Category: Sports News

The Mets did their crosstown rivals a huge solid taking two out of three from the Rays, meaning the Yankees closed the gap to 3.5 games with their extra-innings win over the Angels. Cam Schlittler authored another dominant start and Austin Wells supplied the game winner to ensure the team enters the off-day on a positive swell of emotion before heading to San Diego for three.

Here’s how the rest of the games involving the AL playoff picture shook out:

New York Mets (63-77) 10, Tampa Bay Rays (83-56) 4

Neither team’s starting pitching plans went according to script. Griffin Jax was only able to give the Rays 2.2 innings in his first start off the IL, allowing six runs (three earned) on seven hits and two walks. The Mets meanwhile tried to get cute with a bullpen game, only to watch opener Justin Hagenman and reliever Chris Devenski combine to give up four runs on six hits and a walk in 3.2 innings.

New York scored the first six runs of this contest, starting with three in the first. Juan Soto singled and Carson Benge walked to set up a two-run single from Jared Young aided by a missed catch error by the catcher on a play at the plate. Marcus Semien then drove in Young with a double. Two innings later, they scored another three runs. Bo Bichette singled, Semien walked, and A.J. Ewing singled to load the bases with two outs. A Brett Baty double promptly unloaded them to make it 6-0.

Tampa Bay responded with four unanswered, starting with one in the third as Taylor Walls walked, Yandy Díaz singled, and Jonathan Aranda plated Walls with a single. Three more came the following inning, Chandler Simpson and Cedric Mullins reaching on singles to set up a three-run blast to right by Richie Palacios.

Then it was the Mets’ turn to score four unanswered. Three of those arrived in the seventh as Bichette doubled, Benge singled, and Semien was hit by a pitch to load the bases. They received their second bases-clearing double of the night, this one courtesy of rookie Nick Morabito, his first ever big league hit. Soto demolished a solo shot in the eighth to push the Mets into double digits.

Other Games

Seattle Mariners (66-74) 8, Boston Red Sox (75-65) 3

Bryce Miller was pulled after just 65 pitches despite no report of an injury — a curious decision given he had held the Red Sox to a run in 4.2 innings to that point. It was even more curious considering the Mariners had spotted hima 4-0 lead with a long rally in the third. Weston Wilson and J.P. Crawford hit a pair of leadoff singles and Dominic Canzone walked, Julio Rodríguez and Josh Naylor then following with their own back-to-back singles as Seattle plated four with the help of a wild pitch and a Jarren Duran throwing error.

The lone damage against Miller came in the fourth on a Trevor Story RBI double. However, Seattle responded with another four-run inning in the sixth. Cole Young got plunked, Wilson walked, and Crawford singled to load the bases with no outs. Jhonny Pereda singled home a pair, Randy Arozarena another, and a Canzone double made it 8-1.

Roman Anthony grabbed a consolation run with a solo home run in the seventh and Mickey Gasper and Eli White added another with back-to-back doubles, but that would conclude the scoring. With the loss and Yankees win, the Red Sox fall five games back of second place.

Houston Astros (71-69) 2, Chicago White Sox (73-66) 3

We had a true pitchers’ duel on our hands, Davis Martin giving the White Sox 5.2 scoreless allowing five hits and a walk while Hayden Wesneski was even better for the Astros — seven scoreless innings of one-hit ball with two walks and five strikeouts. Houston had the first real chance to score, with runners on the corners with no outs after Yordan Alvarez led off the fourth with a double and Isaac Paredes followed with a single, but Martin buckled down to strand them in place.

Chicago squandered a golden opportunity in the eighth after Tristan Peters led off with a triple and Drew Romo drew a walk to put runners on the corners with nobody out. However, Peters got thrown out at home on a groundball. Munetaka Murakami singled to load the bases, but Miguel Vargas killed the rally with the inning ending double play.

Houston capitalized in the bottom of the frame, Alvarez singling, Paredes walking, and Jose Altuve getting grazed by a pitch to load the bases with one out. Nelson Velázquez supplied the game winning hit with a two-run single off Sean Newcomb.

AL Wild Card Rock Fight

Toronto Blue Jays (69-71) 11, Cleveland Guardians (70-69) 0

The Blue Jays bludgeoned Joey Cantillo for nine runs (four earned) in 5.1 innings. Those five unearned runs all came in the second when a throwing error by shortstop Angel Genao allowed two runs to score. The very next batter was Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and he completed the humiliation with a booming three-run blast. Dylan Cease kept pace with Schlittler in the AL Cy Young race, twirling six shutout allowing four hits and no walks with four strikeouts. Vladito would collect another pair of RBIs late and finish with three hits in this rout of the Guardians.

Colorado Rockies (54-86) 6, Baltimore Orioles (69-71) 5

Luis Robert Jr. drove in a pair on his Orioles debut while Trevor Rogers struck out eleven across 6.2 innings of two-run ball. However, the Rockies kept chipping away until a Zac Veen RBI double with two outs in the bottom of the ninth sent the game to extras. In the 11th, Samuel Basallo and Blaze Alexander slapped a pair of RBI singles, but Colorado walked it off by scoring three in the bottom half on TJ Rumfield RBI single, Adael Amador ground-rule double, and the walk-off two-run single by Brett Sullivan.

Athletics (54-86) 9, Texas Rangers (69-71) 2

It was a home run parade for the Athletics in Arlington, four different players leaving the yard. Rookie Nick Bolte became the first player in franchise history to hit two home runs and steal a base from the leadoff spot as he went 3-for-4 with four RBIs. Zack Gelof and Jonah Heim both hit solo shots while Alika Williams provided pop from the bottom of the order with a two-run blast and an RBI double. This was all after Texas jumped out to an early 2-0 lead on solo homers by Ezequiel Duran and Justin Foscue.

Good morning friends!

The Mariners are coming off their second straight high-scoring victory in Boston, as the team triumphed 8-3 to remain perfect in September. The M’s are back home tonight for a series against the Athletics, with first pitch set for 6:40pm PT. How are we feeling coming off those two wins?

In Mariners news…

• The Mariners have reportedly agreed to a minor league deal with right-hander Simeon Woods Richardson.
• The Lookout Landing staff discussed the ramifications of a miserable series in Toronto and whether or not Dan Wilson will finally get canned for this.
• Zack Scott told the story of how the Red Sox very nearly acquired Félix Hernández during the summer of 2009.

Around the league…

• Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said that Shohei Ohtani remains without a timeline for a return to pitching after the two-way star felt discomfort in his knee during his bullpen session on Friday.
• In his MLB debut, Padres catcher Ethan Salas became the youngest player to catch a game since Iván Rodríguez.
• Joelle Milholm spoke to some WPBL stars to hear about their experience during this inaugural season for the league.
• The Awful Announcing staff unveiled voter rankings of all 30 local broadcast crews around the majors. Shout out to my former roommate Jake Eisenberg (Royals) for getting his flowers from the fans.
• Congratulations, Geno!

Rise and shine A’s fans! We got a brand new series to get started today up in Seattle.

The organization has had some massive hits in the first round of recent MLB Drafts. The team’s 2019-2024 picks have all made it to the major leagues with varying success but they really hit it big in recent years with Tyler Soderstrom, Jacob Wilson, and Nick Kurtz. Those three are anchor players among the position player side of things.

While the team has done well drafting position players, they’ve lacked in the pitching department due to a lack of trying. The Athletics did not select a pitcher with their first round pick in the last nine years. No wonder the big league squad has had pitching problems.

That nearly decade-long streak was snapped last year when the club selected southpaw Jamie Arnold, the first pitcher selected with the A’s top pick since another lefty in A.J. Puk way back in 2016. A product of Florida State University, Arnold was widely considered one of the top pitching prospects and one that could move through the system quickly.

Arnold has looked as advertised so far and his ascent up the minor league ladder has been quick. He didn’t pitch after getting drafted last year and began his professional career at Double-A, where he’s spent most of the year. In 23 starts he posted a 3.27 ERA but he was especially dominant in four August starts where he allowed just four runs in 23 innings. That earned him a promotion to Triple-A, where he made his Aviators debut a couple days ago.

Now 23, the left-hander has now arrived at the final stop of the minor leagues and he looked like he hasn’t skipped a beat. Facing Triple-A hitters for the first time Arnold pitched five shutout frames while allowing just four hits. He also punched out five batters compared to just two walks. It doesn’t get much better than that for a top prospect reaching that level for the first time.

That’s now put him on the radar of a possible promotion over the final month. The A’s have been aggressive in recent years with some of their youngest players and if Arnold continues to look comfortable in Triple-A, then the A’s could feel comfortable getting his feet wet in the big leagues in a relief role, or heck even a start before the year is up. That sure would give A’s fans something exciting to watch.

The more likely scenario is that Arnold wraps the year where he is and contends for a spot in the rotation next Spring. As of right now he’d have a decent shot to crack that top five but we’ll have to wait and see what the A’s do to bolster the starting rotation this offseason. Either way, it’s not much longer before we see Arnold donning the Green & Gold in a regular season game.

Have a great Thursday everyone.

A’s Coverage:

• A’s Rally Too Late in 8-5 Loss to Rangers
• A’s Designate José Suarez For Assignment
• White exits with back tightness as A’s injury woes continue
• Your 2026 Hacktastic A’s
• Losing Streak Hits Four, A’s Lose To Rangers 8-1
• Athletics Considering James Click For GM Vacancy
• Get the best of Athletics Nation on the new SB Nation app
• How defensive whiz Clarke’s return will impact A’s
• How A’s catcher Bruce Maxwell brought taking a knee to MLB and what happened afterwards
• A’s Plan to Test Top Pitching Prospect Jamie Arnold at Next Level
• A’s Take Series With Finale Win Over Twins 7-4
• Separating The Wheat From The Chaff Not So Easy
• Amidst The Despair: The Position Player Talent Is There
• What Are The Next Steps For The A’s? ($)
• Where Each A’s Player’s Contract Stands Entering Offseason
• Why Athletics Will Have Scary Offense in 2027
• Red-hot Bolte looking to build on lessons from rookie season
• ’Kid has been grinding’: Butler’s resurgence, leadership fuel A’s
• Underdog Athletics prospect Cole Conn playing like a big dog for Aviators
• Behind the Plate, the A’s Face an Offseason Reckoning
• Why The New GM Needs To “Clean House”
• A Seemingly Rock Bottomless Glass
• MLB Trade Grades: A’s Have Quiet Trade Deadline
• This key change(up) could unlock big success for A’s prospect
• Fustercluck 2026: The Real Reasons For A Disappointing Season

MLB News and Interest:

• Rookie of the Year races in AL, NL coming to conclusion as favorites pull away
• New Rays Owner: Stadium Deal Should Lead To Significant Payroll Increase
• Dodgers get Will Smith, Rushing, Wrobleski back from IL
• Mike Trout on ‘needed’ sale of Angels: It’s a ‘fresh start’
• Angels Notes: Stadium, Trout, Front Office
• Rays, Austin Slater Agree To New Minor League Deal
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

Arnold wasn’t the only one with a recent promotion to Triple-A:

Looking like it so far:

Very!

The injuries don’t stop:

With Clearwater’s game rained out, only three of the Phillies’ affiliates were in action on Wednesday. And of the three, only one emerged victorious, and that win required a late-inning comeback.

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 9, Lehigh Valley 2

A rough first inning by pitcher Casey Lawrence put the IronPigs in an early hole from which they couldn’t recover. Lawrence gave up four runs in the first, and in total allowed seven runs on 12 hits – including two home runs – in his 4.1 innings. Lou Trivino also had a tough game, giving up two runs in his one inning of work.

Offensively, Keaton Anthony had a strong game with three hits including an RBI double in the first. Otto Kemp hit a home run as one of his two hits, while Kameron Misner, Alex Binelas, and Christian Cairo each had two-hit games.

Reading 5, Hartford 3

The Fightin’ Phils trailed for much of the game, but Bryson Ware hit a two-run home run in the seventh inning to tie it up, and then RBI hits in the eighth by Carson DeMartini and Aroon Escobar gave the Phils their margin of victory.

On the pitching side, Mavis Graves struck out five batters in two scoreless relief innings to earn the win, and Estibenzon Jimenez pitched a scoreless ninth to earn his seventh save of the season.

Hub City 11, Jersey Shore 4

The Spartanburgers jumped on BlueClaws starter Giussepe Velasquez for three runs in the first inning, and later Jake Eddington had a disastrous relief appearance, getting hammered for seven runs in 0.2 innings.

Offensively, Robert Phelps and Scott Mudler each had two hits, and Nathan Humphries had an RBI triple, but it wasn’t enough to make up for the poor pitching.

Casey Mize continued to struggle in his short tenure with the San Diego Padres. The most recent example came in a 7-3 loss to the Cincinnati Reds in the final game of their three-game series, which also wrapped up a dismal 1-5 road trip. Mize was on the mound for San Diego in the rubber game against Cincinnati, looking to help his new team win the series, which would have sent them into an off day on Thursday before opening a series at home against the New York Yankees on Friday on a positive note.

Mize, who was throwing to Ethan Salas who was making his MLB debut, was given an early two-run lead when Ty France connected on a two-run home run that just made it over the left field fence to put the Padres ahead 2-0 in the first inning. San Diego added to that lead with another run in the top of the second inning when Fernando Tatis Jr. singled to score Austin Hays from second base. Mize entered the bottom of the second inning with a 3-0 lead and it looked like a promising day for a Padres team that is fighting with the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final playoff spot in the National League.

The feeling of hope for a positive result was short lived thanks to Reds second baseman Juan Brito. He connected on a three-run home run to tie the game with one swing of the bat in the bottom of the second inning and seemed to take all momentum away from San Diego. Cincinnati added a second home run in the inning in the form of a solo shot by Hector Rodriguez. Mize watched his 3-0 lead become a 4-3 deficit over the span of six batters.

Mize navigated two more innings without allowing any additional runs but was replaced in the bottom of the fifth inning by Wandy Peralta. The Padres kept the Reds off the board until the bottom of the sixth inning when David Morgan allowed a bases loaded sacrifice fly to Matt McLain which put Cincinnati up, 5-3. The final gut punch came in the bottom of the seventh inning when recently added reliver Jhony Brito allowed a two-out, two-run home run to JJ Bleday which put the game away by the final of 7-3.

The Padres struggled once again with runners in scoring position. They finished the day 1-for-7 and failed to execute a bunt attempt, which resulted in a popout. Both facts are disturbing trends that have contributed to the poor performance of the Friars over the last handful of series. San Diego got two-hit games from Tatis, France and Xander Bogaerts, but Austin Hays was the only other batter to record a hit in the game for the Padres. Salas finished his debut 0-for-4 at the plate.

Mize has appeared in six games for the Padres and has amassed a record of 1-3 with a ghastly 6.67 ERA. Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta were both progressing in their rehab assignments before Musgrove was delayed with some arm soreness. Mize may have a limited number of opportunities with the San Diego going forward if one or both return in the near future. Considering what the Friars gave up to trade for Mize, he may remain on the roster, but could find himself as the new Griffin Canning, pitching out of the bullpen when Musgrove and/or Pivetta return.

San Diego will have an off day today and will resume play against the Yankees at Petco Park starting Friday at 6:40 p.m.

Padres News:

• Braedon Karpathios helped the San Antonio Missions get a win.

Baseball News:

• Ronald Acuna Jr. reaches 200 home runs and 200 stolen bases and leads the Atlanta Braves to a 9-0 win.

• The Arizona Diamondbacks ended their three-game losing streak with a 1-0 win over the Philadelphia Phillies.

• The Seattle Mariners knocked off the Boston Red Sox, 8-3.

• The Colorado Rockies walked off the Baltimore Orioles.

Morning, all!

Robert Garcia was so excited about throwing a live bullpen session on Wednesday that he couldn’t sleep.

Cody Bradford gave up five runs yesterday, all of them via home run.

Bradford says that his command just isn’t there since his return from elbow surgery.

Victory + went dark yesterday, vindicating the Rangers’ midseason decision to change streaming providers.

Skip Schumaker says that the culture of baseball has created a development pipeline that produces players that don’t understand baseball fundamentals.

While yesterday was an ugly loss that once again thwarted the Rangers’ attempts to become a .500 team, they just need to keep winning series to close out the season.

Of course, the next series is against the AL best Tampa Bay Rays.

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I got one more crack this week before the big long weekend, and I'm not taking losing vibes into the end of the summer. Home run and MLB player props are taking notice today.

I'll grab Oneil Cruz in the opener and Alex Bregman to continue his torrid stretch against the Brewers. And just because I didn't cash Mickey Gasper yesterday doesn't mean I'll avoid him today in a better matchup.

These are my favorite MLBhome run props for Thursday, Sept. 3.

MLB home run props for today

For help understanding Polymarket probabilities, see our odds calculator.

Player to hit a HR	Chance
Oneil Cruz	21%
Alex Bregman	15%
Mickey Gasper	16%
💲Today's HR parlay	153.85x

Home run prediction: Oneil Cruz (21%)

Give me one Cruz missile to open the Thursday slate. The form is there with Oneil Cruz, who is hitting over .300 and slugging over .500 across the last two weeks with a couple of taters. His left-handed swing plays very well today against a Giants team dealing with a depleted rotation.

The Giants currently have four starters on the 60-day injured list, plus another seven relievers on the shelf. That means Blade Tidwell gets another turn after serving up three home runs in his last outing. Lefties are hitting more than 100 points better against him and doing their damage deep.

It's a warm one at PNC today, with 9-mph winds blowing out. I want Cruz in this spot at 23% or better. The lefty bats have the edge in this matchup.

• Time: 12:35 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: SportsNet Pittsburgh, NBC Sports Bay Area

Home run prediction: Alex Bregman (15%)

Wrigley Field is one of three parks averaging three or more dingers per game this year. This series has seen more home runs than I can count on two hands, and despite some great numbers, Logan Henderson is not a bad name to fade on a small Thursday slate.

Since the All-Star break, 32% of Henderson's hits allowed have gone yard, and he has allowed nine homers across 48 innings. He's been a very lucky pitcher with a .178 BABIP in the second half while stranding 100% of his runners, per FanGraphs. His lefty-righty splits are pretty even, which puts Alex Bregman and his hot bat on the card at 18.2% or better.

Bregman is on a mission, and that mission took Jacob Misiorowski deep in his last outing. He has four homers in this set alone and has launched eight home runs over his last four series (12 games). Many Cubs hitters are projected as +EV at Covers.

• Time: 7:15 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: FOX

Home run prediction: Mickey Gasper (16%)

Brandon Young has been one of the luckier pitchers in the second half of the MLB season. His HR/FB rate is the 30th-worst among all MLB starters and the worst on today's slate. His xERA is more than a point higher than his actual ERA, and the warmer temperatures and winds blowing out to right aren't going to help him.

Mickey Gasper is a switch-hitter who has been crushing right-handed pitching. It's been a small sample, but nobody has been a better power hitter than Gasper over the last two weeks, with a .964 SLG. He had an extra-base hit in each of the three games vs. the Mariners and homered in two.

I bet on him yesterday to no avail, but I'll happily go back to him in a better matchup that I'd play to 4.5x.

• Time: 7:15 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: FOX

Best home run combo for September 3

Oneil Cruz	Trade Now 153.85x
Alex Bregman
Mickey Gasper

Want more baseball parlays? Check out our MLB parlay picks page!

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

A’s 9, Rangers 2

• Cody Bradford hit 90.6 mph with his fastball, averaging 88.6 mph. Robby Ahlstrom’s fastball topped out at 94.1 mph. Jordan Montgomery reached 91.7 mph with his sinker. Ben Peoples’ fastball maxed out at 95.5 mph.
• Justin Foscue had a 107.3 mph home run. Corey Seager had a 103.8 mph GIDP. Ezequiel Duran had a 103.1 mph home run.
• Yeah.

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The Pittsburgh Pirates head into today's series finale against the San Francisco Giants as a heavy 60% moneyline favorite, with first pitch at PNC Park scheduled for 12:35 p.m. ET. 

It will be a bullpen game for Pittsburgh, which has been shutting the door late in games lately. That has me backing the hosts in my Giants vs Pirates predictions. Find out more in my MLB picks for Thursday, Sep. 3. 

Who will win Giants vs Pirates today: Pirates moneyline (60%)

For help understanding probabilities, see our odds calculator.

The Pittsburgh Pirates will send reliever Lake Bachar to the mound today, and while he doesn't typically work more than two innings, the righty has allowed just two earned runs across his last three outings.

The Bucs’ bullpen also owns a 3.27 FIP over the last week with no home run damage, and the San Francisco Giants have just a .148 ISO over their last seven games.

The visitors counter with Blade Tidwell, who owns a 5.81 FIP over his previous two starts while surrendering 2.53 HR/9.

Pittsburgh has the offensive profile to capitalize, carrying a 111 wRC+ over the last week. The Bucs have the edge.

Play this pick up to 62%.

COVERS INTEL: PNC Park is where the Pirates thrive offensively with a 112 wRC+. On the road, they're much worse, posting a 91 wRC+. 

Giants vs Pirates Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (46%)

I’m leaning Under 8.5, even with San Francisco producing a 110 wRC+ over the last week.

The issue is power. Both lineups have been light in the ISO department, which makes it harder to trust either side to break this open with one big swing.

The bullpen profiles also support a lower-scoring game, with the Giants’ relief corps posting a 3.00 FIP over its previous 31 innings while allowing just 0.58 HR/9.

Pittsburgh’s bullpen is also in strong form, giving this game fewer late-inning scoring paths. With limited power and two steady relief groups, the Under is the play.

Play up to 50%.

Giants vs Pirates home run prediction: Rafael Devers (14%)

Rafael Devers is worth a look given his recent power output. The slugger has clubbed three homers over his last seven games while posting a .370 ISO during that span.

Devers also owns a 52.7% hard-hit rate and 14.3% barrel rate recently. He has put just 38.1% of his contact in the air over the last week, but 37.5% of those fly balls have left the yard.

The matchup against Pittsburgh’s bullpen is not perfect given its ability to limit homers, but Devers’ current form is hard to ignore.

I'd play this pick up to 25%

Giants vs Pirates weather

Weather at PNC Park looks warm but slightly unsettled, with partly cloudy skies and temperatures climbing from 83°F to 89°F. Rain chances sit between 16-33%, so there’s some shower risk, but nothing that screams major postponement concern. Winds are moderate around 8-11 mph, and the warm air could slightly help carry.

Giants vs Pirates odds

• Moneyline: Giants 41% | Pirates 60%
• Run line: Giants +1.5 (59%) | Pirates -1.5 (42%)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (55%) | Under 8.5 (46%)

Giants vs Pirates trend

The Pirates have cashed the moneyline in five of their last eight games for +1.60 units and a 17% ROI. Find more MLB betting trends for Giants vs. Pirates.

How to watch Giants vs Pirates and game info

Giants vs Pirates latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

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Jose Soriano is on the bump for Toronto, and we're riding with him in our Blue Jays vs. Guardians prediction.

The Toronto Blue Jays come into the series finale as -110 favorites at BET99 and look to take back-to-back games against the Cleveland Guardians.

Can the Jays take the series and inch closer to a wild-card berth? Let’s dive into my MLB picks for Thursday, Sept. 3, and find out.

Blue Jays vs Guardians predictions

Blue Jays vs Guardians best bet: Toronto Blue Jays moneyline (-110)

If the Toronto Blue Jays want to build momentum after their gargantuan 11-0 win last night, Jose Soriano is the right man to do it.

Across 46 plate appearances (we love a good sample size), the Cleveland Guardians own just a .213 xBA and .332 xSLG, which includes limiting Steven Kwan to a .159 xBA. That'll play for Toronto in a must-win game. 

The Jays are looking at Tanner Bibee like fresh bacon on Sunday morning after their offensive outburst. The beast that is Vladimir Guerrero Jr. might've woken up last night after going 3-for-4 with 5 RBI and a homer; he won't be slowing down today, either, rocking a .744 xSLG against Bibee.

All the numbers point toward the Jays here; I'd play this up to -120.

COVERS INTEL: It's not just Vladdy who's feasted on Bibee this season. The Jays own a .319 xBA against him across 47 plate appearances. They'll do damage early and often here.

Blue Jays vs Guardians same-game parlay (SGP) 

With Vladdy finding his swing and the Blue Jays looking to close out a series win, we are seeing strong alignment in our same-game parlay. Look for Soriano to find success today and quiet Cleveland's bats — his elite ground-ball rate is the perfect remedy for a contact-first team like the Guardians.

Blue Jays vs Guardians SGP

• Blue Jays moneyline
• Vladimir Guerrero 2+ total bases
• Jose Soriano Under 2.5 earned runs

Blue Jays vs Guardians home run pick: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (+540)

If there is a player to ride momentum with, it's Vladdy. His swing finally looked like the 2025 version of himself yesterday, so we're going to hit the button one more time against a pitcher he's historically had success against. With Bibee rocking a 39% hard-hit rate and throwing his fastball 23% of the time, a pitch Vlad has hit six of his eight homers on, look for Guerrero to barrel one. At this price, it's an easy play for me.

Blue Jays vs Guardians odds

• Moneyline: Toronto (-110) | Cleveland (-110)
• Run line: Toronto -1.5 (+155) | Cleveland +1.5 (-180)
• Over/Under: Over 8 (-105) | Under 8 (-115)

Blue Jays vs Guardians trend

The Over is 5-1 in the Blue Jays' last six games as a favorite. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Guardians.

How to watch Blue Jays vs Guardians and game info

Blue Jays vs Guardians latest injuries

Blue Jays vs Guardians weather

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

What if I had told you Wednesday afternoon that in the game in which the Cubs had to face Jacob Misiorowski, they’d pretty much give him the worst beatdown of his MLB career?

You’d have been pretty happy, right? Figure the Cubs should win that game, right?

Well, nope. The Cubs did do exactly that to “the Miz,” with a strong game plan and some excellent hitting, but the pitching staff could not hold the Brewers down and the visitors from Milwaukee defeated the Cubs 9-5.

Sigh.

This game did not begin well for the Cubs. After David Peterson retired the first two Brewers on just five pitches, they followed with two hits, a walk and another single to take a 2-0 lead.

The Cubs, however, did not flinch — at least at first. Pete Crow-Armstrong worked a leadoff walk off Misiorowski and one out later, Alex Bregman put a ball in the bleachers [VIDEO].

Peterson gave the Brewers the lead back in the second on a solo homer by Jackson Chourio.

Cubs hitters came right back against Misiorowski. Matt Shaw tripled with one out and a single by Tyrone Taylor tied the game 3-3 [VIDEO].

One out later, PCA walked again. BCB’s JohnW53 explains why that was significant:

This is PCA’s 16th game with multiple walks, tying Michael Busch for most on the Cubs. Seiya Suzuki has 15; Alex Bregman, 11; and no one else more than eight.

PCA had two all of last year, when Ian Happ and Kyle Tucker had 17, followed by Suzuki, with 10, and Busch six.

Suzuki followed with another walk, loading the bases, and Bregman singled in a pair [VIDEO].

The Cubs thus had a two-run lead at 5-3 after just two innings.

Friends, that would not last long.

Peterson managed to get through the third holding the lead, but fell apart in the fourth. A one-out walk was followed by a double by Chourio, then Brice Turang bunted. Miguel Amaya tried to get the out at the plate [VIDEO].

That, in my view, was a mistake and helped set up a big inning for Milwaukee. Peterson was not in position to take the throw. If Amaya gets the out at first — which he could have — the run still scores and maybe the Cubs get out of the inning with only one or two runs scoring, instead of three. The latter happened when the next two Brewers singled. Milwaukee is a team that you can’t give these extra chances to, because they will pounce on them.

So the Brewers are up 6-5 heading to the bottom of the fourth. That’s not an insurmountable lead.

Only it was for the Cubs, because the bats went silent after Bregman’s two-run single in the second. The Cubs had just four more baserunners the rest of the game — a one-out single by Happ in the third, a two-out walk by Suzuki in the fourth, a two-0ut walk by Amaya in the sixth and a single by PCA with two out in the ninth. None of the runners got past first base.

You cannot win games that way, I am sure you will agree.

Meanwhile, the Cubs bullpen did an okay job until the seventh, when Daniel Palencia was touched up for a run on a double by Christian Yelich and single by Cooper Pratt. Then Jacob Webb put the game completely out of reach in the ninth, in part because he took this line drive off his arm [VIDEO].

So before I update you on Webb, let me say something about that throw. The competitor in any baseball player wants to make plays. Webb thought maybe he could still get the runner out. There is no chance that was true. He should have just held the ball.

In any case, Webb left the game. Fortunately:

So maybe Webb hits the injured list, though also maybe a couple of days resting the arm would be okay. Gallows humor: So THIS is the way to get Javier Assad back on the team?

Two runs wound up scoring in the Brewers ninth after Colin Rea relieved Webb, and it might have been more except for this great throw by Happ [VIDEO].

There are two more defensive gems I want to show you. Nico Hoerner made this great diving catch to end the top of the fifth [VIDEO].

And another from Nico to start the ninth [VIDEO].

If not for those, the score of this game might have been a lot worse than 9-5. And here’s how bad this game was:

Seven losses in the last 29 games that way. That’s not the way to make the postseason, or win postseason games.

And all of this came after they gave Misiorowski the worst beatdown of his MLB career. From John:

The Cubs’ five runs off Jacob Misiorowski tied for the most he has allowed in any start of his two-year career. He gave up five twice last season, in 3.2 innings at New York vs. the Mets and in 1.1 at Cincinnati, then did it in 5.0 at home vs. the Reds on July 2.

The four walks earned by the Cubs also tied Misiorowski’s career high. He did it once last year, then April 7 of this year in 5.1 IP and June 26 vs. Cubs in 6.0.

So he had done both of those things before (allow five runs and four walks), but this was the first time both of those things had happened in the same start for “the Miz.” The Cubs had a good offensive game plan and executed it — well, for two innings, at least. And the pitching staff just got pounded by Brewers hitters.

Here are Craig Counsell’s postgame remarks [VIDEO].

Counsell again sounds exasperated during those comments, with lots of sighing. You can tell he’s as frustrated as anyone with the pitching failures. About his thoughts on Palencia: It appears to me that Palencia is still not quite right. His velocity is down a tick or two and he doesn’t seem to be locating well. As Counsell says, the team needs Palencia to be right. I think he will be, eventually, but that doesn’t help the “right now” that the Cubs need him for.

One last note on this game: A frighteningly large number of pitches were thrown for the second straight night. On Tuesday, the Brewers threw 182 pitches and the Cubs 137; Wednesday, Milwaukee pitchers threw 150 and Cubs hurlers 177. That made for a 3:18 game for the second consecutive day and if you think that’s long (and it is), those are likely four-hour games without the pitch timer.

The Cubs still have a chance to split this four-game series in its finale Thursday evening. Kevin Gausman will start for the Cubs and Logan Henderson will go for Milwaukee. Game time is 6:15 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Fox-TV (regional — coverage map). A reminder that if you subscribe to MLB.TV or MLB Extra Innings, you can watch this game via those services even if it’s not on the Fox affiliate in your market.

The Phillies have been searching for consistency in their bullpen outside all season. Outside of Jhoan Duran at closer, they’ve experienced peaks and valleys, injuries, and demotions. They acquired some help at the deadline in Brooks Raley and Caleb Kilian, but the latter is injured and may miss the rest of the season while the former appears to be suffering some regression. However, those two weren’t the only additions to the bullpen to have come in early August.

Alex McFarlane had been called up a few times this season, but he didn’t start to receive real playing time until August 11th. He’s appeared in ten total MLB games this season, nine since last being recalled, and has looked impressive. McFarlane has flashed his explosive stuff that made him so tantalizing while in the minor leagues, as he’s averaged 99.8 MPH on his fastball and has struck out ten hitters in 9.1 innings with a 26.5% whiff rate entering play on Wednesday. However, he’s also shown the thing that kept him in the minor leagues even as the Phillies were on the hunt for relief help, as McFarlane has also notched five walks in his short time in Philadelphia with 46.5% of his pitches being outside of the zone, a lower rate than the 50.7% mark he was running in Triple-A.

In any case, McFarlane has been a welcome addition to the Phillies bullpen since arriving for good from Triple-A. He’s been charged with three runs, only one of which was earned, and has allowed only four hits. He’s primarily been used in the sixth or seventh inning, but he’s been able to tally four wins as the team has scored late after his appearances, thanks in small part at least to his performance.

How Don Mattingly and the Phillies use McFarlane over the next month will be telling. Will he begin to see more leverage as the games get more important, getting his feet wet before a possible role in the postseason? Or will the team opt to keep him in the same medium leverage role he occupies now?

So, what do you think of Alex McFarlane so far?