Worldwide Sports News

Greetings, Brew Crew Ball community. The Brewers have officially clinched the NL Central, and they’re now on the verge of clinching their first-round bye. They’re also nearing a franchise record for wins (97-65 last season) and have a realistic shot at becoming the first 100-win team in franchise history. Lots to still play for (even if it’s somewhat symbolic) over these last 10 days.

Feel free to use this thread to chat about (almost) anything you want: video games, food, movies, non-baseball sports, the Brewers, you name it. As long as it’s appropriate and is allowed by our moderators, it’s fair game here.

You know the drill.

This is now an open thread:

The Detroit Tigers dropped the series opener to the Chicago White Sox at Rate Field on Thursday night, 3-1. Framber Valdez struggled early, giving up all three runs that the home team would score in the first inning and the offense simply had no answer for the opposing pitching staff.

Getting the start in Game 2 for the Motor City Kitties is right-handed rookie Andrew Sears, who has had mixed results in his four appearances so far. The 24-year-old has put up a perfectly mediocre 4.50 ERA and 4.10 FIP so far in two games as a starter, allowing 11 hits (one home run) and three walks while striking out nine, along with a pair of hit-by-pitches over 10 innings since being moved into the rotation.

The ChiSox have a righty rookie of their own taking the bump on Friday night in David Sandlin, who will make his fifth start of the 2026 campaign. The 25-year-old has put up a 4.15 ERA and 3.83 FIP over 21 2/3 innings as a member of Chicago’s rotation, but a rough outing that saw him surrender eight earned runs over four frames prevents him from having much more impressive numbers.

Take a look below at how the two match up in the second of the four-game series this weekend.

Detroit Tigers (72-81) vs. Chicago White Sox (78-75)

Time (ET): 7:40 p.m.
Place: Rate Field, Chicago, Illinois
SB Nation Site:South Side Sox
Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network

Game 154: LHP Andrew Sears (0-1, 5.40 ERA) vs. RHP David Sandlin (2-2, 5.64 ERA)

SEARS

SANDLIN

From a regular season standpoint, the 2026 season ends Sep 27. For teams like the Cardinals, their minds’ eye has already started to turn toward the 2027 season. However, transactions (for the most part) that begin to shape the organization’s talent pool won’t really begin until after the World Series ends, or very early in November.

This off-season portends a bit of a unique feature in that the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) expires on Dec 1, and the universal expectation is that transactions will freeze at that point and the players will be locked out of MLB facilities. This will create the MLB version of NCAA’s quiet period, inconveniently overlapping with the time most MLB teams conduct the most extensive roster reshaping exercises of the year. Unless there is a surprise early agreement on a new CBA, expect that the Winter Meetings won’t include player transactions (free agent signings or trades) and the Rule V draft will not occur (on the last day of those meetings). The Winter Meetings themselves may not even occur.

Given this backdrop, what is in store for the Cardinals as they continue to reshape their roster and strive to re-acquire a playoff contending team?

First, I want to take a look back at what this new management team did to reshape the roster in their first year at the helm. Some will remark that this management team has been around longer than a year, which is fair, but they really didn’t get their fingerprints on the major league roster until last November. This article focuses on that roster, not the MiLB side, which has been changing for a longer time. Let’s look a year ago.

When the 2025 season ended, the Cardinals had wrapped up with 78 wins and a retirement party for outgoing POBO John Mozeliak. Change was in the air and hopes were high. As I look at the 40-man roster at the time, it seemed an extensive roster reshaping might be in order. 78-win teams will create that impression. At the time, I counted up 21 pots that could undergo some churn (and hopefully, improvement). See below.

Mikelos was expected to depart via free agency and did. King was non-tendered, as expected. Ten spots on the 40-man roster needed upgrades. A year later, all but one (Prieto) have been moved on. Although the path from then to now was a bit circuitous, I think it fair to opine that in general, improvement has been achieved.

Thompson ended 2025 on the 60-day IL but was not added back to the 40-man when it expired. He remained in the organization, however, but he has not pitched since. I suspect his career is over.

Additionally, one could look at the established veterans on the roster and anticipate that some, if not all, could be dealt as the Cardinals transitioned from one core set of players to another. Their contracts represented a tangle, but management put up the cash to make transactions happen. Here we look up a year later, and all seven indeed have moved on.

That covered the pending departures. Moving on to anticipated adds.

Many 40-man roster changes are instigated by the need to bring on prospects who needed Rule V protection or were ready to make their MLB debuts even if they don’t need protection. The player situations coming out of the 2025 season are shown below, along with some obvious acquisition needs that would be met via trade or free agency.

In the first column, we have the players that could have been projected for MLB debut in 2026 before needing 40-man protection. Three were indeed added to the 40-man and promoted. Henderson suffered a long-term injury and his future is cloudy.

The second column identified players needing 40-man protection. Baez, Bernal, Mautz, Torres and Hjerpe were protected. Love, Hansen and Mendoza were not. All protected players saw their MLB debut and most project as part of the future. The ones that were not added? Hard to say these were mistakes. Winquest was overlooked in this list and got drafted in the Rule V (and returned).

The last column identified the obvious needs (before any MLB roster transactions occurred). Dustin May effectively replaced Mikolas. Justin Bruihl effectively replaced John King and they were added to the 40-man when acquired. Several other pitchers were added later as well, such as Stanek, Shuster, Bruihl, Soriano.

One complicating factor seemed particularly acute last year. At the end of 2025, in addition to the aforementioned Thompson, the Cardinals were carrying 3 pitchers with long-term injuries that would carry over into the 2026 season. This had the effect of freezing three 40-man spots, rendering them unusable until recovery occurred. Roby and Hence were already on the 40-man, and in spite of the injury, Hjerpe did get added. Hjerpe eventually made it back and had his MLB debut recently and he required a 40-man spot when he returned. Roby was handled differently. In 2026, he wasn’t actually placed on the MLB 60-IL but was optioned to MiLB and from a 40-man standpoint treated as a player in the minors. He did pitch in game conditions in order to preserve the option year. He will pitch in the AFL. Hence did not make it back and was subsequently removed from the roster.

Without getting into individual players and situations too much, I think a couple of observations about the overall process may be instructive for how this management team operates.

While the opportunities for churn were obvious a year ago, we should note that it really took almost a full year (not just the off-season) to accomplish “churning” 22 out of the 23 spots (deductions) and 11 more additions. For example, there was much teeth gnashing when Pozo remained on the roster coming into the 2026 season. Heck, if I could see the need for roster upgrade in September, 2025, why would that not be done by when the 2026 season opened? Answer: Sometimes it takes a little longer. At the end of the day, they got there.

The process itself is not complete. I look at this an iteration number one of the transition. I suspect we face another this next year (not just the off-season), complicated by CBA machinations.

Note the imbalance of subtractions and adds from the minor league system last year. The Cardinals chose to add a number of one-and-done players to fill out their MLB roster, many of whom were already off the roster by the end of 2026 (Pushard, Shuster, Blewett, et.al.). This appears to have been by design, to provide roster flexibility as prospects ascend. Keep this in mind. The main path for these guys coming in? Spring training non-roster-invitees (NRI).

When compared to prior years, the amount of churn after 2025 was high. I think most agree the roster had grown stale and this churn was necessary, if sad at times, as we saw favorite players depart. What I think we learned is that this management team is methodical, but not necessarily conservative. Turning over half the roster is not “passive”. Fans can squeal about whether Baez should have come up in July instead of August, but realistically, the indirect path led to the needed changes.

How might this apply to this upcoming off-season? If they follow a similar recipe, it should look about like this:

Soon after the World Series, expect the Cardinals to decline option years on Urias and Stanek. I anticipate a much more limited roster clean-up this off-season (to start with), which I will explain more in the next section. I see 3-4 guys being removed from the roster as part of a general clean-up and another 3 potentially being non-tendered. They will need these spots cleared to make room for new prospects being added, and these are the guys I anticipate going first.

For each of these three non-tender candidates, their performance, projected role and arbitration salary make their spots tenuous at best. It is possible they could end up in the traded category, if another team wants to jump the line before the non-tender deadline.

As to the Free Agents and clean-up spots, I’ve heard these being referred to a “organic changes”. They occur every year with every team and this (or something like it) is this year’s edition. Urias and Strzeleki are already gone, being DFA’ed in the 3rd week of September. Both players were at various stages of injury recovery and the timeline on the season was running out. With the writing on the wall, I anticipate both transactions were done with the players knowledge and acceptance.

Last, two 40-man roster spots may free up in February if Rajcic and Dobbins get placed on the 60-day IL for the 2027 season. Similar to Fitts and Roby last year, they may choose to option these guys and put them on the MILB full season injured list. This decision will likely depend on how many MLB additions they bring into camp for Spring Training.

In total, I expect only 8-9 spots to open up over the off-season. A fair bit different than last year.

Moving on the the potential additions the Cardinals will have to consider as they map out 2027:

I’ll start with the Rule V protection column. As described in a prior article, I anticipate that these six players will be the players moved on to the 40-man. Might be one or two more or less, probably depending on if they see some of the new outfielders as better alternatives to Scott II.

In the IL-60 column, Rajcic must be moved back to the 40-man as the IL-60 list expires at season’s end, so he looks like an addition. This leads to my roster math … seven players on, eight or nine players depart (free agents, 40-man, non-tender). This isn’t a statement that the other 32 spots don’t need upgrading, it is recognition that they free up those spots when someone is ready to fill them (trades, free agency). By November, they’ll need seven spots just to protect their own assets, so they will focus there first.

Looking down the road, it seems prudent to expect the Cardinals will continue to promote up some of their high-ceiling prospects (the first column) through the course of the 2027 season, but likely not coming on Opening Day. In constructing their 2027 roster, they must be mindful to allow for up to 7 spots to churn mid-season as these phenoms matriculate. Realistically, the 40-man roster will need at least half-a-dozen players on it that they do not expect to be with the team come this time next year, to allow for these promotions.

As you look at potential roster improvements (listed generally in the external acquisition column), the team will have pretty much two alternatives. One, they can go out and acquire players that upgrade these areas, or they can wait for some of the uber-prospects to master AAA and be promoted.

If they choose to wait, they will be faced with either coming out of spring training 2027 with a roster largely unchanged from the one that ends 2026 or acquiring a series of short-term upgrades that can be displaced when the uber-prospects are ready as 2027 progresses (or perhaps longer).

There will be some trickiness here, because those yet unidentified, short-term upgrades will displace existing roster members. Bruihl? Torres? Rincon? Peirera? Mautz? Fermin? Winquest? It speaks to the improvement of the overall roster that these decisions will be a bit tougher this go-around than last year.

A third option is to trade off from the core set of players and more radically approach upgrading the roster. Herrera? Burleson? Winn? All are possibilities, but this seems somewhat remote, but a non-zero probability.

So, at the end of the day, I see 3 pathways:

1. Keep the roster mostly intact, except for the organic changes related to free agency, non-tenders and a couple of fringe players,
2. Obtain a number of short-term upgrades and displace role players, and/or
3. Deal off from the core set of players to upgrade the roster in the areas of need (3b, CF, SP, RP, bench).

Remember, the Cardinals will have about 30 days to execute whichever approach they choose before the lock-out starts. They will also likely have a short window post-lockout, but that will be a mad scramble that will be difficult for this methodical group to navigate.

Good morning, Camden Chatters.

Only nine games remain on the Orioles’ 2026 schedule. We’re down to single digits now. Tonight, the Orioles begin their final homestand of the season, hosting the MLB-best Brewers and the wild card-hopeful Blue Jays before finishing their year at Yankee Stadium.

You’d be forgiven if you thought the Orioles’ homestand actually started four days ago, considering how much adulation and support the CitiField crowd was giving to the Orioles (well, one particular Oriole). The positive energy coming from the Mets fans seemed to bolster the Orioles’ spirits, lifting them to a series sweep. It also helps that the Mets are a truly dreadful team.

The Orioles don’t figure to get the same kind of help this weekend from the Brewers, who hold the best record in baseball and have already clinched the NL Central. If the O’s intend to keep their hot streak going, they’re going to need to bring their A game, such as it is. The pessimistic take is that the Orioles will get a cold dose of reality now that they’re facing competent teams, and that this homestand is almost certainly when the O’s will be mathematically eliminated from the playoffs.

But if you’re the optimistic type who’s holding out hope that the Birds can still make a late run at this, they’re going to need to play practically flawless baseball from here on out, and they’re going to need some help to knock out their wild card competitors, too. Right now it’s hard to pinpoint exactly which teams are their wild card competitors, since the AL Central and AL West divisions are very much up for grabs. The White Sox and Guardians are tied for the Central division lead (with the White Sox holding the tiebreaker), and in the West, the Astros hold a one-game lead over the Rangers (and the tiebreaker). The O’s are three games behind for the third wild card spot, currently held by the Guardians. The Rangers and Blue Jays are two games back.

With so many mediocre teams in the mix, the math gets complicated. To catch the Guardians, the Orioles would need to be four games better than them for the remaining nine games (since Cleveland holds the tiebreaker). But if the Guardians were to take the AL Central lead and knock the White Sox into the wild card race, the O’s would only need to be three games better than Chicago, since the Orioles hold the tiebreaker. Of the West teams, the Orioles hold the tiebreaker against the Astros but not against the Rangers, so however that division shakes out will affect the Birds as well. And then there’s also the Blue Jays to contend with, though the Orioles will have a chance to beat them head-to-head in their three-game series next week.

There are a lot of moving parts, and very little time for all of those parts to move in the Orioles’ favor. In all likelihood, three or four days from now there will be no need for O’s fans to keep track of the various wild card permutations. But if you’re keeping an eye on the out-of-town scores just in case, the Guardians are hosting the Athletics this weekend, the White Sox hosting the Tigers, the Astros at home against the Braves, and the Blue Jays and Rangers are facing each other in a pivotal wild-card battle in Texas. Happy scoreboard watching!

Links

Orioles make plans to bring back Povich – School of Roch

Cade Povich is the only realistic choice to replace Kyle Bradish, but see, this is why it’s hard to really believe the Orioles have any kind of chance of running the table.

What went wrong with the post-2023 Orioles? | MAILBAG – BaltimoreBaseball.com

This is a question that would require a novel-length analysis to really delve into, but Rich Dubroff valiantly tries to sum it up in a few paragraphs.

Luis De Leon is emerging as someone that could help the 2027 Orioles – Steve Melewski

The rookie lefty didn’t exactly endear himself to O’s fans by losing his first two major league games, but he’s quietly pitched pretty well since then.

Jon Meoli: Pete Alonso has given the Orioles his best. They’re on the verge of wasting it. – The Baltimore Banner

At least Pete is signed for four more years after this one. I just wish I could feel confident that the Orioles won’t waste all of those, too.

Orioles birthdays and history

Is today your birthday? Happy birthday! Two former Orioles pitchers were born on this date: 2021-22 righty Marcos Diplán (30) and the late lefty Harvey Haddix (b. 1925, d. 1994), who finished his career with the O’s from 1964-65.

On this date in 1976, Hall of Famer Frank Robinson, then playing for Cleveland, appeared in the final game of his 21-year major league career. Appropriately enough, it came against the Orioles, and befitting of Frank’s stellar career, it was an RBI single. It came as a pinch-hitter in the eighth in a 3-2 O’s win at Cleveland Stadium.

One year later, another Orioles legend got his moment as the O’s celebrated “Thanks, Brooks” Day to honor the retiring Brooks Robinson. A sellout crowd of 51,798 packed Memorial Stadium to cheer on the beloved longtime Oriole in an hour-long pregame ceremony. Brooks received a minutes-long standing ovation from the crowd as he rode in a car around the warning track, greeting fans. Despite insisting on no gifts, Robinson was presented with a new car, replacement Gold Glove awards for the ones he had donated to charity, and even third base itself, given to him by his replacement at the position, Doug DeCinces.

And on this date in 1991, yet another legendary O’s Hall of Famer had a day to remember. Cal Ripken Jr. hit his 30th homer in a loss to the Red Sox, making him the first shortstop in major league history to have a 30-homer, 40-double season. He finished the season with a career-high 34 homers as well as 46 doubles on his way to winning his second AL Most Valuable Player Award.

It’s the final regular season homestand and it’s one of the tougher matchups. Atlanta Braves Pre/Post Game Host, Barrett Sallee from 680 The Fan joins us exclusively at The Crawfish Boxes to break it all down.

Q: Astros fans immediately flashback to the 2021 World Series against Atlanta. There’s still 5 members from that squad on the Braves. When you prepare your pre/post-game coverage tonight, will you reflect or reference that matchup?  

A: Yeah, we will definitely discuss the 2021 World Series. That was one of the most improbable runs we have seen in the sport in a very long time. It’s not often that a team that’s below .500 at the deadline makes a run like that, especially with two trade deadline pickups as the MVPs of the NLCS and World Series. As far as specific coverage, we haven’t figured that out yet. But it will definitely be a topic of conversation, especially for local callers after the network coverage wraps up.

Q:Let’s begin with the top of the order, it seems like there’s been a variety of combinations and most of them have worked.    

A: Walt Weiss has moved players all over the lineup this season. Typically, Ronald Acuña Jr. and Drake Baldwin are No. 1 and No. 2 depending on righty or lefty matchups. However, Harris has popped up to the leadoff spot a few times over the last few weeks. It’s been a challenge for the top of the lineup at times this season. Acuña was hurt, then Baldwin, then Acuña again. Things have settled down lately, and we have seen Olson entrenched in that No. 3 spot behind Acuña and Baldwin, wherever they pop in on any given day. Olson has been in a bit of a slump lately. He’s always been a streaky hitter, but this one seems to be longer than others that we have seen in the past. However, when he breaks out of them, he does in a BIG way. Those three can be the most dangerous top 3 in baseball if they’re all healthy and cooking at the same time. Hopefully we will see that for the rest of the season and beyond. 

Harris is a massive reason that the Braves have been successful this season. Historically, his slumps and hot streaks have been extremely low and extremely high, with nothing in between. However, this year he has been solid all season. The slumps haven’t been long, and certainly not as noticeable. The hot streaks have been incredible, which is why you see his offensive productions so high this year when compared to other seasons. 

Q: What has Chris Sale has meant to this rotation this season?

A: Sale might not win the Cy Young Award again this season, but there’s no doubt that his contribution to this team is as valuable as any other pitcher to any other team in the league. He has received very little run production, but finds ways to give his team chances to win every single game. He truly doesn’t care about his win/loss record. He goes in to every start with the only goal of giving his team a chance to win. If he has a great game and the Braves lose, he is not a happy camper. Some pitchers say things like that, but don’t really mean it. Chris REALLY means it.

He has been pushed back in the rotation quite a few times for two reasons this year. The first is to give him a little extra rest to keep him fresh and secondly, to set up matchups against good pitchers and teams to set the tone. I compare the way that Weiss uses Sale to that of a college coach in the midst of a conference schedule. Every team always has that “Friday starter.” The guy that you trust more than anybody else, and can go out and dominate not only to set the tone for the series, but also protect the bullpen for the remainder of the series. Sale has thrived because of it.

More than anything else, though, is that his mindset has permeated throughout the clubhouse. He wants to win, plain and simple. That’s all this team wants to do. If any starter or any hitter goes out and has a great day, but the team loses, that’s a bad day. The younger guys – pitchers and hitters alike – have all taken to this mindset.

Q:Are the Braves built for a deep run this postseason?

A: The Braves are definitely built for a postseason run. While the offense has gone through some rough spots – June and August to be specific – we know how dangerous it can be. Plus, the ability of the pitching staff to keep them in games really helps. The biggest reason, though, is the bullpen. We have seen Dylan Dodd and Didier Fuentes escalate their games to become much higher leverage pitchers than they were early on. When you factor in Raisel Iglesias and (hopefully) Robert Suarez, the Braves have one of the best bullpens in the game.

Q: What would be your overview on pitcher Grant Holmes ?

A: Grant has really come along this season. He has a bulldog mentality. There have been times where, whether it’s for the team or himself individually, he has been in pressure-packed situations. He has come through in every single one of them. His slider has been nasty essentially the whole season. When he gets in trouble, it’s because of walks. However, he told us a few months ago that he really toned down his intensity. As a result, his command has become much sharper and he’s been able to go deeper in games. He really has a chip on his shoulder, too. He was a first round draft pick who essentially spent a decade in the minors. He belongs, we all know he belongs, and he’s going to show everybody that he belongs every time he takes the hill.

The Mets. We don’t like them. We would like to beat them.

I cannot guarantee victory over the loathed blue and orange club. I can guarantee some links.

Phillies News

José Urquidy has made his way to Philly from the ChiSox via waivers.

Brandon Marsh’s season has hit a bumpy patch. ($)

Jesús Luzardo’s injury is a problem. But maybe not reason to panic. ($)

MLB News

Relievers who might be a big deal this postseason.

A breakout prospect from each club.
A 25-year-old mystery from a Fall Classic past.
Where’s the next two-way star?

Free of charge for the discerning reader.

Happy birthday to Ryne Sandberg*, and a mighty host of others.

Today in baseball history, in 1909 – Before 35,409, the largest paid baseball attendance ever, Charles Bender beats Bill Donovan and the Tigers, 2 – 0, at Philadelphia. Ty Cobb is the Triple Crown winner with a .377 BA, 9 home runs (all inside-the-park), and 107 RBI. He also will lead the American League with 216 hits, 116 runs, and 296 total bases. His 76 stolen bases make him the only player ever to win a “quadruple crown”, and other stories as well.

Today in baseball history:

• 1908 – The largest crowd in the history of the National League – 35,000 – cheer as the Giants shove the Pirates to five games off the pace by sweeping a doubleheader. Christy Mathewson shuts out the Bucs in the first game, 7-0, for his 11th shutout and his 33rd win. Then the Giants collect 18 hits to take the nitecap, 12-7, as Hooks Wiltse and Joe McGinnity combine for the win. The other hitting occurs in the first game when Mike Donlin tires of a heckler and punches him in the eye. Police quickly move in.
• 1922 – George Sisler‘s 41-game hitting streak is stopped by New York’s Joe Bush, the same pitcher he had started the streak against on July 27th.
• 1931 – Lefty Grove wins his 30th game, beating the White Sox, 3-1, on five hits. He is the first to win 30 since Jim Bagby of Cleveland in 1920 and will be the last American League hurler to do so until Denny McLain in 1968.
• 1937– Pittsburgh OF Paul Waner establishes a 20th-century National League record with his eighth year of 200 or more hits.
• 1950 – At Ebbets Field, the Dodgers’ Tommy Brown hits three home runs in his team’s losing effort. He is the third Dodger this year to clout three homers in one game. The Cubs’ Ron Northey hits his third lifetime pinch grand slam – a record – to give Chicago a 9-7 win.
• 1976– In his last major league at-bat, future Hall of Fame Cleveland player-manager Frank Robinson strokes a pinch-hit single against the Orioles.
• 1986 – For the second time in his career, Reggie Jackson belts three homers in a game in an 18-3 Angels laugher over Kansas City. At the age of 40 years, four months, Reggie joins Stan Musial and Babe Ruth as the only players to accomplish the feat after turning 40. Reggie scores four times and has seven RBIs.
• 1992– Pittsburgh’s Barry Bonds hits his 30th home run of the season off Philadelphia’s Terry Mulholland in the Pirates’ 5 – 2 win over the Phillies. Bonds thus becomes the fifth player in history to have a pair of 30-HR, 30-stolen bases seasons. The others include his father, Willie Mays, Howard Johnson, and Ron Gant.
• 1998 – Frank Thomas notches his 100th RBI – the eighth straight year he’s reached that level – by clouting a two-run home run in Chicago’s 11-9 win over Boston. Thomas’s home run is one of seven in the game in which 32 hits are registered.
• 2025– All-time pitching legend Clayton Kershaw, who in July became just the 20th pitcher to record 3,000 strikeouts, announces that he will retire following the season after 18 years in the majors, all with the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Today in Cubs history:

• 1903 – The Cubs beat the Phils, 6-5, in the first game of a twinbill. In the second game, Chick Fraser no-hits Chicago, 10-0, for the Phils. Peaches Graham, normally a catcher, is the loser in his only major league decision, while Fraser K’s five and walks four.
• 1928 – The Braves and Cubs combine for National League-record eight double plays between them, but the Cubs win the game, 8-3. Sheriff Blake is the winner over Johnny Cooney.
• 1935 – With 30,000 fans watching at Wrigley Field, first-place Chicago tallies 20 hits in thrashing the Giants, 15-3. Charlie Root picks up the win, Chicago’s 15th straight.
• 1960 – Don Zimmer, Ron Santo, and George Altman hit 6th-inning home runs as the Cubs beat the Dodgers, 5-2, at Wrigley Field. Chicago’s biggest home run threat, Ernie Banks, sets a record by drawing his 27th intentional walk of the year.
• 1965– Larry Jackson of the Cubs beats the Mets, 4-3, for his 11th straight win over New York.
• 1970 – The Cubs sweep a pair from Montreal, winning 3-2 and 5-4. Fergie Jenkins wins his 20th in the opener, helped by Billy Williams‘ 40th homer of the year. Phil Regan is the victor in the nitecap.
• 1977 – After losing five of his last six decisions, Chicago’s Rick Reuschel notches his 20th victory, beating the Mets, 6-5. Reuschel leaves after six innings because of a blister, but racks up two hits and three ribbies at the plate.
• 1999 – Slammin’ Sammy Sosa becomes the first player in major league history to hit 60 homers twice. The Cub outfielder hits his milestone round-tripper off Brewer hurler Jason Bere.

Cubs Birthdays:Brent Lillibridge, Jody Gerut, Ozzie Timmons, Ryne Sandberg HOF*, Ed Hanyzewski, Paul Gillespie, Bob Collins.

Today in history:

• 1793 – US President George Washington lays the cornerstone of the Capitol Building in Washington, D.C.
• 1812 – Great Fire of Moscow burns out after five days, destroys 75% of the city and kills 12,000 people.
• 1837 – Charles Lewis Tiffany and John B. Young co-found a “stationery and fancy goods emporium” in New York City, renamed in 1853 as “Tiffany & Co.”
• 1899 – Scott Joplin is granted copyright for his “Maple Leaf Rag,” the most famous ragtime composition, by the US Copyright Office.
• 1946 – Joe Louis KOs Tami Mauriello in the first round for the heavyweight boxing title.
• 1947 – Central Intelligence Agency officially comes into existence after being established by President Truman in July.
• 1971 – Momofuku Ando markets the first Cup Noodles, packaging them in a waterproof polystyrene container.
• 1975 – American publishing heiress-turned-bank robber Patty Hearst captured by FBI in San Francisco, California.

*pictured.

In theory, taking two of three in a road series to open the week should qualify as a success, but in dropping the series finale in Minnesota, the Yankees lost ground in the AL East race, and they wake up today in Arizona five back of the Tampa Bay Rays. It’s a sobering set of events; the Yankees have played very good baseball for some time now, but haven’t been able to inch closer at all to their rivals. The goal at this point is to get the deficit within four, so that when the Yankees and Rays match up for four games in the Bronx next week, New York still has something of a gutshot straight draw, a narrow window to move into first with a sweep.

This morning on the site, you can get ready for the weekend series against the Diamondbacks with Nick’s preview, and get caught up on Thursday’s action with Sam’s Rivalry Roundup. Later, Matt’s entry in our Yankee Birthday series features a lesser-known figure in Brent Lillibridge, Josh discusses why Cam Schlitter’s stellar season has him leaving fWAR, and Madison delivers the answers to this week’s mailbag.

Today’s Matchup:

New York Yankees at Arizona Diamondbacks

Time: 9:40 p.m. EST

TV: YES Network, DBacks.tv

Venue: Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ

Questions/Prompts:

1. Will Gerrit Cole turn things around and reel in his gopher-ball problems tonight?

2. The 73-80 Detroit Tigers have nearly the same run differential as the 93-59 Tampa Bay Rays. This is less a question than it is a frustrated observation.