LOS ANGELES — In the moment, the focus is on Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is mired in one of the worst slumps of his career, he’s clearly been diminished by knee and biceps injuries, but insists he’s close to figuring things out mechanically, and will remain in the lineup for Game 3 of the National League Championship Series.

But sometimes we can’t see the forest for the trees. Even though Ohtani has no home runs and one run batted in over his last 24-plus games and 110 plate appearances, he still had a very good season at the plate overall.

To that end, Ohtani was voted by his peers among the top three finishes for two MLB Players Choice Awards, the MLB Players Association announced on Wednesday.

Ohtani will finish in the top three for major league Player of the Year, along with Houston Astros designated hitter Yordan Álvarez and Chicago Cubs center fielder Pete Crow-Armstrong. Ohtani is also in the top three for National League Outstanding Player, along with Armstrong and Philadelphia Phillies designated hitter Kyle Schwarber.

Ohtani this season hit .275/.377/.512 with a 139 wRC+, 30 home runs, 81 walks, 89 runs scored, and 81 RBI in 135 games this season, third in the National League in OPS, fifth in slugging percentage, and sixth in on-base percentage and wRC+.

But he also added a 1.79 ERA an 2.73 xERA in 14 pitching starts, with 95 strikeouts and 26 walks in 85 2/3 innings. Combining hitting and pitching, Ohtani’s 6.6 FanGraphs WAR was tied with Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski for second in the NL, and was tied for fourth in the majors.

Ohtani won the Player of the Year Award once from his fellow players, in 2021 while with the Angels. He’s won three Outstanding Player Awards in his league, two with the Angels (2021, 2023) and one with the Dodgers (2024). He’s been a top-three finisher for both awards in each of the last six seasons.

The winners of the 2026 MLB Players Choice Awards will be announced during the week of October 26.

Stephen Stills once sang, “If you can’t be with the one you love, love the one you’re with.”

Dave Dombrowski and the Philadelphia Phillies are heeding that advice.

The Phillies pursued former Red Sox manager Alex Cora to take over as the team’s manager, both early in the 2026 season, after they fired Rob Thomson, and then after the Phillies were eliminated from the playoffs earlier this month. Cora, however, declined both times.

The Phillies named bench coach Don Mattingly the interim manager after firing Thomson, and the Phillies had a big turnaround under him, going 79-55 with Mattingly at the helm. However, they stumbled to the finish line, going 10-14 in September and barely holding off the Arizona Diamondbacks for the final Wild Card spot, then lost to the Atlanta Braves in the Wild Card series. Once their season ended, the Phillies’ preference was to replace Mattingly with Cora, per reports.

However, once Cora passed, the Phillies opted to stick with who they had, and have now announced that Mattingly is returning on a two year deal.

2027 will be Mattingly’s 14th season as a manager. He managed the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2011-15, then the Miami Marlins from 2016-22. He has a 968-1005 career record as a manager, with the seven seasons with the Marlins dragging his record down — he won more games (446) in five seasons with the Dodgers than he had in seven seasons with Miami (443).

The Phillies have been in “win now” mode since signing Bryce Harper prior to the 2019 season. After hovering around .500 from 2019-21, Philadelphia made it to the World Series in 2022, falling to the Houston Astros in six games. Since then, Philadelphia’s fortunes have slowly gone backwards, as they lost in the 2023 NLCS to the D-Backs in seven games, fell in the NLDS round in both 2024 and 2025, and then got knocked out this year in the Wild Card round.

There was a lot going on in Anthony Volpe’s 2026 season. 

From beginning the year recovering from offseason shoulder surgery to two demotions to Triple-A to watching the Yankees make George Lombard Jr. the new shortstop of the present and future.

Volpe started learning new spots on the diamond. He played some second base and even showed up at third. In the postseason, he started twice over Jazz Chisholm Jr. at second and nearly had the most impactful Yankee hit -- his Game 3 fan-interference RBI double that was oh-so-close to being a tying home run might’ve changed the ALDS against the Rays.

Where does Volpe go from here? The Yanks clearly still consider him valuable – throwaways don’t get October starts – and they’ll likely have an opening at second base he could fill.

So should Volpe, superseded at short by Lombard, stay or go? Here’s a look: 

WHY IT WOULD MAKE SENSE TO KEEP VOLPE

Volpe, who doesn’t even turn 26 until April, isn’t a free agent until 2029, so he remains under team control after making $3.475 million this year. He could be an easy answer for the Yankees at second base in 2027 since Chisholm is a free agent.

He’s had one 20-homer, 20-steal season in his career and holds that potential. In the wake of a demotion that had to sting, Volpe put up a .906 OPS in 37 games at Triple-A, hit 11 home runs and returned to have some impact.

While it’s clear some Yankees fans have Volpe fatigue, it was also apparent that the way he processed his weird season impressed in Yankeeland. He was cheered during the playoffs, where he was 3-for-7 and one of the best offensive performers in pinstripes.

And the clubhouse was clearly watching his reaction to being demoted. He got serious praise from Aaron Judge following the Yanks’ elimination: “To handle that type of adversity, not only from the game, not playing your best, and then hearing it from fans, hearing from everybody and then for him to go down to Triple-A, work on what he needed to and then come up here with a bang like he did, it just speaks volumes to his character.”

Judge also said: “If we were going to go win a World Series, we needed Anthony Volpe on the team.”

Might be worth hanging on to a guy who feels this deeply, too: “It’s been four too many times having this taste in your mouth,” Volpe said after the disappointment of Game 3. “And, at this point, I don’t even think ‘motivated’ is the right word because I think it’s just ‘(ticked) off’ and that’s how I feel. Just channeling that in the right way.

“You want to have the parade. You want to do all this stuff that you grind, and you work so hard for and when you don’t come through and you put every single thing you possibly feel like you can into it and then come up short, you obviously got to do a lot of soul searching.”

WHY IT WOULD MAKE SENSE TO LET VOLPE GO

The former first-round pick has not lived up to the outsized hype that accompanied his arrival in the big leagues, even though it was unfair to think he – or anyone – was going to be Derek Jeter, the sequel.

 

Volpe had a .658 OPS in 70 games in the majors last year, right around his career norm, though his .245 average and .321 on-base would be career bests if he carried them over a full season. In his three full seasons, he has struck out at least 150 times. He owns a Gold Glove, but he’s also had a season in which he tied for the AL lead in errors at short.

The Yanks have clung to his potential in recent years and Volpe sometimes seems to have the talent to push his results further. But aside from glimpses, it hasn’t happened. Would both sides benefit from a fresh start elsewhere if the Yankees found an enticing trade partner?

Perhaps the Yankees could enhance their contact profile by signing free agent Luis Arraez to play second. Or ink Brandon Lowe for his lefty power bat, which produced 35 homers for the Pirates.

VERDICT

Stay.

It’s worth keeping Volpe to see if he can compete for the second base job. In his three full major league seasons, he averaged 17 homers and 23 steals. He’s had some moments in the postseason, too. World Series grand slam, anyone?

At worst, Volpe is a speedy utility player. MLB teams crave depth. Lombard, as impressive as he is, has only 47 games of experience in the majors, including five postseason starts. He’s 21. If he experiences some wobbles next year, it might be wise to have Volpe and José Caballero as options at short.

If Volpe continues his development at third, maybe he’s a right-handed option there. Ryan McMahon, who has one more year left at $16 million, only had a .509 OPS against lefties.

Don Mattingly was named the Philadelphia Phillies' full-time manager Wednesday, Oct. 14, signing a two-year contract after two weeks of uncertainty following the club's elimination from the playoffs, club president Dave Dombrowski announced.

The 65-year-old Mattingly took over in April when the team fired manager Rob Thomson after Philadelphia lost 10 of its first 19 games to open the season.

Mattingly then led Philadelphia to a 79-55 record as the interim manager. The Phillies eventually made the postseason, where they were eliminated by the Atlanta Braves in the wild card round.

The Phillies reached out to former Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora in both April and earlier this month, but both times Cora decided to turn them down.

Before taking over as manager, Mattingly was under contract as the team's bench coach through the 2027 season. Mattingly's son, Preston, is the Phillies' vice president and general manager.

Mattingly will take the reins when the owners and players agree to a new collective bargaining agreement, as the current one expires Dec. 1.

Gabe Lacques contributed to this report.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Phillies name Don Mattingly their full-time manager

If you watched any Nationals baseball in 2026, you would know that the bullpen was not good. The unit actually set records for their ineptitude, with the 2026 Nats blowing more saves than any team in history. That does not mean there were not any bright spots in the ‘pen. 

I am going to take a look at Erik Tolman and Jack Sinclair, two unheralded arms who were impressive down the stretch. By the end of the season, those two were Blake Butera’s most trusted arms. That tells you a lot about the state of the bullpen, but it is also a credit to Sinclair and Tolman.

Entering 2026, both of these guys were little more than organizational depth. Sinclair posted a 5.95 ERA in AAA as a 26 year old. Tolman spent the first half of 2025 bullying A ball hitters as a 26 year old, before posting a 5.97 ERA in 28.2 Double-A innings. Somehow, these two were the Nats high leverage arms at the end of the season.

Both Sinclair and Tolman took massive leaps in the Nats new player development infrastructure. They each added over 3 MPH of fastball velocity between 2025 and 2026. That new found heat made them relevant arms in the Nats organization. 

Multiple Nats are on this list. Both Erik Tolman and Jack Sinclair added 3+ MPH on their fastballs. Rode that extra heat to the big leagues https://t.co/ACavLPxymf

— federalbaseball (@federalbaseball) October 1, 2026

Even with the extra velocity, neither of them put up great numbers in AAA. Tolman posted an ERA over 5 in Rochester because of his control issues. Despite striking out more than 12 batters per 9 innings in the minors, Tolman ran into trouble because he walked 23 batters in 31 innings. 

Even if the results were not great, Tolman had nasty stuff, so the Nats decided to give him a shot. It did not take long to see that the Nats had something with Tolman. After running through so many soft tossing lefties, it was refreshing to see a southpaw that averaged 97 MPH on his fastball. Tolman also showed off his nasty changeup and solid slider.

The most impressive part about Tolman was his moxie. He did not panic in big moments, which gave him Blake Butera’s trust. I remember when he was brought in with the bases loaded and nobody out in the 8th against the Marlins. Tolman immediately got a strikeout and a double play to end that inning. He came back out for the 9th, and continued to mow down Marlins hitters to get his first save.

Erik Tolman first MLB save pic.twitter.com/ycnTBwouwf

— Kev (@klwoodjr) September 1, 2026

That was the moment that sold me on Tolman. Part of the reason Tolman never panics is because of what he has been through. He was almost forced to retire due to two Tommy John’s and a devastating knee injury which also caused nerve damage. When Tolman is on the mound, he has to wear an ankle brace for stability. I wrote a story about this and went into real detail. 

For the season, Tolman had a 2.93 ERA with 17 strikeouts in 15.1 innings. Despite throwing the ball in the zone at an above average clip, Tolman still struggled with walks in the big leagues. He walked 13.4% of hitters, and free passes will always be an issue for him. With that in mind, I do not think Tolman is a closer or even a set up man, but he has good enough stuff to be an effective lefty out of the bullpen. 

The other reliever that emerged down the stretch was Jack Sinclair. Like Tolman, Sinclair was solid but not spectacular in the minors. In 52 AAA outings, Sinclair posted an ERA of 4.03. Sinclair’s 28% strikeout rate was impressive, but he also walked over 12% of hitters in Rochester. 

Despite his up and down season, the Nats gave Sinclair a shot due to his big time stuff and the lack of options. Sinclair made the most of his opportunities, posting a 2.45 ERA in 11 outings. He mainly used a fastball-sweeper combination to keep hitters off balance.

Sinclair threw the sweeper 43% of the time, and it is easy to see why. The pitch has a ton of movement and held hitters to an .071 average against. His sweeper also generated whiffs at a 29% clip. Those whiffs are crucial because none of his other pitches had a whiff rate above 12.5%.

start the k counter on jack sinclair 🙂‍↕️ pic.twitter.com/ph1BV7R0IX

— Washington Nationals (@Nationals) September 5, 2026

Right now, Sinclair throws his 4-seamer more than his sinker. However, I think the sinker is better. It compliments his sweeper quite well, with the sweeper breaking away from hitters and the sinker running into them. That is a formula that has proven to work.

Despite the strong surface level numbers, I still want to see more from Sinclair. He only struck out 17.4% of hitters and did not generate many whiffs. His walk rate was a solid 8.7%, but I think there are red flags here as well. Sinclair is in the zone less often than Tolman and gets less chase as well. He also had walk issues in the minors too.

With his mid to upper 90’s fastball and a nasty sweeper, I think Sinclair can be a big league arm. However, I have my doubts about him being a real difference maker. He has good stuff, but it is not standout stuff. There are a lot of relievers with 95-98 MPH fastballs and good sweepers to go with them. However, Sinclair is still more promising than most of the arms the Nats threw out.

I do not think Sinclair or Tolman are lock down arms, which is why I still think the Nats need to find a closer. However, they looked like big leaguers, which is very impressive. Before the season, these two were afterthoughts, but now they both have an inside track towards a roster spot in 2027.

Tarik Skubal will be the top free agent on the market when it opens five days after the conclusion of the World Series. Count Mets left-hander Zac Thornton among those hoping Skubal lands in Queens.

"I talk to [Nolan McLean] all the time about it, and he had some good talks with Skubal when they were in the WBC together," Thornton told Mike Puma of The New York Post. "It would be awesome to bounce ideas, especially coming from another left-handed pitcher. Sean [Manaea] and I talk a lot, just about being lefties — there are not many around here, so it would be awesome to have another powerhouse left-handed pitcher around here."

The Mets' starting pitching group includes McLean, Christian Scott, Manaea, and Thornton.

Kodai Senga's role in 2027 is to-be-determined after he finished this season in a late-inning relief role, but a return to the rotation would be curious considering how he performed as a starter in 2026.

Meanwhile, the Mets have tasked Jonah Tong with forcing himself into the conversation. 

Speaking at his end-of-season news conference, Mets president of baseball operations David Stearnswas unambiguous when it came to the offseason plan for the rotation.

"I do think it is necessary for us to add to our rotation," Stearns said. "We can do that in a variety of different ways. We've talked about this plenty before -- you'd always love to add to the top of your rotation, any team would love to do that -- over the long term, what we need to do is develop pitchers at the top of our rotation, and I think we are proving we can do that, and we'll continue to do that."

It's possible Skubal receives the largest contract ever for a starting pitcher in terms of both average annual value and total value. If so, a deal for him could conceivably land around $350 million for eight years.

One plus for any team that signs Skubal is that he won't be attached to a qualifying offer since he was traded from the Tigers to the Dodgers midseason, making him ineligible for one. 

It has never been Stearns' modus operandi to strongly pursue starting pitchers who receive megadeals.

An exception was New York's serious push to ink Yoshinobu Yamamoto, when the Mets extended a 12-year offer for $325 million before the Dodgers matched it. But Yamamoto was about to begin his age-25 season, making his free agency unique. Skubal will be entering his age-30 season in 2027.

While Skubal is significantly older than Yamamoto was at the time of his free agency, he is coming off back-to-back Cy Young awards and has some of the filthiest stuff in baseball.

And with the Mets having a glaring need at the top of their rotation and a substantial amount of money coming off their books after next season, a Skubal pursuit feels logical. 

On October 3, my hometown of Lincoln, Kansas, hosted what they called a Vintage Baseball Game. The game took place at the West Diamond and featured the Wichita Cowtown Team against the Lincoln County Sod Busters.

The game was played under 1860s rules, with the pitcher throwing underhand. The uniforms were vintage 1800s wool, which was hot and scratchy on a warm October afternoon. There was a large crowd in attendance, and the game was interrupted twice by women, dressed in period clothing, protesting voting rights. Each player was given an 1800s-era nickname, which added to the cool factor.

The game was notable because two of my former classmates and teammates played for the local squad. Max “Wimpy” Wallace was a terrific high school athlete, a state-caliber sprinter, and good enough on the gridiron to garner a scholarship, yet he went to Kansas State to play baseball. Max, hardly a wimp, still looks like he’s about 25.

The other classmate was my good bud Dennis Luck, who went by the nickname Lucky.

The obvious nickname, Cool Hand, went to his younger brother Alan. Alan’s two boys also played: Braden “Big Country” and Austin “Loco.” Braden, living up to his nickname, knocked a couple of balls off the left-center fence.

Dennis was my batterymate during our Midget League years. Yes, that’s what our baseball league was called. Even in these politically correct times, it’s still called the Midget League, and I hope they never change it.

I got thrown into pitching duties when our star pitcher’s mother packed up and left town. Dennis, by default, was the catcher because he was the husky kid. Think Ham Porter from The Sandlot. That would have been Dennis. I struck out 50 batters in 50 innings. I would have had 15–20 more except my wildness had Dennis running to the backstop on many third strikes.

When my arm tired, Dennis pitched, and I moved to catcher. That’s how Dennis went about throwing a meatball to another classmate, Steve Heiser, who hit it out of sight into the rodeo grounds that bordered right field. I walked to the mound and said, “Holy crap, that went a long way.” Borrowing a line from Bull Durham, I remind Dennis every year that the last time I saw something flying that far, it had a meal and a stewardess on it. He replied, “That was a moment in my life that never seems to disappear.” Like that baseball did.

Our Cookie League coach, Lovie Holl, saw Dennis for what he was, nimble of foot with a sure glove, and moved him to the middle infield, where he excelled. Lovie was a helluva coach and a Lincoln institution.

At age 13, I blew out my elbow throwing sliders, which necessitated a move to right field. Every ball I threw back to the infield bounced at least once. Two summers later, my elbow magically healed, and I went back to the mound, several miles per hour slower, and started delivering long home runs of my own.

Our school was pretty much horrible in every men’s sport except track and baseball.

The final score of the Vintage game was 19–18, with the Sod Busters pulling out the victory thanks to Dennis’ two-RBI single in the bottom of the ninth, which drove home the winning runs. In his self-deprecating manner, Dennis said he stretched a couple of doubles into singles. Not bad, since he and Max are both 66, and many of their teammates and opponents were several decades younger.

For one hot Kansas afternoon, it was fun to see two friends turn back the clock. Who says you can’t teach an old ballplayer new tricks? The game was a smashing success, and there is talk about a rematch next fall. Here’s hoping it becomes an annual event.

*********************************************************************************************************

Speaking of traditional baseball, I found myself praying to the baseball gods that a San Diego pitcher would man up, channel his inner Bob Gibson, and put a fastball into the ribs of the Brewers’ William Contreras after his Game 3 home run dance-a-thon. My inner Crash Davis was screaming, “Move it, dummy,” while Contreras admired his shot. It took him 30 seconds to make his way around the bases, stopping a couple of times to flex. Contreras is a heck of a player, but I’d enjoy him a lot more without the theatrics.

When it comes to over-the-top crap like this, I love the advice Henry Aaron gave a young Dusty Baker about Bob Gibson.

“Don’t dig in against Bob Gibson, he’ll knock you down. He’d knock down his own grandmother if she dared to challenge him. Don’t stare at him, don’t smile at him, don’t talk to him. He doesn’t like it. If you happen to hit a home run, don’t run too slow, don’t run too fast. If you happen to want to celebrate, get in the tunnel first. And if he hits you, don’t charge the mound, because he’s a Gold Glove boxer.”

Man, I miss those days. I understand this is how the young guys do it nowadays, styling it, representing, whatever the hell they call it. Doesn’t mean I have to like it. You kids get the hell off my lawn.

In a similar vein, I had to grimace while watching Cody Bellinger of the Yankees draw a walk. It took him at least 30 seconds to peel off all his protective armor and batting gloves, then put on his fancy oven mitt, then walk to first base.

Okay, Mommy, I’m ready to go to first base now.

I mean, the guy doesn’t have to be Pete Rose going to first (if you watched Pete, you know), but good lord, pick it up a little. I’d be in favor of a rule change that says a baserunner must wear all the armor he wore to the plate.

Aside from that, the Padres-Brewers series was a classic. Too bad one of them had to go home.

*********************************************************************************************************

It’s also been fun to see some former Royals in the playoffs. Samad Taylor had a moment with the Padres, collecting a single, then stealing second and eventually scoring on a groundout. That was cool to see.

A guy I thought the Royals gave up on too early, Foster Griffin, pitched well for Cleveland in Game 3 against the White Sox, striking out seven of the 10 batters he faced in a Guardians win.

Chris Getz had his White Sox on the verge of advancing before their epic three-game collapse. Former friends Randall Grichuk, Tommy Pham, and Andrew Benintendi all picked up at-bats for the Sox.

Mike Yastrzemski, Lane Thomas, and even Brewer Hicklen got some airtime for Atlanta.

John Schreiber pitched an inning for New York, and Kris Bubic made an appearance for Los Angeles. I must admit it was weird seeing those guys in different uniforms. I wouldn’t be brokenhearted if J.J. Picollo brought Bubic back, assuming he’s healthy.

Either way, the playoffs are always great to watch, especially now that the Damn Yankees have been sent to bed.

Good morning everyone!

It’s Wednesday and we’ve got some news to report on from around baseball.

MLB Postseason scores…

• The Rays took advantage of an untimely defensive blunder by José Ramírez to secure a 3-1 win, pulling the series even at a game apiece.

In Mariners news…

• The Mariners are reportedly talking to Astros skipper Joe Espada for their managerial opening. Espada’s contract expires at the end of this month, though he has publicly said he’d like to stay in Houston. Adam Jude at The Seattle Times adds that the M’s are hoping to fill the vacancy by Halloween.
• The Mariners appear to be hiring for several Peoria-based jobs in coaching and scouting, if you know anyone who may be interested in applying.

Around the league…

• The Phillies are expected to keep Don Mattingly on as the team’s manager for the 2027 season.
• Jeff Passan at ESPN wrote about how the ALCS and NLCS teams may impact the coming labor dispute.
• Marc Nomandin at Baseball Prospectus analyzed the latest CBA proposal from the league to the players, wondering if there are pieces of it that may appeal to the MLBPA. ($)

Many Cubs fans were happy when the team acquired Clay Holmes (and Tyrone Taylor) from the Mets for Jefferson Rojas. Even though Rojas was a top Cubs prospect, Holmes seemed a really good fit for the Cubs as a ground-ball pitcher coming to a team with elite infield defense.

It didn’t work, obviously. Holmes did make several good starts, but got hit hard in others and overall, his 4.25 ERA and 1.295 WHIP in nine starts didn’t come close to what he had done with the Mets, either last year or this year.

Earlier this month, Patrick Mooney of The Athletic took a look at what happened. He quoted Cubs manager Craig Counsell:

Leading into the playoffs, Cubs manager Craig Counsell framed Holmes’ performance this way: “The walks are what we got to limit.”

“It’s a different at-bat against left-handed hitters,” Counsell said. “That’s where the walks are going, left-handed hitters. That’s important, something we got to keep an eye on. He can get himself out of stuff with the sinker. We see that for sure. But the free passes, we got to lower that.”

Holmes’ walk rate was up significantly with the Cubs. It was 8.4 percent in the nine starts he made with the Mets before an injury put him out for almost three months. With the Cubs, Holmes’ walk rate was 11.8 percent. Even getting himself “out of stuff with his sinker” isn’t going to help when you’re putting so many runners on base. Cubs President of Baseball Operations Jed Hoyer was also quoted in Mooney’s article:

“How much of that was because he came back from injury?” Hoyer said. “How much of that was just the length of the season? Obviously, he wasn’t pitching his best baseball towards the end. Not just with Clay, I think that’s one of the biggest challenges in these jobs, getting everything synced up right to go into the postseason.”

So, there are a lot of unknowns about Holmes as player and team turn the page to 2027. Holmes has a $12 million player option for next year. He made $13 million in 2026. It’s entirely possible that Holmes exercises that option, coming off a not-great year in which he was injured (though the injury was not arm-related).

Holmes turns 34 in March. For $12 million, he might not be a bad fourth or fifth starter. If Holmes declines the option, though, would you be willing to sign him for around that amount? Or less? Or just let him walk?

Welcome to Wednesday A’s fans.

Two games have taken place in both the American League (AL) and National League (NL) best-of-seven Championship Series. The winners of these will face each other for the national title.

In the NL, the league-best Milwaukee Brewers won the first two games against the two-time defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers. Following an off day, the NLCS shifts to Los Angeles tonight for the first of three games at Dodger Stadium.

Two wins away from their second World Series appearance in franchise history, the Brewers can clinch a berth on the road. However, the Dodgers will look to keep their season alive and send the series back to Milwaukee for Games 6 and, if necessary, 7.

On the other side of the bracket, the Tampa Bay Rays won Game 2 against the Cleveland Guardians 3-1 to send the ALCS back to Cleveland knotted at one game apiece.

Meanwhile, there has not been any news about the Sacramento/Las Vegas Athletics general manager search since ESPN MLB reporter Jeff Passan’s tweets from this past Saturday. The longer that Athletics owner John Fisher and president Marc Badain drag this search out, the slimmer the options will become, especially given that the A’s are not the only team in this situation. The Houston Astros also are looking for a new general manager.

The AL West is wide open next season, if the lockout does not result in a cancellation of some or all of the games. Entering the offseason, the A’s roster needs are evident. What moves should the new general manager make to bolster the Athletics’ pitching staff?

In the meantime, enjoy the rest of the playoffs. Out of the final four, which team do you want to win and why?

A’s Coverage:

• Pitching prospect Huggins growing his game with the help of this A’s Hall of Famer
• Phillies, Cubs executives reportedly among top Athletics GM candidates
• Fuld Rejection Offers Possible Clues To GM Search
• Matt Kleine, Rob Cerfolio Candidates In Athletics’ GM Search
• ’Be a sponge’: No. 19 prospect leads A’s Fall League group with do-it-all mentality
• Zack Of All Trades Tries To Get One More Win: In Court
• Important Dates For The Athletics This Offseason
• 12 A’s Players Out of Options Heading Into 2027
• How MLB’s Proposed Changes Would Impact the A’s
• A’s part ways with assistant hitting, quality control coaches
• After an outfield collision left him paralyzed, every gain in rehab is a big win for A’s Ryan Lasko
• Why 2027 Athletics Will Be Completely Different Team
• A’s Las Vegas ballpark cost rises to $2.1B, public funding delayed
• 2026: Year Of The “Didn’t See That Coming!”
• A’s Hoping Luis Severino Chooses to Stay
• Where the A’s Plan to Use Zack Gelof in 2027
• Drafting The Top AL Graduated MLB Prospects From 2026
• Devin Taylor: Athletics 2026 Minor League Player Of The Year
• Athletics 2026 MLB Draft Report Card
• Henry Bolte Is the A’s Next Budding Star
• Determining Athletics’ Offensive MVP for the 2026 Season
• Notes From Star-Studded Rockies-A’s Instructional League
• 2027 Infield Landscape Ever Changing
• “Fast Movers” Might Be Key To Contention
• Billy Beane comments on the job Mark Kotsay has done this season.
• Should Mark Kotsay return in 2027? A’s Players Weigh In
• What the A’s Hiring Mike Rizzo would Signal and the Questions it Would Raise
• Athletics Considering James Click For GM Vacancy
• Get the best of Athletics Nation on the new SB Nation app

MLB News & Interest:

• Rays create havoc on basepaths, get stellar start from Peralta to even ALCS
• Mariners considering Espada for manager vacancy (source)
• Crew overcomes 3 deficits in seesaw Game 2, tightens grip on NLCS
• Dodgers to discuss sitting Ohtani for NLCS Game 3 (report)
• Contreras shines as Dodgers’ stars slump … and other key takeaways from Game 2
• Guards come up big late to rally past Rays in ALCS opener
• Hopkins in, Cleavinger out on Rays’ ALCS roster
• Guardians swap in Cecconi for Schneemann, bolstering staff for ALCS
• MLB teams using ABS challenges more frequently in postseason
• The Tigers’ Under-The-Radar Option Decision
• Reviewing The Rays, Angels, And Reds Three-Team Trade
• How The Rays Turned Bryan Baker Into An All-Star Closer
• Good News: Father and son bike to every MLB ballpark for charity
• 5 years after Rays stole Caminero from Guards, the question remains: HOW?
• Today in Baseball History

Best of X:

What do you think of this opinion on the Athletics’ search for a new general manager?

Once Fuld turned #athletics down, that gives leverage to everyone who interviewed who was passed over. A's aren't necessarily starting from square one, but not far from it! https://t.co/0olJ5wnFCc

— Aaron Cameron (@ThatBootlegGuy) October 13, 2026

Twenty-five years ago yesterday, New York Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter made this incredible play against the A’s in the playoffs.

“ONE OF THE MOST UNBELIEVABLE PLAYS YOU WILL EVER SEE BY A SHORTSTOP!”

OTD 25 years ago, Derek Jeter came out of nowhere to cut off a throw from the outfield and nail the runner trying to score. The @Yankees, who were facing elimination, held on to win the game 1-0, then won the… pic.twitter.com/dHDw9NEFz9

— MLB (@MLB) October 13, 2026

The A’s failed to sell-out their Triple-A stadium in Sacramento. Will attendance improve in Las Vegas, or will the team remain near the bottom of the league?

The A's drew right around 10,000 fans a game in Sacramento this year, and the math isn't as bad as it sounds. Sutter Health Park only has 13,416 seats, so they filled roughly three quarters of a Triple A ballpark while they wait on Las Vegas.

The Marlins drew more, around… pic.twitter.com/UKTjVOndTN

— Baseball’s Greatest Moments (@BBGreatMoments) October 10, 2026

Say the Brewers or Rays win the World Series this year. Do you think that will impact team owners and league executives push for a salary cap?

Major League Baseball has launched a dedicated page on its website to make the case for a salary cap. @LevelThePlField

The “Level the Playing Field” campaign is now more than ads during games. The league is building a centralized platform to shape the conversation around…

— Michaela Bennett (@MichaelaB_22) October 13, 2026