BALTIMORE, MARYLAND - SEPTEMBER 07: Pete Alonso #25 of the Baltimore Orioles reacts after drawing a walk to drive in a run in the third inning against the Cleveland Guardians at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on September 07, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Pete Alonso will return to New York tonight in search of his 300th career home run. The Polar Bear is expected to receive a warm welcome at Citi Field after spending the first seven years of his career in a Mets uniform. The Orioles signed Alonso to a five year, $155-million deal last offseason.
Samuel Basallo will not be in the lineup tonight. Baltimore skipper Craig Albernaz said Basallo is dealing with some right shoulder discomfort. Carlos Narváez will bat ninth and catch starter Brandon Young.
Dylan Beavers is back atop the lineup and will play left field. Gunnar Henderson (shortstop), Coby Mayo (third base), and Jackson Holliday (second base) will round out the infield and the heart of the order.
Christian Encarnacion-Strand will bat sixth and DH. Heston Kjerstad will bat seventh and play right field, and Colton Cowser will bat eighth and take center.
Young has already tossed a career high 140.2 innings. With Baltimore all but out of contention, it’s fair to wonder if this could be his last start of the season. Young is 9-4 with a 3.71 ERA.
Prior to the game, Baltimore optioned RHP Yaramil Hiraldo and recalled RHP Codi Heuer. The Orioles acquired Heuer from Milwaukee for cash on August 3.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 13: Emmanuel Rodriguez #21 of the Minnesota Twins makes a catch during the game between the Cleveland Guardians and the Minnesota Twins at Target Field on Sunday, September 13, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Michael Turner/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
First Pitch (CT):6:40 PM TV: Twins.TV Radio: TIBN/830 WCCO/102.9 The Wolf /Audacy App Know Yo’ Foe:Pinstripe Alley
Bad news: the Twins play the Yankees. Good news: most of these Twins are young enough to not even know the Twins are cursed against the Evil Empire. But back to bad news: back-to-back MVP Aaron Judge is back after missing over 4 months.
Judge is still rounding into form, with the Yankees opting to bring him right back to the Bigs and forgo a rehab assignment. But even with a less-than-100% Judge, monster masher Giancarlo Stanton missing 90% of the season, and key starters Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham placed on the IL in the past week, this New York lineup is still plenty deep. Cody Bellinger is a rock steady contributor, while Ben Rice and midseason pickup Luis Garcia Jr. each have over 30 homers this season. Plus, they have their own exciting rookie tandem between shortstop George Lombard Jr. and humungous centerfielder Spencer Jones (think Matt Wallner but fast).
Dean Kremer will head to the mound for the Twins, who will look to provide some length after the debacle yesterday. Kremer’s home run rate has normalized since coming to Minnesota, as expected, but his strikeout rate has dropped while his walk rate climbed, so the overall results have still left Twins fans a bit wanting. I don’t think Kremer is at risk of being non-tendered in the offseason, but with all of Pablo Lopez, Joe Ryan, Bailey Ober, and Kremer set to be free agents after 2027, Jeremy Zoll and co. will likely want to do some shuffling in favor of long-term stability. Everyone from Kremer to my dog would feel much better about next year’s outlook if he can string together a few strong starts to end his campaign.
NOTES
Trevor Larnach was in the intial lineup but was scratched after getting injured pre-game. He is getting imagine on his wrist. Any missed time would end his season and potentially his Twins career.
Kaelen Culpepper remains out after getting drilled in the back by a fastball on Saturday. Derek Shelton sounded optimistic that he could be back tomorrow.
Royce Lewis also remains out after leaving yesterday with shoulder discomfort. We may be seeing the last of Lewis as a Twin as well.
MINNEAPOLIS, MN - SEPTEMBER 13: Steven Kwan #38 of the Cleveland Guardians makes a catch during the game between the Cleveland Guardians and the Minnesota Twins at Target Field on Sunday, September 13, 2026 in Minneapolis, Minnesota. (Photo by Michael Turner/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
CINCINNATI, OH - JULY 30: A wide angle view of the crowd watching Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Shohei Ohtani (17) pitch against the Cincinnati Reds on July 30, 2025, at Great American Ball Park in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Brian Spurlock/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Freddie Freeman gets a rare day off as the Dodgers visit Great American Ball Park for the first time in 2026.
MIAMI, FL - SEPTEMBER 11: Edgardo Henriquez (60) of the Los Angeles Dodgers pitches a ball during a game between the Miami Marlins and the Los Angeles Dodgers on September 11, 2026 at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Florida.(Photo by Chris Arjoon/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
One day after allowing his first runs in four weeks, Dodgers reliever Edgardo Henríquez was placed on the 15-day injured list with lower back discomfort. His regular season is over.
Henríquez has been one of the best relievers on the team this season, with a 2.85 ERA and 2.47 xERA in 61 games, with 71 strikeouts and 25 walks in 60 innings, with a 29.3-percent strikeout rate and only one home run allowed. The 24-year-old leads the Dodgers bullpen in innings and xERA, and is second only to Tanner Scott in strikeouts.
Sunday was a rare rough outing for Henríquez, who allowed three hits, a walk, and two runs in the eighth inning, recording only two outs. Those were the first runs allowed by Henríquez since August 16, snapping a string of 11 consecutive scoreless appearances.
“It’s the confidence he has in his fastball. Everybody knows it’s not easy to hit 103, 104 coming at you with confidence,” outfielder Teoscar Hernández said last week on the Dodgers’ homestand. “That’s been the difference between the Edgardo we saw at the beginning of the year, and the Edgardo we’re seeing right now.”
Whether Henriquez will be ready and available once the postseason starts remains to be seen.
With Henríquez sidelined, Bobby Miller was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City. Miller was just optioned last Monday, but he’s able to return before his 15 days are up because he’s replacing an injured player.
CINCINNATI, OHIO - JULY 28: Yoshinobu Yamamoto #18 of the Los Angeles Dodgers throws a pitch against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park on July 28, 2025 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The Dodgers and Reds continue their series on Tuesday in Cincinnati, with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound.
Tuesday is Yamamoto’s 27th start of 2026, the lone Dodgers starting pitcher to remain active and in the rotation all year. He’s at 172 innings, needing only two innings to surpass his MLB regular season high of 173 2/3 innings set in his 30 starts in 2025. Yamamoto’s 6.62 innings per start is tops in the majors.
Right-hander Rhett Lowder starts for the Reds on Tuesday. He allowed seven runs in 3 1/3 innings to the Dodgers last Wednesday at Dodger Stadium. The winning pitcher that night was Yamamoto, who struck out 10 in seven innings.
José Ramírez has been weakened by injury, but if there’s anything that can restore his strength it’s seeing the White Sox in the opposite dugout. | (Photo by Frank Jansky/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
The series opener between the White Sox and Guardians will determine the AL Central. If that sounds overdramatic, perhaps you haven’t watched the last two weeks of South Side baseball.
Chicago limps into this game looking to right many wrongs. In their last 10 games, they’ve lost seven and produced a -9 run differential. The bats hit .179 with runners in scoring position, going a measly 14-for-78, and the rotation is out of steam. Starters have averaged 3.57 runs allowed in their last seven games before getting yanked in the middle of the fifth. Coming out of this slow stretch, the South Siders will be playing with a deck stacked against them.
Walking onto Progressive Field hasn’t been easy for this organization: Since 2020, the Sox are 16-28 in Cleveland, and that’s including the three-game series the Guardians took earlier this year. The White Sox haven’t swept the Guardians in a series in the last six years, and the story only gets uglier going back to the late 2010s. Not only does Cleveland have home-field advantage this week, but they just wrapped up a 6-4 record in their last 10 games and are eager to reclaim their spot as the division leader, which they last shared with the Sox on July 21. This match between the hungry Guardians and white-knuckling Sox will be a major tone-setter for the final 13 games of the year.
With a rotation crawling towards the end of the season, Sean Newcomb is once again an opener for the White Sox, against Gavin Williams, who has been all over the place in terms of quality outings this year. Williams has endurance on his side, averaging just short of six innings pitched per game, but Newcomb has been successful as an opener.
Here’s how the Sox line up at the plate:
And here’s how the Guards match up against them:
Don’t miss the first pitch, at 5:40 p.m. CDT on CHSN and ESPN Chicago WMVP 1000 AM.
PHILADELPHIA, PA - AUGUST 09: Davis Schneider #36 of the Toronto Blue Jays at bat during the game against the Philadelphia Phillies on August 9, 2026 at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Graessle/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Happy Monday.
There was a roster move today, Jesús Sánchez was claimed off waivers the the Diamondbacks. Not really surprise that someone picked him up. There is power there, we just didn’t get it to come out.
And some real roster moves:
Rudy Martin Jr. has been put on the IL with a left hamstring strain.
Brendan Cellucci LHP has been called up. He has a 3.06 ERA in 46 appearances, mostly with the Bisons. In 53 innings he allowed 44 hits, 26 walks and 59 strikeouts.
Davis Schneider has been called up. In August, for the Bisons, he hit .250/.421/.607 with 3 home runs, 8 walks and 8 strikeouts. I feel a little better about him coming up considering he was actually hitting the ball some, and not just taking walks.
And Ricky Tiedemann has been optioned to Buffalo.
And there are some injury notes:
Trey Yesavage will throw three innings tomorrow (well, hopefully throw three innings) for the Bisons. If all goes well, he may be up soon after that.
Anthony Santander will play with the Bisons ‘through this week’. We knew he wasn’t likely to be coming up right away. He’s going to have to show he can hit some.
Apr 30, 2024; New York City, New York, USA; New York Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor (12) scores a run on New York Mets first baseman Pete Alonso (not pictured) sacrifice fly ball during the first inning at Citi Field. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-USA TODAY Sports | USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con
Mets lineup
Francisco Lindor – SS Juan Soto – LF Bo Bichette – 3B Carson Benge – RF Jared Young – DH Marcus Semien – 2B A.J. Ewing – CF Brett Baty – 1B Francisco Alvarez – C
SP: Jonah Tong – RHP
Orioles lineup
Dylan Beavers – LF Pete Alonso – 1B Gunnar Henderson – SS Coby Mayo – 3B Jackson Holliday – 2B Christian Encarnacion-Strand – DH Heston Kjerstad – RF Colton Cowser – CF Carlos Narvaez – C
SP: Brandon Young – RHP
First pitch: 7:10 PM EDT TV: SNY Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2
Inter and Roma lead Serie A, Como move up to third
Real Betis beat struggling Villarreal in La Liga
Inter fought back from two goals down to beat Udinese 5-3 on Monday, maintaining their perfect Serie A start alongside Roma, who won 2-0 at Torino before Saturday’s match between the joint leaders. Both sides have 12 points from four matches and share top spot before their encounter at the Stadio Olimpico, while Como are third on 10 points after beating Parma 2-1.
Udinese stunned Inter with two goals in the opening 16 minutes, as James Abankwah headed home unmarked after nine minutes before Jurgen Ekkelenkamp doubled the visitors’ lead with a close-range finish seven minutes later. Inter hit back through Carlos Augusto, whose long-range effort flew into the bottom corner, before Nicolò Barella levelled 10 minutes before half-time.
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 12: Francisco Lindor #12 of the New York Mets rounds the bases after hitting a grand slam in the eighth inning during the game between the New York Mets and the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium on Saturday, September 12, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by Michael Urakami/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
There are no poop emojis to be found on this meter. There aren’t even any down arrows to be found on this meter. I think that might be a first? It’s a shame it took until [checks notes] September 2026 when the team is already well out of the playoff race to achieve this feat. But scoring double-digit runs four times in the past two weeks and having three contests in which the team hit three or more home runs over that same span will do it. The Mets are fifth in baseball in position player fWAR and tied for third in baseball in wRC+ in this 12-game span, despite yesterday’s shutout loss. Juan Soto, still ramping up slowly from injury, isn’t even at the peak of his powers right now and they’re still doing this. What a weird baseball team.
Player
Last week
This week
Francisco Alvarez, C
Brett Baty, UTIL
Carson Benge, OF
Bo Bichette, 3B
A.J. Ewing, OF
Francisco Lindor, SS
Nick Morabito, OF
—
Christopher Morel, 1B/DH
Cristian Pache, OF
Marcus Semien, 2B
Juan Soto, OF
Luis Torrens, C
Mark Vientos, 1B/3B
Jared Young, 1B/DH
We’ll start with A.J. Ewing, who has probably had the starkest turnaround of anyone on the roster from the last meter to this one. Ewing was mired in a months long slump and he has finally broken out of it to the tune of a fantastic 174 wRC+ in his last 45 plate appearances. He’s already hit two home runs in the month of September after not hitting any at all in the month of August. In the Marlins series, Ewing had two three-hit games, driving in five in those two games alone. Overall, he leads the team in hits with 15. He has driven in nine runs in total, scored eight runs, walked four times, and stolen a base. He has continued to hit the ball decently hard this whole time, and the hits are finally starting to come in bunches for him in the season’s final month.
Meanwhile, Carson Benge has cooled off some as he tries to make his final push for the NL Rookie of the Year title. Though Benge is one of many Mets with double digit hits, he has just a .213 batting average in his last 54 plate appearances with six walks and only two extra-base hits—good for a 79 wRC+. He has scored seven runs, but driven in just three and struck out a whopping 16 times to lead the team. He was right on the cusp of red arrow territory, but he does lead the team in stolen bases with three and continues to make Superman style catches in the outfield.
But the third—perhaps less heralded—rookie on the team Nick Morabito is hitting extremely well, putting up a 121 wRC+ in 22 plate appearances. Morabito was called up when rosters expanded and has comported himself well in the big leagues with his big highlight being a bases-clearing double that gave the Mets some key insurance in the victory in the final game of the Rays series. That was the only one of his five hits that went for extra bases, but he also walked three times and scored three runs.
But despite also only having 22 plate appearances over the past 12 games, one could argue that Brett Baty is the hottest hitter on the team with his 236 wRC+ in that span. In the same game as Morabito’s big RBI extra-base hit, Baty also hit a bases-clearing double in the third that gave the Mets a 6-0 lead at the time. In fact, despite having less than half of the plate appearances as the everyday players, Baty is second on the team in RBIs over this two-week span with ten. That’s because of his seven hits, all but one of them went for extra bases: four doubles and two home runs. Baty has been making contact with the ball; he has struck out just twice in those 22 plate appearances.
Since returning from the injured list, Mark Vientos has also been reduced to a part-time role, but has performed well. He has four hits, including two home runs, and two walks in 16 plate appearances. He has also scored three times and driven in four runs. Jared Young continues to see the lion’s share of the at-bats at first base and he has earned it by continuing to hit. Young put up a 110 wRC+ in 42 plate appearances over the past two weeks, leading the team in runs scored with 12. He also walked five times and drove in three runs. Of his ten hits, two went for extra bases, including the final home run of Saturday’s dinger bonanza against the Yankees.
Speaking of that dinger bonanza, it is no surprise that Francisco Lindor leads the team in RBIs with thirteen. That includes two home runs on Saturday—a grand slam and a solo shot. In fact, all 12 of Lindor’s hits are either singles or home runs. He also leads the team in long balls with six and is second only to Young for the team lead in runs scored with ten. With a 129 wRC+ in his last 59 plate appearances, the Mets’ shortstop is in his usual second half groove.
Nestled right between Ewing’s team-leading 15 hits and Lindor’s 12 hits is Bo Bichette’s 13 hits—the second-highest mark on the team. Four of those 13 hits went for extra bases, including two home runs. Bichette scored eight runs and drove in seven runs. Bichette is also tied with Benge for the team lead in walks with six. All told, Bichette put up a 118 wRC+ in 55 plate appearances as he continues to have a solid second half.
Of the Mets’ big hitters, Juan Soto has ironically put up the worst numbers over the past two weeks with a 90 wRC+ in 54 plate appearances. He hasn’t been quite 100% since coming off the injured list, but he is still Juan Soto, as evidenced by his moonshot that was one of the Mets’ six home runs on Saturday. That home run was one of three home runs for Soto—the only Met besides Lindor to go deep more than twice over the past two weeks. Soto also hit two doubles, making half of his ten total hits extra-base hits. Soto scored nine runs and drove in six runs. He also reached base via the walk six times to match Benge and Bichette’s total, but one of those walks was intentional. Unfortunately Soto leads the team with three double plays grounded into, but he did steal a base, which is a good sign that his calf is feeling good.
Francisco Alvarez bounced back from his poop emoji mark from the last meter with an unremarkable but solid 84 wRC+ in 31 plate appearances. His six hits include four singles and two home runs. He scored three runs and drove in four. Unfortunately, he is also back to striking out a lot. He struck out 12 times against just two walks. Meanwhile, Luis Torrens has stayed hot with five hits and a walk in just 17 plate appearances. Three of those five hits went for extra bases—two doubles and a home run. Torrens drove in a whopping seven runs in just six games and all seven of those RBIs came in two of those games. He drove in four runs in the Mets’ wild victory in the series finale in Miami and then followed that up with a three-RBI performance at Yankee Stadium on Saturday in which he was responsible for one of the Mets’ six home runs.
Christopher Morel had just 11 plate appearances and appeared in only five of the Mets’ 12 games covered by this meter, but he had the game of his life in the insane series finale in Miami in which the Mets and Marlins combined for 39 hits. Morel had three of those hits, including a home run in the third inning and a crucial RBI single in the seventh that helped see the Mets go back in front (ultimately for good, but just barely). Morel had just one other hit in the four other games he played in combined.
Marcus Semien continues to putter along playing mostly every day and putting up okay-but-not-great offensive numbers. In 45 plate appearances, he posted an 87 wRC+. He racked up nine hits—six singles and three doubles—driving in three runs and scoring eight runs. He also walked five times while striking out only three times.
Cristian Pache is batting 1.000 for this meter; he hit a single in his only plate appearance over this two-week span and scored a run. He appeared in four games in total.
NEW YORK, NEW YORK - FEBRUARY 10: Taj Gibson #67 of the New York Knicks reacts during the game against the Indiana Pacers at Madison Square Garden on February 10, 2024 in New York City. 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 Steven Ryan/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The second-oldest active player in basketball is no more, as OAKAAK Taj Gibson announced his retirement on Monday afternoon following his release by the New Orleans Pelicans last week. He will join the Chicago Bulls’ coaching staff under Tiago Splitter for 2026-27.
After 17 NBA seasons, Taj Gibson is retiring and returning to the Chicago Bulls as an assistant coach under Tiago Splitter to begin his coaching career. pic.twitter.com/K601XXGZe2
Gibson, a Brooklyn native, was selected No. 26 overall by the Bulls in 2009 out of USC. It was with Chicago that he spent the bulk of his career, debuting as an extremely old rookie at the age of 24 and growing into one of the best backup power forwards in the game.
He finished fifth in Rookie of the Year voting in 2010, fifth in Sixth Man of the Year voting in 2012, and had the best season of his career in 2013-14, where he played all 82 games and averaged 13 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks in a bench role, finishing as an extremely close runner-up to Jamal Crawford for Sixth Man of the Year.
It was in Chicago that he grew close to head coach Tom Thibodeau, a connection that would pay dividends down the road. Thibs coached the Bulls from 2010-15.
Shortly after he was canned, Gibson left Chicago as the Bulls entered a rebuild. He was traded to Oklahoma City in February 2017 with Doug McDermott and a 2018 2nd for Cam Payne, Anthony Morrow, and Joffrey Lauvergne. An interesting fact here: McDermott and the Bulls’ 2018 2nd would be flipped a few months later to the Knicks for Carmelo Anthony, and that 2nd became Mitchell Robinson.
He’d slide in next to Steven Adams as the Thunder’s starting power forward for the rest of the 2016-17 season in the first year of the post-KD era, but left in the offseason when Thibs’ new team in Minnesota came calling with a two-year, $28 million pact.
It was there that Taj emerged as a full-time starter as a grizzled veteran, posting 11.5 points and 6.9 rebounds across 153 games as a Timberwolf, but when Thibs was canned, he was out the door as well.
The most relevant chapter of his career to us came when he inked a two-year, $20 million contract with the Knicks in 2019 as part of the “four PFs” offseason in the aftermath of the KD/Kyrie disaster. David Fizdale and Mike Miller would utilize the 34-year-old as more of a center for the first time in his career, using him as a mentor for Robinson. He’d play just 16.5 minutes a game, but started 56 of the 62 games he played as a shield for a young and erratic Robinson’s foul trouble.
His team option was declined for 2020-21, but we should’ve read the tea leaves as soon as Thibodeau was hired as coach that summer. After the Nova Knick 1.0 prototype (Omari Spellman) fizzled out in the first week of January, Gibson returned to fill out the depth chart behind Robinson and Nerlens Noel.
This year marked the backstretch of Gibson’s career, where his experience and mentality were significantly more valuable than his on-court contributions. He would grow into a solid role off the bench, particularly when Robinson was injured.
With the Knicks surprisingly competitive, we suddenly saw the 35-year-old put into the spotlight when Robinson was ruled out for the season, and both he and Noel were stuck as overmatched bigs against Clint Capela and the Hawks. Of the 20 career playoff starts he had, three of them came in that first round series.
He was re-signed for 2021-22 and played a similar role, this time being forced to step up into a backup role due to Noel’s long-term injury. In a frustrating season for the team, he showed a new, interesting wrinkle to his game: shooting threes.
It looked like his time in New York was over when he signed with the Wizards in 2022-23, where he played 49 games as a vet for a very young and bad team, but he’d get one more chance to play for his hometown soon enough. When Robinson suffered a seemingly season-ending ankle injury in December 2023, it was Gibson who got a non-guaranteed contract to fill his shoes.
He’d be yo-yo’d around for the rest of the year, being released in mid-January to avoid guaranteeing his contract before inking a pair of 10-day contracts later in the season, but with Robinson’s unlikely return nearing ahead of the playoffs, Gibson played his final game as a Knick on February 14, 2024, going scoreless in nine minutes.
He finished his Knicks career averaging 4.9 points and 4.4 rebounds on 56.7% from the field in 175 games (64 starts) across four seasons. From there, he continued to be the token veteran on bad teams, playing four games in March 2024 for Detroit before signing one-year deals in both Charlotte and Memphis.
He hangs it up after playing 10 games for the Grizzlies down the stretch in 2025-26 before being traded in the Jordan Hawkins deal to the Pels, who subsequently waived him.
Gibson’s spot in Knicks lore is not that of someone who had an iconic moment that will be replayed forever, but as someone who was there as a transitional piece from the bright times to the bad times. Playing for the team he likely dreamed of playing for growing up, he transitioned from a starting caliber forward to an end-of-roster veteran, providing depth and experience.
People forget this, but Gibson is the only player aside from Julius Randle and Mitchell Robinson whose Knicks career spanned from David Fizdale to the year 2024. He was there for LolKnicks, the We Here season, and (very briefly) the Brunson revival. Championships are not entirely built by the stars that finished the job, they’re fortified by players who built the foundation.
Maybe Gibson wasn’t a true foundational piece of the rise from irrelevance to competence, but he was a constant throughout it. It’s a great hire for a young Bulls team under an inexperienced head coach in Splitter.
Today is a very emotional day for me.
After 17 seasons in the NBA, I can honestly say I gave this game everything I had.
Basketball gave me the opportunity to live a dream. As a kid from Brooklyn, NY, I was lucky to get a chance to display my talent on the biggest stage. From… pic.twitter.com/tQAgHoUYl6
On this day 95 years ago, Lou Varland blew a game that set off a sickening end to September.
1921 The 58-79 White Sox were bad, a seventh-place team in the eight-member American League. But with an 11-8 loss to the Yankees at Comiskey Park, things were about to get a lot worse, as the defeat was the first of 11 straight — ALL coming at home.
The skid slid the White Sox down to 58-90, still comfortably ahead of basement-dwelling Philadelphia but contributing to one of the worst homestands (2-12) in club history — one that ended with four losses in five games against the Athletics, in fact.
The 11-game losing streak remains tied for the seventh-longest in franchise history.
As exemplified from this post-Black Sox fall from grace, the White Sox were about to enter the longest and darkest era for the franchise, mostly godawful losing seasons until 1951.
1931 A decade later, things weren’t much better in Chicago, as the White Sox started a 10-game losing streak with a 12-8 loss at Fenway Park. Starter Tommy Thomas and reliever Vic Frazier really took it on the chin during a six-run Red Sox seventh inning, as Boston pushed ahead, 8-4. But two-run hits by Luke Appling and John Kerr in the top of the eighth evened things back up. That’s when Lou Garland lost the game for the White Sox, surrendering four runs right back to the Carmines.
The loss dropped the White Sox to 55-85, en route to a 56-97 finish that at the time was the worst record in White Sox history. The South Siders would win just six games in September and went 1-13 to finish the season — beginning on this day.
1952 In a 17-inning game in Chicago, Sox pitcher Saul Rogovin struck out 14 Red Sox in 15 innings of work. But it was Luis Aloma who got the decision over two innings of relief; in the bottom of the 17th, four two-out singles by Sam Mele, Minnie Miñoso, Sam Dente and Rocky Krsnich delivered the 4-3 win.
It was the first game of a doubleheader; the nightcap was suspended by darkness. This was also the second 17-inning game played against Boston in two years.
1967 The day after the Sox beat Cleveland, 1-0, in 17 innings, they continued their mastery over them by winning, 4-0, in 10.
It was Cisco Carlos on the mound, going the distance and allowing only five hits.
The Sox won the game when Don Buford hit a grand slam off in the 10th inning of of Orlando Pena, scoring Tommie Agee, Duane Josephson and Joe Horlen. It was the first walk-off grand slam in team history.
1974 White Sox first baseman Dick Allen called a team meeting to announce he was retiring from baseball. Allen would win the American League home run title, despite missing the final two weeks of the season! Allen was fighting serious injuries to his shoulder and leg from previous seasons, and was frustrated with the effort being put forth by many teammates. However, the way Allen walked out on the Sox left a bad taste in the mouths of many fans.
White Sox GM Roland Hemond later traded Allen’s rights to the Atlanta Braves for catcher Jim Essian. Allen would return and see action with the Phillies and A’s before retiring for good in 1977.
1997 Carlton Fisk had his No. 72 retired in a ceremony before the White Sox took on Cleveland. Because he was released unceremoniously in 1993, and also for being denied entry to the locker room during the 1993 ALCS, Fisk asked that owner Jerry Reinsdorf and GM Ron Schueler be absent from the pregame ceremony.
As if things couldn’t get worse, the game was also remembered for manager Terry Bevington using five pitchers in a five-run eighth inning — and going to the mound that inning to call in Keith Foulke to the game — with no one was warming up in the bullpen when he called for the change! Bevington ended up using an MLB-record nine pitchers in the nine-inning game. The Sox lost, 8-3, to fall 7 1⁄2 games behind first-place Cleveland.
1998 In a five-hour, 12-minute slugfest at Tiger Stadium, the White Sox upended Detroit in 12 innings, 17-16. Chicago jumped to a 5-0 lead after their second bats, were up 12-8 heading into the seventh-inning stretch, and even held on to a 12-10 lead in the bottom of the ninth. But Detroit scored a flurry late, and and RBI double and single tied the game in the bottom of the ninth, 12-12, with the bases full and one out. Bill Simas wriggled out of that jam, and the two clubs traded three-spots in the 10th.
In the 12th, Ray Durham led off with a solo homer and Craig Wilson went back-to-back, making it 17-15, White Sox. Detroit got one back in the bottom of the 12th on a fielder’s choice ground out, but the game ended with a Bobby Higginson (whose two-run homer in the 10th kept the game going at 13-13) strikeout.
The White Sox scored their 17 runs on 19 hits, with three steals and three errors; Detroit had 22 hits for their 16 runs, with two errors. Wilson went 4-for-7 with two homers, four runs and five RBIs and Albert Belle also drove in five on a 5-for-8 day that included three doubles and a runner thrown out at home plate. On the other hand, Robin Ventura went 0-for-6 in the mauling and Frank Thomas just 1-for-5, although the pair combined for five walks.
The 17 runs were the most-ever scored by the White Sox in a game that went to extra innings.
2017 It was a record-setting afternoon for a couple of White Sox players in the team’s 17-7 blowout of the Tigers at Comerica Park.
White Sox outfielder Avisaíl García went 5-for-5 with seven RBIs and two runs in the game, in addition to a walk. Rookie second baseman Yoán Moncada went 4-for-5 with two walks and five runs, and first baseman José Abreu went 4-for-5 with three runs.
García became the second White Sox player with five hits and seven RBIs in a game. The other was Carl Reynolds against the Yankees on July 2, 1930 in New York. Moncada,meanwhile, tied Hall-of-Famer Tim Raines’franchise record with his five runs; Raines originally set the record against the Red Sox in Boston on April 18, 1994.
The White Sox pounded out 25 hits in the 2017 game.
Sep 13, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Emmet Sheehan (80) catches baseball against the Miami Marlins during the third inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
The fresh arm express continues to run in September, with Emmet Sheehan optioned to Triple-A Oklahoma City ahead of Monday night’s series opener against the Cincinnati Reds at Great American Ball Park, one day after he pitched six scoreless innings on Sunday in Miami.
Paul Gervase was called up from Triple-A to give the Dodgers an extra arm in the bullpen, after the Dodgers used four relievers Friday, three on Saturday, and four more on Sunday against the Marlins. Monday is the fourth day of a stretch of 10 game days in a row for the Dodgers, their final extended stretch of games this season.
This had nothing to do with Sheehan’s performance, as he allowed only one run in 11 2/3 innings last week after getting called back up from Oklahoma City himself, with 15 strikeouts. But Sheehan is on the outside looking in when it comes to the Dodgers’ postseason rotation, and the team might also get Roki Sasaki at some point this week from a blister on his right middle finger.
Gervase last pitched on Friday for Oklahoma City, striking out four in a four-out save in a scoreless outing to close out a win over Sugar Land. On the season, the 6’10 right-hander had a 4.56 ERA and five saves in 38 games in Triple-A, with 66 strikeouts and 35 walks in 47 1/3 innings.
Citing recent record-setting prices for sports franchises, the uncertainty of an upcoming lockout and the monopoly Major League Baseball franchises have on their territories, a minority investor in the Atlanta Braves sent a letter to the teams' board of directors urging it to sell the franchise.
The Monday, Sept. 14 letter from Breach Inlet Capital Management, a boutique investment firm, to Atlanta Braves Holdings' board of directors outlined several reasons why the time would be right for a sale.
The Braves' value was most recently estimated at $3.35 billion by Forbes, seventh among major league franchises; the Angels were valued at $2.8 billion in those estimates. The club controls a development - the Battery - that's adjacent to Truist Park and has been the envy of other franchises seeking a similar build-out that allows it to control revenues that don't need to be shared with other MLB franchises.
The Braves were spun off from Liberty Media in in 2023 yet John Malone, the chairman of Liberty Media, remains the largest shareholder in the club. Terry McGuirk remains the club's CEO and control person, a role he assumed when Liberty purchased the club in 2007 for an estimated $460 million.
The Braves declined comment on the letter. Malone in 2024 cooled the notion of a Braves sale in an interview with Sportico, saying comments from Liberty Media CEO Greg Maffei that did not rule out a franchise sale were misinterpreted.
Breach Inlet Capital's letter to the Braves, signed by founder and portfolio manager Chris Colvin and published by Business Wire, cites its "fiduciary duties obligate it to act in the best interest of shareholders" in urging a sale; according to Fintel, Breach Inlet Capital's investment in the Braves comprises roughly 13.5% of its portfolio, with a value most recently disclosed at $40.4 million.
It suggests the Braves' board and Malone "should capitalize on the current backdrop and not assume valuations for sports teams will keep climbing at these rapid rates into perpetuity," and, citing the player strike of 1994-95 and the impending lockout in December, "should not hope that history does not repeat itself and should instead capitalize on the MLB’s current momentum ahead of a potential extended lockout."
Additionally, Breach Inlet Capital cited changes to the tax code that "disadvantage the Braves relative to privately owned MLB teams" while noting that it views "every MLB team as a monopoly with scarcity value." The Braves' history, their significant footprint in a growing segment of the Sun Belt and the presence of the Battery add significantly to the club's value.
"If (Malone) is unwilling to sell and believes that (the franchise) is worth significantly more than its current trading price," wrote Colvin, "we encourage him to submit a proposal to take the Company private."
Colvin acknowledged that while MLB's media rights are up for bid en masse following the 2028 season, he projects that the eye-opening prices for the Padres and Angels already reflect what's expected to be a leaguewide windfall.
