There remains no known timetable for Giancarlo Stanton, but based on what Aaron Boone is seeing, the return of the designated hitter “shouldn’t be too far off.”
The Yankees manager wanted to correct the record on Stanton on Tuesday, telling the “Talkin’ Yanks” podcast that Stanton is closer to rejoining the club than reports had indicated.
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Asked Wednesday, Boone said that the lack of a public and known timeline does not mean Stanton is a great distance away from playing again.
“I feel like he’s moving in a good direction,” Boone said before a doubleheader in The Bronx against the Pirates. “I just don’t know if [his return is] a couple of weeks from now, a few weeks from now, whatever it is.
“But he is getting much closer to that point.”
Stanton has not played since suffering a right calf strain on April 24.
Giancarlo Stanton’s return date still a mystery Jason Szenes for the New York Post
He appeared on the verge of a return in mid-June, when he had progressed to running the bases, but then felt something in his calf that Brian Cashman later clarified was “a whole new injury,” rather than a setback.
Since that point, Stanton has not run the bases, and the Yankees have not offered much detail about when the powerful but oft-injured slugger could return.
In what is probably the most optimistic update yet from Boone, the manager said Stanton “is running, and so I think based on that, it shouldn’t be too far off.”
Stanton has been in his running progression for several weeks. Boone said Stanton is at the stage of reaching “certain speed points” and then “obviously bouncing back and recovering.”
There is still little clarity about the exact details of Stanton’s daily workload, but the club says he is making progress and has been hitting.
Stanton generally prefers skipping rehab assignments, feeling he can be ready by swinging off the Trajekt machine, but a return-to-play plan, too, is unknown.
“I don’t have a timeline,” Boone reiterated. “I don’t know when he gets to the end of that and then what we do to get him back.”
During the Roarin' Twenties, when the Yankees dominated baseball and the Rangers had won their first (1928) Stanley Cup, Frank Boucher was the Blueshirts star and a good baseball player.
This was proven one day when Babe met Frank on the ball field.
As it happened, on one sunny Ottawa day in the summer when The Sultan of Swat and The Raffles Boucher actually faced each other in an intense baseball game that also featured Yankees' legend Lou Gehrig.
This was in the very late 1920's before the Rangers opened their training camp but after the baseball season had ended. In those days it was normal for The Babe and Lou to travel across America and Canada picking up extra cash playing exhibitions.
"This particular game happened to be played in Hull," said Boucher, "across the river from my home town of Ottawa. Our Canadian team was composed of amateur ball players from Montreal and Ottawa. Not surprisingly Babe and Lou drew an overflow crowd.
"As it happened Ruth and Gehrig were on the same team and I played shortstop in Gehrig's infield. My brother Buck Boucher was on the home team in centerfield which was a mistake.
Buck was a terrific catcher but he never played center in his life."
Just to make the game even zanier for Buck, he had brought his catcher's mitt to the game and didn't have a fielder's glove. Frank had to loan his brother his fielder's glove every time the sides changed.
Boston, MA - January 28 - Atlanta Hawks forward Onyeka Okongwu (17) lets the ball get loose as Boston Celtics guards Jordan Walsh (27), Hugo Gonzalez (28) and Baylor Scheierman (55) surround during the second half of a NBA game at the Garden. (Photo By Matt Stone/MediaNews Group/Boston Herald via Getty Images). | MediaNews Group via Getty Images
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Jaylen Brown is a 76er. Paul George is a Celtic.
That trade — and the addition of Mitchell Robinson — was the highlight of the summer and could be the difference of whether or not the Celtics surpass the pleasant surprise of their 56 wins a year ago. However, there’s also the continued internal development of so many of the players that were responsible for that unexpected regular season.
There’s Hugo Gonzalez, who seems to have added more to his tool belt based his Summer League performance. He was used as a spark plug off the bench in his rookie year, but in Vegas, we got a glimpse of what he might look like as an offensive engine and maybe more importantly, as a leader in the locker room.
What about Hugo’s superfriend, Baylor Scheierman? In a 20-game stretch last year, he averaged nearly 10-6-3 as a starter before Tatum returned from his Achilles tear. His defense improved dramatically and he’ll again bring his Swiss army knife skillset to the table, whether that’s off the bench or alongside Derrick White in the backcourt.
After the team picked up their option on Jordan Walsh’s contract, it became fully guaranteed on Monday and during a visit to Vegas, Walsh guaranteed to get better on the offensive side of the ball:
Jordan Walsh on what that shift in his offensive role looks like:
“It means being a threat at all points in the game. I feel like there's a lot of times in the season last year where it became clutch moments where we need a bucket and I have to get subbed out.
And after bouncing around the fringes of the league, Ron Harper Jr. signed a four-year, $14 million contract with the Celtics. That’s a huge vote of confidence for the 26-year-old who could become that microwave scorer in the second unit.
The new collective bargaining agreement has made the contributions of players on their rookie deals or minimum contracts a necessary premium for teams looking to contend. In the past, teams could use the backend of their roster more for patient player development; now, they’re getting thrown right into the fire and are expected to perform and perform well. With that in mind, who’s going to be Boston’s best candidate for Most Improved Player in 2026-2027?
NBA owners loved it — this is what they and Adam Silver want to see, players willingly taking a little less money. It frustrated the NBA players' union, starting with the fact it's a decision that had to be made at all.
Victor Wembanyama took a discount on his contract extension with the Spurs that could save the team a little more than $50 million over five years by agreeing to only take 25% of the salary cap — still five years, $252 million — rather than the 30% he would be eligible for if he is again Defensive Player of the Year or makes an All-NBA team (thinks that feel like a lock if he plays the required 65 games next season).
For the first time, Wemby discussed his decision, speaking to Jason Jones of The Athletic about the French center being named the NBA 2K27 cover athlete (along with Caitlin Clark and Derrick Rose).
"We have a good team, we had a very good playoff run, and we had a very good regular season. But what's even better and greater is our potential. The reality of today's NBA is that often, the potential of teams is not fulfilled because of money. I just want to make sure it's never our case."
We are not alone
Victor Wembanyama has landed as your NBA 2K27 Standard Edition Cover Athlete
Welcome to the world of the second apron of the luxury tax, which teams are treating as a hard cap. Oklahoma City's Chet Holmgren took the same discount Wemby did a year ago, and yet this summer his team had to let go of Lu Dort, Isaiah Joe and Aaron Wiggins to stay below that line. Boston traded Jaylen Brown because management said it couldn't build a contending team in the future with him and Jayson Tatum taking up a combined 70% of the salary cap. Wemby sees the extensions coming for Stephon Castle and Dylan Harper — plus De'Aaron Fox being on a huge contract — and did what he sees as his part.
If anyone deserved all the money he can get, it's Wembanyama, who at age 22 is arguably the best player walking the face of the earth — and in a couple years that will not be an argument. Last season he averaged 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.1 blocks per game, lifted the Spurs to the NBA Finals, was voted the unanimous Defensive Player of the Year, came in third in MVP voting and was voted First Team All-NBA. He is becoming a massive global brand and star.
Which is why he's on the cover of NBA 2K27, taking the spot that Shai Gilgeous-Alexander held a year ago for the top-selling sports video game in the United States. Wemby gets that this is big.
"I know it means a lot culturally, too. It's hard to realize for me that I'm taking more and more space, more real estate in the world of basketball, in what basketball means, in professional basketball."
And his eyes, if the money he gave up helps him and the Spurs stay there, then it's worth it.
ARLINGTON, Texas — Texas Rangers third baseman Josh Jung exited early from a 10-0 win over the Chicago White Sox because of left calf tightness.
Jung, the team’s leading hitter with a .294 average, was replaced in the field in the top of the fourth inning. Jung had a two-out single in the third, then appeared slow going from first to third base on a single by Brandon Nimmo. Jung did finish that inning, scoring on a double by Jake Burger.
After the game, Jung said he was a little sore but not concerned about the tightness he first felt when running to first base on his hit in the third inning. He said he wanted to play through it, but Rangers manager Skip Schumaker took him out of the game.
The Rangers before the game placed catcher Kyle Higashioka on the 10-day injured list with right flexor strain, and put right-handed pitcher Jose Corniell on the 15-day list with the same injury.
Texas brought up left-handed pitcher Marco Gonzales and catcher Austin Wynns from Triple-A Round Rock.
Gonzales, a 34-year-old left-hander, pitched the final three innings for his first big league save — in his 171st career game since his debut in 2014, and his first relief appearance in the majors since 2017.
It was his first big league game since a start for Pittsburgh on Aug. 7, 2024. He missed all of last season recovering from elbow surgery, and started this season in the San Diego Padres organization.
Left-hander Jalen Beeks, who will miss the rest of the season because of surgery for a flexor tendon strain, was transferred to the 60-day IL.
New Milwaukee Bucks guard Tyler Herro was in Paris when he was traded and had a stern message for the Heat the moment he learned he was being shipped out.
Herro was sent to Milwaukee, his hometown team, in a blockbuster trade that sent Giannis Antetokounmpo to the Heat, and he couldn’t believe that he was being moved.
“Back to the motherf–king crib, dog,” Herro said in a video posted on his YouTube channel. “Y’all did lost your motherf–king mind.”
Bucks guard Tyler Herro reacts to his trade to Milwaukee on his YouTube channel. Tyler Herro/YouTube
He appeared to be all smiles, singing verses of “The Boys Are Back in Town” by Thin Lizzy multiple times after learning of his new team.
A passenger in the car with him then began singing “I’m Coming Home” by Skylar Grey in anticipation for his return to Wisconsin.
“I’m ready to come home and not prove everyone wrong,” he told ESPN, “but just be able to represent the city and the state because I wanted to do that coming out of school as well.”
Herro went to Whitnall High School in Greenfield, Wisc., where he finished his career with over 2,000 points, was named the Wisconsin Gatorade Player of the Year and earned First Team All-State.
He earned a four-star ranking and was the No. 1 player in Wisconsin, per 247Sports. He chose to play for John Calipari at Kentucky instead of staying home with Wisconsin.
Tyler Herro #14 of the Milwaukee Bucks attends a game between the Milwaukee Bucks and Miami Heat. NBAE via Getty Images
The incident started when Adebayo approached Herro and confronted him about comments the guard had made on social media, criticizing Adebayo and Antetokounmpo.
Herro responded verbally, which Adebayo took exception to, and the incident became physical. Sources with knowledge of the altercation told ESPN that Adebayo hit Herro in the face area.
The two left the gym on their own after others refrained them from striking each other again.
“Honestly, I’m just trying to move past all of it,” Herro told ESPN. “I’m focused on Milwaukee and building something special. They obviously just traded the greatest player in their history, so we want to come in and help continue what they’ve been doing.”
The full trade saw Antetokounmpo and Bobby Portis head to the Heat in exchange for Herro, Kel’el Ware, Jaime Jaquez Jr. and Kasparas Jakučionis, plus a haul of draft picks.
CHICAGO — Cubs reliever Trent Thornton is day to day with a bruised left heel after he was struck by a comebacker.
Thornton had a CT scan that showed no fractures. He played catch before the Cubs’ 11-2 victory over the Detroit Tigers, and the right-hander was optimistic about avoiding a stint on the injured list.
“I got very lucky,” he said. “Definitely a lot of positive signs today.”
Thornton came in to pitch the 10th inning in the Cubs’ series opener against the Tigers. But he was helped off the field after he was hit by Riley Greene’s 108.9 mph liner.
The 32-year-old Thornton credited his Mizuno cleats with helping him avoid serious injury. He was wearing a model with a hard shell right at the heel, while his other cleats have a soft outer shell for that area of the foot.
The Cubs used seven relievers during an 8-6 loss.
Thornton got hurt on the same day that fellow reliever Phil Maton went on the 15-day IL for the third time this season with right knee tendinitis.
Manager Craig Counsell said Maton received a platelet-rich plasma injection. He is expected to have no significant activity for the next three weeks.
Utilityman Matt Shaw is traveling to the team’s complex in Arizona and may start swinging a bat soon. Shaw was placed on the IL on June 29 with a sprained left hand.
“The good news was the additional imaging showed improved healing,” Counsell said. “That makes Matt feel good, obviously, so we just got to get through the last little bit.”
CHICAGO — The Detroit Tigers placed right-hander Jack Flaherty on the 15-day injured list with right flexor inflammation.
Flaherty pitched four innings in an 8-6 victory at the Chicago Cubs. He allowed three runs and four hits.
The 30-year-old Flaherty is 3-8 with a 4.59 ERA in 19 starts this season. He finalized a two-year, $35 million contract with Detroit in February 2025.
“It wasn’t a clear-cut IL when we woke up this morning, and then as the day went on and the more (opinions) we got, the more we realized he wasn’t going to pitch in five or six days,” manager A.J. Hinch said.
Ty Madden was recalled from Triple-A Toledo, putting a fresh arm in Detroit’s weary bullpen. The right-hander replaced Framber Valdez with two outs in the first and pitched 3 1/3 innings of one-run ball in an 11-2 loss at Wrigley Field.
The Tigers used four relievers to cover 4 2/3 innings in a 3-2 loss at the Los Angeles Angels. Then they used five relievers for six innings in their series opener against the Cubs.
Infielder Zach McKinstry and catcher Jake Rogers each pitched one inning.
“The two position players helped us get to the finish line,” Hinch said. “Today was like live to play another day.”
The 26-year-old Madden has no record and a 3.09 ERA in eight appearances for Detroit this year. He is 2-0 with a 4.71 ERA in 11 starts and one relief appearance with Toledo.
“There’s a little different edge and sort of a different attention to detail, I think, when he gets to the big leagues and he’s performed really well here,” Hinch said. “He challenges the strike zone. He’s got a tough, tough combo with his slider and split. Somebody I do trust a lot to pitch in a variety of roles.”
Hinch said Justin Verlander was the first player from the team to arrive at the ballpark. The 43-year-old right-hander, who plans to retire after this season, is coming back from hip and hamstring injuries.
“His arm’s still moving,” Hinch said. “We haven’t gotten to the mound yet. Once that happens, then we can start to lay out a little bit of a longer plan.”
Hello! I’m Jon. When Alex and I were piecing together the script for “The History of the Seattle Mariners” way back in 2019, our short Lenny Randle segment went through a couple of revisions. Although he only spent a small fraction of his career in Seattle, Lenny established himself as a Mariners legend, and we had to rein ourselves in from writing an extensive tangent covering his entire story.
It took us long enough, but six-plus years later, Lenny finally gets his own Secret Base video. Time and again, he found himself standing center stage during baseball’s oddest, most chaotic scenes. Sometimes he just happened to be there and passively observed the ruckus. Other times, he conjured it himself. Since “The History of Charging the Mound” is, above all else, a story about baseball chaos, it was inevitable that he’d find himself here.
Hope you enjoy his story as much as I did. As always, if you want more from this series, or more special projects like this, and get them as soon as they’re ready – check out Secret Base on Patreon. If you’re a member over there, then you would’ve gotten to see an uncensored butt in this video. Best sales pitch we’ve got.
PHOENIX , AZ - MARCH 20: Charlie Beilenson of the Seattle Mariners pitches during the game between the Seattle Mariners and the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Fields of Phoenix on Friday, March 20, 2026 in Phoenix , Arizona. (Photo by Aryanna Frank/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
While it’s far from the only problem with the team, the “B” side of the Mariners bullpen has been an issue this season, as the team has cycled through various names trying to find some surehanded help to prop up an injury-ravaged ‘pen. With the latest injury update forecasting that Carlos Vargas, Matt Brash, and Cooper Criswell won’t be back until mid-to-late August (Vargas and Brash) to late August or September (Criswell), picking up bullpen help at the deadline is obviously on the Mariners’ shopping list, but with the market shaping up to be an extreme seller’s market, the Mariners would find themselves paying top-shelf prices to acquire bullpen pieces while the offense continues to flounder.
Instead of looking for outside help, the Mariners might be better served by keeping their prospects and looking internally. Obviously, the first two names to jump to mind – especially after their sterling outings at the Futures Game last weekend – are Kade Anderson and Ryan Sloan, the two-headed pitching monster currently destroying the Texas League. However, Jerry Dipoto said in conversation on Friday that the team is going to be very mindful of Anderson’s innings, in particular: there’s a number of innings they want him to get to, and the math has to work out considering what his role would be at the big-league level. The situation is similar with Sloan, who is even younger than Anderson although with more pro ball experience; the Mariners are laser-focused on ensuring that they won’t be robbing Peter to pay Paul, so to speak, and artificially accelerating the timeline or development of either of the two pitchers in order to paper over cracks at the big-league level.
But there are are pair of relievers, recently promoted to Tacoma, who have been pitching well enough to deserve a shot, both mentioned in conversation by Dipoto. The first is a familiar name for those of you who were heavily plugged in during Spring Training: righty Charlie Beilenson, a fifth-round senior sign in 2024 out of Duke – one of the senior signs the Mariners used to save money for Ryan Sloan, funnily enough, but Beilenson is a legitimate prospect. The club had designs on fast-tracking him in 2025, but an injury suffered in spring training kept him out for most of the year. Beilenson got back on track this spring, pitching both with the big-league club in spring training and for Team Israel in the WBC, experience that Dipoto said was invaluable for the young reliever, given an opportunity to share the field with some of the game’s best and feel like he belonged. At Arkansas this season, Beilenson is striking out over a third of batters faced and holding hitters to a .187 average, despite not having the loudest stuff – his fastball hangs out in the lower 90s, mid-90s when it’s going well, and he couples that with a slider-changeup combo that accounts for most of his whiffs. The big selling point with Beilenson is his plus command, although he walks a few more guys than you’d expect out of that profile. He has eight saves for Arkansas, leading all pitchers in the system – familiar territory for Beilenson, who was a Stopper of the Year finalist at Duke and tied the school record for saves in a single season.
Here’s one of my favorite Charlie outings, from July 7 against the Amarillo Sod Poodles: technically this is low-leverage because it was an extra-inning game tied at 2 before the Travs scored eight runs in the top of the 10th, but Beilenson still struck out the side to put an exclamation point on a thrilling Travs win. Vimeo wasn’t cooperating with me so please excuse the Bluesky embed (and click through to see all three strikeouts, two swinging and one called to end the game).
The other arm Dipoto mentioned was Reid VanScoter, also recently promoted to Triple-A. A longtime resident in Seattle’s system, VanScoter could be an option for the Mariners should they want to add another lefty to the pen. In his second tour of the Texas League, VanScoter is striking out a career-high 31% of hitters thanks to what Dipoto described as a mechanical change; however, that spike in strikeouts has come at the cost of some of his command, as he’s also walking a career-high number of hitters. He’ll need to calm that down in order to earn a look at the big leagues and unseat Josh Simpson as the other lefty option in the ‘pen.
One name that didn’t come up but is definitely on most prospect-heads’ radar is Teddy McGraw, a promising pitcher whose journey to the bigs has been delayed by multiple arm injuries but who possesses one of the best curveballs in the system. The Mariners have been ramping up McGraw’s usage at Double-A late in June, going from having him pitch every four days to every other day. McGraw’s arc is a little longer than the other two, as he continues to gain experience in the upper minors and just adjust physically to the rigors of professional baseball, even while healthy, but he’s a name to monitor.
Another longer-path name to know is Brock Moore, who was promoted to Double-A in early June after mowing down hitters at High-A. The 6’6” former Oregon Duck is still searching for his command in Arkansas, but he’s the “stuffiest” guy listed here, with a fastball that can kiss triple digits and a two-plane slider that combine for massive whiff rates but also massive walk rates.
Brock Moore strikes out 4 over 2 innings of 1-hit ball. He’s been throwing the ball very well in his last 4 outings.
Jun 13, 2026; Toronto, Ontario, CAN; Toronto Blue Jays starting pitcher Kevin Gausman (34) throws a pitch against the New York Yankees during the first inning at Rogers Centre. Mandatory Credit: Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images | Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images
The Atlanta Braves do a lot of things that typically play up well in October. Home run ball? They’re 5th in the league in homers even after a dormant month of June. Dominant bullpen? The Braves have arguably the best group in the game, especially if Robert Suarez returns soon. Ace at the top of the rotation to lean on? Chris Sale’s been incredible.
But at the same time, despite owning one of the best records in the league, the Braves have a few glaring needs heading into the trade deadline, which is quickly approaching on August 3.
Let’s fix those needs. Here are three players (or maybe four) the Braves need to acquire before the trade deadline.
Kevin Gausman
As of this writing, it remains to be seen if the Toronto Blue Jays — who were inches away from the World Series last fall — will sell as they continue to fall behind in the American League East. But if they do, the Braves should reunite with old friend Kevin Gausman.
There will be other starting pitching options for Alex Anthopoulos. But given the presumed cost, familiarity, reliability, durability, and potential to form one of the top 1-2 punches in the game alongside Chris Sale, this would be my starting pitching addition.
Gausman’s tenure with Atlanta in 2018-2019 did not meet expectations, but he’s been as good as virtually anyone in the league since leaving town. Dating back to the 2022 season, Gausman ranks 4th in pitcher WAR with a strong 3.60 ERA and even better 3.21 FIP. He’s been a beacon of durability and reliability, making 145 starts in that time span. He also has a wealth of postseason experience, and while milage can vary on how much that actually means, he was superb with Toronto last postseason. The idea of pairing him with Sale atop the rotation is tantalizing.
Gausman will be a free agent at the end of 2026. I’ll believe Alex Anthopoulos unloads the top of the farm system when he actually does it — he’s been hyper cautious moving prospects during his nine year tenure in Atlanta — and the price for Gausman would likely not be astronomical as someone with a few months of control. The veteran righty is owed approximately $8M the rest of the season, a significant amount of coin the Braves can eat.
Gausman hasn’t been quite as good on the surface as he’s been in recent years — a 4.51 ERA won’t make anyone fall out of their chair — but he’s been better than that if you look under the hood (3.67 FIP, 3.79 xFIP, 3.87 xERA as of July 21). His velocity on his fastball and famous splitter are down a tick this season, although his fastball grades out extremely well at Baseball Savant. There’s a lot to like here, even if he hasn’t been quite as good as in previous years. Make it happen, Alex.
Spencer Steer and JJ Bleday
OK, so I’m cheating here. The headline says “three players the Braves should acquire” and I’m listing four. Take me to jail.
The Cincinnati Reds are almost certainly going to sell. They have reportedly already received calls on Spencer Steer, and I’m guessing they will be asked about JJ Bledway, too.
Here’s Steer, the 28-year-old righty who can bounce around the field.
The idea behind Steer is largely for what he can do against left-handed pitching. He is absolutely mashing southpaws this year, hitting .342 with an absurd 184 wRC+. His career numbers are obviously not quite that good — .270 average, 126 wRC+ — but he would represent a massive upgrade in the middle of the lineup against left-handed pitching and can hold his own against righties. The Braves are guaranteed to see good left-handed pitching down the stretch, and they rank 23rd in the league against them with a collective 93 wRC+.
At present, the Braves’ right-handed bench options are Eli White and Joey Bart. Sean Murphy could factor into that equation at some point, although I don’t think you can count on Murphy for anything besides superb defense. Steer would become an outstanding platoon partner with Mike Yastrzemski in left field, provide insurance in the event of another injury to Ronald Acuña Jr. (or another outfielder), becomes an impact bat off the bench when called upon late in games, and makes the Braves infinitely better against left-handed pitching.
As for JJ Bleday, he’s having an even better season in Cincinnati. You may recall he tormented the Braves earlier this year, and he’s kept up the good work outside of a downturn for a few weeks in June. Here are Bleday’s numbers:
The Dominic Smith story was a great one early in the year, but it’s time to move on. Smith has a sub-600 OPS since late April, a real cause for concern as the every day DH on the team against right-handed pitching.
Bleday would provide a significant upgrade over Smith at DH, and he could play a corner outfield spot, too. Adding an outfielder (or two) also nearly guarantees Mauricio Dubon can move to shortstop on a full-time basis. This lineup becomes so much better and deeper with the addition of a lefty and righty bat. Steer and Bleday feel like great fits, and again, neither should cost a fortune.
Robbie Ray
I won’t rehash all the issues with the rotation, but let’s hypothetically say Anthopoulos acquires Gausman. Here’s your rotation:
Chris Sale, Kevin Gausman … Reynaldo Lopez? Grant Holmes? Bryce Elder? Martin Perez? AJ Smith-Shawver? JR Ritchie? Owen Murphy? We just saw Hurston Waldrep go down with another elbow injury, and the reports on Spencer Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider aren’t exactly rosy at this point.
That’s not good enough.
Enter Robbie Ray, a pending free agent on a San Francisco Giants team guaranteed to sell. He’s owed approximately $8 million the rest of the way whenever he’s moved.
Ray owns a strong 3.33 ERA but hasn’t been nearly that good with a 4.59 FIP and 4.84 xFIP. He’s been better overall since a disastrous start in Arizona on May 18; since then, Ray owns a 2.41 ERA, 3.87 FIP and 5.05 xFIP. I would imagine teams interested in Ray won’t value him at the low-threes ERA and instead see him as a reliable innings eater to round out a rotation for two months.
Not only would a second starter help stabilize the rotation, but it would also make it easy to move Grant Holmes to the bullpen, where he should thrive only facing hitters one time. It just makes too much sense, and if my assessment of his trade value is close, it shouldn’t take a ton to acquire the veteran lefty. Noticing a theme here?
So there you have it. An impact starter, an innings eater, and at least one bat for the outfield and DH spots, ideally two.
In a recent article for The Athletic, Dom Luszczyszyn named the 10 best contracts in the NHL for the 2026-27 season. Without much surprise, a member of the Buffalo Sabres made the cut: Rasmus Dahlin.
"If Dahlin were to hit UFA this summer, it wouldn’t be difficult to imagine him commanding something close to Kaprizov’s current AAV," Luszczyszyn wrote. "It’s in line with what Cale Makar and Quinn Hughes will no doubt ask for, and he’s risen into that company. That he’s signed for six more seasons at just $11 million is a huge discount for Buffalo."
When looking at how well Dahlin has performed for the Sabres, it is easy to understand why his contract is being viewed as one of the best in the NHL. The 26-year-old defenseman is one of the top blueliners in the league, and with the salary cap going up, his cap hit just keeps looking better.
In 77 games during this past season with the Sabres, Dahlin posted 19 goals, 55 assists, and 74 points. This was after he had 17 goals and 68 points in 73 games for Buffalo during the 2024-25 season. With numbers like these from the point, the Sabres captain has been providing a ton of value for Buffalo.
Furthermore, with Dahlin being only 26 years old, he is just entering his prime. That just makes his deal look even better, and it will be fascinating to see how he performs during it from here.
ATLANTA, GA - JULY 05: Martín Pérez #33 of the Atlanta Braves pitches in the first inning during the game against the New York Mets at Truist Park on July 5, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. (Photo by Jack Casey/Atlanta Braves/Getty Images) | Getty Images
TBD no more: between this weekend’s rumblings and JR Ritchie’s 3.2 innings of relief in last night’s loss to San Diego, today’s moves aren’t suprising.
Martín Pérez has been activated and is set to start tonight’s game. He has been sidelined since July 6 after suffering a 92 mph liner to the left forearm in his outing versus the Mets, and don’t ask about what happened after he exited. Pérez (6-6, 3.54 ERA) had struggled a few consecutive starts following a different comebacker in late June, but will be aiming to bounce back and do his part to stabilize the rotation.
In a corresponding move, JR Ritchie will board the Gwinnett shuttle and head back to Triple-A.
The #Braves today reinstated LHP Martín Pérez from the injured list and optioned RHP JR Ritchie to Triple-A Gwinnett.
TheHockeyNews.com is running a series ranking each NHL coach, going in reverse order from No. 32 to No. 1.
The criteria for these rankings include each coach’s accomplishments, short- and long-term history, expectations, and general reputation. Of course, these rankings are subjective.
St. Louis Blues coach Jim Montgomery found his name at No. 16 on these rankings, ahead of the likes of Todd McLellan, Sheldon Keefe and Marco Sturm. He also finds himself trailing coaches like Dan Muse, Peter Laviolette, and Rick Bowness.
Montgomery’s time in St. Louis has been very up and down. When he took over, he helped propel the Blues to the playoffs and pushed the Presidents’ Trophy winners to the Game 7 overtime.
But in 2025-26, with expectations higher, Montgomery was unable to help the Blues avoid another slow start to the season, and they fell short of the playoffs.
Now, Montgomery has added his assistant coaches, and with over a year and a half under the helm in St. Louis, the pressure for the 57-year-old to deliver is increasing.
With the Boston Bruins, Montgomery guided the Original Six franchise to the most wins in a single season, taking home the Jack Adams Award, although he wasn’t able to bring them past the second round.
“When Montgomery became available to teams in November of 2024, the Blues took exactly five days before they fired Drew Bannister and replaced him with Montgomery,” started THN.com’s Adam Proteau. “And who could blame them – Montgomery had led the Bruins to a stunning 65-12-5 record in 2022-23 while winning a Jack Adams Award in the process.
“Montgomery hasn’t had the success in St. Louis that he had in Boston. But that’s a product of the changing core of the Blues as they transition to a new era under new GM Alex Steen.
“That said, there is all kinds of pressure for Montgomery to improve St. Louis’ 2025-26 record of 37-33-12, and Montgomery must be a teacher for the Blues’ youngsters while trying to push the team up the standings of the highly competitive Central Division. With so much at stake, Montgomery is at a point where he could rise steeply or fall steeply in the coach rankings depending on what St. Louis does next season.”
Montgomery’s third season with the Blues will be an important one. If the Blues falter out of the gate and are on a crash course to miss the playoffs, changes could be made, but the Blues have full faith in their bench boss.
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WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 06: Nate Pearson #55 of the Houston Astros bats against the Washington Nationals at Nationals Park on July 06, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by G Fiume/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Today, the Houston Astros announced they have traded reliever Nate Pearson to the Kansas City Royals in exchange for righthanded pitching prospect Max Martin.
Martin, 22, has posted a 6-2 record with a 2.01 ERA in 26 relief appearances across two levels of Class A ball in the Royals system this season. Martin was a 10th round pick by Kansas City in the 2025 draft.
Pearson, 29, has made 16 appearances for the Astros this season. He is 1-0 with a 3.60 ERA and 1.40 WHIP. Pearson was one of the hardest throwers in the Astros pen, able to hit 98 MPH with his fastball. Command has been an issue for Pearson, who has walked 12 batters in 20 innings this season to go with 16 strikeouts.
The Astros clear a roster spot on both the 26-man and 40-man roster with the move.
SP Hayden Wesneski is scheduled to make one more rehab start before being activated, and now his pathway back to the roster is clearer.
