Category: Sports News

Turner, Marsh, Bohm lead the offense as Phillies beat up on Pittsburgh's Cy Young winner originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

It was 96 degrees when Zack Wheeler threw his first pitch Wednesday night at Citizens Bank Park.

Like the old song says: Hot town, summer in the city.

Or maybe it should be: Hot team, summer in the city.

Fresh off 18 wins in June – second-most in the big leagues – the Phillies opened the month of July with a 10-6 victory over the Pittsburgh Pirates.

The Phillies, now a season-high 11 games over .500, took it to defending National League Cy Young winner Paul Skenes, lighting him up for a career-high eight runs in four innings.

Wheeler, a two-time runner-up in the Cy Young voting, labored through his most difficult start of the season. His stuff was good, as evidenced by his 10 strikeouts, but his command was unusually poor as he threw 104 pitches before exiting with two outs in the fifth. He gave up nine hits, eight singles and a solo homer, over 4 2/3 innings. It was his shortest outing since June 16, 2024 when he lasted just 4 1/3 and gave up eight runs in a loss at Baltimore. After that, Wheeler reeled off 53 straight starts of five innings or more, entering Wednesday night.

Wheeler came into the game with an ERA of 2.03. He exited with an ERA of 2.36, still exceptional for a man coming off surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome. Wheeler has made 13 starts since returning from the injured list. The Phils are 11-2 in those games.

The right-hander picked the right night to be off his game. The Phillies scored 153 runs in June, second-most in the majors. They kept piling up runs on the first night of July. They scored five times against Skenes in the second, added another one in the third and two more in the fourth.

Skenes has had his problems with the Phillies. They tagged him for five runs in a 6-0 win in Pittsburgh on May 17. A season after leading the majors with a 1.97 ERA, he is 6-8 with a 3.62 ERA. Amazingly, the Pirates are winless in his last nine starts.

Surging Trea Turner continued to swing a potent bat for the Phillies. He lashed a three-run homer on a hanging breaking ball against Skenes in the second inning. Turner is hitting .350 (21 for 60) over his last 14 games.

Brandon Marsh continued his trek to the All-Star Game with a solo homer, his 15^th, in the third inning against Skenes.

Bryce Harper added a two-run double against Skenes in the fourth. Harper has driven in at least a run in seven straight games and has overtaken Kyle Schwarber for the team lead with 56 RBI.

Alec Bohm capped the scoring with a two-run homer against reliever Dennis Santana in the ninth.

Before that, the Pirates had made it a two-run game in the seventh. Orion Kerkering did an excellent job quieting things down before Jhoan Duran closed it out.

On the way to the win, Bohm and Harper both made terrific defensive plays behind Kerkering.

The Phils have won two of the first three in the series, which wraps up Thursday afternoon with Alan Rangel scheduled to pitch against Jared Jones.

More coming…

The fresh arm express continued for the Dodgers on Wednesday, as they optioned Tuesday call-up Wyatt Mills for Charlie Barnes to get recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City.

Barnes has been starting in Triple-A, with a 3.67 ERA in six starts, with 27 strikeouts and 11 walks in 27 innings. He last pitched last Thursday, which makes him perfectly rested for what figures to otherwise be a bullpen game for the Dodgers in their series finale against the A’s, after the rotation was shuffled to move Shohei Ohtani from Wednesday in West Sacramento to Friday at home against the San Diego Padres.

Barnes, claimed off waivers by the Dodgers from the Cubs on May 9, has pitched two games in relief for the Dodgers this season with a pair of scoreless innings against the Angels in May in Anaheim.

Mills was called up just Tuesday, and pitched a scoreless ninth inning with three strikeout at the end of a blowout win over the A’s.

The Colorado Rockies are calling up one of their top pitching prospects in Gabriel Hughes (no. 12 PuRP) this evening, according to a report by Rockies MLB.com beat writer Thomas Harding. The move has since been confirmed by the Rockies organization.

Hughes, 24, was selected 10th overall in the first round of the 2022 MLB draft out of Gonzaga University. The right-handed pitcher made it as far as Double-A Hartford in his first two professional seasons, but missed the entirety of the 2024 regular season after needing Tommy John surgery.

After returning to baseball activities for the 2024 edition of the Arizona Fall League, Hughes started 2025 with the Double-A Hartford Yard Goats. With Hartford he posted a 3.29 ERA with 35 strikeouts over nine starts and 41 innings of work. He was promoted mid-season to the Triple-A Albuquerque Isotopes, where he held his own in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League with a 5.11 ERA and 48 strikeouts over 14 starts and 61.2 innings.

Hughes started the 2026 season back with Triple-A Albuquerque, where he dazzled in his first two starts with a combined three earned runs allowed and 14 strikeouts over 10.1 innings. However, he was unable to make it through five innings in any of his next three starts. He finished April with a five inning, eight strikeout start against the El Paso Chihuahuas, but also with an 8.64 ERA.

The Rockies organization placed Hughes on the injured list with side and shoulder discomfort on April 30th, causing him to miss most of May. After two rehab starts with the High-A Spokane Indians, he returned to the Isotopes and has been utterly dominant.

Over Hughes’ last five starts and 21.2 innings of work, he has not allowed a single earned run while allowing just six hits and eight walks. During that stretch he has struck out 26 batters.

Hughes will wear no. 43 and is expected to make his Major League debut out of the bullpen rather than the rotation. He will be the eighth rookie to make his debut with the Rockies this season.

In a corresponding roster move, right-handed pitcher John Brebbia has been designated for assignment.

Brebbia, 36, spent spring training with the Rockies and signed a second minor league contract with the team earlier this season. He made three appearances out of the bullpen in late June, the first two of which were scoreless. In his third appearance, he gave up five earned runs on five hits—including two home runs—in 1.1 innings against the Miami Marlins.

The Rockies’ 40-man roster currently sits at 39.

---

---

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Rosters were announced on Wednesday for the All-Star Futures Game, featuring top prospects from all around the league in a showcase game as part of All-Star Week. The Detroit Tigers’ representative will be catching prospect Thayron Liranzo, currently working at the Double-A level. He’ll be behind the plate for part of the Sunday, July 12 contest at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The game will be broadcast at noon E.T. on NBC.

The sole selection of Liranzo was a little bit of a surprise. The All-Star Futures Game tends to draw on prospects that haven’t reached the Triple-A level yet. So it was expected that neither Max Clark or Max Anderson would be selected for the midseason battle of top prospects. On the other hand, the lack of Bryce Rainer is an oversight. The young shortstop is scorching hot with 8 homers, 10 stolen bases, and a .394 on-base percentage for the West Michigan Whitecaps, and generally draws 55 FV grades from national prospect rankings. Instead, Liranzo will be the Tigers only representative.

The switch-hitting, 22-year-old catcher—he’ll turn 23 in a week’s time— has really come on strong in his second season with the Erie SeaWolves. Most of that development has come behind the plate, so he’s not exactly lighting it up offensively, but right now that defensive progress is more important anyway. Liranzo has nine homers and a .337 on-base percentage in 44 games this season. He’s still walking a ton, holding a 16.3 percent walk rate in the Eastern League. Of course, while he’s starting to trim the strikeouts, he’s still holding a 28.6 K-rate as well.

It took Dillon Dingler three tries to really break out of Double-A, so there’s still plenty of time for Liranzo, and his defensive improvements now have him looking like much more of a lock to catch at the major league level, even if he’s still tracking like a backup who plays some first base, and gets looks at DH and as a pinch-hitter to access his raw power.

The Dominican born catcher was the key piece of the trade that sent Jack Flaherty to the Los Angeles Dodgers at the 2024 trade deadline. With Trey Sweeney largely flaming out, Liranzo is both the key piece, and potentially the only piece acquired in that deadline selloff that looks like it could work out very well for the Tigers. Of course, Sweeney already contributed by helping get the Tigers into the playoffs that year with Javier Báez down for surgery on his hip. It’s been bleak since for Sweeney, and he’s out for the year after shoulder surgery.

Liranzo doesn’t chase out of the zone much, but his pretty grooved swing as a left-handed hitter says he’ll always whiff quite a bit. The key is to keep taking walks and doing damage while continuing to develop well as a defender. Things are well on track now in that regard. He’s earned the nod to the Futures Game, and it’s a really fun event where the younger talent in the game get to play together and against each other while enjoying the All-Star Week’s other festivities. Congratulations to Thayron on his selection.

Pittsburgh Pirates vs. Philadelphia Phillies, July 1, 2026, 6:40 p.m. ET

The Pittsburgh Pirates are looking to end their disastrous run of Paul Skenes starts as he takes the mound for the Buccos in Game 3 of their four-game set in the City of Brotherly Love.

The Pirates have dropped their last eight games in which Skenes pitched. During that stretch, Skenes is 0-5.

In his last start against the Cincinnati Reds on June 26, he pitched five innings, giving up six hits and four earned runs in a 6-4 loss to their division rival. The game that began this streak came back on May 17 against the Philadelphia Phillies. Skenes pitched five innings, giving up six hits and five earned runs in a 6-0 shutout loss against Philly at home.

Meanwhile, the Phillies will turn to Zach Wheeler, who is enjoying another stellar season and could be on route to his third consecutive All-Star appearance. In his last start against the New York Mets, he pitched seven innings, giving up four hits and one earned run in a 2-1 victory at Citi Field. He also pitched against the Pirates earlier in the year, pitching seven innings of shutout ball in that 6-0 win on May 17 at PNC Park.

Perhaps Skenes and the Pirates can turn things around against the Phillies.

Location: Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA

Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh

Pitching Matchup: Paul Skenes (6-7, 3.10 ERA) vs. Zack Wheeler (8-1, 2.03 ERA)

BD community, chime off in the comments section below.

The San Diego Padres would like to forget about Wednesday afternoon.

The Padres got run out of Wrigley Field by the Chicago Cubs 23-2, a blowout so lopsided that San Diego handed the ball to catcher Rodolfo Duran for the final two innings rather than burn another arm.

It capped a three-game sweep by the Cubs and sent the Padres to Los Angles for a four-game series against the Dodgers on the sourest of notes.

The box score looks like a video game. Eight home runs, 23 RBI, 17 hits. The Cubs went 8-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left just two on base all day. It was more like batting practice for Chicago, especially Dansby Swanson.

GRAND SLAM
THIRD HOMER OF THE GAME

DANSBY SWANSON IS 🔥🔥🔥 pic.twitter.com/z88J0AC6vQ

— MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2026

The shortstop hit three home runs and drove in eight runs. Michael Conforto added two home runs and four RBI. In all, the Cubs had eight homers out of 17 total hits.

Padres' starter Walker Buehler gave up nine runs and three home runs in four innings. Kyle Hart came out of the bullpen and gave up six runs, five earned, on three hits - all home runs - over two innings. Duran gave up eight earned runs on seven hits, including two home runs.

San Diego avoided a shutout on Sung-Mun Song's first MLB home run and a Samad Taylor triple, which could have been an in-the-park home run if not for the ball getting stuck in the ivy and stopping the play.

The Padres head into a National League West series against their rival Dodgers having lost five straight and sitting at 43-42.

Michael Busch makes it TWENTY-THREE runs for the @Cubs 🤯 pic.twitter.com/rpnhzZzaw4

— MLB (@MLB) July 1, 2026

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Padres pummeled by Cubs 23-3 in an embarrassing series finale

With the Mets’ 2026 season having gone completely off the rails, the owner of the team is standing by his president of baseball operations. Steve Cohen was a guest on a podcast, and while being interviewed, he offered up a variety of responses that offered support to Stearns just a few days after the organization fired manager Carlos Mendoza.

In supporting Stearns, Cohen highlighted the need for the organization to be able to commit to a long-term plan and mentioned that it would be tough to attract people to the club if he were to fire someone like Stearns for short-term plans. He also made a point that Stearns was in charge when the Mets made it to the National League Championship Series in 2024.

Stearns is in the third season of a five-year, $50 million contract as the team’s head of baseball ops. The Mets are 208-202 thus far in the regular season under his leadership.