Yankees right-hander Clarke Schmidt underwent testing on his right biceps after experiencing soreness on Sunday and looks to have avoided a serious injury.
Manager Aaron Boone told reporters before Tuesday's doubleheader against the Tampa Bay Rays at Yankee Stadium that Schmidt "looks like he’s in a pretty good spot" following the results of the tests.
While it appears Schmidt, who was recently activated off the 60-day IL, averted disaster, his availability is still in question. Boone said the right-hander will play catch on Tuesday to see how available he can be and what the next steps are.
Schmidt has appeared in one game this season, when he pitched 0.2 innings against the Minnesota Twins on Sept. 16. He allowed two hits while striking out two on 24 pitches (13 strikes) during his outing. The Yanks called the 30-year-old's number once again on Sunday against the Arizona Diamondbacks, but Schmidt experienced "cramping" in his right biceps while warming up and had to cut it short.
"Nothing structural, it was more precautionary," Schmidt said after the game. "Given the circumstance coming back from surgery, I don’t want to push through anything. All the testing was fine – nothing with the shoulder, nothing with the elbow."
Schmidt had Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in July of last year and has a history of injuries over the last few seasons, including a right lat strain and right rotator cuff tendonitis.
After making 32 starts in 2023 as a full-time starter for the first time in his career, Schmidt has made a total of 30 starts since.
Jazz Chisholm Jr. expected to be back Tuesday
The Yankees will be getting some reinforcements for the second game of Tuesday's doubleheader as they are expected to activate Chisholm from the IL, per Boone.
Chisholm has been out since Sept. 9 with a right thumb sprain, and the infielder's return should give New York's offense a nice boost.
In 134 games this season, Chisholm is slashing .232/.312/.403 with 19 home runs, 55 RBI and 40 stolen bases. He was on fire prior to the injury, hitting .391 (18-for-46) in his last 15 games.
Sep 21, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Brett Bateman (21) makes a sliding catch during the second inning at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Jamie LeBlanc-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
I have a busy day so let’s have an Open Thread.
It sounds like Brett Bateman’s injury isn’t too serious, which is good to hear. I’d be ok when them sitting him the last five games.
The Sun has a story ‘Who’s to blame for Dylan Cease’s breakdowns?‘ Hmmmm who ever invented baseball? Throwing a baseball, that hard, snapping off spin, doing it over and over isn’t really something an arm was developed for.
What do I want to see in the last five games? I don’t know really, I’d like to see some good plays. I’d like to see some of the young guys play. I’m guessing they will have to call up a couple of the young starters. Scherzer will start tonight. José Soriano will start one. And Trey Yesavage will start one (which will be a bullpen day). That leaves two. CJ Van Eyk? Grant Rogers? I don’t know if they will want to start the major league clock on anyone. Maybe Chad Dallas will get a start? Josh Fleming?
Anyway, use the thread to discuss anything you’d like. Baseball related or not.
NEW YORK (AP) — Yankees star Aaron Judge had an injection in his sore right calf, putting his status for the postseason in even more jeopardy.
Before the Yankees faced the Rays in a day-night doubleheader Tuesday, manager Aaron Boone said Judge had a platelet poor plasma injection during the team’s off-day on Monday following its return from Arizona.
Judge was put on the 10-day injured list Saturday with a strained soleus muscle, which is in the lower part of his calf. Boone did not say what grade the strain is but described it as “moderate.”
“We’re planning on him not being a part of that but we’re also at time of the year, you hear all the time with injuries, you give ranges two to four weeks, four to six weeks,” Boone said. “The range is for a reason and a we’re at a point of the year where obviously we push it a little bit if that was in play but that’s a week away. I’m not expecting it, but I’m not ruling it out either.”
Judge is eligible to be activated for the regular-season finale on Sunday against Baltimore but will not do much activity in the next few days.
Judge injured his calf during last Wednesday’s game at Minnesota. The eight-time All-Star was lifted in the sixth inning for a pinch hitter because of discomfort in his leg and said at the time it was a precautionary move.
Boone said symptoms persisted and an MRI revealed the strain.
Judge was 4 for 23 with 13 strikeouts and one extra-base hit in seven games after returning Sept. 8 from a broken rib, which kept him out of the lineup for more than three months.
Judge is hitting .241 with 18 homers and 41 RBIs in just 66 games this year. He hit a long homer on Sept. 14 in Minnesota and had the next game off before straining his calf.
The Yankees entered Tuesday with a 48-41 record in the games Judge has missed and a 41-25 mark in games he has played. New York also began Tuesday a loss away from being eliminated from the AL East race, setting up a second straight wild-card series against the Red Sox next week.
“We’ve played much of the year without him and for the most part, we’ve done a pretty good job,” Boone said. “So guys are used to it. Obviously you always want your best player in the mix, but we understand we’ve got a job to do and an expectation to win. I think that expectation doesn’t change with or without him. We’re expecting to go into the series and know we can beat anyone when we play our game.”
DENVER, CO - SEPTEMBER 18: Lazaro Montes #99 of the Seattle Mariners rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run to take the lead in the ninth inning during the game between the Seattle Mariners and the Colorado Rockies at Coors Field on Friday, September 18, 2026 in Denver, Colorado. (Photo by Casey Paul/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
I realize I’m jumping the gun here by six games and the Mariners are not mathematically eliminated yet, but I mean…(/gestures at entire cosmically cursed existence of the Seattle Mariners Baseball Club). This party is all but over. But, I’m going to try and steer the discourse into a more positive direction because, hey, it wasn’t all bad! There were a lot of exciting, fun, emotional, and unique moments in the 2026 Mariners season.
Here are a few of the more obvious ones:
Randy Day (AKA The Day Randy Woke Up and Said “I am going to kill the Cubs myself”)
Just spectacular and it really put an exclamation point on the career season Randy was already having at that point. I hope the Mariners can bring him back, but if not, I will miss him dearly and we’ll always have 2026 Randy, Destroyer of Worlds.
Colt Emerson’s first career walk-off
Before we found out Colt Emerson was playing hurt, boy, he had a great first few weeks in the show. Here he smashes a line drive into right field through the lefty shift and then gets thrashed around a bit by his teammates as tradition dictates. Hope to see more of this next season and lots more, Colt!
The Cal Raleigh 3 dinger game
In what will surely be a sneaky hard trivia question one day, a finally healthy and resurgent Cal Raleigh blasted three home runs against the Phillies in Seattle after enduring months of what can only be called The Worst Season Ever to Follow a 60 Home Run Season. So in a few decades, if you see a trivia question about “What season did Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hit three home runs in one game?”, just remember it came AFTER his career year in 2025. You’re welcome.
Lazaro Montes hits the longest home run in Safeco Field/T-Mobile Park history
This is probably my favorite because I’m fascinated by this enormous, violent-swing-having lad. This ball landed in the center field concourse, which is a landing spot that was previously unthinkable to just about every Mariners fan who has watched games at our marine layer-drenched stadium since 1999. Maybe it was the warm night air in combination with one of the, uh, “home run-prone” baseballs in the mix combined with a swing that could supply enough wind energy to power a small nation that produced this massive 474 foot blast. Regardless, it happened and it was special. Hope to see many more!
Okay, let’s hear from y’all in the comments!
What was your favorite moment, storyline, or player achievement during the 2026 Mariners season?
Your answers may help fuel nominations for this year’s annual Lookie awards, so let’s see what you got. And don’t worry, there will be plenty more opportunities to doom and gloom about all the things that went wrong in 2026 (someone should write a book about it, honestly), but let’s see those silver linings for now.
North Carolina Tar Heels center Henri Veesaar (13) celebrates after a three point basket during the second half of the Fort Myers Tip-Off Beach Division game against the Michigan State Spartans at Suncoast Credit Union Arena on Fort Myers, Fla., on Thursday, Nov. 27, 2025. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co
The Atlanta Hawks announced on Monday that former Tar Heel Henri Veesaar tore his right ACL during a workout on Sept. 15 and will miss the entire NBA season.
The 22-year-old Estonian was an all-ACC performer for Carolina last season, averaging 17 points, 8.7 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 1.2 blocks while shooting 42.6% from 3-point range. He declared for the draft despite having one more year of college eligibility and was generally projected to be taken late in the first round. However, he slid all the way to #52 overall, where the Los Angeles Clippers selected him before trading him to the Hawks.
It’s a tough break for a player who was a lot of fun to watch in his only season in Chapel Hill, and it further confirms he made the right decision by leaving college early. With the NCAA no longer granting medical hardship waivers, a torn ACL wiping out Veesaar’s final college season likely would have led to him going undrafted and having to fight for a two-way contract–a far cry from the four-year, $9.3 million deal he landed with the Hawks.
Veesaar is set to undergo surgery in October. Here’s hoping he recovers quickly and comes back better than ever.
CHICAGO, IL - SEPTEMBER 03: Logan Henderson #43 of the Milwaukee Brewers pitches during the game between the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field on Thursday, September 3, 2026 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by George Gaza/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
The Milwaukee Brewers have the best record in baseball at 98-58. They’ve essentially clinched a bye for the Wild Card round, and it is just a matter of whether or not they will have homefield advantage throughout the entire playoffs.
Or at least, the entire playoffs before they get eliminated.
This is the Brewers’ fourth straight National League Central title, and the eighth time in the last nine years that they’ve made the playoffs. There’s a belief in baseball that if you make the playoffs enough times, eventually, things will break your way, and you’ll win a World Series.
Eventually has yet to come for the Brewers. Not only have they not won the World Series, but they also haven’t even made it there during this run. The closest they came was in 2018 when they lost 4-3 in the NLCS to the Dodgers. Last year, they once again faced the Dodgers in the NLCS, and went down without much of a fight, getting swept. They had homefield advantage in 2025, and all it resulted in was scoring a total of two runs across their two NLCS home games.
After being swept by the Brewers in the regular season series, the Dodgers got the sweep of Milwaukee in the Championship Series! pic.twitter.com/M7n7tvj5PM
Will this year be any different for the Brewers? They seem to have a roster capable of winning it all. They’ve scored the second-most runs in baseball. They have a strong front of their rotation, and a bullpen capable of holding leads.
But they’ve seemed to have the necessary pieces in past years as well, and it hasn’t mattered. Maybe “eventually” simply hasn’t happened yet, or maybe they’re a great regular season team that lacks an extra something for the playoffs?
Opposition research: Logan Henderson
Most of us are familiar with Brewers’ ace Jacob Misiorowski who is very likely to win the NL’s Cy Young award this season. But one star pitcher does not a rotation make, and if the Brewers want any chance of winning a World Series, they’re going to need to get good starts from Mis’ rotation mates.
A good place to start is rookie righthander Logan Henderson. Henderson was called up at the beginning of 2025, and immediately impressed, striking out 29 batters in his first four starts. However, he experienced elbow inflammation which ended up sidelining him for almost the entire season.
After spending most of the early season in AAA, Henderson was recalled to the majors in May and had a string of strong starts before a back strain sent him to the Injured List. Since returning in July, he picked up where he left off. He hasn’t allowed more than three runs in a start and has a 2.51 ERA on the season.
It’s understandable that the Brewers want to be cautious with a promising young pitcher, but it is somewhat concerning that he’s already had two notable injuries in two years. But that might work out in the Brewers’ favor if he’s relatively fresh for the playoffs.
Hating on the Brewers
For a while, it seemed like the Oklahoma City Thunder were following the Brewers’ example as a team that left Seattle only to repeatedly fall short in the playoffs every year. Except the Thunder finally won a title in 2025, something the Brewers have yet to do, and really only came close once – and that was in 1982.
The Pirates have been to twice as many World Series as the Brewers in the last 48 years.
Maybe it’s because they play in a small market, or maybe it’s because of all their past playoff failures. But nobody will view this team as a serious contender until they actually win the World Series.
Remembering a guy who played for both the Phillies and Brewers
After spending his early career with the Braves, Wes Helms was traded to the Brewers. For a second, it looked like Milwaukee might have stolen him when he hit 23 home runs in 2003. But he couldn’t follow up on that success, and after basically being relegated to a bench role over the next two seasons, he left as a free agent after 2005.
Helms had a strong season at the plate as a part-time player with the Marlins in 2006, and the Phillies signed him, hoping he could adequately replace David Bell at third base. Instead, he actually made Phillies fans feel slightly wistful for Bell.
In the end, "David Bell" was too high a projection for Wes Helms’ Phillies career. https://t.co/4s9tMHligL
There was a three-way split of playing time at third base among the 2007 Phillies: Abraham Nunez – who could field, but couldn’t hit, Greg Dobbs – who could hit, but couldn’t field, and Helms, who couldn’t do either. Somehow, the Phillies overcame the black hole at the position to win the NL East.
Realizing they needed a better option, the Phillies signed Pedro Feliz after the season, and released Helms, who went on to spend three seasons as a lousy bench player for the Marlins.
Additional thought about the series
The Phillies seemingly have more to play for this series, as they can still finish as any of the three Wild Card seeds or miss the playoffs entirely. The Brewers will likely be more concerned with getting their team ready for the playoffs.
You’d think that would be an advantage for the Phillies, but it is hard to understand this team much of the time. You don’t want your team to “peak at the wrong time,” but with one week until the playoffs begin, this seems like the right time for heretofore slumping hitters like Brandon Marsh and J.T. Realmuto to get their acts together.
Tampa Bay Rays starting pitcher Drew Rasmussen (57) delivers a pitch during a Major League Baseball game against the Houston Astros at Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida, on September 11, 2026. The Rays defeated the Astros 3-1 to become the first team to clinch a spot in the postseason. (Photo by Kim Hukari/Image of Sport/NurPhoto via Getty Images) | NurPhoto via Getty Images
The Penguins beat the Buffalo Sabres 4-1 in their pre-season opener Monday night and will field a different lineup for Tuesday's game.
Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin will both be in the lineup, and we'll get a glimpse of what their lines will likely look like when the regular season starts next Wednesday in Philadelphia.
We'll also get to see Liam Ruck and Markus Ruck together after the Penguins selected both in the 2026 NHL Draft.
Goaltender Arturs Silovs will play the entire game, with Taylor Gauthier as the backup.
Here are the expected lines and pairs:
Forwards
Robertson-Crosby-Rakell
Chinakhov-Novak-Malkin
McGroarty-Zonnon-Calvert
L. Ruck-M. Ruck-Ilyin
Defensemen
Girard-Korczak
Carlile-Solovyov
Galvas-Harding
Tomas Galvas will make his pre-season debut on the third pair after being scratched on Monday. He's had a quiet camp, but will get to show what he can do in a game on Tuesday.
Forward Carter Sanderson and defenseman Phil Kemp appear to be the scratches.
Puck drop is set for 7 p.m. ET on SportsNet Pittsburgh. Fans can also listen to the game on 105.9 'The X.'
LAS VEGAS, NV - JULY 19: Lajae Jones #25 of the Golden State Warriors plays defense during the game against the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2026 NBA Summer League Championship on July 19, 2026 at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this Photograph, user is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Mike Kirschbaum/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
After the Golden State Warriors decided to sign undrafted free agent big man Graham Ike to fill the final two-way spot on the squad, news shortly followed of Dubs second-round pick Lajae Jones opting to start his post-college career internationally. Jones has agreed to a one-year deal with Pallacanestro Trieste of Lega Basket Serie A (the most prestigious basketball league in Italy). The Warriors will retain Jones’ rights.
It’s clear from the press release and surrounding reporting that Jones decision to head abroad was made in tandem with the Warriors, who clearly thought Ike was a better fit for the team this season. Pallacanestro Trieste has some notable ties to Golden State. Jones will now be teammates with former Warriors rotation player Juan Toscano-Anderson.
“His selection in June’s NBA draft is proof of his hard work, dedication and immense basketball potential,” Trieste general manager Michael Arcieri said in a press release attached to the signing. “His decision to proudly wear the Trieste jersey and continue his basketball dream and development with us is proof of the great trust he has in our team, our staff, our fans and the potential of a truly special 2026-27 season. Our collaboration throughout the season with the Golden State Warriors’ staff regarding Lajae’s development represents an incredibly exciting opportunity for our staff and organization.”
The Warriors clearly still believe Jones can be a helpful contributor for the team long-term. It’s worth noting that wing Malevy Leons is already on a two-way deal, but will not be two-way eligible next season. It seems reasonable to believe Golden State’s front office is optimistic that Jones can develop more abroad and replace Leons’ two-way spot next year. It’s also worth noting the Dubs still could trade the rights to Jones in a trade.
NEW YORK, NY - SEPTEMBER 11: Carlos Rodón #55 of the New York Yankees pitches during the game against the New York Mets at Yankee Stadium on September 11, 2026 in New York, New York. (Photo by New York Yankees/Getty Images) | Getty Images
This four-game tilt against the Rays in the penultimate series of the season had the chance to be a blockbuster showdown to decide the division. However, the Yankees losing two out of three to the Diamondbacks removed a lot of the jeopardy from this series, New York now needing to sweep just to avoid being eliminated from the AL East title race and depending on a very unlikely collapse from Tampa in their final series of the season to keep the divisional door the slightest bit ajar. All the same, this could be a preview of a prospective ALCS showdown, so I expect both teams to come out firing. The first game of today’s doubleheader is a makeup of the rainout from May 23rd.
Carlos Rodón finds himself in the unexpected position of being on the postseason rotation bubble. Cam Schlittler and Max Fried are seemingly locks which would pit Rodón against Gerrit Cole for that final spot if they roll out a three-man rotation. It almost comes down to a style choice at that point — Rodón walks almost three times as many batters as Cole, but surrenders about half as many home runs per nine. He’s a good choice to start a game against the Rays — in six starts against Tampa with the Yankees, Rodón has a 3.69 ERA and 31.3-percent strikeout rate in 31.2 innings. In 15 starts this season, Rodón is 6-3 with a 2.95 ERA (142 ERA+), 3.69 FIP, and 83 strikeouts in 76.1 innings.
The Rays have a maddening habit of transforming other teams’ castoffs into rotation stars. This season’s example is longtime journeyman Nick Martinez, who had pitched as a swingman the previous four years in San Diego and Cincinnati. Martinez owns the lowest walk rate (3.5-percent) of any qualified starter, using deception and precise command to induce soft contact. He’s technically got a six-pitch mix but usually sticks with sinker, changeup, cutter, and four-seamer. In 29 starts, Martinez is 15-4 with a 2.94 ERA (142 ERA+), 3.98 FIP, and 101 strikeouts in 171.1 innings.
This is more or less the Yankees’ go-to lineup for the rest of the regular season with Aaron Judge on the IL. Heliot Ramos and Spencer Jones are both going to get a lot of run out in the outfield, so it was encouraging to see them both hit home runs against the former Cy Young winner Corbin Burnes in their last game. José Caballero gets the start over Ryan McMahon at third and sounded eager to make an impact against the team that traded him to the Yankees at last year’s deadline.
The Rays have their three-headed slugging monster atop lineup and then stack the bottom two-thirds with speed. Junior Caminero is third in MLB with 41 home runs giving him back-to-back 40-HR seasons. Chandler Simpson is MLB’s stolen base leader with 46 and third in batting average at .309, but is the only qualified hitter in baseball without a home run this season.
HOUSTON, TEXAS - SEPTEMBER 20: Jeremy Peña #3 and Yordan Alvarez #44 of the Houston Astros look on in the fifth inning against the Atlanta Braves at Daikin Park on September 20, 2026 in Houston, Texas. (Photo by Houston Astros/Getty Images) | Getty Images
The final week of the regular season is upon us and the Mariners have one last chance to throw some chaos into the AL West race with a two game series against the Astros. This season has been supremely disappointing, and the team has been frustrating to watch, but these are the last Mariner games we’ll see until next year — and the looming labor lockout by the owners could extend that hiatus even further. Enjoy them.
The Astros were just swept by the Braves this past weekend, dropping them from first place in the division. They’re just a game behind the Rangers and hold the tiebreaker if the two teams should finish with matching records. Between the injuries and ineffectiveness across the pitching staff, the offense — and more specifically, Yordan Alvarez — had been carrying the team through the summer. Unfortunately, the team has scored more than four runs in a single game just once over their last 10 games. It’s a terrible time for a slump.
Player
Position
Bats
PA
K%
BB%
ISO
wRC+
Jeremy Peña
SS
R
456
23.9%
5.3%
0.197
123
Yordan Alvarez
DH
L
663
17.3%
15.8%
0.284
179
Isaac Paredes
3B
R
631
13.5%
10.6%
0.174
127
Jose Altuve
2B
R
545
19.6%
7.3%
0.153
99
Yainer Diaz
C
R
333
15.6%
3.6%
0.168
111
Daulton Varsho
CF
L
526
20.3%
7.4%
0.134
78
Christian Walker
1B
R
608
23.4%
7.9%
0.186
97
Cam Smith
RF
R
542
25.8%
7.2%
0.180
84
Taylor Trammell
LF
L
273
31.1%
9.5%
0.157
84
Yordan Alvarez’s shot at winning the AL Triple Crown looks pretty slim right now. A late season slump, spurred on by a nagging ankle injury, has dropped him to second in the AL in home runs and RBIs. He’d have to have a monster week to have any hope of catching Pete Alonso for the RBI lead; Alvarez trails Alonso by six right now. The other batter who is swinging the bat well right now is Jeremy Peña; he has posted just an 89 wRC+ in September, but he collected 10 hits and three home runs last week. The rest of the lineup is really struggling; Jose Altuve (96 wRC+ in September), Cam Smith (60), Daulton Varsho (42), and Christian Walker (17) are all mired in slumps this month.
For a pitcher with such a long history against the Mariners, it’s been nearly three years since Cristian Javier has pitched against them (his last outing against Seattle came on September 26, 2023). He blew out his elbow early in 2024 and missed most of last year recovering from the resultant Tommy John surgery. At his peak, he leaned heavily on a backspinning four-seamer and a slow sweeper as his primary weapons, essentially acting as a two-pitch pitcher. After his surgery, he’s expanded his repertoire a bit to include a changeup and a cutter. He’s bounced between the rotation and the bullpen throughout this year but it looks like he’s finally found his groove down the stretch; over his last six outings (five starts, one bulk relief appearance) he’s running a 3.77 ERA and a 3.72 FIP.
Pitcher
IP
K%
BB%
HR/FB%
GB%
ERA
FIP
Ethan Pecko
28.2
16.4%
10.3%
12.5%
38.6%
3.77
5.50
George Kirby
169.2
19.9%
6.1%
11.1%
43.8%
4.24
3.85
Pitch
Usage vRHB
Usage vLHB
Velocity
Stuff+
Whiff+
BIP+
xwOBA
Four-seam
21.1%
22.4%
93.5
99
109
123
0.466
Sinker
36.6%
13.5%
92.9
100
136
80
0.300
Cutter
4.6%
27.9%
90.2
98
78
109
0.421
Changeup
0.0%
7.7%
87.1
Curveball
5.7%
17.6%
81.6
98
Sweeper
32.0%
10.9%
82.7
105
The Astros promoted Ethan Pecko in mid-August to take the place of Tatsuya Imai in the rotation. He was the team’s fourth ranked prospect on their preseason list and looked serviceable with a 4.25 FIP in 17 appearances in Triple-A before his debut. His best pitch is his four-seam fastball which has given minor league batters fits when he’s able to locate it at the top of the zone. He has five other pitches in his repertoire but most of his secondary pitches look average at best. He’s got decent command and uses his wide arsenal to keep batters guessing. It’s a back-of-the-rotation profile, but that’s exactly what the Astros have needed this summer. The Astros have used an opener in front of Pecko the last two times his turn has come up in the rotation — I’d expect them to do the same on Wednesday.
The Big Picture:
Team
W-L
W%
Games Behind
Run Diff
Recent Form
Rangers
78-78
0.500
—
-34
W-L-W-W-L
Astros
77-79
0.494
1.0
-59
L-W-L-L-L
Mariners
73-83
0.468
5.0
-56
L-W-W-L-W
Athletics
61-95
0.391
17.0
-223
L-L-L-L-L
Angels
60-96
0.385
18.0
-87
L-W-L-W-L
While the Mariners try to keep the Astros from gaining any ground in the AL West, the Rangers are hosting the Mets.
NEW YORK, NY - JUNE 18: Jalen Brunson is seen outside City Hall at the New York Knicks ticker-tape parade on June 18, 2026 in New York City. (Photo by XNY/Star Max/GC Images)
In the immediate aftermath of winning a championship, there’s utter jubilation. Once that initial high wears off after the ceremony and you start truly grasping what you just witnessed, the human mind naturally goes in a completely different direction.
You begin to think of those who were proven wrong.
Athletes always say after they win it all, “They didn’t believe in us,” or “What’re they gonna say now?” They feed off slander. Any time in life that you or something you care about gets disrespected, you long for the day that person has to eat crow and face the music. It’s just human nature.
For the basketball world, after the final buzzer sounded on June 13, that vitriol was directed towards one person.
Becky Hammon.
After a few months to really ponder things, my tone has shifted toward Becky, even if only slightly.
In that clip, Hammon expresses her opinion, which is based on the last 35 years of NBA basketball. Only one team has won a championship with a small guard as their best player since the Bad Boys Pistons from 1989-90, and even then there’s an exception because almost all of their identity came from smashmouth defense that had nothing to do with I.T.
You can’t win if your best player is small. The one exception was Steph Curry, who changed the game of basketball forever with the 3-point revolution. Unless you have a generational talent, an outlier with impact so drastic that you have to provide additional context for his cultural impact, your best player cannot be a small guard if you want to win a championship.
She was right about her overall premise. She was just wrong about the one person she singled out.
There are loads of small guards that Becky could’ve singled out. Ja Morant, Donovan Mitchell, Damian Lillard, Kyrie Irving, prime Russell Westbrook, Trae Young, De’Aaron Fox, etc. All of these guys were No. 1 options at or before the time of her remarks in December 2023. She has never, on record, talked about any of them as guys who can’t win.
Her problem was that she singled out Jalen Brunson. The odds were in her favor that she would never have to answer for her misdeeds, but her desire to ride the “Knicks for Clicks” wave was her undoing. Of all the typical, ball-dominant, non-winners in the world she could’ve ragged on, she decided to choose the only one who would ever be able to prove her wrong.
What Brunson did isn’t a blueprint. It isn’t a fluke. It wasn’t asterisk-worthy. It was a definitive statement that he belongs in the same conversation as Curry as an outlier, as a player who stands amongst giants and doesn’t back down, as a player whose playstyle allows him to overcome the true reality of smaller guards being at a disadvantage in the modern NBA.
For the last few years, we’ve heard the same phrase, “Who’ll be the next Jalen Brunson?” The answer is nobody will be, because if it were that easy to be Jalen Brunson, it wouldn’t be as utterly shocking to the NBA landscape as his lifting the Larry O’Brien Trophy turned out to be.
It’s a story that honestly goes a helluva lot deeper than even I can chronicle.
They say that the son of a role player is more likely to be the star than the son of a superstar, and that personifies the Brunson’s to a T. Role players know what held them back from stardom and can pass down to their sons what it means to not always be the best player on the court.
We saw the countless stories of Rick Brunson having a young Jalen work hard to master his craft, not take shortcuts, and do everything he can to overcome not always being blessed with the genetic makeup of a can’t-miss superstar.
You see it all throughout his career: how he had to constantly prove people wrong to get to the next level. He had to continue to work and change his game to prevent stagnation. He never accepted being shoehorned into a role. His work ethic is 1-of-1 and something that defines his path to where he is today.
The best example I can find of him evolving his own game to help him reach the next level is his floater evolution. Did you know that, back at Villanova, Brunson never shot floaters? Something that he’s currently the best at in basketball used to be totally alien to him.
Jalen Brunson attempted just 4 combined iso floaters in college and 1 as a rookie. 7 years later, he leads the league in iso floaters by 100+ and is 3rd in efficiency (1.04 PPS).
Why did a young Brunson, who was still shorter than everyone else and should’ve had this in his toolbag as soon as possible, not attempt many? It was apparently a Villanova edict. Jay Wright did not want his guards to attempt floaters. For six consecutive years, the perennially contending Wildcats were dead last in floater attempts, something that was personal for Wright.
He wanted his players to finish off two feet. It was drilled into them in every practice from the moment they stepped on campus.
Watching Brunson’s college highlights, you can see the footwork that makes him who he is today. It reminds us that it usually takes a village to raise a warrior, as Brunson learned his impeccable footwork by developing in an incredible system for multiple years, while later adding the floater to take advantage of time and space. He was able to do both once he was given the freedom to.
When he did start attempting more floaters towards the end of his tenure in Dallas, you saw flashes of what he would become in New York. He was just hidden in a system that revolved around Luka Doncic. You saw what he could be when he was out, especially against the Jazz in the 2022 playoffs.
It was really a perfect storm when he came to New York. He got to return to a place he cared so deeply about, playing for the father who pushed him to be great, in a support system with many lifelong friends and family around the team; he got the ability to be ball-dominant, and he got to unleash the love child of the footwork he meticulously developed in college and the elite touch and jumper he got from grinding for more playing time in Dallas, all while doing the one thing he has done his whole life: prove everyone wrong.
Maybe we should’ve seen this all coming.
There’s also one aspect that I’ve neglected to mention that has nothing to do with his basketball ability, which he has in spades.
There’s an old-school form of leadership that Brunson possesses, one that you don’t see almost anywhere else that doesn’t have a grizzled, Udonis Haslem-esque veteran. Despite never winning an NBA championship or even coming close, he carried himself like one.
A perk of growing up as the son of an NBA player is that you will learn what to do and what not to do. Rick was certainly not infallible, and the mistakes he made growing up shaped Jalen into the non-problematic star he is today.
You look around the league, and you see divas. You see people who clap back on Twitter burners when they’re being slandered; you see people take thinly veiled shots at teammates through the media; you see players be hostile towards fans and the press; you see them get in trouble with the law in one of a million different ways. Distractions, controversy, and immaturity. All of that can consume you, especially in a media market like New York.
That doesn’t happen with the Knicks, and it starts with their captain and leader. They got to this point by playing like a team of brothers who all have each other’s backs, and it’s how they’ve managed to pick each other up after every early deficit and punch in the mouth they receive. No matter how bad it gets, they don’t point fingers.
It’s why I cannot stand people saying, “Well, if *insert point guard* had a supporting cast like that, they’d win too,” Kyrie Irving is someone who’s been used as a point of comparison with Brunson all season, with heated debates ongoing about who’s better.
It’s Brunson. Full stop. Irving was embarrassing every time he had to lead a team.
Don’t give me the crap that he didn’t get to lead a team like Brunson’s. Sure, the Baby Jays from 2017-19 weren’t an ideal situation, but it was one he could’ve embraced and turned into something beautiful if he gave it time. Hell, they were an ECF-caliber team despite Gordon Hayward’s leg being sideways and two of their starters not being old enough to drink. Instead, he was a diva and gave up on trying to be “the guy,” and settled for being a sidekick to KD and eventually James Harden in Brooklyn.
So to sum this all up, here’s something to leave you with.
Becky Hammon was right. Small guards almost never win titles as the top option. You do need a “1A dude”.
But she picked the wrong guy to single out, because history will remember Brunson as the exception to the rule, one that defied every odd and left the NBA world wondering how he did it.
BOSTON, MA - SEPTEMBER 2: Interim manager Chad Tracy #17 of the Boston Red Sox during the game against the Seattle Mariners at Fenway Park on September 2, 2026 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Is this remotely surprising? Chad Tracy and the Red Sox have agreed to a three-year deal that will make him the team’s 49th full-time manager, hopefully at least through the 2029 season. At the same time, Red Sox ownership has exercised the 2029 and 2030 options it held on Craig Breslow’s contract, giving him the big chair for at least four more seasons. Given the way this season has played out, the Tracy deal in particular was a foregone conclusion. But you certainly wouldn’t have said that back in June, and the fact that Breslow is being extended today instead of fired is evidence of the team’s remarkable turnaround.
“Craig and Chad are two exceptionally talented leaders who have earned these opportunities in very different ways,” said Red Sox President & CEO Sam Kennedy. “Over the last three years, we have watched Craig bring clarity, discipline, and conviction to the work of building our baseball operation. Chad was asked to step into a difficult situation with little notice, but the trust he immediately commanded at the major league level was earned through years of work across our organization. What this team has accomplished over the past several months has been historic. Results matter greatly in this business, but so do judgment, character, and the ability to bring out the best in others. Craig and Chad have demonstrated all of those qualities, and they have earned our confidence in leading us forward.” (MLB.com)
FSG appears to be hoping to finally achieve some continuity in the front office and dugout with this move, which is something they’ve struggled to find in recent years. “Since Francona and Epstein ended their successful run together in 2011, the Red Sox have had eight manager/baseball operations head combinations, including Ron Roenicke’s one-year stint alongside Bloom in between Cora stints in 2020. The longest of those pairings — the ill-fated Bloom-Cora marriage — lasted fewer than three years during Cora’s second stint, from the start of 2021 to September 2023.” (Chris Cotillo, MassLive)
But Tracy and Breslow still have some work to do this year, because the Red Sox offense is seriously scuffling right now. As a team, the Sox are barely hitting above the Mendoza Line over their last 11 games, while averaging fewer than 3 runs scored. Part of that is due to the absence of some key pieces, like Willson Contreras and Ceddanne Rafaela, but lineup mainstays like Wilyer Abreu and Adley Rutschman are fighting slumps, too. “Just got to stay with it,” Chad Tracy said after Sunday’s loss. “Obviously we’ve got to hit and score runs. But we’re getting our way back to health, and we’ll get there.” (Peter Abraham, Boston Globe)
If the offense doesn’t get going and the Sox get bounced in the first round without playing a single game at Fenway, just like they did last year, does that change the ultimate perception of the job Craig Breslow did this year? Perhaps. Of course the perception of the job he’s done has already changed several times over the past few months, which may be a product of his willingness to shake things up mid-season. “I always try to be guided by what I believe to be right and best for the organization,” Breslow said. “Oftentimes, most people in these jobs would say their initial read or inclination of a situation was largely a correct one, but friction and inertia and emotion prevented you from acting on that. Then, you look back and say I wish I would have done whatever it was you were thinking at the time more often than you say that was probably not the right decision, and I wish I hadn’t.” (Alex Speier, Boston Globe)
One of those decisive mid-season moves was the trade of Marcelo Mayer — the man who was once heralded as the future of the Red Sox by the Red Sox themselves — to the San Fransisco Giants for middle reliever Erik Miller. But while the move divided Red Sox fans, his family is thrilled with the trade, as they say Mayer faced undue criticism and even threats from Boston fans. “When his dad found out about the trade to San Francisco, Enrique said he “jumped 10 feet in the air.” ‘I can’t explain how happy we are… Marcelo got a cortisone shot to be ready to come back a month and a half early to help the team in the playoffs and then he gets the rap he doesn’t play in pain? That couldn’t be further from the truth.” (Susan Slusser, San Fransisco Chronicle)
Aaron Judge will almost certainly sit out the New York Yankees' upcoming American League wild-card series due to a calf strain, manager Aaron Boone told reporters on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
Judge missed 75 games this season with a rib fracture and then suffered the calf strain in just his seventh game back Sept. 16 at Minnesota. While the Yankees have fared well enough without him – they head into Tuesday 89-66 and can clinch the No. 1 wild card spot with one more victory – his lineup presence will be greatly missed in the postseason.
The Yankees will likely play the Boston Red Sox for the second consecutive year in an AL wild-card best-of-three that begins Tuesday, Sept. 29.
"We're planning on him not being a part of that," says Boone, who also noted Judge had a platelet-poor plasma injection in the leg.
Aaron Judge injury
Boone told reporters in New York that Judge suffered a "moderate grade" strain of his right calf, which the Vermont Sports Medicine Center defines as the "largest and most variable category" of injury. It falls shy of a Grade III injury which would indicate the calf muscle is torn and almost certainly put Judge out for the entire postseason.
Judge was removed early from the Sept. 16 game in Minnesota. He was working his way back into full playing shape after the extended absence due to his rib fracture.
How will Yankees replace Aaron Judge?
The only silver lining for the Yankees is that they moved aggressively to augment their lineup at the trade deadline due to Judge's original injury. They added both right- and left-handed sluggers in Heliot Ramos and Luis García Jr., with Ramos expected to retain many of the plate appearances Judge might have received in the wild-card series.
Ramos is batting just .172 with a .672 OPS and four home runs in 32 games since his arrival from San Francisco, but he is a former All-Star who hit 22 and 21 home runs in 2024 and 2025.
How will Aaron Judge's injury affect Yankees?
Judge's injury isn't the only one the Yankees have been monitoring. Center fielder Trent Grisham has not played since suffering a hamstring injury Sept. 4. Grisham, who has hit 18 home runs, is not expected to be activated by the end of the regular season, Boone said Sept. 20, but is a possibility to return by the wild-card series.
That would move rookie Spencer Jones out of center field and create an alignment of Grisham and All-Star Cody Bellinger and, likely, a platoon of Ramos and Jones in the third outfield spot. All-Star Ben Rice, whose 39 home runs lead the Yankees, is entrenched in the DH spot, with García and Paul Goldschmidt sharing first base duties.
Will Aaron Judge play in the AL division series?
Should the Yankees advance out of the wild-card series – they are likely to play the Boston Red Sox in the best-of-three shootout for a second consecutive year – the AL division series will begin Saturday, Oct. 3. That would give Judge 17 days of recovery since suffering the calf injury, which would offer no guarantee but obviously enhance the chances.
The AL championship series begins Oct. 12 and the World Series tips off Friday, Oct. 23.
One thing the Philadelphia Flyers hoped not to see in their shortened slate of preseason games was injury, but that was quickly added to their plate in their very first contest.
On Monday, Flyers forward Denver Barkey, who has been establishing himself as a middle-six forward and embracing a new role at the professional level as a center, was forced to leave the team's preseason game against the Washington Capitals with a lower-body injury.
Barkey, 21, appeared to have suffered an injury in a first-period collision with Capitals defenseman Martin Fehervary, and while Barkey did initially return for the second period, his night came to an end after just one more shift.
Flyers head coach Rick Tocchet was unable to provide an update on the injured Barkey in the immediate aftermath of Monday's game, though he had more to share after morning skate ahead of the team's second preseason game against the Boston Bruins on Tuesday night.
"I think he's getting evaluated now, so, yeah, I say day-to-day," Tocchet said Tuesday morning.
"I don't think it's serious. I don't want to put myself out here and the next thing is he's out for four months. But it's not going to be four months. It's just day-to-day, trust me."
Barkey's injury creates more opportunities
In the wake of the injury Barkey suffered against Washington on Monday night, another player who played in that game, Cole Knuble, will be getting a second opportunity in as many nights to continue making his bid for a roster spot.
Knuble, Jett Luchanko, Alex Bump, David Jiricek, Oliver Bonk, and Ty Murchison are among the notable prospects set to play against Boston in the second leg of the back-to-back.
As noted above, Barkey had been getting some burn as a center under the direction of Tocchet, and perhaps that opens up a legitimate possibility for Luchanko to make the NHL roster out of training camp for a third straight year.
Or, it could just define the Flyers' center depth that they already have: Trevor Zegras, Christian Dvorak, Noah Cates, and Sean Couturier.
By the time preseason game No. 3 rolls around on Thursday, we'll know a lot more about Barkey's injury and where all the adjacent pieces stand.
