MLB ROUNDUP: ROCKIES SWEEP ROYALS ON KYLE FREELAND’S FIRST COMPLETE GAME
Kyle Freeland struck out eight in the first complete game of his career, Jake McCarthy hit a three-run home run and the Colorado Rockies beat the Kansas City Royals 8-1 in Denver on Sunday.
Freeland (3-10), who needed 115 pitches to go the distance, retired 18 straight batters before Salvador Perez’s one-out double in the ninth. Starling Marte followed with a single but Freeland got the next two batters to finish off the team’s first complete game since Chad Kuhl did it June 27, 2022, against the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Cole Carrigg had three hits and two stolen bases and Brett Sullivan added two doubles for Colorado, which swept a series for the first time since taking three at the New York Mets on April 24-26.
Jac Caglianone doubled for one of the five hits for Kansas City, which has lost four in a row. Royals starter Seth Lugo (4-7) allowed five runs on five hits over five innings, getting chased early in the Rockies’ six-run sixth inning which blew the game open.Baseball coverage
Braves 4, Nationals 2
Mike Yastrzemski and Matt Olson cracked solo homers as Atlanta capped a four-game sweep over visiting Washington.
Dylan Dodd (3-1) threw a perfect fifth inning to trigger five innings of hitless relief by the Braves bullpen. Raisel Iglesias claimed his 24th save while spot starter JR Ritchie allowed four hits and two runs over four innings.
Nationals starter Cade Cavalli (8-5) gave up six hits and three runs (two earned) in six innings. Washington took a brief 2-1 lead in the fourth when Andres Chaparro was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded and James Wood followed with a sacrifice fly, but Olson responded with a solo shot to lead off the bottom of the fourth.
Phillies 8, Orioles 0 (5 1/2 innings)
Bryan De La Cruz and Bryce Harper homered and three pitchers combined on another shutout as visiting Philadelphia shut out Baltimore in a rain-shortened game.
De La Cruz drove in three runs for the Phillies, who have won two straight after losing eight of their previous nine games. Justin Crawford had two hits, two RBIs and two runs while Alec Bohm added a pair of hits. Kyle Backhus pitched one inning and Tim Mayza (3-3) worked two innings in relief of starter Zack Wheeler, who saw his outing last just two innings due to an extended third-inning rain delay.
The Orioles were held without a run or extra-base hit for the second straight day. Starter Kyle Bradish (7-10), who also didn’t return following the delay, was charged with two runs in three innings. The game was called when it went into a second rain delay ahead of the bottom of the sixth.
Cardinals 5, Blue Jays 1
Jordan Walker stroked a two-run single to cap a four-run ninth and visiting St. Louis defeated Toronto to avoid being swept.
The Cardinals plated four runs (one earned) on three hits, a walk and a costly error against top Blue Jays reliever Louis Varland (3-4). Lars Nootbaar also had an RBI double for St. Louis, which got six innings of one-hit shutout work from Matthew Liberatore.
Toronto tied the game in the home eighth against George Soriano (4-3). Andres Gimenez singled with two outs, stole second and scored when Luis Urias hooked a double into the left field corner. Max Scherzer allowed one run and four hits with five strikeouts in six innings, moving to 3,512 career strikeouts, three behind Walter Johnson, who is 10th on the all-time list.
Reds 10, Pirates 2
Sal Stewart continued his rise up Cincinnati’s all-time rookie leaderboard and ace Chase Burns allowed just one run and two hits over six innings as the host Reds claimed three of four from Pittsburgh in the weekend series.
Stewart hit his 24th of the season, tying Joey Votto in 2008 for the second-most by a Cincinnati rookie. Frank Robinson holds the single-season franchise record for rookies with 38 in 1956. Tyler Stephenson homered, doubled and drove in two, while Nathaniel Lowe had three hits for the Reds.
Pirates starter Mitch Keller (6-8) was tagged for seven runs and six hits over two innings, walking four and striking out two, while the offense was held to just four hits on the day.
Guardians 5, Diamondbacks 0
Chase DeLauter delivered a two-run double and had three RBIs, and Patrick Bailey hit a solo homer as Cleveland avoided a series sweep against visiting Arizona.
Gavin Williams (11-6) took a perfect game into the sixth as he struck out 10 and gave up one hit and one walk over 5 2/3 innings. Hunter Gaddis, Craig Yoho, Matt Festa and Cade Smith finished off the combined two-hitter.
Diamondbacks starter Merrill Kelly (8-9) allowed five runs on eight hits over five innings. The right-hander struck out five and walked four.
Marlins 2, Mets 0
Sandy Alcantara and three relievers combined on a five-hitter for visiting Miami, which stayed hot by edging New York in the finale of a four-game set.
Joe Mack had two hits, including a homer in the fifth inning, for the Marlins. Xavier Edwards added an insurance run with a single in the ninth. Alcantara (12-6) gave up four hits and walked two over six innings. Michael Petersen replaced Alcantara and escaped a bases-loaded, no-out jam in the seventh. Pete Fairbanks finished the shutout to secure his 17th save.
Robert Stock took a hard-luck loss for the cellar-dwelling Mets in his first major league start since 2021, allowing one run on three hits over five innings. New York was 0-for-12 with runners in scoring position, stranding 10 men on base.
White Sox 9, Rays 1
Anthony Kay spun 6 1/3 shutout innings, Everson Pereira homered and drove in a career high-tying four runs and Chicago won the first series of its six-game road trip with a blowout of Tampa Bay.
The left-handed Kay (8-5) scattered seven hits — all singles — over 89 pitches while striking out three and walking one to win for the second time in three starts. The injury-plagued Pereira, who appeared in 23 games for the Rays last season, homered for the first time since April 16 and doubled. Miguel Vargas and Andrew Benintendi also went deep, while Chase Meidroth had two hits, a walk and two runs scored.
Tampa Bay starter Griffin Jax (6-9) allowed two unearned runs in the first inning and finished with one earned run over five frames. He yielded four hits and fanned eight. Ben Williamson homered and Chandler Simpson collected three hits. Ryan Vilade and Junior Caminero each added two hits as the Rays, who stranded 10 baserunners, finished 6-3 on their homestand.
Yankees 2, Cubs 1
Jose Caballero’s two-run homer and 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball from Gerrit Cole powered visiting New York over Chicago.
Cole (5-5) worked around four hits and three walks, striking out five, as New York took the third and decisive game of the weekend series. David Bednar got the final four outs for his 24th save.
Colin Rea (8-8) struck out seven and allowed just four baserunners in six-plus innings, but he was the hard-luck loser as the Cubs went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position. Michael Busch had the lone RBI for Chicago.
Astros 7, Rangers 3
Yordan Alvarez capped his second four-hit game of the season with a two-run double in the seventh inning, helping Houston complete a three-game series sweep of visiting Texas with its sixth straight victory.
Alvarez finished 4-for-5 with three doubles, two RBIs and a run scored. Jeremy Pena added a two-run homer, and Jose Altuve, Cam Smith, LaMonte Wade Jr. delivered RBI singles. Astros starter Peter Lambert retired the first 12 batters he faced before he was tagged for two runs in the fifth.
Brandon Nimmo hit his 11th homer for the Rangers to tie the game at 3 in the top of the seventh. Kumar Rocker gave up three runs on 10 hits over 5 1/3 innings. With the sweep, Houston moved 2 1/2 games clear of Texas atop the AL West.
Angels 3, Brewers 0
Rookie Walbert Urena allowed three hits over six innings and Wade Meckler hit a two-run homer to lead Los Angeles to a victory over Jacob Misiorowski and Milwaukee in Anaheim, Calif.
Zach Neto added an RBI single for the Angels, who snapped a five-game losing streak. Urena (7-7) allowed just three singles, walked three and struck out seven while outdueling National League Cy Young frontrunner Misiorowski. Ryan Zeferjahn struck out four and allowed two hits over 1 2/3 innings to pick up his fourth save.
Misiorowski (11-5) walked one and struck out 10. It was the 10th time he has registered double-digit strikeouts in 21 starts this season, setting a new franchise single-season record. After Meckler’s second-inning home run, he retired 16 straight batters and 17 of the last 18 hitters he faced but still took his first loss since July 2 against Cincinnati.
Padres 5, Giants 4
Jackson Merrill belted a two-run homer during a four-run second inning and San Diego won for the eighth time in nine games, holding off visiting San Francisco.
Merrill’s 16th homer of the year off Landen Roupp (7-10) got the Padres off to the fast start they needed to repel the Giants’ rally. Two more runs came in on Jake Cronenworth’s single. Kyle Hart delivered three scoreless innings as an opener in place of Michael King, whose start was moved to Monday at Arizona.
Osleivis Basabe and Rafael Devers homered for San Francisco. Roupp gave up six hits and five runs in 4 2/3 innings.
Tigers 11, Athletics 0
Keider Montero allowed two hits in six shutout innings and Eduardo Valencia drove in four runs with a pair of doubles as Detroit blanked the Athletics at West Sacramento, Calif.
The Tigers swept the series and have scored at least eight runs in five straight games for the first time since 1996, and over the same dates of July 28 to Aug. 2. Detroit swept the season series 6-0 — reportedly the first time the Tigers have swept a season series from an American League opponent.
Montero (8-6) walked two and struck out two in 86 pitches. A’s starter Gage Jump (4-7) gave up six runs on four hits in 3 2/3 innings. The A’s, who have lost five straight and 10 of their last 12, issued nine walks to the Tigers.
Mariners 7, Twins 6
Colt Emerson lined a run-scoring single through a drawn-in infield with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning as host Seattle edged Minnesota after blowing a six-run lead.
Leadoff hitter Cole Young had his first career four-hit game and Cal Raleigh homered for the Mariners, who took the final two games of the series on walk-off wins after losing the opener. Seattle starter George Kirby tossed seven scoreless innings before the bullpen squandered the lead.
The Twins’ Luke Keaschall led off the ninth inning with a homer just over the right field wall off Mariners closer Andres Munoz (5-4) to tie the score. Josh Naylor led off the bottom of the inning by lining a single to right field off Yoendrys Gomez (2-1). An out later, Victor Robles lined a single to center, with Naylor advancing to third on an ugly belly-flop slide on which he bloodied his face. The Mariners brought in Stuart Fairchild to run for Naylor and Emerson hit his single to right to win the game.
Red Sox 8, Dodgers 4
Ceddanne Rafaela continued his home-run barrage and Boston finished off a three-game road sweep over the Los Angeles to complete a 6-1 California road trip that also included a stop in West Sacramento to face the Athletics.
Wilyer Abreu, Masataka Yoshida and Jarren Duran also went deep as the Red Sox improved to 2-0 in August after going 21-4 in July to set a franchise-record winning percentage (.840) for a full month. Rafaela hit the first of three Boston homers in the third inning and delivered four homers in the series.
Andy Pages drove in three runs for the Dodgers, who went 2-4 on their homestand. Los Angeles right-hander Emmet Sheehan (4-8) lasted just 2 2/3 innings, allowing five runs on six hits. Red Sox rookie left-hander Jake Bennett (7-4) gave up three runs on six hits over 5 2/3 innings with two walks and four strikeouts.
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Two-time Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal is on the move to the Los Angeles Dodgers, giving the two-time defending champions even more talent on a loaded roster.
Right-hander Freddy Peralta is switching teams, too, as the Tampa Bay Rays beef up their rotation.
Major League Baseball’s trade deadline is less than 24 hours away on Monday at 6 p.m. EDT and two of the biggest pitching prizes — Skubal and Peralta — are already off the board. But other enticing options still remain, including San Diego Padres closer Mason Miller, San Francisco Giants second baseman Luis Arraez and Toronto Blue Jays outfielder Daulton Varsho.
In other recent moves, the surprising Chicago White Sox picked up right-hander Luis Castillo in a deal with the Seattle Mariners, and the Atlanta Braves acquired outfielder Lane Thomas from the Kansas City Royals.
Dodgers land Skubal
Skubal is the latest star to join the high-priced roster for the Dodgers that already has big-name players like Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Mookie Betts.
If everyone is healthy, he could be part of a rotation with Ohtani, reigning World Series MVP Yamamoto, fellow two-time Cy Young Award winner Blake Snell and Tyler Glasnow. The Dodgers led the majors with a 3.36 ERA from their starting pitchers going into Sunday’s games and now add Skubal to the mix.
“I’m excited to be a Dodger,” an emotional Skubal said on Saturday night. “I’m excited to get down there and meet all those guys and chase three championships in a row. That’s hard to do, so I’m so excited to a part of that. But it’s a lot of different emotions. Definitely kind of a roller coaster a little bit.”
The Tigers received three minor league prospects in right-handers River Ryan and Brady Smith and outfielder Zyhir Hope.
Skubal is 7-5 this season with a 2.79 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 96 2/3 innings. He is 61-42 with a 3.04 ERA over seven seasons, all in Detroit. In two postseasons, Skubal is 2-1 with a 2.04 ERA in six starts.
Mets unload Peralta to Rays
The last-place New York Mets traded Peralta to the Rays for three minor leaguers, outfielder Aidan Smith, infielder Émilien Pitre and right-hander Gary Gill Hill.
Peralta, a two-time All-Star who can become a free agent following the World Series, has been a disappointment with the Mets after they acquired him from Milwaukee in a January trade.
But he could boost the middle of a strong rotation for the pitching-rich Rays, who began the day with the best record in the American League at 65-45 and a 3 1/2-game lead in the AL East over the New York Yankees.
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THE TIGERS FACE A DIFFICULT CHALLENGE AFTER TRADING ACE TARIK SKUBAL TO THE DODGERS
WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — The Detroit Tigers said their goodbyes to ace Tarik Skubal and now must turn their focus to an uncertain final two months of the season as they try to make a playoff push without their best player.
The Tigers traded the two-time reigning AL Cy Young Award winner to the Los Angeles Dodgers for three minor league prospects in a deal that was agreed to late Saturday night.
“Baseball has a funny way of challenging you to deal with change,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said before the series finale against the Athletics on Sunday. “Sometimes that’s difficult, sometimes it’s part of the game and part of the business. These guys are callous to some of the emotions that come with it.”
Moving on without Skubal is the ultimate challenge. The ninth-round draft pick in 2018 developed into one of the best pitchers in baseball, winning the Cy Young in 2024 and ’25 and posting a 2.40 ERA over the past three seasons.
Skubal is 7-5 this season with a 2.79 ERA and 116 strikeouts in 96 2/3 innings and had a major impact in the clubhouse. But with him set to become a free agent after the season, the Tigers opted to trade him for minor league right-handers River Ryan and Brady Smith and outfielder Zyhir Hope.
Hinch said it was important for the players to appreciate what Skubal gave the team while still understanding the task ahead.
“He wasn’t going to pitch today. So we have to be sort of cold about we got to move on and go play today’s game that he wasn’t going to impact despite the loss of his presence in our clubhouse,” Hinch said. “We have a ton of respect for what he brought every day, his preparation, his attitude, his desire to win. That impact doesn’t leave with him as he gets on a plane to go to a different team. The day-to-day does, and we’re going to have to find a way to overcome it.”
News of the trade broke during Detroit’s 8-6 win over the A’s on Saturday night with many players first hearing about it from fans near the dugout during the game. Skubal was back in the clubhouse beyond the center-field fence at the minor league stadium where the A’s play when he got the news, making it impossible for the players to get the news directly from him until after the game.
But they managed to focus on the game and come up with the win.
“The team’s handled it really well,” first baseman Spencer Torkelson said. “Leading up to the trade, I thought we blocked out the noise amazing. Even in the sixth inning when everyone’s screaming at us from the stands that we traded our best pitcher, I think we kept our focus and kept the main thing the main thing. I think as a team we still believe in ourselves and we know that we’re definitely not out of it.”
The trade came at an uncertain time for the Tigers, who have overcome a slow start to the season to move with 2 1/2 games of the final wild-card spot after winning the first two games of this series.
Prized prospect Max Clark was called up from the minors on Friday and has delivered five hits, two doubles, a homer and three RBIs in two games. But the team also scratched Casey Mize from his scheduled start this weekend in case he gets traded before the deadline Monday.
“It’s a weird, weird place,” Mize said. “We’ve played really good baseball the last couple days. We trade our best player. It says we’re 2 1/2 back, but obviously there’s a lot of teams still to overpass, so it’s certainly a strange spot.”
The task now will be to try to get back to the playoffs without Skubal after they lost in Game 5 of the division series the past two seasons. Skubal started both of those losses. He had a rough start and took the loss in 2024 against Cleveland. He had a strong start last season with 13 strikeouts in six innings against Seattle but the bullpen squandered a 2-1 lead and the Tigers went on to lose 3-2 in 15 innings.
Skubal said Saturday night after the trade that it hurt that he couldn’t help deliver Detroit its first World Series title since 1984.
“Over the last couple of years, we don’t get anywhere near to what we’ve done without Tarik Skubal,” Mize said. “I hope our fan base is appreciative of that, even if it maybe didn’t end the way that everyone wanted it to.”
The Tigers fans might get a chance to see Skubal again later this month when the Dodgers visit Detroit Aug. 28-30.
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REPORT: NATIONALS TRADE GARCÍA TO YANKEES FOR 4 PLAYERS
The Washington Nationals traded first baseman Luis García Jr. to the New York Yankees, sources told ESPN’s Jeff Passan.
Washington received four right-handed pitchers in return, sources told Passan: Prospects Jack Cebert and Ben Grable, as well as Jake Bird and Yovanny Cruz.
The 26-year-old García is having a career year for the Nationals, with 23 home runs and 76 RBIs in 357 at-bats. His .560 slugging percentage leads the NL and is third in MLB behind Yordan Alvarez of the Houston Astros and future teammate Ben Rice of the Yankees.
New York already has two first basemen on the roster in Rice and Paul Goldschmidt. García, a left-handed hitter who does most of his damage against righties, will likely platoon with Goldschmidt while Rice operates as the designated hitter until Giancarlo Stanton returns from a calf injury. The Yankees are also playing without three-time AL MVP Aaron Judge, who is sidelined with a fractured rib.
García has played all of his defensive reps at first base this season, but he also has experience at second base and shortstop.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone was excited about acquiring García after hearing about the reported deal.
“He rakes,” Boone said, according to ESPN’s Jesse Rogers.
Bird and Cruz could slot into the Nationals’ bullpen immediately. The 30-year-old Bird owns a 4.90 ERA and 8.5 K/9 in 227 big-league appearances, while Cruz has been solid (1.69 ERA, 10.1 K/9) in four MLB outings this season. Washington’s bullpen ranks 27th with a combined 4.78 ERA.
Cebert (14th) and Grable (25th) both ranked among the Yankees’ top 30 prospects, according to MLB Pipeline.
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BLUE JAYS ACQUIRE TAILLON FROM CUBS
The Toronto Blue Jays have acquired right-hander Jameson Taillon and cash considerations from the Chicago Cubs for a player to be named later or cash considerations, the teams announced Sunday.
Taillon was designated for assignment Monday after authoring a 5.92 ERA and 6.73 FIP in 15 starts this season. The 34-year-old was in the final year of a four-year, $68-million contract when he was let go by the Cubs.
The pitcher owns a 3.99 career ERA across 10 seasons with the Pittsburgh Pirates, New York Yankees, and Cubs.
He pitched for Canada at the World Baseball Classic in 2013 and 2026.
Taillon’s addition comes amid reported trade rumors involving Blue Jays pitchers Kevin Gausman, Shane Bieber, Jeff Hoffman, and Max Scherzer.
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BRAVES GET RHP TYLER MAHLE FROM GIANTS FOR RHP ANTHONY MOLINA
The Atlanta Braves acquired right-handed starting pitcher Tyler Mahle from the San Francisco Giants in exchange for right-hander Anthony Molina, the Braves announced on Sunday night.
The Braves — winners of five straight and battling the Los Angeles Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers for the best record in the National League — added a veteran arm to a rotation anchored by Chris Sale and Bryce Elder but missing Spencer Schwellenbach and Spencer Strider due to long-term injuries.
Mahle, 31, joined San Francisco this year on a one-year, $10 million contract, but the Giants are in sell-off mode as they sit 18 games below .500.
Mahle was 3-9 with a 5.13 ERA over 18 starts with the team. He struck out 89 batters and walked 37 in 94 2/3 innings.
In 10 MLB seasons with the Cincinnati Reds (2017-22), Minnesota Twins (2022-23), Texas Rangers (2024-25) and Giants, Mahle is 42-55 with a 4.19 ERA, 842 strikeouts and 301 walks across 160 games (159 starts).MLB content
Molina, 24, saw action in three games for Atlanta this season and gave up four runs (three earned) over five innings of relief. In 55 career games (two starts) with the Colorado Rockies (2024-25) and Braves, Molina is 2-2 with a 6.89 ERA.
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CUBS BOLSTER ROTATION, ACQUIRE VETERAN KEVIN GAUSMAN FROM BLUE JAYS
The Chicago Cubs are getting a much-needed boost to their rotation depth by acquiring right-hander Kevin Gausman from the Toronto Blue Jays ahead of Monday’s trade deadline, the Cubs announced on Sunday night.
The Blue Jays are getting a pair of prospects, shortstop Ty Southisene and outfielder Brett Bateman, in exchange for shipping the veteran off to playoff-contending Chicago before his five-year, $110 million contract expires at the end of this season.
Gausman, 35, has taken a step back in production this season with a 5-10 record and 4.38 ERA over 23 starts and 127 1/3 innings during his fifth season in Toronto. However, this season has been an anomaly relative to a strong recent run of success for Gausman, who posted an ERA of 3.83 or better in each of the prior six seasons.
His best stint came from 2021-23, when he posted three consecutive top-10 Cy Young finishes and earned his only two career All-Star nods with a 38-25 record and 3.10 ERA with 669 strikeouts and 133 walks over 95 starts spanning 551 2/3 innings for the San Francisco Giants (2021) and Blue Jays (2022-23).
Over 14 major league seasons, Gausman has a 117-123 record and 3.85 ERA over 384 regular-season appearances (345 starts). He’s also made 14 appearances (eight starts) across six separate postseasons.
Six of those outings (five starts) came last season on Toronto’s run to the American League championship and a World Series loss to the Dodgers. Gausman had a 2-3 record and 2.93 ERA in last year’s postseason. He took the loss as the starter of Game 2 and Game 6 of the World Series, allowing a combined six runs on seven hits over 12 2/3 innings.
Chicago, which is currently four games clear atop the National League wild-card standings, has battled injuries to its starting pitching all season.
Cade Horton made just two starts before undergoing season-ending elbow surgery. Justin Steele missed almost all of the 2025 season after having Tommy John surgery, and then sustained a setback in his recovery which has still not allowed him to pitch in a game this season. Edward Cabrera has been sidelined with hamstring and adductor strains but is nearing an expected return date this month.
Southisene, 21, is the Cubs’ No. 13 prospect, per MLB Pipeline. The fourth-round pick in the 2024 MLB Draft was elevated to High-A South Bend in May and is hitting .326 with a .451 on-base percentage, 27 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 44 games at that level.MLB content
Bateman, 24, is the Cubs’ 21st-ranked prospect. He’s spent this entire season at Triple-A Iowa, hitting .312 with three homers, 18 doubles, 33 RBIs and 20 stolen bases in 82 games.
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