The Baseball Buffet for 8/21/2025

Issue #373

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 147th day of the season featured a nearly full slate of Wednesday games:

• TOR 1, PIT 2 - George Springer greeted Johan Oviedo with a HR in the top of the first, his 21st of the season. The Pirates came back with two runs in the bottom of the frame, and that would be all the scoring this game would produce. Oviedo did well after that (5 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) and three Pirates' relievers kept the Jays off the board with Dennis Santana earning his 9th save. Chris Bassitt struck out 10 in 5.2 innings while taking the loss.

• SEA 2, PHI 11 - Julio Rodríguez hit a HR in the first inning, but then Jesús Luzardo struck out 12 over his 6 innings of work (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 12 K). Eugenio Suárez hit his 39th HR of the year in the seventh, but those two solo HR wouldn’t be nearly enough in the face of the Phillies’ 20 hits. Kyle Schwarber was 3-5 with a HR, a double, and 5 RBI; Max Kepler was 3-5 with a HR and a double; and Trea Turner was 5-6 with a triple and 3 runs.

• HOU 2, DET 7 - Mauricio Dubón hit a 2-run HR in the fourth, but the Astros couldn’t get much else going as Charlie Morton otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 3 BB, 8 K) and three Tigers’ relievers didn’t allow any further runs. Detroit scored seven runs in five innings off Framber Valdez (5 IP, 7 H, 7 ER, 4 BB, 2 K), with Dillon Dingler going 2-4 with a triple and a double.

• CLE 2, AZ 3 - Arizona’s starter Brandon Pfaadt did well (7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K), but Cleveland rookie Parker Messick, making his MLB debut, was even better allowing only one run in 6.2 innings (6.2 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K). Lourdes Gurriel Jr. hit his 17th HR in the bottom of the ninth to tie the game 2-2 and force extras. The Guardians didn’t score in the top of the tenth, but the D-Backs had a walk-off victory when Adrian Del Castillo singled to left to drive in Pavin Smith.

• STL 2, MIA 6 - Willson Contreras hit a HR in the sixth inning, but Sandy Alcantara otherwise pitched well, striking out nine (7 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 9 K). Miami scored in five different innings, including rookie Maximo Acosta hitting his first major league HR in the sixth.

• NYM 4, WAS 5 - The Nationals had a 4-0 lead when Brett Baty finally got the Mets on the board with a solo HR in the fifth. Josh Bell answered with a solo shot in the bottom of the frame, and then the Mets scored three in top of the sixth to come within one. But the score stayed that way, as three Nationals’ relievers pitched scoreless innings, including Jose Ferrer notching his 3rd save.

• CHW 0, ATL 1 - Each team only managed four hits in this one, with both veteran Martín Pérez (5.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K) and rookie Hurston Waldrep (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K) doing well. The lone run came in the bottom of the fourth, when with two outs and a runner on third, Ozzie Albies reached on a fielding error by SS Colson Montgomery that allowed Marcel Ozuna to score. Raisel Iglesias pitched the ninth for Atlanta and locked down his 21st save.

• NYY 6, TBR 4 - New York rookie Cam Schlittler (6.2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 8 K) had a perfect game going through six innings, only broken up by a leadoff single by Chandler Simpson in the seventh. Meanwhile, the Yankees built a modest 3-0 lead powered by solo HR from Trent Grisham in the first and eighth innings, plus a solo HR by Austin Wells in the fifth. But then the woes of the Yankees' bullpen struck again, as Luke Weaver allowed a HR to Bob Seymour in the bottom of eighth, and David Bednar gave up two runs in the bottom of the ninth to force extras. The Rays brought in their closer Pete Fairbanks, but Giancarlo Stanton hit a pinch-hit, 2-run HR, and Austin Wells immediately followed with his second dinger of the game. Devin Williams allowed a run in the bottom of the frame, but also struck out three to earn his 18th save.

• TEX 6, KCR 3 - Vinnie Pasquantino hit a 3-run HR in the bottom of the first, and Bobby Witt Jr. went 3-5 with his MLB-leading 39th double. But the Royals couldn’t get anything going beyond that first inning really, while the Rangers tallied 12 hits, including Wyatt Langford going 2-2 with a HR and 3 walks, and Marcus Semien going 3-5.

• ATH 4, MIN 2 - Tyler Soderstrom hit his 23rd HR in the fourth inning, but Bailey Ober otherwise pitched fairly well (5.2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 7 K). The Twin scored two in the bottom of the fifth, and the game remained locked 2-2 through nine. In the top of the 10th, Génesis Cabrera let up a 2-run HR to Shea Langeliers, his 28th on the year. Tyler Ferguson pitched a scoreless bottom of the frame, earning his 2nd save.

• MIL 3, CHC 4 - The Cubs took their third game in a row from the recently red-hot Brewers. In the third inning, Michael Busch hit a bases-loaded double to drive in three off Jacob Misiorowski (4 IP, 1 H, 3 ER, 3 BB, 5 K). Up 3-2, Matt Shaw hit a HR in the bottom of the eighth as an insurance run, and that was important since the Brewers did score one in the top of the ninth before Daniel Palencia closed it out for his 18th save.

• LAD 3, COL 8 - Teoscar Hernández hit a HR in the sixth, but Rockies' rookie Tanner Gordon otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K). Colorado managed nine hits of Shohei Ohtani (4 IP, 9 H, 5 ER, 0 BB, 3 K) and tallied 16 hits overall. Hunter Goodman was 3-5 with a double and 3 RBI; Jordan Beck was 3-5; and Brenton Doyle was 2-4 with a double.

• CIN 1, LAA 2 - Both starting pitchers did well: Yusei Kikuchi (7 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 4 K) and Nick Martinez (6 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K). The winning run came in the bottom of the 8th when Bryce Teodesio hit a double, and then with one Luis Rengifo hit a single to left to drive him in.

• SFG 1, SDP 8 - Casey Schmitt hit a solo HR in the fourth, but JP Sears otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 2 K) in his first start since being called back up. The Padres got to Landen Roupp early (2.1 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 2 K), and overall tallied 10 hits, including four homers: Gavin Sheets had two, and Manny Machado and Ryan O’Hearn had one 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 Yankees won their fifth in a row, climbing to within four of the AL East leading Blue Jays.

• The Cubs have closed the gap with the Brewers to six, and have one more game against them today.

• SDP won and LAD lost, so that division tightens again to just one game between them.

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

Today’s Trivia Question

Which pitcher has had the most strikeouts so far during the 2020s (from 2020 through so far in 2025)? Bonus points for any of the others in the top five you can name.

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

• DET SP José Urquidy

• CHC RP Eli Morgan

• BAL SS Jorge Mateo

• LAD IF Kike Hernádez

• MIA 3B Connor Norby

🤕 Placed on the IL

• CIN C Tyler Stephenson - 10-day IL (left thumb fracture)

• TEX RP Cole Winn - 15-day IL (nerve irritation)

• CHW RP Elvis Pequero - 15-day IL (right elbow strain)

🚼 Placed on the Paternity List

• LAA SP José Soriano

League Leaders

On Tuesday, Corbin Carroll had two more triples, further solidifying him atop this MLB leaderboard:

• 16 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 12 - BOS Jarren Duran

• 10 - SFG Jung Hoo Lee

• 9 - DET Zach McKinstry

• 8 - LAD Shohei Ohtani

• 6 - ATL Michael Harris II

• 6 - COL Mickey Moniak

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 21…

• 1901: Spitting incident leads to arrests and a fine. “In Baltimore, Orioles pitcher Joe McGinnity is tossed for spitting in the face of umpire Tom Connolly. When Detroit's Kid Elberfeld intervenes, he is decked by Baltimore's Mike Donlin. Bill Keister also gets involved, as do some fans, and the police, who arrest the players and a fan. Judge Harry Goldman, a part-owner of the O's, releases the players and fines the fan $100.”

• 1908: Catching a ball off the Washington Monument. “On the third try, Senator Gabby Street catches a ball thrown from the top of the Washington Monument. Scientists estimated the 555-foot drop the ball traveled had a force between 200 and 300 pounds.”

• 1926: Ted Lyons throws a no-hitter. “White Sox hurler Ted Lyons pitches a no-hitter, beating the Red Sox at Fenway Park, 6-0.”

• 1975: The Reuschel brothers combine for a shutout. “The Reuschel brothers of the Cubs join forces to blank the Dodgers, 6-0. Rick goes 6 1/3 innings and Paul finishes the game for the first combined shutout thrown by siblings.”

• 1982: Rollie Fingers is the first to reach 300 saves. “Brewer reliever Rollie Fingers become the first player in major league history to record 300 career saves as Milwaukee defeat the Mariners, 3-2.”

• 1984: Rookie Roger Clemens strikes out 15. “Red Sox rookie Roger Clemens strikes out 15 and walks none as Boston whips Kansas City, 11-1.”

• 1986: Spike Owen scores six runs. “Spike Owen becomes the first major leaguer in 40 years to score six runs in a game as the Red Sox rout the Indians, 24-5.”

• 2015: Mike Fiers throws a no-hitter. “Mike Fiers of the Astros pitches the fifth no-hitter of the season, defeating the Dodgers, 3-0, in an interleague contest. He strikes out 11 and retires the last 21 batters in a row. It is the first time in his career that he reaches the 9th inning in a game he has started.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• J.D. Martinez (1987) has so far had a 14-year major league career, as a RF, LF, and DH, mostly with the Astros, Tigers, and Red Sox, but with single seasons with the D-Backs, Dodgers, and Mets too. A six-time All-Star, Martinez has hit 20+ HR eight times, with highs of 45 in 2017 in 43 in 2018, when he led the AL with 130 RBI. Overall, he has had 331 HR, 1,071 RBI, a .283/.348/.516 slash line, and a 131 OPS+. Martinez has not officially retired, but is currently a free agent and has remained unsigned so far during the 2025 season. Interestingly, he has announced his intention to become a professional Pickleball player when his baseball career is over.

• John Wetteland (1966) had a 12-year major league pitching career, spent with the Dodgers, Expos, Yankees, and Rangers. He posted 25+ saves in nine consecutive seasons from 1992-2000, his final season in the majors. This includes a high of 43 which he had three times: in 1993 with the Expos, in 1996 with the Yankees (led AL), and then again in 1999 for the Rangers. In 1996, Wetteland was named World Series MVP after he finished five games including 4 saves with a 2.08 ERA. A three-time All-Star, Wetteland overall had 330 saves, a 2.93 ERA, and a 148 ERA+.

• Craig Counsell (1970) had a 16-year major league career playing a mix of 2B, SS, and 3B. He spent most of his time with the Brewers and Diamondbacks, and the rest with the Marlins, Rockies, and Dodgers. He had a little speed on the bases, with a high of 26 SB in 2005, but was a fairly light hitter overall with a .255 average, .342 OBP, and only 42 career HR in 5,488 plate appearances. But his good defense and position versatility made him a valuable teammate. Soon after retiring as a player he became the manager of the Brewers in 2015, and performed in that role through 2023, then switched to the Cubs where he has been manager the past two seasons.

• John Stearns (1951) had an 11-year major league career as a catcher, spanning from 1974-1984. He was the first-round (2nd overall) draft pick by the Phillies in 1973, but was then traded to the Mets along with two other players for reliever Tug McGraw and two others. Stearns hit 12 HR in 1977 and 15 HR in 1978, but was a rare catcher for his era as he had some speed on the bases, stealing 10+ bases four times, with a high of 25 SB in 1978. A four-time All-Star, he had a career .260/.341/.375 slash line and a 102 OPS+.

• B.J. Upton (1984) had a 12-year major league career, initially playing several infield positions before switching to CF. He was the first-round (2nd overall) draft pick by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2002, and played for Tampa for most of his career, before finishing up with Atlanta, San Diego, and Toronto. He struck out a lot (eight seasons with 150+ K), but had a nice combination of power and speed, hitting 20+ HR four times, and stealing 20+ bases eight times., including having 40+ SB four times. Overall, Upton had 164 HR, 300 SB, and a .243 career average. His younger brother Justin had a 16-year major league career, hitting 325 HR with 151 SB.

• Jesse Chavez (1983) finally retired earlier this year, after an 18-year major league career that included time with nine different teams. Mostly a reliever, he did do some starting in the middle of his career while with the Athletics and Angels. His best numbers perhaps came in 2018 while playing for the Rangers and Cubs when he posted a 2.55 ERA with 5 saves and 92 K in 95.1 IP.

Currently active players who were born on August 21 include AZ Corbin Carroll, NYY Luke Weaver, TBR Ryan Pepiot, PHI Alan Rangel, and TBR Eric Orze.

Today’s Matchups

Today we have a partial slate of Thursday games (9), as many teams are either travelling or otherwise have the day off. Some games and pitchers that jump out to me are:

• MIL vs. CHC concludes their long series today with Quinn Priester (3.48 ERA, 100 K in 124 IP) and Shota Imanaga (3.06 ERA, 85 K in 103 IP).

• SFG vs. SDP concludes this 4-game California series, with Justin Verlander (4.23 ERA, 95 K in 106.1 IP) going against Dylan Cease (4.61 ERA, 171 K in 132.2 IP).

• BOS vs. NYY begins a four-game series of this classic rivalry, with New York as the hosts this time. Lucas Giolito (3.63 ERA, 87 K in 106.2 IP) is up for Boston, and Luis Gil is making his fourth start of the year for the Yankees.

Also on the mound today are LAD Clayton Kershaw, WAS MacKenzie Gore, and STL Sonny Gray.

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:

• MIL William Contreras, small sample but is 3-7 with 2 HR vs. CHC Shota Imanaga

• KCR Bobby Witt Jr., small sample but is 5-9 with a HR and a double vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

• KCR Maikel Garcia, small sample but is 4-8 with a HR and a double vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

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:

• NYM Jeff McNeil, 8-12 vs. WAS MacKenzie Gore

• NYY Amed Rosario, 7-17 with a triple vs. BOS Lucas Giolito

• KCR Jonathan India, 6-16 with a HR vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

• SFG Patrick Bailey, small sample but is 4-7 with a double vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• WAS Josh Bell, small sample but is 4-8 with a double vs. NYM Sean Manaea

• CHC Nico Hoerner, small sample but is 4-8 with a HR vs. MIL Quinn Priester

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 18 - ATH Tyler Soderstrom

• 11 - CIN Noelvi Marte

• 10 - PHI Trea Turner - is 23-46 (.500)

• 9 - STL Pedro Pagés

• 9 -WAS Paul DeJong

• 9 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 9 - SFG Jung Hoo Lee

• 8 - NYM Francisco Lindor - is batting .485 with 3 HR

• 8 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 7 - NYY Giancarlo Stanton - is 12-21 (.571) with 5 HR

• 7 - MIN Brooks Lee

• 7 - AZ Lourdes Gurriel Jr.

• 7 - MIN Luke Keaschall

• 7 - COL Ryan Ritter

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:

• SDP Ramón Laureano, 2-13 with 7 K vs. SFG Justin Verlander

• SDP Xander Bogaerts, 4-29 with 5 K vs. SFG Justin Verlander

• TBR Christopher Morel, 1-11 with 4 K vs. STL Sonny Gray

• NYM Pete Alonso, 2-18 though only 2 K and one hit was a HR vs. WAS MacKenzie Gore

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

Wasn’t my first guess, but Dylan Cease is the leader in strikeouts so far in the 2020s. Here are the top-five:

• 1,106 - Dylan Cease

• 1,094 - Zack Wheeler

• 1,052 - Kevin Gausman

• 1,009 - Corbin Burnes

• 1,009 - Aaron Nola

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.

• Freak-Out Factor: Who should be pushing the panic button?, by Anthony Castrovince at MLB, 8/20/2025

• One potential prospect callup for each team, by Sam Dykstra and Jonathan Mayo, 8/20/2025

• The Matchup: Hershiser vs. Morris!, by Joe Posnanski at JoeBlogs, 8/19/2025

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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