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Sunday notes…

• SPLITTING THE DIFFERENCE: This is the 22nd of the Cubs’ 45 series in which they have split the first two games. There was no third game after one series. The Cubs were 9-11 in third games of the others, including 6-6 after losing, then winning. At home, they are 2-5 overall and 1-4 after winning, then losing. The lone win was vs. the Twins on July 19. They have lost to the Yankees and Tigers since then. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• LIGHTING UP: Tonight’s game will be the first of five in a row under the lights at Wrigley Field. The Cubs have played five straight night games at home, without a road trip in between, three times before: June 4-8, 2017 (3-2): won vs. Cardinals; won, won and lost vs. Marlins; lost vs. Rockies; Sept. 15-20, 2020 (3-2): won twice vs. Guardians; after day off, won, lost and lost vs. Twins; April 18-22, 2022 (1-4): won, lost and lost vs. Rays; lost twice vs. Pirates. So this will be the first time the Cubs have played five in a row in two series vs. National League opponents. Before 2017, the longest such streak had been four games, Sept. 12-15, 2005 (1-3): lost, won and lost vs. Reds; lost vs. Cardinals. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• LIKE NIGHT AND DAY: The Cubs are 46-29 in night games this season. They finished 49-38 last year.
• They are 18-12 at home under the lights this year. They wound up 21-11 a year ago. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• RUNS ON THE BOARD: The Cubs scored in six of the eight innings in which they batted yesterday. They had done that twice before this season. They also scored in six of nine twice. Their four innings with three runs each were the most of the same “crooked number” they have scored in any game this season. They scored two runs three times in three games. (Courtesy BCB’s JohnW53)
• TODAY IN CUBS HISTORY: In a crazy game at Wrigley, the Cubs go down 6-1 to the Dodgers in the top of the third. They tie it up with a five-run third, two of the runs scoring on wild pitches by Tommy John. The game goes to extras tied 8-8, and the Cubs walk it off 9-8 on a home run by Jim Hickman in the 11th. It happened 54 years ago today, Wednesday, Aug. 30, 1972.

Cubs lineup:

Reds lineup:

Shōta Imanaga, LHP vs. Chase Burns, RHP

As you know, Shōta Imanaga really struggled in his last start last Sunday in Seattle, throwing 72 pitches and allowing five hits and two walks in just two innings. Fortunately, Craig Counsell got him out of there and the Cubs won the game.

Imanaga had a 2.67 ERA and 1.099 WHIP in 12 starts prior to that, covering 67.1 innings, including 10 strikeouts against the White Sox Aug. 17 at Wrigley Field. So let’s hope last Sunday was a one-off and he’ll be hack to that tonight.

Chase Burns was the Reds’ No. 1 pick (second overall) in 2024 out of Wake Forest, and he’s been Cincinnati’s best starter all year. He’s been a bit shakier recently, allowing five runs in two of his last four starts.

He has not faced the Cubs this year. His only career appearance against them was 1.1 scoreless innings of relief Sept. 20, 2025 in Cincinnati.

Burns throws hard. Cubs hitters often have trouble with guys like this. Hopefully today is better.

Here is the weather forecast for the area around Wrigley Field.

Today’s game is on NBC (full national broadcast, no blackouts), also streaming on Peacock. Announcers: Jason Benetti, Anthony Rizzo and Jeff Brantley.

Here is the complete MLB.com live streaming page for today.

MLB.com Gameday

Baseball-reference.com game preview

Please visit our SB Nation Reds site Red Reporter. If you do go there to interact with Reds fans, please be respectful, abide by their individual site rules and serve as a good representation of Cub fans in general and BCB in particular.

The 2026 game discussion procedure has been changed, so please take note.

You’ll find the game preview, like this one, posted separately on the front page two hours before game time (90 minutes for some early day games following night games).

At the same time, a StoryStream containing the preview will also post on the front page, titled “Cubs vs. (Team) (Day of week/date) game threads.” It will contain every post related to that particular game.

The Live! (formerly “First Pitch”) thread will still post at five minutes to game time. It will also post to the front page. That will be the only live game discussion thread. After the game, the recap and Heroes and Goats will also live on the front page as separate posts.

You will also be able to find the preview, Live! thread, recap and Heroes and Goats in this section link. The StoryStream for each game can also be found in that section.

Discuss amongst yourselves.

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My Astros vs. Mets predictions and MLB picks for Sunday, Aug. 30 are looking back the Mets at a fair price today.

After a 6-2 New York win on Saturday, the Mets can keep that momentum rolling behind Zac Thornton. 

Who will win Astros vs Mets today: Mets moneyline (55%)

For help understanding probabilities, see our odds calculator.

There's minimal data on Houston Astros 24-year-old right-hander Ethan Pecko, as he only has eight full innings in the bigs under his belt. In those two outings, he's allowed a combined seven runs on eight hits.

Opposing hitters own a .410 OBP and near .900 OPS in those games. The New York Mets bats would love nothing more than to feast on a young arm trying to find his footing.

On the other side, the Mets will send out Zac Thornton, who has been pretty serviceable, posting a 2.83 ERA and 1.14 WHIP while allowing a barrel rate below 6% to opposing hitters at home this season. 

Neither offense has been seeing the ball too well, which is why leaning with the more established arm is the play in this spot. Play to 58%.

COVERS INTEL: Over his last 30 hitters faced at home, Thornton owns just a 2.38 xERA, 2.03 xFIP, and 4.3% barrel rate.

Astros vs Mets Over/Under pick: Under 8.5 (47%)

The Mets should be able to put up some runs against Pecko, but with how well Thornton has been pitching, runs look to be at a premium this afternoon.

Both lineups own a wRC+ under 81, a wOBA under .266, and an OPS below .680 over their last 12 games. Neither is making a lot of hard contact or barreling the ball up.

Asking these two cold offenses to produce 9+ runs feels like a lot. Play to 50%.

Astros vs Mets home run prediction: Luis Robert (17%)

Despite being put on waivers, Luis Robert has been crushing the baseball. In his last 30 plate appearances against right-handed pitching, he owns a .304 BA, .739 SLG, 1.172 OPS, and 22% barrel rate.

Pecko has only faced 19 left-handed hitters so far this season, but those hitters have a .579 SLG and 1.019 OPS.

If Robert wants to show his worth to the rest of the league, he needs to continue to mash.

Backup option if he does not play: Jeremy Pena (13%)

Jeremy Pena has easily been the hottest bat on the Astros lineup, posting a .600 SLG, .350 IOS, and 16.7% barrel rate. He is the second-best long ball look in this matchup.

Astros vs Mets weather

Chance of scattered showers. Otherwise, edge to the offenses on a warm day with winds blowing out at 11 mph.

Astros vs Mets odds

• Moneyline: Astros 47% | Mets 54%
• Run line: Astros +1.5 (64%) | Mets -1.5 (36%)
• Over/Under: Over 8.5 (55%) | Under 8.5 (46%)

Astros vs Mets trend

The Mets have hit the moneyline in 14 of their last 23 games (+6.30 Units / 25% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Astros vs. Mets.

How to watch Astros vs Mets and game info

Astros vs Mets latest injuries

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

We are witnessing one of the most special seasons in Cubs history in what Pete Crow-Armstrong is accomplishing in 2026.

Entering Sunday’s action: .282/.377/.567 (147-for-522) with 27 doubles, seven triples, 36 home runs, 89 RBI, 32 stolen bases and 71 walks. The .567 SLG leads the National League, as does his .944 OPS and 158 OPS+. His 296 total bases lead MLB, and with four more total bases he’ll have the first Cubs season with 300 or more since Javier Báez in 2018.

He’s now posted 8.3 bWAR and 9.1 fWAR. Both figures lead MLB.

So that’s a summary of PCA’s season, but here I want to talk about his three-homer game accomplished Saturday against the Reds. As you know, PCA also hit for the cycle this year, June 15 against the Rockies.

I wondered if anyone else had done that, so I asked BCB’s JohnW53 to do a little research project on this for me.

As it turns out, Pete Crow-Armstrong is the fourth Cub to have a three-homer game and cycle in the same season. The other three:

Hack Wilson, 1930 (three-HR game July 26, cycle June 23)
Babe Herman, 1933 (three-HR game July 20, cycle Sept. 30)
Andre Dawson, 1987 (three-HR game Aug. 1, cycle April 29)

Eleven other players have accomplished this feat:

Johnny Mize, Cardinals, 1940 (three-HR game Sept. 8, cycle July 13)
Joe DiMaggio, Yankees, 1948 (three-HR game May 23, cycle May 20)
Frank Robinson, Reds, 1959 (three-HR game Aug. 22, cycle May 2)
Jim King, Senators, 1964 (three-HR game June 8, cycle May 26)
Tony Horton, Indians, 1970 (three-HR game May 24, cycle July 2)
George Brett, Royals, 1979 (three-HR game July 22, cycle May 28)
Jose Reyes, Mets, 2006 (three-HR game Aug. 15, cycle June 21)
Adrian Beltre, Rangers, 2012 (three-HR game Aug. 22, cycle Aug. 24)
Nolan Arenado, Rockies, 2017 (three-HR game July 19, cycle June 18)
Jose Altuve, Astros, 2023 (three-HR game Sept. 5, cycle Aug. 28)
Yordan Alvarez, Astros, 2024 (three-HR game Aug. 28, cycle July 21)

That’s a pretty eclectic group of players, a few Hall of Famers and also a couple of “remember that guy?”

It’s just more proof that Pete Crow-Armstrong is a special player and we are witnessing one of the greatest seasons in Chicago Cubs history. Among other things, PCA is a strong candidate for Player of the Month for August. In 26 games this month he is batting .278/.371/.685 (30-for-108) with 12 home runs and six stolen bass (no caught stealing). Also:

Lastly, I’ll remind you that only three position players in Cubs history have ever had a 10+ bWAR season: Rogers Hornsby (10.6 in 1929), Ernie Banks (10.2 in 1959) and Sammy Sosa (10.3 in 2001). Hornsby and Banks were named MVP and Sosa finished second to Barry Bonds.

PCA has a chance to have a 10+ bWAR season. Here’s hoping he gets it, wins the hardware, and helps lead the Cubs to a long postseason run.

Many thanks to John for his always-great Cubs research.

Here’s his three-homer game Saturday:

And here’s his cycle from June 15:

The Boston Red Sox are getting a double-barreled boost for their playoff hopes over the final month of the season with the addition of outfielder Roman Anthony and shortstop Trevor Story from the injured list.

The moves come just before the final game of their series on Sunday against their division rivals, the New York Yankees.

Anthony will bat leadoff as the designated hitter and Story will hit eighth and play shortstop in the Aug. 30 game at Yankee Stadium. New York has won two of the first three games in the series.

The Yanks currently have a three-game edge on the Red Sox for the top wild-card spot in the American League.

Texas Rangers lineup for August 30, 2026 against the Milwaukee Brewers: starting pitchers are Kumar Rocker for the Rangers and Dustin May for the Brewers.

The last game of the road trip. Can the Rangers avoid the sweep? Your guess is as good as mine.

The lineup:

Pederson — DH

Seager — SS

Langford — LF

Nimmo — RF

Duran — 2B

Burger — 1B

Carter — CF

Freeman — 3B

Diaz — C

1:10 p.m. Central start time. Rangers are +138 underdogs.

After the Nats first walk off of the season yesterday, we are getting another first today. CJ Abrams is making his much anticipated debut at second base. It has been over two weeks since the initial announcement, but Abrams is finally at his new position. Hopefully that can re-ignite his offense.

As mentioned, CJ Abrams will indeed be playing second base today. That means Nasim Nunez is at shortstop. Jorbit Vivas will be at third over Brady House. Andres Chaparro will be at first and Abi Ortiz will DH. Jacob Young and Harry Ford also return to the lineup. Andrew Alvarez takes the ball this afternoon.

With a lefty on the mound, the Marlins have a lot of righties in the lineup. Jakob Marsee is the only pure left handed bat in the lineup. Esteury Ruiz, Leo Jimenez, Agustin Ramirez and Brian Navarreto are all in the lineup after sitting yesterday. This is a very different lineup for Miami. Janson Junk will make the start in this one.

Game Info:

Stadium: Nationals Park

Time: 12:15 PM EST

TV: Peacock/NBCSN

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

It will be good to finally see CJ Abrams at second base. This whole situation seems to have negatively impacted him. Now that he is actually playing the position, hopefully things start to fall into place. This is also a good chance for the Nats to stay hot. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats.

The San Diego Padres lost this one in a way they usually don’t. Typically, if the Friars have a lead in the seventh inning, the game is mostly over. Their bullpen has been nails all season, and is known as one of the most dominant in all of baseball. That was unfortunately not the case on Saturday afternoon. Bradgley Rodriguez allowed a season-high four runs in the seventh inning, loading the bases before a Yandy Díaz single (and Luis Rengifo throwing error) cleared them.

That would give the Tampa Bay Rays the series win, though the Friars certainly gave them a run for their money in Game 2. San Diego strung 10 hits together, including a Ty France home run (his 100th in his career), a Jake Cronenworth RBI-double and a Manny Machado two-run single. It was a great night at the plate for San Diego, but the ‘pen couldn’t hang on.

Taking the mound

Drew Rasmussen (TB) v. Robbie Ray (SD)

Rasmussen has looked every bit the pitcher Tampa Bay expected him to this season. He’s been one of the most underrated pitchers in baseball during his career, pitching to a career 2.91 ERA through 601 innings. The right-hander has turned in five consecutive seasons with a sub-3.00 ERA and is nearing his sixth.

The righty began his career with the Milwaukee Brewers as a reliever before being traded to the Rays. Tampa Bay converted him to a starter, where he has absolutely flourished. None of the Padres have an abundance of experience against the righty, so San Diego will need to solve him quick to win the series finale.

Ray has been fantastic for the Padres since being traded over from the San Francisco Giants at the Trade Deadline. He’s posted a 3.21 ERA through 26 appearances this season, splitting time between the two clubs. The former Cy Young winner has shown real grit this year, consistently finding creative ways to get hitters out.

The veteran left-hander was traded for in order to bolster San Diego’s rotation for the playoffs. He’s done exactly that. Ray will seek to continue that in the series finale today. Of Tampa Bay’s lineup, only Yandy Díaz has faced Ray more than 20 times. Díaz owns a career .333 average and 1.157 OPS against the lefty (24 at-bats).

Batter up!

As stated, the offense looked fantastic in Game 2 of the series. Perhaps none more so than newcomer left fielder Dustin Harris. Harris went 3-for-4 and scored two runs in what was an eventful night at the plate. With that, he raised his batting average to .283 (53 at-bats), having gone 5-for-10 with the Padres.

1. Fernando Tatis Jr., RF
2. Jake Cronenworth, 2B
3. Manny Machado, 3B
4. Ty France, 1B
5. Jackson Merrill, CF
6. Gavin Sheets, DH
7. Dustin Harris, LF
8. Xander Bogaerts, SS
9. Freddy Fermin, C

Rengifo was unfortunately severely injured in the midst of his seventh-inning throwing error. The current diagnosis is a knee sprain, though Rengifo is headed back to San Diego for imaging on his knee. It seems very likely that the utility player will be out for the remainder of the season. Hopefully, Harris will step up to fill his place alongside the returning Samad Taylor.

Relief corps

Walker Buehler covered five innings quite well before departing the game. Kyle Hart, Rodriguez, Adrian Morejon and Yuki Matsui covered the final three frames. Apart from Rodriguez’s implosion and a lucky single given out by Morejon, the remaining trio was fantastic. It’s tough to see the rookie Rodriguez struggle, but he’s been nails this whole season. He had to struggle at some point, and this just happened to be it.

That means the Friars will be somewhat reliant on Ray to deliver a relatively deep outing. Their bullpen availability is somewhat slim, with Griffin Canning, Mason Miller, David Morgan and Wandy Peralta as options for the finale. That said, if Ray stumbles, Canning will likely be called upon to cover multiple innings for San Diego.

The Braves have re-added Sean Murphy and Ha-Seong Kim to the lineup, with Murphy moving up to the seventh spot:

Murphy made his season debut hitting seventh, but has largely hit eighth or ninth since his most recent reactivation from the Injured List. With Mauricio Dubon in left field, Mike Yastrzemski gets a “day off.” Michael Harris II also moves back to cleanup, creating a lefty-followed-by-lefty situation towards the top of the lineup that the Braves began avoiding after dropping the first two to the Brewers last week.

The Colorado lineup is mostly full of familiar names, except that Hunter Goodman gets a day off from catching and will DH instead, while Ryan Ritter takes over at shortstop. This is just Ritter’s fourth start of the year; he also got about 200 PAs last year in a replacement-level effort.

While the Braves haven’t faced Mason Adams given that, well, he made his MLB debut last week, the Rockies have some history against Tyler Mahle. Everyone in their lineup save for Ritter has faced Mahle at least once, though no one has double-digit PAs against the right-hander. The aggregate line of 49 PAs is very funny: a .399 wOBA and .290 xwOBA. That’s not unexpected in just 49 PAs, but boy, that’s a big difference between those two numbers. The Braves will hope the Rockies don’t do that to them and Mahle today.

No matter what marker you use – whether the calendar flipping to August, the Trade Deadline, or August 15 (as Keith Hernandez recently explained on a broadcast), we’re officially in the stretch run of the regular season. While the 2026 Mets may not have much to compete for, there’s still a thrill in watching established stars and up-and-comers alike slam on the gas pedal to cross the season’s finish line on a high note.

In that spirit, I’ve selected a roster of position players who put together some of the best stretch runs in Mets history, primarily weighing individual performance with a slight edge given towards those who made a meaningful impact on a playoff-bound team. I looked at players’ performances only from Game 113 on (in a normal 162-game season, that’s the final 50 games) and put those stats in italics under each player’s bolded name in their entry. Only time will tell whether Carson Benge (currently batting .343 with a 1.009 OPS since entering the 50-game stretch on August 9) might make his way onto the list by season’s end.

Without further ado, here is my All-Stretch-Run team…

C – MIKE PIAZZA, 1998
.378 avg, 1.169 OPS, 13 HR, 48 RBI

Piazza hit the ground running from the moment he landed in New York via trade on May 22, posting 5.4 bWAR in just 109 games while maintaining a .348 average. As the season wound down, he only seemed to get better, batting .326 in July, .347 in August, and .378 in Sept/Oct. The future Hall of Famer had other tremendous stretch runs, particularly in ’99 and ’01, but his introduction to Mets fans late in ’98 still stands as his best.

1B – PETE ALONSO, 2019
.267 avg, .948 OPS, 19 HR, 41 RBI

Was it an absurdly offense-rich environment? Sure. But Pete Alonso’s stretch of 19 homers in 50 games as he raced to set the franchise home run record and then the all-time rookie home run record is still a marvel. Alonso’s 2021 and 2025 stretch runs were arguably more impressive showings as an all-around hitter in more pitching-friendly seasons, but 2019’s home run total is simply too awesome to beat.

2B – EDGARDO ALFONZO, 2000
.319 avg, 1.033 OPS, 12 HR, 30 RBI

In his lone All-Star season, the 26-year-old Alfonzo entered the break batting .318 with a .955 OPS, both of which would have been career-best marks had he simply maintained them. Instead, he raised them over a stellar second half, finishing with a .324 average and .967 OPS. In the postseason, he reached safely in 13 of 14 games as the Mets made their way to the World Series for the first time in 14 seasons.

3B – DAVID WRIGHT, 2007
.376 avg, 1.109 OPS, 11 HR, 40 RBI

Wright’s 2007 season was about as close as you can get to a video-game player – not only because of his stellar numbers, but because of how comically well-rounded they were. .325 batting average. 30 homers. 34 stolen bases. 107 RBI. Wright became the third Met to win a Gold Glove Award and Silver Slugger Award in the same season (after Keith Hernandez in 1984 and Carlos Beltrán in 2006), and the second Met to start an All-Star Game at third base (after Howard Johnson in 1989). While the Mets may have infamously collapsed down the stretch, Wright kept rolling, capping perhaps the greatest season from a position player in franchise history.

SS – ASDRÚBAL CABRERA, 2016
.345 avg, 1.041 OPS, 10 HR, 29 RBI

As the injury-riddled 2016 Mets willed their way to a Wild Card berth, Cabrera – a free-agent signing the offseason prior – transformed into the slugger at the heart of their lineup. The 30-year-old’s signature moment of the ’16 stretch run (and of his entire Mets tenure) came on September 22, when he crushed a walk-off three-run homer off Phillies reliever Edubray Ramos, capping one of the wackiest games in Citi Field history and fueling further bad blood between the two feud-prone clubs.

LF – YOENIS CÉSPEDES, 2015
.286 avg. .994 OPS, 17 HR, 39 RBI

Céspedes’s 17 homers with the Mets after being acquired minutes before the Trade Deadline on July 31 don’t tell the full story. It wasn’t just about the volume of Céspedes’s production, it was the timing of it. Each blast seemed to be clutcher than the last, whether he was setting the franchise record for team homers in a game, pulling off a hat trick during a slugfest at Coors Field, or effectively putting the Nationals’ playoff aspirations to bed with a homer off a frustrated Drew Storen.

CF – CARLOS BELTRÁN, 2007
.304 avg, .991 OPS, 14 HR, 50 RBI

By most rate stats, Beltrán’s 2008 stretch run was actually superior to his ’07 run, but this one stands out because of the 50 RBI – the most in franchise history for a player over the final 50 games of the regular season. Beltrán was also playing elite defense, en route to his second of three consecutive Gold Glove Awards with the Mets.

RF – JUAN SOTO, 2025
.297 avg, 1.050 OPS, 18 HR, 42 RBI

How do you go from an All-Star snub to an MVP finalist? You hit 18 homers and steal 22 bases over the season’s final 50 games (a 58/71 full-season pace) while also walking a whopping 43 times. The 2025 season didn’t end the way the Mets had hoped, but Soto’s dominant stretch run was a welcome sight after mild stumbles out of the gate during his first campaign in Queens.

BE – GARY CARTER, 1985
.312 avg, .986 OPS, 15 HR, 39 RBI

Carter ended his first Mets season with a crescendo, batting .320 with 13 homers in September and October as the club tried to chase down the first-place Cardinals in the NL East. That stretch included a three-homer game in San Diego on September 3, which at the time marked just the fifth three-homer game in Mets history (and is still the only one by a catcher).

BE – JOHN OLERUD, 1998
.378 avg, 1.041 OPS, 7 HR, 27 RBI

No, this is not a typo, and no, I didn’t accidentally copy Mike Piazza’s batting average from earlier in the article; the 1998 Mets somehow had two players bat exactly .378 over the final 50 games of the 1998 season. Olerud’s surge helped him land at a .354 average by the season’s end, a mark which overtook Cleon Jones’ record of 29 years (.340 in 1969) as the highest single-season batting average in Mets history.

BE – FRANCISCO LINDOR, 2024
.329 avg, .998 OPS, 11 HR, 27 RBI

Putting a team on your back is a hard enough task; doing so while battling lower back soreness makes the feat even more impressive, and even more legendary. Whether breaking up a no-hitter and tying the game with one swing in Toronto or clinching a playoff spot with late-game heroics in Game 161 in Atlanta, Lindor did everything he possibly could to will the scrappy Grimace-powered squad to glory.

BE – J.D. DAVIS, 2019
.329 avg, .987 OPS, 11 HR, 23 RBI

New Mets prospect Sammy Stafura’s all-time favorite Mets third baseman, Davis benefits this bench in his flexibility to really play anywhere on the diamond. He showed promise with the bat throughout his four-year Mets tenure, but never more so than in late 2019, after earning a full-time role rather than just platooning against lefties. Davis delivered one of the team’s many electrifying late-season walk-off wins with a tenth-inning double against Cleveland on August 21.

BE – MOISÉS ALOU, 2007
.373 avg, .987 OPS, 9 HR, 32 RBI

Maybe this article should just be called “The 2007 Mets, and also some other people.” The 41-year-old Alou joins Wright and Beltran representing the ’07 contingent on this roster for his late-season efforts after missing two and a half months with injury. With all these hitters going on tears as the regular-season calendar wound down, one might wonder how the Mets went 25-25 over their last 50 games and 5-12 over their last 18.

Having a father who was a former player and one of the best pitching coaches in baseball history certainly helped, but Shelley Duncan always has wanted to be a manager.

Duncan is in his fourth season with the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, and on Friday night in Worcester, Massachusetts, he managed his 1,000th career game in the minor leagues. It was a successful one too, as the RailRiders blanked the Red Sox, 2-0, behind the combined three-hit shutout by Alexander Cornielle and Bradley Hanner.

“Managing 1,000 games personally is really cool,” Duncan said. “When I think about it, it gives me that feel sometimes of when my gut is screaming at me and the conscious part of my brain might have doubt. Just that feeling of you’ve managed 1,000 games, trust it. It gives me an extra layer of confidence in decisions. It kills a lot of thoughts and negative doubts. It’s a really cool feeling to have. I can’t explain it. You just have that feeling that you’ve done something enough, it allows you to trust yourself more. It liberates your mind a lot and frees you up. It’s not a pride-ego thing. It’s a really cool feeling that’s hard to explain. That’s why it’s special.”

Duncan, 46, was drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round in 2001. He worked his way up through the farm system and made his major league debut in the Bronx on July 20, 2007.

He spent seven seasons in the major leagues: three with the Yankees, three with Cleveland and one with Tampa Bay. He played 330 games and batted .226 with 43 home runs and 144 RBI.

But even while he was playing, he thought about managing. Growing up, he was obsessed with leadership and learning about people who are at the top of their field or industry and what makes them special. He wanted to combine that with his passion for baseball.

“From a young age, I’ve always tried to look at the game from the lens of a manager,” Duncan said. “Even in my playing career, I didn’t take for granted playing for the good managers I played for and tried to learn as much as I can from every one of them, knowing that my career after playing could be longer as a coach or manager. I knew this is where ultimately the real future would be.”

So after his playing days ended in June 2014, Duncan began his managerial career in 2015 in the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He spent two seasons with the High-A Hillsboro Hops, one year with the Low-A Visalia Rawhide and one with the Double-A Jackson Generals. He compiled a record of 231-199 and won league championships with Hillsboro in 2015 and Jackson in 2018.

For two seasons (2019-20) he worked with the Toronto Blue Jays as a major league field coordinator and a scout. Then he was an analytics coordinator with the Chicago White Sox for two seasons (2021-22). In 2023, he returned to the dugout and to the organization where he began his playing career. He has a record of 317-254 with the RailRiders. Last season, he led them to the International League championship series and was named the IL Manager of the Year.

Through Saturday, his overall managerial record is 548-453.

One might think coming back to manage at a place where he had so much success as a player — in 2009, he was the IL MVP with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre — would be special, and it is. But Duncan said the true meaning isn’t in the Yankees name, but rather the people within the organization.

“When I came back here in ’23, even though it had been 13, 14 years it felt like I was back with family,” Duncan said. “A feeling of being with people you can trust and be the best version of yourself; you don’t have to be anybody different. That’s where the meaning comes from. It’s being with the group of people I’m with, not the name on the jersey.”

Of course, Shelley’s father is Dave Duncan, who spent 30 seasons as pitching coach with Hall of Fame manager Tony LaRussa in Chicago, Oakland and St. Louis. That meant Shelley got to be around LaRussa as a kid. But he also has tried to take a little bit of something from every manager for whom he played.

“As a player, you start learning that there isn’t one right way,” Duncan said. “Tony LaRussa was successful doing things his way, Joe Torre was successful doing things his way, Joe Madden was successful doing things his way. All those guys had different styles to deliver success, but ultimately it was all based on the personnel they had. They were the best managers they could be for the group of guys they had. It wasn’t the players molding their system. They did what was best for those players.

“The cool thing about it is whatever group of guys I have, whatever situation, I don’t expect the players to morph into me. I try to create an environment and make decisions that’s best for them. You use lessons and experiences from every single manager and how different they were.”

Whenever he has the chance to tell a player he is being promoted to the major leagues, especially for the first time, Duncan still gets goosebumps. The one he remembers most is his first one in 2018 — pitcher Yoan Lopez.

“He was a castoff in the (Arizona) organization,” Duncan said. “They sent him to me all the way down in A-ball. They were fed up with him. Something we did with him changed his trajectory and he became a new person. He got everything together in Double-A. He was having such a good year, they called him straight up from Double-A. Getting to see a guy that was completely cast off, at the bottom of the barrel, make it is something I won’t forget.”

Asked what other highlights stand out for him in his managerial career, Duncan said it is not the wins, the championships nor the awards. Rather, it is seeing players and coaches he has been with have success both in and out of baseball.

“It sounds cliche, but it’s true,” Duncan said. “The moments that stand out more than anything are seeing the ones I’ve had success with down the road. Not just players or coaches I’ve coached who coach in the big leagues. Seeing players who are done playing baseball and they go into professional life and send me messages, talking about things they’ve gone through and experiences that we’ve had that have helped them be better in their career outside baseball. Those are the ones that are the most meaningful. No games, no individual stuff. None of that. It’s seeing people succeed.”

Some day, Duncan would like to manage in the major leagues. Deep down, he believes he would be good at it. However, it has to be the right time and circumstance.

“GMs find the right managers for the right situation,” Duncan said. “You could have the best manager in the whole entire world and it not be the right personality, the right guy for that situation. The GM has to hire somebody that he wants to be with every single day. There has to be a trust and a bond. Not everybody’s a match, so respect that. I’m not a match for everyone. There might be a managing job out there one day that I wouldn’t want because it’s not the job you’re going into, it’s the people you’re going into. People are the most important thing.”

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George Springer can do no wrong at the plate right now, so I'm rocking with one of the hottest bats in baseball as part of my Mariners vs. Blue Jays prediction.

The Toronto Blue Jays host the Seattle Mariners for their series finale as a +120 underdog at BET99. Can they close the 1.5-game gap in the Wild Card race?

Let’s dive into my MLB picks for Sunday, Aug. 30, and win another same-game parlay.

Mariners vs Blue Jays predictions

Mariners vs Blue Jays best bet: George Springer Over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI

George Springer owns an .839 OPS in August for the Toronto Blue Jays and has played a huge role in their run to the Wild Card. He's registered eight hits (two homers, two extra-base hits) over his last four games and is on another level right now.

Against Seattle Mariners starter Logan Gilbert, he's5-for-18 with a double, triple, and homer — that'll play for us today.

He's cashed this bet in three straight games, and he's in line to make it four straight this afternoon.

I'd play this to -130.

COVERS INTEL: Struggling with the long ball? The Mariners' ace comes into the matinee coughing up six homers in his last five starts. Toronto needs to capitalize when he elevates his four-seamer today — hitters own a .501 xSLG against his heater.

Mariners vs Blue Jays same-game parlay (SGP)

Springer owns strong numbers in this matchup, and so does Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who's 7-for-23 (.322 xBA) with two doubles and three homers against Gilbert, while rocking an astronomical .690 xSLG.

With these two dominating Gilbert and a strong performance from Max Scherzer, we shouldn't have an issue keeping this one close.

Mariners vs Blue Jays SGP

• Blue Jays +1.5
• George Springer Over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI
• Vladimir Guerrero Jr. Over 1.5 hits + runs + RBI

Mariners vs Blue Jays home run pick: Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (+575)

Today could very well be the day Vladdy hits his first home run at home. He's hit three off Gilbert in his career already (he owns an average exit velocity of 98 MPH in this matchup), and owns a .721 OPS during day games.

Let's give our guy one more chance to climb out of this hole.

Mariners vs Blue Jays odds

• Moneyline: Mariners (-140) | Blue Jays (+120)
• Run line: Mariners -1.5 (+120) | Blue Jays +1.5 (-140)
• Over/Under: Over 8 (-110) | Under 8 (-110)

Mariners vs Blue Jays trend

The Under is 7-1 in the Blue Jays' last eight games as a home underdog. Find more MLB betting trends for Mariners vs. Blue Jays.

How to watch Mariners vs Blue Jays and game info

Mariners vs Blue Jays latest injuries

Mariners vs Blue Jays weather

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