Category: Sports News

This will be the location for trades made leading to the August 3 5pm CT MLB Trade Deadline. It will be updated as more deals happen.

The Mets wrap up their four-game series against the Miami Marlins at Citi Field on Sunday at 1:40 p.m. on SNY.

Mets Notes

• With the trade deadline looming, the Mets are starting right-hander Robert Stock, who is make just his third major league start for the club
• Carson Benge is hitting .360 with a .440 slugging percentage over his last seven games
• If Luke Weaver is traded before the deadline, he'll head to his new team on a major hot streak, having pitched to a 0.84 ERA over his last 30 outings
• Along with Stock, the Mets selected RHP Bryce Conley to the major league roster, while RHP Kevin Herget was DFA'd and RHP Jonathan Pintaro was optioned to Triple-A

Today's Lineups

Good morning, folks…

The Texas Rangers fell to the Houston Astros by a score of 5-4 last night.

Shawn McFarland writes the Rangers’ ongoing problems with the bases loaded hurt them again in the loss.

Brandon Nimmo hit the 10 year service time mark yesterday.

Jeff Wilson asks whether the Rangers should add another starting pitcher at Monday’s deadline.

If the Rangers do add a pitcher, it won’t be Tarik Skubal, who is reportedly heading to the Dodgers.

It also won’t be Luis Castillo, who the Chicago White Sox acquired from the Seattle Mariners last night.

Evan Grant says the decision to buy, sell or hold is a difficult one for the Rangers.

Evan Carter has performed quite well since coming off the injured list, and a better understanding of his swing is part of the reason why.

Texas signed their top 18 draft picks, exceeding their bonus pool in doing so.

David Laurila has his Sunday Notes column up at Fangraphs.

It’s just not very fun to watch the Yankees these days. Even if they’re in playoff position, the guys in the lineup right now aren’t the ones who put them in that spot. The Yankees’ starting pitching is doing yeoman’s work, with Max Fried following up nice outings from Gerrit Cole, Cam Schlittler, Ryan Weathers, and Will Warren with one of his own. But the offense is just paltry these days, and an E3/single/single rally combined with a Spencer Jones solo shot only gave them a 2-1 lead. Two of the better arms in the Yankees’ bullpen—Fernando Cruz and Brent Headrick—both had bad days, and that cooked the lead.

The Yankees aren’t giving their pitchers any margin for error, and that’s not even getting into the larger matter of the Rays and Red Sox barely losing anymore. Here’s what else was going on around the American League’s best on Saturday.

Tampa Bay Rays (65-45) 1, Chicago White Sox (58-52) 0

The White Sox scored six runs in Friday night’s win over the Rays, but they were back to the offense yesterday that frustrated their fans almost as much as the Yankees’ lineup did with their own diehards. They got four hits and a walk against Rays ace Drew Rasmussen, putting the leadoff man on in half of his six innings. But they never capitalized on those opportunities. Rasmussen fanned 10 while lowering his ERA to 2.91 on the season.

Chicago’s best chance came in the sixth, which Braden Montgomery began with a single. Tristan Peters got ahead of Rasmussen 2-0 before lining out to center. Chase Meidroth then flew out, but Edgar Quero delivered a two-out single, and a terrible throw to third by left fielder Chandler Simpson allowed Quero to move into scoring position as well. With a chance to make it 2-0 on a mere single, Sam Antonacci hit it hard to right—at 105.1 mph, it was actually the second-highest exit velocity of the day for Chicago—but Victor Mesa Jr. was there for the play.

The Rays weren’t exactly prolific themselves against the opener/bulk guy combo of Jordan Hicks and Noah Schultz and the relievers who followed. Nonetheless, they did score their one run, so it held up. Jonny DeLuca began the home half of the fifth with a single, stole second on a strikeout, and after Ben Williamson grounded out, catcher Nick Fortes cashed in the ribbie on a knock to left.

Down to their last licks in the ninth, Miguel Vargas hit Bryan Baker’s first pitch 372 feet to left, and it would’ve been gone to tie the game at Fenway and Wrigley. But at the Trop, it died at the warning track. Baker then got Colson Montgomery to ground out and Randal Grichuk went down swinging to end it.

At least Luis Castillo will cure Chicago’s offensive malaise. Wait, what?

Okey dokey.

Other Games

Boston Red Sox (59-51) 3, Los Angeles Dodgers (69-42) 2: Not even Yoshinobu Yamamoto could cool down the Red Sox out west. Fresh off an absurd 21-4 July, they won again on August 1st as Ceddanne Rafaela clubbed two homers off Yamamoto and a leadoff double by Andruw Monasterio in the eighth turned into the go-ahead run on a bunt single and a grounder. The Dodgers mustered 10 hits and a pair of walks (largely against Payton Tolle), but their only scoring came on a Teoscar Hernández two-run shot in the second. So in a postgame rage* over actually losing a series for once, the Dodgers traded for the Tigers’** two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal. That’s one way to cope.

*Yes, yes, I know that the deal was almost certainly completed before the final out. I am being silly. For fun.

**No, I don’t think the Tigers are going to go on another improbable post-sell run like they did in 2024, but also they’re only 2.5 games behind the Twins and Guardians for the last Wild Card spot. Texas, Baltimore, and Seattle are all ahead of them but… it’s possible!

Arizona Diamondbacks (59-52) 12, Cleveland Guardians (56-56) 8: Would you believe that the score in this one was 2-2 at the start of the seventh? Hunter Gaddis had one of his worst days as a professional and Franco Aleman got beat up as well during the D-backs’ seven-run seventh, which was capped by a three-run blast from Corbin Carroll. Nolan Arenado’s homer in the eighth made it 10-2, but deposed closer Paul Sewald almost gave it all back in his own nightmare eighth. A homer and four singles later, he was out of the game, and when Kevin Ginkel finished the frames, it was 10-7 (all runs charged to Sewald). The best reliever is always more offense though, and a two-run single by Geraldo Perdomo in the ninth added insurance in the 12-8 final.

Houston Astros (57-55) 5, Texas Rangers (55-56) 4: Sigh. The Astros returning to the top of the meager AL West wasn’t a one-day thing. They added a full game of separation between them and the previously-leading Rangers by beating up Jacob deGrom for five runs on seven hits; the former Mets great recorded just 10 outs. Texas made it a one-run game in the middle frames, but Houston held on for the W.

Seattle Mariners (54-58) 4, Minnesota Twins (56-56) 3: With rumors swirling of Jerry Dipoto and company considering a sell, the M’s absolutely needed a win if that clubhouse wanted any hope of staying together. Dipoto could still unload some folks, but Seattle at least eked out a walk-off win on Saturday. The 3-0 lead from the first couple innings (with a Randy Arozarena solo shot) vanished as Logan Gilbert faded in the middle frames. Homers by Luke Keaschall and Trevor Larnach chipped away, and an RBI groundout from Victor Caratini evened it at 3-3 in the seventh. Closer Andrés Muñoz entered to strike out Royce Lewis with runners on in the eighth, and after another scoreless frame in the ninth, his offense rewarded him.

Randy Arozarena led off with a double down the left-field line and moved to third on a deep fly. Minnesota challenged defending home run leader Cal Raleigh by intentionally walking Julio Rodríguez with one out to set up a double play. The struggling MVP runner-up hit a grounder to first, but while Lewis stepped on the bag for one out (rather than throwing to second to try to turn two on the slow Raleigh), his throw home to get Arozarena was late, securing the weird walk-off win. The Astros remain three games up on Seattle in the AL West.

(The M’s still dealt starter Luis Castillo after the game, but he’s less essential to the operation than almost everyone else in the rotation.)

For the first time in almost a year, San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller blew a save. He was put in a tenuous situation, entering the game in the top of the eighth inning with one out and the bases loaded for the San Francisco Giants who were trailing, 5-3. Miller struck out Grant McCray for the second out of the inning, but then rookie Osleivis Basabe ripped a 103-mph fastball into left field that tied the game at 5-5 before Miller got Bryce Eldridge to ground out on a tapper in front of the plate to end the inning.

The Padres were unable to score in the bottom of the eighth and Miller returned to the mound to work the top of the ninth. The right-hander recorded back-to-back strikeouts to open the inning but then allowed a walk to Rafael Devers. Miller wasted no time, throwing just two pitches to get Willy Adames to pop out to Xander Bogaerts at shortstop.

Bogaerts led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a line drive double to left field. Freddy Fermin dropped down a bunt, that he nearly beat out for a base hit, and was thrown out at first, allowing Bogaerts to move to third base with just one out. San Diego needed a fly ball to win the game and sent Gavin Sheets to the plate as a pinch-hitter for Jase Bowen. Sheets hit a weak ground ball toward third and was thrown out at first, leaving Bogaerts at third. Fernando Tatis Jr. came to the plate and was quickly intentionally walked which gave Jake Cronenworth a chance to play hero. He did just that winning a seven-pitch at-bat with a line drive single to center field that allowed Bogaerts to score to give the Padres a 6-5 walk-off win.

San Diego took a 2-1 lead in the series and will look to make that 3-1 with a win today in the final game of the four-game set at 1:10 p.m.

Padres News:

• Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta are working toward returning to the MLB club after long absences. Thomas Conroy of Gaslamp Ball looks at what their returns could mean for the Padres and when they might happen.

• Romeo Sanabria hit a grand slam, but it did not help the El Paso Chihuahuas get a win.

• The Padres have played themselves into a position where they are one game out of a playoff spot. Kevin Acee of the San Diego Union-Tribune says they will try to address their needs to get them into the playoffs before the Trade Deadline.

Baseball News:

• The speculation has ended and the predictions came true; the Los Angeles Dodgers are trading for Tarik Skubal of the Detroit Tigers.

• The Chicago White Sox bolstered their rotation, trading for Luis Castillo of the Seattle Mariners.

• The Atlanta Braves made a deal with the Kansas City Royals to acquire Lane Thomas and Bailey Falter.

• The Pittsburgh Pirates acquired reliever Camilo Doval from the New York Yankees.

The 2026 MLB trade deadline is about 34 hours from now, and the Rockies haven’t been super active yet. They traded Seth Halvorsen to the Dodgers, but have stayed pat otherwise. Some of that, though, might be that they are asking a (rightfully) large return for Hunter Goodman. Additionally, the stove has been lukewarm all around the league so far. But that doesn’t mean it won’t heat up over the next day and a half.

Rockies fans have optimism that they’ll be much more active than recent history, though. The vast majority believe that the Rockies will make three or four trades by tomorrow at 4pm MT.

28% believe they’ll make one or two more, while 12% believe they’ll go nuts with 5+ trades and 1% thinks they’re already done.

Do you agree with the results? Have you changed your vote since the poll was posted on Monday? Let us know in the comments!

But in the meantime, here’s what our writers had to say this week:

To Read: Rockpiles

• Monday: Six weeks of “The Cole Carrigg Effect” | Sam Bradfield
• Tuesday: What is the Rockies “core” going forward? | Renee Dechert
• Wednesday: Reacting to your Rockies trade proposals | Skyler Timmins
• Thursday: Will fielding errors define this new era of Rockies baseball? | Cory Cohen
• Friday: With trade deadline looming, which Rockies should stay and who should go? | Joelle Milholm
• Saturday: What is Troy Johnston’s narrow path to value with the Rockies?  | James Riggenbach

To Read: News

• Rockies news:What should the Rockies do with Brenton Doyle? | Joelle Milholm
• Rockies news:Mickey Moniak makes impact both on and off the field for the Rockies | Duane DaPron
• Weekly Pebble Report:Zac Veen found the power without paying for it | Eli Whitney
• Rockies news:Is Hunter Goodman’s defense really something to worry about? | Skyler Timmins
• Rockies roster:Rockies activate Brenton Doyle from IL, option Braxton Fulford | Cory Cohen

Brought to you by FanDuel Sportsbook, the official sportsbook partner of SB Nation.

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here.

The Tampa Bay Rays look to pick up their 10th win in 13 games this afternoon in their series decider against the Chicago White Sox at Tropicana Field.

Their hot streak has them favored at -148 on the moneyline, and my MLB picks are taking them to get another win behind Griffin Jax. 

I explain why they’ll win a low-scoring affair in my White Sox vs. Rays predictions for Sunday, August 2.  

Who will win White Sox vs Rays today: Rays moneyline (-148)

The Tampa Bay Rays hold a clear pitching advantage with starting pitcher Griffin Jax taking the mound.

His breaking ball run value ranks in the 86th percentile, anchored by a disgusting sweeper generating a 37.8% whiff rate and a .177 BAA.

Chicago White Sox starter Anthony Kay is allowing hard contact while struggling to record strikeouts. That’s a dangerous combination against a Tampa lineup with the eighth-lowest strikeout rate (20.6%) since July 1.

Jax has allowed one earned run or fewer in seven of his last 10 starts. Look for another strong start, with Tampa’s dominant pen bringing the game home.

Take the Rays to win to -155.

COVERS INTEL: Since July 1, Griffin Jax ranks in the Top 20 in strikeout rate (30.9%), K/9 (11.48), and xFIP (2.99) among 131 SP with at least 70 batters faced.

White Sox vs Rays Over/Under pick: Under 7.5 (-112)

Kay’s inability to limit hard contact won’t be exploited as much in this matchup, which should help keep scoring down.

The Rays rank dead last in hard-hit rate (23.4%) since the All-Star break. Their ISO of .140 is 10th-lowest, as is their K%.

Thankfully for them, the White Sox aren’t much better. They sit third-worst in HH% (29.3%) since the break, and are Bottom 10 in xwOBA, K%, and BABIP. 

The probability of crooked numbers is low for both offenses at the moment, and I expect Tampa to see an eighth straight game with fewer than 7.5 runs.

I'm betting the Under down to -125.

White Sox vs Rays weather

Weather will not be a factor with the teams playing inside the domed Tropicana Field.

White Sox vs Rays odds

• Moneyline: White Sox +138 | Rays -144
• Run line: White Sox +1.5 (-156) | Rays -1.5 (+150)
• Over/Under: Over 7.5 (+104) | Under 7.5 (-108)

White Sox vs Rays trend

The Rays have cashed the Under in 32 of their last 50 games for +13.35 units and a 24% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for White Sox vs. Rays.

How to watch White Sox vs Rays and game info

White Sox vs Rays latest injuries

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

Want to get more Covers content? Add us as a preferred source on your Google account here.

The New York Yankees are -125 favorites to get back in the win column this afternoon.

Gerrit Cole gives them a big pitching edge, and my Yankees vs. Cubs predictions and MLB picks see New York making the most of it on August 2.

Who will win Yankees vs Cubs today: Yankees (-125)

Gerrit Cole is in great form, having allowed just 10 runs over his last five starts while posting a 2.78 xFIP and 11.57 K/9.

His strong run of pitching should continue against the Chicago Cubs. They’ve been a middling offense the past month, sitting 16th in OPS and 20th in ISO against righties. 

The Cubs also struck out at the sixth-highest rate, which should feed into Cole’s spike in K rate. 

The New York Yankees have been up and down offensively, but should have their troubles eased against Colin Rea and his eighth percentile xERA.

Bet to -140.

COVERS INTEL:Cole's 98th percentile walk rate will help him further limit baserunners in a game with extremely pitcher-friendly conditions.

Yankees vs Cubs Over/Under pick: Under 6.5 (-105)

It’s not often you see totals of 6.5 — and see value on the Under to boot — but that’s the case here.

Cole has pitched like an ace over the last month, limiting runs effectively while posting a high K rate and excellent contact profile.

With Chicago’s offense in middling form, and winds blowing in at more than 20 miles per hour, it’ll be difficult to hit for power — and Cole isn’t allowing many hits.

Rea owns a 3.69 ERA in pitcher-friendly conditions, and the strong winds will help him neutralize New York’s power.

Bet to -115.

Yankees vs Cubs weather

The forecast calls for temperatures in the high 60s and strong winds blowing in. Big boost to the pitching.

Yankees vs Cubs odds

• Moneyline: Yankees -130 | Cubs +110
• Run line: Yankees -1.5 (+140) | Cubs +1.5 (-160)
• Over/Under: Over 6.5 (-115) | Under 6.5 (-105)

Yankees vs Cubs trend

New York has hit the game total Under in 25 of the last 40 games (+8.75 units, 20% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. Cubs.

How to watch Yankees vs Cubs and game info

Yankees vs Cubs latest injuries

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

The Detroit Tigers took the second of their three-game road series against the Athletics with an 8-6 win on Saturday night. Max Clark hit his first major league home run and Framber Valdez threw a quality start, but the bullpen almost gave another one away in the late innings.

Looking to seal the sweep in Sacramento, the Motor City Kitties send right-hander Keider Montero to the mound. The 26-year-old’s last outing against the Baltimore Orioles was a dud, serving up six runs (four earned) on nine hits (one home run) and a walk while striking out one and hitting a batter over 4 1/3 innings to earn his sixth loss of 2026 in an 8-5 final.

For the A’s, left-hander Gage Jump will be making the 13th start of his rookie campaign coming off one of his better outings of the summer. At home against the Boston Red Sox, the 23-year-old threw six scoreless frames on three hits and four walks while striking out seven to earn his fourth win in a 4-3 final.

Here is how things look on paper heading into the series finale on Sunday afternoon.

Detroit Tigers (53-58) vs. Athletics (44-66)

Time (ET): 4:05 p.m.
Place: Sutter Health Park, Sacramento, California
SB Nation Site:Athletics Nation
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 112: RHP Keider Montero (7-6, 3.34 ERA) vs. LHP Gage Jump (4-6, 4.00 ERA)

MONTERO

JUMP

Meet the Mets

On the day the Mets honored the 1986 championship team, the 2026 Mets highlighted their dissimilarity to that squad in a 6-2 loss to the Marlins at Citi Field. Despite a shaky start from Zac Thornton, the game remained close until the middle innings thanks to a Tyrone Taylor homer that got the Mets back in it, but Daniel Duarte had his first truly poor outing out of the bullpen this season to give the Marlins some cushion in a game that featured a lot of names we are going to see a lot more often in the final couple of months of the season after the trade deadline.

Choose your recap: Amazin’ Avenue, MLB.com, Newsday, New York Post

As expected, the reward to Xzavion Curry for soaking up five innings in relief on Friday night was a ticket back to Syracuse. Kevin Herget was recalled yesterday to take Curry’s spot on the roster.

As the Mets commemorated 40 years since their last World Series championship, the team is poised to be the biggest sellers at this year’s trade deadline.

The celebration served as a bittersweet reminder of how far the current organization still has to go, writes John Harper of SNY.

“I don’t think any of us could have ever predicted or imagined that one instance in time in baseball history would bring that much joy to people and create a lasting memory,” Mookie Wilson said yesterday, reflecting on the 1986 Mets. “There’s no one story I can tell that overshadows the rest.”

Rather than pitching in the big leagues today despite his stated readiness to do so, in anticipation of a potential trade, Clay Holmes will be pitching another rehab outing in Brooklyn instead.

In Holmes’ stead, Robert Stock will be starting for the Mets this afternoon. It will be his first big league appearance since June 8, 2025 and his first start since 2021. Stock had been in competition for a roster spot with the Mets during spring training before undergoing thoracic outlet syndrome surgery in March.

In Triple-A, Jonah Tong struck out his 100th batter on the season yesterday.

The fact that several young players have taken steps forward this season and showed they belong in the big leagues is one of the lone bright spots in an otherwise miserable season, writes Peter Sblendorio of the New York Daily News.

Around the National League East

The Braves beat the Nationals 8-3 on the back of seven one-hit innings from Martín Pérez. Pérez was not even the originally scheduled starter for Atlanta; Reynaldo López was scratched from the start about 50 minutes before first pitch due to left knee inflammation.

The Braves acquired outfielder Lane Thomas and left-handed pitcher Bailey Falter from the Royals in exchange for right-hander Lucas Braun—the Braves’ No. 8 prospect, per MLB Pipeline—and left-hander Carter Holton.

The Phillies shut out the Orioles 5-0, as Cristopher Sánchez struck out 11 batters over six scoreless innings.

Prior to yesterday’s win, the Phillies had lost 10 of their last 13 games as their bullpen woes deepened, ramping up the pressure on Dave Dombroski to improve the roster at the deadline.

Around Major League Baseball

There were a flurry of trades yesterday as things began to pick up ahead of Monday evening’s deadline. None were bigger than the Dodgers’ acquisition of two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal in exchange for three players, including two top-100 prospects: outfielder outfielder Zyhir Hope (No. 25, per Pipeline) and righties River Ryan (No. 68) and Brady Smith. “I’m excited to be a Dodger,” Skubal said to reporters after news of the trade broke. “I’m excited to get down there and meet all those guys and chase three championships in a row. It’s hard to do, so I’m excited to be a part of that.”

The Guardians traded Bo Naylor and Codi Heuer to the Brewers in exchange for Craig Yoho and Blake Perkins.

The Yankees dealt Camilo Doval to Pirates for prospects Luis Cruz and Omar Alfonzo.

Luis Castillo went to the White Sox and the Mariners received reliever Seranthony Dominguez, outfielder Nolan Jones and catching prospect Boston Smith in exchange.

The Angels scratched José Soriano from his scheduled start against the Brewers Saturday night in anticipation of a potential trade.

Yesterday at Amazin’ Avenue

Brian Salvatore covered the Mets’ latest trade rumors.

This Date in Mets History

Cleon Jones became the first Met in franchise history to reach 1,000 hits on this date in 1973.

Here's what happened in Mets Land on Saturday, in case you missed it...

• Zac Thornton allowed four runs over 4.2 innings, and the Mets' bats were quiet in a 6-2 loss to Miami
• Tyrone Taylor, another Met likely to be traded, provided the only offense of the day with a two-run homer
• The Mets celebrated the 40th anniversary of their 1986 championship team
• Clay Holmes, who is tentatively scheduled to pitch a rehab outing on Sunday, talked about the upcoming trade deadline
• Jonathan Santucci struck out seven but had issues with his command in his Triple-A debut

August 1st started off with a bang, didn’t it?

Ultimate team player Martín Pérez was having a completely normal day before, in a span of five hours: thinking he was going to be traded, agreeing to start on short notice with scheduled starter Reynaldo López headed for the IL, and then carrying a no-hitter into the seventh inning against a very legitimate Washington offense, leading the Braves to an 8-3 win. 

(Some trades also went down – buckle up as we get into the frenzy this evening/tomorrow, folks)

It feels like April instead of August – here we are on a Sunday with the Braves aiming to turn a series win into a series sweep. Except this one is of the rare four-game variety, so let’s break out the mops.

With Pérez answering the call early, JR Ritchie was scratched from his start in Gwinnett last night and has been recalled to Atlanta.

Ritchie (1-2, 4.50 ERA) came out of the bullpen in his last five outings with the big club with his last start dating back to June 23. In that July mop-up capacity, he had a 3.38 ERA and still had an issue with walks. In his last start with the Stripers on July 26, he gave up seven hits and five earned runs in four innings of work.

This will be a rematch, as Ritchie will be opposed by Nationals right-hander Cade Cavalli (8-4, 3.55 ERA). Cavalli has been a fairly consistent arm for the Nats and has a four-game streak of quality starts. Cavalli last faced the Braves in late April, where he surrendered seven hits in five innings, but only allowed two runs. JR Ritchie earned the win on his debut that same day by a final score of 7-2. A comfortable Braves win like that sounds nice for the Sunday matinee.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Sunday, August 2, 1:35 p.m. ET

Location: Truist Park, Atlanta, GA

TV: BravesVision

Streaming: MLB.tv

Radio: 680 AM / 93.7 FM The Fan, La Mejor 1600/1460/1130 AM