The Baseball Buffet for 8/20/2025

Issue #372

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 146th day of the season featured a full slate of Tuesday games:

• MIL 4, CHC 6 (Gm 1) - Christian Yelich hit his 26th HR, but Chicago had two homers of their own: a 3-run HR by Willi Castro and a solo shot by 23-year old rookie Owen Cassie, the first of his career. Overall, Cassie was 2-4 with 3 RBI on the day, and after Matthew Boyd gave up four runs, the Cubs’ bullpen kept Milwaukee off the board the rest of the way, with Daniel Palencia picking up his 17th save.

• MIL 1, CHC 4 (Gm 2) - In the evening game the Brewers scored in the top of the first, but the Cubs came back quickly with two in the bottom of the second. Jameson Taillon did well (6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) in his first game since June 29th, and the Cubs’ bullpen again was solid, pitching three scoreless innings with Andrew Kittredge gaining his 2nd save of the year.

• TOR 7, PIT 3 - The Blue Jays got to Mitch Keller (3.1 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) in the first two innings, including a 2-run HR by George Springer, his 20th on the year. Alejandro Kirk was 3-5 with a HR and 3 RBI, while Max Scherzer was solid through six innings (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K).

• HOU 0, DET 1 - This game delivered as a pitchers’ duel, with both Tarik Skubal (7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 10 K) and Hunter Brown (6 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 6 K) doing very well. Neither team scored through nine, and Will Vest came back out for a second scoreless relief inning in the top of the tenth. Having already used their top bullpen arms, Houston brought in Kaleb Ort for the bottom of the tenth, and he struggled with his command, walking Gleyber Torres with the bases loaded allowing Wenceel Pérez to score.

• STL 7, MIA 4 - The Cardinals got to Edward Cabrera early (4.1 IP, 11 H, 6 R, 4 H, 1 BB, 6 K), scoring in each of the first three innings. Miami scored several runs off Michael McGreevy (6 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 5 K), but then three St. Louis relievers kept them off the board, with Riley O’Brien striking out two in the ninth for his 2nd save.

• NYM 8, WAS 1 - The Mets scored five off Jake Irvin (6 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 3 K) in the third inning, including a 2-run HR by Mark Vientos. They later had more homers by Brett Baty, Juan Soto, and Jeff McNeil, while starter David Peterson was masterful (8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 10 K).

• SEA 4, PHI 6 - Kyle Schwarber and Bryson Stott hit HR off Bryce Miller (5 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 K), with Schwarber’s being his 44th of the season. Down 4-1 through six, the Mariners came back and tied it in the top of the seventh, with Eugenio Suárez going 3-4 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI on the day. But then in the bottom of the 8th, J.T. Realmuto connected for a 2-run HR off Matt Brash, and Jhoan Duran closed things out in the ninth for his 22nd save.

• BAL 4, BOS 3 - Tomoyuki Sugano pitched well (5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 K), and Baltimore went up 3-1 in the fifth and it stayed that way through eight. Newly signed Nathaniel Lowe was the DH for Boston, and he came through in the bottom of the ninth with a 2-run HR to tie the game. Neither team scored in the 10th, and in the top of the 11th, with a runner on third and one out, rookie Samuel Basallo grounded out softly such that Jeremiah Jackson could score. Corbin Martin entered as the Orioles’ seventh pitcher and notched his 7th save.

• CHW 10, ATL 11 - The lead went back and forth a few times in this one. Kyle Teel was 2-4 with a HR, a double and 4 RBI, and Luis Robert Jr. was 1-4 with a double and 3 RBI. For the Braves, Michael Harris II and Jurickson Profar hit homers, while Matt Olson was 4-5 with 2 doubles and 3 runs, and Ozzie Albies was 3-5 with a double and 2 RBI. Down 10-4 after six, the Braves did most of their damage in the 7th and 8th innings, while keeping the White Sox off the board the rest of the way, and Raisel Iglesias picking up his 20th save.

• NYY 13, TBR 3 - Aaron Judge, Cody Bellinger, and Giancarlo Stanton hit back-to-back-to-back HR in the first inning off Shane Baz (3 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 2 BB, 3 K). But that was just the beginning as the Yankees hit a total of nine HR in this one, a feat they also accomplished in their second game of the year. Bellinger and Stanton had two apiece, as did lighter-hitting José Caballero. Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Ben Rice also hit dingers, as New York collected 16 hits overall and Carlos Rodón (6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K) was the beneficiary of his lineup’s largesse, running his record to 13-7 on the year.

• TEX 2, KCR 5 - Corey Seager and Joc Pederson each hit solo HR, but Seth Lugo otherwise did well (6.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K). Similarly, Vinnie Pasquantino and Mike Yastrzemski each hit longballs, the only two hits allowed by Merrill Kelly (6 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 3 K). So the difference came down to the bullpens, with KC scoring one in the bottom of the seventh and Bobby Witt Jr. connecting for a 2-run HR in the bottom of eighth, while the Royals’ John Schreiber locked down his first save of the year.

• ATH 6, MIN 3 - Brooks Lee and Ryan Jeffers each hit a solo HR, but Jacob Lopez otherwise did well (6 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 8 K). Two Athletics’ relievers kept the Twins off the board, while Shea Langeliers had a 2-run HR and Nick Kurtz went 3-3 with 2 doubles and 2 walks.

• LAD 11, COL 4 - The Dodgers scored multiple runs in each of the first three innings off Austin Gomber (3 IP, 9 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 2 K) and tallied 18 hits overall. Alex Call was 4-5 with a HR, a double and 3 runs, while Shohei Ohtani hit his 44th HR of the year. For the Rockies, Brenton Doyle had a 2-run HR in the losing effort, as did Kyle Karros, the first of his career.

• CIN 6, LAA 4 - The Angels’ Jo Adell hit two solo HR, but the big story was Reds’ starter Hunter Greene striking out 12 in only 6.1 IP in his second start back from the IL. Noelvi Marte went 2-4 with a HR and a double; Miguel Andujar was 3-4 with a double and 2 RBI; and Tony Santillan struck out two in the ninth for his 4th save.

• CLE 5, AZ 6 - José Ramírez hit his 26th HR of the season, but the D-Backs came out on top with Jake McCarthy going 2-4 with a HR and Corbin Carroll hitting two triples to raise his MLB-leading total to 16 on the year.

• SFG 1, SDP 5 - Giants’ leadoff man Jung Hoo Lee hit a HR and a double, but otherwise Nick Pivetta did very well (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 10 K). Three Padres relievers pitched scoreless innings the rest of the way, and Manny Machado and Ryan O’Hearn had two hits apiece.

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 Cubs took two from the Brewers yesterday, but remain seven games behind in the NL Central.

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

Today’s Trivia Question

As a follow-up to yesterday’s question, the Guardians might have the lowest team batting average so far this season, but they are only the fifth lowest in producing runs. Which team has so far scored the fewest runs per game?

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 a Rehab Assignment

• MIL 1B Rhys Hoskins

• HOU LF Yordan Alvarez

• LAA RP Robert Stephenson

• BOS RP Justin Slaten

• PIT RP Tim Mayza

• HOU SP Luis Garcia

• LAD RP Tanner Scott

• NYY RP Fernando Cruz

• HOU RF Pedro León

• PIT RP Justin Lawrence

• LAD RP Kirby Yates

• COL SP Germán Márquez

🤕 Placed on the IL

• CHW RP Owen White - 15-day IL (right hip impingement)

• NYM C Francisco Alvarez - 10-day IL (right thumb UCL sprain)

• NYY RP Brent Headrick - 15-day IL (left forearm contusion)

• MIA RP Anthony Bender - 15-day IL (right tibial stress reaction)

League Leaders

Tarik Skubal is the first to reach 200 strikeouts this year:

• 200 - DET Tarik Skubal

• 196 - BOS Garrett Crochet

• 195 - PHI Zack Wheeler

• 175 - SFG Logan Webb

• 174 - PIT Paul Skenes

• 171 - SDP Dylan Cease

• 170 - HOU Hunter Brown

• 169 - PHI Cristopher Sánchez

• 169 - NYY Carlos Rodón

• 165 - WAS MacKenzie Gore

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 20…

• 1915: The Indians trade Joe Jackson to the White Sox. “The White Sox obtain Joe Jackson from Cleveland in exchange for OF Braggo Roth, OF Larry Chappell, P Ed Klepfer, and $31,500. Roth will lead the American League in homers this year with 7.”

• 1938: Lou Gehrig hits his 23rd and final grand slam. “Lou Gehrig hits a 1st-inning grand slam, the 23rd and last of his career, setting a record that will last until Alex Rodriguez breaks it in 2013. It comes off Buck Ross in an 11-3 victory over the A's.”

• 1957: Bob Keegan throws a no-hitter. “Using a new slow delivery, 35-year-old Bob Keegan of the White Sox pitches a 600 no-hitter over Washington, walking just 2.”

• 1963: Don Blasingame breaks up a no-hitter… again. “For the second time in two weeks, Don Blasingame is the only thing between the Senators and a no-hitter. Blasingame's single off the A's Moe Drabowsky is the only hit for the Nats in a 9 - 0 first game loss.”

• 1974: Nolan Ryan strikes out 19 for the third time in a year. “Nolan Ryan of the California Angels whiffs 19 Tigers in a 1-0, 11-inning loss to the Tigers. It is the third time the "Ryan Express" has struck out 19 batters in one game this season.”

• 1980: Omar Moreno steals 70th base for third year in a row. “Pittsburgh's Omar Moreno steals his 70th base of the season, becoming the first player this century with three consecutive 70-steal seasons. The fleet outfielder swiped 71 in 1978, 77 in 1979, and will finish this season with a career-high 96.”

• 1995: Jose Mesa runs his saves streak to 37. “Setting a major league record, Indian Jose Mesa picks up his 37th save in as many opportunities as Cleveland beats the Brewers, 8-5.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• Todd Helton (1973) is a Hall of Famer who had a 17-year major league career as a slugging 1B for the Colorado Rockies. Drafted in the first round (8th overall) in 1995 out the University of Tennessee, Helton was in the majors by 1997 and came in second in the voting for the 1998 NL Rookie of the Year Award after hitting 25 HR with 97 RBI and a .315 average. He hit 30+ HR with 100+ runs scored in each of the next six seasons. His biggest numbers came in 2000, the first of five consecutive All-Star seasons, when he hit 42 HR with 138 runs, and led the NL with 216 hits, 59 doubles, 147 RBI, and a .372 average. His numbers were admittedly inflated a bit by playing his home games in Colorado during that era, as he slashed a huge .345/441/.607 at home, but a less impressive, though still solid .287/.386/.469 on the road. Helton was a good defensive 1B, earning three NL Gold Glove Awards and frequently either leading the NL or being amongst the leaders in various 1B fielding metrics. Overall, he had 369 HR, 1,406 RBI, 1,401 runs, a .316/.414/.539 slash line, and a 133 OPS+.

• Graig Nettles (1944) was a 3B who had a 22-year major league career, spanning from 1967-1988. He played the most (11 seasons) with the Yankees, but also spent time with five other clubs at the beginning and end of his career. A power hitter, Nettles had 11 seasons with 20+ HR, including leading the AL with a modest 32 HR in 1976, and then hitting a career-high 37 HR in 1977. A six-time All-Star, he was also outstanding defensively, taking home two Gold Glove Awards and frequently being at or near the top of several defensive statistics leaderboards. Nettles is second only to Brooks Robinson in all-time assists by a 3B. Overall, he had 390 HR, 1,314 RBI, a .248/.320/.421 slash line, and a 110 OPS+.

• Al López (1908) is a Hall of Famer who had a 19-year major league career that spanned from 1928-1947. He played mostly with three National League teams: Brooklyn, Pittsburgh, and Boston. A two-time All-Star, he was a defense-first catcher, only batting .261 with minimal power (51 HR in 6,611 plate appearances). But his defense was strong enough that he nonetheless received down-ballot MPV votes in eight seasons. He led the NL in caught stealing % four times, and ranks fourth all-time in that category. While he was a good catcher for a long time, López is in the Hall of Fame even more because of his success as a manager. He led the Indians from 1951-1956, including an impressive 111-43 record and AL Pennant in 1954. He then led the White Sox from 1957-1965 (and for brief stints in 1968-69), again winning an AL Pennant in 1959. Overall, his managerial career record is an impressive 1,410-1004, which is a .584 winning percentage, and he never had a losing season when managing for the entire year.

• Mark Langston (1960) was drafted in the 2nd round in 1981 by the Mariners and went on to have a 16-year major league pitching career, spent mostly with Seattle and the California Angels. He came in second in the AL Rookie of the Year vote in 1984 after posting a 17-10 record, 3.40 ERA, and an AL-leading 204 strikeouts. He would again lead the league in strikeouts with 245 in 1986 and 262 in 1987, his first of four All-Star seasons. An excellent fielder on the mound, Langston took home seven Gold Glove Awards. Overall, he had a 179-158 (.531) record, 2,464 K, a 3.97 ERA, and a 107 ERA+.

• Tom Brunansky (1960) was drafted by the Angels in the first-round (14th overall) in 1978, but after a brief call-up in 1981, was traded to the Twins along with Mike Walters for Doug Corbett and Rob Wilfong. That worked out well for Minnesota as “Bruno” would hit 20+ HR in all six of his seasons as their primary RF, including highs of 32 HR in 1984 and 1987. He went on to play for three other clubs, and have a 14-year major league career. Overall, Brunansky had 271 HR, 919 RBI, a .245/.327/.434 slash line, and a 106 OPS+.

• Andy Benes (1967) was the first overall pick in the 1988 draft, taken by the San Diego Padres. He was up in the majors the next season, and pitched for them until being traded to the Mariners during the 1995 season. He was signed as a free agent by the Cardinals the next season and played out his 14-year career in St. Louis and Arizona. He was an All-Star once, and received down-ballot Cy Young Award votes in two other seasons. Overall, Benes had a 155-139 (.527) record, a 3.97 ERA, a 104 ERA+, and exactly 2,000 strikeouts.

Currently active players who were born on August 20 include SFG Jung Hoo Lee, CHC Cade Horton, and CHC Nate Pearson.

Today’s Matchups

Today we have an almost full slate of Wednesday games (14), so there are lots of possibilities. Some games and pitchers that jump out to me are:

• SEA vs. PHI is the third and final game of this series, with the Phillies having taken the first two. Here we have Luis Castillo (3.48 ERA, 125 K in 142.1 IP) vs. Jesús Luzardo (4.21 ERA, 158 K in 139 IP).

• MIL vs. CHC today concludes this series, with the Cubs having swept the split double-header yesterday, bringing the Brewers back down to earth a bit. Today we have Jacob Misiorowski (3.89 ERA, 50 K in 34.2 IP), who couldn’t get out of the second inning in his last start, and the Cubs countering with Colin Rea (3.99 ERA, 90 K in 121.2 IP).

Also toeing the rubber today are HOU Framber Valdez, NYM Kodai Senga, TBR Drew Rasmussen, KCR Noah Cameron, and LAD Shohei Ohtani.

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:

• PHI Kyle Schwarber, 6-20 with 4 HR and 2 doubles vs. SEA Luis Castillo

• ATL Ozzie Albies, small sample but is 7-9 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. CHW Martín Pérez… wow, that is pretty good! It does track though, because Pérez is a lefty, and although Albies is a switch-hitter, over his career he has been much better against LHP than RHP.

• HOU Jose Altuve, 6-22 with 2 HR and a double vs. DET Charlie Morton

• LAA Mike Trout, 6-21 with 2 HR and a double vs. CIN Nick Martinez

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:

• SEA Donovan Solano, 7-13 vs. PHI Jesús Luzardo

• PHI Max Kepler, 6-16 with a HR and 2 doubles vs. SEA Luis Castillo

• SDP Fernando Tatis Jr., small sample but is 4-6 vs. SFG Landen Roupp

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 17 - ATH Tyler Soderstrom

• 12 - ATL Michael Harris II - is batting .471 with 6 HR

• 10 - CIN Noelvi Marte

• 9 - PHI Trea Turner

• 9 - STL Pedro Pagés

• 8 -WAS Paul DeJong

• 8 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 8 - SFG Jung Hoo Lee

• 7 - NYM Francisco Lindor - is batting .500 with 3 HR

• 7 - NYM Brandon Nimmo

• 7 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 7 - CIN Elly De La Cruz

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:

• HOU Jesús Sánchez, 3-21 with 8 K vs. DET Charlie Morton

• NYY Anthony Volpe, 0-9 with 6 K vs. TBR Drew Rasmussen

• NYY Aaron Judge, 1-9 with 6 K vs. TBR Drew Rasmussen

• ATL Matt Olson, 2-13 though only 1 K vs. CHW Martín Pérez

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

The teams with the fewest runs per game so far this year are:

• 3.52 - Pirates

• 3.78 - Rockies

• 3.80 - Royals

• 3.84 - White Sox

• 3.96 - Guardians

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.

• 3 ways Ohtani is an entirely different pitcher now, by David Adler at MLB, 8/19/2025

• The clubs that can deliver a life-changing title this season, by Will Leitch at MLB, 8/19/2025

• Dead Ball’s Renaissance Man, by Chris Jensen at Here's the Pitch: the IBWAA Newsletter, 8/20/2025

• Wilbur Cooper – a forgettable would-be HOFer, by Mark Kolier at Almost Cooperstown, 8/20/2025

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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