Latest news with #Triple-A
Yahoo
14 hours ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Yankees' Luis Gil strikes out seven in strong final rehab appearance
It looks like the Yankees are about to receive a huge boost to their starting rotation. Youngster Luis Gil was terrific across 4.1 innings of work as he made his likely final rehab appearance with Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday night. Gil needed 19 pitches to get through the opening frame against the Nashville Sounds, but he picked off a baserunner and added his first punchout with a nasty slider in the dirt. He hit a man in the top of the second but quickly settled back into a groove, striking out the next four batters he faced before issuing a two out walk in the third, which was also quickly erased. The righty continued cruising from there, as he picked up a pair of three-pitch strikeouts in the fourth to help him work around a one out single lined right back up the middle. Nashville was finally able to strike against Gil in the fifth, though, as catcher Jorge Alfaro took an 0-2 slider on the outside corner the other way for a leadoff solo homer. He retired the next batter on one pitch, but was pulled after an error put another man on -- right-hander Zach Messinger entered and was able to escape without any further damage on his line. Gil's book closed with one run allowed on three hits and a walk while striking out seven over 4.1 innings. After a shaky first outing in Triple-A, this was certainly the effort the Yanks were hoping for. Aaron Boone said Tuesday that if everything comes back okay afterwards, the 27-year-old is lined up to make his highly-anticipated season debut on Sunday afternoon against the Miami Marlins. Gil, of course, has been sidelined since spring training with a right lat strain. The last time he was on the big-league mound he was finishing off a Rookie of the Year campaign in which he pitched to a 3.50 ERA and 1.19 WHIP with 171 strikeouts over 29 outings.
New York Times
a day ago
- Sport
- New York Times
Giants keep coming up short, lose to Pirates in pitcher Carson Whisenhunt's debut
SAN FRANCISCO — Carson Whisenhunt made a nice adjustment in his major league debut Monday night. He wasn't so sharp at the outset. He felt an abundance of adrenaline and he isn't the sort of pitcher who can convert that into fuel. When your best pitch is your changeup, more tends to be less. Whisenhunt, the last well regarded pitching prospect who remained in the Giants' thinned-out minor league system, threw some good changeups in the first inning that faded past major league bats. He snuck one of them past Oneil Cruz and his freakish bat speed while recording his first career strikeout. But other changeups were too firm and stayed in the middle of the zone. Almost every attempt at a slider kicked up dirt in front of the plate. Whisenhunt did not have the element of surprise in his favor, either. There was a time not long ago when a pitcher coming up from Triple-A was such a total mystery he might as well have arrived in a flying saucer. Those days are gone. The Pittsburgh Pirates had so much data on Whisenhunt that they could've taken out an auto loan in his name. They knew his pitch shapes and his sequences and that he usually had a changeup in his holster. So they hunted for it, and he served them enough hittable ones. After two innings against the lowest scoring team in the major leagues, Whisenhunt had given up four runs. Advertisement 'It kind of seemed like they were sitting changeup early on,' Whisenhunt said. 'And we wanted to flip the script a little bit.' Whisenhunt threw more fastballs after the second inning — the pitch that Triple-A hitters hit .377 against — and he put enough of them on the corners to keep the Pirates off the board. He retired nine of the last 10 hitters he faced, completed five serviceable innings, and by the time he handed over the baseball, the Giants had come back to tie the game. As debuts go, Whisenhunt's was neither a disaster nor an eye opener. It was something in between, which is what the Giants' decimated rotation needed. Whisenhunt might have displayed a little growth and moxie in the process, too. A very special night for the Whisenhunt family 🧡 — SFGiants (@SFGiants) July 29, 2025 Here is where the silver lining ends and the nor'easter begins. The second Carson of the night to take the mound, right-hander Carson Seymour, gave up a tiebreaking, two-run home run to Andrew McCutchen in the seventh inning. The Giants' spirited comeback attempt in the bottom of the ninth fell short in a 6-5 loss. For another team and another set of circumstances, Monday night's result would've included all the plaudits and pablum of a team focused on developing at the major league level. A second-round pick reached The Show. The hitters did enough grinding with two strikes to put the winning run on base. There was progress, even if it didn't show up on the scoreboard. But the Giants are not burning a pile of cash so they can celebrate incremental development successes. There was nothing festive about their 10th loss in 12 games to continue what's been a sudden and unexpected fall to the fringes of contention. The Giants were 12 games over .500 as recently as June 11. They are just one game over .500 now and four games behind the San Diego Padres for the third and final National League wild card spot. The trade for slugger Rafael Devers in mid-June was supposed to provide afterburners for a team on the rise. What a brilliant move by club president Buster Posey, the thinking went. Not only did they acquire the best hitter who will be moved at the trade deadline, but getting it done so quickly means that they'll have six more weeks for Devers to make an impact. Advertisement Instead, the Giants have spent most of those six weeks sitting in an impact crater. They are 13-22 since the trade — the worst record in the major leagues. They've scored 132 runs over that span — tied with the Pirates for the fewest in the majors. Devers is human, of course. He's adjusting to new teammates, a new coaching staff, a new city, a vastly different home hitting environment, and he's learning first base on the fly. He has a .729 OPS in 35 games as a Giant, which is 13 points above the major league average. He hasn't elevated the lineup as anticipated, but he isn't wholly to blame for the Giants' lack of run production, either. Even on a night when they received four hits with runners in scoring position, which counted as banquet fare after they were 0 for 23 with runners in scoring position last weekend against the New York Mets, it wasn't enough. The Giants have two more games to play before Thursday's trade deadline and they'll have to win at least one of them to get there with a winning record. Every signal is that Posey is not entertaining a selling posture. But you'd have to believe that winning just two of their last 12 games might be reducing his enthusiasm to make further sacrifices from the farm system in order to buy in a meaningful way. (Does it signify anything that closer Camilo Doval was summoned to pitch the ninth inning with the Giants trailing by two runs?) Of course, all of this context was secondary to Whisenhunt's family, including his jet-lagged father, Dennis, an aerospace engineer who was on a business trip in the Philippines trying to retrieve the wallet he left on his arriving flight when he got the word of his son's promotion. For everyone else, getting to San Francisco from North Carolina was an easy trip by comparison. Giants amateur scouting director Michael Holmes, who led the effort to draft Whisenhunt and also makes his home in North Carolina, flew in to mark the occasion as well. There was no minimizing the exhilaration and celebration and family pride of experiencing a childhood dream achieved. Whisenhunt had been scratched from his start for Triple-A Sacramento on Saturday, leading him to wonder initially if he'd been traded. Instead, he was told to report to the Giants' waterfront ballpark on Sunday so the team could stash him on its taxi squad. By midday Sunday, he knew he'd be making his major league debut the following night. Advertisement It was his last chance to request a different number from the No.66 he was issued in spring training. He didn't need to build up the courage to do it. Clubhouse manager Brad Grems acted first. He sought out Whisenhunt and asked if he preferred anything else. 'You got 88?' Whisenhunt said. 'I've never had anybody ask me that question,' Grems replied. When Whisenhunt threw his first big league pitch, he became the first No.88 in Giants history. Only 20 other major leaguers have worn the number. Chicago White Sox outfielder Luis Robert Jr. is the best-known current representative; it might be more than coincidence that he chose the number after signing an $88 million contract before making his debut in 2020. Feared slugger Albert Belle wore the number for two seasons with the Baltimore Orioles; his No.8 was already the sacred property of Cal Ripken, so Belle chose to duplicate it. Between all the retired numbers in Giants history, plus several that Grems unofficially sets aside (think Tim Lincecum's 55 or Bruce Bochy's 15 or Posey's 28), there aren't many traditional alternatives that remain for a pitcher making his major league debut. If Whisenhunt was going to get stuck with a football number, he figured he might as well use the one that his father wore on the high school gridiron. Whisenhunt's mother, Mandi, graduated from college in 1988. He has an aunt with an August 8 birthday, too. The Giants are likely to need at least one more start from the left-hander wearing No.88. Then they'll hope Landen Roupp's inflamed elbow will permit his return. They'll see what else the trade deadline might bring. Perhaps the next time out, Whisenhunt will take the mound with less adrenaline behind his changeup. But for the Giants, less cannot be more. They've gotten too little for too long.
NBC Sports
2 days ago
- Sport
- NBC Sports
MLB Power Rankings: Blue Jays soar to the top, streaking Mets gain momentum as trade deadline looms
Featured in this week's MLB Power Rankings, the Blue Jays keep on rising, Aaron Judge is hurting, the Tigers are slipping, the Mariners make the first big move before the trade deadline, Emmanuel Clase is probably not on the trade block anymore, rookie slugger Nick Kurtz has perhaps the best game by a hitter in MLB history, and much more: (Please note these power rankings are a combination of current performance and long-term projected outlook) Let's get started! Eric Samulski, Note: Rankings are from the morning of Monday, July 28. Last week: 3 Another week, another new No. 1 team. Is this season fun or what? Even with a loss on Sunday, the Blue Jays made a huge statement by taking three out of four from the Tigers. Max Scherzer made one mistake to take the loss Sunday, but he mostly looked dominant while striking out 11 batters on his 41st birthday. Some good news even in a rare loss for the Jays. At 41 years old, Max Scherzer is the oldest pitcher in at least the last 125 seasons with 10+ strikeouts on his birthday Surpassing 37-year-old Randy Johnson in 2000 Last week: 4 With Shota Imanaga coming off his roughest start of the season, the Cubs' need for an impact starting pitcher becomes more clear. The big question is who? Edward Cabrera? Sandy Alcantara? Merrill Kelly? Zac Gallen? MacKenzie Gore? Last week: 8 Seven straight wins for the Mets to climb back into first place in the NL East. The best sign in recent days has been how good Francisco Alvarez has looked following his return from Triple-A. HE'S BACK. FRANCISCO ALVAREZ TIES THE GAME WITH A TWO-RUN HOMER! Last week: 1 The Brewers walked off the Marlins on Sunday to avoid a sweep, but up next is a three-game first place showdown against the Cubs in Milwaukee. That's as important as it gets in late July. By the way, the best thing I saw this weekend was this. So cool to see Prince Fielder hitting bombs. He's still got it! The @Brewers are holding a postgame alumni HR Derby, and Prince Fielder is hitting TANKS Last week: 6 The Dodgers have had a patchwork rotation for much of the year, but with Blake Snell nearing his return, it suddenly looks like the club could have a surplus. Would the club actually consider parting with Dustin May to improve in other areas? Last week: 2 The Tigers scored 10 runs on Sunday to snap their six-game losing streak. Kerry Carpenter went 0-for-3 with two strikeouts in his return from the injured list, but getting him back is a big deal for this lineup moving forward. Last week: 7 Kyle Schwarber reached 1,000 career hits on Friday, and of course he did it with a homer. Kyle Schwarber's 1,000th career hit is a no-doubt homer! #FridayNightBaseball Nobody has hit more homers (319) within their first 1,000 hits than Schwarber. Last week: 5 The battered and bruised Astros continue to stumble. After getting swept by the A's, they've now lost 11 out of their last 16 games. Look for the club to prioritize a position player via trade this week. Last week: 9 When there are trades happening, you can expect A.J. Preller to be involved in some way. He has a way of keeping us on our toes, so nothing can be ruled out, including potentially moving closer Robert Suarez or Dylan Cease to upgrade in other areas. Watch this situation closely. Last week: 10 Yes, things could have been much worse in regard to Aaron Judge's elbow, but missing him for any length of time is a brutal blow in a tight AL playoff situation. Last week: 11 Garrett Crochet outdueled Clayton Kershaw on Saturday and Alex Bregman hit a go-ahead homer on Sunday as the Red Sox took two out of three from the Dodgers. The big question for the Red Sox to start the week is if Aroldis Chapman's back injury is a long-term concern. Last week: 12 Lots of things to discuss with the Mariners. Cal Raleigh is now the AL MVP frontrunner with Aaron Judge sidelined and Seattle's lineup is looking more fearsome with the acquisition of Josh Naylor from the Diamondbacks. I couldn't write about the Mariners here without mentioning Ichiro's wonderful speech at his Hall of Fame induction on Sunday. There's simply nobody better than this man. "Not bad, huh?" 😏 Last week: 17 After sweeping the Braves, the Rangers have now won six straight games and find themselves very much in the mix for a playoff spot. SIMMY WALKS IT OFF! #AllForTX Last week: 14 The Reds and Braves will square off in the first-ever 'Speedway Classic' this weekend at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee. MLB says they've sold over 85,000 tickets to Saturday's game, which will set a new regular-season MLB attendance record. Here's the first look at an official MLB field inside a NASCAR track 🤯 The Speedway Classic will take place next Saturday, Aug. 2nd between the Braves and Reds Last week: 15 It took long enough (17 starts), but Justin Verlander finally picked up his first win of the season last Wednesday against the Braves. He's now sitting on 263 wins for his career, so getting to 300 is looking unlikely for the 42-year-old. Last week: 13 Does the situation with Emmanuel Clase make it more likely that the Cardinals trade closer Ryan Helsley? The impending free agent told Katie Woo of The Athletic last week that he sees the odds as, '90 percent I go, 10 percent I stay.' It's a weird spot for the Cardinals, as they are one game over .500 and 3.5 games out of the Wild Card race to begin the week. Last week: 16 The Rays are 6-15 this month and look more and more like a seller going into this week's trade deadline. The question is whether we'll see some smaller deals or bigger moves involving the likes of Yandy Diaz or Brandon Lowe. Last week: 20 The topsy-turvy Guardians have been playing better recently, but should they keep the band together? One player we know won't be traded is Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase, who has been placed on non-disciplinary paid leave as part of MLB's sports-betting investigation. Last week: 21 While we wait to see what path the Guardians will take, it's clear that the Royals are still in it to win it. In addition to acquiring Randal Grichuk in recent days, they have reportedly agreed to an extension with right-hander Seth Lugo. Still, it will be challenging to chase down a Wild Card spot while missing both Cole Ragans and Kris Bubic. Last week: 18 Let the deals begin! The Diamondbacks have already traded Josh Naylor (Mariners) and Randal Grichuk (Royals) over the past few days and we should see Eugenio Suarez, Merrill Kelly, and Zac Gallen follow them out the door before Thursday's deadline. Suarez has slugged his way into being the most-coveted name on the trade block, with the Yankees, Reds, Cubs, Tigers, and Phillies among the potential landing spots. Last week: 19 Mike Trout reached the 1,000 career RBI mark in majestic fashion on Sunday, as he launched a 443-foot homer to center field. The future Hall of Famer is now just three homers away from 400 for his career. MIKE TROUT JOINS THE 1,000-RBI CLUB WITH A BANG 🐟 Last week: 22 The Twins are a key team to watch leading into the trade deadline. There's the obvious route to go with impending free agents like Harrison Bader, Willi Castro, and Danny Coulombe, but they could make things interesting if Griffin Jax and Jhoan Duran are made available. Last week: 23 Sandy Alcantara picked a good time for a throwback performance. The former Cy Young Award went a season-high seven innings while allowing just an unearned run against the Padres last Wednesday. The Marlins have other likely trade candidates, but Alcantara's situation is the most interesting to follow this week. Last week: 24 There's been some talk in recent weeks about the Orioles potentially trading Felix Bautista, but that's increasingly unlikely after he landed on the injured list last week with right shoulder discomfort. Gregory Soto was shipped to the Mets over the weekend and we should hear plenty of buzz about names like Ryan O'Hearn, Ramón Laureano, and Charlie Morton, among others. Last week: 26 The A's just pulled off their first-ever sweep of the Astros in Houston, highlighted by rookie slugger Nick Kurtz having perhaps the best game by a hitter in MLB history. THE 20TH FOUR-HOMER GAME IN MLB HISTORY BELONGS TO NICK KURTZ! In addition to being the youngest player ever to pull off a four-homer game, Kurtz's 19 total bases tied the MLB record set by Shawn Green on May 23, 2002. Last week: 25 The Braves can't wait for 2026 to come along. Grant Holmes hit the IL due to right elbow inflammation on Sunday, joining rotation mates Chris Sale, Spencer Schwellenbach, Reynaldo Lopez, and AJ Smith-Shawver on the sidelines. The Braves acquired the recently-DFA'd Erick Fedde from the Cardinals as well as Carlos Carrasco from the Yankees just to have some dudes who can throw some innings. Last week: 28 With another dominant outing Sunday against the Diamondbacks, Paul Skenes has won back-to-back games for the first time this season. Of course, that's not his fault. Skenes holds a ridiculous 1.83 ERA and 146/32 K/BB ratio over 133 innings (matching his innings total from last year) and should be considered the frontrunner for NL Cy Young Award honors. Last week: 27 Nationals outfielder Jacob Young pulled off one of the best catches of the season last Wednesday. MUST SEE: JACOB YOUNG SCALES THE WALL TO BRING THIS ONE BACK! Last week: 29 White Sox fans are getting a tantalizing glimpse at the future, with shortstop Colson Montgomery recently homering in three straight games. Colson Montgomery homers for a third straight game! The South Siders are putting on a show 😎 Last week: 30 Well, hey, look at that. The Rockies have won consecutive series for the first time this season and might be able to avoid the White Sox record for futility.
Hindustan Times
4 days ago
- Sport
- Hindustan Times
Phillies' Aaron Nola will make his first minor league rehab start on Thursday
NEW YORK (AP) — Philadelphia pitcher Aaron Nola will make his first injury rehabilitation start Thursday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley at Worcester as he works his way back from a sprained right ankle and fractured rib that have sidelined him since May. HT Image Nola threw batting practice on Friday. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Saturday the 32-year-old right-hander will throw about 60 pitches in the Triple-A game. Nola hurt the ankle during agility drills on May 8. He made a pair of ineffective starts and was placed on the IL effective May 15. Nola threw a bullpen session June 1 and felt sore a few days later. An MRI showed a stress fracture of a rib, Thomson revealed June 10. On the IL for a physical injury for the first time since 2017, Nola was 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA in nine starts and 49 2/3 innings. Right fielder Nick Castellanos was out of the starting lineup Saturday, a day after getting hurt in the Phillies' 12-5 win over the Yankees. 'The last play last night where he went back towards the wall, just kind of jammed his left knee a little bit,' Thomson said. 'He came in a little bit sore today, so keep him out, see how he is tomorrow.' Alec Bohm is to meet up with the Phillies on Sunday, travel with the team to Chicago and be evaluated. Bohm broke a left rib when hit by a 92.2 mph Yu Darvish pitch at San Diego on July 12. The third baseman and first baseman returned July 18 following the All-Star break, then went on the injured list. 'Still a little bit sore,' Thomson said. Outfielder Brewer Hicklen was obtained from Detroit for cash and optioned to Triple-A Lehigh Valley. Hicklen, 29, was hitting .227 with eight homers and 31 RBIs for Triple-A Toledo. He went 2 for 3 with a walk and a stolen base for Detroit at Colorado on May 8 in his only big league appearance this year. Right-hander Ryan Cusick was designated for assignment. ___ AP MLB:
Hamilton Spectator
4 days ago
- Sport
- Hamilton Spectator
Phillies' Aaron Nola will make his first minor league rehab start on Thursday
NEW YORK (AP) — Philadelphia pitcher Aaron Nola will make his first injury rehabilitation start Thursday for Triple-A Lehigh Valley at Worcester as he works his way back from a sprained right ankle and fractured rib that have sidelined him since May. Nola threw batting practice on Friday. Phillies manager Rob Thomson said Saturday the 32-year-old right-hander will throw about 60 pitches in the Triple-A game. Nola hurt the ankle during agility drills on May 8. He made a pair of ineffective starts and was placed on the IL effective May 15. Nola threw a bullpen session June 1 and felt sore a few days later. An MRI showed a stress fracture of a rib, Thomson revealed June 10. On the IL for a physical injury for the first time since 2017, Nola was 1-7 with a 6.16 ERA in nine starts and 49 2/3 innings. Nick Castellanos sits after hurting knee Right fielder Nick Castellanos was out of the starting lineup Saturday, a day after getting hurt in the Phillies' 12-5 win over the Yankees . 'The last play last night where he went back towards the wall, just kind of jammed his left knee a little bit,' Thomson said. 'He came in a little bit sore today, so keep him out, see how he is tomorrow.' Alec Bohm update Alec Bohm is to meet up with the Phillies on Sunday, travel with the team to Chicago and be evaluated. Bohm broke a left rib when hit by a 92.2 mph Yu Darvish pitch at San Diego on July 12. The third baseman and first baseman returned July 18 following the All-Star break, then went on the injured list. 'Still a little bit sore,' Thomson said. ___ AP MLB:
