If you didn’t watch baseball this weekend, we won’t judge, but you missed out on a lot of action.
Here are the key takeaways from this weekend’s series.
Most ball connoisseurs will tell you that the best team in MLB is the Braves or the Dodgers.
Well, this weekend, Los Angeles made that debate a little less interesting by beating Atlanta at Dodger Stadium. The Braves held position on Friday, but were defeated in their last two games and suddenly found themselves 2.5 games behind Philadelphia in the NL East.
Both the Dodgers and Braves have comically loaded offensive units, but the difference in starting pitching is stark. This weekend, Los Angeles’ starters – Gavin Stone, Tyler Glasnow and James Paxton – outperformed the Atlanta trio of Charlie Morton, Bryce Elder and Max Fried. What’s more, this was the first time since Spencer Strider went down for the rest of the season with a torn UCL that you could actually see how the loss of the mustachioed flamethrower will impact Atlanta in the postseason.
Morton is phenomenal for a 40-year-old player, but he is far from a star at this point in his career. Elder showed last fall that with his current pitching array, he is not capable of starting a playoff game. And Fried, who has been one of the game’s most consistent pitchers over the past half-decade, hasn’t looked like himself this season. Reynaldo López and Chris Sale, Atlanta’s two postseason acquisitions, have done incredibly well so far, but this Strider-less rotation is simply worse than Los Angeles’ (not to mention Philly’s). It’s also worth noting that the Dodgers are missing more innings now, with Walker Buehler, Bobby Miller, Tony Gonsolin, Dustin May and Clayton Kershaw all on the shelf due to injuries.
Trea Turner injured in Phils’ win over Giants
The first-place Phillies, who have won 16 of their last 19 games, won all three home games against San Francisco over the weekend. But it wasn’t all peaches, rainbows and butterflies at Citizens Bank Park: Shortstop Trea Turner strained his left hamstring on Friday and will be sidelined for about six weeks. Turner has been the club’s second-best offensive force so far this season, an encouraging development after the disastrous start to his Phillies tenure a year ago. His injury will force utilityman Edmundo Sosa into action as an everyday shortstop for now. Second baseman Bryson Stott has appeared at shortstop and played there during Philadelphia’s deep 2022 run, but captain Rob Thomson said he plans to keep Stott in the cornerstone most of the time.
The struggling Blue Jays head to Philadelphia this week, setting up the joyful Phils for another likely series win. But a soft starting schedule, dominant starting pitching and Alec Bohm’s offensive breakthrough helped overshadow slow starts from some Philadelphia stalwarts. Turner’s extended absence means veterans like JT Realmuto, Kyle Schwarber and especially the scrappy Nick Castellanos will need to pick up the slack. For the first time in more than half a decade, the Braves look somewhat vulnerable at the top of the NL East, and the division may be Philly’s, but the climb has become more difficult with Turner recovering.
Orioles allow just a single run in Reds dominance
A week ago, there was unrest in Birdland. Not with the lineup — Baltimore’s offense was, and still is, the disintegration of baseballs — but on the pitching side. The O’s team was buried under a mountain of questions. Who would step into the bullpen after closer Craig Kimbrel had two saves in three days? How would Kyle Bradish and John Means, two of Baltimore’s best starters when healthy, be doing in their first games back from serious injuries? Would the O’s run prevention suffer with second-year right-hander Grayson Rodriguez hitting the IL?
What a difference a weekend in Cincinnati, Ohio can make. Through 27 innings this weekend, Baltimore pitchers allowed exactly one run. The incumbents did not allow any. Cole Irvin continued his magnificent early season run on Friday; only one Red (Elly De La Cruz) reached base in 6⅓ strong frames from Irvin. So Means, who hasn’t been fully healthy in a long time since late 2021, looked sensational in his season debut on Saturday. The left-hander went eight-for-seven scoreless, allowing just three Reds to reach base.
Dean Kremer finished the sweep on Sunday, surrendering just one hit and one walk in six scoreless runs. And the bullpen — which this writer referred to as “exposed and undermanned” a week ago — was perfect, except for Kimbrel’s rough outing on Saturday. Baltimore’s pitching, which many prognosticators considered the team’s weak point, now looks incredibly robust. Sure, the regular season is long and fraught with injuries, but a potential October rotation led by Corbin Burns, Rodriguez and Bradish (who looked solid in his return on Thursday against the Yankees) and supported by Means, Kremer and Irvin could be quite impactful in autumn.
Astros fail to start, abandon series against Seattle
Friday night at Minute Maid Park felt like old times. Houston hit Seattle’s bullpen for four spots in the seventh inning and took a 5-3 lead. But these Astros, who are now seven games behind the Mariners in the AL West, are 10 games under .500 for a reason. Seattle’s scrappy pitcher Logan Gilbert struck out Jose Altuve, Yordan Álvarez, Alex Bregman and Co. on Saturday before a go-ahead run by Cal Raleigh, Josh Hader’s ninth-inning blast gave the Mariners the series on Sunday.
The Mariners offense has some issues — Josh Rojas has been their best hitter by a mile — but this pitching staff is so, so good. Seattle heads to Minnesota this week to face the Twins, winners of 12 straight games before Sunday. Meanwhile, Houston is headed to the Bronx for a showdown against the Yankees. A sweep at the hands of their longtime rivals could be a true death sentence for the Astros, no matter how early in the season it is.
Arráez delivers in his Padres debut
After a night trade that sent Luis Arráez from Miami to San Diego on Friday, the high-average wizard struck out four times in his debut game with the Padres on Saturday. His arrival, along with the suddenly super-hot Jurickson Profar, makes San Diego’s lineup even deeper.
The Padres still have some questions: Knuckleballer Matt Waldron was benched in a loss on Sunday. This week, San Diego heads to Chicago for a fascinating matchup against the Cubs.
Other things to know:
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The Cubs and Brewers were only supposed to play a 99-game series in the NL Central. Managing his former club for the first time after a shocking move to Chicago over the winter, Craig Counsell guided the Cubs to a well-deserved series victory over their division foes.
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Minnesota’s 12-game winning streak was snapped by the Red Sox on Sunday, but the Twins’ hot streak has moved them back into the thick of the AL Central.
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The Rangers recovered from a poor offensive performance on Friday to defeat the Royals on Saturday before winning the series on Sunday. The Texas pitching staff has performed admirably while waiting for Max Scherzer and Jacob deGrom to come off the IL this summer.
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The Yankees beat the Tigers behind 9⅔ scoreless frames from their bullpen and a double from Juan Soto on Sunday.
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The Rays’ radical, fluorescent City Connect uniforms and signs of life from brawler Randy Arozarena led them to a sweep against the upside-down Mets.
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Pittsburgh’s offense stinks now, but they won a series anyway because the Rockies aren’t good either. Pirates rookie phenom Jared Jones was masterful once again in Saturday’s 1-0 victory.
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It’s officially panic time in Toronto; the Jays lost a series in D.C. to the pesky Nationals despite taking an early 5-1 lead on Sunday. Toronto pitcher Alek Manoah earned the leadoff lead in his first MLB start of the season.
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The playful Athletics reached .500 on Saturday with a 20-run performance, but were unable to finish the sweep against Miami.
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Cleveland talisman José Ramirez hit a home run after a 10-pitch at-bat Sunday to push the Guardians past the Angels. Unfortunately, the hot guards had to place starting catalyst Steven Kwan on the IL due to a hamstring issue.
