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Well, these were back-to-back games that made you want to slam your head in a wall, but that’s baseball, right? In a game that traded leads a couple of times — including an absolutely ridiculous, three-run homer from Tommy Pham — Cleveland had the last laugh once again, as a four-run sixth inning gave the Guardians a three-run lead that held up, 6-3.

Lefthander Anthony Kay tossed a solid outing despite two unearned runs in his box score. In his four innings, Kay only surrendered two hits with two walks while striking out three, and was throwing GAS today. The lefty typically averages around 95-96 mph for both his sinker and fastball, but today was hanging in the upper-90s, topping out at 99.2 mph while tossing three of the fastest pitches in the game. On top of that, his changeup had a bit more spin on it today that added about a two-inch increase horizontal break, which got batters to whiff every time they swung at it (3-of-7) at a 42% called-strike-plus whiff rate (CSW%).

Both runs that scored in the bottom of the third were due to an error made by Chase Meidroth while attempting to turn a double play. Petey Halpin led the inning off with a base hit, and with one out, Steven Kwan hit a grounder to Chase at second, who seemingly had an easy double play to tag Halpin and toss it over to first to get Kwan. Meidroth probably should have made the tag with two hands to ensure that he at least got ONE out, but the ball flew out of the glove as he tagged Halpin, which allowed the rookie to move into scoring position.

Kay was able to work soft contact out of José Ramírez to get the second out of the inning, although unable to get the much-needed double-play ball. Let us be reminded that errors and walks will always kill, and sadly the Meidroth error came back to haunt the South Siders as Jo Adell ripped a two-run base hit out to left to take a two-run lead.

After working through that brief chaotic period, Kay settled down and was able to work through the fourth without too much issue. The southpaw had used just 66 pitches through four, and it felt like a bit of a panicked move for Will Venable to decide to go to the bullpen early, in the fifth, to bring lefthander Hagen Smith in. With the way Kay was throwing today, he seemed to definitely have at least one more inning in him before needing to rely on the bullpen. But we could debate this until we are blue in the face, and either way, the White Sox lost the game.

On the other end of the ball, the White Sox had actually outhit the Guardians this game, 8-5. The issue, however, for the billionth time this season (don’t fact-check me, but I’m sure it’s a close estimate), the team could not execute with runners in scoring position: 1-for-8 while stranding eight runners. In fact, the White Sox mashed seven of those eight against Parker Messick in his six innings, but also struck out eight times along the way.

Their lack of ability to score in the first inning after Randal Grichuk smoked a one-out triple set the tone early. Once again Miguel Vargas simply needed to make some contact — any contact would have been a good start! — but he struck out on a high pitch out of the zone, and Tommy Pham grounded out to end the frame, in his first plate appearance after elevator-lobbying his way into the game.

The South Siders loaded the bases up in the fourth with base hits from Vargas and Brenton Doyle, and Colson Montgomery was hit by a pitch in the wrist for the third base runner with … Luisangel Acuña up to bat. It was not lost on me that it was just the fourth inning, but having that meaningful of an opportunity and letting Acuña take the plate appearance feels … icky. The AB ended just as you’d expect, too, with a ground out to the shortstop to end the inning. Pain. The only good news in this situation is that Montgomery’s X-rays came back negative, and he will be day-to-day.

All game, Meidroth was attempting to start a rally, going 3-for-5 on the day with a two-bagger, marking his fifth hit in the last two games from the leadoff position (5-for-10). Outside of the rally in the fifth that scored all three South Side runs, the rest of the lineup just could not come through in the clutch. Except Tommy. Freaking. Pham.

If you were like me, you were probably punching the air while yelling about the bonkers decision that GM Chris Getz and Venable made to bat Pham in the cleanup position in his first game off of the IL. Especially given that, prior to today’s game, he has had exactly ONE (1) at-bat in MLB since APRIL, and has been on the injured list since then. Meidroth and Grichuk worked back-to-back base hits with one out in the top of the fifth, looking to ignite the offense with Vargas coming up to bat. Vargas was likely looking for another fastball, but ended up getting way too out front on a changeup and flew out to right, bringing none other than Pham up with two outs. The 38-year-old had hit the ball hard (104.4 mph) in his first at-bat, but in the inning prior he went down on strikes after staring at a fastball down the middle; needless to say the confidence in him producing wasn’t really there.

But Pham proved us all wrong. On the very first pitch, he blasted a three-run, no-doubt bomb to give the Sox a one-run lead, 3-2, completely turning the game on its head and rendering me speechless. I’m sure he saw people talking smack and knew the consensus around his addition to the lineup was generally negative, so naturally he rose to the occasion to prove everyone wrong. I will stand on 10 toes to say that I was absolutely someone that was not a fan of Pham being selected to bat fourth in a must-win game, but TOMMY, I WAS WRONG: 412-feet with a loud crack off of the bat … bravo. This is the type of psychopathic behavior that we love to see.

That truly could have been the magical home run that saved the White Sox season, but alas, they couldn’t maintain the lead, and the game became un-fun in about 10-15 minutes. Pham’s malevolent homer flashed the clutch, home-run hitting White Sox that we’ve seen all season, but it’s such a brutal punch to the gut knowing that a guy with a Backyard Baseball name like Petey Halpin crushed the South Side momentum like a tiny little lego under a hydraulic press.

As the game moved into the bottom of the fifth, Smith came in and was able to get through the frame despite José Ramírez hitting the first of two doubles on the day. But as has been the case each game this series, things started to go haywire in the sixth. Smith managed to get two outs, but his two walks ended up coming back to bite Chicago. The worst part, truly, is that Smith surrendered walks to David Gry and Austin Hedged, who are better matchups ahead of potential killers such as Brayan Rocchio in the 9-hole.

Instead of letting the southpaw face Halpin as the 8-hitter, Venable turned to the third lefty of the game, and Sean Newcomb was chosen to try to clean up Smith’s mess and escape the inning with the lead. As good as Newcomb has been, he was immediately rocked for a three-run homer from Halpin. Petey was batting just .029 against southpaws in 40 plate appearances with a -76 wRC+ and a .108 OPS. Smith has been throwing some nasty pitches, and could potentially have been a better match against the rookie outfielder. Again, everything is in hindsight so who knows, maybe the Halpin homer was as destined as Pham’s.

Newcomb has been excellent all season, but unfortunately the Guardians beat him today. On a 3-1 count, Newcomb served up a sinker that hung mostly down the middle of the plate, and Halpin turned on the pitch and blasted a three-run shot to right, handing the lead back over to Cleveland, 5-3.

Newcomb walked both Rocchio and Kwan to put two runners on for Ramírez, who knocked his second double of the game to score an insurance run for the Guardians, completely erasing Pham’s miraculous homer. After the Ramírez RBI, Venable went to the bullpen for the second time in the inning, and thankfully Jordan Hicks was able to strike Adell out to get out of the inning. In his one appearance this series, Hicks was ready when we needed him most, but that was all for today.

For the final two frames, lefthander Noah Schultz made his first relief appearance of the season, and his first MLB outing since early August. Schultz was solid for both innings, and retired all six Cleveland batters that he faced in order to keep the White Sox at just a three-run deficit.

Both Kyle Teel and Munetaka Murakami — in for Colson — drew walks to put two runners on with two outs in the eighth, giving the South Siders another chance to get back in the game. You better believe it, Acuña was due up to bat again in a huge situation, but Sam Antonacci pinch-hit for him after the Guardians brought in Cade Smith. The Matrix had already glitched once earlier in the game for the Pham homer, and maybe in another timeline Antonacci blasts the game-tying bomb — but not in this one.

The Good Guys went down in order in the top of the ninth, giving Smith his 37th save of the season after 1 1/3 innings, striking out the first and last batter of the inning to slam the door on the White Sox. We all knew Chicago needed to win AT LEAST one game this series. They did that, and they have the tiebreaker. That’s all cool and fun, but wow, these last two games were truly heartbreaking.

Chicago will head back home tonight with a sour taste in their mouths, but there’s still a way into the postseason, despite how flat it feels after these three in Cleveland. Righthander Erick Fedde is set to go against Framber Valdez of the Detroit Tigers as they kick off a four-game set in the Southside jerseys, honoring Tim Anderson’s career with the White Sox.

I’m gonna go cry now. Let’s try again tomorrow, I guess.

MVP
Tommy Pham: 1-for-4, R, 3 RBI, HR, K

Runners-Up
Anthony Kay: 4 IP, 2 H, 2 R (0 ER), 2 BB, 3 K
Randal Grichuk: 2-for-5, R, K, 3B
Chase Meidroth: 3-for-5, R, 2B, E (cost 2 R)
Noah Schultz: 2 IP, 0 H

Cold-Cat
Sean Newcomb: 0 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K, Blown Save (2)

Runners-Up
Hagen Smith: 1 2/3 IP, H, 2 R, 2 BB, 2 K, LOSS (3-2)
Luisangel Acuña: 0-for-3, K
Tristan Peters: 0-for-4, K
Chase Meidroth: 3-for-5, R, 2B, E (cost 2 R)

Go Rays!

The Nats handed the Phillies a damaging loss last night. They will look to repeat the trick tonight. The Phillies need this game for their playoff push, so they will come out with a point to prove tonight. However, these Nats have been playing good baseball at home lately.

Blake Butera is loading his lineup with lefties tonight. Dylan Crews is the only right handed hitter in the lineup. That means the likes of James Wood, CJ Abrams, Daylen Lile and Keibert Ruiz are back. We will also see Abi Ortiz and Jose Tena get starts. Jared Simpson will be the opener in a bullpen game.

The Phillies are making a couple changes at the bottom of their order. With a righty likely to get bulk work, lefties Brandon Marsh and Justin Crawford will be in the 8 and 9 spot. Otherwise it is the same cast of characters as last night. The Phillies turn to another ace with Zack Wheeler on the bump.

Game Info:

Stadium: Nationals Park

Time: 6:45 PM EST

TV: Nationals.TV

Radio: 106.7 The Fan

There are only 10 games left in the season now. The Nats will look to get their most wins in a season since 2019 tonight. They also have a shot to win their 5th game in a row. Follow along in the comments down below and let’s go Nats!

Mets lineup

Francisco Lindor – SS
Juan Soto – LF
Bo Bichette – 3B
Carson Benge – RF
Jared Young – 1B
Marcus Semien – 2B
A.J. Ewing – CF
Brett Baty – DH
Luis Torrens – C

SP: Xzavion Curry – RHP

Orioles lineup

Dylan Beavers – LF
Pete Alonso – 1B
Gunnar Henderson – SS
Coby Mayo – DH
Christian Encarnacion-Strand – 3B
Samuel Basallo – C
Jeremiah Jackson – 2B
Rece Hinds – RF
Colton Cowser – CF

SP: Chris Bassitt – RHP

First pitch: 7:10 PM EDT
TV: ESPN
Radio: Audacy Mets Radio WHSQ 880AM, Audacy App, 92.3 HD2

It’s been less than 24 hours since the Brewers clinched their fourth straight NL Central title, and their visiting locker room at PNC Park probably still smells like champagne. The Brewers are still playing for postseason positioning, though; they remain just two games up on the Dodgers for the top record (and homefield advantage) in the National League, and while they’ve built some cushion (5.5 games as of today) between themselves and the Braves, the Brewers still need to see things out to ensure that they can skip the Wild Card round.

While we might expect to see a little bit of a letup on the throttle (have you seen those gas prices?), tonight still offers a fun matchup between two excellent young pitchers. On the mound for the Brewers is Logan Henderson, the clear number two on the Brewers’ roster heading into the postseason. Henderson is making his 17th start, and looks to improve on what are some of the best rate stats in the league this season. Henderson’s remarkable run continues as he has not allowed more than three runs in any start all season, and has allowed even three just twice.

For the Pirates, it’ll be Jared Jones making his 18th start this year. It’s been a mixed bag for Jones in his age-24 season, but he’s on a roll in September: in 13 innings across two starts, he’s allowed just four hits and hasn’t allowed a run while striking out 17. Jones has an electric arm and he seems to be rounding back into form after missing all of 2025, so the Brewers will have their work cut out for them.

In the first version of Milwaukee’s lineup tonight, Garrett Mitchell was included, but he was a late scratch with “neck tightness.” Given the celebration last night, I’m not going to worry about it unless it lingers past tomorrow. Luis Lara will start in his place in center field, with Jackson Chourio and Jake Bauers flanking him. Andrew Vaughn is at first base, while Joey Ortiz is at third and Brice Turang at second. After missing last night’s game with illness, Cooper Pratt is back in the lineup. William Contreras is catching.

First pitch is at 5:40 pm on Brewers TV and the Brewers Radio Network.

When Shohei Ohtani hitting off a tee is positive news, you know you're in trouble.

The Los Angeles Dodgers can clinch their 13^th NL West crown in 14 years when they play the Reds in Cincinnati Wednesday, Sept. 16. But they have never looked so vulnerable with the playoffs set to begin in less than two weeks.

Freddie Freeman, the Dodgers' All-Star first baseman, missed two games recently for tendinitis in his right knee. His bat has been ailing, too. He’d gone 1-for-26 before finally breaking out Tuesday while going 3-for-5.

The optimist will point out the Dodgers have won 10 of their last 12 games. But during that stretch, they have piled up victories against subpar teams.

Whether Los Angeles is equipped to beat the best teams in baseball remains to be seen. After all, in August the Dodgers suffered three-game sweeps to the Chicago Cubs, the Boston Red Sox and the Atlanta Braves. They also lost three of four games to the Milwaukee Brewers.

Those are the caliber of teams the Dodgers have to beat to become the first National League club to win three straight World Series titles.

“Nobody wants to win anymore.” That was the only slightly hyperbolic thought that entered my mind as the Yankees and Twins engaged in an utter slog, the first act of which took the form of a normal Yankee loss. The Bombers trailed Minnesota 2-0 entering the ninth inning, before a heroic two-run double from Anthony Volpe brought everything back to square one. Volpe’s hit was a rousing moment—but friends, the torment was only beginning.

The Yankees took a pair of flimsy one-run leads in the 10th and 11th innings, and quickly blew them both. They then loaded the bases with nobody out in the 12th, and failed to score. In the 13th, they went down quietly, and the Twins won 5-4 on a misplayed ground ball by George Lombard Jr.

It almost feels like an afterthought now, but Aaron Judge left this game in the sixth inning with what was described as “lower right leg tightness.” Stay tuned for more updates on the Captain’s status as the Yankees prepare to fly to the desert.

If Carlos Rodón wanted to complete six or more innings for the second straight start, he would need to regroup from a busy first inning, in which he threw 24 pitches and surrendered the opening run on a single by veteran Josh Bell. The rally was catalyzed by leadoff man Luke Keaschall, who worked back from 0-2 down to slap a single. He then scored from second on Bell’s hit, though Cody Bellinger’s throw from left field nearly nabbed him at the dish.

Meanwhile, the young righty Zebby Matthews had Yankees hitters in a blender with his fastball-slider combo. He worked five spotless innings against New York, whose best opportunity to that point came in the third. Aaron Judge, after striking out in the first, came back up with two on and two out, but swung through Matthews’ fastball to retire the side. On the opening pitch of the at-bat, Judge checked his swing and appeared to grimace afterward. He struck out, played the field for the next few innings, then exited the game before his next at-bat. More on that later.

The Twins tacked on in the fifth. Second baseman Ryan Kreidler ambushed Rodón on his first pitch of the inning and sent it hurtling out to the seats in left for a 2-0 Minnesota lead. A double from rookie Ben Ross gave them another opportunity to add to their lead, but the Yanks forced him out between third and home. Then García made another fine play, sprawling to the ground and picking a sharp ground ball to retire the side.

The sixth inning brought the bad omen of Heliot Ramos entering off the bench to hit for Judge. At this point, we’re well past the point where an early exit from the game is normal. As anxiety mounted about the status of the Captain, Zebby Matthews completed yet another scoreless inning.

Rodón rallied to complete those six innings; they certainly weren’t the cleanest he’s ever tossed. Aaron Boone paid him a visit with one out in the sixth, but Carlos lobbied to stay in, and the skipper listened. He induced a flyout from Royce Lewis, then struck out Rodriguez to finish his day. He threw a season-high 102 pitches, striking out five and working around four hits and three walks. His season ERA is 2.95.

Clarke Schmidt made his long awaited return to the Majors in the seventh. He struck out Kreidler to begin his relief outing, then surrendered a pair of singles to get in a jam. He fell behind Austin Martin 3-0, but rallied to punch him out even as a double steal put two runners in scoring position. Boone took him out to keep him from throwing too many high-stress pitches in his first game back, and Brent Headrick got the final out to keep any runs from landing on his tab. His slider wasn’t obeying, but there were plenty of positive signs too. I’m looking forward to seeing more from Clarke in the Arizona series.

The Yankees got a late rally going in the eighth inning, loading the bases for Luis García Jr. with two outs against A.J. Minter. The veteran lefty reliever prevailed, however, striking García out with a high fastball to waste what appeared to be New York’s best shot to come back.

Following that missed opportunity, we learned the reason for Judge’s exit: right lower leg tightness. To my ear, that sounds like an ailment that shouldn’t result in a return to the injured list—but the Yankees are being understandably cautious with their franchise player. We’ll have more as additional information emerges.

Old friend Yoendrys Gómez entered in the ninth to close the Yankees out, and met more resistance. George Lombard Jr. poked a single with one out, then Paul Goldschmidt followed with a hit of his own. He exited for pinch runner José Caballero, putting plenty of speed on the bases and setting the table for Volpe. The Jersey boy played hero in Twinkie Town, blasting a ball off the high wall in right center field to score both runners and tie the game with New York down to their final out.

Volpe definitely thought he’d hit it out—and indeed it would have left Yankee Stadium comfortably—but it stood as a two-run double. Bellinger was unable to extend the rally which might have brought the Fox home, so it was up to Paul Blackburn to hold up his end and give the Bombers a chance to complete the sweep in extras. Blackburn obliged, and we went to the 10th. Little did we know Volpe’s big knock would condemn us to an interminable sequence of baseball, which Ramos began the inning with a swinging bunt to advance Bellinger, the Manfred man, to third. Then, of all people, Ali Sánchez came up in the cleanup spot and swatted a single past a drawn-in infield to bring Bellinger home and give the Yankees their first lead of the day. However, they failed to add on more runs—giving the Twins a chance to immediately respond.

And respond they did, as the pesky Keaschall singled off David Bednar to tie the game right back up. As another opening graf for this recap was unceremoniously mothballed, Bednar rebounded to strike out Ryan Jeffers and induce a twin killing from Bell.

The Bombers again only managed one tally in the 11th on a Caballero sacrifice fly, before Lewis decided two could play at that game and popped a sac fly of his own to even it back up at 4. Bednar refused to let this extremely-cool-and-good-extra-innings-ping-pong-match-that-everybody-loved-watching end, sentencing us to the 12th inning with a strikeout of Kreidler.

And suffering was indeed on the menu. The Yankees found a way to load the bases with nobody out—the kind of scenario where they might grab more than one run. A novel concept, I know. But Ramos, who I remind you was hitting in Judge’s spot, tapped into an elusive 1-2-3 double play. Some players just find a way. Sánchez was not about to play hero—he struck out to strand two runners in scoring position.

If you thought that was embarrassing, though, don’t worry. The Twins didn’t want to win either. Kreidler got himself picked off at second by John Schreiber, then Keaschall rolled into a 6-4-3 DP. I sure hope you wanted another inning of this!

There was only one more inning of whatever-this-was coming, mercifully. The Yankees failed to bring Sánchez home from second in the top of the 13th, then the game ended in one of the only way it could have ended: a bad misplay on defense. Veteran Victor Caratini came up in a pinch-hit spot and tapped a grounder off the mound toward second base. Lombard misjudged the hop and let the ball slip past him and into center field, scoring the winning run at long last. An ugly end to an ugly game, as the Yankees let the sweep slip away.

Thankfully, the Yankees have the day off tomorrow. That’ll be good news for this pitching staff, which had to run a marathon to keep them in it. Then on Friday night, the Yankees will open up a three-game weekend series against the Diamondbacks. Gerrit Cole will get the ball for a 9:40 p.m. first pitch on YES.

Box Score

MINNEAPOLIS — With a single pinch hitter, the outcome of Wednesday afternoon’s game suddenly felt a whole lot less relevant. 

Because Aaron Judge was the hitter being replaced in a two-run game, coming off an off-day, in his seventh game back from missing three-plus months with a stress fracture in his right rib. 

The Yankees lost 5-4 to the Twins in 13 innings at Target Field, but whether they lost more than that remains to be seen after Judge exited early with what the team said was right lower leg tightness. 

Neither Judge nor Aaron Boone would specify which part of the leg was the issue, or if he would be going for tests Thursday, though the back-to-back AL MVP later added, “probably not.” 

Judge said he felt the tightness while playing right field in the bottom of the first inning and initially tried to stick it out before deciding to say something about it after the fifth inning, at which point he was pinch hit for in the top of the sixth. 

“Tried to play it off and see how long we could go, because these games are important down the stretch,” Judge said. “But kind of talking it over, I thought it’d be the right move to come out so we don’t cost the team in the field or cost the team on the basepaths.” 

Judge has the benefit of an off-day Thursday, when he will continue to get treatment, but it was not immediately clear whether that would be enough to get him back in the Yankees lineup Friday against the Diamondbacks. 

“Obviously he’s a key figure to what we do,” Boone said. “Hopefully we get it treated and knock it out and [he can] be a factor at some point.” 

With 10 games left in the regular season, the Yankees (88-64) can ill afford to lose Judge again. They trail the Rays by four games for the division, ahead of Tampa’s game Wednesday night, but getting Judge back healthy in time for the playoffs outweighs whether or not they have to settle for the top AL wild card. 

The Yankees had been fairly cautious in easing Judge back into action after his extended absence and not going on a rehab assignment before returning. He had two days fully out of the lineup across his first six games, the most recent one coming Tuesday after he had played four straight games. That came on the back of hitting his first home run Monday night, when the Yankees clinched a playoff berth. 

Still, Judge having to exit Wednesday’s game early — after being unhappy about only playing six innings in his first game off the IL last week — was telling. 

“We’re still trying to ramp up, so there’s going to be little things like this that come up,” said Judge, who appeared to be hobbling in the field in the bottom of the fifth inning. “Just thought it’d be best, instead of pushing through it like I normally do and it might become a little worse, to get somebody who’s ready to go in there. Just trying to do what’s best for the team.” 

Judge likened it to dealing with nagging things every spring training while ramping up, which he had avoided during his comeback from the rib injury until Wednesday. 

“Hopefully it’s just one little thing and we’re back out there soon,” Judge said. 

Long after Judge was gone, the Yankees added insult to injury. Anthony Volpe tied the game in the ninth inning with a two-out, two-run double before the Yankees scored the automatic runner in the 10th and 11th innings. But they could not make it stand up either time, and then after not scoring with the bases loaded and no outs in the 12th, ultimately lost in the bottom of the 13th when Victor Caratini hit a ground ball up the middle that bounced under George Lombard Jr.’s glove, allowing the winning run to score for the Twins (71-81). 

And while it may have put another dent in the Yankees’ chances of chasing down the Rays for the division, that paled in comparison to the nightmare thought of Judge having to miss time again with the postseason less than two weeks away. 

“It’s never good when the best player on your team comes out of the lineup,” said Carlos Rodón, who allowed two runs in six innings. “Obviously I’m hoping he’s going to be OK.”

Prior to Wednesday night's rubber match game against the Orioles, Mets interim manager Andy Green provided a few injury updates and discussed Francisco Alvarez's recent struggles...

Confidence in Alvy

Alvarez is scuffling. 

The Mets backstop is riding the bench Wednesday in favor of Luis Torrens. 

Without an off day this week, Green thought it best to sit Alvarez for the series finale with Baltimore, and although the catcher is 1-for-9 in this series and batting .148 (4-27) over his last seven games, the Mets still believe in him.

"He has so much talent. We are going to continue to believe in him. For the rest of this season, he will continue to have at-bats, opportunity to play," Green said of Alvarez. "We have faith and confidence the performance will reflect what it has for the majority of his career: someone who has a ton of pop, has had a ton of big swings.

"Just like A.J. Ewing did, went through a tough stretch, we expect him to rebound from that tough stretch. We have confidence in Alvy and will continue to cheer him on, have great at-bats and finish the season strong. He’s put in real work with the hitting coaches and no one wants it more than he does."

Alvarez's struggles go beyond the last week. Over his last 15 games, Alvarez is batting .176 (9-for-51) with two home runs and 22 strikeouts. The 24-year-old is slashing .228/.310/.392 with an OPS of .702 to go along with 15 home runs and 37 RBI across 106 games. 

His 121 strikeouts are a career high, and if the season ended today, his SLG and OPS would be career lows. 

Duarte's season over

The Mets placed Daniel Duarte on the 15-day IL with a left hamstring strain Wednesday. The right-hander suffered the injury trying to cover home plate in extra innings in Tuesday night's loss. 

With the 15-day designation and not many games left, Duarte's season is officially over but Green praised the reliever's season.

"He’s had such a good season. He’s done so many good things," Green said. "It’s a tough loss; we don’t think it’s anything serious long term and he’ll ultimately be back. It’s a tough way for your season to come to a close. Just really impressed with the way he competed this year and a tough way to end the season."

Duarte made 24 appearances for the Mets this season, pitching to a 2.12 ERA and a 0.81 WHIP, and converting two saves in three opportunities.

Stock down

The other injury designation on Wednesday was Robert Stock landing on the IL with finger numbness, which Green says is a residual from Thoracic Outlet Syndrome and has been feeling it for a little while. The team was optimistic Stock could make this last start, but after last night's extra-inning loss and the strain on the bullpen, the Mets felt it best to IL him now.

"Maybe the most unique individual I’ve been around in baseball," Green said of Stock. "He’s hungry to learn, hungry to grow, challenge norms and he has good stuff....Enjoy him very much."

The 36-year-old has had his ups and downs, but he helped stabilize the rotation following some trade deadline departures. 

In eight appearances (seven starts), he's pitched to a 5.93 ERA and a 1.75 WHIP. 

With Stock out of the rotation, Green says the rotation will stay intact with the off day coming Monday before the Rangers series. The Mets will roll out the young four (Nolan McLean, Zac Thornton, Christian Scott and Jonah Tong) in the Phillies series and that will be the rotation, with Sean Manaea in the mix as well to wrap up the 2026 season.

Big Wheel keeps on turnin' as Phillies get back on winning track originally appeared on NBC Sports Philadelphia

WASHINGTON – This was a game the Phillies had to win. They had lost eight of 12 coming in. The losing prompted Kyle Schwarber to deliver a postgame pep talk through the media the night before. The Phils had one of their aces on the mound. They were facing a cast of relievers from the Washington Nationals, a team 10 games under .500 with the second-worst bullpen in the majors.

Repeat: This was a game the Phillies had to win.

And that’s just what they did. It wasn’t the prettiest win, at least from an offensive standpoint, but the Phillies did manage to beat the Nationals, 3-0, on Wednesday night to earn a split of a quick, two-game series before heading off to New York for four games with the Mets.

In need of something to feel good about in the starting rotation after Jesus Luzardo was placed on the injured list Tuesday and Cristopher Sanchez struggled in a 6-3 loss hours later, the Phils got it from Zack Wheeler. The 36-year-old right-hander was efficient and effective in firing seven shutout innings.

Wheeler has fully recovered from the second-half slump that saw him pitch to a 8.51 ERA in a six-start span from July 27 to August 24. In four starts since then, he has allowed just three runs in 26 innings. The Phillies have won all four games.

The victory left the Phillies at 84-68 with 10 games to play. They will open their series in New York on Thursday night no worse than second in the NL wild-card race.

Wheeler, who is 13-5 with a 2.99 ERA, is scheduled to make two more starts before the regular season ends. His final start would come on the last day of the regular season. The Phils would love to sew up a playoff spot before then so he could skip that start and take the mound for the playoff opener two days later.

Wheeler scattered four hits and a walk. He struck out five. He finished his night with a strikeout of Dylan Crews on a 96.6 mph fastball. He threw an economical 91 pitches. Jose Alvarado and Jhoan Duran completed the shutout.

The Nationals started rookie Jared Simpson in a bullpen game. He walked four batters and gave up a hit in the first inning as the Phillies ran out to a 2-0 lead. Alec Bohm had an RBI single and Bryson Stott drew a bases-loaded walk in the inning. Luis Arraez followed a Bryce Harper single with an RBI double in the seventh to complete the scoring. In all, Washington pitchers walked an obscene total of 13 batters. The Phillies could have done more — they should have done more — but they had only five hits. They were 1 for 10 with runners in scoring position and left 13 men on base.

(More coming…)

The Tigers’ winning streak ended at six as they lost to the Jays 5-1.

On Wednesday afternoon, the Tigers were hoping to continue their winning streak by sweeping the Blue Jays. To get the job done, they had new dad Keider Montero on the mound, up against old friend Max Scherzer for the Jays.

Colt Keith got things going for the Tigers with a two-out double in the top of the first. A Riley Greene single then brought Keith home and put the Tigers on the board nice and early.

In the home half Brett Bateman singled to start the inning. With one out, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. singled. Two outs then followed, ending the threat and leaving two men stranded.

Heading into the second, Brett Callahan took a two-out walk, but the Tigers weren’t able to convert the run. In the bottom of the inning, Brandon Valenzuela singled, followed by a Myles Straw single. A third out ended the inning with no runs scored.

Kevin McGonigle got a leadoff single to start the third. However, with one out, McGonigle tried to steal second and was tagged out for the second out of the inning. Colt Keith then walked, but a Riley Greene out ended the inning. In the home half, Guerrero Jr. got a one-out walk, but George Springer hit into a double play to end the inning.

In the top of the fourth, Spencer Torkelson took a two-out walk, but the Tigers weren’t able to extend their lead. In the bottom of the inning, Kazuma Okamoto got a leadoff single, then Josh Smith doubled, sending Okamoto to third. An Ernie Clement sac fly scored Okamoto and tied up the game 1-1. With two outs, Smith had advanced to third, then Straw singled, bringing in another run and putting the Jays in the lead. Straw was then caught stealing to end the inning.

The Tigers went 1-2-3 in the top of the fifth. The day was done for Montero after the rough showing in the fourth. His final line was 4.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K on 89 pitches. He was replaced by Tyler Holton. Bateman singled, then advanced to second thanks to a sac bunt by Nathan Lukes. The Jays got runners on the corners after Guerrero Jr. hit into a force out that got Lukes out at second but advanced Bateman to third. Springer then singled to bring in another run. Okamoto grounded into a double play to end the inning. The Jays were leading 3-1 at the end of five.

Mason Fluharty replaced Scherzer after five innings of solid work from the veteran. Fluharty got the Tigers out in order. Drew Sommers came out to pitch in the home half. Clement reached on a fielding error by John Peck. Valenzuela then reached on a fielder’s choice and a throwing error by Peck allowed Clement to score and Valenzuela to end up safely at second. Myles Straw then reached on a fielding error by McGonigle, and three errors in a row is some pretty inexcusable fielding for a team hoping to make a last-ditch bid for the postseason, just saying. Bateman hit into a force out that eliminated Straw. Lukes then hit a soft single right back at Sommers, allowing Valenzuela to score. A third out finally ended the inning, but it was a rough one for the Tigers.

Spencer Miles was the next reliever out of the Jays’ pen. Torkelson got a one-out single, but the Tigers were not able to bring him home, as two outs followed. Tyler Kinley came in for the Tigers in the home half, and for the first time in the game, got the Jays out in order.

McGonigle singled to start the eighth. Then Gleyber Torres got a one-out single to bump McGonigle over to third. But despite being in a good position to score, the Tigers weren’t able to capitalize. Valenzuela got a one-out walk, but a double play then ended the inning.

Max Clark singled to start the ninth, followed by a walk from Torkelson. Louis Varland replaced Miles. He got three outs in a row to end the inning and the game, unfortunately shutting down the Tigers’ opportunity for a rally. Thus endeth the winning streak.

Final: Jays 5, Tigers 1