Alex Bregman homers in ninth as Cubs top Blue Jays

Valencia gets a look behind the plate for Saturday afternoon’s matinee in the Motor City with Dillon Dingler getting a break from the field at DH. The 26-year-old rookie backstop has cooled off in recent weeks, but he’s still hitting .333 (24-for-72) with six homers and 17 RBI in 25 games since early July.

There was some social media chatter late Friday that Anthony and Trevor Story (abdomen) would potentially return for Saturday’s doubleheader against the Yankees. That isn’t happening. There’s a chance that the pair return for Sunday’s series finale in New York based on comments from interim manager Chad Tracy on Friday, but that decision won’t be made until after Saturday’s twin bill. There’s understandably plenty of excitement to see Anthony back in Boston’s lineup, but they obviously want to make sure he’s 100 percent ready before bringing him back, especially since he hasn’t played in the big leagues since May 4.

Jones receives an opportunity to face Yankees veteran southpaw Carlos Rodón in the front-end of Saturday’s twin bill in New York. It’s just his third start since the beginning of August. His only real path to a potential postseason roster spot with the Red Sox is to show he can do damage against left-handed pitching.

Burgos provides Boston with another left-handed weapon out of the bullpen to combat New York’s southpaw-heavy lineup. The 27-year-old has give up only three runs over 10 innings of work across three relief appearances for the Red Sox this season.

Whitlock returns to Boston’s high-leverage mix for Saturday’s critical doubleheader against the division-rival Yankees. The 30-year-old setup specialist wound up requiring just a minimum stay on the injured list with elbow inflammation. He’s forged a sparkling 2.05 ERA, 0.89 WHIP and 49/7 K/BB ratio across 44 innings of work this season.

Olds collected his first career win and allowed just four runs across six innings of work in his first taste of the majors after being promoted earlier this month. The 27-year-old rookie figures to return in a couple weeks as middle relief depth.

Max Fried (elbow) will be activated from the injured list prior to the nightcap of Saturday’s twin bill at Yankee Stadium. Beck provides New York’s bullpen with a fresh arm after Cam Schlittler and three relievers combined on a five-hit shutout during Friday’s pivotal series opener.

Lee was back patrolling right field and hitting fifth following a two-game absence due to an elbow contusion after being hit by a pitch earlier this week. He picked up his 11th stolen base of the season and reached safely in two of his four plate appearances. He’s graded out as a reliable top-30 range fantasy outfielder this season, hitting .289/.328/.422 with 61 runs scored, nine homers, 47 RBI and 11 thefts in 497 plate appearances. He’s on track to play nearly a full season for the second straight year after being limited to just 37 games due to injury in his stateside debut back in 2024.

Bichette wound up missing just one game after fouling a ball off his left foot against the Brewers earlier this week. He hasn’t exactly exceeded expectations in his Mets debut, but hasn’t been a total disaster either, slashing .262/.309/.390 with 64 runs scored, 14 homers, 66 RBI and one steals in 572 plate appearances.

Bauers walked three times and reached base safely in all five of his plate appearances after missing three games due to shin splints earlier this week. The unheralded 30-year-old masher has been an unexpectedly solid fantasy contributor, delivering borderline top-10 value among outfielders this season. He’s hit a robust .275/.389/.504 with 78 runs scored, a career-high 23 homers, 75 RBI and 10 steals in 481 plate appearances. Score one for the “old and boring veterans in the late rounds of a draft” strategic approach.