The Baseball Buffet for 7/12/2025

Issue #332

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 107th day of the season had a full slate of Friday games:

• CLE 4, CHW 2 (Gm1 ) - Luis Robert Jr. had a 2-run HR in the second inning, but that was the only hit that Logan Allen allowed over six innings (6 IP, 1 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K). Three Cleveland relievers pitched scoreless innings, including Emmanuel Clase who earned his 20th save on the year. On offense the Guardians only had five hits, but three were HR by Daniel Schneemann, Angel Martinez, and Carlos Santana.

• CLE 4, CHW 5 (Gm 2) - José Ramírez hit a 2-run HR in the third inning, his 18th of the year. But White Sox starter Jonathan Cannon otherwise pitched fairly well (5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K), and Lenyn Sosa hit two HR in the first five innings, which gave Chicago the lead at that point. The game ended up tied 4-4 after nine, making for an even longer double-header day than planned. Neither team scored in the tenth, and White Sox reliever Mike Vasil pitched a third scoreless inning keeping the Guardians off the board in the 11th. In the bottom of the frame, with one out and a runner on third, Mike Tauchman singled on a soft ground ball to short and Colson Montgomery scored for the win.

• MIA 2, BAL 5 - Edwin Cabrera struck out 6 in 4 innings, but he also allowed 8 hits and 4 runs. Baltimore had 12 hits overall, with Jordan Westburg going 3-4 with 3 runs, and Ramon Laureano was 3-4 with a double and 2 RBI. Dean Kremer pitched well (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), and the Marlins only scored two runs late with a HR by Connor Norby.

• CHC 0, NYY 11 - Carlos Rodón pitched a great game (8 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), and Scott Effross pitched the ninth to complete the shutout. The other star of this game was Cody Bellinger, who came into the game on an MLB-leading 15-game hitting streak, and proceeded to go 3-5 with 3 HR and 6 RBI. The Yankees tallied 15 hits overall, with Paul Goldschmidt going 3-5 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI.

• COL 3, CIN 2 - The Reds out hit the Rockies 8-6, but they were 0-11 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11 runners on base. Ryan McMahon hit a 2-run HR for Colorado, but Cincinnati rookie Chase Burns otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 10 K). Germán Márquez had a good game (6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 8 K) and Victor Vodnik struck out three in the ninth for his second save on the year.

• SEA 12, DET 3 - Tarik Skubal wasn’t as good as he usually is (5 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K), including giving up a 2-run HR to Julio Rodriguez. But the majority of the damage done by Seattle came later, including seven runs scored in the top of the ninth. Cal Raleigh continued his incredible 2025 season by hitting a HR in both the 8th and 9th innings, with the latter being a grand slam.

• TBR 4, BOS 5 - The Red Sox lineup is looking a bit different now, with DH Masataka Yoshida in his second game of the year, and 3B Alex Bregman making his first appearance since May 23rd (they both were 1-4 with a double). The Rays scored four runs early and had a 4-3 lead with their closer Pete Fairbanks on the mound in the ninth. But he walked Roman Anthony and then let up a game-winning 2-run HR to Ceddanne Rafaela, his 13th on the season.

• WAS 3, MIL 8 - DL Hall pitched the first three innings, and then Quinn Priester pitched well for the other six (6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K). Milwaukee got to Nationals starter Mitchell Parker by scoring six runs in the third inning, including a 2-run HR by Christian Yelich, his 19th on the year.

• PIT 1, MIN 2 - Both starters only pitched five innings apiece, but they did well: Joe Ryan (5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) and Paul Skenes (5 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K). The difference in the game was a 2-run HR by Twins DH Trevor Larnach in the fourth inning. Minnesota used five relievers, including closer Jhoan Duran who struck out two in the ninth for his 15th save.

• NYM 8, KCR 3 - The Royals out hit the Mets 10-8, but they were 0-8 with runners in scoring position. Kodai Senga did well in a short start, his first in a month due to time on the IL (4 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K). Michael Wacha also did well (5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K), but the Mets scored seven runs in the final two innings, including Mark Vientos hitting a bases-clearing double in the 8th, and Francisco Lindor and Juan Soto hitting back-to-back HR in the ninth.

• TEX 7, HOU 3 - The Rangers got to Lance McCullers Jr. (3 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 5 K), including Adolis García hitting his 12th of the year. Texas tallied 13 hits overall, with Wyatt Langford going 4-5 with a HR, a SB, and 2 RBI, and Corey Seager going 2-3 with 2 walks and 2 runs scored.

• ATL 6, STL 5 - All of the runs scored in this one occurred in the first three innings, with both starting pitchers allowing plenty of hits: Grant Holmes (3 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 K) and Matthew Liberatore (3 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 0 K). Alec Burleson was 2-4 with a walk and 2 doubles for the Cardinals, while the Braves’ standouts were Sean Murphy who was 3-5 with 2 HR and Ronald Acuña Jr. who was 3-5 with 2 doubles.

• AZ 5, LAA 6 - Ryan Nelson let up four runs in the first inning, including HR by Zach Neto and Yoán Moncada. But then Tyler Anderson allowed four runs in the top of the second, including a HR to Randal Grichuk, his first of two homers on the day. Each team scored again later making it a 5-5 tie going into the ninth. Kenley Jansen kept the D-Backs off the board in the top of the ninth, and then in the bottom of the frame, with runners on first and second, the Angels’ Travis d’Arnaud singled to left to drive in Logan O’Hoppe for the game-winner.

• PHI 2, SDP 4 - Ryan Berget struck out 7 in 4.2 innings, but also allowed solo homers to Nick Castellanos and Kyle Schwarber, his 30th of the year. Manny Machado hit his 17th HR, and five Padres relievers held the Phillies scoreless, including Robert Suarez pitching the ninth for his MLB-leading 28th save.

• TOR 7, ATH 6 - Max Scherzer had been pitching well (6 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), and was staked to a 7-0 lead, but then allowed homers to Nick Kurtz and Tyler Soderstrom in the sixth inning. Toronto’s closer Jeff Hoffman struggled in the ninth (1 IP, 3 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K), including giving up a solo HR to Max Muncy, but the Athletics come back fell short.

• LAD 7, SFG 8 - Shohei Ohtani hit his 32nd HR of the year in the third inning, but the Giants built up an 8-2 lead through five innings, powered by homers from Willy Adames and Dominic Smith, and a two-RBI triple by Jung Hoo Lee. The Dodgers made a comeback, scoring five runs in the sixth and seventh innings, including a 2-run HR by Michael Conforto. But it wasn’t enough as the Giants held on and Camilo Doval secured his 15th save.

I plan to start including the current standings in some form here, but until then… here is a link to the official standings at MLB.com.

Today’s Trivia Question

Exactly when the All-Star game occurs each year is not entirely consistent. But with two more HR last night, Cal Raleigh now has 38, and that set a new American League record for the most HR before the All-Star break. Which two AL players had the previous record of 37? Bonus points if you can also name the NL player with the overall record of 39.

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).

➕ Sent on a Rehab Assignment

• PIT RP Ryan Borucki

• MIL CF Blake Perkins

🤕 Placed on the IL

• NYM LF Jesse Winker - 10-day IL (back inflammation)

• CHW 1B Tim Elko - 10-day IL (right knee sprain)

• HOU CF Jake Meyers - 10-day IL (right calf strain)

• TBR 2B Brandon Lowe - 10-day IL (left oblique tightness)

• AZ RP Jalen Beeks - 15-day IL (lower back inflammation)

🚼 Placed on the Paternity List

• MIN RP Carlos Vargas

• MIL RP Aaron Ashby

MLB Debut Yesterday

Here I’ll try to keep up with players who just made their MLB debut the day before!

• SS HOU Brice Matthews - The 23-year old played 2B yesterday, batted eighth, and went 0-4 with three strikeouts. He was the first-round (28th overall) draft pick by the Astros in 2023. Before the call-up he was doing well at AAA Sugar Land, with 10 HR, 25 SB, and a .283/.400/.476 slash line in 73 games.

League Leaders

Paul Skenes’ ERA increased just enough yesterday that at this point we no longer having any qualified pitchers with an ERA below 2.00:

• 2.01 - PIT Paul Skenes

• 2.17 - PHI Zack Wheeler

• 2.21 - HOU Hunter Brown

• 2.23 - DET Tarik Skubal

• 2.27 - NYY Max Fried

• 2.29 - TEX Jacob deGrom

• 2.39 - BOS Garrett Crochet

• 2.48 - KCR Kris Bubic

• 2.52 - CHC Matthew Boyd

• 2.59 - PHI Cristopher Sánchez

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 July 12…

• 1900: Noodles Hahn throws a no-hitter. As described by baseball-reference.com, “Frank "Noodles" Hahn of Cincinnati twirls a 4-0 no-hitter over Philadelphia. The Reds lefty gives up five walks to the visiting Quakers who are playing without Nap Lajoie. Hahn strikes out seven, including the first two batters in the 9th. The last batter, Roy Thomas, is thrown out on his two-strike bunt. Philadelphia's Bill Bernhard allows seven hits, including a homer by Sam Crawford in the 7th.”

• 1921: Babe Ruth sets a new record… with 137 HR. Babe Ruth hit his 137th career home run, passing 19th century star Roger Connor's record of 136.

• 1951: Allie Reynolds throws a no-hitter. As described by baseball-reference.com, “At Cleveland, Allie Reynolds of the New York Yankees blanks Cleveland, 1-0, for the first of his two no-hitters this season. Gene Woodling's 7th-inning homer off loser Bob Feller is the difference in the 1-0 game. The Chief's no-hitter is the first by a Yankee since Monte Pearson in 1928. New York takes the nitecap behind Vic Raschi as Joe DiMaggio cinches it with a three-run homer off Chuck Stobbs.”

• 1979: The White Sox forfeit over Disco Demolition Night. As described by baseball-reference.com, “After a delay of an hour and 16 minutes, the White Sox are forced to forfeit the second game of twi-night doubleheader against the Tigers when over 5,000 fans refuse to leave the field during a Disco Demolition Night promotion gone awry. Mike Veeck's promotion involves admitting fans for 98 cents with a disco record, collecting the vinyl and then literally blowing up the LPs and 45s in center field.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys🎉

• Ron Fairly (1938) had a 21-year career as a 1B and LF, spanning from 1958-1978, and spent primarily with the Dodgers and Expos. A 2-time All-Star, Fairly had modest power, with 14 seasons with 10+ HR, but with 19 as his career high. Overall he had 215 HR with a .266 average, but because he walked a fair amount he had a more impressive career .360 OBP. After his playing career, Fairly had a lengthy career as a television color commentator from 1979 to 2006 for the California Angels, San Francisco Giants and the Seattle Mariners.

• Mario Soto (1956) had a 12-year career entirely with the Reds and spanning from 1977-1988. Throwing primarily two pitches, a good fastball and a circle change, Soto developed into a high-strikeout pitcher, with three seasons of 200+ K. An All-Star each year from 1982-1984, he came in second in the NL Cy Young voting in 1983 after posting a 17-13 record, with 242 K, and a 2.70 ERA. Overall he had a 100-92 record, 3.47 ERA, and 108 ERA+. Soto was inducted into the Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame and Museum in 2001, and he has worked with the team as a pitching coach.

• Howie Kendrick (1983) had a 15-year major league career, primarily with the Angels and Nationals. He primarily played 2B, but saw some action at 1B and LF also. He was a high-average hitter, with modest power and speed, with a high of 18 HR in 2011 (his one All-Star campaign) and 14 SB in four different seasons. Overall, Kendrick had 127 HR, 126 SB, a .294/.337/.430 slash line, and a 109 OPS+.

Currently active players who were born on July 12 include NYY Austin Wells, WAS Zach Brzykcy, MIN Bailey Ober, and TOR Nathan Lukes.

Today’s Matchups

A full slate of Saturday games (15), so we have lots of possibilities. Some games that jump out to me are:

• CHC vs. NYY is game two in this series between good teams, and with pitchers having good seasons in Matthew Boyd (2.52 ERA, 96 K in 103.2 IP) and Max Fried (2.27 ERA, 111 K in 119 IP).

• SEA vs. DET, like yesterday, is another nice pitching matchup between these two teams, with George Kirby (4.22 ERA, 50 K in 49 IP) taking on Casey Mize (2.63 ERA, 73 K in 85.2 IP).

• LAD vs. SFG features Shohei Ohtani starting again, though I’m not sure how many innings he might be expected to throw. The Giants will go with Landen Roupp (3.39 ERA, 8 1K in 90.1 IP), who has done well in his last four starts.

• TEX vs. HOU is an AL West battle with two aces in Jacob deGrom (2.29 ERA, 105 K in 106.1 IP) and Framber Valdez (2.90 ERA, 115 K in 115 IP).

Also on the hill today are BOS Garrett Crochet, MIL Brandon Woodruff, PHI Zack Wheeler, AZ Zac Gallen, and TOR Kevin Gausman.

And also of note, the MLB Futures Game is today, at 4pm ET. This exhibition features 50 of the best prospects in baseball. It is only seven innings long, with potential for one more inning if a tie.

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:

• ATL Marcell Ozuna, 9-15 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. STL Erick Fedde

• ATL Ronald Acuña Jr., 5-17 with 2 HR and a double vs. STL Erick Fedde

• SFG Matt Chapman, only 4-18 but with 2 HR and a double vs. LAD Shohei Ohtani

• PHI Bryce Harper, 4-15 with 2 HR vs. SDP Yu Darvish

• PHI Kyle Schwarber, 5-15 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. SDP Yu Darvish

• PHI Trea Turner, 7-23 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. SDP Yu Darvish

• SEA Jorge Polanco, 5-14 with 2 HR and a double vs. DET Casey Mize

• TEX Jonah Heim, 6-21 with 2 HR and a double vs. HOU Framber Valdez

• HOU Victor Caratini, 6-17 with 2 HR and a double vs. TEX Jacob deGrom

• CHC Justin Turner, 9-25 with 2 HR and a double vs. NYY Max Fried

• CHC Ian Happ, small sample but is 5-9 with 2 HR and a double vs. NYY Max Fried

• DET Jake Rogers, small sample but is 3-5 with 2 HR and a double vs. SEA George Kirby

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:

• ATL Michael Harris II, small sample but is 5-7 with a double vs. STL Erick Fedde

• BOS Alex Bregman, small sample but is 5-9 with a HR and a double vs. TBR Shane Baz

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:

• 16 - NYY Cody Bellinger

• 15 - TBR Chandler Simpson

• 14 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 12 - SEA J.P. Crawford

• 9 - MIL Jackson Chourio

• 8 - BOS Ceddanne Rafaela

• 8 - NYY Jazz Chisholm Jr.

• 8 - CLE Angel Martinez

• 7 - BOS Roman Anthony

• 7 - HOU Christian Walker

• 7 - TBR Jonathan Aranda

• 7 - BAL Jordan Westburg

• 7 - TOR Bo Bichette

• 7 - PHI Kyle Schwarber

• 7 - TEX Adolis Garcia

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:

• WAS Josh Bell, 4-29 with 9 K, though one hit was a HR vs. MIL Brandon Woodruff

• SDP Jake Cronenworth, 2-16 with 6 K vs. PHI Zack Wheeler

• SDP Elias Díaz, small sample but is 0-9 with 3 K vs. PHI Zack Wheeler

• DET Javier Báez, 1-11 with 3 K though the hit was a HR vs. SEA George Kirby

• BOS Jarren Duran, 1-11 with 3 K vs. TBR Shane Baz

• TEX Jake Burger, 2-14 with 6 K vs. HOU Framber Valdez

• PHI Alec Bohm, 2-14 with a 5 K vs. SDP Yu Darvish

• PHI Brandon Marsh, 1-9 with 5 K vs. SDP Yu Darvish

• HOU Christian Walker 0-10 with 4 K vs. TEX Jacob deGrom

• NYM Juan Soto, 1-10 though only 1 K vs. KCR Michael Lorenzen

• CHC John Berti, 2-14 with 4 K vs. NYY Max Fried

• CHC Seiya Suzuki, small sample but is 0-9 with 5 K vs. NYY Max Fried

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾

Today’s Trivia Answer

Cal Raleigh’s 38 HR topped the previous AL record for the most HR before the All-Star break, held by Chris Davis in 2013 and Reggie Jackson in 1969. The NL and overall MLB record is 39, by Barry Bonds in 2001.

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.

• Team-by-team breakdown of every player headed to Futures Game, by Sam Dykstra, Jonathan Mayo, and Jim Callis at MLB, 7/11/2025

• Everything to know about the 2025 MLB Draft, by MLB writers, 7/11/2025

• Who will win the Derby? Let’s rank the contenders, by Will Leitch at MLB, 7/11/2025

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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