Thursday's edition of MMA Junkie Radio with "Gorgeous" George and "Goze" is here.
On Episode 3,692, the Junkie Radio boys welcomed in Jovan Leka, who is just coming off his win in UFC's first trip to Serbia. They also went over a myriad of fight announcements and previewed PFL Charlotte and UFC Fight Night 284. Tune in!
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: MMA Junkie Radio #3692 : Guest Jovan Leka, UFC and PFL preview

#fight #george #goze

Shhh. Don't say anything. Don't jinx it. But…there's a chance that the Orioles could end today tied for an AL Wild Card spot.
It's hard to believe such a thing could be true, after all the trials and tribulations and the often foolish play we've witnessed from the 2026 Orioles. But if they win this afternoon and the Guardians lose to the Mets, then the O's would vault ahead of Cleveland and move into a tie with the idle Rangers for the third wild card spot. Even while still being under .500. Wild stuff.
But first things first: the O's need to take care of business against the Angels, the worst team in baseball. The Birds have done so in the first two games of the series, even if their hitting performance wasn't quite as potent as we'd like. But their pitching has been stellar, with Cade Povich and Trevor Rogers each delivering quality starts and a patched-together back of the bullpen locking things down late. It helps that the Angels can't really hit, but let's not pick nits.
Today the O's have their most reliable starter, Brandon Young, on the mound as they try for the sweep. As a reminder, the Orioles are a whopping 15-3 in Young's starts this season. The right-hander passed the 100-inning mark in his last start and carries an 8-2 record and 3.31 ERA. The Angels will be facing him for the first time in his career.
On paper, the Birds would appear to have the pitching advantage with Young taking on Ryan Johnson, a rookie righty with a 7.63 ERA. Johnson has been absolutely dreadful against every team he's faced…except the Orioles. Back in June, Johnson faced the Birds in Anaheim and dominated them for six shutout, one-hit innings, striking out eight. It was by far the best outing of Johnson's career, and the only time he's ever pitched more than five innings. The O's offense was absolutely pathetic in that game. It wasn't the first or last time the Orioles had been shut down by a pitcher with a sky-high ERA. Hopefully we won't see a repeat performance today.

#orioles #first #birds

Adley Rutschman trade grades: Red Sox land star catcher, Orioles restock farm system with massive return originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox made a big splash ahead of the trade deadline, securing catcher Adley Rutschman from the division-rival Baltimore Orioles.
Rutschman is currently on the injured list, but when healthy, he is a switch-hitting catcher who was talented enough to go first overall in the 2019 MLB Draft. Catcher was one of the Red Sox's weakest positions, so this deal fills a pretty large hole.
The Orioles will now hand the catching reins over full time to Samuel Basallo, whom the team has already signed to a long-term extension. This does, however, signal the end of an era in Baltimore, as Rutschman was expected to be a big piece of the Orioles' future but instead played in just five total playoff games.
Here's a look at how each team did in the deal.

#orioles #adley #baltimore #preferred

The Boston Red Sox are reportedly acquiring catcher Adley Rutschman from the Baltimore Orioles in a rare intra-divisional trade, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Rutschman was part of Baltimore's youth movement two years ago, but has come back down to earth after a hot start to his career. With the Orioles looking to be deadline sellers, his name consistently was brought up since Baltimore had a surplus at catcher between Rutschman and Samuel Basallo.
Baltimore drafted Rutschman with the first overall pick in the 2019 MLB Draft. He made his debut in the majors in 2022. That year, he played in 113 games and hit .254 with 13 home runs and 42 RBI.
The catcher's best season so far was in 2023. He was an All-Star and won the Silver Slugger Award that year after slashing .277/.374/.435 with 20 home runs, 80 RBI and a 4.3 WAR.
Rustchman has played in 67 games this year for the Orioles. His numbers across the board are down, with just eight home runs and 47 RBI so far.

#orioles #down #played

Some people like their recaps neat and tidy, so this will be the same. Since the Phillies played a shortened game today, this will be a shortened recap.
The starting pitcher? Zack Wheeler. He only went two innings because for some reason, the Orioles saw a window and tried to play through it. In those 2 1/2 innings, the Phillies were lucky that Bryan de la Cruz homered to give them a lead.
DE LA CRUZIN' ON HOME pic.twitter.com/ZFeRBzx4vv
Then they delayed the game since the field was garbage.
After the delay was over, the Orioles' pitching couldn't throw strikes, leading to the Phillies scoring two more runs in the fourth. Bryce Harper joined the action with a home run in the fifth,

#Phillies #orioles #wheeler

BALTIMORE, MD - APRIL 25: Manager Alex Cora #13 of the Boston Red Sox looks on from the dugout during the sixth inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards on April 25, 2026 in Baltimore, Maryland. (Photo by Scott Taetsch/Getty Images)
The Boston Red Sox looked destined for another disappointing season just a few weeks into 2026. After entering the year with postseason aspirations, the club stumbled to a 10-17 start, prompting one of the most surprising managerial changes in recent franchise history when former World Series champion Alex Cora was dismissed alongside several members of his coaching staff.
At the time, the move appeared to signal that Boston's season might already be slipping away. Instead, the Red Sox have engineered one of baseball's most remarkable midseason turnarounds, putting themselves squarely back into the American League playoff race.
Blue Jays Castoff Sends 4-Word Message On Dodgers 'Rental' Trade
Even after leaving the organization, Cora apparently never lost confidence in the roster he helped build.

#baltimore #season #orioles

Mike Elias has made his first move ahead of the trade deadline. The Orioles are trading Dean Kremer to the Twins. The Athletic's Ken Rosenthal broke the news of the trade. Another reporter at The Athletic, Dan Hayes, wrote that the return for the Orioles is 18-year-old outfield prospect Jhomnardo Reyes.
Selling off a player right after a dramatic win kind of sucks. The Orioles are one and a half games out of a dang wild card spot and this is how Elias responds. Not only is the first move a sell, it's selling to one of the teams that is ahead of the Orioles in the wild card standings. That's the immediate reaction.
On the other hand, Kremer has a 6.50 ERA across his seven starts this year. He is giving up home runs like they are going out of style. He's been consistent across the past three seasons before that, posting ERAs of 4.12, 4.10, and 4.19. If he finishes the season with that kind of ERA, the Orioles may end up regretting the immediate aftermath of this trade. If he doesn't, then Elias has moved on from a pitcher at a good time and done well to get a player in the process.
This is a subtraction not just from the rotation for the rest of this season but for next season as well. Kremer has one season remaining before becoming a free agent. He's making $5.75 million this year and figures to get at least a modest increase on that next year. That's not even a third of what Chris Bassitt is making this season. Bassitt has started his rehab ******* ignment; he's probably the rest-of-season replacement for Kremer in the rotation, although that may take a start or two before he's built back up and can take that spot. It won't be good if Bassitt pitches like pre-back surgery Bassitt.
Reyes is an 18-year-old from the Dominican Republic who signed with the Twins for a bonus of $322,500 in January 2025. He made his US minor league debut this season with the Florida Complex League Twins affiliate and came away with a pretty darn good .296/.406/.541 batting line in 49 games, including seven home runs. He has since played in a small handful of games for Low-A Fort Myers. Presumably, the Orioles will ******* ign him to their affiliate at that level, Delmarva.

#orioles #bassitt #elias #good

A beloved player amongst the Detroit Tigers players, coaches and fanbase had to make way for another on Tuesday, July 28.
The Tigers reinstated shortstop/center fielder Javier Báez from the 60-day injured list ahead of Tuesday's game against the Baltimore Orioles. Detroit had to clear a roster spot on both the 26-man and 40-man roster since Báez was removed when he was placed on the 60-day list in June.
On Monday night following an 8-5 loss to the Orioles, manager A.J. Hinch and president of baseball operations Scott Harris sat down with backup catcher Jake Rogers and let him know he would be designated for ***** ignment.
Rogers, 31, has been a member of the Tigers' organization since he came over in the trade package for Justin Verlander from the Houston Astros in 2017. He made his major league debut with Detroit in 2019 and proceeded to appear in 362 games across six different seasons.
"Jake has been here as long as I have been here," Hinch said. "Scott, Jake and I met last night and did everything to walk down memory lane to just explain the timing and how decisions get made."

#orioles #list

Detroit — As of right this minute, manager AJ Hinch has every intention of sending Tarik Skubal to the mound Wednesday for his scheduled start in the finale against the Orioles.
Trade deadline rumors be ****** ed.
"We're trying to win the series so it puts us in a better position to be a playoff team," Hinch said. "The information I have is, win the series. We obviously need to win tonight (Tuesday) to put us in that position. But I fully expect him to start."
More: Tigers activate Javier Báez, DFA Jake Rogers
Skubal, who is coming off a 12-strikeout performance against the Royals, fully expects the same thing.

#orioles

Welcome to SB Nation Reacts, a survey of fans across MLB. Throughout the year we ask questions of the most plugged-in Orioles fans and fans across the country. Sign up here to participate in the weekly emailed surveys.
During the recent Orioles press conference about the Kyle Bradish contract extension, principal owner David Rubenstein said of his president of baseball operations Mike Elias that "we couldn't be more pleased" regarding the job that he has done.
Taking that at face value, the question has been answered, Elias will remain the boss of the Orioles front office no matter what happens with the remainder of the season. There are plenty of examples across the sports landscape of why not to take those kinds of proclamations at face value. The "dreaded vote of confidence" is its own recognized part of the manager/GM hot seat. Almost ****** ody ever directly says, "Things need to improve or we're going to fire this guy." They just say nice things when asked and fire the person when they want to fire them.
In this week's survey question, I want to know what you think is going to happen. Is Elias going to be around for next year, or not? Vote in the poll here:
I have thought for a while that if the Orioles do not make the postseason this year, then Elias should be gone at the end of the season. Let someone else figure this thing out, because his answers aren't getting the Orioles where they need to be.

#orioles #going #survey

Hello, friends.
The Orioles found a way to avoid a complete disaster of a series in Boston by winning the second game of yesterday’s doubleheader, in the process stopping the Red Sox from setting a new franchise record for longest winning streak. The first game of the doubleheader was almost as bad as the first one was good. Check out Paul Folkemer’s recap of the first game if you want some not-so-lovely totals, and John Beers’s recap of the second game if you’re more in the mood for some lovely totals.
Splitting the doubleheader leaves the Orioles at 50-53 on the season, three games out of the third wild card spot with two teams to pass. Those teams are the Red Sox and Mariners, each of whom currently holds the head-to-head tiebreaker over the Orioles. They are in better shape than they were before the seven-game winning streak. They have, for now, passed a lot of the other fringe contenders who were in their way. That’s worth something. I don’t know if it will end up being worth enough.
There are nine games left to play before the August trade deadline. What kind of record do the Orioles need between now and then to have it where you definitely think they need to push the chips in for this year? More importantly, where do the Orioles even have an opportunity to buy?
On the other side, what record would send you into “sell-off” territory? It’s tough to feel like there should be any buying when the team is three games below .500. It’s also tough to contemplate the team being dismantled when the team is three games out of a playoff spot.

#orioles #record #first

BALTIMORE (AP) — Right-hander Kyle Bradish will receive $23 million to cover his final two seasons of arbitration eligibility as part of his $90 million, five-year contract with the Baltimore Orioles that starts next year.
Bradish gets salaries of $10 million in 2027, $13 million in 2028, $17 million in 2029, $22 million in 2030 and $28 million in 2031 under the deal announced Saturday.
He would get a $1 million ***** ignment bonus if traded, payable by the acquiring team. He also receives a suite on road trips.
Bradish has a $3.55 million salary this year after beating the team in arbitration. The new deal covers what would have been Bradish's final two years of arbitration eligibility under the rules of the current labor contract.
The 29-year-old is 6-9 with a 3.61 ERA in 19 starts this year, his first full season back from Tommy John surgery in 2024. He finished fourth in AL Cy Young Award voting in 2023 and is 25-24 with a 3.50 ERA in five major league seasons, all with the Orioles.

#orioles

How Red Sox Can Make Franchise Win Streak History vs. Orioles in Today's Doubleheader originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox had to put history on hold for a night.
They could've tied the franchise's all-time winning streak record on Tuesday night, but their clash with the Baltimore Orioles was rained out. That has led to a doubleheader being scheduled on Wednesday.
And a doubleheader means that the Red Sox will have the chance to double down on history.
If they win game one, they tie the all-time winning streak record for Boston, which was set in 1946.

#streak #orioles #nesn

BOSTON — As the Red Sox try to match a franchise record by extending their winning streak to 15 victories on Tuesday, they’ll welcome one of their All-Stars back to the mound after a brief injured list stint.
Lefty Ranger Suarez will be activated from the IL to pitch Tuesday against the Orioles, interim manager Chad Tracy said after a 6-5 victory in which Caleb Durbin was the hero. The corresponding roster move is unknown. Suarez came out of a pregame workout — which included playing catch and doing some fielding drills on the mound — well enough to be activated.
Suarez last pitched July 5 in Anaheim, when he left after 2 ⅔ innings of a 7-5 Red Sox win with left adductor tightness. He tried to complete his between-starts work in hopes of feeling good enough to make his next start but three days later was placed on the IL. Because of the All-Star break, Suarez’s 15-day injured list stint meant he missed just one start, a game in which Eduardo Rivera started and the Red Sox beat the Mets on July 11.
BETTING: Red Sox moneyline is set at -136 on FanDuel for Tuesday night’s game versus the Orioles. Our complete FanDuel Sportsbook review provides an in-depth guide on how to use their app.
Rivera, who started Friday against Tampa Bay, is a candidate to be sent down to make room for Suarez on the active roster, as is righty Brayan Bello, who returned from a month-plus stint in Triple-A to pitch well on July 12 against the Mets but has been in limbo since. Between the majors and Triple-A, Bello has made just two appearances — a five-inning start for the WooSox on July 1 and his 4 ⅓ inning outing for the Red Sox in New York — since June 25.

#orioles #bello