The Red Sox earned a 9-4 win over the Dodgers last night, finishing off a dream month that saw the team go 21-4. This .840 win percentage in July was the best in any month in Boston’s 126-year franchise history. Ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto takes the mound for Los Angeles today to try and slow the Sox down, while the Red Sox will start Payton Tolle.
1. Final starts for rotation trade candidates?
The Blue Jays’ Kevin Gausman and the Angels’ Jose Soriano are still scheduled to start for their respective teams today, but nobody would be surprised if either pitcher is a late scratch. We already saw Freddy Peralta and Casey Mize scratched from planned starts on Friday, as clubs aren’t going to risk a late injury for players likely to be moved before Monday’s 5pm CT trade deadline. Gausman is an impending free agent but there hasn’t been any extension talks between the Jays and the veteran righty, as Gausman told Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi yesterday. It remains to be seen if the Angels will move Soriano since the righty is arbitration-controlled through 2028, but the fact that the Halos are at least open to offers on Soriano and other controllable players creates some possibility that a trade is possible.
2. Clark’s stellar debut
Scratching Mize from starting didn’t stop the Tigers from a 13-1 rout of the Athletics on Friday. A four-pitcher bullpen game limited the A’s to just one run on three hits, so Max Clark matched the Athletics’ hit total himself in his big league debut. The star prospect went 3-for-4 with a walk, with two doubles and his first career RBI to show for his first game in the Show. The 52-58 Tigers are 3.5 games out of the last AL wild card spot, but are expected to mostly act in a seller capacity before Monday’s deadline. That means impending free agents like Mize and superstar Tarik Skubal have likely thrown their last pitches in a Detroit uniform, and the Tigers are undoubtedly being flooded with offers from pitching-needy teams.
3. The Astros take command in the AL West
A 4-1 loss to the Twins on May 20 sunk the Astros to a 20-37 record, but hope wasn’t lost. Houston has since posted a 36-18 record to both get back over the .500 mark and take over first place in the AL West, following yesterday’s 11-2 win over the Rangers. The Astros are on a four-game winning streak and have won nine of their last 10 games, putting the club firmly in position to add talent at the deadline. It is no secret that Houston is looking to acquire outfield help, ideally a left-handed hitting outfielder (or two) to add some balance to a mostly right-handed lineup. First things first, of course, is staying on top of the division, as the Rangers could move right back into the top spot with a victory today. Texas will start Jacob deGrom today while Ronel Blanco (who is returning from Tommy John rehab) will make his third start of the season for Houston.
