The Baseball Buffet for 9/1/2025

Issue #384

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 158th day of the season featured a full slate of Sunday games:

• STL 4, CIN 7 - St. Louis’ rookie catcher Jimmy Crooks hit his first major league HR, but the Reds had homers from Austin Hays and Matt McLain. Brady Singer struck out 8 over 6 innings, and Emilio Pagán struck out three in the ninth to earn his 26th save.

• PIT 2, BOS 5 - Lucas Giolito walked five, but otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 5 BB, 6 K), with Aroldis Chapman striking out two in the ninth to earn his 27th save. Jarren Duran had a big game, going 2-2 with an inside-the-park HR, a double, 2 walks, and 3 RBI.

• SDP 2, MIN 7 - Joe Ryan was outstanding over seven innings (7 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), and Byron Buxton was 2-5 with a double and a HR, his 29th of the year. It sure has been nice to see him stay healthy and perform well—at 31, maybe he can still have several solid seasons ahead!

• TBR 7, WAS 4 - The Rays scored six in the top of the second inning, including Brandon Lowe hitting a grand slam off Brad Lord (3 IP, 5 H, 7 ER, 2 BB, 3 K). Ian Seymour struck out 8 over 5 innings (5 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K), and three Rays’ relievers pitched four scoreless innings the rest of the way, with Pete Fairbanks striking out two in the ninth to record his 24th save.

• SEA 4, CLE 2 - Daniel Schneemann hit a 2-run HR in the third inning, but that would be the only scoring for the Guardians in this one. Other than that homer, Bryce Miller had a good game (6 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 3 K), and three Mariners relievers pitched scoreless innings, including Andrés Muñoz who struck out two in the ninth for his 32nd save. Randy Arozarena had a 2-run HR, and Julio Rodríguez was 2-4 with 2 RBI.

• MIL 4, TOR 8 - Both teams scored early, and both tallied 13 hits overall. Max Scherzer let up nine hits (4 IP, 9 H, 4 ER, 0 BB, 1 K) including HR to William Contreras and Brice Turang. Brandon Woodruff allowed ten hits and eight runs, though only five were earned (4.1 IP, 10 H, 8 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 3 K). Both bullpens kept the offenses quiet after the fifth inning, with the Jays showing faith in their recently shaky closer Jeff Hoffman who closed out the game in the ninth.

• MIA 5, NYM 1 - Sandy Alcantara pitched a good game (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) and two Miami relievers kept the Mets off the board for the final two frames. Kodai Senga struggled (4.2 IP, 7 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 6 K), including giving up a 2-run HR to Marlins’ catcher Augustín Ramírez.

• LAA 3, HOU 0 - Oswald Peraza hit a HR in the fifth inning, but Hunter Brown otherwise pitched well (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 3 BB, 5 K). Jose Soriano was outstanding, only allowing one hit over seven innings (7 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 BB, 8 K). Two Angels’ relievers combined for the two-hit shutout, with Kenley Jansen securing his 25th save.

• DET 5, KCR 0 - Tarik Skubal was good per usual (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 4 K), and two Detroit relievers combined for the four-hit shutout. Catcher Jake Rogers was 2-4 with a triple, a double, and 2 RBI.

• NYY 2, CHW 3 - Aaron Jundge hit his 43rd HR of the year in the first inning, and was 3-5 with a double and 2 runs on the day. White Sox starter Martín Peréz did fairly well overall (6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), as did Luis Gil (5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 7 K), giving up a HR to rookie Colson Montgomery in the sixth. The game was tied 2-2 through seven, but then Yankees reliever Tim Hill gave up a solo HR to Lenyn Sosa in the bottom of the eighth. That would prove decisive as Mike Vasil held the Yankees scoreless in the top of the ninth for his 3rd save of the year.

• CHC 5, COL 6 - Tanner Gordon struck out 9 in 6 innings of work (6 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 9 K), while Rockies rookie catcher Braxton Fulford went 2-4 with a triple, a double, and 2 runs. Down 5-2, the Cubs came back and tied the game in the eighth thanks to a 3-run HR by Ian Happ. But then in the bottom of the ninth, Ryan Ritter hit a single and Mickey Moniak drove him in with a triple to right for the walk-off win.

• AZ 4, LAD 5 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto was outstanding through seven (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 10 K), while the Dodgers scored four off Arizona starter Brandon Pfaadt (4.1 IP, 8 H, 4 ER, 1 BB, 5 K). Corbin Carroll hit a 3-run HR in the 8th to tie the game, his 29th homer of the year. Blake Treinen pitched a scoreless top of the ninth, and then in the bottom of the inning Will Smith hit a walk-off HR, his 17th of the season.

• BAL 2, SFG 13 - The Orioles tallied 10 hits, but were 2-12 with runners in scoring position and left 12 guys on base overall. Justin Verlander was great, striking out 10 in five innings (5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 4 BB, 10 K), and the Giants collected 16 hits with Rafael Devers going 3-5 with a HR and a double; Heliot Ramos 3-5 with 2 runs; and Drew Gilbert 3-5 with a triple, a double, and 3 RBI.

• TEX 9, ATH 6 - The Rangers scored three runs early from homers by Joc Pederson and Josh Jung. They built up a 7-0 lead while Jacob deGrom had another good start (5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K). The Athletics scored five in the 8th, and one more in the ninth, but it wouldn’t be enough.

• ATL 3, PHI 1 - Brandon Marsh hit a HR in the fourth inning, but otherwise Atlanta’s rookie starter Hurston Waldrep once again had a good start (5.2 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 9 K). Four relievers kept the Phillies off the board the rest of the game, including Raisel Iglesias striking out two in the ninth for his 23rd save. Phillies’ starter Jesús Luzardo was outstanding (6.2 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), but the Braves tied the game 1-1 in the eighth, and then Drake Baldwin hit a 2-run HR in the top of the ninth.

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 Rangers are surging a bit, with a 5-game winning streak and taking 8 of their last 10.

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

Today’s Trivia Question

As I noted above, it has been nice to see Byron Buxton staying on the field this year and putting up the numbers we always knew he was capable of. In doing so he has become the seventh Minnesota Twins player to have a 20/20 HR/SB season. How many of the other six can you name? (There are six other players, but seven 20/20 seasons as one player did it twice.)

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

• MIA SP Ryan Weathers

🤕 Placed on the IL

• LAA SP Tyler Anderson - 15-day IL (left oblique strain)

• SFG SP Carson Whisenhunt - 15-day IL (back strain)

• MIA CF Dane Myers - 10-day IL (right oblique strain)

• MIA SP Ryan Gusto - 15-day IL (right shoulder impingement)

👋🏻 Claimed off Waivers

• TOR SS Isiah Kiner-Falefa - claimed off waivers from the Pirates

• PHI RP Tim Mayza - claimed off waivers from the Pirates

• CHC SP Aaron Civale - claimed off waivers from the White Sox

📝 Signed as a Free Agent

• PHI SP Walker Buehler

• LAA SP/RP José Ureña - if he pitches for them it will be his fifth major league team this season, as he’s already pitched for the Mets, Blue Jays, Dodgers, and Twins.

League Leaders

As we enter the last month of the regular season, here are the pitcher strikeout leaders:

• 216 - DET Tarik Skubal

• 214 - BOS Garrett Crochet

• 195 - PHI Zack Wheeler

• 187 - PIT Paul Skenes

• 187 - SFG Logan Webb

• 183 - SDP Dylan Cease

• 182 - HOU Hunter Brown

• 182 - PHI Jesús Luzardo

• 181 - PHI Cristopher Sánchez

• 177 - NYY Carlos Rodón

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 September 1…

• 1902: Tinker, Evers, and Chance play together for the first time. “In today's split of a doubleheader with the Phillies‚ Joe Tinker‚ Johnny Evers‚ and Frank Chance appear together in the Chicago Orphans lineup for the first time‚ but not in the positions that will earn them immortality. Evers‚ a New York State League rookie‚ starts at SS‚ with Tinker at 3B‚ Chance at 1B‚ and veteran Bobby Lowe at 2B.”

• 1906: Two rookie pitchers go 24 innings each. “The American League's longest game to date takes place in Boston before 16‚000. Rookies Jack Coombs and 24-year-old Joe Harris go the route in a 24-inning struggle‚ ending with a 4-1 Athletics victory after 4 hours and 47 minutes. It sets the major league record‚ later broken‚ and is still the AL mark for two pitchers.”

• 1931: Lou Gehrig hits third grand slam in five days. “Lou Gehrig hits his third grand slam in five days and his sixth home run in consecutive games when he connects in a 5-1 second-game win over the Red Sox.”

• 1964: Murakami becomes the first major league player from Japan. “Southpaw relief P Masanori Murakami becomes the first major league player from Japan. He debuts in a 4-1 San Francisco loss at New York. His first 11 innings will be scoreless ones.”

• 1972: Rod Carew steals home for the win in the 10th inning. “Rod Carew swipes home with two out in the 10th inning to give the Twins a 5-4 victory over the Indians. Carew will swipe home 17 times in his career‚ seven times stealing alone. The Twins score their first four runs as Bobby Darwin drives them all in on four hits‚ including two homers.”

• 2007: Clay Buchholz throws a no-hitter in his second game. “Clay Buchholz of the Boston Red Sox pitches a 10-0 no-hitter over the Baltimore Orioles in his second career start. He is the first pitcher to throw a no-hitter in his first or second start since Wilson Alvarez did so in 1991, also in his second start.”

• 2019: Justin Verlander throws his third no-hitter. “Justin Verlander pitches the third no-hitter of his career as the Astros defeat the Blue Jays, 2-0. Verlander issues only one walk in pitching the complete game, and is only the sixth pitcher to have performed the feat three or more times. It is the second time that the Jays are his victims, making him only the third pitcher to no-hit the same team twice.”

🎂 Today’s Birthday Boys 🎉

• Jim O’Rourke (1850) is a Hall of Famer who had a 23-year career spanning from 1872-1893 (with one game played in 1904 as well). Although primarily an outfielder, he also played over 100 games each at C, 1B, and 3B. He played eight seasons for the New York Giants, but also spent time with seven other clubs. A high-average hitter, he was a good run-scorer, with five seasons of 100+ runs and would have had more except the first half of his career was during the early days of short seasons. Overall, O’Rourke had 2,639 hits, 1,729 runs, a .310/.352/.422 slash line, and a 134 OPS+.

• Garry Maddox (1949) was drafted in the second round in 1968 by the Giants, and went on to have a 15-year major league career, spanning from 1972-1986. After several good seasons with San Francisco he was traded in May 1975 to the Phillies for Willie Montañez. He was a capable hitter, with good speed on the bases including eight seasons with 20+ SB. But his primary value came from his defense in CF, which earned him eight Gold Glove Awards and the nickname “Secretary of Defense”. Overall, Maddox had 117 HR, 248 SB, and a .285/.320/.413 slash line.

• Rico Carty (1939) had a 15-year major league career, spanning from 1963-1979, including eight years with the Braves and the rest spread between five clubs. He played LF but was not very strong defensively, so switched to mostly DH in the mid-1970s. His one All-Star campaign came in 1970 when he led the NL with a .366 average and a .454 OBP, to go along with 25 HR and 101 RBI. Overall, Carty had 204 HR, 890 RBI, a .299/.369/.464 slash line, and a 132 OPS+.

Currently active players who were born on September 1 include CHC Shota Imanaga, SEA Eduard Bazardo, STL Anthony Veneziano, and CHC Jordan Wicks.

Today’s Matchups

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

• PHI vs. MIL is game one of a series featuring two of the top teams in the NL. Taijuan Walker (3.63 ERA, 73 K in 101.2 IP) gets the call for the Phillies, and the Brewers will counter with the exciting, though recently inconsistent, Jacob Misiorowski (4.33 ERA, 65 K in 43.2 IP).

• LAA vs. HOU is interesting because it is the first start of the year for Houston’s Luis Garcia, who has been rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. If he can do well today and throughout September it will bolster the Astros’ pitching depth going into the postseason. The Angels are going with Yusei Kikuchi today (3.68 ERA, 156 K In 154 IP).

Also toeing the rubber today are CIN Hunter Greene, STL Sonny Gray, ATL Spencer Strider, SDP Dylan Cease, and SEA Luis Castillo.

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:

• NYM Juan Soto, 8-14 with 3 HR and 7 BB vs. DET Charlie Morton - probably best that he just walks him more!

• HOU Ramón Urías, 4-15 with 3 HR vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• HOU Yordan Alvarez, 9-25 with 3 HR and 3 doubles vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• TOR Bo Bichette, small sample but is 3-6 with 2 HR and a triple vs. CIN Hunter Greene

• ATL Jake Fraley, 6-12 with 2 HR vs. CHC Colin Rea

• AZ Ketel Marte, 7-15 with 2 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:

• HOU Carlos Correa, 13-25 with a triple and 2 doubles vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• MIL Christian Yelich, 5-10 with a HR and a double vs. PHI Taijuan Walker

• LAA Yoán Moncada, 5-9 with a HR and 2 doubles vs. HOU Luis Garcia

• NYM Mark Vientos, small sample but is 5-7 with a HR and a double vs. DET Charlie Morton

Who is streaking?

Active hit streaks

• 11 - MIL Andruw Monasterio

• 11 - BAL Jeremiah Jackson

• 9 - TEX Joc Pederson

• 8 - TEX Josh Jung - is 17-34 (.500) during this streak

• 7 - CHW Andrew Benintendi

• 7 - MIA Connor Norby

• 7 - SDP Gavin Sheets - is 13-25 (.520) during this streak

• 7 - NYM Brandon Nimmo

• 7 - SEA Julio Rodríguez

• 7 - LAD Andy Pages

• 7 - SDP Jake Cronenworth

Active HR streaks

• 2 - MIN Byron Buxton

• 2 - AZ Corbin Carroll

• 2 - NYY Aaron Judge

• 2 - CIN Matt McLain

• 2 - STL Pedro Pagés

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:

• BAL Ryan Mountcastle, 1-11 with 6 K though the hit was a HR vs. SDP Dylan Cease

• MIN Byron Buxton, 1-10 with 5 K vs. CHW Mike Clevinger (if pitching, TBD)

• HOU Christian Walker, 2-15 with 5 K vs. LAA Yusei Kikuchi

• LAA Taylor Ward, 1-13 with 4 K vs. HOU Luis Garcia (though Ward might not play, as he got hurt crashing into the wall yesterday)

⚾ Enjoy the games today!⚾
 

Today’s Trivia Answer

The 20/20 HR/SB seasons for the Minnesota Twins have been:

• 2025: Byron Buxton with 29 HR and 21 SB… so far!

• 2014: Brian Dozier with 23 HR and 21 SB

• 2004: Torii Hunter with 23 HR and 21 SB

• 2002: Torii Hunter with 29 HR and 23 SB

• 2001: Corey Koskie with 26 HR and 27 SB

• 1995: Mary Cordova with 24 HR and 20 SB

• 1986: Kirby Puckett with 31 HR and 20 SB

• 1977: Larry Hisle with 28 HR and 21 SB

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.

• 6 big questions that will be answered in September, by Will Leitch at MLB, 8/31/2025

• 5 Baseball Cards to "Charm" a Queen (city), at Wax Pack Gods Newsletter, 8/31/2025

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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