want two stud RBs to start and then grab my receivers next. Of course, things change when you get in a draft, but that’s how I see things this season.

Wide Receiver Injuries

Malik Nabers, Giants

The Giants have an extremely weak wide receiver group, but the good news is that Malik Nabers is back at practice after suffering a torn ACL in Week 4 last season. He looks like he’ll be available for Week 1, which is good news for fantasy and the Giants. Nabers is one of the few receivers we know is going to get as many targets as he can handle each week.

Luther Burden, Bears

There are plenty of people very high on the Bears offense this year after watching HC Ben Johnson turn things around in year one. Second year receiver Burden is one of those players getting hype, with many seeing his upside as a top 10 fantasy receiver. I am on board with this line of thinking, but a groin strain has kept him out of practice of late and we have to keep that in mind. Hopefully he returns to practice as they get ready for Week 1, but we’ll have to wait to see.

Emeka Egbuka, Buccaneers

Egbuka got off to a hot start in his rookie season, but he and the rest of the team faded hard in the second half. I still like Egbuka and with Mike Evans gone, there is going to be opportunity there to be the WR1. He is currently dealing with a toe injury and there has been no word on how bad it is. Let’s hope he returns to practice ahead of Week 1 so we can feel better about drafting him at ADP.

Jordyn Tyson, Saints

The hype train out of Saints camp for the rookie Tyson was chugging away at full tilt this preseason, that is, until he suffered yet another hamstring injury. His history with injuries is truly scary for anyone drafting him. We’ll see if he ends up on the PUP list or not to start the season, but it looks like he’s out for Week 1 at least. I really like Kellen Moore and this Saints offense, but this does hurt them a bit.

Alec Pierce, Colts

The Colts went out and gave Pierce a nice contract this offseason despite knowing he was dealing with an ankle issue. So, the fact that he’s still not practicing is concerning, but something I expect he can recover from at some point early in the season. I’m not drafting him at this point though. I want to see him practicing and getting through practices first.

Wide receiver late draft targets

Jayden Reed, Packers

Reed is a very good football player. Sadly, we can’t project that he’ll see a big snap percentage and workload. The Packers receivers have been black holes for fantasy, which is partly due to injuries, emphasizing the rushing game and spreading the ball around. Will Reed stay healthy and become a key player in this offense? I think it’s possible. He’s too good to not keep giving the ball if he can stay healthy. And at WR47, I’m happy to take the chance on him again this year.

De’Zhaun Stribling, 49ers

Stribling has looked great so far in preseason. His ability after the catch fits so well in Kyle Shanahan’s offense that it looks like a match made in heaven. The 49ers offensive playmakers are ancient in NFL terms. Christian McCaffrey, George Kittle, Mike Evans and Deebo Samuel are all great players, but most people would take the bet that one or more of these guys will miss significant time this year.

Stribling’s hype may push someone in your home league to scoop him up way too early, but if he’s anywhere near his current ADP of WR50, grab him.

Wide Receiver PPR Rankings

On August 18, 2020, 23-year-old left-hander Tarik Skubal made his major league debut for a Detroit Tigers team that went on to miss the postseason for a sixth consecutive season.

Over the next six years, Skubal helped Detroit reach the postseason over two consecutive seasons, with highlights being his performance in Game 5 of last year’s ALDS and lowlights like the grand slam he allowed to Lane Thomas in the 2024 ALDS. He also made his name officially known by winning two consecutive AL Cy Young awards, winning the pitching triple crown in 2024— the first Tiger to do so since Justin Verlander in 2011.

Skubal made his final start as a Tiger on July 29, and the baseball world was stunned to see him shipped off to Los Angeles. Now, for the first time as a visiting player, he returns to the city he called home for parts of seven seasons. When asked by David Vassegh of AM 570 about the emotions of returning to Comerica Park, Skubal has a rather stoic mindset.

“The game of baseball is going to stay the game of baseball. That’s something I pride myself on, treating every game as the same. I’m very familiar with the stadium and all the guys across the way, and I look forward to seeing all those guys too. Those guys are my really good friends. We’re going to have relationships beyond baseball, so I look forward to getting back there and pitching.”

Yoshinobu Yamamoto was on the losing end of a fierce pitcher’s duel against Chris Sale and the Atlanta Braves on Thursday, where a first-pitch leadoff home run from Drake Baldwin was the only time any side could scratch across a run.

Yamamoto spoke with Kirsten Watson of SportsNet LA following the Dodgers’ 1-0 loss about his ability to navigate Atlanta’s lineup following the Baldwin home run while also finding a way to pitch deep into the game, with a final line of 6 1/3 innings.

“It’s a great lineup, I knew that. I just had to stay sharp the whole game.”

Getting swept against a team that is also a division leader stings, but there’s still a chance to go out win games over the weekend. That’s the mindset that Dave Roberts has following Thursday’s defeat, per Maddie Lee of the Los Angeles Times.

“I wish we’d played better,” Roberts said. “I wish we’d have won the game. I wish we’d won the series. It didn’t happen. But right now, there’s nothing we can do but just go out there and keep trying to get better and win a baseball game [Friday].”

The 2026 NFL season is trying to sneak up on us, but we’re prepared and poised to take on all challengers! Below are my running back PPR rankings for this season. We have a couple clear studs that should go first and second in most of your drafts, and for good reason. After that, it’s the usual free-for-all.

After a few years of “Zero-RB” draft strategy winning due to running back injuries, the tables have turned and running backs are back in the forefront. What we really need to learn from trying to predict injuries is that you can’t. When you take a player who is the best offensive guy on a team, he’s going to get “overworked” to an extent. How his body handles that is impossible to predict. Not many people thought Christian McCaffrey would hold up to his 400+ touches again in 2025, but he went and did it like the stud fantasy back he is. This is all to say, every pick has risk, and that risk isn’t easy to quantify.

Do we want running backs who get 20+ touches a game? Yes, yes, and more yes. Would we rather that back be young like Jahmyr Gibbs and Bijan Robinson or old like McCaffrey? Young, yes. You’re scoring an incredible 100% so far. But, unfortunately, if you don’t have one of the first two picks, you aren’t getting those young superstars. So, you fall back on CMC and hope he stays healthy or you lower your upside for a player who seems safer.

Running back injuries

Jeremiyah Love, Cardinals

Love has the ability to be a top fantasy producer as soon as he’s healthy, but after suffering a high-ankle sprain in preseason, his health is questionable. I’m not out on Love, but I would rather get a discount on him due to this injury. We should know more as we close in on the season, so keep an eye on the news.

Ashton Jeanty, Raiders

We had a big scare with Jeanty going down in practice, but thankfully he didn’t suffer a major injury. At this point he appears to have a lower ankle sprain, but his Week 1 availability is in question. As long as it truly isn’t a high-ankle sprain, he should be okay. But if you get Jeanty, it is worth trying to grab his backup Mike Washington as well.

Zach Charbonnet, Seahawks

Charbonnet played well last year, but also tore his ACL in the playoffs. The Seahawks let Kenneth Walker go to the Chiefs and then drafted Jadarian Price with the 32nd pick overall. Charbonnet has reportedly been ahead of schedule in his recovery, but it would be surprising if he didn’t go on the PUP list to start the season. His likely absence should give Price a chance to prove himself early on.

Jonathon Brooks and Chuba Hubbard, Panthers

Brooks is healthy and ready to go after back-to-back lost seasons to injury. He will compete with Chuba Hubbard for work after Hubbard returned from a hamstring injury in training camp. As long as both are healthy, I’d expect them to divide up the work, but Brooks at least has a chance to prove he is truly back and worth giving the majority of the touches.

Late round RB targets

Keaton Mitchell, Chargers

Mitchell is an explosive play waiting to happen and Chargers OC Mike McDaniel is adept at scheming explosive plays for explosive players. Mitchell’s ADP is rising, but with Omarion Hampton and Kimani Vidal on the team, fantasy footballers will be wary. With Mitchell we are looking for efficiency and big plays. And as long as he’s healthy, I believe that is on the way. He might not be consistent, but given 8-10 touches a game, I’m on board with him as a flex option most weeks.

Marshawn Lloyd, Packers

Lloyd’s injury troubles have taken him out of contention his first two years of his NFL career, but so far so good in year three. Josh Jacobs isn’t going anywhere, but Lloyd is talented enough that if he can stay healthy, who knows how high he could fly. He’s extremely risky, but that’s why we get him late and drop him if he gets hurt again.

Running Back PPR Rankings

Your fantasy football drat day is around the corner. Are you ready? Are you excited? Let’s do this! The 2026 season will once again be led by the many great to okay quarterbacks in the league. There are plenty of questions that need to be answered about this group of quarterbacks this season. Can Sam Darnold do the unthinkable and lead his team to another Super Bowl victory? Or will Drake Maye continue his assent and get his team back to the promised land? Will Lamar Jackson stay healthy and run his way to yet another MVP? Can Patrick Mahomes return from his knee injury to bring the Chiefs back to their usual prominence? Will Jaxson Dart start to slide to save his brain from being crushed? Can Josh Allen keep up his insane fantasy numbers? Will Jayden Daniels return to his rookie form following an injury plagued season? Will Justin Herbert have healthy starting tackles all year? Does Kyler Murray find his mojo in Minnesota? Can Tyler Shough mind meld with Kellen Moore to make the Saints a contender? Will Aaron Rogers get E. coli from a raw milk and lettuce smoothie? The questions are endless, but in just a few days we’ll start to get the beginnings of answers topmost of these pressing inquiries.

In fantasy, quarterbacks who run the ball continue to get a huge leg up on quarterbacks who don’t. That doesn’t mean pocket passers can’t put up good numbers, but efficiency is key and they need their TD rate to be extra high, like Matthew Stafford’s last season. His 7.6% touchdown rate led the league and helped him to QB3 honors in fantasy and a MVP award. But, even with 46 passing touchdowns, Josh Allen and Drake Maye put up more total fantasy points than Stafford due to their rushing ability. I’m still happy to take a player like Joe Burrow or Jared Goff or Stafford at the right spot, but the margins for error are much smaller.

Quarterback Injuries

Patrick Mahomes, Chiefs

Mahomes tore his ACL last December, but appears on track to suit up Week 1 against the Denver Broncos. He didn’t play in the preseason, but has been a full participant in practices. Without Tyreek Hill and a strong deep passing game, Mahomes’ fantasy greatness has fallen off. He did actually put up decent fantasy numbers last season because the team had no running backs worth anything, so Mahomes needed to run a lot more. He ended up with 422 rushing yards and five touchdowns, but we won’t see that this year following his injury and the acquisition of RB Kenneth Walker. He may help his team bounce back from a down year, but his fantasy upside remains capped.

Michael Penix Jr., Falcons

Penix Jr. tore his ACL in Week 11 of last year and is now returning to practice as we close in on the season. The team went out and signed Tua Tagovailoa to compete with Penix Jr., but he hasn’t shown much so far in training camp and preseason. At this point it looks like Penix just needs to get back up to speed and he could quickly start over Tagovailoa.

Late round QB pick

Bo Nix, Broncos

Nix isn’t free in drafts, but he’s one of the QBs I feel good about grabbing if none of the top guys fall to me. He can be had late enough that I’ll pair him with a later round QB like Tyler Shough or Malik Willis to form duo I can stream throughout the season. Nix just got Jaylen Waddle added to his target tree, which could truly open up this offense. But, even if he stays as his steady self, he’s finished the last two seasons a respectable QB7.

Overall QB Rankings

Welcome to The Hockey News Vancouver Canucks site's 2026–27 player preview article series. This series will outline the expectations for every player projected to play for Vancouver during the 2026–27 season. Today's player is Canucks forward Ty Mueller 

Mueller's 2025-26 Season

Mueller had another strong campaign with the Abbotsford Canucks. The 23-year-old finished tied for second on the team in points with 37, while his 16 goals set a new career high. Mueller was also one of eight skaters who played in at least 60 games, as Abbotsford, like Vancouver, dealt with plenty of injuries. 

For the second straight year, Mueller was called up near the end of the season. He played in six games and scored his first NHL goal. Mueller's development has been a positive for the organization over the past few seasons as he continues to step up in the AHL. 

Mueller's 2026-27 Letter Grade

The Hockey News' Canucks site gave Mueller a B- grade for his 2025–26 season. He adapted to a bigger role in the AHL, which led to his career-high in goals. Mueller also became more consistent as the year went on, which led to an extended call-up this past year.

Mueller's 2026-27 Predictions

With a logjam of forwards on the NHL roster, Mueller will most likely start the campaign in the AHL. That being said, he will be high on the call-up list if injuries occur. If Mueller can keep impressing, he should get another extended look in the NHL at some point this year. 

As for the AHL, Mueller will once again play a significant role for the Canucks. Not only will he be part of the top six, but he should also get plenty of special teams time. Mueller may also be part of the leadership group, as he now has 125 games of regular-season experience in the AHL. 

Bold Prediction: Mueller records over 20 goals in the AHL for the first time in his career. 

Canucks 2026–27 Player Previews:

Aatu Räty

Kirill Kudryavtsev

Arshdeep Bains

Ilya Safonov

Braeden Cootes

Linus Karlsson

Nikita Tolopilo

Victor Mancini

Kevin Lankinen

Filip Chytil

Thatcher Demko

Jonathan Lekkerimäki

Elias Pettersson (D)

Marco Rossi

Max Sasson

Jamie Oleksiak

Drew O'Connor

Luke Schenn

Paul Cotter

Brendan Gallagher

Liam Öhgren

Tom Willander

Jake DeBrusk

Zeev Buium

Brock Boeser

Filip Hronek

Elias Pettersson

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

Latest From THN’s Vancouver Canucks Site:

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Vancouver Canucks 2026-27 Player Preview: Aatu Räty

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Now that the summer Top 25 Under 25 series has wrapped up today, and with it (almost) the month of August, let’s turn attention to next season.

Players on the Penguins are trickling into town and starting to workout in Pittsburgh to prepare for NHL training camp that will begin in mid-ish September. Opening night for the regular season sees the curtain come up on September 30th.

There’s a lot to figure out from now until then, today let’s take a stab at what that lineup could be. Injuries figure to derail a lot of this – the Pens announced on opening day of training camp that Rutger McGroarty was out with a summer injury (good news: McGroarty is skating so that shouldn’t be the case this year). During training camp there was more with Bryan Rust and Kevin Hayes opening the year on IR and not the 23-player roster due to injuries. Any issue that hasn’t happened yet can’t be projected ahead of time, of course, so we’ll roll with what is known as of now and see how it holds up.

Forwards

Egor Chinakhov – Sidney Crosby – Bryan Rust
Nick Robertson – Ben Kindel – Rickard Rakell
Andrey Kuzmenko – Tommy Novak – Evgeni Malkin
Connor Dewar – Blake Lizotte – Elmer Soderblom

Extras: Hendrix Lapierre, Ville Koivunen

Defense

Erik Karlsson / Trevor van Riemsdyk
Sam Girard / Kris Letang
Declan Carlile / Kaeden Korczak

Extra: Ilya Solovyov

Goaltending

Opening night starter: Arturs Silovs
Backup: Sergei Murashov

A lot of meat on the bone, let’s get into it.

For the forwards, I’ve no idea what to do with Justin Brazeau. Do they find a spot for him with with Kindel? It’s hard to see how. Maybe Brazeau sneaks on as a scratch but after signing Koivunen to that contract it’s tough to see Koivunen going on the waiver wire. Maybe that means a trade to clear the numbers, but we’ve all thought that for many months now. More than likely if there’s even one injury to one of these 14 forwards, there’s a space for Brazeau and that could be how things sort out. As last year taught us, that could easily be in the cards.

As far as the rest, you can call the second line the third line and the third line the second line, it’s all about the same with the ice time splits under Dan Muse. The main thing is trying to get Malkin with players he should do well with and putting Kindel in a spot where he can continue to shine. The good news is there are lots of choices on the splits to make that happen independent of this exact outlook. Otherwise, we’ll stick Chinakhov with Crosby and project Soderblom to win perhaps the only open job and see how long before things get mixed up, which will likely be pretty quickly.

On defense, Erik Karlsson slyly joked last season that it took 17 years before an NHL coach asked if he could kill penalties. Has anyone inquired about how he feels about playing on the left side of the ice? That would solve a lot of lineup split concerns for having too many right handers if he can. If not, maybe van Riemsdyk can. This outlook could be wildly inaccurate with plenty of other directions more than possible, but hey, it’s an idea. Overall the #1-6 roles are probably about known, but the placement of who gets paired with who is going to be very curious to see unfold during the preseason. The spoiler/wild card would be if Owen Pickering or Harrison Brunicke make a preseason run at a roster spot and kick a player like Carlile or Korczak into the scratch spot and send Solovyov to waivers. Could happen but the path of least resistance is to keep 7D that way the overload of forwards can keep a player and keep the younger players in the AHL for the start of the season. One name not seen yet: Ryan Graves. Just putting this out there to show that’s not an oversight on our part, but in reality will he get a look?

Last year, it was a surprise when Silovs played opening night and not Tristan Jarry. Do the Pens have another surprise in store this year? Considering the first opponent is the Flyers and Silovs played so well against them in the playoffs, I’d have to think him a heavy favorite to be the regular season Game 1 starter this year. We all know it won’t take long for the backup to get in, perhaps as soon as the second game (Silovs after all pitched a shutout and then watched Jarry take the next game).

In terms of the salary cap, the Penguins have plenty of room. They could keep 26 or 27 players comfortably and still be under – if not for the 23-player limit. That will make it difficult for bubble players like Rutger McGroarty, Avery Hayes, Filip Hallander and the aforementioned young defensemen of Brunicke and Pickering to make a run for what looks to be an extremely limited amount of spaces. Then again, it only takes one announcement or practice gone awry to land some players on the injured reserve, which would shake up the entire outlook and provide some unexpectedly open spots to work with. Until that happens, it’s tough to project, besides the knowledge that a team rarely is 100% healthy even at the start of the season – so who knows, there may be surprises in store during the coming weeks before opening night.

Feel free to give your projected opening night lineup in the comments and very soon we’ll start to see how it comes together with the impending start of training camp.