Recaps
[AP] Rodriguez strikes out 9 as Diamondbacks beat struggling Dodgers – Eduardo Rodriguez struck out nine in seven strong innings and the Arizona Diamondbacks clinched their first season series over the Los Angeles Dodgers since 2018 with a 4-2 victory Sunday. The Dodgers snapped a seven-game losing streak with a 2-1 win over Arizona in 10 innings Saturday. Rodriguez (11-4) shut them down most of the afternoon in the series finale, allowing two runs and five hits.Ketel Marte hit a two-run homer off
Justin Wrobleski (11-4) in the first inning and Kevin Ginkel worked a perfect ninth for his first save this year, clinching Arizona’s 7-6 win in the season series. The NL West-leading Dodgers have lost three consecutive series for the first time since Aug. 29 to Sept. 7, 2025.
[Dbacks.com] E-Rod’s 115-pitch gem helps D-backs secure season series vs. LA for 1st time since ’18 – There’s more than a month and a half until the playoffs begin, but if the D-backs needed a Game 1 starter, it would almost surely be Eduardo Rodriguez. The 2026 All-Star was again in top form Sunday, stymieing the star-studded Dodgers lineup for the fourth time this season. He yielded just two runs across seven frames and turned in a season-high nine punchouts, throwing 115 pitches, his most in a start since Sept. 9, 2019, as a member of the Red Sox. But this isn’t just any lineup. It’s the Dodgers, who boast the second-highest team OPS (.766) in baseball. Rodriguez gave up eight runs (six earned) against the club in two starts last year, but has completely flipped the script on them in 2026, posting a 1.88 ERA across his four outings.
Team news
[Arizona Sports] Diamondbacks win season series vs. Dodgers for 1st time since 2018 – The series was tense. The D-backs outscored the Dodgers 9-7 over three games, winning the first on a walk-off home run from rookie Ryan Waldschmidt and losing the second in extra innings. It was played in front of a packed house for all three games at Chase Field, a split crowd that created a high-stakes atmosphere. “We always play the Dodgers well,” Ketel Marte said via Spanish interpreter. “It’s a tough game. I like that type of adrenaline. We are doing the little things well, this is going to help us out.” In that environment, Arizona’s starting pitchers Merrill Kelly, Brandon Pfaadt and Rodriguez held the Dodgers to three runs over 19.2 innings, and Rodriguez put forth a Herculean effort in the finale.
[AZ Central] Diamondbacks to sign veteran starting pitcher, sources say – The Diamondbacks have agreed to sign veteran right-hander Zack Littell, a source said, in a move that gives them additional rotation depth less than a week after they were unable to land another starting pitcher ahead of the trade deadline. Littell, 30, has a 4.97 ERA in 112 1/3 innings this season for the Washington Nationals. He split time in the rotation and logged bulk innings in relief. He could end up in a similar role with the Diamondbacks. Littell was designated for assignment by the Nationals last week and cleared waivers, ostensibly because he had a $4 million buyout on a 2027 mutual option, thus becoming a free agent. The Diamondbacks will be on the hook only for a prorated portion of the league minimum.
[SI] Torey Lovullo Sends a Message to D-backs Fans After Beating Dodgers – “I want to say something about our fans. They’ve been present, and they’ve been posting up, and it’s been great. This crowd here [Sunday] was very engaged. I always judge the seventh inning stretch [chants] ‘D-backs’ or ‘Dodgers.’ And I think we got them today. I heard more D-backs over Dodgers. So they brought it. I love our fans. We need them. Keep coming.” The energy has been palpable all series, reaching a particularly high volume in game one, thanks to Corbin Carroll’s home run-robbing catch and Ryan Waldschmidt’s eventual walk-off home run. Lovullo said he’s felt the fan support, even when playing in opposing cities. “Even on the road; we go on the road, and there’s a large crowd behind our dugout. Every single city we go into. I haven’t necessarily seen that a lot over the ten years that I’ve been here. I want to say thanks to those fans that come out and rock it for us on the road, too.”
[Arizona Sports] Diamondbacks keep winning while best players are slumping – Carroll’s batting stance looks a bit different, as the perennial workhorse continues to try putting himself in better hitting position.He moved his hands down in an effort to be more streamlined to the baseball.“Just trying to fix my direction, basically,” Carroll said. “That’s what feels good right now, but I’m just trying to make sure that my hands don’t kind of get buried behind me and keep them showing to the pitcher a little bit more. I’d say just working and trying to find the points of emphasis where when I go in the game, it keeps it simple,” he added. “Hopefully things take off from there. … I would say there’s been some positive signs in the games recently, just in terms of hitting a few more balls on a line. Just gotta keep working.”
And, elsewhere…
[Yahoo] Craig Kimbrel signing with 12th MLB team moves veteran reliever closer to history – Once Kimbrel does get on the mound in Kansas City, he will then have pitched for more organizations than all but five pitchers in MLB history. Edwin Jackson and Rich Hill both toed the mound for 14 teams each, while Octavio Dotel and Roosevelt Davis pitched for 13 teams apiece. Kimbrel, a nine-time All-Star, turned 38 back in May and has made 33 Major League appearances in relief this season for the Mets and Rays.
[MLB] How the hot springs in Arkansas became the original Spring Training destination – Although Spring Training has come to be heavily associated with its permanent homes of Florida and Arizona, where this tradition formally began may surprise you. To call Albert Goodwill Spalding an influential baseball figure would be an understatement. As a player, he was an early adopter of the baseball glove and a co-organizer of the NL itself. Within a decade, he was the president of the Chicago White Stockings (later the Cubs), and in that role he stumbled upon another innovation. Ahead of the 1886 season, Spalding decided to find a more suitable preseason training site for his team. He landed, ultimately, on Arkansas.
The Furious (2025)
- Rating: B
- Dir: Kenji Tanigaki
- Star: Miao Xie, Joe Taslim, Yang Enyou, Joey Iwanaga
Yeah, believe the hype. Okay, much of it. This is not quite as good as The Raid: Redemption. But the number of films deserving even of a credible comparison there are few. Simply being in the conversation is high praise, reserved for the very top tier of action cinema. Might be limited to not many more than The Night Comes for Us – and it’s hardly a coincidence both those, like this, starred Taslim. He may be the best, least-known action actor in the world. Make no mistake though: it’s a banger, which likely provoked more audible reactions from Chris and myself than any other film this year. Mostly of the “Oh, shit!” variety – and in a good way at that.
