Category: Sports News

For eight and two thirds innings AND two strikes of this nine inning game, the Twins looked lifeless, dead, and outclassed by a much inferior Royals squad. To the point that I had a recap completely written and ready to post as soon as the score went final. But Kody Clemens had other plans.

Unfortunately, we need to start with the first 99.9% of this game.

Mere hours after being shut out by ex-Twin and bad pitcher Randy Dobnak, they somehow did even worse against Noah Cameron today. Cameron came into this game with a 4.93 ERA, fifth worst among pitchers with at least 100 innings this season. So naturally he no-hit the Twins through six, went eight scoreless overall and simply breezed through the lineup all afternoon. Also of note: Cameron is a lefty, so this outcome was preordained by whatever left-handed witch the Pohlad family insulted a decade ago. 

Minnesota’s offense made some serious strides from June 1 through the All-Star break, but have been completely lifeless since then. They’ve only scored more than five runs twice, and those came in games where the Guardians and Athletics committed three and four errors, respectively. If you eliminate those slop-fests, the Twins are averaging two runs per game since the All-Star Break. Two!!

In that same stretch, they are also 29th in home runs, 28th in SLG, 25th in batting average, 24th in OBP, 28th in xwOBA, 27th in wRC+, and 30th in barrel rate. They’re making soft contact over and over again, which does make sense when you look at regulars like Brooks Lee, Luke Keaschall, Ryan Kreidler, and Austin Martin. The difference is now hits aren’t falling like they used to.

Which makes it even more baffling that the Twins opted to bring up yet another non-factor bat when Buxton went on the IL. They could have turned to Walker Jenkins, the consensus Top 5 prospect who has hit well at AAA all season. Kaelen Culpepper and Emmanuel Rodriguez are still working themselves back from injuries, but starting them every other day could bring some juice to a lineup that desperately needs it. Instead, Derek Shelton has run out two different lineups this week that involve journeyman minor league catcher Alex Jackson starting at first base. 

But we’ll complain about that next week. Kody Clemens wasn’t happy about my negativity and did something about it.

Despite the offensive ineptitude on display all day, the Twins rallied with two outs in the ninth inning. Lucas Erceg was the Royals’ closer to begin the season, but his lack of commend lost him the role before April ended. That wildness was on very much on display today.

Erceg hit Ryan Jeffers, gave up a soft two-strike single to Royce Lewis, and walked Josh Bell after getting ahead of him 0-2. Lefty Matt Strahm then came in to finish the game against Kody Clemens and also got up 0-2 on the Twins’ left-handed hitter. And then on the third pitch of the AB, Clemens made sure the rest of that game didn’t matter. Take it away, Cory Provus.

How about one more angle for good measure?

After all that, the Twins secured another series victory, are back at .500, and Kody Clemens goes home a hero of epic proportions. In fact, he did something only 33 other players in MLB history have done: hit an ultimate grand slam. 

On to Seattle!

STUDS

• Somehow, some way, Kody Clemens: WALK OFF GRAND SLAM

DUDS

• If this was any other game, literally every other hitter 
• But it’s not. NO DUDS TWINS WIN!!

Despite a gem spun by Noah Cameron, the Royals lost today, 4-3. The Minnesota Twins won on a walk-off Grand Slam by Kody Clemens off Matt Strahm. It is the ninth time this season that the Royals have lost via walk-off, and the second time the bullpen has allowed a walk-off Grand Slam.

Before the bottom of the ninth, the game had been mostly free of drama, thanks in large part to Cameron, making his first start since July 19 when the Royals fell to the Padres, 19-2.

Hey, that begs the question, which is worse? Losing a game like that day, when the Royals never had a chance, or losing a game like today, when the Royals had the Twins down to their last strike three different times? Asking for a friend, obvs.

Back to Cameron. He’s had quite the road trip. His last outing against Detroit, he entered in the second inning and never gave up the ball. While the Royals—get ready for this—lost that day, Cameron grooved to the tune of two hits, three walks, eight strikeouts, and zero runs across seven innings pitched.

Today, he topped that performance. It certainly helped getting ahead of the count so often—in fact, Cameron threw first-pitch strikes to 20 of the 22 batters he faced. When he finally left the game, he had tossed a career-high eight innings while allowing just one hit (a measly single in the seventh) while walking two and striking out seven.

8 IP
1 H
0 R
2 BB
7 Ks

Noah Cameron took a no-hitter into the 7th inning in Minnesota! pic.twitter.com/ux1YtHZbpT

— MLB (@MLB) July 30, 2026

Combine his last two outings, both on the road against divisional foes: 15 innings pitched, three hits, five walks, 15 strikeouts, zero runs.

The Royals lost both games.

Jac Caglianone started the scoring when he hit one to Mars. Actually, it hit the American flag blowing in right field. Caglianone’s 17th home run of the season, which also scored John Rave, traveled 438 feet while being hit 113.7 MPH.

It sounded divine.

Jac Caglianone crushes a 438-foot home run to open the scoring! pic.twitter.com/Rj6ZzPDykp

— MLB (@MLB) July 30, 2026

The Royals padded their lead two innings later in the fifth when Carter Jensen scored on a heads-up play. With two outs and Jensen on first, Rave doubled for the second time. Clemens, the right fielder, tried to nab Rave at second, but the ball scooted away. Jensen, whose forward momentum hadn’t ceased, raced home ahead of an off-line throw. 3-0, Royals.

Really, that was it. Or: it should’ve been it. Cameron cruised while limiting baserunners. The Royals added some runners, but none crossed home. The way Cameron looked on the mound, it didn’t seem to matter.

And it didn’t matter until Cameron left the mound.

Enter: The Kansas City Royals Bullpen. 2026 motto: No Lead is Safe.

Lucas Erceg came in first and retired the first two batters he faced on a strikeout and soft liner. Ho-hum. Then he hit Ryan Jeffers before getting two strikes on Royce Lewis. Lewis, naturally, singled. Josh Bell followed. Again, Erceg had him down to the last strike. Then he threw four straight balls to walk him. Bases loaded.

Matt Quatraro graced us with his presence then when he walked to the mound to pull Erceg for…wait a minute, that can’t be right…Matt Strahm???

Raise your hand if you knew the Royals were toast at that point. I don’t care who Minnesota had coming up, things were not going to end well for the Royals. Since Kansas City is so far out of it as this ugly downward spiral continues, the whole situation humored me more than anything.

Strahm got Clemens down 0-2 before all but laying it up on a tee.

KODY CLEMENS ULTIMATE GRAND SLAM! pic.twitter.com/zIp6jZ3fgR

— MLB (@MLB) July 30, 2026

For the second time in three days, the Twins walked off the Royals. Minnesota improved to 55-55 while this Royals dropped to 46-64.

On to Denver.

Since the Jays aren’t going to make any trade news until I walk into the theater, let’s look back.

On this day 11 years ago:

The Blue Jays traded Daniel Norris, Matt Boyd, and Jairo Labourt to the Tigers in exchange for David Price.

At the time of the trade, the Jays were 52-51, tied for second place and six games behind the Yankees.

The Jays went 41-18 the rest of the way, finished first in the AL East, and, well, you know the rest.

Price went 9-1 in 11 starts for the Jays (it’s remarkable he received 10 decisions in 11 starts), posting a 2.30 ERA. However, he struggled in the playoffs.

He was also a great presence in the clubhouse—cheering on the team when he wasn’t pitching, enjoying Rogers Centre popcorn, and clearly savoring the moment. Alex Anthopoulos praised his ‘clubhouse presence,’ calling him the best teammate he had seen.

In the off-season, Price signed with the Red Sox. While it was disappointing to see him go, given his $217 million, seven-year contract, it was likely bestthe Jays didn’t match it. He had four inconsistent seasons in Boston, clashed with the media (primarily Dennis Eckersley, which I consider a plus), and dealt with injuries. Over those four seasons, he went 46-24 with a 3.84 ERA.

In February 2020, Price was traded to the Dodgers alongside Mookie Betts. He sat out the 2020 season, but in 2021 he pitched in 39 games (starting 11) with a 4.03 ERA. This year, he has made 26 relief appearances with a 3.08 ERA, and he’s mentioned considering retirement after the season.

What about the players the Jays traded away?

• Boyd turned out to be the best player the Tigers received in the trade. After joining Detroit, he pitched eight seasons for them, going 42-65 with a 4.92 ERA in 162 games. He’s also pitched for the Mariners, Guardians and now, the Cubs. He’s 6-1, 3.41 in 12 starts with the Cubs this year.
• Norris pitched parts of 8 seasons with the Tigers. He had an 20-33 record and a 4.52 ERA in 153 games, 79 starts. Since then he’s pitched for the Brewers, Cubs, Tigers and Guardians and retired after the 2023 season
• Labourt appeared in six games for the Tigers in 2017—that comprised his entire MLB career.

In the end, we were pretty happy with the trade:

And history proved us right.

Blake Snell may have done enough to show the Dodgers that he is ready to return from injury.

The veteran left-hander overwhelmed Single-A hitters during his latest rehabilitation start Wednesday, throwing four scoreless innings for the Ontario Tower Buzzers while allowing one hit and striking out nine.

Snell threw 45 of his 60 pitches for strikes and consistently reached 95 to 96 mph with his fastball. After giving up a one-out single in the opening inning, he retired the final 11 batters he faced, including three consecutive strikeouts in the second.

The performance matched the workload the Dodgers had established for him almost perfectly.

Manager Dave Roberts said the goal was for Snell to complete four innings and throw about 60 pitches. Ontario manager John Shoemaker said the organization had targeted between 60 and 65 pitches, with Snell’s efficiency determining how deep he worked.

Snell could hardly have been more efficient.

The outing may have been his final test before returning to the Dodgers’ rotation, although Los Angeles has not announced its next step.

The biggest remaining unknown — and the most important one — is how Snell’s body responds after the outing.

The outing couldn’t have come at a better time, with the Dodgers in an immediate need of another starter.

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Shohei Ohtani is unavailable as a pitching option because of right biceps and left knee injuries, while Tyler Glasnow remains sidelined by lower-back spasms. LA currently lacks the six healthy starters needed to operate its preferred rotation structure.

That could increase the temptation to bring Snell back sooner rather than later.

The 33-year-old has made only one major league start this season. He opened the year on the injured list because of shoulder fatigue before returning against the Braves in May. Loose bodies were later discovered in his left elbow, sending him back to the injured list after that brief appearance.

Snell underwent a minimally invasive procedure to remove the loose bodies and has followed another gradual throwing program since then. The Dodgers have handled his rehabilitation cautiously, prioritizing his availability for the stretch run and postseason over rushing him back during the summer.

Wednesday’s outing offered their strongest evidence yet that the patient approach has worked.

Facing low-level minor league competition is significantly different from navigating a major league lineup, but Snell accomplished everything the Dodgers could reasonably have wanted.

Another rehab start remains possible. After such a dominant performance, however, Snell may soon receive a much more difficult assignment with the Dodgers.

Five games for the San Francisco Giants Minor League Baseball affiliates on Wednesday. The rookie ball teams didn’t play (the DSL squads had the day off while the ACL season is over), but AA Richmond played a doubleheader due to having their game on Tuesday postponed. Let’s dive into it!

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

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

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AAA Sacramento (57-44)

Sacramento River Cats beat the Tacoma Rainiers (Mariners) 5-4
Box score

Some exciting news in Sacramento, as center fielder Jonah Cox began a rehab assignment. Funnily enough, since the Giants called up Cox straight from AA Richmond, Wednesday’s rehab game was Cox’s first time playing in AAA. It didn’t go particularly well, as he went 0-3 and struck out twice, but hey … it was his first game in a month!

The Giants seem to be enjoying giving Grant McCray some run, and they’re no longer chasing wins, so my guess is that Cox will get optioned to Sacramento when he’s done rehabbing, which is good. That’s the level he should have been at all along, in my opinion.

Speaking of outfielders who play great defense and steal a lot of bases, left fielder/center fielder Turner Hill had another great game, because that’s all he does these days. The 27-year old lefty went a perfect 3-3 with a walk and 2 runs batted in, which pushed his hitting streak to 15 games. During those 15 games, the former undrafted free agent has hit a scintillating 28-61 with 2 home runs, 2 triples, 3 doubles, 6 walks, and just 4 strikeouts, which has brought him up to an absurd 1.112 OPS for the month, and a .912 OPS and 141 wRC+ on the year.

TURNER DOES IT AGAIN 💥 pic.twitter.com/WO2nf9zt6b

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) July 30, 2026

Second baseman Nate Furman (No. 39 CPL) had another nice game, hitting 2-4 and stealing a base. Furman’s been a little more middle-of-the-road than notably good lately … since June 18 he’s hit 30-120 with just 8 extra-base hits, 15 walks, and 17 strikeouts, while maintaining a batting line just above league average (.773 OPS, 107 wRC+). But with Casey Schmitt out for the year with a torn meniscus, and Luis Arráez almost guaranteed to be wearing a different team’s jersey this time next week, Furman has to be eyeing a Major League debut (personally I’d give Jesús Rodríguez [No. 16 CPL] those reps).

NATE BRINGS IN TWO MORE ‼️ pic.twitter.com/QLrM2gUFjW

— Sacramento River Cats (@RiverCats) July 30, 2026

Third baseman Parks Harber (No. 17 CPL) continues to look comfortable in AAA, as he hit 2-5 with a pair of hard-hit singles. Harber has hit safely in 10 out of his 11 games since getting promoted, and is 19-50 with 4 extra-base hits, 3 walks, and 13 strikeouts (.926 OPS, 146 wRC+). It’s been a less smooth transition for designated hitter Bo Davidson (No. 4 CPL), who went 0-4 with a strikeout in this game. The lefty has really been scuffling since his promotion, going 11-48 with 1 extra-base hit, 3 walks, and 15 strikeouts (.538 OPS, 48 wRC+). Adjustment periods are to be expected, though, especially for someone who doesn’t have a long history of facing pitchers who can really spin the baseball.

On the mound, RHP Blade Tidwell (No. 9 CPL) made what is likely to be his last start in AAA for a while. With LHP Carson Whisenhunt (No. 8 CPL) taking the turn of injured RHP Trevor McDonald (No. 12 CPL) in the MLB rotation, Tidwell is likely to be the name who replaces LHP Robbie Ray when he’s invariably traded in the coming days. It’s fair to wonder how well that will go for Tidwell, who has really had an up-and-down season. Wednesday was more of the same, as he did make it through 5.2 innings, but threw just 56 of 96 pitches for strikes, while allowing 5 hits, 2 walks, 2 hit batters, and 4 runs, and only striking out 3. Tidwell, a 2022 2nd-round pick who came over in the Tyler Rogers trade, has so many tools, but it’s hard to envision things going smoothly for him in an MLB rotation right now. That said, he’s been pretty solid lately: in his last 6 starts, he’s thrown 31.2 innings and allowed 27 hits, 12 walks, and 11 earned runs, with 32 strikeouts. On the year, he has a 4.38 ERA and a 4.88 FIP.

LHP Reiver Sanmartin and RHP Ryan Walker, who are both on the 40-man roster, had scoreless relief appearances but got into some trouble (Sanmartin gave up 3 hits in 1.1 innings, with 1 strikeout, while Walker ceded 2 hits in 1 inning, with 2 strikeouts). RHP Michael Fulmer continued his recent dominance, with 1 walk and 1 strikeout in a no-hit inning, which lowered his ERA to 3.05 and his FIP to 3.35. The veteran, who is not on the 40-man roster, has only allowed runs in 2 of his last 18 outings, which is a wild statistic in the PCL. In his last 6 games, the 33-year old has pitched 8.1 innings and allowed just 2 hits, 2 walks, and 0 runs, with 5 strikeouts.

AA Richmond (58-38)

Game 1: Richmond Flying Squirrels lost to the Somerset Patriots (Yankees) 7-4 (7 innings)
Game 2: Richmond Flying Squirrels beat the Somerset Patriots 6-2 (7 innings)
Game 1 box score
Game 2 box score

A fun little doubleheader for Richmond, though made less interesting by the fact that outfielder Dakota Jordan (No. 5 CPL) was placed on the Injured List before the start of the games, so we didn’t get to see him continue to adapt to a new level.

We did, however, get to see center fielder Trevor Cohen (No. 15 CPL) continue his adjustment. Cohen had a delightful day patrolling the grass and wreaking havoc on the dirt … across the 2 games, he hit 4-8 with a double, 0 strikeouts, and 5 stolen bases, though he was caught stealing once, bringing him up to a .697 OPS and an 87 wRC+.

The ultra impressive thing was that 4 of those 5 stolen bases occurred in the 2nd game, when the Squirrels set a franchise record with 11 swiped bags, which is made all the more impressive since they weren’t caught stealing and it was a 7-inning game. You love to see that!

Also getting in on that action was second baseman Diego Velasquez (No. 31 CPL), who hit 3-6 and stole 3 bases (he has 21 stolen bases in 25 attempts this year while, across 2 levels, Cohen has 31 stolen bases in 40 attempts. Love to see those swiped bags!).

Diegooooo!

The hottest hitter in the Eastern League in July picks up an RBI on his 27th hit this month to make it 3-0 Squirrels! pic.twitter.com/yMegcYZEZf

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 29, 2026

It’s emphatically time for Velasquez to be in AAA, as the 22-year old switch-hitter has made dramatic gains in his 3rd pass through the level. He’s also been on an absolute heater lately: over his last 21 games, Velasquez is 30-69 with 6 extra-base hits, 11 walks, and just 9 strikeouts, which has raised his OPS to .814 and his wRC+ to 124. When the trickle down effect of Arráez being traded takes place, hopefully it means Velasquez gets to head to the highest level of the Minors.

But the best performance belonged to an infielder who has been having a tough year: third baseman/shortstop Maui Ahuna (No. 33 CPL). Ahuna has been struggling quite a bit lately, but showed off in this pair of games, hitting 2-4 with a home run, a double, 3 walks, and a stolen base. What a day!

MAUI! 💪

Back out in front in the sixth! pic.twitter.com/T1rbDL5CM3

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 29, 2026

Ahuna isn’t getting to play his natural shortstop position (where he’s a wizard) all that often anymore, given the promotion of Gavin Kilen (No. 7 CPL), but really what the Giants need to see is if he can develop his bat. The glove will always play, though he’s starting to get comfortable at other infield positions now. He has a .671 OPS and an 84 wRC+ on the year, though his 33.2% strikeout rate remains the biggest concern.

Speaking of Kilen, he went 2-7 with a double, a sacrifice fly, and a strikeout. He’s 13-39 with 7 extra-base hits, 4 walks, and just 4 strikeouts since making his way to Richmond (.908 OPS, 131 wRC+) … he’s really, really rounding into form with this promotion.

Ahuna didn’t have the only home run, as left fielder/right fielder Jean Carlos Sio went 1-5 with a solo home run, a walk, a stolen base, and a strikeout. Sio, who only turned 22 in April, is still adapting to the level, as evidenced by his .218 average and .256 on-base percentage, which lead to a .746 OPS and an 89 wRC+). But he already has 11 home runs in just 42 AA games, which is mighty impressive for a young player who plays all over both the outfield and infield.

SIO LATER!

It's the 11th @Woodfin home run of the season for Jean Carlos Sio! pic.twitter.com/mK7S19fqJQ

— Richmond Flying Squirrels (@GoSquirrels) July 29, 2026

LHP Greg Farone had a sensational pitching performance in the second game of the doubleheader, tossing 6 strong innings with 5 hits, 0 walks, and 2 runs allowed, while striking out 4. The 2024 7th-round pick was quite a strike thrower in this game, with 52 of his 81 pitches going for strikes. July has been far and away Farone’s best month this year, and he’s been excellent in 3 of his 4 starts, albeit with 1 blow-up game … just look at the month-by-month splits:

April: 6.75 ERA, 24 strikeouts to 11 walks
May: 6.33 ERA, 18 strikeouts to 10 walks
June: 7.29 ERA, 16 strikeouts to 15 walks
July: 3.98 ERA, 19 strikeouts to 4 walks

That improvement is great to see, though there’s still a lot for Farone, who has a 6.08 ERA and a 5.85 FIP, to work on. He’s allowed more than a hit per inning, and exactly 4.5 walks per 9 this year. Perhaps most concerning is that he’s ceded 16 home runs in just 80 innings.

RHP Trystan Vrieling didn’t have such a good start, giving up 6 hits, 2 walks, and 3 runs in 4.2 innings, with 3 strikeouts. RHP Marques Johnson, who has struggled since getting demoted from AAA, got blasted for 5 hits and 4 runs in 1.1 innings, but RHP Mitch White had a strong showing, striking out 2 batters in a perfect inning. It’s been a tough year for White, who, at age 26 is playing his 1st year of affiliated ball. But he’s been much better lately, so hopefully that continues.

High-A Eugene (60-38)

Eugene Emeralds beat the Tri-City Dust Devils (Angels) 4-0
Box score

A few really nice performances in this game. The tone was set on the mound, where RHP Hunter Dryden had perhaps his best performance of the year. The D3 17th-round pick in 2024, who has a lot of intrigue, tossed 5 shutout innings in this game while striking out 7 Dust Devils, and allowing just 4 hits, 1 walk, and 1 hit batter.

Dryden, who threw 52 of 86 pitches for strikes, had a much-needed stellar outing, after ceding 12 baserunners and 9 runs in his last outing. Way to bounce back! It hasn’t been the smoothest season for the 24-year old, who has a 5.26 ERA and a 5.56 FIP, but in this game he addressed his 2 biggest issues this year: walks and long balls. He’s allowed 5.1 walks and 1.6 home runs per 9 innings this year, so great to see him make improvements on that front.

Following Dryden was RHP Alix Hernandez, who made his High-A debut in exhilarating fashion, striking out 4 batters in 3 scoreless innings, while allowing just 2 hits and 0 walks, and throwing 25 of 32 pitches for strikes. Hernandez, who just turned 22, struggled to keep runs off the board with Low-A San Jose this year, but had excellent strikeout numbers (11.9 per 9) and decent walk suppression (3.5 per 9). Sometimes pitchers do a little better against higher level talent, and hopefully this game is a sign of that being the case for Hernandez!

There were a few nice hitting performances, but one that stood out above the rest: left fielder Jose Ramos had a fantastic game, hitting 2-2 with 2 doubles, 1 walk, and a stolen base, with the lone hiccup being an error. Ramos, a 23-year old righty, has spent time in the ACL, Low-A, and High-A this year, and has also missed time with an injury. He’s been excellent during his multiple short stints with Eugene, posting an .873 OPS and a 145 wRC+ in 7 games. It’s hard to know how much to read into that given his awful numbers in 13 games in Low-A (.592 OPS, 52 wRC+), but still!

Designated hitter Carlos Gutierrez (No. 18 CPL) and right fielder Jose Astudillo both hit 2-3 with a walk. Since July 3, the soon-to-turn 22-year old Gutierrez is 24-57 with 7 extra-base hits, 6 walks, and 13 strikeouts, bringing his season numbers to an .846 OPS and a 128 wRC+. He continues to be one of the most under-the-radar prospects in the organization, and after seeing his superhuman contact skills take a big hit to start the year, he’s climbed his way back to a .279 average. As for Astudillo, a 22-year old in the midst of a breakout season, he’s fitting in splendidly in Eugene, posting a .359 average through his first 10 games (and striking out just 6.7% of the time), en route to an .842 OPS and a 134 wRC+.

Low-A San Jose (56-42)

San Jose Giants lost to the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes (Angels) 3-2
Box score

Well, baseball is a game of highs and lows, that’s for sure. And that’s doubly true for prospects, who are learning and adapting and adjusting on the fly. Just ask third baseman Luis Hernández (No. 6 CPL) … a day after blasting one of the longest Low-A home runs you’ll ever see, Hernández, playing in just his 4th game at the level, went 0-5 with 5 strikeouts. I don’t think it’s wild to predict that he’ll never do that again, at any level!

A slightly better, if not dynamic day for his running mate, shortstop Josuar González (No. 2 CPL), who hit 1-4 with a hit by pitch and a strikeout. Right now, good numbers are just cherries on the sundae for that pair. Just seeing them at this level is so exciting.

Second baseman Dario Reynoso had a nice day, hitting 1-3 with a double and a walk, though he struck out twice. Reynoso had been playing third base all year, but the arrival of 2 blue-chip shortstop prospects means he’s going to play some second base (the setup is that Hernández plays third when González is at short, and González plays second when Hernández is at short). Reynoso has cooled down following a red-hot clip, but is still having a very nice year, with a .900 OPS and a 127 wRC+ … though the 31.8% strikeout rate remains very concerning for the 21-year old.

Catcher Fernando Gonzalez hit 1-2 with 2 walks and a strikeout. Gonzalez, the team’s 20th-round pick in 2024, has shown some impressive contact skills in his 2nd season, as he has a .286 average with San Jose, and just a 7.5% strikeout rate. That said, he has barely any power (he has 5 total extra-base hits in 107 plate appearances), and is 24 years old. But as Drew Cavanaugh has taught us, you never know when an unheralded catcher will pop!

Excitement on the mound, as RHP Argenis Cayama (No. 13 CPL) made his return after a 2-month injury absence (which featured 4 rehab appearances). There was a fair amount of rust, which is to be expected, as Cayama only pitched 3 innings while allowing 5 hits (including a home run), 1 walk, and 2 runs, with 2 strikeouts. Mostly it’s just great seeing him back on an A-Ball mound, and hopefully he can end his year on a high note … there’s so much talent in his 19-year old arm, as evidenced by 47 strikeouts against 9 walks in 39 Low-A innings this year (despite that, he has just a 4.62 ERA and a 4.55 FIP).

RHP Samir Chires continues to look excellent since getting promoted, as the 22-year old pitched 2 shutout innings with 1 hit and 3 strikeouts. Chires, who threw 21 of 31 pitches for strikes, has a 0.84 ERA and a 3.60 FIP since his promotion, with a glistening 11 strikeouts to 0 walks in 10.2 innings. He’s really started to get his command in control after struggling mightily with walks earlier in his career.

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Home run tracker

16 — Jean Carlos Sio — [11 in AA; 4 in High-A; 1 in ACL]
6 — Maui Ahuna — [AA]

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Thursday schedule

Sacramento: 7:05 p.m. PT at Tacoma (SP: TBD)
Richmond: 3:35 p.m. PT at Somerset (SP: Yunior Marte)
Eugene: 6:35 p.m. PT vs. Tri-City (SP: Jacob Bresnahan)
San Jose: 6:30 p.m. PT at Rancho Cucamonga (SP: TBD)

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

The Atlanta Braves will be facing the Washington Nationals this evening and it will be a clash between two teams that are in the top three in runs scored for the month of July.

A lot has gone wrong with star players for the Braves this year, and the month of June as atrocious, but overall the Braves’ offense has been one of the best in MLB, even factoring in injuries and underperformance from players like Austin Riley and Mike Yastrzemski.

The Braves’ lineup is now as healthy as it has been all season. Of course some players are on the IL, but there was never a time this season where everyone was healthy. The biggest question recently before the lineup drops is now typically if Drake Baldwin will be the DH, and who will play LF. This late in the season, and before the trade deadline, lineups get pretty predictable.

That is not the case today. Austin Riley is getting a much needed night off with Mauricio Dubón playing 3B.

Holmes on the hill 💪 pic.twitter.com/jtjTjbGMNL

— Atlanta Braves (@Braves) July 30, 2026

The Braves lineup will be facing Jake Irvin who handled them with ease in May. In that game Irvin limited the Braves to one hit and zero runs over 5.0 innings of work. That being said there are a couple of players who have had success against him in the past. Michael Harris has twenty-two at-bats against Irvin and has maintained a .318 average, and Matt Olson has a .812 OPS in nineteen at-bats. It is interesting to see Albies hitting so high in the lineup since he has been in a bit of a slump since the All-Star break with a wRC+ forty-two percent below average against righties and has also struggled to an OPS of .435 against Irvin in fifteen career at-bats.

To likely the surprise of many, the National are easily MLB’s best offense this season. They have continued that throughout July as well, having scored the most runs yet again. Grant Holmes was able to pitch well against them in May when he held them to two earned runs while striking out ten in five innings of work.

in atlanta posting LINEUPS pic.twitter.com/ME5GDWu5Sb

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) July 30, 2026

The Nationals are not holding back any punches as all of their stars are in the lineup tonight.

No one on the Nationals has more than seven at-bats against Holmes, but a few have had success in their limited sample size. James Wood has a HR and an OPS of 1.500 in four ABs, Jorbit Vivas has a HR and 1.850 OPS in four ABs, and Dylan Crews has a HR and 1.833 OPS in three ABs.

Holmes has his work cut out for him today. Hopefully he can get more run support than the offense provided those that pitched in New York recently.

First pitch is at 7:15 EDT.

Perhaps no starting pitcher on the Mariners’ staff better represents the drop-off from last season than Bryan Woo, the starter the Dodgers will be facing in this series finale. Despite similar underlying numbers, including a lower FIP than he had a year ago, Woo hasn’t delivered as the ace he established himself as, posting back-to-back seasons with an ERA under 3.00 in 2024 and 2025.

Against Luis Castillo and Emerson Hancock in the first two games of this series, getting people on hasn’t been a problem—the issue has been driving them in, at least as efficiently as the Dodgers would like. With just one walk, the Dodgers stopped at four runs on 11 hits in last night’s win; the difference is that, unlike Justin Wrobleski, who gave up homers like they were candy, Eric Lauer was able to shut down Seattle for a low-scoring win. High among the list of problems for Woo in 2026 has been his inability to strand base runners, with a LOB% cratering from an 80.4% mark a year ago to 63.1% this season.

Seeking consistency, Roki Sasaki returns to Dodger Stadium having been absolutely phenomenal on a road trip through New York, allowing a single earned run in 12.2 innings against the Mets and Yankees. That run came on a long ball, exactly what’s plagued Sasaki in his worst moments of the season and the driving force behind Seattle’s win on Tuesday.

Thursday’s game info

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

Today and tomorrow, in advance of the trade deadline, I want to do a quick (relatively, it’s me writing) review of the state of the farm. It’s been an eventful year to date, with significant graduations, a trade addition already and more to come, and the draft, plus significant movement among the extisting members of the farm. Today, a look at pre-season top 40 prospects who are still eligible (though some have left the organization). Tomorrow, I’ll look at graduates, additions, and prospects not previously on the 40 or our honorable mentions who’ve made themselves known.

Stock Up:

• Nolan Perry (Matt’s Pref List) is the biggest riser in the system this season. Freshly back from Tommy John surgery, he’s absolutely carved through three levels so far this season, posting a total of 85 strikeouts (just under 40% of batters he’s faced) against only 19 walks and a 2.41 ERA in 56 innings. He’s a top 5 prospect in the system now, and if he finishes strong you could make a top 100 case.
• Daniel Guerra (Matt’s Pref List) looked great through early June, punching out 73 batters in 54.0 innings with the Vancouver Canadians and posting a 3.17 ERA. He missed a month with an elbow issue, but has K’d 9 against 4 base runners in two rehab appearances.
• Eric Snow (Tom’s Pref List) is a capable middle infield defender who makes loads of contact but fell to the sixth round because of a near-total lack of power. This year, he’s managed four home runs and 21 total extra base hits in 306 PA while earning two promotions, to Vancouver and then New Hampshire. He now shows just enough impact to profile as a utility infielder.
• Charles McAdoo (Just Missed) got his first crack at AAA this season, and then a cup of coffee in Toronto. He looked over-matched at the latter stop, but his Buffalo performance actually suggests improvement, with some contact gains and the plus raw that his his carrying tool.
• Franklin Rojas (#38) made the transition from the Dominican to the US complex for his age 19 season. He’s flashing doubles power, average contact, and a solid approach and still looks like he’ll stick at catcher.
• Carson Messina (#37) is back from the elbow inflammation that kept him out almost all of last season. He’s battled his command but is missing loads of bats and regularly touching 96, suggesting that the stuff that got him a $550k bonus is intact.
• Javen Coleman (#34) moved up to AA to start the season and continued to overpower with his mid-90s fastball, slider and splitter, posting a 35% strikeout rate while walking fewer than 6%. That just earned him a promotion to Buffalo, and he’s likely in the mix as soon as the Jays need a lefty reliever and have 40-man room.
• Sam Shaw (#31) was diagnosed with a blood clot in his shoulder at the end of last season that was apparently so serious his career was in doubt. He’s made a full recovery, though, and is building on last year’s A breakout with an even better campaign at A+. His power production won’t stay atthis level, but he’s clearly hitting it hard enough, making a decent amount of contact, and has an excellent eye.
• Sean Keys (#17) has had a rough welcome to the major leagues, but he’s only there because he obliterated AA and AAA to begin the year and forced his way up. And even in MLB his contact and power metrics are promising. I’m sold that he’s some kind of MLB bat, even if it takes a while for him to find his footing.
• Blaine Bullard (#15) has exceeded expectations for his power production in his pro debut, with 8 homers and 26 total extra base hits in 75 games, while swiping 31 of 35 bases and looking good manning centre field. He’s got a little work to do on his approach and contact, but a 19 year old posting above average results in A ball is always a pleasant surprise.
• Johnny King (#10) continues his ascent. His strikeouts have dropped form an absurd 40% last year to a merely excellent 31% as he’s moved up to Vancouver, but he’s also trimmed his (still too high) walk rate, and hitters aren’t having any luck barreling him up. He’s made his way on to Baseball America’s top 100.
• Jojo Parker (#3) took a little while to get his bearings in A ball, but since June 1 he’s slashing .258/.397/.508 with almost as many walks as strikeouts. [NOTE: these stats are a few days old and don’t even account for his 2-homer Tuesday night]. In the Futures Game, he turned on a 101mph fastball to pull a laser to the wall. All of which is to say the bat looks to be as advertised, with discipline, contact, and power that could all be plus.
• Arjun Nimmals (#2) conquered A+ in his second attempt early in the season, then held his own in his first month at AA. He went down with a hamstring issue, and has been getting loads of extra rest since coming back, but he’s also got four home runs and two doubles with just a 21% K rate and a 13% walk rate since his return. There’s work to do on his pitch recognition, especially against high minors quality sliders, but everything else looks excellent.

Stock Down:

• Jackson Hornung (Matt’s Pref List) has seen his power evaporate in his second go at AA.
• Carson Pierce (Matt’s Pref List) has had a rough go in his return from a season missed with injury. He’s walked more batters than he’s struck out over 23.1 innings and missed a couple of months from late May to last week.
• Cade Doughty (Matt’s Pref List) has continued to struggle offensively in his third crack at AA, striking out too much for a hitter whose college power hasn’t translated.
• Irv Carter (Tom’s Pref List) struggled mightily with his command early in his first attempt at AA, and has been down since May with an injury.
• Enmanuel Bonilla (Tom’s Pref List) continues to show neither the hit tool nor the power that were the supposed justification for his $3.5m signing bonus. He’s really shown nothing as a pro to support expectations.
• Brandon Barriera (#40) struggled badly in seven appearances before going down with yet another injury. He’s pitching again, but at this point he’s off the prospect radar.
• Gilberto Batista (#35) has hit a bit of a wall in A+, with his strikeout rate dropping and his walks ballooning.
• Grant Rogers (#33) got by through AA with a deep repertoire and command, making up for the lack of even average stuff. It’s caught up to him in Buffalo, though, as advanced hitters are hitting everything he throws and hitting it hard.
• Yondrei Rojas’s (#32) jump in strikeouts from last season in Vancouver hasn’t translated at all to New Hampshire. He’s also back to walking too many batters.
• Edward Duran (#29) has been trying out a new aggressive approach in A+ and it hasn’t worked, crashing his OBP without cutting strikeouts. He can still catch really well, but will need to find an offensive approach for it to matter.
• Cutter Coffey (#24) hasn’t been able to carry the pop that powered his 2024 and 2025 up to AA in 2026, and his strikeout rate has jumped to 33%.
• Austin Cates (#22) hasn’t carried over his excellent form from 2025, seeing his walk rate jump and his strikeout rate dip. That’s gotten worse after a jump up to AA.
• Adrian Pinto (#21) shouldn’t be in this section if yo look at his slash line. He got promoted to AA and has walked as much as he’s struck out while hitting for some power. But he’s been on the IL for six weeks now and is looking at his fifth straight year of failing to record 200 PAs. If I thought he’d ever play 100 games in a season he’d be in the top 10.
• Landen Maroudis (#19) still has a live arm, but he’s in his second consecutive season of posting ugly results, and it’s starting to look like his command might just not be good enough to make it all work.
• Fernando Perez (#8) had a disastrous first four games of the year, walking 16 in just a dozen innings. That’s concerning for anyone, but especially a pitcher whose profile rests on top notch command rescuing middling stuff. He was placed on the non-injury development list in early May and hasn’t been heard from since.

Long Term Injury, Wait and See:

• Jared Spencer (Just Missed) is still recovering from surgery before he was drafted last season, as expected.
• Chay Yeager (#39) got Tommy John before the season.
• Micah Bucknam (#28) was placed on the full-season IL April 2nd. Details are sketchy, but he won’t make his pro debut until 2027.
• T.J. Brock (#25) just made his first appearance since 2024 Tommy John surgery at the complex a couple of weeks ago.
• Jake Bloss (#6) got hit pretty hard in his return to AAA and has since been sent back to the 7-day IL. The good news is that he brought a couple of extra MPH with him from the rehab gym. His fastball now sits almost 96, with corresponding increases in the sharpness of his off speed stuff.
• Ricky Tiedemann (#5) was already having a slow time working back from Tommy John, and then neck soreness has wiped out his June. He’s made it as far back as A ball, still sitting 97 with nasty secondaries and 7 Ks against 15 batters faced, so the stuff that made him the best left handed pitching prospect in baseball four years ago is still there, but we’ll need to see sustained health before we believe.

Steady-ish:

• Elaineiker Coronado (Tom’s Pref List) is a fast, slick fielding shortstop who makes load of contact. Repeating the DSL, he’s now showing the barest hints of power. We’ll need to see him not get the bat knocked out of his hands in the States before we trust that he’s strong enough for his other tools to play.
• Jackson Wentworth (Tom’s Pref List) hasn’t managed great results in AA this year (18.4% K rate, 9.5% walk rate, 4.83 ERA), but that still basically looks like a future 7th starter.
• Michael Mesa (Tom’s Pref List) got a significant bonus in last year’s international free agent class. In his DSL debut, he’s been a mild disappointment, putting the ball on the ground too much to get to his power while posting just ok strikeout and walk numbers.
• Jace Bohrofen (Just Missed) looks like a stock-up candidate, with his .931 OPS but it’s still hard to see how a 62% AA contact rate won’t get him eaten alive against better competition.
• Alex Amalfi (Just Missed) has developed a home run problem after very effectively suppressing the long ball the past three years. He’s still missing plenty of bats, and has trimmed his walk rate a bit, but he’ll need to get that back under control to reach his ceiling as a swing man/depth starter.
• Juan Caricote (#26) is in his first pro season in the DSL. He’s been over-aggressive but he’s flashing the power that was his offensive carrying tool and throwing out his share of runners from behind the plate.
• Tim Piasentin (#23) struggled with swing and miss in his complex debut before going down a little over a month ago with an injury. He’s just 19, though, and was always considered a project, so no flashing lights yet.
• Jake Cook (#18) has just about held his own in A ball. That’s normally a significant knock for a 22 year old college draftee, but Cook is in just his second year after converting pack to a position player from the mound. He’s unusually raw and the athleticism that got him drafted is showing in the field and on the bases, so I’m inclined to give him a little longer to figure something out.
• Silvano Hechavarria (#16) has had an ugly season, ERA-wise, after his start was delayed by an injury. He’s looked to be finding his footing a bit recently, so I’m going to hope that he has a strong second half.
• Victor Arias (#14) has struggled a bit since his promotion to AA late last season. This year, he’s improved his contact somewhat and is hitting for power, but at the cost of walks, and his overall line is about average.
• Juan Sanchez (#12) has been a bit over-matched in A ball, with more strikeouts and fewer walks than you’d like. He’s shown power, though, and some signs of progress. For one of only a couple dozen 18 year olds in full season ball that’s enough to hold your shares.
• Gage Stanifer (#11) looks about like he did last season: He’s striking out 30% of the batters he’s facing but walking too many. He looks on track to be a likely leverage reliever with an outside chance that command refinement allows him to be a high-K five and dive starter.
• RJ Schreck (#9) looks just like he did last year. He walks a lot, doesn’t swing and miss much, and while his raw power is modest he gets to enough in games. He might not have the wheels for CF or the pop for left as an everyday guy, but he does enough well that I think he’s at least a luxury OBP-first fourth outfielder.
• Josh Kasevich (#4) is stuck at AAA, blocked by healthy seasons from Andres Gimenez, Ernie Clement and Kazuma Okamoto. He looks to be past his own injury troubles from last season, though, and he’s doing his usual thing: making loads of contact, surprisingly hard, but too low and too often oppo for it to produce power. MLB is the only test left for him to pass at this point.

You know the old baseball adage… when you think you have enough left-handed hitters, go get some more.

That’s about pitching? Huh. That’s weird. Well, anywho, the Guardians’ love left-handed hitters so what makes us think they’ll only target right-handed hitters at this deadline? Instead, as the St. Louis Cardinals enter today 2.5 games out of the third wildcard spot, they may try to pry another left-handed hitter off the Redbirds in the form of one Alec Burleson.

You can view our larger trade deadline piece here as we discuss a wider pool of options the Guardians may consider. To make my position clear, I expect the Guardians to make smaller moves, like trading Bo Naylor and getting a castoff/undervalued reliever. But, in the interest of exploring potential larger moves, we are doing a series looking at some of those bigger names. So far, we have discussed Spencer Steer, Luis Arraez, Shea Langeliers, Taylor Ward, Heliot Ramos, Jo Adell, Ty France, Tyler Soderstrom, Heriberto Hernandez and Kyle Stowers. Although the Guardians’ greatest need is hitting, the market is aflush with starting pitching so it also may make sense for the Guardians to see if they can find a good value there, as we wrote here and looked at specifically with Jose Soriano.

Back to Burleson: He is a 27 year-old first baseman/outfielder/DH under team control through 2028. He has a career 110 wRC+ but over the past two seasons, he is at 124 wRC+, with a 15/7.4 K/BB%, and a .287/.343/.460 slashline. It is only fair to note that this number includes a 145 wRC+ against RHP and only a 65 wRC+ against LHP. Burleson is primarily a strong-side platoon hitter… but he is a particularly excellent one. He is not a good defender at first base or left field but can stand in either spot and not embarrass himself; I’d prefer to see him made a full-time DH at which spot he has a 145 wRC+ over the past two seasons. The absence of the usual “DH penalty” there should be attractive to the Guardians, and he can happily fill in at first or left field on the occasional Jose or DeLauter DH days, as needed (or those DH days can be scheduled against LHP when possible while Burleson gets a day off). Burleson’s career home run total would look almost exactly the same at Progressive Field (actually +1) as it does at Busch Stadium, according to Baseball Savant, so that’s another point in his favor.

I would hope the Guardians would still target one of the Jo Adell/Taylor Ward/Heriberto Hernandez/Ty France Mount Rushmore of available Lefty Mashers if they acquired Burleson, but I would think the Cardinals could be made to see reason for the return here, given the uncertainty surrounding the existence of a 2027 season. I wouldn’t trade Ralphy Velazquez, Juneiker Caceres and PROBABLY not Angel Genao for Burleson, but everyone else can be part of the discussion. Additionlly, if the Cardinals think they can fix Kyle Manzardo, I’d be willing to entertain that conversation along with a very good prospect.

Against right-handed pitching, the following lineup (should Manzardo be retained) looks pretty formidable:

1. Kwan LF
2. Jose 3B
3. DeLauter RF
4. Burleson DH
5. Bazzana 2B
6. Manzardo 1B
7. Angel Martinez CF
8. Bailey C
9. Rocchio SS

Let me know your thoughts about getting another lefty-hitter in Alec Burleson in the comments below!