The Baseball Buffet for 8/18/2025

Issue #370

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 144th day of the season featured a full slate of Sunday games:

• PHI 11, WAS 9 - The Phillies jumped on Mitchell Parker in the first two innings (1.2 IP, 4 H, 6 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, 0 K), including Alec Bohm hitting a 3-run HR. But then the Nats came back with six runs off Aaron Nola (2.1 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) in the bottom of the third. The Phils scored more runs as the game went on, building an 11-6 lead through eight, with Nick Castellanos going 2-5 with a HR and a double, and Trea Turner going 2-4 with a walk and 3 runs. Washington 1B Paul DeJong hit a 3-run HR in the bottom of the ninth, but then Jhoan Duran entered and got the last two outs to earn his 21st save.

• MIA 5, BOS 3 - Wilyer Abreu hit a 2-run HR in the fourth inning, and then Janson Junk allowed one more run in the seventh (7 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 6 K). The Red Sox had a lead going as Garrett Crochet was great once again (7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), only allowing a solo HR to Eric Wagaman in the third. But then the Boston bullpen allowed four runs in the 8th and 9th, including HR by Dane Myers and Jakob Marsee. Anthony Bender pitched the bottom of the ninth for Miami and notched his fourth save.

• MIL 2, CIN 3 - This game was a good pitchers duel: Andrew Abbott (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K) and Jose Quintana (6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K). William Contreras hit a 2-run HR in the top of the ninth to put the Brewers up 2-1, but then the Reds scored in the bottom of the frame to tie the game and force extras. Graham Ashcraft pitched a scoreless top of the tenth, and then Grant Anderson came back out for the bottom of the tenth. With one out and a runner on third, the threat of a sacrifice fly loomed, so Milwaukee elected to intentionally walk both Elly De La Cruz and Will Benson to load the bases and setup both a double-play option and a force play option at home. But Austin Hays then singled to left for the walk off win, ending the Brewers winning streak at 14 games.

• TEX 10, TOR 4 - The Blue Jays scored all four of their runs off homers, including solo HR by Alejandro Kirk and Vladimir Guerrero Jr., and then a 2-run HR by George Springer. Although he allowed the first two of those dingers, Nathan Eovaldi otherwise pitched well (7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 6 K) and Shawn Armstrong earned a four-out save, his 4th of the year. Meanwhile, the Rangers tallied 10 hits off José Berríos (4.1 IP, 10 H, 6 ER, 0 BB, 2 K), adding five more off the Toronto bullpen. This included HR by Marcus Semien, Corey Seager, Wyatt Langford, and Evan Carter. Jonah Heim went 3-4 with 2 RBI out of the ninth spot in the lineup.

• ATL 5, CLE 4 - The Guardians built a 4-1 lead through four innings, but then the Braves came back with two runs in both the fifth and sixth. That included Jurickson Profar hitting a 2-run HR, his 7th of the year. Raisel Iglesias eventually struck out two in the ninth, earning his 19th save.

• BAL 12, HOU 0 - Dean Kremer did very well (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), and two Orioles relievers combined for the shutout. Cristian Javier was pitching pretty well (3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K), but he wasn’t feeling well and so exited the game after three innings due to illness. The trouble immediately began for Houston as their bullpen allowed 11 runs over the next 5 innings, with only non-pitcher Chas McCormick (1 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K) finding a way to stifle the Baltimore batters. They had 14 hits in all, including Jordan Westburg 4-5 with a HR and 5 RBI; Jackson Holliday 2-4 with 2 walks and 3 runs; and Jeremiah Jackson 3-5 with 3 runs.

• DET 1, MIN 8 - Thomas Hatch pitched five good innings (5 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) and four Minnesota relievers kept Detroit off the board the rest of the way. Meanwhile, three Twins hit homers off Chris Paddack (5.2 IP, 9 H, 8 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) in the second and third innings: Royce Lewis and Byron Buxton had solo HR, and Brooks Lee hit a grand slam.

• CHW 2, KCR 6 - Lenyn Sosa hit a HR in the first inning, and the White Sox outhit the Royals 9-8, but they were 1-8 with runners in scoring position and stranded 11 guys overall. They were up 2-0 after six innings, as Davis Martin was outstanding (6 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 K). But then all three Chicago relievers allowed runs to score, as Adam Frazier went 2-4 with a 2-run HR and a double, and Jonathan India was 1-3 with a walk and 2-run HR. Kansas City starter Ryan Bergert did fairly well (5.1 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) and four Royals relievers contained the Sox the rest of the way.

• NYY 8, STL 4 - The Yankees scored three in the top of fourth, but then the Cardinals came back with four runs soon after. The Yankees tied it in the top of the seventh, and ultimately took the lead and then some with four runs in the top of the ninth. Paul Goldschmidt went 3-5 with 2 doubles, and Luke Weaver got the last five outs for the win.

• AZ 5, COL 6 - Antonio Senzatela did well over five innings in his first start since coming off the IL (5 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K). Arizona then scored four runs in the top of the sixth, including HR by Corbin Carroll and Lourdes Gurriel Jr. They outhit Colorado 13-9, but were 2-14 with runners in scoring position and left 13 runners on base. The Rockies were down 4-1 but scored four more of their own in the seventh, and added one more in the bottom of the eighth. The D-Backs scored one in the top of the ninth, but it wouldn’t be enough.

• TBR 1, SFG 7 - Ryan Pepiot struck out eight, but gave up four runs in the sixth inning (5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 8 K). In the seventh inning Drew Gilbert hit his first major league HR, and Tyler Fitzgerald made it back-to-back dingers. Meanwhile, Logan Webb was great (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 7 K) and Keaton Winn struck out two in the ninth to close it out.

• SDP 4, LAD 5 - Freddie Freeman hit a 3-run HR and Andy Pages hit a solo HR in the first inning of Yu Darvish (4 IP, 3 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 5 K). Ramón Laureano hit a HR in the fifth inning, but Tyler Glasnow otherwise did pretty well (5 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K). The Padres tied the game 4-4 in the top of the eighth, but then LA took back the lead when Mookie Betts hit a HR off Robert Suarez in the bottom of the frame. Dodgers reliever Alex Vesia came back out for the ninth and locked down the win.

• PIT 3, CHC 4 - The Bucs outhit the Cubs 9-6, but were only 3-13 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10 guys on base. The game was tied 3-3 through seven, when Ian Happ hit a ground-rule double in the bottom of the eighth to advance Carson Kelly to third. With just one out, Dansby Swanson then hit a sacrifice fly to drive Kelly in for the go-ahead run. Andrew Kittredge followed and pitched a scoreless ninth for his first save of the year.

• LAA 11, ATH 5 - Jo Adell hit a 3-run HR in the top of the first inning, his 26th of the year. But the Athletics came back with three homers of their own, hit by Nick Kurtz, Shea Langeliers, and Lawrence Butler. The game was tied 5-5 and went into extras. The Angels feasted in the top of the tenth on two Athletics pitchers, scoring six runs, including a solo HR by Zach Neto, his 21st of the season. With Kenley Jansen having already pitched the ninth, José Fermín closed out the game in the bottom of the tenth.

• SEA 3, NYM 7 - Clay Holmes pitched well (5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K), though Cal Raleigh would later hit a 2-run HR, his MLB-leading 47th of the year. The Mets did their damage off George Kirby (4.2 IP, 12 H, 7 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) in the second and fifth innings, including a 3-run HR by Mark Vientos.

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:

• The Brewers winning streak finally ended at 14, but even with a Cubs win they remain a solid 8 games ahead in the NL Central.

• The Dodgers swept the series with the Padres, so they have a two game lead on them in the NL West.

• Current Wild Card Leaders: In the AL it is SEA and BOS tied, and then NYY; in the NL it is CHC/SDP/NYM.

Today’s Trivia Question

Last season there were 19 players who had 20+ HR and 20+ SB. How many of the 8 players can you name who already have 20+ HR and 20+ SB so far this year? (Hint: six are repeats from last year, while two have made the 20/20 club for the first time this year.)

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

• NYY RP Jonathan Loáisiga

🤕 Placed on the IL

• STL CF Victor Scott II - 10-day IL (left ankle sprain)

• PHI SP Zack Wheeler - 15-day IL (right upper extremity blood clot)

• MIA LF Kyle Stowers - 10-day IL (left oblique strain)

• TEX CF Sam Haggerty - 10-day IL (left ankle inflammation)

• TEX RP Jon Gray - 15-day IL (right shoulder nerve irritation)

⬇️ Designated for Assignment

• CIN RF Jake Fraley - The 30-year old, in his seventh season in the majors, was batting .232 with 6 HR and 4 SB in 168 AB so far this year.

MLB Debut

• STL OF Nathan Church - The 25-year old played CF and batted ninth, going 0-4 in the Cardinals 8-4 loss to the Yankees. Before the call-up, Church had 13 HR and 16 SB with a .329 average across 86 games at AAA/AA.

• BAL C Samuel Basallo - The 21-year old played DH and batted sixth, going 1-4 with a single and two RBI in the Orioles 12-0 drubbing of the Astros. Before the call-up, Basallo has 23 HR and a .270/.377/.589 slash line in 76 games at AAA Norfolk.

League Leaders

Nobody has 40 doubles yet, but Witt and Bichette are getting close:

• 38 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 37 - TOR Bo Bichette

• 33 - BOS Jarren Duran

• 32 - CHC Pete Crow-Armstrong

• 32 - KCR Maikel Garcia

• 31 - NYM Pete Alonso

• 31 - ATL Matt Olson

• 30 - TOR Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

• 30 - SDP Manny Machado

• 30 - ATH Brent Rooker

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 18…

• 1960: Lew Burdette throws a no-hitter. “Facing just 27 batters, Lew Burdette pitches a 1-0 no-hitter against the Phillies. Tony Gonzalez, the only Phil to reach base, is hit by a Burdette pitch in the 5th inning but erased on a double play. The Milwaukee pitcher also scores the only run of the game.”

• 1967: Tony Conigliaro is beaned and is out for the rest of the year and all of 1968. “A baseball tragedy occurs when Tony Conigliaro of the Red Sox is beaned by the Angels' Jack Hamilton. Hit on the left cheekbone, just below the eye socket, Conigliaro will miss the rest of this year and all of 1968. He is hitting .267 with 20 home runs and 67 RBI in 95 games. Despite the loss of Tony C, the Red Sox will sweep the four-game series with the Angels. The sweep will still leave Minnesota in first place, with Boston, Detroit, and Chicago all within two games.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• Roberto Clemente (1934) is a Hall of Famer who had an 18-year major league career, tragically cut short by a plane crash that took his life on December 31, 1972. One of the best players of his era, he starred as a RF for the Pirates from 1955-1972. He didn’t hit as many HR as some of his contemporaries like Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson, and Harmon Killebrew, but Clemente could hit them just as hard and just as far. He was a high-average hitter, taking home four NL batting titles: .351 in 1961, .339 in 1964, .329 in 1965, and .357 in 1967. He also hit .340+ each year from 1969-1971, in his age 34-36 seasons. An All-Star in twelve seasons, he was NL MVP in 1966 Also an outstanding fielder, he was feared for his throwing arm in RF and took home 12 Gold Glove Awards. Overall, Clemente had 3,000 hits, 240 HR, 1,416 runs, 1,305 RBI, a .317/.359/.475 slash line, and a 130 OPS+.

• Burleigh Grimes (1893) is a Hall of Famer who had a 19-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1916-1934. He was the last pitcher officially permitted to throw the spitball: when it was banned in 1920, he was named as one of 17 established pitchers who were allowed to continue to throw the pitch, and he outlasted all the others. He won 20+ games five times, leading the NL with a 22-13 record in 1921 and again in 1928 with a 25-14 mark. He led his league in complete games four times, and strikeouts once, in 1921, with a modest 136 total. Grimes started and ended his career with the Pirates and had a third stint with them in the middle as well. He primarily threw for Brooklyn, and spent time with five other teams too. Overall, Grimes had a 270-212 (.560) record, a 3.53 ERA, and a 108 ERA+.

• Max Lanier (1915) had a 14-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1938-1953, mostly with the Cardinals. An All-Star in 1943, he led the NL with a 1.90 ERA to go along with a 15-7 record. He was again an All-Star in 1944 when he went 17-12 with a 2.65 ERA. That year he was the winning pitcher of the clinching game in the 1944 World Series against the Browns. Max Lanier’s son Hal was a major league infielder and manager.

Currently active players who were born on August 18 include CHC Seiya Suzuki, CLE Austin Hedges, WAS Nasim Nuñez, BOS Justin Wilson, TOR Yimi García, AZ Andrew Saalfrank, and MIN Mick Abel.

Today’s Matchups

Today we have a nearly full slate of Monday games (13), so there are lots of possibilities. Some games and pitchers that jump out to me are:

• MIL vs. CHC is a double-header between the top two teams in the NL Central. Game has Freddy Peralta (2.90 ERA, 148 K in 136.2 IP) up against rookie Cade Horton (3.07 ERA, 67 K in 85 IP) who has been outstanding over his last five starts: 28.1 IP, 11 hits, 24 K, and only one earned run allowed for a 0.32 ERA. As of the time of this writing, the starters for game two are still TBD.

• TOR vs. PIT is interesting because Paul Skenes (2.13 ERA, 166 K in 148 IP) is taking his turn in the rotation, and is facing a test in the AL East-leading Blue Jays, who will counter with veteran Kevin Gausman (3.79 ERA, 138 K in 142 IP).

• HOU vs. DET is game one of a series between two AL division leaders, with Spencer Arrighetti making his fifth start of the year against Jack Flaherty (4.76 ERA, 153 K in 124.2 IP).

Also on the hill today are MIL Freddy Peralta, PHI Ranger Suárez, ATL Spencer Strider, LAD Yoshinobu Yamamoto, CLE Gavin Williams, and SFG Robbie Ray.

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:

• SDP Manny Machado, 5-19 with 3 HR vs. SFG Robbie Ray

• CHC Ian Happ, 8-34 with 3 HR and a double vs. MIL Brandon Woodruff (if pitching, TBD)

• CHC Michael Busch, only 2-13 but with 2 HR vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• SFG Rafael Devers, 5-21 with 2 HR and a double vs. SDP Nestor Cortes

• TEX Joc Pederson, 6-24 with 2 HR, a triple, and 2 doubles vs. KCR Michael Wacha

• PIT Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 6-14 with 2 HR and a double vs. TOR Kevin Gausman

• DET Riley Greene, small sample but is 2-2 with 2 HR vs. HOU Spencer Arrighetti

• KCR Salvador Perez, small sample but is 3-3 with 2 HR and a double vs. TEX Jack Leiter

• LAD Shohei Ohtani, small sample but is 4-6 with 2 HR and a double vs. COL Kyle Freeland

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:

• SDP Ramón Laureano, 7-12 with a HR and 3 doubles vs. SFG Robbie Ray

• COL Ezequiel Tovar, 6-7 with a HR and a double vs. LAD Yoshinobu Yamamoto

• CHC Kyle Tucker, 5-8 with a double vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• CHC Pete Crow-Armstrong, 5-9 with a HR and a double vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• CHC Seiya Suzuki, 5-8 with a HR and 2 doubles vs. MIL Brandon Woodruff (if pitching, TBD)

• CLE José Ramírez, 5-9 with a HR and a double vs. AZ Zac Gallen (if pitching, TBD)

• CLE Steven Kwan, 4-9 with a triple and a double vs. AZ Zac Gallen (if pitching, TBD)

• HOU Mauricio Dubón, 5-11 with a double vs. DET Jack Flaherty

• HOU Jose Altuve, 5-13 with a HR vs. DET Jack Flaherty

• SFG Casey Schmitt, 4-5 with a HR and a double vs. SDP Nestor Cortes

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 16 - ATH Tyler Soderstrom

• 10 - ATL Michael Harris II

• 8 - MIL William Contreras

• 8 - CIN Noelvi Marte

• 7 - PHI Trea Turner

• 7 - STL Pedro Pagés

• 7 - TBR Yandy Díaz

• 7 -WAS Paul DeJong

Active HR Streaks

• 2 - TEX Marcus Semien

• 2 - BAL Dylan Carlson

• 2 - ATH Colby Thomas

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:

• CHC Ian Happ, 2-32 with 14 K, though one hit was a HR vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• CHC Seiya Suzuki, 2-21 with 12 K, though one hit was a HR vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• CHC Dansby Swanson, 2-21 with 8 K, though one hit was a HR vs. MIL Freddy Peralta

• CHC Nico Hoerner, 2-18 with 3 K vs. Brandon Woodruff (if pitching, TBD)

• PHI Brandon Marsh, 1-15 with 6 K vs. SEA Logan Gilbert

• HOU Victor Caratini, 1-10 with 3 K vs. DET Jack Flaherty

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

The eight players who already have 20+ HR and 20+ SB in 2025 are:

• NYM Juan Soto - 30 HR, 20 SB

• CHC Pete Crow-Armstrong - 27 HR, 30 SB

• CLE José Ramírez - 25 HR, 35 SB

• NYM Francisco Lindor - 24 HR, 20 SB

• SEA Julio Rodríguez - 24 HR, 23 SB

• SEA Randy Arozarena - 23 HR, 24 SB

• NYY Jazz Chisholm Jr. - 21 HR, 21 SB

• LAA Zach Neto - 21 HR, 21 SB

Juan Soto and Pete Crow-Armstrong are the two who have made the 20/20 club this year for the first time in their careers.

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.

• Here are the top 10 prospects at each position, by Ben Weinrib at MLB, 8/17/2025

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.

This newsletter was produced with beehiiv, an outstanding platform for creating email newsletters and blogs. If this might be of interest for your own creative work, get a 30-day trial and 30% off your first three months!