Category: Sports News

Yankees 4, Mariners 1

Eastbound and Down: Bryan Woo, 0.28 WPA

Weston and Wilson: Michael Rucker, -0.47 WPA

Game thread comment of the day:

Alright Fritz. Fine.

It’s Tuesday night here at BCB After Dark: the grooviest hang for night owls, early risers, new parents and Cubs fans abroad. Come on in out of the heat. There are cool people in here. There’s no cover charge. We have a few tables still available. The hostess will seat you now. Bring your own beverage.

BCB After Dark is the place for you to talk baseball, music, movies, or anything else you need to get off your chest, as long as it is within the rules of the site. The late-nighters are encouraged to get the party started, but everyone else is invited to join in as you wake up the next morning and into the afternoon.

Last night, I asked you which team was most likely to claim the second National League Wild Card? The vote wasn’t too close as 50 percent of you picked the Phillies. The Diamondbacks just snuck past the Padres for second place, 23 percent to 22 percent.

On Tuesday nights, I don’t generally do a movie essay. But I always have some time for jazz, and that time is now.

Tonight we are honored to have trumpeter Freddie Hubbard in 1989 performing “The Night has a Thousand Eyes.” Peter Washington is on double bass, James Williams plays piano and the drummer is Tony Reedus.

Welcome back to everyone who skips all that jazz.

Rick Sutcliffe said something on social media a couple of weeks ago that’s stuck with me.

I’m the kind of person who thinks that managers get too much credit when things go well and too much blame when things go poorly. I do believe that managers make a difference, both good and bad, but the influence is normally small. I do think a bad manager can do a lot more damage to a team than a good manager can help one. Sometimes what we think is a good manager is just someone who isn’t quite as crappy as the guy before him.

But in this case, I gotta agree with Sut. I don’t need to tell you that this year’s Cubs team was decimated by pitching injuries. Things were ugly in May. But Counsell kept the boat afloat through the storm and managed to find some starters and relievers who could keep games close enough for the offense to win. When Pete Crow-Armstrong struggled early in the year, he didn’t bench him against left-handers. Bregman did get off to a poor start to his Cubs career (at least by his standards), but Counsell stood by him and now he looks like his same old self. Hoerner’s mid-season struggles seem to be over. I know a lot of you wanted the Cubs to bench Ian Happ and yes, Counsell did give him an off-day here and there. But the rested and refreshed Happ is starting to look like his old self as well.

Everyone says Counsell is a wizard with the bullpen. Except Counsell. He thinks that’s overstated. But he’s been forced to use 13 different pitchers to record saves this year. He’s put together a bullpen with chewing gum and piano wire.

Now, with the Trade Deadline passed, the Cubs have several reinforcements for those injured players just as the injured players returned. And over the past several weeks, the Cubs have been the best team in the National League, at least as far as wins and losses go. And I don’t think any other metric really matters.

So I’ve got to give Counsell an “A.” But what do you give him?

Thank you for coming in. We always enjoy having you stop by. Get home safely. Call a ride if you need one. Recycle and cans and bottles. Tip your waitstaff. And join us again tomorrow for more BCB After Dark.

Dodgers catcher Dalton Rushing went through the second-opinion carousel — “opinions on opinions,” as he put it — after his elbow started bothering him on Aug. 2 while playing catch in the outfield before a game against the Red Sox.

“We then come to an agreement that surgery is not necessary,” Rushing said Tuesday. “So, we’re going to rehab the muscle on the inside of my forearm. And the details as to timeline, I don’t really have any for you. But at the same time, I can say it feels 10 times better than it did a week ago. And as soon as I can be throwing a baseball, I will be.”

Rushing said that Sunday was the first time he’d felt pain while throwing — “didn’t feel a pop or anything, but felt pretty serious as it kind of tightened up on me a little bit.”

Manager Dave Roberts said last week that Rushing’s MRI scan showed a slight ulnar collateral ligament tear. Rushing added Tuesday that something similar had appeared on previous scans, without symptoms.

“It’s something we’ve known about, but it hasn’t gotten worse over the years,” Rushing said. “And so it puts my arm in just a fine spot, and obviously, we just worry about the muscle.”

Strengthening the surrounding muscle and addressing the inflammation in the area should help stabilize and take pressure off the inside of his elbow.

On Monday, Rushing started swinging, which he said didn’t bother his elbow. His eventual throwing progression will give him and the Dodgers more information on his availability the rest of the year and any potential offseason interventions — “I don’t think [surgery] will be necessary,” Rushing reiterated when asked specifically about the offseason.

While Roberts said last week that he thought the chances of Rushing catching again were “very small,” Rushing was more optimistic.

Read more:Shaikin: The Shohei Ohtani Economy: A two-mile ride to Dodger Stadium, for $85

“Yeah, if I can throw, I’m going to be able to catch,” he said. “So I’m not too worried about it. And two months at least of playing baseball, and that’s what I’m going to worry about at the moment. And when the season’s over with, and we have another World Series, then we can worry about what the next step is.”

Klein hopes to avoid surgery

Dodgers reliever Will Klein hopes to avoid surgery to remove the loose bodies in his right elbow.

“We’re going to rehab and let the inflammation calm down and get back to where it’s manageable this year and try to build back up and see where that puts us,” he said. “It’s feeling a lot better right now. So that’s encouraging.”

Klein has been on the injured list since the start of the month, with what the Dodgers called right elbow discomfort. The Athletic was the first to report a more specific diagnosis.

Klein said he’d known about the small pieces of bone in his elbow, which had previously been manageable. But they’d calcified and become larger, causing inflammation.

His exact timeline to return is in flux, but Klein is scheduled to start throwing weighted plyo balls this week.

“I’m going to do everything I can to get back and pitch again this year,” he said.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Yankees offense was held in check for six innings before exploding for four runs in the seventh en route to a 4-1 win over the Mariners on Tuesday night.

Here are the takeaways...

-Weathers was dealing again. The southpaw mowed down the Mariners lineup, allowing just one hit and two walks in the first five innings, even retiring 10 straight batters at one point. 

The game changed in the sixth when Randy Arozarena took Weathers deep with a one-out short-porch homer. It's Arozarena's 18th career home run against the Yankees.

Weathers went 5.2 innings (106 pitches/62 strikes), allowing the one run on two hits and three walks while striking out four. 

-Bryan Woo came into Tuesday's game with a 4.31 ERA (a 6.27 ERA on the road), and those numbers improved because of the Yankees' lifeless offense. 

To the Yankees' credit, they were on Woo's pitches early, narrowly missing home runs on a number of at-bats, but the right-hander threw five scoreless innings, allowing three hits and one walk while striking out five. 

-The Yankees' best chance came in the seventh. A leadoff double from Luis Garcia Jr. and a single from Jazz Chisholm Jr. put runners on the corners with no outs. George Lombard Jr. struck out and Chisholm stole second. Spencer Jones walked in front of Ryan McMahon and the Yankees third baseman hit an opposite-field single to drive in two. Austin Wells dropped a single in to load the bases for Trent Grisham. The veteran outfielder did his best McMahon impression, going opposite field to drive in two more.

-After Weathers, the Yankees bullpen kept the Mariners bats down. The combination of Tim Hill, Brent Headrick and David Bednar pitched 3.1 scoreless innings. Here's how it broke down:

• Hill: 1.1 IP
• Headrick: 1.0 IP, 2 K
• Bednar: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 K

-Lombard went 1-for-4 and continued to show his major league-level defense. 

Game MVP: Ryan McMahon

McMahon's two-run single gave the Yankees the lead they wouldn't relinquish.

Highlights

George Lombard Jr. with the barehand! pic.twitter.com/gxgFmsM48H

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 11, 2026

BIG MAC.

Ryan McMahon gives the Yankees the lead! pic.twitter.com/4bJK82tLxc

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 12, 2026

Trent Grisham brings home two more! pic.twitter.com/0wXb61cAcX

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) August 12, 2026

What's next

The Yankees and Mariners continue their three-game set Wednesday night. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

Will Warren (8-6, 4.18 ERA) takes the mound against Bryce Miller (4-6, 3.08 ERA). 

Pope Leo XIV was famously in the stands at the 2005 World Series, back when the Chicago White Sox were a team that won things. He's kept the faith since, which for a Sox fan is saying something.

The Dolton native turned first American-born pope got his tribute Tuesday night when the White Sox hosted the Cincinnati Reds. There were over 40,000 pope hats, enough for the fans and even players, handed out before the game. There was even a special one made for the White Sox mascot South Paw. The pointed mitre in black and green with a Sox logo on it were such a popular idea they had to expand it. Initially it was a typical "first 1,500 fans," but ticket sales tripled withing a day of the announcement.

Former Mets general manager Jim Duquette has one simple solution for David Stearns to fix the Mets’ issues next season.

Sign Tarik Skubal in free agency.

During an appearance on the latest episode of The Post’s “The Show” podcast with Jon Heyman, Duquette identified the Mets’ rotation as his biggest concern and questioned whether Stearns’ approach to building a pitching staff can work in the Big Apple.

“My biggest concern is in their rotation,” Duquette said. “… The philosophy that David Stearns has had just doesn’t work in New York. There’s too many variables if you don’t get some certainty in the rotation, like what the Yankees have and the Dodgers have.

“They have to sign Skubal. I don’t see any other way out of this if they don’t get Skubal.”

Skubal, who was traded to the back-to-back reigning champion Dodgers before the deadline, is expected to garner a record-breaking deal on the open market this winter. 

The southpaw has won the American League Cy Young in each of the past two seasons, and has posted a 2.93 ERA across 18 outings so far in 2026. 

The big-spending Dodgers and Yankees, who also pursued Skubal before the deadline, are expected to be in the mix for his services this offseason.

The Mets’ rotation has been a sore spot for the team this season, posting a 4.46 ERA heading into Tuesday’s play, which was the ninth-worst mark in baseball. 

The failed experiment with Freddy Peralta, who was traded to the Rays after a disastrous stint in Queens, didn’t help. 

Peralta, who was expected to slot in as the Amazin’s ace after coming over from Milwaukee, pitched to a 4.99 ERA with the Mets in 22 starts before the trade.

Blake Snell looks for his first win of the season, facing the Royals and veteran Michael Wacha.

Tuesday’s game info

• Teams: Dodgers vs. Royals
• Ballpark: Dodger Stadium, Los Angeles
• Start time: 7:10 p.m. PT
• TV: SportsNet LA
• Radio: AM 570 (English), KTNQ 1020 AM (Spanish)

The Atlanta Braves lost a disappointing game one to the New York Mets last night and we looking for a rebound behind Martín Pérez who struggled against the Mets in July. Interestingly, Pérez faced the same opponent he did last month, Nolan McLean who pitched a great game.

Pérez had a solid first inning. In the past Francisco Lindor had absolutely dominated him, and so had Bo Bichette. Lindor singled but Francisco Lindor got Bichette to ground into a double play to end the top of the inning. The first did not go any better for the Braves as McLean sat them down in order.

For some reason the Mets had Luis Robert hitting cleanup, so he led off the second with a pop up. Initially it looked like Jim Jarvis made a great play to get Benge out, but after review he hit a single. After another induced pop up, things got a little messy with a walk to Alvarez. Pérez was able to settled down and strike out off-season acquisition Polanco to end the top of the second. It looked like the Braves may get something going in the second when Harris led off with a single, but then he was caught stealing followed by two more outs.

Pérez got through the third unscathed in terms of runs. He walked his nemesis Lindor, but that was the only offense by the Mets. The third was another inning much like the second. Yastrzemski led off with a walk to look like the Braves may get some offense, but then that was the only base runner.

Pérez continued to look sharp in the fourth. Benge had his second single of the night off of him, but Pérez sat down the rest of the hitters to include a strikeout to Alvarez, avenging the walk he gave up earlier. The Braves continued to look anemic in the fourth. Even Harris, the only payer with a hit to this point for the Braves, struck out. The side was retired. Pérez avenged his teammates in the fifth though, and did he exact same thing. The Mets were sat down in order.

The Braves finally broke through with a single swing of the bat when Albies smoked a no doubter to the chop house on the second pitch he saw to make the score 1-0. It was the only offense of the inning, but it was all that was needed.

In the sixth, we saw some more strand rate magic for Martín Pérez. After a Lindor groundout he gave up a walk followed by a single to put runners on the corners, but then got Benge to ground into a double play, preventing any runs. It is a good thing he did, because yet again the Braves were sat down in order in the sixth.

Didier Fuentes came in to pitch the seventh. Martín Pérez avenged his last start against the Mets with 6.0 innings of four hit ball that were all singles and lowered his season ERA to 2.96. Fuentes sat down all three hitters to include a strikeout. The Braves finally looked like an offense that wanted to win in the seventh after McLean was removed. Olson walked and then advanced on a wild pitch, Harris moved him over to third on a groundout. Albies then walked. Dubón then did what he does best, have clutch contact by recording a sac fly to make the score 2-0. Lane Thomas then came in to pinch hit and walked. Both runners advanced on a wild pitch, but then Robert made a fantastic leaping grab at the wall to rob Riley of a two RBI double.

Dylan Lee came in to pitch the eighth and did Dylan Lee things by retiring the side to include a strikout to lower his ERA to 1.99. The eighth inning is where the Braves iced it. Jarvis was retired but then Baldwin walked. Acuña hit the balled extremely hard, but Robert made another fantastic read on the ball. Then, Matt Olson stayed red hot and hit an absolute tank of a two-run bomb to make the score 4-0. His HR went 423 feet.

Harris singled and Albies did his signature pop up to end the eighth. Iglesias came in the game and had no problem sitting down three hitters with a four run lead. He had struggled some this season in those situations so it was nice to see him come through.

The key to the game was Martín Pérez limiting hits and the offense coming through against the bullpen. The Braves look to do it again tomorrow.

ATLANTA — August’s dog days have nothing on Nolan McLean. 

At a time of the season when concerns about a rookie starting pitcher’s workload might arise, the right-hander appears on his game. But that alone couldn’t get the Mets a victory Tuesday night. 

With their previously sizzling bats cold, the Mets lost 4-0 to the Braves at Truist Park for their second loss in eight games on this road trip. 

McLean surrendered one hit — a homer to Ozzie Albies — over six innings, allowing one run on a night he retired 16 straight batters to begin the game. He struck out three and walked two while extending his workload for this season to a career-high 136 ²/₃ innings. Last year he combined to pitch 113 ²/₃ in the minors and major leagues. 

“I think a lot of it is working out in between your starts, not changing the routine even if you don’t feel the best,” McLean said of his crispness. “Just getting in the weight room and getting after it to keep the strength up. And then early in the year we talked about throwing too much in between starts and just being mindful of your chronic workload in between starts as well.” 

Interim manager Andy Green indicated that McLean, at 85 pitches, might have returned for the seventh inning if the Mets had the lead. 

“[But] he’s thrown a lot of pitches his last number of outings, so 85 pitches, six innings, one run and one hit, that’s a good day’s work for him in August in his first year,” Green said. 

McLean’s rebound from a shaky start last week in Cleveland was a welcome sign. Thursday, he had his worst start of the season, surrendering five earned runs over five innings. 

Overall, he’s pitched to a 3.42 ERA in 24 starts this season. 

“There’s still a lot of work to do,” McLean said. “There’s a lot of games left this season. I wouldn’t say the body of work is finished. I can learn every time we go out there and each lineup is completely different, too. So, I think it proposes a good challenge every time we go out there on how to navigate lineups multiple times through the order. The goal is to keep learning from that.” 

The Mets had averaged 7.1 runs over the previous seven games, but on this night were stifled by lefty Martín Pérez. They were also shut out in their other loss on this road trip, Saturday in Pittsburgh. 

A.J. Ewing’s full-extension, diving catch racing toward the foul line in left field deprived Mauricio Dubón of a hit to conclude the second inning. McLean raised his right arm to celebrate the play. 

Albies homered leading off the home fifth, jumping on an 0-2 fastball and clearing the right field fence to give the Braves a 1-0 lead. 

The Mets wasted an opportunity in the sixth, putting runners on the corners with one out before Carson Benge grounded into an inning-ending double play against Pérez, who before the night concluded extended his scoreless streak to 18 innings. The lefty allowed four hits and three walks over six innings, departing after 82 pitches. 

“[Pérez’s] change-up was really special,” Green said. “We didn’t make the appropriate adjustments to it. He only left a couple of them up.” 

Jefry Yan walked Matt Olson and Albies in the seventh. Dubón’s sacrifice fly extended the Braves lead to 2-0. The lefty Yan was removed with two outs in the inning after walking Lane Thomas. 

Chayce McDermott allowed a two-run homer to Olson in the eighth that sank the Mets into a 4-0 hole. Olson’s homer was his 35th this season, which tied him for the major league lead with Kyle Schwarber, Yordan Alvarez and Junior Caminero.

When Dalton Rushing and Will Klein initially went down with injuries over the last couple weeks, there was fear they could each need surgery and that their seasons were potentially finished.

On Tuesday afternoon, however, both Dodgers players struck considerably more optimistic tones while discussing their recoveries, holding out hope of making full returns this year without going under the knife.

“The main worry is getting back on the field for the last however many weeks of the season,” said Rushing, the backup catcher who suffered a slight tear to the ulnar collateral ligament in his elbow.

“I’m gonna do everything I can to get back and pitch again this year,” added Klein, the right-handed reliever battling bone spurs/loose bodies in his elbow.

For now, Rushing seems like the slightly safer bet to be back in some form –– though his chances of catching again this season remain up in the air.

While his elbow injury won’t preclude him from hitting (he said he has already resumed swinging a bat barely a week removed from going on the IL), the road to regaining full arm strength (a requirement to play behind the dish and throw out base runners) will be a longer one.

Manager Dave Roberts previously said Rushing would be shut down from throwing for roughly 4-6 weeks, and described the second-year slugger’s chances of catching again this year as “very small.”

On Tuesday, however, Rushing expressed more confidence in his chances of getting back to 100% in time for the playoffs; grateful that after several rounds of medical evaluations, “we came to an agreement that surgery is not necessary.”

“We’re going to rehab the muscle on the inside of my forearm,” said Rushing, who added that while his UCL has been flagged in medical imaging before, he’s never actually dealt with an injury in his elbow. 

“The details as to timeline [to return], I don’t really have any for you. But at the same time, I can say it feels 10 times better than it did a week ago. And as soon as I can be throwing a baseball, I will be.”

If Rushing can’t return to catching –– the Dodgers added two other catchers at the trade deadline as insurance, and remain confident that Will Smith will eventually come back from his neck injury –– the former top prospect could still serve as a left-handed bench bat for a right-handed-heavy Dodgers offense down the stretch.

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But first, he is eager to get into a throwing progression, see how his arm responds, and exhaust every effort possible to remain an option behind the plate.

“If I can throw,” he said, “I’m gonna be able to catch.”

Klein is also hopeful of being able to throw again this year, even after he was diagnosed with some calcified bone debris in his right elbow.

Typically, such injuries require a clean-up procedure –– which in Klein’s case, would likely sideline him for the rest of the season.

Since going on the injured list at the start of August, however, Klein said his arm is already feeling “a lot better,” with his inflammation subsiding to the point where he can resume a plyoball throwing program in the coming days.

“Try to build back up,” Klein said of his plan, “and see where that puts us.”

Klein didn’t want to blame all of his recent struggles on his elbow injury (he allowed 13 runs, eight of them earned, in his final six outings before going on the IL). But he acknowledged it had impacted his ability to cleanly finish his throw.

“Some of the ‘snap’ wasn’t there like it had been early on in the year,” said Klein, a 2025 World Series hero who had a 2.29 ERA in his first 30 appearances on the season. 

His goal now is similar to Rushing’s: Rest up, let the injury continue to heal and come back just in time to reclaim their spots on the team’s roster.

That’s no guarantee. With Klein’s status specifically, Roberts said he was “hoping” but “wouldn’t say hopeful.” But, given where both players were when they first got hurt, it’s at least something to cling to.

“We’ve got two months, at least, of playing baseball,” Rushing said. “That’s what I’m going to worry about at the moment.”

The Mets dropped just their second game of the road trip on Tuesday night, losing to the Atlanta Braves, 4-0.

Here are the key takeaways...

-- Locked in a pitcher’s duel with Braves starter Martin Perez, Nolan McLean appeared to have the upper hand as he didn’t allow a hit through the first four innings and was getting through Atlanta’s lineup efficiently and with relative ease thanks to the Braves’ aggressiveness at the plate.

-- Unfortunately, the Mets’ blistering offense came to a screeching halt and was unable to get past Perez, despite good career numbers up and down the lineup against the veteran, as the left-hander matched McLean’s zeros.

-- The game turned on a dime in the fifth inning when Met killer Ozzie Albies broke up the no-hitter, the shutout and the scoreless tie when he turned on an 0-2 fastball by McLean for a solo bomb leading off the frame.

The home run was Albies’ 20th of the season and his 25th career home run against the Mets in 119 games – the most he’s hit against one team. Albies also entered the day hitting a ridiculous .366 with a .869 OPS on an 0-2 count, far better than his career .201/.206/.295 slash line.

-- McLean quickly regrouped and retired the next three in order before going back out for the sixth and retiring the side. The right-hander’s night was done after that, following just 85 pitches (53 strikes), his only blemish being the home run, which was enough to give him the loss.

-- New York’s bullpen wasn’t as sharp as McLean with Jefrey Yan walking three in the seventh and throwing a wild pitch while allowing a run to score in 0.2 innings. Chayce McDermott came in to get the final out and after uncorking a wild pitch of his own, he got Austin Riley to fly out to deep center field with Luis Robert Jr. making a nice catch at the wall.

McDermott wasn’t so lucky in the eighth, allowing two runs to score on Matt Olson’s league-leading 35th home run of the season, which gave the Braves a 4-0 lead on just two total hits.

-- The Mets weren’t much better, tallying just four hits on the night – two from Carson Benge. Atlanta’s bullpen pitched three perfect innings in relief of Perez, who got the win.

Game MVP: Ozzie Albies

Albies' long ball against McLean was the big hit in this one.

Highlights

Francisco Alvarez throws out Michael Harris trying to steal second! pic.twitter.com/pcrQtMmdl1

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 11, 2026

OH WOW, A.J. EWING! pic.twitter.com/FkkPHBFdiL

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 11, 2026

Nolan McLean freezes Michael Harris 🔥 pic.twitter.com/qMOMS7Ih6F

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 12, 2026

Marcus Semien makes the catch and avoids a collision with Luis Robert Jr. pic.twitter.com/PEW7kiS4c5

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 12, 2026

Francisco Lindor makes the long throw and Gabriel Arias makes the scoop to retire Ronald Acuña Jr.! pic.twitter.com/wTJnOl4ukM

— SNY (@SNYtv) August 12, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Braves close out their series in Atlanta on Wednesday night with first pitch scheduled for 7:15 p.m. on SNY.

LHP Zac Thornton (3-2, 2.52 ERA) pitches for New York, opposed by RHP Tyler Mahle (3-9, 4.83 ERA).

After putting up a total of 13 runs last night, the Mets and Braves had a much lower scoring affair in game two of this three game series, with the Atlanta going over NewYork 4-0.

Nolan McLean and Martín Pérez engaged in a pitchers’ duel, with neither having dominant stuff tonight, but both doing what they could to keep the offense to a minimum. The Mets put runners on in each of the first four innings, but Pérez was able to keep them from coming around to score.

Both teams were kept off the board until the bottom of the fifth inning, when Ozzie Albies led off with a solo home run. That solo home run was the only hit given up by McLean, who had six strong innings, allowing just the one hit/one run, two walks, and struck out three. McLean was efficient with his pitches, throwing 85 over his six innings.

The Mets’ best chance to score happened in the sixth inning, when Bo Bichette walked and Luis Robert Jr. singled to put two on with one out. However, Carson Benge grounded into a double play to end the inning without incident.

Another run crossed the plate for the Braves in the seventh, with Jefry Yan on the mound. Two walks, a wild pitch, a ground out, and a sacrifice fly plated the second run of the game. After issuing his third walk of the inning, Yan was pulled from the game for Chayce McDermott. The first pitch tossed by McDermott was a wild pitch, pushing the runners to second and third. A long fly ball off the bat of Austin Riley found its way into Robert’s Jr’s glove at the wall to end the inning.

After the Mets were blanked in the top of the eighth, McDermott was back out for his second inning of work. With two outs and one on, McDermottt hung a breaking ball and Matt Olson hit it so far that you could barely hear Braves’ fans racist chants where it landed. With that one swing, the Mets were now down 4-0.

Raisel Iglesias pitched a perfect ninth inning to close the book on the game, handing the Mets their MLB-leading 13th shutout loss. Tyler Mahle will face Zac Thornton in the rubber game tomorrow evening.

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big winner: Nolan McLean, +17.0% WPA

Big loser: Carson Benge, -13.0% WPA

Total pitcher WPA: +5.0% WPA

Total batter WPA: -55.0% WPA

Teh aw3s0mest play: Luis Robert Jr.’s sixth inning single, +10.3% WPA

Teh sux0rest play: Ozzie Albies’ solo home run, -14.2% WPA

Like seemingly every other game in recent weeks, the Cleveland Guardians fell short of a victory. They put up runs, they out hit their opponent, but they weren’t able to string together anything significant to gain victory over the Tigers.

Tanner Bibee took the mound for Cleveland and ended up going 6.1 innings. Bibee gave up six runs, five earned, on five hits and two walks. He struck out four batters. The unearned run came in the bottom of the seventh with Matt Festa on the mound. José Ramírez missed a catch, allowing the inherited runner to score. Matt Fest closed the seventh inning, striking out a batter.

Franco Aleman came on in the bottom of the eighth and made quick work of the Tigers. He did walk a batter, but he also struck out one and retired the side in 14 pitches.

The Guardians got on the board in the top of the third. With one out, Chase DeLauter hit the second pitch of the at bat a whopping 424 feet into the seats in right center.

In the top of the seventh, Steven Kwan drew a one out walk. Chase DeLauter reached on a single right and both runners advanced a base on a passed ball. José Ramírez hit into a groundout, scoring Steven Kwan to bring the Guardians within two runs of the Tigers.

The next inning, Jo Adell hit a solo home run 428 feet to center to kick off the inning.

Cleveland pieced together the makings of a rally in the top of the ninth. Steven Kwan hit a lead off single. With one out, José Ramírez drew a one-out walk. Stephen Vogt went to rookie Angel Genao to pinch hit for Rhys Hoskins. Angel Genao worked a six pitch walk to load the bases. Jo Adell hit a sac fly to deep enough in the right field to score Kwan from third.

The Guards were still 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, but the offense had a base runner in every single inning. Like Twitter user MichaelHook_CLE phrased it, this team seems to be playing at their floor. There are some categorical improvements in the offense since the trade deadline additions, but it feels like the pieces are taking their sweet time to fall into place.

The Tigers and Guardians face off again tomorrow with another 6:40 PM EDT start.

You know, the Royals and the Dodgers have, basically, the same base uniform. What’s up with that? The same blue, the same home script, the same grey away uniform. Thankfully, the Royals have some uniforms and colors that are legitimately different (IE, powder blue, and #PurplePower City Connect jerseys). Unfortunately, while they may have the better uniforms, the Dodgers have the better…everything else, just about.

Well, mostly. I went to Dodgers Stadium a few years ago. It was fun, I saw Shohei hit a home run, yada yada. But the traffic was horrific. It took us an hour and a half to go from our hotel near LAX to the Dodger Stadium parking lot. That’s a 20-mile distance. Imagine the drive from Oak Park Mall to Kauffman Stadium taking an hour and a half. Ew. Public transit is good.

In any case, Blake Snell is pitching, and the Royals will have their work cut out for them.

Royals lineup

Dodgers lineup