Dylan Cease throws no-hitter for San Diego Padres

Perhaps my most enjoyable moment of the 2024 baseball season occurred Thursday afternoon. No, it wasn't anything pertaining to the White Sox losing their 11th consecutive game.  

Actually, I turned the Sox game off to watch former Chicago ace Dylan Cease pursue history. Much to my delight, Cease finished off his first career no-hitter, as the San Diego Padres defeated the Washington Nationals, 3-0.

The 28-year-old right-hander threw a career-high 114 pitches, striking out nine and walking three. Sox fans probably recall that Cease previously came within one out of a no-hitter on Sept. 3, 2022, against the Minnesota Twins.

I was in attendance at that game. Unfortunately, Minnesota's Luis Arraez broke up that bid with a single to right-center. Cease then struck out Kyle Garlick to finish off a one-hit shutout. Even though the Sox won that game resoundingly, I remember being so disappointed leaving the stadium and walking back to my car.

Even though Cease no longer pitches for my favorite team, I was nervous for him when he got to two outs in the ninth. When Washington's CJ Abrams hit a soft liner to right field, I think I yelled at the TV, "Catch it! Catch it!"

Sure enough, San Diego right fielder Bryce Johnson made the play for the final out.

Cease is now 10-8 with a 3.50 ERA for the Padres this season. As usual, he's been durable, making 22 starts to this point. His numbers may not be spectacular, but they are solid. I imagine San Diego is happy it acquired him in a five-player deal with the Sox shortly before this season began.

In recent starts, it seems as though Cease has regained the dominance he had in 2022, when he finished second in the American League in Cy Young voting. 

Over his past three outings, Cease is 3-0 with a 0.00 ERA. Hard to beat that, right? He's thrown 22 innings in that span, and he's given up a grand total of two hits. 

No, that's not a misprint. He's given up only two hits in his past three starts, striking out 30 and walking only four. Just outstanding.

Sarah Langs tweeted Thursday that Cease has six outings this season of six-plus innings with zero or one hit allowed. That's two more than anyone else in a season since 1901, Langs wrote.

When Cease is on, good luck to opposing batters.

It's really sad for Sox fans that they don't get to enjoy his top-level pitching anymore. But hey, how about Drew Thorpe? At least the main guy the Sox got in the Cease deal has pitched well as a rookie, having totaled five consecutive quality starts.

But that's still not as fun as a no-hitter, you know?

Source: White Sox to sign KBO pitching star Erick Fedde

The White Sox on Tuesday agreed with right-handed pitcher Erick Fedde on a two-year, $15 million contract, according to a source.

Fedde, 30, pitched parts of six seasons with the Washington Nationals from 2017-22. He appeared in 102 games, including 88 starts, and went 21-33 with a 5.41 ERA. He had a rough season in 2022, going 6-13 with a 5.81 ERA. 

Those struggles were so bad, in fact, that Fedde found himself pitching in the Korean Baseball Organization in 2023.

That turned out to be a good career move. Fedde tossed 180.1 innings for the NC Dinos of the KBO, going 20-6 with a 2.00 ERA. He struck out 209 batters and walked just 35. Fedde won the Choi Dong-won Award for his efforts, the KBO equivalent of the Cy Young. 

Knowing that Fedde stunk the last time he pitched in the U.S., why should Sox fans be optimistic about this move? Well, senior pitching advisor Brian Bannister was on the platform formally known as Twitter to explain the move to fans. 

Bannister noted that Fedde works out in the offseason with San Francisco Giants ace Logan Webb, and the two made the exact same changes to their pitching arsenal in recent times. 

Fedde has changed his slider to more of a sweeper, and he adjusted his changeup grip, as well, making the pitch have an action more like a split-finger fastball. Bannister stated that Fedde had neither of those two weapons in his arsenal with Washington. 

These adjustments worked in the KBO. Now we wait to see whether Fedde's newfound pitches will work against the best hitters in the world.

One thing I will say in Fedde's favor: I like the fact that he threw 180-plus innings in 2023. If there's one thing the Sox need, it's more innings from starting pitchers. Fedde should be well positioned to provide that. Let's just hope those innings are quality.

White Sox trade for pitcher Lance Lynn (OK), sign outfielder Adam Eaton (huh?)

Lance Lynn

We asked for some offseason moves, and now we have two. The White Sox on Tuesday acquired veteran right-handed pitcher Lance Lynn from the Texas Rangers in exchange for right-hander Dane Dunning. 

They also agreed to terms with right fielder Adam Eaton on a one-year, $7 million contract.

Let's start with the Lynn move. The 33-year-old had two good seasons in Texas back-to-back. In 2019, he went 16-11 with a 3.67 ERA and finished fifth in the American League Cy Young Award voting. 

He followed that up in the shortened season of 2020 by going 6-3 with a 3.32 ERA, good enough to finish sixth in the Cy Young voting.

Over those two seasons, Lynn has missed plenty of bats with his fastball-cutter-heavy approach. He struck out 246 batters in 208.1 innings in 2019, and 89 batters in 84 innings this past season. 

Lynn joins Lucas Giolito and Dallas Keuchel at the top of the Sox's starting rotation. In 2020, Keuchel finished fifth in the Cy Young voting, while Giolito was seventh. This means the Sox have three of the top seven American League pitchers in 2020 on their roster for 2021.

And even with the departure of Dunning, there is some depth. Dylan Cease, Michael Kopech and Reynaldo Lopez will be expected to vie for the remaining two rotation spots. Don't be surprised if the Sox add another veteran starter to provide additional competition. (Jose Quintana? Adam Wainwright? James Paxton?)

I like Dunning and thought he showed promised during his seven starts with the Sox in 2020, during which he went 2-0 with a 3.97 ERA. However, he projects as a back-of-the-rotation pitcher over the long haul. Your farm system should be able to churn out pitchers like Dunning regularly, so there shouldn't be a lot of harm in using him as a trade piece for a more established pitcher.

One drawback to this deal: Lynn only has one year left on his contract. He'll make $8 million in 2021, a bargain if he continues to produce in the same manner we saw in Texas. That adds urgency for the Sox next season. If Lynn is your "finishing piece" for the rotation, then you have to do everything possible to win right now.

And since Lynn doesn't make a ton of money, you figured there would be room left in the payroll to sign a high-end right fielder, right?

Well, too bad, we'll get Eaton whether we like it or not. The 32-year-old is coming off a rough, injury-plagued season with the Washington Nationals, in which he batted .226/.285/.384 with four home runs and 17 RBIs in 41 games.

His career slash line is .282/.360/.416, so I'm sure the Sox are hoping he'll bounce back to something resembling that. However, "hope for the best" is not a great strategy in a win-now season. And I'm not really convinced the Sox needed to pony up $7 million to sign this player.

For me, Eaton isn't a guy you sign on Dec. 8. He's the guy you sign when you've whiffed on all your other targets. In short, he's a fallback option. 

Even if the Sox aren't in the bidding for George Springer, I'd still have Michael Brantley, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Eddie Rosario ahead of Eaton on my board -- and maybe the Sox will still sign one of those guys. 

It's just a weird business strategy to make a secondary free agent signing your first offseason move. It's early in the offseason at this point, so maybe as time goes along, we'll see how Eaton fits into the big picture.

I'm OK with the Lynn move, but not overly impressed with settling for Eaton right now.

Anthony Rendon signs seven-year, $245 million deal with Angels

Anthony Rendon

Remember last year when the top free agents didn't sign until it was time for spring training to start?

Yeah, that's not happening this year. The top three free agents all came off the board this week at the Winter Meetings, with third baseman Anthony Rendon agreeing to a seven-year, $245 million contract with the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday.

Earlier this week, Gerrit Cole signed with the New York Yankees, while Stephen Strasburg returned to the Washington Nationals.

Do you think the Angels are going to score some runs this season? Rendon is joining an offense that already includes the best player on the planet, center fielder Mike Trout, and outfielder/pitcher Shohei Ohtani.

So, Trout is making $36 million in 2019. Rendon is making $35 million. Albert Pujols is making $29 million, and Justin Upton is making $21 million.

That's $121 million tied up in four hitters for the Angels. And they haven't addressed the holes in their pitching staff yet. We'll see if they have more money they can spend.

Stephen Strasburg back to Nationals on seven-year, $245 million contract

Stephen Strasburg

When Stephen Strasburg opted out of his contract at the end of the 2019 season, he had four years and $100 million remaining on his deal with the Washington Nationals.

After going through the free agency process, the World Series MVP essentially got a three-year extension worth $145 million. Pretty good if you can get it, huh?

Strasburg, 31, on Monday agreed to terms with the Nationals on a seven-year, $245 million contract that will take him through his age-37 season. The deal was the biggest news from the first day of the Winter Meetings in San Diego.

The right-hander, who was considered the second-best available pitcher on the free agent market, went 18-6 with a 3.32 ERA in 33 starts for the Nationals in 2019. He followed that up by becoming the first pitcher to win five games in the same postseason, going 5-0 with a 1.98 ERA in six October games (5 starts).

Strasburg was the winning pitcher in both Game 2 and Game 6 of the World Series, both on the road against the Houston Astros.

This deal is worth $35 million annually, and you can't help but wonder what this means for the top free agent pitcher on the market, right-hander Gerrit Cole.

Word is the New York Yankees offered this same deal -- seven years, $245 million -- to Cole over the weekend. That looks a little light now, considering that Cole, 29, is two years younger than Strasburg.

The guess here is Cole gets an eight- or nine-year deal from somebody, and it wouldn't be shocking if his contract has a $40 million AAV. I'm thinking this is going to end with him getting an eight-year deal somewhere in the $320 million range.

For now, Strasburg's contract is the largest ever handed out to a pitcher. But he'll probably hold that distinction for only a short time. Cole may sign before the Winter Meetings are over Thursday.

And, no, I still don't believe for one second that the White Sox will be bidding on Cole. Maybe Sox fans will get some coal in their stocking this Christmas, but I'm not expecting any Gerrit Cole in Chicago -- except as a member of a visiting team in 2020.

Nationals use 4 starters, 2 relievers to beat Astros in World Series

World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg

Five times during the 2019 playoffs, the Washington Nationals faced elimination. In those five games, the Nationals trailed in all of them. However, they never lost.

Washington finished off an improbable run to a World Series championship Wednesday night, rallying to beat the Houston Astros, 6-2, in Game 7.

The Nationals trailed, 2-0, after six innings, but they came back with three runs in the seventh inning, one in the eighth and two in the ninth to stun the crowd in Houston and win the series, four games to three.

Most people will remember this series because the road team won all seven games -- that's never happened before in any sport. But hopefully, history will look back on this series as the one that brought good starting pitching back into fashion.

The Nationals won this series with basically six pitchers: World Series MVP Stephen Strasburg, Max Scherzer, Patrick Corbin, Anibal Sanchez, Sean Doolittle and Daniel Hudson. The first four men on that list are starters; the last two are relievers.

Washington pitched 36 innings in this series, and 32.2 of them were handled by the six men listed above.

Strasburg earned his MVP with a brilliant, clutch performance in Game 6. He went 8.1 innings and allowed two runs on five hits with seven strikeouts in a 7-2 Washington victory.

On the morning of Game 7, it was unclear who would pitch for the Nationals. But Scherzer answered the bell, three days after being scratched from his Game 5 start and taking a cortisone shot for back and neck muscle spasms.

Scherzer was far from his best, allowing 11 base runners (seven hits, four walks) over five innings, but only two of them scored. The Astros were ahead, 2-0, but they could have been ahead 6-0. Instead, they left 10 men on base and went 1 for 8 with runners in scoring position. It was a gutsy outing by the Washington pitcher.

Worth noting: Houston also got brilliant starting pitching in Game 7. Zack Greinke allowed no runs on one hit through six innings, before he ran into mild trouble in the seventh inning.

Anthony Rendon homered with one out to make it 2-1, and Juan Soto followed with a walk. Greinke had only thrown 80 pitches, but you know, the analytics say you shouldn't let a starting pitcher face a lineup the third time through.

So even though Greinke had good stuff, Houston manager A.J. Hinch went to the bullpen. And then Hinch spent the rest of the game desperately trying to find a reliever who had stuff as good as Greinke's was.

Howie Kendrick greeted Will Harris with a two-run homer that put the Nationals ahead to stay at 3-2.

Soto's RBI single in the eighth made it 4-2 and added a run to Houston closer Roberto Osuna's tab. Then Washington scored two more in the ninth off Joe Smith and Jose Urquidy, with Adam Eaton delivering a two-run single to make it 6-2.

The Astros used five relievers, and the game got out of hand on their watch. So much for the era of "super relievers," huh? Maybe it is better to stick with an accomplished starter over a bunch of decent but not great relievers, no?

Meanwhile, the Nationals relieved Scherzer with another starting pitcher, Corbin, who worked three scoreless innings and earned the win in this clinching game. Hudson came on in his familiar relief role and worked a 1-2-3 ninth inning with two strikeouts, no doubt setting off a wild celebration in the nation's capital.

Our congratulations go out to the Nationals and their fans. This was a surprising championship, but a well-earned one. Washington beat both the 106-win Dodgers and the 107-win Astros on its path to the title. You have to respect that performance. 

Astros on brink of World Series championship after three wins over Nationals

Joe Ross

Most people didn't see it coming when the Washington Nationals won the first two games of the World Series on the road against the Houston Astros.

The Nationals looked the part of a team of destiny. They entered Game 3 having won 18 of their past 20 games. Well, that hot streak is over, because the Astros won Games 3, 4 and 5 in Washington, D.C.

After Sunday night's 7-1 Houston victory in Game 5, the Astros hold a 3-2 lead in the best-of-seven series.

Houston dominated the three games in Washington, winning by a combined score of 19-3. The Nationals never took the lead in any of the three games.

In Sunday's pivotal Game 5, Washington was in trouble before it set foot on the field. The marquee starting pitching matchup between Max Scherzer and Gerrit Cole never materialized, as Scherzer was scratched because of neck spasms and back tightness.

When Scherzer doesn't pitch, you know he's legitimately hurt, too. The man had made 30 or more starts in 10 consecutive seasons coming into this year. Joe Ross got the emergency start for Washington, and while he didn't embarrass himself, you know he's just not like Scherzer. Few are.

Ross went five innings and allowed four runs, giving up a pair of two-run homers -- one to Yordan Alvarez and the other to Carlos Correa.

Meanwhile, Cole went seven strong innings. He allowed only one run -- a solo home run by Juan Soto -- on three hits, with nine strikeouts and two walks. Cole is 4-1 in his five postseason starts, and if this was the free-agent-to-be's last start in an Astros uniform, his legacy in Houston is secure.

Game 6 is Tuesday night in Houston, and Washington will turn to postseason ace Stephen Strasburg to try to force Game 7. Who better to pitch this game? Strasburg has made four starts in these playoffs and won them all, with a 1.93 ERA.

For his career, Strasburg is now 5-2 with a 1.34 ERA in the playoffs.

However, his opposition is formidable in Justin Verlander, who is looking to add to his Hall of Fame-caliber resume with a World Series-clinching win. And Verlander will be looking to atone for his loss to Strasburg in Game 2.

The Astros are now just a win away from becoming the fourth team in MLB history to rally to win a series after dropping the first two games at home. They also are looking to become the first team to win a home game in this series.

Washington Nationals beat Houston Astros in first two games of World Series

Juan Soto

It's Oct. 24, and the Washington Nationals haven't lost a game since Oct. 6.

The Nationals not so long ago had a well-earned reputation as playoff chokers -- they lost in the National League Division Series in 2012, 2014, 2016 and 2017. They had never won a playoff series before this season, but hey, look at them now.

Washington has won 18 of its past 20 games dating back to the regular season, and it has won eight consecutive playoff games after its 12-3 victory over the Houston Astros on Wednesday in Game 2 of the World Series.

The Nationals have won three elimination games in these playoffs -- the wild card game against the Milwaukee Brewers and Games 4 and 5 of the NLDS against the 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers. And they came from behind in the eighth inning in two of those three elimination games. That's clutch.

Now, Washington leads this World Series, 2-0, and it has the next three games at home. Two more wins and the franchise will permanently shed the "playoff choker" label.

How have they done it? Well, they've gone on the road in this World Series and beat the two best pitchers in baseball, Gerrit Cole and Justin Verlander, on back-to-back days.

Cole and Verlander were a combined 41-11 this season, but all that matters now is that they are 0-2 this week. The Astros had only lost two in a row at home once since July 1. Make it twice.

The Nationals scored five runs in seven innings off Cole in Game 1, and their cleanup hitter -- Juan Soto -- led the charge with three hits and three RBIs in a 5-4 victory. And Ryan Zimmerman, a member of the Nationals since 2005, hit a solo home run. Good for him. He's been there through all the postseason disappointment, so he probably has a great appreciation for this run.

Washington ace Max Scherzer only went five innings, but he got the win, and I thought it was interesting that Patrick Corbin worked an inning in relief -- a scoreless sixth (more on that in a minute).

Tanner Rainey gave up a run in the seventh, and Daniel Hudson gave up a run in the eighth. But with a 5-2 lead sliced to 5-4, Sean Doolittle closed it out for Washington with a 1-2-3 ninth inning.

In Game 2, Verlander and Stephen Strasburg battled through a 2-2 deadlock after six innings. Strasburg was over 100 pitches in the bottom of the sixth, but he extricated himself from a first-and-second, one-out jam to keep the game tied.

His teammates rewarded him by erupting for six runs in the top of the seventh. Kurt Suzuki's homer off Verlander put Washington ahead to stay, and the Nationals tacked on a whole bunch more against the Houston bullpen. As a matter of fact, Washington scored 10 runs in the last three innings; former White Sox outfielder Adam Eaton homered in the top of the eighth.

Remember, I mentioned that Corbin relief appearance. He will NOT get the start in Game 3 as previously expected. Instead, Anibal Sanchez will work for Washington against Houston's Zack Greinke on Friday night.

This is interesting, because you wonder if we'll see Corbin in relief again. If the Nationals have the lead in Game 3, I think they should make Corbin their first man out of the bullpen again. Go for the knockout punch in Game 3, and if you get it, you've got a 3-0 lead in the series, and what does it matter who starts Game 4?

If the Nationals have a 3-0 lead, they can start whomever in Game 4 and know that even if they lose, they still have Scherzer for Game 5 and Strasburg for Game 6, and they'd only have to win one of those games to be world champion. That would be an enviable scenario for the Nationals.

In case you were wondering, 26 previous teams in baseball history have gone on the road and won the first two games of a best-of-seven postseason series. Those 26 clubs have won the series 23 times.

The three teams that rallied from an 0-2 hole? All of them came in the World Series -- the 1985 Kansas City Royals, the 1986 New York Mets and the 1996 New York Yankees.

The Astros are a 107-win team, so you can't count them out. But they are facing some long odds.

Here are the pitching matchups for the first three games of the World Series

Max Scherzer

The 2019 World Series will be a delight for fans of starting pitching. The Houston Astros and Washington Nationals both go three-deep with brand-name starters, and those six pitchers will be on display in the first three games of the Fall Classic.

All games start at 7 p.m. Central. Here are the matchups (Astros' starter listed first, since they have home-field advantage):

Tuesday at Houston: Gerrit Cole vs. Max Scherzer
Wednesday at Houston: Justin Verlander vs. Stephen Strasburg
Friday at Washington: Zack Greinke vs. Patrick Corbin

I was wondering whether the Nationals would go with Scherzer or Strasburg in Game 1. Scherzer is their ace, so he seems like the obvious choice, but Strasburg has been terrific in the playoffs throughout his career. In seven lifetime postseason appearances, he's 4-2 with a 1.10 ERA, with 57 strikeouts in 41 innings pitched.

Of course, Scherzer hasn't exactly been struggling. He won his start against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the NLDS, and then took a no-hitter into the seventh inning in a win over the St. Louis Cardinals in the NLCS. Scherzer has allowed just one earned run on five hits over 15 innings in his past two starts. He has struck out 21 and walked only five over that same span.

Can he beat Cole? We'll see. Cole has been ridiculously good in three postseason starts so far this October. He's 3-0, and he's allowed one run in 22.2 innings pitched, with 32 strikeouts and eight walks.

Right now, it feels as though the Astros are invincible when Cole pitches. But if anyone can outduel him, perhaps Scherzer's the guy.

Tune in Tuesday night.

Nationals, Astros making starting pitching popular again

Stephen Strasburg

There are only two teams in baseball that have never made the World Series -- one in each league. One is the Seattle Mariners in the American League.

The other, the National League's Washington Nationals -- who were once the Montreal Expos -- are on the verge of advancing to the Fall Classic for the first time in the franchise's 51-year history.

Washington beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 8-1, on Monday night to take a 3-0 lead in the National League Championship Series.

How are the Nationals doing it? With starting pitching. Stephen Strasburg on Monday struck out 12 and walked nobody over seven innings of one-run ball.

In fact, the Cardinals have scored a grand total of two runs in the first three games of the series -- that's a good way to dig an 0-3 hole.

In Game 1, Anibal Sanchez, who is Washington's No. 4 starter, had a no-hitter through 7.2 innings. He ended up combining with Sean Doolittle on a one-hit shutout in the Nationals' 2-0 victory.

Washington ace Max Scherzer had a no-hitter through six innings in Game 2. He ended up pitching seven shutout innings with 11 strikeouts in a 3-1 Nationals' victory.

The run the Cardinals scored Monday against Strasburg was unearned, which means Washington starters have not allowed an earned run in 21.2 innings going into Tuesday's Game 4.

That is domination. The Nationals are bucking the bullpen trend we've seen over the past few years. Washington's bullpen is pretty thin -- there isn't much there beyond Doolittle and Daniel Hudson.

But the Nationals have Scherzer, Strasburg, Patrick Corbin and Sanchez. That's a deep, strong rotation that just may carry them into the World Series.

Meanwhile, in the American League, Gerrit Cole struck out seven over seven shutout innings Tuesday as the Houston Astros defeated the New York Yankees, 4-1, in Game 3 of the American League Championship Series.

The Astros took a 2-1 in the series, and they regained home-field advantage in the best-of-seven.

Houston is seeking to win its second World Series in three years, and the strength of their team is, well, starting pitching. Cole and Justin Verlander, you can flip a coin in the AL Cy Young race this year. Zach Greinke is their No. 3 pitcher, and while he hasn't been great in these playoffs, he's an ace on most teams around the league.

If the Nationals and Astros both make the World Series, we'll be looking at a matchup of the two deepest starting rotations in the game. So much for bullpen usage ruling the day.

Two Game 5s coming in the National League on Wednesday

Jack Flaherty

Both National League Division Series will conclude Wednesday, with the Atlanta Braves hosting the St. Louis Cardinals and the Los Angeles Dodgers hosting the Washington Nationals in a pair of winner-take-all Game 5s.

Who do you have winning?

Before the playoffs started, I picked the Cardinals and the Dodgers to win these series, so I guess there's no reason to backtrack now.

The series between Atlanta and St. Louis has been incredible. I really had no idea which team was going to win coming into the series, and I still don't have much of a clue.

Both clubs have one significant weakness. For the Cardinals, they have the weakest lineup of any team in the playoffs. Strong pitching staff, yes, but the offense is suspect. And that lack of offensive punch has hurt them in a 3-0 loss in Game 2 and a 3-1 loss in Game 3.

For the Braves, the significant weakness is in the bullpen, and that weakness has hurt them twice in this series. In Game 1, Atlanta led 3-1 after seven innings. The Braves lost, 7-6. In Game 4, Atlanta led 4-3 after seven innings. The Braves lost, 5-4, in 10 innings.

Game 5 will feature a matchup of perhaps the two best pitchers in the National League since the All-Star break. For St. Louis, Jack Flaherty went 7-2 with a 0.91 ERA in 14 second-half starts. His mound opponent, Atlanta's Mike Foltynewicz, went 6-1 with a 2.65 ERA in 10 second-half starts.

This is also a rematch of Game 2, which was won by Atlanta and Foltynewicz, as cited above. Should be a great one.

Meanwhile, the Nationals will try to do the unthinkable and slay the heavily favored Dodgers, who have won the NL pennant in each of the past two seasons.

Los Angeles won 106 games this season and was an absurd +273 in run differential. The second-best team in the NL in that area was, well, the Nationals at +149.

When you think about it, Washington probably is the second-best team in the NL right at this moment. Sure, the Braves won the NL East fair and square, but when you look at the Nationals, they lost the division because of their pathetic 19-31 start. However, Washington went 74-38 over the last 112 games of the regular season -- that's not a small sample size, and perhaps we should have known they were the biggest threat to the Dodgers.

And, the Nationals will send Stephen Strasburg to the mound. So far in these playoffs, Strasburg has worked nine innings, allowing only one run on five hits. He has struck out 14 and walked nobody. He was the winning pitcher in Game 2 of this series against the Dodgers. Could he win this game Wednesday and help Washington shock the baseball world? You bet.

But he'll have to beat Walker Buehler, who is the Dodgers' ace, with all due respect to Clayton Kershaw. Buehler was the Game 1 winner in this series, when he tossed six innings of no-run, one-hit ball with eight strikeouts and three walks. It should be a great pitching matchup.

These days, they say fans love the long ball, and there are plenty of those in the modern game. Me personally, I like to see the top pitchers go head to head. I'm hoping to see that kind of baseball Wednesday.

Washington Nationals rally to beat Milwaukee Brewers in NL wild card game

Juan Soto

During the 2018 playoffs, teams that took a lead of two or more runs into the eighth inning went 24-0.

One night into the 2019 playoffs, teams that look a lead of two or more runs into the eighth inning already are 0-1.

That's because the Washington Nationals scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning against Milwaukee Brewers relief ace Josh Hader to rally for a 4-3 victory in the NL wild card game Tuesday night.

Juan Soto delivered the big hit, and now the Nationals advance to the NL Division Series, where they will meet the 106-win Los Angeles Dodgers.

For Hader, who had 37 saves and a 0.806 WHIP this season, the meltdown was stunning. But, he had some bad luck in the inning, and he was his own worst enemy with shoddy command.

Summoned to protect a 3-1 lead, Hader could not throw his slider for a strike to save his life, which allowed Washington batters to completely disregard that pitch and key in on his fastball. And Hader did not command his fastball well either, routinely missing up and out of the zone.

Washington's Victor Robles actually did Hader a favor by striking out on a 3-2 fastball up and out of the zone to lead off the eighth inning. The Milwaukee left-hander was not so fortunate as the inning progressed.

The next batter, pinch-hitter Michael Taylor, also worked a full count. Hader's 3-2 fastball rode up and in and hit either Taylor's hand or the knob of Taylor's bat, depending on your perspective. It was a tough call -- it could have been ruled a foul ball -- but umpires determined it was a hit batsman, and the call held up under replay review.

Trea Turner also did Hader a favor by striking out swinging on a fastball up and out of the zone. That was the second out, and despite his shaky control, it appeared Hader might escape trouble.

However, Ryan Zimmerman muscled a broken-bat single to center field that advanced Taylor to third base. Hader made a good pitch there, but he was unlucky, as the weakly struck ball landed where nobody could catch it.

That brought up the leading RBI man in the NL, Anthony Rendon, who worked a walk on five pitches. Once again, Hader routinely missed high with his fastball, and he could not throw his slider for a strike.

That loaded the bases for Soto, who obviously noticed that Hader didn't throw a single low fastball the whole inning. Everything with velocity was top of the zone and up, and Soto lined a fastball at the top of the zone into right field for a single.

The ball appeared to take a funny kick on right fielder Trent Grisham. It got past him, and all three runners scored, turning a 3-1 Washington deficit into a 4-3 Nationals lead.

Milwaukee managed to tag Soto out in a rundown between second and third base on the play for the third out, but the damage had been done. The Brewers, who won 18 of their last 23 games in the regular season to earn the second wild card spot, went from being in command with their best reliever on the mound to being in big trouble.

Former White Sox prospect Daniel Hudson, now a veteran reliever, got three outs for the Nationals to earn a save, pitching around a Lorenzo Cain single in the top of the ninth.

For Washington and its fans, this had to be a bit of a catharsis. In each of the Nationals' last three playoff appearances, they had lost a winner-take-all game at home -- one loss each to the St. Louis Cardinals, Dodgers and Cubs.

The last time a Washington team won a winner-take-all game at home? Well, Walter Johnson was on the mound for the Senators in Game 7 of the 1924 World Series.

Quite a start to the playoffs, no?

Just too much bad pitching on the White Sox

Odrisamer Despaigne

One more thought before I take a break from this for a couple of days -- I'm actually going to the White Sox game on Thursday when they play the New York Yankees, so I won't have time to blog.

It wasn't Odrisamer Despaigne's fault that the Sox got beat, 12-1, by the Washington Nationals on Monday night. The 32-year-old journeyman was making his first start for the South Siders, and he did a credible job.

He went six innings, allowing three earned runs on seven hits. He struck out two and walked two. It was a quality start, and that's good enough to win sometimes.

The front end of the bullpen -- Jose Ruiz, Josh Osich, Thyago Vieira and Juan Minaya -- gave up nine runs over the last three innings and caused the Sox to get humiliated.

That being said, it's frustrating that Despaigne is on this team in Year 3 of the rebuild. This is the sort of pitcher who makes starts for you in the first year of a rebuild -- see Derek Holland and Mike Pelfrey in 2017. These are all pitchers of similar quality.

And the relief pitchers listed above, with the possible exception of Ruiz, also are nothing more than roster filler, to put it charitably. Less charitably, they are cannon fodder. Minaya has had plenty of chances. Vieira can't find the plate. Osich has tried and failed with other organizations.

By now, wouldn't you like to think more interesting pitchers would be around in the organization and available to take these innings? Alas, it isn't to be. Manny Banuelos is starting Tuesday against the Nationals, and he's another guy who you'd expect to see in a first-year rebuild.

Year 3, and there are still mornings when I wake up and say, "The Sox are in trouble today." It's so frustrating to watch this bad pitching, especially when there are position players who are decent and making progress on this team.

Of course, the White Sox got swept by the Nationals

Reynaldo Lopez

We should have known the White Sox weren't actually going to get back to .500, right? After a 6-1 homestand, the South Siders briefly sustained the momentum by jumping out to a 5-0 lead against Washington Nationals ace Stephen Strasburg on Tuesday night.

Alas, they had the wrong guy pitching. Reynaldo Lopez blew the whole thing, the Sox lost, and the Nationals went on to sweep the two-game series.

In Lopez's past three starts, he has been handed 4-1, 7-1 and 5-0 leads. He has won none of those games, and the Sox (29-32) as a team are only 1-2 in those three contests. That's not how it's supposed to work as a starting pitcher.

Lopez is 3-6 with a 6.62 ERA after he posted a respectable 3.91 ERA in 32 starts in 2018. He's the opposite of Lucas Giolito, who stunk last season and is pitching well in 2019. If the Sox had any rotation depth whatsoever, Lopez would be a candidate for demotion to Triple-A Charlotte.

Here's a look back at this brief, disastrous series in Washington:

Tuesday, June 4
Nationals 9, White Sox 5: Lopez walked two men to start the third inning and both of them scored. He gave up a solo home run to Howie Kendrick in the fourth and a three-run homer to Anthony Rendon in the fifth. The homer by Rendon was Lopez's last pitch of the night, a hanging, get-me-over slider, and he left the mound trailing, 6-5.

Josh Osich provided little relief, giving up three more runs before the fifth inning was over. Lopez's final line: 4+ innings, 6 runs, all earned, five hits, four strikeouts, four walks and two home runs allowed. Fifty-four of his 92 pitches were strikes, but it felt much worse than that. His fastball command was terrible, and he could not throw an offspeed pitch for a strike -- except for that hanger to Rendon.

It's too bad, too, because the Sox cuffed Strasburg around for four runs in the first inning, capped by a two-out, two-run single by Yolmer Sanchez. Yoan Moncada added a long solo home run in the second inning to make it 5-0, and the Sox were in position to get back to .500.

Alas, it was not to be.

Wednesday, June 5
Nationals 6, White Sox 4: This was a more conventional Sox loss, characterized by three errors, leadoff walks that came back to bite them in the ass, and of course, a failed bunt in the ninth inning that killed a potential winning rally.

The Sox never lead, and they played poorly, so we can't really say they should have won. However, they had their chances. Alex Colome (2-1) had his worst outing of the season, his first failure in a high-leverage spot. He entered with the score tied at 4 in the bottom of the ninth inning. He walked Brian Dozier on four pitches and gave up a game-ending homer to Trea Turner on a 3-2 fastball.

The Sox had battled back from a 4-1 deficit with three runs in the eighth. Jose Abreu's two-run homer made it 4-3, and Welington Castillo's solo shot tied it.

Alas, it was not to be.

Hey, at least Dylan Covey wasn't terrible. He pitched five innings and allowed two runs. And Moncada homered for the second straight game, which is nice.

The winning on the last homestand was exciting, but I'll go back to my usual combination of apathy and cynicism now.

Some of the latest MLB transactions ...

Robinson Cano

Catching up on a few things ... the Seattle Mariners are selling everyone, I guess. Here are three transactions that have happened in the past few days:

• The Mariners traded former All-Star second baseman Robinson Cano and All-Star closer Edwin Diaz to the New York Mets in exchange for outfielder Jay Bruce, relief pitcher Anthony Swarzak and prospects Gerson Bautista, Jarred Kelenic and Justin Dunn.
• The Mariners traded All-Star infielder Jean Segura and relievers Juan Nicasio and James Pazos to the Philadelphia Phillies for first baseman Carlos Santana and shortstop J.P. Crawford.
• The Washington Nationals have signed left-handed pitcher Patrick Corbin to a six-year, $140 million contract.

The last move is too bad, because Corbin was one of the players who was on my wish list as a White Sox fan. Of course, if the Sox signed him, he'd probably blow out his elbow next season anyway.

Yankees rally from 0-2 series deficit, upset Indians

Didi Gregorius

The Cleveland Indians once had a 22-game winning streak. They finished the season winning 35 of their final 42 games.

None of that means much now, does it?

The New York Yankees are in the ALCS after winning Game 5 of the ALDS, 5-2, at Cleveland on Wednesday night.

I felt as though the Yankees would be a dangerous opponent for Cleveland, just because New York is the one team that can match the Indians' bullpen arm for arm. However, I never expected the Yankees to pull this thing off, especially after Cleveland won the first two games of the five-game series.

New York rallied to win the final three games of the series, and sure enough, strong bullpen work was essential in the Game 5 victory.

That said, we would be remiss if we did not point out that Yankees starter C.C. Sabathia outpitched Corey Kluber, the Cleveland ace and likely Cy Young Award winner in the American League this year.

Didi Gregorius touched Kluber up for two home runs, a solo shot in the first inning and a two-run blast in the third. Kluber lasted only 3.2 innings and left the mound in the top of the fourth inning with his team trailing, 3-0.

Sabathia, meanwhile, allowed no runs on only one hit through the first four innings. He ran into trouble in the fifth, when he gave up two runs on four hits.

The Indians cut the New York lead to 3-2, and had runners on first and second with only one out. But former White Sox reliever David Robertson came in and slammed the door, inducing Francisco Lindor to hit into an inning-ending double play.

Sabathia struck out nine over his 4.2 innings pitched, and that's all the Yankees needed from him with Robertson and Aroldis Chapman coming out of the bullpen.

Robertson played the role of super reliever perfectly, navigating a scoreless 2.2 innings. He did not allow a single hit and protected that one-run lead through the fifth, sixth and seventh innings.

That got the ball to Chapman, who struck out four and did not allow a hit while recording a six-out save.

The Yankees got a little breathing room in the top of the ninth inning, when Brett Gardner's single on the 12th pitch of an at-bat against Cleveland closer Cody Allen produced two runs to make it 5-2. Gardner fouled off five consecutive 3-2 pitches before getting the base hit. Credit him for a terrific job against one of the better relievers in the AL.

In Game 5, the Yankees' starter outpitched the Indians' starter, and the New York bullpen was better than the Cleveland bullpen. Add in a big-time performance from Gregorius, and there's your upset.

The Yankees are headed to Houston to open the ALCS on Friday night.

Nationals force Game 5

So, I guess sending Stephen Strasburg to the mound worked out OK for the Washington Nationals, huh?

Strasburg struck out 12 over seven shutout innings Wednesday, and the Nationals beat the Cubs, 5-0, to tie the NLDS at 2-all. I don't think Tanner Roark gives you that performance, Washington fans.

We probably wouldn't be talking about a Game 5 back in Washington on Thursday night if Roark had started that game.

The Nationals are at home for this decisive game, which can only help them. But I still think the Cubs have the advantage pitching-wise. Kyle Hendricks was brilliant in Game 1, and he'll start Game 5 on regular rest. Can the Washington offense solve him?

Washington will have to go with either Gio Gonzalez or Roark, but Max Scherzer should be able to give them a couple innings of relief, if necessary.

Still, I'd give the edge to the Cubs. But don't listen to me. I thought the Cubs would close out the Nationals in four. I also thought the Indians would beat the Yankees.

The only thing I know is that I know nothing about baseball.

What is going on with Dusty Baker and the Washington Nationals?

Dusty Baker

Does Dusty Baker know that playoff baseball is different than regular-season baseball? Does he have any urgency to win whatsoever?

Baker and the Washington Nationals received a huge break Tuesday when Game 4 of their NLDS against the Cubs was postponed because of rain here in the Chicago area.

The Cubs lead the series, 2-1, and the Nationals are facing elimination in Game 4. The unexpected day off was a gift for Washington, because now it can start ace right-hander Stephen Strasburg on regular rest in this critical game.

Or so we thought.

After the postponement Tuesday, Baker instead announced he would be sticking with Tanner Roark for Game 4. That's the same Tanner Roark who has a 4.67 ERA pitching in the weak National League East this season.

Seriously, Dusty? That's the guy you want to pitch with your season on the line? Should this even be a debate?

Baker also claimed that Strasburg was battling illness, because there is a lot of mold in the air in Chicago at this time of year, and apparently the air conditioning wasn't working right at the Nationals' hotel or some such thing.

Talk about lame excuses.

I can attest that the mold count is a problem in Chicago right now. I suffer from a mold allergy, and I've struggled with it off and on for the past month or so. But you know what I do? I take some allergy medicine and go to work. It's kind of an annoying thing, but it's hardly debilitating. It doesn't prevent a person from doing his job.

Early Wednesday, Baker reversed course and announced that Strasburg will start Game 4. Duh. I assume someone from the Washington front office stepped in and knocked some sense into him. Even if Strasburg fails, this is an obvious move, and it should have been announced Tuesday to give Strasburg additional time to prepare himself mentally for the start.

But Baker isn't very good at strategy, and often fails to make the obvious move. Take Game 3, for example. With the game tied 1-1 in the bottom of the eighth inning, the Cubs had the go-ahead run on second base with two outs and Anthony Rizzo at the plate.

Baker had a number of options there. He had a solid reliever on the mound in Brandon Kintzler. He could have walked Rizzo and taken his chances with Willson Contreras, the Cubs' on-deck hitter. He could have brought in his best left-handed reliever, Sean Doolittle, to deal with Rizzo. Or, he could have walked Rizzo and brought in his best right-handed reliever, Ryan Madson, to deal with Contreras.

Instead, Baker opts to bring in 36-year-old journeyman lefty Oliver Perez, he of the 4.64 ERA. Rizzo singles on the first pitch from Perez, and the Cubs win Game 3, 2-1.

Nice move, Dusty, nice move. I guess he was saving Doolittle for the ninth inning, huh? Maybe you do that in the regular season, but certainly not in the playoffs.

Honestly, is there a manager out there who is a worse tactician than Dusty Baker? My goodness ...