The Detroit Tigers continued their surge into the All-Star break on Friday night with an authoritative 10-2 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies at Comerica Park. Jack Flaherty made it to the six-inning mark for the first time in what seems like forever, giving his team a quality start in the process, while a trio of home runs fueled the offense to a double-digit total.
On Saturday, the Motor City Kitties can clinch their fourth straight series with right-hander Casey Mize taking the mound. The 29-year-old is coming off a pair of quality starts of his own, putting up a 1.32 ERA and 2.46 FIP over the last 13 2/3 innings, allowing just six hits (one home run) and two walks while striking out 14 to earn his third and fourth wins of the season.
It will not be easy for the Tigers with left-hander Cristopher Sánchez climbing the hill for the Phillies. Coming off a season that saw him finish second in the National League Cy Young race, the 29-year-old has picked up where he left off, ranking second in the majors in pitching fWAR behind Milwaukee Brewers ace Jacob Misiorowski.
However, Sánchez is coming off his worst outing of the 2026 campaign, surrendering nine runs on 12 hits (three home runs) and a walk while striking out just one Kansas City Royal on the road for his fourth loss in a 15-1 final. Maybe the Tigers can get to him on Saturday evening too.
Here is a look at how the two match up in Game 2 of the three-game series in Detroit.
Detroit Tigers (44-50) vs. Philadelphia Phillies (52-43)
Time (ET): 6:10 p.m. Place: Comerica Park, Detroit, Michigan SB Nation Site:The Good Phight Media: Detroit SportsNet, MLB.TV, Tigers Radio Network
Game 95: RHP Casey Mize (4-5, 2.64 ERA) vs. LHP Cristopher Sánchez (10-4, 2.62 ERA)
The 2026 MLB Draft begins today, and Kentucky Baseball fans will have at least one major reason to tune in.
Wildcats shortstop Tyler Bell is widely expected to be selected in the early rounds after two seasons in Lexington.
Bell entered the season as one of the top prospects in the 2026 class, with MLB Pipeline ranking him among its top draft prospects. He also participated in the MLB Draft Combine last month.
While recent first-round mock drafts from CBS Sports and ESPN have not projected Bell among the opening selections, his prospect status makes him Kentucky’s best bet to be called early in the draft.
Bell’s combination of defensive ability, switch-hitting potential, and youth could make him an intriguing option for organizations looking for an up-the-middle prospect.
Kentucky could also have additional players selected during the later rounds as MLB organizations work through 20 rounds over two days.
Mark Pope has drawn some criticism from fans in his first two seasons in Lexington regarding his substitution patterns.
Fans have (understandably) been frustrated with the deep bench Pope deploys throughout the season, as opposed to tightening the rotation and keeping his top players in the game longer.
Pope was asked about his substitution strategy during an appearance on Kentucky Sports Radio this past week, emphasizing player development over the course of the season. Pope said there are several variables that come into play when it comes to substitution patterns, but it’s also important to develop players up-and-down the roster.
“Developing guys is really important,” Pope said. “And you saw that, a great example is Collin Chandler. Collin Chandler was the seventh most improved player in all of college basketball last season. That doesn’t happen by accident. You have to kind of nurse guys and grow guys. You know, Jasper Johnson is a player that has tremendous upside and we needed him and kept trying to find the right situation for him, and he’s going to be a great player. Some of that’s going to come from those developmental minutes.
“You look at Otega Oweh’s rise and us being able to continuously put him in new situations. That’s how guys grow. Malachi Moreno, you know, early on in the season force feeding him some minutes helped him grow into the guy who had to carry the load for so much of last season. You kinda go down the list. For us, we are developers of players. I think it’s one of the things we do better than anyone else in the country. We help our guys get better.
“I’m really proud of the fact that Amari came in as a non-draft board guy. That Koby came in here as a non-draft board guy. That Otega came here as a non-draft board guy. These are not guys that were predestined to be drafted players. JQ was, but those other three weren’t and the fact that those guys came her and we were able to develop them, and they were able to develop themselves because it’s their hard work that does it, to earn themselves a chance to go play at the next level is really important to us.”
So what does that mean going forward? It sounds like Pope will continue to deploy a deep bench throughout the regular season, while tightening the rotation for the postseason. It’ll be interesting to see how Pope rotates lineups with this group this season.
In some past seasons, we’ve written up every pick the White Sox make in the draft with individual stories. This year, we’ll let a constantly-updated Day 2 draft tracker do all the work, but overall we will have individual features on the first five White Sox picks (Nos. 1, 34, 44, 77, 105).
An exciting twist to our coverage this year is having Melissa Sage-Bollenbach in Philadelphia and on the grounds covering for us. That should mean details and quotes you won’t see anywhere else, as well as video and other postings on all our social media channels (@southsidesox.bsky.social on Blue Sky, South Side Sox on Facebook, @sss_south_side_sox on Instagram, @southsidesox_ on TikTok, @sss_south_side_sox on Threads and @SouthSideSox on Twitter/X).
To kick off our coverage of today’s five picks and the following 16 on Sunday, here’s a How to Watch guide. But really, let us do the heavy lifting and just stay tuned to the real-time updates of South Side Sox!
Day 2: Sunday, July 12 (Rounds 5-20) 10:30 a.m.-6:30 p.m. CT Rounds 5-20 (MLB.com, MLB.TV, MLB+)
The 2026 MLB draft is in Philadelphia this year as part of MLB All-Star Week. First-day coverage of the draft is extensive, with interviews of newly-drafted players, highlight packages, real-time analysis from MLB’s experts, footage from team draft rooms and interviews with front office personnel. Sunday’s coverage will be exhaustive, covering every pick, but the nature of buzzing through hundreds of picks means that the broadcast mostly consists of stock-ticker reporting in rapid-fire fashion.
MLB draft primer After trading Jacob Gonzalez to the Pirates, the White Sox the largest draft pool in baseball: $20,489,500. Each pick of the first 10 rounds has an assigned slot value, and adding up all of those pick values determines the bonus pool. Teams can spend more or less on any draft choice in any round, all the way down to Round 20.
Overall, teams are allowed to exceed their allotted pool by up to 5% — but teams are taxed 75% on any spending beyond the bonus pool; if the White Sox sign their 21 draft choices for $21 million, they’ll have to pay a 75% tax on that extra $510,500. (For a Jerry Reinsdorf-run team, don’t expect to see the White Sox exceeding their bonus pool.) And if a team was to exceed their bonus pool by more than 5%, it’s viewed as “cheating” and results in higher penalties and a loss of future draft picks — NO TEAM has ever done this.
Players picked in Rounds 11–20 have slot values of $150,000 — but it’s all “free” money in that it does not count against the bonus pool. Any contract of more than $150,000 results in the extra payment counting against the pool (if the total used to sign Round 11-20 selections adds up to $1.5 million, the White Sox will have all $20,489,500 to spend on their Round 1-10 picks, but if the total added up to $3 million, the bonus pool to sign Round 1-10 draftees will be just $18,989,500. The White Sox are very likely to lowball a few selections with no other options (players sign for as little as $10,000) to free up money in the latter half of the draft, rather than cannibalize the more precious bonus-pool monies.
Finally, if you’d like your own “White Sox draft preview show” as you wait for the action to begin, here’s director of scouting Mike Shirley on Friday’s broadcast, talking draft:
CHICAGO, ILLINOIS - FEBRUARY 15: Rich Paul and Anthony Davis attend the Klutch Sports Group All-Star Dinner presented by PATRÓN Tequila at Swift & Sons on February 15, 2020 in Chicago, Illinois. (Photo by Daniel Boczarski/Getty Images for PATRÓN Tequila) | Getty Images for PATRÓN Tequila
The Washington Wizards’ summer of 2026 has centered around AJ Dybantsa’s professional debut in the Summer League. And so far, Deandre Ayton is coming to Washington, Khris Middleton is returning and Patrick Ewing is returning to coach with the first NBA team he ever coached for. In Ewing’s case, keep in mind that as a player, he is the (now second) best New York Knicks legend of all time. Why? Because the Knicks won the 2025-26 NBA championship!
Okay, I ribbed on Ewing a little too hard there.
But what about Anthony Davis? The Golden State Warriors apparently wanted him from the Wizards, but Washington has since made it clear that he’s staying. So … what now?
On Game Over, an NBA podcast with Max Kellerman and Rich Paul (who is Davis’ agent), Kellerman just asked him straight up on an episode which was released yesterday. Paul said simply “yes” and then “Why wouldn’t he” when pressed further. Paul even said “I don’t know anything about [a trade].”
Rich Paul says Anthony Davis WILL play for the Wizards next season:
I’m trying to look closer at Paul’s body language and he doesn’t seem relaxed about this topic. I can 100 percent believe him that Davis will start the 2026-27 season with the Wizards. However, he’s not so relaxed when being pressed about trade requests and the like. Interpret that for what you will.
LOS ANGELES, CA - JULY 17: A view of the draft logo prior to the 2022 Major League Baseball Draft at L.A. Live on Sunday, July 17, 2022 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images) | MLB Photos via Getty Images
Good morning! It’s draft day for Major League Baseball which, strangely, comes at a terrible time for the Red Sox. They’ve won seven in a row! They’re somehow surging up the standings despite suffering a new injury every day! It’s time to celebrate the NOW! Not to look to the future!
Alas, the schedule is what it is, and the baseball gods Rob Manfred has decided that the best time to hold the MLB draft is on a Saturday afternoon, when it will compete against a full slate of MLB games as fans gear up for the All-Star Break. So, to some extent, the big league club will take a backseat today.
The Draft begins with rounds 1-4 today, which will be broadcast on NBC/Peacock starting at 1PM, with coverage moving to MLB Network at 2:30.
The Red Sox will make the 20th, 67th, and 96th picks in the first four rounds today.
DALLAS, TX - APRIL 5: Brandon Williams #10 of the Dallas Mavericks handles the ball during the game against the Los Angeles Lakers on April 5, 2026 at American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. Mandatory Copyright Notice: Copyright 2026 NBAE (Photo by Glenn James/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
The Dallas Mavericks have 14 of their roster spots filled for the upcoming season, leaving one vacant for them to work with.
It remains to be seen what the Mavericks will do, but there is reason to believe that a reunion with Brandon Williams could be in the cards.
“Guards who can get both feet in the paint outside of transition aren’t easy to find. Fortunately for clearance-rack shoppers, Brandon Williams is sitting right here,“ Bleacher Report contributor Dan Favale wrote.
“… A distinct lack of size hurts Williams on the defensive end. His three-point shot has also proven to be a non-starter, and even out of drives, he’s not the most reliable passer. But a 49.1 percent clip on long twos the past two years (28-of-57) coupled with reasonable free-throw shooting suggests there could be more levels to his scoring arsenal.”
When the Mavs traded for Detroit Pistons point guard Marcus Sasser, it definitely hurt Williams’ chances of returning to the team. It’s hard having Ryan Nemhard, Sasser and a returning Kyrie Irving on the roster. If Williams was added, that would give them four point guards that stand 6’2 or shorter. It’s incredibly hard to find minutes for all of them.
That being said, Williams brought an edge to the Mavericks the team needed. The attitude Williams had when he was playing for the Mavs was infectious, and it’s not easy to find that in the NBA. Williams improved a lot for the Mavericks, and who’s to say that the 26-year-old guard won’t get even better if he were to remain with Dallas?
Mavs Moneyball community, what do you think about the chances of Williams filling in the final roster spot for the team? Chime off in the comment section below.
Troy Watson was knocked around in his return to the rotation, and the Hens couldn’t capitalize enough on 10 hits and two walks to mount a comeback.
Watson gave up a run in the bottom of the first, and then three more in the third. The score remained 4-0 for several innings until the Hens fought back in the seventh.
Andrew Navigato led off the top of the seventh with a double. Luke Shliger, up to fill in for Eduardo Valencia, flew out, but Max Clark stepped to the dish and cranked a two-run shot just fair down the right field line. Clark’s eighth shot of the season made it 4-2.
Max Clark crushes a 2-run homer to right to get Toledo on the board. It’s his 8th home run of the year – left his bat at 102.6 and went 384 feet. pic.twitter.com/BRiXgLVJ5G
Unfortunately, the comeback stalled there. Jack Little allowed a pair of runs in the bottom of the eighth. That opened up too much distance between the two clubs, and the Hens couldn’t mount another charge.
Clark: 2-5, R, 2 RBI, HR, K
Anderson: 1-4, R, 3B, BB, K
Watson (L, 3-3): 5.0 IP, 4 ER, 7 H, BB, 2 K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 3-1 Indy lead heading into a 7:05 p.m. ET start on Saturday.
Jake Miller returned from his lengthy rehab with a short start for the SeaWolves, and the rest of the pitching staff dominated to down the Senators on Friday.
Miller fired three scoreless frames as the Tigers continue to carefully build him back up. The left-hander’s command is still rusty, but he allowed just one hit and two walks, striking out two.
In the bottom of the third, Bennett Lee was hit by a pitch and that sparked a big inning as Peyton Graham followed by drawing a walk. Justice Bigbie singled in Lee, and Graham scored on an Andrew Jenkins grounder that forced Bigbie at second. Garrett Pennington followed by drawing a walk, and Max Burt singled in Jenkins for a 3-0 lead.
In the fourth, Viandel Pena, who the Tigers recently signed out of Indy ball after Pena was released by the Nationals last summer, led off with a double. Bennett Lee drilled a line out to center and Pena took third. Graham singled him in, posting a two-hit, two walk game that took his OPS to .837 on the year.
Eric Silva tossed a scoreless fourth, then allowed a run in the fifth. So it was 4-1 SeaWolves in the bottom of the sixth when Pena doubled with one-out. Lee grounded out, but Pena stole third and Graham singled him in. Bigbie walked, and Jenkins reached on an infield single to load the bases. A walk to Pennington forced in a run, and a passed ball made it 7-1.
Lael Lockhart had it from there. The lefty fired four scoreless innings of one-hit ball to close this one out.
Graham: 2-3, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, K, SB (48)
Bigbie: 2-4, R, RBI, BB
Pena: 2-4, 2 R, 2 2B, K
Burt: 2-4, RBI, BB
Miller: 3.0 IP, 0 R, H, 2 BB, 2 K
Coming Up Next: The Senators lead the series 3-1 headed into Saturday’s 6:05 p.m. ET start.
Fort Wayne TinCaps 6, West Michigan Whitecaps 3 (box)
Carlos Marcano gave up four early runs in this one, and the offense just didn’t have the mojo for a comeback.
The TinCaps scored one in the first, and three in the second before Marcano departed. In the bottom of the fourth, Caleb Shpur drew a leadoff walk and Bryce Rainer singled. A double play ball from Clayton Campbell erased Rainer, but Shpur scored on a wild pitch.
Luke Stofel gave up a run in the fifth, but in the sixth, Rainer drew a leadoff walk and later scored on an error after a Samuel Gil single to right field and Rainer pushed first to third. The throw in went wild, allowing him to score, but the Whitecaps would only get one more run. Campbell walked in the eighth, and Gil was hit by a pitch. An Andrew Sojka single made it a 6-3 game, and that’s where it ended.
Hernandez: 2-4
Rainer: 1-3, R, BB, K
Marcano (L, 1-3): 2.0 IP, 4 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, K
Coming Up Next: It’s a 7:05 p.m. ET start on Saturday.
Lakeland Flying Tigers vs. Dunedin Blue Jays (postponed)
They’ll play two on Saturday after getting rained out on Friday.
Joey Wimpelberg got knocked out of this one early, but Ryan Hall took over for four decent innings, allowing two more runs. SS Angel de los Santos kept it rolling with an inside the park home run, a single, and a walk. Michael Oliveto was the DH in this one and had a pair of hits, including an RBI triple. Unfortunately, after tying this one up in the top of the seventh and scoring two in the first inning of extras, the Yankees dropped three more runs to walk this one off.
De Los Santos: 2-2, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR, BB, CS
Oliveto: 2-4, RBI, 3B, K
Cristian Perez: 1-3, 2 R, RBI, HR, BB, K
Hall: 4.0 IP, 2 ER, H, 2 BB, 4 K
Cristian Perez has hit his 12th FCL home run. That ties him with Jimmy Adler (1990), Alexis Espinoza (2007), and Juaner Aguasvivas (2009) for the most rookie ball home runs by a Tigers hitter since 1986, when Chris Hoiles hit 13. pic.twitter.com/SwLEFcnhhD
Unlike other major pro sports in the United States, Major League Baseball’s annual draft is hardly must-see television. With 20 rounds of picks—it used to be 50—and very few of them household names, only true baseball diehards closely pay attention beyond the first handful of selections.
For college baseball fans, though, the MLB Draft can bring about some stress and uncertainty since both incoming freshmen and existing veterans are eligible to be selected. The best college juniors and seniors are sure to get drafted and sign, while top recruits may be lured into starting their pro careers early via a hefty signing bonus.
Last year the UA saw nine members of the 2025 squad, which reached the College World Series, get drafted and sign. One of its prep signees also took the money rather than come to Tucson.
The 2026 draft, which begins Saturday and finishes Sunday, won’t be nearly as impactful to Arizona’s roster. Only one current Wildcat with eligibility remaining is assured of being drafted: junior right-handed pitcher Owen Kramkowski.
Kramkowski, who struggled in the spring after a breakout 2025 season, is ranked as the 205th-best draft prospect by Baseball America and No. 245 by MLB.com. That would put him in the range of the 6th or 7th round to get selected, though he could go earlier. All indications are Kramkowski will sign.
Beyond that, it’s anyone’s guess. No other current or future Wildcats are among BA’s Top 500.
Among Arizona’s outgoing seniors, the top candidate to get drafted is left-handed pitcher Patrick Morris, who is currently playing the MLB Draft League. Infielders Tyler Bickers and Maddox Mihalakis could also get picked late or sign as an undrafted free agent.
Draft-eligible juniors other than Kramkowski include lefty Maclain Roberts, catcher Beau Sylvester and outfielders Andrew Cain and Easton Breyfogle. A couple of Arizona’s 2027 newcomers, such as junior college righty Collin Cobb, prep infielder Ayden Deome and catcher Francisco Rivero, are also at risk of getting picked.
Arizona has had 293 players drafted in its history and has had at least two taken every year since 2011.
The first four rounds of the 2026 MLB Draft are Saturday, with NBC airing the first 10 picks starting at 10 a.m. PT before the broadcast switches to MLB Network and later MLB.com. Rounds 5-20 are Sunday on MLB.com starting at 8:30 a.m. PT.
WASHINGTON, DC - JULY 10: Jazz Chisholm Jr. #13 of the New York Yankees celebrates with teammates in the dugout after hitting a two run home run against the Washington Nationals during the ninth inning at Nationals Park on July 10, 2026 in Washington, DC. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images) | Getty Images
After splitting their series against the Rays, one series was left between the Yankees and the All-Star break. The Nationals managed to take the lead late as Tim Hill didn’t have it in the eighth, but thankfully Washington’s bullpen gave it right back in the ninth to give New York their third win in five games. Ben Rice launched his 29th home run of the season and now has two more games to hit a nice, round 30 before the break, and Austin Wells hit his second home run in as many games after a lengthy drought. All in all, that’s a great game for the Yankees to have taken, and now they can end this half of the year with a series win if they win today or tomorrow.
The break isn’t for another couple of days, but the festivities start this weekend with the MLB Draft kicking off this afternoon. We’ll have plenty of coverage of the event throughout today and tomorrow and breakdowns of what the team accomplished afterwards, but we’ll open the day up with a primer from Andrew on what to expect from today specifically. Andrew’s also got the Rivalry Roundup lined up and Matt celebrates the birthday of Harry Wolter before we get deep into prospect land.
Today’s Matchup:
New York Yankees at Washington Nationals
Time: 4:05 p.m. EST
TV: YES Network, Nationals.TV
Venue: Nationals Park, Washington, D.C.
Questions/Prompts:
1. Get your guesses in for who the Yankees take with their first-round pick (35th overall).
2. Will we see any team make a trade over the break?
PITTSBURGH, PA - JANUARY 10: Kevin Hayes #13 of the Pittsburgh Penguins controls the puck in front of Brayden Pachal #94 of the Calgary Flames at PPG PAINTS Arena on January 10, 2026 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Joe Sargent/NHLI via Getty Images) | NHLI via Getty Images
This is a good one from the NHL social media team, asking players who they would want on their beer league teams.
Who would be the best from the Penguins? Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin, duh, they stand apart as an opportunity you’d never forget to get to share the ice with some of the greatest players of all time.
For on ice reasons, I would go with players that might not be so obvious. Sure, you might immediately go to wanting Egor Chinakhov on your team since he’s outrageously fast and shoots the puck so hard, but that also means he’s impossible to keep up with and not going to be so fun to play off of for a mere ‘normal’ type of player. Now, someone like Tommy Novak would be an incredible beer leaguer; he’s good enough at lugging the puck up the ice in the NHL, he would skate around the entire league of non-pro level players, toy with everyone else with his dangles and then be able to set his teammates up. Especially if it was roller hockey, I’d bet Novak would be a way higher value player than one might think upon first glance due to his puck control and hands.
Erik Karlsson is up in that Crosby/Malkin obvious territory, but my goodness, how fun would that be? I feel like he would be the guy that shows up late half the time and skips out on the other half of the games but would be incredible beer leaguer, effortlessly so since he’s also one of the greatest players of this generation. Kinda like the time he missed the entire preseason with an injury and then stepped right in to play all 82 NHL games, the ease and casualness of Karlsson would fit right in even before the fact he could score 10 points a game without breaking a sweat in your average beer league.
Controversially, I don’t think I would want Marc-Andre Fleury. Being in proximity to the pranks is not as fun as watching from afar, though clearly if the opportunity was available, of course you wouldn’t pass it up.
Elmer Soderblom would be a marvel in the beer leagues. He was starting to hold the puck and drive to the net at the NHL level, it would be just impossible for any rec level player to take it away from him. Plus with that reach, good luck trying to get the puck around him. His size and strength would be off the charts.
For the social aspects, take a look at the regulars at the poker table and more colorful members of the team. From last season, Connor Clifton and Kevin Hayes would be unreal beer league teammates. Chopping it up with those guys would be a riot. It’s not hard to picture Noel Acciari with a six pack in the lockerroom bemoaning his upcoming chores or family obligations and BS’ing around with the crew after the game like an average Joe. Those guys wouldn’t have the panache of being an absolute star but for the vibes and experience would be just as terrific as anyone.
That’s who came to mind here, let us know who you would want to play beer league hockey with.
New York Daily News | Gary Phillips: A lot of the big headlines to come out of Brian Cashman’s media availability on Thursday were around the status and recovery of Aaron Judge and his rib injury. Also during that availability, Cashman noted that the performances the Yankees have gotten from the catcher position this season have been an issue. While he emphasized that he’s looking to improve themselves in total as opposed to putting all the eggs in one position’s basket, he acknowledged that catcher has become an unexpected area of concern.
The Trentonian | Greg Johnson: One annual event during the All-Star Game weekend festivities is the Futures Game played between some of the top prospects from around baseball. The Yankees were set to be represented in this year’s event by shortstop George Lombard Jr. and pitcher Carlos Lagrange. However, both have been ruled out with injury. In their place, the Yankees will now send pitcher Ben Grable, an 11th-round pick from Indiana last year who is now in the Somerset Patriots’ bullpen. He’s much lower in the Yankees’ prospect pecking order, but is having a nice 2026 season.
MLB.com | Byron Kerr: The Yankees’ offense had one of their best performances in a while on Thursday when they put up 12 runs in a win over the Rays. A couple Yankees gave a bit of credit to a pregame speech from Jazz Chisholm Jr. ahead of that game. Jazz then played a big role in last night’s win over the Nationals, so it’s been a nice couple days for him.
Netflix: Ben Rice’s competition in the 2026 Home Run Derby is set for Monday night. Barring any late substitutions, he will face Junior Caminero of the Rays, Jac Caglianone of the Royals, Jordan Walker of the Cardinals, Munetaka Murakami of the White Sox, Willson Contreras of the Red Sox, and two host sluggers: Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper of the Phillies. Caminero and Schwarber were runners-up in the 2025 and 2018 events, respectively, while Harper was the winner in 2018, the last time he competed in one with the Nationals. Rice will be looking to become the fifth Yankee to win the event, alongside Tino Martinez (1997), Jason Giambi (2002), Robinson Canó (2011), and Aaron Judge (2017).
MLB.com: Another event this weekend is the MLB Draft, which is set to begin later today. If you want to feel old, the sons of Andy Pettitte, CC Sabathia, Jose Contreras, and other famous names from around baseball will be among those available for selection in this year’s Draft. And if you’re curious about who the Yankees might take with their top pick (No. 35), check out Dan Kelly’s article for us yesterday.
WASHINGTON — Jasson Domínguez began Friday as one of the Yankees’ hotter hitters of late — which wasn’t exactly saying much, given their collective funk before Thursday’s breakout — but Aaron Boone is setting a higher bar.
As in more of what Domínguez did Friday night.
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The 23-year-old outfielder smoked a solo shot from the left side and later singled from the right side in the ninth inning to start the game-winning rally as the Yankees beat the Nationals 5-3 at Nationals Park.
“I feel like I’ve been getting better,” Domínguez said. “I’ve been working to take better at-bats. Just go and compete, and that’s been my only focus.”
At a time when the Yankees need all the offense they can get, Domínguez is batting .333 (10-for-30) over his past eight games. Still, he ended the night batting only .242 with a .709 OPS in 34 games this season.
“I expect more,” Boone said before the game. “I feel like really all year he’s giving solid at-bats every day, but hasn’t had that breakthrough yet. His on-base percentage should not be whatever it is [.276]. He’s so much more than that. But I feel like he hasn’t struggled at all in the time that he’s been up so far. But I feel like he hasn’t caught that fire yet either.
Jasson Domínguez celebrates with teammates after belting a solo home run in the fourth inning of the Yankees’ 5-3 comeback win over the Nationals on July 10, 2026 in Washington. Getty Images
“He’s been a little unlucky, especially this last week. He’s hit some balls on the screws right at people. He did it a couple times in the Tampa series. So hopefully he’s starting to consistently square things up. When he’s doing that, he can do some special things out there with his speed and his power to all fields.”
The switch-hitter has the potential to be a difference maker in the Yankees lineup — often residing in the top half — especially as it carries on without Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton for the foreseeable future.
Domínguez remains a work in progress in right field, but if he can produce more consistently with his bat and legs, it would make his growing pains defensively easier to live with.
*Ryan Weathers turned in a strong outing against the game’s highest-scoring offense, holding the Nationals to just one run across 5 ¹/₃ innings despite receiving some shoddy defense behind him — including a pair of errors from third baseman Amed Rosario.
The left-hander changed up his pitch mix — leaning on his sweeper, slider and changeup and throwing just seven four-seam fastballs — to scatter six hits and no walks while striking out six.
“It’s definitely weird for me, but my job is to go out there and help the team win the ballgame,” Weathers said. “If me throwing less fastballs helps us win the ballgame, I want to go out there and win every possible game I can.”
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Paul Goldschmidt snapped out of an 0-for-34 skid with a single in the first inning, then later added an infield single.
Angel Chivilli had two encouraging outings in the final two games against the Rays, throwing a perfect inning Wednesday and two perfect innings with three strikeouts Thursday.
That earned him a longer stay on the roster instead of being sent back to Triple-A for a fresh arm Friday.
“Wow,” Boone said. “[Thursday] was really good. And coming off a game where he pitched the day before, to be able to give us two innings, because he was efficient and the strike throwing. The changeup’s a really good pitch. He was executing with it a lot in these last two games.”
He did not pitch in Friday night’s victory.
Ben Rice’s dad was at Nationals Park early Friday afternoon to throw him batting practice, as the two got a round of prep for Monday’s Home Run Derby at Citizens Bank Park.
If you’re only only interested in the baseball happenings, you can skip down to the section titled ‘The Actual Game Recap’
If you’ve been around here at the Snakepit for long enough, you should already be familiar with the now traditional cannabis themed recape or ‘weedcaps’ every April 20th. For those who haven’t been around for that long or are just unfamiliar with how that works, a weedcap consist of me recapping the game while also consuming and reviewing different cannabis products and various accessories. Sadly this tradition was broken in 2026, as April 20th was an off day for the D’Backs, so instead we’re doing the other weed holiday, which just so happens to be today, the 10th of July. If you aren’t familiar, July 10th has become the holiday where cannabis concentrate are celebrated, and that’s entirely because 7/10 reads as OIL upside down. (Apologies to the Europeans who use date/month instead of month/date). Links helpfully provided to either define what I’m talking about or to the appropriate business’ website.
Rally Rig and MJ Concentrate Product Review
During the 2026 season, I’ve often referred to the ‘Rally Rig’ in the comment section, taking ‘dabs’ of concentrates in the superstitious hope that it rallies the team.
This piece was actually part of the Daily High Club’s April “420 stoner party” subscription box, which you can purchase here, if so desired. Pictured below is the full subscription box contents. I looked all over for a baseball related piece for the specific purpose of this article, but sadly couldn’t find much. Thankfully, the Rally Rig has anthropomorphic cannabis flower using a joint as a baseball bat on it, so it was good enough!
I’ve actually built up a fairly impressive collection of glass pieces thanks to them and I’ve largely been satisfied. However, I wouldn’t reccomend actually subscribing to the boxes, as it is mildly annoying unsubcribing. If you like cool glass display pieces, or are looking for a gift for the resident stoner/medical marijuana patient in your life, I would absolutely recommend giving their website a look.
To go with the glass piece meant to be used with concentrates, I picked up a couple different strains (Mr. Powers round glass container on the left, Blueberry on the right ) of sugar wax from Tucson SAINTS dispensary‘s house brand. In addition, I also grabbed some of IO Extracts Pineapple Chem shatter, pictured in between the two containers of sugar wax.
I won’t go into full details on the individual products, but I recommend the Saints Wax for the combination of value (2.5grams for <25$) and overall quality. IO Extracts also make quality products worth checking out, albeit at not as great of value. They’re very consistent, and have a wide array of strains, different forms of concentrates, as well as vape cartridges for those not so inclined to mess with the torch and dab rig set up. (And it is a pain to be honest, the rally rig is pretty much only used during game days.)
I had originally planned on doing a very different version of this article, but last minute time and budget constraints changed those plans.
The Actual Game Recap
Shohei Ohtani, the pitcher, was scratched as the Dodgers starting pitcher, so instead the Dodgers turned to their bullpen, starting with RHP Kyle Hurt. The Diamondbacks offense struck early against Hurt, scoring a pair of runs in the first, thanks to back to back singles from Ketel Marte and Geraldo Perdomo to lead off the game. After Corbin Carroll ground into a fielder’s choice to put runners on the corners, Gabi Moreno singled and advanced to second on a Kyle Tucker throwing error, allowing both runners to score and putting the Dbacks 2-0 over the Dodgers.
Shohei Ohtani, the hitter, made his presence in the game known immediately in the bottom of the inning, hitting a home run off Dbacks starter Eduardo Rodriguez to leadoff the game, making the score 2-1. Andy Pages followed up with a solo homer of his own, which tied the game up at 2-2. Rodriguez would get Freeman to strikeout for the first out before giving up single to Mookie Betts, but he’d set down the next two batters and exit the inning without any further damage.
Nolan Arenado lead off the second inning with a walk, but Ryan Waldschmidt struck out swinging and Tim Tawa flew out to right. That would prompt Dodgers Manager Dave Ross to take Kyle Hurt out of the game at this replaces, replacing him with Will Klein, who’d then get Marte to ground out for the third out of the inning stranding Arenado at third. The bottom of the inning proved uneventful as Rodriguez set down Teoscar Hernandez, Miguel Rojas, and Daulton Rushing in order.
In the top of third inning, after a Perdomo groundout, Carroll walked, which the Dodgers unsuccessfully challenged, which Carroll responded to by stealing his 10th base of the year. The Dbacks were unable to capitalize on the runner in scoring position with Moreno striking out and Gurriel grounding out to end the inning. Fortunately, Eduardo Rodriguez continued to cruise through the bottom of the third inning, striking out Ohtani and then erasing an Andy Pages single by getting Freeman to ground into a double play.
After an overly aggressive Ildemaro Vargas struck out for the first out of the fourth inning, Nolan Arenado walked, prompting another pitching change with LHP Brock Stewart taking over for Will Klein. After getting Ryan Waldschmidt to strikeout for the second out of the inning, Tim Tawa blasted a two run homerun to left center, giving the Dbacks a 4-2 lead. Ketel marte then struck out for the third out. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Rodriguez continued neutralizing the Dodgers offense, working around a two out double from Kyle Tucker to come out of the inning unscathed.
in the top of the fifth, Geraldo Perdomo lead off with a walk. Corbin Carroll then hit into a fielder’s choice on a ball hit 2 feet at 70MPH, but thanks to a throwing error by Dalton Rushing, he’d reach safely and Perdomo would advance all the way to third. Gabi Moreno then ground out to third, but that’d be enough to score Perdomo, putting the Dbacks up 5-2 to over the Dodgers. Another pitching change would follow, this time with RHP Edgardo Henriquez to face Lourdes Gurriel, replacing Brock Stewart.
Gurriel would go down on strikes, but not before Carroll advanced to third and then scored as a result of a balk, then a wild pitch, making the score 6-2. Vargas would then strikeout for the third out, sending it to the bottom of thw inning. In the bottom of the fifth, Rodriguez once again escaped without any damage, despite giving up a leadoff single to Miguel Rojas and a two-out single to Andy Pagès.
In the top of the sixth, the Dbacks offense blew the game wide open, though not without a casualty. After Arenado lead off with walk, Ryan Waldschmidt was injured attempting to bunt him over, resulting in Jorge Barrosa taking over in the middle of the at-bat. Update: The pitch hit Waldschmidt’s thumb, x-rays came back negative, see comments
Thankfully, Barrosa was able to finish the job bunting Arenado over and a throwing error by Dodgers third baseman Tommy Edman not only only allowed Barrosa to reach safely, but put runners on 2nd and 3rd with nobody out. Tim Tawa then singled, scoring Arenado, advancing Barrosa to third. Dbacks lead 7-2. Later in the inning Barrosa would score on a Perdomo ground out, adding an additional run to make it 8-2.
In the bottom of the sixth, Rodriguez once again allowed a baserunner, a one out walk to Tommy Edman, but managed to escape the inning unscathed.
In the top of the seventh, Jack Dreyer would take over for Edgardo Henriquez and posted a scoreless inning, though he did allow a two out single to Ildemaro Vargas. In the bottom of the seventh inning,
Rodriguez was relieved by Brandynn Garcia, who put up an easy 1-2-3 inning by getting Vargas to pop out, followed by striking out Rushing and Ohtani.
Evan Phillips would take the ball next for the Dodgers in the bottom of the eighth inning. Before recording a single out, Phillips gave up a Jorge Barrosa single, a wild pitch, and then a Tim Tawa RBI single. That tacked on one last extra insurance run, making the score 9-2. Phillips then set down the top of the Dbacks order to send it to the bottom of eighth. Jonathan Loáisiga took over for Garcia, who pitched an uneventful, scoreless eighth inning.
Alex Vesia would take over for Phillips for the top of the ninth and allow a leadoff double to Moreno, but got Gurriel to pop out, then struck out Vargas and Arenado to send it to the bottom of the ninth. Drey Jameson, taking over for the ninth inning, allowed a leadoff single to Tommy Edman and two outs later an RBI double to Miguel Rojas, but got Dalton Rushing to ground out, ending the game.
Wembanyama helped France win silver at the 2024 Olympics [Getty Images]
NBA star Victor Wembanyama has signed a long-term deal with the San Antonio Spurs.
The 7ft 4in France centre's deal, according to ESPN, is for five years and worth $252m (£188m), which is the NBA's maximum for a rookie scale player extension.
The 22-year-old reportedly has an option in the fifth season and could have opted for clauses to make the deal worth more but did not do so to give the Spurs more financial flexibility.
"Spurs family, I'm here to stay. Whatever it takes," Wembanyama wrote on social media prior to the deal being announced.
The two-time All-Star, who was the first overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, helped the Spurs reach the NBA Finals last season but they missed out on the title, beaten 4-1 by the New York Knicks in the best-of-seven series.
He had a league-leading 3.1 blocks per game, while he averaged career highs of 25 points, 11.5 rebounds and 3.1 assists in 64 regular-season games during the 2025-26 campaign.
