The Baseball Buffet for 6/16/2025

Issue #307

What follows is a new feature for 2025 at Now Taking the Field. The goal with The Baseball Buffet series is to provide the best daily dose of relevant baseball info in a smart-brevity format (mostly short bullets, getting to the point, with quick analysis/insights.) Think of it like what baseball fans of a certain age would look forward to in their morning newspaper’s sports section each day! Let me know what you think of each issue… I can be reached at [email protected].

⚾ Welcome! ⚾

The 81st day of the season had a full slate of Sunday games:

• CIN 8, DET 4 - Jahmai Jones and Wenceel Perez hit HR early for the Tigers, but the Reds scored six runs in the final two innings for the comeback victory. Elly De La Cruz went 3-5 with his 16th HR of the season, and fourth HR in four consecutive games.

• PIT 2, CHC 3 - Both teams scored two runs in the first inning, but then Mitch Keller (6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 K) and Colin Rea (6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) each settled in after that. The game remained tied at two through nine innings, and Chris Flexen blanked the Bucs in the top of the tenth. In the bottom of the tenth, with runners on second and third, David Bednar let up a single to Ian Happ that drove in the winning run.

• LAA 2, BAL 11 - Nolan Schanuel hit a HR in the first inning, but the Angels couldn’t get much else going on offense. Yusei Kikuchi struck out 10 in 5.2 innings, but he also allowed 7 hits and 5 runs (3 earned). The Orioles got 2-run homers from Ramón Urías and Jordan Westburg, and a grand slam by Gary Sánchez.

• TOR 4, PHI 11 - Zack Wheeler again pitched very well (6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K) and the Phillies tallied 18 hits including nine off José Berríos (4.2 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). Alec Bohm and Nick Castellanos each hit their 7th HR of the year.

• COL 10, ATL 1 - Grant Holmes struck out 15 in 6.1 innings… but loses the game? Huh? You read that right, as Holmes pitched well (6.1 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 15 K) but the Braves couldn’t get much going against Austin Gomber (5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER 1 BB, 4 K) in his 2025 debut. The game was tied 1-1 through six innings when the Rockies scored six in the 7th inning and another three in the 8th, mostly from small ball as the only HR came from Ryan McMahon.

• MIA 3, WAS 1 - Dane Myers hit a HR, but MacKenzie Gore otherwise pitched pretty well (6 IP, 8 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). The two runs allowed were enough though as four Marlins pitchers held the Nats to just six hits and one run.

• NYY 0, BOS 2 - Max Fried pitched well (7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 9 K), letting up a HR to Rafael Devers—apparently his last in a Red Sox uniform given the big trade news announced after the game. But those two runs allowed were all the Red Sox needed as Brayan Bello was excellent (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K) and Garrett Whitlock earned a five-out save, helping Boston sweep the series against New York.

• TBR 9, NYM 0 - Shane Baz was excellent (6.2 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 K) and three Rays relievers combined for a five-hit shutout. The Rays scored six runs off Griffin Canning in just 4.1 innings, and then Junior Caminero added a 3-run HR in the ninth, his 17th of the season.

• ATH 3, KCR 2 - Noah Cameron again pitched very well (5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), suggesting that his recent rough outing against the Yankees was just a speed bump in his excellent rookie season. Jeffrey Springs also did pretty well (6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K), and Austin Wynns hit a 2-run HR in the sixth inning to tie the game. With no outs in the top of the ninth, rookie Nick Kurtz hit a solo HR off Royals closer Carlos Estévez, and then Mason Miller struck out two for his 14th save of the season.

• MIN 1, HOU 2 - The Twins out hit the Astros 8-4, but were 0-8 with runners in scoring position. Their lone run came from a Brooks Lee HR in the third inning, a hit which extended his MLB-leading hitting streak to 15 games. Simeon Woods Richardson pitched well (5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K), but aside from the HR by Lee, so did Brandon Walter (6.2 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K). The Astros finally scored in the bottom of the ninth to force extras, and then Josh Hader held the Twins in check in the top of the tenth. In the bottom of the frame, with two outs Mauricio Dubon singled to center to drive in Jake Meyers who was on second as ghost-running Manfred Man.

• STL 2, MIL 3 - Christian Yelich hit his 14th HR of the season, but Miles Mikolas otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K). Quinn Priester was also solid (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 3 K), and although he let up two hits in the ninth, Trevor Megill struck out three to secure his 15th save.

• CHW 1, TEX 2 - Miguel Vargas hit his 10th HR for the White Sox, but newly acquired starter Aaron Civale let up a lot of baserunners in his first start for Chicago (5 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 4 K). The two runs the Rangers scored off him were enough as Kumar Rocker was excellent (5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) and Luke Jackson pitched a scoreless ninth to notch his 9th save.

• SDP 8, AZ 2 - Eugenio Suárez hit his 21st HR of the year, but Nick Pivetta otherwise pitched well (7 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K). The Padres meanwhile collected 13 hits, with Fernando Tatis Jr. going 4-5 with 2 doubles, and Jake Cronenworth and Elias Diaz each hitting a HR.

• CLE 0, SEA 6 - The Mariners jumped on Luis L. Ortiz in the second inning, including a grand slam by J.P. Crawford, his sixth HR of the year. Emerson Hancock pitched very well (7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) and two Seattle relievers combined for a four-hit shutout.

• SFG 4, LAD 5 - Shohei Ohtani went 3-3 to raise his average to .297, Tommy Edman hit his 10th HR of the year, and Andy Pages hit a 3-run HR in fifth. Those were the decisive runs it turned out, as Tanner Scott struck out three in the ninth for his 13th save.

Today’s Trivia Question

I recently asked about which active franchise has the all-time lowest winning percentage. The answer was the Marlins, just barely below the Rockies. The third worst are the San Diego Padres. But which team has the all-time lowest winning percentage amongst the original 16 AL and NL franchises, including for some teams their entire history going back to the 1800s?

Trivia answer is at the bottom of the newsletter.

Who’s on the move?

In this section I won’t list 26th-man moves, or every time a team shuttles relievers back and forth to AAA to keep a stock of fresh arms in the bullpen. I’ll focus on the biggest, more impactful demotions, promotions, and injury list changes (for a full list, see all the latest MLB transactions).

🤕 Placed on the IL

• MIN 3B Royce Lewis - 10-day IL (left hamstring strain)

• TEX SP Tyler Mahle - 15-day IL (right shoulder fatigue)

• COL SP Kyle Freeland - 15-day IL (low back stiffness)

📝 Signed as Free Agent

• Arizona has signed SP Anthony DeSclafani. He has pitched in the majors since 2023, but did pitch five AAA games at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Yankees) earlier this year. With Corbin Burnes out for the year, and several of the D-Backs’ other starters underperforming so far, this signing gives them some extra rotation depth and a solid long-relief arm as DeSclafani has thrown almost 1,000 major league innings and has a 4.20 ERA.

➡️ Traded

• In surprising and big news… the Boston Red Sox have traded star 3B/DH Rafael Devers to the San Francisco Giants for SP Kyle Harrison, SP/RP Jordan Hicks, and minor leaguers pitcher Jose Bello and outfielder James Tibbs III.
  
  For the Giants, Devers will presumably play at 3B until Matt Chapman comes back from the IL, and then take over at DH with Wilmer Flores splitting 1B with Dom Smith and, given Flores’ versatility, also getting playing some at the other infield spots. The Giants did have a surplus of starting pitching, so while losing Hicks and Harrison depletes their depth, they still have a rotation of Webb, Ray, Verlander, Roupp, and Birdsong.
  
  For the Red Sox, Devers has already had an interesting story arc this year. Unhappy with the idea of being the team’s DH after they signed Alex Bregman (a better defensive 3B), he started the season in a horrible slump at the plate. But then he showed signs of life, with some hot and cold streaks. But since April 26th he has posted a .316/.441/.603 slash line with 13 HR and 44 RBI in 46 games, which for the year gives him a .272/.401/.504 slash line with 15 HR and 18 doubles in 73 games. In fact, he was leading the Red Sox in HR and is by far their leader in RBI, so his bat will be missed to be sure. Although recently called-up prospects Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony are not off to good starts, perhaps having the DH spot opened up will give them more opportunities.
  
  The return for Devers is good though, as starting pitchers 23-year old Kyle Harrison and 28-year old Jordan Hicks will help bolster what has been an inconsistent rotation this year. Jose Bello is only 20 and pitching at the rookie-league level, so is a long-term play. James Tibbs on the other hand was the Giants 1st-round draft pick (13th overall) out of college last year, so at age 22 and playing A-level, could be an option for the Red Sox outfield in the nearer future.

League Leaders

It has been a dozen days since I’ve reported on the batting average leaderboard. During that time Aaron Judge has come back to earth bit, and Athletics rookie Jacob Wilson has surged a bit, such that he’s now only 11 points behind:

• .378 - NYY Aaron Judge

• .367 - ATH Jacob Wilson

• .336 - LAD Freddie Freeman

• .325 - HOU Jeremy Peña

• .324 - CLE José Ramírez

• .319 - TBR Jonathan Aranda

• .317 - LAD Will Smith

• .316 - TOR Alejandro Kirk

• .316 - SDP Manny Machado

• .313 - STL Brendan Donovan

• .311 - NYY Paul Goldschmidt

• .310 - BAL Ryan O’Hearn

On this day in baseball history…

Here is what stands out to me for this day in baseball history (for a longer list, see the feature at the Baseball Almanac or the Bullpen feature at Baseball-Reference.com):

📅 On June 16…

• 1938: The Browns wanted no part of Jimmie Foxx. As described at baseball-reference.com, “At Sportsman's Park, the St. Louis Browns walk Red Sox star Jimmie Foxx all six times he comes to bat. The Browns' decision to pitch carefully to Foxx does not prevent the Red Sox from winning the game, 12-8. By being walked six times in a nine-inning game, Foxx sets an American League record and matches the mark set by Walt Wilmot in the National League in 1891.”

• 1978: Tom Seaver threw a no-hitter. As described at baseball-reference.com, “Tom Seaver pitches the only no-hitter of his brilliant career. Seaver strikes out three and walks three as the Cincinnati Reds defeat the St. Louis Cardinals, 4-0, at Riverfront Stadium. Seaver had barely missed pitching no-hitters on three previous occasions, losing the bid each time in the 9th inning.”

• 1993: Ken Griffey Jr. hits his 100th HR. As described at baseball-reference.com, “Ken Griffey, Jr. of the Seattle Mariners hits his 100th career home run in Seattle's 6-1 victory over Kansas City to become the fourth-youngest to hit the century mark. Only Mel Ott, Eddie Mathews and Tony Conigliaro did it faster than the 23-year-old Griffey.”

• 1996: Broadcaster Mel Allen dies at age 83. As described at baseball-reference.com, “Legendary broadcaster Mel Allen dies at the age of 83. In 1939, Allen started doing play-by-play for both the New York Yankees and New York Giants, and later narrated the long-running television show, This Week in Baseball. In 1978, Allen received the Hall of Fame's Ford C. Frick Award for broadcasting excellence.” Allen’s beloved catch phrase was of course “How about that!”

• 2014: Tony Gwynn dies at age 54 from cancer. As described at baseball-reference.com, “Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn, winner of eight National League batting titles, passes away from cancer of the salivary gland at 54, likely a result of his long-time use of smokeless tobacco. He spent his entire 20-season major league career with the San Diego Padres and is the only player to have been a member of their two World Series teams, in 1984 and 1998.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys🎉

• Wally Joyner (1962) had a 16-year career as a 1B from 1986-2001, primarily with the Angels, Royals, and Padres. He was immediately popular as an Angels rookie in 1986, and came in second in the AL Rookie of the Year vote after he hit 22 HR with 100 RBI and a .290 average. His power numbers increased the following season when he hit 34 HR with 117 RBI, 100 runs, and a .285 average. But he never reached those statistical heights again, instead putting up seven seasons with 12-21 HR each and four with .300+ batting averages. Overall he had 204 HR, 1,106 RBI, a .289/.362/.440 slash line, and a 117 OPS+.

• Kerry Wood (1977) was the first round (4th overall) pick of the Chicago Cubs in the 1995 draft. In the minors he was overpowering, getting a lot of strikeouts and not letting up many hits—but that came with a high walk rate. He earned NL Rookie of the Year honors in 1998 after going 13-6 with a 3.40 ERA and 233 K in only 166.2 IP (but also 85 walks). He was only 20 years old that year, but was very impressive including a game against the Astros where he tied a major league record with 20 strikeouts. Unfortunately he then needed Tommy John surgery and so missed the 1999 season. By 2001 he was going strong again, and posted three consecutive seasons of 200+ K, including an NL-leading 266 in 2003. Wood’s aggressive pitching style led to frequent injuries (he was on the DL 14 times over his 14-year career.) For the 2007 season he converted to the bullpen, and served as a closer for the Cubs in 2008 and the Indians in 2009. A two-time All-Star, overall Wood had an 86-75 (.534) record, 3.67 ERA, 117 ERA+, and 1,582 K in 1,380 IP.

• Ron LeFlore (1948) had a 9-year major league career spanning from 1974-1982, mostly with the Detroit Tigers, with one year for the Expos and two with the White Sox. He was a major base-stealing threat, stealing 20+ bases every year, leading the AL with 68 in 1978 and the NL with 97 in 1980. He scored 100+ runs three times, including a league-leading 126 in 1978. Overall for his career LeFlore had 455 stolen bases with a .288/.342/.392 slash line, and a 104 OPS+. According to Wikipedia, “A movie and book were made about LeFlore's rise to the major leagues after being an inmate at the Jackson State Penitentiary. One in a Million: The Ron LeFlore Story was a made-for-television movie starring LeVar Burton that aired on CBS in 1978.”

Currently active players who were born on June 16 include CIN Will Benson, NYY Ian Hamilton, NYY Will Warren, and SDP Alek Jacob.

Today’s Matchups

A short slate of Monday games (7), as many teams are travelling or otherwise have the day off. Some games that jump out to me are:

• BOS vs. SEA is game one of a 3-game series between two teams that are right around .500. The Mariners are getting Logan Gilbert (2.37 ERA, 44 K in 30.1 IP) back from the IL (hasn’t pitched since April 25), while Boston will go with Lucas Giolito (5.45 ERA, 31 K in 39.2 IP). Adding intrigue, this is their first game after the blockbuster trade of Rafael Devers to the Giants.

• SDP vs. LAD is game one of four-game series between these two strong NL West teams. Dylan Cease (4.28 ERA, 96 K in 75.2 IP) was outstanding in his last outing, which was against the Dodgers on June 10, when he went 7 innings with 11 K and only let up 3 hits and 0 ER. But the big story here is that Shohei Ohtani apparently will serve as the opener for the Dodgers, going one or perhaps two innings before someone else (e.g., Ben Casparius, 2.86 ERA, 46 K in 44 IP) enters to provide bulk innings.

HR Watch

Predicting who might hit a HR on any given day is a challenge. But here are a few to consider based on opposing SP past performance:

• LAD Shohei Ohtani, 7-22 with 3 HR and a double vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• HOU Jose Altuve, 9-22 with 2 HR and 3 doubles vs. ATH JP Sears (if pitching, TBD)

Hits Watch

If you play MLB’s Beat the Streak mobile game, or otherwise bet on/parlay players to collect hits, I’ll try to provide some good options in this section. In addition to the HR Watch guys listed above, here are some others to consider based on opposing SP past performance:

• PHI Trea Turner, 13-37 (.351) with a HR and 2 doubles vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• PHI Alec Bohm, 10-27 (.370) with a triple and a double vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• LAD Freddie Freeman, 6-13 with a double vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• LAD Kiké Hernández, 6-14 with a HR and 2 doubles vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• SEA Randy Arozarena, 4-9 with a triple and a double vs. BOS Lucas Giolito

Who is streaking?

These are players on active hit streaks and who for this reason (if playing) might also be interesting picks to get a hit today:

• 15 - MIN Brooks Lee

• 9 - BAL Gunnar Henderson

• 8 - MIN Willi Castro

• 8 - TEX Marcus Semien

• 7 - TEX Josh Smith

• 7 - TOR Ernie Clement

• 7 - ATL Matt Olson

• 7 - MIL Jackson Chourio

• 7 - SFG Matt Chapman

Who might struggle today?

Betting against any given player to not get a hit is tough, as guys in the starting lineup get at least one hit in a game more often than not. That said, here are some guys who clearly have struggled against their opposing SP today:

• LAD Teoscar Hernández, 3-17 with 8 K vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• LAD Will Smith, 1-11 with 6 K vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• LAD Max Muncy, 1-11 with 5 K vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• SEA Donovan Solano, 1-11 with 6 K vs. BOS Lucas Giolito

• HOU Jake Meyers, 1-11 though only 1 K vs. ATH JP Sears (if pitching, TBD)

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾

Today’s Trivia Answer

The all-time lowest winning percentage amongst the original 16 AL and NL franchises is owned by the Philadelphia Phillies at .474. Dating back to 1883, they have 10,249 wins vs. 11,355 losses. The second lowest is the Baltimore Orioles (.475), which includes their time as the St. Louis Browns, and the third lowest is the Minnesota Twins (.482), which includes their time as the original Washington Senators.

Good Reads

Here I am providing one or more links to baseball articles I’ve enjoyed recently, whether by writers at MLB.com or elsewhere.

• 5 takeaways from the shocking Devers deal, by Will Leitch at MLB, 6/15/2025

• Major deals don't always wait for July, by Brian Murphy at MLB, 6/15/2025

See recent issues of The Baseball Buffet for more recent good reads!

Did you know? I wrote a 600+ page book with the same title as this newsletter/blog? Now Taking the Field: Baseball’s All-Time Dream Teams for All 30 Franchises was published in early 2019, by ACTA Sports. It is available at Amazon and most other major booksellers.

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