Latest news with #postseason
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Sox reportedly in the hunt for Twins flamethrowing closer
The Boston Red Sox will be an interesting team to watch in the next 24 hours. The trade deadline is approaching, and they are in the mix for a postseason spot. Boston currently is just five games back in the American League East and in possession of the second Wild Card spot. They will likely be buyers in the next few days. They need some help on the pitching side. Another high-leverage relief arm wouldn't hurt. Jon Heyman of MLB Network recently reported that Boston is in the mix for Minnesota Twins closer Jhoan Duran. "If they can pull off the trade, it would not only give the Red Sox an electric late-inning duo of Duran and Aroldis Chapman for 2025 but also solidify the back end of their bullpen beyond this season. While Chapman is a pending free agent, Duran is controllable through 2027," reported Wednesday. Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp Duran has put together a strong season for the Twins. He is 6-4 with a 2.01 ERA and 2.3 WAR in 49 appearances and has recorded 16 saves. However, the Twins are selling and have been falling out of the postseason race for the past few weeks. The Red Sox also need some bullpen help. Duran could potentially split closer duties with left-hander Aroldis Chapman, who has been serving as the team's closer. In the event that Chapman walks in the offseason, he could also take over the closer's role in 2026. His best season to date was 2022, when he posted a 1.86 ERA as a setup man for the Twins. He has been a reliable source of strikeouts for several years as well. We'll see if the Red Sox make a move for Duran. More MLB:
Yahoo
7 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Sox, mindful of workload, push Garrett Crochet's turn back a few days
MINNEAPOLIS — Underscoring his importance to the team and its chances for reaching the postseason, the Red Sox are planning to give ace Garrett Crochet a few additional days of rest before his next outing. Crochet, who pitched last Saturday against the Dodgers, would ordinarily have been scheduled to go Friday when the Red Sox begin a brief six-game homestand. Instead, Crochet will next pitch on either Monday or Tuesday, to ensure that he has some extra time between starts. Crochet, who was last season limited in his workload by his former team, the Chicago White Sox, has never pitched more than 146 innings in a single season. To date this year, his first with the Sox, he's at 141.1 innings, the most of any pitcher in the majors. 'This is something we've been talking about for a while here,' said Alex Cora, 'kind of like give him a breather. So we'll do that. This is the plan we had before (this week). We decided to do it.' Crochet either leads or is tied for the MLB lead in innings pitched, strikeouts, and starts and is third in ERA. He's also shown no signs of fatigue despite approaching his career high in innings before August. 'It's huge. He's posted. He's done an outstanding job,' said Cora. 'There was one outing (in May against the Mets) that we planned accordingly, a short one (limiting him to 85 pitches). The other ones have been full-go. That's the thing - he'd actually rather (have a few extra days) instead of going 80 pitches in one outing. So we've talked about it as a group and we brought it during the week.' Crochet is understanding of the team's thinking and believes the extra few days can be beneficial. 'It's a good time to catch my breath a little bit,' said Crochet. 'Not really a de-load, but a little bit so in that sense. I kind of knew, throughout the season, that we would try to find extra rest for me if we could. I'd like a five-day (routine), but I appreciate the front office and the managerial staff looking out for me.' Crochet is unsure if this will be the last time the rotation is rearranged some to provide him with more bounce-back time. 'I think realistically, it kind of depends, as we get into August and September, what we're looking like as far as the postseason picture,' he said. 'But before we really get into the heat of August and September, while the off-days are still kind to us and we're able to do this without throwing everybody else off schedule as well, it benefits me and I feel like if you're benefitting anybody, you're ultimately benefitting the team.' Crochet said he's holding up under the workload, even as he ventures into territory he's never before visited. 'I've been feeling really good,' he said. 'Last year, I didn't know what to expect. This year, I went into the break with 20 more innings than last year but felt a little bit better than I expected, to be honest with you. And that's kind of held true throughout the season for me. '(I'm at a point that I'm) knowing what I actually need at this point in my career, whereas last year I didn't really know what I needed to do. I was just kind of throwing it together on the fly. This year, I've really stuck to it.' A key, Crochet said, is 'kind of listening to my body as best I can. I definitely still like to have a good base of strength going into starts. But there are four or six-week cycles in the weight room, you kind of alternate between power output, speed output and then resting. So, it's kind of wherever that falls.' Crochet confirmed he would rather have extra days rather than having his pitch count limited as it was for the one game in May. 'One hundred percent,' he said. '(Shortening an outing), you're kind of putting people in an awkward spot whereas now, whether someone comes up and makes a start or because of the off-day, we're able to bump everybody up and keep everyone else on a five-day (schedule). I feel guilty doing it to the guys, but that's where we're all here for - to pick each other up and pull for one another,' More Red Sox coverage Red Sox trade rumors: Boston among several teams 'prominently in' on Twins closer (report) Ex-Red Sox pitcher traded to Angels, starting third stint with team (report) Fenway Insider Live: Submit questions for MassLive's Sean McAdam MLB Trade Deadline 2025 tracker: Eugenio Suárez market heating up; What will Red Sox do? Alex Bregman scratched after being in original Red Sox lineup for Wednesday matinee Read the original article on MassLive.
Forbes
12 hours ago
- Sport
- Forbes
Dansby Swanson On Possibility Of Leading Chicago Cubs To A World Series: ‘We're Going To Have A Good Chance'
Dansby Swanson knows the Chicago Cubs have a legitimate chance of winning the World Series this season. The 31-year-old shortstop has already previously won a World Series with the Atlanta Braves (in 2021). Not only does the two-time All-Star know what it takes to win one, he knows when a team has the ingredients to make a postseason run. Entering Tuesday's game against the division-leading Milwaukee Brewers, the Cubs are 62-44, the second-best record in the National League. "We're just a good baseball team," says Swanson in a one-on-one interview. "I think sometimes we can overlook just that. We have a deep lineup, we run the bases extremely well. Our defense is pretty freakin' top tier. Starting pitching has been consistent, the bullpen has been really good. We've been able to withstand some injuries on the pitching side, and we just have a great group that wants to win." The Cubs are not only impressive when it comes to their record, they're a pretty good squad as a whole. Chicago leads the majors in runs and ranks in the top five for hits and batting average. It also doesn't hurt that the Cubs have two All-Stars in the batting lineup — Kyle Tucker and Pete-Crow Armstrong — along with Matthew Boyd. Boyd is coming off of his first All-Star selection and has a 2.47 ERA to go along with 11 wins. He ranks second in the National League in both categories. "We're always spending time around one another, we just do a lot of things really, really well," says Swanson. "I think that with baseball and getting to play every day, when you can show up and do your job well every day it gives you a good chance to win." The Cubs still have two months left in the regular season and they obviously need to finish the season strong in order to clinch their first playoff appearance since 2020. Swanson — who joined the team in 2023 — details what it takes to play well throughout a full 162-game season. It's worth noting that when the Braves won the World Series in 2021, they had the fifth-best record in the National League. "A lot of it is just mentality, just the being strong and tough mentally throughout a season is everything, you're going to get kind of dinged up from time to time," says Swanson. "There's going to be aches and pains that you're going through. There's going to be some slumps that you're going through, and it's really just about putting the uniform on and taking the field and finding a way to help the team win. I think it's it really is as simple as that. The more that you do it, your body -- in a way — kind of gets calloused over to it." Swanson — who is actually from Georgia and grew up a fan of the Braves — says winning the World Series with the Braves was only a script that "God could write." The veteran shortstop grew up going to games at Turner Field. "I feel like I've always had a pretty big imagination," says Swanson when asked if he ever imagined winning a championship with his hometown team. "I feel like I've always had a belief system that that would happen. It's a script that is something only I feel like God could write just doing it for your hometown team, and all those kinds of things that go with it. At the end of the day, that was a part of my story, and I'm very glad it is." Swanson speaks glowingly of possibly winning a World Series in Chicago, which would be just the second time the Cubs have won the World Series since 1909. He calls the possibility "quite the feat." "I just like to win," says Swanson when asked what his objective is this season. "That really is something that I value most, is the winning. I think that winning here in Chicago is really freaking cool. Wrigley has been so magical this whole season, just people are really, really into our games. The fan support's been pretty incredible. Obviously, bringing a championship back to Chicago would be quite the feat. It's hard to even fathom right now, just because of what the crowd would be like winning a championship here." Swanson has played in 37 career postseason games and has made four playoff runs in his career. He's also won a College World Series while at Vanderbilt, becoming one of the few players in Major League Baseball who's won championships at both levels. There are just four active players who have done so. He says that winning a World Series "might be" the hardest thing to do in sports. "It might be the hardest thing there is to do in sports, just because of the way the series work, and it's about who can get hot at the right time," says Swanson. "There's just so many things that end up going your way. Every pitch is so meaningful. and sometimes the ball just bounces your way. In that season (in 2021), I feel like we started playing our best ball at the right time. There was a strong belief system within the group. "I feel like right now, with where we're at in Chicago, we feel that we're in a good place to do something special," Swanson continues to say. 'We feel like the rest of the season is going to be a lot of fun, and we're going to have a good chance to do something pretty cool in October.' While Swanson is busy trying to ensure the Cubs continue to win in their quest to win a World Series, he's partnering with Dairy Queen leading into Miracle Treat Day on July 31. For every Blizzard treat sold on Miracle Treat Day, $1 will be donated to Children's Miracle Network Hospitals. The Cubs star – who can currently be seen in a Dairy Queen commercial with New York Mets star Francisco Lindor – has been partnered with the fast food chain since before the season started. He explains what led to him starring in the campaign. "While growing up, my family were big fans of Dairy Queen," says Swanson. "We had one down the street from our house, and it was a symbol of a staple during the summer months, with it being so hot in Georgia. When I saw this opportunity present itself, it just made a ton of sense, something that was closely related to me and my family, and something that I could definitely get behind. With the Miracle Treat Day Stuff on the 31st of July, and what they're doing to give back to the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, it was just a match made in heaven, and very, very grateful to be able to do my part and be a very small part of this. But I feel like there's just so much good that can come from it."
Yahoo
13 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
WNBA playoff outlook: Which teams have the easiest path to the postseason? What about home-court advantage?
With the WNBA postseason starting on September 14, the fight for playoff spots and seeding will only ratchet up in the coming weeks. One of the biggest factors in who makes it in and who gets home-court advantage is the remaining schedule. The uneven nature of the 2025 slate means that the teams who are traveling and facing top teams in the home stretch may have a tougher time. The WNBA playoffs are structured differently from the NBA. The top eight teams, regardless of conference, move into the postseason. The rest of the format is familiar, with the team with the best record getting the top seed and home-court advantage throughout. There will be two changes in the playoffs this year. The finals will increase from five to seven games, with a 2-2-1-1-1 format, meaning the higher seed would host the first two games, and the lower seed would get the next two, and then they will go back and forth with the higher seed getting to host a potential Game 7. The first round will feature a 1-1-1 structure, so the higher seed will host the first and, if needed, third game. (In the previous playoff format, the lower-seeded team wouldn't get any games at home unless they took one of the first two games, which were on the road.) The new format for the first round means getting home-court advantage isn't quite as important, as teams will now need to travel for at least one game, regardless of the seed. Still, teams will want to make it into the top four just for the chance to play more games at home, so let's take a look at the teams fighting for that all-important fourth playoff spot. Phoenix Mercury Current record and standing: 16-9; 3rd Most important game: August 17 at Seattle Outlook: The good news for Phoenix is that they have the easiest remaining schedule based on their opponents' winning percentage. Most of their remaining games are against teams further down the standings, and their final three games of the season are against the Sun, Sparks and Wings, all teams currently out of the playoff picture. Phoenix has struggled with injuries this season — their big three of Alyssa Thomas, Satou Saballly and Kahleah Copper has not played together much — so an easier schedule could allow the Mercury to give their starters a break in the run-up to the playoffs. Seattle Storm Current record and standing: 16-11, 4th Most important game: September 5 at home vs. New York Outlook: The Storm have the fourth-toughest remaining schedule in the league. In addition to their August games against the Dream and Mercury, they will play the Lynx twice, the Liberty once, and end the regular season against the Valkyries, who could be battling to make it into the playoffs in their first season. The Storm will need their stars, Nneka Ogwumike and Skylar Diggins, to lead the way — Diggins put up her first career triple-double in a blowout win over the Sun on Sunday. Atlanta Dream Current record and standing: 15-11; 5th Most important games: August 13 and 15, away and then home against Seattle Outlook: Atlanta is just a smidge behind Phoenix with the second-easiest remaining strength of schedule, but they do have a rough stretch in mid-August where they face Phoenix, Seattle twice, Golden State, Las Vegas, Minnesota and New York. If they can emerge from this run around the No. 4 spot, they have a good shot to hold on and earn home-court through the first round as they play their final five games against Los Angeles and Connecticut. While the Mercury, Storm and Dream are fighting for home-court in the first round, they're all but assured a spot in the postseason. The Aces, Mystics and Valkyries are fighting for playoff spots, period — here's how their schedule affects them: Las Vegas Aces Current record and standing: 14-13; 7th Most important game: August 23 at Washington Outlook: It feels a bit surreal to think that the Aces — the team that won back-to-back titles in 2022 and 2023, the team with four Olympic gold medalists, including three-time MVP A'ja Wilson — might not make the playoffs in 2025. But if they can't navigate the rest of the season with more consistency, it could happen. Their strength of schedule is right in the middle of the road compared to the rest of the league, but the Aces do have some tough games in the schedule's final six weeks, including games against the Liberty and Lynx. The final three games of the season do offer some promise for the Aces, however, as the team will play the Sky twice and the Sparks once. Washington Mystics Current record and standing: 13-13; 8th Most important game: August 30 at Golden State Outlook: The young Mystics are in a good position to make it to the playoffs in Sydney Johnson's first year as the team's head coach, especially because they have a fairly easy schedule (third-easiest in the league). It's not a cupcake, as the Mystics will have to play the Lynx once and the Liberty twice, all on the road, but they could continue to surprise with their rookie duo, Sonia Citron and Kiki Iriafen, helping lead the charge. Golden State Valkyries Current record and standing: 12-13; 9th Most important game: August 30 vs. the Mystics Outlook: One of the best WNBA stories this season is the Valkyries, who could make the postseason in their first year in existence, all without a superstar. But it will not be easy for Golden State to break into the league's top eight with the sixth-toughest remaining schedule in the league. It's not just that the Valks will have to face the Mercury and Lynx twice and the Liberty once. It's their sheer number of games in the next six weeks. A particularly unforgiving stretch starts August 9 and ends August 19, with Golden State playing every other day. They then end the season on the road with games at Seattle and Minnesota. But if they make it through that with a postseason berth, they will be well-prepared for the playoffs behind head coach Natalie Nakase, a former assistant with the Aces.
Reuters
2 days ago
- Sport
- Reuters
Guardians, adjusting to closer's absence, face Rockies again
July 29 - The Cleveland Guardians' postseason chances took a major hit on Monday when closer Emmanuel Clase was placed on non-disciplinary paid leave, joining starting pitcher Luis Ortiz on MLB's administrative leave list amid gambling investigations. The Guardians took another step in the wrong direction later in the day, when the visiting Colorado Rockies rallied against Cade Smith in the ninth inning for an 8-6 win. The three-game series continues Tuesday when Guardians left-hander Logan Allen (6-9, 4.16 ERA) faces Rockies right-hander Tanner Gordon (2-2, 3.13). Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt chose to maintain a stiff upper lip after the gut-wrenching Monday loss that saw his newly installed closer retire a lone batter while giving up four runs. Thanks to Smith's throwing error on an attempted sacrifice bunt, only one of the runs was earned. "Definitely not a normal Cade outing," Vogt said. "He just looked like he got a little bit sped up there. He typically has a slow heartbeat pitching that spot. These things happen, but yeah, I still have full confidence in Cade and all of our guys." Perhaps no one took Clase's stunning departure harder than Smith, who filled in for the three-time former All-Star when Clase endured a rough stretch in April. "That (stinks)," Smith said of Clase's departure. "I mean, he's a part of the team. It sucks for him to be not here." Smith, a 6-foot-5, 230-pound Canadian, is now 3-for-6 in save situations this season, but he has been a seventh- and eighth-inning anchor since making the Guardians out of spring training in 2024. Over 121 games, Smith has an 8-5 record, four saves and a 2.39 ERA. "I'm going to do whatever the team asks me," Smith said. "My job is to be here to compete, to prepare, to be ready for when that bullpen phone rings. And so that doesn't change." Allen has dropped back-to-back outings, giving up seven runs on 15 hits in 11 2/3 total innings against the Athletics and the Baltimore Orioles. He has only pitched against Colorado once, when he was rocked for seven runs over 1 2/3 innings in a road loss on May 29, 2024. The Rockies are almost certain to finish with the worst record in the major leagues. They are sitting at 28-78, and they could approach the 2024 Chicago White Sox's modern-era record of 121 losses. However, in the series opener on Monday, Colorado looked nothing like its lowly mark. Tyler Freeman tied his career high with three RBIs, capped by the go-ahead single in the ninth, and rookie Warming Bernabel became the fifth player in team history to sock two homers in his first three career games. Freeman, who was acquired from Cleveland for outfielder Nolan Jones on March 22, has blossomed in a full-time role as a right fielder/designated hitter. The ex-utility man is batting .333 with 16 RBIs and nine stolen bases in his last 45 games, while Jones is 5-for-39 (.128) since July 12. "I know (Vogt) loves Tyler. Well, I second that," Colorado interim manager Warren Schaeffer said. "He's been incredible, brought a lot to our team all season. I love how he plays. You love when a guy goes out and gives it his all -- and then some -- every day." Gordon is 1-3 with a 7.36 ERA in four career interleague starts, but this will be his initial appearance against Cleveland. He threw six scoreless innings in his latest start, beating the St. Louis Cardinals on Wednesday after being recalled from Triple-A Albuquerque. --Field Level Media
