SAN FRANCISCO — Buster Posey’s second offseason in charge should be a busy one, and not just because it’s starting with a search for a new manager, which in turn will lead to the hiring of several new coaches and possibly other changes. Posey also needs to fill out most of his bullpen and sign multiple starting pitchers while addressing several minor needs on the position player side.
One thing he won’t have to do, however, is worry too much about arbitration.
The Giants in recent years have had several key players — Mike Yastrzemski, Tyler Rogers, LaMonte Wade Jr. etc. — come up for arbitration every offseason, but this year’s class will be a small one. Camilo Doval was set to be their most expensive player in arbitration for the 2025-26 offseason, but he was traded in July. Patrick Bailey and Ryan Walker had both hoped to qualify for “super two” status, but they likely will just miss.
That leaves just three players, according to MLB Trade Rumors’ yearly projections, which are generally extremely accurate in terms of salary guesses. Catcher Andrew Knizner and pitchers Joey Lucchesi and JT Brubaker are all arbitration-eligible, and it would be a shock if the Giants brought that whole group back.
Lucchesi had the best season in San Francisco, taking over as the top lefty in the bullpen after Erik Miller went on the IL. He posted a 3.76 ERA and 3.97 FIP in 38 appearances and at times pitched late in games for Bob Melvin after the trade deadline and injuries decimated the bullpen.
MLB Trade Rumors projects that Lucchesi will make $2 million in arbitration, and he would certainly fill a need if he’s back. Miller was fully cleared by the end of September, but the only other lefty option this past year was Matt Gage. It’s not an area where the Giants have a lot of depth in Triple-A, either, particularly with Reggie Crawford sidelined by a second shoulder surgery.
Knizner, projected to make $1.3 million, was Bailey’s backup for the final four months of the season. He hit .221 with a .598 OPS and one homer. The Giants will need better catching depth next spring, but they could have an in-house backup for Bailey already in Jesus Rodriguez, who was acquired at the deadline and spent the final week on the taxi squad so he could learn the big league staff.
Brubaker made five appearances down the stretch for the Giants, allowing six earned in 12 2/3 innings. He also made 12 appearances for the New York Yankees earlier in the season. He’s projected to make $2.1 million if he goes through arbitration.
Bailey and Walker would have gotten nice raises had they reached arbitration early. They arrived at Oracle Park on the same day in May of 2023 and haven’t gone down since, but both are expected to miss the “super two” cutoff — which allows a small group of players to reach arbitration before accruing three years of service time — by just a few days when MLB makes the list official.
Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts tags out Nick Castellanos at third base for the first out of the ninth inning in the Dodgers' 4-3 win in Game 2 of the NLDS on Monday night. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Even Dodgers fans steeped in the lore of Kirk Gibson might not remember the name of Mel Didier.
Didier was the scout who had issued this warning to the 1988 Dodgers: If you’re facing Dennis Eckersley, the mighty closer for the Oakland Athletics, and the count runs full, he’s going to throw a backdoor slider.
Eckersley threw it, Gibson hit it for a home run, and the Dodgers went on to win the World Series.
If these Dodgers go on to win the World Series, no one will struggle to remember the name of Mookie Betts, of course. On Monday, however, Betts pushed the Dodgers to within one win of the National League Championship Series — not with his bat and not with his glove, but with memory and aptitude to rival Didier.
“His mind is so far advanced,” Dodgers coach Dino Ebel said of Betts. “That was the ballgame right there.”
With the tying run at second base and none out in the ninth inning, he was the calm in a screaming madhouse. As the Dodgers infielders gathered at the mound and Alex Vesia entered from the bullpen, Betts thought back to a play he had participated in once, in an August game against the Angels. Miguel Rojas had taught him the so-called "wheel play."
“All he had to do was tell me once,” Betts said. “To me, that was like a do-or-die situation. Them tying the game up turns all the momentum there. If we can find a way to stop it, that would be great.
“I just made a decision and rolled with it.”
On the mound, amid the bedlam, Betts put on the wheel play. It’s a bunt coverage: with a runner on second base, the third baseman and first baseman charge home, with the idea that one would field the bunt and throw out the runner at third.
In any previous decade, the Dodgers would have practiced this play in spring training, repeatedly.
“We don’t really even practice the wheel play, with pitchers not hitting any more,” third baseman Max Muncy said. “There’s very few times where you’re 100% sure that a guy is going to bunt.”
This was the time. The Phillies had opened the ninth with three consecutive hits, including a two-run double from Nick Castellanos.
The Dodgers led, 4-3, with none out and Castellanos on second base. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said he wanted to play for the tie and take his chances to match his team’s bullpen against the Dodgers bullpen in extra innings.
And for the “never bunt” crowd: the chance to score one run is slightly higher with a runner on third base with one out than with a runner on second base and none out. The Phillies had the bottom of the order coming up — starting with infielder Bryson Stott, whom the Dodgers had evaluated as a good bunter.
Betts remembered how he had asked Rojas when to run the wheel play.
“In a do-or-die situation,” Rojas had told him.
So Betts took charge and put on the play.
“I don’t know if it was very comfortable, but somebody’s got to do it,” Betts said.
“I figured, if there was ever a good time to make a decision and roll with it, that was the time.”
Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy throws to third after fielding a bunt from Phillies second baseman Bryson Stott in the ninth inning in Game 2 of the NLDS on Monday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Muncy would charge and, if the ball was bunted to him, would throw to Betts covering third base. First baseman Freddie Freeman then said he would charge and, if the ball was not bunted to him, would cover second base so Stott could not advance there, since second baseman Tommy Edman would be covering first. Later, on his PItchCom, Vesia said he heard an order to cover second base.
“When Doc came out and made the pitching change, we talked to him about it and he was all on board,” Muncy said. “I am going to credit Mook. It was his idea.”
Said Betts: “That was one of times where Doc called on us and said, you guys figure it out — in a very positive way. And we did.”
Rojas called Betts “an extension of the manager on the field.”
Said Rojas: “I’m happy that he called it right there on the field. Because it was the right play with the right runner, knowing the guy was going to bunt.”
All of this speaks well of Betts’ intuition and intelligence, but the postseason is not the time for “trust the process” blather. The postseason is the time when the right call is the one that actually works.
For Stott or anyone else, Thomson said, a batter that sees the wheel play in motion should forget about the bunt and swing away, given the holes left by two infielders charging the plate and the other two rushing to cover a base.
Stott bunted.
The first problem for the Phillies was that they had no one available to pinch-run for Castellanos. Aside from a backup catcher, they had two position players left: Harrison Bader, playing with a sore groin, and Weston Wilson, whom the Phillies had to save to run for Bader.
The second problem for the Phillies was that the Dodgers had only run the wheel play once this season, so even the best advance scouts could not have been warning the Phillies to beware.
“It’s something we have under our sleeve,” Rojas said.
The third and most critical problem for the Phillies was that Betts had lingered close to second base, shadowing Castellanos. By the time Stott could have seen Betts take off for third, it was too late.
“Mookie did a great job of disguising the wheel play,” Thomson said.
Muncy fielded the ball cleanly, and Betts beat Castellanos to the bag by so much that Betts had time to drop his knee and block the bag before tagging out Castellanos, holding onto the ball even as Castellanos upended him.
“Those guys executed it to perfection,” Roberts said. “It was a lot tougher — they made it look a lot easier than it was. And for me, that was our only chance, really, to win that game in that moment.”
If Muncy did not field the ball cleanly or did not make a good throw, or if Betts did not beat Castellanos to the bag or tag him out, the Phillies would have had the tying run at third base and the winning run at first base with none out.
But they did not, which meant the ensuing single did not tie the score. Two batters later, the Dodgers had won.
The play would be difficult enough for a lifelong shortstop. Betts is in his first season as a full-time shortstop.
“It shows his intuition in the game,” Muncy said. “It’s second to none out there. It doesn’t matter what position you put that guy at — he knows what’s going on. It’s honestly really impressive.”
Said Ebel: “He’s obsessed with being a great player. And he’s still learning. He’s still going to get better. That’s the scary thing about it.”
As the Dodgers headed for a happy flight back to Los Angeles, Betts offered this game a five-star review.
“I’ll take off my Dodgers hat and just put on a fan hat,” he said. “I think that was a really dope baseball game.”
Now it’s time to see how the Celtics plan to build back up their frontcourt after all those offseason departures.
Can Neemias Queta build off his success from EuroBasket? Will Luka Garza blossom with more minutes than he saw in Minnesota? Can Xavier Tillman carve out a more consistent role after dealing with knee woes last season? Will the Celtics go double-big with veteran Chris Boucher at the forward spot, or lean more heavily into small ball lineups?
If you’re optimistic about the Celtics’ chances to compete this season, it likely hinges on the team’s obvious perimeter talent. Jaylen Brown, Derrick White, Payton Pritchard, Anfernee Simons, and Sam Hauser give this team ample firepower. The “big” question is how quickly the new-look frontcourt gets settled and whether this group can bring the same sort of defensive impact that has become standard for this team.
Regardless of how the new season plays out, there’s one question that needs to be answered: Is the starting center of Boston’s next title contender is already on the roster? Will someone grasp the opportunity in front of them, or does center remain the biggest area of need as Brad Stevens and Co. determine how this team will look moving forward?
Four preseason games aren’t going to answer that question, but they’re a chance for all of the younger bigs on this new-look roster to make a first impression as they step into a harsher spotlight.
2. Fast and the furious
You may have heard the Celtics want to play faster. Outside of Tatum’s rehab, it’s been the most relentless storyline since Boston huddled last week for Media Day and the start of training camp. Brown went so far as to suggest recently that he doesn’t play for a basketball team, he plays for a track team given the way that Mazzulla has been running his team throughout camp practices.
Brown was quick to note how that’s not a bad thing. He wants to run. And the numbers back up his desire.
Brown was one of only six players to average five-plus transition possessions per game during the 2023-24 season. (The others: Giannis Antetokounmpo, De’Aaron Fox, RJ Barrett, Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, and LeBron James.) Brown was one of the best high-volume transition finishers while averaging 1.25 points per play during the 2022-23 season.
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But the Celtics ranked 28th in transition plays finished last season, too often plodding into their offensive sets. That was down from 10th in transition opportunities during the 2024 title season.
Now, it’s time to shift back to a higher gear. And Brown could be the biggest beneficiary.
Talking after practice Monday at the Auerbach Center, Brown stressed that the Celtics need to play both fast and smart. The Celtics absolutely have to maximize possessions and limit turnovers, even while trying to make quick decisions.
Preseason play is usually sloppy out of the gates, and Boston’s new crank-the-tempo play style might accentuate any growing pains. But the Celtics clearly yearn to mask some of the talent drain that occurred this summer by playing faster and harder than their opponents.
3. Pull the cord on the Lawn Mower
After Brown held a state of the union on Boston’s new up-tempo ways, newcomer Josh Minott stood in front of reporters Monday and confidently declared himself the fastest player on the roster. Pull the cord on the man nicknamed the Lawn Mower, and let’s see just how fast he can go.
Minott has all the physical traits to thrive in Boston. His penchant for cleaning the glass could be important for the size-deprived Celtics, while his desire to run will be welcomed if the team leans heavily into the up-tempo ways.
Nearly half of Minott’s shot attempts came at the rim last season. One of his top highlights came on a dunk over Derrick White, who made a bit of a business decision in not trying to contest the high-flying Minott while scrambling with help defense.
Minott’s offensive development could be key to unlocking maximum playing time. Defensively, he has the ability to be a menace with his ability to block shots, create steals with his length, and be impactful on the glass.
Minott is still only 22 years old. There’s been a good amount of camp hype about his ability to impact Boston in a positive way. Let’s see if the Lawn Mower can win fans over this preseason.
4. Away we Hugo
There hasn’t been much playing time for rookies during the Mazzulla era, but we’re eager to see if rookie Hugo Gonzalez gets a chance to change that this season.
Maybe nothing emphasizes the way Gonzalez plays like the clip of him diving to save a ball in the Celtics’ Spike Ball tournament at camp this week. Gonzalez is going to bring energy and grit. HIs 3-point shot looks notably smooth in post-practice shooting.
Maybe he ends up spending most of the early season up in Maine getting extra reps. But the Celtics need to build a bench, and they need defensive energy in that second group.
We’re eager to see if Gonzalez can make an early impression and earn Mazzulla’s trust.
Once again, those in attendance were ultra-boisterous, the fireworks blasted during the national anthem, the red towels waved (though the rally part of them didn’t do much) and the chants drowned out everything at Citizens Bank Park during the Phillies’ Game 2 against the Dodgers in this National League Division Series.
It has been the recipe for four years now during Phillies home playoff games, making CBP the toughest place for visitors to compete in a playoff game.
But guess what? It isn’t just tough on the opposition. It can be quite draining on the home team also. And the sellout crowd on Monday had to be wondering that as the Phillies didn’t get their first hit of the game until second baseman Edmundo Sosa’s bloop single to right on the 72nd pitch by Dodger starter Blake Snell.
The Dodgers went on to win the game, 4-3, while holding the Phillies scoreless for the first seven innings. The big bats at the top of the lineup aren’t hitting, Los Angeles is getting the timely hits, and with that loss on Monday, the Phillies are now 3-7 in their last 10 postseason games at CBP.
So, what gives?
No Phillies players, nor the manager, nor those in the front office will ever complain about the atmosphere that CBP provides during playoff time. In fact, the reaction to the bedlam seems to garner more gratitude each time it happens. But still, something is amiss.
How could it be the Phillies lost the final two World Series home games to the Houston Astros back in 2022, including a no-hitter in Game 4? Can you explain losing two in a row to the Arizona Diamondbacks at CBP after coming home with a 3-2 lead in the NLCS in 2023? Then there was Game 1 against the Mets last season in the NLDS when the Phillies gave up five runs in the eighth and one in the ninth to New York in a 6-2 loss.
And now, two straight losses to the Dodgers to begin this year’s NLDS.
This veteran group of Phillies doesn’t make excuses for losses. That really isn’t their nature. And, again, they crave playing in front of this frenzied crowd whenever they can. But the task is harder than any of us can imagine. Because when the good is good, it is a tidal wave of emotion. But so is the bad.
J.T. Realmuto said after Game 1 that he looked up at the scoreboard at one point and couldn’t believe it was only the fourth inning. He said he was exhausted. Simply because the amount of emotion thumping through that stadium can be as draining as exhilarating.
“I think there are some big spots where I think you’re trying so hard that it just gets you,” third baseman Alec Bohm said. “Everything is so heightened and you’re so hyper-focused that you see something, and you don’t even know why you swung. It just happens. That’s the part of the game where you gotta try to slow it down and stay within yourself. Everybody just wants to help the team win.”
The want is there, no doubt. The effort, too. But when things begin to get pressurized, CBP can be a bit of a difficult place to play for the home team.
“I think that the stadium is good on both sides,” Nick Castellanos said. “When the game is going good, it’s wind at our back. When the game is not going good, it’s wind at our face. So, the environment can be with us, and the environment can be against us.”
Don’t sneer at that quote as an excuse. Instead, think about it. As a fan, you feel the anxiety you have with winning runners on base, two outs and your team trying to tie a playoff series. The heart and head pound. Hands clench and emotions run high. Now think about being a player in that spot. He has to perform. He has the same emotions but has to try to contain them while 45,000-plus rain down their feelings on that player.
“I wouldn’t say that it drains but it can definitely take you out of your center,” Castellanos added. “It’s super stimulating and euphoric if everything is going for us. But then it’s a very uphill climb when you can feel that everything is amplified negatively, like if you do something bad, you’re going to get a negative response. So, it makes it harder to play freely. If everything is going good, and we’re rolling, it’s a b—h to play here if you’re an opposing team because the environment is amazing. But if we roll into adversity and the tide shifts, we’re playing more tight because we don’t want to be reprimanded for something bad and playing becomes more difficult.”
Again, not an excuse, just the reality of something we as observers will never feel.
“Everything in an environment like this is amplified,” Castellanos said. “One run could seem like more than it actually is. When it’s going good, you’re on the expressway. When it’s going bad, it just takes something to take the ball rolling.
“Besides (Jesus) Luzardo, because pitching was phenomenal, as far as an offense we had two times that momentum was being built. So, when those dominoes start to fall, that’s important. Just like on the other side here. When good things start to happen, it’s like a snowball effect.”
No one can imagine saying that getting away from Citizens Bank Park may be a good thing for the Phillies in this series. But right now, it just may be. Not because of the fans’ reaction, but because of the reaction the team is causing with their play. The players know that.
So now, the almost unimaginable task of winning two at Dodger Stadium is right in the Phillies’ face.
“Got nothing to lose now,” Trea Turner said. “It’s not over. … It’s not over and we’re not going to quit until they tell us to go home. We got a great team. We’ve won three games in a row before, we’ve swept good teams. We’ve played good baseball. We got to find that. We’ve got to find it quick. I feel like we’ve played pretty decent these last two games, we just haven’t had enough to get the win. I don’t feel like we’re really beating ourselves. We’re playing good defense, we’re getting some hits here and there. It just doesn’t seem like enough each step of the way.”
If they get two wins in Los Angeles, no doubt Citizens Bank Park will be an atmosphere the players will crave.
Coach Steve Kerr detailed his vision for Kuminga’s usage during an exclusive interview with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke on “Dubs Talk.”
“I think the role is right there for him,” Kerr told Burke. “We need JK’s size, athleticism on the wing, his ability to guard the big wing guys like Luka [Dončić], LeBron [James] and Kawhi Leonard. So, the role is right there for him. I know it hasn’t always been easy for him because he’s wanted more of a role, being more of a focal point in our offense.
“But right now, we have Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler — two of the best players in the league. So, JK has to do what every player on our roster has to do, which is embrace whatever role we ask and help us win. If he does that, I’m confident that his role will grow over the coming year.”
Kuminga certainly has the ideal size and physical traits to be a key focal point of the Warriors’ defense, with Golden State’s point-of-attack success poised to play a major role in determining its ceiling during the 2025-26 NBA season.
Kuminga’s agent recently said there was a bit of a miscommunication between his client and the Golden State braintrust, a notion that Kerr disagreed with.
Kerr explained that he understands Kuminga’s situation differs drastically from the other top picks from the 2021 NBA Draft, with the 22-year-old immediately joining a championship roster and not having the same room for error that other prospects in his class were afforded in their first few seasons.
The Warriors coach also urged Kuminga to be “patient,” and that there still is plenty of room for him to grow as a player entering his fifth NBA season.
“Our communication is fine. We have film sessions all the time,” Kerr said. “There’s no confusion about what his role is. What I understand is his desire for more of a role. I think his agent misspoke, frankly, when he talked about confusion. I’m really clear with all my players, exactly what I ask of them, what’s to be expected. I think the difficult part for JK is that everyone in his draft class around him were given big roles right away on bad teams, frankly, that were able to play through mistakes, play 35 minutes.
“JK came to a championship team. We won the whole thing his rookie year. This has not been easy for JK, and I recognize that. But I also think that he could be patient, recognize that he’s 22 and that there’s a lot of things he can improve upon and that we are asking him to do. That’s all a part of being on a team and being a part of a group. He’s a good, young guy. We have a great rapport. I know he’s frustrated, but we will get through it.”
Kuminga averaged 15.3 points and 4.6 rebounds per game in 47 appearances during the 2024-25 season, showing tremendous promise before an ankle injury derailed his season. In his absence, the Warriors added Jimmy Butler into the mix, further complicating Kuminga’s fit as Golden State reeled off a notable run of success en route to the NBA playoffs.
On a positive note, Kuminga noted that his ability to share the floor with Butler during Golden State’s Western Conference semifinal series with the Minnesota Timberwolves last season allowed him to begin building crucial on-court chemistry with the six-time NBA All-Star.
Ideally, that chemistry and a clear line of communication between Kuminga, his teammates and coaches will allow the young forward to make the most efficient impact possible on an aging roster that is desperate for an impact from its younger pieces.
Briton retires when trailing 6-1, 4-1 against Ann Li
Novak Djokovic vomits on court but wins in Shanghai
Emma Raducanu’s brutal run of form and luck in Asia continued at the Wuhan Open as she retired because of illness from her first-round match at the WTA 1000 event, while trailing 6-1, 4-1 against the American Ann Li.
Raducanu is the latest player to crumble in tough conditions across China, with temperatures rising to 31C with 67% humidity in Wuhan on Tuesday afternoon.
The Warriors are zigging while the rest of the NBA zags, but coach Steve Kerr remains confident Golden State’s foundation built on older superstars still is a recipe for success.
Kerr detailed why the duo of Steph Curry and Jimmy Butler remains a lethal pairing during an exclusive interview with NBC Sports Bay Area’s Kerith Burke on “Dubs Talk.”
“Steph is our solar system. He’s the sun. Everything else revolves around the sun,” Kerr told Burke. “We have Steph Curry. He is one of the all-time great players. We thrive – and Steph thrives – when there’s spacing, ball movement, flow. This is why we have built our team around Steph, and then Jimmy arrived last year and gave Steph another threat next to him. Jimmy is the best isolation player in the league, analytically. When you give him the ball and you space the floor, you give him a good shot.”
Curry’s credentials need no introduction, with the two-time NBA MVP spending the last decade as one of the most feared offensive players in league history. While Curry’s gravitational pull is generational, the addition of Butler gives Golden State a different one-two punch than the Warriors had throughout their dynastic run.
The Warriors felt Butler’s immediate impact after acquiring him from the Miami Heat, posting a 23-7 record in the six-time All-Star’s 30 regular-season appearances with Golden State during the 2024-25 NBA season.
Kerr explained that Butler’s isolation value isn’t limited to just scoring, but also by creating opportunities for others, which creates a need for plus shooting on the floor around him.
“A lot of that, though, is [Butler] creating a shot for someone else, and so we need spacing,” Kerr said. “The combination of Steph and Jimmy last year, once those two guys were together, I think we went like 26-8. [We] beat Houston in the first round of the playoffs, the No. 2 seed. Our identity is built around those two guys, and we have a chance to be really good. Everyone else on the team has to see that, embrace it and find a role within that. That could be difficult at times for certain players, easy for others. But as a coaching staff, we just have to do whatever we think to win each game.”
While Butler’s instant integraton into the Warriors’ roster certainly was impressive, Kerr also highlighted the benefits of having the five-time All-NBA selection experiencing an entire training camp with Golden State.
“I think having Jimmy from the start will help with our chemistry, our continuity, just the guys getting used to one another,” Kerr said. “The good thing: it was an immediate fit last year, but we didn’t even put anything in. We just gave them the ball and it kind of cleared out. He was really good with that. I don’t think we’re going to do anything earth-shattering offensively, changing our attack a ton. But I do think Jimmy will get more and more comfortable with the stuff that we already do and with the teammates around him.”
Butler averaged 17.9 points, 5.9 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game with Golden State last season while also providing a boost with his leadership and high-IQ play that can’t be quantified in a traditional box score.
Based on the track record in a relatively small sample size, there’s plenty of reason to be optimistic Curry and Butler can pick up right where they left off. The question remains: can the duo stay healthy and contribute at that level for a full season and the grind of postseason basketball?
If, and it’s a big if, they are able to, there’s no reason to think Golden State won’t be right in the thick of things among NBA title contenders this season.
The Buffalo Sabres got down to 23 players on Monday by placing four players expected to be regulars on injured reserve, but unexpectedly plucked a goaltender off of the waiver wire. The Sabres placed goalie Ukko-Pekka Luukkonen, defensemen Michael Kesselring and Owen Power, and winger Jordan Greenway, along with minor leaguer Carson Meyer, and claimed goalie Colten Ellis from the St. Louis Blues.
The 25-year-old Ellis was a 2019 third round pick of the Blues and has spent all of his professional career in the ECHL and AHL. Last season, Ellis had an excellent campaign with St. Louis’s affiliate in Springfield, where he posted a 22-14-3 record, 2.63 GAA and .922 save percentage. The claim now gives the Sabres a third netminder, joining Alex Lyon and Alexandar Georgiev, which might be a indicator of the uncertainty of Luukkonen’s injury status.
The Sabres will carry 14 forwards, six defensemen and three goalies to start the season, which gets underway for them against the NY Rangers on Thursday. With Power and Kesselring unavailable for at least seven days, the club’s short-handed blueline will consist of Rasmus Dahlin, Bowen Bryam, Jacob Bryson, Ryan Johnson, Mattias Samuelsson, and Conor Timmins.
Up front, the only real surprise is the inclusion of enforcer Mason Geersten, who will likely be spotted in when the Sabres play a rough opponent. Greenway is making progress from his mid-body injury, so when he is cleared to play, GM Kevyn Adams will have to have to corresponding move to open up a spot on the roster.
MILWAUKEE — Andrew Vaughn and Jackson Chourio each hit a three-run homer, William Contreras added a solo shot and the Milwaukee Brewers beat the Chicago Cubs 7-3 on Monday night to move one win from a trip to the National League Championship Series.
The Brewers have a 2-0 advantage in the best-of-five Division Series, which shifts to Wrigley Field in Chicago for Game 3 on Wednesday. Teams taking a 2-0 lead in a best-of-five postseason series have won 80 of 90 times, including 54 sweeps.
Milwaukee is attempting to win a postseason series for the first time since 2018, when it reached Game 7 of the NLCS.
Vaughn and Chourio hit the first two three-run homers in Brewers postseason history. Contreras' solo shot in the third inning broke a 3-all tie.
Chicago slugger Seiya Suzuki hit a three-run homer of his own - a 440-foot shot to left-center in the first inning against Aaron Ashby. After coming out of the bullpen in 42 of his 43 regular-season appearances, Ashby served as an opener in this one.
But the Cubs didn't score again. Nick Mears, Jacob Misiorowski, Chad Patrick, Jared Koenig, Trevor Megill and Abner Uribe combined for 7 1/3 innings of shutout relief in which they allowed just one hit.
Misiorowski came on in the third and threw three scoreless innings to earn the win while hitting at least 100 mph on 31 of his 57 pitches. Each of the rookie's first eight pitches went at least 102.6 mph, and he topped out at 104.3.
While Misiorowski was sizzling, Chicago’s Shota Imanaga was fizzling.
Twice in the first three innings, Imanaga retired the first two batters before running into trouble that resulted in a homer. Imanaga has allowed multiple homers in six of his last eight appearances.
Vaughn tied the game in the bottom of the first with a drive over the left-field wall after Contreras and Christian Yelich delivered two-out singles. According to MLB, this was the first playoff game in which each team hit a three-run homer in the first inning.
Contreras then hit a 411-foot shot to left with two outs in the third.
Vaughn’s first-inning drive marked the first time the Brewers had ever hit a three-run homer or a grand slam in the postseason. They got their second just three innings later, when Chourio connected on his 419-foot shot off Daniel Palencia.
Chourio was back in the leadoff spot after tightness in his right hamstring caused him to leave in the second inning of Milwaukee’s 9-3 Game 1 victory on Saturday. Chourio went 3 for 3 with three RBIs in Game 1 before his exit, making him the first player to have three hits in the first two innings of a postseason game.
Kiké Hernández, right, celebrates with Freddie Freeman after scoring on a two-run single by Will Smith in the seventh inning. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
Phillies starter Jesús Luzardo had set down 17 batters in a row going into the seventh inning of Monday’s National League Division Series game. The Dodgers hadn’t had a hit or a baserunner since the first.
And it didn’t look like they’d get another.
“Luzardo,” said Dodger first baseman Freddie Freeman, “was amazing.”
Yet it was Freeman who brought Luzardo’s masterful night to an end and pushed the Phillies’ season to the brink, keying a 4-3 Dodger win that sends the best-of-five series to Los Angeles for Game 3 on Wednesday with Philadelphia a loss away from spring training.
“It's huge. It's absolutely huge,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said of the two-game sweep on the road. “Guys are really stepping up.”
Especially in the seventh, when the Dodgers batted around, producing the kind of inning they rarely managed in the regular season, one that featured aggressive at-bats, smart baserunning and three two-out RBIs.
“All that coming together; just really good at-bats up and down the lineup,” Roberts said.
Teoscar Hernández got it started with a single to center. Freeman followed with a hit off the end of his bat into the right-field corner, a single he turned into a double when he refused to stop at first, surprising outfielder Nick Castellanos.
“I was trying to keep things going, put pressure on them,” Freeman said. “I just wanted to push the envelope in that situation since we hadn't had anything going on since the first inning.”
Luzardo had given up one hit through six innings; now he’d given up two in the span of five pitches.
“He retired 17 in a row. He had 72 pitches. He's pitching great,” Phillies manager Rob Thomson said.
But after Freeman’s hit he was done, with Thomson summoning reliever Orion Kerkering. The Dodgers, however, were just getting started, and an out later Hernández put them ahead to stay, breaking smartly from third on Kiké Hernández’s slow roller by the mound, then sliding to the back of the plate to beat shortstop Trea Turner’s wide throw home.
Pinch-hitter Max Muncy followed with a four-pitch walk to load the bases for Will Smith, whose two-out single on the first pitch he saw drove in two more runs.
“In that situation, it's very easy to try to want to do too much,” Muncy said. “You have a chance to drive in a couple runs. It's very easy to chase a pitch. But you’ve just got to be diligent with what you're trying to do up there and just pass the baton to the next guy.”
Dodgers' Will Smith hits a two-run single during the seventh inning of Game 2 of the NLDS on Monday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)
The Dodgers' rally had been built around a double that should have been a single, a run-scoring fielder’s choice that barely passed the mound, a walk and Smith’s one-hop single to left, the hardest-hit ball of the inning. When Shohei Ohtani grounded a single by diving second baseman Edmundo Sosa, the Dodgers led 4-0.
“Obviously some huge two-out hits by Will and then Shohei. Great play by Teo getting his foot in,” Freeman said. “A lot of good things happened in that seventh inning.”
The inning also silenced the sellout crowd of 45,653, which minutes earlier had been louder than a rock concert during a NASCAR race. When Matt Strahm, the third pitcher of the inning, finally got Mookie Betts for the third out, the fans booed the Phillies off the field.
The crowd came alive again in the ninth, when Dodgers reliever Blake Treinen once again melted down on the mound, gave up three hits and two runs without getting an out to let the Phillies back in the game. But Roki Sasaki then took them out again, retiring Turner on a groundball with the tying run on third, earning his second save in as many games.
When it was over the Phillies, who had the best home record in the majors this season, had lost consecutive games at home for the first time since June 1. And the Dodgers, unbeaten this postseason, were a win away from the NL Championship Series.
“Lots to unpack in that one,” Roberts said.
Freeman managed to put it all in perspective.
“We were just sitting at our lockers and Kiké said, ‘we just took two here’,” he said. “This is a hard place to play. Incredible fan base. It's loud here.
“We obviously put ourselves in great position going into Wednesday.”
Former Pittsburgh Penguins forward Greg McKegg has a new home for the 2025-26 hockey season.
McKegg signed a deal with the KHL's Shanghai Dragons on Monday. The Dragons announced the news via their official Twitter/X account.
Shanghai Dragons Sign Veteran Winger Greg McKegg for Remainder of Season
McKegg brings extensive professional experience to the KHL, having played 251 NHL games, tallying 41 points (23 goals, 18 assists), and 497 AHL games with 264 points (106 goals, 158 assists)
McKegg played for the Penguins during the 2017-18 season, compiling two goals and four points in 26 games. He made his NHL debut with the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 2013-14 season, after being drafted by them in the third round of the 2010 NHL Draft. He remained with the organization through the end of the 2014-15 season.
