The Baseball Buffet for 8/26/2025

Issue #378

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 152nd day of the season featured a nearly full slate of Monday games:

• BOS 4, BAL 3 - Roman Anthony led off the game with a HR, but then the Orioles took an early 3-1 lead after three innings, including a HR by Colton Cowser. Boston came back and took the lead with a 3-run HR by Jarren Duran in the top of the fifth. Both bullpens held the score at that point, with Aroldis Chapman eventually locking down his 25th save.

• TBR 9, CLE 0 - Tampa Bay pitcher Ian Seymour had been working as a reliever, but yesterday he had his first major league start and was great (5 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K). Junior Caminero has been hot lately and went 4-5 with 2 HR, a double, 4 runs, and 3 RBI; Yandy Diaz was 2-5 with a HR and a double; and Josh Lowe, Carson Williams, and Bob Seymour had two hits apiece.

• ATL 1, MIA 2 - Spencer Strider did well (7 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K), but Edward Cabrera was outstanding (7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 10 K). Marlins’ 3B Maximo Acosta hit a HR in the bottom of the eighth to put Miami up 2-0, which was important as Calvin Faucher let up a solo HR to Drake Baldwin in the top of the ninth before wrapping up his 12th save.

• WAS 5, NYY 10 - Rookie Cam Schlittler had another strong start for New York (6 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K). The Yankees bullpen had issues again late, as the Nats finally got on the board with five runs in the top of the ninth, including a grand slam by Jacob Young. But it didn’t matter this time as the Bronx Bombers offense had already scored 10 runs spread across the odd-numbered innings, including a solo HR by Ben Rice in the third, a 2-run HR by Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the fifth, and a 3-run HR by Jasson Domínguez in the seventh. Cody Bellinger was also an important contributor, going 2-3 with 3 RBI.

• MIN 4, TOR 10 - Matt Wallner hit two HR off Toronto starter Max Scherzer (6 IP, 4 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K), but the Twins couldn’t get much else going with only five total hits. Meanwhile, Joe Ryan struggled early (5 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), giving up four runs in the first inning including a 2-run HR by Alejandro Kirk. Nathan Lukes was 2-5 with 2 doubles and Andrés Giménez was 2-3 with a HR, a walk, and 3 runs scored.

• KCR 0, CHW 7 - Shane Smith was outstanding, allowing only one hit over seven innings (7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K), and Tyler Gilbert combined with him for a 2-hit shutout. Meanwhile, Royals' rookie Noah Cameron struggled (5 IP, 8 H, 6 ER, 0 BB, 0 K), including giving up back-to-back HR to Korey Lee and Brooks Baldwin in the fourth inning. Miguel Vargas was 2-4 with 2 doubles; Lenyn Sosa was 2-4 with a double and 2 RBI; and Curtis Mead was 2-4 with a double.

• PIT 6, STL 7 - The Pirates got back-to-back homers from Bryan Reynolds and Spencer Horwitz in the third inning, while Johan Oviedo did well in a short start (4 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). Leading 4-1, Andrew Heaney came in and let up 5 hits and 5 runs in less than an inning of work. The Bucs came back with a run in the seventh, and then tied the game 6-6 with a run in the top of the ninth. But then Alec Burleson capped a 4-hit day with a HR off Dennis Santana in the ninth for the walk-off Cardinals’ win.

• PHI 3, NYM 13 - The Phillies established a 3-0 lead through the first three innings. But then five Mets relievers kept Philadelphia quiet the rest of the way, while New York scored 13 runs spread across five different innings. They tallied 14 hits, with Luis Torrens going 3-5 with a HR, a double, and 5 RBI; Mark Vientos 2-3 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI; and Tyrone Taylor 3-4 with a double and 3 runs.

• AZ 5, MIL 7 - Milwaukee scored five in the bottom of the third, forcing Eduardo Rodriguez from the game (2.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 1 K). Brandon Woodruff was humming along nicely until he also gave up five runs in the sixth inning (5.2 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), including a 3-run HR by Lourdes Gurriel Jr. So the difference in this game came via two Brewers’ solo HR by Andruw Monasterio in the fourth and Caleb Durbin in the eighth, respectively. Abner Uribe pitched a scoreless ninth, earning his 3rd save.

• LAA 4, TEX 0 - Zach Neto hit a leadoff HR, his 22nd dinger of the year. Jacob deGrom otherwise did fairly well (5 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), but José Soriano was strong (5.2 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) and four Angels relievers combined for the 5-hit shutout. Logan O’Hoppe tacked on an extra run with a ninth inning HR, his 19th of the season.

• SDP 6, SEA 9 - Seattle starter Bryce Miller (5 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 4 K) gave up three HR in the second inning to Gavin Sheets, Jake Cronenworth, and Fernando Tatis Jr. The Mariners also had early HR, with Cal Raleigh hitting his MLB-leading 50th in the first inning, and Jorge Polanco hitting a 2-run HR in the second. Seattle had tied the gave 4-4 through four, and then put the game out of reach by scoring five runs in the bottom of the fifth off San Diego reliever David Morgan.

• DET 3, ATH 8 - Both teams had 10 hits, but the Tigers were 1-11 with runners in scoring position and stranded 9 guys overall. Athletics’ starter J.T. Ginn struck out 8 in 5.1 innings, but gave up three runs in the sixth including a HR by Gleyber Torres. Tarik Skubal had been doing great, and ended up with 12 K in 6.2 innings, but in the seventh inning he gave up a solo HR to Colby Thomas, and then after striking out two with the bases loaded, let up a grand slam to Shea Langeliers. Nick Kurtz added a pinch-hit 2-run HR in the eighth, his 27th on the year.

• CIN 0, LAD 7 - Hunter Greene gave up two HR to Andy Pages, and Mookie Betts added a solo HR later in the seventh. Meanwhile, Emmet Sheehan was outstanding (7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 10 K) and two Dodgers’ relievers combined for the 3-hit shutout.

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:

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

• There hasn’t been much movement in the WC picture lately. If the Royals, Rangers, or Reds are going to do anything, they need to get hot now!

Today’s Trivia Question

I’ve been frequently lamenting the sad state of batting average leaders in the NL this season. Freddie Freeman is currently leading with a .302 mark, followed by Trea Turner of the Phillies at .299, so he could easily climb up and take the title. Who is the last member of the Phillies to win an NL batting title?

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).

🤕 Placed on the IL

• NYM RP Reed Garrett - 15-day IL (right elbow inflammation)

• MIL RP Grant Anderson - 15-day IL (right ankle tendonitis)

🚼 Placed on the Paternity List

• CLE 2B Daniel Schneemann

• LAA SP Tyler Anderson

League Leaders

Shohei Ohtani continues to dominate the runs scored leaderboard, but Aaron Judge recently became the second to top 100:

• 122 - LAD Shohei Ohtani

• 101 - NYY Aaron Judge

• 95 - NYM Juan Soto

• 91 - SDP Fernando Tatis Jr.

• 90 - CIN Elly De La Cruz

• 90 - PHI Kyle Schwarber

• 90 - PHI Trea Turner

• 88 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 88 - NYM Francisco Lindor

• 86 - SEA Cal Raleigh

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 26…

• 1916: Joe Bush throws a no-hitter. “At Philadelphia's Shibe Park, A's hurler Joe Bush no-hits the Indians, 5-0. ‘Bullet Joe’ will be credited with 15 of the last-place Athletics' 36 victories this season.”

• 1930: Hack Wilson sets a new single-season NL record for HR. “Hack Wilson has four RBIs to lead the Cubs over the Pirates, 7-5. Wilson cracks a two-run single in the 5th, but then allows a Lloyd Waner liner to skip by him for an inside-the-park home run, and vows to atone. He hits his 44th home run, off young Larry French, breaking Chuck Klein's one-year-old National League record.”

• 1939: The first MLB telecast. “A major league baseball game is telecast from Ebbets Field for the first time as the Reds play the Dodgers in a doubleheader. Red Barber broadcasts the game over W2XBS. The Reds take the first game, 5-2, and the Dodgers take the second, 6-1. Between the two games, a ceremony is held to honor Alexander Cartwright with a Hawaiian-themed celebration to mark the centennial anniversary of baseball.”

• 1962: Jack Kralich throws a no-hitter. “The Twins' Jack Kralick no-hits the A's and wins, 1 - 0, on Lenny Green's sacrifice fly off Bill Fischer. A 3 - 2 walk to George Alusik with one out in the 9th spoils the bid for a perfect game. Alusik had beaten Kralick with a two-run home run on August 8th.”

• 1987: Paul Molitor’s 39-game hitting streak comes to an end. “Paul Molitor's 39-game hitting streak comes to an end as he waits in the on-deck circle watching pinch hitter Rick Manning single home the winning run in a 1-0, ten-inning victory over the Indians.”

• 1990: Bret Saberhagen throws a no-hitter. “At Royals Stadium, Bret Saberhagen fires a no-hitter beating the White Sox, 7-0.”

• 1994: Ichiro has a long hitting streak as a rookie in Japan. “Ichiro Suzuki, a rookie with the Orix BlueWave, reaches base for the 68th game in a row, setting a new Nippon Pro Baseball record.”

• 1998: Andruw Jones becomes the youngest player to have a 20/20 HR/SB season. “Atlanta's Andruw Jones steals his 20th base of the season, becoming the youngest player ever to have a 20 homer, 20 steal season. Cesar Cedeno was the previous record-holder. The Braves go on to win by a score of 6-2.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• David Price (1985) was the overall number one draft pick in 2007, selected by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. He was strong in the minors in 2008 and was called up towards the end of the year, doing well in a mostly relief role in both the last bit of the regular season and in the postseason. He became a part of Tampa’s rotation in 2009 and had a 10-7 record with a 4.42 ERA before doing much better in 2010 with a 19-6 mark and 2.72 ERA. That was Price’s first of five All-Star campaigns, including in 2012 when he won the AL Cy Young Award after leading the league with a 2.56 ERA and in wins with a 20-5 record. After playing for the Rays for parts of seven seasons he spent the rest of his 14-year career with the Tigers, Blue Jays, Red Sox, and Dodgers. He had 15+ wins in six seasons, and overall had a solid 157-82 (.657) record, a 3.32 ERA, and a 123 ERA+.

• Elvis Andrus (1988) had a 15-year major league career, that started at age 20 in 2009 and went through 2023. He played mostly with the Rangers, spending only his last three seasons with the A’s and White Sox. A two-time All-Star, Andrus was a good defensive shortstop who led the AL in SS Putouts five times and SS Assists twice. He was also a capable base-stealer, with ten seasons of 20+ SB, and a high of 42 in 2013. He didn’t have a lot of power, but broke out for 20 HR in 2017 and managed 17 in 2022. Overall, he had 102 HR, 347 SB, and a .269/.325/.370 slash line.

• Jesse Barnes (1892) had a 13-year major league pitching career, spanning from 1915-1927, and mostly spent with Boston and New York in the NL. He went 25-9 with a 2.40 ERA in 1919, and then was 20-15 with a 2.64 ERA the following year. He performed well in two World Series, posting a 1.65 ERA in 16.1 relief innings for the Giants against the Yankees in 1921, and then allowed only 2 earned runs in a 10-inning start the following year against the Yankees. Overall, Barnes had a nearly even 152-150 career record, along with a 3.22 ERA and 105 ERA+.

Currently active players who were born on August 26 include DET Spencer Torkelson, PHI Ranger Suárez, and CHC Ryan Brasier.

Today’s Matchups

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

• PHI vs. NYM is game two of this NL East leaders’ series, with Jesús Luzardo (4.10 ERA, 170 K in 145 IP) up against Sean Manaea (5.15 ERA, 45 K in 36.2 IP), who has given up four or five earned runs in each of his last four starts.

• SDP vs. SEA is an inter-league matchup between two teams with playoff plans, and features Dylan Cease (4.71 ERA, 178 K in 137.2 IP) against Luis Castillo (3.57 ERA, 127 K in 146.1 IP).

Also on the hill today are ATL Hurston Waldrep (4-0 and 0.73 ERA in his four starts), WAS MacKenzie Gore, MIL Jacob Misiorowski, HOU Hunter Brown, CHC Matthew Body, SFG Justin Verlander, and LAD Clayton Kershaw.

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 Nick Castellanos, 6-19 with 3 HR and a double vs. NYM Sean Manaea

• NYY Aaron Judge, small sample but is 3-5 with 2 HR vs. WAS MacKenzie Gore

• SEA Eugenio Suárez, 4-11 with 2 HR vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• STL Nolan Gorman 5-22 with 2 HR and a double vs. PIT Mitch Keller

• TEX Adolis García, 5-18 with 2 HR vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• ATL Marcell Ozuna, 11-28 with 2 HR and 2 doubles vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• ATL Ronald Acuña, 12-35 with 2 HR, a triple, and 4 doubles vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• ATL Ozzie Albies, 13-45 with 2 HR and 4 doubles vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

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:

• LAA Travis d’Arnaud, 9-21 vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

• LAA Taylor Ward, 6-15 with a HR and a double vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

• LAA Zach Neto, 4-8 with a HR and a double vs. TEX Patrick Corbin

• STL Lars Nootbaar, 9-23 with a HR and a double vs. PIT Mitch Keller

• ATL Michael Harris II, 6-16 with a HR vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• SDP Ryan O’Hearn, 6-16 with a double vs. SEA Luis Castillo

• NYM Jeff McNeil, 5-12 vs. PHI Jesús Luzardo

• TEX Jonah Heim, 5-13 vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• PHI Edmundo Sosa, 5-10 with a HR, a triple, and a double vs. NYM Sean Manaea

• SDP Luis Arraez, 4-6 with 3 doubles vs. SEA Luis Castillo

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 14 - KCR Bobby Witt Jr.

• 12 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 10 - COL Ryan Ritter

• 10 - TOR Bo Bichette

• 9 - HOU Carlos Correa

• 9 - PIT Nick Gonzalez

• 8 - MIL Brice Turang

• 8 - PHI Bryce Harper

• 8 - NYM Mark Vientos

• 8 - PHI Alec Bohm

• 7 - BAL Gunnar Henderson

• 7 - CHC Michael Busch

Active HR streaks

• 3 - CHW Colson Montgomery

• 3 - TBR Junior Caminero

• 2 - NYY Jazz Chisholm Jr.

• 2 - MIL Caleb Durbin

• 2 - SEA Cal Raleigh

• 2 - MIN Matt Wallner

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:

• NYM Pete Alonso, 2-25 with 12 K, though one hit was a HR vs. PHI Jesús Luzardo

• ATL Matt Olson, 2-22 with 8 K vs. MIA Sandy Alcantara

• TOR Ty France, 2-14 with 5 K vs. MIN Bailey Ober

• CHC Justin Turner, 1-14 with 4 K vs. SFG Justin Verlander

• CHW Andrew Benintendi, 1-13 with 4 K vs. KCR Michael Lorenzen

• SFG Willy Adames, 1-12 with 4 K vs. CHC Matthew Boyd

• BOS Jarren Duran, 1-12 with 4 K vs. BAL Cade Povich

• NYM Mark Vientos, 1-11 with 4 K vs. PHI Jesús Luzardo

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

Trea Turner is batting .299 and is second in the NL batting race behind Freddie Freeman at .302. The last member of the Philadelphia Phillies to win a batting title was Richie Ashburn with a .350 average in 1958.

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.

• Will they opt out? Will teams opt in? These players have big decisions looming, by Mark Feinsand at MLB, 8/25/2025

• 10 farm systems with the best pitching prospects, by Sam Dykstra at MLB, 8/25/2025

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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