Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across Major League Baseball. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Yankees fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.

Last week, we polled Yankees fans about how they envisioned the 2026 regular season ending for the ol’ Bombers. Only 24 percent said that they thought the Yanks would overtake the upstart Rays in the second half and win the AL East, though 58 percent maintained that they would still make the playoffs as a Wild Card, with the plurality of the options in the poll—35 percent—adding that New York would be the top Wild Card and host a best-of-three first-round series.

Had we sent this survey to fans during a different week when the Yanks weren’t in midst of a 4-14 stretch, perhaps the results would have been different. But even now after sweeping the Nationals to finish the second half on a better 5-2 road trip (splitting a tough Rays series in Tropicana Field as well), it’s clear that the Yankees have work to do. A three-game deficit sits in front of them, and unless they sweep a four-game set against the Rays in September, it might as well be four because Tampa Bay holds the tiebreaker. They’re most likely safe to make the playoffs because they hold a 6.5-game lead on the last Wild Card spot, but there are enough clubs at least vaguely in the mix that if a couple get hot, then it could get tense there as well.

In this week’s survey, we want you to predict the Yankees’ October, months ahead when the roster will look at least a little different due to the unforeseen injuries, players like Aaron Judge and Max Fried ideally returning to health, and any Trade Deadline tweaks. Do you think they’ll get themselves in good enough shape to win their 28th World Series, or at least to advance to their second in three years? Will they fall short somewhere in the AL playoffs? If so, where?

Vote in the poll and we’ll check out the results around the time the second half begins. A challenge awaits with those two-time defending champion Dodgers coming to the Bronx on Friday.

Somehow, the 2026 All-Star break is here.

What a first half for the Atlanta Braves. We’ve run the emotional gamut in this 55-40 record – delirious joy, abysmal lows, and all the in-between. Much like the summer temperatures, a certain divisional race is heating up. But a two-game lead, no matter how tenuous, is still a lead. Enjoy it.

The boys will be partaking in some much-needed rest before returning to game action on Friday. Ozzie Albies, Drake Baldwin, Matt Olson, Chris Sale, and Raisel Iglesias will represent Atlanta in our rival’s city tonight in the Midsummer Classic.

The All-Star Game and accompanying activities are polarizing for baseball fans. We asked the good people of Battery Power to put on their commissioner hats and share the ways they’d change the ASG. Hot takes ahead!

Let’s see some skills

We talk about tools all the time when we’re talking about ballplayers. Beyond the ability to hit dingers, why can’t we see more of what’s possible in our beautiful sport?

In a different flavor, we spend a decent chunk of ASG festivities honoring current players and getting excited about future stars. Why limit the alumni activations to brands and collabs? 

Scheduling logic

Why do the All-Stars Futures Game and the MLB Draft happen while games are still being played? This is prime sicko content and it’s competing with real baseball, and seemingly for no reason.

Similarly and pedantically, this isn’t halfway through the season. So if we want it to serve as a real demarcation in the 162, it should theoretically be earlier. 

Roster revamps

Fan voting will forever be contreversial, so some alts:

Get rid of [X]

Of course, some people want to simplify or eliminate the things they don’t personally enjoy. Whether it’s the fan vote, the Derby, or simply baseball’s newest game rules… nothing is sacred or safe:

With all our differing opinions, I think we can all agree on this one:

The 2026 MLB Draft is now over and if they all sign, there will be 21 new members of the Cubs family. Scouting director Dan Kantrovitz said before the draft that the Cubs would work on the weakness on the pitching side of the Cubs farm system and boy, did they ever. With 21 picks over the 20-round draft, the Cubs took 16 pitchers, one outfielder, one shortstop, one catcher, and two first basemen, although one of the first basemen catches some. Nineteen of the 21 picks were college players.

Here, once again, are all 21 Cubs draft picks.

Round 1 (23): Cade Townsend RHP Mississippi

Round 2 (62): Caden Sorrell OF Texas A&M

Round 2 Comp (75): Myles Bailey 1B Florida State

Round 3 (98): Carson Jasa RHP Nebraska

Round 4 (126): Dylan Marioneaux RHP Northwestern State (LA)

Round 5 (159): Dylan Blomker RHP La Cueva HS (NM)

Round 6 (188): Isaac Morton RHP Minnesota

Round 7 (217): Cole Tryba LHP UC Santa Barbara

Round 8: Lance Williams RHP Maryland

Round 9: Chase Meyer RHP West Virginia

Round 10: Luke Alwood RHP Seattle University

Round 11: Ariston Veasey RHP Clemson

Round 12: Brandon Arvidson LHP Tennessee

Round 13: Emanuel Hernandez C Carlos Beltran Academy (PR)

Round 14: Corey Nunez SS UC Santa Barbara

Round 15: Griffin Naess RHP Caly Poly SLO

Round 16: Ashton Pocol RHP Florida Gulf Coast

Round 17: Ryan Marton RHP UNLV

Round 18: Luke McGrath RHP James Madison

Round 19: Luke Guth RHP Vanderbilt

Round 20: Brennan Hudson 1B Georgia

So the Cubs stuck to their long-standing preferences for college players over high school players by drafting only two high schoolers—Blomker in the sixth round and Hernandez in the 13th. That’s a trend that is taking hold in all of baseball as around 77 percent of the players drafted came from a four-year college. Another two percent came from the junior college ranks, so only around 1 out of 5 picks were high school players.

Otherwise, two things stand out. Obviously the Cubs took a lot of pitchers. Kantrovitz hinted that they would and they did. But what is striking is what kinds of pitchers they took. While the Cubs did not take many soft-tossers, even the hardest throwers sit more 95-96 miles per hour on their four-seam fastball. Some have touched the upper-90s and perhaps the Cubs think they can put a few ticks of velocity on them in the pitch lab. They’ve had some successes doing that in recent years.

But the one thing that unites almost all these pitchers is a high spin rate. In his video press conference with the Cubs media, first-round pick Cade Townsend said:“Spin is really my super power. That’s what I tell everyone. I just have a weird, innate ability to spin the ball and make the ball move left or right.” Kantrovitz said he was going to work with Cubs pitching coordinator Tyler Zombro to identify pitchers that he could work with. Apparently Zombro wants pitchers who can spin the ball.

Beyond Townsend, 3rd round pick Carson Jasa, 4th round pick Dylan Marionneaux, 5th round pick Dylan Blomker, 6th round pick Isaac Morton, 8th round pick Lance Williams and 9th round pick Chase Myers are praised for the spin they get on the ball. Spin affects the path of the ball—more spin means less vertical movement and more arm-side horizontal movement. Basically, the mis-named “rising fastball” is a fastball with a lot of spin. A pitch with a high spin rate is just harder to hit.

Clearly, Kantrovitz and Zombro targeted pitchers with that high spin rate and Zombro thinks he can build upon that kind of profile better than he can with lower-spin pitchers.

The two position players taken with the two second-round picks are interesting as well in that neither one of them have great contact rate, which is something that the Cubs have targeted in past drafts. Instead, Sorrell and Bailey are athletic and powerful sluggers who struggle sometimes to make contact. Sorrell’s problem is pitch recognition and swinging at too many pitches out of the zone. Bailey just swings so hard that he misses a lot of hittable pitches, even if he tends to lay off bad ones and draw a fair number of walks.

I’m not going to go over the first five picks as I already wrote about Townsend, Sorrell,Bailey, Jasa and Marionneaux. I will add, because I didn’t have much information on Marionneaux right after he was drafted, is that he’s a pitchability right-hander whose best pitch is his mid-80s slider. He also has a low-90s fastball, a cutter, a curve and a change. He was used as a starter at Northwestern State, but he’s almost certainly a reliever in the professional ranks where his slider could be an effective weapon out of the pen. In my article on Saturday I said that Marionneaux was likely a below-slot pick so that the Cubs could sign a player who wanted a bigger bonus later. That pick turned out to be Blomker. But I do want to make clear that the Cubs didn’t just grab some random pitcher who’d sign cheap. They clearly like Marionneaux and that slider fits in with what Zombro wants to work with down in Mesa.

I also want to add that Bailey is likely to be the most fun Cubs hitting prospect since Daniel Vogelbach and maybe even farther back than that. He’s going to strike out a ton and we hope that doesn’t derail his career. But man, he hit home runs than just made your jaw drop at Florida State. Bailey is gonna be a must-watch player for the sheer entertainment value.

So here are some quick thoughts on the Cubs other 16 draft picks.

Dylan Blomker is one of the two high school players the Cubs took in the draft. He’s a 6’4” right-hander with a pretty vertical pitching motion. His fastball is timed in the low-90s, but it touches higher and a lot of scouts think he can add a few ticks on to his four seamer as he develops. But his best pitch is a sweeping slider with a lot of spin and impressive break. He, like most high school pitches, needs to work on his changup.

Blomker has already said he’s going to sign. Fun fact: the Blomker family is friends with the Bregman family and Dylan has known Alex most of his life. Alex Bregman helped recruit Blomker to LSU. Now he is a major reason Blomker is excited to forgo LSU and sign with the Cubs.

Isaac Morton is a 6’3” right-hander who had two seasons at Texas A&M before transferring to Minnesota. He’s got a hard sinking fastball that sits 94-96. He also has a low-90s cutter and a mid-80s slider. Both pitches have a lot of spin and the slider is his put-away pitch. He also made major strides with his control his junior year after coming home to Minnesota.

On talent alone, Morton should have gone in the top three rounds. Baseball America named him as one of their “college sleepers” in this year’s draft. But he struggled to stay healthy with the Aggies and after making 13 starts with a 3.26 ERA for the Gophers, he suffered an arm injury that required Tommy John surgery. So it will probably be late next season before we see Morton pitch at the earliest. But Baseball America write that Morton is the best pitcher to come out of Minnesota since Max Meyer and if Morton is anywhere near as good as Meyer is these days, he’ll be worth the wait.

Cole Tryba is an undersized lefty with a low arm release and above-average control. His fastball is around 90-93 mph. He also has a sweeping slider that is his go-to pitch. Tryba’s changeup needs some refinement, but it’s promising at this point. He also has a cutter.

Tryba has been the Gauchos closer for the past three years and he’s most likely going to stay in the pen as a pro. Tryba pitched well in the wooden bat Cape Cod League last summer (1.07 ERA over 25.1 innings) and that’s always a good sign.

Lance Williams is an undersized (5’11”) righty who nevertheless gets some good velocity on his fastball, which sits mid-90s and has touched 99. Once gain Williams ties into the “spin rate” that the Cubs are chasing, and both his slider and cutter some impressive spin. He rarely threw his change, but when he did, he got a lot of swings and misses.

In his one year at Maryland, Williams split time between the rotation and the bullpen. He missed a lot of bats and missed the plate a lot, leading to 69 strikeouts and 29 walks over 57 innings. It’s a profile that works better in the pen than as a starter as a professional, but it’s also some good clay for the pitch lab to work with, so I wouldn’t completely dismiss the chance that he starts.

Chase Meyer is a 6’2” right hander with some electric stuff. Meyer sports a fastball that sits around 96 and can go as high as 98. He’s also got those high-spin breaking pitches. His change is a low-8os 12-6 with a hard break and the slider comes in just a bit faster but with good glove side break.

Unfortunately, Meyer was dismissed from the Mountaineers after two appearances and 3.1 innings this February after he was involved in a locker room incident where he angrily criticized the coaching staff. Since then, he’s pitched in both the MLB Draft League and the Cape Cod League to give scouts some looks. Again, Meyer is likely a reliever.

Luke Alwood ia a big, 6’5” right-hander who spent four full years at Seattle University. His fastball is only 92-94, but there is some thought that someone that big should be able to throw harder and he has hit 98 once or twice. He has good control, although his pitches can be a bit too hittable. For a college senior, his stuff is still pretty raw. With his size, Alwood is definitely someone whom the pitch lab would like to work with and see if they can make something out of him. It’s definitely a starter’s frame, if not a starter’s arsenal at this point.

I fully expect that all of the top ten draft picks will sign. There may be one or two picks in the second half of the draft that don’t.

Ariston Veasey is a 6’1” right-handed junior out of Clemson. He missed the start of the season after getting involved in a campus bar fight, but all charges were dropped in the end. Veasey transferred to Clemson after two years at Alabama and quickly became the best reliever on the Tigers with a 3.29 ERA and 37 strikeouts over 25.1 innings. Opposing hitters managed just a .143 average against Veasey. He did struggle with control at times and walked 18 batter. Veasey has a mid-90s fastball.

Brandon Arvidson is a tall, 6’5” left-handed reliever with a lot of swing-and-miss in his fastball/slider combination. The mid-80s slider breaks down hard and is a potential plus pitch if he can learn to throw it for more strikes. It’s Arvidson’s bread-and-butter pitch. The fastball sits low-90s but can touch 95-96. Arvidson struck out 35.2 percent of hitters over his two years with the Volunteers. He improved his walk rate this past season and he will need to improve it still if he wants to be a major league reliever.

About all I know about Emanuel Hernandez is that he’s a Miami of Ohio commit and that the Cubs needed to grab some catchers or all these pitchers they drafted will have no one to throw to. I did see a video of him throwing to second base from behind the plate and he looked fine there. We’ll see if he sticks to his college commitment. The Cubs need catchers.

Corey Nunez is the second Gaucho the Cubs took in this year’s draft after Tryba and after they took two more Gauchos, Ryan Gallagher and Ivan Brethowr, in the 2024 draft. Nunez took a step forward in his senior season at UCSB with a line of .280/.361/.393 and hit .345 in limited (seven games) action this summer in the Cape Cod League. Despite being 6’3”, Nunez doesn’t have much power and has a stroke that is geared towards contact on a line to all fields. Nunez struck out just 23 times in 200 plate appearances this past season.

Griffin Naess is another tall, 6’6”, lanky right-hander who was a three-year starter for Cal Poly. From what I’ve seen of Naess, despite his size, he’s not a hard-thrower with a fastball checking in around 90 mph. But by far his best pitch is a fall-of-the-table upper-70s changeup that gets a lot of swings and misses. He’s also got a mid-70s curve with some good break on it but I didn’t see him land it for a strike much.

With the Mustangs last year, Naess went 8-5 with a 4.63 ERA over 91.1 innings and 17 starts. He struck out 97 and walked 35. The Mustangs seems to ride his arm more than I like and he threw 137 pitches in the Big West Championship Game.

Ashton Pocol was the senior closer for FGCU. He put an impressive strikeout-to-walk ratio with 50 strikeouts and just ten walks over 33.1 innings. He was 3-4 with a 3.24 ERA and six saves.

Canadian Ryan Marton is a big 6’4”, 235 right-hander who spent two years in junior college before transferring to UNLV this past year. He didn’t get much of a chance with the Rebels, throwing just 19 innings over four starts and nine relief appearances. His numbers aren’t all that impressive—6.16 ERA, 22 strikeouts and nine walks—but he was pitching in Las Vegas.

Luke McGrath is a 6’2” redshirt sophomore right-handed reliever who struggled with control last year at James Madison. I didn’t get a radar reading on his fastball from the video I saw of him pitching, but it looked hard. He also appears to have a slider and a curve, again, at least from what I saw. The breaking pitches appeared to have good movement, but from the 20 walks he had in 28 innings last year, I wonder how often he can throw them for strikes. McGrath struck out 28.

Luke Guth is another one of those big spin guys that the Cubs took so many of in this year’s draft. Guth has a 92-93 mph fastball with that good spin and “rise” that the Cubs have targeted. His breaking stuff has a lot of movement—maybe too much as he seems to struggle to throw them for strikes. Guth was dominating as a sophomore reliever for the Commodores with a 0.93 ERA and 22 strikeouts and seven walks over 19.1 inning. But Guth couldn’t follow that up and he struggled this past year with a 5.18 ERA. The problem was he was just walking too many batters. If Guth can live up to his promise of 2025, there might be a solid reliever in there.

I have Brennan Hudson listed as a first baseman but a lot of places list him as a catcher. He did both at Georgia this year, with more first base than behind the plate.

Hudson wasn’t much of a draft consideration last year in his first season with the Bulldogs after transferring from Georgia State. But as a senior this year Hudson had a breakout season, hitting .294/.466/.730 with 22 home runs in 56 games. The big difference between Hudson’s junior and senior season is a huge drop in his strikeout rate from a whopping 37 percent as a junior to 20.8 percent as a senior. Hudson walk totals also increased as his power numbers soared. He has a kind of violent left-handed pull swing that is geared to power.

Despite those impressive numbers, both the scouts and the data analysts think those senior season numbers were a bit of a fluke. That’s why Hudson was still available in the 20th round. But he certainly seems like someone worth the gamble this late. And if he can catch, that’s all the better.

It has been an entire year since a member of the Phillies has won the All-Star Game MVP award. Can any of this year’s contingent of Phillies All-Stars break the long-standing “Curse of Kyle Schwarber?”

For newer readers, or those that generally tune me out: For the past few years, I lamented the fact that the Phillies hadn’t had the MVP of the All-Star Game since Johnny Callison in 1964. But thanks to Schwarber’s heroics in the overtime of last year’s game, The “Curse of Johnny Callison” was finally broken!

With a healthy representation on the National League squad, and the game being played in Philadelphia, it feels like there’s a decent chance the Phillies could have the MVP of the game two years in a row.

Here are the candidates and the likelihood that they’ll win:

I don’t see it happening

Zack Wheeler – Since he understandably rejected the belated invitation to the team, he will (probably) not appear in the game, which generally reduces the chances of winning the MVP award.

You’d be better off investing in Crypto

Jesus Luzardo – Pitchers are generally at a disadvantage to win the award in general, and unless Luzardo is called upon to get a pivotal out – and as a late addition to the roster, I can’t see that happening – he’s not going to win

If you squint, you could see it

Cristopher Sanchez – For the past 40 years, the only pitchers to win the MVP award have done in when pitching in their home city. As the starting pitcher, Sanchez might get to work an inning plus, and if he looks great in a game where there are no clear offensive standouts, they might give the hometown guy the nod.

If the vibes are right

Jhoan Duran – I have to imagine that if the NL is leading in the ninth inning, Duran is going to get the save opportunity, because that entrance is going to play well on national TV. As with Sanchez, if there are no standout offensive players, and Duran closes out the game in dominating fashion, he could be the choice.

Why not?

Brandon Marsh – Being in the starting lineup can actually be a disadvantage for a player’s chances, as he might get just one at bat, and it will be early in the game. Based on Monday night, Marsh is really enjoying being an All-Star, and his beard does garner attention. Sometimes early hits can prove just as decisive as late ones, so if Marsh drives in a few runs to put the NL ahead for good, he’s got a chance.

You know he wants it

Bryce Harper – Believe it or not, this will only be Harper’s second time playing in an All-Star Game as a Phillie. After falling short in the Home Run Derby, you know Harper is itching for the chance to shine on Tuesday. After his WBC heroics, you have to figure that if there’s a key at bat late in the game, manager Dave Roberts will deploy Harper. If he comes through, the award is his.

Let’s do it again

Kyle Schwarber – Maybe he’s worn out from Monday’s epic Home Run Derby…Or maybe it’s just left him hungrier. As the NL’s leadoff hitter, a Schwarbomb to start things off would be positively majestic. And if the game goes into overtime again, it’s almost a given that Schwarber will be one of the NL’s hitters in the swing off. Can lightning strike twice?

I thought I’d ask the question, Who do you think will improve the most the second half of the season?

I planned on have all the Jays regulars in the poll, but I’m limited to six option in the poll. Oh well.

There is room for any of our hitters to improve, but let’s go with these six. The team offense isn’t what it ought to be. Let’s use OPS as a measure, the one who’s second half OPS is the most improved from the first half.

Obviously, Vlad’s numbers are nowhere near what we expect from him. And there has been some improvement over the ten games. He has a .773 OPS over those ten games, mostly because he hit two home runs and took seven walks in those ten games. I don’t think that means he is sure to improve after the All-Star break, but it would be hard for him not to improve.

Myles Straw has a .626 OPS in the first half. He’s never been a great hitter, but last year his OPS was .680. So there is a lot of room for him to get better. And he’s been some better in his last ten games, with a .692 OPS.

Andrés Giménez has a .640 OPS. He isn’t in the lineup for his bat, but he can do batter than that. His last ten games have been awful offensively, .400 OPS.

Daulton Vasho has a .696 OPS, after a .833 last year. And his last ten games have been terrible, .276 OPS. I think he’s looking better defensively, but the bat? He isn’t striking out, but he isn’t making any hard contact.

George Springer has a .677 OPS. After a bounce back season last year, he’s back to be hitting like he did in 2024. He’s finally been moved out of the leadoff spot. He’s only had three games since the last injury.

Alejandro Kirk has had a tough season, breaking a hand. Guys often have a tough time after an injury like that. His OPS is .587. I’ve always thought that Kirk could fall out of bed and hit .290. In his last ten games, he has an .589 OPS.

When your franchise is decades older than the very first iteration of your sport’s all-star event, you’re bound to have some iconic players making some key plays during the league’s premier mid-year showcase. The Boston Red Sox are no exception to that.

Over 125 seasons and……….well, a lot of All-Stars later (I ain’t counting all of these; there’s at least four guys on there though, no arguing that), the law firm of Rafaela, Chapman, and Contreras (Suarez is on vacation, it appears) will look to add on to that legacy of Sox getting the job done during the Midsummer Classic or the preceding Home Run Derby.

With the 96th MLB All-Star Game set to take place in Philadelphia tonight, what better way to celebrate than by counting down the best Red Sox memories from All-Star festivities of yesteryear?

One catch, though: We’re looking at the moments that happened after the 1999 ASG at Fenway. Sorry, that’s too easy. You and I both know that the two best Red Sox All-Star moments are Ted Williams riding out in the golf cart from center and the masterclass that Pedro put on immediately afterwards. You can pick which order you want to put them in. Regardless, including 1999 into this countdown would make everything a foregone conclusion, so let’s mix it up a bit and call this a list of 21st century Sox memories from the ASG.

Honorable Mention: Johnny Damon Doin’ Some Karaoke With Alter Bridge (Detroit 2005)

Dudes rock.

I thought I had maybe imagined this while trying to find the footage. I was striking out for a little bit, thinking I perhaps had a Mandela Effect thing going on. Surely, World Series champion and 2005 All-Star Johnny Damon was not singing some butt rock at Comerica Park before the Home Run Derby, right?

Nope, it was real. Johnny Damon (and Mike Piazza!) were getting fans revved up to see some dingers with the best way the knew how: belting out the tunes. All-Stars can be crooners, too.

5. Brock Holt Just Being There As An All-Star (Cincinnatti 2015)

That was awesome, huh? .280/.349/.379 sure looks like the triple slash of an All-Star to me, dear reader.

In a season that was as garbage as 2015 was, it was nice to have a win like this one. Someone had to represent the team in Cincy—I’m glad it was our ol’ pal Brock. That can be the the beauty of MLB’s All-Star Game: Future Hall of Famers can rub elbows with guys who are cult heroes in their own cities.

And Holt took a bag off of one of the best defensive catchers we’ve ever seen! Not too shabby for a guy who was selected just because every team has to have a representative!

4. Manny And Papi Have Liftoff In Space City (Houston 2004)

The best 1-2 combo in the league in 2004 showed everybody what they were about during the 2004 All-Star Game, as Manny Ramirez and David Ortiz both left the yard en route to a massive 9-4 win for the Junior Circuit.

Manny was first in the opening frame, sending a two-run bomb into the Crawford Boxes to really open up the scoring. It was part of a six-run first inning against, guess who, Roger Clemens. Papi followed in the sixth inning to extend the AL’s lead with a massive dinger.

The duo went on to have no other notable hits in the 2004 season.

3. David Ortiz: Derby Champion (Anaheim 2010)

Speaking of Ortiz homers….

It took Papi a couple of tries (he was in three straight derbies between 2004 and 2006), but he was finally able to claim the Home Run Derby crown at Angels Stadium in 2010. Ironically enough, he beat future teammate Hanley Ramirez in the final.

Much like his lack of output in 2004, Mr. Ortiz went on to have a quiet career after his triumph in the summer of 2010.

(By the way, look at how far news videos have come based off of that video from the AP)

2. JD Drew Ties It Up In The Bronx (New York 2008)

JD Drew waited a while to become an All-Star. When he finally got his chance, he did not disappoint.

His two-run dinger in the seventh inning finally got the AL on the board at the old (but not the OLD old) Yankee Stadium in 2008. The game eventually lasted for 15 innings—the NL actually got the lead right back after Drew’s heroics before the AL tied it again—before the American League walked it off late into the summer night. Still, Drew’s home run was enough to earn him the MVP nod.

Drew didn’t even have the best homer as a Boston player en route to an ASG MVP award in the 21st century, though…

1. Jarren Duran Gives The AL The Lead (Texas 2024)

Jarren Duran’s excellent 2024 campaign with the Sox was punctuated with a huge go-ahead homer in the fifth inning to put the American League out in front in Texas. The AL went on to hold onto the lead for the rest of the game, and number 16 was rewarded with the game’s MVP award for his efforts. He was also rewarded with an interview from that guy who didn’t amount to much after he and his pal hit some homers of their own in Texas 20 years earlier.

On top of that, his homer ensured that people would forget that Tanner Houck gave up a nuke to that Ohtani fella earlier in the night. Nice teammate!

Hopefully, this article will be a lil’ out of date by the end of the night. Let me know if you think I forgot any memories in the comments below. Regardless of whether you think I did or didn’t, though, enjoy the game!

As the 2026 MLB Draft played out, several early surprises created a scenario where it seemed like a wealth of position playing talent was going to still be on the board for the Yankees to choose from. Bo Lowrance, Daniel Jackson, and Cole Prosek were three names that had traction with Yankees fans online. With all those options on the board I expected the Yankees to grab a position player in the first round, but they took advantage when a highly ranked pitcher was unexpectedly still available with the 35th overall pick.

University of Arkansas pitcher Hunter Dietz was the highest-ranked prospect still on the board as the Yankees made their first pick of the draft, and the team jumped at the chance to bring him into their pitching development system. The 6-foot-6 lefty from the University of Arkansas battled injuries during his first two seasons in college but broke out in a big way this past season. Dietz led the SEC in quality starts during the 2026 season while striking out 131 batters in 85.2 innings.

One player comparison that will excite Yankees fans is with Cam Schlittler, as Dietz’s large frame and big velocity should give him a similar tool set to work with as the Yankees had with Schilittler when he joined the organization.

The Yankees then followed up with Canadian prep left-hander Sean Duncan, who is considered one of the most polished high-school pitchers in the draft. Duncan is a Vanderbilt commit, but it is widely assumed that he will sign after being taken in the second round. Yankees fans will have to wait a while to see him in action as it was reported in June that he will need Tommy John surgery, but with a long track record of being one of the top pitchers in his age group, there are not many concerns that he will return to form after his recovery.

With these two picks the Yankees bolstered the left-handed pitching depth of their farm system. In order to get these two talented left-handed pitchers, the Yankees passed on several other areas of weakness within their farm system but quickly turned to start addressing those needs. They used their third- and fifth-round picks on college catchers, which is not surprising as their farm system currently does not have a catcher ranked among the top-30 prospects by either MLB.com or Baseball America.

In the third round the Yankees grabbed Brendan Brock, an exciting prospect with the rare tool of elite speed for a catching prospect who just played a big role in the University of Oklahoma’s national championship run. Brock is athletic enough that scouts also see him as a legitimate option anywhere in the outfield if the Yankees choose to go that way.

Two rounds later, the Yankees grabbed Texas A&M’s Bear Harrison. The younger brother of Brewers pitcher Kyle Harrison, Bear has a career .445 on-base percentage in three years of college, peaking with a .495 mark this past year. He has also produced outstanding exit velocities during his career showing the potential to be a solid power hitter as he moves into the professional ranks.

Another fun pick came in the eighth round when the Yankees selected Luke Pettitte as a two-way player from Dallas Baptist University.

Andy Pettitte’s son took advantage of his year recovering from Tommy John surgery to put up big numbers including 16 home runs while serving as a full-time designated hitter. It is more likely that we will see Pettitte on the mound when his arm is recovered, as Baseball America credits him with some of the best command in the 2026 draft class.

The other storyline to follow now that the picks are complete is signability. In the age of NIL, only a handful of college teams can compete with a solid signing bonus and improved minor league pay, but it is a different environment than in many previous years. The Yankees selected four high-school players and will likely have to be creative to sign all of them away from their college commitments. Sixth-round pick Andrew Gonzalez was moving up draft boards as his strong left-handed power from the caught the attention of a very well-funded Texas Tech program. Further down in the draft, the Yankees selected outfielder Lee Garris and shortstop William Cutshall. Garris is coming off a Virginia state championship for his high school team and was expected to head to James Madison University before being drafted by the Yankees with the 398th overall pick. Cutshall was planning on starting at the University of Mississippi in the fall and may be one of the toughest picks to keep from going to campus.

The Yankees put together a very solid draft, bringing in a mix of exciting arms and talented position players. Over the course of two days, they drafted players who will slot as their top or second-best left-handed pitching prospect. They also picked up two players who will rank as the best catching prospects in the organization for now. Around that they selected a blend of solid performance, and potential upside. In the coming weeks, we will get to see many of these players take the field for the first time as Yankees prospects.

In case you missed it, check out Pinstripe Alley’s full draft coverage!

• Round 1: Hunter Dietz
• Round 2: Sean Duncan
• Round 3: Brendan Brock
• Round 4: Paul Gutierrez-Contreras II
• Rounds 5-10
• Rounds 11-15
• Rounds 16-20
• Draft Day 1 review
• Overall Yankees draft review
• Draft signing tracker

The Atlanta Braves will be well represented at the 2026 All-Star Game. Veteran left-hander Chris Sale is part of a five-player contingent set to suit up when the National League battles the American League at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia on Tuesday night.

Sale will be flanked by second baseman Ozzie Albies, catcher Drake Baldwin, first baseman Matt Olson, and closer Raisel Iglesias. While Albies and Olson each received the honor for the fourth time, this All-Star selection marks the 10th in the Hall of Fame career of Sale.

Reaching that double-digit plateau puts Sale in exclusive company. He is just the eighth starting pitcher in Major League Baseball history to be selected to 10 All-Star Games. Sale joins Braves legends Tom Glavine and Warren Spahn as well as Steve Carlton, Roger Clemens, Randy Johnson, Clayton Kershaw, and Tom Seaver on the list.

Sale earned this trip to Philadelphia by compiling a 2.20 ERA, second only to fellow All-Star Jacob Misiorowski (1.62) in the NL. This marks the third consecutive season that Sale has been named to the All-Star team since joining the Braves, ending a five-year absence after going to seven straight for the American League from 2012-2018.

Atlanta’s group of All-Stars also includes two first-timers in Baldwin and Iglesias, the former in just his second big league season while the latter was wondering if he’d ever make the cut. 

I spent a few minutes catching up with Sale to hear his memories from his first All-Star Game, the road back from injury to once again being selected for this honor, and his thoughts on a long-awaited All-Star nod for Iglesias.

Grant McAuley: Let’s chat a little about the All-Star game, because I know as somebody who’s been around the game and had the opportunity to take part in some of these, they’re all special. What does this one mean to you? Third year in Atlanta, third All-Star appearance. As you get to this point of your career, I would imagine it’s just a different level of meaningful.

Chris Sale: Yeah, I think there’s nothing like the first one. The first one’s probably always going to be the coolest one, the funnest one, just because you’ve never been there before. But that doesn’t mean that any of the other ones aren’t special and cool again. I just think about all of the people that helped me get here. You go back five or six years ago, I don’t think a whole lot of people had this on their bingo card, so I’m just really thankful for everyone that helped me get back to this point and to be able to enjoy these things.

GM: Walk me through that first All-Star game. It was 2012, if memory serves. It was a different game back then, a different time in your life and career. As a young player coming up, what was it like walking into that locker room and being among the guys you looked up to, players who at that moment in time were the best in the game?

CS: Shoot, I want to say there’s at least two Hall of Famers in there. I remember, you know, CC Sabathia was there, Derek Jeter was there. Some of those bigger name guys that I looked up to when I was a kid were just walking around that clubhouse. I was just thinking, ‘Man, I don’t feel like I belong in here.’ So, to be able to look back on that moment and then to where I am now, it’s just special. Again, I just appreciate the opportunity and I’m just thankful for all the people that helped me get here.

GM: You mentioned people a few years ago might not have had this on their bingo card, you becoming a multiple time All-Star again. I know you went through a lot and I’m sure that was a gut check experience in so many different ways, emotionally, physically, and everything in between. To be here at this point, I’d imagine that there’s a fair amount of appreciation not just for the people that got here but the fact that being an All-Star is still a path you’re able to walk by pitching at a very high level.

CS: For sure. This game is very humbling. There’s not a single person that’s ever played for an extended period of time as a Major League Baseball player that hasn’t been just absolutely humbled by this game. The rough parts of it, you know, they happen to everybody. I think perspective helps a lot, too. Sometimes your problems are your problems, but they’re not real problems. I certainly could have gotten a lot worse news than some of the news I was getting. 

There’s always someone having a rougher time than you, I can promise you that. So, I think perspective helps a lot. I know I keep going back to it, but just leaning on the people that I had around me helped me a lot through the bad times. Then to be able to experience the good times with them and being able to make some of these phone calls I’ve made over the last few days. 

Certainly in 2024, with the way that year played out, you know, being able to make some of those phone calls and then go and sit in Coach Dave Tollet’s office at FGCU and just being like, ‘Man, what the hell just happened?’ It was kind of a whirlwind, but I’m just so thankful.

GM: Well, the people who are around you for this All-Star game include several of your teammates. Drake Baldwin is a first-timer, but another first-timer is Raisel Iglesias. You know how hard this game is. You know how long you have to chip away sometimes to maybe get some recognition from the outside. Raisel said that he’d all but given up on the idea of being an All-Star and was just looking forward to that vacation with his family for a few days. Obviously, he was very happy to change his plans this time around. How happy are you for Raisel?

CS: Very happy. Like I said, that first one is always the best one, you know? The excitement and everything surrounding it. It’s going to be fun for me to be able to go and experience that with them for the first time. And correct me, if I’m wrong and I haven’t fact-checked this, but he has the most saves for a first time All Star. 

And not only that, and I might sound like a homer here, but I think if you look at the numbers it’ll back it up, but he probably should have been an All-Star in 2024 as well. I think making it that far into your career and feeling like you kind of got snubbed once, maybe twice, along the way, it’s got to be tough. I’m just happy for him. I mean, it’s been a long time coming and it’s an honor that should be recognized for him and it’s something that he’s earned. He deserves it. So, I’m just happy for him. You get a guy that’s been in the game that long, 12 seasons now, and a first time All-Star? That’s awesome.

GM: It absolutely is. Chris, I appreciate your time. Enjoy the All-Star Game, the All-Star break, and all those good things.

CS: Thank you.

For more All-Star conversations, check out this piece on four-time MLB All-Star Ozzie Albies