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Seventeen walks, eleven issued by the Jays, against just seven strikeouts. Really, on both sides, some of the worst pitching you’ll see in a major league game. Five Jays pitchers played, and all but Spencer Miles gave up a run.

On the positive side, the offence actually showed up. They managed seven runs on eight hits and six walks of their own, including home runs by Jonatan Clase and Vladimir Guerrero jr. It’s a little late for moral victories, but Vlad going into the All Star break having broken out of his months long slump would be a little good news.

The Jays offense took an inning to figure Walker Buehler out, recording just a Vladimir Guerrero jr. chopper for an infield single in the first. In the second, though, they pounced. Kazuma Okamoto and Daulton Varsho walked. Alejandro Kirk lined a double that plated one run, and Andres Gimenez grounded out to force a second across. That left one on for Jonatan Clase, who homered on a fly ball to right to put the Jays in front 4-2.

Trey Yesavage could not find the plate at all. 12 of his first 13 pitches were balls, loading the bases with none out in the first. He got a pop out, but then walked in a run. A sac fly added a second before he was able to get out of the inning. Staked to a lead in the second, he struck out Luis Campusano before issuing his fifth walk of the game. Then a ground out and two more walks loaded the bases, and a Manny Machado line drive single tied it at four. That was the end of a start that never really got off the ground. Adam Macko took over, but before he could complete his first at bat Machado was caught in a rundown between first and second for the third out.

The Jays could manage only a Kirk single off reliever Matt Waldron in the top of the third. Macko allowed the Padres to break the tie in the bottom half, on a hit, a line single, a stolen base and a two RBI single, putting them back on top 6-4.

Waldron walked Clase in the fourth, but the Jays couldn’t do anything with it. Braydon fisher got the first two batters in his half, but yet another walk and a pair of single plated one more for San Diego. Both teams were quiet in the fifth, with Waldron pitching a 1-2-3 inning and Mason Fluharty working around a single.

In the sixth, Yuki Matsui walked Clase and hit Nathan Lukes, setting the table for a three run Vladimir Guerrero jr. home run to left, tieing the game at seven. It was short lived, as Ty France took Fluharty deep off the Western Metal Supply Co. building for a solo home run in the home half.

Bradgley Rodriguez and Spencer Miles each sat the opposing side down in order in the seventh. Luis Urias, hitting for Gimenez, singled to lead off the eighth but Adrian Morejon struck out Clase and got a double play from Clement. Jackson Merrill singled and appeared to steal second in the bottom half, but was called out. The call survived a replay, but I have to say he looked safe and it wasn’t particularly close. The Jays were happy to take it, of course. Miles took advantage to get out of the inning, although he issued two more walks in the process.

Nathan Lukes managed a single of Mason Miller in the ninth, which is more than almost anyone has this season. Myles Straw pinch ran and stole second while Guerrero struck out. George Springer lined a ball hard 390 feet to dead centre, but Merrill made the catch at the track to prevent the comeback from coming to fruition. Miller struck Okamoto out to end the game.

Jays of the Day: Guerrero (0.17), Kirk (0.14), Clase (0.16)

Less so: Yesavage (-0.39), Macko (-0.14), Fluharty (-0.11), Springer (-0.25), Okamoto (-0.16)

Tomorrow’s the last one before the All Star break. Kevin Gausman (4-8, 4.32) will try to right the ship after a rough finish to his first half, while the Padres will start German Marquez (4-2, 5.02), who’s having a rough season of his own. We’ll get it started at 4:10pm ET.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs deconsecrated the St. Paul Saints (Twins), 8-2. It was Iowa’s fourth-straight win.

Jameson Taillon started this game on a rehab assignment and dominated. Taillon threw 4.2 innings and allowed just one hit and no runs. Taillon struck out three and walked one. He threw 53 pitches and 34 were strikes.

Ty Blach gave up two runs on two hits over the next 2.1 innings, but got the win because Taillon didn’t throw five innings. Blach walked two and struck out two.

Second baseman Ben Cowles hit a two-run home run in the eighth inning, his fifth on the year. He was 1 for 4.

Right fielder Brett Bateman was 2 for 4 with a two-run triple and a walk. Bateman also scored once.

Third baseman Owen Miller doubled twice in a 3 for 4 game. He scored once.

Center fielder James Triantos was 1 for 2 with two walks and two runs scored.

Bateman’s triple.

A strikeout for Taillon.

Cowles’ home run.

Knoxville Smokies

The Knoxville Smokies were shelled by the Biloxi Shuckers (Brewers), 3-1.

Another great start for Jace Beck, who has allowed zero or one run in his last eight appearances. Tonight, Beck allowed one run on three hits over five innings. The one run was a solo home run. Beck struck out nine and walked just one.

Tyler Schlaffer pitched the next three innings and got the loss. He gave up two runs on one hit. Schlaffer walked one, hit one batter and struck out three.

DH Jefferson Rojas was 1 for 4 with an RBI double for the only Smokies run.

Second baseman Drew Bowser was 2 for 4 and scored the only run.

Third baseman Alex Madera was 2 for 4.

South Bend Cubs

The South Bend Cubs were harvested by the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Twins) 11-7.

Starter Alfredo Romero kept the Kernels off the board for three innings, but he gave up two in the fourth and two more in the fifth. The final line on Romero was four runs on six hits over 4.2 innings. He walked one and struck out four.

The Kernels exploded for six runs in the bottom of the seventh, and losing pitcher Ben Johnson was responsible for five of them. The final line on Johnson is was five runs on two hits and two walks over one-third of an inning. One of the five runs was unearned. Johnson struck out one.

Shortstop Angel Cepeda connected in the sixth inning with a man on for his first South Bend home run and second on the year. Cepeda went 1 for 5.

Right fielder Miguel Olivo was 3 for 4 with a double, a walk and three stolen bases. Olivo scored one run and knocked home one.

Second baseman Michael Halquist was 2 for 4 with a double and a triple. He scored twice.

An RBI double for Jose Escobar, who went 1 for 4 with a sac fly and two total RBI.

Myrtle Beach Pelicans

The Myrtle Beach Pelicans upset the Fredericksburg Nationals, 8-7.

Starter Noah Edders surrendered three runs on two hits over 4.1 innings. One fo the three runs was unearned. Edders struck out seven and walked three.

Edwardo Melendez pitched the top of the eighth and ninth innings, did not allow a run and got the win when the Pelicans scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth. Melendez gave up just one hit. He walked two and struck out three.

DH Ivan Cespedes hit a three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth that gave the Pelicans the lead and ended up being the difference. It was Cespedes’ second home run with the Pelicans and seventh overall. He went 1 for 4.

Shortstop Alexis Hernández was 2 for 4 with a walk and a solo home run in the second inning. It was Hernández’s second home run. He also stole a base and scored twice.

Center fielder Alexey Lumpuy went 2 for 3 with a double and two walks. Lumpuy scored once.

Third baseman Derniche Valdez was 2 for 4 with a triple and a sac fly. He had two RBI and one run scored.

Second baseman Jose Silva went 1 for 2 with two walks. He scored twice and had one run batted in.

The Hernández home run.

Valdez’s triple.

Cespedes’ blast left no doubt.

ACL Cubs

Beat the Athletics, 11-3.

Right fielder Robin Ortiz hit two home runs

On Friday, JJ Wetherholt and the St. Louis Cardinals agreed to the most recent in a string of early career extensions. Wetherholt’s deal will last eight years and will buy out what would have been two free-agent years. This deal comes with Wetherholt having played fewer than 90 big league games in his career.

Many teams have looked to gain some cost certainty with their young players and have signed similar deals recently including the Pittsburgh Pirates with Konnor Griffin and the Detroit Tigers with Kevin McGonigle. Some, such as the Seattle Mariners’ Colt Emerson and Milwaukee Brewers’ Luis Lara signed extensions before having made their major league debut.

The Rockies made a similar long-term deal to a player on a rookie contract in 2024 when Ezequiel Tovar agreed to a seven year extension just after his rookie season. With the surge of new faces performing well in Denver and a handful of prospects banging on the door from Triple-A, it would seem a good time to ask the question:

Are there any Rockies rookies that the front office should be trying to sign to a long term extension now?

There are a decent number of possible candidates:

• TJ Rumfield is fresh off of two straight rookie of the month awards.
• Cole Carrigg has provided a spark to the rockies lineup since his call up in June.
• Gabriel Hughes has had two great outings since his being called up a week ago.
• Charlie Condon and Zac Veen have both been destroying baseballs for the Isotopes all season long.

If you were in Paul DePodesta’s shoes, would you be trying to lock down any of these players beyond the normal six years of service that their rookie contracts would cover? Is there someone else you’d like to see signed for the long-term?

Let us know in the comments!

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Following in the footsteps of his older brother Jaxon, who is a top prospect for the Cubs, Carson Wiggins turned electric stuff into becoming a high draft pick. Carson will have bragging rights at holidays in the Wiggins household though, as he goes No. 27 overall to the Mets in the 2026 MLB Draft while Jaxon went No. 68 overall in 2023.

Wiggins was a highly regarded prospect coming out of high school in 2024, where he first touched 100 mph as a 17-year-old. He ranked as the No. 78 prospect by Baseball America and No. 79 by MLB Pipeline in the 2024 MLB Draft. He ended up going undrafted in the 2024 class due to his strong commitment to Arkansas, where his brother also attended college.

He started his collegiate career pitching out of the bullpen for the Razorbacks, but after 14 innings in his freshman year, he underwent Tommy John surgery with an internal brace surgery and missed not only the rest of the 2025 season, but the entirety of his 2026 collegiate season as well.

When the 6-foot-5, 215-pound Wiggins is right, he possesses some of the most electric stuff in this year’s class, headlined by what MLB Pipeline graded as an 80-grade fastball that sits 99 mph and touches 102. His upper 80’s slider was untouchable in his small sample in college, generating a 74 percent whiff rate on it. He is also an excellent athlete on the mound, which is something the Mets have always sought. That athleticism would be evident if you looked up some of his high school basketball highlights.

The recently turned 21-year-old draft eligible sophomore helped his draft stock by proving to teams that he was healthy by throwing at the MLB Combine in Arizona last month. While not going full bore, Wiggins was up to 97 mph in that bullpen session and showed his patented slider as well as two pitches he seldom threw before, a curveball that he really can spin, averaging 2,719 rpm at the Combine as well as a changeup that lags behind the other offerings. The Mets also had eyes on him throwing bullpen sessions throughout the SEC schedule in the latter half of the college season.

While Wiggins was ranked as the No. 88 prospect in the 2026 class by MLB Pipeline, it was expected he would go much higher than that number. When I polled scouts, most believed he would go inside of the top 50 picks. One scout said “102 with a wipeout slider simply don’t grow on trees”.

Ultimately, if the Mets wanted Wiggins, they had to take him at No. 27. They did not have a second-round pick to hope for him to fall to, as they forfeited that as well as their compensatory fourth-round pick that they received for the Dodgers' signing of Edwin Diaz when they signed Bo Bichette who had a qualifying offer attached to him last winter.

The stuff is tantalizing, but this is going to be a bit of a project for the Mets' player development department. Wiggins has had control questions dating back to high school, and in the small sample of innings that he had in college, he walked 15.3 percent of the batters he faced. It goes without saying he has to throw more strikes at the next level.

The Mets will send Wiggins out as a starting pitcher with his increased arsenal and delivery that they believe will play as a starter. Mets vice president of amateur and international scouting Kris Gross called him a pitcher “with real frontline upside”. Starting is something Wiggins also wants, saying after being drafted: “I would like to be a starter if that opportunity comes to me, but I’m going to do whatever they (the Mets) need me to do”.

However, if starting doesn’t work out, Wiggins has the kind of stuff to profile as a late-inning reliever, perhaps even a closer type with a lethal fastball/slider combination alone.

This is a home run swing type of pick, with a wide range of potential outcomes, but given where the Mets were picking, they felt the juice was worth the squeeze.

Like his brother Jaxon, Carson had an elbow surgery that took out their final college season and both ended up high draft picks despite that. Jaxon ended up being a top 100 prospect in baseball entering 2026, and the Mets are hoping he follows in his brother’s footsteps, becoming a future top 100 prospect himself.

Cristopher Sanchez stunk the other day in Kansas City. We mentioned pitch tipping as the main reason the Royals were able to put a beatdown on him, but the simple fact was that his stuff wasn’t good, he left it over the middle of the plate and was hammered as a result.

Tonight, against the Tigers, he was back to the form that may have earned him a start at home on Tuesday in the All-Star Game, the Phillies won and they enter Sunday with Zack Wheeler on the mound to try and take another series.

The scoring started in the third when Derek Hill reached on an error, stole two bases and scored on a sacrifice fly to give them the early lead. In the bottom of the innings, Hill was able to preserve the lead with another spectacular play in centerfield to rob a certain RBI double.

In the fourth, Brandon Marsh walked to lead off, then went to second on a one out single by Bryson Stott. J.T. Realmuto followed with a double that plated both and pushed the lead to 3-0.

Hill then drove in Realmuto with a single and the score went to 4-0. From there, Sanchez settled in and cruised. He allowed a solo home run in the fifth to Eduardo Valencia, who seems to be on a career beginning heater, but that was about all that Detroit could muster. Sanchez just had it all working yet again after that minor blip against the Royals on Monday.

It did get a little hairy in the eighth when Sanchez was brought back out to start the inning only to allow the first two runners on and get replaced by Jonathan Bowlan, who promptly hit Dillon Dingler to load the bases with no one out. Bowlan then got Spencer Torkelson to ground into a double play, one of three on the night, that helped quell the threat, even if a run did score. Bowlan finished the inning, then was followed by Jhoan Duran slamming the door shut in the ninth without much of a threat.

Watching Sanchez be so bad this week was jarring a bit, but tonight reinforced why he should still be considered a favorite to win the Cy Young award. He kept Detroit off balance, found his stuff and stopped the offense in its tracks.

Wonderful to watch.

WASHINGTON — Cam Schlittler has made himself the AL Cy Young favorite in the first half by leaning heavily on three different kinds of fastballs.

The Nationals, his final test before the All-Star break, have been one of the majors’ best fastball-hitting teams.

That made for an intriguing matchup Saturday afternoon, which started poorly for Schlittler when he gave up a pair of solo home runs in the first inning before pitching into the seventh as the Yankees came back to beat the Nationals 4-2 for their third straight win.

In an ace-like effort, Schlittler rebounded from the early ambushes by not giving up a run the rest of the way, putting the finishing touches on a terrific first half (2.05 ERA) that should earn him the start for the American League in Tuesday’s All-Star Game.

“Good pitchers are going to battle through that or you’re going to crumble,” Schlittler said. “I feel like I crumbled a little bit against Detroit [two starts ago when he gave up four home runs]. I feel like I can take today as a win in terms of making those adjustments and getting deeper into the game than I probably should’ve been.”

Schlittler did not have his best command either, tying a season high with four walks while striking out six.

But he settled into a groove as he got deeper into the game and finished with 6 ²/₃ innings — helping out his bullpen and keeping the Yankees within striking distance so they could come back to win it.

“Just a bunch of resilience, making pitches, competing,” said Trent Grisham, who delivered the go-ahead two-run homer in the eighth.

Up next could be a start in the All-Star Game, on what would essentially be Schlittler’s between-starts bullpen day.

Aaron Boone said before the game that there was a “good chance” Schlittler would be able to throw in the game, and while the right-hander said he did not yet know if he has the green light, he expected to find out in the next day or two.

• CHECK OUT THE LATEST MLB STANDINGS AND YANKEES STATS

“If I’m comfortable doing that, then I’ll do that,” he said. “It’d be a cool experience. I’m not gonna lie, I’m not too worried about it. I got more things to worry about in terms of this team and how we’ve been playing. I like how it’s been the last couple days.”

David Bednar, after throwing two innings to close out Friday’s win, came back for the ninth inning Saturday to record his 18th save of the season.

He now has a career-long 19-inning scoreless streak after an up-and-down start to the year.

“I think just finding my form and being aggressive,” Bednar said. “Being aggressive in the zone and trusting all three of my pitches. Whenever I’m able to be in the zone with all three, I’m able to have success.”

Max Fried (left elbow bone bruise) was in line to throw about 45 pitches in a simulated game Saturday afternoon at Double-A Somerset.

If he recovers well from it in the coming days, he should be cleared to start a rehab assignment after the All-Star break, giving him a chance to return to the Yankees by early August.

The Texas Rangers scored three runs but the Houston Astros scored nine runs.

Kumar Rocker made a couple of mistakes in the first inning. The first one wasn’t quite as big as the one that followed but he did allow an 0-2 single to Jeremy Pena to lead off the game. That was a mistake because that meant Yordan Alvarez was up with a runner on base.

That therefore meant the Rangers trailed 2-0 because Rocker’s second mistake was throwing a 93 MPH fastball right down the middle to the only player in baseball with an OPS north of 1.000.

Rocker eventually made many more mistakes, including allowing a third inning grand slam to LaMonte Wade Jr. on another pitch right down the middle. Before his day was over, Rocker also allowed a solo dong to Christian Vazquez in the top of the fourth on, you guessed it, a pitch right down the middle.

About the best you can say about Rocker’s evening is that he gave a beleaguered Texas staff 5 2/3 innings despite allowing seven of the nine runs. The final tallies came in the top of the ninth when Chris Martin entered and allowed a couple runs in what should be the final appearance of his big league career if the Rangers are being serious.

Granted, Martin was the only person to get Alvarez out all night so maybe there’s still some juice in the old fella’s right arm.

The bats, meanwhile, collected just one run on three hits over six innings against someone named Peter Lambert. By the time they got to the Houston bullpen for a couple of runs in the ninth, it was already way too late.

The Rangers have gone 3-6 against Houston this season meaning one more loss will end their quest to secure the Silver Boot in 2026.

Player of the Game: Ezequiel Duran connected for two home runs and drove in all three of Texas’ runs.

Up Next: The Rangers close out the first half of the season with a rubber match against these Astros. Neither team has listed a starting probable.

The Sunday afternoon first half finale from The Shed is scheduled 1:35 pm CDT and it will be aired on the Rangers Sports Network.

You would be hard-pressed to find a more relaxing night of baseball as an Orioles fan than the team’s smooth 6-1 win over the Royals on Saturday night. Kyle Bradish twirled a gem, taking a no-hitter into the seventh inning, and the lineup pounded four home runs in support.

Bradish put together one of his better starts of the season. There were really just two innings with some worrying moments. In the third inning, a error by Jackson Holliday, followed by a Carter Jensen walk, put two runners on base ahead of Bobby Witt Jr. That threat quickly dissipated when Witt popped up the first pitch of the at-bat. And then there was the seventh inning, where Jac Caglianone led off with Kansas City’s first hit of the day, moved to second on a ground out, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and then scored on a sac fly.

Now, this was not Bradish at his absolute best. In fact, he was battling quite a bit. His velocity was down slightly. As was his whiff rate (20%) and strikeout rate (five across 6.2 innings). And yet, the Royals struggled to square the ball up. Oftentimes that is the mark of a top tier pitcher, to turn in an impressive showing with less-than-ideal stuff. His season ERA is down to 3.61, the lowest it has been since May 31.

On offense, the Orioles were powerful and efficient. They had one at-bat with a runner in scoring position and cashed in. The other five runs all came in on the quartet of home runs that they bashed.

Samuel Basallo had the team’s one hit with a runner in scoring position. That came in the second inning. Pete Alonso had doubled ahead of him and Basallo singled him in on a slider at his knees. Those two base knocks were the Orioles only hits that didn’t leave the yard. It was a “three true outcomes” kind of night.

Alonso got in on the fun with his 21st long ball of the season. That was a two-run shot in the fourth inning to score Taylor Ward

Coby Mayo had the two hardest hit balls of the evening. In the second inning, he lined out on a ball hit 112.8 miles per hour. In the fifth inning, he launched a ball 440 feet at 110.4 miles per hour for his 12th homer of the year. Have we mentioned that he likes facing left-handed pitching?

Ward launched his sixth dong of the season. It’s his first home run since June 22nd, yet another long stretch for a player that was expected to challenge for the team lead in round-trippers.

Gunnar Henderson was the final Oriole to go yard. He left the park in the eighth inning with a 417-foot bomb to right-center field for his 17th homer of the year.

This lineup was designed to win with power. It hasn’t happened as much this year as the front office would have probably liked for it to. But sometimes they have nights like this and make it very easy to understand what all of the spreadsheets and analysis were illustrating to Mike Elias back in the winter.

The bullpen was also good in this one. Grant Wolfram came on to wrap up the seventh inning for Bradish. He did that, and then got two more outs for fun. Yennier Cano struck out the lone batter he faced in the eighth inning. And then Tyler Wells came on for a shutout ninth inning.

It was an odd sensation to watch this team play a relatively easy game like this. They were in control throughout, and it never felt like things were about to go sideways. That must be how fans of competitive teams feel every night.

On top of that, the Orioles gained a full game in the wild card race tonight. So now, despite the uneven play throughout the first half, they find themselves just two games out of a playoff spot. The win tonight also made it three in a row. They are yet to win four in a row this season. If they reach that threshold on the final day before the all-star break, it will give all of us some very different vibes with trade season on the horizon.

The O’s and Royals will wrap up the unofficial first half of their seasons on Sunday afternoon at Camden Yards. Shane Baz (4-9, 4.21 ERA) is set to duel with Seth Lugo (3-6, 4.56 ERA). First pitch is 1:35.

Most Birdland Player, July 11. 2026

Who do you think was the Most Birdland Player in this Orioles win? Here are some nominees for your consideration, but feel free to name your own in the comments.

• Kyle Bradish (win, 6.2 innings, two hits, one run, two walks, five strikeouts)
• Pete Alonso (2-for-4, home run, double, two RBI, two runs
• Coby Mayo (home run, hitting left-handed pitching really, really hard)
• Grant Wolfram (cleaned up Bradish’s mini jam in the seventh)

Today, a lot of dreams came true. The Yankees were the genie to grant four of those wishes, making the 35th, 63rd, 99th, and 127th selections in the 2026 Major League Baseball Draft.

The Yankees were given a 10-spot penalty on their first-round pick because they exceeded the league’s luxury tax threshold. However, it was worth the wait. As someone who watches a lot of Arkansas Razorback baseball, I’ll say this was an easy choice for my favorite Yankees selection of the draft not only this year, but in years.

With the 35th pick, the Yankees selected Hunter Dietz, a left-handed pitcher from Arkansas. For those unfamiliar, the OmaHogs are essentially the college version of Matt Blake’s pitching factory. Since 2019, the Razorbacks have had more pitchers drafted than any other college program, with 30 prior to this selection. Dietz now joins Hagen Smith and Gage Wood as Razorback pitchers selected in the first round in three consecutive drafts. Going further back, two Cy Youngs have come from Arkansas as well: Cliff Lee and Dallas Keuchel.

Dietz is good. Like, really, really good. Standing 6-foot-6 and weighing 235 pounds, his delivery and pitch mix remind me of a lefty Cam Schlittler. That’s the type of pitcher I think he could become. If things break his way health-wise (he did have 2023 surgery for a stress fracture in his elbow), I think his ceiling is incredibly high, and many evaluators believe he could move quickly through the minor-league ranks. Dietz recorded 131 strikeouts, including an SEC-best 47 looking.

Dietz generated those strikeouts with a fastball that sits in the mid-90s and has touched 99 mph. That fastball has the same high ride that makes Schlittler so effective, and he pairs it with a slider that tunnels off it before breaking late. Dietz was a first-team All-SEC selection, a semifinalist for both the Golden Spikes Award and Dick Howser Trophy, and a second-team All-American. I don’t know whether there was some slot gaming involved, but the Yankees getting this type of upside at No. 35 is outstanding value.

In the second round, with the 63rd pick, the Yankees selected another southpaw in Sean Duncan out of Terry Fox Secondary School in British Columbia. A Canadian prep product who only turned 18 in May, Duncan has been pitching in Canada’s National Team program since aging out of Little League. The Vanderbilt commit had been climbing draft boards before an elbow injury ended his spring season.

Some reports suggest Duncan would prefer to rehab his already-completed Tommy John surgery with the organization that drafts him. If that is the case, it may be a while before we see him on the mound, but Blake and the Yankees’ player development staff will have an opportunity to work with a young pitcher who already fills up the strike zone with a low-90s fastball and multiple off-speed pitches. High school selections always carry the risk of honoring a college commitment, but the Yankees must feel confident in their ability to sign Duncan away from Vandy.

With the final pick before triple digits, the Yankees selected catcher Brendan Brock out of the University of Oklahoma. Brock spent one season with the Sooners after playing the previous three years at Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville.

One thing I learned during my time in college athletics was never to count out a true JUCO grinder. Brock, a right-handed hitting catcher, hit 13 home runs, drove in 55 runs, and stole 28 bases this past season while helping Oklahoma win its first College World Series in 32 years. This kid is a legitimate athlete who flashes plus power and speed, though he’ll need to cut down on the strikeouts as he climbs the professional ladder.

With their fourth and final selection on Day 1, the Yankees went back to the JUCO transfer well and selected right-handed hitter Paul Gutierrez-Contreras II. Gutierrez-Contreras transferred to Cal State Fullerton after beginning his collegiate career at Modesto Junior College.

This past season, the 20-year-old followed a good summer in the wood-bat Northwoods League by slashing .346/.441/.633 while earning Big West Co-Player of the Year honors. Known for not wearing batting gloves at the plate, Gutierrez-Contreras will now look to continue his development in the Yankees’ system.

After Day 1, the Yankees have come away with a pair of left-handed pitchers and two right-handed hitting former JUCO products. The draft always feels like the perfect time to open the windows, let in some fresh air, and dream about what might be.

Day 2 gets underway tomorrow at 11:30 a.m. ET, with all of Rounds 5-20 on deck.

Milwaukee Brewers star right-hander Jacob Misiorowski will miss his scheduled start Sunday against Pittsburgh Pirates ace Paul Skenes and Tuesday’s MLB All-Star Game due to arm fatigue, the team announced Saturday.

Misiorowski said he does not expect to require a stint on the injured list and anticipates being ready to pitch after the All-Star break.

"A little forearm stuff," Misiorowski said, according to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, part of the USA TODAY Network. "Nothing crazy. Just didn’t bounce back. A little quick on the days off between but nothing crazy. We also have this long break."

Bo Lowrance models his game after Freddie Freeman. So, it’s fitting that the Dodgers selected the 6-foot-5, 200-pound high school infielder — ranked the No. 21 overall prospect by MLB.com — with the 40th pick in the MLB amateur draft on Saturday.

“He’s obviously a first baseman, and I’m on the left side, so defensively a little different,” Lowrance said of Freeman during a conference call with media. “But he’s still unbelievably athletic, and a big thing that I’ve watched for years is his approach and how he uses the whole field. … [Freeman is] somebody that I’m always trying to emulate.”

Lowrance hit .435 with 12 home runs last season at Christ Church Episcopal School in Greenville, S.C.

A left-handed batter and right-handed thrower like Freeman, Lowrance is expected to develop as a shortstop — noting former Dodger Corey Seager has a “super smooth” defense at 6-4 he hopes to replicate — with a potential role at third, depending on how the prep star grows into his frame.

Read more:Chicago White Sox select UCLA shortstop Roch Cholowsky with No. 1 pick in MLB draft

“Yeah, definitely want to be a shortstop,” Lowrance said. “I believe I’m capable of it. I think I have the glove skills and the athleticism. I think it’s just going to turn into who I want to become at the plate in terms of my overall size and frame. Like, if I ultimately put on a bunch of weight and kind of grow out of the shortstop position, then maybe that’s where that’ll change.”

Lowrance hit it off with the Dodgers’ front office in June at the draft combine in Phoenix.

And even though the Dodgers didn’t exactly see the Freeman comparison Lowrance mentioned, they would be thrilled if he turned out anything like the 10-time All-Star.

“Bo was definitely our main target coming into the day,” Dodgers amateur scouting director Zach Fitzpatrick said. “Probably would have said there’s a pretty low chance we were able to acquire him, had you asked me in the morning. So as the picks start coming off the board and realizing there’s a little bit more opportunity to get him, our excitement level climbed. And then to actually be able to call his name was a home run for us.”

Read more:Why 2026 MLB draft will be special for Dodgers coach Dino Ebel’s family

“I’ve been in communication with them for a while,” Lowrance added. “I’ve loved their scouting staff. I have a great relationship with them.”

The Dodgers entered the draft with the smallest bonus pool at $3,951,900; the White Sox had the most cash to work with, boasting $20,489,500.

Fitzpatrick, though, said the Dodgers’ strategy centered around taking the best player available.

The approach carried over into the Dodgers’ second and final pick on the day — Florida right-handed pitcher Russell Sandefer at No. 132.

Sandefer posted a 3-2 record as a junior in 2026 with a 4.42 ERA over 19 games and 12 starts. The Dodgers were intrigued by his repertoire and heat.

“As we dove into Russell throughout the spring, kind of all departments — from scouting and what we saw at the park to our player development group and our analytics group — kind of flagged Russell as very intriguing and then having a lot of upside left,” Fitzpatrick said.

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“A starter at Florida, threw a lot of strikes; there’s obviously velocity, there’s a deep mix, and he performed and had some pretty stellar outings along the way that helped us believe in his upside and different ways we can help him access it more consistently.”

Lowrance was happy to be part of the Dodgers’ draft class.

“Just a whole wave of emotions,” he said. “I’m extremely grateful, first off, and couldn’t be more excited. I mean, yeah, I’ve said it already: It’s the best team in baseball, and nobody else that I want to be a part of.

“Couldn’t have drawn it up any better.”

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This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.