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The Houston Astros player development department has named C Jason Schiavone the Astros 2026 Minor League Player of the Year, RHP Bryce Mayer the Astros 2026 Minor League Pitcher of the Year, OF Anthony Huezo the Astros 2026 Minor League Baserunner of the Year, IF Max Holy the Astros 2026 Minor League Defender of the Year and IF Yamal Encarnacion the Astros 2026 Standard Award recipient. All five players will be recognized in a pregame ceremony at Daikin Park on Sunday, September 20.

Schiavone, 23, has batted .246 (104×422) with 84 runs, 23 doubles, 31 HR, 87 RBI, 90 walks, 29 stolen bases and a .907 OPS in 118 games between High A Asheville (35 games), Double A Corpus Christi (79 games) and Triple A Sugar Land (four games). He leads the Astros minor league system in OPS, slugging percentage (.521), RBI and home runs, while also ranking second in runs,  fifth in OBP (.386), fifth in doubles, fifth in walks and eighth in stolen bases (min. 200 AB). Schiavone was also named the Astros Minor League Player of the Month in April and May. The Astros selected the catcher in the 11th round of the 2024 MLB Draft from James Madison. The 23-year-old is rated as the Astros number six overall prospect by MLB.com.

Mayer, 24, has gone 6-4 with a 3.21 ERA (35ER/98IP) in 23 appearances, including 20 starts between Double A Corpus Christi and Triple A Sugar Land. The right-handed pitcher also recorded 132 strikeouts, a 1.19 WHIP and a .202 opponent batting average. Mayer ranks first strikeouts per nine innings (12.12), first in ERA, first in opponent batting average, second in WHIP and seventh in walks per nine innings (4.32) in the Astros minor league system (min 90 IP). Mayer has now earned the Astros Minor League Pitcher of the Year in consecutive seasons. He was also the Astros Minor League Pitcher of the Month in July after he recorded a 0.47 ERA (1ER/19IP) with 29 strikeouts for the month. The 24-year-old was drafted by the Astros in the 16th round of the 2024 MLB Draft from the University of Missouri. He is rated as the Astros number eight overall prospect by MLB.com.

Huezo, 20, batted .242 (105×433) with 79 runs, 31 doubles, four triples, 22 HR, 73 RBI, 58 walks, 47 stolen bases and an .825 OPS in 112 games between Single A Fayetteville, High A Asheville and Double A Corpus Christi. The 20-year-old stole 47 bases and was caught only 12 times for a 79.7 percent success rate. He ranks third in the Astros minor league system in stolen bases this season. Huezo was drafted by the Astros in the 12th round of the 2023 MLB Draft from Etiwanda High School in California. The 20-year-old is rated as the Astros number 10 overall prospect by MLB.com.

Holy, 24, appeared in 110 games this season between High A Asheville and Double A Corpus Christi, making starts defensively at shortstop (100), second base (five) and third base (five). He committed just 10 errors in 391 total chances for a .974 fielding percentage, while turning 42 double plays. Holy was signed by the Astros as an undrafted free agent on July 20, 2024, from Central Missouri University. He is rated as the Astros number 29 overall prospect by MLB.com.

The Astros Standard award, which was established this season, highlights a player who represents the core values of the organization in a positive way both on and off the field. Encarnacion, 23, spent the entire season with Double A Corpus Christi, batting .266 (93×349) with 61 runs, 18 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 48 RBI, 37 walks, 48 stolen bases and a .720 OPS in 95 games. The 23-year-old was signed by the Astros as an undrafted free agent on January 15, 2021, from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.

Back in early September, we asked Purple Rowers to tell us the stories they wanted to read, and we got some great suggestions. Among those questions was this one from DaveN5280:

While this probably falls into the “playing time distribution” category, I’m pretty sure a lot of us here on PR want to know where all those lineup construction and late-inning PH decisions are coming from. Is it just old-school “lefty-righty” kinda stuff from Schaef and the bench coach or hitting coach? Or is it coming from real data provided by the analytics dept and/or GM—level direction to always “optimize the situation?” And is there any awareness of how these decisions in the 6th/7th innings affect the game situation in the 8th/9th?

Or maybe that’s a deeper dive that should be covered in an off-season story 🤷‍♂️

I don’t know how many people know this, but Colorado Rockies manager Warren Schaeffer is a chess enthusiast — he loves strategy. (In fact, Schaeffer and CJ Cron used to play regularly.) I share this because I was thinking about his chess background while listening to his rationale for the line ups he constructs.

When I asked this question, on Saturday, September 5, the Rockies had lost to the St. Louis Cardinals the night before. With that game over, Schaeffer was looking to the evening’s game against LHP Matthew Liberatore.

I have decided largely to run this as a transcript — I want you to have a sense of Schaeffer’s thinking — but I have corrected players’ nicknames for clarity’s sake and done some light editing.

Here’s my question: What’s your approach whenever you’re setting up a lineup?

This is Schaeffer’s answer:

It’s multifaceted.

There’s a lot of work and time that gets put into it.

Jake (McCarthy’s) going to lead off. Period. That hasn’t moved. That hasn’t changed in a very long time because he sets the tone. He’s been good against lefties. He doesn’t punch out. When you flip the order over, he can offer thump. He can drive runs in, which you’ve shown that he does.

Then after that, so let’s see here.

Today we’re facing a left-handed pitcher, so that third time through, the left-handed pitcher coming through, which is tough on a pitcher. We all know that. If you match him up with guys that are more likely to do damage against him, which today it’s Connor Norby right-handed, it’s Hunter Goodman right-handed, TJ Rumfield in the four hole, he’s left-handed.

It makes it difficult when you go left, right, right, left for them to match up later in the game.

A lot of the stuff that is constructed, especially in the lower part of the lineup, because Goodman’s going to hit three most days, Rumfield’s going to hit four most days, McCarthy’s going to lead-off most days, Moniak’s going to hit second against a right-handed pitcher, especially at home, because that’s where he does all his damage, and you want him up that third time through against the right-handed pitcher.

The bottom of the lineup is constructed a lot of the time for later-game matchups.

Today, Rumfield’s in the four, Cole Carrigg’s in the five, switch hitter. Jordan Beck is in the six.

So you’ve got right, right, left with Troy Johnston.

Right, right, Adael Amador, Ezequiel Tovar.

This is just being totally open with you.

I had it earlier, where at first I had Amador, Johnston, Tovar, and then I flipped it because I thought it was too easy of a for them to match up with their left-handers in the pen with Johnston hitting there.

So you could go left-hander at Troy, who I’m probably not going to hit for Tovar in the nine, and then left-hander at McCarthy, who I’m not going to hit for, and they get the matchup that they want in that spot. So you try to avoid that as much as you can.

That’s why a lot of our times our our I would say five-through-nine looks different on a daily basis. It’s later game matchups that you’re thinking about.

It’s knowing what the other club does as well and who’s available in their bullpen.

Sometimes you’re wrong. Like last night, I didn’t think that O’Brien was going to come in in the ninth inning. He had thrown back to back against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Long night flight, and he went three in a row for the first time in his career. Good for him, and he was he was nails. But that was something that was different. I wasn’t prepared for it.

Now I wouldn’t have done anything different, but that just it’s a testament to you can plan and plan and plan, and then sometimes it just the game throws itself at you.

MLB.com’s Thomas Harding asked this question: How much of it is information that’s given to you, looking at usage and everything else for the other bullpen. How much of it is gut?

Here’s what Schaeffer said.

When I construct the lineup, both (information and intuition) are in play. You know, for me, it’s hard.

Maybe even if Goodman’s struggling, it’s hard for me to take him out of the three-four hole because he’s a force to be reckoned with at any moment.

You’ll see Moniak not quite as much in the two-hole on the road against right-handed pitching because he’s typically better at home. These are just things that exist. I don’t know. It’s both (information and intuition). I’m having a tough time thinking of like gut stuff that overrides matchup stuff.

Everybody knows who hits and who doesn’t hit.

And you want your guys, typically your better hitters, one through five. That’s it basically.

And I think maybe some people could want to say, “Move McCarthy out of a leadoff spot against left-handed pitching because that spot’s coming around, and you want the right-hander at the top,” but not me. That’s more gut. That’s more gut because there is something to leaving a guy like that in a spot that he’s comfortable with, and he doesn’t even think about it, and he knows he’s earned it, and he does a really good job at it, so it’s good to have that spot covered.

I love talking about lineup construction.

I’ve evolved in my in my thought process on lineups, as well, especially with when you get to the big leagues and the late-game matchups are so important to get, and especially with the way our team is built. We need the best matchups, and we’ve been doing it all year.

And our offense has been really good all year, just in general, compared to the league. And a lot of that is late-game matchups.

You prepare also for where you’re going to pinch hit, and you know who you’re going to pinch hit, and when and where. And the lineup is constructed based on that as well at certain points.

It’s definitely been good because when I was in the minor leagues and old school thought. . . . But old school, people used to say, some teams can be constructed like that, where one through nine, they know. Like the Dodgers, they know one through nine what the order they’re going to be in every night, pretty much, for the most part over the past five years.

And there’s something to that. There’s something to a guy knowing, “I’m going to hit third and play first base every day.”

We’re not built like that. Our team is not built like that. We need matchups.

The Rockies won that game, 10-7. Here’s the box score, so you can judge for yourself how Schaeffer’s line-up strategy went.

Closing thoughts

Obviously, line-up construction doesn’t win a baseball game. Rather, it’s a strategy for maximizing talent.

And as Skyler Timmins showed recently, the Rockies hitting problems are not due to platooning; rather, they are the result of not having enough effective right-handed hitters. As Skyler wrote: “With Goodman and Karros on the Injured List, Freeman in Triple-A, and the other options not exactly thriving on either side of the platoon, it’s showing cracks in the offense. More than ever, the Rockies need better right-handed hitters.”

It’s also easy to see the value of switch hitters given how the Rockies are constructed. Switch hitters give Warren Schaeffer another tool in his strategy arsenal. When Willi Castro is healthy, the Rockies have three of them (and I wondered throughout the Cardinals series if his bat would have made a difference). I expect the Rockies to give Amador serious innings throughout September. If he can hit, they will have found their second base man and solidified another switch hitter in their arsenal.

That’s what I learned. Let us know what you think in the comments!

Please keep in mind our Purple Row Community Guidelines when you’re commenting. Thanks!

Late last night, the news got out that Reynaldo López would be heading back to the IL with shoulder inflammation and that JR RItchie would be coming up as a result. Ritchie will reportedly be making the start on Wednesday, so none of these moves were particularly surprising when the Braves announced it.

However, Atlanta ticked on an encouraging rehab assignment for a relieve that we haven’t seen for a very long time.

Well, would you look at that! Joe Jiménez is beginning a rehab assignment. I’d imagine that a lot of folks probably expected to see Robert Suarez’s name here considering that he’s been the one that we’ve seen most recently on a big league mound for the Braves.

With that being said, Jiménez had been throwing live BP recently and and there had been indications that he was doing that just to finally get back on the mound before the 2027 season. That honestly might still be the case as far as this rehab assignment goes, as it would be asking a ton of Jiménez to return at this juncture of the season with a Postseason run on the horizon.

Still, it’s good to see that Jiménez appears poised to make a return to the Braves — whether it’s this season or next. It’s been a long, long road to recovery for Jiménez and hopefully there are no more setbacks for the veteran reliever.

Before he was known as Slow Joe, Judd Bruce Doyle was a right-handed pitcher growing up in the middle of Kansas. Like most of the time, his love of baseball was not born in an organized league, but in the school lot and in local games in his community featuring players of all ages.

Judd Bruce Doyle
Born: September 15, 1881 (Clay Center, KS)
Died: November 21, 1947 (Tannersville, NY)
Yankees Tenure: 1906-1910

Born before the turn of the century, Doyle was small even by the standards of the time. He was reported by most accounts at 5-foot-8 and 150 pounds. However, growing up working on the family farm made Doyle what many call country strong or stout. Despite having some strength behind his small frame, Doyle relied on changing pace and his arm slots to keep hitters off balance, much like former Yankee folk hero Nestor Cortes. Doyle and his mix of overhand and submarine deliveries tossed a drop ball, rise ball, changeup, and the legendary spitball.

Doyle’s professional baseball journey started right after he graduated from Clay Center High School in 1901. This kicked off a five-year run through the amateur ranks. In 1902, Doyle suited up for the Fort Worth Panthers and the New Orleans Pelicans. Then, in 1903, Doyle joined the Baton Rouge Red Sticks in the Cotton States League. In his first season in Baton Rouge, Doyle went 16-9 and helped the team win the league championship. He started the 1904 season back in a Red Sticks jersey, but would finish that season and play the 1905 season for the Wheeling Stogies.

After playing well for the Stogies, Doyle finally landed the coveted contract with a professional team when his rights were sold to the New York Highlanders in August of 1905. Slow Joe burst onto the scene a few days later, making his debut on August 25, 1906. In his first start, Doyle threw a six-hit shutout against the Cleveland Naps. He followed that up with another shutout against the Washington Senators in his second game. The rookie appeared in nine games total, tossing 45.1 innings with a 2-1 record and 2.38 ERA.

Following the hot start to his career, Doyle came into the 1907 season expecting to be a big part of the Highlanders rotation. Doyle appeared in 29 games, making 23 starts. This led to what would stand as his career-high 193.2 innings with an impressive 2.65 ERA and an 11-11 record. Doyle led the Highlanders with 15 complete games and 94 strikeouts. It was also during this run that his reputation for slow playing really took hold. The Washington Times referred to Doyle as the Human Snail due to his long stretches between pitches.

In 1908, Doyle’s third season, Slow Joe was officially the name adopted and used by the press as an unofficial, official name. Doyle’s arm did not handle the large workload from the year before well, and he was limited to 12 games, only four starts, and only 48 innings. Despite being effective when he pitched, the lack of availability started to be the story.

Doyle asked for extra days of rest between starts in 1909, and it led to a rebound. He pitched in 17 games, making 15 starts, tossing 125.2 innings, and going 8-6 on the year. Still just 27 years old, Doyle’s arm simply could not handle the workload of a normal pitcher of the time.

The Highlanders had Doyle on their roster to start the 1910 season but ended up cutting him halfway through the year. The Cincinnati Reds signed Doyle, and he pitched the final part of the season for them. After making five relief appearances for the Reds, Doyle’s major league career was over at just 28 years old after the 1910 season.

Beyond his memorable nickname, Slow Joe Doyle holds a legendary status among modern sports collectors due to one of the rarest and most valuable printing blunders in baseball history: the 1910 T206 “Slow Joe” Doyle error card. During the production of the iconic tobacco card set, the American Lithographic Company accidentally designated Doyle as playing for “Nat’l” rather than “Amer” in his New York uniform. After catching the mistake, the printers pulled the printing plate, scrapped off the “Nat’l” letters, slapped the plate back into the machine, and continued printing. Today, fewer than a dozen authentic copies are known to exist, making it more rare than the famed Honus Wagner T206 card.

Happy birthday, Slow Joe!

Vidal Brujan

Week: 6 G, 23 AB,.391/.500/.696, 9 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 5 BB, 6 K, 1/2 SB (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 60 G, 198 AB, .268/.381/.399, 53 H, 10 2B, 2 3B, 4 HR, 33 BB, 39 K, 15/20 SB, .318 BABIP (Triple-A) / 9 G, 11 AB, .091/.167/.091, 1 H, 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1 BB, 1 K, 0/1 SB, .100 BABIP (MLB)

Had the McNeil Rule not been activated, MJ Melendez would be our Hitter of the Week. He hit .381/.519/1.000 with four homers this week and has been on an absolute tear over the last couple of weeks. Since August 1st, he is hitting .301/.368/.707 in 33 games with 12 doubles, 1 triple, and 12 home runs. Because Melendez is not eligible, Vidal Brujan is instead the Hitter of the Week.

The Mets traded for the veteran back in January, sending cash to the Minnesota Twins to complete the exchange. Not that he had much of a chance making the big league club, but he performed poorly in spring training, making it moot, and was assigned to Triple-A Syracuse. He ended up spending only a few weeks there before the Mets called him up to Queens, as Ronny Mauricio hit the injured list with a broken thumb at the beginning of May, joining Francisco Lindor.

Brujan did not play much, and when he did, his stats were unimpressive. A former top prospect in the Rays’ minor league system around the beginning of the decade, the same thing happened every time Tampa Bay gave him an opportunity. They eventually gave up on him, leading to a trade in November 2023 to the Miami Marlins. Almost a year later, the Marlins traded him to the Chicago Cubs for cash. He didn’t last the season with Chicago and was claimed by the Braves on waivers that August. Designated for assignment by Atlanta in January, he was claimed by the Minnesota Twins. Designated for assignment by them a week after being claimed, he was finally traded to the Mets for cash.

A light-hitting utility infielder, it is hard to imagine too many scenarios where the Mets would be in need of his services in 2027 at the major league level. He has performed fairly enough in Syracuse, and if he were re-signed and re-assigned there in the future, I’d have no problems with it, but at the same time, if he was signed elsewhere, I would lose no sleep over it.

Jonathan Santucci

Week: 1 G (1 GS), 5.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K (Triple-A)

2026 Season: 19 G (19 GS), 68 H, 42 R, 36 ER (3.57 ERA), 45 BB, 120 K, .314 BABIP (Double-A) / 7 G (7 GS), 29.0 IP, 31 H, 19 R, 17 ER (5.28 ERA), 18 BB, 37 K, .351 BABIP (Triple-A)

Now that the Single-A seasons are over, our player pool has decreased by 50%. As such, with only pitching performances from the Binghamton Rumble Ponies and Syracuse Mets to choose from, and of those two teams, Jonathan Santucci had the best week. In past weeks, Santucci’s performance might not have passed muster to be Pitcher of the Week, but here we are.

The left-hander really struggled after being promoted to Triple-A Syracuse at the beginning of August. In his first four starts, he posted a 7.71 ERA in 14.0 innings, allowing 16 hits, walking 16, and striking out 18. He seems to have settled down and adapted a bit, posting a 3.00 ERA over his next three starts, allowing 15 hits, walking 2, and striking out 19 over those 15.0 innings. The drop in his walk rate stands out the most, shrinking the free passes he issued eightfold, from 16 to 2. Seemingly, a biproduct of issuing fewer free passes and throwing in the zone more, Santucci’s home run rate has increased over this “good” streak, allowing four homers in those 15.0 innings as opposed to the 1 that he allowed during his “bad” string of starts. Hopefully, that does not continue and become a trend.

With four Pitcher of the Week wins, the McNeil Rule is being activated. Santucci is the second player—and the first pitcher—to have the McNeil Rule activated this season. He is the first pitcher to be McNeil’ed since Jonah Tong in Week Eleven of the 2025 season (June 3-June 8) and the first left-handed pitcher since Zach Thornton a few weeks earlier in Week Nine (May 20-May 25).

Players of the Week 2026

Week One/Two (March 27-April 5): Hayden Senger/Cam Tilly

Week Three (April 7-April 12): A.J. Ewing/Christian Scott

Week Four (April 14-April 18): Randy Guzman/Jose Chirinos

Week Five (April 21-April 26): A.J. Ewing/Channing Austin

Week Six (April 30-May 3): A.J. Ewing/Jonah Tong

Week Seven (May 5-May 10): Ryan Clifford/Jonathan Santucci

Week Eight: (May 12-May 17): Jacob Reimer/Zach Thornton

Week Nine: (May 19-May 24): Ryan Clifford/Channing Austin

Week Ten: (May 26-May 31): Ryan Clifford/Jose Chirinos

Week Eleven: (June 2-June 7): Vincent Perozo/Frank Camarillo

Week Twelve: (June 9-June 14): JT Benson/Nicolas Carreno

Week Thirteen (June 16-June 21): Nick Morabito/Jonathan Santucci

Week Fourteen (June 23-June 28): JT Benson/Daviel Hurtado

Week Fifteen: (June 30-July 5): MJ Melendez/Daviel Hurtado

Week Sixteen: (July 7-July 12): Daiverson Gutierrez/Jonathan Santucci

Week Seventeen (July 13-July 19): MJ Melendez/Noah Hall

Week Eighteen: (July 21-July 26): Ronny Mauricio/Conner Ware

Week Nineteen: (July 28-August 2): Mitch Voit/Jonah Tong

Week Twenty (August 3-August 9): Mitch Voit/Noah Hall

Week Twenty-One (August 11-August 16): Elian Peña/Jose Chirinos

Week Twenty-Two (August 18-August 23): Yonatan Henriquez/Xzavion Curry

Week Twenty-Three (August 25-August 30): MJ Melendez/Jonah Tong

Week Twenty-Four (September 1-September 6): MJ Melendez/R.J. Gordon

Nationals fans all know that Keibert Ruiz has had a great season. He has risen from the ashes to become one of the more productive catchers in the league. In a season full of offensive success stories, Ruiz is arguably the biggest organizational win. However, I still don’t think Ruiz is being talked about enough.

It has flown under the radar because the team has not been good, but Keibert Ruiz has been spectacular since the start of August. In 26 games, Ruiz is hitting .361 with a .936 OPS. He looks fresh and confident down the stretch, which is a great sign.

This hot run has Ruiz’s season stats looking really strong. For the year he is now hitting .289 with a .790 OPS. His wRC+ is now up to 113, by far his best in a full season. In 2024 and 2025, Ruiz hit .235 with a .610 OPS, making this turnaround borderline miraculous. 

The biggest factor behind Ruiz’s offensive breakout is his batted ball profile. In the modern game, pulling the ball in the air has become a big emphasis. Those batted balls tend to get the best results. Among qualified hitters on Baseball Savant, nobody pulls the ball in the air at a higher rate than Keibert Ruiz. His 34.2% air pull rate just beats out Pete Crow-Armstong, who air pulls 34% of the time.

For a slower player without much raw power who puts the ball in play a lot, hitting it at the right angles matters a lot. We saw that last year with Ruiz. Even in 2025, he was barely striking out. However, his ground ball rate spiked, which saw his OPS drop to a career low .595. Ruiz was also pulling the ball at the lowest rate of his career.

This year he has totally flipped this switch. His 59.7% pull rate is the highest number in all of baseball by over 5 percentage points. Ruiz is constantly getting out in front of balls and finding green grass to the pull side from both sides of the plate. This extreme approach does not work for everyone, but it suits Ruiz, who has exceptional hand-eye coordination.

Pulling the ball in the air helps him find easy hits, but it also makes hitting home runs easier. At 380 feet, Ruiz’s average home run distance is one of the lowest in all of baseball. Everything that goes over the wall counts the same, so this is not a bad thing. It honestly shows how Ruiz is able to tap into all the raw power he has.

His skillset is very different from a James Wood, so he does not hit the same way. One thing that this staff has done well is tailor their coaching to the individual. They have core principles like elevating the baseball, but that does not have to happen in the same way.

Keibert Ruiz’s offensive turnaround has been remarkable. However, Nats fans always knew he had hitting ability. He was not this good, but back in 2023, Ruiz had a solid offensive season. I think Keibert Ruiz’s rise on the defensive side of the ball has been even more stunning.

Between 2023 and 2025, Keibert Ruiz was the worst defensive catcher in baseball. His fielding run value numbers those seasons were -22, -7 and -10. In all phases, Ruiz was an absolute mess. His blocking was poor, he could not control the running game and his framing was almost comically bad.

Under the guidance of new catching coach Bobby Wilson, Ruiz has become an above average defensive catcher in one season. This season, Ruiz’s FRV is +2. He still has limitations controlling the running game despite some flashes of success. The big improvements have come with his blocking and framing.

Over the past few seasons, Ruiz had been a consistently poor blocker. His blocks above average were in the negatives each of the past three seasons. This season that number is 0. Keibert Ruiz is an average blocker behind the plate. He is not exactly Yadier Molina, but average is absolutely fine with me.

The biggest leap has come with his framing though. Ruiz was a below average framer in every season of his career. His framing run value was -9 last season, -3 in 2024, -12 in 2023 and -5 in 2022. That seemed like a part of his game that was beyond saving. However, he is up to +3 this season, which is truly remarkable for him.

These improvements have made him a very valuable player. This season, Ruiz has 2.4 bWAR and 2.1 fWAR. Before the season, Ruiz’s 8-year $50 million contract looked like an albatross. However, he has easily outperformed his yearly salary this season. Ruiz has been an above average starting catcher.

You have to give a ton of credit to both the player and the coaching staff for this improvement. It never felt like work ethic was Ruiz’s problem, but now we know for sure that it was not. He just did not have the right guidance. The upgrade from Henry Blanco to Bobby Wilson as catching coach cannot be overstated.

Ruiz’s hard work and determination is also beyond questioning. His future was in doubt after a pair of dreadful seasons and concussion issues. Ruiz worked his butt off to get better on both sides of the ball though. This was a career saving season for the Nats catcher.

He may never be the star he was supposed to be when he came over in the Scherzer/Turner trade. However, Keibert Ruiz has finally established himself. This is likely to be one of his better offensive seasons, but I think he has the ability to be solid on both sides of the ball for years to come. 

We have talked about the rise of Keibert Ruiz, but I still think it has been slightly underdiscussed. That is why I wanted to give him his flowers today. He has had a truly amazing season offensively and defensively. It is awesome to see a player you counted out get off the mat and produce in an unexpected fashion.

Sometimes Heroes and Goats doesn’t flow with the narrative of a game. This was a Pete Crow-Armstrong night. He had been in what amounts to a slump for him the last several games. Nothing extravagant, but when you have grown accustomed to him being one of the stars of every game, him being reduced to role player is striking. Even his first hit in this game, the two-run double, felt a little like he reached out his bat just trying to keep an at bat alive and got good wood on it, flipping it over first and down into the corner. Fangraphs did record it as a line drive, so I’m sure I’m underselling the contact and creating a narrative a little. But this just didn’t have the usual all over it type look of a PCA hit.

By the third hit, there was no doubt about it. He crushed that one for a two-run homer. Launching him into Cub history. With that, he tied Cub legend Billy Williams for the most homers ever by a Cub left-handed hitter. It’s an amazing record. Pete should own it all by himself before this season ends. He also stole his 37th base in the game. Our infatuation with round numbers as a society is always a fun thing. His season won’t be less magical if he ends with fewer than 40 steals. He won’t any less be the National League MVP. When you are arguably the league’s best fielder, arguably the league’s best hitter and one of the league’s best base runners, you are the MVP. Doing it on a team that will reach the postseason enhances that legacy. With the injury to Shohei Ohtani, voters were given an out. They shouldn’t need one, but this should be a runaway vote for MVP. A four-hit game against the Braves in September doesn’t hurt it any, for sure. One more fanbase and couple of sports writers sees up close what he can do and how he can affect a game.

It’s easy to lose David Peterson in Pete’s big night. Don’t lose David’s night, though. I wrote in my pre-series look at the Braves that they aren’t as good on the road as at home. But that’s still almost certainly a division winner in the league that was better this year. The league that has won the last two world championships. The league that has won six of the last 10 championships. The league that didn’t have investigations or high level accusations of sign stealing.

Peterson threw six innings of one-run ball. He allowed three hits and three walks before leaving one batter into the seventh. At the time he left, it was zero runs. Craig Counsell tried to get one (or more) outs out of him in the seventh but then pulled him after a leadoff single. It was a superlative performance. We talk here about how in a close game so many performances were all vital to the win. You usually can’t remove one and still have a win. I will make that same kind of observation about David Peterson in reference to the Cub season. I’m not sure where this team would have been without the lift he gave to them early on.

At the time the Cubs traded for Peterson, there were questions as to who even would start games for them. If the team had gone into a tailspin induced by weak starting pitching, then the trade deadline probably doesn’t happen. He was an enormous life raft at the time this team needed it most. He beat the Brewers in his first start. Got hammered by the Cardinals the next time out. He pitched decent in a loss in Baltimore (no decision for him). Then the Cubs won his next six starts. That streak ran from July 21 through August 22. They were 56-44 before that streak started and 74-56 by the time it ended. They improved six games in the standings. At a time when the Cubs won six straight Peterson starts.

As for deadline acquisitions, there was Ryan Zeferjahn working the ninth inning. Can not all of the way anointed closers have the same problem as long time closers? That is, pitching in non-save situations. How many times does a closer come into a low leverage situation, allow a few runners and then slam the door once the leverage is ratcheted up? Probably less than is romanticized in baseball lore. Two hits, strikeout, walk, game ending double play, the last of those against former NL MVP Ronald Acuña Jr.

The former MVP is a cautionary tale on getting too carried away with what PCA’s career will or won’t be. I already saw someone this summer doing projections and deciding that Pete was on a Hall of Fame trajectory. Well yeah, when there are technically only a handful of data points and they are trending upwards towards Superstar performance, yeah that looks great. But in 2023 at 25 years old, Acuña had a 41-73 (!!!) season. He was over 8 bWAR that season and doesn’t have 5 bWAR since. He might go back to his MVP level or he might not.

You’ve heard this from me before. The future isn’t guaranteed. Enjoy what we are getting from Pete. Don’t worry about historical context. We can put his career in perspective, hopefully, 10-15 years from now. Or more. This year he is posting a historical season. Enjoy it for the best season any of us has ever seen a Cub have. Let tomorrow be tomorrow. Don’t make Pete spend his whole career chasing ghosts. He caught one (living) legend today. It’ll be fun if he finishes chasing down one more legend and claims ownership of the best fWAR season in Cub history. Interestingly, Baseball Ref doesn’t like Pete’s season nearly as well.

Another discussion for another day.

Three Positives:

• David Peterson. 6 IP, 1 R, 3 H, 3 BB, 7 K
• Pete Crow-Armstrong. 4-5, HR, 2B, 4 RBI, R, SB
• Carson Kelly had a single and drew a walk and scored two runs. But I thought his biggest contribution was beating a double play. A run scored on the play and two more would score on Pete’s double that followed. That appeared to supercharge the night.

My lineup construction thought was a big hit. So how about Shōta Imanaga versus David Peterson for game four of a postseason series. Do me a favor and pretend that you can ONLY pick one of those two. The first three being Clay Holmes, Matthew Boyd and Kevin Gausman in some order. I tell you I’m starting one of those two. Period. You are my advisor on this, which one are you suggesting?

Game 151, September 14: Cubs 7, Braves 3 (84-67)

Reminder: Heroes and Goats are determined by WPA scores and are in no way subjective.

THREE HEROES:

• Superhero: David Peterson (.213). 6 IP, 23 BF, 3 H, 3 BB, R, 7 K (W 5-2)
• Hero: Pete Crow-Armstrong (.166). 4-5, HR, 2B, 4 RBI, R, SB
• Sidekick: Nico Hoerner (.108). 2-4, RBI, 2 R

THREE GOATS:

• Billy Goat: Alex Bregman (-.047). 0-4
• Goat: Michael Conforto (-.024). 1-4, 2B, RBI
• Kid: Javier Assad (-.016). IP, 5 BF, 2 H, 2 R, K

WPA Play of the Game: PCA’s two-out, two-run double gave the Cubs a three run lead in the second. (.161)

Braves Play of the Game: Reynaldo Lopez struck out Michael Conforto with runners at the corners and the game scoreless in the second inning. (.062)

Note: The top six WPA events in this game favored the Cubs. Included in that top six were three double plays induced. This game was actually lopsided enough that one of 77 plays registered at .000 and Mike Yastrzemski’s two-run homer in the seventh was only .022.

Cubs Player of the Game:

Game 150 Winner: Miguel Amaya received 43 of 47 votes.

Rizzo Award Standings: (Top 5/Bottom 5)

The award is named for Anthony Rizzo, who finished first in this category three of the first four years it was in existence and four times overall. He also recorded the highest season total ever at +65.5. The point scale is three points for a Superhero down to negative three points for a Billy Goat.

• Pete Crow-Armstrong +26.5
• Alex Bregman +24
• Carson Kelly +16.5
• Ben Brown +13.5
• Michael Conforto +13
• Jameson Taillon -13
• Seiya Suzuki -15
• Nico Hoerner -15
• Dansby Swanson -17
• Caleb Thielbar -17.5

Note: This game saw a lot of leaderboard action. Not only PCA passing Bregman back for the lead. But at the time of the game, four of the six podium members were in the top six in the overall standings (Assad being the one outside the top five, dropping now from sixth to seventh). Also Nico grabbed a point down near the bottom.

Scoreboard Watching: Hat tip to the Dodgers for tying the MLB record by notching their 14th consecutive playoff berth. They will go on to win the NL West for the 13th time in 14 years. So impressive, regardless of any thoughts you might have about the financial structure of baseball. The Padres won their eighth straight. They remain 1.5 games behind the Cubs. The Diamondbacks played a nail biter against the Marlins. They walked it off with a Corbin Carroll homer. They are four back of the Cubs and still out of the postseason right now. They are suffering to the red hot Padres.

Up Next: Game two of the three game set with the Braves. Kevin Gausman (9-11, 4.60) starts for the Cubs. He’s 4-2 with a 5.31 ERA as a Cub. Last time out, the Brewers beat him, scoring six earned runs against him in just four innings. Kevin lost to the Braves as a Blue Jay. He allowed four runs in six innings of work.

35-year-old lefty Martin Perez starts for the Braves. The Venezuelan native is on a nice run, though the record doesn’t show it. He’s 1-3 but has a 2.62 over his last seven games (just 34.1 innings). He did just throw seven scoreless against the Rays in a no decision. He threw 90 pitches in that one, the only time he’s thrown more since the trade deadline, the Brewers pushed him to 97 pitches in four innings. Walks are an issue. So look for a righty heavy Cub lineup and a very patient approach. He pitched in relief against the Cubs in May, throwing a scoreless inning. He’s 8-9 with a 3.16 as a starter (0-0 with a 1.93 in 9.1 relief innings). He’s been a fair bit worse on the road (4.76) than at home (1.80).

This is another winnable game. Go get it done. This remains the game Fangraphs is most confident with the Cubs winning. FG favors the Cubs to win six of the remaining 11 and win 90 games.

The Yankees were the only member of the top trio of American League teams playing on Monday, with both the Rays and Red Sox off inadvance of series against the A’s and Rangers, respectively. The AL West-leading [read: .500] Astros were also sidelined. So yeah, if the 2026 Yankees are the gold standard, then you know it’s a dreary night of action. Thankfully, they took care of their own business after a slow start by dropping a six-spot in the eighth inning on their ol’ Twins pals in the eighth inning to win on Clinching Day.

As it turned out though, the Yankees had already punched their 61st ticket to the postseason! Here’s what the teams that were active were up to on Monday night.

Chicago White Sox (77-73) 7, Cleveland Guardians (76-75) 3

Separated by a half-game before first pitch, the White Sox and Guardians squared off in Cleveland to begin a three-game set that could decide both the AL Central and—believe it or not with these records—a first-round bye. It was a scoreless duel through five, with Guardos ace Gavin Williams and the opener/bulk guy combo of Sean Newcomb and Sean Burke putting goose eggs on the board. Williams returned to the mound in the sixth, looking for a couple more punchouts to tie and surpass both Dylan Cease and Jacob Misiorowski (236) for the MLB lead. Instead, he was the one who got punc—OK you get it.

It started innocently enough with an infield hit by Andrew Benintendi. Then came one of the most remarkable at-bats of the entire season, as Tristan Peters worked Williams for 18 pitches before taking a walk. It was the longest at-bat (well, plate appearance I suppose) since a 19-pitch battle by Matt Wieters for the 2020 Cardinals (sure?).

Peters had worked Williams’ pitch count up to 113 by that point, so he was done for the night. Tim Herrin replaced him, and he honestly did his job by getting a double-play ball to first baseman Nathaniel Lowe. But Lowe’s throw to second caromed off Peters’ helmet and scored Benintendi for the first run of the game.

From there, the wheels came off. Chase Meidroth singled in a second, Randal Grichuk got a knock to load the bases, Kyle Teel doubled in a pair, and after Daniel Espino replaced Herrin, Miguel Vargas dropped the hammer with a two-run bomb:

Burke gave one back in the home half and David Fry at least briefly woke up the home crowd with a two-run homer with two down in the ninth, but this never felt close after that one inning. Final score: 7-3, Chicago, and a 1.5-game lead in the AL Central.

AL Wild Card Rock Fight

Toronto Blue Jays (75-76) 5, Detroit Tigers (71-79) 6: Most Yankees fans’ eyes were directed at this game though, as either a Jays loss or Yankees win would punch the Bombers’ ticket to the postseason. They got both! The Jays’ loss came a little less than half an hour before New York beat Minnesota, so the Yanks got to feel good in the dugout for just a bit before they celebrated on the field.

For awhile, it looked like the wait would continue until at least tomorrow, as the Yanks trailed the Twins 2-1 through seven while the Jays rallied against the Tigers. Detroit had taken a 4-2 lead in the seventh with José Soriano set his no-hit bid ablaze, as Max Clark and Spencer Torkelson both doubled to get the Tigers ahead. But a three-run blast by Kazuma Okamoto brought the Jays back in front, 5-4. A year ago, this probably would’ve been a propeller of sorts; however, these Jays are not the same, and neither is weary Louie Varland. A pair of hits off Joe Mantiply set up the game-tying Tigers attack in the eighth on a flare to left by Brett Callahan against Varland, and a leadoff walk put Varland in position to fumble the ball away as the go-ahead run crossed home.

After his own leadoff walk, Kenley Jansen struck out Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and got Alejandro Kirk to bounce into a game-ending double play for his 496th career save. The Jays still trail the Guardians by a game in the AL Wild Card with the Rangers one win behind them.

Baltimore Orioles (73-78) 2, New York Mets (69-81) 1: The O’s are just barely alive in this Wild Card conversation as well, but they got the win they needed to get to three games back; they’ll need many more this week! This one was all about Pete Alonso’s long-awaited return to Queens, and the Mets fans showered him with affection on a night in which they were (appropriately) eliminated. Alonso took an oh-fer, but Gunnar Henderson broke a 1-1 tie in the eighth with a solo shot and Rico Garcia held on to close it out.

Veteran left-hander Cole Irvin has been a stabilizing force in the Triple-A Oklahoma City Comets rotation this year, and on Monday he was named pitcher of the week in the Pacific Coast League.

Irvin started twice for Oklahoma City last week against Sugar Land and didn’t allow a run in either game, totaling 9 2/3 innings with eight strikeouts and five walks. He also made this nifty stab of a line drive for a double play on Sunday.

The 32-year-old Irvin pitched twice previously on four days rest this season, going four innings each time, and allowed nine total runs. On Sunday he pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings, after throwing five scoreless innings on Tuesday.

On the season, Irvin leads the Pacific Coast League in innings pitched (134), ERA (3.09), and wins (12).

Six Oklahoma City Comets have won Pacific Coast League player or pitcher of the week this season — James Tibbs (March 31—April 5 and May 25-31), Alex Freeland (May 11-17), Jack Suwinski (June 9-14), Ryder Ryan (June 9-14), Emmet Sheehan (August 17-23), and Irvin.

Tuesday schedule

• 4:35 p.m. PT: Texas League playoffs, Game 1: Tulsa (Adam Serwinowski) at Springfield (Yhoiker Fajardo)
• 5:35 p.m.: Oklahoma City at El Paso

Mets fans spent most of Monday night's game against the Orioles alternately showering Orioles first baseman Pete Alonso with affection and voicing their displeasure with David Stearns and the front office's decision to let him go.

When it comes to Mets fans welcoming a prominent former player back, Monday night stood alone for its combination of love for the player and vitriol directed at the decision-makers who oversaw his departure. 

Count former Mets GM Sandy Alderson among those on the side of the fans. 

During an appearance with Brian Kenny on MLB Network on Monday, Alderson gave a deep, illuminating answer when asked for his thoughts on the Mets not doing what it took to retain Alonso.  

"I was disappointed," Alderson said. "Look, Pete Alonsowas drafted by Tommy Tanous -- the scouting director at that time -- in the second round. Basically a home run hitter who got on base. And that's what he's been since he came to the big leagues. Let's say his defense is not superb. Poor defense doesn't outweigh the kind of homegrown, home run talent -- impact talent -- that Pete Alonso can provide. 

"From my standpoint, if they let him go because of his defense, I think that was a mistake. If they let him go because they thought his power was gonna diminish over time? Okay, that's a guess. It might happen, it might not. To me, the deciding factor is the guy is homegrown. He's gonna set your home run record. 

"Baseball is entertainment. It's not 'well, X's and O's, it doesn't matter.' No, it's entertainment. And sometimes you have to take that factor into account, and Pete Alonso was part of the entertainment that Mets fans appreciated and supported."

Alderson served as Mets GM from 2011 through 2018, and returned to the organization as its president from 2020 to 2023.

His second tenure with the club was in more of an oversight role as the team transitioned from the Fred Wilpon ownership to the ownership of Steve Cohen.

During his time overseeing baseball operations for the Mets, Alderson often spoke about baseball as an entertainment business first and foremost. And he believed in the value that homegrown players could provide. 

One of Alderson's biggest moves as GM was to sign David Wright to a seven-year extension after the 2012 season. Wright's career was upended soon after due to spinal stenosis, and he retired following the 2018 season after spending his entire career in Queens. His No. 5 was retired last season. 

As far as Alonso, he's having a terrific season in his first year in Baltimore.

While playing all 151 games, Alonso is slashing .268/.363/.496 (.859 OPS) with 35 home runs and an AL-leading 100 RBI.