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Tarik Skubal hadn’t delivered a signature outing, nor had he earned a win, over his first three starts with the Dodgers.

And six minutes into Saturday’s game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, the two-time defending American League Cy Young Award winner seemed on his way to his worst performance yet with his new club, giving up three runs on three hits.

Then, the left-hander that manager Dave Roberts has been waiting for finally arrived, giving up just two hits over the next six innings while striking out 11 in a 4-3 win.

“Obviously the first inning didn’t go great,” Roberts said after the series-clinching win. “But just seeing him on the attack after they got those two runners on in the second inning — from that point on, it was a different pitcher.

“Yeah, that’s the guy that we needed; completing seven innings, reset the bullpen; great outing.”

Read more:Shohei Ohtani takes 'really positive' step in push to return to Dodgers' rotation

Skubal finally looked like himself, earning a standing ovation as he walked off the field in the seventh.

“It feels good, obviously, to get the first one out of the way,” said Skubal as “Scooby Doo Pa Pa” by DJ Kass blared in the clubhouse. “I didn’t do a good job early in the game, but the boys picked me up and were able to keep us in a game. The offense got going, and that’s all we needed to get a win today.”

Kyle Tucker was one of the Dodgers (79-51) who got going.

Riding an 0-for-26 drought and hitting below the Mendoza Line at home, Tucker delivered a go-ahead, two-run single off Yohan Ramirez in the fifth, giving the Dodgers a lead they wouldn’t relinquish.

“I don’t, like, keep up with the stats like that,” Tucker said. “I’m just trying to go up there ... try and have a quality at-bat, whether it’s working a long at-bat or drawing a walk, getting ahead [or] moving guys over.”

Roberts has been outspoken in his support of Tucker and was thrilled to see the four-time All-Star have a good moment in front of the 12th sold-out crowd at Dodger Stadium this season.

“Obviously, everyone’s talking about the splits and how much he struggled at home,” Roberts said. “But I do think that the fans, every at-bat, cheering for him — you gotta feel that as a player. ... It was really good for him to come through right there.”

Read more:Swanson: Struggling Dodgers outfielder Kyle Tucker simply needs to relax

Another Dodger who came through was Alek Thomas. Called up from triple-A Oklahoma City after center fielder Andy Pages sustained a hand fracture Friday, Thomas delivered an RBI single off Pirates starter Jared Jones, a Whittier native, in the fourth.

“It’s been a little while,” said Thomas, who made his Dodgers debut after spending 55 games in Oklahoma City. “So, I’m super glad to be back, and happy to help the team in any way, shape or form.”

Over parts of five seasons with the Arizona Diamondbacks, Thomas heard his fair share of boos when playing in Dodger Stadium.

“It’s funny, because they always hated me whenever I came out there in center field,” said Thomas, who was acquired by the Dodgers in May. “I was, like, ‘Come on, guys, I’m Mexican too. You don’t have to yell at me; like, we’re on the same side here.’

“But, obviously ... it doesn’t matter where you’re from. ‘If you’re not a Dodgers guy, you’re not my guy.’”

Relievers Evan Phillips, Jack Dreyer and Tanner Scott combined for two shutout innings. Dreyer struck out Oneil Cruz looking to end the top of the eighth with a runner on third, fighting off the Pirates’ final gasp.

The Dodgers, who have won five straight for the first time since late May, will look to sweep Pittsburgh (63-68) on Sunday.

“I’m excited,”
Skubal said. “You got a ton of really good arms here and a ton of talent. It’s just about us going out there and playing baseball and executing. And when we’re doing that, we’re the best team in the league.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The show you came to see: Randy Arozarena, 1.08 WPA

New to the show: Kade Anderson, -0.20 WPA

Game Comment of the Day:

‘Nuff said.

There’s been plenty to criticize this season, but nobody can question Baltimore’s ability to find the right bat at the right time. The Orioles offense went scoreless for seven innings before Samuel Basallo delivered a pinch-hit, game-tying homer in the eighth. The bullpen did its part, and Dylan Beavers came off the bench to walk it off in the bottom of the 10th. The late-inning heroics propelled Baltimore to a 3-2 victory and another series win over the first-place Rays.

Before the fireworks, Brandon Young gave the Orioles a chance to win the game. Young didn’t have his best stuff, but he fared better than his performance against Tampa last week. The righty allowed the first two batters of the game to reach before generating a pop out and an inning-ending double play.

Liam Hicks took him deep to start the second inning, but Young used another twin-killing to escape the frame with only one run allowed. The 28-year-old went on to retire the next eight batters that he faced. Cedric Mullins worked a two-out walk in the fifth, but Carlos Narváez nabbed Mullins attempting to steal second.

The Rays clung to the one-run lead before doubling their advantage in the sixth. Young walked Taylor Walls to start the frame. Yandy Díaz followed with a single to right, but Tyler O’Neill fired a strike to third that caught Walls attempting to take an extra 90 feet. Young retired Jonathan Aranda for the second out, but he failed to escape the inning unscathed. Chandler Simpson advanced Díaz with an infield single, and Junior Caminero drove him in with a base hit up the middle. Young left after 5.2 innings, and Josh Walker retired Ryan Vilade to end the frame.

Baltimore threatened a couple of times but struggled early to find the big hit. Coby Mayo delivered a double with Pete Alonso running in the first. Alonso may have scored if he followed the ball, but he slid into second before realizing that Mayo had made contact. Alonso made it to third base with less than two outs, but he declined to break home on a shallow fly ball by Tyler O’Neill. Gunnar Henderson struck out to end the inning.

Mayo and Alonso found their way into scoring position again in the third, but O’Neill flew out to end the threat.

The Orioles finally broke through in the eighth inning. Jackson Holliday turned a Kevin Kelly sinker around for a leadoff base hit. Kelly struck out Alonso with a high fastball for the first out, but Craig Albernaz pushed the right button once again. Albernaz sent out Basallo to pinch hit for Mayo, and the rookie tied the game with one swing of the bat. Basallo worked ahead in the count before sending a sinker 411 feet from home plate. The ball cleared a jumping Mullins, and Baltimore found its way into a brand new ball game.

O’Neill kept the Rays off the board with a pair of spectacular plays in the top of the ninth. The two-time Gold Glover chased down a screaming line drive to rob Caminero. Andrew Kittredge generated a ground ball from Kenny Piper for the second out, but Jonny DeLuca found his way into scoring position with a double to left field.

Richie Palacios followed with a shallow fly ball to right field. It felt like the type of soft single that propels a team like the Rays to victory, but O’Neill raced in and made a diving grab to keep the score even at two. The game went to extras after Baltimore went quietly in the bottom half.

Cedric Mullins advanced the designated runner to third with a ground ball to start the tenth. Taylor Walls attempted to bunt Palacios home, but Rico Garcia cleanly fielded the squeeze play and flipped home to nab the potential go-ahead run. Garcia fell behind 3-0 to Díaz before closing out the inning with a fly out to left.

The Birds entered the bottom of the tenth needing only one run to walk things off. Albernaz sent out Beavers to pinch hit for Carlos Narváez, and the pinch-hit magic continued to propel the Orioles. Facing former Oriole Bryan Baker, Beavers fell behind 0-2 before taking a pair of fastballs outside of the zone. Baker made a quality pitch with a changeup below the knees, but Beavers went down to get the ball and ripped it to right center.

The ball bounced off the wall and allowed designated runner Leody Taveras to race home without a play. The MASN broadcast booth originally thought Beavers homered, but everyone gladly settled for a walk-off double and a 3-2 win.

These are the types of games that make you believe in the 2026 Orioles. Basallo delivered the big fly, the team made several impressive plays on defense, and Beavers came through with another clutch knock. Baltimore moved to 63-67 with the win. They’ll go for the sweep tomorrow afternoon with Shane Baz set to face Nick Martinez.

O’Neill shined on defense, while Basallo and Beavers delivered huge hits off the bench. Let us know your pick for the Most Birdland Player of the Game in the comments below!

Kyle Tucker and the Los Angeles Dodgers’ offense showed some positive signs on Saturday, Aug. 22.

He hit a two-run single to right field against pitcher Yohan Ramírez of the Pittsburgh Pirates, allowing Max Muncy to score what proved to be the game-winning run. The Dodgers have now won five straight games.

The runs Tucker provided gave the Dodgers a 4-3 lead in the bottom of the fifth inning after trailing 3-2. They held on to win by a 4-3 final.

Tucker snapped an 0-for-26 hitless streak at home. It was his first hit at Dodger Stadium since Aug. 2.

“I haven’t had a hit in the last three home stands," Tucker told reporters after the game. "I don’t keep up with stats like that. I just go out there and take the next at-bat and try to have a good quality at-bat.”

Kyle for the lead! pic.twitter.com/igmdhUMdCE

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) August 23, 2026

Tucker received a standing ovation from the crowd before his first at-bat on Friday. There was an effort made by fans to show their support for Tucker during his return amid his slump.

“It’s nice, they come out and support us every single day," Tucker said. "... They’ve been doing their part. We try to go out there and win games.”

The outfielder was previously booed at the home stadium on Sunday, Aug. 16. He managed to draw a walk but remained hitless on Friday, Aug. 21 after four at-bats.

Tucker produced an RBI double against the Colorado Rockies in Denver on Aug. 18 that snapped an overall 0-for-26 hitless streak.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Kyle Tucker snaps hitless streak at Dodger Stadium in Dodgers' win vs. Pirates

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs scrambled the Toledo Mud Hens (Tigers), 7-3 in ten innings.

Jordan Wicks continues to pitch well in August. Tonight, he allowed two runs on four hits over a five-inning start. Wicks struck out six and walked on.

Shelby Miller pitched the sixth inning and struck out the first two batters he faced before giving up a two-out double. But Miller got a line out to center to end the threat from the next batter.

Antoine Kelly let the tying run score with two outs in the bottom of the ninth on a wild pitch. But he got the win when the I-Cubs stormed back for four runs in the tenth. Kelly’s final line was one run on one hit and one walk over one inning. He did not have a strikeout.

James Triantos led off the top of the first with a solo home run, his eighth on the year. Triantos went 2 for 5 with a double and the home run. He scored twice.

Justin Dean blew this game open with a bases-loaded, bases-clearing double in the top of the tenth, scoring three. It was Dean’s only at-bat of the game.

Triantos home run.

Leadoff homer for Tri! pic.twitter.com/magFxnRR8D

— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) August 22, 2026

Dean had a bit of luck on his bases-loaded double in the tenth.

Dean drives in three! pic.twitter.com/XgjTlS32iC

— Iowa Cubs (@IowaCubs) August 23, 2026

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies were pulled into the water by the Pensacola Blue Wahoos (Marlins), 4-3.

Brooks Caple started and took the loss. Caple allowed four runs on seven hits over five innings. Two of the hits were solo home runs in the fifth inning. Caple struck out one and walked no one.

Ethan Flanagan tossed two perfect innings of relief in his Double-A debut. He struck out three. Vince Reilly pitched the ninth, retired the side in order in the ninth and struck out two.

Third baseman Edgar Alvarez hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning, his tenth on the year. Alvarez went 1 for 4.

Center fielder Kane Kepley went 0 for 1 with three walks and three steals. He scored once.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs surfed past the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers), 4-3.

Pierce Coppola absolutely dominated the Whitecaps for five innings, giving up no runs and no hits. He struck out seven and walked two.

The Whitecaps took the lead when they scored three runs in the top of the sixth inning off of reliever Nate Williams. But the Cubs came back and took the lead in the bottom of the eighth, giving the win to Yoendris Gonzalez. Gonzalez pitched two innings and only allowed one baserunner and that came on a one-out error in the ninth. Gonzalez struck out three.

After the Whitecaps took a 3-0 lead in the sixth, first baseman Josiah Hartshorn hit a solo home run in the bottom of the inning. It was Hartshorn’s 15th home run with South Bend and 20th overall. That makes Hartshorn the first Cubs teenager to have 20 home runs in a season since Corey Patterson in 1999.

Hartshorn also singled in the tying run in the bottom of the eighth inning. He finished today 3 for 4 with the home run. He drove in two and scored twice.

Shortstop Angel Cepeda also hit a solo home run in the sixth inning and hit the go-ahead single in the eighth, scoring Hartshorn. It was Cepeda’s sixth South Bend home run and seventh overall. Cepeda was 2 for 4.

Center fielder Ethan Conrad went 0 for 4 with two strikeouts in his South Bend debut.

Highlights of Coppola.

Five hitless innings from Pierce Coppola! 🐊#SBCubspic.twitter.com/cOA0Wb0pO9

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) August 23, 2026

Hartshorn’s home run.

The first teenage @Cubs prospect with a 20-homer season in the 21st century.

Josiah Hartshorn.@HoosierLottery Home Run | #SBCubspic.twitter.com/wmH8wHAPat

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) August 23, 2026

Cepeda’s home run.

Angel Cepeda sneaks one out!@HoosierLottery Home Run | #SBCubspic.twitter.com/ncWMRSqYZp

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) August 23, 2026

RBI single in the eighth by Hartshorn.

Josiah Hartshorn is 3-for-4 tonight against two pitchers six years older than him.#SBCubspic.twitter.com/MhxSsGQh4z

— South Bend Cubs (@SBCubs) August 23, 2026

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

Rained out. Doubleheader tomorrow.

The A’s snapped their five-game losing streak on Saturday night, beating the Astros 4-3 on Houston’s home turf for the club’s 50th win of the season and setting the team up for a possible series win tomorrow morning. Wouldn’t that be something?

More to come…

JJ Bleday leaned out and turned on a Zack Littell meatball in the Top of the 6th inning of Saturday night’s game between the Cincinnati Reds and Arizona Diamondbacks down in the Land of the Endless Strip Mall, and the laser flew over the fence in right field at Chase Field for a homer.

That’s cool in a nutshell. What made it even more special, though, is that the Cincinnati outfielder had already picked up a single, double, and triple on the evening, and this homer game him the cycle.

JJ BLEDAY JUST HIT FOR THE CYCLE@BledayJaypic.twitter.com/1Fcn2bDg5v

— Cincinnati Reds (@Reds) August 23, 2026

The cycle – just the 8th in the long, storied history of the Cincinnati Reds – was a marked change from where Bleday’s form has been so far in August. Despite scorching the earth with his play in May after being recalled from AAA Louisville, he’s fallen into something of a three true outcomes slugger ever since, with the hits and homers being much fewer and more far between.

Not so on Saturday, though.

Bleday’s homer played pile-on for the Reds, who held an 8-2 lead at the time. Each of JJ, Elly De La Cruz, and Sal Stewart had been electric at the plate so far on the day, and that’s pretty much the lone recipe for the Reds having success on any given night.

Fortunately, that was the case tonight – including Elly smashing a towering 450 homer to right off his former teammate Littell.

Elly De La Cruz DESTROYS this baseball ⚡️ pic.twitter.com/zE94cAlFtI

— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2026

At the beginning of Saturday’s game, Tarik Skubal suffered his worst inning as a member of the Dodgers.

By the end of the team’s eventual 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates, however, the marquee trade deadline acquisition had rebounded for perhaps his best start with the club.

“When you get punched in the mouth early in this game, I always think it’s important for any pitcher to see how you respond to those moments,” Skubal said afterward. “I think that’s when the true, who-you-really-are kind of shows out.”

Indeed, despite giving up three runs in a first inning full of less-than-fortunate contact (two soft singles and a down-the-line triple) on what Skubal felt were mostly well-executed pitches (only one of the hits came on a pitch even in the strike zone), the star pitcher did not waver in his fourth start with the Dodgers.

Even after two more tough-luck singles dropped to begin the second, he did not falter in the face of early adversity. 

Instead, with the kind of dominant flurry the team has been waiting to see out of the reigning two-time Cy Young Award winner, Skubal rediscovered a “standard” that he said had been missing in his first couple weeks since joining the team.

“I’m not going to be perfect out there, but yeah, I need to be more efficient,” Skubal said last week, after failing to pitch into the seventh inning in each of his first three appearances with the Dodgers. “That’s the standard that I hold myself to, is pitching deeper into ballgames. Giving our team a chance to win every time out.”

And right on cue, he rebounded en route to a seven-inning, three-run, 11-strikeout showcase –– finally finding a rhythm just when it appeared his game might go off the rails.

“From that point on, it was a different pitcher,” manager Dave Roberts said. “He sort of went into bully mode … and you could see we fed off of that intensity.”

The turnaround started in the second, when Skubal stranded runners at second and third by getting his first two strikeouts of the day, turning to his slider for each after struggling to get early whiff with his trademark changeup.

From there, the momentum kept building. He retired the side in order in both the third and fourth with a pair of Ks each. He worked around a two-out walk in the fifth while dialing up a couple more punchouts. Then, he reached top gear in the top of the sixth, striking out the side in a breathtaking 14-pitch sequence that was punctuated by a 100 mph fastball –– his hardest pitch with the Dodgers, and second-hardest all season.

“Early in games, I might just be trying to feel it out too much instead of just competing with what I got in that moment,” Skubal said. “I feel like deeper into games, you just kind of get into a little bit better rhythm and your command cleans up … So when I feel confident commanding the ball, that’s when I feel like I can really start letting it rip, and it’s going to go where I want it to.”

---

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As Skubal found his groove, so too did the Dodgers offense, clawing its way to the lead with rallies in the fourth and fifth innings.

In the fourth, Teoscar Hernández and newly recalled Alek Thomas (who was summoned from triple-A prgame to replace the injured Andy Pages) strung together back-to-back RBI singles against Pirates Jared Jones. 

Then, in the fifth, Kyle Tucker ended his historic home-field hitting drought, snapping a 26-at-bat hitless streak at Dodger Stadium (which dated back to Aug. 2) with a two-run single through a drawn-in infield (giving him his first RBIs at the venue since July 8).

“I think the last couple days is more of what we’re going to see going forward,” Roberts said of Tucker, while praising what he felt was an uptick in the quality of his at-bats. “Obviously, everyone’s talking about the splits and how much he struggled at home … So it was really good for him to come through right there.”

Skubal made sure to make it count, too, finishing his 106-pitch outing with one more 1-2-3 inning in the seventh.

Overall, he retired 18 of the final 19 batters he faced, finished one strikeout away from his season-high of 12, and –– for the first time since his blockbuster arrival before the trade deadline –– flashed the sort of sustained dominance that has made him arguably the sport’s best current pitcher.

“That,” Roberts said, “is the guy that we needed.”

Added Skubal: “The stuff coming out of hand is as good as it’s ever been.”

All it took to get there was the pitcher overcoming his worst inning as a Dodger along the way.

Tarik Skubal had choppy waters in a rough first inning, but it was smooth sailing after that in the Dodgers’ 4-3 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates on Saturday evening at Dodger Stadium.

The Dodgers have won five games in a row, their longest streak since a six-gamer May 23-29, and their fourth win streak of at least five games this season.

The Pirates bunched together three hits in a row against Skubal in the first inning, capped by a two-run triple by former Dodgers farmhand Oneil Cruz, who scored on a groundout. But after those three runs, plus two singles to open the second inning, Skubal more than settled in.

Five of the first Pirates got hits, with no strikeouts, but then Skubal retired 18 of 19 batters faced with 11 strikeouts, including four in a row at one point. He finished seven innings in the longest of his four strikeouts with the Dodgers

Skubal’s 11 strikeouts matched Justin Wrobleski (June 30 at A’s) for the most by a Dodgers pitcher this season, and one shy of Skubal’s season high (July 24 vs. Kansas City Royals).

Tarik Skubal's 9th, 10th and 11th Ks. pic.twitter.com/d5Bf8C4nOm

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 23, 2026

The Dodgers didn’t have a hit until the fourth inning, but they did make Pirates starter Jared Jones work, getting him out of the game after 87 pitches to get 12 outs. They scored two runs each in the fourth and fifth innings, with a Max Muncy double key to both frames. Muncy had three hits in the game and scored after each double.

Lack of production from Dodgers non-Andy-Pages outfielders this season has been well-documented, and now Pages is out at least four weeks with a broken hand. Naturally, all three Dodgers outfielders drove in runs on Saturday:

Teoscar Hernández singled home the first run in the fourth. Center fielder Alek Thomas, just called up from Triple-A Oklahoma City on Saturday, drove in the second run. Kyle Tucker singled home a pair in the fifth to give the Dodgers their first lead. It was the first home hit for Tucker since August 2, snapping an 0-for-26 skid at Dodger Stadium.

Evan Phillips struck out two around a double in the eighth inning, but Jack Dreyer stranded the tying run on base with a strikeout of Cruz to end the frame. Tanner Scott pitched a clean ninth with a strikeout of his own. Fifteen strikeouts by Dodgers pitchers matched their season high, also done on May 4 at Houston, June 30 at the A’s, and Wednesday in Colorado.

Saturday particulars

Home runs: none

WP — Tarik Skubal (8-7): 7 IP, 5 hits, 3 runs, 1 walk, 11 strikeouts

LP — Yohan Ramírez (6-4): 1 IP, 2 hits, 2 runs, 2 strikeouts

Sv — Tanner Scott (19): 1 IP, 1 strikeout

Up next

One more game between the Dodgers and Pirates on Sunday (1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA), with Blake Snell making his third start since returning from the injured list.

The Texas Rangers did not score but the Anaheim Angels scored three runs.

The Rangers were honoring the 1996 club tonight. A lot can change in 30 years, apparently.

Unlike this year’s team, the ‘96ers are a version of this franchise that I hold near and dear to my heart, so hopefully the players who made it out didn’t stick around to watch this one. They wouldn’t recognize whatever the 2026 team does on the home synthetic field as the same sport as the one that they played over at The Ballpark on their way to the first AL West championship in team history.

The ‘96 squad averaged just a smidge over ten hits per game and scored 928 runs. The 2026 team is sitting at 516 runs scored this season and added none to that tally tonight. The current year Rangers haven’t scored in a regulation inning since Thursday, have now been shut out twice this week against a couple of teams with a combined record of 113-148, and have scored two or fewer runs in all but one game this week on this homestand.

Texas’ big output this week was scoring five runs in Tuesday’s victory. The ‘96 team averaged 5.7 runs per game.

Anyway, here in the present, in unrecognizable baseball land, Zach Neto doubled on the second pitch of the game, the first of three extra base hits for the Anaheim leadoff man, and the first of ten hits for the Angels overall. The Rangers, meanwhile, had one single all evening.

Player of the Game: I guess No. 8 hitter Cody Freeman for collecting Texas’ lone hit — a single in the bottom of the sixth — to prevent the club from getting no-hit by a guy with a 6+ ERA in front of the team’s first ever playoff squad.

Up Next: The Rangers and Angels close out this series tomorrow where RHP Cal Quantrill will make the start for Texas opposite a pitcher to be named for Anaheim.

The Sunday afternoon first pitch from The Shed is set for 1:35 pm CDT and you can view it on the Rangers Sports Network.

Ever since the Chicago White Sox series last week in which the Tigers got swept, the wind seems to have gone out of their offenses’ sails. The Tigers pitched pretty well in this one, but the bats were asleep yet again as they dropped their seventh game in their last eighth by a score of 3-1, and lost the series to the Royals in the process. They’ll try to salvage one on Sunday.

From the start, this was just another frustrating effort from the Tigers offense against Michael Wacha. The veteran right-hander’s deep pitch mix and deception has often given them trouble the past two seasons. Kevin McGonigle and Gleyber Torres each lifted weak flyouts to start the game. Colt Keith walked and Dillon Dingler blooped in a single, but Zach McKinstry flew out to end the first inning.

Drew Anderson came into this one looking for a good start after some mediocre efforts since moving into the rotation. He gave up a single to Bobby Witt Jr., who stole second base, but escaped the inning unscathed as Salvador Perez grounded out to Torres.

Brett Callahan got a good look at all the ways veteran major league starters can pitch you and struck out to open the second inning. Spencer Torkelson got eaten up by the curveball and struck out, while Max Clark lined out to first. Anderson gave up a walk to Nick Loftin but no more.

In the third, Wacha handled Hao-Yu Lee, and then McGonigle and Torres again with ease. Kyle Isbel, the nine hitter, jumped a first pitch fastball in the heart of the plate and smoked a solo shot to open the scoring in this one. Anderson took care of the next three hitters in order to end the inning. Anderson came into this one with a good .283 wOBA against his fourseamer, and using that pitch more, and more effectively, is a big piece of turning him into a quality starting pitcher. The fastball is effective, but that still doesn’t mean you can groove them, and the fastball command has certainly been an issue at times.

Colt Keith opened the fourth with a rocket to center field, but Isbel hauled it in. Dingler was nicked on the elbow guard by a curveball, but McKinstry struck out, and Callahan grounded out.

In the bottom half, it was Salvador Perez who got a poorly located fastball. In a 1-2 count, Dingler signaled for a fastball up, but it was more center away, and the veteran catcher crushed a deep fly ball to center field for a solo shot to give the Royals a 2-0 lead. Anderson gave up a one-out single to Loftin up the middle, but he popped up Michael Massey and Tyler Tolbert grounded out to send us to the fifth.

Hao-Yu Lee cut the Royals lead in half in the top of the fifth. After Torkelson and Clark struck out, Lee got a 1-1 sinker on the inner third and destroyed it, launching a 446 foot homer that left the bat at 110 mph. Lee now has two homers and three hits total in five ABs against Wacha. At least someone sees the ball well out of his hand. 2-1 Royals.

Anderson kept the momentum with a quick 1-2-3 inning. Isbel grounded out, and Carter Jensen was dusted by a high fourseamer to strike out. Witt Jr. grounded out to end the inning.

Wacha’s pitch count was still in pretty good shape at 72 pitches entering the top of the sixth. He got Torres on another routine ground out as the veteran second baseman reached for a slider breaking down and away to start the inning. Colt Keith correctly challenged a first pitch strike call to get into a hitter’s count. In a 1-2 count, Wacha floated another high changeup that fooled him and was fouled back, and Keith watched a sinker right down the gut for strike three. Dingler’s recent struggles continued with another ground out to end the frame.

AJ Hinch left Anderson in to face the left-handed hitting Jac Caglianone to open the bottom of the sixth. The changeup made him a better option with Tanner Rainey poised to take over. Instead, Caglianone smoked a hot ground ball double to right. Hinch made the switch, and Rainey got a ground out from Perez, moving Caglianone to third with one out. A good 2-2 slider from Rainey got a sharp grounder to Torkelson, and Caglianone had to hold as the Tigers’ first baseman stepped on first base for the second out. That left it up to Nick Loftin, and Dingler came out for a quick chat with Rainey. The right-hander is currently sitting 96 up to 98 mph with his fastball, making him a little more effective than in recent years. He fed Loftin plenty of breaking balls to get to a 2-2 count, but then yanked a fastball into the dirt toward the other batter’s box. Dingler couldn’t backhand it, and Caglianone scored on the wild pitch. Loftin popped out, but the way things were going that was a tough run to give up. 3-1 Royals after six.

McKinstry grounded out to first to start the seventh. Wacha was only nearing 90 pitches at this point and was likely to get the whole inning if he could go 1-2-3. He could not, however. Callahan got a first pitch changeup that he was way ahead on. Wacha tried it again, and Callahan ripped it down the right field line for a double. The Royals bullpen quickly got to work warming up as Torkelson stepped in. The first baseman has had little to no success against Wacha in his career and it held true as he popped out to Caglianone. So it was up to Max Clark to get Callahan home. Wacha threw him two changeups, one fouled off and one up, and then came back to jam him with a cutter and Clark grounded out to second. That was the end of the night for Wacha, but the Tigers were rapidly running out of time to prevent a seventh loss in their last eight games.

Lefty Drew Sommers, whose nickname in the cluhouse is Pontoon as we learned today, took over in the bottom of the seventh. We kind of preferred something more traditional like Big Nasty. He got Massey to ground out ot McGonigle at shortstop. He locked up Tolbert with a good swing back sinker on the inner edge for the second out. Isbel just couldn’t pick up Sommers arm slot and took a sinker down the middle for strike three. With much improved strike throwing and a bit of added velocity to go with his tough arm slot and huge extension, Sommers is pitching the best ball in the Tigers’ pen at this point.

Old friend Alex Lange took the bump for the Royals in the eighth. Lee grounded out to Witt Jr. to start the inning. McGonigle flew out to Isbel, and Torres grounded out to end the frame.

The Tigers offense is the second best in baseball by wRC+ and fourth best in run scoring since June 1, but the sweep at the hands of the White Sox seems to have sucked the second wind out of them. The power has largely dried up, and some of the rookies are getting their first taste of the struggle.

Sommers was really feeling it in the eighth. He whiffed Jensen on a nasty slider and then just reared back and blew Witt Jr. away with heat. Caglianone threw his bat at a slider away and grounded out weakly for a quick inning. And so it was last call for the Tigers.

They would face one of the all-time great closers, Craig Kimbrel, though he is not that guy anymore. No doubt Kenley Jansen can sympathize. He would face Colt Keith, Dingler, and McKinstry. Keith grounded out to second to start things off. Dingler took a fastball for a called strike three just above the zone and didn’t challenge it either, suggesting that the frustrations are mounting for him lately. McKinstry waited Kimbrel out and drew himself a walk, and so the game was in Brett Callahan’s hands. Kimbrel stepped off after a first pitch strike, but Caglianone wasn’t holding the runner, making it a balk to move McKinstry to second. Callahan yanked a curveball foul and then fought off a pair of fastballs. A high fourseamer drew the whiff, and the Tigers have lost seven of their last eight.

First pitch is set for 2:10 p.m. ET on Sunday. The Tigers are going with a bullpen game centered around lefty Andrew Sears, who will be called up for his major league debut. You can read more about him here.

It was a remarkably quick game as both teams combined for only 10 runners total. The Royals evened the season series and took the weekend series with a 3-1 victory over one of the teams that bedeviled them so much earlier in the season.

Watching this game, you might not have realized just how well Michael Wacha was pitching. It wasn’t ever close to being a no-hitter; he wasn’t striking out everyone he saw. But when he left the mound after the top of the seventh, he had struck out 6 and allowed only 4 baserunners and 1 run all night. The lone run came on a blast from Hao-Yu Lee in the top of the fifth. That was one of only three times in the entire game that Wacha allowed a runner as far as second base.

Alex Lange pitched a clean eighth, and Craig Kimbrel continued the closer carousel for the Royals, becoming the eighth pitcher to pick up at least one save for KC this season. That number includes Daniel Lynch IV, starting tomorrow; Eli Morgan, no longer with the team; and Lucas Erceg, demoted to Omaha earlier this week. Just one more way of saying the Royals’ bullpen has been an absolute problem this year. It also marked Kimbrel’s first save since 2024 with the Baltimore Orioles, and the Royals became the ninth team for whom he has saved a game.

It was a good thing the pitching was so effective, despite Kimbrel’s struggles in the ninth, because the Royals’ offense couldn’t get much going. Kyle Isbel led off the third inning with a no-doubt blast, the third time in his career he has hit home runs in back-to-back games.

Salvador Perez walloped one foul down the left field line foul before going deep to dead center instead.

The Royals scored their third run in the bottom of the sixth when Jac Caglianone smoked a double at 102.2 MPH just past Spencer Torkelson. He advanced to third on a Perez ground out and eventually scored on a wild pitch.

And that’s about it. Like I said at the top, it was a quick, simple game. Just a touch over 2 hours in total length. The Royals can go for the sweep tomorrow. Whichever team wins that game will also win the season series. Daniel Lynch IV (2.83 ERA, 4.02 SIERA)will get the starting nod from the Royals, surely to be followed by Mason Black. The Tigers are expected to counter with Framber Valdez (4.35 ERA, 4.36 SIERA), though MLB currently has them with TBD.

The Royals now must win 24 of their final 31 in order to finish the season at .500.

This is the Fernando Tatis Jr. we all knew was in there. 

Doubts had crept into the minds of San Diego Padres fans about whether Tatis could reclaim the player we first experienced, before injuries and a suspension for using a banned substance.

The start of the 2026 season did not bring much optimism for the success of the player who views himself as one of the best players in the game. Tatis struggled at the beginning of the year, not only by not hitting well but also by lacking extra-base power. For the first five weeks of the season, Tatis had four doubles, no triples, and no homers among his 28 hits.

The month of May began the same way, but as the month wore on, the bat began to heat up. By the end of May, his average was improving, and he had a triple and a homer added to his numbers. 

Baseball fans began to see Tatis drive the ball more regularly as the summer warmed up. We also saw his ability to pull the ball over the wall was increasing. By the July All-Star break, his average had climbed, with extra-base hits a quarter of his total hits. He still only had five home runs, but his doubles total was up to 19.

Since then, the adjustments Tatis has needed have been made. His defense has always been there; he has won two Platinum Gloves in right field. With the injury to Jake Cronenworth, the organization even called on him to fill in at second base. A role he filled well and seemed to enjoy.

His baserunning is aggressive, and despite some ill-advised choices at times, the excitement is always there. Even the matrix moves he makes at home plate, trying to avoid the high and inside pitches, bring gasps from fans.

There is no doubt about the talent; the consistency has been the issue.

MLB Network analysis

Mark DeRosa of MLB Network highlighted the adjustments made as the season has gone on. Using the first home run in May as the dividing line, the first 50 games of the season yielded a .238 average, a .319 OBP, a .276 slugging percentage, and an fWAR of 0.0 with no home runs.

Since that date, over 75 games leading to Aug. 20, his average is .306 with 15 home runs, a .374 OBP, a .528 slug and a 3.2 fWAR.

The stroke has returned

Over his past 30 games, Tatis has 10 home runs and has accumulated a 1.008 OPS, best in MLB. 

The longest home run distance in MLB this season is 474 feet, hit by Tatis on July 21 versus the Atlanta Braves. He has four homers over 450 feet this season, which is tops in the league.

He robs them too

The game that best shows how important a fully effective Tatis is to the Friars was played on Aug. 18, versus the New York Mets. The game that prompted MLB Network to sing his praises. The catch over the right field wall to rob Francisco Lindor of a grand slam might have been his best. It certainly was the most dramatic.

It’s not a coincidence that the Padres offense has heated up at the same time Tatis has turned it on. 

In May, the Padres’ offense had the worst batting average in baseball. In June, they had improved to No. 22 in the league. For July, the Padres offense was top five in all batting averages and was seventh in home runs.

Of course, it wasn’t all Tatis making the difference, but his improvement seems to have spearheaded the turnaround. As has been noted before, the Padres have always believed that the team would go as Manny Machado goes. That sentiment is just not relevant this season.

Machado continues to hit home runs, driving in a team-leading 72 runs along with his 24 homers. But his average continues to hover around .200 with a .715 OPS. Multiple players have a better OPS, and Luis Campusano leads the team with a .904.

We could be witnessing a transition of dominance, with the Padres’ new owners taking over the franchise, and Tatis taking the forefront on the field.

Tatis and Jackson Merrill are the future for this team. Tatis has shown his dedication to the organization by signing a long-term contract early in his career here. That alone has shown Padres fans that Tatis is the player we need to watch as the standard-bearer going forward.

Consistency is the key for Tatis. His talent is off the charts. The future of the squad rests on Tatis’ ability to maintain what he knows he can do.

The Phillies had sent Andrew Painter down to the minors in mid June as they searched for answers to their fifth starter problem. They had clearly not given up on Painter as a project, but at the time, they needed much more than what Painter was giving them. While in Lehigh Valley, Painter wasn’t exactly a paragon of effectiveness as he tried to sort out his issues. His five starts while there saw him strike out roughly the same amount of batters as he did in the majors, but the control was still a bit sketchy.

However, since returning to the majors with the Phillies, the things that he apparently needed to work on have been much better, Saturday night being the best start he has had this year.

Seven innings, five hits, one run, no walks, eight strikeouts….and twenty swings and misses, the most he has had this year.

Andrew Painter, Nasty 88mph Slider. 😨

6th K pic.twitter.com/6qoFBJGGdR

— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) August 22, 2026

While Painter was carving up the Cardinals offense, the Phillies offense was cooking. Three runs in the first inning thanks to Alec Bohm continuing his hot streak with an RBI single and Edmundo Sosa filling in nicely for Bryson Stott and getting a two RBI double to make it 3-0.

In the third, Bryan de la Cruz had an RBI single with the bases loaded to tack on two more runs, followed by a sacrifice fly by J.T. Realmuto and an RBI double by Derek Hill to essentially ice the game at 7-0. St. Louis got on the board in the sixth with an RBI single by Alec Burleson, but it was on a great pitch by Painter, making it a tip of the cap and move on to the next batter. In their half of the sixth, four more runs were added thanks to an sacrifice fly by Kyle Schwarber and a three run missile by Bryce Harper.

Bryce Harper 3-run blast 💥

The @Phillies have scored ELEVEN runs! pic.twitter.com/0qKPCYE2Nz

— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2026

Schwarber must have been jealous as he added one that may have injured someone had it hit them directly.

Kyle Schwarber hits his MLB-leading 38th homer! pic.twitter.com/RybWoiKFTg

— MLB (@MLB) August 23, 2026

Did the Cardinals tack on two more runs at the end? Sure, but who cares!

The story here was Painter. Seeing him be an effective version of himself has added quite a bit of stability to the rotation. With the way everyone has been pitching, there are five starters that are giving the Phillies a good start each time he goes out. Has Zack Wheeler struggled? Sure, but with Painter pitching well, particularly this well tonight, the team can weather that. Seeing him get this many swings and misses is particularly encouraging as that was one of the bigger bugaboos to his game this year, that he wasn’t able to get hitters out on his own. Should he be considered “fixed”? Talk to me when this becomes the norm rather than a “Wow!” type of start, but it’s surely another big step in the direction the team seems to have him back on.