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The Dodgers saw another Atlanta Braves comeback against Tanner Scott on Wednesday, this time walking them off in the bottom of the ninth in a 6-5 final score.

Roki Sasaki was one strike away from completing a perfect bottom of the first inning, but Matt Olson attacked a low slider and struck the foul pole to put the Braves on top for a second consecutive game. Sasaki promptly allowed two consecutive two-out baserunners, but he was able to escape further damage by getting a weak groundout from Ozzie Albies.

The Dodgers had their second leadoff extra-base hit over their last three innings, as Tommy Edman led of the top of the second with a double to right center field. A.J. Smith-Shawver managed to get two consecutive outs, but after a walk to Teoscar Hernández, Hunter Feduccia kept his solid month of August going with an opposite field single to left field, plating Edman and tying the game.

Freddie Freeman made it three leadoff extra-base over the Dodgers’ last four innings with a double to begin the top of the third. Smith-Shawver once again retired the next two hitters after being down in the count 2-0, but Edman decided to take the 2-1 pitch for a called strike 1. That decision paid off, as Edman turned on the very next pitch to right field, scraping the outfield wall and giving the Dodgers their first lead of the series. It was Edman’s second home run from the left side of the plate and his fourth away from home.

Sasaki was able to keep Atlanta scoreless over the second and third innings, but they found their stride offensively in the bottom of the fourth inning. Ozzie Albies worked a leadoff walk and stole second base before Mike Yastrzemski moved him over to third with a single up the middle. Austin Riley drove home Albies on a sacrifice fly to reduce the lead to one before Sean Murphy cracked a double to put runners on second and third— just his second extra-base hit of the season. That double was the final pitch for Sasaki on the night, as he would leave the game early due to a blister to his right middle finger.

Wednesday was the shortest outing of the second half for Sasaki, as he could only complete 3 1/3 innings while tossing just 66 pitches.

Edgardo Henriquez came in relief of Sasaki to try and get the Dodgers out of the jam, but an awful route from Teoscar Hernández on a fly ball to left field from Drake Baldwin allowed both runners to score, helping Atlanta regain their first lead since the first inning. Eric Lauer came on for the fifth inning, making his second relief appearance as a Dodger, and the left-hander managed to complete two full innings. In doing so, he allowed the first home run of Sean Murphy’s season to pad the Atlanta lead to two.

The Dodgers were left struggling to find any answers against Smith-Shawver and Dylan Dodd after the third inning, but they managed to kickstart a seventh-inning rally against southpaw Dylan Lee. Shohei Ohtani led off the inning with a double before a single from Freeman moved him over to third. Mookie Betts drove home Ohtani with a single up the middle, and a walk to Max Muncy loaded the bases with nobody out, chasing Lee out of the game.

Didier Fuentes was called on to preserve the lead, but a walk to Tommy Edman took Sasaki off the hook for the loss and evened the score a 5. Kyle Tucker’s lineout to left field was too shallow to bring home Betts, and Fuentes needed one pitch to ignite a 4-6-3 double play from Alek Thomas.

The Dodgers once again loaded the bases against Fuentes in the top of the eighth inning, but the Dodgers couldn’t capitalize as Max Muncy went down swinging to end the threat. Atlanta responded by immediately putting two runners in scoring position with nobody out against Brock Stewart in the bottom of the eighth inning. Stewart managed to hold both runners on a weak ground ball to Freeman off of Ronald Acuña Jr., and after an intentional walk to Olson, a nifty 6-4-3 double play kept Atlanta quiet and got Stewart out of the bases-loaded jam.

The Dodgers went down in order against right-hander Victor Mederos in the top of the ninth inning, while Tanner Scott was one out away from doing the same in the bottom half when Lane Thomas sent a double down the right side to put the winning run in scoring position. The Dodgers decided to put Austin Riley on base intentionally to put the force at any base, but a pinch-hit single to left from the struggling Ha-Seong Kim sunk the Dodgers, allowing Atlanta to walk them off and officially take the season series.

Freddie Freeman’s double against Smith-Shawver in the third inning was the 578th of his career, tying him with Hall of Fame third baseman Wade Boggs for 24th on the all-time doubles list.

With the Milwaukee Brewers defeating the New York Mets on Wednesday, the Dodgers now sit two games back for the best record in the National League. They still maintain a two-game lead over the Atlanta Braves for the two seed.

Game particulars

• Home runs— Matt Olson (37), Sean Murphy (1): Tommy Edman (5)
• WP—Victor Mederos (3-1): 1 IP, 0 hits, 0 runs, 0 walks, 2 strikeouts
• LP— Tanner Scott (1-5): 2/3 IP, 2 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 1 strikeout

Up next

The Dodgers look to avoid being swept by Atlanta on Thursday (4:15 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA) before heading out to Detroit for a weekend series against the Tigers. Yoshinobu Yamamoto faces Chris Sale.

Brewers starter Dustin May left Wednesday night’s Brewers-Mets game in New York after just one pitch, as he took a 106-mph liner off his back on a comebacker off the bat of outfielder A.J. Ewing.

UPDATE 7:44 p.m.: Official word from the Brewers is that May left the game with a right scapula contusion. X-rays were negative. We’ll hear more after the game.

UPDATE 9:51 p.m.: After the game, May sounded relieved that the injury is nothing more than a bruise and said he’ll see how he feels tomorrow.

Stay tuned for more updates as we learn more.

After a dramatic win last night, the Atlanta Braves were looking to secure a series win against the mighty Los Angeles Dodgers tonight behind AJ Smith-Shawver who took the mound for just the third time this season against the struggling Roki Sasaki.

With the Braves win last night it gave the Dodgers a losing record against teams above .500, showing that maybe those power rankings you see all over the internet may just be skewed a little bit.

Smith-Shawver started the game off with a statement by striking out the reigning MVP, Shohei Ohtani on four pitches to include a 98.4 MPH putout pitch. He then followed that with forcing a groundout to former MVP Freddie Freeman, but then walked another former MVP, Mookie Betts. He settled down and got 2026 All-Star Max Muncy to ground out as well. Sasaki struck out Baldwin and got Acuña to ground out, but then Matt Olson launched a 1-2 pitch into orbit for a 1-0 lead to put him three HRs away from forty. This put him 130th all-time in MLB for career HRs and second all-time in the amount of HRs in a player’s first five seasons with the Braves franchise behind the great Eddie Mathews.

It looked like the Braves might get more offense when Dubón singled and stole second followed by a rare Harris walk, but Ozzie Albies grounded out to end the inning.

The second inning did not go quite as well for Smith-Shawver. He gave up a leadoff double and after a pop up and fly out he walked Teoscar Hernández on five pitches. Hunter Feduccia then tied the game with a single. Fortunately, he settled down and got Ohtani to fly out. The Braves continued to put pressure on in the second but could not cross the plate. Riley and Baldwin both singled, but it did not result in runs.

Smith-Shawver struggled again in the third. He gave up a leadoff double to Freddie Freeman, and retiring the next two hitters, Tommy Edman hit a two-run shot to put the Dodgers up by two runs. Smith-Shawver settled down, and got Tucker to ground out. The Braves could not return the favor in their half of the inning as they were retired in order.

The fourth was shaky as well for Smith-Shawver. He was able to retire the first two hitters to include a strikeout, but then walked Hunter Feduccia followed by an Ohtani single to put runners on the corners. Ohtani stole second, but Freeman flied out. The Braves struck back in the fourth inning. Albies walked and then stole second. Yastrzemski singled to put runners on the corners. Riley then hit a sacrifice fly to bring the Braves within one. Sean Murphy finally started to look like Sean Murphy again tonight starting with a double here. Sasaki then was removed from the game due to a blister. Drake Baldwin took advantage of the pitching change and bad defense to hit an opposite field double off of Teoscar Hernández’s glove to score two and give the Braves the lead before Acuña struck out.

Matt Olson then lined out hard to end the inning, but some serious damage was done.

In his longest start of the season thus far, Smith-Shawver pitched the fifth inning and retired the side to include striking out Edman, who hit a HR off of him, on a failed ABS challenge. Smith finish his night with 5.0 innings pitched that included three earned runs on five hits, three walks, and three strikeouts. Eric Lauer came in to pitch for the Dodgers and Dubón led off with a single. Harris then moved him over with a rare sac bunt. Albies hit a hard line out and then Lane Thomas then came in the game to replace Yaz. Unfortunately, the Thomas sub did not work with him grounding out.

Dylan Dodd came in to pitch the sixth. He retired his first two hitters but then gave up a single to Teoscar Hernández. He was able to get the next out easily with a fly ball. In the Braves’ half of the sixth Riley struck out, but then Sean Murphy hit his first HR of the season to give the Braves a two-run lead.

Baldwin and Olson both walked, but they could not be scored.

Dylan Lee came in to pitch the seventh, and he had a rare bad night. He gave up a leadoff double to Ohtani, followed by a singled from Freeman and then a single to Betts to bring the Dodgers within one run. He then walked Muncy to load the bases with zero outs. This led to Didier Fuentes coming in. He unfortunately walked in the tying run, but then looked great for the rest of the inning and came in super clutch. He got Kyle Tucker to line out and then got Thomas to ground into a double play to stop anymore damage.

Evan Phillips came in to pitch the seventh for the Dodgers. Michael Harris hit one deep but was caught by a leaping Teoscar Hernández at the wall. Albies singled, but was out at second on a force out when Lane Thomas hit a force out. Thomas stole second, but it did not result in a run when Riley struck out. The eighth got scary for Fuentes. Teoscar Hernández singled and was moved over on a sac bunt by Hunter Feduccia. Ohtani then moved the runner to third on a ground out. This led to the decision to intentionally walk future HOFer Freddie Freeman. Fuentes then clearly pitched around Mookie Betts which led to loading the bases yet again. This led to an epic showdown with Max Muncy where after nine pitches to include five fouls, Fuentes was able to strike him out to end the inning with no runs scored.

Brock Stewart then came in to pitch eighth inning. Sean Murphy hit a single, putting him a triple shy of the cycle, and then Drake Baldwin hit his second double of the night to put runners on second and third with no outs. Somehow, the Braves squandered this opportunity. After an Acuña groundout and a Matt Olson intentional walk to load the bases, Dubón grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Victor Mederos came in to pitch the ninth inning and was able to strike out Edman after getting to a full count. He then got the the most hyped free agent of this past off-season, Kyle Tucker, to pop out to third. Medoros likely gained even more hearts of the fans tonight with a clutch strikeout to Alek Thomas to bring the game into the bottom of the ninth tied.

Tanner Scott came in for the Dodgers to face Michael Harris. Harris grounded out, Albies struck out, but Lane Thomas was able to stretch out a double to bring up Austin Riley who was intentionally walked. Because of the swaps earlier it resulted in Ha-Seong Kim coming in to hit in the ninth spot currently held by Mederos. This led to one of the most hilariously awesome walk-off wins of the season with Kim battling an eight pitch at-bat that resulted in a walk-off single to secure a series win for the Braves. As Brandon Gaudin said so beautifully, the unlikeliest of heroes.

The Braves only scored six runs, but if they continue to hit like tonight, their offense may be back. They had fourteen hits, and six walks to equal twenty base runners. They did leave thirteen runners on base, but we won’t dwell on the negative. The Dylan Lee struggled, but the rest of the bullpen pitched with ice in their veins.

The Braves go for the sweep tomorrow.

An adventurous squirrel — and not former utility player Jeff McNeil — was the highlight of the Mets’ evening Wednesday.

Unlike the team, it gave Mets fans something to cheer about.

Robert Stock and the lifeless lineup certainly didn’t.

The journeyman right-hander had very little, and the Mets failed to take advantage of Brewers starter Dustin May leaving after one batter in an ugly 8-1 loss at Citi Field.

In the bottom of the third inning, the crowd began cheering. A squirrel had gotten loose behind home plate.

The cheers turned to groans as the Mets failed to take advantage of a two-on, two-out opportunity when Carson Benge flied out to left field. As the fans were rooting on the squirrel, Bo Bichette fouled a pitch off his foot. He later left the game with a left ankle contusion.

In the top of the following inning, the Brewers put the game away. Brice Turang ripped a three-run homer to make it 7-0. Stock was trying to go for the strikeout but hung a 1-2 slider that Turang crushed.

“It was a pretty risky pitch because it might get a swing and miss, but it’s most likely to give up a home run if he does connect. That’s exactly what happened,” Stock said. “Their good approach forced me to do something I wasn’t comfortable with, and it wound up burning me.”

Milwaukee started the second with six consecutive hits. Stock, who replaced Freddy Peralta in the starting rotation when the veteran was traded to the Rays, hasn’t given the Mets much length.

He lasted only four innings Wednesday and gave up 10 hits and seven earned runs, as his ERA rose to 7.40.

“When you face a team like that, it’s kind of rolling the dice. They’re going to put the ball in play and it’s on you to make your best pitches, and a theme that I’ve noticed for every outing is my velocity has been dipping,” Stock said. “Not because I’m not feeling good, but I think because I’m spending so much time working on throwing strikes. That’s my strongest suit, is I should be able to go out there and throw 98. Tonight I didn’t see any 97.”

In five starts, he has failed to record an out in the sixth inning. This performance was similar to his Aug. 8 start against the Pirates, when he was tattooed for nine hits and eight earned runs in three innings.

Next week, rosters expand by two, and the Mets could opt to replace Stock in the starting rotation with a prospect like Jonah Tong. Interim manager Andy Green said before the game he was unsure of any promotions that could be coming.

He reiterated that stance afterward.

“We just finished up the game right now. We’ll get in there and talk about it as a group, see where our heads are at,” Green said. “He’s had some nice starts for us. This was another one I’m sure he would want back.”

Leading off the game for the Mets, A.J. Ewing drilled a line drive off May’s right shoulder.

May initially tried to stay in but was in obvious pain and, after a few warmup pitches, departed. It was later announced as a right scapula contusion.

It didn’t help the Mets lineup.

Robert Gasser held them to six hits and one run over 5 ¹/₃ innings. His lone hiccup was allowing a Francisco Alvarez run-scoring single in the fourth.

The Colorado Rockies came into this game having just ended their longest losing streak of the season by narrowly beating the Washington Nationals 3-1 on Tuesday. A magnificent start from Tanner Gordon combined with a home run parade from the Rockies lineup made for a remarkable tone shift compared to just two days ago with the Rockies winning 13-1.

Gordon efficient and steady

After rejoining the rotation just last week, Gordon had his best outing of the season.

When the game began, it did not seem like Gordon would last nearly as long as he did as Washington hitters came out of the gate with hard contact. In the first, Dylan Crews notched a triple into deep right field where he was stranded thanks to a groundout by Daylen Lile.

In the second, though, the Nationals got on the board with a leadoff home run from Andres Chaparro.

For a brief moment it seemed like the Nationals had Gordon figured out, and he was in danger of a short outing.

Instead, he quietly got the next seven straight batters out to silence any thoughts of bringing the bullpen in early.

In the bottom of the fourth, Chaparro would again get a hit, but was limited to a single this go around. Then came the play that could have thrown Gordon off of his rhythm and unraveled the entire outing.

With two outs, Cole Carrigg lost sight of what should have been an easy fly out from José Tena, and it instead turned into a double. Carrigg did not react quickly enough to communicate to Jake McCarthy, who was backing him up, that he could not see the ball and it ended up dropping between the two of them. Tena would end up on second base and the lead runner would advance to third.

Carrigg was bailed out of the mistake by Gordon unflinchingly getting Nationals catcher Harry Ford to softly ground out to end the inning.

He would go on to throw another three uneventful innings. When Zach Agnos replaced him before the eighth inning, Gordon had a sparkling line of only one run on six hits and no walks while striking out five.

After the game, Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer attributed Gordon’s success on the night primarily to his early count approach: “It all starts with him getting ahead. He got ahead, and then 0-1 he was 14 out of 15 strikes, which is elite.”

In the end, Gordon earned his first win of the season and allowed the bullpen to largely rest after a taxing five-reliever day on Tuesday.

Early trouble in the clutch

The early innings for the Rockies lineup were defined by getting players into scoring position and then failing to drive them in.

• McCarthy led off the first inning with a double and was followed by a TJ Rumfield walk and three soft contact outs. He would fail to score despite advancing to third on a stolen base.
• Ezequiel Tovar led off the third inning with a single that chased Nationals starter Matt Waldron. After he advanced to second on a groundout from McCarthy, both Carrigg and Hunter Goodman struck out to end the threat.
• The fourth inning again opened up with a runner in scoring position as Rumfield doubled. He would then be thrown out trying to advance on a fielders choice hit into by Willi Castro.

After the fourth, though, the Rockies lineup decided to put that frustration to bed and simply start hitting dingers.

When in doubt just hit it out

In the fifth inning, Connor Norby walked to lead off before being driven in when Troy Johnston took a cutter to right field.

That was followed up by McCarthy reaching first on a hustle bunt and then scoring on a homer from Carrigg to left field.

After a quiet sixth inning, the Rockies continued the home run parade in the seventh.

A couple of singles from Goodman and Rumfield followed by a rare Castro walk would load the bases against Nationals pitcher Luis Perales, who was making his Major League debut. Mickey Moniak struck out for the third time in the game before Connor Norby came to the plate and earned some grand slam taco’s for Denver.

For good measure, in the eighth Goodman crushed his 36th home run of the season to plate another two and bring the overall score to 10-1.

That home run parade by Rockies hitters was enough for the Nationals. After a couple more walks they raised the white flag in the top of the eighth.

Position Player pitching shenanigans

While the Rockies went to Zach Agnos to close out the last two frames of this blowout the Nationals instead turned to utility infielder Jorbit Vivas to get the final four outs.

Vivas came in with two outs and two runners on base. His mid-40’s looping eephus not only lacked velocity but also missed the strike zone. He allowed a couple of singles to Norby and Tovar but then managed to hit both Johnston and Moniak.

Eventually, Carrigg mercifully flew out to center field to end the inning.

The ninth came around, and the Nationals stuck with Vivas. Amusingly, a two-out single from Ryan Ritter was the only additional baserunner Vivas would allow as Goodman flew out and both Rumfield, and Moniak grounded out.

Up Next

Tomorrow the Rockies will face off against the Nationals for the final time this season.

On the mound for the Rockies will be Gabriel Hughes facing Jake Irvin of the Nationals.

First pitch is scheduled for 11:05 AM MDT.

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Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Giants fans and fans across the country.

The San Francisco Giants pitching has been miserable this year. Buster Posey’s self-proclaimed plan to win with pitching and defense has fallen on its face, from top to bottom. Entering Tuesday’s epic collapse, the starting rotation is 22nd in the Majors in ERA (4.43), 15th in FIP (4.11), 11th in innings (693.1), and 20th in fWAR (8.2). The bullpen? 18th in ERA (4.13), 18th in FIP (4.17), and 24th in fWAR (1.0).

On top of it all, the team traded two of their starters and two of their best relievers at the deadline, so there’s even more work than meets the eye for fixing the pitching in 2027, and that’s before accounting for the fact that Carson Whisenhunt and Trevor McDonald will miss the entirety of the year with Tommy John surgery, with Adrian Houser potentially joining them.

The Giants will, thankfully, have some money to spend to fix this issue. But is it more critical to spend it on the rotation, or on the bullpen? A better rotation makes for a better bullpen but, then again, a better bullpen tends to make for a better rotation, too.

Hopefully they address both. But if they go all-out fixing one, which should it be?

The Yankees lineup finally opened well.

And closed well.

And after months of looking ill, it sure seems to look well all of a sudden.

The Yankees ended a first-inning drought, poured it on in the late innings and exploded once again for what has become a rarity: a going-away victory over the Astros that ended 9-3 in front of 40,269 in The Bronx on Wednesday.

With a seventh win in nine games, the Yankees (75-57) remained 3 ½ games back of the Rays and gained a game on the Red Sox, who now are 2 ½ games back of the top wild-card spot.

The Yankees did so with a series of pitchers stepping up: Elmer Rodríguez (six innings, three runs) with the best start of his career, and a gutsy and excellent Paul Blackburn, an at-least intriguing Michael Fulmer and a solid Tim Hill excelling behind him.

They did so with a hitting attack that Aaron Boone has been awaiting for months. Once Aaron Judge went down and the rest of the lineup seemed down, the manager would glance at his batting order and reiterate that there were “a lot of good hitters on there.”

And yet those hitters consistently did not perform: In a 57-game span from June 18 through Saturday, the Yankees scored seven or more runs in just five games.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

To run past Houston, a healthier (but not yet healthy) lineup scored at least seven runs in a third straight game.

The lefties woke up: a maybe-no-longer slumping Jazz Chisholm Jr. tallied three hits; Cody Bellinger drilled a go-ahead, two-run double; Spencer Jones added an RBI single in a four-run seventh inning; and Luis García Jr. remained hot with a two-run shot in the eighth.

But nearly everyone contributed on an evening all Yankees starters except George Lombard Jr. (who did have an RBI groundout) recorded a hit.

“It has been nice to see them start to really gain some traction,” Boone said after a 13-hit outburst that began immediately.

Finally, they scored a run (and finished with two) in the first inning for the first time in 23 games — a span in which Yankees hitters went 7-for-73 (.096) with nine walks and 25 strikeouts in the opening inning, of course with zero runs scored.

Until Wednesday, when Ben Rice smacked a solo shot and the Yankees used some ingenuity to score again. With García on first, Bellinger poked a ground ball to Christian Walker at first, who tried for a double play but hit García — who was running on the grass — in the back. The runners wound up on second and third, and García then scored on Lombard’s groundout.

The Astros scored once in the top of the first and scored a single run again in the fourth and seventh. Each time, the Yankees had an answer in the bottom of the inning.

The loudest answer arrived in the seventh with lefty Bennett Sousa on the mound.

Left-on-left, Trent Grisham — who had misplayed a ball in the first inning — atoned with a blooped single to left. Left-on-left, Rice (who reached in four of five plate appearances) went from behind 1-2 to an eight-pitch walk. Left-on-left, García hit a chopper to the right side and showed just enough wheels, beating Sousa to the base to load the bases.

And, left-on-left, Bellinger — who has been back from the IL for three games and helped the team score 24 runs — cracked a two-run double off the wall in right-center to put the Yankees ahead to stay.

After a Lombard strikeout, Jones, left-on-left, stroked a single to right before Chisholm banked another double off the wall in left to make it 7-3.

No one has personified the struggles of the lineup like Chisholm, who has acknowledged that he has “sucked” and owned a .680 OPS as recently as Friday.

That number is up to .708 after he reached base in four of five plate appearances and has eight hits in his past three games.

“It’s probably the best few games he’s strung together,” Boone said of his second baseman. “So, hopefully, that’s where he’s headed.”

Chisholm believes he is headed in the right direction. For the first time in a long time, the team’s hitting seems as if it is, too.

“I really want to win a World Series,” Chisholm said. “I’m just trying to get ready and do my best to get us there.”

In the end, Bennett Sousa just wasn’t up to the task.    Yankees 9 Astros 3.       

The Astros would once again get on the board first.    Isaac Paredes drew a two out walk and scored on a Jose Altuve double.     However, the lead was short-lived as in the bottom of the same frame, Ben Rice would hit a solo shot.   

The Yankees weren’t done.    Luis Garcia singled, and advanced to third on a throwing error by Christian Walker. George Lombard Jr brought him in giving the New York their first lead of the night, 2-1.

That remained the score until Daulton Varsho launched his 10th homer of the season, a solo shot to center field to tie the game at 2.

In the bottom of the fourth the Yankees were active.    Chisholm, Wells, and Caballero each singled which generated a 3-2 lead. 

That remained the score until the 7th.   Jose Altuve walked, Varsho doubled moving him to third and moments later, Walker would reach on an error which scored Altuve.     Unfortunately, that was all the runs the Astros could generate that inning.     Varsho was thrown out at home, and Vazquez and Pena struck out swinging with runners on.     

The night would get away from them after that.    New York’s first four batters in the 7th inning would all score. By the time the damage was over, it was a 7-3 deficit.    Sousa’s final stat line was abysmal: 0.1 IP   5 hits allowed, 4 ER, and a walk.  All nine Yankees batted in the 7th.     

The Astros in the 8th sent Alvarez, Paredes & Altuve to the plate but Michael Fulmer set them down in order. Any hopes of making it close at that point went out the window as in the home 8th, Luis Garcia would launch a two-run shot to right, scoring Ben Rice.   That made things 9-3, and that would be your final.     

The only Yankees player without a hit was Lombard Jr.     He did record an error for a fifth straight game.   

For the night, the Yankees outhit the Astros 13 to 4.    

Odds & Ends:

With the loss, the Astros have dipped below the .500 mark once again.   They now sit at 66-67.    

Thursday’s rubber match at 6:05 pm CDT will pit Hayden Wesneski against Gerrit Cole.    Rain is expected in the forecast.    

With his two-hit performance on Wednesday, Daulton Varsho now has a 6-game hit streak.   

Right out of the gate, it looked like this could be a repeat of last night’s back and forth slug fest, the two sides trading the lead as early as the first inning. That pattern continued until the seventh, when the Yankees broke the game open scoring four runs on five hits. In total, New York collected 13 hits, their highest outlay since August 12th against the Mariners, to level the series with a 9-3 victory.

Elmer Rodríguez impressed in his nine Triple-A starts since his last MLB appearance, pitching to a 2.13 ERA thanks to an uptick in sinker velocity and curveball usage rate. We saw both trends on display in the first, ERC striking out Jeremy Peña on a filthy curveball and freezing Yordan Alvarez on a 98 mph front door sinker after starting that AB off with a 99 mph heater. Unfortunately, we also saw the command issues which plagued his four previous big league appearances. Isaac Paredes drew a two-out walk after falling behind, 1-2, and Jose Altuve drove him home on a first pitch sinker that caught to much zone. Trent Grisham was principally at fault for the Altuve double, however, getting an awful read on the fly ball and breaking in before getting turned around on a ball that flew over his head.

Fortunately for ERC, his offense immediately responded in the bottom of the frame. Ben Rice lasered a 1-2 fastball from Peter Lambert into the seats in right for his 35th home run of the year to join Aaron Judge and Don Mattingly as the only three draft picks in franchise history to reach that milestone. It was the first run scored by the Yankees in the first inning in 23 games, that streak falling one short of the all-time franchise record.

They followed up that blast with some old fashioned small ball. Luis García Jr. reached on a soft line drive single to center. Cody Bellinger then pulled what looked like the inning ending double play ball to first, but Christian Walker hit García in the right shoulder with the throw, the ball trickling far enough into center to allow both runners to advance to second and third. George Lombard Jr. then hit a soft grounder to the right side on a sinker that shattered his bat to bring García home as the go-ahead run, 2-1.

Credit to ERC, he did not let the first inning misfortune get him off his stride. He tallied another pair of strikeouts against Taylor Trammell and Cam Smith, the sinker impressively holding its velocity at 97-98. The bats kept generating traffic in the bottom of the second, loading the bases with two outs on a single by Jazz Chisholm Jr. and walks by Austin Wells and Rice. García came within inches of hitting the Yankees’ first grand slam of the season, his line drive hooking just the wrong side of the right field foul pole. He hit a lazy fly ball to left on the following pitch to strand all three runners in place.

After a brief lull in the third, we saw a pair of lead changes in the fourth. Daulton Varsho somehow managed to muscle a solo home run into the Yankees bullpen on a decently located changeup from ERC that got the hitter unbalanced on his front side. The tie game would not last for long, the Bombers again loading the bases. This tie they did so with nobody out on three straight singles from Jazz, Wells, and José Caballero. Grisham’s nightmarish day continued with a ground ball double play, the silver lining being that it plated Jazz to retake the lead, 3-2. However, Rice flew out to end the inning and it was hard not to feel like they squandered an opportunity against a flagging Lambert.

ERC rebounded nicely with a 1-2-3 fifth, collecting his fifth strikeout on a nasty sweeper to Christian Vázquez. He’d face the minimum in the sixth against the top of the order to position himself for a deep start with the pitch count at just 83. In the bottom half, Jazz walked for his third time on base and attempted his second steal of the game. He was ruled out on the field, and despite video replay appearing to show his hand contacting second base before the tag was applied, the replay center decided to stick with the call on the field. A Wells single knocked Lambert from the game with two outs, but Kai-Wei Teng got Caballero to hit his second pop out to end the frame.

ERC came back out for the seventh but issued a leadoff walk to Jose Altuve to prompt Aaron Boone from the dugout. It was without question ERC’s best start in the bigs, completing six-plus innings after failing to make it out of the fifth in his previous four. The sinker velocity obviously stood out, ERC still firing at 97 mph against Altuve in the seventh, and the curveball looks like a real weapon inducing a gaudy 55-percent whiff rate on 11 swings, but it was his ability to paint the glove-side edge of the zone with sinkers that impressed me most. He departed having allowed three runs on three hits and two walks with a career-high six strikeouts on 88 pitches.

Paul Blackburn came in and immediately gave up a double to Varsho to put runners at second and third with no outs. Lombard then committed his fifth error in the last five games, booting a sharp grounder from Walker to allow Altuve to score the tying run. Blackburn then made a brilliant heads-up play on a grounder right at him by Trammell. Seeing Varsho had strayed too far off third, he ran right at the runner and tagged him out to keep the score tied. A walk of LaMonte Wade Jr. loaded the bases, but Blackburn stranded all three ducks on the pond with clutch strikeouts of Vázquez and Peña on a pair of disgusting breaking balls.

That seemed to turn the tide of momentum in the Yankees’ favor, because the bats truly came alive in the bottom of the seventh. Grisham singled, Rice walked, and García singled to again load the bases with no outs. This time, Bellinger made sure to capitalize on the golden opportunity, his two-run double securing a 5-3 lead. They weren’t finished, Spencer Jones singling to plate García and Jazz doubling to plate Bellinger to give him his third hit of the game and the Yankees a 7-3 lead.

This extra breathing room allowed Boone to go to Michael Fulmer for the eighth. Signed to a major-league contract just hours before first pitch as added cover for Fernando Cruz’s trip to the IL, the Mets’ former first round pick worked a 1-2-3 inning as he tries to revitalize his major league career after pitching just 9.1 innings since the end of 2023 following a long road back from 2024 Tommy John surgery.

Seemingly discontent with a four-run lead, the Yankees saved a final flourish for the eighth. Rice reached on a one-out walk and García roped an elevated 1-0 changeup from Enyel De Los Santos over the short porch in right for a two-run tank. It’s García’s 28th on the year and fourth in his last six games, giving him at least three hits in back-to-back contests.

Tim Hill set the side down in order in the ninth to secure the win, 9-3. Don’t look now but the Yankees have now scored at least seven runs in three straight games. With García staying hot and Jazz and Wells joining him, the lineup looks to be turning it around at just the right time.

The Yankees go for three straight series wins in the rubber game tomorrow, Gerrit Cole taking on former Yankee farmhand Hayden Wesneski. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 pm ET with the broadcast returning to YES.

Box Score

Given how often Andy Green talks about staying in the present – and frankly, no manager in baseball talks about it more – asking him about his future on Aug. 26 seemed likely to yield a predictable answer.

And indeed, when asked Wednesday whether his team’s recent success and the accompanying groundswell of enthusiasm for his work as manager is making his plan to return to the front office at season’s end more fraught for him, Green said exactly what anyone who has listened to him carefully would expect him to say.

“The most honest answer is you can’t live 45 days out in the future and be helpful to anybody,” Green, who has managed the Mets to a 26-26 record, said. “You can’t be a good player worrying about how the season ends on August twenty-something. So you have a lifetime of conditioning for being in the moment, not thinking about those things, not worrying about what happens or doesn’t happen – and being present for people. That gets the best version of players, staff, anybody. [The future], if you give it time, can occupy anybody’s mind.”

As of this moment, that plan to return to the front office remains intact. Last week, Steve Cohen said the team still plans to conduct a managerial search this offseason, one in which Green would be included should he throw his hat in the ring, though he says he will not do so. Ten days ago, David Stearns said: “My expectation, and I think Andy’s expectation, is that he is going to rejoin the front office, and I have no reason to believe otherwise right now.”

People familiar with the Mets’ internal deliberations affirm the plan remains for Green to return to the front office, though not necessarily in the player development role he held previously. One role those people floated as a potential fit: General manager, a position Cohen has talked about filling during Stearns’ tenure but never has.

Exactly how likely it is that Green fills that role – or even that the Mets fill that role soon at all – remains unclear. But Green makes sense for multiple reasons.

Optically, he is an uncomplicated pick at a benign moment. He has a close working relationship with Stearns over multiple years that would temper any awkwardness – real or perceived – around the power dynamic between a President of Baseball Operations and a second-in-command. And since he is not returning as manager, the Mets need a new job for him, which would explain away any notion that another disappointing season was the reason Stearns suddenly needed a second-in-command.

Logistically, Green knows the players in the organization better than anyone. He already built clout with players who came up in the Mets system. Carson Benge, for example, called him “an easy person to respect.” But his tenure as interim manager has given him a chance to understand clubhouse dynamics and build relationships with key Mets veterans. To a man, they say he has done so gracefully.

“Initially, we sat down and we had a conversation, and other than that, it’s been very natural. Whenever we find each other around or have a minute to talk, we have a chat. He’s been great,” Bo Bichette said. “He has a pretty good idea of how to create conversation without it feeling forced, which I think is definitely important. He’s genuine. I think there’s a lot of characteristics about him as a human I think a lot of us can respect.”

Exactly what a general manager’s duties consist of varies from organization to organization. Practically, it is just a title – though one that does affirm a certain organizational weight to the opinions of the person holding it.

Whether in that position or another, Green will almost certainly remain a crucial voice moving forward, particularly because of his experience in a variety of on-field roles. People familiar with higher-ups’ thinking say this year led to the conclusion that they could use more people with major league experience in their operation, though whether that means hiring a manager with playing experience, adding voices to their front office, or both remains to be seen.

Stearns, meanwhile, has Cohen’s full public support entering his fourth year in the POBO role. People in the Mets front office, as well as his colleagues in other front offices, describe Stearns as someone who trusts the Mets’ internal projection models and is matter-of-fact about his decision-making. That combination, not unique among this generation of data-driven heads of baseball operations, can create a distance between front offices and the clubhouses they create.

After an offseason spent purging veterans while navigating an owner-acknowledged rift between the two remaining superstars, all while replacing a coaching staff, followed by a disastrous April and early June firing of the manager… one can understand why the Mets might seek more connective tissue between baseball operations and the clubhouse.

Publicly, at least, Green has already created some. His daily managerial press conferences have provided new insight into the Mets player development philosophies with first-hand perspective of someone who spent the last few years shaping them. He has communicated a desire to get more out of this Mets roster without ever suggesting that his predecessor, Carlos Mendoza, should have gotten more. The Mets’ offseason and early season were largely shaped by decisions that sometimes felt clinical and detached. Green’s brief tenure has helped the Mets feel more human and more self-aware.

“He is very honest. He’s not afraid to push people to get better, but at the same time, he’s very encouraging and uplifting. He has a way of letting people know how good they are, and it’s not fake,” Bichette said. “I don’t think he’s saying it just to give someone more confidence. I think he says it because it’s true in his mind, and obviously, that’s going to have more impact on us. He genuinely sees what we could be better at and our potential and lets us know that. And that’s powerful.”

Presented with the hypothesis that whatever his title, Green’s role with the Mets will always include handling the human element, he demurred.

“I wouldn’t define it that way. We have a lot of good people that understand that these are 26 guys trying to be the best version of themselves and it’s our job to get the best version out of them,” Green said. “That’s the most important thing any of us do. So the culture is hugely important to everyone here, and I don’t see myself as any different than anyone else.”

Green did say, however, that he is treating this managerial stint far differently than his first try with San Diego, when he went 274-366 over four seasons with the Padres.

“I used to think strategically, tactically, I probably saw that part of the game as 90 percent of what a manager did,” Green said. “Now I probably see it as 10 percent of what a manager does. These guys are really special athletes. They don’t need to be taught as much as they need to be reminded about how good they are, but you have to be connected enough to have that land.”

So far, so good – though everyone from Stearns to Green and his coaches are willing to admit it can be hard to know what exactly to learn from how the Mets are performing with postseason pressure long since off their shoulders. Still, the turnaround is a more favorable testimonial to the Mets’ revamped coaching staff – a coaching staff Green helped assemble this winter – than what the first two months offered. While the Mets plan to have a new manager next year, multiple coaches are under contract beyond this year and could therefore return as part of a reshaped dugout staff.

Either way, because the Mets have improved under Green’s watch, questions will persist about whether Green and the Mets should ditch their front office plan and name him next year’s manager. He said that while the questions are flattering, that does not mean they should shape his answer.

“There’s not a person in the world who doesn’t want people to think highly of them. So any person who holds an opinion in that regard, you appreciate that,” Green said of fans and others pushing for him to stay as manager after two strong months. “But you can’t let your actions be dictated by the opinions of others. You just want to do right by people, as much as possible. That’s what we’re trying to see every guy on the team do. What’s the next right thing? And how do we go do it together?”

Knicks television voice Mike Breen made a surprise appearance on SNY's Mets pregame show and during Wednesday's Mets and Brewers broadcast as a special guest in the booth alongside Gary Cohen and Keith Hernandez.

Breen talked about his Mets fandom, calling Knicks games and much more. 

Here are five memorable moments from the broadcast...

Keith is Breen’s favorite

Breen was giddy sitting between Cohen and Hernandez, especially Hernandez, whom the longtime Knicks broadcaster said was his favorite player of that era.

“I’ve been a Met fan since I was seven, that’s 1968. Every era you have a favorite player. Bud Harrelson was and always will be my favorite," Breen said. "But each era I had a favorite player, and the ‘86 championship, you were my favorite. We've met a number of times, but I've never told you."

And in classic Keith fashion, he wanted to hear more praise from Breen.

"Tell me why, I want to hear it," Hernandez said.

Keith's defense is why he was Breen's favorite, and he even called Keith the best defensive first baseman in MLB history. 

Mike Breen tells Keith that he was his favorite player on the 1986 Mets

Mike: "We've met a number of times, but I've never told you"

Keith: "Tell me why, I want to hear it" 😂 pic.twitter.com/QHSP0EpsEW

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026

Breen covering the 1986 Mets

Before becoming the voice of the Knicks in 1991, Breen worked for WNBC radio and covered the Mets during the 1986 playoffs. 

"I called you Mr. Hernandez, which I realize was a mistake at the time,” Breen told Hernandez and Cohen.

Breen revealed that Keith didn't answer his questions when approached and that some of the beat writers were happy since they didn't want the radio guys in the locker room. 

"Usually you were a great quote back then. The writers loved you," Breen said of Hernandez.

"I know," Hernandez quipped.

Breen also told a story of when he had to watch Game 6 of the 1986 World Series from the Red Sox booth since there wasn't room in the press box. 

"I was in the back of the Red Sox radio booth when the ball went through [Bill] Buckner's legs, and I’m embarrassed to admit, I lost any kind of professional conduct... I'm jumping up and down," Breen said.

Mike Breen says he tried to interview Keith during the 1986 playoffs when he was a reporter for WNBC radio:

Keith: "You can't do that"

Mike: "I called you Mr. Hernandez" 😂 pic.twitter.com/HiiE73xTCe

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026

Mike Breen talks about his experience in the back of the Red Sox radio booth during Game 6 of the 1986 World Series: pic.twitter.com/iLpo9kIwAB

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026

Breen, Clyde and Keith

It's hard to talk about Breen's history with the Knicks without including Walt "Clyde" Frazier. 

Breen explained that he had a poster of Clyde in his room where he lived in Yonkers, so it was a treat to get to work with him.

"It's been one of the gifts of my life," Breen said of working with Clyde. "As a 10-year-old, this is a guy I idolized and now it's a lifelong friendship."

Hernandez also had a somewhat working relationship with Clyde. The two former athletes famously appeared in Just for Men commercials and he spoke about that experience.

"They put so much dye, you can see. So much fun working with Clyde," Keith said. "We did that for about seven years, that was the gift that kept giving... Walt, with his poetry. I had a big thrill. I was in high school when the Knicks won with Willis Reed… we loved Clyde and to have to work with him. Such a kind man and such a class act."

"It's been one of the gifts of my life."

Mike Breen talks with Gary Cohen and Keith Hernandez about working with Clyde Frazier 🫶 pic.twitter.com/G9bvvs3BDO

— SNY Knicks (@sny_knicks) August 27, 2026

Breen on Mets' future

The 2026 Mets season has been a disappointment, even to Breen, who says he's the "optimistic" one out of his Met fan friends. But although this season hasn't gone how many expected, Breen is optimistic about what he has seen from the youngsters.

"Clearly, this year was so rough. I didn't really know what was going to happen, but it was disappointing early. But I love what I'm seeing now," Breen said. "You see young players that you can tell have a chance to be here for a while. That's a part of it. Fans, we care so much and there's nothing better when they're winning.

"Two years ago was one of the great times for me as a Met fan. This is disappointing, but it's what makes the great moments special."

Breen put it into perspective. He called Knicks teams that won just 17 games, and now he's called the first Knicks championship in over 50 years. 

He also shouted out A.J. Ewing, Carson Benge and Zac Thornton on the broadcast.

Mike Breen says it's "so much fun" watching the Mets' young players and talks about being a Mets fan:

"There's nothing better when they're winning. Two years ago was one of the great times for me as a Met fan. This is disappointing, but it's what makes the great moments special" pic.twitter.com/zqjQS3Aql5

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026

"21 years of sustained excellence"

For 21 years, Gary, Keith and Ron have graced the SNY airwaves. During Mets pregame, Breen called him being in the SNY booth on Wednesday a "bucket list" moment. And when he finally got to the booth, Breen wanted to acknowledge them.

"There's no booth that's been better. And I'm not talking local, any booth in the history of baseball broadcasting," Breen said. "I speak for many Met fans, this is 21 years of sustained excellence. It's just such a treat to have you guys night in and night out."

Mike Breen says it's a "bucket list" moment for him to be in the booth for part of tonight's Mets game:

"I love that booth. It's one of the great booths of all-time." pic.twitter.com/PetadI0gR0

— SNY Mets (@SNY_Mets) August 26, 2026

"I can't believe I'm sitting here. I'm like a kid in a candy store."

- Mike Breen pic.twitter.com/NizhANmjpw

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026

Mike Breen with some kind words for the SNY booth 💙🧡 pic.twitter.com/GzRAVU5PJQ

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 27, 2026