Category: Sports News

In the history of any franchise, you can pick out a handful of keystone signings that help usher in a new chapter in the annals of the team. A decade of mismanagement under CBS ownership left the Yankees in the wilderness, contributing to a 14-year World Series drought, the longest in the franchise’s history since the nascent years as the Highlanders.

With George Steinbrenner’s purchase of the team and promise to return the once-proud franchise to their glory years, changes were on the horizon. Fading into the review mirror were the days of Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris, meaning a new slate of stars had to be assembled in the Bronx. Catfish Hunter, Reggie Jackson, Goose Gossage, Willie Randolph, Sparky Lyle, Ron Guidry, Lou Piniella, Chris Chambliss, Mickey Rivers, Ed Figueroa, and Bucky Dent all arrived in the first half of the 1970s via the Draft, trade, or free agency to form the core of the eventual back-to-back World Series winning Bronx Zoo. However, it was the 1973 trade for Graig Nettles that truly signaled the sea change in the franchise’s fortunes.

Graig Nettles
Born: August 20, 1944 (San Diego, CA)
Yankees Tenure: 1973-83

Graig Nettles was born on August 20, 1944, in San Diego, CA, the second of three sons to Wayne — a former police officer and high school teacher — and Florence Nettles. He was a star dual athlete for San Diego High School, earning a scholarship to play college basketball before switching to baseball as an upperclassman. He was drafted by the Twins in the fourth round of the inaugural 1965 amateur draft after starring over the summers for the semi-professional Alaska Goldpanners in Fairbanks.

Under the tutelage of his future manager with the Yankees, Billy Martin, then managing in the Twins minor league system, Nettles rose quickly though the levels. He was handed a pair of September cups of coffee in 1967 and 1968 before Martin’s promotion as the big league manager in 1969 earned Nettles a permanent role in the majors. Blocked at third by Harmon Killebrew, Nettles was dealt to Cleveland the following season, for whom he would play two seasons before being granted a trade by GM Gabe Paul — later his GM in New York — to the Yankees alongside Jerry Moses for Charlie Spikes, John Ellis, Jerry Kenney, and Rusty Torres following the conclusion of the 1972 season.

“If I could have picked the spot I wanted to go, it would have been the Yankees. I always wanted to play for New York and for Ralph Houk. I hope I’ll satisfy the team and be here for ten years or so.”

In his debut season in the Bronx, Nettles batted .234/.334/.386 with 22 home runs and 81 RBI in 160 games. Notably, he crushed the team that traded him away, with four home runs and seven RBIs during a doubleheader in Cleveland on April 14th and his first six home runs of the year coming against his former employers as part of an eleven homer spree in his first 22 games. His production looked pretty similar in 1974, slashing .246/.316/.403 with another 22 homers and 75 RBIs. The Yankees would miss out on the playoffs by two games, and Nettles was ejected from a game on September 7th after six superballs bounced out of a broken bat he maintained he received from a fan in Chicago.

1975 saw Nettles slash .267/.322/.430 with 21 home runs and 91 RBIs to earn the first of his six All-Star appearances. It also was the birth of the free agent era, and Jackson, Hunter, Gossage, Randolph, Rivers, Figueroa, and Dent all signed to join Nettles, Thurman Munson, Guidry, Lyle, and Nettles’ fellow trade acquisitions Piniella and Chambliss. In the span of just a couple years, the Yankees had transformed from a rudderless franchise just starting to find its direction to a veritable juggernaut truly ready to compete for titles.

The following season, Nettles led the AL with 32 bombs, slashing .254/.327/.475 with a career-high 136 wRC+. His 8.1 fWAR remained the high water mark for a Yankees third baseman until Alex Rodriguez put up 9.1 in 2005. The season culminated in the Yankees’ first World Series appearance since 1964 — a humbling sweep at the hands of the Reds.

The fruits of this franchise renaissance finally arrived in 1977, Nettles setting career highs in home runs (37) and RBIs (107) while earning his second All-Star nod, first Gold Glove, and finishing fifth in the AL MVP race. Though he would bat just .171 with no home runs and three RBIs in 43 plate appearances that postseason, the Yankees would squeeze past the Royals in a finely poised ALCS three games to two before securing their first title in 15 years, winning in six games over the Dodgers thanks to Jackson’s Mr. October heroics.

However, Nettles would take center stage the following October. After another strong regular season in which he slashed .276/.343/.460 with 27 home runs and 93 RBI to earn consecutive All-Star and Gold Glove nods and a sixth-place AL MVP finish, Nettles caught the popup from Carl Yastrzemski to end Game 163 between the Yankees and Red Sox, and went yard in another ALCS vanquishing of the Royals. Trailing the Dodgers two games to none in the Fall Classic, Nettles’ defense almost singlehandedly won them the game in Game 3. Nettles made a diving stop in the third and erased a pair of bases-loaded jams in the fifth and sixth with some quick-twitch glove work.

The Yankees would go on to win the next three games to secure back-to-back crowns, Dodgers outfielder Reggie Smith saying of Nettles’ defensive heroics in Game 3, “It’s Dodgers 2, Nettles 1. If we hadn’t been losing, I may have applauded myself.”

Over these years, Nettles gained a reputation for his acerbic wit, earning the nickname “Puff” for his habit of disappearing after a practical joke. He also stood out as one of the Yankees’ most combative players, getting involved in several brawls. On May 20, 1976, Nettles tackled Bill “Spaceman” Lee and broke the pitcher’s collarbone during a brawl against the Red Sox.

In Game 5 of the 1977 ALCS against the Royals, Nettles ignited perhaps the most famous brawl in postseason history. After a hard slide at third by George Brett, Nettles kicked his fellow third baseman in the face and sparked a melee that somehow didn’t result in any ejections.

With the tragic passing of Thurman Munson in a plane crash in 1979, Nettles was never the same player. He also missed significant time to a hepatitis diagnosis in 1980 and the strike in 1981, the latter season representing Nettles’ final hurrah in pinstripes. He was named the ALCS MVP after batting .500 with nine RBIs in a sweep of the A’s. However, he broke his thumb on a diving attempt in Game 2 of the World Series against the Dodgers and missed the next three games, going 2-for-3 with a double in his final postseason game for the Yankees as they fell to LA in six.

Nettles always had a contentious relationship with Steinbrenner, and things really soured in his final two years thanks to stalled contract talks and a diminished platoon role at third. Things reached a head upon the publishing of Nettles’ infamous book Balls, and like Sparky Lyle after the release of The Bronx Zoo, Nettles found himself shipped out of town on the next train, sent to the Padres for Dennis Rasmussen and a PTBNL.

“I was happy to get away from New York. The owner said things about me being a destructive force on the club, so why play for a guy who keeps sniping at you? I finally had enough of him. I’ll always be a Yankee. I love those guys. I love the team, and I’ll always root for them.”

Nettles helped lead the Padres to their first World Series appearance in his first season, and would later play for the Braves and Expos before retiring in 1988 at the age of 43. He remains one of the most notable Hall of Fame snubs in the live ball era, his 67.9 rWAR the highest mark for a third baseman not enshrined in Cooperstown. His 390 home runs trailed only Mike Schmidt, Eddie Mathews, and Darrell Evans among regular third basemen at the time of retirement. He was removed from the BBWAA ballot in 1996 after falling below the requisite five percent threshold and never garnered enough support from multiple Veterans Committees.

He is one of just 11 Yankees to hit at least 250 homers with the team and is top-15 all time in WAR in franchise history, yet somehow has still not been honored in Monument Park. Nonetheless, his immaculate glove work at the hot corner, power bat, and fiery competitiveness cemented Nettles as a favorite among fans from the Bronx Zoo era, his appearances at Old-Timers’ Day—including as recently as 2025—always acknowledged with a thunderous reception.

We wish Puff a happy, healthy, and hearty 81st birthday!

See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.

There isn’t much for news this morning. They are telling us that Brett Bateman’s injury isn’t serious, he likely won’t go on the IL. I feel like ‘not serious’ tends to mean ‘season ending’ but I’m not going to jump to that.

The problem with having a guy on the active roster who can’t play is that the size of bullpens teams use these days, you don’t have many options on the bench. Yesterday it was Clement who couldn’t play, so it made pinch hitting tougher, and when a player might have to come out of the game, I started thinking about which pitcher they should put in the outfield. Insert your own Sanchez joke here.

The old man in me can’t believe you need 8 guys in the bullpen. And they are all overworked. When I was young, there was 5 guys in the bullpen. The closer, a setup man, a third decent reliever and two guys who were really starters and were there just in case that day’s start gets ejected early in the game. The fifth guy would pitch in 10-15 games a year. He was really there so they could still play cards when one of the others had to warm up.

But the game has changed. And I get it. Pitchers throw at 100% every pitch. They didn’t in the old days.

Anyway, today’s lineup. No Sanchez:

Yesterday’s umpire was pretty good:

The Jays starts at 1:00 Eastern, which makes it 11:00 my time, which really works well with my laziness. I can’t go workout, because I have to get a post up, and get the game thread ready. All I can do is sit and watch comedy clips all morning.

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The New York Yankees go for the sweep at Camden Yards tonight as a -118 moneyline favorite, with the total sitting at 8.

Gerrit Cole brings a 1.93 ERA across three August starts, while Kyle Bradish counters with a 3.65 ERA and 58 walks over 133 innings.

My Yankees vs. Orioles predictions target Bradish's strike-throwing problem and a total both offenses are built to stay Under.

Read on for my MLB picks for Thursday, Aug. 20.

Who will win Yankees vs Orioles today: Yankees moneyline (-127)

I'd play the New York Yankees to -135 tonight.

The Bronx Bombers walk at a 9.8% clip, fourth-best in MLB. For me, this is one of the most undervalued stats in baseball, but it matters more here because of the current form Baltimore Orioles armKyle Bradish.

He grades in the 25th percentile in walk rate at 10.3%, and the underlying numbers are worse: a 43.8% zone rate and a 55.3% first-strike rate, both career lows. A patient lineup does not need to hit him to score. 

Gerrit Cole is the other half of the equation. He's looking closer to vintage form with a 1.93 ERA across three August starts and a 2.15 mark since the All-Star break.

COVERS INTEL:Kyle Bradish's four-seamer has become a giveaway pitch. He throws it 17.4% of the time, and hitters are batting .330 with a .481 xSLG against it.

Yankees vs Orioles Over/Under pick: Under 7.5 (-108)

Both offenses score in bursts or not at all.

New York sits at a .273 BABIP, the lowest in MLB, and Baltimore is fourth-worst in contact rate at 72.3%. That is a profile built for two three-run innings rather than sustained ones. The multi-run homer is likely what beats me, but it's reduced with both pitchers having an approximate 5% barrel rate reduction over the last week.

Bradish grades in the 79th percentile in ground-ball rate at 48.5% against a Yankees club that hits 40.9% fly balls, a mismatch of intent that turns damage swings into outs on the ground. Cole sits in the 77th percentile in xERA at 3.37 and has allowed just five earned runs across 18 2/3 August innings.

I made this total 7.1 and would play it to -120.

Yankees vs Orioles home run prediction: Jazz Chisholm (+562)

Bradish's chief skill is keeping the ball on the ground. Beating him means getting lift on breaking stuff.

Jazz  Chisholm is the Yankee who does it best, posting a .413 average and .609 slugging with a .504 xSLG against sinkers this season, a plus-5 run value and the best mark on the roster. Chisholm also pulls 53.9% of his contact, the highest rate in the lineup, into a right field porch that rewards it.

Play to +350.

Yankees vs Orioles weather

Yankees vs Orioles odds

• Moneyline: Yankees -118 | Orioles +108
• Run line: Yankees -1.5 | Orioles +1.5
• Over/Under: Over 8 | Under 8

Yankees vs Orioles trend

Yankees are 6-1 in their last seven games as a favorite. Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. Orioles.

How to watch Yankees vs Orioles and game info

Yankees vs Orioles 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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Toronto owns the pitching matchup today as it looks to win its seventh straight series, so I'm riding with them as part of my Blue Jays vs. Rays predictions.

The Toronto Blue Jays walk into their final game at Tropicana Field as +145 underdogs at BET99, and have a strong chance to cash against Ian Seymour.

Let’s dive into my MLB picks for Thursday, Aug. 20, and cash another same-game parlay, shall we?

Blue Jays vs Rays predictions

Blue Jays vs Rays best bet: Blue Jays moneyline (+145)

This is a good spot to take a shot.

The Toronto Blue Jays have all the momentum after coming just a run short of completing a seemingly insurmountable comeback following a couple of mind-numbing errors from Jesus Sanchez in left field. This type of resiliency should carry over against Tampa Bay Rays SP Ian Seymour, whom the Jays own a .325 average and .439 xSLG against across 40 at-bats.

On the other side is Shane Bieber, who's rocking a much more respectable 3.63 ERA in August after two strong starts against the New York Yankees and Houston Astros.

With the Rays owning just a .290 xwOBA over 52 plate appearances against the right-hander, I'm riding the Jays to win their seventh straight series.

I'd play this up to +120 at BET99.

COVERS INTEL:George Springer will need a big game if the Jays are going to take two of three at the Trop. He's 5-for-9 vs. Seymour with a .447 xBA and .669 xSLG, while owning an average exit velocity of 95.2 mph. That'll play.

Blue Jays vs Rays same-game parlay (SGP)

If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Blue Jays +1.5 has cashed for us in five straight games. I expect much of the same today.

Elsewhere, the offense has quietly come on, scoring 21 runs over its last three games while cashing this team total Over in five straight as well.

Springer has been a big part of that injection of offense — let's see him have another big game against Seymour.

Blue Jays vs Rays SGP

• Blue Jays +1.5
• Blue Jays team total Over 2.5
• George Springer 2+ total bases

Blue Jays vs Rays home run pick: Alejandro Kirk (+575)

If we're looking into homers, we might as well rock with the hottest hitter in the Blue Jays lineup.

Yes, Alejandro Kirk has 14 hits and three bombs across his eight-game hit streak, and he owns a home run alongside a .857 SLG against Seymour in his career. Let's ride with the big man one more time.

Blue Jays vs Rays odds

• Moneyline: Toronto (+145) | Tampa Bay (-170)
• Run line: Toronto +1.5 (-145) | Tampa Bay -1.5 (+125)
• Over/Under: Over 7 (-120) | Under 7 (+100)

Blue Jays vs Rays trend

The Over is 7-0 in the Blue Jays' last seven games as a road underdog. Find more MLB betting trends for Blue Jays vs. Rays.

How to watch Blue Jays vs Rays and game info

Blue Jays vs Rays latest injuries

Blue Jays vs Rays 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.

Good morning, folks…

I’m apparently doing the links again this morning…

The Texas Rangers fell to the Washington Nationals yesterday by a score of 6-0.

Evan Grant’s game story highlights the difference in the Rangers’ record when they score first.

Jeff Wilson writes that if the Rangers want to make the playoffs, they’ll need to take advantage of a remaining schedule that is heavy on home games.

The good news is that Jacob deGrom is feeling good and slated to start for the Rangers tonight.

Evan praises the work of Cal Quantrill, calling him the Rangers’ most reliable starting pitcher of late.

Jake Burger has a daughter with Down’s Syndrome, which has inspired he and his wife, Ashlyn, to start the Burger Family Foundation.

Josh Jung announced his engagement to Kaylee Brown.

Cade Cunningham, who has an ownership stake in the Rangers, offered up some advice for the team yesterday.

Sometimes we get so focused on our own bubble we don’t pay attention to the outside world.

That can cause us to lose perspective and not see the forest for the trees. So, for a moment, let’s zoom out. While the Phillies have had a dizzying 2026 season thus far, they are not the only National League team to go through its own series of ups and downs.

The Atlanta Braves, for example, are suddenly struggling once again. After beating the Mets last Wednesday, August 12, they were up 9 1/2 games in the NL East. This week, they lost a series against the Diamondbacks and were swept by the Twins in Minnesota.

Out of the blue, the Braves’ lead over the Phils is just 4 1/2 games. While it’s unlikely the Phillies will catch them and win the division, the fact it’s suddenly a horse race once again is staggering. But Atlanta has not been immune to slumping, as evidenced by their 9-14 record in June. They are only 9-8 in August.

But the biggest surprise in baseball right now are the struggles of the Dodgers, MLB’s Evil Empire, the unstoppable behemoth whose financial dominance undoubtedly means they will never not win a World Series ever again.

While it’s fair to continue calling them the favorites to win it all, things are not going at all well in Los Angeles. They are 8-10 in August, thanks mainly to a three-game sweep of the Rockies in Colorado. Prior to that, the Dodgers had lost 10 of their last 15.

As it is, L.A. has been just a .500 ballclub since July 1 (21-21). During that time, they are just 17th in runs scored, 18th in OPS, and 20th in OBP. Their starting rotation’s 4.02 ERA is 14th over that stretch, while the bullpen’s 4.60 ERA is 23rd.

Off the field, the future of the franchise is clouded in uncertainty. Owner Mark Walter is currently being investigated for alleged tax fraud among his insurance companies, and reports indicated he is trying to raise as much money as possible to rectify his financial issues. He’s already sold his majority stake in the Los Angeles Lakers less than a year after buying it, and is reportedly preparing to sell his stake in the Chelsea Football Club. A sale of the Dodgers could affect the team’s ability to continue funding their massive payroll long-term, but likely doesn’t have much impact this year.

Still, the distractions cannot be helpful for a team trying to do something that hasn’t been done in nearly 30 years.

As I mentioned on my latest Hittin’ Season podcast, powered by WHYY, there’s a reason no team has won three straight World Series titles since the 1998-2000 Yankees.

It’s been a nightmare season for free agent outfielder Kyle Tucker, who is hitting just .232 with 11 HRs in his first season in L.A.

Will the Dodgers recover and go on another run? It’s certainly possible.

Right now, they look human. And that opens a window of opportunity for a Phillies team that is playing as well as it has all season.

Last night Cade Cavalli twirled yet another gem. As the season has gone on, Cavalli is reaching another level. That is so encouraging to see given the fact we have had plenty of pitchers regress as the season goes along in the past. With how Cavalli has been pitching lately, he has put himself into down-ballot Cy Young consideration.

Obviously he is not going to win the award, Jacob Misiorowski and Cristopher Sanchez are fighting for that honor. However, with how he is performing, he should be in the top 10. Even former Nats play-by-play announcer Bob Carpenter remarked that Cavalli should be in consideration.

For the season, Cavalli has put together an impressive resume. In 142.2 innings, Cavalli has an 11-5 record with a 3.22 ERA and 162 strikeouts. Those strikeout numbers are highly impressive in particular. He is tied for 5th in the NL in strikeouts and tied for 9th in all of baseball. Cavalli’s swing and miss stuff is undeniable, and that is such an important part of modern pitching.

In terms of fWAR, Cavalli is tied for 8th in the NL among qualified starters. These numbers, along with a very strong ERA suggest at least a top 10 finish in Cy Young voting. For a guy in his first full MLB season, that is wildly impressive. I had high expectations for Cavalli entering the season, but he is shattering even those.

He is not going to win the Cy Young, but over his last 10 starts, Cavalli has pitched like a Cy Young. In that time he has a 2.12 ERA with 73 strikeouts to just 13 walks in 59.1 innings. The most impressive number for me is that he has 8 straight quality starts. That shows an ability to go deep into games, not just dominate for shorter spurts.

For Cavalli to go from a Cy Young outsider to someone who can truly challenge for the award next year, he will need to keep that up. In the first three months of the season, Cavalli was mostly effective, but he tended to only go about 5 innings. He also had these starts where the pitch count got out of control, and he had to leave in the third or fourth inning. Cavalli has not had one of those since the Pirates start in the beginning of July.

Lately, he has been an absolute rock at the top of the Nats rotation and dare I say an ace. That ace crown is one that many fans do not give out easily, and understandably so. The likes of Max Scherzer and Stephen Strasburg have worn that crown in the past. Cavalli might not be there yet, but it is time to have a conversation. In this 10 start stretch, he has undeniably been an ace.

For a guy whose career looked to be on the ropes just 18 months ago, this has been such a terrific story. It goes to show that you should never bet against elite stuff and an elite mentality. He was struggling to get on the mound at that time, and now the numbers firmly point to a top 10 Cy Young finish.

Just to put his resume in one place, Cavalli is 5th in the NL in strikeouts, 9th in ERA, tied for 8th in WAR, 8th in FIP and 9th in innings. That points to a top 10 Cy Young finish, a truly remarkable accomplishment for the 28 year old.

For a minute, I also want to dive into how Cavalli has had so much success. He has a fastball that averages around 97 MPH, but his best pitches are his breaking balls. Cavalli has exceptional power and break on his curveball and sweeper. Both pitches get whiffs at over a 30% clip and grade out as elite on stuff models.

What makes those pitches so unique is the velocity he gets on them. Both the curveball and the sweeper average 86 MPH, but have been closer to 87 the past couple months. That power, combined with how much movement he can get on the pitches makes him so devastating. He has also started featuring a cutter, which helps bridge the gap between his breaking balls and his fastball, making everything even better.

The Nats pitching coaches have not had a ton of success stories this season, but Cavalli is certainly one of them. Adding the sweeper has helped him out a ton against right handed hitters, who he really struggled against last year. In 2025, righties hit .381 against him but that number has dropped to .222 this season. The midseason addition of the cutter has also proven to be a wise move.

It makes me want to see what this staff can do with more talented arms, especially a guy like Connelly Early. Cavalli has excelled this season, and is getting better by the start. That is something all Nats fans love to see. We have not had a Nats pitcher on a Cy Young ballot in a while, but that should change this year with the rise of Cade Cavalli.