LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA - OCTOBER 03: Tarik Skubal #29 of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches during the sixth inning against the Atlanta Braves in game one of the National League Division Series at Dodger Stadium on October 03, 2026 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Luke Hales/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers secured their first postseason game of the year on Saturday, powering three home runs to back a strong start from Tarik Skubal in a 5-3 win over the Atlanta Braves.
It was the first time that Skubal was able to pitch at home in a postseason starts, as all of his four playoff outings had come on the road during his time with the Detroit Tigers. Skubal’s lone blemish on Saturday came via a Sean Murphy home run in the top of the sixth inning, but he went on to strike out seven hitters over six innings of one-run ball.
He did this while also battling a heat wave that struck Los Angeles, but the weather didn’t play a factor into how he addressed his Game 1 start, notes Sonja Chen of MLB.com.
“It’s hot. No denying that,” Skubal said. “Every team’s playing in it, right? They’re playing in the same conditions we are. It doesn’t really matter. It shouldn’t really impact how you are mentally or how it’s going to impact how you pitch. Just go out there and play baseball and try to drink water.”
The 2026 regular season wasn’t too kind to Teoscar Hernández, as a hamstring injury cost him a month’s worth of time while having his power zapped until a torrid September. Now that the real test has begun, Hernández has found his October-self yet again, crushing a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning on Saturday to start the scoring.
“I think the focus is different. In the regular season, you try to have a good game in three at-bats. I think in the playoffs, it’s just pitch-by-pitch. For me, it doesn’t matter what I do in the at-bats before, I will try to focus on the one I’m taking.”
Max Muncy continued to etch his name in the company of Dodgers greats, as he crushed his 17th career postseason home run on Saturday, setting a new franchise record for home runs in the postseason, writes Thomas L. Murray of the California Post.
Kyle Tucker was a disaster when playing at home this season, but he started to rectify his Dodger Stadium struggles with a two-run home run that made the difference in Saturday’s win. Bill Plaschke of the Los Angeles Times notes in his latest column that Tucker has a chance of becoming the unlikely hero of the NLDS.
New York Rangers goaltender Igor Shesterkin has rightfully been ranked among the best players in the NHL.
The Hockey News' Adam Proteau ranked Shesterkin as the 51st player in the NHL in his top 80 NHL player rankings list for The Hockey News' main site.
"As a Vezina Trophy winner, the 30-year-old Shesterkin doesn’t need to prove anything to anyone – although he might have something to prove in the playoffs. But if you examine Shesterkin’s career numbers, you’ll see his consistency is outstanding," Proteau wrote.
Seeing Shesterkin be ranked among the best players in the NHL is not difficult to understand in the slightest. He is easily one of the NHL's best goaltenders, after all.
Shesterkin has had a strong start to the 2026-27 season, as he has a .935 save percentage and a 1.51 goals-against average in two games. With this, the 30-year-old is certainly playing well right now.
It will now be interesting to see how Shesterkin performs as the 2026-27 season rolls on. If the Rangers hope to get back into the playoffs this season, they are going to need Shesterkin to be on his A-game. He is their biggest X-factor.
The Chicago Blackhawks' loss to the Buffalo Sabres on Saturday night was a sad ending to what is now an 0-3-0 road trip to begin the season. Before they even hit the United Center ice for the first time, they are in a hole that will be incredibly hard to dig out of.
Is it time to panic? Absolutely not. It also sounds like the team as a whole is not even close to panicking yet, either, but they do acknowledge that things have to get cleaned up sooner rather than later. You can't make the playoffs in October, but you can certainly miss them.
"I don't think we're worried about the record," head coach Jeff Blashill said. "It's all about process. I've talked about that from the start with our group. That process is way better. Let's build on the process. You can't take one step forward and two steps back. That's not always going to show in wins and losses. Over the long period of time, if the process is good, the wins will follow."
One part of that process must be doing a better job of protecting the goaltenders. The Blackhawks have hung out their guy in the crease to dry in all three games so far.
In game one, Spencer Knight faced 36 shots. In game two, Arvid Soderblom faced 32. In game three, back to Knight, he faced 32 as well. In the first game, the Blackhawks had 26 of their own shots, but a lowly 15 in each of the next two. That's not even close to an even distribution. There has been significantly more pressure on their goaltenders than on the opponent's.
With that kind of workload, it is impossible for any goalie to win consistently in today's NHL. Both Blackhawks netminders, especially Knight, can steal a game here and there, but it can't be expected every game.
Let's use the Buffalo game as an example. The Blackhawks went up 2-0 early, but they allowed the Sabres to dominate possession, offensive zone time, and shots on goal in the process of gaining that lead. It was only a matter of time before the Sabres evened things up. Spencer Knight was only able to do so much before they finally got one past him.
Shot suppression and backchecking are the hardest things for a young team to master, but they have to step up and be better in that regard as early as their next game. If there isn't an improvement, they will continue to lose in the fashion that they have.
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The 2026–27 season only started last week, and already, the Vancouver Canucks are taking part in the second-half of their first back-to-back. After winning 4–1 against the Calgary Flames on Saturday night, Vancouver is back with a matchup against the Vegas Golden Knights tonight. Vegas suffered a 4–3 loss to the Anaheim Ducks on Friday.
Saturday saw Vancouver put together a solid team effort. Not only did they find the back of the net four different times (three times at even-strength), they also stepped-up to defend one-another, from Luke Schenn dropping the gloves to Brendan Gallagher mucking it up with Jacob Middleton. While all of Vancouver’s games have had a lighter air about them so far to start 2026–27, Saturday’s game seemed to show best how tight the team has gotten.
While the vibes have sure been high, Vancouver will face their toughest test of the early season when they face Vegas tonight. Having made it to Game 6 of the 2026 Stanley Cup Final, Vegas is a strong team both offensively and defensively. Adding to this is the fact that Vancouver is coming off a back-to-back, while Vegas has had the extra day of rest. For a team like Vancouver, still on track to re-build despite their strong start to the season, tonight’s game will be about sticking to their game-plan regardless of what happens on the scoreboard.
Players To Watch:
Elias Pettersson
The Elias Pettersson that has taken to the ice for the 2026–27 season has looked very different from the player seen the past couple of seasons. Pettersson has played with an added bite to his game through the first three games, currently standing as the NHL’s hits leader with 16. He’s also recorded two goals and three assists in this span, which is tied for his team’s lead in total points. Scoresheet aside, the level of engagement Pettersson has shown to start the year has been nothing but positive.
Jack Eichel
On top of leading his team with five points through Vegas’ first two games of the 2026–27 season, Eichel also recently hit the 700-point mark through his NHL career. As the Golden Knights’ top-line centre, it’ll be interesting to see who Vancouver matches up against Eichel, as the forward is strong on the puck both offensively and defensively.
Vancouver Canucks (2–1–0):
Points:
Paul Cotter: 3–2–5
Elias Pettersson: 2–3–5
Marco Rossi: 3–1–4
Liam Öhgren: 1–3–4
Filip Hronek: 0–4–4
Goaltenders:
Kevin Lankinen: 1–1–0
Leevi Meriläinen: 1–0–0
Vegas Golden Knights (1–1–0):
Points:
Jack Eichel: 1–4–5
Shea Theodore: 1–2–3
Brayden McNabb: 0–3–3
Victor Olofsson: 1–1–2
Ivan Barbashev: 0–2–2
Goaltenders:
Carter Hart: 1–1–0
Adin Hill: 0–0–0
Game Information:
Start time: 6:00 pm PT
Venue: Rogers Arena
Television: Sportsnet
Radio: KiSS West Coast
Apr 7, 2026; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks forward Elias Pettersson (40) battles with Vegas Golden Knights forward Cole Smith (22) in the third period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images
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St. Louis Cardinals first baseman Alec Burleson (41) circles the bases after hitting a two-run home run during the seventh inning of their game against the Milwaukee Brewers Friday, September 25, 2026 at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
Now that the St. Louis Cardinals season is over, it is now fair to look at the entire year together and evaluate the team’s performance rather than grading the season with games left to play. According to basically every respected outlet that produces baseball content, the Cardinals and their fans should be ecstatic for how this season went.
Admittedly, there were plenty of times during the season that the Cardinals were upsetting or disappointing, even when they were playing well above preseason expectations. The team sat at nine games over .500 multiple times but could never hit that double digit, the trade deadline left some to be desired, and their September performance made it easier to check out than I had hoped. Even with this, the Cardinals kept me engaged, entertained, and hopeful by the end of the 162-game season.
The Cardinals surpassed 2026 expectations and set a solid foundation for the future
Since the season is over, I decided to go back and find any preseason predictions built around the Cardinals team and see if expectations met reality. Based on what I could find, I would say that even with me expecting them to surpass the atrocious 68.5 win total given at the start of the year, the Cardinals did indeed surpass what I was hoping for. It was fun to check things out from early in the season, especially opening weekend when I wrote about blown leads and comeback wins. Sounds like the first three games of the year really set the tone.
Every year over at Redbird Rants, Josh Jacobs asks the team to put in their preseason predictions around Team MVP, breakout players, and bold predictions. Looking back at my own thoughts, it looks like the Cardinals played exactly like I expected but there was still some meat on the bone. Starting with Team MVP, I decided to go with DJ Burly Biscuits as my choice. In my write up, I spoke to his consistency, continued trend of improving, and being the leader of the team. I predicted .275 with 25 homers and 80 RBIs and I think we all would have taken that from Alec Burleson. Instead, he decided to go out and surpass all those numbers AND lead all of baseball in RBIs. I’ll count this prediction as a big, fat W for me.
Moving on to breakout players, I think I am officially taking Masyn Winn off of my players to watch list but still believe in him as a main fixture for the Cardinals organization. For the third year, I predicted Winn to put it all together and hit a dozen or so homers, swipe a few more bags, and bring that batting average back up to .270 or so. As much as I nailed the Burly prediction, this one was well on the other side. I do not know what to expect from Winn next year, but I have jumped ship on my 20/20 predictions and am now just hoping for .250 with 10 homers and to stop playing through injury.
Pitching wise, I think I hit the nail on the head but still think I expected a bit more in order to call it correct. I decided to roll with Dustin May as my breakout pitcher even with him being a lock to be traded at the deadline. For May, I wrote that “it is unfortunate that we are only going to see him for a few months, but this could be the season that May fans have been waiting for”. Well, we did only get to see him for a few months and he did put together a decent season before getting dealt to Milwaukee. The second half of my prediction was that he would be a difference maker for whoever acquired him (netting the Cardinals a nice return), so I will say I was close but no cigar in total.
My bold prediction was indeed bold… I went back to the well with Masyn Winn while also putting faith in Victor Scott II, which I never had in general for him. I predicted that these two and JJ Wetherholt would combine for 100 stolen bases after the team finished near the bottom of the league in that category for too long. All three players stole bases in the season’s first week and had me feeling good. But then reality set in for VSII, Winn was unable to consistently get on base and run, and Wetherholt was too busy hitting homers or getting driven in that he did not steal as much as I had hoped. It may not be these three again, but I do need the Cardinals to get more aggressive running the bases.
Finally, it went to record and final standings. I will again give myself a passing grade because not only did I nail the 77-85 record on the head, I also was correct in my fourth place finish in the division. Where I missed was saying the rest of the division was mediocre and the Brewers were the best team in baseball with the Cubs getting to make a cameo in the postseason. Adding on that the Pirates finished above .500 and the NL Central was one of the better divisions in the game.
As I was looking for my predictions, I also found a couple stories from the year as it progressed relating back to the beginning of the year expectations. Early in April, I asked the question if the Cardinals would improve the bullpen if they continued to compete. The team continued to compete but they definitely did NOT address the bullpen that was doomed from the start. A month later, I then asked if we were allowed to be disappointed by the Cardinals this year. In the quarter checkpoint of the year, the Cardinals remained competitive but definitely had some holes that continued to be an issue throughout the season.
Now that the dust has settled on the Cardinals season, how did they do compared to your preseason thoughts? Did you expect them to be the worst team in the majors like the experts or were you one of the few optimstic ones?
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 22: Freddy Peralta #51 of the Tampa Bay Rays celebrates with teammates in the clubhouse after defeating the New York Yankees to clinch the American League East title at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday, September 22, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Meet the Mets
“I was happy over there. Obviously I wasn’t in the spot that I wanted to be with my numbers…but this is baseball,” said Freddy Peralta to the media of his journey from New York to Tampa Bay after Game 1 of the ALDS. “Everything changed when I got traded. I’ve been treated here as a king, and I feel really good about it. They work on me really well here. For me, and my family, this is a great opportunity to be the pitcher for the second game of the ALDS.”
There is no greater disconnect between fanbases in New York than the one between the two New York baseball teams, writes Mike Vaccaro of the New York Post.
Around the National League East
The Braves’ bullpen game strategy fell short, as the Dodgers took Game 1 of the NLDS 5-3 behind six innings of one-run ball by Tarik Skubal.
The Dodgers are forcing the Braves to make a tough decision about Chris Sale; will Atlanta start him in Game 2 after he was deployed on Thursday for the final four outs of the Wild Card Series or will they save him for Game 3?
The city of Washington DC is looking at legislation to authorize bonds to generate $380 million for an “extensive” renovation of Nationals Park, per reporting by the Washington Business Journal. It is unclear how much the Nationals would contribute to the project.
Game 1 of the AL Central ALDS matchup also was a shutout, as the White Sox blanked the Guardians 3-0.
The Brewers won a nail-biter in Game 1 of the NLDS, defeating the Padres 3-2. The Padres took an early 2-0 lead off Jacob Misiorowski, who only managed to record 12 outs, but Jackson Chourio tied the game with a two-run homer in the third inning and William Contreras went deep off Padres setup man Adrian Morejon for the decisive blow in the eighth. This game truly had everything, as a potential go-ahead home run in the ninth off the bat of Ty France struck a cable running across the roof of American Family Field and redirected itself into Jackson Chourio’s glove like an act of divine intervention by the home ballpark.
On this date in 1999, the Mets beat the Reds in a decisive Game 163 behind a two-hitter by Al Leiter to send the club to their first playoff series in 11 years.
ST PAUL, MINNESOTA - OCTOBER 03: Jared Spurgeon #46 of the Minnesota Wild celebrates his goal against the Boston Bruins with teammate Marcus Foligno #17 in the third period during the home opener at Grand Casino Arena on October 03, 2026 in St Paul, Minnesota. The Wild defeated the Bruins 4-1. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Playing their second game in 24 hours, the Bruins got off to a flying start when Tanner Jeannot scored less than two minutes into the game.
Unfortunately, that was about as good as things would get for the visitors.
Minnesota would score twice in each of the final two periods to pull away from the B’s, skating to a 4-1 win.
Michael DiPietro took the loss in his first NHL start in more than four years, making 26 saves.
Jeannot’s goal came after a hard-working shift from his line, as he collected a Connor Clifton point shot and beat Jesper Wallstedt to make it 1-0 Bruins.
Kirill Kaprizov got the Wild on the board with a power play goal six minutes into the second period, as the Bruins made a somewhat poor choice and left him all alone at the top of the crease. 1-1 game.
The Wild got a fortuitous bounce to start the third, with Jared Spurgeon’s shot deflecting off of Nikita Zadorov and past DiPietro to make it 3-1 Wild.
The Bruins didn’t exactly roll over, landing 13 shots on goal in the third period, but ultimately, they couldn’t cash in.
Kaprizov would add an empty-netter to seal the deal.
Bruins lose, 4-1.
Game notes
You could be forgiven for considering this a scheduled loss, given the strength of the opponent, the back-to-back games, and the fact that we’re less than a week into the season. However, the Bruins played a decent enough game overall and were very much “in it.” It would very much be a stretch to say they deserved more from this game, but a few moments shifted the momentum in Minnesota’s favor.
One of those moments was the deflection on the Spurgeon goal, which is one of those “what are you gonna do?” goals that happens several times a season. The more back-breaking moment was the Hughes goal, as that came with the Bruins just one second away from killing nearly two full minutes of a Minnesota 5-on-3 power play. If you make that kill, it’s a 1-1 game and momentum is on your side; instead, the Wild took the lead and never really looked back.
Speaking of special teams, the Bruins were let down by their power play in this game, going 0-for-3 on the man advantage. That included nearly four consecutive minutes of power play time midway through the third period, when Minnesota took a minor, killed it off, then took another minor about 30 seconds later. The Wild, meanwhile, scored two of their three non-ENGs on the power play.
On the season, the B’s are 0-for-6 on the man advantage. Not exactly time to panic quite yet, but not ideal either.
David Pastrnak remains without a goal on the season, but it wasn’t for a lack of trying on Saturday night: the Bruins captain landed five shots on goal and played 21:02, second-most on the B’s behind Hampus Lindholm.
The Bruins will return home to host the Ottawa Senators on Monday night at 7:30 PM.
Jun 29, 2026; Dallas, TX, USA; New Dallas Mavericks’ head coach Dusty May, along side Masai Ujiri, Dallas Mavericks’ President of Basketball Operations, answers questions from the media during an introductory press conference at American Airlines Center. Mandatory Credit: Raymond Carlin III-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Welcome back to Moneyball Mailbag! Here we will answer your questions relating to anything and everything Dallas Mavericks. Questions are gathered from our very own Feed, as well as social media and face-to-face.
If you asked a question, we’re grateful and thank you for joining in. If you haven’t, please both spread the word and also let us know what’s on your mind – We have a spot in The Feed where you can easily post questions to us.
With Media Day in the books, we have a few items to pique our curiosity. For questions of a similar nature asked by multiple people, we’ve simply distilled it down to a single iteration to best cover what may be on the minds of most readers. Also, some questions are edited for proper context. Let’s get to the questions!
“Is there any realistic chance Naji Marshall can shoot 45% from beyond the arc this season?”
If this question isn’t on your mind, it should be. If you peeped my player preview piece on Marshall from Monday, you know that I listed his best case scenario as being the third best player on the team and his season goal as improving his three-point percentage. I wrote that piece prior to Media Day, so I was thrilled to see his plans about shooting 45% from downtown.
To answer the question directly: no, I don’t think that’s realistic. Exactly two qualifying players accomplished that level of efficiency last season. Luke Kennard at 47.8% and Bobby Portis at 45.6%. Marshall wasn’t in the top 150 players in the category, as he shot a woeful 29.1% from deep. For his career, Marshall shoots exactly 30.0% with his best season clocking in at 38.7%. If he jumped to 45% this season, it would be one of the most incredible improvement you could imagine.
None of that is really the point, however. The point is that Marshall knows he needs to improve this area of the game, and he’s aiming for the next galaxy while hoping to land on the moon. That’s a great start and a great sign that he focused on the right things this offseason. If he can pull himself back to his career high 38.7%, we should all be throwing a party.
“Are the two preseason games in Macao going to be televised on channel 29?”
-Reh
The Mavericks are set to take on the Houston Rockets on Friday October 9 and Sunday October 11 in Macao, China. As of this writing, the official TV broadcast is “TBD,” which is a bit unfortunate for those wanting their first taste of Mavericks’ basketball since Summer League wrapped in July. What we do know is that the October 9 game will take place at 7:00am Dallas time, and the October 11 game will be at 5:00am.
“What will be the most important things to see from the Mavs during their first 10 games of the regular season?”
-DCON
My top three most important things for the first 10 games are health, cohesion and .500 basketball.
The Mavericks have had more than their fair share of injuries over the past two seasons and can’t afford any setbacks out of the gate. This is especially true with Kyrie Irving’s return. He is critical to the success of the team and his pairing with Cooper Flagg is something we’ve all been waiting to see. Which leads us to the cohesion factor.
There are some outright new faces on the team, but also a ‘new old’ face or two with key players like Irving reentering the fold. They need to maximize training camp so everyone knows their roles and tendencies and the team isn’t figuring things out as they go (as was the case last year). Fortunately, it seems like Irving and Flagg already have some chemistry building from offseason work.
As for playing .500 basketball, that doesn’t sound too ambitious, but a look at the schedule indicates splitting wins and losses over the first 10 games is probably a good outcome. The Mavs play six games at home and four on the road over the first 10 games, however they play three games in the first four nights of the season and will play the Oklahoma City Thunder once and the San Antonio Spurs twice in that span. They also play the Houston Rockets twice, Indiana Pacers and the rebuilt Miami Heat. If a new team with returning players can get five wins in that mix, that’s a pretty good start.
I invite you to follow me @_80MPH on X, and check back often at Mavs Moneyball for all the latest on the Dallas Mavericks.
After spending nearly three months on the free agent market, former Buffalo Sabres defenseman Logan Stanley signed a one-year, $1.5 million contract with the New York Islanders in late September.
Now, Stanley is already making an impact with the Islanders. This is because the former Sabres blueliner put together a solid game for New York against the New Jersey Devils on Saturday.
Stanley recorded two assists in the Islanders' 6-0 win over the New Jersey Devils. With this, the former Sabres blueliner chipped in some solid offense for his new club.
Stanley will now be looking to continue this kind of play for the Islanders as the season rolls on. The former Sabres defenseman showed last season that he has the potential to provide some offense from the point in addition to his toughness, so it will be intriguing to see if he can again for New York this season.
Stanley was acquired by the Sabres from the Winnipeg Jets ahead of the 2026 NHL Trade Deadline. In 17 games with the Sabres following the move, he posted five assists, 14 hits, 29 penalty minutes, and a plus-5 rating. This was after he had nine goals, 21 points, 96 hits, and 99 penalty minutes in 59 games for the Jets before the trade in 2025-26.
October 4th, 2016: Toronto Blue Jays Designated hitter Edwin Encarnacion (10) celebrates after hitting his game winning three run homer in the bottom of the 11th inning during the American League Wild Card game between the Baltimore Orioles and Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre in Toronto, ON. (Photo by Gerry Angus/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Remembering the Blue Jays’ Wild Card Walk-Offten years ago today.
In the 11th inning, with the Orioles best reliever sitting in the bullpen (Buck Showalter was a genus), the Orioles brought in Ubaldo Jimenez into the game. With one out, we got singles from Devon Travis and Josh Donaldson. At this point, I was sure Zach Britton would be coming into the game. But Showalter left Jimenez in there.
Then, the unforgettable moment unfolded:
Buck Showalter certainly deserves a thank you—perhaps a nice fruit basket.
Earlier in the game, offense was limited. Jose Bautista hit a solo home run in the second, and Ezequiel Carrera brought home Michael Saunders with a single in the fifth.
We grounded into three double plays, despite only putting seven runners on base all game. According to the recap:
The one that hurt the most was in the 9th inning, Josh Donaldson (off a leadoff double) and Edwin Encarnacion (intentional walk) on first and second with one out (Bautista strike out on a check swing) when Russell Martin ground one straight at third for an easy 5-4-3 double play.
Marcus Stroman pitched six strong innings, his only blemish being a two-run homer allowed to Mark Trumbo.
The bullpen was outstanding—Brett Cecil, Joe Biagini, Jason Grilli, Roberto Osuna, and Francisco Liriano combined for five scoreless innings.
From the recap:
Jays of the Day: Edwin (.126 WPA, I thought it would higher), Liriano (.214), Osuna (.195, please don’t be hurt), Grilli (.106), Donaldson (.284).
We won, so I’m not giving any suckage awards, but if I did: Travis (-.240), Martin (-.296), and Tulo (-.134).
I remember thanking Showalter for the assist, and someone on Twitter telling me, “If you put Britton in there, who gets the save?” I was amazed that people still thought managing for the save stat was a priority.
Edwin left as a free agent after the season, finishing with 239 regular season home runs (third in Jays history) and four postseason homers for Toronto. After that, he played for Cleveland, the Yankees, Mariners, and the White Sox. Over those four years, he posted a .241/.344/.489 line with 114 home runs. This past year was tough: he hit just .157/.250/.377 with 10 homers for the White Sox.
The Jays went on to sweep the Rangers in the ALDS, taking all three games.
Toronto then fell to Cleveland in five games in the ALCS—a series defined by outstanding pitching. Cleveland’s hitters managed just .168/.215/.329, while the Blue Jays hit .201/.251/.283.
Milwaukee Brewers shortstop Cooper Pratt (12), =second baseman Brice Turang (2) and shortstop Joey Ortiz (3) watch a replay during the ninth inning of their National League Division Series game against the San Diego Padres Saturday, October 3, 2026 at American Family Field in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
LOS ANGELES — After a four-game Saturday, the National League has Sunday to itself with a pair of Games 2 of the NLDS first in Milwaukee and then in Los Angeles.
The Brewers took a tight opener over the Padres in Game 1, a contest that was not without controversy. Ty France hit a ball that looked like it might have had the distance for a go-ahead home run, but hit the roof in Milwaukee before being caught in deep left field.
San Diego and Milwaukee have the early slot on Sunday, with both NLDS games on FS1.
Sunday Division Series schedule
1 p.m. PT: Padres at Brewers Milwaukee leads, 1-0 NLDS Game 2: Michael King vs. Logan Henderson FS1 (Adam Amin, Adam Wainwright, A.J. Pierzynski)
5 p.m.: Dodgers vs. Braves Los Angeles leads, 1-0 NLDS Game 2: Blake Snell vs. TBA Fox (Joe Davis, John Smoltz)
CLEVELAND, OHIO - OCTOBER 03: Steven Kwan #38 of the Cleveland Guardians walks against the Chicago White Sox during the third inning in game one of the American League Division Series at Progressive Field on October 03, 2026 in Cleveland, Ohio. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Home run totals from yesterday’s games:
Dodgers 3, Braves 2 – Dodgers win
Rays 1, Yankees 0 – Rays win
Brewers 2, Padres 0 – Brewers win
White Sox 1, Guardians 0 – White Sox win
That’s pretty much all you need to know. When the top 6 in your order go 0 for 18 and do not hit a homer, you are going to lose a playoff baseball game.
Now, an off-day to regroup and remember how to hit. The shadows of the afternoon sun were an issue which should only be a problem for the opening of game two. We will see if that enables the Guardians to hit the White Sox bullpen… or, gulp, the White Sox to hit our relievers.
Drew Rasmussen threw seven scoreless, hitless innings against the Yankees which was an all-time performance. Yankee Austin Wells hit a two-out double off Rasmussen in the eighth but was thrown out trying to get to third and I just hope the Guardians were taking notes on what not to do because they make way too many outs at third base. Don’t make the first or third out of an inning at third should be way more of an involiable rule than it is.
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Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Jed Hoyer: Pitching Must Improve, Home Playoff Games Are Good. “Jed Hoyer held his annual postseason press conference on Friday afternoon, which the Cubs’ media release somewhat hilariously listed as October 1, and the content was just about as exciting as wet cardboard.”
Evan Altman (Cubs Insider): Cubs Have Decisions to Make on 12 Arb-Eligible Players. “The threat of a lockout might have players and agents feeling a little more amenable to early deals for the sake of security, but it could also mean teams are looking to low-ball players even more than usual.
Chris Pownall (DaWindyCity): One brutal statistic sums up the Cubs’ embarrassing playoff exit. “The Chicago Cubs spent six months building one of baseball’s most dangerous offenses. It took the San Diego Padres two nights to make all of it look completely irrelevant.”
Clint & The Cosmic Wake is a Texas based blues rock band with an eclectic foundation marrying the group’s collective influences of gospel, blues, metal, and Southern rock. Clint Echols (vocals, lead guitar) began playing live in the ‘90s with seasoned musicians in places like the “Chinkapin” in Uncertain, TX. Citing influences such as David Gilmour, Dimebag Darrell, SRV, Alan Fox, and Donnie Pendleton, Clint’s riffs initially manifested in the hard rock/metal bands Goodwill Ammunition and Merciful Pete. Clint eventually paired up with rhythm master “Flute Man” Greg McDonald (drums), who began drumming 40 years ago playing in his father’s Country band between sermons at church. Dan Giddens (bass) spent nearly a decade playing bass guitar in metal bands before adding his dark spice to the crew. April Echols contributes crafty harmonies, rhythm guitar, and writes unhinged lyrics to melodies you cannot fit in a box. The band has a singular style of songwriting evident in their wildcard originals and Texas blues rock riffs.
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CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - SEPTEMBER 18: Kevin McGonigle #7 of the Detroit Tigers throws towards first base during the fourth inning against the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on September 18, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Jessie Alcheh/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The first thing we should do this offseason is appreciate an all-time great rookie season, and what seems certain to be an AL Rookie of the Year award. The only real question around the Tigers fresh-faced star is where to play him.
McGonigle played almost his entire, though certainly brief minor league career at the shortstop position. In his first season in 2024, he did get a little bit of time at second base, but otherwise he was a full time shortstop. In the 2025 Arizona Fall League, he finally started getting some reps at another position, but it was third base. He then split his time as a major league rookie hitting at an extremely high level while also juggling two difficult positions on the field.
As a prospect, I always graded him as a solid but slightly below average shortstop, mainly because of his arm strength. His hands are sound and he’s good around the bag but despite his quickness, his limited wingspan and arm strength cut into his effective range somewhat. Second base seemed the better fit for him, at least down the road. Instead, McGonigle put in the work last offseason and managed to improve at shortstop while playing a pretty solid third base as well. All the more reason to be impressed with him. He’s still quite young and keeps improving all parts of his game.
This season McGonigle played 644 innings at third base and 675.2 innings as a shortstop. Sports Info Solutions liked his defense just fine, crediting him with +8 defensive runs saved (DRS) at third base, and +2 DRS as a shortstop. That’s pretty good work.
Statcast’s player and ball tracking saw things differently. By outs above average (OAA), McGonigle scored a -2 OAA at third base, and a -1 OAA as a shortstop. Overall, Statcast gives him a -1 fielding runs value (FRV) as a third baseman, and a neutral 0 FRV at the shortstop position. Despite the technology, there is always some subjectivity in evaluating and projecting defense. The numbers guide you to a general range, and I tend to just mash them together to get a rough average.
Essentially, the takeaway is that Kevin McGonigle is already an average defender at both positions. With his bat, that’s plenty good enough, and his ability to handle the switch between positions is also big for the Tigers’ roster construction and flexibility. For the most part, they should just play McGonigle at shortstop to allow them to mix in all their other infield bats at second and third base. Based on his trajectory, steady improvement, and youth, there’s a good chance he’s going to keep getting better at the position until he physically starts losing a step, hopefully sometime in his late 20’s if we’re fortunate.
On the other hand, McGonigle’s average and max velocity on his throws were below average in comparison to all qualified fielders. That’s still a good argument for a long-term home at second base. It’s just that an upgrade at shortstop would be required to move him there right now.
They can always adapt as needed, because McGonigle has shown himself so able to adapt already. If John Peck hits and the Tigers like him slightly better at shortstop? Great, he can take some of the reps there, with McGonigle moving to third if needed. Maybe the Tigers can find a legitimate defensive upgrade at shortstop on the trade market, but that just doesn’t seem like a Scott Harris move. Otherwise? Just leave McGonigle at shortstop and let him work at the position until a plus full-time shortstop, hopefully top prospect Bryce Rainer, is ready to seize the reins in 2028 or so.
Kevin McGonigle did it all in his rookie season, and it’s going to result in the 2026 AL Rookie of the Year award. The attention is understandably on his bat and how much power production he’s going to develop with experience. There’s so much more to his game though, as he also showed off his speed, ran the bases well, and improved his defensive ability to produce solid work at both shortstop and third base. He can still move around in 2027, and maybe a bit of work at second base again becomes part of the equation, but for now? Leave him at shortstop and make someone else push him off the position.
Oct 3, 2026; St. Petersburg, Florida, USA; New York Yankees catcher Austin Wells (28) is tagged out at third base in the eighth inning against the Tampa Bay Rays in game one of the ALDS for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Tropicana Field. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
Good morning, Camden Chatters.
Look, it sucks that the Orioles aren’t in the playoffs. Their 2026 season was an abject failure. They were bad and they should feel bad. There’s no way to overcome that disappointment.
But in the absence of the Orioles, watching the Yankees fail miserably in the postseason provides at least some small measure of happiness for O’s fans. And the Yanks’ failure last night was nearly one for the record books. They almost became the victims of the fourth no-hitter in postseason history, as the Rays’ Drew Rasmussen came within four outs of a no-no in a simply dominant performance against a punchless Yanks lineup.
Even more deliciously embarrassing, when the Yankees finally did get their first hit — on an Austin Wells liner just inside the right-field foul line — he foolishly tried to get to stretch it into a triple and was thrown out by about the length of a football field, short-circuiting a potential rally. Never make the third out at third base! That’s Little League stuff. The Rays ended up with a 1-0 victory to secure the first game of the ALDS.
It was a pretty competitive night all around in the opener of every Division Series, as all four games were decided by three or fewer runs. The White Sox stormed into Cleveland and blanked the Guardians by a 3-0 score, while the Dodgers were annoyingly efficient in dispatching the Braves, 5-3. The Brewers and Padres ended the night with a 3-2 thriller that was decided when a would-be go-ahead ninth-inning homer by Ty France deflected off the roof of American Family Field and into the glove of left fielder Jackson Chourio, one of the unluckiest events you’ll ever see in a professional baseball game.
Today, only the National League is in action as the AL teams get a weird non-travel day off after just one game. The Padres and Brewers have the early game at 4:00, preceding the Braves and Dodgers at 8 ET. That means there won’t be any further embarrassment for the Yankees today. But there’s always tomorrow.
Just when you thought Albernaz’s managerial tenure couldn’t get any more infuriating, apparently he gave the cold shoulder to the best pitcher in franchise history. This guy is seriously the worst.
If you thought trading Adley to the Red Sox was painful, consider how close the O’s came to trading him to the Yankees instead. Just think: Austin Wells could have been making terrible baserunning blunders for the Orioles instead of the Yanks.
Notwithstanding the typo in the headline, it’s a valid point — the O’s seem overstocked at the hot corner with Jordan Westburg set to return and Coby Mayo, Christian Encarnacion-Strand, and Blaze Alexander all worthy of regular at-bats. I guess you’d call that one of those good problems to have.
Orioles birthdays and history
Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Five former Orioles were born on this day: right-hander Alec Asher (35), outfielder Drew Stubbs (42), utility man Mark McLemore (62), right-hander Dave C. Johnson (78), and the late outfielder Don Lenhardt (b. 1922, d. 2014), a St. Louis Brown who came over with the franchise to Baltimore in 1954.
The Orioles have played seven postseason games on this date in history. They won the first four and lost the last three. The losses were Game 3 of the Division Series in both 1996 and 1997, and the Wild Card Game in Toronto in 2016. We need not say any more about those. As for the wins:
In 1969, in the first-ever AL Championship Series game after the league split into two divisions, the O’s beat the Twins, 4-3, in a 12-inning thriller at Memorial Stadium. Trailing 3-2 in the bottom of the ninth, the Birds tied the score on Boog Powell’s leadoff homer against Twins starter Jim Perry. It was the Orioles’ third solo homer off Perry after Frank Robinson and the light-hitting Mark Belanger did so earlier in the game. In the 12th, the Orioles walked it off on Paul Blair’s bunt single that scored Belanger from third.
A year later, the O’s again beat the Twins in the ALCS, this time in Minnesota, with an 11-3 rout in Game 2. The Orioles held a meager one-run lead until the top of the ninth, when they erupted for seven runs, their second straight game with a seven-run inning. For the second straight game, every Orioles starter except Paul Blair had at least one hit. Frank Robinson and Davey Johnson each crushed a two-run homer, backing a complete game by Dave McNally.
On this date in 1971, the Orioles won Game 2 of the ALCS against the Athletics, 5-1. Mike Cuellar pitched a complete-game, one-run masterpiece to outduel Hall of Fame A’s righty Catfish Hunter. All five Orioles runs against Hunter came on homers: a pair of blasts from Boog Powell and solo shots by Brooks Robinson and Elrod Hendricks.
And on this day in 1979, the O’s outlasted the Angels in Game 2 of the ALCS, 9-8. The O’s seemed on their way to an easy victory by storming out to a 9-1 lead after three, but the Angels kept chipping away at the lead in the late innings, eventually putting the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position in the ninth before Don Stanhouse induced a bases-loaded groundout to end the game. Had ‘em all the way. Eddie Murray homered for the Orioles and leadoff man Al Bumbry reached base four times.
