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The Dodgers needed a pivotal win Sunday afternoon against the Milwaukee Brewers. And Tarik Skubal did his part, giving up just one earned run on seven hits over six innings.

“Seemed like they had a good approach,” Skubal, who threw a season-high 109 pitches. “My job doesn’t change. I got to continue to make pitches and continue to get ahead and throw strikes, and I felt like I did that.”

But it wasn’t enough.

Milwaukee’s Logan Henderson quashed the Dodgers’ offense, giving up just three hits and one run over seven innings, to give the Brewers a 6-2 win in front of an announced crowd of 45,828.

The Dodgers (74-51) lost the four-game series 3-1 and also dropped the season series against the Brewers 4-3. The Dodgers trail Milwaukee (77-48) by three games for the best record in baseball.

“I really wanted to win this game because it could matter,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “But we didn’t, so now we got to move forward. I hope it doesn’t come back to bite us.”

Read more:Tommy John, Dodgers pitcher and medical pioneer, dies at 83

Panic hasn’t — and presumably won’t — set into the Dodgers’ clubhouse. The two-time defending champions, however, are well aware they have lost 11 of their last 16 games.

“This has been cumulative,” Roberts said. “It’s been a long time since we’ve been consistent offensively. ... I just don’t see the consistent plan of attack, one through nine. The results are hard, hitting’s hard, but I do think that fighting and winning pitches, spoiling pitches — that’s care, hunger. 
And that’s a reason why [when] you look at four and a half months of the season, the Brewers have outscored us. ... A team that’s young and hungry. It’s certainly not talent.

“We just haven’t played clean baseball for quite some time, and that speaks to the defense and not converting an out ... it’s just not winning baseball. Our pedigree [and] what we typically do is control the zone, grind it, grind at-bats [and] create stress. We’re not doing that.”

The Brewers struck first with two outs in the second inning after Luis Lara grounded into a bases-loaded fielder’s choice; Tommy Edman dropped an awkward flip to second base from Mookie Betts, resulting in an error and a 1-0 Milwaukee lead.

Max Muncy got to Henderson in the fourth by hitting a tying home run 370 feet to right field. In the next inning, Milwaukee’s Jake Bauers hit a go-ahead single to right off Skubal, scoring Jackson Chourio from second after his double.

“I just got to be better in those moments,” Skubal said. “You know, the slider down and in to Lara’s got to be probably a little bit more down and in, and the changeup to Bauers has got to be a more quality pitch. ... So as much as it’s in the kind of grind of at-bats, they also put some swings on some balls. But I need to execute some pitches and some two-strike counts a little better as well.”

The Brewers added two insurance runs in the seventh, as Bauers and Andrew Vaughn collected a pair of RBI knocks against left-handed reliever Alex Vesia. They got two more in the ninth after a second bases-loaded error by Edman came when he failed to field a choppy ground ball from David Hamilton, allowing Chourio and Lara to score.

“We have a lot of guys with reputations that can really pick the ball,” Dodgers catcher Ben Rortvedt said of the defensive woes. “I don’t think we’re really worried about [it]. All these things are going to help us in the long run.”

The Dodgers had a chance to crawl closer with one out in the eighth, with Teoscar Hernández on third and Hunter Feduccia on first. But Shohei Ohtani grounded into a double play against Brewers reliever Aaron Ashby.

Andy Pages hit a solo home run in the ninth, but it came too late to matter.

“It can’t happen all at once,” Roberts said of a potential turnaround. “It just kind of starts building, collectively. And once we do that, then you get the big hit, things like that. But it’s a process of: each pitch, pass the baton, valuing every single pitch. And mentally, it’s not easy, but we can do it. We’ve done it many times over before.”

The results just haven’t been there for the Dodgers.

As they head to Colorado for a three-game series against the last-place Rockies, the Dodgers aren’t expecting any breaks.

“Honestly, I think every team’s hungry because they’re chasing us,” Roberts said. “They’re trying to make a name for themselves or trying to play spoiler, whatever it is. But every team we play is going to bring their best. The guys we are going to play the next three games, they’re gonna bring their best, I promise you that.”

If there is a silver lining, it’s that Skubal seems to be acclimating just fine in L.A. — even if the two-time defending AL Cy Young winner hasn’t had his best game since joining the Dodgers.

“I just got to be more consistent,” Skubal said of his first three starts with the Dodgers. “Continue to get quality contact on the ground, and sometimes you need a little bit of luck … But the stuff on my hand is as good as it’s ever been. And honestly, my execution today was pretty good too.

“There’s always room for improvement … but [in] the same breath, you can’t beat yourself up too much. I’m not going to be perfect out there. But yeah, I need to be more efficient. That’s the standard that I hold myself to: pitching deeper into ball games and giving our team a chance to win every time out.”

Read more:Swanson: The Dodgers need Mookie to be Mookie

Injury updates

The Dodgers placed left-handed starter Justin Wrobleski on the 15-day injured list with left forearm inflammation and recalled right-handed reliever Kyle Hurt from triple-A Oklahoma City. Wrobleski, who has pitched a career-high 126⅓ innings this season, surrendered four runs and four hits in a loss against the Brewers on Saturday.

“We just felt collectively that Justin was the right person [to] back off the fatigue of the arm,” Roberts said. “It’s not something that he’s ever going to make an excuse for. But I do think that it’s smart for us, as an organization, to take that load off a little bit from him.”

Wrobleski has struggled recently, giving up 11 home runs over his past four starts.

Stewart, who was placed on the 15-day IL with right shoulder discomfort on July 31, said he’ll join the Dodgers on their upcoming road trip to Colorado and is hopeful he’ll be activated soon.

Read more:Shaikin: For Dodgers’ Charley Steiner, a complete game three years in the making

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

The Seattle Mariners have followed up a playoff berth with a disappointing season that ended with similar hopes dashed, in particularly violent fashion on Friday. Then, in the first game of the off-season, those same silly Mariners went and won decisively and dare I say, entertainingly. Okay, so the season being over bit is hopefully obviously facetious, but the outlook remains grim nonetheless. In today’s Sunday game three against the Astros the series win is on the line for either team, but perhaps more emphatically, Seattle’s season’s hopes remain hanging onto an even thinner strip, and with but a pinky. Play ball!

Game Info:

First Pitch: 4:20 PM Pacific
TV: Sunday Night Baseball on Peacock
Radio: Seattle Sports (710 am)

Your recap for the Cubs’ 11-4 loss to the Cardinals Sunday is basically in the headline. Edward Cabrera returned from injury, got hit hard and didn’t have command, and then Dansby Swanson took a swing in the third inning and immediately came out of the game.

I guess I could wrap things here, but… you come here for a complete recap and you are going to get one.

First, I was amused by this sequence of social media posts. When Craig Counsell met with media before the game, here’s what he said about the Cubs upcoming rotation:

Five-plus hours later, after Cabrera’s disastrous outing, here’s what the media heard from Counsell:

Gee, Craig. Ya think?!?!?!

I don’t know what was up with Cabrera. His velocity was fine. But when he wasn’t getting hit hard — four-extra-base hits including a home run in the first three innings — he was issuing walks, three of them in what wound up being a six-run fourth that put the game essentially out of reach.

Personally, I’d put Cabrera in the pen and let David Peterson, who’s been really good as a starter, keep that starting spot.

Before that, though, the Cubs did make an attempt to come back from a 3-0 second-inning deficit. And that’s when Swanson’s injury happened [VIDEO].

Swanson immediately left the game and was replaced by James Triantos. Triantos worked a walk, and one out later Pete Crow-Armstrong put a ball in the bleachers [VIDEO].

Well. Now it’s 3-2 and there’s at least a chance, right?

Nope. In the top of the fourth, Cabrera retired the first Cardinals hitter, then loaded the bases with two walks and a single and walked in a run. After a sacrifice fly made it 5-2 and the other runners moved up to second and third, Ryan Rolison was summoned. Alec Burleson singled in a pair to make it 7-2 and then Rolison gave up a long home run to Jordan Walker and in just a few minutes’ time the Cardinals led by seven.

Aaron Civale threw a pair of scoreless innings in the sixth and seventh, despite loading the bases with two out in the sixth, so perhaps Civale can be counted on for multi-inning relief. His numbers with the Cubs have been quite good in that role.

In the top of the eighth, Caleb Thielbar entered and allowed a hit and walk after one out, then struck out Burleson. But he wasn’t going to be allowed to face the righthanded-hitting Walker, so Trent Thornton was summoned. Welp, that didn’t work either, as Walker hit a two-run double to make it 11-2.

The Cubs scored a couple of consolation runs. In the eighth, Seiya Suzuki led off with a double and went to third on an infield out. Tyrone Taylor, batting for Ian Happ, scored Suzuki with this sac fly [VIDEO].

For amusement value, Carson Kelly pitched the ninth and was throwing “fastballs” as fast as 74 miles per hour! He allowed a two-out single but did not allow a run. It’s the second time Kelly has mopped up this year and that reduced his ERA from 18.00 to 9.00, for whatever that’s worth.

Miguel Amaya completed the Cubs scoring with his fifth home run with one out in the ninth [VIDEO].

Here’s the postgame update on Swanson:

This is not good. Whatever you think of Swanson’s hitting, his defense will be missed, and oblique injuries are notoriously difficult to come back from. He might miss a month, depending on the severity. It means Nico Hoerner plays shortstop and Pedro Ramirez second base, and while those two are good defenders, it’s still a notch down from Swanson at short and Nico at second. Who will be recalled to take Swanson’s place on the active roster is uncertain, but it probably has to be either Justin Dean or Kevin Alcántara — those are the only two position players on the 40-man roster currently on option at Triple-A Iowa.

A couple of final notes on this loss from BCB’s JohnW53:

Going into today, the Cubs had surrendered 79 homers with any runners on base, second most to the Nationals’ 80. The White Sox and Yankees were tied for third, with 72. The combined average of the 29 teams besides the Cubs was just 59 — 20 fewer, 25.3 percent, than the Cubs’ 79.
…..
The Cubs have given up at least six runs in five of their last six games, including today.

They also had allowed at least six runs in two of their previous five games, for a total of seven of their last 11.
For the season, they have surrendered half a dozen or more in 37 games. They were 11-25 in the ones before today.

So none of this is good. Here’s more not good news: The Brewers defeated the Dodgers Sunday so the Cubs are now five games out in the NL Central. And all of this is prelude to hosting a hot White Sox team that just swept the Tigers, beginning Monday evening at Wrigley Field. Shōta Imanaga will start the series opener and old NL Central opponent Luis Castillo will go for the White Sox. Game time Monday is 7:05 p.m. CT and TV coverage will be via Marquee Sports Network (and also CHSN and WCIU-Ch. 26 with the Sox announcers).

Box Score

The Brewers, who had a bit of a rough patch in San Diego earlier this week as they were swept by the Padres, bounced back nicely over the weekend, winning three of four against the mighty Dodgers — aided by some shaky defense — and rebuilding their lead over the Cubs in the NL Central.

William Contreras, batting in the leadoff spot for the first time in over two years, started things off with a single. Luis Lara then flew out, and Jackson Chourio, after just missing a homer as he fouled one just to the left of the left-field foul pole, struck out. With two outs, Jake Bauers picked up a single of his own, but the Crew couldn’t get anything across as Andrew Vaughn flew out.

Logan Henderson gave up a leadoff single to Shohei Ohtani but left him there, inducing a flyout and striking out a pair to get through a clean inning.

The Brewers got one across in the second, with Brandon Lockridge drawing a walk, Jonathan Ornelas singling to push Lockridge to third, and Contreras taking a walk to load the bases for Lara. Lara hit a soft grounder to short, and Mookie Betts made the flip to second for the final out, but Tommy Edman missed the ball, and everyone was safe, giving Milwaukee a 1-0 lead before Chourio had a deep flyout to end the inning.

Henderson worked around another leadoff single in the second, inducing a flyout and double play to keep it 1-0. The Brewers hit into a double play of their own in the third, as Bauers singled before Vaughn grounded into a 6-4-3 double play, and Gary Sánchez then flew out on a nice over-the-shoulder grab by Freeman running into the outfield.

Henderson had the first true 1-2-3 inning of the day in the bottom of the inning, and Tarik Skubal returned the favor in the top of the fourth. After recording the first two outs in the bottom of the fourth, Henderson hung a changeup to Max Muncy, who promptly put it into the seats in right, tying it up at 1-1.

It didn’t stay tied long, though, as Chourio doubled and Bauers singled with two outs in the fifth to take a 2-1 lead.

Henderson bounced back from the homer in the fourth and recorded another 1-2-3 inning in the fifth, and Skubal did the same in the top of the sixth, ending his day with three consecutive strikeouts. Henderson kept rolling in the sixth with another 1-2-3 frame, and Edgardo Henriquez took over for Skubal in the seventh.

Henriquez recorded two outs without a problem, but Chourio once again picked up a hit with two outs. Dave Roberts went to lefty Alex Vesia to face Bauers, and the move didn’t pay off, as Bauers doubled to bring Chourio home. Vaughn then singled to bring Bauers home on a close play at the plate — Bauers had a perfect slide to avoid the tag — and suddenly the Brewers were in command with a 4-1 lead.

Henderson, who set a career-high with 6 1/3 innings in San Diego on Monday, was back out for the seventh, and after walking Andy Pages to begin the inning, he recorded three more outs to get through seven innings.

Kyle Hurt took over for Vesia in the eighth and got a 1-2-3 inning with three strikeouts before Chad Patrick took over for Henderson in the bottom half of the inning.

Patrick got a flyout from Edman to begin the frame, but Teoscar Hernández singled into right for the Dodgers’ first hit since Muncy’s homer in the fourth. Hernández then advanced on a wild pitch before moving up to third on a very hard-hit single by Hunter Feduccia to Ornelas at second — Ornelas couldn’t quite handle the rocket as it trickled into right, putting runners at the corners.

Note: If Brice Turang was healthy and playing at second, there’s a decent chance both of those singles end up as outs.

Pat Murphy went to the workhorse Aaron Ashby to play lefty-lefty matchup, with Ohtani and Freeman due up representing the tying and potentially go-ahead run. Ashby wouldn’t need to face Freeman, though, as he induced an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play from Ohtani on the third pitch he threw, escaping the jam with the 4-1 lead still intact.

Contreras led off the ninth with a flyout, but Lara followed with a walk before Chourio hit a fly ball to the wall in right. Kyle Tucker, fighting the sun a bit, just missed the catch, and Chourio and Lara were at second and third, respectively, on a double. Hurt was pulled for the lefty Jack Dreyer with Milwaukee looking to add on with Bauers — already 4-for-4 while facing only lefties in Skubal and Vesia — at the plate.

Bauers drew a walk to load the bases before David Hamilton hit a chopper to second with a drawn-in infield. Edman completely whiffed (for the second time today), and the ball rolled into right as all of the runners took two bases, giving Milwaukee a 6-1 lead before Dreyer got out of the inning with a pair of strikeouts.

DL Hall took the bottom of the inning and gave up a one-out solo homer to Pages but nothing else, giving Milwaukee a 6-2 win and a 3-1 series win in a battle of two of MLB’s best.

Henderson earned his seventh win with a career-high seven innings, allowing one run on Muncy’s solo homer while striking out six. Patrick got into a bit of trouble, but Ashby bailed him out by inducing the inning-ending double play, and Hall gave up a homer but still closed things out for the win.

Bauers led the offense with a 4-for-4 day, finishing with three singles, a double, a walk, and two RBIs. Chourio added three hits and scored three runs, while Vaughn added a pair of hits and drove in one.

The Brewers finally get a day off on Monday before they welcome the Mariners to town for three games beginning Tuesday night at 6:40 p.m. Kyle Harrison gets the ball for Milwaukee with Bryce Miller starting for Seattle. We’ll see you then.

The Dodgers struggled to get anything going offensively on Sunday, as they only mustered two runs while falling to the Milwaukee Brewers by a four-run margin.

After a 15-pitch first inning where he abandoned two baserunners, Tarik Skubal was the victim of the Brewers’ tenacity with two outs. Jonathan Ornelas lined a single to left before Skubal walked William Contreras to load the bases. Luis Lara hit a soft ground ball to shortstop, but Tommy Edman misplayed the feed from Mookie Betts as Milwaukee struck first again. It took Skubal 33 pitches and seven hitters faced to get out of the inning.

All the Dodgers could do offensively against Logan Henderson over their first two innings were leadoff base hits from Shohei Ohtani and Betts. Both men couldn’t advance further on the base paths as Henderson needed just 28 pitches over his first two innings of work.

The Dodgers had gone hitless over their next eight trips to the plate after the Betts single, but Max Muncy gave the Dodgers their first run on the season against Henderson with a two-out, game tying solo home run in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Skubal was one out away from setting down eight hitters in a row since the third inning, but Jackson Chourio ignited another two-out rally with a double to right center field. Jake Bauers’ third hit against Skubal plated Chourio to give Milwaukee the lead again before Andrew Vaughn made it three straight two-out hits. After combining for just 19 pitches between the third and fourth innings, Skubal needed 28 pitches to complete the fifth.

Skubal ended his afternoon on a high note, as he struck out the side in order to give him seven and tossed a total of 109 pitches, surpassing his previous career-high set back in 2022. One one earned run was charged to Skubal— the least he’s allowed as a Dodger— and over his first three starts with his new team, the left-hander is 0-2 with a 3.18 ERA, striking 19 while walking six over 17 innings.

The Dodgers couldn’t give Skubal any further support, as they went 0-7 against Henderson following the Muncy home run. Betts managed to get on base with two outs in the bottom of the seventh, ultimately to no avail as Henderson finished a career-high seven innings over just 93 pitches.

The two-out magic carried over against the Dodger bullpen, as Jackson Chourio knocked Edgardo Henriquez with a single in the seventh inning. Bauers brought him home again with an RBI double against Alex Vesia., giving him four hits on the game. Vaughn made it three-straight two-out hits and drove home Bauers to make it a 4-1 Brewers lead for the second consecutive game.

Kyle Hurt made his first appearance since August 9, tossing 1 1/3 innings while striking out the side in order in the eighth.

The Dodgers started to put something together against Chad Patrick in the bottom of the eighth, as Teoscar Hernández and pinch-hitter Hunter Feduccia roped a pair of one-out singles. Pat Murphy put in Aaron Ashby to face Shohei Ohtani, and the move paid off with a ground ball double play to escape the jam.

Jack Dreyer came in relief of Hurt in the top of the ninth, and after walking Bauers, he got a ground ball from David Hamilton that skipped under the glove of Edman and allowing Milwaukee to add another two runs. The Dodgers responded with a home run from Andy Pages in the bottom of the ninth inning against D.L. Hall, but that’s all they could reap against the Brewers bullpen.

With the Dodgers dropping three of four against Milwaukee, they are now three games back for the best record in the National League. Over the past two regular seasons, the Dodgers now have a combined 3-10 record against Milwaukee, including a 1-6 record at home.

Game particulars

• Home runs— Max Muncy (24), Andy Pages (21)
• WP— Logan Henderson (7-2): 7 IP, 3 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 6 strikeouts
• LP— Tarik Skubal (7-7): 6 IP, 7 hits, 2 runs (1 earned run), 2 walks, 7 strikeouts

Up next

The Dodgers head out to Denver as they begin a three-game series against the Colorado Rockies on Monday (5:40 p.m. PT, SportsNet LA). Both teams have yet to announce Monday’s starters.

Patrick Sandoval, simply put, is not good enough. I don’t know what discussions were had about bringing in a starting pitcher at the deadline, but I’m surprised they decided to roll with the group they have.

Sandoval has one good pitch: his changeup. His slider is a fine pitch to get strikes, except he hasn’t had feel for it since coming back from injury. His four-seam fastball is entirely too hittable, and his sinker is just fine at 93 mph. When those other pitches don’t work, his changeup doesn’t do him much good. The other pitches weren’t there today, and he paid the price for it.

This has been brewing for a while, too. In his first outings of the season, he was keeping opponents off the scoreboard, but not without traffic on the bases. A blow-up outing was bound to happen, and it all but lost the Red Sox today’s game in the first three innings. If it were up to me, Brayan Bello would be in Sandoval’s spot, with or without an opener. 

A Connor Wong home run in the fifth inning was the only offense from the Red Sox today. They threatened in the second inning, but Andruw Monasterio quickly ended the threat by grounding into a double play after trying and failing to get a bunt down, putting himself in a negative count. The bunts have been great at times, but if you ask me, it’s been excessive lately.

Raymond Burgos took over for Sandoval, throwing two innings before severe thunderstorms hit Pittsburgh. The tarp came on the field, and a lengthy weather delay ensued. The game was delayed for about 2.5 hours, during which time I drank a mojito and gathered some stats for my upcoming feature. I don’t know how Burgos passed the time, but he came back out and fired two innings, allowing one run. The Red Sox failed to score in the after-rain innings, and the Pirates won, 8-3.

Two Studs

Connor Wong (2-3, HR)

Raymond Burgos (4 IP, 1 ER)

Shoutout to Burgos for being the ultimate sacrificial lamb. He’s come up and down between Worcester and Boston and been asked to eat meaningless innings in less-than-favorable conditions. He’s an unsung hero who we should sing about.

Duds

Patrick Sandoval(4 IP, 7 ER)

Anyone in the lineup not named Connor Wong

The A’s managed to win their second series of the second half on Sunday afternoon with their win against the Rangers. Texas could only manage two runs against the Athletics today while the short-handed offense managed to show up for 13 hits and five runs. And thanks to the Angels’ day off we are no longer the worst team in the league. Progress!

It was lefty Jacob Lopez on the mound today looking to continue his recent hot streak. Outside of one mistake pitch in the second inning that went over the wall for a home run and a couple productive outs from the Rangers in the third, Lopez was in control yet again. He’d end up finishing six full innings this afternoon, giving his offense an excellent chance to nab the win.

• Jacob Lopez: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K, 93 pitches

Is Lopez quietly reinserting himself into next year’s rotation mix? He’s been extremely effective in these recent outings and one has to imagine he’s at least making things a bit easier on the front office with his recent play. He’ll pitch again later this coming week, likely in the series-opener against the Houston Astros.

The A’s offense gave him some early help this afternoon when Lawrence Butler launched a two-run homer in the second to give the club an early 2-1 lead:

Later on, with the game tied 2-2 it was Zack Gelof’s turn to bat and he launched his own two-run homer in the seventh to give the A’s the late lead:

We also had a big “first” later in the game when rookie Tommy White connected on his first big league home run, a solo blast in the eighth to make it 5-2 that gave the A’s some insurance:

The A’s bullpen was nearly perfect this afternoon. Four pitchers combined for three shutout frames to end this one, with just a couple hits allowed. Hogan Harris closed it out, securing his 12th save of the year.

An encouraging win all around. Lopez continues the comeback tour with six strong innings today while Tommy White gets his first big league homer. And for once the bullpen didn’t buckle late. Back on track to a degree as the homestand wraps up.

We’re hitting the road now as the club heads to Kansas City to take on the Royals for a four-game series. It’ll be rookie right-hander Mason Barnett going up against veteran Michael Wacha. Should be a good one!

TONIGHT’S GAME: The first-place Houston Astros (63-61), who own a 2.0-game lead in the AL West, and the Seattle Mariners (58-66) will play the rubber game of their three-game series tonight at Daikin Park.

Astros ace RHP Hunter Brown (3-2, 3.68 ERA) will get the start for the Astros opposite RHP Bryan Woo (8-8, 4.15 ERA) and the Mariners.

DIESEL POWER: RHP Hunter Brown will make his 13th start of the season and his 10th since returning from a lengthy stint on the IL with a right shoulder strain. The 2025 All-Star has begun to round into form over his last four starts, including two quality starts, going 2-1 with a 3.04 ERA (8ER/23.2IP) with 24 strikeouts, a .188 opponent average (16×85) and a 0.97 WHIP. Brown is looking to reverse his fortunes against the Mariners, who he’s gone 1-4 with a 4.09 ERA (20ER/44IP) against in nine starts.

THE TURNAROUND: After a slow start to the season, the Astros are 43-30 since May 22, which is the second-best record in the AL in that span. On that date, the Astros were 20-31, 11 games under, which is their low water mark for the season.

TONIGHT’S BROADCASTS: Tonight’s game will be nationally televised by NBC and streamed on Peacock with Jason Benetti, Ryan Rowland-Smith, and Geoff Blum in the booth. The game will also be available nationally on ESPN radio with Sean Kelley and Doug Glanville behind the mic. Locally, the game can be heard in English on SportsTalk 790 featuring Robert Ford and Josh Reddick. The Spanish radio broadcast will feature Francisco Romero and Alex Treviño on TUDN 102.9 FM.

HALL OF FAME WEEKEND: The Astros are celebrating Hall of Fame Weekend at Daikin Park, which included the induction of Astros legends Alan Ashby and the late Phil Garner into the Astros Hall of Fame in a pregame ceremony yesterday.

HEART & HUSTLE: In a pregame ceremony tonight, OF Cam Smith will be honored as the Houston Astros 2026 Heart and Hustle Award winner. This prestigious honor, which is awarded by the Major League Baseball Players Alumni Association (MLBPAA), is presented yearly to players who exemplify a passion for the game and who best embody the values, spirit, and traditions of the game.

ASTROS ROSTER MOVES: After last night’s game, the Astros optioned RHP Ronel Blanco to Triple A Sugar Land. To take his place on the active roster, the club recalled RHP Miguel Ullola from Triple A.

THAT’S OFFENSIVE: Among American League teams, the Astros rank first in slugging (.413), first in total bases (1727), second in OPS (.732), second in home runs (166), and second in runs scored (574). In the Majors, the Astros rank third in homers, trailing only the Nationals (179) and Yankees (170).

MVP-CALIBER: Yordan Alvarez holds the lead in all AL Triple Crown categories, ranking first in average (.321), first in homers (36) and first in RBI (88). Additionally, he leads MLB in OPS (1.058), OBP (.436), SLG (.622), and TB (275). In the AL, he ranks first in hits (142) and XBH (61), tied for first in runs (82) and second walks (86).

YOR-GONE!: DH Yordan Alvarez connected for his 36th home run of the season on Friday, which gave him the outright lead in home runs in the AL. He’s now just one homer shy of matching his career high in homers (37 HR in 2022) and is 11 homers shy of matching the franchise record for a single season, set by 1B Jeff Bagwell in 2000 (47 HR).

WHAM BAM CAM: RF Cam Smith has a triple, three homers and seven RBI in his last seven games. Smith is batting .346 (18×52) with two doubles, two triples, three home runs, nine RBI and a 1.005 OPS in his last 14 games since July 29.

HADERADE: LHP Josh Hader has been stellar since returning from injury in early June, going 4-1 with a 0.93 ERA (3ER/29IP), 40 strikeouts, a .121 opponent batting average (12×99) and a 0.76 WHIP, while also converting all 17 of his save opportunities, through 30 appearances. The veteran Hader, now in his 10th Major League season, has made 498 career appearances, needing just two more to reach 500 for his career.

VS. THE M’S: This is the first series between the Astros and Mariners in three month, with the two clubs last seeing each other from May 11-14. The Astros have gone 2-8 vs. Seattle this season with just a two-game series left in the season series, which will take place in Seattle from Sept. 22-23.

DOWN ON THE FARM: RHP Bryce Mayer, the Astros No. 2 pitching prospect per MLB.com, earned his first Triple A win last night after tossing 6.0 innings of one-run ball at Round Rock (TEX). Mayer is 5-3 with a 3.12 ERA (27ER/78IP) in 19 games between the Triple A and Double A levels this season.

TODAY IN ASTROS HISTORY:2011 – PH Brian Bogusevic hits a pinch-hit, walk-off grand slam off RHP Carlos Marmol to defeat the Cubs at Daikin Park, 6-5. This marks the third pinch-hit, walk-off grand slam in franchise history and the first since Gregg Zaun did so in 2002.

Game Info

Game Date/Time:  Sunday, August 16, 6:20 p.m. CT

Location:  Daikin Park, Houston, TX

TV: NBC/Peacock

Radio: KTRH 740 AM; KBME 790 AM & 94.5 FM HD2; ESPN Radio (National); TUDN 102.9 FM HD2 (Spanish)

The Texas Rangers scored two runs but the Northern California Athletics scored five runs.

Austin Wynns was the designated hitter for the Texas Rangers today.

That pretty much tells you everything you need to know.

Player of the Game: Jake Burger hit a solo home run and had three of Texas’ seven total hits.

Up Next: This excruciating road tip has concluded. As an undeserved reward, the Rangers get tomorrow off before opening up a homestand against the Washington Nationals beginning on Tuesday night back at The Shed.

Noah Cameron threw a complete game shutout, continuing his unbelievable stretch on the mound, as the Royals took the rubber match against the Angels on Sunday afternoon, with a 3-0 win.

Today was game number five of Cameron calling his own pitches, and with the stats backing me up, he’s basically been Cy Young. In those 5 outings, he has thrown 37.2 innings, allowing 13 hits, 5 runs, (3 of those scored after he left the game), 9 walks and 34 strikeouts.

His final line against the Angels was 9 innings, 1 hit (a bloop single), a walk and 8 strikeouts. The local kid has really found something.

Offensively, Jac Caglianone’s hitting streak ended today, but Michael Massey and Bobby Witt Jr. each smashed a solo homer, and Carter Jensen drove in another with an infield single to end a 0-22 stretch.

Massey also finished the day 3-4, wrapping up a good series.

It was another fast game and not much happened outside Cameron being awesome. The Royals finish the trip out west at 2-4. They are 51-74 on the season. They open a 4-game series at home tomorrow against the Athletics. First pitch is set for 6:40 p.m. CT.

Who would win the weekend series between the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs? Sunday’s game would decide it and it was a classic Cards/Cubs back and forth duel. The Cardinals bats would strike early again and Hunter Dobbins would give St. Louis a solid start, but the Cubs would not go down quietly. Fortunately, the Cardinals power would continue to pour it on.

As JJ Wetherholt goes, so go the Cardinals which was a good thing in the top of the 1st inning when JJ started the game with a ground-rule double. Two batters later, he would be able to casually cross home plate as he watched an Alec Burleson bomb sail 421 feet into the right-centerfield stands for an immediate 2-0 Cardinals lead.

The Cardinals would add another run to that lead in the top of the 2nd inning when Jimmy Crooks hit a two-out double. He would score when Blaze Jordan smacked a single to center that Pete Crow-Armstrong was unable to handle giving St. Louis a 3-0 lead. It’s such a joy to watch PCA mess up anything.

While many of us who faithfully follow the Cardinals enjoy Pete Crow-Armstrong failing, there’s no denying his talent and likely MVP-level season. Hunter Dobbins had not allowed a hit going into the bottom of the 3rd inning when he walked Triantos who entered the game after Dansby Swanson was removed after having left-side discomfort after an errant swing. The old “walks always come back to haunt you” mantra proved true two batters later when Pete Crow-Armstrong proved why he’s the current MVP favorite (and boy it pains me to utter those words) when he destroyed a Hunter Dobbins four-seam fastball into the right field stands cutting the Cardinals lead down to 3-2.

The Cardinals would regain their 3-run lead with an assist by Cubs starter Edward Cabrera in the top of the 4th inning. He walked Masyn Winn and Jimmy Crooks with one out in the Cardinals 4th. Blaze Jordan then snuck a ball past short for a single which loaded the bases. Cabrera couldn’t find the plate with JJ Wetherholt up walking him and gifting the Cardinals a run making it 4-2. Iván Herrera then lifted a sacrifice fly to right scoring Jimmy Crooks to make it 5-2 Cardinals and they weren’t done yet. The Cubs removed the wild Cabrera and brought in Ryan Rolison who Alec Burleson greeted hammering the first pitch he threw into left field for a single that scored both Blaze Jordan and JJ Wetherholt when Ian Happ did a pirouette instead of throwing the ball to home making it 7-2 Cardinals.

But wait, there’s more…

With Alec Burleson on first, Jordan Walker showed he has not lost his Home Run Derby mojo when he waited on a 79 mph curveball and blasted it into the fencing above the centerfield wall for a 2-run shot giving the Cardinals a commanding 9-2 lead. BOOM!

Hunter Dobbins pitched the Cardinals into the bottom of the 6th inning. While his outing was a quality start and overall strong, he walked too many batters Sunday. Hunter walked 4, but only allowed 2 hits and 2 earned runs. over 5 full innings. I’ll take that any game at Wrigley Field. A walk to Alex Bregman to leadoff the Cubs 6th led to his removal from the game by manager Oli Marmol. He was replaced by Luis Gastelum who was tasked with getting the Cardinals closer to the finish line in the middle innings. He pitched out of a two-on jam in the bottom of the 6th to keep the Cubs from cutting into the Cards lead. He would also keep the Chicago bats quiet in the bottom of the 7th also.

St. Louis would enter the land of double digits in the top of the 8th inning when JJ Wetherholt would get his second hit of the day after he beat out an infield single with one out. Iván Herrera walked to give the Cardinals two on with one out. Jordan Walker then blasted a 92 mph cutter off of the right-centerfield wall for a 2-run double increasing the Cardinals dominant Sunday advantage to 11-2.

Gordon Graceffo was the Cardinals bullpen answer for the bottom of the 8th inning. He would surrender a run after Suzuki doubled down the right field line and then advanced to third on a wild pitch by Graceffo. He would score a “who really cares” run when pinch-hitter Tyrone Taylor lifted a sacrifice fly to center to make it 11-3 Cardinals.

The Cardinals had the joy of facing former teammate Carson Kelly who was the Cubs designated position player pitcher. Only Jimmy Crooks managed a single down the right field line as Kelly got flyouts from Church, Winn and Jordan. Caleb Ferguson took care of the Cubs in the bottom of the 9th inning to end what became a laugher for the Cardinals. The most eventful part of the bottom of the 9th inning was the first out which was a fine play by JJ Wetherholt throwing out Michael Conforto which ended up going through a 5-minute ABS challenge. Miguel Amaya did hit a solo home run to make the final score 11-4, but that made more sense than the ridiculously-long challenge call in a game gone out of control. Kudos to Ferguson for not walking anyone. Well done.

The St. Louis Cardinals begin a brutal week where they’ll play 8 games in 7 days as they play a day/night doubleheader Monday in Cincinnati. The first game is scheduled to start at 12:40pm central time as the Reds will start RHP Rhett Lowder. The Cardinals have yet to announce their first starter for Monday. Game broadcast will be available through Cardinals.tv.

With only about a month left in the minor league regular season, the Mets are promoting top prospect SS Elian Peña to High-A Brooklyn.

Peña, the No. 6 prospect in Joe DeMayo's midseason top 30 rankings, slashed .271/.388/.397 with eight home runs and 18 doubles for 44 RBI over 96 games with Low-A St. Lucie.

The 18-year-old was New York's top international signing in 2024 for $5 million, which was the largest bonus the organization has given to an amateur international free agent.

Last year in rookie ball, Peña hit .292 with a .942 OPS and totaled nine home runs and 13 doubles in 55 games.

Peña wasn't the only prospect that the Mets promoted on Sunday, as SS Émilien Pitre is heading up to Triple-A, according to The Athletic's Will Sammon.

Pitre was one of the three prospects acquired from the Tampa Bay Rays in the Freddy Peralta trade. He was hitting .323 with a .943 OPS across 37 games with the Double-A Montgomery Biscuits and kept it going with Binghamton, hitting .375 with seven RBI over 10 games. He slid into the No. 11 spot in New York's system in DeMayo's midseason rankings.

The moment Mets No. 3 prospect Elian Peña found out he has been promoted to Brooklyn!

Congrats Elian, thank you for a great season and wishing you the best of luck with the @BKCyclones! pic.twitter.com/a2UDLotaty

— St. Lucie Mets (@stluciemets) August 16, 2026

Tommy John’s name will live on in baseball forever, long after his excellent 26-year major league pitching career ended. John died on Saturday at age 83, and will be long remembered for being the first to undergo the surgery that bears his name.

John’s baseball accolades on their own are mind-boggling. He played in 26 major league seasons, matched only in the modern era by Nolan Ryan, who pitched in 27 years. John is one of only eight pitchers to make 700 starts, and he pitched a whopping 4,710 1/3 innings in his major league career.

With the Dodgers, John led the National League in winning percentage in each of his first two seasons, including 13-3 for a pennant-winning team in 1974. But he didn’t pitch that year after July 17, sidelined by an elbow injury. That September, Dr. Frank Jobe tried a new elbow reconstruction surgery, replacing the ulnar collateral ligament in John’s left elbow.

“Tommy was an exceptional pitcher throughout his career in Major League Baseball, and his courageous role in becoming the first to have surgery that would go on to bear his name can’t be overstated,” Dodgers president and CEO Stan Kasten said. “His impact both on and off the field has been felt by ballplayers of all ages and will be for generations to come.”

After the first such procedure that would ultimately bear his name, John rehabbed in 1975 but returned to make at least 30 starts for his next seven full seasons, a stretch interrupted only by a strike-shortened 1981 season in which he started 20 games and pitched 140 1/3 innings.

John pitched in three World Series — two for the Dodgers against the Yankees in 1977-78 and one for the Yankees against the Dodgers in 1981 — and in his career had a 2.65 ERA in 14 postseason games, including 13 starts and 88 1/3 innings.

In the 1977 NLCS, John pitched a complete-game win in Philadelphia in Game 4 to clinch the pennant, finishing off the win with a strikeout of Bake McBride in Philadelphia.

John was 31 when he had the surgery, already with a solid dozen major league seasons under his belt. But his lasting power after the surgery was remarkable, pitching until age 46. He ended with more starts, innings, and wins after the surgery than before. He made one All-Star team prior to the elbow procedure, and was an All-Star three times afterward, and also finished second in Cy Young Award voting twice and fourth another time after the surgery.

The procedure is now commonplace, with hundreds of pitchers undergoing Tommy John surgery in the 52 years since. But John was the first, and his success afterward opened up doors for countless number of pitching careers to continue.

“While his incredible longevity and post-surgery achievements changed the fortunes and trajectory of countless athletes around the world, it also overshadowed his excellence as a pitcher, which included consecutive 20‑win seasons with the Yankees” the Yankees said in a statement. “We pause to remember the totality of his legacy — his competitiveness and skill, his penchant for conversation, his kind and gracious nature, and his stature as an athletic and medical pioneer.”

In the media room at Dodger Stadium there’s a large framed magazine cover with a picture of Sandy Koufax and Jackie Robinson from what appears to be the 1972 ceremony to retire the uniform numbers of Koufax, Robinson, and Roy Campanella. What strikes me about Koufax in the picture is the wonderful smile on his face, but also how young he was. Koufax was just 36 in 1972, and might have been able to still pitch if some form of elbow surgery was available six years earlier.

Koufax during his abrupt retirement in 1966 mentioned he didn’t want to regret one moment by continuing to pitch through pain. He’s still going and living a happy life and looks fantastic even now at age 90, so Koufax is likely happy with that decision all these years later. But he also didn’t have much of a choice at the time. After Tommy John and Dr. Frank Jobe, hundreds of pitchers had a chance at renewed life on the mound.

For that, Tommy John will be remembered forever.