Category: Sports News

With the blink of an eye, years go by so fast covering high school athletes. It seems like only yesterday Jake Bauers was a senior at Marina High collecting 48 hits with a .571 batting average. Thirteen years later, Bauers has a beard, tattoos and is in his seventh major league season as the first baseman for the Milwaukee Brewers.

The last time I saw him was the Division 1 championship game at Dodger Stadium. His team lost 1-0 to Harvard-Westlake and Jack Flaherty at Dodger Stadium.

Fast-forward to Tuesday afternoon. He’s in the visiting clubhouse at Petco Park preparing to face the San Diego Padres, the team that drafted him in the seventh round in 2017. He’s as levelheaded and as comfortable as he was living in Huntington Beach. He has 21 home runs this season. Not bad for someone who didn’t get to play varsity baseball until his junior season.

Wearing No. 11 on her cheek at Marina games was his girlfriend, Lauren Carr, now his wife and mother of his two children.

“Same one,” he said of his biggest fan.

Not playing varsity until junior year is now considered a little unusual for top players, but Bauers said it’s nothing to think deeply about.

“We had a good team,” he said. “Maybe it was frustrating at the time. In hindsight, it doesn’t really matter. If you’re a good player, you’ll keep playing.”

The Brewers can call themselves the best team with the most Southern California natives. Trevor Megill, a high school teammate of Bauers, joins Joey Ortiz (Garden Grove Pacifica), Brice Turang (Corona Santiago), Garrett Mitchell (Orange Lutheran) and Christian Yelich (Westlake) as the SoCal group.

“We got a lot of guys from Southern California,” Turang said. “It’s cool. A lot of guys played against each other in high school.”

The Brewers also drafted in the last two years the Ebel brothers from Corona, Brady and Trey, so when they make visits to Dodger Stadium, it’s a big deal.

“Crazy,” Turang said of the Southern California players getting asked for tickets.

Bauers, 30, certainly hasn’t lost his passion for fun. He was playing two Brewers in a video game before heading out to the field.

He said people change as they get older.

“Years of experiences, you gain perspective if you’re willing to look at yourself,” he said.

Turang was asked what high school kids today need to do to succeed in their journey to major league baseball.

“You have to practice every day. This doesn’t come easily,” he said.

Sign up for the L.A. Times SoCal high school sports newsletter to get scores, stories and a behind-the-scenes look at what makes prep sports so popular.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

It’s definitely been a frustrating road trip for the Orioles. They’ve had two series against wildcard contenders to stake their place in the playoff hunt, but the same flaws keep appearing. The offense just isn’t there, and the bullpen is wildly erratic.

After dropping two of three to the Rangers last series, the Orioles got handled in Game 1 against the Twins, especially painful fashion by one of their former own, Dean Kremer, who held them to one run over seven innings, not even a week after being dealt at the Trade Deadline.

Orioles will try to get it going again with right0hander Brandon Young on the mound. With an 8-3 record and 3.43 ERA, the righty has unexpectedly been one of their most consistent starters, although his last two times out were not his best: he allowed four earned runs against the Phillies on July 31, and threw just 4 ⅔ innings last week in a loss to Los Angeles.

Facing Young is certified big guy Bailey Ober, who at 6’6” is more commanding than his 7-3 record and 4.45 ERA. Ober faced the Orioles once this season, allowing three runs in four innings back in April.

Orioles lineup

1. Gunnar Henderson SS
2. Pete Alonso 1B
3. Jackson Holliday 2B
4. Tyler O’Neill RF
5. Christian Encarnacion-Strand 3B
6. Coby Mayo DH
7. Christian Franklin CF
8. Jeremiah Jackson LF
9. Yohel Pozo C

Twins lineup

1. Trevor Larnach LF
2. Ryan Jeffers C
3. Josh Bell DH
4. Kody Clemens 2B
5. Royce Lewis 1B
6. Brooks Lee 3B
7. Luke Keaschall CF
8. Alan Roden RF
9. Kaelen Culpepper SS

What was thought to be a normal Sunday of friendly summer softball turned into the shock of a lifetime for so many in Central Park.

Angry Orchard, a hard cider brand based in Walden, NY, approached Nick Swisher on Sunday to help bring some life to the Sons of Pitches, a rec softball team in New York City that appeared to have lost all hope of securing a victory.

They were set to face the Fattened Calves, one of the most dominant teams in the league, and had little idea how to break their 14-game losing streak. However, once the Angry Orchard team announced that Nick would be joining the Sons of Pitches, it was game on.

“I think it’s such a cool idea that Angry Orchard is not only investing in the winners, but also the underdogs,” Swisher said at the event. “Everybody gets frustrated, but there is always some fun to be found in frustration!”

It was unforgettable to witness the amazement on the faces of almost every player and spectator at North Meadow Ballfield #9. Crowds gathered around the area to watch the former Yankees first baseman take to the plate and crush a couple of home runs into the blaring sun.

Luckily for Swisher, the heat was giving the chunky ball a bit more height than initially expected.

“I learned to play this game through fun,” Swisher said. “If I’m going to go out there, I’m going to do it my way. I’m going to smile and have the best time ever because I know I’ve put the work in the back half. I know I’m prepared to go out and play. When I go out and play, my excitement is infectious.”

Since joining the Pinstripes after getting traded from the White Sox, Swisher contributed to the Yankees’ success both on and off the field. He takes pride in bringing a glowingly positive mentality to the clubhouse while also serving as a leader both at the plate and in the infield.

Despite Alex Rodriguez missing the first month of the 2009 regular season, Swisher stepped up and carried the Yankees’ offense through. At the end of April, Swisher had a 1.144 OPS with a .744 slugging percentage. He also adapted to play right field while Xavier Nady missed the remainder of the season with an elbow injury. As the Yankees continued to generate success and overcame injury challenges, Swisher made his mark as one of the most memorable 2009 World Series Champions. He finished the season batting .249 with 29 home runs and 82 RBIs.

As part of their campaign, Angry Orchard scoured the nation to find one of the worst rec softball teams in America that never stopped showing up and giving their all on the field. They recruited Swisher to participate as an Angry Orchard Super Sub and give the Sons of Pitches a much-needed morale boost.

Swisher ultimately helped the Sons of Pitches gloriously secure their victory, celebrating with cheers and several pours of Angry Orchard. It was an incredible day that helped shift the perspectives of so many players and inspire some tenacity to defy expectations and keep a positive attitude.

FriarWatch: August 11 Edition

The San Diego Padres use some late-inning fireworks to take the opening game of the three-game set against the Milwaukee Brewers. Jackson Merrill hit a two-run homer in the seventh inning to give the Padres a 3-2 lead. Mason Miller recorded his National League-leading 30th save to preserve the victory.

Scoring late in games with a shutdown closer has been the perfect combination, as the Friars have won 13 of their last 17 games to get back in the Wild-Card chase. 

Tonight’s game offers another quality pitching matchup, Kyle Harrison vs Walker Buehler, as the Brewers bats must figure out how to be more productive in their at-bats. They must win this series to build momentum before facing the Los Angeles Dodgers in Chavez Ravine this upcoming weekend.

Taking the mound: Kyle Harrison (MIL) vs Walker Buehler (SD)

The Brewers will try to get back on their winning ways by sending Harrison (9-2, 2.84 ERA) to the mound. Finally, he unlocked his potential as a starting pitcher. Both the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox lost patience with Harrison because of his control issues in starts. The former prospect failed to throw strikes consistently.

The Brewers’ pitching development staff refined his delivery mechanics by adjusting his arm angle and moving Harrison from the third-base to the first-base side of the rubber. The results have been outstanding.

Immediately, he increased the velocity of his four-seam fastball from 92 MPH in past seasons to 95 MPH in 2026 starts. It has allowed him to work at the top of the strike zone. Opposing hitters are having trouble tracking his sweeper and changeup because of the vertical drop.

His revamped pitching style has allowed Harrison to get ahead in counts and record more quality starts than ever in his four-year major league career.

The Padres will counter with Walker Buehler (6-5, 5.07 ERA), who is battling to remain a consistent starter for the final two months of the 2026 season. He has failed to record a quality start since June. Buehler has averaged 4.2 innings over his last six starts.

No question, it has been a process for Buehler to transition from being a power pitcher to using his full repertoire in games. He has a seven-pitch mix (four-seam fastball, sinker, cutter, slider, changeup, sweeper, and knuckle-curve) that keeps hitters off balance.

The days of him earning a complete-game victory are over. But Buehler can get through the Brewers batting order twice before they figure out his pitch sequence. He must work the corners against such a potent lineup. 

However, Buehler cannot challenge them with his fastball; it will be a losing proposition. The velocity has dropped, as teams are hitting .393 off his four-seamer.

The Friar Faithful can expect the bullpen to play a role in this evening’s game.

Today’s lineups

TONIGHT’S GAME: The first-place Astros continue their six-game road trip tonight and will hand the ball to RHP Hunter Brown (3-1) for game two of their three-game set at Oracle Park.

The Giants will counter with LHP Carson Whisenhunt (2-3), who will be making his 6th start of the season.

THE TURNAROUND: After a slow start to the season, the Astros are 41-28 since May 22, which is the second best record in the AL in that span.

On that date, the Astros were 20-31, 11 games under, which is their low water mark for the season.

THAT’S OFFENSIVE: The Astros lead the AL in SLG (.414), and OPS (.735), while ranking second in home runs (162), OBP (.320) and hits (991).

In the Majors, the Astros rank third in homers, trailing only the Nationals (171) and Yankees (167).

DIESEL POWER: RHP Hunter Brown will make his 12th start of the season and his ninth since returning from a lengthy stint on the IL with a right shoulder strain.

The 2025 All-Star has begun to round into form over his last three starts, including two quality starts, going 2-0 with a 2.41 ERA (5ER/18.2IP) with 20 strikeouts, a .169 opponent batting average (11×65) and a 0.80 WHIP.

Brown is set to make his 1st appearance at Oracle Park and his 2nd appearance vs. the Giants (also, May 2, 2023, at Daikin Park).

AYA IN ACTION: TheAstros Nike RBI Softball Team recorded a 2-1 win over Roberto Clemente Nike RBI Softball Team in day two of the 2026 Nike RBI Softball World Series in Vero Beach, FL.

The team’s next game will be at 8 a.m. CT tomorrow vs. the US Virgin Islands Nike RBI Team, with the winner advancing to the Nike RBI Softball World Series Championship.

The Astros Nike RBI Softball Team, which has won five Nike RBI World Series Softball Championships, is making its 12th appearance in the Nike RBI Softball World Series.

ROAD WARRIORS: The Astros continue a six- game West Coast road-trip with the second game of a three game series tonight at Oracle Park, the club’s first trip to the venue since a three-game series from June 10-12, 2024.

Houston has gone 24-15 (.615) on their last five road trips and are 30- 21 (.588) on the road since going 1-9 on their first road trip of the season.

Houston is 31-30 overall on the road in 2026.

YESTERDAY’S GAME: Down to their final strike, the Astros rallied for a 6-3 win in 10 innings last night at Oracle Park.

RF Cam Smith, who also hit a solo homer in the 7th inning, drove in the game-tying run with a two out single in the 9th inning.

SS Jeremy Peña (RBI single) and 3B Isaac Paredes (two-run double) put the Astros out in front in extras and LHP Josh Hader tossed 2.0 perfect innings to finish out the win, marking his longest appearance of the season.

RHP Hayden Wesneski got the start and matched his career high by tossing 7.0 innings, allowing three runs on five hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

The Astros have won all three of Wesneski’s starts this season.

ROSTER MOVES: OF Nelson Velázquez reported to the Major League team today (wearing No. 30).

To make room for Velázquez on the active roster, the Astros optioned OF Jake Meyers to Triple A Sugar Land following last night’s game.

Velázquez, 27, has played in 34 games for the Cardinals this season and 228 career games at the Major League level, also appearing with the Cubs (2022-23) and Royals (2023-24).

Velázquez owns a career .739 OPS vs. left-handed pitching in the Majors.

VS. THE GIANTS: The Astros have a long history with the Giants, having played them 742 times, their second-most against a single opponent, trailing only the Reds (860g).

This series marks the Astros’ first trip to Oracle Park since June 10-12, 2024 (Giants went 2-1).

The Astros have a pair of players who spent portions of their Major League careers with the Giants in LHP Steven Okert (2016-18) and OF LaMonte Wade Jr. (2021-25).

MVP-CALIBER: Yordan Alvarez leads the AL in all three Triple Crown categories, ranking first in batting average (.323), HR (35), and RBI (86).

Additionally, he leads MLB in OPS (1.059), OBP (.435), SLG (.624), and TB (269).

In the AL, he ranks first in hits (139), extra-base hits (60), and runs (80), and tied for second in walks (82)

HADERADE: LHP Josh Hader has been stellar since returning from injury in early June, going 4-1 with a 1.00 ERA (3ER/27IP), 38 strikeouts, a .110 opponent batting average (10×91) and a 0.74 WHIP, while also converting all 16 of his save opportunities.

Since being reinstated from the IL on June 3, he ranks second in opponent batting average (.110), third in SO/9 (12.67) and fifth in ERA among AL relievers (min. 25 IP).

CAM JAM: RF Cam Smith has homered three times and logged two three-hit games through his first three appearances of this current road trip, including his fourth career multi-homer game last Friday at SD.

So far this road trip, Smith has batted .545 (6×11) with five runs, three homers, four RBI and a walk.

He has also hit safely in eight of his last 10 games (since July 29 at LAA), batting .432 (16×37) with 10 runs, two doubles, one triple, three home runs, eight RBI and a 1.246 OPS over that stretch.

THREES COMPANY: 2B Jose Altuve enters tonight’s game with 224 career games of 3+ hits, which is just one game of 3+ hits from tying Hall of Famer Craig Biggio (225) for the most in Astros franchise history.

Altuve has multiple hits in six of his last 12 games (since July 28 at LAA), batting .319 (15×47) in that span.

BIG WES: RHP Hayden Wesneski parroted the first two successful outings of his season by matching his career high of 7.0 innings in last night’s win, allowing three runs on five hits with two walks and four strikeouts.

Wesneski has gone 2-0 with a 3.86 ERA (8ER/18.2IP) through his first three starts of the season after missing 14 months due to Tommy John surgery.

Game Info

Game Date/Time: Tuesday, August 11, 8:45 p.m. CT

Location: Oracle Park, San Francisco, CA

TV: Space City Home Network

Radio: KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)

Earlier today, the Colorado Rockies recalled outfielder Zac Veen (No. 9 PuRP) from Triple-A Albuquerque while infielder Edouard Julien was designated for assignment.

It’s been a big week for the Rockies top prospect, who learned yesterday that he had won his second consecutive Pacific Coast League “Player of the Week” Award.

Even briefly spoke with media about being back with the big-league club.

“I feel really blessed,” Veen said. “I feel really grateful for the opportunity, and I think how much I appreciate taking the field every day has been a big difference for me this year.”

In 2025, Veen was with the Rockies for 12 games when he slashed .118/.189/.235.

During his time with the Isotopes, Veen has been busy, working on both sides of his game.

“I feel like a little bit of everything has gotten better while I was there,” Veen said. “I feel like we worked on some mechanical stuff, hitting-wise, worked on some approach stuff — just things to (help me) be the most best version of myself every day.”

In terms of working on his approach at the plate, Veen gave credit to Isotopes hitting coach Matt Snyder.

“We had a really good plan for you know what pitches I wanted to swing at, what we were looking for,” Veen said, “and I think he did a great job with helping me get better at that.”

Veen’s numbers from the last month certainly support that thesis.

Currently, the Rockies first-round draft pick in the 2020 MLB Draft currently slashing a torrid .327/.402/.635. He also leads the Pacific Coast League in both slugging percentage and OPS (1.037) in 100 games with just under 400 at-bats.

What was Veen doing when he got the news that he’d be joining the Rockies at Chase Field?

“I was about to load a ‘Call of Duty Zombies’ game in the hotel, and that’s when I got the call.”

Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer made clear that Veen has earned this spot.

“Zac Veen has earned every bit of this promotion, which I am super excited for him about,” Schaeffer said. “He pushed his way to the big leagues. He’s been working on his plate discipline. He’s been showing a ton of power — just playing the game hard every night.”

Then Schaeffer added,“ He’s just been doing everything that we’ve asked of him. So he’s earned his way here.”

And what is Schaeffer looking for?

“The last time he was up here, I think the nerves took over. I want him to have fun and be himself, just because that’s the only way he’s going to show what he can show, and he knows that.

“I think big things are ahead for Zac Veen.”

This story has been updated to include comments from Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer.

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

The St. Louis Cardinals and Philadelphia Phillies will tangle again Tuesday night as Andre Pallante will try to earn his 13th victory for the Cardinals while the Phillies will send LHP Cristopher Sánchez to the mound. First pitch is scheduled for 6:45pm central time at Busch Stadium and the game TV broadcast will be available through Cardinals.tv.

Texas Rangers lineup for August 11, 2026 against the Anaheim Angels: starting pitchers are Cody Bradford for the Rangers and Ryan Johnson for the Angels.

Texas looks to make it two in a row against the Angels, who fired all their pitching coaches today. As a result, Ryan Johnson, who barely two years ago was pitching for Dallas Baptist, and who has been rushed to the majors and has a 7.11 ERA, will no doubt throw a 2 hit shutout.

The lineup:

Pederson — DH

Langford — LF

Seager — SS

Nimmo — RF

Duran — 3B

Carter — CF

Burger — 1B

Wynns — C

Lopez — 2B

8:38 p.m. Central start time. Rangers are -146 favorites.

There’s been some nasty weather in the forecast all day for metro Atlanta. It’s been threatening and threatening and threatening to roll in and finally it’s close enough to where the grounds crew at Truist Park has gone ahead and put the tarp on the field ahead of Tuesday’s contest between the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets.

We’ll have more for y’all once the details come in but for now, anticipate that tonight’s game won’t be starting on time.

UPDATE [6:55 p.m. ET]: Well apparently the weather is fine enough at the ballpark to where the game is apparently set to start on time. The tarp is off and the players are preparing as if the game will be starting on time.

Apparently this leaves in the possibility of a one-minute delay.

UPDATE [7:15 p.m. ET]: The teams are on the field and it’s time to play ball. Come join us in the game thread!

The Texas Rangers have purchased the contract of outfielder Jarred Kelenic from AAA Round Rock, the team announced today. To make room for Kelenic on the active and 40 man roster, the Rangers have designated infielder Jonah Bride for assignment. In addition, the Rangers announced that catcher Danny Jansen is beginning a rehab assignment with Round Rock today.

Well, this is weird. Bride was added to the active roster on Sunday, with lefthanded hitting outfielder Alejandro Osuna being sent down to AAA Round Rock. Now, after two games, both of which Bride started, going 1 for 5 with a walk and two Ks in all, Bride is dropped so the Rangers could add a lefthanded hitting outfielder to the active roster.

Did they just want Bride for the two games? Was the plan all along to have him up against the two lefty starters, then put him on waivers? Did he do something to upset somebody? Did he cropdust Skip Schumaker? Was he playing the Thong Song on the clubhouse stereo (or, conversely, objecting to someone playing the Thong Song on the clubhouse stereo)? Did he sit in Corey Seager’s preferred spot on the bus?

Its a mystery.

Anyway, Kelenic is back for his second stint on the Rangers’ active roster this season. Since being sent down, Kelenic has slashed .391/.456/.674 in 103 plate appearances over 24 games while going 7 for 7 on stolen base attempts. He went 2 for 4 on Sunday, with a walk, a stolen base and two runs scored, and maybe the organization like the cut of his jib in that game so much they decided, the hell with Jonah Bride, we need this Kelenic guy back up!

In Kelenic’s previous stint with the Rangers, he was 1 for 8 with two walks, five Ks and a caught stealing in seven games. For some reason, I thought he had gotten more action than that.

The good news is that Danny Jansen will hopefully be back soon. Jansen has been out with an elbow issue that reportedly may or may not need surgery this offseason. He’s scheduled to catch four innings for Round Rock, and my guess is that he’ll spend the week with the Express and, if things go well, be activated when the Rangers return home a week from today to start a series against the Nationals.