Good
morning.
- Mariners catcher Cal Raleigh hit home runs number 55 and 56 last night. That passes Mickey Mantle for the most home runs ever in a season by a switch hitter and ties Ken Griffey Jr. for the Mariners’ team record.
- Dayn Perry looks at how the Mariners have won (now) ten in a row to catapult to first place in the American League West.
- Ken Rosenthal has his notes column, which includes how the Mariners turned their season around (The Athletic sub. req.) as well as bits on Bruce Bochy, Roki Sasaki, Kyle Schwarber and others.
- Dayn Perry examines the possibility of Schwarber re-signing with the Phillies.
- Speaking of Schwarber, the Phillies became the first team to clinch their division title. It’s Philadelphia’s second-straight.
- Jake Mintz explains how Phillies left-hander Christopher Sánchez went from back-of-the-rotation depth to a pitching ace.
- Jesse Rogers polls MLB executives on their playoff favorites.
- Ben Clemens tries to explain FanGraphs’ famous “playoff odds.”
- Will Leitch has eight playoff teams who haven’t won a World Series this century with a playoff series they’d like to forget.
- Bradford Doolittle has the biggest success and the biggest failure for all 30 teams.
- Jay Jaffe notes that pitching issues have the Mets barely hanging on.
- On the other hand, Anthony DiComo explains why the Mets could be a dangerous team in October. They just beat up on the Padres.
- Mike Petriello writes that the Dodgers poor bullpen could be countered by their excellent starting rotation.
- Sonja Chen outlines how Shohei Ohtani could be used as a pitcher in the playoffs.
- R.J. Anderson looks at how the Red Sox and Giants have been doing since the Rafael Devers trade.
- MLB has cancelled next year’s London Series between the Yankees and Blue Jays, citing scheduling conflicts.
- Davy Andrews finds a correlation between Blue Jays pitcher Kevin Gausman’s performance and his facial hair, as if he’s some modern day Samson.
- Blue Jays shortstop Bo Bichette is out for the rest of the regular season with a sprained left knee. They hope that he can play in the postseason.
- A look at the upcoming free agency of Bichette.
- Astros outfielder Yordan Alvarez is probably out for the rest of the season with an ankle sprain.
- Dan Szymborski looks at what teams have been hurt the most from injuries.
- Matt Snyder looks at which non-contending teams can possibly contend in 2026.
- Fred Zinkie reviews the Angels’ season and previews what they need to do over the winter.
- Jordan Schusterman explains how Pirates ace Paul Skenes’ “cerebral approach” makes him an even better pitcher.
- Davy Andrews details how the same Brewers defense helps Freddy Peralta and hurts Brandon Woodruff.
- Zack Meisel shares with you the wit and wisdom of Guardians third baseman José Ramírez. (The Athletic sub. req.)
- Jared Greenspan and Jason Foster predict the Gold Glove winners in each league.
- Thomas Harrington argues that Diamondbacks shortstop Geraldo Perdomo should be a candidate for National League MVP.
- Katia Lindor, the wife of Mets shortstop Francisco Lindor, played the Star Spangled on the violin before the Mets game on Tuesday.
- Kamila Hinkson interviews Alex Hugo about a progress report for the Women’s Professional Baseball League. (The Athletic sub. req.)
- Bob Nightengale looks at how the family of the late Cardinals pitcher Darryl Kile carries on the fight against heart disease more than decades after his death.
- And finally, actor Robert Redford died yesterday at the age of 89. Redford briefly attended the University of Colorado on a baseball scholarship, but his real connection to the sport was the film The Natural. Thomas Harrington has more.
- And Rob Peterson explains why The Natural still resonates, over 40 years later. (The Athletic sub. req.)
