Category: Sports News

Rafael Devers' hot stretch at plate coincides with growing comfort at first base originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

SAN FRANCISCO – Rafael Devers, daily, is taking extra work to improve his defense at first base and get more comfortable at the position.

If the three-time MLB All-Star can get that to match his comfort level at the plate, there’s no limit on what the veteran slugger can do.

One day after making a pair of spectacular defensive plays, Devers went deep for a second consecutive day when he connected for a home run leading off the sixth inning.

It was the seventh time Devers has gone deep in 45 games in a Giants uniform, showing why president of baseball operations Buster Posey targeted him just before the trade deadline.

“I think it’s just him being Devers at this point,” Giants manager Bob Melvin said in the aftermath of Saturday’s 4-2 loss to the Washington Nationals at Oracle Park. “He’s just a really good hitter who knows what his strengths are.”

That was the scouting report on Devers before joining San Francisco: A well-accomplished slugger with a career .277 batting average who has clubbed 10 or more home runs in each of his 10 MLB seasons.

Things didn’t start well for Devers with his new team on the West Coast. He had some inconsistencies at the plate and in the field, leading some to question the trade with Boston.

A lot of that noise has been muted lately.

Devers is playing a lot more effectively at first base and is currently one of the hottest hitters in Melvin’s lineup.

After ending July in a 0-for-14 funk, Devers has found a nice rhythm at the plate. In eight games this month, he has gone 9-for-28 (.321) with three home runs, eight walks and seven RBIs.

In the 45 games since his acquisition from the Red Sox, Devers has 22 RBIs.

“Just basically doing the same thing that I’ve done all year, just making sure that I take advantage of all my at-bats,” Devers said through interpreter Erwin Higueros. “I don’t think that it’s necessary for me to change anything. I’m just being the type of player that I am. Things are beginning to work out for me.”

That includes playing first base, one of the issues that led to his exit from Boston. He was reluctant to play a position he had never played before at the big league level.

Devers faced early criticism from the media and Giants fans but has quieted that chatter with some smooth fielding. That included a heads-up play Friday when the Nationals loaded the bases and hit a grounder to first that Devers snagged and wisely threw home to get the out.

“Every single day, I’m always making sure that I work at first and make sure that I’m ready for everything that’s going to be thrown my way,” said Devers, who had two hits and two walks as the Giants’ designated hitter on Saturday.

It’s worth noting that Devers’ comfort level on defense has coincided with his output at the plate. It makes sense that less stress and concerns in one area would translate into success in other areas.

Devers isn’t sure if that’s what’s happening but acknowledged that playing in the field keeps him more engaged.

“I really don’t know if that’s something that’s working out. I just know that when I play first base, I’m more involved in the game,” Devers said. “You’re thinking about different aspects of the game, not just thinking about your next at-bat.”

Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast

The Yankees are going through it right now. 

They were defeated by the Houston Astros in extra innings on Friday night, cutting their lead for the final wild card spot in the American League to just a half game. 

They've now dropped six of their last seven games, and with each loss, Aaron Boone’s seat seemingly gets hotter and hotter. 

The boos have been loud and heavy lately in the Bronx. 

Joe Torre has been there before; he understands what the long-time skipper is going through. 

“People always ask me who I root for, I root for people,” he told SNY’s Chelsea Sherrod at Old Timers' Day. “I feel for Aaron, I’ve been in that place before -- you’re trying to rearrange the furniture and hopefully it makes a difference.”

Though things aren’t looking good right now, Torre remains confident in the team under Boone’s leadership.

The four-time World Series champ certainly knows what it takes. 

“This club is too good to not have a run, there’s still time left,” he said. “If it were Sept. 1, I’d be more concerned, but I have a lot of confidence -- Booney has been down this road before, he’s a third-generation major leaguer.

“I feel that they’re going to make a run and will be where they are supposed to be at the end of things.”

Wille Randolph. 

Jorge Posada. 

Tino Martinez.

Johnny Damon.

That’s just a few of the Yankees stars who were in attendance at the Stadium on Saturday afternoon for this year’s Old Timers’ Day festivities. 

It’s the 77th annual Old Timers' Day game, but the first since 2019.

The event also celebrated the 25th anniversary of the 2000 World Series championship.

While that team and all the great memories they shared were a hot topic of discussion, so was the current state of the organization as they fight through a brutally tough stretch. 

The Yankees currently find themselves trailing the Blue Jays and Red Sox in the AL East and hold a slim advantage for the final wild card spot after dropping Friday’s series opener in extra innings to the Astros.  

“They’re going through a tough time,” Damon told SNY’s Chelsea Sherrod. 

“Teams are not afraid of us anymore,” Randolph added. “We need to get that mojo back to where when they come into Yankee Stadium and places like that, they know they’re going to be in for a big fight.”

Though things are looking bleak, there is still plenty of baseball to be played.

“They’re struggling right now, but they’re still in the hunt,” Martinez said. “As long as you’re there this time of year and you can improve from here, they have a chance, but they have to minimize the mistakes and play better baseball.”

“It’s more of an attitude than anything,” Posada added. “They have to get a little angry, hopefully a fight or something to get them going -- they need to have that chip on their shoulder, they need to play like that.”

It’s been a tough stretch for New York baseball. 

Despite adding a handful of big pieces ahead of the trade deadline, both the Mets and the Yankees have remained in their deep slumps over the past week.

The Mets now sit 3.5 games behind the Phillies in the NL East after dropping their fifth consecutive game in frustrating fashion on Friday night. 

The Yanks were knocked off by the rival Houston Astros in the series opener Friday too, and they now find themselves with just a half-game lead for the final AL wild card spot. 

They are 3.5 games back of the Red Sox for second in the AL East and 6.5 games behind the Blue Jays for first. 

Things are not looking good for either World Series hopeful team right now, but a former New York baseball legend is confident they'll be able to turn things around down the stretch.

“I think the Mets are going to be okay,” Dwight Gooden told SNY’s Chelsea Sherrod at Yankees Old Timers' Day. “I still like to say pitching wins, you have to have consistent pitching because the lineup is nice, but they have to get more consistent.

“The main thing is they have to stay healthy because they are right there -- once you get into the postseason, it’s the hottest team that wins, not always the best, so I think they’ll be okay, they just have to get more consistent.”  

Gooden feels the same way about the Yankees, who he says are playing not to lose.

“You just have to have confidence you’re going to win,” he said. “When you go out there and try not to lose, you put a lot of pressure on yourself -- they just have to take things one game at a time, sometimes all it takes is getting back to the basics.”

Both teams will look to get back on track on Saturday. 

The Mets face off with right-hander Tobias Myers in Milwaukee, while Luis Gil makes his second start of the season against ace left-hander Framber Valdez in the Bronx.

What we learned as Carson Whisenhunt allows three homers in Giants' loss to Nats originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

SAN FRANCISCO – Rafael Devers homered for the second consecutive day and reached base four times, but the Giants’ offense was otherwise muffled in a 4-2 loss to the Washington Nationals on Saturday at Oracle Park.

One day after putting up five runs during a shutout victory in the series opener, the Giants generated good traffic on the bases but couldn’t cash in on the opportunities. Manager Bob Melvin’s club stranded seven runners on base, including leaving the bases loaded in the third.

Devers provided one of the few offensive highlights with his 22nd home run of the season and seventh in a Giants uniform. He also singled and walked twice.

Wilmer Flores added a pinch-hit sacrifice fly in the eighth to drive in San Francisco’s other run.

It didn’t help that the guy holding down the Giants’ offense was rookie Brad Lord, whose only career victories came in relief. Lord allowed four hits and one run over six innings.

San Francisco needed much more from its offense on a day when top pitching prospect Carson Whisenhunt lasted four innings in his third career MLB start. Whisenhunt allowed three runs — all solo homers — and five hits in four innings while striking out five with three walks.

Carson Seymour helped ease the pain of the afternoon with three innings of solid relief. He allowed one run and four hits.

Shortstop Willy Adames gave the Oracle Park crowd a jolt with a defensive gem in the eighth inning, chasing down Daylen Lile’s grounder up the middle, making a 360-degree spin and then throwing to first base for the out.

Heliot Ramos singled twice to extend his career-high on-base streak to 22 games.

Here are the takeaways from Saturday’s loss that drops the Giants to 59-58:

Serving it up

Whisenhunt had surrendered two home runs through his first two starts this season but was battered for three solo shots in the first three innings against the Nationals.

The rookie pitcher seemed to settle down after James Wood hit his third pitch out of Oracle Park in the first inning, pitching out of a mini-jam in the second.

Things really went south in the third when Washington’s batters were squaring up nicely and hitting almost every pitch hard. The back-to-back homers by Paul DeJong and Josh Bell – both estimated longer than 420 feet – gave the Nats a comfortable lead.

All three home runs came off sinkers, which have been Whisenhunt’s most effective pitch this season.

Devers heating up

Devers’ career with the Giants got off to a shaky start but the three-time AL All-Star has been dialing in at the plate lately and has homered in the last two games and three of the last six.

This is the hitter whom the Giants believed they were getting when they traded for him in June, a game-changing bat with the capabilities of carrying an offense. Devers also showed good patience at the plate, drawing two walks.

Lucky No. 13

Clean-up hitter Dominic Smith’s fourth-inning double extended his hitting streak to 13 games, the longest active streak in the majors and the longest by a Giants player since Brandon Belt’s 14-game stretch in 2021.

During the streak, Smith has wielded one of the hottest bats in manager Bob Mevlin’s lineup, going 16-for-44 (.390) with three extra-base hits and three walks while raising his batting average from .235 to .280.

Download and follow the Giants Talk Podcast

Jen Pawol breaks MLB's gender barrier as first female umpire to work regular-season game originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

Jen Pawol has made history as the first female umpire to work a regular-season game in the major leagues.

Pawol’s much-anticipated debut came as the first base umpire for Saturday’s first game of a split doubleheader between the Atlanta Braves and Miami Marlins. She enjoyed a quiet first inning, watching as Braves right-hander Hurston Waldrep struck out the first two batters before Agustin Ramirez lined out to third baseman Nacho Alvarez.

The Braves also were set down in order by Miami right-hander Ryan Gusto in the bottom of the first inning, with no calls from Pawol needed at first base.

As the first base umpire, Pawol’s responsibility was to check Waldrep’s hands for foreign substances following the inning. During that brief encounter she also appeared to receive a warm greeting from Braves catcher Sean Murphy on his way to the dugout.

Pawol’s first real test came in the third inning when she called Braves catcher Sean Murphy safe on a close play. Replays indicated Murphy may have been out, but Marlins manager Clayton McCullough did not challenge the call.

Pawol also showed she will make animated calls. When Miami’s Xavier Edwards grounded into a double play, Pawol pumped her fist and lifted her leg when she called Edwards out in the third inning.

Pawol couldn’t help but notice her debut was being watched closely. Fans responded with a warm ovation when the video board focused on the umpire between innings, forcing her to take a quick glance at her image.

Pawol will work third base in Saturday night’s second game of the doubleheader. She will be in the spotlight when she calls pitches behind the plate in Sunday’s final game of the series.

There was much anticipation for her historic debut on Saturday. A crowd of photographers gathered while waiting for the umpires to walk onto the field from their entry ramp near the Marlins dugout.

McCullough and Braves bench coach Walt Weiss greeted Pawol when lineups were exchanged at home plate before the game. Pawol then jogged down the first base line. She shook hands with Marlins first base coach Tyler Smarslok before taking her position on the right field line for the first pitch.

Pawol said Thursday she was “overcome with emotion” when notified she would make her Major League Baseball debut this weekend.

“It was super emotional to finally be living that phone call that I’d been hoping for and working towards for quite a while, and I just felt super full — I feel like a fully charged battery ready to go,” Pawol said.

Pawol, 48, has been working in the minor leagues since she was assigned to the Gulf Coast League in 2016. She was assigned the Triple-A championship game in 2023 and worked spring training games in 2024 and again this year.

Pawol, who is from New Jersey, had only a few days to prepare for Saturday’s doubleheader. She said she was told of her long-awaited promotion during a Wednesday conference call with director of umpire development Rich Rieker and vice president of umpire operations Matt McKendry.

Pawol was a three-time all-conference softball selection pick at Hofstra. She worked as an NCAA softball umpire from 2010-16.

Pawol’s rise to make MLB history came 28 years after the NBA gender barrier for game officials was broken and 10 years after the NFL hired its first full-time female official. The men’s soccer World Cup first hired a female referee three years ago. The NHL has not had any women as on-ice officials.