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If the 2026 Orioles are going to pull off a September surprise to find their way into the postseason, they’re going to need a lot less drama than they got in their game against the Blue Jays on Friday night. It should look easy when you manage to score seven runs. The O’s rattled off six straight hits against Max Scherzer in a five-run second inning and that should have made it simple. It wasn’t simple. The game ended with the tying run at the plate. The Orioles held on and got the win, though, taking the series opener, 7-4.

Those who tuned in late to the game missed the start of the scoring. Dylan Beavers, batting leadoff for the Orioles, only needed to see two Scherzer pitches before he got one that he liked, blasting his seventh homer of the season over the right field fence. The O’s took this 1-0 lead and never trailed or even had a tie game from that point on.

This is not to say that Orioles starting pitcher Chris Bassitt cruised through the game, or even through the first inning. After retiring the first batter he saw, Bassitt gave up a single to George Springer and a walk to Vladimir Guerrero Jr., building a possible real rally. Vlad Jr. was very quickly caught napping off of first, with O’s catcher Samuel Basallo firing a back pick that Pete Alonso was able to smoothly tag into Guerrero. It’s a good thing he did this, too, because Bassitt walked that batter, Alejandro Kirk. Without the runner getting wiped out, that would have made it bases loaded with only one out.

Basallo’s back pick was a bit of a makeup for him after he blew one of the Orioles ABS challenges for the game during the Guerrero walk. Basallo and ABS challenges came back as the inning ended: Bassitt threw a strikeout pitch to Nathan Lukes that the umpire missed. Basallo raised his hand as though he intended to challenge, then decided he didn’t want to possibly lose two challenges in the first inning. The umpire took up the challenge anyway even though Basallo didn’t tap his helmet; fortunately, it was strike three and the inning was over. Too bad, Lukes!

The game swung heavily in the Orioles direction immediately after that and never turned back around. The big second inning rally began with Gunnar Henderson delivering a leadoff single. The next five batters all got hits as well, with Heston Kjerstad driving in a run, and Colton Cowser and Beavers each driving in two.

For Scherzer, this turned out to be a regrettable career first: In his 498th MLB game, he gave up six straight hits for the very first time. The future Hall of Famer pitched three more innings after this, finishing with six runs allowed in five innings. He has a 6.38 ERA for the season. The career clock may have struck midnight on the 42-year-old.

With a big early lead for the Orioles, a person who was not familiar with the 2026 squad might be fooled into thinking that they could cruise through the rest of the game. This was not, of course, the case. The third inning got interesting for the Jays after a hard ground ball ate up Henderson; Toronto eventually loaded the bases with two out in the inning. One good swing could have made this a much different game.

The Jays did not get that one good swing, at least not there. They did get it leading off the fourth inning. Third baseman Kazuma Okamoto blasted off Bassitt’s 1-0 pitch. Okamoto has pretty much been as advertised in his first MLB season after signing from Japan, with a low batting average and a lot of strikeouts but also a lot of homers. This was #31 on the season.

Bassitt had an elevated pitch count for much of his time in the game and battled to even make it through five innings and put himself in line for the win. He ended up giving up two runs on six hits and three walks over five. This would have been a better stat line if Bassitt had come out of the game after five. Manager Craig Albernaz pulled off one of his specials in leaving Bassitt in to start the sixth, then pulling Bassitt after a single and a double.

Coming out of the bullpen to defuse the situation, reliever Josh Walker did the job. A strikeout and a groundout mostly ended the threat, even as the groundout scored the man from third to make the score 6-2. Walker finished the inning by getting a flyout to Cowser in center. Things did not get out of hand. Or at least they didn’t get out of hand in that inning.

Coby Mayo gave the Orioles some insurance with two outs in the seventh inning, hitting a solo home run to make the score 7-2. This was Mayo’s 23rd home run of the year, and crucially, it came off of Jays righty Braydon Fisher, who’s been a good pitcher out of the Jays bullpen this season. Mayo is now slugging .576 over his last 30 games, .654 over his last 15, and .826 over his last seven. This has included him starting to show power against righties in addition to lefties. If he can finish strong, that will be a positive to take into next season.

Ideally, this would have been the last thing worth writing about in the game. Alex Hoppe, called upon to finish off what was then a 7-2 game, had other plans. The Orioles reliever got two outs easily and then just could not get the third out. He threw a total of 20 pitches after getting two outs, any one of which might have ended the game. They didn’t end the game, and in fact brought it much closer. Jays center fielder Brett Bateman got a two-run home run in there to make it 7-4, and Hoppe let the next two guys on base, too.

Albernaz called upon Rico Garcia to finish it off. Garcia had Alejandro Kirk foul off four pitches before hitting an easy grounder to second base that finally ended the game. It’s Garcia’s eighth save of the season.

The Orioles are now 72-76. They pulled back a game on one of the teams ahead of them by beating the Jays. Whether they can gain on the Rangers or Guardians depends on results still to come after I post this recap. All the Orioles can do is win – probably 11 more times if they want to make it. They have a chance to do that until they’ve blown too many games.

The series continues on Saturday afternoon at 3:07. Kyle Bradish makes the start for the Orioles. As of this writing, the Jays have not listed a starter.

**

It is a longtime tradition on Camden Chat to proclaim a Most Birdland Player after each Orioles victory. What is Most Birdland? Each person must decide for themselves. Sometimes, this is the same as the most valuable player and sometimes it is not. Who is your choice in this game? Make your nomination in the comments below.

Box Score

The Milwaukee Brewers came into tonight’s contest needing merely to win to clinch a playoff spot.

They looked motivated.

An all-out assault on Cincinnati’s pitching, whether it was starter Andrew Abbott or any of the relievers who followed him, led to eye-popping offensive numbers from the Brewers. Pair that with an extremely encouraging start in which Dustin May, who is vying for a postseason rotation spot, cruised through six scoreless innings, and the Brewers put on quite a show as they officially punched their postseason ticket.

They did not need much time to turn this one into a laugher. After a quick top of the first from May, Jackson Chourio picked up right where he left off against the Cubs and whacked a double into left. Brice Turang then bunted for a single, and with runners on the corners, William Contreras hit a sacrifice fly to center that gave the Brewers a 1-0 lead. Andrew Vaughn was up next, and he crushed a 92 mph fastball right down the middle for another double to left, scoring Turang from first.

Abbott worked out of the inning by getting Jake Bauers and Luis Lara, but it didn’t take long before the Brewers put more pressure on him. After a 1-2-3 second for May, Cooper Pratt and Garrett Mitchell started the bottom of the second with back-to-back singles. After Joey Ortiz flew out, we were back to the red-hot Chourio, who cracked one into the right-field gap. It bounced off the warning track and went over the wall, scoring Pratt from second and putting runners on second and third with one out. After a mound visit, Turang, who’d dropped down a bunt for a hit in the first, swung away—and did not miss. A changeup in a bad spot ended up in the Reds’ bullpen, and Milwaukee’s lead was up to six on Turang’s lefty-on-lefty violence.

That wasn’t all in the second, though; with two outs, Vaughn singled and Bauers, in his second at-bat, also got one off the lefty, a two-run shot to center, and it was 8-0 Brewers after two.

Back on the mound in the third, May continued to cruise with another three-up, three-down inning. Abbott was done after two innings, and reliever Julian Garcia was able to put up a zero in the third despite a single from Ortiz. Garcia even managed to get Chourio out!

Sal Stewart picked up his second single in the top of the fourth but that was all against May. In the bottom of the inning, the Brewers kept their foot on the gas. Turang drew a walk to start the inning, and after hard line drives from Contreras and pinch-hitter Christian Yelich (with the lefty Abbott out of the game) went for outs, Bauers singled and some sloppy fielding allowed Turang to score all the way from first.

In the top of the fifth, Luis Lara decided that the Brewers would flex on both sides of the ball. Eugenio Suárez led off the inning with a drive to right that would’ve been a homer, but Lara got up and pulled it back—fooling everyone in the process. Two batters later, May had another 1-2-3 inning, and was just two over the minimum through five.

If things weren’t out of hand by the bottom of the fifth, they certainly were before the inning was over. Mitchell, Ortiz, and Chourio started the inning with consecutive singles, scoring Mitchell on the third. Turang followed with an RBI double (and was replaced by David Hamilton as a pinch-runner, just to get him off of his feet), and Contreras—the last Brewer starter without a hit—lined a two-run single to center. Reds pitcher Luis Mey finally got a couple of outs with strikeouts of Yelich and Bauers, but Lara single and Pratt walked to load the bases with two out. Up stepped Mitchell, who blasted the Brewers’ first grand slam of the year.

Through five innings, the Brewers had a 17-0 leadand 20 hits. That will do.

The other major positive about the game was that Dustin May was having a great night. He had to work through a little trouble in the sixth when with two outs he walked Elly De La Cruz and Pratt was given an error when he had trouble with a hard ground ball from Stewart, but a JJ Bleday groundout ended the inning. That ended up being May’s last inning, as he didn’t need to keep going with the game so lopsided: he allowed just two hits and a walk while striking out six on an efficient 84 pitches in six shutout innings (with a nod to Lara and his home-run robbery).

Brock Burke was Cincinnati’s pitcher in the sixth and he had a 1-2-3 inning—the first of the night for the Reds—despite a 106 mph, 349 foot line drive from Contreras. May’s replacement in the seventh was the newly recalled Garrett Stallings, and his only blemish in the inning was a walk to Suárez.

It was position player time in the bottom of the seventh, and of course Jose Trevino, the Reds’ backup catcher, threw a 1-2-3 inning. In the top of the eighth, Bo Naylor came on at first base—notable, because in 347 career games in the big leagues, he’d never appeared in the field anywhere other than catcher. Stallings was perfect in the top of the eighth, and after Trevino had shut down the Brewers in the seventh, the Brewers got to him in the eighth—singles by Ortiz and Chourio were followed by a three-run homer by Contreras, giving the Brewers a 20-0 advantage.

Stallings completed his third scoreless inning—he’s now got 11 scoreless innings to start his major-league career—to finish off the Reds.

Quite a box score to peruse, but a few highlights:

• Chourio had four hits, his fourth four-hit game since August 27th. Two were doubles. His batting average is up 23 points since August 15th.
• Turang went 3-for-3 with a double and a homer before being lifted for a pinch-runner.
• Vaughn was 2-for-2 with a double and an RBI.
• Bauers had two hits including a two-run homer.
• Contreras was the last Brewer starter to pick up a hit, but he finished 2-for-5 with a homer and six RBI.
• Lara had two hits and robbed a homer.
• Mitchell was 3-for-5 with a grand slam and three runs scored.
• Ortiz also had four hits, all singles. Speaking of batting averages, Ortiz was hitting .188 at the end of May and is now at .263.

Add in the combined shutout for May and Stallings, and the Brewers made quite the statement as they clinched their eighth playoff berth in the last nine years.

The Brewers are still playing for a bye and home field advantage in the playoffs, and they haven’t yet clinched the division, though they can do so in a matter of days—the earliest possible day being Sunday, if they were to sweep the Reds and the Pirates took the next two from the Cubs.

The series continues tomorrow when Brady Singer starts for the Reds. The Brewers haven’t announced any starters moving forward, so stay tuned to see who ends up on the mound.

A last little parting nugget for your evening:

Top Dodgers prospect Josue De Paula wasn’t going to be overwhelmed by the moment. Manager Dave Roberts was quite sure of that.

“He’s gonna swing at strikes, take balls, put together good at-bats,” Roberts said before De Paula made his major league debut Friday in the Dodgers’ 6-2 win over the Miami Marlins.

Sure enough, when De Paula stepped into the batter’s box at Loan Depot Park, he wasn’t tempted to swing at the first-pitch curveball that dipped below the zone. He didn’t bite on the slider that missed high and outside.

He forced Marlins starter Ryan Gusto to throw into the zone. And after De Paula had worked a full count, swinging at a pair of fastballs and fouling off the second, he sent a slider to right field.

Read more:'He's not supernatural.' Shohei Ohtani's injury management raises tough questions

Though it was a flyout, the moment was momentous: De Paula had completed his first major league at-bat.

“I always had it in the back of my mind it could happen,” De Paula said of making his debut this year. “But I never tried to think too much about it. But when it did happen, I wasn’t really thinking about it because we really only had about four days left before the [double-A] season ends. So I was just thinking — four days, playoffs and then go home.”

Instead, the Dodgers selected De Paula’s contract from double-A Tulsa and put Shohei Ohtani on the 15-day injured list. To clear room on the 40-man roster, they transferred left-hander Eric Lauer from the 15-day IL to the 60-day.

The Dodgers (90-57) don’t have a more specific diagnosis for Ohtani’s right biceps injury, Roberts said. The team simply listed it as inflammation. And that lack of clarity makes it difficult to map out his return.

“We’re really going off of how he feels,” Roberts said. “And I think there’s a good amount of communication going on, which led us to the IL, given how he’s felt. And then going forward, take a few days [off] from swinging the bat, and then let’s sort of reevaluate in the coming days and see what works.”

In the meantime, De Paula will get a chance to show what he can do with his bat. Roberts envisioned the rookie serving as the designated hitter for all three games against the Marlins (72-76).

De Paula estimated that 15 people, including his parents, attended his debut. They watched the Dodgers trim their magic number to five.

Dodgers starter Blake Snell, who hasn’t given up more than one run in any of his seven starts back from surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow, was stifling on the mound. He held the Marlins to one run and four hits in 5⅔ innings, lowering his ERA to 1.91.

“The goal, at worst, is definitely six [innings] for me,” Snell said. “I also know that I can go seven, eight, nine. I know I’m able to do it. So for me not to, I’ve just got to get more efficient early in the game. I feel like once I get past the first couple innings, I start cruising and start figuring it out.”

Kyle Tucker powered the Dodgers’ offense, finishing a double shy of the cycle while recording a season-high five RBIs. He drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly in the third inning. Then he tripled in the sixth and scored on a single by Will Smith. He topped it off with a grand slam in the seventh to seal the Dodgers’ season-high eighth straight win.

“Just trying to stay on top through the ball, stay up the middle or left-center,” Tucker said about unlocking a better swing. “Just keep the body from flying open.”

De Paula batted No. 7 and worked full counts in his first two at-bats. He drew a walk in the fourth.

De Paula gave a glimpse of his base running ability — he had 31 stolen bases in double-A this season — as he raced to second and touched the base before the tag came down. But his hand came off as he slid past the bag, and after a replay review, he was called out. He’s still seeking his first hit, but he proved the Dodgers’ confidence in his ability was well placed.

“He’ll be in there [Saturday] and the next day,” Roberts said, “and he’ll get his first one soon enough.”

De Paula, 21, has been pushing for a promotion with his play at the plate for months. He had a .948 on-base-plus-slugging percentage in double-A and went on a power spree starting at the end of July, hitting 11 of his 27 home runs before his promotion.

De Paula is expected to get regular at-bats at DH, with possibly some time in the outfield. He has some familiarity with his teammates and coaches after being at spring training the last two years.

Hitting coach Aaron Bates said De Paula’s calmness in the batter’s box stood out.

“It’s a ‘wise beyond his years’ kind of thing,” Bates said. “Just very polished in the sense that there’s no panic when he’s in the box — especially for a young hitter. You see young hitters try to swing faster or catch up or swing harder. He’s got a great temperament about him as far as the way he goes about it. And I think this year he was able to kind of put it all together.”

De Paula pointed to improvements across the board — defensively, physically, mentally.

“It was a lot of visualization and concentration, holding focus,” he said before the game. “Practicing that, I felt it would help focus in on what I have to do and not distractions. I feel it’s going to help me on the field.”

Freeman out of lineup

Freddie Freeman was out of the lineup because of a sore right knee for the second straight game.

“Turf [field], flight, travel, just smart to give him one more day,” said Roberts, who initially hoped Freeman would return to the lineup Friday.

Roberts expected Freeman to play Saturday.

Sign up for more Dodgers news with Dodgers Dugout. Delivered at the start of each series.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

A game that meant a great deal to New York only meant something to one of the city’s teams in the standings. 

The Yankees delivered in both regards. 

On a Friday night that began with an emotional pregame ceremony that honored all those lost 25 years ago in the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the Yankees kept pace in their division race, holding on late to beat the Mets 6-4 for their fourth straight win in front of a sellout crowd of 47,410 in The Bronx. 

Cody Bellinger crushed a three-run homer off Nolan McLean in the second inning that proved to be the difference, thanks in large part to a strong start from Carlos Rodón, as the Yankees (85-62) remained three games back of the Rays for first place in the AL East with 15 games left. They also moved to 5 ¹/₂ games clear of the Red Sox for the top AL wild card. 

“Today was a day where it felt bigger than the game and bigger than yourself,” said Bellinger, whose father, Clay, was a Yankee in 2001 and later became a firefighter. 

The Mets (68-79) threatened to play spoiler, coming alive late against the Yankees bullpen to nearly get all the way back from a 5-1 deficit before David Bednar finished off a five-out save. 

“Certainly wish the game outcome was different than it was, but special to be a part of,” Mets manager Andy Green said. 

The Yankees now have a chance to clinch a playoff berth as early as Saturday, needing a win and a Blue Jays loss. 

“Obviously as a club, we’re playing for a lot, but having some of the people involved back today and part of the pregame ceremonies, it felt special,” manager Aaron Boone said. “It felt like what you’d want a ballgame to feel like.” 

Ben Rice added another home run as part of a three-hit game while Luis García Jr. chipped in three hits and some slick defense at first base to support Rodón, who struck out eight across 6 ¹/₃ innings of two-run ball. 

Paul Blackburn and Brent Headrick, two of the Yankees’ best but most-used relievers, both got into trouble in relief of Rodón. They combined to record three outs and give up two runs while both loading the bases (Blackburn in the seventh, Headrick in the eighth). But Headrick escaped Blackburn’s jam in the seventh by snagging a line drive right back to him off the bat of Francisco Lindor — after a fan waving a Palestine flag ran onto the field and caused a delay — to strand three Mets. 

Bednar then bailed out Headrick in the eighth — after Carson Benge worked a 10-pitch walk to load the bases — getting two fly balls, one of which was Marcus Semien’s sacrifice fly to cut the lead to 5-3, to end the inning. 

After Ryan McMahon provided some insurance in the eighth with an RBI single, A.J. Ewing led off the top of the ninth with a home run off Bednar. But the Yankees closer eventually slammed the door by getting ex-Yankee Juan Soto — who was booed vociferously by the home crowd all night — to ground into a double play to end it. 

The Yankees tagged McLean for a career-worst 10 hits across five innings in which he allowed five runs. They were on him from the start, loading the bases with no outs in the bottom of the first, though they had to settle for only one run on Spencer Jones’ RBI single. 

The Mets tied it in the top of the second after a fielding error by Jones in left-center field allowed both runners to move up 90 feet, putting Mark Vientos in position to score when Christopher Morel grounded out to deep shortstop. 

But the Yankees took the lead back for good in the bottom of the second in a rally that began with a one-out single from Anthony Volpe in his second game back from Triple-A replacing the injured Jazz Chisholm Jr. 

Rice followed with another single on a 10-pitch at-bat before Bellinger appeared to draw a walk when he took a 3-1 pitch out of the zone, only for it to be called a strike. He said he considered challenging but not until it was too late, though he made the most of it, belting the next pitch into the right field seats for a three-run shot that made it 4-1. 

“Obviously glad I didn’t do it,” Bellinger, wearing an FDNY cap, said with a grin. 

“That felt like a little bit of an exhale moment, like we were off and running,” Boone said. “But credit to the Mets, they were able to hold us down and climb back into it.”

Kyle Tucker hit a crucial seventh-inning grand slam to power the Dodgers (90-57) to a 6-2 win over the Marlins (72-76) Friday night in Miami.

It was an exciting night in Miami with pregame buzz surrounding the MLB debut of Dodgers top prospect Josue De Paula. De Paula went 0-for-3 on the night. He flied out to right fielder Esteury Ruiz in his first major-league at-bat. In his second at-bat, with one out in the fourth, the 21-year old drew a walk. In his third at-bat, De Paula grounded out to first baseman Kyle Stowers.

Blake Snell put together another solid night on the mound, only allowing 1 run on 4 hits to the Fish. Otto Lopez singled against Snell in the first, but Smith gunned down Lopez at second on a steal attempt to end the inning. The Marlins got more base runners on in the second against Snell, but he was once again able to pitch around the traffic to get out of the inning unscathed.

Tucker has been getting hot at just the right time for the Dodgers after an abysmal year at the plate.

The Dodgers manufactured a run in the top of the third. Tommy Edman drew the leadoff walk, and Max Muncy singled. Kyle Tucker’s sac fly gave Snell a 1-0 lead.

De Paula got thrown out on his first MLB steal attempt with two outs in the fourth. His hand came off the bag, and his leg was touching the tag. After a manager’s challenge, the call was overturned, and the inning was over.

After he brought in the first Dodgers run with a sac fly, Tucker tripled with one out in the top of the sixth. Smith drove in the second run of the night for L.A. with a single off Gusto.

The Marlins broke through with two outs in the sixth against the Dodgers bullpen. After Javier Sanoja singled against Snell, Dave Roberts replaced him with Evan Phillips. Agustín Ramírez put together a solid at-bat against Phillips and ultimately came out the winner with an RBI double to make it 2-1.

The Dodgers loaded the bases in the top of the seventh with two outs against the Miami bullpen. Tucker, who had two hits on the night, crushed a grand slam versus Cade Gibson. It was his first grand slam since summer of 2023.

The Fish added a second run to their tally in the bottom of the eighth against Blake Treinen. Javier Sanoja led off with a triple, and Owen Caissie brought him home on a sacrifice fly.

Edgardo Henriquez closed the door in the home half of the ninth to secure the Dodgers their 90th win of the season. Their Magic No. to clinch the NL West is now down to 4.

Friday particulars

Home runs: Kyle Tucker (14)

WP — Blake Snell(4-1): 5 2/3 IP, 4 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 8 strikeouts (101 pitches)

LP — Ryan Gusto (1-5): 6 IP, 5 hits, 2 runs, 3 walks, 3 strikeouts (89)

Up next

The Dodgers and Marlins continue their series Saturday at loanDepot Park (1:10 p.m., SportsNet LA). It will be a battle of the Tylers when Tyler Glasnow (4-0, 3.12 ERA, 0.88 WHIP) counters Tyler Phillips (5-6, 3.51 ERA, 1.33 WHIP).

A Subway Series game on the 25th anniversary of September 11th was always going to bring about some pomp and circumstance and a chance for New Yorkers of all fandoms to come together and pay tribute.

However once the first pitch is thrown, both sets of fans want their team to win above all else. In the series opener, the Yankees’ fans were the ones that got to celebrate.

On the mound, Carlos Rodón was very good. He ended up going 6.1 innings, allowing two runs (only one earned) on three hits and a walk, while striking out eight. At the plate, the Yankees got to Mets’ starter Nolan McLean for a couple runs, including a big three-run homer from Cody Bellinger. That proved enough to give the Yankees a 6-4 win in the Subway Series opener against the mets.

The Yankees started out the game in close to perfect fashion. Ben Rice and Bellinger started with singles, followed by an Aaron Judge walk to load the bases. The inning didn’t turn out as good as it could’ve after that, though. Spencer Jones brought home one run with a single, but the bases were stranded loaded, including an inning-ending double play by George Lombard Jr.

Naturally right after that, the Mets immediately answered. Mark Vientos walked and two batters later, Marcus Semien singled, with a Jones misplay allowing them to move up a base each. That error would allow Vientos to score on a ground out, tying the game.

However, the Yankees’ offense had a reply waiting. While the first two hitters of the second went down in order, Anthony Volpe continued his nice start since returning with a single. Ben Rice followed that with a single, having used ABS to successfully overturned a strike three. That kept the inning going for Bellinger, who took a three-run shot out to right field.

Rodón settled in a bit after that and the Yankees eventually tacked on more. Rice led off the bottom of the fifth with a homer. They again missed out on an opportunity to add more, though.

In the sixth inning, Rodón got one out before allowing a single, which would be the end of his day. Paul Blackburn came in and got two outs, but a walk and a single got the Mets a run back. Brent Headrick came in for him and got out of the inning with a nifty catch on a comebacker.

Headrick then came back out for the eighth, but much like Blackburn in the inning before, he got himself into some trouble. A single and two walks loaded the bases with just one out, leading to Aaron Boone going to David Bednar for a potential five-out save. He got the first two, but a Semien sacrifice fly scored one run before the inning ended.

With the Yankees’ lead dwindling, they were in need of some insurance in the ninth. Luis García Jr. and Jones each hit a single, with George Lombard Jr. then bunting them up a base. Ryan McMahon then dropped in a single that only scored one run, as pinch runner José Caballero had to hold up to make sure the ball wasn’t caught. The hit did provide some insurance, but it did end up keeping the Yankees from more in the inning.

With Bednar back on for the ninth, the inning got off to an iffy start when A.J. Ewing hit a laser of a home run into the second deck in right field. A Francisco Lindor single later in the inning meant that Juan Soto came to the plate as the potential tying run, as the narrative decided not to use subtext. However, Bednar got Soto to ground into a game-ending double play to take round one of the set.

The Subway Series will continue tomorrow at 1:35 pm ET. Gerrit Cole and Zac Thornton are expected to be the starting pitchers.

Box Score

The Rays are back in the postseason for the first time since 2023 as the club rallied late against one of the better relievers in baseball in the 9th to walk off the Astros 3-1.

This game was two hours and twenty-two minutes long, but the 9th inning was the main event. Through the first eight innings, the teams combined for two runs coming off a sacrifice fly by Yanier Diaz in the 4th and yet another Victor Mesa home run in the 5th inning:

The Rays offense was not able to generate any other offense outside that solo shot against the quartet of Miguel Ullola, Bryan King, and Ethan Pecko, Pecko’s setup on the mound and his approach was reminiscent of how Robert Stock shut the Rays down in the last homestand. Rasmussen remained undefeated since the All-Star break even if the outing was a bit of a grind. He threw first pitch strikes to 15 of the 27 batters faced and scattered seven singles as well as a double to former Ray Isaac Paredes in the outing. He was behind in more counts than usual in his outing, but grinded through this outing with the help of a couple of timely double plays. The Rays remain undefeated in games when Rasmussen starts as he continues to embrace the role of staff ace in 2026.

Rasmussen gave way to Tyler Wells and Bryan Baker to get the last six outs and that duo permitted two runners to reach base while stranding them both to set up the 9th inning. Joe Espada brought in Bryan Abreu to begin the inning and had Josh Hader warming up, which we will revisit momentarily. Abreu entered this contest limiting hitters to a .187 average while striking out 30% of the batters he has faced.

Abreu struck out Yandy Diaz on a high inside fastball to get the first out. Jonathan Aranda then worked a 1-1 count and got a cutter that found too much of the plate and came within a foot of hitting a walk-off home run, instead settling for a double:

That brought Junior Caminero to the plate with a base open and Liam Hick on deck. Logic would have said to put Caminero on base and bring in Hader to either face Hicks or force Cash to likely pinch hit with Ryan Vilade. Hader has held hitters to a .114 average this season, but Espada stuck with Abreu who attempted to announce his presence with authority to Junior Caminero. Abreu chose poorly:

Caminero’s 40th home run on the season was his first career walkoff. He has now hit 40 home runs in consecutive seasons and is the first player in nearly 30 years with multiple 40+ homer seasons before the age of 24. It was a fun comeback with two well-struck baseballs in the 9th thereby equaling the team’s output through the first eight innings of the game. The Rays hold serve in the standings as the Yankees defeated the Mets in the first game of the Subway Series as they celebrate for one evening while staying focused on higher aspirations this month.

MIAMI –– Time will tell if Kyle Tucker is truly heating up.

But for now, at the very least, it finally seems like he is starting to thaw out.

After being stuck in a deep freeze at the plate for much of the last month, Tucker produced a second-straight offensive outburst in the Dodgers’ 6-2 win over the Miami Marlins on Friday night, finishing a double shy of the cycle in a three-hit display highlighted by a grand slam at loanDepot Park.

It started with a single in the first inning, allowing Tucker to pick up where he left off after a three-hit performance on Wednesday. He then opened the scoring with a sacrifice fly in the third, giving Blake Snell a lead he wouldn’t relinquish in a 5 ⅔-inning, one-run start.

In the top of the sixth, Tucker took another confident hack, squaring up a hanging first-pitch slider for a triple off the wall in right. He would later score on a bloop single from Will Smith.

And for a finale, his breakout night culminated with the bases loaded an inning later, setting up Tucker for a grand-slam swing –– on a 395-foot drive that landed in the right-field bullpen –– that punctuated perhaps a season-best performance.

“Felt good in the box, put the barrel to the ball, put up competitive at-bats,” Tucker said afterward. “Wherever the ball goes, it goes. Just trying to hit it hard.”

Up until the last few days, hitting the ball hard had not been a common occurrence for the team’s $240 million flop of an offseason signing.

He had gone from bad to worse during a slump through much of August and September, taking an already disappointing debut season to even more confounding lows by batting .116 over his previous 26 games.

But then came Wednesday, when Tucker had three hits, two runs scored, a double and, technically, a home run, albeit off a position player.

“It still counts,” he joked that night. “I’ll take it.”

Now, following Friday’s 3-for-3, five-RBI performance, Tucker has collected three hits in back-to-back games for the first time all year.

To manager Dave Roberts, the resurgence is not a coincidence. He said that Tucker and the team’s hitting coaches found a fix to his swing recently that has “cleaned up his bat path” and kept his barrel square through the zone.

“I know the hitting coaches kind of unlocked something with Kyle, and it’s just good to see it translate that quickly,” Roberts said.

Added Tucker, who was vague about the specifics of his breakthrough: “There’s a lot more room for error hitting the ball because you can hit it deep and go the other way or catch it out in front and pull it a little bit more. Just trying to be consistent with that and be as long through the zone as possible.”

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There’s little saving Tucker’s season-long stats at this point, of course. At the end of play Friday, he was still hitting just .230 on the year (a career-worst for a full-length campaign) with a .701 OPS (the 36th-lowest mark of MLB’s 139 qualified hitters).

However, the Dodgers’ main impetus for signing the four-time All-Star was to bolster their chances of a World Series three-peat. Despite his struggles, they remain in prime October position. And while all might not be forgiven if he has a big playoff moment, it would certainly help erase the sting of his regular-season frustrations.

“The numbers [for the season] probably are what they are,” Tucker said. “But we’ve got a lot of important games coming next month. Just trying to finish out the season strong, get to that point and just try to win games. That’s the most important thing.”

Granted, there’s a long way to go before any of that. Two games, against two sub-.500 opponents, offer little more than a simple seed of hope that Tucker can eventually turn things around.

Then again, that’s more than the Dodgers have had to cling to for most of this year, while waiting on something from the 29-year-old superstar.

Now, at long last, Tucker has real confidence. He’s not quite hot yet, but he’s no longer ice cold either.

It is Friday night.

The Orioles have beaten the Blue Jays, 7-4, to open their series in Toronto. Dylan Beavers led off the game with a homer, the Orioles offense rattled off five runs thanks to six straight hits in the second inning, and things got interesting later but Rico Garcia was able to get the final out and close out one of the probable 12 wins in their last 15 games that the O’s need to get. The odds are not good, but they’ll get better if the Orioles keep winning.

YOU KNOW WHAT MUST BE DONE.

On the 25th anniversary of 9/11, the Mets and Yankees met for a game that seemed bigger and more impactful than it realistically should have, given each team’s current playoff position. However, the emotions were running high and, despite multiple attempts at a comeback, the Mets couldn’t claw their way back from an early deficit, losing 6-4 to their crosstown rivals.

After five straight quality starts, Nolan McLean had a bit of a rough start this evening. In the bottom of the first, the first three batters reached first on two singles and a walk, before Spencer Jones drove in the first run on a one-out single. McLean was able to work his way through without further damage.

The Mets tied the game in the top of the second when Mark Vientos scored on a Christopher Morel groundout, but that would be the entirety of the Mets’ offense against Carlos Rodón. Aside from a third inning single by Juan Soto, the Mets didn’t muster another baserunner until the seventh.

That was not true of the Yankees, who added on as soon as the Mets tied the game. McLean got the first two outs in the second, but two straight singles by Anthony Volpe and Ben Rice put two on for Cody Bellinger, who hit a three-run home run to right-center field, putting the Yankees up 4-1.

In the fifth, Ben Rice led off the inning with a solo home run, extending the lead to four runs. McLean would be done after five, allowing ten hits and five runs while walking one and striking out five.

Carson Benge took the ball the other way for a one-out single in the top of the seventh, the first Met baserunner in four innings, and that would do it for Rodón. Old friend Paul Blackburn was first out of the Yankees’ bullpen. Blackburn walked Marcus Semien to start his evening, but induced a weak ground ball from Jared Young for a fielder’s choice, erasing Semien at second. A.J. Ewing drove in Benge with a pulled single over second base, cutting the lead to 5-2. Blackburn walked Francisco Alvarez to load the bases, and that would be it for Blackburn.

Lefty Brent Headrick was brought in to keep Lindor batting from the right side, where he has been far weaker this season. Lindor worked the count full before an extended delay was caused by an idiot running out on the field. Lindor lined the ball hard up the middle, but right into Headrick’s glove to end the inning.

Jack Weisenburger, fresh from Syracuse, pitched the sixth and seventh inning for the Mets, not allowing a baserunner and striking out both Bellinger and Aaron Judge. It was an impressive outing for Weisenburger, another one of the seemingly endless parade of arms the Mets have called up in the second half.

Soto grounded out to start the eighth, but a single by Bichette and a Vientos walk put two on with one out for Benge. Benge worked a really great at-bat and walked to load the bases. David Bednar, Yankees’ closer, was brought in to get the five out save, or at least get the Yankees through the eighth.

Semien stepped to the plate, and hit a long fly ball to center, scoring Bichette and allowing pinch runner Cristian Pache to tag up to third. It was for naught however, as Young lined out to left-center to end the inning, but the Mets brought the game within two.

Weisenburger came out for the eighth, and quickly allowed singles to Luis García Jr. and Spencer Jones, and all of a sudden things looked shaky for Weisenburger. George Lombard Jr. laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt, pushing the runners to second and third with one out. Ryan McMahon dorked a ball in front of Soto, allowing a run to score and widening the Yankee lead to three. Weisenberger gout out of it with just the one run scored, but the uphill battle got a little steeper.

On the first pitch of the ninth, Ewing turned on a ball and cranked it over the short porch in left, bringing it back to a two-run game. Alvarez quickly was out on strikes, leaving it to the top of the Mets’ order to get it done. Lindor, batting from the left side for the first time in the game, dribbled a single between first and second, bringing Soto to the plate as the tying run. Bednar was feeding Soto nothing but splitters, and Soto topped over one into a game-ending 3-6-3 double play.

The Mets will look to even the series tomorrow when Zac Thornton faces Gerrit Cole at 1:35.

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Win Probability Added

What’s WPA?

Big Mets winner: Tie: Mark Vientos, Marcus Semien, and Carson Benge, +5.0% WPA
Big Mets loser: Nolan McLean, -29.0% WPA
Mets pitchers: -29.0% WPA
Mets hitters: -21.0% WPA
Teh aw3s0mest play: Marcus Semien’s second inning single, +9.2% WPA
Teh sux0rest play: Cody Bellinger’s three-run dinger, -25.3% WPA

The Mets lost to the Yankees, 6-4, in the series opener of the Subway Series on Friday night.

Here are the key takeaways...

-- Nolan McLean had his first clunker in quite some time after allowing five earned runs on a career-high 10 hits in five innings in his Subway Series debut at Yankee Stadium.

-- The right-hander’s outing started off shaky after he loaded the bases on two singles and a walk to the first three batters he faced. After a lineout, Spencer Jones drove in the game’s first run with a single. McLean managed to get out of further trouble by getting a double-play ball from George Lombard Jr.

-- The second inning started better for McLean, who retired the first two of the frame, but then disaster struck. Anthony Volpe kept the inning alive with a single before Ben Rice had his second hit of the night and suddenly the Yankees had a two-out rally going. 

The big blow came off the bat of Cody Bellinger, who demolished a hanging curveball by McLean into the right field seats for a three-run bomb. It was the first home run allowed by McLean on a curveball in his career.

-- The rookie faced the minimum from there (thanks to another outfield assist by Carson Benge, this one against Luis Garcia Jr. at second base) until the fifth inning when Rice extended the Yanks’ lead with a leadoff solo shot to the opposite field that just went over the glove of Juan Soto. McLean had more trouble to deal with in the inning after two more singles, but he finished his night by striking out Jones and getting Lombard to fly out.

-- The right-hander’s final line: 5 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 5 K, 1 HR on 101 pitches (63 strikes). It was the first time in five starts McLean allowed more than two earned runs and failed to pitch at least six innings. His ERA climbed from 3.06 to 3.24.

-- On the other side, Carlos Rodon limited the Mets to two runs (one earned) over a season-high 6.1 innings. He allowed three hits and struck out eight as he continued his strong season when healthy.

-- The Mets’ best chance to get back into the game came in the seventh inning when, with a run already scored in the inning, they loaded the bases against former Met Paul Blackburn, which brought up Francisco Lindor. 

The Yankees countered with Brent Headrick, who ran the count full against Lindor before snagging a liner hit right back to him to end the inning and the threat.

-- The Mets settled for just one run again in the eighth inning despite another prime opportunity to get more after loading the bases with one out. Marcus Semien drove in the run with a sacrifice fly, but closer David Bednar ended the inning with a flyout.

-- The Yanks got that run right back in the bottom half of the inning against Jack Weisenburger, who went three innings in relief of McLean to save the rest of the Mets' bullpen. New York (AL) finished with 13 hits, with Rice and Garcia leading the charge with three each while Bellinger and Jones added two apiece.

-- A.J. Ewing led off the top of the ninth with a home run for his second hit of the game to cut the Mets' deficit to 6-4, and after Lindor singled, it brought up Soto as the tying run. The former Yankee, who heard boos all game, ended the game by grounding into a double play.

Game MVP: Carlos Rodon

The offense did its thing, but the left-hander had the Mets off balance all night.

Highlights

Nolan McLean gets a bases-loaded double-play ball from George Lombard Jr. to avoid further damage in the first pic.twitter.com/9eLX6MPTTJ

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 11, 2026

Christopher Morel's groundout brings home Mark Vientos to tie the game at 1 pic.twitter.com/Y12gocBQ4A

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 11, 2026

CODY BELLINGER THREE-RUN HOMER! pic.twitter.com/A5tO3iLN73

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) September 11, 2026

Stop running on him!

Carson Benge throws out Luis Garcia Jr. at second base pic.twitter.com/JRwojA6wzo

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 12, 2026

Ben Rice solo shot! pic.twitter.com/DW0mOFTMGP

— SNY Yankees (@snyyankees) September 12, 2026

A.J. Ewing drives in a run and brings the tying run to the plate 👀 pic.twitter.com/gqtE1J8eZV

— SNY (@SNYtv) September 12, 2026

What's next

The Mets and Yankees continue the second installment of the Subway Series this season in the Bronx, with a Saturday matinee kicking off at 1:35 p.m. on SNY.

LHP Zac Thornton (3-5, 3.53 ERA) will face off against RHP Gerrit Cole (8-8, 3.41 ERA).

Carter Jensen hit a pair of doubles, drove in a run, and scored a pair to lead the Royals to their second straight victory and first win against Boston since August 6 of last year. The final score was 3-2 in favor of Kansas City.

It was kind of a weird start for Seth Lugo. I attempted to do a reverse jinx on him with the game preview, and he ultimately allowed only two runs in five innings. That’s good enough for now. However, looking toward the future, allowing 7 hits and 2 walks, even while striking out 7, in 5 innings is not a recipe for sustained success.

He only threw seven of his pitches tonight and, perhaps most notably, eschewed the slow curve entirely. The curveball and four-seamer were both much more effective than they have been of late. Perhaps this is a sign he’s on the rebound.

For a while it seemed like the jinx on Sonny Gray might work, too. Gray came into the game with a 1.74 ERA against the Royals, the best among any pitchers with at least 10 starts against the team. Jensen’s first double led off the game. He advanced to third on a groundout from Bobby Witt Jr. and scored on a Salvador Perez single when Gray inexplicably threw Salvy a sinker in instead of the usual breaking stuff away.

In the third inning, it seemed like the Royals might just go ahead and knock out Gray then and there. Isaac Collins led off with an automatic double at 103.2 MPH down the right field line that hopped over the short fence near the pole. Carter followed up by smashing one at 102.6 off the monster in left to trade places with Collins. Bobby flew out to center at 103.3 to advance Carter to third and Vinnie Pasquantino hit one at 102.4 to give the Royals their final run. Sadly, Salvy grounded into a double play to end the inning and that was the last time KC would score.

The bullpen, as has occasionally been the case in the second half, while it was almost never the case in the first half, pitched well for four innings. Connor Thomas, Nolan Hoffman, Nate Pearson, and Steven Cruz combined for 3 strikeouts, 0 walks, and only 1 hit. That’s how you cling to a one-run lead for half of a game.

The Royals will play a late-afternoon match tomorrow. Randy Dobnak (2.54 ERA, 4.58 SIERA) will face off against Ranger Suarez (3.44 ERA, 3.95 SIERA) at 3:05 PM Central. Suarez, of course, is a lefty. So the Royals will have their work cut out for them.

The Colorado Rockies entered Detroit hoping to snap a seven-game losing streak on the road. Despite a solid start from their rookie pitcher and an offense that out-hit the Tigers, the Rockies bullpen collapsed in the middle innings, leading to a 6-2 defeat. They are now just eight games away from losing 100 games for the fourth season in a row.

Well done, Mr. Adams

Making his fourth big-league start, Mason Adams continued to impress in a Rockies uniform with a fairly quick and efficient outing.

The night started promisingly as Adams struck out the side in the bottom of the first inning. In the second, he allowed a leadoff single to Riley Greene and a one-out walk to Max Clark but managed to escape with a ground ball double play. He then worked a quick 1-2-3 third inning followed by a quick fourth inning where he faced the minimum.

Through the first four innings, Adams had thrown just 52 pitches with four groundouts and looked primed to go the deepest into the game than he had previously. Unfortunately, he had to labor in the fifth inning with 25 pitches.

After the Rockies had taken the lead in the top half of the fifth inning, it didn’t take long for the Tigers to tie things up. After striking out Dillon Dingler for the second time, Adams surrendered a solo home run to rookie outfielder Max Clark on a fastball that was low and inside. The home run may have rattled Adams a smidge as he walked the next two batters, but he got out of the inning by inducing another double-play ball.

His night was over after 77 pitches, having allowed just the one run on two hits over five innings with five strikeouts against three walks. Adams pounded the zone and the Detroit lineup had a tough time squaring him up. Even the pitch Clark hit out was a quality offering that he just got beat on. The efficiency was on point and the future remains quite bright for the young right-hander.

“I thought [Adams] was really good,” manager Warren Schaeffer said. “He got behind in some counts and had some walks but other than that I thought the breaking ball was really good. The punch-out was high; he looked sharp.”

“I think it all goes back to his poise and his preparation. He looks in total control out there and he has really good stuff. Those two things combined and the presence he brings on the mound, it’s something that lines up for a long time in the future.”

Sixth inning bullpen struggles and beyond

After a great performance by the rookie starter, the Rockies turned to rookie reliever Mark Manfredi in the sixth inning. After retiring Kevin McGonigle to start the inning, Manfredi walked Gleybor Torres. He then got pinch-hitter Spencer Torkelson to fly out to right field for the second out of the inning. Riley Greene then stepped up to the plate and seemingly struck out to end the inning, but he challenged the pitch, which was flipped to a ball. Greene then launched a ball to center field that Cole Carrigg tracked all the way to the wall, but as he hit the wall and got tied up as the ball hit the wall right next to his glove. Greene ended up with an RBI triple to give the Tigers a 2-1 lead.

The Rockies then turned to rookie reliever Nick Frasso.

Unfortunately, Dingler unloaded on the first pitch he saw for a two-run home run — his first long ball in five weeks — to put the Tigers up 4-1. Frasso lost all command of his pitches as he spiked a curveball that hit Clark, who promptly stole second base. Frasso then yanked back-to-back wild pitches that allowed Clark to move up to third base and subsequently score and make it 5-1 Tigers. John Peck then walked and stole second base before Zach McKinstry flew out to finally end the inning.

Blas Castaño took over in the seventh inning and worked a quick inning, but the Tigers collected their sixth run of the game when Greene collected an RBI double in the eighth inning. He managed to escape without any further damage.

The bullpen surrendered five runs on just three hits while walking three and hitting a batter, while recording zero strikeouts.

Stalled engine

Much like the series in New York, the Rockies had opportunities to score but couldn’t put much together against Tigers starter Framber Valdez. The Rockies managed to get a pair of base runners in the first inning, but Valdez escaped with a double-play ball from Hunter Goodman.

The ground ball was quite prevalent for Valdez throughout his start. Through his six innings of work, he induced 11 groundouts while striking out just two batters and issuing two walks.

The Rockies finally managed to crack through in the fifth inning, but it took a lot of frustration. Troy Johnston led off the inning with a single and moved up to third when Jordan Beck singled to right field. With runners on the corners, Ezequiel Tovar dropped a bunt that resulted in a flip play by Valdez to cut down Johnston at the plate. Jake McCarthy then lined up a ball into right that looked like it would score Beck from second base. Unfortunately, McKinstry got to the ball quickly and fired a bullet to home plate to cut down Beck.

Connor Norby then managed to draw a walk to load the bases with two outs. Carrigg rolled over on a ball to third base that ended up kicking off the heel of McGonigle’s glove, allowing Tovar to score and give the Rockies a brief 1-0 lead.

Jacob Waguespack replaced Valdez and threw two scoreless innings, giving up just one hit while striking out two. The Rockies then were able to threaten in the ninth inning against Brant Hurter. Adael Amador singled to lead off and eventually came in to score on a two-out infield single by Zac Veen. McCarthy then singled to put two runners on, his third hit of the game, which prompted Detroit to bring in Kenley Jansen. He then retired Norby on three pitches.

The Rockies lineup only had five strikeouts while out-hitting the Tigers 10-5, but they had no extra-base hits and went 2-for-8 with runners in scoring position. The lack of thump and lost chances in the fifth inning, combined with the dozen groundouts, made for another tough night offensively.

Up next

The series continues Saturday morning with Tanner Gordon (1-4, 5.40 ERA) taking the ball for the Rockies. Detroit has yet to announce a starting pitcher.

First pitch is scheduled for 11:10 am MDT.

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The San Francisco Giants welcome the San Diego Padres to Oracle Park tonight to begin a three-game weekend series. And just a heads up that this game is only available on Apple TV.

Taking the mound for the Giants will be right-hander Anthony Molina, who enters tonight’s game with a 1.88 ERA, 3.52 FIP, with 13 strikeouts to two walks in 14.1 innings pitched. His last start was in the Giants’ 9-5 win over the New York Mets on Saturday, in which he allowed two unearned runs on one hit with six strikeouts and a walk in five innings.

He’ll be facing off against our good friend and now Padres left-hander Robbie Ray, who enters tonight’s game with a 3.39 ERA, 4.68 FIP, with 127 strikeouts to 77 walks in 151.1 innings pitched between the Giants and Padres this season. His last start was in the Padres’ 5-1 loss to the New York Yankees on Saturday, in which he allowed five runs on five hits with one strikeout and four walks in two and a third innings.

Game #148

Who: San Francisco Giants (62-85) vs. San Diego Padres (78-68)

Where: Oracle Park, San Francisco, California

When: 7:15 p.m. PT

Regional broadcast: n/a

National broadcast: Apple TV

Radio: KNBR 680 AM/104.5 FM, KSFN 1510 AM