Category: Sports News

The sun has finally risen on the last day of the last day of the 2026 Major League Baseball regular season. Today marks Game 162 of 162 an the Colorado Rockies are in the South Side of Chicago for one last game against the White Sox.

The Rockies played spoiler last night, handing a loss to the White Sox while also handing the American League Central to the Cleveland Guardians. Now the Rockies seek to end a rough September, a long campaign, and their fourth consecutive season with 100 or more losses on a high note with a win this afternoon. Should the Rockies emerge victorious, it will be their first series win since the beginning of the month.

On the mound today for the Rockies—and perhaps making his final start for his hometown team—is left-handed pitcher Kyle Freeland. It has been a long and difficult season for the 33-year-old from Denver as he has dealt with injuries and poor performances. His 6.58 ERA in 25 starts is the second worst figure of his career—trailing only a miserable 2019 where he struggled with mechanical issues and spent time in Triple-A Albuquerque.

Freeland gave up five earned runs on nine hits his last time out against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Coors Field. Should this indeed be the last time we see him suit up for the Rockies, it would be nice to see him end things with a good outing.

Toeing the rubber for the White Sox this afternoon is left-handed veteran Anthony Kay. Kay, 31, is bringing his first full MLB season since 2023 to a close. He spent the 2024 and 2025 campaigns with Japan’s Yokohama DeNA Baystars.

Kay owns a 4.53 ERA in 32 appearances—30 of which were starts—for the White Sox this season. In 153 innings he has 125 strikeouts to 54 walks, though there is some wildness in him. Kay currently leads the league in hit batters with 25. His primary pitch is a sweeper that he backs up with a mid-90s four-seam fastball and a sinker. He also throws a cutter, a changeup, and a traditional slider. This will be Kay’s first time facing the Rockies in his big league career.

First pitch: 1:10 p.m. MDT

TV: Rockies.TV

Radio: KOA 850 AM/94.1 FM; KNRV 1150 (Spanish)

White Sox SB Nation:South Side Sox

Lineups:

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Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Detroit Tigers, September 26, 2026, 3:10 p.m. ET

The Pittsburgh Pirates are wrapping up the regular season as they take on the Detroit Tigers in game 162.

Jared Jones (5-6, 3.87 ERA) is making the start for the Pirates. Jones has made 20 starts this season, bouncing back after missing the entire 2025 campaign due to injury. His ERA is lower than it was in his rookie year in 2024, and the Pirates have seen signs of growth that could carry him toward being part of the rotation in 2027. In his last start on September 22, Jones pitched 7 scoreless innings, allowing just 1 hit and striking out 9 in a 2-0 victory against the St. Louis Cardinals at PNC Park. Jones would love to finish off his season with a great start.

River Ryan (0-0, 0.00 ERA) is getting the start for the Tigers. He was in the Los Angeles Dodgers’ minor league system for the last couple of years before being traded for Tarek Skubel in early August. He was called up on September 21 and pitched three innings, striking out three against the Washington Nationals. Now, he will get one more shot before the Tigers head into the offseason.

Location: Comerica Park, Detroit, MI

Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh

Pitching Matchup: Jared Jones (5-6, 3.87 ERA) vs. River Ryan (0-0, 0.00 ERA)

BD community, this is your gameday thread for today’s game against the Detroit Tigers. Chime off in the comments section below.

Today, we’ll test one of the great questions in our beautiful game.

Jimmy got this wrong, of course (as he did so many things). There is so much crying in baseball. I don’t know that I’ll cry for Randy—it still feels like a dream that he ever even became a Mariner. But for sure, I will cry for J.P. and for Rick. In fact, when I think of J.P. Crawford, one of the moments that always comes to mind is baseball crying.

That was five years ago. It’s hard to believe how much has happened with the Mariners since then and how central J.P. Crawford has been to all of it. He’ll start at shortstop today, as he has more times than anyone else in a Mariners uniform.

Lineups

News

Kade Anderson’s x-rays came back negative after taking a comebacker off his throwing arm in the fourth inning last night. He’ll have more imaging done to make sure they didn’t miss anything, but he said he knew immediately that although it hurt like hell, it didn’t break anything. He also said this isn’t the first time this happened to him: he got hit hard once like this in college, so he pretty much knew what to expect and didn’t freak out when his arm went dead.

I’m glad to know at least one person was not freaking out about this because I sure as hell was.

Game Info

Hooooooo boy. Around here, we refer to 710 as Old Reliable, but they’re actually not that reliable. Today, for instance, the ostensible “Seattle Mariners Radio Network” will bump the Mariners over to 770 in favor of the Seahawks. But we all know what we’ve really meant by Old Reliable. Rick Rizzs’s final call will also be simulcast on the tv broadcast for the ninth inning. There is so much crying in baseball.

First pitch: 12:10 PDT
TV: Mariners TV
Radio: 770 am and mariners.com

Texas Rangers @ Minnesota Twins

Sunday, September 27, 2026, 2:10 PM CDT (KRLD 1080 / Rangers Sports Network)

Target Field

LHP MacKenzie Gore vs. RHP Dean Kremer

Go Rangers!

We made it folks! The final game of the season is upon us. The A’s are set to suit up one final time this season, taking on the Astros to wrap up the year. The A’s stand at 64-97, sitting in fourth place in the AL West and with the second-worst record in the American League. That’s where they’ll sit this offseason but if the team can end the year with a win that’d send us into the offseason on a high note. Let’s finish the year with a 65th win in front of Sacramento.

As for Houston, this isn’t just any game for them. They still have not clinched a spot in the postseason as they enter today tied with the Texas Rangers at 80-81 atop the AL West. Thanks to them owning the tie breaker the Astros control their own fate: win and they’re win. The Rangers will be watching this game and rooting for our A’s, hoping to keep their playoff hopes alive. They need to pair their own win with an Astros loss to make it to October. In a way it’s up to the A’s which Texas team goes to the postseason. Which would you prefer to allow to stay alive a bit longer? Either is a bad pick.

Taking the ball today in the final to start things off is right-handed reliever Seth Johnson. That means we’re looking at a bullpen game today. Johnson as you may remember was the lone acquisition at the mid-season trade deadline, coming over from Philadelphia in exchange for outfielder Colby Thomas. Johnson has split time between the big league club and the Aviators in the two months since joining the organization, posting a 6.89 ERA in 11 appearances at the big league level. We shouldn’t expect more than an inning or two out of the righty this afternoon, and from there it’ll be all Kotsay mixing and matching.

Here’s the final A’s lineup of the 2026 season:

Not how we thought the last lineup of the season would look but six months of baseball will grind down plenty of teams. It’s been the typical lineup here down the stretch and they’ve been servicable, especially since the return of Langeliers. We’ll also get to see infielder Joshua Kuroda-Grauer one more time this afternoon, and it’s a great sign and he’ll be able to put that nasty injury he suffered fully behind him heading into winter. And another good sign, catcher Brian Serven is back in there after taking a ball of the face earlier in the week.

The Astros meanwhile, with their season on the line, have right-hander Peter Lambert taking the ball this afternoon. Lambert has been a godsend for the Astros this season. An offseason pickup from Colorado, the 29-year-old has broken out with a 3.87 ERA in a team-leading 28 starts, solidifying a shaky Astros rotation. Houston isn’t in contention or anywhere near the top of the division without his emergence, and he’s a likely option for Game Two if the Astros advance to the playoffs.

And Houston’s starting nine:

Time to finish the season. Wrap it up with a win, boys. Let’s go A’s!

Follow the Game:
Watch:
Athletics – NBCSCA

Listen:
Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, KVMX 92.1/105.5, A’s Cast

Happy Sunday, folks! It’s the last day of the regular season (probably), and everything is weird in Red Sox world.

For starters, the game is being played in Tropicana Field due to a Nor’easter in New England. It was the right call to move the game because there’s zero chance they would have had a window to play in Boston today, but the game ultimately didn’t need to be played at all. Against all odds, the Red Sox and the Cubs are both locked into the fifth seed, so this game counts for pride and pride alone. Unless the two meet in the World Series, in which case it counts for home field advantage. Let’s not worry about that right now, though.

For other starters, Tanner Houck is back! He’s starting his first game since last May. Houck probably won’t figure into the postseason at all, but it’s nice to see him back out there.

We’ve got injury news too! Willson Contreras and Ceddanne Rafaela are both in the lineup today, a positive sign for the postseason, although I’ll be closely watching how Contreras swings as he grinds through his injury. Tyron Guerrero was also placed on the injured list, a huge blow to the bullpen ahead of the playoffs. Wyatt Olds took his spot, while Nate Eaton replaced Mickey Gasper.

If meaningless baseball at a neutral site isn’t your thing, how about games with real playoff implications? The Astros and Rangers are tied for the top spot in the American League West, with Houston owning the tiebreaker. The Astros are starting Peter Lambert, who just threw 62 pitches on Thursday. Personally, I’d rather the Rangers make the playoffs because I don’t want to see Yordan Alvarez, but pitchers taking the ball on short rest is always cool.

In the National League, the Phillies are in a tailspin but control their own destiny. They’re in with a win, but if they lose a fifth straight game and the Diamondbacks pull out a win, they’ll fall out of the playoff picture on the last day of the season. There’s some weather at play in Philadelphia as well, so that’s something to keep an eye on.

That’s a whole lot of preamble before a meaningless regular-season Red Sox game. It’s a great day to stay inside and watch all the sports, so get your TVs out, your beers in the refrigerator, and find a nice spot on the couch for the rest of the day*.

*If you don’t have other responsibilities.

First pitch at 3:05 pm on NESN and WEEI

Lineups

Texas Rangers infielder Cam Cauley has been recalled from AAA Round Rock, the team announced today. To make room for him on the active roster, the Rangers have optioned DH/catcher Logan O’Hoppe to AAA Round Rock.

Cauley gets called up due to Nicky Lopez having a foot issue that resulted in him leaving last night’s game. Cauley gives the Rangers a second reserve infielder, along with Cody Freeman.

If you didn’t realize O’Hoppe was on the roster, that’s because he was added yesterday, with Josh Jung being placed on the 15 day injured list with his fractured hand.

Robby Ahlstrom was also recalled prior to yesterday’s game, taking the place of Gavin Collyer. Collyer had been recalled on Wednesday, with Winston Santos having been sent down.

Game 162 of the 2026 baseball season has arrived, and the Phillies’ situation is clear: If they win, they make the playoffs. If they lose, they have to hope the Padres can defeat the Arizona Diamondbacks allowing the Phillies to back into the final Wild Card spot.

The good news for the Phillies is that Zack Wheeler is scheduled to start. The righthander is 13-5 with a 3.06 ERA on the season.

He’ll be opposed by Nick Martinez. The veteran righthander is wrapping up his best season with a 15-5 record and 2.94 ERA.

Game time is 3:05 PM and will be televised locally by NBCSP.

With the top wild card spot in the National League now in their hands, the San Diego Padres can turn their attention towards hosting the Chicago Cubs in their first postseason series. Friar faithful now know when they'll be able to cheer on their team, too.

MLB announced the start times for all four wild card series starting Tuesday, Sept. 29 and running through Thursday, Oct. 1. All but two matchups are set; the Houston Astros and Texas Rangers are having a mid-off to decide who will be the division winner with the worst record in 21 years, and the Philadelphia Phillies are trying to avoid a monumental collapse in the final game of the regular season to keep the Arizona Diamondbacks out.

Other than that, Red Sox-Yankees and Padres-Cubs are all set to get the 2026 postseason underway.

The Padres get the late game in every scenario, being the westernmost team in the wild card. Each of their three-game series with the Cubs will begin at 7 p.m. PT. But in the event of a Game 3, there are a couple different scenarios to look out for.

Here are the scheduled start times for Padres-Cubs, including all Game 3 scenarios for Thursday, Oct. 1:

Quite a Guardians lineup today for the hangover game:

Here’s the Royals lineup:

Let’s go, Guardians!

Sunday notes…

• AT THE TROP: Today’s game will be the Cubs’ 12th at Tropicana Field. They are 4-7, including 2-1 this year. They lost to the Rays on April 6, then beat them on April 7 and 8. It will be the 243rd game for the Red Sox at “the Trop,” where they are 116-126 vs. the Rays overall and 1-6 this year. They played there just last weekend, winning the first game and losing the next two. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• WINNING AND LOSING SERIES: This is the 25th series that the Cubs have lost. They have won 26 and split three. Last year, they were 31-19-3 in series and finished 92-70. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• NOT SCORING RUNS: The Cubs have allowed a total of 10 runs in their last four games but lost three of them. This is the 18th span this season, some overlapping, in which the Cubs allowed no more than 10 runs. It is the first in which they did not win at least two games. They won all four in five spans, three games in five more and two games in seven. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• RISPy BUSINESS: On June 16, the Cubs’ batting average for the season with runners in scoring position was .219. In the next 65 games, through Sept. 2, it was .289, raising the season average to .252. In their last 21 games, it is .185, dropping the season average to .243. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: The Cubs sweep a doubleheader from the Pirates, 4-2 and 7-2, thus clinching the NL Central title. It happened 23 years ago today, Saturday, Sept. 27, 2003.

Cubs lineup:

Red Sox lineup:

Shōta Imanaga, LHP vs. Tanner Houck, RHP

I’m actually a bit surprised that Shōta Imanaga is starting this game, unless the plan is to have him only go a couple of innings so he could be available maybe on Thursday against the Padres.

Imanaga has had a very good September: 1.96 ERA, 0.783 WHIP in four starts covering 23 innings, with only one home run allowed. Keep up the good work, Shōta. The last time he faced the Red Sox was July 19, 2025 at Wrigley Field, where he threw seven shutout innings and struck out five.

Tanner Houck, who had a really good year for the Red Sox in 2024, had Tommy John surgery after nine starts in 2025 and has not pitched in MLB at all this year. He’s thrown eight innings in four rehab outings in the Red Sox minor leagues this year and posted a 3.38 ERA and 0.875 WHIP.

No current Cub has more than six at-bats against Houck. Dansby Swanson is 2-for-5 with a home run. The pitch chart for Houck below is from 2025.

Today’s game is on Marquee Sports Network.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Red Sox site Over The Monster. If you do go there to interact with Red Sox fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.