FILE – Houston Astros catcher Martin Maldonado and Texas Rangers’ Adolis Garcia, second from right, argue as the benches clear following Garcia’s grand slam during the fifth inning of a baseball game July 26, 2023, in Houston. Everything is certainly bigger deep in the heart of Texas this baseball postseason, with a Lone Star State matchup for a spot in the World Series. The Astros are in their seventh straight ALCS, this time against the Rangers for the first time. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox, File)

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Everything is certainly bigger deep in the heart of Texas this baseball postseason, with a Lone Star State showdown for a spot in the World Series.

Defending world champion Houston is no stranger to playing long into October, now getting ready for its seventh consecutive American League Championship Series. This time, the Astros play the up-and-coming Texas Rangers, who led them in the AL West standings for most of the season but again didn’t fare well in the head-to-head matchups.

Both benches and bullpens cleared the last time the two teams played in Houston, where the ALCS opener will be played Sunday night.

“There’s a lot of intensity. … I’d say we’re rivals,” first-year Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Thursday. “That’s the way baseball should be, I guess. They’re your opponent, so I don’t think it should be a lovefest out there.”

Especially with so much at stake when the instate rivals meet in the playoffs for the first time.

This will be only the 10th postseason series featuring teams from the same state in baseball’s divisional era (since 1969). It will be the first outside of California since the New York Mets and New York Yankees played in the 2000 World Series, which was a year before the Astros and Rangers had even met in a regular-season game.

Hall of Fame strikeout king Nolan Ryan pitched for both teams, finishing his career with the Rangers and later was part of the ownership group for their only World Series and ALCS appearances in 2010 and 2011. Their respective 40,000-seat retractable-roof stadiums are about 250 miles apart — Minute Maid Park in Houston opened in 2000, and Globe Life Field is in its fourth season.

Houston’s Dusty Baker and Bochy are the winningest active managers, both with more than 2,000 wins in 26 seasons managing in the big leagues. Bochy won three World Series titles with the San Francisco Giants and Baker finally got his first championship last season.

“Now me and Bruce Bochy need to battle,” the 74-year-old Baker said. ”I know Bruce and he knows me.”

They have gone head-to-head 214 times. Their only playoff meeting was the 2012 NLDS that Bochy’s Giants won in five games over Baker’s Cincinnati Reds.

Houston has dominated the AL West since the Rangers won the division in 2016, their last winning season before this year. The Astros have since been to the World Series four times, winning two of them, and the only time without a division title was the abbreviated 60-game regular season during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when as a wild-card team they lost a seven-game ALCS to Tampa Bay.

“They are the reigning champions, so you have to give them a respect for that,” Rangers catcher-designated hitter Mitch Garver said. “I’d say we have equally as good a chance to win as they did.”

Texas led the AL West for 148 of the first 149 days this season, and 159 overall. But when the Rangers lost at Seattle on the final day of the regular season, a day after clinching a playoff spot, and Houston won to match them at 90 wins, the Astros had another division title and a first-round playoff bye.

“A lot of people were wondering what it was gonna be like if the ’Stros didn’t win the division,” third baseman Alex Bregman said at the start of their champagne celebration after the regular-season finale. “I guess we’ll never know.”

The Rangers became a wild card and had to fly across the country — going over North Texas on the way — before sweeping the AL’s winningest teams from the regular season, Tampa Bay and Baltimore.

Houston, which won its ALDS over Minnesota in four games, had the division tiebreaker because of its 9-4 record against the Rangers this year. The Astros had clinched the season series even before their obliterating three-game sweep with 16 homers and 39 runs in Arlington from Sept. 4-6. That is the only time they have played since the benches cleared July 26, after the Astros won the previous two nights to move within a game of the division lead.

Yordan Alvarez got hit by a pitch right after Bregman homered in the first inning of that series finale, and Texas second baseman Marcus Semien took a retaliatory plunk in the third. Semien hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the fourth, and exchanged words with catcher Martin Maldonado. An inning later, Semien scored on a grand slam by Adolis García, who was face-to-face with the catcher when the benches cleared, though no punches were thrown.

“It’s a heated rivalry. I understand why there’s some animosity,” Rangers first baseman Nathaniel Lowe said.

Bochy was drafted by Houston and began his nine seasons as a big league catcher with the Astros from 1978-80, when they were still in the National League. Their first World Series came as National League champions in 2005.

Interleague play began in 1997 with NL and AL teams from corresponding divisions playing each other. Well, the Astros were in the NL Central and it wasn’t until 2001 that MLB changed things so they could play annually. They became division foes when Houston moved to the AL West in 2013.

“Sometimes it takes time to build that (rivalry). But you can see it developing here,” Bochy said. “You’re in the same state, so no, I’m not surprised how quickly it’s developing.”

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FILE – Houston Astros catcher Martin Maldonado and Texas Rangers’ Adolis Garcia, second from right, argue as the benches clear following Garcia’s grand slam during the fifth inning of a baseball game July 26, 2023, in Houston. Everything is certainly bigger deep in the heart of Texas this baseball postseason, with a Lone Star State matchup for a spot in the World Series. The Astros are in their seventh straight ALCS, this time against the Rangers for the first time. (AP Photo/Kevin M. Cox, File)

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Everything is certainly bigger deep in the heart of Texas this baseball postseason, with a Lone Star State showdown for a spot in the World Series.

Defending world champion Houston is no stranger to playing long into October, now getting ready for its seventh consecutive American League Championship Series. This time, the Astros play the up-and-coming Texas Rangers, who led them in the AL West standings for most of the season but again didn’t fare well in the head-to-head matchups.

Both benches and bullpens cleared the last time the two teams played in Houston, where the ALCS opener will be played Sunday night.

“There’s a lot of intensity. … I’d say we’re rivals,” first-year Rangers manager Bruce Bochy said Thursday. “That’s the way baseball should be, I guess. They’re your opponent, so I don’t think it should be a lovefest out there.”

Especially with so much at stake when the instate rivals meet in the playoffs for the first time.

This will be only the 10th postseason series featuring teams from the same state in baseball’s divisional era (since 1969). It will be the first outside of California since the New York Mets and New York Yankees played in the 2000 World Series, which was a year before the Astros and Rangers had even met in a regular-season game.

Hall of Fame strikeout king Nolan Ryan pitched for both teams, finishing his career with the Rangers and later was part of the ownership group for their only World Series and ALCS appearances in 2010 and 2011. Their respective 40,000-seat retractable-roof stadiums are about 250 miles apart — Minute Maid Park in Houston opened in 2000, and Globe Life Field is in its fourth season.

Houston’s Dusty Baker and Bochy are the winningest active managers, both with more than 2,000 wins in 26 seasons managing in the big leagues. Bochy won three World Series titles with the San Francisco Giants and Baker finally got his first championship last season.

“Now me and Bruce Bochy need to battle,” the 74-year-old Baker said. ”I know Bruce and he knows me.”

They have gone head-to-head 214 times. Their only playoff meeting was the 2012 NLDS that Bochy’s Giants won in five games over Baker’s Cincinnati Reds.

Houston has dominated the AL West since the Rangers won the division in 2016, their last winning season before this year. The Astros have since been to the World Series four times, winning two of them, and the only time without a division title was the abbreviated 60-game regular season during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020, when as a wild-card team they lost a seven-game ALCS to Tampa Bay.

“They are the reigning champions, so you have to give them a respect for that,” Rangers catcher-designated hitter Mitch Garver said. “I’d say we have equally as good a chance to win as they did.”

Texas led the AL West for 148 of the first 149 days this season, and 159 overall. But when the Rangers lost at Seattle on the final day of the regular season, a day after clinching a playoff spot, and Houston won to match them at 90 wins, the Astros had another division title and a first-round playoff bye.

“A lot of people were wondering what it was gonna be like if the ’Stros didn’t win the division,” third baseman Alex Bregman said at the start of their champagne celebration after the regular-season finale. “I guess we’ll never know.”

The Rangers became a wild card and had to fly across the country — going over North Texas on the way — before sweeping the AL’s winningest teams from the regular season, Tampa Bay and Baltimore.

Houston, which won its ALDS over Minnesota in four games, had the division tiebreaker because of its 9-4 record against the Rangers this year. The Astros had clinched the season series even before their obliterating three-game sweep with 16 homers and 39 runs in Arlington from Sept. 4-6. That is the only time they have played since the benches cleared July 26, after the Astros won the previous two nights to move within a game of the division lead.

Yordan Alvarez got hit by a pitch right after Bregman homered in the first inning of that series finale, and Texas second baseman Marcus Semien took a retaliatory plunk in the third. Semien hit a go-ahead, two-run homer in the fourth, and exchanged words with catcher Martin Maldonado. An inning later, Semien scored on a grand slam by Adolis García, who was face-to-face with the catcher when the benches cleared, though no punches were thrown.

“It’s a heated rivalry. I understand why there’s some animosity,” Rangers first baseman Nathaniel Lowe said.

Bochy was drafted by Houston and began his nine seasons as a big league catcher with the Astros from 1978-80, when they were still in the National League. Their first World Series came as National League champions in 2005.

Interleague play began in 1997 with NL and AL teams from corresponding divisions playing each other. Well, the Astros were in the NL Central and it wasn’t until 2001 that MLB changed things so they could play annually. They became division foes when Houston moved to the AL West in 2013.

“Sometimes it takes time to build that (rivalry). But you can see it developing here,” Bochy said. “You’re in the same state, so no, I’m not surprised how quickly it’s developing.”

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HOUSTON (AP) — Houston dominated Texas during the regular season, winning nine of 13 matchups.

Now the Rangers get another chance at the Astros when they meet for the first time in the playoffs in a Texas-sized showdown with a trip to the World Series on the line starting Sunday night in Houston.

The Astros completed the regular season matchup against the Rangers with a three-game sweep at the beginning of September. Houston hit 16 homers to sweep that series by a combined score of 39-10.

But despite the lopsided results this season, both teams say they’ll start with a clean slate for the American League Championship Series.

“Regular season doesn’t mean anything anymore,” Houston Game 1 starter Justin Verlander said. “And I think it’s a different game. Playoffs is a different brand of baseball.”

That series in September was during the worst slump of the season for the Rangers, who were without third baseman Josh Jung and who lost Adolis García during the series.

Texas first baseman Nathaniel Lowe also noted that 21-year-old outfielder Evan Carter wasn’t even in the majors the last time the Rangers met the Astros.

“I think we were missing two or three bats, two or three starting bats. Evan was still in high school,” Lowe joked. “We had a couple pieces that weren’t fully, fully firing on all pistons.”

Houston’s success in the head-to-head matchup allowed the Astros to win the AL West while the Rangers had to play in the Wild Card Series after both teams finished with 90-72 records.

Now both teams are back to full strength and prepared to fight for the Lone Star state crown.

This isn’t the first time Houston manager Dusty Baker has experienced a high stakes, in-state postseason matchup.

As manager of the San Francisco Giants in 2002, he lost the World Series to the Anaheim Angels.

“In California we were in the World Series, two teams, us and the Angels, battling for bragging rights in California,” he said. “But everything is bigger in Texas. I’ve learned that since I’ve been here.”

Outfielder Robbie Grossman is in his first season with the Rangers but is well-acquainted with the rivalry, after going to high school in suburban Houston and spending his first three big league seasons with the Astros.

“It’s huge for baseball, but it’s even bigger for the state of Texas,” he said. “Just being a Texan, I know how much both these teams mean to the state.”

Verlander will face left-hander Jordan Montgomery on Sunday night.

Verlander, who returned to Houston in a July trade from the Mets, will make his 36th playoff start. The three-time Cy Young Award winner pitched six scoreless innings in the Division Series opener against Minnesota to extend his franchise record with his 10th postseason win.

This will be the fourth playoff start for Montgomery and third this season. Montgomery, acquired from St. Louis this summer, has had an up-and-down postseason after throwing seven shutout innings in the Wild Card Series before allowing four earned runs and nine hits in just four innings in Game 2 of the ALDS.

He talked about his struggles against the Orioles.

“Everything was a little un-synced up,” he said. “So just got to find my timing and execute more pitches.”

Houston’s Framber Valdez opposes Nathan Eovaldi in Game 2 on Monday.

MAD MAX BACK?

Texas starter Max Scherzer is expected to return for this series after being out since Sept. 12 because of a muscle strain in his shoulder.

The three-time Cy Young Award winner, also traded from the Mets this summer, said he was “ready to go” after throwing a bullpen session and doing fielding drills Friday.

Texas manager Bruce Bochy was asked if Scherzer would be included on the ALCS roster Saturday.

“Max is doing well,” Bochy said. “He’s done well. After workout today, we get together, we’ll get the staff, of course, (general manager) Chris Young and his staff, and we’ll talk about the roster. But he’s doing really well.”

Scherzer is 7-7 with a 3.58 ERA in 27 postseason games that include 22 starts. If he appears for Rangers, it would be the fifth team he has pitched for in the postseason after Detroit, Washington, the Dodgers and Mets.

ABREU’S STREAK

Houston reliever Bryan Abreu enters the ALCS with a 31-inning scoreless streak in his last 30 appearances. Abreu, who hasn’t allowed a run since July 18, hasn’t been scored on in the postseason in 14 2/3 innings, which spans 14 appearances dating back to last year.

Abreu, who normally pitches the eighth inning before handing things off to closer Ryan Pressly, has allowed two hits in 3 1/3 innings over three appearances this postseason.

“As a pitcher you just have to be calm and be ready to execute every single pitch and keep attacking the strike zone,” he said. “If you let everything outside go through your head … you’ll lose focus.”

FRIENDLY WAGER

Arlington Mayor Jim Ross proposed a wager to Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner that the loser of the series would have to wear the winner’s jersey to a city council meeting.

Turner quickly agreed and wrote on X: “Since I’ve been mayor, I’ve had the pleasure of seeing the Astros win the World Series… twice, so I accept.”

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AP Baseball Writer Stephen Hawkins contributed to this report.

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ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — This time of year, Houston Astros manager Dusty Baker is usually starting to think about getting some rest for his everyday players and putting together pitching plans for the playoffs.

Not yet this season in what is shaping up for a wild West finish in the American League.

The reigning World Series champion Astros will go into the final 10 days of the regular season with only a half-game lead in the AL West over both Seattle and Texas after all were off Thursday. The Mariners play their final 10 games against those other two teams.

“These tight (races), they can build character. So, let’s see what kind of character we’ve got,” Baker said.

“It’s kind of cool to see three teams fighting for one spot, two spots with the wild card,” Mariners first baseman Ty France said. “It’s exactly how we wanted to finish, and hopefully we can take care of business.”

Seattle opens a three-game series at Texas on Friday night with those teams tied for the American League’s third and final wild-card spot, and Toronto right ahead of them. The Mariners then go home for three games against Houston and four more against the Rangers.

Houston has 85 wins after their walk-off victory Wednesday over AL-best Baltimore to stay in front and avoid being swept at home. That is one more win than the Mariners and Rangers — all three teams have 68 losses.

The Astros pretty comfortably won each of the last five AL West titles determined over full 162-game schedules, including by 16 games last season. They have been to the AL Championship Series six years in a row, even as a 29-31 wild card during the COVID-altered 2020 season. They went to the World Series four times in that span, winning two of them.

Only 39-39 at home, the Astros host 102-loss Kansas City this weekend before going to Seattle and NL wild-card contender Arizona.

“I don’t think it’s going be a problem for us to go out there and focus and win some games,” said Astros second baseman Jose Altuve, adding that their past success should help them.

Story continues

Texas, already ensured its first winning record since 2016, led the AL West for 148 of the season’s first 149 days through Aug. 26. But the Rangers had lost 20 of 30 games before back-to-back wins over Boston.

“It’s been a heck of a ride … some steep, steep hills, up and down. It’s unlike I’ve seen, to be honest, when you look at this roller-coaster ride,” said Rangers manager Bruce Bochy, a three-time World Series champion with San Francisco before being out of the dugout the past three seasons.

”But I missed it. … If you told me I’d been in this situation last year when I wasn’t doing this, I would have done a cartwheel around this ballpark.”

The Rangers have two multiple Cy Young Award winners, but Jacob deGrom (elbow surgery) hasn’t pitched since April and trade-deadline acquisition Max Scherzer is on the injured list with a strained muscle in his shoulder. Five of their six All-Stars have been on the IL since that July 11 game, with slugger Adolis Garcia and rookie third baseman Josh Jung the last to return this week.

Seattle and Texas last met the first weekend in June, when the Rangers swept three games at home, including 16-6 and 12-3 wins. The Mariners, who last season made the playoffs for the first time since 2001, were then 29-30 and 9 1/2 games out of the division lead.

While only 1-5 against Texas so far, the Mariners have won eight of 10 against the Astros. Houston went 9-4 against the Rangers, hitting 16 homers and outscoring them 39-10 in a three-game road sweep just two weeks ago to take sole possession of the division lead for the first time all season.

The Mariners had a pair of eight-game winning streaks in August while led by their young star Julio Rodriguez, whose 176 hits are tied with Texas leadoff hitter Marcus Semien for most in the AL. But they lost at least three games in a row three times in September before they swept three games in Oakland this week.

Seattle does have experience with the emotions and swings of a playoff chase. The M’s won 90 games each of the last two seasons, just missing a postseason berth in 2021. They won in the wild-card round against Toronto last year before Houston swept them in the AL Division Series.

“You lose two games in a row and oh my god, the sky is falling. And then you win two games in a row and everybody’s, ‘Oh we’re a lock.’ It just comes and goes so quickly,” Seattle manager Scott Servais said. “After you’ve gone through it once or twice like we’ve done the last couple of years, you understand it’s just about today’s game first of all, then move on to the next day. You really can’t control anything else.”

No team controls its destiny as much as Seattle because of the schedule, though the Rangers will try to seize that same opportunity.

“We’ve got a seven-game set with the team that we need to beat the most,” Texas first baseman Nathaniel Lowe said. “It’s right in front of us. … It’s going to a week full of like just-about playoff baseball.”

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AP Baseball Writer Janie McCauley and AP Sports Writer Kristie Rieken contributed to this report.

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AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/MLB

Stephen Hawkins, The Associated Press

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ANAHEIM, Calif. — Shohei Ohtani’s major league-leading 33rd homer keyed the Angels’ tying rally in the ninth inning, and rookie Trey Cabbage scored on Grae Kessinger’s throwing error in the 10th to end Los Angeles’ wild 13-12 victory over the Houston Astros on Saturday night.

Kessinger threw wide of first base while attempting to turn an easy inning-ending double play on Taylor Ward’s grounder. Cabbage scored from third in only his second major league game to set off a wild celebration for the Angels, who rallied from a six-run deficit in the seventh and a three-run deficit in the ninth before snapping their six-game losing streak.

The AL West rivals combined for 18 runs in the final four innings of a much-needed victory for the Angels, who had lost 10 of 11.

Ohtani hit a 404-foot shot to center off closer Ryan Pressly leading off the ninth for the Angels, who already had tied it 9-9 in the seventh on Mike Moustakas’ dramatic three-run homer. Chas McCormick put Houston back ahead with a two-run homer in the eighth.

Hunter Renfroe’s RBI single tied it in the ninth, but Pressly stranded two Angels in scoring position. All-Star closer Carlos Estevez (3-1) pitched a scoreless 10th inning for Los Angeles, and Phil Maton (2-3) lost without allowing a hit.

CUBS 10, RED SOX 4

CHICAGO (AP) — Cody Bellinger hit his eighth career grand slam in a six-run third inning, a day after homering twice, and Chicago beat Boston.

Bellinger connected off James Paxton (5-2) for his 12th homer and Patrick Wisdom added his 15th an inning later, a two-run drive off Tayler Scott.

Marcus Stroman (10-6) allowed one run and three hits in six innings. He had been 0-2 in his previous three starts.

YANKEES 6, ROCKIES 3

DENVER (AP) — Giancarlo Stanton homered for the fourth time in four games and reached 1,000 career RBIs by driving in four runs to power New York.

Stanton’s three-run homer in the second capped a five-run inning off Connor Seabold (1-7) that built a 6-1 lead. Stanton, who has 12 homers at Coors Field, drove in the first run with a groundout in the first. He has 16 RBIs in his last 14 games.

Clarke Schmidt (5-6) gave up two runs and three hits in six innings while tying a career high with eight strikeouts. Clay Holmes pitched a one-hit ninth for his 11th save in 13 chances.

DJ LeMahieu had three hits, including two doubles back at Coors Field.

ORIOLES 6, MARLINS 5

BALTIMORE (AP) — Gunnar Henderson homered to start a two-run seventh-inning as Baltimore rallied to win its seventh straight.

Anthony Santander put Baltimore ahead with an RBI single later in the seventh, and the Orioles still dropped to two games behind first-place Tampa Bay in the AL East after the Rays swept a doubleheader at Kansas City.

The Marlins led 5-4 in the seventh when Henderson sent the first pitch from reliever Huascar Brazoban (3-2) to deep right field for his 14th homer. 0Brazoban allowed hits to four of his five hitters.

Mike Baumann (6-0) won in relief.

Miami’s Luis Arraez had four hits to raise his average to .386, and Marlins outfielders Dane Myers and Jesús Sánchez were able to stay in the game after a scary outfield collision in the first.

WHITE SOX 6, BRAVES 5

ATLANTA (AP) — Jake Burger’s sixth-inning homer off Spencer Strider gave Chicago the lead, Andrew Benintendi drove in three runs with three hits and the White Sox held on in the ninth inning.

Strider (11-3) struck out 10 to reach double digits for the seventh time this season but allowed five runs and eight hits in six innings. Strider had won his previous five starts.

Ronald Acuña Jr. had three hits, including two home runs, and drove in three runs for Atlanta.

Lance Lynn (6-8) allowed four runs in 5 1/3 innings as Chicago earned its first win in eight games in Atlanta. Kendall Graveman finished for his eighth save in 11 chances, getting Sean Murphy’s game-ending double-play grounder.

PHILLIES 6, PADRES 4, 1st game; PHILLIES 9, PADRES 4, 2nd game

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Bryce Harper ended the longest homerless streak of his major league career in the second game, and Philadelphia completed a doubleheader sweep.

Harper connected on a curveball from left-hander Ryan Weathers (1-6), tying the score 1-1 in the fourth inning. It was the fourth homer of the season for Harper, who made his season debut May 2 after recovering from Tommy John surgery. The home run was Harper’s first since May 25 at Atlanta. He had gone 166 plate appearances without going deep.

Kyle Schwarber put Philadelphia in front for good with a three-run homer in the bottom half of the fifth.

Johan Rojas had three hits and two RBIs in the second game after making a spectacular catch in the first inning of the opener in his major league debut.

Taijuan Walker (11-3) allowed two runs and four hits in five innings to win the second game.

Schwarber hit a tying home run in the seventh inning of the opener, a 440-foot drive, and drove in the go-ahead run with a single in the eighth off Tim Hill (1-3).

Manny Machado’s 300th homer had given San Diego a 4-3 lead in the eighth against Matt Strahm (6-3). Craig Kimbrel retired Machado with two on for his 15th save.

RAYS 6, ROYALS 1, 1st game; RAYS 4, ROYALS 2, 2nd game

KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Luke Raley had a go-ahead single in the eighth inning, and Tampa Bay completed a doubleheader sweep.

Jose Siri hit a pair of solo homers as the Rays won the first game to open the second half. AL East-leading Tampa Bay has won three in a row after a season-high, seven-game losing streak and at 60-35 became the first AL team to 60 wins.

Kansas City has lost eight of nine, dropping to 26-67 and falling 41 games under .500. The Royals were swept in a doubleheader for the first time since May 25, 2019, against the New York Yankees.

Dairon Blanco’s RBI grounder in the fifth put the Royals ahead 2-1 in the nightcap. Josh Lowe tied the score with a run-scoring triple in the seventh and Raley singled in the eighth against Carlos Hernández (0-5). Harold Ramírez added a sacrifice fly in the ninth against Dylan Coleman.

Colin Poche (7-2) threw a 1-2-3 seventh. Pete Fairbanks worked around Salvador Perez’s leadoff single in the ninth for his 10th save in 11 chances.

Tyler Glasnow (3-3) gave up six hits and struck out six in the first game.

GIANTS 3, PIRATES 1

PITTSBURGH (AP) — Michael Conforto hit a tiebreaking RBI single in the eighth inning and San Francisco won its fourth straight.

After LaMonte Wade Jr. walked and Joc Pederson singled with one out against rookie Carmen Mlodzinski (1-2), All-Star closer David Bednar entered and struck out J.D. Davis. Conforto then hit a line drive into right field. Wade scored on a play at the plate, beating right fielder Henry Davis’ throw. Pederson also scored when Pirates catcher Jason Delay threw wildly to second in an unsuccessful bid to get Conforto.

San Francisco’s Mike Yastrzemski and Pittsburgh’s Henry Davis hit solo homers in the second inning.

Taylor Rogers (5-3) worked a scoreless seventh, and Camilo Doval worked around a leadoff single in the ninth for his major-league leading 28th save.

BLUE JAYS 5, DIAMONDBACKS 2

TORONTO (AP) — Chris Bassitt (9-5) allowed two runs and seven hits in six innings after Kevin Gausman was scratched early because of discomfort in his left side.

Whit Merrifield homered off All-Star starter Zac Gallen and Bo Bichette against Scott McGough, both solo drives. George Springer drove in two runs.

Yimi García got his second save as Toronto moved a season-best 11 games above .500 at 52-41.

Arizona has lost nine of 13.

NATIONALS 7, CARDINALS 5, 10 INNINGS, comp. of susp. game; CARDINALS 9, NATIONALS 6

ST. LOUIS (AP) — Nolan Gorman hit a two-run double to break a fifth-inning tie, Alec Burleson homered and robbed Joey Meneses of a three-run drive as St. Louis earned a split of two games.

In a game that started after a 65-minute rain delay, St. Louis had a season-high 17 hits in the night game, opening a 4-0 lead in the second before Washington tied the score. Gorman doubled off Amos Willingham (0-1) and scored on Paul DeJong’s single for a 7-4 lead.

Dakota Hudson (1-0) allowed four hits in 3 1/3 scoreless innings. Nolan Arenado homered in the eighth.

Thomas hit a tiebreaking single in the 10th off Jordan Hicks (1-6) in the first game.

Kyle Finnegan (4-3) pitched two innings for the win and Hunter Harvey got his ninth save.

RANGERS 2, GUARDIANS 0

ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) — Andrew Heaney rebounded from his worst start of the season and slumping Marcus Semien had his first multihit game in two weeks as Texas got its seventh shutout of the season.

Heaney (6-6) allowed six hits and one walk in 5 1/3 innings, striking out four. Aroldis Chapman struck out two in a one-hit ninth in his first save situation since he was acquired from Kansas City on June 30.

Semien, who entered in a 3-for-36 slide, had two singles, scored a run and added a sacrifice fly.

Cleveland’s Gavin Williams (1-2) allowed both runs, four hits and four walks over five innings. The Guardians were blanked for the ninth time.

TIGERS 6, MARINERS 0

SEATTLE (AP) — Kerry Carpenter homered twice, Michael Lorenzen allowed two hits in 6 2/3 innings and Detroit beat Seattle.

Carpenter hit a solo homer in the second inning and a three-run shot in the fifth, giving him three homers in the past two games.

That was more than enough support for Lorenzen (4-6), who took a no-hitter into the fifth inning. The 31-year-old righty struck out seven and worked around five walks in a 97-pitch performance. Beau Brieske and Brendan White pitched 2 1/3 innings of relief to finish a combined three-hitter.

Detroit tagged Seattle starter George Kirby (8-8) for six runs and eight hits in five innings.

TWINS 10, ATHLETICS 7

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) — Kyle Farmer had three hits including a go-ahead home run in the seventh inning, and Minnesota won its second straight.

Michael A. Taylor hit his 11th home run for the Twins and made a catch at the wall in center field to rob pinch-hitter Brent Rooker of extra bases in the sixth.

Ryan Jeffers walked twice, scored three runs and drove in one for Minnesota, which leads the AL Central at 47-46. Farmer homered off Freddy Tarnok (0-1).

Ryan Noda and Seth Brown homered for Oakland, which has lost six straight and is last in the AL West.

Jovani Moran (2-2) retired two batters to win. Jhoan Duran struck out two of the three batters he faced in the ninth for his 14th save.

DODGERS 5, METS 1

NEW YORK (AP) — Mookie Betts went 4 for 4 with a home run and Los Angeles won its sixth straight.

Max Muncy scored the tiebreaking run in the eighth inning on David Peralta’s RBI grounder. Mets first baseman Pete Alonso had a chance to start an inning-ending double play, but his throw to second base forced shortstop Francisco Lindor to make a leaping grab and then find the bag, giving Peralta enough time to beat the relay at first.

Los Angeles added three insurance runs in the ninth, helped by a fielding error by rookie third baseman Brett Baty. J.D. Martinez and Peralta followed with RBI singles off Grant Hartwig.

Brandon Nimmo homered for the Mets, held to three hits one night after mustering just one, en route to their fourth straight loss.

Brusdar Graterol (3-2) worked a hitless seventh for the NL West leaders, who have won 14 of 19. Adam Ottavino (0-4) took the loss.

BREWERS 3, REDS 0

CINCINNATI (AP) — Freddy Peralta combined with three relievers on a one-hitter, Christian Yelich homered on the game’s first pitch and Milwaukee shut out Cincinnati for the third straight game.

Playing six straight games against the Reds, Milwaukee has won four of the first five. The Brewers tied the Chicago Cubs, Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto for the major league shutouts lead with 10.

Jake Fraley had the Reds’ only hit, a broken-bat infield single with one out in the fourth. Cincinnati (50-43) has managed just seven hits in its last three games, none for extra bases.

Peralta (6-7) won for the first time since May 21. He struck out six and walked two in six innings. Evan Peguero, Joel Payamps and Devin Williams followed with an inning each, with Williams getting his 22nd save in 24 chances.

William Contreras homered in the fourth and Owen Miller in the seventh. Andrew Abbott (4-2) allowed two runs and three hits in six innings, and Miller homered off Buck Farmer.

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By Zach Buchanan, Nick Groke and Stephen Nesbitt

Like the Cardinals, Astros, burnt ends and the fourth Mad Max movie, some things are worth waiting for. The barbecue should take hours to do correctly. “Fury Road” came out 30 years after “Beyond Thunderdome.” And the Astros and Cardinals needed six weeks to finally show up this season.

We are now more than 25 percent through this season. Some teams are still finding their way, and others are ready to find a third gear. Some needed a while to get off the line and others are hitting their stride. But all of them are looking for that one kick to push them into new territory.

Shout-out to Keith M., who took top honors as our commenter of the week for his biting observation that it is “definitely reigning comity in here.” Kudos to Keith for his totally sincere take that wasn’t at all sarcastic and for having a good vocabulary.

All of us are still waiting for more comity in this world. Meanwhile, let’s take stock of baseball’s hierarchy this week by zooming in on one thing each team is still waiting for that might take them to the next level.

Record: 34-14
Last Power Ranking: 1

Truthfully, the Rays regulars have almost all been clicking on all cylinders these past two months. They have no star who has yet to find his footing, no should-be ace scuffling in a slow start. They are powered by a mishmash of Yandys, Randys, Wanders, Harolds and Lowes, and somehow they are still standing despite rolling out half a rotation. But we are here to pick nits. And so I will say, like a real hard-hitter, “Gosh, their backup catcher … yikes.” Yes, Francisco Mejía is batting .211 with a .590 OPS. He is doing what he did last year, just a little worse. Same with Manuel Margot. Great defense, OK hitter. So there, we knocked the Rays’ bench. That’s about it. A couple other hitters have come back to earth this month (Brandon Lowe, Wander Franco, Christian Bethancourt), along with the Rays’ win/loss record, but the way they clicked from Day 1 this season, they’re certainly capable of doing it again any day now. — Stephen Nesbitt

Record: 29-17
Last Power Ranking: 3

OK, I’m stumped. I have scrutinized the Rangers roster up and down and I’m having a hard time picking out someone important who is underperforming in a meaningful way. Sure, Jacob deGrom is out with an injury, but terrific pitching interrupted by stints on the injured list is kind of what you expect, right? Almost every lineup regular is turning in above-average offensive production. Unsurprisingly, the Rangers are scoring the most runs per game in MLB. What, am I going to pick on Robbie Grossman? He may be the weak spot in left field, but he’s actually performing better than he did a year ago. Starting pitchers Martín Pérez and Andrew Heaney are carrying mediocre ERAs, but those numbers are inflated by a few rough outings. Perhaps this explains a lot about the Rangers — aside from a few key injuries, almost everything is going well and very little is going poorly. — Zach Buchanan

Record: 29-17
Last Power Ranking: 4

It’s too early to truly be concerned about Michael Harris II. Right? Right?? RIGHT??? Through 25 games in his rookie season, Harris was batting .330 with a .900 OPS, so seeing him below the Mendoza line is a little jarring. Harris, who missed three weeks in April with a lower back strain, has a .171/.253/.256 triple slash, with just five extra bases and four steals so far in 2023. The reigning NL Rookie of the Year has struggled against righties in general and against fastballs in particular. But it does seem like things should start clicking. With as consistently as Harris barrels baseballs, factor in an abnormally low .213 BABIP and improved walk and strikeout rates this season and I’m betting his surface numbers will come around before long. But, if not, the slow start will soon be sounding alarm bells. — SN

Record: 31-16
Last Power Ranking: 6

It would’ve been cool to see Jorge Mateo continue his meteoric rise this month, but in reality, the Orioles weren’t counting on guys like Mateo in 2023. They were expecting an immediate impact from their top prospects like Gunnar Henderson and Grayson Rodriguez. Instead, it’s been a rough transition for those two, even as the surging Orioles have accumulated the second-best record in baseball. Henderson is batting .192 with a .685 OPS in everyday playing time, and Rodriguez has a 6.21 ERA through eight starts. There are silver linings, to be sure. Henderson is getting on base at a good clip. Rodriguez now has more solid starts than bad, with a few blowups skewing the ERA. But they’ve also looked a lot like, well, rookies. And if the Orioles are to do better than stay in the playoff conversation, if they’re going to chase down the Rays, it’ll likely be because Henderson and Rodriguez got a firm foothold and found their groove. — SN

Gunnar Henderson (Patrick Smith / Getty Images)

Record: 29-19
Last Power Ranking: 2

When the Dodgers trade for a guy, the general expectation is that guy is suddenly going to get way better. (See, to a certain extent, Jason Heyward.) Miguel Rojas has been the opposite. Acquired from the Marlins for shortstop prospect Jacob Amaya — who is starting to hit in Triple A, by the way — Rojas was set to fill a Trea Turner-sized hole at shortstop. The 34-year-old has been a good defender, but he’s been terrible at the plate with a .494 OPS. Rojas has never been a league-average hitter in any full season, and certainly no one expected him to hit like Turner, but his offensive numbers are just plain ugly.

Of course, the Dodgers are scoring the most runs in the NL — their big problem is pitching injuries, not pitching underperformance — so maybe getting Rojas to hit would be unfair to everyone else. — ZB

Record: 27-19
Last Power Ranking: 11

Yes, the Astros, with their below-average offensive production, need Alex Bregman’s talent to float back into his body. It’s worth noting, though, that Bregman is coming off a good week and hasn’t been nearly as much of a drain on the lineup as another fixture. The guy who truly got Monstar-ed is first baseman José Abreu, who owns a .534 OPS, worse than even Martín Maldonado’s. I could throw a whole bunch of numbers at you, but this gets the point across.

Jose Altuve is back, which should help the Astros at the plate, but Abreu is still batting in the heart of the lineup. Until manager Dusty Baker drops the struggling veteran – or benches him — the (admittedly surging) Astros will be waiting for him like Godot. And if you’re familiar with the Samuel Beckett play, you know that Godot never arrives. — ZB

Record: 29-20
Last Power Ranking: 9

The answer to this prompt would have been Aaron Hicks had he not been designated for assignment Saturday, but there are a few others getting a lot of run for the red-hot Yankees and not contributing with the bat:

• Oswaldo Cabrera: .203/.258/.312, 3 HR, 10 BB, 28 K, 5 S
• Isiah Kiner-Falefa: .198/.258/.302, 2 HR, 6 BB, 14 K, 4 SB, 2 CS
• Kyle Higashioka: .191/.247/.368, 3 HR, 5 BB, 24 K

These are lower than typical numbers for Kiner-Falefa and Higashioka, but they were known commodities as glove-first guys. After Cabrera broke into the majors with a .740 OPS (109 OPS+) in 44 games last season, there was hope he’d help both ways. But through 42 games this season, that hasn’t been the case. He’s lugging around a .570 OPS and looking at a lot of blue on his Statcast page. Also worth noting: Josh Donaldson hasn’t played enough to say the Yankees are waiting for his bat to show up; right now they’d settle for him showing up healthy at all. — SN

Record: 25-22
Last Power Ranking: 7

Less than two weeks ago, Carlos Correa was hitting just .185 — and hearing boos. “I’d boo myself, too,” Correa said. Since then, he’s hitting better, with an .873 OPS over that stretch to raise his batting average to .206. He’s inching back into form. But here’s the rub: The Twins are treading water, in control of the AL Central but just three games above .500. They’re currently shorthanded. They’re … fine. And fine isn’t good enough. At some point, if they’re serious about this season, the Twins will need to reach another level. They won’t get there by going 2-4 in a week as they did after a trip through Los Angeles and Anaheim last week. They’ll get to another level behind their stars. And Correa is their brightest. “When I get right,” Correa said, “when we get right as a team, then we’re going to be playing better baseball.” He knows what’s up. — Nick Groke

Record: 27-20
Last Power Ranking: 10

Things are mostly going well with the Arizona offense. By bWAR, the Diamondbacks’ top six players are all hitters. Arizona had a couple dead spots in the outfield, but has the prospect depth to flip those guys out for replacements like Dominic Fletcher and Pavin Smith, both of whom are hitting well. Arizona has similar prospect depth in the rotation, but the results there have not been as good.

The bottom three spots in the Arizona rotation are filled by rookies Ryne Nelson and Brandon Pfaadt along with pseudo-rookie Tommy Henry. They have a combined 5.81 ERA. Each has shown positive signs, but consistency is what a rotation needs. Arizona is 13-7 when Zac Gallen and Merrill Kelly pitch, and 14-13 when anyone else does. The Diamondbacks are comfortable winners right now, but that’s a hard act to keep up when three-fifths of the rotation is so shaky. If those young pitchers don’t find their footing soon, it might be time for the Diamondbacks to reach even deeper into the farm system for, say, Blake Walston or Bryce Jarvis. — ZB

Record: 26-21
Last Power Ranking: 12

The Red Sox’s starting shortstop switching from Xander Bogaerts to Trevor Story to Kiké Hernández represented an obvious downgrade, but the results have been even worse than expected. Hernández’s hitting numbers, from the traditional (.298 OBP, .646 OPS) to the advanced (87.5 mph average exit velocity, 33.3 hard-hit percentage), are among the lowest of his career, and his defense has rated as worse than all but two position players in the majors: Amed Rosario and CJ Abrams. Bogaerts, meanwhile, is tied for first in the majors in Outs Above Average. On the pitching side, Corey Kluber is throwing slower and getting hit harder than ever. His start Sunday ended after seven outs and five runs, one earned. His ERA went down, from 6.41 to 6.26. Kluber’s strikeout rate entering Sunday’s start (18.4 percent) and ground-ball rate (30.7 percent) were both career lows, which helps explain how his home-run rate (2.52 per nine innings) is more than double his previous high. — SN

Record: 25-22
Last Power Ranking: 5

Bad week for the Blue Jays, and in Toronto, no less. They lost three of four to the Yankees, then were swept by the Orioles. The East is already on fire. As we stand, Toronto is a last-place team, but that’s deceiving. Yes, they are 5-12 in their division this season and they need to be better against those teams directly in front of them. But the new balanced schedule takes some of the sting away. The Jays are still a winning team. They just need more. And that more should come from George Springer, Toronto’s best underperforming player. Springer was an All-Star last year, but while he was about 33 percent above league average as a hitter in 2022, he’s now about 15 percent worse than league average. Quite a swing in the wrong direction. Nothing is especially alarming about his season; for example, he’s not striking out more than he normally does. And he’s suffering some bad luck (.252 BABIP). But Springer needs to be more impactful. The Blue Jays could really use an infusion from their right fielder. — NG

Record: 25-21
Last Power Ranking: 8

Big picture, the Brewers are 5-5 over the past 10 games and still on the winning side. But in the past week, they lost an alarming series to the Cardinals and another to the Rays. And despite the Pirates falling back to earth and the Cardinals playing like a Roomba in a sandbox, the Brewers failed to pull ahead in the Central. Milwaukee has fielded a very middle offense, exactly at the median by fWAR and slightly below average by wRC+. With a rookie-inflected lineup, that’s probably how it will stay for a while. What they need is for Corbin Burnes to go on a heater. It’s not fair to expect the Brewers’ ace to carry them. He can only pitch every five days or so. But that’s what aces do. In his last outing, Burnes struck out seven and walked just one over six solid innings. And yet the Brewers lost that game to the Cardinals. Maybe it’s too much to ask, but they need Burnes to be even better. What they have right now is a potential All-Star. What they’re waiting for is the Cy Young winner. — NG

Record: 25-23
Last Power Ranking: 15

There are some notable underperformers on the Angels roster — Aaron Loup, Tyler Anderson, Gio Urshela, Brandon Drury — but we can’t do this team and not talk about third baseman Anthony Rendon. The 32-year-old, who is currently out with a minor groin issue, actually has been one of the better hitters on the roster, carrying a 118 OPS+ entering Monday. But that’s still a shadow of what the Angels are paying him to be. The Angels dropped seven years and $245 million on him after 2019 thinking they’d be getting the guy who’d just finished third in MVP voting with a 157 OPS+. And they did get him … for one season. Rendon posted a .915 OPS in the shortened 2020 campaign, but barely played the next two years. When he did play, he was a shell of himself, batting just .235/.328/.381. His performance this year has been encouraging by comparison — before his injury, Rendon was batting .412 with a 1.041 OPS in May — but the Angels need him to do more than just show up if they’re going to keep pace as a supposedly three-superstar team in the AL West. They also need him to hang around a while. — ZB

Record: 25-23
Last Power Ranking: 18

I can say with a certain degree of confidence that, when healthy, Max Scherzer and Justin Verlander will deliver good results for the Mets. I will say no such thing, however, about a handful of veterans currently populating the Mets’ lineup and bench. To oversimplify here, let’s say that if league-average OPS in 2023 is .728 (which it is) then residing in the .600s or below is a real bummer. And that’s where Eduardo Escobar (.685), Luis Guillorme (.591) and three of four outfielders — Starling Marte (.620), Mark Canha (.666), Tommy Pham (.664) — all reside. That’s not even counting those with fewer than 20 games played this season. For Steve Cohen and the Mets, the quickest path to first place is to get those bats back on track. Marte had three hits Sunday to bounce his batting average from a career-low .231 to still-a-career-low .245, and he also homered and hosed a former teammate from right field, so maybe he, like the Mets, is coming around. — SN

Record: 22-24
Last Power Ranking: 16

The Phillies are a strange team to try to explain statistically. They’re both one of the best pitching teams in the league (third-most valuable rotation in the majors by fWAR) and one that has allowed the 10th-most runs. They are the 13th-best offense by wRC+ and one that ranks 20th by runs scored. Watch them for more than one game at a time, and you may guess the Phillies have one of the best records in the NL and yet they’re in fourth place in their own division. Some of this will even out over time. But Philadelphia is already mortgaging their season in an alarming way. Their starting pitchers have thrown among the fewest innings in the majors this season, which in turn has taxed a bullpen that is missing Jose Alvarado. With Ranger Suárez now back in action, the Phillies are waiting for their starters to show up in full. “We need to get it going,” manager Rob Thomson said. “We really do.” — NG

Record: 22-24
Last Power Ranking: 13

“Can man survive on pitching alone?” our Corey Brock asked last week, and that gets to the heart of Seattle’s problem. The Mariners are waiting on nearly an entire offense to show up. Jarred Kelenic and Cal Raleigh are doing well, but so many others are scuffling. Kolten Wong is hitting .177. Teoscar Hernandez strikes out so often that he’s in danger of earning Titanium Strikeout Status, with free punchouts for life. “Seattle’s designated hitters have produced a collective .138 batting average,” Brock wrote last week. Most glaringly, reigning Rookie of the Year winner Julio Rodríguez is batting just .204.

Too long; didn’t read? Consult this handy flow chart. — ZB

Record: 24-22
Last Power Ranking: 17

There are a few hitters the Pirates wish would bring more with the bat — Ji Hwan Bae and Austin Hedges come to mind — but none of them were expected to produce in the way Ke’Bryan Hayes and Carlos Santana were. Santana, asked to clean up in the middle of the lineup, has just two homers and a .696 OPS for the second-place (but struggling) Pirates. Hayes doubled twice and tripled over the weekend to slightly better his slash line: .234/.290/.351 (.641 OPS) with one homer. Hayes, an incredible defender at third base, seems to have the right tools at the plate. He hits the ball hard, and his strikeout rate has improved this season, but he has been stuck for the past three seasons as a squarely below-average bat with mediocre OBPs and little pop. Hayes still has his believers that he’ll break out as a hitter, but so far this season they’re still waiting to be proven right. — SN

Record: 21-27
Last Power Ranking: 25

If not for the Astros’ torrid run recently, we’d be framing the Cardinals as the hottest team in baseball, winners of eight of their past 10 games. Nolan Arenado is hitting .439 with a 1.357 OPS over his past 10 games, with six home runs and 15 RBIs. It’s a ridiculous run of hitting that helped the Cardinals sweep the Red Sox, win two of three against the Brewers and three of four against the Dodgers. They are back on track, even if they have a ways to go before breaking even. The offense showed up, but St. Louis is still waiting for its pitching to get hot. Adam Wainwright, Miles Mikolas, Jack Flaherty and Steven Matz still remain below league average by park-adjusted ERA. Only Jordan Montgomery has an ERA below 4.50. And collectively, the rotation ranks about 24th in the league. Somehow, all that panic about Willson Contreras didn’t ruin the Cardinals. But that doesn’t mean everything is tip-top with the team and their starting pitching. — NG

Record: 22-24
Last Power Ranking: 21

The Giants are a weird team of extremes, as Grant Brisbee explains. They are not rebuilding and they are not a juggernaut. But, judging by how they conducted their offseason, they do expect to win — which they have been doing more of lately. After leaving Carlos Correa at the altar, other teams might have said, “You know what, I need to take some time for myself,” but San Francisco got right back out on the market and made notable additions to its roster in the hopes of building out a winner.

But many of those additions have not produced. We’ll give Michael Conforto a bit of a pass, as he’s been roughly a league-average bat and missed all of last season. But Mitch Haniger is sitting on an OPS+ of 52. Sean Manaea, signed for two years and $25 million, can’t stick in the rotation and has the eighth-highest ERA of any pitcher who has thrown at least 20 innings this season. The Giants aren’t bad — and for once are producing homegrown talents like Casey Schmitt and Patrick Bailey — but if you’re going to build your team through free agency, you have to get those signings right. — ZB

Record: 21-26
Last Power Ranking: 14

What are we waiting for to show up in San Diego? How about the super-squad Padres team this offseason promised us? Like the free-spending Mets on the opposite coast, the Padres have a star-studded team playing several degrees below its own talent. This piece by Dennis Lin last week gets across the magnitude of the problem:

• The franchise is on its fifth full-time manager since general manager A.J. Preller took over in 2014. It doesn’t seem to make a difference!
• The Padres have already played 23 games in which they scored three or fewer runs. They have lost 21 of them.
• They went 2-for-9 with runners in scoring position in one game against the Royals to improve their season average in those situations.

Not hitting: Austin Nola, Trent Grisham, Nelson Cruz.

Not pitching well: Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove.

The boobirds have been out. “I would boo ourselves, too,” said Fernando Tatis Jr. — ZB

Record: 24-23
Last Power Ranking: 23

We’ll start with Jean Segura. Because for as hard as the Fish have worked to keep their heads above .500, they’ve had little help from Segura, who this past offseason signed a two-year, $17 million deal. He’s batting .204 with a .509 OPS — more than 200 points lower than any of his past seven seasons. He is swinging at everything and barreling almost nothing. Meanwhile, the Marlins’ catching situation is a mess. They have the worst OPS from the position in the majors this season, at .459. Jacob Stallings is batting .118 with a .340 OPS, and Nick Fortes has hit .211 with a .538 OPS. Add into the mix that shortstop Joey Wendle and outfielder Peyton Burdick are also both batting below .200 in small samples, and the Marlins have some significant holes in their lineup. — SN

Record: 20-26
Last Power Ranking: T-19

Rewind a week. The Cubs were coming off a rough stretch with series losses to the Cardinals and Twins. They were getting good contributions from several players, notably Dansby Swanson. And, at least statistically, their lineup is among the top 5 in the majors. The one hole in the order, at the time, was Seiya Suzuki. In his second year after moving from the Hiroshima Toyo Carp to the North Side, the Cubs were still waiting for him to break out. Then, in the past week, Suzuki raised his batting average by more than 30 points and his OPS by more than 100 points. And now, Suzuki, too, is hitting well above league average. “He’s in a good place,” Cubs manager David Ross said. “When he’s like that, you’re going to see our offense put up a lot of good numbers. He’s key in the middle of that order.” Unfortunately, the Cubs went 1-5 this past week, swept by the Astros and bested by the Phillies. Maybe they were waiting for somebody other than Suzuki to fix everything. — NG

Record: 20-26
Last Power Ranking: T-19

The Guardians are clearly not a bad baseball team. Ok, maybe it’s not immediately apparent, but it’s true. The league this year is made up of maybe five good teams, two demonstrably horrid teams and a flat circle of mediocrity in between. The Guardians are in that middle group. The fact that they’ve trended toward the bottom of the mid-range is immaterial. Sure, they are five games under .500 with a run differential now 34 runs below even. They’re also in a winnable division and it’s hard to imagine even Alan Trammell would claim the Tigers are better than the Guardians. So something is missing. In the past calendar week, the Guards went 1-5 and that series loss to the White Sox is borderline shameful, but they were swept out of New York by a total of just three Mets runs. This season, they’ve won as many as four games in a row and lost as many as three straight. They’ve scored as many as 12 runs and allowed as many as 11. When they find some consistency — if they can find some consistency — Cleveland will get right. — NG

Record: 20-24
Last Power Ranking: 22

Well, you might say the Tigers are still waiting on most of their lineup to figure things out. But these are the second-place Tigers we’re talking about, so show some respect. Let’s focus our attention on the bats. The only Tigers hitters who rate as above-average this season by OPS+ or wRC+ are Zach McKinstry, Riley Greene and Kerry Carpenter, who is currently injured. That’s not super-duper promising. But, again, I refer you to the standings. No one is counting on Miguel Cabrera to turn around his .459 OPS, but how about Jonathan Schoop (.565), Nick Maton (.616), Matt Vierling (.639), Javier Báez (.608) or Spencer Torkelson (.661)? Torkelson, Vierling and Maton all have shown encouraging signs at bat in this past week, and any (or all) of them starting to click regularly could be what keep these Tigers — No. 2 in the division, No. 1 in your hearts — interesting this summer. — SN

Record: 19-29
Last Power Ranking: 27

Nice week for the White Sox, after winning two of three against the Guardians and sweeping the lowly Royals. It was the kind of week that should be expected. Losing five of six to those two teams would have said more about their problems than winning all but one says about their merits. At a granular level, the Sox are trying to fix some pitching mechanics to get right, with Lance Lynn and Dylan Cease tweaking their motions for better results. This team, though, is beyond the tweaks. They are the third-worst team in the league! They’re looking down at the Royals and A’s, two historically bad teams. Maybe the Sox aren’t a good team, as constructed, but they shouldn’t be this bad. We are not here to lobby for cleaning house with the roster or even the front office. It just seems like the Sox are waiting for a big idea — any idea — for getting right, either this season or into the future. They are beyond the need for tweaks. — NG

Record: 19-27
Last Power Ranking: 24

I saw a recent article on a competitor’s site highlighting players receiving trade buzz, and one of the names listed was Reds outfielder Wil Myers. This prompted me to look up Myers’ numbers and … what? Teams want to trade for this guy? Why, do they owe Cincinnati a favor?

The Reds signed Myers to a one-year deal hoping they could flip him at the deadline like they did with Brandon Drury last year, but it’s not working. Myers is hitting .198/.258/.298. He hasn’t had a multi-hit game in nearly a month. For a guy wearing red, his Baseball Savant page is really, really blue. Myers has generally been a good hitter, but there’s a chance the 32-year-old has hit the downslope. His in-zone contact is a career-worst, as is his maximum exit velocity. He is striking out so damn much.

It’s not going to kill the Reds if he doesn’t turn it around, but it sure wouldn’t hurt! (And anyway, the guy we’re all really hoping will show up is Elly De La Cruz.) — ZB

Record: 20-27
Last Power Ranking: 28

I’ve sung Keibert Ruiz’s praises around here as a breakout candidate and as an early-season positive for the Nationals, as he batted .281 with a .351 OBP in April. But the production has cratered in May, with Ruiz batting .167 with a .227 OBP, which actually improved significantly over the weekend with a single, double and homer against the Tigers. With his profile as a switch-hitting catcher with excellent bat-to-ball skills, Ruiz makes a ton of contact, but not a lot of hard contact — especially when he’s chasing. And that weaker contact is why his below-average BABIPs (.233 this year, .263 in the majors) don’t look so much like bad luck as they do his norm. Ruiz is mostly a singles hitter at this stage, and he rarely walks, so a prolonged slump like the one this month is capable of completely halting his offensive production. Ruiz isn’t the only Nationals player with middling offensive numbers so far this season, but he’s a central piece of the franchise’s future and it’s crucial for him to continue making progress. — SN

Record: 19-28
Last Power Ranking: 26

The Rockies were so pleased with their core over the past few seasons, they doled out contract extensions to Kyle Freeland, Antonio Senzatela, Ryan McMahon, Daniel Bard, Elias Diaz and C.J. Cron. And they signed Kris Bryant to a seven-year deal. Bit of an odd strategy considering they were no better than a 74-win team over the past four years and are currently a last-place squad. There’s just not a lot of room to work over the roster in free agency. They’re waiting for an infusion of rookies — namely, outfielder Zac Veen, the club’s top prospect. But here’s the tough part, and the Rockies aren’t alone in this way of dealing with prospects: If Veen makes his way to the majors later this summer, he’ll be joining a losing team, a team that needs him more than he needs them. That’s not an ideal situation for a young player. All of a sudden, you’re asking him to save the team. That’s an unreasonable demand. Ideally, Veen would get the space to find his way and figure out how to survive in the major leagues. That alone is incredibly difficult. But to be responsible for the future of the team, too? Not a fair request. — NG

Record: 14-34
Last Power Ranking: 29

When he’s out there collecting four hits in a game like he did Saturday — more like three and a half with that nubber to the pitcher, but he also smacked a well-hit double — Nick Loftin will start turning that gentle knock on the big-league door into a hard bang. If the Royals are content to wait for their No. 2 prospect, fans might not be. Loftin sits just outside the list of MLB’s Top 100 prospects, or just inside, depending on the wind. And he is probably the nearest, best minor-leaguer yet to join the Royals. As a do-it-all hitter, five-tool player and utility fielder, Loftin should have little trouble finding a spot on this Royals team. The key question is how to maximize his future. It’d be dumb to rush him into the bigs just for him to learn how to lose games. But keeping him in Triple-A Omaha in perpetuity is just as bad. Everybody, it seems, is waiting for Loftin to arrive. — NG

Record: 10-38
Last Power Ranking: 30

We could spend a lot of time clowning on the abject futility of the A’s — Jayson Stark has that in great detail if you desire it — but that feels like it’s missing the point we’re making here. If this week’s theme is about waiting for the real Slim Shady to stand up, these A’s aren’t helpful. Barely anyone on this roster has a track record!

So, we’ll take aim at the C-suite, where we’re waiting on competent executives to arrive. A brief rundown of recent events: The A’s announced a “binding” land deal in Las Vegas and abandoned it almost immediately. They then announced a new deal that would involve nearly $400 million in public funds, only for public officials to be like, “Uh, I don’t think we’re spending that much.” Owner John Fisher and president David Kaval built a bad roster on purpose. But this Vegas stuff is something they’re actually trying to get right. — ZB

(Top photo: Ron Jenkins / Getty Images)

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An Astros rotation already lacking significant depth and entering the year 2023 has received two major blows in the past few days.

Starting pitcher Jose Urquidy was placed on Monday’s 15-day injured list with a shoulder complaint, and Monday night brought more troubling news. Starting mate Luis Garcia left his start against San Francisco in the first inning with an elbow injury, and Astros manager Dusty Baker noted that Garcia will be out indefinitely after the game with an MRI scheduled for Tuesday.

It’s unclear how long each pitcher will be out of Houston’s rotation. But in the short term, Baker now faces a serious problem.

The two injuries further complicate a difficult dance for Baker. Starting the season with Justin Verlander, now in Queens, and Lance McCullers Jr. on the injured list, he took what is perhaps the team’s greatest strength and placed a legitimate question mark outside of Staff aces Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier. Now where exactly will Baker turn to with a pair of keys out of his arms? Let’s go through some options:

Internal Candidates

This remains the most likely path for Astros right now, with exploration for access via trading likely closer to the July 31st deadline. There are some relatively attractive opportunities within the organization at the moment.

Brandon Bielak is almost guaranteed a rotation spot after a strong showing on Monday, which included six strikeouts in four innings to relieve Garcia. Bielak isn’t the strongest arm, although his experience – with eight career starts under his belt – and performance should give him the upper hand.

Twitter

– PitchingNinja Twitter

Who could take last place behind Bielak? The most likely candidate is right-hander JP France, who was protected by the Astros in the Rule 5 draft this offseason. Although there may be other possibilities at play. Right-hander Ronel Blanco dominated Spring Training competition with just one earned run in 17 innings, and Forrest Whitley has some upside potential following the hype. Given his past struggles at Triple-A Sugar Land, I’d be cautious about calling up Whitley. Although Baker could try to give Whitley a one-start trial in a pinch.

External options?

Astros CEO Dana Brown isn’t afraid to be aggressive considering he’s proposing a slew of potential contract extensions this summer, and perhaps the same logic will apply in the trading market. Where might the Astros look for guns? Let’s take a look at the bottom of the league table. Perhaps the NL East bottom-feeder in Washington — a phrase that was frankly unthinkable in October 2019 — will part ways with a low-cost veteran arm in Trevor Williams or Chad Kuhl, and a similar path could be taken in Oakland, though the A as (theoretical) divisional rival. The most appealing option could be in Kansas City, where Zack Grienke’s less-than-stellar homecoming could see him returning to a contender.

None of the above options are particularly attractive, but as May approaches, it’s hard to imagine anyone other than the league’s worst-performing teams wanting to sell. Instead, Brown will likely need to keep his proverbial prospect powder dry, hoping to get enough production through internal replacements before we really hit the dog days of summer.

The post Astros sport shaky rotation after Jose Urquidy, Luis Garcia accidents appeared first on DAILY SAN FRANCISCO BAY NEWS.

An Astros rotation already lacking significant depth and entering the year 2023 has received two major blows in the past few days.

Starting pitcher Jose Urquidy was placed on Monday’s 15-day injured list with a shoulder complaint, and Monday night brought more troubling news. Starting mate Luis Garcia left his start against San Francisco in the first inning with an elbow injury, and Astros manager Dusty Baker noted that Garcia will be out indefinitely after the game with an MRI scheduled for Tuesday.

It’s unclear how long each pitcher will be out of Houston’s rotation. But in the short term, Baker now faces a serious problem.

The two injuries further complicate a difficult dance for Baker. Starting the season with Justin Verlander, now in Queens, and Lance McCullers Jr. on the injured list, he took what is perhaps the team’s greatest strength and placed a legitimate question mark outside of Staff aces Framber Valdez and Cristian Javier. Now where exactly will Baker turn to with a pair of keys out of his arms? Let’s go through some options:

Internal Candidates

This remains the most likely path for Astros right now, with exploration for access via trading likely closer to the July 31st deadline. There are some relatively attractive opportunities within the organization at the moment.

Brandon Bielak is almost guaranteed a rotation spot after a strong showing on Monday, which included six strikeouts in four innings to relieve Garcia. Bielak isn’t the strongest arm, although his experience – with eight career starts under his belt – and performance should give him the upper hand.

Twitter

– PitchingNinja Twitter

Who could take last place behind Bielak? The most likely candidate is right-hander JP France, who was protected by the Astros in the Rule 5 draft this offseason. Although there may be other possibilities at play. Right-hander Ronel Blanco dominated Spring Training competition with just one earned run in 17 innings, and Forrest Whitley has some upside potential following the hype. Given his past struggles at Triple-A Sugar Land, I’d be cautious about calling up Whitley. Although Baker could try to give Whitley a one-start trial in a pinch.

External options?

Astros CEO Dana Brown isn’t afraid to be aggressive considering he’s proposing a slew of potential contract extensions this summer, and perhaps the same logic will apply in the trading market. Where might the Astros look for guns? Let’s take a look at the bottom of the league table. Perhaps the NL East bottom-feeder in Washington — a phrase that was frankly unthinkable in October 2019 — will part ways with a low-cost veteran arm in Trevor Williams or Chad Kuhl, and a similar path could be taken in Oakland, though the A as (theoretical) divisional rival. The most appealing option could be in Kansas City, where Zack Grienke’s less-than-stellar homecoming could see him returning to a contender.

None of the above options are particularly attractive, but as May approaches, it’s hard to imagine anyone other than the league’s worst-performing teams wanting to sell. Instead, Brown will likely need to keep his proverbial prospect powder dry, hoping to get enough production through internal replacements before we really hit the dog days of summer.

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The Houston Astros’ offense looked unusually mediocre in April, sitting 19th in the league in OPS (.697) and 21st in home runs (27) as of Monday night. And while Houston’s mediocre production on the record is largely due to the dual absences of Jose Altuve and Michael Brantley, a spot on Dusty Baker’s daily lineup falls far short of expectations.

Enter Jose Abreu, the $58 million man currently struggling to pose a threat to opposing pitchers.

Abreu, 36, came to Houston as an offensive force over the past decade with plenty of pedigree. The Cuban slugger won the 2020 American League MVP when he hit 19 home runs for the Chicago White Sox during the 60-game season shortened by the pandemic, and he has been one of the most reliable RBIs in his career with six 100+ RBI campaigns -Sources of baseball in his career. But one of the AL’s most feared hitters is off to a slow start in 2023 as the Astros look to take the lead from AL West.

Houston’s first baseman has an ugly .267 on-base percentage with just four walks versus 27 strikeouts this season. But perhaps most worrying is the lack of performance from a player expected to feast on the short porches in both left and right field at Minute Maid Park. Abreu has yet to homer in his first 120 plate appearances in 2023 ahead of Monday’s home game against San Francisco. Of his 27 hits, 23 were singles, and of the 129 players who made 100 plate appearances this year, only White Sox infielder Elvis Andrus has a worse slugging percentage.

Abreu joined the Astros as a hitter with near-metronomic production, used as a patient but powerful bat to deepen what may be baseball’s finest lineup. Neither Abreu nor a less-healthy Astros roster have quite fulfilled that plan so far.

We should tap the pauses on any panic over Abreu’s lackluster production so far. Baker said in early April he expected a relatively slow start from Abreu after speaking to White Sox coaches during the offseason, and the metrics support Dusty’s theory. Abreu’s career 0.768 OPS prior to May 1st is approaching an impressive 0.850 in all other months.

On Sunday, Abreu noted that his swing “isn’t where I want it to be,” and both Baker and Abreu highlighted his work on his swing mechanics in the first month of the season. Abreu also pairs his ugly outside production with some solid underlying metrics, where his 32 hard-hit balls (defined as balls in play over 95 MPH) are tied with All-Stars Manny Machado and CJ Cron for a respectable No. 62’s MLB Leaderboard.

Abreu is sure to improve on the plate in the coming months. He has over a decade of data suggesting he’s one of the game’s more natural right-handers, with a penchant for quality contact and driving in runs. But as we move into May, the caution of Houston’s big offseason move — in which they gave big money to a first baseman in his late 30s — is increasingly being questioned. Maybe a new month will bring old Abreu to Minute Maid Park.

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Houston will face a National League West roster in their first-ever (non-Canadian) international competition.

May 1, 2023Updated: May 1, 2023 11:14 am

Astros star Yordan Alvarez is likely to have a big day when Houston takes on Colorado in the racquet-friendly heights of Mexico City.

Carmen Mandato/Getty Images

The Houston Astros are heading south in 2024 as they are reportedly set to become the newest team to compete in Major League Baseball’s international competition during the regular season.

Dusty Baker’s side will take on the Colorado Rockies in a regular-season series next season in Mexico, with the competitions set to be held at the Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú, according to The Athletic’s Ken Rosenthal and Chandler Rome. The date for next season’s international series is set for Monday.

Twitter

— ken_rosenthal Twitter

Twitter

– Ken_Rosenthal Twitter

Fans will likely see plenty of runs scored when the two teams travel to Mexico City in 2024. The San Diego Padres and San Francisco Giants combined 37 runs in two games at the Estadio Alfredo Harp Helú over the weekend and hit 14 homers thanks to the stadium’s elevation and height. Denver’s Coors Field — perhaps considered the most locally-owned baseball stadium — sits just 5,280 feet above sea level. Located in Mexico City, the stadium sits over 7,300 feet above sea level, creating even less drag when the ball is batted. Maybe in 2024, like we did over the weekend, we’ll see a soccer score break out on the lozenge.

Twitter

— Covers Twitter

Next year will be the Astros’ second (non-Canadian) regular-season international, following a contest against the Angels in Monterrey, Mexico in 2019. And based on recent trends, it’s unlikely we’ll see the list of competitions going abroad end anytime soon. The Yankees and Red Sox faced off in London in 2019, and numerous regular-season games have been played in both Tokyo and Mexico City in the 21st century. As MLB seeks to expand its presence internationally, taking the game’s stars overseas is a natural move.

Houston has remained firmly focused on the pursuits in 2023 despite Monday’s announcement. The Astros will look to improve on their 15-13 record in 2023 on Monday when they host the Giants at Minute Maid Park. The first pitch is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. CT.

Michael Shapiro is a sports reporter for Chron, covering the Rockets, Astros and every team in town. A Denver native, University of Texas at Austin graduate, Michael is a noted fan of three-piece pull-ups, wide receiver passes and a good hot fudge sundae.

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