Los Angeles Dodgers starter Blake Snell logged another quality start Sunday against the Pittsburgh Pirates, but he isn't satisfied just yet.
Snell came back from a procedure on his elbow Aug. 11, and has been fantastic in all three of his starts since returning. In his first appearance off of the injured list, Snell allowed just one earned run through six innings while striking out 10 batters.
He only allowed one run in his subsequent outing, striking out five batters through six innings on his way to his first win of the season. The southpaw made his third appearance of the month on Sunday, shutting out the Pirates through six innings with six strikeouts.
Despite his dominant three-game run, though, Snell still expects better from himself.
"There were a couple innings there where you get two quick outs and then a full-count walk," Snell said. "It's not acceptable. Especially with [how] I feel good, know I can command the ball. Honestly, it's lazy. It's me trying to get strikeouts instead of trying to go seven, eight, nine. So I definitely got to clean that up."

#sunday #allowed #striking

Anthony Hernandez tips his cap to Gregory Rodrigues and his toughness in the UFC Fight Night 285 main event Saturday – but there's one thing he didn't appreciate.
For five rounds, Hernandez (15-4 MMA, 9-4 UFC) and Rodrigues (20-6 MMA, 11-3 UFC) battled back-and-forth. Though he lost a unanimous decision, Hernandez displayed heart and unbreakable will in front of his home city fans at Golden 1 Center in Sacramento, Calif. The pair of middleweight contenders also earned Fight of the Night honors and the $100,000 bonus ***** ociated with it.
"A dream come true," Hernandez said at a post-fight news conference. "Obviously, I've got to get back to work and clean some ***** up. Next time I'll give you guys a win. I promise. ... (The crowd support) was f*cking ... a blessing. It was crazy. That's what kept me going. I couldn't give up. That sh*t hurt like a f*cking b*tch, man. It still hurts. It was a real f*cking blessing. I feel so honored to have that much love. Hopefully they come back to Sac so I can show out again. I'd love to give you guys more wars like that."
Hernandez became hobbled early as Rodriguez repeatedly chopped down his legs, causing him to shift from orthodox to southpaw. Hernandez rallied in Round 2 and nearly finished the fight, but "Robocop" hung tough.
One issue Hernandez took with Rodrigues was his grip around the glove area. According to Hernandez, Rodrigues had his fingers inside the glove – and he told referee Herb Dean as much mid-fight.

#fight

Second-half turnaround: Ashlyn Puerta scored only 45 seconds after entering the game and Baylee DeSmit netted two more goals to boost Sporting Club Jacksonville women's soccer to second place in the Gainbridge Super League, defeating Tampa Bay Sun FC 3-2 in the home opener on Aug. 22.
Puerta power: The league's player of the year in Sporting Jax's inaugural season, Puerta smashed a game-tying 25-yard laser in the 46th minute, moments after entering as a halftime sub for Maci Teater at the University of North Florida's Hodges Stadium.
DeSmit double: Two more goals for DeSmit pushed Jacksonville in front. In the 60th minute, Meg Hughes dribbled down the right wing and cut the ball back for DeSmit, who cracked a 20-yard shot off the hands of Tampa Bay goalkeeper Liz Beardsley and into the net. Ten minutes later, DeSmit stayed onside for a crisp finish after a headed ***** ist by Coco Thistle.
Dinosaur in the house: The club introduced its new mascot, orange dinosaur Sporting Rex, in a pregame presentation that also included appearances from the Jaguars' Jaxson de Ville and the Jumbo Shrimp's Southpaw.
Quick free kicks: Tampa Bay (0-1-1) scored twice on the break, with Shea Connors giving the visitors a first-half lead and Jordan Zade narrowing the gap to 3-2 late. … Sporting Jax goalkeeper Jamie Gerstenberg made six saves, preserving the edge amid a stoppage-time flurry from the Sun. … Thistle made her club debut in place of Melina Descary in the 60th minute. … First-team all-league forward Paige Kenton was unavailable due to illness.

#desmit #jacksonville #thistle #second

Left-hander Andrew Sears is reportedly on his way to Detroit. The Tigers 11th ranked prospect on our preseason rankings, Sears has shown out in two Triple-A appearances since being promoted from Double-A Erie back on August 11. The X account Dr. Degenerate, apparently the burner account for someone with good sources, reported on Saturday that Sears is being promoted to Detroit. That account has nailed several recent promotions in the Tigers' system. The report has been circulated by both Emily Waldon as well as the MiLB Central official account on X, and Chris McCosky of the Detroit News confirmed that Sears is with the team in Kansas City and will be used as a bulk reliever in Sunday's bullpen game.
The 23-year-old Sears, he'll turn 24 on August 30, was the Tigers 10th round pick in the 2023 draft out of Connecticut. That makes him the first pitching prospect drafted by Scott Harris to reach Detroit, and another later round success story to go with Brett Callahan. Sears received a $167,500 bonus to sign, just barely over the base bonus of $150,000.
Sears made his full season pro debut in 2024 at the Low-A Lakeland level, where his strikeout rate was good and he was rarely hit hard, but had some control issues. Those were resolved by 2025, and the southpaw continued to rack up good strikeout numbers and prevent home runs while throwing a lot more strikes for High-A West Michigan. Left-handers often thrive in A-ball and then struggle as more advanced hitters get used to seeing more southpaws against them, but Sears didn't miss a beat moving into the upper levels. He closed out the season with a nice run over six starts at Double-A Erie. The hope this year was that Sears would refine his changeup and overall command a bit more, reach Triple-A and become available in the second half of this season to help the major league club.
Ultimately, this all came to pass, but it was a wild ride for Sears this year. He had a bone spur fracture in his throwing elbow to begin the season, and spent a few months recovering and rehabbing, returning to Erie in mid-June. He made nine starts for the SeaWolves, compiling a 2.57 ERA/3.44 FIP combination, with a 24.3 percent strikeout rate and a 7.6 percent walk rate. In two starts for the Triple-A Toledo Mud Hens, Sears has been a strikeout machine, punching out 41.2 percent of hitters he's faced. His walk rate has ticked up to 11.8 percent, but he also hasn't allowed a home run.
We've pegged Sears for two seasons now as the next lefty swingman for the Tigers. He can start, but he makes plenty of sense as a long reliever and spot starter who also works out of the bullpen. His deception, built on a bit of funky, crossfire delivery and a quick arm from a low slot, makes him tricky to deal with, and his stuff has routinely played up compared to the raw stuff metrics. The big task this season was to refine his changeup and get to using the offspeed more often to take pressure off his good sinker-slider combination, and

The New York Yankees announced that starting pitcher Ryan Weathers was pulled from Saturday's start against the Toronto Blue Jays due to "forearm discomfort."
The announcement added that the veteran southpaw would be undergoing imaging to determine the severity of the injury.
Weathers made it through only 3 1/3 innings. He threw 72 pitches and allowed two earned runs on eight hits. Weathers didn't issue any walks and struck out three.
The 26-year-old is in his first season with the Yankees. He has made 25 starts this year and has tallied a 5-7 record with a 3.60 ERA. The southpaw has struck out 143 batters in 137 1/3 innings of work.
Weathers is the latest Yankee to be banged up. It was announced on Saturday that Giancarlo Stanton, who is recovering from a right calf strain, suffered a new injury to his left calf during a fall while running.

#southpaw #injury #year #calf

NEW DELHI: "Arey nahi nahi!" Sanat Sangwan bursts into laughter when asked if his father was a fan of Sri Lankan batting legend Sanath Jayasuriya and whether that inspired his name.

The 25-year-old southpaw has been Delhi's most consistent batter in the last two domestic seasons. Sangwan managed only 385 runs in his debut Ranji Trophy season in 2024-25, but his stay at the crease gave Delhi's fragile batting line-up some ******* urance. The only problem was that he was not able to convert his starts. He turned that around in the 2025-26 season, amassing 828 runs at an average of 69, including three hundreds.

Sangwan explained the hard work behind those runs, which has earned him a spot in the North Zone squad for the Duleep Trophy, starting from Sunday (August 23) at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru.

"You have to put a lot of effort into preparing for red-ball cricket during the off-season. Conditions are different, and as an opener, it is always difficult while facing the new ball. And sometimes you might have to walk out to bat in the afternoon or sometimes even when the lights are not good. So keeping all things in mind, I prepare more for red-ball cricket during the off-season," Sangwan said in a select media interaction organised by Delhi Premier League's (DPL) franchise South Delhi Superstarz.
"I prefer to go to the nets at around 8 am when there is a little moisture on the wicket. I try to replicate the conditions that I get in matches. I practise a little earlier because the more I practise in difficult conditions, the easier it becomes to adapt. I ask the net bowlers to start with a new ball. Then, after an hour, I give them another new ball. I try to face more new ******* in the nets so that the situation doesn't feel easy for me in a match," he explains his preparation.

While talking about his preparation for red-ball cricket, Sangwan goes into the details of his training and love for the format, and also explains why it gives him so much joy.
"I love this format. From the start, you see the opener go out to bat with the new ball. Then the conditions get better, and then the second new ball comes again. There is a lot in this format. It is a difficult format. It tests your skill, patience and fitness. The result is not in your hands. You can come back at any time. If you take two or three wickets quickly, or have a good partnership with the bat, you can change the game. I have worked a lot on my cricket since I was 19. Red-ball cricket is my favourite format," he says.
Sangwan isn't soothing to the eyes like other southpaws. His cover drives are not as elegant as any other left-handed batters, but he knows how to put a price on his wicket, has a great temperament and his batting mantra is pretty simple: "Tire the bowlers in the first hour."
"In red-ball cricket, I try to select my shots according to what I have prepared. I don't play the cover drive early in my innings. I try to avoid cutting the ball

ARLINGTON, Tex. - Baseball can be a funny thing. One night you can score 18 runs, and the next you can be held scoreless through nine full innings.
That's the situation the Los Angeles Angels found themselves in against the Texas Rangers on Friday, though they likely weren't laughing after taking a scoreless game into the 10th inning before falling 2-1 to the Rangers.
Reid Detmers was on the mound for Los Angeles and he delivered yet another stellar start, going six innings without allowing a run while allowing six hits and one walk while striking out five.
It was Detmer's seventh-straight start of allowing three earned runs-or-less, but in a recurring theme for the southpaw, the Angels offense didn't show up for him and he left the game once again with a no-decision.
While Detmers and the three Angels relievers that followed him through the ninth inning held the Rangers to a zero on the scoreboard, Mackenzie Gore and his staff did the same thing for the Rangers.

#Angels #scoreless

The first-place Tampa Bay Rays (76-51) open a crucial AL East series in Baltimore against the Orioles (61-67) tonight. With just five wins in their last ten games, the Rays have seen the Yankees cut into their lead in the division while the Orioles have dropped a full two games behind the Twins in the chase for the final Wild Card spot as the result of being swept by those same Yankees earlier this week.
The Rays dropped two of three earlier this week against the Blue Jays. The usually stingy Tampa pitching staff allowed 21 runs over the three games. As mentioned earlier, the Orioles are also looking to bounce back this weekend. The Yankees' hurlers held the O's to five runs in the series. These teams met last weekend in St. Petersburg with the Orioles taking three of the four games.
Freddy Peralta (5-10, 5.27 ERA) takes the ball for Tampa Bay tonight. After a brutal first start with the Rays (7 Earned Runs over 3.2 Innings), Peralta has been solid allowing three runs over six innings against the Athletics on August 10 followed by a stingy but short effort against these Orioles last Sunday in which he surrendered two runs over 4.2 innings. Trevor Rogers (8-8, 4.15 ERA) gets the start for Baltimore. He was on the winning end last Sunday against the Rays allowing just two runs over six innings. In 16 innings this month the southpaw has allowed six earned runs. Since June 1, Rogers has started 13 games and allowed more than two runs just twice – four earned runs July 29 at Detroit and three earned runs June 9 against the Mariners.
Lets dive further into tonight's game 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.

#runs #orioles #tampa

The Yankees, on the strength of Trent Grisham, pulled out a 3-1 win over the Orioles on Tuesday night.
But the game could have been very different if not for ABS.
In the second inning with the game still scoreless, the Orioles loaded the bases thanks in large part to a fielding error by Jazz Chisholm Jr. after the second base umpire screened him on a groundball. What could have been an inning-ending doubleplay turned into a massive jam for Carlos Rodon and the Yankees.
Rodon would wind up striking out Carlos Narvaez before Jackson Holliday stepped into the batter's box with two outs. After Rodon got ahead 0-2, the southpaw threw a fastball away and a bit high. Holliday didn't bite, but Austin Wells hopped up to head into the dugout but stopped once he realized homeplate umpire Will Little didn't ring up the young Orioles infielder.
After a few seconds, ABS confirmed that it was a strike and the Yankees escaped.

#didn 't

After a rocky start to the 2026 season, there was a time that Cincinnati Reds lefty Andrew Abbott settled into a rather great groove. That time, though, has sadly evaporated, and he's been nothing more than mediocre – at best – for a little bit now.
Over his last 9 starts dating back to June 26th, he's pitched to just a 4.66 ERA/4.41 FIP with an extremely discouraging 38/25 K/BB in 48.1 IP. He was shelled for 5 ER in his most recent outing (in just 4.1 IP), and the month of August has seen him allow 11 ER with a brutal 8/10 K/BB in just 16.0 IP (6.19 ERA).
The Reds will surely hope he can find a way to flip that script on Tuesday night against the St. Louis Cardinals, who boast the second lowest K% against southpaws among the 30 MLB clubs (just 18.3%).
Kyle Leahy gets the starting nod for the Birds, and first pitch is set for 6:40 PM ET.
Here's how both clubs will line up to begin things:

#time #cincinnati #abbott #tuesday

Probable pitchers: RHP Chris Basssitt (4-4, 5.27 ERA, 37 Ks) vs. LHP Steven Matz (5-4, 5.46 ERA, 48 Ks)
Where to watch: MASN/MASN+
The Orioles had an opportunity in the immediate wake of yet another trade deadline sell-off. With series against bottom-feeder Angels and fellow Wildcard hopefuls in the Rangers and Twins, the O's had a chance to really make up ground in their quest for a playoff spot. Instead, Baltimore went 3-6 in those series and now stare down an AL East gauntlet.
Tonight starts a four-game set against the American League-leading Rays, and the first of nine straight games against the Rays and Yankees. The good news for Birdland is that Baltimore remains only two games out of the final AL Wild Card spot. That bad news is they'll now have to try to make up ground against a Rays team who enters on a nine-game winning streak.
The Rays will look to extending that winning streak by forcing the O's to face their biggest weakness: a mediocre left-handed starter. Baltimore ranks 25th in team OPS and 29th in average vs. LH starting pitchers. Coby Mayo and Christian Encarnacion-Strand are lefty mashers, but the rest of the lineup has been league average or worse against southpaw starters.

#baltimore #spot

The Yankees offense was held in check for six innings before exploding for four runs in the seventh en route to a 4-1 win over the Mariners on Tuesday night.
-Weathers was dealing again. The southpaw mowed down the Mariners lineup, allowing just one hit and two walks in the first five innings, even retiring 10 straight batters at one point.
The game changed in the sixth when Randy Arozarena took Weathers deep with a one-out short-porch homer. It's Arozarena's 18th career home run against the Yankees.
Weathers went 5.2 innings (106 pitches/62 strikes), allowing the one run on two hits and three walks while striking out four.
-Bryan Woo came into Tuesday's game with a 4.31 ERA (a 6.27 ERA on the road), and those numbers improved because of the Yankees' lifeless offense.

#yankees #innings #walks #tuesday

During the top of the third inning of Monday night's Royals vs. Dodgers game, the SportsNet LA broadcast flashed a leaderboard of the lowest starter ERA since the start of the 2023 season. Of the five names listed, four are currently employed by the back-to-back champs: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell and the star of this particular evening, Tarik Skubal. Some understandably pessimistic fans in western Pennsylvania surely harbor fear that the fifth figure, Paul Skenes, will end up in Dodger blue one day as well.
But if that list was a reminder — as if anybody needed another — of the preposterous talent gilding L.A.'s star-studded roster, Skubal's ordinary performance on Monday in his first home start as a Dodger emphasized that nothing in this wonky sport is preordained.
Pitching in front of a revved up, eager audience, Skubal was downright mediocre in L.A.'s 6-5 victory over the Royals.
His fastball command was, by his cathedral standards, scattershot. He struggled to locate the four-seamer consistently at and just above the top rail, right where the world-beating southpaw makes his bread. Skubal had similar issues with his sinker, a handful of which ended up catching far too much plate, including one that resulted in a first-inning RBI single from Royals first baseman Jac Caglianone.
But the hammer blow of Skubal's night came in the third, when he gifted Caglianone a hanging, piped 0-2 slider. The scalding-hot lefty didn't miss the miss, sizzling the breaker 110.8 mph into the right-field seats to give Kansas City an early 3-0 lead.

#four

During the top of the third inning of Monday night's Royals vs. Dodgers game, the SportsNet LA broadcast flashed a leaderboard of the lowest starter ERA since the start of the 2023 season. Of the five names listed, four are currently employed by the back-to-back champs: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Shohei Ohtani, Blake Snell and the star of this particular evening, Tarik Skubal. Some understandably pessimistic fans in western Pennsylvania surely harbor fear that the fifth figure, Paul Skenes, will end up in Dodger blue one day as well.
But if that list was a reminder — as if anybody needed another — of the preposterous talent gilding L.A.'s star-studded roster, Skubal's ordinary performance on Monday in his first home start as a Dodger emphasized that nothing in this wonky sport is preordained.
Pitching in front of a revved up, eager audience, Skubal was downright mediocre in L.A.'s 6-5 victory over the Royals.
His fastball command was, by his cathedral standards, scattershot. He struggled to locate the four-seamer consistently at and just above the top rail, right where the world-beating southpaw makes his bread. Skubal had similar issues with his sinker, a handful of which ended up catching far too much plate, including one that resulted in a first-inning RBI single from Royals first baseman Jac Caglianone.
But the hammer blow of Skubal's night came in the third, when he gifted Caglianone a hanging, piped 0-2 slider. The scalding-hot lefty didn't miss the miss, sizzling the breaker 110.8 mph into the right-field seats to give Kansas City an early 3-0 lead.

#Royals #caglianone #inning #start

The San Diego Padres signed outfielder Austin Hays to a Major League contract on Sunday afternoon.
After San Diego signed Hays, Stammen almost predicted what would happen later in the game. The Padres manager said, "He's a good right-handed bench bat…one of those guys that, in his career, has hit lefty pitching really well. So he's somebody that we can bring in to pinch-hit against a tough lefty, or someone that we can start against a lefty."
A few hours later, Hays was pinch-hit to face left-handed pitcher Bryan King and hit his second home run of the season in his first plate appearance with San Diego, almost exactly as Stammen predicted when explaining the free agent signing.
Hays' number was called in the bottom of the eighth inning of Sunday night's game against the Houston Astros. There was a runner on first, and Hays hit a 371 ft. home run to left field to put his new San Diego team up 7-2, making quite the first impression.
Hays replaced designated hitter Gavin Sheets. Hays bats right-handed while Sheets hits lefty. Manager Craig Stammen made the substitution call with Houston bringing on southpaw Bryan King in relief.

#hays #Padres #sunday

Carlos Rodon was on the mound in live game action Saturday for the first time since going down with elbow inflammation.
The Yankees southpaw tossed 48 pitches (29 strikes) across 2.2 innings, allowing three runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four batters for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.
It was an inauspicious start for Rodon. Seaver King took Rodon deep to lead off the game. Rodon bounced back to get the next three batters out to end the first inning. After a 1-2-3 second inning, Rodon ran into trouble in the third. After striking out the first batter of the inning, four batters in a row reached base (a double, two walks and a triple) as Rochester pushed across two more runs.
After Rodon struck out his fourth batter to get the second out of the third, he was pulled.
Rodon would have pitched deeper, but Yankees manager Aaron Boone said earlier this week that the plan was for the southpaw to throw around 50 pitches.

#rodon #inning #pitches

On a beautiful Old-Timers' Day at Yankee Stadium, the Yankees beat the Braves, 5-4 the final score, to clinch the series victory.
-Gerrit Cole and Chris Sale faced off against each other for the third time in their illustrious careers.
-The Yankees opened the scoring in the second inning, when Spencer Jones singled home Trent Grisham - who had doubled a few batters earlier - with two outs. Sale wasn't fazed, however, and the southpaw retired each of the next seven Yankees batters he faced.
-The Braves roared back to take the lead in the fifth inning, scoring two runs before Cole could record a single out. The first RBI came off the bat of Mike Yastrzemski, who doubled over the head of an ill-positioned Heliot Ramos in left field to bring home Mauricio Dubon. Austin Riley then singled to put Atlanta runners on the corners, before rookie shortstop Jim Jarvis roped a line drive into right field to bring home Yastrzemski and make the score 2-1 Braves. Yankees skipper Aaron Boone kept the faith in his veteran right-hander, and Cole battled back to retire the next three batters in order to escape the jam, including two strikeouts. Cole's strikeout of Braves slugger Matt Olson was his 1,000th in just 139 games with the Yankees, making him the fastest to reach that milestone in franchise history.
-Leading off the bottom of the fifth inning, George Lombard Jr. successfully challenged two straight pitches to turn a strikeout into a walk. Jones got the best of Sale yet again, driving a front-door slider into the gap for a triple which easily brought home Lombard to tie up the game. Much to the chagrin of Sale and Braves manager Walt Weiss, the umpire ruled that Sale balked, and Jones was allowed to walk home from third base. Weiss was ejected in the ensuing argument. Austin Wells kept the momentum rolling for the Yanks with an opposite-field double, but Ramos grounded into a double play to end the inning with New York leading 3-2.

#jones

The Athletics have lost nine straight after getting blown out 13-1 by the Boston Red Sox in last night's series opener. At 45-71, the A's are tied for the worst record in the league. It wasn't long ago that the team was sitting at .500, highlighting just how swift and extreme this collapse has been.
This afternoon, the A's will look to stop the bleeding and avoid dropping their 10th in a row. Left-hander Gage Jump will get the start for the Green and Gold. The 23-year-old enters his 14th start of the season with a 4-7 record, a 4.59 ERA, a 1.47 WHIP and 73 strikeouts across 66 2/3 innings pitched.
The club's top pitching prospect got off to a strong start, showcasing his tantalizing stuff during a dominant stretch to begin his major league career. However, Jump has struggled recently, perhaps running into a rookie wall as opposing teams have figured out how to attack the southpaw.
In Jump's last outing against the Detroit Tigers, he took the loss after allowing six runs on four hits and six walks over just 3 2/3 innings. The start before that, he dominated these Red Sox hitters in Sacramento, striking out seven over six scoreless innings.
If the Athletics want to win a baseball game, they will need Jump to replicate that performance at Fenway Park, although the Red Sox will have a better idea of what to expect from the left-hander. A quality start would go a long way, especially after right-hander Jack Perkins' short and poor start yesterday forced the team to ask more out of its struggling bullpen.

#left

Sometimes, you gotta make the tough call to put the old steer out to pasture.
Rhys Hoskins has a 95 wRC+ this season. That, especially on the Guardians, is not bad. However, this includes a 79 wRC+ since June 1st, during which time he has struck out 37% of the time. Even more prominently, since June 1st of LAST season, Hoskins has a 57 wRC+ against LHP. Why has Hoskins forgotten how to hit southpaws on a team that needs him to be able to be the career 130 wRC+ against them he has traditionally been like no other? I don't know. Because the baseball gods hate us, probably. It's likely one of two options: 1. small sample size and he'll eventually correct things, or 2. the canary in the coal mine that he is washed overall.
Regardless, Hoskins isn't helping the Cleveland Guardians win baseball games in his current role of supposed lefty masher who plays first base when LHP are on the mound. He's not a good defender. But, he is, from all accounts, great in the clubhouse. So great that the team is a game under .500 on August 8th. You can probably sense my skepticism that his clubhouse skills are indispensible to this team's success.
I think it's probably time to give Kody Huff a chance at a platoon first-base/occasional catching reps role. Huff has a .793 OPS against LHP and .914 OPS against RHP this season, but has traditionally hit LHP better than RHP as most RHH's do. Most importantly, he has a higher OPS away from the Columbus bandbox than at home (.888/.879). Zach Meisel of the Athletic has repeatedly mentioned on the Selby is Godcast that the team "LOVES" Huff and it was a big reason they were willing to trade Jacob Cozart and Bo Naylor at the trade deadline. Great opportunity to potentially get Huff some experience with Austin Hedges and Patrick Bailey and make use of the 235 innings he has played at first base to hopefully leverage their way to an improvement over what Hoskins has done against left-handed pitching.
By September, if Huff struggles and Ralphy Velazquez continues his recent breakout, I would love to see the team give Velazquez reps in a first base/DH role and let him hit LHP. (Cooper Ingle cannot hit lefties, in case anyone is wondering about him in a full-time DH role). Ralphy has consistently hit LHP slightly better than he has RHP over the past two seasons. He's a full-time hitter, eventually, and it would be great to give him a chance to experience big league pitching and potentially help a team trying to make the playoffs. But, for now, the team needs to take a shot at improving their roster in the Hoskins' role, even at the risk to clubhouse chemistry, and Huff seems to be the best potential option.

#huff #base

Uncrowned has Aaron McKenna vs. Etinosa Oliha and Callum Walsh vs. Tyler Denny live results, round-by-round updates, highlights, ring walks and start time for the Zuffa Boxing 10 fight card on Saturday at the 3Arena in Dublin, Ireland. Aaron McKenna and Etinosa Oliha clash for the vacant IBF middleweight ******* le in the main event, while rising star Callum Walsh takes on the former European champion Tyler Denny to complete the middleweight doubleheader.
Ireland's McKenna (20-0, 10 KOs) was last in action when he dominated Liam Smith for a wide unanimous decision win in April 2025.
Oliha (22-0, 10 KOs) defeated Alexander Pavlov in an IBF eliminator in late 2024. He has fought just once since, getting a third-round TKO win over Ivan Njegac last September.
Walsh (16-0, 11 KOs) moved up to middleweight in his last fight and survived a knockdown to take a decision over Carlos Ocampo in January.
Denny (21-4-3, 1 KO) is coming off a competitive loss to George Liddard in March. The West Midlands southpaw formerly held the European ******* le from 2023 to 2024.

#oliha #last #aaron #callum

Queensberry promoter Frank Warren has said that Irish boxer Lee Reeves is "making progress" after being hospitalised following his fight in Dublin on Saturday night.
The 31-year-old's condition was described as "critical but stable" after he was admitted for treatment following his defeat to Gary Cully.
Reeves was fighting for the vacant BUI Celtic super-lightweight ******* le but was knocked out in the 10th round at the 3Arena.
The Limerick southpaw was stretchered out of the ring after the fight.
An update provided by Warren on Thursday struck a positive note.

#following #frank

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 St. Louis Cardinals (56-57) and New York Yankees (63-50) continue their three-game series tonight at Yankee Stadium.
Its been a challenge offensively for these teams for much of the season, but last night the bats were alive as the teams combined for 20 runs and 23 hits as the Cards rallied in the eighth inning to win 13-7. Alec Burleson put on a show all by himself with three home runs and six runs batted in but he was not the only player who went yard. Jimmy Crooks and Nathan Church also homered for St. Louis and the Yankees went deep five times. Recently acquired Luis Garcia Jr., Ryan McMahon, Trent Grisham, Jose Caballero, and Austin Wells circled the bases for the hometown Pinstripes. Buried behind all the offensive fireworks was a poor outing from Cam Schlittler who walked five and gave up four hits and four runs over just three innings.
With the loss New York dropped to 3.5 games behind the Rays in the AL East while the Cardinals kept pace in the NL Wild Card chase with the win.
St. Louis is expected to turn to right-hander Hunter Dobbins (2-1, 3.74 ERA). The 26-year-old has been inconsistent this season. Last Monday he allowed seven hits and four runs over 5.1 innings against the Cubs. The previous Wednesday, though, Dobbins threw six shutout innings against the Angels. The Yankees counter with Ryan Weathers (4-7, 3.99 ERA). The southpaw has been sharp his last two starts allowing just nine hits and one earned run over 12.2 innings.
After Monday's offensive explosion, the biggest question entering Game 2 is whether the sudden offense stays around or if either side's pitching regains control.

#cardinals

Jed Hoyer finished his media scrum in the Cubs dugout at Wrigley Field with a simple phrase: "I'm tired."
Who could blame him?
Hoyer's front office made a flurry of moves before the MLB trade deadline Monday evening, adding four new pitchers and an outfielder onto the roster in a 24-hour span.
It was an aggressive deadline for Hoyer, who gave up quality young talent in exchange for a chance to go deep into the playoffs.
Included in the haul was a starting pitcher Hoyer termed the Cubs' "white whale" (Kevin Gausman), a veteran starter who also has vast experience pitching out of the bullpen (Clay Holmes), a dynamic reliever who piles up the strikeouts (Ryan Zeferjahn), a southpaw that will factor into future rotation plans (Braxton Garrett) and a right-handed-hitting outfielder that fills a need for this current team (Tyrone Taylor).

#hoyer

The Los Angeles Dodgers have reportedly acquired left-handed starting pitcher Kris Bubic from the Kansas City Royals, per ESPN's Jeff Passan.
Bubic has been dealing with elbow and shoulder injuries this season and is currently on the 60-day IL. He hasn't pitched in the bigs since May 14.
The southpaw was an All-Star last season. Before getting hurt this year, Bubic had made nine starts. He tallied a 3-2 record with a 4.11 ERA, striking out 51 batters in 50.1 innings of work.
Bubic is in the final year of arbitration and will be a free agent at the end of the season if he isn't signed to an extension.
The 28-year-old will provide further depth to the Dodgers down the stretch of the season. He started a throwing program in late July and is expected to pitch again this season, barring any setbacks.

#season

After enjoying a wide range of two-start options last week, fantasy baseball managers will need to live with a more moderate list for the current scoring period. Still, there are four serviceable options on this list, depending on a manager's level of risk tolerance. On the hitting side, the Rays are the top source of short-term help, while the Phillies could have some great options for those in shallow leagues.
Sean Manaea, Mets, 15% (@ CLE, @ PIT): Since rejoining the rotation on June 13, Manaea has posted a 3.88 ERA, 1.25 WHIP and 43:13 K:BB ratio across nine starts. And his road hasn't been easy, as he has faced clubs that currently hold a playoff spot in seven of those nine outings. The southpaw has thrown six or more innings in three of his past four starts and should have a productive week against the Guardians and Pirates, who rank 27th and 20th, respectively, in OPS vs. lefties.
Ian Seymour, Rays, 40% (@ COL, @ SEA): Although the Rays are keeping him on a short leash, Seymour is showing strong skills (90:28 K:BB ratio). The southpaw's most recent start was a prime example, as he earned a win by following an opener and throwing 4.2 scoreless innings. Although an outing at Coors Field will be challenging, Seymour has pitched well enough to get the benefit of the doubt, especially when his second matchup is a favorable one against a Seattle squad that ranks 29th in OPS vs. lefties.
J.T. Ginn, Athletics, 34% (@ CIN, @ BOS): A breakout season for Ginn was briefly interrupted when he spent the past two weeks on the injured list while dealing with a blister on his right middle finger. The southpaw induces oodles of groundballs and has solid strikeout skills, which has allowed him to post a 3.47 ERA and 1.23 WHIP over 19 starts despite walking more batters than he should (4.1 BB/9 rate). He would rank slightly higher on this list if not for the unknown factor of how effective he will be in his return from injury.
Brandon Pfaadt, Diamondbacks, 29% (vs. SD, vs. LAD): Since altering his delivery and pitch mix, Pfaadt has finally become a reliable starter. The right-hander has logged a 1.85 ERA and 1.06 WHIP while showing outstanding control skills (4 BB) over six starts since rejoining the rotation on June 30.

#list #rays #options #manaea

CHICAGO — As the wind swirled and the flags flapped at Wrigley Field, Spencer Jones drilled a ball that could not be swayed by the breeze on Friday.
With a 108.7 mph, 418 foot rocket to right center, the left-handed hitter cleared the ivy with ease for the fourth home run of his young career. The solo shot, hit off Chicago Cubs southpaw Shota Imanaga, who has neutral splits, was also Jones' first longball against a left-handed pitcher.
"It was awesome to get a pitch to handle, and then obviously the result was cool," Jones, who hasn't gotten too many opportunities against lefties, said after the New York Yankees' 2-0 win. "I feel like there's been pick-your-spots and limited opportunities [vs. lefties], but just like any other pitcher, you gotta go up there and do what you do. I felt comfortable in the box today."
The rookie outfielder must have felt cozy at the plate in Saturday's 5-2 loss as well, because he hit his second homer off a lefty in as many days in the seventh inning. This time, Jones made the Cubs' David Peterson the victim of an opposite field, bases-empty blast that cut through the twisting Chicago air at 106 mph.
Jones has actually looked comfortable most days since his second major league call-up on June 5.

#Cubs #field #pitcher

CHICAGO — The Chicago White Sox have not been shy about their efforts to add starting pitching in the lead-up to the trade deadline at 6 p.m. ET Monday. The Sox are casting a wide net in their search for playoff-caliber rotation reinforcements, with the hope of getting back to the postseason for the first time since 2021.
The White Sox have been scouring the market in recent days, and sources tell Yahoo Sports that Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Shane Bieber and Orioles left-hander Trevor Rogers are two names on Chicago's radar. Bieber is a familiar face to the White Sox, as he faced them for seven seasons while a member of the Cleveland Guardians. This year, the Blue Jays' right-hander is 2-2 with a 5.74 ERA in seven starts.
Rogers, who is 6-7 with a 4.27 ERA in 20 starts this season, has come on strong over the past month and a half. The Orioles' southpaw has a 1.85 ERA with 41 strikeouts across his past seven starts. Both Bieber and Rogers will become free agents at the end of the 2026 season.
Chicago, like other upstart contenders around the sport, would love to add controllable starting pitching to their roster if they can. But the Sox also aren't afraid to go the rental route, depending on what the market presents over the next few days. Yahoo Sports reported on Monday that the White Sox were showing interest in starting pitchers who fit the window of the team's young core, with Los Angeles Angels starter Reid Detmers high on their list.
Chicago has also continued to show interest in New York Mets right-hander Clay Holmes. The Sox were one of several teams who had representatives at Holmes' rehab start on Tuesday. The Mets' right-hander, who has a player option for 2027, can become a free agent at the end of this season.

#right

Alan Jouban has trained several times with Daniel Rodriguez in the past, so he knows the danger he brings as an underdog vs. Uros Medic in Saturday's UFC Fight Night 283 headliner.
Longtime UFC desk ****** yst and veteran welterweight Jouban is quite compelled by Medic (13-3 MMA, 7-3 UFC) vs. Rodriguez (20-5 MMA, 10-4 UFC), who meet in their first octagon main event at Belgrade Arena in Serbia (Paramount+).
Both men bring three-fight winning streaks into the bout, where Medic is a sizeable betting favorite. "The Doctor" has a home-field advantage in Serbia and heavy hands that have proven capable of knocking out high-level fighters. Jouban understands why Medic is favored, but his history with Rodriguez, as well as studying his many fights, affords respect to the potential path to victory.
"D-Rod's got this thing, man – I was training with him when he was young, before he got into the UFC," Jouban told MMA Junkie. "I used to bring him in to spar with me, and I just always remember he has this follow-up left hand that buzzes you. You see it in his fights. He'll be losing a fight, he'll get knocked down and people get a little overzealous and go for the finish. He always had a natural ability – he's a southpaw, so a lot of people don't like to throw their power hand because it makes you put yourself more in danger and commit to the punch, whereas a check hook or something is a lot easier to stay away. Daniel has this natural ability to always finish a combination with his left hand, which is his power punch and his best punch, as well. It's natural. I've felt it. It buzzes you. He seems to get guys.
"That's what I'm going to be looking for in this fight with Uros Medic. He's a finisher, he smells blood, and he gets you out of there very quickly. Three-fight win streak, three knockouts for Uros Medic. If he hurts D-Rod, I expect to see this in the first round. I expect to see him hurt D-Rod. D-Rod's kind of got a history of getting hurt, and then hurting you after. What happens in that exchange? Did Uros do the film study? Is he able to control the emotions of not going for that finish that he's so good at? If D-Rod can find that left hand and change the course of the momentum of this matchup. That's going to be what I'm really looking at closely in this fight."

#jouban #three

The White Sox (55-51) waited until the bottom of the ninth to score any runs, and ironically ended up outhitting the Yankees (61-46), but they couldn't make the full comeback and fell just short, 3-2. Chase Meidroth saved the day from a 3-0 shutout, mashing a homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, but the bats were mostly quiet and couldn't provide run support for their pitching staff.
Giving the White Sox bullpen a bit of a reprieve from Monday night, Anthony Kay labored through 5 1/3 innings, looking sharp outside of his 29-pitch second inning. The lefty started the game on a high note by striking out the side in the top of the first — the first three of seven Ks during today's outing — but we can't say the same about the next frame.
Back-to-back singles from Jasson Domínguez and Trent Grisham led off the second frame and kicked off their three-run rally. Kay uncorked a wild pitch to move both runners into scoring position before Anthony Volpe lined a double off the top of the wall in right, scoring Domínguez. The southpaw worked around Jazz Chisholm Jr. with a strikeout, but Max Schuemann doubled to left to score another two runs to give the Yankees a 3-0 lead.
Kay was otherwise solid, and when a batter did reach base, he was able to work around it. The main issue, however, is that he received zero run support from the offense, which mustered only three hits while Kay was in the game. It helped that Kay gutted through five-plus innings, but without any run support, it hardly mattered.
Kay put Domínguez on for the second time to lead off the sixth, hitting his 20th batter of the season, and his 10th batter in his last nine starts. Though there was some weird communication between Tristan Peters and Braden Montgomery in right-center, Braden was able to snow cone the ball at the last second for the out.

#three #yankees #anthony