Eric Lauer surprisingly established himself as a valuable member of the Los Angeles Dodgers rotation after he was designated for ******* ignment by the Toronto Blue Jays.
Amid some pitching injuries, Lauer got a chance to prove his worth to the organization, making eight starts prior to the trade deadline and pitching behind an opener once. In those nine games, the team went 9-0, and Lauer had a 2.96 ERA.
However, trade rumors grew as Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow took steps toward returning to the big leagues. With Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki and Justin Wrobleski also in the rotation, Lauer's spot was in danger, making him a trade candidate. Lauer spoke about trade possibilities with Andrew Friedman before the deadline.
"They had been pretty open with me communication-wise about what they were thinking, what I was thinking," Lauer said. "I expressed to them that I wanted to be a Dodger. So, I think they took that to heart."
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#rotation #deadline #took #thinking

The Chicago Cubs denied the Los Angeles Dodgers' late comeback attempt on Wednesday, completing a three-game sweep over the World Series champions.
Shohei Ohtani hit his 29th leadoff home run as a Dodger to kick off the game, rising to No. 2 in the Dodgers' all-time leaderboard. He now only trails Mookie Betts by three homers in that ranking, and will certainly catch up to him if he maintains his spot at the top of the order.
Eric Lauer started the game for the Dodgers, looking to maintain his spotless record since becoming a Dodger, but didn't do himself any favors, allowing six runs during his four-inning outing.
The Cubs immediately tied the game in the bottom of the first inning, as Pete Crow-Armstrong hit a leadoff homer of his own. They scored two more times in the bottom of the second inning, as Dansby Swanson and Crow-Armstrong both hit RBI doubles to take the lead.
Crow-Armstrong got to Lauer again in the bottom of the fourth, hitting his second home run of the day—this time scoring two runs to make the score 5-1. Lauer allowed a double to Seiya Suzuki immediately after, and Alex Bregman singled him home to further extend the lead.

#home #inning #Cubs

The Dodgers' woes in the month of August continued on Wednesday, as their losing streak reached a season-high six games in a 7-6 loss to the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field.
Shohei Ohtani got the best of his former WBC teammate Shota Imanaga, as he turned around a center-cut fastball for another leadoff home run. It is Ohtani's 29th leadoff home run as a Dodger, passing Davey Lopes for the second on the franchise leadoff home run list. Ohtani's hit streak is now at nine games.
The Cubs would immediately respond against Eric Lauer, as Pete Crow-Armstrong smashed the first pitch he saw over the center field wall to tie the game.
The Dodgers added a pair of singles from Mookie Betts and Miguel Rojas in the top of the second inning, but Imanaga got out of the jam as Hunter Feduccia lined out to right field in his first Dodger at-bat since last year.
The Cubs were able to produce with men on base in the bottom of the second inning, as after a leadoff single from Nico ***** ner, Dansby Swanson drove him home with a double down the left field line to give Chicago a one-run lead. Lauer got Tyrone Taylor to fly out for the second out of the inning, but Crow-Armstrong had his second RBI of the game with a double of his own to extend the Cub lead to two.

#home

Shohei Ohtani tattooed the seventh pitch of Wednesday's series finale between his Los Angeles Dodgers and the Chicago Cubs at Wrigley Field. With an exit velocity of 110.2 mph, the ball jumped off his bat and whipped over the right-field wall.
Pete Crow-Armstrong, a contender to dethrone Ohtani as the National League's MVP, answered in the bottom half of the inning with some leadoff fireworks of his own.
PCA teed off on the first pitch Dodgers southpaw Eric Lauer tossed, a 90.2-mph four-seam fastball. His game-tying solo shot soared 420 feet to center. It also made him the first player in Cubs history to mount consecutive seasons with at least 25 homers and 25 stolen bases, according to ESPN's Jesse Rogers.
Crow-Armstrong's response, and MVP case, didn't end there. The next inning, he ripped an RBI double that bounced off the right-field wall. Two innings after that, in the fourth, he launched another big fly off Lauer. That two-run dinger traveled 405 feet, again to right. The no-doubter lifted Chicago to a 5-1 advantage. Soon after, an RBI single from Alex Bregman extended that lead to 6-1.
Crow-Armstrong, who entered the day leading all MLB players in wins above replacement (7.0), per Baseball Reference, showcased his massive improvement against left-handed pitching this season.

#ohtani #Dodgers #Chicago #lauer

The Dodgers entered the 2026 season with ambitions of becoming team to three-peat in 26 years. Following Monday's trade deadline, they echoed that sentiment with a summer blockbuster and an encore.
Their string of deals began late Saturday night, as after suffering a 3-2 loss to the Boston Red Sox, they struck a deal that infuriated nearly the entire baseball world. The Dodgers landed two-time defending AL Cy Young award winner Tarik Skubal from the Detroit Tigers while sending away outfield prospect Zyhir Hope, right-hander River Ryan and pitching prospect Brady Smith.
The addition of Skubal not only invigorates an already vaunted rotation (when fully healthy), it gives the Dodgers another left-handed option that is a proven innings eater. Before Skubal needed surgery to remove loose bodies from his elbow, he had logged at least six innings of work in six of his first seven starts. He hasn't matched his pre-injury average start length since returning on June 13, but he has logged at least five innings in all but one of his nine final starts in Detroit.
For a Dodgers rotation that is still missing Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow, adding Skubal in the mix keeps the six-man rotation as the norm for the pitching staff down the stretch. With Emmet Sheehan's demotion to Triple-A, the current rotation features Skubal, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki, Justin Wrobleski and Eric Lauer, and until the other three starters return, the Dodgers could implement a weekly bullpen game. Skubal will certainly headline the four-man rotation in the postseason, and the Dodgers have seven options to choose to accompany him come October.
Gauging what the postseason rotation will be a work in progress until October arrives. Skubal and Yamamoto are shoe-ins at the top, but the final two spots are completely up for grabs. Blake Snell is set to return next week after a final rehab start, while Tyler Glasnow has yet to embark on his rehab ***** ignment. The latter is projected to return sometime in September. Ohtani's status for returning to the mound in the regular season is unclear, though the team expects him back in October. The trio of Sasaki, Wrobleski and Lauer all were used exclusively in relief last year for both the Dodgers and Blue Jays.

#Dodgers #skubal #innings

The Los Angeles Dodger put together a strong offensive display on Wednesday, with Max Muncy, Tommy Edman and Dalton Rushing all playing huge roles as the Dodgers claimed a series win.
The Dodgers lost the opening game of the series against the Philadelphia Phillies, but a two-run homer off of Muncy’s bat gave them the win in the second game of the set.
Muncy hit yet another two-run home run on Wednesday—passing Ron Cey in the Dodgers’ all-time leaderboard—with the game tied at three after two fantastic at-bats from Dalton Rushing, giving the Dodgers a 5-3 lead, and the rest of the offense did their job to extend the advantage late.
The Dodgers won the game by a score of 9-5.
Eric Lauer started the game for the Dodgers, throwing five innings as the starter. The Phillies struck early against the left-hander, as Alec Bohm jumped on a 1-0 changeup to hit his 13th homer of the season to make the score 2-0.

#homer #score

Dodgers vs Phillies prediction for Wednesday: Trade MLB on Polymarket originally appeared on The Sporting News. Add The Sporting News as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Get ready for a blockbuster National League showdown as the Los Angeles Dodgers are in the City of Brotherly Love to take on the Philadelphia Phillies. First pitch is scheduled for 6:40 PM ET at Citizens Bank Park, with live coverage available for fans on NBCS-PH and SportsNet LA. Follow along for a Dodgers vs Phillies prediction for Wednesday to trade on all the action using Polymarket.
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The Dodgers enter this prime matchup boasting a stellar 64-38 record, cementing themselves as one of the elite squads in the league with a .627 winning percentage. Meanwhile, the hometown Phillies are putting together a strong campaign of their own, entering the game at 56-46 and eager to defend their home turf against the West Coast powerhouse.
Fans and prediction market traders will not want to miss the star-studded talent taking the field. Los Angeles brings a roster featuring Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts, and Freddie Freeman. Philadelphia counters with immense firepower of their own led by Bryce Harper and Trea Turner. On the mound, the Phillies are slated to hand the ball to veteran pitcher Aaron Nola, while the Dodgers are scheduled to counter with Eric Lauer in what promises to be a thrilling contest from the first inning to the last.

#Phillies #wednesday #sporting #angeles

Los Angeles (64-38) tied up the series with Philadelphia (56-46) after a 2-1 win thanks to a base running blunder from JT Realmuto in the bottom of the ninth inning.
The Dodgers are 3-2 in the five games since the break and scored two or fewer runs in three of those five games. Los Angeles is holding a .218 batting average in the second half of the season (24th) and have the seventh-fewest amount of hits (36). Eric Lauer takes the mound for the Dodgers as they are a perfect 7-0 since acquiring him. Lauer has a 3.12 ERA with Los Angeles over seven starts after a 6.69 ERA in eight starts with Toronto this year.
Philadelphia has alternated wins and losses over the last five games to start the second half of the season. Despite hitting .244 (15th) to start the second half, the Phillies are tied sixth with nine home runs over five games and eighth in SLG (.476). The Phillies have lost four straight games with Aaron Nola on the mound as he's surrendered 15 combined runs in that span. Nola has a 5.60 ERA over his last five games and is coming off a June where he posted a 6.67 ERA.
Let's dive into the matchup and find a sweat or two.
We've got all the info and **** ysis you need to know ahead of the game, including the latest info on the how to catch first pitch, odds, recent team performance, player stats, and of course, our predictions, picks & best bets for the game from our modeling tools and staff of experts.

#five #runs #philadelphia #Phillies

The Toronto Maple Leafs made one of the offseason’s most surprising coaching moves by hiring Ottawa Senators icon Daniel Alfredsson as ******* ociate head coach. The announcement immediately led to strong reactions across the NHL, especially from fans who never expected one of Ottawa’s greatest players to join its biggest rival.
Toronto confirmed the additions on social media, writing, “John Gruden, Daniel Alfredsson and Brad Werenka have been named to our coaching staff.”
Alfredsson arrives after spending the past three seasons as an ******* istant coach with the Senators. Before that, he worked in player development with the organization that defined his playing career.
Senators owner Michael Andlauer said, “While I wish he wasn’t joining an arch-rival, Alfie is forever an Ottawa Senator and the door will always be open for his return.”
MORE: Toronto sports fans ‘worried’ as Rogers acquires 100% ownership of MLSE

TORONTO (AP) — Daniel Alfredsson, once public enemy No. 1 in Toronto as captain of the Ottawa Senators, is leaving Canada's capital to join the Maple Leafs as an ****** ociate coach.
The Maple Leafs announced the move Tuesday, saying John Gruden and Brad Werenka also are joining coach Jim Hiller’s staff as ****** istants.
Alfredsson, 53, spent the last three seasons as an ****** istant in Ottawa after a Hall of Fame playing career spent mostly with the Senators.
The Swedish winger was a prominent figure in the “Battle of Ontario” between the Maple Leafs and Senators, which included four playoff showdowns between 2000 and 2004.
Senators owner Michael Andlauer in a statement said that while he wished Alfredsson were not joining a rival organization, the door would always be open for a return.

The streak of no extra-inning games is finally over, and we can say that the Dodgers are undefeated in extras this season, walking it off against the Rockies 8-7 in the 11th inning. The decisive hit in this thrilling game came from the bat of Dalton Rushing with an RBI single, completing a terrific three-hit performance for the Dodgers catcher.
Before they had to dig deep for this victory, the Dodgers got to experience the thin line in baseball between control of a game and the illusion of it. The home team saw a 6-3 lead collapse in the ninth as Tanner Scott had his first blowup outing in over a month, walking multiple hitters for the first time this season.
To acquire that 6-3 lead, Shohei Ohtani and Eric Lauer were the protagonists. As if facing Ohtani in and of itself wasn't a daunting enough threat, Kyle Freeland did so for the second time in the third inning with a runner on base after allowing a leadoff double to Rushing. Whoever questioned the Ohtani-Rushing partnership in recent weeks needs to check their facts—it seemed to be working just fine when Ohtani gave the Dodgers their first lead of the game by driving in Rushing with a two-run homer, his 19th on the season and seventh against lefties—now just two short of 300 in his career.
This combination of Rushing and Ohtani would go on to lead the way for the Dodgers once again in the following inning. After Max Muncy and Miguel Rojas secured back-to-back RBI on a single and sac fly, respectively, Rushing once again set up Ohtani with a double, who then proceeded to drive in a pair, this time with just a two-run single.
Overall in this game, the four runs batted in by Ohtani represented a season-high mark at home and only the third time he's achieved that number or higher this season. Ohtani's three hits were also a season high for the reigning back-to-back NL MVP. All of that success that Ohtani and the rest of the Dodgers offense had against Freeland couldn't be replicated facing Zach Agnos, who tossed three scoreless innings to keep Colorado with a puncher's chance.

Eric Lauer had a solid season for the Toronto Blue Jays last season, posting a 3.18 ERA in 28 games, but he was off to a poor start this year.
Lauer was very important for the Blue Jays last season as he helped cover some key pitching injuries, and also was able to serve as both a starter and reliever. He came out of the bullpen in October and had a 3.12 ERA in five games during the Blue Jays' World Series run. This season, he had a 6.69 ERA in eight games for the Blue Jays, making six starts. They designated him for ******* ignment on May 11, and the Los Angeles Dodgers acquired him for cash on May 17.
The Dodgers have been dealing with pitching injuries all season, with Tyler Glasnow and Blake Snell both spending time on the injured list. Relievers Edwin Díaz, Evan Phillips and Blake Treinen are also on the injured list. It made sense for them to acquire a swingman like Lauer to eat innings, but they have turned him into a key player. He has a 2.88 ERA in six games, making five starts, for the Dodgers.
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Not only is he helping the Dodgers win games, but he is also making a case to remain on the roster when some of the injured players return. Lauer seems like a far better rotation option than Roki Sasaki at this point in time. When healthy, the Dodgers may be best suited to have a rotation of Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Snell, Glasnow, Lauer and Justin Wrobleski. If they want a five-man rotation, Lauer would make the most sense as a long-relief option.

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — Shohei Ohtani hit a three-run homer to support Eric Lauer in his conventional return to the starting rotation as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the Athletics 9-4 on Monday night.
Max Muncy and Andy Pages also homered and joined Ohtani in a group of eight Dodgers with two hits apiece. Los Angeles manager Dave Roberts earned his 999th career victory.
Lauer (4-5) allowed three runs and nine hits in six innings, seven days after pitching six hitless innings of bulk relief and getting the win against Minnesota. The left-hander struck out two and walked one in his sixth appearance for the Dodgers and fifth start since they acquired him from Toronto for cash on May 17.
Kyle Hurt set down all three hitters he faced in the seventh on swinging strikeouts. Jonathan Hernández retired four batters and Jack Dreyer got the final two outs in the ninth.
Colby Thomas homered for the A's, who have lost seven of nine.

The Los Angeles Dodgers reinstated outfielder Teoscar Hernández from the IL Monday, and put him directly back into the lineup for their series opener against the Athletics.
Hernandez has spent just over a month on the injured list following a grade 1 hamstring strain against the Colorado Rockies towards the end of May.
The Dodgers are heading to Sacramento to finish a nine-game road trip, and are fresh off of a series win against the San Diego Padres. They claimed the final two games of the series with a blowout win on Saturday and a strong performance on Sunday.
Eric Lauer is taking the mound for the Dodgers, and will look to continue his success since joining LA. He has a 2.54 ERA with the Dodgers through five appearances, and is yet to receive a losing decision since joining the team.
Lauer already faced the A’s this season, though as a member of the Toronto Blue Jays. He threw 5.1 innings in that outing, allowing just two earned runs and striking out nine batters on his way to a win.

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Pinch-hitter Miguel Rojas launched a tiebreaking homer in the seventh inning and the Los Angeles Dodgers erased an early deficit to beat the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 on Monday night in the opener of a six-game homestand.
Kyle Tucker hit a three-run homer for the Dodgers and threw out a runner at the plate from right field. Kyle Hurt (2-1) earned the win with a scoreless inning of relief, and Tanner Scott retired the side in order in the ninth for his eighth save.
Rojas batted for Alex Freeland with one out in the seventh and sent the first pitch he saw from Steven Matz (4-4) into the left-field stands to snap a 3-all tie. It was the Dodgers’ first pinch-hit home run this season and the second of Rojas’ career.
Eric Lauer allowed three runs over six innings for Los Angeles. He remains unbeaten in four starts since the Dodgers acquired him from the Toronto Blue Jays on May 17.
Ryan Vilade hit a two-run homer and Taylor Walls executed a perfect safety squeeze for the Rays. Nick Martinez gave up five hits and three runs over 5 1/3 innings. He walked one and struck out six.

At the beginning of this series, Mark Grace remarked that the Diamondbacks needed to take advantage of the starting pitching matchups in the first two games because – on paper at least – they favored the D-Backs. The first game featured a resurgent Eduardo Rodriguez against youngster Emmet Sheehan while the second one pitted the reinvented Michael Soroka against journeyman Eric Lauer. Grace's recommendation was certainly heeded in the first game when Rodriguez went six innings and allowed just one run, but Soroka wasn't quite able to take the baton the next night even if he ended stronger than he started. Frustratingly, the script flipped on starting pitching beginning with Shohei Ohtani and his otherworldly 0.82 ERA going tonight while Justin Wrobleski and his excellent 2.87 ERA will round out the series. As expected, the D-Backs ran headlong into the buzzsaw that Ohtani has been on the ***** p this season while Zac Gallen labored through just five innings and gave up five runs. There were essentially no highlights for the D-Backs tonight, just lowlights. Seriously, if you're a Diamondbacks' fan, go read a book or talk to a friend instead.
The vibes for the night started off poorly with Ketel Marte being scratched from the lineup late with "full body fatigue" that was later clarified to be more focused on his hamstring as Torey Lovullo explained that he would prefer to give him a day off today than push him through the pain. They did not improve through the night. After a scoreless first, Mookie Betts leadoff the second inning by reaching on a slightly off-target throw from Geraldo Perdomo that was immediately cashed in on a mammoth home run from Kyle Tucker off a flat Gallen fastball that sat middle-middle. The third also started with a pair of leadoff base runners with a walk to Ohtani, a double from Andy Pages, and a two-run single from Freddie Freeman. Max Muncy would add another run on a single that somehow eluded Gallen and Perdomo to reach the outfield and allow Freeman to motor around for a fifth LA run. Brandon Pfaadt came into the game in relief and failed to provide much confidence in his role moving forward. After collecting a couple quick outs, he loaded the bases on a Muncy double, a Will Smith walk, and an Alex Call hit by pitch that was again quickly cashed in by an Alex Freeland single up the middle that once again eluded the infield defenders.
Meanwhile, the Ohtani show was in full effect tonight. He extended his no-hit streak another 3.2 IP until Gabriel Moreno broke up his no-hitter with a two-out double in the fourth – one of just two hits and three baserunners the ***** anese ace allowed over six innings of work. The D-Backs would muster just two more baserunners for the remainder of the game with a two-out walk to Jose Fernandez and a fielding error on a ball Moreno put into play on the left side of the infield. They did little to generate any baserunners and continued to struggle to find any kind of offensive rhythm aft