LOS ANGELES, CA - MAY 11: Lebron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers throws chalk in the air before the game against the Oklahoma City Thunder during Round Two Game Four of the 2026 NBA Playoffs on May 11, 2026 at Crypto.Com Arena in Los Angeles, California. 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 Juan Ocampo/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
In 2013, the Sixers brought on Sam Hinkie as general manager. The Daryl Morey protege took a sledgehammer to the roster, hoping to pull the franchise out of NBA purgatory and into perpetual relevancy.
You could liken the next decade-plus to getting on a rollercoaster that never stops and is on fire. Sure, there have been thrilling moments, but sometimes, you just really wanted to get off the ride.
Now, 13 years later, LeBron James is a Philadelphia 76er. You did it, Sixers fans. You trusted the process. It wasn’t easy. In fact, it was downright tortuous at times, but you’re here. Like Andy Dufresne, you crawled through a river of shit and came out clean on the other side.
It feels like every so often I write a column and wind up rehashing everything you went through. Nearly securing the worst single-season record in NBA history — a record held by this very organization. Having a nepobaby executive foisted upon you only for him to be embroiled in a Twitter scandal which led to his ouster. The draft pick injuries, including Zhaire Smith nearly dying from a sesame seed allergy. And if I had a nickel for every time the Sixers took a guy No. 1 overall who couldn’t shoot … well, I’d have two nickels, but super weird that it happened twice!
Even as the franchise took steps forward, it felt like a step back was coming.
The best example is making blockbuster trades for Jimmy Butler and Tobias Harris, then choosing Harris over Butler in free agency (or pissing off Butler enough to make him not want to re-sign, whatever you want to believe). Nearly trading for James Harden, Ben Simmons’ brutal playoff stretches — culminating in The Pass — then actually trading for Harden, being minutes away from the Eastern Conference Finals, choking that away, and then Harden calling Morey a liar. That led to the cap space plan … which did lead to signing Paul George, which led to trading for Jaylen Brown, which led to signing LeBron James.
All those Joel Embiid injuries and procedures. All the roster, coaching and front office upheaval has brought you here.
Of course, there are no guarantees. On paper, Tyrese Maxey, VJ Edgecombe, Brown, James and Embiid looks like one of the most talented starting fives the sport has ever seen. That doesn’t mean the Sixers get to skip steps along the way. It’s an overabundance of talent, which beats the hell out of the alternative. It’s fair to wonder how these stars coalesce — but it’s equally fair to wonder who the hell is going to stop them?
Let the folks in Cleveland and Miami consume the sourest of grapes. Allow the national folks to twist themselves into a Philly soft pretzel over LeBron’s decision. It truly does not matter.
Today is not the day for the detractors and naysayers. They’ve had their fun for the last decade or so. It’s your time, Sixers fans.
In their search for a right-handed hitter, the Mariners are telling teams they also are open to moving righty Emerson Hancock, according to people briefed on their discussions.
Well. Emerson Hancock is the same age as Detmers (turned 27 in May), and he has something that would likely be very attractive to the Cubs front office: four years of team control after this year! Yes, that’s right, the Cubs could possibly get Hancock for four and a half seasons, if they could put together the right deal. In addition, Hancock isn’t even arb-eligible (based on the current CBA) until 2028.
Hancock was the Mariners’ No. 1 pick (sixth overall) in the 2020 Draft out of Georgia. He was in the major leagues three years later and was an occasional starter over the last two seasons.
He’s had a breakout year in 2026 — 19 starts with a 3.16 ERA, 1.006 WHIP and good walk, strikeout and home run rates. All that is good for 2.4 bWAR (1.7 fWAR).
Here’s Hancock’s pitch selection chart:
The article mentions the Mariners looking for a right-handed hitter.
Matt Shaw would be the obvious choice here, but Shaw’s on the IL and as of Friday, here’s his status (Bluesky link):
So it doesn’t seem likely he could be traded, unless the Mariners would like to take a chance he’ll be ready sometime shortly after the deadline, which is nine days from now.
Many of the Mariners are having down years, and it’s entirely possible they miss the postseason altogether, after being in the ALCS last year and one game from their first World Series. Could they be re-tooling for 2027 and beyond?
Or would you be willing to send Moisés Ballesteros to Seattle for Hancock? Yes, I know. They’re looking for a right-handed hitter. What about Ballesteros and Kevin Alcántara?
Remember, you’re getting a starter who is good now, is 27, and is under team control through 2030.
KANSAS CITY, MISSOURI - JULY 20: Michael Wacha #52 of the Kansas City Royals pitches during the first inning against the Kansas CIty Royals at Kauffman Stadium on July 20, 2026 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by Jay Biggerstaff/Getty Images) | Getty Images
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year, we ask questions of the most plugged-in Kansas City Royals fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.
Earlier this week, we asked how you felt about Jim Bowden’s proposed Michael Wacha trade.
80% of you would give the trade a passing grade. I find that result fascinating given the comments I saw on both the poll and the article, suggesting people are very over both Matt Shaw and Kevin Alcántara as prospects. I’m divided in my own mind, believing the deal should be either an A if you believe in both of those guys or a C if you think they’re a bit overrated. But the plurality of you split the difference, with 33% voting that such a trade would result in a B from you.
Now I find myself wishing I’d asked instead which prospect you’d be more excited about if the Royals made such a deal. I think that could have interesting results because it seems clear to me that Alcántara has the higher upside, but Shaw has the higher floor. Let me know in the comments below: which do you prioritize?
I also find it amusing that fully 40% of people graded this a C or lower, even knowing that Jim Bowden would consider this a pretty hefty overpay by the Cubs. That’s something Baseball Trade Values agrees with, calling it a $20 million value overpay by the Cubs. Also of note to me is that both of these players are still being tied to the Royals for a starting pitcher one year after they and Owen Caissie were being suggested as potential trade candidates for Seth Lugo. Caissie, of course, ended up going to the Cubs as one piece in the deal to acquire Edward Cabrera. Looked at a certain way, Alcántara and Shaw for Wacha makes sense in that context. Wacha was much better than Cabrera last year, and both players are under club control through the end of 2028. Maybe it’s not so far-fetched after all?
Unfortunately for the Detroit Red Wings, it's no longer "Showtime" in the Motor City.
Future Hall of Fame forward Patrick Kane, who had been with the club since signing as a UFA in December 2023, chose to return to the Chicago Blackhawks, with whom he'd spent the bulk of his career and won three Stanley Cup rings.
Chicago paid handsomely to lure Kane back into the fold, signing him to a salary cap hit of $8 million for the next two seasons, which will likely be the last of his career.
While Kane ending his career where it began is a fitting conclusion, his departure leaves a significant void in the lineup of the Red Wings, who were considered a longshot to return to the playoffs next season even had he re-signed.
But just because the Kane era in Detroit is over, it doesn't mean that he won't look back fondly on his playing days wearing the Winged Wheel.
Kane, who spent time in the metro-Detroit area as a youth and was even hosted by the family of former Red Wings forward Pat Verbeek, spoke glowingly about how the organization and the fan base treated him.
“What can I say about Detroit? I know it’s a huge rival with Chicago, but it was an incredible place to play," Kane said during his introductory press conference with Chicago on Friday. "The fans were great to me, the team was great. Everyone kind of welcomed me with open arms and really embraced me while I was there. So, great, great experience.”
Kane, who is good friends with Alex DeBrincat, whom he played with in Chicago and Detroit, appreciated the chance for their young sons to continue their friendship with one another.
“I got to watch my son kind of grow up a little bit there and make some good friends with Archie DeBrincat, and they had a great relationship,” Kane said. “So, it was fun to watch that kind of evolve."
Unfortunately for the Red Wings and their fans, they never got to experience Stanley Cup Playoff hockey with Kane in the lineup. While Kane said upon re-signing with Detroit last year that he'd love to skate in playoff hockey at Little Caesars Arena, it wasn't meant to be.
The Red Wings now own the NHL's longest postseason drought at 10 years and counting. Captain Dylan Larkin requested a trade out of town, and GM Steve Yzerman recently stepped down from his role.
In April, Kane expressed interest in what would have been a third full season in Detroit, but it's likely those aforementioned developments played a role in his choosing to continue his career elsewhere.
And while he'll finish his career as a Blackhawk, he was happy to have played for the Red Wings.
“Obviously, we didn’t get to the playoffs, which is disappointing, but my experience there was great," Kane said of playing in Detroit.
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The Blackhawks were the team the Wild simply couldn't get past. Chicago eliminated Minnesota from the Stanley Cup Playoffs in three consecutive seasons from 2013-15, with Patrick Kane playing a starring role each time.
Whether it was his game-breaking skill, timely goals or ability to frustrate opposing fans, Kane became one of the most recognizable villains in Wild history.
But over the last several years, that rivalry has lost much of its edge. Minnesota is 18-1-1 in its last 20 games against the Blackhawks.
Chicago entered a rebuild after its championship core aged out, while Minnesota established itself as a consistent playoff team. Games between the two clubs no longer carried the same emotion or significance they once did.
Kane's return to the Blackhawks changes that.
No, it doesn't suddenly make Chicago a Stanley Cup contender, nor does it dramatically alter the Wild's outlook in the Central Division. Minnesota will still be judged by how it stacks up against Dallas and Colorado.
What Kane's return does bring back is intrigue.
Every Wild-Blackhawks matchup now has another storyline. Kane returns to the franchise where he became one of the greatest players in NHL history, while Connor Bedard continues his development as the face of Chicago's next era.
On the other side, the Wild are trying to prove they're ready to take another step as legitimate contenders in the Western Conference.
That's a far more compelling matchup than what fans have seen in recent seasons.
There's also a nostalgia factor that can't be ignored.
Wild fans haven't forgotten the playoff battles of the early 2010s. Kane scored several memorable goals against Minnesota and always seemed to save some of his best performances for games against the Wild. While many of the players from those series have moved on, the memories haven't.
Seeing Kane back in a Blackhawks sweater when he visits Grand Casino Arena will undoubtedly bring some of those emotions back.
At the same time, these games now represent a meeting between two very different stages of team building.
Chicago is hoping its young core, led by Bedard, eventually returns the franchise to contention. Minnesota, meanwhile, is trying to capitalize on the prime years of Kirill Kaprizov, Quinn Hughes, Brock Faber, Matt Boldy and the rest of its current core.
The stakes may not be the same as they were a decade ago, but the entertainment value should be.
For the first time in years, Wild-Blackhawks games feel like they'll have a little extra buzz. Fans will get another chance to watch one of hockey's all-time great American players return to the team where he became a legend, while seeing how Minnesota measures up against a Chicago club beginning to show signs of life.
The rivalry isn't back to where it was during the Stanley Cup playoff battles.
But thanks to Kane's return, it's a lot more fun than it was a week ago.
They all took their big swing — Cleveland, Miami, Golden State and Minnesota were all in the chase for LeBron James. All of their big swings missed.
Now what do they do?
The how varies a bit team to team, but the overall theme is they get back to work and pivot to look at the next guys on their list.
Cleveland Cavaliers
For the Cleveland Cavaliers, the next step means re-signing James Harden — who opted out of $42.3 million and, while he may take a small short-term haircut, is expected to sign for two years and well north of $60 million — and taking a look at Jonathan Kuminga, reports Joe Varden at The Athletic.
Cavs officials maintained contact with Kuminga and his Cleveland-based agent, Aaron Turner, throughout James' free agency, and there is mutual interest, multiple league sources told The Athletic. They spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss internal team and player deliberations...
Basically, Cleveland could comfortably offer Kuminga roughly $6 million this season — the same amount the Cavs would have likely given James. Theoretically, the Cavs could offer Kuminga $15 million under an exception to the salary cap, but doing so would greatly reduce the amount they could pay unsigned veteran star James Harden... Kuminga, though, is more interested in a sign-and-trade deal involving Atlanta because he could earn more money that way. Kuminga is seeking a salary much closer to what he would have earned had the Hawks picked up his option, in the neighborhood of $20 million to $23 million.
The salary cap makes it unlikely either Cleveland or Atlanta is interested in the kind of sign-and-trade Kuminga wants. For Cleveland, a sign-and-trade hard caps it at the first apron, a number the Cavs are about $25 million below. It becomes very hard to re-sign Harden at a fair number, bring in Kuminga at the money he wants and round out the roster and stay under that cap. Cleveland would at least have to trade away Max Strus and Dennis Schroder, is Kuminga really worth that?
From Atlanta's perspective, it currently sits $4.9 million below the luxury tax with 17 players on the books, meaning Atlanta already must trade or waive two players before the season starts — and Kuminga is not one of the guys on the books. For example, if the Hawks sign-and-traded Kuminga for Strus and his $16.7 million, that puts the Hawks at 18 players on the books (only one of those is a partial guarantee) and $11.8 million into the tax. The Hawks aren't going into the tax for Strus or any other role player.
Bottom line, unless Kuminga wants to take the roughly $6 million, Cleveland feels like a long shot.
Golden State Warriors
The Warriors are going to focus on re-signing Draymond Green — who declined his $27.7 million player option to give the team flexibility to chase LeBron and others — as well as officially finalize the two-year, $11 million contract with De'Anthony Melton.
After that, how will GM Mike Dunleavy fill out the rest of the roster? While the Warriors could technically sign someone to the mid-level exception of $15 million, then finalize the deals with Green and Melton and go into the tax, the more likely path is to get their two guys re-signed, then round out the roster (two or three spots, depending on if they want 14 or 15 players) with veteran minimum guys, which keeps the Warriors out of the tax.
Would DeMar DeRozan accept the minimum? The Warriors are interested, but that might be all they have to offer.
Miami Heat
After sign-and-trading for Giannis Antetokounmpo, the Heat are hard-capped at the first apron ($209 million) and, with that, are limited in next moves. They have 12 players on the roster and can offer one player the remaining $7 million of their mid-level exception, then offer one player a veteran minimum (they will leave the 15th roster spot open to start the season).
DeMar DeRozan has been linked to the Heat, and while he is not the classic playmaker that Pat Riley has talked about wanting, he is a bucket. DeRozan averaged 18.4 points per game last season in Sacramento, and he's durable, playing in 77 games. He could be worth some or all of the remaining mid-level exception.
Bradley Beal was another name mentioned by ESPN's Shams Charania, who added they will keep their eye on Klay Thompson, who may get bought out by Dallas. Another couple of names to watch are Seth Curry and, if he gets bought out by Atlanta, Buddy Hield.
Minnesota Timberwolves
Minnesota had already been aggressive this offseason, shifting from a defense-first roster with size all along the front line, to a more offense-first roster with LaMelo Ball and Anthony Edwards in the backcourt (leaving Rudy Gobert to try to be the ultimate backstop in the paint who keeps the team's defense respectable). LeBron would have been plug-and-play at the four, filling a hole in the Minnesota roster (the Timberwolves moved on from both Julius Randle and Naz Reid this offseason).
Now, Minnesota has an open roster spot and can offer the veteran minimum. Whoever they land at this point is not going to be as impactful as LeBron would have been, but Minnesota can get someone. Then just lean hard into their new identity.
The New York Yankees are short road favorites against the Philadelphia Phillies, and I’m laying the small moneyline price.
Philadelphia is undecided who will start tonight's ballgame, while Ryan Weathers brings enough home-run risk to keep the total pointed Over.
Here are my Yankees vs Phillies predictions and MLB picks for July 25.
Who will win Yankees vs Phillies today: Yankees moneyline (-126)
The road to the majors for 32-year-old Brian Keller is admirable, but I’m fading the spot. It is unclear whether Keller will open or work as the bulk reliever, but either way, this is his first MLB appearance against a New York Yankees lineup built around power.
New York enters with an MLB-best 135 home runs, giving it a clear edge against an unproven, fastball-heavy arm likely to cover real innings. Ryan Weathers is not easy to trust, but the Yankees get the better look against an uncertain Philadelphia Phillies pitching plan.
Yankees vs Phillies Over/Under pick: Over 8.5 (-131)
I'd play the Over 8.5 to -150. Both pitching setups have obvious stress points. Keller’s minor league numbers are strong, but a debuting pitcher or bullpen-bulk plan against the Yankees is still a difficult ask.
The Philadelphia Phillies have their own scoring path against Weathers, whose history against this lineup is ugly. He owns a 9.53 ERA in three career appearances against Philadelphia, and it's easy to see why.
His barrel and hard-hit rate have always been an issue, and this year is no different, with his barrel rate sitting in the bottom 9% of baseball. That's always going to be an issue against a lineup with the likes of Bryce Harper and Kyle Schwarber.
Chris Hatfield's 2026 Transparency Record
ML/RL bets: 39-35, +6.47 units
Over/Under bets: 43-33, +12.32 units
Yankees vs Phillies weather
Sunny skies and slight winds blowing in toward left-centerfield tonight.
Yankees vs Phillies odds
Moneyline: Yankees -121 | Phillies +109
Run line: Yankees -1.5 | Phillies +1.5
Over/Under: Over 8.5 | Under 8.5
Yankees vs Phillies trend
The New York Yankees have covered the Run Line in 9 of their last 11 games (+7.10 Units / 49% ROI). Find more MLB betting trends for Yankees vs. Phillies.
How to watch Yankees vs Phillies and game info
Location
Citizens Bank Park, Philadelphia, PA
Date
Saturday, July 25, 2026
First pitch
6:05 p.m. ET
TV
YES, NBCSP
Yankees starting pitcher
Ryan Weathers (3-7, 4.40 ERA)
Phillies starting pitcher
TBD (Y-Y, X.XX ERA)
Yankees vs Phillies latest injuries
Odds are correct at the time of publishing and are subject to change. Not intended for use in MA. Affiliate Disclosure: Our team of experts has thoroughly researched and handpicked each product that appears on our website. We may receive compensation if you sign up through our links.
Each week, The California Post will power rank MLB’s 30 teams and check in on one intriguing awards race.Records as ofSaturday morning.
1) Dodgers (66-38)
This time last year, the Dodgers were mired in an incomprehensible slump. This year? They’ve recovered from a temporary blip (getting swept going into the All-Star break) by winning back-to-back series against the Yankees and Phillies. (Last week: 1st)
2) Brewers (64-39)
Brandon Woodruff is done for the year. But Jacob Misiorowski returned quickly from some pre-All-Star-break arm fatigue. Keeping him healthy the rest of the year has become more important than ever. (Last week: 2nd)
The Dodgers’ Shohei Ohtani has not returned to the mound in the second half, but he has continued to produce on offense. Getty Images
3) Rays (60-43)
Tampa Bay continues to pace a mediocre American League and could be on track for a No. 1 playoff seed for the first time since 2021. (Last week: 3rd)
4) Braves (61-42)
After slumping through most of June and early July, the Braves have steadied themselves, winning six of eight coming out of the All-Star break. They’re also close to finally getting Ronald Acuña Jr. back. Now if they can add some pitching at the deadline … (Last week: 7th)
5) Cubs (58-45)
Two months ago, Pete Crow-Armstrong was batting in the .220s with an OPS below .700. Now? He’s the MLB leader in wins above replacement, according to FanGraphs, more valuable than even Shohei Ohtani in his two-way role. (Last week: 6th)
6) Yankees (58-45)
We always knew the Yankees were Aaron Judge-dependent. But in his continued absence, the offense struggling this badly — they have scored more than three runs just once since the All-Star break and more than five just twice in the last month — has nonetheless been a surprise. (Last week: 5th)
7) Phillies (56-48)
The Phillies’ sustained midseason turnaround has finally hit a little bit of a snag, after post-All-Star-break series losses to the Mets and Dodgers. Of all the league’s true contenders (basically, the first seven teams in these rankings), they might have the most to do at the deadline still. (Last week: 4th)
8) Red Sox (53-49)
What a couple weeks it’s been in Boston, where a Red Sox team that once seemed left for dead has suddenly regained October-contending life with its 15-game winning streak. This was already shaping up as one of the strangest seasons in club history. Now, it has come with one of the more joyous plot twists, too. (Last week: 17th)
9) Diamondbacks (55-49)
They haven’t done quite the same thing as the Red Sox, but the Dbacks are in the midst of their own late-July surge (wins in 8 of 10) that could have massive ramifications. Without it, the team might have had a quiet trade deadline. Now, their front office could attempt to make them more of an actual playoff threat. (Last week: 18th)
10) White Sox (54-48)
The White Sox’s feel-good season keeps on rolling, but it would feel better if Munetaka Murakami hadn’t started so slowly since returning from injury: 6-for-34 with no home runs. (Last week: 10th)
The Red Sox recently won 15 consecutive games to surge in the standings. AP Photo/Charles Krupa
11) Guardians (54-51)
José Ramírez is back. Rookies Travis Bazzana and Chase DeLauter continue to have productive campaigns. And Steven Kwan has finally started to break out of his first-half slump. Don’t be surprised to see the Guardians back in first in the AL Central before long. (Last week: 11th)
12) Pirates (53-51)
Things you may not have known: The Pirates rank second in scoring this year (behind only the Nationals) and third in team batting average (trailing only the Dodgers and Rays). If their Paul Skenes-led pitching staff can get hot, maybe they can be a dark horse in the NL. (Last week: 14th)
13) Cardinals (52-51)
A critical couple weeks lie ahead for the Cardinals, who have started to slip in the standings (now 2 ½ games back of a wild-card spot) and find themselves firmly on the fence of buying and selling at the deadline. (Last week: 9th)
14) Rangers (52-51)
On MLB’s official standings page, there is a stat for each team’s “expected record” based on its run differential. The Rangers, by that metric, should be seven games under .500. Instead, they remain in first place in the AL West, despite having given up 29 more runs than they’ve scored. (Last week: 12th)
15) Mariners (51-53)
It’s difficult to overstate just how drastic Cal Raleigh’s regression has been from last year’s 60-homer season, with the catcher having hit just 10 home runs this term with an MLB-worst .165 average (Last week: 13th)
16) Astros (51-54)
Slowly but surely, the Astros continue to claw their way back up the standings, having pulled within two games of first place in the AL West behind Yordan Alvarez’s MVP-caliber campaign. (Last week: 16th)
17) Padres (51-53)
Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado are finally playing more consistently. Joe Musgrove and Nick Pivetta are making progress in returns from injuries. Will that be enough to convince general manager A.J. Preller he can be a buyer? (Last week: 19th)
Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal is 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA in his last five starts. AP Photo/Paul Sancya
18) Tigers (50-54)
Speaking of teams trying to figure out a deadline approach, the Tigers are chipping away bit by bit at their wild-card deficit, back within 3 ½ games thanks to a 15-5 surge. A key reason: the return of Tarik Skubal, who is 4-1 with a 1.48 ERA and 44 strikeouts in his last five starts. Whether he stays or goes will be the biggest story in baseball over the next week. (Last week: 20th)
19) Nationals (52-52)
Attn Nationals ownership: Instead of letting CJ Abrams’ name continue to linger in trade rumors, either commit to locking him up long term or getting competitive before he becomes a free agent after 2028. Otherwise, what a waste of a potentially exciting young core this would be in DC. (Last week: 15th)
20) Marlins (52-52)
We should’ve known better than to get Fish Fever. Stunningly, the Marlins have followed up their sudden resurgence in June and early July with a 10-game losing streak that has dropped them immediately back to .500 and (for now) derailed what was shaping up to be an intriguing playoff push. (Last week: 8th)
21) Orioles (50-54)
Another team that has needed just a couple decent weeks to get back in the playoff picture, the Orioles continue to hang around — though still don’t feel like a serious threat in a crowded wild-card race. (Last week: 23rd)
22) Twins (51-54)
The Twins are finally starting to drop down the standings as long expected — just in time to begin selling pieces off at the deadline, as has also been long expected. (Last week: 22nd)
23) Reds (48-54)
After an eight-run clunker in his long-awaited return from injury, Hunter Greene has looked more like himself (including seven shutout innings with 12 strikeouts against the Cubs a couple weeks ago). But it’s almost certainly too late to save the Reds’ lost season. (Last week: 25th)
24) Blue Jays (47-57)
This Blue Jays’ season has been equal parts disappointing and disheartening, turning the good vibes from last year’s World Series run into foreboding dread that a large reset might be in order, starting with a likely sell-off of popular players this coming week. (Last week: 21st)
25) Athletics (44-59)
In a year the Athletics were once looking to take a step forward, they instead have the worst run differential in the majors. (Last week: 24th)
26) Giants (43-60)
It took Tony Vitello seven years at the University of Tennessee before he lost 100 total games. In an abject Year 1 with the Giants, he can only hope he doesn’t reach that mark by the end of this season. (Last week: 28th)
27) Royals (43-62)
There’s been little to laugh about in Kansas City this year. So shoutout to the fan who jumped in the Kauffman Stadium fountains to retrieve Salvador Perez’s home run ball — then had Perez making public pleas to have his arrest for trespassing undone. (Last week: 27th)
The Cubs’ Pete Crow-Armstrong (4) is having a spectacular season with 22 home runs and 56 RBIs. AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar
28) Mets (43-61)
One silver lining ahead of what will be the Mets’ biggest deadline sell-off since 2023: The season after that disappointing campaign, they made a surprise run to the 2024 NLCS. Then again, they never maintained the momentum from that October, either, winding up right back where they started now. (Last week: 26th)
29) Rockies (42-63)
For a Rockies team trying to identify pieces for the future, it wouldn’t make much sense to trade an obvious one in catcher Hunter Goodman, who has been the subject of deadline rumors. Keep him in Denver and see if he can be a core piece moving forward. (Last week: 29th)
30) Angels (41-63)
Unlike the Rockies, the Angels will need to tear things down to build up again. Thus, maybe now is the time to deal someone like Zach Neto. With or without him, the Angels are not going anywhere anytime soon. (Last week: 30th)
Award Tracker: National League MVP
1) Shohei Ohtani, Dodgers (.286 average, 22 home runs, 61 RBIs as hitter; 8-2 record, 1.79 ERA as pitcher)
Ohtani’s knee-injury-induced break from pitching has added the slightest bit of intrigue to the MVP race, allowing Pete Crow-Armstrong to jump him in WAR. Still, for now, it’s hard to imagine Ohtani not winding up with his fifth career MVP this season, especially because his pitching absence appears to be shorter term.
2) Pete Crow-Armstrong, Cubs (.285 average, 22 home runs, 56 RBIs)
As noted in the Cubs’ blurb above, Crow-Armstrong’s turnaround has been critical to his team’s playoff push this season. If he can keep this MVP race even somewhat close, prepare to hear plenty of hot takes about how he has been more “valuable” (aka, irreplaceable) to his club than any other player.
3) James Wood, Nationals (.270 average, 28 home runs, 69 RBIs)
A tip of the cap to the Nationals’ youngster, who has validated the substantial hype that has surrounded him since he (and Abrams) were the centerpiece prospects in the Juan Soto trade. The 23-year-old is second in the NL in OPS, third in home runs and third in WAR.
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CLEVELAND, OH - JANUARY 28: Lebron James #23 of the Los Angeles Lakers throws chalk in the air before the game against the Cleveland Cavaliers on January 28, 2026 at Rocket Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. 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 Nathaniel S. Butler/NBAE via Getty Images) | NBAE via Getty Images
Rocket Arena reserved one of its loudest roars of the year for a late January 30-point blowout.
That cheer wasn’t for anything that happened on the floor; it was instead for the hometown hero, who was playing possibly the last game on the court he had reigned on for over a decade.
LeBron James doesn’t break composure often, but this was different. The ovation and genuine love moved him to tears.
This stood in stark contrast to everything happening in Los Angeles. Instead of being welcomed as a hero, he was celebrated as merely a good basketball player who had his best achievements come in different uniforms.
After a month of reiterating that the final chapter of his career would be about happiness and his family, LeBron chose to shamelessly ring chase with the Philadelphia 76ers — a city he has no ties to and is far from a sure thing to win a championship.
On its face, this move is surprising if James is looking for appreciation and praise.
Choosing the Cleveland Cavaliers would’ve provided the perfect storybook ending for the local kid who grew up to become the best basketball player of all-time. There would’ve been 82 more opportunities for moments like that one in January to happen. All the while, he would’ve still had a shot at competing for a championship. After all, the Cavs are just two months removed from playing in the Eastern Conference Finals.
Yet, this all operates under the assumption that James and those around him actually understood what made that connection possible in the first place. Maybe they don’t. After all, this is someone who’s spent their whole career trying to craft the greatest narrative, but has ended up weaving a convoluted tale about someone who bounces from city-to-city based on who can provide the quickest short-term gain.
So from that perspective, this move shouldn’t have been that surprising.
America’s capitalist society has long confused money and attention for cultural relevance and artistry. Commercial success is the standard movies, shows, books, and music are judged. Quality and whether there’s an actual message being conveyed through it don’t matter. This is how we find ourselves in the endless cycle of franchise reboots and empty live-action remakes of things we once loved, but have now lost the core of what made them special.
Hollywood isn’t the only one chasing the ghost of once great things.
Winning is the currency of basketball. LeBron has spent his whole career in Michael Jordan’s shadow. That was inevitable with him entering the league a year after Jordan retired. Why he’s still there now, and probably always will be in the court of public opinion, isn’t because of anything he’s done on the basketball court.
Another championship, or even two, wouldn’t change that because it was never about the rings.
People get invested in stories because they want to feel something. Sports, at their core, are just an ongoing narrative that you hope will invest you for the time you put in. Watching players and teams meet, fall, and maybe one day overcome the obstacles in their way is where the entire joy comes from. And it’s also where we get our idea of what makes someone truly great from.
This part is what James and those around him haven’t understood and probably never will. There’s more to this than just winning at all costs.
Jordan and Kobe Bryant’s greatness came from their play, but also the continuity of their stories. The bond between player, team, and city went through peaks and valleys, but it persisted for decades. The endurance of that marriage made their triumphs more meaningful for everyone and easier to appreciate for outside observers.
LeBron and the athletes who followed his lead threw that playbook out the window. Instead of enduring the natural ups and downs of an organization, they took control of their own narratives.
There are benefits to that. James probably doesn’t win consecutive championships in 2012 and 2013 if he doesn’t join the Miami Heat. Kevin Durant isn’t a back-to-back Finals MVP if he doesn’t go to the Golden State Warriors.
Those choices are completely understandable and what I would do if in that position. Taking ownership of your situation instead of leaving it up to people who may not have your best interests in mind makes sense, but that doesn’t mean the general public has to like it. Every choice, even logical ones, has drawbacks.
Everything LeBron has done throughout his career has been calculated. He’s constantly thought one or two steps ahead of everyone else to put himself and his brand in the best position to succeed. That includes surrounding himself with the best teammates and situations on and off the court to lead to winning. But again, even calculated moves have consequences.
If success is just about winning and making money, then there’s no viable criticism for anything LeBron has done, including this move. After all, LeBron’s Sixers jersey has already sold out. His brand will grow in a large coastal market, which will certainly open up new business ventures. On top of that, the Sixers should do plenty of winning on the court. However, winning alone doesn’t buy adoration. If it could, Durant wouldn’t feel the need to continue making burner accounts to defend his honor.
What was supposed to be an expansion of his kingdom ended up being an eight-year footnote. He won a championship, put his name on top of the scoring list, and shared the court with his son. All of those things should’ve been celebrated as once-in-a-generation achievements, but they weren’t. He — predictably — didn’t get the treatment from the fans or team personnel that Kobe did at the end of his two decades spent in one uniform. Not even close, which reportedly influenced him to leave.
James now seems destined to repeat that mistake in another city that has no connection to him. If the Sixers win, the credit will go to Philadelphia’s guys, Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey. And if they lose, that will fall on LeBron.
By making this entirely about winning one more ring, LeBron has validated the narrative that he’s still chasing Jordan because of the title count. It’s an admission that he isn’t viewed as the greatest, despite being better at basketball than anyone else who’s ever lived.
LeBron doesn’t owe anyone anything. He especially doesn’t owe anything to Northeast Ohio after all he’s done for the community. But viewing things through that prism misses the entire point of why sports matter.
In an idealistic world, you’d like to think the bond between an athlete and a city is what drives decisions. I’m not naive enough to think that it actually does — but there are exceptions to that rule. LeBron and Cleveland seemed to be one in that January moment, and when he yelled “Cleveland, this is for you!” with tears in his eyes after delivering the city’s first championship in over half a century.
This latest decision, and whatever comes down the line, don’t change what happened in the past. Relationships aren’t static. They’re always evolving.
The bond between Cleveland and LeBron will endure past this. He will still return as a hero at some point. Yet, it does complicate things further than they already were.
How James’s last game in Cleveland will look is anyone’s guess. It could come in an inconsequential regular-season game. Maybe this whole summer is swept under the rug, as we do with Jordan’s Wizards jersey. Or, it could come in one of the last games of the conference finals with James trying to end the season in the one place he still calls home. That situation wouldn’t be swept under the rug as quickly.
What we can say with certainty is that moment on that cold January night in Cleveland won’t be replicated again there. At least, not while James is still wearing a jersey. It probably won’t happen at his new home court in Philadelphia either, based on how we’ve seen this story play out in the past. That is the true cost of this last-ditch attempt at one more championship.
Good news: the Yankees acquired a future Cy Young Award winner as the Player To Be Named Later in a deal in 1984 that sent their 31-year-old veteran first baseman to the Chicago White Sox.
Bad news: the Yankees traded said Cy Young winner away long before he won the greatest accolade of his career.
Today’s birthday honoree, Doug Drabek, was drafted twice and then traded before ever making his MLB debut. His tenure in the Bronx was brief, but he went on to have a long and successful career and the Yankees almost brought him back when he hit free agency in the early 1990s. It all goes down as a miss for the Yanks.
Douglas Dean Drabek Born: July 25, 1962 (Victoria, TX) Yankees Tenure: 1986
A Texas native, Drabek attended St. Joseph High School in Victoria where he excelled as a multi-sport athlete, playing football and baseball. The right-handed hurler caught the eyes of major league scouts, and in the 1980 MLB Draft Cleveland drafted the teenager in the fourth round.
Drabek, however, opted to head to school and hone his craft there rather than toil in the minor leagues. So off he went to the University of Houston, where he was nothing short of spectacular. Drabek set a Cougars record with 27 wins in 268 career innings (including six shutouts). Twelve of those wins came in 1983, and one was a no-hitter. Drabek is a Southwest Conference Hall of Famer and a member of the Houston Athletics Hall of Honor; his No. 16 is now retired.
Three years after choosing the University of Houston over Cleveland, Drabek’s name was again called during the Amateur Draft. This time, the Chicago White Sox chose Drabek in the 11th round of the 1983 edition, and he signed.
Drabek reported to the Niagara Falls Sox of the New York-Pennsylvania League, the White Sox’s Low-A affiliate. The 20-year-old made 16 appearances for Niagara, primarily pitching out of the rotation, with sporadic relief appearances. The following season, he began at A-Ball but after only one start Chicago promoted him to Double-A, where he pitched for Glens Falls in the Eastern League. Before long, however, he found himself on the move again, this time to a new organization. On July 18th, the Yankees sent first baseman Roy Smalley to Chicago for two players to be named later. On August 14th, those two PTBNLs were made public: southpaw Kevin Hickey and Drabek were headed to the Bronx.
New York’s brass immediately assigned Drabek to Nashville, the club’s Double-A affiliate. Drabek pitched the remainder of the 1984 and ‘85 seasons at Double-A, though he was evidently promoted to the Triple-A Columbus Clippers for the International League playoffs.
Unfortunately, Drabek was on the losing end of the ‘85 International League Championship. The Tidewater Tides, the Triple-A affiliate of the crosstown rival Mets, beat Columbus three games to one. The fourth and final game was scoreless into the sixth inning until Drabek walked a batter, then surrendered hits to future major leaguers Dave Magadan and Kevin Mitchell, the latter of whom went on to win the 1989 NL MVP Award.
Heading into 1986, Drabek was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 5 Yankees prospect. New York skipper Lou Piniella signaled that Drabek would get a serious look in spring training to see if the young hurler, who’d excelled the past two seasons in the minors, could force his way into the big league rotation. Alas. Drabek was sent back to Triple-A to start the ‘86 campaign, where he struggled mightily.
Despite his struggles, New York called Drabek up to The Show, where he debuted on on May 3rd in Oakland. Entering the game in relief, Drabek hurled 4.1 frames of one-run ball in his initial taste of the big leagues. Two weeks later, he made his first start in Baltimore where he authored four shutout innings. All told, Drabek pitched well for the ‘86 Yanks, who went on to win 90 games, finishing 5.5 games back of eventual AL pennant winner Boston. Maybe he pitched too well.
That offseason, veteran pitcher Rick Rhoden expressed his desire to get out of Pittsburgh. Rhoden was coming off a career season in the Steel City and to get him, the Yankees evidently had to include Drabek in the trade package. The full damage: Drabek, Logan Easley, and Brian Fisher to the Steel City in exchange for Rhoden, Pat Clements, and Cecilio Guante. Rhoden pitched well for New York in ‘87, though he never came close to his lofty 1986 season. He pitched one more year in the Bronx before finishing his career in Houston in 1989.
Drabek, meanwhile, went directly into the Pirates’ rotation in 1987 and began an eight-year streak with an ERA+ above 100. The following year, he won 15 games and kicked off a six-year stretch of throwing at least 219 innings each season.
1990 was the height of Drabek’s career from a personal standpoint. The righty won 22 games en route to an eighth place finish in NL MVP voting and his first and only NL Cy Young Award. That year also started a three-year stretch of Drabek and the Pirates reaching the NLCS only to go down in defeat each time.
After the 1992 season when the Pirates bowed out to the Atlanta Braves in the NLCS, Drabek reached free agency. The Yankees, where he’d gotten his professional start, were among the interested suitors. But after making an offer to Drabek, along with David Cone and Jose Guzman, general manager Gene Michael pulled all the offers from consideration and started looking elsewhere for starting pitching.
“I tried to get answers quickly from the three,” Michael told the New York Times. “I didn’t want them to take a week and then shop it around to get other clubs to meet it or top it.”
Whether Drabek ever seriously considered the Yankees or not, the path back to the Bronx was gone. Ultimately, he ended up signing with the Houston Astros on a four-year deal. His first two seasons in Houston were up to par, though through some hard luck he led the Senior Circuit in losses in 1993 with 18. Drabek’s 1994 was more conventionally effective, as he went 12-6 with a 2.84 ERA and 140 ERA+, making the NL All-Star team and finishing fourth in Cy Young voting during the strike-shortened campaign.
But Drabek’s final two Houston campaigns were disasters. He departed in free agency and pitched two more seasons—1997 with the White Sox and 1998 with the Orioles—before retiring. Now 64 years old, Drabek is currently the pitching coach for the Reno Aces, Arizona’s Triple-A affiliate.
See more of the “Yankees Birthday of the Day” series here.
FORT MYERS, FLORIDA - MARCH 12, 2026: Kristian Campbell #28 of the Boston Red Sox runs off the field after the first inning of a spring training game against the Minnesota Twins at Lee Health Sports Complex on March 12, 2026 in Fort Myers, Florida. (Photo by Nick Cammett/Diamond Images via Getty Images) | Diamond Images/Getty Images
The WooSox now have 45 hits in their last three games. Although this game was close and the Jumbo Shrimp (Marlins AAA) were resilient, tagging every relief pitcher for runs in a bullpen game after Tyler Uberstine opened things up with a scoreless first, the WooSox simply just stayed one step ahead of them. Kristian Campbell continued his hot streak with his fourth home run of the season in the sixth amidst a raucous stage of the game where teams were trading runs for three consecutive innings, and the WooSox also enjoyed a three-hit night out of Mickey Gasper. And don’t count out Tyler McDonough batting out of the nine spot, as his bat continues to stay hot following his promotion. Friday, it was the patience at the plate that made a difference, as he waited out three walks and really extended those innings despite not actually crossing home plate.
No Arias, no problem. Well, not exactly, as the Sea Dogs struggled to put a solid offense inning together against the RumblePonies (Mets AA) but Brooks Brannon, the home run machine, is still on the roster, and he essentially called game in the sixth with his 17th home run of 2026.
No one was getting past this impenetrable wall on the mound. Dalton Rogers, Jesse Wu-Yelland and Max Carlson were all extremely solid in their three innings a piece. Rogers walked six but allowed just one hit. Binghamton would have just one baserunner after the fourth and they’d fall to strikes fifteen times against this Portland pitching staff. I also want to be realistic: while it’s easy for many in the “trade everything who’s not bolted down or named Franklin Arias” camp to look at these performances and say “yay, more trade fuel to buy next week!” the reality is that these are guys who all had a great night against a demonstratively rough season and are unlikely to capture much value. I’d also warn folks that one or two “trade everything” phases put us in the position we’re arguably in now, where we look at these minor lines and lament about how our starters organization-wide are getting thrashed on a weekly basis and how no one outside of about five guys can hit. Unless these guys somehow reach a stage of their development where they truly shine in 2027 and then they’re ours anyway!
Marcus Phillips and Griffin Killander did not have it against Spartanburg (Astros High-A) yesterday afternoon; the most graceful thing about Game 1 was that it was only 7 innings, as Greenville allowed ten runs and only got some relief from getting shelled by Enddy Azocar’s 9th home run and Stanley Tucker’s 2-RBI double. Aside from that, it was all Hub City.
Night and day from game 1. Greenville was patient, drawing seven walks and though they stranded ten runners, some of those walks came back to bite Spartanburg with two separate Ronny Hernandez RBI knocks. Pitching wise, Greenville had nothing to worry about, as Devin Futrell had one of his better nights on the mound. He was one out from capturing a perfect game in the abbreviated contest and struck out nine. Steven Brooks came in when Futrell ran into a bit of trouble in the seventh and slammed the door. All in a day’s work.
We have reached the first player I can recall seeing who was born in 2008. Fresh off the Gulf Coast league, Sadbiel Delzine made his first start in A-ball. At 18, his fastball is at 94 miles per hour and he has a four-pitch repertoire. This was Salem’s first look at him, and although he didn’t go far into the game and got taken yard, he struck six out and overall looked promisingm. Brady Tygart took this the rest of the way and struck five additional Green Jackets (Braves A) out. Catchers had their day on the farm Friday, and Adonys Guzman was no exception, as his fifth-inning shot turned a 3-2 game into a 5-2 game, shifted the tone, and made it possible for Tygart to shove through fifteen outs, as did Skylar King’s three knock night.
NEW YORK — Roki Sasaki isn’t only pitching better.
By his own estimation, he’s also more handsome.
Asked about the larger glove he started wearing after the All-Star break to address his pitch-tipping problems, Sasaki played dumb by describing it as an optical illusion.
“My face became smaller,” he said in Japanese, “so it just looks [bigger].”
In Japan, a kogao, or small face, is considered attractive.
Sasaki joked that he received treatment on his face over the All-Star break.
Which is a good sign for the Dodgers.
Los Angeles Dodgers’ Roki Sasaki pitches during the second inning of a baseball game against the New York Mets Friday, July 24, 2026, in New York. AP Photo/Frank Franklin IISasaki reacts as he walks off the field after the seventh inning against the New York Mets at Citi Field. IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect
A great sign, actually.
His demeanor makes him particularly easy to read, and he has transformed over the first four months of the season from broken to cautiously optimistic to now self-assured.
The side of Sasaki’s personality that emerged in the wake of his most recent start was the same side that surfaced last October, when he caught lightning in a bottle to become the Dodgers’ closer. Back then, Sasaki joked that he wasn’t bothered by the taunts he received on the road because he didn’t understand enough English to know what opposing fans were screaming at him.
As was the case on that World Series run, Sasaki seems to think he’s figured out something.
There is risk involved in trusting the judgment of a relatively inexperienced and emotionally volatile pitcher with a 4.71 ERA, but Sasaki’s improved form reinforces a case I made last month: The Dodgers don’t have to acquire Tarik Skubal.
To be clear, they can acquire Skubal.
They can in the unlikely case the trade market for him implodes and the Tigers let him go at a minimal cost.
But they don’t have to.
Sasaki holding the two New York teams to a single earned run over a combined 12 ⅔ innings in his two most recent starts doesn’t qualify him to be a substitute for Skubal.
Except the Dodgers don’t need Sasaki to be that. By the start of the postseason, they are expecting to have Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow back in the rotation along with Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Detroit Tigers pitcher Tarik Skubal reacts to the final out against the Kansas City Royals during the seventh inning of a baseball game Friday, July 24, 2026, in Detroit. AP Photo/Paul Sancya
What they need is insurance — and in Sasaki and Justin Wrobleski, the Dodgers have premium policies.
If one of the Big Four can’t pitch in October, maybe Sasaki or Wrobleski steps in and starts. Or maybe they combine to take down the majority of innings in a bullpen game.
Either way, they provide the Dodgers with adequate cover — enough that the team shouldn’t feel as if it has to trade its most prized prospects for Skubal.
A 26-year-old left-hander, Wrobleski is an All-Star with an 11-2 record and 2.62 ERA. Wrobleski has struck out 27 batters in 20 ⅓ innings over his last three starts, addressing concerns about his inability to miss bats.
Sasaki has also started addressing his shortcomings — in particular, his control problems.
Sasaki’s fastball was down a smidge from his previous start in the Dodgers’ 4-2 win over the Mets on Friday night, but it didn’t matter.
The only run he allowed was on a high fastball in the second inning to Luis Robert Jr., who banged it over the left field wall. He pitched seven innings, allowing three hits and two walks.
“Outside of that,” manager Dave Roberts said, “I thought [innings] four through seven, that split was really unhittable.”
Sasaki pitched. He really pitched.
He averaged 98.6 mph with his fastball, but he threw it only 32% of the time. He threw it less frequently in only one of his previous 13 starts.
In his first time through the order, he controlled the Mets with his slider. He then let his splitter take over.
The splitter was thrown at a similar trajectory as his fastball — only for it to bottom out as it approached the plate. His new glove, or smaller face, presumably kept the Mets from figuring out beforehand what pitch he was about to throw.
Sasaki struck out nine batters and generated 21 swings-and-misses, his most in the majors. He was efficient, throwing only 94 pitches.
“My splitter has been good lately, and it’s one of the reasons I’m able to throw comfortably throughout the game,” Sasaki said. “Of course, there are days in which the pitches feel different coming off my fingertips. But fundamentally, if my delivery is right, I think the forkball becomes easier to throw.”
And from the Dodgers’ perspective, this development makes it easier for them to dream.
About the pitcher Sasaki could become.
About how trading for Skubal would be more of a luxury than a necessity.
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EL SEGUNDO, CA - JULY 02: Los Angeles Lakers general manager Rob Pelinka answers a question during the Los Angeles Lakers welcome press conference for their NBA Draft picks on July 02, 2024, at UCLA Health Training Center in El Segundo, CA. (Photo by Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) | Icon Sportswire via Getty Images
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the NBA. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Lakers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.
The pressure was on Lakers President of Basketball Operations Rob Pelinka this summer to build a roster around Luka Dončić. He didn’t disappoint.
Considering the whirlwind of activity, for our SB Nation Reacts survey this week, we asked fans if their opinion on Pelinka has changed. The results are in, and his approval is up.
This was a good summer for Pelinka. He finally landed an A-list center, a need since before the Anthony Davis trade.
Doing that alone probably makes this a good offseason. When you also add in that the Lakers were able to keep Austin Reaves and added a ton of new young talent, it’s clear why fans are happy with Pelinka.
And it’s not just fans that are pleased with the changes as Dončić is excited about the moves. Considering that he’s the franchise player, that’s good news for Pelinka.
The Lakers didn’t just try to run it back with an old team that was fourth in the Western Conference. Instead, Pelinka made bold moves to shake up the roster.
Another positive for Pelinka, based on this poll, is that only 5% have a worse view of him. That’s a relatively low number and is more evidence that fans have approved of the job he’s done this summer.
In the end, though, what matters most is what ownership thinks of Pelinka and how the Lakers perform this season.
Still, it’s always a plus to have support from the fans. With all the moves Pelinka has made, he is currently in their good graces and that’ll continue to be true if the Lakers play well during this upcoming season.
Biloxi Shuckers infielder Andrew Fischer (25) hits the ball during a minor league baseball game between the Knoxville Smokies and Biloxi Shuckers at Covenant Health Park in Knoxville, Tenn., on July 7, 2026. | Angelina Alcantar/ News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across the MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Brewers fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.
In this week’s Reacts survey, we asked fans which of the team’s top prospects (non-Jesús Made category) they’d be least willing to trade at the deadline. The results may be somewhat surprising:
The Brewers, who sit at 64-39 atop the NL Central, tend to be very cautious when it comes to dealing prospects at the trade deadline. Since the 2008 blockbuster deal for CC Sabathia (which sent team No. 2 prospect Matt LaPorta the other way, as well as player to be named later Michael Brantley, who ended up being the prize of the deal), the Brewers haven’t made a super splashy move.
If they opt to change the status quo, though, it seems likely they’d need to part with at least one of their top prospects. With Luis Lara and Cooper Pratt locked up, and Jesús Made seemingly untouchable, that leaves four position player prospects up for discussion — Luis Peña, Jett Williams, Josh Adamczewski, and Andrew Fischer.
The results of our poll saw Fischer finish as the player fans would LEAST like to see traded. It’s a surprise in terms of prospect ranking, as Fischer is the only one of those players not in MLB’s top 100 prospects, but it shouldn’t come as much of a surprise when you look at Fischer’s stats.
The 22-year-old third baseman was the team’s first-round pick in 2025 (No. 20 overall) out of Tennessee. In his first full season in the minors, he’s appeared in 83 games (between High-A Wisconsin and Double-A Biloxi), and he’s raked his way to a whopping 30 homers, slashing .283/.424/.662. The biggest concern with Fischer comes on his strikeout rate — he’s struck out 123 times in 370 plate appearances. The good news? He’s also walked 66 times.
I’ll quickly give you the 2026 stats on the other three options, too:
Jul 24, 2026; San Francisco, California, USA; San Francisco Giants first baseman Rafael Devers (16) celebrates hitting a ground-rule double to walk off the Los Angeles Angels in the bottom of the tenth inning at Oracle Park. Mandatory Credit: Justine Willard-Imagn Images | Justine Willard-Imagn Images
The San Francisco Giants returned home battered and broken after a 1-5 road trip in which they suffered five straight losses, including a sweep to the lowly — but well-matched — Kansas City Royals. The offense couldn’t score more than three runs. The pitching, starters and relievers alike, struggled to preserve leads. Crucial defensive mistakes proved the difference in tight, one-run games. The trip felt like a series of humiliations. The team looked like a play-thing for the rest of the league, a new ball of yarn for the Mariners and Royals to paw around at their leisure.
Earlier on in the season, one might graciously refer to these failures as tests, challenges to overcome in order to burnish their spirit in preparation for a climactic confrontation. But it’s July — really late July. Perhaps its overly generous to compare this 2026 season to the ancient epic, but if this was The Odyssey, we’re at the point in which all pretense is gone. Odysseus and his men are no longer victors returning from Troy. Hope and hubris has been wrung out of them by the gods. Logan Webb as Matt Damon as Odysseus tied himself to the mound’s mast and wept as the Sirens tortured him with their unattainable song. After months that have felt like years, Tony Vitello has assembled a raft of driftwood and shoved off into the open water, finally accepting his fate and submitting to the capricious nature of the seas. There is no more wit or cunning or courage to fall back on — it is the only the schedule that floats them back to their harbor.
In this sense, the wins now feel less like triumphs and more like dodges, delays, not-losses. Facing off against another lowly franchise in the Los Angeles Angels, the Giants 7-6 victory in 10 innings revealed more similarities than differences between the two clubs. Logan Webb struggled again, giving up another 3-run frame, jeopardizing an early 4-run lead. Reliever Jason Foley served as the day’s bullpen punching bag when Vaughan Grissom rocked a 2-run homer in the 8th to tie the game. Though they emphatically broke through with 5 runs off starter Grayson Rodriguez, the Angels relievers cooled the offense considerably after the 4th inning. So the mobbing of Rafael Devers after his game-winning single felt more than a bit contrived. They won because they had the last swing. Home field advantage — just like Odysseus in Ithaca.
The punishment of a fan following a losing season is not the losses, but that you aren’t allowed to celebrate the wins. Is this fair? We shouldn’t be purposefully myopic or naive, rejoicing after each storm we survive without the sober and appropriate recognition that the situation has not changed: We are floating on a raft in the middle of the ocean. We are still not in charge.
You can’t disregard the wider context. And in my very important role as a sports blogger, it feels like my job at times to belabor the point: A millennial Homer, reminding everyone after anything that everything still sucks.
The over-lapping, layered structure of The Odyssey is designed to hold the whole story all at once. Odysseus retells his story to the Phaeacians which give his memories an awareness of what is to come. Within the past, nests the future. A baseball season can be like this — dense and intricately woven. But just like the ancient epic, there are episodes. Games that work as standalone adventures that can be, and should be, savored and enjoyed. Odysseus and his men escaping the giant-cyclops-shepherd Polyphemus’s cave by blinding him and hiding among his sheep is a heck of a story on its own. I like to think Odysseus himself relished the re-telling in King Alcinous’s court, allowing himself a moment to smirk at his wit when he told the cyclops his name was Nobody, despite the consequences of that interaction that would soon follow.
So let’s free ourselves from context, the burden of the “epic,” and enjoy the little episodes, the minor tales of how the Giants jumped out ahead of the Angels by stubbornly refusing to let starter Grayson Rodriguez record the third out in the early innings. In the 1st, with two outs and nobody on, already down a run, Bryce Eldridge forced Rodriguez to throw 8 pitches, eventually working a walk. Next up, Devers lined his 21st homer over the cars in left.
In the same situation in the 3rd, Eldridge, once again spoiled a clean inning for Rodriguez with a 2-out double. Falling behind 2-0 to Devers, the right-hander elected to send him to first to face the same-side bat of Casey Schmitt. Perhaps fueled by the intentional walk, Schmitt annihilated an inside fastball for a 3-run shot — also his 21st — giving the Giants what felt like a commanding 5-1 lead at the time.
But a good story always has set-backs. The heroes should never just cruise. The Angels provided that necessary adversity, closing the gap with a three run 5th inning off Logan Webb.
Webb gave up a walk and four hits in the frame, with a devastating 2-run triple delivered by number-9 hitter Tyler Heineman. It was Webb’s second triple surrendered in the game, and only back-up backstop Heineman’s fourth extra base hit of the year.
Jo Adell’s 7-pitch at-bat, which ended in a lead-off single, set the tone and table in that inning. Webb had him down early in the count, but his fourth and fifth pitches were throwaways, big misses that couldn’t even entice the free-swinging slugger to chase off the plate. Webb then fell behind 2-0 to number-8 hitter Denezer Guzman. With count leverage, Denezer got a fastball over the plate that scooted through a hole into left for another single. A lack of sharpness had Webb on his heels and he probably succumbed to some tunnel vision facing Heineman. He doubled down on change-ups at the bottom of the zone and Heineman didn’t miss the second one.
The whole game the Angels had their heads bowed facing Webb. Not out of deference, but on the hunt for his signature off-speed at the bottom of the zone. Both triples came off genuflecting swings (the pitch to Neto came in shin high) that deposited the baseball in the furthest ranges of Triple’s Alley. Adell’s lead-off single was on a low-and-away change. Mike Trout’s thoroughly-smoked sac fly to score Heine was on another.
Another outing in which Webb allowed three runs in an inning, but, unlike in Seattle, he finished the inning with the lead, albeit a slim one, was still in-tact. It’d last for a couple more innings. The Giants even extended it with some effective small-ball tactics in the 7th when pinch-runner Grant McCray (taking over for Drew Gilbert after his walk) stole second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Daniel Susac. McCray emerged as the late-game hero, doing the dirty work in preparation for Devers’s walk-off. His base-running in that sixth run allowed them to weather Vaughan Grissom’s game-tying shot, and his outfield assist cut down the potential go-ahead runner in Oswald Peraza for an inning-ending double play which heavily tipped the scales in favor of the home team.
It wasn’t perfectly executed, there were some dice-y moments, but they got it done.
For a moment it looked like Jesus Rodriguez, as the 10th inning Manfred Man, wouldn’t advance to third on Luis Arraez’s knuckling single. After initially freezing on the line-drive, then retreating for a moment as shortstop Zachary Neto made a play on the slow-moving grounder, Rodriguez had to make a mad dash for third when the ball squeaked through to the outfield. With a chance to end the game, Heliot Ramos rolled a comebacker right into the pitcher’s glove — a first out that ratcheted up the pressure for Bryce Eldridge. Instead of walking Eldridge to load the bases and set-up a booby-trapped infield with a myriad of double play or force-out possibilities, reliever Chase Silseth went after the rookie with the hope that his youth and inexperience would cause him to chase. As he did in the 1st, Eldridge stood firm. In an 8-pitch at-bat he navigated four two-strike offerings. He chased only one — a well-located inside sweeper that he fouled off — before working the walk and loading the bases for Devers to play hero and send everyone home.
COVERS INTEL: Ryan Weathers’ four-seamer has allowed a 
