The Baseball Buffet for 8/16/2025

Issue #368

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!

⚾ Welcome! ⚾

The 142nd day of the season featured a full slate of Friday games:

• PIT 3, CHC 2 - Colin Rea pitched well through five innings (5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 K), and Pete Crow-Armstrong went 3-3 with a double, a run, and an RBI. But Braxton Ashcraft did well in his five innings for the Pirates too (5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K), With the game tied 2-2, the Cubs brought in their closer Daniel Palencia who has been quite reliable this year, but this time he gave up a HR to Jack Suwinski. The Bucs turned to their current closer, Dennis Santana, and he held the lead in the bottom of the ninth for the win.

• MIL 10, CIN 8 - The Brewers entered this game red-hot, having won 12 in a row, and 27 of their last 31. And they had rookie phenom Jacob Misiorowski on the mound, fresh off the IL. But as can happen with first-year players, he struggled this time (1.1 IP, 4 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 3 K). DL Hall allowed an additional three runs such that Milwaukee was losing 8-1 after two innings. But the Brew Crew were undaunted, and scored five in the third inning, and two more in the fourth to tie the game 8-8. Christian Yelich and Andrew Vaughn hit homers off Reds starter Nick Martinez (2.2 IP, 9 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 1 K), and then Christian Yelich hit a second HR in the sixth to give Milwaukee the lead. Overall they posted 17 hits, with Yelich going 4-5 with the two HR, a double, and 5 RBI; Brandon Lockridge going 3-5 with a double and 2 runs; and four others getting 2 hits apiece. Ultimately closer Trevor Megill, their seventh hurler of the game, struck out two in the ninth to earn his 29th save and extend the team’s streak to 13 wins.

• PHI 6, WAS 2 - Both Zack Wheeler (5 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 6 K) and MacKenzie Gore (6 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) pitched fairly well, and the game was tied 2-2 through six. But then the Phillies scored four in the seventh by unloading back-to-back HR from Kyle Schwarber and Bryce Harper. Five Philadelphia relievers pitched shutout ball from the sixth inning onward, including veteran David Robertson closing it out in the ninth.

• TEX 5, TOR 6 - The Rangers went up early as Kyle Higashioka hit a 3-run HR in the top of the second. Jacob deGrom was excellent over five innings (5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K), but then the Texas bullpen allowed six runs in the 7th and 8th innings, including a 2-run HR by Alejandro Kirk. Marcus Semien hit a 2-run HR in top of the 8th, but Jeff Hoffman came in and struck out three in the ninth to lock down the win.

• SEA 11, NYM 9 - Francisco Lindor hit two HR off Luis Castillo (4 IP, 9 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 5 K), and Juan Soto added a solo HR as well. The Mariners had two HR off Mets starter Sean Manaea (5 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), one by Mitch Garver and the other by Cal Raleigh, his MLB-leading 46th of the year. Down 6-5 through six innings, Seattle scored five in the top of the seventh, as overall they pounded out 16 hits including an impressive 9 doubles. Francisco Alvarez hit a 3-run HR in the bottom of the eighth, but then Mariners closer Andrés Muñoz shut things down in the ninth for his 29th save.

• ATL 2, CLE 0 - Joey Cantillo pitched fairly well through five (5 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K), but Cleveland’s offense really struggled with only leadoff hitter Steven Kwan managing to go 2-4 with a double. Hurston Waldrep was great in his third start of the year (6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), and three Atlanta relievers combined for the 2-hit shutout, with Raisel Iglesias earning his 18th save.

• MIA 1, BOS 2 - This one was a pretty good pitchers duel, with both starters doing well: Sandy Alcantara (6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K) and Lucas Giolito (6.1 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). With the game tied 1-1, Boston closer Aroldis Chapman kept Miami from scoring in the top of the ninth. Then in the bottom of the frame, Jarren Duran was hit by pitch to load the bases, and Trevor Story hit a walk-off single to right for the win.

• BAL 7, HOU 0 - Baltimore rookie Brandon Young (8 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 6 K) had a perfect game going into the 8th (which would have been only the 25th perfect game in major league history). But then he gave up a gave up a 2-out infield single to Ramon Urias. Meanwhile, the Orioles scored in four different innings including a solo HR by Coby Mayo in the fourth, and a 2-run HR by Dylan Carlson in the eighth.

• DET 7, MIN 0 - 41-year old Charlie Morton did well (6 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K) and three Detroit relievers combined for a 2-hit shutout. The Tigers jumped on Twins starter Pierson Ohl (2.1 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 1 K) for five runs in the top of the first, with Dillon Dingler going 2-4 with a double and 3 RBI, and Javier Báez going 2-3 with a double and 2 RBI.

• CHW 1, KCR 3 - Lenyn Sosa had a solo HR in the fourth, but Kansas City rookie Noah Cameron otherwise had another good start (5.1 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 K). Four Royals relievers kept the White Sox off the board, with closer Carlos Estévez striking out three in the ninth for his 31st save. Bobby Witt Jr. was 2-4 with his MLB-leading 38th double, and Salvador Perez was 2-3 with a HR and 2 runs scored.

• NYY 4, STL 3 - Andre Pallante struck out 8 in 5 innings, but also allowed 4 runs, including a 2-run HR to Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the first inning. Luis Gil did well (5.1 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) in his third start of the year. Although Camilo Doval allowed two runs, Luke Weaver and David Bednar then shut things down with two strikeouts each and Bednar securing his 19th save.

• AZ 3, COL 4 - Hunter Goodman hit a HR in the first inning off Brandon Pfaadt (6 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K), and then the Rockies spread another three runs off him in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. With a 4-3 lead, the Rockies bullpen kept the D-Backs off the board in the final three innings, with Victor Vodnik striking out two in the ninth for his 5th save.

• LAA 3, ATH 10 - Zach Neto hit a 2-run HR in the fifth, but the Angels offense couldn’t get much else going. The Athletics tallied 14 hits, including a leadoff HR in the bottom of the first by Shea Langeliers, a 3-run HR by Colby Thomas in the third, and a 3-run HR by Nick Kurtz in the eighth.

• SDP 2, LAD 3 - Ramón Laureano hit a solo HR in the second, but Clayton Kershaw otherwise did really well (6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K). Teoscar Hernández hit his 19th HR, and five Dodgers relievers picked up where Kershaw left off, with Jack Dreyer getting the last out for his 2nd save the year.

• TBR 7, SFG 6 - The Giants scored six in the first three innings, including Willy Adames hitting a solo HR, his 19th of the season. But the Rays scored six early as well, including Junior Caminero hitting his 35th HR, and the game was tied after four innings. It stayed that way until the top of the ninth, when with one out and runners on first and third, Yandy Díaz singled on a line drive to right to drive in Chandler Simpson. Rays closer Pete Fairbanks came in for the bottom of the frame and secured his 21st save.

Standings

I am providing current standings as part of The Baseball Buffet, with the image being a modified version of the text-based standings at Plain Text Sports. Here also is a link to the official standings at MLB.com.

Notes:

• Everyone in the AL East won yesterday, so no shifts in their relative positioning.

• Seattle won and Houston lost, so only a half-game separates them in the AL West.

• As noted above, the Brewers came back and won so now have a 13-game winning streak, and an amazing 9-game in the once competitive NL Central.

• LAD and SDP are once again tied atop the NL West.

• Current Wild Card Leaders: In the AL it is SEA/BOS/NYY; in the NL it is either LAD or SDP, plus CHC and NYM (with CIN just a half-game behind).

Today’s Trivia Question

As noted below, José Caballero is the AL leader in stolen bases with 37 (currently leads all of MLB as well). Admittedly, he only recently joined the Yankees. But can you name the last three Yankees to lead the AL in stolen bases?

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

• MIN SP Simeon Woods Richardson

• CLE SP John Means

• HOU SP Lance McCullers Jr.

• ATH CF Denzel Clarke

• CIN SP Wade Miley

🤕 Placed on the IL

• SEA SP Logan Evans - 15-day IL (right elbow inflammation)

• CIN SP Chase Burns - 15-day IL (Grade 1 right flexor strain)

• SFG 3B Matt Chapman - 10-day IL (right hand inflammation)

• LAD 3B Max Muncy - 10-day IL (right oblique strain)

🚼 Placed on the Paternity List

• MIL LF Isaac Collins

• SFG RP Ryan Walker

⬇️ Designated for Assignment

• ATH 3B Gio Urshela - was batting .238 with 0 HR and 0 SB in 181 AB this year. The 33-year old has played 10-years in the majors, and had a high of 21 HR in 2019.

MLB Debut

• TBR 1B Bob Seymour - The 26-year old played 1B and batted seventh in the lineup, going 0-3 with a walk and two strikeouts in the Rays 7-6 win over the Giants. Before the call-up, Seymour was mashing at AAA Durham, with 30 HR and 87 RBI and a .263 average in 105 games.

League Leaders

Where are José Cruz and José Cruz Jr. when you need them? We have a José conspiracy at the top of the SB leaderboard now, plus two Cruz guys near the top too:

• 37 - NYY José Caballero

• 35 - CLE José Ramírez

• 34 - PIT Oneil Cruz

• 34 - TBR Chandler Simpson

• 31 - CIN Elly De La Cruz

• 31 - CHW Luis Robert Jr.

• 31 - STL Victor Scott II

• 30 - CHC Pete Crow-Armstrong

• 30 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 28 - PHI Trea Turner

On this day in baseball history…

Here is what stands out to me for this day in baseball history. Unless otherwise noted, the descriptions are from baseball-reference.com.

📅 On August 16…

• 1870: The curveball is proven to be real. “Young pitcher Fred Goldsmith demonstrates at a public exhibition at the Capitoline Grounds in Brooklyn, NY that the curve ball is a real pitch and not simply an optical illusion, as he manages to make a ball bend around three parallel stakes placed in the ground. Henry Chadwick is among those in attendance and reports on the event in the next day's paper. Goldsmith's claim to have invented the pitch will be disputed by Candy Cummings, however.”

• 1920: Ray Chapman is beaned by a pitch and dies the next day. “Cleveland SS Ray Chapman, 29, is beaned by a Carl Mays pitch. A righthanded batter who crowds the plate, Chapman freezes and fails to get out of the way of the submarine delivery. He is carried from the field and dies the next day from a fractured skull. Mays, a surly, unpopular pitcher, is the target of fans' and players' outrage. Chapman, a Cleveland favorite since breaking in in 1912, had been married the previous year. In October his wife will receive a full World Series share, $3,986.34. The incident has no effect on Mays' pitching. One week later he will blank Detroit, 10-0, and go on to win 26 and lose 11. Joe Sewell will be called up to take Chapman's place, and for 14 years he will be the hardest man to strike out in the Major Leagues.”

• 1947: Ralph Kiner hits three HR against the Cardinals. “Ralph Kiner hits three successive home runs for the host Pittsburgh Pirates, in a 12 - 7 win over the Cardinals in a game in which the two clubs bang out a major-league record ten homers (since topped). Two other Bucs, Hank Greenberg and Billy Cox, and one Cardinal, Whitey Kurowski, each contribute two home runs to set a major-league record for most players with two or more homers in a game. Kiner matches the major league mark of seven home runs in four games, six in three games, five in two games, and four in consecutive at bats.”

• 1948: Babe Ruth dies at age 53. “Babe Ruth dies of throat cancer at age 53 in New York. He will lie in state at Yankee Stadium and be viewed by more than 100,000 mourners.”

• 1950: Hank Thompson hits two-inside-the park HR. “At the Polo Grounds, Hank Thompson hits two inside-the-park home runs as the Giants drub the Dodgers, 16-7.”

• 1969: Not fake news… Boog Powell hits an inside-the-park HR. “Seattle's Sicks Stadium shakes when 250-pound Boog Powell legs out an inside-the-park homer in the 9th against ex-teammate Steve Barber. It really isn't that vital, as Baltimore romps, 15-3.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• Yu Darvish (1986) was pitching effectively as a teenager in Japan, and then in his early 20s really dominated in that league with five seasons with an ERA below 2.00. He came to the US with great fanfare and was an All-Star in his first three seasons for the Rangers, coming in second in the AL Cy Young Award vote in 2013 after leading the league with 277 K in 209.2 IP, to go along with a 13-9 record and 2.83 ERA. He missed the entire 2015 season and part of 2016 due to Tommy John Surgery and the need for rehab. He would later pitch parts of three seasons for the Cubs until they traded him in December of 2020 to the Padres where he has pitched since. Injuries limited his time in 2024 and so far in 2025, so it remains to be seen in turning 39 years old how much he has left. But overall the 6-time All-Star has a 112-91 (.552) record in MLB, a 3.62 ERA, a 117 ERA+, and 2,036 K in 1,739.2 IP.

• Gene Woodling (1922) had a 17-year major league career spanning from 1943-1962. He began briefly in 1943 with the Indians, then missed two years due to military service, returned to the Indians in 1946, played for the Pirates in 1947, and then finally joined the Yankees for the 1949 season. It was in New York that he finally blossomed as a LF and hitter, before later bouncing around three other teams. He hit .300+ five times, and hit 10+ HR nine times. Woodling was an All-Star in 1959 while playing for Baltimore, and overall had 147 HR, a .284/.386/.431 slash line, and a 123 OPS+.

• Baby Doll Jacobson (1890) played 11 years in the majors spanning from 1915-1927, mostly with the St. Louis Browns. His best numbers came in 1920 when he had a .355 average with 14 triples and 122 RBI, 1922 with a .317 average, 16 triples, 102 RBI and 19 SB, and 1924 with a .318 average, 12 triples, 19 HR, and 97 RBI. Overall, Jacobson slashed .311/.357/.450 with a 112 OPS+.

• George Scales (1900) played for 20 years in the major Negro Leagues, spanning from 1921-1946, and spending time with six different clubs. According to the data available at baseball-reference.com, Scales was a versatile player on the field, playing mostly at 3B and 2B, but also getting into games at 1B, SS, and the OF. Overall, the data we have indicates a career .320/.424/.509 slash line and 147 OPS+ in 2,613 plate appearances.

Currently active players who were born on August 16 include CIN Tyler Stephenson, CIN Connor Joe, COL Michael Toglia, SEA Dominic Canzone, DET Akil Baddoo, and Martin Maldonado (free agent).

Today’s Matchups

Today we have a full slate of Saturday games (15), so there are lots of possibilities. Some games and pitchers that jump out to me are:

• SEA vs. NYM is game two of this interleague series between two teams with playoff aspirations. Seattle will have the very reliable Bryan Woo on the mound (3.08 ERA, 145 K in 146 IP), while the Mets will have a major league debut from 24-year old prospect Nolan McLean, their 3rd round draft pick in 2023. At AA and AAA this year he has posted a combined 2.45 ERA with 127 K and only 78 hits allowed in 113.2 IP.

• NYY vs. STL features two generally solid starters in Max Fried (2.94 ERA, 135 K in 144 IP) and Sonny Gray (4.06 ERA, 148 K in 135.1 IP).

• MIL vs. CIN will be interesting to see if the Brewers can keep it going or not. They are on a 13-game winning streak, have won 28 of their last 32, and as described above yesterday came back from an early 8-1 deficit to win 10-8. Today they have Quinn Priester on the mound (3.49 ERA, 95 K in 118.2 IP), and the Reds will counter with Zack Littell (3.60 ERA, 100 K in 145 IP).

Also toeing the rubber today are CHC Shota Imanaga, DET Casey Mize, and SFG Justin Verlander.

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, 9-25 with 3 HR and 2 doubles vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• CLE José Ramírez, 4-12 with 2 HR and a double vs. ATL Joey Wentz

• ATH Brent Rooker, 5-14 with 2 HR and a double vs. LAA Tyler Anderson

• MIN Byron Buxton, 7-17 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. DET Casey Mize

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:

• LAD Freddie Freeman, 6-16 with a double vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• SDP Luis Arraez, small sample but is 5-7 with 0 K vs. LAD Blake Snell

• CLE Brayan Rocchio, small sample but is 3-7 with a HR and a double vs. ATL Joey Wentz

• TOR Alejandro Kirk, small sample but is 3-3 with 2 doubles vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 14 - ATH Tyler Soderstrom

• 10 - MIA Xavier Edwards

• 8 - ATL Michael Harris II

• 8 - NYM Juan Soto

• 8 - BAL Gunnar Henderson

• 7 - CIN Miguel Andujar

• 7 - TOR Andrés Giménez

Active HR Streaks

• 2 - TBR Junior Caminero

• 2 - SDP Ramón Laureano

• 2 - NYM Francisco Lindor

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:

• NYY Paul Goldschmidt, 1-23 with 8 K vs. STL Sonny Gray — Goldy is nursing an injury, so maybe sit this one out?!

• LAD Will Smith, 2-14 with 8 K vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• BOS Jarren Duran, 1-13 with 4 K vs. MIA Cal Quantrill

• CHW Andrew Benintendi, 1-11 with 4 K vs. KCR Michael Lorenzen

• SDP Xander Bogaerts, 4-26 with 8 K vs. LAD Blake Snell

• SDP Jose Iglesias, 2-13 with 4 K vs. LAD Blake Snell

• MIN Ryan Jeffers, 2-15 though only 1 K and one hit was a HR vs. DET Casey Mize

• ATL Jurickson Profar, small sample but is 0-9 with 3 K vs. CLE Slade Cecconi

• PIT Bryan Reynolds, small sample but is 1-9 with 3 K vs. CHC Shota Imanaga

• WAS Luis García Jr., small sample but is 1-9 with 1 K vs. PHI Taijuan Walker

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

José Caballero, now with the Yankees, has 37 SB and is leading the AL and all of MLB. The last three Yankees to lead the AL in SB are:

• 2011 - Brett Gardner, tied Coco Crisp (OAK), with 49

• 2002 - Alfonso Soriano, 41

• 1988 - Rickey Henderson, 88 (also led with 87 in 1986 and 80 in 1985).

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 hitters boosting contenders with 2nd-half surges, by Jared Greenspan at MLB, 8/15/2025

• Max Scherzer is a Hall of Famer, Right?, by Ray Kuhn at Here's the Pitch: the IBWAA Newsletter, 8/16/2025

• How the Brewers built MLB's best team out of castoffs and unknowns, by Mike Petriello, 8/12/2025

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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