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Mets' Juan Soto sets new career-high with 42nd home run this season: 'It’s pretty unbelievable what he’s doing'

Juan Soto's first year with the Mets is becoming more and more legendary by the game, and Friday saw another milestone set for the outfielder.

Soto's fourth-inning blast not only gave the Mets an 8-4 lead, but it was the 42nd long ball of his season, a new career high. It's the third-most ever by a Met in a single season, and his 21 homers at home are tied for fourth-most by a Met. 

Considering how Soto's inaugural season in Flushing started, it's impressive how far the slugger has come, to the point that he's having one of his best statistical seasons ever. Mets manager Carlos Mendoza was asked after Friday's 12-6 win over Soto's former team, the Nationals, what impressed him the most about Soto.

"When you talk about the numbers, that is something special," Mendoza said. "For me, it’s just the person. It’s how consistent he has been the whole year. It was hard for him in the beginning, going through the ups and downs, tough stretches…Never panicked, the impact he has with the boys, that for me is what makes him who he is.

"Special guy, special player, man, it’s pretty unbelievable what he’s doing."

"Feels great," Soto said of reaching his new milestone. "A lot of hard work day in and day out since the offseason and to get results it’s really good for any player. It feels great that we got the win. It was good."

After the blast, Soto trotted out to left field, where the Citi Field crowd chanted and showed him love. It doesn't feel like too long ago Soto wasn't getting that reception from the home crowd, but he's flipped his season on its head and is helping the Mets push their way into the postseason.

Over his last 20 games, dating back to Aug. 29,  Soto has a .368/.462/.829 slashline with 10 home runs, three doubles, one triple, 24 RBI and 20 runs. During that span, he leads the majors in home runs, RBI, SLG, total bases (63) and OPS (1.291).

"This crowd has been unbelievable," Soto said. "The whole year they’ve been showing up, Nothing else we can ask for."

In his eighth big league season, Soto continues to push the heights of the production he can put up. After setting a career high in homers in his final season with the Padres, he eclipsed that with the Yankees a year ago, en route to finishing third in MVP voting. But in 2025, Soto continues to produce power that we haven't seen from him.

What goes into it?

"A combination of everything that he does at the plate," Mendoza explained. "His ability to control the strike zone. His bat-to-ball skills, his power, his ability to drive the ball to all fields. His ability to hit righties and lefties and on top of that, the awareness and understanding of the situation. What the pitcher is trying to do to him, it’s a complete package at the batter’s box. At this point, nothing surprises me anymore. He’s going to continue to get better, that’s pretty unbelievable."

Soto finished Friday's game going 2-for-3 with a walk and a stolen base. His walk is the 121st of the season and is now just four shy of tying John Olerud's franchise record for a season. His 34th stolen base, another career high, are the most by a Met in a single since since Eric Young Jr. in 2013. 

With eight games to go, and just six stolen bases needed, Soto can become the first Met to go 40/40 and just the seventh player in MLB history to do it.

Unbelievable indeed.

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Mets Prospect Roundup: Jett Williams homers, Carson Benge triples with Triple-A Syracuse

The regular season is winding down for Triple-A Syracuse, but two of the Mets' top prospects aren't squandering the few opportunities they have left to improve their standing within the organization.

There was no shortage of offense in Syracuse's 8-1 road win over Lehigh Valley on Friday night, and Jett Williams and Carson Benge inflicted the most damage. The pair of highly-touted youngsters delivered three combined extra-base hits, and drove in two runs apiece.

Benge broke the ice in the first inning with an RBI single to right, and then in the fourth, his triple to the right-center field gap bumped Syracuse's lead to 2-0. It was the 22-year-old outfielder's first Triple-A three-bagger, and seventh across three minor-league levels this season.

Williams then flaunted some pop in the sixth, crushing a two-out fastball to deep left field for a two-run shot -- his sixth homer with Syracuse. It also wasn't the only extra-base knock for the 21-year-old infielder, as he collected a triple of his own with one out in the eighth.

Call it welcomed production from Williams and Benge, who've both hit near the Mendoza Line since receiving the Triple-A promotion in mid-August. The Mets' expectations for them remain sky-high, of course -- Benge was recently named the franchise's Minor League Player of the Year.

In between Benge and Williams in Syracuse's lineup was outfielder Tyrone Taylor, recovering from an early September hamstring strain. He began his rehab assignment on a positive note, finishing 1-for-4 with an RBI single in the sixth. He was subbed out in the bottom of the seventh.

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Todd McLellan Shares Impact of James van Riemsdyk’s Training Camp Absence

The Detroit Red Wings have nearly wrapped up Training Camp in preparation for the upcoming 2025-26 NHL season, but two key members of the team have been absent for the entirety of the proceedings. 

Defenseman Simon Edvinsson, who is coming off his first full NHL season and has already made himself arguably Detroit's second most valuable blue liner, is dealing with an injury that's expected to sideline him potentially until the Oct. 9 home opener. 

Secondly, newly-signed forward James van Riemsdyk has also been unable to participate. Thankfully, the reason behind van Riemsdyk's absence appears to be a happy one. 

For now, head coach Todd McLellan continues to tinker with different line combinations, even trying Elmer Söderblom on the top line with Lucas Raymond and Dylan Larkin during scrimmage play. 

Bookmark The Hockey News Detroit Red Wings team site to stay connected to the latest news, game-day coverage, and player features. 

However, van Riemsdyk's absence from the ice in the early goings of Training Camp hasn't thrown a wrench into their plans. 

"It changes things for, maybe some line situations or something like that, but our lines are going to be all over the map here pretty soon," McLellan said. "We're just going to continue to try and experiment with different people in different places until we find things we like."

van Riemsdyk was the second overall pick in 2007 (Philadelphia Flyers) behind his now-current teammate Patrick Kane (Blackhawks). Ironically, they'd both battle one another just three years later in the 2010 Stanley Cup Final.

He's already eclipsed the 1,000 game mark, appearing in 1,082 total regular season contests with 327 goals and 338 assists across stops with four different clubs (two separate stints with the Flyers). 

Getting a veteran like him back up to speed isn't going to be a problem for Detroit, according to McLellan. 

"When JVR gets back to camp, whether it's going to be here tomorrow, the Red & White game, or back in Detroit, we'll get him caught up on things," McLellan said. "He's a seasoned veteran, he's played multiple different systems in the League....he's a smart guy. We'll be able to catch him up to the pace of the team. I'll be his legs and his timing and all that type of stuff that'll have to come back, but it'll come." 

Todd McLellan: Red Wings' Carter Mazur Brings 'Hunt Menality' We NeedTodd McLellan: Red Wings' Carter Mazur Brings 'Hunt Menality' We NeedCarter Mazur’s long-awaited NHL debut on March 6 of last season had all the makings of a storybook night for the 2021 Detroit Red Wings draft pick.

As far as final line combinations as Opening Night approaches, McLellan cautioned fans not to read too much into them, as they're subject to change at a moment's notice. 

"We're moving people around. I think we have to give the younger players every opportunity to experience being on a line with some veterans, and see how that goes," he said. "But please don't read into the lines and good luck guessing, because I don't even know what we're doing tomorrow, yet."

Following the final day of Training Camp in Traverse City, the club will travel to Grand Rapids for the annual Red & White Game, which was moved to Van Andel Arena for the first time, on Sept. 22.

They'll follow this up with the opening pre-season game against the Chicago Blackhawks the following night at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit. 

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Juan Soto's home run caps six-run inning as Mets defeat Nationals, 12-6

Juan Soto set a new career high for homers in a season as the Mets took advantage of mistakes to defeat the Nationals, 12-6, at Citi Field on Friday night.

Soto went 2-for-3 with three RBI, two walks and a stolen base as the Mets have won four of their last five games.

Here are the takeaways...

-Brandon Sproat dominated the Nats over the first two innings, striking out three, but it started to unravel a bit in the third inning due to to bad fundies. After a leadoff walk, Jorge Alfaro hit a dribbler down the third base line that Sproat came off the mound to field, and the young right-hander probably should have held it, but tried to get the out at first and instead threw it into the outfield. Paul DeJong scampered all the way home as the Mets' fielders took a while to get the ball in. After a walk, Sproat got James Wood to hit into a much-needed double play to record the first two outs of the inning. Sproat was one strike away from getting out of the inning, but CJ Abrams' double put the Nats up 2-1. Josh Bell followed with a liner to left-center field that Jose Siri had a beat on, but the ball bounced out of his glove and Abrams came around to score on the double. Daylen Lile then hit it toward Siri in shallow center but he took a bad route on it and the ball skipped past him all the way to the wall as the fourth run of the inning for Washington scored on the triple.

Sproat bounced back, striking out two in a 1-2-3 fourth, but that was the end of the line for the youngster. Sproat tossed 71 pitches (42 strikes) in four innings, allowing four runs on four hits and two walks while striking out five batters.

-As for the Mets' offense, Pete Alonso was the catalyst for the team's first two runs. In the first, the slugger hit a bloop single down the right field line. Francisco Lindor, who hit a leadoff single, went first to third and came home on an error by right fielder Dylan Crews. In the third, Alonso hit a two-out single to drive in Lindor, who walked with two outs and advanced to third on a Soto single.

The Mets would get squared at 4-4 in the fourth thanks to back-to-back singles by Brandon Nimmo and Starling Marte to lead off the inning, followed by a two-run double from Francisco Alvarez. After a Brett Baty HBP and Siri struck out, Lindor picked up his second hit of the game to drive in Alvarez as he and Baty moved up base on Woods' error in left field, allowing the ball to trickle under his glove. Soto capped off the six-run inning with a three-run shot to put the Mets up 8-4. The ball went out 107 mph off the bat, 419 feet to dead center for his 42nd blast of the year, a new career high. 

-Huascar Brazoban was the first arm out of the bullpen in relief of Sproat and he didn't have it. A leadoff single, then a one-out, two-run shot from Abrams cut the Mets' lead to 8-6 and Brazoban's night. After Brazoban, the Mets' bullpen was nails. The combination of Brooks Raley, Ryne Stanek, Ryan Helsley (yes, Helsley) and Tyler Rogers locked down the Nationals lineup before Chris Devenski, with a six-run lead, was asked to preserve the win. After allowing two one-out hits, Devenski struck out the last two batters he faced.

Here's how the Mets bullpen fared on Friday:

  • Brazoban: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 K
  • Raley: 1.0 IP
  • Stanek: 0.2 IP, 1 K
  • Helsley: 1.0 IP, 1 K
  • Rogers: 1.0 IP
  • Devenski: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 2 K

-With the Mets only up 8-6, the team scratched across a crucial insurance run in the seventh. Jeff McNeil hit a leadoff single (pinch-hitting for Mark Vientos) before Luisangel Acuña pinch-ran and stole second. Nimmo moved Acuña to third on a groundball and Marte tacked on the run with a groundout of his own.

Acuña then walked on four pitches with the bases loaded in the eighth with two outs to push across the 10th run of the evening for the Mets. Nimmo followed with a two-run single to put the game out of hand.

-Siri, getting the start at CF against the southpaw with Tyrone Taylor on a rehab assignment, not only made two misplays in the outfield but also went hitless (0-3, 2K). His strikeout in the fourth as the Mets were making their comeback had Citi Field booing. 

Game MVP: Francisco Lindor

Lindor went 3-for-4 with a walk, an RBI and three runs scored. His aggressiveness on the basepaths got the scoring going for the Mets and he was in the mix for all of the Mets' rallies. 

Highlights

What's next

The Mets and Nationals continue their weekend series with a Saturday afternoon game. First pitch is set for 4:10 p.m.

Nolan McLean (4-1, 1.19 ERA) looks to continue his dominance since being called up, while the Nationals will send Cade Cavalli (3-1, 4.76 ERA) to the mound.

 

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Yankees struggle to muster enough offense in 4-2 loss to Orioles

The Yankees were unable to narrow the gap in the AL East standings on Friday night, as they fell to the last place Orioles, 4-2, at Oriole Park at Camden Yards.

Here are the takeaways...

-- Orioles starter Trevor Rogers entered Friday with a stellar 1.43 ERA through 16 starts this season, and it didn't take long to realize that the Yankees weren't picking up his stuff with ease. The left-hander retired the first eight batters faced, and while the Yankees managed to reach base three times on two walks and one hit-by-pitch through five innings, they failed to register a hit or orchestrate a rally. Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Volpe came close to inflicting damage, but their 400-foot flyouts landed just short of the wall. Rogers logged seven strikeouts during this five-inning stretch.

-- All that the Yankees could ask from Will Warren was some quality length, and much to their delight, the rookie right-hander delivered it. He lowered a bloated first-inning ERA by retiring the Orioles in order with a pair of strikeouts, and while he served up a leadoff solo home run to Ryan Mountcastle in the second inning, he limited mistakes from there and sent down 12 of the next 15 batters with four punchouts. After five, the Yankees trailed, 1-0.

-- The Yankees' luck against Rogers slightly turned in the sixth, as Austin Wells broke up the no-hitter with a single to center. But the leadoff knock was all for naught, as Orioles outfielder Dylan Beavers crushed any chance of a momentum shift by robbing Paul Goldschmidt of a two-run homer (or extra bases) and Aaron Judge of a single. The first web gem required a decent leap at the left-center field wall, while the latter demanded a head-first slide and snowcone catch. Rogers then induced a groundout of Cody Bellinger to complete the inning at 106 total pitches. 

-- The Yankees' missed opportunities at the plate came back to bite Warren shortly thereafter. He allowed the leadoff man, Jordan Westburg, to reach first on a fielding error, and then one pitch later, Jazz Chisholm Jr. botched a shovel throw to first on a grounder that went past Goldschmidt and put a pair of Orioles in scoring position. Warren's night didn't last much longer -- a sac fly extended Baltimore's lead to 2-0, and he then walked Beavers on four pitches. Fernando Cruz took over with one out, allowing a walk and an RBI groundout before escaping the jam. Still, a decent outing from Warren.

-- Chisholm made up for his defensive blunder in the seventh. With two outs and a runner on first, he cut the Yankees' deficit back to one with a timely two-run homer to right. The 388-foot blast was also memorable, as Chisholm became just the third player in franchise history to produce a campaign with 30 homers and 30 stolen bases. The other two members of the exclusive club? Bobby Bonds (1975) and Alfonso Soriano (2002, 2003).

-- Cruz returned for the seventh, striking out the leadoff hitter, but further work wasn't requested. Tim Hill entered with one out, and the lefty-on-lefty strategy backfired. While the veteran southpaw induced a grounder for the second out, he gave up a single to Westburg and then a double to Gunnar Henderson that bumped the Orioles' lead to 4-2. Camilo Doval was tasked with logging the third out, and he did just that by getting Mountcastle to fly out. 

-- The Yankees were given a crack at a late-inning rally, as a one-out, pinch-hit walk from Ben Rice, a bloop single from Judge, and a soft groundout from Bellinger set Stanton up with the tying run at second. But the moment didn't overwhelm Orioles reliever Rico Garcia, who managed to induce an inning-ending groundout to third. The ninth inning belonged to Keegan Akin, who needed only nine pitches to record his eighth save this season.

Game MVP: Trevor Rogers

Rogers kept the Yankees off balance for much of the night, and while he needed a season-high 106 pitches to complete six innings, he gave the home crowd a shutout performance worthy of cheers.

Highlights

What's next

The Yankees (86-68) will continue their four-game set in Baltimore on Saturday night, with first pitch scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

LHP Carlos Rodón (16-9, 3.11 ERA) is slated to take the mound, opposite RHP Tomoyuki Sugano (10-8, 4.39 ERA).

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Flyers Training Camp: Healthy Jett Luchanko Focused on the Present

(Photo: Perry Nelson, Imagn Images)

With an uncertain future ahead, top Philadelphia Flyers prospect Jett Luchanko is keeping everything in perspective in front of him during training camp.

Luchanko, 19, will be forced to either make the NHL outright this season, as he did on John Tortorella's iteration of the Flyers last year, or return to the OHL with the lowly Guelph Storm.

But, having gone through it all already, and knowing what to expect in regards to his future one way or another, the 2024 first-round pick isn't spending all that much time considering what's ahead of him.

"Just a lot of the same as last year. Just come to the rink everyday and work hard," Luchanko said of his current approach Friday. "No matter what, it's never going to be easy to make a team like this, so, kind of just take it day by day."

Flyers Training Camp 2025: Top 3 Roster Battles to WatchFlyers Training Camp 2025: Top 3 Roster Battles to WatchThe Philadelphia Flyers are looking to ratchet up the competition for NHL roster spots this year, and that starts with the beginning of training camp on Thursday.

The 19-year-old had an interesting 2024-25 campaign, playing games for the Flyers, Canada U20s at the World Junior Championships, the Storm as their captain, and the Lehigh Valley Phantoms, including seven Calder Cup playoff games.

Then, heading into development camp and even the recent rookie camp, Luchanko spent time nursing a nagging groin injury.

And, unfortunately for Luchanko and the Flyers, he won't be back in the AHL until the spring, just as last year, due to league rules.

Suffice to say, a lot can and will change during life as a top NHL prospect.

But, Luchanko's ability to keep perspective and stay grounded is impressive and says a lot about his mentality as a player and as a person. That's undoubtedly part of the reason why the Flyers believe in him as much as they do.

A player who's already made an NHL team out of camp and played regular season games, Luchanko anticipates having to earn every minute of ice time, even as he's paired with Owen Tippett and Alexis Gendron in the early goings of training camp.

Flyers Training Camp Day 1: Big Opportunities AplentyFlyers Training Camp Day 1: Big Opportunities AplentyThe vibes are high as the Philadelphia Flyers kicked off their 2025 training camp Thursday, and for good reason. The atmosphere seems to be totally different.

The Flyers are committed to giving all their young guys a fair chance in beneficial circumstances, which, of course, extends beyond Luchanko, but he's only worried about himself and his game.

Not about competition, not about roster spots, and not about doing a repeat of last year.

Those all exist in the grand scheme of things, but the mature head on Luchanko's shoulders will take him to where he needs to go, starting with training camp this week.

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“Everyone Wants To Play In The NHL And That’s What I Want”: Canucks Defenceman Elias Pettersson Discusses Goals For 2025–26 Season

The 2024-25 season was a rough one for the Vancouver Canucks, but there were still a few bright spots by the end of it. One of these was the remarkable rookie effort from defenceman Elias Pettersson. 

The 21-year-old, who started his first North American season last year with the Abbotsford Canucks, made his NHL debut on January 25 against the Washington Capitals and stuck in Vancouver’s lineup virtually since then. Calm, cool, and collected, the defender demonstrated a confident tenacity not often seen in players his age. Because of this, he’s the current favourite to make Vancouver’s third-pairing on opening night. 

“Everyone wants to play in the NHL, and that’s what I want,” he told The Hockey News after the second day of the Canucks’ Training Camp on Friday. “I think it's just great for the competition, for the practices, for the games.”

Last season was full of memorable moments for the younger Pettersson, who was also named to the AHL All-Star Challenge as a rookie, though he didn’t end up playing due to already being in Vancouver’s lineup for another game. He also scored his first NHL goal on April 5 against the Anaheim Ducks, and got in his first NHL fight on April 11 against Logan O’Connor of the Colorado Avalanche. Still, the defenceman insists that the biggest moments of that season were the first he’d ever experienced — his debuts. 

“Always the debuts,” he said. “Debut in Abbotsford, debut up in Vancouver. A debut, you never forget those moments.” 

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Vancouver’s off-season lasted a bit longer than the team would have wanted it to, with their final game being played on April 16. During the summer, Pettersson took the opportunity to learn from current NHLers such as Calgary Flames captain Mikael Backlund. 

“He helped me, battling with him on one-on-ones — so hard — but I think it’s so good for me to play against such great players during the off-season.” 

Vancouver Canucks 2025–26 Player Preview: Elias Pettersson (D) Vancouver Canucks 2025–26 Player Preview: Elias Pettersson (D) Welcome to The Hockey News - Vancouver Canucks site’s player preview series for the 2025–26 season. In these articles, we’ll preview the players who are expected to play for the Canucks in the 2025–26 season. Today, we’ll be looking at how rookie defenceman Elias Pettersson could perform in 2025–26. 

The 2025-26 season will be quite different from last year, with one main change in the team being their coaching staff. Former assistant Adam Foote is now the head coach, and appears to be approaching things differently than former bench boss Rick Tocchet. The team appears more aggressive under he and new assistant coaches Kevin Dean, Brett McLean, and Scott Young. Pettersson worked with Foote last season, and will continue to learn under him now despite the coach having a different role. 

“I learned so much. I’m still learning,” he explained. “Always some advice every practice, every game. Just really good for myself and for the team.”

Pettersson has learned lots, and will continue to learn even more, as he prepares to embark on what could possibly his first full NHL season. 

Mar 11, 2025; Vancouver, British Columbia, CAN; Vancouver Canucks defenseman Elias Pettersson (25) skates against the Montreal Canadiens in the first period at Rogers Arena. Mandatory Credit: Bob Frid-Imagn Images

Make sure you bookmark THN's Vancouver Canucks site and add us to your favourites on Google News for the latest news, exclusive interviews, breakdowns, and so much more. Also, don't forget to leave a comment at the bottom of the page and engage with other passionate fans through our forum. This article originally appeared on The Hockey News.

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Phillies execute piggyback plan to defeat Diamondbacks 8-2

Phillies execute piggyback plan to defeat Diamondbacks 8-2 originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

PHOENIX – The big picture for the Phillies as they wind down this regular season is to make sure a first-round bye is secured by either being the first or second seed in the National League.

The smaller one is for manager Rob Thomson to tweak and shuffle and have his players in just the right frame of mind heading into the postseason.

Friday night at Chase Field, the Phillies checked both those boxes with an 8-2 thumping of the Arizona Diamondbacks.

With the Milwaukee Brewers losing to the St. Louis Cardinals, the Phillies are now two games back in their quest for that No. 1 seed. The Phillies have now won 12 of their past 16 games and improved to 92-62 on the season.

Thomson designed for Friday to be a pitchers’ piggyback game with Taijuan Walker getting the start and Walker Buehler scheduled to replace him during a clean inning. If he could have gotten eight innings or so out of the duo, the manager deemed before the game that it would be ideal. He pretty much got it.

After giving up two runs in the first, Walker didn’t allow another during his four innings before giving way to Buehler, who was nothing short of terrific in his 3 2/3 innings of work.

Buehler, whose fastball got as high as 96 MPH and hovered around 94 during his stint, was in complete control during most of his 60-pitch outing. He did load the bases in the eighth on a single and two walks, but Tanner Banks came in and got pinch-hitter Jordan Lawlor to pop out to short to end the threat. For the night, Buehler allowed two hits, two walks and struck out three.

The Phillies got their first run on the board in the second when Brandon Marsh got a one-out single and scored on a double to right-center by Alec Bohm, who was making his first start since September 7th after coming off the IL earlier in the day.

A two-out home run to left by Harrison Bader in the fifth tied the game before the Phillies took the lead in the sixth inning.

Marsh led off with a single and stole second with two outs. Weston Wilson then brought him home with a single to left for a 3-2 lead.

Marsh had a chance to do more damage in the seventh when he came up with the bases loaded and two outs. But lefthander Philip Abner, making his major league debut, got Marsh looking with a fastball. It really didn’t matter, though, as the Phillies combined to score five more times in the eighth and ninth.

Nick Castellanos, who put on a home run hitting show in batting practice before the game, drilled a two-run shot to left off Jake Woodford in the eighth for a 5-2 lead. Castellanos entered the game in the sixth when he pinch-hit for Max Kepler against lefthander Jalen Beeks. He stayed in the game and provided those huge insurance runs for the Phillies.

It was a positive return for Bohm, who saw eight pitches before delivering his RBI double the opposite way to open the scoring for Philadelphia. He also made a spectacular play at third in the fourth, diving towards the line to get a ground ball by Tim Tawa. He reached base in the eighth on an error by third baseman Blaze Alexander and scored ahead of Castellanos on his homer and drove in a pair in the ninth with a bases-loaded single to center. Castellanos then drove in his third run of the game with a single to center to drive in Marsh and the route was complete.

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Giants fail in bid to spoil Kershaw Night as postseason hopes continue dwindling

Giants fail in bid to spoil Kershaw Night as postseason hopes continue dwindling originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

LOS ANGELES — At 9:53 p.m. last Friday, Patrick Bailey hit a walk-off grand slam off Tanner Scott to beat the Los Angeles Dodgers at Oracle Park. The Giants crept closer in the NL Wild Card race that night, and given how ridiculous the moment was, it wasn’t hard to picture them rolling all the way through September. 

At 9:57 p.m. exactly a week later, Matt Chapman popped up a slider from Scott, clinching a 6-3 loss on a night that started with some promise. The Giants lost for the sixth time in seven games since the Bailey slam, and while they’re trying to avoid the math, the situation is bleak.

The late July/early August Giants returned at the worst possible time. Their dreams of an unlikely postseason run could be officially extinguished as early as Sunday afternoon, and the final week might be spent simply trying to finish above .500. Even that might be a stretch, given that they’re 76-78 and have two more games left at Dodger Stadium this weekend.

After the Bailey slam, manager Bob Melvin noted it has been a season of extremes. He smiled and said he hoped the Giants would ride the positive vibes as long as possible. Instead, they have found themselves on the other side. 

The 2025 Giants might finish right around .500, but they don’t necessarily embrace the middle. When they win, they do so with walk-offs and offensive explosions. When they lose, well, the lows are pretty low. 

The latest loss came when Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts went back-to-back, erasing a deficit and knocking Robbie Ray out of the game after a strong start to his night. Ray had outdueled Clayton Kershaw in the other lefty’s final start at Dodger Stadium, but the Dodgers quickly caught up after Kershaw was pulled in the fifth and showered with multiple standing ovations. 

Ray has had some success against Ohtani, and his fastball has been firm in September even as he has struggled overall. He threw five of them at Ohtani in the fifth, the final one coming in at 95.5 mph and sticking to the corner. Ohtani casually flipped it into the seats. 

“It was almost like he was trying to foul it off, and he hit it out to left several rows deep,” Melvin said. 

Ray said he thought it was a good pitch. Ohtani just put a good swing on it. 

“If it’s not down the line, it’s probably not a homer,” Ray said. “But he caught it deep enough to where he was able to get it over the wall.”

This is what the Giants will be up against for the rest of the decade, but the last time they were at Dodger Stadium, they tried to cut into the deficit. At the end of a trip in June, Buster Posey acquired Rafael Devers, who helped the team get back in the race in early September. 

Devers, however, is still looking for a signature moment in orange and black, and he has struggled when the Giants needed him most. Since the win last Friday, Devers is 2-for-27 with 11 strikeouts. Four of them came Friday night, including one with two runners on in the ninth. 

The stars have slumped over the past week, and given their lack of pitching depth, that has left the Giants with little hope. They weren’t even able to spoil Kershaw’s goodbye outing, despite a strong start. 

Heliot Ramos was intent on being aggressive, and he nearly homered on Kershaw’s first pitch. Later in the at-bat, he smoked a ball 431 feet into the seats in left-center. 

“The plan was to be aggressive and try to attack,” Ramos said. “We know the position we’re in. I was trying to attack.”

It was the right mentality, but the rest of the lineup would manage just one more run off Kershaw, who soaked in every moment. Long after the final out, which clinched a postseason spot for the Dodgers, he came back out to the mound to wave at fans and take pictures with his large family. 

A couple hundred feet away, the Giants got dressed in a quiet clubhouse. Ramos said the goal was still to pile up as many wins as possible over the next week and see what happens. Ray said the team is still taking things one day at a time. 

They are running out of days, though. That’s what happens when you waste an entire week in September. 

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Jonathan Toews Making Immediate Mark On Winnipeg Jets

When longtime Chicago Blackhawks star center and captain Jonathan Toews chose to sign with the Winnipeg Jets this summer as part of his NHL comeback, the questions began about how quickly he would make his mark on his new team.

The answer to that question is “immediately.”

“The biggest thing you see is the level of enthusiasm,” Jets GM Kevin Cheveldayoff said of Toews in his comments to media on Thursday. “I have talked to his agent a few times, and he was like, ‘I haven’t seen him like this in years. I haven’t seen him like this since he was breaking into the league, as far as the excitement levels.’ ”

When Toews pressed pause on his NHL career in 2023, there were no guarantees about a return to hockey’s top league whenever the 37-year-old had addressed and overcome serious health concerns. But now that he’s back and active with the Jets, Toews’ leadership skills and instincts are readily apparent to the Winnipeg organization.

“I was fortunate enough to watch him when he was coming into his prime (in Chicago) and becoming ‘Captain Serious’, and it was the little things that he did, the things that he did to make linemates better,” Cheveldayoff said Thursday. “Those aren’t things you lose because of age or not playing. Those are intangibles, and that is what he has. We will see how things progress and everything like that, but I think the true measure of what he is going to bring to the team is how he elevates people around him.”

To be sure, Toews’ 15 NHL seasons of experience – in which he’s played 1,067 regular-season games, while generating 511 assists and 883 points and winning three Stanley Cups – can only be a good thing for the Jets. He’ll not only be motivated to earn up to $5 million in performance bonuses on top of his $2 million of base salary, but he'll be hungry to win.

This coming season, they’re going to try to push further than the second round of the playoffs, where they were beaten last year by the Dallas Stars. So Toews has a golden opportunity to add to his terrific resume and be one of the catalysts in Winnipeg having its best year in the franchise’s history.

Five Burning Questions Heading Into NHL Training CampsFive Burning Questions Heading Into NHL Training CampsAs NHL training camps open across the NHL, there are unfinished contract business, lineup projections, rookies looking to earn a spot and pending signings and trades. 

Toews’ talents on offense may have been diminished by Father Time – in his most recent season, he produced only 15 goals and 31 points in 53 games – but the Jets don’t need Toews to be a front-runner for the NHL’s Art Ross Trophy as the league’s top point-getter. That said, they need him to not only produce on offense but also play savvy defense, be a calm voice in their dressing room and help the team weather any storm that might come its way. 

If he can do those things, the Jets and Toews will be soaring this season.

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What we learned as Clayton Kershaw gets last laugh in Giants' loss to Dodgers

What we learned as Clayton Kershaw gets last laugh in Giants' loss to Dodgers originally appeared on NBC Sports Bay Area

BOX SCORE

LOS ANGELES — In the fifth inning Friday night, about two hours after the first pitch, Dodger Stadium started shaking. But it had nothing to do with the game being Clayton Kershaw’s final regular season start in Los Angeles. 

Shortly after Kershaw departed, Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts went back-to-back off Giants starter Robbie Ray. That flipped a close game and led to another NL West loss for the Giants, who are getting closer and closer to being officially eliminated from the MLB postseason race. 

The 6-3 loss was the fourth in five games on this road trip through Phoenix and Los Angeles and sixth in seven games since the Giants briefly climbed into a tie for a postseason spot. They got a leadoff homer from Heliot Ramos, but after that it was another quiet night for a group that has seen its stars slump with the season on the line. 

The night started with a standing ovation for Kershaw, who took the field alone and then signaled his teammates to join him as he warmed up. Before many of the 53,000 could sit down, Ramos blasted a 431-foot homer to left-center, but the Giants weren’t able to spoil Kershaw’s big night. 

A day after he announced that he is retiring after the season, Kershaw allowed two runs in 4 1/3 innings. He was on the hook for a loss when he departed, but Ohtani quickly changed that with a three-run blast. 

Closing The Book

For years, a decade even, the Ramos homer alone would have qualified as a good day for the Giants against Kershaw. Nobody has ever been more of a Giants-killer than the future first-ballot Hall-of-Famer, who made his 63rd career appearance against them on Friday night. 

With his second of six strikeouts, Kershaw passed Warren Spahn for the most career strikeouts against the Giants. He finished with 421 of them in 411 2/3 innings and posted a 2.10 ERA. That’s the lowest for any pitcher in history who threw at least 150 innings against the organization.

Kershaw finished his night — and possibly his career at Dodger Stadium — by striking out Rafael Devers for a second straight time. He froze Devers with an 89 mph fastball at the knees and then hugged teammates as Dodger Stadium roared and Dave Roberts came out to get the baseball.

The Night’s Other Lefty

Ray has gotten to know Kershaw over the years, a friendship that began when they played catch together at an All-Star Game. On Thursday, shortly after Kershaw’s announcement, Ray said he was excited about pitching in what would feel like a playoff atmosphere. 

For four innings, Ray looked ready to ruin the night. But he got heater-happy against Ohtani and paid for it. Ray has had good velo the last two times out and he pumped fastballs at Ohtani, who hit the fifth one into the seats in left for his 52nd homer of the year. 

Ray was charged with five earned runs. He has allowed 16 earned over four starts in September. 

Postseason Picture

If you are, uhh, still holding out hope … it’s not pretty.

The New York Mets used a six-run inning to blow out the Washington Nationals on Friday afternoon and the Cincinnati Reds beat the Chicago Cubs in a homer-filled game at Great American Small Park. It shouldn’t be long now before the Giants are mathematically eliminated. 

Counting the tiebreaker, they are five games behind the Mets with eight to go. The Reds are two games ahead of the Giants, so even if New York collapsed and the Giants finished strong, they would still need plenty of help. With a rough weekend, they could be eliminated as soon as Sunday. 

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Nate Schmidt Brought Big Energy and Bigger Expectations When Playing for the Jets

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Talk The Talk, Walk The Walk - Oct. 19 2021 - Vol. 75 Issue 5 - Jared Clinton

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(SERGEI BELSKI-USA TODAY SPORTS)

NATE SCHMIDT HAS AN industry secret to share, a trick of the trade he’s picked up over the past few months.

You see, beyond balancing that patrolling-the-blueline-in-the-best-league-in-the-world thing, Schmidt picked up a side gig as a salesman during the off-season, buying into ShortSide Hockey Co., a hockey tape and apparel company started by a few friends from Minnesota.

Schmidt stumbled across a surefire sales tactic through his work with ShortSide. It goes a little something like this: find a potential customer and use the gift of gab. Sure, it’s not for everyone. There are those without a penchant for prattle, those who feel no need for chitchat. But the good news is Schmidt likes to talk. Like, a lot.

“Usually I get on the phone and just start chatting and rambling and talking, and I think usually by the end of it people are saying, ‘Yeah, I’ll buy it from you just so you shut up,’” Schmidt laughed.

Early Takeaways From Jets Training Camp: Groups, Players To Watch, Position BattlesEarly Takeaways From Jets Training Camp: Groups, Players To Watch, Position BattlesBreaking down the early takeaways of Winnipeg Jets Training Camp including storylines from each group, position battles to watch and prospects to keep an eye on.

He’s kidding, of course. Truthfully, it’s hard to fathom anyone telling Schmidt to pipe down and not at all because of his big-league bonafides. Rather, it’s Schmidt’s gregariousness. He has a magnetism and all-too-rare earnestness to him. A conversation about hockey tape shouldn’t be engaging, yet Schmidt can manage to talk about the process of testing batches, cold-calling coaches and persuading teammates to use the stuff without the conversation falling flat.

He brings that same sincerity and thoughtfulness to everything he does, not the least of which is his NHL day job. That much is evident when Schmidt discusses his summer trade to the Winnipeg Jets and reports he considered using his no-trade clause to veto the move. In his first meeting with the Winnipeg media, he took pains to clarify any thought given to nixing the deal was no slight to the city, team or its fans.

It was simply his desire to step back and think – about moving halfway across the country to a new team, about life in a new city and about how his fiancee would feel about the move. “When guys go through and look at free agency and such, things happen really quickly and some guys always say, ‘You wish you could slow it down because it happens so quickly,’” Schmidt said. “When I was taking a look at (the trade) and looking at all the things, the possibilities, it was, for me, my way of slowing it down, to be able to walk away and just reflect on all the things that were about to change.”

It’s difficult to argue with that justification, and even more difficult when considering the veritable whirlwind that has been the past few seasons of the 30-year-old’s career.

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CHANGE OF SCENERY

Schmidt hopes the move to Winnipeg will spur a return to his prior form as a reliable offensive contributor.

(GARY A. VASQUEZ-USA TODAY SPORTS)

Shrinking NHL Pre-Season Could Present Opportunity For AHLShrinking NHL Pre-Season Could Present Opportunity For AHLThe NHL's recent CBA changes could lead to a longer AHL pre-season, following the NHL cutting down on exhibition games. 

Ahead of the 2018-19 campaign, with one year remaining on a two-year pact he had signed with the Vegas Golden Knights, Schmidt inked his first legitimate big-money, career-making contract, a six-year, $35.7-million deal that he believed would keep him in Sin City for the bulk of what was left of his career.

Included in that deal was the aforementioned no-trade clause, which seemed to further insinuate Vegas saw him as a long-term fixture on its blueline. That wasn’t quite the case. One season into his new agreement, the Golden Knights sent Schmidt packing, dealing him to Vancouver for a third-round pick. Less than 10 months later, Schmidt was headed to Winnipeg. “The first time it was pretty devastating to go through, because you think, ‘I signed this deal, I am going to be a part of this team, we’re the Misfits and we’re going to keep it together,’” Schmidt said. “It was a hard thing to figure out at first. I think as you go through and realize that this is part of hockey, it doesn’t really diminish the fact it is hard.”

MY EXPECTATIONS FOR MYSELF ARE EVEN HIGHER THAN WHAT OTHER PEOPLE HAVE FOR ME– Nate Schmidt

And while he’s not about to make excuses, he admitted the wrinkle that COVID-19 added to matters – from the shutdown to the bubble and off-ice restrictions – made that first transition especially challenging, which bore out in Schmidt’s numbers. Across the three seasons preceding his campaign in Vancouver, Schmidt had established himself as a regular offensive contributor, with his 97 points in 196 games, a hair shy of half-point-per-game production during his time with Vegas.

As a Canuck, his output dropped precipitously, to the tune of just five goals and 15 points in 54 games. “I knew I wasn’t at my best last year,” he said. “A lot of different things go into that with a weird year and frustration sometimes. You put a lot of pressure on yourself to go in there and play really well, and there really isn’t a whole lot of time to get used to a new system, new team and real time to actually get going.”

Having gone through this before has Schmidt feeling more settled this time around. It doesn’t hurt he’s relatively close to home – St. Cloud, Minn., is roughly a six-hour drive south – and was able to settle into former teammate Cody Eakin’s Winnipeg home upon arriving with his new team. He’s getting a feel for the city, for the team facilities, and he’s starting to form all-important bonds with his teammates, which has been made that much easier by the relaxing of some of pandemic-related restrictions.

Schmidt acclimating to his new surroundings is no small thing, particularly given the Jets are anticipating he’ll be a major piece of a rejuvenated blueline to which Brenden Dillon has likewise been added. Not since the halcyon, Western Conference-finalist days of 2017-18, when Winnipeg iced a top four of Josh Morrissey, Dustin Byfuglien, Jacob Trouba and Tyler Myers, has there been this much promise in the Jets’ defense corps, at least on paper. If Schmidt returns to the same form that saw him munch minutes for the Vegas group that ended that 2017-18 Winnipeg team’s post-season run, it’d be no surprise to see the Jets carving a playoff path this season.

Trust he’s aware of what Winnipeg is hoping for, too. “A lot of the time, honestly, the expectations people make, my expectations for myself are even higher than what other people have for me,” Schmidt said. “I expect the best out of myself. I do feel good. I feel like my confidence is back playing with this group, we have a good group and it’s going to make for an exciting year.”

Divisional Focus: Jets Look to Snap Losing Skid versus Last-Place PredatorsDivisional Focus: Jets Look to Snap Losing Skid versus Last-Place PredatorsThe Winnipeg Jets aim to win three crucial divisional games over the Nashville Predators next season after losing four of their last seven matchups.