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As has been the case more often than not of late, it was not the Yankees’ day on Wednesday. In an important divisional match with the first place Rays, the Bombers were shut out, and will be forced to try for a split in the series’ fourth game on Thursday. Now five games out of the top spot in the East, New York has plenty of work ahead them as we march closer to the All-Star break.

Regardless, there was plenty of other important baseball going on around the Junior Circuit on Wednesday. Amid some blowouts, gems on the mound, and the narrowing of standings, let’s take a look at what went down.

Boston Red Sox (42-48) 5, Chicago White Sox (47-44) 0

In a battle of the Sox, those of the Red variety had control over Wednesday’s game for much of its duration. After a pair of scoreless innings on both sides to begin the game, Boston jumped out to a five-run lead in a hurry. In the third, RBI knocks from Tsung-Che Cheng and Ceddanne Rafaela helped to plate three, while the same from Carlos Narváez and Cheng scored two more in the following inning.

The outburst in the middle innings was actually the extent of the scoring on either side, as the Red Sox cruised to victory in Chicago. The story of their day, however, was the pitching. Starter Jake Bennet had his best stuff working on Wednesday, as he tossed seven scoreless innings, while striking out four and walking just one. It was his fourth consecutive start of six or more innings, as the lefty continues to pitch well for the Sox.

Boston’s win gets them to within a few games of the final wild card spot, while Chicago’s loss only tightens the situation in a rather close American League Central. With three different teams within two games of first place, the division could once again remain close for much of the season.

Other Games

Toronto Blue Jays (44-49) 10, San Francisco Giants (38-54) 0:

On the topic of top-notch pitching, Dylan Cease was about as good as it gets in San Francisco on Wednesday. The highly talented righty took a no-hitter into the ninth inning against the Giants, and although he lost the no-no to the first hitter of that frame, Cease finished with a pristine line of eight scoreless innings with eleven strikeouts racked up. All the while, the Toronto bats backed up their starter with double-digit runs, fueled by Kazuma Okamoto’s grand slam, and homers from Vlad Guerrero Jr. and George Springer. The Jays creep back to within 2.5 games of a wild card berth with their dominant win by the Bay.

Miami Marlins (51-42) 2, Seattle Mariners (47-46) 0:

Remaining on the theme of shutouts, the Mariners dropped a tough one on the road against the Marlins. Early runs for Miami, thanks to extra-base hits from Kyle Stowers and Xavier Edwards gave them the lead, while another excellent effort on the mound allowed them to keep it. Miami’s Tyler Phillips along with three relievers kept Seattle out of the run column wire-to-wire, as the Fish continue to impress, holding onto the last wild card spot in the NL. With the disappointing loss, the Mariners shrink their lead in the West to just a half-game, as their situation becomes a bit troubling as we head toward the second half.

Minnesota Twins (46-47) 6, Cleveland Guardians (47-46) 5:

In the closest game on our docket for the day, the Twins walked it off in the ninth to close the gap between them and the Guardians. It was a close battle throughout on Wednesday, as both clubs matched each other with three runs in the fourth inning, and two in the seventh to knot things up at five. The big hit came from Alan Roden in the bottom of the ninth, with his walk-off “single” that hit about half-way up the big wall in right-center sending the Twins and their fans home happy. The dramatic wins gets the surprising Twins a bit closer to the action in the Central, as they now sit just two games out of first place.

Greetings folks, and a happy Thursday to you.

The Mariners lost a snoozer to the Marlins yesterday, falling 2-0 with another hapless performance from the offense.

A question for you to ponder on this fine morning in advance of the series finale: who is the most Mariner-like Marlin, and who is the most Marlin-like Mariner?

In Mariners news…

• Ryan Divish at The Seattle Times wonders if the Mariners should have more than one All-Star this year.
• Emma Cortes Ellendt at Forbes went behind-the-scenes to learn more about the Mariners’ new influencer strategy.

Around the league…

• Veteran right-hander Justin Verlander announced that he will retire at the end of the season. Verlander was also just selected to the All-Star team as a “legend pick.”
• Bradford Doolittle eulogized the amazing and unique career Verlander has enjoyed.
• We have some new Home Run Derby participants, with the Royals’ Jac Caglianone and the Red Sox’s Willson Contreras each announcing they will compete.
• Former Mariners righty Gregory Santos has elected free agency. Santos has had a rough season between the majors and Triple-A in the Giants organization.
• The Women’s Pro Baseball League (WPBL) unveiled the names and logos of its four teams in advance of its inaugural season, set to begin on August 1.
• Carlos Collazo at Baseball America provided his penultimate mock draft with less than a week to go until the first round begins. ($)

Anders’ pick…

• This is gonna hit so hard in December.

Could you imagine scoring 22 runs and coming within one hit of losing a game? That’s what happened to the Ontario Tower Buzzers, but all is well that ends well in a day of no defeats in the Dodgers minor league system.

Player of the day

While the hitting candidates were plentiful as the Tower Buzzers put up 22, no hitter in that game secured multiple home runs in the same important manner as did Zyhir Hope. The Drillers’ outfielder basically carried the team’s entire offense on his back in a 7-2 win.

Although it is only July 9th, it is already the fourth game securing at least five total bases for Hope this month, who hadn’t homered twice in the same game since the start of June. The lefty-hitting outfielder is already up to 76 RBI on the season.

Triple-A Oklahoma City

It’d be tough to ask for much more out of Zach Ehrhard, who has now passed the 60-RBI mark on the season—Ehrhard hit one of the Comets’ four homers, an inside-the-parker at that, to lead the way for a win over the Chihuahuas by a score of 9-2. Alek Thomas left the yard twice, and Noah Miller had the other home run.

In a game in which both sides combined to allow more hits than strikeouts, the work of veteran Cole Irvin got the job done for OKC. Irvin covered six innings of two-run ball, handing it off to a bullpen that tossed three scoreless without allowing a single hit.

Lastly, Ryan Ward needed just one single to become the all-time hits leader in the OKC’s Bricktown era, reaching 463 total and leaving behind Drew Avans, now second on the ranking.

Double-A Tulsa

Any Hope of winning this game against the Cardinals went through Zyhir, who homered twice and drove in five of the Drillers’ seven runs with those key long balls, his only hits in the game. In fact, considering Chris Newell also left the yard, the only Tulsa run that didn’t come via the long ball came on a Mike Sirota RBI triple, the man who can’t stop reaching base safely.

Pitching, only one of the three runs let across by Adam Serwinowski was earned, as the southpaw managed to earn his seventh win of the season. While they ran into a bit of trouble in the ninth inning, Kelvin Ramirez came in to secure a two-out save, carrying Tulsa to their 56th win in 83 games.

High-A Great Lakes

Working well with runners in scoring position (5 for 11), the Loons overcame a 4-1 deficit in the fifth inning to beat the Dragons 8-4 at home. The combination of Charles Davalan and Eduardo Quintero at the top of the order had a great performance, responsible for half of the team’s RBI, with Quintero hitting the team’s only home run, a solo shot in the first.

Because the Loons only took the lead after Aidan Foeller left the mound, having covered 4.2 innings with eight strikeouts and allowing three runs across, the win was left for Matt Lanzendonfer, his third on the season.

Single-A Ontario

One occasionally hears of football scores in a baseball game, but nothing quite as shocking as this 22-21 by the Tower Buzzers over the 66ers. In this game both sides combined for 33 hits, six errors, and four half innings with at least six runs scored.

It was by the thinnest of margins that Ontario escaped one of the all-time minor collapses in this one, considering they scored the game’s first 16 runs through three innings. Mairoshendrick Martinus and Ching-Hsien Ko combined to strike out five times, but each had an outstanding game of their own, responsible for 10 of the team’s 22 RBI. On top of those two, Jaron Elkins and Joendry Vargas also left the yard with multi-run homers.

Jholbran Herder tossed a couple of scoreless innings to begin the game, but then virtually any reliever that the Tower Buzzers sent to hold this sizeable lead seemed intent on giving it up. With the most alarming of appearances coming from Dailoui Abad in a ninth inning in which he allowed six runs to come across. The game ended with the tying run in scoring position and Jecsua Liborius punching out Ryan Piccolo, who had reached base all three times up at the plate before that at-bat.

Wednesday’s scores

• Oklahoma City 9, El Paso 2
• Tulsa 7, Springfield 3
• Great Lakes 8, Dayton 5
• Ontario 22, Inland Empire 21

Thursday’s schedule

• 4:05 p.m. PT: Great Lakes (Sean Patick) vs. Dayton (Kyle McCoy)
• 5:00 p.m. PT: Tulsa (Davis Martin) vs. Springfield (Chen-Wei Lin)
• 5:05 p.m. PT: Oklahoma City (Jackson Ferris) vs. El Paso (Evan Fitterer)
• 6:35 p.m. PT: Ontario (TBD) vs. Inland Empire (Jose Romero)

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Another busy slate across the majors presents value in my MLB same-game parlay predictions. 

Today's selections will include the likes of Jesus Luzardo, Nathan Eovaldi, and the red-hot Jo Adell. 

Read more in my MLB picks for Thursday, July 9.

Today's best MLB SGP picks

Game	SGP Odds
SEA vs MIA	+335
PHI vs CIN	+675
LAA vs TEX	+1200

Mariners vs Marlins SGP: Another gem from Miller

Bryce Miller continues to dominate for the Seattle Mariners. The righty owns a 2.17 FIP over his last two starts, and he hasn't allowed a single walk during that span.

Miller has also held opponents to a 30.9% hard-hit rate over the last month. He's cashed the Under in earned runs allowed in two of his previous three outings. 

The strikeout prop for Miller is also a no-brainer tonight. His total is set at a modest 5.5, and the 27-year-old has easily surpassed that in six straight. He's struck out 11.57 hitters per nine innings across his last four starts. 

Cal Raleigh is in the midst of a four-game hitting streak, and he has an impressive 50.3% hard-hit rate over the last week. 

• Time: 6:40 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Mariners.TV, Marlins.TV

Phillies vs Reds SGP: Luzardo quiets Reds

Jesus Luzardo has been inconsistent at times this season, but he's improving a lot lately. Over his last two starts, the Philadelphia Phillies lefty has posted a terrific 1.56 xERA, and he's hit the Under in earned runs allowed in both outings. 

Luzardo is also consistently pitching deep into games. He's lasted into the sixth inning or longer in three of his last four. Over the last month, opponents have only had a 31.3% hard-hit rate. 

Youngster Justin Crawford has multi-hit games in back-to-back appearances, and he's batting .353 over the last six games. He'll face Cincinnati Reds starter Brady Singer tonight, who has an alarming 44.4% hard-hit rate and 14.8% barrel rate in his last two outings.

This is a clear chance for Crawford to stay hot. 

• Time: 7:10 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: Reds.TV, NBC Sports Philadelphia

Angels vs Rangers SGP: Adell keeps raking

Nathan Eovaldi certainly hasn't been dominant this season, but as always, he's still racking up the Ks. The veteran has struck out 10.57 hitters per nine innings across his last five starts.

The righty has easily surpassed tonight's total in three straight outings, posting nine Ks in each. 

Jo Adell is one of the hottest hitters in baseball right now. He has seven hits in his last three games, and Adell just went 2-for-4 on Wednesday with two homers. Eovaldi has allowed a 39.3% hard-hit rate over his last two outings.

There's some vulnerability that Adell can capitalize on. 

Mike Trout has collected a hit in nine consecutive games. While he just returned from the IL, the veteran has continued to make quality contact, producing a 45.8% hard-hit rate over the last month. 

• Time: 8:05 p.m. ET
• Where to watch: ABTV, Rangers Sports Network

This article originally appeared on Covers.com, read the full article here and view our best betting sites or check out our top sportsbook promos.

Michael King was pulled with a 3-0 lead after 75 pitches against the Los Angeles Dodgers in his last start, which ultimately became a 4-3 loss after an error and a grand slam followed his departure. He came into the contest between the San Diego Padres and Arizona Diamondbacks looking to replicate the success from his previous start and he did just that allowing one run on four hits over six innings of work. King limited the walks in his outing, allowing two free passes, and struck out four on 92 pitches as the Padres earned a 10-4 win over the Diamondbacks at Petco Park on Wednesday.

The Padres offense supported King’s effort with runs in the third and fourth innings to take a 2-1 lead. San Diego then added two runs in the fifth inning and four runs in the sixth inning to take a comfortable 8-1 lead. Arizona added two runs to its total in the top of the seventh inning when Tommy Troy connected on a two-run homer against reliever Ron Marinaccio which made the score, 8-3. San Diego immediately responded in the bottom of the inning, adding two runs to its total to give the Padres a 10-3 lead. The Diamondbacks tacked on a run in the top of the eighth inning,

San Diego got contributions from the majority of the lineup with only Gavin Sheets being held without a hit. Miguel Andujar recorded three doubles and Fernando Tatis Jr., Jackson Merrill and Luis Campusano each had two hits in the game with Campusano recording his first home run of the season.

Padres News:

• The San Diego farm system has seen several changes over recent days, and Cheri Bell of Gaslamp Ball provides details on who moved up, who moved down and who was released.

• The Padres have had a first half of the season to forget when comes to their pitching staff. Thomas Conroy of Gaslamp Ball looks ahead to what the rotation could look like following the All-Star break.

• The MLB trade deadline is fast approaching, and Gaslamp Ball asks readers how they would handle that time on the baseball calendar.

• Samad Taylor is the latest Padres player to land on the IL and Luis Rengifo was recalled from Triple-A to take his spot on the roster.

• Manny Machado got the day off following a game in which he fouled a ball off his big toe.

• Jake Cronenworth has returned to the San Diego lineup and has supplied much needed power to the bottom of the order.

Baseball News:

• Dylan Cease came close to his second no-hitter, but the San Francisco Giants played spoiler breaking up the no-no in the ninth.

• The Miami Marlins knocked off the Philadelphia Phillies.

• Mike Trout returned to the lineup for the Los Angeles Angels and homered in his first game back.

• The Chicago Cubs knocked off the Baltimore Orioles.

It’s hard to argue with the Brewers’ recent draft results. Jacob Misiorowski is already a two-time All-Star, while Cooper Pratt, Braylon Payne, Blake Burke, and Andrew Fischer have emerged as some of the organization’s brightest young stars. Milwaukee will look to add another name or two to that list this weekend as the 2026 MLB Draft gets underway. Here’s everything you need to know before the Brewers are on the clock Saturday afternoon.

What picks do the Brewers have?

Milwaukee has three picks in the first three rounds. They only have two picks in the top 100, their fewest top 100 picks in the last eight years.

First round: 

• No. 25

Second round: 

• No. 66

Third round: 

• No. 102

After that, the Brewers have one pick in each remaining round. Last year, after selecting infielders Andrew Fischer and Brady Ebel with their first two picks, Milwaukee drafted five straight pitchers. In 2024, every selection they made between the fifth and 13th rounds was a pitcher. Don’t be surprised if the Brewers once again prioritize pitching depth on Day 2.

Milwaukee also had a second-round competitive balance pick (No. 67), but traded it to Boston in the trade that brought Kyle Harrison, David Hamilton, and Shane Drohan to Milwaukee.

What are the Brewers’ organizational strengths and weaknesses?

Most consider the Brewers’ farm system to be the best in baseball. By “most,” I mean Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, ESPN… you get the idea.

Strengths: The Brewers’ biggest strength is the middle infield, led by the consensus No. 1 prospect in baseball, shortstop Jesús Made. Milwaukee also has three other middle infielders ranked among MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 prospects: Luis Peña (No. 2 in the organization, No. 18 overall), Cooper Pratt (No. 3, No. 56 overall), and Jett Williams (No. 5, No. 81 overall). Josh Adamczewski (No. 6), who has hit at least .320 in every season of his professional career, came up as a middle infielder but has shifted to the outfield simply because there’s nowhere else to play him. Last year, Milwaukee also took Brady Ebel (No. 14) with the No. 32 pick.

Honestly, it’s easier to ask what the Brewers don’t have. They have plenty of promising corner infielders, led by Andrew Fischer (.299/.441/.713, 28 home runs between High-A and Double-A), Blake Burke (.885 OPS, 19 home runs in Double-A), and Luke Adams (.942 OPS in 38 Triple-A games). They also have 11 pitchers in MLB Pipeline’s organizational Top 30, led by Logan Henderson (No. 7) and Bishop Letson (No. 10), plus another handful who could realistically crack those rankings in the near future. In last year’s article, I highlighted Coleman Crow, Tyson Hardin, and Ethan Dorchies as unranked pitchers to watch. Sure enough, all three have since appeared in MLB Pipeline’s rankings, and Crow ended up making the big leagues.

Last year, I also listed the outfield as one of the Brewers’ biggest organizational weaknesses. One year later, it’s become one of their strengths. Luis Lara‘s breakout season earned him a seven-year extension worth at least $31 million, while Braylon Payne (.281, .967 OPS, 16 home runs) has taken a huge step forward. Williams can play the outfield, Adamczewski has already made the move there, and younger prospects like Alexander Frias, Josiah Ragsdale, Brailyn Antunez, and Kenny Fenelon have all shown flashes. Add in a major league outfield already headlined by Jackson Chourio, Sal Frelick, Garrett Mitchell, and now Lara, and it’s suddenly become a pretty deep positional group.

Weaknesses: Honestly… maybe catcher?

Jeferson Quero (No. 9) and Marco Dinges (No. 11), both of whom the Brewers are extremely high on, are the only two catching prospects in the organization who project as potential above-average major leaguers. Even then, calling catcher a weakness feels like a bit of a stretch.

Milwaukee already has an All-Star behind the plate in William Contreras, while players like Matthew Wood (.891 OPS in 189 Double-A at-bats) have produced despite flying under the radar. Besides, organizations don’t need nearly as many catching prospects as they do pitchers, infielders, or outfielders.

Either way, I would expect the Brewers to draft a catcher at some point during the draft. In a recent mock draft, Baseball America had the Brewers selecting high school C/SS Cole Prosek, the nephew of Brewers third base coach Matt Erickson, with their first-round pick.

The reality is that the Brewers don’t have many glaring organizational weaknesses. They have impact talent at nearly every position and enough depth throughout the system that they’re in a position to draft the best player available rather than trying to fill a specific need.

Who will the Brewers take?

One player who has been frequently mocked to Milwaukee is Ace Reese, a third baseman from Mississippi State who reminds evaluators of recent Brewer first-round picks Brock Wilken and Andrew Fischer. Reese slashed .336/.432/.721 with 24 home runs in 247 at-bats this season. Both ESPN’s Kiley McDaniel and The Athletic’s Keith Law have him going to the Brewers at No. 25 overall.

In addition to Reese and Prosek, other players who could be in play at No. 25 include Zion Rose (OF, Louisville), Aidan Ruiz (SS, Stony Brook HS), and Cade Townsend (RHP, Ole Miss).

One thing to keep in mind: the Brewers have frequently gone under slot (spent less than the projected value of the pick) with their first-round pick to free up bonus pool money for later rounds, where they can target high-upside prospects with strong college commitments. Don’t be surprised if their first selection isn’t any of the names listed here. Ultimately, only Matt Arnold and the front office know the answer to this question, and the Brewers usually find a way to surprise.

How much can the Brewers spend?

After trading away its Competitive Balance selection, Milwaukee’s bonus pool is $8,042,900, which ranks 25th in Major League Baseball. Their first-round selection (No. 25) carries a slot value of $3,696,000, although the Brewers can choose to spend less or more on whatever prospect they select.

Day 1:

Round 1 (No. 25): $3,696,000

Round 2 (No. 66): $1,353,100

Round 3 (No. 97): $853,000

Round 4 (No. 127): $614,800

Day 2:

Round 5 (No. 157): $455,900

Round 6 (No. 187): $351,600

Round 7 (No. 217): $275,100

Round 8 (No. 247): $224,400

Round 9 (No. 277): $202,100

Round 10 (No. 307): $191,900

In rounds 11-20, teams are allowed to offer up to $150,000 in signing bonuses without it counting towards their bonus pool. They are allowed to offer more, but any money spent in excess of that limit is then counted toward the pool.

How do I watch the 2025 MLB Draft?

The 2026 MLB Draft begins at 12:00 p.m. CT on Saturday. Picks 1-10 will be televised on NBC and Peacock, picks 11-40 will air on MLB Network, MLB.com, and MLB.TV, and picks 41-135 will stream on MLB.com and MLB.TV. The rest of the draft takes place at 10:30 a.m. CT on Sunday and will stream live on MLB.com and MLB.TV.