The Atlanta Braves are looking to avoid a sweep, while the New York Yankees are hoping for a successful outing with Schittler on the mound.
Tune in at 1:35 p.m. ET for the first pitch to watch how this contest unfolds.
It's been more than 25 years since the Ottawa Senators traded Alexei Yashin to the New York Islanders in one of the most important deals in franchise history.
Yashin was the Senators' first real star in the 1990s, and still the only player in team history to be nominated for the Hart Trophy.
But after many seasons of discontent, which included contract complaints, holdouts and claims of broken promises, the Senators, just as they did this summer, traded away their team captain.
And incredibly, it's a trade that still has a chance to pay dividends today.
On June 23, 2001, the Senators sent Yashin to the Islanders in exchange for Zdeno Chara, Bill Muckalt and the second overall pick in the 2001 NHL Draft.
Later that day, the Sens used that #2 pick to select Jason Spezza.
Chara emerged as one of the NHL's top defencemen during his four seasons in Ottawa, while Spezza developed into one of the most talented offensive players in franchise history.
Chara eventually left Ottawa as a free agent in 2006, and Muckalt spent just one season here, so two of the three branches of the Yashin trade tree came to an end a long time ago.
But the Spezza branch is still alive.
Spezza played 11 excellent seasons with the Senators, scoring 251 goals and 687 points in 686 regular-season games. He still ranks second all-time in Sens scoring.
In the summer of 2014, in the proud tradition of Sens captains wanting out, Spezza requested a trade, and Bryan Murray sent him to the Dallas Stars.
The Senators received Alex Chiasson, Nick Paul, Alex Guptill and a 2015 second-round draft pick.
That created four new branches on the Yashin trade tree.
Three eventually came to an end.
Chiasson spent two seasons in Ottawa before being traded to Calgary for Patrick Sieloff, who's best known for clobbering a recovering Clarke MacArthur in a preseason scrimmage. The Senators later flipped Sieloff to Anaheim for Brian Gibbons, who had 14 points in 20 games for the Sens before leaving as a free agent that summer.
Guptill was included in a multi-player trade with Buffalo in 2016 that brought Phil Varone, Jason Akeson and Jerome Gauthier-Leduc to Ottawa. It was strictly a minor league deal that never yielded another asset to the Senators.
The 2015 second-round pick acquired from Dallas also took an interesting path.
Ottawa packaged the 42nd overall selection with another pick to move up to No. 36 in the 2015 draft, where the Senators selected Gabriel Gagne.
Gagne was eventually traded to Toronto in 2019 for former first-rounder Morgan Klimchuk. Klimchuk played one full season in Belleville, then retired at 25.
That left Nick Paul, the fourth and final branch. Teammates would often say, "Nicky Paul does it all," and that apparently included nursing trade trees back to life.
The tree could have easily died at any point when the Sens exposed Paul to waivers on three separate occasions, but he went unclaimed and eventually became a very solid middle-six forward for the Senators.
In a trade that certainly hasn't aged well for Ottawa, the Sens deal Paul to the Tampa Bay Lightning at the 2022 trade deadline for Mathieu Joseph and Tampa Bay's fourth-round pick in the 2024 NHL Draft.
Joseph spent two more full seasons with the Senators before Ottawa traded him to St. Louis in 2024 along with a third-round sweetener just to free up some cap room for some big changes in Ottawa that summer.
That ended the Joseph portion of the tree.
But there was still that 2024 fourth-round pick, a single remaining bud.
The Sens used it to select winger Blake Montgomery, and he's the sole reason why a trade tree that sprouted in 2001 is still alive today.
After falling in the NCAA Final with Wisconsin, the 21-year-old joined the pro ranks late last season, signing his entry-level contract and getting into three games with Belleville.
So, in a nutshell (I've decided the tree has nuts), the history of the Spezza branch looks like this:
Alexei Yashin → 2001 No. 2 pick → Jason Spezza → Nick Paul → 2024 fourth-round pick → Blake Montgomery.
It's one of the more intriguing trade trees in Senators history, and whether it ends with Montgomery or not remains to be seen.
By Steve Warne
The Hockey News
Future Watch: Blake Montgomery Turns Pro With Senators, Then Dazzles With Highlight-Reel AHL Goal Friday NightAfter NCAA heartbreak, then signing with the Sens, Blake Montgomery scored his first AHL goal, showcasing elite speed and a slick finish.This article was first published in The Hockey News. For more Sens coverage at The Hockey News, click on one of the Sens headlines below:
2025 Senators First-Rounder Shares 'Gnarly' Details Of His Long Road Back
Drake Batherson Wins His Club Championship, Taking Trophy From His Dad
Senators Newcomer Recognized For NHL's Best Goal Of The Year
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The latest news and notes about the Houston Astros:
Four times since 1920 has a player led all of MLB in AVG, HR, and RBI. The last player to do it was Mickey Mantle in 1956. 70 years later, Yordan Alvarez is challenging to be the next to do it:
Some Astros top draft picks from this year’s draft are headed to Class A Fayetteville.
After failing to land a quality right-handed outfield bat at the deadline, the Astros still find themselves in search of one. Recently released players like Austin Hays, Rob Refsnyder and Jorge Soler are reported to be on the target list:
Mike Burrows is getting close to making a rehab start at Triple-A Sugar Land:
How Steven Okert went from tragedy to success as “Everyday Okert”:
Peter Lambert’s durability (and sustainability) will be key for Astros down stretch:
Can Cam Smith turn his recent hot streak into continued growth?
Astros owner Jim Crane reportedly refused to trade Bryan Abreu at the deadline. Abreu hasn’t allowed an earned run since July 12. He’s allowed only 7 earned runs since May 1 after allowing 13 earned runs in March/April. Abreu’s velocity also appears to be back to Abreu’s normal range:
After an off day on Saturday to recover from wrist soreness, Mets outfielder Carson Benge is back in the starting lineup for the rubber game against the Pittsburgh Pirates.
Benge jammed his wrist into the left field wall on a spectacular sliding catch in the third inning of Friday's game and left shortly after. After the game, interim manager Andy Green said the rookie's X-rays came back negative as New York avoided an injury scare.
Regardless, the team would wait and see how Benge felt the following day before deciding what to do and sure enough, out of an abundance of caution, Benge was on the bench in the second game of the series.
"Great," Green said regarding how Benge feels. "He’s mad he didn’t play yesterday. His swings look good, he’s moving around fine. Obviously recovered pretty quickly from the collision with the wall so we’re glad to have him back out there. We waited a while to let the lineup out [today], we wanted to see if he was gonna be good to go and he felt great."
Benge is batting cleanup and playing right field with A.J. Ewing sliding over to left field and Luis Robert Jr. in center field.
Not in the lineup is Jorge Polanco, who played the first two games of the series while going 0-for-7. Green said that's where the team is at with Polanco right now, not starting him for more than 2-3 days in a row.
"We’ve been doing that fairly repetitive with him," the skipper said.
Meanwhile, Green also spoke about the plan for Robert Stock, who pitched on Saturday and struggled mightily, going three innings and allowing eight earned runs on nine hits and five walks -- the complete opposite from his season debut against the Miami Marlins on Aug. 2 in which he allowed one run over five innings.
"I think more than likely we’re anticipating him making his next start for us," Green said. "Still kinda being a little bit patient before being fully committed to it, but I think we’re leaning that direction."
Despite having a day off on Thursday next week before hosting a six-game homestand at Citi Field, the Mets are reluctant to skip Stock's turn in the rotation entirely because of the heavy workload that their young starters have already been through this season.
"I don’t think that’s our best choice given the load a lot of the young guys have carried into their first full season in the big leagues," Green said. "So as much as we’d like to get those guys back on the mound quickly, the extra day is good for them."
SP: Sean Manaea – LHP
SP: Jared Jones – RHP
First pitch: 1:35 PM EDT
TV: SNY
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2
The Pittsburgh Pirates are back at home for a weekend series at PNC Park when they take on the New York Mets for the final contest of a three-game set.
Jared Jones is on the bump for the Buccos for the first time since August 4, when he pitched four innings, giving up eight hits and three earned runs as the Pirates lost 4-2 to the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field.
The Mets giving the ball to Sean Manaea, who is 3-5 with a 4.33 ERA so far this season. Manaea has gone back and forth between the bullpen and the starting rotation, but he has been consistently playing as a starter since the middle of June.
Manaea’s last start came against the Cleveland Guardians on August 4, when he pitched six innings, gave up seven hits, and earned a 6-2 victory on the road. Manaea pitched against the Pirates earlier this season on March 29, giving up one hit in 1.1 scoreless innings.
It’s the final matchup of a quick homestand for the Pirates, who will head back out to South Florida for a series against the Marlins in the middle of the week. They want to send the fans home happy with a win.
Location: PNC Park, Pittsburgh, PA
Broadcast: KDKA AM/FM, Sportsnet Pittsburgh
Pitching Matchup: Sean Manaea (3-5, 4.33 ERA) vs. Jared Jones (2-3, 4.02 ERA)
BD community, chime off in the comments section below.
The impossible happened last night: the A’s won a game! The club snapped their 9-game losing streak, getting their first August win while snapping Boston’s winning streak. Fitting. Now the A’s need to prove it wasn’t a one-off and make it two in a row, something the team hasn’t done since before the All-Star Break.
Taking to the hill in this afternoon’s series finale will be right-hander J.T. Ginn, who is set to get the ball for his 21st start. Ginn spent a couple weeks on the IL recently with a blister issue but didn’t seem to miss a beat while he was on the shelf. In his first start back he fired six innings of three-run ball in an eventual loss to the Cincinnati Reds. Hopefully the bullpen won’t waste another fine start from the emerging righty.
Here’s how the Athletics will line up this afternoon for the finale:
Mostly the same lineup as yesterday and why mess with something that worked? The only changes at the top of the lineup are Jonah Heim is catching instead of DH’ing today while Tyler Soderstrom occupies that role with a half-day for the lefty slugger. Jonathan Ornelas will replace him on the grass and bat seventh this afternoon, ahead of third baseman Max Muncy and second baseman Jeff McNeil.
The Red Sox meanwhile have left-hander Erik Miller getting the ball for them today. A deadline acquisition from the San Francisco Giants, Miller is only expected to go an inning or two at most this afternoon before making way for the rest of Boston’s relief unit. Expect to see lots of pitching changes from Boston today.
And Boston’s starting lineup today shakes out like this:
Two in a row? I forgot what that feels like. Let’s make it happen A’s!
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Watch:
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Athletics – Talk 650 KSTE, A’s Cast
Philadelphia was the biggest winner this offseason — landing Jaylen Brown and LeBron James to go with Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid — and with that, there are already a lot of news and rumors around the team heading into the season. Here are a few.
Jaylen Brown is excited to be a 76er and chase a ring in Philadelphia.
That was not his initial reaction. Brown was drafted by Boston, won a championship there and had invested his time and money in the community. He didn't just show up to collect a paycheck. So, unsurprisingly, when he talked at his introductory press conference about getting the call that told him he was traded, he described frustration, with the quote via Noah Levick at NBC Sports Philadelphia.
"When I first (learned) I got traded, I just threw my phone across the room," he said with a laugh... "I think Maxey reached out to me first. He reached out and was like, 'I know it's a lot of stuff going on right now, but we're excited to have you.'"...
"There's been a lot of emotions," he said. "It's been a process. To be honest, I'm still processing to some degree. One, the excitement of coming to a new city, new place, new expectations, new energy. And then also leaving somewhere that you've been for a very, very long time."
One thing that will help with that will be workouts with teammates in the coming weeks, and eventually the start of training camp.
The expectation is that LeBron James will be the "point guard" for Philadelphia this season, although the better way to describe that may be that he will be the one initiating the offense.
Team president Mike Gansey spoke about it on ESPN.
"LeBron's a connector. That's the one thing about him. He fits every role you possibly can. He's gonna elevate everyone in the whole building...
"When LeBron was maybe a possibility, I went back and watched some of the Olympic tape with [Embiid] and LeBron. Those two played pretty well together. We have so many different options. Any given night anyone can be the guy. So I think once we get clicking and get gelling, it's gonna be fun to watch."
Gansey also was honest about needing the first domino to fall before LeBron would come.
"Without getting Jaylen, I don't think we get LeBron."
The 76ers have 14 players on the roster heading into training camp, and that's likely where things will stay. Philadelphia is hard-capped at the first apron and is $1.8 million below that number as it stands, meaning they can't add even a veteran minimum deal right now.
Still, a couple of veterans are throwing their hats in the ring.
Kevin Love's agent has reached out to the 76ers, reports Dave McMenamin at ESPN.
"Though the 6-foot-10 Love and James have remained close since teaming up for four seasons with the Cavaliers and even vacationed extensively together this summer, that bond doesn't necessarily mean there will be a roster spot for the former five-time All-Star by training camp."
Markieff Morris says that roster spot should be his.
Shiddd if it’s anybody getting that last Vet roster spot it’s gonna be me! Philly raised!!! https://t.co/QZPs25JKVR
— Keef Morris (@Keefmorris) August 7, 2026
Again, Philly would have to waive Jabari Walker, who is just partially guaranteed (that's not happening), or trade a player to have the cap space to sign anyone. Don't bet on it. This is the roster entering the season.
Playing some catch-up on roster moves in a busy week, we had resolution for three players were designated for assignment by the Dodgers in the last week.
Wyatt Mills was designated for assignment on Monday when the Dodgers needed to clear 40-man roster space after a flurry of trade deadline deals. On Thursday the right-hander was claimed off waivers by the Washington Nationals, who simultaneously optioned Mills to Triple-A Rochester.
The 31-year-old Mills pitched in six games for the Dodgers this season, his first time in the majors since 2022, after Tommy John surgery wiped out 2023 and 2024.
“A long road, it’s never a guarantee that you get fully healthy after that,” Mills told me after his call-up in May. “So it was more like a deep breath, kind of peaceful. I felt calm. I put in a lot of work, and my confidence came from that.”
Mills struggled in his stints with the Dodgers, with nine walks and five strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings, with five runs allowed, four of them earned. He had a 2.41 ERA and six saves in 33 games for Triple-A Oklahoma City with 52 strikeouts and 18 walks in 37 1/3 innings.
Oklahoma City got a battery back this week after two more players were designated for assignment.
Cole Irvin, who pitched six bulk innings in a reset game at Dodger Stadium on July 31, got designated for assignment one day later. He cleared waivers an was sent outright to Triple-A on August 3. He started and won again for the Comets on Friday night in Salt Lake.
Chuckie Robinson, an intermittent catcher the last two seasons for the Dodgers, started six games in the majors this season. He was designated for assignment on Tuesday when both Ben Rortvedt and Hunter Feduccia were activated one day after getting acquired in separate dealsahead of the trade deadline.
Robinson cleared waivers and was sent outright to Triple-A on Friday. The 31-year-old is hitting .229/.333/.440 in 126 plate appearances for Oklahoma City this season, with 32 games started behind the plate.
The Texas Rangers today purchased the contract of infielder Jonah Bride, the team announced today. To make room for Bride on the active roster, the Rangers optioned outfielder Alejandro Osuna to AAA Round Rock. To make room for Bride on the 40 man roster, the Rangers transferred pitcher Jake Leiter from the 15 day injured list to the 60 day injured list.
Bride is a 30 year old who played for Skip Schumaker in Miami in 2024, when he had a career best season, slashing .276/.357/.461 while playing first, second and third base. He has an overall career .221/.311/.313 line, however, which is why he signed a minor league deal with the Rangers this past offseason and has spent the year at Round Rock.
Bride’s overall slash line for Round Rock is a rather pedestrian .282/.401/.425 in 431 plate appearances this season. However, he has put up a very impressive .388/.473/.669 slash line against lefthanded pitchers, which is why the Rangers, who are kind of desperate for a righthanded bench bat, have brought him up. Interestingly, Bride has reverse splits in the majors for his career, slashing .194/.295/.228 against lefties in 272 plate appearances in the bigs, against .238/.321/.367 against righthanded pitchers.
Osuna has played sparingly as of late, getting just one start in the month of April and mainly being used for pinch hitting duties. He’s not a good fit for the roster, as currently constructed, given that he’s a lefthanded hitting outfielder on the bench, and the Rangers need a righthanded hitting bench outfielder, not a lefthanded hitting one. It seems like this might have been an area the team would have wanted to try to address at the deadline, were it not for the fact that Ray Davis is apparently claiming that the team is po’ like Kenny’s family.
Bride will presumably fill in until Josh Jung returns, assuming Jung does return at some point this season.
The move of Leiter to the 60 day injured list is purely procedural in nature, given that he’s spent close to 60 days on the injured list so far on this stint. He still would seem to be on track to return sometime in late-August or early-September.
After playing poorly in two straight losses, the Phillies will try to salvage the third game of their Alumni Weekend series against the Toronto Blue Jays.
Jesus Luzardo gets the start for the Phillies. The lefty is 10-5 with a 3.36 ERA.
The Blue Jays will go with Shane Bieber. The former All-Star is 3-2 with a 5.11 ERA on the season.
Game time is 1:35 PM and will be televised locally on NBCSP.
Rangers have rejected an offer for striker Youssef Chermiti, with manager Derek McInnes confirming that it did not meet the Scottish Premiership club's valuation.
The 22-year-old striker, who went off injured after starting Saturday's match at home to Hibernian, joined the Ibrox club from Everton in September 2025 as he reportedly became their most expensive purchase since Tore Andre Flo in 2000.
"I'm led to believe the club's valuation of the player hasn't been met," McInnes told BBC Scotland when asked about reports that Turkish champions Galatasaray were the bidders.
"So, from our point of view, like everything else, when you get clubs looking at your players, it's business as you were."
Chermiti, capped at under-21 level by Portugal, has made 43 Rangers appearances, 30 of them starts, scoring 15 goals.
"It's no surprise that he's a player who's got a big tag on him and he's got high potential, but thankfully he's our player and that will continue to be the case," McInnes said.
"We're trying to build a team here at the minute and we're trying to still bring additions to the team that helps us add to the good players that we've got, including Youssef.
"So it's not something we would encourage at any point and, as I say, obviously news has broken today, but we're just trying to concentrate on the game today."
Rangers have made nine signings already this summer after the arrival of McInnes from Heart of Midlothian and he is hoping to add more.
"We've got a few bids in for several players and a few things are ongoing at the minute, but everything else, ideally a lot of these things would have came to fruition a wee bit quicker," he added.
"But hopefully, if there is any news to tell, it'll be in the upcoming days on a few of our targets."
After that brutal road trip, these last two wins have been a massive boost for the Nats. Now they will look for only their second sweep of the season this afternoon against the Reds. The only other sweep was against another NL Central team in the Brewers, so maybe that is a good luck charm.
The Nats actually have the same 9 players in the lineup today. However, the order is mixed up a bit. Jose Tena will be up in the 3 spot, while Dylan Crews moves down to the 5 hole. Keibert Ruiz will also move down in the order. The Nats have a bullpen game today which will be started by Brad Lord, but all hands are on deck.
The Reds are making a couple changes with a righty opener on the mound. Hector Rodriguez will return to the lineup. Tyler Stephenson will also be the catcher in this one. Left handed JJ Bleday will move up in the lineup while righties like Eugenio Suarez and Dane Myers will move down. The veteran sinkerballer Brady Singer is on the bump.
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Game Info:
Stadium: Nationals Park
Time: 12:15 PM EST
TV: Peacock and NBCSN
Radio: 106.7 The Fan
Getting a sweep would be a major statement for the Nats. It would show that this team has no plans of fading into oblivion. The Wild Card is a real long shot now, but with a real winning streak you never know. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!
Tomáš Nosek is going home.
After 11 seasons and stops with five different NHL teams, the former Vegas Golden Knights forward appears ready to close out his professional career where his hockey journey began.
Nosek has signed with HC Dynamo Pardubice of the Czech Extraliga in recent weeks, returning to his hometown club after more than a decade in North America.
For Golden Knights fans, Nosek will always have a special place in the franchise's early history. He joined Vegas for its inaugural 2017-18 season and spent four seasons with the Golden Knights, appearing in 240 games and recording 31 goals, 34 assists and 65 points.
Nosek was never expected to be a star in Vegas, but he became a reliable part of the team's bottom six and played 240 games for a franchise that was still establishing its identity. He brought size, versatility and a willingness to do the less glamorous work that comes with playing a depth role in the NHL.
After his time with the Golden Knights, Nosek continued his career with several other NHL clubs before eventually landing with the Florida Panthers.
His final two NHL seasons couldn't have ended much better.
Nosek helped Florida win the Stanley Cup during the 2024-25 season, appearing in 16 playoff games and recording three assists while throwing 44 hits during the Panthers' championship run.
He returned for one more NHL season in 2025-26, appearing in 21 games and finishing with two goals and two assists for four points.
Now, at 33 years old, Nosek is heading home.
A native of Pardubice, Nosek joined HC Dynamo Pardubice's system in 2007, beginning with the club's U18 team. Nearly two decades later, he's returning to the organization as a Stanley Cup champion and a veteran of 11 NHL seasons.
It's a fitting ending for a player who never forgot where he came from.
When Nosek got his day with the Stanley Cup following Florida's championship, he made sure to bring it back to Pardubice. He visited his childhood rink and former high school before eventually sharing the trophy with thousands of people in the city's historic Pernštýnské Square.
Now, after playing for five NHL teams, winning a Stanley Cup and building a career that lasted 11 seasons in the world's best hockey league, Nosek appears ready for one final chapter in his hometown.
And if this is indeed the end of the road, he couldn't have picked a better place to finish it.
The stage is set as the Atlanta Braves look to avoid a sweep against the New York Yankees.
Let’s take a look at the lineups.
Dominic Smith has returned to DH for the Braves and is batting in the sixth spot. Other than that, the lineup replicates yesterday’s. The bat power is expected (or hoped) to show up in a big way today with Grant Holmes on the mound, but the Braves will have to strike while the iron is hot and get a head start in setting the tone.
Ryan McMahon and Jazz Chisolm Jr. have been added back to the Yankees lineup. McMahon averages a 1.500 OPS against Holmes and a .400 batting average, while Luis García Jr. averages an OPS of 1.300.
Cam Schlittler, who will be leading the Yankees on the mound, is no joke and will be looking to bounce back from his off outing against St. Louis. The Braves are just looking for a win before they return home to face their division rivals, who also happen to be right across the subway.
First pitch is set for 1:35 p.m. ET