San Francisco’s mayor, Daniel Lurie, showed his support for Kuiper with an X post on Sunday afternoon that read, “San Francisco is with you, Kuip. Wishing you strength as you take on treatment. We’re all rooting for you.”
San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie speaks during a Domestic Violence Awareness Month rally on the steps of City Hall, Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2025, in San Francisco. Lurie joined local leaders for the rally to observe Domestic Violence Awareness Month. Getty Images
The reaction from Lurie was a direct re-tweet from Kuiper that read:
“I was recently diagnosed with throat cancer and began treatment last week with my doctors at Stanford Medicine. This cancer is unrelated to the one I experienced five years ago, and I’m optimistic that it will be successfully treated,” Kuiper wrote in a statement.
“I’ll miss the broadcasts tomorrow and Wednesday as I continue treatment, but I’m looking forward to returning Tuesday and this weekend to celebrate my partner, Mike Krukow, and his remarkable career as he calls his final game before retirement.
“I’m incredibly grateful for the care I’m receiving and for the tremendous support from my family, the Giants organization, my broadcast partners and so many others,” the statement added.
San Francisco Giants television announcer Duane Kuiper is seen before a game against the Atlanta Braves at Oracle Park in San Francisco, Friday, Aug. 25, 2023. USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
Kuiper has been in the Giants’ broadcast booth since 1986 (aside from one year working for the Colorado Rockies) and spent four seasons playing for San Francisco. He has become a Bay Area icon and one of the most beloved members of the organization.
Lurie speaks for all of San Francisco with this heartfelt sentiment about Kuiper.
Duane Kuiper of the San Francisco Giants prepares for the game against the St. Louis Cardinals at Oracle Park in San Francisco, California, Sept. 9, 2026. Getty Images
PITTSBURGH, PA - SEPTEMBER 15: Jacob Misiorowski #32 of the Milwaukee Brewers pitches during the game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Pittsburgh Pirates at PNC Park on Tuesday, September 15, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Milwaukee Brewers are going for a series sweep in Baltimore tonight, as ace Jacob Misiorowski will toe the rubber for Sunday Night Baseball, Milwaukee’s first Sunday night game since the MLB Little League Classic in Williamsport, Pennsylvania, one month ago.
The Brewers, at 97-58 on the season, have also officially tied their franchise record for wins in a season at 97. With one week to go in the regular season, they’ll have seven chances to set a new record, and they’re also just three wins away from the first 100-win season in franchise history.
The aforementioned Misiorowski is looking for his 16th win of the season tonight in what is likely his penultimate start of 2026. The NL Cy Young frontrunner, Miz is 15-5 with a 1.89 ERA, 2.19 FIP, and 243 strikeouts across 166 1/3 innings, totaling 5.9 bWAR. In his last outing against the Pirates, he went five scoreless innings, allowing five hits and a walk while striking out seven. This marks his first career appearance against Baltimore.
Opposite Miz is right-hander Brandon Young. Young, 28, is also in his second major league season. He’s made 26 starts this season, with a 9-4 record, 3.65 ERA, 4.57 FIP, and 118 strikeouts over 145 2/3 innings. He went five frames against the Mets in his last outing, allowing one run on five hits and five walks, striking out six. This marks his first career appearance against Milwaukee.
After a travel-day-esque lineup in Saturday’s 1-0 win, the Brewers are rolling with most of their regulars tonight. Jackson Chourio is in his usual leadoff spot, followed by Brice Turang, William Contreras, and Jake Bauers. Joey Ortiz moves into the No. 5 spot, followed by Christian Yelich, Cooper Pratt, Garrett Mitchell, and Sal Frelick.
Tonight’s game is televised exclusively on Peacock and the NBC Sports Network, with the radio broadcast available, as always, on the Brewers Radio Network. First pitch is slated for 6:20 p.m.
NEW YORK, NY - OCTOBER 19: A basketball sits on the court during a break in the action between the Brooklyn Nets and the Philadelphia 76ers during preseason action at the Barclays Center on October 19, 2012 in the Brooklyn borough of New York City. The 76ers defeated the Nets 106-76. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and/or using this photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Bruce Bennett/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Only one more Off-Season Report left! Don’t tell us about this being a quiet off-season! It hasn’t been easy finding a lot to write home about! There was big news like Mikel Brown Jr.‘s debut and Egor Demin’s growth. The arrival of Julius Randle is intriguing. He does have a habit of exploding when joining a new team after all. Sean Marks & co. also made some moves like re-signing Day’Ron Sharpe and Josh Minott to more than reasonable deals.
But for the most part it was stay-the-course, show resolve, call for patience, build for that “sustainable” future. You know: the tank may be over but the rebuild continues. They added another first rounder in another salary dump. They still have 13 firsts in the next seven drafts, most in the league. The 18-man roster continues to be development-centric with nine players 22 or younger and 14 under 25, retaining their position as the NBA’s youngest team in a generation. Winning may be the goal now but hoping to contend for anything other than a play-in spot seems like folly … despite what Michael Porter Jr. has said.
And ICYMI, the Knicks threw themselves a parade that attracted two million people! So there’s that.
All that said, we’ll know more over the next two weeks or so about the internal view of the team. We’ll get state-of-the-team assessments from Sean Marks and Jordi Fernandez a week from Monday at Media Day. Players will be available too of course. No word yet on how much of it will be televised on YES and the Nets website. Then, from September 29 through October 5, there will be daily practices at the facility as well the Nets Fan Fest — apparently the Practice-in-the-Park replacement — in Crown Heights on October 4. Fernandez will be available to the media (including ND) at the end of each practice to provide updates. The preseason opener is October 6 in Charlotte. Two days later, the Nets will be at home vs. the 76ers for their only home game this preseason.
A positive at least for now: we know of no injuries or health issues … although the Nets have a history of not publicizing them till the last minute. We learned about Demin’s plantar fascia issue (which had put him in a wheelchair!) at last year’s Media Day, months after it had been diagnosed and treated. Similarly Nolan Traore’s ankle scope was only revealed the day before the Nets flew out to Sacramento for Summer League. Same with Grant Nelson’s patella tendinitis.
The only contract situation outstanding remains MPJ’s extension. Nothing new that we know of there. Just a lot of speculation. Porter seems quite happy with the organization otherwise, promoting the improvements made by the young players and offering his enthusiasm and optimistic assessment of how he and Randle can work together.
A different kind of preview
In the meantime, we’ll be “treated” to preseason previews that no doubt will be continue to be mostly negative. It remains the narrative with just a little relief. If you’re looking for one preview that we thought captured things without being overly pollyannish or gloomy was the No Ceilings preview which is the most recent, having been published Saturday.
No Ceilings’ Tyler Rucker and Tyler Metcalf say Nets fans should be excited about team, particularly its future, while admitting the team has a “long way to go” before they contend. Sounds fair.
Metcalf starts off the preview with a comment that reflects what a lot of fans think: “I don’t even know where to start with this team (pause.) They are so weird.”
“I love Mikel Brown Jr. I love that they swung on him in the first round,” he continued. “I think they got a couple of really intriguing forwards in the draft in Joshua Jefferson and Tyler Bilodeau. I think Egor Demin is in for a massive second year. I loved the style they played last year with the quick decision-making, ball movement, player movement … and then there’s Julius Randle. When he’s good, he’s really good. Then there’s the other part.”
Rucker generally agrees.
“I’m sort of intrigued with …” he started off, with his own pause, his face just a tad contorted. “The team is weird enough that I like sort of like it. You know what I’m trying to say. I’m like, they’re sort of finding the path.”
Much of the positive elements of the preview are based on their excitement about the two 20-year-olds and their belief that Randle and Porter Jr., while flawed are “bucket-getters.”
“It starts with Mikel and Egor. I think Nets fans should be optimistically excited with this team. They’ve got two young pieces that they can build around,” said Rucker before defending Randle and Porter Jr. to Metcalf. “Say what you want Randle and Michael Porter Jr. They’re going to produce. You know they’re going to have games.”
Metcalf grudgingly agrees re Randle, saying “you know he’s going to get his on that Brooklyn team. He’s getting his numbers” and Rucker arguing that maybe the two players will love it in Brooklyn. (Both have certainly said so publicly.)
Metcalf also talked about the possibilities of Demin, Brown Jr. and Porter Jr. working together.
“I think Egor is going to be in for a big year. I love, theoretically, just what the trio and the floor spacing and the decision-making and scoring versatility of what he, Mikel and Michael Porter Jr. could look like together. I think those three on the court with their shooting, with their decision-making, and with their off-ball movement could be really, really fun ” he added.
He is not so sure how Randle fits. While conceding the veteran’s skills, Metcalf also wondered about the 6’9” forward’s offensive game.
“We talked about the Nets last year played such a fun style and really moved the ball. That’s not what Julius Randle really does. He’s a good passer, really skilled for his position, but it’s grab, pound, pound, pound, throw your body into someone, throw your body into someone, then make a decision. There’s very little quick decision-making. So I’m curious to see how works.“
Rucker, however, offered the other side of Randle’s game: he knows how to score.
“Randle’s going to be toughness. and he’s almost been what, nearly 20 points a game since 2019! That’s amazing.” (Editor’s note: The actual number is 21.7 points a game since 2018-19: 11,965 points in 551 games over eight seasons.)
Rucker addresses one big criticism of the last two years, that other than Demin, the 2025 Draft class aka the Flatbush 5, has underperformed, including during this year’s Summer League. Still he thinks that some of the criticism is unwarranted or premature.
“If Egor is awesome, I feel like we’re gonna to ignore the rest of the picks,” he argued. “almost. almost.”
Metcalf takes a similar tack.
“If you get one of those guys to hit at a super high level, especially the first one who’s a top 10 pick, then the rest is gravy … ‘We got one!’… and realistically, how many picks in the twenties actually hit?” said Metcalf of the Nets other picks taken at Nos. 19, 22, 26 and 27. “Typically, you’re either taking a seasoned upper classman to fill a very specific need or you’re taking a big homerun swing and they swung.”
Rucker thinks that it’s too early to give up on what else they got.
“Ben Saraf, I think, is going to be a good backup. Nolan Traore, we didn’t see at Summer League, but we saw him walking and I turned to you and said, ‘Traore looks like he gained two inches of height.’ He looked gigantic. So we’ll wait and see, but I’m with you.
“I like (Noah) Clowney, (Day’Ron) Sharpe and you get Joshua Jefferson and what are you going to get from Danny Wolf this year? I don’t know, but I really like Tyler Bilodeau in the second round. I thought that was a really sneaky add for them. He looked good in Summer League.”
Rucker summed up his thoughts this way:
“Am I saying the Nets are going to make the playoffs? NO! Am I saying this could be a year step forward? Sure for the Nets development? Absolutely!”
Rucker also left Nets fans with a wondrous best case scenario.
“This could be one of those funny teams that … there’s always one team that starts red hot, that’s we’re like ‘where did this come from?!?’ They’re 8-2 to start the year and all of sudden, we’re like, Oh! Okay! There it is!”
To which Metcalf adds, “they’re already done that.” Indeed, this is the 25th anniversary of Jason Kidd joining the Nets. Despite Kidd’s record of achievement prior to his arrival in New Jersey, virtually no one picked the Nets to even make the playoffs. They started 7-2 in 2001-02 and look where they wound up.
Tyler Bilodeau’s unlikely round trip
It was interesting to hear Rucker praise the Nets for taking Tyler Bilodeau at No. 43 in the second round. The 6’9” UCLA sharpshooter was not high on any draftnik’s big board until last June when ESPN pegged him in at No. 60 in their last two mock drafts.
We’ve written about Bilodeau’s possibilities, but also admitted that when he was selected, all of us who followed the draft reacted with one variation or another of “who dat??” when Mark Tatum called his name midway through the second round. Metcalf was correct in that he played well (enough) in the Summer League. And he had the highest 3-point percentage —46.0% — of any player in the Draft.
But what interested us this weekend when doing some research on the Nets draft history was the route he — or should we say the pick used to take him — traveled. It’s an example of how picks, particularly second rounders, wander… in this case four times in eight years.
The story starts in June 2018 when the Nets and Hawks were talking about a trade — a salary dump to be specific. Brooklyn sent Jeremy Lin; a Nets second rounder in 2025; the right to swap second rounders with the Hawks in 2023 in return for the draft rights to injured 21-year-old French guard Isaia Cordiner and Portland’s second rounder in 2020, which is protected top 55. The deal freed up $12.5 million in cap space which when added to the $10.5 million the Nets already had, giving Marks enough to make other moves in the third year of his first rebuild. Move No. 1.
This was the trade that Joe Tsai mentioned in his interview for David M. Rubenstein’s for his book, “In the Owners Box.” the one the Nets owner feared would cause millions if not tens of millions of basketball fans in China, Taiwan and Hong Kong. to “hate me forever.”
Then, in January 2022, the Hawks made a deal with the Knicks centered on Kevin Knox for Cam Reddish. Talk about a trade that no one won! Atlanta traded Reddish, Solomon Hill and the Nets’ 2025 second round pick for Knox and draft pick — a first round pick protected top 18 in 2022, top 16 in 2023, top 14 in 2024 or if not transferred, seconds in 2026 and 2027. Move No. 2.
The Knicks held on to it until June 2024 and the Mikal Bridges trade. Sean Marks took advantage of Leon Rose’s desire to add Mikel Bridges by asking not just for the five first rounders — four Knicks and one Bucks — but also his 2025 second rounder back. Done deal. Move No. 3
A year later, the Nets still controlled the pick and four firsts. Then, the day before the 2025 Draft, Brooklyn became part of a three-team deal — for them a salary dump — with the Hawks and Boston Celtics who needed help to complete a deal centered on Kristaps Porzingis and Georges Niang. In return for that help, the Nets acquired Atlanta’s first rounder, at No. 22, which became Drake Powell, and Terance Mann. Did the Nets want to develop five firsts AND a second? Nope.
So they shopped their wayward second, sending it to the Phoenix Suns and winding up with a 2026 second from the Los Angeles Clippers and a 2030 second from the Celtics in return. Move No. 4. That 2026 Clipper pick became Bilodeau. (What happened to the Nets 2025 pick? The Suns traded it to the Lakers and it became Adou Thiero.)
Other than a nerdy trip through eight years of draft boards, what is the value of this exercise? For one thing, it shows that second round picks have worth and the Nets lead the league in seconds with 19. Also, it shows that Bilodeau should be counted as part of the Nets haul for Bridges, not that it means much after that parade.
So let’s hope that Rucker was right in calling Bilodeau a steal. It’s taken enough time for him to get here.
Final Note
Another sign that the off-season is ending is what you just read. As we noted, not much out there. We are still waiting for the final Exhibit 10’s to get done. We’d expect that’ll happen this week.
But rather than dwelling on that, we’d like to point to something that Joe Tsai told David Rubenstein for his book on billionaires buying sports teams. Not what he said about his concerns over the 2018 Jeremy Lin trade nor how he set up a Twitter account to have direct access to fans now how Supreme Court Justice Brett Cavanaugh had a “decent game” when the two played pick-up with Yale Law students. Nope. it was what he said about his priority in running the Nets.
“We need to win a championship,” Tsai told Rubenstein. “We need to prove ourselves.”
DENVER, COLORADO - SEPTEMBER 20: Kade Anderson #13 of the Seattle Mariners pitches in the first inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 20, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Kade Anderson had his best-ever performance, and the Mariners extended their suffering another day.
The Mariners beat the Rockies 2-1 on Sunday in an uneventful game that was neither short nor long, exciting nor boring, meaningful nor insignificant. It was a baseball game between two bad teams, with just enough happening to be better than the offseason ahead. With the win, the Mariners take the series and avoid elimination entering the final week.
Anderson was the selling point for this one. He was fantastic for the first time in the majors. On the one hand, it came against the league’s worst offense. On the other, it came at the league’s launching pad in Denver. However you prefer to qualify it, Anderson was excellent in a Big League start that counts for real. He threw seven scoreless innings, allowed just three runs hits, and walked none while striking out seven. Most importantly, he got tons of chase out of the zone and picked up a career-high 14 whiffs:
It was good to see. Anderson struggle in his first five starts in the majors, with a 5.33 ERA and 4.44 FIP. He hadn’t shown an ability to throw strikes or miss bats or prevent hard contact or keep the ball on the ground. That’s not abnormal for a rookie, especially one who threw all of 93 innings in the minors and none above Double-A. But a strong outing Sunday — and hopefully one more against the Angels next week — is a nice confidence booster entering the offseason.
On the other side, the Mariners were getting perfecto’d through three innings, and I was getting a bit nervous that I’d need to put some effort into this recap. Thankfully, they figured out Tomoyuki Sugano in the fourth. Randy Arozarena drew an eight pitch walk, and Dominic Canzone singled up the middle to bring a hustling Arozarena around to score the game’s first run. It looked like the Mariners might have a big inning in the works after Cal Raleigh walked, but Julio grounded into a double play to end the threat. The Mariners got a second run in the sixth inning, this time off Ryan Feltner. J.P Crawford singled to lead off, and Canzone doubled him home.
That was it for offense in this one. I’m not really exaggerating. I have listed three of the four hits and two of the three walks the Mariners collected in this one. Lazaro Montes walked in the seventh and Julio picked up an infield single in the ninth, if you want me to be thorough.
I was done with the recap, then Andrés Muñoz gave up a home run to Hunter Goodman in the bottom of the ninth to make it 2-1. After a walk, Dan Wilson came out with the trainer in tow. Muñoz left with an injury, and Eduard Bazardo took over. Bazardo struck out a batter, walked a batter to put the winning run on base, and struck out another batter to end the game.
The Mariners are still technically alive. The Rangers and Astros also lost on Sunday, so their “tragic number” remains at two. That puts the dagger in the hands of the Astros in Seattle next week.
Alex Bregman walked off the field Sunday, Sept. 20 with a towel pressed to his face and blood running down his cheek. The Chicago Cubs third baseman was hit in the face by a foul ball as he waited in the on-deck circle in the top of the fourth inning against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball park.
Bregman was taken to a local hospital for further testing after the scare in Cincinnati. After the 9-1 win, Cubs manager Craig Counsell told reporters the ball hit Bregman in the cheekbone, which is swollen, and left a cut on his face. Bregman was evaluated for broken bones.
It happed with two outs and the Cubs leading 5-0. Michael Busch checked his swing on a 1-2 pitch from Reds right-hander Luis Mey, and the ball ricocheted toward Bregman. He dropped to the ground immediately, clutching his face, then got up and walked to the clubhouse under his own power. There was no official diagnosis.
Alex Bregman was hit in the face by a foul ball off the bat of Michael Busch while on deck in the 4th inning. Matt Shaw came in to PH.
Before the injury, Bregman had done damage to the Reds. He drove in a run with a first-inning single, then walked and scored in the Cubs' four-run third inning.
The 32-year-old is hitting .260 with 26 home runs, 88 RBIs and an .801 OPS this season. He signed a five-year, $175 million contract with Chicago last winter. The three-time All-Star won two World Series with the Astros.
The timing is the problem for Bregman and the Cubs. Chicago is on the verge of clinching a playoff berth, needing just one win or an Arizona Diamondbacks loss to lock in wild card spot. If Bregman needs time away, the Cubs have Matt Shaw and Pedro Ramirez to fill in at third base. Neither has Bregman's experience in a playoff race.
Any fracture would change the outlook considerably. Facial fractures around the cheek bone or eye socket can sideline a player for weeks, and a hitter usually has to be cleared before he can face live pitching again.
DENVER, COLORADO - SEPTEMBER 20: Randy Arozarena #56 of the Seattle Mariners slides into home plate to score a run in the fourth inning against the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on September 20, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Mariners 2, Rockies 1
Italian food: Kade Anderson, +0.51 WPA, Dominic Canzone Italian food discourse: The rest of the lineup, -0.48 WPA
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 20: Kazuma Okamoto #7 of the Toronto Blue Jays is late on the tag as Jake Burger #21 of the Texas Rangers slides safely into third in the sixth inning at Globe Life Field on September 20, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Jays 7 Rangers 2
Bullpen days seem dependent on how the ‘bulk guy’ does. Someone has to do more than a inning, they aren’t going to run 9 guys out there, doing an inning each. Long men tend to (how to put it politely?) not be the best arms. If they were good, they would be starters.
Today we got two guys that went more than an inning:
Spencer Miles ‘opened’ and went three innings without giving up a run, with four strikeouts. They seem to have given up on the idea of managing his innings, and we won’t know if that is a bad idea until later, but he’s been terrific.
Spencer Arrighetti threw 2.1 innings. He did give up a couple of runs (on a Jake Burger home run, Brett Bateman almost pulled it back into the park) but those things are going to happen. It was Burger’s 27th home run, so he’s hit them off a lot of pitchers.
After that it was short guys:
Mason Fluharty gave up a hit and a walk, while just getting one out in the sixth.
Paul Sewald got the last out of the sixth.
José Rodríguez, pitching in his second MLB game, threw the seventh. He gave up a single and had a strikeout.
Tyler Rogers got the eighth give up just a single in the eighth.
Louis Varland pitched the ninth, even with the big lead. Course he hasn’t pitched in a few days, might as well use him.
Offensively, we got everyone involved. We scored:
One in the first: Brett Bateman started the game with a walk. Vladimir Guerrero singled him to third. Nathan Lukes brought him home on a sac fly.
One in the third: Lukes had a one out single. An out later, Sean Keys doubled him home.
One in the fifth: Bateman again started the inning with a walk. Myles Straw singled. Keys walked to load the bases.
Four in the seventh: Bateman started this one with a double. Straw walked. Lukes singled in one (Lukes was asked to bunt, failed twice and then singles. Bunts are stupid). Charles McAdoo doubled in two more. Andrés Giménez singled in the seventh run (108.4 mph line drive).
The team had 11 hits. 10 different Jays hit, with Lukes being the only one with two hits.
It wasn’t all good news. Vlad came out of the game with back tightness (after getting a single).
And before the game, we were told that Dylan Cease is being shut down with a tired arm. They are saying it is possible that he could start at the end of the season, if he recovers quickly, but it seems unlikely that the last couple of games will mean anything.
Jays of the Day: Miles (0.16 WPA), Keys (0.14), Bateman (0.13) and Sewald (0.09).
Other Award: Arrighetti (-0.09) and Clement (-0.08).
Tomorrow the Jays start their last road series of the season vs the Orioles. Six games left. They still vaguely have a chance, but just seeing some good ball before the long cold lonely winter (as George Harrison said).
ARLINGTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 20: Jacob Degrom #48 of the Texas Rangers pitches against the Toronto Blue Jays in the first inning at Globe Life Field on September 20, 2026 in Arlington, Texas. (Photo by Richard Rodriguez/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Texas Rangers scored two runs but the Toronto Blue Jays scored seven runs.
After winning several games where it appeared as though the Rangers weren’t exactly the favorites, today The Shed dwellers had the opportunity to sweep Toronto with their remaining best pitcher Jacob deGrom on the mound versus a bullpen game for the Blue Jays.
This felt like one that the Rangers should have taken to further grab hold of their season with just a week remaining. The magnetic pull of .500 baseball is simply too strong for this squad, however. deGrom was nowhere close to his best, unfortunately. deGrom believes in his club but doesn’t deGrom’s groin or hip or leg or whatever believe in him?
This Rangers team in particular seems to be quite momentum dependent, which means an early lead feels like a requirement for them to have a good day. Maybe Chris Young put together a big group of sulkers, I don’t know. deGrom has been pretty poor at helping them facilitate that this season as he’s been prone to allowing first inning runs.
Indeed, it was 1-0 Blue Jays after the first inning today as deGrom walked the leadoff man who eventually scored the game’s first run on a sac fly. It became 2-0 Jays in the top of the third when deGrom allowed a two-out RBI double to some fella 20 games into his career sporting a .196 batting average.
After the Rangers showed a little life and tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, deGrom came back out and walked the leadoff hitter again and after a couple singles, including one that put Toronto ahead, Skip Schumaker had seen enough which meant another long day for the bullpen.
deGrom finished what is likely his penultimate start of the regular season going 4 1/3 innings on 82 pitches while allowing three runs on five hits with four walks and just two strikeouts. While that’s not good enough for a guy you were hoping could stabilize the staff after cobbling together innings all week, it’s clear that deGrom is also among those who are hobbled. It’s all cobble and hobble right now instead of full speed ahead for the sudden AL West leaders.
Though the Rangers got a couple of big double plays to wiggle out of danger to keep the game close over the next few innings, and even saw a couple of rallies die without tying the score, eventually the dam broke for a bullpen that will be especially glad to see a day off scheduled for tomorrow.
Though still just a 3-2 game into the seventh inning, two of the more trusted arms for Texas — Tyler Alexander and Chase Silseth — combined to allow four Blue Jays runs in the top of the frame and that was that. It’s worth noting also that even if deGrom had been better and put together are lengthier, more deGrom-expected outing, the Rangers also only scored two runs and those two runs came on one swing of the bat.
There was plenty of failure to go around.
Anyhow, here’s the good news: The Astros were swept by the Atlanta Braves so the Rangers retain their lead in the American League West by a single game. Still, it feels like they missed a big chance at adding to that lead and making their route to the playoffs a little more feasible with a dud in today’s finale.
Then again, it was either padding to their scant lead or being .500 again so we knew where this was headed.
Player of the Game: Jake Burger hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the fourth inning that had tied the game before Toronto broke down deGrom and the Texas bullpen and sank the Rangers’ shot at sweeping an AL East squad for a second time on this homestand.
Up Next: The Rangers will take their final scheduled rest day of the 2026 season before beginning their final home series of the regular season on Tuesday night against the National League’s New York Mets.
NEWARK, NJ - SEPTEMBER 20: Ryan Schmelzer #49 of the New Jersey Devils celebrates with Ben Steeves #37 and Cam Squires #75 after scoring a goal during a game between the New York Islanders and New Jersey Devils at Prudential Center on September 20, 2026 in Newark, New Jersey.(Photo by Andrew Mordzynski/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
This afternoon, the New Jersey Devils kicked off their preseason with a home matchup against the New York Islanders.
Things started off a bit slowly for the Devils, despite the eventual favorable outcome. In the first period, they were outshot 12-6, only playing a bit over 10 minutes at five-on-five because of a myriad of penalties. In that period, there were two near-goals: one for each side. The first came off the stick of Cody Glass, who took a feed while cutting across the net and chipped it past Vitek Vanecek after Ethan Edwards was run through the post, which knocked the net off the moorings. While the officials conversed, the Devils were not awarded a goal nor a penalty, shortly after taking their third penalty of the period. In those six penalty killing minutes, the Devils allowed three shots and looked pretty decent, only giving up a couple of high-danger chances. Later in the period, David Rittich was scrambling around the crease and had a loose puck just about covered up when he was rammed and jammed with the puck into the net. As the Islanders began to celebrate (barreling over a linesman in the process), Rittich went chasing after the offenders, causing a bit of a scrum that led to a four-on-four sequence.
Late in that first period, though, Ethan Edwards took a hooking penalty on Calum Ritchie, which gave the Islanders a four-on-three at the start of the second period. With that power play, Cole Eiserman scored the first goal of the game. Rittich just got a bit stuck at the far post.
It would not take long for the Devils to tie the game. Ryan Schmelzer, captain of the Utica Comets, scored on a quick counterattack off a feed from Ben Steeves after a Devils power play had expired.
David Rittich largely did well to keep the game tied throughout the second except for an adventurous departure from the crease that probably would have been punished by a full-NHL squad. I think that the Devils could do without decisions like that one given the goaltender they had just moved on from during the summer. The Devils dominated the expected goals battle in the second period after having a rough time in the first period, so giving momentum away in spots like that during the regular season is to be avoided.
In the third period, the game was a bit more back-and-forth with Connor Brown scoring the game-winner. In what has been a bit of a usual move for him, Brown poked the puck loose at the blueline off of Marshall Warren’s stick, racing the other way for a breakaway. He beat Vitek Vanecek cleanly, putting the Devils up 2-1.
The Devils largely controlled play after that game-winner, including a two-minute power play where they had chances but did not convert. At the end of the game, the Islanders had Vanecek pulled for the extra attacker, but they were not able to do much with the opportunity, only putting up one shot on Rittich with the six-on-five. So, the Devils took this one at a 2-1 score.
With this being a largely AHL-heavy lineup, the Devils seem to be saving more veterans for tomorrow night’s matchup against the New York Rangers. Today, Amadeus Lombardi led the way in expected goals percentage, trailed closely by Xavier Parent (with Parent leading by far in raw expected goals for at five-on-five). While I have not been noting Parent as a roster contender so far, today is a reminder not to count him out entirely. Parent is someone who plays with energy and has a drive to score, as he led the Devils in individual expected goals per all-situation 60 minutes today (2.044/60) despite not playing much on the power play.
And, to his credit, while I think he was a bit too hectic in net, David Rittich saved 1.82 goals above expected on 24 total shots against, per Natural Stat Trick. That is, statistically, a good first start for him.
Tomorrow, we should be seeing some of the top six. I am looking forward to it.
Your Thoughts
What did you think of the preseason opener? Did you watch? Did you attend? What was your experience if you were at the game? What did you think of Lombardi’s first preseason game? Silaev? What about the returning veterans in Brown, Glass, and Dillon? What did you think of Rittich? Leave your thoughts in the comments below, and thanks for reading.
New York Yankees' Trent Grisham throws during batting practice before a baseball game against the New York Mets, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, in New York.
PHOENIX – Trent Grisham could be on the Yankees’ playoff roster, but he almost certainly will not play in a regular-season game before then.
The Yankees are not planning to activate Grisham off the injured list during the final week of the regular season, partly because he still has boxes to check off in his return from a hamstring strain and partly because of complications in how they construct their playoff roster.
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“I know he’s trending to be close, but the activation might be a little complicated,” manager Aaron Boone said Sunday morning at Chase Field.
The issue is that if the Yankees activate Grisham during the regular season, they would either have to option a player to Triple-A or designate someone for assignment to clear a spot on the active roster.
Optioning a player would make them ineligible to be recalled for 10 days (or 15 for a pitcher), meaning the Yankees would not have access to them for the AL wild-card series and potentially the ALDS.
Max Schuemann is expected to be sent back to Triple-A to make room for Jazz Chisholm Jr., who could come off the IL as early as Tuesday, but clearing another spot gets more difficult if everyone stays healthy.
New York Yankees’ Trent Grisham throws during batting practice before a baseball game against the New York Mets, Friday, Sept. 11, 2026, in New York. AP Photo/Noah K. Murray
The question then becomes whether the Yankees want to have Grisham on their playoff roster fresh off missing three-plus weeks on the IL, coming back to an uncertain role.
Spencer Jones has taken over center field duties in his absence and hit well (even with some hiccups defensively), especially against left-handers.
With Aaron Judge trending toward missing the wild-card series, Heliot Ramos figures to start in right field against the Red Sox’ left-handers. Could Grisham start in center field against a righty like Sonny Gray, with Jones moving to right field, or be a left-handed pinch-hitting option off the bench?
Before the Yankees have to make that decision, Grisham needs to finish off his running progression to be cleared physically.
“He’s been doing quite a bit,” Boone said. “He’s pretty deep into his running progression, hitting and doing baseball activities. So he’s getting pretty close.”
I’ve written virtually every Sunday gamethread this year as some variation of, “hey, the Sox have a chance to win this series! That would be pretty cool!”
I love the competition of the race, but I’m also kind of sick of it, simply from inexperience. I can’t be the only one who bit their nails to the nub with every pitch of that Cleveland series thinking to myself that I truly couldn’t remember the last time White Sox baseball made me that nervous. I love it, but I also forgot the unmistakably unique type of crushing that comes from being on the wrong side of “Team A gets cold and Team B gets hot at the most important point in the season.”
As I wrote last week with regards to the Sox pitching, I’m comfortable with dancing with who brought us here, which in this case is Davis Martin, who’s looked quite solid since his August IL stint. The length that we were getting from him earlier in the season isn’t there, but he’s still allowed just three earned runs in 16 innings since his return. Every game is a must-win at this point, and I suspect that if the White Sox can pull through, it’s going to be because Sean Burke and Martin nutted up when it counted, as they did for so much of this season.
A.J. Hinch isn’t exactly putting a Murderer’s Row out there, especially with another game tomorrow. If the Davis Martin Hype Train is once again picking up steam, this shouldn’t be too much of an impediment to what could be his first quality start since June.
That last quality start of Martin’s also came against a pre-deadline Detroit lineup that still had designs on the playoffs. The Sox will also have the potential advantage of seeing starter Troy Melton for the second time in a month or so, after dinging him around a fair amount back in August to end his Cinderella start to the season.
Time to take care of business. If they can’t, it’ll be hard to argue that they deserve to keep playing beyond this coming week.
First pitch was scheduled for 1:10 p.m. CT, but has been indefinitely delayed due to rain doing rain things. Whenever it does get going, it’ll be broadcast on CHSN with Len Kasper and Darrin Jackson on the call over the radio waves on WMVP AM 1000. See you in the comments!
I’ve written virtually every Sunday gamethread this year as some variation of, “hey, the Sox have a chance to win this series! That would be pretty cool!”
I love the competition of the race, but I’m also kind of sick of it, simply from inexperience. I can’t be the only one who bit their nails to the nub with every pitch of that Cleveland series thinking to myself that I truly couldn’t remember the last time White Sox baseball made me that nervous. I love it, but I also forgot the unmistakably unique type of crushing that comes from being on the wrong side of “Team A gets cold and Team B gets hot at the most important point in the season.”
As I wrote last week with regards to the Sox pitching, I’m comfortable with dancing with who brought us here, which in this case is Davis Martin, who’s looked quite solid since his August IL stint. The length that we were getting from him earlier in the season isn’t there, but he’s still allowed just three earned runs in 16 innings since his return. Every game is a must-win at this point, and I suspect that if the White Sox can pull through, it’s going to be because Sean Burke and Martin nutted up when it counted, as they did for so much of this season.
A.J. Hinch isn’t exactly putting a Murderer’s Row out there, especially with another game tomorrow. If the Davis Martin Hype Train is once again picking up steam, this shouldn’t be too much of an impediment to what could be his first quality start since June.
That last quality start of Martin’s also came against a pre-deadline Detroit lineup that still had designs on the playoffs. The Sox will also have the potential advantage of seeing starter Troy Melton for the second time in a month or so, after dinging him around a fair amount back in August to end his Cinderella start to the season.
Time to take care of business. If they can’t, it’ll be hard to argue that they deserve to keep playing beyond this coming week.
First pitch was scheduled for 1:10 p.m. CT, but has been indefinitely delayed due to rain doing rain things. Whenever it does get going, it’ll be broadcast on CHSN with Len Kasper and Darrin Jackson on the call over the radio waves on WMVP AM 1000. See you in the comments!
The saga between Vezina and Hart Trophy Connor Hellebuyck and the Winnipeg Jets has reached critical mass, as the Olympic gold medal-winner failed to report to training camp, and was subsequently suspended by the Jets. The 33-year-old goalie reportedly requested a trade after the regular season, but GM Kevin Cheveldayoff has been unable to get an offer that he deemed equal value.
Sportsnet’s Elliotte Friedman and TSN’s Pierre LeBrun indicated last week that the Florida Panthers pursued Hellebuyck, but traded assets that were offered in the proposed trade to Ottawa for winger Brady Tkachuk and to New Jersey for goalie Jacob Markstrom. They also reported that three clubs; the Buffalo Sabres, Utah Mammoth, and Carolina Hurricanes are still in the mix for the veteran netminder, who has five years left on his contract at $8.5 million per season.
The Sabres reportedly came closest to pulling off a trade for Hellebuyck, but as to how close they came, is open to interpretation. Friedman said on this week’s 32 Thoughts podcast that the Jets wanted the fourth overall pick that Buffalo obtained in the Bowen Byram deal, and did not want to give up the eighth overall pick, which they used to select Swedish forward Viggo Bjorck.
The biggest potential impediment to a deal now is that Friedman believes that Sabres goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen has put the Jets on his five-team no-trade clause, and with Winnipeg wanting a goalie in return in the deal for Hellebuyck, that would seem to put Buffalo as a longshot as his final destination.
But on Sunday, a pitcher from his high school alma mater scaled the mound at Dodger Stadium.
Yuuri Teramoto, a first-year student at Hanamaki Higashi High School, threw out the ceremonial first pitch before the Dodgers’ series finale against the San Francisco Giants. Teramoto plays on Hanamaki Higashi’s girls baseball team.
Teramoto was one of 50 high school students chosen by Iwate prefecture to visit the United States as part of an exchange program. This is the 150th anniversary of Iwate’s founding, as well as the 15th anniversary of the Tohoku earthquake and tsunami.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani spends time in the dugout against the San Francisco Giants on Friday, Sept. 18, 2026, in Los Angeles. Wally Skalij for CA Post
Teramoto’s first pitch was caught by Iwate native Roki Sasaki, who is from the coastal town of Rikuzentakata and lost his father in the tsunami.
Teramoto is from the southern island of Kumamoto but said she was in part inspired by Ohtani to attend high school in Iwate, which is on the northern part of Japan’s mainland.
“He’s someone I admire,” Teramoto said in Japanese.
Like Ohtani, she added, “My dream in the future is to go to the United States.”
Hanamaki Higashi is also the high school alma mater of Angels left-hander Yusei Kikuchi and Miami Marlins prospect Rintaro Sasaki.
Teramoto said her team practices using a pitching machine donated by Ohtani.
“We used the machine every day and we’re very grateful,” she said.
Among the homegrown arms in the Mets rotation, Jonah Tong still has the most to prove.
Flashes of dominance have emerged from the 23-year-old rookie, but consistency is lacking. This was evident again Sunday, when the right-hander fell into an early hole, and his team never recovered in a 7-2 loss to the Phillies at Citi Field.
“I think I need to do a better job,” said Tong, who allowed two runs in the opening frame. “Especially, that first inning set the tone, but I feel like I competed well through it. But my job is to limit the damage and go out there and keep competing.”
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Nolan McLean, Christian Scott and Zac Thornton have all performed at a high enough level to begin next season in the rotation. The wild card is Tong, who has pitched to a 4.21 ERA in six appearances this season. In three starts since his recall this month from Triple-A Syracuse, he’s pitched to a 4.60 ERA.
On Sunday, he allowed four earned runs on five hits and four walks over 4 ²/₃ innings, departing after 95 pitches. It followed a start against the Orioles in which he did not surrender an earned run over six innings.
“I don’t think he was far off today,” interim manager Andy Green said. “The changeup has been really good for him since he’s been up. He’s got a lot of strikeouts with it. … Even if he doesn’t have the greatest feel for that, we have got to find a way to reintroduce that and keep that a part of the mix. That pitch is very important for him.”
Green was asked about Tong’s chances of cracking the rotation to begin next season.
“He definitely has a chance,” Green said. “I think we have kind of painted the landscape for a lot of young guys that [the front office] is likely to go sign some people. We’ll have a lot of guys who have established themselves at that point in time, so the chance is heightened if he pitches really well, if his stuff gets better, if the strikes are there. I think all those things are possible for Jonah.”
New York Mets pitcher Jonah Tong (21) is knocked down by Philadelphia Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott (5) as he tags him at first base on a groundout to end the top of the first inning at Citi Field in Queens, N.Y., Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post
The Mets, who split the four-game series, completed their 2026 home schedule at 36-45. They will play at Texas and Washington this week, with six games to conclude the season.
Tong walked Kyle Schwarber in the first inning and watched the Phillies DH score the first run on Luis Arraez’s sacrifice fly. Alec Bohm’s RBI single widened the Mets deficit to 2-0. Bryce Harper also singled in the inning.
Trea Turner’s RBI double in the third inning extended the Phillies lead to 3-0 after Schwarber walked leading off. Arraez’s RBI single gave the Phillies their fourth run.
“Some credit to Schwarber’s two walks,” Green said. “They weren’t walks where the pitcher has lost it. They are battle walks where he fouled off a number of pitches. The first and third [innings] started that way, and that’s where the runs came.”
New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) strikes out looking during the third inning of a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citi Field in Queens, N.Y., Sunday, Sept. 20, 2026. Robert Sabo for NY Post
The Mets were overmatched by Cristopher Sánchez, a National League Cy Young Award candidate who allowed two earned runs on six hits over 6 ¹/₃ innings with six strikeouts. Sánchez began the day with a 7.5 bWAR this season — the highest among all pitchers.
Bo Bichette homered in the sixth for the first run against Sánchez. Brett Baty delivered a pinch-hit RBI single in the seventh that sliced the Phillies lead to 4-2.
Kodai Senga allowed three runs in the eighth and was removed after recording only one out. The right-hander’s appearance was his first since Tuesday, when he surrendered Pete Alonso’s 300th career homer — a game-tying blast in the ninth inning.
