Worldwide Sports News
It’s game 3 of the Cardinals weekend series against the White Sox Sunday as Michael McGreevy takes the mound for the Cardinals. The White Sox will start RHP David Sandlin. First pitch scheduled for 1:15pm central time and the game broadcast will be available via Cardinals.tv.
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Here’s the Guardians lineup:
Here’s the Twins’ lineup:
Let’s go, Guardians!
“Enzo, Enzo, Enzo, in your head” was how delirious Manchester City fans regaled Enzo Fernández, who after a star role in a memorable victory has instant cult hero status.
This 199th derby was won by Erling Haaland’s ninth strike in the fixture but the visitors’ totem was their new No 17. He was the key nuisance in a goal ruled out initially for offside and which the video assistant referee overturned when ruling that Fernández was not distracting Lisandro Martínez when Josko Gvardiol’s ball came over. The Argentinian, too, was an emblem of the fight Maresca’s team carried to Manchester United after Phil Foden appeared to turn the game the hosts’ way on 22 minutes.
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One last rubber game in Miami to decide the weekend series. First major league outfield start for Josue De Paula. Turf days off for Teoscar Hernández and Tommy Edman.
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Elversberg 1-2 Bayern; Sassuolo 3-2 Juventus
Barcelona see off Levante, PSG end winless run
Harry Kane scored his first Bundesliga goal of the season to help Bayern Munich edge to a 2-1 win at promoted Elversberg on Sunday. Handed the captain’s armband with skipper Manuel Neuer rested, Kane scored with 18 minutes remaining to break a 1-1 deadlock and put the defending champions on track for victory.
Bayern had taken the lead through teenage Germany winger Lennart Karl, but Elversberg – who had won their opening two matches in their maiden top-flight campaign – levelled things up just after the hour mark thanks to a stunning curling effort from Maurice Krattenmacher.
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The San Diego Padres have been close to blowing some perfect leads. But, this is the time to do that. In both Games 1 and 2, the Friars have scored seven runs. In both games, the Friars have allowed the San Francisco Giants to come back within at least two runs as last as the eighth inning. That has forced the Padres to dip into their high-leverage relievers despite their potent offense.
With Mason Miller, Adrian Morejon and Bradgley Rodriguez all having pitched on back-to-back days, they’ll be unavailable in the series finale. The onus will be on the offense and the Padres’ lower-leverage relievers to finish out the sweep over San Francisco. With how San Diego’s been swinging the bat, that shouldn’t be too much of a problem.
Webb, despite some flashes of elite pitching, has struggled this season. He currently sits at a 4.10 ERA. If he finishes the season with an ERA over 4.00, it will be the first time he’s done so in six years. The last time he did so was in the COVID-shortened 2020 season.
He hasn’t pitched much better down the stretch (4.66 ERA in last seven starts), but Webb is coming off of six innings of one-run ball versus the St. Louis Cardinals. He’s also done a pretty good job of limiting the Padres historically. Only Jake Cronenworth, Manny Machado and Jackson Merrill have batting averages over .240 (15-plus at-bats).
Pivetta had just about the closest thing to a perfect return to the mound on Monday. He hurled five scoreless innings against the Washington Nationals, one of the most potent offense in the league. Still, Pivetta is mostly untested since returning back from his three-month IL trip.
He’s faced most of the San Francisco lineup, and has limited them well. That said, Jung Hoo Lee has had his number for quite some time. In 13 career at-bats, Lee owns a .462 batting average and 1.577 OPS when facing Pivetta. Hopefully the righty will be able to limit the Giants’ bats in the series finale.
The lineup has returned to its incredible potent ways, scoring 14 runs in the first two games of this series. The Friars have gotten some incredible production from their stars, as well as their contributors. San Diego needs to keep that rolling in order to hold onto their postseason spot.
Harris made his first appearance batting second in the order yesterday. He did not disappoint. He ended the game 1-for-4 with three RBIs after going 2-for-3 with two RBIs and a walk in the series opener. Harris could very well remain in that two-spot going forward.
Despite some struggles in the first few innings, Michael King locked the game down from there on. The starter pitched seven innings before Rodriguez entered the game. Rodriguez made it interesting, giving up a three-run shot to make it a one-run ballgame. After that, Morejon and Miller were used to finish out the last two innings.
That gives San Diego some options for the series finale. Griffin Canning, Kyle Hart, Yuki Matsui, David Morgan, Wandy Peralta and Randy Vásquez will be available once Pivetta departs form the game. That said, if Pivetta isn’t as dominant as he was on Monday, Vásquez will likely enter to pitch in bulk relief.
Game three of three with the Orioles.
I’m getting this together early because I’m busy until game time.
The lineups aren’t up yet, But we have Dylan Cease (10-5, 2.40) vs Trevor Rogers (10-9, 4.15).
Go Jays Go
1923
Though the team was not contending for the pennant, the White Sox made a late move that would have terrific short- and long-term consequences: Buying center fielder Maurice Archdeacon from the Double-A Rochester Tribe in the International League, for the impressive sum of $50,000. The speedster was hitting .357 for the Tribe — and dialed it up when inserted as an everyday major-leaguer as an audition for 1924. Archdeacon hit .402 in 22 late-season games for the White Sox, with his batting average never falling any lower than .378. He followed that up in 1924 by hitting .319 for the South Siders.
By …
1925
… Archdeacon’s star had faded, and he saw just 10 games of action before being traded to the then-Double A Baltimore Orioles in June. The player to be named later in that deal arrived in Chicago on this very day: Righthander Tommy Thomas, who would go on to put up a 22.2 WAR career over seven seasons in the South Side rotation, beginning in 1926.
Not only was the swap an enormous win for the White Sox, but brought one of their best-ever pitchers to the South Side, as Thomas ranks as the 15th-best pitcher in franchise history per WAR.
1967
In one of the longest games in franchise history (tied for 13th-longest overall), and in the middle of a four-team pennant race, the White Sox shut out Cleveland, 1-0 — in 17 innings! (Now that’s pitching!)
The game lasted more than 4 1⁄2 hours, and was finally finished when Rocky Colavito singled to right, driving home Buddy Bradford.
White Sox starter Gary Peters allowed one hit in 11 innings, striking out seven … but also walked 10! (I wonder what his pitch count was!) This came just two weeks after also throwing 11 scoreless innings against Boston, in a four-hit win.
But opposing starter Sonny Siebert outdueled Peters, also going 11 innings, yielding four hits but no walks.
Don McMahon, the fourth Sox pitcher, picked up the relief win.
1985
With one out and the bases full in the ninth inning of a game the White Sox led, 2-1, at Seattle, pinch-hitter Joe DeSa crushed a grand slam to right field, becoming the eighth White Sox ever and first since 1972 to have a pinch-hit slam. The White Sox went on to win, 6-1, improving to 72-68 on a season marked by a strong September finish.
DeSa’s story takes a sad turn, however, as this would be his final of his two career major league homers. The Hawaii native played all of 1986 in Triple-A Buffalo, hitting .283 with 17 homers and 83 RBIs. He became a free agent but was snapped up by the Kansas City Royals, with a good chance of breaking camp on the MLB roster. However, while playing winter ball in Puerto Rico, he was killed in a car accident on Dec. 20, 1986.
1987
In a game in his old haunts of Seattle, White Sox pitcher Floyd Bannister fired a one-hitter in winning, 2-0. Harold Reynolds’ two-out single to left in the first inning was the only baserunner on the night for Seattle — and he was thrown out trying to stretch the hit to a double! Bannister faced the minimum 27 hitters, and struck out 10.
Opposing starter Mark Langston pitched a two-hitter for the Mariners — and took the loss! Unfortunately for him, his two hits allowed were solo homers to Pat Keedy and Donnie Hill.
1996
After James Baldwin endured a six-run outburst in Boston to fall behind, 6-0, in the third, Frank Thomas led off the fourth inning with an answer: a solo shot off of Roger Clemens. But that blast over the Green Monster didn’t just cut the Red Sox lead to five, it tied Thomas with Harold Baines and Carlton Fisk for most-ever White Sox homers, 214.
Interestingly, Baines had been the former franchise leader, passing Bill Melton, but after being traded from Chicago in 1989, Fisk took over the franchise lead. Baines had tied Fisk atop the White Sox leaderboard just two weeks earlier, on August 30.
2002
For the first time, the new Sox Park hosted a concert. The Rolling Stones took the stage in the middle of a three-day stand in Chicago that saw them first at the United Center, later at the Aragon Ballroom. The Daily Herald reported 52,000 fans, but the true total was likely in the 40,000 range. The Pretenders opened the show, then giving way to two hours of Stones. The tour celebrated the 40th year of the Rolling Stones.
As for the White Sox, they trounced New York at Yankee Stadium, 13-2, getting multi-hit games from José Valentín, Magglio Ordóñez, Frank Thomas and Joe Crede.
2004
Due to Hurricane Ivan, U.S. Cellular Field hosted the first two games of a series between Montreal and Florida. It was the first time a National League team had played a regular season “home” game in an American League park since 1946. Attendance for the curiosity was 4,003.
After winning two close games, the Nats have secured a series win against the Angels. This afternoon, they will be looking for the sweep and a chance to get to 70 wins on the season. The Nats have had trouble getting sweeps this season, but this is a prime opportunity.
There are a couple changes to the lineup this afternoon. Jose Tena gets his first start of the series at second base. Andres Chaparro will be back in the lineup over at third base. Yohandy Morales is also back in there at first. Dylan Crews is out of the lineup, which means the outfield consists of Daylen Lile, Jacob Young and James Wood. Riley Cornelio will be the opener in this one.
With a righty on the mound, the Angels are bringing back some of their left handed bats. Wade Meckler, Moises Ballesteros and Josh Lowe are all in the lineup today. Mike Trout will be the DH which means Jose Siri will be in center field. Former Oriole Grayson Rodriguez will be on the mound for the Halos.
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Game Info:
Stadium: Nationals Park
Time: 1:35 PM EST
TV: Nationals.TV
Radio: 106.7 The Fan
The Nats have actually been playing solid baseball at home lately. Hopefully that can continue this afternoon. Sweeps have been hard to come by, but after two hard earned wins, the Nats have a chance to close the show. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!
The Yankees got spanked on their home turf yesterday, Gerrit Cole and a few mop-up relievers combining to surrender six home runs and a dozen runs total. The best way to wipe clean the stink of that performance is with a win in the rubber game to secure the Subway Series this afternoon.
Cam Schlittler keeps on rolling as he looks to keep pace just ahead of Dylan Cease in the AL Cy Young race (and perhaps compete for an MVP as well). Last time out, he allowed one run while striking out 10 across seven innings against the Rockies, which was his 20th start of the season with one or fewer runs allowed to extended his franchise record. In 30 starts, Schlittler is 13-6 with a 2.01 ERA (209 ERA+), 2.61 FIP, and 220 strikeouts in 178.2 innings while leading all AL pitchers with 5.7 fWAR.
Christian Scott is one of the many young starting pitchers the Mets have produced and graduated to the majors over the last few seasons. The 27-year-old righty debuted in 2024 but underwent Tommy John surgery in September of that year, forcing him to miss the entirety of the 2025 season. He offers a rare combination of wipeout stuff and damage limitation, sitting in the 84th percentile in both strikeout and hard-hit rates. He technically has a seven-pitch arsenal but will generally lean on three pitches: a four-seamer in the upper-90s, a sweeper with a 30.9-percent whiff rate, and a cutter against which hitters are batting just .132. In 21 starts, Scott is 4-4 with a 3.81 ERA (108 ERA+), 3.60 FIP, and 120 strikeouts in 99.1 innings.
The Yankees get some thump back in their lineup, Ben Rice and Luis García Jr. returning after getting the day off yesterday. There was a question of when Aaron Judge’s next rest day might come — it’s certainly not today as the Yankees go for the series win. If he can really get his timing back over the next couple of weeks, a top-five of the lineup of him, Rice, Cody Bellinger, García, and Spencer Jones looks pretty dangerous.
Four of the five Mets who homered yesterday remain in the lineup, only Luis Torrens getting replaced by Francisco Alvarez behind the plate. Francisco Lindor led the way with his two home runs and five RBIs and remains at leadoff today. Schlittler has his work cut out for him against a lineup with pop at almost every station, particularly now that Lindor and Juan Soto are healthy.
Please note that first pitch has been delayed slightly due to the weather to 1:55 PM.
How to watch
Location: Yankee Stadium – Bronx, NY
First pitch: 1:35 pm ET 1:55 pm ET
TV broadcast: YES, SNY
Radio broadcast: WFAN 660/101.9 FM, WADO 1280 (NYY) | Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App 92.3 HD2 (NYM)
Streaming: Gotham Sports App, MLB.tv (out-of-market only)
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The Chicago Blackhawks have a surplus of young defensemen. Some are already in the NHL, while others are in development leagues around the world.
There are also some good ones at this year’s prospect camp, where a group of Blackhawks prospects is preparing for the 2026 Prospect Showcase against the St. Louis Blues.
Leading the way for that group on the blue line is Taige Harding. Chicago selected Harding with their 3rd-round pick (91st overall) in the 2021 NHL Draft. At 24, he is one of the older players at the tournament, and he is standing out.
Harding is a big player. At 6’7” and 236 lbs, he’s one of the largest players in the organization. He uses every bit of that size on the ice as well. For being as big as he is, he skates well, too.
During these practices, he has looked like the number one defenseman at the event. It is lining up as if he is going to be on the top pair against the Blues. Jake Furlong is his likely partner on the ice. During drills of all kinds, Harding seems to have a grasp of what’s expected, and he feels good about it.
"Everything's kind of just getting ready for mini-camp," Harding said about what he's working on. "Help the younger guys; this is my second one now, so I feel pretty comfortable. Just kind of work on the details and get back into game shape."
Throughout the year, Taige Harding is going to spend his time with the Rockford IceHogs of the AHL. This is another good opportunity for him to develop down there and learn for another year.
"For me, personally, it's making an impression," Harding said. "Everything I can so the staff knows who I am; prove I belong here."
If Harding were a perfectly sound prospect, he would be in line to make his NHL debut this season, but it isn't likely. There is a lot for him to work on within his game, and he recognizes that.
"Being a big guy, skating," Harding said. "At this level, everyone skates so well. I think I do skate pretty well, but just being more fluid, being a little quicker in some areas. [I have to] continue working on that and just using my brain; make sure I don't get caught."
When Harding was asked who he models his game after, he mentioned St. Louis Blues defenseman Colton Parayko. Of course, that is a high ceiling for a large defenseman with that skill set. Parayko was a top-pair caliber defenseman on a team that won the Stanley Cup in his prime, so it's a good goal for him to have.
"Taige took huge strides last year," IceHogs head coach Jared Nightengale said of his defenseman. "With his size, when he plays with an edge, I think he's going to make us a heck of a hockey team."
The plan for Harding in Rockford is for him to be on the penalty kill, play against top lines, and bring a physical presence to the team at even strength. When asked who Harding's ideal partner would be, coach Nightingale said he didn't have one particular person in mind.
Of course, there is a lot of fluidity to AHL lineups due to the nature of the league, but Nightingale did say that an offensive defenseman would work well with someone like Harding, who leaves a lot of "outs" with his stay-at-home nature.
There are not many players of Harding's size in pro hockey. Just because a player is big doesn't make them good. When Harding is on the ice, there are other big players, but his game is much more noticeable than most.
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Baltimore Orioles @ Toronto Blue Jays
1:37 EDT, Rogers Centre
MASN/MASN+
It’s a battle of team aces in today’s finale between the Orioles and Blue Jays. For the Orioles, it’s Trevor Rogers. Rogers is a free agent at year’s end, and while his overall numbers don’t look especially impressive, he’ll get a big payday. Since June first, Rogers has a 2.88 ERA / 2.78 FIP in 17 starts. When Rogers was traded to the Orioles back in 2024, I never thought I’d miss him if he left. But he has turned out to be a delight, and if we only have a few more starts together, I’ll be sad.
Rogers won’t get as good of a payday as Toronto’s starter, Dylan Cease, got before this season. Cease has lived up to his hype in the first year of his seven-year, $175 million deal. He’s pitched the full season, 27 starts, with a 2.40 ERA and 2.48 FIP. That FIP is league-leading, as are his hits per nine (5.7), HR/9 (0.6), and K/9 (12.97). He will walk a guy, but when you’re so good at other things it doesn’t matter as much.
I don’t want to be a downer, folks, but I don’t think the Orioles have much of a chance.
Today’s lineup is about the best the Orioles have to offer right now. You can argue about the lineup order, but the players themselves are almost as good as it gets. That said, I see no reason for Leody Taveras to start for the rest of the season. Heston Kjerstad is here! He’s worse than Taveras defensively, but that’s not to say Taveras is good. But just let Kjerstad play. It doesn’t matter.
Orioles lineup
Dylan Beavers (L) LF
Pete Alonso (R) 1B
Gunnar Henderson (L) SS
Coby Mayo (R) DH
Samuel Basallo (L) C
Christian Encarnacion-Strand (R) 3B
Jackson Holliday (L) 2B
Leody Taveras (S) RF
Colton Cowser (L) CF
Blue Jays lineup
Brett Bateman (L) RF
George Springer (R) DH
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
Kazuma Okamoto (R) 3B
Charles McAdoo (R) LF
Ernie Clement (R) 2B
Andrés Giménez (L) SS
Brandon Valenzuela (S) C
Myles Straw (R) CF
Let’s go O’s!
TODAY’S GAME: The Houston Astros (75-74) and Tampa Bay Rays (89-59) play the finale of this 3-game set this afternoon at Tropicana Field.
RHP Hayden Wesneski (5-1, 3.35 ERA) will start for the Astros as he takes on Rays RHP Freddy Peralta (8-11, 4.82 ERA).
BIG WES: RHP Hayden Wesneski has pitched well in recent weeks, posting a 3-0 record in his last 4 starts with a 1.57 ERA (4ER/23IP). In that span, he has allowed just 10 hits in 23.0 innings of work. The Astros are 4-0 in those 4 starts and 7-1 in his 8 starts overall in 2026. Wesneski made his 2026 debut on July 29 after recovering from Tommy John surgery.
Vs. the Rays: Today will be his 1st career start and 3rd app. overall vs. the Rays. His last app. vs. them was in relief on June 11, 2024 at TB while with the Cubs (1.2 IP, 0 R). He has a 1.69 ERA (1ER/5.1IP) in his 2 career app. vs. TB. Wesneski was acquired by HOU from the Cubs along with Isaac Paredes and Cam Smith in exchange for Kyle Tucker on Dec. 13, 2024.
ASTROS-RAYS: The Astros are 2-3 vs. TB thus far this season. HOU took 2 out of 3 games from the Rays when they met at Daikin Park earlier this season, July 3-5.
At Tropicana: Prior to the current series, the Astros had enjoyed success at Tropicana Field, posting an 8-1 record here from 2022-24. In those 3 seasons, Astros pitchers posted a combined ERA of 1.56 (14ER/81IP) at the Trop. Including the current series, Astros pitchers have a 1.85 ERA (20ER/97.1IP) in their last 11 games at the Trop.
Astros-Rays History: The Astros are 45-51 all-time vs. TB in the regular season.
Postseason: The two clubs have met twice in the postseason, with the Astros defeating TB in the 2019 ALDS, 3-2, and the Rays topping the Astros in the 2020 ALCS, 4-3.
CAM CAN: Cam Smith is 6×18 (.333) on the current road trip with 3 HR and 4 RBI. He homered in all 3 games at PHI on the 1st stop of the trip. Smith, who has posted an .887 OPS in Sept., is T-1st in the AL in triples (6) and T-2nd in OF assists (8) among RF’s.
ROAD WARRIORS: Today is the finale of a 6-game road trip for the Astros (2-3 thus far). Since going 1-9 on the first road trip of the 2026 season, the Astros have gone 37-27 (.578) on the road since April 14, which ranks 3rd in the Majors in that span. More recently, they are 21-15 (.583) on their last 6 road trips combined (includes current trip).
MEASURING UP: The Astros are 28-20 (.583) vs. teams currently at .500 or above. They own a .500 or better record vs. several clubs that are in the AL postseason hunt: 5-1 vs. BOS, 5-2 vs. CWS, 4-2 vs. CLE, 9-4 vs. TEX, 3-3 vs. NYY, 3-3 vs. TOR.
NOTHING FINER THAN YAINER: C Yainer Diaz is hitting .412 (14×34) in the month of September with a .987 OPS.
Multi-Tasking: Diaz has tallied multiple hits in each of his last 6 starts, going 13×23 (.565) in that span. Additionally, he is 9×18 (.500) on the current road trip.
20 HR CLUB: Isaac Paredes’ solo HR in the 1st inning last night was his 20th of the season. It is the 4th time he has reached 20 HR in a season. Additionally, the Astros now have 4 players with 20 or more HR (Yordan Alvarez-38, Christian Walker-25, Smith-20, Paredes-20). 2023 was the last time that HOU had more than 4 players with 20 more HR in a season when they had 5 players reach that plateau. Additionally, HOU’s 194 HR as a club are their most since they hit 222 in 2023.
THE HIT MAN: Jose Altuve collected his 2,500th career hit on Wed. night at PHI, becoming the 103rd player in ML history to reach this milestone. Freddie Freeman was the last player to reach 2,500 hits, which happened on June 9 of this year at PNC Park vs. PIT. Freeman (2,587) and Altuve (2,504) are the the 2 active hits leaders in the Majors.
ON THE OFFENSIVE: The Astros lead the AL in Total Bases (2,044) and are 2nd in HR (194) and SLG (.408).
SLOW AND STEADY RECOVERY: Since starting the season with a 20-31 record after 51 games, the Astros are 55-43 (.561) in their last 98 games (since May 22). That is the 3rd-best record in the AL in that span, behind only the Red Sox.
STARTING STRONG: In the last 12 games, Astros starters have combined for a 2.90 ERA (20ER/62IP). The Astros are 6-6 in that span. Additionally, the Astros are 10-8 in their last 18 games, during which the starters have posted a combined 3.22 ERA (32ER/89.1IP).
TRIPLE THREAT: Yordan Alvarez, who is a solid candidate for the AL MVP Award, currently ranks 1st or 2nd in the AL in all three Triple Crown categories. He enters today leading the AL in batting avg. (.310), while ranking 2nd in HR (38) and RBI (96). Alvarez also leads the Majors in OPS (1.017), SLG (.590) and OBP (.427).
Rare Feat: Since Carl Yastrzemski won the AL Triple Crown in 1967, there has been just one Triple Crown winner in the Majors, Miguel Cabrera in 2012 (AL).
CHALLENGING STRETCH: The Astros are 6-6 thus far while in a stretch of playing 13 consecutive games vs. opponents with winning records (CWS, ARI, PHI, TB). 2 of those opponents are leading their respective divisions (CWS, TB), one currently holds a WC spot (PHI) and another is 1.5 games out of a WC spot (ARI).
DOWN ON THE FARM: Tonight, the Fayetteville Woodpeckers begin a best-of-three series vs. the Charleston RiverDogs for the Carolina League Championship. Fayetteville swept Fredericksburg in their 1st-round playoff matchup to advance to the championship series.
UP NEXT: Following today’s game, the Astros will return home for a 6-game homestand, during which they will host KC (3G, Tues.-Thurs.) and ATL (3G, Fri.-Sun.).
TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY:2015 – In Anaheim, the Astros erupt for 5 runs with 2 outs in the top of the 9th for a dramatic, 5-3 come-from-behind win over the Angels. A 3-run HR by Jed Lowrie in that 9th inning was the key blow.
1999 – In a 13-2 win over the Phillies, LHP Mike Hampton earns his 20th win of the season. That gives the Astros two 20-game winners in the same season as Jose Lima also reached 20 wins a few days earlier.
1965 – In the Dome, Willie Mays hits his 500th career HR in the Giants 5-1 win over the Astros. At the time, Mays became the 5th player in MLB history to reach 500 HR.
Game Info
Game Date/Time: Sunday, September 13, 12:40 p.m. CT
Location: Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL
TV: Space City Home Network
Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)
Full disclosure: Bryce Miller is one of my favorite Mariners, both on the field and off. In interviews, he’s funny, thoughtful, reflective, insightful; as a player, I’ve enjoyed studying his emerging and evolving pitch arsenal and writing about it. After the 2024 season, Miller was my preseason pick to earn an All-Star nod and even earn downballot Cy Young votes.
Obviously, that didn’t happen. Miller’s 2025 was haunted by a nagging elbow issue that caused him to miss the back half of May and then, when initial treatment didn’t resolve the issue, knocked him out from June until late August. Health problems reared their head again this spring when Miller missed the opening of the sesaon with an oblique strain. Since returning, it’s been another maddeningly inconsistent season for Miller, but August was been consistently terrible for him – he gave up a combined 21 runs over four starts, and the Mariners didn’t win a single one of his starts that month, which included the brutal back-to-back slate of the 22-0 loss at the Brewers and the 19-2 loss against the Cubs.
The Mariners have tried to move Miller into a bullpen role twice, first putting him into a piggyback role with Luis Castillo, then moving him to the bullpen after the promotion of Kade Anderson. But neither turn stuck; the Mariners shipped off Castillo at the trade deadline, and Emerson Hancock’s adductor strain occurred before Miller could make a single appearance out of the bullpen.
It’s not easy to lose your job, and Miller is staring down the possibility of losing his place in the starting rotation – the only thing he’s known since being drafted by the Mariners five years ago. At the highest level of the sport, it’s hard enough to make adjustments on the fly; it’s even harder to do so while fighting for your job, and by extension, part of your identity. But in order to try to get his season back on track, Miller might have wandered further afield from his best self.
Miller has been susceptible to left-handed hitters his whole career; even in his best season, 2024, lefties slugged about a hundred points higher against him, .389. To counteract that, Miller added a splitter and a cutter to his arsenal to use as weapons against lefties. The splitter has evolved into a foundational part of Miller’s arsenal, capable of getting both lefties and righties out; it’s his second-most used pitch. Miller’s also been using the cutter more frequently to try to steal strikes, especially against lefties early in counts, but the cutter carries with it an intense amount of risk. It has produced his highest whiff rate of the season, at over 35%, but at a cost: when hitters do make contact with the pitch, they absolutely tattoo it: hitters are batting over .350 against the pitch and slugging .882 on it (against a .567 xSLG). Miller doesn’t throw the pitch that often, only about 6% of the time,
But the biggest problem with the cutter is that every time Miller is throwing it, that’s a time he’s not throwing the fastball. Miller says himself that his identity is as a fastball-forward pitcher, and specifically, the fastball at the top rail, where the pitch plays best.
But multiple times this season Miller’s fastball has landed low in the zone, coming in with almost a traditional sinker shape. In his last outing against Texas, where he got roughed up for four runs in just 3.2 innings pitched, Miller’s fastball command was spotty: sometimes on the top rail, but often winding up well below the zone for noncompetitive misses that led to disadvantage counts.
Postgame, Miller suggested that to be an intentional adjustment, noting that the Rangers lineup had some hitters – notably Jake Burger – who are particularly good at hitting the high fastball. But this might have been a case of over-thinking and over-planning; Miller’s fastball elicited just four whiffs on 23 swings, with hitters only offering at the pitch about half the time.
Miller recognizes that he’s gotten away from his identity somewhat as a fastball-first pitcher, expressing frustration with his performance postgame after his outing against the Rangers that also sums up some season-long frustration.“
“I just got to get back to getting ahead, attack with confidence, with my best stuff, and trust it. That’s the main thing that allows me to have quick at-bats, have quick innings, get deep into games. Shoving fastballs as aggressively as possible.”
And it’s not just leading with the fastball, but the location of the fastball that he recognizes is an issue.
“I’m not a guy that’s going to dot the fastball down and away over and over. Jacob deGrom’s great at that. That’s not what I do. When I try to do that too much, then that leads to – miss an inch here, an inch there, and then you get into bad counts.”
Bad counts have certainly been an issue for Miller lately. His walk rate doubled in his miserable August to an unsustainable 13%, with the chief culprit obviously being the career-high seven walks in the rout against Chicago.
“It’s felt like all of my walks in the last month or month and a half have scored,” Miller said after that outing, “but when you have seven walks, what do you expect? It’s super frustrating.”
Miller admitted after that game that he though he might have been beating himself mentally rather than making the other team earn it against him.
“I’m at my best when I’m going to attack this pitch, give this pitch all I have and not think ahead. And I think that last month I’ve been kind of thinking ahead too much, and thinking of what I need to do to this batter, the next batter, the next inning, to get out of this with a good line and keep us in it. That’s not what I do when I’m at my best. It’s got to be this pitch, this moment, this at-bat, one at-bat at a time, one pitch at a time. So that’s one thing I need to do better.”
It’s an understandable mindset for Miller, who has been fighting for his job at the same time the team’s been fighting for its season, a stressful overlap of which Miller is clearly aware. But it’s one thing to talk about it; it’s another thing to be about it. Miller has always been able to summon his Big Tex persona: the swaggering, confident Texan who is equal parts hat and cattle. He’s been short on the cattle this season, but there’s time yet to get back to his best self – pumping fastballs in the zone, setting the pace and controlling at-bats. Big Tex is still in there somewhere; Bryce just has to find him again.
A sweep would be sweet. Win today and we can potentially pack some champagne for the road trip…
Join us in the comments, on the SB Nation app (available on iOS or Android!) or on the site, as the Braves face the Philadelphia Phillies for the final time in the 2026 regular season.
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